The ABCs of Zutara: KINDLE

Written by Katie Jo aka AVidZktjo

AN OFFICIAL SEQUEL TO DISTRACTED
(In other words, I refer to that one-shot in this story, so I recommend that you read that one first)

The firebender was in love with a Water Tribe girl. Shaking the distraction from her mind, Katara reined in her thoughts, forced them into submission, and tried to focus on the flow of water in her hands. Up and down. Back and forth. The clear, blue liquid moved with grace through her fingers and around her body in measured motions of fluidity. In. Out. Push. Pull. The only sounds that reached her ears were the misty splash of the waves and the crash of the ocean's current against the sand. Her mind was fixed on the present. Nothing else existed. No past. No future. Only the here and now. So, are you pleasantly distracted?

The water abruptly dropped from her command and the waterbender stood as rigid as a block of ice. Why did his voice have to constantly disrupt her thoughts with that blasted question!? The answer was the same every time. It hadn't changed and it wasn't likely that it ever would. Yes, she was distracted. In fact, there wasn't a time these days when she wasn't distracted. And when she tried to escape from the distraction, it only came back to, well, distract her!

Bending the water back into her hands, Katara sighed and told herself, "Just focus. He's not here so there's no reason for me to be distracted. He doesn't exist. There's only me and the ocean. Nothing else." The water obeyed its master's command and cascaded through the various movements with polished skill and elegant style. Each technique was pristine and perfect in its execution. No mistakes. No blunders. No slipups. Just grace and poise and – Katara's lips slowly curled upward as the image of Zuko's captivating smile invaded her mind. To her disappointment, her motions broke out of their smooth flow the minute her thoughts turned in favor toward the distraction.

"Ugh!" In a huff, Katara threw down her disobedient element and lifted a wall of water before her. With rage in her eyes and a curse on her tongue, she pushed the wave away from her, crashing it into the rocks up ahead. "I'll never get it right!"

"Actually," – Katara whirled around to face the intruder – "I think it was perfect."

"Zuko." Just the man she didn't want to see. "What are you doing up so late?"

Zuko, who had been casually leaning up against a tree intent on the waterbender's movements, stepped out from the shadows and walked towards Katara. Ignoring her question, the intrusive firebender waded into the water beside her and lit his palms aflame. "That last move you did, it almost looked like a firebending technique Uncle taught me."

"My last one? That wasn't a waterbending move. That was just anger."

A grin appeared upon Zuko's mouth. "I know."

Katara narrowed her eyes at him. "Then what technique are you talking about?"

"This one." With more grace than Katara thought possible from a firebender, Zuko drew out his flame and made it circle around him in much the same pattern as she had done earlier. It was beautiful, but it wasn't a firebending technique. It was a copycat. "See. It's the same as firebending," Zuko spoke up in the middle of his motions.

Pulling water into her hands, Katara mimicked his move. "No. Actually it is the same as waterbending. You're the one who stole my moves not the other way around. Not that I'm surprised. You've done it before."

Zuko extinguished his flame and stared over at Katara. "What are you talking about? I've never stolen any of your bending."

"Sure you have. In Ba Sing Se."

"What? Ba Sing Se?"

Katara sighed and let the water fall back into the ocean as she turned to face the puzzled firebender. "Yes. Ba Sing Se. Don't you remember? When we were fighting, you mimicked my every move."

Zuko rolled his eyes and shook his head. "That's called adapting to your opponent."

"No. That's called stealing," Katara argued while putting her hands on her hips.

The simple gesture caught Zuko's eye and he couldn't help but focus on her scantily clad body. He tried to avert his attention away from what little clothes she was wearing and how much skin she was showing and the water cascading down her – "What does it matter? Fire and water have similar techniques. It's all the same."

"No, it's not. Fire is nothing like water. You can't do my moves and I can't do yours. The elements are all different," Katara continued to prove her point, failing to notice the way Zuko's eyes roamed.

In an attempt to regain his focus, Zuko turned from Katara and looked out over the ocean, producing flames in his palms once more. "That's not what my uncle told me." As the fire in Zuko's hands flowed like water through the air, he tried to explain. "The elements are all connected. Each one takes from the others and learns from it, and at the same time each one gives to the others and contributes to the whole. It is an endless cycle. We may be different in our elements, but our bending has similar aspects and techniques. They are all related, each one building upon the next. It is how the Avatar learns them all. Therefore, we are the same."

"Hmmm…" Katara hummed as she watched Zuko's graceful motions. His firebending was proof in and of itself. Each movement was as fluid as the next and looked as if water could have taken the place of the flames. Katara thought that Zuko must be right, but she wanted to prove his theory before fully accepting it. "Alright. If you're so sure that our elements are the same, let's see you do this." Katara lifted a wall of water before her, split it in two, and formed massive water whips around her arms. After moving them around her in a complex pattern, she shot them off in the firebender's direction and watched the wall of water evaporate into steam.

With a teasing grin on his smug face, Zuko provoked her. "Is that all you've got?"

As Zuko effortlessly imitated every action of hers with fire, Katara couldn't help but stare after him in amazement. I guess he was right, she thought. After lifting a wave before her to block the flames he spewed her way, Katara voiced another question. "So you've got some skill in adapting to waterbending techniques. How about you teach me something now?"

Zuko paused for a moment. "Alright. I've got the perfect one," he eventually complied. Focusing on the rising fire in his hands, Zuko molded it to his will and then circled the flames around his torso before spiraling it off into the night sky. It was a simple move save for the image that Zuko produced.

"A dragon? You want me to make a dragon? I can't do that and you know it," Katara pointed out to him as her hands found their way to her hips yet again.

She looked annoyed, not that Zuko was focusing on her face. "Sure you can," he encouraged her as he stepped up behind her. "If I can do it with fire then you can easily make it with water. It's not that hard. Here, I'll show you." He couldn't believe he was doing this, but there was no stopping himself now. Not that he wanted to. With a cautious air to his gentle touch, Zuko wrapped his fingers around each of Katara's wrists and raised her hands. "You need to focus more on the wrist and finger movement than the overall bending." As Katara pulled water up into her hands, Zuko breathed in the scent of her hair and about fell over from the intoxicating scent.

"Is this right?" Katara asked in a hushed voice.

Zuko quickly shook off the aroma and focused on Katara's bending. "Uh, yeah, that's, um, that's good." He wanted to kick himself for his stuttering.

As Katara's unlikely teacher guided her through the intricacies of his bending artistry, she couldn't help but fumble a bit through the motions. Normally, she would have been able to pick up the move as quickly as any other, but with Zuko standing behind her, his warmth seeping into her skin, her focus on the technique had all but vanished. The only thing she could focus on was the feel of his gentle hands upon her arms, the sound of his deep voice in her ear, and the searing heat radiating from his body and into her own. Her mind was anything but focused. In fact, it seemed as if distraction was now her constant companion.

Zuko was having about as much luck as Katara. His attention to the lesson at hand lasted about a millisecond and then his focus became fixed upon the waterbender for every second after that. The smell of the ocean in her hair was driving him crazy. Why did she have to smell so good? And on top of that, she was dressed in her training gear, though gear was the wrong way to put it. She was wearing next to nothing, which gave his eyes plenty of space to roam over. Ugh. Focus, Zuko. Focus, he tried to demand of himself, but it was no use. He couldn't even seem to get out a syllable let alone an entire word. He was fumbling all over the place and she wasn't picking up the move much either. This was a disaster.

"Uh, Zuko?" Katara whispered his name.

Why was her voice so quiet? "Yeah?"

"I don't think this is working." He could tell by the slow constricting of her neck that she swallowed hard. "Maybe…uh, maybe we should try this again tomorrow…or something."

Zuko cleared his throat and then dropped his hands from around her wrists. "Yeah. Sure." Before stepping away from his captivating student, he breathed in one last whiff of her hair, letting the scent burn within him. Oh, spirits, she smells good. It took all of his strength to back away from the enticing aroma, but somehow he managed to retreat.

Hesitantly turning around, Katara faced her tutor and gave him a timid smile. "I think you were right, Zuko. Our elements have their similarities both in style and technique."

All Zuko did was nod.

Tucking a strand of moist hair behind her ear, Katara looked down at the water around her calves. "I, uh, well, thank you for showing me that. I'll have to practice a little more, I think, before I get it." Katara glanced up at Zuko. His eyes seemed to hold hers with such intensity. What was wrong?

Focus. Fo-cus, his mind reprimanded through gritted teeth. His wandering eyes were turning into an annoyance, a very dangerously frightening annoyance. And yet, it was rather exciting as well. No! Her eyes. Look in her eyes and nowhere else. With concentrated force, Zuko stared into her big blues. There was no way he was going to let his thoughts and emotions control him like this. He couldn't let them. Katara was…well, she was Katara, a waterbender, a Water Tribe girl. She couldn't – He couldn't – They couldn't. It just could never – would never – work! But then why for the first time in his life did Zuko have no control over the heat within his body or the thoughts in his head?

"Well…I guess…" Zuko's eyes never dropped from hers and the intensity of his stare only seemed to increase with each passing moment. It was wrecking havoc on Katara's nerves and she had to get away before he burst out in anger or some other random emotion. The fire prince was not easy to read, especially now. "I'm just gonna…" Katara's gaze fell down to the waves and she walked past Zuko without looking back. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Wait." His plea was but a whisper in the dark.

Katara stopped and turned to face the back of her midnight companion.

After taking a deep breath, Zuko softened his gaze and met once more with eyes of blue. "It's beautiful out." Glancing above him, Zuko took in the vast expanse of the clear sky. "The stars are shining brightly tonight."

Katara furrowed her brow in confusion. "Yes. They are."

"I was…just wondering…if you…" Zuko closed his eyes and sighed. This was a stupid idea. What was he thinking? It wasn't like anything could come of this. The only thing this was going to accomplish was the same thing that taking her to the fountain accomplished. Nothing. Lifting his gaze to meet hers, he finished, "Never mind." With a dejected look in his amber eyes, Zuko passed by the waterbender and tread back to camp.

Stupid! What were you thinking! he cursed himself. Katara was his friend now. That was all. And he couldn't ask for anything more than that. In fact, he didn't dare to. It was out of the question! Insane! Crazy! Only an idiot would think on such things. Then I guess I'm an idiot because I can't stop thinking about her. "Ugh!" In a fit, Zuko threw open his tent and crashed down upon solid earth.

What was I thinking? Asking her to spend the night under the stars with me? That was the stupidest, craziest, most ridiculous idea I've ever had! I can't believe I even thought about asking her. Ugh, I can't believe I almost did. What's wrong with me? It's Katara, not some Fire Nation girl. Therefore, I can't. Throwing the covers over his head, Zuko screamed out one last command in his mind. So stop thinking about her!

"Zuko?"

In an instant Zuko was up on his feet and out of his tent. "What is it, Katara?" Though her Water Tribe outfit still revealed her budding curves, the struggling prince couldn't help but thank the spirits that Katara was fully clothed now.

Zuko could tell she was nervous about something because she never bit her lip on any other occasion. "Well, I…I was just wondering if you would…" Katara moved her hands from around her back to reveal her sleeping mat. "It's a beautiful night, as you said, so I thought it would be a great time to sleep outside. Those tents can get a little stuffy. It would be nice to take a break from them."

Amazing. His plan had worked, not that it had been much of a plan to begin with, but it had worked all the same. She actually wanted him to sleep under the stars with her. Amazing. "So…does this mean that…"

Averting her eyes to the ground, Katara stuttered through the invitation. "I…well, you…you could join me…if you'd like."

A smile lit up Zuko's face and he burst out, "Of course, I'd love to!" Her big blues eyes met with his golden ones. "I mean…I would like to. Yes."

Katara found herself mimicking his grin. "Great. I'll meet you by the ocean then."

"Right."

Dropping her gaze from his penetrating eyes, Katara brushed past him and made her way to the ocean front. She could feel the heat of his stare on her back as she left his side and it sent shivers down her spine. What was I thinking? This is crazy! I can't believe I actually asked him to join me. I mean, why did I ask him to join me? What's the point? Katara knew why she'd asked. All was forgiven. They were friends now. But still there felt like something was missing. She wanted more. She wanted to get to know the fire prince better. And she wanted to see his distracting smile again.

As Katara spread out her blankets on the sand, she scolded herself, "Stop it. This is crazy."

"What's crazy?"

Oh, great. "Nothing. I was just, um, well…" Katara said the first thing that came to her mind. "I'm a little cold is all." Cold? Yeah, right. She was a waterbender who lived in the South Pole. Nothing was cold to her.

Zuko stepped up beside her and spread out his own mat right next to hers. Then he glanced over at the waterbender and held her eyes with his. "I think I can help with that."

Katara wrinkled her forehead. "How?"

Zuko's lips curled in a teasing grin. "I am a firebender after all. I can warm anything." Zuko leaned in closer to Katara and whispered with an even deeper tone to his voice, "Even you."

Katara's eyes popped and she could feel her cheeks getting redder with each passing second. Brushing her hair from her shoulder, she dropped her eyes and turned her attention to the blankets they each had spread out on the beach. She practically tripped as she lowered herself into a seating position. So, are you pleasantly dis — Yes! I am. Okay. Enough already! This was going to be one interesting evening to say the least.

Sitting down next to her, Zuko immediately tried to apologize for his idiotic statement. "Katara, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. It was stupid of me. I didn't mean it like that." Zuko smacked himself in the head and sighed. What was wrong with him? I can warm anything. Even you. What kind of reply was that? Katara must have thought he was trying to seduce her or something, which was just ridiculous…or was it? Enough! I'm not attracted to Katara. I want nothing more than to be friends with her. And that's the end of it! But as Zuko's eyes lifted and locked onto the understanding gaze of the waterbender, he knew nothing was further from the truth.

"Katara, I'm—"

His companion lifted her hand and waved off his apology. "Don't worry about it, Zuko. I thought it was rather cute what you said. Actually, it was kind of funny." A small chuckle rocked her shoulders and Zuko found himself growing weak at the sound.

"So…you're not cold then because I can…well…" Zuko's gaze fell from hers. "I can still, um, help with that. I mean, I can, well, I can…what I'm trying to say is that…"

Katara bit her lip in an attempt to hold back her laughter. This had to be the first time she'd ever heard Zuko ramble on uncontrollably. When had he ever stuttered? Well, there was the time he had tried to join them, but that was just nerves. Then what was this? Was he…nervous? No, he couldn't be. What could he possibly be nervous about? "Zuko."

A sigh escaped the firebender's mouth and he lifted his eyes to hers once more. "Yeah?"

Now was her chance. She could either tell the truth and say that she wasn't cold – or – she could lie and say that she was. It wasn't that hard of a decision to make. "I think my waterbending practice gave me a bit of a chill." Wrapping her arms around herself, Katara tried to imitate shivers. "I am a little cold."

"Well, uh…here." Zuko lifted his arm in an inviting gesture, and to his utter joy, Katara fell into the embrace and even nestled in closer to him. "There…is, uh…is that better?"

Aside from her racing heart, everything was much better. "Yes." Through the use of his firebending, Zuko had somehow made his body even warmer than it usually was and Katara found herself melting in his arms. His embrace was nothing like her brother's or her father's or even Aang's. It was something else. Different. Unique. Special. And it warmed her in more ways than one. The heat from the firebender's arms seeped through her skin, filling her up with fire, a fire that ran deeper than the simple flames of his element.

Was this really happening? Was Zuko actually holding her? She couldn't believe it. Against all odds, she had trusted this man and even befriended him. But now there was something more, something deeper, something much greater than mere friendship forming within her heart. Glancing up at Zuko's face, Katara marveled at the beauty there. Even though he was scarred, he was handsome and very beautiful to behold. Dropping her eyes, Katara bit her lip. What was happening to her? Was she actually attracted to Zuko? Without thought to her action, Katara pulled out of Zuko's embrace and inched away from him.

"What's wrong?"

Lying down on her sleeping mat, Katara stared up at the starry sky. "Nothing. I'm just a little tired."

"Oh."

She could hear the disappointment in his voice, but she ignored it and focused on the stars up above instead.

Zuko didn't know what he'd done wrong. He had tried to keep his temperature at an even level, but maybe he had warmed her too much. Or maybe…maybe he had moved too fast. Maybe this had all been a mistake and she was just now realizing it. Looking over at her still form, he let his eyes take her in. She was so very beautiful. Any man could see that. And he had seen that. Zuko had recognized his attraction to her almost instantly. He'd been thinking of her as a woman now ever since he'd tied her to that tree all those months ago. And now he looked on her as the loveliest sight he'd ever seen. But it was in the moment he'd been able to talk with her for the first time that he realized her beauty was more than skin deep.

That sounded so clichéd but it was true nonetheless. She was compassionate and kind and understanding. He'd never found anyone like her. Of course his uncle had provided him with the same understanding heart, but finding it in the waterbender had been unexpectedly rewarding and quite different from his uncle. Katara had become a dear friend to him and he would do anything to keep her in his life. Betraying her trust had been one of the biggest mistakes he'd ever made, but scaring her away would be an even bigger one.

Lying down beside the rigid waterbender, Zuko did as she and turned his attention to the stars. It was one of the clearest nights he'd seen since joining their gang and picking out the constellations was a breeze. There was Sozin, the great dragons, even the Fire Nation symbol, all brilliantly displayed in the sky.

"I've never seen Tui and La so clear."

"Who?" Zuko asked upon hearing her murmur.

"Tui and La." Katara glanced over at Zuko and then lifted her hand up to point out the two circling koi fish. "Don't you see them? They are circling one another in their never ending dance."

Zuko followed Katara's tracing finger but he didn't understand what she was talking about. Shaking his head, he lifted his own hand into the sky and traced the same figure, explaining the true meaning of the constellation. "No, that's the great dragons of old. They are spewing fire from their mouths. Their tails meet at the center. See?"

Katara turned her head toward Zuko. "What are you talking about? That's Tui and La, the two koi fish at the North Pole who represent the moon and the ocean."

Zuko furrowed his brow. "What? That's the two great dragons who were the first to teach man how to bend fire. That constellation has been a part of our culture for hundreds of years."

"No, it has been a part of ours for hundreds of years."

Zuko rolled on his side to face Katara better. "Wait. Are you telling me that we have different constellations?"

Katara's eyes grew wide at his question. "We do?" She mirrored his position. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know. I guess our varying cultures came up with different images in the sky."

"Hm," Katara murmured as she stared into Zuko's golden eyes. In an instant, the constellations were forgotten and all she could focus on was the handsome face in front of her. Once she had called him her enemy and thought him ugly, but now all she could see was his beauty. And that scar…Katara reached to touch it but quickly drew back her hand when she saw Zuko's stunned expression. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have."

But the fire prince grabbed her hand and gently placed it upon the rigid skin of his face. "It's alright. You can touch it."

Feeling the roughness of his burnt skin under her fingers should have been a familiar sensation but it wasn't. Something had changed in Zuko since Ba Sing Se and even his scar felt different somehow. It was still a scar, rigid and hard, but the face of the man that possessed it had become much softer. Katara could sense the change in him. The mark upon his face was no longer a failure in his life but it had finally become what it had been all along. Just a scar. It may have been a part of his face, but it no longer had any control over him the way it had before. "You've learned to accept it, haven't you?"

Zuko was amazed that she could read him so easily. "Yes. I have. I realize now that healing my face of this blemish would have done nothing but remove a scar. Nothing can heal the past. Not even a skilled waterbender like you."

A slight smile appeared on Katara's lips as she lifted her hand from his face and put it back in front of her. "Then you truly have changed."

"It's about time you see that," Zuko replied with a playful grin.

Katara chuckled but then grew serious. "Have you ever let anyone else try to heal it?"

The fire prince's teasing grin dimmed as he replied. "No. I've never let anyone come close enough to touch it. Not even my uncle."

Katara's eyes widened in surprise. "Then why did you let me?"

Zuko put his hand over Katara's and captured her eyes with his. "Because you were the first person to offer me real hope. You saw past the scar and into a destiny I had not yet realized. You understood me more than anyone else has since my uncle. You saw the real me."

Katara didn't know how to answer. She knew that something deeper had taken place in the crystal catacombs than just the simple gesture of kindness she had made to the fire prince. But she hadn't known what it was until now. Friendship had sparked between them in the cave, a fire had begun to kindle within their hearts, and now it was starting to rise. "I'm the only one who has ever touched your scar?" was all the response Katara could give as his amber eyes seemed to dig deeper into her soul.

The smile on Zuko's lips lifted higher. "Yes. You're the only one."

Katara bit her lip as her heart sped up its beating. The warm hand he had placed over hers was wrecking havoc on her nerves and his eyes were putting color in her cheeks. As gently as she could, Katara pulled her hand out from under his and then turned on her back to look up at the night sky. "So…which of the constellations are different?"

The blush that had spilled over on Katara's face only made her more captivating and Zuko's internal struggle with his eyes returned in full force. The only way to combat the distraction was to turn his attention back to the sky and join Katara in her star gazing. As they took turns explaining the different patterns, their hands inched towards the middle of their sleeping mats. Before they knew it, their fingers had met. With one quick glance, the decision was made and their hands intertwined in an innocent touch.

As the quiet evening wore on, their eyes began to tire and their conversation slowed. Though it was clearly a lie to her, Katara shivered as the wind picked up. Ever the gentleman, Zuko wrapped his arms around her shoulders in another warm embrace. Her head rested within the crook of his arm and Zuko set his cheek atop her intoxicating hair. The sweet smell that filled his lungs and the warmth of her hand within his made no difference at all to the truth of the moment for the truth had been burning within him long before that evening. It had begun to spread like a budding flame, but now it was reaching towards his heart. If he wasn't careful, the simple kindle would become a raging fire that would consume his whole being. But who was being careful.

REVIEW!!! Please & Thank You! ^_^

It's so ADORABLE!!! Awww… In case you didn't figure it out already, this was all FLUFF and nothing more. Hehe. Seriously, I'm more of a plot person than a fluff person so this was something different for me. Don't get me wrong, I love the fluff, but I like plot within the fluff. LOL. Anyway, it doesn't matter. This was just cute and adorable and had the awww-factor. I didn't plan on it being a sequel either, but it worked.

As for the word KINDLE – it means the beginning of a fire. Great word, right! Basically in this story I wanted to show the beginning of the great romance between Zuko and Katara. It starts with attraction and then moves into more. So in this story they are both attracted to each other, though they may try to fight it, and they are starting to like each other in that deeper way. Yay! So cute!

And stuttering Zuko – gotta love him! When it comes to a romantic Zutara, I guess I picture Zuko kind of awkward because he's never really been in a real relationship before. He's been too occupied with chasing after the Avatar, but now he has time to relax and his manly desires are kicking in. Hehe. Focus, Zuko. Fo-cus…on Katara that is! =D

I thought that the difference in constellations was a cool idea. Since they are from different cultures, I believe that they would have a difference in many things not just their images in the sky. Plus, it was a cute scene. And I had to go into the scar bit because Katara needs to know that she's the only one who's ever touched it. And the part at the beginning where she scolds him for stealing her moves in Ba Sing Se was just too funny. We've all thought it. It was time they actually talked about it.

Oh, and I gotta give a shout-out to LavenderLeo because she kind of inspired a moment in this one-shot with her own brilliant story. I wonder if she can pick it out. Let me know, girl! In the meantime, check out her amazing Zutara story – Where the Sun Meets the Ocean – one of the best I've read!

Thanks for reading! And don't forget to REVIEW!!!

AVidZktjo

*** Liars is sure to be fun! Can't wait! Oh, and I tried to keep this short, but it still kinda went a little long. Sorry. Can you find it in your hearts to forgive me? =D ***