To serve my master
by Etherealstar

Author's notes: Thank you to my eleven reviewers of my first chapter. You guys totally rock. Thankies you guys. I hope this chapter is worth in some way. A reminder, this fanfiction will have included Japanese words to give an anime touch.
Disclaimer: Avatar is owned by (looks around nervously) somebody? And sure that somebody wouldn't mine if I played with their characters, right? Anyways, this fanfiction is for non-profit, its just for fun—and a bit of evilness.

Chapter 2: Angered Zuko

"Congratulations Zuko!" spoke a familiar voice of the olden.

"On what?" came the scowl and snarl, together in one. Brows deep of anger twitched at the sight of the old man with the cruel smirk on his face.

"On losing the Avatar. Touché touch my grandson. Absolutely chic on your behalf."

A deep growl from behind the throat escaped Zuko's mouth. Gritting his teeth he turned toward the huge window.

"Some grandfather you are. Rubbing it in on the wound, absolutely scholarly!" Zuko bit back, watching his army train under his General's rule.

"Ahh, Zuko, my boy don't take it to heart," came a calm voice.

Zuko by this time had been closing his eyes. Defeated, he felt more of defeated hearing what his grandfather was saying. A nerve actually was popping from what he was hearing.

"There will be other times my boy"

'How can you say that? Other times, what in bloody name is wrong with you?'

His eyes flew open in a sudden flutter. Snapping around he turned to see his grandfather sipping his tea in his traditional Chinese Gi. 'Pray every day that you're my relative old man'

"Come Zuko, come sit with me."

Zuko twitched, "I don't want to. I have plans, business and stratification to set up"

"Ohh? Is that so? Well I think you should do otherwise" he pat the table.

Zuko sighed.

Striding forward to the table, he pulled himself a chair, sitting comfortably with his aged grandfather in front of him. Sipping tea with closed eyes, he would every now and then pull the cup away blowing the heat off the tea.

"What are your plans Zuko, to better your army?" the man inquired

Zuko thought. A bit confused of what was his plan, he kept his eyes focused on the wall thinking of an excuse, a potential answer for that matter.

"To train my soldiers…under rigorous pressure" came his answer.

The old man smirked. Zuko simply rolled his eyes seeing the stupid smirk on his old man's face. What was it about this man and smirking? Was he enticed by Zuko's words, or was he just doing this to tease?

Zuko shook his head to forget it.

"You're indeed young Zuko. Carefree, young and stupid." True, Zuko felt he was all of the above, but stupid, where did that come from?

"E-excuse me?" a quizzical stare was given. Zuko intently kept his eyes on the man wondering where such a word came from.

"What? You'd expect me to tell you the all perfect and no flaws. Bahh! Come now Zuko, you out of all persons know life doesn't work that way. Besides, even the best warrior isn't based under words of perfection. For all we know perfection is a word, with no example, which is usually the case so to speak, think about it" he paused.

An unwavering tension grew in the air, as Zuko kept his anger-filled eyes on the man. His chi felt all heated and his hands grew clammy as fires within simply seem to scorch inside. Zuko was often known as temperamental and because he was, everyone did their best to keep conversations calm and on the gentler side, but with his grandfather, it was quite the contrary. To start with, the man barely knew him yet he felt he knew him down to a T. Then there was the fact he became analytical over everything Zuko did as ruler of the Fire Nation. This usually caused serious friction between the two, leaving them often on sour terms.

Growling at the old man, Zuko decided to kept muted about the situation. Maybe bearing it inside would help to pass the fact he was even there.

"Stupid in the sense that you're young" he paused, waiting to hear the possible snappy reply of the youth, he instead heard nothing. Impressed, he continued. "Stupid that your decisions are often too hasty. You look at them from the same angle. No miboy, that's not always how life is. Stop looking at things in its most literal form, don't look at it from the view you always do. In the case of the Avatar, it was all to do with your timing. If you realize it Zuko, in the case of punishing your men by training them harder is cruel. The real person to be blamed is yourself, yourself for your poor timing. You knew you had the enemy, but what did you do? You gloated the taste of soon to be victory." He paused again, opening his eyes to Zuko whose narrowed eyes were directly looking back into his.

"To be the best you can, is to use a bit of common sense. Stop seeing everything from one angle, but turn the situation around and see something from another angle. To reach the Avatar is a case of how you stratify yourself, and you miboy will never catch the Avatar if you constantly stick with one method…" he placed the cup on the saucer wiping his mouth. "Well I guess I should leave you to think about some strategies, hmm?"

With that the old man picked up his walking stick and bent-back began slowly exiting the room leaving behind an angered youth. Zuko felt the calls of anger race in him, fill him up with nothing but hate. Ire burning through his veins and feeding his heart, made him exude a chi of darkness.

Zuko felt the hairs on his neck prickle as the fire from within was not being maintained. Closing his eyes, he tried to focus on controlling the fires that every now and then would break free from within. Another surge of fire rips violently through him, clenching his hands tightly, he gritted his teeth when another surge of fire ripped within him.

Zuko breathed in deeply holding his chest as the fire slowly died down within. Reopening his eyes, he huskily breathed. 'Damn, why is this happening so frequently?' Not trusting his current condition, Zuko sat down in the chair staying there until he could properly think this one out.

'Here I am…'

'All alone. Again…'

'The night and sun are my friends and my conscience is my cruel audience. Oh what have I gotten myself into?' Sighed the blue-eyed girl.

Some days went good, and others went bad, but today…well, it was just not one of her days. Straying her eyes outside the bars of prison that confined her, she sighed at the sight of the place. Dirty, gritty and dark she felt frightened by this strange environment.

Thrown in the wet mildewed dungeons of the Fire Nation, Katara smelt the pungent scent of dead corpses and rodents. Almost feeling to hurl, Katara covered her mouth to resist convulsion. Oh, the place gave her the creeps and to imagine this is what she asked of Zuko. How insane, thought Katara.

Going to a corner of the small prison, she held herself in a ball, laying her head on her knees wishing Kami (God) would hear her prayers for safety. She knew by no chance she would get out of this one with ease, especially with the strict security of the Nation. Knowing that Aang and her brother had their work cut out rescuing her, she grimaced at her promise she made to Zuko. As personal slave.

Swallowing at the mere flashback, she shuddered when she lingered on it. It sounded disgusting and morbidly off, to see herself serving Zuko. Perhaps when he wasn't looking she would poison him and call that tops, but thinking about it, the Fire Nation has many followers and they would definitely know who did it and behead of the one.

'Forget it Katara-girl, you're confined. You got yourself into this one, get yourself out of it. Besides, you made a promise with Zuko, if you don't fulfill who knows what would have happened to that poor village'

The mere thought of what may have happened made Goosebumps creep along her skin. The sight of blood and the sound of blood curling screams was never something she would oblige to witness. The image was all together too painful, especially envisioning the empty faces of the dead. Their last expressions usually filled of fright, as they are all opened eyed to their deaths. Screwing her eyes shut, she wondered if Zuko had done it, what would she as the water-bender have done?

Feeling a gut pain pang within, she blinked back, she would have done absolutely nothing. She was so much of a water-bender, but she hadn't perfect her moves or techniques. Unlike Aang or even Zuko who worked tediously with their elemental ability, Katara couldn't exactly say she was like them, usually she was always on the run with her brother and developing her water power was a bit too time consuming by itself.

The sound of water droplets falling filled her ears as she zoomed back to reality. Looking around the small chamber, she leaned her head against the grimy old wall, wishing a miracle would come, just about now.

Staring at the room for a couple of seconds, her seconds turned into minutes then hours. The shadows on the walls changed as day phased to night. Katara felt her eyes grow red. Prickly sensations played as she suffered the torture of being left in dark dungeons with heaven knows what. Standing to her feet in the dark room, she can still make out the unmade bed in the corner. The latrine is a complete mess and the walls are all graffiti in human feces and carvings. The moon lights the walls just barely, but its all she needs. Going toward the bars of the prison, she places her tender hands around them leaning her face against the cold metallic poles.

'Oh Aang, wherever you are, please…save me' a tear falls from her eyes, 'please, save me'

Dropping to her knees, muffled cries escape her lips as she finally breaks down. Feeling the pain just easily come out, Katara felt herself grow weak, but right now no one was judging her, the only judge was herself. She made a bad choice, yet a good one. Her choice ensured many a life to live again. In itself her reward was right there. But Katara couldn't come to terms with that. Sobbing pathetically to herself, the wind blew through the poles and brushed her hot cheeks. The wind carried her sobs all through the lone dungeon where a reverberated echo traveled up to rooms of the Fire Nation.

Traveling down the many dark halls and under the doors of the residents, it finally came to the room that it was fated to.

In a huge room, filled of lit candles, where rich burgundy curtains were veiled on the windows, accented a large western bed. Adorn in ebony carvings from the East, lay a body on the black silk sheets. Smooth skin touched silk as the body silently twitched from the sound. Twisting in his bed most uncomfortably, the body turned in his sheets until the sound or whatever was became a little louder. It stirred the body. Covering his head with a pillow, a hollowing cry pierced the air and it simply caused anger to flicker through his depths. Opening his hazel brown eyes he removed the pillow violently, listening to the sound another time, he tried to determine who was the unwise person who wanted to die. Sheets still clinging to his lower torso, Zuko slowly pulled the sheets off realizing that it was coming from the bottom floor, the only bottom floor was the dungeon and there was only one person who could be doing this.

"Katara" he growled deep throatily.

Flinging the silk sheets off his half naked body, Zuko went forward for a robe, "like hell I'm going to kill you woman…for sure"

To be continued…