All right, I got day 2 ready to go! Prompt: disguise.

happy reading!


"Zuko, you have to wear it if you want to go into town!" Katara huffs as she pushes the hat into his hands for the 10th time that day. It was Ember Islands Fire Festival and they all decided to go into town to have some fun before Sozin's Comet.

He rolls his eyes at her and scoffs. "A hat? That's the best you guys can come up with?"

Katara raises an eyebrow and crosses her arms. "What do you suggest? Suki has some makeup if you want to go that route." She smirks as she watches Zuko's face go paler than normal.

"No!"

"Then wear the hat."

"Katara, I'm not wearing a stupid hat!" he stalks into the house leaving the gang all staring after him. Why was he giving her such an attitude over a hat?

"Sparky has some serious issues with hats. Is it ugly or somethin'?" Toph asks.

Aang shrugs as he touches the top of the hat he's wearing, "I don't understand the big deal, I like my hat!"

Katara rolls her eyes, "You guys go ahead, we'll meet up with you later."

Suki steps forward and places a concerned hand on Katara's arm, "Are you sure?" Katara glances in the direction Zuko took off in and sighs. "Yeah, you guys go. We'll be there soon."

"Alright, people! Let's go!" Sokka yells as they head off to town.

Katara huffs in frustration as she heads back into the beach house in search of the most infuriating person she knows. Who knew that making up with Zuko would make them close enough that she knew this was more than about some hat.

She walks down the hallway to his room to see it empty, "Zuko?"

She passes a few more rooms before finding him in the balcony of the last room on the left.

Katara had never been in this room before. She remembers Zuko mentioning that it was off limits to everyone but him. She never bothered asking since she didn't care at the time, but the more she takes in the room the more she notices the feminine touches.

It's his mother's room.

"So," Katara starts as she walks up behind him. "Is this really about a hat?"

She see him tense at hearing her voice but then slumps his shoulders in defeat.

Of course she'd come looking for me.

Katara walks out on to the balcony and leans against the railing next to Zuko. "Zuko…" He doesn't look at her. "Will you tell me what's bothering you?"

He bites his bottom lip between his teeth and clenches and unclenches his fists. "I don't want to talk about it."

She turns to him exasperated, "Yes we are! What is bothering you about the hat?"

He turns to her, leaning down to get in her face. "It's not about the damn hat!" He brushes past her back into the room and throws himself onto the bed. A small puff of dust gathers in the air but quickly dissipates.

His arm is covering his eyes when Katara rushes into the room. "Then tell me what's wrong!"

He doesn't answer her immediately, but when he does her heart drops to her stomach.

"Today is my mother's birthday and we always went to the Fire Festival every year to celebrate." His voice was quiet, nothing Katara has ever heard from him before, and it made her want to toss the hat out the window and never see it again.

Gently, Katara gets into the bed and lays down beside Zuko. She reaches out to place her hand on his arm covering his eyes. He doesn't push her away, encouraging her to pull his arm away from his face, revealing the small tears gathering in his eyes.

"Zuko…"

"It's stupid." His voice is tight with emotion. Without thought, Katara wraps her arms around his middle and buries her face in his neck. At first she feels him tense at the contact, but then relaxes into her touch.

Katara can feel his arms slowly wrap around her body, pulling her close to him. He rests his head against her temple, slowly stroking her hair.

"No. It's not stupid." She tells him. She can feel the shuddering breath as it passes his lips. She knows he's crying but doesn't say anything.

After a few minutes she feels Zuko pull slightly away from her. She glances up at him, her arms still tight around his body.

"Do you feel any better?" she asks. He smiles down at her grateful he has someone he can talk to when things are tough. Especially since being back at the beach house, there are too many memories here for him to deal with.

He clears his throat, "Y-yeah." he takes a breath. "Yes, I'll be okay." His voice stronger than before.

She smiles up at him, her eyes sparkling with happiness. "Good."

Zuko looks around the room and takes note of the masks on the wall.

"When I was younger, my mother had us wear masks to the Fire Festival." Katara follows his line of vision and takes note of the different spirit masks.

"Would you…" Katara looks up at him and gestures to the masks on the wall. "Would you still like to go to the festival in disguise with me? Only if you want to."

He smiles down at Katara and nods his head, "Yes, I'd love to."