Chapter Text
It has been nearly a year and she hasn't seen him yet.
In that time, she found her mind wandering towards him. It started off irritated, annoyed that they had to constantly be on the lookout for an angry fire prince.
However lately, when the thought of him crossed her mind, it was filled with curiosity and musing.
Even now, while she walked the streets of the lower ring of Ba Sing Se, her thoughts turned to him. Was he alive? She always wondered, but knowing Zuko as well as she did, she knew he wasn't one to easily give up. Even in the face of death.
If she had one thing to admire him about, it was that.
Maybe he finally went home? Immediately, she tossed the idea away - there was no way he would have gone back without Aang. Considering everything he's done, like tying her up against a tree and following them to the North pole, she understood he needed Aang in order to return home.
Though why the Firelord sent his son on the quest to find the avatar when no one has seen him for a hundred years was something Katara couldn't understand. And quite frankly, it made her more sympathetic towards him, as weird as it was.
All this thinking was hurting her head.
And it didn't help much to think of the reason why she was out in the first place. She finally confronted Aang about his feelings and spirits , was it a conversation. She never wanted to hurt the boy but she couldn't force herself to return feelings she simply didn't have. The admission destroyed the perfect image of her he had but there was just too much on her plate to even think about a relationship at the moment. It wasn't fair to her to put her discomfort aside for his feelings.
And even if she did, a monk with blue tattoos wasn’t who she saw herself with.
She knows it'll take a while for things to settle, but she couldn't stand the heartbroken look. So Katara thought a stroll through the lower parts of Ba Sing Se would ease her mind.
Maybe even spoil herself with a new hair ornament. She doesn't even remember the last time she's done anything like that for herself. Ever since they left the south pole to face the world with, it's always been about taking care of them. And with another member who didn’t clean up was added into their team, it was starting to wear her down.
When her eyes landed on a tea shop, her thoughts scattered and only one remained. Tea was just exactly what she needed.
She slipped into the shop and perked up when she saw the empty booth furthest from the door. Sitting down, she looked around at the tea shop and instantly felt some of the tension leave her. The atmosphere was welcoming and it was clear the owner took great care of it.
Taking a moment to read through the menu in front of her, she mused over the odd-sounding tea names and their blends. Maybe she'll get the lavender lotus blend? Or the chamomile-
"Hello, welcome. Are you ready to order or will you need a moment?"
That voice.
Furrowing her eyebrows, Katara nearly huffed in irritation. She'd been thinking about the Firelord's son so often, she was starting to hear his voice.
And it wasn’t in her dreams this time.
Shaking her head, Katara trained her thoughts back onto the menu. There must be something wrong with her, if anyone knew she thought about the banished prince this much, they would call her crazy. Just as she was wondering if someone would be taking her order, the sharp intake of breath caused her to look up and immediately, she froze.
He was here , but that wasn't possible, right? The boy in front of her couldn’t possibly be him - this had to be an illusion. The sound of the cafe ceased to exist as she stared into the amber gaze locked with hers.
And when his eyes widened, she realized this wasn't something her subconscious mind was making up. It really was him.
"You're alive." She breathed out.
-
When he first walked into the tea shop, he was expecting it to be like any other time he's worked there. Nothing new, just a lot of annoying, irritating people praising his uncle's tea.
(He doesn't see the hype - it really is just leaf water. )
So when he walked up to a new customer, he immediately started playing in the role of a server. But when they didn't speak up, he held in a sigh and raised his head, only to nearly drop from shock as to who was sitting in front of him.
It was her.
The Avatar's waterbender.
She was here and he couldn’t but notice how much of her changed. Before he could further take in the presence of her, she glanced up at him and the only comfort he got was the surprised look on her face. And just when he would have done anything to prevent her from outing him, she spoke up.
"You're alive."
Immediately, irritation spiked up in him, momentarily forgetting his disbelief. "Death's going to have to work a bit harder to kill me." He stiffened just as those words left his lips, remembering just exactly who he was speaking to. But what made little sense to him was the way she had said it - there wasn't a hint of distaste, of anger. In fact, she sounded... relieved .
To his continued bafflement, she snorted, a smile tugging on her lips. "Of course. You're stupidly stubborn, your highness."
Was she joking with him? He was starting to wonder if she had hit her head somewhere when he saw the way she froze, her eyes going wide. Seeing her hand move towards her water skin, he raised his hands up in the universal sign of surrender. "Please, I'm not looking for a fight. My uncle and I only serve tea now."
He was mentally preparing for a fight even after what he said. Zuko didn't expect her to listen to him but for the third time already, she surprised him by slumping back into her chair, the fight draining from her.
"You're lucky I am in no mood to fight, Zu-"
"Li, my name is Li." He quickly interrupted, feeling his shoulder relax slightly. "Do you know what tea you want to drink?”
A few moments of silence followed his question and he rolled his eyes, annoyed that not only did she interrupt his boring morning but she wasn’t making his job any easier. “Anytime now would be great.”
He kept his gaze on her, satisfied when she huffed, shooting him a withering look. "I would like whatever is the most relaxing tea you got."
Nodding at that, Zuko gathered the menu and straightened up. "Uncle would know just what to give you. And..." He hesitated, glancing at her and wondering what could be causing the bags under her eyes, the defeated slump in her shoulders. Every time they've met, she fought with a fire that rivaled his. Seeing her this crushed... it didn't sit right with him. "We have a small table in the back and my break is coming up.” He heard himself say, his mouth speaking faster than his mind could keep up.
He saw her jaw slacken in shock and he quickly stalked off without waiting for her response. He doesn’t know what compelled him to say such a thing, why he cared about her looking so off. Shouldn’t he be celebrating, seeing the avatar’s waterbender in no mood to fight? He could easily overpower her then and force her to give up the whereabouts of the airbender.
At least, that’s what he would have been doing if he was still after him.
"Lee? What are you doing?"
Sighing, he turned to face his uncle, already on edge with her under the same roof as him. "We need the strongest relaxing tea you have. The Avatar's waterbender is here but we agreed to no fighting."
"Oh, friends! I know the exact mix and please, let her know it's in the house!" His uncle looked way too smug and Zuko scowled, not appreciating the twinkle in his eyes. Whenever Uncle got that look, nothing good came out of it. But thankfully, he left him alone after that.
Once again, his mind wandered towards the waterbender out there waiting for her drink.
Katara .
He was embarrassed to admit that he thought of her more than a handful of times during the months he hasn't seen her. One of the first things he recalled was how her bending was growing stronger each time they fought. Even his sister, a known prodigy, didn't master her bending as quickly as Katara has.
And Zuko would be lying if he said he hadn’t thought of her in the darkest of nights, under the security of his bedsheets. .
Grabbing the drink from his uncle, Zuko made the trip back to the waterbender, only stopping when he saw her stand up. He felt an itch crawl down his arms, knowing that if she were to attack him here, he would fight just as he had before.
"I think I'll take you up on your offer, Li," she stated, and Zuko nearly held his breath at the way she stared at him. It was clear she didn't trust him, but whatever was weighing her down must have been rough enough she was willing to spend some time with her supposed enemy.
It floored him, to know she willingly accepted such an offer.