Katara checks down both sides to make sure there is no one in the hall. Luckily, there isn't. Pushing herself off the wall, she creeps towards the direction of the deck, practically tip-toeing and hugging the shadows so that she won't be seen.
The flats are all silent on the floor and for that, she's thankful because her heart is beating loudly enough for anyone remotely close to hear it.
Her blood is racing excitedly though her veins, palms itching for a fight because of all the anticipation building up inside of her and the sinking feeling in her stomach that she's going to get caught. But she won't – Katara isn't going back down in some cell for two weeks and she'll fight back. If she can make it to the deck before they catch her, she'll be fine… she thinks…
The moon is pulling at her body as if it's attached thousands of tiny strings to her arms and legs. Her body moves without her even telling it to, and eagerness catches in her throat because she's finally going to feel the moon and she hasn't seen it in so long –
– she hears her guest's heartbeat before she actually sees him.
Katara lies flat up against the wall, attempting to absorb into the metal as if she's invisible. Her breathing stops because for some reason, she just can't, and her eyes are wide and the beats are getting nearer, stronger.
They can see her. Oh Spirits, she's going in the cell for sure if she doesn't get on the deck before they grab her.
But the person turns down a hall. The beats dim as more distance is put between the two. Katara is finally able to breathe again.
Her legs don't start moving again though – the person, they really scared her for a moment. This is too dangerous, she's risking too much coming out here and she should go back to her room. The moon, though…
A frustrated whimper escapes her and she closes her eyes. The moon wants her to go one way but common sense is telling her to go back to her room and forget that this ever happened. It's what she should do. It's safer in her cell; she won't be locked in a real prison for the remainder of her trip if she goes back to her bed and goes to sleep.
She's so absorbed in her dilemma that he doesn't even register the other heartbeat until they're far too close for her liking
Someone's hand wraps around her arm and yanks her into a corner. She's pressed up against the wall before she can even blink. One hand is on her arm, pressing her deeper into the darkness and the other is over her mouth so that she can't even gasp in surprise.
Stupid.
Her eyes are wide and straining in the darkness so that she can try to see who he is. She can't though, but luckily his hands are staying where they are and he is trying to steady his heartbeat. Katara doesn't lift her hands to fight him off. Yet. But if he so much as moves…
"What are you doing out here?" Lee hisses and she probably shouldn't be startled but she is. "Do you know what you're risking? Do you know what will happen if you get caught?"
Katara sort of rolls her eyes at the irony – Lee has, after all, caught her in the hall and all he's doing is scolding her. She can't speak though with his hand covering her mouth. So she settles for worming her hands between them to try to shove him away. Lee sighs but backs away just slightly, turning his head to look back down the hallway.
His heart has calmed down considerably but it's still racing. He starts to tug her back towards her room and she's going willingly before the moon pulls at her blood and she freezes. The moon – it's so close, it's just around the corner and she really needs the energy so that she can feel whole again.
"What are you doing?" Lee tugs on her arm a bit harder. Katara moves an inch. "Are you crazy? Snap out of it, Katara, we need to get you back before someone sees you!"
She turns her head to look over her shoulder and she swears she can see the light around the bend. It's tugging at her: her blood, her heart, her mind, her legs - they're all affected and she really just wants to see it. It's been so long…
Lee's yanking at her. He's huffing, his heart pounding in his chest and she knows that if she only had the full power of the moon in her blood, she could make him let her go but she doesn't and that's why she needs to see it. That's why she needs to feel it on her skin and her face. She needs it more than anything and Lee's stopping her.
He's shocked when she begins to wrench herself away from him, fighting with his tugs by planting her feet firmly on the ground and throwing her weight back. He's strong though and he holds on. Katara gets a hand free and starts digging her nails into his skin and he hisses.
"Katara." Lee gives her one strong pull and she's yanked forward into his chest. Lee makes quick work, picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder. His heart is racing faster than she thought possible and he's practically running back to her room.
She fights him every step of the way. She wriggles, twisting and turning and he's holding on to her with both of his arms wrapped around her now. Katara bites into his back, claws her nails across the fabric of his tunic, presses her knees into his chest and stomach. Her eyes are wide, frantic just like her blood because the moon is disappearing. She can't see the light anymore.
A door opens and she's thrown unceremoniously on her bed. Katara snaps up in an instant, scowling and she's racing for it again – Lee stops her with a strong swoop of his arm against her midsection and she's tossed up against the dresser.
She catches herself – barely – and she's rushing at him again, her hands already working to pull water from the air. But she's too weak for that and she didn't get to the moon so all she gets is dryness on her palms.
The feeling enrages her. Katara starts hitting him, punching him as he stands in between her and the closed door. He's trying to hold her back, grasping at her wrists to restrain her but he's meeting only empty air.
"Katara – stop, stop this!" Lee finally grabs onto her arm and Katara punches him square in the jaw with her free one before he grabs that one as well. Katara is a crying, kicking mess when he pushes her back to her bed. She hadn't even realized that she was tearing up.
Water. Her fingers flick and the water from her cheeks disappears to form a small whip. It's pathetic, but Lee's eyes widen and she starts working her feet in between them to push at his stomach so that she has room to bend.
"Katara." He's panicking because she's winning. He's no longer pushing her into the mattress and her desperation is overpowering his strength. The moon – she needs the moon so much it hurts.
His heart pumping lets her know that Lee is actually frightened. Katara snarls at him and manages to push against him hard enough that he actually lets go of her wrists. Her hands raise and the water whip swipes at his cheek – a scratch – and she's already bounding for the door.
"Wait – no!" Lee is calling out after her. But her hand is on the knob and she's turning it, yanking it open and now she's running out and into –
– Katara collides against a chest and she rebounds back into the room, having made no more than a step outside. She lands on her back, palms already going to the floor to push herself up but there's a boot on her chest that presses her down. She hits her head on the metal ground and she snaps her eyes closed.
A searing heat passes by her head and her water whip is evaporated instantly. Her lips curl into a sneer, rage making her see in red and black and she looks up at the man who had dared stop her from going to the moon.
It's the guard who demanded an apology from her.
Another steps in from behind him and the door closes solidly. The sound echoes in the small room. A chill runs down her back.
Katara refuses to look away from his stare, the scowl still on her lips. It doesn't look much different from this man's smile.
"Soldier Ji - Prince Zuko has orders and -" Lee starts to step forward. The other guard steps between the two, stopping Lee's advance even though his eyes haven't left the man whose boot is planted on her chest.
"I know what the Prince ordered." Ji snaps back. "Don't quite understand why he's so adamant that the waterbender remain untouched. She's the one who started it all."
"Get off of me." She warns in a low growl.
Ji bends down a little. "Or you'll what?" Her eyes narrow. His glisten from amusement. "The little Prince still hasn't managed to get anything out of you, has he? Can't say I like his idea of interrogation. Much prefer Zhao's myself. You know, there's men on the ship who love to tell stories about how you screamed like a whore when he burned you."
Her nails dig into the metal floor. Lee tries to move again but he's stopped by the other guard.
"I wonder how loud I can make you scream?"
"Soldier Ji you don't want to do this." Lee says tightly. Ji doesn't look away. All the fury and hatred and hunger on his face is directed straight at her. Katara refuses to falter. She won't be shown up by him.
Ji holds his palm up, flicks his fingers and a ball of flame appears. Katara can't help that her eyes immediately shift to it, blood starting to freeze in her veins as her body tenses. The soldier with the sick smile notices because soon after, the flame burns brighter.
"They say that Water Tribe women taste the sweetest of all the women in the world." Ji speak nonchalantly. He twists his wrist and the flame disappears but Katara's shoulder stay strained tight against the floor. "They also say that they burn the brightest."
"You're sick," she repeats the words she had thrown at Zuko earlier. Only this time, she means it.
"Oh am I? Funny, I'm not the firebender who lets prisoners get by easily just because they spread their legs." He looks down at hers. "Even if they are nice."
Katara's heart is hammering in her chest. So is Lee's. The other firebenders, though...their's is so calm and steady that it's almost scaring her.
"I think she likes it, Ji." The other guard chuckles. "But we should show her how real firebenders treat their prisoners."
Lee surges forward but the guard slams him back up against the wall. Ji looks at the two. "Knock him out. He'll cause too much trouble if you don't."
The other guard, larger and more muscular, has no trouble taking Lee's head and pounding it up against the wall. Katara shakes, jumping at the harsh sound. Her eyes watch as her ally's body slumps and then drops to the ground with a thud. She's alone.
Ji moves his foot and grabs her by the arms. He hauls her up easily, like she weighs nothing and is trash, and brings her face right up to his. His palms are warm but not comfortable. They burn, searing through her fabric so that his fingers touch her bare skin while his breath that smells of brimstone washes over her face.
"You should have apologized when you had the chance."
Katara forces down the wince when his palms start to heat up. She can't show weakness. Not here, not now. She's a waterbender, and water will always be stronger than fire. They can burn her but they won't touch her.
"I'll never apologize to Fire Nation scum." She's haughty, scowling with the fierceness of a mother polar beast. Ji doesn't like her answer and he manages to look every bit as angry as Zhao when he throws her down on the bed.
Katara bounces, head hitting the pillow at an uncomfortable angle and pain shoots down her neck. Hot hands are pulling at her ankles, yanking her further down the mattress and another pair is at her wrists, forcing them up above her head with her palms facing down.
"Try to waterbend all you want. You're not getting out of this." Ji gives her a smile that makes her stomach churn. Katara kicks, hits his chest and his jaw before he growls and grabs them. There's fire - flaming, hot and bright yellow and she arches her back to gasp. It hurts - so much pain and anger lacing up from her ankles where he's still holding her and she jolts, trying to yank her legs out of his grasp.
He drops them and she gasps as the cold air licks at the burns. Her blood is already churning, the healing making her teeth gnash in slight pain but she can't think about that. Ji's hands are on her waist and his knee is forcing her legs apart.
"Scream." The guard at her head jeers.
Katara doesn't scream. Instead, she snarls. Snarls like a rabid beast as her hips buck to get his heated hands off of her and away from the rising hem of her tunic. He gives up on bringing it up, instead he lights it on fire.
Flames touch her abdomen and chest and she bites her tongue to keep from crying out. The taste of blood forces her to concentrate on getting him off and soon she's arching her back up to get some distance between their touching bodies. Ji sucks the flames up and off of her clothes. Or what remains of her clothes. She feels more cold air on her exposed skin than she ever wants.
The man at her head moves her hands and soon they're buried up underneath the pillow. Katara arches her hips down and away from Ji's yearning hands, pressing them into the mattress so that he can't tug down her leggings to get what he wants.
Her fingers scrape against metal.
Her focus sharpens.
The knife is in her hands.
Before she can even think about what she's going to do next, she grabs it so hard that her nails dig into the skin when she has the knife in her palm. Katara uses every bit of strength she has to yank her arms out from the pillow and she pulls with all of her might. Her body snaps out of the man's gasp and soon she's meeting Ji's surprised - panicked - eyes.
Katara stabs the knife so deep in his heart that one of her fingers slips into the wound too.
She yanks the blade out. Looking straight into his eyes, she stabs again. And again. Hard, heavy stabs that have as much hate in them as his eyes had earlier. She's painting his distaste onto her new canvas. Her hatred and his are mixing together to bleed the life out of him.
Blood, hot and red and sick, spills instantly onto her skin. Everyone is in so much shock that they can't do anything but watch as her hands are stained red. It oozes, spurts, dripping down his shirt, onto her fingers, and onto her bedspread and her leggings.
She's frozen. Something about the way the blood pours out has her transfixed. She can't look away.
Ji's eyes roll and he falls to the side. His heartbeat is so slow that she knows he doesn't have much longer than a few moments left. Katara's hand shakes where she still has it held, empty, in mid-air. Her knife is deep in his chest.
There's a gurgle, a wet moan. And then there's nothing.
She can't breathe. Her hands are warmer than they should be. Looking down, she sees that they are still instead of shaking. They're...calm. So calm that it scares her just as much as the redness that is seeping into her skin.
Did she cut herself? No - the redness is his - it's Ji's. It's all his and it's all so much.
Katara hears the faint, rapid heartbeat of the other guard and she turns sharply to face him. His eyes are wide, but when hers narrow and she starts moving her wrists to gather some of Ji's blood, they go wider and wider until they take up his entire face.
He was going to hold her down. He was going to show her how real firebenders kept their prisoners. He was helping Ji -
She wanted his red, too.
The blood follows her commands. It wraps around the unknown man's neck and she pulls it tighter and tighter like a rope. He claws at his neck, fingers sliding through the redness until they drop at his side.
The only heartbeats in the room are her's and Lee's.
She drops the control over her bending and the blood spills onto the man's neck and torso. The collar of his white shirt turns pink, the blood expanding over his skin and the shirt and she can't help but watch as she sits. Her eyes are wide.
Her breath so far has been calm.
She blinks. She... The men... Red. There is so much red and it's everywhere. Panic clutches at her throat and she's gasping and jumping - falling - off of the bed. She slips on some blood and falls onto the floor. Hands scraping and sliding across the floor, she doesn't stop scattering away from the bed until her back hits the far wall.
She...She... She just killed two men.
It should not startle her. And for some reason, she doesn't think that the death part does. She's killed people before. Lots of people. But...the blood...
It's all over her hands and her body and she thinks she can feel it on her face. She's stained with Ji's red and it's sinking into her flesh and -
- her nails are clawing frantically at her skin and she's ripping what's left of her clothes off. Her bindings are on haphazardly, and they're charred in some places but the necessities are still covered. She can't even look at herself because all she can see is red and blood and death.
She's shaking, shivering on the cold metal ground. But it's not from the cold - it's from the red.
So absorbed in the redness that covers her she is, that she doesn't even realize that on the other wall, Lee's heart is beating more strongly and he's stirring. Her head is buried between her knees and her arms are wrapped around her legs. She can't even bring herself to cry.
"Katara..." Someone whispers gingerly. She freezes. A hand - gentle but cautious - brushes against the bare skin of her arm. Katara jolts away and the touch leaves. "Katara what happened?"
She sniffs and finally brings herself to look up. Her eyes swim for a moment before they adjust and she sees Lee looking at her with concern. "They're dead."
His eyes drift down her body - Ji's red - and they widen a little. When he finally stands and looks at the bed, he breathes in sharply. Katara wonders if what he sees is the red, too. Maybe he sees other colors like her blue.
"Come on." He says softly. Cautiously, he puts his hands on her arms and he slowly pulls her up. Katara puts her legs underneath her even though they're shaking. Her hand rests on his shoulder for support. "We need to inform the Prince about what happened."
He finds a cloak - one that isn't destroyed by the red - and drapes it across her shoulders. Katara doesn't have the strength to close it, so she lets it hang open. The red is exposed for all the ship to see.
But they don't see anyone. Not when they go outside the door - Lee closes it behind her - and not when they walk down the hall towards Zuko's room. Katara's hands hang limply by her sides but she holds her head high. The red may stain her body but she infected those men with her blue. She showed that she was not going to lay by without a fight.
Lee knocks on the Prince's door. Unlike other times, he doesn't automatically open it. Instead he waits and Katara realizes they are at the Prince's bedchamber rather than his office. They wait.
The Prince opens the door, rubbing his eyes and scowling. "What is..." He trails off when he sees the waterbender. Straightening, he looks to Lee for an explanation. "What happened?"
He steps aside so that Lee can prod Katara into entering. She hesitates but soon steps inside.
"Ji and Cho tried to attack her. They knocked me out but..." He looks at the Prince and gulps. "They're dead. I'm not sure what happened other than that.
"Your men," Katara says before Zuko can ask her for her story. "Your men tried to rape me." She swallows down the sickness that she feels in her throat. "I killed them before they could do anything."
She doesn't mention the red, the blood. That's on her body, a part of the story he has to see for himself.
Zuko looks down and she thinks she can see some shame in his eyes but she's not for sure. His arms cross over his bare chest and he turns to Lee. "Get rid of the bodies. We will tell the crew what happens to traitors tomorrow. Send one of the servants to clean up the mess when you've disposed of them."
Lee nods, gives Katara one last look, and then ducks out of the room.
"Did they hurt you?" Zuko asks her, uncomfortable.
"Not nearly as much as I hurt them." She replies honestly.
Zuko finally looks at her - really looks at her and he seems to finally see the red. All of the red. Hesitantly, he reaches out, his eyes watching hers to gauge her reaction and he grips the heavy cloak. He pushes it off her shoulders and it falls around her ankles. Katara tenses but she doesn't make a move to stop him.
Warm fingers brush her hair off her shoulders. She holds her breath, eyes on his as his hand drops back down to his side.
"I'm sorry." He says. The apology startles her. The honesty in his eyes does as well.
"Don't be." Her voice is flat like the knife she used to kill Ji. "I was doing it for the Fire Lord. You father shouldn't receive spoiled goods."
His eyes and body harden and he's back to the commanding, controlled Fire Prince. Zuko's stare narrows into a glare and he turns away from her, opening the other door in the room.
"You'll need to wash up. You're covered in blood."
-/-
Katara is taken back to her room when she's done with her bath. She had eventually fallen asleep in the ice - she had frozen it because she couldn't stand the warmth - and Zuko called for a female guard to wake her after they had finished with her room. The guard's eyes were kinder, almost pitying when she helped Katara dry off and dress in a fresh tunic and leggings.
Katara couldn't look at those eyes. This woman should hate her because she killed two fellow firebenders. Katara should hate the guard because she's a firebender. But she can't bring herself to hate the woman with the soft, gentle hands that are shockingly cool on her skin when she pulls the tunic over her head.
When she made it back to her room, she took the new blankets and put them on the floor. She grabs a pillow and the cleaned knife. When she cocoons herself in the sheets and finally falls asleep, she does so with the knife in her hand.
The cold sharpness of the knife erases memories of warm slickness.
Lee doesn't say anything when he brings her breakfast and water in the morning. He doesn't need to. The apology and unspoken words are in his eyes and written on his body as he hands the tray to her. He doesn't even ask why she is sleeping on the floor. He just knows.
She doesn't even tell him wants she wants to tell him: that it's not his fault, that nothing he could have done would have stopped what happened. But she can't find the energy to part her lips so she stays quiet as he closes the door.
For the first time, the click of the lock makes her shoulders relax.
Iroh brings her tea. It's stronger than the cups she had before. He tells her jokes that almost make her smile. Then, there's sadness in his eyes and he picks up the red and gold book that she likes.
"Ah," he says knowingly. "Poems from the Fire Nation. I used to read this to my son when he was young. When he became older, he would read it to Zuko."
Katara's brows furrow. "Your son?" It's the first time she's spoken all day. Her mouth is dry but the sounds are strong.
"Lu Ten. He's a little older than Zuko is now. He was...banished by my brother for...traitorous actions."
Katara hears the weight in Iroh's words and doesn't say anything. She didn't know there was a banished Prince somewhere. The rumor was that Lu Ten had died and that was why Ozai had managed to gain the throne.
A king should have heirs and Ozai had two. It's harsh, but that's what she is told.
She wonders if her father knows this. That even if they manage to overthrow Ozai, there is another with a claim to that throne. Another that they - at least, she - had not counted on. The list of her enemies is growing longer each day.
He leaves, something heavy on his shoulders and she's alone in the quiet. When she closes her eyes to sleep again, she dreams of red princes and flames.
Zuko does not come to see how she's doing. Katara wonders what she would say to him if he did. She wonders what he would say to her.
-/-
She hears something that does not belong. A heartbeat - three beats to be exact. One is hers, steady but slowly speeding up, and the other two are different. One calm, the other not. Katara rolls over, sitting up so that she can see her intruders. She holds her blanket around her shoulders.
It's dark and she has to blink through sleepiness for a few moments. The horrors of red have still plagued her dreams and at first, she's a little worried that she's still asleep and just having an awful, awful dream. But the sharp cold air on her skin tells her that she's still awake.
She isn't sure that's a good thing. She would rather this be a nightmare. After a few seconds, her eyes adjust to the dim lighting and she blinks a few more times so that the rest of the tiredness is gone so that she can see.
Her blood freezes.
Lee is on the floor, knees touching the metal and his head hangs low with shame and with the weight of the other's hand bearing down on his neck. Katara's eyes travels up the arm, fear rising to her throat - not again - and it catches there.
Learing, with a victorious smile wide and broad in the dark, is Zhao.
Her fists clench around her blanket.
-/-