13. Festival

"...So, then he packed me into the limo with the leftover sambar from last night and ordered Jee to take me home. Didn't ride with me. He stood by and watched it leave." Katara paused. "So, what do you think it means?"

"Well," Suki's voice speculates on the other end. "I don't have personal experience—"

"That doesn't make me feel any better..."

"But it sounds like he's confused." Suki plows on before Katara can get out something like that's vague. "I mean, you guys run into his crazy dad on his birthday; the man delivers a long, evil monologue on how he screwed up his son; you punch him in the face; then, you go to his house to get fixed up; and last, but not least, you two have what sounds like angry sex on the couch."

Katara flushes and walks to her door, checking to see if it's locked. Sokka's watching a big football game downstairs, but she doesn't need him barging in on her private conservation on the most confusing event of her life with his girlfriend. She doesn't call Toph because she knows the girl who rebelled all throughout Catholic, finishing, and society schools and lessons would bluster with as many bawdy jokes as a tavern full of drunken pirates. She'd completely ignore the advice and worry part. Katara obviously cannot talk to her brother, though he may have some guy insight on this, but it was bad enough that Sokka launched a Protective Brother Inquisition when she arrived in the morning with her hair still tangled. She didn't need any more of—

"Katara?"

"Suki, for one thing, I don't think it was angry sex..."

"It sounded as if it was passionate, like maybe done in the heat of the moment?" Suki replies carefully but gently. "You've got to admit it was a strange situation last night. You initiated the kiss and didn't protest when he started to make his move, and none of you planned for that to happen. Next morning, he's waking up, naked, and wondering how it happened and if he took advantage of you somehow."

"I would have stopped—"

"He doesn't know that."

"He threw me out before we could really talk! That is so like him." Katara huffs and hugs a pillow close to her. "What am I supposed to do?"

She can imagine Suki shrugging over the phone. "Just have a chat with him. Maybe go somewhere fun to take your mind off things with him."

"The Winter Festival?" Zuko questions as he stares at the brightly colored flyer that Katara basically threw at him before she dived into the pool. He holds it up for Katara to see, as if she hadn't gone to the trouble for securing an actual glossy piece of paper for her suggestion.

"It's a fair, with games and rides and food." Katara says as she flips over on her back to relax a little as he examines it. "I go every year."

Zuko doesn't look at her. Usually he peeks a bit when she shows up in a tight swimsuit and kisses her before she hops into the pool, but he acts as if she has the plague. She pretends not to notice and tosses her head. Katara is still prideful and puts her all into her laps today, hoping that water would splash her stupid coach/sort-of-boyfriend right in the face. He's not the least bit wet. Ass.

"We already went to the zoo and...dinner. We need to train. The Olympics is in three months."

Katara begins to open her mouth, but he stops her. "I know what you're about to say. We can afford to lose a little bit of time. I'll really work hard next practice. But we need to be...more serious and focus more on training."

It sure sounds like a double meaning, of idling and fooling around instead of practicing or their relationship. Katara wants to shout at him, but even now she knows it's not the best way to go. He'll yell back, then she'll retaliate, and they'll continue until one or both of them storm out as dramatically as they could, almost like a contest. They must chat about what happened, but Katara acquiesces to yield for a short while. He needs gentle encouragement.

"Jee, I thank you for getting him decaf coffee instead of the actual caffeine. He'll be out for a bit."

"Psh, he's a stubborn ass, miss. He hasn't changed since he was...born. I could tell you tales of his pig-headedness until the next year. Now, we're going to a festival, right?"

"The Winter one, just a few blocks down this street." Katara agrees with a smile. She pats Zuko's head on the seat lightly and leans back in satisfaction. The limo is driving very carefully, and she watches the cars pass by with a lazy air.

"What's the funniest Zuko-stubborn moment you remember, Jee?" she calls.

"Oh, as I've said, there are a lot, but there's one where he refused to put his clothes back on after his bath for his third birthday party—"

"...and he dived into the great big cake. He smeared it into his face in front of the lovely society ladies and gents, then threw a particularly heavily-frosted piece at Ozai, the old bastard. The whole affair, needless to say, was ruined."

Katara wipes tears from her eyes. Her sides ache. Jee is chuckling so much that he's threatening to pull over because his hands are shaking too much for steadiness at the wheel.

Zuko is not amused. He's woken up at the sound of their uproar and refuses to speak to anyone besides growl as Jee begins another embarrassing story involving mustard, Jello, ducks at the park, and innocent bystanders.

"Why don't we try this game?"

"Katara, it's rigged. The hoops are oval-shaped instead of circle-shaped, so the ball will bounce right out."

The booth vender glares at him as the crowd begins to disperse. Katara shoots him a semi-apologetic look as she leads her troublesome charge to another game. The man in a slightly rumpled apron grins, bows at her, and watches as Katara turns towards Zuko.

"How about these bottles? You can win a stuffed panda."

"It's also rigged. If the two bottles were set equally side-by-side, then the three would easily crash down when the baseball hit it in the right spot. But one, if you look very closely, is slightly off, so it's extremely hard, if not impossible, to knock down all of them—only two at most will be kncoked over."

Katara sighs, shooting another tired smile at another glowering vendor. She's almost afraid to direct him to the rides. He might start spouting out death and injury statistics on tranportable coasters and Ferris wheels. She bet that this was how he felt at the zoo.

She decides to get holiday-themed hotcakes, with cinnamon, nutmeg, and whipped cream. He begins to call out her daily calorie count and her "champion's" diet, when she subtly knocks his wallet about ten feet off the table. Zuko stares at her and runs to retrieve it before someone decides to for him.

A woman smiles down at her as she walks by with a plate of chocolate bon-bons. "Ugh, a personal fitness trainer? Those are terrible, very harrassing."

"Oh, no, it's worse," Katara replied dryly. "He's my Olympic coach and part-time boyfriend."

The lady stares at her with a bemused smile that drips of wanting to smile strainly and reply with a suuuureeee... "Ah, well. Good luck then."

"Thanks," Katara says airly as she hurries away. "I'll need it!"

"So." She's cornered him onto the Ferris Wheel. It's spinning very slowly. Zuko's peeking out the windows nervously as if considering throwing himself out. "We had sex two days ago."

"Errr..."

"And you threw me out."

"Um..."

"It was very hurtful. I had to eat a pint of chocolate chip ice cream and call my best friend to get over my grief."

Zuko looks strained now. Good. "Katara—"

"Zuko, I should have realized that you felt as if you had taken advantage of me in the heat of the moment and made a mistake in our relationship as not only in significant others, but as coach and student. However, you had no right to kick me out and should have talked with me if you felt insecure."

She sits back and watches him fluster. He looks green.

Too easy.

"Katara...I'm sorry." he finally says. "I screwed up."

She crosses her arms. "Mm-hm."

"I mean, I told myself when we first started going out that I wouldn't do or cause something that you would regret. I felt that I broke that promise that morning. I was angry at my father, I was exhilarated when you hit him, and I was hurt when he brought up...my scar. You could have continued because of...guilt. Or pity. I didn't want that, and I was...afraid I'd hurt you."

She softens and touches his arm. "Zuko, I would never lead you on or make you believe that something wasn't wrong. What we did is something we can't take back, but I love—"

Zuko pulls away from her. Before she could react, he's turning his head and upchucking out the open window of the carriage. She feels sympathy for whoever is below.

He turns back toward her and sheepishly wipes his mouth.

"You should have mentioned you're afraid of heights or something." she mentions to him. He groans and rests his tired head on her lap as she strokes his hair. Jee is smirking in the front.