Katara loved candles. Candles hung in her home in the Water Tribe. Candles lit her room, lit the halls, added a light. They were warm and bright. They reminded her of Zuko, warm and bright.
She recalled a night they went out, downtown. They were guised in black hooded clothes, wearing costume masks so no one would pester them, even though it was an hour passed anyone's rousing. Everything was closed down for the night, so he lit the candles along the streets, lighting up the streets. He lit the candles in their room when she wanted to read, or just be able to see his face in the dark. They had scented candles in their room, not only did those illuminate the dark, they had an arousing aroma.
Zuko, however, had a different love for candles, a more practical admiration. He liked using them when his lamps had burnt out and he'd burnt all his midnight oil. He liked to use them so he wouldn't have to strain his eyes, squinting at the tiny print on the documents. This night, he'd burnt the candle almost out, it was dimly lit, running out.
Katara came down the winding staircase, holding an unlit candle, taking Zuko by surprise. "Here, Zuko, you're going to go blind," Katara insisted, setting one of her scented candles, a gift from him, on the desk.
"That's your good candle. And, Toph seems to manage," Zuko teased, rubbing his eyes, yawning.
"Toph is an earthbender, you're not. You gave me it anyway, and you need it," Katara persisted, but instead of forcing him to light it, and finish, she shut the book filled with legislation. "You are so tired. There are dark circles under your eyes," she spoke with concern, cupping his cheeks as her thumbs traced under his eyes. "You look awful. Stop it with the papers, please," she begged him. "You're a person, Zuko. You're not a machine. You need to rest," Katara whispered, her boyfriend pouting.
Zuko lit the candle, smelling its scent get more potent. It smelled like cotton. Katara smirked, the aroma purging out a memory of one of their first dates, as scents held that strong power to person. "You know," Katara flirted, twisting her locks of hair on her finger, "Some people think candlelight is romantic," Katara teased, making him smile.
"Do they?" he played along, recalling the night vividly. They ate dinner on a balcony, and put out that candle at night. He'd lit it, but accidentally spilled some of the hot wax on her lap. "I don't know, I feel like you'd remember them as the opposite."
Katara laughed, clasping his hand. "It was cute," she stated. "You're cute when you're all flustered over little things like that. I had a good time, don't fret," she assured him.
"Good, now let me have a good time with my papers," he grumbled sarcastically. Katara shook her head, and pressed her fingers to the flame on the wick, extinguishing it.
"I've got plenty of time for candles later, now come to bed, hotpants."