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Zutara Week: Family

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Zutara Week ~Family~
By ~theoncecagedbird

~~~~


Floor boards creaked under his weight as he paced slowly down another dusty, forgotten hallway.  One of many sleepless nights and a restless mind led him to his solitary wanderings.  Lost in memories of a much happier time, he turned the next corner and was confronted with a very real manifestation of what his mind had been recalling.  A family portrait hung on the wall in front of him, haunting him with happy faces and lost bonds… and lost love.  His fingers lifted of their own accord to trace the features of his mother, trying to recall her warmth, her smile, her presence.  He closed his eyes and turned away as grief gripped his heart.

His memories were fading…

The dawn was just beginning its pink flush on the horizon when she found him on the porch, legs swinging over the edge and head resting against the railing.  She'd heard him, or rather his footsteps, in the middle of the night as he walked around the beach house.  At first she'd thought it was Aang having another restless night, but when she'd gotten up to follow, she had passed Aang's room and heard him snoring behind the door.  Knowing the only other person that it could be, she'd returned to her bed without disturbing him.  After all, what could she say that she hadn't already said before?

His pacing hadn't stopped, and she had been listening.  All night the quiet creaks gave away the sleepless fire bender as he roamed the halls of a place he had once called home.  Unable to take it any longer, she slipped out of her bed and meandered her way around the house until she found him.

Katara still hadn't figured out what she'd say to Zuko when she found him on the porch of the beach house.  She didn't know what was wrong, and he wouldn't tell her, so how could she help?  The ocean breeze made her shiver in the predawn darkness as she sat down beside him.

"Katara, what are you doing up so early?"  Zuko asked without turning his head.  She could see the bags under his eyes.

"What were you doing prowling the house all night?" Katara inquired not unkindly, but ignoring his question.

"I don't really sleep well here I guess," Zuko said as he always did.  Shrugging he got up and offered a hand to Katara, smiling sheepishly, "I didn't mean to wake you up though."
  
Katara looked at his hand and let her eyes trail up to his.  For all the world he looked like nothing was wrong but an inability to sleep.  She stared at his face and thought, Maybe that's all it really is… but I doubt it…

"Why don't you tell me what's wrong?"  She asked, patting the floor beside her, indicating that he sit back down.  She watched his face carefully, to see if the mask slipped, if there was a mask there at all.  But he just stood up straight and gave her a curious look.

"I think you could still get some sleep, you know," he said, "The others won't be up for a few more hours…"  She gave him a steady look and Zuko sighed.

"I don't know what you're talking about, I'm just-"

"I do know what I'm talking about," Katara interrupted with a glare as she stood up to face him.  "Sheesh, you'd think that talking about emotions was the end of the world for you boys."

Zuko blinked in surprise at her outburst.  He hadn't seen the lethal side of Katara directed at him in quite a while.  But now, seeing her enraged over something like not telling her how he felt was almost… comical.  He knew that to laugh might spell his doom, but his shoulders were already shaking and an uncontrollable grin was spreading across his face.  Her eyes darkened and Zuko had to turn away from her face so that she wouldn't see his laughter.

"Why are you laughing at me?" Katara demanded, angry, confused, and a little hurt.

Seeing her distress, Zuko sobered and explained, "It's not you, it's just the last time you were this angry at me… it was a very different situation…"  Her brow cleared of its angry furrows.

"Oh, well, you know, I was just concerned and then you started laughing at me… I don't know," Katara huffed and plopped back down on the floor, leaning against the rail and letting the breeze cool her warm cheeks.  She heard the creak of the rail to her right and knew that Zuko was leaning against the wood too.

"I guess this place has too many memories and… reminders," Zuko said slowly, drawing a surprised look from Katara.  Meeting her look, Zuko shrugged again and faced the ocean.

"You asked," he said simply.

"You answered," she agreed happily.  Then she shifted again, wanting to know more, but not willing to bother him further.

"I remember how my family used to be, when I was little," Zuko continued, startling Katara, "We used to play on the beach.  My dad taught Azula and me how to swim…"  He saw Katara's stunned expression and smiled wryly, "Yeah, my father used to be a dad."

"My mom would play all sorts of games with us, and my parents would take turns telling us stories when the summer storms kept us inside," Zuko said with a distant voice, before he shook his head.

"But now it's all different… and when I'm here, I guess the memories get to me."

Unsure how to comfort him, Katara reached out and said, "Zuko…"

"But you know what's the worst?" Zuko asked, interrupting her, "The worst part is that the memories are fading.  Pretty soon, I won't remember what it was like to have a family that laughed together, that loved, that could actually, I don't know, be with each other…"  He threw up his hands in frustration and fell silent, his despair almost palpable.

"Zuko?"  Katara asked gently, but he didn't respond.

"Zuko."  She said more firmly and he finally looked at her.  "You do have a family."  He snorted and turned away again, but Katara wouldn't have any of that.  Again she rose to her feet.

"Look at me," she ordered, tugging on his sleeve, "We're your family now, your uncle is your family!"  She never thought she'd be giving this speech again, especially to Zuko.

He turned to face her with an impatient look on his face, "I know that."

"I don't think you do," she countered.  Then she softened, "Zuko," she repeated again, "What is a family?"

That threw him off.  He paused, trying to find the words to describe the meaning of a family, but Katara shushed him.

"That was a hypothetical question, Zuko," she said, smiling. He raised an eyebrow, but seemed inclined to listen.

"A family is when people forgive you, no matter what you've done.  When someone is willing to go through the trouble of cheering you up when you're moping.  And help you when you need it, or let you do something yourself if that's what you need."

"Sokka…" Zuko said quietly.  Katara smiled and continued.

"A family is someone who will tell you the truth, even when you don't want to hear it, and won't take your excuses.  They'll beat some sense into you if you need it… physically or verbally."

"Toph," Zuko said, making a wry face.

"A family has someone who'll keep you together, someone that helps everyone through their differences, and makes everyone feel welcome all the time."  Katara grinned, "Families also tend to have some pets, even if they're a little odd."

"Aang, Appa, Momo," Zuko sighed.  Then he quirked an eyebrow at Katara, "And families also have that one person who listens when someone else is being an idiot."

Katara shook her head, "Not an idiot, I think, just lonely."  She smiled, "It's easy to forget what you have occasionally."  Zuko nodded and turned to face the rising sun again.
  
"We may not be the kind of family that you remember, but that's okay, it doesn't make us any less of a family," she finished lightly.

They were quiet for a moment as they watched the sky turn golden.  Then Zuko chuckled again.

"We're one really weird family, aren't we?" He asked.

Katara made a face, "Speak for yourself Zuko."

"What?  You're part of the family too you know," Zuko smirked.

"Yeah?  What part?"  She challenged, her curiosity piqued.  Zuko appeared to think about it for a moment.

"In literal, familial terms?  As if we were blood relatives?" he asked.  Katara nodded, intrigued by their conversation, no matter how silly.

"Well, Toph would be my little sister of course," he said, counting off one finger, "Much nicer than Azula too…"  Katara pretended to shudder at the thought and Zuko snorted.

"Sokka would definitely be my brother, he picks on me too much not to be," Zuko continued with a smile, counting off another finger, and Katara laughed out loud.

"Aang can either be the kid brother or the dad, depending on what's going on…"  Zuko's eyebrows furrowed at the strangeness of that assessment but continued, "Appa and Momo are the weird pets you mentioned earlier, so that leaves just you…"

"The caring older sister?"  Katara guessed.  But it didn't sound right, even to her, and when Zuko shook his head, she wasn't surprised.

"No, I don't think you'd be a sister…" he said thoughtfully, "At least, not to me.  Sokka, Toph, and maybe Aang, but not me."

His statement stung a little, but Katara decided to make light of it.  "Don't tell me I'm the mom of the family," she said, grimacing.
  
But Zuko shook his head again, "Not my mom either.  I think everybody means something different to each person.  So you might be the mom or sister to the others, but that's not how I see you."

"So what am I to you?"  Katara asked, her heart picking up the pace in her chest.

Zuko met her eyes again for a long moment before he answered.

"An equal."

"What?"  Katara asked, confused and a little embarrassed.  It wasn't that long ago that he would have died before calling her an equal.

"I can't think of you as a sister, and you don't treat me like a child, so I think you're something more than that."  Zuko shrugged, giving his best explanation.

Katara arched an eyebrow, "And "equal" was the best word you could think of?"  She asked sardonically.

Zuko's smile was warm, but his eyes were unreadable.  "Give me some time, and I'll think of a better word to suit you…" he answered mischievously.

Heart hammering, Katara returned his smile and leaned against his arm, "I could help with that," she offered, a million words spinning around inside her head.

friend…

"I bet you could…" Zuko agreed mysteriously.

                                                                 …best friend…

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked nervously, not sure if he meant what she thought he meant.
                                                                                                                                           …wife

"What am I to you, Katara?"  Zuko asked suddenly.  Dawn was approaching and soon the others would be awake, but all the sudden, he was extremely curious about what the water bender considered him to be.  Besides, he wasn't even sure what he had meant, so he was changing the subject.

Katara drew back in surprise; she hadn't expected to be put on the spot like this.  She held up a finger, indicating that he should give her a second to think.  To calm herself…

"I don't really think of you as a brother either," she said, thinking aloud.  "But I don't think of you as a father type at all.  I mean, not a father to me, type."  She paused to gather her thoughts.  No, he definitely wasn't a father or brother… she had a father and a brother, two brothers if she counted Aang, so she knew that what she felt for Zuko wasn't the same.

"Not as easy as you thought?"  Zuko teased, trying to quell his intense curiosity.

"Shush, I'm thinking," Katara retorted.  What was Zuko to her?

"But I can't say 'equal' either," she mused.  "Not that you aren't my equal in a lot of ways," she corrected hastily when she caught sight of his expression.  "It's just that I don't think that word is specific enough."  

His bemused look spurred her to continue her rambling train of thought, "It's just that even enemies can admit that the other is an equal," she explained, with a pointed look at the fire bender.  Zuko held his hands up in defeat, and the sheepish look returned to his face.

"But we're friends, not enemies," Katara continued, "So I can't use the word 'equal'."  She shrugged helplessly, "I guess I don't really know either."

"We are friends, like you said," Zuko pointed out.

"Yeah, but friends doesn't feel quite right either, does it?" Katara asked.

"No," Zuko agreed, "But it's closer."

So what does that mean?  Katara asked herself.

"I guess it's one of those things that takes time to figure out," Zuko said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, I guess so," Katara said.  Zuko seemed content to leave it at that as he turned away again.  But Katara wanted to say something more.

"I'd be willing to take the time," she said, barely believing her own ears, "To find out what you mean to me… and what I mean to you…"

He froze for a moment before turning to her, several emotions crossing his face, foremost among them being disbelief.  "You would?" He asked, unsure.  "That could take a while…"

"I guess we'll find out, won't we?" Katara asked, suddenly feeling giddy and excited at the prospect.

Zuko grinned in return, "Yeah, I guess so," he teased.

The dawn broke over the horizon, as the two benders watched, content with a simple promise of time and answers that could wait until later.  Now, the moment was far too perfect and the understanding between them far too complete for either one of them to worry about a mystery that they could spend their whole lives answering.


After all, families wait for you, don't they?

~The End~
Zuko: Wow, how'd we get on that conversation? :?
Katara: I have no idea :|
Me: Sorry guys, that prompt was a beast, and this is all I could come up with ^^;
Zuko: So are you blaming the prompt...?
Katara: ...or yourself?
Me: Em... Both?
Zutara: :icondotdotdotzplz:

Yeah, I know, I know it's not very good. But I really want to start working on the next prompt, so this one had to be submitted and out of my hair first.
Anyways, enough of my late-night grouching.
HAPPY ZUTARA WEEK PEOPLE!!! It's going to be the best yet!
:icongrin--plz::iconzutaraplz::iconftwplz:
© 2010 - 2024 theoncecagedbird
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OMFG!!!! That was amazing!!