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Push and Pull	By : AngelaBlythe Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > Het - Male/Female > Katara/Zuko Views: 19400 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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PUSH AND PULL
CHAPTER 11: The Soldiers and the Healers
Part I
When word came that the warriors were returning (two days later than originally planned) Katara found Zuko and they rushed to the Great Ice Wall of the North Pole. Zuko gasped in amazement (and perhaps a little horror) as ships began to appear over the horizon. Hundreds and hundreds of ships…Fire Nation ships. He looked over at Katara, who was wide-eyed and confused, wringing her hands in an agitated fashion. Zuko had to admit his own confusion as the first ships began to approach the Great Ice Wall. Unless Zuko was having some kind of daylight vision…the waterbenders seemed to be bending the Fire Nation ships towards the North Pole.
But as the ships came closer, Zuko saw it wasn’t only Fire Nation and Water Tribe ships that were present, but also a good number of Earth Kingdom ones – odd and bulky among the swifter ships. Did this mean…was it a success? What was success in something like this? At any rate, the Water Tribe seemed to have captured the entire Eastern Fleet – the larger of the two fleets and previously under the control of Admiral Zhao.
Zuko surveyed the procession for as long was safe. Katara was quick to remind him that his presence was to be secret – no one from the Fire Nation should know of his actions here at the North Pole. He and his uncle were cooped up in their room for hours until Katara returned, her hair falling out of its braids and looking rather tired. When the ships had arrived and they had all returned to their room, Katara had received a message to see Chief Arnook. After minimal primping she had left, and now, upon returning, Zuko was anxious to know what the hell was going on.
Katara was letting her hair down and massaging her temple lightly across the table from him. Iroh poured her tea, which she took gratefully. “Well?” Zuko asked impatiently.
She gave him a tired, wry look. “Well, I think you’re going to be happy with the outcome.” She took a deep breath. “The first ship they ran into was an Earth Kingdom ship from the southern region. It seems my friend Toph – you know, the blind girl – had success in contacting not only Omashu, but Kyoshi and several other major southern Earth Kingdom port cities. There was a huge offensive all the way down the coast throughout the solar eclipse.
“Chief Arnook doesn’t have any information about what’s been happening to the south, but here in the north there were very minimal casualties. The Fire Nation didn’t seem to be suspecting an attack – they probably didn’t know of the eclipse until the day of. They were taken completely off guard. Most of their ships were docked…and, well, quite frankly, that’s how they got all the prisoners here.
“There are…thousands… They don’t have an accurate head count, but if there is a full crew on every ship, plus a hundred odd foot soldiers that were captured, and there are three hundred and seventy five ships…you do the math. They took two days just securing all the prisoners. Let me tell you, Zuko, I haven’t made any friends by insisting we take prisoners. There are a lot of Earth Kingdom ships out there that want a stern word with me…they want those prisoners I had Chief Arnook take…”
Then she sighed and put her head in her hands. “They’re adding prison cells in the dungeons for the officers and firebenders as we speak,” she continued, “but most likely they’ll just end up holding the normal soldiers back on the ships. Those Earth Kingdom ships are carrying supplies to support the staggering amount of prisoners…they’ve mostly taken from Fire Nation supply houses, however.”
She rested her head on her forearms, hesitant to continue speaking. “Zuko,” she said softly, “they’re going to destroy most of the fleet. Rip it apart and let it sink to the ocean floor… They’ll keep the bare minimum to house the crews and prisoners…but…” she looked cautiously into his eyes. “I’m so sorry, Zuko…they’ll destroy all the rest… I just don’t have any more power over them…that information was it…”
As she turned her head down to rest on the table, Zuko took a moment to absorb all of this. And by a moment he meant well into the night. He barely paid any never mind to when Katara placed a soft kiss on his temple, sliding under the furs in exhaustion.
For his part, Zuko was truly wracked with guilt. He seemed to collect the feeling. He felt guilt over his banishment, over Katara, over his people, over his mother…over these soldiers. The feeling was a river that didn’t end, flowing on into new reasons and situations. Had he done what was right? Could he count on these backwater tribesmen to honor their word? Would the soldiers be treated fairly? Would the officers beheld for trials?
The guilt grew until it was almost unbearable. Wrapped up in his thoughts, he found his cloak and pulled the deep hood over his face. When he was stepping out the door he vaguely realized that if he was caught by either firebenders or waterbenders he would suffer dire consequences…
“Zuko…” she called from behind him. The dim light in the hall lit her face. She was sitting in the furs, looking at him with worry etched on her face. “Wait for me,” she said finally.
When she was dressed in her anorak and had pulled mittens and boots on to shield her against the cold, Katara joined him in their silent walk down to where they were docking the Fire Nation ships. It was across the city, and they stayed mostly in the shadows. It was a long walk, but it was lit by the moon, and no one was out and about. When they arrived at the docking area the ships stretched on farther than imagination. Hundreds of ships…Zuko still couldn’t believe the ‘success’ of the mission. This was a huge blow to the Fire Nation. It took out the larger part of their fleet.
There were regiments of Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom soldiers guarding the ships, patrolling the decks and the docks. Zuko knew there was always a good supply of chains inside Fire Nation ships, and escape was made almost impossible by the build and design of the inside. When he nodded, Katara walked up to a Water Tribe guard and requested a tour of the ships. After the issue of ‘Katara of the Southern Water Tribe, Daughter of Chief Hakoda, Waterbending Master…’ and so on and so forth was taken care of, two men from the Earth Kingdom escorted Katara and Zuko onto one of the larger warships – the Ember. When Zuko was a child this had been the flagship of the Eastern Fleet, but it had since been demoted.
They walked down to the prison hold. Zuko was quiet, observing the soldiers from beneath his hood. Many of them were sleeping, and many of them were very young – his age and a bit older. Some younger. There were a few awake, and they cast Katara and the Earth Kingdom guards the dirtiest looks. Katara ignored this, though, Zuko was glad to see. She led them down into the main hold, and she actually gasped when she saw the men chained and bound in huge groups. Many were injured, but no one seemed to be dying.
With a gasp, Zuko watched in horror as Katara swept to the side of dangerous-looking, middle-aged career soldier with a huge gash over his head and across his chest. The man was chained, and when Katara put a hand over his forehead he growled at her. “Get away from me, wench!”
This woke several of the soldiers around him. A few sleepy jeers followed, but Katara would have none of that. “Now quit that!” she snapped firmly. She turned to the two Earth Kingdom guards. “Would you two make yourselves useful and get me some water. Buckets and buckets.” When they didn’t move she stood and put her hands on her hips. “Now!”
When she knelt back down to the soldier she whipped out her water skin, bending the water out with a flourish. Was she going to…heal these men? Zuko stayed glued to his place, half out of the want to not be discovered, but also because Katara didn’t seem at all afraid. He was there to protect her after all.
“So it will be water torture, then?” the seasoned soldier growled. “Do your worst, wench.”
“Yes,” she said lightly. “I’m very proficient. Now tell me your name or I’ll make you suffer, Fire Nation dog.” She did this with an air of humor that, quite frankly, confused the Fire Nation soldier.
The water oozed into her hands, making them glow. The soldier yelled out when her hands touched him, but stopped once he figured out he wasn’t dead. Or even injured any more. She repeated the same process on his head and sighed, capping her water skin. “Now how does that feel?” she asked, prodding the area the cut had been.
Zuko raised an eyebrow when the soldier actually thanked Katara – haltingly and uncomfortably, of course. She even managed to get him to take a drink before she moved on to the next injured soldier. Zuko followed her from patient to patient, watching in amazement at her patience, her unyielding kindness and willfulness as she healed the Fire Nation soldiers. A few of the younger ones even gave her their names.
The Earth Kingdom guards brought bucket after bucket of water, and Zuko stood over her as she healed every soldier with wounds serious enough to warrant waterbending. Word of her spread quickly down through the ship, and it seemed that the soldiers actually began anticipating her arrival – mostly with nasty words or suggestive comments. She took this all in stride, changing their minds one by one until Zuko began to see the strain on her face.
He had to half-carry her, half-drag her out of the bowels of the ship and away from the injured soldiers. He held her possessively as they passed by soldiers and walked back through the city. The sun was beginning to rise when he finally led her back to her furs, helping her out of her boots and anorak. She smiled at him vaguely before closing her eyes, and Zuko shook his head.
After seeing that his people were in relative good condition he had been ready to leave. But because of Katara they had stayed for several more hours. And Katara…she’d exhausted herself healing patients that threw sideways comments at her. And she changed their minds as easily as someone could snap their fingers.
“I heard rumors,” Master Ullo said from the doorway.
Zuko looked up at the old waterbending master. It was midmorning – and usually Katara would be training, but he’d not woken her after the night she’d had before. Master Ullo had his arms crossed over his chest, and he accepted a cup of tea from Zuko’s uncle before kneeling before the table Zuko and his uncle were eating breakfast at.
“Midnight visits to the docks, hm?” the old master continued. “A little risky, don’t you think?” he asked Zuko.
Zuko growled. “I had to see it for myself.”
Master Ullo raised an eyebrow at this, but said nothing.
Part II
Zuko wanted to say no to her so badly. He didn’t want her anywhere near those soldiers – especially after last night. She’d completely overexerted herself, and she’d slept ‘til Minute="0" Hour="12">noon and ate ravenously when she’d woken. He could tell she’d gone too far by the paling color of her skin. He didn’t want her to go back to those ships, to those ungrateful soldiers.
But when she looked at him like that, pleaded and tried to wheedle deals like “I won’t heal more than ten in a row” and “I’ll take breaks often” the batted her eyes and held onto his hand… Why the hell did she have to be so good at that? She looked a little better, more refreshed, after she’d bathed and eaten some, so Zuko broke just a little bit. If she agreed to take it slow and not overdo things…and he was always there at his side…maybe it would be okay for them to go down to the docks.
That morning the Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom soldiers had begun rearranging prisoners. All firebenders and officers were kept in the dungeons below the palace, and all the regular soldiers were being sorted by age and years in service onto different ships. True to his word, Chief Arnook was sending anyone with six months or less time served back to the Fire Nation. The rest of the prisoners would be kept on board the ships, but they would be cramped.
As Zuko led Katara back to the docks, Fire Nation ships were already being dismantled. The waterbenders seemed to know a way to use steam to build the pressure within the boilers, causing the engines to explode and the ships to sink. There was a large explosion about ever ten minutes, and a flash of fire as the ships sunk under the waves. Katara twitched every time a ship was blown up, and Zuko couldn’t say he was too hot on the idea either. Those were HIS ships out there…
When they reached the docks most of the prisoners had been relocated to their permanent locations. It was about two hundred men per ship, and fifty ships would be used for housing them. With roughly 10,000 normal soldiers and at least a thousand firebenders and officers, Zuko wasn’t sure if the Water Tribe could manage those sort of numbers. But they would be sending away nearly three thousand because of time served – fifteen less ships to worry about would help the situation. And they did have all those rations they’d stolen from Fire Nation storehouses.
Zuko was also worried about the imprisoned firebenders and officers. He wondered how the Water Tribe was going to control them. His thoughts were cut short when Katara began asking two Water Tribe warriors to assist her with buckets. Zuko would have helped, but he was busy. With Katara. And guarding her.
He still wore his hood over his face, not wanting to be recognized. He received a lot of inquisitive stares, and when soldiers asked, Katara simply said he was her bodyguard and laughed. News of her had spread fast, and despite the fact that they were on a completely different ship, all of the soldiers seemed to know who Katara was – her name, the color of her eyes, the magic quality of her hands.
She dealt mostly with soldiers that had more serious injuries, though she was known to stop and sit beside a soldier and let him drink from her water skins once in a while. That isn’t to say she was widely accepted in a positive light. In fact, many soldiers she tried to heal flat out refused her, and when she became insistent they insulted her, and once tried to physically harm her. Zuko put a stop to that real quickly. For the most part, his countrymen were boorish, rude, uncomplimentary, ungrateful, and cruel. But Katara seemed to take this all in stride.
True to her word, she did not overexert herself. She took long breaks in deserted hallways, resting her head on his shoulder as the sat side by side. “You don’t have to do this, Katara,” he said softly during one such of these breaks.
She didn’t respond for a moment, and tucked her arms under his, winding her hand around to hold his own. “I know.”
“Then why are you?” he pressured her.
She sighed. “You know I can’t stand to see people in pain, Zuko.”
“Even firebenders?” he asked.
She looked at him from beneath her lashes. “Especially firebenders.”
When the sun began to set Zuko finally pulled her away from the ships. She was loath to go, and complained when he made her, but she was almost too tired for arguments. It was as they were leaving the docks that Zuko began to realize they were being followed. Katara was tired, slumped against him as he half-carried her back towards the palace.
“Katara!” someone shouted from behind.
Katara’s head jerked up and she turned around, instantly alert. Zuko’s hand brushed the hilt of the broadswords he’d been allowed to carry. Katara had argued them out of the hands of the head of the armory (Zuko was impressed to see the amount of old Fire Nation weapons kept there), saying if he was going to be any protection at all on the ships he had to at least carry a weapon. Now he was glad she’d gone through the trouble.
Katara’s head tilted to the side, squinting in the light of the setting sun. “Captain Fong?”
Zuko disliked the man immediately. It wasn’t because he was an Earth Kingdom soldier, or because he wore a spiffy Dai Li uniform, or because he’d been following them. It was because Katara knew his name. Captain Fong was a tall, burly eartbender from the looks of it, and he had stoic green eyes and wore the stone gloves of a Dai Li agent. Zuko knew enough about the Dai Li from his time in Ba Sing Se to know to stay well enough away from them.
Captain Fong stayed a good distance away. Katara, however, stepped out of Zuko’s supporting arms and gave the Earth Kingdom captain a respectful bow. “It’s…good to see you well, Captain Fong,” she said awkwardly, quietly.
“I see the stories weren’t too exaggerated after all,” the captain said with a bow. “There is a blue-eyed waterbender with magic hands.”
“I didn’t think to see you here, Captain Fong,” she replied quietly.
“Well,” he said bitterly, “after my lieutenant’s hands began to unfreeze a little he managed to bend some rocks to help along the process. We had a real time getting me out of that tree though.”
Katara pursed her lips. “I apologized for that,” she said in a sturdy voice. Zuko raised an eyebrow. Could this possibly be one of the earthbenders that captured Katara as she was trying to get to the North Pole?
Captain Fong snorted, then his face softened in a manner Zuko didn’t think he liked. “You’re not the only one who’s sorry, Katara.” Then he sighed. “I misjudged you. And I’m sorry for that.”
After a moment, Katara nodded. “You were just doing your job.”
There was a very uncomfortable silence. “I’m going to be in the North Pole for a few days,” Captain Fong said slowly, scratching the back of his neck. “Maybe a week…you know, as we sort this whole thing out.” The man paused, and fire shot through Zuko’s veins. “I would like it if we could talk.”
Zuko moved closer to Katara, who seemed to be very taken aback at all this. He put a hand on the small of her back and glared daggers at the Earth Kingdom captain. Katara started at the pressure on her back and turned to Zuko silently, a plea on her face. “I –” she stammered. “I think that might be okay.”
Captain Fong bowed swiftly and took his leave, and Zuko grabbed Katara by the elbow, leading her away, as he hissed in her ear. “What the hell was that about?”
Katara jerked her arm away, glaring up at him. “How the hell should I know? He’s the one that captured me – the Earth Kingdom captain I told you about, the one I froze to a tree. I never thought I’d see him here!” she replied in a hard voice.
“Why does he want to ‘talk’ to you?” Zuko shot back angrily, realizing his jealous and possessive nature was getting the better of him, but somehow not really caring.
“I think he’s just sorry,” Katara explained as he turned her into a deserted alley, shadowed by the icy building. She tried to explain things calmly, he knew she was trying, but he was just angry. “For a while he trusted me, talked to me, and then when I escaped he said some really mean things. I think he’s just realizing he was wrong, that’s all.” Her eyes grew worried. “Zuko – what’s wrong? Who cares?”
“I care,” Zuko hissed, bringing his face next to hers as he backed her against the wall.
Her eyes softened a little bit. “Oh, Zuko…you’re not jealous, are you?”
Zuko crushed his lips to hers in response, taking advantage of her surprise to claim her mouth possessively. Katara pushed against his shoulder for a moment, but then pulled him closer, kissed him passionately. Her nose and lips were a bit cold, but Zuko solved that pretty quickly, heating her chilled skin. He thrummed with desire for her, and he realized he couldn’t help himself as he pressed against her, feverishly kissing her neck.
“Zu-Zuko,” she whimpered as his hand cupped her breast. He’d been wanting to do this since the hot springs on the day of the eclipse. “Not here,” she murmured in his ear.
He nipped the back of her neck affectionately. “Anywhere I want,” he growled in return. It sent shivers down her body; Zuko could feel them.
As suddenly as he was on her he was away again, flipping his hood back over his head. He watched as Katara regained her breath, mumbling something about princes under her breath. He watched a small smile form on her lips. “You really don’t have to worry, Zuko,” she whispered. “Earthbenders don’t do anything for me…” Then she paused. “What’s the use of a guy unless he can keep me warm?”
He followed her with a bemused expression on his face all the way back to their room.
Part III
Katara wasn’t entirely sure how she’d been talked into this whole business. She was waiting for Zuko to say the word, so they would go back and find Jeong Jeong and Aang, but when this offer was posed, it seemed he was intrigued. The past few days Katara had been vigilant about her healing duties. Well, not duties. Obligations. She had seen to it that those men imprisoned on their own ships were given proper treatment, were warm, were well fed, were more or less comfortable in their captivity, and were healed if injured. It was her obligation, considering she was the reason they were down there. She didn’t really feel guilt over it – they were prisoners of war after all – but she did feel the distinct need to make sure they weren’t abused.
And Katara was no longer alone. A young group of waterbenders – girls under the tutelage of Ugota – had joined her. They had several guards each, and were perfectly safe. Though some of them weren’t as strong willed as Katara, and flinched at the harsh words of the Fire Nation soldiers. They cried, but they were brave, and they were compassionate. As strong as the hate was between the Water Tribes and the Fire Nation, Katara was gratified to see that some people still relied on compassion and kindness to rule their lives.
It was because of these brave girls – and Katara herself – that the younger soldiers were sent away so fast. Katara had expected the ships to be there for much longer than needed, but they left only a day or so after the attack. With the quick healing and swift prisoner rotations, fifteen ships were ‘escorted’ into Fire Nation waters. They’d left earlier that day actually. Katara was pleased to see that Zuko had a complimentary word about the speed in which the younger soldiers were sent away. His attitude had become a little lighter since the eclipse, and she thought they would be leaving any day.
That was until Chief Arnook called Katara before him and presented her with his outrageous plan. She had tried not to be demeaning, but it was a little thin and farfetched. As she sat respectfully, legs curled under her, before Chief Arnook, Master Ullo, and (an unhappy-looking) Hahn, Katara clenched her fists. For a while she was glad that Zuko and Iroh were there with her – certainly they would agree with her about the foolishness of this plan. No such luck.
“It just seems you have a way with these firebenders,” Master Ullo said – his voice hinting on sly when he spoke. “Our interrogations aren’t going well with the officers, and we can’t get names or ranks out of most of them. If you, Prince Zuko, and perhaps General Iroh go in and talk to them, maybe you can recognize a few and get names and ranks for us. It won’t be too hard, and a few of them have refused medical treatment as well…”
Katara pursed her lips. “I highly doubt that I’ll be accepted half as well as you’re making it out,” Katara replied. “Soldiers are one thing, but I’m not stupid enough to think I can outsmart an officer of the Royal Fire Nation Army. They’re officers for a reason. Master Ullo,” she added respectfully after a pause.
“I don’t think she’s up to it, Master Ullo,” Hahn said with a smirk.
Katara very nearly rolled her eyes. “Honestly, I don’t think I am. I need to be leaving soon to meet up with the Avatar and my brother…”
She drifted off as Zuko’s hand brushed her elbow. She turned to him and he gave her a significant look. She narrowed her eyes at him, and he gave her a slight nod. She closed her eyes, turning back to Chief Arnook, Master Ullo, and Hahn. With her back ramrod straight, she sucked up her pride and bowed slightly. “I’d be happy to try. I don’t guarantee any results, but I will make my best attempt.” Then she bowed again. “Chief Arnook. Master Ullo. Warrior Hahn.”
Retreating out of the hall she cast a hard look at Zuko. “This is a dumb idea,” she spat angrily once they were in their rooms.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Iroh said with good natured sarcasm. “You do seem to have a certain affinity to firebenders. You’ve certainly charmed me!”
Somehow, seeing Zuko smirk, Katara felt like having a temper tantrum. It had been a while, and she was far due. She’d been saving this one for a while, and she had mostly been saving it for her brother, because it was always satisfying yelling at him, but she was going to give a little gift to Zuko and his uncle.
“You know what?” she seethed in a dangerous voice. “You two,” she pointed at Zuko and Iroh. “Are EXACTLY alike!” She felt her face grow pink with anger. She was just getting warmed up. “You mask it all with a ‘tea-loving, grandfatherly concern’ façade or an ‘angry, bad-boy, smirking jerk-face’ veneer – but DON’T THINK I CAN’T SEE RIGHT THROUGH THAT!”
When Zuko opened his mouth to reply, Katara cut him off swiftly. “I’m not BLOODY WELL DONE, your highness!” she raged, forming a dangerous-looking ice-dagger in her hand and stabbing it deep into the wood of the low table before her. “NOW I’M DONE!”
With that she stormed into the washroom and slammed the door loudly behind her. She was just a little wound up at having to heal people all day that just talked back and made rude comments. She was just a little angry at being cooped up for so long in the North Pole. She was just a little upset at not having seen Aang and Sokka and Toph, and having to worry constantly over them. She was just a little tired of being so sexually frustrated that she could snap at any moment. She would have a nice bath, relax, and forget any of this happened.
She leaned against the door she had just slammed. If she listened hard enough… “I told you that you shouldn’t rile her up like that.”
There was a pause, and then Zuko replied. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“She’s kind of scary sometimes, isn’t she?”
Another pause. “Yah.”
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Push and Pull