Chapter 5: Little by Little
By: RebLaw
Disclaimer: I still don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
A/N: So many wonderful comments! Thank you all so much! I'm so sorry for how long it's taken me to update… I am happily employed these days and busy with family stuff, so my free time is rare and precious. I'm sorry that this chapter is kind of short, and the bath scene is not shown here, but rest assured loyal readers, you will know what happened in it!
Billy Rose- yes that would be funny, honestly as I write this, I really feel bad for Aang, he gets the raw end of all of this.
PillowQueen- I'm sorry for taking so long to update!
expect the unexpected- I'll try to live up your praise!
crazyhorse- wow, um, you know, you are very right about the ending not being a good ending (honestly I couldn't come up with a nice conclusion to that chapter)
MonCappy- You're right on both accounts. I guess I just got confused because her fire and lightning look kind of similar (weak excuse, honest there is no excuse for an Azula fangirl like me to have made that mistake), thank you very much for catching it!
Lil'Pup- Thank you for your comment, I'm sorry I made you wait so long!
-.-.-
"What are you doing?" Katara asked as Azula sat down by her, watching her prepare ingredients. Azula had acted like her shadow the whole day, and it was starting to get on Katara's nerves.
"I've never seen anyone cook before," Azula said, indifferent to Katara's tone. "I'd like to see how it's done for once."
"Well, I guess it's nice that I can be the sideshow attraction for your royal pain in my …" Katara grumbled irately under her breath.
"What was that?" Azula asked; her voice harsh and firm, her eyes focused on Katara's quickly softening expression.
"Nothing," Katara said crossly. "Look, if you're going to watch me, you might as well do something useful."
Katara threw a potato over at Azula. She handed the girl a knife and watched as Azula looked confused staring at the potato and then at the knife, as if she didn't understand what was going on.
"You skin the potato using the knife," Katara said patiently. "But you have to be careful. You don't want to cut yourself accidentally."
Azula nodded. She began to cut into the potato, and started to carefully peel it. She wasn't sure how she was doing with Katara. Katara seemed to alternate between treating her kindly and being suspicious- she had been doing that all day. Maybe she was cracking the artic water bender's shell, or maybe she was occasionally seeing a glimpse of what Katara was really like. Either way.
Azula slightly smiled as she began to peel the potato. While she was talented with firebending and unarmed martial arts, the feeling of holding a weapon still made her feel more powerful. Feeling the weight of a tool, it made it somehow made her deadliness feel more real. Firebending wasn't magic, but it wasn't cold hard metal.
She peeled it slowly, and deliberately. Azula always took care in all she did. If something was worth doing, it was worth doing perfectly-- that was Azula's philosophy. To some it seemed like overkill, but to her, it was the only acceptable way.
"You're doing a very good job," Katara said politely, as she went to get the pot, with a smile. "I can't believe you've never done that before."
Azula looked up at Katara. It seemed foolish for her to praise such a simple task. Azula forced herself to smile in response. "Thank you," she said, her voice sounding light and genuine.
Katara gave Azula an earnest smile. Azula discovered that it was contagious. Katara left for a few minutes during which Azula tried to perfect her speed and technique at potato peeling.
When Katara returned she gave Azula a little smile, mostly wondering why the girl took so long to finish peeling one potato.
"I found some nuts," Aang said happily as he returned. His expression changed slightly when he saw Azula and Katara smiling at each other, unsure of what to make of it.
"Oh, hi, Avatar Aang," Azula said smiling more as she noted Aang's discomfort. "Katara is teaching me how to cook."
"That's, um, nice," Aang said, unsure of whether Azula should be seen with suspicion or if she was just weird.
"Do you know how to peal potatoes Avatar?" Azula asked, as she slowly pealed one. "It would be a good exercise for honing your focus."
"Yes, Katara taught me how to do that," Aang said. In an almost calculated, but cheerful, voice he said, "She's the best teacher ever."
Katara smiled with a teacher's pride. "It's easy to teach such a talented pupil."
Azula rolled her eyes as Aang blushed like a school girl. She wondered if the waterbender had caught on to the Avatar's obvious crush on her.
Noting how Katara was politely smiling, she guessed not. From her observations she could tell that Katara was a very innocent girl. And that was going to make her task even more enjoyable. Innocent girls were fun. That's why, despite being closer to Mai, Azula enjoyed Ty Lee's company a little more. There is nothing more beautiful to the Fire Nation princess than corrupting innocence.
"Say Katara," Azula said in a light calculated tone, moving toward Katara. "Why doesn't Aang here take over the potato pealing and you show me how to do what you're doing."
"Um, okay," Katara said, hesitantly. She didn't really like Azula ordering her around, but the girl's request made sense. "Would you mind helping, Aang?"
"Not at all Katara," Aang said pleasantly smiling at Katara while internally frowning at Azula.
-.-.-
"I want to take a bath," Azula announced after the meal had been eaten and the sun had set.
Katara and Aang were recalling an incident with a koi elephant. She didn't have the same history with Katara than Aang had, so listening to those two twitter on was a waste of her time. It was no matter, Azula was confident she could command Katara's attention anyway.
"Okay," Katara said. "I've got some soap and stuff by my pack. Feel free to use any of it."
Azula looked at Katara expectantly. Katara frowned. "Yes?" she asked.
"You will be accompanying me," Azula stated in her royal voice. Katara blinked. Azula turned her back and walked toward a nearby stream.
Katara looked over at Aang. She didn't believe Azula's nerve, giving her a direct order as if she were some kind of servant. Aang was unsure of what to make of it, so he watched blankly.
"I guess I should go then," Katara said, looking Aang in the eye, as if expecting him to say something.
"Have fun," Aang said lamely as Katara left walked off following Azula.
Katara glanced back over her shoulder, to see Aang poking the fire with a stick. She sighed. Sometimes Aang's childishness bothered her. She wondered what evil plan Azula had in store for her.
"Oh, I'm not planning anything," Azula said shortly, after Katara had caught up, her pride almost visible in her voice. "I merely like to bath."
Katara frowned.
"I know you don't trust me," Azula said. It wasn't the first time she said it, nor would it be the last. She had to show Katara that she understood her.
Katara remained silent. She didn't feel as if she needed to explain herself. She knew her feelings were justified.
"Trust me," Azula said an eerie smile upon her lips. "I would've played my hand already if I had wanted to kill you."
"But if you killed me in front of Aang, you'd lose his trust," Katara returned. "So, you're planning to kill me here, far away from him so you can make it look like an accident and take him back to Ozai."
Azula raised an eyebrow. "And why would I want to take him there?"
"Because that's what the Fire Nation wants to do," Katara said, her temper rising. "Because Aang is the only one who has the power to defeat the Fire Nation."
Azula stopped walking and turned around. In a dark voice she said, "You have the power to defeat me. I am one of the most talented firebenders on record. Contrary to popular opinion, my father is not the most powerful firebender in our nation, he is merely its leader."
Katara's brow furrowed. She sarcastically retorted, "Yeah, that's why Aang was almost dead when I ran away from you at Ba Sing Se, exactly, because I'm so powerful."
"I had an army of elite earthbenders at my disposal then," Azula said quietly. "When it was just us fighting each other, you were vastly superior."
Katara felt the disappointment and Azula's voice, and for a moment felt sympathetic. Maybe Azula wasn't purely bent on destruction like her father.
"It doesn't matter," Azula said, her arrogant tone returning. "I'm fighting for the winning side now!"
Azula turned around and made her way to the stream. A smirk graced her face when Katara wasn't looking. It always amused her when she said things that could be interpreted multiple ways and the gullible fool she said them to fell into her trap.
At the stream Azula removed her clothing, methodically and quickly. Katara was amazed at how she showed no shame; she didn't try to cover herself at all. But then Katara realized that being a princess Azula probably was used to others dressing her and things like that.
The waterbender caught her eyes roaming up and down Azula's body. It wasn't like Azula looked that much different than her… just her skin was like porcelain, her physique slim, and her body utterly flawless.
It's just natural curiosity, the girl told herself, as she felt her face redden as Azula turned and almost glared at her.
"Aren't you going to bathe as well?" Azula asked, inwardly smiling at the waterbender's expression.
Katara shrugged and began to take her outer robes off. Azula forced her eyes away from the waterbender's form. It wasn't polite to stare after all.
-.-.-
"So how did it go?" Aang asked when Katara returned.
She was frowning.
Azula followed shortly after, carrying her things with a satisfied grin.
"It was a bath, young Avatar," Azula said with a sly smile. "It went like all baths go."
Aang almost cringed at the sound of Azula's answer.
"I asked Katara," Aang said in a controlled voice.
"It was just a bath Aang," Katara said, her mind elsewhere. "Nothing to worry about."
Aang couldn't help but feel impending doom at the detached tone of Katara's voice. But given how things had been going, he doubted very much that he would get a chance to talk about it with Katara without Azula present.
