Enemy of My Enemy
Author: Kodukadvakch
Prompt: #55. Enemies
Title: Enemy of My Enemy
Word Count: 2137
Rating: PG-13 for language
Summary: Trapped in a cage with my greatest enemy was not my idea of a fun outing...
Author's Notes: Written in 1st person, Katara's POV.
“I hate you.”
“You’re an idiot.”
“I hope you die.”
“You wouldn’t be the first person to wish for such a thing.”
The honesty in his voice was genuine; genuine enough to frighten me into silence.
Anger bubbled up just under my skin, screaming for release, and I had the sudden urge to jump the boy in front of me, and throttle him.
Instead, I settled myself in a corner of the cage we were stuck in, and decided it would be best to wait this whole dilemma out.
After all, it wasn’t my fault that the Almighty-Prince-Of-The-Fire-Nation had gotten us trapped in this stinking hell-hole of a prison. I had been minding my own business this morning, while I was out buying supplies for our little group; just another face in a multitude of faces. Today had just been another one of those days - the kind where you really had nothing to do, yet you found yourself struggling out of the pits of boredom anyways - until he had shown up.
Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation, one of the most hated people in the world, my freakin’ enemy, just had to go and mess everything up!
I growled outwardly before I could reign in my anger, and glanced up to find the Fire Brat watching me with a contemplative gaze. His now-shaggy hair framed his face with gentle subtlety, and the light brown strands which fell into his eyes only seemed to heighten the golden hue to their depths.
He’s… surprisingly attractive,
I thought, then blanched. Wait, no! I meant, ‘evil.’ He’s very, very evil! I mean, come on, he can‘t be good looking; look at that gigantic scar on his face!
Though he couldn’t hear them, I paled at my own thoughts, and felt immensely shameful at my conceited mind. To hate someone for their actions was one thing; but to despise them for their appearance…
Damn my conscious, for it was silently nagging at me for my behavior.
I mean, I was a civil person, right? It wasn’t uncommon for me to at least act politely towards people who got on my nerves; unless they pushed me to the edge, of course. And right now, all this Fire Nation boy had done was sit there quietly, taking my verbal assault with the grace of an actual prince.
True, he was my enemy, but for some odd reason, he wasn’t acting like it.
Sighing, I settled myself into the corner opposite of the person I was trapped with, bringing my knees towards my body to wrap my arms around my legs.
“I didn’t mean that,” I whispered, avoiding eye contact with those piercing golden orbs.
He was silent, and for a moment I thought that maybe he was ignoring me, but when I glanced up to confirm this speculation, I nearly gasped at finding the boy kneeling only about a foot in front of me.
How did he do that!? I didn’t even hear him move!
Zuko was staring at me with an expression as intense and consuming as the fire he controlled. I suppose it was the waterbender in me that shuddered at his proximity, for when fire and water mixed, one or both elements were destroyed. Or, perhaps it was basic instinct - common sense - that told me of this boy’s danger; of his power.
It didn’t matter, because no matter how hard I tried to analyze the situation I now found myself in, it was very, very difficult to string two coherent thoughts together when the breath of my enemy was ghosting across the flesh of my cheek.
Was it out of fear that I was shivering? Or was it something else…?
I didn’t want to think about.
Thankfully, his scratchy voice broke through my reveries.
“Don’t lie, peasant,” he growled out, the anger in his tone a deadly knife against my throat. He slit his eyes dangerously, searching my own wavering gaze for any hint of deceit.
“I didn’t -”
“You would kill me, if given the chance.”
Was that sorrow shining in his eyes? I couldn’t tell, because the glimmer faded in an instant.
“No I -”
“Yes, you would.”
God, his incessant interruptions were getting on my nerves. I opened my mouth to speak, but found that he beat me to it, once again.
“I am your enemy. You would kill me, if the opportunity ever arose, because I wouldn’t hesitate to take away the boy you defend with your life, if given the chance.”
He had a point there. I would defend Aang with my life - even if it meant taking the life of another. He was the Avatar, after all. My existence, the existence of others, paled in comparison to his own destiny.
These thoughts must have shown through my eyes, for the Fire Prince merely snorted and leaned back on his heels, sitting cross-legged in front of me.
The silence that followed was perhaps the most awkward sound I had ever heard.
After what seemed liked hours, the loud thump, thump, thump of heavy footsteps echoed down the passage leading to our small cage, and a rather burly looking man came into view; the torch in his hand seemingly engulfed by the darkness which surrounded us.
He glanced between us - I, in my blue Water Tribe garb, Zuko in what appeared to be Earth Kingdom clothing -, then allowed his gaze to rest on me.
“Alright, girly,” the man said in a demeaning tone, and I found myself bristling at his words. “Yer comin’ with me.” The toothy grin he flashed my way, though, made my stomach lurch, and I had the sudden urge to cling to the golden-eyed boy beside me. At least he was familiar, unlike the stinking giant who was currently fumbling around with a set of keys to unlock our cage.
Trying my hardest to delay his hands, I questioned, “Where are you taking me?”
He paused for a moment - sweet success! -, before flashing me another one of those disturbing smiles.
“Well, sweetheart, yer a lucky one, tonight.” The way he said ‘lucky’ made me curse the fates for my misfortune. “The prison’s full, so we getta’ take you to the brothel. Trust me, it’s just as much of a hell-hole as any jail.”
I paled, and would have fallen over had Zuko’s firm grip on my arm not stopped me. The Fire Nation Prince rose to his feet - dragging me along with him - and glowered down at the man before us.
“She’s innocent. I’m the one who stole the feed; she just got in my way.” This admission stopped the bigger man's hands for a moment, for which I was infinitely grateful.
Wait a minute… was my enemy protecting me?
Crap, I needed to lay off the Cactus Juice.
“That’s all good and well, son,” said the other, his face now set in a grim line. “But I don’t give a shit.” The menacing smile which etched into his features at that moment made me want to retch. “You’re goin’ to the rock query, see. The both a’ ya’ have a hundred and sixty-eight hours of community service.”
I didn’t know about the community, but I had a pretty good idea of what kind of service I was meant to provide.
Shuddering at the thought, I suddenly wished that they hadn’t taken away my water skin, and cursed this stupid cage for being disgustingly dry, instead of damp like in the horror stories we were told as children.
Zuko’s grip on my arm tightened to bruising intensity, but I couldn’t find it in me to wrench away.
After all, the enemy of my enemy was my friend - which meant that, for these few hours, Zuko was on my side.
“She’s not going anywhere,” Zuko growled out, the scratchiness of his voice only making his words sound all the more threatening. I could see the tiny glint of fear in the bigger man’s eyes, but he shook it off quickly, and only started to laugh.
“Ha, good try kid!” Then, more darkly, “Now hand her over.”
I was surprised to find myself pulled up against the Fire Nation Prince, one of his arms wrapping protectively around my waist.
“I will not stand by and let an innocent girl get raped. I have more honor than that.”
I was beginning to hate the man before us, because the chuckle whish escaped his lips chilled me to the bone. “Fuck honor.”
Standing this close to the Fire Nation boy, I could feel the heat of his fury radiating from his skin, and the rumble of his chest shake my own body.
Odd, how in the middle of a desperate situation, I would notice that my enemy’s warmth was rather pleasant, and that his voice was actually quite nice to hear.
These thoughts flitted through my mind only briefly, for the second the click of the lock resounded in that desolate place, a blast of fire sent the bigger man flying backwards, while I myself was pulled forward through the gap in our cage.
And we ran, as if hell itself were chasing our heels.
"Fire Nation!" came the winded shout behind us, which only seemed to make my companion pick up his grueling speed.
Zuko had taken his arm from around me to grip my wrist rather forcefully, dragging me through the dark corridors we now found ourselves in.
“This way,” he whispered, and pulled me into a darkness so absolute, I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face. It smelt horrible in that passageway, and the slimy water which I now found myself sloshing through seemed to be the source of such a stench.
“Where are -” I began, but could barely talk for the disgusting aroma which permeated my senses.
“You don’t want to know,” I heard Zuko whisper from in front of me, his hand still clamped tightly around my wrist as he pulled me deeper and deeper into the blackness surrounding us.
For a moment, I wondered how he had any idea where he was going, but shook away these doubts when a tiny pinprick of light up ahead caught my attention. Already, the sickening smell was lessening, and when we finally broke free from the tunnel we were traveling in, I breathed deeply of the fresh outside air.
It wasn’t until several minutes later that I realized the Prince’s hand was still on me, and that it had been surprisingly easy to forget my disgust of him.
When we did notice that we were practically touching shoulders by our proximity, the both of us took a nervous step away from the other. The hand around my wrist was snatched back rather forcefully, and I glanced up to find that the Fire Nation Prince had a light blush tinting his cheeks.
How cute, I thought offhandedly, gazing appraisingly at the right side of his face. From this position, his scar wasn’t visible, and in the fading rays of sunset, the golden hue thrown about his features only heightened his handsomeness.
He would be really good-looking without that scar…
And suddenly, all the shame from earlier came rushing back. How could I be so cruel? Hating someone for a scar, of all things…
As if noticing I was staring, Zuko turned fully around to face me head on, and the sight which greeted me made my breath hitch in my throat. The distorted skin which marred the features around his left eye seemed to turn a shade of crimson in the golden light- like a blood stain smeared across his face, or the flame of an all-consuming fire dancing across his flesh. The light in his eyes seemed to glow - flickering between golden and amber with every slight turn of the head -, and the light, easy set of his lips made his passive face soften like the glow of campfire.
Strange, how, in that moment, my enemy could look so much like a friend.
We watched each other for a few moments, though this time the silence was far from awkward. We were contemplating, studying, analyzing - and yet, we were calm in our movements and thoughts.
Fire and water… we danced to a beat of unwritten ages, where one wrong move could destroy us both. But, if we stepped lightly…
…It was beautiful. He was beautiful, in a way. A mixture of ruggedness and smoothness; hatred and friendliness. Opposites… like fire and water… were shown on his face.
A perfect face. Scar and all.
Enemy of my enemy…
Friend of my friend…
Stepping lightly, I walked closer to the boy before me, the slight look of astonishment on his features telling me that he had not been expecting this. Paranoia shone through his otherwise passive mask, and before he had a chance to run, I surprised him once again.
“I wouldn’t kill you, because I have more honor than that.”
And I hugged him.
What surprised me the most, though, was the fervor with which he returned my embrace.
----
End
----
I've left some things out for a reason. This one-shot was meant to be a little vague, so you can use your imagination on how certain things turned out.
Feedback is much appreciated!
Prompt: #55. Enemies
Title: Enemy of My Enemy
Word Count: 2137
Rating: PG-13 for language
Summary: Trapped in a cage with my greatest enemy was not my idea of a fun outing...
Author's Notes: Written in 1st person, Katara's POV.
“I hate you.”
“You’re an idiot.”
“I hope you die.”
“You wouldn’t be the first person to wish for such a thing.”
The honesty in his voice was genuine; genuine enough to frighten me into silence.
Anger bubbled up just under my skin, screaming for release, and I had the sudden urge to jump the boy in front of me, and throttle him.
Instead, I settled myself in a corner of the cage we were stuck in, and decided it would be best to wait this whole dilemma out.
After all, it wasn’t my fault that the Almighty-Prince-Of-The-Fire-Nation had gotten us trapped in this stinking hell-hole of a prison. I had been minding my own business this morning, while I was out buying supplies for our little group; just another face in a multitude of faces. Today had just been another one of those days - the kind where you really had nothing to do, yet you found yourself struggling out of the pits of boredom anyways - until he had shown up.
Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation, one of the most hated people in the world, my freakin’ enemy, just had to go and mess everything up!
I growled outwardly before I could reign in my anger, and glanced up to find the Fire Brat watching me with a contemplative gaze. His now-shaggy hair framed his face with gentle subtlety, and the light brown strands which fell into his eyes only seemed to heighten the golden hue to their depths.
He’s… surprisingly attractive,
I thought, then blanched. Wait, no! I meant, ‘evil.’ He’s very, very evil! I mean, come on, he can‘t be good looking; look at that gigantic scar on his face!
Though he couldn’t hear them, I paled at my own thoughts, and felt immensely shameful at my conceited mind. To hate someone for their actions was one thing; but to despise them for their appearance…
Damn my conscious, for it was silently nagging at me for my behavior.
I mean, I was a civil person, right? It wasn’t uncommon for me to at least act politely towards people who got on my nerves; unless they pushed me to the edge, of course. And right now, all this Fire Nation boy had done was sit there quietly, taking my verbal assault with the grace of an actual prince.
True, he was my enemy, but for some odd reason, he wasn’t acting like it.
Sighing, I settled myself into the corner opposite of the person I was trapped with, bringing my knees towards my body to wrap my arms around my legs.
“I didn’t mean that,” I whispered, avoiding eye contact with those piercing golden orbs.
He was silent, and for a moment I thought that maybe he was ignoring me, but when I glanced up to confirm this speculation, I nearly gasped at finding the boy kneeling only about a foot in front of me.
How did he do that!? I didn’t even hear him move!
Zuko was staring at me with an expression as intense and consuming as the fire he controlled. I suppose it was the waterbender in me that shuddered at his proximity, for when fire and water mixed, one or both elements were destroyed. Or, perhaps it was basic instinct - common sense - that told me of this boy’s danger; of his power.
It didn’t matter, because no matter how hard I tried to analyze the situation I now found myself in, it was very, very difficult to string two coherent thoughts together when the breath of my enemy was ghosting across the flesh of my cheek.
Was it out of fear that I was shivering? Or was it something else…?
I didn’t want to think about.
Thankfully, his scratchy voice broke through my reveries.
“Don’t lie, peasant,” he growled out, the anger in his tone a deadly knife against my throat. He slit his eyes dangerously, searching my own wavering gaze for any hint of deceit.
“I didn’t -”
“You would kill me, if given the chance.”
Was that sorrow shining in his eyes? I couldn’t tell, because the glimmer faded in an instant.
“No I -”
“Yes, you would.”
God, his incessant interruptions were getting on my nerves. I opened my mouth to speak, but found that he beat me to it, once again.
“I am your enemy. You would kill me, if the opportunity ever arose, because I wouldn’t hesitate to take away the boy you defend with your life, if given the chance.”
He had a point there. I would defend Aang with my life - even if it meant taking the life of another. He was the Avatar, after all. My existence, the existence of others, paled in comparison to his own destiny.
These thoughts must have shown through my eyes, for the Fire Prince merely snorted and leaned back on his heels, sitting cross-legged in front of me.
The silence that followed was perhaps the most awkward sound I had ever heard.
After what seemed liked hours, the loud thump, thump, thump of heavy footsteps echoed down the passage leading to our small cage, and a rather burly looking man came into view; the torch in his hand seemingly engulfed by the darkness which surrounded us.
He glanced between us - I, in my blue Water Tribe garb, Zuko in what appeared to be Earth Kingdom clothing -, then allowed his gaze to rest on me.
“Alright, girly,” the man said in a demeaning tone, and I found myself bristling at his words. “Yer comin’ with me.” The toothy grin he flashed my way, though, made my stomach lurch, and I had the sudden urge to cling to the golden-eyed boy beside me. At least he was familiar, unlike the stinking giant who was currently fumbling around with a set of keys to unlock our cage.
Trying my hardest to delay his hands, I questioned, “Where are you taking me?”
He paused for a moment - sweet success! -, before flashing me another one of those disturbing smiles.
“Well, sweetheart, yer a lucky one, tonight.” The way he said ‘lucky’ made me curse the fates for my misfortune. “The prison’s full, so we getta’ take you to the brothel. Trust me, it’s just as much of a hell-hole as any jail.”
I paled, and would have fallen over had Zuko’s firm grip on my arm not stopped me. The Fire Nation Prince rose to his feet - dragging me along with him - and glowered down at the man before us.
“She’s innocent. I’m the one who stole the feed; she just got in my way.” This admission stopped the bigger man's hands for a moment, for which I was infinitely grateful.
Wait a minute… was my enemy protecting me?
Crap, I needed to lay off the Cactus Juice.
“That’s all good and well, son,” said the other, his face now set in a grim line. “But I don’t give a shit.” The menacing smile which etched into his features at that moment made me want to retch. “You’re goin’ to the rock query, see. The both a’ ya’ have a hundred and sixty-eight hours of community service.”
I didn’t know about the community, but I had a pretty good idea of what kind of service I was meant to provide.
Shuddering at the thought, I suddenly wished that they hadn’t taken away my water skin, and cursed this stupid cage for being disgustingly dry, instead of damp like in the horror stories we were told as children.
Zuko’s grip on my arm tightened to bruising intensity, but I couldn’t find it in me to wrench away.
After all, the enemy of my enemy was my friend - which meant that, for these few hours, Zuko was on my side.
“She’s not going anywhere,” Zuko growled out, the scratchiness of his voice only making his words sound all the more threatening. I could see the tiny glint of fear in the bigger man’s eyes, but he shook it off quickly, and only started to laugh.
“Ha, good try kid!” Then, more darkly, “Now hand her over.”
I was surprised to find myself pulled up against the Fire Nation Prince, one of his arms wrapping protectively around my waist.
“I will not stand by and let an innocent girl get raped. I have more honor than that.”
I was beginning to hate the man before us, because the chuckle whish escaped his lips chilled me to the bone. “Fuck honor.”
Standing this close to the Fire Nation boy, I could feel the heat of his fury radiating from his skin, and the rumble of his chest shake my own body.
Odd, how in the middle of a desperate situation, I would notice that my enemy’s warmth was rather pleasant, and that his voice was actually quite nice to hear.
These thoughts flitted through my mind only briefly, for the second the click of the lock resounded in that desolate place, a blast of fire sent the bigger man flying backwards, while I myself was pulled forward through the gap in our cage.
And we ran, as if hell itself were chasing our heels.
"Fire Nation!" came the winded shout behind us, which only seemed to make my companion pick up his grueling speed.
Zuko had taken his arm from around me to grip my wrist rather forcefully, dragging me through the dark corridors we now found ourselves in.
“This way,” he whispered, and pulled me into a darkness so absolute, I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face. It smelt horrible in that passageway, and the slimy water which I now found myself sloshing through seemed to be the source of such a stench.
“Where are -” I began, but could barely talk for the disgusting aroma which permeated my senses.
“You don’t want to know,” I heard Zuko whisper from in front of me, his hand still clamped tightly around my wrist as he pulled me deeper and deeper into the blackness surrounding us.
For a moment, I wondered how he had any idea where he was going, but shook away these doubts when a tiny pinprick of light up ahead caught my attention. Already, the sickening smell was lessening, and when we finally broke free from the tunnel we were traveling in, I breathed deeply of the fresh outside air.
It wasn’t until several minutes later that I realized the Prince’s hand was still on me, and that it had been surprisingly easy to forget my disgust of him.
When we did notice that we were practically touching shoulders by our proximity, the both of us took a nervous step away from the other. The hand around my wrist was snatched back rather forcefully, and I glanced up to find that the Fire Nation Prince had a light blush tinting his cheeks.
How cute, I thought offhandedly, gazing appraisingly at the right side of his face. From this position, his scar wasn’t visible, and in the fading rays of sunset, the golden hue thrown about his features only heightened his handsomeness.
He would be really good-looking without that scar…
And suddenly, all the shame from earlier came rushing back. How could I be so cruel? Hating someone for a scar, of all things…
As if noticing I was staring, Zuko turned fully around to face me head on, and the sight which greeted me made my breath hitch in my throat. The distorted skin which marred the features around his left eye seemed to turn a shade of crimson in the golden light- like a blood stain smeared across his face, or the flame of an all-consuming fire dancing across his flesh. The light in his eyes seemed to glow - flickering between golden and amber with every slight turn of the head -, and the light, easy set of his lips made his passive face soften like the glow of campfire.
Strange, how, in that moment, my enemy could look so much like a friend.
We watched each other for a few moments, though this time the silence was far from awkward. We were contemplating, studying, analyzing - and yet, we were calm in our movements and thoughts.
Fire and water… we danced to a beat of unwritten ages, where one wrong move could destroy us both. But, if we stepped lightly…
…It was beautiful. He was beautiful, in a way. A mixture of ruggedness and smoothness; hatred and friendliness. Opposites… like fire and water… were shown on his face.
A perfect face. Scar and all.
Enemy of my enemy…
Friend of my friend…
Stepping lightly, I walked closer to the boy before me, the slight look of astonishment on his features telling me that he had not been expecting this. Paranoia shone through his otherwise passive mask, and before he had a chance to run, I surprised him once again.
“I wouldn’t kill you, because I have more honor than that.”
And I hugged him.
What surprised me the most, though, was the fervor with which he returned my embrace.
----
End
----
I've left some things out for a reason. This one-shot was meant to be a little vague, so you can use your imagination on how certain things turned out.
Feedback is much appreciated!