Enjoy. I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender
Koori stared at the two ladies and held her breath. They stood and while one went to lock the door, the other knocked on the walls and put her ear to it. Both women gave a small nod and then returned to their chairs. "Koori, darling, please sit down," one said.
Koori looked around herself and sat on the floor. Her butt rested on her heels and her hands were placed delicately on her lap. She stared at the two women who were smiling greedily upon her. "We know all about you," the other whispered.
Koori's face held many questions, but she did not want to disrespect these women or accidentally inform them of something that they proclaimed to know all about. Their smiles became frowns. "Perhaps she has never heard of us?" asked one.
"We thought that Zhao would have mentioned something about us."
Koori's head rose at the sound of her previous Master's name. "Excuse me," Koori whispered. Both ladies turned their attention to the girl, "I don't mean to be rude, but what do you know about me?"
Their smiles returned and they stood from their chairs to sit on the floor in front of Koori. "There is a prophesy about you, my dear." One of them reached out to touch Koori's face but the concubine winced at the touch and pulled out of their reach. "You are the one the Fire Lord fears besides the Avatar."
Koori held her breath and looked down at her hands. "You are the healer," they said, frowning.
"What are you talking about?" Koori asked. Her mindset was to play dumb and get all of the information about of these women that she could. She was curious; how did they know about her ability, who she belonged to, or who she was?
The older women rolled their eyes. "Please stop your charade. The reason why you are here is because of us." They gave her time in order to digest this information. "We were the ones who made the prophesy. We are the ones who told Zhao to keep you alive, despite the Fire Lord's direct orders."
Koori's eyes were wide and her mouth was agape. "But," Koori thought about her words, but decided against saying too much, "why?"
The women laughed, rather harshly, and Koori once again winced. "We have seen the Fire Lord and the Princess's mental state decline. We knew that this would happen because this war has been harsh on all of us and we determined long ago that it needed to end before those," they searched for the right word, "monsters destroyed everything."
Li and Lo both looked concerned. Koori could see behind their happy demeanor saw that they were tired. Their eyes had suddenly sunk in and their wrinkles lined their faces ferociously. "We prayed for the spirits to create a being that could help us. They granted our wish and showed us a vision of a baby girl, born of water and fire."
Koori thought about her mother, a waterbender, and her father, a firebending soldier. "Born of fire and water?" she asked.
The women nodded. "Zhao brought you here on our orders when you were a child. We saw you play with the Prince and Princess and knew what you would become."
"Zhao was…" Koori lost her train of thought. A pawn, she said to herself.
Exactly. I was always trying to protect you, and you did all that you could to resist me.
Koori returned her attention to the old ladies in front of her. "We have done much to keep you alive, but now it is your turn to do something for us," the ladies said. One stood and started to slowly walk to the door. The other grasped Koori's shoulder and forced her to stand. Koori stood and was walked to the door. "You must help the Prince discover who he needs to become."
Koori was pushed out of the door and she stared at the mahogany as it shut tightly behind her. The Head Mistress was strolling towards Koori and smiled at her. "Was your visit educational?" the woman asked.
Koori nodded. "Yes, Head Mistress."
-!-
Koori was in the midst of her "flexibility" session when there was a knock on the door. She was bending backwards with her hands positioned behind her head. The Head Mistress eagerly walked over to the door and opened it. She closed it behind herself and Koori hastily took herself out of the uncomfortable position. She walked silently over to the door and pressed her ear against the wood. She heard murmurs about other concubines and she turned her head. She returned to the middle of the room to sit on the ground. She stared at the door and it opened, revealing the Head Mistress.
She looked at Koori with pity in her eyes. "Koori, I have great news to tell you," the Head Mistress shouted, bringing her hands in front of herself and wringing them greedily. "The Fire Lord has determined that he needs company tonight. He has ordered for your companionship." Koori stared, dumbfounded at first. Her stomach started to churn and she stood. The Head Mistress grabbed her arm and led her out of the room. "We need to get you another bath, more makeup, and…" Koori was no longer listening to the woman. Her mind started to drift back to Zhao who was walking behind her, dragging his chains.
-!-
Zuko walked the hallways, admiring the artwork. He heard whispers from the servants and blocked their voices. He could order for them to be silent, but they seemed to be in a deep conversation, and he felt like being nice today. He stared at a family picture and admired his mother's pleasant smile.
"Oh yes…that new one…what's her name?" said a slave.
"Koori," came a reply. "Her name is Koori. She is supposed to be a well-mannered slave, very pretty too."
Zuko turned his head to listen as he pretended to look at a picture of Sozin. "Her consummation date has been moved up. The Fire Lord is very anxious because he keeps hearing good news about her."
Zuko felt his stomach growl and grabbed for it. He felt sick as he leaned against the wall for support. He could not hear any more. He turned and sulked out of the hallway and into his room.
He entered his chambers and felt a chill enter his muscles. He shivered uncontrollably and then tried to heat himself up, but it wouldn't work. He sat on a sofa in his room and picked up a scroll. He started to read, but his eyes could not comprehend the symbols. He frowned and then covered his face with his pillow. He laid down and removed the pillow. He held it to his stomach and stared at the ceiling. The intricate artwork that was on his ceiling depicted a favorite story of his. It was one that his mother told him repeatedly. The Blue Dragon and the Red Dragon were always fighting for the beautiful princess, but only one would be victorious. He had heard the story many times, but he could not remember the outcome.
-!-
Koori stared at the walls of the bath. "Master?" she asked. There was no reply and she dipped her chin into the water and started to blow bubbles. She heard chains rattling and then brought her face out of the water which had washed her old makeup off. "Master?" she asked again.
"Yes, Koori?" came a solemn reply.
"Master, you have heard then?"
"Yes."
Koori wanted to see him. "I do not want you around me after my makeup is put on," Koori said, looking in the vicinity where she thought her previous master was.
"I was not planning on following you after this point. It would sicken me too much." He appeared before her, dangling his legs in the bathwater. This seemed to be his favorite position while Koori was bathing. He gave her a reassuring smile. She breathed out deeply and looked away. "You will be fine," he whispered as he edged closer to her and patted her shoulder.
Koori stared at the door as it opened and sighed again. The servants dragged her out of the water, covered her with a robe and started to apply her makeup. When they finished, Kathryn was dressed with the most elegant undergarments she had ever seen. They were lacy and see-through. She was then put into a crimson kimono that was simple, but not too simple. The collar was white, which Koori found odd. They put her hair in an up-do which was held in place by a clip that looked like a flame.
The Head Mistress entered the room and smiled at her creation. "You look splendid," she said. Koori smiled politely and looked into the mirror to admire the concubine that she had become. She frowned at the foreigner which was her reflection and then turned to the Head Mistress. "There are rules that you must follow, of course," the Head Mistress said with a cruel smile. "You must leave once the Fire Lord goes to sleep. If he wakes and still wants you company, he must call on you again. It is a security issue to have a common peasant sleep alongside the Fire Lord, especially a foreigner." Koori nodded. "Then, there is nothing more that I have to teach you, you must figure everything else out on your own."
The Head Mistress took Koori out of the Concubine Quarters and led her down the hallway. Koori saw the Prince standing down the hall, looking at her. She turned away, ashamed, and he did the same. The Head Mistress approached the large doors of the Fire Lord's chambers and opened them. The concubine followed the woman inside the apartments and she was left there, sitting calmly on the bench in front of the bed.
She stared at the door, hoping that she would never see the knob turn. She stared for what seemed like an eternity and she turned her head to look at the walls. She could see the outline of a door which would lead to tunnels within the walls and she exhaled. The door opened and Koori stared at the Fire Lord. He smiled. "Welcome to the Fire Nation," he said.
Oh no! Whatever shall happen? XP
