Title: Fireflies
Author: Flutie2891
Word Count: 922
Warning: Zutara, first attempts at fluff, OOC-ness
Notes: Remember how I said I'd rather wait for inspiration to strike? Well, strike it did. Yay. Concrit is MOST appreciated.
One thing's for sure, Katara thought to herself, late one afternoon in the early summer. He'll never cease to amaze me. "He," of course, was their newest traveling companion- one of them, at least- the sulking, surly, not-so-burly, ex-Fire Prince Zuko. Usually the teenager would be meditating or brooding or something else equally solitary; but tonight was different. Tonight, he was actually being normal. Well, as normal as a person could be on an adventure such as theirs, anyway. He was sitting with Toph, watching Aang chase the butterflies and lightning bugs that always accompanied the warm twilight. His sitting with Toph was not so unusual- she seemed to be his favorite, not counting his Uncle- but the fact that he was watching Aang's antics with a peaceful, lazy grin was. Katara had to admit that she hadn't seen the firebender so relaxed in- well, now that she thought about it, she'd never seen him really relax at all.
While Katara was contemplating Zuko's strange behavior, Aang was contemplating the best way to catch one of these fascinating insects. His version of contemplation, however, happened to be chasing after the bugs as fast as he could in hopes that he would get lucky and snatch a particularly slow one. Alas, the nimble creatures always managed to slip through his fingers. Aang rushed for fly after fly, even employing a few airbending tricks, but still couldn't get his hands on one of the elusive critters.
"Having trouble?" Katara asked as she plopped down next to Toph.
Aang's face was the picture of innocent sadness. "No matter what I do, I just can't catch them!"
"It's because you're being so spastic," Zuko said. He noticed Aang's bewildered (And slightly hurt) expression. "You're running after them like a lunatic. Bugs have really good eye sight- it's hard for them not to notice a big yellow-and-orange something coming at them at full speed." A blush found its way across the young Avatar's cheeks as he realized the truth in Zuko's words.
"Here," Zuko said, rising from his comfortable position on the ground. He glanced around for a while before kneeling a few feet away from the grass stalk on which a particularly bright lightning bug perched. Ever so slowly, he crept towards it with all the grace and stealth of a jungle cat, until finally-
"Wow," Aang exclaimed softly, as he examined the buzzing insect now trapped between Zuko's fingers. "That was awesome! How did you do that? Can you teach me?"
Zuko continued his cycle of acting weird by actually laughing at Aang's enthusiasm. "It's easy once you get the hang of it. You just have to be very slow, very sneaky, and very, very, patient." Aang nodded and rushed off to put this new technique into practice.
"Are these things big?" Toph asked with a quirk of her head. "They sure make a lot of noise."
"Here, feel for yourself," Zuko said as he pressed the insect into her hands. The squirming mass of legs and wings now enclosed between her sensitive fingers caused Toph to giggle like the twelve year old girl she was.
"It tickles," she laughed as the bug buzzed around in her hands. "I'm gonna go show Iroh and Sokka," she said before running back to the campsite.
This, of course, left Zuko alone with Katara, who was now utterly convinced that the whole world had gone insane. Zuko, however, merely glanced at her before turning and walking back out into the meadow.
Katara harrumphed as she crossed her arms over her chest. Just because they didn't talk so much was no reason for him to leave her there without even acknowledging her presence. Just who did that jerk think he was, anyways? Stupid, arrogant, annoying-
"Here."
Katara was snapped out of her inner tirade by the sight of the aforementioned jerk kneeling in front of her with yet another insect between his palms. Katara peeked curiously into the small cage formed by his fingers. He obligingly lifted one hand to expose, not a lightning bug, as Katara had expected, but a dainty butterfly, softly opening and closing its wings, revealing a glimpse of a brash blue and black pattern splashed across its back.
"This one's called a Bluebell, I think. They're pretty rare around here at this time of year." Zuko paused to flash her a quick grin. "Aang was chasing all the others around, and I thought you'd like this one."
"I love it," she said quietly, stroking one soft wing with her finger. "It's much prettier than some old lightning bug anyways."
"Lightning bug?" Zuko questioned, cocking his eyebrow.
"Yeah. You know," Katara waved her hand to indicate the crowd of buzzing beetles, seemingly brighter in the near darkness, "lightning bugs."
"Oh," Zuko said, comprehension dawning on his face. "Those. Where I come from, they're called fireflies."
"Fireflies?" Katara tested the word on her lips, feeling it roll off her tongue. "Fireflies…" she repeated, softer and more sure this time. "I think I like that better." Zuko flashed her another smile, which she returned.
So here I am, sitting with the son of my greatest enemy, petting a butterfly and talking about fireflies.
Yes, she decided, the world has definitely gone insane. And she couldn't help but think that she liked it better that way.
-June 21, 2006