Where'd You Go?

Chapter 3

We Will Either Find a Way or Make One

"Azula! Let me go!" Katara yelled, pulling and yanking on her chains. She moaned in pain as she leaned on her broken arm. She was in a dungeon at the bottom of a large Navy ship. Azula sat in a chair in front of the cell, fileling her nails.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Water Tribe peasant?" Azula noted, checking her nails.

Katara glared at Azula, "What do you want with me?"

Azula shrugged, "I'm just the delivery girl. I get what I want from him, he get's what he's been asking for for years."

Katara moved around a little more, trying to get comfortable, "Who wants me?"

Azula looked at Katara for the first time since Katara was chained down, "Why would I tell you?"

Azula, tell her.

Azula looked around the room. Damn it. She's back. Azula stood up, walked towards the cell and hissed, "Let's just make this simple. I deliver you to that Water Tride Barbarian, and you stay quiet until we get there. Got it?"

Water Tribe Barbarian? Katara thought. Katara yanked on her chains more, not caring about the shooting pain that her broken bone was causing, "Let me go, Azula!"

"Quiet!" Azula yelled, blue fire streaming from her mouth as she yelled.

Katara coward back against the cold metal wall, afraid of being burned. Azula noticed this and smirked, "Oh. The little Water Tribe peasant is afraid of a little fire?"

Azula opened the cell door and walked in, her arms covered in blue fire, "Let's see if you can beat me again, peasant."

XXX

Aang, Bumi, Sokka, and Toph arrived at the Fire Nation Palace at sunset the next day. Aang landed Appa in the back gardens of the Palace and was greeted with open arms from Zuko.

"I'm sorry to hear about what happened to Katara," Zuko said, patting Aang on the shoulder.

Aang nodded, "I just want to find her."

Zuko nodded, "I understand. We actually had a break in at the Palace today. We caught the girl but she won't speak to anyone. But she has requested you. She said she was here to deliver a message. She wasn't violent about it either. I think she might be here to help. She somehow knew you were coming here."

Aang nodded, "Let's go talk to her then."

"Bumi!" Honora came running out of the bushes.

"Honora!" The two kids hugged and laughed as they fell to the ground.

The two kids wrested until Sokka pulled them apart, "Okay, okay, break it up."

Zuko smiled at the kids, "Honora, go play with Bumi in your room."

Honora smiled and took Bumi's hand, "Come on! I have so much new toys since the last time you were here!"

As the two kids ran off Aang looked at Zuko, "Honora better not burn off Bumi's eyebrows again."

Zuko smirked, "I've helped her control her bending more. She's a lot like my sister with her bending."

"Thank God she isn't like Azula with her personality," Sokka came up from behind them and patted Zuko on the back, "Long time, no see, man."

Zuko and Sokka shook hands. Toph walked over to them, "Hey, where's the gloomy princess?"

Zuko shook his head and smiled, "She's out with Ursa shopping."

"Let's go see this girl now," Toph said, arms crossing and with a determined look on her face, "Lead the way, Sparky."

XXX

Aang sat across from the girl that broke into the Palace. She didn't look at Aang, much less notice him, until he spoke.

"You wanted to speak with me?" Aang asked.

"Yeah," The girl turned her head to look at Aang. She had a burn mark that stretched from the side of her cheek to the bottom of her eye.

"I worked for Azula for the past five months. I didn't know who she was at the time. She claimed to be someone she wasn't. I helped her gather Intel about your family, until a few weeks ago." The girl said, her arms crossed. Her face was blank and her eyes were a dull shade of hazel, mixed with dull green.

Aang leaned in a little more. There was something about her that seemed oddly familiar. Aang cleared his throat and kept staring at her eyes, "Who did Azula claim to be?"

"She claimed to be a friend of yours. She never gave me a name or anything." She shrugged and dig a pinky finger into her ear.

"Do you know what she wanted to find me?" Aang leaned in more. He needed to figure out why she looked so familiar.

She shrugged and pulled her pinky out of her ear and flicked it away, "Said she had a message to give you, but she had to give you it alone. So I followed your family around. I noted what times you were alone until I saw a pattern. I gave her the time and days you were alone. Sadly, yesterday, you didn't stick to the schedule. Your wife caught Firebenders sneaking into your home. She reacted, but she didn't win."

"You didn't find it strange that she needed me alone to tell me something?" Aang bit his bottom lip, holding back his anger.

She yawned, "It was a 'don't ask, don't tell' kind of thing."

Aang grinded his teeth, "Do you know at all what the message was?"

"Nope," she shook her head and pulled her legs under herself.

"None at all?" Aang pleaded.

She sighed and pulled a hand through her hair, "I think she was planning to kill you. I'm not sure. I overheard her making a plan with some dude."

"What dude?"

"I dunno. Couldn't see the guy." She shrugged.

"Why did she take Katara?"

She shook her head, "Her target was you. The only explanation I can think of is that she got in the way. Azula panicked and took her."

Aang sighed and put his head in his hands, "Do you know where Azula is doing all of this?"

She shook her head, "I just know it's one of the old Fire Navy ships. She's always on the move."

Aang looked at her, "Are you lying?"

She just stared at Aang, "Why would I be lying?"

"To take us off track. You could probably still be working for Azula. You could probably me telling me a different story then what really is going on," Aang said calmly, leaning back on the chair.

The girl stared right into Aang's eyes, "I'm not lying."

She's blind.

XXX

Katara screamed in agony as Azula pulled on her broken arm.

"Not so strong now, are you peasant?" Azula cackled.

"Azula, please!" Katara cried. She whimpered and screamed as Azula started to burn her arm again.

"It's really amazing how I can engulf my hand in flame and I don't get burnt," Azula pulled her hand away from Katara's arm, smirking.

Katara held onto her arm, "Azula…please...stop!" Katara tried moving away from Azula, but Azula just pulled her back by the chain around her neck.

Katara choked back tears as Azula twisted her arm, "Azula! Please!"

Azula smirked down at Katara and let her go. Azula walked out of the cell and closed the door behind her.

"I'll be back later," Azula hissed before she walked out of the room.

Katara laid there, cradling her arm and crying softly.

"Aang…where are you…" Katara whimpered.

She never felt this helpless before. She had no water around her. She couldn't heal herself, she couldn't cut through the iron bars. She just laid there…crying.