Hello everyone! Welcome to chapter 57 of Sparks Ignite! This is a very emotional chapter so buckle up. I hope everyone is staying safe out there! 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 57: The Cracked Plate

Katara marched to Zuko's office. She stood outside the door and took a deep breath. She continued to remind herself that this was what she needed, that at least for now, this was best.

She reached up and knocked softly on the door. She heard a grim reply and she opened the door a crack, peaking her head in.

Zuko sat at his desk, his head into some very strange scrolls, a pile of them sitting next to him on his desk. He looked up and saw her and smiled wide, "I'm sorry I didn't realize it was you. You know you don't need to knock…"

Katara smiled slightly and closed the door behind her, "What are those?" she spoke, referring to the ancient scrolls in front of him. He looked back at the scroll in front of him, "I'm looking through our archives to see if there is any laws or reformations that would be against this… But arranged marriages are quite a stain on our history…"

She nodded, figuring as much after she did so much studying into the fire nation history. His own mother and father were an arranged marriage. Some got to marry for love, but it wasn't often. Yet she tried not to lose hope, especially since he was trying everything in order to fix this.

Katara cleared her throat, "We actually need to talk…"

She sounded very serious and he looked at her confused, "Okay… What do you need?" he asked her.

"I need to borrow a fire nation ship…" she told him.

Zuko looked at her confused, "Okay… where do you need to go?", he would do anything to help her but her favor worried him.

Katara stuttered for a moment, half of her begging not to say it, "I-I need to go home…"

He watched her, blinking for a few moments to make sure he wasn't dreaming, " O-oh…" he looked down into his lap. He would be lying if part of him didn't see it coming, but he had hoped he would find a solution before she would.

"I-I…" she started to speak, but words didn't come out. She took a deep breath and continued, "I'm not giving up… I'm not walking away or saying not to try…" a single tear fell down her cheek as she spoke, "I just need a break…"

"Did Mai do something?" he asked her. She didn't want to answer this. He could tell by the way she looked away from him, "What did she do?" he asked her, gritting his teeth. He could feel his temper bubbling up inside him, threatening to explode over.

"Zuko…" she spoke his name softly. He stood abruptly, "I'll banish her from the palace this instant! I will get her as far away from here as possible!" he shuffled his papers, as if he were going to take them all into the throne room and throw them on the table, stating that he was going to banish her from the fire nation.

"You know and I both know that isn't an option Zuko" her voice was hard and deliberate, knowing that it was too late to go back on her decision.

But Zuko continued, his anger boiling out of him like a pot of tea that had been left on for far too long, "I don't care! She is not going to be the Fire Lady! I won't let it happen!"

"Zuko it's too late! Right now, our best option is just to bide our time until we can come up with a solution…" she tried explaining to him but he wasn't understanding any of it. His eyes zoned into tunnel vision and his only goal was to make it work. But it was like he was standing in front of his kingdom, juggling plates. They watched as each one fell to the ground and shattered, another part of the kingdom crumbling. He was desperately trying to hold onto the one that was his relationship with Katara, the pipe dream that they could live happily ever after. But it kept slipping through his fingers, each time it landed, it left another crack. He knew it hadn't quite shattered yet, but it was so close.

Zuko looked away from her, his heart shattering, just like the plates in his imagination, "Just go…" he spoke, under his breath.

Katara looked at him, confused, "What?" she asked him, not entirely sure what he said, but also hoping he didn't say what she thought.

"JUST GO!" he yelled back at her. Katara took a few steps back from him, caught off guard at his outburst. He never yelled at her. She had seen him unleash his anger at others, but he always spoke softly with her, even when he was mad. He continued, "If you don't want to try, then just go!"

Katara shook her head, "That's not at all what I'm saying Zuko! I'm trying to say that"

But he cut her off, not wanting to hear what she had to say, "I don't care! If you wanna leave so bad, then go!"

"I'M SAYING" she yelled over him, trying to get his attention, "That I can't be here and just be sad all of the time! I need to be home! I need time with my family! I need a clear head so we can figure this out!" tears ran from her eyes like the rivers that ran through the Earth Kingdom. She sobbed in front of him, trying to get him to see reason, but he just looked away from her, his anger turning all inward. She could still hear him, even though his lips fell quiet.

"Just go…" he spoke once more. But instead of arguing, this time Katara turned away from him.

Katara stormed from his office, tears pouring from her cheeks, and ran down the hallway. A part of Zuko's heart broke into two as he watched her leave, but his resolve didn't shift. His face stayed hard as stone, as if it were etched by a sculptor.

Admiral Jee saw the waterbender run past him and walked into his office, "Is everything alright sir?" he expressed concern for the Fire Lord. He had told Iroh of his worries, to which the man expressed the same, and this display didn't help his concerns. The Fire Lord nodded, "Everything is fine. Tell the crew to prepare to set sail by dawn tomorrow morning"

Admiral Jee nodded slightly, "Of course sir…" he went to the door to leave, but stopped. He couldn't leave the Fire Lord in this distress without saying anything. He had known the man for far too long to do that. He stood silent for a moment, before turning back to him, "Sir…" Zuko looked back at him when he spoke, thinking he had already left, "This may be speaking out of turn… But for as long as I've known you… you have never backed down from the impossible… And for the little amount of time that I've known the waterbender… I can say the same for her…"

Zuko listened for a moment and then nodded, sitting back at his desk. Jee closed the door behind him and Zuko let out a breath. He couldn't but feel like he had been here before, like this moment had played before him once. He tried to reach through the fog in his brain to remember. But no matter how hard he tried to part the smoke, all he reached was more smoke.

He shook his head, running his fingers through his hair. He looked out of his window at the sea. He wanted her to stay, but he also knew he couldn't ask her to. He just wanted to go with her, to get away from all of the stress and blur that is this mess they ended up in.

He had known that the advisors wouldn't be overjoyed with him marrying outside the Fire Nation. But he never thought that they would stop him from doing so. Katara was a master, and by her tribe's standards she was the chiefs daughter and therefore, royalty. He thought that it might take some convincing but…

He sighed and looked out at the sea, pondering all the ways he could possibly fix this mess.

Ta-Daaa! A very suspenseful chapter! Wait until next time to see what happens! I hope you all enjoyed! Until next time!