Hope I didn't keep you all waiting too long. The fall semester at my university just started so I might take longer than usual to post new chapters but that doesn't mean I will stop. I plan to finish my stories. I can't believe that this story has gotten over 23,000 views, it makes me so happy that you all enjoy what I've written. I only hope that I can fulfill your expectations.
Two months passed since Katara came back from Omashu. When she came back Zuko had planned on confronting her for lying about where she went. He didn't believe what she had said in the note she left behind for him. The only earth kingdom friends that Katara could have that Zuko could think of was Toph, Haru, and the freedom fighters. Katara wasn't close with the freedom fighters nor was she that close with Haru. Zuko would have believed her if she said she was going to see Toph, but she didn't.
Just when he was ready to yell at her for her dishonesty he stopped. As Katara walked, she kept her eyes on the ground, her shoulders slouched, and strands of her hair were sticking out like she hadn't combed her hair for days.
"Katara?" he called out to her. Finally, she looked up from the floor and Zuko saw her eyes. Katara looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her eyes were red as if she had just cried earlier and she also had bags under her eyes. The water bender looked terrible.
"What's wrong Katara?" Zuko asked.
"Nothing" murmured Katara.
"Don't lie to me. You and I both know that you weren't really visiting friends in the earth kingdom. What were you actually doing?"
Katara really didn't have the energy to talk to Zuko but she couldn't avoid this.
"I went to Omashu to see King Bumi. I heard that Aang went to visit him, so I went there to get answers. Bumi wouldn't tell me where Aang went."
She recounted everything that happened. It seemed that Zuko's suspicion was right, Aang did leave because of them. He hugged her to make her feel better, but it didn't seem to do much for her.
Since then Katara had been depressed. It killed her knowing that Aang left to get away from her. She started to spend a lot more time in her room insisting that she was tired which she was, but she was tired almost all the time. When she slept she would have nightmares of Aang leaving her again and again. The time she spent practicing her water bending had decreased as it kept reminding her of Aang.
Sokka, Suki, and Toph noticed that there was something off about Katara when they returned. To them, she wasn't as talkative as much as she did before and rarely had a genuine smile on her face. Sokka had felt tempted to take her on a boat and sail to the north pole where Aang was but knew that it wouldn't be a good idea.
They all did their best to be there for Katara. Suki felt guilty about keeping Aang's secret, she wanted to help the water bender but didn't know how to other than telling her where he was. Toph had tried to get a rise out of Katara so that she would talk more but it didn't work. Sokka had suggested that he could inform Aang of Katara's condition but Suki and Toph insisted that he shouldn't. They didn't want Aang to feel more guilty for leaving.
Zuko reflected back on his relationship with Katara. After confronting Yon Rha, they had become close and he felt that he finally met someone that understood him. Katara and him both lost their mothers because of the fire nation. He wouldn't deny that he found her attractive either. Plus, Katara had admitted that she did find him attractive after she forgave him but was hesitant to be with him because she knew how Aang felt about her. That was how their secret meet ups started.
Zuko would be lying if he said he didn't feel guilty about hiding this from the others, especially Aang. He knew how the air bender felt about Katara and they were dating behind his back because they knew how hurt he would be. It would also have distracted him from preparing for his battle with the fire lord.
When they didn't have to hide their relationship anymore, things had become complicated. Katara worried what Aang's reaction would be and were surprised with how well he seemed to take the news. At first it felt like they worried over nothing until Katara found Aang's room empty the next morning. Had it not been for the letter Aang left, they would have immediately assumed that he left because of their relationship. Zuko could tell that Katara tried to not let the air bender's absence consume her but it was a fruitless endeavor. He understood that Katara and Aang were best friends, but he wondered if it was more than that. It was obvious that Aang had feelings for Katara. It would be understandable to worry about your best friend when they leave out of nowhere but for this long?
Zuko started to suspect that Katara did indeed have feelings for Aang after all but just didn't know it. The thought didn't bother him like he thought it should. It led him to wonder about his own feelings for her.
'Am I really in love with Katara?' he wondered. While he found her attractive, Zuko felt that Katara was too energetic for his liking. She always wanted to do things that were out of his comfort zone. When they spent time together before the war ended Katara would always want to talk about her feelings and philosophize about the world. It's not that Zuko didn't like talking about things but sometimes he felt that she talked to much. Then Katara would want to do activities like dancing, which Zuko wasn't a fan of. He didn't mind slow dancing, he didn't like to do anything that was fancy, but that wasn't what Katara wanted to do. She wanted to try dance routines like what she had done with Aang once but Zuko didn't want to do it. It was because he didn't want to get out of his comfort zone that he found himself arguing with Katara often.
He wouldn't admit this to her, but he felt weird whenever they would kiss. It didn't help that she wasn't a good kisser in his opinion. She didn't kiss him like Mai did.
Mai also didn't expect him want to do things together, she was just content being by his side. Zuko never had to change who he was just for her sake since Mai loved him for who he was.
When Zuko started to compare both Katara and Mai, he realized how much he missed his ex-girlfriend. The same ex-girlfriend who risked her life so that he and Sokka could escape the boiling rock and what did he do in return for it? He chose to be with Katara while Mai rotted in prison. He wondered more and more if his feelings for Katara were not what he thought they were.
Zuko needed to talk to someone about how he felt. Luckily, his uncle Iroh had come to visit one day.
"Uncle, I need your help with something" Zuko stated as his uncle poured some Jasmine tea for the two of them.
"I'm always happy to help you dear nephew." Iroh replied, "Is it fire lord business that you need help with?"
"No…it's about my feelings for Katara."
"Oh…", Iroh gave Zuko his cup, "and what of your feelings?"
"I'm starting to think my feelings for her aren't what I thought they would be"
"How so?" Iroh wondered as he took a sip of his tea.
"I mean…I don't think I'm as attracted to her as I thought I was. Lately I've noticed that I'm not fond of our relationship. When I'm with Katara, all I think of is Mai."
"You miss Mai"
"I do Uncle."
"When did you realize that?"
"It's when I started to think Katara had feelings for Aang. Ever since he left, she hasn't been the same. She doesn't sleep much or smile much like she used to. When I started to believe that she did have feelings for Aang, I started thinking about how much it didn't bother me."
"So you're not mad that your girlfriend has feelings for her friend?"
"I'm not."
"Oh"
Zuko sipped his tea.
"I just don't know why. If I'm not mad then what does that say about my feelings for Katara?"
"I would say that it means that your feelings for the girl aren't in a romantic sense. Tell me what it is that you like about her."
Zuko thought for a minute before answering.
"She's a powerful water bender in my opinion but she's also an extremely sweet person. Katara is so loving of others and always happy to help in any way that she can. She is headstrong in her beliefs and always willing to do the right thing. She's the opposite of Azula."
"Azula huh?", Iroh raised an eyebrow, "Do you think that it may be possible that you wished your sister could be like Katara?"
"Hmm…I think so. Sometimes I would look at Katara and Sokka and wish that I could have the same sibling bond with Azula."
"Then I would say that you love Katara like a sister instead of a romantic partner. What you thought of as romantic feelings were really just sibling love. It's probably why it does not bother you that Katara might love Aang because deep down you know they should be together."
Zuko nodded.
"Katara and I just aren't into the same things either. When I was with Mai I was very content and with Katara I'm not. It's because of that I just miss Mai all the time."
"What I have noticed about you and Katara is that you're both have bad tempers. I'm guessing because of that similarity that you two would fight a lot." Iroh pointed out.
"Yeah we would. Katara just enjoys trying new things to get out of her comfort zone but I'm not. She'd keep pushing me to do the same, but we would just end up fighting about it. These days we don't really do any fighting because she doesn't want to do anything, and I hate seeing her like that. I can't bring her out of this sadness…but maybe Aang can."
Iroh said nothing and drank his tea. A minute of silence passed between the two before his nephew spoke again.
"I have to break up with her. Katara needs Aang and I need Mai."
"I couldn't agree more. You both deserve to be with someone that makes you happy."
"Thank you Uncle. I don't know what I would do without you."
"You never have to thank me Zuko. I'll always choose to help my dear nephew in any way that I can" Iroh smiled.
A week after that conversation with his uncle, Zuko couldn't wait any longer to break up with Katara. He only kept putting it off because she was still distraught over the fact that Aang left her. Zuko hoped that she would eventually get better and then break up with her on good terms. But with Katara still depressed and he worried about what she would do when he told her how he felt.
'I can't put this off any longer! I have to do this for both her sake and mine.' He thought to himself.
He walked to her bedroom and knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" called out a sad and tired voice from in the room.
'Crap…this is going to tough.' Zuko took a deep breath.
"Zuko here…I need to talk to you"
After a few seconds, the door was opened. From what Zuko saw, Katara didn't look so great. She looked tired.
"Are you okay Katara?" Zuko asked.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine Zuko. I was just sleeping." She responded.
"You've been doing that a lot lately now. You hardly come out of your room anymore. You can't stay there all the time."
"Did you come here just to give me a lecture?!" Katara snapped. Zuko put his hands up in defense and tried to defuse the situation.
"No! I just needed to talk to you about something."
"What is it?" she sighed.
'Here I go…'
"I think that we sho—"
"KATARA!" a male voiced screamed. They both turned to see Sokka running up to them.
"What do you want Sokka?" Katara questioned with an annoyed tone.
"It's Toph! She was attacked by some fire benders. I think they were Ozai loyalists."
"Oh no!" Zuko exclaimed. They all ran to the infirmary where Toph was laying on a bed with Suki by her side. From the looks of it Toph had a lot of bruises on her body and her feet were burnt. Katara immediately went to work on healing Toph as soon as she saw her.
"What happened Toph?" Zuko asked.
"I was just practicing my metal bending when suddenly I hear an arrow coming at me from behind me. I tried to block it with a barrier, but it exploded on me and knocked me off my feet. The fire from the explosion burnt my feet and I couldn't see anything." Toph explained.
"Sokka and I heard the explosion and saw her on the ground. There were three fire benders that were about to kill Toph until they saw us running towards them. They ran off before we could even attempt to fight them." Suki stated.
"No one but fire benders still loyal to my father could have done this. I'll order my guards to stay alert for any enemy combatants. It's possible that they will try to attack again." Zuko said and marched out of the infirmary.
"I need some more water. I'll be right back Toph" Katara ran out of the room as well for a bowl of water. She decided to grab her water flask from her room first and then headed to the kitchen and grabbed a bowl of water.
As Katara approached the infirmary she heard Sokka and the girls talking.
"Maybe we should send him a letter. We could use his help" Suki suggested.
'Send who a letter? The water bender thought to herself.
"Could we even send him a letter in fast enough time? We don't know if or when those Ozai goonies will attack again." Toph pointed out.
"Well I could try to have Hawky try to pick up Aang's scent. We can't send him a letter through normal means like we usually do." Sokka finally said.
'Aang? They know how to get in contact with Aang?' Before Katara realized it, she dropped the bowl of water.
THUD!
The three turned around to the source of the sound and found Katara standing at the doorway with her hands to her sides and the bowl of water that spilled on the ground.
"Oh no" Suki murmured. Sokka looked at Katara in shock and Toph just simply stared in her direction.
Sokka and Suki saw Katara's surprised expression change to rage. She stomped her way into the room.
"You've been in contact with him all these months?! How could you keep this from me?" Katara demanded.
"Katara you need to calm down" Sokka spoke up.
"CALM DOWN?! YOU LIED TO ME SOKKA! I'm your sister, how could you hide this from me?!"
"Please hear us out Katara. Right now isn't the best time to discuss this…we have the Ozai loyalists to worry about." Suki pleaded.
"You all knew where Aang was going all this time while I have been worried sick about him!"
Suki and Sokka just looked at each other. They knew there was no way of getting out of this situation. Sokka turned back to his sister.
"Look Kat—"
"How long did you actually keep this from me? Was everything he left in his letter even true at all?" Katara asked.
Sokka sighed before speaking. He couldn't lie his way out of this.
"Since he left. He wasn't lying about fulfilling his avatar duties but there was more to it than that."
Katara was shaking.
"So you always knew from the beginning.", tears started to flow down her cheeks, "This whole time you all could have told me where he went. Aang could have got hurt and I wouldn't have known about it because you all lied to me."
"Aang isn't a fragile kid Katara. He can handle himself." Toph finally spoke up. Katara ignored what she said because she had another question on her mind. She looked back at her brother.
"You said that there was more to what he was doing instead of just his avatar duties. That must mean he had another reason for leaving"
"Yes, but it isn't our place to say it" Suki stated.
Katara threw her hands up in exasperation. Not even her own brother and friends would tell her.
"Then let me ask you the same thing I asked King Bumi. Is Aang avoiding me? Am I the reason he left?"
None of them answered her question. Sokka looked to the right, Suki looked down at her feet, and Toph turned her sightless eyes down to her lap.
"Don't just say nothing. TELL ME!" Katara cried.
"What is going on here?" Zuko questioned as he entered the room. He had heard yelling from down the hall and came as fast as he could to all of them.
"I'll tell you what's going on Zuko", Katara spoke with venom in her voice, "My dear brother and friends have been keeping a secret from us"
"What secret?" Zuko wondered.
"Oh that they have been in contact with my Aang while I've been miserable without him."
Zuko looked towards Sokka and the girls. "Is this true?"
"Aang needed to get away Zuko. There isn't much more we can say about it. Please try to understand." Toph spoke.
"Get away? From what?"
"They won't say it, but it might as well be true. Aang left to get away from me" Katara brought her hands to her face. Sokka reached out for her.
"Katara just lis—"
BOOM!
The infirmary exploded and blasted them all against the wall. From where used to be a wall now crumbled down. A group of fire benders now stood where the wall collapsed and faced all of them.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Zuko demanded. He tried to stand up but couldn't due to the impact from the explosion. He was in too much pain to stand. Katara got up on her knees and looked towards the others. Her brother was on the ground next to her.
"SOKKA!" she crawled to him as fast as she could, already forgetting that she was just mad at him. She then saw Suki and Toph next to him unconscious.
"Fire lord Zuko! Your reign ends today! We are here to take you and your friends out and reinstate Azula as the true Fire lord and bring out Phoenix King back to his rightful glory!" a fire bender standing in the center with the others spoke. It occurred to Zuko that he must have been the leader.
He still couldn't get up but Katara could. She got up from her knees and stood wobbly.
"I'm not going to let you hurt my friends" she stated with determination in her voice.
"Don't worry water bender. This will be over quickly" the leader spoke again. The fire benders punched a wave of fire at Katara, but an earth wall was erected up from the ground before the fire could touch her. The wall separated the enemy fire benders from the others. Katara turned to look towards Toph who was still unconscious. She then looked to Zuko.
They were both wondering the same thing.
'Who made this wall?'
They then heard noise coming from the other side of the wall. From what they could hear, it sounded like the enemy fire benders were fighting a losing battle but against who?
Just as the noise stopped, the wall had come down and that was when she saw him. After what was almost a year, he finally came back. After what felt like an eternity, Katara found her voice.
"Aang…"
Well this was a doozy to write lol. Be sure to let me know what you thought of the chapter. As always, the reviews are helpful. The long-awaited reunion for Aang and Katara is almost here. I will get to work on chapter 9 before I get back to writing "Yandere Katara".