a/n I am loving the love I've been getting from you all! I'm so glad you're liking what I'm writing (even if my chapters are a little short…). And now *drum roll please* for the moment you've all been waiting for… THE FIGHT!

And things do get a little more hot (title joke) in this chapter, so please abide by the M rating.

Chapter 6 ~Hot~

-Zuko-

His anger melted away, but an odd silence stretched on. He wondered if she knew what she was suggesting, or if she knew how hard he just got when she

said things like that. He cleared his throat.

"Yes, uhm… lets go." And he got up off his bed. A wonderfully teasing idea came to him, and he shrugged off his shirt, making sure to roll his shoulders so his

muscles rippled. YES! He thought as he saw her eyes widen while her lips parted in surprise. Now smirking he crossed the room and through the door. He

could hear her soft footsteps behind him as he headed to the beach.

Quietly, they slipped out into the humid night.

"It's about time." A voice complained. Zuko jumped in his skin, and a grinning Toph emerged from behind a tree.

"Uh, Toph, hi," Katara said, turning to Zuko she said, "Zuko, look, there's-"

"No, Katara," he interrupted, "There's-"

"There's something I need to tell you," they said in unison. They took a step back from each other in surprise.

"I made a deal with Toph." He said sheepishly.

"That's funny, I made a deal with Toph too." Katara's eyes narrowed as she looked at the earthbender.

"Yeah, that's really great guys. You both promised me that I could watch the fight, so let's get started." Toph said as she rubbed her hands together as if she

was about to eat a delicious meal. Katara looked at him. There was something in this look that he didn't like.

"Okay," she acquiesced and resumed walking towards the beach.

"She's pissed you know." Toph said to him as they started to follow Katara.

"What? I didn't do anything." He cried innocently. Okay maybe I did do something… he thought, "Sure, I made a deal with you, but she made the exact same

deal too!" he clarified.

"There, there," Toph said unsympathetically, "she's not really mad at you. I think she's made at herself."

"Why?" he asked, but Toph didn't answer. They continued down the path in silence.

Katara and he walked to the middle of the beach, halfway between the ocean and the trees. Without a sun or a moon, the stars were the only immediate

source of light. It would be harder to tell when Katara was attacking he thought and grimaced.

"I want a nice clean fight," Toph instructed, "from both of y-" she stopped, "oh what the hell just do whatever you want." Zuko wasn't sure that was the best

idea, but he nodded in agreement.

"How do we know who's won?" he asked, looking at Toph.

"We'll know I've won when you surrender." Katara supplied smugly. He snorted and Katara narrowed her eyes.

"Or if one of you dies," joked Toph. Katara and he turned to glare at her. "I'm just saying!"

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that." He said softly.

"Whatever. Are you ready?" asked Toph. They both nodded and dropped into a defensive stance. "Okay, uh… ding!" Here goes nothing he thought. And the

battle was on.

Katara advanced, gathering water from the ocean to form giant tentacles. A moment later one of her octo-arms transformed into three ice daggers aimed at

directly at him. He crossed his arms and roared, making two fiery whips and a mouth blast to knock her daggers out of the air. Before he could send an

offensive blow, another watery arm stretched out and formed a whip. But Zuko was already on the move. He crouched down under her whip, rolled away two

feet, and uncurled with a fire blast aimed her at octo-arm. Her watery limb hissed and fizzled while it fell from her control to the ground. However, no sooner

had it fallen did she summon up a replacement.

"Oh come on, Zuko, can't you do better?" she taunted. Even in the low light, he could see her smirk and her dancing eyes.

"Alright then," he replied, "just remember: you asked for it." And with that, he sprang into the air, sending out a circle of fire around him. As he sent out his

blast, the night too sparked to life. While he was in the air, he saw her draw up an ice shield to deflect his fire. He landed softly in the now damp sand only a

few inches from her. "Was that better?" he rasped. Standing so close, he could see her eyes widen fractionally while she nodded. Agni those eyes he thought

as he became momentarily lost in their depths. Remembering himself, he smirked. But the next thing he knew there was an icy grip around his ankle and he

was suddenly upside-down.

-Katara-

Got you! she thought. Her face split into a huge grin as she watched the surprise unfold on his face. While he was being his arrogant self in her face, she has

inconspicuously worked a water tentacle around his right leg. Now she had him strung up by his foot upside-down in front of her. With a flick of her wrists, she

froze the arm, locking his ankle in place.

"Well, well, well," she said and started making a tsk sound with her tongue, shaking her head at him. He thrashed in the air trying to right himself. His head

swayed just inches from her own and his bare chest shook heavily. "Do you give up?" Suddenly he stopped struggling. A purposefully look came into his good

eye and for a moment she was distracted. His honey gold eyes could reduce any ice into a puddle she thought. Although his scar obscured his left eye, it didn't

lose any of its brilliance. His scar was just a part of him and she didn't want to change it even if she could, although she had once offered. I wonder how he got

the scar she thought absentmindedly, too absentmindedly.

"AGNI!" she swore as suddenly Zuko had her pinned against the sandy beach.

-Zuko-

He struggled against his ice-clad foot, trying to regain his footing (or any footing). When she gloated in his face, he suddenly found his focus. He took a deep

breath through his mouth and let it go slowly through his nose. The slow breathing would warm up his chi and melt his icy shackle. All the while, he thought

about how she fought. During their fight, he noticed that she mainly used her arms for bending octo-arms, water whips, or ice daggers. He knew if he really

wanted to win, he would have to restrain her arms. He could tell she was lost in thought, oblivious to his circulating heat. And she did not expect him to free

himself, so she was an easy pin.

"AGNI!" she cursed loudly as he pinned her. He smiled. She struggled out of his hold but it was no use.

"Do you give up?" he asked.

"Never!" she replied, jutting out her chin in defiance. Her jolt ran through him like electricity and he suddenly realized the position he was in. He had straddled

her waist and held his weight on his arms, which held her hands above her head. His bare chest blocked her view of the night sky.

"Agni," he muttered quietly. She must have heard him because he heard a soft gasp and her eyes turned up to meet his. "Katara I-" he started.

"Ahem!" somebody cleared their throat about a foot away from where Katara and he lay. They looked over. Toph stood, her hands on her hips

'looking' at them. "Well, Sugar Queen I believe that's a pin. So, congratulations, Hot Pants." And with that, she turned and walked back towards the palace.

"Did she just call me 'Hot Pants?'" he asked, looking back at Katara who giggled. Her giggling was a (practically) painful reminder of just what kind of position

he was in.

"I don't know, Zuko," she bit her lip to stifle her laughter, "I think your pants are pretty hot."

a/n SOOOO... what'd you think? Did this fight live up to your expectations? Please remember to review so I know how I'm doing!

And a shout out to "The Confrontational Approach" by Advocaat for inspiring parts of this fight scene.