Here is Chapter one. Tell me what you think by REVIEWING. Also set a little after boiling rock.
Disclaimer: I don't own avatar the last air bender or any of its amazing characters
Chapter 1
"Someone go get Sokka. I think she's coming around."
"All right." There was the sound of feet shuffling and then the shutting of a door.
"Do you think she is going to wake up, Suki?"
"I don't know, Toph, she could just be fading out again. I've treated all her injuries. It's up to her now."
"Well she better come 'round soon, I'm getting tired of not having anyone worrying about every single little thing I do."
Over the mist she heard the voices. They were distant, but voices none-the-less, and her instincts told her to cling to them. At first, the fear claimed her again. Even in her half conscious state, the fear returned. She hadn't escaped, not yet. But she promised herself that the fear wouldn't reveal itself to her captors. As her thoughts started to clear, she balled her hands into fists. Her sharp nails were digging into her sweaty palms, giving her a sense of control.
Slowly she opened her eyes. Her vision was hazy at first, but it gradually cleared. As she stared into the face that was bending over her, she could feel the fear crawling its way back into her venis. This face was unfamiliar; she didn't recognize this face. It wasn't one of them. She would have remembered them, wouldn't she? This thought caused her confidence to waver for a bit. She remained perfectly still as the face examined her carefully. This face was pleasant and had a nice warm glow to it, there was a little stubble along the chin and the eyes, as blue as the ocean, portrayed relief. She didn't struggle as he took her hand in his much larger one.
"Hey sis," he said with a goofy grin as he ran a finger over her knuckle; it had a soothing effect on Katara. "You scared us back there. Ya know?"
A girl with short auburn hair and blue eyes appeared behind the boy. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and stood on tiptoe to whisper something in his ear. Katara couldn't hear what information the girl had passed, but whatever it was, it made him retreat a few steps from her bed.
She felt the girl take her pulse, but Katara's gaze was fixed on the blue eyed boy. He was wore a sleeveless blue tunic that was tied at the waist with a white strap. He wore dark blue pants and wore brown boots. His hair was pulled into a tiny ponytail. It sort of reminded Katara of a wolf's tail. She let her gaze wander away from his and observed her surroundings. The room she was in was fairly large and appeared to be some sort of a bedroom, but there was a musty smell, as if it hadn't been used for a long period of time. There were a couple of windows, and a younger girl, whom Katara had only just noticed, leaned against the window sill. She wore a green kimono; her matching green headband withheld her midnight black hair all except her bangs
which hung loosely in her face. From what Katara could see, she had pale green eyes, but they seemed cloudy, as if she was blind, yet this girl stood with such confidence that she couldn't possibly be blind.
"Sugar Queen, I can feel you staring at me."
Katara turned away and noticed that at the foot of her bed stood a young boy who was currently staring out the window. He was bald and had blue tattooed arrows running down the back of his head and continuing on his neck, and she could only guess that the arrows ran the whole length of his body. He wore a loose yellow and orange top that only covered once of his thin shoulders. He had on baggy black pants and he too wore boots. He appeared to be deep in thought as he continued to stare out at the clear sky.
As she continued to examine the room, her eyes stopped at the door. There, an older boy leaned against the wall. He fascinated Katara, but she didn't know why, he wore a dark red tunic with gold trim. His pants were black as were the boots that he was wearing. His shaggy black hair was a little too long, since it kept falling into his eyes. She didn't know why, but she felt like she knew this boy. As the boy's gaze landed on her, she noticed that his eyes were the richest color of gold she had ever seen. She saw that a crimson colored scar ran from his left eye to his left ear. He caught her staring at the blemish and turned his head away from her, annoyed. Disappointed, Katara turned her attention to the girl who had taken her pulse.
"How do you feel?" the girl asked worriedly.
"My head hurts," Katara moaned.
"Suki, can't you give her something for it?" asked the boy with the ponytail, who had moved back to stand by her bed.
"Sokka, I'm trying my best. I'm a warrior, not a healer." The girl sound irritated.
"I know that, it's just…."
"Um, excuse me, but who are you?" Katara asked as she stared at Sokka.
"Who--"
As Katara looked around the room, she noticed that everyone seemed shocked by what she had said.
"You are very weak." Suki said as she gently cut off Sokka. She watched as the girl put a hand on Sokka's arm, in comfort.
"You have been through a lot. Confusion's natural at first," continued the girl but her voice wavered.
Lying flat on her back, she watched the warrior girl send signals to the other occupants of the room. A raw sickness began to roll inside her stomach. She was warm and dry, she realized. Warm and dry, but empty. She had a body, and it was tired; but inside the body was nothing. Her voice was surprisingly strong when she spoke again and everyone in the room responded to it.
"I don't know where I am," Katara began her voice wavering, "I don't know who I am."
"You remember nothing?" asked the boy with the arrows as he looked down at her.
Confused and fighting back tears, Katara started to push herself up only to have Sokka settle her back against the pillows. She squeezed her eyes shut as she struggled to regain her composure. Suddenly a stream of memories whooshed back at her: running… darkness… the fear… a stranger blocking her path…. She took a deep calming breath and slowly opened her eyes again and when she spoke her voice was still strongly but achingly hollow, "I don't know who I am. Tell me everything--"
"--after you rest," Suki began to step forward but was stopped by Sokka, who shook his head.
"You are my younger sister," he said, taking her hand in his again and kneeling beside her bed.
"Your name is Katara. You grew up in the South Pole with dad, GranGran, and me."
She had a father and a brother. Family roots, but still nothing came. She simply couldn't remember.
"And your-- our-- mother?"
"She died when you were little in a fire nation raid against our village," he said as he closed his eyes and bowed his head. Still nothing. Katara could see the obvious pain on her newfound brother's face; but still she couldn't feel that pain.
"Where are we?"
Sokka opened his eyes, surprised, and replied, "We are at the Western Air Temple. Katara, surely you remember." he continued, almost pleading with her, "Remember Dad? Remember
how he left us to go fight in the war, and then it was just you, me, and GranGran?. Remember you were turning 15 in the fall and you could hardly wait?"
Nonplussed, she slowly shook her head as Sokka urged, "Come one, Katara, you must remember. Why can't you remember? Why?"
"Sokka," said Suki as she once again put a hand on his shoulder as he looked down at a teary eyed Katara. "That's enough. Come on, let Katara rest."
Katara watched as Sokka's shoulders slumped and he allowed Suki to lead him out of the room.
"Not too long guys. Katara needs her rest." Ordered Suki as she continued to gently led Sokka out of the room. She then turned her attention to the boy with the golden eyes who hadn't moved from his place on the wall.
"Zuko, make sure she rests," Suki whispered to him as she walked out of the room.
"Katara?" asked the airbender who had not yet left her side. "Do you really not remember anything? Not even me?"
"I'm sorry, but I don't," she replied sadly as she looked down at the sheet that covered her.
An uneasy silence filled the room as the airbender bowed his head sadly. "I was afraid of that. You are my best friend and I... I… lo—
"Please," she began for both their sakes. It was obvious that the boy was upset that she couldn't remember him and for some unknown reason it brought her even closer to spilling the tears that she so desperately held back. "I'm very tired."
"Of course," he said sadly.
"Come on Twinkle Toes," said the girl with midnight black hair as she walked over towards them, "Let's let Sweetness get some rest."
"Right Toph," said Aang, as he stood up.
"Sugar Queen get better soon 'cause I'm starting to miss your nagging," said Toph with a smirk as she walked out of the room with Aang trailing behind her.
"You really should try to get some rest," said Zuko as he too started to leave, but he was stopped short when he heard Katara's voice.
"Zuko, that's your name? Right? 'Cause that's what the girl who was taking care of me called you" Katara wondered aloud.
"Yes."
"It feels like… like I know you. Well, of course I do know you," Katara said as she dabbed at her eyes, "I just can't remember knowing you or anyone for that matter."
"You really should try to get some rest," said Zuko as he leaned against the wall again, "Maybe it will help you remember."
"This is so frustrating," she said more to herself than him, "I feel as if I'm a book that had pages ripped out. My whole life is blank pages and I have to wait for others to fill it for me." She threw her hands up in disgust.
"I can remember running, and-- and it was dark. I don't know what I was running from. And then-- there was someone… standing in my way…" she paused and thought for a moment. Suddenly the answer became extremely obvious. "It was you, wasn't it? You were the one that found me." She paused. "What was I running from? Do you know?" she asked as she looked up expectantly at him.
"No, I don't. I found you in the forest 4 days after you disappeared, and when I called out to you, you passed out. You were in pretty bad shape."
"How so?" Katara frowned.
"Well," he began as he looked down at her with smoldering eyes, "You were all cut up and had a lot of bruises, and you were exhausted. It seemed as if you had run for miles."
"Oh," Katara looked down in annoyance at the bandages that covered her arms, "And that girl, Suki, she healed me?" She looked over at Zuko only to find him staring with a small frown at the bandages that seemed to cover every inch of visible skin on her arms
"Yes she did." He said as he lifted his eyes to meet hers.
"How long was I unconscious?"
"Today would have been the second day," he said as he looked down, "Look, why don't you get some rest. I'll bring some dinner in a bit."
"Yeah," she said quietly. With that, he left the room, shutting the door softly behind him.
After making sure that Zuko wasn't coming back in, she threw her legs over the side of her bed and tried to stand up. Dizziness swept over her. For a moment, just a moment, she wanted to lie back down. But she wouldn't tolerate being tied down any longer. She leaned on the bed waiting for the weakness to fade. It was something she had to accept now. Then carefully, slowly, she walked over towards the mirror on the far wall.
She had been avoiding this. Remembering nothing of her looks, a thousand possibilities had formed in her mind. Who was she? How could she begin to know when she didn't know the color of her eyes? Taking a steady breath, she stood in front of the mirror and looked.
Too thin, she thought quickly. But not, she added with foolish relief, hideous. Perhaps her eyes were an odd color, a lighter blue than her brother's eyes but still a darker blue color that complimented her skin tone. Lifting a shaky hand to her face, she traced it. She touched the bandage that was covered a cut on her cheek. Delicate, she thought.
"Who are you?" Katara demanded as she pressed her palm against the glass. "What are you?"
Then, despite what she promised herself, she gave in to her despair and wept.
Suki and Sokka were making their way to the main courtyard in silence. The couple passed statues of past airbenders as they continued their walk through the deserted temple hallway. Suki was worried about Sokka; he was deeply upset. Anyone could see that but, what bothered Suki was that he didn't even register that she was there with him. She couldn't stand it much longer, so she did the only thing she could think of. She stepped in front of him and blocked his path.
"Sokka," she said as she reached out to him only to have him evade her and continue to walk. Sokka, please, just talk to me," she said pleadingly as she looked down at the floor.
"Suki," he said as he whirled around to face her, "She doesn't remember me. Nothing. Zippo. What's wrong with her? Why can't she remember? What if—"he hesitated, "—Suki, what if she never remembers?"
Suki was shocked to see that silent tears were streaming down his face. Sokka never cried. It was unnerving. She pulled him into a tight embrace because that was the only thing she could do. He dug his chin into her shoulder and wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, as if she would suddenly disappear.
"She's my baby sister and Dad, Dad told me to protect her and….and… I didn't. I failed to protect her and now, she's suffering. Suki, she can't even remember who she is," he mumbled into her now wet shoulder.
"Sokka, it's going to be all right. She'll remember. Just give her some time. She's strong, just like you, so don't you ever underestimate her." She said as she rested her head against his chest.
"So what's wrong with Katara?" asked Haru as he finished serving rice to everyone. While Suki, Sokka, Zuko, Aang, and Toph had been taking care of Katara, Haru had made dinner with some assistance from Teo and The Duke.
"Sugar Queen can't remember anything. Not even her own name," said Toph as she dug in to her meal.
"Why," asked The Duke.
"Well, Duke," started Suki only to be cut off by The Duke.
"It's THE Duke."
"Oh, sorry," she said sheepishly, "Well, we don't know what happened."
"Hmm… it sounds like temporary amnesia," stated Teo from his wheelchair as he took a bite of rice.
Everyone was gathered in the main courtyard eating dinner. The Duke, Teo, and Haru were sitting by the fire together while Toph sat in between Zuko and Aang opposite them. Suki and Sokka sat separated from everyone else. Usually Sokka would be on his third helping by now but tonight he just stared down at his food taking small bites now and again.
"What happened exactly when you found her?" Sokka asked abruptly.
"After we split up to look for her, I walked for about a mile, when I heard someone running. At first I figured it was an enemy and took up my stance but it was Katara. She had this wild look in her eyes, and when she saw me she froze completely. I called out to her, and that's when she passed out. I picked her up and brought her back here," explained Zuko as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Did she hit her head or anything when she passed out?" asked Suki as she looked over at Zuko who shook his head in reply as he downed the rest of his bitter tea. His uncle really did make much better tea.
"So what are we going to do know?"
"I don't know, Toph; I've done everything I can think of," replied Suki who glanced quickly at Sokka.
"I remember something like this happening at the Southern Air Temple," said Aang quietly and everyone turned to look at him.
"And what happened?" asked Toph.
"It was a year before the monks told me that I was the avatar. Some air benders had found a man in the woods that surrounded the mountain. He couldn't remember his name or anything. Similar to Katara's situtation. Gyatso said that if the man ever wanted to recover his lost memories, he would have to remember them himself. He also said that the reason why the man had lost his memories was that something from his past was blocking them from coming."
"So… Sugar Queen just has to remember on her own. There. Problem solved." Toph said as she blew her bangs out of her face.
"Toph, surely it's a little more complicated than that. I think what Aang was trying to say is that she has to find what is blocking her memories before she can remember," said Teo.
Sokka suddenly looked up from his half-empty bowl of rice, "Aang, what happened? Did that man ever regain his memories?"
"No, he never fully recovered his lost memories," as he said this Sokka's face fell, "But I'm sure Katara will remember, she's too stubborn to give up," Aang pushed on, trying to reassure Sokka.
"I guess."Sokka took a sip of his tea.
A silence engulfed the group as they finished their meal. After dinner only Sokka, Suki, and Zuko remained in the courtyard, cleaning up after everyone. Suki was washing the dishes while Zuko dried them. Sokka just sat and stared at the fire. Nightfall was slowly approaching.
"Is it just me? Or does it seem like Toph and Aang have been spending a lot more time together? I mean more than usual. He's taking this very well. You know, Katara losing her memory. You would have thought he would've…. yeah. Ugh, this trying to make small talk is driving me crazy. Please, can we talk about something? Sokka, come on, you can't keep moping forever. If you want her to get better, you have to be supportive about it," encouraged Suki as she handed Zuko another clean plate to dry.
"Sokka…."
"I know, all right, Suki? I get it. It's just that -- it's hard," he said as he stared up at the moon rising in the sky.
Zuko, sensing that the couple needed a moment alone walked over to the dinner pot and dished out some rice into a small bowl.
"Well, I'm just going to go give Katara some dinner," he said as he walked out of the courtyard. In the background he could hear the hushed whispers of Suki comforting Sokka, the dishes forgotten for now.
She hadn't meant to sleep, but rather think. Still, she felt herself drifting awake as groggy and disoriented as she had been earlier today.
Katara, she told herself. Her name was Katara and she was lying in a bedroom in the Western Air Temple.
Her name was Katara and there was no reason to wake up afraid. Safe, she repeated over and over in her head until her muscles believed it and relaxed. Slowly, she started to sit up. She looked around the room and it was just like before except that there was no one there. Throwing the blanket that covered her off she swung her legs around and got up. She slowly made her way over to the mirror again. She frowned at her reflection when she still couldn't remember anything.
"It shouldn't be like this," she thought, "I should be able to remember. What happened to me?"
Zuko walked down the hallway that led to Katara's room. As he got to her room, he knocked on the door, but no reply came. Cautiously, he opened the door only to find the room empty. Surprised, he set the bowl of rice down on a bed side table and rushed out of the room to go find Katara.
That girl! Why can't she just listen for once? thought Zuko as he walked down yet another hallway. As he passed a side hallway, he heard a voice. Approaching quietly he found Katara pacing back and forth in one of the empty rooms that he used for his meditation. He hid in the shadows as she passed by the open door way, muttering to herself.
"Why can't I remember? This is so dumb. Just remember all ready. Your name is Katara. You are from the Southern Water Tribe. You have a brother named Sokka, a father, and a grandmother.
A mom who was killed in a fire nation raid. Your fourteen years old and… and why can't I remember any of this. Why?"
Zuko just smirked from his hiding place. Katara was definitely living up to everyone's expectations; she was bound to drive herself crazy until she remembered.
"What are you doing?" Zuko asked as he stepped out of the shadows.
"Oh, uh… nothing. How much did you hear?" she asked as she looked down obviously embarrassed about being over heard.
"Not a lot. And I thought you were suppose to be resting?" he said as he raised his good eyebrow.
"Well I was bored, and I thought, if I explored a little, maybe it would spark something, and I would remember."She looked up at him while saying this.
"Well, did it work?" He asked smirking.
"Obviously not," she replied with a sigh as she walked over to where Zuko was standing.
"Why were you looking for me anyway?" She asked him, tilting her head a little.
"I brought you some food," he replied, suddenly becoming embarrassed as well.
"Well, where is this food?" she asked as she raised her eyebrows.
"In your room, where you should be," he shot back.
"Well, lead the way. I am kind of hungry now that you mentioned it and I sortofforgotwheremyroomis." She said rushed.
"What?"
"I sort of forgot where my room is." Zuko snorted as Katara glared at him. "All right, so can you just lead the way hotshot?"She didn't understand why she was getting so worked up over nothing but something about this boy just made her blood boil.
"Hey, wait up," she called as she ran down the hall to catch up with Zuko.
"I have a few questions and I think you can answer them." She finally caught up with him.
"I can?" Zuko said, looking down at her from the corner of his good eye.
"Stop being smart," she said, glaring up at him as they continued their walk back to her room.
"So, what are these questions?" he demanded as he rolled his eyes.
"I saw that," she said, sticking out tongue at his retreating back.
"And I saw that, too, so we're even now." He said sarcastically.
"Fine. Anyway, I was wondering, how many people are living here?"
"Let's see… There's Toph, Suki, Sokka, Aang, Teo, the Duke, Haru, me, and you." He paused in his counting, "So, nine."
"Hmm, all right. I have no clue who any of those people are. Wait, the girl, Suki. Was she the one that was fussing over me when I woke up?"
"Yes."
"All right, so that means the younger girl with the pale green eyes must be Toph. Is she blind?"
"Yes, she is."Katara blinked.
"But, how she seems so full of confidence! You would think that if she was blind, she would be…helpless. She didn't seem helpless, not to me at least" she stated as her and Zuko rounded another corner.
"She's blind, but, with her earth bending, she can "see" where she's going. It all has to do with feeling vibrations from the earth through her feet or something like that. You'll have to ask her tomorrow about it," he said as he looked down at her.
"Interesting. I know Sokka is my brother. So who are the rest of the people?"
"You met Aang today he was the one with the arrows…"
"Oh yeah, the monk?"
"I guess you could consider him a monk but he's the Avatar."
"I see… Who are the rest of the people you mentioned? Wait… the Avatar! He's supposed to have vanished. What happened?"
"It's a long story, and unfortunately for you, we're at your room, so it will have to wait for another time. Anyway, the other people are our friends. You will meet them tomorrow," he said as he opened to door for her.
"Thanks," she mumbled as she walked into the room.
"Here," He offered her the bowl of rice.
"It's cold!" She exclaimed after tasting it.
"Well it wouldn't have been if you'd have just stayed in your room like you were supposed to. Give it to me." Katara handed Zuko the bowl of rice and he heated it using fire bending.
"You're a fire bender." Katara realized.
"Yeah."
"I can sort of water bend."
He gave her a confused look as he asked, "What do you mean sort of? You're a water bending master."
"I am? No, I'm not! I'm just starting to learn how to bend. I can't even make a lousy water whip."
"What are you talking about? I've fought you before, and let me tell you, those water whips hurt."
"I… What?" she asked as she slowly sat down on her bed.
"Never mind." He mumbled as he sat down beside her.
"So," she said between mouthfuls of rice, "can you give me a tour of this place tomorrow?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Thanks. So, about this avatar story--"
"I told you, it's a long story."
"I've got time," she said, looking slightly disgruntled.
"Maybe tomorrow, that is, if you're good," he said as he too gave her a look that seemed to say "Drop it."
"Sokka said that I lived in the South Pole, so why am I here in the Western Air Temple?"
"This is our current home, that is, 'til the Fire Nation finds us."
"Oh."
Silence engulfed the teens as Katara finished eating her rice while thinking.
"Hey, Zuko, Do you know where this necklace came from?" she asked as she touched the pendant that encircled her neck.
"I feel it is important, but I can't remember why," she said as she ran her finger over the smooth stone.
"It's your mother's," said Zuko without thinking. Confusion came and went in her eyes. Zuko could almost see her clutch on that one thin thread.
"How did I get it?"
"I don't know. You'll have to ask Sokka. All I know is that it was your mother's."
"How do you know?" she asked quietly as she rubbed the smooth stone again.
"Let's just say it has spent some time in my possession," he said as he glanced at the necklace.
"Katara?"
"What?" she asked as she looked up snapping out of her daze.
"Get some rest, you look tired," said Zuko as got up and took the empty bowl from her hands.
"Yeah good idea," she agreed as she laid down on her bed, pulling the covers up. Zuko moved to the door, but stopped when he heard Katara whisper, "Thank you -- for everything -- for rescuing me, and… yeah… thanks."
"No problem," he replied quietly as he opened the door.
"Don't forget, you promised you show me around tomorrow."
"I won't. I'll come and get you. Just make sure you're actually here when I do."
"'Night, Zuko."
"'Night, Katara." Zuko quietly shut the door behind him.
OMG I'M SO SO SO SORRY THAT I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN A WHILE. These past weeks were crazy and I even though I had some of this chapter written I wasn't very pleased with it so I continued to work on it till I got something I finally liked which is what you just read. Please let me know what you think cause after rewriting it about 5 times and driving my beta reader insane (She
was seriously ready to kill me) I would kinda like to know how it turned out. Any way I know you're going to hate me for this but I'm leaving Saturday for another vacation so updating will happen after that and yes I will write this out on the way down so expect chapter 2 as soon as I get back. Also who else say the finale and was terrible disappointed I mean even though zutara didn't win it still wasn't what I had expected. I mean who else thought it was a little dumb that Aang got hit in the back at the right moment and got into the avatar state also another problem that upset me was that all these past avatars were saying that he had to do what was right to save the world (kill ozai) well just his luck find another way out of it ugg I was ripping my hair out at that point. Otherwise like Sokka said the effects were nice. And then leading us up to this big zutara ending with southern raiders and ember island players and all other episodes before that then poof there is Katara and Aang. Ok ranting done and even though I wasn't fond of the ending I still love the series. All right well I better go pack seeing as I still haven't gotten to that yet.