Didn't See That Coming

by Rebirth of the Phoenix

Hi, I'd just like to say thanks to everyone who reviewed, all the positive feedback really gets my imagination going! Well on with the story and the first of the fears. Forgive me if it comes out stupid but I'm trying out a really original idea here!

Read, Enjoy and Review!

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The forest disappeared; Kaen, the trees and the stepping stones were all gone. Instead Katara stood ankle-deep in white, powdery snow. She was home. She snapped back to her senses. 'It's a trick remember! Wait... where's Zuko?'

She looked around frantically but couldn't see him anywhere. 'I thought we were going through these fears together?' Katara stood in the vast emptiness, there was no sign of anyone or anything. She spun around on the spot her eyes searching across the frozen tundra. 'There!' In the distance a small trail of smoke drifted towards the sky. She smiled inwardly, her village wasn't very far away. She took stock of her situation again; why in heavens was she stood in th snow banks alone? Sokka usually insisted on escorted her everywhere, she never understood why though. What was going to happen to her; was she going to get attacked by an angry penguin or something? She giggled to herself slightly. Her mind suddenly seemed blissfully blank.

In the back of her mind, something was nagging at her. She was forgetting something... something important. She frowned to herself. There was something she was meant to remember about being here. Her thoughts were drove out of her head, however, when a figure in the distance shouted her name.

Katara snapped out of her revive and squinted into the distance. Then she recognized the person.

"Sokka!" Katara shouted joyfully.

Sokka waved at her. "Come on Katara, mom wants you back home!"

Katara started running through the snow towards Sokka. She didn't know why but she had a great longing to see her mother. She snorted at herself. She had seen her mother just this morning. Katara reached Sokka, and together they mad their way into the Water Tribe Village.

- - - - - - -

Zuko stared as the forest dissolved around him. In no time however, the world reappeared around him. He was stood on frozen ground, the wind biting at his face. He'd felt this cold once before... he was in the South Pole; this was Katara's past.

Katara... Zuko looked around and spotted her not too far from him. Relieved, he ran over to her. He barely noticed that is feet didn't press into the soft deep snow, or that his footfalls didn't disturb Katara as he approached.

"Katara!" Zuko called out to her as he came to her side. The girl gave him no answer, instead he saw her search her brow furrow slightly. "Katara?" Zuko asked again.

He reached out a hand to touch her shoulder, but found something stopped him making contact with her.

"You can't touch her."

An amused voice sounded from behind Zuko. He whipped around to see Kaen floating several feet above the ground behind him. Her robes and her were moving as usual.

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked sharply. "You said we could face our fears together."

"I know what I said." Kaen smirked. "You are going through her fear with her, and you can help her fight her fear. You just can't physically fight them for her, you don't exist here; this is her fear and her Past."

Zuko was furious. "You tricked us! If I'm not physical here, how can I help her? How can I protect her?"

"Technically I didn't trick you. You never asked for specific details. Don't worry so much! You'll have to be smart and work out how to help her. Just because you can't be killed in her Past doesn't mean she can't be." Kaen gestured carelessly to Katara.

"Will I be a part of the physical world in Katara's other fears?" Zuko was seething with rage at the demon.

"Nope. All of the fears are comprised of either memories or subconscious thoughts from your minds. That means, my dear boy, that she will not see you inside her fears. Also, you will not see her in your fears.

Zuko sighed, slightly relieved. "At least Katara will be safe while she's in my fears."

Kaen's evil smirk widened. "Yes, but that's if she makes it into your fears. This may be her past, but a little demon magic can make even the happiest past into a nightmare. It should be interesting for you to watch because your little girlfriend has had anything but a happy past. Have fun!"

With that Kaen vanished. Zuko heard someone shout Katara's name. Squinting into the distance he saw Katara's idiotic brother. He heard her shout "Sokka!" and she ran towards her brother. Zuko ran alongside her, his body almost gliding across the ground. He didn't know what was coming, but he knew it couldn't be good.

- - - - - - -

Katara looped her arm into Sokka's, laughing as he told her how he had almost fallen through the iced over lake while he had been ice-fishing with their father. Katara glanced over her shoulder, she felt like someone was following her. She sighed and told herself off for being so paranoid. When she turned back to Sokka, she saw her village come into clear view. The dozen or so huts were gathered in a crescent shape a little way back from a large fire pit. Katara saw Gran Gran entering the hut that was used as an infirmary. Further away from the village she could make out her father and most of the other men getting into the fishing boats, they were going further afield from the camp to replenish the village's food stores.

Katara turned to Sokka. "Did mom want to speak to me?"

Sokka nodded. Noticing the worried look on her face he hurried to comfort her. "Don't worry Katara, Gran Gran said mom would be getting better in no time at all."

Katara smiled grimly a Sokka and rushed over to the medical hut, just as her Gran Gran was leaving it. She patted Katara gently on the shoulder and Katara walked in to the room,seeing her mother in bed.

- - - - - - -

Zuko entered the tent with Katara and looked at the woman in the bed. Zuko was left in no doubt as to where Katara had gotten her beauty from. The woman essentially looked like an older version of Katara. There ere a few differences though. Her eyes were a more grey-blue, opposed to Katara's vivid cobalt. Her hair was cut to her shoulders and her face was pale in her illness.

She smiled as her daughter entered the room. She held out her arms to embrace Katara. Her daughter willingly complied and ran into her mother's arms.

"Hello Katara, were you dilly dallying around again?" Her voice was cheerful, Zuko noted, but it had a edge of feebleness to it.

Katara nodded into her mother's shoulder and her shoulders shook suddenly.

Katara's mother held her at arms length and Zuko could see the tears streaming down Katara's face. It broke his heart "My darling, what is the matter?"

Katara sobbed harder. "I don't now, everything seems so familiar, like a dream I had once and can't remember. I just have this bad feeling that you're going to leave me alone here."

"That's it Katara, fight it, you know that you've already lived this. Come on, you can fight it!" Zuko wasn't sure why he was speaking out loud but he felt he had to try to reach Katara in some way.

Katara's mother pulled her back int an embrace. "Shh my sweetheart, I will never leave you." She was caught with a sudden coughing fit.She bent forward over the blankets, the coughs racking her frail figure.

Katara stood and rushed to the other side of the room. Glancing back to the lady in the bed he saw flecks of blood hit the sheets that lay over her. Zuko frowned; he was no doctor but he knew that coughing up blood wasn't a good sign. Katara's mother seemed to be thinking the same thing. She threw the sheets off her and sat up just as Katara came back with a small bowl of water and a cloth.

"Mom what are you doing? Get back into bed!" Katara set th bowl down on the nightstand and looked at her mother.

"Calm down Katara! I want to give you something. Come sit next to me." Katara complied and snuggled close to her mother. "Now, my little star, I have something that needs to be passed down to you. Gran Gran gave it to me years ago and I want to give it to you." She reached round the back of her neck and took off a necklace that Zuko recognized s the one Katara wore.

Katara stared as her mother fastened the necklace around her neck. She started to cry softly. "Mom, why are you giving this to me now? You could give it to me in years time, it's like you're saying goodbye."

"Katara, I know it's hard sometimes, feeling as though we are alone in the world. But you will never be alone. You'll have your brother, your father, Gran Gran and all those who care for you as I do. I will always be there too Katara. I'm not saying goodbye...ever."

She forced Katara to look at her and she brushed some stray tears from her face. Katara offered her a weak smile.

Just then there was a loud crunching sound and screams erupted from outside. Katara stuck her head outside and gasped.

"Mom, it's Fire Nation! They're here!"

Zuko went to the door of the hut and looked out. Sure enough the pointed prow of a Fore Nation ship was embedded in the ice at the edge of the village. He could see most of the village escaping from the Fire Nation's path. He could see Sokka being pulled away by his grandmother. He was fighting trying to pull back in the direction where Katara and his mother were. Zuko realized with dread that Katara and her mother were trapped in the hut. If they tried to escape the would undoubtedly be spotted. Zuko heard Katara's mother from behind him.

"Katara!"

Zuko turned around. Katara was being pushed under the bed by her mother.

"Katara listen to me, stay under this bed. No matter what you hear, no matted what happens do not make a sound or move!"

"But mom-!"

"No Katara! Listen, your father and the nearly all of the other men have gone downriver for the day. There are only a few men left in the village and not all of them are Waterbenders. I need to help Katara. Remember that. If a time should come in your life when you have the chance to make a difference, take it! No matter how hard it seems, it will make a difference, always fight back no matter how hopeless the cause seems!"

Katara was about to argue back but her mother pressed a quick finger to her lips and whispered something Zuko couldn't hear. She then forced Katara all the way under the bed and straightened up just as the screams of pain started outside.

A moment later Zuko hard a horribly familiar voice outside "Search the tents for anyone hiding, bring them out. If they fight...kill them."

Zuko heard the footsteps crunching into the snow, approaching the hut. A moments pause and then one of Zuko's most hated enemies entered the hut.

Zhao. He stood there glaring straight at Katara's mother.

He sneered at her sick appearance. "Hmm, worthless peasant, ill too. Well at least you're useful enough to tell me where the rest of the men from your village are."

Katara's mother kept silent. Zhao let out a snarl of fury and strode forward. He grabbed her around the neck and yanked her off the ground.

- - - - - - - -

Katara watched in horror as she saw he other's feet lift from the ground. From the small portion of th floor that she could see from her hiding place. She could see her mother's toes brushing the floor and hear her gasping breath. She heard the man shouting for her to tell him what he wanted to know. Katara wanted to cover her ears to block her ears but she knew she couldn't move. She was fighting with all of her might not to cry. She knew her mother was to weak to use her Waterbending, she was helpless.

Then Katara's heart stopped. She saw her mother's toes jerking and then they became completely still. She heard the man give a snort of discontempt, but nothing could have every prepared Katara for what happened next.

- - - - - - - -

Zuko watched, appalled as the ill woman was strangled to death by Zhao. Then he stared as Zhao lifted his palm towards on Katara's mother's face. He then sent a powerful blast of ire straight into her face and let her charred remains fall to the floor.

- - - - - - - -

Katara's insides turned to ice and her whole body stiffened. From above her her mother's body fell to the floor and lay face down on the floor. Her face was turned to Katara, it was not the face Katara remembered. The skin was gone, the flesh blackened and those once beautiful eyes were now sunken and bloodied. Katara felt the bile rise in her throat. She wanted to scream but her voice had left her and her body refused to close her eyes.

- - - - - - - -

Zuko wanted to stop Katara from reliving this nightmare. He had no idea this was how her mother died. 'Oh Agni! Katara! She's still under the bed, she can see her mother's body.' He felt utterly powerless. Then another most unwelcome voice made itself heard.

"She did have a horrible past, didn't she?" Kaen stood next to Zuko and looked neither sorry or upset at Zhao's actions.

A low growl raised from Zuko's throat. "She's faced her fear, can we move on?"

Kaen smirked. "Now where's the fun in that? In true life Zhao left and Katara was never found by the Fire Nation. She stayed under the bed until someone found her. The men of her village saw the Fir Nation from a distance and had to wait for a whole day before the Fire Nation left. Katara lay next to her mother's rotting body for a whole day."

Zuko was sickened. He felt a huge urge to gather Katara in his arms and stop her coming to anymore harm."

Kaen started speaking again. "I wonder what would have happened if Katara had cried out before the Fire Nation had left? What if they had found her."

Zuko snapped his head around. "You can't do that! That isn't what happened in Katara's past."

Kaen shrugged. "I know, I call it demonic license. I need some way to keep myself entertained for the rest of eternity. Good luck trying to save her!"

Then Kaen was gone and Zuko heard Katara's heart wrenching scream.

- - - - - - - -

Katara screamed and sobbed at the sight of her mother's body. She knew she shouldn't but she couldn't help herself. She didn't even hear the retreating footsteps pause an then storm back to her hiding place. A large hand shot under the bed and grabbed Katara by the hair.

- - - - - - - -

Zuko was furious as he watched Zhao hold Katara by her hair. He yanked the sobbing girl to her feet and delivered a sharp slap to her face.

Zuko knew he had to do something, if all he could do was to shout at Katara and hope she could hear him, then that is what he would do.

- - - - - - - -

Katara felt the stinging on her cheek as well as the sharp pain on her head where her hair was being pulled from her scalp. She could here the man holding her shouting something at her but she paid no attention. She hung in the man's grasp and could feel the tears sliding down her cheeks.

Then she heard a new voice, it cut through the shouting and her crying.

"Katara, fight him! Use your Waterbending!" The voice sounded familiar; at the back of the mind she was beginning to feel recognition.

'I know that voice, but who is it?'

"Katara,listen to my voice! You are stronger than this! Remember what your mother said, you need to fight back!"

'You're right! Whoever you are, you're right I need to fight back. I will not die like this!"

As though through a haze Katara saw the man holding her light a ball of fire in his hand. She also heard her voice being called again.

"KATARA!"

- - - - - - - -

Zuko watched helpless as Zhao prepared to strike Katara dead.

He yelled out to her a final time.

The word had barely left his mouth when Katara strand to life and drew up a water whip. It hit a surprised Zhao straight between the eyes and he released he with a grunt.

At the moment that the whip struck the world began to dissolve again. Zhao faded and Zuko saw Katara's knees give way. He rushed forward and gathered her in his arms. He was elated to find he could touch her again. Katara clung to Zuko, sobs racking her body.

"Zuko, thank you, I heard you at the end, you saved me."

In the black void the two held each other.

Zuko stoked Katara's hair and spoke to her softly. "I'm so sorry Katara... I never knew. Shh now, rest."

Katara mumbled something into Zuko's chest.

Zuko embraced her tighter and thought to himself. 'It's my turn now Kaen. Let's see what you've got!'

- - - - - - - -

Hey! Wow! This chapter was going to include Zuko's Past too but it came out waaaaaaaaaaaaay long with just Katara's Past. This chapter will be a two-parter. I really hope yo liked it. I've been writing for 4 hours now and my arms arr gonna fall off! I really hope you liked it!

(I was a little mean to Katara, giving her such a horrible past, huh?)

Did my idea for them to relive the pas work or did I just confuse you? Let me know!

Review!