Zuko watched his girlfriend pass out bowls of stew to the group from his place by the small cooking fire he had made at Katara's request. The group was exhausted and hungry, and they quickly began to tuck in. Zuko smiled fondly to himself as he lifted his spoon to his mouth. It doesn't seem like they can go five minutes without getting into trouble.
It was seriously true; the Avatar and his traveling companions seemed to have a way of finding the most obscure trouble that there could possibly be. As soon as they had landed in the village of Shu Jing, after about a week and a half since departing Qiansiao,the natural beauty and peace of the place lush with waterfalls had been disturbed by a meteorite falling in the form of a flaming ball from the sky, and the group had been forced to take immediate action to prevent the fire from burning down the town while the villagers slept. Seriously, what are the chances?
Zuko was just as tired from the battle as the rest of his friends. Friends, he smiled to himself. It still left him in awe that he finally had people his own age he could consider true friends, people whose respect he had won on his own merit, not just by being born Prince of the Fire Nation. The Gaang had fought hard alongside each other, anticipating each other's needs and protecting their backs like they had known each other for years. It had been exhilarating and, even through the blanket of exhaustion that lay on the group, Zuko could feel the lingering excitement radiating from everyone.
Well, everyone except one person, that is. Zuko allowed his gaze to fall on Sokka. The Water Tribe boy had been quiet and withdrawn since the battle, not sharing in the congratulatory hugs with the rest of the group. Now he wasn't even touching his stew, which was a clear sign something was wrong with the normally ravenous warrior. The Prince wanted to help his friend feel better, but he wasn't too sure how. He would be the first one to admit that emotions were not his strong point, and he wasn't necessarily the most encouraging and patient person on the planet. Besides, no one else seemed to notice Sokka's morose mood, and they had all known the Water Tribe boy longer than Zuko.
On cue, Aang stood up with a huge smile, Momo chattering excitedly on his shoulder. "Great job team!" He shook his head. "This town has no idea how close they came to being roasted."
"Yeah, that was a close one," Katara agreed, finally sitting down next to Zuko to eat her own meal. "Though it was really helpful to have a Firebender with us," she looked admiringly to her boyfriend, who blushed slightly at the praise.
"I just wish I could greet them as a leader and actually take responsibility for it," Zuko said, rolling his eyes in frustration. Toph banged her wooden spoon on the outside of her empty bowl in agreement.
"Here, here! I miss the hero worship," she said, flinging herself down in the dirt, bowl and spoon going flying to hit Sokka right in the eye.
"Ouch! Watch it, Toph!" He yelled angrily, jerking himself from his seated position and spilling his own stew. Katara immediately got up to soothe the situation.
"Here Sokka, I'll just get you a new bowl—"
Her brother simply shook his head. "Don't bother," the tall boy stooped to reach for his boomerang. "I'm going hunting."
Sokka's wolf tail quickly disappeared into the forest, the group's (mainly Katara and Aang) interjections falling on deaf ears. Katara moved to go after her brother, but Zuko stopped her by grabbing her elbow.
You haven't even eaten, he said concernedly, gesturing to her bowl of now cold stew. He took the bowl in both hands, trying to simply reheat it for her, but quickly losing control and forcing the soup to a rolling boil. He smiled apologetically, but she just winked at him, taking the bowl and slowly exhaling cold air, cooling the soup down to just right.
Teamwork makes the dream work, she said. Zuko's brow furrowed.
Well I've never heard that phrase before, but it does make sense. And that is why you will be staying here to eat something and rest, while I will be going after your idiot brother, Zuko decided. Katara looked ready to argue, but then she seemed to reconsider.
I guess Sokka had really never had another guy his own age to talk to...it's always just been me, him and Gran-gran, she reasoned. Zuko nodded in agreement.
I know how he feels, he said, thinking of his early days in the Palace with only his sister and his sister's friends for company. The Prince thought he might have an idea as to what was wrong with Sokka, and he also thought he might have a way to fix whatever it was. He didn't want to get between the siblings if Katara didn't want him there but, by the same token, Sokka had become a true friend over the course of the last couple of weeks. Friends helped solve each other's problems, didn't they?
I guess they do, Katara answered with a teasing grin. Zuko smiled in return; while it was nice to have the ability to hide his thoughts from Katara (something he still had to teach her), when he let his thoughts flow freely as the bond was meant to be, he always ended up enjoying the outcome. He kissed his girlfriend's cheek in thanks before getting up to go after her brother.
"Oh, are you two finally done with your 'lover's spat'?" Toph asked sarcastically before laughing at them. Katara paid them no mind, happy to see Aang laughing along with the Earthbender—even in the presence of their so-called 'mushiness'. Zuko simply huffed.
"I'm going to find Sokka," he announced out loud, walking towards the tree line. He created a small ball of fire in the palm of his hands, trying to slowly increase the size of the flame so it could effectively light the way. The fire had other plans, wanting to take the power of the bond and grow far beyond his hands. Controlling the flames lately, willing the warmth not to overtake him and those around him, had become harder and harder. Katara had also experienced a power increase, but her element did not want to grow and change–it flowed; it did not fight against her, it worked with her. With fire, one had to exert control. A bender must breathe life into his fire and, once it had life, it almost had a mind of its own.
Zuko looked down at the fiery blue ball in his hands as he stopped walking, listening for any signs of the wayward warrior. He and Katara would work further on control later‒now he was here for Sokka.
As if summoned, the Water Tribe boy's tan face appeared out of the darkness. He had thrown his body down glumly on a large rock, and was halfheartedly sharpening his trusty boomerang with a worn piece of flint. Sokka looked to Zuko as his little clearing was bathed in the eery, flickering blue firelight.
"What are you doing here?" Sokka asked meanly, "Shouldn't you be back there kissing my sister or whatever?"
Zuko was reminded of Sokka speaking those exact same words to his sister when she tried to join Father and son on their fishing trip. He breathed through the forceful feeling of deja vu and focused on the task at hand.
"Is that what this is about? Is that why you're so upset?" Zuko asked evenly, not feeding into the other boy's sour mood. Sokka huffed.
"No," he said grudgingly, "You actually seem like a pretty good guy, and no one can say you don't make my sister happy, once you got past the whole 'angry guy trying to capture the Avatar' phase."
"Right…" Zuko muttered. "Then what's the problem? Everyone is worried."
"What's the problem? What's not the problem," Sokka spat. "Everyone here knows their role, knows what they need to do. But me?" he asked, pointing frustratedly to his chest with his boomerang. "I'm not the Avatar. I don't have any fancy bending or psychic spirit bond. My own kind of ex-girlfriend doesn't even come to me in spirit form like she does everyone else!" He threw his hands in the air. "Did you see me out there? I was useless tonight!"
Zuko sighed, taking a seat on a log near Sokka's rock. He idly gathered a small bunch of sticks and grass to light a small fire. "I know what you mean," he responded slowly. The other boy rolled his eyes.
"How could you know what I mean? You've been a Firebender your whole life!" Zuko shrugged.
"I wasn't always a very good one," he admitted easily. "Growing up, I always felt useless. Azula was a prodigy, and even her friends that weren't benders were masters at something else. I ran to Uncle one day, crying that I would never be good at anything."
Sokka's face softened a bit in apology. "What did he say?" He asked, intrigued despite himself.
"He told me great effort brings great reward, and I was putting in great effort with my bending. But," Zuko interjected, "He said there are also other paths, and another path may be better for me."
The other boy sat silent as he mulled that over, the only sound the crackling of the fire Zuko had lit. The Prince felt oddly at peace, he felt he might have the answers his friend was looking for.
"And that," Zuko broke their silence with a small half smile, "is how I picked up the broadswords. The next day, a great sword master and friend of my Uncle's arrived at the Palace to begin my instruction. This particular man was almost a legend growing up. Everyone knew about how he deserted the Fire Nation army because he became disillusioned with the war. The Firelord at the time, my grandfather Azulon, sent a squadron of 100 soldiers to arrest the master, but he defeated them all."
"Wow," Sokka said in awe. "Do you think you can get this guy to train me?!"
Zuko smiled, standing and offering Sokka a hand up himself. "You never know, we might be in just the right place at the right time."
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Toph blew air noisily out of her mouth to push her bang out of place from her seat next to their fire. Once again, the Earthbender found herself thinking about Aang.
Since their departure from Qiánshào, Toph had been waiting for the oblivious Airbender to make a move. He had been sweet, beyond sweet. So sweet that it was almost sickly sweet…
And Toph was sick of it, dammit!
He held her hand occasionally, he kissed her cheek by the fire. Toph had even managed to rope the monk into rubbing her feet after a long day! But still, despite all of this, despite how many mornings Toph had endured Katara doing her hair thus far, Aang still had not kissed her.
There could be a few reasons this for this, Toph reasoned. One of them was her biggest fear: had he leaned into a few tentative kisses so quietly that she had not noticed, even with her Earthbending senses? Did he think she was not ready to be kissed?
Or maybe he just doesn't want to kiss me at all, Toph thought glumly. She had been trying to push these worries to the very edge of her thoughts, only breathing life into them when she had told Katara about her doubts. The Earthbender had originally thought that perhaps Aang hadn't had his first kiss either, and confessed that to the older girl. But, to her dismay, Katara didn't have very good news on that front.
"Well, a-actually, Aang has kissed me before," the Waterbender admitted one morning as she did the younger girl's hair. Toph could tell by the sound of her voice that she was embarrassed and apologetic, but that didn't erase the slight sting of hurt.
"He has?" she muttered, picking at some dirt under her fingernails. She could sense Katara coming around to face her.
"Listen Toph, I'm really sorry," she said earnestly. "He barely kissed me, not the other way around! It was when we were stuck in the Cave of Two Lovers and—and I'm not interested in him at all, you know that!"
"Well, I guess it must just be me then," Toph tried to say lightly as she crossed her arms and turned away. She heard Katara sigh.
"Trust me Toph, these things take time. Let it happen naturally because, when it happens?" She stood to resume styling the Earthbender's hair, "It probably won't' be perfect, but it will feel like it is, and that's the important part."
Toph had done her best to follow the older girl's advice, reassuring herself at the sound of Aang's panicked heartbeat every time she came into a room but, after several days, she could feel herself beginning to despair. She hated feeling this way, all caught up over some stupid boy.
A stupid boy who probably doesn't even like me, Toph thought as she idly twirled a bunch of pebbles in the air. Sparky and Sugar Queen had disappeared to go practice their stupid spirit bond thing. Sokka had somehow proved himself worthy and was now training with a legendary sword master and Aang was probably off doing Avatar stuff. She was alone, she would probably be forever alone
Maybe I'm being a bit dramatic, Toph reasoned, then she shrugged.
Dramatic or not, they were at war dammit! And she would not die an amazingly heroic, fiery death without having her first kiss!
That's it! I'll tell Aang I just want to kiss him, no feelings attached, Toph decided, determinedly pushing back the little voice that told her she would only end up hurt and shooting up from her seat to do just that when she felt a tap on her shoulder.
She nearly screamed. Had she really been that absorbed in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed anyone sneaking up on her in enemy territory? This is why boys are bad news, she lamented.
"Uhh...Toph? Are you okay?" It was Aang, his voice and heartbeat giving him away. Toph took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
Here he is, just say what you have to say. But as soon as the Earthbender opened her mouth, it felt like the words got caught in her throat. She impersonated a fish for several seconds as she felt an uncharacteristic blush rising on her cheeks.
"Umm, if you don't want to talk I can just...just come back later," Aang stuttered out awkwardly, backing up. Toph snapped out her stupor.
"N-no! Sit!" Toph exclaimed, pulling Aang down next to her to sit on the "earth couch" she had created by the fire. She tried to smile at him, guys like it when girls smile, right? But she felt the expression hadn't come off well by Aang's quiet intake of breath.
"S-so..what did you want to talk about?" Toph asked the Avatar, trying not to let her tone sound too hopeful. Aang jumped like he had been caught, but she wasn't sure what he had been doing. His heart was beating like crazy.
"Y-yeahh...talk. I wanted to talk..about sparring!" Aang suddenly exclaimed. Toph's mouth flatlined.
"Sparring?"
"Sparring," Aang confirmed, laughing nervously. She sighed.
"Sure Aang, that sounds...good," the Earthbender agreed halfheartedly, kicking a patch of grass as she looked down in disappointment. She felt the monk shift slightly towards her.
"Toph, what's wrong?" He asked in concern.
"Nothing's wrong," she snapped, suddenly irritated. "I should have known you would've just wanted to spar," she said sourly, crossing her arms with a huff.
"What's wrong with sparring?" The Airbender asked confusedly.
"Nothing's wrong with it, if you could just make up your mind!" Toph yelled accusingly. Aang's heartbeat positively thrummed with anxiety, but he still feigned confusion. I thought I told this stupid airbender he needs to face his problems head on.
"Make up my mind about what?" He asked. She threw her hands in the air.
"Gee, I don't know! Do you see me as a girl, or am I just your tomboy Earthbending teacher?! You've been holding my hand and kissing my cheek and being extra nice to me all week, but you still haven't kissed me!"
In the silence following Toph's statement, she simply buried her face in her hands as her stomach dropped to her dirt covered toes.
"You can either kill me now or you can go," came her muffled groan from behind her palms. The Earthbender tensed, ready for rejection as she felt Aang tentatively slide closer to her.
"I'm sorry Toph," Aang said apologetically. "I didn't mean to upset you." She felt his heartbeat speed up in nervousness. "I actually, kind of—well I wanted to—" he took a deep breath, "I came over here to talk to you about that."
"About what," Toph prompted from under her palms when the Avatar went silent.
"A-about us, I guess," Aang was clearly uncomfortable. "I wanted to see if you would go into town with me...like as a...date?"
Toph felt her cheeks warm up under her hands as she processed the monk's question. Date?
"You...you would want to go on a date? With me?" She asked, removing her hands from her face.
"Well yeah—of course!" Aang exclaimed.
Her brow furrowed. "I...I've never been on a date before...If we go on a date, does that mean we're together?" His already excited heart immediately began to beat even faster as the monk shifted towards her and took her sweaty hand in his own.
"It doesn't, but this might," Aang took a deep breath. "Toph, will you be my girlfriend?"
The Earthbender's mind was going a million miles a minute. She had just been sitting here cursing Aang's name, and now he was sitting in front of her like one of her most outrageous fantasies. If she was still back home in Gaoling, she would never, in a million years, have dreamed that the Avatar would be sitting in front of her asking her to be his girlfriend. But it was clear that this was now her reality, and she was going to embrace it. She took a deep, calming breath. I'm not in Gaoling. I'm not my parent's helpless puppet. I'm a Master Earthbender. I deserve this. I can do this. She smiled at him.
"Well, if I'm your girlfriend, does that mean you'll kiss me?" Toph asked slyly. She could sense Aang shifting uncomfortably.
"I want to kiss you but...I don't think I'm any good at kissing," Aang admitted. "I don't want to disappoint you."
"But you've kissed Katara before!"
"Yeah, and that didn't go well at all! Did it?" Aang exclaimed, embarrassed and sensed him moving even closer to her as he took her hand in his.
"Listen, I definitely don't think you're just my Earthbending teacher. I actually think you're really pretty, especially when you smile一you don't smile a lot," he admitted quietly then, awkwardly, "and I guess you can't see me staring." He shifted uncomfortably. "I think I have a lot to learn, about this whole relationship thing….and the kissing thing, and I'm sorry I was too embarrassed to admit that."
Toph was stunned for a second before she recovered. Now or never, she thought wryly, then she threw her arms around the Airbender's neck, and pressed her lips to his.
It wasn't perfect. Neither of them knew what to do, so they just sort of stayed stock still with their lips against the others. Aang fumbled awkwardly with his hands before placing them on her waist, and she might have missed his mouth the first time she tried to kiss him but, despite all of that, Toph suddenly understood exactly what Katara had been talking about.
"Alright Twinkletoes, first kissing lesson: next time, you kiss me."
Even though Toph couldn't see it, she could feel the smile on Aang's face as their lips met again.
"Lesson learned," he grinned.
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Katara was bored.
To be clear, she was currently doing something. She and Zuko had been unable to resist the urge to walk a short distance away from camp and the suddenly irritating antics of the Gaang to find a quiet place as their skin itched like they hadn't seen each other in weeks. For the first time in several weeks, Katara was starting to feel the first licks of cold on her skin despite their tropical environment. But, once they began to attempt convergent mediation, Zuko had unusually quickly slipped into the signature calm state without Katara, and her thoughts had begun to wander in the silence, which had not only prevented her from meditating, but had also left her in her current predicament:
Boredom.
Currently, sitting next to Zuko was enough to ease some discomfort, so Katara opened her eyes with a sigh to look around, abandoning meditation for now in favor of reflection. They had been traveling deeper into the Fire Nation in the week and a half since their mid dance party departure from Qiánshào, first stopping at a starving fishing village in the middle of a polluted river that Katara had been desperate to help. With Zuko's help to convince the Gaang and his inside knowledge as to how Fire Nation factories worked, they made quick work of the factory and river and spent a few days there helping clean up and stocking up with dried fish for their travels. They had stayed in the picturesque village of Shu Jing for several days now because Sokka wanted to train with the legendary Sword Master Piandao, but Sokka's unusual absence had left the group with a lot of down time.
The setting and their surroundings were perfect for meditation. Shi Jing had an abundance of natural waterfalls, which made Katara feel relaxed and even more in tune with her element and internal chi. Like most of the Fire Nation, the air around them hung heavy with humidity, threatening afternoon rain. They weren't seated on meditation mats, but lush, green grass that thickly carpeted the forest floor. The clearing they had found not far from camp hosted one of the island's characteristic waterfalls and, though it was a small waterfall, it emptied into a sparkling pool that the Waterbender couldn't wait to dip her toes into. Even with these beautiful and peaceful surroundings, Katara was embarrassed to admit the majority of their down time in this beautiful place had been wasted because she and Zuko couldn't figure out this spirit forsaken bond!
The Waterbender shook her head. She shouldn't be thinking like that, this bond was a gift, entrusted to them by the spirits themselves. A frustrating gift, from frustrating spirits, she thought sourly.
It became clearer after every meditation session that something was missing, something was refusing to click. Their chi wanted to connect always, and something was preventing it from fitting perfectly into the puzzleㄧit was clear that they hadn't figured out the connection as well as they thought they had, with their continued discomfort. The bonded pair had been discussing what they learned in the library of Qiánshào feverishly since they had left the town, usually late at night when everyone was asleep and they could talk out loud without being overheard. Even though they were comfortable with the group knowing about their bond, the couple wanted to take the time to figure out the extent of their connection for themselves before trying to explain it to other people.
Of course, doing that was proving to be quite difficult. The book had said that different types of meditation could enhance one's chi, giving them almost supernatural abilities. It seemed Katara and Zuko already had access to some of these abilities. Zuko's fire when bending had only gotten hotter as his bending chi had been enhanced. Their ability to talk in their minds and share memories when they slept was also a huge part of the bond, and these powers had only gotten better the more time they spent together. Secretly, Katara thought her healing abilities also must have been affected. When Aang had been hit by Azula's lightning bolt back in Ba Sing Se, Katara had feared she wouldn't be able to heal her friend. Even with the water from the Spirit Oasis, Aang hadn't been breathing, he had been effectively dead—and she had brought him back.
Of course, the more they meditated, the more memories they had shared. Some were inconsequential, like when Katara found out Zuko's favorite color had always been blue, despite his element and upbringing.
Some provided prospective, like Zuko witnessing first hand the Water Tribe sibling finding the Avatar frozen so far away from where they were now.
Others still were painful, but necessary...but Katara didn't want to think about how she still sometimes shivered as the memory of ruthless blue flames scorching Zuko's skin lingered in her mind.
Abilities aside, for every dream had, every small piece of information learned, the main question still hadn't been answered: What had caused this bond to spring up between them? What made Katara and Zuko so special and made it necessary for them to be close to each other? Asking themselves these questions along with the information in the book, the couple had arrived at the same conclusion.
Their connection was convergent meditation.
It only made sense. The connection was stronger and their chi more enhanced the longer and closer they were to each other—so as long as they were touching, they were able to subconsciously meditate, increasing their energy and storing extra for later. This, they agreed, must have been what Yue meant when she said the divisions between them were thinner when sleeping. They were able to 'charge' even better when they slept next to each other, making the connection stronger overall.
By meditating with another person, one can direct one's chi to flow through the other and vice versa. In this way, their chi will converge, their paths will merge.
This type of meditation would be out of reach for most people. One's chi is naturally self-contained, so directing it to flow outside of its normal path through another body should be extremely difficult, if not impossible.
And yet, here they were. To Katara, their chi flowed together so easily it almost felt like they were just one entity. It had been like that since the very first time she had touched him in when they had been held prisoner in the caves. Katara chewed her bottom lip and looked sideways to check on Zuko. Still completely unbothered, she thought with an eye roll as she returned to her thoughts.
They wanted to be able to understand the bond, she reasoned; they wanted to know all of its limitations so they could better understand their future. Most importantly, Katara wanted to know if their connection was permanent. If they were given this connection for a reason, did it cease to exist when they achieved whatever it was meant for? Even though both she and Zuko felt they somehow knew the connection was permanent, Katara's own insecurities demanded she confirm that—especially before she committed to living in the Fire Nation after the war ended. To answer any of their questions, they had decided they needed to do what the bond seemed to be urging them to do: convergent meditate. And yet, everytime time they attempted it, despite how euphoric it felt in the moment, there always seemed to be something missing.
She sighed; the more she thought about the problem, the more insurmountable it seemed. Sitting here, knowing she and Zuko potentially had all this power to aid Aang at their fingertips, but were unable to control it, Katara felt helpless. It felt like she was back in the South Pole, floundering and trying to teach herself to bend, knowing she could do it but unable to make it work.
Katara could feel herself getting more and more frustrated. She took a deep, calming breath, focusing on the distant sound of the water trickling into the pool. She needed to think clearly; if the bond was similar to waterbending, how had she eventually mastered that? Katara frowned, I guess I mastered the basics, she mused. She thought about how much time it had taken to perfect her water whip, one of the most basic offensive moves. But, once she had the hang of the whip, once she became familiar with the fundamental push and pull of waterbending, everything else came easier.
So, Katara reasoned, to know more about something, one should start from the beginning.
The Waterbender returned to her memories of her first experience with the bond. Their connection had changed somewhat while they were in constant, close proximity on the ship, becoming a stable, buzzing hum of desire for Zuko's company. Katara was thinking about how she had felt back in the caves, holding her hand hesitantly up to his face. The bond had felt as if it was pushing her whole being at Zuko almost violently, and pulling back on him desperately with that same fervor. She thought about the pull she had felt, and how the distance between them felt so much thinner than the distance between anyone else. Even now, she was more aware of Zuko than ever before, no matter how far he was. When she was sitting next to him or holding his hand, she felt almost as if she could pull him into her body.
Katara thought harder about that feeling, that pull, so similar to the push and pull of her element. Shetried to recreate the sensation within her mind, uncomfortably confronting those feelings of desperate need. She unconsciously closed her eyes as she slipped her hand into her boyfriend's, taking deep breaths as she looked inside herself and reached out with her senses, focusing on the feeling that was purely Zuko just on the edge. The bond felt different than every other time Katara had tried to meditate with it. She felt like she finally understood it, what it was meant for, and what she needed to do, and like she could finally see exactly how precious the connection between them was. Katara was able to finally focus, so she focused with all her might, reached into the buzzing void between them, and pulled hard.
The pair gasped in synchrony as the world faded to black around them.
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Zuko woke with a gasp, flat on his back in a bright, white, endlessly large room. He shot to his feet in a Firebending stance immediately, temporarily blinded by the stark brightness after what had felt like an eternity in the dark.
The Prince looked around slowly at the clearly empty room as he tried to remember what happened. He had been meditating with Katara…
Katara?! Where are you? Zuko frantically projected his question through their bond, but there was no response. The emptiness of the white room was beginning to make him dizzy as he whirled with frantic eyes, searching for the Waterbender. The air inside his 'cell' felt thin and dry, and Zuko nearly choked on it as he began to feel panic rising within him. In this endlessly white room, with no way to tell what was up or down, left or right, there was no use moving, but he needed to find his bonded. His body practically buzzed with discomfort without her there. Katara, where are you?
Zuko? It was faint, but it was there.
Katara! But the connection had gone silent. Zuko dropped to his knees, one hand tangling in his hair, the other pounding the ground with a closed fist in frustration.
He wanted her here with him dammit!
He stared hard at the bright, white room, willing the Waterbender to present herself at his side, where she was meant to be. He concentrated so hard he almost didn't notice at first. It happened slowly, but with the background of the endlessly white room, it was easy to see all the brilliant designs that appeared, even through all his anger and frustration. Soon, the Firebender was able to see individual swirls and hazes of color where they had been none before. The gossamer strands hung silently in the air, offering no explanation for their appearance. He looked around in wonder at the different brilliant lights surrounding him, and quickly noticed a piece that stood out among the rest, it's blue color so distinct, shining through all the other colors on the spectrum, the strand calling out to his senses in every way, practically beckoning him towards it. The swirl of bright, brilliant blue extended into the distance and, though it was twisting and turning, his eyes were able to follow the strand further than all the ones surrounding it as it twisted and turned around the others before continuing through the wall.
Following some unknown instinct, Zuko cautiously approached that blue strand. He walked around it once, examining it from all angles as he tried to figure out where it started and where it ended. There was no discernible beginning or end, and the Firebender's impatience finally got the best of him. Fuck it, Zuko thought to himself, thinking of Katara. This was the only choice he seemed to have in this room, so he was going to follow his gut, hoping the quicker he complied, the quicker he could have his girlfriend back. Having decided his course of action, he approached the glowing strand, reached out with both hands, grasped it and pulled.
All at once, Zuko felt something slam into him, taking the air out of him with a whoosh. The tale-tell tingling of the bond told him exactly who it was.
Katara! Zuko yelled frantically in his thoughts, but anything Katara was going to say back was drowned out by air rushing past them so loudly he couldn't hear himself think. The cold, solid ground had disappeared from under his feetand the momentum of her fall was pushing them both down, down, down…..
They fell for some time, the endless blackness just as maddening as the white room before it. He tried to stay focused on the feeling of Katara's body on his, calming his mind and simply relishing the knowledge that at least they were together. They landed softlyーbelying their extreme speed of descent. Zuko barely took a brief glance at their surroundings, observing that they were in what seemed to be a moonlit meadow clearing in the middle of a forest, before he wrapped Katara in a hug, holding her close.
Where are we? He asked her as he smoothed her long, dark hair, reassuring himself that she was there and okay. Her chocolate eyes were hazy with confusion as she met his golden ones. Where were you?
Iー
Before the Waterbender could continue, she was interrupted by a focused beam of light coming directly from the moon. Both teens were forced to shade their eyes as the beam of light became unbearably bright and, while Zuko would usually be concerned about their vulnerability, something about this place calmed him of his anxieties from before. Though all this had happened quickly, whatever they had done had clearly landed them here—and now that he knew Katara was safe and unharmed, Zuko would be damned if they let this opportunity to learn more about their connection slip away because he was afraid—they would face this challenge—whatever it was— head on and together. After some time, the light finally dimmed and the couple could shakily give their hands a break from covering their eyes. Zuko pushed Katara's body behind his own right before they finally got a glimpse of what the light had been obscuring.
The clearing they were standing in had been transformed into a meadow in full bloom. On the far side of the meadow, thick bushes of flowers that bloomed in a plethora of brilliant colors had formed a circle, in the center of which there was a crystal clear, blue pool of water sunken into the ground. The bright, flowery aisle stood in contrast to the dark background of trees on the path to the pool and, behind the pool, standing tall, pale and ethereal and bathed in moonlight, was Yue.
Somewhere in the back of his mind, Zuko realized this scene looked very familiar. It was like an even more lush version of the clearing they had been meditating in in Shu Jing. The Prince decided not to take too much time to think more on it right this moment, however, as he reached for his girlfriend's hand, pulling her forward. Yue was the only guide they had, and with the way she had helped them so far, he trusted her. The aisle of flowers made it clear which path they should take, and together they practically stumbled through the flowers, the perfumed air and surrealness of the entire experience putting them into a kind of daze that numbed them into malleable putty. Before he knew it, they found themselves directly in front of the Moon Spirit, her presence giving the air around her an unnatural warmth. Despite this, Katara's body trembled violently next to him, her hand chilled in his own.
His instinct was to comfort her, but he suddenly felt all too warm, as if he was burning up. Looking at her face, pinched in pain and discomfort, it was like a switch flipped in his brain. Suddenly, that exhausting, wracking, burning pain from the bond caused by Katara's absence was back full force. It was as if she was miles away rather than right next to him, tucked into his side where she belonged. Zuko shuddered in exhaustion, suddenly barely feeling able to stay on his feet. His inner fire flared somewhere inside his chest, the warmth usually simmering just below the surface heating his whole being uncomfortably from the inside out. The bonded couple trembled in sync as they stood before the Moon Spirit, who watched them with a smile that was somehow sad and resigned, yet proud and loving all at the same time. She dangled one long, tan arm towards them, barely brushing the top of Zuko's head, but the Prince felt a small surge of strength. She smiled again.
"Trust me children; I, above all, know how you are feeling," she gestured to the pool, "You are strong, you will feel better soon, but you cannot continue to deny."
Without his consent, Zuko felt his legs moving toward the pool, his body pulled along partially by Katara, who was naturally comforted by the sight of water. Yue continued speaking, her melodic voice compelling them along. Without being told, the teens stripped on their way until they stood, bared naked as the day they were born to the warm air, right at the water's edge.
"I apologize, this process usually takes much more time...it is a large choice, after all," she took a deep, cleansing breath and the whole clearing seemed to breath with her.
Zuko stepped in slowly, lulled into further compliance by the warmth of the water. Steam rose off the surface, perfumed thickly by the flowery air. He looked back to offer a hand to his Waterbender, guiding her steps into the pool then drawing her into his side. They both turned to Yue, curiously absent of embarrassment despite their lack of clothing. They waited as the Moon Goddess bent to pick up a previously unseen knife, a plain silver thing that gleamed sharply in the moonlight. She then made her way to the bonded pair, walking weightlessly to the water's edge, then into the pool to stand across from them in the center.
"The fate of the world hangs in the balance. To help the Avatar restore balance to the world is your fate."
The former Northern Water Tribe Princess swept all of her pale hair over her shoulder to one side, exposing one long, snow white strand at the base of her neck. She raised the knife slowly, using one hand to hold the lock of hair while the other swung the knife without hesitation, separating the chunk from her scalp. With his new vision, Zuko could see the energy swirling and changing within the strand. As Zuko observed the spirit's actions and looked to the Waterbender tucked into his side, a deeply hidden memory was sparked in the Fire Prince's head; tales of lovers throughout the history of the Fire Nation engaging in a ceremony that would bind them for this life and the next.
Unbidden, Zuko took Katara's hand in his own, holding their joined hands up to the spirit like an offering. She smiled proudly.
"You know what you are accepting?" She asked, the long white lock dangling from her hand and swaying in the light breeze, the swirls of energy tailing playfully behind it.
"Yes," Zuko answered, without hesitation.
"It cannot be undone," she warned one last time.
"We know," Katara assured her. Zuko's head snapped to her in surprise, but she simply looked up into the Prince's face, smiling at him reassuringly. A feeling of rightness settled over him, and he was smiling back when the bond suddenly contracted between them, causing the teens to double over in pain. Worry flashed across the Spirit's face as she took in their obvious agony.
"We must hurry!" She exclaimed, lunging forward to grab the pairs joined hands, "The bond can either be accepted or denied. It cannot exist in between, uncompleted. Energy will flow uninterrupted, or it will not flow at all." Yue's slender fingers nimbly arranged their hands the right way, then began to loop the long lock of hair around their joined wrists. She wrapped the hair around before knotting the ends tightly three times.
Somehow, both teens knew this was the moment of truth. The Waterbender looked to her bonded, face open and trusting despite the tension around her eyes. They could both feel the pull worse than ever now, even worse than the bond had been in the caves right at the beginning.
Are you ready?
Zuko nodded at her, leaning in to press a kiss to her lips. In synch, they turned to face the Moon Spirit, who took both of their hands tightly in her own, hooking the piece of hair holding them together with a single, slender finger.
"Flow anew," she atoned. Without warning, she yanked sharply on their wrists, propelling them forward into the water with supernatural strength. The water rushed over the pair's heads, revitalizing them with energy after the torture the bond had been wracking on their bodies. For a brief moment, while suspended in silence in the crystal clear water, illuminated by the moonlight, Zuko opened his eyes to see Katara looking back at him.
The meadow was soon left completely silent as they drifted together into the darkness.
ZutaraZutaraZutaraZutaraZutaraZutaraZutara
Author's Note: Guys, I'm so sorry this took so long to get up. Real life took over and I had family visiting, am trying to move, and have a lot going on with work/school at the moment. I'm sorry to leave this cliffhanger, but I couldn't write anymore and I wanted to give you guys something. This chapter is like the fifth iteration I've written of the same sequence, and I think I am finally to a point where it feels good enough to share. I've probably read this thing at least 30 times, and that's not exaggerating.
I am going with the "Aang actually kisses Katara in the Cave of Two Lovers" thing simply because it's convenient for the scene, which I wrote before remembering that Aang and Katara hadn't actually kissed yet. But I like how it turned out, the scene with Toph is another one I agonized over.
To the guest who asked why I refer to Katara's hair as curly: I think it's about context. In this universe, everyone else we see has silky, straight hair of varying tones, but no wave or texture to be seen. As a black woman with kinky hair, I'll be the last person to call someone's hair curly if it's actually not, I promise you :D. I was just thinking about it in the context of the characters and the universe, and I assume that's what every other author in fanfic is doing when they write it that way as well *shrug emoji*.