Hello again! I thought I was all done with the Zutara Secret Santa, at least until next December, but as it turns out, I'm not. So...I had a new set of prompts for a new lovely person, and I chose #2, which was Zuko and Katara meeting as kids in Ba Sing Se. Dear Sassycat2, I am terribly sorry that this is so late, and I hope you like it and have a wonderful day!

The Icewalker and the Ninja of Justice

BA SING SE

Year 91 A.S.C. (After Sozin's Comet)

The warm spring sun is shining down on the Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se. The scent of blooming flowers is heavy, and the streets quiet as the most important people in the city meet with the Earth King. The little boy dressed in drab browns jumps from corner to corner, practicing his stealth. He carries wooden swords and a small pack.

A slight giggle draws his attention, and he turns to the nearest public fountain. There is a girl there, a girl dressed in blue. She's playing with the water.

The boy gets an idea. He'll test himself, see if he can be as quiet as a cat, and sneak up on her.

Closer he comes, on his tiptoes. He reaches out his hand, ready to poke the strange girl on the shoulder.

"Aaah!" she cries, twisting to look at him with wide blue eyes. "Who are you?"

"I'm Zuko," he answers, grinning. "Sorry if I scared you."

She puffs up, indignant. "I wasn't scared! I am Katara of the Water Tribe and I'm scared of no one!"

"Oh really?" Zuko says, raising an eyebrow. She doesn't look older than five.

"Yeah, really!" Katara replies. "I am the Icewalker, Mistress of Snow!"

"That's a cool title," the boy tells her, sitting by the fountain. "What's snow?"

The little girl's jaw drops. "You don't know what snow is?"

Zuko shrugs. "We don't have any in the Fire Nation."

"Oh, it's the funnest thing ever! You can make snowmen, have snowball fights, go penguin sledding, make forts," Katara grins brightly. "I'll show you some, watch!"

To Zuko's surprise and delight, the five-year-old reaches out to the fountain and pulls up a thin stream of water. With a practiced flick of her wrist, the drops fly up into the air, and come back down as snowflakes. The firebender watches them fall, sticking out his hand to catch one.

"Wow!"

"I don't know how to do a lot of things, because I just started my lessons," Katara confesses, "but I can freeze water and unfreeze it, and sometimes I can move it, too."

To demonstrate further, she reaches into the fountain and cups water in both hands. As she pulls her arms up, the water solidifies into a ball.

"This is a snowball," Katara explains, giving it to Zuko. "We have the best snowball fights at home, with gloves on so we don't get sick. What do you do for fun?"

"I'm a firebender," Zuko replies, "but I'm not very good yet. My little sister is five and she's already better than me."

He can't hide the tinge of bitterness in that last sentence. His father is not a patient man.

"I've never seen firebending before, can you show me?" Katara asks, her eyes alive with interest.

Zuko has never had such a rapt audience, except perhaps his mother.

"Alright then," he agrees, and punches a small ball of fire over the fountain. Prince Ozai would have called it pathetic; Katara is enthralled.

"Wow, that's amazing! Do it again!"

He does, his ears turning pink from the praise.

"I'm also a ninja," he confides, pointing to his outfit. "I blend into the shadows and bring justice with my blades," Zuko adds, taking out his wooden swords and swinging them.

"Aren't ninjas bad?" Katara asks, frowning. "Don't they kill people?"

"The bad ninjas do," Zuko answers quickly. "I'm a good ninja. I protect the Fire Nation from evil people by defeating them in combat and throwing them in jail."

"Oh," Katara replies, pondering this. "Alright, then."

"Do you want to join me on my crusade for justice?" the prince offers, hesitant.

Katara doesn't know what crusade means, but she does need a playmate for when Sokka stays home to pig out.

"Okay!"

Zuko smiles. "Let's go, then. I'll teach you how to walk without making noises, and we can fight evil with swords and fire and ice."

I was having so much fun with this prompt that I accidentally turned it into a multichapter...so, there will be more snapshots of Zuko and Katara, all belonging to this same AU. The war is over and Iroh is the Fire Lord, if you must know.

Feedback is always welcome!