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Katara loved to sew. The action of pushing the needle into the thread helped keep her hands busy and her mind focused on what she was doing, which was perfect for managing her anxiety.
“I’m sure Aang didn’t come home last night because he met someone at the festival.” Katara told her husband as she watched him pace up and down the drawing room, the light of the fireplace casting a dark shadow on his worried face. “He probably forgot all about you and me, and had a fun night of romance!”
At least that was what Katara had hoped. She knew Aang liked to have wild nights with strangers from time-to-time, but he would usually be back by morning.
After hearing his wife’s voice, Zuko’s scowl was completely wiped off his face and he gave his wife a handsome smile. He walked over to his beloved, took her hand, and gave it a quick kiss.
“You’re probably right.”
But neither Zuko or Katara left the drawing room to go about their usual business. They silently sat there all evening, either doing paperwork or reading, boiling in the anxiety and tension that grew stronger the longer their friend was gone.
Katara knew she would look back on this afternoon and laugh at how silly they were being. She and Zuko had been married for three years and hadn’t decided to have a child yet, but they were acting like two parents who were waiting for their wayward teenaged son to come home.
‘Aang is a grown man.’ she reminded herself as she and Zuko held hands and drank their tea. ‘He can take care of himself.’
“Can we send a search party for him now?” Zuko asked the captain of the guard, keeping eye contact with the other man and his back straight to not give away how tired he was. Katara affectionately rubbed her thumb against his hand to soothe him. She smiled when he squeezed her hand to return the gesture. She loved how he expressed affection. When she pushed, he pulled.
“If the Avatar doesn’t return for another hour, then we can classify him as a missing person and send out a search party.”
Katara took a sip of her tea to hide the fact she was frowning at the captain’s nonchalance. Captain Biyu was a pragmatic and brilliant strategist, which made him a great protector of the Fire Nation Royal family, but he lacked warmth. She thought it was ironic for a firebender.
“What difference is an hour going to make?” Zuko asked. Katara could feel his body temperature going up.... Uh oh… That usually wasn’t good…
“My lord, I know the Avatar is a close friend of yours, but I do not think it would be wise to send out a search party and potentially cause a panic among the people if they simply went out and had a romantic fling.” Captain Biyu could probably sense Zuko’s rising displeasure too, and had the sense to wipe that smirk off his face. “I am only thinking of what is best for everyone.”
“The safety of my best friend is what’s best for everyone.” Zuko gently unclasped his hand from Katara’s and stood to rise tall above Captain Biyu. Despite the captain being five years older than Zuko, the Fire Lord loomed over the captain of the guard like a tall and intimidating statue.
Katara took a bite of her rice cracker so she wouldn’t bite her bottom lip, making it less obvious to Captain Biyu and the palace servants how much she loved it when her husband got so passionately righteous and protective of his found family.
“Aang could be in trouble right now, but because you are so obsessed with ‘protocol’ - I’m sitting here drinking tea while he’s probably lying somewhere in a ditch!”
“Do you not like drinking tea with your wife, my lord?”
Fuu, one of the servants, squeaked and dropped a plate. Apart from her mutters of ‘sorry’ and the sound of her tiny steps pattering out the drawing room, you could hear a pin drop. The servants tensed as they watched Zuko glare Biyu down.
“I love drinking tea with my wife.” Zuko said with the energy and vigour of a man who really enjoyed spending time with his spouse and would naturally be offended at the implication that he didn’t. Katara made a mental note to tease him nonstop about tea time when they were alone, before she would proceed to make out with him. “Which is why I’m upset that I can’t enjoy my time with her because I’m worried about Aang!”
“I’m sorry my lord, that was a silly question.” Katara pretended to clean her mouth with a napkin while the usually cool-as-a-cucumber Biyu gave a small, nervous cough. She didn’t want to laugh at the poor man, even if she did find him annoying sometimes.
“What I’m trying to say is that you should relax with your lovely wife because I bet any minute now, the Avatar will walk through that door.” Biyu would be proven right, but at a cost…
The doors of the drawing room slammed open and as a white beam of light bathed the room, a small figure limped across the room to approach the Fire Lord. He looked frail and small compared to Zuko’s large stature, especially since he was barely holding onto an airbending staff.
Katara felt her heart plummet into her stomach as her worst fears had been confirmed.
“Aang!”
Zuko quickly grabbed the Avatar into an embrace before he could collapse onto the floor and held him gently in his arms, while the airbender caught his breath. Katara could feel her heart wince painfully at the hollow sound coming out his lungs and the wounds littered across his skin.
“Someone please bring water, lots of it!” Katara ordered the scattering servants, before joining her husband to comfort their friend. “Aang, are you okay? Speak slowly, tell us what happened.”
“I’m fine!” Aang gasped, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he leaned against Zuko for support. “The Equalists kidnapped me, took me to their base, but Jet…”
“Jet?!” Zuko exclaimed, anger bubbling beneath his voice. She could see the fire burning in his eyes and empathised with the rage he felt, the desire to avenge her friend against the freedom-fighter turned Equalist pulsing through her veins.
“He helped me escape, but we have to be quick. We’ve gotta - we’ve got to go back and save him!” The soft desperation in Aang’s voice contrasted the married couple’s ire. It quelled some of the fury Katara felt, but it was not enough to sway her to obey Aang’s demands.
“You can barely walk, even when holding your staff! You are not going anywhere!” Katara cried. “Especially not for Jet!”
Aang winced at the venom in Katara’s voice, but pressed on, grabbing onto her hand in a way that screamed: ‘listen to me!’ “Please, you have to understand!”
“No Aang, she’s right, you’re hurt.” Zuko said in a soothing voice that Katara loved. “And while I’m glad Jet helped you, we don’t know what his motivations are for letting you go. He could be plotting something.”
“No!” Aang said, the desperation clear in his eyes. “I promise, he’s changed! I could see it! I could see the doubt, the fear and inner conflict swirling inside him. Jet’s changed guys, I think he’s ready to leave the Equalists!”
Katara sighed, wanting to believe Aang for her friend’s sake, but experience taught her that what a person said and what a person did, did not always align together. She had no doubt that Jet smooth talked his way back into the Avatar’s good graces with that silver tongue of his, as he had once did back in Ba Sing Se.
“Aang…” Katara gave the airbender’s hand a tender squeeze. “We’ve been through this already. Jet has made his choice. He’s not going to let go of his hatred for the Fire Nation, even if it means hurting those he swore to protect.”
Katara knew that Jet had hurt Aang before he joined the equalists, so she hoped it would be enough to convince him to let the man go. But when Aang looked Katara right in the eyes, she knew he would not be persuaded, no matter what she said or did.
“Jet protected me.”
“Aang, buddy, you said that-”
“No.” Aang cut off Zuko, tears falling down his face and onto Zuko’s chest. “He sacrificed himself for me .”
Zuko and Katara waited to hear what Aang would say next, letting him have a good cry as he mustered the mental and physical energy to plead his case.
“There was only enough room for one person on the boat and the Equalists were right behind us, so he said: “Tell everyone I’m sorry” and “I’m glad I got to help you” before pushing the boat out.”
Aang started sobbing hard into Zuko’s shoulder, which prompted the Fire Lord to rub the back of his head in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. Katara bit her lip so she wouldn’t start crying too.
“I thought he was going to get in the boat with me! We’d have found a way, but he stayed behind to make sure I escaped, so we can’t just leave him back there! We can’t! I won’t!” Aang howled. “I can’t do that to him after he told me all the horrible things they did to him!”
Well. That decided it for Katara. And she knew it was decided for Zuko too when she looked into her husband’s eyes.
“We won’t leave him behind.” Katara said, putting her hand on Aang’s shoulder. “We’ll find Jet and rescue him.”
Katara was relieved to see the hope in Aang’s eyes return, only to be crushed by the following sentence:
“Oh I don’t think we’ll be doing that.” Katara and Zuko glared at Captain Biyu.
“And why would you not carry out a command from the Fire Lady, Captain Biyu? She gave you an order!” Katara grinned at her husband, loving how supportive he was.
“I apologise your highness, I have the highest respect for the queen.” Biyu said, bowing his head. “But I won’t send soldiers to rescue an Equalist .”
Aang looked like he was about to lose his temper with the captain, as he escaped from Zuko’s arms and used his staff to waddle over to the other man and say: “Ex-Equalist. An ex-Equalist who saved me from a fate worse than death. Doesn’t that matter?”
“Not to the people who have lost their loved ones.” Captain Biyu said with icy certainty as he looked Aang dead in the eyes. He walked around Aang to speak with Zuko and it took Katara every bit of self control in her body to not use her blood bending to throw him out the window.
“Fire Lord Zuko… I’m not doing this to be unkind.” Like monkey feathers he was! Katara rushed to hold Aang upright, while she burned holes into the captain’s back. “I’m doing this with your best interests at heart.”
“Leaving an honourable man to die is in my best interests?” Zuko asked, crossing his arms and blowing out steam from his nose. Katara would have laughed at her husband’s dragon-like mannerisms if she wasn’t also seething.
“If they are hated by the Fire Nation, then yes, it is!” Captain Biyu said, the passion in his voice slipping out. He took two determined steps towards the Fire Lord, made eye contact with him, kept his posture strong and sturdy, as if he were showing a powerful dragon that he would stand strong and stick with his beliefs.
“You have worked so hard to prove to everyone that you are the Fire Lord this country needs.” Katara gawked at the emotions he was displaying - pride, sadness and most of all - determination.
“You have made peace with the four nations, brought prosperity without sacrificing our natural resources, proved your enemies wrong when they wanted you to fail and even convinced a council of old relics that marrying a Water Tribe woman was the best idea since sliced bread.”
“Your point, Captain?” Zuko asked, shocked that the usually quiet captain was saying so much, but trying hard not to show it.
“Do not throw it all away for one man.” Biyu said. “Your reputation won’t survive it.”
Zuko quietly registered everything Captain Biyu had said and pinched the bridge of his nose. He let out one long, frustrated sigh.
“Zuko?” Katara didn’t like how quiet he was being. He should be telling Captain Biyu off, telling him screw his reputation, that it wasn’t worth anything without his honour! That was the man Katara fell in love with!
“Thank you for your council Captain Biyu, you and everyone else are dismissed.” Zuko’s words gripped Katara’s heart like a vice and squeezed . “We will not be sending my army to the Equalist’s secret base to find Jet.”
“What?” Aang body bristled with the rage, indignation and heartache Katara felt on the inside. “Zuko, you can’t be serious! Please, don’t do this!”
“You have made a wise choice my Lord.” When Captain Biyu bowed and followed the servants out the room, Katara deeply regretted her choice not to throw him out the window and would have corrected that mistake had she not been restraining Aang.
Instead, Katara comforted her friend, who was crying in her arms and sobbing: “No, no, no!”
“Shhh, it’s going to be okay.” she said as she laid Aang down onto one of the couches and started healing his wounds with the water the servants left behind. Healing her best friend was a much needed distraction from how disappointed and angry she was at her husband.
“I know what you’re both thinking…” Zuko started to say, the guilt thick in his voice.
“I don’t want to hear it!”Katara snapped as she applied her watery cool touch to the gash on Aang’s head. “How could you do this to Aang?! You’re the Fire Lord Zuko, not Biyu!”
“That doesn’t mean I can do whatever I want Katara.” Zuko said as he kneeled next to his wife.
“Well then what’s the point?!” Katara shouted as she added balm to the wound she healed on Aang’s head before moving onto his next injury. The Avatar flinched at the pain in his friend’s voice, but chose to stay quiet and let the married couple sort out their problems. “You became the Fire Lord because you wanted to help.”
“And I can’t do that if I don’t have the support of my people.” Zuko said. “So we’ll have to find another way.”
“Well then what about the support of your wife and family?! What about that, huh?!” Katara’s healing efforts were stopped short by a tender hand holding her cheek. She felt her head gently being turned so she could see the look of devotion in her husband’s eyes.
“I have always put you first.” Zuko said in the quietest, doting voice Katara had ever heard as he cupped her face in his hands. “And I always will.”
The night Zuko jumped in front of Azula’s bolt of lightning to save her life flashed before Katara’s eyes and a burst of love for Zuko bloomed in her chest despite how angry she was. It was the last straw as she broke down and cried in Zuko’s arms.
“I know.” Katara sobbed. “I’m sorry, I know you care about us, it’s just so unfair!”
“It’s okay, I know.” Zuko said as he buried his nose deep into Katara’s hair, soothingly rubbing her back as she vented her emotions. “I’m angry at myself for not telling Biyu off too. Should have banished him when he questioned my love for tea time.”
Katara snickered into her husband’s chest. Despite being in a lot of pain, Aang raised a delicate eyebrow.
“Tea time?” Aang asked, his voice lulling Katara back into full healer mode.
“It’s a long story buddy.” It wasn’t, but from how Zuko was blushing so prettily, it seemed that he didn’t want to explain how whipped he was when it came to his wife. He reached out for Aang’s hand and held it. “All you need to know is that I am not going to leave Jet behind.”
“And how are you going to do that without taking an army with you?” Katara asked.
“I’m going to go find my friend.” Zuko said. “The Blue Spirit.”
Katara looked at Zuko like he had grown a platypus bear tail.
“The what? Isn’t he an urban legend?” Katara stared at Aang, hoping he would know who her husband was talking about.
“Um…” Aang stared at Zuko like he was crying for help. “I heard he was a dude in a blue mask who robbed the rich and gave to the poor but didn’t he… You know… Quit?”
Katara looked back at her husband, who seemed… strangely confident.
“He’s a very old friend of mine, I’m sure he’ll be willing to come out of retirement to help me.” Zuko smiled.
Katara wanted to butt in and say: ‘When did you make this friend without me or anyone else in our gang knowing?’ before the Avatar finished his exchanged with the Fire Lord:
“Well, as long as I get to come along to say hi to the Blue Spirit before he rescues Jet, that’s perfectly fine with me!” Just as Aang was about to get up, Zuko set him back down on the coach. “Zuko!”
“Aang, if Jet is injured and he needs to be carried back to the palace, my friend won’t be able to rescue him if he has to carry you as well.” Zuko said in what he hoped was an authoritative, but kind tone.
“But… he saved me.” Aang said softly. Katara could hear and relate to the pining in Aang’s voice and it took every bit of self restraint for her to not just give him a big, big hug. He looked so lost and sad.
“Then repay him by recovering your health and being ready to get him out of here when it’s no longer convenient to hide him.” Zuko said. “Because I don’t think I’ll be able to shelter an Equalist inside the palace for very long.”
“So you’re going to rescue him?” Katara asked.
Zuko took Katara’s hand and kissed it. “Be patient and wait for me until morning. I promise that I will have found a solution to our problem without endangering you or Aang.”
“Wait for him until morning, wait for him until morning! Who does that man think I am, hmm?!” Katara growled as she fastened the last bandage around Aang’s arm, making him wince at how tight it was. “Next thing he’ll be saying I should stay in the healing huts with the women!”
“I’m sure that’s not why he wanted us to stay behind.” Aang smiled before he glared off into the distance. “Though he’ll get his when I’m in good health again.”
Katara and Aang took one look at each other before they burst into a fit of giggles.
“Boy, Zuko’s in for a butt kicking when he comes back, huh?” Katara grinned.
“If Jet’s not back in one piece he will be.” Aang sighed, rubbing his injured arm up and down before closing his eyes. “I hope that whatever Zuko’s planning, Jet will be okay.”
There were so many questions Katara wanted to ask Aang. How did Aang end up meeting Jet last night? Did he go to Jet of his own accord or was he kidnapped by the Equalists? Did he and Jet have any real time to talk about what was happening or did Jet decide to let him go as a spur of the moment thing? Was Jet’s redemption real?
She also knew Aang had gotten close to Jet before he joined the Equalists, but why was he willing to take a huge risk to get him back? Was he making a mistake by empathising with him?
‘Deep breaths Katara.’ she said as she twisted the wedding ring on her finger, remembering the time Zuko said “That’s something we had in common” back in the Crystal Caves. ‘Things worked out for the best after that day, I just gotta hope things will work out for Aang too.’
Katara clasped Aang’s hand before she said: “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he comes home in one piece.”
Aang looked surprised. “How?”
Katara snorted: “Well, let’s just say Zuko isn’t the only one who has an old friend who owes her a favour.”
“Katara, no!” she smirked when her friend put the pieces together.
“Katara, yes!”
“Katara, no! Having two vigilantes rescue Jet could… complicate things.” Aang started to sweat nervously. “Let’s be sensible and wait until morning, I’m sure Zuko will have found the Blue Spirit by then.”
‘But that’s time Jet probably doesn’t have.’ Katara thought as she looked at Aang’s injuries. If they wanted Aang alive, who knows what the Equalists would do to a traitor.
“Why wait until morning when you could see Jet again tonight?” Katara winked. No point in making her friend worry more when he was ready to fly out the window with his glider.
“Katara, you’re impossible.” Aang grumbled as his cheeks glowed pink.
“I love you too.” Katara said as she poked him in the cheek, before calling out to the hallway. “Doctor Li?”
The clack of heels revealed a sophisticated-looking Fire Nation woman with glasses holding a scroll, most likely holding Aang’s medical notes. She gave Katara a small bow and said in a calming voice: “Good evening Fire Lady Katara, how can I help you today?”
“Aang’s been through a lot today and I don’t want him to be alone, but I need to run an errand for him.” Katara gave Aang a one-arm hug around his shoulders, which made the airbender pout. “Would you please watch over him until I come back?”
“Of course your highness. He shall receive the best care.” Doctor Li winked at Aang, making him huddle under the covers a little. He had heard Katara and Zuko talk about Doctor Li before, but he never had the pleasure of meeting them.
“Exactly what I wanted to hear! See you later Aang, I’ll have a present for you when I come back.” Katara smirked at him. Aang glared at Katara as she scurried out the room, never looking back as she left him behind.
“Just don’t get into a fight with the Blue Spirit when you see him!” he shouted after her.
“Not if I get to Jet first!” Katara called back as she ran down the hallway.
Aang grumpily resided back into his hospital bed as Doctor Li smiled serenely at him. Katara seemed to trust her and she looked friendly enough, so Aang turned his head to her to say: “She and my friend Zuko literally share the same brain cell.”
Doctor Li looked around to see if anyone was listening, leaned in close to Aang and whispered: “I know.”
It took all of Aang’s willpower not to just go into the Avatar State and jump out the window to get Jet himself.
Katara felt like one of those ‘super heroes’ in those new plays Sokka, Toph and Aang enjoyed whenever a live theatre performance was happening in whichever city they happened to be visiting. She didn’t have a cape but it felt really good to don the hat, face-paint and red dress after years of keeping her costume in the closet.
“Hello The Painted Lady, good to see you after all these years!” she finger snapped at the image in her mirror, before climbing outside her window and traversing the Fire Nation Palace. She had been living there with Zuko for years and they’d often sneak around the palace guards to avoid detection for their trysts, so she had gotten very good at outsmarting the guards.
She allowed herself a moment to think: ‘it’s a beautiful night, shame Zuko didn’t take me with him to meet The Blue Spirit.’ before taking an ostrich horse from the stables. They were tiny compared to khimodo rhinos and fast, perfect for helping her transport an injured person quietly.
‘Ugh.’ Katara grimaced. ‘I’m going to have to talk to Jet again.’
She made a silent prayer for Jet to be knocked out or too injured to do too much talking because while she would do almost anything for her best friend Aang, she was still pretty furious with Jet for claiming he had changed, joining the Equalists and… No, she didn’t want to get into the third reason because it would just demotivate her from going ahead with this rescue plan and she couldn’t return to Aang empty handed.
‘Just follow the directions Aang gave you.’ Katara left the ostrich horse by the beach and looked out onto the ocean.
She suspected that the Equalists had never expected a waterbender to come and invade their territory in the Fire Nation, but it was a breeze to surf her way to their secret island. She just had to be very careful not to be spotted by the enemy and Equalist Island’s beach was crawling with them.
“Go through the palm trees, sneak behind the rocks, climb up the tree that looks like an old man, watch out for the big burly guard at the front entrance…” Katara quietly recited Aang’s instructions as she pushed through the greenery. She was glad she had practiced rock climbing in her downtime. Using her waterbending to glue herself to the walls as she scaled them was so much fun and made easy work of moving around undetected.
The only problem was… Which building was Jet being kept in?
“If I were an Equalist, where would I imprison a traitor?” Katara asked herself, before she started giggling. “Now if I were Amon I’d hang Jet by his toes but I think he prefers a more sophisticated mode of torture.”
Katara regretted saying that immediately when she heard the man himself crying out in pain, the sound followed by gut wrenching punches to the stomach. She gasped and snuck quietly towards the nearest window where she heard the sound coming from.
Despite how cold her hand was, she had to clasp her mouth closed so she wouldn’t give herself away as she peaked through the window.
“That’s quite enough.” A masked man emerged from the shadows and the crowd of people who were gleefully tearing into Jet dispersed like waves in the ocean. The masked man slinked towards Jet, tutting and shaking his head like a hawk who was examining their pathetic prey. “Oh Jet… I’m so very disappointed.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you are.” Jet smirked before spitting out the blood in his mouth. “You must be so hurt by my sudden yet inevitable betrayal.”
“Not really… I could tell that you and the Avatar are quite good friends.” Katara didn’t like the way Amon said that and Jet didn’t seem to either when his cool and calm exterior faltered for a second. “I must praise you for how easily you were able to gain his trust after everything you did.”
“He believes that I can become a good man.” Jet confessed, a fond little smile blossoming onto his face despite the circumstances. Katara frowned, having a hard time disbelieving that Jet’s fondness for Aang wasn’t real despite her better judgement. “He’s an utter fool.”
“An utter fool for you.” Amon corrected, prowling around Jet before delicately raising his chin with his fingertips and looking deep into the ex-freedom fighter’s eyes. “Which is going to be oh so helpful when you lure your powerful friend back to our island.”
“Excuse me?” Jet’s mind blanked.
“I’m not a petty man Jet, I believe anyone can learn from their mistakes. What kind of man would I be if I didn’t give one of my followers a chance at redemption?” Amon leaned in close as if he were a lover whispering sweet nothings into his beloved’s ear. “I know he told you things. Made you believe that you were equals, made you believe that you were special to him.”
Katara had to take a deep breath to resist the urge to jump in there and knock Amon out because she recognised gaslighting when it was coming.
“But look at you… You’re here, tied up and beaten, while the Avatar probably forgot all about you the minute he got home.” Amon held his own chin and struck a curious pose. “Where oh where could your saviour be at this hour?”
“I don’t regret what I did.” Jet told Amon. “I don’t care if he comes back for me.”
‘Yes, well done Jet!’ Katara mentally praised him. ‘Never give these jerks the reaction they want!’
Amon and Jet glared at each silently for a full five tense seconds before Amon loosened up and turned his back to Jet. “Then you’ll die at sunrise.”
“Then how will you get to the Avatar?” Jet asked, bargaining for his life.
“I’m sure it will be much, much easier to kidnap the Avatar next time I see him. I’m sure he’ll be terribly distraught when he finds your body strung up outside the Fire Nation Palace.” Katara’s skin crawled at how absolutely giddy Amon seemed to be at the prospect.
“Clever idea, get the Avatar mad, send him into the Avatar State.” Jet rolled his eyes, refusing to let the prospect of death phase him. “I’m sure you’ll win that fight.”
“I’m happy to test my luck.” Amon said as if he knew something Jet didn’t. “Unless you accept my offer, so your precious Avatar won’t have to suffer knowing that he killed his friend.”
Jet mulled the offer over. “Master… Please come closer… I think I have made my choice.”
‘No!!!’ Katara grit her teeth. ‘I was rooting for you!’
On the one hand, Katara would achieve her dream of finally having a just reason to kill Jet. On the other hand, she could picture Aang’s face when she tried to explain to him why she had to take him out and it made her want to die on the spot.
She would have screamed if it wouldn’t have given her location away!
“I am so glad you have started to see things my way, my child.” Amon moved forward gracefully to embrace Jet before the young man hocked a loogie and spat in his face.
Nobody moved or made a sound. A look of horror spread like a virus among Amon’s followers as they watch Jet’s saliva slide down their glorious leader’s face and drip to the floor, as if to punctuate the man’s humiliation.
“That’s what I think of your off-” Jet didn’t get to finish that sentence because Amon punched him so hard he knocked a tooth out of his mouth.
“At sunrise I want him dead.” Amon told his followers as he made angry strides towards the exit, ignoring Jet’s wheezing cries of pain. “Tonight I’ll decide the most gruesome way to kill him, but for now he can rot in this room.”
“Yes Amon.” All his followers said in unison as they trailed behind their leader, the last one of them locking the door with a decisive thunk.
Katara took the opportunity to exhale the breath she had been holding.
“You sure know how to clear a room, don’t you Jet?” Katara chuckled as she climbed through the window. She frowned when Jet didn’t respond. “Jet? Jet are you okay? It’s me.”
Katara paused, remembering her current getup.
“I mean, it’s probably better if you refer to me as The Painted Lady since I’m on a dangerous rescue mission, but you recognise me, right?”
Jet groaned in pain. He was struggling to lift his head and wasn’t opening his yes.
“Oh dear, I got my wish didn’t I?” Katara bemoaned her current situation, it was going to be difficult to get Jet back to the palace by herself when he was in this state. “Don’t worry, I’ll patch you up and you’ll be as good as new.”
“Not so fast…”
Katara froze, cursing herself for not scanning the room before entering. How could she have missed one of them?
“This man is coming with me.”
Katara turned around to see a demonic blue face emerge from the darkness, its white fangs glinting in the moonlight and its hollow eyes staring at her in a way that made her feel like he was looking deep into her soul. She shivered, slightly intimidated by his size and the broadswords he held in his hands, but she was a Master waterbender. She wasn’t going to back down.
“I don’t think so.” Katara took a protective stance in front of Jet to shield him from any attacks. “I’m The Painted Lady. I made a promise to a friend and I’m not breaking it. If you want Jet, you’ll have to fight me for him.”
When Katara had emerged from the moonlight, something about The Blue Spirit changed. He gasped, putting away his swords and just staring into her eyes as he admired the way they glowed so prettily in the night.
“Katara, is that you?” Suddenly, the other man no longer held an aura of power and intimidation.
She would recognise that voice anywhere!
“Zuko?” she cried.
The mysterious man took off his mask and revealed himself to be none other than Katara’s really, really dumb husband. Katara burst out laughing at The Blue Spirit’s secret identity reveal and kicked herself for not realising that her husband’s ‘friend’ was actually an alter ego. “Oh my goodness, it’s you!”
Seemed as if Zuko shared her sense of humour because he couldn’t stop chuckling and even had to wipe a few tears from his eyes from how amused he was to find his wife was also a vigilante.
“Oh my gosh, we really do have so much in common.”
Oh. That did it. Katara wanted to kiss her husband right then, right there. It seemed as if Zuko had read Katara’s mind, as he walked towards her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He took a moment to just take in the sight of Katara in her Painted Lady outfit and said: “I should have taken you with me.”
“You’re darn right you should have.” She stood on her tippy toes and bridged the gap between her and Zuko with a kiss. She got shivers down her spine as her husband started reciprocating. They had smooched like this dozens of times and loved it, but this kiss felt like their first because once again they were exploring new and uncharted territory together.
While she wondered why Zuko kept this a secret from her, she found it incredibly exciting her husband had this alter ego she didn’t know about. Even though they had gotten very comfortable with one another, there were still lots of surprises to come in their marriage. And she looked forward to discovering every single one.
“Um…” she just barely heard Jet in the background. “Who ARE you?”
Katara reluctantly broke the kiss with an exasperated sigh and turned to look at a concussed Jet.
“Recognise me now?” Katara took off her hat so Jet could see her face properly.
Jet stared at Katara. Then stared at Zuko who was rubbing Katara’s lipstick off of his mouth. Then stared at Katara again. Then closed his eyes and regretted his life choices.
“I just watched my least favourite couple make out, didn’t I?”
“Yep.” Zuko licked his lips like a satisfied, smug cat.
“You can leave me to die here now.”
“No.” Katara said, putting her hands on his hips. Her word was final.
“Okay, just don’t do t hat again.” Jet grimaced.
“No promises.” Zuko said as he grabbed Katara by the hip and kissed her cheek. Katara giggled, knowing that if Jet didn’t enjoy the boat ride home, at least she would.
“Very cute, you’ve been married for this long and are still finding out new things about each other - now will you untie me please?”
After Katara spent a good hour using her waterbending to turn the boat Zuko brought into a speedboat (she kicked herself for not thinking of that) she was pooped. She gratefully took her husband’s hand as she got off the boat and made her way to the ostrich horse she left behind. She smiled at seeing its twin standing right next to it.
“Stop copying me.” Katara teased as she playfully hit him on the shoulder.
“I’m sure I’ve been The Blue Spirit longer than you have been The Painted Lady, so if anything, you should stop copying me.” Zuko bopped her on the nose. She’d get him for that later, in private.
“Your flirting makes me feel sick.” Jet said as he skulked towards the ostrich horses. “You two literally share one braincell.”
“Now I know you’re just saying that because you miss Aang.” Katara teased. “Don’t worry, we’ll see him again shortly.”
Jet just grunted and attempted to climb onto Zuko’s ostrich horse. Attempted being the key word because he winced when he tried to pull himself up. Katara was a great healer, but it was a miracle that Jet was even on his feet right now.
“Here.” Zuko came up behind Jet and lifted him by his armpits. “I’ll help you.”
Jet was too tired to protest and accepted his passenger seat on Zuko’s steed.
“Let’s ride.”
Katara felt relieved once they started riding towards the palace, but there was one thing still bugging her. She shyly looked towards her husband and gathered the courage to ask the question that had been bugging her all night:
“If you were going to rescue Jet, why didn’t you take me with you?”
Zuko’s concentration broke away from the road, shock and a bit of guilt overcoming him. He bit his lip, mulling over how he should explain his actions. The question seemed to get Jet’s attention too, as he looked to see how the Fire Lord would respond.
“I didn’t want anyone to blame you if the rescue had gone wrong.” Zuko decided to give an honest answer.
“What?” Katara snorted.
“We know what some of the foolish people in this country think about you.” Zuko knuckles turned white as he gripped on his ostrich horse’s reins. “I didn’t want to give them an excuse to make up stupid reasons for why I should divorce you.”
Katara chuckled.
“When have I ever cared about what those idiots think?” Katara had developed a very tough skin over the years. She knew that her marriage made some people very angry, but at the end of the day, that was their problem and not hers. “They don’t bother me.”
“But they do bother me .” Zuko said. “When I married you I promised I would always have your back, the way you always have mine. I know you’re strong and it’s one of the reasons I love you, but I can’t help but want to protect you.”
“Even if that means leaving me behind sometimes?” Zuko stopped his ostrich horse and so did Katara.
“You were mad at me for leaving, weren’t you?” Zuko asked, reaching to hold his wife’s hand.
Katara stared back at the ocean, before pulling at her hair and shyly saying: “A little, yes… Although now I understand why you thought you had to go alone.”
Zuko kissed her hand.
“I’m sorry.” he said. “I should have talked to you first.”
“You should have.” Katara agreed. “Next time I hope you will.”
“That’s a promise, The Painted Lady.”
“I love you, The Blue Spirit.”
“I love you too.”
Zuko and Katara looked into each other’s eyes before sharing a sweet and simple kiss, that was very chaste compared to the heated one they shared back on Equalist island. Jet timidly looked away to give the couple their privacy.
Once they were done he blurted out: “Thank you… for rescuing me. Even though I didn’t deserve your help.” The ex-equalist shoulders were tense and he refused to make eye-contact with either Zuko or Katara, but they could tell his gratitude was genuine.
Whoa! Katara was not expecting that. “You have Aang to thank for that. If he wasn’t hurt he would have stormed Equalist Island to come get you, we just took his place.”
“So you had better show him how grateful you are when you see him.” Zuko snarled as he commanded his ostrich horse to start running again. Katara wanted to laugh at how protective Zuko was being. He really could be such a dad sometimes and he looked like an unhappy father about to reunite their child with an undesirable suitor.
‘Gran Gran was right. Marriage is full of surprises.’ And it wasn’t plain sailing all the time. Katara sometimes had her doubts and worries, but she never regretted her choice to go on this journey with Zuko. She looked forward to exploring old and uncharted waters with him for the rest of their lives.