A/N: Hello! I noticed that a lot of Zutara fics are either capture fics or arranged marriage fics. And although I enjoy those, I decided to do something different in my own Zutara fic. Warning! There will be slight promise spoilers. You have been warned. But you'd need a magnifying glass to spot them anyway, so if you haven't read the book it won't spoil anything earth shattering.
Chapter One
"I was bored."
Zuko curled his lip in mute disgust. That was her stupid justification for cheating on him: a lack of amusement. He had been suspicious of Mai's faithfulness for a while, so one night after a date, he decided to secretly follow her home. What he had seen was just what he expected. His girlfriend was kissing some other guy, completely unaware that Zuko was watching the ordeal. Her betrayal stung.
"I bore you?" Zuko asked, his temper rising.
"What did you expect, Zuko? You're always chained to that desk of yours, never paying me any attention," Mai replied, drably.
"I have responsibilities, Mai. I have a nation to run."
Even as they were having the quarrel, Zuko was sitting at his desk, in his office chair. He had even closed the crimson curtains to block out distractions from the outside. The fact that he was in his office proved Mai's point of Zuko being a workaholic. Before the argument, he had been responding to a letter from The Earth King. Mai had just happened to walk in and check on him when he decided to finally confront her. His favorite pen was still grasped firmly in his hand, ready to pick up right where he left off as soon as their fight was over.
"That doesn't mean you should push everyone else away," she defended.
"I can't believe you're blaming me for this!"
"It's your fault. If could stop being so dull all the time…"
"Well if I'm so tedious, why don't you go and find someone else more thrilling?" Zuko hissed.
"Maybe I will."
With a flick of her long hair, Mai turned on her heel and left the office. Zuko groaned, flames literally shooting out of his mouth. This was far too much for so early in the day. It wasn't even lunch, and Zuko had just lost his girlfriend to a stranger.
Aang peeked his head in the doorway. "Uh, is this a good time?" he questioned.
"Oh, Aang! What brings you here?" Immediately, Zuko straightened up.
"I just wanted to show you some of the future plans for Republic City, but if you're busy…"
"No. I'm not. Not anymore. In fact, why don't we go outside and look at the plans together?" Zuko suggested.
"If you're up to it…"
Zuko stood up, and put his beloved pen down. He could break away from his paperwork for a few minutes, couldn't he? Of course, Zuko told himself. Some sunshine could do him some good. He gestured for Aang to follow him, and the two of them headed toward The Palace garden to discuss their plans.
OoOoO
Eventually, the two friends grew bored with the talk of politics and the conversation began to drift to other things. They both sat on the edge of the pond, chatting. Aang's feet were in the water near the tree; Zuko preferred not to dirty his traditional fire lord robes so he leaned up against the apple tree. In the Fire Nation, apples were a rarity; a foreign delicacy native to the Earth Kingdom. Zuko had taken a liking to them during his stay in Ba Sing Se, so he had ordered an apple tree be planted in the garden. It added to the overall friendly, happy vibe the place gave off.
"So," Aang said, plucking an apple from Zuko's tree, "I ran into Mai on my way into your office, is everything okay with you two?"
A bitter chuckle almost escaped Zuko's lips—Aang just had turned fourteen. He didn't know anything about love, and there was no way he could fully understand an eighteen year old guy's relationship. Sure Aang and Katara were technically dating but that amounted to Katara mothering him, Aang doting on her, and constant use of the word sweetie. However, it was nice that Aang wanted to feel his friend's pain.
"I don't want to talk about it," Zuko responded.
Aang smiled at him. "Oh come on, Zuko. Talking about problems is a healthy way to express them. You're being a grump."
"She cheated on me. She left me. What else is there to say?" he snapped.
"You could talk about your feelings," Aang told him.
"No thanks, you wouldn't understand anyway."
"Why not?"
Sighing, Zuko slumped ever further against the tree. How long had it been since the Fire Lord had last slept more than a nap or two in between a meeting or letter? Too long. And with Mai gone, Zuko doubted he'd be sleeping for a long time. Guilt stirred inside of Zuko. He was a jerk. Not only to Mai, but to Aang as well, who was just trying to help him quit his brooding. When he spoke again, his tone was less sharp and sweeter.
"You're the Avatar, master of all types of bending. Love isn't exactly something you can master at fourteen," Zuko answered.
"Actually," Aang corrected, "I technically haven't mastered all types of bending. I can't lightning bend, blood bend, metal bend, heal, sand bend, and my energy bending is pretty sloppy."
A look of confusion came across Zuko's face. "Energy bending?" Zuko echoed.
"I learned it from a Lion Turtle," Aang explained.
That clarification did not make Zuko any less confused. "A Lion Turtle?"
"It's an Avatar thing. I used energy bending to defeat the, um, previous Fire Lord. But it can also do a lot of other things. I'm not completely sure what it's capable of. It's a really old form of bending."
"That sounds powerful," Zuko observed.
"The only problem is that I haven't been able to explore it. It's not like anyone's going to offer to let me practice on them."
Those words might as well have been an invitation with scented parchment. Underneath Aang's careful words was a message clearer than day: let me practice on you. And despite how dangerous energy bending probably was, Zuko himself was curious. It wasn't every day someone assisted The Avatar in mastering an ancient, forgotten technique. Helping Aang in this would be a rare honor.
"I would be honored to aid you in learning energy bending."
"Really?" Aang's eyes widened in delight. "Thank you so much, Zuko. You don't know how much this means to me."
"No problem."
Aang stood up, leaving his half eaten apple on the ground in the emerald grass. The airbender motioned for Zuko to do the same. Slipping out of his upper attire, Zuko rose. He folded up his precious robe and set it next to the tree. The long sleeves of the Fire Lord's robe would only get in the way.
"Okay! Let's begin…"
OoOoO
Staying in one place had never been Aang's thing. After all, the kid wasan air nomad. It was practically written in his blood; it was what his people did. So whenever Aang got a bad case of wanderlust, Katara was more than happy to accompany her boyfriend—the word felt weird in her mouth still, even after two years—on his journeys. But the whole traveling the world thing was getting old. Katara had enough adventures for a lifetime. Now she just wanted something more…stable.
Still, she enjoyed being around Aang enough to keep that opinion inside. His latest trip was to the Fire Nation, to talk to Zuko about political decisions. While Zuko and Aang talked, Katara chose to go to the market to restock on supplies. She assumed that when she returned, Aang would be back. But no, he obviously was still at The Fire Nation Palace, leaving Katara alone with Appa. Sometimes, she wished that it wasn't just the two of them; her brother and Toph now went on their own adventures running a mental bending school and rebuilding her home. Maybe, if they were there, she wouldn't feel so lonely all the time. Katara set the supplies next to Appa, who didn't react at her presence.
Momo landed on her shoulder. "Why is he taking so long?"
Of course, Momo didn't answer her. She sighed, and stroked the flying lemur's fur. Katara didn't want to be a bother, but Aang hadn't really been paying attention to them lately. It seemed that he had forgotten that he wasn't just The Avatar, but her boyfriend as well. Aang was constantly abandoning her on their journey, going off on "Avatar business". She was beginning to feel like the tag along girlfriend.
Katara loathed feeling so needy, so she found a way to justify following Aang. She told herself she would head towards The Palace to see Zuko. The lie was believable; she hadn't seen her friend in months. So, with Momo on her shoulder, she began to walk towards Zuko's domain. Luckily, it wasn't far from the place where Aang and Katara were camping.
A blinding light shot up into the skies, melting the nearby clouds. It appeared to be coming from the general direction of The Palace. Katara knew that could only mean one thing: something was happening with Aang. Panicking, Katara spirited to The Palace, running past the guards. They didn't try to stop her. She and all of the members of Team Avatar were welcome here—and the last disaster was still fresh in their minds. She paused, once, to ask a guard a very important question.
"Where are they?" Katara demanded.
"Out in the garden," she answered, "Why? Is something wrong?"
"No time to explain!" Katara ran to the garden entrance, the glowing light guiding her footsteps. Momo flew away, frightened at her hectic behavior.
What she witness was unlike anything she had ever seen. Aang and Zuko stood in the garden, near the pond inhabited by the turtleducks. Even they froze in their pond; taken captive by awe. The source of the light was emitting from Aang and Zuko's mouth, pouring out into the heavens. Both of their bodies glowed; Aang's light was an icy blue, Zuko's a fiery maroon. For a moment, Katara was still. It was a lot for her to process.
But then, the red energy became aggressive. It began moving—no, that wasn't the right word—consuming the light blue energy on Aang's body. To Katara, that didn't look promising. If she didn't do anything, Aang's very essence would disappear. So Katara did what she could.
At full speed, she attempted to tackle the Fire Lord down to the ground.