Chapter 11

Zuko slammed his door with some force, causing his personal room guards, men who had survived Ozai's reign, and the day reign of his sister, to jump with shock.

Zuko ran across his room, through his office and to his bed, where he lay face down, until he heard a soft knocking upon his door. He did not move, but heard the cause of the knocking open the door, thank the guards and walk towards him.

Katara laid something on the bed, next to Zuko, and then knelt on the floor beside the bed. He turned his face to look at her, and saw she wore the look he remembered seeing directed at Toph, Aang and Sokka on their travels, but never to him; a mix of concern, fear and sadness, that made him feel rather uneasy, and yet protected.

She reached out a hand and stroked the edges of the scar upon his face before speaking.

"I had the servants put our food on a tray, so I could bring it to you, seen as we barely made it through the starter"

He gave a small smile before dropping his face again.

"Want to talk about this?"

Zuko turned his head away from Katara; she rose and rushed around to the other side of the bed. She bent down next to the bed again.

"You can't just turn your head and pretend that dinner didn't just happen"

"I can, and I will" He turned his head again; Katara followed him round again, and sat down on the floor next to the bed.

"Oh mighty Fire Lord, you are such a child" He stuck his tongue out at her, and rolled onto his back, placing his arms under his head, and staring at the canopy over his four poster. She clambered onto the bed, and curled up next to him, nestling her head on his shoulder.

"I really thought she might change" Zuko came out with after they had lain in silence for a few minutes, "But clearly not. She is still the cruel, manipulative sister I grew up with"

"Zuko..."

"Don't disagree with me Katara, you've hardly seen what she is like, she was always my father's favourite, and after my mother was gone, I had no-one but uncle to rely upon. I mean seriously, what man can be so cruel to practically disown his own son with no reason. But that isn't even the half of it; that day, when he gave me this," He pointed to his scar. Katara had now sat up and was cross legged on the bed, looking down at Zuko, who was gesticulating wildly as he let his emotions run away, "That day, his face, he was looking down at me with hate and it was as if he had purposely gathered a crowd, and then I look away, and the last thing I saw before I passed out from the pain, glaring at me through the jeering crowd, was Azula, looking almost happy!" He took a moment, and slowed his breathing, "I was always jealous of you, you know, even when we hated each other."

"Why?" Katara wondered aloud

"You had a loving family. Not just Sokka and Hakoda, and a mother who gave her life for you, but your gran-gran, and your whole tribe, you're like one big family, but you also had Toph and Aang, and Suki too. All I've had for so many years is Uncle"

Katara pushed a stray hair out of his face, "You have a larger family than that Zuko," she said softly, "Sokka, Toph, Suki, Aang, you are a brother to all of them. Everyone who came to our aid during the final days of the war, we are all joined by something deeper than just friendship, you, me, all of us who fought back against Azula and Ozai, are a family, joined by the power to do good and fight for what we believed in." She paused again and bent forward to place a small kiss on his lips. She hovered just above his face to say, "And you will always have me. That's a promise" She went to pull away, when Zuko sat up, and kissed her with such passion that it caught her off guard for a moment, much like the first time they had kissed.

When they both pulled away for air some time later, the Fire Lord's eyes were watery, and his cheeks stained with tears. Katara stroked her thumb across his cheek softly, catching a stray tear. They sat cross legged across from each other, the piercing ice blue eyes staring into the golden amber ones.

"I'm not that hungry anymore" Katara mused. Zuko nodded his head, and a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth. Katara cocked her head to the side,

"Happy again?"

He gestured for her to turn, and she did, and leant back against his firm frame, his arms crossing under her elbows and holding her tight. He rested his chin on her shoulder and spoke softly into her ear;

"I don't want to forget this moment. I'll happily forget what happened at the dinner table, but being in here with you, just talking, undisturbed; it's a moment I will treasure. It's not something that happens very often, being left alone. And you are right, your family is my family and they are our family." He trailed small kisses up her neck back to her ear before continuing, "You meant what you said?"

Katara was snapped out of her thoughts and daydreams brought on by those kisses, and quickly asked; "Did I mean what?"

"That I'll always have you?"

Katara pulled out of Zuko's grip, turned and sat low on her knees before him;

"My dear Fire Lord, I promise that you will always have me, you can trust in that. At this point, you have a better chance of beating Uncle at Pai-Sho than getting rid of me" Her comment on his Pai-Sho skills earned her a small playful tap on the arm, "I'll never leave, unless you ask me to"

Zuko leaned forward and laid a gentle kiss on her lips;

"No man would be stupid enough to ask you to leave" His playful tap was returned, "Katara, I know we've only been together for a few weeks, but you are my best friend, you know my deepest, darkest secrets, you've seen me at my worst and best, and you are an excellent fighting partner, both in sparring matches, and fights to the possible death during an Agni Kai. You have brought into my life so much light and happiness, and a family larger than I could ever have imagined. I love you"

"Zuko, I don't know what to say. I love you too"

They shared a small kiss, before resuming their sitting positions opposite from each other, each with a goofy smile on their face. Zuko's quickly faltered, and he started pulling at a string on his bed spread;

"Did Azula say anything after I left?" Katara's smile too faltered; she took his hands between hers, and began to draw circles on them again with her thumb, like back in the garden.

"She didn't have the chance; I left almost immediately after you."

"What about Uncle? Did he have anything to say?"

"Again, not as far as I know."

"I cannot believe he and your father have placed a bet on us. It makes me want to annoy them and my council and just wait for years!"

Katara looked at him like a cat preparing to pounce, "You forget I am on your council, and I would prefer it if we didn't wait," Zuko looked confused; Katara's face grew hungry. She leant into the Fire Lord, and teasing him much like he did her, began to trail kisses from his chin, down his neck and chest, slowly unbuttoning his shirt, "I am in no mood to wait oh mighty Fire Lord" she said into his shoulder before placing a kiss there. Zuko sighed contentedly; Katara made her way back to his face, kissing Zuko on the lips, and placing her weight on him, until she was lying on top of the now flat Fire Lord. She placed her head near his ear; "You aren't going to make me wait are you Zuko?"

Zuko quickly snapped out of his daze, and sat up, Katara's legs that had been straddling him becoming a vice grip around his hips, and Katara herself sitting in his lap. She made to kiss him again, but Zuko turned his face away. When he looked back, the waterbender looked embarrassed. He placed a kiss on her forehead.

"You made a promise to me, now it's my turn. I also promise never to leave you, and I promise to not make you wait much longer." Katara's eyes went wide with shock

"You...you actually want to get married to me?"

"Of course Katara, I love you, and I don't think I will love anybody else. But Fire Nation custom, even for the Royal family, has certain rules. 'All marriages, and so engagements to be married, consensual, arranged or otherwise, must be withheld until the child becomes an adult on the eve when 36 solstices have passed" he quoted perfectly, "Basically," he explained, as Katara had taken on his confused face, "We have to wait until we are 18, or I least I do. You aren't Fire Nation; your homeland decides your rules"

Katara smiled, and kiss him lightly on the lips, before swinging her legs off the bed, and sauntering towards the door, leading from the room. Placing her hand on the handle, she turned and said;

"My home is wherever you are, and the world is not so different anyway. Goodnight Zuko" she stepped through the door, and it slammed lightly back into its frame. Zuko lay back on the bed, rather frustrated for a number of reasons, and blew a large amount of steam out of his nose.

A/N Okay, hi guys! I am so much happier with this chapter than the previous :D anyway, small notice; rating will be going up, as I have had a request to get them married ASAP, and write their first night 'together' ;) this no doubt is going to cause a riot, so let me explain, in my headcanon, Zuko and Katara are the same age, they were 16 when they beat Azula, their 17th birthdays fell sometime in the year running up to the beginning of this story, and in the next few chapters, I will deal with their 18th birthdays, which I probably make around the same time :) when these two turn 18, Aang will be 16, Toph 15, Sokka and Suki 19, and Azula 17. Last thing; some pairing/OTP issues have come up. I got a PM from someone who I checked hadn't favourited or followed this story, and yet took offence to my pairing; I didn't think it had bothered me, so here we are. Sukka is happening, I like them together and I always have done. As previously mentioned, I don't like Azula, I think I'm going to lock her away again and so, she can't be with Sokka, which I would never do anyway. Toph and Aang...maybe, could happen. I mean, they are like chalk and cheese, polar opposites, but maybe that could make them great? I don't know, one review said put Toph with Teo; if I did that, am I bringing back all the kick ass kids like Haru and Ty-Lee and Mai, and pairing them up? And who do I put Aang with? If anybody; he is a monk after all, he could be celibate and his year away from everyone did open his eyes to his potential as the avatar; maybe that potential just means deep friendships, but no real earthly attachments? Please tell me what you think, and I will get writing as much as I can :)

PS NO KATARA HATE!