Zuko could hear the faint, rushed footsteps of his friends behind him. All the firebender could think of was Katara and the painful screams he heard as he sprinted toward his father's secret bunker. The prince turned a corner, and then another, and was suddenly knocked backwards by a powerful gust of air. Zuko hit the ground and somersaulted onto his feet, his golden eyes wide. "Air?!" He spun around, spotting the cloaked person retreating down the hallway."Aang?!" he eagerly called out.
The person stopped. As he turned slowly, Zuko noticed the blue arrow tattoos on his hands and his breath caught in his throat. He was alive.
"...Zuko!" Aang exclaimed, drawing back his hood. He rushed over to the firebender and pulled him back onto his feet. "I-I'm sorry! I obviously didn't think—," Aang said in a hushed voice, "What are you doing here?"
Zuko just gawked at the airbender. Aang looked thinner in the face and a little dirty, but otherwise, he appeared unharmed. The Avatar put a hand on Zuko's shoulder. "Are you alright?"
"Y-You're alive," the prince breathed.
"What? Of course I am," Aang said, his face puzzled.
"Sokka, the others... they said—" Zuko stammered.
Uncle Iroh rounded the corner, carrying Toph on his back, with Sokka and Hakoda right behind him. They all froze when they spotted the airbender.
"I don't believe it," the gray-haired firebender gasped.
"A-Aang!?" Sokka called out in disbelief. Toph's unseeing eyes lit up and she squirmed herself off of Iroh's back, grasping around for Sokka's good arm.
"Aang?!" Toph echoed.
The airbender hushed them, a smile coming across his lips. "Hi guys," he said. Sokka and Toph rushed over together, hand in hand, as tears filled their eyes. The two embraced the Avatar tightly. "What—what is with all of you? Were you that worried?"
"We... we watched you get burned at the stake during the execution," Hakoda said grimly, "Or, well, I suppose it wasn't you after all."
Aang's heart pounded. "...the explosions early this morning?" he asked hesitantly. Hakoda and Sokka nodded as they the chaotic, violent scene replayed in their minds. Aang finally noticed Sokka's arm. "You guys were there?"
The Water-tribe teen and earthbender lowered their eyes.
"It was a trap. They knew we were coming and... Suki and Haru..." Sokka let his sentence fade away.
Aang's gray eyes widened. "No," he gasped. Sokka nodded.
"If it weren't for Toph, Sokka and I probably wouldn't have made it out alive, either," Hakoda explained, "I sent Teo and The Duke back to camp with Appa."
Aang's chest felt tight as he began to grasp the reality of the situation. His eyes welled up, thinking of Suki and Haru—they were gone. Gone because they came to save him after he allowed himself to be captured. The airbender looked to Sokka and Hakoda, fully taking in their injuries. "I-I'm sorry—" Aang choked out, "It's all my fault—" His thoughts drifted to the unknown boy who was used as a decoy. An innocent—burned alive in his place. The airbender sobbed at the thought, covering his face. All at once, he realized someone else was missing. "Katara—?!" he asked desperately, looking around at everyone's faces.
Zuko stepped forward. "We think the Firelord has her, but we aren't sure," he said solemly. Terror tore through Aang's features.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Aang said frantically, wiping the grief-stricken tears from his eyes.
Zuko couldn't have agreed with him more.
Uncle Iroh placed a comforting hand on the airbender's shoulder. "I know it's hard, but you must remain calm, Avatar Aang," Iroh spoke gravely, "You will be facing Firelord Ozai, not some random guards. You must defeat him—you will not if you aren't calm of mind."
"What? H-How am I supposed to be 'calm of mind' when—?" Aang choked out, tears forming in his eyes, "How am I supposed to beat him, when Katara might be—"
Uncle Iroh pursed his lips and gave a sympathetic squeeze of Aang's shoulder. "Avatar Aang, you will win, but you must remain focused—it is your destiny and purpose to restore balance to the world, but if you allow your emotions to overtake you, Ozai will use them against you." Iroh felt terribly as he stared down at the boy Avatar, who was barely 13, and he desperately wished this burden didn't have to be placed on his shoulders, "I'm very sorry for those you have lost and I wish we had the time to properly grieve for them." Iroh drew in a hesitant breath while Aang began to panic. "And I understand that you're worried and afraid, you would be foolish not to feel that way—but know that we are here to support you and help you in any way we can. That said, we must move forward calmly, intentionally, and with your focus solely on fighting the Firelord. The unfortunate reality is that any sort of panic or distraction on your end will give the Firelord the advantage he needs, and will possibly put Miss Katara in greater danger."
Zuko swallowed hard, the last words echoing in his mind. It donned on him that he hadn't heard the screams in awhile and he could only hope that it didn't mean what he thought it meant. His chest ached. The firebender couldn't even bear the thought of it. Zuko turned to bolt when his uncle grabbed him tightly by the back of his shirt and pulled him back.
Uncle Iroh eyed his nephew. "You need to calm down, too—no running off this time. We're all very worried, but before we get any closer to the Firelord's bunker, we should form a plan. I'm sure the Firelord will have the door heavily guarded—so from this point on, we move as a unit. We'll make the decisions as quickly as we can without being reckless," Iroh's eyes flicked over to Aang and Zuko, "I understand time is of the essence, but we should not go forward in blind haste."
Toph eyes seemingly moved towards Iroh and the gray-haired Firebender noticed her gaze. "O-Oh, I'm sorry Miss Toph, that was insensitive—"
"Nah, it's okay. I'm know I'm blind," Toph said flatly, "Especially now. And it sucks. So I'm with you, old man. Let's come up with a plan."
Aang spoke first. "Okay, I'll head in using a big blast of air, pushing my way through the guards. The moment I can get through the door, I'm going to go in and get Katara—"
Iroh shook his head, "Forgive my frankness, young Avatar, but you need to be focused on fighting and defeating the Firelord, not rescuing Miss Katara—"
"Then I'll follow Aang in and get her out of there," Zuko volunteered quickly. The prince wanted to be the one to fight his father, but his Uncle was right—attempting to do both would only play to his father's favor and put Katara in more danger.
Besides, it should be Aang to defeat the Firelord. Aang stared at the Fire-nation prince as those jealous suspicions surfaced once more. Zuko glanced at the Avatar, who quickly averted his gaze, his gray eyes angry. He wondered if Aang was truly ready for the task. His golden eyes found his uncle. "...And, in case I'm unable to get to her, can I trust you to get her out safely?"
Uncle Iroh nodded. "Of course."
"So then it's up to the rest of us to get the them through the door," Hakoda stated.
"Okay," Sokka said sternly, thinking of his damaged arm. He'd trained a bit with his left arm for this exact reason, but he was much weaker attacking with his left. His blue eyes made their was to the blind earthbender. Sokka grasped Toph's shoulder. "I'll watch your back."
Toph gazed toward the Water-tribe teen, knowing he'd hardly be able to defend himself. "Don't worry about me. It'll be more difficult if I can't earthbend, but I'll be fine. I do know some martial arts if they come up close, and my other senses are really heightened so I can use other ways to sense what's around me," she said, unable to fully hide the uneasiness in her voice.
"The ground is all dirt and stone down the secret passageway," Zuko reassured her.
Toph and Sokka both let out a sigh of relief. Toph chuckled, as she nudged the Water-tribe teen's good arm, "Look at that, now we can watch each other's backs."
The door flew open as energy rippled through the earth beneath the gold tiles, sending a few flying around the room. A ball of fire immediately followed, barreling its way toward the Firelord. Ozai stood his ground and extinguished the attack with one swift movement of his arms.
Katara's spun around and saw the small-statured airbender standing in the doorway.
Her blue eyes widened as a small, relieved gasp escaped her lips. He was alive after all. In the silence that followed his arrival, the clanging of weapons striking armor echoed through the room.
There were people fighting just outside the door.
"It's time to settle this, Ozai," Aang said, deliberately keeping his eyes focused on him.
Suddenly, the two Dai Li agents flanked the Airbender. Not a moment later, two simultaneous blocks of earth shot up from beneath them, forcing the earthbender assassins to dodge away from him. Hope blossomed in her chest as a small, pale, blind earthbender came to mind.
The Firelord lied about everything—it was all a ruse.
"...Welcome Avatar, we've been waiting," Ozai sneered, an all-knowing smile breaking across his lips. Aang froze and swallowed hard. "We?" Gray eyes scanned the room before landing on Katara—her eyes welled up as their eyes met.
"Aang," Katara breathed, an involuntary smile breaking across her lips.
"Katara, you—," he gasped, stunned by her rough appearance. His eyes traveled over her matted hair, swollen features, torn clothes, and bloody wounds. His shock was quickly replaced by anger—and suddenly, Katara's feelings of relief were taken over by fear and dread.
The reason the Firelord was looking for her, the reason he'd tortured her and didn't just fight with her or kill her—the reason he offered to bring Aang to her—it was all clear. She was meant to be a trigger, but not necessarily for Zuko—for Aang. It was the same tactic General Fong used to coerce Aang into using the Avatar state.
Only Ozai wasn't attempting to find ways to control him, he intended to end the Avatar cycle once and for all.
"N-No—," she stammered. Aang blinked and when his eyes re-opened, they revealed the bright blue glow of all the spirits of his past lives stirring inside of him. The wind picked up around him and his feet left the ground as his arrow tattoos illuminated. The Fire-nation cloak he was wearing snapped around him wildly while pieces of stone from the walls broke and flames formed in his hands. As memories of Ba Sing Se flooded the waterbender's mind, her heart pounded in her chest—not again. Things were happening so quickly—she had to stop this—she had to do something this time. "Aang!" was all she could cry out before she saw the bright bolt of lightning fly by, Ozai's low chuckling ringing in her ears.
Immediately, the bolt made its way back toward Ozai. The waterbender's eyes widened as the Firelord narrowly dodged the blast. The wall exploded behind him where the lightning struck. Her breath caught in her throat. She whirled back around, finding the Firenation prince standing in front of the Avatar, who was collapsed to the floor. His golden-colored eyes were locked on hers. "Z-Zuko—" Her heart pounded in her chest and her cheeks grew warm.
A hand landed on her shoulder. She twisted around to see Uncle Iroh standing behind her.
"Miss Katara," the gray haired firebender said, "Can you walk?"
"Y-Yes," Katara answered.
"Oh no, she isn't going anywhere," Ozai snarled as he stood, his hands ignited with flames.
"Uncle!" Zuko yelled out.
The ball of fire barreled toward them. Iroh spun his way around her and dissolved the fiery blast with a quick movement of his hands. He shot a fiery blast at his younger brother as Zuko sent a wave of fire hurdling towards his father.
The Firelord spun away from Iroh's attack and absorbed Zuko's. Zuko settled into a battle stance before turning his attention to the Water-tribe girl and his uncle. "I'll hold him off! Hurry!"
As Uncle Iroh lifted Katara up in his arms, helplessness washed over her. She wasn't going to get to fight. "No, this time I was supposed to—" Katara thought desperately. "Z-Zuko—," Katara gasped, her throat felt like it was closing up, "N-No, wait—" This is what she wanted to avoid to begin with. She didn't want Zuko to fight for her. She wanted to help—she wanted to protect him.
"You have been so strong," Iroh said softly in her ear, "It's time to get somewhere safe."
Katara watched helplessly over Iroh's shoulder as he carried her towards the exit. Zuko fought with his father, flames flying all around them.
She didn't feel strong.
Heat filled the room as Ozai's blast broke through Zuko's attacks. Iroh hesitated in the doorway as he heard a loud thud from behind them. Zuko grunted as he hit the ground. Despair and fear overwhelmed the waterbender simultaneously. "Zuko!" She pushed against the gray-haired firebender's arms. "Put me down!"
"M-Miss Katara—" Iroh stammered, trying to keep a hold of her. A low moan escaped Aang's lips as he stirred awake.
"Leave me here! I'm fine, please—just go help him!" Katara cried.
Aang's eyes snapped open with her voice. "No, Katar—" he started. His gray eyes widened as they fell upon her.
She wasn't looking at him. She wasn't talking about him. Those bright blue eyes were wide with concern—and fixated on the scarred, raven-haired Firebender. Zuko was on the defense, jumping and somersaulting to dodge the continuous attacks from Ozai. Aang lay there, his brow furrowed and a perplexed look on his face as he gazed at the Waterbender.
"I'm okay, really—I'll make sure to get somewhere safe. Please, you have to help him!" Katara begged, "Please!" Iroh's expression was tentative—he knew Katara was more injured than she was letting on, but he hesitated out of concern for his nephew.
"Uncle! What are you doing?! Get her out of here!" Zuko bellowed. As the last word left his mouth, a blast of fire knocked him backwards once more. Zuko hit the floor hard and slid into the wall.
"Zuko!" the waterbender screeched. Katara lunged forward, she wanted to go to him—but Iroh grasped onto her, holding her back. Katara's breath hitched in her throat as Zuko lay unmoving up against the wall. A moment later, the firebender groaned and slowly rolled over onto his back.
Ozai's sinister grin was plastered to his face and the crackle of lightning sparked on his fingertips. All at once, Aang was clamoring to his feet—Iroh released Katara and ran toward his nephew, but there was no way he'd make it in time. Katara's heart wrenched.
The moment before the lightning left Ozai's fingertips, the Firelord's eyes found hers—full of triumph and malicious delight.
Fury tore through her.
The waterbender reached both of her arms out. "No!" she cried out. She could immediately feel the flow of Firelord Ozai's energy and blood. She quickly pulled her arms to the side, yanking his arm in the other direction, the bolt of lightning shooting away from Zuko and into the ceiling. Iroh and Aang froze in their tracks as her blue eyes met Ozai's. For the first time since their meeting, she saw a genuine look of fear in his eyes. A smug smile touched her lips and Katara flicked her wrist sideways and upwards. The Firelord's arm twisted behind his back grotesquely, like a broken marionette.
He grunted in pain. "W-Wh..." Ozai gasped. She could feel Ozai desperately trying to move his limbs. She eased herself into a more solid stance. Uncle Iroh stared at her, stunned.
"M-Miss Katara..." Iroh breathed.
Rage tore through Ozai's features. "Y-You—" he fumed. Katara's smile faded and she glared at the Firelord.
"I told you before, I will not let you hurt him," she said, "Never again." She clenched her fist, twisting his arm further until it snapped. Firelord Ozai let out a small grunt and ground his teeth as he bit back the pain, refusing to cry out.
His eyes never left Katara's.
"W-What is...?" Ozai grunted, still struggling to move independently.
"It's called blood-bending," she said. The waterbender lowered her arms and forced the Firelord onto his knees. "And there's no use resisting," she said, "I'm in control as long as you have blood in your veins." She swallowed hard, trying to keep her focus. The waterbender sounded convincing, but her muscles had already started to shake and the burning pain from her wounds flared up. Light-headedness began to wash over her and beads of sweat formed on her forehead.
"...Katara?" Zuko said, pushing himself up from the floor.
She hesitated a moment before looking over at Zuko. She tried to force a smile, but her every nerve was on fire as she struggled to keep control of Ozai. She was afraid she wouldn't be able to hold him much longer. Zuko forced himself up from the floor, his eyes full of concern for Katara.
The fact that he wasn't looking at her like she was the monster she was, only made it harder for her not to break down. "I'm sorry, I had to—I-I didn't want to do this," she whispered, tears filling her eyes, "I—I just—I didn't want to lose you. H-He was going to kill you—"
Zuko said nothing as he stared at the waterbender. She was visibly struggling—it was amazing that she was still standing, much less bending in any form. "Are you alright?" Zuko asked. Katara closed her eyes, focusing her strength on blood-bending. She nodded.
"I-I'm fine," she said. Zuko finally looked over all of her wounds, trying to control his anger as he did so.
"No you're not," he stated, shortly. The firebender was aware of the torture tactics used by firebenders, and it looked like his father used all of them on her. Fury built up inside of him as he remembered her screams. He wanted to make Ozai scream twice as loud and bleed twice as much. He spoke softly and carefully to the wounded waterbender, "Thank you for saving me, Katara. It's okay, I'll take it from here. Let my Uncle take you out of here."
Katara looked at him—she hated that he had to see her this way. "Really, it's not as bad as it looks," she reassured, "Surface level stuff."
The Firelord tried to lift himself up the floor, drawing her attention, and she yanked him back down to the floor. Her wounds burned as she did so and she bit her lip to keep herself from crying out. Katara took a moment to catch her breath and did her best to hide the agony tearing through her entire body. "Y-You—" she stammered, "You should just take him out now."
Zuko stared at her, stunnedn as his eyes shot to his father.
"I-I can't do that. Even if it's him, I can't attack someone who can't fight back, Katara," he said.
Katara internally cursed Zuko's moral compass, sweating as she held the Firelord to the floor.
"..He did this to me while Dai Li held me down," she snapped—Ozai grunted as she clenched her fists and his limbs twisted in response. She raised her eyes to meet Zuko's. "He refused to fight fair. He wanted you, and I wouldn't... I couldn't let him..." her voice trailed away as tears brimmed her eyes.
Anger and anguish bubbled beneath his skin, bringing a heated flush to his cheeks. This happened to her because she was protecting him. He cursed himself.
Zuko glanced at his father. Firelord Ozai's furious, obsessed gaze was fixated on Katara as he laid on the ground, powerless.
No, the Fire-nation prince wouldn't take the blame for this.
His father and Azula have done this to him his whole life. They would hurt the people he cared about and make him feel like he was the one who'd caused their fate.
The firebender wouldn't have ever given Katara up to Ozai, and he would hate for Katara to blame herself if the roles were reversed.
His father inflicted the wounds covering Katara's face and body. He illicited the pained screamed out of her. It was Ozai's fault Katara was desperate enough to blood-bend.
And he would pay dearly for it.
The firebender forced himself to half-smile at the waterbender. She blinked the tears out of her eyes and smiled back at the messy-haired Fire-nation prince.
Aang sat across the room, staring at the two of them while feeling an array of emotions—sad, shocked, hurt, angry, and confused. Suddenly, it was all so clear. Even if the Avatar didn't understand the how or why—somewhere along the way, the two of them fell in love.
It wasn't just Zuko experiencing one-sided feelings for the waterbender like he originally thought—she returned sentiment.
How long did they feel this way about each other?
When he really thought about it, Aang suspected it as far back as the Western Air-temple when Katara ran back for Zuko.
At the time, the Avatar convinced himself that he was crazy to think such a thing. The waterbender and firebender couldn't stand being in the same room together. Aang and Katara always got along, right from the start. The two of them have been through so much together—so naturally, he always assumed they would eventually be together. In many ways, Aang felt like he deserved Katara's affection. His heart wrenched inside his chest as he realized how childish that was.
That isn't how love works.
"...Katara," Aang's voice echoed in the room.
She jumped at the sound of the airbender's voice. And in that brief moment of surprise, her control slipped away from Ozai.
It was only for a split second, but it was long enough.
Just as the flames engulfed Katara, Zuko spun and blasted a bolt of lightning at his father.