Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar the Last Air bender

Prologue: Leaving the Oceans Behind

She was looking at water as it pushed and pulled against the Fire Nation's boat her brother had taken over some time ago. Its movements gave her the sense of peace and tranquility common of her element. But she knew that it wasn't going to last that long. More sooner than later, she would have to return to Aang, who was laying in a bed still recovering from the lighting shot that Azula had given him. At least he wasn't dead. Thanks to the water from the Oasis she had been able to save him, but at what cost? When he woke up, if he ever did, he wouldn't like what was happening in the world. He had been unconscious and unresponsive for a whole year and it didn't seem like he was going to wake up soon.

It was infuriating and sad. It made her feel guilty for no apparent reason and that cause an undeniable rage to build inside her. It was scorching and blinding like a huge storm in the middle of the ocean. Violent and unforgiving.

Katara had learned how to hate. It was a feeling that consumed her, a sorrow so great that tears didn't come out anymore. But the grief didn't change the sacrifices they had made or the people they had lost. It didn't even come close to the people who were still suffering because of their mistakes. Of her weakness. And she knew she was weak. If it had been otherwise then she would have won at Ba Sing Se instead of running away with the tail between her legs. She, no, the whole conscious group thought that they could be redeemed after making a fool of themselves in the City's Catacombs by continuing with the plan for the day of the Black Sun. Well, the attack had ended up being a disaster. Most of their supporters had been captured and sent to prison while the rest, a group of children, were left to escape. They said they were the future. Ha, she couldn't see a worst future for them than this one.

The Fire Lord was alive and scorching half the world to his amusement. The Earth Kingdom was basically slave country. Well, that was the part that wasn't burned to the ground with smoking cadavers here and there. The Water Tribes weren't that better off either, but Katara wasn't sure because they had been unable to pass the Fire Nation ship barricade that kept the North isolated from the rest of them. The Air Nomads where about to become really extinct if Aang didn't wake up soon so she guessed that Ozai had to be really happy with all the progress he had made during the last twelve month.

It only made her angrier if possible. Their own situation wasn't better off since they couldn't help anyone and they were on all the lands wanted list. If seen once they were to be killed, which was that the reason they were trying to pass off as a Fire Nation ship. They were sailing around the world at the moment, but they never knew if they were going to be found out when an unknown ship passed nearby. During those times everybody worried, but Katara felt she did more than the rest. She felt her friends simply accepted things as they had become, but she couldn't. Her spirit wasn't destroyed yet; instead it burned more vividly than before. It was the rage, the hate, the indignation that made her fight when everybody else had given up, when she was doing nothing to stop the madness that settled among the stolen ship's crew. At first she had tried to keep the spirit alive among the group but noticed that it wasn't working. She knew it for certain when Sokka had told her to shut up in front of everyone. She hadn't tried that again since. But those feelings of naïve hope had been replaced by abhorrence.

However, Katara was too tired of those emotions that where taking their toll on her psyche. She was tired of hating so much Fire Lord Ozai, the bastard that had destroyed the Earth Kingdom and the spirit of the people who wanted to be freed of him; Tired of hating Azula, the crazy bitch that had almost killed the only hope the world had of ever being liberated from her bizarre family; and tired of hating Zuko, the traitor and the complete idiot. How he dared to side with his sister after all she had done to him? And for what? HONOR? She didn't see any honor in what he had done. He had betrayed his uncle, and he had betrayed her.

For a long time since things had taken a turn for the worst, she felt the tears coming to her eyes. The sadness and desperation was overwhelming so she did what she hadn't dared to do since everything had started. She cried. She cried and screamed at the world her sorrow and suffering. She cried for those that couldn't weep anymore and she filled herself with hate, detest and disgust for the Fire Nation and his people. She swore she was going to get her revenge. She was tired of waiting in the side lines and letting time pass without doing anything. She believed she had mourned enough and it was time to act. That night, she decided, she would leave that night to extract her revenge on the unsuspecting Royal Family of the Fire Nation.

She cleared her wet eyes and smiled toward the falling sun. This smile was a sad comparison to those of the previous year but it had to do for now. She hoped that someday that happiness that had been lost in an instant would return to their lives but while she waited for those pleasant times, she would enjoy the deceitfully peaceful sunset. For the time being it was enough. But it wouldn't be always. While now there was an evil man controlling the world, and his patrol ships where all over the seas –the constant dark cloud that could barely be seen in the horizon assured her of that– there would a day that it wouldn't be so. She would make sure to make his triumph as short lived as possible.

Sighing as she planned how to get off the ship, she turned around to head for the cabinet where Aang slept. Before she left he needed another healing section and some of the special food that kept him more or less alive. She would leave the indication to make his food so he wouldn't die of starvation even if he looked like a mummy, at least it would give him the nutrient he needed to survive for a sometime. However, Sokka was looking at her from the other side of the deck. He wasn't smiling or making his silly remarks –it had been months since she heard one of those– as he neared her.

"Are you ok?" She heard him ask. "I thought you were crying?"

"Nah, I'm fine, you were imagining things," she told him with the most amazing smile he had seen in her face in some time and he knew instinctually that it was fake and that she had been crying. There was the familiar shine in her marine eyes that gave it away. However, he let it slip. "I'm going to heal Aang, so see you at dinner, ok."

He did a weird affirmation noise and she left to get ready for her voyage.

The small room was quiet and mostly dark with a couple of candles in the corners to give the place a little light. The cold iron wall faintly glowed as she closed the door and slowly neared the sleeping boy. He breathed. It was all it could be said about him. If he dreamed or not, if he was conscious or not, was another matter entirely. He was still, or so Katara hoped, alive after all. He had not died yet so that had to count for something. But she was unsure, just like the rest of the world.

Ignoring the sinking feeling she had in the pit of her stomach, she turned Aang around. In his back, the burn mark that marred the blue arrow that covered his body from head to toes and hands was still an angry red and didn't appear to be fading away. As many other times, Katara reached for the container with the liquid from the Spirit Oasis and bended the water out. Making the water wrap around her hand like a glowing fluid glove, she began to heal him.

The process wasn't long but it was straining. Thick drops of sweat fell around her face as she focused to mend him one last time. When she couldn't hold it anymore, she stopped, collected the water in a blob and snaked it back into the bottle. However this time, the water from the Spirit Oasis wasn't going to be place close to Aang but in the hide bag that had accompanied them for a while. With that, some clothe and blankets were pressed together and pushed in. Only food was missing and she had to be careful about that. Right about then, somebody had to be cooking so the kitchen and storage area had to be in use. It was obvious that Katara didn't want to be stopped, so she would have to wait until everybody went to bed to get those.

She put the bag in corner where it wasn't obvious and returned to Aang's side. Moving him back to his previous position, she washed the dirt off of him as a way to say goodbye. One done, it was time to feed him the concoction. It was made of some leaves that General Iroh had used for his teas. Actually, it had been the man's recipe and indication that had kept the Avatar alive during all that time. But, as usual, the problem always came when she had to feed Aang. At first, getting the obnoxious liquid down his throat had been difficult but Katara came up with an idea to make it easy. She only needed to keep his mouth open and she would bend the liquid in instead of out like she had done in Kyoshi Island. With more practice she had perfected the move.

A knock in the door of the cabinet told her that it was time to wrap things up and leave the Avatar to his sleep. It was probably Toph calling her for dinner. However, the knock became persistent and it made Katara wonder who it was and what could it want.

"Who is it?" She called.

"Time to eat," said her brother's voice. It was a surprise since they had kept talk to a minimum after the incident.

"I'm on my way," she said after a small silence as she put the cup on the side table. Standing up and opening the door, she found Sokka still there. "What is it? Is there a problem?"

"No, no, just that I… feel you kind of distant lately," he mumbled.

Making a neutral face, Katara tried not to snap at him too hard but the acidity of her words wasn't disguised at all. "Well, it was obvious that you didn't want me to talk about how everything wasn't a lost cause and that there was still a little hope left, and since I have nothing else to say, I prefer to be quiet and keep away temptation."

"Katara, listen…"

"No, Sokka, no," she said a little desperate. "You listen. Hope is the only thing we have left and right now, we don't even have that. Without it, we are just floating around waiting for a Fire Nation ship to sink us. I don't want that to happen, especially when Aang is not dead yet. If we could find a doctor, a real doctor, maybe we could do more than whine and be depress but until now, all you have done is run away and away. I don't want this kind of life. I want to fight for my freedom. If finding somebody who can wake Aang up is the answer to that, I would happily go there, Fire Nation or no Fire Nation to block my way. But all of you are too afraid," the words were followed by silence. There was no need to deny them. Everything was true. And it hurt. Katara hung her head low but never apologized for her outburst. "I'm just telling you, if things aren't going to change, I will change them. It's my last warning, Sokka, and you might not like how these changes will come. So unless you're planning to surprise everybody in five minutes with an optimistic approach to this hellish situation, don't bother trying to patch things up between us."

Sokka didn't manage to say anything as Katara went pass him toward the dining room. When he appeared at the table, he was just as before. Sitting down without even brothering to look at anyone else, he took the bowl and ate his veggie soup absentmindedly.

"I thought so," murmured Katara for just her brother to hear.

He sighed but didn't offer any explanation.

The crescent moon hung over the night sky, playing with the sea levels and watching over lovers from miles and miles away. She was sad and lonely, but didn't let anybody know and continued to come out almost every night, shyly showing her figure among the passing clouds. Yue was the moon spirit who watched over the seas of the world. She missed her lover terribly, but what hurt more was to see him so hopeless and lost under her light. His sleeping figure frowned, probably from another unhappy dream but mainly from a sad reality. Yue knew about all his worries but the one taking most of his mind at the time was Katara. The young water bender was hardheaded but it really was an admirable trait in situations like that one. She made the people around her see the light. However, Yue had a bad feeling after hearing the conversation with Sokka so she stayed near the boat instead of going somewhere else.

The Moon wasn't made to wait long as Katara came out of Aang's room with the shoulder bag and silently headed for the kitchen. Hoping to stop the door from making any noise, she opened it slowly which only made the chirring sound louder than it was. Making sure nobody was awake; she went toward the storage space and began to fill her bag with food. Sharing the amount equally between those who were staying and her hasty travel, she sealed the bag and left the kitchen.

Going toward the bow, she silently released the anchor and descended through the iron chain into the sea. Freezing the water under her, she stepped on it and quietly began to slowly bend away from the boat. Her direction was west toward the volcanic islands of the Fire Nation while she planned what she was to do once she put foot in enemy territory. Although she was dressed in a red and gold halter top with an equally red and gold skirt, it didn't change the fact that the path was long and hazardous. It could take her days to get there and there was a chance she would tired very soon so she was making some kind schedule. During the day she could travel under water as long as possible. Once there was no air she would surface and rest for a while. If it was lunch time, eat, if not just drink water before submerging again. This would ensure that no ship would see her, or at least minimize the chances of being caught. During the night, she would create the block of ice to travel which allowed her some rest and probably sleep. With that in mind, she doubled the effort to cover more water when there was less chance of a boat passing by and seeing her water bend. It would be suspicious enough to be in a block of ice in a place where the heat didn't allow icebergs even during winter; if they actually caught her in the act she was as good as dead.

If she actually made it to land, Fire Nation land, she would have to find a way to infiltrate into the castle. She guessed that it would harder than anything with so many guards and the sheer size of it. But she hoped to have several tricks under her sleeves by the time she reached the main island. Knowledge was strength, but it wasn't the only strength she would need. Besides, if she did managed to kill one member of the Royal Family, it would twice more difficult to kill a second and probably impossible to kill a third one. She just hoped that if she did managed to eliminate one that she would either be able to escape, stay and accomplish more, or weaken them so somebody else with enough guts could finish the job for her.

Katara was stupid. She knew what she was getting into and leaving the Fire Nation's Capital unharmed was a nothing more than a dream.

Suddenly coming awake, Sokka looked around him in panic and confusion. Something was wrong. Thinking that it might be an intruder, he slowly came of his bed and picked up his boomerang. Opening his cabin's door a bit, he looked through the small opening to see if there was somebody outside. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The hallway was dark and the quiet snore of the other members could be heard softly over the crash of the waves against the ship. Taking this as a sign that nobody was there yet, he tiptoed toward the door that headed to the deck. Not really sure of what he would find when he arrived there; he cautiously opened the Iron Gate to look around. Once more, the place seemed normal and calm. He noticed that was almost dawn as the wind blew over the deck with the usual strength of that time of year messing his untied hair. Not giving completely up, he decided to check outside first before heading back and checking on the others. He thought that if somebody foolish enough had boarded their ship, he would find resistance pretty soon, especially with Toph onboard.

Giving a round around the deck and even checking the sides to be safe, the only oddity he found was the lowered anchor. Not really suspecting it of any treachery –although it was unusual for it to be lowered, if they needed to flee, hailing it up would take some precious seconds that could be the difference between life and death– he decided that it was time to check on everyone.

Once inside, he checked the rooms to see if everyone was ok. Most of them were knocked out cold, most likely just tired from working all day to stay away from any danger and maintaining the ship. He could say the same for himself, but there was just something in the air that warned him to check on every one. Following his instinct, he opened Toph door's and found her sitting up looking toward him with pale green eyes.

"What's going on?" She asked him.

"Nothing, go back to sleep," he said. There was no need to worry her when it was obvious nothing was wrong.

"She left you know," Toph informed him, her unseeing eyes no longer looking at him but at her hands.

"What?" He asked. Sokka was uncertain to whom she was referring but at the same time, dread began to cloud his mind.

"There was nothing I could have done to stop her," those were the only words closest to an apology he was going to receive from the small earth bender. "She was decided and determined and you know when Sugar Queen gets stubborn nobody changes her minds."

Grasping the meaning of the conversation, he felt anger toward Toph. It was a blinding feeling that guided him as he entered the room with previously unseen speed. Holding the small girl by her clothes, he brought her face to his.

"She's my little sister and is my duty to protect her. You should have told me right away when you felt her wandering around at night," he screamed.

"What are you doing! Let me go!" Begged Toph scared of the warrior's reaction.

"You could have stopped her," he hollered as her eyes moved rapidly looking around for a way to free herself while several tears began to fall.

"Hey, let her go," ordered Haru who stood at the opened door. The screaming had awoken him and, thinking it was an attack, he ran toward the commotion. After having joined the group to attack the Fire Nation Capital during the day of the Black Sun, he had stayed with them as support in case some unexpected situation happened.

"What's going on here?" Asked Smeller Bean followed by Long Shot seconds after.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Yelled Sokka again as he shook Toph with more strength than was really needed.

"Come," called Haru, "help me get him off her."

Smeller Bean and Long Shot moved fast to help the earth bender while Haru pulled Sokka off with more force than he had thought he needed. This one, on the other hand, fought to try and reach Toph. Her shaking form and thick tears made a pitiful image of somebody close to being broken.

"It was the least I could," she told him, her voice a murmur. Toph had had a hard time accepting that her parents might be no more and being unable to return to the Earth Kingdom, there was no way to know if they still lived or not. That had been a tougher blow than she would have thought or even admitted to, but it was the reason she had lost her hope. Together with Aang out of commission, the blind earth bender really didn't see why the sun came out each morning. Katara, on the other hand, had still tried. She was the only person on the whole ship who had tried to cheer them and convinced them that everything was not lost. She was the only thing that had kept her going. Katara was her hope. But then, Sokka had opened his big mouth and screwed everything up. Telling his sister that there was nothing they could do to stop the Fire Lord and that her cheerfulness –or attempt at it– was only making things worse, the water bender stopped talking to the rest of them altogether. It was a wonder she had even stayed that long but she had. It was her way of giving them a chance to redeem themselves. However, they hadn't taken that chance and the only way for her to not lose herself was by leaving her depressing companions. Toph understood that and, because it was the only thing that kept the water bender moving forward, she hadn't had the courage to take it away by alerting her warrior brother of the plan.

Sokka stilled when he heard Toph words. She meant it, he knew from that look in her eyes, one that wasn't supposed to be there. But he couldn't help but worry for the safety of Katara. He had always protected her. At least, before, he had. And even if she could defend herself quite well, he still wished he could be with her during her journey. It was the only way he could be sure she was alive and well. He wasn't giving up just yet. There had to be a way to track her down and find her before she reached her destination.

"Where was she headed?" He asked Toph.

"I don't know, but if I had to guess I would say west," revealed the girl.

"West? Toward the Fire Nation? We have to stop her!" He exclaim.

"That wouldn't be possible. She left around midnight and it's been almost five hours since then. There is no way of knowing where she could be at this time," Toph told him.

"I'm not giving up," said Sokka, now free from Haru's hold and walking around the room like a mad man, passing his hand over his eyes and pressing his seines to ease the migraine that had develop in the last 10 minutes. "Get ready," he ordered finally deciding what to do. "We're heading west."

"No, we are not." Haru interceded.

"What do you mean?" The warning wasn't missed as Sokka's eyes narrowed and his voice came out low.

"I understand Katara is important to you, to all of us, but following her would be suicidal. We have something important to protect and we can't have the luxury of being sunk into the sea because of a wild goose chase," spoke the older earth bender. "I know how you feel Sokka, but she has to do this and I trust her to come back to us alive. Give her this opportunity."

A long silent followed. Tense minutes passed the group. Haru and Sokka had a staring contest before a sight escaped the water tribe warrior and a barely perceptible nod confirmed Haru's decision.

"We'll do it your way," acceded Sokka. "For now..." he added afterwards and walked out.

A/N

Finally, I re-made the prologue. It's longer and more detailed with more than just Katara planning to leave. I like this version a lot better, although I have to admit that the last part was the hardest one to write. I didn't really know how Sokka would react to Katara leaving so that was what came out. Hope it looked good.

Seleni Argyrios