Hey guys! So this chapter is smut. If you're uncomfortable reading you can skip it and it won't effect the story line. Again-THIS IS RATED M PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

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ChapterThirty-Two: By the Candle Light

She had pushed him to the very edge of insanity. The icy lick of it was almost soothing against his now feverish body.

This gorgeous creature had snuck in and infiltrated every wall he had put up. Every defense, every mask he used to disguise and bury his true self deep down to the farthest depths of his mind and she had, somehow, managed to wrangle it up to the surface.

Her cerulean eyes watched him intently, trying to gauge his reaction. Katara was bare to him from the waist up now, his chest tightened at the sight.

"Katara.." He started but the words died on his tongue. She looked back almost in irritation now, her eyebrows bunching, sending wrinkles across her forehead, like she really hadn't expected him to hesitate for so long.

She shattered his grip on reality and the gooseflesh that peppered his pale skin sent him reeling. She tugged his hand gently and he found himself following her out of the spring. Clothes be damned. It just didn't seem to matter.

He allowed her to guide them through the chamber to the large four poster bed as he lit every candle they walked by without as much as a second thought. Her body bathed in the golden light from his flame. She sat Zuko on the edge of the bed, and not a second passed before she straddled his lap with her thighs. If he wasn't hard before he certainly was now.

They were so close they shared breaths. But he still found himself moving closer, trembling fingers clutching onto her, the hot air he expelled tickled her ear and he whispered,

"I knew you craved this as much as I did..." Zuko brushed his lips against the shell of her ear and she arched into him, he could feel her heart beating rapidly in her chest against his own. The hefty weight of her bare breasts pushing against him insistently.

He let out a breath that he hadn't realized he was holding in. She looked sensational. When he backed up slightly he wasn't prepared for the intensity of her gaze.

The room was dark, minus what light the moon let in along with the candles haphazardly placed about; but her eyes shone like the vast ocean just beyond the shore of the small island. Her hazelnut hair was still saturated with water, the pitter-patter of it hitting the floor below was the only sound that could be heard.

Her iris's darkened with want and something he'd never seen before.

"By the Spirits-" but his words were cut off by that perfect mouth of hers. She kissed him fiercely, desperately even, and when her fingers intertwined in his hair and tugged, he groaned against her lips.

He broke apart from her in an attempt to catch his breath, to slow all this down. The whimper that escaped her throat at his retreat left him concentrating hard on his control. His erection was already painfully hard as it rested against her backside.

He gripped her face roughly in his palms, his forehead pushed against hers, "Katara." Her name burned his throat as he said it against her swollen lips, his restraint failing. He could feel her smirk against him, somehow she was still controlling everything that was ensuing.

He kissed her this time. A fire that had laid dormant since the moment he met her blazed in his heart as she guided her tactful fingers to his chest, tracing muscle and scars alike.

Her eyes drank in the sight of him until he couldn't think straight. He could tell what she wanted, could see it in her eyes. But he wasn't sure he was strong enough to give into her. Because once he did, he would never be able to free himself from her grasp.

KATARA

It was unlike anything I've ever experienced. Zuko was touching me like he intended on memorizing every tantalizing curve and dip my body had to offer.

I was putty in his hands far sooner than I'd like to admit. His fingers were molten lava on my skin, burning a treacherous path across every inch of my flesh. The heat had been there a long while. Since he came galavanting back with Sokka, my father in toe.

It smoldered and laid dormant for weeks-months even, overshadowed by grief and hatred. Because I did indeed hate him for his act of cowardice when faced with his inability to choose us over Azula under Ba Sing Se.

I wanted to hate him. I wanted to kill him. But looking back I saw the dread, the fear that swirled in his young eyes. The man before me now is no longer the child that needed the approval from his father. No, he sought out his own destiny.

I had no control over it. I had no control over the growing flames as the walls of ice I built crumbled almost effortlessly against its relentless force. I watched him blossom, I watched him grieve, and I watched him discover who he really was.

By the time I realized what had happened I was too far gone. I had fallen in love with the son of the man who took everything from me. And I had fallen hard.

His heat was near scorching when he took my face in his strong hands again forcing our eyes to meet. I gasped at the intensity of it. The intensity of him. He was speaking. I watched those sensual lips mouth words but I was so enamored I couldn't hear him.

"Katara..?" His velvety voice purred my name and I blinked in acknowledgement unable to speak as he ground up against me. I moaned at the delicious friction. "Are you sure? We can wait." My heart thrummed in my chest so loud I thought he'd hear it.

"I've never been so sure of anything in my life."

Sleeping with the enemy, oh how interesting my life had become. The gorgeous man below me didn't speak. But I felt him. His length. Strong and hard against the curve of my ass but soft as silk.

At the words I uttered I was certain he stopped breathing. His lust filled golden eyes looked so deep into my own my cheeks flushed at the passion swirling inside them.

He seemed to search for uncertainty. When he found none he shuddered out a breath, like he was finally relinquishing the hold on his desires. His hands that were buried in my hair had slunk down my mocha neck to my shoulders.

He paused and I arched into him. Encouraging. I was not ready for the sensation that sent my toes curling when his hands rested on my breasts. I did not anticipate the gasping moan that tore through my throat without my consent.

Zuko's eyes were closed when I finally found the courage to look back at him. His willpower was failing him and quickly. He managed a deep breath before opening those eyes again.

They pierced into my heart, my soul. His palms massaged across the sensitive flesh on my breasts and I bit down on my lower lip to keep the sound at bay.

Noticing my reluctance he all but growled, "Don't do that, Katara. I want to hear you when you moan for me." His voice was thick and husky and I was thankful to have been sitting in his lap; unsure if I could support my weight if I were standing.

He looked down at my chest and his thumbs traced over my nipples again and again, I allowed the gasp. His stare so burning I could feel myself becoming self conscious. I resisted the urge to cover myself.

"You're perfect." He exhaled. While one of his hands remained on my breast and the other tickled down my rib cage, resting on my hip. And he kissed me.

This kiss, unlike all our others, this one threatened to obliterate me. A death, I realized, I would enjoy; welcome even, as his wicked fingers plucked and rubbed my nipples.

I arched into the kiss, into him, wanting more, needing more. As if the movement itself could get more of my breast into his eager hands.

He chuckled darkly against my mouth before kissing down my neck. Lower. Until that cruel tongue swirled around my nipple. Never quite touching.

I ground down on his groin exacting my revenge for the teasing. A deep moan rolled out of that perfect mouth, past those perfect lips, I looked down to find him already staring up at me.

"You do not want to play that game with me, Katara." I was about to snap a snarky comeback when his lips wrapped around my nipple the same time his fingertips pinched the other.

I clamped my mouth shut, stifling my moan if for no other reason but to keep his ego in check. In a movement so quick I could hardly track it, Zuko switched our positions, my back hitting the bed with a gentle thud.

His palms trailed a path down my stomach to my knees and gently pushed outward. Taking the hint, I moved it under my own accord-wider, so it bowed out at my waist until I was fully exposed to him. But I was not afraid, not afraid to give myself to him.

"I'm going to lick you until you scream my name so loud the inn staff come knocking at our door." My throat dried instantly, I inhaled clumsily trying to remember how to breathe.

He moved then, kneeling on the floor before gripping my thighs and dragging me until my ass met the edge of the bed, my legs swung over his shoulders.

His lips peppered my thighs in a series of wet kisses that made me delirious. My legs were trembling with need when Zuko finally hovered over my dripping sex. I could feel my arousal leaking down my thighs in anticipation, his hot breath ghosting over the neglected flesh.

My hips were subconsciously lifting off the bed to meet his mouth when his hands traced the outside of my thighs before pushing my hips down and keeping me there. I was at his mercy, the thought alone making me squirm.

The first long lick from my seeping entrance to my clit had my eyes rolling to the back of my head and my hands gripping his wrists searching for some kind of stability.

Zuko hummed against my sopping folds, appreciating the slickness that had gathered before he even touched me.

He was merciless as he lapped away at me and I struggled to stay conscious. I was arching off the bed when his wet appendage started licking tight circles on the nub at the apex of my thighs. I couldn't control my voice.

"Agni, Zu-Zuko…I-"

Then his mouth pulled away. I groaned in frustration moving to my elbows to look at him. My juices were dripping down his chin and he had the nerve to look innocently up at me.

"What is it, Katara?" I thought I'd start crying. In my haze of ecstasy my brain attempted to form a proper sentence demanding him to continue his touching.

"No! Please-Zuuuko, please don't stop." I whined. Reduced to begging, it was truly pathetic. But he still made no effort to move, in fact he placed his head on my thigh, seemingly content to stay there all night.

"Tell me what you want." His deep voice reverberated back and my face felt like it was on fire. 'He wanted me to say it, bastard...'

"Zuko, I need you to lick me, please stop teasing." His smirk was something sinister but he leaned forward and traced every piece of skin he could reach with that delightful tongue.

I didn't think it could get any better than this as the pleasure racked my body again and again. But I was mistaken when two fingers slipped inside my heat and his tongue attacked my clit.

"Fuck…I-oh Agni that feels so goooood." It felt as though I was being ripped apart but put together at the same time. I could feel my toes curling when Zuko pulled back, his fingers still pumping in and out of my heat at a frenzied pace.

"I can feel you clenching around me, you're close aren't you, Katara?" His voice sounding worlds away, almost like he was in a different room. I leaned forward slightly to grab a handful of his hair and pull him back down to continue his torturous licking.

He obliged, sucking and lapping away at my folds with new found vigor. I was on the cusp, so close to crashing into bliss I began moving my hips against him seeking any form of friction I could. Just when I thought I'd be teetering on the edge for eternity the pads of his fingers curled upwards and his mouth began sucking on my clit.

I threatened to stop existing. "Zuko! I-I'm gonna-oh Spirits I'm gonna cum, don't stop-please I-."

I stopped breathing, or maybe I just couldn't breath at all. I fisted Zuko's hair, my thighs clenching around his head but he kept licking. My vision began to blur and it felt as though my whole body was shaking.

He hummed against me as my release barreled down my spine. I threw my head back in ecstasy, finally gasping for air that never seemed to reach my lungs.

I released my hold on his onyx locks and my thighs fell slack onto his shoulders as I focused my remaining efforts on breathing. Zuko did not complain as he languidly continued to move his fingers inside of me drawing out my orgasm as long as he could.

Even when the tremors of passion stopped, he did not move out from underneath my legs. Instead, as slow as he could manage, Zuko pulled his fingers out from inside of me and began drawing lazy circles on my thighs with a pale, wet finger.

After what felt like a century, but I highly doubt it was longer than five minutes, I slowly adjusted onto my elbows again to peer down at him and the beautiful mess he created between my legs.

My heart leapt when his eyes found mine, the sheer amount of adoration swirling in his golden orbs had me reaching for him to join me on the bed.

And he did, unraveling my legs from his body he gripped them by my ankles and slid me so I was longways on the bed before laying down beside me.

Though my body was still scorching, I moaned into his familiar heat, rolling on my side to run a hand down his body. I boldly danced my palm past his belly button to grip his pulsing cock. Left unattended for so long, he was as sensitive as ever and he groaned his appreciation.

I kissed up his neck before pulling him into a kiss. The taste was maddening and had me pumping him in earnest. My stomach coiling with need once more.

ZUKO

I would die like this I realized. I walked into this battle knowing I wouldn't survive. And I didn't care.

I was throbbing painfully in her soft hand as she pumped me at such a slow pace I thought I'd go mad. Her hair washed a shade of cinnamon in the golden light caught my attention next. The way it elegantly draped over one shoulder, the rest of it splayed out behind her like a river across the blood red sheets. Her skin appeared almost ethereal the way it glowed in the moonlight.

Then I met her eyes. The clarity in those ocean orbs had me struggling to take a breath. "Please...Zuko.." It took more self control than I realized not to question her choice of words. "Please.." I could count on one hand the number of times she said please to me.

I brought her into a warm kiss before asking, "Have you ever..?" It was an obvious question and I watched as her face blushed fiercely before shaking her head no in embarrassment. I smiled sweetly at her. 'Could I, in good conscience, take her virginity?'

"Are you sure you want to do this? We can wait." I reasoned. Katara seemed to contemplate this for a moment, her blush deepening before she spoke, "I'm tired of waiting. I want you to have this piece of me, regardless of where our destinies take us, this will always be yours, and no one else's."

My heart was beating rapidly in my chest now. It was a big deal for Mai when we finally decided to take it to the next level. She was scared and embarrassed and the whole encounter was awkward to say the least. But Katara seemed almost honored that I would even consider being her first. And I was honored; honored that she'd give me this piece of her.

I shifted, removing her hand from my length and settling between her thighs. She grumbled when I swatted her hand away when she reached for it again.

I hovered over her kissing her hard before breaking away leaving her breathless. "Katara, I want you to just lay here and try to relax and I'll take care of everything else, ok?"

I tried my best to keep myself from shaking, if she knew I was nervous she'd become nervous as well and this would be more painful for her than it probably already would be.

She nodded in affirmation, "I trust you." Her words spurring me on.

I looked down at her, finally allowing myself to take in everything she was. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen." And she truly was, I couldn't fathom why she would spend her time with me of all people.

My fingers ghosted down her lithe body, brushing over her nipples and down lower to rub a thumb against her clit which elicited the most sinful sound from her lips. A mix between a gasp and a moan and something that sounded like my name.

"Mmm, you're still sensitive from earlier. If it's too much we can stop." I teased, rubbing the little nub again before pulling away completely. She groaned in annoyance, "No! I'm fine…I-I want to feel you inside of me. Please just…"

I couldn't stop my smile. "Okay, okay hang on a second, Katara." I took a deep breath before leaning down, my chest brushing hers, as I braced myself on my forearms.

I kissed her sweetly before reaching a hand back and directing her legs to wrap around my waist. I held back the groan at the feel of my cock brushing up against her wet heat.

I sucked in a breath at the feel of it, my eyes snapping shut, goosebumps peppering my skin despite the heat of the room.

"Look at me…" it was hardly a whisper but her lashes fluttered upwards at my command. My face felt hot and she only nodded slightly as I reached in between us to grasp my length, my other hand sliding over slightly to cup her cheek.

I watched as she exhaled deeply, her chest rising and falling at a pace that gave away her anxiety.

I kissed her lips slowly as I rubbed the tip of me against her entrance picking up the wetness that had gathered there. I could feel her heart pounding against my chest.

I pulled back to look at her face but her eyes were snapped closed again.

"Katara." The sound of her name had her opening them once more.

"That's it, don't look away, just focus on me." She smiled, her eyes bouncing between my face and the space I was closing between us.

I finally positioned myself against her entrance and I moaned at the feel of her. My weight pressing into Katara slightly as the head of my cock sat snuggly against her. She tensed against me at the impending intrusion.

"Just relax, it's ok, I've got you." My words had her apprehension melting away, her body softening.

I pushed in an inch at a time, her eyes watching me the whole way and her face screwed up into something I can only describe as discomfort. She was tight. So gloriously tight it had me breathing heavier than she was.

It was maddening. My composure was failing as I did my best to go as slow as I could before meeting a slight resistance almost halfway sheathed inside her. This was the part that would hurt her, I was unsure how to proceed. But it seemed Katara could read my mind.

"Just do it.." she gritted out against slightly clenched teeth, bracing herself against me, her nails digging into my forearms. In one quick thrust, I was buried fully inside her. She cried out, a quick shriek of pain as she stilled against me.

The hot wetness that was utterly her had me blinking away spots, trying but failing miserably to keep from trembling.

I was unsure how long I sat there waiting for a sign Katara was ok for me to move. It felt like hours but logically I knew that was impossible.

But eventually she croaked out a silent 'you can move.' And I withdrew slowly before sliding back in, relishing at the feeling of being inside of her.

KATARA

This was beyond my capacity to grasp. I tensed up at the slightest push of his hips but I could feel my want for him dripping down my thigh.

He looked disoriented. Like he was trying to hold onto his cusp on reality but wasn't very successful. He blinked once. Twice. "I love you, Katara." The words seemed to subconsciously pass through his lips, for a second later his body went rigid, like he was unsure if he should say it. But the love and certainty in his eyes stole the breath from my lungs.

I pulled him to me, kissing him fiercely. I could feel my eyes water but I wouldn't cry. He pulled out and I gasped as he filled me once more. It was a steady rhythm that Zuko set, my pain ebbing away though not completely gone.

He was a beautiful mess atop of me. His eyes squeezed shut in concentration, his black hair hanging over us, it was so long now it brushed against my cheeks.

His gentle pace quickened and I listened to his gasps and moans as he rocked into me. I was stunned by his beauty. "Angi..Katara, I-you feel amazing, I-I don't know how long I can keep this up." He confessed and it had me rocking against him trying to meet his thrusts.

"I want you to fuck me, Zuko." He groaned, his thrusts were near sporadic as he plunged deeper and harder inside of me.

I would have blushed had I not been so focused on the feel of him. "You-you're so thick, it feels like you're stretching me.." I said moaning loudly knowing he was nearing his end.

He gripped my hips tight enough to bruise as he pounded into me mercilessly. "Shit, Katara, I'm gonna cum-spirits…can I?" He nearly pleaded his head falling in the crook of my neck.

Groaning against him I nibbled on his ear before whispering, "Yea, go ahead. I want you to finish inside me, I want to feel it. Please, cum for me." In a split second his arms looped under the backside of my thighs pushing them up into my chest as he slammed into me with enough force he stole the breath from my lungs.

"Oh fuck..fuck-I'm cumming..." His thrusts slowed but didn't stop; his chest falling flat against mine, his breaths labored. He was scorching, his skin almost hot enough to burn. I willed my own flesh to a nice cool temperature as my hands began drawing patterns across his back while I waited for him to come down from his high.

A few minutes later he rolled off of me onto his back still trying to catch his breath. I laid next to content to stay by his side, as one of his hands came to rest on his forehead in embarrassment.

"Fuck, Katara you shouldn't have let me..you know..inside of you. What if you get pregnant? How can we even explain that?"

I chuckled, actually laughed at him. Which of course prompted him to glare at me followed by a, 'I don't see how this is funny,' comment before leaning against his elbows for support.

"I learned a lot of things when I was in the Northern Water Tribe. I noticed a lack of children for such a big population. The woman there informed me that after they have sex they can just bend the liquid out and dispose of it that way to refrain from having kids until they were ready."

He looked at me slightly shocked but leaned back against the bed in relief, pulling me down with him and chuckled against my lips, "I'm the luckiest man alive."