ZUTARA WEEK 2023: Day 5: RESPITE
Shelter for Weary Hearts
DISCLAIMER: Avatar: The Last Airbender belongs to Bryke but Zutara Week belongs to all Zutarians.
NOTE:
A great prompt to work on and to explore the wonderful dynamic between Zuko and Katara. A simple, quiet piece. Action and adventure are not needed here.
After more than a decade of writing for this ship, I am fairly certain I have written a similar scenario before. But it is always a different take or so I tell myself. The words are never exactly the same because I am not the same person anymore. The only constant is my fervent love for this pairing.
Wrote this while listening to "Weary Bones" by Elizabeth Moen. A very soothing tune, and well worth checking out.
Enjoy and let me know what you think. Thank you!
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Katara couldn't sleep.
After tossing and turning in her bed for half an hour, she realized that all her efforts were in vain. This was going to be just one of those nights, and lately, such nights occurred more often. But there was nothing to be done. No rest would come.
She got out of bed and decided to take a late night stroll. She found that this helped calm her nerves on such restless nights, and the full moon shone bright over Ember Island that night, so there was some comfort in that. At least, she had a natural source of energy.
The waterbender made her way to the beach, breathing deeply and enjoying the sound of the waves touching the shore. Between the moonlight and the sea, she felt slightly rejuvenated. But not enough to dispel her worries or to keep out all the dark thoughts that plagued her. That pain would not be so easily assuaged.
She was surprised to see someone else on the beach, a lone figure sitting on the sand, seemingly staring out at the sea. She almost decided to end her stroll and return to the house when she recognized who was sharing her insomnia. And Katara found herself walking towards Zuko.
He turned to her when he noticed someone walking towards him and stared at her with those piercing golden eyes. He did not smile exactly, but his expression was welcoming and that was invitation enough for her.
Katara sat beside him on the sand and they continued to stare at the waves, content in each other's silent company.
Neither of them said a word. There seemed too much to say and at the same time, no need for talking at all. They both recognized in each other an exhaustion that very few could understand, and in recognizing this, they found some comfort. Someone to share in this indescribable burden of painful memories, nightmares, fears about an uncertain future, anxiety about a swiftly-changing world, and doubts in their own strength. The flurry of fighting and fleeing, of hiding and healing, all this took its toll.
It went beyond sore muscles, aching bodies, and depleted energy. Their minds were constantly preoccupied and their hearts weighed down by all that they had seen. The war would end but not before they all paid a heavy price. Of that, they were all certain. How they would emerge after it was all over was still a mystery, and there were some less than pleasant prospects that still haunted them.
This was not to discount how Aang or the others felt. Everyone had their own way of dealing with the chaos that surrounded them.
Katara could not explain it but ever since she had finally learned to trust Zuko, she had found a kindred spirit. They both felt things deeply, though she may have been better at expressing herself than him, she knew that he understood her. She saw the weariness in his eyes, and the scar on his face was a constant reminder of his own hardships. He had known pain and betrayal. But he shared her desire to fix things, to do everything in his power to make things right in the world.
And she had learned that she could always rely on him, not just to help Aang and the group, but to help her. He was constantly offering to assist her, from doing simple chores or fighting by her side. She had grown so accustomed to taking care of everyone, and they had always relied on her to do so, that it had been refreshing to have someone eager to take care of her for a change. She did not know how he did it differently from the others she loved deeply in her life, but he always helped her feel less alone.
Even at that moment, sitting quietly on the beach under the moonlight, he was sharing in her burden. And to her delight, Katara felt her heart grow somewhat lighter. No one else had ever made her feel so safe and less afraid of whatever may come. It almost felt like a luxury to be this serene, when everything around her was going up in flames. The thought, and its association with his element, amused her slightly. But she could not deny the power of this unspoken connection between them.
She could only hope that he was feeling the same. The darkness was never so bad when one had someone else with whom to face it.
She sighed deeply and then, taking a chance, leaned her head on his shoulder. She felt him tense but only for an instant, no doubt simply surprised by her gesture, and then he relaxed. At some point, she felt him lean his head slightly on hers and she wished that they could stay that way forever, their weary hearts sheltered from a thousand storms.