A/N: Ok, not to be mean or anything but i only got a few reviews on the last chapter which was slightly disappointing but thank you to those who did! Muchly appreciated. Now if only i got a few more reviews on this. Even if its like one worded reviews like "good" or "bad" i don't care just REVIEW please!!!
The next few days passed slowly.
Katara sat in front of Iroh, listening to him speak as she drank the heavenly brew of tea he had made. She relaxed slightly, despite being on Zuko's ship. The prince himself was below deck, talking with the captain.
"Something on your mind, Katara?"
The water tribe girl looked up and set her cup down. Her question fell off her tongue before she realized what she was saying. "Why is Zuko always angry?"
To her relief, Iroh chuckled, his sides shaking as his face stretched into a broad smile. "It is not often I am asked such a question," he told her, observing her over the rim of his cup. She gave a sheepish grin and waited for him to continue. "Zuko was quite a pleasant boy when he was younger. Oh yes," he added as Katara raised her eyebrows, "he was. He was never an outstanding bender like his sister nor was he any good at making friends. He was a little shy – he spent a lot of time with his mother."
Katara snorted. "Shy?"
Iroh gave a laugh. "You should have seen him cry the day he was sent to the Royal Fire Academy for Boys. In three weeks he was back. Incredibly stubborn but overall a good boy," he finished, wiping a tear from his eye. "And now I'm afraid…he's a little lost."
Katara's mind wandered as she listened to him speak, imagining a smaller Zuko bawling as he hugged onto a faceless women's leg. Somehow she couldn't quite picture it. "When did Zuko…?" she waved her hand at her face.
"He was thirteen," Iroh answered heavily. "He paid a terrible price for doing the right thing."
"What right thing?" said Katara curiously. Iroh shook his head.
"It's his story. You should ask him."
The water tribe girl didn't say anything but nodded, silently sipping her tea, knowing full well she wouldn't be asking the temperamental fire prince anything about his scar. She didn't know what Zuko had been through save being exiled from his own home nor did she want to know. It was unfair and uncharacteristic of her but she knew that if she ever found out the Zuko behind the scar she would start feeling for him and right now she didn't want to feel sorry for anyone except herself.
She took a deep breath and asked another pressing question, wondering if she wasn't crossing the line here. "When Zuko…turned on you in Ba Sing Se, what happened to you?"
The old man froze. His stare was fixated on her face and she began to panic, thinking it was all over when he took a deep breath and answered. "I was arrested for treason against the Fire Nation."
Katara's eyes went wide as she looked horrified. "They just…threw you in prison? He just let them? After everything you did for him?" She felt anger course through her and although she didn't know the man very well, felt his hurt also. Suddenly it was very easy to hate the prince.
"He came and visited me at times," he added quietly. Katara looked at him and felt her respect for the ex-General rise. She could see the love in his eyes for his nephew as he defended him.
"Still…" she muttered trying to find a fault in the prince. "Zuko told me he and his sister were on vacation. I mean, that's what they told the Fire Lord. What are you doing here?"
"I do not know. I do not believe the Fire Lord knows but Azula is very much respected – or feared – by much of the palace staff. Azula had me put on this ship with my nephew. A bribe of sorts one could say."
"A bribe to get Zuko to help her capture the Avatar?"
The old man shrugged. "Possibly." He didn't seem too keen on the topic and eventually Katara let it slide.
Excusing herself, she stood up and walked to the door, making her way down to Zuko's room. It wasn't empty. He was sitting at his desk, one hand resting on the table with the brush handle between his fingers as he leaned back in his chair, staring out the window. She shut the door loudly causing him to look around, slightly annoyed. His expression wasn't surprised as he saw her, not expecting anyone else to enter his room so brashly.
"You were shy?" she snorted in the most unladylike manner.
He raised his eyebrows or brow, turning around fully. "What?"
"You cried when you got sent to school."
His eyes narrowed. "Who told you –?"
"Your uncle," she said, calmly sitting down on his bed. Now she had something to hold against him. "He tells great stories. Really interesting."
"What do you want?" he said bluntly.
She blinked innocently. "Who said I wanted anything?"
"I grew up with Azula. Girls are crazy and manipulative and are never nice unless they want something in return."
"Maybe that's only Fire Nation girls," she threw back at him.
"You must be part Fire Nation then," he retorted smoothly.
Both stared each other down. Zuko rolled his eyes and picked up his brush again, turning back to whatever he was doing before Katara interrupted him. The Water Tribe girl stretched out along the bed, gazing up at the ceiling, Iroh's stories still running through her head.
"He also said you were nice."
Something clattered to the floor and she opened an eye, watching Zuko's mouth form the various curse words she'd heard Sokka and Toph occasionally use as he stooped down to pick up his brush, ink staining his white hands. Like then, she felt a vague disapproval at his choice of language but ignored it. He was a spoiled prince – what else should she expect?
"What else did he say?" he said cautiously.
"Not much," she replied enjoying the sudden power she held over him. "Only that you were mommy's little boy and a bit of a crybaby."
"I was not!" he said defensively.
"Ok," she said patronizingly, smiling with her eyes closed. "You weren't."
He sent a light fire ball her way which blew over her head, briefly warming the air above her. "I wasn't!" he repeated glaring at her.
"Fine. What kind of kid were you then?"
"I was…" he frowned, dropping his brush, thinking hard. "Reserved," he finished.
"Reserved?" Katara mused. "Ok, then what about the crying?"
"I didn't cry," he snapped. "If you believe everything anyone says no wonder the Avatar fell in Ba Sing Se. You're a fool for trusting people."
Katara shot up, her feet landing on the floor, her smile gone. Her blue eyes were ice, a cold fire blazing inside them. Her hands shook slightly as she spoke. "I was a fool for trusting you." Her voice cracked like a whip. "But I have something you don't – friends I can trust. And you could have been one of them!" she spun around and stormed angrily from the room.
Zuko stared after her, feeling the slightest bit guilty about what he'd said to her. But what she had said hurt more. And he knew he deserved it. With an enraged roar, he flung his brush at the wall, turning away as the ink stain slowly spread across it.
He stood at the window of the cabin, arms crossed, beside the man steering the ship towards the port. Stopping at the small Earth Kingdom village would hopefully refill their supplies. As he gazed out unseeingly, he thought of where he stood with the water bender. She baffled him as much as he did her. For some reason, he thought convincing her would be easy. He knew how much she cared for her friends yet thought it would be worse for them if he helped her find them. Of course, she had good reason not to trust him; tying her to a tree was obviously not something she was going to forget quickly let alone Ba Sing Se. He could always set her free and simply follow her back to the Avatar but somehow she didn't strike him as the one gifted with a sense of direction. She'd probably end up lost in some Earth Kingdom town. And…although he hated to admit it, having her as company wasn't a completely terrible thing. It was almost like having friends even though he'd never had one in his entire life.
The ship slowly pulled up in front of the wooden pier and the front was gently lowered to allow travel to and from the ship.
"Prince Zuko?" said the captain, bravely interrupting Zuko's obvious absent-minded state. "We're here."
"The water bender?" he asked automatically, returning to the present.
"Above deck, sir."
Zuko nodded once and left the room, passing his uncle on the way out. He paused. "Uncle? Would you like anything?"
Iroh did not answer immediately, flipping the Pai Sho lotus tile between his fingers casually. "Perhaps a nice souvenir," he said quietly. Zuko nodded once, remembering his uncle's occasionally annoying habit of buying useless artifacts every time they stopped, before continuing out.
He took a deep breath as he stepped out on deck. Stray crew members were flitting about, preparing cartons to carry their purchases. Some had already begun leaving.
Katara stood to the side, watching the men silently. She didn't react as he came up behind her, the stiffening of her shoulders the only indication she's noticed his presence.
"We're leaving." he said pointing down the ramp. Her eyes flicked from his face to the metal slope and she stalked down it, knowing she didn't actually have a choice and really wasn't feeling up to another fight. He caught up to her quickly, grabbing her shoulder as they made it onto solid land.
"What?" she said in a biting voice.
"Don't try to escape."
She rolled her eyes, even more annoyed. "I'll do whatever I want. You don't tell me what to do."
"I believe you're my prisoner. You'll do what I say," he said coldly. Both glared at each other, still furious.
"Oh, we're back to that game, are we?" she retorted. "If I'm your prisoner shouldn't you be locking me up instead of taking me shopping?" She held her wrists up and waved them around in front of him. He raised his hands and locked them around hers, gripping them tightly.
"I could if I wanted to," he said leaning closer. She stared back defiantly, refusing to back down.
"Then why don't you?" she hissed.
His eyes searched her face and suddenly his grip loosened. "I don't know," he whispered. She took a step back and began walking away.
"Besides, where are you going to go?" he called after her, following and easily catching up to her with his long strides.
"Let go of me!" she growled shrugging his hand off as he touched her shoulder again. He paused and then held up his hand, palm facing upwards. "You don't have a choice anymore. I'm all you've got now."
Cerulean eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of sadness evident in the clear gaze. "You'll never be all I've got," she said quietly, turning away from him.
He lowered his hand, a scowl adorning his face at the rejection. Somewhere inside him, it hurt.
They walked in silence for a while, her leading the way, stomping furiously in the direction of the other crew members while he followed silently behind. Not oblivious to the fact that she was wearing a simple robe over her body, Katara made a mental note to stop by a garment store and get something new to wear.
The village they were stopping at was a little more inland than expected and there weren't any rhinos to take them. Tension was thick in the air between the two as they walked carefully maintaining some distance between them. As they approached the tiny town, they noticed something oddly different about the place.
It was silent. There was no movement, no sound, no sign of life at all. Zuko stepped up beside Katara holding his arm out to stop her as well. His eyes scanned the area before he slowly approached one of the buildings. Why there was no one around became apparent immediately.
A scorch mark. It made a vicious stain on the structure. Zuko looked up at Katara and saw her expression was narrowed. She seemed to understand what the mark meant. The two turned the corner and froze.
The entire village, deserted and eerie, had been burnt to a crisp. Few building stood, barely intact. The shingled roofs had turned to charcoal, bricks lying broken on the street. There was no scent of smoke in the air, signaling that it had happened a long time ago.
Katara walked forward, as if in a daze, shaking her head, staring around. She put her hand on a low brick wall, retracting it as it crumbled under her touch. "No." She continued walking, following the various streets. "No…" Zuko trailed behind her, a gut-wrenching feeling telling him no good could come out of this.
"Fire benders," she whispered, stopping, staring at a pile of ash that was once a house. "Fire benders did this."
"I know," Zuko replied quietly.
It began to rain, slowly at first, one drop at a time before it picked up pace and fell rapidly, soaking them from head to foot. Katara didn't notice, looking around with a look of disbelief on her face.
She stood there, her shoulders shaking slightly looking at him as if seeing him for the first time. "You know…why didn't you do anything?" Suddenly she sounded angry. "You're a fire bender aren't you?" Zuko opened his mouth to object when she cut across him. "These people are dead! And you…" she choked slightly. "This is all your fault!" Silent tears began to stream down her cheeks.
He didn't say anything but listened to her rage, a slow anger building in his chest. She continued on.
"That's all you people do. Look! You're destroying the world!" she shouted, pointing at the destruction surrounding them. "Are you happy now?"
Zuko grabbed her arm angrily as she made to walk off. She winced at the tight grip and tried to pull away from his suddenly ferocious glare. "I didn't do this! I had nothing to do with this!"
"You could have stopped it!" she yelled back. "You're the Fire Prince aren't you? Do you do anything useful, or do you just sit there ordering people around?"
He stared at her, the heat rising in his body. She struggled to wrench her arm free. "I didn't order these attacks, ok?" he growled. "You don't have any right to blame me! I'm trying to find the Avatar! If there's anyone who's not doing anything useful, it's you!"
There was a sharp pain in his leg as she kicked him and broke free.
Katara ran blindly through the deserted village, not paying attention to her surroundings, wiping away the tears as she half ran, half stumbled along, sobbing. She couldn't stand him anymore. Holding her captive, blackmailing her, his constant anger, his downright honesty, she hated everything about him. The built up frustration, anger and fear she'd felt in the past week escaped from her in a relentless scream. Her brother, Toph, Aang, were all distant memories and she clutched onto them harder than ever, begging them not to leave her alone.
Her run slowed to a walk, the path slick with water, the sky dark with clouds. She pushed her hair off her face, looking back behind her as she did so. Her surroundings were unfamiliar. She was truly lost.
Just as she contemplated turning around and trying to retrace her steps, she tripped over an object and fell. Her stomach turned as she twisted around to look at it.
It was a body. Dead and rotting away. The green clothes were torn and burnt in several places but they were the only things left intact. The skin had been eaten away revealing the bones and gaping holes where the eyes had once been. Beside the corpse lay a shattered ceramic pot.
The sight caused her stomach to roll and she nearly retched. Sharp pains cut Katara's chest as she struggled to breathe, the nonexistent eyes staring back at her. A fresh wave of sobs threatened to overcome her as she scrambled to her feet, looking to run somewhere, anywhere, where she wouldn't have to see those sightless eyes again.
She managed to stand up, trembling, and whipped around forcing her feet to carry her. The next thing she knew she had hit something hard.
She stopped completely, knowing exactly who it was, her face disappearing into his shoulder as the crying began again. All previous contempt disappeared as she clutched him tight, not caring where he was from or what he represented. She needed someone, anyone, just to hold onto and let go of herself. He was there, holding her, as she struggled to stand leaning into the only person around who was the slightest bit familiar. He held her up as her knees gave way and she clung to him, the tears running against his neck.
Zuko had completely frozen. Never had he been thrust into such an uncomfortable position and truth be told, crying girls frightened him. Azula had never cried since she was a toddler, not when their mother left or when their grandfather died (although he hadn't been particularly upset on that occasion either). Now he was stuck with the sobbing Water Tribe girl who had made it perfectly clear minutes ago what she thought of him. Tempted to simply leave her here for causing him so much trouble, Zuko silently cursed his overactive conscience and turned to comfort the water bender the best he could.
He raised his hand, hesitantly, and awkwardly ran it through her hair just like his mother would to him whenever he was upset. The rain continued to fall around them, soaking them both to the bone. She rested her head against him, the sobs quaking through her body. Realizing she wasn't going to stop anytime soon, Zuko slowly wrapped an arm tightly around her waist and the other behind her knees and lifted her up.
"Prince Zuko!" one of his crew rounded the corner and rushed to his side. "You found her! Do you need any –?"
He shook his head immediately, leaving the guard to run quickly after him. Katara's cries were subsiding although she kept her face buried against him, not even protesting against him carrying her. Her fingers gripped his clothes tightly, unwilling to let go at all. He had been right.
He was all she had now.
She felt warm. Not sweaty warm but enticingly warm. It was comfortable to the point of luxurious. And maybe it was. The now-familiar silk sheets were around her and relaxed her muscles.
Katara sighed and shifted closer to the source of the warmth. Her fingers curled around soft fabric; it wasn't silk but it wasn't coarse either. It was really warm here. Then her head bumped against something solid and her eyes snapped open.
With surprising speed for a usually late-riser, she shoved Zuko away and he tumbled onto the floor with a yell.
"WHAT THE–" he got to his feet practically spitting with fury, unable to form coherent words. "For Agni's sake –"
"You creep!" she screamed back. "What are you doing here? Why were you…" her face contorted fiercely with several expressions, "sleeping here?"
He turned his head upward and fire exploded from his mouth. She flinched slightly as he looked back at her. "First of all," he yelled, his voice causing her ear drums to throb. "It's my ship so I'm entitled to sleep wherever I want. Second, maybe if you'd let go of me yesterday, I wouldn't be sleeping anywhere near you!" He emphasized his point by jabbing his finger at her in disgust.
Katara kneeled on the bed, facing him, fists clenched. This was by far worse than actually being captured by the jerk. She was embarrassed, irritated, offended, exhausted, and – Agni better have mercy on the prince – scorned.
His overly smug look pushed her over the edge. Before she knew what she was doing, she had grabbed a pillow and whacked him across the face with it.
He blinked and his mouth opened in surprise as the pillow came at him again. This time he was ready and snatched it out of her hands as it reached him. Getting a good grip on it he brought it down over her head, an as she let out a shriek, and she seized the other one, blocking his attack. He quickly hit her ribs and she toppled over. Rolling to her side quickly to avoid the next blow, she landed on her feet on the other side with the bed in between them. Both breathed heavily as they faced each other.
Zuko moved first; he moved with speed and grace, leaping onto the bed and swinging the pillow in an arc towards Katara. She used the advantage of being on the ground to dodge around to the other side. Her opponent was closer this time, still on the bed as he twisted around and snapping the pillow at her. Its bulky and odd shape made it difficult to execute the move in the desired manner; nevertheless it hit the girl in the side, causing her to momentarily falter. Zuko seized the opportunity to get off the bed but he misjudged the distance between the bed and ceiling and his head hit the roof with a resounding thump. Katara watched in satisfaction as he stumbled to the floor, dancing around to the other side so they were back where they had started.
"Your first time, amateur?" she taunted, gripping her pillow tighter.
"Doesn't matter," he retorted, "I'll still win."
She bared her teeth and took one step to the side. He imitated her, moving as she did, trying to close the distance between them. She stepped the other way and again he copied her.
"What are you doing?" he growled.
"What? Tired already?" Katara put a foot on the edge of the bed and waited for him to take the bait. He narrowed his eyes and paused. Everything seemed to freeze and then Katara moved, throwing herself into a tight roll across the silk, her hands coming up in time to protect her face as he reacted in time to attack. Now on the same side and much closer, Katara put her all into her offensive moves. Hit to the side of the head, slam down on top, feint to the other side then come up beneath the chin. Hair flew everywhere as the soft pillows made contact with the other.
Zuko managed to sneak a well placed blow towards her neck, knocking her pillow right out of her hands.
"Hey!" she yelled, falling back and rolling away to avoid the next wallop. He crawled onto the bed as she found her pillow and held it up as he slammed his pillow against hers.
"Come on peasant," he growled. "Fight back!"
She struggled under the pillow pressing against her face. "S-stop! I can't…breathe." Her knees curled into her stomach making it uncomfortable for him to hold her down. He paused in his assault, pinning her down as he leaned against her legs keeping them restrained. She cautiously peeked out from behind her pillow and he seized the opportunity to slam it back on her face. She squirmed, her legs kicking wildly. He let her up eventually, rolling to the side. They both sat up, hair tousled, cheeks flushed, completely breathless. Suddenly Katara started laughing. A smile broke across her face as she leaned her head against her knees, giggles coursing through her body. An unwilling grin began to unfold across the prince's own countenance.
Katara fell back, her laughs shaking her body. Zuko fought the upturning of his mouth and failed miserably, watching her with interest. She turned her head to look at him as she calmed down and sat up, still a little breathless. "You know, I don't think I've ever seen you smile."
His grin disappeared as he protested. "I do smile! Sometimes…" he added as an afterthought.
"You should do it more often," she told him, fixing her hair. "You'd look much nicer." Her hands rose up and she reached to touch the corners of his mouth when he pulled back instinctively. They dropped back into her lap and suddenly the silence between them was awkward. Zuko cleared his throat and stood up, shaking his hair back as he pulled the belt of his tunic tighter.
"Food," he muttered not looking at her and striding out of the room. Katara straightened her borrowed robe and ran her fingers through her hair a few times, untangling it. She twirled a strand of her hair around unconsciously, still thinking of the smile she'd seen dancing on Zuko's face. A little surge of pride ran through her as she realized she was the one who had managed to make him laugh. She doubted many could claim to have done that.
The previous night's events came back to her eventually and she frowned, remembering how she had yelled him and run away, then (her stomach turned at the thought) found the dead body and ran into him and started crying all over him. She squirmed simply thinking about it. It never struck her that she'd ever use the angry prince's shoulder for comfort. Not that he'd really offered any…except holding her close…and carrying her back to the ship…and (she turned red even though no one was there) slept beside her the whole night. Of course, she was the one who wouldn't let go but still…Katara sat up straight as she was suddenly visited it by a strange thought.
Maybe, just maybe, Zuko wasn't that bad.
Her head snapped around as the door opened and someone walked in and put some food on the low table. She slid off the bed but didn't sit down, waiting.
He came eventually, looking more awake than before. He barely glanced at her as he shut the door and went to sit at the table when she stepped up to him, stopping his actions looking nervous.
"I…" she began, not quite able to look him in the eye after the morning's events. She bit her lip, unsure of whether to go through with this. The images of her three friends floated into her head and she closed her eyes, hoping to Tui and La and whatever other spirits were out there that she wasn't about to make a decision she was going to regret.
Zuko slowly pulled his arm out of her grip (when had she grabbed it) and folded it across his chest along with the other, waiting.
"I'll do it," she said. "I'll help you find Aang."
His arms dropped to his sides as he raised his eyebrows. "You will?" he asked curiously. Something glinted in his eyes…hope?
She smiled at him, a genuine smile. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly in response. "I will. But first things first."
He immediately looked wary.
"We're equals now," she said.
He stared at her. Equals…she wordlessly put her hands into the traditional Fire Nation bow position and waited for him to do the same.
As a prince he didn't often bow to people and if he did it was the incline of the head to acknowledge their offered respect or a kneel, complete with touching his head to the ground in front of his father. This time it was different. Katara wasn't one of his subjects – she was a rival, powerful, courageous and determined. She easily matched his abilities as an opponent. Countless battles had proved that. But bowing to her would remove his authority over her as her captor, giving her the right to back out. He hesitated.
She looked him in the eye, waiting.
Zuko sighed and put his hands in their correct positions. They bowed. The depth of their bow matched each other's perfectly and they straightened at the same time. They were equals.
She smiled turned around to sit down at the table. His hand shot out and touched her shoulder lightly.
"Thank you…Katara."
It was the first time he'd said her name.
Longest chapter i've written but hoped you all loved it. Peace, love + review! Gracias!