Chapter 1
It was a week before Sozen's comet. Training Aang had become everyone's top priority and the sense of urgency overshadowed the usual laidback atmosphere that the group had grown to live by. In the early morning Aang would train with Zuko followed by Katara and the finally with Toph in the afternoon. "Good Aang!" Katara yelled across the grassy field where Aang was constructing a giant wave from the moisture in the air. "but now try this one!" Katara gained the offensive by using Aang's monstrous wave to bend an equally intimidating one in the opposite direction. She rode the wave towards Aang ready for the attack. In one swift motion, he threw her off guard by freezing the wave and pinning her down to the ice. The two benders laughed at Katara's clumsy defeat. The pair's ability to always have fun might cause an onlooker to think they were training for a circus rather the one of the world's most important battles. Their laughter was interjected by an angry earth bender. "alright ice queen, you are ten minutes over your training time, Aang is coming with me." Toph grabbed Aang by the collar and dragged him off towards the woods for more bending training.
"Need some help?" a familiar voice asked Katara. "Yeah I think I lost quite a bit of my dignity with that defeat you just witnessed." While she was no Sokka when it came to jokes, Katara was known for her sarcasm. She grabbed the hand that lingered just above her and helped herself off the icy floor. "Thanks Zuko" Katara smiled up at Zuko's stern expressionless face. "You know, you should probably be working Aang harder if he is going to defeat my father before the comet arrives" Zuko replied. Though he sounded serious, Katara could tell that the comment was supposed to be helpful rather than harsh. "Yeah I know, but he has just been working so hard. I think it's good for him to have a little fun." she responded. "I guess it would be pretty fun to see your water bending teacher get knocked on her ass." Zuko shot back. Zuko's unusual playful tone caught her off guard causing Katara another fit of laughter. "Hey! I doubt you could do any better" she teased "Against you I could." This last comment shocked Katara, she had never seen Zuko so confident before let alone social. She hoped that this meant he was starting to warm up to their group. "Alright little fire prince you asked for it, let's see what you got." Katara snapped. Zuko shrugged and they got into sparing stances.