A/N: Sorry that break was longer than I anticipated, broke my toe last week (don't underestimate the pain lol) so kinda not been doing much of anything really. I'm back with a long angsty chapter that you'll be happy to hear! I hope you enjoy it, I had fun writing it, so let me know your thoughts. Once again, my gratitude to all of you is immense, so thank you! Now, on with the story XD
Aang's POV:
"Any idea how we're going to get out of this?" I turn to glance at the girl as she rests her forearms on her drawn up knees. I bite my lip and flicker my gaze across the metal cage.
"If I knew how to metal bend then this would be easy." I mutter to myself as I rest a hand against the metal floor beneath me.
"Hey now, none of that. We're looking for solutions not blame." Katara orders firmly. My lips twitch at her attempt to make me feel better and I nod my head in agreement.
"You're right. Let's see what we have." I murmur as I scan the cell for any irregularities. 'As much as I love airbending, it won't help me here. Fire and water won't do any good. The only thing that might help is earthbending to break open the cell and even that's not something I can do unless I slip into the Avatar State.' I purse my lips as I shift closer to Katara's cell.
"I think our best bet is to nick the keys. We just need to find out where they are." I whisper, but the waterbender is barely paying me any attention as she stares at something behind me. I don't need to turn around though when I hear that chilling voice.
"Oh, look what we have here, a rare specimen in a cage." Azula sneers. I swallow and immediately chance a glance at Katara who's expression of shock quickly morphs into fury.
"You're behind this?!" She screams while jumping to her feet in a fit of rage and grabbing hold of the metal bars.
"Oh, the airbender didn't tell you? I thought he must've after all the scheming he's been doing with my brother." Azula drops with a devious glint in her eyes. Katara's head snaps towards me so swiftly that I visibly cringe at the betrayal written on her face.
"What...what is she talking about?" The waterbender forces out. I hunch my shoulders up to my ears.
"Zuko isn't a part of this. He didn't even know till recently." I try to explain, but the girl shoots me a withering glare.
"That's beside the point! You let me hang out with the son responsible for my mother's murder! That's sickening!" Katara yells. I flinch at the shriek just as Azula's eyes widen slightly in surprise.
"Oh, so your mother was the nurse my father had killed, which means your father is the councilman that the Triple Z have been threatening. That's an interesting twist I hadn't seen coming." The firebender drawls out with intrigue. I jump when Katara slams herself against the metal bars in an attempt to grab the other girl.
"Rot in hell!" She snarls as Azula quirks an amused eyebrow at her, not the least bit bothered by the wrath on the waterbender's face.
"As interesting as I find this, I'm hardly responsible for your mother's death. That honour belongs to your dad for wanting to protect this runt or I suppose the runt himself." The firebender elaborates as she points her thumb towards me. I swallow when Katara's eyes meets mine and her face screws up with pure hurt. I bite the inside of my cheek and skirt my gaze elsewhere as she re-opens her mouth.
"Your father is the one that had her killed." The waterbender utters darkly. Azula shrugs.
"That's true, but it wouldn't have been necessary if it weren't for the airbender. You know what I find funny is that the two people we were looking so long for is actually the same person." The prodigy murmurs with a smirk as she leans down to meet my eye. I glower at her.
"You have me. What do you need Katara for?" I demand as Azula pulls back to tap her chin.
"We need someone to keep you in place. Who better than your little girl here?" Red floods my face at her words.
"She's not my-" I stammer.
"I'm not his!" Katara voices forcefully over me. My eyes slide over to her to find the waterbender absolutely livid and I can't help the prick of dismay at how opposed to the notion she sounded. She must've felt my eyes on her as she turns her head to look at me. Her lips part at my expression and I look away.
"As fun as it is to watch this, I do have other things I need to be doing. For now, take these. The key is for your wrist chackles so you can write properly. Father wants something impressive by evening. Weapons, battle strategies, the whole lot." The firebender orders as she drops some paper, a key and a thick marker into my cell. I stare at them before furrowing my eyebrows and glancing up.
"But it's already evening?" I point out in confusion. Azula grins widely.
"Then you better be quick so-called genius otherwise the girl gets beaten up." The prodigy discloses smoothly as she starts walking away.
"Fight me you coward!" Katara shouts. Azula pauses before turning to face her.
"And why would I want to do that?" The firebender waves off in boredom.
"To prove to you that you're wrong." The waterbender growls, only for the prodigy to snort.
"Nice try, but we're not sparring. See you later waterbender." Azula bids slickly before sauntering off. Stiff silence settles between us. I chew my lip for a moment before opening my mouth.
"Don't." Katara hisses. I snap my jaws closed. "You should've told me." I hear her mutter. I swallow, knowing that I probably should've, 'but what good would that have done except bring her more pain?'
"I'm sorry." I whisper, but she doesn't respond, instead I watch as she shuffles to the furthest end of her cell and gives me her back.
My chest throbs at the action. 'I've grown so accustomed to her always wanting to be near to me, I hadn't considered how much I've come to rely on it.' I swallow again as bile rides up in my throat.
"Katara, I'm sorry." I repeat as desperation leaks into my voice. Again, I'm greeted with deafening silence. I can feel my lips trembling and I don't know why. 'It shouldn't hurt this much. I shouldn't even care. This is what I wanted, right?' I remind myself.
But as I stare at her hunched back with her arms wrapped tightly around her calves, I realise I was just trying to fool myself.
"I didn't want you to be madder at Zuko than you already were. And I didn't think it would change anything." I plead as I shift to my knees and clutch the metal bars that separates our cages.
"Would you just shut your trap hole?!" The waterbender shouts, while still keeping her face turned away from me.
A shaky breath escapes my control as I recall that the only time that Katara has ever been verbally harsh to me was straight after her mother's murder. Otherwise, she's always been so gentle and kind, albeit frustrated at me at times, but never outright mean.
I twist away from her and opt to lean my back against the metal bars as I stare hopelessly at the papers in front of me. I grab the key and unlock the chackle that kept me tied to the metal bar and silently push it across towards Katara. She doesn't move for several moments. Eventually she picks it up and unlocks her chain, but I receive no other response from her.
With a shaky hand I grab the marker. I stare at it for an age as my mind goes blank. 'War? I know nothing about war.' I think irritably, but when I glimpse behind me at the unmoving girl, I know I have to write something. For her sake. I close my eyes briefly before bringing my hand to the paper.
As thoughts of war swirl in my mind, I feel as if I'm taken into another moment in time. Long ago, in a place of ruin where I can almost hear the explosions, large heavy tanks rolling in, war balloons and planes dropping bombs. So much tortured screaming and agony. Families cruelly ripped apart as surviving members mourn over charcoaled remains. Pavements coated in hot, red, sticky blood as the world is engulfed in flames.
I feel my body becoming flushed as I stare at the almost lifelike display in my mind. As if I actually witnessed such a travesty. Or maybe I have. Roku once said that he saw memories from the Avatar before him. 'Is this what this?' I wonder as a stare at the destruction before me. A piercing scream cuts through the fire. A girl. Wailing for her mother. Begging her to not die.
I slam my hands to either side of my head to rid the image and how sickeningly familiar it is to my own experience. Vomit forces its way up my oesophagus, but I hold it back, not wanting to draw Katara's attention.
My hand is shaking uncontrollably as I try to press the tip of the pen onto the sheet of paper. The marker slips past my fingers. 'I can't do this. Not after what I've seen. If this was what happened when Roku first fought the Fire Nation royals then I can't allow myself to be a tool for so much death.' Again, I turn to look at Katara who still hasn't budged from her rigid position. 'But I can't let them hurt her.'
A heavy pressure pushes against my ribcage, trying to split it open as my precious air escapes my lungs. 'What do I do?' I think in a panic. 'Ok, calm down. I can...' My eyes widen as an idea hits me. 'I can draw up schematics that have a fault or two in them! They won't notice till later, by which time we'll have escaped.' I silently decide and start drawing flawed war machinery that I've read in engineering books. I'm on my third one when I hear a voice.
"Aang." I look up, but Katara is still not looking at me and with a frown I turn my head to either side, looking for a source of the voice, but find none. "It's Roku, I've managed to forge a connection for us to speak. Hakoda contacted me and told me what happened." I balk when I realise the voice is in my head, coming from the older Avatar.
"You can do that?!" I mutter to myself.
"Only once I've got to know you. I'm going to use our connection to locate you. Don't do anything rash." My guardian instructs as I feel his presence ebbing away.
"Wait, how long..." I trail off when I can no longer sense him. 'Dang it.' I curse as I blow out a frustrated breath.
"Were you just talking to yourself?" I blink at the feminine voice and turn to find Katara frowning at me, but her face is still angled away slightly, as if ready to turn away at any moment.
"No!" I argue. She scrutinises me for a moment, as if expecting me to elaborate, but when she sees no words are forthcoming from me she resumes her prior position with her back towards me. I chew my lip before crossing my legs. "Help is coming." I whisper. I watch as her shoulder blades bunch up together as she straightens her back.
"How do you know?" She asks. I part my lips, knowing that the abilities of the Avatar is a heavily guarded secret for a reason.
"I just know." I mumble, sounding just as unconvinced with my answer as I feel.
"Continue lying to me, it doesn't matter anyway." I hear her mutter followed by a sad sigh. I bite the inside of my cheek as I gaze at her mournfully. An apology is already on the tip of my tongue, but I catch myself on the last second, knowing it will do nothing but irritate her further.
"I...I don't mean to. I'm just..." I trail off with a swallow as I rest my back against the metal bars once more. "...I'm not used to sharing things. I haven't been close to someone in my age range in so long. I...I guess I've forgotten what I'm meant to do." I confess in a whisper. A light exhale greets my ears as Katara rotates in her spot until she meets my eyes. Her lips part, as if ready to say something, but instead she just casts a glance to the side.
"You really haven't let anyone in for that long?" She asks after an age as her blue orbs flicker briefly to meet my stormy ones.
"Not until you." I murmur with a twitch of my lips as a twinge of affection pricks at me. The waterbender's cheeks flush as she glances away. A quiet cough startles the two of us from...whatever was going on between us.
When I turn my head to look at who the cough belonged to, I freeze. With agape jaws I stare at the familiar man with his thick messy black hair and piercing amber irises. Slowly, I get to my feet and walk as close to the man that I dare that's still within the limits of my cell.
A man whom I've only ever caught brief flashes of over the last few years. Despite the years, he looks exactly how my 8-year-old memory remembers him, save for a few grey hair strands that weren't there before.
"Kuzon." I dare to whisper as he rubs the back of his neck before giving me an awkward half wave.
"It's been a while Sport." He greets with a tip of his head. A lump settles into the pit of my stomach as I continue to stare at the man. I can hear Katara also getting to her feet as she glances unsurely between me and Kuzon.
"Aang, who's that?" She asks in a hushed whisper, but I don't dare take my eyes off the firebender as I answer.
"He's the man that started all of this." I respond rigidly as my tone takes on a hard edge. Kuzon cringes as he drops the hand from his neck to his side while Katara just frowns at me in confusion.
"I guess I shouldn't have expected any less hostility." I hear him mutter and instantly a scowl contorts my features.
"Any less?! You killed my parents!" I growl which elicits a sharp intake of breath from the waterbender. But the firebender is shaking his head with his hands out in front of him.
"I didn't start the fire!" He argues as he takes a step towards me. The urge to bend a rush of air at him is too tempting.
"Liar! I saw you that day." I grit back, but the man shakes his head once more.
"I was the one that called the fire brigade. Another gang member had set the fire. It wasn't me." Kuzon insists as he takes another step towards me, close enough that I could reach through the bars and grab him if I dared.
"Then why didn't you save them!" I cry out as I clench a hand around the metal bar of my cell. At this, the man looks away, ashamed.
"I was afraid they'd kill me if I intervened. It was wrong and I know it." The firebender confesses in shame. My eyes harden.
"My Dad was your best friend and you just let him die. Not only him, but also my Mum who had nothing to do with any of this! How could you?! I trusted you and you betrayed us. I loved you like family!" I yell and liberate my restraint as I bend the man back with a blizzard of air. I watch as he loses his footing and slides a few paces back on his stomach. His hands clench into fists as he pushes himself onto his knees.
"Don't you think I knew that? I wasn't as brave as your father. I wasn't willing to risk my life for his. It was stupid." He berates himself, but it does little to ease my burning temper.
"No, it was foolish for you to tell the Triple Z about me. You ruined everything!" I bellow as my eyes glow white and I hurtle another wave of air at the man which he narrowly ducks.
"I've tried protecting you ever since! I watched over you and despite knowing your location, I never told them. And I was the one who warned the monks to relocate you when the gang discovered your location!" He babbles, but his words just pushes me into a deeper frenzy.
"You were trying to make up for your mistakes! But all it led to with more death. You're the reason I've had to face all of this." I shout as the ground beneath me starts to tremble. I'm just about to lash out when a hand grips my wrist tightly.
"Aang, stop! This isn't you!" Katara yells as she reaches out to hold my forearm with her other hand
"You don't know me!" I retort acidly as my voice thunders.
"I do know you! I know your smile never quite reaches your eyes. I know you skateboard because it makes you feel free. I know you think everything is your fault. It may not have been long since we first met, but that doesn't mean it matters any less because it feels like I've known you my whole life." The waterbender argues. I try to shake her off me.
"Katara stop!" I shout as I try to shake off the effect of her words.
"No, I won't stop! I won't stop trying to save you from yourself. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere." The pure love and determination in those words has me snapping out of the Avatar State. As soon as my feet return to the ground my knees buckle underneath me as tears leak past my eyelids. Arms wrap themselves around me as best they can through the bars that separates us.
"I'm sorry I'm such a mess." I choke out as the healer keeps me close.
"You're my mess and I love you the way you are." Katara murmurs soothingly as she rubs my back. My heart skips a beat at those words as the rest of body tenses up. The girl must've realised what she said as she starts to withdraw. "I mean...I..." She stammers, but I reach out and pull her back towards me.
"I...love you too." I whisper. Fear grips me at having spoken the words I've been refusing to acknowledge for the last few weeks. But the hurt I've seen on her face time and time again, all inflicted by me has me wanting to do anything I can to rectify, even if it means exposing my heart.
"How cute." Ice floods my veins at the cold masculine voice as I detach myself from the girl and turn around to meet Gyatso's killer as he eyes me with a cruel smirk. "Here I was worried you were going to escape with all that extra power, but it looks like the girl is your crutch." Yon Rha goads while Kuzon quietly slips away in the background before Yon Rha notices. I scowl.
"Katara isn't a crutch, she's my strength." I fire back with clenched fists. I sense the waterbender's warm gaze on me briefly before she turns her attention to her mother's murderer.
"I couldn't do anything before with my Dad's life on the line, but I can now." Katara vows dangerously. I'm not quick enough to stop her when she condenses a small icicle from the air and fires it right at the man's face. He leans back just in time, but not before it nicks his cheek. Yon Rha growls and bends a whip of fire into his hand. My eyes widen when I see him bend his arm back, ready to strike the waterbender with it. Without thought, I loudly clap my hands together, sending a burst of air to topple the man to the ground.
"Don't you dare." I hiss as the firebender wipes at his mouth where a small trickle of blood drips from his chin, curtsey of Katara's icicle, before pushing himself back onto his feet while he glowers at me.
"You'll regret that." Yon Rha threatens as he spits at the floor before spinning on his heels and marching away. I release a sigh of relief and wilt back.
"Coward." Katara insults bitterly as soon as he's out of earshot. I clench my jaws and twist round to face her.
"You shouldn't have done that. We're at their mercy here." I rebuke, surprising the girl before she crosses her arms across her chest.
"He deserves a lot worse than a small cut." She mutters. My body goes rigid at the venom in her voice. 'I might not be able to sway her sense of vengeance, but maybe I can appeal to her better judgement.' I think to myself as I force my body to relax.
"You're justifiably angry, I get it. But Katara, he was about to hurt you with a whip of fire. We have to be careful. I was wrong to get angry earlier, so don't copy my mistake." I reason. Her shoulders sag slightly as she tips her head forward in regret.
"You're right. I'm sorry. Just seeing him has my blood boiling. He killed her and he doesn't even care. It makes me so angry." The waterbender voices, sounding frighteningly resentful. I gulp and nod my head in understanding.
"I know, but this isn't the time to lash out. Wait, until someone comes for us and then he'll be punished according to the law." I remind calmly. Her features darken for a brief moment, but it's gone too quickly for me to comment on it.
"Fine." She mumbles, sounding anything but convinced. Before I can argue further, the lights in the basement are cut off, plunging us into darkness.
"That's it for today. Members go home and return tomorrow at the crack of dawn." A voice booms from a loudspeaker. I quirk an eyebrow at the announcement.
"Guess we're spending the night here." I say dryly as Katara slides down the metal bars till she's seated back on the ground and huddling her knees to her chest.
"I guess so." She replies with a smile that doesn't quite reach eyes. I swallow, feeling guilty for being the reason I've taken her away from her home.
"I think one of us should keep watch while the other is awake. Just in case something happens." I suggest. The girl squints at me before nodding.
"Ok, I'll go first." The waterbender offers, but I shake my head.
"No, it's fine. I'll stay up." I wave off, but the woman snorts.
"I don't trust you to to wake me up when it's my turn. Although..." Katara trails off as she chews her lip. I raise an eyebrow at her.
"What?" I ask and to my surprise she shuffles towards me and stretches a hand towards the makeshift bandage around my waist. I catch the slight hitch in her breathing as she drops her hand back.
"You're still bleeding quite a bit. I don't want you drifting off. Are you not feeling lightheaded at all?" Katara asks as she looks up at me. I open my mouth with the intention to reassure her, but when her hand reaches through the gap in the bars to rest on my cheek, I know I can't lie to her.
"I do have a bit of a headache." I admit, but when I see the concern radiating from her, I instantly regret it.
"I'm worried you'll lose too much blood if we keep waiting to be rescued or by the time we manage to nick the keys it might be too late." The waterbender murmurs as she chews her lip anxiously.
"I'm sure I'll be ok." I try to reassure, but all it earns me is being on the receiving end of a glower.
"I do medicine, remember? This isn't good, we need to close the wound. If there was just enough water in the air I'd be able to..." The healer mutters to herself as her eyes dart around the compound.
"Well, there's always the old-fashioned way." I pipe up, earning the girl's attention as she frowns at me.
"We don't have a suture needle to stitch you up." Katara points out blandly. I give her a half smile.
"I meant, cauterizing." As soon as the words leave my lips, the waterbender's face pales and her hand drops from my cheek.
"No way on earth am I allowing you to do that!" Katara hisses.
"But you're right. I'll bleed out by the time we figure out a way to get out of this mess." I insist, strangely warming up to the idea, if anything to stop the horrible sticky sensation I feel throbbing at my midline.
"What with? There's no cauterizing blades around here." The healer voices, sounding somewhat panicked. I give her a sheepish grin.
"I can firebend, remember? I mean, I don't like using it, but this will be quick." I mutter as I stare down at my open palm. 'All it takes is to feel the heat and my hand will light up.' I silently think to myself.
"Do you have any idea how painful that would be?!" Katara argues vehemently, her voice going up an octave as she clenches her hands. My lips part at the fear in her eyes. I release a quiet sigh and undo the knot of the jacket regardless.
"Pain is hardly a stranger to me." I mumble as I rest a hand on my abdomen. I nearly gag at the wet feeling of liquid against my fingers. Just before I can light up my hand, fingers grasp my wrist tightly.
"Aang, don't." Katara pleads as a look of pain enters her blue irises. Suddenly it dawns on me why she's so against this. 'She thinks I'm just using this as another way to punish myself.' I bite the inside of my cheek. 'Am I?' I purse my lips. 'Maybe a little. But at least this punishment has a positive outcome. I can't die and leave Katara to suffer for my mistakes.'
I take a deep breath and I pull her hand back, before lighting up my hand. The flames lick away at my skin as I bite my tongue to hold off a scream. The fire is so much more painful than giving myself a simple cut. I jerk my hand back, unable to withstand the searing agony any longer. I clench my hand, cutting off the fire as gasps of pain escapes me.
A bright light greets me a moment later and with it the pain ebbs away slightly. Not enough to disappear, but enough for me to open my eyes to find Katara's face hovering nearby as her hand remains rested against my stomach. I furrow my eyebrows in confusion.
"What...?" I start, prompting the girl to speak up.
"I used your sweat to try and heal you. But it wasn't much and it's still going to leave a huge scar." She explains before dropping her head. "Jerk." I hear her mutter angrily, but I can't help but give her a faint smile.
"It worked, didn't it?" I say cheekily which earns me the death glare.
"You're impossible." Katara growls as her hand clenches into a fist against my abdomen. My lips continue to twitch upwards as I reach down to rest a hand on top of hers.
"I'm sorry." I murmur, giving her hand a squeeze. I'm just about to withdraw it when her free hand drops on top of it.
"Don't ever do something like that again." The waterbender threatens, but her voice wobbles slightly, rendering the effect of her words as no more than a scared plea. I resist the urge to say it's fine and just squeeze her hands silently.
When the water tribe girl notices that I'm not going to promise anything any time soon, she sighs and slips her hands from underneath mine before leaning her back against the cell wall.
"Rest. I'll take the first watch." Katara whispers as she rests her chin on top of her bent knee. Despite my reservations, I nod, not wanting to upset the healer any further. I rest the back of my head against one of the metal rods. It's not long till my eyelids drift to a close and I find myself falling into the realm of sleep.
Dream-state:
I'm standing in a white empty plane. There's nothing here, but me. With a hesitant step, I walk forward, unsure of where I am or why I'm here.
"Is anyone here?" I shout, but I'm greeted with no response. I sigh. 'Of course, I'm alone. What did I expect?' I blow out a sad breath and watch as the air flutters ahead of me before dissipating.
"Aang?" I blink at hearing my name and turn round to find Katara standing in front of me.
"Katara?" I voice with a frown and take a few steps towards her.
"I need you." The girl echoes. My feet falter as I stare at her.
"I'm not sure about that." I mutter, but her face becomes more desperate.
"No, I need you now. Wake up!" The waterbender pleads. Something in her voice pulls the air from my lungs as I gape at her.
"What?" I utter dumbly.
"Wake up!" She shouts and the white plane around me disappears.
Reality:
I jerk my head forward, banging my elbow against one of the metal poles as my eyes snap open in anxiety and my heart thuds heavily against my chest. 'That felt too intense and real to be a dream.' I think to myself as I run a hand through my hair. My eyes flicker to the cell next to me, but my heart drops when I can't see the waterbender.
"Katara?" I call out in the darkness as I shuffle to the edge of my cell in the hopes that maybe she's obscured in the darkness, but from the single moonlight beam that streams through a high window, I find her cell empty.
I jump to my feet, cringing at the pain that greets me with the sudden movement, but I ignore it and grab hold of the metal bars as worry envelops me. 'Where on earth is she?! Did she escape? No. She'd have woken me up if she had. Did they...did they take her?' I wonder as ice crawls down my spine.
And then I hear it. A grunt. The sound of a whip. Then a gasp of pain. My eyes widen in fear as my hands tighten around the bars until my knuckles go white. The sounds repeat, but this time a sharp screech pierces the otherwise silent compound. I don't think, only act as my hands burn bright red. I feel the metal melting beneath my hands, but I'm not in control. The more powerful part of me is never in control.
Once there's enough space for me to squeeze through, I screw my eyes shut, willing the anger away. It takes several moments before my tattoos stops glowing, but the tug of the Avatar State remains just beneath the surface, threatening to break out and wreak havoc.
I sprint towards the sounds, ignoring the throbbing from my abdomen as I run. My feet skid to an abrupt halt at the image before me. Katara is tied up with her arms above her head, her clothes are singed in multiple areas while Yon Rha stands over her with a whip of fire in his hands.
The rage takes over and the Avatar State breaks free from my fragile hold on it. Air is thrust from my hands towards the criminal who turns around just in time to be knocked right into the wall a metre away from Katara. I'm just about to blast another round of air, until the man points to the side. My glowing eyes snaps to the side to find a rifle trained on Katara. The sight has me tumbling out of the Avatar State in seconds as I lift my hands up in surrender. The sight makes Yon Rha smirk as he pushes himself up to his feet and spits some of his blood onto the ground.
"See, I told you that you would pay for that." The murderer voices smugly. Hatred burns through me, but my eyes slide over to the heaving waterbender as she struggles to stay on her feet. When she catches me watching, she tries to reassure me with her eyes, as if saying it's ok. But it's not. From where her clothes has been singed there are nasty looking burns around her collarbone, left side and right calf. Burns that will probably scar. My guilt and anger wage war against each other at the sight.
"You monster." I growl while clenching my hands.
"Go back to your cell filthy Airbender and I won't kill her." Yon Rha waves off smoothly with a disgusting glint in his eye.
I take a threatening step forward, but freeze when I hear the release of the safety trigger as the other masked gang member takes several steps closer, his gun never wavering from Katara. My stomach twists, but before I can stammer a word out the gang member's eyes suddenly widen before he collapses in his spot. I stare at the unconscious body before flickering my eyes up. My jaws drop at who I find standing before me.
"Yon Rha, you explicitly went against my orders." Azula expresses, her tone chilling as she steps over the unconscious body. The whip from the criminal's hand disappears as his face pales.
"P-Princess A-Azula! I was...they were trying to escape! I was stopping them!" Yon Rha splutters, only to be met with the cool gaze of the firebending prodigy.
"Oh, and I suppose you happened to have enough time to tie up the peasant girl and burn her all while the most powerful bender in the world stood by and did nothing?" Azula notes sarcastically as she continues to walk towards Yon Rha and Katara. I swallow, confused on what's going on.
"Yes!" The man stutters. Big mistake. In one sweep the firebendering girl grabs the man's arm and sears it with her renowned blue fire. I gape at the scene.
"Lie to me again and I'll burn more than your arm." Azula threatens with slit eyes as she steps back and with one slash, she cuts the rope tying Katara up. The waterbender sways and I rush to her side.
"Thanks." Katara whispers as she leans heavily against me with one arm around my shoulders. I bite the inside of my cheek and wrap an arm around her waist to keep her upright.
"I'm sorry Princess Azula, I'll never do it again!" Yon Rha grovels at her feet.
"See to it that you won't. If so, I'll cut you down quicker than you can breathe. The Avatar is not to be harmed and the water tribe peasant is only to be harmed if the boy does not follow orders. Is that understood or do I need to repeat myself a third time?" The prodigy orders. The man nods his head vigorously.
"No. I understand." Yon Rha says between grit teeth.
"Good, because I don't like repeating myself." Azula utters coldly. "Take the two to the other cell that has no bars. You better hope I don't tell my father of your insubordination." The girl hisses before spinning on her heels and sauntering away as if she just didn't save her so-called prisoners.
The man curses under his breath as he pushes us forward. I keep my grip on Katara as we fumble several paces forward before being shoved into another cell, one with nothing but a small window. He slams the door shut and locks it with a key before leaving with a grumble.
Finally, I allow the muscles in my body to relax as I turn to give Katara a thorough scan. She must've felt my gaze as she looks down at me with a half-smile before easing herself off me to lean against the wall behind her as one of her arms remains wrapped around her middle.
"What happened?" I demand as I hover over her in case she loses her balance.
"He took me out of the cell a couple hours after you fell asleep." The waterbender explains as she straightens up, only to grimace. My lips twitch downwards as my eyebrows scrunch tightly together at the look of pain in her face. She catches the expression in mine and tries to wave it off. "Hey don't worry about me, it's just a few burns." Katara soothes with her warm voice, but it takes more than warmth to melt the ice.
"You couldn't have called out for me? Woke me up or something?" I fire out as guilt gnaws at my insides while my eyes are painfully fixed on the angry looking burn just above her collarbone. I'm just about to reach out and touch it when I catch myself.
"His friend had a gun trained on you. I didn't want to risk them hurting you. Besides, a confrontation was long overdue. It just wasn't in my favour with how dry the air is in here." The waterbender explains as she pushes herself off the wall to stand up properly, but her arm remains tucked around her midline.
I can't stop myself; I reach out and pluck her arm back to reveal a long, thick diagonal red line. My lips tremble at the sight when I realise that I failed in protecting her. 'She wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for me.' I think to myself as my eyes burn with tears. The girl's face drops when she sees my expression and instantly steps forward into my personal space to grasp at my forearms lightly.
"Hey, it's ok. It's just a burn. Give me some water and I'll be healed in no time." Katara reassures kindly as her eyes crinkle with reassurance. But she's not fooling me.
"Don't lie to me. I know how healing works. All it does is speed up the healing process, it doesn't reverse permanently damaged tissue, that's why scars don't disappear with waterbending. And most of your burns are bad enough that it will scar." I voice statically as I feel like smashing my head against the brick wall behind me. Her reassuring smile falls as she chews her lip.
"Ok so it won't be completely normal, but scars don't bother me. There's no need to be upset." Katara insists as she stretches out a hand towards my cheek, but I abruptly step away from her.
"No need to be upset?! This happened to you because of me! You're here because of me! I should never have let myself get close to you or Sokka. This all my fault." I spit angrily as I fist a tuff of my hair in dismay. Something in the healer's expression shatters as she parts her lips.
"That isn't fair!" She argues as tears line her eyelids. I blink in surprise and stare at her in confusion.
"What?" I echo back as the girl takes a faltering step towards me, but I subconsciously take an anxious step back. Her face screws up with either pain or frustration. Maybe both.
"Don't you know how much it hurts when you say that you regret being friends with me?!" Katara yells, her voice cracking towards the end is when I realise her expression is a mixture of physical and emotional hurt. My lips move wordlessly for a few moments before I work up the courage to speak up.
"I'll happily regret ever meeting you if it means you're safe." I retort so firmly that she takes a step away from me. The way her face breaks, has my heart cracking at the cruelty of my words, but her safety is so much more important to me than how comfortable she makes me feel. 'I've been selfish before, running when I should've saved all those kids. I refuse to be selfish again.'
"You can't mean that." She whispers thickly. I swallow, unable to respond. Instead, I just turn and give her my back. "Aang!" I flinch at the choking sound coming from her throat as she grabs my arm, but I shake her off.
"We need to stop talking to each other. The sooner they see that we aren't as close as they think we are, they'll stop using you as leverage. Maybe I can get them to release you." I think aloud.
"Aa-" I hear her start, but I'm too consumed in my thoughts to really pay attention.
"Surely kidnapping the daughter of a councilman is a more dangerous risk than they're willing to accept." I mumble to myself as I rest a hand under my chin in thought.
"But...!" The woman tries to interject, but I pay her no heed.
"If they drop you off somewhere, then the police would be less inclined to use up their strained resources on finding some orphan boy." I regale as my mind jumps several hundred miles an hour to come up with some form of a plan that can save her. A sharp punch to my shoulder is what stops me in my tracks as I release a yelp and turn to eye the angry woman wearily.
"Don't you even dare." The waterbender threatens icily, but it isn't the threat that has me pausing. No. It's the trek of tears sliding down her face. My heart lurches at the sight. "I'm not leaving you." She voices stubbornly. I bite my tongue hard.
"This isn't about what you want! It's about keeping you safe! Look at what they did to you." I point out as I raise a hand and graze my knuckles against her collarbone, just shy from one the marks, but the girl still flinches. "These...burns...I won't forgive myself if something worse happens." I whisper as my face crumples at her response of pain from my touch. Katara's features soften as she gazes at me.
"Aang..." She trails off, unsure of what to say.
"Just let me handle this." I insist forcefully as I feel my face hardening and with swift feet, I go to the far side of the cell, creating as much distance as physically possible between us, before sitting down with my back to her. But even from here I can hear her shaky breath, as if trying to stop herself from crying, but a brief sob escapes past her lips anyways.
The organ in my chest thumps frantically against my ribcage, threatening to burst out so it could go and comfort her. Tell her that I didn't mean any of it. That I'm sorry. I raise a fist and pound it firmly against my sternum when I hear the waterbender slide against the wall till she hits the ground with a quiet thump as another quiet sob escapes her.
The despair from her side of the room is so palpable that I almost lean forward to vomit. 'No. I'm doing this for her. Being cold is the only way I can save her. And I have to save her.' I try to convince myself, but my hand clenches into fists in my lap at the thought that I'm inflicting pain in another form.
I close my eyes as I try to control my raspy breathing, but when I do, that image from my dream comes and haunts me. 'Was that a coincidence? It felt so real. Did Katara really contact me during my sleep somehow?' I'm almost tempted to turn around and ask, but I remain rigid. 'Its just a coincidence.' I insist silently, but a small part of me feels otherwise as I continue to listen to the girl's soft crying while my heart screams at me to do something. But like the airbender I am, I deflect my feelings on the matter and screw my eyes shut as I try to block out the sound.
A/N: Ouch. That last bit was pain. Think that's my favourite part of the chapter lol. I hope this chapter didn't come across as messy or abrupt. I was reading it through and I'm not sure about it. Some parts of it I like and others I feel should be re-done, but I don't have the energy to do so, so hope it wasn't too all over the place. Also, my headcanon is that healing is hard to do with tiny droplets of water, I feel it's something that would require a bit more water to do. Water in the air of a dry, warehouse is probably barely existent I'd say. Also, I know I've been putting a couple new twists on the avatar abilities, but I thought a more modern version would be interesting and hope that's ok with you guys!
Still writing the next chapter, so no idea when it will be done. Hopefully not long, but I hope this chapter has given you enough to continue on XD Thank you for everyone who's being patient with me and leaving such kind words. This is officially my longest story on this site and I couldn't have done it without all your enthusiasm and kindness, so thank you so so much! If you have time, drop me your thoughts of this chapter and I'll see you next time!
5/3/22