A/N: Thank you all who have reviewed! :D It really brightens my day!
She was beginning to panic. He was still touching her. Her moon-blood hadn't come. The full moon had come and gone, leaving her with a feeling of restless desperation. The energy from the moon always reverberated through her soul and it was no different this month, but the absence of her cycle was leading to a new restlessness. She thought maybe it could be stress, depression. Not what she was thinking. Not what she refused to admit to herself.
Katara stood and paced by the window, chain clinking behind her. She looked out into the dark courtyard, seeing the still fountain, the shaggy bushes. Coming to a halt beside the window, she laid her hand on the thin pane. It gave. Her eyes widened. She looked quickly over her shoulder to make sure she was alone and pushed on it again. It had a slight give and squeaked just a little bit. The pane was big enough for her to get through and it was an easy climb down a tree to freedom. She leaned forward only to feel the tug of her collar. She put her bound hands up to it, feeling the indomitable strength of it. If only she could get her hands free she could freeze it with just a little water.
The door creaked open to admit a servant and Katara jumped, startled. As she looked at the middle-aged serving woman coming towards her, a reckless plan formed in her mind. The woman was kind, and had attended her before, although never this late at night. She was also fiercely loyal to the Fire Lord, and would give Katara gentle pointers on surviving his…attentions.
"Good evening, water girl." She said, coming to stand next to Katara and stroke her hair. "I'm afraid the Fire Lord is still tied up in meetings. I think they will be done around midnight."
Katara bowed her head and averted her eyes. "Mistress, I have a favor to beg."
The woman eyed her sternly. Her kindness didn't usually extend to favors. "Yes?" She began unfastening Katara's chain to take her to the bathroom.
"I…I would really like to touch the Fire Lord with my own hands." Katara hoped her racing heart and faint blush would be taken as infatuation, rather than fear and humiliation. "Would you please, just for one night, unbind my hands?"
The old woman began walking towards the bathroom, Katara's chain in hand. She eyed the girl, looking for any sign of duplicity. She knew the girl was a bender, but, like most fire nation citizens, didn't take water as a real threat. The girl's eyes were downcast, a faint blush on her cheeks. In her own mind she smiled at the thought: the girl had fallen in love with her Lord and master. How wonderful for her finally.
"I'm not sure that would be the wisest course of action, dear." She turned away so Katara could make use of the facilities. "I haven't received any sort of approval from the Fire Lord."
"I'd love to surprise him." Katara said in a breathy, excited voice. She cringed inwardly at the sound of herself. "Think of how much better it would feel on him: hands instead of leathery binds. I only wish to please the Fire Lord as much as I can."
The servant woman again inspected her face and, to her eyes, only saw slight shyness and desire. She sighed, smiling at the girl. "Very well, but I will be waiting in here until you are finished to retie the binds."
Katara nodded eagerly, but not too eagerly. The old woman took her hands and with a small knife from her sleeve cut the top leather strip on each hand. The rolls of leather fell swiftly to the ground and lay curled like brown snakes on the cool tile floor. Katara flexed her hands, marveling in the freedom of movement. Her hands were stiff and weak, and she worried she'd never have full control of them. She smiled her gratitude at the servant woman and bent to rinse her hands in the wash basin. Instinct kicked in, and when the woman's back was turned, the water glowed blue.
"I'm sorry." Katara whispered as she pulled her hands from the water.
"What dear?" The servant woman turned, only to see Katara in a waterbending stance. Immediately realizing her mistake, she managed a wild strike with her knife before her entire body betrayed her. Katara gasped and bent her hand in a motion that caused the woman's throat to close up, depriving her of oxygen until she was unconscious. The woman's body sunk to the floor, still breathing lightly. Katara put a hand to her cheek and it came away bloody. The woman's knife had cut from her right cheekbone to the top of her lip. It wasn't deep, and she didn't have time to waste.
Bending water from the wash basin, she wrapped it around her collar and grit her teeth as it grew colder and colder. The metal shattered, pieces tinkling to the floor. She watched them scatter across the tiled floor, and a hysterical giggle escaped her. She was free. Almost.
Katara poked her head out of the bathroom door, peering down the small hallway that led to the bathroom. She stepped out, slinking along the wall towards the window. When she came to the end of the hallway, she peered around the corner and seeing no one, she began to sprint towards the window, running headlong into a tall, red robed figure.
Ozai's shocked face matched hers. On instinct they both folded into their bending stances, facing off against each other. Katara's heart was pounding in her chest. Ozai's stance was steady, his face hard. Katara tried to circle him, to move herself closer to the window, but instead of moving opposite her, he moved towards her. She leaped backwards, towards the door, and he snarled, throwing a fireball at her head. She ducked and skittered closer the door. She threw her hands up, ready to bend his veins against him to keep him from touching her again.
"Guards!" Ozai bellowed, advancing on her. Katara swung around to face the advancing royal guards. They were in full armor, faces obscured by steel plates. Their fists were already lit with dancing orange fire. Katara could feel the heat from where she stood and retreated towards the third wall. Ozai's guards fell in behind him as he stalked towards her, fists twin flames at his side. Katara's eyes darted, looking for an escape when her back hit the wall. Ozai's guards spread out, boxing her in.
"Give up, slave." Ozai snarled, his fists turning blue. "There is nowhere for you to go, except back to my bed."
Katara shuddered but didn't lower her hands. She'd rather die than be used by him again. Taking a chance she raised her hands in a spidery-clawed movement and grasped control of his blood. Ozai shuddered, his movements becoming jerky and his eyes wide. Katara closed her eyes, trying to find the vein to sever to end his life. She felt it, grasped it, began to squeeze. A burst of flame from her side disrupted her concentration and she lost it. Ozai sucked in a deep, gasping breath and his guards surged forward, gripping Katara's arms and forcing her to her knees.
Ozai stood panting for a moment before striding forward and backhanding her across the face. Her head snapped around and she whimpered. Ozai grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked, pulling her head up. She glared back at him, one side of her face still trickling blood from the old woman's knife, and the other swollen and red from his slap.
"I hope that last act of defiance was worth it, waterbender." He ground out. his grip on her hair tightened and she whimpered again. "Tomorrow morning, Zhao is deploying to the Southern Water tribe, while my daughter leads her fleet against the Northern tribe." He leaned down to whisper in her ear. "The decimation of your people is imminent, Katara."
"No…" she breathed out. Her heart began to race. Gran-gran, all the people she grew up with, all the innocent children and babies and mothers and fathers. They all swirled before her eyes in a haze.
"Take her away and crush her hands." She heard Ozai, but it was if he was far, far away. "Make sure they won't heal properly. It is time for a more permanent solution to her insubordination."
"What should we do with her afterwards, my Lord?"
"Bring her back." His answer was immediate.
Katara felt strong hands grip her upper arms and hoist her to her feet. Her legs wouldn't stay under her and she wobbled. They dragged her away, feet sliding on the polished floor of the hallways. She still felt like she was in a trance. Her family, friends, teachers, healers…all of them. The Southern tribe had no defenses. The Northern tribe she supposed could survive maybe long enough for Earth Kingdom reinforcements, if they could get the word out in time. Her home was going to vanish into flames.
She allowed herself to be dragged, consumed in grief, not even caring about the destination. Vaguely she noticed turns down corridors, bumps, and the passing of other bodies. She thought she saw Zuko once, but as she lifted her head she only saw a painting of a smiling boy standing next to a tall woman as she slid past it.
Finally they reached an outdoor courtyard. Katara felt herself falling and barely managed to catch herself as they dropped her. She registered the rough stone, cooler air, and the sensation of hands on her arms, stretching them out.
Beside her face, a small green plant grew. It was little, so little, but it was enough to wake her up. All life contained water. She felt hands come down to secure her wrist on the ground, sensing a body standing next to her, and moved.
Faster than a striking snake, she pulled the water from the little green plant and slashed through the ankle of one of the soldiers. He howled in pain as he fell over, his severed foot staying upright. The other soldier, the one holding her arm, grasped tighter, but she used the blood of his comrade to slice through his throat. He too toppled, gurgling.
Katara stood, her head rushing. She stumbled only a moment before she got her feet under her, and then she was running, and then she was burning. A third soldier, alerted by the screams of his fellows, stood between her and the area surrounding the palace. He stood between her and freedom. He had sent a large ball of fire towards her and she had caught it on her hands. She clutched them to her chest but it only made them hurt more. She screamed, looking down at them to see large blisters already forming. Releasing a feral shriek, she swiped her hands and tore large claw marks of broken veins through the soldier. He fell without a sound, blood seeping across the cobblestones.
Katara bent and gingerly removed his long black cloak. She absently wondered how fire nation soldiers didn't get heatstroke as she pulled it on and lifted the hood. She snuck through the large gates and out into the crowd around the Fire Palace, just another face in an endless sea of faces. Keeping her blue eyes down and hidden, she moved slowly until she was almost half a mile from the palace, and then she ran. She didn't stop running for a very, very long time.