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Slow Heat	By : Spleef Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > General Views: 77367 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Slow Heat
Chapter 15 – To Sail Beyond the Sunset
o0o0o0o
One Month, 16 Days BSC
Zuko
I was silent as I listened to Sokka speak, outlining what we would be doing in the next few weeks. I had come to respect Sokka for his planning skills even though he would obsess over details at times. When I had first met him, I had merely thought he was a... idiot, running up the ramp of my ship and screaming like that. Not much of a first impression, but the Water Tribe warrior had done much afterward to earn my respect. And what I had first taken for idiocy I now saw as bravery. He had been trying to defend his village.
We had much to do. Hakoda's forces were readying for the invasion, as well as the men of Ba Sing Se under the direction of General How. It would be a immense help, but to make the invasion cleaner so to speak, we would need men from the Fire Nation. There were Firebenders and Fire Nation men alike who tired of the war or saw the injustice of it. While I enjoyed my stay here, and the Avatar could practice his Bending without overmuch distraction, we could not stay here forever. Sokka said that we needed to be out of the Temple in about a week, and I agreed with him. Just as I listened to him, he listened to me as I pointed at the map, making suggestions. I explained to him how it would be important to have Firebenders on our side too. Just as I came to respect him, he respected me. We got along very well, and I could even call him a friend.
I had never had a real friend before. Uncle was a good companion and mentor, and yes, a friend too. But I had never had a peer that I could get along with like this. I dueled with Sokka, both of us brushing up on and honing our swordsmanship skills. Though I didn't 'pour out my heart' or anything like that as I heard women did, I found it comfortable to discuss things with him. And I found myself enjoying the fact that I had this kind of relationship with Sokka.
Now, only if his sister could treat me with the same openness and civility.
Ever since that fateful night, she had gone out of her way to avoid me. If she was not training with the Avatar or performing a chore, she would wander off by herself and hide herself better than she had before. The few times that I was able to find her, she always regarded me coldly, and when I attempted to bait her, she would not take it. I had no idea how to make things right between us. When I tried to talk about what had happened between us, she would flat-out refuse to talk about it, as if it were some horrible lapse in judgment on her part.
Three days of this was more than I could take. It seemed that the relationship between Katara and myself deteriorated with every passing moment. The night before, I had a dream of her and myself. She had been curled up, her face set in a expression I could not quite make out. Was it anger, pain, or loneliness? Perhaps all three. And she had been encased in ice. Clear, pale blue ice that surrounded her lithe form, keeping her away from warmth. I had used my Firebending to melt the ice.
I remember the excitement I had felt when the ice had fell apart, in chunks of crystal and flowing water, and she had fallen on me. She had been shivering, her teeth chattering. She was naked, but I had made no move to molest her. Rather, I had taken her into my arms, feeling her form shudder, goosebumps against her arms as I rubbed them to warm her. I had concentrated on sharing my heat, bringing fire beneath my skin so that my body warmed hers. She had slumped against me, letting me comfort her. Tears had come from her eyes, and I kissed them away. I had murmured comforting words to her, telling her that it would be okay, and that I would keep her warm. She had clung to me, burying her face against my chest.
And then I had woken up.
After discussing strategy with Sokka and a bit of one-on-one with Toph, I was ready to unwind. But one thing remained in my mind. Katara. No matter what, I could not let this continue. I would not give up, no matter how many times she had tried to run me off. The group did not miss the hostility that Katara exuded towards me. Sokka had asked me about it, and so had the Avatar. I could not tell them the truth, at least not all of it. All I would say was that we had fought, and refused to elaborate.
It could get frustrating finding Katara sometimes, because there were many places to hide oneself in the temple. But it also ensured that when Katara and I had one of our confrontations, it was well away from the others. What could I say or do this time? I had tried being polite to her, and asking her gentle questions. I had tried provoking her. I had tried being firm.
I came upon her at one of the small fountains that was apparently designed for washing one's hands or face. Next to her were several articles of clothing. I stayed out of sight as I watched her dip clothes in the water, one by one, and Bend the water out of them before she folded them. I stiffened when I saw her pick up a bloodied cloth. Had she hurt herself somehow? I stepped forward, alerting her to my presence. She gasped and quickly put down the bloodied cloth, glaring at me.
“Did you hurt yourself?” I asked, putting concern in my voice. That wasn't hard to do, since I was genuinely worried to think of her being hurt. Despite her vitriol towards me, I still wanted to be her friend, and more. I just had to figure out what was bothering her, and fast.
I saw a flicker in her blue eyes, a momentary thawing of the ice, and hoped that meant that I had made progress. But that flicker disappeared, and she stiffened as she glared at me.
“Just leave me alone.”
“No. I'm tired of this. This needs to stop. Now, tell me, are you hurt?” I asked as I took several more steps. She put up hr hand to stop me, and I grabbed her wrist, staring down at her, showing her that I meant business even as she flailed at me. I was well aware of the water at her side, and ready to defend myself. I gestured to the bloodied cloth she had dropped, and she blushed, though this was no flush of pleasure.
“It means that I'm not pregnant!” she hissed before shoving me away. I stumbled back a couple of steps before I righted myself and stared at her. Agni, I felt like such a idiot. I had taken her without thinking about the possible consequences. I had been so worried about her negative attitude to me that other... concerns had been pushed to the back of my mind.
“Okay, okay.” I replied, quickly scrambling for a response as I put my hands up, trying to show her that she didn't have to worry about me trying to do anything funny. “Look, I'm sorry if I made you worry about that... I got caught up in the... heat of things. But then, so did you.” I countered. She had been as fierce with me, and if she had truly wanted me to stop, she would have kneed me in the groin or something along that vein.
Her eyes narrowed and she shook her head, trying to deny the fact. Why did she have to think it so unpleasant? How could she not cherish the memories, like I did? Did she still hate me so much?
“Was it truly so unpleasant for you? What do you want me to say? Do? I don't want you angry with me.”
“I don't want to...”
“Talk? Why not? I'm not asking you to tell me your deepest, darkest secrets or anything like that, Katara! ...Look, I won't ever mention your mom anymore, okay?” I blurted out, remembering that my comment about her mother was what had made her break into tears in front of me for the first time. I saw her stiffen, and rushed to rectify the situation.
“I didn't say that to be mean, honest, okay? I swear. I'm not trying to give you a hard time or anything.” I shot out, placing my hands up to show her that I meant what I said.
“Fine. But I still want you to leave me alone.”
“No. Not until we clear up some things. I don't know why you're so angry with me, but it needs to stop. Talk to me, Katara.”
“Why are you so intent on talking with me? Why should you care? You had me, it's over.”
“What? You think that what happened is just because of that? You're wrong. It's more than that.” I admitted softly. She stared at me for several moments.
“There is no way you could ever have feelings for me!” she finally shot out, leaving me stunned. Did she truly think so lowly of me? My temper flared out, and before I knew it, flames had encircled my fists as I growled.
The sunlight reflected off the water whip that shot out a moment after, and I steeled myself for another confrontation. There was no way in hell that I would let the Waterbender walk all over me and continue acting like... well, a bitch.
I jumped back as the water whip lashed at my feet and growled, shooting a fireball at the ground in front of her.
“Jeez, the two of you can't be left alone without trying to kill each other, can you?” I heard someone say in a amused tone. I blanched at the thought of Toph having eavesdropped on us. I silently prayed that she had just happened on us a moment ago. The water whip was pulled back into the fountain, and the my own fire had dissipated.
“What is it, Toph?” Katara asked testily, still glaring at me.
“Twinkletoes is having a hard time with the latest set of Firebending moves. He wants you to come and help him, and I felt where you were with my feet. I guess I got here just in the nick of time.” she grinned.
o0o0o0o
Katara
I let out a slow sigh after Zuko left with Toph. Part of me knew that I was being unnecessarily harsh on Zuko. He was right. I had been as fierce as he. I had given myself up to the urges of my body. I guess I was as much angry with myself as I was with him, if not more. How could I have been so easily swayed by the fierce attentions that he had given me?
Doing my own laundry only reminded me of what we had done. I quickly washed the blood out of my linens, ignoring the pain in the pit of my stomach. Having a baby with Zuko.... well, that was the last thing I needed. As a Waterbender, I could bend sweat, tears, perfume, anything with water in it. After what Zuko and I had done, I had simply... bended out what had been put inside of me. Of course, Zuko didn't know that. Let him worry. I would be worried too, if I hadn't been a Waterbender.
How could I feel so good about something, and then feel so ashamed of it later?
o0o0o0o
Zuko
It was getting harder and harder to Firebend. At first, I had not noticed it. But over the last couple of weeks, it had taken more effort to produce the same amount of flame, and now, not even that was good enough.
I hated to admit it... but I needed help. I knew that I hadn't lost my inner fire. I could still feel it deep within me. But for whatever reason, the way that I had Firebended before was no longer the right way to do it. I needed to find a new way to unleash my inner fire. There was only one solution I could think of that would help the Avatar and myself.
It felt strange knowing that I would be alone with the Avatar for a while. Before, I would have used this opportunity to take him captive and bring him back to the Fire Nation to restore my birthright. Now, I was teaching him Firebending.
We had just eaten, so I would at least leave on a full stomach. I had my pack strapped to my back. Appa was ready, and the Avatar waited for me. I had already talked with Sokka and said goodbye to Toph. Katara leaned against a pillar, staring outside with her cup of tea in hand. I was quiet as I approached her, though I maintained a distance. The light from the setting sun cast her skin in a warm glow and brought out a slightly reddish sheen to her hair.
“Goodbye. I... hope you feel better soon.” I murmured. I didn't know what else to say.
“Just worry about yourself.” she replied, refusing to look at me. I inclined my head in a short bow before I turned away. There was nothing more I could say. Hopefully this trip would clear my head, and hers.
As Appa took off, I looked back. Sokka was waving, and I could not help but smile a little as I waved back, feeling the wind in my hair. I was surprised to see Katara now looking up as I moved further away from the Air Temple. I stared back down at her, keeping her within my sights until I could no longer see her.
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Slow Heat