Summary:

K+—Romance/action/adventure—multi-chaptered

Fire and Water, Earth and Air, the opposite elements. Aang needs a Firebending teacher and when Katara encounters Zuko in an Earth Kingdom town and he joins the group, the request is granted. But Azula is still hot on their trail; Zuko will have to come to terms with himself and settle his inner turmoil if he wishes to defeat her. Can Katara help him? Meanwhile, Aang is struggling to master two elements at once before the summer’s out, and his emotions are confused. What will happen when warriors and benders from all four nations come together as one? Y7 recommended for non-reproducible fantasy violence. This isn’t extremely violent or inappropriate, I’m just rating itK+ to be safe. Zuko/Katara, Aang/Toph, Sokka/Suki

Disclaimer:

I do not own “Avatar: The Last Airbender” or anything pertaining to it. The following story is what I want to and/or believe will happen in the show’s future. All sections of italicized text are either dreams, flashbacks, or thoughts. All flashbacks, spoken/reworded flashbacks, and some quotes were directly described and quoted from episodes of “Avatar: The Last Airbender”. The phrase “Stay alive” was borrowed from Last of the Mohicans.

Earth…

Fire…

Air…

Long ago, the Four Nations lived together in harmony. But everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, Master of All Four Elements, could stop them. But when the world needed him most…he vanished.

A hundred years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar, an Airbender named Aang. And although his Airbending skills are great, he’s got a lot to learn before he’s ready to save anyone.

But I believe, that Aang can save the world…

Scars of the Past

Chapter One

Less Than Enemies

Katara was alone.

Aang, Sokka, and Toph were hiding out south of this small Earth Kingdom town, waiting for Katara to return with provisions to sustain them for the coming journey. Normally, the others would have joined her, but in light of recent circumstances, that wouldn’t have been the best decision. Aang’s picture was posted on every message board in town; not because he was the Avatar, but because Toph’s father had accused him of kidnapping her, and now Aang was a wanted Airbender.

Katara looked up into the blinding sunlight, shielding her eyes with her hand. It wasn’t even midday yet, but it was already scorching hot outside. Around her, the market was busy with all manner of people. Traders displayed their wares in the shops and stands that lined the streets; children ran up and down the dirt road, playing tag and running between the stands after some childish game. Katara smiled at that and watched them play as she walked.

“Leave me alone!” one child cried. The Waterbender turned to see a little girl being bullied by two older boys. One of the boys seized the little girl’s doll and dangled it above her head, just out of her reach. “Give it back!” she demanded, jumping up for her doll. The older boys laughed.

Katara was about to intervene, but a young man beat her to it. He returned the little girl her doll and she thanked him fervently, but the two boys fled rather than receive some sort of punishment. The little girl clung to her doll and thanked the young man again. He grinned and mussed her hair, then continued to lead his ostrich-horse down the street.

How sweet, she thought, smiling. Katara was standing off to his right, so she saw only his profile, but somehow he looked incredibly familiar to the Waterbender. He couldn’t have been over seventeen, and she didn’t know where she could have seen him before. He had short, shaggy brown hair and he wore a set of dual broadswords at his side. Where had she seen him before…?

Suddenly, the young man looked her direction. A crimson flame-shaped scar covered his left eye. Katara’s heart skipped a beat and her breath caught in her throat. Zuko…

Katara’s heart was beating rapidly. Had he seen her? Why was he here? Did he know where Aang was? Question after question came unbidden into her mind, all of them reverting back to Zuko capturing Aang. Run, stupid. Run! Katara kept telling herself, but her legs seemed leaden and would not heed her mind’s commands.

Even as she thought this Zuko looked up and his amber eyes met Katara’s blue ones. Oh no, she thought despairingly. She was caught. Run! Finally her legs responded and she turned to flee, but as she did so a woman near her shrieked, catching her attention and that of all those nearby, including Zuko. The entire marketplace turned toward the south gate of the town and watched as the poorly constructed wooden gate fell to the ground with a dull thud. Dust and dirt billowed up from the ground and from behind the dusty screen emerged many, many Firebenders and at their head…

“In the name of Fire Lord Ozai, I, Azula, Princess of the Fire Nation, claim this town for the Sons and Daughters of Fire, the Superior Element,” the leader proclaimed loudly above the roar of the crowd. “Long live the Fire Lord!” At this the crowd was aroused from their hypnotic state and protested loudly. The Firebender Princess nodded to her two companions who stood nearest to her, a tall slender girl with long black hair and a shorter girl whose brown hair was braided and draped over her right shoulder. With that simple motion, the Firebenders poured into the gate, fire springing from their palms into the crowd.

Katara hardly marked the furor around her. The streets were now filled with screaming women and children, the men trying to shield them from the flames. People were seething all around her as the Firebenders advanced and she reached to remove the lid from her water skin, but even as she did so, someone near her called, “Come on!” And Katara was pulled onto the back of a running ostrich-horse and before she even knew what was happening, she found herself wrapping her arms securely about Prince Zuko’s waist as they galloped through the crowd.

Their mount pulled up short near the outer wall of the city at a sharp command from Zuko and waited impatiently in the shadow of the barrier as the Firebenders poured into the tumult and disappeared into din of the raid. Katara started to protest to Zuko but he silenced her quickly.

“Shhh!” he whispered fiercely. “Do you want to get us both killed?” Katara grew quiet at his words and waited in scared silence as the violent procession passed them by without noticing them. The last of Azula’s party trickled past the shattered gate into the town and were lost in the fray.

Now! Zuko thought, digging his heels into his ostrich-horse. The beast leapt forward and out of the gate; they were not missed in the city’s uproar, and they made a headlong dash for the concealment of the forest. Behind them, and drifting ever farther away, Katara could hear the roar of the city as it was overtaken, the heartrending shrieks of the dying and wounded as the cruel fire burned them. The wail of a child rose above the others for an instant and in front of her Zuko cringed. Katara was reminded of the words of Jeong Jeong the Deserter, how he had thought of Firebending as a “burning curse” that “brings only destruction and pain. It forces those of us burdened with its care to walk a razor’s edge between humanity and savagery. Eventually, we’re torn apart.” Looking at Zuko who sat in front of her, Katara couldn’t help but wonder if the prince felt the same way.

The Firebender did not slow their breakneck pace even after the concealing leaves of the forest had closed in around them, and Katara was growing impatient.

“Where—” Katara started to ask, but Zuko cut her off.

“Hush,” he said, not so severely this time. “We’re not yet far enough to be safe.”

It seemed like hours passed before Zuko tugged on the ostrich-horse’s reins, pulling it to a halt. He dismounted and Katara followed suit.

“I trust you won’t try to run away?” Zuko said, glancing over his shoulder at the Waterbender as they walked still deeper into the wood.

“Where are you taking me?” she demanded, hurrying to catch up with him.

“Back to your friends,” he answered without hesitation.

“If you think I’m about to just let you capture Aang, you’ve got another thing coming,” Katara said. She was walking side by side with him now.

“Aang?” Zuko said, looking at her quizzically. “You mean the Avatar?”

“Yes,” the Waterbender answered reluctantly.

“Well—” The Firebender ended abruptly, realizing as if for the first time, that he didn’t even know her name.

“Katara,” she said proudly. “Of the Southern Water Tribe.”

“Katara,” he echoed thoughtfully. “Well, Katara,” he said again. “I assure you, I have no intention of trying to capture the Avatar…Aang.”

“What do you want then?” she asked, exasperated by this point.

“What do I want?” he replied incredulously. “I want my honor, my throne. I want my father, not to think I’m worthless. At least I thought I did. But I don’t want the Avatar. Not anymore. He’s no use to me anymore.”

“No use to you?” Katara snorted. “That’s all he is to you and the Fire Nation, isn’t it? Did it ever occur to you that Aang is a person? He didn’t choose to be the Avatar. It’s not his fault.”

“I didn’t choose to lose my honor,” Zuko retorted becoming angry in his turn. “But I did. It’s not my fault that I’m the son of a ruthless tyrant. But I am.” He looked at Katara over his shoulder. “It’s nothing personal,” he said truthfully. “I needed the Avatar to restore my honor. I don’t expect you to understand.”

Katara fell silent, pondering Zuko’s words. She remembered having seen him earlier in the day, how he’d behaved toward the children, how sweet she’d thought it was until she realized that it was Zuko. Katara glanced over at her “captor”. This wasn’t the Zuko she’d known before. This wasn’t the Zuko that had tracked her and Aang and Sokka all the way from the South Pole to the North Pole. This wasn’t the Zuko that was constantly trying to kill her and her friends. Maybe there was someone real and compassionate behind that stoic mask…

“You’ve changed somehow,” Katara said slowly, softly.

“No,” Zuko said, shaking his head. “I haven’t. I’ve always been me. No,” he said again. “I haven’t changed, only your perception of me.”

Katara was at a loss for words. Could that truly be so? Was she that narrow-minded? The Waterbender forced herself away from such thoughts and concentrated her mind on her current situation.

“Who were they?” she asked without preamble, obviously meaning the Firebenders. Zuko didn’t answer immediately. It was at this point that he doubled back on their course and they began heading back toward the city. Katara didn’t question the action; Sokka had done similar things when they wished to lose a tracker. She just hoped that Zuko’s instincts were better than her brother’s.

“They were Firebenders,” was all Zuko said at first; Katara knew that, of course. The Fire Nation Prince was not going to be forthcoming, that seemed certain. Fire Nation Prince…It was in that instance that it fully registered with Katara how changed Zuko was since their encounter at the North Pole. He wore no ornament of his title; he had abandoned his Fire Nation armor for the clothing of an Earth Kingdom commoner. And, more significantly, his uncle, the retired General Iroh, Dragon of the West, was not with him. She thought back to that day that they had last seen Zuko, that day in the abandoned town. Azula had been there and she had…

“Get away from us!” Zuko cried angrily, looming protectively over his uncle’s inert body.

“Zuko, I can help,” Katara said sincerely.

“Leave!” Zuko roared thunderously, sending a wide arc of flame toward the Avatar and his companions…

“Zuko, where’s your uncle?” Katara asked pensively, fearing the worst. This time, he answered more clearly, but his tone seemed sorrowful to her.

“We had nothing more to gain by traveling together,” he replied in a low and controlled voice. “I need to find my own way.”

Katara released a silent sigh of relief to know that the old man was still alive.

“Who were they?” she demanded again. Zuko looked over at her in annoyance, but he yielded to the question with some reluctance.

“Their leader,” he began, “is my sister, Azula, the favored child of the Fire Lord. But I guess you knew that already.”

“But you’re next in line for throne, aren’t you?” Katara said. Although, at this point, she wasn’t very fond of either one of them, Katara felt that Zuko would be a much better ruler than this Azula.

“I was,” he answered. “But I fear my position has been taken. You see,” he said, even as he had told the Avatar in the cavern in the North Pole, “Azula is a Firebending prodigy. Everyone adores her. My father says she was born lucky. He says I was lucky to be born. I don’t need luck though; I don’t want it. I’ve always had to struggle and fight and that’s made me strong. It’s made me who I am.”

Katara looked at him with a new light in her eyes. How could a father hate their child? She thought about her own father who was away in the War, and she remembered how he and Sokka had always gotten along so well, going fishing and hunting together, warrior training and so on. That thought brought a smile to her lips, but it vanished almost immediately as she considered Zuko and how harsh his childhood must have been.

The very idea made her feel queasy and put an unpleasant taste in her mouth; she folded her arms over her abdomen and looked away.

“Wait.” Zuko stopped suddenly as they entered into a clearing. Katara looked about and recognized it as being the same clearing where they had set up camp last night. The others were gone. Zuko knelt and examined the trampled grass, and Katara was painfully aware of what an obvious trail they had left, probably similar to the one they left every morning.

No wonder Azula has such an easy time finding us, Katara thought bitterly.

“Your friends left just a few hours ago,” Zuko said in his low voice. “We should be able to catch up with them if we keep a steady pace.”

“Thanks,” Katara said suddenly. “Thanks for helping me.” Zuko only looked at her and didn’t answer. He couldn’t keep himself from admitting that she was beautiful. Her silky brown hair fell in a single, long, thick braid down her back; her eyes were unusually bright and bluer than a cloudless morning sky. And also he knew her to be a fierce warrior and not to be underestimated. That knowledge tempered his tongue and kept him from speaking his thoughts.

So instead he remained utterly silent.

“Come on,” he said after a while. “They went south.” He stood and leapt into the saddle, and gestured for Katara to do the same. She mounted the ostrich-horse behind the Firebender and wrapped her arms around his waist.

The evening wore on and faded into night and neither of them spoke for a long time. The moon was above the mountains and the stars were visible in the sky when Zuko finally broke the silence.

“Your welcome,” he said quietly. Katara smiled.

And as they set up camp that evening, Zuko, son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai, Prince of the Fire Nation and heir to the throne, and Katara, the Waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe, were less than enemies.