How You Doing Insane Gang!

I hope everyone is coping alright in these times.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

It started when Toph found out he has a scar.

"What's the big deal about a scar," She asked while they were all huddled around the fire one night.

"It's big Toph." Haru pointed out.

"Yeah! Like it covers half his face!" Teo added.

Toph stretched a hand up suddenly to his face. Zuko was fast enough to block her wrist away.

"Hey! I'm blind here! Just let me touch it Sparky."

Zuko was gruff about it. "I don't like anyone touching it."

Hakoda agreed while through another log onto the pile. "Let the boy be Toph, it's his face after all."

Toph grumbled but complied taking a seat adjacent to him.

Aang shook his head, "Your family would have had to at some point and didn't you used to have a girlfriend?"

Sokka snorted along with Zuko. "Come on, a girlfriend? Not with how he used to look."

"Sokka." Katara chastised him.

Zuko stretched and leaned further back onto the stone.

"Her name was Mai—"The one with the knives?"—yes, Toph the one with the knives. Anyway she never touched it, she would never admit it but she didn't like to look at it."

"Okay but what about your family?" Aang prompted.

There has had to be some happiness he associated with his family and Aang wanted to help him reconnect with it.

The others were interested to hear about it as well. Zuko never talked about his family growing up.

"My mother disappeared before I got it, Azula never touched it she scowls at it as it's a sign of weakness in her eyes, and the only time my father touched it when he gave it to me." Zuko summarized without a hint of emotion.

Sokka was uncharacteristically quiet. "You never told us that before."

Zuko stared into the fire unable to meet anyone else's stares. "It's not something I like to share."

Katara, next to him, put a tender hand on his knee.

Aang felt sad for his teacher. "So no one has ever touched your scar?"

Zuko was about to reaffirm when Hakoda spoke up suddenly.

"No that's not true." He had an indistinguishable look in his eyes. "I've seen Katara touch it multiple times."

Katara's expression was startled while Zuko's eyes narrowed at the older man. "You have?"

Hakoda didn't back down. "I will explain them to you."

He sat on the fountain watching Sokka and Zuko spar. Both were locked in heated combat until Sokka was able to spin and slice a cut on Zuko's scarred cheek.

He hissed in pain and dropped his guard.

"Sorry!." Sokka reached out to assess the damage when Zuko turned away, fingering the cut himself.

"It's fine, that was a nice job, I'll just go get this cleaned up myself."

Sokka's eyebrows creased. "I can get Katara if you want, she can heal it up real quick."

Zuko shook his head. "I'm fine."

Sokka watched him stalk off into the building.

Hakoda sighed and followed the brooding teenager in. If he was so adamant of not getting his daughter than he can at least direct the poor boy on how to properly dress a wound so it doesn't get infected.

He stopped short however as Zuko didn't head for the bathroom but to the opposite side of the temple.

Katara was relaxing, mindlessly bending a stream of water back and forth.

"Hello, Katara."

"Take a seat beside me Zuko." She didn't turn her head to know who it was.

He complied, his scar side facing her.

"Do you mind uh..."

At his hesitance, she twisted her head.

"What happened?"

"I was sparring with Sokka and got a nice hit in...could you possibly heal it for me?"

Katara shifted closer, taking the stream of water she was bending into one hand. She pressed it lightly into his scarred cheek. Without much concentration the water glowed blue, sealing it up good as new.

Her thumb rubbed where the cut was previously as she slowly removed her hand.

"There."

The next time was days later at dawn. Zuko being a firebender is accustomed to getting up that early to meditate. Hakoda trailed on after him. As a seasoned warrior he was used to being up during all hours in case of Fire Nation attacks out at sea and when he witnessed the raids back home.

That's why it surprised him when he saw Katara come out moments later to Zuko's mediation spot. Zuko didn't seem surprised to see her as he only cracked one eye open to watch her. As she passed him she ghosted her hand up his scar to move his hair away from his eye.

The gesture seemed natural to them as Zuko didn't recoil from the touch. It was hard to say how long time passed when Katara cradled his scar to get his eyes open.

When he did open his eyes be made no move to remove her hand. Instead, he sort of leaned into it. She asked him a question that Hakoda couldn't hear, but he saw Zuko nod in her hand before following her out of sight.

Aang didn't know what to feel after Hakoda's confession. By the looks of it neither did Zuko or Katara. They avoided eye contact and he wasn't sure if both their cheeks were pink from embarrassment or the warmth of the fire.

"Huh..." Toph was thinking of something when she set her sightless stare at Zuko."

"Why Katara?"

Zuko picked his head up to stare right back at her. The question seemed innocent enough but to him, it felt weighty. The sigh out of his nose was heavy enough to make his shoulders shake.

He turned his head to hold the gaze of the girl beside him. Something passed between them for a moment.

"Because she's Katara."

The girl in return smiled. Everyone except Toph and Hakoda who kept quiet on the subject groaned in dissatisfaction.

Funnily enough, it seemed to be the perfect answer for her.

I always wanted to talk about how Katara was the first person to touch his scar. That shit means something you know.

Stay Crazy.