Chapter 33

Katara opened her eyes, her first thought of the morning to determine just how bad of a hangover she was nursing. She gently shook her head, experiencing only a mild headache. It seemed as if the excesses of the previous evening had left her largely unaffected. She rose slightly upwards in the bed, letting out a yawn and only then realizing that she was not in her own hotel room, suddenly remembering the reason for it. And she also realized the reason why she found herself having slept in the nude throughout the night, her bathrobe lying discarded next to Yue's bed.

Yue herself was nowhere in sight, but it didn't stop Katara's cheeks from heating up at the memories of the night before. There were sounds coming from the adjacent bathroom, which meant that Yue was probably taking a shower. Katara used the opportunity to quickly put her bikini back on before throwing the bathrobe over her shoulders for good measure. She briefly considered the idea of fleeing back to her own room where she could make better sense of everything that had happened, but before she could put her plan into action, Yue stepped out of the bathroom, wrapped in a large white towel, a smaller towel wrapped around her head.

"Oh!" Yue gasped at the sight of Katara, then blushing. "Good morning," she smiled, coming up to Katara and leaning in to gently kiss her on the cheek. "How are you feeling? Do you have a hangover?"

"I feel pretty good, thanks," Katara replied with a bashful smile. "Only a very mild hangover, I guess."

"Just like me, then," Yue smiled. "All the same, I called the room service and ordered the richest and greasiest items from the breakfast menu for both of us. They should be up here any moment-" she was interrupted by a knock on the doors. "Now," Yue grinned. "Feel free to duck into the bathroom if you're feeling skittish, by the way."

"Yeah, I'll do that," Katara nodded, needing a bathroom visit for more reasons than just to hide from the eyes of gossiping hotel staff. She emerged a few minutes later feeling much refreshed, even if she had decided against taking a shower, not with all of her essentials back in her own room across the hall. Yue had already picked up her tray of food and started on the divinely smelling breakfast, and Katara hesitated no longer, digging into the greasy offerings of eggs, bacon, grilled cheese sandwich and a glass of orange juice.

"So," Yue began after they had been eating in comfortable silence for a while. She looked rather unusually embarrassed and shy. "Do you… want to talk about last night? And where it leaves us?" she asked.

"I assumed that it would leave us being girlfriends," Katara smiled at the other girl. She felt pretty embarrassed herself, though probably for different reasons than Yue. Katara was painfully aware of just how inexperienced she was, and how awkward and clumsy she had been with Yue. Having been more than a little tipsy had definitely helped. But Yue was here and seemingly still wanted to be with her, so maybe she hadn't been too awful. "I must say, you really took me by surprise last night. I had all but given up on hope that I would be able to convince you to walk away from your father," she said, then frowning when she noticed Yue's reaction at her words, her girlfriend freezing and giving her a confused, wide-eyed stare.

"Wait a moment," Yue looked seriously worried now, and it immediately made Katara anxious as well. "Did I say that I was walking away from my father?"

Katara blinked in surprise. She tried to remember Yue's exact words the night before, which was not easy considering their state of inebriation. "Well, I guess not in those exact words," Katara admitted. "But what else could you have meant when you said that you had found a way for us to be together?"

"I… I had something else in mind, actually," Yue managed nervously, setting her plate of food aside. Katara did the same. "I was thinking about still going ahead with the arranged marriage so that I would have access to all of the necessary funds. I was thinking to use them to pay your tuition fees at the Agna Qel'a medical college, and I would also rent a splendorous apartment for you. I'm sure I would be able to find a way for us to see each other regularly."

"In secret, skulking behind closed doors, having to keep our relationship hidden from everyone," Katara summarized. She suddenly felt sick, and not from the hangover. What the fuck had Yue been thinking with this 'plan' of hers? Was she for real? "You're basically asking me to become your secret mistress. Yue, with everything that you know about me and the values I hold dear, did you seriously thought that this would be acceptable to me?"

"I know what you really want, Katara. I want the same, but I can never give it to you," Yue spoke, looking sad. "But I thought that this could be a good compromise. That's what real life is about, Katara, it's about compromising. Our ideal solutions hardly ever materialize."

"Don't patronize me," Katara snapped. She was quickly becoming very upset and angry. "I thought you knew me well enough to realize that I would not compromise about something like this. Either you walk away from your father, or we can't be together, at least not romantically. I will always support you as a friend and you know that… even if I'm really angry with you right now."

"I don't know what to say, Katara," Yue looked quite shattered. "I… I really thought you'd be happy. I don't know why I thought that."

"I'm actually really annoyed that you would assume something like that about me," Katara said, starting to pace back and forth the room, her anger mounting. "And now I'm seriously trying not to jump to the assumption that you ever so conveniently did not explain all of this to me the evening before. I'm really trying to convince myself here that you didn't do all of that just to get me in bed with you."

"What?" Yue looked absolutely shocked, but now also angry. "Now wait a minute here! I wouldn't want to sleep with you just once and then have us fall out like this! I want to be with you long-term, you idiot! How can you assume something so awful about me?"

"Well! It wouldn't be the first time you acted pretty dodgy, would it, Yue?" Katara glared, hands on her hips. "What about that fling with Suki back on Kyoshi Island? And the way you wanted to make out with me right after breaking up with Sokka? You can be pretty ignorant about the feelings of others and that's a fact!"

Yue winced as if she had been punched in the gut. Her anger immediately faded, and instead she began to cry. "Katara, I know… I have fucked it all up again, but please, you have to believe that I didn't mean for it to happen this way," she pleaded, her words interrupted by bouts of hiccupping. "I should have never tried this while we were both plastered, but I needed the courage, alright? I fucked up and I realize that now, but seriously… you can't think I was manipulating you. Can you?"

"I would not have offered to stay with you if I had known this plan of yours in detail, you can be sure of that," Katara snapped. Her expression softened a little at the genuine distress on Yue's face. She didn't think that Yue was faking it. And now that she remembered the events of the previous night more clearly, Katara had to admit that she had jumped to the conclusion a little too quickly, perhaps interpreting Yue's words in a way she had wished them to be heard. "Alright, fine. I take it back, Yue. I don't think you were manipulating me. It was a complete and utter miscommunication."

"Thank you," Yue exclaimed, looking a little more relieved, but still deeply unhappy. "I don't understand why I keep messing up like this, Katara, truly, I don't. I think I wanted to explain everything to you in detail, but after you hit me with that offer to stay the night, I just… I just couldn't think of anything else but that," she explained, blushing furiously.

"Okay, that's fair," Katara was quickly calming down as well, now feeling more regretful than angry. "I guess I made false assumptions and jumped the gun myself. We're both to blame, I suppose. This is why it's probably a bad idea to make these decisions under influence, right?"

"Yeah, no kidding, lesson learned," Yue laughed nervously. "Good grief, imagine if that had happened if either of us were with a guy. Shit, the potential disaster there."

"Ugh," Katara grimaced. She then gave Yue a piercing stare. "But let's be serious for a moment, Yue. I love you, I still do, but the only way we can be together is openly, without hiding from the world. If that can only happen through you walking away from your father, well, that's my stipulation and I'm not backing down from it."

"Understood," Yue nodded somberly. "You know I can't promise you that, right?"

"Then we remain friends," Katara smiled, despite her heart being stabbed and pierced by the pain of her long-cherished dreams falling apart. It had been nice to live the dream for about ten hours or so – and she had slept through most of that, too. "Also, wow… my first official relationship and it lasted less than a day. Yay, go me."

"Sorry," Yue mumbled. "Can we ever go back to how we used to be, after this?" she asked nervously.

"I don't know… I hope so," Katara sighed. "We have to try, for our own sake and for the sake of the others. They are your friends as much as they are mine. If one of us stops hanging out with the group, things will become really awkward. And Yue, I really want you to remain a part of the group. This isn't something that we can't get past, okay?" she said, trying to sound reassuring. Sure, things would probably be very strained between them, but really, nothing that horrible had happened, right? She had slept with Yue, sure, but… she had always wanted to sleep with Yue. She had simply wanted for it to happen under different, happier and more honest circumstances.

"I'm relieved to hear you say that, Kat," Yue sighed. "Still, I don't think I can face our friends today and be my normal fun-loving self."

"I can cover for you and tell them that your hangover is really bad," Katara offered. "But you're joining us again tomorrow, am I understood? I'm not taking no for an answer here."

"Understood, boss babe," Yue managed a weak smile. "Again… I'm really sorry it all happened the way it did. But let's try and work through this awkwardness, like you said. I'll be right back hanging out with you tomorrow, it's a promise."

"Alright, Yue," Katara also smiled as she turned to leave. She really didn't want to hold on to her anger at the other girl. It was just a stupid drunk misunderstanding, a case of complete miscommunication. She couldn't let something like that destroy years of friendship because it still remained too precious to her.

The embarrassing misunderstanding that had left a profound impact upon Katara's relationship with Yue had also left a similar impression on their performance at the Pai Sho board. They both played badly over the next three rounds, but because they were facing opposition of very different quality, Katara and Yue emerged from this rough patch with drastically differing results. Katara had at first muddled through wins over Kei Lo and On Ji Takeda which proved more complicated than necessary, but at least she had maintained her spotless record. That spotless record was ruined in the sixth round, however, when Teo Guyuk managed to force her into a draw.

Yue had been less fortunate with the outcome of her games. She had played badly and lost to Joo Dee in Round 4. She had played better in the next two rounds, but she had been facing Aang and Azula, and it hadn't been enough, so Yue was now on a streak of three subsequent losses, putting her right out of the running for the podium. She had slipped to the eight place in the standings, not only behind her four friends, but also trailing Teo, Kori and Joo Dee.

Toph and Aang were tied on five points, after Toph had won three games straight, and Aang had lost his spotless record by suffering defeat at the hands of Teo Guyuk. Katara was half a point ahead of them both and Azula still further ahead with six wins out of six. So far, Azula was absolutely crushing this. It seemed like she was absolutely thriving due to the supportive environment created by her new group of friends, feeling relaxed and confident at the Pai Sho board. Katara wondered how well Azula would be performing if she was still alone and isolated like years ago, but she really didn't want to think about that. Katara could not imagine being so heartless to wish that for her friend. She wanted Azula to be happy, even if it meant that her friend was becoming nigh unstoppable at the Pai Sho board.

The tournament in the Fire Fountain City was different from the previous years in that the games were being played in a large open air terrace, instead of a stuffy, not always well ventilated hall. This was a pleasant change of scenery, especially considering the Fire Nation heat, tempered by the persistent and refreshing breeze coming in from the waterfront. The only drawback for Katara was the increased level of noise coming in from the nearby street, the beach goers, and the flocks of gulls flying overhead. There were also fewer spectators this year because the makeshift stands erected next to the terrace were not very large.

It wasn't until the sixth round that Katara had actually paid any attention to the spectators, but as she stood and waited for the rest of her friends to gather following her draw with Teo, Katara finally looked up at the stands and immediately spotted the familiar face of her brother in the press box. Sokka was wearing a simple blue shirt and orange shorts, standing next to a cute auburn-haired girl with a camera hanging from her neck. She was wearing her baseball hat backwards and had a pencil stuck behind her ear, a pencil that she occasionally used to scribble something down in her notebook. While Katara was waiting for her friends to assemble before returning to Azula's penthouse suite, she decided to walk up to Sokka and his new girlfriend. Now that Katara had noticed them, it felt silly to pretend that she hadn't seen her own brother.

Sokka noticed her approach immediately, poking his girlfriend in the ribs. Suki blinked and then gave Katara an excited wave of the hand. With the press box being a little higher up in the stands, Sokka and Suki swiftly descended down the stairway to meet up with Katara at the ground level, speaking over the barrier that separated the terrace from the spectator stands.

"Hey sis, sorry about that tough break," Sokka smiled at her.

"Mhm, not one of my better games," Katara scowled. In truth, this was her third sub-par game in a row. Her two previous opponents just hadn't been as skilled as Teo to exploit her weakness. She then turned towards his brother's new girlfriend. "Well, since my brother isn't going to bother formally introducing us, I guess I'll do it all by myself. You must be the famous Suki," Katara said, extending her arm to the other girl who accepted it with a very firm and vigorous shake.

"That I am, though definitely not famous, or at least nowhere near as famous as you, Katara," Suki replied with a cheeky grin. Katara decided that she liked this girl, even if she couldn't imagine choosing her over Yue. Which was just as well, because Katara was done thirsting after Sokka's girlfriends, once had been enough already.

"You're still within touching distance of Azula," Sokka said. "Think you can take her, sis?"

Katara chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, I don't know about that, Sokka," she smiled. "Azula is on a roll this year, I'm not sure anyone can stop her."

"Uh… can I print that?" Suki asked with a gleam in her eyes.

"Umm, how about no?" Katara frowned. She suddenly realized that there might be an issue here. Suki seemed like a cute and funny girl, but she was a reporter, probably always chasing a scoop or a hot take. "I don't want Azula to think that I've given up already, because I really haven't," she added.

"Yeah, Suki, can we keep everything with my friends off the record please?" Sokka looked at his girlfriend.

"Sure, babe," Suki smiled at him, making a gesture across her lips. "There, my lips have been sealed."

"Thanks," Katara smiled at Suki, then turning back towards her brother. "Honestly, it's been a little weird this year, not having you hanging out with us, Sokka. It makes me just a bit sad."

"Yeah, I miss the others as well," Sokka nodded. He looked over Katara's shoulder and waved, smiling. Katara glanced behind her, spotting the group of her four friends standing there and patiently waiting for her to finish talking with her brother. They did not seem at all intent on approaching Katara, Sokka and Suki.

"I'm sorry babe, but the fact that you're dating a reporter might be putting them all off," Suki sighed, looking apologetic. "I really didn't want to create this barrier between you and your friends."

"No, I think it's something else, Suki," Sokka shook his head. "I think they're sticking up for Yue. Which is fair enough, I guess, they're free to take whichever side they choose. And I wouldn't want to make it weird for Yue or anyone, really."

"Nobody's taking any sides, Sokka. There are no sides to take," Katara shook her head. "Nobody is upset with you for what happened. Yue certainly isn't upset with you. I mean, she was the one who did the breaking up, and I thought you had forgiven her by now."

"Of course, I have. After I got over that initial shock and anger, I was actually quite relieved. And Suki has been awesome," Sokka grinned, pulling his new girlfriend close for a peck on the cheek. "I didn't think things with Yue would be weird, at least not from my side."

"I didn't think they would be weird on Yue's part, either," Katara said. She then realized that maybe things were weird because of Yue's brief fling with Suki. Katara had no idea whether Suki had told Sokka about what had happened, so perhaps she needed to keep her mouth shut about that. Besides, when speaking about things being weird, she had just slept with her brother's ex she had been thirsting after for years. Yeah, maybe right now hanging out in one big group would be just a little too awkward for all of them. "Anyway, at least come to the after-party, alright? I'll put your name down to make sure you're allowed to enter."

"Oh, you would? I heard that the after-party is going to be held in that cool downtown cocktail bar that Suki and I went to a few days ago," Sokka looked excited. "I'd love to go and hopefully toast your victory, Kat."

"Well, we'll see just what you get to toast," Katara smiled, then looking at Suki. "You're welcome too, of course, that goes without saying. Just… leave that camera behind, alright?"

"Understood, and that won't be a problem," Suki smiled brightly. "Thanks for stopping by, Katara. It was lovely to meet you after all this time."

"Yes, likewise," Katara nodded. "I'll see you both later," she added before turning to leave.

It was late in the afternoon following the sixth round of the tournament, and Azula was once again hosting a somewhat wild party for her group of friends at the penthouse suite. It was still too early in the day for the booze to be brought out, but it most certainly would be flowing eventually, considering tomorrow was the second off day of the tournament. Azula was relieved that they hadn't started to celebrate properly, because she had just received a phone call from the Sozin's Island estate, Azula's father calling to check up on her.

The conversation had felt a little disturbing. Ozai had praised Azula about her progress, sounding certain that she was well on her way to claim the top spot. Ozai had also urged her not to relax, adding that he would be disappointed if she missed out this year after coming so close. But there had been no clear threats of what would happen should she fail. In fact, the conversation had been almost sickeningly sweet, with Ozai using words such as 'honey' and calling her 'precious'. Combined with the massive bouquet of flowers he had sent earlier in the morning, Azula felt seriously disturbed by her father's attitude. She was starting to think that she actually preferred the berating and the physical violence to what all this caring and tenderness was starting to point towards.

Having finally gotten off the phone with Ozai, Azula took a while to steady her nerves, only then noticing that Katara had walked back inside after her, standing by the bar and fixing herself a drink. She seemed to have been standing there for quite a while, however, and Azula realized that Katara must have been trying to listen in on her phone conversation with Ozai. "Is everything alright?" Katara asked immediately as Azula went to rejoin her at the bar, further incriminating herself.

"Why wouldn't everything be alright?" Azula shrugged. She had used the brief moment of time well to recompose herself and so was able to lie convincingly. "Honestly, Katara, I thought you were above listening in on other people's conversations."

Katara turned red in the face. "Sorry," she said apologetically. "But you know how worried I am for you and the way things stand with your father."

"There's no reason for you to worry, Katara, seriously," Azula sighed. "I have things well under control. You'll soon see for yourself." She really had nothing under control. Her father's change of attitude was ominous and she had no idea how to protect herself from what it was all pointing towards. She still did not dare to put into words or even thoughts that which she was starting to suspect her father of planning. A part of her still couldn't believe it despite all the warning signs.

"Spirits, you're just like Yue, or even worse than her," Katara exclaimed in frustration. "It's like both of you don't realize just what this will do to you!"

Azula merely offered a neutral smile in response, sensing an opportunity to ask Katara something that had been bothering her for a few days now. Azula thought that it was weird how Yue had skipped a day of hanging out with them, and she hadn't believed the hangover excuse for a moment. And when Yue rejoined them the next day, she was not her usual self, appearing distant and subdued, rarely smiling. Katara's mood had also dropped considerably. Although she remained just as affectionate with Azula, Toph and Aang, her interactions with Yue had felt tense. On top of all that, the level of play of both Katara and Yue had dropped off considerably, and it was particularly evident in Yue's case. Something had happened between the two girls, Azula could sense it quite clearly. She was good at spotting these nuances in the emotional states of other people, but she wasn't quite so good when it came to her own feelings. In any case, she needed to know what had happened.

"Speaking of Yue," Azula said in a meaningful tone. Katara immediately looked startled. "What's going on between you two?" she demanded to know.

"I've no idea what you're talking about," Katara attempted to lie. It was an embarrassingly pathetic effort, just as Azula had expected it to be. Katara was quite simply a terrible liar.

"I'm being serious here," Azula sighed. "Are you mad at Yue because she kissed me during that truth or dare?"

"What? No! I mean… I thought it was a little weird, but… no, I'm not mad about that," Katara shook her head. "Alright, so… we had a misunderstanding. But we're going to be okay, I think."

"It must have been some misunderstanding," Azula remarked.

Katara looked at her and frowned. "Why should I tell you more when you're clearly holding back about how things are with your father?" she asked.

"Because there's not much to tell you about, Katara," Azula exclaimed in frustration. Katara looked adamant, however. It seemed that Azula would have to come up with at least something. "Seriously, I've been trying to be as obedient as I possibly can. I'm doing everything to keep my father happy. In the meanwhile, I'm trying to find something incriminating I could threaten him with in exchange for my freedom."

"Something incriminating? Like what?" Katara asked. She was looking worried, just what Azula had wanted to avoid. And this was without Azula even mentioning her horrible and growing realization that Ozai was harboring some sick and wrong intentions towards her. "Isn't that really dangerous?"

"What, you thought that there would be a way for me to walk away from my father that wouldn't be dangerous?" Azula rolled her eyes. "Do you want me to share my father's shady business dealings or his involvement with the criminal underworld? Do you really want me to make you an accomplice and a target? My father might hesitate when it comes to me, but he won't spare another thought when it comes to you. Will you finally understand and accept that I can't share everything with you? If anything happens to you because of what I've told you-" Azula cut herself off before she could say anything else. She was getting far too upset and emotional, and she needed to calm down.

Fortunately, her words appeared to have connected with Katara. The Water Tribe girl looked more than a little spooked. "Alright, Azula… I'll stop pressing you for details. I just wanted to be sure that you're serious about making this break from your father," Katara spoke quietly. "I'm really sorry for pushing you."

"It's alright," Azula managed a smile. "I know that you just can't sit idle. You're a moral busybody, but I l-… like you for it." Azula really hoped that Katara hadn't caught her slight stutter there. It seemed as if she had missed it. "Anyway, you owe me an explanation about Yue."

Katara chuckled bitterly and shook her head. "It was just a stupid misunderstanding, really," she sighed. "I've been in love with Yue for years now, you see."

"Oh," was all that Azula could manage in a small voice. This was what she had wanted to hear, wasn't it? That Katara wasn't into her, because that would seriously endanger her friend. This was a good thing, right?

"Yeah, and a couple of days ago Yue told me that she loves me back," Katara continued. "But for some reason, I assumed that it meant that she was going to leave her father in order to be with me, which wasn't what she had meant at all. She wasn't very clear about it, and that's where the misunderstanding came from. We only cleared things up after we had already… well, gotten together," she finished, red in the face.

"Oh… wow," Azula said quietly. If this was a positive development, Azula wondered why it hurt so much. Something seemed to be growing within her chest, a tight and uncomfortable ball of suffocating emotions. She needed to do something to get rid of it, quickly. "So where does that leave you and Yue?" she asked.

"Back to square one of being best friends," Katara smiled, a little bitterly. "I still love her, of course. But I can only be with her if she walks away from her father."

"Well, it's good to know that I'm not the only rich girl you're trying to convince to walk away from her inheritance," Azula said. "What am I, your Plan B, perhaps?"

"What? How can you say that?" Katara glared at her, looking genuinely upset. "You're not my Plan B or Plan Anything. I thought you were one of my dearest friends and I was trying to help you get out of a terrible situation in which you were being abused! I can't believe you would suspect me of having some selfish goal here. You really are something, Azula."

"Well, I suppose it doesn't really make sense for you to try and get into Yue's or my pants after we've been disinherited," Azula shrugged.

"Oh, so I'm not a manipulative mastermind. Thank you so much for that compliment, Azula," Katara snorted, slamming her glass on the counter and turning to walk away, though she looked more exasperated than actually angry.

Azula didn't follow Katara right away. The revelation that Katara was in love with Yue was still playing merry havoc with her emotions, threatening to devastate her with a flood of tears. Azula quickly scanned the array of bottles for something stronger, pouring a generous shot of brandy and then gulping it down in one go. It burned her throat as it went down the hatch, spreading comforting warmth through her and clearing some of those upsetting feelings in her chest. It was time to put a brave and carefree smile back on her face, get back out there and resume the role of the awesome and filthy rich friend who was definitely too cool and aloof to feel upset about the girl she loved being in love with someone else.

Next chapter: The final stages of the tournament. Surely Azula isn't going to throw it away this year, right?