Hey! Sorry for the absence as of late... There isn't really any excuse except that I got lazy XD

song of a free heart: I don't think Iroh would like Mai with Zuko at all... All she does is depress him :P

MagicalBender: Iroh is definitely another one of my favorite characters! He would definitely do something like setting up Katara with Zuko :)

DOZeus: Haha, your review made me laugh! Zutara kicks ass ;)

Her feet hurt. Like, a lot. The sweltering heat was unrelenting, and she tiredly wiped away the sweat that had accumulated on her forehead with the back of her hand. A groan escaped her lips.

"How much farther?" She asked, no longer caring whether she was whining or not. The prince ignored the question, trudging on ahead of her at a quick pace, forcing the girl to lengthen her strides. She glared at his back and once again was reminded of her predicament.

Katara liked to think that she was a patient and understanding person. In fact, she often took pride in it. But something about this prince just rubbed her the wrong way, despite the fact that he was her enemy. The way he treated her like some doormat that he could walk all over made her frustrated beyond belief, and his annoying habit of ordering her around as if he had some kind of authority over her caused a rebellious spirit to well up in her. Just because he was a spoilt prince and was probably used to getting whatever he wanted didn't mean he had any right to ignore her!

She huffed in irritation and marched up to the boy, dismissing the fact that she had to practically run in order to catch up to him. Her petite frame blocked his path, giving him no other option but to stop. Dangerous, golden eyes burned into her, but Katara stood her ground. She crossed her arms.

"I said, how much farther?" She returned his glare. But instead of getting a rise out of the prince, he just brushed past her and kept walking. Her jaw dropped in anger. It was infuriating enough that he had refused to answer her question, but now he just acted like she was invisible?!

Katara's fists clenched, and she whirled around. Fury boiled her blood. Before she could even think twice, she had already lunged forward and shoved the unsuspecting prince. Hard. He lurched forward and stumbled forward a couple of steps. There was a second of silence.

Then, the boy turned to face her, smoke unfurling from his lips. His whole body had tensed, and his eyes were smoldering. For a split second, Katara remembered that she should probably be afraid of him, but that moment passed as a fresh wave anger swept over her.

"Don't you even think for a second that you can get away with treating me so rudely just because you're a prince." She strode forward, sticking a finger into his chest. "You think I wanted to get lost with a spoiled brat like you in the middle of nowhere? Think again. So you better start showing me some respe-"

She was cut off as Zuko suddenly shoved her backwards. She tripped and landed hard on her backside.

She watched his lips smirk in satisfication. "You should really learn your place, peasant."

An indignant screech escaped her mouth, and she pushed off the ground, barreling right into him. They both went down in a blur of red and blue. Katara punched and kicked, scratching blindly at the hands roughly grasping at her shoulders and arms. Zuko, caught off guard by her surprising strength, snarled and fought back. They continued to roll across the dusty floor, each yelling at the other and trying to wrestle their way to victory.

"How dare you attack me, water-wench!"

"Think you can still ignore me, your highness?!"

"Stay still and-"

"Shove off you-"

"Ow! Stop biting-"

"Let go of my-"

And suddenly, they stopped. Katara had a knee planted firmly in his ribs, one hand braced against his shoulder, and the other pulled back into a fist. A triumphant grin curved her lips. Her hair, having escaped the confines of her braid, was wild, sticking up in funny directions and falling in her face. Glowing blue eyes pinned him in place. Zuko suddenly had a hard time breathing, and not only because of the knee digging into his stomach.

Katara was breathing hard, but she was elated that she had finally pulled a fast one over the arrogant prince. Her arm was tight and wound back, ready at any second to strike. "Always expect the unexpected, Zuko."

A wicked smirk twisted the prince's features. Katara narrowed her eyes suspiciously. What was he planning... Before she could even react, a hand had knocked away the arm pushing against his shoulder, effectively causing her to fall forward. Her gasp was cut short when his other hand buried itself in her hair, yanking her head down until their lips connected. Too shocked to do anything but freeze up from surprise, Katara let out a short yelp which was quickly smothered.

She attempted to pull away, but his hand held her still. Katara tried not to notice the sudden butterflies going crazy in her stomach, or how she had somehow ended up slightly straddling Zuko's torso. It was almost inevitable when her eyes fluttered shut and she instinctively relaxed into the kiss.

Her mind, hazy from the fervent movement of his lips, registered a little too late when the prince flipped their positions so he was on top. In a flash, he had her hands pinned above her head, and a small pearl dagger lightly pressed to her throat. He smirked at her confused expression, leaning so that their faces were inches apart.

"Always expect the unexpected."

Author's Note: This was one of those slightly cliche 'Katara-gets-stuck-with-Zuko-and-then-they-end-up- having-a-hot-makeout-sesh' oneshots, but oh well. It was fun to write :)

Review, please and thank you!

MI3