Author's Notes:

The following story is an outtake from Another Word for Alchemy (my fluffy romance story about Zuko and Katara that you should go read first). The following scene takes place at the end of Chapter 21.

Please note that this is a portrayal of first-time sex. It is not particularly dirty or graphic, but it is a lemon and it is rated R for a reason. Clothing will be coming off.

Also, it's long. Something like 9000 words long if you include the preachy note that I'm going to add at the end. As a result, chapters were necessary. Yep. That's right. I wrote multiple chapters of first-time sex for Katara and Zuko. And it was fun. And no, I'm not going to let you read it all at once, because I want this story to last a little longer than Zuko would if Katara ever decided she wanted to bring bloodbending into the mix.

I recommend listening to Ed Sheeran's song Kiss Me while you read. I'm going to publish a new chapter every Sunday until I've published all 5 chapters. I hope you enjoy every "ahh" and "mmm" of it. Happy sexy Sunday.

Disclaimer: ATLA is of course not mine. I'm just borrowing.

Zuko

Dinner was long over, but Zuko didn't want the evening to stop. When Suki and Sokka stood up to say goodnight, he nearly commanded them to sit back down in the small, private dinning room on board Zuko's ship. Katara leaned against his shoulder and sighed. After what they'd been through the last few days, all either of them wanted was to be together.

Aang stood up soon after and said it had been a long day.

"No," Katara protested, but Aang just pulled Toph up from off the floor and gave him and Katara an amused look. Zuko impulsively wrapped his arms around Katara as the door shut behind their friends, leaving them to linger alone.

It was time to say goodnight, but Zuko couldn't do it. He wasn't ready to let her go tonight yet. "Maybe you could use a midnight tour," he murmured into Katara's ear. She shifted in his arms so she could look up at him.

"You already gave me a tour of the ship," she said. He detected slight disappointment in her voice.

"I was thinking you might like to see the Fire Lord's private quarters," he managed, trying not to get lost in her eyes when they brightened at the suggestion.

"I think I would like that," she said, so low it was almost under her breath. He leaned down to kiss her, she twisted up to return the kiss, and it was soft, patient, slow and left him wanting much more. He definitely wasn't ready to say goodnight.

It seemed it had been a matter of motivation, then, that neither of them had wanted to get up and leave the dinning room. They walked silently and swiftly to the door that blocked his private suite from the rest of the ship. The door felt ominous and momentous at the same time. Zuko breathed shallowly as they approached.

Katara laughed, and there was a nervous quality to it. "Does the Fire Lord entertain a lot of women this way?" she asked. She was at his side, his hand resting lightly at her back as he reached for the door. He stopped abruptly, turning so he could see her face. She only gave away a hint of uncertainty. A hint was enough for him to pause.

"No," he said. The worst thing he could think of was for her to think she was anything like any other woman to him, when really she was everything that had worth in the whole world. "Not any women in a long long time."

The uncertainty cleared. She stood on her toes to kiss him sweetly. "Tell me again what you said earlier," she said.

"That I love you?" he asked, relaxing again as he took in her face. He brushed the back of his hand against her cheek.

She nodded and he felt the corners of his eyes crinkle. He took a deep breath and kissed her again, drawing out the contact. Whatever else he craved tonight, the thing he wanted most was just her there with him and no reason to fear that she was going anywhere anytime soon. "I love you," he said.

She held the fabric of his robes in her hands at his chest tightly, as if she were trying to hang onto the moment itself. He looked deep into her eyes. He would never get tired of looking into those blue depths. "Will you show me?" she whispered.

He answered by opening the door with a trembling hand and guiding her inside.

Katara

The tour of Zuko's suite was a slow dance. He lit candles and lanterns as they walked, but he never broke the physical contact between them. His hand was always on her waist, her arm, her shoulder, her back - something always. He looked at her like she could disappear from his sight any time.

"I'm not going anywhere, Zuko," she said, trying to reassure him.

"That's for damned sure," he said, his mouth coming down on hers hot and insistent. He backed her against a nearby wardrobe, and as her shoulders hit the tall piece of furniture she responded with a fervor of her own. A noise like want issued from her throat and made her giggle, because she had wanted this kind of passion from him before, but never this badly. She hadn't even known she could want so much.

He smiled against her lips, and soon they were both laughing, the kiss broken but the experience somehow more whole. Then he slightly changed the position of his fingers resting lightly on her hips - he was only adjusting his grip - and it made her catch her breath. She swallowed at the realization that he could do so little and cause such a sensation, and their eyes barely met before their mouths did again. She thrilled at the violent rush in her veins as they leaned into each other, giving in together to an irresistible need to be close. So close.

He made noises too. Low guttural sounds that drove her crazy while she lost track of whose lips were kissing and whose lips were being kissed and was it her tongue prodding his or his swirling gently around hers? Her legs began to wobble while a quivering warmth spread through her from deep within, and she drew back, gasping. He found her hands with his.

"Come on," he said, guiding her eagerly back to another room with an arrangement of plush furniture. She looked around. Dark wood, gold trim, brown leather, red velvet. But…

"No Fire Nation flags," she commented. He looked puzzled at her.

"Private quarters," he said. "It's supposed to feel comfortable, not regal."

He was still holding her hand. She lifted his up to her mouth and kissed his knuckles. "I like it, Zuko," she said. "I like to think of just you sometimes, without the whole Fire Nation watching."

He grinned. "There's definitely no one watching tonight."

A mischievous smile fell on her face. "Good," she said. "Because the things we do tonight should stay between us."

He laughed, blushed, and ran his free hand through his hair. He was sexy even when he was being adorably uncertain, so she reached up and ran her hand through his hair too. It was loose, he wasn't wearing any of his normal armor, and she was glad for the casual attire. He looked at her with eyes that were open and trusting. It made her want to cuddle with him, but the warm need buzzing inside her made her want to do other things first.

They stood in the center of the room together, and she wasn't sure what else to do with the break. How soon could they get back to the kissing? Zuko seemed unsure as well. "I could get us both drinks," he offered, nodding at a liquor cabinet she hadn't noticed before, but not making any move toward it. "Do you want something?"

She shook her head. "Just us tonight, okay?" she said. No alcohol, but also no sun, no moon, no bending, no magic. Just them. Together not because of the chemistry of opposite elements attracting but because of the common experiences that wove a bond between them of trust and love. He held her hand tighter. She didn't think she had to explain.

"Okay," he said. "A glass of water then?" She nodded and slipped down onto a soft couch while she waited for him to pour glasses of water from a pitcher. Presently, he handed her a glass, sat down across from her and tipped his own glass to her before taking a drink. The ship was rocking gently, and the calm allowed her to hear the quiet shush of ocean waves and the low crack of candlelight flickering around them. She experienced a sense of normalcy at the insignificant act of drinking water with Zuko. She had thought the intimacy of the night would come later, but it was here instead, reminding her that what happened behind closed doors wasn't just pleasure. It was also comfort, security, stillness and shared vulnerability.

She leaned her arm against the back of the couch and her head against the back of her hand. Zuko reached out to stroke her forearm lightly before setting his hand to rest there. She feared that he was going to suggest the night should come to an end - they were obviously both tired - but his eyes glinted like they were sharing a fantastic secret instead.

"Do you remember the day after Sozin's comet?" he asked. It was an odd memory that came back to her.

"The healing sessions?" she asked, thinking of their younger selves. At first, she had thought those healing sessions would be just like the ones she had done for Aang. How startled she had been to realize that sitting alone with Zuko with her hands hovering over his still body could make her heart beat so fast and her own skin feel so warm.

He leaned forward conspiratorially. "I could barely handle those," he confessed. "I wanted to kiss you so much."

She grinned. "I thought the crush was one-sided. You never let on."

He smiled. "Didn't I?" he asked. "I always thought you were the one who wasn't interested."

"How did this ever happen?" she asked, waving her hand between them.

"Serendipity," he said, and then he added apologetically: "And our friends intervened on our stupid behalves."

She scrunched her nose up at the thought of their friends' involvement in their romance, then she stretched back, setting her glass down. "Washroom?" she asked. Zuko pointed her toward another door and she got up, but turned back.

"Zuko," she asked, "my rooms don't happen to be connected to yours, do they?"

"They're part of the private living space on the ship reserved for the Fire Lord and his immediate family," he admitted, looking imploringly at her as though he needed forgiveness for the act of keeping her close.

She tilted her head at him and put her hand on her hip. "So two weeks ago, when you first brought me onto this ship-"

"It could have been worse," he shrugged meekly. "I almost carried you straight to my own bed."

She pressed her lips together to keep a smile from forming and shook her head. "How long have you been in love with me, Zuko?" she asked.

Now he tilted his head at her and his smile was lop-sided. "Probably since you told me to go jump in a river."

The laughter bubbled up from deep inside her.