Author's Note: Okay, so this is the longest chapter I've posted thus far (almost 3,000 words)! I hope you like it. Also-I've passed 100 followers! And that's just on this website, not even counting AO3. The positive response I've received for this story is absolutely flooring! Thank you all SO much. I appreciate each and every person who wastes precious moments of their life reading my story. I have no idea why you do it, but I am grateful that you do. I really hope you are liking the story. PLEASE let me know in the comments/private messaging! I've had so much fun writing it, even though it's been tough between college and some personal problems, so thank you for your patience. Alright this is getting way too sappy-enjoy the new chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own A:tLA or any of its characters. I just own my own characters and ideas. Ok cool.

Zuko was only half-asleep when he heard the door creak open. He'd been reminiscing over his spar with the Prince, remembering his ridiculous face staring up in horror as his sword hovered not an inch above his Highness's throat. Zuko knew with certainty that had been one of the best moments of his life.

But his day-dreaming was interrupted when he heard the faint thud of the door opening. He sat up on his pallet, eyes still glazed with almost-sleep, and peered at the person silhouetted by the dull light coming from the corridor.

"Princess?" he whispered, squinting. It was definitely her. She was leaning on the doorframe, her arm crossed over her abdomen, hair wild and untamed over her shoulders. Luckily, it seemed that no one else had woken up. Zuko slipped out from under his blanket and made his way over to her, just in time to catch her as she sagged against the door. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked quietly, gripping her shoulders, uncomfortable with their close proximity.

She groaned in response and her eyelids fluttered weakly. Zuko took her out of the room, half-dragging her limp body, and slid the door shut behind them. Out here he could see how pale her skin was. There were deep bruises beneath her eyes and her lip was split, the blood trickling down her chin. He wiped it away before he realized what he was doing. But she didn't even seem to notice.

"Outside," she croaked. Suddenly, her eyes slid shut and she went completely motionless against him. They both collapsed to the ground and he cradled her body against his chest, shaking her slightly, trying to rouse her.

"Katara? Katara, what's wrong? Who hurt you?" His voice shook with something he couldn't identify as he watched her mouth open and close, too weak to actually speak the words.

Outside. That's what she'd said. He clung to that word like a drowning man and swung her up into his arms. She was solidly built, but slight, and not heavy. He took off down the hallway as fast as he could, only stopping once he reached the doors that signaled the end of the servant's quarters. There was no way they could get past the guards out there without being noticed. What would they think when they saw their Princess like this? He'd be dead in seconds.

"Katara?" he whispered, peering down at her pallid face. He tried to make his voice calm, but even he could hear the panic behind the words: "Can you get us out of here?" There was no response. He could feel her breathing, albeit barely, but she wasn't strong enough to waterbend—or even talk—their way outside.

"Let me help," a voice chimed behind them, one Zuko recognized instantly.

"Jin?"

The girl stood behind them, hands clasped in front of her chest, wearing the thin shirt and pants all the sevants wore for sleeping. She was perhaps the least intimidating-looking person he had ever seen, but the determination on her face was indisputable. She looked at Zuko when she spoke. "I'll distract them long enough for you to get out."

Without hesitation Zuko nodded and watched as she crossed the threshold. Adjusting Katara so her head rested on his shoulder, Zuko pressed an ear to the door. He could hear Jin murmuring faintly, then silence. Then there were two grunts and the thumping of footsteps that became disconcertingly louder with each passing moment. Zuko ducked behind the wall just before the doors opened, and Jin, flanked by the two Water Empire guards, passed through the doors. She threw a subtle glance over her shoulder. Her eyes found Zuko and she winked, then continued leading the guards down the quiet hallway.

Zuko slipped between the doors before they had a chance to close and sprinted down the halls. He had a vague idea of where they led, and decided to just keep running until he either found an exit or ran into another night guard.

Soon he stumbled upon a single door at the end of a dim, deserted hallway. He would have kept running had he not seen the sliver of silver light leaking from the crack between the ground and the door. Praying to the spirits that there weren't any guards out there, Zuko opened the door and was bathed in the glow of the full moon. He took a second to breathe in the fresh air. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been outside without chains. Even though it was freezing, it felt exhilarating. It felt like freedom.

Just this brief moment in the moonlight seemed to animate Katara. She stirred in his arms and he positioned her against a pillar so they were both hidden from any prying eyes that might be lurking in the shadows. He watched anxiously as her breathing became more even and her eyes flickered open, at first darting, then focusing on him. His heart lept.

"Katara?"

In reply, her hand twitched and the ice platform they sat on began to tremble. A jiggling stream of water rose from beside her, almost translucent against the dark sky, save for the shimmering of the reflecting moonlight. It immediately began swirling blue as it covered her hand, and she moved it across the thin fabric that covered her stomach. Zuko simply sat off to the side and watched as the color returned to her face, pinking her cheeks and igniting her blue eyes. His chest seemed to lighten. She was definitely stronger now, but he still reached out to help as she tried to sit up. When his hand touched her arm to steady her, she looked at him, eyes wide, as if he had caught her doing something private.

He recoiled.

But then something in her expression softened, and she smiled at him. "Thank you, Zuko." Her voice was still quiet, but he didn't know if that was because she was still in pain, or because she didn't want to get caught…or if it was something else.

He cleared his throat. "You're welcome." His voice was no louder than hers when he asked, "Katara, what happened to you? How did this happen?"

She had been so helpless only moments before. It was the perfect opportunity, the annoying little voice in his head pointed out, but he ignored it. It looked as if someone had almost beaten him to his own mission. Besides, there was nothing honorable about killing her while she was half-dead.

Katara shook her head and tried to sit up before falling back against the pillar with a pained groan. She moved her hand against her stomach again, healing herself with that glowing blue water. It was mesmerizing to watch, though he wouldn't admit that to anyone, especially not her. There were old tales of fire sages using firebending to heal wounds, although no one had ever seen the skill in practice. It was simply a fable. But it would be convenient, Zuko condeded.

"Katara, who did this to you?" he repeated more forcefully. Her jaw worked but she refused to answer. Somehow, she didn't have to. He just knew. "Was it your father?"

She still wouldn't look at him, but now it was just stubbornness. Her silence was affirmation enough. Zuko felt his blood boil. As far as he knew, this was the second time her father had hurt her. But surely he had done it plenty of times before. Why did she keep letting this happen? Why wouldn't she stand up to him?

"You're weak," he spit out as his anger broke through the walls he had so carefully built up around it. He'd been able to hold his tongue during the trials, and in the dungeons, and even in front of the prince—but not here. She just didn't make any sense! He hadn't meant to say what he did—at least, not as harshly—and when he saw her face crumble, he instantly regretted it. But then she sat up, only inches from his face, and her eyes turned to ice.

"I. Am. Not. Weak." With surprising strength, she shoved him away and stood up, swaying only slightly, and went back inside without another word.

Zuko watched her go, saw the door close angrily behind her. He distantly worried that she might hurt herself, that she wasn't fully healed, but was too mad to do anything about it.

But mad at what? Katara? Her father? The Empire? He found that he didn't know where the emotion was coming from: only that it was uncomfortably strong.

Zuko breathed a long stream of smoke from his nose and leaned against the pillar. At least he was finally outside. This platform didn't have any sort of exit to the ground, so he was still trapped, but there was fresh air and space. It was a beautiful night. The sky was dark blue and clear, and the stars cast specks of light on the choppy ocean. It reminded him of the sky at home.

He was marooned on this chunk of ice with these unfamiliar places and these strangers who were supposed to be his enemies. And he would have to go back inside eventually, before anyone realized he was missing. But at least in this moment, as he looked at the sky, he felt familiarity. And for now, that was enough.

Katara didn't go to breakfast the next morning. She told Toph to inform her family that she would be staying in bed that day, as she had suddenly "caught a cold," and was too sick to perform her royal duties. She was actually completely fine, aside from her sore stomach. But she wanted to avoid her father. He would see right through Toph's lie, but hopefully he wouldn't bother her. She was counting on his wounded pride and lack of fatherly instincts to keep him from feeling any sincere compassion for her.

Her father had known exactly what he was doing last night, and any infinitesimal ounce of respect she held for him had been destroyed in that moment. It surprised Katara how easy this revelation had come. She thought she should feel some kind of emptiness, some lingering regret for what could have been. But she only felt finality. It was rather liberating.

She dressed slowly, trying not to irritate her wounds further. She'd definitely had internal bleeding last night. After her father deserted her in the training room, there had been a few moments of sheer panic when Katara realized she was too weak to heal herself. Then the hysteria had set in, and the pain was overwhelming, and she had to drag herself from the room. In hindsight, she probably should have found the palace healer, or even her mother; she was one of the greatest healers in the Empire and probably could have done a monumentally better job than Katara had done herself. But perhaps the pain had warped her mind, or she was too ashamed to ask her mother for help, because she had somehow found herself in the servant's quarters.

Katara scoffed now, earning a sharp pain in her midsection. It had been stupid to go to Zuko. There hadn't been any guarantee that he would help her. He could have gotten a guard and turned her over to them. He could have ignored her. Plus, it was dangerous to let him see her, the Empire Princess, so vulnerable.

She needed to be out under the light of the full moon, where she was where she was at her most powerful. And to her surprise, he helped.

Perhaps he thought he owed her after she had healed him. Spirits, that felt like ages ago. But, she reasoned, that was probably why he helped. And now they were even. Katara made a mental note to thank him anyway. Even though he called her weak, which hurt almost as much as the bleeding in her stomach, she was grateful to him. She hated to admit it, but he might have saved her life.

She had just put on her loosest robe when Toph, without knocking or announcing her presence, came into the room. Before Katara could chastise her, Toph said,

"The Emperor is coming."

Katara's words caught in her throat. She thought he would leave her alone. She thought she was safe, at least for a day.

Toph shuffled awkwardly, more unsettled than she had ever seen her. "And he's mad."

So that was it. He was angry at her for trying to avoid him. Katara swore softly and finished tying her robe. "Help me lace my boots, Toph."

The Earth girl obeyed without comment, a rare occurrence, but perhaps she could feel the nervous energy which had swiftly permeated the room. Katara gathered a small sum of money and her travel cloak and tossed another one at Toph.

"Let's go."

They made it to the end of the hallway, out of sight, just as Hakoda entered from the opposite direction. Katara quickly dragged Toph around the corner, up the stairs, and over to the palace's front doors. Trying to sound calm, she told the guards that she and her lady's maid were going out on the town that day, and no one was to know of their whereabouts. "It's dangerous for us, you see. Bandits and whatnot," she said, not entirely lying. The guards obediently let them through and they made their way down the grand ice-sheeted staircase. She only looked back at the palace once, just to make sure Hakoda wasn't running after them.

Katara told Toph to pull up her hood as they reached the edge of the palace grounds and they slipped past another set of guards through a hole in the wall that Katara bent. The less people who knew where they were, the better. It was still early in the morning, so the only people out on the town were various merchants and tradesmen setting up stands beside the road. Katara and Toph went down a side street between two long rows of houses, keeping their faces down and hidden from curious eyes. Their dark coats blended in well with the shadows, so they weren't intercepted until they reached the main square.

This part of town was considerably more crowded, and a fish vendor asked them to look at his goods, "Freshly caught, just this morning!" Katara shook her head politely and reached behind her to grab Toph's hand, hoping no one would recognize them. Carts were set up around the fountain in the middle of the main square, selling fabrics and food and novelties. Katara rarely went out by herself, but when she went out with her mother they loved to look at all the crafts and antiques for sale. Today was different. Today, she couldn't afford for anyone to realize who she was and let word get around that the Princess was in the town. Katara had to practically drag Toph down the street because she kept getting distracted by the smells of pickled prunes and seal kabobs.

Finally, the pair arrived at a quiet tea shop on the opposite side of town. The sign hanging from the front of the squat building read "The Golden Temple." As soon as Katara passed through the familiar doors, she breathed a sigh of relief and dropped her hood, telling Toph she could do the same.

"Um, sweetness? Aren't people going to recognize us?"

"We're safe here, Toph," Katara assured her. She had been coming here with her mother ever since she was a small child, and the only people who dined here were fishermen and the random vagabond. The woman who owned the place, a short, portly woman by the name of Lilit, was a close friend of her mother's. Kya had been a server in this very tea shop as a young woman before she went to work in the Palace. When she brought Katara there she would reminisce about those happy, simpler days with Lilit. Katara had a sneaking suspicion that, had her mother not been sent to the palace by her parents, she would have been perfectly content to remain working in the little tea shop for the rest of her life. Katara understood. The place was almost magical in the way it made you feel utterly at home, even if you had never been there before.

"Darling!" A voice called from across the room, and a woman in a dirty apron emerged from behind a cloth curtain connecting the dining room to the kitchen.

"Lilit," Katara smiled, and rushed over to embrace the woman who seemed significantly shorter than the last time she had seen her.

"My girl," Lilit gushed, holding her at arm's length, "you've grown since the last time I saw you!"

"I think you're just shrinking, Lilit," Katara replied, and received a playful slap on the arm.

"I'm glad to see being cooped up in that stuffy palace hasn't robbed you of your sense of humor." Then Lilit saw Toph standing nearby, who was pretending to look around the room. "And who is this?"

Katara took Toph's arm and pulled her over. "This is my friend, Toph." The girl's eyes narrowed at the term 'friend', but she didn't protest. Rather, she curtsied gracefully and offered Lilit a polite, if not a bit forced, smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am."

"Oh, don't be so formal, dear. We're all friends here," Lilit said and pulled Toph into a hug. Toph's eyes widened at Katara, who had to hold back a laugh. Toph obviously wasn't one for affection and Lilit was the exact opposite. This would be an interesting afternoon.