Avatar the Last Airbender: Wherever You May Be

A/N: So…hello. Right, went on vacation in June for two weeks, barely touched my computer during that time, came home and have been on a BLEACH kick like nothing else (Seriously. Got home of the 24th and except for two, maybe three days, I have either read or watched BLEACH since then).

Went and peeked at my story and saw I hadn't posted since May and though "Holy F#&% that's over an entire month!" so I'm posting. Bad news: the next one probably will not be until sometime in August (refer to the whole BLEACH obsession above) and I don't think I've actually added any pages to my story since, well, January (before BLEACH there were a few other obsessions and I'm a one-at-a-time obsessive girl).

Anyways, enjoy! The background of what happened to Ursula is covered and a look into the life of the Royal Family of the Fire Nation.

Oh, and a little bit of fluff!

Wherever You May Be

Chapter 9

"Is she here?"

"No," Lady Tien said before sighing, clasping her hands together in her lap as she stared at Zuko sadly. "I am not sure of where your mother is, Lord Zuko. I haven't known for almost nine years."

"What?" he asked hoarsely, not understanding. His mother had made it this far – Jiro was proof of that – so how did it come that she had disappeared again?

"Yet she is alive, correct?" Katara asked softly from his right. "You don't deny she's dead?"

"She is alive," Lady Tien agreed and Zuko let out the breath he had been holding. "She corresponds a few times a year, but it is never mentioned where she lives. All I know is that she is teaching."

"What about Jiro?" Zuko asked, pinching the top of his nose. "My mother and Ozai hadn't shared a bed for years before her banishment."

"How much do you know about the time around her banishment?" Lady Tien asked softly, pushing her cup of tea away.

"Only what Ozai told me and my own memories," Zuko told her. "He told me my mother was a traitor and that he banished her, but he didn't say why."

"He had been planning on taking the throne for years, even before Iroh left for Ba Sing Se," Lady Tien told him softly. "He had always craved the power of being Fire Lord and spent many years trying to find ways to gain the throne. During Iroh's siege of Ba Sing Se, with his only heir there with him, your father saw an opportunity and took it."

"He killed Lu Ten?" His cousin had been much older than him, but he could remember him and the times he had spent with Lu Ten and Iroh in the palace as a child. The thought that his father would pre-ordain his cousin's murder was shocking, even knowing how ruthless Ozai was.

"I am not sure; if he did it was extremely well planned. There is also the possibility he knew the dangers of attacking Ba Sing Se and that there was a good chance Lu Ten would die in battle," Lady Tien reasoned sadly, her voice and eyes showing her own grief at the thought. "Your father also wanted a son to follow him to the throne, even though as you know Azula was already hailed as a prodigy around this time."

"You said 'a son'," Katara said softly and Zuko felt her hand reach out and grab his under the table in a silent comfort he appreciated more than he could admit. "He didn't want Zuko as his heir?"

"No, he did not," Lady Tien agreed sadly and Zuko felt like the air had been punched out from him. He knew now that his father had always hated him, the one lucky to be born, but never knew it went as far as to deny him his birthright as the first born son…

"Zuko?" Katara asked worried and he slackened his grip which had tightened in anger around hers.

"He wanted another child, another boy to give his throne," he clarified roughly and Lady Tien nodded sadly.

"His…visitations with your mother started around that time. Your father was never a gentle man to begin with, Prince Zuko," Lady Tien said softly, unable to meet his gaze, and Zuko felt horror rise in his throat. "When your mother continually failed to conceive the child he intended to be his heir…"

"He hurt her."

"No," Zuko told Katara, staring at her sadly. "He hurt me."

"What?" Katara hissed in surprise, staring at him.

"He knew how much my mother cared for me, so he took out his frustrations on me," Zuko told her, oddly calm now that he knew the reasons why his father would come after him and beat him. Several times he would end up bed-ridden with the injuries he had received and had once suffered a broken arm from it. "I always thought I had done something wrong, thought it was because I couldn't be at Azula's level of firebending or my studies weren't progressing fast enough."

"Why didn't anyone say anything? Surely your grandfather would have noticed!" Katara seethed next to him and Zuko felt slightly mollified at the anger she was showing.

"They said he was sick," Lady Tien explained. "Prince Zuko often fell ill as a child, a carryover affect from his early birthing, so Fire Lord Azulon never thought much of it. Had Princess Ursa attempted Prince Zuko would have suffered much more."

Silence filled the kitchen as they all paused, Zuko staring into the fire though he kept his grip around Katara's hand.

"So he tried for two years to conceive a child?" Katara asked, breaking the silence, and Lady Tien shook her head, avoiding their gazes.

"He gave up after that first year, knowing he had lost the time to produce another child before Iroh's return as it seemed the breach into Ba Sing Se was imminent."

"But, then Jiro isn't…?" Katara trailed off, confused.

"No, he is my brother," Zuko said coldly as he worked out the timing of conception. "A few weeks before my grandfather died my mother became ill and had to stay in her room for a few days to recover. When I finally saw her the bruises had faded enough to be hidden by make-up, but they couldn't bare a close inspection."

"He raped her," Katara said horrified, covering her mouth with her free hand as she gazed at Zuko who clenched his teeth together as he glared at the table. At the time, he hadn't known what the bruises had meant and as kid, there was little he could have done. Still, looking back on it he felt rage rise in him before he pushed it back down.

"We got word of Uncle's failure in Ba Sing Se and the news of my cousin's death shortly afterwards," Zuko continued after a few minutes, his rage and anger barely restrained in his voice. "Ozai asked Azulon to name him heir to the throne as Uncle was disgraced for his failure and had no one to carry on his line. My grandfather was angered by the suggestion and told him for his betrayal to his older brother he would suffer the same loss."

"He ordered Ozai to kill you," Katara said, having heard this much of the story when Zuko had told her about his mother before, shortly after the end of the war.

"Yes. After that, all I know is that night my grandfather died, naming Ozai as heir, and my mother disappeared in the middle of the night. From Ozai's words I figured she killed Azulon to save my life," Zuko said softly, staring at Lady Tien who nodded in confirmation.

"So she was banished and you remained as your father's only male heir," Katara said before frowning. "How come he didn't remarry? As part of her banishment the marriage would be terminated, wouldn't it?"

"No," Lady Tien said, shaking her head. "Their marriage was valid, is still valid today as both are alive. In claiming her banished, Ozai locked himself into a position he could not escape. In the Fire Nation, banishment does not remove one's title or contracts, including marriage. And since heirs can only come from a blessed union…"

"He couldn't sire other children from different women to be his heir," Zuko finished before shaking his head. "She would have been welcomed back though if she brought Jiro though. He could have easily removed the banishment to get the second son he wanted. Why didn't she?"

"Jiro is not a firebender," Lady Tien told him softly and Zuko stared at her in surprise.

"Is that needed to be Fire Lord?" Katara asked confused and the two nobles shook their head.

"It is not stated that the Fire Lord must be a firebender, though it is implied from when the Fire Lord was originally a Fire Sage and therefore was required to have bending abilities," Lady Tien explained.

"Ozai would have outright killed him and my mother," Zuko explained to her and saw Katara's eyes widen in surprise and horror. "He hated me because my bending was weak, but at least I had the ability to bend. If he knew that he sired a son who couldn't even do that he would have been outraged and have blamed my mother for it."

"So she hid him here to protect him," Katara reasoned and Lady Tien nodded. "And she left him with you so he wouldn't be found even if she was."

"That is correct. She thought it best that we remained separated from each other. She comes and visits every few years, but not for very long, and no one in the village knows" Lady Tien said and the two women jumped as Zuko suddenly stood, breaking his grip on Katara's hand.

He didn't excuse himself as he exited from the doorway in the kitchen, letting the door slam behind him as he walked away.

sSs

"I should follow him," Katara said softly after the door had slammed shut. She was reeling at what they had just learned, but she had seen Zuko's face as he had left and the emotions usually kept under tight control threatening to break out.

Standing, she left Lady Tien behind in the kitchen as she followed Zuko outside, seeing him walking towards a large snow bank several yards from the back of the house. She slowly followed him, shivering as the snow seeped in through her pants as she waded through it.

She stopped a few feet away from him, startled as he suddenly yelled and sent a large blast of fire into the snow, sending up a puff of steam. It was followed by several more attacks until Zuko was standing in a puddle of water and breathing heavily. Figuring he had calmed down Katara finished approaching him, reaching out to rest her hand on his arm. He braced under her touch but didn't shrug her off so Katara stopped next to him, staring up at the unmarked side of his face.

"I want to hurt him," Zuko whispered harshly without looking at her. "I want him to truly suffer for all that he has done to her, to other people...to me."

"There is nothing wrong with feeling that," Katara told him, remembering the similar conversation she had with him about her mother's killer. "Ozai is a cruel man and should be punished for his actions. No man has the right to hurt his own child to punish the mother and should have the honor to not hurt his wife."

"Ozai never had honor, only lust," Zuko barked out, a short burst of flames escaping from his fisted hands from the excess of his anger. "I tried so hard when I was younger to get him to see me as something other than a failure, even after my mother was banished. Now I realize I was just a constant reminder of his failure. He must have been happier than I thought the day he banished me."

"You have much to be thankful for because of your banishment," Katara reminded him. "If you had not left him, you would have either died or wound up as bad as he was. What you had to go through made you stronger than him, not weaker, and you know this, you told him yourself. You are a good man, Zuko."

"But not good enough for her," he said softly, finally turning to look at Katara. She could see the pain and abandonment on his face and in his eyes as he stared at her, the boy who lost his mother when he needed her the most. "It's been six years since Ozai's defeat and she never tried to come back to me. She never even tried to contact me, so I must not be good enough in her eyes. The years it took me to find myself weigh too heavily in who I am."

"No, that can't be it," Katara denied, shaking her head. "As a mother I'm sure there is nothing more than fear you would reject her for her actions that night she left Zuko. If it was me, I would be scared."

"She saved my life," Zuko said, rubbing his hands over his face. "She left me to save my life, why would I ever reject her?"

"Because at some time you were angry at her for leaving, weren't you?" Katara asked and after a few seconds Zuko nodded, refusing to meet her gaze at the admission. "It was the same with my father during the war. Even though I knew he left to protect me and Sokka I hated that he left us alone and I took out my anger on him the first time I saw him in two years."

"It doesn't matter, does it?" Zuko asked scornfully a few minutes later, glaring back out at the snow again. "She isn't here and once again we have no idea where she can be."

"But we know what she's doing," Katara reminded him, pulling him to face her and hugging him. "She's alive, so we'll find her, I promise."

"Thank you, Katara, for bringing me this far," Zuko said as he returned the hug, resting his head on top of hers as he pulled her close to him. She gave in and relaxed into his embrace, closing her eyes as he secured one arm around her waist while the other reached up to tangle in her hair at the base of her neck. Neither broke contact until Katara suddenly shivered, laughing softly as she stepped out of his hold.

"Mind if we go back inside? I'm loosing feeling in my hands," she told him and Zuko grabbed her hands and placed them between his before she could move to return to the house.

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course," she told him, blinking as Zuko brought their clasped hands up to his mouth. She jumped as hot air suddenly covered her cold fingers and saw flames rise up from the gaps between her hands as Zuko exhaled. Out of reflex she flexed her fingers as they started to tingle from the heat returning to them and accidentally brushed the tips over Zuko's lips.

The touch startled her and she went to pull her hands away only to have Zuko tighten his hold, pulling her hands closer so he could place light kisses on the tips. He didn't break their eye contact as he did so and Katara shuddered at the caress, the cold no long being a problem as he pressed a kiss into her palms.

"We need to talk," he said, his voice coming out deeper even though he was talking softly. She opened her mouth to reply, a denial coming to the front of her mind only to be cut off as Zuko reached out and pulled her back to him so they were almost touching besides the grip he had on her hand and waist.

"About Jiro?" she finally blurted as Zuko started to close the space between them. He paused, staring down at her confused and Katara took the opportunity to slip out of his hold, putting a few feet between them. She was flushed and hated how her heart felt like it was trying to escape out of her throat and shaken by what just happened.

One touch, she realized stupidly, one touch on the lips – that wasn't even a kiss! – and the energy between them sky-rocketed until it was almost tangible.

"What about Jiro?" Zuko asked slowly, his gaze still causing her to shiver in desire. She pushed the feelings aside though, reminding herself she had more to worry about than wanting her engaged friend.

"What's going to happen to him now that you know he exists?" she asked, wrapping her arms around her as the cold started to return to her overheated body. Zuko didn't seem as effected but she could see the snow practically melting at his feet as he stared at her in a cross between confusion and bewilderment, still not following their sudden change in conversation. "Are you brining him back to the Fire Nation?"

"I…I don't know. I haven't exactly given it any thought yet," he reminded her and Katara shrugged, purposely turning back to the house. She was starting to freeze and wanted to be back inside by a fire in the presence of someone who would keep these awkward moments between them at bay. "Katara!"

"See you inside!" she called back, rushing inside and refusing to acknowledge what he seemed to want to talk about. As she stepped inside, she heard a short yell and a wave of heat hit her as the door closed and she closed her eyes briefly before opening them again and focusing on Lady Tien.

"You're freezing!" Lady Tien said as Katara stomped her feet clear of snow inside the kitchen. Katara waved at her to remain sitting as she went to stand by the fire, her shivering slowly subsiding as the heat penetrated through her wet pants. "Would you care for dry clothes?"

"I'll be fine. They're drying decently," Katara reassured her, turning to face the fire as the door opened so she wouldn't be able to see Zuko as he entered. She held her hands out to the fire and wiggled her fingers to get the circulation going, trying to forget the feeling of Zuko's lips on them.

"I'm sorry for running out," Zuko said softly to Lady Tien from behind her and Katara listened to their conversation as she continued to face the fire.

The two talked about some of the Fire Nation festivals and a little about Zuko's pet projects until Katara finally turned to face them as her face started to burn from facing the fire. Zuko met her gaze briefly and she saw a flash of irritation and hurt pass over his face before he returned his attention back to Lady Tien, talking about a school for low-class firebenders he wanted to start.

All three looked up as they heard eager footsteps on the stairs before being followed by a loud sound that she took to be Jiro jumping the last few steps of the stairs. He appeared in the kitchen a few seconds later, grinning happily as he stopped next to Lady Tien.

"I finished all my readings!" he told her excitedly, nearly bouncing on the balls of his feet. He glanced between Lady Tien and Zuko several times and Katara hid a smile behind her hand as she watched him try to contain himself. "Can I spend some time with Fire Lord Zuko now? Please?"

"Ah…just Zuko's fine," Zuko told him and Jiro blinked at him before grinning widely at the request. "We are brothers, so titles don't matter do they?"

"I guess not," Jiro said before turning to face him. "Is it true that you once fought off an entire ship of pirates?"

Katara snorted loudly at the comment before slapping a hand over her mouth, blushing as all three turned to face her at the un-ladylike sound. Jiro and Lady Tien seemed surprised but Zuko was almost glaring at her before he shifted his attention to his younger brother.

"Yes I did. They were after Katara though, she had stolen something from them, a scroll," he told him and Katara laughed, going to join them. She sat across from Zuko rather than returning to her original seat next to him, uncomfortable at returning so close to him after what had started outside and figuring once Jiro calmed down he would like to sit next to Zuko.

"And you tying me to a tree was purely coincidental?" she asked, staring at him questionably.

"You tied her to a tree?" Jiro asked while Lady Tien simply glared at Zuko who flushed under her gaze before glaring at Katara who just smiled innocently.

"I was trying to protect her," Zuko said slowly and Katara paused to think before shrugging. She wouldn't have thought it at the time but having Zuko there probably had saved her from worse treatment from the pirates if they had come after her alone, even if she had been tied to the tree.

"Okay. You won though, right?" Jiro asked, sitting down next to Zuko in Katara's old spot. There was a hint of idolization in his gaze and Katara hid her smile again, trying not to think how cute the scene was.

"Um…in a way," Zuko stuttered, glancing at Katara.

"Well, you didn't go over the waterfall. I would call that winning," she decided and Jiro stared between them in surprise.

"There was a waterfall?"

"It was pretty big too and the rocks at the bottom destroyed both ships that went over."

"Awesome!" he cried. "What about the underground city of Ba Sing Se?"

"Where did you hear about these things?" Katara asked, suddenly wanting to divert Jiro's attention from the topic. The group had made peace about what had happened there but she didn't want to relive another crucial moment of her and Zuko's friendship when things between them were a little rough.

"Mother wrote to me about it. She said a lot of people were talking about what happened during the war once Zuko became Fire Lord and there was even a group of people traveling around putting on a play about it," Jiro explained and Katara shuddered at the description.

"The Ember Island Players?"

"Yeah, that's them!" Jiro said and Katara heard Zuko groan softly.

"Those idiots?" he grumbled and Katara grinned.

"I wonder if they got your scar right this time?" she asked and laughed as Zuko glared at her before turning to Jiro.

"Why don't you show me your room and I'll tell you all the stories you want? The Ember Island Players tend to take liberties with the truth," Zuko said and shot a glance at Katara. "Extra commentary is not needed at this time."

"You take all the fun away!" she called after the two as they left the kitchen, leaving her and Lady Tien alone.

"Did he really tie you to a tree?" Lady Tien asked and Katara laughed at the barely restrained outrage in the older woman's voice.

sSSs

Ending A/N: Yeah…in all honesty, too drunk to write anything. Let me know if I missed any errors.

Review!

Disclaimer: Oh, no way…