Hello everyone! Welcome to chapter 37 of Sparks Ignite! This chapter was a lot of fun to write because you get to see a lot of zutara action. And we get to see a little bit of the concept for this book of Sparks Ignite. I hope you guys enjoy! As always, I do not own Avatar or its characters. Onto the story!

Fate and Destiny are a funny thing. They are so permanent, but yet can be changed by the smallest thing. It can cause the moon and the sun to collide. Or the most opposite Sparks to Ignite.

Chapter 37: The Price

Katara slowly made her way to Zuko's room from the meeting. She had a lot on her mind from the meeting and a lot from the past few weeks. She never once thought 3 years ago that she would be helping the fire nation bureaucracy come up with a plan to stop rebellions. But she also never once thought she would help the Avatar save the world either. If she stepped back at all, it seemed as if her entire life was slightly foreign to her, as if she were dreaming and wondering when she may wake up, back in the igloo.

Iroh had told her several times how good she was with the advisors and with fire nation issues. She could feel him dropping hints of being Fire Lady, and she supposed if she wanted a life with Zuko, that was going to come. But she still wasn't sure how she felt about it all. Could she help run a kingdom that tried to murder her own? What did being Fire Lady even mean?

Katara wandered into Zuko's room, lost in thought. But when she looked around the room and saw the bed completely empty, she was snapped from her thoughts. She saw the window wide open, curtains blowing in the wind, and fell into a panic. All she could think was he was taken. Somebody ran in and took him.

She ran from the room, hoping to find a guard close by to tell them the Fire Lord has been taken. But she turned and saw Ursa pushing Zuko down the hall in a wheelchair. Her body immediately relaxed at seeing him. Ursa saw the look on her face and gave her a delicate smile, "I'm so sorry to worry you. Zuko and I just took a trip to see my old garden"

Katara shook her head, still slightly out of breath, "No worries at all"

"Why don't I leave you two?" Ursa suggested, giving Zuko a wink as she walked out. Zuko gave her a stern look, seeing the situation she was trying to set up, even though deep down, he was a little thankful. The two never seemed to get time alone anymore.

"How did the meeting go?" he asked her, as he tried to push himself back into bed. Katara came next to him and helped lift him by his armpits, "Same as before… They're worried about the dangers of moving him" she sighed, feeling a little disgruntled about the whole situation. Zuko gave her a sad smile, "I'm sorry… The advisors are… tough to say the least"

Katara sighed, "I just have a bad feeling… After seeing… you like that, I just don't want it to happen again" she caught herself on her words. After talking with Iroh and Ursa, she had decided not to tell Zuko right away about the man in the mask. She didn't want him knowing that just as he was in danger, she was as well with whatever 'plans' he had for her.

She knew that at some point, she would have to tell him. But right now, the most important thing was that he got better and rested.

Zuko gave her a smile and took her hand, "We pumped up the security at the castle… Chef Poe is the only chef that is allowed to make or bring me any food and he and the serve staff are well aware of that… It's going to be okay"

Katara smiled back at him, nodding slightly, "Honestly I don't want to think about it… I never want to see you like that again…"

Zuko sighed and laid back, opening his arms to her, "Come here…"

She looked at him, a little hesitant, not wanting to hurt him. But he gave her a reassuring smile and she climbed into bed next to him, resting her head under his chin. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

His body felt unbelievably warm underneath her. But it wasn't uncomfortable; it was like she was laying next to a warm fire. He had his arms wrapped around her waist, holding her close to him. She closed her eyes, feeling the most at peace she had been in a long time.

"I want to court you…"

Katara looked up at him and frowned a little, "What does that mean?" she asked him. She had never heard of such a thing at home.

Zuko sighed, thinking for a second, "It means that we would spend more time together… Just you and me… And a chaperone" he let out a chuckle, "Most would use it as a time to get to know each other…"

Katara couldn't help but roll her eyes, "As if we don't know everything already…"

He smiled down at her, "So I'd like to think of it as practice…" he told her. She furrowed her brow, "Practice?" she said curiously. Zuko paused for a moment, "Practice for… after I marry you…"

Katara gaped for a moment, wide eyes looking back at him, "You want to marry me?" she asked him, as if part of her didn't know the answer already.

"More than anything…" he told her. She couldn't stop the smile that appeared on her face. But it disappeared after a moment, once a young monk's face came into her mind. "What is it?" he asked her, confused and a little worried at her reaction.

She sat up and held onto his hands, "I want… more than anything… To have that. But before that can happen, I need to talk to Aang… I need to" she continued but Zuko shook his head, stopping her.

"You don't have to explain…" he told her, "I already know…"

Katara gave him a confused look, before he sighed and continued, "At one point, he told me to back off… That you and he were meant to be and he didn't want me getting hurt… I know how he feels about you and I don't want him getting hurt either…" he looked down at her hands, playing with her fingertips. Katara frowned, "It seems that he has been trying to choose things a lot for me recently…" she told him, slightly annoyed.

Zuko looked at her, a smile of understanding written on his features, "He's young… And he spent so much time saving the world that he forgot to learn what life is… I guess that's the price for saving the world… He just has to remember that even though sometimes we defeat the Fire Lord, sometimes we fail too…" he told her, pausing for a moment, "He will learn to understand… It just will take time…"

Katara gave him a grateful smile back, but sighed slightly, "I just don't want to hurt him…" she confessed. Zuko smiled at her, "I know… Take the time you need… I'll be waiting… patiently"

She smiled and chuckled slightly, before leaning down and placing a gentle kiss on his lips. He held onto her, wishing he didn't have to let go. When she pulled away, he sighed and spoke, "I can't wait until I can do that whenever I want…"

Katara smiled down at him, wishing for the same exact thing.

Ta-Daaa! I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter! We got to see a lot of zutara fluff in this chapter. How do you think Aang is going to react? Until next time!