Whew. This chapter made me tired...and kinda sore. Oh this chapter is a little more bloody then the last. So be warned. Oh yeash one other thing. Keep in mind that Aang and Sokka don't know about Riyo yet. ...Or the fact that Zuko and Katara are 'married'.
Zuko stumbled through the door way and made his way to his uncle. Zuko's stomach was hurting and blood had caked up on his fingers. The doctor stood up quickly, knocking her chair back as she ran over to the Prince. She tried to pull his hand away but he pushed her off of him.
"Katara needs help! Uncle you stay here with Riyo!" Iroh stood up and started to object but a look in Zuko's eye's changed hsi mind.
"I will explain later!" Zuko said and started back out the door, only to be caught by the arm by the doctor.
"I can't let you continue on. You'll tear your wound even more." Zuko glared at the shorter doctor. He ripped his arm away from her and stood up straight.
"Her life is more important right now." Was all he said, slipping out as a hiss through his teeth. He turned and took off, if she wasn't going to cometo Katara, he would bring Katara to her. But he soon heard the pat of the doctor's small feet on the dirt road behind him.
Katara let out a jagged breath, sending up the dust around her nose in a puff. The tears slid down her face forming a small dark spatch of mud beside her cheek. She was in pain, no she was pain. She had never felt such a burning hot sensation coursing through her entire body like ravenous wolves devouring her from the inside out. Her hands were gripped tight around the tip of the ice, and her fingers were pushing down as hard as they could against the wound. She could feel the warm liguid life slipping and oozing over and between her fingers. She winced as someone tried to pull out the spear from the back.
"Dammit! Whoever did that stop! You aren't..helping." She said her strength showing even through the water sliding down her face was trying to tell another story.
Aang sat back on his heels. He wanted to help. He had to fix what he did, but when he tried, she would wince or bit her lip to keep from screaming at him. He didn't want her to die. He didn't want to sit there and do nothing, watching her writhe in pain, and watching the dark blood pour from her body. The once green garb that she worn was now a dark brown from the wound down, and seemed to blend in with the blood soaked ground, that lay beneath her.
Aang looked up at Sokka, but Sokka just looked away. He couldn't look at Aang. Not right now. If his sister died...he..he didn't know what he would do. But he knew that if Aang were in too close of range that something very bad would happen to the young avatar. Sokka growled as his sister moaned in pain. She was taking it so much better then he would. She wasn't crying outloud, and it didn't seem that she was crying willingly. The tears just seemed to slip down from her eyes.
Sokka knew had the situation been switched that he would have went to pieces, he didn't take pain very well, at least so much pain all at once. Sokka shook his head and sat up straight looking around the crowd then back down to his sister. He pulled a sliver of her hair out of her face. That bastard. Oh yeah he loves her, then why the hell did he run off when she needed him the most. I'll never forgive myself for this. Sokka scolded himself.
Katara closed her eyes tight and moved her hand, letting one finger slip into her wound. She winced as she applied a little pressure. She couldn't lose her head. She had an idea, it was a long shot but she was desperate. She didn't want to die like this. She wanted to see her brother married, and with children. She wanted to see Aang stop the war. She wanted to see Zuko again...And she wanted to watch Riyo grow. She knew that if she let go none of this would happen for her. She also knew that if she gave up, that the probability of Aang doing what needed to be done, would be bleak. She knew that she would never find out if her father had survived. She didn't know though how Sokka would take it, that would mean that he lost everyone, except for gran-gran, and noone really knew how much longer she would be around.
She bit her lip as she waited. With the ice being nothing but frozen water, that meant it would melt faster because of her body heat. She just hoped it didn't melt to fast. She could feel the blood trickling over her fingers, thick and warm but then a new sensation came to her finger tip, cold and thin running. That is what she wanted. The water has slowly began to melt, giving her just the opertunity that she needed. She focused her energy, but with the pain shooting through her limbs and to the tips of her fingers it was rather hard for her to focus everythign in jsut the one spot.
She could heal herself, but she didn't know how much, and just what exactly the consequences would be of her actions, but she was willing to take any chance she was given.
Sokka realized what she was trying to do, but also noticed that with all her concentration she was putting herself in more pain. He didn't know what to do, but a movement caught his eye. Aang had jumped to his feet.
Aang glared as the prince came running back up to them. Aang pushed himself forward and ran over to the Prince stopping him dead in his tracks.
Aang rared back and pushed the prince, tears in the young boy's eyes.
"This is you fault!" Zuko narrowed his eyes and grabbed the Avatar's wrists. He tightened his grip and held steady so the Avatar would look at him.
"We need to help Katara, Our fight can wait." He said in a stern voice and pushed Aang out of the doctor's way.
Katara looked up as the doctor walked over to her. She forced a smile and laid her head back down on Sokka's lap.
"Oh good." She said andtook her hands away from the spear so the doctor could look. The doctor gasp and stared blankly at the wound. Katara grimaced, that really wasn't something you wanted to hear come from a doctor's mouth.
The doctor poked and prodded and pushed, and Katara was having to use every ounce of energy in her to keep from screaming at the doctor for being such a stupid idoit. Katara kept reminding herself that this woamn was a doctor. She knew what she was doing. But then again how many patients have a spear of ice going in one side and out the other.
The doctor stood up dusting her hands and turned to look at Zuko.
"We have to get her back to the house. With such a crowd I could never pull this thing out properly." the doctor said looking around at all of the village folk that had gathered around. It was human nature to be curious, and to want to see carnage. If some one was hurt everybody wanted to know about it.
Zuko walked over and knelt down beside her.
"Katara, listen to me. Can you walk?" Zuko ask softly. But before Katara answered Sokka jerked his arm and pushed Zuko back, causing the prince to loose his balance and fall. Zuko glared at Sokka. Katara growled. Even in this type of situation, where Zuko is trying to help her brother still wasn't going to let the prince near her.
"Yeah. Help me up." She said quietly. Sokka stood up and grabbed he arm gently trying to pull her to her feet. Zuko could see that her brother was trying to help, but with only him helping her to her feet he was hurting more then he was helping. Zuko knelt down, putting her arm over his shoulders, receiving a death glare from Sokka.
Katara was finally to her feet, but the moment she put pressure down on them her knees buckled and she muffled as scream in Zuko's shoulder. The doctor shook her head.
"I had hoped that the ice had missed her spinal cord." Aang's eyes shot to look at her. What was that supposed to mean? The doctor looked up at Zuko and shook her head.
"She can't walk. You are going to have to carry her." Zuko nodded and went to pick her up but a rough hand on his shoulder stopped him.
"She's my sister. I'll carry her." Sokka growled. Katara looked up at her brother, tears streaming down her face. She was in excrutiating pain and she couldn't hide it anymore.
"Sokka...shut up!" She hissed and laid her head back down on Zuko's shoulder. Zuko looked at his love softly then picked her up being careful not to drive the spike any futher in. She wrapped her arms aroudn his neck clinging to his shirt.
Sokka watched his sister, feeling more or less abandoned. The tears in her eyes and the pain that misted them, enfruriated him further. That man was the reason this happened. If she hadn't fallen in 'love' with a damn firebender none of this would have happened and they coudl have went on like normal. But here hse was clinging for dear life to the man that was the cause of all of their problems.
Aang looked at Sokka then back to where Zuko was walking away. Aang shook his head tossing the bad thoughts from his mind and ran to catch up with Zuko, Momo bouncing along to catch up.
Sokka didn't move. He didn't want to move. To see that man making over his sister like he actuallly cared for her made him sick inside. A firebender could never care for anyone, other then themselves. Hesitantly Sokka began to move, and slowly found his way to the doctor's house.
Iroh was holding baby Riyo, when the stubby doctor came running in the door, ordering him to move over. Iroh did as he was told and watched the door. Zuko stepped in holding Katara in his arms. Iroh's jaw fell slack as he looked at the spike coming out of the girls' stomach. Iroh watched his nephew as they passed walking into the other room. Katara was covered in blood, Zuko was covered in blood and Iroh couldn't tell which was which. Iroh looked down at the ground after the three dissappeared behind the curtain and looked over the trail of dark red spots that led from the door to the room.
"Oh dear young Riyo."Iroh said shaking his head sitting down in the chair. He looked up as another person entered the house. Iroh recognized him right away.
"Avatar?" Aang just looked at the old man. Iroh cocked an eyebrow. How ironic was this? Here Zuko had been chasing the Avatar for going on two years now, and the avatar just came in chasing Zuko.
"Where is she?" Aang ask his voice tight. Iroh understood then. The ice. Iroh turned and looked at the door, but stopped the avatar from going in.
"The doctor won't let you." Iroh smiled as Riyo squealed. "Isn't that right?" Iroh laughed looking down at the baby tickling a small toe. Aang stared at the child seeing it for the first time. They had a baby? Aang was frozen before he learned anything about those kind of things. Aang's heart felt like it was tearing into thousands of little pieces. Not only had he hurt one of his dearest friends, he might have killed someone's mommy. Aang looked at the door.
"All you can do is wait. The doctor will take good care of Katara." Aang sat down on the floor in front of Iroh. This was the old man that defended the moon spirit from Zhao. He also brought the moon spirit back to life. So even for a firebender he couldn't be that bad?
Aang couldn't take his eyes off the child. The baby looked exactly like Zuko, well with out the scar of course. But the more Aang looked at the baby, the more Katara he could see. Aang pushed himself up and walked over to the older man looking down at the squirming bundle. Momo peeked his head over Aang shoulder and looked at the baby aswell. Momo walked down Aang's arm and onto Iroh's looking at the baby.
"Momo, don't." Aang said starting to pick him up but Iroh stopped him.
"He's fine. Let him look. He's just curious." Aang watched as the lemur reached a small paw out to touch Riyo's hand. Riyo squealed and promptly grabbed Momo's fingers. Momo shreiked and ran back over and hid behind Aang's head. Iroh laughed.
"He's a strong boy." Iroh caught Aang's stare. "Here do you want to hold him?" Aang looked up at Iroh and took a step back.
"Come now, young avatar. He won't bite, he may drool or spit up on you but that would be the worst thing to happen." Aang stuck his arms out and Iroh put the baby curled up in his arms. Aang felt very awkward. He had never held a baby before. And he had never expected to hold the son of the prince of the Fire Nation. Come to think about it he had never expected to hold Katara's child, but here it was one in the same.
Sokka walked into through the door. He looked up and seen the old fire bender that had been at the north pole. He stopped. He turned and took one look at Aang, seen him holding a baby and turned and walked back out.
Zuko set Katara down easily and looked over her. Katara turned her head and looked at Zuko with a small smile. She reached her hand up for his, the blood trickling down her writ. Zuko took her hand and leaned over kissing her fist then set it back down. She looked up at him and blinked slowly.
"I love you." Zuko nodded.
"I love you to, now conserve your energy." Katara nodded and her head rolled to the side and she shut her eyes. Zuko's eye shot wide open and he looked frantically up at the doctor.
"She didn't just ..." The doctor shook her head with a smile.
"I gave her some pain killer, it does that. Now you need to go outside." Zuko shook his head.
"No. I want to stay with her." The doctor got a very stern look on her face and stood up to her full height, albeit that she maybe hit the prince at the chest.
"You can't do any thing for her. And I believe that you have a child that you need to tend to."
Next chapter will be a long one as well. Next chappie,Aang and Sokka thinks that Riyo is Katara's child...fighting insues. Then they find out about the marriage...Oh god, Sokka's going to have a caniption fit.