A/N: Hey everyone! So I just got back from Lubbock, Texas for a great trip to Texas Tech for my school's UIL Regionals. Very fun :) I got inspired there and couldn't wait to get home and type up this next chapter! Anyways, here it is! Chapter 8. Enjoy. Review. And all that good stuff :D
"Where do we go now?" Zuko mumbled to himself as we flew over the ocean again. "We don't even have a lead."
I hadn't said a word since we left the ship. I was lost in my thoughts, trying my hardest to remember how old Yon Rha was when he invaded my village all those years ago. He would look different now, especially if he was old enough to retire from the navy, and I was worried I wouldn't recognize him when I saw him.
"How old do you think he'll be?" Zuko said to me, reading my thoughts. I blinked a few times before I finally opened my mouth to speak, but he started to talk again. "Where should we stop for the night?"
I looked up at his face and studied his expression. He looked a bit concerned as he stared down at me and I paused under his gaze. He hadn't used that stone face of his since we left camp. Has he opened up to me? My eyes started to widen, but I quickly shook my head and looked down at my hands. He knew I was upset and he was trying to make it better.
"Anywhere is fine. Let's just hurry," I said finally and he nodded as he turned around and climbed over the saddle to sit on Appa's head. It wasn't long before we were lowering down to the shore below.
It was beginning to turn chilly, not to mention our clothes were wet, so Zuko started a fire the moment we landed. Appa rolled over on his side and growled happily as I petted his nose. When he was gently snoring, I turned around and looked over at Zuko, who was sitting on the other side of the fire…with his shirt off.
I paused in my step and crossed my arms over my chest. He was looking into the flames as he ran his fingers through them causing the light to dance over his pale skin happily. I wasn't stupid. Any girl would see that Zuko was handsome, and I had to look down to hide my blushing face.
"You okay?" I heard him call and I jumped at his voice.
"I'm fine," I snapped suddenly. I heard him get up and through my lashes I could see him coming over to me.
"Katara, I know we didn't find him, but at least we know that he's…"
"Zuko, please," I interrupted. I wasn't mad at him, but I really didn't want him near me with his shirt off. I had to think quickly. "We have no clue what to do now. We have to start over and we have no idea where we need to begin," I said. I wasn't completely lying.
"Katara…" he said quietly as he reached his arms out to grip my shoulders, but I took a step back and stared up into his face. Concern flashed in his eyes for the briefest of moments before his face fell into the stony mask he used to isolate himself so well.
"Lets get some sleep," he said and I nodded as I looked down at my feet. He stood there for another moment before he slowly turned and walked away.
I silently berated myself for pushing him away again as I watched him unfold his blanket on the sand. The thought that maybe all of the problems lately were me ran through my mind and I silently gasped. I was the one who refused to let Zuko feel accepted. I was the one who was constantly making remarks and questioning his trust.
I quickly shook my head to stop the thoughts from coming. I couldn't think of this yet. I had to concentrate on the mission, and that meant I wasn't going to make amends with Zuko until it was over. Without another thought, I walked over to the other side of the fire and unrolled my blanket before I slowly sat down.
As I untied my boots, I glanced at Zuko to find him staring into the fire. He looked peaceful as the flames cast shadows on his face and I quickly looked away before he could catch me watching him. With a sigh, I tugged on the sash around my waist and watched it fall into my hands, surprised at how easily it unwrapped. Setting it aside, I wriggled out of the damp, black robe and got up to hang it on a low tree branch. As I made my way back, I noticed that Zuko was flipped over with his back to the fire.
I frowned at the new sight and sighed quietly. One minute he was the serene boy hidden beneath years of war, and the next he was his stoic self blocking the world out with the walls he worked so hard to build. It was heartbreaking really, and as I lay on my blanket, I felt guilt build in my stomach.
Those were the last thoughts that filled my mind as I drifted to sleep, though, I didn't sleep long. I woke up just a few hours later to find the fire dimmed and the heat gone. I rolled over several times before I finally sat up and looked around the little campsite.
Appa was comfortably snoring just a few yards away and Zuko was on his stomach, his head pressed into his folded arms as he took long deep breathes. It was still dark, but the moon was low in the west letting me know that morning wasn't far off. With a sigh, I pushed myself up and walked over to my hanging robe. It was still damp and was covered in sand, so I quietly brushed it off and gave it a shake before hanging it back on the branch.
I knew I wasn't going to fall back to sleep, so I looked around for something to do. I ran a quick check list of anything that needed to be done before we left again, and except for packing our blankets and getting dressed, there wasn't much to do. I started to walk around aimlessly, watching my feet sink in the sand as I did, until the tide came into view. I subconsciously played with the waves, moving my wrist in a steady pace, as I turned back to Zuko to check if he was still asleep. I really needed a swim, but I didn't want to get my blue robes wet again. Swimming in my under wrappings with just Sokka and Aang around were one thing, but I didn't know Zuko well enough yet to be so vulnerable in front of him. And Zuko was much older than me.
I looked back out at the ocean and breathed in the scent of the salty breeze. My skin tingled at the longing to jump in and just let the waves carry me away, and I closed my eyes as another wave moved over my feet. I made up my mind. With a few steps and another glance back, I quickly unwrapped my sash and threw my robe as far away from the tide as I could get. I then untied my pants and did the same before quickly unwrapping my gloves and throwing them aside.
I ran back to the water's edge and took a deep breath before wading into the cold waves. The sensation sent chills all over and goose bumps covered my arms. Before jumping into the water, I carefully took the ribbon from my hair and wrapped it around my wrist in a tight knot. Without another thought, I took a deep breath and plunged under the water, pushing the shore hard with my feet. Using my bending, I pulled myself out further, but not too far that I couldn't get back, and I let myself float under the surface before I swam up for air.
The water was calm and easy to swim in, and I shivered as the icy droplets slid down my back. The salt stung my eyes and nose, but I didn't mind. I just let myself lay back and float on the surface of the water. I stared at the starry sky and listened to the water splash against my ears as I turned in circles on my back. After a moment, however, I lifted my arms up and tensed my muscles, the water following suite, and lifted myself up as if I was sitting on a chair. Relaxing, the water fell back into the ocean and I dropped down with it. When I pushed back up to breath, I giggled to myself and started to backstroke towards the shore.
It was a short swim, but it was refreshing and I smiled to myself as I stared up into the night sky. After a moment, I closed my eyes and let the waves carry me the rest of the way. Suddenly, sand gently scrapped against my shoulders and I giggled again as I sat up and used my hands to scoot back just far enough so that the tide splashed against my knees. I sat there for a moment, wiggling my toes each time the water pushed against them, before I laid back down on the shore and closed my eyes again.
"What are you doing?" came a smooth voice from behind and my eyes shot opened. I quickly rolled over onto my stomach and a pair of sand covered feet came into view. I trailed my eyes up to Zuko's face and gave him a sheepish smile before standing up.
"I was swimming," I said quietly as I brushed the sand from my stomach and arms. I glanced up at his face before quickly looking back down, and my face warmed at the fact that I had been caught in my underwear. Then he chuckled.
I quickly looked up with wide eyes and frowned at his sudden amusement.
"What's so funny?" I asked crossing my arms.
"You are," he said and I huffed at him. "You're covered in sand and your hair's a mess, not to mention you're in your…" he trailed off and I watched as his eyes widened slightly and his cheeks turned red. Suddenly, he zipped around and tensed up, embarrassed.
"You didn't expect me to swim in my clothes did you?" I said as I walked past him, trying to hide my blush. I quickly snatched my clothes from the ground and walked over to my blanket.
"That's what a bathing suit is for!" he growled.
"I don't own one!" I defended. "And you were supposed to be asleep! Besides. I do this all the time."
"In front of everyone? Why?" he honestly seemed shocked and I gave him a confused glare.
"Why not? Toph is a girl and blind. Sokka's my brother and Aang is twelve…"
"And is completely in love with you." he interrupted and I felt my anger flare.
"Aang is not in love with me!" I protested and the memory of the young monk kissing me on the submarine flashed through my mind making me turn an even darker shade of red.
"Oh, come on, Katara! He's crazy for you. I knew you were naïve, but not this naïve," he said as he walked up to me. "You can't honestly say you haven't noticed at all."
I stared up at him angrily, my face flushed from anger and embarrassment. I wanted to hit him. Of course I noticed that Aang liked me. But if I admitted it, then it would be for sure, and I wasn't ready to accept that fact yet.
"What does it matter to you, anyway? So what if he does! He can like who he wants," I said as I pulled on my pants and tugged on the string that tightened them.
"No he can't, Katara! Aang has to focus on the war. He has to keep his mind concentrated on saving the world. And you're getting in the way of that," he shouted. I stopped in the middle of wrapping my sash and stared wide-eyed at Zuko. Did he just blame me?
"I'm not in the way of anything! Without me, Aang would still be trapped in that stupid iceberg drifting around in the ocean! Then you would still be out there searching for an old man and training for a fight that would never happen! You'd still be banished and spoiled and lost!"
He pinned a dark glare on me and steam flew from his nostrils like a tiger-bull. I didn't care though. I turned on my heel and stormed off into the trees grumbling to myself angrily. From behind I heard Zuko growl in frustration and send a fireball towards the ocean. He could be mad all he wanted. It was his fault.
As I made my way deeper into the forest, I started to think back over our argument. Zuko was smart and I knew he was right about Aang. He was the avatar and needed to keep his focus on the fate of the world. It was his destiny. But Zuko wasn't right about me. I purposely kept Aang at a friend level until the time was right. Not just for Aang, but for me, too. I couldn't concentrate if my head was in the clouds about a boy. I learned that from Jet and I wasn't going to let that get the best of me again.
As I sat down on a rock, the freedom fighter rushed into my mind and brought back raw memories. My heart clenched at the image of him lying on the dirt floor under Lake Logai, tattered and in pain. I would never know if he survived Long Feng's attack. I could feel tears begin to build up at the thought that Jet might be dead and I pulled my knees close to my chest.
This is all your fault, Zuko. Why did you have to get so mad over nothing? I thought to myself as I wiped at my eyes. I was just swimming. Suddenly, a thought occurred to me and my eyes widened.
"Was he flustered at the fact that I wasn't dressed?" I whispered to myself.
I never thought of myself as really pretty, but Zuko was sixteen. Was it possible that I had made him feel nervous or uncomfortable by being so carefree? And if so, did I do the same to Aang? Zuko did make it sound like I lead Aang on, I thought, but I quickly shook my head.
"Don't be so full of yourself, Katara," I said to myself before sighing loudly. I will never understand male hormones.
I tied my blanket down securely and gave the strings a good tug before I jumped down from Appa's saddle. As I tied my hair back, I looked up at the cloudy, grey sky and sighed. It was definitely going to rain.
I had ended up staying in the forest for the rest of the night, not moving from the rock until light began to dapple the sky. When I did emerge from the tree line, however, Zuko's stuff was already packed on the saddle and he was nowhere to be found. Some footprints made a trial to the north and I guessed that he went for a morning walk, so I began to pack and get dressed so we could leave when he returned.
It had been almost an hour since then and I was beginning to wonder if he ran off and left me. No, he wouldn't have done that, I kept reassuring myself. As if on cue, I spotted Zuko making his way down the shoreline. He was jogging at a steady pace as he approached and I raised my eyebrows at him as he passed me. He slowly came to a stop just a few yards away and took a breath before he walked out into the ocean waist deep and fell backwards into the waves.
I watched as his head broke the surface and he swam back to the beach. He then rolled over on his back with his arms stretched out on either side of him. He was taking deep breaths with his eyes shut tight as I approached him. He looked exhausted as he laid there with nothing but his bending pants on and his hair plastered to his face.
"Zuko?" I said gently. "Are you okay?" I was leaning over his face and I jumped when he opened his eyes suddenly and stared up at me.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly and I almost didn't hear him. I kept my gaze in his for a moment before I squatted down next to him. "I was just…surprised that you weren't fully dressed. I didn't know how to react to that."
"I understand," I said after a moment. "We were both just tired and tense. Maybe a good fight was what we needed."
Neither of us smiled, nor did we laugh. A fight was what we needed. It helped him get out his anger. And it helped me finally see what runs through Zuko's mind.
A/N: So writing the fight was really fun! I also felt like they were very much in character, but please correct me if I'm wrong. Also, I think there are about two more chapters until this story ends...unlessss I get at least 10 reviews saying otherwise. So you tell me: End when she forgives him, End at Sozin's Comet. It's up for vote! So please review and tell me what you think :)
And don't forget to vote for me for Best Zutara Fanfiction! Just go to Citrus Productions's profile and then his forums to vote or you can go to www . citrusproductions . webs . com (without the spaces of course)! Thanks for your support, reviews, and time.