A Prisoner of Your Own Mind

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.

If Hell on Earth could be described by a single location, Zuko would easily say that it was where he was sitting. Well, actually kneeling. The metal under the raw skin of his shins was cold, almost as frigid as the glaciers in the poles. The rusty cuffs that locked his wrists to the wall were cutting into his skin, drawing blood that slowly dripped down his forearms and biceps. His shoulders were numb from being held above his head for so long. If he had been standing, he was sure he would be supporting all of his weight in his wrists because his legs would have given out by now.

In fact, Zuko didn't even know how long it had been since he wasn't chained against that wall. The last time he saw sunlight was when his sister, Azula, captured him and his Uncle Iroh in that abandoned Earth Kingdom town. They were fighting her with the Avatar and his companions, which perplexed Zuko in more ways than one. But some do say an 'enemy of my enemy is my friend' and in that case, Azula was everyone's enemy. After she had escaped in the explosion caused by the joint attack and the Avatar left Zuko and his Uncle in the town, Zuko tried this hardest to find shelter. But he only managed to get up the hill with the unconscious Iroh. Unfortunately, Azula had returned with her friends, overpowering the already weakened banished Prince.

Now he was in a jail somewhere in the Fire Nation. He wasn't exactly sure. Azula had continually forced some type of sticky and sweet liquid down his throat that caused him to hallucinate and black out after a few hours. He knew what it was after she had slipped in her rigid schedule of making him drink the fluid. It was cactus juice, and why she made him drink it confused him even more. After a while, he figured it was so he wasn't coherent enough to know where she was taking him, let alone articulate enough to back talk or call for help. He was lost in his own mind for hours at a time.

Once he was brought to this cell, they stripped him down to a pair of knee-length trousers and then chained him to the wall. At first, Azula would come once a day to taunt him, but her visits have been coming fewer and farther in between. There was a time where he could have sworn Azula herself didn't visit, just a guard bringing him his food. He would get a meal once a day, which consisted of undercooked rice and more cactus juice. Why she insisted on still making his mind muddled and disoriented, he didn't know. Perhaps Azula just liked to mess with him. It didn't surprise him one bit.

He had gotten one visit from his father, but the man didn't even speak. He just opened the door, stared at Zuko for a few minutes and then left. He only knew it was Ozai because of the shadow he casted into the cell. The Fire Lord crown was incredibly distinguishable, even in a silhouette. It was after that day that Azula stopped coming frequently. Same with his meals. And now when she came, she would torture him. More in a mental way than a physical way, but both types of blows didn't register with Zuko. He was absolutely numb.

He could remember small bits of what she would say to him, sometimes even remember what she looked like that day. But more often than not, he would just retreat to the back corners of his mind while she ridiculed him and humiliated him. There wasn't an audience, but knowing what she would say and do to him just brought Zuko so much shame. She called him a waste, an unloved and useless piece of garbage. She would whip him with her blue fire, and then punch him in the jaw for good measure. She even carved something in the skin of his back with her fingernails and the wound stung for days. Or what Zuko thought was days. It could have been weeks for all he knew.

The prince basically figured he was going to die in that cell. He didn't think anyone was going to come and rescue him. No one cared enough. And he knew he was there long enough that people had probably already forgotten about him. The short hair he had when he was first captured was now dangling in his face and over his eyes. He knew he had started to grow some type of beard, but nothing to the caliber of what his uncle would have grown out by now. Zuko assumed he just looked like a vagabond that had lived in the streets. He certainly felt like it. Actually, he felt worse. He felt like the dirt that Azula called him. Scum between the toes of the people of the Fire Nation.

He belonged in that cell, because he failed. He had a mission and he was unsuccessful. Knowing his luck, Azula probably captured the Avatar by now. Along with his friends. What were their names? He knew he had heard them before.

There was the older boy with the ridiculous ponytail. Not that Zuko had room to talk about ridiculous ponytails. His was pretty atrocious, as well. But this guy was something of a warrior. He was brave, Zuko knew that. The kid must have had guts if he charged head-on against three fully trained Fire Nation soldiers. If he had been more properly trained, the boy could have potential. Zuko remembered the Avatar saying his name once. It was like an article of clothing with an "a" at the end… Panta? Glova? Socka? Sokka! His name was Sokka.

Then there was the Avatar. His name was Aang, Zuko knew that. But he refused to put the name to the child, only so he wouldn't see him as an actual person. That would make capturing the kid so much easier. Now that Zuko was looking back, he felt bad for Aang. Not because he was the Avatar, but because he was so young. He was only twelve-well technically one hundred and twelve- and he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. Most twelve-year-olds want to play and goof off. But he never would have the chance. He had the responsibility of ending a tyrannical regime and stop the century-long war that Zuko's family started. If Zuko wasn't so hell-bent on getting his honor back and pleasing his father, he might have let the youngster go. He had enough problems to deal with. A determined Prince was something he probably didn't need on his tail at the time.

There was a new person in their group. She was small and obviously an earthbender. Why the Avatar picked the frailest looking little girl in the Earth Kingdom to be his earthbending sifu was something Zuko didn't understand. Maybe she had some hidden potential or the Avatar had a crush on her or something.

No, he had a crush on the waterbender. Katara. Even in his delirious state of mind, Zuko remembered Katara very well. Her fluidity in her movements, much like the water she so easily commanded. Her bright blue eyes, her long brown hair. Zuko wondered what it would look like if she let it out of the braid. It was probably really curly. She just seemed like a girl who would have unruly hair, like her personality. Zuko admired that about her. She was fierce and had a type of ferocity that he saw in some of the best firebenders in the world, including himself. It was a trait uncommon among waterbenders, and he felt that made her a very unique opponent.

Zuko let his mind wander back to all of his encounters with this girl. When he first saw her at the South Pole and locked eyes with her. She was scared at the time and he almost relished in the fact. He liked making people scared. It made him feel worthy of being the heir to the Dragon Throne. She had stood proud, though. Which was something he didn't quite understand. Her eyes were trembling with fear as he paced in front of the villagers, but her shoulders were back and squared to him as if she wasn't really afraid. That's what made him notice her. The fact that she was willing to put on the act of bravery but she really was just as scared as everyone else.

Then he thought back to when she had stolen the waterbending scroll from the pirates. He and the pirate captain had found her on the river's edge trying to practice one of the moves. She had ran away from one pirate and right into his arms. Literally. Being that close to her was the first time he could admire her features. She was pretty, in a way. In an exotic way he wasn't used to. Women in the Earth Kingdom were way too similar to the women in the Fire Nation, both nationalities had pale skin and dark hair. But the people of the poles were quite different. Tan skin and brown hair with blue eyes. How the people with the least amount of sunlight had the darkest skin, Zuko would never understand. But it intrigued him. He tied her to a tree with some of his best rope, despite the suggestion of using chains by some of his crew. He tried to coerce her into telling him where the Avatar was by bribing her with the necklace he knew she wore. She said it was her mother's, but why she was so defensive about it he didn't know. Or care. At the time. Now all he wanted to know was why that stupid necklace was so important.

Then he thought about how he used the necklace, again, to find her. June's shirshu had tracked her and her brother down. Zuko had hoped that the Avatar-Aang- was with them but his bad luck streak was triumphant again. He hated that they had to paralyze the two siblings, but it was necessary in his quest. A minor hiccup in the road to his reinstatement in the Fire Nation.

Zuko felt that Katara would have been the kind of girl to convince him that what he was doing was wrong. Like she had some self-righteous notion to make the world good and pure again. If she knew the reasons of his banishment and sub sequentially his quest for Aang, she would have tried to make him see that he really wasn't at fault. And that he had some ridiculous "destiny" thrusted upon him and he had the choice to run away from it and be his own man.

He made himself believe that she would be wrong. But she really wasn't.

He began to see it when he was fighting her at the North Pole. He had no way to bring the Avatar back home, let alone get past all of the people in the way back to the ships. She was his main obstacle. And she had been for months before he even stepped foot in the ice city. He hated that he struck her down, but it was necessary. Guilt had gnawed at him while he dragged the Avatar through the frozen tundra's behind the city. He had nowhere to go, and he had hurt an innocent girl. There was something seriously wrong with him.

The sound of grinding metal broke Zuko out of his reverie. He barely had enough strength to lift his head and focus on his visitor, but he knew by the footsteps that it was Azula, bringing him his food and drugs.

"Well, Zuzu, you're look awful today."

Her words cut through him like heated knives. He knew she was right. He probably looked terrible. Dried blood caked on his skin, old cuts and burns infected from improper treatment. He didn't sweat because he was dehydrated. And he knew his ribs stuck out from malnutrition. He probably looked like Hell. And most likely smelled like it, too.

"So we're going to go through our usual routine, alright Zuko?"

He didn't answer. He had no voice or will to even try to acknowledge the fact that she was going to be torturing him again. Zuko made a silent prayer that today she would finally just kill him. He didn't want to have to sit in this place, imprisoned in his own mind because that was the only place he could go.

"But first, we're going to feed you. Open up."

He had no strength to comply. After a few moments, Azula knelt down in front of him and yanked his head up so they were eye-to-eye.

"I'm only doing this because Father insists on keeping you alive," she hissed. "I don't know why, but I have to follow his orders. He didn't say anything about making this pleasant for you. So open your damned mouth so I can shove this pathetic excuse for a meal down your ungrateful throat."

Zuko's eyes remained unfocused. He only saw the blurred outlines of her face, one so similar to their mother's. He felt her fingernails dig into the skin of his jaw as she yanked his mouth open. She poured in the juice first and tilted his head back so he had no choice but to swallow. The sweet nectar quenched his dry throat momentarily, but he felt like begging for more just so he could cure the dull ache. He didn't care what effects he would get if he had too much. He just wanted to cure the dryness in his mouth.

Azula then took a handful of rice and stuffed it in. He knew that was all he would get so he chewed slowly and swallowed it. He thought she was done, but she forced more cactus juice into his mouth. He was thankful, but also wary. Why was she giving him more? He normally only got one drink. Today he got two. Something was up.

Azula dug her nails into his jaw once more and he felt the blood trickle out. She let go roughly and stood up, looking down on him. His head was already hanging from his weakness, so he couldn't assess what she was thinking. Whatever was happening, it was seriously different.

"I bet you're wondering why I gave you more liquid today."

That bitch read my mind.

"Well I bet you're aware that there is an eclipse coming tomorrow," she stared pacing back and forth in front of him, her boots coming in and out of his now blurring vision. "You probably don't, though because your inner fire is so weak at this point."

That explains why I don't know how long I've been here.

"Well the physicians insist you have a little more strength to go through the eclipse without completely dying. So I was ordered by Father to give you a little more substance."

She kneeled in front of him again and her face was leaned next to his ear, "But I'll just 'forget' I heard that and only give you extra cactus juice. Because I know you love it so much."

Her voice because to change tones and she sounded more sinister than ever. When Zuko tried to focus his eyes, it seemed like Azula was standing on a river of lava. Here we go. She began pacing again and he heard voices echoing around the metal chamber. He wasn't paying attention to what she was saying, but he knew she was already taunting him again. He felt like his body was swaying back and forth now, like it would if he was on a boat.

"And I'm sure you know since we captured Ba Sing Se, the Earth Kingdom has fallen..."

Her voice seemed to be enhanced by several others, making her sound like a demon. Zuko almost laughed at that thought, because she really was one.

"… But we believe that they're still going to try and invade the capital city…."

He felt his eyes start to droop but before he could fully close them, Azula kneeled in front of him and grabbed his chin again, forcing him to look up and into her eyes. They looked like they were on fire. The gold in her irises dances around like the flames in front of their father's throne. It was interesting. Then he realized that the whole room was moving and dancing like her eyes.

"Dammit, I didn't think it would kick in so soon," she whispered. Her gaze softened slightly, but he attributed it to the cactus juice playing with his mind, making him believe his sister really wasn't that bad. That she had a heart underneath the cold metal machinery that was her body and soul. It was doubtful, but there was probably something beating in her hallow chest. It was probably metal and full of rusty gears and chains, but it was a heart nonetheless.

Her grip loosened but she still held his head up. Her eyes darted back and forth between his, searching for something. After a heavy sigh, she whispered, "Zuko, if I didn't know better I'd say you have given up."

She let his head drop and she stood, dusting her knees off as she stared down at him, "What was it that your stupid little dagger said? 'Never give up without a fight'? I see you've begun to go against your little mantra. No matter, Zuzu. You'll be in here until the end of time. The sooner you give up, the better. Have a nice week. I'll be seeing you."

The metal door clicked and the grinding noise of the lock rang through his ears. Azula was right, he gave up a long time ago. What point was there to fight anymore? He was chained and unfed. Even if he managed to somehow break out and get past the guards in the hall, his body would probably only take him to the end of the hall before giving out and collapsing underneath him. He was certain that his legs probably didn't even work anymore.

Even if he had the strength to fight, he had no reason. His family hated him, his uncle was locked up as well. Most likely dead now. He had no friends, he was an enemy everywhere he went. There honestly was no point.

At that thought, a single tear broke out of Zuko's good eye and dropped to the metal underneath him.

0x0x0x0

As he did every day, Zuko woke up with the sound of the guards rotating in the hall. He heard them chatting about the eclipse today and how they were needed in the Fire Lord's bunker or something like that. The replacement asked why they were going to leave the Prince and the guard leaving snickered and said lowly:

"No one is going to come get him. He'll be fine without a guard."

Zuko knew the man was right, but he couldn't help but hope. Maybe if there was an invasion like Azula had said, someone would come and free him and any other prisoner in this place. Wherever he was. But the odds of that happening were slim to none, so he tried not to get his hopes up.

After what was probably a few hours, Zuko heard someone call to the guard outside his door and the man left. He had no one guarding him. He was vulnerable to whatever the universe decided to pull on him. Maybe a rogue citizen will break in and cut his throat. Or a single guard will enter and break every bone in his body, at least the ones that weren't already broken. Or maybe Azula will come down and kill him once and for all and frame it on some low servant, claiming it to be caused by lack of security. Whatever it was going to be, Zuko welcomed the fate of death with his already opened arms.

Probably another hour passed and Zuko was jolted from his daze by a shout down the hall. His fate was coming for him. This was it. His end was heading towards the door that held him in for so long.

"Which room is he in?!" it was a girl shouting, a voice he had heard before. No, it can't be.

"He's in the room at the end of the hall," another girl replied. He heard this voice, too. The cactus juice must still be in my system. I'm imagining this.

"Toph, open the door."

Toph? Who's Toph?

"I hope we aren't too late…" He knew that voice anywhere. Uncle…

The sound of grinding metal filled his ears and if he had the strength, he would have cringed at the noise. But his body was too broken and unwilling to respond to anything his mind thought he should do. A sudden light filled the room and he heard a collective gasp. Then a pair of feet were in front of him and the owner kneeled down and grasped his chin gently. She lifted his head and he was greeted by two bright blue eyes.

She sighed out and a smile graced her lips, "He's alive."

No I must be dreaming. You wouldn't come here and be relieved that I was living. This is truly the cactus juice.

He saw another blurry figure approach him and grabbed the chains that held his arms above his head. The grinding sound echoed in the cell and he felt the pressure go away. His arms dropped and a hoarse groan escaped Zuko's lips. The girl in front of his hushed him and brought his body against hers, stroking his hair as the second figure unlocked the chains around his ankles.

There was a soft pressure around his shoulders and a sudden warmth. He felt a couple pairs of hands grope his body and he was suddenly lifted and held bridal style against someone. Zuko rested his head against this person's shoulder and felt his eyes flutter close.

"Stay strong for me, Zuko," his uncle's voice said. It was right above him. So he must be in Iroh's arms. A sudden sweeping feeling of safety fell over Zuko as the darkness clouded his mind. This was death. They were taking him away from that cell and leading him to the gates of absolution.

This was it. Zuko felt a smile twitch on his lips as he welcomed this. He relaxed more as the feeling of Iroh's movement was fading away and the noises of shouts and attacks were drowned out by the soothing sound of nothingness. Zuko was right. This was the end.

0x0x0x0

If Heaven on Earth could be described by a single location, Zuko would easily say it was where he was laying. It was warm, comfortable. His head was cradled by something slightly hard, but it was oddly comfortable. He felt something cool tickle his cheeks, like the wind when he was on the sea. The warmth he felt on his skin was much like the sun when it was high in the sky, filling him with strength and power. There was something moving back and forth slowly on his forehead, which was incredibly comforting. He knew he was probably smiling, considering this was the first time he felt something other than dread. With a content feeling in his stomach, he let himself drift back into the darkness.

0x0x0x0

Zuko felt consciousness finally come back to him. His eyes wouldn't open, but he knew he wasn't in his cell anymore. In fact, he was laying on a mattress of some kind. And there was a blanket covering him. His limbs were stiff from being unused. If he had any strength, he would have pulled the blanket off because he was too warm, almost feverish. Zuko thought about it and he probably was running a fever. That's probably why he was on this mattress and not chained in his cell.

A shifting on the edge of his bed made him flinch. There was someone else here. The stranger pulled down the blanket off his chest and he heard them hiss out as they looked at him. Then a cooling sensation ran over his stomach and up towards his collarbone. It was different, and comforting. It was amazing.

When the sensation receded, he felt awfully rejuvenated. He involuntarily took a deep breath and was happily surprised there wasn't any pain like there had been before. Then there was a hand on his forehead brushing away his hair.

"Be strong Zuko." It was Katara. What was she doing in the palace hospital helping him? Was she captured too and forced to heal him so he could go back to his cell just to die? "We need you."

The darkness began claiming him again, not without making him question what the hell was going on to him.

0x0x0x0

When Zuko came to again, a light broke through his eyelids. There was a pressure on his right hand, wrapping around it entirely. He felt the warmth of the blanket on him still, and his body still felt feverish. He tried to move, but his body didn't respond. He felt like yelling out in frustration. He had no idea what was going on and he just wanted to know what was happening.

The pressure on his hand increased slightly and then went away completely. Then the cooling sensation came back, but it was on his forehead. It felt like someone had taken ice and ran it back and forth against his heated skin. It felt amazing. If Zuko could smile, he would have at this sensation.

"You're getting better," Katara's voice whispered to him. "I just wish you would wake up so we would know for sure."

I am awake!

"But considering how bad off you were when we find you, I don't think you'll be waking up for a while," she sounded really upset.

How bad off was I? He felt the pressure on his hand again and he realized it was her holding him. No one had ever held his hand before, except his mother. A weird feeling pooled in his stomach and all he wanted to do was to wake up and have her let go. Why, he didn't know. He didn't want anyone touching him, no matter how soothing it was. Whatever she had been doing before felt okay, but when she touched him, he felt odd.

"I wish we would have found you sooner," she said after a while. "Azula told us about you when we fought her in Ba Sing Se. I can't believe she would do that to her own brother. I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that. And as I look at you, I'm surprised you were still breathing when we got there. You're really strong, Zuko. You really never give up without a fight."

His heart warmed when she said that. And like before, if he could smile, he would have. He began to relax and the darkness flooded over again, but not before he felt Katara squeeze his hand again.

0x0x0x0

The cooling sensation woke Zuko from his dreamless sleep. He felt his body respond to his sudden consciousness, flinching slightly when he felt the pressure on his chest. There was a shuffling and then he heard Katara shout something from near his feet. Then her presence came back to him and the cooling sensation ghosted over his chest again. He involuntarily flinched at the touch and he heard her choke out something close to a laugh.

"Are you awake, Zuko?" she whispered. The cooling sensation left his chest and her hand grasped his again. She squeezed and he heard breaths shallow out in anticipation. Zuko focused all of his strength to his hand and felt himself squeeze back slightly. Katara gasped out and lifted his hand up and pressed his against what he assumed was her cheek. It was wet with some warm liquid, so he guessed she was crying. Why is she crying over me? What happened since the last time I saw them? Last I recall, I shot fire and yelled at her the last time we had a meeting.

There were footsteps and Katara had turned her head towards the noise, bringing Zuko's hand with her.

"He's awake," a girl's voice said.

Katara nodded and turned back to him, "I think so. He squeezed my hand back, so I think he's fully waking up."

"No," the other girl said, "He's awake. I can feel his heartbeat. He's just not strong enough to fully open his eyes. Try talking to him."

Katara nodded again and whispered towards him, "Zuko? If you can hear me, can you squeeze my hand again?"

Mustering all the strength he had left, he felt his fingers tighten around hers weakly and she gasped out with joy. The other girl approached the bed and sat on the edge of the mattress.

"Do you think he's going to be able to fully wake up soon?"

"I'm not sure," Katara replied. "He lost a lot of blood and was being starved. I'm surprised he's even awake this early. We've only been here a week and he's showing great improvement."

"Why don't you go get some food and clean up?" the girl asked. "I'll watch him. I don't think he'd going to open those eyes for a while. And I feel like he'd only open them for you."

Zuko felt his heart pick up and the other girl chuckled for some unknown reason. Katara squeezed his hand and let go, then he presumed she stood up and began to leave the room.

"Thanks, Toph," she said softly. "If there's any progress before I get back, have someone come get me."

"Will do, Sweetness."

Katara's footsteps faded away and Zuko could only hear Toph's steady breathing. He felt her prop her feet on the edge of his mattress and she chuckled again.

"I know you're awake, Sparky," she said. "But since you can't talk, I guess I'll just fill you in on what happened while you were in the dark. Literally."

What is she talking about?

"Well, according to your Uncle when we found him, you two were captured right after our little run-in with your crazy sister. She brought you two to the Fire Nation and locked you up. Uncle broke out about two months later but didn't know where you were, so he started heading to the Earth Kingdom. All the while, we were traveling to Ba Sing Se in order to tell the Earth King about the eclipse that just happened so the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes could invade the Fire Nation while you guys were powerless.

"But while we were there, Azula staged a coup and we had to flee. Aang got hurt, but Katara saved him which was good. We decided to travel the Fire Nation while we prepared for the invasion. We actually ran into Iroh in a town near the rendezvous point, and he joined us on the terms that we helped free you. He knew you had been way worse off than he had been after he heard what happened through one of the guards near his cell.

"Well during the invasion, Aang was supposed to fight your dad but didn't find him. So we had to flee the capital with the youngest members of the invasion force. Your Uncle fled with us but he went back to the Earth Kingdom in order to meet up with some old friends to help take back Ba Sing Se.

"We've been here at the Western Air Temple since the invasion failed. We've been waiting for you to wake up so you could teach Aang firebending. Iroh said that you would be perfect for the job and I know you probably wouldn't want to do it, considering everything that has happened. But we need you. You can help Aang defeat your father and end this war. And you can get revenge on Azula for what she did to you. Even I want to kick her ass for what she did to you. And I don't even know you.

"Katara has been in here every day since we got here. She's the most worried about you. She feels like it's her fault that this all happened. But you and I both know it isn't. She's been healing your wounds and trying to lower your fever with her healing powers. She's been trying so hard. So just promise that when you wake up, it'll be when she'd here."

Toph grasped his hand with her much smaller one and squeezed it gently, "If you understand everything I just said, squeeze my hand."

The darkness was starting to flood over him, but all of his remaining energy, he gently squeezed her back.

"Good."

0x0x0x0

Zuko was too warm. Like he was standing in a volcano. If he could, he would have thrown off the blankets draped across his body and run to the nearest spring to submerge himself neck-deep in the water.

"Just close your eyes. The sun is going down. You'll be alright. No one can hurt you now. Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound…"

The haunting melody ringing through his ears made him stop his worrying about his body heat and listening. The girl singing had a soothing voice, and the song she was singing was comforting in a way, like a lullaby his mother would sing when he was sick. But it was nothing he had heard before.

The pressure on his hand was there again and this time it was easier to squeeze back. The girl stopped singing and pressed her free hand to his forehead and gasped at the touch. A second later, the cooling sensation was against his skin. He sighed out in relief.

"Zuko?"

Katara let go of his hand and pressed her fingers against his left cheek. Right on his scar. He stiffened involuntarily and she recoiled, muttering an apology under her breath and she moved the blanket off his chest so he could run the cold water against his flushed skin. He sighed again and he heard her shift in her seat.

She grasped his hand again and murmured softly, "Zuko, if you can hear me, can you try to open your eyes? Squeeze my hand if you understand."

He squeezed back and tried to focus on opening his eyes. They felt oddly dry, like they had been covered with dirt. With all the strength he could muster, he managed to open his right eye slightly. His vision was blurry, which was to be expected. But he saw the outline of Katara's body in the moonlight. He blinked and slowly opened it wider. He still couldn't focus, but he could manage to make out her face. She was smiling, which made the corners of his lips turn up slightly.

"I'm going to give you some water to drink, okay?"

He squeezed her hand and she opened his mouth and bent a stream of water down his throat. A cough forced its way from his lungs and she laughed a little and muttered an apology. Zuko closed his eye again and squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"Can you try to talk?"

Zuko swallowed and felt the dryness of his throat. As he tried to force a noise out, the only sound he made was a croak. Katara squeezed his hand again and pushed the hair off of his forehead.

"That's alright. I didn't expect you to. Go back to sleep, Zuko."

He felt something press against the bare and clammy skin of his forehead and then she placed a wet cloth against his eyes. The coolness felt good against his irritated eyelids and he felt sleep begin to claim him again as she started to sing again.

"I remember tears streaming down your face when I said, 'I'll never let you go'. When all those shadows almost killed your light. I remember you said, 'Don't leave me here alone'. But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight…"

0x0x0x0

Sunlight broke through Zuko's eyelids as he regained consciousness. He felt the sun rising and realized it was close to midmorning. Happy his inner fire was starting to burn again, he began trying to open his eyes. Surprisingly, he didn't have any difficulty with that task. He was greeted with the slight of a sleeping Katara. She was slumped over in her chair and her head was laying against the edge of the mattress near his hand. He lifted his fingers and ran them through her loose hair. He smiled when he realized that her hair was exactly how he thought it would be: curly and unruly.

His fingers reached her scalp and he pulled his hand up to the top of her head. She flinched and lifted her head up slightly and jumped when she saw him, making his arm flop back to the mattress.

"You're awake!"

He tried to answer but all that came out was a dry cough. Taking that cue, she bent some water from a bowl next to his bed and sent the water into his open mouth. He swallowed it and sighed with the relief the water gave his dry throat.

"How are you feeling?"

Zuko cleared his throat and yet again, another croak came out. Katara gave him a confused look and then gloved her hand with some water and cupped his neck. It was cold and he almost cringed away from her touch, but she placed her free hand onto his chest to hold him into place.

"I should have noticed this sooner…"

He rose his eyebrow in confusion and she shook her head as she sat back and removed her hands from his body. He felt oddly empty when her touch retreated.

"Your vocal chords were damaged from your time in the prison," she sighed. "I should have realized. I won't be able to heal them as well. So they'll just have to heal on their own."

He nodded slightly and smiled weakly at her.

She smiled back and grasped his hand, "Your fever broke last night after you fell back asleep. If this keeps up, you might be able to get up and move around in a couple days."

Zuko shook his head and pulled her hand, trying to relay his wish to get up that second.

"You can't get up yet, Zuko. You're too weak."

He scowled and pulled her again. Katara sighed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders and helped him sit up. He let out a scratchy groan as his body protested the movement and he noticed in the corner of his eye Katara smirking.

"I told you so. Still want to get up?"

He nodded and clenched his teeth, using his limited strength to swing his feet off the edge of the mattress. He croaked again and Katara tightened her grip around his waist.

"I think we might need to get you a bath," she said after his breathing calmed. "You okay with that?"

Zuko nodded and they slowly pulled him into a standing position. His legs felt like rubber, barely able to hold up his weight. He stumbled slightly and Katara caught him easily. Zuko figured he must have lost a lot of weight if she could hold him up with such ease, and considering he was probably close to six inches taller than the girl he realized it must have been a lot more than he had originally thought.

They began taking small steps towards the door, pausing so Zuko could take a quick break from the strenuous work he was putting his body through. Katara had said something about how he never gave up without a fight, and he wasn't going to prove her wrong just because his legs were a little unaccommodated to walking.

"Zuko we don't have to-"

He interrupted her with a fierce shaking of his head and he pressed on, clenching his teeth and cringing with every step. If he knew it was going to be this bad, he would have just forced himself back to sleep. He didn't want Katara thinking he was weak especially after the stint he did in that prison.

"Luckily the bathroom is right around the corner," she said as they passed through the threshold of his room.

Zuko realized she was more talking to herself than to him. Then he wondered why she was being so nice to him, considering how much they had been through. He had pondered it before, but now as she was acting as his crutch as he limped to the washroom he couldn't help but wonder why this perfectly good girl was helping her once-enemy.

A sudden draft made Zuko blink several times to re-wet his eyes. Once he focused, he saw the Avatar and Toph standing right in front of himself and Katara.

"You're awake!"

"Aang, don't crowd him. We're just trying to get to the bathroom so he can wash up."

"I'll take care of that," Toph said. She shifted her feet and suddenly Zuko and Katara were gliding along the earth, speeding down the short hall and through the bathroom door and stopped right in front of the tub.

Katara shook her head quickly and called over their shoulders, "Thanks Toph!"

He heard the little girl call back, "No problem!"

Katara turned back to Zuko and smiled up at him, "Think you could steady yourself while I start the water?"

He nodded and she slowly pulled out from under his shoulders. She held onto his waist for a second as he regained his balance and stepped away reluctantly. Zuko smiled reassuringly at her and she bent down and turned the tap on the tub, letting the water flow into the porcelain basin. She added some soaps and scented oils, filling the room with a clean fragrance. Zuko couldn't remember the last time he had a bath, let alone one with soap.

He gave her a grateful smile as she straightened up and turned to face him. She returned the grin and her hands went to the waistband of his trousers. He jumped and quickly grasped her wrists, staring at her with wide eyes.

"You're wearing underwear. Don't worry," she smirked as she pulled herself out of his grip and untied his pants. "I already saw everything anyway."

Zuko blushed and it caused her to giggle a little. The embarrassment of the moment got even worse when she shimmied the garment down his legs and helped him step out of them. When she stood up straight, she grasped his hand and led him to the tub, placing his hands on her shoulders as he slowly and painfully lifted his legs over the lip of the tub and settled down into the water.

He exhaled with relief as the water lapped against his grimy skin. He relaxed his head against the edge of the tub and closed his eyes in content. Then, he felt Katara's hands rubbing along his body. His eyes shot open and he stared her down, causing her to jump and then grin nervously.

"I'm just trying to help," she whispered out. He frowned at her and she pulled her hands out of the water. She crossed her arms and glared back at him. "Since you're in the water fully, I can try and heal your muscles so you can move around better. But I can only do that if you let me touch you."

Zuko stared at her with wide eyes for a few moments and then sighed and nodded to her. She smirked victoriously and then put her hands back in the water, starting with his arms. Her fingers gripped his muscles and massaged the healing water into the tendons, stretching them out and invigorating them their old strength. Once his arms were done, she pushed him so he would lean forward and she focused on his back. He heard her inhale sharply at the sight, most likely taking in all the scars from the wounds Azula left.

"Do you know what she did?"

Zuko shrugged and Katara sighed.

"She wrote something."

He nodded as if he knew that she had done something along the lines of that and he turned and looked over his right shoulder, silently asking her to tell him what was there.

Katara swallowed thickly and whispered, "She wrote out 'traitor'."

Zuko nodded once and turned to face the rest of the tub again. He knew Azula would have done something along the lines of that, he just hated that Katara had to see him so beaten up and broken. It wasn't fair to her that she had to take care of him, too. Zuko silently vowed that once he was able enough, he was going to take care of her in any way he could.

"Did it hurt?"

Zuko stiffened and thought for a moment. Did it hurt? Well, yes it did. Being there was so painful, Zuko lost all reasoning of time and logic. His delirium went as far as thinking that he was dying when he was in fact being saved. He had wished that every time someone came to visit, they were actually going to kill him instead. Did it hurt?

He slowly nodded and bowed his head slightly. He felt Katara's slim hand grip his shoulder and squeeze tightly, "I'm sorry, Zuko. We'll make it better."

Katara moved around the tub and was on his right. Her hands went back into the water and massaged his thighs, moving down to his calves and feet as she moved the healing waters through his chi paths, relieving some of the dull aches he was feeling. After she finished with his legs, she leaned over and started working on his chest. Her breath was tickling his face and she was dangerously close to him. He had to swallow and try to look away so she wouldn't see his blush. Thankfully, she was too focused on his body to notice his face. Something he was incredibly thankful for.

"If we do this one more time, you should be good as new," she whispered as she pulled away. They locked eyes and she smiled reassuringly to him, which he smiled softly back. He dipped his head under the water, wetting his longer hair and scalp. He sighed out at the sensation of the water trickling down his head and neck.

"I like your hair long like that."

He rose his eyebrow and stared incredulously at her. She shrugged and then gripped his chin, feeling the hair that was growing on his jaw.

"But this will have to go. Facial hair doesn't suit you."

He felt himself laughing silently and motioned for her to go ahead and shave him. Katara pulled some water out and formed it into a sharp ice dagger. Then she took some of the soap from his bath water and spread it along his jaw, cheeks and neck. Carefully, she dragged the ice blade against the hair, slicing it off his face and leaving smooth skin in its wake.

"So you didn't shave or cut your hair for almost five months," she said as she ran the ice along the left side of his jaw. He nodded and looked into her eyes, which were fierce with concentration. She finished a few minutes later and ran some extra water against his face, washing away the hair and the left over soap. Zuko lifted his hand and ran it against the smooth skin. He grinned at her with gratitude and held out his hand, signaling he was ready to get out.

Katara grasped Zuko's hand and together they pulled him into the standing position. His legs were stronger and he felt certain he would be able to walk back to his room without any help. That thought made him smile. He stepped over the edge of the tub and she bent the water off of his skin and out of his underwear. He stepped back into his trousers and bent over to pull them back up. Without asking, Katara leaned over and helped him stand up straight again. He shot her an annoyed glance and she grinned nervously.

Together, they made their way out of the bathroom and back down his room, pausing once so Zuko could catch his breath. It was a draining trip, especially since Zuko hadn't been conscious for longer than fifteen minutes in the past month. But he was pretty proud of himself. This much headway was a great sign for his progress to come.

Once they reached his door, Katara took his hand and led him back to his bed, He slowly sat and looked up to her with grateful eyes. She knelt down in front of him and took a stream of water from the bowl and held it to his neck again.

She silently worked on the strained chords and he patiently waited as the soothing water restitched the broken tendons inside. After a few minutes, the glowing water receded and Katara moved her hand away, looking slightly defeated.

"I'm sorry," she whispered as she stood up. "I thought I could do more."

Zuko smiled and grabbed her hand, squeezing it comfortingly. She squeezed his hand back and then pulled her arm away.

"You should get some rest. I'll come and check on you in a couple of hours."

He nodded and swung his legs back onto the bed. He cleared his throat and rubbed the skin of his neck as she started to walk out. He laid his head down on his pillow and smiled as she crossed the doorway of his room. With a sudden jolt of confidence, Zuko opened his mouth to speak.

"Katara?"

She froze and turned to him with a shocked look on her face, eyes wide with hope and a small smile twitching on her open mouth. The sound of his voice was hoarse with misuse and strain, but he managed to croak out a few more words before he forced himself to sleep.

"Thank you."

Fin

A/N I hope you liked this long one-shot. I always had the idea of Katara healing Zuko after he got imprisoned and tortured. And since I've been having a bout of writer's block for "The Swamp" and "The Phoenix", I decided to hash this puppy out and possibly get my creative creek flowing in the right direction.

The song Katara was singing was "Safe and Sound" by Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars. I was actually listening the version by Madilyn Bailey. Hers is much better.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this! I won't be continuing this, but I may do a companion piece in the future. MAYBE. No promises. Chao!