The Last Airbender is not my creation, the people at the Nickelodeon Studios created it, but that will not stop me from making my own little episodes of excitement and romance.

The only thing I own is the plot on your screen. If you plan to take my ideas and put them into your own fanfic, claiming to be your own mind that thought them up, get a hobby. Plagiarism is wrong, don't do it!

Katara glared dangerously at her husband as she patiently waited for him to answer the question she had asked. "Sister?" she asked again, her voice sounding more forceful and resentful. Why the hell had Zuko lied about having a sister?

"We'll talk about it later. We have more important issues at the moment," the Fire Lord said through slightly gritted teeth. This wasn't the place or time to talk about family matters, especially when there was someone below them in their presence. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair and furrowed his brow in annoyance when he noticed that Katara was still giving him that suspicious stare. "Later," he repeated to her and jerked his head towards Atar. Drop it, he ordered mentallyand sighed in relief when his wife got the message.

The waterbender quietly cleared her throat and returned her attention to Atar. "Since you have told me who was your accomplice in this horrendous act, because horrendous it definitely is, you will have the chance to randomly choose your penalty." Katara nodded towards the pieces of paper on the desk. "On each of these, there is written a punishment. Banishment, beheading, or being lynched at the corner square. Whichever you pick will be your punishment. I suggest you choose wisely and follow your heart, though I highly doubt you have one." She folded her arms atop the wide oak table and waited for the maid to act.

The woman's heart was beating at a hundred time its normality and her face was moist with the sweat that was being secreted from her young pale skin. Choose wisely, Katara's voice rung within the maid's worrying mind. Her hands had begun to tremble with an unexplainable anxiety. She didn't want to die. She didn't want to be remembered as the tramp who tried to ruin the Royals marriage. She wanted to apologize like there was no tomorrow. She wanted to beg for her life. She wanted to grow old and have a family. Gods, please help me, she cried internally as her mind raced with never-ending regrets.

She lifted her small delicate hand and held it above the beige pieces of parchment that were laid out before her. Her gaze traveled from slip of paper to the other in hesitation. It was at last that her emerald eyes fell down upon the slip that laid between its twins. Here goes everything. Perhaps even, my life… She slowly lowered her hand and all but snatched the paper that would decide her fate. Her doom. Her heart thumped fiercely behind her ribcage and her breathing was becoming a sort of task. She slowly unfolded her fortune and shut her eyes as she said a little prayer. Oh please… She opened her hope-filled orbs and looked down.

The Gods had chosen to ignore her pleas. She was destined to death.

She didn't cry. She didn't scream or yell. Surprisingly enough, she laughed. She laughed as if someone had told her some hilarious joke. She squeezed her hand and crumpled the paper within her grasp. "I'm going to die," she said with a delirious smile and slammed her hand on the desk.

Katara raised her eyebrows. The woman was going mad.

"I'm going to die. You're going to choke me to death," Atar continued happily and stood from her seat.

"Call the guards Zuko," the waterbender ordered quietly when she noticed that the maid was nearing the door. "Now."

The Fire Lord immediately got to his feet and walked towards the maid, pulling her back when she was within his reach. "Seat down," he ordered and watched her nod obediently. She went back to her seat and Zuko opened the door, signaling to the guards.

Two men, a couple decades older than the Fire Lord himself, came to the door. The look upon their faces were a combination of both boredom and expectation. Obviously, they had done absolutely nothing the entire day and were hoping for anything exciting to happen. "Yes sir?" the first asked and bowed slightly when he saw the Lady standing a yard or two behind the Lord.

"Send this woman down to the dungeons. She'll be executed tomorrow so make sure she doesn't try anything funny," Zuko stated, taking a step aside, allowing the men to grab Atar from her seat.

The youngest of the two roughly lifted the woman from her seat and pushed her in front of him after she bowed down to Katara. "Come on," he ordered and shoved her out the door.

"I'm going to die tomorrow…"

Katara shook her head and grabbed the two pieces of paper that were left on the table. She read them briefly and sighed in slight despair. Indeed, the maid had grabbed the one marked with: death by rope.

Zuko took his seat again and let out a giant breath of relief. "That woman will die insane," he said and glanced at his wife.

The Lady stared at Zuko suspiciously and straightened her posture upon the chair she seating on. "So, tell me. What's this about you having a sister?" she asked and looked up at the ceiling, giving herself the illusion that she was pondering someone's name. "Zula, is it?" she inquired rhetorically and furrowed her brow at her husband, who had tensed up at the name of his absent sibling.

"Kata--"

"I don't want to hear apologies Zuko. I want an explanation as to why you never told me about her," the girl interrupted roughly, knowing her husband all too well. "Why, Zuko? Why didn't you ever mention her? Why did you lie?"

"You wouldn't understand," he answered softly and looked down at his lap.

"Oh, right. Of course I wouldn't. Silly of me to ask you such questions because unlike you, I have actually spoken truth in all the years we've been married. Of course I wouldn't understand the reasons to your lies."

"I didn't lie to you!"

"But you never mentioning her doesn't make it a truth!" Katara argued and slammed the palms of her hands on the desk. She couldn't believe this. Today was suppose to be joyful. The ending of a misunderstanding. The death of the lies that had scratched her marriage. But a lie just leads into another and another and another. The cycle of lying never ends. Katara sighed. Never.

The Fire Lord passed his hands over his eyes as he let out an exaggerated breath. "Why must you aggravate me so? Just leave the subject alone. She's dead to me."

"But she's not dead to me. Zula-or whatever her name is-is trying to ruin our marriage. We have to stop her before she tries anything more drastic," she insisted, a hint of plead in her feminine voice. This woman, Zuko's legitimate sister, was obviously very determined. Who knows what kind of things her determination could cause her to do. If she was anything like her brother, her determination could be intense. Even dangerous.

"More drastic? I doubt it. Our marriage is already going to the dogs."

That cold statement slapped Katara hard in the face. Already? she echoed desperately in her mind. She looked up at the Fire Lord and found that there was nothing she could say to that. He had ripped out her tongue in confessing that he thought their union was falling apart.

The firebender glanced at his opposite and sighed when he saw the reaction to his words. "I--I didn't mean that. I just meant that…that…" he trailed off. He didn't really know what he had meant. Perhaps, he had said what he meant and meant what he said. Perhaps, deep within himself, he felt that Katara and him were growing apart. Perhaps, during the month that they didn't speak to each other, he came to comprehend that their relationship wasn't as strong as he thought. "…I'm sorry," he said and opened the door to leave.

Or perhaps not. Perhaps, he just needed to think things over.

The Water Tribe girl just sat there as she watched the large door shut quietly, leaving her alone in the room. Our marriage is already going to the dogs… She let out a long breath, trying to relive herself from the hollowness that had formed in her lungs. She set her head down upon the table and closed her cerulean eyes as she did so. Our marriage is already going to the dogs… She felt large tears beginning to well up behind her eyes in frustration and sadness. Where had she gone wrong? …My marriage is falling apart and it's all my fault…

And that revelation broke her.

The next day everything was prepared for the death sentence of Atar. The crowd had gathered around the corner square when the news had spread that a maid from the palace had betrayed the Fire Lord and Lady. The townspeople had already begun to spread horrible rumors about the betrayal caused by the women. But the ones that were affected by the punishment bestowed upon the maid (mostly family and friends), just stood quietly before the hanging platform, waiting to say their final goodbyes to her.

The Fire Lord and Lady had taken a seat above the platform, on a balcony, waiting for the criminals' cart to arrive with Atar sitting within its wooden cage.

It wasn't long before the loud shouting of the crowd made it known to Katara and Zuko that Atar had arrived. The clicking of the horse's hooves upon the cement road stopped abruptly and the Fire Lord peered over the balcony to see that the carriage had stopped in front of a small path that led towards the platform. Two guards helped--or rather--forced the woman down the cart and onto the path, where hateful people began to throw food and other objects at her.

Odious profanities were yelled at her as regretful tears slid down the young girl's face. She walked slowly down the dirt path that led to her death, with two bulgy men having a strong hold on her weak arms. She looked to her side and saw her mother crying silently with her brother, who seemed overwhelmed with shock. What have I done? she thought remorsefully and hung her head low, hiding her face from the vicious crowd.

The traitorous woman walked up the few steps to the platform and let out a cry of heartbreak when the executioner placed the noose around her fragile neck. Memories of her childhood passed briefly through her mind and images of her entire family filled her watery emerald eyes. This was it. This evening she will be in paradise…

Or hell.

She looked down at her family, who were mourning loudly for the cause of her crime. Atar glanced to her side and swore that she saw death standing by the executioner, smiling maliciously.

An unknown man came from behind her and tied her wrists behind her back, making sure to tightened the rope to the most of his abilities. She yelped in pain. The knot was so tight…so painful. The maid sighed and looked out into the horizon, noticing the bright blue sky and white puffy clouds. It's nice to know that the day of my death is beautiful.

A mask man tightened the noose around her neck and checked the her pockets for any belongings. "Any words you'd like to say before…" he began to ask but stopped when he saw the girl give him a soft nod.

"If I may," she whispered and looked up at the Royals balcony.

The man turned her around after telling her she could only say a couple words.

A couple words and I'm dead, Atar mused and lifted her chin into the air. And as she opened her mouth to speak, the mass of people quieted, expecting the adulterer to lash at the monarchy. "My Lord and Lady," she yelled over the multitudes and watched the Fire Lord stand from his royal seat when his title was mentioned. "I hope that you will forgive me, even after my most deserving death. And know that I am not part of any schemes against your precious daughter, the heir to the Fire Nation throne."

The guard standing behind the woman nodded at the executioner in approval and watched as the plank was pulled from below the traitor's feet.

Katara looked at her husband with wide eyes. "Wait. What did she say about Luna?" she asked desperately as she grabbed his arm in expectation.

"Nothing, just that she's not part of any…" He stopped when it dawned on him.

The Lady of the Fire Nation stood hastily from her seat and rushed to the edge of the balcony, leaning over it in urgency. "Stop!" she yelled and waved her dainty arms. "Stop the exe--" She stopped and gasped when she saw the sight below her. Hanging from a thick rope was Atar's small lifeless body, swinging gently in mid-air as her family cried miserably in their hands. Katara looked away and sighed in despair.

Her daughter was in danger.

"Never underestimate someone whose mind dwells in vengeance." -chickygurl

Her long black robes swept the clean beige floor as she walked hurriedly down the corridor towards the destined room. Her hands were fisted and her face held a face of pure hatred. That woman just had to say that! They'll be coming at any moment! she thought angrily, paying no mind to a stout elderly man who had glanced at her as he sipped his tea.

"Good day," his soothing voice hummed when she walked past him.

"Yeah yeah," she threw over her shoulder and continued walking, leaving the man in the dust.

She growled enraged when she saw two men guarding the room that she needed to go in to. She cooled her expression and forced a smile, as well as a bow, when she neared them. "Good day sirs," she began in a sweet innocent voice that she was clearly faking. "The Lord and Lady wish to speak to you about your position in this corridor." She glanced to her side and saw the old man take a seat on an old marble bench, still sipping his drink. She couldn't help but roll her eyes when she briefly recollected the long tea parties he put for her all those years ago.

"We have orders to stay here, no exceptions--"

"But I'm not talking about exceptions. The Fire Lord clearly said to me to call you forth. I can not appear empty handed and you can't not show up." She heard faint steps and panicked. "You'll be fired without pay," she insisted when the men exchanged worried glances.

"But the child," one began. "We can not leave the Princess unattended. Strict orders from the Royals, you know."

She nodded and smiled. "If it is the child you are worried about, I'll stay here and watch her." She pushed one man forward and grabbed the other's arm. "Go on. They're in the study."

The men took a couple steps forward in hesitation. "I don't know…"

"Just go!" she yelled in frustration and slapped her hand in front of her mouth after the words escaped her. She looked at one of guards and smiled sheepishly. "Please forgive me," she excused and seductively grab his hand. "It's just that I've been under a lot of stress lately and…"

The guard cleared his throat uneasily and glanced at his partner, who was completely unsettled by the whole scenario. "It's alright my lady," he said and gently pulled away from her tender grasp.

"He just wishes to speak to you," she whispered pleadingly and looked both ways down the corridor, expecting to see either her brother or his wife coming at her. "It won't take long and I'll be here to watch the girl." She discreetly pushed the two soldiers forth a bit, sighing mentally when they nodded in agreement.

"Alright. We'll be back soon. Do not leave this door no matter what," the second man ordered as he pointed his large finger at her. "Got It?"

She nodded hurriedly and gave them a final shove before watching them leave towards the Royal study. "That was a bit too easy," she said to herself once they were out of earshot.

She opened the door to her niece's room and peered inside before taking a step forward. She entered the nursery upon hearing loud steps followed by the faint murmuring of approaching people. They're coming! She closed the door and briefly inspected the room. Upon one wall was the great Fire Nation flag with its proud insignia embroidered in the middle of dark red fabric. And across this symbol of high allegiance and honor, was a large Water Tribe flag with its blue colors and emblem laid across the textile. To her, this flag symbolized weakness and weakness alone. How common of my brother to reproduce with such dirty blood.

She approached the small crib that laid in the middle of the room and pulled the dark pink curtain aside, exposing a sleeping child. Her niece. She smirked and leaned down to examine the babe closer. "You look just like Water Tribe filth," she commented and grabbed the child roughly, not caring if the Princess woke or not.

"Ma?" the young girl squeaked sleepily when she felt her body being raised from her warm soft pillows.

"No," the malicious woman answered and looked straight into the girl's light blue eyes. "I'm not your mother." She smiled and placed a empty kiss on the babe's cheek. "I hate you," she whispered to her and found that the words affected the child. Good.

"Aaaah," Luna whined and slapped the woman's arms furiously. She didn't like this woman. Not one bit. And she especially disliked the word she had used to express herself. "Nooooo!"

"Shut up!" she ordered and shook the child slightly.

"Put her down!" Zuko yelled as soon as he opened the door to his daughter's nursery.

Zula turned to face her brother and smirked. This was what she had practiced for. "No," she answered and watched Katara and General Iroh push themselves past the Fire Lord. "I don't think I will."

A/N- Okay, I have a concern about your reviews, or should I say, the lack of them lately. You guys, I work really hard writing this fanfic and it kinda sucks (and hurts) when I get fewer and fewer reviews everytime I update. You see, the less reviews I get, the less motivation I have to write. So please guys, review. Tell me what you think about the chapter, about the story, about the cartoon in general.

I'll update as soon as I can...promise.
PLEASE REVIEW GUYS!
PLEASE!