Save Me

Author: YolandaFriella

School's returning, and summer is coming to an end. So right now, I'm savoring the extra time I have, for I already will begin having practices next week. Well, the practices are super fun, but they do take a lot of time! :D Anyway, thank you for all the hits I got on this story! I'm so happy you are all liking this story as much as I enjoy writing it. Really. I don't have to force myself to sit down and write, out of pure boredom. I seriously look forward to writing. Lame, I know ;p

Thanks to my superb reviewers: Templar of Honor, Th3DarkLord, imawordbender, MadameJelly, Marnie Wolffe, Sun Daughter, spockjasperzukowriting, MaroonAngel of Darkness, ArrayePl, Anonymous I Think, IceBlossom22, Draminoe-Fan 17, and AnnaAza. Thank you so much people! Have I ever told you that you brighten my day? Wow I sound cheesy XD

Okay, I want to give super special thanks to imawordbender for beta-reading this chapter! I cannot stress to you how amazing her skills of writing are; seriously. I can't thank her enough, and for that, I dedicate this chapter to her (even though she's already read it XD). Thank you so much! You may have a cookie, girl :)

Another thanks to IceBlossom22 for her unique review. I honestly don't know how writer's block is immune to me right now, but I hope I never catch it XD Random questions there. I'm 14, and I trust that none of you will stalk me by just the mentioning of my age. XD

Well, enough of my ranting, which I always do in the beginning of the chapter. Thank you for reading this story, and I hope you stick with me :D Thank you again, imawordbender!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Avatar, the TV show, belongs strictly to Mike and Bryan. They're the ones with the awesome mind to create this superb show. :)

Chapter Six: Pride

The room suddenly felt smaller.

Reeni noticed my hesitation and turned to give me a look. I ignored her icy stare as the gears in my head started spinning, the thoughts racing through my mind.

No. There's no way. That couldn't have been the Avatar. He's been gone a hundred years. But how could anyone be trapped inside an iceberg, let alone the Avatar? Someone should help whoever that is, Avatar or not! But if it was the Avatar…no, I must be imagining everything. It was just a dream….

I could feel a headache coming on fast, threatening to make my day even worse. I stared at the ground, wrapping my arms tightly around my midsection. My legs began to feel wobbly, and I leaned against the wall, breathing deeply to keep from falling. The breathing did little to calm me down as my stomach lurched.

What if it wasn't just a dream, but more of a...vision? Was I the only one who knew anything about this? What about Sokka? Oh I wish he were here...

What should I do? Should I do anything? Sure, the dream was convincing, but does that mean it's true? Was there really an iceberg, somewhere near the south pole, that was waiting for someone to release whoever, or whatever, was trapped inside?

No. The dream was nothing but a creation of my imagination. I was merely hoping for something miraculous, so obviously, I dreamed of the Avatar's return.

I was jerked out of my reverie as someone slammed into me from behind. Letting out a yelp of surprise, not knowing what was going on, I flew forward and crashed into a very aggravated Reeni. We probably would've both gone plummeting to the floor in a heap of scrambled limbs, but she caught me just in time.

Just as Reeni pushed me away from her, I looked to where the force of the blow had come from. No one was there. No one had apologized for the hostility, and there was no one there to tell exactly what I thought of their rudeness.

"Kita is always in a hurry," Reeni said. Them she muttered something under her breath I couldn't quite make out. "Now come on. I'm not sure you'll have time to eat."

I moved along behind her, picking up my pace as we walked down a dimly lit hallway. The walls bore no decorations, paintings, candles, or any sign of humanity at all. This wasn't the first time I came across an example of what the Fire Nation seemed to lack. As soon as I had grown accustomed to the dimness, we walked through a metal door into a bright room. Tables and chairs speckled the vast hall, windows lined two of the far walls, and several food stands immediately grabbed my attention. The smell of food teased my nose and my stomach, which growled in response. There weren't many healers here in the mess hall, perhaps they were already out working.

"Hurry," Reeni urged again, and I quickly obeyed.

A worker handed us each a tray, and I thanked her. The food was mediocre, but it was certainly a step up from nothing. It seemed that healers were somewhat revered in the Fire Nation, as I compared my fine clothing to the rough fabric the tray woman wore. I managed to find myself a feast: steaming noodles and a roll. I wasn't sure what kind of noodles they were, but it didn't matter; I grabbed a cup of water and found a place to sit.

I didn't think of the dream again as I shoveled down the food. Reeni watched me from a distance, studying her nails as she waited for me to finish. My fingers shivered as I drank the water, cooling my frazzled nerves instantly. I longed to bend it, but I held back when I caught sight of Reeni's suspicious glower. She was already unhappy with me, why give her reason to dislike me even more?

As I raised to mug to my lips for a final sip, the table shook violently beneath me, causing me to spill the rest of the water on my shirt. Dazed once more, my eyes caught a teenage girl rushing off in a hurry. I frowned. Was that the same girl who "bumped" into me earlier? I fought the urge to find her and show her what happens when you mess with a waterbender, but I gathered my trash instead.

"Don't bother," Reeni said, suddenly beside me, "that's what the workers are for."

As she mentioned the workers, I noticed the sneer on her face.

"Unlike you," I shot back, "I clean up my own mess."

I could feel her stare on my back as I threw away my trash and did my best to ignore her.

Next time, I won't hold back.

"Heal him."

I held my tongue as Reeni stood beside me, scrutinizing my every move. I stood over the injured soldier, who had an icicle lodged in his right shoulder. I tried not to grin with pride for the waterbender that must have caused this. The urge to grin left as soon as I listened to his ragged breath and saw the pain in his darkened eyes.

The soldier's dull eyes were not like the prince's. The soldier's eyes showed only pain and imminent death. The prince had humanity in his eyes. They radiated every thought and emotion as they flashed through his mind, or at least, it seemed that way, like he was silently communicating everything to me.

I looked at Reeni. "I need water."

"There's a basin next to you, in case you haven't noticed."

I gave her an annoyed look, while trying to calm the anger bubbling up inside. I may have come from a frozen wasteland, but I had the temper of a firebender.

Suddenly it dawned on me. The snide remarks, the disrespect. Reeni didn't believe I could heal him. She doubted me. Obviously, she'd never even seen me bend water, let alone heal with it. I almost laughed out loud at the realization. She didn't just not like me, she didn't believe what Lady Ayaka told them I could do. Pursing my lips, I inched the basin closer to me and flexed my fingers, feeling the water particles respond. I'll show her what a real healer can do.

"Watch closely," I whispered, glancing to see her watching me intently. The water began lapping at my authority, and I lost myself in the soothing element once more.

I moved my hands over to the icicle, finding no need of the water for now. Focusing on the energy inside of the ice, I thought of how to melt it. But I wasn't that advanced yet. I hardly even knew how to move water, let alone melt it. I brought my hands back down, deflated, unsure of what to do."We need to get that out of his shoulder," I informed Reeni, motioning to the embedded icicle.

"Can't you just bend it out?" Reeni smirked.

"I'm a healer. I'm not that advanced with my bending yet. I wouldn't want to risk doing more damage."

"Or maybe it's just because you're not as good as you think you are." Reeni shot back. I felt the anger bubbling up inside me again.

"Listen," I snapped, "can you even bend anything?"

Reeni was silent for a moment. "No."

"Exactly. So no matter how hard you try, you'll never be able to do what I can do. Got it?"

She lowered her voice. "Don't you ever talk to me like that."

"What goes around comes around."

"Please." We both looked down as the soldier moaned, squeezing his eyes shut. To my horror, I realized that I had forgotten about him. "Get this…out...of...me."

Acting impulsively, I leaned over the man, knowing what I was about to do was risky, and once I did it, I'd have to move fast.

"What're you doing?" Reeni demanded, as I grasped the icicle.

"Healing him." With a swift, simple heave, I yanked the icicle out of the man's shoulder, blood instantly pouring from the wound. I tossed it aside, my hands already over the bowl of water. I could feel Reeni gaping at me as I bended the water out of the basin, levitating it over the man's wound. Biting my lower lip, I guided the water into the hole as the crimson liquid mingled with it. I closed my eyes, concentrating on the man's tissue as I mended it together. The water began to glow—proof that it was getting the job done.

I knew I wouldn't be able to fix all of the broken tissue, so I pulled the water back once the blood flow lessened. Practically dropping it back into the basin, I stepped back and motioned for Reeni.

"Bandage him," I said, noting her dazed expression as she was unable to look away from the water. I grinned.

"That was…good." She grumbled, grabbing a roll of bandages from a nearby counter. "For a beginner, that is."

As she patched him up, I had one thought in mind:

If I'm a beginner…then what are you?

"I love proving people wrong."

~Ed Belfour

Lady Ayaka came to see how I was doing.

She was impressed, to say the least.

"I knew you would do wonders," She told me with a light smile, the only smile I had seen since the day before. "I just knew it. I remember my first time healing; it was awful."

"Lady Ayaka," Reeni cut in, "is this an emergency? Pardon me, but there are many wounded soldiers in need of healing."

Lady Ayaka grinned over at me. "Yes, this is an emergency. I must speak with Katara, alone."

"So be it." Reeni walked past me, barely brushing my shoulder as she went. I stared at her back, watching the way she looked at everyone with repulsion. I sighed.

"Follow me," Lady Ayaka said, walking over to the secluded area of the healing room. "Katara, I know you may not agree to this, but we have an urgent request from the Fire Lord himself."

She had my attention right away. "What? Are you being serious?"

"Yes. But first, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"Have your healing abilities improved?"

I paused. "A little, why?"

"Well, we don't need you fainting again." Lady Ayaka laughed awkwardly, grabbing a hold of my hand to whisper, "The Fire Lord personally requested for you to take care of his son, the prince of the Fire Nation. Can you believe it?" She looked at me with an expectant smile, truly thrilled at this surprising honor.

I suddenly felt nervous. "What does he mean by 'take care of him'?"

"Nothing major, so don't worry. All he wants you to do is to use your bending to you know, try to ease the discomfort a bit." Lady Ayaka lowered her voice even more. "I hear he's in excruciating pain right now. Poor boy."

"I can try, I suppose." I winced, the memory of my fainting fresh in my mind. "When does he want me to start?"

"He wants you there immediately. The Fire Lord said you will to tend to the prince for three days, until he goes into exile."

"So this is the first day?"

"Yes. Katara. Aren't you so excited? The Fire Lord actually knows who you are!" She saw the resentment in my eyes and sympathy crossed her features. "Remember what I said last night? I know what you're going through." She squeezed my hand. "And even though it doesn't seem like you have people to back you up, we will. Especially Reeni."

"Reeni?" I furrowed my brow. "She hates me."

Lady Ayaka laughed. "Of course not! Reeni doesn't hate you. She may seem arrogant and hotheaded, but deep down, she has a wonderful heart. Trust me, I've seen it."

"You have?"

"Who knows? Someday, you two might actually become good friends. Now, we must hurry. The prince is in dire need of some healing right now."

"I know, for a fact, that you would never heal some rich, spoiled prince."

I frowned as I remembered Sokka's voice in the dream. Could the prince really be spoiled? With that horrible scar?

My thoughts only worsened as I followed Lady Ayaka from the infirmary, twisting through winding hallways and emerging from various doors.

It was bad enough to heal him once. But for three more days?

I shuddered at the thought.

"You must go in alone."

"What?" My eyes widened and I quickly backed away from Lady Ayaka.

With a wry smile, she motioned to the door. "I'm not supposed to go in. Only healers and family are permitted. The prince won't allow anyone else inside."

"But, I can't go in alone."

"You're brave. Please, Katara, think of the pain he's in."

My mind instantly went into defense mode, fury raging in my blood. I inhaled deeply.

"He's Fire Nation," I hissed. "Why should I help one of the people that has been a part of so much bloodshed? It wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't the prince, but he is, and that makes it even worse."

I regretted the words the moment they escaped my lips, and I winced silently. I knew, for some strange, inexplicable reason, that the prince wasn't like the Fire Nation people I'd met so far. Perhaps I was being naïve, but he just seemed different.

"To be honest, the Fire Lord won't exactly be pleased if you refuse to help." Lady Ayaka whispered, giving me an earnest expression. "Please…can't you just help him out? It's only three days."

"Fine. But only because…" I trailed off as I opened the door and the smell of rotting flesh flooded my senses. My hand swept to my nose, covering it as I scanned the room.

Darkness. The only light was from the window across the room where the last rays of dying sunlight peeked through a crack in the heavy curtains. My soft breathing was the only thing that broke the utter silence. Tentatively, I took a deep breath and uncovered my nose, steeling myself for the revolting odor. I stood in the doorway for a few moments, letting myself get used to the smell of putrid flesh while my eyes strained to see the shadowy details of the royal room.

I took one step into the room and heard the door close behind me. The sun had finally set and I was entombed in full darkness, my breath catching in response. Tensing up, I wanted to turn and run, but I stayed. Was I really frightened of darkness right now? I held up a hand to feel where I was going, and I could scarcely see the outline of my arm.

My foot hit something on the floor and I gasped as I stumbled forward. Regaining my balance, I turned and wondered what I had kicked. Something clanged onto the floor, rolling for a moment. The hair on my neck rose as I stood, frozen, wondering just what to do.

"Sir?" I whispered, unsure of exactly how to address the prince. My voice sounded small in the dark room. Even Sokka wouldn't have recognized my voice at that moment, frightened and nervous as it was.

I stopped for a few moments, my eyes adjusting to the darkness, and stared toward the bed across the room. Shouldn't there be someone lying there….?

Just as I realized no one was in the bed, something snatched me from behind. Hands wrapped around my arms to hold me down. A yelp escaped before a bare hand closed over my mouth.

My heart raced. This was it….this was the end. The prince must've been assassinated, and now, the attacker was going to kill me.

I closed my eyes as the attacker pulled me closer, forcing me to walk. I obeyed without a question, my entire body trembling in fear. I fought the urge to beg for mercy until pride took its place. I should fight back. I shouldn't let this stranger have power over me. I shouldn't let myself die without a fight.

I began struggling in his grasp, but it seemed that he was a trained in combat because he easily spun me around, twisting my arm in a way it was never meant to. I cried out in pain, tears springing to my eyes. Just as I thought he would break my arm, or dislocate my shoulder, I was shoved up against the wall, hitting my head brutally. The dimness seemed to grow more concentrated as my head hung limp, my eyes seeking out the attacker's face.

"Why?" I moaned, my heart now pounding against the walls of my chest. I thought it might explode from the pressure.

I saw a shadow move in front of me. Raising my eyes, I caught the outline of the attacker towering over me. Pursing my lips and acting out for my life, I picked up my shaking hands, swiftly spotting the basin for me nearby, and water surrounded me, practically indistinguishable in the darkness. With a grunt, I sent the water in the direction of my attacker, only to miss and hear it splatter to the left,. I silently wondered if I shouldn't have even tried that, judging by my lack of fighting skills.

A voice spoke in front of me, rough and husky from lack of use. "You're the waterbender?"

Confused, I stared into the outline before me, imagining them looking back at me. Dazed, I nodded in response.

This person was a firebender. I watched as they lifted their hand, and a flame appeared, blazing softly in their palm. My eyes trailed on the hand as they moved it towards their face, and I swallowed thickly.

The right side of his face was maimed in a crumpled scar, the eye permanently narrowed in anger. My eyes ran over his face, the pale left side and the mutilated right side. This person was familiar, I had seen them before.

Could this be the prince?

Was that the prince? If so, why did he attack Katara The world may never know! *insert sci-fi music*

Oh, have ya'll also heard of the new show Mike and Bryan are coming up with? I would give ya'll the link to the juicy details, but I doubt it'll show on here. Apparently it takes place 70 years after the ending of the original series, Avatar: Last Airbender. And there are rumors that there WILL be flashbacks with the original characters (I hope so). Just type it up on google, because it looks really interesting. But I personally will think the original series will be better, because I loved them dearly :)

Also, if you're waiting for my next update, check out my new Avatar story. It's a Jinko, but I recently posted it. Either that or read spockjasperzukowriting's Avatar stories. They're breathtaking, trust me.

~YolandaFriella