A/N: Aha! You people thought I dropped off the face of the earth, didn't you!? Come on! Admit it, you did! :)

FINALLY!!! After the end of semester exams and the defeat of writer's block, I got this chapter finished! I do appologize for being so late on this chapter but I kinda had to focus on school work more. Sorry... Academics first, you know!

HJ, your question about partisans will be answered in this chapter. And if you have any more, just ask. I got my information on them from a history of special ops book.

Chapter 11—Sonderkommando

Katara stared at the Russian man as he and her brother conversed on the other side of the camp fire. Normally she was a very trusting individual, but for some reason, she did not trust this man who called himself Jet. For one, he interrupted her plan to escape and rescue Zuko from Auschwitz, and two, he knew too much about the group at first glance than Zuko knew after the first hour of meeting them. Who was this man? Was he really from Russia? And if he was, what was he doing this far into enemy territory? It seemed a little too farfetched for normal Russian soldiers.

"Sorry to barge in on you all like that, but when we saw your fire, we were a little cautious," she heard Jet say. "It seemed odd to us to see something like that during times like these."

"What are you all doing here in the first place?" Suki asked, who was leaning on Sokka's arm, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

Jet smiled warmly at the girl. "We're special operations soldiers sent on a mission here in Germany." He gestured to the rest of his team. "These are all my friends and my team. This is Longshot," he said, pointing at a quiet man with black hair who held a big rifle with a scope mounted on the top. "My second in command, Smellerbee." He moved to a small woman with short, ruffled hair who could be easily mistaken for a boy. "The boy who found you up in the tree, we call him The Duke, and our civilian Partisan, Pipsqueak." Katara cocked her head to the side. Pipsqueak seemed like a very odd name for someone like this man. He was very large and very muscular. His voice was deep and he was in no way, shape, or form, a pipsqueak. How on earth did he get a name like that?

"How did you know we came from Auschwitz?" It was Sokka who asked the question.

"The girl," The Duke answered. Katara raised an eyebrow at the boy's remark. You'll have to be more specific than that. There are three girls here. "Her head is shaved and she looks very weak and mistreated." It took a minute for Katara to realize that he was talking about Suki. "She's very skinny and her face is very pale and tired-looking. Obvious signs of a Concentration Camp. And seeing as Auschwitz is the closest one to where we are, I'd say that that is where you came from."

Katara watched as her brother began conversing with the man who called himself Jet. She did not hear what they said but turned her head away angrily. She stared into the fire, pondering over recent events. Her plans were foiled and these newcomers were to blame. Now how was she supposed to rescue Zuko? Now that these men were here, she could no longer escape back to Auschwitz without anyone noticing. It was just impossible now.

Her eyes began to burn from the light of the fire and for a moment she thought she saw Zuko's stern but caring face in the flames. Blinking, she had to tell herself that she was seeing things before the fire flickered as someone tossed another log on it, making sparks fly out. One landed on the back of Katara's hand and she yelped and jumped to her feet.

"Ow!" she cried, shaking her hand trying to get the cinder off her skin. Sokka came right to her side, immediately asking for her hand. She let her brother examine her burn as she looked around angrily for the culprit who placed the log on the fire.

"Sorry," Jet said as he walked around the campfire just as Sokka did to examine her hand. "I didn't mean to burn your hand." She glared at him angrily and looked away from him. "Are you okay?" he asked, reaching for her hand. Sokka released her and let Jet look at her injury.

"I'm fine!" she argued, attempting to pull her hand away before he could grab it, but he caught it before she could stuff it in her pocket. She cringed as his hand rubbed against her burn but did not pull away. "I told you, it's fine," she protested.

Jet brought her close to the fire for better light. "There is no need for lies," he said, turning her hand over in the fire light. He turned around to his group. "Pipsqueak, bring the medical bag." He then turned back to Katara and smiled. She still scowled at him but he seemed to ignore her malice as he took the medical supplies from Pipsqueak. "Hold still, please."

Katara squirmed when Jet first took a wet towel to her hand. Her brother then came up and took her other hand after the Russian nodded in his direction and she squeezed his hand in turn to take her mind off the pain. Once Jet was done cleaning off the soot and dirt, he rubbed her burn with an odd sort of paste that cooled her skin before wrapping it up with a cloth from the medical bag. He then looked up at the gypsy girl and smiled.

"There you go," he said, staring her right in the eyes. Katara looked right back and noticed that his eyes were solid black. She wondered if it was just a trick from the firelight that made them look that black; if they were really just dark brown. But they still weren't the amber color that Zuko had. That beautiful amber that she saw every time she looked in the fire suddenly reminded her of how much she disliked and distrusted Jet and his men. Katara pulled her hand back out of Jet's hand and glared at him. He only sighed and stood up, returning to his place around the fire.

"If you really are Russian," she began, making Jet stop and look back at her. "What are you doing so far south into enemy territory? Surely your mission shouldn't take you this far south." Every eye in the camp had turned to her but she did not care or even notice. Her gaze was focused on Jet as she studied even the slightest movement he made.

He sighed and sat back down right across the fire from her. "That is a very good question," he said, almost as if he were trying to avoid answering her question. "But tonight is not a good time for its answer. It looks like we are all rather tired. I suggest we all settle down for the night and get some rest." He turned to Sokka. "Sokka, you can take the first watch tonight. I will take over after you, then Aang, after that, Smellerbee and then Pipsqueak."

Everyone nodded their agreement, all except Katara who only grumbled as she unrolled her sleeping mat and blanket and crawled in to go to sleep. She lay awake for a good hour before finally dozing off, deciding that she would reformulate her plan to save Zuko in the morning.

---

Dirt, the dirt got everywhere, in his wounds, in his clothes, his eyes, fingernails, everywhere. It was even worse in the form of mud. Zuko hated the rain, seeing as it turned the dirt into mud. Not only did it get everywhere, but it was made easier to get everywhere by making him slip and fall down and slipping was not fun when one had to dig a big hole in the ground. It made the dirt fall back into the pit and he had to dig out what he had just tossed out of the hole.

Zuko had been woken up that morning to the sound of rain pounding on the roof of his steel prison. He groaned as he forced himself off the cold, metal floor. He was not looking forward to working out in the rain and was soaked to the bone within two minutes of walking out side. He hoped it would clear up by the end of the day, but his hopes were dashed as they were called back in for their supper and the rain still came down in sheets. Strangely enough, the rain in his bowl made his slop that was passed on as soup taste slightly better and he did not have to muscle passed his gag reflex to stomach it.

As he was led back to his cell, he studied each of the soldiers that took him and envied their heavy coats and furs. Maybe there would at least be a thin blanket waiting for him in his cell when he got back. He rolled his eyes at his thought while his escort opened his cell door before shoving him unceremoniously back inside. Azula was not that generous.

Once again, he was forced to endure a broken sleep from cold and shivering.

The next day, he was placed with Eli again for work. They both worked near the fence that separated the male prisoners from the female prisoners stacking up sand bags once again. As soon as he arrived, Zuko noticed that Eli was not looking like his normal self. He seemed somewhat sickly, more so than usual. He did not talk much but coughed a lot. It was not a small cough that could be ignored; it was almost like a loud, deep-throated cough. It was deep and gritty and sounded like Eli's throat would be torn up if he did not stop.

"Are you okay?" Zuko asked, placing his hand on the man's shoulder when a particularly violent cough seized a hold of him. Eli tried to answer back, saying that he was fine, but his cough took up all of his effort to keep at bay and he could not talk. He only nodded.

Unconvinced, Zuko looked around them to see if they were being watched by any of the guards. His gaze fell on two Nazis conversing with each other while motioning to him and Eli's position. His stomach did a flip flop as Zuko looked back down to Eli, whose cough had not subsided. "Come on, Eli," he said, concern in his voice. "You've got to stop coughing, the guards are taking notice." He looked back up to see the guards he had seen before walking towards them. Frantically, Zuko looked around for the canteen that was left for their area only. Grabbing it off a pile of sandbags, he unscrewed the cap and shoved it in Eli's hands. "Here, drink this, quick!" His friend grabbed the canteen and drank the water in gulps, trying to sooth his dry throat. It only worked for only a short while and he was soon coughing again.

It must have been the rain from the day before. Eli's health was poor to begin with and an added downpour only worsened his condition. Zuko stayed by his friend, constantly giving him gulps of water to ease his parched throat, but it did no good. The guards from before had arrived and, grabbing Zuko by the back of his shirt, threw him to the ground and closed in on Eli.

"It's time for this one to get transferred," said one as he pulled out a note pad and jotted something down.

The other guard grabbed Eli by his thin arm and dragged him to his feet. "Shall I put him with the others?" he asked his partner. The guard with the notepad nodded and the man that held Eli started dragging him off back to the buildings.

Zuko growled, feeling his rage build up inside him. He knew what it meant to be "transferred" in a concentration camp. They were going to gas him, kill him along with many others. Determined not to let that happen to his only friend in the camp, he gathered all the strength he had and tackled the guard that held Eli to the ground. Eli fell to his knees as Zuko and the guard began rolling around in the mud, both fighting to get a hit in on the other. Zuko had rolled on top of the man, punching him with all his might right in the nose. Blood spurted out and it looked bent in an odd direction and the ex-Nazi knew he had broken the man's nose. Furious, the guard tried to throw Zuko off him, but even malnourished and worked to the bone, Zuko still remained the stronger of the two. It looked like he would win the fight had there not been another guard there to break them up.

Zuko was about to land another blow on the guard's already broken nose when he heard the distinct click of a round locking into place right by his head.

"That's quite enough!" the other guard yelled angrily. Zuko slowly turned his head to look up just to stare into the barrel of a rifle and the furious man holding it. The guard had Eli's arm gripped tightly in his hand and the rifle in his other hand. With no other choice, Zuko got off the guard he had tackled to the ground, the barrel of the rifle following his face as he moved. "I will be speaking to the Warden about this and she will decide your punishment." Zuko cringed at those words, knowing that punishment from Azula was never lenient. "But for now, get back to work!" Swinging his rifle over his shoulder, the guard shoved Zuko back into the mud next to a shovel, helped his friend back to his feet and walked off, Eli in tow.

Zuko grumbled and went back to work, digging a trench around the fence and loading sand bags into the trench. It was tiring work, and lonely without Eli to work with him. Without Eli, his fellow workers ridiculed him, shoved him around, spat on him, or otherwise ignored him completely with the exception of a few angry glares.

He worked for only a few minutes when a voice from his right sounded from the other side of the fence. "That was very brave of you." Zuko looked up, startled at the sound of a pretty voice that reminded him of Katara. He was scared, thinking that he had gotten his friends caught after all but when he turned in the direction the voice came from, he sighed with relief at the pretty face he laid eyes on. "Was he a friend of yours?" the girl asked.

Zuko pretended to think for a moment before answering. "Something of the sort, yes," was all he said as he continued to dig. They were silent for a while as neither of them had anything to say and they had to keep quiet so they did not attract the attention of the guards. Zuko studied the woman's features for the first time since she had started talking to him. Her hair was light but her skin was dark. She had blue eyes just like Katara. She was beautiful but with a much rounder face than Katara's. Was she a gypsy too?

"My name's Yue, by the way," she suddenly said.

Zuko stared at her, bewildered. What was with these people and suddenly trusting him? They know what he is, so why were they so friendly to him? He grunted and went back to work, assuming she was just like Eli, believing everyone had a second chance. It was a load of cow dung in his opinion. He knew he did not deserve another chance, not after what he had done as a Nazi. Not after everything he knew and did nothing about.

"Why are you talking to me?" he asked her, wondering what she saw in him.

"I saw you defend that man as they were taking him away," she replied, not looking at him but continuing on with her work. "That was very brave of you."

Zuko watched her as she worked. He still did not understand why she wanted to speak to him, but he did not press the matter. Instead, he looked back down to the trench he was digging and sighed. "No it wasn't," he muttered. He knew she turned and raised an eyebrow at his comment but was glad when she did not say anything on the matter. "So how is it you're over here talking to me?" Zuko asked her. "Won't the guards notice?"

"They could, but I just really wanted to talk to you after seeing you defend your friend from the guards."

Zuko only nodded and continued to dig. When the wheelbarrow came with more sandbags, he abandoned his place by the fence and helped unload the sandbags before returning back to his shovel. "I'm Zuko," he said to her. She only smiled at him and continued working. After three more hours of working, Yue was called away, back to the rest of the women and Zuko joined the rest of the men for their evening slop. He still did not understand why she was talking to him even after she saw him attack the guards. All the other prisoners still hated him because of the swastika band around his arm. They knew who he used to be and were not willing to give him a second chance.

He arrived at the gaggle of people, so hungry he was even willing to eat the junk that they were served every night. But just as he was about to grab a bowl to eat, two guards grabbed him from behind and dragged him away. Zuko was about to protest, but decided against it, thinking that one bad idea was good enough for one day.

He was led back to his cell, shoved in and told to wait. Confused, Zuko went straight to his back corner and went right to sleep. However, he was allowed only a few minutes of shut-eye when the door to cell opened once again. He blinked several times, trying to see where the bright light shinning in his eyes came from. When his vision focused, he grew angry when he saw who had entered his prison cell. Azula smiled as she looked down at her brother. It seemed word had reached her of Zuko's small attempt to save his friend. It was time to receive his punishment.

"I hear you attacked one of my guards today, Zuzu," she said in a sweet voice, though her intentions were anything but sweet. "That is a big no-no in this camp."

"Would you just get to the point already?" Zuko growled. "I'm sick of your pointless speeches before you sentence me."

Azula raised an eyebrow but continued on. "Very well, if you really want it that badly." She turned and nodded at one of the guards that had escorted her there. The man nodded in return, entered the cell, and picked Zuko up by his thinning arms. "You will get no food for today and tomorrow and tonight, you will help the Sonderkommando bury the dead." He glared daggers at his sister as he was dragged back out of his cell. "When you return from that, I will be waiting to administer the last of your punishment."

Zuko knew he was going receive another beating. With Azula it was almost completely predictable.

The guard dragged him all the way across the camp to the burying grounds which were conveniently placed right next to the gas house. As they drew nearer to the burying grounds, a foul stench rose up into the air and it was all Zuko could do to not gag and throw up on the spot. The guard dropped him off with a group of men that were finishing digging a big hole that the bodies of their dead would soon be dumped unceremoniously. A shovel was tossed to him, he groaned and started digging. He looked around at the other prisoners that were forced to bury their friends and noticed that they did not look at him in anger. Curious, he glanced down at his arm where the swastika armband was supposed to be placed and noticed that it was missing. It must have come off when the guard dragged him by the arm. Zuko shrugged, no armband meant an easier time working and he was not about to complain. His joys were dashed when the guard returned and tossed the armband down the hole where Zuko worked.

"Seems like you lost something, Brandt. You better put it on before someone notices." The man then walked off chuckling to himself.

Zuko bend down and picked his armband out of the mud, sighed deeply, and put it back on. The other prisoners watched the guard curiously and almost did not notice what had been tossed down to him until Zuko had returned to work. When they saw the swastika, they were everything but happy about it.

"You!" one cried, pointing an accusing finger at him. Zuko looked up at the man with the saddest expression on his face before turning away and continued digging. He was startled when he felt the man's hands on his shoulder. Zuko was spun around to come face to face with a very angry man. "You're that man! You're that man who sent me and my family to this hell!"

Zuko continued to stare sadly at the man but inside he was completely confused. Who was this man? He was sure he had never seen him before, ever. Why was he suddenly accusing him of something he was sure he did not do?

"Don't look at me like that!" the man yelled. He raised a fist to the ex-Nazi and struck him across the face. Zuko allowed the attack, no longer caring what they did to him. "You're the reason why I have to bury my son! The reason why my wife might as well be dead judging by the looks of her!"

Zuko did not need to look around to know that they were gathering a crowd. He sighed, looking downright heartbroken as he brushed off the man and continued digging. He glanced back only once, and that was to say something that he felt needed to be said to this poor man. Zuko only wished he could hear it from his own family. "I'm sorry," was all he said before he turned and ignored everyone in the pit.

Zuko did recognize the man. After he had mentioned a wife and son, he knew exactly who he was. It was Zuko's first group of Jews he had taken. Oddly enough, back then, he had no problem taking them because he was fed lies to make him believe that what he was doing was the right thing. He had taken that family right out of their apartment building in Munich. Now that he looked back at it, he realized how terrible of a person he was, how cruel he was to the family. The weight the tugged at his heart to begin with was only increased by this man's anger.

He worked in silence, keeping to himself and trying his best to ignore the dirty looks he received from the rest of the workers. They had not been working for very long when the guards returned and yelled at the group to get out of the hole. As soon as everyone had crawled out of the hole they had dug, three giant wheelbarrows full of dead bodies were brought around the corner of the building and dumped at the edge of the hole. They were told to throw the bodies in the dirt and bury them.

Zuko did as he was told. He helped another man hoist a dead body off the pile and toss it into the pit. They worked in silence, no one speaking to another. After the first wheelbarrow was in the pit, the second was dumped and the group began tossing those in as well. It was not until the third wheelbarrow was dumped did Zuko see a familiar face. He stared down at the man for several seconds before he recognized Eli in the heap of dead. He stood frozen in place as the others moved around and tossed the rest of the bodies in the pit. One man tried to take Eli's body but Zuko would not let him. Instead, he lashed at the man, took the body and a shovel and moved to a different location. He could hear the others calling to him, telling him that he would get in terrible trouble if he buried the body separate from the others. But he shut them out, ignored them and kept going to a place by the edge of a building. Here he set Eli's dead body against the side of the building and started digging.

It was slow going in his weak condition and no helpers. But he persisted, determined to give his one friend a somewhat decent burial. Finally, after a quarter of an hour of digging, the hole was deep enough for one body. Taking Eli, he set him as carefully as he could in the ground, positioned the body in a comfortable position before taking the shovel and covering his friend in dirt. Once the hole was filled in, Zuko stood up straight and looked down at his friend's grave.

"I won't forget you, my friend," he said. Taking the shovel, he etched the Star of David in the side of the building right above Eli's head. "You gave me hope when I thought there was none to be found." That said, he fixed his grip on his shovel and walked back to the rest of the Sonderkommando.

When he arrived, the pit with the rest of the bodies was still not completely filled in. Taking his shovel, he lent his hand and the hole was filled in within the next ten minutes. As soon as they were finished, the guards returned to take Zuko back to his cell. It was time to receive more punishment from his precious twin sister.

When he arrived, no one was there. As usual, he was tossed crudely into his cell and left alone. It was not until several minutes later that Azula came strutting through the metal door with her whip in her hand. She was quickly followed by two male guards who stood at the door ready to take action if Zuko even attempted to escape.

When the door to his cell opened up, Zuko looked up drowsily from his small corner where he slept, saw who it was, and lowered his head again. "Oh, it's you again," was all he said.

Azula smiled and walked over to her brother who was curled up on the floor. "Were you expecting anyone else?"

Zuko just sighed. "No…"

"Good, because I have a special treat for you, brother." Zuko looked up, startled as his sister turned back to the guards and nodded. "Bring her in," Azula whispered to the man.

For a split second Zuko thought "her" meant Katara. He feared that they really had been captured but his fear disappeared when the girl he had been talking to earlier that day was dragged into the room and thrown on the floor.

"Yue!" He stared wide-eyed at the girl who looked up with surprise at her surroundings. Zuko looked up at his sister in anger. "What is she doing here?" he demanded.

Azula only smiled and nodded once at the guard before forcing Zuko to his feet and tying him up with her whip so he could not move. She stood behind him and whispered in his ear. "Lieutenant Colonel Zhao told me that you killed a fellow soldier to keep him from raping a gypsy. Let's see if you can repeat that act."

"What! Azula, you're crazy!" He looked down at Yue who looked back at him with a face that was pleading for his help. He saw the guard Azula had spoken to smile sadistically and kneel down next to the gypsy girl on the floor. "You can't do this, Azula! Do you have any conscience whatsoever?"

"Hmmm," she said, pretending to think. "Nope! I don't think I do!" She laughed at her own joke and yanked at her brother's matted hair. "You might want to watch, this is the good part."

Zuko looked down to see the man on top of Yue attempting to pry her legs apart and get inside the girl. Yue began to scream and Zuko's heart began to beat faster than ever. He felt that he had to do something, but what could he do with Azula holding him motionless? Yue's screams echoed his name through the cell and it hurt him to hear them. As he watched the guard force Yue's legs apart, he was filled with an untamable rage. Without even realizing what he was doing, he brought his leg up and kicked back. He felt his foot make contact with his sister's kneecap and felt her fall to the floor, clutching her knee in pain. He did not even need to think when he kicked the soldier off the gypsy girl, turned around and beat his sister over the head and then kick the second guard in the gut, making him keel over and hold his stomach as he dry-heaved over the floor. It all happened so quick that he was free of Azula's whip and helping Yue up off the floor before he knew it.

"What have you done?" the gypsy asked. "They'll kill you for sure now!"

"My death is scheduled to be executed as treason. They will not kill me here," he reassured her. "Now go, go back to your sleeping quarters. You'll be safe there for now." She nodded and turned to leave but stopped herself, turned back and kissed Zuko on the cheek.

"Thank you," she said before running out of the cell.

It was silent in his lonely cell for only a few seconds before his sister got a grip of her surroundings after the blow to the head she had received from her brother. "Guards!" she screamed. "Guards!" Two more soldiers entered the room and stood at attention after giving Azula their salute. Zuko turned around to see her giving him the foulest glare he had ever seen. "Seize this man and chain him to the back wall!"

Zuko knew what was coming having experienced it once before. He tried to resist with the last of the strength that still possessed him, doing everything in his power to not be flogged again, but it was no use. The fight to keep Yue from getting raped had taken the last of his energy away from him. His struggles were futile against the much stronger and much healthier guards that held him.

He was dragged to the back of his cell once again, his wrists locked in shackles that hung from the ceiling of the metal prison. Even cuffed to the ceiling, he still struggled against his bonds. He knew it was useless, but he could stop himself.

"I'd stay still if I were you, brother," Azula said behind him, her voice strained with rage. "You will just cause more pain for yourself."

Immediately, Zuko stopped struggling and stood still, his hands above his head and spread out like a star. He strained his neck to turn and see his sister, holding her knee to help ease the pain from the kick she received from him as she bent down to pick her whip off the ground. She limped to the center of the cell right behind Zuko to where he could no longer see her and had to turn back to face the metal wall. He squeezed his hands into fists, bracing himself for the lashes that were sure to come.

"You will pay for that stunt you just pulled to save that gypsy wench!" She raised her whip just as the soldiers who had come in when she had called picked up the guards Zuko had attacked off the floor. "Fifty lashes, or until you pass out!" she declared and immediately began his punishment.

As soon as the first gash was cut into his back, he realized that the whip hurt more now than it did before. Instead of just gritting his teeth together and grunting, he opened his mouth in an ear-splitting scream. The wounds he had received from the last time he was flogged had only just started to heal and were now reopened along with new and deeper cuts. He had never been in so much pain before in his life and knew now that what he did for Katara and her friends was the right thing to do. No one should have to go through this kind of torment, no matter what they did in life.

Azula was acting out of rage, her lashes grew more and more powerful with each stroke she gave. To Zuko, it felt like the whip was splitting his back in two. He felt as if the bone in his spine was being hammered at by a chisel. With each stroke his sister gave, he let out a terrible cry of pain and with each cry of pain, his sight began to blur and darken. He could feel his consciousness begin to slip and begged it to leave him. He could not take the pain much longer and knew he would die if he did not pass out first. Unconsciousness came faster than he had hoped for. It was only a few seconds after he felt his mind slip that his vision went black and he no longer felt the immense pain in his back or hear the crack of Azula's whip against his flesh. Zuko had fallen unconscious from sheer pain.

---

Azula watched as her brother's head droop as his body went limp. He was unconscious and yet she still had the desire to hurt him in any way she could. She could not stop herself, as soon as she saw Zuko go limp, she only cracked her whip harder, creating deeper gashes on her brother's back. If she did not stop, she would surely kill him, she knew that.

She wanted him dead, she was sure of it. He was a traitor to his country, he committed treason against Germany during a time a war and the penalty for that was death. She wanted to be the one to kill him, he stole from her camp right out from underneath her nose. He ruined her reputation, stole from her, and embarrassed her in front of her own men. He deserved what she gave him, deserved to die after enduring long and agonizing torture.

But even after all that, he was still her brother.

Azula was happy when Zuko was gone, away from her and someplace she did not have to see him. He confused her, made her second guess herself. She no longer could trust her judgment when he was around. She wanted him gone, no matter the consequences. He just had to leave. If he had to be executed, so be it, if he was to be killed by her hand, so be it. She did not care.

But she loved Zuko, she had always loved him. After all, he was her twin brother, was he not? Their father may not love him, but she did. And yet, she still continued to lash at him with her whip. She loved her brother but he was a traitor, and traitors had to be punished. She was screaming now, letting out small cries of emotional pain as she railed on Zuko's unconscious body. She could not stop herself, she needed help from some else to stop and it did not take long before she felt strong arms grab her arm and hold her back.

"That's enough, Captain!" the guard cried from behind her. "He's already unconscious!" Azula continued to struggle against him for only a few moments before stopping her uncontrolled fit of rage against her brother. She looked back to see her best soldier and good friend Second Lieutenant Schultz. Lowering her head, she allowed him to help her back to her feet, making her just realize that she had fallen to her knees in her outburst. She clutched Schultz's shoulder to help steady herself before she spoke.

"Thank you, Schultz," she said, giving him a rare, slight smile. She looked back at her brother and then back at the other soldiers in the cell. "Let him down," she ordered. "Give him a blanket for tonight, I have a feeling it is going to be rather cold." She turned to leave but stopped and turned back as her men were releasing the unconscious Zuko from his shackles. "And when he wakes, give him a new shirt and some medical attention. I want him whole when we send him to Berlin for execution." That said, she left the cell, gesturing slightly to Schultz as she left.

He followed her as ordered and they walked in silence for quite some time before anyone spoke. "Captain," he began, unsure of whether he should ask his question or not. "What happened back there? It seemed as if you were not yourself."

Azula said nothing for several minutes as they walked, not looking at her Second Lieutenant before she was comfortable enough to answer. "I know you know this already, Schultz, but Gunnery Sergeant Zuko Brandt is by twin brother." Schultz nodded his agreement but stayed silent and let his Captain continue what she was saying. "It is very hard on one's heart when their own family member becomes a traitor to your own country, especially when you are the one who catches them in the act. I don't know exactly how to describe it, but I hate my brother for what he did, I want him to die, to suffer for his treacherous deeds, but at the same time I have trouble carrying out my own orders against him. That is why I act so cruel towards him, I just can't help it. Keeping him here is the only way I can show him that I care for him."

She looked up at Schultz to get an idea of his reaction to her explanation. Schultz was a quiet man by nature and usually the only way one got a reaction from him was by facial expressions. The face he wore after her explanation surprised her. He wore an expression of understanding, of compassion, of sympathy. It confused Azula but after a while, she began to understand.

"It's happened to you, too, hasn't it?"

He nodded. "My girlfriend. I caught her sneaking Jews into England. I loved her, and she betrayed me."

Azula merely stared at the ground as she walked. "I see. It looks like we have a lot in common, doesn't it?"

Schultz smiled and nodded just as he and his Captain arrived at her quarters and she disappeared behind her door.

---

Katara awoke to the sound of voices whispering near the mouth of the cave they had found to protect them from the rain that had begun to pour the night before. It was the second night in a row it had rained and the gypsy was beginning to get a little sick of it. She blinked her eyes a few times before lifting her had ever so slightly off her pillow so that she could see the shape of the two backs in the dark light of the early morning. Once as her eyes had adjusted to the dark, she recognized the two men sitting at the mouth of the cave. One she would have recognized blindfolded. It was her brother, Sokka, sitting on a boulder with the new rifle he had acquired a while back resting against his knee. And the other was the one man Katara did not trust at all, Jet.

The two men were conversing so quietly Katara could barely make out any words that were said. But recognize them she did and she was not to happy and quite surprised to hear the words coming out of her brother's mouth.

"After seeing the reaction it got from Katara, I feel a slight pang of guilt for what I did to Zuko," she heard Sokka whisper quietly to the Russian. "I just thought I was doing the right thing by selling him out as a traitor to his own people. I didn't trust him and I thought that my sister would understand. But after seeing her completely break down after watching his capture, I'm not so sure I can trust my own decisions anymore."

Jet smiled and rested a hand on the gypsy's shoulder. "Don't worry, my friend," he said reassuringly. "We will get him back, I promise you that." He glanced back to the back of the cave where the rest of the group lay sleeping and Katara had to quickly drop her head back on her pillow and close her eyes so Jet did not see her eavesdropping on their conversation. "These are the best group of Partisans and soldiers Russia has to offer. It is our mission to find and bring this Zuko back to the Moscow so that Stalin can speak with him. The end of the war depends greatly on your friend."

Sokka turned to stare wide-eyed at the Russian. "What do the Allied forces want with a traitor Nazi?" he asked, completely perplexed.

"Gunnery Sergeant Zuko Brandt has information that we can utilize to defeat Hitler and his Nazis and stop the spread of his incessant evil across Europe. Without him, the war is lost and Hitler wins."

Katara watched her brother hang his head in shame and sigh deeply. "I'm sorry I sold him to the enemy. I swear I would not have done it if I had known how important he was, I would not have done it. I thought I was doing the right thing!"

"Don't worry, Sokka. We'll get him back."

"You better!" Katara said as she sat bold upright and flung her blanket off her body. She was furious at her brother. How could he? How could he sell Zuko out when he knew how much she cared for him? It was not the right thing to do, it was murder!

Both men whipped around and jumped to their feet at the sound of her voice. Sokka's face seemed to drain of all color at the sight of his sister looking so livid. She was seething with rage. Standing up, she walked over to her brother and slapped him hard across the face. "How could you, Sokka!?" she cried. "How could you give someone over to the Nazis and think it was the right thing when you knew very well what they would be going through? I care greatly for Zuko, he is more than just a friend to me and you know it! So how could you? How could you just betray him like that?" She could feel the tears coming to her eyes once again. Her rage was getting the better of her. "How could you betray me like that?"

Sokka stared down at his younger sister as if she were a woman randomly approaching him and telling him he was the father of her child. He was at a loss for words and he looked over to Jet for help. The Russian was by no means surprised by Katara's sudden outburst. He must have known she was listening in on their conversation. He reached out to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder but she turned on him next just as angry as ever.

"And you!" she yelled. "Why did you not tell us that your mission was find Zuko in the first place? Telling us could have been helpful in you search and I would be able to see him again much sooner!" Furious, she raised her fist to Jet as well. After firmly giving both of the men a red handprint on their cheek, she stormed off out of the cave and into the rain that fell through the canopy of the forest outside.

Jet seemed undisturbed by her slap across his face as he watched her run off into the forest in hysterics. He knew she was crying, he could tell by the way she ran with her hands constantly flying to her eyes. Taking off his jacket, he ran after her, ignoring the calls of Sokka telling him to let his sister be.

He found her, crouched under a large tree wiping the tears from her eyes. She did not seem to know he was there because he was able to walk right up to her without her making the slightest motion that indicated she knew he was there. Kneeling next to her in the mud, he draped his jacket over her shoulders. She raised her head quickly in surprise and his suspicion had been confirmed. When she saw who it was that had followed her, she glared at him and turned her head away from him. He only looked at her in compassion.

"What do you want?" she asked with a poisonous tongue.

Jet said nothing but merely sat down next to her, leaned his back against the wet tree and stared straight ahead of him. They sat in silence, neither one even looking at the other until several minutes later when Jet broke the silence. "You love him, don't you?" he asked.

Katara said nothing, purposely ignoring the Russian's question. Jet kept his eyes on her, on her beautiful blue eyes and deep brown hair that flowed down her back.

"I can tell you do just by the way you reacted to your brother's betrayal." Still, she remained silent for quite some time. It was not until several more minutes of silence did she decide to speak.

"I didn't have that long to get to know him before he was captured by that lady in Auschwitz. Only a few weeks at max, but he grew on me. He intrigued me, a Nazi, and yet he had killed his own companions to save me and my brother. He risked everything and more to help us and even help rescue our friend Suki from the camp. He was brave and selfless and I love him for that." One tear escaped her blue eye as she recalled her memories of the German. "And now, I don't know if I'll ever see him again."

Silently, Jet slipped his arm around her shoulder and let her rest her face in his chest. She was exhausted with worry. It had worn at her heart making the fatigue it created catch up with her. She had been running on will power alone. Her determination to see Zuko again was the only thing that kept her going.

"Don't worry, Katara," Jet told her, her head still resting on his chest. "My team and I will leave today for Auschwitz. We will find him and bring him back to you."

Katara's head snapped up to look at the Russian with newfound hope. "Today?" she asked. "How long will it take you get to get there?"

Jet smiled. "Well, seeing at the camp is just at the other end of this forest, we should be there by nightfall." It was true, from the information he had received from Sokka, Katara and her friends had not left the forest that the death camp was located near for almost a week. It was the perfect hiding place, far enough away from the enemy so that they would not be found but close enough to where they would not be suspected of being there at all.

Jet released the gypsy and stood up. He extended his arm to her, offering her his hand to help her up. "Come Katara," he said. "We need to start making preparations of the journey."

Taking his hand without hesitation, Katara allowed him to lift her to her feet and lead her back to the cave where the rest of the group waited for them.

A/N: Okay, originally, I was going to make Jet and his friends British SAS but then I thought, "That's too original and boring. I think I'll make then Russian! :)" I like the Russian idea better. :)

I hope you enjoyed and I will see you next chapter!