i. Water & Fire

Katara woke up with a start when she heard a door closing quietly. Her night had been restless - she slept with one eye open, tossing and turning, mulling over the decision that led to Zuko sleeping in a room across the hall from hers. She could not shake the feeling that they were making a terrible mistake that would cost them everything.

She leapt to her feet and slowly crept towards the door. Holding her breath, she peaked through the cracks and saw Zuko walking silently down the hall. His movements were smooth and graceful, but underneath it radiating a menacing agility and strength she knew he possessed. He reminded her of the polar panthers of her homeland. The first time she saw a pair, circling each other in sleek movement, she couldn't help but cry out in awe "They are so beautiful." "Beautiful, but dangerous, Katara." replied Gran Gran.

Get a grip, Katara, she told herself. Beautiful was not a word she wanted to associate with the fire prince who had caused them nothing but trouble in the past. If he was sneaking around before dawn, she had to know what he was up to. Someone had to protect the group. They did not understand how vicious and treacherous he was, but Katara would never forget how he had turned on her.

She fastened her belt and crept along the hallway to the direction of the court-yard, stopping behind a pillar. Zuko walked all the way to the edge of the terrace, sat down on his heels, motionless. From that angle she could only see half of his face - the unscarred half. For the first time, Katara realized how even his features were and wondered what he looked like before - before whatever happened to him. She watched mesmerized as he slowly lifted his face towards the first rays of the rising sun, eyelids closed, his expression peaceful, almost serene.

You rise with the moon. I rise with the sun, the memory came back crashing violently. All of it - his menacing, triumphant gaze, the impotent rage she felt as he snatched Aang from her. Katara felt the anger filling her veins, sweeping through her like waves in a stormy water. She wanted him to take a misstep, to give her a reason to let it out and show him her power; to engulf him in terrifying waves, to freeze him into icetowers, to cut him with ice shards. She could picture it all so vividly.

She pushed the violent images away and stepped into the middle of the court-yard, her purposeful steps echoing against the pillars. Zuko slowly turned his head and looked at her with an unreadable expression. He did not look startled at all; he must have realized that she was watching him. Somehow, this thought that he may have been silently mocking her made Katara even angrier.

"If you think you are just going to sit around, while I make breakfast, think again. We all have to do our parts here." Her voice was harsh like a whip. Until he gave her a reason to burst actual water at him, sharp words would have to do. She expected whiny protest in response, just like Sokka, Aang or Toph usually did when it came to chores, but Zuko just rose to his feet in one fluid motion and bowed his head in silent assent, waiting for her to give him an order.

"Well, make yourself useful - how about you bend some fire so I can put the teapot on? If using your bending for something actually decent is not totally beneath you…" her voice was dripping with sarcasm and she waited for him to finally burst, to let out his anger, to breathe fire. To be the normal Zuko that was so easy to hate. Instead, he just absorbed everything she threw at him, like the sun melting away the icicles as if they were inconsequential.

He knelt down again and opened his palms setting a small fire with a couple of twigs that were laying around. Katara put the teapot on it and with a wave her hand splashed it full of water, smirking with delight when a few splashes landed on his face. He wiped his face silently with the sleeve of his tunic and kept his eyes on the flames.

When Katara started rinsing the rice-bowls and tea cups clean, he moved closer to help. As they were kneeling side-by-side, their hips and shoulders almost touching, she became intensely aware of the pleasant heat radiating from him - it filled her with warmth, even as she tried to hold onto the cold inside her, so she could remember he was dangerous. Still, a small part of her mourned the loss of the sensation when he moved away from her to brew the tea. He sniffed the tea leaves before immersing them in the teapot; his movements were precise and purposeful. Katara placed the cups next to him on a tray.

"We make a good team," he smiled warmly. His quiet voice startled her; she realized it was the first time he spoke that morning. For a moment, she was lost in his golden gaze. She was drawn to it, yet knew with a certainty that getting too close was risky. She clenched her jaws and focused on the cold inside her again.

"We are not a team. Don't forget, you are only here, because Aang needs a firebending teacher and you are literally our only choice. That doesn't make us anything." Her words were meant to cut, and her aim was precise. His smile faded, his shoulders slumped and Katara could see the hurt flash in his eyes before he managed to hide it by looking away. He let out a slow breath and rose to his feet, his posture straight and his face impassive again.

"I should wake up the Avatar. Sunrise is the best time for training," his voice was even. Katara watched him walk away. She should have felt triumphant for gaining the upper hand, but instead she just felt confused. Zuko's arrival stirred something inside her; a deep, dark undercurrent that caught her by surprise. She was used to being the soothing, quiet stream - bending around obstacles. But somehow she felt different now; a cascading river, coursing purposefully forward, washing away everything that was in her way. She felt powerful and unyielding - it was exhilarating and terrifying in equal proportions.