A Twist of Rope
By Kali Gargoyle
I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters.
His return to consciousness was sudden and painful. For several seconds the only thing Zuko was aware of was that his arms and legs were tied, he was being dragged, and something kept hitting him in the head.
When he opened his eyes his first observation was that it was night, and that he was in a wooded area. A flash of blue and a braid clicked his brain back into coherent clarity.
"Release me, you Water Tribe peasant!" He struggled, but it only caused pain. The waterbender had tied his arms tightly behind his back, almost up to his elbows. He could tell his legs were similarly imprisoned from ankles to knees. He couldn't tell what the rope was made of but it felt thick, probably difficult to burn through. She was taking no chances.
Katara didn't even glance backwards at her captive, she just kept dragging him along, struggling with every step. Although her waterbending training had built up her muscles, he was still bigger than she was, and very heavy.
"I said release me!" He tried breathing fire at her, seeing as how his limbs were tied, but missed by several inches without damaging so much as a single hair. But it did catch her attention.
She spoke without stopping or turning around. "No. I'm taking you to Azula and trading you for Aang."
"What!" Zuko twisted again, in vain. "Azula has the Avatar?"
"Not for long," Katara replied, her voice thick with fierce determination.
Zuko tried to think, which was difficult considering he was being dragged over rocky ground by the collar of his shirt, the heels of his captor's boots regularly making contact with the back of his skull.
Azula had the Avatar. She had his only chance at reclaiming his honor and throne. If this peasant handed him over he'd be arrested, possibly even executed on the spot. He needed both himself and the Avatar free...
"Listen, peasant, Azula is not going to hand over the Avatar no matter what you give her. You're no match for her. She'll kill you, then me, and your Avatar stays her prisoner. Your plan is beyond stupid. And stop kicking me in the head!"
Zuko felt his head hit something hard and solid when he was dropped on the ground.
Katara stood over him, glaring. "I have to rescue Aang. I know it's not an equal trade, Aang's worth ten times what you are." Her lips curled up into a manic smirk and Zuko was reminded of his sister for a moment. "According to the wanted posters, at least. But I have to do something."
The fugitive prince could have sworn he saw tears well up in her blue eyes, but in literally a blink they were replaced by anger and conviction. But it was enough to remind him that she was still the person traveling with the Avatar, the kind of person who wanted to bring hope and peace back to the world.
"You really want to see me killed that badly?" Zuko said in a calm, even tone. Despite how often he struck out in bursts of anger, he was able to control himself when he needed to; he just didn't see the need in most situations. This was a situation where it was needed.
Katara was visibly taken aback by that remark. "No, I..." She regained her courage. "I don't care what happens to you. You've caused us nothing but suffering ever since you crashed your ship into our village! Whatever is planned for you, you deserve it!" She stood, glaring down at him, her jaw tight, fists clenched. She wanted stomp on his stupid scarred face.
"Listen, waterbender-"
"Katara."
"Peasant. I obviously don't want to be turned over to Azula. But I don't want her to have the Avatar-"
"Aang."
"-either. Release me and I'll help you rescue him."
Katara actually laughed. "Why should I believe you?"
"You don't have any choice," Zuko told her. "I give you my word, once we're away from Azula, we'll go our separate ways." For awhile, anyway...
Katara stared down at the prince, but didn't see him. She was too busy in her own thoughts. She knew her plan had very little chance of succeeding, she didn't have a chance against Azula by herself. In the fight against the three Fire Nation girls, Katara had been separated from Sokka and Toph. She had no idea where they were, and by the time she did find them, it might be too late to help Aang.
She did need help, but the fact that she didn't have anywhere else to turn to except for one of her worst enemies made her blood boil. "How can you expect me to trust you? You've been trying to capture us since we first met. You're arrogant, violent, and selfish."
"But I'm not a liar."
Katara's expression remained as stubborn as ever, but her eyes flickered in desperation. She tried to think back to a single incident in which he had lied. When they first met in her village... he did leave with Aang without hurting anyone, as he promised. When he'd worked with the pirates... although he held her prisoner, he had never hurt her. The North Pole, when he kidnapped Aang... he could have killed her, but didn't.
She compared his actions to Azula's and cringed in response. If it was a choice between trusting him or his sister...
"You promise that you'll help rescue Aang and then leave us alone."
Zuko nodded. "You have my word."
Katara stayed just out of reach. "If you try anything. If I even think you're going to betray us..." she put her hand on her water skin to emphasize the silent threat.
Zuko met her eyes, gold against sapphire, and nodded again. Katara walked slowly, popping off the top of her pouch so that Zuko could see she was serious. She knelt down, frequently glancing towards Zuko's face as she undid the ropes. The first thing she'd have to do when she found her brother was thank him for teaching her these knots.
The firebender remained on the ground until he was completely free, then he got up slowly. Katara had jumped back, out of arm's reach, in a defensive position, prepared to freeze him solid at the first suspicious movement, but he only rubbed his shoulders. Having your arms tied like that was very painful.
He got to his feet, stretching his limbs, hoping that his time spent being dragged around in ropes didn't cause any damage that would impair his fighting ability. When Zuko was satisfied with his condition he turned to Katara, who deepened her stance.
"Which way did they go?"