I know History isn't my subject at all. I am not good at it and I do not like it. But I never thought it would be so hard for me until I got to college. Hell, I think I'm going to fail the course! Specially because I'm in an American History course and I am not American... so I don't know anything about U.S history.

So, basically that's why this is so late! Sorry! D:

Anyways, read and review!

Remember I don't own A:TLA, otherwise I would have kicked Mai's ass (she is so dull! She exasperates me so much it hurts.) and Zutara would have been a reality!

Enjoy!

III

For the following year, the visits they paid to each other were more and more common. Kya and Ursa became friends eventually because of their children's relationship, so Katara started traveling more often to the Fire Nation.

The first time she arrived to the Caldera City, she felt that Ba Sing Se had been more impressive. That was, until she arrived to the palace. The words had got stuck in her throat and her eyes where wide open. The place was more than huge and she suddenly felt tiny.

"You never mentioned your house was so small, Zu zu," she whispered beside him, sarcasm present in her whole body, while Ursa and Kya chatted the way to the visits chamber. He smirked and shrugged.

"I thought that it wasn't a big deal, 'Tara," he answered. She rolled her eyes. He thought it was funny that she was so taken a back about the palace.

I see. She's not used to a place so big. He thought, understanding her. She'll hopefully get used to it, anyways.

Katara took in the palace's grandeur. Paintings were decorating the red walls and servants ran around the halls, not occupied enough to forget bowing respectfully at the sight of little Prince Zuko

"This is not 'my house' anyways." He said a while later "It's the Fire Lord's palace, you know?" he declared when they reached one of the gardens, smiling at her.

"Clearly," she replied. He led her to the pond where she bent some water happily and Zuko silently admired her technique.

They started playing afterwards. Katara constantly mocked him about how slow he was in reacting to her playful attacks. He only stared, and after a couple of grunts and her running away from him, laughing; they sat under a tree's shadow, a comfortable silence immediately surrounding them.

"'Tara?" he hesitantly looked at her. She smiled at him expecting him to continue. "We'll always be friends, right? No matter what happens between our countries, you'll always be my friend, won't you?"

She stared at him confused for a moment. The question had taken her by surprise and she didn't understand the uncertainty in his eyes. His golden eyes looked at her worried and sad. He was expecting a promise, and so she gave him that.

"What kind of silly question is that?" she chuckled "We'll always be friends, and there's no way something can end our friendship. Ever. So stop looking at me like a dead puppy," she smiled at him, and she saw relief in his eyes.

It didn't take long for them to meet each other again after then. He had traveled again to the South and she showed him how to do penguin sliding. He fell awkwardly to the snowy ground three times (or so he declared, but Katara knew he was lying), and the sound of her musical laugh stopped him from yelling at her angrily.

He also mentioned something about a new Fire Lord being currently chosen, and that his father most likely would inherit the throne. "At least he says so. He's confident about It," he shrugged.

Katara noticed Zuko's worried eyes, and her hand met his shoulder, caressing him soothingly.

"Remember our promise? I'll still be your friend even if you turn out to be 'Crown Prince Zuko' when we meet again, so don't worry," she teased and he smiled at her.

In every trip they had, they got used to showing a little bit of their bending progress, trying to compete between each other. This is how he noticed how talented she was at water bending, and she noticed he wasn't bad at firebending either.

Zuko admitted that she was quite impressive at bending. She was the only waterbender he had ever seen–this does not prove his point as good as it should be–, but he was sure that she was very talented at it, the moves seemed too complicated for him. And the next thing he discovered was that waterbenders could be healers. She mentioned it in one of their letters.

One in which she congratulated him for his improved calligraphy.

The next time she traveled to the fire nation (some days after the improved calligraphy letter), he made her eat some spicy food that she couldn't recall the name of and that was when she discovered she didn't like the burning sensation in her tongue. Zuko gave her a beautiful flower as an apology –he would always say Ursa had made him to– for he did not know it would harm her so much.

They were best of friends. Sokka had visited Zuko several times also, but Zuko would prefer playing with Katara more. There was almost no way to separate them when they saw each other. Ursa and Kya grew worried, of course –war was closer and closer, and they knew their children would suffer when it came. But since their smiles were so bright, neither of them made an attempt to stop it.

Chief Hakoda, on the other hand, started being more and more possessive, jealous and alert of Zuko's presence in his daughter's life. Kya was always soothing her husband's jealousy, making their friendship last longer and be less dramatic. But Hakoda had one day commented to his beloved wife, that the situation between the Fire and the rest of the nations was too delicate to let their children continue seeing each other.

Because it was happening, war was too close and neither Katara nor Zuko had a clue of how bad a war could be. Sadly enough, that was something they will have to live sooner than later.

The last time she ever saw him as the Zuko she knew for almost two years –generous, happy and a true gentleman–, was when he had wrote to her saying he was going to travel to the Southern Water Tribe and his ship never arrived. Next thing she knew, war exploded in their faces and in the blink of an eye, she was the last waterbender in the Southern Water Tribe.

And her mother was gone.