Something shifted in Zuko's grasp. In his sleep, he frowned. What was in his bed? Worse, who was in his bed? The small body (small in comparison to his), moved closer, gripping his arms slightly.

It was obviously still night; Zuko could faintly hear the cricket birds in the nearby trees. With that thought in mind, Zuko decided he couldn't care less about who was in his arms (though if he had been awake enough, he would have figured it out). Instead, he relaxed and fell back asleep.

In his dreams, he was back at the Fire Palace where he belonged. He could feel the hairpiece of the Fire Lord resting on his head and the red robes swishing around his ankles as he walked.

He walked towards what had been his parents' bedroom (now his), pulling aside the foldable screen that blocked the Fire Lord's Quarters from the rest of the palace. Zuko brushed aside the silk banners that acted as doors from the outermost chamber to the ten inner ones. At the center, Zuko knew that something was waiting for him.

Sure enough, in the round innermost chamber, someone was sitting on the feather bed, hidden by the silk canopies. Zuko smiled and shed the heavy robes he was wearing, leaving him in his black shirt and pants he wore under them. He parted the curtain and found himself locked in a tight embrace. Burying his face in the long dark hair of who was obviously his lover, Zuko inhaled the woman's scent. Snow lotuses and moon peaches.

Wait…aren't those Katara's favorite flowers?

Katara…

Zuko woke up, feeling whoever was in his arms stir as well. The person extracted herself from Zuko's arms, turned, and gasped.

"Zuko? What are you doing in my bed?"

"You're bed? I thought this was mine? It was empty when I went to sleep," Zuko retorted, sitting up, trying to hide his blush.

"I had gotten up in the night to get a drink of water and use the bathroom!" Katara said in a loud whisper, not wanting to wake anyone up. "You must have come back and fallen asleep in my bed before I came back. And when I came back, it was pitch black and I didn't see you in my bed, so…"

"You laid down with me," Zuko finished. Katara paled slightly when he put it that way, but nodded. There was an uncomfortable silence. Katara looked at Zuko.

"Let's not tell anyone about this, okay?"

"My lips are sealed."

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"So, I think we should leave sometime tomorrow," Sokka said as he finished his breakfast.

"So soon?" Lakai asked. Sokka nodded, trying to hold back his laughter at the sight of Momo sitting on Lakai's head and the Waterbender doing nothing about it.

"We don't want Azula catching up to us, or bring her anywhere near you, after all you did for my sister," Sokka said. Iroh nodded.

"He's right, Miss Lakai. My niece will be on the trail in a matter of days, if she isn't already," he pointed out. Aang groaned.

"For once I'd like to not think about that creepy girl and her being after me," the young Avatar complained.

"It's an occupational hazard, Aang," Toph said nonchalantly. "Like being blind means you hear and sense things you'd really rather not." She turned her head slightly towards Ty Lee and Sokka. Zuko gathered that there had been a little flirting, at least on Ty Lee's part, the previous night.

Lakai nodded. "Okay. I'll give you guys some supplies and such. How're y'all going to fit on the bison?" Momo's tail fell into her eyes and she brushed it aside carelessly.

The gang paused and looked at each other. With Iroh and the supplies, there'd be little or no room.

"I forgot about that…" Aang muttered. The others nodded. Iroh looked ready to say he'd stay with Lakai, but Zuko knew and stopped him.

"You're coming, Uncle. It took me almost a month to find you; I'm not letting you out of my sight again," he said. Iroh smiled and nodded.

"Anyone got some ostrich horses?" Everyone turned to Ty Lee. She blushed. "Just an idea."

"And a pretty good one," Sokka said, thinking. "We'll need…at least two ostrich horses."

Lakai nodded and stood. "It's Tuesday, right?" At the nods, Lakai started at jog towards Len Sung. "Be back in a few!"

She did return, with three ostrich horses in tow. Aang cheered and ran over to pet them. "I love ostrich horses!" Lakai smiled and handed him the reins.

"Why do you need the horses anyway?" she asked. Sokka looked the said animals over.

"What's with the small one?" he asked. Lakai looked at it.

"It's the baby, too young to be away from the mother right now, so I got her free. Why do you need them?"

"Good question," Katara agreed.

"I'm with them!" came Toph's remark.

"Shut up and I'll tell you." Sokka waited for silence. "Thank you. Now, there's room for three, maybe four, people on Appa with the supplies, right?"

"Right," Katara and Toph said in unison

"Two people can fit on an ostrich horse, right?"

"Right."

"So, three people ride Appa, while the other four ride the horses to the same place. We camp, Toph trains Aang in Earthbending, you practice Waterbending with him, sis, and…would one of you two teach Aang Firebending?" Sokka asked, turning to Iroh and Zuko.

Iroh bowed. "It would be an honor."

Sokka nodded and clapped his hands together. "Well then, we're all set. Or, at least, we will be once we get everything together," he added as an afterthought.

Katara applauded slightly. "Not bad, Sokka," she congratulated.

Zuko smirked. "You actually have a brain."

"Thanks…hey!" Sokka looked offended when everyone else started laughing. Oddly, the one laughing the hardest was his sister.

It about two hours to get the luggage divided up and loaded, and then it took at least three quarters of another hour to decide who would travel with who and how first. Iroh got Appa, due his age, and Sokka insisted that Katara got to ride Appa as well. ("She's my baby sister and she was injured!") The problem was who was going to ride with them.

The matter of their traveling arrangements settled, Toph, Katara, and Iroh sat back while Aang and Sokka fought it out. Ty Lee was standing by for mediating purposes and Lakai was getting some more herbs for them to take along in case of sickness. Zuko was just standing there, bored.

Toph turned to Katara. "By the way, you may not have noticed it, but Sokka's been flirting with Ty Lee. And it hasn't even been a full week yet."

"What? Agreeing with her and elaborating on her idea? That's not flirting; that's just Sokka," Katara retorted. "You've still got two weeks."

Meanwhile, Zuko was just letting Sokka drone on.

"I'm her brother!"

"Yeah, but I'm the Avatar!"

"I say Zuko rides." Everyone turned to Lakai, who had just exited her shrine-tent. "Here, Katara. Blessed and everything." She noticed the stares. "What? Zuko apparently is the only one capable of protecting her (and that's what you two are really saying), so let him do it."

"Why?" Aang and Sokka asked, awed.

"He's the only one not throwing a fit."

She had them there. Therefore, after they had settled on a landing place, Katara waved to her brother and Aang as Appa flew off with her and two Firebenders.

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Wow, chapter sixteen and no kiss! That's the longest I've gone without any MAJOR MAJOR fluff, I think... Don't worry, it's just them and Iroh in the next chapter, and we all know how much Iroh loves Zutara...