zutaraweek

[zutaraweek]

Announcement going forward: Due to DeviantArt’s loud stance on Generative AI and general mismanagement as an artistic community over the past decade, Zutara Week will no longer be hosted on their platform.

The continuation of our yearly tradition will still take place on our main socials here on X, Instagram, and Tumblr—but we are currently in the process of creating our own space to serve as an archive of all past works.

This is in hopes of having one central Zutara Week resource that the community can access without having to log in to our various socials!

Stay tuned for future announcements regarding this, and the upcoming Zutara Week dates for 2024!

Thank you all for sticking around!

#zutara #zutara week #zk week #zkweek #zuko #Katara #atla

[zutaraweek]

A very very late addition to @zutaraweek 🥲

Steam

[zutaraweek]

DAY 6: FORGE

They grow so fast⚡. So fast that it seemed like only a moment had passed since Katara first hugged and forgave Zuko to when Zuko proposed to her💕. Maybe it was just a moment, but that moment is worth a thousand years🌺. They forge their future together🔥.

By @starartist 🫧

For @zutaraweek ✨️

I was very busy during Zutara week, but now we continue with this.❤️‍🔥

[zutaraweek]

I want to extend my gratitude and appreciation for everyone who celebrated and submitted works for this year’s (very late) Zutara Week!

Plans are in the works for next year’s event, which will be held in the summer, for those of you who weren’t able to participate this year!

Thank you all, again! If we still haven’t reblogged your work, please @ this account!

[zutaraweek]

im late to the party & didnt get to do all the prompts

but i had to do this one. any excuse for me to rewrite this scene ill take lol

@zutaraweek / day7: forge

She isn’t certain how many times throughout the night she thinks this is madness.

But then his eyes meet hers and she’s set ablaze once more, burning passion that surges her forward, that keeps her pressing on. Through every encounter, through every moment, each one worse than the last. Until finally, after hours of travel, after a lifetime of waiting, she’s brought face-to-face with the man who killed her mother.

And even still, in the very end, she’s left unable to do anything at all. She wonders if that’s proof of her strength, or even her weakness. She knows Aang will be happy, perhaps even proud of her, and she can picture his gray eyes full of relief when he learns she did not take her revenge as she so desperately wanted. And truthfully, deep down beneath the surface of it all, she knows that would have been what her mother wanted as well. The last thing she’d have wanted was for her daughter to become a murderer just because of her. 

So, she’s done the right thing, yet she’s feeling strangely empty as they return to the place where they’d left their friends behind. 

Dawn is just barely breaking above the horizon when she slides down from Appa, who sinks into place on the shore for a well deserved rest. Katara makes a mental note to find him some apples to feed as her thanks for what he’s done for her over these last few days. Zuko turns her way when she pauses on the dock, but she waves him on, because she just needs some time to herself. And Zuko, somehow understanding her, nods, moving on towards the campsite, perhaps to carefully slip into his usual spot to sleep a few hours before their friends woke and found them returned. 

Behind her, she’s unaware that Aang of course wakes at once, and she’s also unaware that Zuko keeps him from coming her way- again, somehow his understanding of her needs is far greater than Aang’s or perhaps even Sokka or Toph. For that, she would someday be thankful. 

There on the dock, she sinks onto the edge, kicking her feet into the still blue water, unable to stare into her own reflection. She forces herself to think back through the memories of it all; her mother’s death, the pain of moving on… The anger, no, the hate she had felt for the man and the nation that had taken her from her. For her, the Fire Nation was nothing but evil, corrupt people with no regard for peace nor feeling. But then… Golden eyes appear in her mind and she looks up, surprised, her heart skipping a beat at the thought of the wayward prince. Somehow, Zuko had proven himself to be nothing like who she thought he was. Beyond what he’d done for her (not to mention saving her life more than once) he’d been fighting alongside them this whole time. And she supposes, it is easy to lose your way, to lose your faith… Hadn’t she just done the very same thing?

And who brought her back… Him. 

The sound of approaching footsteps alerts her and she looks up and over her shoulder, unsurprised to see the very subject of her thoughts standing there. Almost as if her thoughts had summoned him, he stands there with a sheepish look on his face, cheeks tinted red as he runs a hand through his hair. “Katara… I…” He says quietly, watching as she rises up to her feet, closing the gap between them. 

“You know…” She begins, shifting from one foot to the other, blue eyes rising up to meet gold. “I’m not ready to forgive that man for what he did, I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to,” she admits, thinking of the old man he’d become, unlike the man she recalled from her memories. “But I think I am ready to forgive you.” She reaches for him then, embracing him in a way she’s never embraced anyone in her entire life. Though he startles at first, she feels his arms wind around her waist a moment later, drawing her in just a tiny bit closer. He’s warm, she notes, warmer than she expects him to be.

A moment later when she’s drawing away, she can’t help but to keep a hand to his arm, giving it a tender squeeze. In this moment, they both know one thing and one thing alone: something new has been forged from this embrace, from this encounter together. Something stronger than steel, something neither of them has ever experienced before. 

It would be something everlasting. 

[zutaraweek]

Ahaha I missed zutara week again this year :'> I was way busier this week than I thought I would be. Thank god my prof moved the deadline cause ain't no way can I finish an animation by tonight ajskaidlsk anyways, since the deadline got moved I decided to take a break from it and draw some zk :>> happy zutara week!!

[zutaraweek]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender Rating: Not Rated Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar) Additional Tags: zkweek2023, Zutara Week 2023 (Avatar), Prompt: flow, Domestic Fluff, there is no dealing with katara, katara deals with you, Zuko takes a break, References to Comic Canon Summary:

Katara and Zuko have spectacular weekend plans. The only trouble is, Katara has neglected to tell her worrisome Firelord boyfriend. It’s surprise. Zuko doesn’t love surprises, but he does love Katara.

@zutaraweek

[zutaraweek]

Zutara Week 2023 - Day 7: Flow

This is my first time participating in a fandom week, let alone Zutara week, and I have to say I am humbled by the amount of people who have seen, read, reblogged, and liked my posts. You all are amazing, each and every one of you. Happy holidays that are approaching, and enjoy the final prompt from me for this event!

---------------

Katara calmly begins explaining the issues he’s been having, “Okay look, you’re approaching your problems like you would approach firebending, aggressively, and with passion. You need to slow down, and let the everyday motions flow more naturally, like water.”

She demonstrates the fluid movements briefly before resuming an explanation. “Each movement is somewhat imprecise while capturing the spirit of the intended goal. Even If you mess up the footwork, as long as you continue your body’s momentum, the world around you can adapt.”

Zuko responds in turn, “It doesn’t work that way with fire. It reduces everything to ash if you make one misstep. Even in politics, one wrong word might land you in an Agni Kai.” 

Producing a flame, he playfully tosses it from hand to hand, before lobbing it into a pile of dried brush. The pile is engulfed within seconds, producing enormous heat before Zuko extinguishes it with a meditative sigh. The pair look at one another in silence for several minutes as the sounds of the forest return following the brief interruption.

Katara leads Zuko to another location in the region, and later that day they arrive at a large earthen dam. It’s well crafted, with a shallow sloping embankment leading to a town below. 

“Look out at the dam there, Zuko. Do you think it filled with water in one night? It took hundreds of people months to build the dam, and months more for it to fill with the water that once flowed through the valley. It was a conscious decision to dam the river. Everything that burns, only burns with conscious intent if you’re a bender.”

She pauses, then decides to go on, “You treat life’s choices as if they’ll turn to flame and destroy everything when sometimes they’re like the water in that dam, slowly building to a point of beauty if only you’d let them.” 

The young man sighs, and turns to observe the valley before him. A stream in the great distance feeds the reservoir, leisurely flowing and providing the town with its storage of water. Beaches dot the man-made lake, while fish leap from the surface.

He decides enough is enough, “Okay. You want me to let my choices and emotions flow like water instead of hoping they don’t burn everything down? Fine, I’ll try it your way.” 

An enormous sigh predicates his determination as confidence flows through him, “I’m struggling in the Fire Nation. I thought everything after the war would be easier than fighting it. It isn’t. I need help. I can’t do this alone. You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Katara. You’ve driven me forward even when I’ve had my darkest moments. You’re strong, and let the world flow around you when I’m resistant and stand in the way of the current. If it weren’t for you I’d have broken years ago.”

He pushes his nerves away, now isn’t the time to stop his words, “Would you be willing to spend your life with me, be my Fire Lady? Help carve the future of not just my nation, but the world?” 

Katara smiles softly before replying, “Of course.” She pauses, “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for you to ask?”

She rushes to embrace him, feeling the passage of time stop, a brief interruption of the flow of time, as her oft dreamed upon moment has arrived at last.

If you like my writing, check out my other works over on AO3!

@zutaraweek

[zutaraweek]

Zutara Week - Flow

Zuko: For a long time, I've relied on rage and aggression but now I'm confident that I can have a more cooler head.

Katara: Yeah, Pakku told me that the best way to waterbend is not to beat a river into submission but surrender to its current while using its power as your own. Go with the flow basically.

Zuko: You know, that makes total sense. I'm sure you've heard that lightning redirection is the result of a firebender studying waterbending.

Katara: Which honestly sounds very unbelievably amazing.

[zutaraweek]

Day Five: Respite

Sometimes I think these two need just a respite from fighting with each other and the only way to get that is to shut their dumb mouths (this is kind of my Twist Me to the Left balcony scene reinterpreted)

@zutaraweek

[zutaraweek]

Day Six: Forge

The way the final Agni Kai ended in my heart

@zutaraweek

[zutaraweek]

I AM BACK AFTER 2 YEARS (OMG) ONLY FOR MY BELOVED ZUTARA

✨ This is my contribution for Zutara Week! 💜 ✨

day 6: FORGE 💋

Summary:

“The Painted Lady and the Blue Spirit are about to start action in the Ember Island to protect its people. Before the real action begins, the two talk to each other. Flirtation is inevitable. And one lipstick will be their red string.”

AU - Canon Divergence, Post- War

They are in their 20s

Maybe they already love each other, maybe they are already lovers or married - or perhaps they are simply partners! 🤷🏻‍♀️

hope you enjoy it! xoxo

@zutaraweek

[zutaraweek]

@zutaraweek day 6, forge: it's 1994. you are at a party. and then you see a girl. and your soul remembers something: listen here (17 songs, 1 hour 9 minutes)

i've been thinking a lot about older internet. namely, old 8tracks playlists. and i thought it'd be fun to harvest a little of that nostalgia to make an old school fandom playlist meant to be listened to in order with a storyline and annotations!

song list with links and annotations under the cut (and if you liked this one, you can check out my longer zk playlist here)

~House of Metal by Chelsea Wolfe (You put your love inside the metal/You build the metal for your house): Tui and La. Moon and Ocean. Yin and yang. An eternal dance.

~Here She Comes by Slowdive (It's so lonely in this place): It’s 1994. He’s at a party. He doesn’t want to be. He looks up. And there she is.

~Home Soon by Vagabon (I’ll be home soon): Something remembers.

~Cinnamon by Jome (It’s a slow cinnamon summer/Your spell is pulling me under): It’s the last year of the 100 year war. The summer air is thick. Her smile’s the same. And something is happening that's far too sweet as they tumble towards the end of the world.

~First Light by Hozier (Could this be how every day begins?): A realization. A secret. A wish.

~Flaws by Daughter: She holds him after the lighting tore through him, after she saved him, as they watch the sky turn blue. What do you say after that? Besides what you want to, of course.

~Neptune by Sleeping at Last (I'm only honest when it rains/If I time it right, the thunder breaks/When I open my mouth/I wanna love you but I don’t know how): A realization. A horror. A little dream.

~Country Rain by Slowdive (I know I shouldn’t care/But I wish you were mine): They part. Not for the first time. Not for the last time.

~Spanish Sahara by Foals (I’m the ghost in the back of your head): Even after years, that summer won’t let go. Even after the years, she's as familiar as breathing.

~Lullabies by Yuna (Though you weren’t mine/You were my first love): A confession. A soft one.

~Fire in the Water by Feist (Nobody should see this/The freeness of the light): Knowledge that is learned cannot be unlearned. But things are seldom simple for them. It's never been simple for them.

~Cherry Tree by The National (Can we show/A little discipline?): What do we do with it? What have we ever done with it? The tangle of their lives, ever so complicated, and ever so woven. Maybe it's dangerous.

~Earth by Sleeping at Last (But I put it out of my mind/Long enough to call it courage): Wrong place, wrong time. That’s what it is.

~Good Day Sunshine by Slowdive: It’s 1994-It’s the dawn of time-It’s the 100 years war-It’s a cave between two cities-It’s-It’s-It’s-

~Samson by Regina Spektor (I loved you first/I loved you first): At least they’ll know. In the knot of his scar. In the tips of her fingers. In the glances, the letters, the comfortable silences side by side. At least they’ll know.

~Welcome Home (Reprise) by Radical Face: Maybe…maybe. Maybe now.

~When the Sun Hits by Slowdive (As the sun hits, she’ll be waiting/With her cool things and her heaven/Hey hey, lover, you still burn me/You’re a sun): It’s 1994. She’s at a party. She doesn’t want to be. She looks up. And there he is.

[zutaraweek]

Zutara Week Day 5: Respite

These were actually meant to be part of a larger piece for the day 1 theme "Home", but... art was refusing to art (I have so many sketches and half finished pieces I started for ZK Week, but things were just not working). So instead, we'll use there peaceful family moments in the South Pole for "respite"!

Kya pops up the most in my art, but Kallik makes an appearance here! He's Zuko and Katara's second child, and only son.

♥ Please do not repost. If you like it and want to show people, share a link to this page instead. Thank you!

[zutaraweek]

This is my contribution for Zutara Week 😅

[zutaraweek]

Flow

Zutara Week 2023: Day 7

Read it on AO3 | @zutaraweek

The Fire Nation royal guards capture a spy near the palace, and with all his other family gone, Zuko is left to determine the consequences.

A spy was found at the western gates.

Father is gone right now, off meeting with some general or other at one of the outposts on the southern end of the Fire Nation. And with Azula out for a few days with her friends, it’s only natural that Zuko would be the next highest authority. That he is the only person the guards can turn to for orders at the moment.

Still, he feels small. He feels stupid.

As he hurries down the hall, he finds himself glancing sideways. The guard who first brought the news is one of the oldest in Father’s service, and one of very few who occasionally makes allowances for Zuko’s youth and ignorance. Not trustworthy, exactly, but at least not desperate enough for Father’s approval to make an immediate report if Zuko stumbles or asks questions.

“What exactly am I supposed to do?” Zuko asks, half hoping that his voice will be too quiet for the man to hear.

He isn’t so lucky. The guard looks at him like it’s strange that he doesn’t somehow find this both obvious and easy. “You’ll authorize the sentence. We all know the law when it comes to spies. Me and the other men just need someone to sign off on the execution.”

It may not be a complicated process, but the simplicity doesn’t make it easier. Zuko has never had this kind of authority before. He shouldn’t even have it now. Even if there is a spy here, even if his life is in danger because of that, he doesn’t think he can stomach an execution. Not at his hands. Maybe not at anyone else’s either.

His doubts only intensify when the doors open to a prisoner crouched on the floor and flanked on either side by guards. The spy—if she is a spy at all—is just a girl.

“Well, Your Highness? All we need is your order.”

Zuko thinks he might be sick. The girl is engulfed by long, dark robes, and her face is hidden beneath a broad hat and veil, but all the many layers of fabric don’t hide the fact that she is young. Smaller than him, and probably terrified. 

He can’t do this. He won’t.

“Prince Zuko?”

He swallows hard. He will not hurt this girl. And neither will anyone else, if he can help it.

“We don’t know why she’s here,” Zuko says a little harshly. Though he is the highest authority left in the palace today, he still has to tread lightly. “Spies don’t work alone. Don’t you know that? I’m not giving any orders until we have a better idea of what’s going on here. Understood?”

The guards seem briefly taken aback. They’ve undoubtedly heard the same tone before, but always from Azula or Father, not Zuko. But he steels himself against their shock and presses on.

“Did any of you even bother to ask her any questions?”

One of the men shrugs. “Of course we tried. She wouldn’t say anything.” He fixes Zuko with a stern look. “The Fire Lord doesn’t like us to waste our time on uncooperative prisoners.”

He could have guessed as much. Thankfully, Father isn’t here to give his opinion.

“Then don’t waste your time. If you’re so busy that you can’t question a prisoner properly, then leave. I can’t think of anything more important to do, so I’ll do it myself.”

The guards exchange glances, clearly uncertain. Even with Father and Azula gone, Zuko isn’t meant to have this type of authority. He isn’t meant to overrule the guards, but now that they’ve asked him to involve himself, it may be too late to push him out.

At least that’s what he hopes.

“Go on,” he presses. “Clearly your time is too valuable for this.”

The guards exchange looks again, and it’s all that Zuko can do to hold his gaze steady. He doesn’t have the ruthlessness to back up his bluster the way that Father and Azula do, and the guards all know that. They have to. He just has to hope that they aren’t willing to take any risks arguing with royalty.

It takes longer than he likes, but one by one, the guards retreat out the door, leaving him alone with the girl still crouched in the middle of the floor.  

Zuko exhales and rubs his forehead. Unless he’s badly mistaken, they won’t have gone far—probably no farther than the corridor—but that should be all the space he needs to think. To figure out how exactly he can hope to get away with letting her live.

She can’t stay here, he knows that much already. If the girl is still here when Father returns, she’ll be executed anyway. Which means that he’ll have to get her out of the palace one way or another. That should be fine. With the guards presumably watching the door, he won’t be able to lead her out through the usual corridors, but he knows the tunnels and passages under the palace well enough to make up for that.

The real trouble, he suspects, will be in convincing her to follow him in the first place.

The girl moves her head over so slightly, apparently looking toward the door. Probably calculating her chances of escape now that there’s only one person left to watch her. Not good, he knows. With her hands still bound behind her back, she can’t possibly overpower him, much less the men still waiting outside.

Taking a step back, he crouches, trying to catch a glimpse of her face beneath her hat. Then, when she jerks her head downward as though anticipating his curiosity, he speaks as soft and gentle as he can. “What’s your name?”

She gives a short, bitter laugh. “Just how stupid do you think I am?”

Though he knows she won’t see it, Zuko shrugs. “You were careless enough to get caught. I don’t know if that makes you stupid.”

With a sharp exhalation, she shakes her head.

Fine. That was a long shot to begin with. “Are you the same Painted Lady who helped all those people in Jang Hui?”

Though she doesn’t answer, she seems to stiffen ever so slightly. For him, that is confirmation enough.

“My father was furious when we got the news. Not that that’s anything new. He’s always furious about something.”

“If that’s supposed to be a threat, give it up. I’m not scared of you or of him.”

There is something familiar about her voice, but Zuko can’t immediately place it. Hastily, he shakes his head.

“No. That’s not—I’m not trying to threaten you.” He exhales, steadying himself. “What I’m saying is—Father isn’t here right now. And no matter what he says, I’m glad someone was there to make a difference. I’d like to do more myself, but there’s only so much I can get away with when the guards are looking over my shoulder every minute of the day.”

The girl neither speaks nor moves, but Zuko senses a shift in her all the same. It’s almost like she’s listening more intently now.

“The truth is—I don’t really care why you’re here. The law says that spies are supposed to be executed, and right now, I’m the only one who can approve that. But I won’t do it. I don’t care if you came here specifically to kill me. No one is ever going to die because of me if I can help it.” His shoulders feel lighter now that he’s said it, and in the wash of relief that follows, a burst of clarity breaks through as well.

He can’t kill for Father. He can’t hurt people for Father. And although he’s been fighting against the natural conclusion for a long time, he finally has to admit it. If he can’t do what Father wants from him, then there just isn’t a place here for him. One way or another, Zuko has to leave the palace.

It surprises him just how comfortable that realization feels.

The girl looks up, and for the briefest moment, Zuko catches a glimpse of her face. “So what are you going to do to me, then?”

For a few seconds, Zuko can’t speak. He knows her. Her hair is covered, and her face is streaked with crimson paint, but he would recognize her anywhere.

Katara.

He swallows hard, grateful beyond words when she looks away again. If he had to meet her eyes, he doesn’t think he would be able to speak at all.

“Nothing. I’m not planning to do anything to you.”

He can’t. The fact that it’s her doesn’t change that. If anything, it pushes him into action faster.

Mind made up, Zuko circles around behind her to begin loosening the bindings on her wrists. Though she tries to jerk away from him, Zuko doesn’t stop. “There are passages out of the palace. Secret ones. If I show you the way, no one will know you’re gone for hours.” And that, hopefully, will be enough time for him to decide where he needs to go too.

Unsurprisingly, she ignores his hand when he offers to help her up. There is enough hesitance in her movement that he suspects her legs have probably fallen asleep, but she stands as tall as she can, somehow an imposing presence, despite the fact that she only reaches the level of his nose. “Why should I trust you?”

Though the answer comes automatically, it still surprises him. “You shouldn’t.” Then, before she can take that as an excuse to flee straight into the waiting arms of the palace guards, he adds, “But everyone else here is willing to kill you. There’s nothing worse that I could do.” Again, he extends a tentative hand in her direction. “You don’t have to trust me. I probably wouldn’t if I were you. But since you are already here, it doesn’t seem like you have very many choices.”

For a few seconds, Katara doesn’t respond. Clearly she isn’t happy with the suggestion, but after a brief pause, she sighs. “Fine. Where am I supposed to go from here?”

⁂

The tunnels and passages beneath the palace seem smaller, narrower than he remembers. Zuko can’t be certain whether that’s because he’s grown since he last explored them or because Katara is there beside him. In any case, she stays closer by his side than he expects, probably hoping that the proximity will keep him from catching a clear glimpse of her face.

“Does the royal family spend a lot of time sulking around underground?” she asks after a few minutes of near silence.

Surprised, he glances her way, but all he can see in the darkness is the dim silhouette of her hat. Just as she probably hopes.

She’s bold, he has to give her that much. In her position, most people probably wouldn’t be prying for information. But Katara isn’t most people, and he can’t help but respect her boldness.

“We don’t make a habit of eating or sleeping down here, if that’s what you mean,” he says. “I haven’t been down here for a long time.”

“Then how do you expect me to believe that you know where you’re going? All these tunnels look the same, and the last thing I need is to end up stuck down here with you.”

The venom in her tone is unmistakable, and Zuko briefly wonders whether that would change if she knew that he recognized her. If caring enough to pull a former enemy out of harm’s way might be enough to earn him a scrap of trust.

Probably not, he decides. Katara doesn’t trust him, doesn’t have any reason to think his intentions might be good. Not after Ba Sing Se. No, right now, she probably thinks that his ignorance is the only thing keeping her safe. If he admits to knowing her, she will probably assume that he’s leading her into peril worse than what she faced at the palace.

“I have a good memory and a decent sense of direction,” he answers. “I was down here enough times as a kid to find my way out again.”

So long as Father hasn’t locked off the more obscure sections of the tunnels in the past three years, that should still be true. Even this far below ground, he can still feel the direction of the sun, and it isn’t difficult to keep himself pointed toward the exit in the western forest.

Sure enough, he finds his way to the long, narrow passage that stretches out beneath the entire city, and though Katara hesitates, she follows him around the corner.

“Where exactly are you taking me?” she asks, her tone more uncertain than before.

He can’t blame her for that. While the rest of the tunnels are more or less smooth and deliberate in their construction, this section is entirely rough-hewn, looking more like a natural cave than anything else.

“Out of the city.” He doesn’t know if she’s familiar enough with its layout for a more detailed explanation to mean anything to her, but he studies the contours of the blackened stone around them all the same. “We should be coming close to the rim of the caldera by now. The tunnel feels a lot longer than it is, but it's pretty much a straight shot from here.”

By the flickering light of the flame hovering over his hand, it’s difficult to judge her reaction, but it seems reasonable enough to guess that she is neither pleased nor entirely convinced by that answer. Still, she hasn’t tried to flee from him yet.

“Why are you doing this?” she presses after a pause. “Those guards know that I was here. When they find out that I’m missing, they’ll know it was because of you.”

Her voice positively burns, and Zuko wonders whether it’s anger or fear or something else entirely. Whether she thinks that he means to harm her or not.

Since there is nothing he can say to convince her otherwise, he doesn’t try. Instead, he focuses on her last sentence.

“I know that. And I’m sure those three will spread the word to everyone else.”

“So what happens to a member of the royal family who—loses a prisoner?”

This time when he glances her way, he finds her face tilted upward, and her blue eyes pierce straight through to his core. His breath catches briefly in his throat. Can she really believe that he doesn’t remember her?

“Execution, probably,” he says, forcing his eyes forward again. “I don’t think it’s ever happened before, but aiding a spy is definitely considered treason.”

“And—wherever you’re taking me is somehow worth that?”

“I don’t plan on getting myself killed, if that’s what you’re saying.” He has to duck ever so slightly to pass beneath a low-hanging rock. “The guards can’t do anything to me on their own. Only a higher royal can punish the crown prince, and Father isn’t supposed to be back for three more days.”

From the corner of his eye, he watches for a reaction. Sure enough, Katara stiffens slightly, apparently recognizing the significance of the date.

“They don’t tell me much if they can help it,” he continues. “But it sounds like there’s a solar eclipse coming, and Father wants to be here in time to face the Avatar if he shows up.”

She stiffens again, but this time, it isn’t just a slight change in her posture. This time, she stops walking entirely. She probably thinks that the Avatar’s plan to take advantage of the eclipse is a secret. She’s probably been hoping that a combination of surprise and the lack of firebending on that day will be enough to bring the city to its knees. He has probably just broken her hopes for a quick end to the war.

If that keeps her and her friends from running blind into battle, though, he sees nothing wrong with puncturing that particular hope. It’s better if she and her friends don’t run headfirst into a fight they can’t win.

After a considerable pause, Katara composes herself enough to press on, apparently hoping that he won’t notice her distress. “So what are you planning to do, then?”

“Then—it doesn’t really matter.” He angles his shoulders just enough to hint that he’s ready to keep walking as soon as she joins him. “I’m not planning to be here on the day of the eclipse.”

“What?” Her composure cracks again, and she jogs a few steps to catch up. “What is that supposed to mean?”

He hasn’t thought about it long enough to have a real plan yet, and still somehow, the words come of their own accord.

“I shouldn’t have come back here in the first place,” he begins, trying his best not to look her way. “Being home is nothing like I hoped, and I really should have seen that coming. But I didn’t, so—” He exhales, long and slow, to steady himself before he can continue, and the flame hovering over his hand swells. “I guess it's lucky that Father isn’t in the city right now. Even if the guards are sending him a message about how I’m up to no good as we speak, he couldn’t get back to the palace before this time tomorrow. At least that gives me a little time to pack and get out.”

Katara doesn’t respond immediately, and emboldened, he goes on.

“I’ve been thinking about the Avatar recently. About how if he’s planning to face my father on the day of the eclipse, he probably hasn’t learned any firebending yet. And—maybe if I could find a way to warn him and his friends, he might change his mind. Maybe he’ll decide not to take on a fight he can’t win.”

“And then what?” Bitterness has taken root in her voice again, and her footsteps grow more forceful. “The only alternative he would have is learning firebending. Who’s going to teach him that? You?”

“I could. If he and his friends would let me.” He chances a glimpse in her direction. “I’ve made my share of mistakes, but maybe I could try to make things right that way.”

Katara scoffs quietly, and for a second, he almost believes that she’s put the pieces together. That she knows he recognizes her and is trying his best to make amends in the only way he can. But then she squares her shoulders and keeps her eyes fixed straight ahead. “I’d think of a backup plan if I were you. Most people with sense aren’t going to want anything to do with a Fire Nation prince.”

“I know that. But I’m sure most of my own people will want me dead by this time tomorrow, so I might have to take my chances anyway.”

It’s difficult to tell whether some part of her believes him, or if she’s simply done talking, but in either case, Katara goes quiet. And although the tunnel stretches on longer than he remembers, though the tension in the air grows almost unbearable at times, Zuko has little choice but to do the same. He's said his piece for now. If she doesn’t believe him, no amount of words is likely to change her mind.

When at last they reach the door to the outside world, he allows the flame to blink out and throws all his weight, all his strength into opening the latch, then sliding the immensely heavy door aside. Though the sun has dipped below the horizon, the light that spills into the tunnel feels almost blinding. It takes a few seconds of blinking before his eyes adjust, and he finds Katara still beside him, blinking against the brightness.

When her eyes seem to adjust, Katara shoots a wary look his way before venturing out into the balmy evening air. Zuko, meanwhile, doesn’t dare to go much farther.

“What are you playing at?” she demands, whirling back to face him once she’s well out of his reach. “I know who you are. Don’t pretend that you’ve secretly been on the right side all along.”

She still doesn’t think he knows her, that much is clear. Zuko sighs. “I haven’t been on your side before. Not deliberately. But now—people change their minds sometimes.”

A scoff. “Well, then good luck convincing the Avatar and his friends that you’re not faking this change of heart. If you’ve changed your mind once, you can do it again.”

As she begins to turn away, to make her retreat into the forest, an odd sense of calm and certainty comes over him. Even in the face of her anger and mistrust, his decision solidifies. He’s leaving the palace soon. Before the end of the night, if he moves quickly enough. And when he does, beside her is precisely where he wants to be.

“Katara.”

She freezes in her tracks.

There are a million things he could say, a million that he wants to. But every question, every apology dies on his lips when she turns back far enough for him to see the blank space at the hollow of her throat.

“I don’t know if you were wearing your necklace when you got captured this time,” he says. “I need to go back long enough to pack up some supplies, so if you’ve lost it, I can try to bring it back to you.”

Her hand flies up to her neck, and even under the veil, he sees her eyes widen.

“I am leaving home,” he adds, his voice both softer and firmer than before. “And I do want to help. I’d like that to mean working with you and the Avatar to end all the fighting, but if you won’t have me, I’ll find another way.”

She is quiet long enough for him to step back into the dark of the tunnel, long enough for him to take hold of the latch and start hauling the door closed again.

Long enough for him to nearly miss it when she says his name.

“Zuko—don’t waste your time.”

He freezes, heart sinking clear down to his stomach.

But Katara isn’t finished. “I left my necklace back at camp. Don’t put yourself in danger looking for it.” And with that, she turns away.

[zutaraweek]

Zutara Week 2023: Respite

quiet moments after a long day of maintaining the balance of the world

inspired by @ 宣hsuan on weibo/@ hhsuan616 on twitter (i would link their art but they’ve since removed the post!)