Disclaimer: All rights belong to Nickelodeon, Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, and all the men and women that created the A:TLA show, books, and comics. I take no credit, and I do not mean to break any copyright rules. This is simply a work of fiction made for enjoyment. No money is being made. The lyrics are from the song "Harmony" by Elton John

Rating: General Audiences. Warning: some scenes contain dark themes and minor violence

Chapter 8 - Creating Harmonies

Harmony and me
We're pretty good company
Looking for an island
In our boat upon the sea

Zuko pulls out a new map and spreads it across the table in the navigation room. The captain of the vessel stands beside him.

"We're here," Zuko says, pointing to an Earth Kingdom island halfway between the Southern Water Tribe and the mainland of the Southern Earth Kingdom. "We're going here."

The captain leans forward. "The Taku Ruins? In the Northern Earth Kingdom? But why? No one's lived there in decades."

"There are still a couple inhabitants. If you know where to find them." Zuko marks the spot with a piece of charcoal. "We'll anchor the ship outside Mt. Makapu and I'll take a small group by foot from there."

"We'll need to stop for supplies again around here," the captain says, pointing to the middle of the Southern Earth Kingdom coast.

"That's Omashu. Still unconquered by the Fire Nation." Zuko shakes his head. "It's not safe."

"Kyoshi Island is about a three day trip from here. We could stop there, but our supplies would only last us until just past Omashu. There aren't many ports nearby."

"No, Kyoshi Island is just as hostile to Fire Nation as Omashu is." Zuko does some quick measuring with his fingers. "What about Whale Tail Island? There's a Southern Raiders' base there. They're our allies."

The captain follows his calculations. "That might work. It's about a week journey from here, and it would give us a few extra days to find a port after Omashu."

"Good. Follow that direction, then. And steer clear of Kyoshi Island." Zuko rolls up the map. "The faster we travel, the better."

"Of course, Prince Zuko." The captain bows in respect and then goes to the navigation system. Zuko exits the room and joins his uncle up on deck. Iroh is standing at the rail, smiling like a fool as he stares out at the water.

"What is it, Uncle?" Zuko asks. "An approaching ship? Pirates?"

Iroh shakes his head. "Not everything is a threat." He points in the distance and Zuko sees something moving quickly along the surface of the water. The thing moves closer and he can see that it's a person riding along waves that form out of the blue.

The person waves and then rides back along the side of the ship. Zuko sees that it's Katara, riding along a surfboard made of water. She grins when she sees him.

"Can a Firebender do this?" she teases before zipping back off.

Zuko crosses his arms. "I'm glad someone has found a way to entertain herself," he grumbles. "An ancient art of combat and she uses it to surf."

"You could have more fun with your firebending, you know," Iroh says.

"I do have fun." Zuko crosses his arms even tighter and raises his chin.

Katara rides past them again. "Come join me!" she calls out.

Zuko glances at his uncle. "She's kidding, right?"

The words had barely left his mouth before a stream of water wraps around him and pulls him off the deck. He makes a sound halfway between a squeal and a shriek that is definitely unprince-ly as he flies through the air.

The water releases him on the back of the surfboard. He glances down and realizes that somehow she's making the water solidified enough to stand on but it's still water. He can't fend off the wave of terror that engulfs him.

He is, quite literally, out of his element.

"Hang on!" Katara tells him. He doesn't even hesitate to grab on to her and hold tightly. He's feeling a mixture of panic and anger and humiliation all at once.

He's the prince of the Fire Nation! He should not be surfing while on a very important mission to find the Avatar and restore his honor! And he definitely shouldn't be clinging on for dear life to a peasant girl.

Katara laughs out loud as she creates a series of waves for them to ride. "Relax!" she calls out. "This is fun!"

He tries to say something along the lines of "This is the opposite of fun!", but he gets a mouthful of salt water and his words come out as an unintelligible gurgle.

"No, but seriously relax," she says. "I can't breathe."

He loosens his arms a bit and spits out the water in his mouth. "My uncle put you up to this, didn't he?" he grumbles.

"Maybe." She creates a loop wave and they ride it around all 360 degrees. Zuko has to squeeze his eyes shut. Fighting a band of pirates? No big deal. Challenging someone to an Agni Kai? He's done that before. Surfing? He'd rather face the Avatar.

"You know, he's not always wrong." Katara creates an ice jump and they go flying into the air. When they land back on the surface with a splash, she continues. "Being all obsessed with your search, or whatever your mission is, is bad for you. Sometimes you need to take a break and wind down."

"I wouldn't call this winding down."

She sighs loudly. "We're only trying to help you, Zuko. You need to let off some steam."

Letting off steam. How ironic. Zuko lets off plenty of steam every day when he practices his firebending.

"You're the one who had a huge outburst and almost killed me a few days ago," he points out, realizing only after he's spoken the words that he's completely at her mercy right now.

She doesn't get mad, which surprises him. "Exactly. I suffered, I let my explosive emotions out, I talked about it, and then I felt better. You should try it."

Her frankness is a bit shocking to him. "You're not still upset about it?"

She slows down the surfboard and comes to a standstill. They've travelled quite far; the ship is only a blur is the distance.

"I'm still sad," she admits. "I always will be. But when something bad happens to us in life, we can either let it consume us or we can move on and accept our new reality. I've decided to move on."

"You sound just like my uncle." His tone is coarse but he actually doesn't feel any anger for once. Just sadness. And not so much sadness as wistfulness. There was once a time when he was so hopeful. Now he realizes hope is for fools. In life there is only hard work. That's why he believes he'll find the Avatar someday. He's working hard to find him, so one day he will.

"You are too critical of your uncle. He only wants what's best for you." Katara turns and looks him in the eye. He looks away.

"I know. He thinks of me like a son."

"Then why are you so hard on him?" Her voice is patient, not judging. Maybe that's why opens up for once. He keeps all these emotions bottled up because he doesn't trust anyone enough to confide in them. But Katara is a stranger who is in his life for just a short time, and she's willing to be here for him.

It's always easier to talk about your problems to strangers.

"He had a son. My cousin, Lu Ten. He died during the siege of Ba Sing Se. My uncle was heartbroken. He only reappeared when I was banished. He thinks of me as a son, but I'm not his son. I won't be a replacement to fill his empty heart."

Zuko looks across the water, too full of anger to make eye contact with Katara. Zuko has spent his whole life acting - acting like the perfect heir to his father, acting like the perfect prince to his people. He doesn't want to have to act like the perfect son to Iroh, too.

"I don't think he thinks of you as a replacement." Katara lays a hand on his arm. Her skin is cool, like the element she controls. Zuko has a theory about how which element you control affects your personality, and the longer he spends with Katara, the more it seems to be confirmed. How else could she be as calm and steady as the ocean waves yet still be as fierce and fatale as a hurricane?

"Then what does he see me as?"

"Someone who's lost and needs his guidance."

Zuko takes his arm back. "You don't know anything about me."

"No. But I can see it."

Katara looks at him with pitying blue eyes and he hates it. He hates how good and compassionate and sympathetic she is. He hates how easily she can read through him. He's spent so long building up walls, creating the perfect face, and she cuts straight through it to the truth.

And at the same time, he doesn't hate it. In fact, it's nice to know there's someone he doesn't have to act around. Not that he's ready to completely open up, but it's nice to know that if he wants to, she'll be there for him. He's never had that before. Not since his mother left.

"I'm ready to go back now," he says quietly.

Katara nods and takes them back to the ship. Zuko decides to take her advice. As he passes his uncle playing Pai Sho on deck, he says, "Thank you."

His uncle looks up in surprise. "For what?"

"You know."

Zuko continues walking down the deck, back to his room. It wasn't much, just a handful of words, but a few words can mean the world to someone.

Maybe Katara is right. Maybe Iroh isn't using him to replace the son he lost - maybe Iroh just wants to help him. They are family, after all - the only two members of their family that aren't power-crazy.

Zuko shakes his head. He thinks too much. He's overthinking everything. It's a flaw of his. He overthinks, and then he speaks out of turn. It's what got him into this mess in the first place.

Sometimes he wishes he was a cold and calculating as his father and his sister. He has too much of it his mother in him. He's always known it.

It's always been his downfall.

Katara sits across from Iroh, a Pai Sho board between them. She's getting better at the game but she'll never be able to catch up to the old general. The game is just so intricate and involves a deep understanding of strategy. She can understand why Iroh was such a good general.

"You must keep track of which tiles create harmony with each other," Iroh advises after clearing the board. He had, unsurprisingly, won by a landslide. "That is the key to victory."

On the other side of the deck, Zuko is going through his firebending exercises. Katara watches him for a moment. His motions are graceful, as is the case with every bender, but also so aggressive - his punches use force rather than technique, he lands harder on his jumps than necessary, and he focuses on his target rather than opening his mind to all of his surroundings. While he is an extremely skilled Firebender, Katara can see where he would be defeated by a better one.

"Life is one big Pai Sho game to you, isn't it?" Katara asks, turning back to him. "That's why you want me to befriend Zuko. You see 'harmony' between us."

"People are much more complex than Pai Sho tiles," Iroh replies, sipping on his tea. "I can only see the potential for harmony."

"Zuko and I are complete opposites, though." Katara holds up a water tile in one hand and a fire tile in her other.

"Zuko is not so different from you," Iroh says. He holds up the lotus tile and the Avatar tile. "There is more to him than fire. Just like there is more to you than water."

Katara knows there's more to the prince than his anger. She just can't seem to get past that to see the truth. This morning, when they were on water, she saw a glimpse. But that was incredibly hard to get to, and she knows his walls are back up. How can she break through them again?

"This morning he opened up a little," she admits to the old general. When Iroh doesn't respond she continues, "He said he felt like a replacement for your lost son."

Iroh sighs heavily as he lays out the Pai Sho tiles again. "I can never replace Lu Ten. I can only try to prevent Zuko from receiving the same fate."

"What about his father? I know he's the Fire Lord, but shouldn't he be protecting his son?"

Iroh gently takes the tiles that she's still holding in her hands. "My brother does not appreciate his family as much as he desires power. It is a flaw that too often comes with the throne. I myself fell victim; only after I paid the ultimate price did I truly realize what was important in life."

Katara watches Iroh sadly. This is a man with wisdom beyond measure. It's just a shame his understanding of the world came at such a high cost. No person, no matter how horrible, deserves to see their child die.

Looking between the powerful, anger-fueled prince and the wistful, wise old general, Katara finds it hard to believe the two are related. But after hearing Iroh's story, she realizes that Zuko is just Iroh before Iroh lost his son. Zuko must have the kindness and patience and intelligence that Iroh has. It's just buried deep under a desire for power or whatever it is that drives Zuko so hard.

So what would Zuko have to experience in order to bring out that side of himself?

"You can make the first move this round," Iroh says, motioning to the Pai Sho board.

They move the tiles for a couple rounds. After Katara lines up a fire tile with a water tile just right, Iroh smiles.

"You didn't forget the harmonies this time. You are learning."

Katara smiles back. "Creating harmonies is the key to victory. And I had a good teacher."

Perhaps applying Pai Sho principles to real life isn't such a bad idea, after all. In order to find out what creates harmony with Zuko, Katara needs to discover what kind of "tile" he is. By that, she means she needs to get him to open up more with her and then she can figure out how to help him.

Watching him firebend, she decides there are two big mysteries she needs to unlock: What his scar is from and why he seems to hate it so much and two, what his mission out here really is and why he won't return home to the Fire Nation.

But first she needs to continue building up a good relationship with him so that when the opportunity presents itself, he'll be willing to talk.

"After this round, I think I'm going to see if he wants to train with me for a while," she tells Iroh. "I could use some practice."

"I think that's a great idea." Iroh glances down at the board. "And I think you're really starting to understand Pai Sho."

Sokka sits on the beach, stabbing at the sand aimlessly with the tip of his boomerang. A few minutes ago he'd seen the Unagi eat a giant koi. The struggle had been quick and violent. Right now he thinks being eaten by the Unagi would be better than having to go back into the village and face Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors.

He knows he's being ridiculous. He remembers when he and Katara had gone down to the North Pole for Katara to train with the Waterbenders there. Master Pakku had tried to send Katara with the other women to learn how to use their powers for healing, instead of combat. Katara had stood her ground against him and proven that girls can fight, too. Sokka had been so proud of her in that moment. So why now is he struggling to accept that the Kyoshi warriors are female?

Maybe it's because Katara was different. She was his sister, and she was a Waterbender. Maybe it just rubs him the wrong way because Suki and the others are nonbenders like him.

He hears footsteps in the soft sand behind him. He knows who it is without turning.

"Don't feel too bad," Suki says, taking a seat next to him. "Just because I beat you doesn't mean you aren't a good fighter. I just happen to be better."

"But how?" Sokka stabs his boomerang straight into the sand. "I'm so much stronger than you."

"That's the problem with the way you fight. Most girls aren't as physically strong as men. That's why we use a technique that turns our opponent's strength against them. It's a difficult one to master, but we train for years."

Of course. Sokka feels really dumb. Strength is an advantage, but intelligence is even more powerful. These girls are smart and strong.

"I can teach you, if you want," Suki offers.

He turns to her. "Really? You would? Even after what I said and how I acted?"

She nods. "You have nowhere to go. Oyaji told me your story. And we can always use an extra hand around here, especially with the Fire Nation growing more and more aggressive."

Sokka still isn't entirely sure how he feels about these female warriors, but she has a point. And she went out of her way to offer him this - where else is he going to find a home in a war-torn world? Not to mention that he never wants to feel as low as he did when she dropped him in the training house.

"I would be honored to train with you," he says.

Suki smiles. "Of course, you'll have to follow our traditions."

"Sure."

"And I mean all of them."

An hour later, when Sokka is in full dress and make-up, he isn't sure how thankful of Suki's offer is. But it's too late to go back, so he joins the other Kyoshi Warriors and begins his training.