A/N: I just have to make this quick note saying thank you to my friend who helped me to come up with a metaphor that Iroh will say later on in the story. To this friend you know who you are so again thank you. Also for those of you who may not know a chrysalis is pretty much a fancy word for the cocoon a caterpillar makes. It will make sense when you get to that part. Ok, I'll let you get back to the story. Enjoy!

Chapter Four:

-Zuko-

"What's wrong with her?!" I shouted at Uncle as soon as we were outside. Uncle brought his index finger to his lips telling me to shut up and inclined his head to the left as he walked that way. I followed. When we were a good enough distance I repeated my question quietly though I know I didn't need to. "What is wrong with her? Is she just trying really hard to keep secrets?"

"No Prince Zuko, there is something very wrong with her." Uncle paused while he collected his thoughts. "I cannot say for certain, but I believe our young water bender has amnesia."

Amnesia? "Are you serious?"

"Yes. Like I said, I do not know for sure, but I had seen it occur sometimes after major battles. No one really knows why, but many believe it has to deal with the after effect of being hit on the head. Some doctors also believe that amnesia is the body's way of repairing itself while also trying to protect the mind from anything unpleasant that may have occurred. As you could clearly see by the bruises on her wrists and from your observation of how skinny she is slowly becoming, something traumatic happened to her and she is not going to just open up about it. She will need lots of patience and healing."

"So," I began, "do you think she even remembers she's a water bender?"

"It's hard to say, why do you ask?"

"Because when the other fire bender showed up she just kept trying to back away from him. She never fought back once. That's not the Katara I remember from the North Pole. I was just curious."

"So, Katara is her name" Uncle stated slyly. "What a lovely name."

"Not the point Uncle." What is with him and mentioning girls nonstop?

"I know, and like I said I'm not sure if it's amnesia. For all we may now she could just be disoriented from what happened earlier."

"You don't honestly believe that" I stated confidently. Once Uncle makes up his mind he usually sticks with the idea. He's been like that for years and I highly doubt he would change anytime soon.

"No I don't. That is why you and I will be taking her to see a doctor tomorrow morning in town. It's the best we can do for her until we know the extent of her condition."

I know it's the right thing to do and we are going to do it, but there is one thing that just cannot be overlooked. "How exactly are we going to pay for that if we can barely get enough money to buy food and water for ourselves and the ostrich horse we have?"

"Don't worry about it. Many people these days appreciate a helping hand from others so I'm sure I could just work off the debt for a little bit. In the meantime that would mean you have to look after and care for Miss Katara" Uncle stated in a calm voice.

I couldn't even come up with coherent sentences as I blurted out everything that came to my mind. "Uncle—what—how—are you—you can't mean—I—no—I can't—argh!" I finally gave up until I could finally come out with a complete sentence. "How am I supposed to take care of someone I hardly know, except for a few brief encounters, who only seems to possibly remember one comment I made about pirates, when all that person seems to do when I'm around is grow scared out of her wits and tries to stay as far away from me as possible?"

"I never said it would be easy" Uncle started, but I cut him off.

"Easy? More like impossible."

Uncle stood there stroking his beard; must be deep in thought. I still don't get why he does that whenever he is thinking though. "Your lady friend is like a chrysalis. She is going through something difficult to understand, and won't be moving very far in the mean time." He laughs quickly with the sound resonating from his stomach before he continued. "You must give her the time, patience, and space. She needs to evolve into a beautiful butterfly."

I stared at him bewildered. "Uncle you are not helping."

"Would it have helped if I said she was like a fire lily in bloom that needs-"

"Uncle, enough with the metaphors already! Can't you get that I don't understand a word you are saying?! As usual!"

"You really should keep your voice down" Uncle commented. "Keep this up and you'll wake up the entire nearby village."

I groaned exasperated. At this rate we'll be out here all night arguing and Katara is still inside the cave, hopefully sleeping, when she shouldn't have been left alone in the first place.

As if Uncle could read my mind he finally stated, "We'll just take this one day at a time Zuko. That's all we really can do until Miss Katara is willing to open up to us more." He paused as he yawned loudly. "I believe now would be a good time for us to get some rest. We have a busy day ahead of us in the morning."

We walked back to the cave to find Katara asleep where we had left her. Uncle made some comment of finishing his tea before he retires, but I wasn't paying attention. My focus was solely on Katara. I don't know what happened to her, but it can't be good. Her sleeping form didn't seem right. She's too rigid. Her entire body, aside from her arm tucked underneath her head, was as straight as the Avatar's glider that he is always carrying around with him. Katara's face was as immobile as the stone behind her; I couldn't even tell if she was finally sleeping peacefully or what.

I looked away from her to find my sleeping mat and laid it close to fire. It was more to keep an eye on Katara than it was for warmth. I felt the need to watch over her while my Uncle started to fall asleep. My eyes kept drifting shut, but I forced them to stay open. I didn't understand what the big deal was. Katara's asleep, she's safe, and here I am depriving myself of much needed sleep. I still tried my hardest to fight of the sleepiness I was feeling.

Eventually, though apparently it was probably only a few short minutes, I lost the fight against my eyelids and I fell asleep as my Uncle began to snore loudly.