AUTHORS NOTE: I know what you're thinking: another story? But, hear me out.

This story came about in a sudden burst of inspiration. It is very loosely based on a series of art that was created by zhevickmeister on Tumblr, and is also known as zutaraxmylove on Deviantart. This project was begun in partnership between zutaraxmylove and the very popular artist Nymre (whom I'm sure everyone in this fandom has heard of/seen their art). I have been given permission by one of the artists to write a story to go along with their art. See endnotes for more info.

If you want a better feel for this story, I would strongly suggest going and checking out the corresponding art pieces. You can find links to all respective art pages at the end of the chapter.

Anyways; this is a post war type of fic. And, though there are probably many out there, I am striving to make this one different. Rated M for blood/gore — the works — for future reference. This story will probably, more than likely progress through the spans of several months/years. Time skips will be frequent but not dramatic. It'll be a process. Chapter 1 is short because I'm trying to get things going but my chapters for other stories are usually much, much longer!

Enjoy chapter 1!

The Firefly Lantern Project

Chapter 1

He'd been vaguely aware of his surroundings as he filtered in and out of consciousness.

He remembered feeling hot — incomparable to anything he'd ever felt. His entire body felt as if it were cast in flames and he couldn't escape it. He'd begun to think he was dying.

A cool set of hands lay upon his body, then, and suddenly his eyes opened to meet those of blue. When she'd met his hazy stare, her own eyes widened and her brow furrowed. Her voice held something of a waver — something he couldn't quite place.

"You need to stay down. The fever will only worsen."

One hand against his forehead; another laid upon his chest. A dull glow cast shadows for which danced across her face; a glow only identifiable by that of glowing hands.

"Ka—" he'd tried, her name falling silent upon his lips. His throat was dry, so incredibly dry and it was then that he'd realized he hadn't known just how long he'd been comatose. But, as soon as he began to wonder up such a thing, his mind began to fog and his chest began to tighten.

He felt as if he couldn't breath; he began to struggle. But his name ghosted across the spans between them before he had a chance to realize what was happening.

"I'm sorry." It was but a whisper but he'd caught it between a wakeful memory and a dreamless land.

The sun was rising.

He could feel it in his bones as the heat flowed throughout his veins. It warmed him; from the tips of his toes to the quiver of his lips, it warmed him.

When his eyes reluctantly fluttered open, his senses began humming; one by one, and then all at once. Light flooded his field of vision, songbirds sung behind closed windows. He was vaguely aware of the twitch he felt beside his hand.

His head fell to the side and his eyes fell to where brown curls splayed across the mattress. Her head rested next to his hip and it was then that he noticed she had been leaning over in a chair at his bedside. She must have fallen asleep while healing him — as she had been for months, now.

Zuko never did quite understand why she did the things that she did for him, but he couldn't be anymore grateful. He wasn't sure there would be anyone else he would trust enough to help with something so complicated, let alone be in his presence while he slept — vulnerable and weak, as he was.

Yet, he didn't ask her to stay — she'd wanted to. He didn't argue with her about it after that. If he was being honest with himself, he didn't want her to leave — at least, not so soon. He felt as if he was completely alone and it only worsened as his coronation neared. His Uncle would be returning to his new home in Ba Sing Se within the quiet tether of the small Earth Kingdom city once more. He wasn't so sure he was ready to say goodbye.

There was a quiet groan beside him and his eyes followed the sound. Katara had awakened and, from the look in her eyes when theirs had met, he could only gather that she hadn't anticipated waking up in his presence. He watched her face change into something he could only register as guilt.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep here," she whispered, sitting up just a little straighter. She stared down at her hands before looking to the wrappings stretched across his chest. "Your fever must have broken over night. How are you feeling?"

Her voice was gentle, soft, and he felt the corners of his lips upturn in the very slightest before confusion washed over him anew. "How long was I gone?" he asked. His throat ached from disuse and he fell into a coughing fit, then. Katara left her perch beside him to fetch a water pitcher that sat a few feet away before pouring him a glass.

She sat the glass down on his bedside table before sliding a hand behind his back in order to help him sit up. His entire body ached something fierce and but he was determined to begin moving again despite the burning of his limbs.

He whispered a quiet thank you as she handed him the glass.

"You should probably drink that slowly. You haven't been able to keep much in your system and if you drink it all now you might overwhelm yourself." He nodded as she spoke, watching her carefully as she moved to stand once more. He felt a tightening in his chest as he saw her eyes fill with something like indignation. But, as quickly as it appeared, it vanished and the look in her eyes cleared.

"Are you hungry?" she asked after several moments of silence. "I'm not sure how much food your stomach can hold right now. It's been several days since you've been coherent enough to even open your eyes." She sounded pained; he wished she didn't.

"I'm not hungry right now, but thank you," he finally managed. His voice was rough and he lifted a hand to rub at his throat. He caught her watching him and lifted his brow curiously.

"What?" he asked. She merely shook her head, apologizing under her breath. "What are you sorry for?"

"It's nothing," she whispered, and suddenly she was turning away. "I'll be back soon. You really should try and rest, all right? When I come back, you can try to eat."

She was gone before he could protest. He didn't realize just how alone he really was until the room lacked the presence of a certain waterbender.

When he woke next, it was to the sound of clattering footsteps.

"Shh, you'll wake him." Katara's voice found his ears and he groaned quietly. It fell upon deaf ears.

The voice he heard next was unfamiliar. "My apologies, Miss Katara. I only came seeking the Princes' advice. There have been a lot of questions coming from the people of Caldera and they would like answers. If he could just make a quick public statement—"

"No, absolutely not," he heard Katara whisper sharply. "Do you not see how ill he is? He needs to rest. He is in no condition to be appearing publicly; he can't even get out of bed," she said. "When he is well enough, he will personally let you know. But, until then, I ask that you please do not come back."

Zuko had heard a flurry of apologies before the room fell silent and he groaned once more, attempting to roll over onto his side to face her. The room spun before his eyes and he felt his stomach roil.

"Zuko — " His name tumbled passed her lips in a rush and his eyes fell open upon the sound. She was at his side, then, helping him back onto his back. He felt weak and he hated it. He hated it as much as he hated the saddened look that befell Katara's face.

"— are you alright? How are you feeling?" she asked, eyes roaming over his face for any signs of distress. "You've been asleep all day. It's practically sundown, now."

Zuko's eyes followed her own to the window and he watched the suns decent into the horizon. Inky blue bled into oranges and reds as twilight clawed its way across the sky.

His attention was drawn back to her, however, when he felt a hand upon his forehead. He watched as she felt around his face, his neck and his chest with the back of her hand. "You're not as warm as you were, that's good. If your temperature keeps going down, that means you'll be feeling a lot better pretty soon."

He sighed at her words. He was happy to know that he wasn't dying, as much as it felt as if he were.

"Thank you, Katara," he whispered, trying his best to give her a smile. It must have worked because she returned a warm grin.

"You don't have to thank me, I'm just trying to help," she said. His eyes scanned her face and he watched in dismay as her eyes darkened before his very own. "It was scary, watching you like that."

Katara's voice was quiet and he couldn't help but notice the faint tinge of pain laced within her words. "I wasn't sure what was happening — not at first. You had fallen asleep while I was healing your chest, but… then I could feel it. Your skin got really hot to the touch to the point that I couldn't heal you," she admit, finally averting her gaze. "Then you started seizing."

Her eyes closed and he watched as her fingers began to tremble slightly before she was pulling them back into her lap. His heart clenched at the thought. She must have been really upset about what had happened if she couldn't even look him in the eyes. But, he tried putting himself in her shoes. If she had been the one to have fallen ill… he would have been terrified as well.

"You wouldn't stop convulsing," she whispered and when she opened her eyes again, he felt as if he could see the images flashing within them. "Your temperature wouldn't stop rising. And, I knew that if I didn't get it to lower, you could have slipped into a coma."

"I had a few guards help me get you into the tub. It was a long shot, I didn't even know if it would work. But… after about an hour of wading the water around your body, I could feel your temperature lower. It wasn't by much, but it was a start.

Guilt began festering within the center of himself. She looked so tired, so exhausted and her eyes were red rimmed from lack of sleep. He couldn't believe all the things she'd done for him. It was so much; he wasn't sure how he would ever be able to repay her — if he were able to at all.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, meeting her gaze. "You shouldn't have had to do that." Zuko grew quiet, then, studying the way her eyes searched his own. She looked as if she was looking for something but he couldn't be sure what.

"I had to at least try," she said. "I was sure that it had been your body going into aftershocks because of the lightning. I had no idea any of this would happen to you. I feel so…"

What? She felt so what? Surely she wasn't going to say guilty. She should never be guilty for something he had done.

"I felt helpless. You were unconscious and your temperature just kept rising and you—" Katara stopped herself, but only for a moment while she inhaled a deep breath. He watched as her throat bobbed before his eyes flicked back to her eyes, imploring her to continue. "You stopped breathing, once. Your heart stopped beating and I didn't know what to do."

"I had— I had to— " she couldn't even finish and he swore she saw a swell of tears wet her lashes but they never spilled. He felt his chest constrict at the look in her eyes and when her own met his, he saw fear. It was the same look she'd held when they confronted the first man off the coast of Whale Tail Island.

She looked haunted; she looked as if she'd seen something she never wanted to see. She looked as if she'd just faced a demon she never wanted to revisit.

She was scared, and he knew what she had to do in order to save him.

"You don't have to say it," he choked, his throat suddenly very dry. "I'm sorry," was all he could offer. "I'm… I'm sorry. You should never have had to do that."

She looked away "It saved your life."

He considered this. "Because of me, you had to do something you never wanted to do again."

"Because of you I'm alive," she volleyed.

"I— " but… what was he to say to that?

He still felt exhausted, and tired and as if the world was crushing his chest. Just then, a sharp pain shot through below his lungs and he inhaled deeply, swallowing thickly before grabbing at his chest with a weak groan.

"You should rest."

She was gone before he could protest.

He found himself incredibly lonely that night.

AUTHORS NOTE: Leave a review to let me know what you thought! The budding relationship between both Zuko and Katara is an interesting dynamic that I've always wanted to write, but have for some reason feared. It's such a scary process writing the beginning of a relationship between these two because there are so many emotions that you know you need to get right, so it's difficult for me to properly display them for you all. I can only hope I've managed to capture their personalities properly.

This is also my first time at trying to write in Zuko's pov so… I hope it was okay. It's always a struggle for me.

I will try to update this as often as possible, and since I work better with a more open concept and not so strict an outline, the ideas and chapters for this story will flow a lot better and easier, so chapters for this story will update a lot quicker.

LINKS TO THE ART:

zhevickmeister . tumblr . com

nymre . tumblr . com

thefireflylantern . deviantart . com