Looks can be deceiving
Etherealstar
Author's notes: Thank you to all those who read and were kind enough to comment. Thank you all.
Disclaimer: Avatar and Avatar Manga is owned by Nickelodeon and Sitcom. All rights reserved.
Chapter 7: Knocked into sense
Katara looked at the card only to sigh. 'What is he talking about? Me – a water-bender? He must be joking.'
Katara sat there looking at herself in the small mirror. Why did she feel like she gave up, why did she always feel like she gave up? Haru made some good points, but they're unrealistic, thought Katara. She gave up water-bending years ago, and for a good reason she thought. It's hard enough dealing with painful memories, but its worst resurrecting the things we let go of. Besides, nobody could defeat the Fire Nation much less a wee ex-water-bender like her. She shook her head, it simply wasn't credible and definitely didn't assure her safety, in finality she thought she couldn't do it.
Taking up the card she threw it in the bin, 'I'm sorry Haru,.. but I'm not the Katara I use to be. There's just – too much pain, too much agony here. Water-bending can't save me especially when I don't believe in it, all I am, is-is a geisha…'
Turning to her bed, she lied down on the warm bed. Covering herself in thick sheets she thought of what had happened. She cringed when she felt like she failed herself and Haru more so, but he had to understand, he must—she's not a water-bender, she's a geisha…just a geisha. Knowing there was no need to fight herself and contemplate on the resonated sadness within her, she slowly felt herself slip into a deep sleep, a sleep she longed for in so many days.
Another tear falls down her face.
She sharply gasps for another breath of air. Looking over the body, she shivers. 'Katara' the girl whispers…
Again she doesn't budge. The body refuses to wake. "Ka-tara" she cries… "please, wake up" the voice was a hoarse whisper by this time.
The tears fell to their own accord, freely staining the girl's face in pain. How could have this happened, thought Suki. She swallowed the lump. She just couldn't bear to break the news, not after discovering that she herself was on the point of breakdown.
Staring down at Katara's still body, she shook her lightly. "Wake up please"
Slowly eyes blinked open to see a teary girl above her. "Suki?"
"Katara-chan…" she sniffed.
"Suki, what's the matter?" Katara by this time was fully awake.
Suki shook her head; the tears flying from her eyes. "I-I'm sorry" she whispered.
"Suki, tell me what happened" Katara was becoming scared. Had something happened to Aang or Sokka? Did the Fire Nation kill them? Fearing the worst, Katara tried to push herself to a sitting position but Suki would not let her.
"Katara, please, stay…" Suki said.
"Tell me Suki what happened. Is it something to do with Aang and Sokka?"
"No…" her voice trailed off into a whisper
"Then tell what it is, please" Katara pleaded.
Suki wiped her tears, "I'll show you"
Helping Katara to her feet, Suki supported her all the way out her room and the Geisha house. Katara realized that whatever happened, occurred out the bounds of the establishment. Swallowing, that anything could have happened, she prayed silently that whatever it was, she wouldn't go into a fit. But considering both Aang and Sokka were alive and still not in harm, then the worst should be over, right? But that's what scared Katara the most. There was no certainty of her friends' lives or anything…
Coming closer to a small hut in the village, many mourning people confessed their sympathies to Katara. Katara by this time was confused, 'what happened?'
She not sure, she felt Suki stop. Katara peered her a look. "Katara-chan, whatever happens, just remember I'm always here for you and so are the girls of the geisha-house. We won't neglect you, we swear!"
"B-But I don't understand"
"You will soon" she paused to look down, "you see that door Katara?" she said.
"Yeh?"
"Open it. And when you're inside, please…" she held Katara's arm, "be strong"
Katara nodded. She barely understood a thing that was happening, all she knew was that she was heading for a door which would unlock all that seem blurry.
Limping toward the wooden door, people stared on at her, as if anticipating for her. Katara gave a tiny sigh. 'What could be so horrible?'
Stopping at the door knob, she took a deep breath and opened the door to darkness. A room filled of – medication? scented the air. Doctors seem to brim the room as they made barrier to prevent her crossing.
An old doctor, that Katara knew as a child looked down at her. His eyes were sparkling and she knew he had cried. For what? She didn't know. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he whispered, "I'm sorry…there's nothing we can do for her"
"Whose she-----" he parted and before her eyes was a sight that burned at her eyes. From no where horror filled her and tears of shock and sorrow racked her inside out.
"Gran—gran" Katara's lips parted as she gasped for air. Had everything failed now? She thought, did this world truly want to see her succumb to the lowest and lose everything? Wasn't losing her parents, her brother and her best friend enough? Was this life of hers truly meant to be a short one?
The room grew cold as all Katara could see was blood on the old woman that had nurtured her since a babe; this was her only line of family she had. This was her reason for life, but before her teary eyes, she saw she would have the join the others with the pace that life kept at her.
Dropping to her knees in a loud thud, the doctors went to pick her up, but she screamed out at them and snapped. 'Noo…you can't go Gran gran'
Feeling like she couldn't breathe anymore, she was surprise to hear the voice of her old lady.
"Ka-tara" the voice was exerted and a mere whisper.
Katara stared at the woman, whose wrinkled hand searched for hers. Katara scuttled to her side and rested her hand in hers. Leaning her head against her hand the woman gently pet her grand daughter's head.
"My little star" she whispered. Pale lips seem to always form bright sentences and cheery notes. Even in death the woman was an optimist.
"Gran gran, how did this happen?" she cried, "who did this to you? How could this have happened to you..out of all people you?" Katara looked up.
The woman's eyes were shut but with the little life she had, it was to explain and say the final things that needed to be said.
"I have not much time my child" she felt Katara snap.
"It makes no sense my darling fighting the inevitable." She whispered, "I wanted to tell you something my dear" she said.
"What is it gran gran?"
"I wanted to tell you…you're your mother everyday. You're the woman she is and I know Katara, that though you blamed yourself for your parents death, it was never your fault sweetheart. It was the Fire Nation who took their lives and – mine as well" she heard a sharp gasp.
"The Fire Nation did this gran gran?" in horrid realization did she swallow the truth.
"Yes…and this is why I must" she gasped for air, "must tell you" she arched as pain surged through her chest.
"Gran gran" Katara saw the kind of pain her grandmother tolerated.
"Help her" she shouted at the doctors.
"There's nothing we can do Katara…your grandmother…she's not going to ma—" Katara pushed the doctor, "shut up! I don't want to hear you, its not true…you're lying. She will be saved…" Katara screamed out.
"Katara…" the dying voiced called.
"Gran gran" Katara rushed to her side and held her hand. Kissing her age fingers she whispered, "please stay"
"I cant stay any longer my blossom… I have something for you though" she said… in her right hand was an object. "When your mother died, all that was left was her necklace. Take it…its yours" Katara shook her head, "no gran gran, its yours…its yours" she repeated.
"Don't be stubborn" she gasped again, this time holding her chest.
"There's not much time my child, so I'll tell you now what needs to be said." She paused to cough, a blood line trickling to the corner of her lips.
"Gran gran, please, don't say anything again, you're using your energy up"
"I want you Katara, to know you are a water-bender and you are designed to heal and give hope to the fallen" she paused to hold Katara's face, opening her eyes one last time she said with the light fading from her eyes, "you were meant to be more than just a simple geisha…you were meant to be water-bender…relive who you are my child…f-fo-r me" she whisper trailed off into a whisper.
"Gran gran?" she held the woman's hand to her face.
There was no response.
"Gran gran?" Katara was becoming frantic…"gran gran" she screamed. "Wake up, please"
Bawling her lungs out seem to do nothing but make more tears flow. How could life be so dull, thought Katara. Was everything she loved suppose to end the same way? Was she to accept death as a cause too? Why did all the people she love just go away and she be forced to stay and live?
She berated herself aloud for living. Why live when everything we love is destroyed? And then to her amazement words echoed in her mind: you are designed to heal and give hope to the fallen
'How can I give hope to the fallen, gran gran, when I am the fallen?'
Eventually after hours of sobbing near a dead body, the doctors pulled the distraught girl away.
Katara wanted to stay at her gran gran's side, but she knew she couldn't. Exiting the hut, Katara felt air for the first time surge through her lungs. There was a heavy feel supplanted deep within her and though she would want nothing more than to rip the feeling away she couldn't. Suki stood on looking her.
"Katara, I'm sorry"
Katara stared at her with tears.
'Why did you have to die Gran gran? Who would do you, a most wonderful woman such a thing?' And remembering what she had said about the Fire Nation taking her family's life and her life…Katara suddenly felt cold. Easing her fingers into a tight fist, Katara felt her nails sink into the softness of her palm. Gritting her teeth and shaking lightly at what they had done, what they took from her and made her feel she let tears of anger fall.
'And everything I would ever learn to love would die…as long as the Fire Nation keeps ruining it all for me.
Suki saw the impassive and intrusive stare that Katara wore.
'I wish I could close my eyes and blot the pain away Gran gran, but you've taught me I can't hide from my fears but I can face them .'
Thoughts whizzed through her head and all she could do was allow them to ransack her life. Features strewn together in anger seem to speak on it own of the hate and infuriation she felt for the Fire Nation.
Knowing that she could simply not take the death of her gran gran lightly she breathed in deeply and thought, 'I will not take your death quietly, I will not let them shred my world, my sanity and my soul apart. I have stood to the side too long in watching them kill what is mine. All I ever did about it…was watch them. I never fought, I never blamed myself and I never tried to redeem myself. But today…a day of sorrow and revelation, will I promise to myself and you gran gran, that I Katara the lonesome girl, will drop my status and become what I was meant to be… a water-bender and of course, a fighter…' she paused, 'for the people I love I will protect and become the person I gave up in believing in, me…'
Katara went home that day with the world's grief banging at her back. She could not escape the maelstrom of emotions plaguing within her, but she could find a way to alleviate them. Revenge was not as simple as said, Katara knew, but revenge would ensure that the people she loved did not die for no reason…as long as she breathed the same air the Fire Nation poisoned then she would stand and triumph over the beasts.
'And like a snake I will walk in their midst and bit by bit I will destroy them until I find the one whose responsible for taking the lives of so many innocents. There is no exit is this game, there is no game over and there are definitely no rules to keep me from my revenge...my kill. The game is on Fire Nation, that is, because ready or not, here I come…'
TO SERVE MY MASTER has a SEQUEL- coming soon!
To be continued…
