Born Beneath An Angry Star

9.The Little Water Tribe Girl

Katara couldn't speak. From a young age she had played out scenarios in her head where she met her mother's killer. In everyone of those scenarios she looked him in the eyes and told him who she was. She told him about the sacrifice her mother had made for her. Then she made him pay. The ways in which she made him pay were always different. Pushing him off a cliff so that she could watch the look on his face as he fell. Setting him on fire so he could know what it felt like to burn. Drowning him so that he knew the might of a waterbender. The ways in which she wanted to hurt the man who killed her mother were endless. The anger she felt over her mother's death scared her, but it also sustained her. Like a second heart that beat within her.

"How?" She asked Zuko.

"I know who attacked your village that day. It was the Southern Raiders. We find the leader and we find your mother's killer."

"You're sure?"

"I'm Positive."

"All right. Ten minutes. She said. "Ten minutes is all I need to get ready."

Katara hurried back into her tent and began packing only what she thought she would need for the trip. She also needed to change her clothes. Her Water Tribe clothing would be a dead give away. This was going to be a mission of stealth and she needed to dress accordingly. Of course she had not packed anything for this type of situation, but she would probably be able to find something on the airship. After she finished packing her bag she boarded the airship and began looking for something that didn't scream Water Tribe.

She searched the ship until she found a storage locker full of long black cloaks. She picked out one for herself and picked one that she figured would fit Zuko. She took the cloaks straight to Zuko's tent.

"Open up it's me." She called out.

The flap to the tent opened at once and she stepped through. "I got this for you."

Zuko held up the black cloak. "Thanks."

"Not a problem." She said as she shrugged into her cloak.

"We should tell the others before we go." Zuko said. "We're going to be gone for at least two days."

Katara shouldered her backpack. "Let's get this over with."

Everyone was sitting around the camp fire. Sokka was telling a story. Whatever the story was it must have been funny because Suki was laughing so hard there were tears running down her face. Toph was rolling on the floor and Aang was doubled over and slapping his knee.

"Zuko and I are going on a field trip." She said abruptly. "We're going to find the man who took my Mother from me."

The laughter stopped at once.

"You and Zuko are going to what?" Sokka asked. His mouth hung open long after he had asked the question.

"You heard me." Katara said. She wasn't going to repeat herself.

"How?" Suki asked.

"I figured it out after Sokka told me the story of the raid on his village. I know who did it. And I know how to find him." Zuko explained.

Sokka closed his slack jaw and turned to look at his sister. "I'm not saying you shouldn't go, but Katara-."

"Don't try to stop us." Katara snapped at her brother.

"What are you going to do when you find him?" Toph asked.

Katara shrugged. "I don't know, and I won't until I see him." She turned to Aang. "Can I borrow Appa?"

"She needs this." Zuko said when Aang didn't answer. "This is about getting closure and justice."

"I think it's about getting revenge." Aang countered.