Firstly I would like to apologize for how long it has taken me to update this, I actually lost inspiration due to how the show took an unfortunate turn for the worse near to the end, and I had all but forgotten about it, and writing in general for a while, but, seeing as I am not all that far from completing this, and I am a writing machine recently; I decided to continue, though I will need to deviate from the main story now to make this one work properly, so please bear that in mind. I swear that I will have this finished with by July at the latest

Making tea was not a big deal for Zuko, he had done it so much at the tea shop that he had grown quiet efficient at it; it was the small talk he was not good at, and while he tried to tell a joke, it fell flat on it's face, and as Katara pointed out, it may have been better if he actually knew the joke, but despite that, people still laughed… it was when Zuko was handing Sokka his tea that the water tribe boy asked to talk to him; now Zuko was not stupid, he knew something was going on, but he was not sure what could have prompted it.

So when he had a chance to get her alone, Zuko cornered Katara to find out what was going on, as clearly it had something to do with the conversation that they had had last night "Katara, look, I know things are not great between us…" Katara's eyes widened slightly as he said that, and a hint of a blush appeared on her features at the implication that something was between them at all, but Zuko continued on, and the blush faded with each word "And I know I can not be like a brother to you, so I am sorry that I have acted that way… but… as a friend… or… even.. just a team mate?... and if that's to much… maybe just… a person here?… I am worried… why was Sokka shouting at you?"

Zuko's blustering was so cute it made her wonder how she had ever been afraid of him once? But his question just reminded her of the real reason she was upset with him, and then the lie she had to tell Sokka, it would do no good to tell him what Sokka had first said to her so she fell back on the lie she had told her brother…

"He was wondering why I was upset, and… he was angry at me for being moody when we had all been having fun"

It was now that Zuko folded his arms and looked angry, and she knew he was only angry because he thought Sokka treated her unfairly, and she felt a bit guilty for telling that lie, especially considering the real reason was because Sokka had thought Zuko had hurt her and was prepared to take him on despite being hopelessly outmatched, Zuko then spoke "So what were you upset for? You seemed okay before we got back, but…" Zuko was already thinking it had something to do with him, so when Katara told him that it was because she missed her mom, it was a bit of a surprise, but then… it made sense that Sokka would ask about their dad, and where he was being kept.

Zuko now knew without a doubt that Sokka would try something stupid… But as Zuko looked at how sad Katara seemed… well… suddenly it did not seem as stupid as all that "Sorry Katara… I guess that is my fault…I was the one who reminded you of your mother, I guess I got lost in the moment and forgot how hard it must be for you…Maybe… I think I should call it a night" Katara watched as Zuko walk away with a rising sense of guilt spreading through her and the next morning when she woke and read that note, She could not help but feel anxious that Sokka and Zuko had gone off together… Alone… something was just not adding up.

She spent the entire day after that doing chores or keeping busy with training, or gathering herbs, or anything that was not being frustrated that Zuko went off alone with her brother… What were they doing together? Why now? They had enough meat for a week after the last thing Sokka had brought in, and the note was so vague, no she did not like it one bit, they were up to something, what if Sokka was interrogating Zuko! Maybe he didn't believe her! He had said he would be able to tell if she was lying…

Or maybe it was the other way around? Zuko was being so protective of her, maybe he was going to have a 'brotherly' talk with Sokka, oh but that would be terrible! What would happen if they started fighting? Zuko would have to leave?! Who would train Aang? And… if she was honest, right now, she did not want him to leave, he was the only other responsible one in the group, and… though she would never admit it out loud, she didn't want him to go… because she would miss him…

This was terrible! What would she do? She began pacing around the fountain and the water seemed to be following her around, and it was not until Toph appeared in front of her after her tenth lap that she halted "Katara, if you pace around this fountain any more, you might just wear the stone away, and I should know, What's wrong with you?" Katara's eyes seemed to widen and she began to fidget with her dress "Wrong? What? Why would anything be wrong?"

Toph just gave her the 'you do know who you are talking too look' and suddenly Katara felt herself crack

"IthinkIlikeZukobutheonlylikesmelikeasisterandheisannoyedatSokkabecauseIliedaboutsomethingandnowIthinktheyaregoingtohaveafightandiftheydoZukowillhavetogoanditwillbeallmyfault" Toph just blinked as she tried to figure out what Katara had said and then when she did, she just laughed "You really are such a dunce, of course he likes you, I can feel it, he just doesn't know it yet"

The shocked look that passed over Katara's face was lost on Toph, and the silence might have lasted forever if it had not been for the sound of a badger toad in the distance, closely followed by a distance groan of Aang complaining about it not being fair… Katara lowered her voice then "he… likes me?" Toph just smiled and sat to the fountain "I think so, first, I thought it was fear, his heart races when he is near you, but then you began to be nice to him, and your heart started doing the same… his is calm now around everyone, but I notice, anytime I force him to face you, he gets nervous, like, he wants your approval"

Katara sighed and shook her head "No Toph, he wants me to be his sister" Toph then tilted her head "Katara, Sokka's heart is just fine around you, and let's face it Sugar queen, you act so bossy most of the time, it would be hard to see you as girlfriend material right now" Katara put her hands on her hips and huffed loudly "Oh yeah! Well, what makes you a love expert!" Toph just shrugged to that and began to stroll away "I'm just saying, if I was a guy, and someone kept nagging me, I wouldn't wanna date them" Katara huffed this time and sounded indignant as she replied "I do not nag at Zuko!"

Toph's melodic laugh echoed of the stone and in the distance Aang called out 'Glad someone gets to have fun!' this got the blind girl shaking her head and turning to face the water bender once more "Nope, not now, but you did, and you were mean to him, and you judged him on everything he did, just because you suddenly decided to like him now, doesn't mean he is going to think he can be with you as anything more than a brother, give it time, so he thinks of you like a sister, doesn't mean you are one right? And maybe, if you make him see that, he might start to think of you in a different way"

Katara just stared at the girl with her mouth slightly open and eventually said "No seriously… who made you the love expert" Toph laughed again and made an off handish comment about being able to see more when you are blind before she went off to do whatever it was she did, leaving Katara to process this new information. She could make Zuko look at her in a different way…. But… how… just what was it that made Zuko think of her like a sister? She could not ask Sokka, first, it was a stupid question that would be answered with, 'eh, because we are siblings?' but it also brought about the problem that he would figure out instantly what was going on if she did.

She might have asked Toph again, but somehow she thought that that one was something that the blind girl would not be able to give advice on, and then it struck her! Aang! He was like a brother to her! And so, she must have been like a sister to him right?! So! She could ask him what it was about her that he thought made her seem sisterly! It was perfect! She sat of running through the temple to find the air bender, finding him resting after just finishing another round of hot squats "Aang! I am glad I found you, I have something I want to ask you"

Aang sat up to full attention and smiled brightly to her "Hi Katara, what do you want to ask me?" She sat in front of him and placed her hands to her lap, but despite him looking to her with that smile, she did not really know how to ask him, or even what to ask him, and so she ended up looking down to her hands and fidgeting with the fabric of her dress as Aang smile slowly faded "Katara?" Blue eyes rose once more to look into his concerned greys "I am sure Sokka and Zuko are fine, it's just hunting"

Katara parted her lips to tell him that it wasn't about that, but ended up looking down and blushing a bit, this was stupid, Aang was too young to understand what she was going through, but then again, Toph was just as young as Aang… she furrowed her brow and spoke slowly "Aang… do I really seem too… sisterly?" This seemed to come out of no where and Aang instantly denied it "But, I- well, I know I am bossy sometimes, and I tell you guys what to do, and I know I said we are your family now, but, you see me as a girl too, right?"

She looked up to find her friend frozen, he seemed not to be able to breath, and she instantly knew she had made a mistake in asking him and she stood up "Sorry Aang, I didn't mean to bother you, I am just being stupid, I will try to figure this out myself" She walked away from the young airbender who seemed to be stuck in place, just watched as Katara left, what had she been trying to say to him? His eyes widened as he pondered the words 'you see me as a girl too, right?' of course he did, he had from the moment he had met her, but… she had seen him as family… maybe… maybe she was starting to like him more now?

A hopeful look passed over the air bender's face as he slowly put one and one together and came up with three, Maybe it was a good idea that he kissed her just before the invasion, and now with Zuko not showing interest in her, perhaps she had started to develop feelings for him! A badger toad croaked and for the first time that day he got up to do his exercises without complaint.

For the rest of the week he followed her around like a lost puppy, offering to do chores without her asking, complimenting her on her hair, clothes or anything else he could think of, and while at first Katara thought little of it, and usually thanked him, by the time the boys had been spotted, she was starting to get annoyed at him, it never occurred to her that her talk with him might have given the impression that she liked him, but rather she came to conclusion that he thought she wanted to be treated like a helpless girl, she had not meant it that way at all, and with him fussing over her so much, it was making her want to prove to him that she was not defenceless at all.

So when the war ship began to dock, instead of her expressing how much she missed the boys, she just commented on the length of their trip and what they brought back, and she would have remained aloof, if it was not for the shock Sokka and Zuko sprang on her! They stepped aside to let other people get off, and right in front of her was someone she was afraid she had lost forever! her Dad! And suddenly, despite her plan, despite everything she had worked herself up for, she fell into the hug and felt like the little girl that she had been denying herself from being, and in her fathers arms, it felt really really good.