Chapter 7— This Boy's Fire
"It was a warm fluttery feeling. It felt like hundreds of flutterbats trapped inside me, but it wasn't completely unpleasant."
.
For the next two years, life went to as normal. Katara got more chances to watch the matches since Shiyu allowed her to watch from the balcony. The last year alone brought more prisoners to the Arena as the Fire Nation increased its grip on the rest of the world.
She watched a single earthbender defeat two angry tiger-oxes without breaking a sweat, a young man with two hooked swords outmaneuver a waterbender and then try to escape, and even a trio of women warriors with fans put up against two benders. Katara enjoyed watching the waterbenders the most since her own training had hit a plateau. She wondered of the instruction those warriors must have received back in their villages. It wasn't from lack of time that she struggled; Shiyu was gone more often than before, leaving for extended periods on non-arena days.
The morning before next fighting day, it was announced that all the matches would be canceled in order to hold an Agni Kai. The guards stopped at the doctor's door to explain the procedure.
"The Agni Kai will begin at the sun's peak tomorrow. You are to wear the official clothing for the match and leave the door open to the arena in case there are any injuries. This is high profile match, so make sure you represent the arena well." The guard glanced past Shiyu at Katara who hovered in the next room.
"I'll need a new set of clothing then," Shiyu explained. "The ones I was given for the last Agni Kai no longer fit."
"Your robes will be delivered tonight then," the other guard added. When the door was shut, Katara moved forward with questions. Shiyu sat down.
"What's an Agni Kai? Why are the other matches being canceled for it?" She had never heard of whatever this event was before, even when she had been with Master Zu. Bai would have surely wanted to see it if it was as entertaining as the regular matches were. Katara could only guess that the occasion was rare and they did not happen that often.
"An Agni Kai is a firebending duel. Typically, only military and royalty still practice them. This arena was specifically designed to house them hundreds of years ago when it was first built, but the duels have fallen out of fashion with the majority of the populace; it's easier to pay someone off to get your honor back then to fight them for it.
"Even with that being said, the whole city will probably fill the stands tomorrow to watch. There hasn't been one in almost six years. It actually took place a few months before you came into my possession."
"Oh," Katara replied. "Do they fight to the death? Will you even be needed for the match then?"
"They can kill each other, it hasn't happened in my lifetime, but it isn't unheard of if one of the duelists loses control. Most fights end in bad burns, as is the nature of firebending, and losing one of the duelists would most likely upset some form of political power somewhere." Shiyu waved his hand noncommittedly. "So we will probably be assisting the duelers after the match."
"Who's fighting?"
"I don't know. We find out with everyone else tomorrow when they announce it."
"Who fought during the last one? You said only nobility and royalty fight-?"
"And high-ranking military typically. One of the duelists typically does something that throws the other's honor into question." Katara tilted her head in confusion, so Shiyu explained further. Katara had no concept of this elevated honor that the Fire Nation elites seemed to live by. She lived day-to-day, caring for other people's wellbeing.
"Maybe one of them speaks out of turn or ruins the other's reputation in a political affair. It truly could be anything." Shiyu explained. "The last Agni Kai was fought between two of the princes. I don't know the details surrounding what transpired, but the event was a somber occasion." Katara nodded in understanding when Shiyu got up and moved around the room to go over the supplies they would need for the next day.
The robes arrived later that evening by the same guard. He knocked on the door and passed them carefully to Shiyu, telling him they were his to alter as he saw fit. Katara lifted the silk robe from his arms and discovered a second set, made small enough to fit her lithe frame. Shiyu chuckled at the surprise on her face.
"Alright Katara," he said. "We only have twelve hours to get these to fit." She laughed and began her alterations.
Shiyu's robes were too long. He was a short man and his pants dragged on the ground when he first put them on. Katara could easily see over his head when she stood up straight; absentmindedly she wondered when she had grown tall enough to do so. His tunic and undershirt were slightly large, but that fix was easy enough.
Katara had much more work to do on her own set. She could not work in baggy clothing and the outfit was obviously designed for a man. Hours before the sun rose, she finally finished the garment just the way she wanted it. Her sleeves were shortened to above her elbows, the robes cut off at her calves. The tunic fit snug against her torso following the curve of her hips and waist. She had hand stitched shut the top so she did not need to constantly keep tightening it in fear it would gape open if she bent over to pick something up.
She slept until the noise in the arena woke her. Shiyu must have let her sleep in.
The announcer called out to the stands that the duel would begin shortly. He explained the duelists would be Admiral Zhao and Prince Zuko.
Katara watched from the window in Shiyu's second story room, not daring to step out onto the balcony, just in case her public presence might put Shiyu's job in jeopardy somehow. He had not told her she couldn't go outside, but he had not explained much about today's proceedings either. The doctor watched from the open doorway on ground level. She heard the crowd call out chastisements when the youngest prince's name was called.
Katara knew nothing of the rulers of the Fire Nation. All she was aware of was that the Fire Lord was Azulon and he was currently on his last leg. According to Shiyu, there was more than one prince, but she did not know who they were. No one had told her anything else, and she had not bothered to ask.
She did not know why his own people would not cheer for him. Even if the boy had done something to be worthy of their jeers, his people should still support him. Her own village would never do anything so cruel. Insults were given yes, but not when the person needed their village's support to learn right from wrong.
As the two men walked onto the platform, the stadium fell completely silent. It was eerie. The first blast was thrown by the Admiral, which caught the young prince off guard. He looked about her age. The boy attacked with a barrage of fire blasts from his fists. The Admiral avoided them easily.
Looking up, Katara saw the shadowed booth surrounded by guards where she was told the Fire Lord and his guests watched from. It was higher than the betting balcony and slightly more towards the northern edge of the stadium.
In the guarded section she saw two sets of people. The front row seemed to move with action, flinching and leaning forward over the railing with each attack, but out of the public eye she could make out more people. They all looked on stoically, no one seemed to move from where Katara could see. She assumed they were made up of the Fire Lord and his family.
Flashes of fire drew her back to the match. The two benders circled for a moment, sizing the other up. The prince attacked, but he was pushed backwards as Zhao countered. It appeared that the Admiral would win until the prince dropped into a crouch and spun. The flames from his feet surprised his older opponent and he stumbled backwards. Zuko jumped back to his feet and shot more flames in his direction. It wasn't possible to avoid all the fireballs.
Zhao ducked and twisted to avoid being hit in the face and moved straight into the path of one headed for his knees. The crowd made a sound of pain as the fire seared through the fabric instantly. Zuko charged forward to take advantage of Zhao's disorientation but moved too late. Even Katara caught his moment of hesitation.
The Admiral recovered quicker than the prince had assumed and punched a flaming fist directly at the boy's face. Zuko twisted slightly to avoid it and received a burning fist to the shoulder instead. He winced, falling backwards, clutching his shoulder. Zhao shot more flames at him, but Zuko rolled and sprang to his feet with renewed energy.
The Arena did not host many firebending matches. The only time she got to see the local bending form was if a masked noble showed off his ability. As different as it was to the waterbending, Katara enjoyed watching these benders. It seemed to require a different mindset to firebend. Waterbending appeared to be concentration and finesse, whereas firebending looked more to be about anger and power. Either way, the fighting style was interesting to watch, especially when there was no fear of being burned.
Blast after blast of hungry flames forced Zhao backwards until he stumbled. Zuko moved in, waited a moment, and blasted a highly concentrated ball of fire at what Katara assumed was the man's forehead. She could not be sure since the Prince stood in her line of sight as he attacked. The audience cheered and Zuko stood triumphant as the winner.
The doctor called to her from below. "Katara, are you ready?" The girl called back that she was and hurried down the steps to prepare the cool water and towels for treating burns. She listened to the crowd's applause die down and saw two figures approach the office.
"I'm fine Uncle," the prince said, even as he shielded his burned skin with his opposite hand. "The burn isn't that bad."
"Now Prince Zuko," the older man stated. "You need to get it looked at while it's still new."
The prince said nothing. The doctor welcomed the two of them inside.
"Excellent match your highness. Please come in and sit down, my assistant and I will look after you." The prince moved towards the table where Katara stood folding clean bandages. She bowed to him just as Shiyu had done then lifted her eyes to his own and told him to take a seat on the table. The boy did as he was told, glancing at the doctor.
The old man who had accompanied the prince inside chuckled. "Shiyu, when did you get this lovely young assistant?"
Shiyu smiled. "A while back. She's been very helpful around here." Katara mirrored his smile to herself as she examined the angry burn on the prince's bare chest. Like most of the prisoners of The Arena, he only wore a set of pants tied around his hips. Unlike them, his pants were made of red silk and were also tied at his ankles, she assumed it was so they would not get in the way of his firebending.
It was different standing before a young man her own age. Most of the men she worked with were older or losing their will to live. This man was full of life. She was used to keeping a highly professional air to herself; she had seen hundreds of men by now, all without shirts to cover their muscled chests.
She figured it was just because he was so close in age to her, not the fact that he was attractive, that had her feeling nervous. She looked away from his injury, peering up to his face. When his eyes fell on her, she glanced away quickly. Shiyu seemed to trust her to handle the simple task as he joked with the older man. Their casual conversation made Katara question if somehow Shiyu knew the young prince's uncle somehow.
"So how did Prince Zuko do today Iroh?" Shiyu asked. "Has he been taking your advice while you've been gone?"
"Today's match was far better than the last one. Zuko remembered his forms and only made that one mistake."
"I underestimated him Uncle," Zuko admitted from his seat on the stone table with a frown. "It won't happen again." His uncle laughed. Wringing the cool cloth out, Katara placed it over the burn. Zuko shifted, the skin was tender, and he hissed in discomfort.
"Now Zuko, let the young woman do her job without moving too much."
"No, it's alright," Katara stated, "I'm sorry." She bowed her head as she spoke hurriedly before turning back to the burn. Shiyu moved closer to oversee the procedure. He nodded and returned to where Prince Iroh sat nearby.
One could tell the burn had been caused by a fist. Where each knuckle had made contact, the burn was darker, more severe. The print was grotesquely perfect. The rest of his chest was flawless though, Katara hoped her work would be enough to keep it from leaving a scar like the one that covered half his face. She looked again at the burned skin on his face quickly. It was enough to make her shiver at the thought of how he must have gotten it.
She had not neglected to notice the unmarred side though. Even with the burn, the boy before her was quite attractive, and the feelings of attraction were not something she was used to feeling.
Katara applied slight pressure to the burn and felt the prince tense under her hands.
"Sorry," she winced again. The prince watched her, obviously bored with the older men's conversation; she refused to look away from the burn in fear her face was a red as his injury. Her mind raced as she turned over her thoughts, keeping them from straying too far into truly unknown territory. She dared not glance up again.
Feeling his eyes on her made her more nervous than she had ever been while healing a patient. Instead of worrying too much, she thought to why her patients seemed to love watching her work. She did not see anything exciting about what she did; well, nothing she did to the fighters. Healing on the other hand, that was interesting to watch, which gave her an idea. When he finally looked away to listen to something his uncle was saying, Katara took her chance.
She grabbed the bowl of burn ointment and lowered the towel. Dabbing with two fingers, Katara applied the medicated salve slowly. She focused on the moisture in the rub. The practice she had gotten with healing was minimal, but she was determined to not let this young man suffer another scar. The one covering his face was enough to make her feel sorry for him. That, and the fact that the butterflies in her stomach thought it was a good idea to keep her hands on his chest.
Ever since Katara found out about her healing abilities with her brother, she had practiced them to exhaustion. But to be able to get more experience, she needed to work with injuries that were not on the warriors who would turn her in to the guards.
The first time was the hardest, holding her hand over a flame on the writing desk in her makeshift room until it burned was almost impossible. She cried out when she finally managed it. Shiyu rushed into the room, but Katara laughed it off, tears still in her eyes, saying she had only gotten too close to the candle. She waved him away and struggled to heal the burn the way she had healed her brother.
It took many weeks of constant practice, after she got a hold on basic healing to discover how to keep the water from glowing so it would not give her away. It was more work, but finally the water yielded to her urging and stayed its normal transparent color.
Zuko jumped when Katara was only halfway done with covering the burn with the ointment, secretly healing it with her bending.
"The tingling is normal," Katara explained, "hold still now, I'm almost done." The ointment itself was just a mix of gentle herbs to nourish the skin and cool the heat from the burn. It had no special healing properties otherwise. By itself, the rub could not make the redness or swelling fade and it certainly did not cause tingling as Katara explained to the few she used it on, practicing. That was her water bending. But no one needed to know the difference.
She focused once more and finished covering the burn with the medicated lotion. It was an olive-green colored paste with chunks of ground up herbs suspended within it. Her heart hammered when she lifted her fingers away. The burn was noticeably lighter, the shape of the fist which formed it blurred to a simple patch of discolored skin. Katara moved to wrap it in fresh cloth, but the prince's uncle noticed the nearly healed skin.
"Shiyu! Your assistant is amazing!" Katara flushed red and wrapped the wound with shaking hands.
"It's just the ointment," Katara lied, "it brings down the redness. The area is still tender." She turned back to Zuko to tie off the bandage. "Did you have any other injuries?" The boy shook his head 'no' and moved to get off the table.
"You've found yourself a keeper Shiyu," Prince Iroh smiled. "She's just as good as you." The two men laughed and Iroh clapped Zuko on the back. The door to the office swung open, cutting all their elated moods short.
"Where's the doctor?" called a booming voice. "I have a burn that needs healing."
"Admiral Zhao, it's customary that the loser wait until the winner leaves with a clean bill of health before he enters," Iroh frowned.
The Admiral snarled. "Yes well, I have places to be, unlike like you two." He looked to Shiyu and then over to Zuko and Katara. His eyes rested on her for a moment too long. Shiyu noticed and called to her.
"Katara," Shiyu stated as he led the new man inside and over to the table, "please escort the prince and his uncle out while I look after the admiral's injury."
"Oh no doctor," Zhao said, suddenly completely respectful with his tone. "I'm not that injured to steal you away from your royal guests. Your assistant can tend to me just fine."
Katara fought her body's urging to take a step back and met the Admiral's eyes. She saw the flames within them, something she had yet to see on any man's face she worked with, even the other firebenders. Somehow, she knew it had nothing to do with his ability to control fire. It wasn't the distanced interest that Zuko had shown, this was different, and not pleasant.
"As you wish Admiral." Shiyu walked Iroh and Zuko out, explaining the proper care of the newly treated burn for next few days. She heard him explain they were welcome to return if there were any issues with the healing skin.
Katara swallowed her nerves and led Zhao to the exam table. "If you'll just sit there. I can take care of your burn." The Admiral followed her orders and watched as she rolled up his pant leg nearly all the way to his hip. The burned silk where the flames made contact was not nearly as bad as she expected it to be. The fabric had browned but not burned through.
He grinned. "Did you enjoy the match, my dear." Katara paused, realized she had not asked him where he was injured since it was not originally visible and mentally hit herself. This man made her nervous. She nodded in silent response to his question.
"Your burn isn't that bad, it should heal quickly," she explained as she pressed a cool towel to his thigh just above his knee.
"How was the princes' injury?" Admiral Zhao laughed.
Katara picked her words carefully. "It was worse than this one, but it will heal."
"Almost finished Katara?" Shiyu called as he trotted back into the room. It seemed he didn't want to leave her alone with the Admiral as much as she did not want to be alone.
"She was just complimenting my firebending," Zhao stated. After a pause, "where did you get this one, doctor?"
"She was gift." He took the towel from Katara as she grabbed the ointment. He was about to take that from her as well but Zhao noticed.
"Let her finish," he snapped with narrowed eyes. "She's doing a wonderful job." Katara noticed Shiyu looked as if he wanted to say something, but he held his tongue. She wondered why. Though she knew nothing of rank, she had assumed that Shiyu was well respected and had a decent status here in the capital. Nothing had ever proved her wrong until now.
The political hierarchy was next to nothing in her own village; here it was too complicated to even try to keep up with. Dipping her fingers in the cool salve, she applied it to the burn with smooth strokes. Even without her bending, the ointment would help his burned skin. It just had more of a chance at scaring and healed more slowly. Zhao watched her, his interest growing by the moment.
"Where is she from?" Zhao asked. Katara bit her lip. Not only did the Admiral not seem to understand that he would not get healed any faster by talking, but he spoke as if she was not even there. It was a different feeling, one that Katara was not so sure that she liked. She had been spoiled obviously, living with Master Zu at first and then Shiyu; both men had treated her fairly, from what she could remember at least. She was already sick of Zhao speaking over her.
"I'm from the Southern Water Tribe," she stated, looking up at him while setting down the bowl with a little too much force. She had never needed to hold her tongue before, especially not when she was upset, which happened very little.
The Admiral grinned even while his eyes rose in surprise, he did not expect to find fire in a prisoner-servant. Shiyu hesitated in answering the question; they had never talked about where she was from or her past in general. He didn't want to answer and be wrong.
"Have you been here long, Katara?" Zhao asked. The way her name rolled off the man's tongue sent a chill down her spine. She was playing with fire; that much she knew.
"Ten years." She finished tying on the bandage and unrolled his pant so it covered his leg once more. The darkened silk shimmered.
"Now, to heal correctly-" Shiyu began, but Zhao tuned the old man out as he was practically dragged out the door. Katara looked up, noticing that Zhao watched her instead. She put everything away and Shiyu came back inside after a few minutes.
"Good work Katara. You did well today." She nodded, smiling with his praise.
Shiyu wrung his hands, an uncharacteristic motion for him. "Though, we might not be able to keep you such a secret anymore, now that Zhao knows."
"You were keeping me a secret?" She was not angry, just confused. So many people knew she was here.
Shiyu nodded. "Only from the ones who would be most interested in taking a young woman off my hands on the way out." Katara froze in place when she realized who he was referring to. "I said no of course. But that man will need a lot more than a 'no' to get him to leave you alone." Katara was silent. She did not like the way the Admiral watched her. It was like he had a hunger in his gaze, and she wasn't quite sure she liked the sound of leaving Shiyu. She needed a change of subject.
"The prince who fought today-"
"Prince Zuko."
She nodded.
"You might want to keep their names straight. There are four princes at the moment," Shiyu said. "Prince Zuko is the youngest of them."
"Four? He has three older brothers?"
"No," Shiyu said. "Fire Lord Azulon had two sons and hasn't passed on the throne yet, so both of them are still given the title prince, along with their own sons."
"Oh," Katara nodded. How confusing to have everyone no matter their relation referred to as prince. She moved on with her original question. "How did Prince Zuko get the scar on his face?"
"It was in the previous Agni Kai, six years ago," Shiyu explained with a sigh and a dropped gaze. "He took a fire blast to the face and I did the best I could. I wasn't as talented as you are with burns and my medicated ointment was nowhere near perfected like it is now. Speaking of which, I didn't add anti-inflammatory herbs to the mix-"
Katara bowed her head to hide her lie "I did. I'm sorry; I thought it would be a good idea since we were dealing solely with burns today."
"It was an excellent idea. No need to be sorry; you probably saved the young prince from another scar." He patted her on the back and walked up the steps to his room.
"Shiyu," Katara asked, recalling something else. "Why was the prince with his uncle today? Why wasn't his father-?"
"Prince Ozai, his father, was the one Prince Zuko fought his first Agni Kai against. His father gave him the scar he wears and publicly declared he wanted nothing more to do with his son's firebending instruction. Iroh took over in his stead."
"Do you know Prince Iroh well? You speak of him so familiarly."
"I meet him many years ago when I was training in medicine at the academy. I was selected to accompany him on a journey to slay a dragon as his medic. He didn't need my abilities then, which was probably a good thing since I was still mostly untrained, but we found we had much in common. With this war still being fought and him leading the advances, I haven't seen him much." She nodded and let Shiyu retreat upstairs to his bedroom. Katara collapsed on her cot, glad the day was over.
...
Two days later, Katara awoke to voices speaking in the front room. Curious as to what was going on, she changed and walked towards the conversation. Before she entered the room, she recognized the voice and stood stone still.
"I'm not selling her."
"I'll give you more than then you'll know what to do with," Zhao growled.
Shiyu's voice hardened. "Admiral. I'm not selling her. There is nothing you can give me that I want enough to give her up. Now, if you would please leave my office."
"I'll find something to make you give her to me." Katara heard the door close and stepped into sight. Shiyu jumped.
"Oh Katara. I didn't know you were up. Will you start some tea?"
"Any particular kind?" She set the old teapot that they typically used for boiling water for medical instruments on the burner and lit the coals with a pair of spark rocks.
"Jasmine please." Shiyu sighed as he sat down at the short table in the front room. Katara set up the tea once the water came to a boil and brought out the never used set of teacups.
There was a knock at the door and Shiyu waved Katara away from answering it. The more she thought about it, it made sense. Shiyu would never ask for tea if there was no reason; Shiyu hated tea. He had been expecting someone.
"Come in," the doctor called. As Katara turned and set down the teapot, she recognized their guest. The old man who had accompanied Prince Zuko walked in and greeted Shiyu. She immediately picked up the teapot.
Originally, she intended to leave it out for Shiyu and his guest to serve themselves. But it hit her that Prince Zuko's uncle was also royalty, as Shiyu had explained before, and thus probably was not used to pouring his own tea. The doctor bowed and they both sat, waiting for Katara to put the kettle on the table.
Katara knelt with the teapot in her hands, and she poured out the cups of tea for Shiyu and Iroh just as she'd been taught to do when she and Bai played tea party. Holding the first cup with her right hand and the pot in her left, Katara moved around the table, serving each man on his right side. Iroh's cup was poured first since he was the guest and then Shiyu's after his.
The doctor struggled to contain his amazement that she knew how to properly serve. Iroh's attention was divided between Shiyu's shocked expression and Katara's movements and proper hand placement. She was slightly hesitant, but it seemed she knew what she was doing.
Shiyu hated tea, so she had never needed to make any for him. She made it for herself at night, but that hardly required any ceremony. It wasn't too much to remember, though Bai's teacher had spoken of using sliced lemons or honey in the tea as well, something he had explained needed to be on the table when tea was presented.
"Thank you," Iroh nodded as he accepted his tea. Shiyu could only stare as he took the cup into his hands.
"Where did you learn to serve tea?" Iroh asked before he took a sip. "It obviously wasn't from Shiyu." He chuckled and eyed the other man.
"My old master had a tutor for his daughter. I learned through her." Iroh nodded his head and took a sip. He settled deeper into his cushion and Katara took her leave. Once she vanished from the main room, the two men began talking. If she had not heard her name, Katara would have given the men their privacy.
Shiyu's voice betrayed his worry. "Admiral Zhao asked after Katara again, just before you showed up today. I'm worried he'll do something rash to get me to sell her. He's come multiple times."
"Are you planning on giving in to Zhao? If you are, I beg you to reconsider. Besides, I can double his price. Any young woman who can serve tea is worth it."
"I'm not planning on giving her up. Not to anyone. She's too useful to me here."
"Understandable." Iroh nodded, "but if you ever end u-"
"Iroh." The two men laughed, and the eldest Prince poured himself another cup.
Iroh changed the subject. "Have you found an apprentice yet?" Stepping away from the door and settling herself on her cot with a book from Shiyu's library she tried not to eavesdrop. It was impossible, the rooms were too close.
"Not yet. I've met with several young men over the last month, but even with the manuals I'm leaving, none of them seem qualified enough. They would need to spend at least a year learning under me, and I'm not sure that would even begin to cover things."
"You just need to pick one. Lu Ten thinks you'll work yourself to death soon, even with the help you have. Though, he's said the same thing about me!"
"I'll look into it further," Shiyu agreed. He took the smallest sip of tea he could and moved on in the conversation.
He lowered his voice. "Speaking of working yourself to death, how is Fire Lord Azulon faring these days? With the way the war is dragging on-"
"It's not a secret my father is getting older," Iroh noted. "That was why he called Lu Ten and I back from the front and our siege on Ba Sing Se a few years back. He was sick and took his time recovering. Everything is ready for the crown to pass."
"And you'll finish the war and be done with this mess, correct?" Shiyu asked. Iroh didn't say anything in response. Katara finally dug deeper into her book and tuned them out completely.
...
The next two months passed in a flurry of activity. Katara treated her first female patient, one of the women warriors who fought with fans. Her wounds were from the single sabertooth moose-lion that the Arena held. Deep gashes had been cut into her chest and back. Katara was happy to be there to assist her since she seemed highly distrustful of Shiyu when he offered to stitch up her biggest gash.
Katara worked her healing into more and more patients as she become skilled with her secretive process. News of the magic ointment spread through the prisoners. Katara realized she may have been doing too well of a job at that point when they asked for it when they suffered from ailments that had nothing to do with burns.
But new prisoners and healing medicines was the last thing on her mind when the gifts for Shiyu began arriving. At first, the boxes of medical supplies and new robes were appreciated. The Fire Nation's entertainment budget did not allocate them much, especially for two of them.
When the gifts became too outrageous though, Shiyu sent the gifter a message; it read something to the effect of 'the gifts need to stop. I've found a buyer who can match and beat any price.' Shiyu hoped that this would end Zhao's obsession with Katara. He didn't know he could be more wrong.
(Original Author Note)
Yay! Zuko makes his debut. Everyone happy? I wonder what will happen from here ;) The Zuko/Zhao fight is a re-imagining of their match in the first season. These two characters clash so well. And I made up the tea etiquette, just in case anyone is wondering...
*The chapter title is from 'This boy's fire' by Jennifer Lopez ft Santana*