Chapter 5

"Aang...it wasn't just that. I think that I'm in love with the woman," Zuko admitted, his eyes downcast. He wondered if the Avatar even felt the slightest bit awkward from this conversation. The Fire Lord was confessing his true feelings for the Avatar's old crush.

"No...no, you're not," Aang spoke slowly. Zuko's face contorted into a sneer of disbelief.

"How could you know?" He exclaimed.

"I'm kidding. Sheesh. Zuko, it's quite obvious how you feel for Katara. Everyone knows!"

Zuko raised his only eyebrow high at the Avatar's wide grin that followed his words. He sighed at the mocking tactics of the younger man.

"Look, Zuko, I have known how you have felt for her since you both went on the search for her mother's murderer. I possibly even knew it before then. Regrettably, at the time, my mind was so clouded with thoughts of asinine puppy love that I didn't care how true your own feelings were," spoke the airbender with wisdom coating his every word.

Zuko stood from his place at the small table and bowed slightly at his friend.

"I thank you for your words yet I'm still not quite sure how to go about this journey."

"You shouldn't mull about it, friend. I have a feeling that everything will work out just fine. Trust me."

"You say that, but what makes you think that things will be okay?"

"I'm the Avatar."

Katara bowed to Zuko's maid who had lain out dark red and brown traveling garments for her to wear. According to the Fire Lord, they'd be heading to the Hidden Temple of the White Lotus first because that is the last place that his uncle had seen his mother.

She dressed quickly, her eagerness for the journey surprising even her. The clothing she wore reminded her of the thrown together outfit she wore when she aided the water village as the Painted Lady long ago but more refined. The waterbender ran a hand through her short hair, happy that she didn't have to worry about spending time fixing it up.

She grabbed her traveling bag and hurried off to find the man. She smiled to herself as she walked through the corridors upon realizing that she'd be alone with him for however long. He'd have to bring up Kyoshi Island at some point.

She had already eaten dinner and she had been sure to bid farewell to Aang and Momo earlier in the day. Katara sat down on one of the large steps leading up the palace's doors as she waited for Zuko to arrive.

He was there just a minute later.

"I have set all of my affairs into order," he spoke gruffily, his dream of what happened on the island clear in his mind's eye, "Are you ready?"

"Yes. How are we getting there?"

"We'll be on foot until we reach the temple just in case someone tries to follow us. Hopefully we don't get lost. The map we have isn't exactly...great."

Katara quirked an eyebrow as Zuko pulled out a crudely drawn map for her to see. He wasn't kidding.

"Well...it is a hidden temple," she smirked with a shake of her head. She saw that he held a bag on one shoulder and his two swords were criss-crossed on his back.

"Right. I had my servants pack a few non-perishable items for us but we'll have to be frugal...we don't really know how long we'll be away. Rest assured, there are no rose pastries."

Katara smiled a wide smile as he joked her love of what he detested.

He loved her smile. He gestured for her to follow as he began to walk around the palace towards the most shaded part of the building thanks to a large tree. Zuko reached toward her and pulled her hood over her head before doing the same with his own.

Katara paused her movements as a sudden realization occurred to her. She had been so eager to get this journey afoot that she hadn't noticed her selfishness. Not once had she thought about what this would mean for Zuko.

Yes, she knew that it was imperative to get closure for his mother's exile but she also knew what feelings were required for such a thing. Her own mother was with Yue and there was no changing that but if there was even the sliver of a chance that Lady Ursa was still alive, Zuko would hold on to it; just as he had for the past many years.

And she would hold him if they came to find out that Lady Ursa had long past. She would hold him and love him.

"Hey, peasant," she felt rather than heard by way of warm breath that tickled her left ear.

"Yeah?" she breathed as a nervous response.

"Are you okay to travel?" Zuko questioned mockingly. Katara then noticed that he held onto one of the thick vines that had crawled, over the years, from the magnificent tree that was their cover and over the stone wall of the palace.

She grabbed onto the vine he held and with agile reflexes she climbed. It was an even darker night on the street side of the palace. She jumped down onto the cobbled ground and noticed that during her brief train of thought earlier Zuko had thrown their bags over the wall.

Mere seconds later Zuko joined her.

"How long shall it be before we arrive?"

"I'm not entirely sure. Maybe two days. It is near Sokka's sword master's estate."

They walked for an hour before reaching the edge of the forest.

"Be very wary of rebels in this forest. My army has been disbanding some of the resistance's groups lately," whispered the Fire Lord as they stepped through a pile of leaves, the crunching sounds like music to the waterbender's ears.

He had a faster stride than she, so during their walk, she mainly stared at his back. She adored his broad shoulders and she longed to run her hands down his arms.

Zuko turned his neck to see how far the woman was from him and grinned. His maids had done exactly what he'd asked by making her an outfit that reminded him of the statue he'd seen of her as the Painted Lady.

"Tell me about your time as the Painted Lady," Zuko spoke. They couldn't just walk through the forest without speaking. His thoughts alone would drive him crazy.

His words broke Katara free of her thoughts and she glanced up to see him looking back at her.

"What do you wish to know?"

"What made you want to help that Fire Nation village back then?" he questioned as he slowed his pace to walk alongside her.

"Zuko, by that time I had discovered that people are...people. It didn't matter to me that those people were of the Fire Nation. It only mattered that they needed help and I could give it to them. I heard the legend of the Painted lady during our stay there and so..I decided to wear her image."

(Past: Two Years Ago)

"I should walk you back to the inn," whispered the embarassed Fire Lord.

The two made their way across the sand and began to trek through the empty streets to get to the inn. It was easy to be unseen by the townspeople due to the celebration being held in the center of the village. At the moment, neither of them wanted to be bothered.

Their walk was silent but they were both too content with each other's presence that they didn't mind.

"Zuko...we're both...drunk," Katara giggled as they walked inside of the inn. She sat down on the bottom-most step of the beautiful winding staircase. She was quite tired from the day's events. Looking up at the fire lord, she could tell that he was feeling the same way.

"It's a good feeling," he grinned grabbing onto her wrist to pull her up.

"I'm too exhausted to even think about climbing those stairs." Katara sagged against Zuko's upright form. Years of being a royal made it so that he had good posture in whatever state he was in.

"Well, I'm not leaving you down here alone. Where is your room at?" Zuko scooped the woman up into his strong arms and Katara knew right then, that she'd never forget the way that her heart swelled at this man's touch.

Katara directed him as he climbed the staircase and walked down the corridor. He stopped when he reached her door.

"You can put me down now," Katara whispered into his ear. Zuko stilled at the warmth of her breath before setting her down gently. And suddenly she wasn't so tired anymore.

They stood there, his golden eyes meeting her blue ones in a dance that could rival the dragons'. And with a quickness, Katara reached up and pulled his face towards hers. Her kiss was so demanding that to steady himself, he reached a hand out to press against the door. His other arm wrapped around her waist.

Her hands were buried in his hair, holding him to her as her kiss became more needy. With the intensity of her kissing him and his own responding kisses, Zuko ended up pushing Katara flush against the door. Zuko opened his eyes and pulled back breaking away from the kiss.

Katara opened her large blue eyes and peered up into his. For a moment Zuko wondered who the firebender really was due to the passion that burned in her gaze...for him.

Zuko pulled the woman close crushing her against his chest, his face buried in the crutch of her neck. He inhaled her sweet scent as he caught his breath.

"I've enjoyed my evening with you," Katara whispered, her eyes tearing up because this night would soon be forgotten for them both thanks to the inevitable return of daily life.

"Likewise. Thank you for choosing to come hang out with me rather than the celebration."

The fire lord found that he didn't want to let her go. He didn't want to go back to his political duties without her by his side. He didn't wish to make another step without her there.

He pulled back away from her and turned his head, refusing to allow her to see the look in his eyes as he realized… that he loved her.

(End Past Sequence)

Katara sat down at the edge of the fire that she and Zuko had just built. Though they were in the Fire Nation the night air still held a chilling bite to it. She pulled her cloak tighter around her as a chilling wind breezed by.

Silently, she cursed firebenders for their naturally high body temperatures. Yes, she should have been used to the cold because of her snowy village in the South Pole but it had been a few years since she'd been back there.

They had decided to stop walking for the night because neither could get over the grumblings of their stomachs nor did they wish to walk into a tree. There was only but so long that the fire lord could keep a flame alight without becoming tired.

She jumped slightly thanks to Zuko plopping down on the hard ground beside her his legs criss-crossed. Having been around this man for so long, if only several days, was making her less alert of her surroundings.

She looked over as he started rustling through his rucksack of food items. She loved the way his dark hair fell across his forehead.

"I have smoked sea-slug and canned moon peaches that should last us for a while," Zuko stated pulling the said items out of his bag. When he didn't receive a response he glanced over at the waterbender.

She was staring at him in the most peculiar way.

"Katara," he spoke waving his hand in front of her beautiful face.

"Yeah, sorry. What did you say?" Katara mentally slapped herself for losing focus.

Zuko shook his head with a light chuckle and handed her a small jar of moon peaches and a package of sea-slug.

They consumed their light meal quietly as the fire crackled and sparked. When they finished eating, they both just sat and stared into the calming fire until Zuko spoke up.

"I admire you, you know..."

Katara blinked curiously and he noticed her shock.

"I would have never thought to help those people, especially back then," he spoke referring once again to the water village.

"I find that unlikely. Even though you were misguided, Zuko, you still had a good head on your shoulders. If someone was in danger, you assisted. I heard about that little boy's family that you helped; the one that you'd given the dagger to."

"That was an oddity for me," he frowned as he looked down at his boot where the dagger was attached.

"Oh stop being so sullen. You're fine, ruling with a fist of iron and a palm of peace. Me on the other hand...I don't know what the hell I'm doing," as she spoke, Katara noticed the truth of her statement. She really did not know. She was a strong person, in body and mind but she was helping these colonies out for so long that she just did not know if it was something that she enjoyed.

It was rewarding seeing the smiles on these people's faces and that's the only reason she was still putting forth the time, energy and effort.

"You're helping people. That's definitely something."

Zuko watched as the woman bowed her head slightly and pulled her slouching cloak tighter around her neck.

"I need to help myself too," she said sadly stunning herself. Zuko stared at her for a good thirty seconds before holding his arms out and outstretching his legs.

"Come on."

As they were only seated three inches apart, Katara scooted closer and positioned herself between his legs, her back against his chest.

"It seems that we are all having issues. This must mean that your brother is doing fairly well," smirked the fire lord as his arms wrapped around her, warming her.

Katara laughed softly causing Zuko's smirk to become a small smile. He would enjoy this feeling while he could; the feeling of this beautiful waterbender's laughter reverberating within his own body.

Enjoy. I know I did.

THANKS for all of the feedback. I'd love to get more, please.