Day 9: Partners in Crime

"Are you sure about this?" Aang asked as he looked up at Zuko.

Zuko stood in front of the Gaang, his arms crossed and his head down. He didn't want to do it, but they were desperate.

"We have no other option. We need to do this." Zuko sighed.

"No way, Zuko." Katara chimed in. "Stealing is wrong. I will not be some common criminal."

"You are already all over the wanted posters. I can't believe that you are feeling guilty over the thought of stealing from the Fire Nation. We need the food or we are going to starve. Now is not the time to take the moral high ground." Zuko rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Yeah, Sugar Queen," Toph slapped Katara's back, "don't get your bindings in a knot. I am not going to starve out here and I sure as hell am not going to die in the Fire Nation. I'm in."

"Me too." Sokka said.

"Aang?" Katara looked at the young Avatar.

Aang looked at the ground, knowing that Katara was not going to like what he was going to say.

"I agree with Zuko." Aang whispered.

"Aang!" Katara shouted.

"What? We need the food and the Fire Nation has so much of it. These are trying times." Aang responded.

"I thought that you were supposed to be a pious monk." Katara crossed her arms.

"I still need to eat, Katara! If I thought that there was a way to gain food without stealing, then I would not have agreed to Zuko's idea." Aang defended.

"So it is settled. Two of us will go into town and raid the Fire Nation base for food and supplies." Zuko said.

"Two?" Sokka asked.

"The five of us would garner too much attention. Two will be fine."

"And who will go?" Sokka asked.

Zuko began to pace, "I will go because I know these bases like the back of my hand. Aang needs to stay here, we don't need the Avatar falling into Fire Nation hands in case the operation fails."

Aang nodded before sitting down.

Zuko looked over at Sokka, "I would take you but all of the soldiers are benders and while you are a valiant warrior, I can't take any chances."

"Aw man." Sokka groaned.

"Toph, I would bring you but I can't predict what will happen and if you will be able to adjust."

Everyone turned towards Katara.

"No way! I am not doing this." Katara stomped her foot and held her head up in the air.

"You are the best option, Katara." Aang said.

"Yeah, stop being annoying and just go." Sokka pleaded.

Katara sent Sokka a glare.

"Fine, I'll go." Katara resigned. She didn't like what the plan was but she was not going to let the team down because she wanted to take the moral high ground. She had to admit that the middle of a war with starvation on the line was not the time to be righteous.

Katara walked away from the group to go back to her tent, getting ready for the night.

The moon was high and Katara emerged from her tent dressed in all black. She had her canteen on her hip and her hair tied up in a ponytail. She looked around and saw Zuko standing at the edge of their campsite, dressed in all black and two Dao swords on his back.

"Are you ready?" Zuko asked.

Katara took in a deep breath, "Ready as I'll ever be."

"Let's go."

Katara and Zuko made their way down to the Fire Nation camp, doing their best to go unnoticed.

"If anything happens, follow my lead." Zuko instructed.

"Follow your lead?" Katara scoffed.

"Can you just trust me on this?" Zuko rolled his eyes.

"I can barely trust you at all and I am only here with you because everyone else is counting on us."

Zuko had only been with the Gaang for a few weeks and the betrayal that Katara faced was still fresh in her mind. They had gone through a lot together in the past few weeks but that didn't mean that she trusted him.

They neared the Fire Nation base ready to break into the storehouse.

"There will be bags of food, lots of it. Just grab what we will need." Zuko commanded.

"You know that you are talking to me, right? Not to Sokka." Katara stared at Zuko, her eyebrow arched.

"Just don't screw this up."

Katara punched Zuko in the arm before walking ahead of him and entering the storehouse.

Katara saw the bags of food. The store room was filled with everything that one could possibly think of. Katara didn't know where to start.

"Remember," Zuko whispered, "take only what we need."

Katara walked over to a small pantry closet where she saw a stack of burlap sacks. Perfect for hauling their loot. She threw a bag at Zuko and the two of them started to get to work.

She grabbed a bag and began to fill it with fruit and vegetables as she noticed that Zuko began to fill his bag with meat and bread. They had filled their bags and were content with their loot. It would be enough for the rest of their time in the Fire Nation and their travels back to the Earth Kingdom where they would meet with allies.

As they finished, they heard the sounds of footsteps approaching. They both stood still in silence as they did their best not to make any noise and draw attention to the store room. Zuko and Katara held their breath as they listened to the soldiers walk towards the store room and still held their breath as they heard the footsteps getting further away.

Zuko and Katara released a collective sigh as they heard the sound disappear.

"Do you have everything?" Zuko asked Katara. She nodded as she swung her sack over her shoulder. "Then let's get out of here."

Katara and Zuko made their way through the Fire Nation base, hoping to avoid being caught with sacks of food on their backs. They did their best to move silently through the base and make their way to the town where they would be out of sight from the Fire Nation soldiers.

"Hey!" a voice sounded. Katara and Zuko froze. Zuko turned around to see two Fire Nation soldiers heading their way.

"Run!" Zuko shouted at Katara.

Zuko and Katara ran as fast as they could, their hearts thumping and their blood rushing. They made their way out of the base and into the town. They weaved through the buildings, trying to dodge the soldiers.

"We need to fight back." Zuko panted.

"No, I have an idea." Katara replied.

"I'm telling you, we need to drop everything and stand our ground." Zuko hissed.

"And I am telling you, I have an idea. Just trust me." Katara snapped her head to look at Zuko.

Zuko groaned as he resigned to following Katara's lead. Katara grabbed Zuko's hand as they ducked into an alley. Katara hid her sack in a crate, and held it open for Zuko to do the same. She heard the guard's footsteps approaching and untied her hair. She took Zuko's dao swords and hid them in the shadows and took off her canteen.

Katara quickly jumped into Zuko's arms and pulled him so that he would fall into her, her back slamming against the wall from Zuko falling into her. She wrapped her legs around Zuko and brought her lips down to his.

Pulling away Zuko's eyes went dark, "What are you doing?"

"Play along." Katara whispered as she brought her lips back down to Zuko's.

Her hands began to rake through Zuko's hair and her hips grinded into his. His hands began to wander down Katara's back and to her hips, adding more support. The kiss became more and more heated, each forgetting what they were there for and the danger that they were in. Maybe it was the teenage hormones or maybe it was the heat of the moment but the two of them knew that the following morning would be awkward...if there was a following morning.

They heard the footsteps of the soldiers approaching.

"Hey, you two!" one of the soldiers yelled.

Katara lifted her head as Zuko went to work kissing her neck, "Yes?"

Katara moaned as she felt Zuko nipped her neck.

"Ugh, nevermind." the soldier groaned. "They won't be any help."

There was a thud coming from the next alley and the soldiers took off. Katara watched and listened, making sure that the coast was clear.

Once she knew that the soldiers were off of their tail, she placed her feet on the ground and Zuko brought his mouth from Katara's neck.

Panting, Katara looked at Zuko, "I told you that my plan would work."

"Let's just get back to camp."