The use of black and white was thought of because of Small Print, a fanfic written by Robinrocks and Narroch06 mentioned the concept and I liked it a lot. I tweaked it a bit though to make it my own special kind of concept.

Chapter 37 Grey

Zuko couldn't help it, but he was still untrusting about what Katara had said. Surely she had only said that to get out of those chains but let's face it, being stuck in chains for a month would make anyone want to get out of them no matter what they would have to say. Still, Zuko was now more paranoid about what Katara might be planning more than ever. He watched as she quietly chewed on the same lettuce leaf for what seemed like a good two minutes. He knew she wasn't really going to just give up and live with him, she wasn't like that; Katara was a fighter through and through.

Zuko was glad that Katara had been trying to be contempt, maybe even joyful some times, more often now but he couldn't help but doubt that this was all just an act. She had become more talkative and friendly to not only him but even to the guards and maids in the palace. She now joined Iroh and himself for every meal, her and Zuko's decision. The only problem was that she hadn't been eating anything aside from salads and Zuko was starting to get worried.

Normally eating a salad wouldn't have bothered her, in fact she liked salads; they're healthy for you, have no fat, and yet they're filling. But this was her tenth salad that would replace a regular meal that she should be eating instead. Every time she tried to eat something else she found herself becoming rather sick merely by the smell alone. Just being this close to Zuko's and Iroh's meal was beginning to get to her.

Her morning sickness had worn off earlier last week and she now knew that her first trimester was about halfway over. She was fully seven weeks into her pregnancy and had already gained 13 pounds. She was really glad that she had a lot of loose fitting clothes in her wardrobe and was able to hide from Zuko still. She had Iroh to thank for the new clothes.

The old General was doing his best to help her through her pregnancy and so far he was very helpful. She knew that when her pregnancy got too bad and she needed advice and to check on the baby's process they would have to come clean with their little secret. Unfortunately, they both knew that they couldn't hide the fact from Zuko forever anyway; he would probably catch on eventually, he was as stupid as he seemed sometimes.

She was actually surprised he didn't notice her extra weight already, but perhaps he did and just didn't want to say anything about it and thought she was merely getting fat. It wouldn't surprise her; she was getting spoiled by being treated like a queen around the palace. Everywhere she went, namely the only section of the castle Zuko allowed her to go through, it seemed like someone was always offering their services to her. Whether it was bringing her a snack, keeping her company, helping her with whatever she was carrying, or even offering to listen to her talk.

It was all an act, she knew it was. None of them actually cared about her or wanted to be her friend just for her. No, they just wanted to get on her good side because that would make them on the Fire Lord's good side too. But she was fine with that, she knew they would never be her friends and she really didn't want anymore friends. It seemed like every time she made a friend, they had to end up paying for her decisions or actions. She was sick of hurting the people who cared about her and that she cared about as well; she vowed to no longer get close to anyone except for those she was already close to; Zuko and Iroh, and Sokka and Aang, if she ever saw those two again.

She felt tears seep up in the corner of her eyes and she quickly blinked them away and pushed her sad thoughts back in her mind. She wouldn't break down crying in front of Zuko; he was acting cautiously around her, as though she was a fragile glass piece that he might crush anytime he flinches too hard or breaths too fast. She was rather annoyed with the way he kept looking at her as if she was about to go through the floor and disappear forever. Even now he was watching her through the corner of his eye and it was bothering her.

Iroh sighed inwardly as he practically felt the tension in the air rise to an even higher degree. He didn't know whether or not the two teens knew how much of an affect they had on each other, but he certainly did. He was exhausted by early evening late afternoon now between running back and forth to his nephew and Katara; making sure both would be able to maintain emotional and mental stability. He wasn't as young as he use to be and the distance between Zuko's study and where ever Katara had wandered off to was wearing him down.

He wished they would at least talk about something. They almost always ate their meals in silence unless he started some trivial discussion about the weather or another unimportant matter. Anything he might say about the war, or how their day had gone, might trigger something and begin a long and very loud argument. He tried his best to avoid those; silence was a lot better than arguing at least.

He sipped his tea and quietly hummed, creating the only sound in the large room except for the occasional swallow or clunking of silverware against china. He supposed if he kept this lifestyle up he would grow older quicker but he wouldn't want to be anywhere else. He loved his nephew like a son, no matter how much he seemed to have gone insane at times, and he loved Katara as a daughter, even if she did seem to have everything in the world against her.

They both had good intentions, he knew that, but they didn't exactly know how to express them or what to do with them. That's where he liked to think he came in; to help them understand how to express their intentions better and show them what to do. He would help them out, play match maker a bit, just until they had at least a slimmer of the beautiful relation they once had back. After they had some form of a relationship back together he would slowly back off and go back to the sideline to watch how far they would get from his push.

First he needed to know which direction to push them in. Well, he knew what direction but he didn't exactly know how hard of a push was necessary. He went over the facts in his mind and reminded himself of a time when he was younger, much younger actually, and was trying to memorize facts about the past Fire Lords so he would be able to learn from their mistakes. That was exactly what he needed to do now; learn the facts, find the mistakes, figure out a way to fix said mistakes, and then he would know what to do.

Fact number one was simple enough to state; Zuko's and Katara's relationship was endangered.

"Zuko?" Iroh's monotone humming stopped as he looked across the table at Katara. She spoke all on her own! Zuko turned to look at Katara also; he had been watching her but now he had an excuse to have his full attention on her.

"Yes Katara?" He coaxed.

"Are you going to eat your salad?" She motioned to his salad with her fork. He never ate his salad or if he did it was a rare occasion but the chefs still gave him one at every meal besides breakfast of course, no one felt like a salad in the early hours of the morning. But each meal he would push it to the side with little to no regard to it.

Still, he was greatly disappointed with the question and as he sideways glanced at his uncle he could tell he wasn't the only disappointed one. "No I'm not, do you want it?" He asked in a low and cold voice. She nodded her head slowly. He sighed and pointed at her plate. "You have other food options you know."

"I don't feel like eating any of this." Katara did nothing to hide the disgust in her voice as she pushed the food piled platter an inch farther away from herself.

"What do you feel like eating? Tell me and I'll have the chefs prepare it in no time." Zuko was starting to get upset at where this conversation was heading.

"I don't want anything else but a salad and seeing as your not going to eat yours why bother the chefs to make another one? Now, can I have your salad or not?" Katara clenched her fork tightly. Why was Zuko getting on her case like this? It would be a waste of food if she had another salad made when a perfectly edible, untouched salad sat nearly inches away from her already.

"No, eat something else, some meat or something. I want to see you eat something that isn't green." Zuko's temper was starting to rise, as well as the temperature in the room. It was time Iroh stepped in for some damage control.

"Zuko, if Katara wants a salad, why not let the lady simply eat a--"

"Because it's all she's been eating!" Zuko interrupted. "Katara, I'm really worried about you and if you don't start eating something else right now I will pick you up and carry you to the doctors!"

Katara crossed her arms over her chest and placed her fork down on the table. She couldn't eat anything now; not only would she retch it, but it was also about the principal of the matter. She was not someone to take threats or orders from someone else and simply comply without a fight. "I lost my appetite altogether." She muttered under her breath.

Zuko fumed and in one swift movement had pushed his chair back, stood up, and picked Katara in his arms bridal style. "Sorry to end lunch early Uncle, but Katara and I seem to have an appointment to see the doctors." Zuko smirked. Katara blushed and pushed at Zuko's chest.

"Zuko, put me down this instant! I am not going to see any doctor; I'm fine, really." She protested as Zuko ignored her futile attempts to get out of his hold. "General Uncle, help me!"

Iroh stood and walked next to his nephew. He looked at the younger man's face and noticed the genuine smile plastered on it. Iroh couldn't help but smile himself and he opened the double doors and stepped to the side to allow his nephew passage with his hollering 'lover' in arms.

"Thank you Uncle," Zuko chuckled, "you were quite helpful." Iroh snickered as he received a dangerous look from Katara.

"Yes, thank you so much for all of you help, General Uncle, I really appreciate it!" Katara's voice drenched in sarcasm was only laughed at as Iroh returned to the table to finish his meal by himself.

Katara had stopped pushing at Zuko's chest and now folded her arms in her lap. She sighed and looked at Zuko, he was smiling. "What are you happy about? You do know that this is only making me angry at you." She turned her head to the floor in front of them and shifted slightly.

"Yeah, I know, but that doesn't really concern me right now. I'm just thrilled to have you in my arms again." He placed a quick kiss on her forehead and she blushed.

She didn't know why but she felt the same way as she had once felt when she and Zuko had first started to express their feelings for one another. Her face felt hot and she knew she was blushing uncontrollably but she couldn't help it. Knowing that she was blushing didn't help stop her from doing so. It also couldn't help the facts that she was noticing the way Zuko's arms felt so well toned and that she had the sudden urge to run her hands across the man's perfectly sculptured abs and chest.

"Zuko," she placed her head on his neck, "let's forget the doctor and go have some fun." She whispered in what she hoped was a seductive voice. Zuko's steps faltered for a moment but then he laughed and continued to head towards the hospital ward of the palace.

"Why are you so desperate to not see a doctor? Are you scared of them or something? Do needles give you the creeps?" Zuko continued to chuckle as Katara pulled her face away from him to glare straight into his eyes.

"No, I'm not afraid of doctors or needles," I'm afraid you'll find out that I'm pregnant. "I just feel like having some fun instead. Come on Zuko, you know you want to." She kissed his jaw line and ran a finger over his collarbone. She wasn't going to give up if she knew this had some affect on him. She had to stay away from doctors at all cost; doctors could tell when a girl was pregnant and if they found out they will definitely inform Zuko right away. She could not have that happening.

"If you still feel that way after we visit the doctors then I'll take you up on that offer. But nothing is going to stop me from making sure that you're completely healthy." She stopped kissing him and sighed deeply. Life hated her and had to make sure that everything that could go wrong did. "I'm just worried about you Katara, you've been acting different lately."

"It's not like I'm going to pick up where we left off or anything. A lot has happened between us Zuko and I'm sure that we can never go back to being how we were back on your ship." She blinked back the tears she felt forming in her eyes as she continued. "I do miss those times though. I really wish we could go back to then; when everything seemed so simple; black and white, sort to speak."

"Like red and blue?" He offered. She smiled and shook her head.

"No Zuko, red and blue are just opposites. I mean black and white like good and bad, easy to understand and comprehend. But now it seems like our life has been clouded in grey; making everything doubtful and questionable as things seem to mix together to form the ugly shade." She felt Zuko tense and she looked in his eyes in an attempt to read his emotions.

"Do you think we can be able to go back to being black and white?" he asked in a sort of hopeful manner.

"If we try really hard we might be able to split the grey back into the two colors but it will take a lot of patience and time." She rested her head on his shoulder. "For example, we'll have to be able to tell each other the truth. Truth lies in the white and when we hide the truth we taint it and only cause more grey."

"I can truthfully say that I still have feelings for you Katara, even if they seem to be tainted by my black actions. But if I didn't have feelings for you I know I would have just given up and let you leave a long time ago. I think we can still end up happy, we have a chance to become simple black and white again, even if there's some grey left I don't care and however long it will take to clear most of the grayness will be worth it to see this to the end." Zuko didn't know why, but his own words encouraged him to try harder.

Too bad Katara didn't feel that way. But she couldn't help but feel that Zuko didn't understand the analogy and if he was he was overusing it. She sighed, "I'm glad to hear that you feel that way Zuko. Though I think most of what you said is debatable I do agree that I still have feelings for you as well. Like, that moment ago, I couldn't help blushing and thinking of how we use to be and just thinking about it was making me happy again."

"Lord Zuko, this is a surprise. What can I do for you today, my Lord?" Katara stopped focusing on Zuko and looked around her surroundings to find herself in a medical looking room. They had finally arrived at the doctors and Katara couldn't help but feel like a shade of grey had been permanently painted on their relationship.

Yes, this chapter was kind of just a space filler with a little bit of information, feelings, and a tiny hint of some fluff that might have been. But next chapter; how will Katara be able to keep her secret to herself?