Part 1:
"Keep it safe for me, would you?"
Katara's words echo through the firebender's all-to-cluttered mind. He sighs, untying and retying the ribbony necklace around his wrist. The blue pendant swings around with each turn and hits his knuckles.
"I don't plan on getting caught, but if, for some reason, I do..." She had looked down at her hands uneasily, "I don't want it falling into the hands of some grubby pirate."
"I promise."
Zuko let's out another heavy sigh.
I really should stop making promises to that girl...
His small, cramped tent is dimly lit by a small lantern that sits in the dirt by his bed. It doesn't give off much light, but it's just enough to make it impossible to fall asleep.
That, and the fact that his friends have been gone for over two hours.
The pirate ship had docked by their makeshift campsite earlier that day. Sokka was the first to spot it. When he and Suki returned from examining it, the gang had been settled down around a small fire for some dinner.
"Maybe they're just refueling?" Aang had suggested, taking a sip of some tea that Katara had thrown together. Zuko shook his head.
"On a remotely deserted, Fire Nation island? That's unlikely." Sokka shrugged.
"They're probably just docking for the night and heading back out in the morning. We shouldn't worry about it." His mouth was full of fish, making it difficult to understand him.
But he was probably right, though it hadn't stopped Toph from being curious.
"I bet there's tons of valuable stuff on that ship," she said with a smirk. "I'd like to get my hands on some quality metal to practice on."
"Let it go, Toph," Zuko grumbled. "Whatever's on that ship isn't worth the trouble we'd face trying to board it."
"What? Are a group of master benders too scared to take on some bumbling pirates?" She taunted. Sokka cleared his throat.
"Ahem! I think you're forgetting about a couple of people...?" He raised an eyebrow and threw his arm around Suki's shoulders. Toph shrugged.
"Oh, sorry. A group of master benders, a skilled Kyoshi warrior, and Sokka." She smirked picking something out of her teeth. They all had a good laugh and the topic of the pirate ship had remained moot until after the sun had fallen beyond the horizon and the moon was high above the trees.
"At least let Zuko and I go!" Toph had pleaded, as Katara put out their fire.
"Leave me out of this," Zuko grumbled, trudging off to his tent. He spotted the earthbender sticking her tongue out at him in annoyance. He couldn't help but smirk a bit.
Aang put a reassuring hand on Toph's shoulder.
"They're just pirates." He said, calmly. "They probably only have some smelly scrolls and fish bones on that crusty, old ship anyway." He smiled at her and headed off to the tent that he and Sokka shared.
Zuko was halfway into his own tent when he heard Katara's hushed whisper.
"I'll go with you," she said softly. "I've been wanting to get my hands on a different water bending scroll for some time now. I bet they've got loads of them on there."
Zuko froze and turned his face to the girls. Toph was smiling brightly at Katara's offer. He straitened up and narrowed his gaze. He caught Katara's eyes, which seemed to beg him to stay quiet about her proposition to the blind earthbender. Zuko shook his head in defeat and retired to his bed.
It wasn't until later that night, when the rest of them had fallen asleep that Katara had come around to Zuko's tent. He sat up in his bed and ran a hand through his hair.
"I already told Toph that I don't want to go on your stupid pirate ship raid." Zuko was too busy trying to turn her away that he hadn't noticed that she had started to take off her water tribe necklace. He blinked in curiosity.
"I know. I didn't come here to ask if you wanted to come along." Zuko wasn't sure if she was being sincere, or snippy. It was too dark to see all of her facial features. She move into his tent and sat on the edge of his bed, cross-legged. Zuko didn't meet her gaze. Her thick, brown hair fell into her face, making her look less put-together than he'd ever seen her. And still, she looked beautiful.
Feeling vulnerable, being alone with the waterbender in a small, dark tent, Zuko lit the lantern beside his bed. The fire made her blue eyes shimmer. He noticed for the first time that they were swimming with worry. She clutched her necklace in her fist, tightly.
"You already know how much my mother's necklace means to me," Katara began. She reached out and took Zuko's hand and pried it open, so that the surface of his palm faced upward. She took a deep breath and slid the necklace onto his hand and closed it up. "Keep it safe for me, would you?"
Zuko slides his finger across the cold, blue stone and shakes his head. It had been too long. They should have been back by now. Frustrated, he stands, throwing the covers away from his body. He is stupid for letting them take off on their own. He is stupid for keeping quiet about their plans and he is stupid for letting Katara charm him into caring so much. He groans and blows out the lantern's flame. He wasn't going to risk Aang, Sokka, or Suki noticing that he was gone.
Quietly, Zuko steps out of his tent and into the undergrowth of the dark trees.