Back with another chapter! This took longer to post than I had anticipated, mostly because I have been working on a thesis (that of course I procrastinated on and left until the last couple weeks to finish), but it's nearly done now and hopefully that will mean I have more time to just sit on my butt and write fanfiction all day.
To the anonymous reviewer who was surprised about Zutara fics still being a thing... we have to keep the ship afloat! Really I just recently re-watched the series and I always wanted to do some sort of fix-it fic, but never got around to it until just now. Better late than never, right? (this is actually my life motto)
The pandemic that is going on right now does indeed suck, like really hard. Isolation is bringing out the weird, pajama-dwelling side of me that inhales cereal and cries at every single movie I watch (seriously. I watched Mulan last night and cried throughout). But hopefully everyone is staying safe and healthy! Look at it this way: you have more time to read and review (please?) Zutara fanfics (specifically this one, if you wouldn't mind)!
As always, thank you so so much to everyone that has reviewed, favorited, and/or followed thus far! You guys (especially those who honor me with reviews) are my motivation! Hope you enjoy this chapter!
She was choking. The darkness that surrounded her was pressing in from all directions, an impossible weight that would not budge, constricting her wind pipe. Grasping at her neck and sternum, she tried to breathe, to scream – anything. Instead, water filled her lungs and she was sputtering, the taste of salt on her tongue. Her lids were heavy and, while the initial panic melted away, she felt as though she was being lulled into a deep slumber. When her eyes finally shut, there were people all around her – no, not people, avatars – thousands of them with glowing white eyes, standing around her, spiraling outwards to infinity.
Miku gasped, clawing at her neck, trying to fill her lungs with air. When her eyes adjusted, she realized she was sitting in her bed. The window was open and a cool breeze was blowing in, rustling the paper talismans that covered her walls. Still breathing heavily, she swung her legs out of the bed, shivering as her bare feet pressed against the cold wooden floor. She walked to the window and peered out; In the distance, a storm brewed over the open sea. As she watched lightning flash between the clouds, her dream suddenly returned to her as vivid and real as if it hadn't been a dream at all.
The avatars had surrounded her again, like they had in her vision when she had shaken Aang's hand. Something was wrong with the avatar spirit, she knew. How she knew, she didn't know, but a foreboding feeling rested deep within her and she couldn't ignore her intuition. She didn't have time to climb the mountain. She needed to do something now.
Miku grabbed the candles from her bedside, ones she often used to read scrolls before going to sleep. There were 8; she breathed a sigh of relief at her luck. She placed the candles in a circle in the center of the room, lighting them as quickly as she could. She ripped paper talismans from the wall; the one that read 'Summons' she placed over her face, the others she lit in the candle flames. Holding the burning talismans in one hand, she concentrated on her breathing, slowing her heartrate and feeling energy rush through her veins, spreading from her center out to her fingertips, as she began to hum.
Miku moved with grace, stomping her feet to the ground with each turn of her body. Her arms swayed back and forth, moving along with her feet, as she wafted the talismans through the air. When she felt the flames from the burning paper talismans lick at her fingertips, she knew it was time. In one swift motion, she removed the summons talisman that covered her face, tossing it up into the air above her. Then she blew the embers from the burning talismans behind it and watched as the summons talisman caught. It drifted slowly to the floor before her, consumed by the flames. As soon as the flame died and a small pile of ash accumulated on the wooden floor, the eight candles flickered out. Carefully, she gathered the ashes in her palm and moved to the window, blowing them outside into the breeze and watching as they curled up towards the sky, following the wind out to sea.
…
He was enveloped in a frigid darkness, sinking into the depths; a familiar feeling that brought back memories a hundred years past. However, this time instead of trepidation, the cold water brought an odd sense of comfort. The distance between him and surface was growing as he watched lightning flash across the sky, a blur of scattered blue light that was gone as suddenly as it had illuminated the water above. Despite the violence of the churning surface, the water below was placid, a tranquil stillness that gently beckoned to him, encouraging his surrender. He was giving in. In a daze, he watched the last bubbles of air trickle out of his mouth, leaving his lungs in a rush to return to the surface. His surroundings began to dim when a white glow suddenly filled his vision.
Through the blur, Aang could make out the figure of a girl floating towards him, up from the depths. She radiated a light so blinding that it took his eyes a moment to adjust. Her waist-length hair flowed around freely in the water. She smiled at him and when she spoke, an enchanting melody replaced the dim, calm silence. The sound was both grating and beautiful.
Aang… You must not give up. Do not delude yourself into believing that you are alone in this… you are never alone. The path ahead will not be easy. You must rely on your friends. They will show you light when you find yourself in darkness.
He was drifting upwards. When his head broke through the surface, he gasped for air, reaching out to find something to cling to. The piece of driftwood he had been riding earlier bobbed up and down to his right and he grasped onto it, hugging it with both of his arms. His body was weak. He looked around for his savior but saw only water, stretching out for miles in every direction.
He was suddenly very tired. The water had calmed after the passing of the storm and he laid his head on the wood, allowing himself to drift with the currents. The girl that had appeared to him; who was she? He pondered it while his eyes grew heavy and the waves rocked him back and forth gently, pulling him into a slumber. Something about her was so familiar, as if from a past life… or a forgotten dream.
…
Katara wiped the remnants of tears from her cheeks as she rushed down the dimly lit corridors of the ship, her despair suddenly replaced with resolution; she had to go after him. She crashed through the iron door to the kitchens to find Sokka and Toph unpacking the food they had just returned with. At her sudden entrance, they froze, turning towards her. Worry was evident in Sokka's expression as he took in her puffy, red eyes.
"It's Aang. He's gone."
"What?" Sokka replied, dumbfounded.
"He's gone," Katara repeated, "He went to try fight the Fire Lord himself. We have to go find him. He flew right into a storm."
Sokka cursed, both in worry over Aang and the possibility that his invasion plan would be foiled.
Before Katara could say anymore, Toph was at her side, pulling her back through the door.
"Lets go, Sweetness," the little blind girl muttered.
Sokka wrapped up the food once more and tucked it under his arm, following the two girls.
When they reached the deck, Appa was waiting for them. Hakoda had prepared his saddle and Momo sat atop the flying bison, chittering excitedly.
The three of them climbed into the saddle as Bato came rushing onto the deck.
"Hakoda told me you would be leaving," he breathed, "Here," handing Sokka a bundle of supplies.
Sokka thanked him and they looked to their father.
Hakoda had a resigned smile on his face. "I was hoping we would get to spend more time together, but it seems like duty calls," He said. "We will stick to invasion plan. Stay safe and take care of each other. We'll see you all again on the day of black sun."
As Appa took off, Katara and Sokka waved their goodbyes to their father.
They flew for hours in a sinusoidal pattern, searching the water below and the sky above for any sign of Aang. Katara was beginning to get restless. As the sun began to peek above the horizon to the east, they saw the vague outline of ships in front of them.
"It's a blockade," Sokka informed them.
Katara, already knowing what that meant, stood and began bending the moisture from the air around them into a thick cloud.
"Keep flying straight ahead," She said, adding the water from her water skin into the cloud to thicken it. They had to make it across the blockade before the sun was fully risen and the Fire Nation Navy would be alerted to their presence. Pulling all of the moisture from the air as they continued forward, she formed a massive cloud around them, hoping it would be enough to fully conceal Appa against the rising sun and ease any suspicion at the sight of a fast moving cloud in the sky.
"Did we make it across?" Toph asked after a while.
"I can't tell," Sokka responded, leaning over the side of Appa, "The cloud is too thick."
"Just give it some more time," Katara promised, sweat beading on her forehead from the extended effort.
At length she relaxed, allowing the cloud to dissipate slightly. The blockade was behind them, disappearing once more into the distance. They all breathed a simultaneous sigh of relief.
"I see smoke… There are some volcanic islands up ahead," Sokka noted, "Maybe Aang stopped there after the storm,"
"If he made it through the storm," Toph sighed, dejected.
Katara glared at the blind girl, but realizing it had no effect, chided her instead.
"Don't be so negative," she scolded, "We have to find him."
As they approached the chain of islands that Sokka had pointed out, Appa slowed and they scanned the shores for any sign of Aang.
"I think I see something down there," Sokka said after a while, pointing, "It looks like someone is laying on the shore." He brought Appa down and Katara rushed to the side of the saddle.
On the island below, Aang's body lay on the shore, the waves lapping at his feet.
"It's him!" Katara yelled. As Appa descended, trepidation washed over her once more. His body was motionless, splayed across the black sands of the volcanic island.
…
Zuko knelt in front of the iron bars, placing the tray before him.
"Uncle, it's me again."
Iroh turned from his corner in the cell, crawling over to where Zuko sat.
Zuko scowled; he hated to see his uncle like this. The old man was filthy and unkempt, it reminded him of when they were begging on the side of the road in the Earth Kingdom. Despite all of his glory from battles of the past, and despite the fact that he was once next in line to be Fire Lord, Iroh was all too comfortable playing the role of a peasant. He watched, trying to conceal disgust, as his uncle crawled across the dirty ground.
Zuko picked up the teapot and poured his uncle a cup of the tea he had brought. When he handed it through the bars, Iroh took it gratefully and inhaled the steam rising from the hot liquid.
"Ginseng," He sighed happily, "You're good to this old man."
Zuko frowned, "Will you stop acting like this?" He blurted out.
"Like what, Zuko?"
"Like a useless old man! I know you Uncle, you can't be content with this."
Iroh sipped the tea and sighed, "All in good time, Zuko. You will see."
Zuko ignored this, deciding he would have to break Iroh out at some point in the future.
"So, you went on a trip?" The old general prompted, still sipping his tea with satisfaction.
"I-… Yea, I did," Zuko responded, looking over his shoulder as if someone else might be listening. For good measure, he lowered his voice to almost a whisper. "I heard some of father's advisors talking about a message they received from one of the Admirals. They encountered a stolen Fire Nation ship that was heading towards the Mo Ce Sea. They mentioned a waterbender and an earthbender on board… I knew it had to be them."
"And you went to find the ship?"
"I did," Zuko paused, unsure of how to tell his uncle what had happened. "The avatar is alive. He was on the ship." He stopped, waiting to judge his uncle's reaction, but the old man remained stoic and thoroughly occupied by the tea in his hands. "But I-… I wasn't able to get to him. Instead I warned them of the Fire Nation Navy approaching. I told them to go North once they hit the sea."
Iroh nodded, his gaze still on the steaming beverage in his hands.
"I slipped into the waterbender's room by accident, trying to hide from the patrol on deck." Zuko dropped his head down, hoping that his face wasn't showing the heat that he felt creeping up his neck at the thought. Busying himself with pouring his own cup of tea, he continued, "She woke up and… she saw me."
At this, Iroh looked up, "She saw you?"
"I was wearing the mask, Uncle. But she did see me. I sort of… jumped on her. I was afraid she would scream and alert the whole ship." Zuko knew he was blushing furiously and refused to look at his Uncle, lest he hadn't noticed already.
"You jumped on her..."
"Yea," Zuko refused to look up at his Uncle. "It- I didn't really think it through, I just reacted. If she had screamed or... tried to attack me..." He didn't want to think about what the consequences were.
"So, what stopped you from getting to the avatar?"
"Well, I found his window, but it was closed. The sun was coming up and I realized…" Zuko paused again, looking down at his hands. "I don't know, Uncle. When it came down to it, I was ready to pry the window open and finish this, but… I hesitated."
Iroh sat back and Zuko could have sworn he saw relief flash over the old man's face. He wondered if he would ever truly understand his uncle and his motivations.
"Why did I hesitate, Uncle? What keeps stopping me?" He was getting annoyed.
"Only you can answer that, Zuko." The old general replied, wise and esoteric as ever.
"Is there a question of mine that you can answer?" Zuko snapped.
"Yes," Iroh responded, smiling sheepishly. "See?"
Zuko was losing his patience, not that he ever had much to begin with. He tried to calm himself by sipping the tea and breathing steam out his nostrils. Placing the cup back on the tray, he brought his hand up to his face, pinching the bridge of his nose just below his brow, as if to constrict his annoyance.
"Last time I was here, you told me to find the history of my great-grandfather and his demise. He was cunning and patient and then died in his sleep when he was an old man. How is that supposed to help me?" He grumbled.
Iroh sighed into his cup and inhaled the steam that surged out of it in response. "You asked Azula, didn't you?"
Zuko averted his gaze, wondering how it seemed the old man could read his mind, but didn't reply.
"The Dragon Bone Catacombs," the retired general finally said, not taking his eyes off his nephew. Zuko looked up and caught his uncle's gaze at this. "The Fire Sages keep the secret history." Iroh sipped his tea once more as Zuko scrambled up without another word. His uncle watched his back as he disappeared through the door, hoping against all odds that Zuko would finally see things clearly. That he would finally see that his destiny was so much more than he had ever anticipated. At length, the old man exhaled and returned to his tea.
…
Fire flickered all around, warming his tired limbs and casting dancing shadows on the ground. Roku stood before him, his back turned, staring out into the nothingness beyond.
"Everyone thinks I'm dead again. They think I've abandoned them… and I'm losing this war. I'm letting the whole world down. Again."
The previous avatar turned to meet his gaze. "If anyone is to blame for the state of the world, it is me. I should have seen this war coming and prevented it. You inherited my problems… and my mistakes. But I believe you are destined to redeem me and save the world."
"I don't know…" Aang mumbled, "I'm not even sure how."
"Aang, it's time you learned about my history with Fire Lord Sozin. You need to understand how the war began if you want to know how to end it. Meet me on my home island, there is much you do not know."
He nodded, "Ok, Roku." Then he realized he couldn't stop, like his body was no longer in his control.
"Aang."
He continued nodding.
"Aang!"
He opened his mouth to say 'yes?' but the word jumbled in his throat and came out as questioning groan. A soreness that hadn't been there before filled his throat; it hurt to breathe.
"He's awake! Aang! You're ok!"
Feeling hands on his shoulders that were gently shaking him back and forth, he cracked open his eyes. Blinding sunlight filled his vision and he scowled, blinking it away. A shadow loomed over him that slowly came into focus. Katara's face was twisted in an expression of both worry and relief as she leaned over him, blocking out the sun. When he looked into her eyes and attempted a smile, she practically wailed in joy and pulled him into a hug. Aang could suddenly feel the heat in his face but it was hard to tell if it was a blush or sunburn.
"You had us all scared, Twinkle-Toes," Toph remarked as she vaulted off Appa's back, sinking her toes into the sand with a pleasant sigh. "I was starting to worry I'd be stuck alone with Snoozles and Sugar Queen for the rest of all time. That's the stuff of nightmares." She strode over to embrace him as well.
Sokka huffed at Toph as he slid down Appa's side, but otherwise paid her comment no mind. "Welcome to the land of the living, bud- wait. Didn't I just say that yesterday? Have you got a death wish, Aang?"
Katara glanced over her shoulder at her brother with a look that said 'save it for later, Sokka', but he just shrugged and grinned in response.
"Seriously, though, it's good to have you back. Again." Sokka added as he joined in on the group hug. Appa and Momo were close behind.
Aang propped himself up onto his elbows and winced; his whole body ached and his wound from Ba Sing Se still wasn't fully healed. "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean to worry you all, I just… I don't know. When I found out that the world thought… that everyone thought I was dead again… I felt like I had to do something."
"It's ok, Aang. I can't imagine how that must have felt," Katara squeezed his shoulder reassuring as always.
"Hey, at least you didn't get caught or anything, right?" Sokka chimed in, "The invasion plan is still on!"
Katara rolled her eyes, but a smile was forming on her lips.
"What happened to the ship? To your dad?" Aang asked, looking between the two siblings.
"We decided it would probably be best to part ways for now," Sokka shrugged, "We'll meet up with them again for the invasion on the day of the eclipse."
"I have so much to do before then…"
"You'll have our help," Katara offered, smiling.
"Yea," Toph smirked, "You didn't think you could get out of training just by coming to the Fire Nation, did you? I still have plenty more ass-kickings to hand out before the invasion," Katara scowled at the blind girl and she must have sensed it. "What? Educational ass-kickings, jeez."
Aang smiled at them as they all pulled away to stand around him. "Thanks, guys. I needed a hug."
Toph stood and stepped back only to trip over a half-submerged stick that was peaking out from the water. She cursed loudly as she fell on her backside, grabbing her foot, "Stupid sand! I can hardly see where I'm going!" She reached down to pick up the stick, preparing to fling it back into the ocean in vengeance, "The one piece of wood on the- oh." Now that it was in her hands, she recognized the wooden stick; it was Aang's glider.
At the sound of her shouting, they all turned to Toph and saw the glider in her hand. The glider was open, but the wood was splintered and cracked; half of the fan was missing and what remained hung limply over the broken frame. Aang's heart dropped and he took it in his hands, inspecting the damage with a sigh.
"It's ok," He said at length, "If someone saw it, it would give away my identity. Sokka was right… it's better for now that no one knows I'm alive." He frowned and stood up, turning towards the volcano in the center of the island that was slowly oozing lava. Jumping up onto a ledge above where a stream of lava was trickling by, Aang spun the glider over his head a couple times before shoving one end into the molten rock, turning away before it caught on fire.
"There is something I need to do…" He said to the group. "I had this dream. Roku came to me and told me to go to his home island… to find out about how the war started."
"Sounds like a plan," Katara smiled up at him, though the sadness in her eyes was evident; she knew what losing his glider meant to him. But it was no time to start getting sentimental.
"Do we have a map?"
"Aang, you know I always have a map," Sokka supplied a rolled up scroll from seemingly out of nowhere. "Why else do you think everyone calls me The Navigation Master of the South?"
"No one has ever called you that, Sokka," Katara interjected, "In fact, you started flying East when we first got on Appa."
"Hey! I was hungry because someone interrupted my dinner, ok? You can't navigate on an empty stomach. Speaking of which…" He handed the map to Aang and jogged back over to the supply pack on Appa's saddle, rifling through the food he had wrapped up the night before. "Anyone up for some spicy Komodo sausage? Or… super spicy sizzle-crisps? Hot-buns? Or…"
"I'm starving," Aang realized aloud, "Have you got anything that isn't meat? Or… spicy?" His throat stung already, the last thing he needed was to add more fire to the burning soreness.
"Um… ash-banana?" Sokka pulled out a bushel of brownish-yellow fruits. "It seems like all the food in the Fire Nation is named after… well, fire. And most of it's meat. I can't say I'm complaining, though…" He pulled out a long link of Komodo sausages and wiggled his eyebrows at the group.
Aang sighed, "I'll take some ash-bananas."
…
Zuko skulked through the shadows, hiding behind large red pillars. After leaving the prison, he came straight to the Dragon Bone Catacombs, figuring that there was no time like the present. The Fire Lord expected him at the war council meeting the following day and that would surely take up most of his afternoon. He also couldn't deny that he was itching to find out what Iroh believed would 'help him answer the question he kept asking himself' – whatever that meant. He did need answers. With so many questions plaguing his mind lately about his destiny, his honor, his feelings – there were lots of questions he had about those – he was determined to finally get some answers.
Peering around the pillar that hid him in shadow, Zuko watched as the elderly Fire Sage he had been tailing approached what appeared to be the entrance to the Catacombs; an ornate decoration in the middle of the floor. A trap door? The Fire Sage stood in the middle of the circle, looking over his shoulder as if he was worried someone was following him. Someone was, but he was far too stealthy to be detected by the old man. The Fire Sage promptly shot a burst of fire into the ornate entrance under his feet and the stone began to creak, opening to reveal a spiral staircase. Zuko watched in silence as the man disappeared down the stairs. He waited for some time to ensure the Sage was far enough down to avoid being seen; the last thing he needed was to be recognized as the crown Prince, sneaking around in the shadows like a criminal. That would surely raise a lot of questions.
He had been doing a lot of sneaking around since his return home. Sneaking out to visit his uncle, sneaking into the catacombs, sneaking onto the stolen Fire Nation steamer… Unbidden thoughts of Katara resurfaced in his mind and he scowled, trying to push them back down to the depths, the recesses of his mind where he stored all of his suppressed memories and feelings. He had to be prepared for whatever he was going to find. According to his Uncle Iroh, this secret history would reveal his own destiny. Hanging on to thoughts of Katara – her gentle touch, the hope in those startlingly blue eyes, her parted lips, her stretched out form pinned to the bed below him- Zuko shook his head, cursing himself; that wouldn't do him any good.
Every time he thought of the Southern Water Tribe girl, his thoughts drifted back to their encounter on the ship; the shameful thoughts he had when he returned to his own vessel, thoughts that had fueled his fantasies ever since. Zuko had never devoted much time to pleasuring himself before; he had largely seen it as a waste of time. However, since Katara had hugged him under Ba Sing Se and they had nearly kissed, it was like a fire was raging inside of him; a flame of desire that had burned low for many years. Just about every morning since leaving Ba Sing Se, he had woken up with the ghost of her lips on his and a very real persistent erection pushing against his sleeping trousers.
Zuko scowled and cursed himself again. He had to focus. He had to clear his mind. This was not time to dwell on thoughts of Katara. Whatever this history about his great-grandfather was, he had to be ready to receive it – it was his destiny, after all. When he figured that enough time had passed since his last sight of the Fire Sage, he scanned the large hall to ensure he was alone, then left the shadows.
…
"That is Roku's home island?" Katara asked, doubtfully, staring down at the barren volcanic landmass below. The island was quite small, not much larger than the one Aang had washed up on this morning.
"That's what the map says…" Sokka pointed to the map he had laid out on Appa's saddle. The island was barely visible on the map, but it was labeled and they were here.
Aang brought Appa down, "This is it."
"But… there's nothing here." Katara said as she slid out of Appa's saddle.
Toph followed her, planting her bare feet on the ground. "Yeah there is… it's an entire village. There are hundreds of houses… all completely buried in ash. Ow, it's hot." She hopped and skipped over to the shore to cool her feet in the sea.
Katara scanned the rest of the island. There was nothing but black ash, no grasses or trees, no sign of life at all. "I wonder when this happened." She watched Aang climb up the side of the volcano to find a spot to meditate.
It was late afternoon and the sun and had passed its peak in the sky hours ago, but it was blisteringly hot, nonetheless. The black ash that covered the island seemed to reradiate heat. It reminded Katara of a sauna; her clothes clung to her and every breath seemed to burn her lungs. It made her miss the South Pole; the cold fresh air, the mountains of ice that glistened and sparkled in the sunlight.
She wondered how people in the Fire Nation could put up with this heat; didn't it drive them crazy? She thought of the only people she knew from the Fire Nation: Azula and her cronies, Iroh, and Zuko. They were definitely crazy. Zuko especially so. She wondered if that was due to the heat or rather something to do with being part of the royal family, though. Surely, you would have to be crazy to take such pride in your nation and family when they had started - and continue to wage - a war against the rest of the world. Zuko. is. crazy. She reminded herself. Being in the Fire Nation made her mind wander in his direction.
The dreams hadn't stopped, although now the Blue Spirit was making occasional appearances. Every single night Zuko had appeared in her dreams in some form or another. They fought, they yelled, he chased her, she chased him; they touched, they hugged, they kissed; In some of the dreams - ones that she was still desperately trying to forget - they did a lot more than that. There were a few dreams where Zuko had comforted her, wiping tears away from her cheeks, stroking her hair; those ones were nice but certainly weird, it seemed so out of character for the brooding Prince. But then she remembered their conversation under Ba Sing Se again, the look in his eyes when he apologized to her, when he lifted her chin so her face was so near his own.
Most of the dreams didn't particularly bother her anymore, with the clear exception of those that her hormonal teenage mind had played far too significant a role in fabricating. She had become accustomed to Zuko appearing in her dreams and, in some cases, it was almost soothing. She couldn't describe it, because, since his betrayal, there was nothing she found soothing about real-life Zuko. Real-life Zuko was an abrasive liar who annoyed her to no end – even just the thought of him. But dream Zuko was a different person almost entirely. Dream Zuko still looked like Zuko and talked like Zuko, but there was that softness about him that she had seen just a flicker of in the catacombs under Ba Sing Se. In her dreams, Zuko could border on gentle and tender.
She knew that fantasizing about dream Zuko was silly; the Zuko of her dreams was something the real Zuko would never live up to. Dream Zuko, she realized, was just Zuko's physical appearance, demeanor, and raspy voice, with all that she desired in a partner projected onto him. He was quiet and kind, fiercely protective at times, but knew when to stand back and let her handle things; He was passionate and romantic, but in such a subtle way that it wasn't obvious at first glance; he had an arrogant streak that was always accompanied with a smirk, but he never actually insulted her, it just turned her on. He was even funny, in an awkward, situational kind of way. Katara laughed out loud at this thought; imagining real-life Zuko with a sense of humor, even one so tenuous, was like imagining Sokka with two extra pairs of arms, mending all of his own shirts while simultaneously washing his socks – utterly absurd.
Not having realized that she had burst into sudden laughter, Katara caught Sokka staring at her from his perch on Appa's back, one eyebrow raised. "Is, uh, something funny over there?"
Katara looked over to him, biting her lip to rid the image from her mind, "Nope, just… thinking about stuff."
"Ok, crazy pants… I think the heat might be getting to you. Let's hope Aang hurries up, before you manage to lose your marbles."
Katara just rolled her eyes and returned to her thoughts. Decidedly, thinking about dream Zuko was a bad idea. She recognized now that she was certainly physically attracted to the Fire Nation Prince; objectively, he was a very good-looking male. He had beautiful amber eyes, a handsome face – save for the scar, he was tall, well-proportioned, and substantially muscled - she knew from feeling his chest and arms flexing around her when she had hugged him. Admittedly, there was even something attractive about his scar, now that she thought about it; it wasn't exactly objectively attractive like the rest of him, but it did give him this sort of dark and complicated vibe that she couldn't help but find appealing. Only, almost nothing about his disposition or personality attracted her whatsoever and that was the real problem. If she let herself fantasize about dream Zuko, not only would she be thoroughly disappointed the next time they met in person, she may let her guard down for the sake of some sense of familiarity, real or imagined, and that could come at a great price; it had last time.
She concluded that she should try to actively fantasize about someone else, in an attempt to push dream Zuko from her subconscious. But the only boy she spent a great deal of time with that wasn't her brother was Aang. She loved Aang; Not really in a romantic sense of the word – or at least, she didn't think so anyway – but as her best friend, as part of her family. He was also twelve. While their age difference wasn't substantial, those couple years felt like a huge leap when she had reached puberty and Aang was, well, still a child. The thought of fantasizing about Aang left a weird taste in her mouth, so she directed her thoughts elsewhere. For a short time, she had fantasized about Jet, but his propensity for impetuous acts of violence and the fact that it was very likely he died that day under Lake Laogai made her endlessly sad and uncomfortable, so that was certainly not an option.
Huffing, her thoughts returned briefly to Zuko; she wondered if he had thought about her at all since Ba Sing Se. It was him who had initiated what was nearly a kiss. She doubted Zuko was plagued with weird dreams of her, like she had been; after all, he was a Prince, he was likely surrounded by gorgeous Fire Nation noblewomen at this very moment. But, despite her best efforts, Katara couldn't completely shake him from her mind. Did he ever regret betraying her trust like he did - even for just a moment?
Suddenly, the urge to cool off took over. She removed her tunic and, in just her sarashi wraps, ran for the waves that lapped at the sandy volcanic shore. She dove into the sea and bounced over a few waves as they crested and broke; feeling the push and pull of the tide, the energy of the water as it rolled in towards the shore, seemed to restore her vitality that had been withering in the unrelenting heat. It was like breathing and feeling the earth breath with her, underneath her. A steady rhythm, the ebb and flow, that felt so instinctual and so right, filled her with satisfaction. Thoughts of Zuko slipped away, dissolving into the saline water and drifting off with the current; out to sea and out of mind. With a sigh of contentment, Katara vowed to herself to not let Zuko get in her way next time, regardless of how attracted she was to him or how appealing he was in her dreams.
So I'm very steadily building up to some future Zutara moments here. I do intend on including some smut later on.. because who doesn't love a little smut sprinkled here and there? ;) sexy dreams are only the beginning!
I'm super excited for the next couple chapters because there is undoubtedly going to be some more Blue Spirit stuff and how could I possibly pass up the sort of cliche but oh so wonderful meeting between the Blue Spirit and the Painted Lady? (Spoilers!)
Anyways, please review if you feel so inclined (PLEASE)!
Thanks for reading!
