To serve my master
by Etherealstar
Author's notes: First fic? Newbie? Be nice?
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 9: Come undone.
She sits on Zuko's bed looking at the picture of the young girl.
"Who are you?"
Though she shouldn't have cared who interested Zuko, she was still curious. Realizing that she was just working herself over stupidity, she placed the picture on the table.
A knock came to Zuko's door and Katara arched a brow.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Lily."
"Lily?"
Katara hadn't seen her friend in a while. Opening the door very excited the young girl handed her a bowl of apples.
"What's this for?"
"Oh, Madam Tristle said Zuko requested it, whatever for, I don't know" the girl said.
"Yeah-he's a bit freaky when he's ready"
"A bit? Feh!"
The girls giggled.
As the girls calmed down they could hear Zuko grumble and shout in his bath.
"What's his problem?"
"Believe me, you do not, and I mean DO NOT, want to know" Katara complied.
"Try me" Lily took the opportunity to enter Zuko's room.
"It's really embarrassing really, and a bit of awkward, and scary and—"would you stop with the and. Damn, you use the most conjunctions in one sentence."
"Sorry"
"It's alright. I figure whatever you have to tell me is pretty bad, so bad you don't trust your friend" she pat Katara's hand, "its alright I understand" and then she gave the puppy face. Damn, Katara hated that face.
"No, not the puppy face!"
Big shimmering eyes, exceptionally pouty lips in a forlorn expression made Katara weak and won over.
"I absolutely hate myself sometimes"
"Oh you know you're no match for this girl and her powers"
"Keep talking and she'll have no powers"
"Ohh, I see Zuko's aggression is rubbing off" the girl slipped the comment.
"Shush! He'll hear you and kill me, especially after what happened in the bathroom I'm totally a goner"
"Ohh, and what happened in the bathroom?" Lily arched a brow.
"Hehheheh?" Katara blushed, "did I say bathroom, um well I meant to say" she paused to see her friend's expression. The face of you're-so-caught-red-handed made Katara sigh out.
"I'm busted aren't I?"
"Absolutely"
"Feh! Hmm, well, today I was scrubbing the bathroom"
"Sure you were…"
Katara shot her friend daggers.
"Anddd, after a couple of hours scrubbing that huge bath-tub, Zuko so happened to be ready to take a bath and by golly, you could have imagined what happened when I sprung up on the spur of the moment and what happened when he was about to take his pants off"
The girl giggled. She couldn't help it.
"Shh, hush, you're going to get us caught"
"Oh relax, nobody knows I'm up here"
"Hello, Zuko is in his bathroom, when he hears us giggling he's going to be in a fit when he discovers two girls laughing their tails off"
"Oh damn, I didn't think of that?"
"Well now you know ingenious one" sarcastically Katara rubbed it in.
"KATARA" Zuko shouted.
"Oppsie" the both girls freaked out.
"WHO IS THAT ONNA?"
"I, urh, I just remembered Madam Tristle had a chore for me. See you Katara, bye" Lily flew out the room.
'Some friend you turned out to be'
The bath door flew open to Zuko.
"Ah, Master Zuko what a pleasant surprise, have you finished your bath?"
"Who was that onna?"
"Who was who?"
"Don't play smart with me onna"
"But master Zuko, I don't know what you're referring to"
"Oh? Is that so? Well maybe I should refresh your memory"
He snarled.
Zuko wasted no time as he took grasp of Katara's wrist jerking her to follow him. She did. Opening his French doors he laid her against the wall.
"Move and I'll hurt you"
Going back into the room, Zuko rummaged through taking up a few items. Seeing in his hand a bowl of apples she wondered if she was going to eat them with him. But then she saw the archery band around his hand and the bow and arrows.
"You know woman they say apples are good for people… do you like them?" he asked fixing the band on his hand properly.
"Y-yes…"
"Oh really? Well, then that makes the two of us. You know why?"
"N-no"
"Well instead of telling you, let me show you"
"Huh?"
"You'll see"
Zuko picked up a red ripe apple. Throwing it to Katara she caught it in one shot.
"Put it on your head onna, very straight or I might miss and have my arrow aiming for that face of yours?"
"M-Master Zuko" she tried to work her way through his stubbornness.
"Do not give me your weak smothering or your insubordination onna, sometimes you really make me on edge that I can't take it. It becomes so bad that I must have revenge"
"But, but?"
"But nothing. Oblige or I will shot you blindly"
She quickly obliged. Her fingers shaking and a few drops of sweat falling from her temple, Katara could only wish that she lived through this.
"Good girl"
Bending his arrow back on the bow, he closed one of his eyes and kept aim on the shaking red apple on her head.
"Now really onna do you want to get shot?"
"N-no"
"Then stay still would you?"
She closed her eyes, waiting for the arrow to stab her. 'Any minute now'
And in a split-second everything was halted. Time froze as Zuko saw he missed. (missed her head too)
"Damn, I missed the middle but at least I have other shots" Katara swore she nearly died
'Oh damn, I can't keep up with this job?'
Zuko wasted no time trying again. Fixating his arrow in his bow sturdily, with one eye open and his tongue slightly on his lips he tried to keep concentration to his best. Any mishaps would mean all his pleasurable fun and distractions down the drain.
And again, with a deep breath taken, he pulled back and let go. The arrow going directly through the apple.
"Very good" came a voice.
Iroh spoke.
"Arigatou (Thank you) uncle" Zuko spoke.
"What are doing to your little slave?"
Zuko picked up another arrow, "torturing her" was his cool reply.
"Ahh, may I have apple my dear?" Iroh asked.
Katara flung him an apple very shaken.
"Ready woman?" Zuko asked.
"No…"
Zuko didn't listen to her sad mutterings. Taking a shot at his aiming again, his arrow went straight for the center.
"Excellent work. You know the last time I practiced archery was when you were fifteen"
"Uncle I'm only sixteen, where's the huge age difference?"
"Not much I guess, but in that little time you've perfected archery"
'Not to mention torture' Thought Katara.
"You know a lot of us are proud of you Zuko?"
Zuko stopped, "you are dismissed onna" turning to his uncle he said, "what's there to be proud of?" Zuko leaned over his balcony.
"You're not the boy I use to know"
"Then who am I?"
"You're Zuko. A one of a kind"
Zuko sighed.
"Uncle, I'm not somebody who takes hope into consideration. You've given a lot of men hope, but I don't take any"
"Why, there must be a reason?"
"Believe me, I don't why yet, but maybe someday I will know"
"Hmm" "Zuko, do you still think of what your father did?"
Zuko took a breath of air. "You want me to forget?"
"No, I'm just asking"
"Everyday. It's scarred on my memory. It never dies. The words he said to me. The faces, they're all around me, my fright, it's still alive. Something I wish never happened occurred and I blame it all on my stubbornness. I wish I could kill the pain uncle, I wish I could scream so loud that the Earth would crack and swallow the entire Fire Nation into a dark abyss. It's hurtful you know, imagining your own flesh and blood banishing you. Tell me, will a memory like that ever fade? It never does. Some memories, burn too deep"
"Hmm, I'm glad you're realized it on your own and it didn't take somebody to tell you the kind of life the Fire Nation truly portrays." He paused, "you will realize Zuko, that you are so similar to your father but your heart, it's what makes you different and believe me hold onto it. You wouldn't want to do someone the same something your father did to you, you know certain things in life leave a scar and a simple sorry can never fix it. Hold on to the people you love and hold on to who you are because more than ever it separates you from your father and you don't want to be him, you want to be who you are, Zuko"
"Thank you uncle" a small smile pitched over Zuko's face.
"Your welcome miboy." He paused, "can I ask another question Zuko?"
"Sure"
"Why do you treat her like that?"
"Treat who like what? Katara?"
"If that's her name. The girl."
"How do I treat her?"
"You know you're treating her the way of a cruel enemy"
"I can't exactly say we're friends"
"Zuko, the last time you kidnapped the girl you didn't treat her this way. You've changed, what's happened to you?"
"I don't know, okay?"
"Are you angry?"
"No, I'm not, I'm just, just tired"
"Tired of what?"
"Tired of everybody getting on my damn nerves" he lashed out.
Iroh kept silent.
"Maybe we should continue this some other time. When you're less tired"
The man left Zuko to be.
Zuko soured. He hadn't meant for things to go this way. His uncle was his only real form of family and just screaming out like that was uncalled for. Zuko, feeling frustrated held his face with both hands. 'Why do I keep messing up?'
Unknown to Zuko, Katara was keeping watch. Sometimes more than others she felt Zuko's pain and why he did the things he did. Sometimes all she thought he needed was a little nudge in the right direction, but the question always remains, will this stubborn prince kindly take orders when he's the one use to ordering?
'Zuko…' she whispered.
Sokka looked over the plans they discussed. So did Aang, for once the jolly hyper boy remained at stable.
"Sokka do you think Katara's hurt?" Aang asked.
Sokka prayed she wasn't. Because if she was, Zuko was going to die a painful death.
"Somehow Aang, I don't think she is. But then again we're not dealing with our everyday neighbour, we're dealing with somebody completely different"
"Do you think Zuko will torture her?"
"It's possible. I'm not expecting anything less. But I don't think he would, he didn't do it once, whose to say he wouldn't do it again."
"I don't know Sokka" Aang said in an uncertain voice.
"Don't know, what do you mean?"
"Some how Sokka I feel things have changed with Zuko. I think we're expecting too much. Somehow I don't like how it feels, you know, having Katara away from us so long. I guess its just, I miss her…that's all" a sad expression came to his face.
"Don't worry lil buddy, we'll get her back. No doubt about it"
"Yes"
"Come on, go get ready for dinner"
"Okay"
Sokka stayed outside looking at the stars in the sky.
"I'll find you Katara, and when I do, I'll behead that repulsive fire-bender. In your name Katara, will all the spiteful sufferings end. But for now, sleep assure that love from the ones who love you is always there. Close your eyes and dream, that I will find you, Aang will find you, again…" he trailed off into a whisper.
"Nite Katara"
To be continued