DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Avatar: The Last Airbender. I don't own anything related to it. I earn no money from this. In fact, I earn nothing from it but my own enjoyment. I make no profit from my writings and don't want to; they're based on someone else's work and I would rather make my own way.

Oh my gosh. Thank you so, so much for your reviews. I can't believe this has gotten so much attention! I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this. Answers here.

Untilthemoonrises: …Technically, they did. I'm just adding in extras. Like smooching and cuddling. Thank you so much for your review!

Heart of the Lullaby: Thank you!

donnacrunch: I'm so glad you like this! I just tried to imagine what they left out—like how Zuko might have been curious about her Bloodbending.

My Soldier of Irrationality: Not to be rude, but I think you actually mean "IC," because "OOC" means "Out of Character." "IC" means "In Character." Just an FYI for the future. And thank you so, so much.

Miss Kitty: Thank you so much. I'm trying to keep it somewhat natural, but it might be a wee bit rushed. And I'm not sure, but we'll see in the chapters to come how it all turns out.

XxEvilMasterMindxX: Thank you! And…really, I think the question is going to be, "How would Zuko handle Aang and Katara?" if it happened.

sokkantylee: Thank you!

AnnaAza: Thank you!

ThinCrustPizzaRules: I actually thought that, too. Because we realize how Katara thinks; she's angry and wants to kill Yon Rah. We don't really get to read much in to Zuko's view of things. I think it would've provided more information. But thank you so much! I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint.

xBrown-Eyed-Maidenx: Thank you so, so much. I just watched the episode and I thought they left out so much…so here's what I think they missed. And…I had to do that; Katara is only fourteen, while Zuko is sixteen. I think the age difference would show once they kissed. And it's your lucky day; I'm updating the same day you review. I hope it doesn't disappoint!

Again, thank you so much for all your reviews. I never get this kind of attention on my fics. I sincerely appreciate it and I hope you love this chapter as much as you loved the others.

This takes place during/after the episode, The Ember Island Players.

Please enjoy this chapter! I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Change

Chapter Three

That night, Katara couldn't sleep. They had gone to the Fire Lord's house on Ember Island, and so far, she just didn't feel so safe here. Zuko had told them…that his father never came here. Not now, not anymore. No one would look for them here. Zuko wasn't at all questioning about it. Instead, he was perfectly sure.

Katara wasn't. She knew now that he wasn't evil anymore, that, truly, he was with them, but…this was just too different. It was too dangerous. It was, in fact, the Fire Lord's house. His house. Katara woke and meandered through the house, trying to assure herself that no one had been here in years. They hadn't. Dust covered most of the furniture and fixtures in the house, and the candles hadn't been burned; they were all fresh, probably replaced for the next time they would come. The kitchen curtains hadn't been touched in years because, when she brushed them aside to peer in to the darkness, a small cloud of dust rose.

The house hadn't been used in years.

But she still couldn't sleep, so she padded down to the beach, slipping out of her robes and down to her underwear. The water here was warm and soothing and she hoped that she could bend her energy out enough that she might be able to sleep. She went through the basics up to the most complex moves of her bending. She stayed out there for hours until she was sure that it was past midnight. But she was still sure that she couldn't sleep.

She sighed such a heavy breath of air that she saw the water dip inward with the force. It wasn't the typical bending, but she was an accomplished young woman with many talents. She began dragging herself to shore, intentionally burying her feet deeply in the sand with every step to try and talk her muscles in to relaxing. …It wasn't working so well.

She was so focused on what she was doing that she didn't notice him until she was just a couple of feet from the shore. She hesitated in the water, unsure of what to do. "Zuko?"

"You still don't trust me?"

Her sigh was heavy again and she plopped down in the water right there, bending a couple of drops of water with one of her fingers. "It's not that."

Zuko wasn't so fond of water, but he was adapting, now that she wasn't attacking him with it. He stripped off his shirt and his pants so that he could join her without walking back in to the house, soaking wet, and he settled in beside her. "Then what is it?"

She was unsure with him so very close to her. The nights that she had spent with him alone, with only Appa to discover what they did, still lingered in her mind. She hesitated for several seconds, but put that aside, and finally spoke. "It's his house. I just…I don't feel comfortable here. Knowing what he's done, what he'll do…it feels wrong. It doesn't feel safe at all. It feels like we're hiding in the den of a wolf and he'll be back any second."

Zuko had to think for several moments to find a way to say something comforting to her. "He won't come here. It has too many…happy memories for him to ever return. The first time I came back here the doors were locked shut. I had to kick them in." It was slow to come, but when it did, it sounded good enough. "He won't look for us here. No one will."

"Not even your sister?"

He went silent for some time after that. "No. I don't think she will. She hates our mother, and…she was here. Her presence hasn't been erased here."

There was an elongated silence here, because Katara didn't have a clue as to what she could say. "…I'm sorry, Zuko."

He shook his head. "I'll find her, one day."

She was quiet after he said that, because she wasn't so sure. Facing his father might not allow them to come home alive, really. She didn't like to think about it, but it was true. She didn't know what to say, and he stood shortly after that. He leaned down and offered her his hand, a very, very small smile on his face. "Come on, Katara. You need some rest now. You know that if anyone comes, there are so many of us. We can fight back."

She hesitated, but took his hand. He pulled her up with strength she recognized and appreciated. "Thank you, Zuko." It was murmured, a gentle thing, and she smiled up at him. "Thank you."

They walked back up to the house in silence, and this time, Katara found sleep smoothly and easily, settling in for the night and finally got some rest.

The next day, Aang trained for most of the day, with all three of his masters, Zuko last. He was surprisingly good at Firebending, especially considering he had, basically, just started. Perhaps it was because Roku had been his last form. He was, after all, born a Firebender. By the time he and Zuko finished, he was exhausted, but he wouldn't go to bed when it was still light outside. That would be stupid.

Sokka solved the problem when he and Suki ran in, carrying a…

Oh, God. It was a poster for a play.

About themselves.

Zuko clearly didn't want to go, but they all took the trip anyway, figuring it would be some sort of…decent break.

But it wasn't. The play was awful; the actors were all wrong, and…the end of it…well, they tried not to think about it.

Katara couldn't sleep that night. It wasn't because she was afraid of being discovered, but because of that stupid play. And what Aang had done. And said. And thought.

She went to the beach again, not to work off some energy, but in hopes of distracting herself. This time, Zuko was waiting for her. He looked at her in silence for some time, watching her, waiting. She thought about turning around and leaving. She was getting tired of him always being there, always.

But he spoke before she could think further on the idea. "What is it this time, Katara?"

She fell right on to her bum and sighed. "That stupid play. And Aang."

Zuko considered this for several seconds, and then he leaned down and scooped her in to his arms. He carried her all the way down to the water, putting her down where it would wash up around her legs. Water was her element. Water would sooth her. "Do you need to talk about it?"

She appreciated what he did. She let the waves lap at her feet and ankles and sat in silence for some time, breathing deeply. It felt so good. But then she knew she had to speak, feeling that he had settled down near her. "…Maybe I do." She hesitated, but then decided she would just blurt it all out. "Before the invasion on the day of the eclipse, Aang…he just kissed me. I didn't have any warning at all and I didn't know what to do and he…didn't quite give me time to say anything." She took a small, but deep breath. "I don't even know how I feel about him. I practically raised Sokka, after our mother was taken, so…he's sort of like my brother and my son, both, and…Aang is sort of that way too, but there's something different, and…" She trailed off with a frustrated grunt.

Zuko was surprised. He hadn't quite thought that Aang would be so bold, really. He was only twelve. Then again, Katara was only fourteen. But she kept going. "In the middle of the play, when he walked out…it was because he thought that what the actors did was real. That I had really said that…I liked you, in Ba Sing Se. He got so mad, he said he would've…gone in to the Avatar state if he hadn't blocked his chakra." There was a pause here. "He thought it was real." Another pause, a little longer this time. "He…wondered what was going on. He said he thought I liked him. I told him…that I didn't know. That I was confused right now. With Sozin's comet coming, and the Fire Lord about to try and wipe out the entire earth…I can't think about things like that. Once the comet is gone, maybe. But right now, it's not a priority. I mean…we might not even come back, Zuko. I don't like to think that, but it's true. We don't know what will happen." There was a breath and she continued with some fire. "I told him I was confused and his reaction was to kiss me again! That's not how you fix it."

Zuko sat there for several seconds, letting her calm down some from her…energy. Then, he reached out and softly touched her shoulder, "Did you tell him that?"

"No. I told him I was confused again, and that I was going back inside and I practically sprinted back in to the theater." She hadn't been too happy with him, after all.

"You should have said something. You know he won't understand unless you tell him."

She sighed heavily, and she shook her head, lying back in the sand. She buried her fingers in the loose earth and sighed once more, but it didn't seem to help her at all. She still looked frustrated and even a little upset, perhaps from the anger she had felt earlier. "He wouldn't understand. I tried explaining to him about not knowing how I feel and he just…well, I told you. He kissed me. He pretty much just threw it in my face."

There was another long pause as he thought for several seconds. "I kissed you and you didn't seem to have a problem with it."

"That was different. You don't…" She trailed off, opening her eyes; they had closed when she fell back in the sand. "…At least, I don't think you like me that way. And it was to distract me, not to…" She sighed. "It wasn't a romantic thing." She hesitated for several long seconds, trying to find the words. "Maybe I don't like him that way. I don't know what it is."

Zuko thought about this for a while. "I thought you said you weren't going to think on it until this war is over, Katara."

"I shouldn't." There was a long pause. "But I can't help it. It's so confusing and he just…he just forced it on me and now I have to think about it."

He lingered there for several seconds, before he got on to his knees. "Then I'll let you think on it in peace."

He was about to get up when he felt her hand on his, and he looked back at her. She was sitting up now, having pushed herself up as he tried to leave, and was now looking at him. He could've sworn there was a small blush on her face. "Wait."

He paused there for several seconds, looking at her. "Yes?"

She hesitated for so long that he wondered if she had changed her mind. But then, finally, she spoke. "…Kiss me."

He was so startled that he didn't know what to do or say at first, and then he looked her in the eye. "Katara, what are you doing?" His eyes were piercing.

"…Maybe it's just me, Zuko. Maybe it's not Aang at all." She hesitated, and then pulled her hand away. "Maybe I'm just…not meant to…" She didn't know how to say it.

Zuko hesitated. He waited for several seconds, until he felt her drawing away, and then made his decision. Technically, he wasn't still dating Mai, so he wasn't cheating on her. He reached out and softly caught one of Katara's cheeks with one of his hands, drawing her in close to him. Unlike the night on Appa, this time, his lips met hers and lingered. It was a soft kiss, almost hesitant, but much more…there than the last one.

She made a sound of surprise and he almost pulled back, until he felt her respond, leaning in to the touch of his lips and shyly returning the gesture. She pulled away after a few moments, blushing deeply, and she looked away.

Zuko's lips were surprisingly smooth and full and even though it hadn't been that kind of kiss, it had felt good. Not like Aang. Aang's kiss had been too hard and abrupt and unexpected. Zuko had kissed her softly and slowly, giving her time to see it coming. It hadn't been so…harsh.

Zuko started to leave, but she pulled him back, and she kissed him once more, bringing him close to her lips, one of her hands finding the back of his neck.

He was so surprised that, at first, he didn't know what to do. Then, one of his hands slipped in to her hair, and he found himself kissing her back, unsure, but enjoying the feeling.

…When had they become friends?

And more than that, when had they started…this?

End Chapter

I hope you enjoyed. Please review! If there's anything I can improve on, please tell me!