Hello again! So this one is pretty looong.

This chapter was inspired by the song 'Heavy in Your Arms' by Florence + The Machine from the 2009 'Lungs' album!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to A:TLA or any of Florence + The Machine, I'm just a huge fangirl :)

Chapter 3: Heavy in Your Arms

...

I was a heavy heart to carry

My feet dragged across the ground

And he took me to the river

Where he slowly let me drown

...

I'm so heavy, heavy in your arms

...

They were ambushed. As soon as they landed on the beach of Kyoshi Island, painted warriors jumped out from the trees above. They had little time to react.

Katara uncorked her water skin and splashed at one of the warriors, but her attack was little more than an annoyance. The painted face was suddenly right in front of hers and a fan caught her in the neck. She gasped for air as the warrior hooked her foot from under her, sending her sprawling on the ground. Sokka and Aang soon followed. Their hands were bound behind their backs.

One of the warriors gestured to the others and they were blindfolded, yanked up from the ground, and marched into the village, their feet dragging behind them. Once they were all strung up to a large pole, side-by-side, voices finally broke the looming silence.

"You three have some explaining to do, and if you don't answer all our questions, we're going to feed you to the unagi." A woman's voice.

"Show yourselves, cowards!" Sokka yelled.

A moment later, Katara's blindfold was ripped from her face. The six warriors stood before them.

"Who are you? Where are the men who ambushed us?"

"There were no men. We ambushed you. Now tell us, who are you and what are you doing here?"

"Wait a second, there's no way a bunch of girls took us down." Sokka chuckled.

"A bunch of girls, huh?" The warrior spoke, stepping towards them menacingly, her hand on her fan.

Katara kicked the side of Sokka's leg, "Don't listen to my brother, he didn't mean it! He's just an idiot sometimes."

"Why are you here?" The warrior asked.

Aang finally spoke up, "I just wanted to ride the elephant koi…"

"How do we know you're not Fire Nation spies?"

"Why would we be Fire Nation spies?" Sokka scoffed, "We're obviously Water Tribe."

"Kyoshi Island has stayed out of the war so far, but the Earth Kingdom is quickly falling. The Fire Nation has had their eyes on our island for a while now."

"We're not Fire Nation," said Aang, "I'm the Avatar."

One of the warriors snorted, "That's impossible, the last Avatar was an airbender who disappeared a hundred years ago."

"That's me! It's a long story but I was trapped in an iceberg at the South Pole and my friends here found me. Now we're heading to the North Pole so Katara and I can learn waterbending."

Katara looked over at Aang in surprise; he hadn't told her of this plan to head to the North. Her eyes widened at the thought – she would be able to find a waterbending master at the North Pole. A real master. She could get formal training. It was like a dream she had, a fantasy that one day she would be a master waterbender, was suddenly possible. She would be able to defend her loved ones and her people. She would be able to finally beat that firebender. She could hardly contain her excitement.

"How do we know that's true?" The warrior questioned Aang.

He paused, scratching his chin and Katara came out of her trance.

"Do some airbending," She muttered to the boy.

"Oh, right!" Aang launched himself upwards into the air in a sudden gust of wind, breaking free from his restraints. A collective gasp resounded through the village; The Avatar had returned.

…

Zuko focused on his breathing, feeling the candle flames before him grow and dwindle with each breath. Control was the key to firebending, his Uncle told him. He always fed his flames with rage, and that rage made him powerful. However, controlling the fire was much harder than creating it, so he meditated everyday.

It had taken them nearly a whole day to dig the ship out from under the ice and snow and Zuko had watched in frustration as the Avatar disappeared in the distance. Then, to make things worse, the lead engineer warned him they would have to make a stop at the Fire Nation outpost on Whale Tail Island for repairs. Currently, they were docked at the island while men worked on the engines and replaced part of the bow.

The sound of the door opening brought him out of his meditation.

"The only reason you should be interrupting me is if you have news about the Avatar... or if you are here to tell me the ship is done and we can leave."

"Well, there is news Prince Zuko," His Uncle said, "But you might not like it. Don't get too upset."

Zuko maintained his composure, still focusing on the flame, "Uncle, you taught me that keeping a level head is the sign of a great leader. Now, whatever you have to say, I'm sure I can take it."

"Ok, then. We have no idea where the Avatar is and Commander Zhao has just pulled into port. He has invited us for dinner."

"What?" Zuko stood, abruptly losing control and the fire blazed to the ceiling. "Commander?"

"Yes, apparently he has been promoted," the retired general pondered aloud, wafting a fan in front of his face in response to the heat, "You should really open a window in here."

They had run into Zhao a number of times during Zuko's banishment, and the Captain – or Commander, now – had always made a point of mocking him. Zuko hated the man.

"There will be no mention of what happened at the South Pole," Zuko finally spoke, "If anyone else finds out the Avatar is alive, every firebender will be after him and I don't want anyone getting in my way – especially not Commander Zhao."

…

Aang was strutting around, being followed around by a hoard of fangirls and seemed to be enjoying his newfound fame. Sokka was talking with the governor about the war, trying to garner all the information he could. Katara decided to take a walk and explore.

She wandered the village, relieved to be free to wander. She had never seen another village before, and while Kyoshi Village was not large by any means, it was much bigger than the Southern Water Tribe; even from what she remembered from her youth when the population had been much larger. Wooden buildings lined the street, leading uphill towards the governor's residence where they had been invited to stay. A wooden statue of the former Avatar Kyoshi, for whom the island and village were named, stood guard over the rows of houses in attire and face paint that was mimicked by the painted warriors.

She heard a faint shuffle of fans and a collective "Hyah!" and followed the noise.

Through an open doorway, she saw the painted warriors, or Kyoshi Warriors as they called themselves, practicing a coordinated attack form. Katara stood in the street and watched in amazement – their movements were so graceful, yet she knew from experience they were also lethal and powerful. She wondered how long it had taken them to achieve such strength and coordination. One of the Kyoshi Warriors caught her eye as the form ended and came to the threshold.

"Interested in a lesson?" She asked, half-joking.

"Really?" Katara's face must have lit up because the warrior looked surprised.

After a moment she chuckled, "Yeah, sure. Us girl's have to stick together, right? We normally don't teach outsiders, but since you're a friend of the Avatar, I think we can make an exception. I'm Suki, the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors."

"I'm Katara," She smiled, "I'm from the Southern Water Tribe." Katara had never had a female friend that was her age; growing up it had only been her and Sokka. The prospect excited her. "I was just admiring your, um, moves?"

"Well, thanks," Suki grinned. "Come on, maybe we can teach you a thing or two."

"That would be amazing! I really suck at hand-to-hand combat," She chuckled, self-deprecatingly. "I'm a waterbender, but I'm not very good since I haven't had anyone to train me. When I fought a firebender in the South, all he had to do was get within short range to beat me."

Suki rubbed her chin, "I see… how about this, I can teach you some basic moves that will help you defend yourself in close-range combat and put more distance between you and your opponent."

"That would be perfect, if it's not too much trouble. Thank you so much!"

"It's not a problem, is it girls?" Suki replied, turning back to the other warriors who shrugged or shook their heads. "Now let's see your fighting stance."

Katara dropped into the stance she used when waterbending and Suki circled her, prodding at her with a closed fan.

"I don't know much about waterbending," Suki began, "But I imagine our combat style would translate quite well into the fluidity of your element. First, you want loosen up – your stance is too rigid. Bend your knees a bit and relax your shoulders some more." Katara did as she was told. "Second, you're too flat-footed. You need to be ready to move quickly – to be prepared for anything. Roll onto the balls of your feet more, and stay on your toes."

Katara rocked back and forth gently, trying to internalize the stance and loosen up.

"Much better," Suki smiled and prodded her with the fan again. "Bring your right elbow in a little bit. If you have it out like that, you're leaving your midsection vulnerable to attack."

She followed the older girl's instructions and Suki nodded.

"Looking good!" She gave Katara a thumbs up, "Now I'm going to show you a super basic defense form and then we'll practice it together, ok?"

"Ok," Katara stepped back to give Suki space, watching intently as the older girl took a fighting stance and whipped out her fan. She skipped back slightly on her back foot and brought up her front forearm to block, then switched her stance, stepping forward with her right foot. Her right arm shot directly out at her imaginary opponent, palm facing forwards.

Then, Sokka was in the doorway and Katara cringed when he said, "Sorry ladies, I didn't mean to interrupt your dance lesson."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Suki smiled innocently, "You're Katara's brother right?"

Katara sighed, "This is Sokka."

"I'm Suki and these are the Kyoshi Warriors," She gestured to the girls behind her, "This is actually perfect timing. I was just teaching your sister a defense move and I think it would be helpful to show her a demonstration. Attack me."

Sokka scoffed, "I can't attack a girl!"

"I promise, I won't hurt you… too bad," Suki smirked at him.

She could see the incredulity in Sokka's expression when he replied, "Ok, fine. But don't get angry when you get hurt."

Katara rolled her eyes at him; she hated when Sokka tried to act all masculine and superior. She knew it was only a symptom of being the closest thing to a man left in the village when all the warriors left, but it still bothered her to no end.

Sokka rushed at Suki and she used the defense form she had just been showing Katara. She hopped back to throw Sokka off balance, brushing off his attack, and then, using the full force of her body, she stepped forward and her palm connected with his shoulder, throwing him backwards to land on his side. Katara watched in amazement and snickered with the other girls when her brother looked up, disbelieving. It was time someone finally put him in his place.

"Hey! I was going easy on you!"

"Would you like to try again?" Suki asked, smiling as she reached out a hand to help him up.

…

Zuko sat patiently as Zhao paced in front of a large map on the wall.

"-And by year's end, the Earth Kingdom capital will be under our rule. The Fire Lord will finally claim victory in this war."

"If my father thinks the rest of the world will follow him willingly, then he is a fool." Zuko scoffed.

"All these years at sea have done little to temper your tongue," Zhao responded, acid in his tone. "Now tell me, how has your search for the Avatar been going?"

Zuko frowned, but kept his voice steady, "I haven't found anything." He could feel Zhao's gaze on him, studying his expression and body language.

As if planned, soldiers rushed into the room, "Commander, we interrogated the crew as you instructed. They confirmed Prince Zuko had the Avatar in custody but let him escape." Zhao turned back towards Zuko, a vicious smile on his lips. The soldier continued, "They reported that he was only a boy, sir."

Gritting his teeth, Zuko cursed his crew. He would root out the traitors later and throw them overboard when they were back out at sea.

Then Zhao turned on him, "A child bested you and your crew. You're more pathetic than I thought. You have failed, Prince Zuko. Capturing the Avatar is too important to leave in a teenager's hands."

Zuko growled, jumping out of his seat preparing to attack the commander, but soldiers grabbed his arms and held him back. Indignant, he brought a flaming axe kick down on the tea table in front of him.

"Don't underestimate me, Zhao. I will capture the Avatar before you."

The Commander laughed, "You can't compete with me, I have hundreds of warships under my command. And you, you're just a banished Prince. Your own father doesn't even want you."

"You're wrong. When I deliver the Avatar to my father, he will welcome me home with honor and restore my rightful place on the throne."

The laugh that came from Zhao was low and cruel, "In your father's eyes you are a failure and a disgrace to the Fire Nation."

"That's not true."

"You have the scar to prove it," Zhao sneered, eyeing the marred skin.

Zuko growled, wresting his arms from the soldiers and getting up in Zhao's face, "Maybe you would like one to match!"

"Is that a challenge?" The commander smirked.

"Agni Kai, at sunset," Zuko snarled, a raging fire burning in his core.

Another laugh, "I don't have time to idle and play games with a spoiled child. I will be long gone by then." Then he turned and left Zuko fuming next to the burning pile of rubble that had been a tea table.

…

After the tenth or eleventh time that Sokka landed on the floor, he got up and stormed out, grumbling something about women.

Katara sighed, "I'm sorry about my brother. All the warriors left our village to fight the Fire Nation when we were still young. He hasn't had any formal training and he was the closest thing to a man left in the village. It made him sort of…"

"Hotheaded?" Suki finished her sentence.

"Yeah," She responded.

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure he'll come around. You're surprisingly patient with him," She laughed lightly, before her tone lowered, "Family stuff can be tough. My older sister, Sumi, used to be the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. She taught me just about everything I know. But then she fell in love with some fisherman from the mainland and left. I yelled at her the last time we spoke and I haven't seen her since. Apparently she had a kid. I wish I could've been more patient."

Katara was caught off guard by her sudden admission, but saw the hurt in Suki's eyes, "I'm sorry, Suki... Do you miss her?"

"All the time. She sent me a letter a couple weeks ago to say that they were moving to Omashu because the war has reached the countryside in the Earth Kingdom. I've been meaning to go visit her – to apologize."

"You should! She's your sister, I'm sure she'll understand."

Suki flashed her a solemn smile, "I hope so. Now, let's get back to training."

After a couple hours of practice, Katara got the defense form down and was able to block and divert most of Suki's attacks. They were both breathing heavily when Sokka came back.

"Here for another dance lesson?" Suki smiled at him, but her tone indicated otherwise.

"Yes- no, I…" Sokka started, "I came to apologize. I have never met a girl who could fight so well and…" Katara rolled her eyes at this, but Sokka didn't seem to notice. He knelt in front of Suki, his hands on his knees, "I would be honored if you would be willing to teach me some things."

Suki's hands came to her hips and she considered him for a moment. Finally, she said, "Ok, but you will have to follow all of our traditions. All of them."

"I'll do anything," Sokka responded, head bowed.

Katara giggled with the other Kyoshi Warriors when Sokka came out of the back room in the traditional attire and face paint. He just frowned at her and groaned, but they continued training for the rest of the evening.

…

Zuko was sitting down for lunch with his Uncle, counting how many days had passed since he had last seen the Avatar. Had it been three weeks already? They were clearly heading North, but as to where or why, Zuko wasn't sure. Where could he be going?

The repairs were scheduled to be done this evening. They would finally be able to leave port and he could continue his search. Unfortunately, he hadn't heard anything. He and his Uncle had asked around that morning at the dock and the small village nearby if there was any news of the Avatar, but most had looked at them like they were crazy. Some had tried to tell them the story; that no one has even seen an airbender for 100 years. It had amounted to a colossal waste of time and Zuko had returned to the ship even more annoyed than previously. How was he going to track a kid on a flying bison if not by word of mouth?

After a few moments of scowling into the steaming cup of tea in his hands, he realized his uncle was watching him from across the table.

"What?"

"Prince Zuko," Iroh began, "Have you ever considered what would happen if the Avatar was caught?"

He was shocked into silence; did his Uncle really think him to be such a fool? Of course he had considered it. Capturing the Avatar was all he could seem to think about.

"Yes, Uncle," Zuko responded, trying to stay calm. "He would be returned to the Fire Nation. The war would continue until the rest of the Earth Kingdom has fallen, with no hope left to be had. Once the Earth Kingdom falls, there will be little organized resistance left. No one would be happy with the Fire Nation occupation, but not much would be done about it. Troops would have to be stationed throughout the Earth Kingdom to maintain order and prevent dissonance until things finally reached a new equilibrium."

General Iroh sipped his tea, nodding slightly, "It is true, that the military presence will have to be vast to maintain order in the Earth Kingdom colonies. But do you really believe that a new equilibrium would be reached? Do you really believe that the people of the Earth Kingdom would ever be willing to give up their freedom?"

"They are a proud people." Zuko responded, agreeing with his Uncle. "But even proud people can be coerced into submission."

Iroh sighed. "I think, without the Avatar, the war will never truly end. You say that when the Earth Kingdom falls, there will be little resistance left. But what about the water tribes? And the Earth Kingdom is a massive land, so hard to impose strict control on, like you suggest."

"I'm going to end the war, Uncle," He replied, "When I take the throne."

"But how, Zuko?" The retired general pressed, "Will you finish conquering the lands still at liberty? Will you send out more troops to occupy those lands?"

He frowned. His Uncle did this from time to time; remind him of his days as a war general.

"You know I wouldn't, Uncle. I would pull troops out of the countryside and focus efforts on maintaining order in the colonies that currently exist. There are people of the Fire Nation that have lived in the Earth Kingdom colonies for generations. I would foster agreements with the remaining territories – the rest of the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes – to pay an annual tax to the crown in return for peace. My father believes that he can rule the world; that everyone will eventually submit to him, but he's wrong. I agree with you, the war will never end unless some agreements are made. But those agreements can still benefit the Fire Nation in the long run. But that can only happen once the Avatar is caught and I am Fire Lord."

Iroh nodded again, appearing to accept his answer, though not meeting his gaze. He wondered if he had passed the old general's test. War strategy was something that did not come naturally to Zuko – strategy in general, really. As if preparing him for his future position, his Uncle always made a point of asking him tricky questions, going over hypotheticals.

They were interrupted by one of the crew members, a man who worked in the kitchens. He brought in their plated lunch; pan-fried red snapper with onions drizzled with spicy pepper sauce and bowls of rice. As he set the plates on the table, Zuko caught his eye. The man was alternatively looking at him and averting his gaze like he had something to say but was afraid to speak up, his mouth dropping open and quickly closing again.

"Do you have something to say?" Zuko growled at him, annoyed by his hesitation.

"Uh- yes, sir- Prince Zuko." He stuttered, bowing his head. "When I was at the market- not two hours ago- I bought this fish and someone aboard the fishing vessel told me that they heard that the Avatar is back. Someone had seen him."

Zuko's eyes widened, then narrowed in fury. "And you waited until just now to tell me?" He shouted, "I had to ask you for this information?"

The man flinched, clearly unsure how to respond, bowing again.

"What else did you hear? Where was this sighting?" Zuko pressed, angrily.

"K-Kyoshi Island, Prince Zuko. They believe the A-Avatar is at Kyoshi Island."

Zuko got up abruptly from the table. There was no time for lunch, now. He had to rush along the repairs and set course for the Island. The Avatar was unlikely to remain in one place for long; he had to follow this lead before it went cold. He pored over the map in the bridge of his ship; Kyoshi Island wasn't far from their current position – perhaps a day and a half away. As soon as the repairs were finished, he would be back on the trail. He only hoped that Zhao didn't catch wind of this information first.

…

"Just admit it, Sokka," Katara laughed, "I beat you!"

Sokka got back into his fighting stance and beckoned her forwards, "I was going easy on you that time. Right, Suki?"

"Mhm sure, Sokka." Suki waved at him, obviously distracted. She was watching Aang show off for his growing crowd of admirers. Today, he had decided to try and ride the Unagi after his fangirls got bored of watching him ride the elephant koi. The airbender had wrangled the sea-monster by grabbing onto its barbels, though, he was still having trouble directing it. "He's a pretty amazing kid, isn't he?"

Sokka shrugged, "Yeah, I guess if you're into 113 year-old thrill-seeking bald guys and not real warriors." He said, flexing his muscles for emphasis.

She turned and pushed his shoulder, knocking him off balance to fall down the sand dune on which he stood. "Your stance needs work," She joked with a mischievous grin. He reached up, grabbing her arm, and she collapsed on top of him, laughing.

Katara sighed, still waiting in her fighting stance. "Again, guys? Really?" She yelled at the two, "I thought we were training!"

They had been on Kyoshi Island for almost two weeks now. The villagers had been generous and kind, eager to please the new Avatar, but Katara couldn't help feeling like they might be overstaying their welcome. Her intuition told her that they would have to leave soon and she was not looking forward to explaining this to Aang. Suki had quickly become a close friend, teaching both her and Sokka some of the basics of hand-to-hand combat; though, lately she noticed Suki and Sokka seemed to be developing something more than friendship. She glanced back over at them, giggling as they play-wrestled in the sand, and rolled her eyes.

The Unagi emerged from the water again, rising high above the surface to blast the shoreline with another jet of water, when Aang cried out. Katara's attention snapped to the airbender; what was he saying?

"Fire Nation!" He yelled again, before the Unagi plunged back into the water. In an instant, he was skimming across the surface of the water sprinting towards them. He collapsed on the sand, out of breath, gasping, "Katara, I just saw… that Fire Nation steamer… on the horizon. They're coming… this way."

"What?" She turned towards Sokka and Suki who had ceased their flirting to look out towards the sea.

"Do you think it's the same soldier as before? The one with the scar?" Katara asked him.

Aang looked at her confused. "That guy wasn't a soldier, Katara…" He eyed her, like he was sure she should know this already. "He's the Prince of the Fire Nation."

Frowning, she bit her lip. What? The Prince of the Fire Nation? She remembered his smirk, the raspy voice in her ear. Don't worry, Little Rabbit… I won't hurt you. A shiver ran up her spine. She didn't believe him. The fact that he was apparently Fire Nation Royalty only frightened her more; he only had the Fire Lord to answer to, a man not known for compassion.

"We need to warn the village," Suki, suddenly very serious, jumped up and started running up the dunes.

…

Zuko mounted his komodo rhino, yelling orders to the other mounted soldiers behind him.

"Find the Avatar and bring him to me. I want him alive." The newly replaced ship bow crashed onto the shore and the afternoon sun filled the hull with warm light. "Let's move."

Kyoshi Island was rather small and he knew from the map that the village was not far inland. He hoped that he wasn't too late. If he was, perhaps his mounted firebending unit would be sufficient to frighten the villagers into divulging where the Avatar was heading next. Instilling fear was generally a successful tactic.

They pounded up the path into the valley that contained Kyoshi Village and found an outer wall, made entirely of wood; its heavy gates shut. Irritated, Zuko shot fire at the gate from his fist, urging his mount to crash forwards through the burning wood. The village was a single street lined with small wooden buildings that continued uphill to a larger wooden building. It looked deserted; all the window shutters and doors were closed. Zuko took note of all the wood; if he wasn't careful, this whole village would burn.

"Come out, Avatar! You can't hide from me forever!" He yelled into the empty street. "Hand yourself over now and the people of this village won't suffer!"

By way of demonstration, one of the firebenders behind him lit the statue of Avatar Kyoshi that towered over the village. The wooden statue caught instantly and flames licked at her painted features. At the sound of the crackling fire, a couple doors and shutters creaked open, accompanied by gasps. Zuko waited a moment longer, but no one stepped forward.

"Find him," He growled at his soldiers. The mounted soldiers proceeded up the street, scanning the houses for any sign of movement. Then, as if out of the shadows, white-faced warriors dressed in green were upon them, knocking one soldier from his mount. Zuko had little time to think before one of the warriors ran at him.

He hadn't expected resistance from such a small village. He scowled as he punched, shooting flames at the approaching warrior from atop his mount. It was a girl, he realized belatedly, as she dodged his attack. This frustrated him even more. Turning his mount, the animal's tail lashed out, knocking the girl into one of the wooden houses.

Zuko dismounted and the warriors were on him again, surrounding him. He shot fire at one, but she blocked the attack with fans. They were closing in on all sides and he grimaced, realizing that they weren't likely to give up as easy as he had hoped. He dropped into a low spinning sweep kick that sent flames out in all directions around him, knocking the warriors back with force. Zuko was beginning to doubt the Avatar was even there – he had yet to see any sign of the airbender or his friends. His soldiers were further down the street, still occupied with fighting the green-clad warriors that had ambushed them from above. Some of the buildings had caught fire, the result of uncontrolled firebending, and Zuko realized it would only be a matter of time before the whole village was a pile of smoldering ashes. Cursing, Zuko was glad his Uncle wasn't here to witness this shameful display. He resolved to meditate over this later.

"Come out, Avatar! Or this village will burn!" He shouted, the command in his voice echoing in the relative silence. The village was going to burn anyway at this rate and there wasn't much he could do for it now.

"I'm here." The boy stepped out into the street, "Leave this village alone."

Zuko rushed towards him, his fist already blazing. But, this time the Avatar was ready. He whipped out two fans, similar in style to the ones used by the green-clad warriors still battling his soldiers farther down the street. The airbender took in a deep breath and used the fans to sweep Zuko sideways, off of his feet and into one of the wooden houses. There was a woman inside, crouched in the corner with two small children, and they watched in shocked silence as Zuko crashed through their kitchen, stood, brushed himself off, ignited his fists once more with a growl and ran out the hole in the wall through which he had entered. He hardly noticed them.

Zuko sent successive blasts of fire at the airbender; sweeping flames high and low, short strong blasts aimed at his abdomen, and fiery attacks from above. The bald boy was nimble, dodging where he could and using the fans to block when he couldn't. But Zuko could see he was starting to get tired. He was on the defense, backing up with each of Zuko's attacks. He ducked around a building to avoid another blow from above and Zuko followed behind the row of wooden buildings which were now largely engulfed in flames. Families were running out of their burning homes into the street and away from the firebenders, up the hill and out of the village. Zuko's grimace returned as he tried to ignore the implication of his actions; to these people, he was no different than the Fire Nation Army, leaving a string of burnt villages in their wake.

"Aang!" Came the voice that he immediately recognized as belonging to the waterbender. "We need to get out of here! Where is Appa?"

She was running towards the Avatar but stopped abruptly when she met Zuko's gaze. As if some animal instinct took over, she dropped into a fighting stance and snarled at him, baring her teeth. Then she was in front of the Avatar, telling him, "Go! I got this."

"Katara, are you-"

"Yes, Aang! Find Sokka." She waved him away, maintaining her cold stare at Zuko, "I'll hold him off."

He couldn't help but smirk. Such determination and anger in her eyes. Was she holding a grudge? The fact that she was so intent on fighting him only piqued his interest in the waterbender.

"Are you so sure about that?" Zuko sneered at her, "Little Rabbit."

…

He was smirking at her again and all she could think of was washing it off his face with a blast of water.

"Don't call me that," She growled, "I'm done playing your games. You'll never capture Aang."

"I admire your determination," His voice rasped as he dodged a stream of water she threw at him from the water pouch at her waist, "but you're too weak to stop me."

"I'm going to beat you, Prince Zuko," His name was poison on her tongue, "And when I do I'll wipe that smirk off your face."

He shrugged and shot an arcing blast of fire towards her with a high kick. She doused the flames in water and sent another stream towards him.

"You're at a disadvantage," He pointed out, blocking her attack, "Aside from the water you have in that pouch, your element is limited. But I can create fire anywhere." To prove his point, he shot an inferno of flames at the ground between them.

Katara's eyes widened and she stepped back reflexively, feeling the heat of the fire. She couldn't let him scare her; she couldn't show him fear or weakness. He preyed on fear. She had to remain stoic, unphased. Returning her eyes to the firebender, she held him in another icy stare. The time had come; she had been practicing both her waterbending and hand-to-hand combat every day since their arrival on Kyoshi Island.

She circled around the flaming ground, pulling the water from her pouch and separating it. In one swift motion, she shot a stream of water towards him and when he sent up a blast of fire to block it, she was ready. The second stream reached him as the fire dissipated and with a twitch of her wrist, it froze. Pride swelled in her at her success; after freezing the Fire Nation soldiers on the ship weeks ago, she had been practicing this technique. First with a cup of water; changing it from ice to water and then back again in between training sessions with Suki and Sokka. Once she had mastered that, she had moved onto freezing streams and projectiles.

The Prince's eyes widened when he caught sight of the frozen stream, pointed into a relatively sharp edge, and she nearly smirked in triumph. He didn't have time to summon fire to sufficiently block her ice attack and avoided it at the last minute. The sharp edge of the ice nicked his right cheek, drawing a line of blood that trickled down his face and collected at his jaw. His expression was blank, but she knew he was surprised. Katara was still running towards him, but he seemed distracted. He reached up and wiped his palm across his face, smearing the blood over his cheek, then looked thoughtfully at his hand, as if it were something foreign.

"Nice trick," He smiled at her wickedly, shattering the momentary silence, his bloodied cheek making him look even more menacing. She tried not to flinch from his gaze as she sent another stream towards him. A fire had lit in his eyes, gleaming and flickering in his amber irises. "But it still won't be enough." He blocked her attack with a blaze of flames and moved towards her.

Pulling the same move he had at the South Pole, he got her at close range, invading her personal space. She brought her arm up just in time to block his attack and, stepping forward, used the first form that Suki had taught her. It seemed he had read her movements, though, and didn't stay still long enough for her palm to connect with his chest or shoulder. Instead, he dodged quickly, kicking her feet out from under her. She gasped at her sudden loss of balance, but caught herself as she approached the ground and was back on her feet in an instant. Training with Suki had made her more coordinated, she realized.

She reached to retrieve more water from the skin at her hip when he caught her wrist. Trying to break his grasp, she turned into him and elbowed at his side. His grip loosened and she tore away from him. He grunted at the impact and she prepared for another attack.

"This is getting more interesting," he remarked, "But I don't have time for this now."

Then he was invading her space again, a gasp escaped her lips at his sudden closeness. His speed was terrifying. He aimed an attack at her sternum that she attempted to step away from, but it was still a glancing blow. It knocked the wind out of her and she stumbled back, panting and choking. She dragged her arms up to block his kick at her midsection, but failed to do anything about his hand approaching her head.

In the instant before the side of his palm connected with her temple, her heart dropped.

Not again.

…

She fell into him, her head resting on his shoulder as her body went limp. Zuko caught the waterbender and set her down on the ground, then scanned the area, searching for the Avatar. The village was burning and he looked down at the girl who had promised to wipe the smirk off his face. He tried not to smirk at the thought. Something about her was so tantalizing; the way she fought, how she sought to beat him, to prove herself, her fierce sense of determination, how her pulse raced when he was near... He dispelled the stream of thought from his mind when he realized how close she lay to the burning village.

He couldn't, in good conscience, leave her there. One of the burning structures nearby posed an immediate threat to the unconscious waterbender's life. Zuko sighed and crouched down, sliding one arm under her knees and another around her back. With a little grunt of effort, he lifted the dead weight and carried her limp body towards a stream outside the village, away from the flames. He laid her body down on the bridge that crossed over the trickling stream.

Zuko was kneeling over the girl when the Avatar rounded the corner of the nearest building.

"Katara!" The airbender saw Zuko and eyed him suspiciously, obviously assuming the worst. "Get away from her!"

This was his chance. Zuko rose. "Just who I was looking for," He sneered, then he was running towards the Avatar kicking into the air and sending flames down at the airbender.

The boy dodged the first attack and jumped on a whirling ball of air that sped out of the way, still looking at the girl on the bridge. The airbender was circling around him, shooting blasts of air, which Zuko was narrowly avoiding. This was getting irritating; he needed to get the Avatar to stay still so he could tie him up and get off this burning island. Watching carefully, he judged where the boy would be next and shot a burst of flames in front of him. The fire knocked the Avatar off his spinning ball of air and sent him flying into the wall of a burning building. Zuko went after him, grabbing the boy's arm and hauling him out of the rubble.

"They're over there!" A voice yelled.

Just when he thought he was going to finally be successful, the semi-conscious Avatar slung over his shoulder, two of the painted warriors showed up atop the flying bison. Zuko cursed under his breath as they jumped down and one charged him, jabbing at his chest. He dodged the attack and kicked at the other one, his foot connecting with a shoulder, but the weight of the boy he was carrying knocked him off balance and they went tumbling. The warrior he had kicked ran over to the waterbender – Katara, his mind corrected – and hauled her into the saddle of the bison, while the other threw kicks and punches at him. He blocked the attacks but was unable to do much when the other warrior joined in and they were attacking from both sides while also grabbing at the Avatar. He was shooting fire at them, but the female warrior was absorbing his attacks with the swift movements of her fans.

He turned to see the other warrior dragging the Avatar into the saddle and lunged to stop him, but the painted warrior pulled him back and used his momentum to launch him into one of the burning buildings behind.

"That's for burning my village!" She cried.

As he rose from the remnants of the wooden building that blazed around him, he watched the bison take off, flying into the air. Zuko cursed. He had to get back to the ship; he couldn't lose their trail again. He was turning to head back to where his soldiers were when a glimmer caught his eye. Giving in to the urge to investigate, Zuko approached the bridge. He immediately recognized the blue necklace that the waterbender wore, lying forgotten on the wooden bridge where he had laid her moments before. Instinctively, he picked up the pendant, rubbing his thumb over the strange engraving, before dropping it into his pocket.

…

"That was a close one," She heard her brother say.

She mumbled something and felt hands on her shoulders, "Katara, are you ok?"

Her eyelids were heavy, but she lifted them anyways, nodding.

There was a long sigh of relief.

"She's ok! That guy..." It was Suki's voice, "You said he followed you guys from the South Pole?"

"Yeah, he followed Aang from the Air Temple," Sokka was saying.

"I was so worried that he... that Katara was..." Aang paused and shook his head, "Do you guys have Momo?" The airbender asked. The lemur chattered in response and jumped into Aang's lap.

Katara's eyes were open now and she watched Suki move to the edge of Appa's saddle, looking down at the smoldering ruins of her village, a solemn look on her face.

"I can't believe… it's all burning." She muttered. Sokka came over and pulled her into a sideways hug.

Aang looked on in resignation. "I have an idea." Then he jumped from Appa's saddle, sailing down into the bay below. Suddenly, he was rising again, feet firmly planted on the head of the Unagi, barbel in either hand. The creature screeched and Aang directed its head towards the village. A jet of water shot into the air above, falling down on the remnants of Kyoshi Village as rain.

Suki smiled as Aang got back into the saddle, "Thanks, Aang."

Katara propped herself up on an elbow to look around, "Where are we going?" She asked.

"Omashu," Sokka answered, looking to Suki.

"I hope you guys don't mind." She said.

"Of course we don't!" Sokka exclaimed, "Let's find your sister. Aang wants to go there anyway to ride some sort of mail slide, right?"

"The World's Greatest Superslide," Aang smiled fondly.

Katara closed her eyes again, her lips turning upwards at her friends' antics, and tried not to think about what she was sure had been a dream; The Fire Nation Prince carrying her in his arms.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Please please please review and let me know what you think! (:

...

With love,

A Storm