Realization
‘But I didn’t forgive him. I will never be able to forgive him.’
The memory of the old, pathetic firebender down on his knees, begging for her to strike turned her thoughts dark and cold.
She wanted to kill him, still. If they ever met again, she wouldn’t hesitate.
That was the man who killed her mother. The man who took her childhood away, forcing her to grow up too quickly. The man who tore her family apart.
Death would have been too merciful.
She sighed and looked up into the face of the man who had suggested they’d take this journey. To find answers. To heal.
She felt a warmth in her heart that she hadn’t felt for a long time. Possibly never before.
‘But I am ready to forgive you’ she continued, while slowly walking towards Zuko.
Zuko’s eyes betrayed slight surprise as she reached for him and pressed her head against his neck, secretly smelling his robe and skin. He smelled like fire. Smokey and rough, but also of sunshine combined with something sweet. Like jasmin or lytchee flowers.
For a short moment Zuko dared to relax and leaned into her embrace. Enjoying her soft skin against his and her long hair tickeling his jaw. Katara was hugging him!
Never could he have hoped for her gratitude to express itself in this way.
The temperature of his skin was warmer than usual and he was praying that she wouldn’t notice.
Katara let go, lowering her eyes, somehow afraid of looking at him. Then she smiled and blue met golden for a short second.
Zuko was enchanted.
Katara walked away leaving Aang and Zuko on the cliff, both longing for the same girl.
Aang had watched from a little distance, trying very hard to find happiness within himself that Katara had finally forgiven Zuko. But he couldn’t. All he found was the burning image in his mind of Katara hugging Zuko and the bitter taste it left in his mouth.
He looked at his firebending teacher with mixed feelings. He respected him. They had even become… friends. But the moment Katara reached for him, Aang could tell what Zuko's true feelings towards her were. It was like he had been slapped in the face.
How long had Zuko been in love with Katara? How long had his 'friend' not been honest with him about it? Zuko knew Aang loved her, but all of a sudden he doubted if she felt that way about him. For a slight second he imagined what Zuko would look like through the eyes of a 16 year old girl.
His hair had gotten long, far from the unappealing ponytail he once wore. It was jet black, softly waving in the evening breeze. The sun had started to go down and colored the sky a warm orange. It reflected on the golden lining of his robes and in his golden eyes. The muscles in his arm were very defined, blue veins slightly visible on the surface.
Zuko looked like a man that girls were ready to kill for. Even the red scar over his eye wasn’t able to change that. If anything, it suited him. He survived that attack. He was a surviver and ready to protect anyone that would try to hurt his loved ones.
How could he ever compete with that?
Him, a barely thirteen year old boy with a bald head and skinny arms. He wasn’t even able to grow a beard yet, opposed to the three days old stupple that was showing on Zuko’s face.
How could Katara ever be his when she had Zuko, ready and waiting for her?
He could see it in his eyes, Zuko wanted her. There was no need to hear him say it, he knew. His male instincts were triggered.
In that moment Zuko became his competition. And he would do anything to keep him from getting the girl he loved.
‘Well, that was…. Unexpected….’ Zuko said softly, trying to spark a conversation.
‘Yeah… unexpected.’ Aang replied coldy and walked towards the camp, leaving Zuko behind.
Zuko sat down on a rock in front of him, overlooking the cliff and surrounding forest.
It was just an embrace. She was grateful for him taking her on that journey. To avenge her mother. To make the killer pay for what he’d done. It was the least he could do in an attempt to restore her trust again after betraying it in Ba-Sin-Se.
There was no need in overthinking it and hoping she felt the same way about him as he did about her.
The strong-willed, driven water bender.
She wasn’t just Katara anymore. Not just a stupid, annoying peasant girl that got in the way of him capturing the avatar. Not just a complication to his plans. No longer an enemy.
She was a woman. A jaw-dropping beautiful woman who he had fallen head over heels in love with.
She wasn’t wearing the childish hair-loopies anymore. Her hair was long, hanging all the way down to her very well shaped waist. Her body was toned. Strong, yet feminine and her curves were out of this world.
But looks weren't solely the reason he was so attracted to Katara.
It weren't her eyes that were colored like the bluest of seas nor her tanned and flawless skin. Not her full lips or the way they moved when she spoke.
It was her kindness. Her ability to see him for who he was and all the things he wasn’t… yet.
She was the first person to trust him, back in that cave in Ba-Sin-Se. She was the first that tried to understand his grief and feel compassion. He wasn’t weak in her eyes, but strong for getting through the loss of his mother. A pain they both shared.
‘Katara’ he sighed. It drifted apart in the breeze.
