A/N: So….I know it has been months since I updated this. I got a little stuck in the middle, and then I got busy, and then even when it was finished, I have to proofread the thing about four times with fresh eyes before I post. I just wanted to assure everyone that this story is not dead, it's just going to be slow going. The bad news is that as a doctoral student, I have a lot on my plate. The good news is that I sat down and have at least the next chapter planned out, and a more clear focus of where all of this is going. Funny part is, it's nothing like I originally imagined. And I think plot-wise it'll be something new, I don't think it's been done before. Anyway, I can't guarantee anything in terms of speediness, but I can guarantee that that story will eventually have the word "complete" after it. A thousand apologies for the delay, and I hope you enjoy the next installment of If It Kills Me!
PS – I don't own Avatar.
Chapter 4
He was about to give up. The older brother had been walking through the woods beyond the village all afternoon, and he was beginning to grow weary. So far, there had been no indication at all that anyone had been in this forest for quite some time. There were no abandoned campsites, no old fire pits. There weren't even any tracks on the ground except those that had been left behind by small animals. The only sounds were the occasional twitter of small birds, and the humming of some insects that were coming out now that dusk was approaching.
The path that he had been following had disappeared a long time ago, making the trek harder than he had anticipated. In truth, he had never been this far away from the village. A fallen tree up ahead looked sturdy enough to sit upon, so he decided to rest. He plopped down, feet aching, relieved to be still for a moment. He pulled the letter from the Seamstress out of his shirt and read it again. Could it really be true? If it were, this was a stroke of luck for him and his brother. How he had wished to escape the small village and move on to bigger and better things in Ba Sing Se. Their parents had both been gone for some time, their mother of illness and their father a casualty of the war. He wanted to take his brother somewhere where there was more opportunity, more chance to grow and be free. This information could be their ticket out.
But where were these men? He had heard so many tales about them. It was said that they were dangerous, but the stories were probably exaggerated, as is wont to happen in gossipy small towns. However, the farther he travelled into the woods, the more he was beginning to doubt their existence. Could the stories just have been tales concocted to keep children from roaming too far from home? He certainly hoped not, or he had wasted a lot of time and a day's wage.
He sighed, and put the letter back into his shirt. Whether these men were real or not, it would be dark soon, and the animals that would come out of the trees would be real for sure. He stood up, disappointed, but sure of the fact that it was time to turn around and head back home. His brother would surely be worried about him, and he hoped to assure him that he was alright before he headed to his shift at the aviary.
He took one last look around, and then started back. He had only gone about ten paces when he heard a branch snap from somewhere behind him. He stopped and listened, hoping that an animal hadn't caught up with him after all. Hearing no other noise, he proceeded carefully, if not a little more quickly, in the direction of the village. He hadn't gone another ten paces before the ground dropped out beneath him.
Toph was irritated. Certainly not as irritated as she might have been if she were home with her suffocating parents, but this difference was only slight. She currently sat in an ice cold room on a cot in the Northern Water Tribe, arms crossed and foot tapping, counting the minutes until she could leave. Her small form was practically lost underneath the enormous parka that she wore. And the boots! The boots were enormous! Those articles of clothing had been unceremoniously tossed into the corner of her temporary living space until she needed to go outside again. At least the floor of this room was covered in plush rugs so her toes wouldn't freeze off, but that was not the case when she needed to go outside. Not that it mattered much, boots or no boots, she couldn't see with all that damn ice. Not being able to see made her feel helpless, and helpless was not something that Toph handled well. The memory of the incident at the Serpent's pass jumped into her mind unbidden, and she quickly dismissed it for multiple reasons.
"Sure I'll come to the Northern Water Tribe with you Aang! It'll be fun!" she said to herself in a mocking tone. "What was I thinking?" She huffed, blowing her bangs out of her eyes.
There was a knock at her door, and she turned her head toward the sound. With the distortions caused by the ice, she couldn't tell whose feet were standing beyond the door. From what she could tell, it was either Aang or some small child. Better not make any stupid remarks in case it was some bureaucrat's dumb kid bringing her something. And if it was some kid, better just keep quiet all together so they go away. Not being able to see takes all the fun out of snarky commentary, she thought to herself.
"Toph, you in there?" It was Aang. Thank the spirits.
She yelled for him to come in. He crossed the room and sat down beside her on her cot, close enough so that their legs touched. This was merely practical, she told herself, so that she would be able to feel his vibrations better. He knew that she missed being able to 'see' people the way she normally did. It didn't stop her own heart from racing a bit though, and she was glad that she hadn't taught the Avatar all of her tricks.
"So Twinkletoes, when do we get out of this ice box? My feet are very unhappy."
"It shouldn't take much longer Toph. The Northern Water Tribe and the Earth Kingdom are natural allies; they just have a few more details to work out regarding a few trading ports and tariffs. Chief Arnook wasn't concerned that there would be a problem, he really invited us here so we could give him an opinion on the new Earth King."
"Ugh, is that it? Well, what's he like?"
"Well, you can tell he's still trying to get adjusted to the job. After the occupation of Ba Sing Se they had some trouble trying to figure out who would succeed Kuei after he ran off with Bosco. They eventually found his second cousin somewhere, living in the lower ring. There was some controversy, but he was eventually crowned. He's a little rough around the edges, but he'll get the hang of it I'm sure. I mean, he's got lots of people around him to help him out."
Aang, always the optimist. "That's all fine and good, but I don't mind telling you that I can't wait to get out of here. It's not that the people aren't nice and all, but two weeks of actually being blind is more than I can take. This is worse than when Zuko burned my feet! For one, it didn't last as long as this because Katara was able to heal them a little, and as a bonus I got to boss Zuko around. And…Aang, are you even listening to me?"
She was picking up a sense of tension from Aang, especially when she mentioned Zuko and Katara. She turned to face him a little, waving a hand in front of where she figured his face would be. "Hello! Earth to Avatar! When someone is speaking to you, the polite response is to listen."
Aang wanted to tell Toph that she was not one to be instructing people on the ways of manners, but instead just sighed. He leaned over, and put his head in his hands, staring at the floor below.
Toph rolled her eyes, but had an inclination of what that was all about. "Twinkletoes, I suggest you spit it out. Whatever is bothering you is going to keep up until you talk about it. You're terrible at solving your own problems."
"I am not!" Aang replied indignantly, but his heart wasn't really in it. He slumped again. "Nothing's wrong Toph. I'll be fine."
"I do believe you are acquainted with my lie-detecting ability, and at this moment it is going through the roof. Instead of beating around the bush, let's just get it out in the open: you miss her don't you?"
Aang turned her way, searching her face, and then returned his head to his hands. "I don't know why I even try with you Toph. You always see right through me. Pardon the pun." With this, he offered her a small smile. "You're right. I do miss her. Since she woke me up, we haven't really been apart for any long periods of time. I get that she wants her space and wants to stop traveling for awhile, but it's strange not seeing her every day. When I pictured the world finally at peace, I pictured us enjoying it together…"
Not one to get involved in this mushy trap, Toph responded, "look, the sooner we leave this place, the sooner we can travel to warmer climates, and who knows? Maybe we can run into Katara in the Fire Nation. I wouldn't mind stopping by the palace, as Zuko technically owes me penance for the rest of his life. He may not know that part yet, so don't mention it to him. What do you say?"
Aang seemed to perk up a bit at the idea. "Great idea Toph! I'm sure there's someplace in the Fire Nation that needs the Avatar's help! I'll try to get these negotiations finished as soon as possible!" Then he was off, sprinting down the hallways that would lead him to Chief Arnook's quarters.
Toph felt him go, and stared blankly in the direction of his departure for some time. The empty space that he filled only moments ago made the whole room feel a little bit colder.
When he awoke, the first thing he noticed was that his head was pounding. He tentatively opened his eyes, and was instantly confused. Where was he? He squeezed his eyes shut against the pain in his head. Slowly the memory of walking through the forest returned to him. He remembered deciding to return home, but then what? He remembered falling, but couldn't remember why. He was pretty sure he hadn't tripped over anything. He decided that it wasn't of much consequence, all that mattered was that he needed to get home.
He opened his eyes again, letting them adjust to the darkness. He seemed to be surrounded by dirt. There was a dim light source coming from behind him. He tried to turn his head to see where the light was coming from, but realized that his head was held firmly in place. What was going on? He struggled to move his head, but stopped as it made the pain in his head worse. He tried to reach up to figure out what was restraining him, and found his wrists to be bound to the arms of the chair that he was sitting in. His initial grogginess dissolved quickly into panic. He struggled against his restraints, but was unsuccessful. Sweat began to break out on his forehead, and his breath became shallow.
"Hello?" He called out. "Is anyone there?"
Silence. His eyes shifted about the room, trying to get more information about where he could be, or how he might escape. In front of him, however, there was nothing but a rounded dirt wall, and above him a dirt ceiling. He seemed to be at some sort of dead end. The only thing in the room that was within his sight and not made of earth was a small metal railing that appeared at eye level. None of this made any sense. How did he even get here?
"Hello?" He tried again. "Please, is someone there? Help me!"
This time something shifted behind him. He was almost sorry that he had yelled, he suddenly didn't want to know where he was, or who was back there. He heard a small shuffling of feet approaching, and squeezed his eyes shut again. The shuffling became louder and then stopped in front of him. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes.
In front of him stood a rather plain looking man, in typical, albeit tattered, earth kingdom attire. He didn't speak, he just stood in front of the boy, arms folded behind his back. He didn't look the least bit intimidating, except there was something off in the way he looked at the boy, something calculating.
But the boy didn't care about that. All he knew was that he was injured and trapped, and now he was no longer alone. "Sir! Thank the spirits you're here! Listen, you have to help—"
"Who are you, and what are you doing in these woods?" The man commanded. The boy shut up immediately. His relief at seeing this man dissolved into panic once more, as the man eyed him sternly and made no move to help him.
He took a deep breath. "I-I came looking for the rebels that I heard lived in this forest. I meant no harm. I have information that I believe they would be interested in." He congratulated himself for not stuttering as much as he wanted to in this moment.
"What makes you think that there are such people?" His voice echoed in the small space. The man remained still, continuing to stare at the boy.
"I don't know—I heard tales I guess—in the village that I'm from—rebels, defectors, something—look, could you please help me out of here? I need to get home—"
"What kind of information could you possibly have that would interest such people?"
The boy suddenly found courage that he had no right to possess at the moment. "Hey, I'm not sharing it with you! It's my ticket out of the village! You'll just go and use it for yours—"
He was cut off by a hard slap to his face, causing the pain that was in his head to bloom behind his eyes momentarily. He sat, stunned into speechlessness.
"I repeat: what kind of information could you possibly possess that would interest such people?" The man's face crept closer to his own as he spoke, and the boy shrank into his seat as much as was possible.
"It – it's in my shirt. My shirt pocket," he whispered, all hope draining from him.
"Good boy." The man reached into his shirt and retrieved the scroll. He read it, his expression never changing as though he were simply reading a list for the market and not a piece of groundbreaking news. When finished, he rolled it back up and placed it carefully within his own robes.
The boy was too scared to protest. At this point he just wanted to go home. Cooperation was key. Perhaps he just needed to do whatever this man asked, and he would help him out of the situation. Before he could gather the courage to politely ask the man to help him out of his restraints, he noticed a shift in the shadows. The light source from behind him seemed to be moving. He saw it, out of the corner of his eye, and then it swung around in front of him, following the path of the rail that he had identified earlier. Slowly, the man in front of him bent down, so that he was at eye level with the boy. The boy couldn't help but stare at the man as he crept closer, until he was inches from his face. He stared at him, all the while the light swung round and round, and then the man began to speak.
"There is no group of rebels in the forest….You have no information regarding Fire Lady Ursa….There is no group of rebels in the forest…."
When the boy awoke, his head ached. He sat up, and took in his surroundings. He was at the edge of the forest, and it was dark. A village could be seen just up ahead, a few lights shining from the some of the homes. He reached up and flinched when he touched a large bump that had formed on his head. When he looked down, there were bruises on his wrists. What had happened? Why was he injured, and why was he sleeping on the ground on the outskirts of a village? He wracked his brain, but nothing was coming. He couldn't remember anything about today. He wasn't even sure where he was. This was not the place that he lived. A cold wind rushed through the trees, telling him that he needed to find shelter for the night. He stood up and brushed himself off, starting out toward the nearby village. Perhaps some sleep in an actual bed would clear his head, and he could figure this out in the morning.
A week later, Zuko left one of his council meetings with some good news. He stepped out into the courtyard, stretching his back until he heard a satisfying popping sound. He was relieved to be standing after sitting for so long. He cast his eyes around the courtyard in search of a certain waterbender. His eyes caught a glimpse of brown hair shifting behind a bush and approached. As he turned down the path and glanced around the bush, he encountered just what he was expecting. There was Katara, sitting languidly on the ground by the turtle duck pond, lazily tossing crumbs to the animals. She glanced to her right, and noticing boots, looked up smilingly at the Fire Lord. He returned the smile as he crouched down beside her, careful not to let his robes trail in the pond.
"I'm glad to have found you. You told me that you would like to offer your services to the Fire Nation, and the council agrees that that would be most welcome. As you might have guessed, your healing abilities are quite sought after, especially as more of our troops return home. Your talents would be greatly appreciated at the local clinic."
"Oh Zuko, that's great!" She reached for him in a sort of half hug. "When do I get to start? Can I go over there now?"
He chuckled at her reaction before growing serious. "Calm down, Katara. First, some ground rules. You are never to go into the city before dawn or after dusk. You will be accompanied at all times by two of my best guards. If anything, and I mean anything untoward occurs, my men are expected to report immediately back to me."
"Ugh!" Katara huffed, crossing her arms. "Do you really think that's necessary? I mean, master waterbender here! I think I can handle walking to the clinic!"
"Yes, I think it is necessary. The world is still becoming accustomed to peace. There are still in this city people who are uncomfortable with non-nationals. As our guest, I will not stand for any of my citizens harassing you. I know that these are not the most optimal terms, but I hope that you will still consider them."
Of course she wanted the job, even if Zuko was going to act all paranoid about it. Still, she sat for a moment, making an exaggerated show of thinking it over, eyebrow quirked, stroking her chin thoughtfully with one hand. Then Katara looked at him with a smirk on her face. "I see, Fire Lord, that you are skilled in the ways of diplomacy. I will accept these terms as you see fit." She bowed her head in a mock fashion, giggling.
Zuko smiled and rolled his eyes. "Well that's a relief. Because Plan B was to send you down to help dig trenches for the new water irrigation system."
Katara's eyes went wide before bursting out laughing. "Zuko! Did you just make a joke?"
"I suppose I did. Tell no one. My reputation would be in ruins." He smirked back at her, and she lightly elbowed him in the arm. "You may start as early as tomorrow. I will be available to take you there myself later this afternoon for a tour, if you would like."
"Of course, this is so exciting!"
"I'll send my servants around the third candle mark to retrieve you. Please be ready. I have a few more meetings to attend to, and then I will be ready myself. Until then?" She nodded, and he smiled before walking off to attend yet another bout of squabbling grown men.
The ride through the capitol was less glamorous than Katara had expected. The clinic she was to work in was in a more poverty stricken area, far removed from the beauty of the palace and it surrounding areas. Katara leaned over to Zuko in the palanquin, and said, "not the greatest part of town, eh?"
Zuko looked out the sides of the palanquin, and looked back to her. "Aren't you glad I insisted on those guards?" She rolled her eyes. He smiled, but then his faced clouded over and he sighed. "No, unfortunately the place that needs you most is out here. These people sent many sons to war. Many families depended on the income that their sons would send, and now that these soldiers have returned and are out of work, they have no money to pay for the fancier hospitals in the capitol. They must rely on smaller local clinics. Your help here will be paramount. I think we are approaching now."
Ahead of them was their destination. It was a health clinic, if one could call it that, as the exterior paint was peeling off and one of the windows was cracked. It looked as though it had been abandoned, but as soon as the palanquin came to a stop in front of it, a woman poked her head out and smiled. She quickly ducked her head back in to shush people who appeared to be crowding the doorway, anxious to see their new co-worker. The original woman, the head nurse by her uniform, stepped back out, and bowed low to the Fire Lord.
"My Lord, we have been expecting you. I hope your travels here were pleasant. Please allow us to escort you and our new addition through the clinic."
Katara, who had been on the other side of the palanquin, had not been able to see the transaction that was transpiring, but was excited nonetheless. The people sounded nice enough. She slid open the curtain on the palanquin and stepped around to the other side, smiling in anticipation of greeting them in person.
The faces she met on the other side were unsmiling, set into looks of contempt, or possibly disgust. Katara's smile fell slowly from her face, and she tried to pick the leader. She faced the old woman and bowed in the traditional way, and said that she was grateful for the opportunity to work with them. She looked up, and none of the faces had changed except they were now focusing their attentions on Zuko.
"My Lord," the head nurse began," you did not tell us you were bringing us a…waterbender." The distaste at the last word was clear.
The Fire Lord was incensed, but in control. "Madame, I would like to introduce you to Katara, Master Waterbender and Daughter to Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribes. Her healing abilities are unparalleled, and she would be an extraordinary addition to your team. Her wish is to help heal the wounded soldiers that this war has brought back to us. Is that not your same goal?"
The head nurse was at a loss, she was nervous in front of authority, and it was obvious. "It is, but My Lord, don't you think—"
"I think, Madame, that you will wait to judge her until you have seen her skills. If they are unsatisfactory, please feel free to inform me directly. However, while we are outside bickering over qualifications, there are men and women in there who need assistance. Shall we?" His gesture toward the door was brisk, his eyes daring her to further the conversation.
"Yes, My Lord." The head nurse sighed, defeated. She didn't dare defy the Fire Lord. "Please follow me, I will show you around the clinic."
She opened the door, and all of the women waiting behind it stepped back and pretended to quickly get back to their duties. But not before glancing at the woman who was now supposed to join them. Zuko turned to Katara, and with a sad smile, held out his arm to her before stepping over the threshold.
She took it gratefully, she needed something familiar to cling to during this situation. Katara was by no means a withering flower that needed protection; if it were up to her she would have water-whipped these women into the next moon cycle for their implications. However, she knew that Zuko had worked hard to obtain her this position, and she didn't want to embarrass him. Above all, she had come to the Fire Nation to be of help and try to bridge the gap between the nations. This was her chance to shine, and she would do it, even in the face of these stodgy women who were clearly set in their ways. To alleviate the tension, she felt the need to tease Zuko a bit about his conversation with the woman.
She leaned over to whisper to him, "Very intimidating, Fire Lord. Such eloquent threatening."
"I didn't threaten! I – oh forget it. Let's just take the tour and be done with it."
The tour was short, as the clinic was a small building with only 25 beds to keep the sick and wounded. Seventeen were currently occupied, mostly with soldiers who had been injured during the war. Katara released Zuko's arm and immediately rushed to the one closest to her. From the placement of his bandages, it appeared that he was injured in both legs as well as his ribs.
She kneeled down, to be on level with the man she spoke, and said "Hello! My name is Katara, and I am new to the clinic. I am a well-trained healer, and I would like to help you. What is your name, and how can I help you?"
The soldier turned his head to look at her. He slowly eyed her up and down, and then turned his head back away. She could hear him mutter, "I don't want any help, at least not from you."
Katara was shocked. She couldn't say that she hadn't expected this kind of resistance, but it still stung. She briefly remembered offering to heal Iroh….were all Fire Nation citizens so reluctant to ask for help? Was it pride, or just the color of her eyes? She was so dumfounded by the man's response that she just stared at him.
Zuko pulled her back up to her feet, and whispered in her ear, "Perhaps we should get back to the palace." Katara nodded, and soon they were back in the palanquin, headed back to Zuko's home.
The ride back was spent in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Katara was still dumbfounded about how poorly that had gone. Not to be defeated, she began slowly to strategize about healing those who were resistant to help based on stupid biases. Meanwhile, Zuko, was brooding about the rudeness of his citizens. An amazing healer is placed before them, and they act as though she is beneath them based on her country of origin. They should be ashamed! A puff of smoke issued from his nose as he snorted in disgust. Katara looked up, but went back to her own musings shortly after.
After an equally silent and brooding dinner, Zuko invited Katara to join him at the turtleduck pond. The two of them walked down the stone path, and not a word was spoken until Katara plopped down onto the stone bench. Zuko remained standing, pacing angrily back and forth.
"Would you sit down! You're making me dizzy with all this pacing!"
Zuko stopped, running a hand across his face. "I'm sorry. I'm just so embarrassed about how those women treated you! My advisors must be playing a trick on me, sending you there. They had to know the animosity that you would face! I fully intend to have a talk with—"
"Zuko."
"—them and let them know just how they have disappointed me. And then I plan to—"
"Zuko!"
"What!" He threw his hands up in the air, spinning around to face her. He stood there fuming, taking large gulps of air, looking indignant.
Katara sighed and then spoke softly. "Look, why don't you just calm down. You don't need to do any of those things. It will be fine."
"No it won't! Those women should not be allowed to speak to you or about you in that way! It's unacceptable! You're an accomplished bender and healer! You're a war hero! For Agni's sake, you healed me! Is the person who healed their own Fire Lord not good enough for them?"
It was clear to Katara that a calm approach was not going to do it. Getting riled up herself, she raised her voice. "Zuko! What do you think will happen if you intervene? Then they'll just think that I am some weak girl who needs the Fire Lord to hold her hand and get special privileges."
Zuko found himself thinking for a moment how he wished she were the kind of girl who wanted to hold the Fire Lord's hand….but she was still talking, and he needed to pay attention. She was up and pacing now herself, the water in the pond following her unconsciously. The turtle ducks noticed the disturbance and quickly got out of the water to hide in the bushes.
"And another thing! I can take care of myself! I can do this job. I have spent the afternoon thinking of new and different ways to win these people over, and I don't need your help with it! I came here to help people and that's what I'm going to do. I've been overcoming difficult obstacles since long before you set eyes on the South Pole, and I'm not about to stop now just because a couple people were rude to me! " She crossed her arms and puffed out her chest, an insolent look on her face.
He knew she was right, but the frustration of the afternoon, coupled with the tense silences, and now culminating in shouting in a place that was supposed to be peaceful finally sent him over the edge. "FINE! Excuse me for interfering! I'm only the Fire Lord, what would I know about handling my own people!"
Not to let him have the last word, she exploded at him. "Yes! You are the Fire Lord! But just because you're the Fire Lord doesn't mean everyone loves you!"
Zuko narrowed his eyes and stalked toward her, stopping only when he was inches from her face, his breath warm on her skin. "Clearly," he seethed, spinning around and storming off toward his bed chambers.
Katara slumped down on the bench after he was out of sight, cradling her head in her hands. How had that gotten so out of control? She supposed it had been an emotionally harrowing day, but that was no excuse. He should know better than to try to coddle her! She could solve her own problems! She was so caught up in these thoughts that she didn't stop to consider what he had meant before he had stomped off. Frustrated, she stood and headed toward her own bed chambers. She had her first day of work at the clinic tomorrow, and she would show him – and everyone else - that she could handle this herself.
Even as an Earthbender, living underground got tiresome after awhile. People were not like the great badgermoles that taught earthbenders the art. They needed sunlight, and an environment that wasn't constantly damp and dismal. He had started to second guess his decision to join the group, lately, thinking that if another worm dropped from the 'ceiling' and down the back of his collar that would be the last straw. However, today was a very good day, and these things that he often grumbled to himself about were nowhere to be found as he made his way through the tunnels on the way to see their leader.
He approached the leader's quarters, which were flanked on both sides by guards, one waterbender and one firebender. The guards eyed him suspiciously.
"I have very important news for the Leader. Let me pass."
"What kind of news?" the guard to the left intoned.
"The kind that could lead to victory for us."
Before the guard could speak further, there was a shout from inside the Leader's quarters. The leader himself appeared at the doorway, peering at the man. "What is this news you bring?"
"Sir," he said with a bow, "I have news of Fire Lady Ursa."
The leader stepped out into the hallway long enough to grab the other man by the front of his tunic and pull him into his quarters. He was instructed to sit, and when he did, he found the Leader sitting across from him, staring intently. He spoke softly. "Boy, if you have news, it had better be substantiated."
"Sir, I intercepted this message from a boy who must have access to an aviary nearby. The message is from a woman they call the Seamstress in a town to the north. She wrote to the Fire Lord himself saying that she was coming home."
The Leader was silent for a time, which made the other man uncomfortable. When he finally spoke, he said, "Are you the only one who knows of this?"
"I am now."
The Leader did not have to question what this meant. "Has there been visual confirmation of the Fire Lady?"
"No, I came to request your permission to leave the bunker in order to make this confirmation."
"Permission granted. Do not allow for detection. If confirmed, do nothing without my approval. Is this understood?" The Leader's eyes spoke volumes of the penalties for failure.
"I will report back as soon as I have solid information. It must be tonight, however, as she is planning her journey to the Fire Nation very soon."
"Very well. Good luck." The Leader said, as he ushered the man out of his quarters.
The Leader watched the man go down the hallway. After he had gone, he read the scroll he had brought. The scroll looked legit, there was little doubt that this Seamstress and the Fire Lady were one in the same. She could change so much for the movement. He was brought out of his thoughts when one of the guards called to him.
"Sir?" the guard asked.
"Yes, what is it?" The Leader did not like to be bothered in moments such as this.
"Operatives in the Fire Nation Capitol have sent word that the Waterbender is staying at the palace as well as General Iroh. I was instructed to inform you of this immediately."
"As well you should have. Good work. Thank you." The Leader went back to his musings. So, the Waterbender and friend to Fire Lord Zuko was staying in the palace, along with General Iroh. This, with the possibility of finding Ursa, was looking more and more like divine providence.
Within a few hours, the man had returned with a positive identification of Fire Lady Ursa. He said that he had not been seen, but from glimpses through her windows, it looked as if she was packed and preparing to leave.
Addressing the guards, the Leader said, "Timing is of the essence in both of these cases. You know how to handle the Fire Lady. I will send word to our operatives in the Fire Nation regarding what their task is. This is coming together almost too nicely…"
Katara's first day at work had gone little better than her tour from the day before. She was still regarded with suspicion and mistrust among the women of the clinic, and by some of the patients. She was starting to warm up to one patient, however, and that was a start. If she could get just one person to allow her to heal them successfully, then perhaps the others would become increasingly comfortable. She had to start somewhere, regardless.
A new arrival had come in while she was treating a man with severe burns on his hands, and the new arrival was admitted to the empty bed next to her. Katara paid him no mind as he settled in, laying back on the futon and attempting to relax while holding his injured arm to his chest. She turned to him briefly to smile and say that she would attend to him in just a moment. Turning her back to the new arrival proved to be a mistake.
As soon as she had the healing water in her hands, the man from behind her delivered three sharp blows to various parts of her body. Katara spun, ready to defend herself with the water in her hands, but instead of obeying her commands, the water dripped through her fingers, pooling worthlessly on the floor.
"You – you blocked my chi, didn't you!" Katara was both flabbergasted and furious at once.
A few more carefully placed blows and Katara was helpless on the ground. The not-so-injured patient scooped her up off the floor and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. With her body limp, she couldn't even pound on him as she would have liked to in this moment. The one thing she could do was scream, and scream she did.
The noise gained the attention of the other women working at the clinic, as well as the guards that Zuko had assigned to escort Katara. They burst into the room she has occupied, but all that was left was the man being treated for burns, and a broken window. Glass was all over the floor and the futon that had been so recently vacated. The man with the burns looked at the guards who had rushed in, and pointed: "He took her! He jumped out the window, and as far as I can tell headed north."
The guards quickly deliberated about what to do. They had to bicker for a moment over rank and responsibility, before they finally decided who would have to tell the Fire Lord this news. The younger of the two guards nodded, understanding his task, and turned to run straight to the palace. The remaining guard questioned the man for a few more minutes before he jumped out the window himself, hoping to catch up to the man that had absconded with Katara.
Katara was displeased, to say the least. She was currently lying across the back of an ostrich-horse, still unable to move. She was reminded of a time similar to this one, although then it had been on a shirxui, and it was the Prince of the Fire Nation holding her in place, not this malingering bandit. She couldn't figure out what went wrong this time, or why she was being kidnapped in the first place. Things had been going along nicely at her job, building rapport with a patient or two, and then suddenly she had been attacked by this man. Once they had entered the countryside and her screaming would do no good, she tried to engage her kidnapper in conversation to try to figure out what was happening here. Unfortunately for Katara, her captor was silent as the grave. He bound her wrists and ankles so that when feeling returned to her limbs she wouldn't be able to run away or bend. Katara tried to focus on a plan of escape, but one didn't seem to be coming to mind. She considered that perhaps when they stopped (they had to stop sometime, right?) she might have more leverage.
As it were, she decided to at least familiarize herself with the landscape. She watched the scenery go by her, mostly fields and brush. They continued down their path at a leisurely pace, as though wherever they were going, there was no hurry. As the sun descended a little further in the sky, Katara swore she heard something else besides the insects in the field and the clopping of the ostrich-horses hooves on the gravel road. She held her breath, trying to figure out what it was. There. I did hear something. Like an animal approaching…
Before she knew it, she could see a rider in black approaching quickly on back of an ostrich horse. She swung her head forward, her captor was either oblivious to all this noise, or was unconcerned. They entered a portion of the path that was shaded by a copse of trees. When she swung her head back to look behind, she discovered that the ostrich horse was still running at them, but the rider had disappeared. She stared in the direction of the ostrich horse, trying to figure out what was going on, when her body was jarred by a sudden stop made by her captor. Looking to the front now, Katara could see the reason for the sudden stop. There stood Zuko, in his old blue spirit clothes, minus the mask, twin dao swords drawn. The man holding her hostage slowly got off his ostrich horse. He regarded Zuko, but did not speak. He reached over to loosen the bonds that held Katara to the animal, and she promptly fell to the ground. She lay there from her new vantage point, still bound and staring awkwardly around the ostrich horse's feet. Finally, Zuko broke the tense silence.
"Who are you? I demand that you release her!"
"In time, Zuko, in time," the man replied with nonchalance.
"How dare you address me so informally, sir. I am your Fire Lord, and I demand that you release her at once!"
"You are not my Fire Lord. But, if you wish, you can have the girl back." With that, he shrugged, and smacked the ostrich horse on the flank, causing it to flail about. Katara screamed as she tried to roll out of the way of its massive feet stomping on the ground. A few times she was not lucky enough to dodge the blows. As soon as all of this began, Zuko rushed the man, swords drawn, trying to get to Katara a quickly as he could. The man who kidnapped her did not appear to be a bender, but his evasive skills were masterful and his movements unpredictable. Finally Zuko was able to catch the man across the arm with one of his swords, causing him to stagger back. He grabbed the reins of his ostrich horse with one hand, and jumped on. Using the distraction, Zuko pulled Katara out from underneath the ostrich horse to the other side of the path. The kidnapper spurred his ostrich horse and rode quickly down the path until he was out of sight. Zuko looked in the direction he came, wanting to follow the man and bring him to justice, but his pressing concern was with Katara.
She had a large gash on one side of her face; from the looks of it, the ostrich horse had kicked her there. She was bruised and dirty, and appeared to have a similar injury to her leg, which was sticking out at an odd angle.
"Katara!" Zuko said, hoping she would hear him and wake up. No response. "Katara," he tried again more sternly, shaking her by the shoulders gently. Still no response. Panic began to march up his spine. He needed to do something, quickly. She wouldn't be able to heal herself while unconscious, so he needed to find someone who could. His nearest bet was the clinic from which they had just left. He gently picked her up and set her in front of him on his ostrich horse, and rode hard back to the town.
The clinic was in a state of confusion when they arrived. No one knew what had happened, except that the man had been admitted as a patient, but then had struck Katara and burst out the window, breaking it. Zuko was uninterested in their reconstruction of events just then, what he needed was for these women to stop gossiping and help Katara. "Excuse me! Ladies! One of your coworkers has been injured, and I require immediate assistance!" The workers shushed and stared at their Lord, not sure if they should volunteer or not.
Not wanting to play the royal card, he appealed to their natures instead. "Please, she would do the same and more for any of you. I know how some of you feel about her country of origin, but this should not matter. You are healers, and I bring to you a person who requires healing. Please, do your best."
The timid women slowly crept forward, and began to address the wounds and injuries Katara has sustained. The leader of the group began shouting out requests for medicines and materials, and the others quickly moved to get them. Satisfied that they were trying, Zuko stepped outside, where he knew one of his guards was waiting.
"What happened in there! Why was Katara left unguarded!" Zuko seethed, turning his anger at the situation on his guard.
"Sir, I don't know how it happened – "
"Well you had better find out. We need to know more about the people who would do such a thing. Go find one of the guards who was supposed to be with Katara at the time of the attack. Find out what he knows. Together, search the path that the thief took, and see if he left any clues behind that might reveal his identity. Go. Now."
"Yes, My Lord," he said and bowed, before going off to find the other guard.
Zuko turned on his heels and went back inside to tend to Katara. The women there had propped her up nicely in a bed, and she was no longer unconscious. She looked tired, no doubt from the pain treatment the women had administered, among other things. He approached the bed and kneeled down next to it. He looked up at her and smiled wanly. "What trouble have I gotten you into now, Katara?"
She looked at him and made a noise of protest, then smiled weakly. "Please Zuko, I find trouble on my own. And I would have had him if you hadn't shown up."
Zuko rolled his eyes. "Sure you would have." His eyes turned serious. "I'm sorry. I had no idea how dangerous this assignment was. If I had known, I never would have – "
"Zuko, come on, I'm a big girl, I told you before. Who do you think that guy was? I mean, who kidnaps a clinic worker, for spirits' sake!" Not thinking, she started to get up out of the bed, only to be reminded that her leg was not yet healed as pain shot up from the injured limb. She quickly sat back down. "Damn! Could you ask the women for a bowl of water? I've got to take care of this leg."
Zuko did as asked, returning with a bowl of water for her healing. She began working the water over the broken bone, the bright blue shimmer reflecting off of her face in a way that was enchanting. As quickly as it had begun, it was over, and the blue glow dissipated as the water dripped harmlessly to the floor. She smiled at him, rotating and testing the leg. "So, I think it's about time we find out who this guy is, so we can kick his kidnapper butt!"
He shook his head and smiled at her. "You should really get some rest. Why don't we relax a bit before there's any butt-kicking."
She flopped back down on the hospital bed with a loud sigh. "Zuko, the tyrant."
Just then, a guard approached at Zuko's left. "Sir, we searched the area, and found this." He handed a scroll to the Fire Lord, saluted, and left.
Katara was still muttering on her bed about needing rest, when Zuko shot up from where he was sitting, the scroll shaking in his hands.
"What is it Zuko?"
"It's my mother. They've found her. And I think she's in trouble."