Chapter Text
It’s a familiar feeling that wakes Katara. Familiar but also strange. She knows it’s the lull of sea, a feeling that she has almost forgotten. After all, any mermaid should be accustomed to waves and currents. Yet it’s strange in that it reminds her of going to the surface. This time around though she feels far removed from the comfort of her tail swishing in water.
Her eyes slowly open to a dim light, like the luminescent fish in the deeper and darker parts of their kingdom. Then there’s a knock and after a moment, in comes a woman with long black hair and a portly man with receding greys. Their arrival jolts her into fully waking and sitting up on the bed.
“Oh, good. You’re awake now,” the woman comments. “I’m June. I’m the healer here. This is General Iroh.”
General? She wonders if this man is dangerous. Her father’s generals certainly are. The man defies expectations when he smiles down. “I haven’t been a general for a long time. Just call me Iroh, miss. Our lookout spotted you barely hanging onto driftwood this morning. You’re aboard our ship now.”
A ship. Just like the one before the storm. A ship that floats on and sails across water. At least now there’s an explanation for the strangely familiar feeling.
“We’re below deck. This is actually my room,” June adds. “There’s only a few beds in the healing room and all of them are taken by the men who got thrown off the ship during the storm.”
“Now, may we know your name?”
Katara opens her mouth to answer, but no sound comes out.
“You must have had a bad time at sea.”
June nods her agreement. “Losing your voice after drowning isn’t very common but it’s known to happen. We’ll wait a few days before getting you some medicine, alright?”
“We’ll leave you for now, miss. Rest well. June will come get you for dinner later.”
Katara can’t do anything else but nod. Her voice is gone. Her voice was taken, as Hama said she would. Which means… legs! Feet! I have legs now!
When the door closes, she jumps out of bed. Her landing is unsteady but it is a landing nonetheless. She doesn’t know how much time passes but she spends all of it trying to walk around the small space. She has to learn to walk steadily now, if she means to find her true love and keep her human legs forever. Obviously, she can’t do that without mastery of her newfound walking.
Still, when she goes to answer June’s knock, she is almost as unsteady as she was when she first got out of bed.
“The sensation on your legs might come back fully in a day or two,” June says politely.
Katara is grateful for June’s assistance walking to the dining hall but can’t express it fully. Her mind is occupied with her comment. A day or two. She doesn’t have that much time. Hama said if Katara couldn’t get her true love’s kiss in three days, her legs will be transformed back into her original tail.
Her chances aren’t looking good… Her brother said before that there are a lot of humans – that’s why they can’t freely cross oceans to meet with their Northern brethren. More importantly now, that means her prince isn’t likely to be aboard this particular ship. Then and there she decides that after dinner, she’ll have to waterbend her way out.
They arrive at the dining hall when people are only starting to gather. She spots Iroh seated opposite another elderly man at a low table with a colored top where colored tiles were spread. Katara kindly tugs at June’s sleeve to signal her to help her walk over. She recognizes the tiles after a closer look. She has a few of them in her collection at home.
“Fancy a game of pai sho, miss?”
Katara shakes her head softly and motions for them to go ahead with their play. She pulls a nearby chair and sits to eagerly watch instead. June leaves, but not without reassuring her that she can call for help anytime.
More people come to the hall and a few gather to watch the pai sho game. At one point someone from the small crowd calls for Iroh to finish the game so they could all go and eat. Katara hasn’t grasped the play yet but in a few moves, Iroh is announced the winner.
June is immediately at her side to help her to a dining table nearby. The woman is truly kind, definitely far from the violent image of humans her family has.
They sit together and across from them sits Iroh. He leaves the chair to his left empty, explaining, “June told me that my nephew might be ready to come out of the healing room. He might join us for dinner so I’m saving this seat for him.”
Someone joins them and promptly sits at Iroh’s right. “Thanks for beating Lieutenant Jee quickly, General. I’ve been hungry since forever.” He quickly gathers food from all over the table into his wooden bowl. It reminds Katara of her own brother’s table manners.
“This is Jet. And this is…” Iroh pauses.
Katara waves a hand instead. Jet extends a hand to… She wonders what to do with it. In a panic, she slaps his hand sideways and smiles unsurely. Jet laughs loudly. Guffaws, really. She rarely hears laughter like that but it doesn’t sound foreign.
“You’re a funny sort, miss.”
He goes on to eat while she figures out why his laughter is familiar. In a few moments she recalls that it’s from the party aboard the ship on that stormy night. Before they could overtake her, she tempers her hopes and thinks carefully. Why didn’t she recognize June or Iroh? She looks around the hall and tries to see more faces. As she recognizes more of them, the lock on her hopes comes undone.
The party was attended by young men around the prince’s age. She recalls the rest of the party. There was a lot of singing and playing of instruments, which she much enjoyed. And there was drinking and eating of cake that apparently tasted horrible. The prince mock ordered that baking cake at sea was no longer allowed. That was probably the only time he spoke loudly and clearly. The rest of the time he smiled quietly at his crewmates’ merrymaking.
She likes her odds better now. Could her prince be aboard this ship?
The answer comes when a young man enters the hall and heads for their table. Unlike Jet’s louder person, he sits without a word and calmly gathers food.
“Prince Zuko, I hope you’re feeling better now.” Iroh greets. Katara’s hopes have gone up to the stars now. This is her prince. She recognizes the name and his dark hair and the scar over his left eye and his guarded face. “Please be polite and introduce yourself to our guest.”
When Iroh gestures to her, Katara waves her hand again. Her smile reaches her eyes this time, reflecting her hopes and her joy at finding him.
Zuko looks up. Katara barely notices his eyes grow wider.
“Oh, hello. Uhm, Zuko here.”