Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Avatar Characters. Nickelodeon owns them. I do not own Lullaby by the Dixie Chicks.
Story Title: Ghost Town
Category: Romance/Action/…
Rating: T for Teen
Pairings: N/A Yet
Summary: Katara gets seperated from the group, and instead finds herself in the middle of a town completely destroyed by the Fire Nation troups. But is it really destroyed? And is she really alone?

A/N: I love this chapter. I love it, love it, love it! I love it so much! I really do. Do you know why? Because one of mynew favorite songs isin it! Yay! Everyone cheer and clap and be happy! I just wanted to thank the people who reveiwed the prologue thus far in the story: willow tree angel, and sweetnevermore. Did I mention that I really liked this chapter? Oh, I did? Okay then, read it! Please review! Enjoy! - Solar Beam

Chapter One:

"Ma'am! Excuse me, miss? Hello, ma'am, can you help—? Sir, do you know where—?" Katara moaned angrily; people were walking right through her, as if they couldn't even see her! And she was irritated when they wouldn't even listen to her! It was as if she wasn't even there. She had been walking around the town for what seemed like hours, trying to get someone's attention. She had tried everything to waving in someone's face to trying to slap someone. No one felt anything, heard anything, or even gave her an inkling of an existence. The girl finally found herself sitting on the side of the water fountain, hands covering her face. She was tired, alone, and, as much as she hated to admit it even to herself, she was terrified.

And then there it was, as if like a sign telling her a warning. A soft lullaby wafted its way into her ears, sad and droning, calling to her as it had when she was pulled into the village in the first place. She started to hum along with the distant singer, her face still covered in her hands. The song came on stronger, and the song became more clear. Katara lifted her head slightly from her hands, wiping a stray tear from one eye as she listened. The voice was so familiar, but so remote. "M-mom?" She began to follow the voice, this time not minding where she walked. She walked through people, cats, dogs, not minding the voices that called to her. The song was calling to her.

"They didn't have you where I come from
Never knew the best was yet to come
Life began when I saw your face
And I hear your laugh like a serenade.

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up."

"Mom." She was sure of it now, as the voice got louder and louder. Her mother was here, in this large town that built itself up. How was it so? She didn't know. But her mother was here, calling to her. She found more and more that she was running into things…solid things. But she really paid no attention to it. By that time her mind was nearly gone. Everything was getting fuzzy, and the only thought clear enough to remember was the statement that repeated over and over in her head. Mom's here, she here. She's here and singing the lullaby. Mom's here, she's here. She's here and singing the lullaby. Mom's here…

Katara couldn't remember why she wanted to leave the town anymore. Everything was so beautiful, so alive. Everyone was so nice, as they waved to her and called to her to ask how she was. She couldn't remember why she was crying by the fountain, and she couldn't remember where she was before she had come upon the town. Who was with her before? It was someone important. But she couldn't remember, she couldn't remember anything.

"I slip in bed when you're asleep
To hold you close and feel your breath on me
Tomorrow there'll be so much to do
So tonight I'll drift in a dream with you.

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up."

"Mom, Mom keep singing. Keep singing, Mom, I'm coming."

She was walking down an empty street now, in between buildings. An alleyway was more like it. No doors on either side of her, a few dim lamps here and there, and the cobblestone beneath her feet was wet with something but Katara wasn't paying much attention to it. Her pace quickened. Mom'shere,shehere.She'shereandsingingthelullaby. The one clear statement in her fuzzy mind was going into a nuclear melt down, as the thought became quicker and more desperate in her mind. "Keep going," she told herself, trying to keep her mind away from completely shutting down on her, "Left foot, right foot, keep going!" Her pace quickened into a fast walk. She stopped, though, as she became to a fork in the street. On one road, it was dark and frightening, and on the other road it was bright and welcoming. Guess where the music was coming from? If you guessed the bright road, then you're wrong. Did Katara have a second thought of which road was better to take? If you said yes, then once more you are wrong.

She turned down the dark path, one hand pressed against the walls of the buildings on her right. It was dark; she couldn't see where she was going, so she was using the wall to guide her. Her hand slipped into something mucky and slimy, but she didn't even wince. By now, her mind was hardly working. The only thought in her mind clear enough to be read was the thought of her mother. She couldn't hear herself at all, she could only hear the intoxicating lullaby.

"As you wander through this troubled world
In search of all things beautiful
You can close your eyes when you're miles away
And hear my voice like a serenade.

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up."

Katara's hand fell on something hard and wooden. A door. She faced it, and looked down at the bright crack on the floor. Light was flooding outside from inside of the building, and the music was gone. Katara's hand lifted to the door, and two silent, mocking knocks were heard from inside the building. Slowly the door opened a crack, and light submerged the area surrounding Katara. Inside of the door, stood a young woman who looked to be in her early forties, perhaps late thirties. She had lovely, brown hair that flowed down to her mid-back with Water Tribe strands hanging in front of her face. Her eyes were those of Water Tribe blue, and her skin matched that of the nation as well. She was wearing, however, a brown and green dress. Earth Nation colors.

"Mom?" Katara breathed.

There was silence, and then the door quickly shut. Katara stood there in the alley, confused and alone. But then the sounds of locks unlocking came from inside the building and the door opened fully now. The woman looked at the girl in front of her, and she covered her mouth with her hand. She parted her fingers and one word came from her mouth that sent chills down Katara's spine. "Kattie?" That was the nickname that Katara's mother had given her when she was just a little girl. The woman covered her face with her hands, leaning against the door panel for support.

"Mom, I can't…I can't believe it. You're here, you're alive!" Katara said, running a hand over her head in disbelief. Her mind still clouded, she paid no attention to the man inside of the building.

Her mother stood there, leaning against the panel, her eyes wide as she studied her daughter in front of her. Katara had filled out since she had last seen her, and she was as lovely as her grandmother had been at that age. She felt like crying. Too bad she couldn't. Her mother's sad eyes hardened as she straightened herself up. "You shouldn't have come here, Kattie."

Katara stood there, outside, confused. "But why? I've always been here, where else would I be?"

Her mother stared at her for a long time and then she cursed. Katara's eyes widened; she had never heard her mother use such graphic words before. "Come inside, dear. Hurry, now." Katara stepped into the building, and as her mother began shutting the door, she did not miss how she looked both ways outside before doing so. What was wrong with her? Her mother motioned for her to sit, so she did. "Kattie, dear, have you eaten anything here in this town yet tonight? Have you…have you drank anything yet? The town's water, anything?"

Katara shook her head. "But speaking of which, Mom, I am rather hungry for some reason. It seems like its been years since I haven't seen you, or eaten food!"

Her mother swiped her hand down her face. "Kattie, Kattie, Kattie. We need to get you out of here."

"Mom, who's that?" Katara pointed to the man sitting in the chair opposite of her.

"No one! You must not know anyone's names here! You should not tell anyone what your name is, either, dear." Katara was confused, but she trusted her mother and she nodded. Something was bothering her mother, and she didn't like it. Her mother disappeared behind a door, and came out. "Do not drink anything here in this town unless it is this, do you understand me, Kattie? This is special water that will help clear your mind."

Katara took the glass, as if her hand was working on its own, and she drank the cup swiftly. It was a tart drink that made her purse her lips and wince slightly. "Do not eat anything here unless you brought it in with you, do you hear me?" Katara nodded, her mind was slowly opening up once more. She remembered a few things now, like Sokka and Aang. Why had she forgotten?

"…Why…What happened to me?"

Her mother sat down, elbow on the table and her head in her hand. She readjusted her head so that now her chin was in her hand. She sighed. "This town is an enchanted town, Kattie. One hundred years ago, this town was destroyed by one of the first attacks of the Fire Nation. The soldiers, however, did not comprehend the mysteries or the folk-lore of the town. A woman had lived here once, but she had been banished from it when she was found using witch-craft. She put a curse on the town, saying that when it was destroyed, every night afterward the town would become back to life. That all the people who had died in the attack would come back to life as spirits, slowly becoming real once again. And then in the morning, they would be killed by the reenactment of the attack."

Katara's eyes widened. "That's terrible!" she breathed.

"You must have gotten here right after it, my dear. At sunset every day, the town rebuilds itself to its formal glory, and then every morning the inhabitants are killed."

Katara thought carefully, tapping her chin with one finger. And then she narrowed her eyes and watched her mother carefully. "That doesn't make sense. Why are you here?"

Her mother looked at her daughter carefully. "I don't know. I found myself here after I died and traveled the Spirit World. I was tricked by a monkey meditating on a rock, I think. He told me to follow a light. I did, and I found myself here with no way out."

Katara gasped. "You mean every night you come back to life, only to be killed for something that you did not do?" Her mother shrugged. "That's…That's horrible. And…that fate is mine, now, too?"

Her mother shook her head. "There is a tale of a man who once found his way here. An old Fire Nation general. He found a way out his first 'day' in this town. He escaped, though we do not know how."

"What was his name?" Katara asked curiously, thinking of perhaps Zhao.

Her mother shook her head; her daughter had always asked the least important detail in a story. "I believe it was something starting with an 'I', though I'm not sure. Maybe his nickname was something around Dragon of the East? Of the West? Yes, I believe it was Dragon of the West."

Katara wrinkled her nose in thought. It sounded fairly familiar, but why? "So, how do we plan to get me out of here?" she asked.

Her mother shook her head once more. "I do not know, Kattie, but we will find a way. Until then, let us catch up. How is your brother?"

"So—" the man sitting in the chair opposite her leaned forward, and she remembered her mother's advice about not saying anyone's true name, "He is as sexist as ever. We are traveling with the Avatar."

Her mother breathed out. "So it is true, then. He has returned." Katara nodded, and once more her mother got out of her seat and back through the door. She came back out with a glass of the same drink. "Drink more, Kattie. It is good for you here." Katara did as she was told. She drank slower this time, afraid the bitter taste would dry her mouth up.

"I taught the Avatar water-bending, and he is a master of that now. He is very good, and I sense wisdom in him even though he is merely a twelve year-old boy. There is a girl we picked up in a town far away from her, an earth-bender. She is blind, but sees using the earth." Her mother nodded, interested in her tales. Finally, her mother stopped her from talking.

"Kattie, go explore the city."

"What? Why?"

Her mother handed her a canteen of the bitter drink. "Because, it'll be another tale to tell your brother and the Avatar when you get out of here. Plus it will give me time to think up a plan."

Katara studied her mother's face for a long time, and her mother added, "The night is still young, darling. It is your time of day, you are strongest." Katara nodded and stood to go to the door. "Remember what I told you? Do not drink or eat any of the food here." Katara nodded, opening the door and stepping out. The alleyway was now lit with lamps above every door. Honestly, she did not remember how she had gotten here, but she would find her way back to the center of town and make her way around from there.

Her foot-steps were soft on the cobblestone; swift but soft. She came to a fork in the road. One road was darker than the other, the other was brighter and the sound of laughter and talking were heard from down it. She went down the brighter path, her steps quick for she didn't like even walking down a bright path. She found herself at the fountain in which she had heard the lullaby. The town was busy and talkative, people laughing and chatting and gossiping. Katara's steps slowed, seeing how peaceful the town was.

She walked to the flagpole and took a left down another street where food-vendors were calling out to her. She shook her head to each, remembering what her mother had told her and keeping one hand on the canteen she had given her. And then she saw him, sitting at one of the vendors. His tall form was leaned over in annoyance, his eyes narrowed as he watched the vendor pile food upon the brown plate. What is he doing here? She stopped in her tracks and watched. The vendor placed the food in front of the boy. Don't eat it… she begged mentally. He took the chopsticks and clanked them together hungrily. He picked up a piece of chicken and was bringing it to his mouth.

"No!" Katara took a running jump and tackled the boy out of his stool, and onto the ground.

"What the hell?" the boy cried as his back slammed into the cobblestone, he looked at the girl lying on top of him with a desperate look in her cerulean eyes. "What are you doing here?"