Yay, Zutara Week is finally here! Although I didn't find out about it until TODAY -.- I'm glad I managed to pull together a story. Each theme that follows will be along the same plotline, just so no one gets confused ^.^
Disclaimer: All Avatar characters belong to Bryke, who have yet to release the Legend of Korra *nudgenudgewinkwink!* x( Though the various creatures mentioned belong to me.
Mask
The night wind blew through the palm trees and down their backs as Katara, Zuko, and Toph traipsed back to the house. Ember Island that time of year was relatively deserted, which is why Zuko preferred to visit then, so they were undisturbed as they made their way from the small town square down the path to Zuko's island home.
A particularly strong and cold gust of wind snuck up behind them and tossed their hair over their faces. Zuko was unfazed, thanks to his natural higher body temperature, but Toph and Katara both wrapped their robes more tightly around them, and Toph's teeth began chattering.
"I don't even know why you like visiting Ember Island more when you're more likely to get frostbite than a tan," she mumbled irritably. She shivered.
Zuko smirked. "Colder weather means less people, less people equals less public disturbance."
Toph scoffed. "Yes, having no people fawn over the Fire Lord constantly is definitely worth losing a few toes." She scowled as Katara smiled, amused. "And I do believe I will lose a few toes soon if I don't get some feeling back in my feet." Katara and Zuko glanced down at her bare feet, which were slightly tinged with blue. Katara frowned.
"Why don't you run ahead of us, Toph?" she asked. "That way you can warm up your feet, and we don't lose a powerful earthbender due to frostbite." She smiled down at her friend, though Toph couldn't see it. Toph nodded.
"Alright. See ya!"
And she dashed off along the path.
A comfortable silence fell over Zuko and Katara as they continued their walk. The wind whistled through the large leaves above their heads, and in the distance they could hear the ocean beating against the sand. A rustle to their right made Katara quickly glance over, while simultaneously moving closer to Zuko. He smirked down at her.
"It's probably just a ferretsnake," he said. She looked up at him. His smirk grew, and she frowned. "Don't tell me the great waterbending Master Katara is afraid of little night sounds."
She rolled her eyes and looked away, toward the source of the rustle. Her eyes narrowed.
"That sounded a bit bigger than a ferretsnake…" she trailed off as she studied the bushes by the path.
"The maybe it was a pumafox," he shrugged. "Doesn't matter. They're used to humans on the island by now." He frowned, thinking along the same lines as Katara. Whatever made that sound was also too big to be anything other than a human…
He shook his head to clear away the thought. Katara was still watching the bushes to their right as they walked.
He glanced ahead of them and saw the lights from the house filtering through the trees. He reached over and grabbed Katara's hand. A pleasant tingling shot up his arm, but he ignored it.
"Come on, I can see the house," he muttered and tugged her along faster. He didn't like the feeling he was getting from the shadows pressing against the trees along the path, and the temperature dropped steadily as the wind continued to blow. He also didn't notice that Katara had flushed pink; she had also felt the same tingling feeling in her hand when he grabbed it.
She looked up and saw the royal family beach house just ahead of them, all the windows glowing with light from within and the sound of Sokka's laughter reaching them down the path. They had just made it up the steps before they noticed a small bundle on the floor in front of the door. They paused and stared at it for a moment before looking behind them to see if the one who had left it was still there and they had missed them.
No one was waiting in the shadows of the veranda or retreating along the path back toward town. They turned their attention back to the bundle, and Katara knelt down to get a closer look.
"What is it?" Zuko asked, his good eye still searching the shadows.
"I don't know," she muttered. She saw that the bundle seemed to be made of soft blankets wrapped together, and she fingered the edge of the outermost blanket before beginning to unwrap it. She pulled back a flap, and a grotesque face with black eyes and curved teeth appeared under her hand. She shrieked and fell back as Zuko whipped his head around, flames hovering over his hand. He extinguished them and knelt down next to Katara as she panted.
"Katara," he said, worried that she had been hurt. He saw that she was staring at the bundle before edging slowly toward it. He turned his gaze and saw her lift away the blanket again, revealing a colorfully painted and slightly menacing looking face peering out from between the folds.
"Is that…a mask?" he asked as he scooted over next to her.
She nodded. "Yes…" her voice trailed off again, and she removed the folds holding the mask in place. The bundle twitched and she gasped. Zuko placed his hands on her shoulders to pull her away, but she shrugged him off. The bundle started squirming.
Her fingers curled around the edges of the mask and lifted it away.
Both benders sucked in a breath as they gazed at the small, round-cheeked baby that rested within the blankets. They looked at each other, their eyes wide, before turning their attention back to the baby, who was beginning to yawn. The little mouth opened wide, revealing two tiny teeth in the baby's gums, and then its eyes opened.
Two large orbs of bright hazel stared up at the stunned benders. Katara, whose mouth had fallen open, closed it and looked over at Zuko, who had not taken his eyes from the baby. His expression would have been amusing if they weren't both stunned and a little confused.
She turned her eyes back to the baby, who stared up at her before letting out a small whimper. Katara's motherly instincts flared up and she reached for the baby. Zuko grabbed her arm to stop her.
"What are you doing?" his eyes were wide and he looked slightly afraid. She wondered briefly if Zuko had ever been around a smile child.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" she countered. "I'm taking this baby inside before we all freeze to death out here." As if to emphasize her point, a bitter wind blew through the veranda, and the baby let out a small cry and coughed. Her concerned gaze went back to the little face as she lifted it into her arms, and she crooned softly. She stood up, opened the front door, and strode into the warmth, the baby cradled in her arms.
Zuko shook his head at Katara's predictable motherly nature, and he stood up as well. He cast his eyes around into the shadows of the surrounding forest once again before they landed on the mask, which had been left on the floor. As a last thought, he stooped down and picked it up before entering the house.
to be continued!...
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