A/N: Ok, so I noticed how you ALL seemed to have had quite a scare from the Zupphire moment (ZukoxSapphire xD). But I want you to all remember how much I ADORE Zutara and how evil I can be. lol. Ok, now I may have let my imagination get the best of me in this chapter, but I couldn't resist! You got me from "I'll save you from the pirates.";-D This chapter is mainly inspired by that saying, but I tried to make it seem realistic too, if that's possible. ^_^ Hope you like it more than the last one.

Song: "Collide" by Howie Day.

Why?: Yeah, I know this is kind of an old song…(yes, 2004/-05 is ancient! lol). But I think it's a good/appropriate song for this chapter, so as always, please at least TRY to listen to it! Thanks.

Chapter 24 ~ Different yet the Same

The young Fire Lord was staring out upon the open sea with a mixed expression of pain and exhaustion…which had nothing to do with his physical discomfort. If only that could be the least of his worries.

Sapphire took a glance at his profile and smirked knowingly, "You're a mess. Look almost worse than when I first found you. I think you need a drink."

Zuko stared at her eyes, already alight with mischief. He scowled, adding to the Fire-bender's fun.

"I won't be taking any drinks from you, thank you very much."

"Hm. How about food then?"

Zuko couldn't resist a small smile tugging at the corner of his lip. He coughed and immediately looked toward the horizon, reminding himself of his mission. Not that Zuko needed reminders.

Everywhere he looked, everything he touched, reminded him of the lost Water-bender and surged more his undying need to find her. He started to wonder if it was normal feeling this way for a friend…he certainly didn't ever feel this way with his other friends, hell, not even with his own girlfriend! That led him to thinking…

"Ya know, it's alright to do other things with your face then scowl and curse everything you see…"

Sapphire's sad remark hit him hard, and Zuko took a deep breath of the fresh sea-salty air while closing his eyes and opening his heart.

"I…can't. Not while knowing she's somewhere out there…hungry…suffering."

Zuko stopped himself and took another deep breath. Sapphire looked down at the crashing waves against the ship's front while something inside her seemed to tear. She sighed,

"You really like her."

Zuko's eyes opened in shock. It wasn't a question, but a fact. Yet he felt the need to assure himself.

"Yes."

It was just one word, but that one simple word was enough for him to finally convince himself that what the young Fire Lord was feeling was something more.

He glanced at his companion in that moment and Zuko could have sworn he saw Sapphire's face in pain, much like the pain he had just expressed, though she tried to hide it. Why should this knowledge make her react in such a way?

Zuko was about to ask but never got the chance, for something caught his eye in the distance…it was another ship. But not just any ship, this one had a pirate flag, and a slight blue clothed figure in its crow's nest.

Zuko's mouth gasped open without his permission.

"It can't be…"

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What am I doing? This is crazy!

Even as she thought this, Katara did not hesitate to grab the rope and hold on to it for dear life, which very well could have been the case since Katara decided to try to escape from the pirates in the middle of the ocean without waiting any longer. But now that she could bend again she wasn't afraid of jumping into the water…the problem was what awaited her below. She wasn't too confident in her distance calculations and if she made one small miss to the right…Katara gulped and tried not to think about it.

It was now or never, and she wasn't going to be captured and harassed again. Just when she was about to jump though, something caught her attention and froze her in place. Another ship was approaching at a very high speed; but that wasn't what froze Katara like a statue and made her question her own sanity.

She saw him.

Right at the ship's front edge, hair blowing wildly while his faded red traveler's ware pressed against his body, and even from far away she could feel his penetrating gaze that made her heart stop…then beat up again at an alarming rate.

At that moment he wasn't just a compassionate friend that had saved her life in more ways than one, this time…he was her hero.

Zuko.

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Zuko thought he'd go crazy. Seeing her so close, yet still so out of reach. Again he threatened the captain for the ship to go faster, it was practically flying but nothing was fast enough for the hot former Fire Nation Prince in that moment…all he saw was Katara.

Her beautiful chocolate brown hair loose and in tangles but flowing with the wind, while her deep blue eyes tore holes through his soul. They were still a few feet away but he could feel something in her eyes…a form of awe and fear. He could understand the awe, but why the fear? That was enough for him; Zuko couldn't wait any longer.

Sapphire was telling him something but Zuko was far past the point of listening anymore and was already three steps ahead. Sapphire almost growled in frustration as Zuko walked off the edge and paced a few steps into the deck. The now anxious Sapphire followed and tried to uselessly persuade him,

"Zuko, listen to me, that's a pirate ship! PIRATE. There's another way to approach this, please just listen to me for one sec…no! No, don't, dammit!"

Zuko was running at lightening speed before Sapphire could do anything to stop him. He lunged himself off the edge while at the same time in that moment he borrowed his little sister's trick, and shot a heavy surge of fire from the soles of his feet, filling in the huge gap between both ships, he extended his arms the farthest they would go and for the briefest second…flew.

Grasping the edge of the opposing ship with both strong arms, he flung himself unto the deck and instantly took his battle stance.

Commencing his fight with the pirates once again.

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When Katara saw Zuko fly like a hawk between both long-ranged ships, she didn't know what to do.

Now, that was impressive! Was her first instinctive thought. Her second one was more out loud,

"Aaahh!" Katara yelled in surprise when she felt someone tug her down and looked down to find the pirate Captain dangling from her right foot.

Katara furrowed her eyebrows and summoned the water from the ocean towards her attacker but the vile man saw it coming and heaved himself into the small crow's nest just on time. As if the space wasn't meager enough, the Captain seemed to take it up whole and Katara pushed herself into a corner, wondering what she should do next.

The Captain saw her hesitation and smiled. "So, you're a Water-bender, eh girl?" The air sung as the Captain pulled out his long deadly sword, "This should be interesting."

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Zuko took down the swarm of pirates like flies, with a mix of his mastery in material arts and fire-bending it was easy, but what was more annoying than anything was that they kept on coming; where he took down two, four would take their place, therefore, not allowing Zuko to go toward his desired destination – Katara.

He kept glancing up though, and saw one of the pirates had joined her, but this pirate looked different somehow. From his posture alone Zuko could tell he had had more experience than the others.

And Zuko also knew he had little time. Something burned in his chest as he looked up at this girl that he had risked so much for…he wouldn't lose her again. He couldn't.

And with this new determination, Zuko took a deep breath and blew fire from his mouth unto the scurrying pirates who ducked or fell back from the burning flames.

Zuko ran toward the mast and grabbed a rope ladder while starting to half climb and half swing upward, when suddenly the ship rocked and he lost his balance…

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Katara staggered when the ship violently shook and she crashed face first into the Captain's fowl belly. With extreme disgust, she pushed herself off, but the Captain grabbed her hair and pulled back hard. Katara let out a pained yelp but quickly swirled the water around the Captain's hand and froze it, giving her time to duck out his hand and turn to freeze the other one, when the Captain swung his sword toward her and Katara had to jump to avoid its sharp side.

She ended up dangling on the edge of the crow's nest with nothing but malicious pirates waiting a long distance below.

Katara frantically looked around for her Fire-bending savior but couldn't see him anywhere. The Captain smiled widely, revealing his missing broken teeth, as he raised his sword to finish Katara once and for all.

Katara closed her eyes and felt something smack into her body…hard. She went flailing off the edge and just when she thought she should feel a hard pain across her back, head, or stomach, she felt nothing but air. Katara finally decided to open her eyes and was met by the shocking gaze of Zuko's golden ones…just inches from her own face.

"Z-z-zuko?!" Katara could barely get the word out but she saw Zuko's lips twitch unconsciously into a spasm of a smile before he solemnly nodded at her and said a deep quick voice full of command,

"Hold on."

Katara was only too quick to oblige, and wrapped her arms around Zuko's waist as Zuko already had one firm hand around hers, he gripped tighter to a long rope he was swinging from and used the burst of fire from his feet again to jump off, back to the ship he had come from, which happened to be the one who had shook the pirate ship earlier.

The added weight didn't bother Zuko, but it did make the landing a little less graceful as they both crashed into the middle of the deck. The Fire Lord and Master Water-bender were quickly surrounded by the ship's crew and Sapphire; who didn't look the least bit pleased about Zuko's quick recovery, and made it known.

"Are you insane?! You were this close to dying! If you could have just held on for 5 more seconds, you would have had at least some assistance!"

But Sapphire's complaints were mere background noise as Zuko and Katara stared at each other for a long while, they were both entangled on the deck floor and Zuko quickly released himself as he helped Katara to her feet, both his hand and heart gripping tighter at the sight of her.

Katara was smiling with a sparkle in her eyes that was so much different than Sapphire's…they sparkled with tears of overflowing emotion. She was finally safe…and she was finally home.

Without a second thought Katara decided to make a formal greeting, and embraced Zuko in the same fashion as in their very first hug.

The differences between then and now seemed so distant yet they were all the same…Katara had accepted Zuko with a moment that couldn't be expressed in words, and Zuko just couldn't help but wrap his arms around her small waist and feel like they just fitted there in the most natural way…they were so different yet so much the same.

It was a mystery how they ever let go, but they did and Katara awkwardly blushed when she finally seemed to realize her audience, as Zuko looked down at her and smiled a true genuine smile and for a blissful moment…everything was right again.

But Zuko knew in his dreamlike state, that even the most perfect picture…didn't last long.