The Palace (Ongoing)

by LittleMartian

Novel Length. Things go on behind closed doors in palaces, everyone knows that. But when it is decided that Prince Zuko and Prince Lu Ten need to find wives, will the selected girls have what it takes to get past the secrecy and revenge that goes on where the royal families lie? Will Princess Katara have the strength? Zutara and many surprise pairings AU

22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

I dedicate this chapter to: Azzia for making me get my butt in gear, PurseMonger and InItToWinIT because they gave me some constructive criticism that I'm trying to fix. Throughout the week, I'm going to try and work on what you guys said.

Katara

"I know you might not…feel the same way…and I'm sorry for that…but I like you Zuko. A lot. Probably more than I actually want to admit."

There. She said it. He was strong, and caring and smart, but more than that, he had a good sense of what was right, and he had a good heart. She meant what she said to Iroh, that there was potential in him to do something good in this world. He was condescending…but not unwilling to change. Proper, but not unwilling to make a little mischief. She might have started paying more attention him as a result of Iroh's request, but now she wanted to know what Zuko was like, without his family around him. Did she love him? No, they were not at that point…but she was falling fast

The only issue, of course, was if Zuko didn't feel the same way about her. But he said he cared for her—as a friend, perhaps? Maybe. She hoped it was more than that. But Zuko didn't say a word as he stared at her in disbelief, brows arched and eyes wide, mouth opening and closing as though he intended to speak, but was unable to say anything.

But before he could ask it, Wu appeared. In his hand he held a little black folder with a corner of a white sheet of paper "Is there anything that you kids need?"

"N-No," Zuko didn't look up as Wu began speaking. "We're fine, thank you." Zuko said gruffly, voice hard.

"Alright then," Wu smiled at the pair, not noticing Zuko's attitude. He left them alone again, after placing the bill on the table between them. Katara and Zuko stared at each other in silence, each waiting for the other to speak and end the awkward tension. Zuko cleared his throat, looking down. He picked up the folder and scanned the amount listed.

"Zuko, what were you going to say?" Katara asked him, feeling her heart beat faster.

He looked up. Zuko reached into the drawstring bag at his side and pulled out a handful of coins. Putting the black folder down, Zuko put the coin amount on top absentmindedly and avoided Katara's eyes. Instead, he focused his attention on the restaurant, which was filling up again.

"We shouldn't talk about this here." He muttered, his lips barely moving. "There's too many people."

She was shaking, even if he didn't feel the same way, it would have been nice to hear the words aloud instead of imagining his response. As he stood, he took Katara's hand in his own, squeezing tightly, not letting go. After checking to make sure the drawstring was tied securely, Zuko made his way towards the door.

"Did you even hear a word I said?"

Zuko looked back at her; his eyes were hidden, guarded. "Hm? Oh, yes I heard what you said." They left the restaurant and entered the throng of people. They made their way onto the street, but Katara had enough. Her eyes narrowed, and her lips pressed into a hard line. Their voices were covered by the noise that everyone else made, shouting, and talking loudly.

Raising her voice, she leaned up towards his ear. "And? What do you have to say?" Katara stopped walking. But Zuko didn't reply. He still didn't say a word. She pulled her hand from his and pointed an accusing finger at him. Her voice grew louder as they stood on the busy street.

"Katara, let me explain—," He tried to say.

"No." As she grew angrier, Katara's hands became more animated. "This whole time, you've been so wishy-washy with me—first accusing me of not wanting to be seen in public with you—and then I tell you how I feel, I tell you that I really like you and you just ignore me like I never said anything?" She knew she was rambling, and she could feel the panic creep into her voice, but could you really blame her?

"Katara, you're overreacting." Zuko said, trying to calm her down. But Katara didn't want to be calm. People were staring at them as they passed by the arguing teenagers and Katara didn't care, let them stare. According to those two idiotic Fire Nation girls, she was something to be laughed at anyway, so what difference did it make who was doing the laughing?

"No, I'm not overreacting." She hissed at him, frostily.

Zuko looked around, and then reached for Katara's hand and pulled her deeply into the alleyway. Her back was to the main street, and Zuko faced her. The buildings around them cast a dark shadow across Zuko's face, and to anyone passing by, it might have seemed untoward.

"Katara, I feel the same as you do. I like you a lot. And like you said, I like you probably a lot more than I should."

He said these words in a rush, but his verbal confirmation of what his eyes were telling her was ringing in her ears. Time had slowed down to the point that every word took minutes for her to process, whole sentences took hours, and her heart seemed like it would beat this fast for millennia to come. But she couldn't get lost in the moment, because there was something hidden in Zuko's eyes, something that made her wary.

"But there's something more to it?" Katara asked him. "Something you don't want to tell me."

"No, there's nothing wrong or anything…I just…" He took a deep breath. "The last time I poured my heart out to someone—,"

"Mai." Katara stated. "You poured your heart out to Mai."

"Yes. Right. It was Mai—Anyway, like I said, the last time I confessed how I felt, she basically laughed at me, and told me to get lost."

Katara gasped and covered her mouth, feeling a renewed dislike for Mai. "I—I'm so sorry."

Zuko's eyes grew hard, but Katara knew that he wasn't angry at her, he was reliving all of the embarrassment and humiliation that he felt at the hands of Mai. "Everyone was there. My mother, my father, Uncle, Lu Ten…Azula…Tiang…and even Zhao." Zuko's fingers balled into fists and his shoulders shook. "I was never so embarrassed…so mortified…and she just expected me to sit there and accept it. I mean I wouldn't have forced her to stay with me but—,"

"To do it so callously…" Katara murmured, placing a hand on his shoulder, shaking her head sadly. "She doesn't deserve you."

Zuko licked his lips, eyes saddened. "And I don't deserve you. I'm not—,"

She felt something then, and it was like last time, the only difference being that she knew what to expect. She saw the way his eyes changed; how they grew darker the closer he got to her face. She closed her eyes when he was only a few centimeters away, and then it happened. He kissed her, pressing his lips against hers in the darkness of the alleyway. It was soft, it was sweet, and it didn't last very long, but it was perfect.

Back home, she never imagined that one day she'd be kissing Zuko in an alleyway.

When they broke away, Zuko backed away from her slightly. "I-I'm sorry." He stammered, looking apologetic. "I-I don't know why…I just felt—,"

She cut him off, smile widening. "I felt it too, it's fine, Zuko. Trust me, I don't mind when you kiss me."

Zuko looked relieved. "So…then I can kiss you again?" He asked, his eyes shining even in the darkness of the alleyway.

"Would I have told you that I liked you if you couldn't?" She said, and Zuko kissed her again briefly. It was only a small peck on the lips, because Zuko ended the kiss faster than she would have liked. She stepped back from him and raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you insatiable now?" She chuckled quietly.

His mouth curled temptingly, and he leaned forward again, she pursed her lips, but he pulled away suddenly, gasping sharply. He placed his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face the street. "Katara, look." He said, pointing over her shoulder.

Looking through the crowd of people going about their daily business, Katara saw a figure walking next to a plain palanquin. The ruby butterfly decoration glittered in the midday sun, but even through the glare, there was no mistaking that figure walking beside the palanquin.

"That's Zhao." Katara gasped, and she gripped Zuko's hand tighter. Zhao didn't appear to notice them, being on the other side of the street, but there was this overwhelming fear inside of her that Zhao would turn around and see them.

"That's good news and bad news." Zuko said warily, trying to be reassuring, but Katara was nowhere near being reassured. Not in the slightest. "The good news is... you didn't kill him. The bad news is...He knows you did something to him."

Katara whirled around, tears in her eyes. She let go of Zuko's hand and flung her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest. "Zuko, what am I going to do? He tried to—he said he'd kill me."

"Shh, Katara, relax." He said. One arm wrapped around her, pulling her to his chest and the other went to her hair as he consoled her, running his fingers through her hair soothingly. He was so warm. He always was. It was comforting, and suddenly she was reminded of the smell of him. Cherries and smoke. "As long as you're here…you'll have the full protection of the royal family." Zuko told her firmly.

She snorted mockingly. "I believed that once, and then Mai tried to choke me in the bathroom."

"Mai and I are over. I actually don't know if we were ever together. But I'm going to protect you, Katara."

"I…" She hesitated. "I believe you. But…I'm not going to let my guard down." She nodded and turned around. The palanquin, along with Zhao had moved further up the street, heading towards the palace. Once they were far enough away, Katara took Zuko's hand and they moved out of the alleyway into the street.

Holding Zuko's hand felt…nice. It was warm, and it was a constant reminder of the fact that she and Zuko were a thing now. Was there a name for this stage in a relationship? Were they dating? Were they just more than friends? She wished her mother or Yue were here with her. They would know. Her mother! She'd have to write her, she'd be happy at least.

"I'd like to know who was in that palanquin though." Zuko said, murmuring to himself. "Couldn't have been someone very wealthy…"

"It was Tiang." She whispered, and Zuko let go of her hand and stopped.

His eyes were wide. "What? You're kidding." Zuko shook his head in disbelief. "Concubines aren't allowed out of the palace without an escort. It's tradition and even a law of the Palace."

She said confidently, "I'm telling you, when I was finished with Jet, I heard Tiang's voice coming from Zhao's office." They started walking again, and but Zuko's fingers intertwined with her own. Her heart sped up a bit, but she was more focused on trying to explain the situation to Zuko.

Zuko nodded thoughtfully. "What were they talking about?"

Katara swallowed and looked around. Zhao was long gone, but there were still people everywhere, all around them. "About Kyoshi—"

A loud shout from down the street stopped her from continuing her sentence. Katara turned around in surprise only to find a large commotion outside of Wu's shop. Some people ran away, but others ran towards the tumult, shouting and yelling words that she couldn't make out. A group of people had formed outside of the entrance, but Katara was still too far to see it. Something was wrong. Letting go of Zuko's hand, she made her way towards the source of the disorder, but he placed a hand on her shoulder, jerking her back. She turned towards him.

"Katara what are you doing?" He asked her, concern in her eyes.

"Something's wrong Zuko. What if it's Wu? Or someone else?" She told him seriously.

But Zuko fired back just as intense. "Even so, what can you do about it? If someone's hurt, you can't heal them without letting everyone know who you're."

"I know." She said firmly, but she turned around anyway. "I can still try and see what's going on though."

She followed the people to Wu's shop, but by the time she got there, the crowd had already formed to the point where seeing through was impossible. Next to Wu's restaurant was a fruits and vegetable stand, and next to that was a weapons store. Katara searched for something that would provide her leverage to see. There were suits of armor outside of the weapons shop, but she could hardly take a suit of armor and stand on it. Looking around some more, she eyed a large, overturned vegetable crate on the curb of the street, Katara ran over to it and stood on top of it. The crate provided her with enough height to see over the heads of the passer-by. There were five men standing opposite the entrance to the restaurant in dark red military uniforms.

They had helmets that covered their faces, but they looked like men from the Fire Nation army. They wore black armbands on their right arms with some kind of character that she couldn't quite make out. In their hands, they held rocks…one of them had a shovel. Katara leaned forward to get a better look. However, the crate was uneven on the cobblestone street. She wobbled, but two arms held her up by the small of her back. She gasped and turned around.

Zuko's golden eyes looked back at her. "I've got you." She sighed, looking relieved. "Now move over so I can see too."

She moved over, Zuko's arm moving to encircle her waist, and Katara took his other hand as he helped himself up onto it. The crate creaked under their combined weight but looked sturdy enough. As Zuko balanced himself, she asked him, "…What are you—,"

He placed a kiss to her temple and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Did you really think that I'd let you go off into a crowd and not be with you? I'm surprised at you Sapphire." Katara wanted to smile at his use of her cover name.

"I can take care of myself, Lee."

"I know you can." He told her. "But still."

She was going to reply when the man in front started to shout. He had a broad face and a large nose with a very thick mustache. Katara assumed him to be the leader, but he swayed on his feet, and his speech was slurred. She thought he might be drunk. "Hey old man...I'm callin' you here…Wu I'm not gonna call you again!" The threat in his voice was neutralized somewhat by the slurr. "Don't…hic…make me have…to come in there mahself! I'm gonna…count…to 10…and if you're not out…I'm gonna make you wish you was!"

He began to count to ten in the wrong order, every number out of place. The five men standing behind him gripped their weapons tighter. Several people in the crowd covered their mouths in shock but despite the threat, Wu didn't come out of the restaurant and Katara didn't know if he was being purposefully stubborn or not. When the man spoke, Zuko's breath hitched.

"What's wrong?" She whispered to him.

"I know those men." He whispered back, and Katara's eyes grew wide. He continued, "Those were Zhao's most loyal followers. When my Uncle dishonorably discharged him from the military, they left with him."

"Was Zhao that popular?" She asked, turning her head towards him.

Zuko nodded grimly. "Uncle Iroh commands a lot of respect, but he stopped active duty ten years ago when I was seven. Zhao took over his command and now he can barely keep the army under control. Almost half of them threatened to desert or go AWOL. These were the only five that actually did what they threatened."

Katara felt a knot form in her stomach. Wu still had not come outside, even though the men were asking him to show up. But the leader of the deserters was still counting.

"7…4…10!" The man slurred before turning to his followers on either side of him. "M'kay boys…go get him!"

The four men behind him nodded sternly before rushing into the restaurant. The occupants had left a long time ago, probably once the gang showed up. In no time at all, they returned with Wu's arms in their grasp, grabbing the old man and throwing him down to the street. They had roughed him up before bringing him outside, there was a large scratch on his forehead bleeding slowly. They threw Wu to the leader's feet.

Wu looked up into the leader's eyes and immediately dropped his head. "Shin…I—I'll pay Zhao tomorrow! I p-promise!" He stammered.

Katara's heart broke for the old man. He looked to be close to tears. But it didn't seem like Shin cared to listen. "You already owe him 70 gold pieces, and you don't wanna owe him no more." Shin folded his arms over his chest and glared down at Wu. The slur was gone from his speech now that he had a task to focus on. But Wu just cowered in the street, not responding. Finally, he said.

"Zhao knows that It's been hard for me to get the money. if I raise my prices, I'll lose business…but I can't lower them anymore…he understands, right?" Wu pleaded, wrinkled face drawn, almost begging. Two of the thugs grabbed him by the arms so that he was looking Shin in the eye from his place on the ground.

Shin shrugged. "That's yer problem, not mine." Shin gestured to the remaining two thugs that had just come out of the restaurant. In one of the men's hands was a small wooden box. It was plain with no visible markings on it except for a golden latch that had been nearly ripped off. Apparently the two of them though that whatever was in there was valuable enough. He opened it and poured out the contents right out onto the street. Several precious gems in colors ranging in between yellow topaz, blue sapphires and red rubies poured from the box. The gems scattered into the street, a blue sapphire rolled next to Shin's foot, shining in the midday sun but no one moved to collect them. Katara waited anxiously.

"Ooh, lookee what we hav' boys?" Shin crouched down and picked up the blue sapphire with his thumb and forefinger. After rolling it between his fingers and examining it, he looked at Wu patronizingly. "Now, why don'tcha give us these little beauties? Commander Zhao'll be happy to get some'uh these."

"No!" Wu said forcefully. Shin raised an eyebrow and dropped the sapphire in surprise, sapphire at Wu's resilient answer. Wu seemed to realize what he said and backtracked, his voice grew quieter. "I mean…no…you can't have them…they're all I have left of my son. Please…please don't take them away from me."

Shin sighed, and 'tsk'ed, shaking his head almost sadly. "Hm…all right, I can be gen'rus…I'm just sorry it had to come to this. But since you don't want to pay up…" Katara internally scoffed. He didn't look sorry. Not at all. Shin turned to the men holding Wu's frail arms. "Boys…break his arms."

"What? No! No please—," Wu begged, writhing in their arms but he didn't have enough strength to fight them off.

"Hey, leave him alone!" Katara yelled out from her position before she could stop herself. Wu was such a kind old man, but when she realized what she said, she covered her mouth.

"What are you doing!?" Zuko hissed at her.

Eyes roamed everywhere to find out where the sound was coming from. Shin looked up to see her standing on the vegetable box. The crowd parted to reveal her and Zuko to Shin. She removed Zuko's arms from her waist, although he gave some resistance and hopped off the box onto the street.

Shin frowned and looked at Katara confusedly. No one else said anything, and Shin looked genuinely concerned, so Katara assumed that he wasn't used to crowd resistance. "What'd you say girlie?"

"Katara get back here," Zuko cautioned, but he should know her personality by now. She wasn't going to sit idly by while someone was tortured.

"What does he owe you for anyway?" Katara asked, walking forward. She heard a wooden creak behind her and knew that Zuko had gotten off the box as well and moved behind her.

"He didn't pay his taxes." Shin sneered, and the other men laughed.

"What taxes?" Katara asked. Her heart beat faster, and while she was nervous, she wasn't afraid to use her waterbending if necessary.

"The protec'shun tax, ubvioussslly." Shin told her, slurring again. Who got drunk so early in the day? "Damn you muss' be new to the city."

She put her hand on her hips. Her voice shook on her lie. She was in the circle by now, Zuko watching her silently, but she could feel his and practically everyone's eyes on her. "I-I just m-moved here." What protection tax are you talking about?"

Shin looked to the two men not holding onto Wu. "Show the pretty lady what we mean by protection, boys." One of the men, holding a rock, threw it, sending it crashing into the sign above Wu's doorway. The sign fell and snapped in half. The other, a rather bulky large man holding a shovel marched up to the doorway, reared back and swung. He hit the doorframe, causing a large crack to appear in the wall of Wu's store. With each act of destruction, Wu let out a little cry of pain, and Katara immediately felt terrible about making her presence known. Shin smiled a toothy grin at the destruction then turned back to her, laughing. "Vanda'lism is such a big probl'm in this ary-ah. Now you'll need to pay yer tax, huh? So we can protec' you." He sounded like a salesman. "Now, with yer protec'tive tax…stuff like that don't happn'. Comman'da Zhao calls it 'Spend me and Defend me'." When he finished his last line, Shin belly laughed, and glared at the crowd until they laughed too.

Katara scoffed. "That's ridiculous. Charging people so you don't destroy their things?" She folded her arms over her chest. "Zhao's a bully, finding a cheap and sleazy way to get money."

Shin stepped closer, and Katara grew nervous. Up close, she saw that he was greasy, dirty, and his hair was falling out in places. He was also missing a front tooth. His breath stunk as he breathed over her. "Oh really? And who's going to report this to the Fire Lord? You?" He laughed and pointed at her. "Girlee, the palace would never take you seriously. I mean, look at you!"

Katara gave him a steely glare and turned away from him, toward the palace. "We'll see about that." She looked around for Zuko, but he wasn't there. Her eyes scanned the shocked crowd members but there was no sign of him. Still, determinedly, she stalked off, with full intention of going to the Palace.

"Oh shit, she's really going!" Shin screamed out, "Get her!"

Before she knew what was going on, two of them had grabbed her arm and were pulling her back towards Shin. Wrestling with them, she broke free, falling to the ground. Scrambling to her feet, she backed away, her eyes still looking for Zuko. One of them was coming after her. Uncapping her waterskin, she moved away and pulled the water to her, the one that came after her was close behind.

Whirling around, she splashed his face with water, causing him to sputter. "She's a fuckin waterbender! The fuck is a waterbender doing here?!"

But the other one was still moving. He stalked up to her threateningly. He grabbed the back of her ankle-length tunic. She spun out of the way and heard the ripping sound as most it was torn off. All that she had on covering her was the remainder of the long tunic, the shorter undershirt and red pants.

"Get away from her!" Zuko's voice yelled out from behind her. Turning her head to the sound of it, she saw Zuko standing there, dual swords in hand. Both men advanced on her, and Zuko's eyes narrowed. "I said, get away from her."

Shin laughed heartily. "Or whut? Yew gonna stop us?"

Zuko smirked confidently and advanced on the two nearest Katara. She ran out of the way and looked for more water.

Zuko

It was times like this that he wished he could firebend. Of course, he wouldn't be that good at it, but it'd be better than nothing.

He didn't see where Katara went, and at the moment he didn't care. Since the attention was all on him, he knew she was out of harm's way for the time being and, in all honesty, that was what really mattered. He should have known that she would get herself into some kind of trouble eventually, so when she began talking to Shin, he made his way through the crowd over to a weapons store and bought a set of Dao swords.

Using the hilt of the sword, Zuko hit one of them in the shoulder and he staggered backwards. The big came at him with the shovel, raising it high over his head and letting out a battle cry. He brought the shovel down to slam on top of Zuko's head, but Zuko crossed his swords over the bar, blocking it, pushing against the downward blow.

But this guy was made of brute strength, and Zuko fought tooth and nail to prevent himself from being knocked out cold. He heard the other one that Katara soaked earlier come up behind him and he raised his leg, rotating his hip and kicking him in the stomach, knocking the air out of him. That threat dealt with, he still had Mr. Big, Mean and Ugly on his hands, and his arms were getting tired.

He was losing strength, when unexpectedly, the shovel was frozen in the thug's hands. Dropping it as if it scalded him, it fell to the ground in a large chunk of ice. Well, actually, it fell on the brute's toe. He let out a howl of pain, and sank to the ground, clutching his injured foot. Zuko whacked the back of his head, knocking the brute out.

When he looked up, he saw Katara standing there, another ball of water flowing gently in her hands.

She smiled at him. "I figured that you could use the help."

Zuko smirked. "You got us into this mess, so it's kind of your fault. Technically I'm doing you a favor."

"My fault?" She asked indignantly, and he wanted to say, 'Yes this was your fault', but Shin growled in frustration.

"Yes, yes, you two are all lovey-dovey and shit, but I've got business to take care of!" He glared at the two of them and spoke harshly to the two thugs holding Wu. "Forget the old man! We've got other things to deal with!"

The two of them dropped Wu, and he fell to the cobblestones with a loud thud. One of them stalked toward Katara, his hands engulfed in flame. The other flipped over to him, fire coming from his feet with each kick in the air. Zuko used the swords to block each attack of fire, but they weren't expensive swords, and they weren't well made. They were breaking with all the pressure, each burst of flame wearing down the metal blades. Zuko slashed at the firebender, but he was agile, and strong. Every attack Zuko came at him with, he dodged. Every time Zuko hit, he used the plates of his armor to resist.

Zuko wasn't really focused on what he was doing, nor was he fighting to the best of his ability. He was distracted, focusing part of his mind on his attacker, and the other part of his mind on Katara.

But he really didn't need to worry.

She was fine.

He caught sight of her just in time to see her wrap a string of water around the ankle of the other firebender and pulled it like rope, causing him to fall on the ground. He hit his head on the cobblestone pathway and let out a holler of pain, arms coming up and holding the back of his head protectively. She used the water as a whip, slashing at her assailant as he flailed around on his back, trying desperately to get away from her.

He saw Katara's eyes narrow and she whipped at his face with the water, and he rolled away. Struggling to get to his feet, he scampered away, past Shin, and ran through the crowd, towards the harbor, hopefully to catch a boat to who knows where. Katara turned to him, still fighting and struggling and gave him a smile of encouragement.

He never saw the attack.

Luckily for him, he dodged out of the way only just in time. But he still felt the burning in his arm. The thug had fired a punch straight to his chest, but he'd rotated so fast it grazed his arm instead. Zuko fought to keep from crying out, but it was impossible to stop the surprise. He fell to the ground, the fabric of his shirt smoking. The flesh beneath the smoldering fabric was a bright-burned red.

The thug raised a leg, engulfed in flame, and stood over Zuko, ready to land it on his head. Zuko braced himself for the pain. He stared up at the standard issue military boot, a boot he would have worn if he could firebend. If he could firebend, he would be able to get himself out of this situation, but as it stood, he couldn't.

A blast of water, hit his attacker in the head, forcing him off balance. He toppled over, looking like Azula had when the seagull distracted her. It seemed so long ago now. But Katara surprised him— glaring at the thug with all of the anger of a Firebender in her icy blue eyes. Zuko was nearly certain that if Katara was in fact a firebender, flames would shoot out of her eyes and burn the offender to a crisp. Speaking of the man, he wasn't much better off. He cowered before her at first, but then tried to strike back— Katara was faster.

"Don't touch him!" Spreading her legs, she lifted one and swung it, moving her arm in the same upward motion. The water followed the path of her arm, arcing over her head and over the goon's body. Bringing her arms crashing down along with her leg, sent the water all along his torso, soaking him. Blowing softly, Katara froze the thug to the street itself.

He tried to get up, to firebend, but Katara had restricted all movement. Zuko stood up on his feet, his arm still stinging. They turned their attention to Shin, who stared at them like a dumbstruck fool. His toothless mouth was open, and his eyes were blank.

"All of your thugs are either unconscious, or in a whole lot of pain." She walked closer to Shin, and he backed away from her, looking more like a sniveling rat than a former navy captain. "Do we have to deal with you too?" Katara asked him, the ball of water in her hands.

Shin looked around at the faces in the crowd. Suddenly, all at once people were calling out for Shin to receive the same treatment as the rest of the men, but Katara seemed to ignore them. Shin whimpered, and then shook his head no and started to back away.

"Oh." Zuko called out to Shin. He looked up with tears in his eyes. "Tell your boss Zhao…that Lee says hello. He'll know what I mean."

Shin nodded before running through the crowd. Katara turned to Zuko and put the water back in her waterskin. Zuko threw down the ruined swords. He had no use for them. The metal was warped beyond repair, forming two hooks at the ends. The crowd clapped for them, and Katara threw her arms around Zuko's neck. But after they saw that there was nothing more to see, they slowly began to disperse and resume what they were doing before the whole fiasco.

When she pulled away, she smiled at him. "I have to say, Lee, that I'm very impressed. I had no idea that you could handle swords that well"

"Oh, you're surprised?" Zuko asked. "I should have known that you would get me into some kind of trouble."

Katara scoffed, unlinking her hands. Stepping away from him, she put her hands on her hips. "If something is wrong, I'm not going to just stand there and watch someone innocent be hurt because I'm too afraid."

Zuko chuckled, "You sound just like my Uncle."

A soft groan broke their conversation and he turned to see Wu still on the ground. Katara let out a little gasp, and she and Zuko raced over to help the old man up. Zuko took one arm and Katara took the other, and they started to help him inside of his restaurant.

"Wait!" Wu cried, and Zuko froze in place. He looked at the old man curiously, and he pointed a frail hand to the scattered gemstones on the cobblestone streets. It was a wonder that no one stopped to pick them up, but everyone was still passing by, minding their own business.

"Katara can you—," She nodded, releasing Wu, and Zuko hooked his arms under the old man's. He half-dragged, half-assisted Wu inside, and he teased him into the first chair he found.

Katara walked in a bit later, carrying the front of her tunic like a pocket. The gems still glinted in the light, and Katara emptied her makeshift pocket out onto the table in front of him.

"I couldn't find the box…" She said apologetically. "I'm sorry."

Wu waved a hand flippantly. "Don't worry about it child, what's really important is right here." He patted the table, shaking the gems.

Katara leaned closer, examining the sparkling crystals. "I didn't realize you sold jewelry too."

Wu smiled sadly. "I don't. My son worked in the stone quarries…up in the mountains. He earned just a few coins a day, but every little bit helped. Since he d-died, it's been harder for me to keep up with the payments."

"What happened?" She asked, placing a comforting hand on Wu's shoulder.

The old man shook his head, and his eyes were wet with tears. He sniffed. "H-He died in an explosion one early morning…I—I don't like to talk about it very much—or very often." He rested his head in his hands, and Zuko thought he was going to fall over.

Zuko's voice was hard when he asked, "Why did Zhao's goons say that you owed money?"

Wu sighed and fingered a ruby on the table. If possible, the lines and wrinkles that marked his face seemed even more prominent than before. "Because I do. Shin was right, there is a payment we all have to make, every month, and Zhao pretty much runs the capital's underground economy. Not like the royal family does anything about it." Wu shot Zuko an apologetic look. "No offense, Prince Zuko."

Zuko's mouth fell open in surprise. "How did you know it was me?"

Wu gave Zuko an incredulous look. "I'm old, not stupid. You're the only customer I've had that hasn't swallowed an entire pitcher of water after eating some of my fire dumplings. And everyone knows that Prince Zuko doesn't need water after eating them, so it wasn't hard to make the connection."

Zuko shrugged. "So much for cover." He gave Katara a knowing look. "I told you that Lee was a stupid name."

Katara scoffed indignantly but didn't reply to his comment because Wu started speaking again. "And I must say, it's an honor to meet you, Princess Katara."

"It was obvious, right?" She muttered under her breath.

"Well of course!" He laughed deeply, mustache quivering. "Who else would order ocean kumquats and be important enough to be seen with Prince Zuko?" He exhaled, dusting off his trousers." Anyway, I'm just lucky they didn't wreck the restaurant. It's all I have left. But I'll probably lose it now too."

"What? Why?" Zuko asked. "Zhao's thugs are gone. You'll be fine."

"No, they're not gone. They'll be back. They always come back." Wu's eyes looked tired, and Zuko could just how exhausting extortion could be. It's written all over his face. "No one stands up to them. Most of us are too afraid of losing everything. My last worker got his leg broken 2 months ago, and since then I've been losing business."

"I'm so sorry…" Katara said to him, she patted the man's shoulder.

Zuko felt sorry too, not just because he'd come to like Wu as a person, but because his family knew nothing about it, and that was hard to believe. When Grandfather Azulon dismissed Zhao, no one knew that Zhao would start his own little cult within the other military deserters…how could anyone have seen that coming?

Footsteps coming into the restaurant broke Zuko's thought process. A woman that looked old enough to be Zuko's mother came into the restaurant. When she saw Wu, head in hands, she gasped, concern evident on her face. "Are you okay?" She had a very motherly feeling about her as she came over to the table. Her face was full of worry. "I-I saw what happened with Shin. Someone needs to do something about this!"

"You don't have to worry about me, Min." Wu croaked out, raising his head. "I'm fine."

Min shook her head; a few loose strands of hair escaped her tight bun. "No, you're not, Daddy. Someone's got to stop Zhao before he comes back, with more of his ugly army."

She's right. Someone needs to stop Zhao…I have to stop Zhao. Before he hurts someone else.

"I agree." Zuko said. "Zhao's been getting away with this for far too long."

Katara's eyes met his. There was an uncertainty in her eyes, but Zuko was far too serious about this. Zhao was already trying to ruin his life, he couldn't ruin others, and if his uncle didn't know about Zhao's gang, then what else didn't his uncle know about whatever else he's done in three years' time, what other trouble that he's caused.

Only then did Min seem to even acknowledge that Zuko and Katara were even there. "Who're you?" She glared at him.

"Don't' worry about them, Min." Wu told his daughter, and now that they were next to each other, Zuko could see the family resemblance. Min shared the same long face as her father, the same look of worry, the same tiredness. Zuko guessed that she too had been badgered by Zhao for payments. Wu looked up at them. "This is Min, my daughter that owns a dress shop. A very successful dress shop if I might add." The pride was evident in Wu's voice as he spoke of his daughter.

"It's nice to meet you." Katara said kindly, smiling at her. "I'm…um…never mind." Katara probably wanted to say her real name and real identity but didn't know if she could trust Min…and frankly, Zuko didn't know if he could either.

Min snorted. "Not too bright, is she?" Katara's eyes narrowed and her fist clenched where she had it resting on the back of a chair. Min looked to her father and then at them. "Thanks for helping my dad inside, but I've got it from here."

Katara opened her mouth to protest. "But if he's injured—,"

"Look, if you want something from my dad, you might as well leave because you're not going to get it." Min glared at the both of them while helping her father to his feet. "While I applaud you for wanting to choose a better life here in the Fire Nation, you're going to get my dad arrested." She looked at Katara. " I just—just stay away from him, okay? Do you understand?" She snapped.

Katara stood. The fury was obvious on her face. She glared at Min, her fingers were balled into fists and she quivered in rage. "Oh, believe me, I understand."

With that, she turned on her heel and left the empty restaurant, stalking out into the street. Zuko stood and eyed the insolent woman. Min sniffed at Katara's retreating figure.

"You've got some nerve," Zuko said to the woman. "Do you know who that was?"

"Should I care?" Min helped steady her father, while looking at Zuko suspiciously. "As you can see, I have other things to think about right now." Wu stared at his daughter in shock, but Min didn't seem to care.

"That was the Princess of the Southern Water Tribe." Min blinked, confused. "And even if she weren't—she deserves your respect just as much."

Zuko shook his head at her before turning around and running after Katara. The streets were full of people, wearing colors ranging from pink to maroon, all different heights, sizes, shapes…but he was looking for a short, tan girl with long brown hair in a braid. He knew that he would recognize her the moment he saw her, and she couldn't have gotten far, having left only a few moments before he did.

But he couldn't find her.

He looked and looked, but she was nowhere to be found. As he walked toward the palace, he looked at people's eyes, but there was no hint of blue eyes. Her eyes.

And then, as quick as lightning, the realization hit him. Katara wouldn't have gone back to the palace. She would have gone to where she felt the most comfortable, the place that reminded her the most of home. The sea.

Katara

She knew he'd find her eventually. But for now, it was just her.

Solitude was what she needed most of all, so no one could see the tears that ran down her face, reaching her chin before she could angrily wipe them away. Far away from the harbor, the sun was still high above the ocean, glittering like a million sapphires. When she'd left Wu's shop, she'd run to the port first, but the men and women that worked there all stared at the strange girl in torn servant's clothing. She'd lost her shoes to the ocean as it slipped off her foot, getting stuck in the sand and then washed away with the tide.

She kept running, but eventually, her lungs burned, and she sank to the sand, collapsing where she stopped. Knees curled against her chest, arms resting on them, she watched the waves hit the sandy shoreline with gentle force. Push, pull…in, out…forwards and backwards in an eternal dance between the land and sea. It felt much like her life at the current moment, and she was being pulled in all sorts of directions…Zuko was pulling her to the Fire Nation, but the people and the drama pushed her away.

She drew lines in the sand with her fingers absently, marring the surface. The white foam of the surf tickled her toes when it came in, soaking the material of the borrowed servant's dress. She didn't think the ripped material was salvageable…maybe none of this was salvageable. Katara felt that the place where she'd lived for the past few weeks would never be a place where she felt comfortable enough to be herself.

What was the problem with the world and their views of the Water Tribe? She wasn't a refugee, looking for a better life. She was happy with her life…she was loved. How did they treat actual refugees then if their attitudes were so cruel? Moreover, though the Water Tribe didn't possess a sprawling city like Ba Sing Se, or have a sophisticated court like the Fire Nation, it was enough for her, and it should be enough for the world.

The sea breeze whipped through her hair, the last of it finally escaping the confines of the braid. Reaching upwards, she pulled the plain red string from her hair, undoing the topknot, her long locks of hair tumbled over her shoulders, down to her waist. She stared at the string for a moment before balling it up with a low hiss and throwing it into the water angrily. It hit the water with a soft 'plop'. She glared at the spot where it landed, feeling resentment for the entire Fire Nation itself and all the people that lived in it.

She fingered what was left of her tunic, sighing in frustration not only for the way people behaved, but also toward herself. This whole idea was stupid. How could she have thought that just by putting her hair in the Fire Nation fashion, and wearing a red tunic that she could change who she was? No, she could never change, and why should she try to? She had blue eyes, brown hair and dark skin. Nothing would ever change that. Even if by some miracle they'd come to accept her…would it be the truth? Or would it just be a façade. She couldn't live with people that didn't care or thought of her as…worthless

Everyone looked down on her because she was from the Water Tribe. Now she realized that it wasn't just Azula, Tiang and the other girls in the Hana Matsuri. It was the common folk that thought she was beneath them as well. Did she really want to put herself through that?

Getting to her feet, she had a haunting realization that it would be better just to go home. Back to her mother, father, brother and grandfather…back to the place where she belonged. Who cared if they judged her for having a crush on Hahn? It would fade…eventually.

Should I leave?

Should I stay?

If I stay, what will I put myself through?

If I leave, what will I put Zuko through?

"Katara!" Zuko's voice called further down the beach.

She turned towards his voice, and the sight of him running towards her brought a smile to her lips. He breathed heavily as he reached her, and she looked away before her resolve weakened. He stood over her, blocking out the strong Fire Nation sun, casting a shadow over her. He, unlike her, had kept his shoes on, and that bothered her too.

"I brought your shoes." He said to her nervously, bending down and placing them at her side. But she didn't look at him. She knew exactly what would happen when she looked at him. She would lose all her resolve, all of her nerve and just melt under his stupidly beautiful golden eyes and agree to stay.

"Thanks." She didn't even acknowledge that they were there. He straightened up, still looming over her. "How did you find me?" She asked, doing her best to avoid looking at him

He sighed and sat down on the sand too, taking off his shoes in the process. "It was easy, once I knew where to look."

She looked at him this time, feeling a need to express just how angry she was at her treatment here. She didn't mean to speak so harshly to him, he had done nothing wrong, but she was just so angry. "No, I mean why did you even bother?"

Zuko scoffed. "Do you really think I'd just go back to the palace without you?"

"Well, I'm sorry to be such a burden for you." She told him, but he shook his head. She glared at him accusingly. "And I know you've thought it, back there at Wu's shop. I might as well just leave the Fire Nation and go back home."

"Katara what are you talking about?"

"Oh please!" She shouted, the tears coming to her eyes. She waved her hand at him. "Don't pretend you don't know what everyone thinks of me. It's bad enough the girls in the Hana Matsuri don't like me…"

Zuko sighed. "Katara…"

She looked up and glared at him. "You're the one who told me they all look down on me, and I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Just because I understand it, doesn't make it right. They'd say you're only spending time with me because you pity me. I don't want to be known as Prince Zuko's burden."

"Katara this is crazy, you're not a burden for me, you're far from it." He said, trying to get her to explain. "Why did you run off?"

Katara stood up angrily and brushed of her pants. Zuko looked at her curiously, but she started to walk away from him, back to the palace. "We're not tied to the hip, Zuko. We don't have to do things together or tell each other where we're going. It's not your responsibility to know where I'm or what I'm doing or where I'm going." Katara snapped, stopping in her tracks, and turning to face him.

The confused and hurt look on Zuko's face said it all, and she instantly felt sorry for how she talked to him. He wasn't a mind reader, he didn't know how she was feeling, but she was angry. She was angry at everything and everyone, but Zuko…didn't deserve it.

Zuko sighed and stood up too. He stood in front of her and looked her in the eye. "Why are you doing this?"

He didn't break eye contact. Katara looked away first.

Head downcast, her right arm held her left. "I-I'm sorry Zuko." She sighed, and he put his arms on his shoulders and brought her in for a hug. She wrapped her arms around his waist, speaking to him softly. "I just…everyone thinks I'm not worth it. Not worth your time…not worth the effort."

"So, use it." Zuko told her, whispering in her ear. "Use what they think of you against them."

Katara took a step back. "What?"

"I'm going to tell you. But first," he said, stretching. "Let's go." Zuko said, and started walking along the beach, away from the city. She stared at him curiously before he turned around and faced her. "Are you coming?"

She blinked in surprise. "Huh? Oh, sure."

She followed along quietly, leaving silence between them. The chatter and clanging from the harbor faded into the background, overpowered by the waves crashing along the rocky cliff. "When my grandfather, Azulon punished me…I was the butt of many, many jokes. I'd lost my worth when I lost my bending. Some of the nobility wanted me banished, saying I wasn't worthy to be a prince—that I'd disgraced my family name. Zhao, of course, was the most vocal of my critics." Zuko laughed darkly and shook his head. He stared further down the beach, lost in memories that were unseen.

"So…what happened then?"

Zuko sighed again and looked at her with melancholic eyes. It still bothered him, his pain from years ago, but he was working through his pain, trying to get around it and finally put it behind him. "I was made a mockery of the court. They accepted me to my face, but they laughed behind my back. The day of my sentencing, Zhao—he was a Commander then—he said to me that I should go live in the Water Tribe, because they're more tolerating of failures."

Katara reached up and hooked her arm around Zuko's and leaned into him, trying to comfort him even though she knew it was good for him to get it all out. "What did you do?"

"My mother, my father, my grandfather all watched as Zhao did whatever he could to undermine my reputation. He called me names, insulted me in every possible way, spread rumors that I was sickly, barely able to stand, he said I was weak. It had gotten so bad that I'd almost challenged him to an Agni Kai."

"That's…a fire duel, right?" She stopped walking and stared at him in shock. "But you didn't, right?"

He shook his head 'No' and Katara sighed with relief. He cleared his throat, sounding almost fond at the memory. "Lu Ten and my Uncle had to pretty much drag me away, and my mother stayed behind to confront Zhao. But my grandfather was a big believer that women should be seen and never heard…so he ordered her back to my bedroom."

"I feel sorry for you."

Katara said, patting Zuko's chest with her hand. "I don't, because I got my revenge." He chuckled, looking at her with a sort-of-smile on his face. "Well, kind of."

"What do you mean?" She asked him. She turned around briefly to see their footprints being erased from the sand by the waves. Well, at least no one would follow them.

Zuko paused for a second and waited until Katara's steps "During his final days later that year, my grandfather became sicker, and wouldn't allow anyone to see him aside from my father and Uncle. But there was a problem. The Royal Fire Academy's graduation was coming up and my Grandfather had to attend."

"He couldn't just send your Uncle instead. Kind of like a proxy or something?" Katara asked.

Zuko shook his head and snickered. "Nope, it's tradition." He smiled at her before continuing. "It just so happened, that it was my first year at the Royal Fire Academy's Upper School. Most kids in the Fire Nation are homeschooled until they turn 10, and then they go to Middle School and then Upper School."

"That's so weird," Katara looked intrigued. "We're all educated together in a huge igloo until we're old enough to get married."

"For us, it's 17 or 18, depending on when your birthday falls." He told her, "Anyway, I was being inducted into the Royal Fire Academy for Boys. Because I was a prince, I had to demonstrate a particular skill the other boys could aspire to. Like all who came before me, I was supposed to firebend, but since everyone knew that I couldn't, they all expected me to look like a fool."

"What did you do instead?" She asked him.

"I brought one of the graduating kids and sparred with him. I used swords like the two you saw me with earlier today, but he was firebending. I think that everyone expected me to lose. Heck, I expected to lose. I was inexperienced, and didn't know as much as I do now, but thanks to help from my Uncle and Lu Ten, I completely beat him. But the best part, was that the kid I sparred against was Zhao's nephew."

Katara couldn't help it. A laugh escaped past her lips. "Zhao's nephew?"

Zuko nodded. "That's another reason he hates me. I beat his nephew, who was 18 at the time. A 14-year-old kid who couldn't even firebend beat Zhao's nephew, a so-called 'prodigy'. My Father and grandfather were speechless, and I've never seen Azula so red.

She smiled at him. "That's amazing Zuko!"

He laughed too. "Thanks." Then his expression changed to something a little bit more serious. He stopped walking and turned his head to look at her. "The point is that even though everyone believed that I was worthless, I proved to them that I'm still capable, I'm still strong, and I'm not to be underestimated."

Katara rubbed Zuko's arm affectionately. "I'm proud of you, Zuko."

His cheeks reddened, and his hand came up to rub the back of his neck. "Ah, it was so long ago…" She looked up at him and he looked down at her and placed his free hand on top of hers where it rested on his arm and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Look, what I'm trying to say is…show everyone that you're more than what they think you're. The people of the Fire Nation have never seen anyone like you. Give them time to know you, to trust you.

Zuko looked at her sadly and sighed, patting her hand. "If you still want to leave, then I'll understand, just know that I'm going to be very sorry to see you go."

Katara smirked. "Oh, I'm not leaving. I'm going to do exactly what you did. Shock them right to their core. I'll learn all of the customs and I'll behave like a proper Fire Nation lady." Her grinned widened before she stood on her toes and planted a kiss on Zuko's cheek. "Thank you, Zuko." She whispered before pulling away. "I really appreciate it. "But then Katara paused.

"Believe me, I don't mind." Zuko told her. "I like that you seem to be taking an interest in the Fire Nation…It helps with adjusting."

She smiled at him, but the smile was fading fast, that conversation still replaying in her mind.

Was she really meant to do this?

Zuko

Katara seemed to be lost in thought, so Zuko left her to it and let his eyes wander all over the beach. They had walked all the way to where the sand met the cliffs just under the Fire Nation palace. Secluded between rocks, Zuko saw a large outcrop of rocks with sand curving around the edge, perhaps hinting at a secluded part of the beach. Rocks of varying size stuck out of the shallow waters, some reaching up to a story high.

"Katara look!" He said and pointed. She looked up and her mouth dropped.

She let go of his arm and started to run to get a closer look. Zuko ran to, catching up with her quickly. As he passed her, he shouted, "Race you!"

"Hey, No fair! You've got longer legs than I do!" She shouted at him from behind. He laughed jovially, never so free, the sound being carried away by the wind. The mouth of the cave was as high and wide.

"You cheated!" Katara huffed, bending over to catch her breath.

He shrugged nonchalantly, unable to keep the grin off his face. He hadn't felt this free in a long time. "It's not my fault you're so short—Ow!" He rubbed his side where Katara elbowed him in the ribs.

"Do you want to go inside?" Katara asked when she'd come down.

"I don't know…do you?" He asked her.

"Sure, I don't mind…I think it would be kind of cool." Katara said, stepping forward. Then she turned back to him, an apprehensive look on her face. "I mean, if we just stay inside the entrance, of course."

"Glad to see you do have some sense of self-preservation." Zuko chuckled but followed her into the cave. "But…Okay."

The floor of the cave was covered in white sand, and the walls were dry, surprising so close to the ocean. Near the entrance, the sun lit up the floor and walls, but the deeper they walked, the darker it got.

"Okay…this is good." Katara said when Zuko could no longer see her face though she stood right next to him. "We can head back now."

Her voice echoed into the tunnel further and it had a fearful edge to it. Zuko wondered if there was an outlet. Somewhere it connected…or did it just continue under the mountainside? It was weird, being alone in the dark with Katara, if only for a moment. Somewhat…romantic even. She backed up nervously and started heading back towards the sun. They reached the entrance of the cave and Zuko asked, "How far do you think it goes?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, maybe forever." But then she her face brightened as if she just thought of an amazing idea. She looked around the secluded section of water and sand and turned to him, a thoughtful look on her face. "Hey…Zuko…this place is really secret…as in…no one could see us, right?"

Zuko nodded hesitantly. What exactly was she thinking? "I'm pretty sure…," he said, looking around again. The Cliffside was all around them, no one could even see them, and even if someone were to look over, that cliff was hundreds of feet high; they would look like tiny specs at the bottom of it.

"Great!" Katara said, hooking her thumbs into her pants. She pulled them down revealing white wrappings around her lower body.

Zuko's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Katara, w-what are you doing?"

She paused in the midst of taking off her tunic and undershirt. "What do you think I'm doing?" She said, matter-of-factly. "I'm going swimming." She pulled off her top revealing a smooth stomach and white bindings covering her upper body.

Oh

Zuko's eyes couldn't help but roam all over her, enjoying the view of her nice figure. Reaching up, Katara took out the remainder of the clips binding her hair and letting her chocolate brown waves and curls cascade over her shoulders like a waterfall. Looking up, she saw Zuko's mouth still agape and eyes wide, reddening a bit before she smirked. Immediately he gritted his teeth.

She knew what she was doing!

Zuko swallowed thickly, as Katara kicked off her shoes and wiggled her toes in the sand. She shook her hair, and it flew everywhere, but to Zuko she looked positively gorgeous, almost unearthly, like a spirit herself. He coughed and tried to cover up the fact that he was openly staring at her, despite the fact that she knew already.

"Oh, I feel so much better!" She exclaimed, "I haven't felt this good in weeks!"

No…but you've always looked that good.

"That's…um…nice." Zuko shook his head, trying to figure out what to say to her. She looked beautiful. Zuko coughed once more. Katara was looking at him as if he was insane. "But do you have to take off your clothes to go swimming?"

"Well, I don't want to get them wet." She said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. She reached up on her toes and put them on top of a rock. Turning around to face him, she smiled brightly, but Zuko could barely keep his eyes from roaming her body long enough to focus on her face. Was this payback for when he took off his shirt in front of her? She spun around again, but as she faced him again, she eyed him mischievously.

"I-I um…Katara…I don't think this…might…be…the best…idea." Each word was like syrup on his tongue, sticky and sweet as he tried to force words out that made sense.

Payback. This is definitely payback.

The curve of her hips, to the smooth flow of her breasts as she basically paraded before him in her underwear was unlike anything he'd ever seen. He'd seen girl's midriffs before, only a few times, when Azula, her friends and Zuko would be forced to go to Ember Island together a few times a year, but Katara was different.

He wanted to see her like this. And he wanted to touch her like this. In a way that he had never done before. He wanted to feel her skin pressed up against his. Katara looked at his blatant ogling and winked, before flouncing off towards the ocean.

It's official.

I'm going to die.

"Come on, Zuko!" She called, running towards the sea, all toned legs and swinging hair and tanned skin.

She ran into the surf, Zuko had to keep in mind that they were not married. But Katara was making that impossibly hard.

Nope. Bad, Bad word.

Zuko collapsed on the sand, and pulled off his boots, suddenly feeling constricted, resting his back against wall just inside of the cave. Katara could still see him, but what was important…was that he could see Katara. He wiggled his toes into the sand while watching Katara swim and enjoy the sea. She wasn't waterbending, but was playing in the ocean, swimming around the circle of rocks a few times.

But of course, as soon as he thought that she stood up. She glared at him, hands on hips, walking towards him while he tried so desperately not to look at how the water droplets fell down her stomach and legs, or the way her hair just clung to her body. Zuko leaned his head back on the cliff face and closed his eyes, a pained expression on his face.

This is the greatest of bad ideas.

Katara's shadow looming across his body made him open his eyes again. And there stood the irritated girl, glaring at him and her hands still on her hips. "Are you just going to leave me to swim in there by myself?" She asked him.

Zuko sighed nervously, not looking at her, or—well—doing his best not to look at her (and he was failing). "You're doing fine out there, Katara. Just…fine…" He chuckled nervously.

"Well aren't you going to join me?" She questioned, looming over him like an angry bear. Water dripped from her hair onto his shirt, and he was forced to look at her.

Zuko coughed again. Looking up at her was a bad idea. He could see all too clearly, how she looked, and her being so close caused a tingle to run throughout his whole body. He had never felt like this with Mai. Not at all. But with Katara, everything was different. He didn't think that she even knew what effect she had on him.

"No, I-I think you're good—yeah—you're good…just fine out there…all by yourself."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." She said, rolling her eyes. She crouched down in front of him, bad idea, and reached for the belt at his waist. She began untying it.

"K-Katara what are you—,"

"Shut up, Zuko." She said, determinedly with a smirk on her lips. When she got the belt undone, she reached for his shirt. His arms felt like noodles as she pulled his shirt over his head and by now Zuko was at the point where he'd just let her do whatever she wanted to him, if he could be near her when she looked like this. "You keep asking me what I'm doing…just let me do this…"

When she got it over his head, and his chest was revealed, Zuko got a strong sense of flashback from earlier this morning when he was getting dressed. The cloudy look in Katara's eyes was identical to the one she wore now. He rather welcomed it. She fell to her knees to straddle his hips, certain parts of her a little too close to him to be considered appropriate, but at the moment…he didn't care.

Zuko's shirt was thrown somewhere that he didn't see. So, there they were, in wet bindings and pants, staring into each other's eyes. It was more than water and Fire; this time…it was steam and heat. He could feel it pooling inside of him, and he wondered if Katara could feel the tingle. Her cool fingers lightly traced his neck, down to his collarbone. They stared into each other's eyes, not daring to break eye contact. He hissed as her cold finger trailed down to his abdominals, finding all of the dips, grooves lines to where they disappeared beneath his trousers. Zuko licked his lips.

They were in their own little steam cloud, separate from the world.

Then it happened.

She kissed him.

And it wasn't a little peck either, Katara's lips parted, and she was really kissing him, mouth opened, breath mingling with his. He responded almost as eagerly. Her lips molded to his, and he felt a fire ignite in his chest and spread warmth throughout his body. She had one hand on his shoulder, and the other in his hair, trailing down to his ear as their lips moved together.

Kissing her was perfect.

Her body was cool to the touch, and he wanted to explore every inch. She sighed into his mouth as his hands found her waist, running up and down her sides. Her head fell forwards and she let out breathy sighs as Zuko could felt her locks of hair fall onto his burning skin, tickling him in the most enticing of ways.

Katara broke the kiss first, gasping for breath, lips swollen and red.

The smell of Katara, like the salty sea breeze on a clear day, her in her bindings, so close to him, it was almost too much for Zuko to take. Zuko, despite being considered an adult, he was completely inexperienced, but he was a teenage boy, and it was a good thing that she broke the kiss because despite how much he respected Katara…he knew that if she kept kissing him like this, things were going to be very awkward, very fast.

When they separated, Katara let out a little chuckle, and Zuko opened his eyes to see a very flushed Katara. Her eyes were bright and blue, she looked positively ecstatic, and there was something deeper there, inside her crystal blue eyes. A feeling of attraction that he knew was mirrored in his own. It coursed through his veins as his blood, and Zuko hoped that she knew what he felt was real.

But if the kiss was shocking enough, then nothing could have prepared him for what she said next. She leaned forward, close to his ear and he could feel the softness of her lips on his earlobe, and when she spoke, her cool breath tickled his ear. "Firebending is controlled by emotion, right?"

"Yes." Zuko breathed, wanting to go back to kissing her.

"If that's true…then…" She placed a parting kiss on his lips, running her fingers through his hair once more and running her hand up and down his arm before letting go of him. "Come with me."

Zuko's heart raced as she separated herself from him, rising. She stood over him, skin flushed, holding out a tanned hand. "Where? Why?" He asked, reaching for her hand as she pulled him up. She tugged on him lightly, directing him towards the mouth of the cave.

She turned to look back at him, winking, an impish grin on her face. "You trust me, right?"

He chuckled, voice husky. "Not when you look at me like that."

"Mm…" Was all Katara said but she continued to drag him forwards.

They came to the edge of the shore, the waves lapped gently against the sand. "Your emotions must be pretty high, right?"

"I suppose…" He said quietly.

"Get in the water." She said, pointing to the ocean foam. Eyeing her warily, he did as she asked, stepping into the water until it covered his ankles. The surf was warm, his toes wiggled into the ocean floor. She stood in front of him, hands perched on her hips, smiling at him wickedly. "Now lie down. Enough so that only your head is above water."

"Are you serious?" He asked her, mouth dropping open.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"W-Well no."

"Exactly. Lie down, Prince Zuko." She ordered, and he did what she said.

The water covered him up to his neck as he leaned on his elbows, the backs of his legs digging deeper into the was a strange sensation, feeling the water go in and out over his chest. It was almost scary; the waves came so close to his neck that he felt like he'd drown if he wasn't careful.

"Sit up for a second?" She asked, and again, he followed her orders, having no idea what she was planning, but he trusted her enough to listen. She wouldn't intentionally harm him. He felt her kneeling behind him, gently pushing his shoulders down so he was resting his head on her lap. Looking up, he saw her upside-down smile...but he was more preoccupied with what she was planning.

"Katara what are you—?"

"Will you hush for a second?" There was a laugh in her voice, but it broke off suddenly. "I…I have a confession to make."

"A confession?" He asked, attempting to rise. "You're not breaking up with me already right?"

"No…" She said, pushing him back down. "It's about why I stayed. It's not because I made the promise to Longshot…It was because of a promise I made to your Uncle."

"Uncle Iroh?" Zuko asked, wanting to look at her face more clearly. "What did he—?"

"He…" She trailed off. "He asked me to try and heal you."

"What? When?"

"The day we met in the prison. I went to speak to your Uncle to see if Jin could be freed and he'd asked me to try and heal you—he said he thinks what's wrong is a physical problem. Since then I've been researching—,"

"No, no, no," Zuko said, sitting up, shrugging off her hands. He turned, sloshing the water around to face her, she looked dismayed, mouth parted in shock. "You don't understand—this isn't something that you can fix, Katara. My mother and uncle looked for years to find the best scholars, and none of them could find an answer."

"Zuko, what's the harm in trying?"

"The harm? The harm is that I get my hopes up, only for them to be cut down." Zuko looked away from her, unwilling to see the sadness in her blue eyes. "I can't—I can't go through that again. I've come to terms with it…just leave it be. Please."

"But—," She started, reaching for him. He shied away from her. "It might work—,"

"And it might not." He snapped, instantly hating how harsh he sounded towards her. She fell off her knees, sitting on the beach, hugging her legs close. "I don't mean to sound so harsh—but this might not be within your capacity to heal."

"I…all right." She said quietly, still looking dejected.

His eyes softened. "Hey. Come here." He opened his arms towards her, pulling her in, their legs intertwining in the ocean water. She wrapped her arms around him, her head resting on his shoulder.

"I just wanted to help." She mumbled into his heated skin.

"I know." He said, placing a quick kiss to her lips. There was still sadness in her eyes, but also a calm that hadn't been there before. "And I love that about you."

Out of sight, a seagull called. She leaned forwards to kiss him deeper, the warm sun heating their skin. Immediately, his hands found themselves around their waist, placing feather light touches on the small of her back.

He heard her hands leave the water to come around his neck as his body pressed against hers. Her fingers were as cool as she was, but the water was warm. His mouth moved down to kiss her neck, and she sighed into his ear. "Zuko…"

Zuko let out a gasp as his spine started to tingle, before that itching feeling spread throughout his entire torso. Katara's hands were moving over his skin, cold and icy, they started at his neck, featherlight touches then trailed down to his spine and lower back. The muscles in his back twitched as his shoulder-blade stung, and his fingers tightened around Katara's waist. Katara let out a murmur of effort, and he tried to lean back from her, but she hugged him tighter to her chest. He managed to turn his head, and saw her eyes squeezed shut in concentration. Her hands still roamed over his back, crawling over his shoulders. Looking down, he stared in shock as he saw her fingers coated in ocean water, trailing over his body with deliberate, even strokes. He groaned aloud, gritting his teeth, hands balling into fists.

Forcing his eyes open, he saw Katara looking at him lovingly, blue eyes both worried and confident.

"Ssh, Zuko. Calm down." Katara muttered. Calm? How could he be calm? He'd asked her not to. He asked her to let it rest. But she didn't.

Her hands roamed over his front now, wandering, looking for something. His arms quivered as he braced himself on the shifting sands, inhaling and exhaling with shallow, rapid breaths.

"Firebending begins with the breath, right?" She asked, calm as ever, though there was a tense excitement to her voice.

He groaned, arms almost giving out. "Yes—Why?! Katara—argh!"" Her hands hovered over his lungs,

"I just, I can almost feel it…" She wasn't listening to him, leaning forward, inhaling deeply as her hands focused on his lungs. "There!"

And something inside of his lungs snapped. He inhaled sharply, like he was choking, fighting for the air to breathe as his body burned, that tingling feeling in his spine spreading throughout his entire body, burning it as it went. She let go of him, staring in horror as he fell back onto the sand, hair soaked by the sea. He writhed on the ground as the pressure built and he panted harshly, fingernails digging into his palms. Katara hovered over him, watching him intently.

After agonizing seconds, the burning began to dissipate, starting in his fingers, making its way towards his heart, warming the inside of him. It moved through his veins, searing wherever it went with a fiery burn and his breathing evened out, returning to normal. Katara began to smile as she leaned over him, her blue eyes wide with glee. Just as quickly as the sensations had come, they were gone. His head was clear, and he felt just as he did before Katara did anything. He sat up, hair dripping onto his neck.

"How do you feel?" She asked, sitting on her heels.

"I…I'm not sure." He said, rubbing his head. "What was that?"

"An idea I had. I thought I could find the specific part of you that was blocked…much like I did with Iroh." She looked down, suddenly ashamed. "I just wanted to try. I know you didn't want me to. I know. But…I know you suffer. I couldn't let you suffer like that."

His breathing calmed, he hunched over. "While I don't appreciate that you ignored what I said…I know you only mean well."

"I do." Her hands rubbed along her face. "I think it worked. I went with what felt right and…felt something loosen itself."

"Yeah, I think I felt it too." He muttered, sitting up.

"Well?" She asked expectantly, eyes bright with hope. "Are you going to try?

"Try what?"

"—and firebend!" She stood up excitedly, holding her hands out to him.

He grimaced, cringing. "Katara, I don't know…"

"If it doesn't work, then we're right back where we started." She shrugged. "But if it does…"

"You're not going to let this go?" He looked up at her, eyebrow raised. He didn't want to hope. He didn't dare hope.

"Probably not."

Groaning, he stood. He didn't feel different, aside from a hollow feeling in his chest. His legs shook when he walked forward. Katara immediately reached for him but her waved her away. Taking a deep breath he walked towards the opening of the cave, Katara following him closely. He looked back at her tentatively.

"You'll be fine. Just try, anyway." She leaned against the wall of the cave, hands on her hips. "And remember that I believe in you."

He nodded more confidently than he felt. He turned to face the depths of the cave. Staring into the darkness, Zuko took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. It took several deep breaths and purposefully avoiding Katara's gaze. But he knew she was there. He knew she was staring at him, watching him.

The fear of failure alone was enough to keep his feet planted firmly to the floor.

But…he also knew that she had confidence in him. And it was through her confidence, that he found his own. He breathed in deeply, feeling the makings of fire in him for the first time in years; it swelled in his fingertips, in his lungs, and in his very bones. He exhaled a deep breath, planting his feet firmly on the sand, digging his toes in, his hands at fists by his side. He didn't know what was going to happen, but he felt it was different this time. He closed his eyes, preparing himself for his inevitable failure. He felt the weight of her gaze on him, as he lunged forward, foot planted firmly on the ground and he punched the air.

Zuko waited for nothing, he waited for the silence of another failed attempt.

What he got instead…was pure heat.

A ball of fire the size of his head burst from his closed fist. Zuko felt the heat leave his body, but he also felt the surge of energy rush through him as the energy cycled back. He smiled in excitement, and then took another step forward, punching the air more confidently, leading to a bigger blast of fire emerging. It swirled down the cave, traveling further down until it dissipated. He looked back at Katara. She had the largest smile on her face, and she clapped encouragingly. He ran forward, flipped through the air and, balancing on his left leg, and roundhouse kicked a ball of flame, his largest one yet down the tunnel. Excitedly, he turned around to Katara, his eyes bright.

Zuko couldn't help it. He laughed. It was like taking a relaxing bath after a long day training or working. He had never felt more alive…whole. Katara was right. Firebending was a part of him, and it came as naturally as breathing. He just needed to remember how.

He ran to her, his arms wrapped around her waist and he lifted her into the air. Katara squealed and rested her hands on his shoulders for balance. She laughed too. Zuko spun her around in circles, earning more giggles from her. He felt so free as they spun, laughing together as her arms wrapped around his neck and she buried her face in his shoulder, pressing kisses to the base of his neck. Zuko realized that he did love her, if only inside his own head. He set her down, the smile still plastered on his face, and she laced her fingers together behind his head and she stared into his eyes.

"I-I never thought I could do it." He said breathlessly, forehead pressed against hers. "Katara do you know what you've done for me—you've given me back something that I thought I'd lost! Something that my father tried to take away from me! I-I don't know how I can ever repay you."

"You don't have to do anything, Zuko." She whispered to him. "Seeing you happy is good enough for me."

Zuko smiled, and she smiled in return. Still on a high from the return of his firebending, he kissed her, trying to pour all of his gratitude into the kiss. When they broke apart, Katara whispered something to him very low. "You know we're going to have to spar the next time we come here."

He smirked. "I hope you're prepared to lose."

She let go of him, and his mind was still spinning from the sheer number of kisses she gave him. She turned away partially, half of her body facing him, the other half facing the sea. He was instantly reminded of all of her curves revealed by the thin bindings she wore, the sunset cast a faint glow around her, making her look like a Spirit come to him. Her hair was wet, it clung to her like a second skin, and Zuko felt his teenage hormones start to take over.

She smirked saucily at him, resting her hand on the curve of her hip. "Oh, we'll see about that, Prince Zuko." He had never seen this side to her before. If he was being honest, he liked this side of her very much. She spun around fully now, her long hair covering every part of her except for her legs. "Now come on, it's late. We've got to get back before we're missed."

Zuko smirked and walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist, feeling the soft skin of Katara's stomach beneath his fingertips. She placed her hands-on top of his and smirked at him, looking up from underneath hooded lashes. "But Princess Katara…we're not going to the palace any time soon."

And they didn't. He and Katara spent the entire evening working on Zuko's forms, Katara showing him a few waterbending techniques, and he tried to implement them in his own bending. They worked until the sun went down before collapsing on the sand, exhausted. They kissed and talked until the sun sank beyond the horizon, and the moon rose from the ocean depths.

But even when it was well past midnight, and approaching dawn…they still didn't return, having fallen asleep on the soft sand.

Edit 2/9/18: When I was imagining the scene where Katara was healing Zuko, I thought of it being like the way your lungs feel when you use an asthma nebulizer. I always get a chilly, hollow feeling in my lungs and it makes my whole body jittery.

I hope you all like the changes!