I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters.

Shady Memories

Epilogue

A yell and an explosion. That signed another failed attempt of creating lightning by the young firebender.

And every time it made him flew further. Or it just started to hurt more… he was not sure.

He let out a frustrated sigh and punched the ground once before he got to his feet again.

His uncle left before sunset telling him he shouldn't push himself… that lightning required inner peace, not only hard work.

"Zuko…" He tensed as the waterbender said his name from somewhere behind him. "I wanted to talk to you…"

He peeked at her standing form from the corner of his eye then continued practicing with another firebending move without turning to her. "Then talk." He said without interest in his voice.

Katara scowled at his back. He had no idea how much he hurt her with avoiding her since he woke up. And above all… Her waterskin opened and she sent a whip to the back of his head. She still had to give him what he deserved for his stupid plan.

As the whip snapped his head his flames grew and he finally turned to her with a darkened face. "What do you want?" He asked through gritted teeth.

The waterbender watched him with narrow eyes. "You owe me a fight!" She snapped at him but to her annoyance instead of attacking her he let his flames die out.

His face cleared and only a light frown stayed on it. "I don't want to fight with you."

She knitted her eyebrows. "Bad for you… because I want to!" With that she sent an ice dagger towards him.

He didn't move a muscle as the ice flew only inches away from his face. "I won't fight you when you're angry…" Katara's scowl deepened and her water circled around her dangerously but it seemed to calm down when he went on. "With a good reason."

The girl's confusion showed on her face. "What?"

He made a sigh. "I did endanger you and the avatar…" When she opened her mouth he corrected himself. "Your friend, the avatar… but I believed that you could handle the situation. With the fact that he mastered three elements…"

She frowned at him again. "We could have handled Azula if you hadn't helped her!" Zuko started to shake his head. "I've held her but you…"

"You don't know Azula! She'd have hurt you!"

Blue eyes narrowed. "Rather me than Aang!" She snapped angrily.

He made a light frown as his expressions softened but she just scowled at him harder before she turned her head away. "Don't look at me like that…"

"Like what?"

She turned back. "Like you'd know… and you'd understand. But the truth is that you've never known and you'll Never understand!" Her eyes shined more with tears in their corners. "You've betrayed my trust and almost ruined everything!"

His eyes narrowed slightly. "You're speaking of betrayal…" He crossed his arms. "While I've never promised you anything."

"You're right…" Her eyes showed her sadness as she spoke. "You've never said it out." The tears slowly flow on her cheeks as she snapped her head away. "I was a fool to believe your eyes!"

His eyes rounded for a moment and he slowly reached for her but she made a frown without looking at him and started running away while the water circled around him and froze.

He melted the ice immediately but when he looked up again she already disappeared. "The second time you made her cry…" He murmured to himself and made a sigh. At least the second you know of…

"You should go after her you know…" Sounded the blind bandit's voice from the side.

He looked at the sitting girl with a light surprise. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to be right." She made a shrug.

He made a scowl. "She just froze me to the spot! That makes clear she wants me to stay away." He said then turned away from her standing in the lightning stance again.

Toph frowned at him as she whirled a boomerang in her hands. "You really know nothing about girls."

He took a deep breath uncaring what she said and moved his left arm… then the right… then shot his fingers out…

"Hey you! Give that back!" Yelled Sokka pointing at the blind girl but it was hard to be heard from the explosion that made Zuko slam to a tree with a cracking sound. "Oh-ow…" Said the water tribe boy and both he and Toph hurried to the prince who slipped to the ground rubbing his head. "Zuko…?"

"You alright?" Toph asked.

"We heard this cracking…" Started the other boy when the firebender lifted his hand without looking up, grabbing a broken tree branch.

Sokka made a smile then leaned downwards and lifted three fingers before his face. "How many fingers can you see…?"

Zuko made a growl still rubbing the back of his head. "Six."

The water boy looked at his hand then back. "Six?"

Toph crossed her arms. "No wonder. He got quite a hit…"

"He got quite a hit…" Zuko's eyes went wide as he held the sides of his head again. His memories… Azula watched him sitting in the green sheeted royal bed. "You were out for more than two weeks." The passed three days… Katara's smile as he held her… It all came back.

He straightened his back with round eyes as he removed his hands. "How could I forget all this…?" He jumped up almost shoving the others away as he ran off.

Sokka raised an eyebrow as he watched how he disappeared. "Man… firebenders are crazy…"

"Who said they were not?" Toph asked waving his boomerang that he quickly picked out of her hand.

"No way! It's mine!" He yelled bringing it close to his chest. "Respect property!" The blind girl made a smirk and he clenched it harder with a frown. "No, you can't make a bracelet from it again!"

"Would you prefer an anklet?"

"Toph!!"

The girl's giggle rang through the forest when Sokka fumed away.

Katara kneeled at the riverbank covering her face as she cried. The white lemur was the only one who broke her loneliness and chirped next to her before crawling in her lap.

The girl sniffed and embraced the little creature into a hug. "He doesn't remember, Momo…" She said desperately. "He doesn't and he doesn't even care…"

When she water whipped him and he turned to her angrily, he asked what did she want… and she couldn't tell him that all she wanted… all she wants now is to see his smile… to see that look in his eyes again… the things that seemed like they'd never happened at all.

Was it all just a dream? A tear fell from her eye when Momo nuzzled its head in her neck. "Why can't I forget if he could?" She looked at her reflection in the water."I feel like a stupid girl who still believes in fairy tales…" She turned to Momo again as she whipped her eyes. "What good could come out from the two of us anyway…?"

Momo hopped away from her as another figure appeared near them. "Perhaps nothing…" She immediately turned towards the voice's source with round eyes. She couldn't be sure it was him until he stepped out of the shadows. "Perhaps everything."

Zuko… She turned her head away from him as she whipped her eyes then asked with faked unconcern. "What do you want?"

The edge of his lips curled upwards for a moment before he finally spoke. "I came to thank you…" She slowly peeked back at him as he came closer. "Stopping me then was a very honorable thing to do…"

Her eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat. Could he mean…? "Stop you when?"

He smirked at her back as she tensed. Oh she knows very well… "I thought from the two of us I had memory loss."

She slowly made a smile before her and finally turned to him with shiny eyes.

He knew she was about to say something that's why he spoke quickly before her. "But it was also quite stupid of you…" Her face darkened and her smile faded. He just knows how to ruin things… the stupid firebender! "…you've ruined quite a moment." He went on his smirk still on his face.

She crossed her arms and scowled. "You mean for myself?" She snapped turning away. "Don't flatter yourself… you're not that charming."

His face changed back to his originally stoic face from the tone she used when he stopped just a few meters away from her. "I meant for us." He said on a low voice.

She looked back at him with surprise and unsure why he avoided her gaze as he spoke again. "But… I definitely owe my other self." She raised her eyebrows but remained silent. "I don't think I could… express myself like I did then…"

"Well…" She started as she stood up and crossed her arms. "You'd better try." Only then did his confidence break and she smirked as his eyes turned round.

She walked to him and poked his chest making a chill ran down his spine. "Your other self had no idea how much this self of yours was in trouble." His thoughts raced as he tried to read from her narrow eyes in vain. "You need to do a lot of things before I'd forgive…"

She was silenced as the prince's arms wrapped around her waist and her hands fell on his chest as he pulled her close.

She frowned up at him. "I just said… I'm still…" As he slowly leaned closer to her looking straight in her eyes she started to have problems finding the words she wanted to use. "…mad…" He stopped an inch away from her face and she blinked sometimes to break free from the intensity in his golden glance. "At you…"

He made a slight smile and slowly brought a hand to her face. "You'll forgive." He whispered. "Until then…" He slowly closed their distance. "You've promised me something…"

When their lips finally met his eyes bore into her round ones that slowly closed. She could feel him smiling when her arms slid around his neck and she deepened the kiss as her answer. Once I've already forgiven you…

And as for the others? Well… let's just say somebody brought his boomerang to his sleeping bag after Toph kept on grinning the rest of the night without any considerably good reason…

The End

A/N: So here it is! I'm really happy I've finally finished something. It's a really good feeling. ;) Maybe I'll write an extra if you wanted me to do so...

I wrote this story for a month and yet I've put it up almost in a week, so reviews are welcome every time of the year:) So if you liked it or you have anything to say, just write. I'm waiting...

And finally I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to read this. My happiness relies on my readers' satisfaction:) Love you all!