A.N.: I am truly ashamed that I let two years slip by without updating this! I thank you all so much if you're reading this for the first time, rereading it to get reacquainted, or have left reviews or added it to your favorites. I really do appreciate it! If you are rereading this, I have begun to rewrite this, to extend the details, and work out some errors that I made in the original form. I will be not only updating what is already here, but I will be adding new chapters, and concluding this story by the end of the year. Thank you again for your patience and I hope you are all still interested! This is the 4th chapter to be entirely rewritten as of July 9, 2010.

Of course I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender or any of the characters except for Kelyin, Ren, Shaya, and the Outcasts. Though you will later find out, I'll make it clear now that everyone is 3 years older. Zuko was 16, now 19, Katara 14/17, Sokka 15/18, Aang 12/15, Toph 12/15. Also, the events of this story were written after the second season, so please disregard all events from the final season of Avatar: The Last Airbender.

/. /. / CHAPTER 4: The One With Golden Eyes

/. /. / KYOSHI ISLAND

The long process of repairing 'Silent', as Katara referred to him, was going smoothly. Over the past few weeks she had managed to close all of his open wounds and heal the majority of the basic scarring, though the burns were still thick and she knew they throbbed with his every movement. He was able to sit up now, and even walk a little with her assistance, but all his movements were stiff and pained. Whenever Katara led him in a small walk to exercise, he stepped awkwardly, with a terrible limp in his right leg and he still could not talk or open his eyes.

Suki and Sokka had been switching on and off in the duty of watching over Katara and Silent, though she insisted she didn't need them there. It was Suki's turn now. She stood by as Katara helped Silent to lay down once again.

"Kara, I'll watch over him if you'd like to go visit the bath house in the village." Katara looked up, unable to hide the smile that lit her weary features. The thought of a warm, soothing soak after weeks of chilly water and cool temperatures was too good to pass up.

"You really wouldn't mind?"

"Not at all. I'll take care of him. Maybe I'll work on reducing the swelling around his eyes with a damp cloth." Katara stood and gave Suki a brief hug, smiling. "Go on now, and take your time. We'll be fine." Katara started toward the forest, but stopped, turning to look at Silent again. She opened her mouth to speak, but Suki smiled and gave her a little shooing wave. "Off you go." She watched as Katara entered the forest in the direction of Kyoshi village, then turned her attention to Silent.

/. /. / KYOSHI ISLAND VILLAGE

Katara sank into the hot water, the warmth of it soaking in and soothing her tired muscles. She closed her eyes, letting her mind wander. She thought about what Aang might be doing right now, and where Toph was and how long it would take her to rid Silent of every cursed scar that he had. Though his raw throat disabled him from uttering more than a grunt or a feeble moan, the scream that had erupted from him when his tortured body touched the water haunted her. How many times had his screams of pain fallen on deaf ears while he was kept prisoner?

She opened her eyes, wiping away the unexpected stream of tears that had appeared on her cheeks. Zuko.

Her old enemy, now her ward. She'd known Silent's identity since the second week. She'd begun work on the wounds of his face when the outline of his fathers scar began to surface. It was unmistakable. He'd been so strong and fierce, and now he was helpless like a child. The majority of her wanted to hate him for what he put her and her friends through, but no enemy, no matter how great, deserved to live through such endless pain. She had to admit, he'd been attractive when she got stuck in the cave with him. Despite the large scar, over his eye and ear, his features were good, handsome. If he'd lived a better life, been raised in less harsh conditions, he probably would have grown to be a sincere, handsome, good young man. Though she hated him, she wanted him to be that better man. She longed to see his face again, the way it was in the cave. Her grandmother had warned her of the tales of good girls and wicked boys, and she had always been disturbed by the tales outcomes, but now she found herself unwillingly falling into the same category. She wanted to care for her greatest enemy, nurse him back to health and help him live a better life. A calmer, more peaceful life.

She lifted her hands from the water and began to mindlessly create little streams and swirls of liquid rising from the surface of the bath and circling above her open palms.

/. /. / KYOSHI ISLAND

Suki gently pressed the cool cloth to Silent's eyes for the fourth time. She let her eyes roam over him. When Katara helped him to stand, he was always hunched over and feeble, only an inch or so taller than Katara. Laying down, she could tell he was much taller. He had to be about 6'2 if not taller. She noticed that both the sleeves and pant legs of the simple green clothes he wore were too short for him. She removed the cloth. "Alright, last time for now. Try to open your eyes." Slowly, his eyes opened a crack, weakly blinking. The right eye opened a little more than the left, which almost stayed closed. Her face fell when she saw the color of his eyes, finally revealed. Not amber, like most people of the fire nation, but brilliant gold, the color reserved for pureblooded Fire Nation royalty. "Good job!" She worked to keep her voice calm. "But let's not strain them, okay?" She spoke as normally as she could, laying the cloth over his eyes again. "I just have to run and grab something from the village." She took his hand as Katara had instructed her to. "Is that okay?" He squeezed once, signaling yes. She stood and took off as fast as she could toward the village.

/. /. / KYOSHI ISLAND VILLAGE

Katara stepped out of the bathhouse and headed toward the shops when a hand grabbed her shoulder. She turned to see Suki, looking panicked. "Katara, you can't go back to him!"

"What do you mean?" A feeling like a heavy stone falling began in her stomach.

"He opened his eyes, and they're gold! Fire Nation Royalty! Katara, I think that's Prince-"

"Zuko, I know Suki. Can we please talk about this somewhere a little more private? I don't want any alarm about him being here."

"What?" Suki stumbled back, away from Katara as if she were some kind of disease, horrified at the calmness with which the Waterbender spoke. Her eyes narrowed. "How long have you known?"

"Come with me." She quickly led Suki to an empty area by the barracks. "I've known since I saw his oldest scar in the second week. It's a burn around his left eye that's been there since the first day I saw him in the Southern Water Tribe just after I found Aang." She looked down. "I was alone with him once… I saw a different side to him in that brief hour. A true, human side."

"He's a spy for Azula!"

"Has Sokka rubbed off on you that much? What is wrong with you two? I know he was an enemy, but you've been there. No human being would endure that much pain just to get information that's readily available to the public! He was embarrassed by that scar. Tortured by it. He'd never agree to being practically burned alive and killed just for the slight possibility of getting a hint of information about Aang. It's not like Aang's in hiding or anything. Everyone knows the Avatar is alive. The Firelords already been defeated. There's no information to find." Suki opened her mouth to protest. "With the stubbornness of these scars, he's suffered for years now, Suki."

"According to Aang's side of the story, as Sokka told me, right after you and Zuko were released from the crystal chamber, he sided with his sister, who came within an inch of killing Aang! How can you even consider helping that traitor? Spy or not, he was obsessed with hunting down Aang. An hour with him three years ago makes you think he wouldn't do just about anything to capture the Avatar, especially since his father was defeated!" Katara clenched her fists at her sides.

"I made a promise on the first day that I would help him. That I would end his pain and give him his life back! I can't break that promise Suki, no matter who he is. It's against everything I am as a healer not to help him."

"Suki rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Katara, he'll recognize you immediately."

"Then what do you suggest besides abandoning him? Because that, I will not do."

"You'll have to get a disguise, something that will make you completely unrecognizable." She sighed. "I'll stay for the rest of the week and convince Sokka that you are alright on your own, but after that, I can't help you anymore. I'm sorry Katara. I just refuse to be a part of helping him of all people. It just seems to be too much of a coincidence for me."

"Sokka can't know a word of this. Not a word. He'll make sure I can't help him if he knows it's Zuko."

"I know." She remained silent for a moment before speaking once more. "Hey, do you still have the clothes that Jet gave you?"

"The Outcast clothes?"

"That would be the perfect disguise. The paint is so thick, he'll never be able to tell who you are…"

/. /. / KYOSHI ISLAND

"Silent?" It was her. That sweet, soft voice that taunted his memory, frustrating him to no end. He felt her remove the damp cloth from his eyes. "I'm going to start on your burns, alright?" She rolled up his left sleeve. He had to see her. He had to see who she was. His eyes slowly opened, and disappointment took over immediately. Her face was concealed by paint, making her face, lips, and neck stark white. A black line was painted across her face, over her eyes, like a mask. She was dressed in clothes more suited for a male. A long sleeve grey shirt with a black hooded tunic over it and loose fitting black pants. He'd seen this before. She was one of the Outcasts*.

Azula despised the Outcasts, saying they were two faced cowards to leave their countries and join others, aiding the Avatar. Zuko knew the real reason she hated them. Azula's childhood friend and her once second in command, Mei, had become one. She had shocked everyone when she was revealed as a spy for them in the palace.

Deep down inside, Zuko had a bit of admiration for Mei and the other Outcasts, acting on their own judgment, not the ideals of their homelands.

He examined Kara's face. Her eyes were blue, showing her as a Waterbender, though he already knew that by her healing abilities. There was something familiar about the shape of her face and her eyes that taunted his mind, just like her voice did. Seeing her only made him more frustrated. He closed his eyes once more as she slowly traced his index finger with her water covered hand. The burning pain in it began to dull for the first time in a year.

/. /. / POST SCRIPT AUTHORS NOTE:

P.S.A.N.: So, Jet is alive, hooray! I hated that he died in the show. I kept hoping that he would show up later on, having healed without anyone knowing, living to fight another day. He was a great character, and I refuse to let him die that way. An extra 211 words were added to the rewrite, including the entire paragraph with Katara reflecting upon the 'bad boy' Zuko while in the bath. Originally, it was not revealed that Katara knew of 'Silent's' identity until she finished Suki's Prince- Zuko sentence.

*Outcasts - A group made up of people who turned their backs on their nations and roamed throughout the world, becoming nomads of sorts. They began forming when the war first began, leaving their homelands due to disagreements about what actions needed to be taken to stop the Fire Nation. Many Outcasts aided Aang in the final fight against the Firelord. The Outcasts are a creation of my own, and they will play a large part in this story.