Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of the characters, nor do I profit from this in any way.

A/N: Go ahead and guess my inspiration source - I bet you can. Now go ahead and try to guess where I'm going with it...I bet you can't!! I hope you enjoy this and give me some feedback all you members and anons! Thanks! -Smooches-

Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Chapter 1 - The Space Between

Katara sat at the edge of the water, toes just barely skimming the surface. The half moon shone blue in the rippled reflections. She stared down at the little waves and interruptions of the calm and smooth water. On the upper levels there was a fountain from a small waterfall, but here on the lowest level there was a deeper basin, probably used for bathing and recreation. There were different levels around the pool, some high and others nearly dipping into the water. Her preference for this particular level had grown since the discovery of the pool. It was just high enough to dip her toes in, but just low enough to hop up on without too much effort.

She sighed and looked out at the night sky. Footsteps echoed against the ceiling. Looking down at her hands in her lap she waited to hear Aang's voice or Sokka telling her to go to bed but the longer she waited, the longer the silence became. Katara looked over her shoulder, narrowed her eyes and quickly turned back around folding her arms. Zuko stared at her back with nothing to say. She waited a while in hopes that he would say something first but in the silence she realized he wouldn't say a word, "What do you want?"

"Nothing." He stated.

"Then go to bed." She said in her motherly tone.

He raised an eyebrow, having heard this pitch in her voice before, and crossed his arms challengingly, "I'm not tired."

She rolled her eyes at the sky, "It's late and you have to teach Aang in the morning."

"He's had a long day, he'll sleep late." Zuko said with a shrug, intentionally arguing her every word. Normally he would choke down anything she dished out, but every now and again they would run into each other alone and he could cunningly return her bitter distain.

Katara wrinkled her nose and resentfully barked, "Go away." She waited for the sound of his retreating footsteps but they never came. Perhaps he had snuck off, quietly as he was known to do to avoid conflict with her. She glanced over her shoulder and there he stood with folded arms and a focused stare. Katara turned back around and tapped her fingers on the stone she sat upon. "Go back to bed." She tried once more with her motherly voice.

"I'm not tired." Zuko insisted.

"Just go." She said, quieter than before. Her head sunk low to her shoulder as she turned her attention to her toes in the water.

Zuko watched her for a moment, letting his arms fall back to his sides, "Why are you up?"

She blatantly ignored him.

He sighed and walked over to the pool. Of all the things he learned on his travels and time home was how to read women. Perhaps it was due to the time he spent with Iroh or perhaps it was from his attempts to make Mai happy, which was no easy task. Zuko leaned his shoulder against a tall rock, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She said with a huff, jutting her bottom lip out as she turned her head away.

He stared down into the water with narrowed eyes, "I didn't come here to start a fight."

She stayed silent and angry.

He glanced over at her, the moonlight shining down on her as it had in the days when they fought as enemies. She was stubborn and thickheaded much like he was and that gave him the edge. Zuko turned his attention back to the water, leaving her in an angry stillness for as long as she needed. Her toes flicked, ripples scattered out across the pool in little waves crashing against the sides, "What do you want?" Katara asked quietly, but a distinct and certain coldness still lingered on the end of her words.

"Nothing." He repeated as he said before.

"Then what are you doing out here?" She looked over at him.

"I couldn't sleep." He turned his face to her.

Katara stared blankly at him, as though to say she didn't care. Zuko sighed and looked away first. She turned away shortly after, "Why did you come here?"

His head dropped forward, hair falling in front of his face to hide away a small smile that snuck up unexpectedly, "It's relaxing."

Katara looked over, more surprised than curious, "Relaxing?"

"Why are you here?" He looked up at her, restraining a pleased smile at her less aggressive tone.

"I'm a waterbender. I'm naturally drawn to the water and the moon." She looked up at the sky, the stars sparkling bright in the distant heavens. Zuko looked up as well, his eyes searching the empty air for words. Katara turned to him again, watching his expressions as thoughts crossed over his mind but then left without being spoken. She slid to the side, hesitating before deciding to speak, "You can sit down if you want."

He looked up at the space between them and then at her for confirmation that she wouldn't attack him if he did take up the offer. She stared innocently at him with her hands on her lap and far from a position to attack. Zuko stepped up the stone and took a seat next to her and dipped his feet into the water and watched as ripples crossed each other, colliding and then forming larger rings that floated to the edges of the pool. He swung his feet back and forth, knocking up little waves that capsized on the tops of his feet.

"Do you like the water?" She watched as he slowly splashed around.

Zuko stopped for a moment to glance at her but then stared down at his feet, "I never thought about it."

"Why?" She asked.

"It just not something I think about." He sighed.

"Well, do you like the water?" Katara kicked up a little wave.

"It doesn't matter." He watched as her feet churned through the cool clear element.

"I guess not." She agreed with a shrug.

"It's my natural opposite, so it probably hates me." Zuko shrugged in thought.

"The water doesn't hate anyone." She placed her hands on the stone, leaning back to look out across the pool with stars reflecting like little gemstones resting on the bottom.

"It's tried to kill me." Zuko said shrewdly.

"You probably deserved it." Katara stated, the astringent sound returning to her voice.

"Probably." He agreed coldly.

She turned to him with wide eyes in disbelief, "So do you hate the water?"

"No." He stared into the glossy surface unsure if she knew what he meant.

"But you said it probably hates you and it's your natural opposite." She pointed out.

"I know." Zuko's eyes watched her for a moment before blinking back down. He hesitated for a moment but then shifted his weight, "What about you? Do you like the water?"

"Yes." She stated matter-of-factly.

"And the air?" His voice dropped.

She smiled a bit, "Yes. What about you?"

He nodded in agreement, "And the earth?"

"I don't think about it much, but yes." She shrugged.

"The sun?" His eyebrow lifted as his eyes shifted to watch her.

Katara thought about it for a moment, "Water is your opposite, and fire is mine." She glanced over at him.

Zuko quickly turned his eyes down, "I didn't ask about fire."

She shrugged, "Well, I don't hate the sun. It's the other part of the moon. Without both, I can't waterbend."

"Aang said he burned you…" He said slowly, contemplating what to say next, "…and because of fire, so many things you care about have been taken away. Is that why you hate it?"

Katara folded her fingers together and played with her thumbs, "I don't hate fire…it's just my opposite."

Zuko stopped swishing his feet around and thought over the conversation a few times. The sound of wind rushing down the ravine echoed on the ceiling. Katara stopped her feet as well and looked over at him as he stared in lost thoughts again. Before she had the chance to look away, he turned to her with a serious stare, "Do you hate fire?"

Her eyes jumped wide. The question had never been asked and she'd never asked herself. It felt as though something squirmed in her stomach as she thought about the words, his tone, and what she meant when she asked about the water. Perhaps he was asking the same thing but she couldn't be certain. Katara brushed back a wave of hair and took a deep breath and let it out slow, "No."

Zuko leaned back on his arms, "Strange, I thought you hated it."

"I hate what it's done and how I've been burned." She said indignantly.

"Do you hold that against it?" He stared at her.

Katara sat silently, the answer hard to find and lost in the space between what she wanted to say and how she really felt. Zuko watched her nervous shifts, "You don't have to answer that."

"I don't want to hold it against it, but I know it could happen again." She said quietly looking down in her lap.

"It won't happen again." Zuko said in a way assuring her that his word was good.

"I'm so afraid that we might fail again but I can't let anyone see that, they all depend on me for confidence." Katara's eyes began to well up, "It's just so hard to be strong for everyone and keep everyone safe…" She raised a hand to cover her mouth to hold back the tears stinging in her eyes like a wet fire.

"You spend a lot of time being a mother for everyone, protecting everyone." Zuko stared down with his eyes squinting in at the wavy reflections, unaware of her broken state.

"Why does everyone think I act like their mother?" She threw her hands to the sides letting them crash down under their own weight.

Zuko looked over to see her red swollen eyes, "It how you treat them. All you want to do is keep them safe."

"What about you, do you think I act like your mother?" A stray tear ran down her cheek. She brushed it away with the palm of her hand.

"No." He answered straight.

"Really?" The tears in her eyes started to retreat.

"I think you're more worried that I'll hurt the Avatar." Zuko stared at her in a way that reminded her of her threat.

"I don't want anything to happen to Aang." She said modestly.

He looked away, "You really care about him."

"Aang's a sweet kid." She said with a smile like a mother thinking of her child.

"I'm not going to hurt him." Zuko paused, "He looks at him like I'm his big brother or something."

"He's really started to like you…" The words seemed strange coming out of her mouth, knowing who she spoke to in the late night, "Everyone's really taking to you…like you've always been here."

Zuko smiled at the feeling swelled in his chest. He'd never had friends of his own, or a family like this one. In the past few days, Sokka would talk to him about this and that and whatever crossed his mind regardless of how idiotic it sounded. Toph constantly reminded him that she would have her revenge for burning her feet but he wouldn't know when it was coming. Then there was Aang, who stuck to him like glue. He didn't mind so much, after all, something about the young Avatar was charming like a younger brother. It made him wonder if this was how Lu Ten felt about him and the very thought made him miss his Uncle more with each passing day. Haru, The Duke, and Teo stuck together like a band of brother and didn't seem phased by his joining their group. Haru constantly suggested he grow a mustache too but time and again Zuko would just ignore the preposterous suggestion. The Duke saw him as an older brother and almost a father figure as he asked for advice, which Zuko had little experience with, piggy-back rides and stories. Teo didn't mind him and left him alone for the most part, every now and again asking him for something or dropping in a word.

Katara interrupted his thoughts again, "In a way, I guess you always have been here." Zuko looked over at her. She scoffed, "After all, you followed us all over the world so I guess it's only natural for you to join us."

"I should have listened to my Uncle a long time ago…" He said sorely.

"He's very wise." She tossed in as a token.

"He wants this war to end more than anyone else, even if he won't say it." Zuko stared sadly at her, missing him with every fiber.

"I want it to end too." She placed her fingers on the stone of her necklace, "All it's caused is pain and suffering." Salty tears returned and burned down her cheeks, hard like a river and angry like a storm.

"It will over before you know it…" For the first time, Zuko found himself speaking words of comfort to her that he'd said to only himself over and over again. She sniffled in sorrow, quaking with every gasp of air. He watched her shake few times and then put his arm across her shoulders, pulling her close. Katara gasped to find her cheek near his and a hand quivering against his chest. Zuko stared at her from the corner of his eyes for just a moment, "Sometimes I think that when the war is over, we can all get back to our lives. Then, when I really start to think about it, I realize that we're not just stuck in one place because we've been interrupted by this war. We're moving along from warfare to war's end and we all have to change a lot before it can end and once it does, we can never go back to where we started."

"This is going to change everything, isn't it?" Katara sniffled, calming down. Her voice was broken and she wondered if she was asking about the moment or the end of the war.

"Yes, it is." He confirmed, looking down at her bright blue eyes.

Something strikingly similar to a smile stretched across her lips and before he knew it, one came across him too. The tears had stopped and the anger she once showed seemed to have melted away. His arm dropped from her shoulder to her back, putting his hand on the stone but she did not move away. It was as though she'd made herself at home against him and it was strangely familiar. Zuko looked down at her and then quickly averted his attention to the pool of water. Mai had once leaned against him in the same way and though Katara was not her, the feelings that he felt them were stirring around now.

"When it's all over, what's the first thing you want to do?" Katara asked, staring out at the ravine.

"I want to stand out in the rain." He said plainly.

"Why?" She looked up.

"The feeling of it beating down, cold and dull like little beads, it's be best feeling on a hot day." He shut his eyes reminiscing.

"It's been a long time since it rained." She sighed.

"It doesn't rain much in the Fire Nation, but when it does, it's hard to forget." Zuko took in a few deep breathes, "What do you want to do?"

"I want to stay up all night and watch the sunrise, knowing that everything is better." She paused, her voice changed to a dark sadness, "Then we all have to say goodbye."

Zuko turned his attention back to her blue eyes that stared into the empty dark air, worried more about everyone else than herself, "Goodbye doesn't mean forever."

"Things will change…for the better." She said hesitantly.

He nodded, then splashed his feet in the water. There was little to be said that hadn't already been said. Katara swirled her feet around and mistakenly bumped into Zuko's foot below the cool surface. With a grin he gave her a small kick back. She grinned a bit and pushed back as well, and back and forth they went with little playful kicks and an occasional small splash. They stared down at the broken water, watching their feet swish left and right. Zuko stopped first and pulled his feet out of the cool element. He stepped down the stone and turned around to face Katara. His gold eyes reflected the silver from the moon in a way she'd never seen. Zuko held out a hand, "It's late."

"You're right..." She pulled her feet out and took hold of his open palm, dissolving the space between them. He brought his arm close, drawing her down to his level and not far from him. Katara felt a blush spread quickly over her cheeks. Once before, Jet had swept her close and gave her a smile to say that everything was going to work out. The feelings lingered as she stared at him in a near awkward silence. He let her hand go and stepped away from the pool.

Katara quickly followed him and then joined beside him as they walked up the flight of stairs to the camp site. The ashes of the fire were skewed about from the passing breeze. Appa breathed heavily from his cozy hay corner and Momo slept sound on his head. In the darkness of the hallways, Katara followed close on Zuko's heels, not able to see well while he ran his hand over the wall, following wherever it led. His eyes adjusted and soon he could tell where in the hall they'd travelled. Zuko stopped.

He turned to Katara who slowly looked around the long hall, realizing she wasn't far from her room. In fact, it was just across the way. Zuko stared at her for a moment, noting the height difference again. She shifted her weight and looked up at him, holding her arm, "You know, I used to think you were a just a jerk but…"

"I understand." He said quietly as his eyes turned away.

"In the morning…" She started. He quickly looked over at her wondering what she intended to say. Katara took a breath, "I guess, in the morning we'll just act like none of this happened."

Zuko smirked a little at the endless possible reactions, "I guess that would be best. I don't think the Avatar would like the idea of his girlfriend and older brother staying up all night together." He let out a nervous chuckle.

Katara tilted her head, confused by his assumption, "What?" He stared through the darkness quietly. She stepped forward, closing the space between, "I'm not his girlfriend." She said in a hushed voice.

"What?" He jerked back. It was a startling revelation. He backed up a few steps and thumped against the door. Slowly, he slid down until thumping on the floor.

"Are you okay?" She closed in on him and leaned over him.

"I'm fine." Zuko nodded, running a hand through his shaggy hair.

Katara smiled, "Alright. Well, I better go to bed." She glanced away with a strange look.

Zuko raised his eyebrow, only slightly confused by the pink dusting rising in her cheeks that was more than visible in the sliver of moon light shining in through the empty windows. She turned to him, reached up and cupped his face. Katara leaned forward and kissed his cheek on the scarred side. His eyes jumped wide and his face heated almost immediately. She pulled back, "Goodnight."

He lifted his hand just a few inches from the floor as though to call her back but found it drop down again as she turned and walked to her room. He searched for his voice as she opened the door, "Wait."

Katara turned around and stared at him.

"I don't know if what happened tonight was right or wrong…" Zuko scratched the back of his neck, "But…it was nice." He smiled, a shade of red stretched from one side to the other.

She smiled, "It was nice."

Suddenly he felt the space that kept them separate disappear. Katara turned around again and left him in the hall. The door shut and she leaned against it letting a sigh out. Her smile was far from fading and her heart beat loud in her chest. Zuko walked into his room, shut the door quietly, and collapsed against it letting out a heavy breath. The sound of his pulse echoed loud in his ears. Somehow, something had changed and they both could feel it thumping from their chests.

A/N: My Garsh! I hate when they don't kiss! What sort of fanfic is this?!! Zuko and Katara not passionately locking lips? What sort of sick freak am I?!! -Shrugs- Oh well, I'm sure it will happen in the next chapter (cause...ya know...we're all waiting for it). But then again...you never know -wink- Stay tuned!!!

ps. I always take suggestions.

-Smooches!-
Amy.