"Stop it," Katara said lowly, her eyes trained on the pond.

"We need to talk," Zuko replied softly, his breath tickling the back of her neck. He stood close to her, but not so close that they were touching. The distance was maddening for the pair, but neither took the step to close the gap.

Katara closed her eyes and let out a heavy breath of air. "Stop."

Zuko sighed, and then looked out over the pond as well. "My mother used to bring me here," he whispered, suddenly finding himself lost in memory. "We used to feed the turtle ducks together." He laughed a little and then shook his head. "She taught me what it meant to care about someone; how to love while surrounded by hatred."

Zuko paused, and then slowly reached out to rest his hand on the girl's shoulder. He felt Katara tense beneath his touch, but he didn't draw away. "There have only been two women that I've ever loved," he admitted, and Katara swiftly shook her head.

"Don't," she breathed, squeezing her eyes closed as she strove to ignore the boy's words.

Zuko continued as though he hadn't heard her. "One was my mother," he said, and then he gently trailed his hand from Katara's shoulder up to the sensitive skin of her neck. "The other is…"

"Please," Katara whispered brokenly, feeling tears form beneath her closed eye lids.

"You." Zuko finished, taking the plunge and moving the step closer. He wrapped his arms around the girl's middle, his chest pressed against her back, and felt her tremble at his touch.

Katara said nothing, but the tears that had begun to gather flowed freely down copper cheeks. "Don't do this to me," she choked out after a time of silence, and Zuko squeezed her tighter.

"I love you," he breathed, ignoring her plea as he pressed a kiss against her temple.

"You can't," the girl replied, her hands balled into fists as her body shook, her heart heavy with anguish.

"But I do."

Katara took in a shuddering breath, wanting to step away from the boy's embrace but unable to move. "I'm getting married," she finally found the strength to say, and Zuko's throat closed as he buried his head in her neck.

"You're not married yet," he murmured, his chest constricting as he gently kissed the sensitive flesh. His lips grazed the necklace that another man had carved, and Zuko felt his stomach sink.

"Stop," Katara whispered again, her voice choked with tears.

Zuko stepped back and then turned Katara around so that they were face to face. "You love me too," he whispered, trailing his fingers from her forehead down over her face and then to cup the back of her head

Katara said nothing, only shook her head as tears continued to pour down her cheeks.

"I can see it in your eyes," Zuko added, and Katara squeezed them closed so that he couldn't look into them and read the truth.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Katara asked tremulously, planting her hands against Zuko's chest as she attempted to push him away from her. However, her hands half clung to his shirt, rendering the effort pointless.

"Because you won't be happy with him."

Katara swallowed and shook her head. When she finally summoned the strength, she opened her eyes and met the boy's gaze.

They had been through so much together, she and this boy-turned-Fire Lord. They had saved the world at the cost of their families, had become adults while still in the bodies of children; they had lost everything they believed in to restore the faith of millions.

Even though they had been through all of that, their love was still forbidden. They would be shunned by the world that they had given their souls to save and they would disgrace the memory of the family that had given their lives for them. They would be together, yes, but they would live in guilt and shadow.

Katara loved him, yes, but she couldn't live her life her life like that. She belonged to the world that she had saved, and her own feelings were of little consequence.

"I wouldn't be happy with you either," she whispered, and she saw Zuko's eyes cloud over with pain at her words.

She wanted to reach out and touch him, to tell him that she loved him too and that everything would be alright. She wanted to hold him close to her, to kiss him gently, to spend the rest of her life getting to know this boy before her. Instead of doing what he wanted, she closed her eyes against his pained face and turned away from the boy that she loved.

"Katara," Zuko said hoarsely, reaching out to touch her.

Katara walked away, although her heart ached as she did so. "Don't," she whispered softly, the weight of the world resting in the word.