Jealousy's Friend

Title Reason: Read it and find out why ;)

Disclaimer: And you can tell by the fact I'm writing a FAN fiction that I own Avatar. NOT.

Rating: T for violence/gore/language

Thank you all for your wonderful reviews 3 They mean a lot!

FirWolf777: Haha isn't it? I love it when he gets all awkward. And I haven't really been planning on anything for the rest of the gaang. Maybe later. I really don't know where I'm going with this. xD

Bookwormforlife: I haven't seen it. I've just heard from reviews (and friends) that it was godawful. _

JustWriter2: MUAHAH just what I planned. D And yep, that's sort of how it's going. Although they don't really know they've been attracted to each other. It's just starting to show up now. And don't worry, there's a reference to that episode in this chapter.

More reviews = Faster updates. Simple as that. ;) By the way, would y'all prefer shorter chapters and faster updates, or longer chapters and fewer updates?

And many thanks to my wonderful beta, Midnight Iris! She helped make this chapter awesome.

The night air stung his face and his lungs as the temperature crept to freezing. The desert's dramatic temperature change at night would've had Zuko shivering while he busily hauled Katara's crates around. She told him that, normally, one of the other prisoners would do the task for her, but since he was here he may as well do the task.

"Shouldn't I be resting?" he countered as his arms strained with effort under the weight.

"You need to rebuild your strength," she replied nonchalantly, rolling her eyes. "Besides, you ate and slept the last few days."

"I was out for a few days!" When did he get here and how much farther away was rescue?

"After you first came to my tent you were out for three days," she told him, concern touching her eyes, a strange contrast to her previous annoyance. She walked beside him towards the group of sand sailors.

"How could I have slept so long?" he breathed incredulously. He was irritated at himself and suddenly, at Katara. There was no saying what could've happened to him while he was out! From the corner of his eye he saw Katara's features offer him a questioning glance. He gave her no answer. After a few moments of silence she lost interest and refocused her attention on the sand sailors they were approaching.

"Here, set it down on this—" she began as they neared, but she never finished her instructions. In the dark the waterbender hadn't properly judged the distance from the desert floor and the platform on the sand sailor. She fell forward, towards the deck… towards Zuko. He had already climbed on top and had been leaning down to grab the crate when he saw her fall. He lurched towards her, hoping the impact with the ground would be less painful. If he'd been stronger he wouldn't have had to worry about that at all; he could've just held her up. However, there was no time for guilt now.

There was an audible 'thud' as the two crashed. The first thing Zuko cared to think about was the sensation of Katara, lying on top of him, in a way that seemed so natural. She was soft and her skin was cool over his. She was smooth and he could feel her breath on his cheek—

"Zuko! I'm so sorry!"

She couldn't believe it! How could she be so klutzy that she fell on him! Katara felt flustered and she hurriedly apologized for her lack of balance. She pushed herself off him and didn't even notice until she was standing that he had his shirt off. She blushed and hid her face, Ok Katara, we don't want him to get the wrong idea, he's just a friend… No. More of an… acquaintance. Ex-enemy, that seems right…Not really a friend at all. The situation is just forcing us to cooperate…Once we're out of this, things will go back to normal…

Though she had gotten up the waterbender noticed that the shirtless ex prince was still on the deck. She looked more closely at him and wondered if she had somehow injured him in the fall. That was until she noticed that his ears were beginning to redden. She wasn't sure if his embarrassment made her nervous or smug.

"Are you hurt?" she asked in an attempt to be professional.

"Hey! Is he harassing you?" one of the sandbenders suddenly called out and caught her attention. She glanced over and waved her hand absentmindedly.

"Don't worry, Boon," she called out to him, "it's all under control." Despite her words she could see the young sandbender scowl in the moonlight. Clearly he wasn't fond of the healer hanging out with some "firebending low life".

He was glad when she turned away because it prevented him from further embarrassment. Zuko hurriedly pushed himself back up and reached down to pick up the crate while the Southern Water Tribe girl spoke to someone named Boon. The exiled prince glanced over briefly to see a lanky teenage boy with long brown hair in a short sleeved tunic. He caught his glance, which turned into only what could be described as a glare.

"Where did you want this, Katara?" he asked, hoping to draw her attention. The waterbender looked back at her patient and waved her hand in the general direction of the other crates.

"Just over there, on top of the other ones… and tie them all down. There's rope around their somewhere." She moved her head so as to flip a strand of hair back into place. Zuko had to admit: with the moonlight spilling down on her she wasn't bad looking; he caught himself midsentence and shook it off and her next sentence nearly rushed past him. "You shouldn't have any trouble tying them… as I recall, you're good with knots," she teased with a smirk on her lips and a crinkle in her forehead, referring back to the time he'd tied her to a tree…back when he had been chasing the Avatar. Zuko's blush from earlier tinged his ears and spread to his cheeks. He scowled at the wooden floor, hating the fact that she could make him blush. Once, she was only a water-tribe peasant. What more could she be now?

Without a word he turned around and walked across the deck to set the box down, blushing all the while. As he searched for the rope that Katara had mentioned he couldn't help but listen in on her conversation with the sandbender boy:

"Isn't it dangerous to leave him unsupervised like that?" he asked. His voice was louder than it had been previously; Zuko assumed he standing nearer to Katara.

"No," he heard her reply. "There are too many sandbenders around for him to try anything… besides, he's too weak to do much damage," Zuko frowned, insulted. He wondered if she was intentionally trying to annoy him.

"He looks pretty strong to me…" was the sandbender's reply and Zuko's lips twitched with a small sense of pride. He was perfectly capable of handling whatever was thrown at him.

The fact that Boon kept glancing over her shoulder at Zuko was more than a little annoying. Why did he have to be so suspicious? It was just Zuko. But then again, if her captors knew exactly who he was it would just make them even more violent towards him. The only reason the sandnbenders hadn't done anything worse to the prince was because they were so isolated from civilization that they didn't realize they had the Fire Lord's son in their hands.

"He's just showing off," she replied dismissively. "Did you bring any food?" Boon nodded and reached inside his burlap bag and pulled out fresh fruits—acquired at a previous market stop, no doubt—apples, mangoes and a few leechi berries. She nodded, flashed him a smile and thanked him. He was frequently sneaking her snacks and she was always grateful for it. His small acts of kindness were keeping her from unconsciousness and, more importantly, they reminded her that not everyone was as cruel and ruthless as Sashain was.

"You seem to be pretty comfortable with him around," Boon said. He was looking over her shoulder again. Can't we talk about something else? She thought with exasperation.

"I've just gotten close to him since he's arrived," she lied. The waterbender thought it best not to let any of the others know that she and Zuko had been previously acquainted before their enslavement.

"So, just how close are you?" Boon's tone was annoyingly suggestive, and the way he raised his eyebrow at Katara did not help at all.

"Don't you have some packing to do?" She shot back quickly, adding a glare for good measure. He grinned.

"Not trying to get rid of me, are you?" he asked mischievously as he tossed an apple from one hand to another. The waterbender couldn't help but roll her eyes and smile at his antics. He could be extremely annoying sometimes, but he had a friendly quality about him that she couldn't help but admire. In some ways he reminded her of her brother.

"If I said 'yes', would you leave me alone?" She asked with a glare still on her face but the smile playing at her lips removed much of the effect. When a wide grin appeared on Boon's face she found herself unable to continue scowling, pretend or otherwise.

"Can't lose me that easily, Princess," Princess… he'd taken to calling her that ever since he found out she had a higher appreciation of cleanliness than most sandbenders. "Although I don't suppose you have anything else left you need to pack?"

Was Zuko hearing correctly? That Boon kid had just called Katara a princess? Then again, he had sounded rather sarcastic about it, so maybe it didn't have the same formal meaning as it usually did. They carried on their conversation, poking fun at each other, sharing memories, and acting as if they had known each other for much longer than they probably had. Zuko didn't get it. He also didn't understand why it had given him a bitter lump in his throat. He swallowed and told himself it didn't matter.

"I don't think I have anything left…" she was saying now in response to Boon's earlier question. "But I'll have to ask… Zu-!" She started calling out his name and mentally smacked herself, she knew it was a bad idea to give these people further insight as to who he was and she almost had done it anyway!

"What?" he called out, acting interrupted as opposed to caught.

"Come over here," she replied. He sighed, finished tying the securing line over the crates, and walked toward the duo. As he hopped off the sand sailor he heard Boon speak:

"Zu? That's his name?" he had an eyebrow lifted and an incredulous look on his face. Katara stumbled for an answer.

"Uh, um, yes. Zu. Zu… Zu-zu." She glanced at Zuko, who now had an eyebrow of his own raised. She gave him a desperate look, but he offered her no help. "Well, uh, his real name is Kuzon," she said, pulling the first Fire Nation name out of her head that wouldn't bury them deeper the grave she had just began digging.

"Then how come you called him Zu-zu?" Boon asked, his eyes growing dark and glancing suspiciously at Zuko.

"Good question," the fire nation boy replied, crossing his sculpted arms across his muscular chest. Katara continued to fumble.

"You, because, uh…" her eyes came alight with an idea. "You kept saying it in your sleep!" Zuko's eyebrows raised higher. It wasn't a very good excuse, after all.

"Well, you did," she said defensively, glaring at him, begging him to go along with it. Zuko said nothing, although the tips of his ears were turning a faint pink. Boon just looked confused. It was, after all, a bit weird that Katara had called him the pet name that Azula had originally given him.

"So… why did you call me over?" the shirtless firebender finally asked. Katara perked up as she realized there was an end to the awkward silence.

"Oh! Did you get all of the crates loaded? Is the tent on the sailor?" Zuko narrowed his eyes and looked over at Boon.

"Yes,"

"So… you got everything?"

"Yes,"

"Well… less work for you, Boon." For some reason Zuko didn't think that pleased the bender. The boy shrugged his shoulders and feigned nonchalance.

"Kuzon, would you like some fruit?" Katara asked in an attempt to change the subject as she pulled out an apple from the sack on her hip. Though his molten eyes were on her hand, Zuko could sense the other boy tense up beside him.

"Yes," he repeated and reached out to take it from her, barely holding back a smirk as he did so. He wasn't sure why—and he very well didn't care—but he liked that this upset the sandbender.

"You're sharing food with him?" He asked.

"What's wrong with that?" Katara asked innocently.

"He's… he's… he's a prisoner! And why doesn't he have shackles on? He could escape!"

"I'm right here you know," Zuko reminded him with a scowl as he bit into an apple.

"And what would he escape to?" the waterbender asked, closing her sack and pushing it behind her. "There's nothing out there but sand," She turned her attention to the firebender, "Sorry, Zuzu, but you'd die on your own out there." Zuko rolled his eyes and let his frown deepen, but didn't protest.

"What if he attacks you?" Boon hissed, looking darkly at Zuko.

"I'd never hurt Katara!" the prince shot back, fists suddenly clenching and legs spreading, defending his point and measuring his opponent. The other boy had gone too far; Zuko would beat the arrogance out of this little punk…

"Alright, everyone! It's time to head out! Get on your sandsailors and let's be off!" The order rang out and both the teenage males gave each other a parting glare. It was time for the trio to go their respective ways. If not for the call the two probably would've been at each other's throats within a heartbeat.

"I'll see you at the Gobi Arena then, Katara?" the sand-boy asked as he began to retreat. She nodded and smiled slightly. "And I'll enjoy watching you plead for your life, Charcoal Brains!" he smirked and turned, sauntering off. Zuko growled and drew back his arm, the anger building in him. He pushed his arm forward, sending the apple on a collision course with his intended target: the sandbender's skull. Thud! Direct hit. Zuko smirked with pride and began to walk back to his own sand sailor.

"Sorry!" Katara called out as Boon turned around, a look on his face that could curdle milk. After a moment he turned back around and continued on his way. There was nothing he could do right now… his revenge would have to wait. The waterbender whirled on the firebender. "Why did you do that?"

"I don't like him," he replied simply, rolling his shoulders and holding his head up.

"You need to behave!" She scolded, like she was his mother. "Do you know how it makes me look? I'm the one who promised you'd behave off…"

"Off leash?" he retorted. "Katara, I'm not a dog, and I refuse to be treated as such."

"Well you're already being treated like one," she said hotly. Then, as if the statement took everything out of her, she sighed. "Please, Zuko… it'll just make life easier on both of us if you don't cause any trouble, okay?" for a moment the Prince was planning on arguing, but after he saw the tired look on her face he decided it best not to. Instead he nodded curtly. "Alright, then let's get going." She turned and headed off for their sailor, Zuko following in her wake.

"What do you see in him?" Zuko blurted, staring at the ground. They had climbed on the sand sailor and were now settling down for the trip.

"He's not that bad," she replied as she folded her skirts around her and sat down. "He's just had a hard time with the Fire Nation. They ruined his family and scarred him." And they haven't done that to me? But he held his tongue. He'd just sound whiny and needy if he brought up the fact.

The wind rushed up around them as the sandbenders began to move their sailors. Katara jolted at the motion and Zuko reached out to hold her steady, fearful that she might topple over. She looked over at him and moonlight reflecting off of her deep blue eyes caught his breath. How could he have ever thought her a peasant or barbaric? These people were barbaric. Katara was—

"You didn't have to do that," she said, interrupting his thoughts and caused Zuko to immediately let go of her shoulders.

"Well excuse me," he replied hotly. He turned away from her. Neither of them spoke for several hours and, eventually, Katara fell asleep; however, the Fire Prince found that he was unable to drift off. He couldn't get Boon's words out of his head. Plead for your life… he would never do such a dishonorable thing. What he was worried about was the fighting, not because of lack of skill on his part but in the question of 'what was he going to face?' What sort of horrors would he meet? Would he have to fight other Fire Nation prisoners? Would he have to kill his brethren…? Are they really your brethren anymore? He wondered. You did leave them, after all. You're exiled. You don't have any alliance to them… not anymore… not technically, anyway.

Another few hours passed. The Prince faded in and out of sleep. He never slept for very long, and after waking up he always glanced at Katara. She was still resting. The exiled prince looked around at the sand sailors. They were taking turns bending the sailors forward. So far, none of them had approached either him or the waterbender… but he was remained wary of them.

A jabbing in his shoulder woke Zuko up. The sun was staining the horizon a violent orange tinge. He was reminded suddenly of Mai. I hate orange… the sensation of another jab brought him to the situation at hand. One of the sandbenders was roughly poking him in the shoulder with the handle of a spear. The sandbender stood back once he realized the boy was awake. He motioned for him to stand up. Zuko glanced at Katara, but she was still sleeping peacefully. So he stood up, his bare feet aching blisters as he did so.

"What is it?" He asked groggily. The bender held up a pair of silver shackles. His golden eyes narrowed dangerously. "No."

"You have to," the sandbender said loudly, projecting authority.

"Shh!" Zuko hissed, "she's sleeping," he motioned down at the girl. He didn't think it was fair to make her lose sleep over his problems. "And I'm also under her care. Ask your leader."

"Sashain's changed her plans," the bender replied gruffly. He shook the manacles again. Zuko glanced at Katara… sighed, and hung his head. The sandbender tucked the spear under his arm and latched the prince's wrists together. I hope you're right about this cooperating thing, Katara, he thought wearily as the bender took him away from the sleeping girl.

As they crossed the deck Zuko could see a building on the horizon. It was covered in sand and breaking down, nestled within the dunes and difficult to see, but it was definitely there…if just barely. The arena. What had Boon said it was called: The Gobi Arena, the place where Zuko would fight as the sick entertainment for his disturbed 'hosts'. This was where he would be judged on his survival skills and his ability to fight off an enemy. But I can't die, he thought determinedly. I have to get Katara and I back to the Avatar so he can finish his training. So I can fulfill my destiny, and he can save the world. Zuko set his molten eyes on the ruins with a new determination and then up at the violently orange sky.