Note: I'm going to be really messing with the timeline in between the Solar Eclipse and the comet. I want time to establish relationships, and I wanted my OC to come in when Katara started trusting Zuko. To be frank, it's my story, and I plan on making it work the way I want it to. I really hope you enjoy it. Also, in my story, Katara is 18, and Zuko is 20. I'm going to have an M relationship between them.
Blueeyeddevil06, thank you for being my beta! Thank you even more for being my friend.
Akal was exhausted. He traveled back through time using the Solar Eclipse and then spent time trying to locate the group. On top of that, he had just met his mother for the first time in years, and he had to keep it together. He wanted to weep when he saw her young, healthy, and alive.
When he got to the group, Katara introduced him; they all looked at him skeptically. He didn't blame them. After all, he was there because of his aunt's betrayal. He was glad they were wary of him.
When he finally laid down for the night, he fell asleep quickly. He was exhausted physically, but even more so emotionally. In the early morning, way before dawn, he woke up screaming. He hadn't done that in years, but apparently, with him traveling back in time to save his mother, his nightmares of her death had come back.
He woke the whole camp, and he acted like he didn't remember his nightmare. He tried to casually ask for them to help him remember it with anything he said out loud. He was trying to discover if he was talking in his sleep. To his relief, he had not.
When everyone went back to bed, he stared into the middle distance. In the early morning, he worried about failure. He tried to block out that possibility. He had to kill Azula. Everyone was counting on him.
The following day when he was staring at the campfire, Katara sat next to him. "You seem haunted."
He forced himself to look her in the eyes. "I am. I'm trying to do something about that, though. I'm fighting for those I love."
"Good." She smiled at him. "Just make sure you get plenty to eat." She then got up and finished preparing breakfast.
He smiled. Even now, without knowing who he was, she was mothering him. It felt incredible. It didn't surprise him that it was his obvious pain that got her to start to warm up to him. She always had a soft spot for those that were suffering.
He looked up and noticed Zuko glaring at him. He wanted to laugh out loud. His father was jealous of the attention his mother was giving him. If Zuko only knew what he had planned, he wouldn't be so upset. He intended to help push his parents together. He knew of Aang's feelings for his mother at the time, and he had no intention of watching him flirt with her.
He made sure to eat enough that morning. He blushed when Katara smiled at him. Zuko and Aang both glared at him. He didn't manage to hold back a chuckle at that.
After breakfast, he offered to clean up. He knew he needed to work to become part of the group. He wanted them to trust him. He needed to stay close to them after all.
He watched Zuko sigh, and his shoulder slouched. He then shook his head and seemed to come to a decision. He walked over to Akal, "Can we take a walk and talk a bit?"
"Sure…" He didn't know what to expect from his father.
They walked away from the group. "This is going to be really hypocritical of me, but if you're going to betray them, you need to walk away now."
"Them? Don't you mean all of you?" He looked at Zuko in confusion.
He shook his head, "I'm not sure how much I'm part of the group yet. Aang needs someone to teach him Firebending. That's why they let me in."
"I think it's more than that, Zuko." Every time he used his parent's names, it felt awkward. He was hoping he would get used to it soon. "Katara trusts you now."
Zuko looked at him in shock, "What do you know about all of that?"
He tried to cover his slip-up. He knew the timeline from Zuko himself in the future. "I saw Katara smiling at you when your back was turned earlier." Why not start getting them together right away? "You implied that you weren't part of the group, but she doesn't seem to feel that way."
"She was smiling at me?" Zuko got a goofy look on his face. He was incredibly pleased. "I didn't know that."
"I did say it was when you turned your back. What's going on between you two?"
"Ugh! I'm crazy about her, but don't tell anyone. Aang likes her. No way would she choose me over the Avatar."
Akal rolled his eyes, "So since he's the Avatar, he 'deserves' her?"
"I didn't say that!" Zuko looked at him, shocked.
"Basically, you did. Think about it."
"He's just so good." Zuko sighed and rubbed his hand through his hair. "I'm just not good enough for her." He looked Akal in the eyes. "I wish I could be, but I'm not."
Gosh, he wanted to shake his father and tell him he was amazing with Katara. He adored her and everyone, even Aang said they were incredible together. He used to love watching his mother smile up at his father and take his hand. They'd kiss, and at the time, he thought it was embarrassing, but now it was a fond memory.
Instead, what he said was, "I don't think that love is about deserving. It's about finding that person you want to be a better person for and who you inspire to feel that way about you."
"I feel that way about her, but I don't think I'd ever inspired that in her. I wouldn't even know how to start."
"Just be you."
Zuko chuckled darkly, "That's the problem."
They were interrupted by Sokka. He plopped down next to them and said, "So, what are you two plotting?" He gave them a goofy grin.
"Other than Ozai's destruction?" Akal shot back. "I'm giving him advice on women. After all," He gave a cock grin. "I'm good with the ladies."
Sokka rolled his eyes, "Have a girlfriend right now?"
"No."
Sokka gave him a playful shove. "Then what makes you think you have good advice? I'm actually dating someone."
Akal scoffed and said, laughing, "Your first girlfriend became the moon to get away from you. Maybe Zuko needs advice from someone who didn't chase a girl from the planet!" Zuko started laughing so hard he was crying.
"Hey, how do you know about that?!"
"You're famous. Word gets around." He realized not letting on how much he knows would be a problem. So far, he could just pretend he heard about them from others. "I noticed you didn't deny it."
Zuko managed to stop laughing enough to say, "Yeah. He sure didn't."
Sokka cracked a smile. He could appreciate a good joke even if it was at his expense. "Fine. That was funny. But, I still say I'm the only one with a stable relationship in this group."
Akal shrugged, "I'll admit it. I'm at a disadvantage, though. I have a very high standard for marriage. My mother was… perfect."
"Was?" Zuko picked up on the past tense, and his heart went out to Akal for some reason.
Akal swallowed hard and nodded. "She died when I was young. It's… hard to talk about. My father never remarried. He won't. She was his other half, and…" He couldn't continue. He had a lump in his throat, and he was about to cry. He knew that this Zuko, his father, had love and then devastating loss ahead.
Sokka nodded, "My mother was killed when I was younger. It's not really something you get over. You just kinda get through it."
Akal shook his head. "No. Not this time. There isn't any getting through it."
Zuko looked at him with sympathetic eyes. "What choice do you have?"
"You have no idea." He smirked. "I'd rip the whole world apart to save her. As it is… Nevermind. It's… complicated."
"Katara said you liked that word," Sokka pointed out. "Don't worry. You'll open up to us."
"What makes you think that?"
"We're awesome!" Sokka pointed to Zuko. "That guy hated us, and now he's on Team Sokka! We grow on you."
"Like a fungus, and who said the team was named after you?" Zuko asked.
"It's always named after the brains of the group. That's me!"
Zuko rolled his eyes. "We're never going to beat my father if you're the brains of the group."
"Hey!" Sokka objected. "I'm brilliant. Just ask Momo."
"He'll agree to anything for food. Of course, so will you."
"All this coming from someone who spent all that time trying to hunt us down. You even sent that assassin, 'Combustion Man' after us."
"Once again, that's not his name!"
"Once again, I don't care. He tried to kill us." Sokka crossed his arms and glared at Zuko. "I can call him whatever I want."
Zuko rubbed his hair nervously, "Right. Sorry about that again."
Akal tried not to show his shock to Zuko and Sokka. He couldn't believe they could joke about such dark things. "You sent an assassin after them?" He actually hadn't ever been told that story.
Zuko blushed, "Yeah. I was… It was when I was still bad. I thought I was good, but then I realized that I wasn't." He sighed. "Well…"
"No, I get it. We all do things we regret. You did something to fix your mistakes, though. That's important."
"Yeah."
Sokka stood, "Well, it's time we should get going. Just a bit of a warning, Akal, Katara's determined to figure out your story." He gave him a wicked grin. "Good luck with that."
