Alright everyone, this is my first ever Avatar fic, but I hope you enjoy it anyway! It will be multiple chapters long, so don't worry about that. ;) I don't own Avatar and if I did, Zutara would be endgame.

It takes one tiny insignificant memory, one tiny jolt to your emotions, to change your entire future. Sudden changes of heart have been known to create both heroes and villains. The difference between a life saved and a life lost. A love gained, a love destroyed. All it takes to change the course of your life is a sudden recollection of something that stirs the emotions inside you, shifting everything just a couple of millimetres to the left. The difference between what once was and what now is.

"I'll save you from the pirates…"

Katara awoke from the dream with a start, rolling off her sleeping matt. Aang was by her side, Sokka was somewhere behind Appa, if the snoring was any indication, and she could easily see Toph in her usual rock tent. She pushed herself up from the dirt she'd inadvertently rolled in and looked around for any sign of Zuko. He was nowhere to be seen…what should she care what he gets up too at night anyway? She always checks, just in case… It was like a habit for her, to keep track of Zuko; make sure he wasn't in any trouble. She always silently scolds herself for caring so much. She lay back on the matt trying not to disturb Aang in the process. He looked so precious and fragile while he slept. She lay on her back and watched the stars begin to fade as the sun rose above the mountains they had chosen to make camp in. She always checked to see if he was around yes, but that was just a habit that she needed to break. She never dreamed of him. Not really anyway. So why would she dream of that one time, so long ago, when he had threatened to save her from the pirates. Had he really threatened her, or was he genuinely trying to save her life? It was hard to remember correctly now. Of all the significant moments she had shared with Zuko, why on earth had she dreamt of that one?

A few minutes past and there was still no sign of Zuko's return. Where was he! Was he just wandering around the woods…? He could have been attacked! She leapt up at the horrible idea of Zuko in some sort of pain and started looking around for footprints.

"I'll save you from the pirates…"

She shook the image from her mind before she could continue recalling it. What does that dream have to do with the situation; all that matters right now is that Zuko may be in extreme danger. He probably isn't, he is the Prince of the Fire Nation and can handle himself very well, but that is beside the point. There is a tiny chance he might need her help. The sun will have risen fully soon and the others will be waking up, so it's best for the both of them if they get back without being seen. She spots a trail of fresh looking footprints just behind Zuko's tent, so she slips quickly and silently into the trees. Following his footsteps is actually remarkably easy. That rules out the idea of him having snuck away; his path is blatantly obvious with no pains taken to hide his trail. She could hear water flowing nearby. It was loud. Really loud. The kind of loud that blocks out all other sounds. The perfect cover for dark deeds. She didn't like being deaf to the possible calls of a possibly wounded man. She cursed under her breath; regretting their decision to set up camp without properly exploring the area. Who knows what manner of things could be roaming these woods after dark, and Zuko had just gone aimlessly wandering off into them-

Katara and all her thought processes came to an abrupt halt as she stumbled upon a vast body of water. It wasn't, of course, the water that caused her mind and body to blank, but the sight of the young man wading through it, set on reaching the nearby waterfall. Katara, who wasn't sure what to do with herself, gulped nervously as he slowly peeled off layers of clothing. Her eyes raked over his torso as he tugged his robe off, watching as he flung it onto the rocks to dry. She wet her lips a little with her tongue and wondered curiously as to why she wasn't moving away from the scene. Surely, he had come here to bathe privately, so why on earth hadn't she left him too it? She let out a tiny yelp when she realised that he was standing under the water fall, completely naked. Water cascaded over his body, illuminated by the rising sun. It rippled over his muscles as he ran his fingers through his dark hair, a small sigh escaping his lips. Both the sun and the water must have seen men and woman bathing here all the time, but if she didn't know any better, she would have thought that both elements were as frozen in the moment as she was. The sun seemed to shine a little brighter, and the water seemed to sparkle with a valour she hadn't seen since she had left the Northern Water Tribe. Her breathe caught in her chest as he flipped the wet hair out of his face and opened both piercing amber eyes to look directly at her. Even his scarred eye was wide and intense.

Katara had defiantly found Zuko alright.

And Zuko had found her.

As he opened his eyes he saw her standing on the edge of the clearing, his private clearing. He had found it last night, and he had thought it would be safe enough to bathe here without being caught. The beautiful trees, and the climbing honeysuckle, and the clearing in its entirety vanished. All he could see was her. All he could feel was his blood. Everywhere, running up and down simultaneously. She was there, on the edge on the water, with a half dazed look in her eyes, a flustered face, and clad only in her bindings. Since when had she started sleeping in her bindings? She must have noticed his stare by now, but she wasn't registering it at all. She just stood there, stock still, her hair catching in the light breeze. He opened and closed his mouth in a desperate attempt to think of something to say. What was there to say? Sorry? You look beautiful this morning? How did you find me?

His eyes flickered from her face to her waist, from her waist to her legs, from her legs to her chest. More blood, fleeing to that single part of his body. Had she noticed what she had done to him? He couldn't even cover himself now; it was too late. So he just stood, watching her watch him in silence, until he finally breathed out her name.

"Katara?"

It was soft and imploring, and barely audible, but she heard it. Of course she did, because directly after, she stepped into the water.

What was she to do? She couldn't stop herself from watching him. His face was turning redder and redder and his penis was growing harder and harder. She saw his eyes flicker around her body, and she didn't blush. She didn't even move. She just held her breath. He was so…

Beautiful.

She had never dared to hope that she might one day see Zuko's entire body. It wasn't even really a thought that cross her mind. But the way he looked at her…no one had ever looked at her like that before. It made her feel…so many things. Special, warm, attractive, uncomfortable, and itchy in a way she couldn't describe. Parts of her throbbed and she had no idea how she was meant to stop it. Did she want to go to him? What would happen if she did? Anything? Nothing? Or everything? What terrified her most was that it didn't even matter. All she wanted was to see what would happen. If he would run from her. Was she, a water tribe peasant, attractive to him, the crown Prince of the Fire Nation? She heard across the gap, a tiny sigh that sounded enough like her name to melt her fears. A suddenly flash followed by that one most important phrase.

"I'll save you from the pirates."

Well, so far he wasn't screaming, and she wasn't running, so she took a deep breath and stepped into the water.

What was he meant to do now? She was coming right at him! He stood so very still and watched her approaching form, sweating as her bindings became wet and transparent. Katara was a young woman now, and he wasn't as if he hadn't noticed. Her full form, her slender face. She was not the same child he had hunted before. The spirits know how often he has dreamed of seeing Katara like this; exposed and unashamed. He often fantasised about occasions in which ended with kissing and biting and the tearing of clothes. But never had he imagined this, not even once. What was she expecting of him? She was within arm's reach of him, his heart began to race faster than he had ever experienced. She looked him directly in the eye with her solid, resolute stare, a tiny blush spreading across her cheeks. Now was the time, if he were to ever have a shot, it would be now. And dear Agni, he hoped this was real.

Slowly, tentatively, he reached for her waist. She didn't fight him. She stepped into his arms as he pulled her closer. This was what she wanted. This, right here, was how she wanted to feel, all the time. She pushed forward so that the waterfall submerged them both. She ran her hands over his shoulders, feeling the warmth of him. The tightness of his muscles. The water that still ran over him. They hadn't even really spoken yet, they just stared at each other in a silence that she could only describe as passionate. They were both waiting for something. She wasn't sure what, and he wasn't sure what he would be able to do. Ever so slowly, she tilted her head to him and that was it. The breaking point. The line had been crossed. He knew exactly what to do.

He captured her lips in a rage of passion, water, and hair, and it was the most delicious thing they had ever experienced.

She had only ever been kissed once, by Aang, and that kiss had nothing on the one she was now sharing with Zuko. He was burning to the touch, scolding her lips, the water heating around them. She couldn't begin to think properly. All she knew was that she needed to be closer. Closer.

She let out a little moan and gripped his shoulders tighter. He growled into her mouth, and lifted her up with ease. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and the two danced upon each other's tongue as if the war could be won if they just tried hard enough. She gasped as he rubbed her against his erection, its length pushing up her bindings. She couldn't help but rock against him.

What were they doing? He had never been this close to a woman before and now here he was, naked, under a waterfall, with Katara grinding herself against him in the most tantalizing way. He wanted nothing more in his entire life but to feel this woman writing around him. She is the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and the tiny moans she let out caused both his blood, and the water to boil in arousal. Breaking their heart stopping kiss, he began to travel down her neck.

"KATARA, WHERE ARE YOU? I AM STARVING!"

Sokka's voice rang through the area, loud enough to attract anything and anyone's attention. The couple jumped a mile! Zuko was lucky he was hanging on so tightly, and Katara was lucky her legs had such good grip or else the two of them would have fallen against the rocks. They looked at each other breathing heavily, chests heaving.

"Uhm…I…I better go!" Katara mumbled

"Ah, yeah, probably best…"

They broke their gaze and Zuko placed her back in the water. Without looking back at each other, Katara waded back to the trees, and Zuko retreated further under the waterfall.

What had just happened? The shock running through Katara's body was nearly as powerful as the passion it had just replaced. She and Zuko just…She was…they…!

Her heart pounded furiously and her whole body burned in an unsatisfied way. Why? Why had she done that? She had even…grinded on him! She grimaced in embarrassment and confusion. What had she been thinking? Even now, she was torn between rage and gratitude towards Sokka, for interrupting them. She was sure that had he not called for her, she would have that most sacred of rituals. Her virginity was saved by her brother's stomach.

"I AM COMING SOKKA! GEEZ!"

She turned back to Zuko for one last look before she headed back to camp, flustered and wet through. He was gazing at her, and very quietly, almost too quietly to hear, he murmured.

"I don't regret it."

Stay tuned for the next chapter all!

Peace out!