Apparently, there's a Zutara month… I really have been out of the ATLA loop.
This is set in the Homeless Dragon fiction that I started up all those years ago. Speaking of which, I am revisiting that fiction, and it should be updated sometime next month. It's going through a major overhaul at the moment. So, for those who are familiar with Zuko's character in that story, some of the changes I have planned will be mentioned at the end of the story.
This is set in the Season 2 period, so Zuko is a little more open. It's where I'm hoping to take the story to at some point.
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar The Last Airbender. It is the property of its creators and Nickelodeon.
...
Fire Nation Pickup Lines by Animegamer89
In their "guesthouse" in Ba Sing Se, Zuko was doing weapon maintenance with his swords, Katara was washing dishes from dinner earlier, Toph was picking at her feet, and Aang chased Momo, who stole some knickknack Aang got in the market. Zuko applied some polish to his blades when Sokka walked into their house in Ba Sing Se. He glanced over his shoulder, and saw a bit of dirt and mud on his friend's clothes.
"Someone had a rough evening," said Zuko.
"Nah, just some poetry," groused Sokka.
Zuko's eyebrow quirked, and whatever tasks the others were doing stopped.
"Poetry?" asked Katara.
"Yeah, stumbled onto a poetry club. Had a competition with the teacher, and well, I won. But then I did a poem with too many syllables," said Sokka.
"Ah, haikus," said Zuko.
"You know haikus?" asked Sokka.
"Royalty, remember? In addition to politics, history, and military science, I also had to learn the arts. Poetry was never really my thing, but I'm familiar with it," explained Zuko.
"Sounds fun," said Toph with shrug, "All I got for my education was how to be a proper lady."
"Sounds rough, considering you're you," said Zuko.
"I don't know, Sparky. I can be quite the lady," said Toph primly as she picked her nose.
"Toph, gross! You just picked your feet," scolded Katara.
"Still, poetry is a pretty neat skill," jumped in Aang, "A lot of poets at the temple would spend days contemplating the meanings of old poems, and writing poems of their own. It's cool you were able to hold your own against a club of skilled poets."
"Yeah well, I'm a man of many talents," said Sokka smugly, "The ladies at the club certainly enjoyed my Water Tribe verses."
"Really?" questioned Katara, with a quirked eyebrow.
"Really!" said Sokka, "Some of them were sighing too!"
"What were they sighing to?" jabbed Toph before she took on a more ladylike postured
I really like meat.
When it's roasted, grilled, or fried
Meat is just so good!
Sokka gave the blind earthbender a flat stare. The interaction got a laugh out of everyone, though Zuko spared his good friend some dignity by simply rolling his eyes.
"Okay Toph, settle down. He's not that bad, I'm sure. There are worse ways for Sokka to woo girls besides poetry," said Zuko.
"What could be worse that Sokka's poetry?" asked Toph.
"Fire Nation pickup lines," said Zuko.
Zuko's companions stared him in surprise.
"Fire Nation pickup lines?" asked Sokka.
"Is there such a thing?" asked Katara, a mix of horror and curiosity in her voice.
"Yep. If there was one thing that put soldiers on the front lines in danger more than boulders it was Fire Nation pickup lines. I can't tell you how many times we had to deal with angry women, fathers, and brothers as a result of them," said Zuko jokingly.
"Can you tell us one?" asked Aang out of curiosity.
"No," said Zuko, "Sokka's image is one thing. Mine's another."
"Gee, thanks," grumbled Sokka.
"Oh, come on! You can't lead us on like that. If they're that awful I've got to hear it," said Toph.
"…Maybe just one?" suggested Katara, curiosity in her eyes as well.
"Yeah, just one, hotman," said Aang.
"…You guys are going to keep bugging me until I say one, aren't you?" asked Zuko.
"Pretty much," they all replied in unison.
"Me, and my big mouth. Fine, but this doesn't leave the house," said Zuko.
"I make no promises," said Sokka.
Zuko scowled, but then an evil thought came to mind. Something that would definitely keep Sokka from yapping.
"How did he say it…?" pondered Zuko verbally, as he put on his eyepatch.
Suddenly, Zuko smiled brightly at all of them.
Sokka, Katara, and Aang felt chills at the sight. They had seen Zuko smile before, usually when he roughhoused with Sokka and Toph, or when something Zuko genuinely found funny was said or happened. This smile though… it was soft. And his expression seemed almost too bright from what the gang was used to. Additionally, Zuko rubbed his feet into the ground, and held his hands behind his back.
And to their horror, Zuko approached Sokka.
"I'm sorry to hear what happened with those girls, Sokka. You didn't deserve that," said Zuko.
"Um… Thanks?" squeaked Sokka nervously.
There was a light shyness in Zuko's voice, but there was also a steadiness in it as well. The same steadiness they all heard when Zuko was resolved to do something.
And that something was taking Sokka's hands into his.
"You're welcome… I'm your friend, after all. If you ever need comfort, you're welcome to come to me," Zuko then leaned close to Sokka's ear and whispered, "A-ny-time."
Sokka immediately ran, and hid behind Katara and Toph.
"Who are you?! What have you done with Zuko?!" accused Sokka, as his face matched the Fire Nation flag in hue.
Zuko's character broke as he snorted, and laughed.
"You should see the look on your face!" Zuko laughed out raucously.
"His heart sounds like it's ready to burst," snickered Toph.
Now to ensure Toph's silence. Zuko made his way over to Toph, knelt before her to match her height, and took her hand into his.
"Milady Bei Fong," began Zuko as he clasped his hands tenderly around hers.
Toph's snickering stopped, and Katara in particular stared in fascination, which didn't surprise Zuko. Toph was obviously the least girly of the two after all.
"…My heart is but a lump of coal. Dark, dirty, and cold. I need only the heat of your touch, to ignite the sparks of love. Toph, allow my heart to burn for you!" Zuko boldly declared.
Toph's face went red, and one of her pale eyes twitched.
Katara stared dumbly at him.
Aang was speechless.
Sokka seemed horrified for Toph.
"…Wow, that was… wow," stammered Toph, who then took a deep breath and settled herself down, "…I'm with Zuko. That's definitely worse than any poem Sokka could come up with."
"You know what? Now that I think about it, we don't need to tell anyone about this," said Sokka, "Think of the trauma we could inflict."
"Maybe Zuko could do this in front of the Fire Lord. It might give us the opening to beat him," teased Toph.
"Are you kidding me? My father would probably burn my body into something unrecognizable if I do that," said Zuko.
"I'm sure Katara would put it out before that happened," said Aang.
"I don't know. My father's pretty efficient. In any case, those were some of the milder lines you'd hear," said Zuko as he recomposed himself, though there was still a small smile on his face.
"That was mild?" asked Katara, "What's, well, normal."
"Worse than what you've heard," said Zuko vaguely, "This friend of mine... it was the day we met, actually. He was on his knees with his arms wrapped around a poor girl's waist. He was going on and on about how he was sure he was going to die in the next battle, and that she had to marry him."
"What?" gasped Katara in horror.
Zuko's smile just grew wider.
"I pulled the guy off of her, and scolded him for disgracing our uniform. As I apologized to the girl, he accused me of stealing his woman, and the girl just slapped him. He flew back two, maybe three feet. Then, when the girl left, and I checked up on the guy, he declared that I had to keep him safe until he got married…" laughed Zuko.
Aang, and the others stared at him, and Zuko couldn't blame them. It must have been odd for them to see him reminisce this way. Granted, he had opened up to them slowly over time, and even more so after they went to field where the last battle he fought took place. However, his mood began to shift as a face came to mind, of a boy taller and older.
Zuko remembered the boy's death, or rather, the arm that stuck out from under the boulder that landed on him, blood pooled beneath it. His laughter slowly stopped, and then his vision blurred. Aang, Katara, and Sokka would have been the first to notice, though Toph would have sensed it close behind.
"I told him 'Fine, whatever keeps you quiet," said Zuko somberly, "But in the end, I couldn't. My friend… He was… He didn't make it."
Zuko shook, but he didn't break down. He just took a breath, wiped his face.
"Sorry, all this talk of flirting reminded me of him… I'm going to get some air," said Zuko.
Zuko, very calmly, walked out of the house.
xXxXx
Toph could easily tell the atmosphere was suddenly darkened. They had all hoped for a quick laugh, and instead, they had brought up memories that Zuko preferred not to think about.
"I guess we should give him some space," said Toph.
"Y-Yeah… I need to shower anyway. That hand holding gave me the oogies," said Sokka in an attempt to alleviate the tension.
"…Too soon, Snoozles," said Toph.
"Sorry, just… I'll just get ready to bathe," said Sokka.
"Don't forget to leave your clothes in the hamper. I'll wash it tomorrow," said Katara.
"Do you think he'll be okay?" asked Aang, "You know how he gets when he talks about his past. From when he fought in the war."
"He's strong, Aang. He just needs a moment to himself, that's all," reassured Katara.
Toph could sense that Aang still seemed uncertain, but she joined in as he nodded along.
…
Tip-Tap-Tip-Tap-Tip-Tap… On and on the noise went, and Toph was getting a little irritated.
It had been two hours, and Zuko still had not returned. Aang, and Sokka had fallen asleep, and she was only now starting to doze off. It was only the worry she felt for Zuko that kept her awake. Granted, Zuko was the loner of the group, and skulking off was a normal thing for him. But they were in Ba Sing Se, and the things they were used to doing weren't necessarily allowed in the city.
Still, she was handling the absence better than Katara…
"Keep pacing like that, and you'll dig a hole in the floor, Sugar Queen," said Toph.
"It's late," responded Katara.
"Hmm…" agreed Toph.
"I said he just needed a moment. It's almost midnight! He's going to be gone all night at this rate," said Katara.
"All night…? You think he went to a brothel, or something?" asked Toph.
Katara stopped, and rounded over to the little earthbender.
"Brothel?! What… How did you come to that conclusion?" asked Katara, aghast.
"He's stressed, and we're in the big city. Some of the guys at Earth Rumble would sometimes go to the entertainment district back home after I beat them," said Toph.
"They talked about those things to you? You're twelve!" yelped Katara with red cheeks.
"Pfft, no! One of the downsides of heightened senses is that you hear everything in the locker rooms," said Toph as she pointed to her ears.
Toph could feel Katara's vibrations going off.
"I swear if he spends any of our money on some… some…"
"Hooker?" supplied Toph.
"Floozy," corrected Katara.
"…Really?" snorted Toph.
"…That's it! I'm going to look for him," said Katara.
Katara left the house with a huff, and Toph sighed a bit in relief. Katara would bring him home for sure, and while she didn't plan for this to happen, with the pacing gone, she might be able to sleep.
xXxXx
After the fourth person she asked, Katara finally had a lead. A person matching Zuko's description was seen in the direction she was heading to.
However, upon reaching her destination, she went cold.
The Red Light District of the Upper Ring.
"What, is he going to a brothel, or something?"
Katara fumed as Toph's words echoed back into her mind. She straightened up, balled her fists, and marched right in. She made an effort to ignore some of the whispers, and giggles that she heard as she made her way deeper into a section of the city she would rather not be in.
"That poor girl…" giggled a woman that clung to a wealthy patron.
"Someone's in trouble," snickered a man.
"Hey Missy, you lost –Ahh!"
Without looking Katara froze the man to the wall with water from her water skin before she melted it, and retracted it quickly back into it's carrier. A testament to her mastery, and mood, it served well in giving the creeps around her second thoughts. Eventually, she came upon two guards that were walking through the area.
"Excuse me," she called.
The two guards turned to face her.
"Have you seen a man with long hair in a low ponytail, an eyepatch, and a scowl on his face?" asked Katara.
The two guards blinked at her, and then turned to one another.
"You don't think…" began one before the other nodded.
"As a matter of fact, we have just now," said one of them.
"He's in one of the taverns," said the other as he pointed to one of the smaller buildings, "That one over there."
"I don't think I've ever seen someone down that many," said the first.
"I'd be sick to my stomach…" replied the second.
"Down that…? He's drinking?!" gasped Katara.
She shouted a "thanks" to the guards on instinct, and ran to the building that the guards pointed to.
'If I see so much as a saucer in his hands…' she thought
Tears threatened to spring to her eyes, but she forced herself to hold it. First she'd beat some sense into the jerk of a firebender, then she'd unleash them in the ultimate guilt trip as a finishing blow for ever daring to worry her. She stood before the tavern, and grabbed the door, and slid it open.
"WE HAVE A WINNER!"
Katara stared in disbelief.
For the first moment, the words threw her off guard along with the cheer that followed. The moment after, her eyes processed the sight. Zuko leaning back against a chair, with an empty oyster shell in hand. There were numerous empty trays of oyster shells, a pot of tea with a cup, and a bucket that didn't look like it had been used.
"Twenty four trays of spiced oysters downed, and he's made it past the five minute mark without hurling his guts! It's a new record people!" announced the tavern keeper as he held up a small sand glass.
Everyone cheered, but Zuko weakly held up a hand in victory.
"Here you go, Mr. Lee. Fifteen gold pieces," said the tavern keeper.
Katara saw Zuko hold out a hand, and the small sack of coins was placed in his palm. She let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't as bad she feared… Still, her brows furrowed, and she made her way over.
"Having fun?" she asked as she placed her hands on her hips.
Zuko stiffened, and he turned around to face her.
"K-Katara?"
He wilted under her gaze, and his voice even quaked a little.
'Good…' she thought as she smiled smugly, "That's a lot of oysters. Any plans for tonight that I should know about? Plans in this part of town?"
It took a moment, but Zuko blushed at the suggestion she made.
"I-It's not what it looks like…?" offered Zuko.
Katara said nothing. She just leaned on one leg, crossed her arms, and tapped her foot. She could hear some giggles, but she ignored them as he got up to face her.
"I was… walking, and I wound up here, and I… I thought I'd have a snack… Ugh," stopped Zuko… "And can you give me a moment."
Katara, in her generous mercy, quickly stepped aside, getting a feeling of what was about to happen to Zuko. The moment he left the building, and after a brief pause, the sounds of a stomach being emptied echoed through the night.
"Thank the spirits we're next to the canal," laughed one of the patrons.
Katara just shook her head, and turned to the tavern keeper.
"I don't suppose there's a park nearby. Or somewhere else that's quiet?" she asked.
"Sure, miss. There's a nice park about thataways down the canal, past the lucky cat-owl statue," he replied.
"Thanks," said Katara.
She left the building, and found Zuko hanging off one of the canal railings.
"There's a park nearby," began Katara in a soft, but steady tone, "We'll talk there."
"Don't feel like it right now…" said Zuko.
"I think you misunderstood. We will talk there," repeated Katara more sternly.
"…Yes, ma'am," said Zuko.
Katara saw him push himself up, and take a breath before he made his way over to her. She moved in the direction the tavern keeper told her, and sure enough, they wound up in a small park. The two settled on a park bench, and Katara waited for Zuko to catch his breath.
"…So, oysters huh?" said Katara.
"…"
"A contest as well. Not exactly a light snack. Was my cooking not enough?" continued Katara.
"…I got some money out of it," said Zuko weakly.
"You think I care about that?! We were worried, Zuko!"
"Lee…" reminded Zuko.
"Whatever!" growled Katara, "We were worried about you! We all know how you get when you think about your war days. How you sometimes go quiet for days on end, how moody you can be at other times. But you know you don't have to vanish on us every time a memory comes up. Especially now, with the Dai Li watching us."
Zuko looked away.
"I was scared…" said Katara, "You heard Long Feng and Joo Dee: There's no war in Ba Sing Se. I thought, 'What if he doesn't come back? What if he accidently blurts out something, and the Dai Li get him?' You remember our meeting with Long Feng; how he looked at you. He looked like he wanted to kill you! We already lost Appa. We can't lose you too."
Her vision blurred, and she let the tears fall.
"…I'm sorry," said Zuko, "Katara, I… I don't know what to say. I guess… I'm so used to dealing with this on my own. I didn't take into account you guys' feelings, and I guess I forgot our current situation."
"That's not a really good excuse," Katara muttered.
"It doesn't excuse what I did," agreed Zuko.
The two sat in silence, save for Katara's sniffles. Zuko then leaned forward, and took a deep breath.
"My friend…" began Zuko, "His name was Lee. He did all kinds of ridiculous things when we had spare time in the army. Lee spent most of it chasing girls, and I wound up making sure he didn't go too far with his… courtship attempts. Sometimes that meant I had to watch him do things that he was sure would impress them. The attempts never worked, and he'd wind up in a tavern, ordering dish after dish to try to smother his sorrows in food."
"Really?" asked Katara out of curiosity.
"We might have been soldiers, but Lee and I were still kids; he was pressed into service like I was, though he was, maybe, 4 years older than me. The army's strict about alcohol, and no tavern in their right mind would tick off the army. I had sorrows of my own, too, so I'd often eat with him. Though, not to the degree that he did," said Zuko, "We'd wind up talking about things. How much high command sucked, how pretty that one girl with the cabbage stall looked, hopes and dreams, those sorts of things."
"You two were close," said Katara, "Wait… Lee? Isn't that…?"
"My alias? Yes. We were best friends. We had a lot in common with one another," said Zuko, "We both felt abandoned, and betrayed by the world. He was orphaned, and a girl he liked used him and abandoned him. I'm no orphan, but I knew what it was like to feel cast aside."
"I see…" said Katara.
"…Sometimes, when I think of him, I do things he would have done. Eat too much food, crack stupid jokes, and flirt with random girls."
Katara's brow twitched a little.
"He'd sulk too, sometimes, but I do enough of that on my own. Everything else though… For me, it keeps my memory of him alive…" said Zuko, "He was always there to pull me out of my own darkness. As ridiculous as he was, he would always bring a smile on everyone's faces. It's been a while since I thought of him this much. Oysters were his favorite; spent a lot of time trying to find a bar in this city that sells any good ones. I figured if I ate enough, I'd get so sick of thinking about him, and stop."
"I see…" said Katara, who had long stopped crying in favor of hearing the story, "Do you really want to stop thinking about him. He was your friend."
"Part of me does. He's dead, and it hurts a lot to think about him," began Zuko, but he clenched his stomach, "But another part of me says I can't forget him. Any of them. They were my brothers, and sisters in arms. No one in that war room cared about them, and if I forget… I'll be just like those…"
Katara pulled him into a hug, and Zuko tensed at first before he relaxed in her arms.
"It's okay. I still think of my mother, even though it hurts. All those happy memories I had of her, they hurt to think about sometimes. But you know what? If I just cast them aside, what would I turn to when the world seems like it's falling apart. Those memories remind me there's good in the world, that there's that little bit of happiness to worth fighting for," began Katara, "Like you said. It's about keeping the memory alive. If you throw away those memories, they really will be dead."
Katara felt a dampness on her shoulder, where Zuko's head laid. She made no mention of it, and allowed him to let out all the pent up feelings. Eventually, Zuko settled down, and he pulled away.
"Sorry, I ruined your shirt," said Zuko as he wiped his face.
"It'll come off," reassured Katara, "Are you feeling better? That's what's most important to me right now."
"I'm fine…" said Zuko, "You know, this is probably the first time I ever talked about Lee. Or any of them, really."
"He sounds like a great guy."
"He was… But, he was ten times worse than Sokka is now."
"And you get along very well with my brother," said Katara.
"Someone's got to keep him out of trouble…" said Zuko quietly, "Besides, the moment he tried to hit on you, you would take back your compliment. You got a taste of his pickup lines earlier in the evening."
"Those were his?" asked Katara.
"The one I said to Toph was definitely his. He said it to an Earth Kingdom girl in one of the newer colonies," said Zuko, "The one I told Sokka… Well, that was used on Lee by someone he thought was a girl."
"Huh?" gasped Katara.
Zuko's lips quirked up.
"Lee was rejected hard by this apprentice seamstress, so what does he do? Go to a bar. Naturally, when I heard, I went looking for him. I found him with this person leaning on him, and whispering softly in the ear. When I told him it was time to go, he said that he met his true love and wasn't going anywhere. At that point, I pointed out his new girlfriend was a guy."
"What?" asked Katara in shock.
"I don't know if you noticed, but entertainment districts like this area try to cater to multiple tastes. In Lee's defense, the guy was shockingly pretty. Like, the beauties in classical paintings, pretty. It didn't help that the guy wore pink on top of that," Zuko chuckled, "The look on his face priceless. He got up, we left, and made me swear to never mention it to anyone. Just like Sokka."
Katara giggled at the thought.
"Was that why you acted girly on top of saying those things to my brother? To keep him quiet?" asked Katara.
"It worked on Lee," said Zuko with a shrug.
Katara laughed, and she saw Zuko look at her funny.
"Sorry, it's just, I just got reminded of this one time Sokka wore a dress in Kyoshi Island, along with the makeup," mused Katara.
"For real…?" asked Zuko.
"Yeah. I just thought of Sokka acting the way you did earlier while wearing those clothes," said Katara.
She saw Zuko snort.
"You know when you put it that way, after meeting Suki in full garb, Lee would have definitely been smitten with Sokka. At least until he realized Sokka was a guy."
"I bet Sokka's face would match what we saw earlier," said Katara.
"Both would be making the same face, and both would accuse the other of being weirdos," said Zuko.
The two shared a laugh as their imaginations played out the scenes in their head. Katara, happy that Zuko seemed more relaxed, decided to keep the conversation going away from anything negative.
"So, out of curiosity, what line would Lee have used on me?" asked Katara.
"…He wouldn't hit on you," said Zuko.
"Oh? Why not?" asked Katara, mildly offended at the idea.
"Because even though he was older than me, my royal blood meant I was an officer from the get-go. And as a commanding officer who pretty much followed him everywhere, it limited what he could do. Most of the time. And even if he slipped through my watch, your brother would get in the way."
"Oh…" said Katara.
"…Don't tell me you're disappointed?" said Zuko, aghast.
"No… Kind of...? I mean Sokka, and Toph got pickup lines…" said Katara.
"Aang didn't get any," Zuko pointed out, "He's twelve. There are some lines you don't cross."
"Toph's twelve," said Katara pointedly.
"That's just blackmail material," said Zuko, "If she so much as mentions anything embarrassing about me, I can go into a story about how I flustered the Blind Bandit."
Katara thought about it, and snickered.
"Clever…" she said.
"They will never speak of this again," agreed Zuko.
"Still, it's kind of disappointing," said Katara.
"If you really want to know… He'd call you 'Dusky Sea Goddess,' or some other ridiculous name," said Zuko.
"For real?!" Katara snorted.
"Yeah…" chuckled Zuko, "Not the words I would use."
Katara went quiet, and for a moment, she twiddled her thumbs as she cleared her throat.
"Is that so? W-Well, what would you say to me?" asked Katara, her cheeks pink.
Zuko looked at her like a stunned deer-ram.
"I-If I was a Fire Nation girl, that is," added Katara quickly.
"O-Oh, right, yes… um," began Zuko, his face a little flush.
Zuko rubbed the back of his head.
"S-So, if you were a Fire Nation girl," began Zuko, and Katara nodded quickly, "If you were a Fire Nation girl, and still the same kind of girl you are in Water Tribe, and I, well, approached you. It would be something like this…"
Zuko said the last part in a whisper, and took Katara's hand into his.
"I have no gold to my name, only steel. I have no palace, but I can provide a roof. I carry no fine kerchief for your tears, but instead offer my tunic… I know these are not good prospects for a lady of your station, but I can give the most precious thing in my life: my heart.
From her seat on the park bench, Katara gulped.
"My heart, my soul, the flame of Agni that burns within me. They are yours, Katara. Yours to kindle, or to snuff out. Will you accept them?"
"…yes," Katara whispered.
Zuko looked at her, surprise on his face.
"Err... I mean, yes, I can see how a girl could go for that," said Katara nervously.
"Right!" said Zuko as he quickly stood up, "Of course. Granted, it's more a confession than a pickup line, and I don't go around saying things like that to any random girl. That would just be weird. Plus, a lot of the girls I've met would have definitely been put off by the formality of it all."
Katara couldn't help but giggle at Zuko's rambling. For such a serious guy, he could be pretty awkward at times.
"Definitely formal," agreed Katara, "I mean, what did you mean by 'my station' anyway?"
"…In the Fire Nation, I'd be called ronin. It means 'wave man' in the old tongue, and it's a derogatory term for an outcast, or someone without steady employment or with no decent prospects for the future. In the eyes of the Fire Nation, I'd be seen as less than a peasant, for at least peasants do something useful for society. Most ronin in the ancient days were bandits, thieves, or some other kind of troublemaker, which only added more fuel to the fire," explained Zuko, "As for your station… The Southern Water Tribe might have been devastated by the navy, but you're still a chief's daughter. I tailored the lines where it was appropriate."
"Oh… I see," said Katara, "Well, thought it was a nice line."
"…You did?" asked Zuko surprised.
"…Yes, and I think, if you found a girl who really cared about you, she would definitely be taken with it. Ronin, or not," said Katara softly.
"…Thanks," said Zuko.
"…"
"…We should get back to the house. The others are probably wondering what's going on," said Zuko.
"Right," said Katara.
Zuko offered her his arm, and Katara looked up at him dubiously.
"At this hour, it wouldn't do for a lady to be without an escort," said Zuko.
"I got through the Red Light District just fine on my own," said Katara as she got to her feet.
"Then allow me to make up for the blunder I made as your bodyguard," said Zuko.
"The mercenary routine? Really?" sighed Katara.
"Someone has to keep you guys safe, and out of trouble," said Zuko.
"Our hero. Just don't try to charge me like you did with the waterbending scroll," said Katara.
Zuko laughed quietly at the memory of when they first met. Katara rolled her eyes, but nevertheless took his offered arm with her own and noted just how cozy and warm he felt on the walk back.
Now if only her heart would stop hammering.
A/N: So as I mentioned before, Homeless Dragon is being revamped at the moment. There will be some fairly big changes to what I was originally going for, one of which is Zuko's character. This is a bit of a preview for what I have in mind. I'm still working the chapters, and I hope to have all of the Book One Sections done by the start of summer this year.
The line Zuko used on Toph was the same one Zuko used on Katara in that Avatar Chibi Short School Time Shipping. I just jazzed it up a little for Toph.
Lee is basically Zenitsu from Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer).
The guy who hits on Lee in Zuko's account of his past was inspired by Haku from Naruto.
Katara's question about Zuko's plans after his oyster binge comes from the idea that oysters are an aphrodisiac.
Zuko emulating some of Lee's behaviors was inspired by how Kakashi from Naruto dealt with his grief over Obito's apparent death.