Chapter 4 is now up! Remember, finals week is happening so update times may vary depending on how much I want to procrastinate.

Read and REVIEW! Seriously. Review. Otherwise I don't feel like updating as soon . . .

—Iason

Inuria

Chapter 4

The first thing Zuko saw when he opened his eyes was his ceiling. Normally painted flawlessly a pale beige, it now sported a large black circle. A burn mark. Made by fire.

Zuko inwardly groaned. He'd almost completely forgotten about last night. Why did something always seem to happen to him? Just when he thought his life was going to be relatively normal, it wasn't.

Zuko shifted but then paused when he realized where he was. Huh. He didn't recall going to bed. Zuko slowly looked down his left arm and saw his hand clasped in between two smaller, slender hands. The owner of said hands was fast asleep, leaning on the bed while sitting in a chair next to it.

Zuko blinked and slowly sat up. Had he really fainted? Gosh, that was a little embarrassing. At least she had been there when he had. Funny how she tended to just show up when he needed her.

Zuko studied his room. With the exception of a few books laying open and slightly disturbed on the floor, and a few charred walls, his room seemed fine. Zuko's eyes wandered over to the window and he saw with some surprise that Katara had taken the time to replace the shattered glass with a thin sheet of ice. He'd replace the window soon, he decided.

Zuko looked down at Katara who was slightly drooling onto his bedspread and couldn't help the fond smile that crept onto his face.

Her kindness towards him had shaped him a lot since they'd first met. And not just her kindness either. It was also her ferocity, her loyalty, her passions. Frankly, Zuko was thankful for the ability to call her his friend.

As he stared at her, studying her dark brown hair that had come out of her bun and loops, now cascading over her shoulders and face, he felt something deep inside him stir. Her mouth was slightly open and her brow was lightly furrowed, and Zuko slowly frowned as he tried to find out what had just happened inside of him. He'd never been that good at self-analysis, but - Katara began to stir, effectively interrupting his thoughts.

She slowly blinked and looked up, and when she saw him sitting up, gave a tired smile. "Hey."

"Hi. Zuko, here," the Firelord joked, referencing his not-so-impressive greeting he had given Team Avatar for the first time since turning good.

Katara opened her mouth to say something but yawned widely.

Zuko grinned, fully amused. "How long did you sleep for?"

"Not long." Katara stretched and slowly slid her hands from his. Zuko decided not to mention the previous contact and let the moment pass.

He watched her as she slowly looked around the room, then finally focused on him. Zuko felt himself relax under her penetrating blue gaze and he blinked kindly at her.

"So. What happened last night, Zuko?" Katara had finally asked him the question that he had hoped she wouldn't.

Zuko sighed and closed his eyes, careful not to show much emotion. He didn't want to hurt his friends - he didn't want to hurt her. And though he normally didn't take other people's threats seriously, he couldn't take the chance of putting the people he cared about in danger. He couldn't tell her. Not yet.

"Zuko -" Katara began.

Zuko cut her off with a question. "So why were you the only person who came down? There was a lot of noise coming from this room."

Katara blinked then shrugged. "Well, Sokka can sleep through anything. And well, Toph . . . I think you must have woken her up. Her reflexes are just as sharp as anybody's if not more so. I guess she didn't think it was any concern of hers."

Zuko nodded and stretched before he slowly climbed out of bed. Katara gave him his space, though he knew that she would help him the second she saw that he needed it. He stretched his legs a little and put on his robes before facing Katara.

"I'm going to go get breakfast then I need to talk with my uncle. Ah . . . Do you want to come with me? To breakfast I mean," Zuko added hastily. He enjoyed her company, he truly did. More than he was ever going to admit aloud. But his Firelord pride wasn't about to let him say that to her.

Katara smiled. "Why not?"

Zuko trudged down the street to the tea shop he knew his uncle was working at. Iroh still owned the shop in the Earth Kingdom, but because of Zuko, he had raised a new one in the Fire Nation. Iroh still managed the other shop, though he had another man keeping an eye one business there for him.

Zuko sighed as he stared up at the shop, watching the happy costumers walking in and out of the busy tea place.

Zuko scowled as he walked up the stairs. People paused what they were doing to bow in his direction, but Zuko gave them no heed. He threw open the doors of the crowded shop and everyone within the small place fell silent as they stared at their Firelord.

"Well?" Zuko practically growled.

The people decided that they didn't want to enrage their already irritated Firelord further, so the chatter continued in hushed tones. Zuko made his way to the back where his uncle was preparing multiple types of tea.

Zuko threw back the final curtain to reveal Iroh sniffing a kettle contently.

"Uncle!"

Iroh looked up at his nephew with a pleased smile. "Zuko! Just the person I wanted to see." He thrust a cup in Zuko's face. "Try this. It's a new blend that I made up."

Zuko stared at the cup being shoved between his eyes and after looking quite bewildered for a few seconds, took the cup and tentatively sipped the liquid inside. Zuko coughed and set the cup down as he struggled to gain his composure, still coughing up a fit.

"Uncle! What is that?! It's incredibly bitter!" Zuko looked at his uncle, feeling the aftertaste creep into him from the back of his tongue.

Iroh looked pleased. "That's exactly what I was going for! I had a costumer who complained that my tea was too sweet. I'm going to give him this, and maybe he won't complain as much."

Zuko shook his head. He had learned a long time ago not to question his uncle. Most of the time, when he did, the argument was completely foolish, or Iroh ended up giving some obscure metaphorical lesson that went through one ear and out the other.

"I have to ask you something important," Zuko began.

Iroh nodded. "I'm listening." He began to pour tea into cups.

Zuko took a deep breath and spoke slowly as he thought about his words carefully.

"Uncle, do you know of any specific gangs, groups, or societies that are particularly against the new peace order that Aang and I have been working on?" Zuko picked up his still full cup of the overly bitter tea and tapped his fingers on the side in order to give his hands something to do.

Iroh looked at him carefully and studied Zuko with an intensity that made Zuko stare into his cup and shift his feet nervously.

"SEVEN CUPS OF JASMINE TEA!" Iroh suddenly shouted, causing Zuko to jump in surprise.

A young teen, probably about fourteen, rushed in and grabbed the tray of cups which Iroh had arranged neatly with the kettle in the center, and rushed back out to deliver the order.

Iroh glanced back at Zuko as he began boiling more water, breathing hot air lightly on the new kettle with his firebending. Then he stood up straight and with his arms folded across himself, and his arms hidden in the sleeves of his robes, addressed his nephew.

"Well, I remember one group of assassins that Ozai had a great liking to. They were highly invested in his cause and I can see them coming back. Though if you must know, many of them have already been detained. There is another group that I have encountered on the border of the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation that stole my clothes and my money. But Zuko, why so curious about it now?"

Zuko blinked as he stared down at his tea, his brow furrowed. "I just want to know." He paused then looked up at his uncle without moving his head. "Do you think our library has anything on certain cults or people like that?"

Iroh let out a nervous chuckle as he heated the kettle once more, this time with his hands. "Let me tell you nephew, you have me really concerned right now. But I shall let you have your secrets. Yes I think we may have something in the palace library. But be careful. The man who knows but does not tell is like a dam holding back the ocean - he will break, and in the process, he will be destroyed."

Zuko chanced a glance at the wiser man and Iroh was studying his nephew with raised eyebrows. Suddenly the Dragon of the West smiled early.

"Here," he handed the Firelord a new tray full of tea cups. "Even a Firelord needs to do something relaxing. Serving your people tea in a small little shop can calm the soul like nothing else."

Part of Zuko wanted to argue with his uncle, that he had something really important to look into, but after thinking better of it, Zuko didn't argue and took the tray from his uncle with a smile.

"Okay, Uncle. Maybe a few trays won't hurt."

Iroh clapped Zuko on the shoulder. "You'll be okay."

Zuko, however hard he tried, couldn't help but think that the opposite was true.

Katara found Zuko hunched over a dozen different scrolls in the palace library a few hours later. She didn't know what to think when, after looking for him in all of his other favorite places, she saw him in the library carefully doing some sort of research.

Zuko looked up when she drew near, his eyes looking haggard and his face betraying his exhaustion.

Katara made her way next to him and put a hand on his shoulder as she looked carefully at all of the scrolls strewed in front of him.

"This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with last night would it?" she asked him, carefully studying her friend.

Zuko shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't even understand what I'm looking for."

Katara was worried about Zuko now more than she had been earlier today. "Well, Toph was wondering if you wanted to spar with her today. I came to find you for her actually."

Zuko shifted in his seat and looked up at her with his piercing gaze, his intensity scared her, but at the same time, sent something running down her spine.

Katara didn't have time to register whatever she was feeling before Zuko sat up straight all of a sudden as if he had just had a diving epiphany.

"That's it!"

Katara blinked as Zuko shot to his feet and looked at her in excitement.

"Toph!"

Katara shook her head and looked up at him. "You're not making any sense right now, Zuko. Are you sure you're okay?"

Zuko laughed and grabbed her face in his hands as he kissed her forehead. "Brilliant! Okay, where's Toph right now?"

Katara raised an eyebrow in question but didn't say anything about what had just happened, even though her heart and mind were racing. "In the palace courtyard with Sokka. They're talking about a new sword Sokka wants Toph to make."

Zuko nodded. "Let's go."

He grabbed her hand and dragged her down the hall with so much renewed energy that Katara had a hard time believing that just previously he had looked as if Appa had sat on him.

Katara jogged to keep pace with Zuko as he marched quickly down the hall with his long, powerful strides.

She didn't say a work to him, and neither he to her. In all honesty, Katara was grateful for the brisk, urgent silence. It gave her time to question herself why her body seemed to readily react to her friend whenever they were in the same room with each other. His intense amber eyes, his tall height, his powerful shoulders and lean shape, his dark hair and -

Gosh she just needed to stop. She hadn't even been single for a year and she felt like she was traipsing after her ex-boyfriend's best friend.

They turned the corner into the courtyard to see Sokka and Toph sitting in the middle of the clear stone area where four years ago, Zuko and Katara had taken Azula down.

"- another space sword!" Sokka moaned.

Toph gave a cry of exasperation and flopped onto her back with her hands on her face. "It's taking every ounce of willpower in my body to keep myself from burying you alive," Toph's muffled voice said from behind her hands, obviously deeply irritated.

Sokka gave a cry of exasperation himself and flopped onto his back too.

Zuko and Katara didn't have to introduce themselves; Toph's master earthbending skills had probably told her of their presence while they were just inside the palace.

"Zuko, tell Sokka to stop being such a baby," Toph said accusingly, taking her slender, yet calloused hands off of her face.

Katara smiled at Toph. She really had learned some self control.

"Toph I need to spar with you," Zuko said urgently. It wasn't necessarily a command, but it wasn't a request either.

Toph sat up and tilted her head curiously. "Sugar Queen is perfectly available, and you two have been spending an awful lot of time together. Is there something I don't know about?"

Her bluntness took Zuko and Katara by surprise and Katara felt her face warm. She avoided Zuko's eyes. Toph mustn't know, Toph mustn't know, Toph mustn't know...

The phrase became a chant as Katara tried to stop flushing.

"No!" Katara exclaimed rather defensively. She winced at her own tone then realized that Zuko had answered simultaneously, and in the same tone. Interesting.

Toph 'stared' at them for a while then sighed. "Fine. But once I kick your butt, we're going in for dinner."

Zuko smiled as he took off his robes and shirt. Katara tried to keep her eyes off of him and instead busied herself with her brother and dragging the man to his feet, then pushing him towards the edge of the courtyard.

"Honestly, Sokka, you don't want to be crushed or burned, do you?" she asked her brother.

Sokka just muttered something under his breath and flicked a pebble into the courtyard.

Katara watched as Zuko and Toph faced each other, ready in their stances. She thought about Zuko's little epiphany earlier, not just ten minutes ago. Katara squinted against the afternoon/evening sun. She could just make out Zuko's thoughtful gaze. It wasn't his sparring face, or even his super concentrated face. It wasn't even the face of adrenaline driven firebending fury.

No, Katara kew exactly why Zuko had been anxious to spar with Toph. He needed to talk to her, and he didn't want anyone else to know.

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