Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When Katara is five years old, she meets her soulmate.

When it first happens, Katara isn't fully aware of it. She doesn't quite understand what's going on.

She falls asleep—and then her dream takes shape, and she is no longer so unaware of her actions.

It is as if she is no longer asleep – even though she knows she is in a place she has never seen before in her life.

She finds herself surrounded by an abundance of greenery. Katara has never seen so much green before. The earth has never been green. The trees have never had so many leaves.

There is no snow.

Without snow, the world seems so empty—and yet it is just as amazing, so different, so beautiful.

A figure stands in front of her.

Katara isn't quite sure if it's a boy or a girl. Their shape is hidden, concealed by smoke that moves slightly. They are slightly taller than her.

Their eyes are golden.

Katara looks at them, and they look at her.

Katara takes a step back.

And then the dream shatters, as if they had never met.

When Katara wakes up, she is convinced that it was just a dream.

She doesn't pay much attention to it.

And then the dream repeats itself.

Once again, she finds herself in the same place, under the same tree, in front of the same person.

Golden eyes stare intently at her. Although Katara has heard that golden eyes are not a good thing, at the same time, looking into those eyes, she feels calm. There is gentleness and kindness in those eyes.

Katara looks at them.

They look at her.

“You are my soulmate!” they say suddenly.

It is the boy's voice.

“And you are mine,” says Katara. “What is your name?”

The boy shakes his head.

“I'm not allowed to say. You know that.”

“I know.”

These are rules that everyone knows.

You can't tell your soulmate your name. You can't look for them. Destiny will bring you together again. You can't rush destiny. You can't say anything that will make your soulmate recognize you ahead of time.

Apparently, it's not that something bad would happen if you broke these rules — you're just physically unable to do so. The world they currently inhabit is a world created in a dream.

Soulmates meet in dreams. This is something that connects them and will always connect them.

“What can I call you?” Katara asks curiously.

“You can make something up,” her soulmate suggests.

“Hmm,” Katara thinks.

She looks at the fog enveloping her friend. At the blackness that rolls around him — at the blackness that sometimes seems to resemble her...

“Ash?”

“No,” her soulmate quickly objects. “No.”

“Why? It's a nice name.”

“You can't call me that”“ says the boy. “It's too similar to ashmaker. Mom says it's a bad word.”

“Oh. I didn't know.”

Silence.

“I'm sorry,” says Katara. “Then maybe...”

She looks at her soulmate.

“Gold?” she suggests. “Because your eyes are golden?”

The boy thinks about it.

“Okay,” he says. “That's fine. So you'll be Blue.”

“Because my eyes are blue?”

“I've never seen blue eyes before.”

“Oh.”

Katara tilts her head to one side.

“Everyone in my family has blue eyes,” she says. “My mom, dad, brother, Gran-Gran. And everyone around me.”

“My father and sister have golden eyes, as do my grandfather, uncle, and cousin,” says Gold. “Many people around me have golden eyes. Or black. You're from the Water Tribe.”

“Yes.”

Katara waits for some kind of denial—a sign that she's said something she shouldn't have—but it doesn't come. So she can say where she's coming from.

“My dad says the Water Tribe is full of barbarians,” Gold says.

“We're not!” Katara objects. “Don't say that!”

Gold shifts uncomfortably.

“I didn't mean to. I'm sorry.”

“Then don't say that!” Katara glares at him.

“...so it's not true that you eat people?”

“Of course not! Nobody does that!”

“And you don't throw babies into cold, icy water if you decide they don't deserve to live?”

“No!”

“Oh.”

Gold stares at her for a moment. Katara only now realizes that when he realized she was from the Water Tribe, he moved away slightly, as if afraid of her.

“I'm sorry,” Gold says after a while. “My teachers told me something different.”

“Then they're wrong!”

“...Are you sure you don't abandon the older members of your tribe by sending them outside the village to freeze to death in the cold?”

“No!” Katara raises her voice. “No one does that! My Gran-Gran still lives with us, and no one will kick her out of the house!”

“Oh.”

Gold cautiously approaches her.

“But you do have names, right? My teacher said that children don't get names until they're fifteen.”

“Tui and La, yes, we have names! Everyone has names!”

“Oh,” Gold stops looking at her with suspicion and concern. “So my teacher was wrong. I'll tell him about it and... Agni, are you crying?”

“I'm not crying!” Katara protests, sniffling. “I'm not crying! These are... These aren't tears!”

Despite her denial, tears roll down her cheeks.

She doesn't understand. Why is Gold — why is her soulmate — saying such cruel things about her family, about her tribe? Why can't he understand her? Why is he so unkind, why is he saying such things?

Katara falls to her knees, not wanting to look at him. She doesn't want to do anything. She doesn't want to be here.

Gold stands motionless above her.

“Agni,” he says after a moment. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. It wasn't supposed to be like this... I didn't know...”

Katara isn't listening to him. She's crying. She doesn't want to listen to him. She wants to go home.

She wants her mom. Her dad. She even misses Sokka.

“I'm sorry,” Gold is suddenly beside her, kneeling down as if he doesn't know what to do. “I know you're not like that.’”

“Then why did you say we were evil?

“I didn't say you were evil!” Gold protests. “It's just... everyone says you're barbarians? Brutes?”

Wrong answer.

Katara bursts into tears.

“I'm sorry,” Gold says quickly. “I didn't mean to. My mistake. You're not like that. My teachers were wrong. They've just never seen the Water Tribes before. They've never been there – wherever you are – before. So they don't know anything about you. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to.”

Katara is still crying.

She hates that she's crying. She wants to be strong.

“I didn't mean to,” Gold repeats more gently. “I'm sorry, Blue. It's just that no one in my country knows about you.”

Katara looks up at him. She looks at him closely.

She can't see his face. Everything is hidden under the smoke that surrounds his silhouette. Katara doesn't know what he looks like, she doesn't know what color his hair or skin is.

But she knows that Gold is not from the Southern Water Tribe. And he's not from the Northern Water Tribe either.

“You're Fire Nation, aren't you?” Katara asks quietly.

Gold hesitates for a moment.

“Yes,” he says.

And then.

“...I'm sorry.”

Katara doesn't know if he's apologizing for being from the Fire Nation or for what he said earlier about the Water Tribes. It doesn't really matter right now.

Katara blinks her eyes, not wanting to cry anymore.

She wants to be strong.

“It's okay,” Katara says after a moment, when she has stopped crying. “But don't ever say things like that again.”

“Okay,” Gold agrees.

After a moment, he adds:

“So maybe... you can tell me a little about the Water Tribes? And then I'll tell my teachers the truth.”

Katara thinks for a moment.

“Okay.”

When she wakes up, she goes to her parents. She wants to tell them about Gold — she wants to tell them about this meeting.

But then she remembers his cruel words, his questions.

Katara should be excited that she has met her soulmate.

For now, she is still angry with him. Just a little.

Gold comes with a list of questions.

“My teachers don't know much about the Water Tribe,” he says, sitting down next to her. “I think the materials they have aren't… exactly right, but everyone thinks they are.”

He smiles at her slightly.

“Will you tell me a little about your tribe?” he asks. “I'll be able to tell the truth to my teachers. Or to my dad. And if... as soon as my dad believes me, he'll go to my grandfather and fix it.”

“Fix what?” Katara doesn't understand.

“What our teachers teach us,” Gold says. “We'll be able to fix it, and no one will think of you as savages. Because I think my family just doesn't know what you're really like. So I'll tell them the truth.”

He smiles broadly—that is, Katara thinks he's smiling at her, because she can't fully see his face. Apparently, she won't be able to see it for a long time, until the right moment.

“You said bad things about the Water Tribe earlier,” Katara points out.

“I'm sorry,“ Gold says uncertainly. “I didn't mean to. That's what I was taught.”

“Then you were taught wrong!”

“I know!” Gold says. “But that's because no one has been to one of the Poles lately! No one has seen what you're really like! My family means well — my teachers mean well — but they just don't know the truth! All the textbooks are old! They don't know that everything has changed... or maybe someone lied to them once! If they knew what you were really like, no one would ever say such things! So we're going to change that!”

“Oh.”

Katara sits down next to him. She was angry with him before, but now she's not so angry anymore.

Gold makes sense. Gold didn't mean to be cruel — he just didn't know the truth. His teachers didn't mean any harm. They were just lied to, just like his family was lied to.

But...

“You're from the Fire Nation, right?” Katara asks quietly.

“Yes,” Gold confirms.

“...my dad says the Fire Nation is evil.”

“That's not true! We're not evil! My family is not evil!”

“That's what my dad said,” Katara notes. “Maybe someone lied to him too.”

“Oh,“ Gold is silent for a moment. “What are they saying about us?”

“Apparently, the Fire Nation is attacking the rest of the world. Burning houses. Killing people.”

“That's not true,” says Gold. “The Fire Nation doesn't want to do anything bad. My dad says we have no choice; that we're trying to share our wealth with the rest of the world.” 

“My dad says the Fire Nation only knows how to destroy and burn.”

“My dad says the Water Tribe only knows how to destroy and kill.”

They look at each other intently.

“My dad is fighting in the war,” Katara says quietly.

“Mine isn't,” Gold says. “But my uncle is. Against the Earth Kingdom.”

“My family hates the war.”

“My family supports the war.”

They are silent for a while.

“My mom says the war won't end until the world is burned by the Fire Nation or until the Fire Nation is defeated.”

“My mom doesn't like to talk about the war. She said I shouldn't think about it and that I should focus on my studies.”

“My Gran-Gran says we have to be careful. That the Fire Nation might attack us again sometime.”

“My grandmother is dead. But my grandfather says that the Fire Nation will never be attacked because we are the best country in the world. And that we should unite everyone under the Fire Nation flag, because then everyone will be safe.”

They fall silent again.

“I think we don't really know much about the Water Tribe,” Gold says after a long pause. “And I think if my dad knew you weren't cruel savages, he would like you. Besides, you're nice, Blue. You're not trying to set my hair on fire, even though I made you angry earlier.”

“I can't control fire. Who attacked you?“

“My sister. I can't say her name, but my sister. She's an extraordinary Firebender. My father says she's a genius. And that I'm pathetic because I still can't firebend.”

“I don't think that's pathetic,” says Katara. “No one in my village can waterbend. Only me.”

“Why?” Gold leans slightly toward her.

“Dad says it's because of the Fire Nation.”

“Oh.”

Gold is silent for a moment.

“I'm sorry,” he says finally. “That's not fair.”

“I know.”

Silence falls between them again.

“So you can bend water?”

“Yes!” says Katara.

“That's... remarkable,” Gold says. “How does it work? Would you like to show me?”

“I can't,” Katara says sadly. “I would need a source of water. Otherwise, I can't bend water. Besides, I'm not very good at it. No one can teach me.”

“My dad hires a lot of people to teach me firebending, but it doesn't work. My sister says I might not be a bender.”

“My brother isn't a bender either. But he's a strong warrior. My dad said he'll start training him soon!

”What's your brother like?” Gold asks curiously.

“Amazing! And incredibly strong!”

“Is he older or younger?”

”Older.”

“I don't have any brothers, but I have a cousin. An older one. He's strong too. And kind. And smart.”

“My brother is smart too! And kind!”

Gold smiles slightly.

“I'm glad.”

Over the next few meetings, Gold gathers information about the Water Tribe. Katara quickly realizes that Gold is not a bad person — his teachers simply told him bad things about the Water Tribe. But when Gold heard the truth, his attitude changed. He is no longer afraid of Katara, he does not try to run away from her, he does not create distance between them.

He tells her a little about the Fire Nation. Katara doesn't quite understand why he might like an incredibly hot place and why it doesn't bother him, but Gold says that as soon as she visits the Fire Nation, she'll understand.

Katara replies that he should see one of the Poles.

Gold says he'll go there one day.

Katara is sure that will happen.

One morning, Katara tells her parents and Sokka that she has met her soulmate. She didn't tell them earlier for two reasons: first, she didn't want to think about Gold, and then she simply forgot to do so because Katara had so many other interesting things to do every day.

“By the way,” Katara says when everyone sits down for breakfast, “I've met my soulmate!”

Everyone turns to look at her.

Her father looks at her with pride. Her mother smiles at her warmly. Gran-Gran nods, pleased.

“Really?” Sokka asks curiously. “Who are they?”

Sokka's soulmate is a girl he calls Warrior because she is incredibly strong and doesn't let him boss her around. She also knows how to fight and wiped the floor with Sokka when they first met.

Since then, Sokka has been fighting and arguing with her almost constantly. Not a day goes by without Katara hearing his complaints.

No one knows where the Warrior is, but she is definitely not in their village. Perhaps she is somewhere further away, in another village of the Southern Water Tribe. But Dad says that the Warrior may not be from the Water Tribe at all, since Sokka didn't meet her among the ice and snow.

“I don't know who he is, but I call him Gold because he has golden eyes!” says Katara. “He has a sister and a cousin. A nice cousin.”

Her parents exchange concerned glances.

“Golden eyes?” asks her dad. “Katara, are you sure he had golden eyes?”

“Yes!” confirms Katara.

Her parents look at each other again.

“He could be from the Earth Kingdom,” says her mom. “Apparently, there are many people of mixed blood there.”

“Let's hope so.”

“Why are bad eyes bad?” asks Katara.

“Because that would mean he's from the Fire Nation, duh!” says Sokka.

“And what's wrong with that?” Katara doesn't understand.

Gold may be from the Fire Nation, but that doesn't mean he's a bad person. He listened to her when she told him about her day. He wants to learn more about her culture. And he wants to tell his teachers that they're wrong.

Gold actually listens to her. He pays attention to her words and apologizes if he does something wrong. He is kind to her. He is her friend, her soulmate.

“Because it's the Fire Nation!” Sokka points out. “The Fire Nation is evil!”

“Gold isn't evil!” Katara objects.

“If he's from the Fire Nation, you shouldn't trust him, Katara,” Hakoda says. Her father puts his hand on her shoulder. “We are at war with the Fire Nation, sweetheart. A war that the Fire Nation started. It would be best if you stayed as far away from Gold as possible.”

“Maybe he's not from the Fire Nation,” her mother says hopefully. “Maybe it's just one big mistake.”

Everyone turns to Katara.

Katara feels tears welling up behind her eyelids.

Why isn't anyone happy that she has a soulmate? When Sokka met the Warrior, everyone was proud of him. And now? Now everyone looks like they're at a funeral, as if Katara has done something wrong, as if Gold has done something wrong. As if his existence is a mistake.

Katara bursts into tears.

She hates this situation.

When they meet again and Katara sees his golden eyes, she feels like crying.

She hates that she's been crying so much lately. But she's just a child, she's allowed to cry — except that Katara isn't the type of person who cries a lot.

“What's wrong?” Gold comes up to her.

Katara doesn't answer. She's still crying.

“Hey,” Gold kneels beside her. When did Katara end up on her knees? “Is everything okay?”

“Dad said I shouldn't talk to you because you're from the Fire Nation.”

“What's wrong with that?”

“The Water Tribes are at war with the Fire Nation. The Fire Nation is evil. My dad doesn't want me to talk to you. He says you want to trick me. And that you're evil.”

“I'm not evil! And I don't want to trick you!” Gold protests.

Katara doesn't answer. She's busy crying.

“I'm sorry,” Gold says after a moment.

“Don't apologize!” Katara says irritably. “I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at them! They don't know you!”

“You don't know me!”

“I know you! We've known each other for at least a week! We talk every night! You're not a bad person, Gold! My dad just doesn't know that!”

“My dad doesn't like that you're from the Water Tribe either,” Gold says. As if to comfort her, he adds, “When I told him, he thought I was joking. And when he realized I was telling the truth, he hit me and said I was pathetic.”

Katara forgets about crying.

“That's... that's awful, Gold. Why did he do that?”

Gold shrugs.

“Because I deserved it. I let him down. I should have a soulmate from the Fire Nation, just like my uncle. But I don't. My dad isn't happy. But I'll prove to him that I'm not pathetic. That I can be useful to him. Did you know I mastered a new kata recently?”

Katara can't believe what she's hearing. Gold says these kinds of things with ease, and the words “he hit me” are spoken as if it were normal. As if it were nothing new.

“Just watch!” Gold says, suddenly standing up and starting to perform movements Katara has never seen before.

She watches them closely. She has to admit, they're interesting.

She's so interested that she forgets what he said and what he revealed.

Days turn into weeks.

One day, Gold comes to her with a big smile on his face.

“Look, Blue!” he says. “Just look!”

He holds out his hand, and a tiny flame appears on it. Katara sighs with delight.

“How did you do that? How does it work?”

“I can firebend!” Gold says proudly. “I finally did it! I knew I would succeed someday and that–!”

He doesn't finish because Katara throws herself into his arms, hugging him. Gold stiffens, as if unaccustomed to hugs.

“I'm so happy!” Katara says. “Wonderful! This is amazing!”

The flame disappears from his hand, but Katara is not afraid of it. This is the world of dreams, nothing here can hurt her.

She is happy for his happiness. Finally, his father will not say that he is pathetic, that he is worse than his sister, that he will never achieve anything in life – for once in his life, Gold will be noticed by him.

It's a little strange. At first, they were distrustful of each other, and Katara was furious with him for everything Gold said about her Tribe – but now Gold is her friend. She spends almost every night with him, talking about a million unnecessary things. And even though they don't always get along, even though they sometimes argue, Gold is her friend.

“You know, Dad even looked at me and said I finally deserved my title,” Gold says excitedly.

Katara can't understand this admiration. She knows Gold's father says a lot of bad things about him, but Gold always defends him, always says his dad is the best person in the world and that his dad is always right.

Katara doesn't understand this, but whenever she tries to talk about it, Gold gets annoyed and says that Katara doesn't understand anything. And even though Katara wants to understand, Gold still doesn't explain it.

Katara once asked her mother about it. Kya looked at her sadly and said only:

“Every child deserves to have parents, sweetheart. But not every parent deserves their child.”

She wanted to say more, but at that moment Hakoda entered the room and Katara quickly ran away, not wanting to see the anger in her dad's eyes that they were talking about Gold.

No one in her family likes Gold. Katara knows why, but it's still a little painful.

But no one in her family has talked to him. No one has seen his smiles, no one has seen his joy, no one has seen him.

No one has seen the happiness he radiates.

Katara smiles.

Katara doesn't tell her parents that Gold is a firebender.

She doesn't tell them that he gained his bending. She knows they'll react badly. She knows what they'll say. She knows they won't be happy about it.

Instead, she goes to Sokka.

“Sokka,” she says.

“Hm?”

“How much do you know about Warrior? Is she a bender?“

“No,” Sokka replies. “She's not. She's just like me. Why do you ask?”

Just like me.

Gold is also a bender. But Katara and Gold don't bend the same element. Their elements are opposites.

“Just curious,” Katara says. After a moment, she adds, “Gold's family are benders.”

Her brother's face shows his displeasure.

“Wonderful,” he mutters. “Be careful, Katara. They're bad people.”

“Gold said that– ”

”I don't care what Gold says. They are our enemies, Katara. You can't be fooled by his words. He's probably just waiting to attack you. Dad told you not to talk to him, didn't he?”

“But I can't help it! He's my soulmate!”

“Then you should make sure he's not!” Sokka raises his voice slightly. “This is wrong! You know that very well!”

Katara blinks her eyes to hold back the tears.

The resentment on Sokka's face turns to horror when he realizes he almost made her cry.

Suddenly, his arms are around her, holding her tightly.

“I'm sorry, Katara,” he says quietly. “There's nothing you can do about it. It's not your fault.”

“Gold isn't bad,” Katara insists. “He's a good person.”

“I know,“ Sokka doesn't sound like he agrees with her, but Katara doesn't care at the moment. She hugs her brother tighter.

She wishes she could believe that at least one person in her family accepts her soulmate.

“Mom?” Katara calls out in the evening.

“Yes, dear?” Kya smiles at her.

“Do you have a soulmate?”

“I do,“ says Kya.

“Is it Dad?”

Kya laughs softly.

“No,” she says.

Katara frowns.

“But...”

“Kat, sweetie, just because someone is your soulmate doesn't mean you have to spend your whole life with them,” Kya says gently. “It's someone who is by your side, who always supports you, who understands you better than anyone else. But that doesn't mean you have to fall in love with them. A soulmate is, above all, your best friend. It's someone who fits you perfectly, someone you can tell everything to... but it's not always someone you have to fall in love with.”

Kya kisses her head.

“Honey, you don't have to worry about your soulmate,” she says. “Even if they're from the Fire Nation, that doesn't mean they'll come here one day to take you to their country and make you their wife. Maybe... maybe, if you're lucky, your soulmate will become your best friend, just like your dad and Bato.”

“Uncle Bato is Dad's soulmate?” Katara asks in surprise.

“Yes,” her mother laughs. “To be honest, when I started dating your dad, I had more trouble convincing Bato than his parents. Bato was very protective.”

Katara thinks about Uncle Bato — how often he visits them, how easily he gets along with her dad.

“Bato is like a brother to your father,” Kya says.

“Do you think Gold could become my brother?”

“I don’t know,” says Mom cautiously. “But I know there’s a reason why the world brought you together. There is always a reason. For us, for the Water Tribes, soulmates are family. Even if we argue, even if we have differences, we are family. Sokka's soulmate will be your sister, just as your soulmate will be his brother, my son. Even if our countries are at war.”

Mom is silent for a moment.

“Bato is your father's right-hand man and has saved his life many times,” says Kya. “Your grandmother escaped from her family and an unwanted marriage thanks to the advice of her soulmate.”

“And your soulmate?”

“She... was a good person,” Mom says quietly, her eyes filled with the sadness that always appears when she talks about her. “She would have loved you if you had only met her. And she would have been thrilled to teach you waterbending.”

Katara doesn't respond right away. No one in her family talks about her mother's soulmate.

Kya suddenly starts tickling her.

“But this is not the time for this kind of conversation!” she says. “You should go to sleep! Gold is definitely waiting for you!”

Gold is not waiting for her.

Instead, Katara is the one waiting for him — for a few minutes, until she begins to wonder if this is a dream shared with her soulmate, or a dream she won't remember later — a real dream, the kind where she is resting and unable to control what is happening.

“Can you show me?” Gold asks.

“Show you? But what?”

“Your bending. Waterbending, I mean.”

Katara looks around, but she doesn't see a single source of water.

“Uh...“

“I know you're a Waterbender! Show me what it looks like, Blue! Please!” Gold looks at her with anticipation and curiosity.

“I can't do that,” Katara admits. “I don't have a source of water. Waterbending doesn't work the same way as firebending.”

Gold raises his hand, on which a tiny flame dances.

“Oh.”

Gold closes his hand. The flame disappears.

“Waterbenders can't create water out of nothing. We need water to control it. If I had some water, I could show you, but...”

“Oh. Right. I didn't think of that.”

Katara shrugs. It's not his fault.

“That's just how it is.”

“Oh.”

Gold is silent for a moment. He's probably thinking about something. Katara has gotten used to these moments of silence between them. They can't always talk all the time, they can't always find the right words.

“My teachers say that's why Fire is the most important element,” he says after a while. “Because we can create fire from nothing. But I think your waterbending must be amazing. Besides, my teachers have been wrong many times before.”

“Did you talk to them?” Katara asks curiously. “About the Water Tribes?”

Gold looks away.

”I talked to them,” he says. “But they weren't happy.”

Katara feels a sudden wave of anxiety.

“Did your dad...?”

“My teachers took all my notes and burned them,” Gold admits. “And they said that if I showed them anything like that again, they would tell Dad. And Dad would tell Grandpa. And that they might consider me a traitor to the Fire Nation. Imprison me. Or kill me.“

A moment of silence.

“I think they just wanted to scare me,” Gold lowers his voice. “But I'm not sure I want to tell my dad about all this. I think he'll understand, but... he's been mad at me lately. My firebending isn't as good as my sister's. My mom told me not to tell him about you. She said Dad would get angry.”

Gold hesitates, as if unsure whether he should say the next words.

“She said it wouldn't be safe,” he says, even more quietly. Then he adds, “I don't like it when Dad gets angry. Mom doesn't like it either.”

Katara takes his hand.

She wants Gold to tell his family that his teachers are wrong. She wants everyone in the Fire Nation to know that the textbooks are wrong.

But she also wants Gold to be safe.

My dad doesn't like that you're from the Water Tribe either, Gold once told her. When I told him, he thought I was joking. And when he realized I was telling the truth, he hit me and said I was pathetic.

“It's okay, Gold,“ Katara says, squeezing his hand. “For now... for now, it's better if you don't tell them. Let it be our secret.”

“But...”

“You know what the Water Tribes are like. You know the truth. That's what matters. Later... someday you'll be able to tell your teachers.”

“But that's not fair,” Gold objects. “Everyone thinks you're some kind of... savages. No one knows what you're really like. They're all wrong.”

“My family thinks the entire Fire Nation is evil,” Katara points out. “And I know they're wrong.” But for now, we can keep it a secret. It'll be better that way. For both of us.”

Gold thinks for a moment.

“Okay,” he agrees. “Let it be our secret.”

Katara smiles at him.

And then, one day, black snow falls from the sky.

The Fire Nation comes, the Fire Nation burns, the Fire Nation destroys.

The Fire Nation kills.

Chapter Text

Katara knew from the start that the Fire Nation was evil.

She knew it—her whole family told her so.

But Katara knows Gold. Katara knows that not everyone from the Fire Nation is evil—Gold isn't evil, his family isn't evil (even if she can't say the same about his father). Katara knows that there are good people in the Fire Nation.

But that knowledge doesn't change reality.

The Fire Nation kills her mother.

Right in front of her eyes.

Katara is powerless to do anything.

All she can do is watch, hide, cry—and pray that she won't be noticed.

The Fire Nation soldier kills her mother and treats it as if it were the best thing he ever did. As if her mother deserved this fate—as if every Waterbender should die.

Her mother was not a Waterbender.

Katara is.

Her mother lied. She gave her life for Katara's life.

Her mother died because of her.

And because of the Fire Nation.

That night, Gold's golden eyes resemble the golden eyes of the Firebender who killed her mother.

Gold takes a step toward her, smiling at her — lately, he always smiles as soon as he sees Katara.

The smile disappears from his face when Katara steps back.

“Don't touch me!” she yells. “Leave me alone!”

Gold stops immediately.

“What's wrong, Blue?” he asks quietly, incredibly quietly.

(If Katara were older, she would recognize his behavior. She would realize how natural it was for him to back away when someone raised their voice at him, how natural it was for him to become quieter, as if he wanted to cease to exist altogether.

But Katara doesn't notice that now. Katara is just a child, just like him; they are both just children, but they have already experienced more than they should have.)

“I don't want you to talk to me!” Katara says sharply. “Leave me alone!”

Gold doesn't move from his spot.

He can't leave — their meetings always last as long as they are meant to last. It's never the whole night — later, they both fall asleep, into dreams they don't share — but they both always know when their meeting is coming to an end.

This is not that moment.

Gold keeps his distance. He doesn't react when Katara falls to the ground, when tears roll down her cheeks.

Only after a long moment does Gold dare to approach her a little closer.

“I'm sorry,” he says quietly.

It wasn't his fault; he still doesn't know what happened and–  

Katara looks up at him as a new, terrifying thought enters her mind.

“Was it you?”

“What?”

“Was it you?” Katara repeats. “Did you tell them I'm a Waterbender?”

“No!” Gold protests quickly. “My family knows you're from the Water Tribe, but I didn't tell anyone you were a Waterbender!”

“Then why did the Fire Nation show up in my village looking for a Waterbender? They knew there was a Waterbender in our village. They knew. They were there for me!”

“I didn't tell them anything!” Gold is suddenly next to her, kneeling beside her but not touching her. He still keeps his distance, and his eyes are golden, as golden as the eyes of the Firebenders, as golden as the eyes of the people who killed her mother. “I swear, I didn't tell them anything, Blue! I don't even know where you live! There are so many Waterbenders at the North Pole! Besides, I would never tell them!”

“Not even your father?” Katara asks bitterly.

“Not even my dad,” Gold says. “I promise I won't tell him anything you tell me, unless you want me to! Besides... besides, my dad doesn't like it when I talk about you.”

Katara knows this. She remembers the wounds that Gold sometimes tries to hide from her. Wounds that were mainly inflicted on him by his father — because he was too weak, said a few words too many, or didn't try hard enough.

“I hate your dad!” Katara shouts, swallowing her tears. “And I hate the Fire Nation! I hate you!”

“What happened?” Gold asks. “What happened, Blue?”

Katara bursts into tears.

She can't say it. It's so hard for her to say it.

“My mom... my mom... the Fire Nation...” Katara searches for the right words. She's afraid to say it out loud. If she does, it will become true.

But her mom isn't coming back. She'll never smile at her again. She'll never look at her with love again.

Her mom is gone.

“They killed her,” Katara says, sniffling. “They killed her. They thought she was a Waterbender. They wanted to kill me. But my mom stopped them. She lied. For me. It's my fault.”

Gold sucks in air loudly.

“This... this isn't right!” he says, and suddenly he's crying too. “This wasn't supposed to happen. This isn't right. This is wrong.”

“I hate the Fire Nation!” Katara shouts. “I hate them so much!”

“I'm sorry,” Gold says, tears streaming down his cheeks. “I'm sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen. This is wrong. This is so wrong.”

Katara wants to scream. His apology won't change anything. It won't bring her mother back. It won't change anything.

It's his country's fault. It's the fault of people like him. It's the fault of the Firebenders.

Katara cries, burying her face in her hands. Her body shakes, and she doesn't know what to do—the tears won't stop flowing, she can't hold them back, even though Katara doesn't want to cry so badly.

Gold embraces her, hugging her close – and Katara lets him, because she has no strength, she is unable to stop it. She wants someone to hold her. She doesn't want to be alone. She wants to be with him.

Katara hates the Fire Nation. Gold is the Fire Nation.

But right now, he's the only person who's with her, who listens to her screams and cries, who whispers quiet apologies and who cries with her.

It's not right.

It's not fair, it's unfair.

But their lives have never been fair.

Katara doesn't remember the next day.

She doesn't remember the next day either, just as she doesn't remember her encounters with Gold.

Everything passes incredibly quickly and slowly at the same time.

“She's in shock,” her father says when he thinks Katara can't hear him.

“It will pass,” says Gran-Gran. “We all miss her, but young Katara had it the worst. She saw something she shouldn't have seen.”

Katara pretends not to hear them.

The world is white.

There’s no black snow falling down.

The Fire Nation does not come again.

It does not come again, but Katara no longer has her mother. She has her necklace — an incredibly precious necklace that Katara wears every day, thinking of her mother.

Her mother won't come back.

She'll never come back.

It's not fair. It's not right.

The world is cruel.

Katara sometimes hates it.

One night, the smoke surrounding Gold's silhouette, hiding his facial features and his body, seems to be slightly different.

Katara notices this only later—perhaps she would have noticed it earlier if she hadn't been trying to avoid looking at him, avoiding looking into his golden eyes.

But today, she finally looks at him. She looks and sees that something is wrong with the mist surrounding him. That in some places it seems to be different, slightly darker. This has never happened before.

Katara squints, trying to figure out what is going on. Why he looks a little different today.

Gold is acting the same as usual. He smiles at her, tries to make her laugh, stays by her side if she doesn't want to talk to him — he does everything he can to not disturb her, and at the same time, to simply be there for her. He doesn't look her in the eyes, as if he knows how much his golden eyes bother her.

But today something is wrong. Perhaps it has been wrong for some time, but Katara is only noticing it now.

The dark spots are taking shape. They seem to be concentrated around his neck. His right wrist.

“Gold,” Katara says, interrupting him mid-sentence.

“Yes?” Gold glances at her, then immediately looks away, as if not wanting her to notice his eyes.

“Gold,” Katara moves a little closer to him. “What's wrong?”

Gold tilts his head to the side, as if not knowing what she's talking about.

Katara points to his neck. His hands move up and then stop. His eyes widen slightly.

“It's nothing,” he says quickly, the lie hanging in the air.

“What happened?” Katara asks.

Gold doesn't answer.

“You're hurt,” Katara realizes.

“No,” Gold lies.

“Don't lie. I know you are.”

Gold still doesn't look at her.

“It was your father, wasn't it?”

“...I deserved it,” Gold looks away from her. “I made a mistake. I said more than I should have.”

Katara looks at him in horror. She's starting to hate how easy it is for him to blame himself for his father hurting him. It's always his fault, never his father's.

“What happened?” Katara asks quietly. She looks at him closely, at his wounds, and then she understands what happened. “He choked you. And your wrists...”

“Burns,” Gold confirms quietly. “Dad was angry. But it's okay. I'm a Firebender. There won't be any marks. Firebenders don't burn easily.”

Katara wonders briefly how many of his injuries she didn't see because they weren't visible enough. Because Gold hid them from her. Because Firebenders don't burn easily.

“What happened?” Katara asks. “Why...?”

“Because it's not right!” Gold suddenly shouts. “Because it wasn't supposed to be like this! What happened to your mom... it's not right! The Fire Nation isn't like that! We're not supposed to be like that! We're supposed to be good! We're supposed to bring joy and happiness, not kill innocent people! We're supposed to help! And what? What is happening? Innocent people are suffering! Your mother suffered! You are suffering! Your family is suffering! Thousands of other people around the world are suffering! Because of us! Because of the Fire Nation! It's not fair! It's not supposed to be this way!”

Katara already knows what happened. Gold told his father — and his father got angry at him.

“I hate this war!” Gold shouts. "I hate it! It's all wrong! Everyone tells me one thing, and you tell me another! I don't understand anything anymore! Why is this war even happening?! Father says it's for the good of the whole world, that we are better and that we deserve it! Grandfather says we're sharing our cultural wealth! Uncle says the rest of the world doesn't know our greatness and we have to force them to understand it! But it doesn't make sense! Why is your mom dead? She didn't do anything wrong! She wasn't a soldier!”

“I hate this war too!” Katara feels tears rolling down her cheeks.

I hate your father, she wants to say, but she doesn't say it out loud. She knows it will make Gold oppose her — because he still loves him, because he still seeks his approval.

Katara doesn't understand.

She doesn't understand this war, she doesn't understand what's going on. She doesn't understand how Gold can be so kind and friendly, and his family can hate her family so much.

It's not right.

Nothing is right.

“I want this war to end!” Katara confesses.

“Grandfather says the war can only end when the rest of the world understands the greatness of the Fire Nation,” Gold says. "That only then will we be able to save them. Dad took me to Grandfather's speech, you know? There were crowds. And Grandfather said we have to get rid of the Water Tribes. That they are savages and barbarians. That they shouldn't be allowed to live. And then everyone started cheering. They started cheering. It doesn't make sense. I don't understand it. Why is everyone happy? Why are they happy when your mom is dead? Why do they want you dead, Blue? Why is that?”

Gold sniffs.

“I told Dad that it doesn't make sense. That it's wrong. That the Fire Nation isn't doing what it should be doing. Dad was angry with me. He said that if Grandfather heard about it, he would make sure I never said those kinds of things again.”

Silence.

“Dad doesn't want me to die,” Gold says after a moment. “He doesn't want it. So he warned me. I can't say things like that anymore. It's wrong. I'm not allowed to say things like that. But at the same time, I know it's wrong, Blue. The Fire Nation is wrong. No one notices it, but the truth is, something is wrong. It's not fair.”

Katara does the only thing she can think of — she wraps her arms around him and hugs him. Gold buries his head in her shoulder.

It's unfair.

The world they live in is cruel.

Even though her world was destroyed with her mother's death, the world did not cease to exist.

Everyone in the village knows what happened.

Katara's family is getting smaller. Every time she turns around, part of her expects her mother to be there, to come to her, to smile at her.

But her mother doesn't come.

She doesn't come back.

There are now four of them—Katara, Sokka, Dad, and Gran-Gran.

The mood in the village is becoming gloomy. The women whisper to each other when they think Katara can't see them, and the men train more often than usual. Everyone is anxiously waiting to see what will happen.

The Fire Nation is not coming.

“Everything will be fine,” her father promises, looking her straight in the eye. “I'm here. I won't leave you alone. I'll always be here for you and Sokka.”

(In a few years, Katara will understand that her father lied that day. Katara will understand this when Hakoda takes the warriors and leaves, leaving her and Sokka in the village.

Sokka will try to protect their village when the Fire Nation ship comes ashore. Sokka will stand up to the soldiers and be the first to raise his weapon against them.

But Katara doesn't know that yet, and she believes her father when he promises her he will never leave her.)

The next few months pass quickly.

Katara gets used to life without her mother. It's not right; it will never be right, but there's nothing she can do about it. All she can do is pretend that things are better, that one day they will be better.

Gold tells her about his studies. He tells her about his training, about how he is getting a little better at firebending, and about how he is starting to learn how to fight with swords. He tells her that his uncle is bringing in a new teacher especially for him to teach him how to use swords.

Katara sometimes envies him for this.

Gold has a lot. He has many teachers and someone who explains to him how to use his bending.

“You have nothing to envy me for,” Gold says one day when Katara mentions it. “I have so many teachers because I'm not a good Firebender.”

Katara's gaze wanders for a moment to the wounds visible on his arms. Since Gold began his firebending training, he has been injured more and more often. His teachers seem to think that pain will help him master his skills better.

There are no scars. Gold comes from a good family, he is a Firebender — even if a teacher hurts him, they always do it in such a way that no permanent mark remains.

Katara hates his family. She hates his teachers.

“Besides, my sister is much better than me,” says Gold, his voice tinged with irritation. “She's always been better than me. Dad says he wishes she were the older one. I'm already enough of a disgrace to our family's honor. But that's not true! I'll prove to him that I can do better! That I'll be better! Besides, my Master said I'm good at sword fighting!”

Gold looks around, as if hoping to find a sword so he can show her. When he doesn't find one, his shoulders slump.

“Did I tell you what exactly my Master teaches me?” he asks, changing the subject. Gold knows that Katara doesn't like it when he talks about his father. “I bet you don't know this fighting style!”

“What fighting style is it?” Katara asks curiously.

“Dao swords.”

“Dao swords?” Katara doesn't understand. “What's that?”

Gold smiles slightly and then begins to explain the fighting style to her.

“Dad has found me a future wife,” Gold says one day, in a completely calm tone.

If Katara had been drinking something, she would undoubtedly have choked on it.

“What?” she asks instead.

“I don't know if we'll get married, but we're engaged,” Gold explains. “However, she's my sister's friend, so...”

“Why did you get engaged?” Katara looks at him intently.

Gold is two years older than her. It doesn't seem right to her. In the Southern Water Tribe, you have to be at least fifteen to get married.

“Politics,” Gold replies simply. “Besides, my sister says she likes me, so... well. It's okay. It could be worse.”

“Do you know when the wedding will take place?” Katara asks.

Gold shrugs.

“When my Dad sees fit.”

“My cousin is leaving today,” Gold says one day.

“Where?”

Gold is silent for a moment, as if unsure whether he should say it.

“To war,” he says finally. “To my uncle. To the Earth Kingdom,” he adds quickly, as if afraid Katara will think they are going to fight against the Water Tribes. “I don't like it.”

“Me neither,” Katara confesses.

Gold sits down next to her and pulls his knees up, wrapping his arms around them.

“My cousin said he has to do it. That it's his duty. That we have to defeat the Earth Kingdom to bring peace to the world. So he's going to Ba Sing Se, to my uncle.”

“Ba Sing Se,” Katara repeats. “You mentioned that before.”

“The city that has never been conquered,” Gold says. "They say that as long as Ba Sing Se stands, the Earth Kingdom will not fall. Ba Sing Se and Omashu have always been the main targets when it comes to the Earth Kingdom. Dad said they had to be conquered. Uncle said he would take care of it. And that he will conquer both Omashu and Ba Sing Se. But for now, he's busy with the siege of Ba Sing Se. My cousin went to help him.”

Katara glances at him out of the corner of her eye.

“I don't want my cousin to go there,” Gold says quietly. “I don't like that Uncle is at Ba Sing Se. I don't like thinking about it. Grandfather says it's their duty; that we have to conquer Ba Sing Se, but... but I don't know if it's right. If the Earth Kingdom is the same as the Water Tribes... Do you think the Fire Nation is doing the right thing? Do you think...?”

“I don't like this war,” Katara says. “I hate how it's going.”

“I wish Uncle would come back. Why does he have to lead the attack? Why him?”

Gold is silent for a moment.

“I know why him,” he says quickly, as if afraid his words might be taken the wrong way. “I know that's what Grandfather wants. That's how it should be. But then I think about the rest of the world, about your family, about your mom, and... I'm not so sure it's right anymore.”

“Could you stop him?” Katara asks, even though she knows the answer.

“No,” Gold says. “It's our duty. Our whole family's duty. We have to fight to bring glory to the Fire Nation. We have to set an example.”

“To kill innocent people?”

“To protect innocent people!” Gold stands up suddenly. “You don't understand, Blue! This war has gone on for so long only because the Earth Kingdom continues to fight us! If only the Earth Kingdom would stop resisting... the war could end! Besides, do you know what the people of the Earth Kingdom are like? They break Firebenders’s arms! They kill everyone they can! We've tried many times to make peace with them, but they never wanted it!”

“How do you know that?” Katara asks sharply. “You thought my tribe ate children. How do you know what the Earth Kingdom is really like? Have you ever been there?”

“I haven't, but my uncle has! And my uncle always said that we have to be careful, that the Earth Kingdom is full of violence, that they want to get rid of us and that...!” Gold breaks off. His chest heaves with unconcealed anger.

Then, for some reason, he stops.

He looks at her for a long time, then sits down next to her.

“I don't know,” he says after a while. “I don't know anything anymore.”

Katara glances at him.

She doesn't know much either. She wants this war to end, but talking to Gold makes her unsure of what is right and wrong, what is good and bad. His uncle and cousin are important to him, but they are also the ones who were sent to war to kill. Katara should hate them.

But if it were her dad and the other warriors who went to war... if they went to fight the Fire Nation, Gold's family... Katara doesn't know what to think.

It's not the first time she's dreamed of living in a world without war.

A few weeks later, she finds him crying.

“What happened?” Katara runs to him, looking at him with concern, searching for wounds or signs that he has been burned.

Gold always hides his wounds from her. He always pretends that everything is fine — and that's why Katara already knows what to look for in the fog surrounding his silhouette.

But this time, Gold has no new wounds.

“Gold, what happened?” Katara asks.

“Lu–” Gold begins, but doesn't finish. He wants to say something, but he can't. “My cousin.”

“The one who went to war?”

Gold nods.

“What happened?” Katara asks, though she has an unpleasant feeling in her chest that she knows what happened.

Gold looks up at her. Tears are streaming down his cheeks.

“He's gone,” Gold says quietly. “He's gone.”

It's exactly the answer Katara suspected — the one she feared.

“Oh, Gold,” she says, taking him in her arms and hugging him, wanting to convey to him that he is not alone, that everything is okay. “I'm so sorry.”

“The Earthbenders killed him,” Gold whispers. “At Ba Sing Se. Uncle... Uncle said he was coming home. He called off the siege. He doesn't want to come back anymore, and Lu – My cousin, he's not...”

Gold looks at the ground, then at her.

“Dad went to talk to Grandfather,” Gold says quickly, as if afraid someone will hear him. “My sister and I overheard their conversation. We didn't mean to eavesdrop, it's just... everything is changing. Everyone is afraid of something, Blue. Something is going to happen. Uncle didn't get permission to break the siege of Ba Sing Se, but now he's coming back and everyone knows there must be a reason... Dad said Uncle is weak. That he doesn't deserve to be the heir. Dad wants to be the heir.”

“But your father is younger, right?” Katara frowns.

She guesses that Gold's family is quite important in the Fire Nation — she has pieced together so much from the bits of information he sometimes gives her, probably unconsciously.

“If my Grandfather names my father as heir, it won't matter,” Gold says. “My Grandfather's word is law. That's all that matters.”

“And what did your grandfather say to that?”

“I don't know. I ran away.”

A moment of silence.

“But my sister stayed. She said that...” Gold hesitates, then speaks even more quietly than before. “She said that Dad would kill me. That Grandfather told him to do it. That since my dad wants to steal Uncle's inheritance because he lost his son, my dad should know the same pain.”

“Oh, Gold,” Katara stiffens. “He wouldn't do that, would he?”

“I don't think so. She always lies. So this must be a lie too.”

Gold pulls her closer, as if afraid she will disappear if he lets go.

“My dad is a good person,” he whispers. “He's a good person and he loves me. He won't hurt me.”

He has hurt him many times before. Katara has an unpleasant certainty that he will do it again.

“I miss my cousin,” Gold confesses. “I miss him. I want to see him again, talk to him, tell him not to go to that stupid war... I hate that war. I want my family back.”

“Me too,” Katara whispers.

She also wants her family back. She wants her mom. And she wants this war to end.

“I want– ” Gold says.

And then he disappears, dissipating into mist and smoke, her hands clutching emptiness.

Katara is left alone.

Gold appears a moment later, looking at her with confusion.

“Gold!” Katara rushes to him. “What happened?”

“I don't know,” he says slowly, blinking his eyes. “My mom woke me up. She said... I have no idea what happened.”

“What did she say?” Katara asks. “Is everything okay?”

“My mom said everything would be okay,” Gold says quietly. “But... everything was a little strange. She woke me up, told me not to be afraid and not to forget who I am, and then she left.”

Gold blinks again.

“I don't know what she meant by that,” he confesses.

“Maybe she was worried about you?” Katara suggests.

Gold shrugs.

“I don't know,” he says. He is clearly trying to be calm, but Katara can see his anxiety and fear. “I have no idea.”

Katara stares at him for most of the night, waiting tensely for something to happen.

Part of her is waiting for Gold to disappear, this time for good.

The next night, Gold is with her.

And he's crying again.

Katara's heart breaks when her friend looks up at her.

“My mom is gone,” he says quietly.  “And Grandfather is dead. Dad has taken his place. Mom is gone, and no one talks about her. No one wants to tell me what happened. No one wants to explain anything to me.”

“Do you think...?”

“I don't know,” says Gold. “I don't know anything anymore.”

Katara hugs him, carefully and gently. 

His family is falling apart before his eyes, but she can't do anything about it.

Chapter Text

Time passes slowly.

Gold tells her how quickly his life has changed. He tells her that he now has more responsibilities—that his father has taken over his grandfather's position, which means that Gold is his successor. Gold tells her that a lot is expected of him now, that he can't make mistakes, that everyone is paying close attention to him now.

“Not long ago, I was fourth in line, and now I'm the direct successor to, uh, the family business,” Gold explains, as always getting a little tangled up when he wants to be more specific but can't.

The rules of their meetings are simple—they can't say too much, they can't say anything that would immediately reveal to the other who they really are. Sometimes they try to break these rules, to say more to each other—but they are never able to do so. It is physically impossible for them.

And that is incredibly frustrating.

“And that means I have to be better,” says Gold. “My sister is an incredibly good Firebender. She's always good at what she does. She's always better than me! It's incredibly annoying! She's always perfect! So I have to train harder, show everyone that I deserve my title!”

“I think you deserve it,” says Katara.

But Gold shakes his head.

“Everyone says Dad stole the title from Uncle. But Uncle isn't even in... he's not at home. He showed up at my cousin's funeral and then disappeared. No one knows where he is. Everyone says Uncle went crazy with grief.”

“Do you think he'll be okay?”

“I don't know,” Gold confesses. “I told my uncle to stay with us, to spend some time... I think it would be good for him to be with someone... the servants said he shouldn't be alone, but... my uncle just left. He disappeared. But not like Mom did.”

Gold looks at the floor.

“No one talks about Mom,” he says quietly. “Dad doesn't like it when I ask about her. My sister says Mom is probably dead. But it's different with my uncle. Everyone talks about him.”

Katara takes his hand and squeezes it gently.

Almost a year later, Gold paces nervously around the room they are in.

The place where they meet changes. Sometimes it's a room, sometimes a clearing with a lone tree, sometimes a frozen forest. Today it's a room with red accents — something almost certainly taken from Gold's memories.

“My uncle is back,” Gold says. “My sister said he'll probably want to challenge Dad to a duel. Fight for the title. For... for everything.”

“Do you think he'll really do it?” Katara asks. “You said your uncle was a good person, right?”

“My uncle... my uncle has changed,” Gold says, not looking at her, but walking in circles around the room. "He used to be... he used to be a warrior, Blue. He was a warrior, a General. Everyone respected him. Sure, he smiled, he always wanted to play pai sho and drink bad tea, but my uncle was someone everyone respected. Everyone wanted him to be Grandfather's successor. Everyone thought he would be. And then my uncle didn't object when my father took the title... he said it was okay, that he didn't want the title... but my sister says it might be a lie. All the servants are just waiting for news about the Agni Kai.”

“Agni Kai?” Katara doesn't understand.

“It's a sacred duel between Firebenders. They fight to the death or to the first burn. Usually, they fight for honor.”

Honor is a big thing in the Fire Nation, Katara knows that very well. Gold has mentioned it several times.

“If my uncle challenges my dad to an Agni Kai...” Gold doesn't finish. “No one knows what will happen then.”

“Do you think your dad will win?”

“Of course he will,” Gold says quickly. “Dad deserves it. He's the best Firebender there is.”

“My uncle renounced his inheritance,” Gold says one day. “Officially.”

“Is that possible?”

Gold shrugs.

“There are special rules, official protocols, but yes. My uncle kept his title, he's still part of the family, but he has no right to inherit. He said he didn't want, uh, the inheritance.”

Gold looks at her apologetically, once again unable to be more specific due to the rules that bind them.

“I think everyone's happy,” Gold says after a moment. “Because at least everyone knows now that Dad has every right to his, uh, inheritance. I mean, everyone knew that because Grandfather wanted it that way, but Grandfather said it right before he died and... I'm not stupid. I know what they say. Even if it's not true. My dad is a good person.”

Katara presses her lips together, refraining from shouting: no, he's not.

As always, she doesn't say what she's thinking out loud.

The months pass one after another.

Katara tries to learn how to control water properly, but she never succeeds. Gold listens to her complaints and sometimes gives her advice, but it is not very helpful—the elements they control are opposites, and Gold is unable to understand the fluidity and changeability of water. Sometimes, a source of water appears in the dream world – a stream, a river, a sea, or an ocean. Then Katara is able to summon Water to herself, but it is never enough.

Katara needs a teacher.

She needs someone who knows waterbending. Gold only knows firebending; even if he wanted to, he would not be able to help her, because you cannot find a waterbending teacher in the Fire Nation.

Life in the village continues at a peaceful pace. The Fire Nation does not attack them again—perhaps because they have decided that there are no more Waterbenders in the village, that Kya was the only one and the last.

Even if it wasn't Kya, but Katara.

Gold, as Katara quickly realizes, falls in love.

And with his fiancée, as it turns out.

Maybe it's just a crush. Katara is not sure. 

Gold doesn't talk about his fiancée much, but every time he mentions her, his voice takes on a slightly warmer tone and he smiles more than usual.

Katara learns a few things about his fiancée: she is a girl who rarely smiles, doesn't talk much, and can be passive. She loves knife – and fighting with knives – and is a close friend of his sister. She was chosen as Gold's fiancée because of her family and her father, who is quite an important person in the Fire Nation.

Katara doesn't quite understand what Gold sees in her — but on the other hand, Katara has no right to forbid him from being with his own fiancée. After all, they will be married in the future.

Katara wonders if they will be able to meet before the wedding.

One day, when Katara falls asleep and opens her eyes in the familiar world of dreams, she hears quiet crying.

It's not the crying that surprises her.

She has heard Gold cry many times before. It is incredibly painful, but she is used to it by now. But after his mother left, Gold stopped crying, even when his father, sister, or teachers hurt him. Instead, he hides his wounds and tries to smile at Katara, saying that everything is fine.

Today, he doesn't even try to hide it.

He kneels on the ground, hiding his face from her so she can't look at him. His body is shaking with spasms.

“Gold,” Katara says quietly, taking a step forward.

“Don't come any closer!” Gold suddenly raises his voice.

His voice breaks halfway through, his scream turning into a cry. But then, when Gold realizes he is not alone, that Katara is nearby, he slowly stops crying. His shoulders are still shaking, and he still won't look at her, but he is no longer crying as hard.

But something is wrong.

His long hair — the hair that Katara loves so much and has played with many times before — is gone. Instead, his head is shaved, but not very neatly, as if someone did it quickly, leaving a loose ponytail.

(Later, when she thought about it, she came to the conclusion that sometimes some things cannot be predicted. The worst thing is that the things that change our lives dramatically come unexpectedly.

That's how it was with her mother. There was no warning of the day she died. There were no signs, no signals.

That was the case with his mother. She disappeared in a single day and never reappeared.

And that was the case when his life was completely changed and his body was set on fire.)

“Gold,” Katara says quietly. “What happened?”

She doesn't like that question.

That question always brings pain and suffering. In his case, the answer never makes Katara happy.

“Nothing happened!” Gold shouts. “Everything is fine!”

It's a lie, and Katara doesn't have to be his soulmate to know it.

“I can see that something is wrong,” Katara says. “Look at me. And tell me what happened?”

“Nothing happened!” her friend raises his voice. “Besides... I don't want you to look at me.”

His voice trembles slightly. It's not an order, but it's not quite a request either. It's more like a plea.

Katara doesn't like it.

“Gold,” she says. “Please tell me what happened.”

Her friend stubbornly says nothing. He just kneels on the ground, not looking at her, hiding his face from her. But his hair is different. Katara knows he wouldn't change his hairstyle without a good reason — Gold has always been proud of his hair, saying it's a symbol of his heritage.

After a long, long moment, Gold turns toward her.

Whatever Katara wanted to say no longer matters.

Katara feels as if her heart has stopped beating in her chest.

She cannot see his face—his features are always blurred, always hidden from her. But Katara has seen the wounds and burns he has sustained over the years.

She has never seen anything like this before.

The left side of his face is red. The burns are clearly visible, even despite the shadows covering his face. His left ear seems to be deformed, its shape different, wrong. One left eye is closed, as if he were unable to open it—Katara doesn't want to think about what that might mean. She doesn't want to think about whether he has lost it completely or if it is only temporary, the result of the wound.

It is a burn—more powerful than ever before. Gold had told her many times before that Firebenders do not burn easily. But this time, Gold burned — and whoever hurt him wanted him to burn. To inflict such a powerful wound, so perfectly visible, that person had to grab his face and hold it — for an incredibly long time, long enough to cause permanent damage and...

She feels sick when she thinks about it.

“Gold,” Katara whispers in horror.

“Don't come any closer!” her friend shouts, seeing her take a step toward him. “Stay where you are! And stop looking at me! Don't look at me like that! I'm not a victim! I'm not weak!”

Ironically, his words make Katara certain that he is a victim. Someone hurt him, someone hurt her friend — and that someone was...

“Who was it?” Katara asks, barely able to hear her own voice. “Who was it, Gold?”

“Does it matter? It doesn't matter now, Blue! Leave me alone!”

“It was your father,” Katara realizes.

Gold flinches but doesn't deny it.

Katara's horror grows even greater. She should have guessed. She should have understood right away. If anyone hurts him, it's his father.

“How did this happen?”

“It was my fault,” Gold says, turning his face away so she can't see him. “It was my fault. I defied my father. I showed disrespect. And I was a coward. I showed weakness. It was my fault.”

“Oh, Gold,” Katara just wants to hug him, to show him that she is there for him. But Gold doesn't want to be touched. He runs away from her, hides from her. “It wasn't your fault. You didn't deserve it.”

“I did!” Gold protests. “You don't understand, Blue. I showed disrespect. I wasn't loyal enough. I wasn't strong enough. I should have fought. But I didn't. That's weakness.” There's no place for weakness in the Fire Nation. It was my fault. If only I had kept my mouth shut–”

“It wasn't your fault,” Katara quickly objects. “Don't say that! You didn't deserve it!”

“It was my fault!” Gold raises his voice. He still doesn't look at her, and Katara knows why. He doesn't want her to look at him. He doesn't want her to see his face. “I made the mistake!”

“A mistake? Like, saying just a few words too many? Gold, this is–”

“I undermined my father's authority! My father—my father gave me the opportunity to regain my honor! But instead, I chose not to fight, I just begged for forgiveness, I was weak– !”

Katara can barely breathe from fear and fury.

His father did this to him. His father hurt him — perhaps irreparably — even though Gold apologized. Even though he understood his mistake—was it a mistake? Katara constantly says a few words too many, but her dad has never hit her, never, even when he's angry with her—he still hurt him.

How dare he?

How dare he do such a thing? How dare he hurt his own child?

Katara doesn't understand.

She has no idea—but right now, she understands perfectly why the world hates the Fire Nation.

Monsters exist, and they have human faces.

For the next few nights, Gold is always there, avoiding looking at her. Avoiding talking to her. Katara always sees him—just as she sees his left eye disappear, probably under the bandages that cover the left side of his face.

That probably means Gold is unconscious. And no wonder—that kind of wound is probably serious.

Katara is glad he's unconscious. It means he's not in pain.

One night, Gold is strangely gloomy.

“Are you okay?” Katara asks, cursing silently.

Of course he's not okay.

Gold averts his gaze from her.

“Hey,” Katara approaches him. “What's wrong? Did your father...?”

“I was... I was exiled,” Gold says after a long pause, as if uttering these words causes him pain. Tears roll down his cheek, but he doesn't seem to notice. “For my cowardice in the Agni Kai. I am forbidden to return to the Fire Nation on pain of death.”

Katara hates herself for feeling relief first.

At least now he'll be away from his father.

At least now he'll be safe.

Katara knows she shouldn't feel relieved. She shouldn't be happy about it — because Katara is well aware of how much Gold loves the Fire Nation. She knows how much he cares about it and that Gold must feel like the world is ending right now.

And yet – Katara feels relieved.

She quickly averts her gaze, thanking heaven that Gold is not looking at her now, that he has lowered his eyes to the ground, ashamed of what he has said, of what has happened.

“But I can come back,” Gold says quickly. “My father gave me a condition. If only I find... I have been given a mission.”

Silence.

“An impossible mission,” he adds after a moment. “No one believes I can do it.”

“Gold, this is...”

Unfair. Cruel.

A great opportunity for you.

Katara doesn't voice her thoughts.

“They say my father sent me to find a spirit,” Gold says quietly. “To do something that no one has been able to do for decades. But I can do it. I know I can. My father wouldn't have given me this mission if he didn't think I was capable of accomplishing it. I know I can do it. My father wants me back.”

But I don't want, Katara thinks.

Gold stops smiling.

Katara realizes this pretty quickly. Whereas before he was open, smiling at her and laughing at her jokes, now he avoids smiles and jokes. He is becoming more gloomy, just as his temper is getting worse by the day.

Katara tries to understand. She tries to explain it away with the fact that he was sent on an impossible mission; that he can't go home; that he's surrounded by enemies.

The whole world is his enemy.

He can't go back to the Fire Nation.  

If anyone from the Earth Kingdom sees him, they will want him dead.

The same fate awaits him if he encounters the Water Tribes.

Katara does not envy his fate, but she is glad that at least he is not alone. He has his uncle and the soldiers who serve on his ship with him.

“No one here respects me,” Gold says one day, crossing his arms over his chest. "No one listens to me. I try to tell them where to go, and even if they eventually follow my orders, it's only because I have to yell at them. Everyone either looks at me like I'm a victim or like I'm pathetic. Everyone thinks my father abandoned me, that he doesn't need me, but no one will say it out loud.”

“Then you have to prove them wrong,” Katara advises them, taking his hands. Gold looks at her now, allowing her to look at him, but it doesn't lessen the sadness Katara feels when she looks at his face, hidden under bandages. “You're stronger than they realize.”

“But how? How am I supposed to prove it to them?!” Gold pulls his hands out of her grip. “I know what they say about me! They say I'm pathetic! Right now, I can't even firebend!”

“Whether you can firebend or not doesn't matter in the slightest,” Katara says in a firm tone. “I know you, Gold. There's so much more to you than just firebending. You're incredibly kind, gentle, you show compassion–”

“Compassion? Compassion is a weakness!” he objects. “That's why I got this!” he points to his face. “If only I hadn't been weak, this would never have happened!”

“It wasn't your fault!”

It was your father's fault, Katara wants to shout. He's the monster.

Please don't become like him.

Her last thought makes Katara freeze. She takes a few deep breaths. She can't argue with him. She can't yell at him. She has to solve this differently, in another way.

“Gold,” she says quietly.

“Yes, Blue?” There is still a hint of anger in his voice, but he is calmer now. Gold realizes that Katara doesn't want to fight him and slowly backs down as well.

“I don't think you're weak,” Katara says. “I think you're one of the strongest people I know. Despite what happened, you're not giving up.”

Gold stands in front of her, clearly surprised by her words.

“And I think you're a good person,” Katara slowly approaches him. She doesn't dare to put her hand on his cheek, so she just puts it on his shoulder. “When I look at you, I see hope for the Fire Nation. Please don't destroy it.”

His face softens.

“I'm sorry I yelled at you,” he says after a moment. “I didn't mean to. I just...”

He doesn't finish his sentence.

Katara doesn't force him to finish it.

Gold tells her about his travels. He tells her about the vast world he explores, about the places he visits.

Sometimes Katara envies his freedom.

She knows perfectly well that she shouldn't say this out loud.

One day, the bandages disappear from his face.

Katara looks at him closely. His face is still covered in shadows, but even they cannot hide his wounds, his damaged eye and ear.

“Can you see anything?” Katara asks, fearing the answer.

His left eye has lost its former sparkle. It is still golden, but now it is constantly squinted.

“Partially,” Gold says. “Mostly blurry shapes. Not well enough. But I can manage. Uncle is helping me find a way to not let it interfere with my fighting.”

Silence.

“Besides, I already have experience,” he adds. “I've spent the last few weeks with practically only one eye. Now at least I can see something.”

“Not enough.”

“But something.”

“Hmm,” Katara comes up to him and stops. She wants to wave in front of his eye to see how much he can see, but realizes that might not be the best idea. Gold probably doesn't want anyone getting close to his face. “What about your ear? How well can you hear?”

Gold doesn't answer, which is a kind of answer in itself.

It's not the first time in her life that Katara feels terrified when she thinks about what his father did.

His father caused Gold to partially lose his sight and hearing — he practically took his eye and ear.

And he made Gold believe that he deserved it. That it was his fault.

Katara hates two people from the Fire Nation — the man who killed her mother and the man who destroyed her friend.

“Blue.”

“Hm?”

“You once told me that you don't have a master.”

“I don't,” says Katara, frowning. What is he talking about? Gold knows that very well.

“I can't help you because I'm a Firebender, but... Watch.”

Gold stands up, takes a few steps away from her, and then begins to move. It's somewhat reminiscent of the kata he sometimes performs to show her how his skills are improving (not now, Gold hasn't been firebending at all lately), but they seem to be slightly different.

Something is wrong with his movements. They are different. There is no anger or passion in them, which is often seen in firebending.

“What is it?” Katara asks.

“Waterbending,” Gold explains.

“But... you're not a Waterbender.”

“I'm not,” her friend agrees. “But some time ago, we found a scroll about waterbending. Uncle said it was worth learning other bending styles. We can learn a lot from them. So I tried to master these movements. Of course, they're not good for firebending, but maybe you would be able to...”

“That... that's amazing!” Katara exclaims. “Then you'll be able to teach me!”

“I can't bring the scroll here, but I can learn the right moves and then show them to you. To be honest, I don't know if that will be enough for you to learn anything...”

“That's more than I can do at home,” Katara remarks. “Show me those movements again.”

A hint of a smile appears on his face, something Katara hasn't seen in months.

“Waterbending is different from firebending,” Gold says, performing the same movements as before, this time more slowly so Katara can get a better look at them. “Firebending is based on strength and passion. But water is not the same as fire. Water is fluid. Water changes. It adapts. Your movements must be fluid. You can't force water to cooperate, you have to work with it. You have to  go with the flow and use what comes at you.”

Katara looks at him, watching his movements. Gold shows her again, and then once more.

Katara stands next to him and repeats his movements. The water does not come, she is unable to use it here – not this night – but for now, the most important thing is to know how to move.

Gold watches her closely. He corrects her posture slightly. When Katara performs the movements correctly, he nods. It's a small compliment, but it brings a smile to Katara's face.

This is definitely one of the most unusual ways to learn to control your bending, but Katara isn't going to complain.

The next day, Katara spends all her time outside by the sea, repeating the steps Gold taught her.

Push and pull.

Katara extends her arms in front of her, focusing on her element, water.

Push and pull.

Water is all around her, Water is part of her.

Her hands move in the motions she has been repeating all night.

Push and pull.

The water responds.

When she meets him again, Katara throws herself into his arms.

“It worked!” she says excitedly. “It worked, Gold! I was able to bend the water! And it was stronger than ever before!”

“I'm glad,” Gold stiffens in her arms, but does not push her away. “I hope it helped.”

“Of course it helped!” Katara says. She looks at him expectantly. “What else can you tell me, Sifu?”

Gold has limited resources. He is not a Waterbender; all he can rely on are the scrolls he acquires and whose meanings he must first learn. Only then is he able to pass on his knowledge to her, always incredibly focused, as if afraid of doing something wrong.

“My uncle helps me,” he says one day. “We're both learning.”

“Does your uncle know about me?”

“No.”

“You should tell him,” Katara suggests. “Your uncle is a good person, isn't he?”

His uncle fought in the war, but his uncle has changed. He went into exile with him. Gold talks about him a lot and clearly cares about him.

Since Gold left his home, Katara has not seen a single wound on his body.

Gold is safe with his uncle.

“He is,” Gold confirms. “But I don't know if he'd be happy.”

“He didn't protest when you asked him to help you learn waterbending, did he? So maybe he won't mind you telling him about me. And it will probably help him understand why you're learning waterbending.”

When Gold doesn't answer, Katara adds:

“Gold, if you don’t tell him, and keep trying to learn waterbending, someone might think you're the Avatar.”

This elicits a reaction. Amusement crosses his face, which turns to irritation at the last moment. Katara isn't fooled.

“Are you the Avatar, Gold?”

“No, I'm not!” says Gold. “That would be... that would be the greatest irony that could ever exist.”

He is silent for a moment.

“But you're right, it's better to explain it to Uncle. That explains why he looked at me with surprise a few times. I told him I wanted to learn more about the Avatar, but it was harder to explain why I wanted to learn waterbending.”

“No wonder,” says Katara, imagining Sokka's expression if she suddenly started learning firebending moves. “My brother would probably have a heart attack if I started studying firebending. Or he would faint from terror.”

“Men don't faint. They lose consciousness.”

“Just like men don't cook?”

Gold frowns.

“What's wrong with a man cooking? All the cooks on my ship are men.”

Katara smiles in response.

She knew there was a reason she liked him.

Sometimes there are no signs of what is to come.

And sometimes there are clues that it will.

This time, Katara has clues. She sees the mood in the village changing. She sees the adults whispering to each other, falling silent when Katara or the other children approach them. She sees Hakoda growing more and more gloomy, the men gathering and talking late into the evenings.

The Fire Nation is becoming more dangerous, they say.

Fire Lord Ozai has no mercy for anyone, they say.

The men are gathering weapons.

Her father leaves, taking the warriors with him.

Her father is going to war.

Leaving Katara and Sokka alone.

“My dad left,” Katara says one day.

“What do you mean?” Her friend's eyes fill with concern. “What happened?”

“Dad went to war,” Katara explains. “He took the other warriors with him.”

“My dad is fighting in the war too,” Gold says quietly.

For a moment, they stand facing each other—the children of two warriors, two people who are waging war.

In their own way, they are similar. A father at war. A mother who is gone.

“I'm sorry you dad had to leave,” Gold says. “I hope your dad will be safe. And that he'll be back soon.”

“Me too.”

“I'm sure he'll be back soon.”

Katara smiles at him, but she knows perfectly well that this is just wishful thinking.

(She was right, as it turns out. They won't see each other again until years later, when she will be accompanied by a bald boy in orange clothes.

But for now, Katara doesn't know that yet.)

Chapter Text

The change happens gradually.

It happens over many long months—long months during which Hakoda is away from home, during which Gold travels the world.

(Later, much later, Katara will know that there were clues. There were an incredible number of clues, over the months and years.)

 It starts with comments.

“We sailed past the coast of the Earth Kingdom today,” Gold says one day. “We saw their cities. They look quite similar to ours.”

“We saw a colony,” he says another day. “Uncle wouldn't let me go inside.”

“The Earthbenders tried to attack us today. Uncle said it was because of the war. War destroys everything.”

“We went to an Earth Kingdom port today. We had no choice, the storm threw us into Earth Kingdom waters and we had to take supplies. Uncle didn't want me to go ashore, but we changed into green and brown clothes and I went with him. No one realized we were from the Fire Nation. It was... different than I expected.”

“They say the conflict is escalating. Apparently, the Fire Nation wants to attack more villages.”

“Are you safe, Blue?”

“They told me today that the Fire Nation burned the fields. The soldiers say it was necessary, that it's the only way we can finally defeat the Earth Kingdom, and I know they're right, but... I've seen the food prices, Blue. It's never been this bad before.”

“They sometimes talk about us so badly, Blue. Sometimes they act as if we were the source of all evil.”

“We were supposed to bring good, you know? But your mother died because of us. Because of the Fire Nation.”

“...sometimes I wonder how many lies we've been told.”

Later, there are discussions.

“Who do you think is to blame here?” Gold asks one day, his eyes looking somewhere to the side, somewhere far away, as if not looking at her.

He seems to be lost in his own thoughts.

“Our mission today... the same mission my father gave me, the same one I've been doing for months... that mission brought us to the Earth Kingdom. Deep, deep into the Earth Kingdom.”

“You didn't tell me about that,” Katara looks at him with concern.

“I knew you'd worry.”

“I'm worried because I care about you, silly,” Katara hits him gently on the shoulder.

“And that's why I didn't tell you anything.”

“And that's why you're silly,” Katara hits him again.

“Yes, yes, I get it,” Gold says.

“Never mind,” Katara rolls her eyes. “What did you find out? How deep into the Earth Kingdom are you?”

“We've only been traveling for a few days. Half of that time was wasted in a tea shop because Uncle, of course, has to try every new variety.”

Katara laughs. That's so typical of his uncle.

“I hope he found something interesting.”

“Don't say that, Blue. You're not the one who has to drink his tea.”

“You don't have to pretend, Gold. I know you love his tea.”

“That's not true!” Gold protests. Katara looks at him expectantly. Gold shifts uncomfortably. “Maybe... a little. Just a little.”

“Quite a bit.”

“I'm not here to talk about tea, Blue.”

“Why? Do we have something better to do?”

Gold doesn't answer.

“Never mind,” Katara says when her friend doesn't pursue the subject. “What did you see in that village? Were you safe?”

“Of course we were. I'm not weak. Besides, my uncle was with me.” 

“Good thing he was,” Katara smiles slightly. She is growing to like his uncle more and more, even though she has never met him before. “And this village?”

Gold's face darkens slightly.

“Those people...” he says. He hesitates a little. “Remember what I told you a while ago? About the fire that the Fire Nation started?”

“I remember,” Katara says cautiously. “You weren't close to it, were you?”

“No,” Gold replies. "But we saw what it did to the people who lived there. Blue, it... it was horrible. Uncle said we didn't have to go there, but... it wasn't right.”

Gold averts his gaze, as if he doesn't want her to look at him.

“Everyone at home says it's right and that there's only one way to end the war, but sometimes I wonder if that's really true,” he says quietly, as if afraid to say the words. “Don't tell anyone I told you this. It's treason.”

“I won't,” Katara promises him.

Somewhere in between all this, interest arises.

Gold tells her about what he sees. He tells her about the places he visits — about a culture so different from his own. Katara doesn't travel as much as he does — she has always stayed at the South Pole — so she always listens to him with curiosity. She asks him many questions. He can't answer all of them, but he always remembers them and comes back with an answer later.

They learn, each of them. Katara learns about the most popular dishes in the Earth Kingdom, and in return, Katara teaches him a traditional recipe that every woman in her Tribe knows.

Sometimes Katara feels that their relationship is unequal. Gold always gives a lot—he is the one who travels, who explores the world, who imparts his knowledge of the world and waterbending to her. Katara is the one who takes, always takes.

She has little to give him in return. She doesn't travel the world, she's always at the South Pole, and her life is full of snow and white. She loves her family and her Tribe, but sometimes she dreams of traveling the world with Gold, of seeing the same things he sees.

Katara has little to give, so she gives him her company. She listens to him, smiles at him, hugs him when he is sad, and argues with him when he acts like a jerk.

She does not ask him to come to her; he never offers.

They both know that they will meet when fate deems it right.

Sometimes, there is anger.

“You don't understand!” Gold shouts one day. “The Fire Nation knows what it's doing! The Fire Nation is good!”

“The Fire Nation killed my mother!” Katara shouts back. “How can you say it's a good country?”

“It's my country!”

“It destroys everything around it! You travel all over the world, Gold! How can you not see that?! The whole world fears the Fire Nation! No one wants your help! We just want to be free!”

“The Fire Lord does what is necessary for the good of the Fire Nation! He always acts for its good!”

“But that doesn't mean he's acting for the good of the whole world!” Katara points out.

“Yes, he is!” Gold insists. “It's the only right way! It has to be the only right way!”

“So you're saying my mother had to die? That it was right?”

“Perhaps it was!” Gold shouts.

Katara slaps him with all her strength, not caring about the sense of betrayal that appears in his eyes. She forces herself not to think about it; not to think about the fact that she has hurt someone who has already been hurt so much.

She turns away, full of rage and anger.

Later, there is silence.

They don't talk to each other for almost two weeks. They meet every night, but neither of them says anything to the other. They just turn away and pretend they are unaware of each other's presence.

The silence between them is incredibly loud and full of unspoken words.

Later still, guilt sets in.

“I didn't mean to say that your mother should have died,” Gold says one day, as if unable to bear the silence between them. “I never thought that.”

“But you said it.”

“I was angry. And confused. Lately, I don't know what's right and what's wrong anymore. But I certainly don't think your mother should have died. I'm sorry.”

Katara looks at him. She remembers every night he spent with her when she cried, unable to cope with her mother's death. She remembers the wounds on his body when he told his father what he thought about the attacks on the Water Tribes. She remembers that Gold is only two years older than her and that he never fought against the Water Tribes.

“I know I sometimes talk too much,” Gold says. “That I act before I think. But I really didn't mean to say that your mother should have died. In my opinion, the raids to find Waterbenders are not right. Innocent people die that way — besides, getting rid of all Waterbenders is not right either. Fire Lord Sozin broke the balance by getting rid of the Air Nomads. He got rid of all the Airbenders. Fire Lord Azulon and Fire Lord Ozai want to get rid of all Waterbenders because they think they're a threat to the Fire Nation. And maybe they're right, but that doesn't excuse it. No one deserves to die just because of who they were born to be. Your mother didn't deserve the fate she suffered.”

It's a long speech. It sounds like he's repeated it at least a few times. Katara knows that sometimes, when he's upset, he needs to rehearse the words he wants to say.

“All right,” Katara says after a moment. “I accept your apology. I know you didn't mean what you said. But don't ever say it again. It was cruel.”

“I know. I'm sorry.”

“It's okay,” Katara sighs, then takes a deep breath. “I owe you an apology too.”

Gold blinks.

“For what?”

“I hit you, which I shouldn't have done. I could have just yelled at you. Instead, I resorted to violence, which I shouldn't have done.”

Even though she knows perfectly well what kind of home she comes from. Even though she knows that Gold lived for a long time in a place where violence was an everyday occurrence.

Gold trusts her — or rather, trusted her. He believed that Katara would never hurt him, that she would never hit him. And yet she destroyed that trust. Even if she was angry with him, she shouldn't have done that.

She wants Gold to feel safe with her. And now? What if he never feels safe in her presence again? What if she has destroyed the trust he placed in her once and for all?

“It's okay,” Gold says. His tone is gentle.

Katara wants to scream in frustration. It's not okay.

But Gold looks at her, as always willing to forgive others for hurting him. It's the same look he gives when he forgives his sister, his father.

“It's okay,” he repeats.

Then, comes the confusion.

“I don't understand it,” says Gold, averting his gaze from her. “Sometimes I really don't understand it. I know why it had to be this way, I know why it has to be this way... but I don't understand it. Sometimes it doesn't make sense.”

“What are you talking about?” Katara frowns.

“We visited the Southern Air Temple today. They... They didn't clean it up.”

Katara doesn't understand — and then she understands.

She is able to fully comprehend what he is trying to tell her.

“But that's...”

“A hundred years have passed, Blue. A hundred years, and you can still find bones. No one even showed up to clean them up. No one,” Gold paces around the room, lost and angry. “Some rooms are still locked, so you can't open them unless you're an airbender. I don't want to know what's in them. I don't want to think about it.”

“But you know what you'll find there,” Katara says gently.

Bones.

“I know,” Gold looks up at her with a pained expression. "I don't understand it, Blue. The Fire Nation did what it had to do. It had to happen. I've read all of Fire Lord Sozin's speeches on the subject. And it makes sense. But at the same time, it doesn't make sense. They say it was an army—that it was a preemptive strike, that otherwise the Fire Nation would no longer exist—but those bones... some of them were too small. They were too small skeletons, Blue.”

Katara thinks about it—about what he must have seen. What it really meant.

“And I know they were dangerous,” Gold returns to pacing the room. “I know they were. Of all the types of bending, airbending is the most dangerous. How can you save yourself from air? I've read about what airbenders were capable of. I know they were dangerous; I know how much of a threat they were. I know what they were capable of. But... but sometimes it doesn't make sense, Blue. “

“What do you mean, airbending was dangerous?”

“Every bending is dangerous, Blue,” Gold says. “Every bending can destroy a person. Fire burns, Water can drown, Earth can bury. But there are always limits, there is always a way to escape it. But Air? How do you fight the air that is in your lungs? Airbenders could suffocate you with just one glance; they could take the air out of your lungs; suffocate you on land; crush you in the blink of an eye. I've read about it. I know how terrifying their abilities were.”

“But you mentioned something about the Air Nomads being pacifists,” Katara points out.

“Exactly, Blue!” Gold announces. “They knew how evil airbending could become! They knew it and decided to flee from violence! And then... then they had to create an army — something must have happened — otherwise, why...? It doesn't make sense, Blue. It doesn't make sense.”

Sometimes, frustration sets in.

“It doesn't make sense!” Gold shouts, kicking a pebble.

That day, they find themselves in the middle of a forest. The landscape changes almost every time they meet — Katara guesses that the world of their dreams corresponds to the world they know in reality.

Since Gold began traveling, Katara has begun to see places that were never there before.

“What doesn't make sense?” Katara asks.

“Everything! My mission!” Gold kicks the pebble again, then summons flames and throws them into the air.

Katara watches without much admiration. She is used to his firebending—at first, after her mother's death, she was a little afraid of it and hated it. But over time, she began to get used to it again, especially after his burn, when the flames Gold was able to summon were incredibly small.

In their own way, they both learned to be in the presence of Fire. Katara after her mother's death; him after his burn.

“Everyone knows it's impossible!” Gold says irritably. “Of course, Uncle won't say it out loud –  he tries to pretend that everything is fine – but everyone knows it's impossible! I'm not stupid, Blue. I'm not. I know it's impossible. I know it perfectly well.

 Katara leans against a nearby tree. She doesn't know what to say. She wants to comfort him, but at the same time she doesn't know how to do it. She doesn't know the details of his mission.

“But I have to do it. I have to do it, Blue,” Gold begins to pace around the small clearing. “It's the only way I can... the only way he can come home.”

His voice breaks slightly at the end of the sentence.

“So I have to do it,” he repeats. "I have no other choice. It's the only thing I can do. My father trusted me—he entrusted me with an incredibly important task, a task that will determine the future of the Fire Nation. My father knows what he's doing. I was—I was a terrible son, I never listened to him, I made a mistake—but I have the opportunity to atone for my sins. My father gave me a chance—he wants me to come back.”

So many things are wrong with what he's saying. It's all wrong, inappropriate. Katara's heart tightens. She doesn't know how to open his eyes to the truth.

“What if your father doesn't want you to come back?” she asks before she has time to think about what she's said.

Gold freezes.

He turns toward her, and Katara realizes she has made a mistake. She has said a few words too many.

She is not afraid of him—she has never been afraid, Katara knows he will not hurt her—but now there is something about the way he looks that makes Katara afraid. Not of him, but for him.

Katara is afraid that she will destroy him—that she will destroy his reality, his illusions. That she will take away his hope.

“That's not true!” After a moment's hesitation, anger creeps into Gold's voice. “My father wants me to come back!”

And Katara—Katara suddenly has had enough.

She's had enough of weeks—months—years—of listening to Gold make excuses for his father, who has done nothing for him. For the same person who hurt him and who got rid of him.

“What if he doesn't want to?” Katara asks, feeling the anger that has been building up inside her for years come alive.

Katara has never forgotten that anger, that hatred. She is well aware that she has an ugly side that wants to destroy the Fire Nation — that wants to destroy the man who killed her mother — and destroy her soulmate's father.

“What if you were never really supposed to come home?” Katara approaches him, letting him hear the old anger, the old hatred in her voice. “What if it was just a game for him, a way to get rid of you?”

“That... that's not true,” Gold takes a step back.

He doesn't yell. He just takes a step back.

And in that moment, Katara understands — Gold realizes that his father doesn't want him to come home. He knows that his task is just one big mockery.

Gold realizes this — but he doesn't want to accept it. He prefers to deceive himself because it makes life easier.

“It's true, and you know it,” Katara takes a step forward.

Gold steps back again.

But Katara can't stop. Not now.

“Your father doesn't want you to come home — if he did, he wouldn't send you on an impossible mission. And even if he did, he would call you back after a while!”

“That's not true,” Gold objects. “It is a possible mission. It has to be. Besides, my father can't just call me back. There are rules, regulations –”

“If he really cared about you, he wouldn't care about that!” Katara raises her voice. Gold flinches.

Katara knows she's being cruel to him. That she's destroying his hope. That she's taking away his naive faith.

But at the same time, Katara feels she has to do this. This situation can't go on any longer. Gold is destroying himself.

“If he really cared about you, he would never have hurt you!”

“He didn't want to do it!” Gold protests. “You don't understand, Blue! My father had to do it! It was all for my own good — for the good of the Fire Nation!”

“There is no situation that would explain why a father would hurt his child — he blinded you, Gold!”

“Because I forced him to!”

“Because he's a big bastard who doesn't deserve your love!” Katara shouts. “Gold, just—just understand this. Your father—your father is a bad man. He hurt you more than anyone else—”

“Because I gave him no other choice!”

“And you're safer when you're not around him!”

These words are enough to stop Gold from voicing the protest he was about to utter.

Instead, Gold takes a step back. It's as if he's afraid of what Katara will say next.

“To be honest, I've always worried about you,” Katara stops shouting. Her voice becomes softer, calmer. “I was afraid of what would happen to you when I wasn't around. I was afraid of what your father would do. I was afraid he would hurt you. And I had reason to be afraid, as it turned out.”

“It's not—it wasn't that he wanted to do it,” Gold tries to protest. “My father never wanted to hurt me. I just didn't give him any other choice. It was my fault.”

Katara shakes her head.

“No,” she says. “It was never your fault.”

“I showed disrespect–”

“I do that all the time. My brother does that all the time.”

“–and I was a coward. I was supposed to fight, but I didn't.”

“Why?”

“What do you mean, ‘why’?”

“Why didn't you fight?” Katara asks.

Since he was burned, they hadn't talked about what had happened. Gold had told her about it in rather vague terms.

“Because it was my father,” Gold whispers. “When I agreed to the Agni Kai, I didn't know it would be him. I thought it would be the old General — that I had offended his plan, but... It was my father.”

“And you didn't fight,” Katara concludes dully. “So you took part in the duel without knowing it would be your father—he didn't even warn you about it–”

“Because I was stupid. Stupid and pathetic, I didn't know what was going to happen—I didn't think about the consequences of my actions, I never think about that–”

“And then you refused to fight your father,” Katara ignores his words. “You know what? I would have refused too. I wouldn't have been able to do it. And I think my brother would have done the same.”

His eyes widen suddenly.

“No,” he says quickly. "You don't know that. Besides – besides, it was a completely different situation. It was Agni Kai. Refusing to fight was disrespectful. To Agni. To my father.”

“You didn't want to hurt him,” Katara says gently. “Gold, you didn't want to hurt him because you love him. So he hurt you. He hurt you, looked at you, made you half blind and deaf, and banished you from your home with no plans for you to return... Why do you even want to go back? To whom? To a person who can only hurt you?”

Gold is silent for a long, too long time.

“Gold,” Katara repeats his name. “Why do you want to go back? For whom?”

“My father wants me back,” Gold whispers. “He wants to do it. I know he wants to. He must want to.”

“And even if you did go back, could you promise me you'd be safe there?”

Gold doesn't answer. Katara can't see his face—but for some reason, she's convinced that if she could, it would be as pale as a sheet.

“If...” Gold says after an incredibly long moment, when Katara thinks he's not going to speak. “If my father... if he's really not always... nice... do you know what that means?”

Katara shakes her head.

“It means I have to go home,” Gold whispers.

Katara feels something flip in her chest. It's as if their conversation never happened.

“Not like that,” Gold says quietly. “I have to go back. For my sister.”

Katara hesitates only for a moment. Something in the way his voice breaks makes Katara run up to him and hug him tightly.

If they both soon collapse to the ground when their legs give way under their weight—neither of them says it out loud.

Sometimes, there is fatigue.

“I don't think I'll ever go home,” Gold says one day. “I know I have to go back — and that I should — and I will, but–”

“Hey, relax,” Katara smiles at him slightly. “You just contradicted yourself.”

“I know,” Gold says.

Katara shifts, looking for a more comfortable position to sit in.

“So,” she says after a moment. “Why do you think you won't go home?”

“Because it's been two years,” Gold says, suddenly looking incredibly tired. “I don't want to give up, Blue. I know I can't give up. I have to go back—there's something only I can do. But lately...”

He doesn't finish.

Katara is silent for a while, not knowing what to say to comfort him. The subject of his mission, his exile, is a sensitive one. Sometimes Katara feels that Gold is trying to ignore his exile; other times, they can spend hours talking about what he has to do.

“So,” Katara says after a moment. “What are you going to do now?”

“I don't know,” her friend replies. “I'm tired, Blue. And I feel like I don't know anything anymore.”

One day, there is despair.

“It's gone,” Gold says, looking at her with an empty gaze.

“Excuse me?” Katara doesn't understand.

“My bending. It's gone,” Gold explains. “I can't bend properly anymore.”

“What do you mean?” Katara looks at him with concern. “But that's impossible. You can't just lose your bending.”

“Apparently, you can!” Gold shouts irritably. “Because that's what happened to me! My firebending is gone!”

“I'm sure it's there,” Katara insists. “It can't just disappear!”

“Well, apparently it can!” Gold raises his voice.

“When did this happen? Are you sure you can't firebend?”

“I can! But it's incredibly weak!”

To prove his point, Gold performs one kata after another. But his flames aren't strong enough, they aren't powerful enough. There are so few of them that Katara almost laughs — but she doesn't. She's more concerned about what's happening to her friend.

“When did this start?” Katara asks.

“A while ago,” Gold says. “I think... I think after I came back from of the Air Temples.”

He turns to her with panic in his eyes.

“Is it because I said a few words too many? Because I started to doubt the Fire Lord's words? Agni... Agni must be furious with me. This is punishment.”

“Certainly not,” Katara says quickly, not wanting him to panic or start blaming himself.

Gold is always like this — prone to blaming himself for everything that happens, even if he's not to blame.

“Of course it is, Blue. It has to be. It has to be, because otherwise I wouldn't have lost my firebending. I must have done something wrong — I must have broken some rules — I must have messed something up–”

“Tui and La, no!” Katara rushes over to him and grabs his shoulders. “Gold, it's not your fault. It must be... Oh, I know! Remember what you told me? That firebending is different from other bending because it comes from within a person? What if it's related to... I don't know, your emotions, your feelings?”

“That doesn't make sense. I feel normal.”

“Do you think something might have changed?” Katara wonders aloud. “Something different in the last few weeks.”

“I don't know,” Gold slowly stops panicking, and a look of thoughtfulness appears on his face. “But... the only thing that's different is that I felt lost.”

“And before that?”

“Before that... before that, I think I was angry,” he says quietly. “At the whole world. At myself. I had my goal, I know I have to achieve it, I'm not going to give up because it's the only way for me to go home, but... I know I have to go home, but then I think about what will happen next and how I can end this war, whether I am capable of doing anything... It doesn't make sense, does it?”

“It makes sense,” Katara says gently. “It does.”

She is silent for a moment.

“Do you still feel angry?” she asks after a while. “Do you feel anger, rage inside you? Maybe you used to use it to fuel your firebending, your inner fire?”

“Perhaps,” Gold thinks aloud. “But even if that's true, I don't want to do it anymore. I feel like it's not right. I feel like I forget what's important.”

“What's important?”

Gold doesn't answer.

After some time, hope appears.

“Uncle said he knows the solution,” Gold says one night.

Katara looks at him curiously.

“About your firebending?”

Gold nods.

“Yes.”

“Did he say what might be causing your problems?”

Her friend doesn't look at her. Katara remains silent, watching him closely. After a long time, Gold gives up. He turns to face her.

“Emotions,” he says. “And Uncle said that over the last few years I've had a certain... motivation. Which may not be enough.”

“You mean your mission?”

“I'm not going to give it up!” Gold says quickly. “I think it might be a matter of anger and... Why are you laughing at me?”

“Because I told you it would be a matter of emotions!” Katara smiles. “So? What's the solution?”

“I have no idea,” Gold shrugs. "Uncle won't tell me the details. But since we have nothing better to do... and we're already wasting enough time looking for a ghost, we might as well go to this place. Whatever it is.”

Then, there is joy.

“Look, Blue!” Gold raises his hand, and a flame appears. “Did you see that? My firebending is back!”

Katara smiles at him.

“I knew it would come back. What exactly did you do?”

“I can't tell you,” Gold looks at her apologetically. “Uncle agreed to take me there on the condition that I wouldn't tell anyone. But now... now I think I understand the meaning of firebending a little better. Everyone sees it as destruction and death, but that's not true. It's life, Blue. Fire is warmth. Without it, we wouldn't be able to live.”

Katara thinks about the nights she spends at the South Pole. About how without fire, everyone would die and freeze to death.

Perhaps fire doesn't only bring death, she thinks.

There is also anxiety.

“Blue.”

“Hm?”

“We're approaching the Water Tribes' territory,” says Gold, playing with a coin, tossing it from side to side, spinning it all the time.

Sometimes, they are able to carry with them the things they had close to them when they were buried. Sometimes, they are able to find something in their clothes. Most of these items are still hidden by fog and smoke, so Katara cannot see their clear shape, but now she guesses that Gold is holding a coin.

Her attention is focused on him when Katara realizes what he has said.

“I see,” she says cautiously.

She must not tell him where she is. Those are the rules. Even if she wanted to, she cannot do so.

“You are from the Water Tribes,” Gold says. “I know the Water Tribes don't like the Fire Nation.”

“We don't have fond memories of you,” Katara agrees. “Are you sure you want to go there?”

“I have no choice,” Gold shrugs. “I have to complete my mission.”

“And you'll be able to do that at one of the Poles?”

“Perhaps,” Gold shrugs again. “Tell me, how can I avoid giving the impression that we've come here to kill people and kidnap their women and children? How can I tell them that we don't want to hurt anyone?”

“Well, I suggest not entering the villages with an army.”

“Even if they try to attack us?”

“You're a Firebender, aren't you?”

“I'm not a good bender, Blue. And I can't risk the lives of my people. Uncle won't let me go alone, and... ugh. I don't think there's a good solution.”

“Maybe don't wear armor?”

“I'll think about it.”

“First impressions are important, Gold. You should be polite. You know, don't yell, don't attack civilians, show respect to your elders, don't scare anyone, and don't threaten to burn down their homes.”

Gold frowns.

“Sometimes it's a good strategy,” he says. “You know, intimidation. If you scare everyone and force them to cooperate, you won't have to hurt anyone.”

“Gold, you're my friend and I really like you, but if you came into my village with a small army, started threatening my Gran-Gran, and got into a fight with my idiot brother, I'd be furious with you.”

“I'll know what to avoid,” he says, amusement crossing his face. “Besides, I'm sure I wouldn't have time to threaten your grandmother. You'd probably attack me first with your extraordinary waterbending.” 

“You've never seen it. Not in real life.”

“But I know it will be extraordinary anyway.”

“Because I had a good teacher?”

“Because you're a good student.” Gold smiles slightly, but the smile disappears after a moment. “Do you think we'll encounter many waterbenders?”

“I don't know,” Katara shrugs. “If I can give you some advice... don't attack first, but defend yourself if you have to. And remember that you're at a disadvantage. The Poles are full of water, ice, and snow. Your firebending is weakened. Be careful. I wouldn't want to lose a friend because of his stupid mission.”

“I'm not stupid enough to die at the Pole.”

Katara just stares at him.

And stares.

“All right, all right, I'll be careful!” Her friend raises his hands. “Happy?”

Katara still doesn't stop staring at him.

“And I'll try not to threaten older women or attack first,” Gold adds under her gaze. “Happy now?”

“Let's say yes,” Katara agrees.

“Let's say?”

“I'll be happy when we see each other again and you confirm that you didn't act like a fool who goes to the Pole without a plan.”

“It's a standard mission,” Gold protests. “We get off the ship, find a village or town, ask a few questions, try not to get killed by angry residents, and then leave.”

“And haven't you ever wondered why everyone dislikes you so much?”

“I know the world hates the Fire Nation, you don't have to remind me,” Gold says with slight irritation. “I figured that out a long time ago. And that's why I have to go home. Because that's the only way I can make a difference. Regain my title. And when my word starts to carry a little more weight at home...”

He doesn't finish. Katara wonders briefly if Gold believes that will ever happen.

For some reason, Katara doubts it.

Some changes happen gradually, some happen overnight.

There is a boy, in an iceberg.

And the destiny begins to move.

Chapter Text

The first thing the boy says to her is:

“Is it true?!”

Katara takes a step back. Next to her, Sokka pulls out his boomerang, looking suspiciously at the boy who emerged from the iceberg. 

“What?” Katara doesn't understand.

“Is it true?!”

“What exactly?” Katara glances at the boy, then at her surroundings.

There is water all around them. Katara knows how to waterbend. If the boy wanted to attack them, she would be able to defeat him. Katara knows she could do it. She is, after all, Gold's best (okay, the only one) student.

“That it's all over,” says the boy. “That the Fire Nation... that there's a war going on? Tell me I'm wrong. That Smashie is wrong.”

“I have no idea who or what Smashie is, but I'll smash you soon if you don't tell me who you are and what you're doing here!” Sokka raises his voice slightly. “Who are you?! You're from the Fire Nation, aren't you?!"

“No!” says the boy quickly. “Oh. Sorry. I got off to a bad start. I'm Aang. I'm... an Air Nomad. Wait. Appa! Where's Appa?!”

He looks around, losing interest in them.

“Appa!” he shouts. “Appa, where are you? Appa? Appa?!”

Sokka continues to look at him suspiciously, but this time with something like compassion.

“Katara,” he says quietly. “Maybe we should leave him alone?”

“No,” Katara says firmly. “I don't know what he—what Aang is doing here or where he came from, but he was literally in an iceberg. Trapped in an iceberg. That means something, Sokka. Besides, we can't leave him.”

“What, you think he's an Air Nomad? Katara, don't be silly. Everyone knows that Air Nomads are –  Sweet Tui and La.”

Aang spins—he spins in the air—and then shoots upward. Flying.

“He's an airbender,” Katara whispers in shock.

Gold will be thrilled when he finds out. Katara knows he's always wanted to meet an airbender.

“He's an airbender, Sokka,” Katara repeats in awe.

And then panic sets in.

“He's an airbender,” she grabs her brother's arm. “An airbender, Sokka!”

“I know, Katara!” Sokka hisses. “You've said it four times already!”

“The Fire Nation will want to kill him!” Katara realizes. “There are laws—rules—regulations—they'll kill him, Sokka. Just because he's an airbender.”

“I know, Katara! I really do.”

Katara has no chance to say anything else, because suddenly the snow rises, revealing a strange creature that has... six legs. And it has an arrow on its head.

“Appa!” Aang cries joyfully as he hugs the animal.

Katara wonders briefly how long it would take the Fire Nation to burn this huge ball of fur to the ground.

“Appa!” Aang continues to hug his... uh, cow? Bison? Katara isn't sure what kind of animal it is.

Clearly, however, Aang cares deeply about it, and perhaps that is enough for now.

So, their new friend's name is Aang, and he's an airbender who has traveled through time.

Not literally, of course.

Aang was born over a hundred years ago, before the war. On the way to the village, he tells them what the world was like and what happened to it.

“And then I ran away,” he says. “Not because I wanted to, just—let's say I had a bit of an argument with Monk Gyatso. I know I shouldn't have, but what the monks told me... it doesn't matter now, I'll tell you what they told me later—anyway, I started running, got on Appa, and we just flew away—I wanted to come back, I always intended to come back, but I needed some time to myself, what they told me—it doesn't matter now. Anyway, I didn't know Fire Lord Sozin was going to attack us. If I had known, I would have stayed. And then there was the storm and—I don't know how it happened. I really don't know. I just got trapped in the iceberg. Me and Appa.”

“It's amazing that you survived,” Sokka says in a tone that clearly shows he doesn't believe Aang was able to survive being trapped in an iceberg.

“I don't know how it happened, to be honest. I didn't even know a hundred years had passed—it didn't feel like a hundred years. I thought it was a few days, you know, I just closed my eyes and then opened them here? But then I saw Smashie–”

“Smashie?” Katara asks. “Who's that?”

“My soulmate!”

Can the Avatar have a soulmate? If so, is it the same soul that also reincarnates, or is it a different person each time? And is that person connected to Aang, or to the Avatar in general?

No, wait, wait, stop. Aang is not the Avatar. He can't be the Avatar because the Avatar is gone. Aang is an airbender, the last one who somehow survived the massacre.

How did Aang manage to survive the massacre? And is he really a person from the past? Besides, how could anyone survive a whole hundred years?

Katara has so many questions—but she can't ask them because Aang keeps talking, explaining his situation.

“Which is really weird! Because, you know, I heard that you usually have a soulmate when you're a child, and then I was twelve and I never had one – and then my dreams when I was trapped in the iceberg – which was really strange because I know I was dreaming, but I didn't feel like time was passing, you know? – Anyway, at some point Smashie started showing up. And I know we didn't meet every night. I know that. But we started talking—she's really cool, you guys have to meet her—and she told me about how much time had passed, and then I saw her change, which is really weird because I still feel like a twelve-year-old kid, and sometimes it was like I blinked and a year or two had passed for her—anyway, Smashie told me about the war!”

The whole story is a bit chaotic, but Katara is somehow able to piece it together—more or less—into a story.

“Anyway,” Aang looks at her curiously. “Is it true? What Smashie said? That the Fire Nation...?”

“Wants to destroy the world?” Sokka interrupts him. “Yes. You decided to show up at a really bad time, buddy.

Later, Katara will conclude that it was all the result of one big misunderstanding.

It was a series of coincidences that, combined with a few hasty decisions, created one big misunderstanding that could have been avoided if everyone had just talked to each other calmly.

But now—now, as Katara and Sokka look at their new friend, an airbender named Aang—neither of them knows that this is what will happen.

It starts with the news that a Fire Nation ship is approaching them and their village.

Later, much later, Katara will laugh at how easy it would have been to avoid this misunderstanding.

But now—now she sees her brother turning to Aang in disbelief.

“This is all your fault!” he proclaims.

“Excuse me?” the boy doesn't understand.

“This is all your fault!” Sokka yells. “I knew this was all suspicious! Your whole story? Suddenly appearing in an iceberg, this whole sappy story about coming from the past? It's obvious you're a Fire Nation spy!”

“I'm not!” Aang protests.

“Sokka!” Katara grabs her brother’s arm. “This is no time to argue with him! If the Fire Nation is really nearby, we need to get back to the village!”

“No, what we need to do is get rid of this spy!” Sokka glares at Aang. “We don't want someone like him at the South Pole! Get out!”

The boy takes a step back, clearly frightened by Sokka's sudden outburst of anger.

“Sokka!” Katara squeezes her brother's arm tighter. “Control yourself! Aang hasn't done anything wrong!”

“He didn't do anything wrong?” Sokka repeats incredulously. “Katara, he brought the Fire Nation with him! He's their spy! And you, what are you looking at? Get out! Leave our village and never come back! We don't want you here!”

Aang blinks, almost starting to cry. Katara can't believe what she's seeing. Why is her brother being so cruel to a boy they met just a few hours ago?

...Of course, Katara knows the answer. She knows why Sokka is so distrustful of Aang. She knows that Sokka suspects Aang of betraying them—after all, Katara revealed herself as a Waterbender to him, so if Aang really were a spy...

Which Katara doesn't believe, because Aang is an airbender. He's an airbender, someone who hasn't been seen in so many years. He's someone who can change the world. Someone the Fire Nation will hunt down.

“Didn't you hear what I said?!” Sokka yells. “Get out! Get out and don't come back!”

Aang turns pale — then turns and flies away, moving away from them.

Katara turns to her brother in disbelief.

“What have you done?!” she asks him. “You kicked him out!”

“Good!” says Sokka. “Let him stay away!”

Katara can't believe what she's hearing.

“You left him at the mercy of the Fire Nation! If he's found...! I have to find him and warn him about the Fire Nation! Aang doesn't know what they're capable of!”

“Katara, don't be stupid!” Sokka grabs her arm just as Katara starts running toward the receding figure of her new friend. “We have to get back to the village! Make sure it's safe!”

“The Fire Nation is looking for waterbenders!” Katara points out. “I'm the only waterbender here!”

“Exactly!” Sokka raises his voice. “You are–! Katara, what if they're looking for you?”

“No, that's impossible. No one knows I'm a waterbender. No one is aware of it.”

“Well, apparently someone did. You know what, follow that airbender.”

“Huh?”

“Follow him, Katara! Go and make sure he doesn't betray you! He knows you're a waterbender! If he tells the Fire Nation–! Make sure he doesn't! I'll go to the village, prepare weapons and people!”

“People? Which people? There are only women and children in the village!”

“And me. Never mind that. Katara, go and catch Aang. Make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone. I’m going to protect the village.”

“But–”

“Go, Katara!” Sokka almost pushes her away. “If they're here for the waterbenders, they're here for you! Or for him! You have to catch him to protect our village!”

Katara hesitates.

She doesn't want to betray her new friend — but Sokka is right, if the Fire Nation is here for the waterbenders...

“I'll find him,” Katara promises. “And you... Don't attack first, okay? And protect the village! I'll find Aang, make sure he's not working with the Fire Nation, and come back as soon as possible.”

She turns and runs after Aang's receding figure.

Katara lost her mother because of the Fire Nation.

She's not going to lose anyone else.

The South Pole is, notably, cold and snowy. It's not a place firebenders like, and if it were up to them, they would never set foot here. It's a place that seems to repel them.

The village they arrived at is incredibly small.

Zuko, the exiled Prince of the Fire Nation—theoretically the Crown Prince of his country and his father's successor, the future Fire Lord—does not like this fact.

The village is small. Too small.

This is consistent with what Blue told him – but his soulmate comes from the North, because the Last Waterbender from the South was killed years earlier. Zuko vaguely remembers the feast that was held for this reason. His grandfather was incredibly happy about it.

Zuko remembers that he could barely eat anything at the time, unable to stop wondering if his family would celebrate Blue's death in the same way.

He didn't voice these thoughts, not wanting to risk his father's anger.

And now he stands in front of the village—which is mostly populated by women and children. Where are the men? Zuko looks around but doesn't see them—which is a bad sign, because it means this is an ambush.

Zuko took only his Uncle and two guards with him—after he nearly died in a village in the Earth Kingdom a few months earlier, his Uncle always insists on taking a guard, even though Zuko says it's not necessary.

The villagers stare at him. These are looks Zuko is used to. Anxiety. Dread. Fear. Hatred. Anger.

It would be best to intimidate them all, ask his questions, and then leave before the hatred turns into violence and Zuko has to engage in conflict. He doesn't want to fight anyone—he knows that the Water Tribes have suffered greatly because of his country—but he will if he has to.

He must find the Avatar.

He will find the Avatar, that coward who has been hiding for a century, ignoring the war raging around him, take him to his father, and when he regains his title, he will finally be able to mean something. And perhaps then this war can be ended.

The villagers continue to stare at him.

“We don't want to hurt anyone,” Zuko says, trying not to show his uncertainty. “We're only looking for one person. Someone who doesn't belong here. Someone different.”

The Avatar could be a hundred years old — an airbender who survived the massacre. Or, if the cycle has moved on to the Water Tribe, it should be an older man or woman.

“You won't find anyone here,” says a boy stepping out of the crowd of women and children.

The boy is wearing blue clothes and holding a strange weapon in his hand — a sword? Or something else? His face is decorated with strange markings — war paint?

“This is our village,” he says, looking at him with a challenge in his eyes. “Go away. We have nothing to give to the Fire Nation! There is not a single Waterbender among us!”

“I know that,” Zuko replies calmly, eyeing him. He looks at his posture, at how he holds his weapon.

He won't be a problem.

“We're only looking for one person,” Zuko says. “Give him to us and we won't hurt you.”

The boy raises his weapon in response.

“There's no one like that, and even if there were, we wouldn't give him to you.”

And then he attacks.

Zuko wins.

Of course he wins. It's hard not to win. You can't even call it a fight.

It doesn't take long before War Paint is lying beneath him in the snow, and Zuko is standing over him, unable to stop thinking about how easy it would be to just attack him now and burn him, not caring that he is a living person, someone who has dreams, desires, a family.

War Paint was incredibly stupid to throw himself at a Firebender with a single sword—a spear?—whatever his weapon was.

If his opponent had been anyone else—Zhao, Azula, another Firebender—he would have been dust long ago.

Zuko isn't going to do that, of course. He doesn't want to burn anyone, he doesn't want to hurt anyone — but he will defend himself.

War Paint lies beneath him, cursing him loudly enough that Uncle Iroh looks at him disapprovingly.

And then, out of nowhere, a boy falls from the sky.

Right between them.

“I'll go with you,” says someone who definitely does not belong to the Water Tribe. “I am the Avatar.”

And suddenly, nothing makes sense anymore.

Katara does not panic.

Katara shouldn't panic. And so - she definitely does not panic.

That would be a lie.

...okey, let's no lie. Katara does panic.

Aang is nowhere to be found. When Katara finishes searching for the boy and realizes that the Fire Nation is at the village border, Katara panics even more.

She looks at her enemies.

She watches them from a distance, watches them talk—but they don't enter the village.

And Aang goes with them to the ship.

And they leave, causing Katara to hesitate for a moment, not reacting, not attacking them—even though she could—but if she does, it will be known that there is a Waterbender in the South, and then their village will be attacked again, and then they will be hunted, and people will die.

But if Katara does nothing—if she just lets her village disappear—Katara knows how to fight, she may not be a Master, but Gold helped her master her skills...

But these are Firebenders. People with years of experience.

Katara runs towards the village.

The Fire Nation takes Aang and leaves.

Katara runs to the village, to her brother.

Sokka turns toward her.

“Katara,” relief is evident on his face.

His clothes are slightly rumpled.

He must have gotten into a fight with someone from the Fire Nation.

But he's alive. He's fine.

“What happened?” Katara asks, unable to hide her terror.

And her anger at herself.

She was stupid. Instead of protecting the village — instead of reacting — instead of attacking the Fire Nation — she stayed here. She hid, she ran away. She looked for Aang instead of protecting her family.

She let her brother go out to face the Fire Nation.

Even though she was the Waterbender.

Even though Gold had been teaching her how to use waterbending for years.

“The Fire Nation came for him,” says Sokka.

“For Aang,” Katara realizes with horror.

“Yes,” confirms Sokka. “The kid wanted to go with them. He said something about the Fire Nation not being so bad, that their leader didn't look like he wanted to kill us all and–”

“You got into a fight with him, didn't you?” Katara gets to the most important part.

Sokka doesn't answer.

“Sokka,” Katara looks him straight in the eye. “At least tell me they attacked first.”

“Aang wanted to go with them!” her brother raises his voice. “That kid almost shouted that he was the Avatar! You wanted me to let the Avatar go to the Fire Nation! I had to attack! I had to stop them!”

The Avatar?

What?

How could Aang be the Avatar?

Never mind. Never mind, because Sokka–

“You could have died!” Katara says irritably. “Did you want something to happen to you?! What if one of them had burned you?!”

Stupid, stupid Katara — why wasn't she with her brother? Why was she hiding, waiting to see what would happen?

“Never mind,” Katara says. “Let's go.”

“Let's go?” Sokka doesn't understand. “But where?”

“To save our friend. We can't leave the Avatar in the hands of the Fire Nation.”

The Avatar is not an old man.

The Avatar is a boy, looking at him with wide eyes, as if he were seeing someone from the Fire Nation for the first time in his life.

And he doesn't stop talking.

“I know the Fire Nation isn't evil,” he says when Uncle Iroh invites him for tea (ignoring Zuko's shouts that no one here needs tea). “I know this because I saw the Fire Nation years ago, and Kuzon was my friend. So I don't quite understand why you're fighting against the whole world.”

“There are many theories as to why this is happening,” says Uncle Iroh, smiling apologetically at him and handing him tea.

The Avatar—not Aang, Zuko can't think of him by name—accepts the tea. He looks at them intently, as if expecting an attack or to be imprisoned, but he still doesn't do it.

Zuko doesn't quite understand why they haven't tied him up or locked him up—that's his mission, his task. The Avatar is the greatest threat to the Fire Nation, a monster with a human face—but he looks and acts like a normal child.

He drinks his tea, smiling at Iroh. Every now and then, he glances with slight concern at Zuko, standing behind his uncle, looking at him suspiciously. Zuko doesn't understand the situation — really, nothing about today makes sense.

It was supposed to be a standard mission. Just a simple reconnaissance. Zuko knew how to behave—he didn't want to disturb the Water Tribesmen, he just wanted to find the Avatar.

But he didn't expect to actually find him.

“Young Avatar, you have nothing to fear from us,” says Iroh. "We do not want to hurt you.”

“But you want to take me to the Fire Lord, don't you?” asks the Avatar. "Who wants to destroy the rest of the world.”

Zuko knows that his Uncle is refraining from looking at him.

The problem is that Zuko has to take the kid to his father—because that's the only way he'll have any chance of ending this war.

But that doesn't mean he wants to do it.

His father is right, of course. His father is not wrong; he is the voice of Agni on earth. His father is not wrong – but the Avatar is a twelve-year-old child, and Zuko really doesn't know what to do with that fact.

“Our job is never to destroy the world, young Avatar,” says Uncle. “Perhaps you'd like a game of pai sho?”

Zuko feels like screaming.

Pai sho?

Now?

Besides, the pai sho table is still on the upper deck—so they'll have to go outside, they'll be in the open air, they'll be surrounded by soldiers—but someone will be able to spot them, the Avatar will be able to escape—they should lock him up, they should imprison him, not take him out into the open!

“We're not playing pai sho,” Zuko protests. "We don't have time for pai sho, we don't have time for tea.”

“There's always time for tea,” Uncle looks at him in horror.

Zuko barely refrains from snatching the damn teapot out of his hands and throwing it against the wall.

Instead, he slams his fist on the table in frustration, causing the Avatar to almost jump out of his seat.

“We don't have time for tea!” he growls. “We're here to talk about the future of the Fire Nation! And the future of the Avatar!”

“My future?” the Avatar asks in a quiet voice.

Zuko turns to him, furious that he's even speaking — and then he sees the fear on the kid's face, as if he really thinks someone here is going to hurt him, as if the Fire Nation is truly evil in his eyes.

Zuko sits down irritably in the empty seat at the table.

“Don't panic,” he says sharply. “My Uncle is right. None of us wants to hurt you.”

Zuko takes a deep breath, praying for patience and knowing full well that he will not be able to be patient.

“Let's start from the beginning,” he suggests. “Who are you, Avatar? How did you end up at the South Pole? And what were you doing there?”

The Avatar shifts uncomfortably.

Then he begins the strangest story Zuko has ever heard in his life.

“We can't just do that!” Sokka objects.

“Why not?” Katara asks, looking at him angrily. “Aang is our friend, and you left him in the hands of the Fire Nation!”

“Aang is not our friend,” Sokka emphasizes. “He lied to us. We don't owe him anything.”

“Aang is our friend,” Katara insists. “We have to help him.”

“He went to the Fire Nation of his own free will. And he lied to us. And he probably summoned them here.”

“First of all, Aang clearly didn't know the Fire Nation was coming here. Second, you attacked them first. And third, we can't leave Aang alone.”

“You're only saying that because you missed the Fire Nation's arrival! Because you weren't there when you should have been!”

“I know that, Sokka!” Katara growls. “It was a mistake. But I'm not going to make it again. We're going to get our friend back.”

“Let's go,” Sokka repeats. “Where, Katara?”

When Zuko imagined what fate would await him when he turned sixteen, he certainly didn't see himself watching Uncle Iroh teach the Avatar how to play pai sho.

Out in the open.

In the middle of a ship, in enemy territory.

Among soldiers, but still—out in the open. At a time when the Avatar is an airbender.

Zuko has no idea what is going on at the moment. He feels like he's in some kind of giant nightmare—they should be imprisoning the Avatar, not treating him to tea and teaching him how to play pai sho! But Uncle Iroh suggested that perhaps the Avatar could be the way to end the war, just not quite in the same way Ozai sees it.

And that leaves Zuko standing on the deck of the ship, looking at the Avatar and his uncle, wondering, not for the first time in his life, what the hell he's doing.

He should imprison the Avatar and take him to his father. But Zuko knows exactly what his father might do—the problem is that every blow Zuko has received has been his own fault.

The situation with the Avatar is different. The Avatar hasn't done anything to his father yet — he's a threat, yes, but he hasn't attacked anyone, he hasn't betrayed anyone. Maybe his father won't do anything to him — maybe he'll be able to talk to him.

The Avatar is twelve years old, smiles broadly, and constantly talks about his dream of peace.

And Zuko wants so much to agree with him.

He looks at him, dreaming of agreeing with him — of saying that it's a good idea. Because Zuko has seen what this war is doing to the world and knows that it must end — he knows that people are dying. It can't go on any longer, and the Avatar is a new factor, something that can change the world.

But Zuko has his orders.

So Zuko just stands there, looking at the Avatar and wondering: what now? How can they end all this so that no one dies or gets hurt, and the Fire Nation isn't destroyed?

Chapter Text

They climb onto Appa.

Controlling a flying bison—a flying bison she didn't even know existed the day before—isn't easy, but somehow they manage it.

When they reach the ship, Aang is already on board.

When they notice him, Aang waves at them.

Katara reaches out her hand to him.

Aang grabs her hand.

“Katara!” he smiles broadly. “Did you know that–?”

Katara pulls him onto the saddle, pulling him up, forcing him to go with them — they have to take him, they have to take him with them, they can't let him stay with the Fire Nation.

Soldiers gather around, fire in their hands — it would be so easy to attack Appa, so easy to set him on fire — when a new voice rings out from somewhere to the side. 

“Hold your fire!” the familiar voice shouts. “Immediately!”

Katara almost lets go of Aang's hand.

She turns in that direction.

She knows that voice. She knows that posture.

Gold — the person who is her friend, with whom she spends every night — stands on the deck, dressed in traditional Fire Nation attire. Black and red. His hair is still in that silly hairstyle—mostly shaved, with a single ponytail.

His scar looks worse than Katara expected.

It's been years since he got it, years since he took off the bandages — and yet the scar is red, and his left eye is perpetually squinted. It's hard not to notice it — and yet Katara's gaze quickly turns to his eyes.

It's the same gold she looks at every day.

Katara looks at him. She sees the moment when his eyes widen, when he recognizes her. She sees the moment when he takes a step toward her, uncertainly. When he reaches out his hand to her.

Katara dreams of taking it.

Then Sokka grabs Appa's reins, and then Aang summons the air—and they're up in the air, and the ship is moving away from her. Katara leans out of the saddle. She sees Gold make a few quick gestures, stopping one of the Firebenders from attacking them. Aang, sitting next to her, smiles slightly and waves his hand as if to say goodbye.

An older man with a rather large belly watches them go. He waves his hand too.

And then they are gone.

The ship remains far, far behind.

“I think we just lost the Avatar,” Uncle Iroh approaches him as Zuko stares at the receding beast. Was that a sky bison? “Prince Zuko?”

Zuko does not respond. He does not know if he would be able to utter anything other than a scream.

They lost the Avatar.

They lost the Avatar—his only chance to return home, to change anything, to end this war. They lost the Avatar because they practically allowed it to happen—and some part of Zuko screams that it's almost as if they wanted the Avatar to escape, so that Ozai wouldn't get his hands on him.

Zuko cannot give up on his mission. He cannot betray his country – he is loyal to the Fire Nation, he will remain loyal to the Fire Nation – but the Avatar is twelve years old, and Zuko knows what his father is capable of doing to children.

So. They didn't let him go. And they didn't let him escape—they tried to catch him—besides, the Avatar also looked like he was hesitating, like he was considering staying with them for a moment—no, there's no point in thinking about it. It will only make the migraine Zuko is already feeling worse.

Besides—besides, that girl. That girl on the back of the sky bison.

That girl, dressed in a blue outfit, with blue eyes, dark skin, determination on her face.

Zuko knows her.

As soon as he saw her, he recognized her. He had never seen her face before, he didn't know what he was looking for — but he recognized her. When their eyes met, he just knew who he was looking at. There was no surprise, no terror — just recognition.

The horror came later, when Zuko realized the consequences of what had happened, what had been done.

“Prince Zuko?” his Uncle says. “What should we do now?”

Zuko flinches, part of him wishing the sky bison would turn back so they could just talk.

But that doesn't happen.

“We should burn the village,” one of his soldiers says, looking at the destruction the sky bison caused when it hit the ship's deck. “The Avatar broke his word. He said he would come with us and that he wouldn't run away — and then he betrayed us. We should burn the village to show the world that we have no mercy for liars and traitors.”

“What?” Zuko turns toward him, instantly returning to the world of the living. “No. Leave the village. We're going after the Avatar.”

He doesn't miss the slight smile that appears on his Uncle's face.

Katara doesn't know what to think anymore.

Aang and Sokka talk almost the entire way, but she doesn't listen to them.

Only later, when they stop and she can finally touch the ground—the ice—does Katara turn to her brother and the boy who is the Avatar.

“What was that?” she asks. “What happened?”

Sokka shifts from foot to foot, a little uncertainly.

“Sokka,” Katara looks at him intently. “Explain the whole situation to me again. Who attacked whom first?”

“It doesn't matter who attacked whom first,” Sokka crosses his arms over his chest. “This is the Fire Nation. They came here, they wanted Aang. I couldn't give him to them.”

“Sokka, you can't assume the worst just because it's the Fire Nation.”

“That's exactly why I'm going to assume the worst,” her brother objects. “Katara, it's the Fire Nation! You know how much evil they bring!”

“My soulmate is Fire Nation, Sokka!” Katara raises her voice. She doesn't say yet that she met him; that he was on that ship. Part of her doesn't want to think about it, doesn't want to accept it.

Because if it's true... if it was Gold...

Katara doesn't know how to feel. Is she angry? Or does she want to cry? Does she feel betrayed? Or does she want to punch Gold in the face? Yell at him that they will always be enemies?

“Really?” Aang looks at her curiously. A broad smile appears on his lips. “I knew the Fire Nation couldn't be evil. There are good people there.”

“Do you hear that?” Katara points at the young monk.

“That doesn't explain why the Fire Nation tried to kidnap him!” Sokka also points at Aang. “They probably wanted to capture him or take him to the Fire Lord!”

Gold mentioned that he had been given an important mission, that he had to find someone — that he was looking for a ghost.

The Avatar hasn't been seen in a hundred years.

It all fits together. Katara wishes Gold wasn't the teenager she saw on the ship — but deep down, she knows that's exactly who he was.

“Aang,” Katara glances at the young boy. “What happened on the ship? And... that teenager on the ship, with the scar on his face. Did you talk to him?”

“Zuko?” Aang tilts his head to the side.

Zuko. Katara's heart beats once, then twice. It's as if she has just gotten the answer to a question she has been asking herself for so long.

Zuko. Her soulmate's name is Zuko.

“Zuko,” she confirms, and his name is so fitting. “You've talked to him.”

And isn't that unfair? The boy she had just met had talked to her soulmate before she had.

“So did I,” Sokka interjects. “This Zuko is a problem, Katara. He was the leader of the people who came to our village.”

“I don't think Zuko is the problem,” Aang objects. “He was quite nice when we were on the ship.”

“Did they treat you well?” Katara asks, a little concerned.

“I didn't really do much,” Aang shrugs. “General Iroh offered me tea. And he explained the rules of pai sho to me when you guys showed up.”

“I hope you didn't drink that tea,” Sokka says quickly. “It was probably poisoned.”

“Zuko and General Iroh drank it too, so I don't think it was poisoned,” Aang says.

“What did you talk about?” Katara asks.

“Nothing in particular,” Aang shrugs. “They asked me who I was, where I came from, why I hadn't been around for the last few years, and they told me a little about the war.”

“What exactly?” Sokka asks sharply.

Aang takes a step back.

“Aang,” Sokka says. “That could just as well be Fire Nation propaganda. You shouldn't believe them.”

“General Iroh said the war won't end as long as Fire Lord Ozai is on the throne,” Aang says. “I think... I think he wanted to convince me to take their side? His and Zuko's side?”

“His and Zuko's side?” Sokka asks incredulously. “The side of some general? That's the Fire Nation's side! One and the same!”

Katara is silent. Thousands of questions arise in her head, questions to which she doesn't quite know the answers.

“Aang,” she says after a moment. “Please tell me, who exactly are Zuko and General Iroh?”

“The Fire Nation,” says Sokka.

“Don't you think it's strange?” asks Katara. “That a Fire Nation ship would appear here? And that instead of capturing Aang, they invite him for tea and a game of pai sho? Besides... Aang said that Iroh is a general. That means he must be high up in the hierarchy.”

“Uh,” says Aang. “Actually, I think Zuko is higher up. Iroh is a general, but he called Zuko Prince.”

Katara's blood runs cold.

“What?” she asks in shock. “What did you say?”

“Zuko said his dad is the Fire Lord,” Aang says. “So that makes him a prince.”

“Great,” Sokka mutters under his breath. “So we have the Prince of the Fire Nation on our tail.”

Katara feels like she can't breathe.

How could she not have noticed?

She knew that Gold didn't come from just any family. She knew that his family was heavily involved in the war, that they supported the war. She knew that Gold came from a good family—that his family was wealthy, that they were heavily involved in politics.

But she never thought that Gold could be the son of the Fire Lord himself.

Now much of what he had told her made sense. The conflict between his father and uncle over the “inheritance.” The knowledge he possessed. The private tutors. The fact that his father had the power to banish him from the Fire Nation.

“Zuko wasn't that bad,” Aang protests.

“Zuko is the Fire Lord's son, Aang,” Sokka says. “The same Fire Lord who controls this war. If the Fire Lord's own son is after us, this could end badly. Very badly. Right, Katara?”

Katara flinches, torn from her thoughts.

“Katara?” Sokka looks at her expectantly.

“Yes?”

“Am I right or not?”

“I don't know,” Katara presses her lips together. “I have no idea, Sokka. But from what Aang has told us, maybe... maybe the internal politics of the Fire Nation aren't as simple as you think.”

General Iroh, standing beside Prince Zuko.

Gold's Uncle is also a general.

Gold's Uncle travels with him around the world.

“Maybe Zuko and his uncle aren't on the same side as Fire Lord Ozai,” Katara says. She realizes too late that she immediately assumed General Iroh was Gold's uncle, so she quickly adds, “They didn't attack you, did they? They didn't imprison you or capture you, did they?”

“No.”

“They attacked our village!” Sokka objects. “This is the Fire Nation!”

“Maybe it was just one big misunderstanding,” Katara says.

She dreams of being right.

“Never mind,” Katara glances at Aang. “You said you're the Avatar. How well can you control the other elements?”

The way Aang averts his gaze from her is the answer to her question.

Katara sighs heavily.

“All right,” she decides. “I'll teach you what I know about waterbending. But we still have to find the real Master—we have to go to the North Pole. And then we need to find someone who can teach you earthbending and firebending.”

Aang smiles slightly at her.

“Thank you, Sifu!”

The smile quickly disappears.

“Can we go to the Southern Air Temple?” he asks. “That's my home. I don't want to believe that there's really no one there.”

Katara thinks about what Gold told her—about the pile of bones he saw, which he and his uncle collected to lay the dead to rest.

Aang won't find any airbenders at the Southern Air Temple.

But Katara has no right to refuse him, so she nods.

“All right,” she says. “If you want to, Aang.”

She expects it, but still something stirs in her chest when she is greeted that night not by fog and smoke, but by a flesh-and-blood person.

Gold—Zuko, Prince of the Fire Nation—stands before her.

Katara straightens up, well aware that just as she can see his face, he can see hers.

His eyes widen slightly when he sees her, but there is no surprise on his face. Just as she recognized him without much trouble, he must have recognized her.

“So,” Katara says, crossing her arms over her chest. “Prince Zuko?”

“Son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai,” confirms with resignation someone who, until yesterday, was her friend. “I'm afraid I don't know your name.”

For a moment, Katara is tempted to refuse to tell him her name, but ultimately decides to play along.

“Katara. Daughter of Kya and Hakoda.”

Gold — Zuko — blinks.

“Wait,” he says. “That boy I met in the village... the one who was riding a flying bison–”

“Sokka. My older brother.”

“That was your older brother?” he asks incredulously.

“Is something wrong?” Katara asks sharply.

Zuko takes a step forward.

Katara takes a step back.

A look of pain crosses his face. Katara forces herself to ignore it. She forces herself to remember that she is looking at the man who attacked her home, her brother, who tried to kidnap Aang.

And who was not cruel to him.

“Sokka is my brother,” Katara says, reminding herself that her loyalty is first and foremost to her family, and only then to her soulmate. “And the village you came to was my village. The boy you kidnapped is my friend.”

“I didn't want to attack him,” says Zuko. “Blue– Katara, you told me to attack only when someone attacks me. Would you rather I hadn't defended myself and ended up at the bottom of the sea?”

“Sokka wouldn't have killed you.”

“I'm sorry that wasn't very convincing when he jumped at me screaming. I tried to explain to him that I didn't want to fight him, but he wouldn't listen. And I had many opportunities to kill him or seriously injure him, but I didn't. Also, I didn't know he was your brother.”

“I don't know if that explains your behavior.”

“You didn't even see me!”

“But I saw you kidnap Aang!”

“I wanted to talk to him on the ship because I saw how everyone was looking at me! I knew they were about to attack us — I didn't want my people to react with violence! Agni, we didn't come to your village to kill!”

Katara takes another step back, regretting that she doesn't have any water with her. If only she did, she would feel safer.

She knows Gold won't attack her.

She wishes she could feel the same certainty about Zuko.

“But you came to kidnap the Avatar,” Katara points out.

“I just wanted to talk to him. My uncle said we had to make sure he really was the Avatar—we didn't plan to bring him before my father right away!”

Katara needs a moment to understand that Zuko is referring to Fire Lord Ozai.

“Good, because your father is a monster!” Katara hisses, saying the words she has been thinking for years.

Zuko flinches.

“No,” he says quickly. “That's not true. My father– my father isn't entirely right about this war. I know it's wrong. That it has to end. But my father is not a monster.”

“Your father burned half your face!”

“For the good of the Fire Nation!” Zuko shouts. Fury flashes in his eyes, and his chest begins to heave. 

Katara takes another step back.

“I deserved it, Blue,” Zuko says. “I deserved it, and don't try to convince me otherwise. But it doesn't... it doesn't matter now. We're not here to talk about me.”

“It does matter!”

“It doesn't matter, Blue! Katara,” Zuko takes a few deep breaths, exhaling the air from his lungs. “I'm not going to take the Avatar to my father. Not in chains. I decided that the moment I saw him.”

“Why?” Katara raises an eyebrow.

She hates herself for not trusting him — but at the same time, she has no other choice. The situation would be completely different if Gold were an ordinary citizen of the Fire Nation.

But the son of the Fire Lord?

Katara knows Gold. She knows that even after all these years, even after all he has suffered, he still craves his father's approval. She knows he is dependent on him, that he wants to fulfill his will.

His father ordered him to capture the Avatar. To capture Aang.

Katara doesn't know how desperate he is. She doesn't know if he'll be able to do it.

“Because he's just a child, Blue. Katara,” Zuko corrects himself quickly. “He's just a child. Uncle told me what fate might befall him if I took him to my father. It wouldn't be good. I don't want to condemn him to that fate.”

“Then what do you want?” Katara asks. “If you're not going to capture the Avatar, what are you going to do?”

“I was hoping… I was hoping that if I could find the Avatar, I could ask him for help. My father won't end this war, but he's doing it because he doesn't know any other option. He hasn't seen what I've seen. He hasn't talked to you. So someone has to talk to him. Tell him how things really are.”

“I'm not sending Aang to the Fire Lord to talk to him.”

“Neither am I! But if he were trained... if the negotiations failed, he would be able to defend himself.”

“I still won't let Aang meet with your father,” Katara looks him straight in the eye. “Zuko, Aang is twelve. He's only a year younger than you were. You know what your father does to children.”

Zuko recoils as if she had hit him.

The distance between them grows vast, incredibly vast.

“Zuko,” Katara chooses her words carefully. “I do trust you. I know you want to end this war. You're my friend. The fact that you're the Fire Lord's son doesn't change that. If... if you became Fire Lord, you'd probably be able to end this war.”

“You didn't sound like you trusted me before,” Zuko remarks bitterly. “You knew I was from the Fire Nation. I never hid that.”

“I do trust you, Zuko,” Katara repeats. “But I don't trust your father.”

Zuko opens his mouth, then closes it.

He is silent for a moment.

“I don't want to hurt the Avatar,” he says after a long pause. “I don't want to hurt you or your brother.”

“Sokka.”

“Sokka,” Zuko rolls his eyes. “But you have to understand, Blu– Katara. Right now, a lot of people know that this kid is the Avatar. The Fire Nation will be hunting you. I'll try to keep it hidden for as long as possible, but... What are you going to do now?”

Katara weighs her options. She could tell him the truth. She could hide part of it.

“We don't know yet,” she decides on a relatively neutral answer. “Aang still doesn't quite believe that a hundred years have passed.”

“He was really trapped in an iceberg? He tried to convince me and my uncle, but it sounds pretty... unbelievable.”

Katara nods.

“He was,” she confirms. “Sokka and I freed him.”

“Oh. I see.”

Silence falls between them once again.

“Katara,” Zuko says. “I'm not lying. Capturing the Avatar is my mission, but I'm not going to let a twelve-year-old child face my father. We'll find another solution. I'll think of something. Besides... as long as the world doesn't know that this boy... Aang is the Avatar, we have the upper hand. Maybe we can help you somehow.”

“What will you do if Aang doesn't agree to your father's proposal?” Katara asks. “What will you do then?”

Zuko doesn't answer right away.

“We can... talk,” he says after a moment. “My father is a good man. He'll understand.”

“That won't work, Zuko.”

“We won't know until we try! If we meet somewhere neutral, it'll work!”

“I'm not convinced your father will respect any rules.”

“You don't know him as well as I do.”

“I know him well enough.”

Zuko looks at her.

Katara looks at him.

They stare at each other for a moment—until Katara sighs quietly.

“I don't think we're going to agree on this, Zuko,” she says. She raises her hand when she sees Zuko opening his mouth to say something. “I wasn't lying when I said I trust you. I believe you want to end this war. That if you could, you would. And I know you don't want to hurt Aang. But I'm still not sure about these peace talks with the Fire Lord.”

“What am I supposed to do?”

“I don't know!” Katara raises her voice. “Neither of us wanted this, but can't you see what's happening now? If you keep trying to attack Aang–”

“First of all, I wasn't trying to attack him, your brother attacked me first. And second, I wasn't trying to attack him, just capture him, if anything.”

“A moment ago, you said you didn't want to capture him.”

“Um.”

Zuko looks like he doesn't know what to say.

“I don't want to capture him,” he says after a long pause, “it's nothing personal. But it's the only way for me to go home.”

“For you to go home,” Katara repeats hollowly. “Why? For whom?”

Zuko doesn't answer right away.

“Because I have no other choice?” he says after a long pause. “Because only the Fire Nation will take me back.”

“The Fire Nation exiled you, Zuko.”

“But my father will take me back if I bring him the Avatar.”

Katara looks at him in disbelief. Does he really believe that?

Katara has never met his father—and if she succeeds, she never will—but one thing is certain: the man does not want his son back. And for his son's sake, it is better that he does not return to the Fire Nation.

“Zuko,” Katara says slowly, looking at him intently. “We need to clarify a few things.”

“Okay,” her friend agrees (at least Katara hopes he's still her friend at this point).

They look at each other for a while, until finally Katara sighs heavily and does something that is both completely normal and completely stupid — she sits down on the ground, next to a tree growing nearby.

She still sometimes finds it hard to believe that there are places where it is warm all day long – where there is so much greenery. Katara grew up surrounded by ice and snow. Gold – Zuko, Katara corrects herself in her mind – told her a lot about his travels, and the world of dreams was made up of places they had seen – but Katara sometimes really cannot comprehend that there are places where there may be no snow. That there are people who have never seen snow.

Zuko hesitates for a moment, then sits down next to her. Keeping his distance a little, as if he doesn't know what to do with himself – but he sits down next to her.

“We need to talk,” Katara says.

“We are talking,” Zuko remarks.

“Not like this,” Katara looks at him with slight irritation.

An amused expression crosses his face, which only irritates her even more. But well, she should have expected that. Zuko can be a jerk sometimes.

“What now?” Katara asks, looking at Zuko intently. “What's going to happen now?”

“Well...” Zuko hesitates, as if he doesn't know what to say.

“You're Fire Nation,” Katara reminds him. Part of her wants to get angry at him, to remind him that he comes from a nation that only knows how to destroy — that his ancestors, his family, are waging this war.

And he's doing nothing to stop it.

And he's doing nothing to stop his father.

Of course, Katara knows that there's not much he can do right now — that he's been exiled, that his father may have tried to kill him that day — but that doesn't change the fact that Zuko is doing nothing.

Unlike Katara, he has had many opportunities over the years to do something to stop his father, to try to end this war—but he has done nothing.

“And you're from the Water Tribe,” Zuko says. “You know, I was convinced you lived in the North.”

“Do you know of any raids in the North?” Katara asks angrily. “My mother died because of the Fire Nation!”

“I know,” Zuko looks away from her. “I'm sorry.”

“Sorry won't bring my mother back!”

“I know. And I’m sorry.”

“Sorry won't bring back all the lives the Fire Nation took!” Katara looks up. “Sorry won't undo everything that happened! It won't help!”

“What do you want me to do?” Zuko asks irritably. “I didn't give the orders!”

“But your family did! You could have done something!”

“The last time I tried to defy my father, I lost half my face!” Anger flashes in his golden eyes. “What, should I go to him and let him finish what he started?!”

“What, would you rather bring Aang to him and let your father destroy him?”

“My father would never do such a thing!”

“Your father is a monster!”

“He is the Fire Lord, and his word is law!” Zuko protests. “Blu– Katara, you can't just expect my father to sit down for tea with the Avatar, who has been considered the Fire Nation's greatest enemy for nearly a century!”

“I'm not expecting that!” Katara hisses. “And stop defending him! He doesn't deserve it!”

“You stop insulting him and acting like he's responsible for all the evil in the world!” Zuko stands up.

Katara does the same, standing opposite him. Part of her is aware that she is acting against what she wanted to do — she sat down under this cursed tree because she wanted to talk to Zuko calmly, and yet all she has done is cause them to start yelling at each other.

“Because he is responsible! Have you forgotten about the raids? About my mother?”

“My father had nothing to do with the raids!” Zuko shouts. “He wasn't Fire Lord then — Father doesn't care about the Water Tribes! The war has been focused on the Earth Kingdom for years!”

“Your father, your grandfather, what's the difference? They all want to destroy the rest of the world anyway — you know that perfectly well, you've seen it all — and don't look at me like that, don't deny it. You've been telling me about it for months. You know very well that the Fire Nation won't end this war until it has destroyed all its enemies!”

“I know that!”

“So what are you doing, huh? What are you planning to do?”

“I have no idea!” Zuko raises his voice. “I have no idea, Katara! The Avatar is my goal, my mission—but I can't just take him to my father, he's just a child—but now everyone knows that the Avatar has returned, and if I don't try to capture him, my father will declare me a traitor—I have a mission, Katara. I have been given a mission. I cannot ignore that.”

“Your mission is to destroy the only hope for peace in this world!”

“You think I don't know that?! That I'm not aware – Listen, I'm trying to find a solution to this situation, Katara!”

“That doesn't look like ‘finding a way to solve this situation’ to me!”

“I'm thinking! I'm thinking, Katara!”

Katara raises her eyebrow. She wants to keep yelling at him—because she understands his situation, she understands why he has to chase Aang—but at the same time, Aang is their hope.

“I know,” Zuko says suddenly. “We can make a promise.”

“A promise?” she repeats.

“A promise of silence.”

Katara freezes.

A promise of silence.

She has heard of it, of course. It is almost a sacred promise – an agreement that soulmates can make with each other. A promise they cannot break. At the same time, it is a promise that only they know about. No one else can know about it.

“What do you mean?” Katara asks quietly.

“I will do everything in my power to make sure that the Fire Nation does not find out that the Avatar has returned. And I will try to protect him—as much as I can, without immediately becoming a traitor to the Fire Nation.”

“And in return?”

“You will make sure the Avatar does not kill my father,” Zuko says immediately. “You will try to convince him to talk to my Father. Father will listen to Avatar. I am sure of it. And if... if there is no other choice, you and the Avatar will support my uncle as the next Fire Lord. My uncle will be able to end this war. I know he will.”

Katara considers her options.

If she agrees—if she agrees, they will be severely limited. Katara knows that they must defeat Fire Lord Ozai to end the war—but can that be done without killing him?

At the same time, it will give them a kind of security—she will know that Zuko is on their side, that he wants to support them. They will be able to figure something out together.

If she agrees, she won't be able to tell Sokka and Aang that Zuko is her soulmate. She won't be able to explain it to them—at least not yet. She would risk them guessing that she had made some kind of deal with Zuko—and if any of them started asking her about it and she said they had made a promise of silence... then Katara would be the one who broke it.

If she didn't agree, she would have no security. She wouldn't know if Zuko was really on their side — she wouldn't know if he really cared about helping them or not.

Ultimately, it was all a matter of trust.

Katara trusts Gold.

But she's not sure she trusts Zuko, who clearly still cares about his father.

“I need to think about it,” Katara says after a long silence. “Give me some time. I'll give you my answer tomorrow.”

Zuko hesitates.

“All right,” he agrees. “I'll expect your answer tomorrow, Katara.”

Katara hates herself for loving the way he says her name.

Chapter Text

Early in the morning, Katara talks to Aang.

She tries to ask him what he intends to do about the ongoing war.

“I know I'll have to do something and that I'll have to stop Fire Lord Ozai,” says Aang, but he doesn't seem too happy about it. “I know something has to be done, but...”

“But?”

Aang averts his gaze from her.

“It's a big task,” he says after a moment. “I don't know if I'm ready for it.”

Katara wants to scream that Aang has no right to say such a thing — that everyone has been waiting a hundred years for the Avatar to appear. That everyone has been waiting for him, hoping he would do something.

And now Aang wants to run away from it?

Sokka puts his hand on her shoulder, shaking his head, as if he knows that Katara is on the verge of exploding with anger.

“He's only twelve years old,” he reminds her. Loudly, he adds, “Well, even if you're not ready, Fire Lord Ozai will be. The war won't wait for you to decide to fight it.”

“I know!” Aang raises his voice slightly. “I really know that! Smashie has told me that many times before, but... It's not like I chose this! That I wanted to become the Avatar!”

“But you are,” Sokka reminds him.

“But I am,” Aang agrees, his shoulders slumping.

It's not like I chose this.

For some reason, these words repeat themselves in Katara's head for the rest of the day.

Katara thinks about them for most of the journey on Appa.

Which is quite long. And boring.

At the very beginning, Katara — like Sokka — is excited. It's the first time she's left her home village, the first time the landscape has changed. Not to mention that she's floating in the air, which is amazing!

But then, over time, everything becomes boring.

No one talks about how boring long hours spent on a flying bison can be. Even if they have a new friend, there is a limit to the things they can talk about.

Katara stops complaining when they reach the Southern Air Temple. She sees Aang's shoulders stiffen.

“Smashie told me that everything is destroyed,” Aang says when they reach the ground, at the temple. “She told me about it, but I didn't think...”

He doesn't finish. There is sadness in his eyes, an incredible sadness that makes him not look like a child. He seems much older than he really is.

Looking at him, Katara also feels older.

Neither of them wanted to take part in the war.

But it's not like they were given a choice, right?

At the Southern Air Temple, Aang proves to everyone why he is the Avatar.

Katara and Sokka look at the destruction wrought by Aang, who enters the Avatar State after finding the bones of his mentor, Monk Gyatso.

Katara watches, swallowing her fear, and suddenly realizes why the Fire Nation considers the Avatar their greatest enemy.

If the Avatar wanted to, he could destroy this world.

Ketu Harbor is a place Zuko did not plan to visit, but he has no other choice—his ship was destroyed by the Avatar's flying bison. Which was quite fluffy and cute, but also heavy. And it damaged Zuko's ship a bit.

For which Zuko is so grateful. Because his favorite task is definitely watching his ship get destroyed. And wondering how he's going to cover the repair costs.

Zuko just hopes he won't have to write another letter asking for more funds. His father isn't interested in helping anyway. Perhaps Azula would be willing, but Zuko hasn't seen her in three years. They still exchange letters, but it's a bit difficult to do when you're constantly on the road.

Besides, this way, Zuko doesn't have to think about what's happening with Azula.

He didn't lie to Katara — his father is a good man and acts for the good of the Fire Nation. He acts for Zuko's good.

The only problem is that his father is not acting for the good of the world. And he is not interested in ending this war.

And Zuko is not sure how he treats Azula. Of course, Azula has always been the better child—Azula is a prodigy, Azula is not the black sheep of their family, Azula's soulmate is not part of the Water Tribe.

But that doesn't mean Azula is safe and that her father won't hurt her by saying he wants to teach her respect or obedience. But—Azula doesn't need these lessons, Azula has always been better, she always knew when to shut up and she always knew how to behave and—

Zuko has to suppress a grimace when he sees who is coming towards him.

“Captain Zhao.”

“It's Commander now.”

Agni, who decided to promote Zhao?

Zhao glances at Uncle.

“General Iroh. Great hero of our nation.”

“Retired general,” Uncle corrects him.

Zuko is completely convinced that Zhao is doing this on purpose. He knows that Uncle doesn't like to be reminded of his former rank – Uncle retired years ago, after Lu Ten's death. He doesn't want to be associated with the army.

But he is still on Zuko's ship. He went into exile with him. Why, Zuko still does not fully understand.

Uncle is a good person. Uncle would be able to end this war.

Zuko has no illusions about himself. If he fails to bring the Avatar before his father in chains — which he would prefer to avoid — he will remain in exile. He will not be able to return to the Fire Nation.

But if the Avatar defeats his father (which is the worst possible option, because Zuko is hoping that the Avatar will simply talk to his father and explain why he should end the war), then someone will have to become Fire Lord. Zuko will not be able to do that if he remains in exile. Azula is only fourteen, and Zuko would prefer that his younger sister not have to rule the country at such a young age.

So that leaves only Uncle.

Uncle, who knows how to be Fire Lord. Uncle, who was supposed to be Fire Lord. Uncle, who has a lot of support in the country.

“The Fire Lord's brother and son are welcome guests anytime,” Zhao says, causing Zuko to once again interrupt his thoughts and focus on the man. “What brings you to my harbor?”

“Nothing,” Zuko says at the same moment Uncle explains (truthfully) that their ship is being repaired.

Zhao looks at the damage without much admiration.

“That's quite a bit of damage,” he says, and something in the way he says it makes Zuko want to yell at him to just leave.

Calm. Zuko should be calm. Zhao doesn't know that the Avatar has returned. So as long as Zhao doesn't know, the Avatar is safe, and Katara is safe.

So all they have to do is keep quiet, and Zhao will never know that the Avatar has returned.

Of course, one of his men has to blab everything to Zhao.

Zhao glances at Zuko and smiles in an incredibly unpleasant way.

“Now remind me, how, exactly, was your ship damaged?”

It's not like I chose this. Those words still echo in her head.

In the evening, when they set up camp to eat dinner, Katara realizes why.

They sit by Appa, just the two of them. Sokka, after realizing with horror that they don't have enough food, went hunting, ignoring Aang's protests.

Katara doesn't know many vegetarian recipes, but she'll learn. But Sokka won't accept switching to a vegetarian diet, so Katara will have to cook something with meat for him. She doesn't know yet how she'll feed both Sokka and Aang, but she'll manage. She'll think of something. She has no other choice.

She has no other choice.

Katara frowns, not knowing why this particular thought caught her attention. Why—

Oh.

I have a mission, Katara, Zuko told her earlier. I have been given a mission.

I have no other choice.

Katara takes a deep breath as she realizes what has been bothering her most of the day. 

Aang looks at her curiously.

“Katara?” he asks, concern evident in his voice. “Are you okay?”

Oh, Aang, Katara thinks. Why are you caring about me when you're suffering so much yourself?

“Yes,” Katara says immediately. Which is a lie.

Aang continues to look at her with concern, but doesn't press the issue.

Katara glances at him out of the corner of her eye. She makes sure Sokka isn't around.

“You said you had friends in the Fire Nation,” Katara says, taking advantage of the fact that she is alone with Aang.

Bravo, Katara, she thinks. You're going to ask for advice from a 12-year-old boy you met literally yesterday. Who lost his entire nation. Who just saw the bones of his mentor.

How low can you fall?

“Yes!” Aang perks up immediately. “Kuzon! He was my best friend! And he was from the Fire Nation!”

Why does he sound so cheerful? Why isn't he crying, why isn't he cursing the Fire Nation?

Why, a few hours after entering the Avatar State—after Katara experienced his fury and anger—is he acting so calm? Why is he so cheerful, why is there joy in his voice?

“I understand,” Katara says quietly. “You blame him for what happened?”

“For the Fire Nation's attack?” Aang asks. He becomes a little more serious. “No. Kuzon had nothing to do with it. At least, I don't think he did. I'd like to find out someday what happened to him after– after I was trapped in the iceberg, but I don't know that yet. But even if Kuzon did something, I don't think he meant to do it. Besides, he was my best friend!”

“Even though he was from the Fire Nation?”

“No one is inherently evil,” says Aang. "The Air Nomads have always wanted to believe that there is good in everyone. But that doesn't mean we should do nothing. We have to stop the Fire Nation from destroying this world. I really understand that, Katara.

“No, no, that's not what I mean,” Katara says quickly. “It's just... remember when I told you that my soulmate is from the Fire Nation?”

“Yes.”

“I talked to them last night, and I think... I may have judged them too quickly.”

Bravo, Katara, she thinks.  Pour out your grievances to a twelve-year-old child who has lost everything.

But for some reason, Katara, looking at Aang, just wants to talk to him. She feels as if the words are pouring out of her mouth. It's as if she can't stop them.

“Because?” Aang tilts his head to the side. It's strange to look at him right now. He seems older than he really is.

“Because... I started blaming them for something that isn't their fault,” Katara says, a little uncertainly. “Practically the whole war, even though it's not their fault. Even though I know they can't do anything about it; even though I know their history and their circumstances; even though I know they really have little say in the matter... Even though I know how terrible the consequences could be if they stood directly against the Fire Lord.”

Katara pulls her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them, barely able to look at Aang. She doesn't know why she's talking to him at all, why she's telling him this. She's only known him for one day.

And yet, something about the way Aang looks at her makes Katara just want to talk to him.

(Perhaps Aang is simply the only person who would be willing to talk to her.)

“It's just...” Katara says uncertainly, searching for the right words. “It's about their father.”

“Their father?” Aang frowns, clearly surprised by the change of subject.

“Yes. Their father—Gold's father, Gold is my soulmate—is not a good person. He hurt him, badly. And more than once. And yet Gold wants to defend him. Which I can't understand, because I think Gold is a good person, that he tries his best... but he still defends his father. He is aware that his father is not a good person, but despite that, Gold still thinks he deserved everything that happened to him. Which is bullsh– very stupid.”

Katara refrains from cursing in front of Aang at the last moment. She shouldn't do that.

“Anyway, when Gold started defending him again, I lost control of myself. And I started blaming him for everything, including many things that aren't his fault. I guess... I guess I just wanted him to agree with me that his father is a bad person. Aang, how can I protect someone when they want to go back to the monster who hurt them?”

Aang is silent for a long time.

“I don't know,” he says finally. “But I think you shouldn't give up. And apologize.”

“Apologize?” Katara looks at him in disbelief.

“You guys usually get along well, right?”

“Yes,” Katara confirms. “Gold is my best friend.”

“Then you should apologize to him. And I don't think it's right to blame him for things that aren't his fault, like you said yourself.”

Katara thinks about it. Aang is somewhat right. Yesterday, in her anger, she started demanding that Zuko do something — but what can he really do? He can't stop this war. His words don't count for much in the Fire Nation. His father doesn't care about him.

Katara bites her lip as she thinks about her behavior yesterday. How stupid could she have been? She is aware of what Zuko's life was like in the Fire Nation — she knows what a monster his father is. She is aware that his childhood was full of violence and propaganda — and yet, Zuko has become a better person than his father.

Yesterday, when he arrived at her village, Zuko did the best he could. As he told her earlier, capturing the Avatar was his mission. But in the end, Zuko did nothing unforgivable. Yes, he fought Sokka, but only because Sokka attacked him (which Katara will have to talk to him about again). Yes, he captured Aang, but he treated him well. And as soon as he realized how young Aang was, he decided not to take him to the Fire Nation; instead, he hoped they could talk.

Katara groans, burying her head in her hands.

“I'm stupid,” she says.

“I don't think you're stupid,” Aang says. “You were probably surprised to see your soulmate for the first time in real life and terrified that the Fire Nation ship was so close to your home.”

“That still doesn't explain why– Wait, what?” Katara looks up at Aang.

The young monk blinks.

“You met your soulmate yesterday, right? And it was someone on Zuko's ship. Am I wrong? If I'm wrong, I apologize.”

“No, you're not wrong, but... how did you know?”

“Because you were very surprised yesterday, and I get the impression that you got angry at your soulmate partly because Zuko took me onto his ship yesterday.” Now it's Aang who is pulling his legs up, and wrapping his arm around them. “But you know, actually, I asked to get on that ship myself. So it wasn't entirely their fault.”

Katara feels like groaning again.

How stupid can a person be?

“I guess you're right,” Katara admits. “So what do you think I should do now?”

“Well...” Aang hesitates for a moment. “I know we're on opposite sides–”

“Gold won't betray the Fire Nation for us,” Katara says immediately. “I know him. He's incredibly loyal. But he doesn't want to hurt you.”

“That's nice of him,” Aang smiles at her. “I hope we could become friends.”

“Yes, that would be nice,” Katara admits. “But that doesn't change the fact that we're on opposite sides. Gold has orders to capture you. I was aware of that, but I still got angry at him yesterday.”

“Do you trust him?”

“I want to trust him.”

“Then you should try to do so,” Aang advises her. “And you should also give him reasons to be able to trust you. You can't expect people to trust you if you don't give something of yourself. If you still want to be his friend, you should talk to each other honestly. And try to make your relationship equal. Monk Gyatso always said that if you want to receive something, you should give something of yourself.”

“But what can I give him?” Katara asks.

“Right now? An apology. And then understanding.”

“Understanding,” Katara repeats. “That makes sense. Aang, remind me, you're twelve, right?”

“Technically, one hundred and twelve. Besides, the situation with your friend reminds me a little of Kuzon. Of course, it's completely different, because I never met Kuzon after Fire Lord Sozin attacked the Air Nomads, but I can't help wondering what would have happened if I hadn't run away that day. If I had stayed at the Temple. What would Kuzon have done then? Would he have fought on his country's side because he was ordered to? I don't think he would have wanted to, but Kuzon loved the Fire Nation. I like to think he would have refused to attack the Fire Nation, but... I don't know what happened to him, Katara. Smashie couldn't tell me anything about him.”

“I think we'll find out someday,” Katara says cautiously. “And honestly? I don't think Kuzon would attack the Air Nomads. I think if he was friends with you, he would have tried to help you.”

“Really?” Aang smiles broadly. “You know, his soulmate was from the Earth Kingdom! I always thought it was Bumi, but I had no way of confirming it because neither Bumi nor Kuzon ever met, but it made sense, you know? And, did you know who Bumi is now?”

Katara blinks. She doesn't know that name.

“No. I'm sorry.”

“Bumi is the king of Omashu!” Aang says happily. “I know he's still alive! Smashie told me! Smashie knows a lot, if she wants to tell me! We should go to Omashu later, Bumi will definitely help us!”

“You're friends with the king of Omashu,” Katara says weakly. “Okay. Okay.”

Great. Another person he knows is part of royalty. What's next? The commander of some elite guard? Or a princess?

“Will you tell me a little more about him?” Katara asks. “About Kuzon.”

Better to talk about Kuzon, who was almost certainly an ordinary citizen of the Fire Nation — please, be a normal person — rather than Bumi. Who is the king of Omashu.

The smile on Aang's face grows even wider.

“Sure!” he says happily. “Did you know that...?”

He's not sure why, but he finds himself grabbing a piece of paper and a pen as soon as he returns to his ship and orders his men to follow the Avatar.

Zuko is halfway through the letter when he realizes what he has started doing.

He blinks and looks at what he has written.

Dear Azula,

This news will surely reach Caldera soon, so my letter will probably come as no surprise to you.

The Avatar has returned.

I found him at the South Pole. He claims his name is Aang and that he is the last of the Air Nomads—he said he had been in an iceberg for the last hundred years, but I'm not sure I can believe that. He's just a kid, twelve years old. The only element he has mastered is Air.

As I write this letter to you, the Avatar is undoubtedly heading north to master waterbending. I intend to follow him. I know I won't be the only one trying to do so. The captain—now Commander Zhao—questioned my men and learned that the Avatar has returned. There will certainly be many who will try to get their hands on the Avatar. As this will be a major obstacle to my mission, I wonder if you would be willing to–

Zuko pauses, then looks at what he has written.

Agni, what is he doing? Does he really want to ask Azula to try to influence the royal court so that as few people as possible try to capture the Avatar?

The existence of Zuko (who is still theoretically the Crown Prince), who is known for searching for the Avatar, should deter some people from getting in his way. Of course, there will be those like Zhao who won't care and will try to capture the Avatar, but...

If Azula could help...

What do you think, Zuko? He scolds himself in his thoughts. Azula probably doesn't care about you. If you tell her about it, she'll start working against you. When you're not at home, Azula is your father's successor.

You know that Azula always wanted to be Fire Lord.

And you know that she might as well work against you.

But Azula has been with their father all this time. With their father, who never saw anything wrong with hurting Zuko. And Zuko deserved it, but who knows how Father treats Azula?

This could be a good opportunity to make sure everything is okay with Azula.

Zuko sighs.

He burns the letter, then sits down to write another, less desperate one.

Even if Azula turns against him, if she replies, Zuko will at least be able to sleep peacefully, knowing that his sister is safe.

When night falls, Katara knows she won't be able to avoid talking to Zuko any longer.

This only makes her even more nervous.

On the one hand, she wants to see him. Their meeting didn't go well, and Katara said a few words too many. Katara wants to repair their damaged relationship (if it has been damaged) and find out where they stand. Make sure they are still friends. Apologize if she has to.

On the other hand, that means she'll have to see him. And face him. Apologize.

Katara is not fond of apologies.

Besides, it's not like she was entirely wrong. Zuko sometimes seems to think that his father, that dammed Fire Lord, is a god walking the earth. Katara is tired of listening to this kind of nonsense.

And that probably means she should explain herself.

Night falls, and Katara enters the world of dreams. It takes a few more minutes before Zuko appears. Apparently, he went to bed later than she did.

Zuko isn't smiling.

“The Fire Nation already knows about you,” he says instead of greeting her.

“What do you mean?!” Katara doesn't understand. “You weren't supposed to tell anyone!”

“We might not have done so if your bison hadn't nearly destroyed my ship! We barely made it to port — and of course, Zhao had to be there! One of my men blabbed. They told him we met the Avatar. Now the entire Fire Nation will be hunting you. Zhao will see to that.”

Katara turns pale.

“I didn't know,” she whispers. “I didn't know that–”

“You were lucky before,” Zuko interrupts her. “You were lucky that I was the one who reached your village. Avatar Aang broke the agreement he made with me. There are people who would burn your village just because he escaped. Zhao is one of those people. He will follow you and will stop at nothing to find you.”

“So what now?” Katara asks. “What can we do? What–?”

“I don't know!” Zuko says irritably. “I have no idea! The Fire Nation will hunt you down—I have to hunt you down, or my father will consider me a traitor! I have to–! That's it!”

The anger in his voice suddenly disappears, replaced by satisfaction.

“What is it, Zuko?” Katara asks.

“I have a solution!” he announces. “I'll hunt you down. But I won't try to catch you. That should help you a little. Besides, even if I catch you, you'll just run away.”

Katara bites her tongue before asking if he could just not hunt them. She doesn't like the idea of someone hunting her like an animal. But it's not like Zuko is doing this because he wants to. Katara should know better.

“Won't that expose us to potential trouble?”

“I don't want to hunt you, Katara, I swear,” Zuko says quickly. “But it's a solution. The entire Fire Nation knows that I've been given the task of capturing the Avatar. If I hunt you... if everyone knows about it, it will give you a kind of protection. There are people who won't dare get in my way. Even though I'm exiled, I'm still a prince. The potential heir to the Fire Nation. Zhao will hunt you, but that's Zhao. Few in the army will try to hunt you personally, not when they know it's my and my uncle’s task. Even if not because of me, then because of Uncle.”

“You want to protect us this way,” Katara understands slowly.

“Yes,” Zuko confirms. “But on the condition that you – I mean, the Avatar try to talk to my father. And that the Avatar don't kill him.”

Katara thinks about what she knows about Aang.

“All right,” she says after a moment. “I can't promise that will happen, but I'll do everything I can to convince Aang to try to talk to your father—but only when it's safe.”

Zuko thinks about her words for a moment.

“That's acceptable,” he finally agrees. “In return, I will pretend to be hunting you and try to scare everyone else away from following you. They'll believe me anyway. The terms of my exile are such that I must capture the Avatar. It can't be anyone else.”

“Okay,” Katara nods. “And as for the throne... If your father is unwilling to negotiate and end this war without destroying the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom, then I want you or your uncle to take the throne and see to it.”

Zuko blinks.

“My uncle is the rightful heir to the throne.”

“But he gave up that title, didn't he?” Katara looks at him intently. “If your uncle doesn't want the throne, I want you to make sure this war ends. Peacefully.”

Zuko looks as if he wants to protest. To say that he disagrees; that it's not right.

But in the end, he nods.

“Agreed,” he says. “But only if my uncle doesn't want the throne.”

Perhaps Katara is making the biggest mistake of her life — perhaps she is forming an alliance with someone she shouldn't trust. Perhaps she has just sold out her friends, perhaps she has just condemned the world to destruction.

Or perhaps she has taken a step toward salvation and peace.

“So we can make a promise of silence,” Zuko says. “We have the terms, we both agree to them, and– What is it, what don't you like again?”

Katara lowers the hand she raised when Zuko started talking.

“I don't want to make that promise,” she says.

A look of hurt crosses Zuko's face.

“Why? What's wrong now?”

“No, no, no, it's not that,” Katara says quickly. “I don't–”

Katara loses her words. She's not sure how to explain her thinking.

Finally, she decides to look up at him.

“I don't want to make a promise of silence because I don't need it,” she says. “I know you, Zuko. You're my best friend. We've been talking to each other for years. I don't need a promise of silence to trust you.”

“And yet, you haven't been willing to trust me lately.”

“I didn't– I said a little too much recently,” Katara catches herself unable to look at him. “I realized I was too harsh on you. I demanded a ready solution from you, even though I knew there was little you could do. But, in my defense, you attacked my village, fought my brother, and kidnapped my friend. I was a little scared of who you really are. But – Anyway, what I mean is, I want to trust you. I don't want to work with you just because we make a promise that neither of us can break. I want to work with you because I trust you, not some stupid magic that binds us together.”

Zuko blinks. He looks like he doesn't know what to say.

“Okay,” he says after a long moment. “Okay. If that's what you want.”

Katara smiles at him, though she's not entirely sure she deserves to smile at him after what she just said.

“I don't need a promise of silence,” she says finally. “But we can treat it as a simple promise between friends.”

“A simple promise,” Zuko repeats slowly. “Okay. Fine. That's fine.”

Silence falls between them. Katara can't tell if Zuko is happy that they didn't make a promise of silence after all, or if he's angry about it.

The silence drags on.

Katara and Zuko look at each other. Neither of them speaks.

“I'm sorry,” Katara says suddenly, unable to bear the silence.

“For what?”

“For yesterday. For blaming you for things that weren't your fault.”

“It's no problem,” Zuko says quickly. “I'm not mad about it. Besides, you were right. My family has done a lot of harm to the world, and I did nothing to stop it.”

Katara bites her tongue a second time, this time to keep herself from suggesting that he forget about his stupid mission and join her, Sokka, and Aang. Aang will need a firebending teacher in the future.

“Even if that's true, I shouldn't have said what I said. I'm sorry.”

“Don't apologize,” Zuko doesn't seem bothered by her words, as if he doesn't believe she really wants to apologize. “You know what, instead of apologizing, just tell your brother he was an idiot.”

“Sokka.”

“Hm?”

“We need to talk.”

“Now, Katara?”

“Yes, now. Tell me, what made you decide to attack the Fire Nation ship yesterday?”

“They attacked first!”

“…yesterday you admitted that you attacked first.”

“What, was I supposed to stand there and let them burn our village?! They're ashmarkers, Katara!”

“But you attacked first. At a time when they had the numerical advantage. It was literally asking them to attack us. Imagine if it wasn't Zuko, but some other Fire Nation patrol. If they had defeated you, I would have had to reveal that I am a Waterbender. And then they would probably have killed not only me, but the rest of the Tribe, too, to make sure there were no other Waterbenders among us.”

Sokka looks at her for a long time.

“Damn,” he says after a moment. “You're right, Katara”.

Chapter Text

The first time she reads the letter, Azula starts laughing.

Then she reads it a second time. And a third.

And she bursts out laughing again.

Of all people, Zuzu asked her for help? His biggest political opponent?

Azula snorts with laughter at the very thought of her brother's stupidity.

How is it possible that Azula is related to someone like him?

Besides, who in their right mind would add something like “I hope you are well” or “I miss you” in a letter?

Azula continues to chuckle to herself as she begins to write her reply.

Zuzu,

Don't be stupid.

Zhao will hunt down the Avatar, no matter what you or I do. He has Father's full support.

This is a race between you and him. If you want to win, stop being a coward and a weakling, and start fighting.

Azula

Crown Princess of the Fire Nation, rightful heir to the Dragon Throne

She looks at her letter for a while to make sure it is correct and that she is not revealing too much. She doesn't want anyone who reads her letter—Azula is convinced that the guards intercept her letters, which are then read to her father—to think that she is acting against the Fire Lord's will. Perhaps her brother isn't completely stupid and has also realized that their letters are being intercepted.

Despite this, Zuko has been writing her letters for years. Their frequency increased significantly about a year and a half ago—not that Azula counts or pays attention to such things. And so she only replies to maybe half of those letters.

Azula reads her brother's letter again and bursts out laughing once more.

She is still laughing when she puts the letter away in a drawer, placing it on top of a rather large collection of letters she has received from him.

When she is in a bad mood, these letters are a great source of entertainment.

The smile does not disappear from her face as she thinks once again about the letter she received.

I miss you.

Azula bursts out laughing.

Yes, these letters are a great source of entertainment.

On Kyoshi Island, Sokka meets his soulmate.

It's not hard to tell when they meet.

One moment Katara, Aang, and Sokka are on the beach, the next they are surrounded by Kyoshi Warriors, and the next Sokka opens his arms wide.

“Warrior!” he shouts happily, moving toward one of the girls.

The girl—Suki, as she later introduces herself—proceeds to wipe the floor with him in a matter of seconds. She knocks him to the ground, defeating him without much trouble—and then kisses him, as if pleased that they have finally met.

Aang and Katara watch from a distance.

“I hope Smashie doesn't kiss me when we meet,” Aang confesses conspiratorially. “I love her, she's my forever girl — forever best friend — but I don't think I'd want her to kiss me.”

Katara laughs quietly.

“I wouldn't want my soulmate to kiss me either,” she says in the same conspiratorial tone. “Zu–Gold is my friend. But kissing him would be... weird.”

Aang nods.

On the beach, Sokka and Suki are still kissing.

“Suki, Suki, Suki, you have to meet Katara,” Sokka almost drags the girl along with him. “Look who it is. Katara, Katara, Katara, this is Suki.”

Katara looks amused at her brother's excitement. Sometimes it's hard for her to believe that Sokka is older than her.

Katara glances at Suki and raises an eyebrow, as if to ask, did you really choose this idiot?

Suki grabs Sokka's arm, as if to say, even if he is an idiot, he is my idiot.

Katara decides there is no point in arguing with such logic.

She shrugs and then nods toward Suki.

“Nice to meet you, sister.”

The worst part of it all is hiding the truth.

Katara hates having to hide the truth from her family. She hates having to listen to Sokka muttering curses under his breath at Zuko. She hates seeing the hope in Aang's eyes disappear the moment Zuko's ship appears on the horizon and he announces loudly that he has been sent here to capture them.

Katara gets a chance to talk to Zuko briefly when they meet on Kyoshi Island.

Zhao is the one who invades the islands with his soldiers. Zhao is the one who threatens to burn the islands. Zhao is the one Suki glares at with fury.

But it is Zuko who moves toward Katara when she stays behind to give Aang time to connect with the Avatar Kyoshi, to talk to her and get advice on how to end the war.

For the first time, they stand face to face, in reality. For the first time, they have the opportunity to talk to each other.

They are not alone. Standing beside Zuko are three soldiers—people he brought with him from his ship.

Katara appreciates that Zuko is keeping his end of the bargain—that he is pretending to pursue them—but she would be grateful if he had thought it through a little better. Why did he bring people with him? Why couldn't he come here alone?

Fortunately, Katara carries a pouch of water with her for a reason.

The water responds to her calls. The soldiers fall to the ground, one after another, and Katara feels something she hasn't felt in a long time—she feels powerful.

This is not the peak of her abilities. Katara learned waterbending from scrolls that Gold found for her – but that was never enough. Katara knows she is capable of more.

But it is enough to defeat the soldiers advancing toward her. None of them have fought a waterbender before.

After a short while, they are all lying on the ground, unconscious. Katara has no intention of killing them—firstly, because they are Gold's crew, and secondly, because she doesn't like the idea of killing.

Only Zuko remains.

Katara looks at him intently.

A slight smile appears on his lips. Pride. And admiration.

“I see you're close to becoming a Waterbending Master,” he says.

“I had a good teacher,” Katara smiles at him.

The smile disappears from her face as quickly as it appeared.

“What now?” she asks. “What are you doing here?”

“My uncle is in the village, making sure Zhao doesn't do anything stupid,” Zuko says. “I was hoping to find you here, but Zhao was faster. Maybe I didn't fool him as well as I thought I did.”

“You were supposed to make sure Zhao didn't find us.”

“I'm trying!” Zuko raises his voice. “But it's not that easy when you only have one ship and Zhao has many more ships at his disposal! I don't have as much power as you think I do!”

“Then you could try harder!” Katara says irritably. She takes a few deep breaths. “Never mind. What are you doing here?”

“I was hoping to warn you about Zhao, but apparently I wasn't fast enough.”

“Mhm,” Katara summons the rest of the water she has left, but doesn't direct it at Zuko.

Part of her dreams of fighting him in a duel. To find out what he is capable of — what she is capable of. Which of them would be better.

(However, if she were to be honest, it would probably be him. Katara was lucky in this fight—she took the soldiers by surprise, none of them expected her to be able to use water against them. Zuko, on the other hand, has been training for years and is much more experienced in combat than Katara.)

Before either of them can say anything, the smell of smoke hits their nostrils.

Kyoshi Island is on fire.

“It's Zhao,” Zuko realizes.

And then—and then he turns and runs toward the city. Katara hesitates for a moment, then decides to stay and watch over Aang so that nothing happens to him.

Soon after, the flames die down, and she can breathe a sigh of relief.

“What did you say to Zhao?” Katara asks as soon as she sees him.

“Nothing,” Zuko says.

“I don't believe your ‘nothing,’” Katara says, looking at him sharply. “Sokka told me what happened when you showed up in the village. Apparently, Zhao set the village on fire, and then you showed up and started yelling at him and putting out the fire.”

“I didn't yell at him,” Zuko objects.

Katara looks at him meaningfully.

“Please, we've known each other for a long time. I know you yelled at him.”

“Well... I might have yelled at him a little.”

“And? What did you say to him?”

“I reminded him that Kyoshi Island is neutral and that attacking it could cause it to lose its neutrality. And I reminded him that I did win the Agni Kai, so–”

“Agni Kai?” Katara can't believe what she's hearing. “When did you get into an Agni Kai with Zhao?”

Zuko shifts from foot to foot, a little uncertain, as if he realizes he's said something he didn't want to tell her.

“Uh...”

“Don't make that face!” Katara says. “Agni Kai? Agni Kai? What were you thinking, Zuko? What if he had hurt you?! What if something had happened to you?”

“I'm not weak!” Zuko growls. “I knew what I was doing! And I won! I beat Zhao without much trouble!”

(Later, much later, he will tell her the whole truth — that yes, he won, but he didn't deliver the final blow. That he stopped himself from burning Zhao. That Zhao attacked him the moment Zuko turned away — and that Zuko would have been injured if Iroh hadn't intervened.)

“What if you hadn't won?”

“I'm not weak enough to lose to someone like Zhao!”

“I'm not saying you're weak! I just don't want anything to happen to you!”

“Nothing happened to me!”

“You're impossible!”

“You're being too picky!” Zuko yells. “You're not my mother, Katara! I don't need your concern!”

“Apparently you do, because you're acting irresponsibly!”

“I'm trying to keep my end of the bargain!”

“Apparently, it didn't work, because Zhao showed up on Kyoshi Island anyway!”

“Which is not my fault!”

Katara feels like screaming. Screaming at the top of her lungs.

Judging by Zuko's expression, he feels like doing the same.

So they scream, for a long, long time.

Only then, when they run out of strength to scream and yell at each other, Katara looks at Zuko with resignation and concludes that they deserve each other.

They are both idiots.

Azula replied to his letter.

Zuko looks at the letter from his sister. As for Azula, it's even… nice.

Zuko reads it several times, trying to find some hidden meaning or threat like “if you don't hurry up, I'll kill you”. After a while, he stops trying to understand his sister and puts the letter in a drawer—the same place where he keeps all the letters he has received from her.

He feels he should write something back to her — this time, Azula's reply came really quickly, which makes Zuko feel that Azula was moved by his letter. At least as much as Azula is capable of being moved by him and things related to him.

Zuko sits down comfortably and begins to write a letter to his sister.

He has a feeling he will be revising it many times. 

“Would you kindly explain to me why I found your mother's necklace in the Fire Nation prison?” Zuko asks one day.

“Uh...” Now it is Katara who wants to escape the necessity of answering this question.

“That's not an answer, Katara.”

“Why do you think it's my mother's necklace?”

“First, I've seen it enough times to recognize it. And second, you're not wearing it. And you always wear it.”

Katara's hands move toward her empty neck.

“So?” Zuko raises an eyebrow. “Would you care to explain what happened?”

“Would you care to explain how you found it?”

“Because I was following you?”

“Why do you always have to have sensible answers to my questions?” Katara wonders aloud.

“I'm not the one who has to answer your questions. So? What have you done this time, Katara?”

Katara considers lying.

“I might have rebelled. A little,” She finally decides to tell the truth.

“Would you care to share the details, or is it a secret?”

“Would you mind giving me back my necklace?”

“Who knows?” Zuko shrugs. “Maybe I'll use it to track you down and catch you.”

“Jerk.”

Zuko grins.

Katara reluctantly begins to tell him everything that happened.

“You know, I was hoping you would try to give me my mother's necklace back.”

“I am trying. But I won't do it at the cost of my uncle's hand.”

“What happened?” Katara asks anxiously. “Is he all right?”

“My uncle,” Zuko's face shows resignation, “decided that a long bath in the middle of the Earth Kingdom was the perfect way to spend the day. He was kidnapped by Earthbenders. If I had come a little later, they would have broken his hands.”

“Tui and La, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Zuko. I didn't want this to happen.”

“Occupational hazard,” Zuko shrugs. “My uncle is fine. He's feeling well. But I have a feeling he suspects you're my soulmate. There's a limit to the number of proverbs he can utter before I realize what he's getting at.”

Katara laughs quietly.

“I don't know if this will cheer you up, but Sokka was recently kidnapped by a monster and ended up in the Spirit World. He told me it was a strange experience. But he's back with us now.”

“How is that supposed to comfort me?”

“Your uncle isn't the only one who got into trouble while you were away?”

“Your brother is an idiot. My uncle isn't.”

“Hey!” Katara protests. “Sokka isn't an idiot. Usually.”

“Exactly, usually.”

“This is the last time I'm trying to give you back your necklace,” Zuko declares.

“Hey!” Katara protests. “It wasn't my fault!”

“Zhao almost caught me in Fire Nation territory.”

“No one asked you to follow us into Fire Nation territory! Besides, you're exiled from the Fire Nation, Zuko! Zhao had every right to imprison you — to kill you! You really never think things through, do you?!”

“What was I supposed to do? Just stay there and watch Zhao follow you? I saw he was behind you—I wanted to warn you–”

“Your warning made Sokka think you're his number one enemy now!”

“It's not my fault your brother loves to attack me before I even talk to him!”

“You shouldn't have thrown fire at him!”

“Agni, I wasn't trying to burn your brother! I was trying to help!”

“You could have helped by not helping!” Katara hisses. “You're no use to anyone dead! And Aang was doing just fine without your help!”

“I didn't see that. When I arrived, the Fire Sages were attacking him—gleefully— and trying to kill him. I tried to warn your brother — I told Sokka that most of the Fire Sages wouldn't be on the Avatar's side! But your stupid brother never listens to me!”

“Maybe because you always start fighting with him?”

“I don't want to fight him!”

“Then why do you always fight him?”

“I don't know!” Zuko yells. “Besides, Sokka should be thanking me — it’s basically training!”

“He doesn’t know that, Zuko! He thinks you’re trying to hurt him!”

“But I’m not. So technically, I am helping him!”

“You're impossible,” Katara says. “Zuko, next time Aang talks to Avatar Roku on Fire Nation territory, just leave him alone, okay?”

The pirates have a waterbending scroll.

Katara stares at it for a long time. Part of her wants to steal it, take it with her—because it's part of her culture, something that was stolen from them.

But she knows these moves. Zuko taught her two years ago.

But it's part of her culture.

The pirates had no right to steal something that belonged to her people.

Katara reaches for the scroll.

Sokka and Aang are angry with her—and no wonder. Katara doesn't need their disapproval to know that she shouldn't have stolen the scroll.

But who can blame her? It's part of her culture. Those pirates had no right to possess that scroll — besides, now she can prove to Aang that yes, Katara knows waterbending and was lying when she told him those were the right moves.

Besides, she won't say it out loud, but Katara needed that scroll. It's one thing to watch the movements of Gold, who is not a Waterbender. It's another thing to read a scroll intended for waterbenders, created by Waterbenders.

“Katara, you already know everything about this magic water!” Sokka says irritably. “Why do you need another scroll? You don't need something like that!”

“What, would you rather it be in the hands of pirates?”

“If it would save you, yes!”

“They don't even know that I took the scroll!”

“They'll be after us now! Katara, you don't steal from pirates!” Sokka raises his voice. “How could you do such a thing?!”

Aang looks at him, then at her, but doesn't dare to interfere in their argument. And rightly so, because this is a matter between Katara and Sokka. Aang shouldn't interfere.

“Maybe I just didn't want the pirates to have our culture! Besides, if I had stolen from the Fire Nation, you would have been happy and said I did a good thing!”

“Those are two completely unrelated things, and besides, if you stole from the Fire Nation, I'd be mad at you too! Katara, just think! Think for once in your life! You can't steal from people just because you don't like them or because they stole from us first! That just creates a vicious cycle!”

“You're only saying that because you're mad that I was the first one and that I took the scroll, not you,” says Katara.

Sokka looks at her in disbelief.

“Katara, that's irrelevant. Stealing is wrong. Even if you steal from pirates. Especially if you steal from pirates. Do you want them to attack you? What if they hurt you?”

“Pff,” Katara lifts her chin proudly. “I told you, Sokka. They don't know who I really am. And they probably didn't even realize I took anything from them.”

So.

His soulmate steals from pirates in her spare time.

Zuko feels like wringing someone's neck. Until recently, that someone was his uncle, who sent him traveling around the city looking for his missing lotus tile (because, of course, Uncle had to lose pieces of his beloved Pai Sho), but now Uncle is giving way to a certain Waterbender.

Katara stole from pirates.

And she did it in such a way that the pirates know it was her.

Honestly, Katara, is it really that difficult to change your outfit so that everyone around you does not know you're from the Water Tribe? That blue dress you're wearing is quite recognizable. If you're trying not to attract attention, you're doing the opposite.

Zuko feels that sometimes Katara and her friends behave as if they want to make his job easier.

Letting the whole world know you’re the Avatar? Check.

Traveling on a large, flying fuzzball? Check.

Zero outfit changes? Check.

Destroying cabbage stands? Check.

Using your bending in front of everyone? Check.

...they are trying to hide, right?

Zuko thinks about it for a moment, then decides he'll have to ask Azula about it. His sister should know the answer.

Zuko begins to write his letter as his ship sets off in search of the Avatar.

Dear Azula, 

How are you? I hope the weather in Caldera is good.

Moving on to the main topic, I have the impression that the Avatar lacks self-preservation instinct. Let me give you a few examples of his behavior that has caught my attention recently....

Bending, as Katara has known for years, is a great way to let out your anger.

Late in the evening, Katara stands by the river, practicing her waterbending. She is getting better and better—no doubt because she has Aang with her and the two of them practice even better together—but it is still not enough. Katara still does not know enough.

“You know, I'm mad at you right now.”

Katara turns around, instinctively surrounding herself with water, ready to attack her enemy.

She relaxes when she sees that the person standing by a nearby tree is Zuko.

“Zuko,” Katara says with relief. “It's just you. You scared me.”

“It's just you, Zuko,” Zuko mimics her. “Yes, it's me. Do you know what you've done?”

“No?” Katara doesn't understand.

“You've made enemies of people you shouldn't have,” Zuko explains.

“Yes, the entire Fire Nation is my enemy, I know that. Tell me something new.”

“I mean the pirates, Katara.”

“Oh.”

“Exactly, oh,” Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

She definitely doesn't like the tone he's using. Zuko is acting like a jerk tonight.

What is he even doing here? Why are they meeting in reality? Because this is reality, not a dream, right?

“You've made my life more complicated than it needs to be,” Zuko says with obvious irritation in his voice. “Come on. You're coming with me.”

“Where?” Katara looks at him suspiciously.

“To my ship. Consider yourself kidnapped.”

“...the hell, Zuko?”

Chapter Text

“You know, instead of saying ‘consider yourself kidnapped’, you could have just said, ‘I'm taking you with me so you can look through my amazing bending scrolls,’” Katara says, looking around. “And your room sucks. I don't like it.”

“I don't like it either, so what? I'm not complaining about it.”

Zuko stands by the door, watching Katara's actions suspiciously. He brought her here because that was the deal he made with the pirates — the girl for the scroll. He must have had some reason to want to cooperate with them.

...actually, he didn't really have to do much. He told them he would track her down. And that the pirates would take the scroll, and he would take the girl.

He gave the scroll to the pirates fairly quickly, but then he had to pretend to kidnap Katara—mainly because he officially had to get something out of the deal. Besides, that way, his people wouldn't ask him what he was up to.

Answer: Zuko has no idea.

Katara, after she stopped being angry at him (which was not a very pleasant experience, better to avoid it in the future), finally agreed to play his game and pretend to be a helpless victim. She was not happy that she had to give up the scroll, but Zuko reminded her that otherwise the pirates would follow them. So it was better for her to make a small concession.

It was much easier to convince her of this when he took her to his room and let her see the collection of scrolls he had been gathering for three years.

“Why did you collect so many of these?” Katara asks, looking around.

Zuko blinks, and suddenly the girl is at the shelf where he keeps the scrolls, looking through them one by one. He thinks he should tell her to stop acting like it's her room, but he catches himself not wanting to do so. The presence of someone who doesn't hate him and who isn't his uncle is... nice? Zuko can't think of another word for it.

“Katara,” Zuko says. “My mission? The search for the Avatar? And the fact that I found scrolls on waterbending for you?”

“I haven't forgotten about that... Zuko, is this what I think it is?” Katara pulls out one of the scrolls and opens it, looking at it closely. “I know these moves. Zuko, I know these moves.”

“I found this scroll some time ago, in a small village in the Earth Kingdom,” Zuko explains. “Don't ask me how it got there, because I have no idea. At first, I intended to take it with me to study other bending styles, to know what to expect from the Avatar, who, you know, was supposed to be a grown man...”

He doesn't finish because he doesn't want their conversation to turn to the Avatar. He doesn't want it to divide them. Again.

Zuko isn't too fond of having to hunt down his soulmate, the girl he sees every night in his dreams, but hey, it's not like he has any other choice, right?

What else could he do? Join the Avatar? Teach him firebending?

You must be joking.

Zuko may not always have been fully loyal to the Fire Nation—like now, when he allows the Waterbender to look through the bending scrolls—but that doesn't mean he wants to turn against his country. If he wants to do something, to help both the Fire Nation and the Water Tribes and the rest of the world—if he wants to try to stop this war so that he and Katara can finally stop being on opposite sides of it—then his best chance is from a position of power. So, using his old title. Or using Uncle's title.

So. They need a new Fire Lord. Or they need to convince Father that war is wrong.

…the last sentence didn't sound convincing even in his head.

“You did those moves well,” Katara says suddenly, and Zuko realizes that there has been silence between them for some time.

Katara was looking through the scrolls, and he was just staring at her, lost in thought.

“What?”

“You did those moves well,” Katara repeats, her fingers tracing the drawings on the scroll. “I couldn't have learned them better myself. I don't know how that was possible, considering you're not a Waterbender.”

“I wasn't sure if I was teaching you right,” Zuko admits after a moment, feeling compelled to explain himself. “Our bending is different. Most Firebenders aren't interested in how other bending works. But that doesn't mean there aren't scrolls—or books—about other bendings. You just have to know where to look. It's probably nothing compared to a real master, someone who can tell you how you should move, but I thought it would be better than... well, nothing.” 

“Definitely,” Katara agrees, her voice sounding almost delighted as she looks through the scrolls. “I didn't know there was so much.”

“You can keep it,” Zuko says. “I don't need any of it right now anyway. It won't be much use to me. You'll get more use out of it.”

“Yes, but...” Katara looks at him. “Won't you get in trouble for this?”

Zuko shrugs. This is not the first time she has asked him if he will get in trouble because of her. Why does Katara ask this? She shouldn't care. To her, he should only be an obstacle.

“If we say you ran away, it would make sense that you took the waterbending scrolls with you,” he says. “And I'll have a reason to yell at the guards. I saw that they don't take their duties seriously. It's as if none of them want to be here and are serving as punishment!”

Wait.

Oh.

“Actually, none of them want to be here, and they're serving as punishment,” Zuko realizes. His shoulders slump. Now he's not surprised that the crew doesn't listen to him.

Katara glances at him apologetically.

“I know none of you had a choice when it came to this ship,” she says cautiously. “But it's probably better than what they could have faced, right?”

“Theoretically, they could have spent years in prison or simply been killed, so, theoretically...”

“See?” Katara smiles at him slightly. “So their fate isn't that bad. I guess. Besides, they're probably happy to know that the Avatar does exist after all. And that they have a purpose.”

“Morale is high lately,” Zuko agrees. “But it probably wouldn't be if– ”

A knock on the door catches his attention. Zuko and Katara glance in that direction, Katara quickly hides the scroll behind her back, trying not to look guilty.

Damn. What now? Zuko should be interrogating her, not treating her like a friend — besides, what if someone thinks he took her to his room with slightly... unethical intentions?

Damn. Why didn't Zuko think of this earlier? Why didn't he take Katara to the cell? He should at least pretend she's their prisoner.

But on the other hand, he didn't want to imprison her. He didn't want Katara to be a prisoner—she's his friend!

In Katara's eyes, Zuko sees growing panic as she realizes how bad their situation is.

“Who's there?” Zuko asks sharply, swallowing his panic. Calm. They need to stay calm.

“It's just me, Prince Zuko,” his uncle replies.

Zuko relaxes slightly. It's just Uncle.

And then he panics. It's Uncle. Who will see him alone with Katara in his room. Which could cause Uncle to completely misunderstand the situation.

“Uh...” Zuko says uncertainly.

Katara glances at him, as if hoping for his help. But what can he do? Zuko doesn't know what they can do! He wishes he could find a solution to this situation himself!

“Is everything all right, Prince Zuko?” asks his uncle.

“Yes, yes,” Zuko says quickly.

“I brought tea for you and our guest. May I come in?”

Zuko and Katara exchange glances. Katara has hidden the scroll on the shelf, but the rest are still scattered around. As soon as Uncle enters, he will realize that someone has touched the scrolls and...

“Yes, yes,” Zuko says, because he can't think of a reasonable excuse to avoid Uncle's presence and make him think that there is something between him and Katara that shouldn't be there.

Okay, Katara may be pretty, but Zuko isn't interested in her that way. Besides, he wouldn't stoop so low as to be interested in someone who is his prisoner. Even if Katara isn't really his prisoner.

The door opens and Uncle walks in. Just as he said, he is holding tea and cups in his hands. Three cups, as if he thought Katara would drink tea with them too.

“We don't have time for tea, Uncle,” Zuko says. “We should, um...”

“Ask me for information about the Avatar?” Katara suggests when she realizes that Zuko has no idea what to say. It's just a shame that her words are more of a question. “Um. You know, the reason you brought me here?”

“Yes!” Zuko says quickly. “I brought her here because I thought it would be easier to question her here. About the Avatar. And that we would find out where he is. But Katara wouldn't tell me anything.”

“I don't know where Aang is now,” Katara says in a monotone voice.

“And I think she's lying,” Zuko adds.

“Which I disagree with, because I'm telling the truth,” Katara says.

“Which is a lie.”

Iroh glances at him, then at Katara.

“Ah, I see,” he says after a moment. He smiles broadly. “In that case, I'm sure you'll accept some tea. It's always better to talk when you have tea with you.”

“Uncle!”

“Don't take all of Miss Katara's attention for yourself, Prince Zuko,” Uncle's eyes dance with strange sparks, as if he finds the situation amusing. “I also want to talk to her. It's not every day that I get to talk to another member of our family.”

Katara, who has meanwhile accepted the tea and just taken her first sip, chokes violently. Zuko jumps up, ready to pat her on the back if necessary, but the girl raises her hand, letting him know that no help is needed.

“What?” Katara glances at his uncle.

“Oh, forgive me if I was mistaken and jumped to conclusions,” says Iroh, still smiling. “I had only heard of the custom among the Water Tribes and thought I would respond in kind.”

“Custom?” Katara looks at Zuko as if he knows the answer.

“You're from the Water Tribe,” Zuko points out. Why would he know something like that? “You should know your own customs.”

“I would if I knew what custom we were talking about! Do you know how many different customs we have?”

Zuko doesn't know, but he can guess that there are probably quite a few.

Uncle smiles slightly, pushing the teacup toward Zuko, who makes no move to take it. He doesn't need tea, not right now. Zuko has no idea what Uncle sees in it.

“I didn't want to make any assumptions,” Uncle says calmly. “If I made too many assumptions, I apologize. I was just wondering if Miss Katara was aware that my nephew's soulmate is a female Waterbender. Who, judging by what I've learned, is unlikely to be from the North.”

“You knew that?” Zuko asks in surprise. “Why didn't you tell me Blue is from the South?”

Katara elbows him in the stomach.

Ah. They were supposed to pretend they weren't soulmates.

Zuko glances at Katara, then at his uncle. Iroh smiles warmly.

“It's nice to meet you officially, Miss Katara,” says Uncle. “My nephew has told me quite a lot about you.”

Zuko's shoulders slump. So much for trying to tell Uncle that they're not soulmates.

Katara seems to come to the same conclusion, because she doesn't even try to deny it, just sighs heavily, as if accepting the truth that their secret is out. And then a curious smile appears on her face.

“Really?” she asks. “What did Zuko tell you about me? Oh, I almost forgot. We don't know each other, not officially. I'm Katara.”

“Iroh, but you can call me Uncle,” Uncle smiles broadly. “Well, Miss Katara, I don't even know where to start. Well...”

Zuko feels like banging his head on the table.

He has a feeling it's going to be a long night.

Zuko thought he had experienced many bad things in his life. He thought he had been through a lot and that he couldn't experience anything worse than being exiled from his own country and sent to find a ghost.

Now Zuko is willing to reevaluate his previous experiences.

Katara and Uncle Iroh, sitting in his cabin, drinking tea and chatting like best friends, exchanging stories about Zuko — this is something Zuko did not plan to experience. And something he really does not like.

He feels like banging his head on the table. And then never waking up again.

Instead, he has to listen to their conversation—and honestly, Zuko doesn't know what he did wrong in his life to deserve being here. He would rather hide somewhere and never come out again. Does Uncle Iroh really want to do everything in his power to make sure Katara never speaks to him again? Really, there's no need to tell her everything!

“Wait!” Zuko suddenly says, remembering something. He stands up, interrupting Katara and Uncle Iroh's conversation.

At least it's good that they can't talk to each other. Zuko promises himself that he won't let them be alone together. It will end badly.

“I know what I was supposed to do! Your necklace!” Zuko rolls up the sleeve of his robe, revealing the necklace.

Katara's eyes widen rapidly.

“I didn't want to lose it or have someone come into my room and take it,” Zuko explains quickly, removing the necklace from his wrist. “That's why I had it with me. I didn't want to lose it accidentally, like if I put it in my pocket, and it wouldn't be right for me to wear it around my neck, so... Here you go.”

He hands the necklace to Katara, who accepts it gratefully.

“Thank you,” she smiles at him. “And thank you for finding it. And for giving it back to me. And for taking care of it.”

“I knew you cared about it, so...” Zuko doesn't finish.

He smiles at her, trying hard to ignore Uncle, who is looking at them strangely. And is it just him, or is there a smile on his face that wasn't there before?

“Thank you,” Katara repeats. “Will you help me tie it? So I don't lose it?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Katara turns her back to him, moving her hair aside to reveal her neck. Zuko catches himself wondering how naive she is when it comes to him. She came onto his ship without thinking about what might happen if he had bad intentions. And now she's exposing her neck, as if she doesn't know that if he wanted to, he could easily take her life.

This is trust—trust she has placed in him, even though Zuko isn't sure he deserves it. She trusted him when he said he wanted to end this war. She didn't agree to keep silent. And now she trusts him again, coming onto his ship, into his cabin. Allowing him to touch her exposed neck.

“Zuko?” Katara says when Zuko doesn't move.

“Yes,” Zuko twitches and quickly ties the string, realizing that he has been staring at Katara for too long, thinking about completely unnecessary things. “Here you go. Is it okay now?”

“Do you have a mirror?”

“Here,” Zuko reaches for the mirror he sometimes uses. He's not fond of mirrors, to be honest. During the first months of his exile, he couldn't bear to look at his own reflection.

He is well aware that his face is not pretty and that his hairstyle does not help matters. He is well aware that he is not an easy person to talk to or befriend.

But for some reason, Katara is here and has not even tried to attack him.

Her fingers brush the necklace as she looks at it in the mirror. It is an incredibly beautiful smile. Zuko looks away.

“Zuko,” Katara says.

“Hm?”

She hooks a finger into his sleeve, drawing his attention. Zuko looks at her.

“This is for you,” Katara says, handing him something.

Zuko frowns (or rather, his one remaining eyebrow does). Katara hands him something small and blue.

“Is that...?”

“A hair bead,” Katara explains. “You gave me back my necklace and gave me the scrolls. I should give you something. I don't have much, so...”

She shrugs, as if it's no big deal.

“In our culture, hair beads are precious,” she explains. “Sometimes we wear them to honor people we care about. This one is for Sokka. This one is for my father. And this one is for Gran-Gran.”

Katara points to her blue hair beads, one by one.

“I didn't wear anything in my hair for my mother because I had her necklace,” she says. “But the one you're looking at was never meant to symbolize someone from the Tribe. It was never meant to be mine.”

“I don't understand,” Zuko confesses.

“I made it some time ago, with you in mind,” Katara does not look at him, but at his hand, on which the bead rests. “It was blue, like all the others. It didn't stand out much when I wore it in my hair. But in truth, I wasn't the one who was supposed to wear it. I should have given it to you a long time ago, but I didn't have the chance, so... Now I'm giving it to you. I know it's not much, but I hoped it would at least remind you of me.”

Zuko looks at the blue bead. He doesn't know what to say. He glances at Katara, at his uncle, who is still here for some reason, smiling like a fool. Then he looks at the bead again.

“I... you didn't have to do that,” he says after a moment.

“You don't have to wear it,” Katara closes his fingers, hiding the bead in them. “I know it's blue and that it practically screams Water Tribe. But someday, when the war is over and we're not fighting each other... maybe then you'll want to wear it.”

Zuko nods, seeing her serious expression. Katara isn't lying. It doesn't look like it's just one big cruel joke.

“Okay,” he says. “Not now, but someday... maybe someday.”

He wouldn't be able to explain why he would wear something blue in his hair, besides, his hairstyle is already bad enough, but maybe someday...

Katara smiles at him.

“Thank you,” Zuko says, because that's what he's supposed to say. “It's an honor. I'll keep an eye on it.”

“No, thank you,” Katara replies.

Uncle raises his cup of tea to his lips, hiding a smile.

Somewhere in the middle of the night, when Katara and Uncle finish drinking tea, talking about a thousand unnecessary things, and Uncle finishes raving about pai sho, Katara decides to make a grand and very dramatic escape.

And by “dramatic,” Zuko really means dramatic. Katara gathers water around herself — whoever thought of locking a Waterbender on a ship, surrounded by water, was a genius (oops, that someone was Zuko). And then Katara floods half the deck—okay, we'll come back to that, we'll talk about it later.

And then she's gone, far away from them.

Zuko can only hope that she's safe.

Some time later, when the commotion subsides, Uncle finds Zuko staring at the blue hair bead.

“That was a precious gift,” Uncle says, stopping nearby.

“Yes,” Zuko confirms. “I didn't expect anything like that. I should probably give her something too.”

“If you want to respect her culture, you should probably give her a hair bead, red or gold, in our colors, so she can always have a piece of you around.”

“I don't think she wants to remember me all the time,” Zuko says, not looking at Uncle. “And wearing the color of her enemies will only put her in danger.”

“Then not now, but in the future, when it's safe,” suggests Uncle. “Are you going to pass on something from our culture to her?”

“I don't think Katara would appreciate another necklace, comb, or pin. It doesn't seem to be her style.”

“Yes, Miss Katara is a warrior, I'll give her that. So maybe something practical?”

Zuko's thoughts turn to the dagger his uncle gave him long ago.

“A dagger?”

“It could work. But you know very well that it can't be just any dagger, nephew.”

Zuko sighs quietly.

“I am aware of that, Uncle.”

When Katara returns to camp, Sokka and Aang are still asleep. They don't seem to have noticed that she's gone. And okay, maybe it was partly her fault, because she was the one who snuck out of camp in the middle of the night, but hey, they could have woken up. Or realized that she was gone and that quite a bit of time had passed.

Katara looks at them. She doesn't want to wake them up—she just wants to take a nap—but at the same time, she is aware that the pirates may still be around. And okay, Zuko has theoretically made a deal with them and they shouldn't attack them, but one of them is still nearby... What if they all fall asleep and get caught?

Katara doesn't want to be captured by pirates—especially after Zuko treated her to a rather long tirade about what they might do to her—but she's also incredibly tired. She spent a good few hours talking to Zuko and Uncle Iroh.

At least she made sure that Zuko and Iroh didn't want to kill Aang or take him to the Fire Lord. And that they were both trying to find a solution to the whole situation.

And she got the waterbending scrolls, let's not forget that.

And okay, her behavior wasn't the smartest or the most prudent, and things could have ended up much, much worse, but hey, in the end, nothing bad happened, right?

However, Sokka will probably be furious with her when he finds out about everything.

Katara doesn't want to tell him about it, but she probably has no other choice. Because otherwise, she would have to be on guard duty tonight. And then she would still have to explain where she got the scrolls.

She glances at Aang, then at Sokka.

“Sokka,” she says, walking over to her brother and shaking his shoulder. “Sokka.”

Sokka makes some strange noises that Katara can't understand.

“Sokka,” Katara repeats. “Wake up, Sokka.”

She has to repeat his name twice more before Sokka opens his eyes. Katara wonders what made Sokka so careless. Maybe he just didn't expect them to be attacked? Did he think Katara was keeping watch? Or maybe he was tired?

The last few weeks have brought great change for all of them. They left the South Pole, saw so many new lands, met so many new people. They have a right to be tired, especially since they have to keep running.

Even if Aang sometimes seems to think that it's all just one big adventure. Isn't that why they came to Kyoshi Island?

Sokka opens his eyes—and then flinches violently when he sees Katara.

“Katara!” he says. “What are you doing leaning over me like that? Don't stalk me when I'm sleeping! I was talking to Suki!”

With Suki, who decided to stay on Kyoshi Island. Katara knows that Suki wanted to travel with them, that she wanted to stay longer with Sokka... but at the same time, Suki has her responsibilities. Ultimately, she chose her responsibilities and decided to stay on the island.

It couldn't have been an easy decision, and Katara doesn't envy Suki.

“Talk to her tomorrow,” Katara pulls the scrolls toward Sokka. “Look what I found.”

“You found– Katara, what have you done?” Her brother quickly wakes up.

He looks at her suspiciously, but also with concern, clearly looking for wounds or anything that would indicate that she is injured or that she was involved in a fight. When he sees nothing of the sort, he relaxes a little.

“Apparently, neither of you realized that I was kidnapped,” Katara says, feeling a sudden, irrational anger toward her brother. She might as well have died, and neither he nor Aang would have noticed.

Sokka's eyes widen.

“What–?”

“Nothing happened to me,” Katara says quickly. “I just yelled at Zuko, Zuko yelled at me, and then I decided to run away and take some scrolls. Did you know he has quite a large collection of them?”

“You yelled at– Katara, what? What happened?” Sokka is fully awake. “Are you okay? He didn't– He didn't hurt you, did he? He didn't touch you or–”

“No!” Katara says, appalled that anyone would think such a thing about Zuko. And yet, on the other hand, their encounters so far haven't been the friendliest, so does she really have the right to blame Sokka for thinking that? “Nothing like that happened. We yelled at each other, and when it turned out that I wasn't going to tell him where Aang was, he gave up. And then I ran away.”

“Katara!” Sokka looks like he can't believe what he's hearing. “What? What happened? How? When?”

“While you were asleep,” Katara explains. “I’m sorry?”

She's not sure if she should tell him that she was actually asking for it by stealing from the pirates. Which, as Katara now knows, wasn't the smartest thing she's ever done, but at the time she really believed she was doing the right thing, okay?

“I was careless,” Katara admits. “But then I escaped. Who in their right mind would keep a Waterbender on a ship surrounded by water? Zuko didn't even think to tie me up.”

Which he probably would have done if they were enemies. But now they're not — or are they? Officially? Katara isn't sure about that part.

“Katara!” Sokka raises his voice slightly.

His words wake Aang, who floats up, blinking his eyes.

“What's going on?” he asks sleepily.

“Nothing, go back to sleep,” Katara says.

“Zuko kidnapped Katara!” Sokka says at the same time.

“What?” Aang almost jumps up. Then confusion spreads across his face when he realizes that Katara, who should theoretically have been kidnapped, is with them. “Wait. But she’s here.”

“I escaped,” Katara explains. “And I'm fine. And I brought us some scrolls about bending. And I got my necklace back. Now we really should get out of here. Zuko's ship isn't very far away, who knows if he'll find us?”

Sokka is furious with her, and it shows.

For the next hour, after they gather their things, load them onto Appa, and leave their camp, Sokka vents everything he thinks about Katara's actions.

Katara truly understands how foolish she was the first time.

“Everything turned out fine!” she says irritably. “Nothing bad happened!”

“But it could have!” Sokka raises his voice. “Katara, I can't believe I'm saying this, but you were lucky that Zuko found you first and not the pirates! What do you think would have happened if they had kidnapped you? Do you really think they would have been nice enough to sit down with you for tea and have a friendly chat?”

“I know it was risky, but nothing bad happened!”

“But it could have!” Sokka moves closer to her. He glances at Aang, who is busy guiding Appa, and lowers his voice slightly. ”Katara, I know you're strong. I know you're capable of protecting yourself. But at the end of the day, you're a fourteen-year-old girl. What do you think pirates might do to a fourteen-year-old girl?"

Katara knows what Sokka means. She has heard rumors about what sometimes happened after Fire Nation raids. She knew that some women preferred to commit suicide rather than let the men of the Fire Nation touch them. Her mother had given her life for her, but Kya wasn't the only woman who had died at the hands of the Fire Nation.

So yes, Katara knows. She is aware of the risk. She knows that her gender is a threat.

“I know,” Katara also lowers her voice. “And don't worry. I wouldn't let that happen. I'm willing to give my life to...”

“No,” Sokka interrupts her quickly, strangely pale. “Katara, no. You don't understand. I don't...”

Sokka glances at Aang, then back at her.

“Katara, you're my sister,” he says quietly, his voice tense. “You're my sister, and as your older brother, I want to protect you. Don't put yourself in unnecessary danger. Please. I couldn't bear to lose you.”

Katara senses his desperation, his terror at the thought that she might die or suffer a fate worse than death.

She is unable to say anything, so she just nods. Sokka nods too, then pulls her close, hugging her tightly.

“I know you're strong and that you have your magic water,” he says quietly. “But please, take care of yourself.”

“Everything turned out fine. I'm safe, Sokka. Nothing happened.”

“But it could have. This world is full of evil and cruel people, Katara. I don't want to lose you because of some of them.”

“You won't lose me,” Katara promises him. “You won't, Sokka.”

Sokka pulls her closer, his shoulders shaking slightly. Katara isn't sure if he believes her.

Aang looks at her from time to time when he thinks she can't see him. Katara tries to ignore it.

In the evening, Aang comes to her.

“What happened to the bead in your hair?” he asks. “I thought you had more of them before.”

“Ah, that...” Katara raises her hand to her hair, where the bead used to be. She glances at Sokka, but her brother isn't paying attention to her yet. “I gave it to my soulmate. Because Gold helped me get my necklace back.”

“Really?” Aang looks at her with sudden interest. “Wow. That's very nice of him. And of you.”

“That bead was meant for him from the very beginning,” Katara says. “In our Tribe, it's proof that we accept our soulmate and want everyone else to know about it. I don't know if you remember, but Suki started wearing a blue bead in her hair after she met Sokka.”

Aang's gaze shifts to Katara's hair.

“You didn't get anything in return,” he notes.

“I didn't expect anything. If Gold were from the Water Tribe, he would have given me a bead, but Gold is from the Fire Nation. I didn't tell him about this custom, and I know I surprised him, but... Anyway, I didn't expect anything in return. Besides, he gave me back my necklace. That's reward enough for me.”

“I think he'll probably prepare something for you,” says Aang, smiling at her. “He's your soulmate, your friend, after all. Do you think I should prepare something for Smashie?”

“I think it would be a nice gift, but you should prepare something from your culture for her. Did the Air Nomads have a tradition of giving something to their soulmates?”

Aang thinks for a moment.

“Bracelets!” he says triumphantly. “And special necklaces with the same design for soulmates!”

“So you should make something,” Katara suggests. “I can help you if you want.”

“Really? That would be great! Thanks, Katara!” Aang smiles broadly, happily. And then he hugs her. “You're a great friend!”

Zuko,

Are you even trying to catch the Avatar?

Azula

Dear Azula,

In answer to your question, yes, I am trying to catch the Avatar. I don't know why you would even ask such a thing. It would be easier if Zhao didn't get in my way and try to interfere with my mission.

You'll probably find out soon—news travels fast these days—but I'm getting closer to capturing the Avatar. I even managed to capture his waterbending teacher, but –

Zuko stops writing the letter, sighs heavily, and burns it until nothing remains. He appreciates the fact that Azula has been writing to him more often lately—even if she only does so to laugh at his failed attempts to capture the Avatar—but perhaps it would be better if Azula didn't know everything that was going on.

He should avoid mentioning Katara to her. Azula knows that Zuko's soulmate is from the Water Tribe—unlike Azula's soulmate, who is from the Fire Nation—so she might start to suspect who Katara really is. Azula knows the small details, what Zuko revealed to her when they were children—that his soulmate's mother was killed by the Fire Nation; that his soulmate has a brother and that she is a female Waterbender (Azula promised on Agni's flames never to tell their father or grandfather). And while that's not enough to know for sure that it's Katara (Zuko didn't know until they actually met), everyone knows that your soulmate is someone whose path will cross yours.

So, if Azula connects the dots, if she comes to the conclusion that Katara is his soulmate...

Zuko cannot predict what might happen then.

Zuko sighs heavily. He takes another sheet of paper and starts his letter again.

Dear Azula,

In response to your question, yes, I am trying to capture the Avatar. I don't know why you would even ask such a question. It would be easier if Zhao didn't get in my way and try to interfere with my mission. Of course, I am aware that he is also obliged to search for the Avatar, in accordance with the Fire Lord's will, as everyone knows that the Avatar is the greatest threat to the Fire Nation–

As always, the letter from her brother makes her burst out laughing.

As always, Azula reads it several times, chuckling to herself and mocking her brother's stupidity and naivety.

As always, the letter goes into a drawer so she can laugh at it at other times.

Unlike always, her soulmate speaks first.

“Your brother has written to you again, Ember.”

Azula turns irritably toward her soulmate. As always, the face remains hidden in shadow, just a silhouette. They have not yet met in reality—and if Azula's assumptions are correct, they will not see each other for a long time.

“I don't understand why you're saying that,” Azula says.

Her soulmate's laughter echoes – today they are in a spacious room that Azula has never been to in reality, so it must be a room from her soulmate's memories. The world of dreams is always built from fragments of reality, from what they know.

“Because you're smiling, Ember,” her soulmate explains. “You always smile like that when your brother writes to you.”

“Because his letters are entertaining,” Azula remarks. “You don't have to envy me. My brother is a fool anyway.”

Her soulmate, whom Azula named Ghost years ago, has no siblings. Azula didn't ask about it, but Ghost told her without being asked.

“Sometimes I dream of having someone who would send me letters,” Ghost says quietly, looking around and observing their surroundings. Azula isn't sure what her soulmate is thinking right now. “Although my father probably wouldn't be happy about it.”

“You should kill him. Or burn him,” Azula suggests. “The easiest way to get rid of your enemies.”

Ghost laughs, as if Azula had just made a joke. Even though Azula was completely serious.

“I'm not going to kill my father, Ember.”

“That's a shame, because maybe you should consider it. I think about killing my father quite often,” Azula confesses. “Especially now that my brother is closer to completing his mission and returning home. When he returns, my position will be threatened. So I should take over... get rid of my father while I can and solidify my position so that even if my brother returns, he won't be able to do anything.”

“Mhm,” Ghost doesn't seem convinced. “I'm sure you want to kill your father.”

“Right now, it's not possible, that's true,” Azula twirls a strand of hair around her finger. “But maybe in a while, when I find a way to make sure no one connects me to his death... Definitely before my brother comes home. I have to take care of myself. I have to protect what's mine.”

“Protect what's yours,” Ghost repeats, in that same strange tone her soulmate sometimes uses. “Yourself? Or your brother?”

Azula considers — for a moment, for a split second — burning her soulmate. It's just a dream world after all.

“Of course, me,” Azula says simply. “Enough about me. Tell me what's interesting in your boring village.”

“Our city isn't a village,” Ghost protests. “It's the largest city in the region and–”

“–it's huge, the kind I've never seen before, yes, I know, you've said that a million times before,” Azula interrupts her soulmate. “Tell me about your boring village.”

Ghost looks ready to argue for a moment but eventually gives up and begins talking about that boring village.

Azula loses interest in the story halfway through.

She should have known it would be an incredibly boring story.

Chapter Text

“I think I'm in love,” Katara announces.

Zuko looks at her as if she's crazy.

“Who is this unfortunate person?”

“You're my friend, Zuko,” Katara says irritably. “My best friend. You should support me.”

“I don't recall becoming your best friend, and I'm definitely not interested in your romantic adventures.”

“You're the only person my age I can talk to about this, so you're stuck with me.”

“What about Sokka? Aang?”

“Sokka is my brother, and Sokka doesn't like Jet. Aang is twelve years old and just a kid. Besides, I've listened to you talking about this girl...”

“Mai.”

“Mai,” Katara rolls her eyes. “So you can listen to me talk about him. Listen to me carefully, Zuko. Jet... Jet is amazing. It's a shame you haven't seen him. He's incredibly handsome, and strong, and really nice.”

Zuko buries his head in his hands, muttering something strangely similar to ‘Agni, for what sins must I listen to this?’.

Katara doesn't intend to let that bother her. Zuko is the only person who will really listen to her — who is able to help her. And advise her.

Zuko may complain, but in the end, he will listen to her.

He always does.

“I hate him.”

“Who?”

“Jet.”

“I thought you loved him.”

“That was before it turned out he was a crazy radical who wanted to destroy the entire village just because there were a few Fire Nation soldiers in it.”

“…”

“Don't make that face, Zuko. Don't say anything.”

“I haven't said anything yet.”

“But I recognize that look. I know what you want to say. You don't have to tell me.”

“…”

“Okay, fine! Say it!”

“Sokka warned you. You should have listened to him. He's an idiot, but he's usually right. Now, please, tell me more about this village?”

“Is everything okay?”

“Why do you ask?”

“The last storm was terrible. I saw your ship, you know, from Appa's back. I wasn't sure you'd make it. It didn't look good.”

“It wasn't that bad.”

“…”

“What's that look on your face, Katara?”

“You're hiding something from me. What happened?”

“Not much. We almost lost one of our crew members. And we were almost struck by lightning. Did you know my uncle can redirect lightning?”

Zhao has captured the Avatar.

Zhao has captured the Avatar, and of course, he has to brag about it to anyone who will listen.

Zhao caught the Avatar—which is Zuko's mission—and he's proud of himself. And he's incredibly pleased to be able to tell Zuko about it, completely ignoring the fact that he's destroying his home ticket.

Not that Zuko needs it.

But. Back to the main topic.

Zhao has captured the Avatar, which means that if someone doesn't do something, the Avatar will be brought to the Fire Nation and then to the Fire Lord. And that's bad news for many reasons, starting with the fact that it destroys Zuko's chances of returning home, and ending with the fact that the Avatar will probably be imprisoned for the rest of his life (there must be some reason why most of the Army was ordered to capture, not kill, right?).

Anyway. Zhao has captured the Avatar, and at the moment, it doesn't look like anyone will be able to help him. He has two allies — Katara and Sokka — but Zuko is not going to go to them with the information that the Avatar has been captured and that he needs their help to break into Pohuai.

He is capable of doing it himself.

Breaking into Pohuai is easy. Escaping is also easy, except for the moment when Zhao allows the Yuyan Archers to shoot at Zuko.

When Zuko wakes up, the Avatar is sitting next to him, looking at him with a strange mixture of sadness and hope.

“Do you know what the worst part about being born more than a hundred years ago is?” says the Avatar. “I miss all the friends I used to hang out with. Before the war started, I used to always visit my friend Kuzon. The two of us, we'd get in and out of so much trouble together.”

Zuko blinks, trying to figure out what happened between their last meeting (full of shouting and fire) and now, with the Avatar looking at him with hope in his eyes.

“He was one of the best friends I ever had,” the Avatar continues. “And he was from the Fire Nation. Exactly like you. Do you think that if we had known each other then, we could have been friends?”

Zuko is well aware that this is the moment when he should throw a fireball at him and make him realize that no, it's not possible.

But something about the way the Avatar—Aang, Zuko corrects himself in his mind, he's just a twelve-year-old child—looks at him makes Zuko not want to be aggressive. Not today. Not now.

“I don't know,” he says, looking at the boy intently, part of him expecting to be attacked. Aang says aloud that he is a pacifist, but he has never had anything against defending himself. “Perhaps so.”

“Really?” Aang smiles broadly at him and jumps down from the branch, approaching him.

Zuko stands up from his seated position, cursing his luck. Of course, he had to get injured just as he was trying to free the Avatar from the hands of the Fire Nation. And of course, Aang had to discover his identity.

“It's hard for me to answer that,” Zuko shrugs, trying to make it sound as casual as possible. His head is bursting with pain. He doesn't seem to have a concussion, he can move, luckily the arrow hit his mask.

If he hadn't been wearing a mask, he would be dead by now.

“I wasn't born in the times you know,” Zuko says, glancing suspiciously at the Avatar.

Aang stops at a safe distance, not getting too close to him.

“But perhaps, if there had been no war... who knows?”

“Do you think we could be friends now?” Aang asks hopefully.

“In case you haven't noticed, I'm actively trying to capture you.”

“I don't think you're really trying to capture us,” Aang says simply, sitting down next to him.

It's as if he's stopped being afraid of him. Wonderful. A very good night has just gotten even better.

“The first time we met, you and General Iroh tried to convince me to join your side,” Aang says. “Then you followed us, but you never really caught us. Besides, you protected Katara from the pirates and let her escape.”

“I didn't let her escape!” protests Zuko.

Aang just looks at him.

“It's all Uncle's fault,” Zuko says. “He invited her to the tea party and then showed her all those scrolls. Are they even useful to you? Please tell me they are.”

“They are useful,” Aang says. “Thanks for giving them to us, Zuko.”

“I didn't give them to you, I just let Katara take them.”

“It's the same thing. And you just admitted that you let her escape.”

“I enabled her escape.”

“Still the same thing. Why don’t you just call it by its name?”

“Plausible denial– Anyway, why am I explaining this to you? Shouldn't you be running away now? Do you want Zhao to catch you again? This time I won't be able to free you.”

“We're far from Pohuai,” Aang says quickly. “They shouldn't find us here for now.”

“That doesn't change the fact that they might find us, and I have to be on the ship, because if anyone finds out that I freed you, my head will be more wanted than yours.”

Aang turns a little green.

“Why?” he asks. “Your father–”

“I'm not the favored child,” Zuko interrupts him. “And my father has made it very clear what he thinks of me. Listen, I'm not—I'm not chasing you because I have some dream or desire. I'm doing this because I have no other choice. You are my only chance to go home. I was exiled years ago. Only by capturing the Avatar can I regain my title, and return home, to my sister, my family.”

He hesitates, wondering how much he can say and how much he can't. He doesn't know this kid well enough. He knows Katara likes him, but how much can he trust him? Can he tell him that he's not really trying to catch him?

“And that means that ultimately our goals are opposed.”

“Theoretically, yes,” says the Avatar slowly. “But then, when we first met, you didn't want to catch me. At least, that's not the impression I got. And now you've helped me.”

“Because I can't let Zhao catch you.”

“Hmm...” Aang thinks. “That makes some sense– My frogs! We can't talk about this here now! We have to go to Katara and Sokka!”

Zuko blinks.

“I thought the whole point of this was to get away from Zhao.”

“Yes, but Katara and Sokka are in danger! We have to help them!”

“...What?”

“If we don't help them, they could die! We have to go to them as soon as possible!”

Zuko had planned to leave. To leave Aang alone with himself.

But now that plan is impossible.

“Lead the way.”

Aang hesitates for a moment.

“I won't hurt you or try to hurt you or your friends,” Zuko says quickly. “I promise on my honor.”

...okay, bad comparison. Zuko has no honor. He lost it three years ago.

“On the bond between me and my soulmate,” he says after a moment. “I won't hurt either of you, and I won't try to catch you, not today. I'll make sure Katara and Sokka are safe, and then I'll leave.”

Aang nods gratefully.

“Great!” he says. “Then follow me!”

So.

Zuko follows the Avatar. Whom he should be capturing. And whom he is not currently capturing.

They reach a small building where Katara, Sokka, Appa, and the lemur are – uh, it was Momo, right? If Zuko remembers his name correctly.

Katara and Sokka are unconscious, their foreheads sweaty. They don't look too good.

“What's wrong with them?” Zuko approaches Katara and puts his hand on her forehead. It's not good. “She's burning up.”

“I don't know,” Aang looks at him strangely, as if trying to solve a puzzle. “But I was told that these frogs can help them!”

He holds out the frozen frogs.

“Frozen frogs,” Zuko repeats after him. “Which...?”

“If they suck on them, they'll get better!”

Zuko blinks.

“Are you... serious?”

“That's what I was told! It's a good solution! Apparently! Besides, I don't have any other medicine! It has to work! At least, I hope so!”

“Is this some kind of... Avatar treatment?”

“Hmm...” Aang thinks for a moment. “Yes?”

“Um. Okay,” Zuko doesn't intend to argue with that. “All right. You try to cure them, and I'll, um...”

He looks around, searching for something he could do.

“I'll make some soup? You must be hungry?”

“You know how to cook, Zuko?” Aang asks curiously.

No. In the palace, everything was prepared by chefs, and on the ship they had chefs. So Zuko never had to cook anything himself.

But it can't be that hard, right?

“Zukooo...” Aang says a moment later. “Did you just burn that soup?”

“No!” Zuko shouts. “Of course not! You can't burn soup! It's water and some vegetables!”

“...There's no meat in it, right?” Aang looks suspiciously at the bowl Zuko has held out to him.

Katara and Sokka still haven't regained consciousness, but their fever has subsided somewhat. Those strange frogs really worked.

“Of course not! You're an Air Nomad, aren't you? Why would I give you meat?! What do you take me for?!”

“Oh,” Aang blinks, as if he didn't expect that answer. “So you knew I was a vegetarian?”

“Are you trying to insult my preparation for capturing the Avatar? Do you think I really didn't research your culture? Do you really think I was searching for you blindly?”

“No, no, no, I'm just... a little surprised. That's all.”

Zuko glances at Aang from under his eyelids, challenging him to continue the conversation. If he continues to insult him...

Aang falls silent. He starts eating.

“Um. This soup is... interesting, Zuko.”

“Shut up, Avatar,” Zuko says, trying the soup.

...as soon as he has a chance to talk to Katara, he'll ask her how to cook it. He must have missed something important in the recipe.

“Zuko,” Aang says a moment later.

“What?”

“I just wanted to... thank you? For freeing me. And um, for giving the necklace back to Katara.”

“I freed you for my own reasons. As for the necklace, I found it in prison. I can catch you without holding on to the only memento Katara has of her deceased mother. I don't need something like that.”

“So you gave her the necklace?”

Zuko looks at him with fury. He puts his soup aside.

“I'm done,” he announces. “Katara and Sokka won't die in the next few hours. They shouldn't get any worse, but if something happens, my ship is nearby. I'll help you, as long as Zhao doesn't notice you. Now I've spent too much time here. I don't want Zhao to connect my absence with your escape.”

He stands up, collects his swords and mask. He should probably destroy it.

Aang also stands up — and then bows slightly.

“I understand, Zuko,” he says. “And thank you for your help.”

“I didn't do it for you, Avatar.”

“Aang. My name is Aang.”

Zuko hesitates for a moment.

“Never mind,” he says. “Don't let them die, Aang.”

And then he leaves, unstopped by the young monk.

Katara hasn't been this sick in a long time.

When she wakes up, there are frozen frogs in her mouth. Aang explains that it was the only way to help her, to save her — okay, that's a little weird, but Aang is the Avatar, so maybe it means something.

Some time later, when Katara is feeling a little better, Aang takes her aside so that Sokka doesn't notice.

He is strangely nervous.

“Is everything okay?” Katara asks anxiously.

“Yes,” Aang says quickly. “Everything's fine. I just wanted to ask you something.”

He glances at her, then looks away. He looks at her again.

Katara looks at him.

“You mentioned once that your soulmate is from the Fire Nation, right?” Aang asks after a long pause, somewhat nervously.

“Yes,” Katara confirms cautiously. “Why do you ask?”

“I was wondering if you could tell me more about them? If you feel like it, of course.”

Katara raises an eyebrow.

“Why do you ask?”

“I'll explain everything, I promise,” Aang says quickly. “I'm just curious. What kind of person are they?”

“My soulmate is...” Katara searches for the right word. “Incredibly stubborn. Loyal. Sometimes almost too loyal.”

Loyal to the wrong person, unfortunately.

Katara hates that — that Zuko knows his father and the Fire Nation are wrong, yet he still wants to fulfill his father's will. Despite the promise he made to her, he still defends his father and insists that he is a good man.

“He... knows that the war must end,” Katara says. "He knows it perfectly well, but he doesn't want his country to suffer because of it.

“Do you think he would take my side? That he would help me?”

“Is this a request for me to persuade him to find you a firebending teacher?”

“No,” Aang says quickly. “I guess why that's impossible for now. But I'm just wondering about the Fire Nation. I know not everyone from the Fire Nation is bad. I know that. I'm just wondering if it's possible for us to befriend someone from the current Fire Nation?”

Katara thinks for a moment. Zuko has always set clear boundaries—he can help her, he can pretend he wants to capture them, but he will never actually do so—yet at the same time, he will not stand directly against the Fire Nation. He will help defeat his father, but he does not want him to die. He will not raise his weapon against the soldiers of the Fire Nation. Ultimately, his loyalty is to his country — and that is why he feels he will have to stand against his father.

“I don't know,” says Katara. “But I have a feeling that if you had met under different circumstances, you would have been good friends. My soulmate... there are many things we disagree on, and sometimes we argue for a long time, but I don't think he's a bad person.”

“I understand,” Aang muses. “When you and Sokka were sick, I was captured by Zhao.”

“Yes, I know. You already told us that,” Katara remarks.

“I know,” Aang shifts from foot to foot. “But I'm talking about the Blue Spirit. I know who's behind the mask.”

“Zhao?”

“Of course not!” Aang laughs at the thought, though it's a nervous laugh. “Katara, I'll tell you who was behind the mask, but you can't tell anyone, okay? Not even Sokka. I don't want Blue Spirit to get in trouble because of this.”

Katara begins to guess who might be behind the mask — and she doesn't like it very much.

Despite this, she nods.

“It was Zuko,” Aang lowers his voice. “He freed me. Zuko is Fire Nation. He tried to capture me several times. He fought against us. But at the same time, he freed me. Remember what I told you during our first encounter with Zuko? That I had a feeling that he and his uncle weren't necessarily on Fire Lord Ozai's side? I think that's actually the case. I think they're acting on their own. And I think we might be able to work with them.”

Katara is silent for a moment.

She dreams of being able to tell the truth—that Zuko is on their side, in a way. That they have the same goal.

But telling the truth would be tantamount to saying that Zuko is her soulmate. And in doing so, she could jeopardize the promise they made to each other.

“We can't be sure,” she says cautiously. “But maybe it's true.”

“Do you think we could be friends?” Aang asks with undisguised hope. “Me and Zuko.”

Katara smiles slightly.

“If it weren't for the war? Definitely.”

“I knew it!” says Aang. “You know, he even came here! He made sure you and Sokka were safe! He even cooked me meatless soup!”

Katara freezes.

“What?”

“I think he cares about you,” Aang says, looking at her in a strange way that Katara can't quite figure out. “Even when he was cooking soup, he kept looking at you, coming over to make sure your fever was going down... it was kind of cute, you know?”

“What?”

“You know, it kind of makes sense,” Aang adds quickly. “When he caught you, he treated you well, right? And then he gave you back your necklace and, you know...”

“I guess so, but... Never mind. I don't think it matters now. After all, Zuko is our enemy, right?”

“Yes, but...” Aang hesitates a little. “Katara, is he...?”

He doesn't finish.

“Is he...?” Katara asks.

“Nothing,” Aang says finally. “I wasn't asking anything.”

“I thought you weren't supposed to do anything stupid, Zuko.”

Zuko, who looks incredibly tired, turns toward her.

“What are you–?”

“Aang told me what happened,” Katara interrupts him. “Apparently, he was saved by a warrior wielding dao swords. Who is as agile as a ninja. And who wore the Blue Spirit mask. By the way, wasn't that a character from Love amongst the Dragons? The play you love and have told me about a million times?”

“It's not what it looks like,” Zuko says quickly.

“No? Then what is it?”

“Perhaps the Avatar was really saved by a Spirit?” Zuko suggests. “Perhaps it is the will of the Spirits. You know, they decided to save the Avatar on their own.”

“That's interesting. A Spirit that can use swords. And dao swords at that. Isn't that your signature fighting style, Zuko?”

“Uh...” Zuko averts his gaze from her.

Katara crosses her arms over her chest.

“What's your explanation?” she asks.

“What was I supposed to do?” Zuko loses the desire to pretend that he didn't free Aang. “Let Zhao drag Aang to the Fire Nation? You should be grateful that I helped him!”

“And almost died in the process. Aang told me what happened. That you were attacked. Didn't you think about what would have happened if Aang hadn't helped you?”

“But he did help me. He didn't let the Fire Nation find me,” Zuko remarks. After a moment, he adds, “He's a good kid.”

His face softens slightly. Although Zuko and Aang are officially enemies, Katara realizes that neither of them wants it that way.

“Thank you,” Katara says after a moment.

“For what?” Zuko tilts his head to the side, clearly surprised that Katara isn't arguing with him.

“For saving Aang. You didn't have to do that. You were only supposed to pretend to chase him, but instead you saved him. Although I don't understand why you tried to poison him afterwards.”

“What?”

“Your soup, Zuko,” Katara says. “I tried it later. Are you aware that it was barely edible?”

“Do you believe in prophecies?”

“What kind of strange question is that, Katara?”

“Just wondering.”

“Mhm.”

“Don't look at me like that, Zuko. And you didn't answer my question.”

“You can't blame me for looking at you.”

“Like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like that!”

“That doesn't make sense, Katara,” Zuko says. “You have to be more specific.”

Katara rolls her eyes.

“Just tell me if you believe in prophecies or not.”

“Agni, I'm not interested in that. I have more important things to worry about than prophecies.”

“Like catching the Avatar?”

“That's my mission.”

“Hey, don't be like that,” Katara nudges him with her shoulder. “We both know you won't accomplish it.”

A look of irritation crosses his face, as it always does when he thinks about it. Sometimes Katara feels bad—she knows how much Zuko wants to go home. The promise he made to her means he won't be able to do that, not while Ozai rules the Fire Nation.

“But,” Katara says quickly. “You didn't answer my question. Do you believe in prophecies, Zuko?”

“Am I to understand that this strangely specific question stems from the fact that you've been involved in some adventure that was both dangerous and interesting?”

“I wish I could say no, but I'm afraid so.”

“...What did you do this time?”

“No one died!” Katara says immediately. “Everything is fine!”

“Why do I get the feeling that you almost died? And that you did something very dangerous?”

Katara laughs a little nervously.

Later, she thinks about what Aunt Wu told her. About her future. About marrying a powerful bender.

A powerful bender. It could be Aang — someone who will become the most powerful bender in the world. But Aang is like a younger brother to her, like a friend.

It could also be Zuko. Her soulmate.

Katara knows that Zuko is a man. He is sixteen years old. It wouldn't be strange for him to be looking for love.

But Zuko is her friend. He may be her soulmate, but above all, he is her friend. Someone she can tell everything to; someone who is her equal; someone who will always listen to her. Sometimes they argue, they don't always agree—but ultimately, they are friends. Zuko has been by her side for as long as she can remember.

Is it possible that one day their friendship will turn into something else?

Katara thinks about Jet—about how easily she fell in love with him, how easily he charmed her, deceived her.

She's not sure she could bear it if Zuko were the one who deceived her, betrayed her.

Katara quickly stops thinking about it.

There is no point in thinking about something that will never happen.

Chapter Text

“Sometimes I'm so fed up with this!” Katara collapses onto the sofa in exasperation.

Zuko, sitting next to her, glances at her and then looks away.

Tonight, they meet in a room decorated in greens and browns. Katara assumes it must be a room Zuko saw during his travels in the Earth Kingdom, because she doesn't recognize the place.

“What exactly?”

“Everything. This war. Aang,” Katara confesses. “You probably don't know, but we met Bato today. Bato is my Dad's friend.”

“His right-hand man?” Zuko guesses. “You've mentioned him a few times before.”

“Yes, that Bato,” Katara confirms. “He's also Dad's soulmate.”

Something strange appears on Zuko's face.

“Ah. I see. I'm sorry.”

“What?”

“What what?” Zuko looks surprised.

“Why are you sorry?”

“Because... they have to hide it?” Zuko asks uncertainly. “And it must be incredibly hard for them?”

Katara frowns.

“No,” she says slowly. “Dad and Bato never hid it.”

“And... Are they okay?” Zuko asks slowly. “They're not trying to... Agni, I'm stupid! Of course! This isn't the Fire Nation! I'm sorry!”

“Zuko, you need to be more specific, because now I have no idea what you're talking about,” Katara confesses. “What does the Fire Nation have to do with this?”

“Uh...” Zuko averts his gaze from her. “It's forbidden. In the Fire Nation. Under penalty of death. Or imprisonment.”

“Why would that be forbidden?” Katara doesn't understand. “The fact that someone has a soulmate... is it because they're both men?”

“My great-grandfather Sozin forbade it,” Zuko doesn't look at her, but somewhere ahead, far away from her. “After Roku abandoned him. Apparently—I don't know if it's true, but Uncle claimed that Sozin and Roku were soulmates. There are theories—I don't know if it was true, but they say there was... something more between them. But it was unrequited, probably. So when Roku abandoned Sozin, he rejected his colonization plans, and then... uh. I don't know. No one knows what really happened, but Sozin forbade it. So it's forbidden. In the Fire Nation. Uh. I'm explaining this all wrong.”

“You're explaining it very badly,” Katara agrees. “Just to be sure. You mean it's forbidden to have a soulmate of the same sex?”

“Agni, no! But it's forbidden to... act on the bond!”

Katara stares at him for a long time.

“Homosexuality!” Zuko finally says, as if unable to bear the silence. “And acting on it! Sozin forbade it! It's illegal!”

Katara is unable to say anything for a moment.

Then she bursts out laughing.

“Tui and La, you thought that... all this time you thought that... Dad and Bato... it's not like that, Zuko. They're not a couple. Not like that. They're like brothers. They're the most platonic soulmates you can imagine. They're not in love with each other.”

“Oh,” he says, understanding in his eyes. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...”

“It's okay,” Katara laughs. “A lot of people thought the same way. You know, it's probably because a lot of people just... romanticize the soulmate connection. They think you're doomed to be lovers with your soulmate just because you have a special connection. But I don't think it has to be that way.”

“That makes sense,” Zuko says slowly, then adds quietly, “My father's soulmate died a long time ago, but I heard she was his true love. My mother... I know she loved her soulmate before she had to leave him. That's why I thought... I don't know what I thought. In my family, you don't marry for love. You marry for politics. That's what my grandfather did. And my great-grandfather. My uncle also married for political reasons after his soulmate was killed.”

“Oh,” Katara reminds herself once again that she is talking to someone whose life has never been easy. “I'm sorry to hear that.”

Zuko shrugs.

“We are royalty,” he says. “We don't have the privilege of marrying for love. That's why many in our family treated their soulmates as lovers. Because they are the only ones you can truly trust.”

He glances at her.

“But I'm not saying it has to be the same between us,” he says quickly. “Don't get me wrong, I like you, but...”

“Not like that,” Katara finishes. “It's okay. You're my best friend.”

Zuko smiles slightly at her.

“Back to the topic. What about Bato?”

“Bato was separated from Dad's. Bato was wounded, but he wanted to return to the fleet. Dad sent a messenger to him with information on how to find him–”

“Wait, that doesn't make sense,” Zuko interrupts her. “Bato and Chief Hakoda are soulmates, right? So why couldn't your father tell him that in a dream? Why risk sending a messenger?”

Katar shrugs.

“I don't know. Maybe they had an argument about something. Or maybe they didn't have enough time to exchange information. You know how it is sometimes. You talk for a few minutes—sometimes a few seconds—and then the conversation ends. You fall asleep, truly asleep. Anyway, Dad sent a messenger, but it was Aang who met him. He got the map and well, wanted to hide it from us. He was afraid that Sokka and I would go to Dad. That we would abandon him.”

“Well...” says Zuko. “No wonder, if I'm being honest.”

“Hey!” Katara objects. “We didn't want to abandon him!”

“Aang hasn't known you long,” Zuko points out. “Besides, this kid has lost everything. Everyone he knows. You've become his family, his best friends. You're all he has, except for his soulmate, but he hasn't met them yet. He doesn't want to lose you, because then he'll have nothing left. So he wanted to keep you with him, even though he knew it wasn't the right thing to do. He wanted to keep you by force, not knowing that sometimes you have to give someone the opportunity to leave, to give them a choice... because if someone really cares about you, they'll come back to you, always.”

Katara nudges him gently on the shoulder.

“I didn't ask you to connect with your inner Uncle Iroh.”

“How did you know I was doing that?” He looks amused.

“Because you always make that funny face when you do it,” Katara explains. “But you're right. Sometimes you have to let people go.”

“You mean my uncle is right.”

Katara smiles slightly.

“Yes, I did,” she confirms. The smile disappears from her face. “Anyway... Sokka and I didn't abandon Aang. We weren't going to go to Dad. I thought about it, I won't deny it... but it wouldn't have been right. Aang needs us. We're all he has. But you know... I hate this war, Zuko. Do you see what it's doing to us? It's making us choose. It's keeping us from being with the ones we love.”

In another, better world, Katara, Sokka, Aang, and Zuko could meet without shouting and anger. In a better world, Hakoda, Kya, and Ursa would be with them.

But they don't live in that world.

“I know,” Zuko says quietly. After a moment's hesitation, he reaches out his arm and puts his arm around her, letting Katara rest her head on his shoulder, just like they did long ago when they were children, when they still knew very little.

Katara closes her eyes, reveling in his warm embrace, his warm arms. Perhaps this is a mistake—officially, they are on opposite sides of this war, and he is likely to become the ruler of the same country that killed her mother—but at this moment, Katara does not want to think about that. When she is in his arms, she always feels safe. Protected.

“I hate this war too, Katara,” Zuko whispers. “But we'll get through it. We'll end it somehow. Together.”

“Together,” Katara repeats.

It sounds like a promise.

“Aang is starting to learn firebending,” Katara announces.

Zuko turns to her in surprise.

Today—well, tonight—they meet amid snow and ice. The South Pole. Katara hasn't been home since she started traveling with Aang and Sokka. The sight of snow is so nostalgic that she almost starts to cry. She misses home, even though she loves to travel.

To keep from thinking about her homesickness, she talks. She talks about what has happened recently. Aang is a good distraction.

“How so?” asks Zuko. “I thought you were running away from the Fire Nation.”

“From you and Zhao,” Katara corrects him.

Snow is falling around them. His clothes—typical Fire Nation attire—stand out starkly. Red and black amid the white.

“From me and Zhao,” Zuko says, irritation creeping into his voice. “Why is Aang learning firebending? Do you want him to be captured by the Fire Nation? Do you know what my father will do when he finds him? Are you crazy?”

“Hey, no one's going to capture anyone!” Katara objects. “We met Master Jeong Jeong.”

“Deserter,” Zuko's eyes widen.

“You know him?”

“Who hasn't heard of him? The whole army is talking about him. He's one of the Fire Nation's greatest traitors.”

“And apparently the only person in the Fire Nation willing to teach Aang firebending,” Katara looks at Zuko meaningfully. “Aang was counting on you to help him, you know? He wanted to be your friend.”

“I don't think I need to explain why that's impossible right now.”

“You don't have to,” Katara agrees. “But... what do you think about it?”

“About what?”

“About Jeong Jeong. About him teaching Aang firebending. Do you think he's ready?”

Zuko doesn't answer right away.

“The cycle exists for a reason,” he says after a while. “Previous Avatars always learned the elements in the right order. In Aang's case... listen, I don't know him as well as you do, but maybe he should master earthbending first. That will give him the control and stability he needs to master firebending. Remember what I told you? Fire isn't evil by nature, but it can hurt people. If Aang isn't serious and careful enough, he could hurt someone by accident. Burn them.”

“Jeong Jeong didn't want to teach Aang,” Katara confesses. “But then the Avatar Roku appeared and convinced him that it was necessary. We don't have many people who can help us.”

“I can't help you,” Zuko says immediately. “And even if I could, I wouldn't do it until Aang has mastered earthbending. It would be too dangerous. The Avatar must master all four elements.”

“I know,” Katara says quietly.

Zuko's worst fears come true and Aang loses control of the fire, burning her hands.

Katara heals her hands with water, but the damage is already done. Aang never wants to learn firebending again.

“Hey,” Katara comes to him in the evening, when the panic and pain have subsided.

Aang looks at her with pain in his eyes. He still feels guilty, even though he has apologized so many times.

“May I?” Katara asks, pointing to the empty space next to him.

Aang nods grimly.

“I'm not mad at you, Aang,” Katara says, sitting down next to him.

“Sokka is.”

“Sokka has forgiven you.”

“I lost control. I behaved inappropriately.”

“It wasn't your fault, Aang,” Katara says gently.

“I burned you!”

“You were careless, yes,” Katara agrees. “But now you know you have to be very careful with fire.”

“I won't have to be, because I'll never use firebending again!”

“Aang,” Katara puts her hand on his shoulder. She looks at him intently. “If you want to defeat Fire Lord Ozai, you'll have to learn firebending.”

Katara dreams of seeing Ozai on his knees. She hates him so much.

But Aang doesn't know that. Aang doesn't know what Ozai is capable of—Aang didn't see the wounds he inflicted on his own son. Aang doesn't know what a monster Ozai is.

Aang doesn't want to become a monster.

Katara softens.

“Remember when I told you that my soulmate is from the Fire Nation?” she asks.

“Yes,” Aang confirms.

“What I didn't tell you is that he's a bender.”

Understanding flashes in Aang's eyes. And also — once again — that strange expression, as if the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place.

“A Firebender.”

“Exactly,” Katara confirms. “My soulmate is a Firebender. He... You have to understand that his family isn't the best. They always put a lot of pressure on him. They wanted him to be the best firebender possible. Sometimes his teachers were... a little too demanding.”

Aang looks at her intently. He doesn't yet know what Katara is getting at. He doesn't fully understand what she's trying to tell him.

“They could be... cruel,” Katara says quietly. “On purpose.”

Aang is silent — and then his eyes widen suddenly.

“They burned him,” he realizes.

“Yes,” Katara confirms sadly. “More than once. For every little mistake. In most cases, there were no scars left—Firebenders don't burn easily—but he knows the pain of looks very well. He knows how much damage fire can do. And that's why he started looking for something else. Another solution.”

“Does such a thing exist?” asks Aang. There is hope in his eyes, but it is subdued, as if he is afraid to hope.

“My soulmate doesn't want to hurt anyone,” says Katara. “But in the Fire Nation, firebending is a symbol of power. My soulmate had to master firebending—but he didn't want to hurt anyone. So he began to learn control. So that his flames would only burn what he wanted them to. And he learned how to extinguish fire. I know that right now it may seem to you that fire destroys... but it doesn't have to be that way. Fire is life, Aang. It's not just destruction. It's warmth. Home.”

“Oh,” says Aang. “Warmth.”

He looks at his hands.

“I don't know if I can do it,” he whispers. “But I'll try.”

“Well, for now, don't try to use fire without a teacher,” Katara asks. “It can be dangerous. But that doesn't mean you have to give up firebending right away.”

Aang doesn't say anything right away. He does everything he can to avoid looking at her.

“Hey,” Katara nudges him with her shoulder. “No one here is mad at you. You may not have mastered firebending the first time around, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't use it. You're not the first person to have trouble controlling it. Besides, the other elements can hurt people too.”

Katara remembers the fear in Gold's eyes when he told her what airbending could do. Either Aang doesn't know about it, or he doesn't want to think about it.

“You can do it,” Katara promises him. “You're not alone in this, Aang. You're not alone.”

Aang doesn't respond for a long time.

“I know,” he says after a moment. “I know that. And I appreciate you being here for me. You. Sokka. Smashie.”

“Speaking of Smashie, I think you should tell her what happened. She might have something useful to say.”

Aang rolls his eyes.

“Smashie doesn't know I'm the Avatar. I can't tell her. Besides, I know what she would say. Probably something like, ‘Don't be a coward, if you can control Fire, then take control of it.’”

“That... sounds like something she would say,” Katara admits. She doesn't know who Smashie is or if they'll ever meet, but from what she's heard about her, it's quite possible that's what she would say.

“Right?” Aang smiles broadly at her. Then he sighs heavily. “You know, it would be cool if I were just an Airbender and Smashie were an Earthbender. Air and Earth. Kind of like you and Z- Gold. You know, Fire and Water. That sounds really cool. Opposite elements, but connected by an incredibly strong bond. Don't you think that would be really cool?”

Aang looks at her, once again in that strange way. Now he seems to be bursting with energy — which is really strange, because just a moment ago he was quite depressed and unhappy with what had happened.

“Um...” says Katara, unconsciously borrowing Zuko's favorite word when he doesn't know what to say. “Aang, Gold and I are benders of opposite elements. We've known this for a long time. Did you know that Gold taught me the basics of waterbending?”

“Wow!” Aang's eyes light up with interest. “That's nice of him! He must really care about you.”

Katara's mind flashes back to all their encounters, the concern she sees in Zuko's gestures, sometimes the smallest ones.

“Yes,” she says, lost in thought. “I think he really cares about me.”

“And you care about him,” Aang concludes.

“Yes,” Katara agrees. “He's my best friend. I love him.”

She blinks, realizing what she has said.

“Not like that!” she says quickly when she sees the genuine excitement on Aang's face. “Not like that, really! He's my best friend! That's all!”

“Well, I'm sure he loves you too,” says Aang. “As a friend, of course.”

“Of course he does.”

“Yes, of course,” Aang continues to smile. “I want him to be my friend, you know?”

“Oh,” Katara didn't expect that. “Why?”

“Because I think he's a good person and he helped me. And I think he wants to fight on our side, he just doesn't know how yet. And he's your soulmate, so that means he's a good person. And he's your friend. A close friend. A very close friend.”

Katara considers punching him on the shoulder.

“Emphasize that again and I'll get angry,” she threatens, but a smile betrays her. “What would you say if someone asked you how you feel about Smashie? Do you love her?”

“I do. As a friend.”

“Exactly,” says Katara. After a moment, she takes a deep breath. “You know what, Aang? As soon as we meet Smashie, I'm going to shout at the top of my lungs that you love her as a friend. I wonder how you'll react then.”

“So that means I can do the same when I meet Gold?”

“Aang.”

Aang just smiles.

Katara doesn't want to tell Zuko what happened.

She doesn't want to because she wants Zuko to keep his part of the promise. She doesn't want to because she doesn't want Zuko to start seeing Aang as an enemy. She doesn't want to because she knows that Zuko cares about her — even if they argue from time to time and when they meet during the day, rather than in the world of dreams, they fight each other.

Katara doesn't want Zuko to know that Aang burned her — but at the same time, she knows that if she hides it from him, everything will end up even worse. Hiding the truth will only hurt him.

Telling him the truth will hurt him too.

Zuko has hidden many of his wounds from her—theoretically, Katara could hide her wounds from him too, especially since her wounds have already healed.

But she should tell him the truth.

Katara looks at him intently, then takes a deep breath. Zuko is her friend, her best friend. Aang is her friend too. Besides, maybe Zuko could give her some lessons on control; something she could then pass on to Aang.

“Zuko,” Katara says.

Her friend turns to her, looking at her intently. He easily picks up on the slightly strange tone in her voice.

“What's wrong, Katara?” he asks.

“Well...” Katara isn't sure how to tell him what happened. “I have good news. Good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

“Don't play games with me,” Zuko says irritably. “What happened, Katara?”

“Nothing terrible!” Katara says quickly. “I learned how to heal wounds.”

“I told you that water can heal wounds and– What happened? Why did you have to use that ability?”

“I healed myself,” Katara confesses. “But it's okay now. It was just a superficial wound, just a minor burn–”

“A burn?” Zuko interrupts her, looking at her closely. Looking for wounds.

“Everything is fine now,” Katara shows him her hands. “As you can see, nothing happened... What are you doing?”

Zuko is standing next to her, holding her hands, looking at her closely, carefully. As always, his hands are warm.

“I'm checking to make sure everything is okay,” Zuko doesn't look her in the eyes, but focuses on her hands. “There's no trace left. Not even the smallest scar.”

“I told you, it was just a superficial wound,” Katara says in a gentle tone. She should probably pull her hands back, but she doesn't want to. When she's close to him, she feels good. Safe. And at the same time, she feels like she can do anything.

They fought each other several times when they met in the real world. These were always short battles, never reaching the peak of their abilities—but each time, Katara dreamed of having more time. She wants to find out what he is capable of. What she is capable of. Whether they are equals.

“What happened?” Zuko finally raises his eyes to her. “The Fire Nation?”

“Aang,” Katara says grimly. “But he didn't mean to! He lost control of himself! Jeong Jeong left him alone for a moment... you know how Aang is. He has a tendency not to take things seriously. Aang really wanted to learn firebending and... I guess he just wasn't ready.”

“I told you he wasn't ready,” Zuko's eyes flash with fury and anger.

“Hey,” Katara squeezed his hands. “I'm not mad at him. It was just an accident. I forgave Aang for it. Besides, Sokka was already mad enough at him. Aang feels guilty about the situation. He didn't mean to hurt me.”

“But he did.”

“Accidentally,” Katara says emphatically. “Please don't be angry with him.”

“I wouldn't be angry with him if it weren't for the fact that the Avatar walks around hurting innocent people!”

“Zuko,” Katara's tone becomes slightly sharper. “I didn't tell you this so you could be angry with him. I told you because I hoped you could help me. I don't want this kind of situation to happen again. Aang is terrified. He's afraid to use firebending. He's afraid he'll hurt someone again. But he's a good person. Aang never meant to hurt me. Believe me, he's suffering more than I am. I can see the guilt in his eyes. I've forgiven him, but he hasn't forgiven himself.”

Zuko doesn't say anything for a while. Katara looks him straight in the eyes, not letting go of his hand, until the anger disappears from his face. Until it is replaced by thoughtfulness.

“Are you sure Aang doesn't want to use firebending?” he asks. “Are you convinced?”

“Absolutely.”

When Zuko doesn't say anything more, Katara adds:

“Do you have any advice? Anything I could tell him?”

“Tell him to only use firebending when he has a teacher with him. When he has someone who knows what they're doing with him, he'll be fine. Aang is the Avatar—he's a master of the elements. For now, it's better for him to focus on waterbending and finding an earthbending teacher. And remind him that fire isn't just destruction.”

Zuko steps back a little, letting go of her hands. The warmth he radiated disappears.

He raises his hand, summoning a flame to it.

“After my... injury, I was also afraid of fire,” he says quietly. “You remember.”

“Yes, I remember,” Katara confirms.

“My uncle suggested that I start with small things. That the fire should be far away. For months—for months, Katara—all I could do was meditate. Only later was I able to summon the fire to me. My uncle was always there for me. He reminded me that fire does not destroy. It gives life. Of course, I didn't listen to him; I was too angry at the world, at myself, but... Suggest meditation to Aang. Tell him to try to connect with his inner flame. But, Agni forbid, don't let him try firebending without a teacher. Meditation is good, but don't overdo it. If he's afraid to meditate with fire, let him try to connect with air or water.”

“Will that help?”

“I don't know,” Zuko shrugs. “Let him work on his breathing. Let him learn to breathe properly.”

“Properly, meaning how?”

Zuko hesitates. Katara looks at him pleadingly.

Her friend gives in. He sits down on the ground. Katara sits next to him.

And then they begin to breathe, one with the other.

The next morning, Katara tells Aang what Zuko said to her.

Katara and Aang sit down together to meditate—not by the fire, not by candlelight, but by a bucket of water.

It's not much, but it's a start.

They are heading north, mainly because Katara wants to meet a true Waterbending Master. Zuko has told her a lot, Zuko has taught her a lot, but Katara still believes that they should find a master, someone who will teach her and Aang how to truly use waterbending.

“I'm not going with you to the North Pole,” Zuko informs her. “It won't be safe. I can't risk my crew.”

“I'll miss our ‘unexpected’ encounters,” Katara says. “The ones I was never warned about.”

“This isn't a joke, Katara.”

“I know, I know,” Katara rolls her eyes. “So what are you going to do then?”

“I'll probably follow you for a while, and then I'll go after you to the Earth Kingdom,” Zuko says. “You won't be able to escape me.”

For some reason, Katara feels like laughing.

The North Pole is both what she expected and completely different.

Zuko told her beforehand what to expect — as soon as she told him where they were going, he started looking for as much information as possible, which he then passed on to her.

Despite this, Katara is still surprised.

The Northern Water Tribe is huge. They have a real palace, a real princess. Many waterbenders. Knowledge that Katara would give anything for. Their city is enormous and well protected. No wonder the Fire Nation didn't try to attack them.

At the same time, the Northern Water Tribe does not respect women. When Katara wants to learn waterbending—to improve her skills and learn more—they send her to a healer. They say that women are only good for healing.

Katara challenges Master Pakku to a duel. She does not win, but she manages to convince him to start teaching her as well.

She does not tell Zuko about this because she knows very well how panicked he would become if he found out that she had challenged the Master to a duel.

One night, she doesn't see him at all.

She is not particularly worried about it. Sometimes they don't meet — Zuko sometimes stays up at night, doing a million things he shouldn't be doing and sacrificing his sleep. He probably put on his Blue Spirit mask and is chasing criminals — or breaking into Fire Nation military bases, stealing intelligence.

This is nothing new.

When she sees him, there are new wounds on his face – as if he had gotten into a fight with someone.

“Tui and La, what happened?” Katara rushes to him, looking at him with concern. “What did you do, Zuko?”

“Me? Nothing. Zhao? He gave me a not-so-pleasant surprise.”

“Zuko...” Katara looks at him with slight dissatisfaction. “Be more specific. What happened?”

“Zhao happened,” Zuko hisses. “But everything is fine. It's okay now. Nothing bad happened.”

“Zhao happened,” Katara remarks. “What did he do? Let me take a closer look.”

Katara grabs his chin, examining his face closely. He doesn't appear to be bleeding, but someone has injured him. And that someone was from the Fire Nation. Again.

“It's okay, Katara,” Zuko steps back, pulling his face out of her grip. Katara regrets not having her water with her. If she did, she could heal him.

“It'll be okay if you tell me what happened,” Katara insists.

Zuko takes a deep breath.

“Zhao blew up my ship.”

“What?!” Katara's voice rises in shock.

“Everything is fine,” Zuko says quickly. “No one was on board. My uncle went for a night walk. We gave the men the night off. It was just me and–”

“Zhao blew up the ship with you on board?!” Katara asks in disbelief. “I've made up my mind. I'm going to kill him. Tui and La, I'm going to kill him.”

“Hey,” Zuko grabs her arm. “There's no need. Everything is fine. I'm alive. You shouldn't worry about it.”

“I shouldn't–?! Zuko, are you listening to yourself? Zhao tried to kill you!”

“He wouldn't be the first person to try and fail!” Zuko hisses. “That's not important right now, Katara! What's important is what he's planning! What's important is that you're currently at the North Pole!”

“So what?!”

“That you will soon find yourselves in the heart of the war,” Zuko looks at her seriously. “Zhao is heading north. With an armada. And no one, especially not me, is able to stop him.”

Chapter Text

“I think Zhao is up to something.”

“You don't say, Zuko. Who would have thought?”

“No, really,” Zuko paces the room irritably. “My uncle told me it doesn't make sense. Why would Zhao want to attack the Northern Water Tribe in the middle of winter? When the Firebenders are at their weakest and the Waterbenders are at their strongest? My uncle says Zhao is up to something.”

“That... is quite possible,” Katara admits.

The attack hasn't started yet, but they don't have much time. The Fire Nation armada is almost at their gates. It's hard not to notice.

Katara told Aang what Zuko had told her, feeling as if she were betraying Zuko, who probably didn't want the Northern Water Tribe to know about it, probably just wanted Katara and her friends to flee and leave the city to its own devices.

Aang told Chief Arnook about the attack, but this knowledge did little to change the situation. Less than an hour later, Arnook was informed by scouts of the approaching army.

The Fire Nation hadn't reached them yet, but they had maybe a day or two. No more.

“Zhao is up to something,” Zuko repeats. “My uncle is sure of it.”

“Mhm,” Katara mutters. “Where are you now?”

The question must surprise him, because Zuko stops pacing around the room.

“Uh...”

“Where are you now, Zuko?” Katara repeats. “You don't have your ship, do you? So you must be somewhere. And I have a feeling you didn't stay on shore to avoid Zhao.”

“Right now, I'm disguised as one of the Fire Nation soldiers and I'm on one of the ships,” says Zuko. “My uncle is pretending I'm dead and trying to find out what Zhao is planning.”

“Zuko, you're on one of the ships,” Katara says slowly. “On board one of the ships that are about to attack the Northern Water Tribe. Pretending to be dead. Deceiving Zhao, who tried to kill you.”

“Yes, that's what I said. Thank you very much for repeating the same thing.”

“You're welcome.”

Zuko looks like he's about to yell at her. Instead, he presses his lips together in irritation.

“Well, now that you know where I am and I know where you are, how about we try to come up with a plan?”

“Come up with a plan?” Katara looks at him in disbelief. “Zuko, this is no joke! I'm on the Avatar's side, on the Northern Water Tribe's side! You're on the Fire Nation's side — you're on one of the ships that's going to attack us! This isn't a situation we can turn around anymore, where we can both fake a duel and then nothing happens to anyone! This is war! Real war! People will die!”

“You think I don't know that?!” Zuko raises his voice. “What do you want me to do? Stop the attack? That's impossible. Zhao is in command of the armada! And Zhao tried to kill me, have you forgotten that?!”

“Well, maybe if your uncle used his title–!”

“My uncle has no authority over the army! He can't do anything!”

“Then why is he at Zhao's side?”

“Because Zhao is up to something, I told you!” Zuko shouts. “He must have a plan—and that means you have to escape. You can't stay in Agna Qel'a! If you stay there, you'll die!”

“We're not running away!” Katara protests. “This is my sister tribe! I'm not abandoning them!”

“Then you'll all die!”

“We're not going to die, Zuko!” Katara hisses. “I'm a Waterbender. I'm going to protect the Northern Water Tribe, whether you like it or not. Or are you going to tell me not to? Because I'm a woman, because I should stay at home, have children, cook and do the laundry?”

“Agni, I never said anything like that,” his hand clenches slightly, bursting into flames. Katara doesn't even flinch. She knows that sometimes, when he's angry, he tends to use firebending. This habit has improved somewhat since he regained his firebending, but it has never completely disappeared. “Whether you're a woman or a man doesn't matter right now. What matters is that if you stay in Agna Qel’a, you will die. Zhao will not let you live. If he finds out you're there–”

“Zhao will want to kill me, no matter who I am or where I am,” Katara points out. “I'm from the Water Tribe. I'm a Waterbender. That's sin enough for the Fire Nation to want me dead.”

Zuko flinches as if she had hit him. He turns a little pale.

“The Fire Nation... The Fire Nation isn't evil,” he says. “We're not evil. Not everyone wants you dead.”

“The current Fire Nation is evil, Zuko,” Katara observes. “It has to change. You know that perfectly well. You know this situation can't go on forever.”

“So what do you want me to do? Kill Zhao? Go against my country? I can't do that!”

“I don't know!” Katara shouts. “Why do you expect me to have a solution? Can't you see there isn't one?! If this continues—if there's an attack—sooner or later we'll meet! And this time we'll have to kill each other!”

“I won't let that happen!”

“You're a Firebender!” Katara points out. “A prince of the Fire Nation. I'm a Waterbender, the Avatar's companion! We're doomed to be enemies!”

“Agni, I didn't warn you about the attack so that you could stay in Agna Qel'a and die there! I warned you about the attack so that you could escape! Take the Avatar—take Aang and Sokka—and flee. If you're not there, perhaps my uncle will be able to convince Zhao to call off the attack. There's something wrong with this attack—it doesn't make sense! We're at war with the Earth Kingdom, not the Northern Water Tribe! This attack makes no sense if you just look at the current front! Zhao is a madman! It's as if he wants to destroy the Fire Nation! And that means he must be plotting something! He is plotting something and–!”

“And that's why I'm going to stop him,” Katara lifts her chin proudly. “I'm not going to run away, Zuko. You can't stop me.”

“Fine! Then die in Agna Qel'a!”

“Fine!” Katara looks at him with rage.

Anger flashes in his golden eyes.

Katara turns away from him and doesn't speak to him for the rest of the night.

Zuko doesn't try to talk to her either.

The attack begins soon.

The Fire Nation arrives, bringing with it fire, ash, death, and destruction, as always.

She meets him in the Oasis late at night, while Aang is meditating and trying to connect with his past incarnations to solve the mystery of why Zhao decided to carry out such a crazy plan.

Katara immediately summons water, determined to attack Zuko if necessary.

Yue, who was staying here with them, quickly runs away, no doubt to find Sokka.

Zuko raises his hands to signal that he did not come here to fight.

“Hey,” he says. “It's just me.”

“What are you doing here, Zuko?” Katara asks, looking at him suspiciously. How did he get here?

...knowing him, he probably did something crazy and incredibly stupid that almost cost him his life.

Zuko doesn't answer. Katara moves to the side, shielding Aang with her body.

“What are you doing here, Zuko?” she repeats her question. “Why did you come here?”

“I have no idea!” he suddenly gets irritated. “You told me we couldn't solve anything while I was on the Fire Nation ship, so I thought we could try talking face to face! But I didn't think you'd be here– What is Aang doing?”

“That's none of your business,” Katara says sharply. She hates arguing with him, but she has no other choice right now. She will not allow the Fire Nation to win this battle.

Zuko takes a step toward her.

Katara holds her hands out toward him in warning. Zuko stops.

“Are you here to capture Aang?”

“You know I can't do that. I promised you I would protect him.”

“If you decide to take him and kidnap him from Agna Qel’a to save him, you won't be breaking your promise,” Katara points out.

Surprise flashes across his face. He hadn't thought of that.

“You're right,” he says, then quickly adds, “But I'm not going to do it! I could only do that if I defeated you.”

“What, afraid you'll lose?” Katara asks defiantly. She hates not knowing what will happen next. It would be so much easier if she knew they were going to fight each other. “That you won't win?”

Theoretically, Katara has the advantage. They are on her territory. There is plenty of water around her that she could use. Pakku may be a jerk, but Katara has learned a lot from him. Besides, part of her is dying of impatience, wanting to face Zuko, to find out which of them is better, which of them would emerge victorious.

“Or maybe you're wondering what would happen next?” Katara asks when Zuko doesn't answer, but continues to stand in front of her, tense, with his hands raised, ready to attack her if he has to. “If you lost?”

“I'm convinced that if we fought each other, I would win,” says Zuko, confident in his abilities. Or maybe he's just too angry to realize what the current situation is. “Maybe I really should take Aang with me. At least he won't die with the rest of Agna Qel’a when Zhao gets here.”

“Take him? Where?” asks Katara. “Out of the city? To Zhao's fleet? Or into a blizzard, to some cave? And then what would you do? How would you overpower the Avatar? Start a typical villain's monologue?”

“I'm not going to do anything like that!” Zuko protests. “What do you think I should do, then?”

“Leave Aang alone!”

“And what am I doing right now? Do I look like I'm attacking him? Or kidnapping him?”

“Zuko, you've been trying to kidnap him for weeks.”

“Agni, Katara,” Zuko lowers his hands, ceasing his fighting stance.

Katara cautiously withdraws her water, but does not take her watchful eye off him.

“Zuko,” she says. “What are you doing here?”

“I've told you twenty times, I have no idea! I just wanted to talk! I was hoping we could work things out somehow!”

“I don't believe you,” Katara shakes her head in disbelief. “You never think things through, do you?”

Zuko takes a step back, slightly uncertain. Katara realizes she's right — Zuko has no plan. He just came here because they had argued earlier and hoped they could somehow resolve the situation.

Katara suddenly feels like screaming in frustration.

“Listen,” she says after a moment. “Aang is trying to connect with his past lives. We know Zhao is up to something. We want to find out exactly what. And that's why it's important for Aang to stay here.”

Zuko doesn't respond.

“The problem is that you're Fire Nation,” Katara continues. “Fire Nation at a time when the Fire Nation is attacking us. Anyone who sees you will immediately think that you wanted to kidnap Aang or attack him. Princess Yue, the girl who was here with me, has probably already reached Sokka. And when Sokka finds out you're here, he'll want to attack you. And then everything will get even more complicated. You can't be here while Zhao is leading the attack. You'll be considered his collaborator. Or a spy, a saboteur, a traitor.”

“I'm not a traitor,” Zuko immediately objects. “I'm on the side of the Fire Nation.”

“And that's exactly why you should leave.”

But Zuko shakes his head.

“I can't. If I leave, I'll break our promise. I said I would protect Aang as long as I could.”

“On the condition that you don't betray the Fire Nation,” Katara reminds him. “If you're discovered here, you risk being labeled a traitor.”

A look of irritation crosses his face. Katara sometimes completely fails to understand his loyalty to a country that has done little for him. She doesn't understand how Zuko can see the Fire Nation's mistakes and yet insist that he is capable of fixing them.

Perhaps it is because of how he was raised. Everyone told him that he was a prince—that he was responsible for the citizens of the Fire Nation. Or maybe he just loves his country.

“I know,” Zuko says.

Despite this, he still doesn't move.

“Are you stupid?” Katara asks. “No, why am I even asking you this? I forgot I was talking to Zuko.”

“Hey!”

“I'm not the one who decided to go on a trip in the middle of an attack,” Katara points out. “Never mind. If you're not going to catch Aang and you're not going to leave, at least cover yourself up. Right now, everyone will think you're the enemy.”

Zuko looks around but finds nothing to cover himself with.

“Um...”

“Sweet Tui,” Katara mutters under her breath. Why does her soulmate have to be such a huge idiot? “Then just sit down. You can help me protect Aang in case Zhao comes here.”

“If anyone asks what I'm doing here, I can say I wanted to find out what Zhao was up to,” Zuko says with slight hesitation. “Zhao did want to kill me.”

“I don't think that excuse will work very well in the middle of an invasion,” Katara says.

Her friend either can't hear her or is completely ignoring her.

Seeing that Zuko is not going to attack them—at least not right now—Katara approaches Aang and sits down next to him. She gives Zuko a sharp look, and after a moment's hesitation, he sits down opposite her.

A moment passes. Neither of them speaks.

“So,” Katara says after a while. “How did you get here?”

“Breath of Fire,” Zuko explains. “I used the turtleseal tunnels. I held my breath. And I swam here.”

“You swam here. In freezing water. Using tunnels. Turtleseal  tunnels. Without knowing if you could make it to the surface.”

“I'm a Firebender. I made it.”

“Tui and La, you're an idiot,” Katara approaches him and sits opposite him. “Did you want to die?”

“What, would you have preferred me to leave you here alone?”

“Yes!” Katara hisses. “If it meant you wouldn't have to risk your life, then yes!”

“I couldn't just leave you! Not when you're asking for death!”

“So your death would have been a better solution?”

“Yes!” Zuko says emphatically.

Katara once again feels the urge to wring his neck.

“It's not worth your safety,” she says quietly. “Besides, I'm not going to die.”

It's a promise Katara can't keep, not really. But at least she can pretend otherwise.

Zuko doesn't respond, looking at her with irritation.

Katara sighs heavily. She looks at him closely. His face still looks terrible, just as it did when they last saw each other after Zhao tried to kill him.

She reaches out her hands to him, but doesn't touch him. She hesitates. 

“Can I... can I heal you? Your face doesn't look good. The wounds Zhao inflicted on you,” Katara quickly clarifies, not wanting him to think she means his scar. “And I'm a little worried you might have hypothermia.”

Zuko's eyes dart to the side, toward Aang, who is still meditating, and then to a small pond nearby.

“I don't know if you should waste your water on something like that. If Zhao comes here–”

“I can handle it,” Katara says firmly. “We can handle it. Let me heal you. Please.”

His golden eyes turn to her. He looks at her for a long time before finally nodding gently.

Katara reaches out her hands to him, summoning water to herself. The wounds on his face disappear. Only his scar remains — something Katara is unable to heal, despite her efforts.

Zuko grabs her wrist.

“That's enough,” he says quietly. “You can't heal the scar.”

“I know,” Katara admits. “That doesn't mean I can't try.”

“No. Don't do it.”

Her fingers are on his face—on the healthy, unblemished part of his face.

“Okay,” Katara says quietly. Zuko's grip on her wrist loosens slightly. It's a kind of permission.

Katara moves her hand to the side—slowly, carefully. She's not going to try to heal him, not the scar—she won't betray his trust like that—but part of her wants to touch it.

It is a symbol of Fire Lord Ozai's cruelty. A reminder of who they are fighting against. Why they must end this war.

And at the same time, it is the mark of a brave man, a prince who stood up for his people when no one else would. Someone who never gives up.

Katara's fingers pause at his scar, but she does not touch it. Zuko watches her closely. He does not stop her, but he does not encourage her either.

“May I?” Katara asks quietly. “I won't heal it. I won't try. But... I just want to feel it.”

Zuko nods almost imperceptibly.

Her fingers touch his scar. The scar is uneven, the skin tight. Katara can't imagine how much it must have hurt — for how long.

“I'm so sorry,” Katara whispers. “You didn't deserve this.”

Zuko doesn't answer, but she can see in his golden eyes what he really thinks—that he did. That he deserved everything that happened to him; every wound he received because of his father.

“You didn't deserve it,” Katara repeats. “Don't let him win, Zuko.”

Ozai took so much from him. From him and the rest of the world.

Katara doesn't want him to take any more.

“It wasn't a fight, Katara,” Zuko's voice is also a whisper. “I didn't fight.”

“No,” Katara objects. “You may have decided not to fight that day, but that doesn't mean you're not fighting now. I see what you're trying to do. You're trying to follow your own path. You want to fight for the good of your people. You're trying to stand up to your own father for the good of the Fire Nation. And I think that's the right path.”

An expression of amusement crosses his face.

“Just a moment ago, you said I had no idea what I was doing here and that I shouldn't be here,” Zuko points out.

“Well, you don't always make the best decisions in life,” Katara admits, smiling slightly.

Zuko smiles too — it's one of those rare smiles. After the first Agni Kai, he stopped smiling as often as he used to. Katara has learned to appreciate them.

Their eyes meet. Gold and blue.

For a moment, Katara forgets the situation they are in. She forgets about the ongoing attack. She forgets that at any moment they could get into big trouble. For a moment, only his eyes and the bond that connects them exist.

Katara wonders what exactly connects them. She looks at him, and a part of her dreams of closing the distance between them, which suddenly seems so great, too great.

They have always been close, always meeting up. Katara talks to him almost every night (except for those times when their meetings last only a few minutes or when they argue and refuse to talk to each other). Zuko is her best friend, someone she can trust. Katara knows him perfectly well—but now, when she looks at him, she begins to wonder if she could get to know him even better.

She's not sure exactly how, but just... just the distance between them right now seems too big, too great. Katara leans toward him, not quite sure what she wants to do. Her blood pulses loudly in her veins, so much so that she wonders how Zuko hasn't heard it.

Or maybe he can hear it? Maybe he's aware of it, but doesn't notice, and that's why he's smiling?

No, he's not smiling anymore. Something changes in his expression, and his eyes stop staring into hers, wandering slightly lower. Katara moves closer to him and—

Then they hear footsteps and voices.

Katara and Zuko jump away from each other—and then Zuko grabs the unconscious Aang and pulls him aside, behind some nearby trees (what's wrong with the Oasis that trees grow here?), so that no one can see them. Katara does the same, hiding next to him.

They are close to each other, still close, but Katara feels as if she has suddenly sobered up. She forgot herself, forgot where she was. She forgot that they were in the middle of an invasion, she started—Tui and La, what was she doing? Was she just fantasizing about getting closer to her best friend and—and what? What did she want to do? Hug him? No, she didn't just have those intentions.

Zuko was still close to her, radiating the warmth that every Firebender brought with them. Katara used to hate it. Now she found comfort and peace in it.

Or at least she would have, if it weren't for the fact that her blood was still pulsing incredibly loudly in her veins.

Perhaps Zuko is to blame, kneeling beside her. He left Aang on the ground, where he had dragged him so that Zhao wouldn't notice him.

And now both Katara and Zuko were kneeling, leaning forward to take up as little air as possible and minimize the chance of someone noticing them. It was just a shame that somehow, in all this, they had ended up close to each other. A little too close, because the blood in her veins was still pulsing a little too loudly.

What's wrong with her?

Katara forces herself to return to the present situation.

They are not alone. People who shouldn't be there have arrived at the Oasis. 

“It's not Sokka and Yue,” Katara whispers.

“No,” says Zuko, becoming serious. “It's Zhao.”

And indeed, the man Katara has learned to hate enters the Oasis. He is not alone; beside him is a group of other Firebenders, including Iroh.

Katara freezes.

If she needed another cold shower, she just got it. Zhao is here.

And that means only one thing: danger.

“They must be looking for Aang,” Zuko says quietly, glancing at the unconscious Avatar's body.

“Probably,” Katara agrees. “We can't let Zhao find him, not right now.”

“No,” Zuko agrees.

Their eyes meet. They both make a decision at the same moment, forming an alliance between themselves. They can't attack Zhao — not now, no, because that would mean Zuko would have to stand against the Fire Nation — but if it comes to the worst, they will. They will stand against Zhao to protect Aang.

Zhao looks around the Oasis, clearly searching for something. Iroh follows him, looking grim.

“What is your uncle doing here?” Katara asks quietly. “I thought he was supposed to be outside.”

“I don't know,” Zuko whispers. “He shouldn't be here. Just like Zhao shouldn't be here. My uncle was supposed to be on the ship.”

“Well, that didn't work out,” Katara hisses.

She considers attacking the man, but after a moment she dismisses the idea. Aang is still unconscious. If Katara attacks Zhao, Zuko will be the one who has to protect Aang. And although Katara really likes Zuko, she's not entirely sure if he'll be willing to risk his position to protect the Avatar.

Zhao approaches the pond and kneels beside it.

“Zhao!” Iroh shouts. “Stop right now! Back away!”

“Stay where you are, General Iroh,” Zhao orders sharply. “Or you will be considered a traitor to the Fire Nation.”

“You don't know what you're doing.”

“Oh, I know exactly what I'm doing,” Zhao says, leaning toward the pond.

Iroh throws a fireball at him, only to have the attack blocked by one of the Firebenders Zhao brought with him.

Aang opens his eyes.

He returns to the world of the living.

“Spirits!” he shouts as soon as he sees Katara. “We have to save the Spirits!”

Then he blinks, seeing Zuko nearby.

Before Aang can do anything, Zhao catches one of the fish.

The world turns red.

And nothing makes sense anymore.

Aang turns pale, completely ignoring Zuko standing next to him. Instead, he runs to the center of the Oasis, standing opposite Zhao. Katara and Zuko do the same, unable to hide any longer.

“Zhao,” Aang says slowly. His eyes are fixed on the fish Zhao is holding—the fish he caught in his bag. Nothing that is happening now makes sense.

Katara has no idea why the world has turned red. She has no clue what is going on. She only knows that Aang is serious—that something very bad is happening.

She summons her water, determined to attack Zhao.

The water does not respond to her call.

Katara freezes.

“Zuko,” her hand instinctively reaches for her friend's arm. She grabs the fabric of his outfit. “I can't bend.”

“What?” Zuko looks at her, then at Zhao, then at Aang.

“Zhao, leave that fish alone,” Aang says, looking at the man with such seriousness, such grave seriousness. “You don't know what you're doing. That is the Moon Spirit. Leave it alone, please.”

“The young Avatar is right,” Iroh says, stiffening. “You don't know what you're doing.”

 His hands are pointed at Zhao. The man is ready to firebend at any moment.

But he doesn't.

No one dares to attack Zhao—not because the man is holding a bag of fish. The Moon Spirit.

And although it sounds like a fairy tale for children, Katara is not laughing. The world is red, and her waterbending doesn't work. She is unable to use it.

“Oh, I know what I'm doing,” Zhao smiles unpleasantly. “You didn't think I came here without a plan, did you? Once we get rid of the moon, we get rid of waterbending. We will bring glory to the Fire Nation! I will be known as Zhao, the Moon Killer!”

“The Fire Nation depends on the Moon, Zhao!” Iroh shouts. “We are an island nation, dependent on the tides! If we get rid of the Moon, we will condemn our country to destruction!”

“Exactly,” says Aang. “Leave the Moon alone, Zhao.”

Zhao's eyes turn to Aang — and then to Katara and Zuko standing next to him. A look of irritation crosses his face when he realizes that the person he tried to kill is still alive.

“Zhao,” Aang says, a note of alarm in his voice. “It's me you want, right? If... if you leave the Moon alone, I'll go with you. Just leave Spirit alone, please.”

“Drop your staff,” Zhao orders sharply, pulling out a dagger and holding it to the bag.

The threat is enough. Aang immediately puts his staff on the ground, not wanting to risk Zhao doing anything.

A smirk of satisfaction appears on Zhao's lips.

Then several things happen at once.

Iroh steps forward, sending a stream of fire in front of him. Zhao turns in that direction, holding out his hand to protect himself. Zuko – Zuko is also suddenly far away, right next to Zhao, kicking away the dagger he is aiming at the bag with one accurate kick. Aang stands up, summoning the wind to him, snatching the sack from Zhao's hand.

Zhao screams. The firebenders he brought with him summon flames to themselves.

The sack flies through the air—and then falls into the pond, undoubtedly directed there by Aang's actions.

The world returns to its normal color.

So does waterbending.

Katara summons water, turning it into ice and sending it forward toward Zhao. Aang suddenly appears at the pond, like its guardian. No one can get close to him—Aang pushes everyone away with gusts of wind.

Zhao – Zhao is still nearby. He shouts something to his soldiers, calling them to listen to him.

Katara ignores his shouts, focusing on defeating all her enemies.

Iroh turns, and a blast of fire comes out of his mouth, forcing the soldiers who are not Firebenders to retreat to escape him.

Katara heads toward Zhao, sending her water against him. Zuko is right beside her, keeping pace. Zhao closes in, fighting against them—but he has no chance of winning, because Katara is not alone. Zuko is with her, and it feels so familiar. So many times before, they have fought each other—both in the world of the living and in the world of dreams. Katara knows what to expect from Zuko, just as Zuko knows what to expect from her.

For a moment, the two of them cease to exist – for a moment, they are one, complementing each other, protecting each other. Zhao directs fire at them, Zuko easily dispels it, and Katara attacks.

Water and Fire, working together. The air becomes slightly hazy—the result of steam they accidentally created. Katara doesn't care, focusing on her opponent. She doesn't even have to think about what Zuko will do – she knows what he will do. At this moment, she understands perfectly why the world decided to make them soulmates. They are one, and at the same time, they are opposites.

And then – and then Zhao falls to the ground, and Katara and Zuko's hands are pointed at him.

Zhao has lost.

Iroh approaches him, grabs him from behind, and then begins to tie him up—where did he get the rope, by the way?

Aang extends his staff in front of him, looking suspiciously at Zhao.

Sokka and Yue rush inside.

“What's going on?!” Sokka shouts.

He pulls out his boomerang — then stops when he sees the situation.

“What's going on?” he asks, a little more quietly.

The soldiers Zhao brought with him are lying on the ground. They are all unconscious.

Katara stops aiming at Zhao, but she still keeps her eyes on him. Aang continues to stand defensively by the pond.

“Traitors!” hisses Zhao. “You have betrayed the Fire Nation! The Fire Lord will know about this!”

“You are the traitor, Zhao!” Zuko steps forward and pulls him toward him. “You wanted to kill me!”

“Too bad I didn't succeed!”

“You wanted to destroy the Fire Nation!”

“I wanted to save the Fire Nation!” The rope binding Zhao begins to heat up.

...they should have thought that tying up a firebender with flammable rope wasn't the best idea.

Katara summons water, turning it into ice, and directs it toward Zhao, dropping it on his head.

The man falls to the ground, unconscious.

Zuko lets go of Zhao.

He turns to her.

“Did you... just kill him?”

“I hope not,” Katara runs to Zhao and puts her fingers to his neck, searching for a pulse. “No. He's alive. He's fine. He's just unconscious.”

“We should have done that from the beginning,” Zuko mutters.

Katara shrugs.

“Somehow, there wasn't an opportunity.”

“So,” Sokka says slowly, looking at everyone gathered around. He is a little tense, and his eyes are focused mainly on Zuko and Iroh. “What's going on here? And why did the moon turn red a moment ago?”

“Zhao tried to kill the moon,” Aang explains. “Zuko... Zuko and General Iroh stopped him. Together with Katara.”

He turns to Katara, and in his eyes she sees an unspoken question that she's not sure she wants to answer.

“Uh huh,” says Sokka. “Zhao tried to kill the moon. Cool.”

“Not cool,” Katara objects, standing up. “What about him? And the rest of the soldiers?”

Her question makes everyone look at each other.

Aang looks a little uncertain. Katara can see that he doesn't want to fight the people who helped him save the Moon — but at the same time, if necessary, he will.

“Zhao tried to kill the Moon,” Iroh says. “Thereby endangering the Fire Nation.”

“So,” Zuko says slowly, “it follows that he is a traitor. Since he is a traitor and currently unable to give orders, command should be assumed by the next person in the chain of command.”

Zuko and Iroh look at each other.

“It would not make sense to continue fighting, Prince Zuko,” says Iroh, and something in his tone makes Katara feel that the man knows too much. That he knows something none of them know. It's as if he has his own plans, as if he is already several moves ahead in his thinking. “There are only two of us. We have a duty to protect our people.”

The earth shakes, reminding everyone present of the ongoing attack.

Despite this, no one tries to start another fight in the Oasis.

Zuko's golden eyes dart toward Aang, then back to his uncle.

“I have a boat at my disposal, we used it to get here,” says Iroh, keeping his eyes on his nephew.

Zuko is silent for a moment, then nods almost imperceptibly.

“Then we will use it,” he says. He turns to Aang and Katara. “We will take our people, and Zhao as well. They will be judged by the Fire Nation and held accountable for their treason.”

“What about the attack?” asks Sokka. “The attack on the city? Are you going to go through with that, huh?”

“The attack was Zhao's idea,” says Iroh slowly. “However, I'm afraid that in light of current events, it will have to be put on hold. We cannot follow the orders of a traitor. Prince Zuko?”

“We're leaving,” Zuko decides sharply.

Aang takes a step forward.

“General Iroh. Zuko,” he says. “I know we didn't always get along, and we often fought each other, but... I am grateful to you. Your actions helped save the Moon.”

He bows slightly, in a perfect copy of the Fire Nation bow.

Iroh smiles slightly.

“We are the ones who are grateful to you, Avatar Aang,” the man says.

Zuko hesitates, then his hands form the familiar symbol of fire.

“My uncle is right,” he says. “You helped us save the Fire Nation. We are grateful to you, Avatar Aang. Thank you.”

The Fire Nation fleet moves away a short time later, ceasing its attack.

Katara has no idea how Zuko and Iroh were able to do it—not long ago, Zuko insisted that nothing could stop the attack—but whatever they did, it worked.

“So,” Sokka says when they have a chance to talk together. “Is anyone going to say anything about what just happened?”

There is much to be done. Many people died in the attack, both from the Fire Nation and the Water Tribe. No one is celebrating the Fire Nation's retreat; most people suspect that it is a trick, a trap, and that they will attack again soon.

“You mean the moon?” Aang asks.

“That too,” Sokka agrees. “But I'm also thinking of Zuko and his uncle.”

“I think... we had common enemies?” Aang says cautiously, glancing at Katara.

There is an unspoken question in his eyes. Katara knows how it must have looked from his perspective.

When Aang began meditating to connect with his past lives, Zuko was not at the Oasis. When Aang opened his eyes, Zuko was next to him, standing next to Katara—and they were in a different place. And then Katara and Zuko fought side by side.

Not to mention that Katara is beginning to have unpleasant suspicions that Aang knows who her soulmate really is.

“We had common enemies,” Katara confirms.

“It was the first time I saw Zuko walk away without trying to capture Aang,” says Sokka.

Aang glances at Katara again. He looks like he's thinking about something, like he's trying to make a decision.

“I think Zuko had more important things on his mind at the moment than trying to capture me,” he says cautiously. “Maybe Zuko doesn't have to be our enemy.”

Sokka snorts.

“Sure. The man who chased us from one Pole to the other isn't our enemy.”

“Zuko helped us,” Aang points out. “He saved the moon.”

“You and Katara saved the moon.”

“We all saved the moon.”

Aang and Sokka look at each other, locking eyes.

“Either way, there's no point in thinking about it now,” Aang says. “Zuko helped us. You heard him. He did it because losing the Moon would be bad for the Fire Nation.”

But that doesn't mean the Fire Nation will see it that way.

Katara presses her lips together, trying not to think about it.

“Katara?” Aang's voice catches her just as she is about to escape to her room.

They won't stay in Agna Qel'a for long. They plan to go to Omashu. Aang must master earthbending.

“Yes, Aang?” Katara glances at her friend.

Aang signals with his hand that he would like to talk to her alone.

He shifts from foot to foot.

“What is it?” Katara asks.

Aang glances at her, then somewhere to the side. His gaze circles the room before finally returning to her.

“Is it him?” he finally asks.

“Who is who?” Katara doesn't understand.

Aang just looks at her.

And then it hits her.

Oh.

Aang knows. Or he has his suspicions.

“I won't tell anyone it's him if I'm right,” Aang says quickly. “If I'm right, I shouldn't get involved. It's just... you're my friend, Katara. If it is him, I wanted... I just want to know that you're safe. Happy.”

Katara doesn't answer for a moment.

She hasn't told Aang and Sokka that Zuko is her soulmate. She hasn't told them because she doesn't want to make their journey any harder than it already is.

“I...” Katara begins. She can't find the right words. After a moment, she decides to tell the truth. She doesn't want to lie to Aang. She looks at him seriously. “Aang, you know very well that my soulmate is a Firebender from the Fire Nation. We don't always agree. His priority is the good of the Fire Nation. But the good of the Fire Nation doesn't always mean listening to the Fire Lord. His current actions... war hurts everyone, including the Fire Nation. And that means we have to stop Fire Lord Ozai. For the good of the whole world.”

Aang is silent for a while.

“I understand,” he says after a long pause. “You know, I like him.”

Katara blinks.

“Who?”

“Zuko,” Aang says, smiling at her warmly. “He may be chasing us, but he's never really been cruel to us. And he helped us at the Oasis. I hope that one day he'll be our friend.”

Katara smiles slightly.

“Me too.”

Chapter Text

“I think Aang knows.”

“Knows what?”

“About us,” Katara explains. She blushes slightly when she realizes how that sounded. “I mean, that we're soulmates.”

“You still haven't told him?” Zuko looks at her in surprise.

“No,” says Katara. “Somehow... it was easier when neither he nor Sokka knew. I didn't want to have to explain. Besides, it's much easier when we're being chased by the Evil Prince of the Evil Empire than when we're being chased by my soulmate.”

“The Fire Nation isn't evil,” Zuko rolls his eyes.

“From a certain perspective, it is.”

“I don't want to talk about it right now, Katara.”

Now Katara is the one rolling her eyes.

“You can tell them,” Zuko says after a moment. “About... you know. About us. Who we are. My uncle knows anyway. It was hard for him not to figure it out.”

“I know, I know. He always smiles at me when I see him,” Katara laughs. “I have a feeling he's already planning the wedding.”

“Agni, please, no.”

Katara laughs even louder.

They are soulmates, but they are not lovers. Right now, Zuko is her best friend. Maybe one day that will change — they say there's a reason you have a soulmate — but for now, they are both happy with the way things are.

At least that's what Katara tells herself, because that moment in the Oasis... Tui and La almost destroyed their friendship because for a moment she really wanted to kiss him.

She hopes Zuko didn't notice. Katara isn't ready for the awkward conversation that would follow. And she doesn't want to explain her feelings.

Feelings she doesn't have. Because Katara has not sunk so low as to fall in love with her best friend. Who still stands on the opposite side of this war.

“I'm afraid he'll have to wait a long time for that,” Katara says, pretending that everything is fine. “But no. I didn't want to tell Aang and Sokka about you. Do you think I should?”

Zuko shrugs.

“Whatever you think is best. Just let me know beforehand. I'd rather your brother not try to attack me with a boomerang the moment he sees me.”

“I have a feeling you already have Aang's blessing,” Katara says, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. “Aang liked you when you were an anonymous Firebender. And now that you've saved the Moon? You know, Aang adores you now.”

“Should I start expecting wedding plans, this time with Aang?”

“Who knows?” Katara smiles slightly. Ordinary banter is fine. Normal. This is their usual relationship. There's no need to ruin it with unnecessary feelings. “However, I'm almost completely convinced that as soon as Sokka finds out about you, he'll try to attack you with a boomerang.”

“Wonderful. Well, at least I won't have to worry about marriage proposals from him–”

Katara punch him gently on the shoulder.

“Hey! What?”

“You're showing that you're a little too Fire Nation-y.”

Zuko looks at her in disbelief.

“Katara, I am from the Fire Nation. I have never denied that and–”

“You have very strange laws that shouldn't exist.”

Zuko blinks. A strange expression appears on his face, something between a smile and irritation.

“Are you trying to tell me that I should somehow convince my father to change the laws because your brother wants to marry me?”

“I have no idea where you got that idea. To answer your question, no, Sokka doesn't want to marry you because Sokka is very happy with Suki. But you could change your stupid laws in the future. I'm sure many people suffer because of them.”

“Possibly,” Zuko admits after a moment. “But, at the moment, there is little I can do about it.”

“I know,” Katara replies.

Silence falls between them.

Zuko closes his eyes.

They sit next to each other in silence for a moment.

“What happened to the fleet?” Katara asks after a while. “And Zhao?”

“He's in custody for now,” Zuko says, opening his eyes. “We managed to withdraw the fleet. But I don't know how long we'll be able to keep control of it. Uncle suggests that I should find my crew—you know, the crew Zhao stole from me—and escape. Because maybe someone will decide that Zhao was right after all. Anyway... everything is under control for now.”

Katara doesn't like the word “for now.”

All things considered, it's not that bad.

Somehow, they manage to withdraw the armada. And they aren't attacked for the first few days. And then a week. And two.

Theoretically, Zuko has the least say here. The armada was sent by Zhao—Fire Lord Ozai gave his permission for the attack. Zuko and Iroh, by stopping the attack and invoking some old law (which no one had checked yet, and which sounded so wise and complicated that the other admirals didn't argue with them), actually opposed the will of the Fire Lord.

This won't end well.

Zuko begins to consider escape.

As soon as his father hears about what happened—that he defied him—his father will be furious. Besides, the ships are currently heading towards the Fire Nation, and Zuko cannot go to the Fire Nation for obvious reasons.

But for now, everything is fine.

For now.

(If Zuko is deliberately making sure the ships sail very slowly, officially saying that it is for their safety and that he does not want to lose a single ship, no one is saying it out loud).

“My brother,” Azula declares one night, “is an idiot.”

Today, they are in the royal hall of Omashu. This is a place Azula got to know quite well after she conquered the city—without much trouble, really. What was “King” Bumi thinking, just giving her Omashu like that?

Why would anyone ever have trouble conquering this city, this part of Earth Kingdom?

Conquering the Earth Kingdom is only a matter of time. Omashu is theirs. They only need Ba Sing Se, and then they will rule most of the Earth Kingdom.

(Of course, it's not that simple. The Earth Kingdom is enormous. Controlling such vast territories will not be as easy as controlling a colony.)

Either way, they are not far from victory. And that allows Azula to relax in the palace.

Even if she is not alone, not in her dreams.

Her soulmate looks around with interest, undoubtedly curious about where they are.

After a moment, her soulmate looks at her.  

“Is everything fine with your brother?” Ghost asks. “I was sure you hadn't seen each other in a long time.”

“We haven't seen each other in three years,” Azula confirms, stroking the back of the throne where King Bumi sat not so long ago. “But even I have heard about what he has done. Apparently, my uncle is a traitor and my brother is a failure. My father is considering getting rid of them both.”

“Oh,” Ghost's face turns a little pale. “Are they all right?”

“I don’t know and I don't care,” says Azula. “But my brother's failure means that now I'm the one who has to clean up after him.”

“Oh, I see. I'm sorry. I hope you manage to complete his mission in that case.”

“Don't repeat stupid words about how important my brother's mission is for the good of this world, I'm bored when I hear it,” Azula says irritably. “My subordinates constantly remind me of it. They seem to forget who their real superior is.”

“Perhaps they want to help or support you,” Ghost says, somewhat uncertainly. “Ember, you are a good person, but the mission you have been assigned will not be easy. I know you are a powerful Firebender, but–”

“Me? A good person?” Azula bursts out laughing. “I didn't know you knew how to joke, Ghost.”

For some reason, her soulmate isn't laughing. But well, that was to be expected. Ghost rarely laughs. Well, Ghost does smile sometimes, but Azula could count the times she heard her soulmate’s laugh.

(Okay, that last part might be a bit of an exaggeration.)

“It wasn't meant to be a joke,” Ghost protests. “I really–”

“Okay, okay, spare me your sweet words. If you don't have anything interesting to say to me, we might as well end this conversation.”

There is silence for a moment. Azula wonders briefly if Ghost is offended by her. But then again, Ghost has never been one to hold a grudge for long.

“I'm thinking about leaving home,” Ghost says after a long silence.

“Finally,” Azula says. “You've been in that little village for too long, and it's only held you back. You should do something with your life instead of feeling sorry for yourself.”

“That's easy for you to say, Ember,” Ghost protests. “Not everyone has parents who send their children out to see the world.”

“Seeing the world,” Azula repeats. “Is that what my brother's mission—a mission that was assigned to me — is to you? Don't be silly. For my brother, it was a punishment. For me, it's a challenge, a chance to show my strength. And I'm not going to disappoint my father.”

No one disappoints Fire Lord Ozai. No one.

Because the moment you fail, you don't live long enough to enjoy the consequences. Zuzu was lucky to be a prince, as even Ozai wouldn't have had an easy explanation for why he killed his own son.

 Zuko failed their father.

Azula has no intention of repeating her brother's mistakes.

One day, Zuko catches his uncle's gaze.

“Prince Zuko,” Iroh says, leading him aside so they can talk alone. “Perhaps we should consider what we should do now.”

“We have to leave the fleet,” Zuko says. “At least I do. We can't keep using these ships, we're not their commanders...”

At least Zuko isn't. His uncle still has his old title. He may be retired, but people respect the Dragon of the West. Or at least they respect him much more than they respect the exiled prince.

His uncle nods.

“We should head for the coast,” he agrees. “Perhaps we could ask our old crew to–”

“That won't work, Uncle,” Zuko interrupts him. “Zhao took them away on my father's orders. Those orders still haven't been revoked.”

The thought of what Zhao had done—what he had dared to do—still makes him furious. Why did Zhao have the right to take his ship, to interfere with his mission?

...Probably because Father never wanted Zuko to complete it.

Zuko pushes these thoughts away. He won't think about it. If he does, all he'll do is start feeling sorry for himself.

 “So what do you want to do, Prince Zuko?” Uncle looks at him intently.

“I don't know,” Zuko admits. “Do you think there's a chance to ask for a new ship?”

“Well,” his uncle ponders, stroking his beard—something he doesn't usually do, so he must have picked it up somewhere along the way and decided it was the perfect gesture. “Perhaps we could ask for one. It's not as if we lost all our resources with the ship.”

Zuko turns to him, confused.

“What do you mean, Uncle?”

“Prince Zuko, although I am not proud of it, I have a long military history,” says Uncle. “I am the owner of considerable wealth. Even if Ozai is unwilling to finance your search for the Avatar–”

And he probably won't, considering that Zuko has, in a way, defied his orders.

Which is incredibly dangerous and was an incredibly bad idea. Zuko can only hope that his father will recognize that withdrawing the armada was necessary, that otherwise all their men would already be lying at the bottom of the ocean.

...who is Zuko trying to fool? Father isn't interested in the lives of soldiers. He's interested in results.

“–that doesn't mean I can't help you,” Uncle smiles, continuing, completely unaware of the small crisis Zuko is currently facing. “I have my own financial resources, which will suffice for some time, in case we are forced to leave the fleet.”

Zuko has a feeling that this will happen soon.

His assumptions prove to be correct—the fleet receives direct orders to head back to Fire Nation waters, where they are to receive further orders. Zuko suspects that they will either be sent to protect their northern waters in case the Water Tribe seeks revenge, or they will be directed towards the Earth Kingdom.

If the fleet is heading for the Fire Nation, Zuko definitely should not be there.

He exchanges glances with his uncle, who nods.

Zuko goes to the captain of their ship and explains in a few simple words why they need to disembark at this particular location. The captain nods without arguing.

When Zuko returns to his uncle, Iroh is drinking another cup of tea.

Iroh smiles at him. Theoretically, he doesn't have to go with Zuko. He might as well go home. He didn't have to accompany Zuko for the last three years, he doesn't have to do it now.

Zuko has no idea what they could do now. The Avatar is no longer around. Zuko's ship no longer belongs to him.

They could—theoretically—continue searching for the Avatar. But the problem is, Zuko isn't sure he wants to do that anymore. The agreement he made with Katara was based on his word and position meaning something, but now...

Well, Father probably won't blame him for the fleet leaving the North, will he?

...Zuko no longer knows if he believes what he says or not.

Azula, she must admit, is disappointed.

“I didn't think you'd be so hard to find, brother,” she says as she enters the resort where her brother and Uncle are staying.

Of all places, a resort?

Besides, Azula is not a messenger. She is not a hunter who has to chase her own brother. She is the conqueror of Omashu, she is a warrior — and yet her father's new orders have made her turn back and take her brother home. Preferably in chains, because he has become very problematic lately.

Not that Father's latest orders were anything new. Azula had known for a long time that their Father didn't care about Zuko and that her brother was nothing to him.

Uncle Iroh is a traitor.

Her brother is a disappointment. Perhaps also a traitor.

Azula looks at the two of them and—oh, that scar is even bigger than she thought it would be. She watched that Agni Kai, never taking her eyes off what was happening, even though their beloved Uncle looked away. Neither of them reacted that day, and that was a good decision. Uncle Fatso kept his life, and Azula is now the Crown Princess.

To keep her throne, she only needs to get rid of her brother.

“Azula,” Zuko looks at her with wide eyes (well, eye, as only one of them is fully open).

Can he even see anything with that left eye? Judging by how big and serious the scar is, Azula has serious doubts. They may both be Firebenders, but that doesn't mean Firebenders can't burn or be injured by fire.

“What are you doing here?” Zuko asks.

“That should be my question, brother,” Azula does her best not to look at his scar. Most peasants probably do just that, and Azula refuses to be on the same level as them. “I was convinced you had received your mission. Somehow, I don't see you chasing the Avatar. Rather, you and our beloved Uncle seem to be relaxing and resting. Could this task be so difficult and hard to accomplish?”

“The last few weeks have been hard for us, Azula,” Iroh says, with that awful, incredibly fake smile and a jovial tone of voice.

Azula hates it when he acts like this. Not so long ago, Iroh was a warrior who made the entire Earth Kingdom tremble. And now? Now he acts like an old fool with nothing in his head. He acts as if he has forgotten who he is, that he is part of the great royal family of the Fire Nation, the descendants of Agni.

Azula feels contempt at the very thought of being related to him.

“Of course there were,” she says, putting on the same smile, the same silky tone. “I guess it couldn't have been easy. I heard about what happened in the North.”

Zuko presses his lips together, looking as if he is planning to kill her. Azula concludes that this is the appropriate expression. This is how her older brother should look at her, this is how their relationship should be. Ultimately, they are only enemies, ultimately they are only political opponents.

Even if his letters are a source of good entertainment.

And even if there was a time when they got along.

But that was a long time ago. Azula is no longer a little girl, Zuko is no longer that boy. They have changed. In his case, that change is permanently etched on his face.

Ultimately, she is the one who has always won every one of their clashes.

“Zhao,” Zuko says, uttering the name as if it were the worst curse, “was going to send our entire fleet to their deaths. I'm very sorry that we decided to prevent that.”

“That's not the report I heard,” Azula looks at her brother with boredom. “I heard that you disobeyed the orders of the Fire Lord himself.”

Zuko presses his lips even tighter.

“It wasn't intentional,” he says. “It wasn't supposed to be.”

“It wasn't intentional?” Azula repeats incredulously. “You accidentally decided to stop Admiral Zhao, who was given that position by the Fire Lord himself? You accidentally withdrew our entire army?”

“If we hadn't, everyone would have died!” Zuko hisses. “Attacking the North Pole in the middle of winter, during one of the longest nights, when the Waterbenders are at their strongest? That's madness! Not to mention what Zhao was planning!”

“Admiral Zhao was trying to kill one of the Great Spirits,” Iroh says. “The consequences of such an action would have been catastrophic, both for the world and for the Fire Nation. Our country still needs the Spirits. We must coexist with them, not fight against them.”

“I'm not interested in your talk of rumors and spirits, Uncle,” says Azula, looking at him with irritation. Does he really not understand what they have done? And the position he has put her brother in?

...Azula always knew she shouldn't trust her uncle when it came to her brother's safety. Zuko had always been foolish and naive.

Her uncle, being the fool that he is, is teetering on the edge of treason and clearly intends to drag her brother down with him.

Azula should congratulate him for that. One less candidate for the throne. Her position will be safer.

“That's a shame, Azula,” says Uncle. “Perhaps you should start paying attention to that.”

Azula almost snorts under her breath. It's as if she can hear her soulmate. Ghost loves to talk about Spirits, no matter how many times Azula says she doesn't want to hear about it.

“Never mind,” Zuko says in a slightly sharper tone, finally sounding like the Fire Prince he should be. “What do you want, Azula? Why did you come here?”

“Why the harsh tone, brother?” Azula smiles at him. “Shouldn't it be obvious? Father wants to talk to you.”

Zuko freezes.

He doesn't speak for a long, long time.

Finally, he glances at Uncle out of the corner of his eye.

“Uncle,” he says. “Give us a moment to talk, just the two of us.”

“Prince Zuko...”

Iroh doesn't look convinced. Azula bursts out laughing.

“I won't hurt my sweet, foolish brother, if that's what you're afraid of. I just want to talk to him privately. I don't recall your name being Zuko, Uncle, so give us a moment.”

Iroh still doesn't look convinced. Zuko makes the decision for him, nodding toward Azula and heading to the side, to another corridor, as far away from their Uncle as possible.

If Azula wanted to, she could attack him now, get rid of him in an instant as he walks in front of her, his back turned to her.

Her brother is really naive.

Azula's appearance is something Zuko did not anticipate. But hey, it's a success—Azula isn't trying to kill him the moment she sees him! That says something, right?

“What is that, Zuzu?” she asks. “If you're going to waste my time, do it quickly. Unlike some people, I'm not lazy enough to have an infinite amount of it.”

Is this a dig at him and his mission, which he has failed to accomplish (and probably never will)? Or is it a dig at Uncle, who is probably ridiculed by the whole of Caldera?

Zuko tried to ignore what the Fire Nation and the royal court thought of Uncle, but he guessed that they saw him in two ways: either as a man tired of life or as a madman who willingly went into exile with Zuko.

Of course, Uncle still had more allies than Zuko.

“You said Father wants to talk to me,” Zuko says, looking intently at Azula. “But I haven't completed my mission. I haven't captured the Avatar.”

“Father wants you back. He wants to see you again.”

“Father wants me back,” Zuko repeats hollowly. “Why, Azula? Why does he want to see me now, after all these years? Now that I don't have the Avatar?”

Katara's words echo in his head. Katara seems convinced that Ozai never cared about him; he never cared about him.

Zuko steals a glance at Azula. She doesn't appear to be injured, but that doesn't mean anything. He has no idea how Father treated her over the years.

But Azula was always the better one. So she should be safe.

Every child should be safe with their father, Zuko, he can almost hear Katara say.  You shouldn't have to worry about something like that.

But he does worry.

What does that say about Ozai?

“Why did Father send you?” Zuko asks suspiciously. “Of all the possibilities, the Fire Princess is his messenger?”

“The Crown Princess.”

“Until I return.”

“We both know that the chance of you regaining your title is incredibly slim, Dum-Dum.”

And those words are incredibly alarming.

Why would Azula say something like that if she was sent to take him home?

...although Azula never said she would take him to regain his title.

“All right,” Zuko hisses through clenched teeth. “So Father wants to see me, but you still have my title. So, please tell me, why exactly does Father want to see me? I don't recall the terms of my exile being changed.”

“Of course they haven't been changed,” Azula says simply, looking at him in that strange, impassive way.

Azula doesn't speak for a long, long time.

“Fuck,” Zuko realizes. “Father doesn't want me to come home, does he? He doesn't want to take me back.”

“What did you expect after you defied his will?”

Zuko turns pale. Azula continues to look at him in that awful, emotionless way.

“Father sent you here to capture me,” Zuko says, his words barely louder than a whisper. “Wait. Why haven't you done it yet? Why haven't you attacked us?”

“Because it is more profitable for me if you are a publicly known traitor living in exile somewhere in the Earth Kingdom than if you became a martyr in the Fire Nation,” Azula replies calmly. “This is my only warning, brother. Leave before I lose my patience.”

Part of him wants to shout that Azula is lying; that Azula always lies... but on the other hand, her appearance here makes no sense. Father suddenly changed his mind, just like that, after the disaster that was the North? Father would suddenly take him back?

“Fuck,” Zuko takes a step back when he realizes they have another problem. “Father sent you to capture me.”

“That's what I said, Dum-Dum,” Azula's eyes flash with irritation. “I didn't think you were so stupid that you wouldn't understand that–”

“If I just leave, he'll realize you warned me,” Zuko interrupts her. “We have to find another way. The soldiers need to see that you've done your part. They need to see that you took us away and that you're loyal to Father... we can't let him think you warned us.”

“I didn't warn you,” Azula objects. “I just want to get rid of you, you idiot. You're in my way.”

“You need the soldiers to see that you caught us,” Zuko insists. “I won't risk anything happening to you.”

“Did you really not understand what I said? I need you to stay away from the Fire Nation and let me–”

“Azula. Please.”

Azula falls silent. She stares at him for a long time, her face showing some strange emotion that Zuko can't quite read.

“Fine,” Azula says after a moment. “But don't think I'll hold back, Zuko.”

“That's acceptable,” Zuko agrees without hesitation. “Thank you for your help.”

“You're starting to make me regret my words,” Azula warns.

Zuko can't help but smile slightly at her. Then he bows slightly in gratitude.

“That doesn't change the fact that I'm grateful to you,” he says.

Azula looks at him with growing irritation.

“Do your job and stay out of my way, Zuko,” she says. “Get ready to go. I won't wait for you forever.”

She turns as if to leave, but Zuko's voice stops her mid-motion.

“Azula.”

“What now, Zuko?”

“Did Father...” Zuko hesitates for a moment. He can't bring himself to look at her. “Did he hurt you while I was away?”

Azula snorts loudly.

“Of course not,” she says. “Unlike you, I'm not a disappointment.”

“I feel like I just got rid of my biggest problem,” Azula announces.

Her soulmate looks at her without much admiration. Rude.

“What happened?” Ghost asks.

“I made my brother a traitor,” Azula announces cheerfully. “Or rather, I made him one officially. He had already been a traitor for a long time. Father told me to catch him and bring him to him.”

“You seem strangely happy, considering you just fulfilled your father's order. Didn't you plan to kill him?”

“My goals remain unchanged. And I didn't deliver my brother to Father. He escaped.”

Ghost is silent for a long time, looking at her in that strange way that Azula has learned to hate. She feels like Ghost is judging her or looking for something on her face. Which is incredibly stupid and naive and pathetic, because Ghost still can't see her face clearly.

“You warned him,” Ghost says in a quiet voice. “And you let him escape.”

“My brother, free and with a bounty on his head, is more valuable to me than if he were at home and the Fire Nation considered him a martyr or whatever he might become if Uncle started mixing his old army friends into all this,” Azula says irritably. “Don't read too much into my reasons. It was the best solution, and in the end, I won.”

For some reason, her soulmate bursts out laughing.

“You're not being honest, Ember,” Ghost’s smile is gentle. “I suppose that's why you're one of my favorite people.”

Azula looks at her soulmate in disbelief.

“Are you completely insane?”

Instead of answering, Ghost walks up to her and hugs her from behind. Azula freezes.

“What are you doing?” she asks sharply.

“I'm hugging you,” Ghost replies simply. “I'm proud of you, Ember. You did the right thing. You protect what is yours. I respect that.”

“You're misunderstanding the situation,” Azula objects. “I didn't do it for him or out of the goodness of my heart.”

“Mhm,” Ghost doesn't seem convinced.

Azula feels the urge to set her soulmate on fire.

Ultimately, she decides to hold off on that decision.

One day, when they meet in reality, Azula will have plenty of time to do it.

Chapter Text

His ponytail is gone.

“What did you do to your hair?” Katara asks incredulously.

Zuko shrugs.

“Hey,” Katara nudges him with her finger. “What happened?”

Zuko looks away from her. 

“Zuko,” Katara nudges him again. “Don't make me beg you for the whole story. What happened?”

“Azula happened,” he says after a moment. “Zhao accused us of stopping the attack on the North. Azula was going to take us to Caldera. In chains. We escaped. The Fire Nation considered us traitors. Me and my uncle.”

Katara looks at him in disbelief.

“But you were trying to save the Fire Nation!”

“Apparently, that wasn't enough for my father,” Zuko hisses. “Either way, the Fire Nation considers us traitors. My uncle and I have to run. Hence the hair. We're reducing the chances of anyone recognizing us.”

“Oh, Zuko,” Katara whispers. “I'm so sorry.”

She wants to hug him, pull him close — but Zuko won't let her, instead pushing her away.

Katara hates this whole situation. Everything about it is so unfair.

“Azula helped me,” Zuko says suddenly.

Katara blinks.

“Your sister?”

“Do you know another Azula?”

“No, but... I thought Azula didn't like you.”

“I don't know what's going on in her head, but she helped me. She warned me that Father doesn't want me back—that he doesn't want to take me home. In fact, he wanted to blame me and Uncle for the North. Azula was supposed to take me home in chains.”

“But she warned you,” Katara whispers softly.

Zuko shrugs again.

“Azula said I was more valuable to her as a fugitive than if I returned home in chains. Maybe she was afraid I'd have allies in the Fire Nation.”

“Or maybe she didn't want you to end up in prison.”

Zuko shrugs again.

“Maybe.”

“So what are you going to do now?” Katara asks. “You know, theoretically, if the Fire Nation is after you now, you could–”

“No, Katara,” Zuko interrupts her sharply. “I'm not going to join you. First of all, I don't know where you are now–”

“I could tell you.”

“–and second, that would be directly opposing the Fire Nation. I'll find a solution—besides, we have to run now, so... No, Katara. Thank you for the offer, but no.”

“I'm starting to think my uncle is an idiot.”

“I was convinced he was incredibly smart.”

“He would be, if it weren't for the fact that he loves to make tea from the strangest plants. Which almost killed him. And you know what his solution was? To try another plant that could cause blindness.”

“I hope you stopped him in time.”

“At the last minute,” Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

“How is he?” Katara asks with concern.

“Better. I took him to a healer. But I do have a feeling that my uncle loves to complicate my life.”

“I'm sure he didn't do it on purpose,” Katara says. “Where are you now? Maybe we could meet up.”

Zuko just looks at her. Meaningfully.

“After we get back from Omashu,” Katara adds quickly. “We're almost there. Oh, have you heard the story of the Cave of Two Lovers?”

Zuko frowns.

“You mean that awful song my uncle loved to sing whenever we talked about Omashu?”

“Oh, so it’s famous all over the world?” laughs Katara. “I suppose it's the same one.”

“...don't tell me you tried to get into Omashu through those tunnels.”

“We tried,” Katara admits. “But we had no other choice. Omashu had fallen. More accurately, King Bumi surrendered the city without a fight.”

Zuko frowns.

“Strange. But that explains why Zhao attacked the North. It was probably a distraction, and Omashu was the target all along.”

“Perhaps,” Katara says.

Her friend continues to stare at her with strange intensity.

“Ask,” Katara says after a moment.

“Ask what?”

“Ask whatever you want to ask.”

“Is there really a secret tunnel leading to Omashu?”

“Yes,” Katara confirms. “As it turns out, love opens many paths. Even family love.”

“Are you telling me that you and Sokka love each other enough to be able to open a secret tunnel to Omashu?” Zuko's face shows disgust.

“Hey,” Katara nudges him in the arm. “Sokka is my brother. Of course I love him. Not all siblings try to kill each other.”

Zuko stops looking at her.

Katara begins to regret bringing up the subject.

“We met Azula today.”

“What?” Panic immediately appears in Zuko's eyes, although Katara isn't sure if Zuko is afraid that one of them hurt her or that Azula hurt them.

“In Omashu. When we tried to exchange Tom-Tom for King Bumi. Azula was in the city.”

“Who is Tom-Tom?”

“The son of the governor of Omashu. His sister is a bit scary. She tried to throw knives at us. Do you know her?”

“Why do you assume I know her?”

Katara shrugs.

“There was another girl with them. In pink. An acrobat. Nice, cheerful, but incredibly devoted to Azula.”

“Ah.”

“What, ah?”

“It's Ty Lee,” says Zuko. “And Mai. Azula's friends. And trouble.”

“Mai?” Katara loses her smile for some reason. “Your fiancée?”

“Ex-fiancée,” Zuko corrects her. “I don't think we are engaged now, not when I have a bounty on my head. Her family is influential, and they probably wanted Mai to become part of the royal family or the Fire Lady.”

“She was your first love, wasn't she?”

Zuko glances at her and then bursts out laughing.

“Katara, are you jealous?”

“No!” Katara protests immediately. “I just don't like the idea that your fiancée–”

“Ex-fiancée.”

“–tried to kill me.”

“Your first love was Jet, so don't complain,” Zuko rolls his eyes. “Besides, Mai is pretty cool. Is she still as scary as before?”

“...Do I want to know the details of your romance?”

“Non-existent romance? Of course, I can share that.”

“You're a jerk,” Katara says, nudging him playfully with her elbow. This kind of banter makes everything feel normal again. Whatever happened—whatever didn't happen in the Oasis—must have been just a silly misunderstanding, right?

Zuko smiles back at her.

After a moment, he frowns.

“Wait. I was sure Azula had already taken Omashu,” he says. “What was she doing in Omashu now?”

“I don't know,” Katara shrugs. “Maybe she came to enjoy her victory?”

Sometimes Zuko feels that Uncle has lied.

Not so long ago, Uncle claimed that he was in possession of a considerable fortune and would be able to use it to help them. Apparently, however, his assurances do not apply to the moment when that fortune would be needed – when they would simply need the money to live.

Because the truth is, the Earth Kingdom is not friendly to them.

Even though they got rid of their phoenix tails and are trying so hard not to be recognized, they really have so little.

Zuko always knew he was unlucky, but he didn't think he was that unlucky.

He had been to the Earth Kingdom several times before when they were searching for the Avatar, but now they have so little. They cannot use firebending because someone might realize that they are Firebenders — which would mean that someone would probably try to kill or imprison them. And even though Zuko has his swords, they aren't much use to him because swords can't satisfy hunger.

He doesn't tell Katara this, of course. He hasn't sunk so low as to complain to her. Besides, Katara has an incredibly good heart and would probably be willing to go out of her way to find him and help him.

But her task is important, isn't it? She has to help the Avatar, she has to find him an earthbending teacher, she has to support and protect him. Zuko shouldn't interfere or distract her from this task.

So all he has to do is keep quiet. There's no reason for him to bother her.

Which doesn't change the fact that Zuko is starting to hate his life more and more.

“Are you okay?”

“Why do you ask?”

“You don't look okay.”

“I'm fine, Katara. You don't need to ask.”

Katara raises an eyebrow.

“I'm worried about you,” she confesses. “Are you sure you're okay? I can see you wasting away before my eyes.”

“Agni, Katara, everything is fine! Besides, what do you expect? My uncle and I are wanted not only by the Earth Kingdom, but also by the Fire Nation! You and the Avatar are lucky—everyone in the Earth Kingdom loves you! And us? We don't have it so easy!” 

“We haven't always had it easy,” Katara objects. “Besides, we're wanted by the Fire Nation too.”

“Which isn't my fault!” Zuko hisses. “Leave me alone! Why can't one of you just leave me alone?! Why does everyone think they know what's best for me lately?!”

Katara frowns.

“Did something happen with your uncle?”

“No!” Zuko growls. “Everything's fine.”

It doesn't sound like everything's fine.”

In response, Zuko glares at her.

“We're having a fight,” Zuko says one day, incredibly quietly.

Katara frowns. She knows Zuko is incredibly close to his Uncle. Why would they be fighting?

“What's going on?” Katara leans toward him.

Zuko looks away from her.

“Nothing.”

One day, there is an attempt on their lives.

Or, rather, something that Katara is convinced is definitely an attempt on Aang's life.

Because, let's be honest, neither of them did anything wrong. They're just wandering the streets of the city, trying to find a teacher for Aang (they're definitely not going back to Long Feng, oh no, that wasn't a pleasant experience, and Katara is definitely not going to tell Zuko about it, because he would probably start to worry about it a lot. Not to mention that his opinion of the Earth Kingdom would be even worse, and that's something best avoided for now. Katara is still hoping to convince Zuko to finally join them).

Anyway, they're not committing any crime. They're not doing anything wrong.

And then the ground bends beneath them and knocks them off their feet.

And it heads towards Aang, as if it wants to kill him.

Aang is instantly on his feet, pulling out his staff. He starts running, trying to avoid the earth, but, well, that's a pretty difficult task considering they're surrounded by earth.

And the pebbles start moving towards him.

People start screaming, and Katara and Sokka immediately realize that whoever is attacking them is only targeting Aang.

And it seems like they're trying very hard to kill him.

“Take care of the townspeople!” Aang shouts, soaring into the air, trying to escape the attack somehow.

The attacks stop, temporarily.

Katara looks around, summoning water. She tries to find the enemy, someone who tried to attack her friend, but she sees no one around. Besides, it doesn't make sense — why would Earthbenders attack the Avatar, their greatest ally?

It doesn't make sense.

It's as if Katara has overlooked something.

“Aang, do you see anyone?!” Katara shouts, getting her friend's attention.

“No!” the boy replies, looking around. From above, he has a better chance of seeing their enemies, but if even Aang can't find anyone... What does that say about their opponent?

For a moment, everything seems to freeze. Everyone looks around for their enemies, but they see no one.

Which is incredibly annoying.

Katara almost starts to miss Zuko. At least with him, she would know what to expect and where to find him. Zuko has never been particularly good at hiding his presence.

Except when he puts on his Blue Spirit mask and becomes almost a different person. Katara still doesn't know how it works.

Because, hey, something like that shouldn't make sense, right? People don't suddenly change their ability to be loud. And Zuko isn’t quiet in most situations.

Well, anyway, Zuko isn't here right now, because if he were, they would have noticed him already. Their enemy is some random Earthbender who decided to attack them in the middle of a random city.

Who still hasn't shown up.

After a moment, when no new attack comes, Aang lowers himself and approaches Katara. His feet touch the ground.

“I didn't see anyone, but–”

The stones fly towards him. Aang dodges them at the last moment, Katara creates a barrier with water.

The two turn toward the direction from which the attack came. Sokka is already running that way, dodging further attacks, boomerang in hand, clearly ready to attack — as soon as they see their enemy.

Katara and Aang exchange glances.

And then, the two rush into battle.

Fighting an invisible opponent is annoying because you can't hit them when you don't know where they are.

Which is really annoying.

The thing about this particular encounter is that some time later, when they no longer know where their opponent is, they decide to appear in front of them.

It's a girl.

A little girl dressed in green and brown Earth Kingdom robes. A little girl who has her arms crossed over her chest and doesn't seem happy with what has happened.

“That,” she says, “was one of the worst examples of earthbending I've ever seen in my life, Twinkletoes.”

...What?

Katara blinks, completely not understanding what is going on here and why she is suddenly talking about earthbending — because she is the Earthbender who has been trying to crush them for the last twenty minutes, right?

Sokka's face shows as much surprise as Katara's.

Aang, on the other hand... Aang stands motionless, staring at the girl in shock, as if he doesn't know what to do or what to say.

Katara gathers water around her, determined to attack the girl with a water whip. Even if she is a child, she has proven herself to be their enemy.

Aang beats her to it, rushing towards the girl.

“Smashie!” he shouts happily. “It's you, isn't it?!”

Katara blinks, and suddenly Aang tries to grab the girl—no, not grab her, he wants to hug her—but she resists, looking at him with irritation.

“It's you, isn't it?” Aang asks excitedly. “It's you, isn't it? Wait, why did you attack us? It was you, wasn't it?”

“Of course it was me, Twinkletoes,” replies the girl (Smashie? Wait, wasn't that the name of–?) “What are you doing here?”

“We were looking for an earthbending teacher and– I'm Aang! What's your name?!”

Aang finally manages to hug her. Smashie looks like she wants to run away, but eventually sighs heavily and lets him hug her. Even her hands wander a little higher, as if she is considering hugging him back.

“I'm Toph,” the girl replies. “And I'll be your earthbending teacher.”

“What?” Aang seems genuinely surprised by this turn of events.

Toph punch him on the shoulder.

“You control Air and Water, I saw you try to use them when you fought me. So you are the Avatar, Twinkletoes. And you haven't mastered Earth yet.”

“How do you know that?!” Aang looks at her in shock. “Wow, you're right! Of course you're right! Wait, wait, I have something for you!”

He lets go of her and starts searching for something in his robes. After a moment, he pulls out a bracelet. The same bracelet he made in front of Katara weeks earlier.

“This is for you, Smashie, I mean, Toph!” says Aang, smiling happily.

Toph doesn't say anything right away, but strokes the bracelet she has received. Aang begins to explain the meaning of the gift, and a slight smile appears on her lips.

Then, some time later, she lifts her head toward Katara and Sokka, who have long since realized that Toph is not their enemy.

Her eyes are white. Katara shudders.

Can she see anything?

“Katara, Sokka!” Aang waves his hand at them. “This is Smashie, I mean, Toph! My soulmate! Toph, these are Katara and Sokka, my friends!”

Katara and Sokka exchange glances.

They sense that their journey is about to become much more chaotic.

They kidnap Toph.

In a way.

With her consent.

Why are so many people kidnapping others with their consent lately?

“I think we found an earthbending teacher for Aang.”

“Mhm.”

“The girl's name is Toph. She's twelve years old.”

“You want to involve a twelve-year-old in this war?”

“I also think she's too young,” says Katara. “But you haven't seen her, Zuko. She's amazing. I've never seen anyone with such great abilities before. I think you'd like her.”

“Mhm.”

“She's Aang's soulmate. It's a shame you didn't see the chaos they caused when they found out.”

“Mhm.”

“As soon as Toph stopped trying to kill Aang—out of love, of course—Aang gave her his bracelet. You know, the soulmate bracelet. It's supposed to be some kind of Air Nomad custom. It's a shame you didn't see how big Toph's smile was then.”

“Mhm.”

“Besides, Toph is blind.”

“...Katara, did you just tell me that you got a twelve-year-old blind girl involved in the fight against the Fire Nation?”

“Toph can see. With her feet.”

“I think I'm sleep deprived,” Zuko decides. “Or you are. This conversation has lost all meaning.”

“Oh, and we kidnapped her. With her consent.”

“I'm definitely sleep deprived,” Zuko concludes.

So.

Toph's arrival is... okay, more than okay, because now they finally have an earthbending teacher for Aang.

But this creates two problems.

Problem number one is Toph herself and everything that comes with her. By that, Katara means the fact that many people now think they kidnapped her (even though Toph suggested it herself), and the fact that Toph is Toph. A slightly spoiled girl who has never traveled long distances before. And who doesn't like to wash.

Katara tries to be understanding, but the latter is too much. Really. How can you not want to wash?

Problem number two is named Azula.

Because Azula somehow finds them and follows them, persistently, always close, always tracking them, forcing them to run. Lack of sleep affects everyone.

Katara would tell Zuko everything she thinks about his sister—and it's not very nice—but the problem is that they simply don't have a chance to meet because Azula is constantly after them and they just don't have time to sleep.

So yeah. Life is wonderful.

Toph is the one who finds the solution to the mystery of how Azula was able to find them.

But everyone is tired, so very tired.

Aang says a few words too many.

Toph presses her lips together, then turns away, leaving them all without a word.

She doesn't look like she's coming back.

After a moment, Aang looks like he's about to cry.

“Oh no,” he says. “What have I done? I was horrible to her!”

He looks around, as if trying to find her nearby, but of course he can't, because Toph is gone. Too much time has passed for them to calm down.

“I have to find her!” Aang jumps to his feet. “And apologize!”

There is a slight hesitation in his eyes. Katara knows what is causing it. Toph has started blaming Appa for Azula finding them. Appa is incredibly precious to him because he is part of his culture, his close friend.

Aang didn't want to hurt anyone, but they are all so tired.

“I know, Aang,” Katara puts her hand on her friend's shoulder. “And we will, okay? Let's just try to clean Appa first. Maybe Toph was right and it was his fur that made Azula keep finding us.”

“Azula?” Aang blinks.

Oh.

Right.

Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee never introduced themselves. Katara didn't reveal their names to her friends at first, not wanting to risk Sokka finding out who her soulmate was (at the moment, it smells of drama that Katara simply doesn't have the energy for). And then... then somehow there was no opportunity to do so.

“Azula,” Katara confirms with a heavy sigh. “That girl with black hair, the Firebender? That's Azula, Princess of the Fire Nation. Zuko's younger sister.”

Sokka looks like he's dreaming of nothing more than going to sleep and never waking up again.

“Of course she's Zuko's sister,” he sighs heavily. And then: “Wait, what? How do you know that?”

“Because–” Aang begins.

“Because my soulmate is Fire Nation,” Katara interrupts him, giving him a warning look. Aang looks away from her. Yes. He definitely knows who her soulmate is. “We talk sometimes. He recognized Azula when I described her to him.”

“Oh, wonderful,” Sokka mutters under his breath. “How much else have you told him, huh? What if it's because of you that they're finding us?”

“Z– Gold wouldn't tell them that!” Katara objects. “Besides, I haven't had a chance to sleep much lately! I haven't talked to him in a long time!”

“Uh huh,” Sokka doesn't seem convinced.

Katara splashes him with water.

“Shut up, Sokka,” she says irritably. “You're not going to blame me for Azula. And we're not going to blame Toph for this. Let's find her and forget about this whole situation. Okay?”

Aang has a plan.

A plan that could probably work — and which does work, because they don't see Azula for the time being. The Fire Princess must be following the fur that Aang is spreading, luring her astray, as far away from Katara and Sokka as possible.

But of course, nothing can go as it should, and Mai and Ty Lee find them here.

Katara gets a little more satisfaction than she should from splashing water on Zuko's ex-fiancée.

Zuko must be either incredibly unlucky or incredibly lucky, because he finds not only his sister, but also the Avatar. On the same day. In the same place.

Which is incredibly problematic, Zuko concludes.

It's good to see Azula, of course. She looks well, very well in fact, which means their trick earlier worked and no one found out that it was Azula that warned him.

It's good to see the Avatar, of course. Not because Zuko intends to capture him, but because it means Katara is nearby and Zuko will finally be able to find out what has been happening to her lately. They haven't spoken in a while, and that worries him immensely. If Aang is here, Katara can't be far.

So. It's good to see both Azula and Aang.

The problem is, Zuko shouldn't want to talk to either of them.

Azula is officially supposed to be hunting him. So they should be fighting each other.

Zuko is officially supposed to be trying to catch Aang. So, again, they should be fighting each other.

And at the moment, Azula and Aang are fighting each other.

Which... isn't the best situation. Zuko wouldn't want either of them to get hurt.

Azula would, of course, laugh at him for thinking that way and prove to him that she isn't weak. His sister is incredibly strong, and Zuko knows that, but she's still his little sister and–

Blue flames are heading his way.

“Hey, Zuzu,” Azula says, a slight smirk playing on her lips.

Ah. So that's how it is. Azula is forcing him to choose.

Wait. No. She's not forcing him to choose.

She is reminding him that they are officially supposed to be enemies. That Azula has received her orders and that she will have to carry them out. That their father does not want Zuko to return home, that he has not given his consent — who knows who will come after Azula?

Besides, Azula is loyal to their father. She must be loyal, so she cannot show even the slightest hesitation.

Zuko stands against his sister.

Azula stands against him, but her flames are warm, not burning.

They fight, although Zuko isn't sure if it's more of a fight or sparing, as neither of them is aiming to kill or hurt the other.

Zuko's presence makes no sense.

Zuko's presence here makes no sense—but for some reason, Zuko and his Uncle are here, and the fight turns into a six-on-one battle.

“What a beautiful gathering,” Azula says, looking at them all.

Zuko, standing next to Katara, freezes.

“Azula–”

“Spare me the pleasantries, brother. It's okay,” says the Fire Princess, raising her hands. “Six against one, huh? Fine. The princess knows when to give up.”

Something strange appears in her eyes. Zuko freezes instantly — and then Azula summons lightning — Tui and La, why didn't Zuko bother to inform her that his sister (his fourteen-year-old sister) is capable of shooting lightning from her fingers?

The lightning is heading their way. Katara reacts too late, realizing too late that this is an attack and that this attack could kill them — but Iroh is first, shielding Zuko with his own body.

The man falls to the ground, and a scream full of terror and rage escapes Zuko's mouth.

Iroh falls to the ground.

And he doesn't get up.

Azula looks at him for a moment. She looks like she wants to say something, but ultimately gives up and runs away, taking advantage of the confusion.

They should probably go after her. They should probably run after her, make sure she doesn't attack them again — but Iroh is still lying on the ground, sweet Tui, Iroh... 

“It'll be fine,” Katara says quickly. “I'll help.”

“Please,” Zuko's hands tremble slightly. He clearly doesn't want to leave his uncle, doesn't want to let him go — but at the same time, he doesn't want anything to happen to him.

“Everything will be fine,” Katara promises. “I can help. I know what to do.”

It breaks her heart to see him so anxious, so uncertain. Zuko loves his uncle and cares for him, even if he's not always able to show it.

Katara raises her hands and gets to work, ignoring Sokka's protests, who is definitely not happy with what is happening.

“Katara–!” He takes a step toward her.

“Sokka,” Aang says. “Katara wants to help. Let her.”

“But Zuko–”

“Is not our enemy right now, is he?”

Zuko says something in response, but Katara ignores his words, focused on her work.

She's not going to let anything happen to Iroh.

Iroh doesn't regain consciousness right away, but his pulse is clearly stabilizing.

Zuko doesn't leave his side, constantly staying with him and making sure he's okay. He doesn't allow himself a moment's relaxation.

“Now that he's okay, we should leave,” Sokka says. “We don't know if that crazy princess will come back.”

“Azula?” Zuko looks up from his uncle for a moment. “First of all, she's not crazy.”

“She tried to kill your Uncle!”

“Because we stood up to her!” Zuko's eyes show irritation and something resembling panic.

Katara suddenly realizes that Azula is his sister. Their relationship hasn't always been particularly good, but that doesn't change the fact that Azula is his sister. She has spent the last few years with Ozai, who is not a good man, Katara knows that, she knows it so well. And when she was sent to capture Zuko, for some reason she decided to warn him.

Her appearance here makes sense, because Azula was chasing them.

But why did she try to attack Zuko too, even though she had helped him before? Why—oh.

Azula cannot be seen as my ally, Zuko told her some time ago when they were talking about her. Her position is probably not as secure as it could be.

Is that why Azula decided to attack Zuko? Was it a form of protection—because she simply cannot be seen as someone who helps him?

“Speaking of which,” Sokka says. “Why did your sister fight against you, huh? What happened that you decided to fight each other? Is this some new tradition?”

“I don't have to tell you anything, Water Tribe,” Zuko says the last words as if they were the worst curse he could think of.

Sokka, unsurprisingly, presses his lips together in irritation.

“Well, I don't have to help you. Neither does Katara. We helped your uncle, even though he tried to capture us before–”

“If we're going to nitpick, it was me, not him.”

“–so you should be grateful to us. We deserve an explanation.”

Zuko sighs heavily.

“Azula will return,” he says after a moment. “She will want to get rid of us.”

“Why?” asks Aang, looking at him with consternation. “What happened?”

Zuko hesitates, as if unsure how to respond. He looks to Katara for guidance. She nods gently, encouragingly.

“Uncle and I were considered traitors to the Fire Nation,” Zuko says after a moment, clearly reluctant. “We opposed Zhao and called off the invasion. The Fire Lord... was not pleased with us.”

“Oh,” something strange appears on Aang's face. “I'm sorry. And I apologize.”

Zuko frowns.

“Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong, Avatar.”

“If I had been a little faster, I could have stopped Zhao from attacking the moon, and you wouldn't have had to get involved.”

“Hey,” Sokka interjects. “They're from the Fire Nation. Don't apologize to them.”

“You don't have to apologize to us,” Zuko says. “We did what we had to do for the good of the Fire Nation.”

“But now Azula is hunting you,” Aang points out.

Zuko shrugs.

“She would probably do the same thing, whether we stopped Zhao or not. She received orders from my father. My uncle and I are a threat to him, mainly because we are theoretically entitled to the throne.”

“Oh,” Aang kneels beside him, looking at him thoughtfully.

Sokka stands behind him, tense, as if Zuko is about to attack him. Toph stands a little further away, but doesn't say anything. She listens to the whole conversation with interest.

“So what do you want to do now?” asks Aang.

“Well...” Zuko's gaze turns to Katara again, then to Iroh. “As soon as my uncle feels better, we'll continue on our way. We were planning to go to Ba Sing Se.”

“Us too!” chirps Aang. “Maybe we could go there together? I'm sure it'll be more fun that way!”

“Wair, wait, what? Aang, are you crazy?” Sokka asks. “This is Zuko. You know, the same Zuko who chased us halfway around the world?”

“But Zuko sided with us at the North Pole,” Aang points out. “And he's pretty nice.”

“Zuko. Nice,” Sokka repeats.

“Besides, his uncle just got hurt,” says Aang. “And Azula is after them. We have common enemies. We should work together.”

“That's a bad idea,” says Sokka. “Katara, Toph, I'm right, aren't I?”

He looks at them, expecting them to agree with him.

“Hey, I met them today,” says Toph. “But Uncle Tea is nice. I like him. And Zuko doesn't seem so bad. I think they can travel with us for a while.”

“Uncle Tea?” Zuko doesn't understand.

“He gave me tea and life advice.”

Zuko's lips curve into a smile.

“Sounds like my Uncle.”

“Now he's mine,” Toph decides.

“Hey! He's my Uncle!” Zuko objects. “Not yours!”

“You can share him!” Aang suggests cheerfully.

“Huh?!” Zuko looks at him as if he's crazy.

Aang takes a step back — and then, for some reason, smiles.

“You know, I've heard that the Water Tribes have an interesting tradition when it comes to soulmates! Apparently, their family is your family! So if–”

“That crazy blind earthbender is not my soulmate!” Zuko objects.

Something dangerous appears in Aang's eyes. And although he seemed to like Zuko until now, that is changing slightly.

“Toph is my soulmate, and she's not crazy,” he says firmly. “I don't like how you talk about her.”

“Oh,” Zuko glances at Toph, then at Katara. He looks like he's thinking about something. He takes a deep breath and, after a moment of silence, bows his head toward Toph. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way. I didn't want to offend you.”

Katara raises an eyebrow. Since when has Zuko been so nice?

Toph shrugs.

“It's okay,” she says. “I'd rather be crazy than boring. But I'm keeping your uncle. I like his tea. He was nice to me.”

“All right,” Zuko sighs heavily once more. “If he agrees, we can share him. But only if he agrees.”

“Oh no, no, no, I don't like this,” Sokka protests. “We can't agree to something like that!”

“Why not?” Aang looks at him curiously. “Toph and Zuko don't mind! Besides, Zuko and his Uncle will be traveling with us for a while!”

“No, no, no,” Sokka quickly objects. “They won't be traveling. They won't, right, Katara? Right?”

He looks at her pleadingly.

“Right, Katara?”  

“I want to make sure everything is okay with General Iroh,” Katara says truthfully, trying to ignore the guilt she feels when she sees something like betrayal in her brother's eyes. “I'd feel better if I had him under my supervision for the next few days.”

Besides, Zuko is her friend. Katara wouldn't mind having him around.

After all, they won't have to pretend to be enemies.

“Really?” Sokka looks at her, then at Toph, then at Aang, and finally at Zuko. “Hey, jerkbender. Tell me this doesn't make sense. That this is a bad idea. We're enemies.”

Zuko raises his gaze to him. Then he looks at his uncle.

“Katara said it would be better for her to keep an eye on my uncle,” he says quietly. “My uncle isn't getting any younger.”

“So you're staying with us?” Aang asks hopefully. “Oh, that's wonderful! I've always wanted to be friends with you!”

“Really?” Sokka can't believe what he's hearing.

“I'm so glad you're staying!” Aang rushes over to Zuko and hugs him, not caring that he stiffens or that Sokka snorts indignantly. “Welcome to the team, Zuko!”

Toph laughs loudly.

Katara smiles slightly.

Sokka still can't believe what's happening.

“We're all going to die,” he says. “This is going to end badly, I'm telling you. I hate this already.”

Chapter Text

Iroh still hasn't regained consciousness.

Since they don't know where Azula is or when she'll return to capture them again, they decide to leave as quickly as possible. Everyone climbs onto Appa—everyone except Zuko, who looks at the bison with a mixture of fascination and admiration.

“Zuko,” Katara reaches out her hand to him. “Come on.”

Zuko hesitates for a moment, as if not believing what he is doing, as if expecting them to fly away without him, but after a moment he takes her hand.

Katara pretends not to see the broad smile on Aang's face.

Appa rises into the air, taking them all deep into the Earth Kingdom.

Part of Katara still can't believe what just happened. What is happening. Zuko is here — sitting next to her, among her friends. And they're not arguing, they're not trying to kill each other. He's just sitting here, as if this has always been his place, as if he's always been part of their team.

“You know what,” Zuko says after a moment. “I always thought this thing would be faster.”

“This is Appa,” Aang corrects him.

“Appa,” Zuko repeats.

“So,” Sokka says a little while later, while they're still in the air. “Is this a good time to set some rules?”

“No,” Katara says.

“Yes,” Toph says at the same time.

Zuko looks everywhere but at them.

“You, jerkbender,” Sokka stares at him intensely. “Do you still want to catch Aang?”

“I was only chasing Aang because it was a mission my father gave me,” Zuko says, still not looking at him. “So I could return home. We are now considered traitors. I don't think bringing the Avatar before the Fire Lord will make my father forgive me.”

“So you just gave up on catching Aang?” Sokka asks incredulously.

“Well...” Zuko still doesn't look at him. “Not exactly. Let's just say I've put that plan on hold. For now, I want to save my uncle.”

“Mhm. Okay. So you're staying until your uncle feels better, and then you're leaving us. Okay. I can work with that.”

“Hey,” Katara objects. “We can't just leave them like that.”

“Yes, we can. Have you forgotten that they're Fire Nation? That Zuko is the same person who chased us halfway across the world? Have you really forgotten that?”

“I only did it because it was my mission,” Zuko says. “I didn't choose it of my own free will.”

“Sure, you were given a mission,” Sokka repeats. “Let me guess, it was probably some royal mission, some kind of task for a member of the royal family to prove to the world how evil you are. But you failed, so now your sister is taking care of it.”

Zuko finally looks up at him. Katara stiffens. His gaze is empty, as if he has lost all hope.

“No,” Zuko says in a calm, slightly too calm tone. “I didn't choose this mission. My father chose it for me three years ago. Finding the Avatar was the only way for me to return home.”

“But...” Aang frowns. “Three years ago, I wasn't even here yet. No one knew I was still alive.”

“Exactly.”

Zuko's words hang in the air.

Sokka presses his lips together.

“Okay, so your daddy didn't want you to come home, so what? You think your sob story is going to convince anyone? Poor Zuko, he had to catch a ghost. Too bad he decided to catch the world's last hope for peace while he was at it!”

“Sokka!” Katara hisses.

“Don't interrupt me, Kat,” Sokka glares intently at Zuko. “So what if you couldn't come home? That doesn't excuse you.”

“Sokka...” Aang grabs his arm, asking him with his eyes not to argue.

But Sokka doesn't listen to him. He just glares at Zuko.

Zuko looks at him for a long time, then his shoulders slump.

“I was banished, Sokka,” he hisses through clenched teeth. “I wasn't allowed to return home, to the Fire Nation. If I had done so without the Avatar, I would probably have died.”

“So what? You probably deserved to be banished.”

“Sokka!” Katara raises her voice, because she knows perfectly well that Zuko didn't deserve it. She's not going to let her brother's words undo all the progress she's made over the last three years. “That's enough! Take back what you said!”

“I'm not going to do that!” Sokka objects. “What are you doing, Katara? Why are you defending him? This is Zuko!”

“Yes, I know it's Zuko!” Katara stands between Sokka and Zuko and glares at her brother. “Don't talk about things you don't know anything about! Zuko was thirteen when he was exiled; he was only a little older than Aang and Toph! Do you really think he deserved to be exiled? To be sentenced to death?”

“Who knows, maybe he did! He probably did something wrong! I don't know, seduced his father's mistress! Or murdered someone!”

“I didn't murder anyone!” Zuko hisses, losing the last of his patience. “I tried to stop genocide!”

His words make Sokka freeze. Aang's eyes widen slightly. Toph raises an eyebrow.

“What do you mean?” asks Aang.

“Nothing,” Zuko looks away. “I don't want to talk about it. Do whatever you want. I'm only here for my uncle. As soon as he feels better, we'll leave and never see each other again.”

Iroh regains consciousness some time later, on Appa's back.

Zuko rushes to him almost immediately, making sure he is all right.

Iroh smiles, assuring him that yes, he is fine. When he learns that Katara healed him, he gives her a big smile and thanks her at least several times.

Katara has to remind herself that Iroh knows that Zuko is her soulmate. And he seems to be very happy about it.

Well, at least Katara won't have to worry that the people who care most about Zuko won't accept her.

The first evening is... peculiar.

Zuko and Iroh stay close to each other; Zuko is a little tense, as if he feels that someone is about to attack them. Iroh is calm, as if he were sitting among friends, not people who were his enemies not so long ago.

Aang smiles. He is incredibly happy that their group has grown a little and keeps talking to Zuko, trying to involve him in the conversation.

Toph seems to have no problem with the two newcomers. She sits close to Iroh, relaxed, and smiles at him more often than she should at a stranger; later, she explains to them that they met before, once, when Toph left their group. Sometimes, when Katara glances at them, she gets the impression that Toph seems to look at Iroh as if he were family—like an uncle, like a grandfather, someone she would like to trust.

Sokka continues to glance suspiciously at Zuko. He clearly doesn't trust him and is clearly unhappy that he is here, but he has been outvoted and has to accept it.

Katara... Katara doesn't know how to behave. On the one hand, she knows she shouldn't tell everyone that Zuko is her soulmate; on the other hand, it's hard to treat him like a stranger when she's spent hours talking to him, arguing with him, or just sitting next to him in silence. Being around him feels natural, normal.

Zuko helps her make this decision by staying close to Iroh and not talking to her.

It hurts a little, even though Katara knows it wouldn't be fair to shout to the whole world that they know each other — she can't do that without Zuko's consent, and so far she hasn't been able to find an opportunity to talk to him, not privately.

Aang finds such a moment.

He approaches her in the evening, when everyone is getting ready for bed, and asks to talk for a moment. Katara doesn't hesitate for too long.

The two of them walk away from the camp.

“So,” Aang says after a while. “You and Zuko. Is it, you know, official?”

“What are you talking about, Aang?” Katara doesn't understand.

Her friend glances at her out of the corner of his eye.

“He's your soulmate, right?” Aang asks. “I don't know why you don't want to tell Sokka or Toph, but I'll keep quiet if you want me to. I'm just curious if, you know...”

He doesn't finish. He starts playing with his fingers.

Katara needs a moment to figure out what Aang is really asking her. Her cheeks flush red.

“He's not my boyfriend!” she denies quickly. “He's... my best friend. We've known each other for a long time. A really long time.”

She realizes too late that she has just confirmed that Zuko is her soulmate — but it doesn't matter, Aang already suspected it anyway.

“Listen, I know not everyone trusts him, and I'm not saying you don't have reasons for that, but Zuko is a good person,” Katara says. “Besides, think about the Fire Nation. We want to defeat the Fire Lord, right? But even if we defeat him, someone will have to take control of the Fire Nation, someone will have to ensure peace. I don't want it to be Azula. Zuko and Iroh are our best options. Each of them has a chance to take the throne, so...”

“I know, I know,” Aang says quickly. “I don't know them as well as you do, but I like them. They're pretty nice. Besides, they helped us in the North. I just wanted to know what's going on between you two. You know, between you and Zuko.”

“There's nothing going on between us!” Katara protests.

 “But maybe there will be,” Aang remarks.

Katara feels like screaming in frustration. Why is Aang suggesting such a thing?

“I'm not saying it's a bad thing,” Aang says quickly. “I like you, Katara. You're my friend. And I want you to be happy. Even if you become the Fire Lady.”

Katara takes a step back.

“What?”

“If you and Zuko are soulmates, and he becomes Fire Lord, then you'll be Fire Lady in the future, right?” Aang asks. A broad smile spreads across his face. “That would be wonderful! You'd be the first Fire Lady from outside the Fire Nation, a symbol of unity, peace, a new world!”

Katara feels her whole face turning red.

“Nothing like that will happen!” she repeats. “We are friends. Just. Friends! Besides, I'm sure he doesn't see me that way! And even if he did, it wouldn't be that simple! It's not like with Sokka and Suki!”

Sokka and Suki are soulmates – as Katara found out quite bluntly, because the first thing they did when they saw each other was hug and kiss. They fell in love with each other as soon as they saw each other – perhaps Sokka had been in love with her for a long time.

But her and Zuko? Katara... she won't deny that she cares about him. She won't deny that sometimes she looks at him longer than she should, that sometimes she thinks about him more than she should — but she knows perfectly well that there is only friendship between them. They are friends. Katara won't destroy their friendship just because of her selfish desire for something more. 

“It's okay,” Aang says quickly. “I didn't mean to imply anything. And I didn't mean to get involved in something that's none of my business. But I just wanted to tell you that if there was something between you two, um, you can count on me? I'd help you. I'd listen. As soon as I'm able to.”

Katara smiles slightly and hugs the younger boy.

“Thanks, Aang,” she says. “You're a really good friend.”

At night, Katara finally has the opportunity to talk to Zuko alone.

The world of their dreams strangely resembles the desert they are traveling through — but there are some flaws, a sign that they are dreaming.

“Aang knows,” Katara says, glancing at her friend. “This time for sure. He confirmed it.”

She tries not to think about what Aang suggested. That maybe one day their friendship would turn into something else.

“I see,” Zuko doesn't seem surprised. “That would explain why he smiles at me all the time.”

“I don't think it has anything to do with you being my soulmate,” Katara says. “I think he just likes you.”

“I've been trying to catch him for most of the time we've known each other.”

“But you freed him from Zhao and helped him in the North.”

“Two situations. Nothing compared to how many times I've tried to catch him.”

“That doesn't change the fact that Aang likes you.”

Zuko rolls his eyes.

“Okay, Aang likes me. So what?”

“I just wanted to tell you that Aang knows,” Katara says. “Do you think we should tell Sokka and Toph?”

Her friend doesn't answer right away.

“I'm not sure that's a good idea,” he says after a while. “I have a feeling Sokka hates me. And I'm pretty sure that if he finds out I'm your soulmate, he'll try to kill me.”

“Not so much kill you as attack you with his boomerang,” Katara laughs. “Or give you a speech like, ‘If you hurt my sister, you'll have to deal with me.’”

“Then I'll win,” Zuko says confidently. “Sokka has never my equal opponent.”

Katara raises an eyebrow.

“Are you going to tell him that to his face?”

“If I have to, why not?” Zuko shrugs. “I'm stronger than him anyway.”

“You know what...” Katara says slowly. “Maybe it's a good idea for you two to try fighting each other.”

“I'll win. Besides, Sokka isn't a bender.”

“But you have your dao swords,” Katara reminds him. “Maybe you should try.”

“Try?” Zuko raises an eyebrow. “It won't be a duel, Katara. It will be a one-sided fight.”

Zuko is right.

The next day, Zuko takes Sokka to training—and systematically wipes the floor with him, over and over again.

Sokka doesn't give up.

Each time, he gets up, picking up the sticks they were using—Zuko wouldn't let him use real swords.

“So?” Katara comes to Zuko a while later, looking at him curiously. “What do you think of him?”

“He'll be all right,” Zuko says. “I'll make him a warrior.”

Katara smiles slightly.

It sounds like Zuko intends to stay here longer.

“Just wait until Sokka tries to make you a hunter,” Katara says, because she can't let her brother be seen as useless. “Or to learn to throw a boomerang. I'm curious to see who will wipe the floor with whom then.”

So.

Prince Jerkbender is apparently not only a Firebender, but he can also fight with swords.

And not just one sword. Two. Cursed. Swords.

And worse, he publicly proved to Sokka that he can fight with them. And that he carries them for a reason.

And he did it publicly, did Sokka mention that?

Zuko. The same Prince Jerkbender who chased them halfway around the world.

Worse still, everyone around him seems to accept him with ease.

Aang constantly talks to him and treats him almost like his best friend — which is incredibly rude, because Sokka is the one who stood by him from the beginning and protected him.

Katara smiles at him when she thinks no one is looking and speaks to him in a gentle, friendly tone.

Toph seems pleased that Zuko doesn't treat her like a helpless girl and clearly admires her skills.

But. Anyway.  

Prince Jerkbender shouldn't be here. And yes, Katara was the one who offered him support, and his uncle was in really bad shape, but still. It's not fair. And it's not normal.

Why is Sokka the only one who can think straight and remind everyone that they are in the presence of the enemy?

“Calm down, Water Tribe,” Zuko says suddenly, reaching out his hand to help him up.

Sokka looks at him with anger. He doesn't need his hand or his help. Zuko is the one who needs their help.

“I'm not planning on stealing your spot,” Zuko says, clearly waiting for Sokka to get up.

Which is his fault, because it was Zuko who threw him to the ground. As part of “training,” as he called it.

Sokka hates him very, very much at this moment.

“Excuse me?” he glares at him with rage. He is only glad that the rest are some distance away and cannot hear them.

He pushes Zuko's outstretched hand away, still glaring at him with rage. He stands up to be on the same level as him.

...why does Zuko have to be taller than him?

“What do you mean?”

“What I said,” the Jerkbender crosses his arms over his chest. “I'm not planning on stealing your place in the group. You don't have to worry about that. Just like I'm not going to catch the Avatar, Aang. I'm not going to try to be your enemy, but I'm also not going to suddenly take your role as leader or whatever you were before.”

Sokka glances to the side, toward his little family. Katara and Aang are talking about something, while Toph... Toph is sitting next to General Iroh and smiling at him. Ugh. Sokka doesn't like how easily Toph has practically accepted the Firebender as her own.

Which shouldn't happen, because they're not all allies here. They've only formed a temporary alliance.

“Listen to me carefully,” Sokka pokes Zuko in the chest with his finger. The Jerkbender doesn't even flinch. “You may think you've fooled everyone else, but you haven't fooled me. If I find out you're here to hurt my siblings, I swear I won't forgive you, and I'll make sure to deliver your head to the Fire Lord.”

“I'm not going to hurt them, but your fears are justified,” Zuko looks at him with strange calmness. And then suddenly blinks his eyes. “Wait, siblings? I thought Katara was your only sister.”

“Aang is like a brother to me, and Toph is his soulmate. So, she's my sister too.”

An expression of amusement crosses Zuko's face.

“What's so funny, Jerkbender?” Sokka asks sharply.

“Nothing,” Zuko says quickly. “I was just trying to imagine Azula's face when my soulmate calls her sister.”

“Oh, how awful, Azula would have another fire throwing sister.”

“Not necessarily. My soulmate isn't from the Fire Nation. However, I may have another fire throwing sister or brother, because Azula's soulmate is from the Fire Nation.”

“I'm not interested in your soulmates,” Sokka growls. Even though he has to admit that it's quite interesting. The Fire Prince's soulmate isn't from the Fire Nation? “I'm interested in what you're doing here. I'll be watching you, jerkbender. And if you do anything wrong...”

“My head will go to the Fire Lord, yes, I got it the first time,” Zuko rolls his eyes. But you should know that this would only make him happy. “He might even be willing to give you a house on some small island in the archipelago for getting rid of his problem.”

Tui and La, Sokka was supposed to threaten the Jerkbender, not start feeling sorry for him.

“I'm not interested in your family drama,” Sokka says, remembering that he's the one who has to be careful here. “Stay away from Aang, okay? And keep your distance from all of us.”

Zuko looks at him meaningfully.

“Stay away from all of us? When we're all traveling together and flying on the same bison?”

“You know what I mean!”

“I'm afraid not,” Zuko says. “You need to be a little more specific and clarify what you mean.”

“No attacking Aang, Toph, or Katara!” Sokka says immediately. “And no attempts to kidnap Aang.”

“We're in the middle of nowhere, Sokka,” the Jerkbender points out. “My Uncle still isn't feeling well enough. I need Katara's help. Besides, even if I caught Aang, I wouldn't be able to deliver him to my father. I'd probably lose my head or be killed by my own people. Not to mention that none of you would let that happen.”

“I still don't believe you. I don't believe your sudden change of sides.”

Zuko shrugs.

“You don't have to,” he says. “It's even better if one of you stays vigilant. You shouldn't just trust your former enemy. Your behavior is perfectly understandable.”

Tui and La, why is it that of all the people in their group, it's the Jerkbender who makes the most sense?

Aang tries to learn earthbending, but he's not doing very well.

The boy is getting more and more frustrated.

Zuko can understand his frustration.

He is in a similar situation himself—after meeting Azula in that desert town, Zuko realized that his current skills are not enough.

In order not to be a hindrance in the future, he must learn lightning bending.

When he tells his uncle about it, he nods.

“It's... not a stupid idea, Prince Zuko,” he admits. “It could be an important skill for you if you have to face your sister in the future–”

“I don't want to fight Azula,” Zuko quickly objects. “I'd rather come to an agreement with her. But maybe, someday...”

He doesn't finish his sentence, but he doesn't need to, because his uncle nods again.

“All right,” he says. “I'll teach you everything I know.”

Everything is going wrong.

He tries to convince Uncle to teach him lightning bending, but all his attempts are in vain. No lightning appears in his hands, no matter how hard he tries.

In response, Uncle teaches him another technique— hot to re-direct lightning. Zuko repeats it over and over until he decides he's ready.

“Okay,” he says. “Now you can shoot me.”

Instead, Uncle freezes.

“What?” His voice is strangely quiet.

“It's the only way I can tell if it worked,” Zuko says irritably. “It's the only way I'll know if I can redirect lightning or not. You're the only one who can create it–”

“I won't do it, Prince Zuko,” Uncle protests.

“Why not?!” Zuko raises his voice. “It's not that hard!”

“If you fail to use this technique properly, you could die, Prince Zuko.”

“So what, you'd rather I use it when someone is aiming to kill me?!”

“I would prefer that you never have to use it.”

“You know very well that the day will come when I will have to!” Zuko can't believe what he's hearing.

“Princess Azula– ”

“I'm not afraid of her, Uncle,” Zuko interrupts him, a little more sharply than he intended. “I'm more afraid for her. Besides, just think about it. Who do you think taught Azula how to create lightning?”

His uncle is silent for a long, slightly too long moment. His eyes show a strange mixture of emotions, which eventually turns into fatigue.

“I didn't teach you how to redirect lightning so that you could give up your life,” he says after a long pause. “I'm not going to hurt you, Prince Zuko. Nothing will make me shoot lightning at you.”

With that, he turns and walks away toward the camp, leaving Zuko alone.

Zuko yells after him, telling him to stop. His uncle doesn't respond. He just walks away.

Leaving him with a technique he cannot learn and an untested technique. Leaving him weak, because everyone around him is growing up and getting stronger, but Zuko remains weak, standing still and unable to protect anyone.

Frustrated, he spews flames. And more fire. And more, until all he can see are flames and he can almost imagine that he is fire.

When he loses his strength, he falls to the ground, shouting:

“This is incredibly pathetic! This way, I'll never become a warrior, and I'll remain forever in the shadow of others!”

“Wow,” he suddenly hears behind him. “That's Flame and Shadow, right?”

Zuko turns around and glares angrily at the insolent person who dared to interrupt him. Unfortunately, his angry glare doesn't quite do the trick, because he fell to the ground earlier.

When his interlocutor is not sufficiently frightened, Zuko stands up straight, crosses his arms over his chest, and once again puts on a defiant expression.

“What do you want?!” he asks sharply.

Avatar Aang looks at him without fear.

“That was Flame and Shadow, right?” the boy asks. “Those are the words of General Kaidan, who fought his whole life to be equal to his brother.”

“That's not– How do you know that?”

“I remember that play. I saw it once at a festival in the Fire Nation.”

“A festival?” Zuko forgets that he was supposed to be angry at the Avatar. “Someone performed it once?”

“Yes, Kuzon loved that play,” Aang smiles slightly. “Ah, Kuzon is my friend. He–”

“He was from the Fire Nation, yes, I know,” Zuko interrupts him.

Aang stands next to him, smiling. There is not even a hint of distrust in his eyes. How naive can this boy be? If he wanted to, Zuko could kidnap him and...

And what? It's not like he ever wanted to catch him.

But Aang doesn't know that. Katara and Uncle are the only ones who know.

“He was a good person,” Aang says. “My precious friend. When I was in the Fire Nation, he always took me to different festivals. But I didn't know they still played  Flame and Shadow in the Fire Nation.”

“It's a classic,” Zuko objects. “Of course they play it! Sure, it's not comparable to Love amongst  the Dragons, but... Wait. Why am I telling you this? Why are we even talking about this?”

“Because we have common interests?” Aang suggests.

“We don't have common interests!” Zuko objects, more out of habit than because he believes it to be true.

Aang just looks at him. And looks.

And stares.

“Well...” Zuko decides it's time for a tactical retreat. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to get away from Toph because her training involves trying to kill me!” says the Avatar with obvious irritation, kicking the sand with his foot.  Which would probably have had more effect if he had kicked a rock. “I know I have to master earthbending to become the full Avatar, but come on! I don't have to rush so much!”

Well... judging by what the Fire Nation is doing to this world, maybe it would be better if he did hurry.

Zuko decides to ignore his thoughts. He shouldn't think that way. He may not be acting according to his father's will, but that doesn't mean he should completely oppose him... right?

“Meanwhile, Toph acts as if I should have mastered everything long ago! I know she's twelve too, but let's not exaggerate! I'm the only Avatar who has to master three elements in a year! No one else has ever had to do that! Besides, I've already mastered Water, right? So I don't have to be a Master at earthbending!”

Zuko doesn't know what to say to that, so he decides to complain about his own situation:

“At least she's trying to teach you something! Uncle gave up on teaching me lightningbending, and he wouldn't even shoot lightning at me to make sure I could redirect it! How am I supposed to learn if he won't work with me?!”

Perhaps in the future he will have to use this skill to protect those he cares about. As soon as he tries to imagine others falling before him in the same way as his Uncle... He sees Azula, he sees his mother, Mai, and Katara... especially Katara, her eyes closing, never to open again...

It's such a horrible thought that Zuko can't bear it.

He won't let that happen. It won't happen.

“No, it won't!” Aang's voice echoes the same frustration Zuko feels. “I told Toph the same thing, that I have to work with her, that her way just doesn't work–”

“Uncle won't say it out loud, but I'm sure he thinks the problem is me–”

“Toph won't say it out loud either, but I think she thinks the problem is me too! It's just... Urgh!” Aang makes a strange sound and then sits down on the sand. “This is just stupid.”

Zuko sits down next to him.

“It's stupid,” he agrees. “If I were an Earthbender, I'd try to help you, but...”

“It's okay, Toph is really trying to help me and I know that, but... I just don't know if I can do what she wants me to do,” Aang inhales heavily. “I want to do it, but... It just doesn't work. And I don't know how to make it work.”

“I don't know if it's your fault,” Zuko tries to comfort him. “Maybe you just need... more time? And then it'll work out somehow.”

“But I don't have time, Zuko! If I don't defeat the Fire Lord before the summer solstice–!”

Aang's voice breaks slightly.

Zuko really doesn't know what to say, so he raises his hand a little uncertainly and pats him on the back.

“There, there,” he says. And it seems to work, because at least Aang doesn't look like he's about to cry.

Instead, Aang suddenly looks up at him.

“Right,” he says, and the irritation, frustration, and fear in his voice disappear, replaced by curiosity and interest. How quickly can he change his emotions? “How much of what you told us was a quote or paraphrase from plays?”

Zuko immediately stands up.

“I'm leaving.”

“No, no, no, Zuko, don't... Where are you going?!” Aang calls after him. “Zuko, I think this is really cool! Zuko! Zuko?”

Katara watches as two people dear to her heart become increasingly frustrated at their inability to learn something new.

“I don't like this,” Sokka mutters one day, watching Zuko and Iroh argue with each other.

“Me neither,” Katara admits.

Zuko gestures nervously. He is too far away for Katara to hear him, but she guesses that he is once again arguing with Iroh about lightning bending — and perhaps about how he can redirect lightning. They've argued about this before — Zuko believes that the only way he can learn is if Iroh shoots lightning at him, which Iroh refuses to do.

“It would be easier if Iroh just shot lightning at him,” Sokka mutters.

Katara stiffens.

“You can't be serious.”

“I don't mean that I want Zuko to die,” Sokka quickly points out. “He's been with us for two days and I don't fully trust him, but hey, he's not as bad as he could be. But I feel like he really needs to learn how to redirect lightning. Is it a matter of pride? Or maybe it's just that he has to stand up to his crazy sister. And sometimes the only way to learn something is to do it when your life depends on it.”

“Which still doesn't mean I want Iroh to shoot lightning at him,” Katara hisses. “You don't understand, Sokka. It's a matter of trust. Almost his entire family had no qualms about using violence against him. And now his Uncle? Someone who has never hurt him? No wonder Iroh doesn't want to lose that trust!”

“He wouldn't lose it,” Sokka frowns. “I know it's dangerous, but at least you'd be around. If something happened, you'd be able to save him. If we leave him alone with this problem... I have a feeling Zuko might do something stupid and incredibly foolish.”

Sokka is right, unfortunately.

Zuko leaves them in the middle of a storm without telling anyone where he's going.

He does it when everyone is asleep. Katara wakes up later when Toph nudges her with her foot, saying that something is wrong.

Zuko returns later, and there is a strange shadow in his eyes, and the air is slightly electrified.

Katara looks at him in horror.

“What have you done, Zuko?” she asks.

His lips stretch into a parody of a smile.

“I learned how to redirect lightning.”

Chapter Text

“Katara...” 

“Sokka, aren't you hungry?” his sister turns to him.

 “I am,” admits Sokka, “it's just, you know...”

“Oh, perfect,” Katara says, smiling cheerfully and dodging the Jerkbender's hand as he tries to grab her arm. “I'll make you something right away.”

“Look, I understand you're mad at me, but you could at least talk to me,” Zuko tries again to get her attention.

Sokka glares at him angrily.

The Jerkbender doesn't even look at him. Rude.

“I know it may not have been wise, but… Katara!” Zuko raises his voice slightly when Katara ostentatiously ignores him and moves toward Appa.

Sokka hopes his sister is going there to feed him, not to avoid Zuko.

Jerkbender doesn't give up.

“Listen, I really understand–”

“You don't understand anything!” Katara loses her patience and turns to him angrily. “You!”

“Me?”

“Yes, you!” Katara points her finger at him. “You are one of the most irresponsible people in the world! How could you do something like that?!”

Somewhere off to the side, Toph and Iroh exchange money.

Sokka feels a little abandoned and ignored. What were they betting on and why didn't they include him?

“I did what I had to do!” Zuko protests.

“You didn't have to do anything! And even if you cared so much about it that you risked your life–!”

“Everything was under control!”

“–you could have at least taken me with you! At least I would have been able to help somehow, react!”

“You would have yelled at me and not let me try to master this technique! Besides, what's wrong with that? I mastered it, please, no one got hurt!”

“But something could have happened! Just...! Aagh, Zuko, you really can't understand that some people just care about you! You idiot!”

Katara lets out a frustrated scream and then douses Zuko with water from head to toe.

She walks away, clearly furious.

Sokka tenses, glancing at the Jerkbender, almost expecting him to attack his little sister, to throw fire at her... But instead, Zuko stares at Katara as if rooted to the spot. After a moment, his cheeks turn slightly red, as if he has just realized something.

Somewhere off to the side, Toph stifles a laugh. Aang stares at Zuko and Katara walking away, looking at times like a child whose parents are arguing, and at other times like someone who is happily watching the drama unfold before him. Iroh raises his teacup to his lips, smiling slightly.

Sokka glances once more at Jerkbender, who doesn't look incredibly angry at all.

Something is going on here, and Sokka intends to find out exactly what it is.

The next day is strange, to say the least.

Katara is clearly angry with Zuko.

And Zuko, in turn... Zuko follows her around like a lost dog. Katara growls at him several times, but he seems completely unafraid of her.

They argue several times—mostly about the same thing. About how Zuko puts his life at risk and doesn't think about others. They argue until Zuko finally gives in and apologizes, and Katara softens a little, but she's still mad at him, which ends up with Zuko taking her aside after a while.

They talk about something for too long. They are a little too far away for Sokka to hear them clearly, but he can watch them. For a moment, it seems like they are going to kill each other, but eventually they both calm down. At one point, Jerkbender approaches his sister, takes her hand in his, and says something to her, something incredibly quiet, which makes Katara look away from him.

Oh no, no, no, we don't play that way. Sokka is not going to let anyone here try to intimidate his sister. He has to tell Jerkbender what he thinks about that an–

“Sokka!” Aang is suddenly behind him, hugging him from behind. “Did you see what Toph can do? Come on, come on, you have to see this!”

“But...” Sokka glances at Jerkbender and Katara, who... Where are they, anyway? Where did they go?

“Come on, come on,” Aang stops hugging him and grabs his hands, pulling him towards Toph. “You have to see this!”

“But... Katara and Zuko...”

“They should talk about it together. Two of them. Let's not interfere, Sokka. Come on. Toph is calling us.”

Sokka glances in the direction where Katara and Jerkbender were a moment ago, but unfortunately, they are no longer there.

Their journey to Ba Sing Se is called into question when they encounter Professor Zei from Ba Sing Se University, who claims that he was planning to go to the Wan Shi Tong Library. And, according to him, they could gain quite significant knowledge in this library.

Sokka, to be honest, has mixed feelings about this.

Of course, it would be nice to have inside information about the Fire Nation's activities. It would be good to learn something and come up with a plan of action.

The problem is that Sokka has serious doubts about going to the library when they have two extra Firebenders with them. Not to mention that taking Professor Zei with them means taking another person on Appa's back, and although Appa is incredibly strong, he has limits when it comes to the amount of weight he can carry.

Not to mention that they have two Firebenders with them. Who, not so long ago, were chasing them all. Did Sokka mention that? Because if not, he'd be happy to.

So. Anyway, Sokka doesn't trust them.

It's only been a few days since they joined them, and although they're behaving reasonably well so far — Iroh is sharing his tea and life wisdom (okay, Sokka has to admit, Iroh is a really wise man), and Jerkbender hasn't tried to attack Aang or capture him, so everything is okay for now, but... anyway, Sokka doesn't trust them.

Besides, let's be honest, it's not like he had any reason to trust them. After all, Jerkbender had been chasing them for months. And yes, he helped them in the Oasis, saved Yue's life, and called off the armada, which got him into trouble and made the Fire Nation want to capture him, and Azula also tried to attack him, but... despite all that, Sokka doesn't trust him.

Jerkbender raises his head, as if sensing his gaze.

Sokka glares harder.

Jerkbender glares back.

Yes, he will definitely need to be kept an eye on.

Toph likes the new additions to their group.

Uncle Iroh is really nice. He doesn't treat her like a disabled person, he always listens to her, and he's always gentle with her — but not because of her blindness, simply because he's naturally kind to everyone.

Which is a little strange when Toph thinks about the fact that this man is the Dragon of the West, the Earth Kingdom's nightmare. Toph has heard many stories about him and knows that the Earth Kingdom fears and hates him for good reason. She knows that she is in the presence of a man who is responsible for much destruction and that if he were discovered by soldiers, they would not hesitate to attack or kill him. Perhaps they would call it revenge, perhaps justice.

Despite this, Toph likes Iroh.

She also likes Zuko, even though Sokka has warned her many times about him and explained why exactly she should stay away from him.

Zuko can be mean, he can be a little harsh, but ultimately he's a pretty decent person. Like Iroh, he doesn't treat Toph like she's a delicate flower that needs protection and shelter.

And, like Toph, he understands what it's like to have parents whose expectations were completely different from the person you wanted to become.

Toph realizes this one evening when Sokka, Aang, and Katara are quietly discussing with Professor Zei whether they should go to the library or not. Toph doesn't really want to go there—who needs books? Besides, what would a blind girl do in a library?

Iroh is snoring as he sleeps in his tent. Katara healed him, but the man needs a little more rest lately, so it's no surprise that he went to bed early.

This makes Sparky the only person Toph can talk to (Zuko is still not convinced about this nickname, but Toph has decided to give it to him and that's that. Sparky has no right to protest).

Toph approaches him, mainly because she's a little bored.

She sits down next to him. Zuko doesn't react.

“Hey,” Toph says.

“Hm?” Zuko glances at her.

“You know, I thought you'd be scarier,” Toph says bluntly. “Everyone scared me with you.”

“Everyone?” Zuko's voice has a strange tone to it, as if he's a little disappointed.

“More like Sokka,” Toph admits. “Katara seems to like you. Or a little more than a little, considering what Aang told me about you guys.”

“What did Aang tell you about us?” This time, there is a slight uneasiness in Zuko's voice.

“You don't have to hide anything from me,” says Toph.

Even before she met Aang in person, Twinkletoes had told her a lot about his travels. And he didn't forget to mention that, in his opinion, there was something between Katara and the Fire Prince.

And while Toph initially laughed it off, she now completely understands why Aang said that to her. Katara and Zuko glance at each other when they think no one else is looking, and strangely enough, they always seem to find themselves close to each other, even when there's no need to be. Katara doesn't act like Zuko is their enemy — from the moment he joined them, there hasn't been a hint of doubt in her voice.

Katara trusts him.

Sokka still doesn't trust him, but that's completely understandable.

Aang wants to trust him, but at the same time he's still a little afraid of him — but he clearly wants to be his friend.

But Katara?  Katara trusted him right away — no, she trusted him before, even before Zuko joined them.

And that means that either they have some kind of unspoken agreement, or they are secretly friends, or they have known each other for a long time. And if they have known each other for a long time, the only reasonable explanation would be that they are soulmates.

Which... would explain a lot. The ease with which they talk to each other, the fact that they trust each other, and that even when they argue, it's more like banter than real arguments.

In a way, it fits. Water and Fire. As they say, opposites attract.

“I'm not hiding anything!” Zuko says sharply.

A lie.

“If you say so,” Toph says, not in the mood to argue with him. “So, what made you join us?”

“Is this supposed to be an interrogation?”

“You could call it that. Answer my question. And remember, I can sense lies.”

“Well, I haven't lied so far,” Zuko shrugs. “My father wants me dead. Azula warned me about it, but as always, my luck made us meet, so she had to attack me.”

“Hmm... Why does your father want you dead? I thought you were his son.”

“To him, I'm the lesser child,” Zuko replies. “I'm not saying this to feel sorry for myself or to get your pity. It's just the truth. My father always preferred Azula. I was a disappointment, always have been.”

“Why?”

Zuko doesn't answer for a while.

“I was too much like my mother,” he says after a moment. “My bending wasn't strong enough. And my soulmate isn't from the Fire Nation.”

His left hand moves to the side, wrapping around his right wrist. When he realizes what he's doing, he moves his hand away, somewhat awkwardly, as if trying to hide the movement.

Toph grabs his hand, even though part of her knows she probably shouldn't. Zuko stiffens, but doesn't pull his hand away.

Toph runs her fingers over his wrist, sensing that the texture of his skin is slightly different from the rest.

“Your father?” she asks.

“He wasn't too happy when I told him that I didn't think burning and killing everyone around was a good way to rule the Fire Nation,” Zuko says with a strange amusement in his voice. “Like I said, not exactly the best father.”

“My parents were convinced that because I was blind, they had to protect me from the whole world. They dressed me in fancy dresses, gave me fancy hairstyles, and were convinced that I was a poor, delicate girl who always needed to be protected. They didn't listen to me, no matter how many times I yelled at them.”

"I can't imagine you like that. Toph, delicate and innocent? Are you sure we're still talking about you? The same Toph who can break bones if someone looks at her the wrong way?

Toph punch him on the shoulder. Gently.

“I'm starting to like you, Sparky, but don't exaggerate. I don't break bones because someone looks at me funny. How would I see that?”

“I didn't mean it literally.”

“But it sounded that way.”

“Oh. I'm sorry?”

Toph hits him on the shoulder again.

“I don't need your apology,” she says. “If you're going to feel sorry for yourself, go to your girlfriend.”

“Katara isn't my girlfriend!” Zuko protests.

Then he curses quietly, realizing he said it a little too loudly. He glances at the rest of the GAang, but no one seems to have heard him, because Toph doesn't sense Aang's amusement or Sokka's anger.

“I never said I was talking about Katara,” Toph remarks.

“You're awful,” Zuko says. “I was convinced this was a moment where we share our awful childhood experiences and bond.”

Toph considers punching him in the shoulder, again.

“Well, our parents suck. Let's just say we bonded enough.”

“I think we should go to that library,” Sokka says, taking advantage of the fact that neither Zuko nor Iroh are able to hear them.

Iroh is asleep, while Zuko is talking to Toph. Katara glances at her soulmate, making sure everything is okay, but it seems that the Fire Prince is getting along quite well with Toph. Especially considering that Toph is currently punching him in the shoulder, which in her case is a sign of affection.

Katara looks away at her brother and Aang.

“Are you sure we'll find anything useful there?” she asks.

“You know, we don't really have any other options,” Sokka points out. “What would you rather do, Katara? We have to find a way to defeat the Fire Nation.”

“The Fire Lord,” Katara corrects him.

“Huh?”

“We have to defeat the Fire Lord,” Katara says. “Look, I'm not trying to defend the Fire Nation, because I know they're our enemies. But haven't you thought about what it means that Zuko and Iroh are here?”

“That we have an even bigger bounty on our heads?”

Katara considers following Toph's example and punching him in the arm.

“That we have two potential candidates for the throne in our ranks. If we put one of them on the throne, as the new Fire Lord, he will be able to stop this war. That would be the simplest solution. Not an official battle, a great war, but a quiet coup.”

Sokka looks at her without much conviction.

“First of all, it wouldn't be a quiet coup, because neither Zuko nor Iroh have much support in the Fire Nation at the moment. Second, I still don't trust them. Third, to do that, we still need to defeat the Fire Lord. So, okay, we can speculate and wonder who the new Fire Lord would be and whether that person would want to stop the war, but that doesn't change the fact that our main goal remains the same. We have to defeat the current Fire Lord. So. We need information.”

“Even though we have a pretty good source of information nearby?” Katara raises an eyebrow.

“A source we can't trust and who might betray us. And a source who hasn't been in the Fire Nation for some time. We need to get the information we need, Katara. We have to.”

Katara sighs heavily.

Well, she tried.

Zuko looks at them for a long, long time without saying anything.

“So,” he says slowly. “You want to go into the middle of the desert. To see some library.”

“Well...” Aang begins, somewhat uncertainly. “Could we help Professor Zei a little? He also wants to find this library, right?”

“Can't you go to the library in Ba Sing Se? I'm sure you'll find some books there too.”

“They can't be just any books!” protests Sokka. “More... ugh, never mind. Anyway, it's not just about books. It's about what kind of books they would be.”

“This is stupid,” Toph says. “Who needs books?”

“Are you against me, Toph?” Sokka looks at her in dismay. “I thought you were my friend!”

“You wish, Snoozles.”

“You just broke my heart,” Sokka says in an incredibly theatrical tone. “You know, I was hoping that at least you would support me!”

Toph snorts in response.

“Anyway,” Katara says, glancing at Zuko out of the corner of her eye. “That's what we decided. I was against it, but I was outvoted. Do you want to come with us to the library?”

Zuko looks at her with an expression that could just as easily be boredom as irritation or amusement.

“Do we have a choice?” he asks.

“You can always go to Ba Sing Se on your own,” Sokka suggests, a hint of hope in his voice. “You don't have to come with us.”

Zuko shifts his gaze to him.

“So you'd rather leave two Firebenders, the same Firebenders who tried to capture you several times, in the heart of the Earth Kingdom? Are you really asking me to believe that?”

“Uh...” Sokka hesitates a little, as if he realizes that he wouldn't feel too comfortable knowing that Zuko and Iroh are at large in the middle of the Earth Kingdom.

Katara wants to stifle a laugh, even though she knows it's not the best thing to do right now. But the whole situation is actually quite funny to her.

Sokka has reasons not to trust Zuko and Iroh—Katara really understands that—but if only he knew Zuko as well as Katara did... oh, then he would have no doubts about his intentions.

Besides, anyone who knows Zuko knows perfectly well what a lousy liar he is.

“Fine,” Sokka says after a moment. “Let's say you can stay. If you insist so much. But don't think we're going to support you. You take care of yourselves. And if I see any of you going near Aang, then... Aang, what are you doing?”

Aang is the one who approaches Zuko. He smiles at him, looking as if he's about to hug him.

“I'm glad you want to travel with us!” he says, still smiling broadly. “I knew you were good people!”

“I don't think the fact that we're traveling with you proves that we're good people...” Zuko says slowly. “We just decided there was no need to complicate everyone's lives, and Katara saved my uncle, so–”

“I wouldn't exactly say I saved his life,” Katara interjects. “I just helped him a bit.”

“But you didn't have to do that,” Zuko looks at her. “For which I am incredibly grateful. Thank you, Katara.”

Katara smiles slightly at him, trying to hide the slight blush that appears on her cheeks for some reason.

“You don't have to thank me, Zuko,” she says. “I would have done it even if we were enemies.”

“Which just goes to show what kind of person you are.”

“No, no, no, don't start that,” Sokka interjects, a little too loudly, drawing the attention of everyone gathered. “We're not going to talk about what Zuko thinks of Katara here, please, no. We're here to talk about the library. Jerkbender, I understand you really want to go there with us?”

“Do I have a choice?” Zuko replies.

Sokka presses his lips together in irritation.

“Well, if it's up to you, you could leave us alone and we wouldn't have to deal with you.”

Zuko raises his one (only) eyebrow in a way that Katara is sure is meant to annoy Sokka.

“Are you sure?”

“Either way!” Aang interjects. “I'm very happy that Zuko and General Iroh want to come with us on our journey! The more the merrier!”

They go to the library.

Which might have been a good idea, except that everything ends up going wrong.

Wan Shi Tong does not take kindly to the news that Sokka wants to use information about the eclipse against the Fire Nation.

The eclipse is... something they didn't know about. Something they didn't expect. And something that could change the course of this war.

And, judging by the expressions on Zuko and Iroh's faces, something they already knew about.

“Did you know about this?” Sokka asks reproachfully.

“Know what?” Zuko looks at him without much interest.

“The eclipse!” Sokka raises his voice. “That the eclipse stops the powers of Firebenders!”

“Sokka,” Zuko says. “I am a Firebender. A member of the royal family. Someone who had a chance to be Fire Lord. Did you really think I didn't know that firebending doesn't work during an eclipse? Our powers depend on the Sun, Sokka, on the Sun.”

“If you knew that, why didn't you tell us?!” Sokka raises his voice. “We wouldn't have had to risk being buried alive in that library!”

“You didn't ask,” Zuko says simply. “And Uncle warned you to be careful what the Spirits say. Wan Shi Tong told you explicitly that you couldn't use the knowledge from his library to harm others. It's not my fault you started doing that.”

“You could have told us this from the very beginning!”

Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

"I have no intention of giving you knowledge that will harm the Fire Nation.

“I was convinced you weren't on the Fire Nation's side!”

“Of course I'm on the Fire Nation's side, Sokka! I love my country! I'm not a traitor!”

“Enough!” Katara steps between them, separating them before they come to blows. “Please, don't fight! Sokka, don't try to antagonize Zuko. Zuko, don't try to antagonize Sokka.”

“I'm not trying to antagonize him!” Sokka and Zuko protest simultaneously, at literally the same moment, using the same words.

“Boys,” Katara looks from one to the other. “Please. Save the arguing for later.”

“I didn't mean to argue,” Sokka says. “It's just that Zuko is hiding important information from us.”

“Zuko didn't know when the next eclipse would be,” Aang points out. “Besides, Zuko has a point. He probably didn't want to reveal his country's secrets.”

“Can you hear yourself, Aang?” Sokka asks incredulously. “That's exactly the point. Zuko doesn't want to reveal the secrets of the Fire Nation because he's on the Fire Nation’s side. And that means we can't trust him.”

“Agni, just because we have the same enemies right now doesn't mean I have to hand you information on a silver platter that you'll use against my country,” Zuko hisses. “I am on the Fire Nation's side. I always have been and always will be.”

“However,” Iroh puts his arm around his shoulder before things get physical, “that doesn't mean we're on Ozai's side, does it, Prince Zuko?”

Zuko presses his lips together.

“Besides,” Toph says, “I appreciate that everyone here still doesn't know who we can trust and all that, but maybe we should try to find Appa?”

They are unable to locate Appa.

Instead, they find the sandbenders who stole him and then sold him.

At this point, Appa is probably somewhere halfway to Ba Sing Se.

Aang enters the Avatar State.

This is... not the nicest thing that could have happened to them.

Traveling through the desert is not one of Katara's best experiences in life — especially now that they have lost Appa.

Everyone seems to be angry with each other.

Sokka still hasn't forgiven Zuko for not telling them about the eclipse. Zuko is angry with Sokka for accusing him of this. Aang is angry at the sandbenders and keeps glancing at Toph, as if unhappy that she didn't sense that they had taken Appa. Iroh is tired from the journey, even though he tries to pretend he isn't. Katara is angry at everyone around her.

This is the worst part of their journey, Katara concludes.

“Fine!” Zuko shouts in the evening, as the road continues to drag on and it looks like they still have many days of travel ahead of them. “I didn't mean to hide important information from you, Sokka! I just didn't think you would deliberately lie to the great owl who warned us not to lie!”

His shouts are so sudden that everyone turns toward him.

Katara welcomes them with joy. Finally, someone is saying something; finally, someone is expressing their true feelings.

“Besides, you can't expect me to become your ally overnight!” Zuko stands in front of Sokka. “You can't ask me to betray my country so you can attack it! But, I do admit Uncle was right. Uncle and I are on the side of the Fire Nation, but not on the side of Fire Lord Ozai. We both know that this war will never end if my father remains in power. I can help you defeat my father, but I will not let you destroy my country!”

Aang drops the apple he was eating. It is the most direct declaration of loyalty to Zuko they have heard.

Sokka looks at him as if Zuko has fallen from outer space.

“Okay,” Sokka says after a long silence. “Thanks, Zuko.”

Katara blinks her eyes.

“Is that all you have to say to him?” she asks when it becomes clear that Sokka is not going to say anything else.

Sokka presses his lips together.

“Fine!” he says irritably. “Thanks for confirming which side you're on, Zuko. And sorry for trying to accuse you of hiding knowledge.”

Katara looks meaningfully at her brother. Sokka shifts from foot to foot.

“I know you have a right to be loyal to the Fire Nation,” Sokka says reluctantly after a moment. “I don't understand it, because the Fire Nation has done a lot of bad things and clearly abandoned you, but I shouldn't have expected you to suddenly fight against the country that raised you in a single day. So, uh, I'm sorry. It's not that you betrayed us. You just didn't want to give us the opportunity to attack the Fire Nation. We have common enemies, but at some point our goals are contradictory.”

“Hey,” Katara approaches her brother and smiles slightly at him. “Maybe we could come to some kind of... compromise. Zuko and his uncle are from the Fire Nation. They are enemies of Fire Lord Ozai. We want to end the war. However, the war will not end while Ozai is in power. Besides... someone will have to take over after that to ensure that peace is maintained. Both Zuko and Iroh have the ability to do so.”

Sokka's eyes widen slightly, as if he has only now understood what the title of Crown Prince of the Fire Nation really entails.

“If you look at it from that perspective, it makes sense that Zuko and Iroh aren't telling us everything,” Katara says gently. "We want to win this war, but they won’t do that at the expense of the Fire Nation. So we need to find a solution that won't destroy another nation. Do you understand that, Sokka?"

“All right, all right,” Sokka raises his hands in surrender. “I'm sorry, Zuko. I shouldn't have yelled at you. I just... got a little irritated. The current situation isn't easy.”

Zuko nods.

“It's okay,” he says. “I understand. And you had every right to yell at me. I probably would have done the same if I were in your shoes.”

Katara relaxes slightly. At least one conflict has been resolved.

“As for Appa...” Katara glances at Aang.

Her friend averts his gaze.

“I'm sorry,” he says quietly. “I didn't mean to get so angry. It's just... Appa is very precious to me. I don't know what I would do if I lost him.”

Katara approaches him and takes his hands.

“Everything will be fine, Aang,” she promises him. “You're not alone. We'll find Appa.”

Aang is silent for a while, then finally glances at her. He doesn't seem convinced, but he gives her a gentle smile, which quickly disappears when he looks at Toph.

“Toph,” he says. “I owe you an apology. I wasn't very nice to you. I blamed you a little for Appa's disappearance, even though we were all to blame.”

“It's not your fault, Toph,” says Iroh, smiling slightly at the girl, even though she can't see it. “We're all equally to blame.”

Toph doesn't say anything.

“I'm sorry,” Aang repeats. “I panicked.”

“I'm sorry too,” Katara says. “I could have done a lot. I could have tried to help somehow. Instead, I let Appa be taken away from us.”

“But we'll get him back,” Sokka says firmly. “There are six of us. We'll find Appa, no matter what.”

Even though they managed to reach an agreement, it doesn't fix everything. Aang is restless, constantly thinking about Appa. Katara isn't surprised. She knows how much he cares about the bison and that Appa is incredibly important to him.

After all, Appa is the only thing left of his culture.

It's a little sad when Katara thinks about it now. Aang and Appa, the last remnants of the Air Nomads. And the people who are descendants of the man who sentenced them to death are walking beside them and, for now, are their allies.

Ever since she met Aang, Katara has thought about Aang and what he has lost many times, but now it all hits her with renewed force. Maybe it's because she sometimes sees Aang sitting alone on the edge of the camp, trying to hide the sadness she senses.

Aang is incredibly powerful, he is the Avatar and the hope of this world, but at the same time he is just a twelve-year-old boy who has seen too much and lost too much.

Katara's heart breaks when she thinks about it.

“You said you would help us defeat Ozai,” Katara says quietly when they are alone in the world of dreams. “The promise we made to each other was that we would try to talk to your father first.”

Zuko looks away from her.

“Zuko,” Katara approaches him. She looks at him intently. “Tell me honestly. Do you think your father will change his mind?”

Zuko looks up at her uncertainly. His eyes reveal pain that he does not even try to hide.

“I wish I could say yes,” he says. “But you've seen what's been happening over the last few weeks. Months. I think... I think I've lost hope that my father will listen to Aang. I wish I could believe it, but now...”

He doesn't finish, but Katara knows what he means.

“Zuko,” Katara takes his hands, trying to give him some courage. “I know the current situation isn't easy. I know that... I know you still love your father. I can't tell you to stop. But this war must end.”

“I know,” Zuko looks down at their clasped hands. Katara's thumb begins to trace small circles, trying to calm him, to tell him she is with him.

“Aang is a pacifist,” Katara says quietly. “He knows we have to get rid of Ozai, but I'm not sure he'll be able to kill him. He's just a child.”

Zuko looks up at her with a pained expression.

“Do you think there's any chance of ending this war without my father having to die and my country being destroyed by the Earth Kingdom in retaliation?”

“Of course there is,” Katara looks him straight in the eye. “Trust me. And if not me, then Aang. I am convinced he will be able to do the impossible.”

The next morning, Katara is awakened by voices.

“Get up.”

“Huh?”

“Get up, Aang.”

“But why? Why? I want to sleep.”

“War waits for no one. Come on. Do you want to learn firebending? We'll start with meditation. Dawn is the perfect time.”

“I don't want to learn firebending! I don't want to hurt anyone!”

“You need to learn firebending precisely so you don't hurt anyone. If you don't have control, one day you'll set your whole surroundings on fire. So get up. We don't have time for you to sleep.”

“But Zuko...”

“No. Let's go. You're a Firebender. When I tell you to get up with the sun, that's what you do.”

“I'm not a Firebender! I'm an Airbender!”

“You're the Avatar. That makes you a Firebender. Let's go.”

“Tui and La,” Sokka says. “Aang, go with him and let us sleep.”

Katara turns over.

She's not a Firebender.

She can sleep a little longer.

Chapter Text

One day, as Ba Sing Se draws nearer, Iroh presses his lips together. His shoulders slump—then he forces a smile. Zuko glances at him, then leans over and whispers something to him.

Katara remembers that Iroh lost his son in Ba Sing Se. Going there can't be easy.

“General Iroh,” Katara says. “Are you sure getting to Ba Sing Se would be... a good option, considering your history with that city?”

Aang and Sokka look at her in surprise. Toph raises an eyebrow, but she's not surprised. No wonder; she comes from the Earth Kingdom, she must have heard a lot about the Dragon of the West.

“Yes,” Iroh says gently. “Thank you very much for your concern, Miss Katara...”

“Just Katara is fine, General Iroh.”

“Call me Uncle,” Iroh says, a sparkle of amusement in his eyes. “Who knows, maybe one day we'll be family?”

Katara freezes. Of course, she had thought about it, considering what Aang had told her not long ago, but...

“I don't...” Katara doesn't know what to say. In a panic, she glances at Zuko, hoping he didn't hear her uncle's words, that he doesn't know about her feelings — whatever it is that connects her and Zuko at the moment.

“We're all family here!” Aang says loudly. Katara is incredibly grateful to him for his help, even if she's not entirely sure whether Aang did it on purpose or not. “Right, Uncle?”

“It would be my honor, Avatar Aang,” Iroh smiles at him warmly, like a proud grandfather. “As for your question, you don't need to worry about me, Katara. Everything will be fine.”

“Why wouldn't it be okay?” Sokka asks, frowning.

“I don't have very good memories of this city.”

Sokka opens his mouth to ask more, but doesn't get the chance. Zuko grabs his arm and pulls him aside, explaining something to him in a quiet voice. Sokka becomes serious and nods. They must come to an agreement, because they glance at the others several times but don't move.

Toph's hand finds Iroh's.

“Hey,” the girl says. “If this city is unpleasant, I'll raze it to the ground.”

Iroh laughs quietly.

“That would be an interesting sight.”

“Suki is nearby,” Sokka says one day.

His words draw everyone's attention to him.

“Suki?” Toph frowns.

“My girlfriend. My soulmate,” Sokka explains. “She told me recently that she's nearby. We should meet up with her. I think she'll help us get to Ba Sing Se.”

“You met your soulmate?” A smile appears on Toph's lips. “What's she like?”

“Amazing,” Sokka says immediately.

“She loves to show him that he shouldn't make fun of girls,” Katara smiles slightly.

“Suki is really strong,” Aang confirms. “She's one of the Kyoshi Warriors.”

“Mhm,” says Toph. “So let's go see her. By the way, Sweetness, you never told me about your soulmate. I've never seen my soulmate, but maybe you have.”

“Wait, what do you mean you haven't seen him?” Sokka looks at her in surprise. “Aang is right here.”

Toph just stares at him.

And stares.

“Ah,” Sokka realizes. “Blind jokes. Okay. Sorry.”

“I'll forgive you if I learn more about Katara,” Toph leans toward her. “How is your soulmate? Have you met them?”

Katara doesn't answer right away.

“Her soulmate is from the Fire Nation,” Sokka says. “I don't think Katara wants to talk about it.”

“Katara can decide for herself if she wants to talk about it or not,” Katara hisses at him.

“Okay, okay, sorry,” Sokka says. “I just assumed that–”

“You assumed wrong!”

Toph looks thoughtful.

“Have you met them?” Toph asks. “Your soulmate?”

Katara glances at Zuko with a hint of panic, and he quickly shakes his head, as if to tell her it's a trap. Some time ago, Toph almost forced Zuko to admit that he and Katara are soulmates, so Toph knows the truth, but...

Exactly, but.

Aang and General Iroh are not the problem. General Iroh has known about it for a long time, and Aang seems to support her and Zuko. Toph probably doesn't care too much, but Sokka...

Oh, no, no. Katara would prefer her brother to remain unaware for a while longer. As long as possible, if possible.

“Sweetness?” Toph asks, turning her blind eyes toward her. “So? Did you meet them?”

“Um...” Katara hesitates. Toph can sense the truth. “Of course I did. In my dreams. Every night.”

“Not like that, Sweetness. I mean in reality.”

Katara glances at her brother. She doesn't dare look at Zuko.

She must hesitate a little too long, because Sokka frowns.

“You've met them,” he says accusingly. “You've met your soulmate and you didn't tell me, even though I told you right away, as soon as I saw Suki.”

“You didn't tell me,” Katara objects. “You just threw yourself into her arms and started kissing her.”

“Because I love her! But that's not important right now! Why didn't you tell me who your soulmate is? Even if it's someone from the Fire Nation, that doesn't mean you had to hide it. If they're our enemy, I can always kidnap them and drill into their heads that Ozai is the enemy and that there's no point in following him.”

Katara looks at Zuko in panic. Resignation appears in his golden eyes. He shrugs his shoulders as if to say, ‘Tell him if you want. He's your brother’.

There's no point in pretending at this point. Sokka knows Zuko. They are allies, in a way. Maybe one day they'll become friends.

Besides, right now Sokka is the only one who doesn't know the truth. Hiding it will only complicate things, won't it?

“You don't have to worry about that, Sokka,” Katara glances at her brother. “My soulmate is no longer our enemy.”

“Huh?” Sokka frowns.

“I knew it!” Toph exclaims cheerfully. “I knew it from the very beginning! Ha! I won!”

“You bet on it?” Katara asks incredulously. “With whom?”

“With myself!” Toph announces proudly.

“Huh?” Sokka looks around.

Aang relaxes slightly, as if pleased that he no longer has to hide anything. Iroh smiles to himself. Zuko puts on the most indifferent expression he can muster.

“Huh?” Sokka continues to look around. After a moment, his gaze settles on Zuko. “Please tell me I'm wrong.”

“Well, I told you my soulmate is a Firebender,” Katara remarks. “You should be happy he agreed to teach Aang.”

Sokka opens his mouth, unable to say anything. He glances at Zuko, Katara, Aang, Toph, Iroh, Katara and Zuko again. And then at Aang.

“You don't seem surprised,” he says, deliberately ignoring Zuko.

“Of course not,” Aang smiles happily. "I figured it out pretty quickly. I started to suspect it when Katara told me that her soulmate was from the Fire Nation. I became almost completely certain after Zuko took our side at the Oasis. Katara confirmed it after Zuko joined us. Oh, right. Hey, Zuko.”

“What?” Zuko turns toward him.

“There's something I wanted to tell you! Katara loves you as a friend!”

Sokka makes some strange noises that Katara can't quite classify.

Katara, meanwhile, hasn't dreamed so strongly of murdering the Avatar in a long time. Or of hiding underground and never coming out again. What is Aang thinking?

“Uh...” Zuko glances panic-stricken at Katara, then at Aang. Is it just her imagination, or is the tip of his right ear turning slightly red? “I appreciate it?”

“You should say the same! You're soulmates!”

Sokka makes the same strange, hard to describe sound again.

Then he quickly turns to Iroh, as if hoping he will disagree.

“They're not soulmates, are they?” he asks weakly.

“My nephew confirmed it to me some time after we met Miss Katara,” says the man. “However, I realized that his soulmate is a Waterbender the moment he started collecting every scroll on waterbending he could find.”

Sokka's shoulders slump. He shifts his gaze to his next victim.

“Everyone wants to make fun of me, right?” He glances at Toph.

“Hey,” the girl shrugs. “It was pretty obvious they had a history. I'm blind, but even I could see they were close.”

“But...” Sokka now looks at Zuko.

His face stiffens.

“Come on,” he grabs his arm and pulls him aside. “We need to talk, brother.”

Zuko doesn't resist, only glances at Katara with a slightly concerned look. She smiles reassuringly at him — at least, she hopes that's how he'll interpret her smile.

“Should I be worried about them?” Katara wonders aloud as she watches Sokka and Zuko walk away from them.

Sokka doesn't even look at Zuko. He just walks ahead, pulling Zuko behind him so he can't escape. They both walk away from the others. Whatever Sokka wants to talk to him about, he doesn't want the others to see.

“I don't think so,” Aang says. “I don't think Sokka would hurt him... at least not too badly.”

“Ha!” Toph laughs. “Too bad they're going so far away! I'd love to see them fight!”

“Young Sokka cares about you, Miss Katara,” Iroh says gently. “He doesn't want you to get hurt. Considering that you and Zuko have been on opposite sides of the war for a long time, it's logical that Sokka would want to make sure you don't get hurt.”

“Should I go over there and make sure they don't kill each other?” Katara wonders aloud. “I mean, Sokka called him his brother, so I feel like he's kind of accepted him as my soulmate, but then again, this is Sokka and Zuko, so...”

“It'll be fine,” Aang reassures her. “Give them some time. They'll talk it out and come to an understanding.”

“I'm not going to talk to you or come to any understanding,” Sokka announces, stopping suddenly when they are far enough away from the others.

Zuko refrains from looking back over his shoulder to check where the others are. He doesn't need to do that — it would make it seem like he's afraid of Sokka!

And he isn't afraid of him, because he has proven many times in the past that Zuko is better than Sokka when it comes to fighting. As long as the boomerang isn't involved, but that's cheating, and Zuko refuses to call it a real fight.

Besides, of all the people gathered here, Sokka is the one Zuko fears the least.

Katara? Katara has proven to him many times that she deserves the title of Waterbending Master, which Master Pakku gave her (although Zuko has a lot to say about that man. He is not someone Zuko would ever want to talk to).

Aang? The kid is incredibly powerful, even though people tend to forget that because of his smiles and talk of pacifism.

Toph? She's one big menace and a force to be reckoned with. Toph can be terrifying.

(And, although Zuko won't say it out loud, Toph is really cool. And right now, she's one of the top people on Zuko's list of people he likes.)

So. Anyway, of all the people who are part of Team Avatar, Sokka is the one Zuko fears the least. He is convinced that he could defeat him without much trouble.

As long as Sokka doesn't use that stupid boomerang of his.

“We're here to settle a few things,” Sokka says, holding his boomerang out toward him.

Ugh. Damn boomerang.

How mad would Katara be at him if Zuko broke that stupid boomerang in half so Sokka could never use it again?

Probably very angry, right?

“I thought you just said you didn't want to talk,” Zuko remarks.

“We're not going to talk,” Sokka says. “Because I'm going to talk, and you're going to listen.”

Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

“I don't think conversations work that way.”

“You have no right to speak,” Sokka stares at him intently, as if he's figuring out how to get rid of him. “What are your intentions toward my sister?”

“You just told me not to speak, and now you're asking me questions. Are you an idiot?”

“You are not to speak until I give you permission!”

“This is ridiculous!”

“I know!” Sokka raises his voice. He runs his hand through his hair. “Okay. Give me a moment. Just a moment. And another moment.”

Zuko waits because he doesn't really have anything else to do. Because what can he do? Tell Sokka that he had no influence on who his soulmate is?

“Okay,” Sokka closes his eyes, then opens them again, clearly unhappy. “You can talk now. Is it true? Is it you?”

“Why would Katara or I lie?”

“Ugh,” Sokka looks like he really, really plans to murder him. Or like he's looking at someone not much more important than a worm. Zuko hopes it's the former. “How did this happen?”

Zuko shrugs.

“Normally. You know, nobody chooses their soulmate.”

“So, you're telling me that you've been talking to Katara this whole time, but you didn't think to tell us about it? And that Katara didn't tell us?”

Zuko shrugs again.

“Yeah, basically.”

“Why?” asks Sokka.

“Why didn't I tell you, or why didn't she tell you?”

“Both! And if you're her soulmate, why were you such a jerk to us in the beginning? Why did you chase us? Couldn't you just have joined us?”

“And become a traitor to my own country? No, thanks, I like my head.”

“Then you could have at least explained everything to us instead of immediately trying to capture Aang–”

“Well, if he had just listened to me a little, I wouldn't have had to try to capture him at all, and maybe we could have kept the fact that he's the Avatar a secret... Anyway, why are you blaming me for something like that? You were the one who attacked me first.”

"Because you showed up in my village with a sword in your hand and fire!

“First of all, I didn't have a sword with me,” Zuko points out. “And second, I don't remember starting the day by shooting fire at you.”

“But you came to us on a ship that screams ‘I am the Fire Nation’!”

Well... Sokka has a point.

“Either way, that doesn't excuse you from explaining what you were doing!” Sokka points an accusing finger at him. “You had no right to treat us like that!”

“Agni, like what?”

Besides, since when has Sokka been acting like they're friends? They've been traveling together for maybe a week or two.

“You don't fight against your soulmate!” Sokka says, looking at him as if he doesn't know he has to explain such an obvious thing. “Soulmates are your family! You can't just reject them!”

“Actually, you can. In my family, there have been deliberate cases of rejecting one's soulmate so as not to risk them getting hurt trying to reach you.”

“First of all, that doesn't sound healthy. Second, I wasn't serious, because I have no idea how you can reject your soulmate or if it's even possible.”

“You just ignore them and pretend they don't exist.”

“That still doesn't sound healthy. Soulmates are there for a reason. You shouldn't ignore them. They're your family.”

“Yes, yes, you already said that,” Zuko rolls his eyes. “Do you have anything else to say to me, or are we just going to stand here?”

“Yes, I'm not done yet!” Sokka points his finger accusingly at him. “I wasn't lying when I said you can't fight your soulmates! You shouldn't do that! You should have tried to find a way to join us!”

“You could have joined me.”

“Which is incredibly stupid for many different reasons that I don't even want to list right now. And I can't believe you said that with a straight face.”

“I said it because, theoretically, it could have worked. If the world didn't know that Aang was the Avatar–”

“–then the Fire Nation would still try to capture him because he’s an airbender. Anyway, why are we talking about this? We’re not talking about Aang. We’re talking about you and Katara.”

Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

“All right. Let's talk. What is it you don't like again? You know very well that you have no control over who your soulmate is. Believe me, my life would be much easier if my soulmate was someone from the Fire Nation.”

Just look at Azula and her soulmate. Father was never angry with her because of her soulmate. He never stopped her from talking about them — just because her soulmate is from the Fire Nation.

Zuko wonders briefly whether Azula has met them yet or not.

Anyway, it doesn't matter now. Whoever Azula's soulmate is, they're probably just as dangerous as she is.

“I don't care,” Sokka says simply. “I'm sorry, Zuko, but I'm not interested in your sob stories or your tragic past. That doesn't excuse you. You hunted us for weeks, and then you met with Katara at night...” Sokka's eyes suddenly narrow. “I hope you didn't do anything inappropriate. If I find out you hurt her–”

“I didn't do anything to her!” Zuko quickly objects. “Katara is my friend! I would never hurt her!”

“Keep it up, because if you do anything I don't like, you'll find yourself at the bottom of the ocean, Katara's soulmate or not.”

“If that happens, you have my blessing.”

Sokka continues to look at him suspiciously, but something like approval appears in his eyes. Which quickly disappears when he adds:

“Either way, I don't like the fact that you were chasing us knowing who Katara is. You could have explained yourself. And I don't remember giving you permission to get close to her!”

“It's not like I had any control over it! Besides, Katara agreed to let me hunt you guys!”

Sokka freezes.

“What?”

“It was a solution we came up with,” Zuko says truthfully. “Because everyone knew the Avatar had returned, but I thought that maybe if it was public knowledge that the Fire Prince was hunting him, fewer people would be looking for us.”

“What?”

“Can't you listen, Water Tribe?” Zuko can't help himself and deliberately avoids using the boy's name. “It all worked out in your favor. You should be grateful to me.”

Sokka is silent for a long moment.

“You know what, I'm going to hit you,” he suddenly informs him.

“For what?”

“Because you're annoying me,” Sokka says. “And I still haven't forgiven you for being my sister's soulmate, playing with her feelings, and fighting against her and your family. I'm the older brother here, and it's my job to keep this family in order.”

“...Have you been drinking cactus juice?”

Sokka does not respond with words.

Sokka and Zuko return almost an hour later. Katara is not even particularly surprised to see bruises on their faces, which does not stop her from lashing out at her brother.

“Are you crazy?” she hisses, looking at him angrily. “You got into a fight? Over something like this?”

“He started it,” Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

“Then he shouldn't have gone near my sister,” Sokka looks at him irritably.

“I couldn't help it.”

“Agni, I told you that–!”

“Enough!” Katara steps between them. “I don't care which one of you started it. If you keep behaving like this, I won't heal either of you!”

“Fine,” Zuko says. He walks over to the camp and pulls out the sticks he and Sokka used for practice. He throws one of them to Sokka. The boy catches it instinctively. “Do you want to keep arguing? I suggest you do it like a man, brother.”

Sokka looks at him, and then a strange smile appears on his face, the meaning of which Katara is unable to decipher.

“With great pleasure.”

For the next several minutes, Zuko takes great pleasure in beating up Sokka. Which he probably shouldn't be getting, but at the moment it doesn't matter in the slightest.

They fight each other, sometimes taking longer breaks, sometimes not.

At one point, Sokka points his sword at him, somewhat accusingly.

“So,” he begins. “You and Katara.”

“Agni, what now?” Zuko asks irritably. “I'm not going to apologize for her being my soulmate! I had no control over that!”

“Calm down, calm down, you don't have to be so indignant,” says Sokka. “That's not what I meant.”

Sokka looks at him closely, his gaze lingering a little longer than it should on his hair, which is still short.

“Did Katara tell you about the beads?”

“She mentioned something about it.”

“And?” Sokka is clearly waiting for the rest of the story.

Zuko doesn't move.

Sokka crosses his arms over his chest.

“Don't make me look like an idiot, Zuko,” he says. “I'm not blind. I may not pay much attention to accessories, but when your sister suddenly loses one of her hair beads, I'm going to notice. Where is it?”

Zuko sighs heavily, realizing that Sokka is unlikely to let the matter drop. He reaches behind his shirt and pulls out a string on which he has hung the blue bead Katara gave him.

Sokka looks at it with an expression Zuko can't quite read.

“Did you take it from her, or did she give it to you?”

“What do you take me for? Katara gave it to me!”

“When?”

“A long time ago. On the ship.”

“On the shi—the pirate incident!” Sokka looks at him as if he's seeing him for the first time in his life. He shakes his head in disbelief. “And Katara didn't tell me anything? Really?”

“I think she didn't want to make it harder for you guys.”

“Half the time you were chasing us, Aang kept talking about wanting to be your friend,” Sokka rolls his eyes. “You could have told me, instead of making it a big secret.”

“Um...” Zuko searches for a suitable answer, but finds none.

“Never mind,” Sokka says. “Why don't you wear them?”

“Because I used to be the Fire Prince, and I couldn't wear something that was clearly Water Tribe. And now I don't have enough hair to braid beads into.”

“That's a surprisingly wise answer for you,” Sokka sighs heavily. “Okay, I'll be honest. I'm still not happy about what happened, but let's say I kind of understand why you kept it a secret. I'm not suddenly going to be your friend or help you find beads for Katara—because you are going to get her something, right?”

“Uh, yeah, I was planning to, but I didn't really know how to go about it, so I thought maybe when the war was over... For now, I wanted to buy her a dagger.”

“A dagger?” Sokka looks at him as if he's crazy.

“That's Fire Nation culture!”

“I don't think Katara would want anything that comes from Fire Nation culture.”

“My country isn't one big evil!”

“Um, no offense, Zuko, but it is,” Sokka shifts from foot to foot. “You guys are the main villains here, you know that?”

“It's the fault of bad management at the top,” Zuko and Agni, it sounds as if he wants to betray his father. “We need to change the government. If the new Fire Lord doesn't want this war... peace is possible, but I won't do it at the expense of my country. I know my father must be stopped, I told you I would help you, but I won't allow innocent people to suffer because of it.”

Sokka snorts.

“The Fire Nation? Innocent?”

“I'm not saying the whole country!” Zuko quickly points out, because, well, he can't say his country is blameless. “But there are people who haven't done anything wrong! You can't blame them for everything that's happening! Besides, many people simply don't realize what's really going on abroad!”

“Don't you think it's a good time for them to find out, then?”

“Why do you think I'm here instead of begging Azula to take me in? Although that probably wouldn't work anyway,” Zuko adds after a moment's thought. “Azula isn't known for her mercy.”

“Come on, she's your sister.”

Zuko raises an eyebrow.

“You've met Azula, haven't you? Can you imagine her being nice to me? Although, she did help me out recently... do you think she cares about me?”

Sokka looks at him for a long moment.

“We were supposed to be talking about my sister, not yours,” he says. “Is family drama popular in the Fire Nation?”

“I don't know about the whole Fire Nation, but in the royal family? Definitely.”

“Okay, now you've got me interested,” Sokka smiles slightly. “Tell me everything you know about Azula. Why did she help you, but you're still being pulled down? And what is your wonderful plan to end the war, a way to, and I quote, ‘prevent the poor, innocent citizens of the Fire Nation from suffering’?”

“That wasn't the right quote, because I didn't say that, but I was thinking that, for example, we could just try to talk.”

“Talk,” Sokka repeats, his voice full of doubt. “Just like that?”

“It would be a good start,” Zuko remarks. “What, would you rather kill everyone?”

“Okay, I'm starting to see why talking might be a good idea. But I hope it's not about your father.”

Zuko shifts uncertainly from foot to foot.

“Let's say.”

“Let's say,” Sokka repeats. “Okay. I can work with that too. So, jerkbender, talk. I'll give you a chance, so you can try to convince me to cooperate.”

Sokka and Zuko disappear for a few hours and don't return until it's dark. Toph uses this forced break to teach Aang earthbending; Iroh decides to teach Katara how to brew good tea.

Sokka and Zuko return late, clearly tired and battered, but also happy. Apparently, they needed those few hours to argue—to fight—but they must have come to some kind of agreement, because the tension between them is now gone.

“Anyway,” says Sokka, sitting down at the campsite and putting down his wooden sword. “Like I said before, Suki is nearby. We should meet up with her.”

“That's a good idea!” agrees Aang. “Suki is really nice!”

“Well, I thought it was strange that she didn't want to join us when we met her on Kyoshi Island,” Katara says.

Sokka makes a not-so-happy face.

“You think I didn't try to convince her to come with us? I did, but she insisted that it wasn't her time, her place, and stuff like that...”

His tone clearly shows what he thinks about it.

“Anyway, Suki is nearby,” he says. “Maybe this time she'll want to stay with us a little longer.”

Some time later, when most people are getting ready for bed, Sokka approaches Katara and sits down next to her.

“Hey, Kat,” he says quietly.

“What?” Katara glances at him irritably. “Are you done fighting with Zuko? Or are you going to start your rant again about how we can't trust him?”

“I know I didn't behave in the best way,” Sokka admits. “But I didn't know everything. You never told me he was your soulmate and... I just wanted to make sure he wouldn't hurt you. You know we don't have the best experiences with him.”

“Zuko won't hurt me,” Katara assures him. “I know him. I've known him for years, Sokka. He's my friend.”

“I know,” Sokka clenches his fist, then relaxes it. “I know. Zuko told me.”

“How much did he tell you?”

“Well... we mostly talked about you. But also a little bit about him. And his family. The future. What he plans to do now. Anyway... he's not as bad as I thought. And he really cares about you.”

“I didn't want to hide it from you,” Katara leaned toward her brother. “I know it wasn't very nice of me not to tell you right away, but... you know how it was in the beginning. Zuko was chasing us. Believe me, we argued about it many times. And then, when he showed up here... Aang figured it out too quickly. Zuko didn't want to tell you because he felt you didn't trust him. He didn't want you to hate him. But we were going to tell you, believe me.”

“Well, a lot of things make sense now,” Sokka admits. “Why I sometimes had the impression that you weren't fighting each other, but training. Why you accepted him right away. Why you got along so well.”

“Of course we get along. Zuko is my friend, Sokka.”

“I know. I know.”

They are silent for a moment, staring into the fire.

“Sokka,” Katara says. “Zuko... hasn't had it easy. You don't have to believe me, but his family... isn't the nicest.”

“Zuko mentioned that to me a little,” says Sokka. “Not everything, but enough. Katara.”

“Hmm?”

“Do you think Zuko is on our side?”

“I believe Zuko wants to fix the Fire Nation,” Katara says with confidence. “He knows the Fire Nation have to change. And he knows Fire Lord Ozai won't take care of that. It's just... sometimes I still worry that Ozai has too much influence over him. I think Zuko still hopes sometimes that Ozai will be able to change; that he will love him.”

“Do you think that will happen?”

“Sokka, Ozai is one of the worst people walking this earth,” Katara looks her brother straight in the eye. “He has no mercy for anyone, not even his family. Especially not his family. Zuko was never safe around him; I doubt he's safe now.”

Sokka swallows loudly.

“Does... does his scar...?”

“If Zuko hasn't told you, I'm not going to tell you,” Katara declares. “Talk to him about it. But I repeat: Zuko will not be safe around Ozai. Ever.”

Sokka presses his lips together.

“Okay,” he says quietly. “I understand. Don't let Zuko meet with his father. Fine. Understood. I can do that.”

Katara blinks.

“I thought...”

“Hey,” Sokka smiles at her slightly. “I may not have reacted... the best, but he's your soulmate. Family. And the Water Tribe takes care of its own. If you trust Zuko, if you want to protect him, I'll help you. Who knows, maybe one day he'll really become my brother?”

“No, you too,” Katara groans. “There's really nothing between us!”

“Really?” Sokka raises an eyebrow. “You know, he's not that bad. Wait. Who was first?”

“Aang really wants to make me the future Fire Lady.”

Sokka starts laughing loudly.

“Fire Lady Katara!” he repeats. “That was interesting!”

He stops laughing.

“Wait,” he says, suddenly serious. “Are you serious? You want to be Fire Lady?”

“I don't want anything, idiot,” Katara hits him on the shoulder. “And there's nothing between us. He's not even interested in me.”

“Hmm...” Sokka looks at her strangely. “Okay. If you say so.”

Sokka turns out to be right, and Suki is nearby.

The girl raises an eyebrow when she sees the two Firebenders.

“I feel like we've met before,” she says.

“Really?” asks Zuko.

“Yes. You kind of burned my village down.”

“Ah,” Zuko realizes. “But it wasn't me. It was Zhao.”

“Ah,” Suki nods. “Okay.”

Later, Katara sees Suki pull Zuko aside and say a few sharp words to him, no doubt bringing up the bond he shares with Katara.

Katara pretends not to see.

She's getting tired of everyone trying to protect her from someone who would never hurt her.

They arrive in Ba Sing Se just in time to realize that the city is under attack.

Azula is pursuing them even here.

Unsurprisingly, both Zuko and Iroh decide not to get involved in the situation.

Getting into Ba Sing Se is not easy, and when they succeed, Iroh and Zuko exchange knowing glances.

“I'm afraid we'll have to part ways here,” Iroh says. “We can't follow you any further. My nephew and I will stay in the city for a while, but continuing to be in your presence would not be... wise.”

“How so?” Aang doesn't understand. “But...”

“Avatar Aang,” Iroh looks at him seriously. “We are in the middle of a war. My nephew and I are not people the Earth Kingdom would like to see here.”

“Hey,” Sokka objects. “You haven't done anything wrong.”

“I'm afraid my past history says otherwise,” Iroh smiles sadly at him. “I've been trying to take this city for six hundred days. I am a former Fire Nation general. I am responsible for many acts that would make many people want me dead. You plan to go to the King, don't you? If we stayed with you, we would risk being caught and killed. We will stay here and make sure no one finds out who we are.”

“But... Zuko hasn't done anything wrong,” Aang points out. “Right?”

“I am the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation,” Zuko looks at him meaningfully.

“And my firebending teacher! You can't just leave me! You're part of our team! And our hope for peace!”

Zuko and Iroh exchange glances again.

“If Zuko were to appear with you, he would likely be arrested,” the man says in a gentle tone. “Regardless of what the potential future might hold.”

He doesn't say aloud, ‘even if one of us becomes Fire Lord in the future’, but Katara can guess that's what he means.

Katara is not stupid. She knows that Iroh and Zuko were raised at court. She knows that they understand politics—even if Zuko can be impulsive at times, very impulsive. But Katara realizes the implications of Zuko's appearance at the Earth King's court. Even if he became their ally, many people would try to turn the situation to their advantage—saying they would give him their support, and then, when he became Fire Lord, make him dependent on them. They would demand a lot from him in return for helping him gain the throne.

Zuko is too proud to do such a thing.

Zuko would not agree to this—no, because if he became Fire Lord (and at this point, Katara still does not know if Zuko or Iroh would be Ozai's potential successor), he would not want to be a puppet ruler. No, he would need to be on equal footing. He can work with Aang because Aang is the person who should represent all nations. To gain power through the support of the Earth King...

“I understand,” Katara looks at Zuko. She can tell from his expression that he is aware of what Katara is trying to convey with that one word. "So what are you going to do now?

“Katara...” Aang looks at her painfully. “We can't let them go.”

“We'll stay here,” says Iroh. “I have old friends nearby. We'll hide for a while. We'll be close by. If you need us, just let us know. We'll do everything we can to help you.”

Aang hesitates, clearly not entirely happy with the situation.

Katara puts her hand on his shoulder.

“It'll be okay,” she says, keeping her eyes on Zuko. “We'll see each other soon.”

A slight smile appears on his lips.

“Yeah,” he says. “We'll see each other soon, Katara.”

Chapter Text

“I miss Suki,” is the first thing Sokka says as soon as they cross the gates of Ba Sing Se.

“You saw her a moment ago,” Katara reminds him.

“Yes, but it was too short meeting.”

“You could have asked her to come here with us,” Katara points out.

“Yeah, but you know her,” Sokka rolls his eyes. “She really cares about what she can and can't do. If she promises Aang she'll find Appa, she'll do it. Even if she has two other friends who could do it for her.”

Sokka sighs heavily.

“Why couldn't Suki come with us into Ba Sing Se?” he wonders aloud.

“Don't ask me,” Katara says irritably. “She could have if she wanted to.”

Sokka gives her a slightly hurt look.

“I tried to convince her, but she wouldn't agree!” he says with incredible sadness. “It's not fair.”

Now it's Katara who rolls her eyes.

Sokka has no reason to complain. He and Suki are in the same situation as Katara and Zuko — they finally found each other, they were finally close, but once again they were separated, this time by the walls of Ba Sing Se.

Fortunately, they will see each other soon in their dreams. 

Getting an audience with the Earth King is not that easy, even if one of the people near you is the Avatar and the greatest hope of this world.

Katara is slowly beginning to hate Ba Sing Se.

They still haven't been able to find Appa. They're putting up posters all over the city, but it's all in vain — no one has seen him. It's as if Appa has vanished into thin air.

Ba Sing Se is not a safe city.

Of course, theoretically it is safe. The Fire Nation has not managed to conquer it (Katara ignores the two Fire Nation Princes who are currently staying there)  and as long as Ba Sing Se stands, the Earth Kingdom has not fallen.

However, the Earth King has no real power. Most of the inhabitants of Ba Sing Se are unaware that there is a war going on outside the city walls – they all agree that there is no war in Ba Sing Se.

The Dai Li give Katara the creeps.

She begins to feel that they have chosen the wrong place to stay.

The days pass slowly. They are still unable to contact the Earth King. They try, of course they try, but it is not easy.

The Dai Li are always somewhere nearby, watching them like shadows.

But that does not mean they are going to give up.

Katara knows where Zuko is. Aang doesn't want to lose his firebending teacher. Sokka doesn't want to lose his friend. Toph doesn't want to lose her victim for jokes and her Uncle – yes, Iroh is now her Uncle, and nobody dares to disagree.

Sometimes, when they have a little more time, they visit the shop where Zuko and his Uncle work. No one dares to try Zuko's tea—let's be honest, it's not the best—but everyone is absolutely in love with his Uncle's tea.

When Aang discovers an abandoned building somewhere in the Lower Ring, he is delighted. He almost forces Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko to come with him, and then decides that they can train here.

“This is a bad idea,” says Zuko. “If someone sees us using firebending–”

“We'll explain it somehow!” says Aang. “I'm the Avatar! I have to master all the elements! Including firebending!”

“No,” Zuko crosses his arms over his chest. “It's too dangerous.”

“But...”

“We're in the heart of Ba Sing Se, Aang,” he points out. “In a city that hates firebenders. I'm not going to risk something like that happening.”

“But...”

“I won't train with you,” Zuko says firmly. “But I can correct your posture. And your breathing. How's your meditation going?”

“Uh...” Aang looks away.

“Wonderful,” Zuko says. He grabs the back of his shirt and pulls him aside. “Let's go, Aang. We're going to meditate.”

“But it's so boring...!” Aang whines.

“Do you want to master firebending or not?”

“I do, but–”

“Then don't complain. Firebending comes from breathing.”

“And that's why we're going to spend the whole day breathing?”

“Yes.”

“You're boring, Sifu Hotman!”

“Don't call me that, Aang. Breathe. Now.”

Aang and Toph train. A lot. They try their best—they don't have much time before summer. Katara joins them too.

Sometimes, when they meet in the evenings in an abandoned building, Sokka steals Zuko for himself and practices sword fighting with him. Zuko doesn’t mind it – and he's really good. Katara could spend hours watching him train with her brother.

“You know,” Toph sits down next to her, temporarily deciding not to bother Aang with earthbending lessons. “If it weren't for the fact that we still don't know how to end this war, life wouldn't be so bad.”

“Hm?” Katara doesn't look at her, watching the duel between Zuko and Sokka.

Sokka is getting better and better. Even Zuko had to admit that her brother has talent and that in time he could become one of the best swordsmen in the world (okay, Zuko didn't say the latter, but Katara knows him well enough to know that's what he was implying).

“After all, we don't have to run away from anyone,” says Toph. “We're safe here. We can hang out with our friends. Watch cute boys swinging swords around.”

“Toph, you can't see,” Katara reminds her.

“But I can feel your heartbeat, Sugar Queen. You're practically drooling.”

“I'm not doing anything like that!” Katara protests immediately. “Please, stop making up these kinds of stories!”

Toph just laughs.

Zuko doesn't like Ba Sing Se.

For many reasons.

One of them is incredibly simple — Uncle found them jobs at a tea shop. At. Cursed. Tea. Shop.

How much tea can one person drink?

Zuko can't understand it. Really. There should be some limits.

Meanwhile, in Ba Sing Se, Zuko learns that there are no such limits.

Which is incredibly annoying, but all he can do is keep his mouth shut and hope he survives another shift.

He begins to appreciate service workers.

How can there be people who are able to smile every day, as if talking to others brings them joy?

It's madness.

Theoretically, as a refugee  — the thought of what he has become is still humiliating and makes Zuko want to murder someone. Quite brutally, if possible — he has no right to enter the Upper or Middle Circle. He should remain in the Lower Circle.

And that makes meeting with Katara and the rest of them even more difficult.

However, lest anyone get the wrong idea, it's not that Zuko wants to meet with them. Well, with Katara, yes, but as for the rest... they didn't really give him a choice, and it just kind of happened that they meet, and Aang really wants him to be his firebending teacher, even though Zuko explains to him many times that it would be incredibly dangerous while they are in Ba Sing Se.

Sokka, on the other hand, is annoying. Just annoying. It's not that Zuko likes him, he just enjoys beating him up with his sword.

Toph, on the other hand, is Toph. You don't argue with Toph.

So, it's not that Zuko wants to meet with them. They are always the ones who come to the Lower Ring so they can meet. Zuko just doesn't complain as loudly as he could about it.

...okay, if he's being honest, completely honest, then maybe a part of him — a small, incredibly small part — likes being around them. It's just nice.

Besides, theoretically, Zuko agreed to work with them and defeat his father with them, so... ugh. Better not to think about it for now. It'll be easier that way. Fewer potential thoughts about potential betrayal.

Agni, is Zuko becoming a traitor?

Zuko thinks about it for a while, then shakes his head. No. That's not it. He's not becoming a traitor. He wants to work for his country. He wants to help the Fire Nation.

And that's why he's currently on his way to meet the Avatar, with no plans to capture or arrest him?

...better not to think about it.

Zuko makes a mistake, completely unaware of it.

His mistake is stopping in the middle of the street with his swords. He is in the Lower Ring, where many people are aware of the war, so someone with swords doesn't attract that much attention — even if officially the war shouldn't be talked about. But even the Dai Li are unable to force all the residents of the Lower Ring—most of whom have lost their homes or families due to the war—to give up their weapons. The streets are full of people with hidden weapons.

The mistake Zuko makes is that:

One, he stops in the middle of one of the smaller streets. Two, he has his dao swords with him because he plans to train with Sokka later. And three, he is putting up flyers about the missing Appa, which Aang gave him the day before.

“Are you looking for the Avatar bison?” a stranger's voice calls out behind him.

Zuko flinches and turns around, instinctively drawing his swords. He didn't notice anyone approaching him — of course, the stranger must have come up on his left side, deaf and blind.

The stranger whistles under his breath.

“Nice swords.”

“What?” Zuko turns toward him. “Never mind. Leave me alone.”

He doesn't sheathe his swords, but he doesn't attack the stranger either. He doesn't look like he's part of the Dai Li, and he doesn't look like he's going to attack Zuko — but then again, Zuko can't be sure. Ba Sing Se is not a good place for Firebenders, especially members of the royal family. Even if those members of the royal family are currently wanted by the authorities.

“Hey, hey, take it easy,” the stranger keeps his distance, his gaze sweeping over Zuko and his posture.

Damn. He gave himself away as not being an amateur.

“I'm not going to attack you, friend,” he says. “Besides, we're on the same side, aren't we? I can see what you look like. And I saw what you were doing.”

“Whatever you saw, you're wrong,” Zuko says, eyeing the stranger suspiciously. Then he glances to the side, making sure they are alone.

And they really are alone, because Zuko doesn't see anyone else around. Does that mean he could just beat up this stranger and forget about the whole thing?

On the other hand, if he got into a fight in this city, he could draw attention to himself, and that would draw attention to Uncle. And Zuko has decided that in Ba Sing Se, he will try to prevent that from happening. Ba Sing Se is a big enough threat to Zuko. But to Uncle, to the Dragon of the West who had besieged it for nearly two years? Zuko wouldn't be surprised if dozens of people were still cursing his name.”

“I've noticed a few things,” the stranger replies. “First, you're just like me.”

“Huh?”

“You're a refugee. An outcast,” says the stranger, and ugh, really? That's not very nice. Even if it's true, he could have phrased it differently. “And you were hurt by the Fire Nation.”

Which is also true, but not in the way the stranger thinks.

“Besides, you're a warrior. And you're an ally of the Avatar. You think I didn't recognize Appa? I saw that bison with my own eyes. Avatar Aang is my friend, you know? We worked together.”

“Aa– the Avatar makes friends wherever he can, that's nothing new,” Zuko replies. “And you wouldn't be the first person to work with him. Now go away. I don’t care about your relationship. I don't know who you are or what you want from me, but I'm definitely not interested.”

“My name is Jet,” the stranger introduces himself. “You know what, I was thinking we could work together. You look like you know how to use those swords you have with you and–”

Zuko stops listening to him.

Because what?

Jet?

Zuko knows that name. And it's not someone he ever planned on meeting.

“What's your name?” Zuko asks.

“Jet?” The boy tilts his head to the side. “I told you that. That's my name. Why do you ask? Was I too quiet earlier? I didn't want to assume anything, but your ear doesn't look too good, not that I'm saying it's ugly or anything, but just–”

“Are you the Freedom Fighter that Katara and the others met somewhere in the Earth Kingdom?” Zuko asks, because although he is almost certain that it is him, he is not familiar enough with the local names to know how popular it is.

There are thousands of Lees in Ba Sing Se alone. Zuko hasn't heard of a single Jet, but who knows, maybe it's just as common a name in the north or south of the country?

The Earth Kingdom is huge. Too big.

“Yes!” says Jet. “I told you I worked with them. We wanted to get rid of the Fire Nation that occupied our lands together!”

“Oh, really?” Zuko sheathes his swords. “Well, that's good to know.”

Jet smiles at him.

“You're an ally of the Avatar too, aren't you?” he asks as Zuko approaches him. “I knew that you–”

His next words are muffled as Zuko's fist travels to his face.

Jet staggers backward, surprise flashing in his eyes. He would have fallen to the ground or reached for his swords if Zuko hadn't instantly moved behind him, grabbed his arms, and twisted them, forcing him to his knees with a simple lock. It's not his favorite fighting style, but after three years at sea and facing people who would gladly kill him, he has learned how to subdue or immobilize people.

“Are you the jerk who broke Katara's heart?” Zuko asks, not even trying to hide the fury in his voice. “Who took advantage of her kindness and gentleness?”

“It wasn't like that!”

“So you didn't lie to her and Aang? You didn't convince them to flood a village where both Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation citizens lived? You tried to turn them into murderers — a twelve-year-old pacifist kid and a fourteen-year-old girl who had barely left her home for the first time in her life!”

“Get a grip, man!” Jet yells. “I didn't want to turn them into murderers — the Fire Nation deserves nothing but death. Besides, I'm sure they've killed before!”

“I'm trying very hard not to think about it, and besides, I'm not interested in that right now,” Zuko suddenly lets go of Jet, who falls to the ground, surprised by the sudden movement.

When Jet turns toward him, the blade of one of Zuko's swords is already pointed at him.

“I'm not in the mood to listen to your excuses,” he hisses. “From what I know, you deceived both Aang and Katara. And you tried to win Katara's heart, and then you betrayed her! You used her!”

“Don't exaggerate, it wasn't like I betrayed or used her or anything! She was just as eager as I was and agreed to the plan! It's not my fault that she ultimately decided she didn't like my plan! I didn't force her into anything!”

“From what I've heard, the situation was completely different. You lied to her–”

“I wanted to protect my country!” Jet objects. “That doesn't mean anything! Besides, just look at your own reflection in the mirror! See what the Fire Nation is doing to this world! They're all monsters who don't deserve to live!”

Zuko presses his lips together. He may not have been in his country for over three years, but he knows that's not true. War is terrible, and the Fire Nation are the bad guys in this story, but that doesn't mean everyone deserves to die. There are good people in the Fire Nation. Zuko knows that. There has to be.

“Shut up!” Zuko growls. “We're not talking about the Fire Nation, we're talking about you and Katara!”

“How do you even know her, huh? Is she your girlfriend or something?”

“Even if she is, so what?” Zuko asks irritably. If Jet wants to think they're a couple, let him. It's better for him to think that than to realize that Zuko is her soulmate.

Zuko and Katara have never been good at hiding their bond. Aang figured it out incredibly quickly, as did Uncle. Only Sokka was unaware of it for a long time, but then again, Sokka is Sokka. That shouldn't surprise Zuko.

“You hurt her, you used her, and now you have the nerve to defend yourself!” Zuko looks at Jet with contempt. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

Jet glances at him, then at the blade of his swords. Zuko doesn't like the look on his face. It looks like he's considering attacking him. The swords Jet carries are probably not just for decoration.

Which isn't a problem, because Zuko is capable of protecting himself. The problem is the same as before — if he gets into a fight with him, he risks giving himself away. Or causing trouble for Uncle.

But that bastard hurt Katara.

Why should Zuko forgive him?

Zuko wants to hit him over and over again, though that probably wouldn't be enough for Jet to understand how much he hurt Katara. Of course, Katara claimed it was no big deal, that she moved on quickly and that she wasn't really in love with him, but Zuko knows her well enough to know that Jet was her first love. She trusted him, only for him to betray her, deceive her, and take advantage of her. He took advantage of her good heart—and that makes Zuko furious, because Jet had no right to do that. He had no right to do such a thing, and he certainly had no right to touch or kiss her—Agni, did Katara and Jet kiss? Zuko feels like punching him at the very thought of such a thing.

“Shut up!” Jet looks at him with rage. “This wasn't about Katara. This was about the Earth Kingdom. About our freedom!” 

“Freedom,” Zuko repeats hollowly.

Right now, that's the least of his concerns. He doesn't care about the Earth Kingdom, he doesn't care about the Fire Nation. All he cares about is that he's looking at the man who hurt Katara.

He sheathes his swords and then quickly leans toward Jet, grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him toward him, simultaneously grabbing his right hand, which is already reaching for his sword.

“You know what?” he asks. “I don't care about this war. I don't care what you do. But stay away from Katara, or I won't be so nice anymore. If I find out that you touched her, that you even breathed in her presence, you'll regret it.”

Katara would probably be furious if she found out he said something like that to Jet. She would probably remind him that she is capable of protecting herself.

And okay, Zuko would agree with that. Katara is strong and powerful. But at the same time, she has too good a heart when it comes to this world.

“Do you understand?” Zuko hisses.

Jet doesn't look like he understands. He looks more like he wants to lunge at him in rage and attack him.

Somewhere off to the side, footsteps can be heard.

Zuko curses silently, then lets go of the bastard who hurt his soulmate and quickly runs away, leaving Jet alone.

Fortunately, Jet doesn't try to chase him.

“I met your ex.”

“What?”

“I said I met–”

“I know what you said, Zuko,” Katara raises her hand, silencing her friend. “But... how? Jet shouldn't be here.”

“I don't know,” Zuko shrugs, avoiding her and taking off his coat, which he then places on a chair standing to the side.

They are in the same building where they have been meeting for some time. Sokka still wants to continue his fencing lessons and is using Zuko for that purpose. Aang and Toph just want to spend a little more time with him—Aang most likely to pester Zuko for firebending lessons.

Sokka and Toph are nearby, currently busy with Aang, who is showing them what he has recently learned about earthbending. They don't seem to have noticed that Zuko has arrived.

…Well, Toph probably did notice, she’s just too busy with Aang.

“Wait, wait,” Katara says. “Why is Jet in Ba Sing Se?”

“I don't know,” Zuko says irritably. “But I hope he never shows his face to me again.”

“Wait, what?” Katara asks. “What did you do?”

“Why do you think I did something?”

“Because you look like you want to kill someone. And I know you don't like Jet.”

“That's a huge understatement,” Zuko says, his face contorting with irritation. “I have no idea what you could have seen in that jerk. He has nothing going for him. He's not even particularly handsome.”

“Well, when I met him, he seemed charming and quite handsome and... Zuko, are you jealous?” Katara asks as the displeasure on Zuko's face grows even more intense.

“No!”

“You are jealous,” Katara realizes, stifling a laugh.

“Why are you laughing?!”

“Because it's funny,” Katara explains. “I didn't expect anyone to be jealous of Jet, of all people...”

“I'm not jealous of him, I just wanted to point out that of all the people you could have fallen in love with, he really wasn't a good choice because–”

“Zuko,” Katara interrupts him. “Okay, maybe I had a crush on him, but that was a long time ago.”

In response, Zuko crosses his arms over his chest.

“How long ago, three months? Four? Besides, that doesn't change the fact that he's a jerk. He shouldn't be in Ba Sing Se, and he should stay away from you, not keep trying to do Agni only knows what!”

“Wait, while we're on the subject, what was Jet doing in Ba Sing Se?” Katara asks. When Zuko doesn't answer, she walks over to him and nudges him with her elbow. “Hey, don't be jealous. You know you're my favorite human in the world. Besides, that was a long time ago. Right now, I'm more concerned about Jet trying to cause more trouble. This is a man who tried to destroy a village and kill innocent people. Who knows what he's planning now?”

“I'm not jealous. And I have no idea what Jet was doing in Ba Sing Se. I didn't ask.”

Katara becomes strangely certain that Zuko was too busy trying to make Jet his enemy to wonder what he was doing here.

“Zuko...” Katara looks at him with slight suspicion. “Jet is alive, right?”

“Of course he is! What do you take me for?”

“Someone who doesn't know how to make plans?”

Zuko looks at her incredulously.

“Really, Katara?”

“What?” Katara raises her hands. “I'd just like to point out that your plans aren't always... the best, if I may say so.”

Zuko continues to look at her incredulously.

“Really, Katara?”

Katara decides not to dwell on it, grabs his hand, and pulls him along with her toward her friends.

Sokka turns to face them. Toph doesn't, busy throwing rocks at Aang — isn't that a little dangerous? What if something happens to him? 

“Sokka, did you hear about it?” Katara says, stopping next to her brother.

“What?” asks Sokka, a strange tone in his voice. A very strange tone, which Katara doesn't like very much.

For some reason, his eyes wander towards Katara, then Zuko, and their hands. Sokka sighs heavily. Then he looks at her with slight reluctance.

“Don't tell me–”

“Jet is in Ba Sing Se!” Katara says. “Zuko just met him.”

“What?” Whatever Sokka was about to say or hear, it clearly wasn't this. “How?”

“It wasn't exactly planned,” Zuko tries to explain. “He just came up to me and started talking to me. It's because of those stupid Aang posters and the search for Appa.”

“The posters aren't stupid,” Sokka objects.

“Well, they would be a lot less stupid if you had let me sketch Appa instead of trying to do it yourself–”

“Hey, it's not my fault you can't appreciate art!”

“Art? Is that what you call those scribbles that–”

“Zuko.” Katara squeezes his hand warningly. “We can deal with this later, okay?”

Zuko presses his lips together in displeasure, but at least he doesn't try to argue with Sokka any further. Why do they have to argue today? They don't usually have this problem, especially when they're training together.

“I don't think so,” Sokka says. “If Zuko has a problem with my art–”

“I can't believe you actually call that art. Have you ever wondered why no one can decipher your scribbles–?”

“Hey, do you have something against me?”

“Against you? Nothing. Against your so-called ‘art’? I'd have a lot to say about that, because–”

“Boys,” Katara says, irritated. “Not now, okay? The important thing is that Jet is in Ba Sing Se and–”

“Who is Jet?” Toph suddenly appears next to her, causing Katara to almost jump in surprise.

“Toph!” she shouts. “I didn't see you!”

“I didn't see you either, Sweetness. Who is Jet?”

“Katara's ex,” Sokka replies.

“He's not my ex!”

“The way you acted around him would suggest otherwise,” Sokka remarks.

“You didn't hear half the things she said to me,” Zuko rolls his eyes. “It was incredibly annoying.”

“You're jealous, so don't talk,” Katara says, turning to face him. “I wasn't dating Jet! It lasted maybe a day or two.”

Sokka and Zuko make equally pained expressions.

“It didn't last a day,” Sokka says.

“Oh, it definitely didn't,” Zuko confirms. “It was the most annoying week of my life. And I'm not jealous. Stop saying things like that. You're making things up that aren't true.”

A strange smirk appears on Toph's lips — and then the ground beneath them shakes, causing Katara to lose her balance and fall to the ground if it weren't for Zuko, who quickly catches her.

“What was that, Toph?!” Katara asks irritably. “What are you doing?”

“I don't like it when everyone talks about something they know and won't tell me what's going on. Come on, Snoozles. Let's go get the right answer from Aang.”

With that, Toph's hand reaches forward. She grabs Sokka's wrist and almost forces him to follow her toward Aang, disappearing behind the nearby door.

Katara and Zuko remain where they are.

“What was that about?” Katara wonders aloud. “Do you think she's mad because she joined later?”

“I don't know,” Zuko admits. “Although I did join later than her.”

“Toph must have heard about it from Aang... She is his soulmate, after all.”

“But who knows what he told her? Maybe he didn't want to gossip? Or maybe the bond prevented him from saying anything.”

Katara thinks about it for a moment, then snuggles up to him, taking advantage of the fact that Zuko is still close to her and hugging her, mainly because he tried to catch her earlier. When Zuko realizes that Katara is not going to move away from him so quickly, his hands carefully wrap around her a little tighter. Katara smiles slightly, feeling the warmth radiating from him. Part of her hates Firebenders and always will, but this Firebender? Her Firebender? Katara adores him.

“I don't know,” Katara says after a moment. “Anyway, it's Toph. There's no point in trying to understand her.”

“You're right,” Zuko replies.

Zuko smiles at her.

Katara tries to smile back—but then she realizes they're really close to each other and—oh. This is getting a little dangerous.

She won't ruin their friendship. She won't, except that Katara's mind wanders to the Oasis, that moment when she thought for a second that...

What if she wasn't wrong? What if Zuko really–?

“Hey!” someone shouts behind them.

The door opens and Sokka looks out from behind it — who, for some reason, is being hugged by both Aang and Toph, who seem to be... trying to stop him from opening the door, but have failed?

Zuko and Katara quickly jump away from each other, this time really falling to the ground. For some reason, Katara feels a strong urge to murder Sokka.

“It's time for our swordbending lessons, brother,” Sokka says in a tone that definitely means something, but Katara has no idea what exactly. “If you're done admiring Katara's ex, then maybe... Aang, Toph, seriously?”

Neither of them is letting go of him yet. Which makes for a rather comical sight.

Katara and Zuko exchange glances, then burst out laughing at the same moment.

“Well,” Zuko says, standing up and reaching out his hand to help her up. “I'm afraid I'll have to leave you for a moment to deal with my incredibly annoying younger brother.”

“Older!” Sokka protests.

And that's all he can say, because Aang and Toph join forces to pull him away from the door, and the three of them disappear behind it, and for a moment, some really strange noises can be heard.

Zuko glances at Katara with slight amusement as he helps her up.

“Do you think they're murdering him?” he asks, not letting go of her hand.

“Who knows?” Katara shrugs. “Let's go help them, Zuko.”

Zuko nods. And then the two of them head in the direction Sokka, Aang, and Toph disappeared.

If neither of them lets go of the other's hand, well, Katara isn't going to complain.

Chapter Text

What Aang is trying to achieve isn't really hard to see.

And apparently, Toph has joined him too.

Katara... Well, if she's being honest, she's aware of what Aang and Toph would like to achieve (and what Sokka definitely doesn't agree with). The problem is that Katara and Zuko are just friends, and Zuko only thinks of her that way.

There's also a limit to how many times Aang and Toph can make fun of it. Because it has to be jokes, right? Because if not, it means they seriously want Katara and Zuko to... do what? Katara isn't sure about that.

But one thing she knows for sure is that she and Zuko are just friends, and it's incredibly annoying when others try to convince her of something that isn't true.

Besides, Zuko clearly attracts the attention of others.

There is a girl, watching Zuko.

She has seen it several times before, but now she is certain of this.

Katara realizes this pretty quickly. She only came to his and his uncle's shop for a moment, but it only took her a moment to realize that someone was watching him.

The girl is pretty. She's just a regular girl from the Earth Kingdom. She has nice hair and a nice smile. She seems to be a little older than Katara.

And Zuko smiles at her. And judging by how easily he talks to her, this isn't the girl's first time here – well, Katara's seen her here a few times too.

Katara glances at them, watching them. She regrets that the girl is sitting a little further away from her and she can't hear exactly what she's talking to Zuko about. But whatever it is, it makes Zuko relax, talking to her with an ease that he still sometimes lacks in Sokka's presence.

The girl smiles at him too. She says something, making Zuko's lips curve upward, almost as if he's about to laugh.

Something strange tightens in Katara's stomach. It's not fair. Why is this girl smiling at him, why is Zuko smiling at her? She doesn't even know his real name!

No, Katara, she tells herself, slowly exhaling. Zuko is your friend, not your lover. You can't be jealous of him. You should be his friend and support him.

A few months ago, she wouldn't have hesitated at all. But now? Why is she overcome with such ugly feelings? What's wrong with her?

Something has changed since the Oasis. Katara hates it because before the Oasis, everything was fine and everything was normal, and now sometimes... sometimes she wants more, more than Zuko can give her.

That's the worst part. She doesn't know when she started doing it, when she started noticing her feelings — something she shouldn't feel — but from that moment on, it's just... hard not to notice. Especially after that situation at the training ground, when for a moment she thought he was going to kiss her.

She takes a deep breath to calm herself down.

Don't be jealous, she tells herself. You have no reason to be jealous. Don't be possessive.

Zuko stops talking to the girl and then disappears behind the counter for a moment. He returns a moment earlier, approaching Katara.

“Hey,” Katara says as Zuko puts the tea on the table. 

Katara often visits his shop, sometimes as a customer, sometimes just to talk to him or spend time with him. Usually, Sokka, Aang, or Toph are with her; today, Katara is alone.

“Hm?”

Katara motions for him to come closer.

“I think someone is interested in you,” Katara whispers, because she is a good friend and as a good friend she should support him. They may be soulmates, but that doesn't mean they have to be lovers.

They aren't. And they won't be.

Zuko clearly only wants to be her friend. So Katara shouldn't give him any trouble. And she definitely shouldn't think about what happened at the Oasis—or rather, what didn't happen. And never will.

So. Katara is his friend. And she will remain so. It's safe. And right.

She won't risk their friendship just because she sometimes looks at him as more than a friend—besides, it's just a passing crush! It will pass!

However, if Zuko was really jealous of Jet...

No. She won't think about it. Katara, as his friend, will remain his friend. That's it. End of story.

“What are you talking about, Katara?” Zuko whispers.

“There's a girl sitting by the window. A pretty girl. Maybe you could go up to her. Invite her to spend some time with you.”

Zuko glances in that direction. Katara immediately grabs his elbow, preventing him from looking at the girl.

“Don't look, Zuko!” she hisses. “I mean, Lee. I don't want her to know we're talking about her! Just go up to her. Try to talk to her. She's clearly interested in you.”

“But I'm not interested in her.”

“Zuko, Zuko, Zuko,” Katara looks at him disapprovingly. “You won't know until you talk to her. Try it.”

Her friend doesn't look very convinced.

“It's just Jin, Katara,” Zuko lowers his voice. Of course, he had to know her name. “She's been coming here forever.”

“Don't you think that means something?”

“What?”

“That maybe she'd like to get to know you a little better.”

“I don't think so,” Zuko objects.

“You won't know until you find out. Go talk to her. Or ask her out to dinner or something.”

Zuko looks at her in shock, as if he can't believe Katara said that. For a moment, he looks like he wants to say something, but at the last moment he gives up. Then, Katara thinks she sees something like anger in his eyes, but it quickly disappears, replaced by some strange emotion that Katara can't quite read.

Zuko quickly steps back and then pushes her hand away—when did Katara manage to put it on his shoulder? Katara tries to pretend that she is not at all upset that Zuko was so quick to leave her.

Katara smiles at him and then sends him encouragingly toward the girl.

Katara watches as Zuko approaches her. He turns around and looks uncertainly at Katara. Katara nods and forms her lips into a “don't be a coward, Zuko!” Her friend approaches the girl. They start talking about something. The girl points toward Katara. Zuko quickly shakes his head. The girl bursts out laughing. They talk for a moment longer. They must come to an agreement, because the girl smiles at him and nods.

And that's how it should be. Zuko is her friend. Her best friend. Katara should support him, not wonder if she feels something more just because everyone around her seems convinced that she will, simply because they are soulmates.

Zuko returns to her.

“Well?” Katara asks. “How did it go?”

“Jin wants to meet me,” Zuko says. “Tonight.”

Katara smiles at him.

“I'm glad. Good luck.”

“Shall we go?” Aang asks impatiently, getting ready for their evening walk to the Lower Ring of Ba Sing Se, to the building where they usually meet with Zuko.

Katara is almost entirely convinced that Aang is excited for two reasons. One, he gets to see her and Zuko together, which for some reason always brings a silly smile to his face. And two, it's a chance for him to tease Zuko about firebending—and sometimes they actually do train together, even though Zuko insists over and over that they have to be careful.

“No need,” Katara says. “Zuko isn't meeting us tonight.”

“Why?” Aang looks at her, confused.

“He has a date.”

Sokka turns his head toward her so abruptly that Katara fears he has broken his neck.

“You have a date with Zuko?” he asks incredulously.

“Not me. Jin. The girl from the Earth Kingdom.”

“Oh, good,” Sokka breathes a sigh of relief. “Wait, what?”

“Zuko has the right to do what he wants and date whoever he wants,” Katara points out.

“But... you're soulmates,” Aang looks at her without understanding. “Sokka and Suki started dating as soon as they met.”

“Because Sokka is Sokka. I'm not going to date Zuko just because he's my soulmate. Besides, it was his choice.”

“Should I kill him?” Sokka asks with such a serious expression that Katara isn't sure if he's joking.

“Please don't,” Katara says, just in case he's not joking. “I'd miss him a little.”

“Me too!” Aang announces. “Who else would teach me firebending if not Zuko?”

“Who else would make terrible tea that has no taste?” Toph asks.

Katara laughs quietly, ignoring the ugly feeling that comes over her when she thinks of Zuko and Jin, alone, just the two of them.    

When Zuko tells Uncle that he won't be home tonight because he's going to meet a friend, Iroh smiles at him. And although he doesn't usually ask about Zuko's plans, today he decides to do so.

“Nothing special,” Zuko replies evasively. “We're going to a restaurant in the Lower Ring, uh, I don't remember the name.”

“Ah, I see,” Uncle's eyes light up in a strange way. “Are you going there just the two of you?”

“How did you know that, Uncle?” Zuko asks in surprise.

“I had a feeling,” Iroh smiles in response. “Well, in that case, you should get ready. You shouldn't go in your usual clothes, especially when you're going to meet a lady.”

“She sees me in an apron most of the time, I don't think better clothes will help raise her opinion of me,” Zuko remarks.

“Oh, you don't yet appreciate how much clothes can change things, especially when it comes to the opposite sex. You must prepare yourself, nephew.”

Zuko glances at Uncle apprehensively. He hopes the conversation doesn't turn to his romantic conquests. Zuko doesn't need to hear about what Uncle used to do — what he still does? It's bad enough that Zuko occasionally sees Uncle shamelessly flirting with the woman selling flowers.

“I'll be fine,” Zuko says quickly. “Besides, I don't have much time…”

“And your hair, we have to take care of your hair!” says Iroh. “Fortunately, it's already better, not that I have anything against your ponytail, Miss Katara clearly didn't mind it either, but we should do something about your hairstyle now. Imagine the surprise on Miss Katara's face...”

“Why are you mentioning Katara?” Zuko doesn't understand.

Uncle blinks.

“Because she's the one you're meeting, isn't she?”

Now it's Zuko who blinks.

“Uh...” He takes a step back, avoiding Uncle's hands, which were already reaching for his hair. “I'm meeting Jin.”

Uncle blinks.

“Ah,” he says after a moment. “Miss Jin. I remember. She's the young woman who often visits us, isn't she?”

Uncle smiles at him, but Zuko feels like he sees something like disappointment in his eyes. Zuko quickly looks away from the man.

“Katara insisted on it herself,” he says, feeling for some reason as if he were committing some great crime. “So what was I supposed to do? Ignore Jin?”

At first, he didn't quite understand why Katara had said that to him, but he quickly realized her reasons. She must have noticed that he sometimes looked at her a little too long. Or maybe she remembered the Oasis, that moment when Zuko thought that maybe... Or that time they were supposed to be training, but Toph used her bending to knock them over and they fell on top of each other, but Katara, instead of walking away, hugged him... and that made Zuko think that maybe...

Apparently, he was wrong, and Katara's current behavior is a sign of that.

You need to get a grip, he tells himself. This is not a good time to show... what? Jealousy? Irritation? Because your soulmate realized you wanted to kiss her — Agni, why did you do that? — and now she's making it clear that she only wants to be friends? Like you're supposed to be?

Don't ruin it, Zuko.

He has to go through this. He has to get a grip and move on — because Katara is his friend, he can't act weird around her.

Maybe Jin will help him find a way to do that.

Maybe it would be best if you just stopped thinking about Katara and tried dating someone else, he tells himself. Maybe that's the best solution to this problem.

Uncle, though he still seems to look at him disapprovingly from time to time—which is a bit rude, it's not like Zuko is doing anything wrong!—ultimately does everything he can to help Zuko prepare for his meeting with Jin.

Zuko solemnly promises himself that he will never rely on Uncle's advice on this matter again.

When he leaves the apartment, it is already dark. Jin is waiting for him at the agreed meeting place, making Zuko feel a little uncomfortable.

“Did I tell you to wait?” he asks.

“No,” Jin shakes her head. “I came early.”

Zuko also came a little early, not wanting her to wait... but apparently he failed.

“I see,” he says. “Um, the restaurant is over there.”

He points ahead, in an unspecified direction. Jin nods. The two of them start walking through the streets of Ba Sing Se. It's quite late, but there are still quite a few people on the streets. The district they are heading to will be even more crowded.

“How did you know?” Zuko asks after a moment, unable to bear the silence that has fallen between them.

“How did I know what?”

“That Katara is my soulmate.”

That was one of the reasons Zuko invited Jin today.

Until now, he thought Jin was just a regular customer, well, maybe someone who had a crush on him — Zuko may have the best interpersonal skills, but there had to be a reason why Jin always came here, why she gave him her name, and why she always smiled at him. But Zuko made it clear to her that he wasn't interested in her that way—at least, he hoped so. Either way, all he had to do was lean a little closer to Katara or mention her a few times during his conversations with Jin and... well, Jin probably jumped to conclusions and decided that Zuko and Katara were a couple, but that was enough for her to stop looking at him in that special way.

Instead, Jin just... was. She still came to the shop, she still asked for tea, but everything was fine. At least, that's what Zuko thought.

The only problem is that when Zuko approached her today, Jin mentioned that Katara was his soulmate.

Which she shouldn't know about.

Jin glances at him.

“Well,” she says, smiling at him. “It wasn't hard to figure out.”

“I don't understand,” Zuko confesses.

“It's obvious that you've known each other for quite some time, and Katara wears her blue dresses and has darker skin. So she's from the Water Tribe. It's incredibly easy to guess.”

Which is absolutely true. Zuko has mentioned to Katara several times that she might consider changing her clothes, but she wasn't interested.

Zuko understands that her culture is incredibly valuable to her—but she could at least try to blend in.

“Neither of you has been to Ba Sing Se before. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but Katara didn't leave home that long ago.”

Zuko slows down a little.

“What do you mean?”

“It's... hard to describe, but it gives that impression,” says Jin. “I don't want to offend you or anything, and I'm sorry if I'm invading your privacy a little, but you're obviously a refugee. Why would someone like you be so familiar with a girl from the Water Tribe? Either you became friends incredibly quickly, or you knew each other before. Which means you're soulmates.”

“Huh,” is all Zuko can say.

That's... not a good sign.

If Jin figured out so quickly that he and Katara are soulmates, what does that say about them? Is it really that easy to recognize?

What if Azula finds out?

No, Azula is less of a problem. She might be more inclined to keep it a secret, considering she helped him—in a way.

But if Father finds out...

Zuko slows down a little, realizing with horror that there is no way his Father will accept Katara. If he finds out that she is his soulmate, he will want to get rid of her. It was bad enough when Katara was an anonymous member of the Water Tribe. But a Waterbender, and a friend of the Avatar...

His Father cannot find out about this.

“Jin,” Zuko stops.

“Mhm?” The girl looks at him curiously.

“Can you not mention this to anyone? Please?”

“All right,” Jin shrugs.

“I'm serious,” Zuko grabs her arm, forcing her to look at him. “If anyone finds out, Katara could be in danger.”

Jin's gaze wanders to his scar and lingers there a little too long.

“Lee,” she says quietly after a moment. “You're from the Fire Nation, aren't you?”

Zuko freezes.

What now?

What should he do?

Jin can't know about this. She shouldn't know about this, because it puts Uncle in danger. Zuko will manage, he always does, but Uncle is finally happy, finally able to take a break from the war and not have to hide, even if it is Ba Sing Se and no one likes them here, but as long as no one knows who Uncle really is, at least Uncle has a roof over his head and is safe from the Fire Nation...

What should he do? He can't get rid of her, not now, not in public, besides, Jin is a good person and Zuko doesn't want to hurt her, besides–

“Relax,” Jin says quickly, smiling slightly at him. “I'm not going to tell anyone. Come aside.”

She pulls him into a side street where there aren't so many people and where they can talk without risking being overheard.

Zuko should get rid of her. He doesn't have his swords, but if the worst comes to the worst... but this is Jin, she's a good person, Zuko should calm down and pretend he doesn't know what she's talking about.

“What are you talking about, Jin?” he lowers his voice. “Do I really look like someone from the Fire Nation?”

He points to his face, to his scar. He used to hate it so much, but in the Earth Kingdom it comes in so handy. People tend to look at his scar and decide he can't be their enemy.

“You have golden eyes, black hair, and your facial features are slightly different from the rest of the people in Ba Sing Se,” Jin says, looking at him seriously. “And a burn scar. Lee, don't get me wrong. I don't mind that you're from the Fire Nation or that you're half Fire.”

Zuko needs a moment to figure out what Jin is implying. She thinks that–

“Oh,” he says. “I... Uh.”

Bravo. You're incredibly eloquent today, Zuko.

Jin smiles at him a little uncertainly.

“Forgive me,” she says. “I think a lot of people have figured it out. But there's nothing wrong with that. Really, it's not your fault.”

“I... What are you going to do now?”

“Like I said, I won't tell anyone,” Jin replies. “I'm sorry I brought it up at all, I just wanted to explain why I thought you and Katara were soulmates... I didn't mean to threaten you or suggest anything like that. I... Well... I'm sorry.”

“Uh. Um. It's... okay,” Zuko says uncertainly. “As long as you don't tell anyone about it.”

“I won't,” Jin smiles at him again. “I promise.”

Zuko nods... because what else could he say?

“How long have you known?” he asks.

“About you and Katara? I figured it out about two weeks ago. About you being from the Fire Nation? Pretty quickly.”

“And that's why you talked to me?”

“No!” Jin quickly objects. “It's...”

She starts playing with her fingers, as if uncertain.

“I won't hide it, at first I thought you were just a refugee. But then I saw your scar and started thinking about it and... Lee, this may sound strange, but I think you know my soulmate.”

Zuko blinks.

“What?”

He tries to go through potential people who might know Zuko and be Jin's soulmate. Soulmates are usually close in age, so... Uh. Zuko hasn't met that many people his age. Besides, it could be anyone who saw him from a distance.

Not Azula, because her soulmate is from the Fire Nation. Maybe Mai or Ty Lee? Or that healer who helped Uncle... uh, Song, was that her name? Or Jet? Agni, please don't let it be Jet. It could even be Lee, that Lee from the Earth Kingdom. He may be young, but then again, maybe he wasn't as young as Zuko thought...

Who else?

...every customer in his shop who is between the ages of ten and twenty.

“I admit that at first I was close to you because I thought I would see my soulmate in your surroundings,” Jin continues. “But they never showed up, so, well... I could have been wrong.”

“Uh,” says Zuko. “Uh. Em. Can you tell me a little more about them? Then I'll be able to help you somehow?”

“They... Uh,” Jin looks uncertain now. “I shouldn't. You meet your soulmates when you're supposed to. I shouldn't rush it.”

“I think... I think you're right,” Zuko admits. “If I had met my soulmate earlier... a few years before I met her... it might not have ended well.”

His meeting with Katara didn't turn out well, but Zuko guesses it would have been even worse if they had met a few years earlier, when he was determined to catch the Avatar.

“Hmm...” Jin says thoughtfully. Then she smiles mischievously at him. “Will you tell me more about her?”

“Huh?”

“What exactly do you like about her? How long have you been together?”

So Jin invited him to this meeting thinking he and Katara were together?

...should he be disappointed?

“I haven't been– We're not together, Jin!” Zuko objects indignantly. “Imagine if you were dating your soulmate!”

“Hmm...” Jin thinks for a moment. “I think I could date them. I like you, don't get me wrong, but my soulmate is special to me.”

“You tried to hit on me!”

“Because I think you're cute!” Jin blushes slightly. “But I also know when someone is taken! I didn't want to get between you two!”

“We're not together!” Zuko objects.

Jin looks at him as if he's crazy.

“Then why haven't you told her yet?”

“Because she clearly doesn't feel the same way!” Zuko says emphatically, and oh shit, he wasn't supposed to say that out loud. It was supposed to stay a secret.

But Jin just smiles.

“Besides, it's not like we have anything. We're friends and... logically speaking, even if we were together somehow, we wouldn't have a future. Besides, we're friends. Just friends. Katara made that quite clear.”

Jin still doesn't look convinced.

“Are you sure?”

“I'm absolutely sure,” Zuko says. He brushes his hair away in irritation, only to realize that it's an incredibly unnecessary move because it's not long enough to fall into his eyes yet.

“Hmm...” Jin says thoughtfully.

“What ‘hmm’?!”, Zuko exclaims indignantly.

Jin suddenly smiles.

“You know what, I have an idea,” she says. “Invite Katara next time.”

“I'm not going to–”

“With me,” Jin says. “The three of us. I want to get to know her.”

“How did it go?” Katara asks late at night when they meet in the dream world.

Not wanting to look her friend in the face, she focuses on his hair. It's getting longer and longer. Anything is better than that awful ponytail he had at the beginning, after his exile.

“Well,” Zuko replies. “Jin knows I'm in from the Fire Nation.”

“What?”

“Apparently, she figured it out a while ago. But she said she wouldn't tell anyone.”

“Are you sure?”

“Not really, but what I’m supposed to do? Threaten her? Kill her?”

Yeah, that doesn’t sound like the best options.

“Well, we should hope she didn’t lie, ”Katara says.  “And also, you know, Jin seemed nice.”

“Because she was nice.”

“Hmm. So, should I congratulate you?”

“We're not together, Katara,” Zuko's words make Katara look at him in surprise.

She should feel bad. She should feel sorry for him. Instead, she feels relieved.

What's wrong with her?

“I thought– ”

“Then you thought wrong. Jin just wanted to talk. Like friends. And, um. She asked me to ask you something.”

“Me?” Katara asks in surprise.

What could Jin want from her? They hadn't even spoken to each other.

“Jin would like to go to the theater. She says she doesn't have many friends here and, um, she asked if you'd like to join us.”

“Us,” Katara repeats. “That's very sweet, Zuko, but I don't want to interrupt your date.”

“You wouldn't!” Zuko says quickly. “We're not together! And we're not going to be.”

“Oh.”

Katara considers her options for a moment. Maybe it would be best to say no—but then again, she doesn't get many chances to spend time with Zuko in the real world.

Besides, if Zuko were to go with Jin instead… for some reason, Katara doesn’t like that idea.

“Actually...” Katara says. “Why not?”

They go to the theater.

All three of them.

Jin is a really nice girl.

The next time they make plans to have dinner, Jin cancels at the last minute, apologizing over and over, saying that her grandmother is feeling ill, but that they shouldn't feel bad about it and should go to dinner together anyway.

Zuko and Katara are left alone.

“Is it just me, or is another person trying to set us up?” Katara asks.

Zuko groans.

“Uncle is the same,” he confesses. “You're his favorite topic. How is Katara? What has Katara been up to lately?”

Katara laughs softly.

“Sokka told me to tell you that he'll kill you if you break my heart.”

“Sokka is overprotective.”

“He's my brother. What did you expect?”

Zuko smiles slightly, then reaches out his hand to her.

“Well, since everyone wants us to go on a date, how about we spend the evening together, my soulmate?”

These are just jokes, their familiar banter. Katara knows this routine, she knows what to do. She knows these are just jokes and that these words mean nothing special to Zuko.

So Katara smiles back at him and takes his hand.

“With great pleasure, my soulmate,” she echoes, matching his playful tone.

Zuko’s smile lingers, warm and easy, and something in Katara's heart flutters.

Oh, she realizes. This is getting dangerous.

“So...” Sokka interrupts their duel, looking at him thoughtfully. “I heard about what happened recently.”

“What happened recently?” Zuko doesn't understand.

“Don't make me look like an idiot, Zuko,” Sokka says, putting his sword aside. “I've heard rumors.”

“Rumors? What rumors?”

Zuko tries to remember what rumors Sokka might have heard. What could it be? Something about Firebenders in Ba Sing Se? Or maybe it's about Jet? Or something else? Or Azula? Does Sokka think Zuko is working with Azula?

...Actually, where is Azula now? No one has seen his sister in a long time. That doesn't bode well, because if Azula is silent, it means Azula is up to something.

“About you, Katara, and Jin?” Sokka raises an eyebrow. “Would you care to explain?”

“Um...” Zuko thinks for a moment about what he could say. “We're friends?”

“I heard Jin wanted to date you–”

“No, no, that's not it,” Zuko quickly denies. “Well, maybe she did, because we went to have dinner, I don't know if it was a date, but Katara said it was, but then for some reason we started talking about Katara, that is, me and Jin, and Jin wanted to invite Katara to the theater too, so we went there... Did you know how good the theater is here? You should come here sometime and bring Suki with you.”

“I don't know if Suki would be interested in the theater, but it's a good idea, I should spend more time with her in reality... You don't even know how much I wish she were here.”

“Then why isn't she here?”

“I don't want to talk about it right now. But, Zuko, what's going on with Jin? Seriously, what does that mean?”

“Nothing special,” Zuko doesn't understand. “Katara said Jin was interested in me, but she was wrong. That's all. Besides, Katara wanted me to meet her, so...”

“So you just agreed to her plan?” Sokka confirms.

“Um. Yeah?”

Sokka sighs heavily.

“I'm starting to think you're either incredibly stupid or in denial.”

“What?”

“Never mind,” Sokka says. “All the better for me. But you know what, I suddenly feel like beating you up. Come on. Let's continue.”

It is Zuko who wins their fight.

Chapter Text

Days turn into weeks.

Life in Ba Sing Se isn't so bad, if Zuko is being honest. Sure, he still hates the city, but at least he's still in touch with Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Aang. And okay, he probably should be trying to catch the Avatar, but at this point, he's completely given up on that.

Besides, Aang is really nice.

And he keeps pestering him to teach him firebending.

After a while, Zuko gives in to his pleas and starts teaching him — in secret, incredibly carefully, and reminding him twenty times a day that he has to be extremely careful and that he can't let anyone see them here. They slowly move on to fire katas and forms– which is probably incredibly dangerous, and Zuko knows it, but what can he do about it? He quickly realizes that it's hard to say no to those puppy eyes.

Aang is dangerous, and not because he's the Avatar.

Why is it so hard for him to say no?

Well, at least it's easier to say no to Sokka. Oh, Zuko gets quite a lot of joy out of annoying Sokka and getting on his nerves. But overall, they get along quite well, and Sokka isn't always that annoying.

Zuko should probably get along with him, considering he's his soulmate's brother. Does that make him and his brother, according to Water Tribe customs?

...Well, Sokka has probably already adopted Toph and Aang as his younger siblings anyway, so who knows?

Anyway, all things considered, life in Ba Sing Se isn't so bad. His Uncle works in a tea shop and is incredibly happy about it. Zuko has the opportunity to meet his... ugh, who are Aang, Katara, Toph, and Sokka to him? Katara is his friend, his best friend, but the rest? Here, Zuko is not sure.

Are they friends?

Never mind. Life isn't so bad. Somehow, he can get through those exhausting days  during which Zuko has to stop himself from yelling at customers at least fifty times because, really, can't any of them at least listen to him? How many times can you explain the exact same thing?

And then there's Katara.

Katara, who often comes to him when she has some free time and doesn't know what to do.

There's also Jin, who is really easy and friendly to talk to.

It's just a shame that some people don't seem to fully understand that there is nothing between Zuko and Jin. Their friendship is purely platonic — Agni, male-female friendship does exist! It's not that strange.

Despite this, Uncle sometimes lets out a strange sigh when Zuko mentions Jin.

One day, Zuko loses his patience and turns to him.

“Could you just stop?”

Uncle blinks.

“What do you mean, Nephew?”

Since they arrived in Ba Sing Se, he has been calling him “Nephew.” He doesn't dare call him “Prince Zuko,” even when they are alone in their apartment.

“Acting like Jin and I are about to start dating!” Zuko says irritably. “We're friends, and it's completely platonic!”

“I'm not blind, Nephew. I can see how she looks at you–”

“We've already agreed that there's nothing going on between us!” Zuko says emphatically. “Friendship between men and women does exist! Besides, Jin mentioned something about not minding dating her soulmate!”

His Uncle frowns.

“I was convinced that Miss Jin hadn't met them yet.”

“No, but she mentioned that she likes them quite a bit... not that she would date them before meeting them in real life. It happens that people have a crush on their soulmate, but it disappears when they meet... Anyway, it doesn't matter! They might as well be platonic!”

Agni, what is he doing? He wanted to tell Uncle that Jin isn't interested in Zuko, she prefers her soulmate... and yet it looks like he's trying to say that Jin and her soulmate only have a platonic relationship.

“Anyway,” he says after a moment, trying to get out of this situation somehow, “Jin and I are just friends. Yes, she told me that she used to be interested in me... a little more... but it doesn't matter now, because I'm not interested in her that way and... uh, we're just friends. I hang out with her because I like spending time with her, not because I'm in love with her! Is that really so hard to understand?!”

Zuko finishes, realizing that he has raised his voice a little too much.

“Besides, male-female friendships do exist. Just look at Sokka and Toph. Or Toph and Aang. Or Aang and Katara. Can you imagine any of them suddenly starting to date each other? I sure can't!”

...well, Sokka is completely in love with Suki. During training, Aang makes it clear to Zuko that he supports his “relationship” with Katara, whatever that means. And Toph... Toph is Toph. Zuko feels a little sorry for the person she'll be dating in the future.

“So!” he says at the end of his short monologue. “Jin and I are friends, just friends, and I'd really appreciate it if you didn't jump to unnecessary — and wrong — conclusions. This is getting uncomfortable.”

His Uncle looks at him for a moment, then sighs quietly.

“Forgive me, nephew,” he says. “I've never seen you get involved with a woman before, except for Mai–”

“She was my fiancée, besides, we were thirteen–”

“–so when I saw you and Jin talking privately and when I knew how she felt about you–”

“Well, I don't feel anything for her.”

“–I was inclined to make a bigger deal out of it than it actually was,” Uncle concludes. “However, I won't hide the fact that I would be happy if you brought a young lady to our house one day. You're young, you have your whole life ahead of you, and besides, who knows if love isn't right around the corner.”

“Uncle!” Zuko says incredulously. He just told him that there was nothing between him and Jin, and he's still at it?

Iroh smiles at him.

“Oh, Nephew, don't look at me like that. I was a young boy once too, and I know that sometimes you have certain... desires that–”

“Oh no, I just remembered that I left my tea on the open fire unattended,” Zuko says quickly, taking the opportunity to escape from the room. And from his uncle.

He definitely doesn't want to hear about it.

Fortunately, he seems to have finally reached Uncle, because he stops making those strange noises when Zuko mentions Jin. Instead, he smiles at her, and then at Zuko was well, saying aloud that he is happy that Zuko has friends his own age.

Katara sometimes comes to visit them. Sometimes the three of them hang out together—her, Jin, and Zuko. Sometimes Sokka, Aang, or Toph join them.

Zuko likes it when it's just the three of them—or when Sokka is with them too. He loves Aang and Toph, but sometimes you can see quite clearly that there is an age difference between them. And although Aang and Toph are mature beyond their years and have seen more than many adults, there are still certain topics that Zuko would rather not discuss with them.

Sokka, Jin, and Katara know this too. None of them say out loud what Jin's misconception that “Lee is half Fire” really means. Aang probably wouldn't understand; Toph might, but that doesn't mean they have to remind her that these kinds of situations happen (even if in this particular case it's not true, but Zuko has seen enough Fire Nation-like children to know why it's so easy for him to blend in with the crowd of refugees in Ba Sing Se, even though everything in his facial features screams that he's Fire Nation).

Either way, being among his friends — Agni, at what point did Zuko start thinking of them that way about Sokka? — is really pleasant and appropriate.

Ba Sing Se is a prison, but at the same time, it's a place where he can be with his friends.

So for now—for now—everything is fine.

Katara visits, sometimes, when she has time.

“I'm starting to have serious doubts that we'll ever find Appa,” she says one day when the shop is empty.

The last customer left a moment ago. Zuko doesn't think anyone else is coming and wonders about closing the shop. It's not that late, but does it make sense to stay open?

He sits down opposite Katara, deciding that there's no point in pretending to work when his only customer is his soulmate.

“I think we'll find him,” says Zuko. “He couldn't have just disappeared, could he? He's a giant flying bison, someone must have seen him. I'm not saying we'll find him in Ba Sing Se–”

“If he were in Ba Sing Se, we would have seen him,” Katara points out.

“We can't give up hope, Katara. I don't think Appa is dead. If that was the goal, he would have been killed back in the desert, not taken away.”

“I know, but...”

Katara sighs heavily.

“That doesn't make it any easier to be here, does it?” Zuko finishes for her.

“Exactly,” Katara confirms. “It's the same with the Earth King. We've been waiting weeks to meet him! Weeks, Zuko!”

“Could it be that the Avatar Card didn't work this time?”

“Shut up, Zuko,” Katara says, in that strange way, between irritation and amusement.

Zuko grins at her in response.

“Make me.”

Katara looks around, as if wondering if there is anything nearby she could use. Zuko continues, still smiling:

"You guys probably aren't used to this, huh? Just being treated like normal kids– Hey!

“Oops, I lost control of my bending,” Katara says, now smiling innocently, as if she hadn't caused the water from a nearby vase to rise into the air and, by some strange coincidence, land in his hair. Not enough to be annoying or for Zuko to consider it an attack, but enough for him to be aware that Katara had just given him an early shower.

“That wasn't very nice, Katara,” he protests, looking at his clothes. “My apron is wet now.”

“Oh, you poor thing.”

“Katara.”

“All right, all right,” the girl rolls her eyes, then waves her hands, collecting water from his clothes.

Zuko looks at her expectantly, then points to his hair.

“Katara,” he repeats.

“Yes, Zuko?” the girl asks innocently.

“Katara,” Zuko says for the third time.

“What?” Katara continues to smile. “Don't you like your new hairstyle? It's definitely better than the one you had on your date with Jin–”

“Friendly meeting with Jin.”

“–so you shouldn't complain.”

“Katara.”

“Hey, it's really not that bad,” Katara says, reaching out to touch his wet hair. “You look a little... different.”

“Yeah, like someone just dumped a vase of water on me. Or like a wet dog.”

“No,” Katara says, that specific smirk still dancing on her lips. “It's kind of cute.”

“You realize words like that make me wish I were a Waterbender so I could splash you, just so you’d see it’s not fun at all.”

“Oh, you poor child,” Katara's fingers are still in his hair, running through his strands.

Zuko starts to enjoy the fact that they’re still wet—because if he’s not mistaken, he didn’t wash them yesterday.

He did not wash them yesterday...

Ah.

“What are you doing?” he asks, tilting his head back slightly so that her fingers cannot touch his hair.

“I've come to the conclusion that this hairstyle suits you,” Katara says. “You did the right thing by changing it. I like your hair.”

“Oh, right,” Zuko gets up. He pretends not to notice her gaze. He goes to the door and turns the sign to indicate that the shop is now closed. “I should close the shop. And clean up. You don't have to sit here if you don't want to.”

“I'll help,” Katara also gets up. Her eyes glance at his hair for a moment, then quickly look away. “Maybe, um... You can sweep the floor, and then I'll mop it?”

“Do whatever you want.”

He shouldn't force her to work, it's not her responsibility, but he can see in her eyes that Katara will do it anyway.

For a while, they work quietly, just the two of them. They could clean the shop much faster—Zuko's job is to clean the tables after customers leave—and they don't really need to sweep or mop the floor. He could just as easily do that tomorrow. But despite this, they work together, calmly, quite slowly.

“I didn't mean to offend you,” Katara says after a while, without looking at him. “When I said I was glad you changed your hairstyle.”

“It wasn't really a choice.”

“I know,” Katara admits. “I know you'd be happier if you didn't have to do it. And I know there was a reason you wore your hair that way and not another...”

“It was a symbol of dishonor,” Zuko mutters under his breath. “It's not like I chose it.”

Only after he says the words does he realize that he didn't want Katara to hear them.

Unfortunately, as soon as he catches her gaze, he realizes that Katara must have heard them.

“I don't think you lost your honor,” she says, looking him straight in the eye, her blue eyes contrasting with his gold. “You tried to do what was right.”

“Defying the Fire Lord is not what is right.”

“Provided the Fire Lord has honor.”

Zuko should protest. He should say that this is treason, that such a thing should not even be thought, let alone spoken aloud.

Instead, he remains silent, looking Katara straight in the eye as she adds:

“Someone who never had honor couldn't take your honor away. Think about that, Zuko.”

And it's wrong, so very wrong—but Zuko just nods.

“I'll think about it,” he says.

Katara stays the night, mainly because it's already dark and late. Iroh doesn't think she should be wandering around the Lower Ring at night—even if she is a Master Waterbender. Besides, there's no telling if anyone would even let her into the Middle or Upper Ring. Anyway, everyone knows that Katara was going to visit Zuko and Iroh today.

So she stays with them for the night. Their apartment isn't particularly large, but at least they have two rooms.  Zuko feels sorry for her when he thinks about her having to listen to Uncle's snoring, so he offers that she could just use his room.

“I'll move to Uncle's for the night,” he suggests.

“I couldn't just kick you out of the room,” Katara protests.

“You're not kicking me out, I'm offering. Besides, it wouldn't be the first time I've slept in the same room as Uncle. Not to mention that if he saw me in the same room as you, he wouldn't leave me alone for the foreseeable future.”

“Why—oh,” Katara's cheeks turn slightly red when she realizes what Iroh might think. After a moment, she sighs in irritation. “You said it was a little better.”

“You know my Uncle,” Zuko has to fight the urge to roll his eyes. “He's convinced that this is the perfect time for me to start my ‘teenage romance’. And since you're a beautiful young girl, and my soulmate, and you know how my family is about soulmates... Well, Uncle is inclined to jump to his own conclusions, even though they're not true.”

“Oh,” Katara begins to smile for some reason.

Zuko narrows his eyes suspiciously.

“Why are you smiling like that?”

“Nothing,” Katara replies. “Is the bathroom free? I'd like to take a bath.”

She walks away quickly, leaving Zuko alone, leaving him wondering what could have made her smile.

Ah yes, he realizes after a moment. You practically told her that you would never be romantic soulmates. She probably wanted confirmation of that, especially after she insisted you should meet with Jin...

But Jin said that...

He doesn't allow himself to finish the thought.

He shakes his head and then goes to the other room, where Uncle usually sleeps. Iroh looks at him in that specific way that makes Zuko immediately know what he's thinking. To avoid an unwanted conversation, Zuko gives him a sharp look, letting him know that he just doesn't want to talk about anything right now.

Iroh, fortunately, seems to understand, because he ultimately says nothing.

Later, when Uncle is already snoring and Zuko is trying to find the most comfortable spot for himself on the blanket he spread out in the room—he wouldn't fit on Uncle's bed, and they don't have any spare mattresses—two thoughts make it incredibly difficult for him to fall asleep. 

Someone who never had honor couldn't take your honor away, Katara's words echo in his head.

I wanted to agree with her, Zuko realizes.

And then, before panic can overwhelm him, his own words come to him.

—since you're a beautiful young girl —

Zuko wants to bury his head in his pillow—in his case, the hoodie he's using as a pillow—and scream in frustration.

You called her beautiful, he realizes. No wonder she ran away from you right away, because you practically confessed to her that you're starting to see her as a woman.

How stupid can you be, Zuko?

Fortunately, their relationship remains normal.

Everything is as it should be. They still meet, both in the world of dreams and in reality. Sometimes their hands get a little closer, sometimes their arms touch – but this is the kind of contact that has existed between them for years, which is natural, which Zuko simply does not want to give up.

Everything is relatively fine—until Jet shows up.

And Zuko's peaceful life is disrupted once again.

At this moment, Zuko truly hates Katara's ex.

“Your ex is incredibly irritating.”

“What?” Katara doesn't understand.

“Your ex,” Zuko repeats, as if he were unable to call Jet by his name. Why does he insist on calling him that? “He came to see us again.”

“Why did you meet him again?”

“I didn't meet him, he came to us. And of course, he had to ruin everything. He suddenly appeared in my uncle's shop and started accusing us of being Firebenders.”

“Zuko, you are Firebenders.”

“Your ex saw my Uncle heating tea and decided to attack us. Really, couldn't you have chosen a less impulsive ex?”

“First of all, stop calling him my ex. There is nothing between us and there never will be. Second, I am not responsible for Jet's current actions. And third, I advise you to stay away from him. He is dangerous.”

“Well, at the moment, there's nothing he can do anyway. The Dai Li took him away.”

Katara looks at him in disbelief.

“What?”

“They arrested him,” Zuko shrugs. “You know, he attacked me and my uncle for no good reason. I mean, he had a reason, but... you know, Uncle and I work in a tea shop. Our job is to heat tea.”

“I hope everything will be okay,” Katara murmurs. “Both with you and with Jet.”

“I don't know what the Dai Li are doing, but I don't like it,” Zuko admits. “It's better to stay away from them.”

“Yes,” Katara agrees. “As far away as possible.”

“So,” Sokka says slowly, looking at her intently. “Your boyfriend got into a fight with your ex, which got your ex arrested. And now you want us to help him.”

“First of all, Zuko isn't my boyfriend. And second, Jet isn't my ex. We just... kissed maybe once or twice. But it doesn't mean anything. But. Most importantly. We should help him. Jet, I mean. Not Zuko. But Zuko can help us. I think.”

“He definitely can!” Aang says happily. “Zuko is awesome! He's like a ninja!”

“What?” Sokka looks at him blankly.

Toph smiles and prepares her fists, as if she's about to hit someone. She's probably getting ready for a mission called “Let's save Katara's ex, who isn't her ex.”

“Zuko is really strong!” explains Aang. “And he can be super agile! It's a shame you saw him in Pohuai! He was just like this—shh, and then boom! And then I thought he was gone because he disappeared, but then he reappeared and again—boom, another guard was gone!”

“Okay, that's a long story, tell me later,” Sokka decides. “Anyway. Jet. Are you absolutely sure he was arrested?”

“That's what Zuko told me. And Zuko wouldn't lie.”

“Ugh. Okay. Then let's go save your ex.”

“I'm telling you again, he's not my ex!”

“What are you wearing, Zuko?”

“A mask.”

“No, I'm seriously asking,” Sokka looks at him as if he's seeing him for the first time in his life. “What are you wearing? And why is it the Blue Spirit mask? I know you're him—by the way, you've given me at least a few nervous breakdowns, you know?—but why are you wearing that mask right now?”

“Um.”

“That's not an answer.”

Sokka looks at Zuko. Zuko looks at Sokka.

Katara just sighs heavily.

“Are you done arguing?”

“We're not arguing,” Sokka says. “This is an incredibly important question. Seriously. Zuko. Why did you take a blue, incredibly recognizable mask on a mission to rescue Katara's ex?”

“Because my face is highly recognizable,” Zuko says, taking off his mask. “I'm easy to remember. I don't want trouble. Not as ‘Zuko, Fire Prince’ and not as ‘Lee from the tea shop’. So. Mask.”

“And you decided it was best to wear a mask that everyone associates with the Blue Spirit?”

 “It is the Blue Spirit's mask,” Zuko says simply. “The point is for everyone to associate it with it. Many people believe that the Blue Spirit is, well, a spirit. So they won't be looking for a man. They'll be looking for a spirit. And since we're going to do something illegal, I'm going to do it as the Blue Spirit. Uncle won't forgive me if he finds out what we're doing.”

“Sparky,” Toph says. “Please tell me, does Uncle Tea know what we're doing?”

“Uh.”

“He won't find out if we don't get caught!” Aang says cheerfully. “Right?”

So.

The Dai Li are apparently worse than Katara thought.

And they like to brainwash people.

They find Jet.

Fortunately, Jet remembers them. He seems a little surprised that he was rescued by someone wearing the Blue Spirit mask, but Aang eventually convinces him that he is their friend.

They help Jet escape from prison and then, on Toph's advice, help him flee the city. They don't want to risk the Dai Li catching him again and finishing what they started.

Katara begins to hate Ba Sing Se even more than before.

“Aang,” Iroh says a little later.

“Hmm?” Aang looks at him curiously.

“Do you remember how I taught Zuko how to control lightning in the desert?”

“Of course I do.”

Iroh smiles at him.

“Come here, young Avatar. It's time I told you the same thing. Perhaps one day this knowledge will save your life.”

“We need to talk,” Sokka wakes them all up one day, looking at them seriously. “This is important. Extremely important.”

“What's going on, Sokka?” asks Aang.

Sokka stands in the middle of the room and looks at everyone gathered there. There are four of them — him, Aang, Toph, and Katara.

“Bad news or good news first?”

“Bad,” Toph says immediately.

“Suki has been captured by Azula. And her two Kyoshi Warriors, Huan and Shan Yu. Before you start panicking, everything is fine, they are not being harmed, but Azula wants to take them somewhere... I don't know exactly where.”

“What do you mean?” Katara stiffens.

“I don't know,” Sokka presses his lips together. “This is connected to the good news. I know where Appa is. Or rather, where he was. Suki found him. Appa is free. But I don't know where he is now. Azula attacked him. Suki helped protect him and told him to run away, and... I don't know where he is now. He could be anywhere. But Suki told him to fly to Ba Sing Se because she knew we were there.”

“So what now?” Katara asks. “We have to free Suki.”

“But someone has to stay in Ba Sing Se,” Toph points out. “We have to talk to the Earth King. Besides, do we even know where Suki is now?”

“I'm not sure,” Sokka admits. “But I know who might know something more.”

The six of them (plus one lemur) barely fit in the tiny apartment where Zuko and Iroh currently live.

Iroh brews tea, saying it will help calm their nerves.

Sokka repeats the whole story once more. Iroh and Zuko listen to him seriously, then exchange glances. Something about those glances doesn't sit well with Katara.

“You know something,” Sokka says what's on her mind. “Where is Suki?”

“I don't know where she is now,” Zuko says slowly. “But I know where she might be. In the future. However, you won't like it.”

“Tell me what you know,” Sokka approaches him and grabs his shoulders. “Zuko, this is incredibly important to me. Suki is everything to me. If you know something...”

“The knowledge may be worse for you,” Zuko looks at him apologetically. “Besides, Suki is still in the Earth Kingdom at the moment, right?”

“Yes,” Sokka confirms. “But Azula is your sister. You must know something. You suspect something.”

“I have my suspicions about where Azula might want to take her,” Zuko says reluctantly. “If she wants to take her to the Fire Nation.”

“We can't let that happen,” Sokka states. “We have to get Suki back.”

“But we can't leave Ba Sing Se,” Toph points out. “Appa will be heading here, if Suki is to be believed. Besides, we were counting on the Earth King's help with the war, weren't we?”

“I know!” Sokka lets go of Zuko and turns to Toph. “But I can't just sit here doing nothing when Azula has Suki! I have to help her!”

“So what are you going to do?” Toph asks. “Go looking for a ghost?”

Sokka presses his lips together.

“I'm not going to let Suki suffer, especially when I know she's been kidnapped. I have to find her before she reaches the Fire Nation. If she gets there, it will be almost impossible to free her. So. I'm going to find Suki, even if I have to do it alone. If you don't want to help me, I'll do it myself.”

“We want to help you,” Aang says immediately.

“You have to stay in Ba Sing Se,” Sokka objects. “And someone has to stay with you. We have to talk to the Earth King. But you can manage without me. I'm going to meet Suki, whether you like it or not.”

“I'll go with you,” Katara offers.

“No,” her brother shakes his head. “I won't let you put yourself in danger.”

“I've been in danger from the very beginning!” Katara hisses. “That's no reason for me to sit here and do nothing!”

“I'll go,” Zuko says suddenly.

Everyone turns to him.

“I'll go,” he repeats. “I'll go with Sokka. It makes sense. Sokka knows where Suki is; I can relay what we find out to Katara. Besides, Azula is my sister. I know how she thinks. I know what she might be planning.”

His golden eyes turn to Aang.

“You need Katara and Toph to help you master waterbending and earthbending. As for Firebenders, well, you have me and Uncle. Uncle can help you when I'm not around. Katara is my soulmate, so if she stays in Ba Sing Se, she'll be able to tell you what's going on with me and Sokka. So. I'm a good choice. Even if Azula takes Suki to the Fire Nation, I'll be able to help Sokka find his way there. I may be exiled, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten everything about my country.”

Iroh glances at him.

“If you do this, nephew, Azula will never forgive you,” he says slowly. “And if Ozai finds out–”

“I know,” Zuko interrupts him. “But do we have any other choice? This is the best solution. You are all needed here. And Sokka is an idiot and will go looking for Suki even if he has to do it alone.”

“Zuko's right,” says Sokka. “Except for the part where he calls me an idiot. I'm not giving up. I'm going to find Suki, no matter what you think. I know roughly where to find her. Suki told me.”

“It won't be an easy task,” warns Iroh. “Without Appa, you won't be able to move quickly. It could be a long journey. It's been weeks since we arrived in Ba Sing Se. Who knows how far away Suki really is?”

“Maybe you'll be able to find Appa when he returns to Ba Sing Se!” Aang says hopefully. “Just think about it, you're actually walking towards Appa! Oh! I can go with you!”

“No,” Katara says quickly. “Aang, that wouldn't be wise. We don't know if Sokka and Zuko will find Appa; besides, Suki sent Appa to Ba Sing Se. It's better if we stay here.”

“But...” Aang hesitates. After a moment, he takes a deep breath. “Okay. But give me a moment. Before you go, I'll give you a whistle. Maybe you can find Appa along the way. Maybe he'll find you. As soon as you find out... as soon as you find out, please let me know.”

“Sure,” Sokka agrees without much hesitation. “We'll do that. Zuko, when are you ready to go?”

“Anytime,” Zuko says.

Katara takes a step toward him. She feels as if her heart is beating wildly. The plan is a little crazy—it would be the first time they've been apart since the desert, and this time for who knows how long. Besides, this time the plan would largely rely on them having to trust Zuko—but at the same time, they have no other option.

It's the best plan they can come up with at the moment.

“Zuko,” Katara looks at him intently. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

His gaze softens. He takes a step toward her, closing the distance between them, and takes her hands, looking at her intently.

“It's not the end of the world,” he notes. “And it's the most logical solution to the situation.”

And also direct opposition to the Fire Nation.

Katara knows this. So does Zuko.

This is another sign of the decision he has made. That he will be here with them—that he will stay here, that he is part of their group. Katara squeezes his hands a little tighter, then lets go—only to hug him, to snuggle up to him.

“You're right,” she says, kissing him on the cheek. “Thank you.”

Somewhere in the back, Sokka makes a face full of disgust.

“Please flirt in another room.”

“Shhh!” Aang and Toph scold him at the same time. Toph because it's one big drama that fascinates her; Aang because there isn't a day that goes by when Katara doesn't hear at least ambiguous words from him about her and Zuko.

Judging by Zuko's expression, he must be thinking the same thing.

His golden eyes sparkle with amusement and something that could be mischief. Or perhaps just a desire to tease their friends.

Zuko smiles at her defiantly and pulls her closer, as if he never intends to let her go. Katara snuggles up to him, hugging him, enjoying the warmth he radiates.

Neither of them lets go of the other for a long time, until Sokka loses his patience and forcibly separates them (much to the disappointment of Toph and Aang) and takes Zuko with him for a battle council and a “man-to-man talk.”

“You know what, with all due respect, you could stop that,” Sokka says.

“Stop what?” Zuko feigns incomprehension.

The truth is, he knows exactly what Sokka is thinking. He thinks Zuko and Katara are trying to flirt with each other. Which they are not. They are friends. Just. Close. Friends.

Close friends who take pleasure in pretending to their friends that there is something between them.

“Ugh!” Sokka looks at him with irritation. “Really?”

“Hm?” Zuko tilts his head to the side.

“You're starting to annoy me,” Sokka says. “Look, I appreciate that you and Katara get along–”

“We've known each other for years and talk practically every night–”

“–but it would be nice if you could just not do that in front of me. Okay?”

“Do what?”

“Shut up, Zuko, and don't make me repeat myself. We're going to save my girlfriend, not talk about my sister.”

Chapter Text

Sokka and Zuko leave Ba Sing Se on the same day.

Since they don't have Appa, they are forced to travel by carriage. Iroh gives them almost all of his savings and then spends a few minutes talking quietly with Zuko. He doesn't try to stop him, but asks him to be careful.

Katara, Aang, Toph, and Iroh stay in Ba Sing Se.

Katara knows it's the right decision. That everyone agreed it was a good plan and that if all goes well, Zuko and Sokka will return not only with Suki, but also with Appa.

However, if something goes wrong...

“Don't stress so much, Sugar Queen,” Toph pats her on the shoulder. “They're not children. They'll be fine.”

“I know they're not children,” Katara replies. “But I don't know if it was a good idea to send Sokka and Zuko alone.”

“Because they might kill each other under the pretext of training? Or some plan might go wrong?”

“I wouldn't worry about the plans,” Aang says. “Zuko usually doesn't think things through, but this time he has Sokka with him, and at least he thinks.”

Katara doesn't know if she should feel indignant on Zuko's behalf. Ultimately, she decides to burst out laughing.

“Well, the presence of someone who thinks should help Zuko a little,” she says. “Still, I don't like that he's going with Sokka.”

“Because he's your brother?” Aang asks.

“Our brother,” Katara corrects him, as this is something Sokka insists on quite strongly. Besides, well, she herself started looking at Aang that way quite a long time ago.

Aang smiles broadly at her words — and then suddenly his hands are on Katara, hugging her, being with her, holding her tight. Katara smiles at him warmly and pretends not to notice that Aang is holding her a little tighter than he should be.

Toph doesn't move, seemingly uninterested.

Katara glances at her. Their relationship didn't start off on the best foot, sometimes Katara really wants to yell at her and is fed up with her – but the truth is that Toph, at some point, has become incredibly precious to her.

Not to mention that she is Aang's soulmate.

Katara reaches out her hand to her. When Toph doesn't move, Katara pulls her toward her a little awkwardly. And although Toph initially looks like she intends to leave as quickly as possible and doesn't want to be here, she quickly melts, surrendering to the embrace.

Katara pulls them closer.

Two members of her family have just left to find one of them, and right now Katara is taking care of the other two.

But that's okay.

They'll manage, just like they always have.

Sokka, Zuko realizes quite quickly, is both incredibly useful and irritating.

Zuko realizes this on the very first day of their journey together. The walls of Ba Sing Se haven't even disappeared yet, and Sokka is already leaning in toward him.

“So.”

“So what?”

“You and my sister.”

“Me and your sister,” Zuko repeats. “What about Katara? Because if it's about whether she's okay–”

“No, no, I didn't say that,” Sokka says quickly. “I was just curious.”

“Mhm.”

Sokka is silent for a moment.

They are both in a carriage. They are not alone—there are many other people around them, mostly refugees. Most people are fleeing to Ba Sing Se, but there are also those who decide to flee from it.

Zuko and Sokka join them. Dressed in brown and green clothes, they can pass for refugees—although, Zuko has to admit, pretending comes easier to him than to Sokka. Sokka has brown skin and everything about him screams “Water Tribe.” Zuko doesn't think anyone would be fooled into believing that Sokka is from the Earth Kingdom.

However, he could pass for someone from the colonies.

Well, Zuko doesn't have to worry about that right now. He would be in more trouble than Sokka if he were recognized. Sokka is Water Tribe, he is an ally of the Avatar. Zuko is the Prince of the Fire Nation, someone the Earth Kingdom would like to see dead. If he were caught, he would only face execution or someone would try to use him as a hostage against his father. Which could end in his execution if Ozai decided he was no longer useful.

Zuko wants to believe that his father cares about him. That he still cares about him.

Ozai won't end this war, Ozai doesn't care about other countries, Ozai doesn't care about his own citizens — but Ozai must care about his own children, right?

“Are you okay?” asks Sokka.

“Huh?” Zuko looks up at him in surprise. He should be the one asking those kinds of questions.

“You know, with this whole situation,” Sokka glances at the people around them, then walks over to Zuko and sits down next to him. “You know, we formed our alliance because you wanted to help your uncle. And then somehow we became friends, but you know, we never really had to fight against your country.”

Sokka lowers his voice, even though he doesn't need to. No one is paying attention to them.

“Everything has changed now,” he says. “Don't get me wrong. I appreciate your help, I really do. You have no idea how much. Besides, your presence here makes sense. You are the link connecting us to Aang, Katara, and Toph. To everyone else. But. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”

“You don't have to worry about me betraying you,” Zuko deliberately avoids looking at him. “The Fire Nation already considers me a traitor. So if I can help you along the way... I see no reason not to.”

“But I'm grateful to you anyway,” Sokka pulls his knees to his chest. “You know, Suki means everything to me. I mean, I love my sister and my dad. Aang is my dear friend, and he's also a bit like an incredibly annoying brother, and Toph is like a younger sister, but Suki... she's special. I can't imagine my life without her.”

“Because she's your soulmate?”

“That too,” admits Sokka. “But above all, she's my best friend. She's like the part of me that I've always been missing. When I'm with her, I feel like the world makes sense. But I'm sure you know that.”

“Yeah.”

“Katara told me you're her best friend,” Sokka says after a moment. “Is it the same for you?”

Zuko hesitates for a moment.

“I think so,” he says finally.

Katara has always been in his life. Ever since she appeared, there hasn't been a night when he hasn't talked to her. And although their meetings were sometimes brief, Zuko never had to pretend in her presence.

When they met, Katara didn't know that Zuko was the Prince of the Fire Nation. She didn't pretend to be his friend, as most children of the nobility did. She was truly his friend and was by his side during the most difficult moments of his life.

They don't always agree. For a long time, they were on opposite sides of the war. Sometimes Zuko still doesn't know if they're on the same side or if they have the same goal.

But one thing he is sure of is that when Katara is by his side, he feels confident that everything will be okay. He can't lose her.

“Good,” Sokka relaxes a little. “I think that's the most important thing when it comes to soulmates.”

“Well, some people say that the most important thing about being soulmates is, uh, love,” Zuko remarks, trying not to blush.

He doesn't want to suggest that he loves Katara — because he doesn't. Zuko is determined to keep their current relationship within the bounds of friendship.

Sokka snorts.

“That's a load of bullshit.”

Zuko blinks.

“What?”

“Romantic soulmates,” Sokka explains. “I don't believe in that.”

“But you and Suki...”

“I like Suki but not because she's my soulmate. If I fell in love with her just because she's my soulmate... don't you think that would make me an incredibly shallow person?”

“Uh,” Zuko isn't sure how to respond.

In his family — and at the Fire Nation royal court — when people talked about soulmates, they usually meant their lovers.

“In my opinion, there's no such thing as a romantic soulmate, someone you're supposed to fall in love with,” Sokka says. “Okay, it often happens that soulmates fall in love with each other, but that doesn't mean it's because they're soulmates. I think it's easier to fall in love with someone when you've known them for a long time, when you let them show you a different side of themselves, a side that only they know... But that doesn't mean it's destiny.”

“Huh,” is all Zuko can say.

“There are platonic soulmates,” Sokka adds. “For example, my dad and Bato. They're best friends, practically brothers.”

“Yeah, Katara mentioned that to me.”

“Or let's say, Aang and Toph. Okay, they're soulmates, but does that mean they'll fall in love right away? I don't think so. They're good friends, but I wouldn't be surprised if they stayed friends.”

“Mhm.”

“Or, for example, you and Katara,” Sokka points his finger at him.

“Uh,” Zuko shifts uncomfortably.

“When you met, neither of you was interested in romance, right?”

“No,” Zuko frowns. “Not to mention that Katara fell in love with Jet. Do you know how often she talked about him? I thought I was going crazy.”

“That's rough, buddy,” Sokka pats him consolingly on the shoulder, then quickly pulls his hand back, as if not wanting to invade Zuko's personal space. After a moment, he adds, as if wanting to change the subject: “Listen, if I wasn't always... too nice to you, I'm sorry. And sorry for how things were in the beginning.”

“You mean when you tried to throw a boomerang at me and give me a concussion even though I wanted to talk to you? Or when you accused me of hiding important information from the Wan Shi Tong library? Or when you decided to punch me in the face because it turned out that your sister was my soulmate?”

“Hey,” Sokka says, shifting slightly. “Okay, I admit, I haven't always been super nice to you. But you were the one who decided to attack us first, remember?”

Zuko rolls his eyes.

“Wait,” Sokka says. “No. That's not how it was supposed to be. I didn't want to argue with you. I wanted to apologize to you. Why didn't I get that right?”

“Don't ask me,” Zuko shrugs. After a moment, he adds reluctantly, “Well, I owe you an apology too. I haven't always been... honorable either.”

“Zuko, dishonorable,” Sokka snorts with amusement. “I never thought I'd hear you say that.”

“Shh!” Zuko leans toward him. “Don't say my name out loud! I'm Lee, remember?”

Lee, an ordinary boy from the Earth Kingdom. Lee, a refugee. Lee, who doesn't mean much and who won't change much.

Sometimes it's unpleasant, knowing that Zuko can't do much right now. That he doesn't really mean much. Aang, Sokka, Katara, Toph — they're trying to do something, trying to change the world (even if Zuko isn't entirely convinced it's for the better). And him? All he's done for the past few weeks is serve tea.

And train.

The latter – their regular training sessions in Ba Sing Se – is something that could easily make him a traitor in his father's eyes. Zuko, purely theoretically, hasn't done anything irreversible yet. He's never directly opposed the Fire Nation (not counting that situation at the North Pole, but he was trying to save the Fire Nation then). But now? Now that he's going with Sokka, a known friend of the Avatar, to save Suki, another ally of the Avatar?

This isn't going to end well.

But he's already made his decision, hasn't he? He made it a long time ago, deciding to side with Katara. That he wouldn't betray them.

“Zuko, buddy,” Sokka puts his hand on his shoulder. Again. Is this some kind of Water Tribe custom? “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” he confirms.

And then he looks straight into Sokka's eyes. Sokka, who sometimes acts like an idiot, but who often has good ideas, and whose plans work. Sokka, whose soulmate is in danger.

“We'll find her,” Zuko promises. “We'll find her, Sokka.”

Sokka squeezes his arm.

“Yes,” he confirms. “We'll find her.”

After a moment, a strange smile appears on Sokka's lips.

“You know what,” he says. “Have you heard about who the soulmates are for the Water Tribe?”

“Um...” Zuko tries to remember what Katara told him. “Siblings?”

“Family,” Sokka smiles broadly. “Which kind of makes us one big family, you know?”

“Um...” Zuko doesn't know what to say to that because, hello? Sokka and Katara have told him this several times already.

“You're my sister's soulmate, which makes you my brother,” Sokka explains. “A very annoying brother who has tried to kill me too many times–”

“I never tried to kill you, I never even tried to catch you, Sokka!”

“Which proves that you are very annoying. What is this, am I less important than Aang or Katara?”

“I never tried to catch Katara either,” Zuko reminds him.

“But you kidnapped her.”

“She came with me of her own free will.”

“It's a matter of semantics. And you're not letting me get to the heart of the matter, Zuko.”

“Lee.”

“Lee,” Sokka rolls his eyes. “You know, since you're my brother, Suki is your sister. Your sister-in-law, maybe?”

Zuko looks at him impassively.

“Did you two get married when I wasn't looking?”

“Maybe someday,” Sokka shrugs. “But you see, I just made your family bigger!”

“Is this some kind of manipulation to make sure I don't betray you and that we actually free your soulmate?”

Sokka lets out a sound of indignation.

“Of course not!” he says. “I wouldn't do that to you! I wouldn't stoop that low!”

Azula would definitely do that.

Speaking of Azula... Zuko's good eye widens slightly as he realizes something.

“Sokka,” he says, leaning toward him. He lowers his voice so that only Sokka can hear him. “If my soulmate's brother's soulmate is my sister, does that mean Azula is your sister?”

Sokka is silent for a moment.

Then a look of horror spreads across his face.

“Oh shit,” he says. “Our family is getting even scarier, Zuko.”

He thinks for a moment.

“I'll keep your uncle,” he says. “I can take your sister in, as long as she stops trying to kill me. But I'm not keeping your father. No way.”

Zuko smiles slightly.

“Fair enough.”

Traveling alone with Sokka isn't as bad as it could be, if Zuko is honest.

That is, there are other people around them. Other travelers. But ultimately, Zuko and Sokka are alone. They make decisions together, and together they decide where to go.

Sokka knows—more or less—where Suki is. So Sokka steers them in that direction, determined to meet her.

Every morning, Sokka tells him what he has learned.

Zuko, for his part, tells him what is happening in Ba Sing Se. They exchange information, and Sokki's eyes show relief every time he learns that his—their?—friends are safe.

It's a strange system, but it works.

The next few days are incredibly exhausting.

Aang asks Katara almost every minute if she has learned anything new. Her answer is always the same.

“They haven't seen Appa, Aang,” she says. “And they're fine.”

“What if...?”

“I don't know, Aang,” Katara says. “All I know is that Zuko said that Sokka said that Suki told him that they've stopped moving for now. Sokka suspects that she's probably in some kind of prison and that they're still in the Earth Kingdom. But everything will be fine. They'll make it.”

They have to make it.

“Zuko,” Sokka says one evening, looking at him in that specific way that makes Zuko realize there's something Sokka wants to ask him but doesn't know how to.

“Hmm?”

“You know Azula better than I do.”

“It would be weird if it were the other way around.”

Sokka rolls his eyes.

“I wasn't being sarcastic. Zuko, there's something I need to ask you.”

“Hm?”

“I need to know what to expect if—when we find Suki. She tells me she's safe, but I'm not sure. She might be trying to lie to me or keep things from me so I won't worry.”

Zuko frowns.

“You mean...”

“I need to know if she's in danger,” Sokka explains. “What to expect. If...”

Sokka swallows. He is silent for a moment, as if gathering his courage.

“Is she being tortured?” he lowers his voice. “I'm not stupid, Zuko. I know these things happen in war. Suki is from Kyoshi Island, which gives her a kind of immunity, but that may not be enough. If someone tried to hurt her... Suki won't tell me. She definitely won't tell me.”

Zuko doesn't answer right away.

“I can't give you a definite answer,” he says finally, cautiously. “The Azula I know can be cruel. But Azula knows she can't always get what she wants through violence. I don't know what her purpose was in capturing Suki... for some reason, she didn't kill her...”

“Maybe she guessed that Suki was on our side?”

“Perhaps,” Zuko replies, still cautiously. “But Azula has no way of being sure. Maybe Suki and her Kyoshi Warriors–”

“Huan and Shan Yu,” Sokka mutters under his breath.

“–Huan and Shan Yu,” Zuko continues, “protected Appa, but protecting him is not the same as fighting against the Fire Nation. Azula will probably want to take advantage of Suki's presence, perhaps taking her as a political prisoner... I don't know, Sokka. I can't predict what she'll do.”

Sokka looks at him for a moment, then sighs heavily.

“You know what? I was hoping you'd cheer me up.”

“I'm sorry.”

“Well, I wanted truth and honesty myself.”

Sokka stands up, extending his sword toward Zuko.

“Want to train?” he asks.

Zuko hesitates for a moment, then decides they have nothing better to do anyway. It's evening, it's dark, so they won't be traveling anyway. And training in poor light will be good for Sokka.

Well, it will be useful for Zuko too. His depth perception isn't the best, not after that Agni Kai...

“Zuko,” Sokka says after a moment, as they begin training.

“Hmm?”

“I want you to know that if necessary, I will fight against Azula. Even if she is our sister.”

Zuko still thinks that Sokka calling Azula his sister is... well, strange.

“Okay,” he says, trying not to think about the fact that one day he might have to fight Azula.

“I'm serious,” Sokka says, not taking his eyes off him. “In the Water Tribes, we value family. But above all, we value soulmates. If I have to choose between Suki and Azula — or between Suki and you — I'll choose Suki. Always.”

“I can understand that,” Zuko admits. “I think I'd choose Katara too.”

“And that means,” Sokka adds, as if he hadn't heard his words, “that if you stand between me and Suki, I will stand against you. I like you, you're my brother, but Suki is my priority.”

“I understand,” Zuko returns his gaze. “I won't hesitate. I'm on your side, Sokka.”

In a split second, the tension that had been visible on Sokka's face disappears.

“I'm glad,” he says. “I'm starting to like you, Zuko. It would be a shame to lose my second favorite brother.”

“Thanks,” Zuko smiles at him. “Wait, who's number one?”

“Aang.”

“That... makes sense.”

In response, Sokka grins at him.

They meet Appa a few days after leaving Ba Sing Se.

Sokka almost loses his voice when he sees the bison. He smiles broadly when Appa notices them and heads their way.

Appa lands next to them. Sokka runs toward him so fast he almost breaks his legs.

And then Appa licks them from head to toe, both Sokka and Zuko.

Sokka grins happily.

Zuko smiles too.

He likes Appa. Appa is nice. A little too flammable—Azula would love to set him on fire, just like she burned all the turtleducks in the pond when they were little and lived in the palace—but Zuko loves him anyway.

Appa also seems happy to see them here.

The smile on Zuko's face disappears when he sees Appa's condition.

Wherever he was, whatever happened to him, it wasn't good. He looks like someone beat him up earlier, his body is covered in ugly marks, and it’s like he hasn't been eating enough. Sokka hugs him, hiding his tears.

They spend most of the day taking care of Appa. They make sure he gets enough food. They try to disinfect his wounds. They do everything they can to make Appa suffer as little as possible.

Who had the audacity to treat him like this?

Appa didn't deserve this. Zuko knows him. He knows how loyal the bison is, how good he is. He wouldn't hurt anyone.

Aang would probably enter the Avatar State if he saw him now.

Maybe it's good that Aang isn't here.

“Aang can't know about this,” Sokka says later. “He'd be devastated.”

“Katara should know that Appa is with us–”

“Yes, yes, I know, but I mean his condition. How do you think Aang will react to this?”

Zuko tries to imagine it.

“Not very well,” he finally concludes.

“Exactly,” Sokka nods. “Whoever held Appa was a bastard.”

“...do you think it was Azula?”

Appa's body shows signs of fire damage. Damn fire damage.

Sokka is silent for a moment, causing Zuko to slowly start to panic. What if it really was Azula? What if Azula...

“No,” Sokka finally says. “Suki told me it wasn't Azula. Appa was already like that when she found him.”

Zuko breathes a sigh of relief.

“Oh, good. Wait, why did you hesitate for so long?”

“Honestly?” Sokka asks. “Because I considered that if I told you it was Azula, I would reduce the risk of your betrayal.”

Zuko feels a little offended.

“Really, Sokka? Is that what you think of me?”

“No!” Sokka says quickly. “I don't think you would betray us! I know you care about all of us! If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't be here! But my point is, we're going to be fighting against Azula. Your—our?—sister. And that's family. Fighting against family is always hard.”

“So that's why you chose to lie to me?”

“I told you the truth in the end, didn't I?”

“Still–”

“Okay, okay, sorry, Zuko, I shouldn't have thought that, okay?” Sokka raises his hands. “But hey, I have three younger siblings to think about, including one who would really like to meet Appa. So sorry, but siblings who aren't trying to kill me are a bit more of a priority than siblings who kidnap my girlfriend.”

“That... makes sense, I guess,” Zuko admits. “But I still don't like that you tried to deceive me.”

“Not deceive, more like bend the truth. But hey, I told you everything in the end, didn't I?”

One evening, Zuko smiles at her slightly.

“We found Appa,” he says. “He was flying towards Ba Sing Se. Sokka almost broke his legs running after him.”

“Sweet Tui,” Katara breathes a sigh of relief. “Aang will be over the moon.”

They found Appa. Somehow, they managed to find Appa, even though the Earth Kingdom is so big.

Katara could kiss Zuko right now.

Instead, she throws herself into his arms, happy that they managed to find their friend. Zuko embraces her without hesitation, and Katara buries her face in his chest. They stay like this for a while, his hands stroking her back. As always, Katara feels safe in his arms.

After a moment, Zuko gently pulls her away from him.

The smile disappears from his face.

“Katara,” he says, his voice serious. “Don't tell Aang this, but Appa... he wasn't in the best condition. Whatever was wrong with him, it wasn't good.”

“How is he?” Katara asks immediately.

“He's... better,” Zuko says hesitantly. “Sokka asks if we can use Appa to go to Suki. He wants to get there faster and is afraid that if we leave Appa alone, something might happen to him.”

“I can't tell you that right now, but I think it's a good idea,” Katara admits. “However, Aang probably won't be happy about it. But he'll understand when we tell him that Appa is safe now. That he's in good hands.”

Relief spreads across Zuko's face.

“Thank you, Katara. I'll tell Sokka.”

“Do that,” Katara tries to smile at him. “Just be careful, okay? I don't know how bad Appa's condition is...”

“We'll be careful,” Zuko promises. “We won't let anything happen to him. We just don't want anyone to capture him again.”

“That's wise,” Katara nods. “Keep him safe, okay? I'm counting on you.”

In response, Zuko smiles slightly at her. His eyes drift toward their hands, which, somehow, have become intertwined. For some reason, it has become much harder to keep his distance from her lately.

“Don't worry,” Zuko squeezes her hand and then lifts it slightly higher, placing a gentle kiss on her knuckles. “I'll protect him. I swear.”

Katara blushes for some reason. Which shouldn't happen, because they're just friends, and it was probably some weird Fire Nation oath and it probably didn't mean anything, but...

But she would like it to mean something.

“Thank you,” she says after a long moment, because that's all she can manage to say. 

When Appa is with them, it's much easier to travel.

They don't want to overwork Appa, of course. They don't want anything to happen to him, but, traveling by flying bison is much easier because they can cover much more ground. They are no longer dependent on carts or other people who may or may not want to help them.

They are able to go wherever they want.

Of course, they risk being spotted—many people know that where there is a bit flying bison, there is the Avatar nearby—but this time they are willing to take the risk.

Sokka is leading the way. Suki has given him information about where she was captured. One day, Sokka tries to draw it to prove to Zuko that he is right.

“That's... a very nice Momo,” Zuko says after a long moment, unable to understand what he is looking at.

But it is Momo, right? It has his ears.

“That's not Momo!” Sokka objects. “It's a landscape! The place where Azula captured Suki!”

“Ah,” Zuko nods, as if he understands what Sokka just said.

“Look!” Sokka points to a strange element that looks like two swords. “It's a house! A whole town! And here we have a lake! And a waterfall!”

“And that strange monster?”

“That's Suki!” Sokka exclaims indignantly. “How can you not see that?”

Zuko tilts his head to the side. He still doesn't understand how this thing could resemble Suki.

“Maybe it's because I'm partially blind,” he says after a moment, deciding he might as well say it. Sokka probably figured it out anyway, and besides, if it comes to a fight, it's better for the boy to know. “I don't see shapes very well.”

“Oh,” Sokka turns a little pale. “Uh. I didn't know. But your other eye...”

“It's fine,” Zuko assures him. “I can still fight. And kick your ass.”

“Hey, I've been getting better lately!” Sokka objects. “Even you admitted it! And if I fight with a boomerang, I can win!”

“I'm the only one who fights you with swords, Sokka.”

“Yeah, and every now and then I almost win.”

“Almost winning doesn't mean winning.”

“Give me a few more months, and you'll see, I'll be able to kick your butt.”

Zuko smiles slightly.

“That day will never come.”