Born Beneath An Angry Star

13. If I had to choose her or the sun I'd be one nocturnal son of a gun

The entire sky looked as though it were on fire. How fitting Katara thought as she and Zuko made their way towards the Fire Nation to do battle with Azula. Her stomach felt tied up in knots that would take tens of thousands of years to untie. She wasn't so much nervous for herself as she was for everyone else. What was going on with her brother, Suki and Toph? How was Aang? Was he scared? Was he injured? She wouldn't be able to heal him this time if he was seriously injured by Ozai. It was a thought that endlessly plagued her mind with worry.

Zuko looked as if his mind was plagued by worrisome thoughts too. Of course it was. In less than an hour they would be facing Azula. Katara didn't know how Aang was going to be able to beat Ozai, but she prayed that he would not have to compromise himself doing it. She prayed that Zuko wouldn't have to compromise himself either. As much as she hated Azula she didn't want Zuko to have to kill his sister.

"Zuko, don't worry, we can take Azula." She assured him.

"I'm not worried about her, I'm worried about Aang. What if he doesn't have the guts to take out my father? What if he loses?"

"Aang won't lose." She turned and took a surreptitious look at Zuko's face. The worried look on his face had grown even deeper.

"It's not so much Aang as it is my father. If Aang shows any sign of weakness my father will pounce."

"There's more than one way to be strong. I know he seems like a goofy kid-."

"That's because he is a goofy kid." Zuko replied.

"Yeah he is, but you haven't known him as long as I have. I've seen how far he's come and how hard he's trained. I thought you were convinced that Aang could beat your father. Where is this coming from, Zuko?"

"I just don't want Aang to get hurt by another one of my family members. We've put him through enough. Maybe that's why he ran away this time. Maybe he's had enough of getting hurt."

"He's gonna come back. He has to."

"If you trust him then I have to trust him."

The Fire Nation Palace's outskirts came into view. Katara's nerves suddenly felt like a hive of Buzzardwasps. The feeling made her sick to her stomach and she pressed her lips together to keep the nauseated feeling in her stomach in check. She and Zuko flew along in silence for a few more minutes. Zuko began bringing Appa down for a landing in the courtyard of the palace. Just as they had suspected Azula had already begun her coronation

"By decree of Phoenix King Ozai, I now crown you Fire Lord..." The Fire Sage who was officiating the coronation was saying, but he stopped talking and looked up to the sky to see that Appa was about to make a touchdown in the Fire Palace courtyard.

"What are you waiting for?" Azula demanded of the Fire Sage. "Do it!" Her focus ,as ever it was, was completely on herself. She didn't even notice that they had pulled up on a sky bison.

"Sorry, but you're not going to become Fire Lord today. I am." Zuko pronounced as he jumped down from Appa.

"You're hilarious."

"And you're going down." Katara snapped. She couldn't wait to put the princess in her place. She'd been itching for a rematch ever since they had fought in the crystal catacombs. Back then Zuko had been on his sisters side, but now the tides had turned and Azula was about to be dragged out to shore.

"Wait. You want to be Fire Lord? Fine. Let's settle this. Just you and me, brother. The showdown that was always meant to be. Agni Kai!"

"You're on."

"What are you doing?" Katara asked. She couldn't believe that Zuko was going to play right into Azula's hands. "She's playing you. She knows she can't take us both so she is trying to separate us." Didn't he know by now that they worked better as a team?