Seven: Redemption
When Zuko finally made his way back to the clearing, it had begun raining, just as Katara had predicted. He crawled into the low shelter they'd spent all day building, and wasn't surprised to find her already there, curled up in the back against the tree.
She didn't say anything as he scooted in next to her; merely pressed herself against the tree trunk to avoid touching him. Zuko thought about moving closer, just to annoy the hell out of her, but decided against it. At this point, she'd probably scratch his eyes out if he so much as breathed on her.
The silence stretched on, broken only by the gentle pattering of the rain on the coconut fronds above them. A few drops of water slid through, but majority of the inside remained dry. They had done a relatively good job.
Zuko glanced over at Katara quickly. She noticed, and turned her face away.
Fine. He didn't need her forgiveness.
----
Katara woke the next morning to find the Prince's forehead resting on the back of her neck, having slumped over her inside the crowded shelter. Warm, yes; fucking acceptable, no
She didn't waste time blushing or making up scenarios or thinking, "Oh my, what if somebody saw us?" Instead, Katara jabbed her elbow roughly into his chest and said, "Wake up, moron."
He yelped in pain and grumbled something incomprehensible. Katara ignored him and scootched out of their makeshift "house", squinting at the bright sunlight.
Another day in paradise.
She kicked a rock angrily and grinned when it ricocheted off something inside the tiny hut.
"Hey!" snapped the Prince. "Watch it!"
He deserves it for threatening me, she thought to herself.
When he emerged, she w as obscenely happy to see a large, egg-sized bruise forming on his previously unmarked cheekbone.
"Don't do that again," he said, rubbing his shoulder.
Katara turned her back on him and left.
----
Prince Zuko followed her as she went to get a drink of water from the coconuts. She ignored him and didn't react when he yelled at her for drinking all of the fresh water.
Zuko followed her when she climbed a coconut tree to bring down the fruit for her breakfast. She pretended like he wasn't there when he scolded her for not getting him one. In the end, he had to scale the tree himself and get his own coconut. "You could have gotten enough for the both of us while you were up here," he muttered to her back as she walked away.
He jumped down, trying to break open his coconut and track her footsteps at the same time. She walked into the densest part of the forest, and when he continued to follow her, she threw a rock at his head before untying the sash on her robe.
Zuko went red and strode a few steps farther away, his back turned to her. "You could have just told me what you were going to do," he muttered.
No answer.
He was stupid to expect anything else.
But really, the silent treatment? How immature.
Well, it was fucking working. Zuko was getting more and more pissed of by the minute, to the point where he felt like tearing out his hair in frustration.
Haha.
When he judged that sufficient time had passed, Zuko peeked over his shoulder.
She was gone.
"Damn it," he swore. Had it all been trick? Most likely; he hadn't heard the sounds that usually accompanied the releasing of human waste. She wasn't enough of a barbarian to do something like that when he was less than ten feet away. She'd probably just used it as an excuse to throw something hard and painful at his head.
And to escape.
----
Katara watched Zuko fumble around and throw his hands up in frustration when he finally realized she'd disappeared. She crouched behind him in the foliage, having circled around him while his back was turned.
She decided to hide from him for the rest of the day. She'd put up with him long enough. See how he liked it, being stuck with nobody but Prince Zuko for company.
----
Zuko spent the entire day trying to find her. He looked everywhere; in the trees, on the beaches, in the water.
He stumbled through sticky tree sap, calling her name. He combed the sand dunes, convincing himself that she must be beyond the next hill, beyond the next curve. He scanned the water, hoping that she'd run out of breath and pop her head up for air again.
As the sun set Zuko began to worry that the Avatar had come while he wasn't looking and rescued Katara. The bison was gigantic and not easily missed, but maybe while Zuko had been busy sticking his head behind trees or crawling through piles of rough sand, the Avatar and his friend had come and taken Katara to safety.
The idea began to take over his mind that he was the only one left on the island.
Fear gripped him and wouldn't let go.
----
The Prince kicked frustratedly at the sand; a pile of it flew up before being blown away by the wind. She tried not to laugh as he sputtered, the grainy stuff getting in his eyes and irritating him. She tried to hold the giggles in at the comical sight; her foot caught in a sand dune and she fell forward, cursing.
Katara scrambled back up again and ran into the forest, but not before she saw Zuko spin around and fix her with a narrowed stare.
Damn. Her entire plan had been ruined!
----
Zuko caught sight of the end of her braid and a swish of blue cloth before she disappeared completely again. How was she so damn fast? There was no point in chasing after her. She would just escape somehow again. He couldn't catch her and tie her down in order to keep her in his sight. The Water bender would take it in the worst possible way.
Besides, at least now he knew she was still here.
Dropping to his knees in the sand, he knew there was only one way he could redeem himself.
He began to dig.
----
Katara sat by the unlit campfire. Much as she had enjoyed playing keepaway with the Prince, once night and darkness had set in, the island was less welcoming and more... foreboding. She preferred to stick to places she knew at night, rather than wander around and risk tripping and breaking her neck. Even though she would have to put up with that Prince.
She heard a rustle near the edge of the clearing. Looking up, she saw the Prince. He looked dirty and his clothes were covered with sand. He was carrying something in his arms, and had a decidedly... satisfied expression on his face.
Katara was wary; he looked much too confident for comfort.
He strode up to her and dumped a dozen or more clams onto the ground before lighting the fire in one quick stroke.
She stared at the food, and then up at him in amazement.
Zuko looked away, taking a stick and pushing the clams into the fire. They both sat there for long, silent minutes. Katara was too surprised to say anything, and Zuko was waiting for her reaction.
When they popped open, steaming, Zuko divided exactly half for her and half for himself. They ate quickly, and finished by piling all the empty shells next to the fire.
He was almost bursting with impatience when she finally spoke up.
"Come over here," she patted the ground next to her. "Let me check your shoulder again."
And all of a sudden he didn't hurt so much anymore.
A/N: In a Crocodile-Hunter-Australian accent:
"And here, children, we are getting a rare shot of the the species, Fireus Princeius, conducting his annual mating ritual in order to catch the attention of a prime female specimen, a Benderus Waterus. Oh, how painful, his first attempt is recieved by the haughty wave of a brown braid from the Waterus, and... is this possible?... the Princeius has been rejected!"
"He tries again, a desperate attempt to catch her before the mating season is over and the Avatarus returns to assert his dominance over the world. The Princeius brings a gift, a spectacular present that will definitely catch the eye of the Benderus Waterus. Watch closely, folks, watch closely as she scoots closer and... YES! she has accepted the gift! Score one for the Fireus Princeius! Now the Waterus begins her own acceptance ritual, a tender movement of care and affection towards the Pinceius! She has been wooed and Fireus Princeius is successful!"
I'm so sorry. I had to get that out of my system. Most of you voted for a majority of comedy/light/fluff, with just a tiniest mix of darkness in there sometimes. Gotcha.
You helped me convert someone from Katang to Zutara! Doesn't that just make you all "giggly" inside? -Chickygurl-
It does! And I would never tell you to "fuck off". Your opinion matters and I have taken it into account. XD