Disclaimer: All Avatar characters belong to Nickelodeon, and all fake characters and cheesy plots belong to me. :D

A/N: I've had roughly 120 visitors on this story. If you read, please review, even if you hated it. (Hoover that does not include you; in fact, I'm asking you not to review anymore.) Oh, yeah. I suck at coming up with titles, so they don't always pertain to the actual writing..

"Zuko, why don't you show Kira the waterfall," Aang suggested, obviously thinking it would help Zuko's hostile mood toward her.

Without a word he stood up and walked away.

Kira looked around awkwardly.

He turned his burning gaze on her. "Well? Are you coming or not?"

She ran to his side enthusiastically, and he flinched a bit, continuing in his longer stride.

She watched him, trying to be as quiet and non-irritating as possible. He has nice features, she thought. He'd look even better if he wasn't always frowning.

He shot her a look from the corner of his eye. "Stop staring at me please."

She veered her eyes immediately. What would it take to get him to stop hating her? How long would she have to endure his scorching stares, his rude remarks?

"We're here," he said roughly.

The water poured over a cliff, surrounded by trees and grass. She walked up to the edge. "It's beautiful!"

She beamed and was once again disappointed by his furrowed brow, his gaze averted.

Despite his apparent hatred for her, Kira wanted to comfort him. She took a step forward.

Zuko's eyes widened, and he ran toward her, pushing her aside.

"What--"

A cloud of steam burst up from where she had previously been standing.

He relaxed and spaced himself from her again. "I forgot to tell you about the geyser."

"Thank you," she said, still somewhat in shock.

He grunted a reply.

--

Everyone knew what her abilities were, except Zuko, who remained thick-headed and gloomy as was normal, and he left every time they began asking her questions.

She was calm. She was patient. She was everything Zuko was not, but she noticed when he shot a glare in her direction, how he stormed off every time the subject turned to her and couldn't seem to fathom his dislike for her.

Everyone else liked her; they had all accepted her warmly, but she couldn't repress the feeling that she was unwelcome to him.

Kira laughed as Momo lunged for her bread.

Zuko, sitting against a tree, stood and trudged toward Appa.
Her face fell, and her laughter ceased. She sighed and went back to feeding Momo half-heartedly.

"Don't let him get you down," Sokka enthused. "He's always like that. I just try to tune it out."

She flashed him a look, piercing in that her discomfort at being disliked was so apparent on her usually cheerful face that no one (excepting Toph) could feel anything but sorry for the girl.

"He's jealous." Sokka munched at his apple nonchalantly.

She frowned in confusion. "Why should he be jealous?"

"Well," Katara explained carefully, "you see, Zuko wasn't accepted as quickly as you. He had to work to get everyone's approval, and you got in, no questions asked."

Zuko patted Appa on his large, furry head. "You still like me, don't you?"

The bison licked the side of his face, leaving his hair wet. He chuckled. "I thought so."

He continued to watch his friends talk, but mostly he watched Kira.

She looked so small, so fragile. He thought at any moment she might hurt herself. She might trip and break a bone or burn herself, sitting too close to the crackling fire. A tree might spontaneously decide to fall and crush her weak body.

Was it so wrong to want to protect something that was so defenseless by nature?

Yes, it was, he decided. Especially when something so defenseless was surrounded by two skilled warriors, a water bender, an earth bender, and the avatar.

These conflicting thoughts within himself were what kept him from staying around long, why he sought out solitude. He hadn't been drawn into her like the others. He wouldn't be.

She was a lovable creature, with her large eyes, small physique, and naive care for every living thing around her. To them she was like a talking Momo. No one could dislike her, even Zuko, who tried his utmost to.

But what did she want from him? She always watched him expectantly. Sometimes he caught her staring at him, concentrating on something so hard that she didn't realize he had looked up.

At first he had thought she was just looking at his scar, like most people did, but somehow he knew she wasn't. She was too polite for that kind of behavior, despite the fact that not once had he said something kind to her.

He was treating her the way Katara had treated him, and just like Zuko, she hadn't said one cruel thing back or retaliated in any form.

A/N: Yes, I know. Very short. Again. I'm lazeh. Maybe one day I'll actually get around to writing something long! Review please! I want to know what you think.

-Anne.