A/N: Terribly sorry that it's such a short chapter, but school must come first! I'm moving along the story line with revealing a few things and changing up some mindsets! Hope you enjoy! Remember to keep reviewing :D
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Neither Zuko nor I wanted to have to try to behave as though there was nothing going on between us, but as we flew out of the swamp on Appa, we both knew that we had to.
The swamp had been an interesting experience; we found Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Iroh at the base of an enormous tree which connected the entire swamp together – and in turn generated the enormous of spiritual energy that Aang was pulled toward. We had met Water Benders who seemed to have a curious way of bending the water in the vines to control them, and I gave it a few tries; I found that it would be a helpful ability down the road, but I preferred to work with actual water.
Aang explained as we were flying away that he had seen a vision of a laughing girl with a flying boar, and that he was only able to think that she must have something to do with whoever was meant to be his Earth Bending teacher.
"What was it that King Bumi said you needed in a master?" Iroh inquired after a moment of silence.
"He said that I need to find someone that waits and listens to the earth before attacking," The monk responded, sighing heavily. "Whatever that is supposed to mean."
"Do not take words of wisdom at face value, Aang; that is the downfall of youth," The old man said, stroking his beard.
I gazed at Zuko, who was looking at me already. I raised an eyebrow at him, and he gave a nearly imperceptible nod of his head, telling me that nothing was wrong for me to worry about.
And yet, I couldn't help but worry about it; him, me, us. I couldn't stop thinking. Because, if we were truly feeling what I thought we were, then there could be trouble for us on this horizon.
I must have held a troubled look for the rest of our flight; we landed for the night to make camp and as I was setting up my tent, Iroh joined me.
"Hakone, something is troubling you," He said quietly so that only the two of us would hear the conversation.
"No," I answered, too quickly and too harshly for it to be an affective lie.
"I can see it written all over your face. You are worried about yourself and my nephew. I don't think you will encounter much resistance here – love like yours is not unheard of; it might be rare, but do not worry. The others, they will accept it; perhaps a bit shocked at first, but give them time," The old man mused as he pulled the tarp over the tent in case of rain.
"Are you sure?" I whispered, almost not able to voice the question.
"I am," He smiled, golden eyes twinkling. "Now, we should join the others for dinner."
I bowed my head, and followed him to the fire, taking my now usual place beside Zuko and Aang.
"Hakone, you still haven't told us about your time in the swamp. What happened to you?" Aang inquired happily, spooning some of the stew that Katara had made into a bowl.
"Nothing much; I found Zuko first, and then the two of us found you," I answered inconspicuously. I saw Aang face drop about a mile when I mentioned Zuko, but there was no other reaction aside from Zuko tensing up beside me.
"Good to know that you found each other; who knows what might have happened if you had been left out there on your own for too long," Katara said.
"Yes, who knows what might have happened," Aang repeated, though with a certain vehemence in his tone that I didn't register.
"What, exactly, are you implying?" Zuko growled menacingly. I whipped my head around to stare at him for a moment, confused, until I realized what Aang had meant.
"Oh nothing, just that you and Hakone seem to be relatively closer to each other than to anyone else in the camp," the monk responded. Everything was silent, and for a moment, the only sound was the crackling of the fire. The tension could have been cut with a knife.
"We need to tell them," Zuko sighed heavily, looking at me with a defeated expression.
"Tell us what?" Sokka asked, curious.
Everyone was looking at me now, Iroh smiling gently, Katara knowingly, Sokka confused, and Aang angry; each expression seeking answers.
"Sokka, Aang, what the two of you don't know… something happened at the North Pole," I started. I launched into the story, leading up to the night of the kiss.
"Zuko and I… we think that our destinies are intertwined. We think that we might be each other's balance – like Tui and La are," I managed after a moment of hesitation.
Katara and Iroh looked happy, Sokka looked confused, and Aang looked hurt.
Without a word, Aang got up, grabbed his staff, and flew off. I gazed off after him for a moment, and then looked back around to the others.
"Well that went… well?" I said after a moment. The others laughed nervously except for Zuko and Sokka.
"What do you mean? Are you and Zuko like… a thing?" Sokka inquired.
"Yes," Zuko said after a moment, leveling a golden gaze at the Southern Tribe boy. Sokka cringed but otherwise said nothing.
"Perhaps I should go talk to him," Katara spoke up after a moment of silence.
"Yes, I think that might be for the best. He's a bit upset, I'm sure," Iroh agreed. Katara stood and after a moment left.
"I never expected that to go quite so… smoothly," I said to Zuko after a moment.
"It wasn't ideal, if that's what you mean," He muttered.
"No, but I expected there to be yelling and arguments," I amended. He smiled at me and then touched my hand for a brief moment. The contact sent a surge of energy through me, and then it was gone. I found myself craving more, but I held myself back from pulling him into a hug.
"How long do you think Katara and Aang will be?" I wondered after a moment.
"As long as it takes for Aang to calm down," Iroh said.
"It's already getting late; I hope they haven't gone too far," I said after a moment, watching the sunset. Beautiful blends of pinks oranges yellows and blues, all creating a mesmerizing and spectacular view.
"Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be fine," Zuko murmured, more to ease my concern than anything. If there was anything that I did too much of, it was worry.
"Thanks," I responded. After a few moments, Iroh went for a walk and Sokka made an excuse to go hunting for the next day's meal, even though there wasn't anything larger than a beetle roaming in the clearing that we landed in.
With the sudden absence of the others, Zuko closed the gap between us and put his arm around me. I felt myself relax into his embrace and for a second all of the tension melted away.
"I could stay like this forever," I sighed after a moment. He rested his chin on my head, humming gently.
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Aang felt hurt. He'd really felt an attraction toward Hakone, and to see him going for Zuko had made him mad with jealousy. He was sitting on a rock, resting his chin on his knee. Looking back on the situation, he knew it was wrong for him to react the way that he was, but he felt mildly hurt.
"Aang?" A voice called. Not the voice he was hoping for either. The young Avatar barely glanced in Katara's direction as she made her way to sit with him. "Are you okay?" She asked after a moment's hesitation.
"I'm upset, but I don't know why. I'm hurt, but I don't know why. I'm being selfish," He muttered. The Water Bender sighed heavily and placed a hand gently on his shoulder.
"Aang, you have every right to feel the emotions that you're feeling because they're normal," Katara told him. The Air Bender didn't move aside from glancing at her. "You had a crush and it didn't turn out the way you'd hoped. I'm sorry," She said kindly, smiling at him in that soothing way she had.
There was something about Katara that made him feel at home, although the Avatar could never place what it was. She was familiar, she was safe. He could talk to her. Without thinking what he was doing, he leaned forward and rested his head on her shoulder.
She brought her arm up to hold him to her, and they sat, watching the sunset.
"Are you okay?" She inquired after the sun was beginning to vanish below the horizon.
"I will be," He said.
