a/n Wow. You people are amazing! I LOVE all of the reviews you gave on the last chapter! As long as you're liking (haha. Facebook pun) / reviewing / favorit-ing this story I vow to see it through to the end. You guys really are why I love to write.
The only thing I want to say about this chapter before you read it is: Please remember that this FF is rated M.

Chapter 8 ~Salt~

-Katara-

She stared calmly into his warm eyes. But how dim can he be? She thought, Of course I can heal myself! On another level, it warmed her heart that he cared so

much about not hurting her. He gasped when she told him about her healing and a moment later, he threw his arms around her waist, molded her shape to

him, and their lips crashed together.

She couldn't change her past, and up until now, she didn't really care how many boys she had kissed. Now she hated it. She felt duped. Those kisses had

seemed passionate at the time, but Zuko's kiss left them all in the dust. He sighed into her mouth and his hands rubbed up and down her back, keeping her

close. Her left hand moved out of his hair and began to wonder around his sculpted, naked back. His arms felt so strong as she ran her hands over them. She

felt a light sheen of sweat as her hand traveled back to his neck. She groaned and wound her fingers tighter in his hair, pulling him closer to deepen the kiss.

"Agni, Katara!" he gasped, leaning away for a moment. "Are you sure yo-" she didn't let him finish. His mane-like hair gave her ultimate control of his head, and

she brought his lips back to hers. He was so surprised his mouth remained open, inadvertently giving her complete access.

She had never tried this kind of kissing before, because it had never seemed right and she always felt uncomfortable about it. But now she didn't care. Now felt

right. Her tongue hesitantly started to stroke his. His hands stilled as she felt him jolt in surprise. A groan rumbled through her as she felt the marvelous friction

between his straining pants and her damp under-wraps. He must have felt it too, because he moaned. His tongue slowly began to meet hers and she loved it.

The world seemed to stop. There was nothing else besides Zuko and herself. As their kisses grew more heated, she felt like wrapping her legs around him, just

to increase their friction. However, she wasn't sure if he could take it… especially if she surprised him. He might accidentally drop me into the sand… then he'd

fall on top of me… and we would end up together in the sand… and… she lost her train of thought. The idea started to sound better and better to her. She

extracted her fingers from his unruly hair and clung tightly to his neck. Her eyes peeked open, sneaking a look at him before she executed her plan. Pure,

unmasked joy filled his face. The moonlight turned his red scar into a pale form of sepia. Oh she sighed and she jumped.

-Zuko-

Kissing her was the best feeling in the world. He was finally able to hold her close to him and fill his lungs with her sweet scent. He could feel every twitch and

tremor in her body as if it was his own. She seemed so sure of what she wanted and was getting herself into, but he… he knew he wanted her, but he wasn't

sure that was enough to risk hurting her. Learning that she could heal herself had dispelled some of his fears, but he wanted to be sure she knew what would

happen if she kept kissing him like this. So he tried to speak.

"Agni, Katara! Are you sure yo-" but before he could finish, her lips cut him off. He gasped in surprise, and she took full advantage, plunging her tongue into his

mouth. His hands stilled, eyes opened, and he jolted in alarm. Seeing the look of pure joy on her face calmed him, and his moment of surprise was fleeting.

Agni! He thought as he reclosed his eyes. What did I ever do to deserve this?

He had thought those words many times in the past, but never under such fantastic circumstances. He could hardly believe that she was here, in his arms. It

was both the most calming and exciting sensation he had ever imagined.

The outside world was silent to him. Nothing could distract from having beautiful Katara all to himself. Their kisses grew stronger and he grew harder. Agni! He

thought again. He felt the odd sensation that she was staring at him, but before he could open his eyes and confront her, she jumped.

In a moment governed by pure reflexes, his arms moved and caught her. For a split second, the movement threw him off balance and he stumbled backwards.

Her legs wrapped around his waist like a vice grip. He groaned loudly. She was so close to him now. His arms supported most of her weight underneath her

upper thighs. Her elbows were cutting into the back of his neck, but he wasn't about to complain. In this new position, Katara was slightly above him and he

had to tilt his chin up to stay in contact with her.

"Whoa!" he breathed, cutting off their kiss. He looked up into her brilliant blue eyes. Her face was silhouetted by the pale moon light, making her look even

more beautiful, which hardly seemed possible. She smiled.

"Nice catch," she whispered, staring back into his eyes. He grinned. It was probably the biggest, broadest, stupidest grin she had ever seen, but he didn't care.

She made him feel so alive. The feelings he had for her made his chest hurt just thinking about her. "I didn't expect you to-" this time, his urgent kiss

interrupted her.

As they kissed, she began to squirm, constantly readjusting herself against him. Every move she made elicited a deep groan from him. But soon her movements

seemed almost taunting. He hated to relinquish his grip on her, but he had too. The fire was burning too hot without any end or form of suitable release in

sight.

She slid down his body until she landed softly on the sand.

"Katara, I…" he shook his head, unable to express what he was feeling. It was all so new to him. She smiled up at him and gently reached up to cup his face

with her left hand.

"I know," she whispered, "I can help." And her hand abandoned his face to join her other hand at the sash of his pants.

"Katara! Stop! Wait!" he cried, staring into her eyes, "You don't ha-AGNI!" He instantly forgot what he was saying as her hands made contact with his

throbbing erection.

-Katara-

At first, she was disappointed that he had caught her, but when her groin smashed against his… She was so glad he did.

"Nice catch," she whispered. He seemed stupidly proud of himself and his grin made her heart stop. Out of fairness, she decided she should tell him how

preemptive her move was, "I didn't expect you to-" he silenced her in the best possible way.

This new position allowed his hands to grab her underneath by her thighs, which thrilled her. She started to squirm and grind herself into him. Suddenly, she

was sliding down his slick body. But she knew perfectly well why and bless him he looked almost embarrassed. Her toes felt good in the cool sand. She stared

up at him and was surprised to find a forlorn look on his face. Slow down, she reminded herself, he's a virgin!

"Katara, I…" he couldn't finish what he was about to say, but she understood. Well, not completely, because she'd never been with a virgin before, but she

understood enough…

"I know," she whispered, "I can help." She removed her hand from his face, undid his pants, and gripped him.

She kept a close eye on him, unsure of how he would respond, after asking her to stop.

"AGNI!" he cried loudly, jerking his hips and tipping his head back. A quick smile passed her lips, before she grasped him tighter. His breaths started to come as

puffs and he gently gripped her hair. Wow. She thought. He sure was ready… Her hands paused for a moment, letting him get use to this. His eyes were still

closed and his jaw was slack. Then, ever so carefully, she took him into her mouth.

She watched as his eyes sprung open and his fingers dug into her hair. It seemed like his eyes couldn't decide if they should stay open or close, so they

flickered instead. He moaned loudly. She smiled and took him in farther, until she felt him at the back of her throat. As she pulled him out of her mouth, she

sucked him really hard and ran her tongue over his tip. His grip on her head was almost painful, but she didn't mind.

"K-Ka-…I…am...I can't...I...Oh sweet Agni!" She knew he was close, so she firmly grasped his hips, and doubled her efforts.

-Zuko-

No amount of words could ever tell her how happy she makes him, not just doing what she was doing at the moment, but anytime she laughed or smiled and

he was blessed enough to see it. Her lips around him was the new best feeling in the world. It quickly obliterated all thoughts or reason. But before all of his

mind was taken over by this new, but wonderful, feeling, he thought Agni this feels so good… She's so good then his brain made the unwanted connection How

did she become this good? The answer was obvious, so he pushed it aside.

He was close, so close, but he wasn't sure if he should tell her… The men on his ship said that some girls don't like to swallow… It was all he could do to try to

form his warning.

"K-Ka-…I…am...I can't...I...Oh sweet Agni!" He was almost at the edge. Maybe she sensed how desperate he was becoming, because she firmly grasped his

hips and doubled her efforts. He felt the unfamiliar tightness in his balls and then he felt her draw back her lips until she held him with just her teeth. That was

it.

"A-Agni!" the words ripped through him as he suddenly and powerfully came into her luscious mouth. She took every last drop of him, milking him until the fire

slowly died. He felt compelled to look down and make sure of what just happened. The sight of her, still with her mouth full of him, was probably the most erotic

thing he had ever seen. Her piercing blue eyes danced with delight. Very gently, she let him go, and he watched as she swallowed. Oh Agni! He thought. She

accepted his hands and he helped pull her to her feet.

They just stared at each other for a moment, communicating with their eyes. He leaned down and kissed her. She jumped, seemingly surprised. He poured all

of the thanks and gratitude he felt into their connection, his tongue bravely entering her mouth. His eyes opened, shocked when he discovered he could taste

the salty tang of his own arousal lingering in her mouth. It wasn't unpleasant, but he didn't like it. He broke away from her mouth and switched to kissing the

side of her neck.

"So…" she said. He felt the words tremble through her. His lips kissed its way to the softness of her ear. He breathed in, smelling her unique scent that now

mixed with the salty smell of sweat.

"Yes?" he whispered quietly into her ear. He gently sucked on her earlobe. She made a weird noise. It sounded like a giggle, but also like a groan, so he

stopped and withdrew to read her face.

"How was that?" She asked almost timidly, not meeting his eyes. He frowned for a moment and tipped her chin up with his right hand.

"Oh Katara," he closed his eyes even at the memory, "that was hands down the best thing I've ever felt." She smiled, but her eyes still looked nervous. Why?

He thought. "Katara, what's wrong?" he paused, "Have you ever done this before?" Her blush deepened. And in truth, so did his.

"Yes," was all he got for a reply. He knew she had probably done it before, but he still saw red for a moment. He took a calming breath of the cool night air.

"What's wrong?" he asked again. She didn't meet his gaze again. He was starting to get really worried. "Katara," he said her name so forcefully that she

looked up at him, "tell me. What's wrong?" Instead of replying, she took a step away from him. "Wh-what?" he asked confused. He watched as she bended a

small bubble of water from the ocean to her. Maybe she's thirsty? He asked himself. She put most of the water into her mouth and the rest fit to her hands like

mittens. He finally understood everything when her hands began to glow. She was healing herself. It felt like there was a gaping wound in his heart and

seeing her healing herself was like salt in that wound. He had hurt her. He had burned her. He was a monster.

a/n Sorry to leave you hanging...Okay, maybe not THAT sorry. PLEASE review! Tell me how I'm doing! Thanks for reading!