Disclaimer: The Avatar world and characters belong to Mike DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko.

This is my first time publishing a fic! Apologies for my poor grammar. My best friend is busy helping me proofread CVs and job applications and is busy with her own life so I've decided to just submit these unedited.

I hope you enjoy it!


Katara opened her eyes to a blindingly bright room before quickly shutting them again. She resentfully noted that she had a very strong headache; it felt like her brain was bruised, and she wondered to herself if she had slipped on the ice and cracked her head again like she had when she was twelve. Katara groaned against her pillow, a noise which did not register well with her sore throat or her newly-acquired over-sensitive hearing. She slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to the light, and the pain from her headache was momentarily forgotten as she felt her stomach churn.

Perhaps it was her hangover speaking, but the only solace Katara could find at that moment was that the pillow she was using was quite possibly the most comfortable pillow she had ever slept on. The entire bed was ridiculously comfy; even though she was curled up on her side, struggling to stare at the floor, she could feel how soft the sheets were and how thick the blanket was.

Though she had a limited view of the room from her spot underneath the comfortable covers, Katara was almost certain that she didn't recognise the floor, the table beside her bed, or the thin wardrobe standing against the wall. The mattress was entirely too thick and soft to be one from the Western Air Temple where she and the gang had been staying for the last month.

Not that the beds at the temple were uncomfortable; she had certainly slept on a lot worse while she had been travelling with Aang, Sokka and Toph. However, after years without maintenance, the temple beds were noticeably harder and creakier than the one she was currently in. This unfamiliarity led to the question: why was Katara not in a Western Air Temple bed?

Katara tried to think of what had happened the night before, to understand why she felt as awful as did, but she was struggling to come up with clear memories. A feeling of shame washed over her. Through the haze of her headache, she tried to concentrate on what she could remember, trying to piece together the events which had led to her current situation like it was a jigsaw puzzle.

She knew that her name was Katara, that she was from the South Pole, and that she was the last waterbender of her tribe. She knew that the Fire Nation and their Hundred Year War had crushed her culture, tribe and family. She knew that with her brother, Sokka, she had left home to help Aang, the Avatar and last airbender, restore peace and balance to the world. She knew that Toph had joined their gang as Zuko had chased them across the world trying to capture Aang.

She knew that the Fire Nation had succeeded in both their siege against the impenetrable Northern Water Tribe and their siege against the impenetrable city of Ba Sing Se at the heart of the Earth Kingdom. She remembered how Zuko had betrayed her trust, and how Azula had so nearly succeeded in killing Aang underneath the Crystal Catacombs.

She remembered that the gang's planned invasion against the Capital of the Fire Nation during the Black Sun summer solstice had not succeeded, and that she had once again been separated from her father and tribesmen. That hurt to recall, and not just because of her headache.

She remembered that she, Aang, Sokka, Toph, Haru, Teo, and the Duke had retreated to the Western Air Temple where they were hiding out whilst Aang continued his waterbending and earthbending training. She remembered how surprised and confused the gang had been when Zuko appeared offering to teach Aang firebending. She remembered how, despite Katara's warnings, Aang had decided to accept Zuko's offer. Aang and Zuko had disappeared together, following a pathetic initial attempt at training, and returned with stories about the Sun Warriors and dancing dragons and with a renewed enthusiasm for firebending. Katara remembered that the others were foolishly beginning to trust Zuko.

Katara began to recall how, after a particularly tense group dinner, Toph had interrupted Katara's bickering with Zuko to declare that she needed a "night on the town". Aang, Sokka and Zuko had agreed to join Toph for the suggested fun break and that Katara had agreed to accompany them only so she could keep an eye on Zuko; he couldn't be trusted, and Toph's suggested town was filled with gambling, escorts and trouble. She remembered using Appa to get into Fire Nation territory and onto Ash Island, and then sneaking into a lively tavern. That was the last concrete memory she had.

She could vaguely remember trying Fire Nation beer, which had been noticeably less bitter than the Watertribe ale she had swallowed a few horrible sips of when she was younger. Katara was fairly sure that Sokka and Zuko, the oldest of the group, had repeatedly returned from the bar counter with drinks for Katara, Toph and Aang. But after that, the night felt like a mystery. How could most of an entire night be a blank, dark space in her mind? She struggled to think of more memories of it, but it was like looking at images through a wall of murky water; she could see bits and pieces, but nothing was clear to her.

At some point in the evening, potentially the first hour or the third, Toph had suggested they move onto something stronger. Had it been fire nation whiskey? Katara thought she could remember Sokka slinging an arm around Zuko's shoulder and telling him that he wasn't "half bad", going as far as to call him "buddy." Katara didn't like that so she had tried to stand in between them more after that.

Katara noticed a glass of water on the stand next to her, and reached for it gratefully. She tried to take small sips, but was surprised to realise how thirsty and dehydrated she was. She quickly downed the whole glass. The movement caused the blanket to fall off of her slightly, and Katara noticed for the first time that she wasn't wearing a top or any bindings. A second later, Katara realised tht she wasn't wearing any bottoms either, just as she heard something move and groan loudly on the other side of the bed. She warily lifted her head to look over her shoulder before quickly sitting up in alarm.

Another wave of shame, regret and nausea washed over her as she saw Zuko lying next to her. She looked at him in alarm, and from where she had pulled the blanket closer to herself in the night, Katara could see that Zuko was also naked.

Katara gasped.

Startled by the noise, Zuko opened his eyes, blinking heavily, and turned his head towards Katara. She watched as his eyes widened when he glanced around, taking in his surroundings and the way she was now clutching the blanket tightly over herself.

"Shit." Zuko sat up sharply, edging away from Katara as he stared at her in shock.

She wasn't sure what had happened, but she could feel it. The place between her legs felt sore, and she knew that she had had sex for the first time.

Zuko ran his fingers through his hair, unaware of the thoughts coming together in Katara's mind as she put two and two together, and Katara glared at him as he frantically tried to remember how they had ended up like this.

"Shit." Zuko repeated. Katara continued to glare at him. He looked back at her. "Say something!"

"I don't quite remember what happened last night," Katara began, her words laced with fury. "I don't know how you tricked me, but this doesn't change anything between us. I don't have to like you or trust you just because…" She gestured angrily between them, and Zuko's eyes narrowed.

"If you can't remember, then how the hell do you know that this is my fault!?" They both winced at his raised voice.

The longer they sat like this, the angrier Katara felt, and becoming angrier caused her to become more nauseous. She scowled back at Zuko, refusing to dignify his question with an answer. She was about to get off of the bed when she noticed something glinting on Zuko's hand in the morning light as he ran his fingers through his hair again.

Katara had never seen Zuko wear a ring before.

Zuko followed Katara's horrified stare to his left hand and the ring that sat on it. In silent synchronisation, they both glanced at Katara's hands. There, on her left hand, also sat a shiny plastic ring on her ring finger.

"What are these?" She demanded.

"We're married?" Zuko said incredulously at the same time. They stared at each other, both of them confused and appalled.

"Fuck." Zuko swore loudly.

Katara twisted away from Zuko, leaning over the bed, and proceeded to throw up onto the soft blanket.