After Katara was done with Azula, who was now yelling and crying out of her insanity, she ran like hell, right over to Zuko. When she was besides him, she kneeled down. Her legs soaking in his blood that was pooling around him. Katara knew Zuko was losing too much blood, and she would have to heal him fast if she wanted to save him. "Zuko?" Katara asked, wanting to know if he was conscious or not. When he didn't respond nor did he move it made Katara even more eager to heal him and as soon as possible.

She bent the water from her water skin around her hand and put both of her hands on Zuko's chest where his wound was. "K- Katara," she heard Zuko say, and as he did, her head immediately turned to face him. She smiled at him and felt tears beginning to form in her eyes. She continued trying to heal him, in hopes of it actually working.

Even Zuko was hoping something to happen, but he already knew that since after about a minute of Katara trying to heal him and nothing happening, that he would not see the sun rising again. Nor would he feel the fire within him awakening when the sun would rise. Zuko knew that he was running out of time.

"Katara, stop." He managed to get out in barley above a whisper. Katara did stop. But when she did, she looked at him with an expression that held a lot of emotions, confusion, shock, panic, sadness, empathy and even anger.

She opened her mouth to say something, but didn't manage to get anything out. But when she finally did, her voice was broken and fragile. "No! Zuko, you're gonna be fine! I- I'm gonna heal you! You're gonna be fine!" After this she tried to continue healing him, but only to be stopped by Zuko taking her hand in his with all his strength he had left. "Katara, we both k-know I'm not g-gonna make it." He told her. The tears started to travel down her cheeks now like raindrops. Zuko too felt a single tear forming, but he didn't let it escape. He tried smiling, only partly succeeding. "No, don't say that! You- you're gonna make it!" She cried, desperately trying to think of something, anything, that would save Zuko. But she indeed did know there was nothing left for her to do. They both knew it.

"Would you, d-do me a f-fa-favor?" Zuko asked her. She nodded her head fast while squeezing his hand, like it would make everything better. "Of course! Anything!"

"Tell my uncle to open his tea shop," He stopped for a moment when he realized that he was losing all feeling from his legs and arms, not that there was much to begin with, but even the little feeling he did have left was leaving them fast.

"And also ask him to find someone else t-to be th-the FireLord. I k-know he- he doesn't wa-want to be it." He continued his voice even quieter. "Tell him I love him." Zuko added. Katara was now sobbing and nodding and trying to smile all at the same time. "An-And tell ev-everyone they did g-good. And th-thank them f-for me."

Zuko was starting to feel his eyelids getting heavier and heavier by every minute and every breath he took. But he was trying to stay awake. Zuko knew that keeping his eyes open wouldn't prevent him from dying, but it felt like it helped to slow it down. "Why?" Katara asked him. What was he thanking them all for? "F-for for-forgiving m-me. An-And begin my-my fa-family."

"What about you tell them yourself?" She suggested, although she knew this to be impossible. Zuko let out something between a tired laugh and a groan, but Katara couldn't really tell which one. "I- I can't e-even make it ove-over to A-Appa." He felt every single breath begin harder to make and the words even harder. He was trying so hard staying alive. He wanted to stay alive. He wasn't ready to die yet.

Just when everything was going good, when he was finally happy, that all would be ripped from him by dying.

There were so many things he wanted to say and do.

Like, seeing the world in peace.

Helping his friends creating a new world that wouldn't be torn by the war.

He wanted to see everyone important him. Tell them all how thankful he was for everything.

Listen to his uncle's advice and not understand half of the things he said.

Laugh at Sokka's bad jokes, and beat him in sword fighting.

Train Aang, and see how he doesn't need it that much anymore.

To be able to see what Toph had in store for him for burning her feet.

Be scolded at by Katara for whatever reason she would make up.

Find his mother.

He would give up so much to do those things. But he knows he can't. And so he accepts his fate and closed his eyes. And with his last breath he says, "I'm sorry."

Sorry for what?

For dying? Chasing them down for so long? Leaving them? Betraying her in Ba Sing Se? Everything he did? But in the end, he really didn't have anything to be sorry for. Not anything that would matter anyways.

She stopped sobbing for a second to realize that Zuko's eyes were closed, he didn't move, and more importantly, he didn't breath. "Zuko?" His name caught in her throat. Her eyes widened when the reality hit her. Zuko was dead. "Zuko!" He wasn't waking up. "Zuko open your eyes now!" She commanded, but he didn't move, or answer. He just lied there, limply. "YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO DIE!" She yelled, now full on sobbing. Crying. Screaming at the world for begin so unfair.

"Please, open your eyes… Zuko open your eyes." Her hysterical sobs turned into quiet but desperate small ones as she laid her head on his chest, next to the wound.

She could hear Azula's cries turn into her laughing like a maniac somewhere behind her, but she didn't care.

Katara didn't know how long she had been there crying and hoping that she could've been a little bit faster, when she heard people coming. She quickly turned to look in the direction of the voice to see the fire sages. She stood up and looked at them. Their expressions were shocked, and before any of them could say anything, Katara said quietly. "Put her somewhere where she doesn't hurt anyone." One of the sages nodded, but Katara didn't care enough to notice who. After that she began to carry Zuko with her waterbending over to Appa.

When she was done with carrying Zuko on Appa, she took one glance towards Zuko's dead body before taking a shaking breath. "Yip, yip!" Katara said.

Zuko was so many things to her,

an enemy,

an ally,

a companion,

a friend,

a bestfriend.

He was part f her family now. But it was too late to tell him any of it now.

She cried until she didn't have any tears left. And even if she did, she would've cried for the dead.

A/N:

So this is my first story here and I don't expect it to be good, but I just wanted to get this out there.

Criticism is welcome, like any other review! Tell me if you want everyone's reaction. Bc I have some already written and probably will publish them any way at some point!

Thanks for reading this!

-TearsForTheDead-