Author's Notes: This was originally for the Zukaang Week theme 'Scars'.

Fields of Life

"Here we are." Aang jumped off Appa's head and Zuko slid off the animal after him. The young Fire Lord looked around the lively field, taking in the tall, sparkling emerald grass and the field flowers that came in all the colors of the rainbow. In some spots rose a small bush, or the beginnings of a tree. Everything growing here seemed fresh, young and new with life.

"Where is 'here', exactly?" Zuko turned his gaze to Aang in question, wondering what they were doing here in some valley between the mountains in the edges of the Earth Kingdom.

"I was last here almost two years ago." Aang spun around, trying to take in the entire view at once. "There used to be a forest here, but I never got to see it. When Katara, Sokka and I came across here, it had all been burned to the ground."

Zuko walked over to Aang, standing in the middle of the tall grass that possibly contained all kinds of small and possibly poisonous animals. A year as the Fire Lord, and already he was feeling disconnected from the earth; certainly Aang was not thinking about getting his clothes dirty and toes bitten off like he was.

"Now it's really beautiful here." There was awe in Aang's tone and Zuko smiled as he stood beside his friend overlooking the view. "It's amazing. Back then everything looked so dead, like it would never heal."

"Scarred," Zuko supplied gently and Aang nodded his head with a sombre expression.

"Now it really feels like the healing has begun, not only for the people, but for the land as well." Aang tapped his hand to his thigh, thinking about something as he began to hum a tune to fit the rhythm. He turned to look at Zuko. "It's far from actually being a forest, but it's nice to see something that has recovered even when the war's been over for only a year."

Zuko nodded his head in agreement, thinking that all of his words were unfit for the situation, for Aang's ears when the other was being so reflective.

"What are you thinking about?" Aang's voice snapped Zuko back to attention and he turned to give his companion an apologetic smile.

"Nothing in particular." Zuko looked over the field and thought for a moment. Then he spoke out: "You know, ashen ground is very fertile." The firebender crouched down and plucked a brilliant blue bell blossom. He then stood up and twirled the stem in his fingers. "In order to improve the productivity of a field, it was burned down every five years or so."

Aang was silent, watching the flower in Zuko's hand while he frowned in thought.

"Fire is destruction." A small spark from Zuko's fingers and the flower burned away in an instant, too fragile to withstand the flicker of a flame for long. "Fire is creation." The ashes scattered to the wind, spreading out a new beginning. Zuko reached out with his other hand and picked up a bright yellow flower with petals that spread like the sun's rays. He presented the flower to Aang, who accepted it without question. "A clean slate."

"I knew there was a reason I chose you for this." Aang's voice was quiet, tender, and the Avatar smiled at Zuko. "Even though your flower metaphor is really clumsy, you do have a point."

Flushing red from embarrassment, Zuko turned his face away from his friend. He heard a shuffle as Aang stepped closer and the other's hand brushed his ear, the sensation causing his face to flame as he turned sharply back to his companion.

There was not much of a height difference left between the two of them, after a couple of inches Aang would catch up with the firebender and Zuko knew his friend was still growing, like the plants around them. It was after that thought that Zuko realized just what the other had done, when he felt the petals of the flower against the corner of his right eye. He reached up to remove the plant, but Aang's hand on his own stopped him.

"Leave it." Aang grinned widely at him. "It suits you."

"Hardly." Zuko disagreed but did as he was told. He very rarely could say no to his friend these days. It seemed that Aang knew this, as he gave a knowing smile before turning back to the field, Zuko following his gaze.

There was much left unsaid, hidden between the lines of their words and gestures, but for now this was a good beginning. On this reborn field the two of them found their own clean slate.