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While there wasn't much question in his mind as to what to do with most of the conspirators that he captured, there was one that he honestly wasn't sure what to do with.

Katara. The fourteen year old girl who by all accounts, fell backwards into the situation, attempted to kill the Yeerk along side of Sam and his group, then... gave up.

It put him in a tough position. She was just a kid who made a rash and remarkably stupid decision. Now he had to decide whether she should.

He had wanted to deal with her immediately, but he wasn't in the frame of mind to. He needed to think, but that at least came with one advantage. It would also give her time to think, which is about all she'd be able to do while being held in the brig.

Now that he finally had a chance to rest and clear his head, he decided to have a talk with the girl. He needed to see where her head was at, and what she learned, if anything. Or if she was as lost as Sam was.

He had her moved from her cell into one of the interrogation rooms. He had her wait there for a few minutes, then finally walked in.

"Miss Katara."

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Leon didn't tell her to calm down, or to hold it all together. She was a kid and obviously holding in a lot. He decided to give her a chance to let it all out. Particularly since she seemed to be holding in something rather important.

"You can tell me about this 'Azula' in a moment, but I need you to back up a little for me. I need you to tell me about Aang. If he's being held somewhere on this ship, you have to tell me everything you can. That's the best way you can help him right now."

Katara took a breath now. She was glad that she finally said it to someone, even though she shouldn't have said it according to Zuko. She was too emotional for that: she definitely knew that now.

"Aang in my world is the Avatar, which means he is the balance of my woirkd because he controls the four elements: water, air, fire and earth. If I knew where Aang was, I'd go there myeslf. I don't know where he is, but I know he's here. You may say I don't have concrete proof, but I know. And if you actually mean that..."

Well. She had no words. How would someone who barely knew her want to help?

He did make sure to take notes on that. This ship had a thousand mysteries, this 'Aang' person seemed to be yet another one of them.

"This is an incredibly huge ship, about the size of a small country. If he's stuck in another part of the ship, he could be miles away, and no one can help him if they don't even know he's there." And speaking of knowing about him...

"How do you know he's on board? Just a gut feeling, or did he try to contact you somehow?"

Katara shook her head. "He's here. There was a way he let me know that he knew it was me. He let off a sign that he was around, a sigh that it was only him. Leon, I know it sounds weird but I won't lie. He's the one I care about...more than anyone."

Katara didn't absolve herself. "I just wanted them to be OK. I know he means this, and I know that I wasn't right. But I need you to know that I wanted nothing but the best for them."

He leaned forward a little, resting his elbows on his knees. "I know. I still think you're a good kid, you just made a bad decision based on incomplete information. Which, honestly? That's typical of teenagers." Granted, those usually didn't involve attempted murder, but these were crazy circumstances. "The good news is you're young, and as long as you're willing to learn, the rest of us are willing to help you. That's far more important than punishing you." Despite the screw up.

"Now, about Aang; tell me where, when, and how he contacted you. If we're lucky, we might find a way to answer back."

Teenagers. Leon was fairly predictable about his opinion of non-adults, which still irritated Katara. In this case, annoyingly, he was right and she knew it. She had made this decision based on her emotions, and not only that, it had been a decision she wouldn't have made a week ago. She knew that because she had decided something different at that time, in that dreamscape with Roxie. What she hadn't realized at that time was how relevant it was going to be for her here. She swallowed, trying to calm the panic so she could answer Leon's inquiries.

"Several weeks ago, I was in the statuary: there we found a place similar to an air temple we visited when we were first discovered Aang. When I found out from Zuko that Aang was still here, I got angry...and at that time, the statues glowed. The only time that ever happened was when Aang was in the Avatar state, where his eyes glow and he channels a great amnount of energy from his previous ancestors. There was no way that could have happened unless he was here...and I still have to find out where he is. He knows I'm here."

The statuary. Interesting that.

"Alright, that gives me someplace to start." Something he could work with, at least.

"You had also mentioned something or someone called 'Azula'?" He liked to be thorough when he worked, and hadn't forgotten about that detail.

Katara nodded. It wasn't much evidence, she knew that. But there was no doubt in her mind that Aang was here: she knew that for sure.

But she really wasn't ready to think about Azula right now.

"Someone I don't want to think about. She was vicious and cruel, the worse person I know. I fought her near the end of the war, and I chained her up before she could do more damage. It was good I did that though: she was only seconds away from electrocuting me with that lightning like she did to Zuko."

And to anyone, it was apparent it was a time Katara didn't like thinking about.

That was something he was willing to let go of, so he didn't push it.

"Ok, I think we're about done here." Not that he was any closer to figuring out what to do with her. But he found out what he needed to know about her.

"Just one more thing; did you sign up for any classes?"

"Thank you," Katara said softly, wondering what all of this would mean to Leon. For her, she just wanted to curl up and go unconscious. The doubt she was having in her heart, the idea of knowing she might be like that woman, was too much to think about now.

"Of course: mathematics, physics, other religions and any art class. I have to keep up with this ship's technology after all. Why do you ask?"

"I'll talk to Allen, and to the Commanding Officers. I don't know how much longer you'll be here--" hopefully not much longer, "--but I wouldn't want you to fall behind while you're here."

Katara nodded. She understood now why this happened, what Leon had wanted. She didn't think she deserved any better treatment than any of the other conspirators, considering why she'd done it, but she was glad he heard her out.

"I'll do my best to keep my studies up," Katara said, then had a genuinely appreciative expression. "Thank you for hearing me out. I know you think I'm a killer, but...I wanted to help the people here. I DO care about them. This was just the wrong way. I know that now."

"A wise man once said, 'Warriors are people who let their hearts feel the pain of the battles they fight. Killers are people who feel no pain and have no regrets over what they've done.'" Five bucks says he got that off of a fortune cookie.

He stood up and put his hand on her shoulder and gave it a soft squeeze. As far as he was concerned, she wasn't a killer. He then headed towards the door. "C'mon, let's get you back to your cell."

Katara smiled, and walked with him. She didn't mind that she'd go back, not now: the fact was, she understood now what the inner conflict meant, and what she could do to stop it. What she'd done hadn't been good because it pushed her closer to being a person she didn't want to be.

She did know that she would have to face what she'd done, and Aang might be disappointed with her when he'd find out.

That would be the true punishment.

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