Zuko was once again pacing nervously. He clutched his dao swords in a tight grip as he walked up and down the length of the gymnasium. Toph had promised to persuade Sokka to come to this training match but Zuko wasn't convinced that he'd actually show. It was three minutes past the time he'd told Sokka to meet him here and Zuko was silently panicking and rehearsing the embarrassing moment he would have to explain his sudden availability to his ministers. As he continued to pace he mouthed along with the imaginary conversation he was having. Just as he gave an elaborate answer to Minister Sato that yes it is very embarrassing for the crown prince to be stood up, accompanied by wild hand gestures, he heard a pointed cough from the doors behind him. Flushing dark red he turned to see Sokka, holding a sword, flanked by Toph and another warrior. She looked to be one of the kyoshi warriors he had met on his return trip to the island. She was dressed in her uniform but was free of the distinctive makeup.
"Suki?" he asked, unsure of how and why she was now standing in front of him.
"Hi again Prince Zuko." She gave him a warm smile. He smiled back.
"You can just call me Zuko," he said, still very embarrassed at being caught out.
"I call him sparky pants," Toph called out, already making herself comfortable on one of the benches lining the perimeter of the gym.
"Hah, sparky pants." Sokka sniggered at the embarrassing nickname. Zuko thought about having words with the young earth bender about spreading the name around but decided it was likely not worth the effort. He wouldn't have admitted it but he also didn't want to offend one of the few people who seemed to actually want to be friends with him. Ignoring Sokka's laughter Zuko rolled his shoulders and walked over to him offering a small bow.
"Hi, um. Thanks for coming."
"Don't mention it," Sokka said, not returning the bow stretching his arms. Zuko smiled at him, surprised by the warriors' friendliness. Sokka didn't smile back "seriously, don't mention it," pushing past Zuko to move further into the room. Zuko's spirits dropped, he had known this would not be easy but it was disheartening. Suki placed a gentle hand on his elbow to bring his attention back to her as she asked
"I hope you don't mind that I tagged along? I heard you and Sokka had plans to spar and I couldn't resist the chance to practice my fan work against you again." She smiled at him genuinely. On his latest visit to Kyoshi Island Zuko had been honoured to train with the elite group of warrior women. It had been a real challenge and another eye opening experience.
"Of course not Suki," he assured her immediately, "I'd love to train with you again. You really gave me a run for my money."
"Thanks," her smile widened. "It'll be nice to verse another non-bender. Other than Mr. Boomerang." She gave a pointed glance in Sokka's direction just as the weapon in question flew back and hit him on the side of the head. Zuko chuckled and Suki laughed with him. It was a nice feeling to have somebody to laugh with. Suki drifted to the side to sit with Toph,saying she was happy to wait for the next round.
"It's been a while since we versed Zuko," Sokka called out as he took his spot in the centre of the training space. "Are you ready to remember what it feels like to lose a Water Tribe warrior?"
"I don't know," Zuko called back as he too took his starting position. "Is there a warrior here?" The joking question slipped out before Zuko could stop himself. Sokka's mouth dropped as he made incredulous noises gesturing emphatically at himself and his blue training gear and boomerang. Zuko grimaced and hoped he hadn't just ruined his chance to get Sokka on his Side. Thankfully Toph and Suki laughed at the joke. Zuko didn't see it but Sokka fought hard to contain his own smile.
"Alright, enough chit chat," Toph cried out from the sidelines when the two girls had finally quietened down. "Time for some action!" Zuko nodded. It was time to get down to business. He was here to convince Sokka that he was good now and if he had to throw a few rounds of practice sword play then so be it. Zuko dropped into a fighting stance and twirled his dao blades. Sokka pulled his sword from its scabbard. It was a unique looking blade. It was clearly expertly made but the material was odd and hard to recognise. Zuko shook his head, plenty of time to ask questions later.
Despite knowing he needed to let Sokka win, Zuko couldn't help analysing his opponent as if he were really going to fight him. At first glance he looked just like the boy he had chased around the world all those years ago. Similar clothes and the same poofy ponytail hairstyle. But the more Zuko looked, he realised Sokka was also very different. Not only taller and broader than he had been as a teenager he seemed to sit better in his own skin. He looked confident now when he had been anxious to prove himself. As they circled each other warily both reluctant to make the first move. Zuko plucked up his courage. It was now or never and he couldn't waste this chance. He charged at Sokka before his nerves could get the better of him. His swords arched at the warrior but Sokka's blade rose up to block him with a decent amount of power. He ducked to avoid a return attack. Zuko was suddenly not so sure he would have to throw this match. As the match wore on Zuko became increasingly impressed. Sokka was faster than expected and handled the strange looking jian sword far better than Zuko had prepared for. He wondered where Sokka had trained, this type of fighting was not common for Water Tribe Warriors and he remembered Sokka previously favoured using a club in their initial encounters.
As the fight continued and Zuko was forced to fight with some real skill he actually began to enjoy himself. It was refreshing to dust off his non-bending fighting skills. While he loved the power bending fire gave him, there was something special for him about using his weapons. He had spent an enjoyable few months during his youth with Master Piando training with all manner of weapons and it was exhilarating testing those skills out once more. As soon as he had the thought the pieces clicked into place. "You trained Piando didn't you?" he asked the next time Sokka approached close enough. The question threw the Water Tribe Warrior and he lost his focus for a second having to scramble out of the path of Zuko's left blade at the last second. At a safer distance he caught his breath
"So what if I did?" He asked, suspicion clear on his face. Zuko grinned, elated at finally finding some common ground with the man that wasn't their tense history.
"I trained with Piando too!" Zuko explained. He kept just out of reach of Sokka's attacks as he raked his brain of all he remembered about his time training with Piando. It had been an enjoyable time for him. A glint of light caught his eye and it was the only warning he had that he'd stopped moving and Sokka was taking full advantage of his lack of focus. Raising his Dao swords at the last moment he struggled to stop the sword in its track to his neck. Forced to use all his strength he pushed Sokka back far enough to dodge his swift follow up attacks and heaved in a deep breath. He needed to stay focused. He needed to find a way he could use this connection with Piando to convince Sokka to trust him. And then it hit him.
"Did you hate the way Master Piando always made you do the weirdest things he claimed would help train you but never explained how they were meant to help?" he called out. This time ensuring he was out of reach of Sokka's weapon. The other boy didn't answer so Zuko just kept talking hoping something would get a rise out of him. "Like, when I," a swing came a bit too close for his liking so he backed up quickly again to gain some space. "When I studied with him he made me do his gardening." He laughed at the memory despite himself. "I spent days planting all those camellia plants." Sokka's mouth twitched just a bit.
"He made me weed the whole east side of the garden," Sokka said, pausing in his concentration to wipe his brow with the edge of his tunic. Zuko was glad for the break to be honest. "I had so many rose thorns stuck in me I felt like a pin cushion."
"Yeah I remember that," Toph called out from her spot on the sidelines. "You had one so deep in your ass it took Aang's air bending to get it out because Katara refused to touch you there." She cackled loudly and Suki's laughter was unmistakable despite her hiding behind her fans. Zuko snorted but tried to contain his laughter as Sokka reddened.
"Hey!"He cried, throwing an outraged look over his shoulder at the two girls. "It's not my fault that I accidentally sat down on a rogue flower." That only caused the two Earth Kingdom girls to erupt with laughter again. Zuko watched Sokka's face expecting him to become furious with the other's laughter but Sokka broke out in a smile himself. "I had trouble sitting down for a week," he said almost wistfully.
Zuko was unsure where to go from here. Sokka was no longer antagonistic towards him but that didn't mean he'd be on his side. Once again he thought honesty was the best policy so he said what he was thinking,
"It must have been hard. Finding time to train with a master when you were trying to help the Avatar."
"How do you know it was when I was with Aang?"
"Well I heard Team Avatar snuck into the Fire Nation weeks before the eclipse and I would like to hope that the son of the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe only snuck into my country once." Zuko smirked hoping Sokka would see that he was attempting a joke. He had always been told he was too serious. Luckily Sokka seemed to have caught on and gave him a small but definite smile.
"Ah so you know about that?" He asked, rubbing his neck sheepishly at being caught.
"An earth bender who likes to brag told me," he said with a jerk of his head towards Suki and Toph. Despite appearing to be engrossed in conversation with Suki the small earth bender in question was obviously paying attention to them as she casually raised a hand and flipped off the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. Sokka burst out laughing.
"I'm pooped," he declared when his shoulders had finally finished shaking. "Let's take a break?"
"Oh, uh sure." Zuko said. He was unused to just stopping in the middle of a session, normally he worked until he was absolutely wrecked but whatever Sokka wanted to do. They made their way over to the others and Zuko passed out cups of water from a nearby fountain. A luxury to have inside.
"It was hard," Sokka said, having drained his cup in one go. "I felt so useless for a while. I mean who was I compared to all these amazing benders and the literal Avatar. And then Suki joined us and she's this amazing elite warrior and I was just a guy with a boomerang." Suki and Toph were quick to voice their disputes at Sokka's assessment. "But my friends were really great," Sokka continued sitting down next to the girls. "They saw that I was struggling, and they were the ones who suggested I find a master." Zuko tried not to let his shock at the care and admiration openly displayed between the friends. "Even though I only got to spend a week with Master Piando it was the chance of a lifetime." Zuko spit out his water all over Sokka's disgusted face.
"A week?" he nearly shouted. "You only spent a week with Piando and you fight like that?"
"I know, okay." Sokka pouted, crossing his arms defensively. "I know I'm not very good but Master Piando taught me what he could. We couldn't have stayed longer; we had to keep moving to get to the Capital for the eclipse."
"No Sokka, I'm sorry," Zuko back tracked quickly. "What I meant is, your fighting skills are amazing and you only spent one week with a master swordsman."
"Oh, well, um thanks." Sokka looked embarrassed but pleased. "You are a menace with those twin sword thingies. I've never seen anything like them," he said swinging his hands in a bad imitation of dao blades.
"Yeah Zuko," Suki chimed in. "You're really fearsome with those things. Almost as much as you are with your bending." It was Zuko who reddened now, coughing awkwardly he muttered out a thanks. He couldn't help a small smile cross his lips at the praise.
"Speaking of bending," Toph joined in. "Why did you go to learn from Piando if you're such a good bender sparky?" Zuko's smile dropped but he figured he'd already started being honest, it couldn't hurt to continue. Especially if he was trying to win allies (and maybe even friends a small part of him hoped).
"Well," he said, taking a seat on the ground and thinking of how to explain. "When I was younger I was not such a good fire bender and my father was not pleased. Can you imagine, the Crown Prince unable to bend Fire it was a disgrace. Not to mention Azula was always naturally gifted. So my father ordered me to train for hours every day and yet nothing seemed to help. Eventually my father stopped coming to my training sessions and in time, hardly spoke to me except for official events." He looked up at the others. Suki was frowning but none of them said anything just waiting for him to continue. " I knew I was failing but there was nothing I could do. I cried to my mother, and to Uncle Iroh when he was home, about it all the time." Another glance up but there was no judgment from the others for his admission to showing such obvious weakness. "And then one day Mother told me we were going on a trip together just the two of us and we ended up at Master Piando's. I was reluctant at first. I was holding on to the idea that bending is superior, but Piando was kind and patient with me. He helped me see the truth. He trained me in all types of swordsmanship and how to use a few other weapons. It was one of the best times of my life. And then one day I found I was able to bend fire as well." Suki had clapped her hands together as if she was genuinely excited for past Zuko to gain his bending, Toph was grinning broadly and even Sokka seemed invested in the story. "Someone must have told my father because soon we were called back to the capital. At first father was delighted and started coming to my training again and praising my abilities. But soon I was falling behind Azula again and he became disinterested and distant once more. But I wasn't allowed to see Master Piando again."
"And I thought my mum and dad were bad parents," Toph said, rolling her eyes.
"Toph!" Suki cried, hitting the younger's arm.
"Hey!" Toph cried out. "It's true! Ozai was not winning any father of the year competitions." Suki frowned deeply and raised her hand to hit Toph again when Zuko interjected.
"It's alright Suki, my father was always a trash dad. It took me a long time and a lot of mistakes to realise it." He took a deep breath, this was it. The perfect opportunity to discuss the whole reason for this meeting. "That's um, actually why I asked you here Sokka. To prove to you that I've changed." It was awful but he forced himself to look Sokka in the eye. "I'm sorry for everything that I've done to you in the past, but I'm not who I used to be." No response and he was starting to panic. "I'm trying not to be my father. I want to be better, and I want the Fire Nation to be better." Sokka did a remarkable job of keeping his face blank. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking. "Please, believe me." The Water Tribe man sighed,
"Look Zuko," he finally said. "I think I believe you."
"You do?" Zuko and Toph said together.
"Man I thought this would be way harder" Toph chuckled.
"I," Zuko stuttered. "I had a whole speech with all my evidence laid to convince you."
"I mean yeah, you ended the war with your uncle. You led the peace talks and the reparations negotiations. Just look at everything you've done to make up for the war as Lee" he said with finger quotes around the pseudonym. Zuko looked at Suki. She was the only one he knew of who had figured out it was actually him helping out rebuilding after the war. The warrior avoided his stare as she was intensely focused on Sokka as he continued.
"Not to mention you asked my sister to marry you despite all of our fast battles and knowing she's friends with the actual avatar! You're crazy but you're not stupid. Why would you do that if you were up to something?"
"Um, thanks?" Zuko answered unsure if it was really a compliment.
"And we didn't find anything suspicious in your office when we went through it." Zuko froze,
"Wait," he pinched the bridge of his nose to keep his anger in check and make sure he heard right. "You went through my office?" Sokka's mouth hung open in a way that would have been funny if it was a different situation. Suki was doing a bad impression of a statue,
"You guys never tell me anything," Toph pouted, crossing her arms violently causing the small stones that had been trekking inside the gym to jump a foot in the air. "I want to break into Zuko's study."
"Suki," Zuko turned to the warrior hoping they were friendly enough for her not to lie to him, "is that true." She finally turned her head to meet his eye and gave a small smile.
"We're sorry Zuko," Sokka nodded. "To be fair I only went to try and stop Sokka doing it."
"Suki!" Sokka cried out as if that was the issue here.
"You guys snuck into the palace, broke into my study and went through classified documents when exactly?" Zuko asked, keeping his voice as level as possible knowing he was failing.
"Oh you know," Sokka said. "Sometime, the other day. When King Kuei arrived. Whenever. Does it matter? We didn't find anything! So there's no problem." There was a problem alright Zuko thought. There would be a long discussion with the palace guards if two people could so easily sneak into not only the palace but the royal living quarters. He decided to let it go for now and keep his new friends on his side.
"Sure, yeah. No problem." He tried a smile and wondered if it looked as awkward as it felt. To his surprise Suki, Toph and even Sokka openly grinned back.
"If there was still any doubt about your motives. The fact you were willing to do a water tribe dance in front of the whole Fire Court is proof of your dedication to proving yourself," Sokka smirked at the memory.
"What?" Suki cried, turning a surprised look on Zuko who was a deep red once again.
"Urgh" Toph cried. "Why do I always miss the best stuff?"
"It was nothing really, we don't have to talk about it." Sokka unexpectedly gave him a friendly clap on the shoulder.
"You're a changed man Prince Zuko." Zuko became very interested in the ground by his feet as he fought to maintain control of his emotions.
"Seriously, Thank you guys, for believing me." This feeling was unusual but not entirely unpleasant Zuko decided. "Can you help me convince Katara?" Their smiles dropped.
"Look, Zuko. Katara is…"
"Stubborn," Suki offered
"Bull-headed," Toph added less diplomatically.
"Yeah," Sokka agreed. "She's got it into her head that you're up to something evil."
"But I'm not!" Zuko protested. "You guys know that, even her dad likes me a little."
"She just won't see reason," Suki explained. "We've tried talking to her Zuko, even before today."
"It's why we broke into your study. To find proof for her."
"So there's nothing I can do?" he asked, dejected. Everyone was silent. Zuko's heart sank. If her closest friends and her own brother didn't know what to do to convince Katara, it was a lost cause.
"It probably has to do with her mum," Toph said carefully after a while. Zuko looked up. Her mother? Sokka nodded slowly.
"Katara has always been deeply affected by our mum's death, Even more than I was," he explained. Zuko knew Katara had been young when her mother passed and he knew it was the Fire Nation's fault. But why was she so angry at him when he had nothing to do with it? Then another memory surfaced. One of a crystal cave and a younger Katara reaching out to him, both physically and emotionally; talking about the shared loss of their mum's. And he'd betrayed her. He always seemed to make the wrong choice. Zuko closed his eyes and groaned. He had gotten some answers but they led to more questions. How could he possibly make it up to Katara after that deep betrayal? A warm hand clamped on his elbow. Suki smiled warmly at him as he looked up.
"We'll help you get through to her," she said.
"Yeah," Sokka agreed. Standing up and grabbing his sword again. "But first I'm going to beat you again." Zuko couldn't help grinning.
"Again? I let you call a timeout in that last round!." Sokka opened his mouth to argue the point but Suki stood up and punched him playfully in the shoulder.
"It's my turn Sokka," Suki said, reaching for her fans. Sokka pouted and aimed some big puppy-eyes at her. Suki giggled and blushed. Zuko looked between the two of them. Oh, he thought. They were a thing. "How about two on three then?" He suggested.
"Yeah Zuko let's see how well you go versing both of us?" Sokka crowed, moving to the centre of the training area.
"I'll be on Zuko's team," Suki called, moving to stand with Zuko and giving him a conspiratorial grin. This time Zuko did laugh at Sokka's expression.
"If Mr Sparky Pants drops his little knives," Toph said, finally getting up from her position on the bench. "I'll join Sokka and then we can have evenly matched teams of one bender and one non-bender."
"Yes I get Toph!" Sokka whooped and punched the air. Suki rolled her eyes and turned to Zuko, a raised eyebrow her only question. Zuko carefully placed his Dao blades back down where they wouldn't get damaged and took his place next to the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors.
"That's Prince Sparky Pants to you," his smile was genuine as the others laughed.
Zuko was sitting in the dusty old Royal Archives looking as if he'd just come out of a battle. He'd been so disheveled when he'd walked in - training clothes askew and dirty, his hair falling out of the immaculate top knot yuto had insisted on despite Zuko's protest that the curators and archive staff had almost refused him entry until they had caught sight of his scar. They had apologised profusely but Zuko really didn't care. At least there was some benefit to the distinctive mark.
Zuko was exhausted and sweaty like he hadn't been in months but he was still elated by the exercise and challenge Team Avatar had presented. Knowing there would be a large pile of paperwork in his office desk and intrigued by the possible
answers about Katara's vendetta against him that had produced more questions Zuko headed away from his now proven insecure personal rooms and instead made his way to the archives. If he could find some more information about the raid that had killed Katara's mother, maybe he could find a way to heal the rift between them.
Hours passed as he fought his way through the minutiae of military reports. He had always thought of the Fire Nation armed forces as quick and deadly, but the truth seemed it was mostly paperwork. As Zuko got lost in bureaucracy, he slowly began to see the reality of what the Fire Nation had been doing in the Southern Water Tribe. The Fire Nation - his father and grandfather, his whole family, had purposefully been trying to wipe out another nation for decades.
When he had been younger he'd believed the official statements. The claims of troublemakers and terrorists in the other nations. That if left unchecked the other nations would use their benders to overthrow the Fire Nation. That their military presence was justified. During his banishment he had learnt the truth. That it was actually the Fire Nation who was land and power hungry. When he learnt of his father's plan to wipe out the Earth Kingdom he'd decided to finally rebel but to see such blatant orders written down and reports of their success were horrifying.
As Zuko read those words his stomach dropped and he had to actively prevent himself from being sick all over the desk. Members of the Fire Nation army, his countrymen, men and women he had known and respected, had purposefully gone to the South Pole to terrorise the people there, destroy their chance of survival and ensure that they lost their bending. They couldn't do it in one go like the air nomads so his family had ordered long term extermination programs. Trade was sabotaged and disrupted, food supplies cut off or contaminated. The destruction of buildings and other infrastructure, especially anything defensive. Most sickeningly the direct orders to destroy all water benders.
Then he found it. One small report. The last raid on the Southern Water Tribe. It was barely even a page long. Just acknowledgement of orders received and an account of events. One line at the bottom was all that mentioned the end of the chief's wife for illegal activities. That was all Katara and Sokka's mother was worth to these men. Zuko stood in a rush, unable to read anymore.
Zuko needed to speak with Katara. He understood now why it was so hard for her to forgive him, to forget his past betrayals. His betrayal in Ba Sing Se, his rejection of her friendship and return to the Fire Nation, had proven to her that she was right in mistrusting him. He had proven himself to be just like the rest of his family, his whole country. He was honestly shocked that the Southern Water Tribe had even signed the peace treaties, after what he'd just read he could understand if they still harbourd deep grudges. And yet here they were, prepared to give up their tribe woman to the nation that had tried to exterminate them.
Zuko shook his head to try and stop his racing thoughts and decide what to do. As he stumbled his way through the maze of shelves one thought solidified in his mind. He now knew the name of who killed Katara's mother.
Evening was just starting to set in as Zuko snuck out of the palace. He had dressed for a mission the black clothes he had once worn as the Blue Spirit. He had contemplated wearing the mask but had thought it too risky and likely to cause more suspicion. He crept through the streets, avoiding the few nobles he saw by ducking and weaving through back passages. Coming up on the house that Katara and her tribe were staying in he realised he had no idea which room she had taken in the large house. Conscious of what it would look like if he were caught Zuko pulled his collar higher and his hair down to cover his face, especially his scar, and began scaling the wall. He figured if he checked every window he'd be able to eventually find which room was Katara's.
Peering through windows Zuko felt like a bit of a creep and he was enormously thankful for the shadows falling on the house from the large Ginkgo trees that lined the edge of the property. The sights inside the house couldn't help catching his attention however. It was unusual and off-putting to see so many people so happy to be together. The Water Tribe seemed to genuinely enjoy being together. There was a large group all sitting together doing various tasks and just talking and laughing. Zuko thought it looked a bit too cozy for his comfort, he kept climbing. There was Sokka! Zuko caught sight of the young man through a window on the third floor, wildly demonstrating something with his arms waving all over the place to raucous laughter from a few of the other men. As Zuko kept moving he even saw Toph and Suki welcomed into the fold, comfortable and happy. And then he finally found Katara. It would make sense for her to have been given the largest room on the top floor. Zuko knew it was also the only room that would have a glimpse of the ocean. She was inside alone, pacing. The contrast of her like this, alone and stressed, compared to her family and friends downstairs was stark and Zuko felt a sense of guilt. Climbing over the balcony he padded lightly to the door. He knocked lightly on the door frame to alert here he was there.
Katara startled, turned abruptly scanning the growing darkness. Landing on his silhouette her eyes widened and her hands flew to her hip where she had once carried a supply of water at all times. The movement and the fear on her face made her look years younger and brought Zuko back to the time when he'd have been glad to see her scared of him. It was a good reminder of why he was there in the first place. He wasn't sure where to begin so he offered a small wave and said, "Hi Katara, Zuko here."
"I know it's you Zuko," she said exasperated. Her hands didn't move from her hip though. "Why are you here?"
"I have something to tell you." He took a step forward and she took two steps backwards. He froze. His hands raised to show he wouldn't attack her.
"What could you have to say that involves sneaking into my bedroom after sunset?" The suspicion was clear in her voice.
"I, Um,"
"Spit it out or leave Zuko."
"I know who killed your mother," He blurted out. It was not the way he had planned but he got so flustered around her. She froze and her face became harder than he had ever seen.
"Who is he?"
"I'll take you to him," he offered.
"You'll take me to him?" Zuko nodded.
"I know who did it and I know how to find him,"
"I won't go easy on him." Katara hadn't moved still and yet Zuko could feel the anger and danger hanging off her every word.
"That's why I'm going with you,"
"I won't let you stop me."
"I don't want to stop you Katara." The door to her room slammed open and the avatar burst in.
"Katara no. Don't do this," he pleaded.
"Aang? What are you doing? Were you spying on me?"
"I was coming to check on you. And I'm glad I did." He gave a hard glare at Zuko.
"Well it doesn't matter Aang. I'm going with Zuko." Katara began rummaging through her trunks and pulling out dark clothing. She didn't look at her friend.
"Please Katara, what exactly do you think this will accomplish?" Aang said moving closer to her and dropping his voice to stop Zuko hearing.
"You don't understand Aang, you never have," Katara said, not even looking up at her closest friend.
"I do understand. You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. How do you think I felt about the sandbenders when they stole Appa? How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people?" Aang tried to grab Katara's hand but she yanked it away. Katara busied herself pulling on a pair of black tights and stepped out of her long skirt.
"She needs this, Aang," Zuko said, finally stepping into the room. "This is about getting closure and justice." Aang turned a withering stare on him. Behind him Katara was unperturbed and continued changing out of her fancy robes into a simple and practical tunic in a deep blue and putting on proper shoes rather than the ornate shoes she'd had on just a moment ago.
"I don't think so. I think it's about getting revenge."
"Fine, maybe it is! Maybe that's what I need! Maybe that's what he deserves!" Katara was yelling now and her voice cracked just a little. Zuko felt sorry for her but wished she'd keep it down if they wanted to make it out of the house unnoticed. Too late Toph, Suki and Sokka walked on.
"What is going on?" Sokka demanded looking at the scene in front of him.
"Zuko is trying to convince Katara to go with him to get revenge on the guy who killed you mum," Aang explained before Zuko could get a word in.
"What Katara? That's crazy," Suki said, turning to the water bender.
"Yeah Katara, even for me this is a bit much," Toph said a serious look on her face for once. Katara's face grew red and splotchy.
"It is none of your business," she said coldly, turning from her friends.
"Forgiveness is the right thing to do Katara," Aang said, trying again to hold on to Katara.
"This man, he's a monster. I have to do this."
"Katara, she was my mother, too, but I think Aang might be right,"
"Then you didn't love her the way I did!"
"Katara," Sokka said in a soft voice. She didn't look at him. Her brother turned and left without another word.
"You've gone too far Katara," Suki said, an ice in her voice Zuko would never have imagined. She left presumably to follow Sokka.
"Now that I know he's out there ... now that I know we can find him, I feel like I have no choice." She finally looked at Aang but she was still determined.
"Katara, you do have a choice: forgiveness," Aang was clasping his own hands together now. Pleading with her to understand.
"That's the same as doing nothing," Zuko countered. If she had the chance Katara should face the monster he felt. The look Aang threw him had the disapproval of centuries of avatars in it and Zuko shivered at it just a little.
"No, it's not. It's easy to do nothing, but it's hard to forgive,"
"It's not just hard, it's impossible." Katara walked to the door to the balcony and passed Zuko. "Lets go." Without another word she'd jumped the railing and was on her way down.
The walk from the house was silent and tense. Katara had shown no emotion as Zuko led her through the city and out to the Royal Airfield. As he prepared the airship she looked a little suspicious but made no complaints and climbed in silently when he announced it was ready to take off. Katara stood rigid at the edge of the basket, her fingers balled so tight he could see her knuckles turning white even in the gloom of late evening. As Zuko fed flames into the balloon he wondered if this was the biggest mistake he'd made yet. He had no way of knowing what Katara would actually do when they got to their destination. Zuko steeled his nerves, he had brought Katara so she could get closure and he had to let it play out how she needed it to. He would step in only if things went too far. He ignored the worrying question of what exactly would be too far.
The man they were looking for was living in a small village on one of the far western outer Islands, according to the request for retirement Zuko had found. Even with the airship making good speed it would still take them several hours to get there. Gathering his courage Zuko approached Katara. "You should rest," he said quietly as he came up behind her not wanting to startle the bender when she was so on edge.
"I'm fine," was her short response.
"It will take a few hours to get there still," Zuko persisted. "You'll need all your strength."
"Oh, don't you worry about my strength. I have plenty. I'm not the helpless little girl I was when they came." Zuko believed her, he had seen first hand what she was capable of. But he also knew from his own experience that anger was no substitute for sleep. He tried to think of what Uncle Iroh would do for him in this situation.
"Tell me about it?" Zuko asked. Katara gave him a short quizzical look out of the corner of her eye. "The day you lost your mum." Katara swallowed hard and gripped the railing in front of her. Zuko was about to apologise when she started speaking.
"At first it was just a normal day. Sokka and I were having a snowball fight. I had only just learnt that I was a waterbender and was using it to beat Sokka again and again. But as we played, the falling snow turned black with soot. We were confused and scared. The older warriors knew what it meant - a Fire Nation raid." Zuko grimaced but tried not to make a sound to distract Katara. "Sokka took off to find dad and I ran back home to find mum. When I got there…" her voice trembled just a little and Zuko really wanted to reach out and touch her hand or shoulder, try and comfort her somehow. But that would be the last thing Katara would want. "When I got there, there was a Fire Nation soldier standing over mum demanding she give him some kind of information. Mum was only worried about me," Katara's voice broke on the last word as she held back a sob. "She did everything to protect me." She said just barely above a whisper now. "She made the soldier agree to let me go if she told him what he wanted to know. She told me to run to dad. I ran as fast as I could but there were so many people and I was so small. By the time we got back the soldier was gone and my mother was dead." Tears streaked Katara's face but she made no move to wipe them. Zuko was unsure how to respond.
"Your mother was a brave woman,"
"I know," Katara said, touching her mother's necklace. Once again Zuko thanked the spirits he had been smart enough to not insist she replace it with his own fake one. The one thing you've done right he thought to himself.
"Rest," he suggested again to Katara as he turned back to the control panel. "I'll wake you when we're close." She didn't respond but somehow there seemed to be less tension between them. Zuko kept to himself the next hour or so keeping them on course and the balloon filled with hot air. Just once he let himself glance at Katara's position to check on her and smiled to himself to see her curled up asleep. As he watched she shivered in the cold air. Zuko looked around to find a blanket for her. Cursing silently at the sparse Fire Nation supplies he removed his jacket and awkwardly draped it across her shoulders. He would never admit it but it did something to his heart to see Katara sort of in his clothing. He blushed furiously as she sleepily pulled it closer to her body. He turned quickly away and busied himself with something, anything, to distract himself from that image.
As dawn broke Zuko finally caught sight of the island they were heading for. As he worked the ship to bring them down Katara appeared at his side. She placed the jacket down next to him without a comment but she looked better than she had earlier. "Are we almost there?" Zukko nodded.
"Less than an hour and we'll have landed just outside the village." Katara's face hardened as she focused once again on her goal.
"Let's do this."
The landed quietly on the edge of a nearby grove of trees and quickly stashed the deflated airship. Without a word Katara handed him some kind of black cloth. Following her lead he tied it across his face as a makeshift mask. For now it seemed Katara was happy to let Zuko lead as she dropped into a stealth position behind him and followed his moves as they snuck into the village. They worked together well, despite having always been adversaries up until now. As the sun rose higher more and more people filled the streets, they found a spot to watch and wait for their quarry. They didn't have to wait long.
"Yon Rha! You lazy piece of work, hurry it up" an old and decrepit looking woman called from the back of an equally old and rickety cart pulled not by a horse or even a bull-oxe but by the man in question.
"Yes mother," Yon Rha called out as he pushed harder, barely increasing the speed they moved. "You know mother," he puffed out. "I would have been happy to bring you something from my garden." His mother scoffeed dismissively.
"The tomato-carrots from your garden are too hard for my gums. I need something soft and juicy,"
"I grow many things mother, perhaps one of them,,,"
"Forget your stupid garden! Just get me to the marketplace so I can buy some real food." The depressing duo passed by Zuko and Katara's hiding spot.
"That was him," Zuko said. "The man we came to find," Katara gave a curt nod.
"That's the monster, I'd recognise him anywhere." She went to immediately move out of their hiding place to follow him. Zuko held onto Katara's arm to stop her immediately running after the man. If they were going to do this then they'd do it right.
They stuck close to Yon Rha and his mother. As soon as they reached the marketplace she left him for the nearby tavern ordering him to bring home the food on his own and come back for her when she was done. They trailed the sad elderly man through the market keeping an eye out for an opportunity to strike. Yon Rha, despite being retired and out of practice had noticed something was off, checking over his shoulder regularly as they morning wore on. Often looking at the sport Katara and Zuko had just been using for cover. Storm clouds rolled in quickly and Yon Rha quickly finished collecting what he needed and began the walk home.
To his bad fortune his mother's house was outside the village and it started to rain heavily just as he left the cover of the village. Grumbling to himself Yon Rha didn't seem to sense the danger as he rounded a corner onto a long stretch of empty road. With his head down to avoid the rain their prey walked straight into the trap Zuko and Katara had set. Pulled to the ground by an invisible wire Yon Rha fell dropping his basket. His face twisted in a snarl and he curled his fists clearly about to fire bend. Preemptively Zuko got ready to send a fireball of his own at the man but Katara was already moving. Raising her hands she made strange gesture's Zuko had never seen before and there was no water being bent that he could see. All of a sudden Yon Rha dropped his fists. He looked down at his own arms with shock
"What's .." he begins but with some more slight moves of her wrist Katara forced his face to the ground.
"I wouldn't try firebending again," Zuko said. He didn't know what Katara just did but he wasn't about to let them lose this opportunity by him wasting time. Yon Rha cowered on the ground pleading
"Whoever you are, take my money. Take whatever you want. I'll cooperate," Katara let her hands drop releasing him from whatever control she had over his body. She stepped forward, yanking her mask aside.
"Do you know who I am?" Yon Rha looked bewildered at the question.
"No. I'm not sure."
"Oh, you better remember me like your life depends on it!" She walked closer until she was barely a foot away from the prone figure on the ground. "Why don't you take a closer look?" She leaned over the man, a terrifying presence despite her small stature.
"Please," Yon Rha begged, "Who are you? I don't know who you are!" He clasped his hands and cowed hoping to convince her.
"Think, Think back to your last raid on the Southern Water Tribe," Zuko said as he too walked up to stand just behind Katara's right shoulder; holding his bending stance in case Yon Rha tried anything. Yon Rha's eyes grew bigger at the mention of the Southern Water Tribe and he peered up at Katara's face.
"You're that little Water Tribe girl?"
"Why did you come to our home?" Katara asked, her eyes never leaving Yon Rha's. Her voice was as cold as ice.
"I had to, it was an order, please."
"We were already desperate, a harsh winter, hardly any food and then you. My mother was innocent. Tell me why you killed her!" She raised her hands to do whatever bending had given her control of the man's body and he trembled at the thought,
"A water bender! We heard rumours there was still a water bender hidden in the tribe. We were sent to eliminate them. Your mother, she confessed it was her. We had orders to take no prisoners." Katara turned away, her eyes closed in pain.
"She lied to you commander. She wasn't the last water bender,"
"But," he stuttered confusion clouding his face. "She admitted it. Why…"
"She was protecting the last waterbender, me!" Katara threw both of her arms out wide, halting the falling raindrops and creating a large dome above the three of them. She then sent a forceful stream of water at Yon Rha, transforming the stream into a flurry of ice daggers midway through her attack. Her skill and precision was impressive. Even from a distance Zuko could see exactly how sharp those daggers were and knew if even one pierced Yon Rha in a vital spot he'd be dead. You Rha clearly knew it too bowing his head preparing to face his end. But the end didn't come. The ice daggers had stopped mere centimeters from his face, just floating in midair. Katara's expression changed as she allowed for the daggers to liquefy and drop back to the ground.
"Katara?" Zuko asked. He was confused why she would stop when she was so close to achieving her vengeance.
"I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing," she said looking away from the two men. Her voice was full of pain. She turned back to Yon Rha "now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you, nothing at all. You're pathetic and sad and empty."
"Katara," Zuko said again. "We've come this far and you want to let him go?"
"As much as I hate him ... I just can't do it." Without saying another word, Katara turned and walked away. Zuko looked from Katara's retreating figure to Yon Rha who was sending thanks to the spirits for saving his life. Shooting the pathetic man in front of him a last dirty look, Zuko too turned away and followed Katara.
