Chapter 6 –Interruptions in the Spirit Oasis

Zuko managed to land his boat on the icy shelf just beyond the city walls without anyone catching a glimpse of him.

He disembarked, careful to make sure the boat stayed out of sight of the wall.

Once he'd done that, he drew a blank about what to do next.

There were guards on the wall, and even if they miraculously failed to spot him approaching, the wall itself was sheer, slippery ice. Zuko was agile, but even he couldn't climb something that had nowhere to grip.

He was startled out of his thoughts by the call of an animal.

Zuko turned around to see turtle seals diving through a hole in the ice. A very foolhardy idea popped into his brain, and he approached the hole thoughtfully.

He teetered on the edge, weighing his options. They must be coming up for air somewhere…

Mind made up, he took a deep breath and dived.

The water was so cold it felt like it was burning him. His muscles seized, and it felt like thousands of icy needles were prickling his skin, but he couldn't go back. The only acceptable way out was onwards.

He swam downwards… and forwards… thirty seconds passed… one minute passed… and then finally, he saw an opening ahead.

He lunged for the surface, heaving himself out of the water and collapsing into a shivering heap on the floor of a cave.

He had to use his breath of fire to warm up enough to feel his fingertips again and to stop shaking enough to stand.

Zuko repeated the diving process twice more, nearly drowning on the third attempt when he found the outlet covered in a thick layer of ice. Luckily, he didn't panic, and he was able to use his firebending to melt his way through.

He ended up in a large pipe inside the city.

Despite having plunged through icy water, Zuko felt… better. The ache in his chest had noticeably reduced, and he felt warmer than he had in weeks. He was vibrating in anticipation, he felt almost giddy.

He knew he was close, very close, to… something.

He left the pipe and snuck through the city. The architecture was awe inspiring, thin sky-scraping spires that gleamed in the moonlight reached towards the heavens all around him. Icy filigree lovingly caressed the eaves and windowsills of all the buildings Zuko ran past.

He couldn't help but feel a grudging respect and admiration for the generations of waterbenders who must have built this great city up out of the arctic tundra. It must have taken a lot of hard work and determination to force their element to bend to their will so completely.

As he made his way through the streets, Zuko encountered no one… It was as if the whole Northern Water Tribe was asleep.

Zuko supposed that everyone was either hidden away safely, or at the wall for defence.

The tug in Zuko's gut was getting stronger and more insistent as he moved deeper into the city, and he couldn't help but run towards it with abandon.

Barely cognizant of the direction he was going in, Zuko eventually found himself in front of a small round door. The door was made of wood, and it was completely out of place in its icy setting.

Zuko could hear the sound of a gently cascading waterfall beyond…

His hand trembled as he reached for the handle, and pulled the door open.

On the other side, there was an oasis, sheltered on all sides by tall white cliffs. The waterfall fell from the top of the cliffs, and fed into a small lake.

Zuko had to stoop low to cross the threshold. On the other side the air was perceptibly warmer.

In the middle of the lake, there was circular island of grass. Two delicate bridges led to it.

Zuko didn't notice that there was a small pond on the island, nor did he notice the ornate archway surrounded by the lush vegetation that had no business growing at the south pole.

The only thing he noticed was that Katara was standing on the island.

As soon as he laid eyes on her, he knew that he'd been lying to himself. She was the source of the pull he felt, and just laying eyes on her eased something deep in his chest.

He didn't realise that he'd been approaching until he heard a startled gasp and noticed that there was another girl present. Her hair was white, a startling contrast to her dark skin.

"Katara! Look!" she exclaimed.

"I'll handle this Yue, get out of here."

Katara sunk into a defensive crouch, while the white-haired girl rushed towards the bridge opposite the one Zuko was crossing. He paid her no mind.

"Zuko… I was hoping you'd be okay. I've wanted to say thank you, for helping me, but I still won't let you have Aang." Her eyes flashed dangerously, and Zuko thought she'd never looked more beautiful.

"I… I'm," he broke off and cleared his throat. He had no idea what to say. He'd barely even noticed the boy, his tattoos glowing, seated on the ground behind her.

"You're welcome," he said.

"'You're welcome?'"parroted Katara in confusion, "Tell me what you're doing here," Katara demanded suspiciously.

Zuko could not find the words. He found his legs automatically carrying him towards her, like a moth drawn to a flame.

"Stay back!" she cried, raising two arms of water.

When she sent a waterwhip at him, he didn't call up fire to defend himself. He didn't even raise his arms. She let her attack splash to the ground just short of him in confusion.

"Zuko… what are you-" She took a defensive step back, but he continued until he was right in front of her.

"Katara…" his voice shook. He raised a hand towards her face, still unsure of what he was even doing, but he dropped it when she flinched away from him.

Being in her presence made him feel more alive than he had in weeks. The pain and the gaping chasm in his chest were gone. He'd been able to deny it on the ship when she wasn't present, but standing in front of her now… he couldn't deny it anymore.

Gravity had moved, and it wasn't the earth holding him in place anymore, it was her. He knew instinctively that he would be whatever she wanted him to be, whatever she needed, even if that meant turning his back on everything he knew and believed in.

He had no choice.

He was simultaneously horrified and elated. He staggered back under the weight of this realisation, and suddenly he couldn't get enough air.

He heard Katara's voice as if she was speaking to him from a great distance.

"Zuko! What's wrong?"

He curled in on himself. He was stuck between an immovable object and an unstoppable force and he was going to be torn apart.

He needed to catch the Avatar to restore his honor and right the wrongs he had committed against his father; it was the right thing for him to do for himself and his nation. All his life, all he had ever wanted was to make his father proud and comport himself in a manner befitting a Prince of the Fire Nation.

On the other hand, he couldn't catch the Avatar because Katara wouldn't want him to, and he couldn't bear to cause her pain or sadness. Keeping her safe and happy was more important than keeping himself safe and happy. It was more important than his loyalty to his nation.

He had no choice.

Zuko had self-loathing down to an art. He was foolish. He was weak. He deserved his punishment. Banishment was a just sentence for what he had done, and he had been trying his best to right the wrongs he had committed.

The new brand of self-loathing blooming in his brain was worse. Now he was a traitor. He didn't want to do the right thing. He wanted to do whatever would make Katara happiest. If she wanted him to jump off the ice wall, he would do it. If she wanted him to turn on his father and help the Avatar defeat him, he would do it. He would hate himself, but he would do it.

He felt a light pressure on his back, and the touch soothed him and brought him back to himself.

Somehow, he had ended up sitting on the grass with his head between his knees, fingers clutching at his skull. His breath came in shuddering panicked gasps.

"Calm down! You're breathing too quickly!" Katara's voice was right by his ear.

He felt her press a palm flat against his chest, right over his rapidly beating heart.

"Slower Zuko, breathe slower," she commanded, "In… and out…. In… and out, that's it," her other hand rubbed slow circles on his back and Zuko finally calmed enough to lower his hands from his head and open his eyes.

Katara was kneeling next to him, peering anxiously down at his face.

His traitorous heart was ecstatic that she was touching him. Having her this close to him was bliss, he felt warm and content, but feeling that way made him feel disgusted with himself.

"Zuko… what was that?" she asked, concern shining brightly in her blue eyes.

"I… I was hyperventilating," was his raspy reply. Katara's eyes narrowed.

"That is not what I meant," she moved so she was kneeling in front of him, and snatched up one of his hands in both of hers. Zuko offered no resistance, finding himself rendered docile under her touch.

She laid two fingers against the inside of his wrist, and seemed to be listening for something. Whatever she heard displeased her, judging by her frown.

She summoned a stream of water from the larger pond, and coated her hand with it.

"What are you doing?" Zuko asked curiously.

"Your chi is all… wrong. I'm going to try and fix it."

The water started glowing blue.

"You have healing abilities," said Zuko in awe. Katara put her dry hand on his shoulder for leverage, and placed her watery glowing hand against the good side of his face. Zuko gasped.

It was a strange feeling, being healed by water. He could feel the swelling around his black eye going away, and all his half-healed cuts and scrapes healing over properly. Katara was careful to avoid his scar.

"Why are you healing me?" he asked in genuine confusion.

"Why did you save me from drowning?" Katara retorted, moving her attention to the lump on the back of his head.

"You were a prisoner on my ship which made your safety my responsibility… plus I tied your hands together so you couldn't swim properly," answered Zuko truthfully.

"It was a rhetorical question Zuko. I wasn't expecting an answer, although I appreciate your honesty," she replied wryly.

She sat back on her heels and jabbed him in the side roughly.

"Ow!" he clutched at his rib. Now that he wasn't distracted by the hole in his chest, he realised that his side was actually quite sore.

"That shouldn't have hurt. Let me see," she demanded. Zuko frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean pull this up out of the way so I can heal your broken rib-" she went ahead and grasped the bottom of his top to pull it out of the way herself.

Zuko felt his face get hot, but he offered no resistance. It helped that Katara's tone and manner were both business-like.

She clucked disapprovingly at the green and yellow bruising she uncovered.

"Did this happen during the explosion?" she asked, probing gently with her wet fingertips.

Zuko nodded, wincing as she prodded a tender spot.

"It's on its way to healing pretty good on its own, but I can fix it better. Hold this out of the way for me…" Zuko obediently held up the left side of his tunic so his ribs were exposed.

The water glowed blue once more, and Katara leaned in very close to place both hands flat against his side. She was so close that Zuko could count her eyelashes if he wanted to. Her brow furrowed in concentration, and Zuko was hit with the urge to reach up and smooth the crease away.

"You're lucky you didn't puncture a lung. What were you thinking doing that firebending form with a freshly broken rib?" she chided gently.

"I wasn't. I was angry and impulsive," answered Zuko bluntly.

"That was another rhetorical question Zuko," she smiled at him in amusement, just a small smile, and for a moment all Zuko could do was stare. Katara's small smile faded into puzzlement.

He quickly averted his gaze.

"Oh, right," he mumbled belatedly.

He focused on the uncomfortable feeling of his bones knitting back together. It wasn't exactly painful, just extremely disconcerting. It was a good distraction from his urge to stare. And touch.

When she was finished with his rib, Katara pushed his shirt up a bit further and gasped.

Zuko glanced down.

Oh!

Angry red scratches criss-crossed the center of chest from when he had clawed at it in the night. He'd forgotten about those.

Katara was completely shocked. So shocked that she dropped her water all over his lap.

Her eyes went wide, and one of her hands covered her mouth, which had dropped open.

"Its not that bad…" Zuko murmured, confused as to why her reaction was so excessive.

"Zuko, how did this happen?" she asked seriously, not taking her eyes off his chest.

He didn't want to say, it made him feel weak, but he couldn't deny her.

"It's from nightmares… sometimes… sometimes I wake up scratching and clawing…" he trailed off and hung his head in embarrassment.

She was probably going to be disgusted with how weak and pathetic he was. Zuko was disgusted with himself.

Katara pulled the water from his lap, and her hand glowed blue once more. She pressed it to the middle of his chest, interrupting his internal self-flagellation.

"It's okay," she murmured in a soothing voice, "I have nightmares too sometimes."

Zuko couldn't have been more astonished if she'd told him she wanted to become a fire sage.

His heart gave a lurch, and his insides felt warm.

Once his scratches were healed, she kept her glowing hand against his chest, frowning intently in concentration.

"Your chi is all… wrong right here. It almost feels like… but it couldn't be…" she trailed off cryptically.

Eventually she huffed in frustration and let the water splash to the ground. Zuko shoved his shirt back into place.

"Zuko, I need you to tell me what happened on the beach," said Katara seriously, "I remember you starting to firebend, and then the next thing I knew I was waking up with Aang and Sokka on Apa, and the spirit was gone," she sat cross-legged across from him, so Zuko crossed his legs too. He stared at two koi fish in the pond circling each other as he considered what to say…

"I did a firebending form that's usually performed on the solstice as part of a ritual of protection. My Uncle suggested that it might be able to get rid of the spirit, and he was right. It did."

He glanced up at Katara and saw that she was still staring at him expectantly. He took a deep breath.

"After I completed the form-"

They were interrupted by the low tones of the sky bison as it flew over their heads and landed heavily beside them.

"What is going on here!"

Katara's brother leap off the back of the bison, brandishing his club. The white-haired girl was with him.

"Katara, get away from him! What is he doing here!" the boy bellowed.

"Sokka, calm down," Katara stood and placed herself between him and her brother, "Let me explain-"

"Have you already forgotten that I saved you from being barbequed on the beach by this guy!?"

"What! I did no such thing!" interjected Zuko, indignant. He scrambled to his feet and drew himself up to his full height to sneer haughtily down at the water tribe peasant. He drew a disproportional amount of satisfaction from being taller.

"Oh yeah? What were you spitting fire at then, huh? You were pointing your flame throwers right at her!" yelled the boy, waving his arms in the air for emphasis.

"Calm down both of you!" yelled Katara, a hand outstretched towards both of them.

Zuko looked down, suddenly ashamed.

"I… I was destroying her necklace," he said quietly. Sokka scoffed.

"Well I knew the necklace was destroyed, I burnt my hand trying to salvage the half you didn't turn into ash! See!" he pointed at a pale half-moon on one of his hands.

"I already told you Sokka! He was helping me get rid of that nasty spirit that you and Aang practically invited into the mortal realm!" snapped Katara impatiently.

"Hey, that was mostly Aang. Moreover, I didn't see any spirits on the beach. Just you and him, with him flaming fire at you!"

"It was you-" said Zuko, realisation dawning, "You hit me in the back of the head!"

"And you squealed like a baby," retorted Sokka smugly.

Zuko remembered the serene face of the spirit. He remembered her hateful black eyes, and how it felt when her pincer reached inside his body and tore… He shuddered at the memory.

"That… that isn't why I screamed," he said quietly.

Katara turned to look at Zuko sharply.

"What did it do to you?" she asked gently, laying a hand on his arm.

Zuko stared at her helplessly, opening his mouth to finish explaining, but then the moment was shattered by an unwelcome intrusion into the oasis.

"Well well, so Prince Zuko is alive."

It was Zhao.

"He's here for the Avatar you have to take him and leave, now!" said Zuko hurriedly.

"That's a bit rich coming from you," snapped Sokka.

"But we can't move Aang, he won't be able to find his body again," fretted Katara.

Soldiers fanned out behind Zhao, four firebenders.

"Either you take him or Zhao will. Go," Zuko urged, walking forward to put himself between the two groups. He sunk into a defensive stance, one fist facing forward, the other open palmed by his face.

"What are you doing?" asked Katara.

"Holding them off. Leave," he didn't want Zhao anywhere near Katara.

"Well, let's hurry up before he changes his mind, help me grab Aang," said Sokka, not needing to be told twice. Maybe he was smarter than Zuko had previously given his credit for.

"We can't leave him here to fight on his own! If he's staying to fight so am I!" cried Katara.

"NO!" yelled Sokka and Zuko simultaneously. Belatedly Zuko realised that this was precisely the wrong thing to say to get her to go. Apparently, Sokka realised this too, because he followed up with "You said you'd protect Aang, so where he goes, you go. Come on."

Katara and Sokka continued to bicker, but Zuko ignored them and started approaching Zhao and his men. He crossed one of the bridges.

"So now you're a full blown traitor to your nation? I'm not surprised. I always knew you had no honor," called Zhao.

The worst thing was that Zhao was right. Zuko had no honor, and he no longer had any intention of doing the one thing that would get him his honor back.

The four soldiers spread out defensively in front of Zhao.

"I want you to incapacitate him so we can take the traitor prisoner. Permanent damage is fine as long as it won't kill him before we get back to the firenation," ordered Zhao.

"Er… but sir, that's Prince Zuko, the Firelord's own son…" mumbled one of the men. They all shifted uncomfortably.

"Are you questions my orders Private Chou!?" Private Chou visibly gulped.

"N-no sir, of course not sir…"

"Good. Now attack!"

Four versus one wasn't good odds against imperial firebenders, but Zuko was filled with anger and hate, mostly directed at himself, and it lent his firebending strength, just as the early morning rays of sunlight did.

The four soldiers lashed out first, and then the battle was on. Zuko was forced on the defensive, blocking and ducking furiously.

He was relieved when he heard the sky bison pass over his head, but then two of his opponents were knocked off their feet with a giant wave, and Zuko's heart dropped out of chest.

Katara swooped in, sliding along a pathway made of ice, before neatly coming to a stop so they were back to back.

"What are you doing?!" he snarled.

"Stopping firebenders from burning you to a crisp," she retorted, gathering water into two long extensions of her arms.

The two men Katara had swept off their feet got up. The fight was back on, and Zuko didn't have any breath spare to continue chastising her.

He leapt in front of her to block a fireball, but then she fired a column of water at the man and froze him to the cliff face.

Zuko sent a firewhip at a soldier and Katara blocked a fireball that was aimed at his back from another.

Zuko's terror for Katara's safety slowly abated as he realised that she was worlds better at fighting compared to how she'd been in his vision.

They worked remarkable well together despite never having fought on the same side before, weaving together their offence and defence.

Katara froze a second man underneath one of the bridges after Zuko knocked him into the water with a fire punch.

Katara froze the third man in a giant ball of ice, and Zuko defended her back while she did it.

They advanced together towards the last soldier.

Katara sent a waterwhip at him, but before it could reach its mark, the water abruptly fell to the ground.

"My… My bending, it's gone!" cried Katara. The other soldiers she had imprisoned were released as all the ice melted back into water with a splash.

Sensing his advantage, the soldier in front of them sent a firewhip at Katara, but Zuko leap in front to block it.

Behind Zuko, Katara gasped.

"T-the moon!" she stuttered, pointing into the sky.

Zuko looked up and felt his jaw drop. The moon was red. Blood red.

What is Agni's name is going on…

The newly released soldiers closed in.

"Stay behind me," Zuko ordered Katara over his shoulder.

"I am a legend now!" cried Zhao loudly; startling everyone into remembering that he was also present.

He was standing by the koi fish pond brandishing a cloth bag which jerked in his grasp. Zuko squinted… did Zhao have a koi fish in that bag?

"The firenation will for generations tell stories about the great Zhao who darkened the moon!" he cried jubilantly.

"Er, congratulations sir!" called one of the soldiers uncertainly, but Zhao ignored him in favour of muttering to himself, "They will called me Zhao the conqueror, or maybe Zhao the moon-slayer. No, Zhao the Invincible-"

Zuko, Katara, and the soldiers returned their attention to each other when it became clear that Zhao neither expected nor required any input from them. He was content to continue basking in his own greatness.

The soldiers shot fireballs at them, herding rather than aiming to injure, until Zuko and Katara were cornered against the cliffs.

Zuko felt panic rising in his chest. He couldn't fight them and defend Katara at the same time, and he desperately didn't want her to get burnt.

"Just give up son, we've got you surrounded," said one of the men.

"I'll come quietly if you promise not to hurt her," he replied.

The men looked at each other.

"She froze me to a wall," said one man flatly.

"Yeah well, she can't freeze anything anymore."

"And she's just a kid."

"Look at them, they both are…"

"Alright all those in favour say aye,"

"Aye," coursed three of the men, while the one who'd been frozen to the wall said "Nay."

"You're such a grumpy bastard Lu Zen," said one of the men, shaking his head.

"Anyway, you got a deal Prince Zuko; we won't hurt your Princess-"

Suddenly, all four soldiers were blasted off their feet by a powerful gust of wind.

The air bison was back, and the Avatar was awake again.

What do you think? How was the interaction between Zuko and Katara?

Sorry for any typos, they are all my own.

Did I mention that this will probably be a slowburn fic? And that Zuko has a long journey to rid himself of angst? Poor boy.

Thanks to the people who reviewed, you're all awesome!