2Chapter 2: Fire is Life
"Help me off this thing! I can't see anything!"
"I've got you Toph. We're on solid ground now, so you can let go of me."
Sokka, Toph, and Suki successfully destroyed the airships that we're headed towards the Earth Kingdom. After seeing Aang defeat Ozai, and marveling over how Aang took away his bending, they decided to head towards the Fire Nation, with said Fire Lord, to help Zuko and Katara.
Sokka hoped his sister was okay. He knew she was strong and powerful, but at the end of the day, she was still his baby sister and would chase her all over the world if it meant her safety. As they neared the palace, Aang steered Appa to a stop, placing him by a nearby shed. Toph shoved Sokka out of the way to get off.
"Finally! Sweet, sweet land!"
Suki rolled her eyes. "You've only been in the air for fifteen minutes. Not fifteen days."
Toph blew a stray hair from her face. "Whatever. It beats being near Snoozles and his smelly feet."
Sokka scoffed. "Excuse me?! My feet don't smell! Do they smell Suki?" Suki giggled a bit before helping Sokka off the bison. "Kind of."
Aang patted Appa in reassurance. "We'll have to leave you here for now, but we'll be back soon!" The bison groaned in reply and the Gaang headed to the palace.
The Sages approached them, bowing their heads. "Avatar Aang, it is an honor to meet you."
Aang bowed in respect. "The honor is mine. Ozai is in the saddle, we couldn't carry him, but he's unconscious—I took his bending away. Please secure him in a cell immediately."
One of the Sages fidgeted a bit, nervously glancing up at the boy. "Yes, Avatar," Two of the Sages take Ozai into the palace to secure him, while one remains. "Avatar, I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but it seems that one of your friends did not survive Azula's wrath."
Aang paused. The rest of the group gasped, but Sokka stepped forward. "Was it my sister? Is Katara…gone?"
A heavy silence draped over the air, like it was suffocating the very atmosphere itself. "We are sorry, but it appears so."
Sokka turned his head, hands clenched. "Can I—Can we see her?" The Sages nodded and guided them into the palace.
Zuko's room was a mess.
Empty wine bottles were scattered on the ground, scrolls were tossed carelessly into oblivion—even one of his mother's old romance scrolls.
Nothing mattered right now, not even that.
Zuko had no idea how long he had been pacing his room, but he was pretty sure it had been a few hours.
It had been a few hours since Katara died.
His Katara, he thought despairingly.
There was a numbing, desolate feeling to the room. He missed her smelly sea prunes, her lean figure, bending the waves of the sea, as if she were their commander. He missed her smile, the kind that made him return the gesture regardless of the situation—the kind that gave hope for the future.
He never imagined one where Katara was not in it.
The Sages told him they were going to send her body off to be cremated at her home in the Southern Water Tribe—a place she dwelled before his interference. Maybe she would've still been alive, had he not shown up.
Or maybe not.
Zuko knew he had to go see her one last time before she was sent away from him forever.
The Gaang followed the Sages through three corridors that led to the throne room, an empty silence followed. Suki and Aang helped Sokka most of the way due to his injured leg, but Sokka couldn't care less about that.
His sister was gone and there was nothing he could do.
Part of him—the irrational side of him—wanted to blame the prince, for even putting his sister in harm's way. But he's a logical person and any sane and logical person that knew Zuko knew the boy would give his life for Katara.
"Here we are." The Sages gestured for them to enter the cold room. The room was dark red, and adorned with golden emblems that encased the walls. Three fire symbols were painted on the hard floor. There was a single bed in the middle of the room that held Katara.
Sokka was the first to make it to the bed. The tears he suppressed earlier slowly ran down his face as he cried.
"Kat-Katara, I'm so sorry. I…I failed you. I should've been here. You needed me and I wasn't here."
The rest of the Gaang surrounded Katara, silently crying. Aang, who had let go of his irrational attachment to the waterbender long ago, gave her a peck on the cheek and silently recited an old Air Nomad prayer. Sokka looked up to see a red-eyed Zuko in the doorway, looking disheveled.
"She—she risked her life for me. I wasn't fast enough—"
Sokka enveloped Zuko in a brotherly hug as they both cried. A moment passed before Aang spoke up.
"Your father…he's secured in a cell. I…took away his bending."
Zuko's eyes widened, but narrowed almost immediately. He would worry about his father later, right now he needed to grieve in order to move on.
If I ever move on, he thought, bitterly.
"Guys…I need a moment. Her body will be sent off soon to be cremated and I just—"
Sokka patted his shoulder knowingly. "It's alright. We'll go. I know how much you loved her."
Loved, Zuko thought, numbly. Sokka said that in the present tense, as if he'd ever overcome that feeling.
The rest of the Gaang left him to his own devices and closed the door behind him.
Katara placed her hands on her hips. "That's not fair! You cheated!"
"What? I simply just threw a flame—"
"Zuko, I almost flew from that blast! You're lucky I didn't freeze you to a tree!"
Zuko put his hands on his hips to mimic Katara, "Oh boo-hoo, you'll get over it."
"Oh yeah? Get over this!"
Katara rose her arms and bended the water to create a huge a wave and threw it towards Zuko. Zuko tried to evade it, but wasn't successful.
"Ha! I'm the winner and you're the loser!" The waterbender placed her slender sienna hands on her hips, "Since you lost, you have to do all our laundry."
Zuko tried to avoid thinking of the past, but he couldn't help it. It kept replaying over and over again and he wasn't sure he wanted it to stop or keep going.
"Katara, I miss you so much. I know this is…odd, considering you're in front of me, but, Zuko clenched and unclenched his hands, "You're everything to me, you stubborn idiot. I'm going to be crowned Fire Lord soon, and the ironic thing is that for so long, the throne was one of the things I would've died for. Now I don't even care." He let a stray tear roll down his face as he put his forehead near her heart and simply laid there.
Through his morbid thoughts, he couldn't help but notice that there was a small thump. Like the sound of a heartbeat. Curiously, he put his ear on her heart and gasped.
There was a heartbeat. It was faint, but it was still there, thudding like the sound of a soldier's footsteps.
Zuko panicked. He wanted to call for the physician, but something in his core told him that this was something he had to do on his own. He recalled a conversation he had with his uncle.
"Nephew, there is something I want to teach you. Something that even Azula and your father do not have knowledge of."
Zuko perked up, ready to take in this sacred knowledge. "What is it, Uncle?"
Iroh put on a pot of boiling water before adding the crushed herbs and spices into it. "It is a technique called Flame Healing."
Zuko's eyes narrowed. His mother had often read him and Azula fairy tales of firebenders that could heal almost any wound, no matter how small or large. No one ever took it seriously though. It was a story that was often told to younger children for amusement.
"Isn't that just a fairy tale? No firebender can heal—fire just destroys anything and everything."
An amused smile played upon Iroh's lips. "It is often the most concealed of things that tend to be the most powerful."
Zuko groaned. He really didn't have time for his uncle's stupid proverbs. "Would you just tell me already?"
"Fair enough," He set down his tea and gave Zuko a solemn look, "Zuko, this technique is very useful, but there are serious consequences of using it. Flame healing requires an extreme amount of chi—some have lost their bending entirely because of it, and some have even died."
"Then why are you telling me this?! How do you even know about this?"
"Iroh sighed. "Just because something is dangerous does not mean it cannot be useful. If used correctly, you should be fine. I have a few older friends that know the sacred ways of the old Fire Nation—the nation that was once known to subscribe to the ideas of pride, peace, and prosperity."
Zuko had an idea of who these 'friends' were. He remembered his uncle playing Pai Sho with some older men, as if they had no care in the world.
Iroh kneeled and closed his eyes, gesturing Zuko to do the same.
Zuko closed his eyes and concentrated on the flow of energy within him.
Zuko closed his eyes and inhaled, letting the flow of his chi circulate throughout his body. He opened his eyes and lightly placed his pale hands on Katara's heart.
Agni, please let this work.
Nothing happened.
Zuko continued to let his chi flow, guiding it towards his hands. The immense heat pressure in his fingers left his body and covered his hand in a soft gold glow, causing the whole room to radiate with his power.
Closing his eyes, he began to guide the warmth to Katara's heart, coating the organ with his chi. As he continued, he noticed her body temperature was beginning to gradually increase, and her lips were regaining their dark pink tint. Her sallow skin began to regain its normal sienna shade. This encouraged him to keep going, despite the black dots filling his vision.
Unbeknownst to Zuko, Sokka snuck back in to give one last goodbye to his sister, only to stumble upon Zuko doing something.
He didn't try to interrupt him. Sokka had a feeling that whatever he was doing was going to help his sister.
Katara's eyes finally opened and as she sat up with a gasp, Zuko, having spent all his energy on restoring her body, collapsed on the floor.
Katara, too weak to tend to Zuko, struggled to leave the bed. Sokka ran to his side instead.
"Zuko!"
Katara woke up in a daze, wondering where she was until she saw Zuko lying on a small couch on the other side of the room. He was covered by a long, burgundy blanket—resting peacefully.
All she remembered was that he did something to her, to…revive her, but she wasn't sure what.
She was so sure she was dead.
Before she had passed out again, Sokka quickly told her what had happened. Apparently, he came in to say one last goodbye, that is, until he caught Zuko standing by Katara, his hands on her chest glowing a bright gold. He didn't protest because his instincts told him that whatever he was doing was going to help her.
And Sokka's instincts are always right, he said proudly.
Katara could hardly believe that Zuko had healing powers. She had never heard of any element, aside from water, that had the ability to heal.
"Fire is life. Sure, it can destroy, but every element has a flip side to it."
Katara pondered for a moment. "So, when we make campfires, the fire provides us with warmth, therefore, shielding us from the cold that could ultimately kill us."
Zuko's eyes glimmered in the firelight. "Exactly."
So was this one of fire's greatest abilities? To also heal? The idea of Zuko being a healer such as herself made her giddy. She'd never known a healer from another element, let alone a male healer. Her memories from her visit of the Northern Water Tribe still left a bitter taste in her mouth. Men were only allowed to fight and the women were to heal. Meeting a male healer of her opposite element was an entirely new experience.
With this knowledge, she slowly crept to where Zuko was resting. She moved his wild, raven hair and just watched how peaceful he looked.
"You know, if you keep staring at me, your eyes might fall out."
Katara shrieked and backed away from him. "Damn it, Zuko! You scared me!"
He let out a snort. "We both nearly died from fighting Azula, but somehow that scared you. You're unbelievable."
Katara crossed her arms. "Whatever. Did—how did you do it? How'd you heal me?"
Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose as he rose up, the blanket falling off his elegant robes. "Uh, it's a firebending technique Uncle taught me. It's called Flame Healing—and it's extremely dangerous. I thought it was just a myth or a fairytale, but it's real." He put his hands over his face. "I had to do something. I heard your heartbeat—it was faint, but it was there. I didn't just make a promise to you, I made a promise to myself—to protect you at any cost."
Katara's eyebrows creased in concern before flinging herself onto Zuko. With a yelp, they both fell on the couch, Katara still holding him. "Thank you. Thank you so much."
"You're welcome. But you should know…I'm angry with you."
Katara broke away and rose an eyebrow. "Oh? And why is that?"
"You know why."
"Zuko—"
"Katara, I watched you die!" Katara flinched.
"I had her! I had Azula! You know I can redirect lightning and yet—"
"—and yet I did it anyway." Katara finished. "Look, I had to watch my mother die. I watched her sacrifice herself for me. I wasn't about to let someone I love do the same."
Zuko closed his mouth. He wasn't sure how to respond to that.
"It was my choice and if I had to do it all over again, I'd do it without hesitation."
Zuko gave a long sigh. "I know, and I'm not sure if I should be happy about that or not."
Katara held the scarred side of his face, letting Zuko lean into it. "I know."
The coronation ceremony was about to start and Katara was still struggling with her dress. Although she was healed, her body was still sore and aching.
"Ugh, damn it! Why did Ty Lee give me the tightest dress ever? I'm going to freeze her—"
"Need some help with that?"
"Zuko! Oh, thank Tui and La, you're here. Help me please!"
He had to bite back a smile to prevent Katara from fussing even more than she already was. "Oh, calm down. I've got it."
Katara huffed as Zuko gently pulled her arm through the long sleeve and placed her arm back by her side.
"I could've done that if I wasn't still so sore, you know."
He pulled her in by her waist and placed a kiss on her nose. "Yeah, yeah."
"So, how do you feel? You know, about being the next Fire Lord and all?"
A moment passed before Zuko spoke up. "There's so much I have to do. It'll take years before everything is truly peaceful again."
"So much you have to do? Don't you mean 'we'?" Katara scoffed. "After I help rebuild my home, I'm coming back here. I hope you're willing to have me."
"I haven't forgotten about that promise, you know."
Katara smirked. "I know."
Zuko couldn't help the grin that crept on his face. "Are you asking to be my Fire Lady?"
Katara playfully punched him and he laughed. "The Southern Water Tribe will always be in my heart. I've realized now that destiny is what you make of it, not what everyone wants it to be."
Zuko remained silent as she continued.
"I've realized that my destiny is helping to restore balance in the world. And while helping Aang was a huge part of it, there's still so much more that I want to do. So, yes—I do intend on being Fire Lady in the near future. I want to help here in the Fire Nation in any way I can, as well as helping the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom reconstruct. It won't be easy, but when have we ever been easy?"
The feeling of Zuko's lips on hers sent her into overdrive, as she kissed him back. "I've always wanted to hear you say that."
"Oh? Say what?"
Zuko gave her a loving smile. "Say that you'll be mine."