A/N: I wanted to get this story going as soon as possible! It's too exciting to not write it!
Katara had just been led into the forest just outside the village she was staying in. She was in a moonlit clearing, alone, with some guy in a mask. Pretty freaky business if you ask me but Katara was so mesmerized she didn't notice how weird this was. She had all her faith in this spirit, and little did she know it was the guy she least expected.
Zuko, the so-called spirit, let her sit down on a stump. "Katara…" When he said her name it made shivers go down her spine, that voice was just so… well she didn't know but it was soothing her. "I have brought you here, to this spot so that we could be alone. Since the moment I first saw you, I knew I needed you to be with me."
Katara looked at the mask he wore. It was blue and sort of creepy, but she didn't care, she was in her own world where nothing existed except her and her spirit. Her heart skipped a beat as he began to speak words that sounded almost musical to her.
"Night-time sharpens,
heightens each sensation . . .
Darkness stirs and
wakes imagination . . .
Silently the senses
abandon their defenses . . .
Slowly, gently
night unfurls its splendor . . ."
Zuko never knew he had it in him to say such words to her, but they just rolled out as he stepped behind her and rapped his arms around her torso. He then whispered more things into her ear causing her to shiver.
"Grasp it, sense it -
tremulous and tender . . .
Turn your face away
from the garish light of day,
turn your thoughts away
from cold, unfeeling light -
and listen to
the music of the night . . ."
Close your eyes
and surrender to your
darkest dreams!
Purge your thoughts
of the life
you knew before!
Close your eyes
let your spirit
start to soar!
And you'll live
as you've never
lived before . . ."
With those final words he pulled away from her. He was in a rush of emotions of lust and love for her. Finally after so much longing to be with her, to touch her, he wanted to stay that way forever but he knew it couldn't last long. It was getting dark and he absent-mindedly lit his hand with a flame so that he could still see the lovely girl in front of her.
When Katara saw this flame she fainted, Fire bender?! That didn't make sense at all to her she was so shocked that a flame came out of his hand that she was out like a light. Noticing his fowl and extinguished the flame as he caught her. He gently lay her on the ground and watched her sleep.
Katara slowly woke up on the cold ground. I remember being brought threw the dark… I remember being brought to the woods… and in the woods there was a man… With that thought she looked up and saw the very man she was thinking about sitting on a stump near her. Who's was that face in the shadows?… Who's was that face in the mask? She stood up causing the spirit, who she now thought must be a man to look at her. She walked over to him slowly and brought her fingers through his hair soothing him with her touch, she then brought her other hand to his mask. He was so into her touch he didn't realize she was about to take off his mask. She finally took the mask in her hand and pulled it off.
Zuko angrily whipped his head away in surprise and jumped off of the stump causing Katara to fall to the ground. "Curse you!" He yelled angrily. Katara was huddled on the ground in fear, she knew that face, and it wasn't a spirit or a man. Prince Zuko of the fire nation! He had spoke softly to her from the trees? Always watching over her? She felt dirty now, knowing he was always there.
"You lying peasant! How dare you rip off the only thing keeping my identity secret!" He was more hurt then anything, he thought now that she knew who he was he could never make her love him! Katara just lay on the ground quiet and afraid. He noticed this and immediately calmed down. He sat down next her on the ground almost feeling like crying. "Katara… you probably think of me as a monster… but all I've ever wanted was to claim my honor and to go home… my father still wouldn't except me… he gave me this scar…" He motioned to his left eye. He normally never spoke of this to anyone but this was Katara, he could tell her anything.
Katara couldn't help but feel sympathy for him. Even though he was the son of the man that slaughtered hundreds, he was still the spirit she fell in love with. She handed him his mask slowly and he took it gratefully. He then stood up. "Come, we must return, those fools you travel with will be missing you."
The next morning Katara sat in her bed. She hadn't gotten any sleep that night after returning to her room. She couldn't sleep after what had happened, she wanted to hate Zuko for all the hurt that she had been put through. Then again, it seemed like he had changed… it seemed like he was a nicer sincere guy… She couldn't help but have strong feelings for him. She was in love with the spirit, he was so charming and protecting… didn't that mean Zuko was too?
Her thoughts were interrupted when Aang came into her room. "Hey Katara, good to see you're here, Sokka said something happened to you… but I see you're fine now."
"Yes…" Katara said lightly with a fake smile.
Aang gave her a smile back and sat next her on the bed. "Is something wrong?"
"No Aang everything is fine…" She replied blankly. Aang gave her a look he was so worried about her… His feelings for her were strong and with those strong feelings caem strong worry.
"Katara, what happened last night?"
Katara just looked over at Aang. "I- I'm not sure… it turns out someone I trusted dearly was a lie… yet he wasn't really a lie…" She put her head in her hands. "Oh I don't know!" She began to sob out of confusion.
Aang lifted up her head with his hand. "It's ok… I'm always here for you! Anywhere you call I will go to." His words made Katara smile as he braced her in a hug.
"Thank you." She whispered.
"A what?" Sokka asked in disbelief to what the director had just told him.
He simply smiled the same goofy smile he always did. "A masquerade! The whole Village does it to promote the play!"
"That sounds like a lot of fun!" Aang smiled happily. "Let's go get masks right now!"
Toph grabbed the back of Aang's shirt. "Slow down there twinkle toes."
"Aang is right!" Katara tried to seem as chipper as ever she had hoped that a masquerade would take her mind off of the night she had dealt with. "This could be a lot of fun, let's go get some masks and enjoy the time we can!" Aang smiled at her sudden brightness. Sokka and Toph just grumbled.
A/N: I hope this is ok, I'm not sure I like this chapter, I hate putting songs in a fic, as if they would break out in song, I wanted it to seem like he was saying it but it just came out like a song… bummer… oh well. I don't think I'll have much more of that though, I just do not like it! Anyways please tell me what you think!Thank you
-Teenfox
