A/N: Just a little Katara/Zuko oneshot set between Firebending Masters and The Boiling Rock. The Fire Nation heat is getting to Katara, but Zuko knows how to cool her down.
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Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters.
It was so hot.
Katara could find no relief from the oppressive and constant heat and humidity. Bending the water out of the air or out of her clothes offered temporary relief, but it always came back. Today was worse than others. Usually she could take comfort in the shade of the Western Air Temple and the canyon breeze. But the air was still today and the shade just as hot as the sun. She lay on the edge of the fountain, manipulating its water into streams above her head. She occasionally let the water fall on her forehead, washing away the salty sweat that gathered on her brow. She knew she should be doing something useful, like mending clothes or gathering food or sparring with Aang.
She sighed. It was just too hot, and besides Aang was busy training with his firebending teacher. And she had no desire to see him. She heard rumbling followed by a loud crash and triumphant girlish laughter. Toph. The earthbender did like to keep Aang on his toes.
As Katara twisted the water above her she wondered if she should begin making lunch. Aang would certainly be hungry; he'd been training for hours with him. She frowned slightly, wishing that he wasn't here. Or no, maybe that's not what she was wishing for. Maybe he should have already been here; he should have been with them for months, at least since Ba Sing Se. She closed her eyes and deepened her frown as she remembered that day and what she had almost done, what he had done.
She shouldn't dwell on it.
She heard footsteps approaching her silent haven. It was probably her brother, hungry and whining. Without looking up she said, "I know, Sokka. I'll go make lunch."
"I'm not Sokka." It's him.
"What do you want?" she asked, feigning nonchalance.
"I was just getting some water," he said.
She returned her ribbon of water to the fountain and sat up. She was suddenly face to chest with a sweaty, shirtless firebender.
"Oh." She watched him out of the corner of her eye as he moved around her and filled his canteen. "Where's Aang?"
"With Toph." He took a sip of water. She continued to watch him silently. For some reason she hadn't thought to move from her positing on the fountain ledge. Moments passed without either speaking.
"I'm going to go make lunch," she said finally.
His only reply was to take another drink from the fountain. Katara huffed quietly at his lack of response and stood up, adjusting her tunic from clinging to her sweaty body. She grunted in disgust and began to walk away.
"In the summer people here usually wear linen," Zuko said softly. "It's much cooler."
Katara snorted derisively but did not look back. Stupid fire prince. Of course he gets to walk around shirtless. It would be nice to be able to take off her shirt. Her water tribe clothes were heavy and thick. At midday they were already drenched in her sweat. If only she did have something cooler to change into, even if it was Zuko's suggestion. All of her water tribe clothes were the same material designed for the harsh cold of the south pole. The idea of linen in the water tribes was laughable.
But in the Fire Nation… Katara sighed. Her Fire Nation clothes were made of linen. They were comfortable and cool and… red. She just wanted a little relief from sweaty itchy fabric hugging her body.
Katara sneaked into her room, hoping no one walked in on her. She couldn't' explain why exactly, but it seemed as if it was taboo or indecent to be shedding the clothes of her people for the clothes of the enemy. And the person who had suggested it… No, she wouldn't think of that, and if she changed just long enough to wash her blue tunic no one would have to know if she was quick.
She stripped off her thick clothes and they fell to the floor with a sickening splat. She grimaced at the sweat drenched fabric. She used the water in her canteen to rinse off her skin before she began dressing in the red linen of the Fire Nation. Once dressed, she dashed to the fountain, dirty blue clothes bundled in her arms.
Please don't let anyone be there, she thought.
No one was. She sighed in relief. She bent a stream of water and began applying it to her clothes. True, she could have just bent the sweat away, but that always left her tunic stiff and slightly smelly. She ran the cool water through the fabric, pushing and pulling. She lost herself to the tranquility of her element and did not notice the silent boy approaching from behind.
"Isn't that better?"
Katara jumped in surprise, turning to face the intruder. "Zuko!"
"Yes?" she could have sworn he was almost smiling.
"You- you scared me," she replied lamely. She was glad to see he was no longer shirtless. He wore his red tunic and brown vest, the same he had arrived in.
"Sorry," he said. He glanced at her wet water tribe clothes, then at her in her sarong. Something came over him, a look in his eyes she hadn't seen since his days of chasing the Avatar. It was just a glint, ferocious and possessive, but as soon as she recognized it, it had disappeared.
"What?" she asked, or rather demanded. She didn't want to admit it, but Zuko's stare had unnerved her.
"I didn't know you had Fire Nation clothes," he replied.
"We had to disguise ourselves," she said. "We were in the Fire Nation before the eclipse."
"You look nice," he said. He immediately cleared his throat. "I mean you look like you blended in well." His eyes passed over her again. "Except for you necklace."
"I took it off," she huffed indignantly, fingering the pendant.
"You could have lost it," he said quietly, stepping closer, "again."
"I-you stole it!" She clutched her necklace possessively as Zuko took another step forward.
"No, Katara. I found it." He took another step forward, but she was intent to stand her ground even though he towered above her.
He was only inches from her. Then he began leaning down and Katara froze, unsure of what he was going to do but anticipating it nonetheless. He close the distance between them until her eyes met his, until she could feel his breath on her, until… until he bent past her and reached for waterlogged garments.
He picked them up and deftly firebended them dry before handing them to her. She accepted them without thinking, then did a double take at the clothes in her arms. They were completely dry and very warm. It was strange, even in this intense heat the warmth emanating from the bundle felt surprisingly nice. She looked up to say something to Zuko, maybe to chew him out for taking liberties with her personal items, but he had already begun to walk away.
"I think Sokka's looking for you," he called over his shoulder. "He said he was hungry."
As soon as the words left his mouth she heard her brother wailing pitifully from another room in the temple. "Katara, where's lunch?" He rounded the corner and looked relieved at having found her. "Finally," he said, and then, "why are you wearing that?"
Katara looked in the direction Zuko had been walking, hoping she could coerce him into explaining about the heat and the linen and the Fire Nation, but he was long gone.
"I-I felt like it, okay?" she replied tersely. "Go get Zuko to start the fire and I'll be there in a minute."
"Good," Sokka said, "I'm starving." He walked away eagerly at the promise of food.
Katara stood by herself for a moment, clutching the laundry to her chest. The warmth was fading but she held onto it as long as she could, even burying her face in it. She inhaled deeply and smelled something odd, but not unpleasant. It smelled a little of spices and smoke. She picked her head up and sighed. As she walked to the makeshift kitchen, Katara silently wondered how to make all her clothes smell like this.