Disclaimer: Still not mine.

Ignition

Chapter 8: Wildfire

The next day began with a start. Zuko sat up suddenly, as if a branding iron had been pressed against his skin. He glanced to his left where Katara had slept, their bodies contoured against one another, snug against the nighttime chill. The Fire Lord glanced around the clearing, his brow furrowed. Katara was nowhere in sight. Quickly, he leapt to his feet. Standing upon the rock on which they had slept, he had a decent vantage point. He could see nothing. He jumped down, landing deftly upon the mossy undergrowth of the forest. The makeshift camp they had made the night before was untouched. Seeing no signs of a struggle, his concern for Katara's safety ebbed, but only slightly. Having been raised near the forest, he had escaped into its shadows on numerous occasions. No one knew better than Zuko the dangers the forest hid beneath its mysterious canopy.

Zuko closed his eyes, opening his other senses to the surrounding forest. Sight could be distracting, misleading. He could smell the damp earth beneath him. The sounds of the wind in the leaves overhead reached his ears, a soft whisper. After a few moments, he was able to distinguish shouting in the distance. Without a moment's hesitation, he lurched forward, dashing through the forest easily. He cleared fallen trees and small bushes quickly, avoiding the loose rocks and raised roots which threatened to send him airborne. Agni help the person who has her…

Without so much as a break in his stride, Zuko burst through the brush and skidded to a halt on the sandy shore of the river. When his momentum ceased, he stood in a crouch with his hands close to his body. The sight stunned him.

Katara stood in the middle of the wide, rushing river wearing her bathing tunic and facing away from him. It was white and wrapped around her chest and waist. The waterlogged fabric clung to her body where it looked even brighter against her bronze skin. Her legs were a shoulderlength apart and her arms were held out to either side. She swept them from side to side, swaying slightly. It appeared to Zuko that she might have been dancing. She made a sudden upward movement with both arms before thrusting them forward violently. Zuko watched as the water before her moved upward slightly, forming a small wave before falling back to the river with a disappointing splash.

Katara's shoulders hunched forward for a moment and she hung her head. After a few seconds, her whole body tensed and she began to shake. "Damn it!" she screamed suddenly, thrusting both palms downward into the water, creating large splashes that soaked her further and had nothing to do with waterbending. "Damn it dall to hell!" she continued, splashing in every direction before yelling angrily and incomprehensibly and disappearing beneath the surface.

Zuko watched the spectacle from a safe distance. Only when she disappeared beneath the surface did he begin to be concerned. Could waterbenders breathe underwater? He wasn't sure. The young man watched the spot where Katara had disappeared intently.

Meanwhile, Katara sat under the surface of the water with her pale blue eyes closed. The coolness of the moving water was refreshing against the singed flesh of her arms. Grudgingly, she opened her eyes to look at them. Foolish as it was, she knew the burns were what affected her bending. Her chi had been blocked before; this was a different feeling. The mark of fire somehow interfered with her ability to become one with the water. She couldn't connect. In waterbending, everything was about connection and fluidity. Without her ability to sense the water and its movement, its intricacies, her knowledge of bending was useless. Water had become as distant to her as any of the other elements. She watched the bubbles escaping her as they darted towards the shimmering surface of the water above her. Her lungs began to feel the strain. Just a little longer…

Zuko began to pace the shore, his eyes never leaving the spot where she had slipped beneath the surface. How long could she hold her breath? What if she had encountered one of the numerous deadly creatures scattered throughout the Fire Nation? Stop this, you're being foolish. Stranger things have happened on this journey... After collecting himself and steadying his breathing, the young Fire Lord resigned himself to the simple task of waiting for his companion to resurface.

Beneath the still surface, Katara watched the way the beams of sunlight danced above her. Though her lungs screamed for the relief of a full breath, she continued to resist. Seconds slipped into minutes as the young waterbender relished the stillness of her aquatic environment. Exhaling, she allowed herself to sink further into the pool. As her vision blurred and began to fade, she scissored her feet as hard as she could manage and propelled herself quickly to the surface. The waterbender fell against the large rocks with a soft thud. Her hands scrabbled to get a hold on the slippery algae-covered rock before her, breaths coming in shallow bursts. Suddenly, something grabbed her by the arm. Instinctively she reached out oncemore, bending the creatures blood, forcing it to her will. There was a yell and the delirious and oxygen-deprived waterbender opened her eyes. The sight of Zuko standing in front of her with his arms and legs at odd angles, his entire body twitching spasmodically shocked her. With a small yelp, she dropped her hands to her side. Zuko swayed before falling forward into the water, where he landed on his hands and knees.

Katara's hand flew to her mouth in shock. She staggered forward quickly, falling to her knees in front of him. She reached out to him, hesitating slightly. Zuko's head jerked upwards suddenly. The expression on his face caused Katara to fall backwards slightly. "Is this going to become a frequent occurrence with you?" he demanded, his brow furrowed. "Is there anything else I should know?"

Katara merely alternated between squeaky attempts at speech and shaking her head. "I'm sorry, I thought…you surprised me…I didn't know what else to…I just…" she stammered incoherently.

Having regained control of his own body, Zuko stood quickly. He shook his soaked hair out of his face and quickly exited the water. "This is why you shouldn't go places without telling me. Especially not here. This place is dangerous Katara. Don't you know anything?" he ranted, gesturing emphatically. His irritation with her foolishness was quite clear. Unintentionally, he glared at the startled waterbender sitting waist deep in the water. His gaze softened as he noticed how pathetic she looked, her clothing and hair soaked and clinging to her, the burns snaking up her arms. Burns –I- caused…

Zuko was startled when she turned to face him suddenly, her face full of defiance. "I shouldn't wander off without informing you of my exact location? I'm sorry my Lord." she spat venomously. "I didn't realize how much pain it would cause you if I went to the river and tried to bend. I wasn't aware it frightened you that I couldn't defend myself. Forgive me for being so damned selfish." she snarled, rising to her feet. "Did you think for even an instant that maybe if you hadn't attacked me this wouldn't have happened? That I wouldn't have had to resort to something so vile? Did that even cross your arrogant mind?" she demanded, her piercing blue eyes boring into his. The pair stood that way for what seemed like hours, the tension between them almost palpable.

Author's Note: Well they couldn't be happy-go-lucky-lovey-dovey the –whole- time :P Anyway, tell me what you think. More to come ;]