This fic is my idea of what happens leading up to, and after the Sozin's comet. Katara and Zuko fall in love, but will it cost the Gaang their victory?

After narrowly escaping Azula, the Gaang found a new campsite. We sat around the fire, eating and joking. Sokka proposes a toast, to our victory with Azula, and calls me a hero.

"Guys, I'm touched," I say, aware of how high my voice sounds. "I don't deserve this." Katara scoffs. I look up at her, shocked.

"You're right. You don't," she spits, then turning and walking away.

"What's wrong with her?" Sokka asks, as we watch her leave.

"I wish I knew." I get up and follow her, ignoring the confused looks behind me.

I find Katara standing on a cliff, looking out over the ocean, her long dark hair billowing in the crisp night breeze.

"This isn't fair," I start. "Everyone seems to trust me now. What is it with you?" Katara whips around.

"Oh! Everyone trusts you now?" she says, mocking me. "I was the first person to trust you, remember?! Back in Ba Sing Se. And you turned around and betrayed me, betrayed all of us." I look down, unable to face her. She's right, of course. I did betray them. And I regretted it ever since.

"What can I do to make it up to you?"

"You really wanna know? Hm. Maybe you could reconquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King. Or I know! You could bring my mother back!" At this point she's yelling in my face, just inches from me. For a split second, before she stormed off, I could've sworn I saw her eyes dart to my lips. But just for a second.

Later that night, I bump into Suki on my way to speak with Sokka. She seems surprised and somewhat flustered.

"I'm sorry, do you need to talk to Sokka too?" I ask.

"Nope!" Suki says, too quickly. "Not me." She walks off before I can respond. When I enter the tent, Sokka has candles and roses across the floor and I realize I have interrupted a, um, private moment. Sokka jumps into a sitting position and tries to act natural.

"What's on your mind?" he asks. I let out a deep sigh.

"It's your sister. She hates me, and I don't know why. But I do care what she thinks of me."

"Katara doesn't hate anybody. Just maybe some people in the fire nation." Sokka quickly tries to cover up what he had said, rambling until I cut him off.

"Listen. I know this may seem out of nowhere, but I need you to tell me what happened to your mother. Katara mentioned her death when we were in prison together in Ba Sing Se, and again just now when she was yelling at me. I think she's connected her angry about that, to her anger at me."

Sokka nods slowly.

"It's not a day I like to remember…"

He proceeds to tell me the story of the day his mother died. A fire nation raid, a tough battle but the Southern water tribe had managed to drive them away. He didn't know what had happened, just that he had lost his mother. In his description, he revealed the symbol of the Southern Raiders. With that information, I thanked him and left the tent.

.

.

.

The next morning, I waited outside Katara's tent.

"You look terrible." I look up and see Katara, annoyed by my presence.

"I waited out here all night," I tell her.

"Yeah? Well what do you want?"

"I know who killed your mother. And I'm going to help you find him." Katara paused then, shocked.

After a long and tedious argument with Aang about mortality and revenge, we set off. Aang would never understand the darkest sides people have within them. I don't know if Sokka would either. But Katara and I knew, and that's part of why I wanted to help her. I could see my own trauma in her.

We flew on Appa for hours. I suggested we stop many times, but Katara let her anger fuel her. Her ferocity was captivating, but terrifying as well.

"Don't you worry about my strength. I'm not the helpless little girl I was when they came." She begins to tell me her side of the story of her mother's death, and I listen carefully.

"I ran as fast I could… But we were too late. When we got there, the man was gone, and so was she." Katara's voice cracked, but I ignored it, knowing this was a very intimate story she was sharing.

"Your mother was a very brave woman." I say softly. Katara nods.

"I know."

We fly in silence the rest of the way. As we approach the ship, Katara bends water around Appa, allowing him to swim under water. She bends a huge wave, knocking the ship's men off the main deck. We open the hatch and enter the ship. I trap a single guard in a closet, locking the door with one sword. We burst through the captain's door and when we face the man that killed her mother, something happens. The captain loses control of his body, violently jerking from side to side, his arms bending at unnatural angles. I look at Katara and realizing she's bloodbending. My eyes widen, I didn't know she was that powerful. Suddenly, he drops.

"It's not him," Katara whispers. "He's not the man."

"What do you mean?! He's the leader of the Southern Raiders. It has to be him." Katara just turns and walks away. I grab the leader and push him against the wall, bending his arm behind him.

"If you're not the man we're looking for, who is?"

"You must be looking for Yon Rha. He retired 5 years ago."

The man gives us the information we're looking for, and we set off, leaving the crew stranded. We follow Yon Rha silently through his village and his path home. It's raining heavily and Yon Rha is paranoid.

"Nobody sneaks up on me without getting burned!" he yells as he shoots a burst of fire at a nearby bush. When no one appears, he gathers his things. He turns and walks away, immediately tripping on a trap we had set for him. He falls to the ground and I great him with a fire punch.

"We weren't behind the bush," I say. "And I wouldn't try fire bending again."

From the ground, Yon Rha pleads with me.

"Please, whoever you are. Don't hurt me."

"Do you know who I am?" I see Katara pull her hood down, exposing her face to the man who killed her mother.

"No… I'm not sure." Yon Rha says, confused but still terrified.

"Oh you better remember me like your life depends on it. Why don't you take a closer look." Slowly, Yon Rha's eyes widen in recognition.

"Yes… You're that little water tribe girl." He gulps, clearly understanding the situation at hand.

"She lied to you, to protect the last water bender of the Southern water tribe."

"What! Who?"

"Me!" Katara yells and the whole world freezes. Every drop of rain stops where it is. Katara bends the water into a dome, sheltering us from the rain. She uses all that water and creates a heavy stream headed right for Yon Rha, turning to shards of ice before stopping inches from his flinching body. She stands motionless and my eyes dart from her to Yon Rha back to her. Suddenly, the ice melts and drenches him. He falls to his knees, panting and pleading with her. Offering his own mother up as a bargaining piece.

"I always wondered what kind of man could do such a horrible thing, but now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you. Nothing at all. You're pathetic and sad and empty. But as much as I hate you, I just can't do it." Katara turns and walks away, leaving Yon Rha a blubbing mess and I in awe of her.

Instead of leaving right away, I find us a secluded part of the island, a clearing near the ocean but surrounded on 3 sides. I guide Appa down and begin setting up a small fire. Katara quickly but silently begins hitching us a tent.

"I think since it's raining, we should share one tent, and use the other for more warmth." She says. I look up, startled, but glad she's speaking.

"Sure Katara, whatever you think is best." We sit and eat, the rain finally letting up. The night was cool and breezy. I saw her shiver and rub her hands against her arms. She catches me looking at her and looks down. I see her cheeks darken, but it could've been a shadow.

"Come here," I say quietly, gesturing to the space on the rock I've been sitting on. She comes over and sits next to me. I put an arm around her running a hand up and down her back to warm her up. She scoots closer to me and leans her head on my shoulder.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask, hoping not to disturb her. She doesn't speak for a long while. She looks up at me and I meet her gaze. She puts a hand on my neck and pulls herself up and we're kissing. I kiss her back for a moment before thinking, and gently pulling her away.

"Tara, what are you doing?" I ask, searching her face for an explanation. She pulls away from me, folding her hands in her lap.

"I'm sorry. I just. I have all this adrenaline and pent up energy. It's like my whole body is tingling," she says, speaking too fast.

"Slow down, I don't understand. What are you saying?"

"I don't know. Just forget it, okay?" Katara stood up and walks over to the tent, climbing inside. I don't know what to do. On the one hand, I know that she probably needs some space. But on the other hand, I'm incredibly tired, and sleeping on the ground exposed sounds terrible. I run my hair through my hair and shrug.

"Fuck it," I say, walking over to the tent and crawling inside. I see Katara's bare skin and immediately cover my eyes.

"ZUKO!" she yells. I flinch at the high-pitched sound.

"I'm sorry Tara I didn't mean to wa-" I start.

"No. No it's okay. I didn't think this through, sharing a tent. I usually sleep without coverings…" She trails off at the end. I peek through my fingers, and Katara's arms fall to her sides. Her bare breasts bounce slightly as she moves and I can't help but stare. I may be a prince, but I am just a 17-year-old boy after all. She clears her throat.

"Are you going to stare at me all night, or come sleep?" She asks. Her voice brings me back to reality.

"Right. Sorry." I awkwardly begin to undress, feeling Katara's eyes on me. I meet her gaze and she doesn't look away. I feel my face burning up and try to ignore it. I pull my shirt over my head and I hear a small intake of breath. I sit down next to Katara and say nothing for a while. She sits up on her knees and reaches out a hand, resting it against the scared part of my face.

"What do you think would've happened?" she asks. "If I had healed your scar back in Ba Sing Se?"

"I'm not sure" I say. Her hand is moving slowly down my face, along my jaw and rests on my collar bone. "Maybe we would've escaped together. I would've joined the team earlier. Avoided so many mistakes." I watch her watch me. Her eyes are darting everywhere.

"Zuko?" she asks.

"Yes, Tara?"

"Do you think, maybe if you had joined the team earlier, we would be different? I thought I felt something between us in Ba Sing Se, something more than just… allies." Her fingertips graze my lips and my mouth feels dry. I swallow hard.

"M-Maybe." I stutter. "I felt that too." Tara looks up at me, not breaking eye contact as she ran her hand through my hair. I lean forward and she meets me, pressing her lips against mine. The kiss is slow and tender, and when we pull away I miss her already. She grips my hair as she pulls me in again and I groan into her mouth. She takes the opportunity to dip her tongue across my lip. I run my hands up her sides, holding the underside of her breasts. She arched her back slightly, causing my thumbs to brush against her nipples. Katara let out a sigh, breaking our kiss.

I look down at her naked form, dark against my pale hands. She was by no means fat, but not thin either with her thick thighs and wide hips. Her body was all soft edges hugging taunt muscles from all the time running, fighting, and bending. Her long full hair hung in loose curls around her face, framing her prominent cheekbones beautifully. I pushed her hair over her shoulder and brought my mouth to her neck, giving light kisses from her shoulder up to her ear suckling gently. Katara moaned and put her hands on my back. The cold touch makes me shudder.

I pull Katara in for another kiss, guiding her down unto the floor of the tent and laying between her legs. Her hands traced down my stomach, touching the patch of dark leading to my crotch. She put the tip of her finger in my waistband and I grabbed her hand.

"Tara," I say, panting. "We don't have to do anything you don't want to." Katara smirks under me.

"Zuko, I am a powerful force to be taken seriously. One of only two people who can blood bend. Do you really think I do anything I don't want to do?" And with that, she pulled my trousers off, and I readily helped her. I felt my member flop against my stomach and Katara eyed it carefully.

"What's wrong?" I ask

"No, nothing's wrong," Katara assures me. "It's just, so big." I smirk and kiss her hard. I can feel her warmth against my thigh and my cock twitched. I pull my mouth away from hers and begin making a trail down her body. I lick the valley between her breasts, squeezing them, rolling her nipples between my fingers. Katara squirmed beneath me, tiny moans falling from her lips. Every one of them shot pangs of desire to my stomach. I continued down, kissing her belly and sucking on her navel. I looked up at Katara's face, asking silently Is this ok? Katara nods and I get to work, spreading her legs and kissing up her thighs to her slick core. I swallow, suddenly very nervous. Mai and I had had sex before, but she was far too private to feel comfortable with this sort of intimacy. I was learning on the job, though I doubt Katara was anything but a virgin.

I parted her labia, licking her slit. She tasted good, salty. I inserted a finger cautiously, but Katara let out a moan, letting me know I was on the right track. I fingered her gently but with a firm rhythm and she thrusts against my hand. I add another finger and Katara gasps, arching her back.

"Zuko, more. Please." She groans.

"What do you want Katara? What do you want me to do?" I look up to meet her eyes and arch one brow.

"I want you to take me," she whispered, blushing and looking away. I crawled up to kiss her and she giggled.

"What's so funny?"

"I can taste myself," she laughed, leaning up to kiss me again. I sit up on my knees, sitting between her thighs. I pull her towards me and angle cock towards her wet hole. I watch her face and she nods.

"Hurry up!" she whines. I smirk and enter her slowly. She was incredibly tight and my breath caught in my throat. I put my hands on her hips and pulled her onto me, inch by inch. I felt her walls twitch around my dick and my knees felt weak.

"Move, please," Katara whimpered. I grab one of her legs and wrap it around my waist. I pull out almost completely and thrust back in with a grunt. She lifts her other leg, locking her ankles behind my back and pulling me deeper. I rock my hips, faster and harder as Katara's moans fill the tent. There's no one around for miles and she knows it, yelling out with no regards for who might hear.

I grab one of her legs and put it on my shoulder allowing me further access to her cunt. I fucked her hard and she met my thrusts. Suddenly, I was on my back. Katara smiled mischievously and lifted herself slightly before dropping back down. I gripped her hips and pulled her down as I thrust up. She throws her head back and grips her breasts, yelling out.

"Oh Zuko! Fuck! I'm so close!" she screamed. I flip us quickly and fuck her wildly, losing all sense of composure. My thrusts were erratic and my fingers dug into her hips. I used a thumb to circle her clit and Katara let out a primal grunt. I felt her walls clench around my cock as she rode out her orgasm and I lost control, pumping hard until I come, pulling out and shooting my load into the darkness of the tent. I flop down on the tent next to her, breathing heavily. I look over at Katara and see she's already asleep. I chuckle to myself , happy that she was finally getting rest after a long journey. I pull a blanket up around us and wrap my arm around her waist, slowly drifting to sleep.

What do you guys think? Should I continue? Let me know in the reviews!