Zuko didn't say much after that but slipped into the bed opposite of her like he had before for many nights. She herself went under the covers. A window had been left open in their room and it wasn't until she began to shiver did she realize it. Suddenly there was a warm hand on her shoulder.
"You're cold." She could feel him move closer and she suddenly felt instantly better. She didn't turn around but still she began to shiver. He leaned in closer and she felt his hot breath along her neck. Even his breath was hot and warm. Her body stiffened at the intimacy, her face becoming hot.
"Turn around, you'll be warmer." It was almost a command but she was so cold at this moment she did turn around. His arms suddenly wrapped around her and tugged her closely to his chest. She felt instantly warmer. His body radiated heat. She let her arms drape across his side and felt him physically stiffen. She wondered what would make him do such a thing. Against his side her hand worked its way down closer to the scar she knew was there and then suddenly her wrist was caught in his large hand. He pulled it away.
"Don't touch it." He hissed through gritted teeth. It took her a moment to realize he did not mean it out of anger. He was in pain. She sat up in alarm. He looked at her with surprise.
"Are you still in pain?" He didn't need to answer her for her to know the answer. Instantly she flung the sheets of her and went to the bathroom and brought back a cloth and a bowl of water.
"Light a candle for me." She demanded. He did so without question but when she shoved the sheets off him to examine him; she felt the room grow hotter. The small flame on the candle grew brighter and his hand grabbed hold of her wrist once more.
"Do not touch it." He gritted his words out to her again. This time she was tired of excuses.
"It has been five years, Zuko! A wound should not hurt for that long unless something is wrong now lay back and let me see before I tie you down myself! I am your wife, now let go!" Something about her forceful air must have gotten to him and he released his grip on her hand. She moved the sheets back and saw just how terrible the scar was. It almost seemed to be festering.
"Just relax, this may hurt a bit." He laid back down not arguing and she took the water into her hands and pulsed it through the wound and back out again. She saw Zuko cringe but something about waterbending and healing made her feel calm and relaxed. He watched her, studying her, but she was too lost in need and her skill to realize how intensely he gazed at her. She did this for a very long time and slowly stretched out her waterbending to the spider like legs the scar had grown. They extended mostly the length of his side and as she watched as slowly they began to grow smaller. Although the scar was too deep and too old for her to fix completely with all the techniques she knew, she was able to make it heal itself properly so he wouldn't be in pain. She reduced it at least a third of its size before she had to stop out of exhaustion. She put the water back in the bowl and looked at its cloudiness. She dumped the bad water out through the window.
When she was satisfied with her work she turned back to him. He looked at his scar and touched it tentatively. His fingers traced its outline and she felt proud of her handiwork all things considered.
"Tomorrow I could try again and maybe get it a bit smaller, but I don't know if I will be able to do more. The scar is old, if I had gotten to it when it was still new I could've done more." She sighed slightly and sat back down into the bed. Her body was still warm from the exertion. The candle remained lit its fire dancing slowly. She turned again slightly to gaze at his form. She was attracted to his body. In clothes it was obvious he was handsome but without them he was even more so. His body was still in the prime of youth and slowly he watched her as she examined his hairless chest. There may not have been any hair but he had many scars. Some of them were burns others were not. She traced over some of them. They were all very old but mostly they had worn as his skin replenished itself every year. She figured a physician had probably been at them more than enough times to count. She let out a sigh as she saw how many there were.
"Zuko, where did you get all of these?" She asked breathlessly.
"Training mostly, firebending, swords, the war, but more than anything, being a son to a Fire Lord." She stared at him in sympathy and pity. She still had no idea how hard life had been for him and she found herself wanting to know more about him. To know exactly what he went through.
For some reason healing him had made her feel better. She lay down and laid her head on top of his chest. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she fell asleep listening to the rhythm of his heartbeat. It sounded so much like water.
It seemed after that night Katara and Zuko seemed to open up to each other more. She smiled at him more and she saw the occasional smile reflected back. The day after Katara had healed Zuko, Fire Lord Iroh summoned her for tea. She accepted and adorned the appropriate clothing and went to meet him out in the gardens where the turtleduck ponds were.
"Good morning, Princess Katara." She gave him a respectful smile and sat down with him and he poured her a cup of tea.
"Good morning Fire Lord Iroh." She replied. He chuckled, his belly shaking.
"Please you are family call me Uncle Iroh." She nodded her head a bit. He seemed hesitant for a second.
"My dear you realize you have been married to my nephew for over a month now and I am concerned about your relationship. Do you remember the reasons why you were betrothed to Zuko in the first place, besides for political balance?" Katara gulped afraid of the answer. When she wasn't willing to respond he sighed deeply.
"I am old, Katara. My time for Fire Lord was many years ago, but when Ozai died and the council refused Zuko's ascension I stepped forward so that my nephew could one day succeed me. He is the true Fire Lord. Even now he does most of the obligations required of me. But he cannot become Fire Lord until he has an heir. Katara I know you and my nephew were not always friends and that this marriage has been difficult, but I…"
"Set your mind at ease, Uncle Iroh. I will not disappoint you." Katara interrupted him, dreading the boring lecture he was giving. She respected him a great deal, but there had been a turning point in their marriage relationship the previous night she knew it would only escalate from there.
"I am glad to hear you two are getting along. He really does care for you. Did you know that this was his favorite spot to play as a boy?" Katara shook her head suddenly interested in the topic. She wanted to know what Zuko was like as a child. She guessed he had been mean and cruel when he was young, like when she met him. Something on her face must have given away her thoughts clearly.
"I know what you are thinking, but Prince Zuko was anything but cruel when he was younger. Azula was always the cruel one. When Zuko was younger he struggled with his bending and he worked hard but he was never as good as Azula. His mother loved him dearly and taught him kindness and compassion, something Ursa was known for. When Ursa disappeared it tore him apart. No matter how hard he tried he could never live up to his father's expectations. His father dishonored him and cast him out when he dared to speak up in a meeting of the generals." She felt herself hanging on his every word trying to imagine what childhood must have been like for Zuko. She looked at Iroh expectantly wanting him to continue. He sipped at his tea slowly.
"What happened, what did he say?" she asked anxiously.
"Ozai was a cruel man when it came to war. He and his generals wanted to send some men to the front as bait for the enemy. They would die painfully; they were barely trained and thus expendable. Zuko thought it was wrong and spoke out. It is a terrible thing to speak out against an elder and an Agni Kai was arranged but when Zuko turned to face the general, he saw instead it was his own father." At this Katara gasped. Her eyes began to water as she imagined Zuko at a young age.
"Then what happened? Is that what happened to his eye?" She asked. He nodded his head slowly. He seemed deep in thought and memories.
"Zuko did not have the heart to fight his own father and begged for mercy. Ozai saw it as a sign of weakness and taught him a lesson. After that he was banished, never to return again unless he captured the Avatar. You see the banishment wasn't meant to be temporary, it was meant to be permanent. No one thought the Avatar was alive, so he was sent on an impossible mission so he would never be able to go back home." Katara felt a tear crawl down her cheek and drip off her chin.
"I never knew. All those things are so terrible. He truly has suffered." Iroh nodded again and took one last sip of tea.
"I think in the end it was worth it. He is a better person for it and he will be a better Fire Lord for it as well." She nodded her agreement and left Iroh after a little while longer. For some reason she wanted to find Zuko and just…she didn't know what she wanted to do. She just had to see him.
She had looked all over the palace for him but with no success. She decided then that the best course of action was to wait for him until evening. She did so and surreptitiously brushed her hair until it was soft and wrapped her robe around her body.
When finally he did come in he actually sought her eyes out first which he had never done before. His golden stare hugged her heart and she stood up and went to him and he embraced her in his warm arms. He was so hot like fire and she watched as the candle light jumped a bit in response. She looked up at him and he leaned down and kissed her. His hot breath warmed her whole body it seemed and she had never felt a sensation like it.
He was so warm and gentle and she wanted to help him. She wanted him to feel needed, wanted and loved. He took off his tunic and undershirt and stood bare-chested before her. She felt the pure heat in it. He gripped her arms and tugged her over to the bed and maneuvered himself next to her as she lay on her back.
She felt sensations going through her body she had never experience before. She realized how passionate he was making her as he kissed her more on the lips a little harder this time, his hand rubbing along her side. His hands came to her robe and he traced the edges of its border.
"Do you want me?" he whispered into her ear.
"Yes." She said breathlessly. His breath tickled her and she squirmed underneath him but when her eyes met his she saw anger flash across them.
"You're a liar!" He jumped off her and away and she watched as the candles burned brighter and suddenly began to dim.
"What?" She yelled at him, sitting up slightly. He had turned his back to her and although she was angry she couldn't help but admire the way his muscles flexed and stretched out of anxiety.
"I know you went to talk to my uncle today, what did you talk about?" He came up closer and was inches from her face. She felt her face grow hot with anger.
"We talked about you, what else would we talk about?" She said sarcastically. He gritted his teeth and stood up and strapped on a robe of his own.
"I don't want your pity." he said through clenched teeth and left her there. She felt alone and as he left the room, the candles almost all went out with the force. She lay gaping, trying to understand what had happened.
She decided to gather her courage and slipped on some light shoes and left her room trying to follow where he had gone. It wasn't all too difficult he left a trail of fiery lights in his wake almost like embers and she followed them surreptitiously until she got to the balcony of the gardens, where the turtleduck pond lay.
"Zuko?" She whispered his name. He didn't turn his back was to her and his robes billowed in the breeze wistfully.
"I have nothing more to say to you." She stood up taller and frowned deeply.
"Well I have something to say to you, so listen up. Look at me!" She cried out to him but he refused. She exhaled trying to calm herself down and put a hand softly on his. He shook it loose, but she strained to control her patience.
"Zuko, I don't pity you, if nothing else now I better understand you. Your life was such a mystery to me I didn't know how you felt or who you even were sometimes. I knew nothing about you. I don't pity you, not even close. I think you are brave and strong and kind, but it was harder to recognize those things, especially when you fight so hard to keep them from everyone! You aren't weak; those attributes make you more honorable than anyone I know. Zuko, please? Let me get to know you." He sighed his whole body seemed to be shouldering off a heavy weight. She slipped her small hand delicately into his and he squeezed it affectionately before turning back to face her. She smiled up at him and he raised her hand in his and kissed it delicately and romantically. She savored in the touch of his heat and before she knew it she was being led back to the room.
She didn't actually expect anything to happen that night and she knew he was surprised by the show of affection as much as she was, but she was still too nervous to lay with him romantically in bed. She gave him a weary look when they got back to the room and he understood.