Fall of the White Lotus [Zutara/Taang]

26 | Traitor

Music: Unforgiven, Two Steps From Hell

                       Minuscule beams of weak light peeked through cracks of molded wood that made up the belly of the pirate ship, gently highlighting the forms of the couple sitting in the far end of the prison cell. They were clinging to each other in an almost desperate way as all of their pent up emotions and the anxiety from the past twenty-four hours were poured into a quickly-intensifying kiss, their hearts beating as one.

It was when Katara crept even closer into Zuko's embrace that realization suddenly hit her. Her eyes shot open and she withdrew from the kiss, her irregular breathing forming small clouds in the chilly air as she stared at Zuko in alarm.

She didn't know if she only imagined the shadow passing over his face when she suddenly pulled back from him. His hands were holding her waist, his outstretched fingers resting against her lower ribs. They had been sending blissful waves of warmth into her body before, but now he was waiting motionlessly for her to slip from his hold entirely as his chest heaved with his panting breaths.

She couldn't, though. The thundering of her heart demanded that she return to his embrace and respond to the fire burning in his eyes. She only needed to lean in. A shiver went through her as she remained in his embrace, fighting her treacherous heart but also postponing the moment she would have to pull completely away.

To Zuko, it felt like a stab to the heart when Katara broke off their kiss, and the bewilderment in her eyes harshly jolted him back to a reality in which they were imprisoned in a dilapidated, damp pirate ship. As he tried to control his uneven breathing, he knew he shouldn't be surprised. He'd never expected her to allow him to renew the contact after she'd ended her chaste kiss. But she had, and now her eyes were roaming his face with a distinctly dreamy expression, while her hand was still entangled in his hair. Her mouth formed a silent 'oh' when she noticed and she started to withdraw, but she took her time as her fingers slid through his hair in a casual caress. Zuko had to muster all of his self-control to not pull her in again.

Kissing Katara had elicited a fierce and overwhelming sensation of belonging he hadn't expected to even exist, let alone hoped to ever experience for himself. And as he stared into dark eyes resembling the bottomless depths of the southern seas, he knew that this kiss had proven false any illusions he'd fostered about marrying Mai out of anything faintly resembling love.

He swallowed when her hand fell limply to her lap, where her fingers started to fumble with the frayed hem of her shirt, and Zuko considered her bowed head with dread.

"Katara..."

She looked up and there it was, clouding over her eyes - the confusion and embarrassment he'd been fearing to see. She bit her lip, and his heart grew heavy as he saw the waterbender he loved struggle to regain control over herself again. And that he loved her, he knew for certain now.

He wasn't so sure, however, if she reciprocated the feeling. Though it left his heart aching, he shouldn't rule out the possibility that the situation had made her temporarily forget herself when she kissed him and that she was now feeling horribly guilty towards Aang.

A bitter expression passed over his features and, as he reluctantly let go of her, he decided to help her out, as a friend.

"It's a good thing the Ember Island Players never found out about you asking Aang to kiss me," Zuko said quietly, not really trusting his own voice as he touched her hands in a comforting way. "I don't want to know what they would have done with that little piece of information."

Katara hesitantly looked up at this, and her lips involuntarily twitched at the dry remark which was clearly meant to cheer her up.

"I'm also extremely relieved that he didn't follow up on your request," he added evenly while warm encouragement shone from his gaze. For a moment it felt as if he'd been wanting to add, 'but I'm glad that you did.'