Author's note:

I would like to thank daddysgirl3001 for reviewing, I really appreciate it.

If you have feedback, I would like to hear it if you could explain what my faults are, and/or give me suggestions to fix them

Zuko's POV

"Prince Zuko!" calls the captain when I walked in. "We will be in the Fire Nation in one week!"

One week. One week until I see my father again. My father, Azula, and all her annoying bratty friends. Mai. One week until I go home for the first time in three years. That could be looked at as a long or short period of time, because time is strange. I can look at it as one week of one month of one year of one decade of one century. But I can also see it as sixty seconds in a minute, sixty minutes in a hour, twenty-four hours in a day, seven days in a week. Yeah, time is a funny thing.

That,too, makes me think of something my uncle said. You know, prince Zuko, Destiny is a funny thing. But I know my destiny. I'm only a week away from fulfilling my destiny.

"Good," I say, only halfly in response to the captain. Then I ask a guard who is sitting nearby, "How is Kata-the waterbender doing?"

"Not very good. I think she's sick," he responded absently, returning to his dinner.

"Sick?" I say disapprovingly. "Why is she sick?" I rush down the hall to her room, unlocking it hurriedly. Katara is curled up in a corner of the room. I wonder if she's conscious. Leaning down, I shake her a couple times, but she doesn't wake up. Hesitantly, I touch her face once. Her tan skin is smooth against my hand, and I want to touch it again.

Katara half-blinks but doesn't open her eyes. She shifts a little before muttering, "Aang?"

I half-wince. Katara and the Avatar probably were together. Katara did look sick-her dark hair tangled and her usually fierce eyes stained red-but she was still as beautiful as usual. How did I not notice before?

Shakily, I let my hand lay on her cheek for a few seconds. A moment later my lips were brushing against hers. Her eyes snapped open in shock and she shoved me off. A second later I was pinned by my shirt to the wall with icicles. Where the hell did she get water.

As an answer, I saw her focus, and pull water out of mid air. My eyes widen in shock, I had never seen that before.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" Her eyes flashed dangerously, her brave fire back in place of her tiredness. She ripped water from a plant that rested on the dresser, freezing me to the wall with it.

"Unfreeze this, now," I demand. This was humiliating that I couldn't break the ice on my own: it was a full moon today.

"No."

Just then my uncle came through the door. "Zuko! What's going on?" He unfreezes me and I sent a blast of fire at Katara out of anger. She wasn't expecting it; she screamed as the flames burned around her eye and her eyelid. My own eyes widen in shock. It was the same place I got burned, though hers wasn't nearly as bad. But it was still bad. I really, didn't mean for that to happen.

Katara squeezed her eye shut in pain and covered her mouth with her hand. I tried to near her but she let out another shriek. "DON'T!" Don't come near me." She tries to bend the water from the floor at me; it appears it is too painful.

"I'm sorry," I say quickly. And I mean it.

She slumps against the wall. "Where is Aang?" shes whispers desperately.

"Let me help you with the burn-"

"-that you caused? Why? I'm going to die anyway once we get to the fire nation. Please, just let me see Aang."

"Fine. You have half an hour."

Katara's POV

Zuko unlocked the door of the room Aang was in, coming in right behind me. He pulled me into a tight embrace before walking up to Zuk and saying, "Mind giving us some privacy?"

"Actually I do mind." he sits down in the chair by the door. I glare at him, wincing at my bad eye. He catches my eye. . .guiltily? Regretfully? Then he clears his throat and says, "I'll wait outside."

As soon as Zuko's gone, Aang asks urgently, "What did Zuko do to your eye? Does it hurt?"

"I can try to heal it as best as I can," I say slowly, thinking how much I should tell him. Would it be a mistake to say that Zuko kissed me? Aang would probably overreact, it was better not to tell him. At least not yet. "Zuko got angry and burned me after I froze him against the wall because I was angry that he-" I cut myself off. I suppose I was just used to telling Aang everything.

"Angry that he...," Aang urged. He lay a hand on my cheek. "Katara, what did he do?"

"He kissed me."