Summary: A huge party is throne at the Fire Nation palace to celebrate the end of the Hundred Year War. A/N: Finished with four minutes to spare! Parties are whimsical, right?
Whimsical
The Fire Nation palace was full with guests from all over the world. Members of every nation had come to celebrate the end of the war. Mai had been talking to Zuko, but he hadn't really been listening so eventually she just left to find Ty Lee. It was the first time he'd see anyone from the old group in two months. It was the first time he'd see Katara. He tried not to think about her, but when he did all he could think about was the moment they'd shared after they defeated Azula. All he could think about was the things that he felt when he was with her, things he thought he'd learn to feel with Mai. He'd missed her a lot more than he would ever admit.
Sokka arrived first with Suki. He'd moved to Kyoshi Island with her after the end of the war. Next came Toph, who was in the process of opening a metalbending academy. He was happy to see his old friends, but the longer he waited for her to come, the more anxious he got, and he knew that that was very, very bad.
Appa landed outside the Fire Nation palace. Aang slid off the side before helping Katara off. "Aang, I'm fine," she reminded him.
"I know. Just trying to be a gentleman," he smiled. "You look really nice tonight, by the way."
"Thanks," she forced a smile, but she was so worried about seeing Zuko that she was sure it looked fake.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm great," she said as cheerfully as possible. "Come on, let's go."
"Okay…" said Aang, clearly unconvinced. She took him by the hand and the two hurried inside.
"Looks like Mr. and Mrs. Twinkletoes finally decided to show up," said Toph. As usually she knew who had arrived before everyone else did.
When Aang and Katara spotted the group, they hurried over to join them, greeting each of them with a hug. Zuko knew it must have been really obvious how taken he was by Katara because of the suspicious look Toph shot him. Katara was always pretty, but tonight, he couldn't take his eyes off her. She was about to hug him, but she realized it would probably be uncomfortable for the both of them so she stopped herself. "It's good to see you, Zuko."
"You too," he said.
Just then the music started to play and couples began to gather on the floor to dance. Aang grinned. "Come on, Katara!" And before she could object, he was dragging her to the dance floor.
Zuko thought of going to find Mai, but Mai didn't dance and she'd really missed Ty Lee so he didn't want to bother her. Besides, his eyes were glued to Katara twirled and swayed to the music, putting him in a daze. For a brief moment they made eye contact for a second, but he looked away faster than she could.
Toph cleared her throat. "Um…Zuko? Is something going on with you and Sweetness?"
"No!" he said almost too defensively. "Why would you say that?"
"Your heartbeat has been a lot faster since she came," she said.
"That's ridiculous! She's with Aang! I'm with Mai!"
"Okay…whatever you say…"
Zuko was thankful that she couldn't see the redness in his cheeks.
As Katara and Aang were dancing, a young looking girl tapped him on the shoulder. "Uh…hi…" she said. I'm a big fan of yours and I was wondering if you'd like to dance?"
Aang looked at Katara, "Do you mind?"
"Of course not," she said. "Have fun."
She was actually relieved to have a moment to herself. Seeing Zuko again had brought all the feelings that she'd worked so hard to get rid of hurling back at her, and she knew she had to leave the party as soon as possible. But before she could, she noticed Zuko standing beside her. "Do you wanna dance?" he asked.
"I don't know…" she said hesitantly.
He took her hand. "Come on, it's just a dance, Katara."
"Okay," she agreed, though they both knew it was a bad idea.
The next song to come on was a slow song. She felt Zuko's arm wrapped around her waste making her shiver. She placed a hand on his shoulder and took his hand in her other one. "You look beautiful," he blurted out.
"Thank you," she said, blushing.
They were silent for the rest of the dance, never breaking eye contact. Both wondering if they'd made a mistake when they made the choice they did, but they didn't want to think about that. They didn't want to worry. They just wanted to be happy and stop trying to hide their feelings for one moment, and they did.
But the song ended too quickly and Aang found them right away. "I guess I owe you a dance know," he said.
Katara shook her head. The minute Aang came back was the minute that she knew that she couldn't be here anymore. She was so confused at that moment that it was making her dizzy. Dancing with Zuko, even though it felt right, was a bad idea. "Actually, I need some air." And she hurried away before anyone could argue.
