Zuko sauntered in and said, "You look really good tied up like that."

Katara rolled her eyes at Zuko, "Are you going to get me out of here, or are you going to be a pervert?" She smiled at him to take the heat out of the question.

"It's one or the other? It can't be both?" he teased. He tried to keep his tone light and joking. She was chained to the wall by her wrists, and her clothing was partially torn, exposing much of her breasts and her sexy right thigh. She looked like something out of dungeon fantasy. Of course, that was exactly what she was to him —his fantasy. He just didn't want to slip and let her know how much he desired her.

As the gAang fought for good and all that was right. He fought for stopping his father and making the world a better place for people like her. He didn't see himself as anywhere good enough for her.

"Very funny," she rattled her chains. "Are you going to get me out?"

"Toph's the metal bender," he pointed out, smirking.

She rolled her eyes, "The keys are hanging on the hook over there. If we weren't in a desert and I wasn't completely dehydrated, I'd be able to get out of this myself."

"Say please," Zuko taunted. He then crossed the room and removed the keys from the hook.

"Please, Zuko," she mumbled.

He stepped toward her, and his desire flared deep in his gut. He was surprised he had a bondage fantasy. Or maybe it was more that this way, he felt more powerful. She always seemed so much stronger than him. Right now, she actually needed him.

He slid the key in the lock at her right wrist and released her from the cuff. He then did the same thing on the left side. "What do you say we get the hell out of here?" he asked as he checked her wrists.

"In a minute," she groaned out as she slid down the wall to a sitting position. "I'm… they haven't been feeding me much either. I may be too weak."

He scoffed at that, "You haven't been weak a day in your life, Katara. You just need a little help." He then crouched down in front of her and said, "Climb on my back. I'll carry you out."

An hour later, he laid her down gently, "I think we're safe now." He then looked around and smiled. He had found the right spot. "I stashed some things around here."

He watched her relief when he pulled out food and water. He handed them over to her and said, "I don't dare start a fire. It would alert them to where we are."

He then pulled out two bed roles. "Hopefully, this will keep you warm enough."

"You're my hero right now. I hope you know that." She sighed in contentment as she looked around.

He set her down to lean against a tree and handed her food. Then he went and laid out a mat for her to lay on. He next brought her water, gave it to her, and sat down next to her.

"You aren't eating?"

"It's mid-morning. I ate breakfast, but you didn't, and you need to get your energy up. As light as you are to carry, this rescue mission will go faster if you can walk."

"Thanks…" She shifted and ate a bit more, then said, "I'm so glad to be out of there. Thanks for coming for me."

"Aang would have too. He just doesn't know you were caught."

"How did you know?"

"I might be the disgraced Fire Nation Prince, but people still tell me things."

He looked at her watery eyes and said, "Sorry, it wasn't Aang that rescued you."

She looked at him in confusion. "What a weird thing to say."

"He's your boy…. You two are close." He couldn't force the word boyfriend out.

She let her eyes drift close and soaked in the sun's warmth on her skin. "I'm actually relieved it's not him. When he does things for me like that, he thinks I owe him. I'm not into transactional relationships."

"What does that even mean?" Zuko asked. Secretly he was relieved she wouldn't rather that it was Aang here with her.

"You've seen he has a huge crush on me. He expects a relationship because of who he is and what he does for me."

"You're telling me you aren't dating?"

She groaned, "He's dating me. I'm not dating him. Does that even make sense?"

"Absolutely not."

"He's never asked, but it's like he's in the middle of this big relationship with me. I can't break it off because it's never started. It's just confusing, and I don't want to think of it right now while I'm dead tired."

"Sorry."

"No, it feels good to get it off my chest. Problem is it quickly gets to be something that can't be easily solved."

"So if he rescued you, then you'd owe him and be deeper in." He changed the subject slightly. It was something that she could focus on that didn't make everything more complicated.

"Precisely. So thank you for the rescue in both matters."

He moved her to her bed so she could get some rest, and he sat guard. He then thought about what she said. It was tricky. If she addressed it with Aang and said she wasn't interested, he could just play dumb and pretend he didn't know what she was talking about. Otherwise, he could stick close to her and make everyone believe they were together. It was kinda genius.