Hello to all avatar fans out there! This is my very first fanfiction. I decided to start writing it after re-watching the whole series and completely falling in love with zutara. At first it was supposed to be a one-shot, but with innumerable ideas constantly popping in my head, I have a feeling it will become a much longer story.

The title of the story is symbolic and its meaning will be mentioned in the next chapters. So, the action starts in "The Southern Raiders" episode and to a certain extent follows the events till Sozin's Comet. But I assure you, this is not a transcript of the final episodes. I will add a lot of plot twists, new issues and whatever my zutarian imagination will suggest me :) I sincerely hope it will become a fascinating story that even non-zutarians will be eager to read.

As for the rating, it's T, although there may be some 'gore' in the first chapter. At least for now, I do not intend to introduce any highly sexual themes.

Now, I present to you… "Sword Lilies in Bloom".

And of course, I do not own "Avatar: the last airbender". All characters belong to Nickelodeon.

Chapter 1: Broken Ice

"As much as I hate you… I just can't do it."

Katara felt as if all her inner strength had left her. The tepid rain was streaming down her face, soaking her dark wavy hair and the black disguise. Only her eyes, burning bright blue like ice, several seconds ago gleaming with pure lust for vengeance, now cast down and empty, betrayed her true identity. Yon Rha was still kneeling in front of her, looking up at the resigned girl with a weak smile of relief. His hands were folded in his lap in a pleading manner, his body trembling like a leaf in a storm, both with the piercing cold and incapacitating fear. Drenched strands of long grey hair framed his wrinkled face. Zuko was standing silently at the waterbender's side, carefully watching the entire scene in awe. Somewhere in the distance a loud crash of thunder sounded ominously, causing the former leader of the Southern Raiders to tremble even more violently.

There she was, towering over the man who had ruined her life, the bastard who had taken her beloved mother away from her. It was her moment; his life depended on her and she could do whatever she desired. One quick move and the precious thin thread could be cut… yet Katara wasn't able to kill. Something was holding her back, making her feel weak and helpless. She recalled the moment she'd first seen him, back at the South Pole. There had been nothing she could do back then, nothing that could change her mother's fate. Sometimes she would blame herself for leaving her, yet she knew it had never been her fault. But things had changed; she wasn't the same girl anymore, the helpless little child who had run out of the tent just as her mother bid her to.

She lifted her gaze only to behold a shadow of triumph on the murderer's face. The pathetic thing dared to look her in the eye. It was more than she could bear. She wanted him to feel her pain, to taste her fury, she wanted to let out the anger that had been dwelling inside her for so long. Rage contorted her face and she swiftly whirled around, collecting the raindrops about her before they hit the ground. In less than two heartbeats a shapeless ball of rainwater was created. Yon Rha's eyes widened in fear and he instinctively tried to shield himself with his arm again before she cried out and thrust the water at him with all the strength that was left in her. The cold liquid snuck into his nose and mouth, taking his breath away. The force of the wave knocked him down and he fell hard on his back, coughing and groaning.

That was it. She wasn't able to look at that filthy monster any longer. Her hands clenched into fists before she spun on her heel and marched away, her step slightly unsteady. Zuko glanced with utter disgust at the man who was now struggling to crawl away like a defeated animal running away with its tail between its legs. Eventually he turned around and followed Katara. He remained vigilant, though, in case the retired raider had a change of heart and decided to complete his task after years.

They wandered off undisturbed.

For several minutes they walked in utter silence through the pouring rain. They could hear only the howling of the wind and drops of water spattering on the leaves of the trees around them. Their boots were splattered with mud and the soaked garments hanged heavily on their shoulders. The landscape was monotonous; the grey of rocks, the clouded sky and the green of leaves were almost the only colors around. Tall trees grew on both sides of the path, standing like silent sentinels, as if carefully observing their every step. However, Katara was too absent to notice any of this. She wished to leave that place as quickly as possible, to fly back to the camp, see her friends again. Yet even though she'd just let all her anger out, she still had the feeling that she was coming back empty-handed, having accomplished nothing. She was unable to comprehend the reason why she'd suddenly decided to spare the murderer's life, since revenge had always been one of the major goals in her life. Why had she even agreed on this mission? She was at war within her own mind, feeling too much at once, beset by guilt and confusion.

All these thoughts suddenly came flooding to her and she halted. She leaned against a lone tree, her breath coming unusually fast, as if she'd just fought a fierce battle. The ground seemed to be almost escaping from under her feet and her eyes started filling up with tears. She didn't want to cry, not when Zuko was with her. The last thing she wanted was for him to see how weak she was. She noticed him looking at her with concern and tried to hide her face, choking back the tears.

"You did the right thing." she heard him say.

Katara knitted her eyebrows and nearly rolled her eyes in annoyance. It was too early to discuss the moral consequences of what she had… or rather hadn't done.

"I don't need your support." she snapped back at him, her voice cracking. She stormed away from him, only to stop again after several steps. She was hardly keeping balance as her legs were almost about to give out beneath her. Much as she tried, she wasn't able to hold back the emotions any longer. Tears were falling one by one onto the trampled grass in front of her feet before she buried her face in her hands. The entire world around her vanished. All she could see was darkness, all she could hear was an indistinguishable noise filling her ears. Then she felt a hand resting cautiously on her shoulder. She shrugged it off vehemently.

"I said I don't!" The words came out almost as a shout.

Yet there was one thing which had escaped her attention – the banished prince never gave up easily. This time he put an arm around her and cautiously tried to pull her closer, keeping in mind the thin borders.

At first Katara was completely immobilized, not fully aware of what was happening. She flinched and for a second she attempted to struggle, even thought of using her bending to knock him down and break free. Her mind was telling her to push him away and run, escape far from him, far from the world, but instead… she stopped fighting. She was to devastated to reject aid, even from him. Against her own will, she leaned in to relax in his embrace and started sobbing quietly, trying to muffle the sounds in his robe. The black fabric filled her hands in a tight grip and she clung to him, as if she were afraid he would suddenly push her away and leave. The change was so rapid that regardless of being aware of the fact that it was exactly what she needed, to some extent she was taken aback by her own reaction. Nonetheless, she was grateful for what he did. He simply stood there motionlessly in silence with his arms around her, waiting for her to let everything out. It felt somewhat strange to be comforted by someone who had been her foe for so long.

Zuko wasn't quite sure why he decided to make that move, since he knew that Katara plainly despised him. But he certainly wasn't able to stand there and watch her cry. He had to do something to comfort her, even if it was connected with the risk of getting bruised or splashed with water. He was already drenched to the bone, so it wouldn't make much of a difference. Once she'd finally surrendered after the short struggle, he tightened the embrace involuntarily and this time she didn't seem affronted.

The firebender was still astounded at what he'd just witnessed. During this entire mission he finally got the chance to see what a powerful bender she was, without being forced to repel her attacks. He'd already seen her waterbending before, but this time it went beyond his expectations. Her bending resembled a wondrous fluid dance, full of passion and life, yet it was a lethal one. She was even capable of controlling the water inside someone's body, which made her almost invincible. What impressed him the most was the fact that despite being driven by rage and the desire of revenge she was able to refrain from taking the life of her own mother's murderer. After all the suffering he had caused, she didn't lose her temper.

Once the worst was already behind her and she stopped sobbing, Zuko decided to break the silence. "Aang was right. This was the journey you had to take. It was brave of you to face him."

"Oh really?" she exclaimed in a breaking voice full of irony and freed herself from his embrace angrily. "Then why is he still alive?" she shouted, extending her arms. "Why did I do nothing to avenge my mother's death? It was my drive! After all these years when I finally get the chance to do it… I can't!"

The feeling of guilt and unfulfilled duty was consuming her from the inside, yet she wasn't blaming herself for having nearly killed a human being, but for having withdrawn from doing it. She'd seen so many atrocities during the war, she knew that in such circumstances morality hardly ever mattered… and it appeared that she still hadn't accustomed herself to the fact that violence was always fought with violence. Even the monster himself admitted that she deserved revenge. Before his retirement he must have murdered a number of innocent people in cold blood, not even flinching or hesitating, completely ignorant about their lives and relatives. Even his own family meant naught to him. Trying to shield himself with his mother… it was unthinkable, vile, abominable. His fake courage had diminished the moment he looked his opponent in the eye and was instantly replaced with pitiable cowardice. There were hundreds of likes of him in the world, spreading death and destruction, breaking families and planting evil in people's hearts. In all probability, most of them would justify it with the fact that they were obliged to carry out orders and obey their leader, yet it was only a poor excuse. So why not contribute to restoring the good by putting one of them to death? Only a person who had no idea about war could claim that thoughts like this meant utter lack of sensitivity, but Katara had experienced the pain. At war ethical values were flipped upside down, thus in many cases it was what guaranteed survival. Since the man had no scruples when he had taken her mother away, why should she have them?

"Am I just too weak to end a life?" She hugged herself and dropped her head resignedly.

"That's nonsense." Zuko denied. "You're stronger than you think you are. And most importantly, you don't want to become him."

Katara opened her eyes and glanced up at him, her eyebrows still furrowed. Before she could reflect on his explanation, he continued.

"Throughout this whole mission I was convinced that what you needed was revenge and I wanted to help you achieve it. It wasn't until now that I realized I was wrong. Back in the camp I made light of Aang's advice, because it was simply naive. Maybe forgiveness really is a noble act, but definitely not in this case. But it looks like this time it was about something else and now I see the real reason why you didn't do it. If you had really avenged your mother by killing him, you would have become the same murderer as him. This is the source of your strength, not weakness."

Katara had never expected to hear such a thorough analysis coming from him. Ever since he'd joined the Gaang she hadn't paid much attention to anything he said, treating him as though he'd been invisible or too repulsive to talk to or look at. The most striking fact was that… he was actually right. Now that he shared his thoughts with her it dawned on her that it was the exact answer to her question. Had she completed her task, her hands would have been stained with blood forever. It didn't matter whether it was the blood of a murderer or of an innocent person. She wouldn't have been able to live peacefully, knowing that she'd spilled it in order to avenge her mother and sentenced a man to death for a crime committed years ago. A reason like this could be a perfect excuse only for such monsters like the one she'd just spared. It wouldn't have been the appropriate way of detaching herself from the past. On the contrary – the wound would have been only deepened.

'While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself'. The young Avatar's words finally became clear. Once again the monks' wisdom proved to be universal, at least the part about revenge. However, Aang's statement wasn't the reason why the ice daggers had suddenly frozen in mid-air mere inches from the raider's face. The words hadn't even flashed through her mind, so determined she'd been. The whole point was that she'd always known it deep inside, even if she hadn't been aware of it. And it truly wasn't something that could be called weakness.

Her painful expression softened and she cast her gaze down to the muddy ground beneath her feet, though she seemed not to see it. Keeping her eyes fixed on the path she nodded meekly and walked past the firebender, heading towards Appa's shelter. At the moment her only wish was to abandon the village and never come back, so she didn't even think of urging Zuko and carried on walking wordlessly.

After a while she heard him follow.

Step by step, lost in her thoughts, Katara moved on with the firebender at her side. The rain had been gradually turning into a light drizzle and soon they found themselves being engulfed by a cool mist. With every step they took it uncovered blurry silhouettes of trees. They were emerging from it one by one, marking the borders of the path. The color of the sky remained unchanged. Not a single patch of blue could be found in the endless grey canvas stretched above the benders' heads. Even though the rain had died down, the humidity in the air still kept their clothes soaked. Katara was dreaming of taking a hot bath and having a delicious warm meal while sitting by a campfire. The fatigue was making her eyelids grow heavy and her legs seemed to be moving on their own.

Zuko was in no better shape, yet he showed no sign of it. He felt strangely responsible for bringing Katara back safely and kept stealing glances at her from time to time to make sure she was alright. Luckily, she was too musing to be able to catch him doing it, otherwise she would have yelled at him. At least that was what he thought she would do. He had been hoping that after all these days of cooperation she would finally accept him. What else could he do to show her how anxious he was to regain her trust and to fix all his mistakes by helping people in need? On one hand her stubbornness and distrust were understandable. It was her who had been imprisoned with him in the Crystal Catacombs. Not Toph, not Sokka, not Aang. Her. She was the first person, excluding his Uncle, who had sincerely offered to help him… and he'd rejected her. Both in Ba Sing Se and after Azula had wounded Iroh. The mistake he'd made by joining his sister seemed to have burned the deepest hole in his heart. Not only had he betrayed his Uncle and Katara, but also himself. He'd been asking himself dozens of times what had induced him to ally with his enemy and destroy the life he'd started in the Earth Kingdom and never received a clear answer. All the effort he'd made to become a better person suddenly occurred to be worthless, wasted. Had Azula really had such a strong influence on him? She was cunning enough to fool anyone like a puppet master, but that didn't justify his deed. It had been a conscious choice. The most infuriating part was that apparently he had to go through all this suffering and return home to the Fire Nation to finally realize what he really wanted.

His decision to defy his father and join Team Avatar seemed to have started a revolution in his life. He had a new goal, a mission to fulfill, and this time he wouldn't balk. This time, he would set things right.

That was when his ears caught a vague sound. Zuko instantly came to a halt. After a while Katara noticed that he stayed behind and she turned around to see him sweep his eyes over the bushes closely.

"What is it?" she asked impatiently.

"Did you hear that?" he said, observing the trees.

At first she couldn't quite fathom what he was talking about… until she caught glimpse of a dark shadow skulking under the cover of the thicket. Katara and Zuko took their fighting stances and slowly closed the distance between them, keeping their eyes on the shrubs. The rustling of leaves could be heard again and they fixed their gazes on one spot, as a tall man with broad shoulders met their eyes. His clothes were nothing more than rags, though the red of them indicated on the owner being a Fire Nation citizen. His hollow eyes slowly traveled from one bender to another. In mere seconds they were surrounded by three more men, their appearance almost mirroring the one of their companion's. There was one exception, though. All three of them were armed. Their weapons ranged from a simple kitchen knife to a long machete, undoubtedly stolen.

Neither Katara nor Zuko… nor any of the men dared to say a word. Finally, the first one of them spoke. "Well well well, look who we have here, boys. Apparently they're looking for trouble." The men laughed derisively.

Someone has found trouble, indeed, but it's not us, thought Zuko. The situation reminded him of the day he'd found his Uncle surrounded by earthbenders, cuffed and ostensibly defenseless. Yet again he was outnumbered, but additionally with a master waterbender by his side, they were clearly outmatched.

"What d'you think, they've got some gold?" one of them asked.

"Sure they do. Look at these fine black robes. Though the little bird wearing them is worth taking a look at, too." the other one said, his eyes boring into the girl.

Katara gritted her teeth. She was in no mood for dealing with a bunch of thieves. If they really wanted to intimidate or rob randomly encountered travelers, they could at least put some effort into it. They were pathetic, just like him. And he had been just what she'd expected: wretched, craven, empty. Her frown deepened as she waited for the men to make their first move.

"Have you fools finished chatting?" the unarmed one snapped. "It's time to play."

Suddenly, without any warning, a ball of flames came rushing towards the two. They quickly dodged and launched a counter-attack. Katara skillfully bended the dew, which had settled on every single leaf and blade of grass. The opponent she was facing stood no chance against her. Soon he ended up frozen to a trunk of tree, unconscious. Then her water whip smacked the attacker charging towards Zuko before he managed to raise his machete to strike the firebender. Knocked out by the sudden blow he hit the muddy ground, his weapon slipping out of his grasp.

A second later Zuko's fireball whistled past her and she felt the heat of fire colliding with fire right behind her. She collected water from the ground, coating her arms with her element, and spun around to face her opponent. The firebender turned out to be the first of the four thieves. With his previous attack blocked, he bared his teeth in a snarl and made another attempt on her. This time fire clashed with water and a hissing sound reached their ears. Not giving the man another chance Katara used her other hand to send him flying into a thick tree trunk, the water freezing him to it in less than a heartbeat. Zuko snatched up the knife he had taken away from his opponent almost without a fight and thrust it at the dazed man, who squeezed his eyes shut in panic. The blunt-edged blade sunk deep into the wood, pinning his sleeve to the tree.

"Let's go!" Zuko shouted to Katara, not waiting to watch the firebender struggle to pull the blade out.

Together they dashed along the path and soon reached Appa's hiding spot. Welcomed with a low growl, they mounted him hurriedly and Zuko quickly took the reins.

"Yip-yip!"

And then they were flying, flying away from that dreadful place. Katara glanced over her shoulder only to see the forest getting smaller and smaller, until it vanished behind the milky-white curtain of fog. It was almost beautiful. She didn't know what she actually felt. Did she feel relieved? She got rid of a huge burden and her heart seemed lighter. Maybe she felt empty? Or maybe it was just because of the fact that her mind was filled with a thousand thoughts. Resting her elbows on the edge of the saddle she glanced at Zuko. She could only see his back and his dark hair being tousled by the wind. Several days ago she would have frowned upon seeing him, and now… his presence calmed her.

Something had definitely changed about her attitude to him. The remains of wrath that had still been dwelling inside her, evoked by confronting the Southern Raiders, veiled one very important issue like a dark curtain. Now that it was all over, she finally let herself turn her attention to the other aspect of the mission. She had been so hell-bent on finding Yon Rha that she hadn't been even ignoring Zuko deliberately, like she would do ever since he joined their group. It had not been the appropriate time for devoting her attention to teasing him mercilessly, let alone gloating over his failures or misfortunes.

In the aftermath, taking into consideration all the events that had led her to this day and Zuko's comment, it finally dawned on her that somehow he'd helped her discover a part of her. It struck her how much he'd done in order to regain her trust. First he'd helped Sokka bust her Dad out of prison and now… Had it not been for him, she would have never found her mom's killer. In both cases he had taken serious risk to help them. Not to mention that he hadn't left her side even once. It was reassuring to know that in that darkest hour he was there, that there was someone watching over her. She was not alone.

The conclusion was simple. Only by detaching herself from the painful past could she step into the future and find the peace of mind. This way she would be able to break the chains which had kept restraining her thoughts. She wanted to free herself from the grief, anger and resentment.

She averted her eyes and watched the dense fog below them instead.

"So, we're heading back to the camp, right?" she asked and almost immediately grimaced. That was not what she wanted to say.

"No, I've had a better spot in mind for a while now." he answered. "Ember Island. It's the perfect place for us to hide. I just want to check if it's safe."

The answer was not what she had expected, yet it was understandable. Staying in one place for a longer time, especially such an exposed place like their current camp, wouldn't be a good plan.

"You should get some rest now. We'll be there by nightfall." he added after a while.

If truth be told she did feel tired. She wasn't sure if it was because of the lack of sleep and the fight with the thieves… or the fight inside her. Yet one thing was clear to her. She still hadn't let something off her chest. A mild frown crept onto her face, reflecting her insecurity.

"Zuko?" she called tentatively, as if she were afraid to address him by his name.

"Yes?"

There was a short pause before Katara finally disposed of all hesitation. "I forgive you."

It took several seconds for Zuko to process the information. No, he hadn't misheard it. The words which had reached his ears were the ones he had been awaiting for so long. They sounded distant, almost like a whisper. He looked over his shoulder, yet his gaze only rested upon Appa's saddle and the grey cloudy sky stretched above it. She must have laid down and therefore she was beneath his line of sight. Still slightly stupefied, he turned his attention back to the distant horizon in front of him, however, his thoughts drifted elsewhere.

She was standing under a dark cloudy sky, surrounded by tall trees, their branches so thick they created a solid wall. The place was eerily familiar. She looked around nervously, hoping with all her heart that it wasn't the place she had yearned to abandon so much. She realized she was all alone, excluding a twisted figure lying on the ground in front of her, several yards away. There was something queer about it. She squinted, trying to make out the exact shape of it. To her horror it was the limp body of her mother's killer, completely still and lifeless. Several long thick icicles were sticking out of his limbs and torso. The ice was quickly turning crimson.

Katara gasped and squeezed her eyes shut. This is not happening. He's not real, I spared him. She raised a hand to her face and immediately pulled it away. Her palm was sticky with blood. Both her hands were covered in the man's blood. Katara's breath quickened. No, I didn't do it. I didn't… The silence ringing in her ears was almost deafening, even though the branches seemed to be swaying ominously in the wind. The body was still sprawled in front of her in a pool of scarlet blood. Katara shuddered in fear on spotting movement, but when she forced herself to focus her gaze on the corpse, it lied still. She closed her eyes again. It was just a trick of the light. This isn't real.

When she opened them, the man was on his feet.

Her heart stopped beating. The paralyzing fear froze a sound in her throat before it had the chance to escape. The sight in front of her was terrifying. Blood was gushing from the wounds where the icicles dug deep into his body. His clothes were torn into shreds. There was no shimmer of light in the lifeless eyes which stared directly at her. Katara started to back away, though she seemed not to be moving away from the man. Desperate, she whirled and tried to run, but almost immediately stumbled, tripping on an invisible root and fell over, her bloody hands staining the dead grey grass. Her knee started throbbing, her vision was blurred by the tears pooling in her eyes.

As if given a silent signal, the trees began to close in on her. Katara let out a loud despairing sob. She didn't dare turn around, although she could feel his presence mere feet away from her. Her limbs felt like they were made of lead and she couldn't even stir. And as she was growing more and more faint, the trees kept creeping closer, and closer, and closer…

"Katara?"

The voice sounded familiar. She wanted to follow it, yet it seemed so distant it faded away instantly. The world around her was gradually dissolving into nothing. Even the ground beneath her knees felt more like quicksand, ready to pull her down into utter darkness.

"Katara!"

This time her eyes snapped open and focused on a worried Zuko looming over her.

"Is everything alright?"

Katara didn't answer. She sat up rapidly and brought a hand to her chest. She was panting heavily and her heart was still racing. She looked down at her palms. To her greatest relief they were clean. It was a dream. Only a bad dream. She was back in Appa's saddle, all safe and sound.

"What's happening?" Zuko asked again.

"Nothing," she said evasively. "Just a… bad dream, that's all."

She crawled to the edge of the saddle to look at the horizon. The fog had disappeared and the setting sun colored the clouds in all shades of red and orange. The surface of the ocean was tranquil, sparkling in the sun. The evening was reassuringly warm.

"So, we've arrived." she sighed and stood up to get a better look at the place.

They had landed on a large sandy beach surrounded by rocky cliffs basking in the light of the setting sun. Not so far away stood an impressive two-storey house, its red roofs blending with the orange colored bushes around. At first glance the place seemed abandoned and desolate.

The two benders hopped onto the black volcanic sand. Katara felt the soft warm ocean breeze in her hair. She turned to Zuko. "What exactly is this place?"

"It's my father's old house." he answered after a moment of hesitation. Bewildered, Katara sent him a searching look. "Relax, nobody has come here since our family was actually happy," he added quickly to calm her. "And that was a long time ago. It's the last place anyone would think to look for us."

Katara remained suspicious. "Are you sure?"

He nodded.

She felt slightly unconvinced. Could it be a trick? Another trap? No, I have to stop being so paranoid, she thought getting rid of pointless insinuations.

"I just… came here first to see if you'd accept this… new shelter." he added. "Plus, we need to make sure no one's in there."

Her opinion was important to him. That was a good sign, she thought.

Zuko glanced at the calm ocean behind them. "It's going to get dark soon. I guess we should spend the night here, so we'd better take a look around."

"Yes, you're right." Katara agreed. "Appa must be exhausted and we both need some sleep, too." Behind them the bison let out a low approving growl. She patted him gently on the snout. "Wait here, Appa. We'll be back soon."

They climbed along the path and soon reached the beach house. It seemed a little smaller than seen from a distance. The rich golden ornaments glistened in the already dying sunlight.

"I'll take a look at the rear." Zuko offered. "Appa can spend the night in the courtyard, so I'll fly up here later. Oh, and don't mind the front doors, it's… umm… my doing." And with these words he left her.

Puzzled, Katara stepped closer to the stone stairs leading to the entrance. To her astonishment, the richly ornamented doors were wide open, indeed. She raised her eyebrows, wondering why no one cared about an estate of the royal family. It appeared that the Fire Lord had more important issues on his mind than planning a vacation on the beach. She shrugged and stepped inside.

After a short reconnaissance she knew the place would serve as the perfect hideout for their group. The house was located far from any settlements, enveloped by a thicket of trees and shrubs providing a fine cover. Inside there were several rooms varying in size and furnishings. No one would be forced to sleep on the floor as the number of beds was just sufficient. Even the kitchen was well-equipped. If something was missing she could always search the cluttered rooms on the upper floor. The omnipresent cobwebs and thick coatings of dust didn't pose a serious nuisance. Nonetheless, Katara knew she would have to clean up a couple of places.

At the end of the corridor she found a roofed terrace overlooking the beach. The sun had already set and the first stars were coming out shyly. She watched them twinkle faintly like new-fallen snow in the sun. When the sky seemed to have darkened even more, something caught her eye. She spied Zuko walking down the path toward the beach. The topic wasn't closed yet, she was fully aware of it. She knew there was something she had to do, whether she was willing to do it or not, however, she didn't consider it as an unpleasant necessity. She bit her lip and walked towards the beach, trying to form sentences in her head.

By the time she reached him, he had sat down on the sand just by the water.

"Zuko?"

He shuddered at the sound of her voice and immediately stood up to face her.

Katara summoned up the courage to look into his eyes and suddenly forgot the whole speech she'd just prepared on her way to him. She folded her arms and started stammering. "Listen, I just came here to tell you… I wanted to say that…" She sighed resignedly. "Thank you. For everything you've done for me. You didn't have to put so much effort in helping me, and yet you did. It… it means a lot to me." she finished, already looking at the ocean behind him.

For a moment all she could hear was the soft swoosh of waves. Katara felt a bit uneasy and shifted her weight from foot to foot, awaiting his answer.

"It's just that… I do care what you think of me." Zuko spoke slowly, as if he feared her reaction. She raised her gaze again. "I assumed that somehow you connected your anger at the Fire Nation… for what they'd done to you… to your anger at me. And I know you had good reasons for that. Like… Ba Sing Se..." He lowered his head for a while. "I wanted to thank you too. For forgiving me. It must have been hard for you and I really appreciate it. I'm so glad you're… well, you're not talking to me with hatred anymore."

His words were sincere, she knew it.

"You're right, it was hard. It was hard for me to trust you again... for fear that you would change your mind, just like then." The prince looked away, wincing. "But after I've seen how you helped Aang with his firebending, how you helped Sokka… I mean, you literally went to jail after him…" she chuckled nervously. "…not to mention this mission. You've really found your own path… and I hope you'll stay on it." she admitted.

"So do I." he said with sadness in his voice. Then he held out his hand. "So… friends?"

She couldn't help but hesitate for a while. But eventually she shook his hand and smiled at him shyly. "Friends."

And then she flung her arms around his neck and pulled him into a quick embrace. It was like a sudden impulse, an urge of expressing her gratitude in the most sincere way. At first Zuko was utterly startled and his jaw hung open for a split second, but then, almost cautiously, he put his arms around her waist. He closed his eyes, sighing inwardly. Alas, as quickly as it all happened, Katara pulled away, one hand still resting on his shoulder as she watched him smile. The glint of gratitude in his eyes warmed her heart.

"We should go find us some place to sleep." she said, taking a step backwards.

"Right," he agreed, thankful for the change of the topic. The awkwardness of their interactions was striping him of his self-confidence. "There are several rooms so you can choose whichever suits you the best."

"I'll be fine so long as I find a nice comfortable bed. Those in the Western Air Temple felt more like planks of wood covered with fabric." she joked, rolling her eyes. Yet her thin smile quickly waned. "I'm just hoping for a peaceful sleep." she said, looking away. Then she turned around to head back to the house.

Zuko knew what she had in mind. It reminded him of his own nightmares back in Ba Sing Se. He was perfectly familiar with the taste of sleep disturbance.

The firebender turned towards the ocean again. He closed his eyes and listened to the waves crashing softly against the sand. He still couldn't believe that she'd actually forgiven him. The last time he felt so relieved was when they'd accepted him in their Team back in the Western Air Temple.

He smiled, knowing that things were about to change for the better, then turned away and quickly caught up with the waterbender.

"Was your nightmare about the recent events?" he asked.

Katara lowered her gaze as they carried on walking. "It doesn't matter. It's all over now." She focused her attention on the pebbles strewing the path. She gave one a light kick and it disappeared in the bushes.

"You're right, it is over." he agreed. "I'm sure you'll feel better tonight. You were just going through a difficult time." he said, wishing to successfully raise her spirits. He had been glad to see that it had helped Aang and Sokka before. He was hoping it would help her, too.

Katara sighed heavily. She wanted to believe him, as she was already tired of dealing with the ghosts of the past.

"I saw him again." she said quietly. "But this time… I ended him. He was dead right in front of me. And then…" she swallowed nervously. "…then he stood up… and came for me." Her voice was strangely calm and she kept it down. "I don't understand one thing. Why did such scenario come to my head after I spared him? It wouldn't have been weird if I had really finished the job, but since I hadn't…"

Her confession didn't take Zuko aback. His uncle had once told him that sometimes people make every effort to find the full and correct interpretation of their dreams. With multiple answers missing, some even fall back on fortunetelling and other miraculous methods. They are firmly convinced that every single dream has two meanings: the literal and the figurative meaning. Uncle believed that in many cases people try to discern the significance completely unnecessarily. 'Just as your eyes may deceive you, your mind's eyes may be treacherous, too', he would say.

"In my view, it doesn't depend on how things ended in real life. Such visions are the result of your emotional engagement. It's only happening because of the trauma you've encountered." Zuko said in a husky voice.

The waterbender resumed studying the stony path underneath her feet. A part of her ensured her that the nightmares were only caused by the turmoil in her mind and heart. She knew that sooner or later they would quit besetting her. Nevertheless, another part of her desired to share all these concerns and speak them out loud, for somehow she knew she would find understanding. And she wasn't mistaken.

"I assure you, once you clear your mind and get some well-deserved rest, you will no longer have to worry about bad dreams." he said, trying to finish with a more positive accent.

…and who would have thought she would find understanding in the banished prince of the Fire Nation. She still found it hard to believe. Everything had happened so fast on the recent days that she could barely catch up with her changing attitude and frames of mind. Hopefully, the serene atmosphere of heir new hideout would help her get over the conflicted feelings.

Once they reached the beach house Katara picked the first room she stumbled across. It was decorated in very simple fashion and poorly furnished, yet the bed looked better than the Air Nomads' ones. Bothering only to shake the dust off the coverlets and take off her boots she laid down on it unceremoniously. Much to her delight, the soft cozy cushions easily lulled her to sleep.

A/N: I'm dying to know what your first impressions are. It will be an honor to read your reviews :)

Thank you for reading! Next chapter - coming soon.