Disclaimer: Next time, I'm just going to put this stupid thing in the summary… or burn it. I think everyone knows by now I don't own anything. Well, mostly anything.
A/N: Wow, I just realized that my chapters have been getting longer and longer as I write… and that I set a new personal high for amounts of reviews. Anyway, I might not write as much for a little while, I have two weeks to finish about ¾ of my summer work, so I think that explains itself. If I don't finish it, I can't attend the class. And I want to attend this class. Let's see, I think some reviewer motivation and/or constructive criticism is in desperate need here. If I don't get some soon, I might just put the story on pause until I do (gives evil smile) and I MIGHT just HAPPEN to leave off on a horrible cliff-hanger. Yeah, I like that. (Goes off to plot.) Oh, and after that cliff-hanger I'm going to do a song-verse type thing for Headstrong by Trapt. And yes, I do like that kind of music (meaning Evanescence, Breaking Benjamin, Sum 41, Wolfmother, Trapt, Guns 'n' Roses, Nirvana, and all that great stuff) and no, I'm not some kind of emo girl, I just like rock, and I can't stand all that shit that Avril Lavigne is putting out now.
It was the day after Katara had woken up, and she was the first one awake. Because she had moved her sleeping bag across the clearing, she had gotten the best sleep. She packed her things and was just finishing her breakfast when Iroh, Aang, and Toph woke up. She ended up waiting for Sokka and Zuko to wake up, watching them and trying not to laugh too loudly. This was because, in their sleep, they had not realized that she had moved. They were holding each other, and neither had gotten very good sleep because of their snoring.
At some point, Toph 'accidentally' dropped the pan that they had used for the fish the night before on a rock, making everyone jump and Sokka and Zuko open their eyes sleepily. As soon as Sokka realized that he was holding Zuko, he screamed and jumped up, trying to run away. Then he tripped over his sleeping bag, fell face first on the ground, got out of the sleeping bag, and began running around again. He ran down to the river and jumped in. During all of this, Zuko just sat there with a disgusted look on his face, like he had slept in rhino droppings. Finally he got up and walked over to Katara slowly, who was trying to hold back hysterics.
"Why wasn't I holding you?" Zuko asked dazedly. When Katara collapsed on the ground holding her sides, laughing, he just glowered at her. When she was able to, Katara pulled herself to her feet and said in between gasps for air, "You and Sokka… were snoring so loud… and I couldn't sleep… so I came over here… and I guess you both thought you were holding me!" She then broke into hysterics again, leaving Zuko to get ready alone.
When Sokka came back from the river, Zuko was changing in the tent, so he packed his belongings. When Zuko came out of the tent and Sokka went in, Zuko took the last piece of fruit for his breakfast and ate it while packing. Sokka threw a fit when he found that he was to have no food for breakfast, but soon they were on their way.
While walking, each person had a pack on their back containing belongings. As they walked, they situated themselves so that there would be no fighting. Aang and Toph were in the front; Katara and Zuko were after them; Sokka and Iroh were at the end. Momo had conveniently gone with Appa, so he would not be stealing their food.
The group walked a good distance, stopping on the bank of the river that they had been following the whole day. They built a barrier of leaves and branches around the camp, and set up. Katara put her sleeping bag closest to the river; Toph was to her right, where there was no sand or mud; Zuko was next to her, and had pulled his bag close to the fire pit; Iroh was to his right, also close to the fire; Sokka was next; Aang was last, between Katara and Sokka. They were not actually sleeping yet, more just making claims to where they would sleep later.
After eating dinner, which was jerky that Zuko had conveniently just found at the bottom of his bag, they talked about what they would be doing next.
"Well, it looks like we have two weeks at the most until Sozin's comet arrives, and it will take us just about that long to get to the Fire Nation capital," Zuko was saying. "With everyone looking for Aang, my uncle, and myself, it will be extremely difficult to get there in less than two weeks. I suggest we skirt the villages as much as possible, and only go in if we know that there is little or no hostility. There will also be a full moon on the night before the comet comes, if I am right, so we should try to get in by that night," he said. Everyone nodded in agreement, but as Zuko watched the flickering of the fire, he realized that the movement of the shadows was not the same as the movement of the fire. When he looked over at his uncle, he jumped to his feet.
"Uncle! What do you think you're doing?!" he shouted, tackling Iroh with the help of Aang and Sokka. Iroh had been shooting flares into the night sky with his finger. To Zuko, it looked at first like he had been telling people that the Avatar had been seen heading in the opposite direction. Iroh's head popped up from between the boys' bodies.
"It is alright," he said, his voice sounding strained. As Sokka, Zuko, and Aang got off him, he began to explain. "Those flares will tell anyone who wants to help the Avatar to meet us in the next town. Anyone else who sees them, like your sister, Zuko, will think that an army official or someone like that has seen the Avatar go in the opposite direction," he said. Everyone looked skeptical, and Sokka voiced their doubts.
"How is that even possible? For two people to see something differently, and get different messages from it?" he asked.
"That is all in the technique. Depending on how you do it, a skilled army officer will think that it looks like a message to turn around. I am guessing that is how you first saw it, Zuko?" he asked, looking over a Zuko. When Zuko nodded, he continued, "Well, if you look closely, you will see that that is not what it says at all. Azula will probably take one look at these and turn around, but she may send men this way just in case. I have been sending off these flares since the day Azula attacked us. You do not think that we will be able to get into the Fire Lord's chambers alone, do you?"
The rest of the group noticed that Iroh made a good point, and they soon dispersed to their own sleeping areas. Before Katara went to bed, however, she needed to speak to Zuko and Sokka. She collected both of them and brought them over to her sleeping bag.
"Now, before either of you say anything, I need to talk," she started. "I know that both of you really care for me. That is fine. But you are both also really overprotective. Sokka, you've always been this way, but I think you're starting to rub off on Zuko. That isn't good. I would like some space, from both of you. I am a grown woman now, and I can take care of myself. If both of you, especially Sokka, could back off a bit, I would really appreciate it," she said. After this speech, nothing was said until Sokka said loudly, "No!"
He then continued, "Dad told me to watch out for you, Katara. I can't just 'back off'! I don't want you getting hurt again." He looked to Zuko, as if to back him up, but Zuko had a look of understanding on his face as he looked at Katara.
"You know, Sokka, I think that she is right. We both have been pretty overprotective. And you are definitely rubbing off on me! I don't like that, so I'm going to back off a bit. Not too much, but enough to give Katara room to breathe every once in a while," Zuko said, his eyes never leaving Katara.
"Thank you," she replied, rather astounded. Then she turned to Sokka. He had a look on his face that meant he was thinking; it looked painful. Katara was just thinking that she could see the gears turning in his head when he spoke up.
"Fine. I'll give you some space. But as soon as something happens, which I know it will, I'm going back into 'overprotective big brother' mode," he bargained. Katara nodded, and let him leave. Zuko stayed, however.
"So, you want us to back off? Come with me," he said softly. Then, he stood up and held out his hand. Katara took it, and they walked into the forest together.
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Once they were far enough into the trees, Katara asked suspiciously, "What is this all about?"
Zuko didn't say anything at first; he just kept walking. When they finally stopped, Katara realized something. She had seen this place before. She thought they had passed it from the path. Zuko had wandered off while they had stopped for lunch; is this where he had come? Just before she asked, Zuko turned around.
They were face-to-face when he turned. He wore a smirk on his face, and Katara could tell he was up to something. He leaned down and kissed her before she got out her suspicions. As they kissed, he pulled her down on the ground with him. When they broke apart, Katara was laying on top of him. She blushed and began to scramble off when she felt a bit of a bulge against her leg, but Zuko just pushed her over.
As soon as Katara looked up, she saw why Zuko had brought her there. There was a perfect view of the stars. Then Zuko sat up behind her and pulled her up to lean against him. As she watched, he shot a small spark at a trailing vine on the ground. When this caught fire, it burned all the way into the trees, and she saw that he had arranged the vines in the shape of two hearts. Katara gasped at its beauty. It looked like as the hearts burned they melded together as one. She could also see all of the stars behind them. It was beautiful.
"Now do you want me to back off?" Zuko asked her. Katara did not even need to turn around to know that he was wearing his trademark smirk.
She turned around and kissed him softly, saying, "Not so much. This is beautiful. How did you manage this during that half hour that we stopped for lunch?"
"Some very fast work and not eating," he answered. This caused Katara to laugh softly before turning back around to look at the hearts again. She sighed with contentment. They stayed there for a while, but when Katara noticed that she could see the moon in the break in the trees, she jumped up.
"Zuko! We have to get back! It's almost midnight!" she said, panicking.
"Don't worry," Zuko said calmly. "I told Uncle not to wait up for us, and I'm sure he'll distract Sokka with some tale that will make him fall asleep."
Katara laughed slightly, relaxing a bit. She turned to Zuko and kissed him again, saying, "Thank you again. This was amazing."
Zuko returned the kiss, then said, "We should be getting back. Though I wouldn't mind staying here for the night," he added, smirking once again at Katara. She obviously got his message, for she blushed and looked down at her feet.
They made it back to the camp in record time, and found that Iroh was telling a story to Sokka, Aang, and Toph, and that Sokka was already asleep, even though it looked like the story had just started.
Zuko and Katara walked past the group, trying not to wake Sokka. Iroh smiled at them knowingly, then told the others that he would finish the story another night, giving Zuko a wink that was supposedly ignored.
That night, everyone slept relatively well, and they left early the next morning.
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The group reached the town the next day. It was really just a small farm village, but it seemed very crowded. There were various ostrich-horses and rhinos outside, but the group did not dare enter. They found Appa and Momo resting in some tall trees next to the exit. Aang immediately ran up to Appa and hugged his face, Appa rewarding him with a groan that could only be assumed was happy. Then Appa licked Sokka, causing the hair on one side of his body to stand up straight. Everyone laughed at this until Sokka shouted at them that it wasn't funny, and they all went about their business. They were all still talking about him behind his back, but he never noticed.
That night, it was decided that Katara would go into the village the next morning to collect everyone who had waited there. She looked the most… normal, as long as she wore the spare Earth Kingdom robe that she had picked up on their travels. Everyone went to bed early, so that they would be well rested for the next day. Iroh sent out one last set of sparks, so that all the people who were going to meet them would know to look out for Katara.
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Katara woke up early the next morning, and immediately started preparing. She took her hair out of its usual braid and pulled it up into a neat bun with chop-sticks holding it up. She also put her hair-loops down, making herself less recognizable. She donned the green Earth Kingdom robe, but not before tucking her water pouch inside for safety reasons.
Then Katara started going through everything in her head. Everyone knew that she would be there, and she even had a cover story. She was visiting her aunt, uncle, and sick grandmother in a nearby village. Her grandmother had asked her to come here for some tea that she thought could be found here. Although Katara hoped that no one would ask her about her origins, she even had a story made up for that. She did have Water Tribe blood, and it had been passed down for generations. She happened to be the unlucky one to get the Water Tribe traits this generation.
Katara walked around to find the spot she was supposed to meet everyone, and was able to catch some people who were already looking for her. She sent them back to the village, telling them to find everyone that they knew wanted to help, and bring them back here at twilight. Apparently, most of the village was coming, including some firebenders, so it was being disguised as a mass trade trip. Everyone was coming with carts, but they would leave them in the clearing.
When Katara walked back to the campsite, everyone else was up. They were all quiet, until Sokka got up. He looked like he was going to make a speech, until Zuko pulled him to the side to remind him that they were going to back off from Katara a bit. Then they came back over, and Katara braced herself for a lecture.
"Good luck, Katara," Sokka said, hugging her tightly. She just stood there in shock for a moment before hugging him back.
"Try not to get hurt," Zuko said when Sokka released Katara. He then kissed her quickly, when Sokka wasn't really paying attention, before going back to stand next to the rest of the group with Sokka.
"Well, here I go," Katara said, a bit nervously.
"Don't worry, Sugar Queen. You'll do fine. Just act natural," Toph said, addressing the air above Katara's right shoulder.
Katara smiled, then turned around and began the walk to the village.