A very important AN: So I know myself pretty well by now. And I know that during exams I have the inescapable desire to write fanfiction. I'm a born procrastinator, what can I say? The problem, this time around, is that I know I'll have no muse: all of it was sucked from me whilst writing the other fics I've recently spewed to the world. And I really don't want to start a multi-chap, full-on fic: that would be suicide.

And thus I turned to my good friend DefyGravity2502. I asked her to give me ten random words. I would then attempt to turn each word into a Hurt!Zuko oneshot or drabble. Because I love that genre of fic so much (it's actually starting to worry and scare me) and because if I write romance in the state of Exam Stress I might just mentally scar some people for life.

I regretted my decision the moment she sent me the words. Why? Because they're terrible. Did you hear that, Deffie? THEY'RE TERRIBLE. Nonetheless, I've had to deal with them. (*glares* I will get you back.) But because the prompts are almost impossible and my writing… well, it leaves a lot to be desired at the best of times this fic carries A warning. Read at your own risk. I certainly cannot guarantee that any of these will be any form of 'acceptable' at all. They're mostly just a stress-reliving, fetish-satisfying… mess.

Oh! And if you're really squeamish or a vegetarian you might want to give this one a miss… Although there isn't much Hurt!Zuko… Hopefully there's enough to make it pass… *worries*

Disclaimer: Avatar is not mine. The prompts are not mine. The slight and inescapable guilt of making Zuko suffer is mine.

Fluffy

At that exact moment in time he was damning Katara to the depths of Koh's lair. He was a Firebender for Agni's sake; a son of fire who had spent most of his life in a land rife with volcanoes and seemingly endless summers. And he could have stayed in that wonderful, glorious land if it weren't for her. He could have married a nice Fire Nation noble and could have subsequently spent all his days lazing in the sun and complaining about the heat.

But no. She just had to flaunt her way into his path. She just had to be beautiful and fiery and passionate and kind and caring and infuriating and stubborn and so Agni-damned easy to love. And she just had to have those amazing blue eyes that could break down his barriers and make him agree to almost anything. Like agreeing to go back with her to the Agni-damned South Pole. And then- as if being half frozen in a foreign land whilst being scrutinized by your girlfriend's family wasn't bad enough- those idiotic, damned peasant boys had to go and challenge him.

He might have still been able to ignore their jibes that he was unsuitable as a husband for Katara. As if he would ever care what they thought. If they were barbaric enough to think that a 'good husband' had to be able to carve Water Tribe weaponry and hunt South Pole animals then good for them. But Katara, it seemed, did not share his view. Her face had been so humiliated and so… so crushed…

And that was why he found himself in the middle of nowhere, freezing half to death with nothing but a spear and an old Water Tribe parka. He hadn't even been given a new parka; one that still had all its fur- it's warmth!- still intact. Oh no. He was supposed to earn that. Great lot of help it would do if he killed himself before then.

And so, it was safe to say that Zuko was not a very happy person. He'd always deemed the men around him who had gone to great lengths to protect 'their girl's honour' as idiots who didn't see the correct path in life. He wondered if the Spirits were simply getting him back for his past sneers. He wondered if begging them for forgiveness would make even the sign of an animal appear so he could kill the thing, return to the village, save Katara's name and be warm again.

In utter frustration he breathed fire onto his hands, relishing in the ability to feel something again. "You better be so damned happy when I get back you can puke rainbows, Katara," he growled to the expansion of ice around him.

All he got in reply was another gust of icy wind swirling around him. With a snarl of impatience he began to stomp onwards, forcing himself not to turn around and gaze longingly at the thin wisps of smoke in the background that told him the Southern Water Tribe was warm and cozy by their numerous fires. He'd contemplated turning back many times. But even though he was almost frozen all the way through to his inner fire- something he hadn't deemed possible until then- he knew he couldn't return empty handed. Katara's honour was his honour too. And he refused to let go of his honour ever again.

Finally, just when he was contemplating finding some sort of shelter where he could crawl up and remain forever, a movement caught his eye. He froze and waited with bated breath and strained ears. A half-smirk, half giddily relieved smile crossed his face as he heard the unmistakable shuffling of an animal. He guessed it was a Tiger Seal; the footsteps were too heavy to be anything else. This made him hopeful; Tiger Seals were pack animals and so if one was alone it was very possible that it was already old or sick. Or both. Slinking into a near-crouch, Zuko crept forward with all the stealth he had, spear clutched at the ready. He cautiously stuck his head around the outcrop of ice and felt his stomach sink.

It was not a Tiger Seal, and it was in no way old or sick. It was a young, healthy and almost impossibly massive male Polar Leopard who obviously hadn't found himself a mate yet. Zuko grit his teeth and shut his eyes. Things could never be easy for him, could they? His prey would by no means be easy to kill. In fact, he wasn't past doubting that he could actually kill it. But, then again… It was the first animal he'd seen in hours. And bringing it back would most certainly bring the Water Tribe equivalent of honour to him and Katara.

The Firebender opened his eyes and looked the still oblivious Polar Leopard up and down critically. Zuko's ego wanted to be able to describe the animal instantly as 'ferocious' or 'violent'. But the first description his brain came up with was, honestly, 'fluffy'. He was sure the fur on the thing would provide blankets for the entire village.

"Well," he murmured to himself. "I guess that settles it, then."

Tightening his grip on his Water Tribe spear- it was so unfair that he wasn't allowed to use Firebending, honestly- he inched forward bit by bit until his body was aligned completely with the beast's. Then, taking a deep breath, he charged. The sound of his running footsteps alerted his prey, but it was too late for the leopard to do anything except howl in pain as Zuko's spear hit its mark. The Firebender grit his teeth as warm blood gushed over his hands. But instead of sinking to the floor like Zuko expected, the Polar Leopard gave a roar of rage and flung the boy away as though he was a cumbersome bug. Zuko felt the wind being knocked out of him but quickly turned his head back towards the Polar Leopard. It was wounded but it was still very much alive. And it was also very ticked off.

Zuko swore, loudly, as the Polar Leopard charged him, teeth bared and eyes spitting. He managed to roll away seconds before a huge half-ton of meat would have been on him. He stayed on his haunches, ignoring the biting cold of the ice beneath him as he wearily eyed his quarry. The Polar Leopard snarled at him, a sound like ripping material mixed with the sharpening of a knife. Okay, so now Zuko's mind could honestly describe the thing as 'ferocious'. But in order for him to live to tell the tale of the fluffy-but-ferocious one he had to be able to kill it before it killed him. And that meant he had to get his spear back. Which meant that he'd have to charge straight at the massive, ticked-off animal. Brilliant.

Mentally telling himself that no girl was worth this he grit his teeth and charged at the leopard. Seeing its enemy advancing the wounded animal howled and charged also. It was only because Zuko was much more agile that the two didn't end in a head-on collision. As it was the nimble Firebender managed to slip to the side at the last minute, his hands catching hold of the spear still imbedded into the bleeding animal's side. Zuko tugged with all his might and the spear thankfully came loose, the action causing the Polar Leopard to bellow and snap harshly at the source of his pain. Zuko, off balance at the sudden give of the spear, wasn't lucky enough to escape unscathed that time.

The Firebender bit back curses as the leopard's teeth sank into his shoulder, biting deep and tearing the flesh as he twisted away. Now the blood that scattered around them on the ice was a mixture of Fire Nation human and South Pole leopard. Sensing the weakness in its enemy the Polar Leopard charged again, its wound making it half crazed in desperation and pain. The Firebender managed to roll out of the way in time but he slipped as he landed, causing him to twist his ankle as he stumbled. Biting back a yelp of pain he instantly tried to massage the throbbing appendage better with no success. As he worked, hissing out profanities, his quarry stumbled on the ice too, the loss of blood finally seeming to take some toll on it. But then the beast shook its head, regained its footing and charged again, as fully intent on killing Zuko as he had been on killing it.

With a snarl Zuko slashed his spear out at the advancing leopard, catching it across its jaw and earning his ears another snarl and the ice more blood. The Polar Leopard retaliated by swiping a clawed paw in Zuko's direction; an appendage that the Firebender only just missed. The beast advanced even further, great body heaving and dangerous, and Zuko did the first thing his instincts told him to: he thrust the spear towards the animal even though it was too far away for his weapon to hit home and then, when the animal's attention was diverted, he flung himself at it, catching hold of its neck and yanking himself as much onto its back as he could.

The Polar Leopard did not like this at all, but its attempts to bite its adversary in half were met by the stinging blow of the spear the man carried. Zuko held on as the leopard tried to throw him off, aware that he was in a strategic position. If he could just get a good enough grip to be able to raise his spear… The Polar Leopard, having none of it, suddenly flung itself sideways onto the ground, pinning Zuko between its body and the hard ice. As he made impact with the ground Zuko heard an ominous, yet faint, cracking noise. The sound was followed shortly by waves of pain that shot throughout his entire body from his left shoulder. Unable to stop the cry of pain from leaving his lips he was left gasping and gritting his teeth against the ache as the Polar Leopard lumbered to its feet again.

He tried to move; tried to get up so he could fight and save his skin. But even the smallest of movements sent waves of pain crashing through his system and he was left on the ice, being soaked through by the snow, as the Polar Leopard charged yet again. Zuko saw it coming, saw the death in its eyes and knew he had to act fast. Gritting his teeth against the pain he knew was to come, he flung himself slightly to the right and grabbed hold of his spear. He spun just in time to have the Polar Leopard leap straight into the point as it tried to get hold of the jugular of its enemy. More warm blood soaked down Zuko's arms as the Polar Leopard collapsed on top of him. Suddenly, breathing was difficult: he was being crushed under the weight of his quarry.

"Sure," he panted at it through clenched teeth. "Now you die."

The thick fur was smothering him, cutting off the little air he would still have been able to inhale even with the massive weight on his chest. He wondered, almost vaguely, what the Fire Nation Council would think if they were to receive news that their Fire Lord had died by being smothered to death by a giant ball of fur. He could actually think of a few people who would find it amusing. With a growl that earned him his first taste of Polar Leopard fur- not something pleasant- he began to shove the beast off of him. The task was a lot harder than it sounded, given that he could only use one arm and none of his legs.

Eventually he managed to wiggle free and allowed himself to lie, panting and hissing in pain, on the ice. After he caught his breath back he slowly began to assess the damage. The worst was definitely his left shoulder: it was still bleeding slightly from the gashes left by the Polar Leopard's teeth and his fall on top of it had obviously not done any good. Slowly he experimented and found- to his chagrin- that he couldn't even move his fingers without sending jolts of pain down his limb. Giving it up as a lost cause the Firebender decided to leave it in the position it was currently in- curled uselessly against his side- and instead focused on the rest of his body. He had minor bruises and bumps elsewhere but nothing else was too major. His head throbbed but his thinking, vision and balance were still intact so he ignored that little fact and continued in straightening up. The ankle he had landed on twinged rather badly but held his weight, causing him to dismiss it as well.

The Firebender was now forced to turn his attention to the next problem: how to get the Polar Leopard back to the Southern Water Tribe. This dilemma had him stumped for quite a while. He was battered, one arm short, exhausted and freezing and the Polar Leopard was much heavier than him. As he stood, shivering and swaying slightly, he honestly had a moment where he wondered if it was not better to just leave the thing there. He had killed it, after all, and six other Water Tribe people were much more suited for carrying the dead thing back than he was. The memory of sneering lips and taunting blue eyes so unlike the azure ones he loved had him banish the thought. Even if it killed him he would return to that village victorious.

Narrowing his eyes and subconsciously curling in to cradle his left arm to his chest better, Zuko looked the animal over and tried to remember if anybody had ever told him about the easiest way to get a massive dead animal back to a rather distant village. After a while an idea formed and he prayed to the Spirits that it would work; without it he was rather doomed. Limping slightly he heated the fingers of his right hand- they'd only forbid him from using Firebending to actually kill the thing- and began tracing them in a square around the fallen animal. To his satisfaction the ice was not too thick and it melted and broke under his bending until, with a thunderous crack, the fallen Polar Leopard was lying on a slab of ice that was completely disconnected with the rest of the frozen tundra.

The next part would be the trickiest: pull the frozen block out of the hole it was currently in so that the Polar Leopard could be pulled along to the Southern Water Tribe on its home-made sleigh. For the first time in his life, Zuko wished he could Waterbend. Then he could just make the ice simply rise up and all his problems would be solved. Instead he had to toil, using his spear as a lever to shift the ice along in agonizingly small bits at a time. Eventually the slab of ice he'd broken off lay on the flat surface of the iced-over land, looking so innocent one might have thought it had just landed there with no effort at all.

The Fire Lord was the only evidence that was contrary to the innocence of the ice. He was sweating profusely and shaking with near exhaustion. If he'd bothered to look at himself in the ice he possibly would have noticed the greenish tinge to his face. As it was he was making himself focus solely on his task; thinking about anything else would probably cause the miraculous energy to drain out of him as quickly as it had come. Stumbling forward he drove his spear into the front of the ice block, shoving it as far as it would go without breaking the ice, the spear or his one good arm. He suddenly found that he was leaning on the spear, breath coming in gasps that panged his still-useless arm and causing pretty little tufts of white air to form around him every now and then.

His knees buckled and he found himself sliding further down to the ground, only just upright because of the steadfast spear. His eyelids felt heavy; it would be so good to just fall asleep right then and there. The cold would go away. His aching body could get rest. His head would cease to try and impersonate his uncle's favourite drum. He would possibly even be free of the dull agony of the object that had been a fully working arm not too long ago. Blearily the Firebender stared at the spear so close to his eyes. His mind took him back to his two weapons: his double broadswords and his treasured dagger.

"Never give up without a fight," he murmured to himself.

You did fight, his thrumming head seemed to plead with him. You fought really hard.

Zuko's tired eyes closed. At the back of his lids he envisioned the hot sun or a warm fire. Unbidden, the image of Katara's face swam before his face. She wasn't glowing or smiling or even laughing. But there was that special look in her eyes: the one that could set the world on fire because she willed it to be so.

"Not hard enough," he answered himself.

Slowly he regained his footing, gripping the spear until the world stopped spinning and he found his footing again. Then, being mindful of his arm, he undid the sash that kept his parka closed. The wind was like knives running through his battered body. Gritting his teeth he looped the strong tie- Sokka had told him once it was made from the hide of a Tiger Seal; the strongest leather available to them- around the edge of his spear. He checked that the knot was tight, took up the lax end of the annoyingly short sash and began to pull. Mercifully the ice and its cargo followed him without too much effort.

Zuko had no concept of time as he slowly trudged back to the village. Soon his right arm began to ache too and after a while his limp was very defined but he did not stop. He could not stop; he wasn't sure he'd be able to get going again. He did, however, have to plunge the spear into the ice again twice on his journey. Those ten minutes were the hardest: it would have been so easy to just have crumpled to the floor and slept. He couldn't feel the cold any more but he could still feel his body; how it throbbed and ached and thrummed in symphonies of pain. But he managed to overcome temptation and keep moving. He managed to never let his stumbles turn into actual falls. He managed not to move his left arm enough to turn the dull ache into waves of agony again.

He managed – Agni knew how – to reach the village again.

He didn't realize he'd reached it until his head connected with the newly constructed wall of ice. His headache flared in protest with the contact but his tired brain took another minute or two to connect the high wall of ice with his own salvation. Shortly after piecing the puzzle together a shout tore through the air.

"He's back! Hey, hey guys! He's back!"

Zuko looked blearily around for the young boy, but the messenger had already scampered out of sight to bring the rest of the village so that they could judge if Zuko had passed the test or not. With fingers that fumbled from cold and exhaustion and pain from being rubbed raw by a leather sash Zuko clumsily undid the knot and messily tied the sash around his waist again, not caring that it was lopsided. Immune to the cold by then he quickly dunked his less injured arm into one of the barrels of Agni-knew-what and water that framed the gate to the village and wiped off the worst of the blood from him. He really didn't need to go in looking like he'd taken part in a massacre. Then he dragged the spear out from the ice almost blearily and then- with as deep of a breath as he could manage- he used the last of his strength to half raise the dead Polar Leopard onto his shoulder.

His entire body quaked with the effort at once but he knew he would only have to hold on for a few moments. A few moments and then the rest of the village would be there. Then he could drop the blastedly heavy animal at their feet, revel in his victory with an overly large smug smirk and finally, finally collapse somewhere. Sure enough it was under half a minute later when people came crawling from the village. The boys- for that was how Zuko saw them. Insignificant little boys- who had challenged him came out first. Their skeptic or smug faces bled into expressions of pure shock. Sokka came out next, saw Zuko's kill and let out a whoop that could have shattered glass. He pulled together a band of friends who swarmed Zuko and took the Polar Leopard from him, heaping congratulations and awed exclamations as they went.

Luck finally seemed to be on the Firebender's side as every one of the Water Tribe people who congratulated him slapped only his uninjured shoulder. And when his kill's weight had been equally distributed amongst eager, excited people the rest of his welcoming party surrounded him in a collectively proud swarm of bodies that half carried him into the safe haven of the Southern Water Tribe. And Zuko actually felt himself grinning slightly too. The excitement and awe of those around him as well as the loss of a very heavy load and the gain of heat made him feel quite a bit better. And then he found himself standing in the midst of the entire village while everybody inspected his very first proper kill and he felt some of the pain melt away as he was allowed to sag against a wall.

His challengers were varying degrees of sour, Master Pakku looked impressed, Hakoda looked almost proud of him, Sokka was ecstatic, Katara was murderous and…

Wait. What?

Zuko blinked a couple of times, not quite trusting his muddled brain. But when he looked again Katara's eyes were still spitting the blue fire he knew so well. She'd been the one to want him to go out hunting and when he returned victorious and wounded- not that she knew about the second part- she was mad about it. The injustice of it all stung almost as much as his thawing fingers. The content feeling disappeared from Zuko's midsection and he firmly looked anywhere except the Master Waterbender. He refused to sit through one of her lectures after everything he'd done for her. And people called him selfish.

As soon as he was sure everybody was engrossed in some other activity he made his swift escape. (Actually, it was more of a slow, painful wobbling retreat but nobody had to know that.) He half dragged himself into the room he was staying in and would have flung himself down on his sleeping mat if it was humanly possible for his body to perform such an action at that point. As it was he limped heavily over to the bundle of blankets and then just sort of collapsed, being sure to land on his right side. The impact jarred his body and for a few moments he was being washed over by waves of pain.

But the tide washed him out onto a sandy beach of only dull throbbing again and he was sure, as he allowed his eyes to close, that he had reached a paradise. He would stay there for as long as he could. And if Katara came to find him he would remain in his blissful position and half-asleep state of mind. He would let her yell and let all of her unjust frustrations out. And he would remain unaffected. He would not start yelling back or do anything else of the sort that would give her the satisfaction of conflict or- even worse- the knowledge that he was wounded and weak. No, he would remain utterly still. He was utterly calm.

The door to his room hit the wall as it was flung open.

"You are such a jerk!"

And with those five angrily spat out words his utter calm evaporated like a single drop of water in the desert.

"You don't get to be mad," he snapped at her, opening one eye to glare at her fuming form in his doorway.

Her eyes narrowed even more, her hands finding their accustomed spots on her hips. "I have every damned right to be mad!"

He sat up to face her and hid his moan of pain in a snarl of frustration. "You acted like you wanted me to go! If you didn't want me to go then you should have said something." He was highly irritated and more than just a little frustrated. He swore to Agni that if he'd gone through all of that for nothing… "You can't act like you want me to do something and not say anything contrary to your actions and then expect me to know what you're thinking or what you really want!"

Her brow knit together even tighter and her arms crossed across her chest; a sign of self-protection. "I…" Her voice was slightly guilty. "I did want you to go." She worried at her bottom lip with her teeth, the fight knocked out of her. "I know it's silly and… and barbaric, I suppose but traditions… And it's what I grew up with…"

Zuko wasn't listening to her pleading explanations or self-justifications. He was too busy glaring at her in exasperation. "Then what is your problem?"

The fight returned to her at once, her shoulders stiffening. "You took too long!" she yelled back.

He seriously felt like punching something. "I didn't know there was a time limit!" And then, louder, to prove his point, "Nobody told me there was a time limit!"

"There isn't!" she yelled back hotly, her arms still tightly crossed against her chest.

He just stared at her, starting to wonder if he wasn't having a fevered dream because, really, she wasn't making any sense. His exhaustion, the aches running riot through his body and his naturally short temper were nearly driving him to something drastic. Luckily his brain was too befuddled to come up with an action or phrase drastic enough to voice his frustration.

"What?" was the eloquent response he came up with instead.

Katara actually blushed. Then shifted from foot to foot. And, suddenly, she couldn't seem to look him in the face. "Sokka only takes about two hours. Four at the most. You were gone almost all day. And it was your first time out there. And it's really cold right now and I began to think… Then you just waltz in here without a care in the world after I've been stuck here all day wo-" She broke off abruptly, her face flaming.

Zuko honestly didn't know what to feel. "You're mad at me… because you were worried about me?" he questioned slowly, trying to catch up to the mysterious workings of her brain.

Her defensive, embarrassed huff was answer enough. He felt like facepalming himself.

"I can look after myself," he reminded her, less gruff than before. A lot less gruff.

She sighed and finally brought her gaze back to his. "I know. It's just… even you can't stay immune forever. And if something had happened… It would have been my fault. It was me who made you go out there, really. And I… I've been the cause of your injuries too many times."

It was at that exact moment that Zuko swore he'd much sooner have another round with the Polar Leopard than let her know that he was injured. Her guilt tasted like acid on his own tongue.

"You mother too much," he accused lightly, slowly lying back down in what he hoped was a casual manner. He didn't think passing out- a sure happening if he stayed sitting upright- would keep her convinced that he was fine.

"Somebody has to," she sighed softly, giving him a warm smile.

"What happened while I was gone?" In a city rebuilding itself with the help of new citizens who had immigrated from the north there was always an interesting story or five at the end of every day.

Katara launched into one such story, her eyes and hands animated as she retold it. He found that although he was slightly captivated by her energy her voice was oddly lulling. Before he knew it his eyes were closed again, his throbbing body and head trembling as it realized just how cold he really had been. But it was okay now. He was inside on soft, warm blankets. He didn't have to move. And if he stayed still for long enough even the pounding behind his ears would fade away to black…

"Zuko? Zuko! Are you even listening to me?"

Her words took an awfully long time to reach his brain. By the time he was struggling to open his eyes she had already started towards him, causing the first thing he saw to be her concerned face. He mentally groaned and was about to tell her he was fine when her fingers reached his forehead. Concern turned to mild alarm.

"You're burning up."

Can't be, he wanted to argue, I'm cold.

Her eyes narrowed and, a moment too late, he realized he must have said some of his thought out loud. Her fingers gently stroked his head in tender compassion before she rose and left the room. He was sad to see her go, but her absence meant he could finally get to sleep. No sooner had he thought it than she was back, armed with a fresh set of clothes.

"You have to get warm," she explained. He mumbled his refusal to move and she growled. "Zuko." Another mumbled, garbled 'no'. "Zuko! Take off your clothes!" she commanded.

Mildly he noted that every fantasy he'd had of her saying those exact words had been far better than the reality he was facing right then. When her cheeks and neck stained blood red he realized he must have said that out loud too. Oops. Good thing they were alone. She recovered from her embarrassment and reached down to help him up and get him undressed herself. Unfortunately rough hands plus injured arm never did make a good combination.

The Waterbender unknowingly moved Zuko's injured arm away from his body, and the Firelord was sure he was going to pass out right there and then. Pain ripped through him, leaving stars sparkling before his eyes and the desire to be disconnected from his body. Unchecked, curses poured from his mouth in shuddering gasps as he half-writhed and shuddered in pain. Vaguely he could hear Katara's alarmed voice trying to calm him, but he was too preoccupied with not puking on her shoes to really notice much. And then, suddenly, he found himself being flipped onto his unhurt side by strong yet gentle hands. He shuddered as the pain dulled and, after a while, felt the cool fingers stroking his cheek.

Katara's face swam into view, and her expression was a mixture of worry, guilt, murderous anger and pure anxiety. Seeing his return to alertness her mouth formed a thin line and she glared menacingly down at him. "What did you do?" Her tone left no room for lies or euphemisms or arguments.

"Shoulder," he sighed, defeated. "Leopard ripped it. Fell on it. Twisted ankle. Head hurts."

Katara's fingers lingered on his head, gently trying to smooth the pain away, before her hands disappeared. They reappeared moments later, covered in shining blue water. She attended to his shoulder first, gasping as she assessed the damage.

"You've dislocated it." She sounded disapproving: her coping method with the knowledge that he was in pain.

"Yo'cn fixzit," he sighed confidently.

He was rewarded by a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "You're going to have to keep it still for a few days."

He grunted his consent and the Waterbender worked her magic on him, mercifully easing the pain until it was a manageable throb. She then ran her hands over his torso and shoulders- an action he was too buffered by fever to even enjoy- looking for any other major injuries. She healed the worst of his bruising, mended the damaged skin on his right hand, tended to his ankle, and then helped him sit up so they could remove his wet clothes.

As tired and delirious as he was, he couldn't help but smirk at her as she began to undo his parka. She saw the look, blushed a deep crimson that reminded him forcefully of home, and glared at him. "Don't even think along those lines. You're sick and hurt."

"Right," he chuckled back, reveling in the warmth of her body.

"Ass," she growled, her red face and twitching mouth betraying her.

They managed to get Zuko redressed without any further incident and the Firebender collapsed onto the sleeping mat, fully intending to sleep no matter what. His injured arm was wrapped snugly to his side and he was warm enough to be comfortable, even with his still-present headache and the chills from his fever. His happy bubble punctured a bit, however, when Katara got up to leave.

"You can't go." He'd meant for it to sound commanding, arrogant and forceful. It came out rather pathetic.

Katara giggled. "I have to watch you until your fever breaks. But there's one thing I have to do first." She shot him a sarcastic smirk. "Don't die while I'm gone."

He was half asleep- already caught up in the half-memory and half-delusion of a fever dream- when she returned, dragging something with her. She draped the something around him gently, and the weight that settled over him was comfortable and promised a lot of warmth.

"You earned it," she explained in a soothing whisper, dragging him further back into sleep. "It's yours now."

Vaguely his fingers stroked his new blanket. As its warmth washed over him he realized his first assessment had been right, after all: the Polar Leopard had been, above all, extremely fluffy.

AN 2: Zuko on a hunting trip has always been at the back of my mind. I originally planned for him to go on one as a part of a multi-chapter I've had in my head for years. So if, one day, you see something similar to this in a fic I write you'll know why.

Again I ask for forgiveness for the utter lameness.