AN: Well this is my first fic in over a year. So I hope that you guys enjoy and I hope that I'm not too rusty. Oh and one more thing, Katara isn't naked when she's swimming. I guess she's in her underwear like she was in the Cave of Two Lovers episode. So enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its fantabulous characters. I do, however, own this plot.

---

She had been running endlessly through the labyrinth of the massive forest. Never once did she stop to rest. Her heart was racing wildly while the fire in her chest raged furiously. She was like prey on the run from her hunter. All coherent thoughts left her mind as the primal instinct to run flooded every part of her being. The image of the scarred prince's face burned vividly in her mind as she continued to press on. How could she have been so foolish to give in to the desires of her body? All she could do now was hope that she would find her brother and the Avatar soon.

---

His body was like a raging inferno as he ran after her. He was on a mad hunt for his prey and he refused to stop although his body begged to be rested. The sharp twists and turns of the forest made his hunt frustrating and difficult. He could still feel her cool touch on his lips and longed to feel her touch forever. He refused to loose her and pushed his body to continue running. How could he have been so foolish to let her go so easily? All he could do now was hope that he caught her before she found her way back to her infernal brother and the Avatar.

---

She could feel the heat getting closer. He was gaining on her. Her heart was beating faster now as she sensed the warmth. She was a panic now; wanting to turn around just to see how close he really was, but she couldn't, she knew she had to keep pressing on.

---

He could see her now, the familiar blue robe flowing before him. He pushed himself harder to close the gap between them and he was succeeding. With every burst of adrenaline her form became more vivid. She was just a sprint away now and he knew that he could catch her.

---

The heat was so intense now that she could no longer handle it. Her fear and curiosity got the best of her as she swiveled her head around. She had been ill fated from the start, for as she turned to see her pursuer she tripped over a gnarled tree root. Suddenly her world turned black.

He had seen her trip and although he was not happy that she was hurt, he couldn't help but be overcome with a sense of relief, for her little accident had been to his advantage. He rushed to her side and tried to wake her, but she did not stir.

---

It had been a wonderfully sunny day so Katara decided to swim in the lake they had found. It had taken a long time for her to convince her brother, Toph, and Aang that she would be fine alone. After reassuring them that she would be okay she headed for the pristine water.

The lake was absolutely beautiful. It was like a hidden gem amongst all the greenery of the forest. The water sparkled brightly as Katara entered the water. The coolness of the blue liquid refreshed her mind, body, and soul. It had been three days since she had last had a decent wash. She was thankful that they had stumbled upon such a beautiful and serene place. She plunged under the water, wanting the refreshing liquid to surround her. She had been waiting for this peace for sometime now and decided that she would enjoy herself.

---

The extreme sense of loneliness that comes with traveling alone was finally starting to set in for Zuko. Although he had regained some sense of who he was, Zuko still felt alienated from the world around him. He had been traveling for two days straight after he left that little Earth Kingdom town. He was ready to give up again, when all of a sudden he saw something glisten in the distance. He pressed on and soon found out that the twinkle was the bright sun glistening on a lake. He jumped off his ostrich-horse to tie it up when something suddenly caught his ear. It was a splash of water. Zuko quickly ducked behind a bush and peered out toward the water. It was a girl, a familiar girl, and one that he had seen numerous times before. She was the Avatar's waterbending friend. What was she doing all alone? Zuko continued to watch her, his eyes glued to the glistening jewels that covered her tan body. For a water peasant she wasn't so bad looking, in fact, Zuko thought she was rather spectacular.

---

Katara continued to frolic in the beautiful blue lake. She used her waterbending to form the water into various shapes. She truly was enjoying herself. Although she was having such a wonderful time, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. She remained calm as she slowly began to survey her surroundings. She scanned the left, front, and right side of her surroundings and didn't see a thing. She slowly turned around and was shocked when blue eyes met amber ones.

---

Shit! Zuko had been caught. He was too caught up in his stupor to make a move as a water whip moving at lightning speed came hurtling toward his face. Bam! Her water whip hit him square in the forehead and sent him tumbling backwards.

She jumped from the water and sprinted for the prince's hiding spot. He was on the ground and she immediately pressed her foot against his throat.

"What were you doing in that bush!"

A muffled groan escaped his lips and she pressed harder.

"Didn't you hear me?" she was obviously not pleased with Zuko's lack of a response.

Zuko recovered from the blow to his forehead and wouldn't take such abuse from this girl. He pushed her foot from his throat and sent her falling to the ground. She landed with a loud thump.

"Don't take such a demanding tone with me! I heard you the first time you idiot, I'm not deaf!"

Katara stared at Zuko, a glint of anger flashing through her eyes. "Well if you're not deaf then why didn't you answer me moron?"

Zuko shot her a death glare of his own. "How could I with your fat foot squashing my throat?"

Katara was pissed and tired of all the petty name-calling. "That's it, no more name calling. Let's settle this like adults. After I kick your ass you have to leave"

"Fine, but what if I kick your ass?"

"There are no what ifs. I'm going to kick your ass and that's all there is to it" With that said Katara wrapped a water snake tightly around Zuko.

Zuko stared at her incredulously. He was so furious that the heat he emitted turned her snake into steam. Now the fight was on.

Zuko sent two bursts of fire toward Katara, but she quickly put them. She quickly returned fire by sending a horde of icicles toward the prince. He had some trouble dodging the icicles for he was still worn out from his travels. Katara saw him struggle and knew that she had the upper hand. She didn't give Zuko time to recover from the barrage of icicles and lashed out with two large water whips. Zuko dodged one, but could not dodge the other and it knocked him onto his back. Katara seized the opportunity and sprinted toward Zuko. She was closing in on him when a sudden burst of fire nearly grazed her ear. Zuko sprang up from the ground and headed for Katara, fists aflame.

Katara was in shock from the intensity of the fireball that had barely missed her. With her feet rooted to the ground Zuko closed in on her. He now had her right where he wanted. As he approached her he sent a barrage of fireballs in her direction. They were coming dangerously close and she still had not reacted, any minute now and she would be burnt to a crisp. Snapping out of her stupor, she created a giant shield of ice and thwarted the prince's attack. When she lowered her shield, Zuko was nowhere to be seen. Now in a sudden panic, she looked around frantically.

Zuko had used her shield to his advantage and ducked into a near by bush. He would use the element of surprise to finish this battle off. Zuko silently left his bush when she fell into her frenzied state and tiptoed behind her. He was light on his feet and moved with ease toward her.

She was still in a panic. She didn't know where he was lurking and her heart began to pump wildly. In her frenzy she hadn't noticed that Zuko was now perilously close. Feeling a sudden chill down her spine, she turned around and was not so pleasantly greeted with the prince's oh-so-familiar scar.

He grabbed her by the wrists and hissed into her ear. "Take me to the Avatar and I won't hurt you"

Katara struggled against him. "Never you bastard!"

His grip on her wrists tightened and the pain only served to egg her on more. She kicked him in the shin and in the suddenness of her movements he let go of her wrists. With her wrists now free she took off running. However, she didn't get very far as she soon found herself on the ground. Zuko had tackled her to the ground and the two were now wrestling. He pinned her to the ground and once again blue eyes met amber ones. She quit struggling against him and just lay there as they stared at one another.

He was so entranced by the sparkling blue of her eyes. The feeling he had earlier as he was watching her in the water had returned. He longed to run his fingers through her long chestnut brown hair. He longed to feel her lips pressed against his. He longed to feel her touch against his skin.

She was confused. Hadn't they just been fighting? And now they were staring at each other, hearts racing a million miles an hour. There was something about his eyes that she could not find it in her to tear away from them. She saw longing in them and was frightened by what was to come.

Zuko couldn't control himself and suddenly found that he was closing the already small gap between them.

Her heart beat even more wildly now as she saw that Zuko's face was inching closer to hers. She didn't try to move, but instead she let continue to diminish the void between them. She shut her eyes tight as she felt Zuko's lips touch hers.

He kissed her slightly and pulled back a little. He was surprised to see that her eyes were closed and that her body felt relaxed. Relieved that it seemed like she wasn't going to hurt him, he loosened his hold on her and pulled her up for another kiss.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss between them. She hated to admit it, but she enjoyed this illicit act between her and the prince.

He was surprised that she had returned his kiss, but decided to just revel in the fact that he was sharing his first kiss with such a beautiful girl.

Katara had given in to the whims of her body and all logical thought had escaped her mind. In this moment of passion she had forgotten that Zuko was her enemy and her fingers through his hair.

Zuko needed to breath and pulled away from Katara. Unbeknownst to him, he had just made a fatal mistake. Now that their embrace was broken, Katara's eyes popped open and she regained control of her mind. She remembered now that this was her enemy and she kneed him in the groin. Zuko inhaled sharply and fell to the ground while Katara took off running.

---

Katara decided that she would weave through the forest to throw Zuko off of her trail. However, in doing so, she lost her sense of where she was and didn't know the direction of their camp. She was now running aimlessly, spurred on only by the knowledge that Zuko was probably not too far behind her.

---

Zuko had quickly regained his composure and took off after her. He refused to loose her. He saw her zigzagging through the forest and knew that she was trying to throw him off. He would not be eluded so easily and kept close to her.

---

And now, here they were. She was knocked unconscious and he was exhausted.

---

"Katara. Katara where are you?"

Zuko heard the familiar and annoying voice of her brother and the Avatar. Despite his lack of energy, he picked Katara up and threw her over his shoulder. He was not going to let them have her. Just as Zuko began to move, the Avatar burst through the trees.

"Sokka. Toph. Over here, I found Katara, but she isn't alone."

"What do you mean she's not alone?" Sokka asked as he also stepped through the trees. Sokka was furious at what he saw. "Put my baby sister down right now you pervert!"

Zuko thought about making a run for it, but knew that he wouldn't get very far with the extra weight. So he placed Katara down and took on a fighting stance.

"Let me have him Aang. I bet he's violated my sister" Sokka was seething with anger.

"I haven't done anything to dishonor your sister, you peasant!"

Toph had been near by and knew that she had to do something before Sokka hurt himself. She listened to the sound of the unfamiliar voice and sent a tremor in its direction.

Zuko felt the earth beneath him shake violently and he lost his balance. He hit the ground hard and lost consciousness.

---

Katara awoke to a sudden coolness. She was surprised to see that she was atop Appa's saddle and soaring through the clouds.

"Why couldn't you have just let me take him!" Sokka was still upset over not being able to have a go at Zuko.

"Because you'd probably be the one who's unconscious, not him" Toph retorted with a smirk.

"Well next time you'd better let me take him" Sokka pouted.

Katara shook off the haziness of her awakening and brought her fingers to her lips. Had she really kissed him, or had it all just been a dream?

"Are you alright Katara?" Aang's voice brought her out of her trance.

"Uh…yeah I'm fine Aang" She gave him a reassuring smile.

"Well that's good to hear and I'm glad that Zuko didn't hurt you"

"Yeah…Zuko" she whispered his name to the wind.

---

Zuko awoke to a throbbing headache. He could feel that he had been gagged and bound to a tree. He looked up to the sky, knowing that she would probably be somewhere up there. He searched for that familiar white speck and had found it. He watched as it grew smaller and vowed that he would find her again and that when he did he would never let her go.

---

AN: I hope you guys liked it and if you check out my profile it says that I'm open for fic requests or more like drabbles or one-shot requests. So take advantage of it if you like. Oh and I forgot to mention above this is placed after Zuko Alone if you didn't catch on to it. Ciao for now!