Chapter I
KATARA
The full moon glows brightly in the evening sky, and all around the Fire Nation Capital is silent. A ship sails from a distance and carries with it an important cargo. A lone figure was standing at the bow of the ship. Her long, wavy brown hair seemed to dance with the wind. She was wearing Water Tribe clothes consisting of a long, blue tunic with white trimmings and a white satin sash with the emblem of the water tribe embroidered on it. Ten years, she thought as she gazed at the capital longingly. Finally the ship had reached the port and all the passengers were eager to leave the ship. At the foot of the gangway, a woman wearing a palace official's uniform and a group of Fire Nation soldiers were waiting for their new visitor, scrutinizing every passenger walking past her. Finally, she found what she was looking for. Slowly the stranger descended from the ship. "Ah, welcome to the Fire Nation, Ambassador Katara," greeted the woman and she made a bow to greet her formally. "I am Song-er, and I ll be escorting you to the royal palace," she added. Katara smiled at her and also greeted her and the soldiers formally. A palanquin was parked next to them, which Katara embarrassingly thought she had to ride on. She was taken to the palace and quietly made her way to her bedchamber. After Katara inspected her room she dismissed Song-er. Once alone, she sighed and smiled, and sat on her bed, waiting.
She didn t have to wait long before she heard someone knocking - behind a wall with the big tapestry of the Fire Nation emblem, instead of the door. She quickly stood up and ran to the tapestry and there behind it was a secret door. The door opened and the fire lord emerged from his hiding place. He wasn't wearing his usual royal robes, but his black tights and shirt. Katara curtsied to the fire lord. "You know you don t have to be so formal to me when it is just the two of us around. I m glad you still came here," Zuko confessed as he was trying to give Katara a warm embrace. But much to his surprise the waterbending master quickly stepped back and turned her back on him. There was a moment of awkward silence that both felt in the room. Zuko still felt embarrassed about the rejection even if they re alone. "You asked me to come here for a very important task. So please could we get on with business as soon as possible?" Katara suddenly spoke. Zuko looked at Katara with concern and sadness. "I think before I start let's have a seat, shall we?" he suggested.
They took a seat on the sofa in the bedroom. Katara, of course, sat at the other end of it, to maintain her distance from Zuko. The fire lord can feel the cold reception, but he is patient. "I have given you the details in the letter I sent to you. I know I have already asked so much from you in the past. You, having to postpone everything in your life to stay here in the palace and take care of my family because of the ordeal we ve been through. And I did promise to no longer bother you and Aang, after it was over. And I have been faithful to that promise, he reminded. But right now, I need your help, since I have no control of the matter, and only you can do it," he continued. "This is also for Kanna's future," he added. Katara suddenly looked at Zuko with hope and liveliness upon mentioning the young princess's name. She had left the Fire Nation while the princess was only four years old to return to the Southern Water tribe. She had fond memories of the young princess and sorely missed her. "Is she alright? Is she here in the palace?" Katara eagerly asked the fire lord. "I knew that would put a smile on your face. She is fine and you ll get to see her first thing in the morning," replied Zuko with a smile on his face. Both friends fell silent again, looking at each other s eyes. "Katara, I..." Zuko hesitantly called her name. But then he got disrupted when they heard a knock on the door. Zuko stealthily went back to the secret passageway. "We'll talk tomorrow," he whispered to Katara, and disappeared into the dark hole on the wall. Katara quickly fixed herself up before she let the chambermaid enter her room.
The next morning, Katara awoke feeling the the first ray of sunlight peeking through the curtains at her window. At first she felt she awoke in a strange room, but when she realized that she is in the royal guestroom, she remembered where she is and her reason for coming to the palace. "I really am far from home," she told herself, feeling homesick already. But the minute her thoughts went to the royal princess, who according to Lord Zuko, whose future rests in her hands, Katara found the strength to get up from bed and dressed herself up. Shortly after she got up from bed, the chambermaids came knocking on her door. She was escorted to the royal baths and back to her room. A simple but beautiful purple silk robe with a gold silk belt was put on her bed and a matching pair of pretty purple shoes was placed at the foot of her bed. She found a note next to the robe. Clearly, she knew Fire Lord Zuko was there while she was out. She opened the white note. 'Just like the old days', is all that was written on the note. Katara smiled and blushed as she read it. A sudden knock on the door startled her back to the present. "Madam, may I come in?" A young woman's voice was heard from the other side of the door. Katara recognized the voice belonging to the chambermaid from last night. Please, come in, Katara replied and quickly hid the note in her drawer. The chambermaid enters the room and bows to greet Katara. "His Majesty requests your presence at the dining hall for breakfast. I'll escort you to them. May I help you with anything, Madam?" asked the young woman. "Ugh! Zuko! He didn't have to," mumbled Katara. He already knows I know every corner of this palace! Katara's thoughts were screaming with frustration. "I'm sorry did you say something, madam?" asked the chambermaid. Katara answered by shaking her head and asked the maid to come back later after she's done dressing herself up. "I really should remind Zuko that I don't need people to serve me hand and foot," she uttered. She started getting dressed. As soon as she finished dressing up, the chambermaid reappeared at her door and they made their way to the royal dining hall. While walking, Katara was in deep thought. She then started to talk to the young maid. "Um, excuse me it's so rude of me. I wasn't able to ask for your name," Katara gently spoke to the young chambermaid. "It's Yumi, Madam. Thank you for asking," she cheerily replied. "My name is Katara. So how long have you been serving in the palace, Yumi?" she asked. This is the best time for me to ask around, she thought. "I've been working here for only two years," Yumi answered. "Were you ever assigned to take care of Princess Kanna?" she inquired. "No, Madam. But His Majesty had hired nursemaids before, but they never last longer than a month, so His Majesty finally stopped looking for a new nursemaid and decided to devote more of his time to take care of the young princess. Isn't that sweet of him?" stated Yumi. "Why wouldn't the nursemaids stay long?" Katara asked Yumi. "We didn't know why. They just change their minds. One of them was even actually looked spooked when she was in charge with the young princess, and left without a word," Yumi explained. Katara felt anxious about the young princess' predicament but never asked further. She hurried her pace to the royal dining hall. This is worse than I thought! She was getting impatient now and felt the hallway was endless. Then, see saw the entrance to the dining hall from a short distance. She stopped a few feet from the entrance, took a deep breath and composed herself, before entering the dining hall.