It was a cold night and even sleeping near Appa wasn't helping Katara to warm up and she couldn't get any sleep with her teeth chattering from being so cold, being a water bender didn't help either, she was naturally colder than most and tonight was one of the worst nights and that's how she ended up thinking about the events of the last week or so. Zuko had just joined them and Katara still held a lot of distrust for him, but since he'd arrived he'd shown a different side of him, a side that Katara was beginning to notice. Everyone else seemed to get along with him and trust him so easily, had they forgotten how long he spent chasing them, his only goal to destroy them? Apparently so, because Toph had already given him a nickname, Sokka was discussing swords with him, and Aang was his firebending student. That's where Katara's problem was, the firebending. Aang had mastered all the other elements and none of them affected her this way. As fire is her opposite element, you would think having so much fire around would put Katara in an off mood, but instead she was seeing the power of it. Not only the power Aang had as the avatar but the power she saw in Zuko. Firebending made him sweaty and his muscles were all over the place; something Katara didn't want to admit she noticed, to her self or anyone else for that matter. She couldn't be attracted to a firebender, especially not one that used to be her greatest enemy.

As she thought about this Katara noticed that Zuko's muscular form was silhouetted by the light of the fire. She got up, wrapped herself tight with her blanket and moved over to the fire, teeth still chattering away from the cold; she sat down as far away as possible from Zuko on the small log. Katara sat as straight as possible, not wanting to give off an air of comfort around him. But he seemed so comforting, his body was slumped and he appeared to be deep in thought staring at the fire. He shifted to sit a little straighter as he sensed Katara, she had pulled him out of thinking about his uncle. He sighed internally, it hurt him that Katara didn't trust him and that she was the only one, because she was the only one he wanted to trust him. He remembered the time they had spent together in an Earth Kingdom prison and how she was so fierce and passionate, she was strong. Mei had always been soft, even though her exterior had been cold and standoffish, Mei was weak and needy when it came to more...sexual relations. But why was he here comparing Mei to how he imagined Katara, Katara would never be with him, she may never even trust him. His thoughts were interrupted by a chattering noise coming from Katara and he looked up over at her. She sat erect and shivered, he could tell she was trying to look dominant in this situation and not let her defenses down, but shivering made her look so vulnerable and Zuko's mind reeled, he wanted to be close to her. Rather than anger her or startle her by moving close to her he started by asking a question and a rather obvious one at that, "Are you cold Katara?"

And he got back an obvious biting answer, "Yes."

Sometimes she could be too prideful, he'd love to break her and let her release herself, all to him. "Would you like me to help you warm up?" Zuko asked as he mentally hoped it didn't seem like a come on and turn her off.

Instead she replied weakly, "Yeah, that'd be nice, thank you". Internally she was doing summersaults at the idea of being so close to this powerful man. She could see it in every movement he made, he was full of raw power, raw power she wouldn't mind slamming into her...but she didn't want to let her mind get away from her, for all her hormones, she still couldn't trust him fully, though his kind gesture was a start. As Zuko stood to come sit next to her she thought about why she felt so attracted to Zuko and realized it might be because she was constantly surrounded by children, Aang only liked to play games, Sokka only liked to tell lame jokes, and Toph only poked fun at people and this is who she spent most of her time with. But here was Zuko, who had constantly been in search of his honor and learning how to be wise in the world and dealing with struggle and defeat, he was hardened by his years spent trying to gain his father's love and he got nothing for it, it aged him well. Now his arm was around her and she felt some nervous tension in his muscles. She wanted to soothe him, heal him from his hard life. But she couldn't. She turned over to look at him and found him looking back at her. She was struck by the full force of his eyes, a deep chocolate brown that had a reddish tint to it and they were full of...well, they were full of lust and passion, but maybe that was just the fire flickering in them. In this stare Zuko too felt the power between them, he fell weak when he looked into Katara's watery eyes with the strength and pride of an ocean behind them. But there was something in there, begging him in, a little part of her that wanted to be humbled and he couldn't take it, so he leaned in and kissed her. It was a soft kill, gentle and he could feel the moisture of her lips, so cool against his burning hot body temperature. The temperature difference elicited a gasp from Katara and Zuko found himself going hard and wanting more of her. Katara found it hard to think, hard to hold on to her pride and keep her walls up. Zuko was ready for Katara to simply melt into his arms, but he knew it couldn't be that easy and with that thought she pulled herself away abruptly and regained her composure. Zuko internally kicked himself for jinxing his luck and moved away from Katara to give her some space. Within minutes of losing the body heat that Zuko so freely gave Katara began to shiver again and Zuko decided to point this out, "You're shivering Katara."

"Am I?" she snapped in return.

"Well it may be obvious to both of us that you are shivering, but its not obvious to me why you can't give up your pride and open yourself up a little and come sit next to me to stop yourself from shivering."

Katara thought on this for a minute, thinking more about how breathless she felt as Zuko's warm mouth and the surge of her hormones had heated her up and how that had felt so good. She pointed out the large flaw in his logic, "This isn't about my pride when you break boundaries and kiss me. That was so inappropriate," she spat at him, flushed and a little angry at herself.

Zuko noticed the hitch in her voice and the almost reluctance to say it and guessed that she had enjoyed the kiss. Did she only enjoy the attention of a male, or was it simply the cold that made her enjoy being so close to him? Or did she even enjoy it at all? He hoped that it was more than that, simply more, he hoped Katara wanted him and only him. "Maybe some boundaries need to be broken for you to enjoy yourself. I think you liked the kiss and you're mad at yourself for that." And with that Katara got up and walked away leaving Zuko to think.

Zuko's thinking lead to an internal cursing. Why had he let himself do that, he shouldn't have scared her away or made her angry all he wanted was to be close to her. Maybe blunt and direct wasn't the way to win her over, she got enough of that from Toph, maybe he needed try sweet and kind, like the Avatar, she seemed to have special feelings for Aang, maybe that's all he needed.

Katara, who had gone back to Appa's paw to rest couldn't find any sleep. She stared up at the starry sky and contemplated the events that had just happened. She tried to assess how she felt about Zuko. She had been so vulnerable in that moment and he didn't try to burn her to a crisp but rather kiss her, maybe in that sense, in the sense of the safety of Aang and everyone she could trust Zuko, but in terms of him acting reasonable and sensible it didn't seem that way. He had crossed an unspoken boundary within a week of his being here. Aang and Katara had feelings for each other for a long time now and neither had acted upon them, knowing what could happen within the group and Katara felt something different with Zuko. Aang was always too sweet, too innocent, too inexperienced. Zuko had something. But why was she even considering it. She turned herself over and sighed into Appa's fur.

Before dawn had broken Katara, who had found no sleep got up to ready breakfast and stoke the fire. To her surprise and another feeling she just couldn't describe, she saw Zuko there, already stoking the fire, smiling...like Aang. It was very suspicious. Breakfast was simmering above the fire and the whole campsite was tidy. What was Zuko up to. When he noticed her, Zuko looked up into Katara's eyes and gave her a cheery good morning and patted the log next to him offering her a seat. She moved hesitantly towards it and when she sat down, she tried Zuko's approach, "What's gotten into you?" she asked bluntly.

Zuko squandered around in his mind, wondering why his Aang appearance wasn't working. He didn't know what to say or do, especially not with her big sapphire eyes peering into his. So he got up and walked away. He walked a long ways away from the campsite to a clearing next to a large rock and river. He sat down and leaned against the rock and it cooled his energy. He closed his eyes but his ears picked up the sound of someone nearby and he jumped to prepare himself. The stranger walked into the clearing-it was Katara. What was she doing following him? Katara asked herself the same question and she didn't know where to begin. They could both sense the energy in the clearing and it was making Katara nervous, while it made Zuko excited. Out of the corner of her eye Katara noticed the stream flowing on the other side of the clearing and she walked toward her element. Sensing the water with her body she began to feel more at ease-she stripped down to her under-wrappings and waded in to the water, letting it calm her nerves. Zuko watched Katara as she stripped, seeing her frame, muscular and feminine, so curvy. He watched as he could vividly see her body relaxing as she stepped into the stream and thought on how she could be so like water, calm like a lake or slow moving stream in one circumstance and then powerful and raging like the ocean. Fire isn't like that, it only produces destruction and is always the same. Katara turned around, facing Zuko now, and Zuko let out a gasp as he turned hard at the sight of her. She was so...voluptuous. The Avatar was weak and slow to not take his opportunity with her. Zuko's travelled to a vision of him banging Katara against the hard rock behind him. But he brought himself back. But even 'back' he was still staring at the goddess before him. Katara left the water, beads of water sliding down every part of her that Zuko wanted to touch.

As Katara left the water she could feel herself excited. The water had melted away her guards and nerves and the look on Zuko's face was one she hadn't seen anywhere before and she liked it. She could tell that he wanted her. And in that moment, she wanted him too. She took her time walking towards him, watching him gulp and internally trying to will him in to making the first move and taking control.

Now she stood next to Zuko and he looked at her, wondering what she was thinking. He wasn't sure he cared much, he wanted to pull her body tight to his and kiss her from head to toe.

Katara attempted to convey with her eyes that she was open to any move that Zuko made and the messaged appeared to be read loud and clear, because Zuko stepped toward her and moved her back against the rock, he held her waist tightly and put one hand on the rock above her head and then kissed her. She opened her mouth and let his tongue enter which he took for a good sign. She let her tongue play back and enjoyed the passion behind Zuko's kiss. Absentmindedly he let his hand trail up the side of her body, reaching that oh-so-sensitive part right to the side of her breast. She could feel her nipples harden and in return Zuko moved his waist so that it was against hers. She could feel him hard against her and an ache developed deep in her body, an ache that just needed to be soothed. She grabbed Zuko by the shoulders and hair and pulled him closer and deeper into the kiss. She wanted to feel more of his body and to feel it so much closer. Even in the entangled state that they were in it wasn't enough for Katara. Zuko was enjoying every minute of it as she pulled and pushed harder, taking control. But his mind left for an instant as he considered the idea of how she would push and pull when he was inside of her, being a waterbender and all. Katara was quickly grasping at the ties on his shirt, trying to remove it and Zuko saw a wild look in her eyes, but he wasn't having it. He was a powerful firebender, he should be the one calling the shots. He grabbed both her hands forcefully and held them above her head. She tried wriggling free but to no avail. Zuko slowed down the pace drastically and to Katara's severe disappointment.

The slower pace allowed both of them a breather and in turn each thought about what they were doing. Zuko knew that he wanted Katara. Since their time together imprisoned in the Earth Kingdom it had always been Katara for him. He loved her personality, her pride, her control, and her power over water, never before had he feared a waterbender till he met Katara. She wielded something great and he found that enticing. And here he had her, right in front of him, willing to fulfill his desires, but he didn't want it. Zuko was a man of honor, he had fought and struggled to regain his honor again, chasing down the Avatar, he wasn't about to go and dishonor someone he thought he could be with forever. He didn't want to go about this the wrong way, Zuko wanted to make sure that Katara felt the same way about him before they went any further. His internal battle added more frustration to his already pent up sexual frustration and he shot a fire blast into the air before releasing Katara.

While Zuko had been mulling about his thoughts, Katara too had been doing the same. Zuko's kisses would send blasts of heat and lust down her spine, the same way watching him firebend could make her feel only this close up it was multiplied and made her simply want to melt into his arms. She thought about the way his toned muscles felt under her hands as she had gripped his shoulders and how she loved pulling on his hair controlling the eagerness of his mouth on hers. And while she loved all this control she loved it even more when he took the lead and called the shots, but when he stopped it was agonizing and then he really just stopped, he stood there, holding her hands above her head all passion lost from his eyes, a pensiveness left behind. She looked the man over standing before and wondered if it was just physical attraction that she felt between them, or if there was more. Anger crossed Zuko's face and for a moment the sliver of distrust Katara still had towards Zuko flared and she was frightened. Zuko shot off a fire blast and Katara winced, worried she had let down too many of her guards and began to build them back up. But Zuko, a little more relieved after blowing off a little steam looked at her and caught the moment of vulnerability, of fear, and reached out to hold her and explain himself, except at that precise moment Sokka pranced carrying his fishing gear and noticed the two. Katara was still only in her under-wrappings and looked flustered and Zuko was standing close, holding her arm.

Sokka looked quickly back and forth between the two of them, trying to piece together what was going on; before he could make the connection Zuko sauntered out of the clearing, not want to listen to Sokka. Sokka still stood, staring at Katara and then it dawned on him and his jaw dropped, Katara blushed. Sokka stood speechless for a few more moments, but those few moments felt like an eternity to Katara who was fearing the wrath of her brothers anger.

Katara hadn't really had much past experience with boys to know how Sokka would react to her being with one, but she had never imagined the experience to be a pleasant one. Sokka, still in shock, questioned Katara, "Are you guys...dating?". There was a little edge in Sokka's voice, but Katara couldn't tell if it was from anger or from confusion.

Katara responded quickly, a little distraught from all the emotions she had felt in the past two minutes, "No, Zuko and I are not anything. Especially not dating."

"Then what was just happening?" Sokka asked, still a little concerned, "Did he hurt you?"

"No, no nothing like that."

"Ok well, I don't think you should be...physical with him."

"Sokka! Its none of your business! You don't always need to butt your head into other people's personal lives." Katara could feel her face flushed and her emotions were all over the place, she was scrambling to pick them up and compose herself.

Sokka could see that his sister was struggling with some new feeling. He wanted to help her, not just be the pesky brother that she always saw him as. "Do you like him, Katara? How do you feel about him?"

Katara looked up into her brother's face and saw concern there, not anger or that look he always got when he was about to be all 'leadery' and annoying. She leaned into her brother and he just hugged her, unsure of what to say or do. "Sokka, I think I like him. I don't want to and I'm so unsure of my feelings, how do you feel about Suki?"

"Well, I don't know what love is, I could never say that, but I feel like when I'm with her, that I'm at my most happiest and that just the sight of her makes my stomach tighten, I love that feeling, I love watching her practice her Kyoshi warrior stances, she looks so hot. I just want to be alone with her...if you know what I mean." Sokka laughed to himself as he thought about this. "Its ok with me if you want to be with Zuko. I'll just have to lay down the rules first."

"Sokka, I can take care of myself, I don't need your interference. Besides I'm not sure still if I trust Zuko or how all this would make Aang feel, or if I even really like Zuko, maybe I just feel this way cause he's the only one here that's...marture."

Sokka started scoffing, "But I'm mature!"

"Sure Sokka, but even if that were true, I can't really have feelings for you, can I?"

"Well, maybe you should just take things slow and try to figure things out before you make any moves, but we're in a war and war does strange things to people. Maybe you should give up your pride and let yourself be close to someone for once. It couldn't hurt, being alone in all this can make things look even more dreary than they do." And with that Sokka walked away.

Katara was left, thinking about what her brother had just said, it was the first time in a long time that he had given her advice that actually seemed insightful.

With her brother's support Katara only had to figure out her own feelings for Zuko...and deal with Aang. That would be a problem. Aang always had that goofy grin and he never took anything seriously, but she knew he would be hurt if she was with Zuko, he loved her. While Katara knew full well of Aang's feelings for her she also knew that she would never be able to reciprocate them. Aang was a child. Katara felt so mature next to him or rather she felt more like a babysitter around him, she loved Aang but could never see him in a romantic light. He could just never be a man, not like...Zuko. She was about to stop her mind from going down that path, but instead she let it flow, seeing Zuko in her mind as he stepped through the graceful yet powerful firebending poses. It was a nice sight every morning to watch while she made breakfast, Zuko would be exercising and she couldn't say she didn't sneak peeks. His muscles, so strong, weren't too masculine to the point of being too bulky, but rather showed a strength that came from within, from his character. A character that was commanding and gentle, fierce and kind, and all the while being passionate in all of these. These might seem to be conflicting ideas but Zuko's life stood as the backdrop to his character. Banished from his own nation, never knowing the love or respect of his father, and constantly experiencing failure had allowed him to be humbled and his pride and experience gave him wisdom and strength. All of this was only enhanced in the way he moved, in the power of his gaze, in the sweat that rolled down his bare chest. Katara snapped out of her musings and realized that her heart rate had quickened, she settled it and when to calm herself by washing her face in the river.

On her knees on the bank of the river she she cupped her hands in the water but she noticed another reflection next to her own in the waters surface, it was Zuko. She stayed still, always a little caught off guard by the sight of his gorgeous scarred face and while the water trickled out of her cupped hands Zuko put his hand on her shoulder. Katara froze unsure of what Zuko wanted. Part of her hoped he wanted a repeat of their physical interactions and the other part was simply unsure.

"Can we talk, Katara?"

"Talk?" Katara's voice was hoarse. "What do you want to talk about?" Katara had moved to stand and Zuko motioned for her to sit on a rock nearby.

He rocked a little unsteady on his feat and Katara could tell he was nervous, "I want to talk about...feelings," he nearly choked out, he cleared his throat and regained his composure, "I want to talk about how I feel about you." Katara had never seen Zuko look so vulnerable, she found it cute...but it wasn't the same powerful Zuko she spent most of her time daydreaming about.

Zuko peered at Katara, waiting for her to respond, she was looking at him strangely and he adjusted himself to stand up straighter. "Oh," was all Katara could answer. Katara could feel an awkward moment coming and she realized she still wasn't fully dressed and she moved to cover herself. Zuko wanted this to go well, he wanted Katara to understand and to listen to him without her pride interrupting. Quickly and forcefully, before she could move to defend herself, Zuko moved close to her and grabbed her arms. Their bodies were so close and Katara relished in his strength. "Katara, I...I like you," Zuko blurted out.

This confession of Zuko's forced Katara to come to terms with her feelings much faster than she wanted to and with his hardened member pressing against her and his body so strong and close, her thoughts were muddled. It didn't help when Zuko let go of her arm only to grab her head and bring it close to his. He looked into her eyes and with his eyes he told her all she needed to know. He kissed her fiercely and she let all her inhibitions go. Zuko could feel Katara let go in his arms, this excited his inner fire and he went deeper into the kiss.

Katara no longer wanted to fight any feelings she had for Zuko and let them over take her. Suddenly her need for Zuko became fervent and she was grasping at his hair pulling him closer. Closer wasn't enough. Zuko wanted this so bad, but he wanted it to be done right and again he slowed her as he had before at the rock. "Slow down Katara, I want to show you, we have time."

His words sank into her conscience and she could see the spans of the war of the last year of her life and then let herself sink away from time all together into the kiss that Zuko was delivering to her aching lips. The passion was still there, but now every movement and moment was cherished by her hormones and emotions as they sang through her body. She could feel that delicious ache in her lower abdomen. Katara's hands were wound in Zuko's hair and she played with it, always applying pressure, bringing his head closer to hers and deepening the kiss. Zuko was enjoying Katara's moment of control over his head and mouth, but her movements stimulated Zuko's fire and simultaneously his natural instinct to be in control. He kissed down Katara's neck and left the unaccustomed water bender wondering what to do in return. Her skin felt warm and cold at the same time under his mouth, cold from her natural waterbender temperature and warm from the flush that he was putting her in, it was a delicious feeling and flavor to it. Soon he was at her collar bone and then his chin reached the strained fabric of her wrappings and smirked. Two supple hills created a deep valley and his attention was captured. He looked at her chest in adoration but also in search of a way to remove the obtrusive clothing. "How do I remove this?" he asked, verbally expressing his distaste at the clothes Katara wore. She made a nervous noise and then helped him and began to unwind her wrapping. Once she started Zuko couldn't take his eyes from her and watched as she unwound the fabric and it loosened, setting her breasts free. Her olive skin was exposed, her nipples becoming taut at the cold, Zuko gasped at the beauty lying before him. He looked at her body as a canvas, a place to leave his mark. He began from her shoulders and traced teasing circles all around her curves, along her side, touching so much sensitive skin but never giving her what she wanted. She itched to have his hands on her breasts, she arched her back to bring them closer to him, to let him know, but he wouldn't respond. He smiled mischievously at her, knowing that she was wrought with need and he was the one making her squirm. She tried to settle herself and hide her yearning, but lust read all over her face and he couldn't bare to hold off any longer. Zuko took the fullness of her breasts into his hands and massaged them tenderly but gaining aggressiveness quickly as he realized how much he enjoyed the weight and feel of them in his hands. Katara was helpless and found herself restless at her inability to do anything in return and yet she still wasn't ready for Zuko to move on, she was enjoying the sensation too much. More than the sensation though she enjoyed looking up at Zuko's face and seeing there an almost manic joy in his eyes and the strength that flowed through his muscular arms as he tended to her. Zuko looked up and caught Katara in the eye, the wild look he saw there reminded him of who he was with and all the time it had taken him to come this far, his face softened as he looked at Katara, whom he admitted mentally, he loved. Katara noticed the change in his face and reached up to stroke the scar that covered the left side of his face, it was textured and grooved, it was so unique to the touch. Zuko almost melted in Katara's hands, her touch was so tender and he had always been ashamed of his scar, of the shame it had meant for him in the past, but the look in her eye told him she accepted him. He turned to look over his shoulder as his eye began to tear a little, Katara noticed this, "Zuko, don't. Don't be ashamed, your scar is part of you and I find it...very attractive," Katara's voice was hoarse as she choked over emotion and passion and this reignited Zuko's fire. This time he took to holding her hands above her head so that he could get a better look at the waterbender before him and then took one nipple inside his mouth, tugging and sucking till he heard Katara moan. He then moved to her other breast and let go over her hands so he could massage her other breast with his hand. Slowly though this hand meandered its way over her stomach creating goose bumps and her nipple to go tight in his mouth which he then flicked with his tongue. His hand moved to her last piece of clothing, but before he went any further Katara decided it was time she return some favors.

She reached for his chin and brought him to meet her face to face. She kissed him hard and forced him to move till he was seated and slowly she moved him to lay on the ground. She left light kisses all along his scar and while distracting him there she began to undo his shirt, her fingers were a little awkward and fumbled at the clasps so Zuko finished for her, leaving his shirt to the side. His pale skin looked fantastic in the twilight Katara noted, as the sun had now set and a light glow was setting over the sky. She saw the muscles she often fantasized about, but now that they were before her, she wasn't quite sure what to do with them, she could simply stare at them forever. She almost achieved this but Zuko became alarmed by her immobility, "Is something wrong?"

"What?" Katara was brought out of her stupor, "No, nothing's wrong, I was just caught off guard by you. You're gorgeous, Zuko." Katara was unsure of how to go about feeling and memorizing every part of the beautiful man before her. She focused on his torso, feeling his muscles and how they reacted to her touch.

She had at first been straddling him on his stomach, but as she wanted to see more of his abs she found herself moving backwards and soon found herself pressed against the very physical and hard proof of Zuko's arousal. She saw him look at her anxiously but she was too entranced by him to take time to care, she took her time and felt every muscle, crawling slowly back towards his mouth that was awaiting her. He kissed her fervently and took her hair into his hands. Their tongues played in an intricate dance. Zuko snaked one hand down Katara's back, pulling her closer to him. He then rolled them over so that he could be back in a place of control.