a/n I know, I know, my chapter title isn't very original. I just wanted one more chapter before Zuko and Katara set off by themselves. Anyways, I should probably have the next chapter posted sometime next week, so this should tide you over until then.

Chapter 29 ~The Fishing Town~

-Katara-

Sounds of life greeted them as they approached the town. The small fishing town she remembered was booming. When the Gaang had left, she had prayed to the real Painted Lady to keep the town alive and prosperous. She must have heard Katara. The waters were clear and the villagers were happy. Laughter had replaced the previous coughs and children played instead of begging for food.
"It's the new Fire Lord!" someone shouted from the docks and a crowd formed.
"Prepare to dock!" one of the crewman yelled behind her and she felt the boat slowly come to a halt. People were waving at them, so she waved back. Zuko just stood stiffly by her side. She elbowed him slightly.
"Ow." He said frowning at her.
"Wave!" she hissed. He waved. The same wave as his 'Hi, Zuko here' wave that he would never live down. It was so awkward, but adorable. He grabbed her hand that wasn't waving and lead her to the off-ramp.

Zuko held his hands up and the crowd hushed.
"As you all probably know we have finally reached the end of this ridiculous war." The crowd cheered, "This means that all Fire Nation troops must withdraw or help rebuild the world Ozai tried to destroy." He paused again while everyone cheered. "This fishing village has survived all manners of abuse. The poisonous factory shall be dismantled and its parts used to expand your city. The question is: would you like the soldiers to help you?" The people fell quiet.
"I don't!" a voice said, speaking out. Then there was a murmur of agreement. "We can fix up our own town thank you very much." The man who was speaking pushed to the front of the crowd. It was Dock. "In fact you were the reason we had problems in the first place! We got to the fortune we have now without your majesty's involvement."
"Of course," a young boy said, "We did have a lot of help from the Painted Lady." There was a louder murmur of agreement to this statement. Katara smiled. This was the little boy who she had shared her food with and whose mother she healed.
"That wasn't the real Painted Lady." Dock said.
"No, but she helped us." The boy replied, "And she's come back." At that, the boy pointed directly at her. The crowd erupted into cheers, louder than they had been for Zuko. She blushed and ducked her head.
"What are they talking about?" Zuko asked in a whisper.
"I'll tell you later." She smiled.

-Zuko-

He could hardly believe how smoothly everything was going. After they had finished talking to the citizens, they went to inspect the factory and notify the commander. The factory was completely useless, completely nonoperational. Whatever Katara and Aang had done, they put the place out of service for good. He had to chuckle to himself. He could just imagine Katara tearing up this factory because of the harm it was costing the village. She always fought for what was right and helped anyone who needed her.

The soldiers would be sent back home. Those who wanted to would board a ship and be taken to places in the Earth Kingdom they were needed, cities that needed rebuilding. It was surprising how the men never questioned the withdrawal. Zuko could tell that the older soldiers had a distant edge to them and chose to go home. The younger members wanted to help the rest of the world and seemed excited to leave. This made his job quicker. Granted there weren't as many people stationed as he had originally thought.

They ate the mid-day meal in a large gathering room that apparently used to be the infirmary. Everyone was chatting while they ate out of their bowls of rice and fish. The man from the dock sat near Katara and him, but Zuko was constantly confused by what name to call the man. When he would get it wrong, the man would correct him as though the mistake was a silly one with an obvious answer, while Katara giggled slightly. Obviously, she found it amusing, whereas he found is very frustrating. Another member of their eating circle was the boy from the pier, who seemed very happy to see Katara. Actually, a lot of people were cheering and toasting her. Why? She had said she'd explain later, but they hadn't had a moment of silence… alone. Yet, it was kind of fun to see people revere her. These people seemed to understand (a little) why he loved her so much. She had obviously done them a great service… whatever it was.
"What are you thinking so hard about?" she whispered into his ear. He stiffened slightly.
"Nothing," he murmured under his breath.
"Really?" she asked, her breath tickling his ear. "Were you thinking about me?" He smiled slightly and turned his head to her.
"Always," he whispered. She smiled a surprised grin.
"What are you thinking now?" He was thinking how beautiful and amazing she was and how he couldn't wait until they were married. Then the thoughts of the wedding night came to him. He groaned slightly and shifted, his pants feeling a little tighter. Breathe. He commanded himself Don't. Now is not the time.
"I'm thinking I'm in love with you."
"I think I'm in love with you too," she leaned in closer until their noses were almost touching. He was just about to lean in for the kiss when people started clapping.

-Katara-

She laughed and turned to look at the people. They had put down their bowls and were smiling and cheering. Zuko groaned and rested his forehead on her shoulder. She could feel him breathing in her hair and brought her left hand up to his hair. It was different since he had his hair pulled up. He pulled away and glanced at the crowd. The people were still cheering.
"I think they want us to kiss." She whispered. His eyebrows knitted. Then he leaned in closer and she closed her eyes. Instead of feeling his lips on hers, she felt him press a kiss to her forehead. The crowd seemed disappointed, but slowly returned to eating. "Cheater." She whispered, playfully nudging him in the ribs.
"Are you done eating?" he asked. She nodded. "Let's go back to the ship then. I'd like to leave later this afternoon."
"Your mother?" she mouthed, not wanting to be overheard. He nodded and they got to their feet.
"You're not leaving already?" asked the boy.
"Soon, but you don't need me anymore, do you?"
"No, I guess you're right."
"You'll be sure to buy all your supplies at my store before you go for sure, of course." Xu said. She smiled at the man.
"Of course Xu."
"Okay, well before you leave you better say goodbye to Dock."
"What about Bushi?"
"Never mind that old goat dog."
"Alright, if you say so." She put her hand in Zuko's and they walked out.

Whenever they passed a villager that person would wave and smile at them. Zuko swung their entwined hands lightly between them. Every now and then, she glanced up at him. She was walking on his right, so from this angle she couldn't see his scar.
"What?" he asked, catching her gaze.
"Nothing." She smiled.
"Actually," he stopped walking and looked her up and down, "I think we should get some different clothes for you."
"Why?" She asked, quickly glancing down at herself. What was wrong? She had quickly selected a red floor-length robe with golden trim. She thought he liked it. She pouted.
"I do like it," he said quickly, reading her thoughts, "I mean they're lovely, but… I don't think they're… you." It was true. The robes were beautiful, but it felt like a costume to her. "I want you to be yourself. That's who I fell in love with." She smiled.
"Okay shopping it is." He smiled in relief.
"Glad I brought my money then."
"You don't normally carry money?"
"No, royalty doesn't and… when I was a refugee I hardly had any. Near the end in Ba Sing Se Uncle and I were making quite a bit of money from the tea business, but things were…different." He seemed a little melancholy.
"Well," she said, putting a smile on her face, "let's go then!"

The small shop was brimming with clothes. None of them were as ornate as the one she was wearing, but that's what she liked about them. Then she caught a glimpse of a few blue clothes.
"Can I help you, Fire Lord Zuko?" asked an older woman organizing a few racks.
"Yes, we're here to get Katara some new clothes."
"Oh! And what does the Painted Lady prefer?" the woman asked, walking up to them.
"Whatever you want," He whispered into her hair. She smiled.
"Can we start with something blue?" she asked excitedly.
"Of course! Right this way," the shop owner smiled, but held her hand out to Zuko, "No men in the changing rooms I'm afraid. Not even the Fire Lord."
"Be right back!" Katara smiled as she was whisked away to a small curtained corner.
"So you said something blue. Are you looking for a full dress?"
"No, I really like two or three pieces." Definitely with pants Katara thought. If Zuko and she were going to be keeping a low profile, she'd need something green too. "I'd also like to see your other colors, please." The woman nodded.
"Just change into this wrap, while I go get some options."

Just as Katara tied the sash the woman came back in, her arms filled with clothes of all different colors. She carefully laid out the garments.
"Well?" she asked.
"They're perfect." Katara smiled. She was instantly drawn to the sapphire set.
"I thought you'd like that one. Let's try it on then."

-Zuko-

While Katara and the shopkeeper were in the back, he decided to look around. There were mainly women's clothes. He couldn't help but image his beautiful Katara in them. The clothes weren't really fancy, but they had a simple elegance that he liked. Of course, most of the clothes were in the shades of the Earth Kingdom; however, he did notice a few blue pieces. Suddenly the shopkeeper was beside him, selecting items to take back to Katara no doubt.
"You like this sapphire one?" she asked, pointing.
"Yes, it's lovely." He replied slightly awkwardly. The woman nodded to herself, finished making her selections, and returned to the changing room. He found the small men's section and was able to select a nice green and tan outfit. He was just looking for another shirt when he heard someone lightly clear their throat. He glanced up and saw Katara in the two-piece sapphire outfit.
"Uhm… what do you think?" she asked. The color matched her blue eyes and made them sparkle. Her long dark hair cascaded down her back. Just a sliver of her midriff and the tops of her shoulders were bare.
"Beautiful." He whispered and then cleared his throat, "You look really nice, Katara." She smiled shyly and became even more gorgeous.
"He's right." The shopkeeper said, "It's perfect." Katara smiled and headed back to try on the other selections.

He always thought clothes shopping would be boring. But Katara made it fun. Just in general she made his life more fun.
"What do you think about this one?" she asked, appearing in a simple red piece that was similar to the one she had before. He held out his hand and she twirled into his side.
"You're beautiful, as always. I really love you in anything…" then he leaned in closer and whispered, "and in nothing."
"Zuko!" she gasped, whacking him lightly.

By the end of the spree, Katara had decided on only three outfits, the sapphire one, the red one, and a simple green-tan traveling one. He had tried to persuade her to get anything she liked, but she said she could only wear one at a time and the two of them would be traveling light anyways. The shopkeeper slipped in a few new sets of bindings as she wrapped up their clothes. He couldn't help but blush slightly.
"How much do we owe you?" he asked her, but she just waved her hand.
"Oh, no charge this time, anything for the Painted Lady." She replied smiling. Huh? He decided just to go with it and picked up the wrapped packages.

As they exited, Katara noticed how late it had gotten. It was long past midday.
"Oh Zuko! Why didn't you say anything? I thought you wanted to leave by mid-afternoon." She said alarmed.
"It's okay. I guess it won't hurt us to spend another night on the ship…" He replied, recalling the 'to be continued' promise she had made that morning. She smiled and bit her lip, remembering as well.
"No, you're right. Another night on the ship won't kill us. Well…maybe you." She leaned in closer, "I doubt you can handle it."
"Oh you do? Is that a challenge?" he asked staring back at her.
"Maybe…" her eyes twinkled mysteriously.

-Katara-

Two guards were stationed by the boat. They nodded their heads as Zuko and she passed. She knew where they were headed without asking. Soon they were inside their bedroom with the door securely locked.
"Now where were we?" she asked, recalling the morning conversation they had just before getting up. Then she initiated the kiss. He kissed her back with shared passion. He began groaning into her mouth and trailing his hands up and down her sides. "Nu-uh." She tutted.
"What?" he asked, opening his eyes and stilling his hands.
"I'm calling the shots tonight."
"Oh really?"
"Yes." She replied firmly and walked him backwards to the bed. "I want to show you how much I love you."
"Katara, you don't have to do this, you know. You don't have to prove your love or anything." She smiled, here was just another reason why she loved him so much. Then her smile faded slightly.
"Wait. Last night… you think you have to prove your love?"
"I…uh…"
"Zuko," she admonished slightly, "I know you love me. I want to do this because," she straddled him, "I love you too." He smiled and slowly reached up to cup her face. "Now are you going to behave?" she asked trying to lessen the tension that appeared. It worked.
"Hmmm…" he paused for a moment, "Before I surrender, tell me something."
"What?" her voice was breathy.
"Who is the Painted Lady?"

a/n Thanks for reading and I hope you liked it! I was going for a cute kind of "Aww" vibe, so hopefully I achieved that. Let me know :)