Chapter 16

A/N I can't remember if Zuko ever saw Katara bloodbend, and I have no internet to find out when I'm writing this, so I'm going with he hasn't seen her do it before, so expect a full explanation.

"How is she?" Sokka asked Suki and Toph as they came back to the council room, where the Gaang had gathered, with Iroh, the other Nation representatives (Hakoda taking Katara's usual place), Katara's grandparents, the Fire Nation council, the remainder of the White Lotus and a number of their old friends, like Haru and Teo. Smellerbee and Longshot had been locked up in the Palace holding cells until the council received full details of what had happened, but they were still recovering from their squeezing.

"She's tired, and very weak. She managed to tell us what happened before she passed out again."

"How did she manage to do it? The full moon is nearly a week away still! It should have been impossible!" Sokka exclaimed

"Will someone tell me what she was doing?" Zuko shouted, a number of the elders in the room nodding along with him.

Aang and Sokka looked at each other.

Aang spoke, "When we were travelling, we came across a woman, Hama. She was a waterbender, from the South, just like Katara. She had been captured early in the war by the Fire Nation, and spent years developing a technique to get out of her prison. She developed a way to use the water inside the bodies of people to control them. She called it blood bending." Kanna, Hakoda, the White Lotus member and Zuko all wore expressions of shock and confusion.

"When we met her, we thought she was just a kind old woman, but it wasn't the first time we've been wrong about this kind of thing. Hama established that Katara and I were from the South Pole, and that Katara was a water bender, and it just so happened that a full moon wasn't far away. Without the full moon, Hama was only able to control the water around her, and in the air, and in plants, but when the full moon came, she could control people. Water benders gain their power from the moon, and so, every month they feel the pull to the water, and they have great power, kind of like what the fire benders experienced during the comet, except that it's every month." Sokka explained

"Anyway, Hama took Katara out on the night of the full moon, just as us three were discovering what she had been doing; she was keeping people prisoner under a mountain, just because they were Fire Nation. We set the people free, and went to find Katara and Hama, and Hama was blood bending her, because Katara refused to help her, but Hama messed with the wrong person. She freed Katara, and set Aang and Sokka on her, and Katara just found the power, and took control of Hama and stopped her. You think Katara is the most powerful water bender. You're right but she's also the most dangerous; especially now that she can do that without the full moon." Toph said

"She hates using it, she hates being able to do it. She thinks its evil, but she obviously saw no other option tonight. She'll only use it if people she loves are in danger." Aang reassured the council and Zuko, who looked concerned.

"Why did she never tell me about it?" Zuko said, barely whispering, and holding his head in his hands.

"She didn't want you to be scared of her. When the full moon is around, or when her emotions are running high apparently, she could kill people, and she doesn't want to be a killer" Sokka said, walking around the table to Zuko.

A number of the council members began talking between themselves; Zuko's head shot up.

"Gentlemen, she is still a Nation representative and a member of this council. This changes nothing, and you will not gossip like little girls." he said with authority, and the murmur ceased, "So, what did she say had happened with...Jet?"

Suki spoke, "He appeared at the ball, cut into her dance with Jeo. She, like the rest of us, thought he was dead. He told her Long Feng had taught him breathing techniques so he could appear to be dying, to fool Toph, and then when she and the others left the cave, he took Smellerbee and Longshot to be brainwashed. Then he said to her that he had wished he had stayed with the group, so he could wipe the Fire Lord off the board, and she thought he meant Ozai, but he..he..he meant you, and she knew Smellerbee and Longshot were at the party, and then you got everyone together, and she had no time to tell anyone, and she just feared for you, and for anyone who got in the way" she explained

"What happened to Jet?" Zuko asked

"He disappeared, when she turned around to locate Longshot" Toph said.

"Okay." He pointed to his army general, "Top priority, find Jet. I can provide a full description later." He turned to his head of security, "Double the guards at Lady Katara's door and station guards at all the entrances to the palace outer wall. Cancel all staff holidays and protect my people. Who knows how far he will go to get to me. Station your men at different vantage points around the capital, and send word to the other cities, and the villages, to be on the lookout, and warn anyone that if they are harbouring him, I will not show mercy."

The man trembled as he spoke, "My Lord, what about you? You require more protection than anyone at this time..."

Zuko cut him off, "Follow my orders. No exceptions. I do not need protecting. If he gets back into the palace, and comes for me, I'll be ready for him. Protect my people, and Lady Katara, but don't have your men do anything rash, protect them too." He waved his hand, and dismissed the council and Nation representatives, except for Hakoda, Iroh, Pakku and Kanna, Bumi, Piandao, Jeong Jeong and the Gaang, and their friends. Zuko gave a small laugh looking at who remained. Children (mostly) to the rescue again.

"Zuko, go and see your beloved" Iroh said. Zuko didn't need telling twice. He nodded to his uncle and his friends, and quickly left the room, resisting the urge to run.

Before the door had even shut, Sokka had laid out plans of the Palace, "He needs protecting, whether he likes it or not, and that's where we come in." and the group began to analyse how Jet may have got in and out without being detected, and where they should situate themselves, as it was obvious no-one was leaving Zuko or Katara's side anytime soon.

Katara's eyes fluttered open. She could hear a small sound. Leaning up, and looking around the room, she spotted Zuko in the far corner, snoring lightly. She looked out the window; the sun was beginning to peek over the horizon. She had slept the whole night away and it wouldn't be long before Zuko awoke. She clambered out of bed, ignoring the ache throughout her entire body, and went to her bathroom, and set the water running for her bath. She sat on the edge, as the water rose, and stared at her hands. Had she really done that? Never mind how close she had come to seriously hurting Smellerbee and Longshot; how had she managed it with the full moon still so far away?

She rose from the edge, and went to the sink, and began scrubbing her hands, unsure of why, just knowing that she had to get the trace of what she had done off of her hands.

Strong arms came from behind her, and turned off the faucet, and held her hands together. She stiffened.

"Zuko?" she questioned, knowing her mistake yesterday evening.

He placed a kiss on her neck, right on her pulse point, and turned her around. It was Zuko. She sighed. Her arms wound around him, and her head rested on his chest, as she began to cry softly.

They stood in each other's embrace for who knows how long, but it was long enough for the bath to over flow, and pool around their bare feet. Zuko went over to turn off the faucet on the bath, while Katara bent the water from the floor, and walked out of the bathroom, to her bedroom, and then out on to her balcony, where she checked that no-one was in the garden below, and watered the plants.

She leant on the rail of the balcony, and Zuko came and mirrored her a few feet away.

"We need to talk about last night" he said, not looking at her, staring out into the distance, "Why didn't you tell me you could do something like that?"

She looked down into the garden, "I don't want to be able to do it. I hate that I know how to do it. I'd give up water bending altogether if I meant I didn't have the ability to do it anymore."

"But why couldn't you tell me? How come everyone else knew about it? Why am I the last to know Katara?" he said, trying to keep his tone level.

"Zuko, I..." she faltered, and turned to look at him, but he wouldn't look back; he continued to stare out at the horizon, "I thought you would think I was a monster"

That got his attention; he turned his head to look at her. She looked more like a little helpless girl than he'd ever seen her.

She sat down, somewhat defeated, and leant her back against the side of the balcony, and looked back at Zuko, who had gone back to staring out.

"Do you think I'm a monster?" she asked, her voice cracking.

He closed his eyes and dropped his head.

"How could I think you were a monster? I just wish you had trusted me." His eyes opened, and looked over to her again; her bottom lip was between her teeth, and her eyes had gotten watery. He walked over, and sat beside her. She didn't look at him, instead staring straight ahead. He took one of her hands in his, and nuzzled his head into her neck, "If anyone's the monster in this relationship, it's me. That's why Jet wants to kill me. That's why so many people want to kill me."

She stiffened, "No one is going to get the chance to kill you, not with me in the way." She gave a small laugh, which caused Zuko to lift his head and look at her; she turned her head to him, "Suki and Toph were teasing me yesterday, about being protective of you, and they said you could handle yourself"

Zuko put his forehead to hers, "Obviously, I need protecting from time to time then" Katara gave another small laugh, "What does it feel like?"

She pulled back, "What does what feel like?"

"Blood bending."

"Doing it or having it done to you?"

"Both."

"When it happens to you, it feels like someone has stuck a hand into your veins and has control over every blood cell in your body, and is moving them at their leisure. I guess Sokka or Aang told you about Hama?" He nodded, "When she did it to me, I couldn't fight it at first, mainly because of the shock of not having control over my own body anymore, but once I breathed and calmed down, I could almost feel my own bodies water, in the same way she could, and I forced her control out; to a non-water bender, I have no idea what it feels like. I never asked Sokka about it. I don't know if there's some...glitch, in my brain though, because Aang can water bend, and he couldn't fight it, he was truly under Hama's control. Doing it feels...powerful. Having that much control over someone, it's almost like completely overtaking another body, without having their ability to speak or think. I don't like it. I only used it against Hama to stop her hurting Aang and Sokka, before last night. No one deserves that being done to them, not the Southern Raiders, not Azula, not Sparky Boom Boom man, no one. Unless they threaten my family." She looked down at her lap.

Zuko brushed a stray hair out of her face, and caressed her cheek with the back of his hand.

"There isn't a glitch in your brain Katara. You're perfect." He lifted her chin with his hand, and she turned to face him.

He kissed her, his hands weaving into her hair and caressing her cheeks. Her hand also wound into her hair, her free hand running over the scar on his eye, and deepened the kiss.