Oh this wild, wild love of ours,
It can't be tamed.
For better or worse,
A blessing or a curse,
Long live this wild, wild love…

1. I WISH I COULD SAY THAT I WAS THE ONE WHO FOUND HER. That's how the stories are supposed to work, right? It's always the boy who meets the girl, not the other way around. She's supposed to be standing there, looking forlorn, and I'm supposed to go up to her. I'll embarrass myself in some way, she'll not like me at first, or she will like me but she'll have another man, or she'll be a spirit and I'll be some sort of god taking human form for a day, or something like that. All of those cheap romances tend to blend together after a while.

The point is, though, that I was the one who was supposed to find her. I'm the prince, she's the peasant, and that's just how the formula works. Only this time…it didn't.

No, she found me. She found me, alone, back against a wall, trying to enjoy a smoke in peace and quiet. And, you know, I wouldn't have it any other way.

It was high summer, the fourth year of my exile. I was…oh…twenty-two, as of the recently past spring. Despite the time of year, the weather was cool, the air light and soft. The sun hung high in the sky, warm but not overpowering. The snows had receded, and the world was a blinding shade of emerald green, the smell of fresh grass mixing with the salty tang of the sea to form a heady mix that left my mind feeling soft and refreshed. We had arrived early that morning, as the sun spilled out over the horizon and turned the world a thousand shades of purple and gold. I had decided to stay for a couple of weeks, to give my crew some well-deserved rest and relaxation. The village elders, such as they were, had agreed whole-heartedly. Our relationship with each other had grown strong and mutually beneficial, and they were as eager for what we could give them as we were for what amounted to a small, hopefully happy vacation. After three months at sea, we were ready to a break.

That's how I came to be there, in that spot in the shade. I needed some fresh air, a smoke, the chance to lay my head against an anonymous wall, close my eyes, listen to the world slide by. There had been some formalities, of course, and various chores. My crew had to be seen to, billets had to be found, my ship's stores had to be emptied of the trade goods we had brought, the tobacco and the liquor and the manufactured goods that this rural tribe simply couldn't make for themselves. There was an official welcoming ceremony, and a ritual passing of a peace pipe, and a ritual toast to everyone's good health. It was nothing onerous, of course; these were a simple people, who had no time for the elaborate niceties that I had been raised in at home. Finally, though, I had, quite simply, had enough. At the earliest opportunity, I turned everything over to my uncle and Captain Fujita and wandered off alone.

I walked aimlessly through the village, letting my feet guide me. I was dressed simply, and carried no weapons, and few seemed to pay me much heed. I had long since stopped being a curiosity, and become, instead, a fairly familiar sight. I knew many of the people I passed, if not by name, at least by face, and more than once I stopped to chat idly with casual acquaintances. I spoke Suomi fluently, and there was no barrier in communication. There were few men my age, but I still found people to talk to. There was even one girl, barely sixteen or seventeen, who flashed a shy grin and coyly asked if I wanted to come inside her house, for, well, tea. I politely declined. She was pretty, and I was lonely, but such casual relations simply weren't my way, and besides, that wasn't what I was looking for, that particular afternoon.

It wasn't until I started to enter the edges of the village that I finally found the spot I was looking for. It was perfect, a random shed, seemingly unattached to anything, standing alone in the sun. It was even angled just right, so that one wall was shrouded completely in shadow, but still allowed me to look out towards the grass beyond the last houses of the village, off into the rolling hills that seemed to stretch off forever, until they faded into faraway mountains, sharp peaks shrouded by the distance. I settled down there, resting my head back against the wall. It was, like I said, cool, and the grass beneath me was soft and slightly damp, but not enough to be uncomfortable. I reached into my pocket, pulled out a crumpled pack of cigarettes. I slipped one out, stuck in my lips, laid the pack on the ground beside me. I lit the cigarette with a snap of my fingers, bending a small flame from the tip of my thumb. I took a long, deep drag, sighed with pleasure as the sharp bite of the tobacco shivered through my veins. I let the smoke slowly curl from my mouth and my nostrils, closed my eyes, and felt at peace. I allowed myself to drift away, floating up and about with the swirls of the smoke, the sound of sighing grass and tittering birds overwhelming my senses.

No doubt I would've dozed off if she hadn't found me.

"Fakku shite mimasen ka?"

I opened my eyes, such as I could. The words filtered slowly into my brain. I'd be lying if I wasn't a little confused. I hadn't heard my native tongue said in a feminine voice in quite some time, and even then, there was no reason for someone to say that. The confusion was strengthened by the fact that the words were said in the most gods-awful, mangled accent that I had ever heard. I looked up, unsure what to find, and blinked in surprise.

There before me, looking down, was the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. She was Water Tribe, of course, with dark skin and long, dark brown hair falling down to the small of her back. Her eyes were the deepest blue I'd ever seen, matching the medallion at her neck, which seemed to drink in the light of the sun. She was tall for a girl, it seemed to me, thin and fit, and was dressed in standard Water Tribe summer attire, light fabric tightly fitting her curves. She had her hands behind her back, and she was leaning down, looking at me with an expectant glimmer in her eyes.

I won't lie, I gaped for a few moments. She, quite simply, took my breath away. What she had just asked me didn't help matters much. I reached up, ran some fingers through my hair, turning my head slightly so that she was fully in view of my good eye.

"Um…what was that?" I asked in Suomi, my tongue thick in my mouth. I swallowed hard, trying to get some moisture back in my throat. I instantly felt flustered and nervous, like I always did when pretty girls talked to me, or, at least, pretty girls that I wanted to talk to me.

She moved her hands to the front, crossed her arms at her chest, tilting her head and sighing in what seemed like exasperation. "Ugh…I didn't say it right, did I?" She took a deep breath, nodding her head up and down as she mouthed the words, before she said, with great emphasis and care, "Fakku shite mimasen ka?"

I felt a blush creeping up my neck. I fought it down, shaking my head in a vain attempt to get my wits back. I was trying hard not to laugh, but I did manage a smile. "You…who taught you that?"

She sighed, straightening herself and casting an ugly look back towards the center of the village. "My idiot brother. He fancies himself a man of culture, which is funny, considering he can barely write his own name."

I nod, realization dawning on my slowly. "Ah…I see…mind if I ask what he told you that meant?"

"He told me it meant, How are you doing today?" She chewed her lip for a moment, before reaching up to pinch her nose. "That's totally not what it means, is it?"

I shake my head, fighting hard against the chuckle building in my chest. "No, it's not."

She looks up at the heavens. "Dare I even ask what it actually means?"

"Heh…do you really want to know?"

She looks back to me. "Might as well, so I know exactly how badly to pummel his ass when I get back to the house."

The laughter is growing stronger, hot and fierce inside me. It's becoming harder and harder to resist. I really don't know how much longer I can last. "Well…basically…you just asked me if I want to…well…get to know you."

Her mouth drops open. "You mean to say…I basically just asked you if you want to fuck me?"

I'm completely lost now. The giggles are spilling out in short, sharp barks. I don't even know why I'm bothering to fight it. I nod my head, a fist pressed to my lips, as I try to shake the laughter away, to no avail. I feel my face growing hot and warm, and I just know she's going to stomp her feet and storm away and never speak to me again, and I don't want that, I don't know why I don't want that, I just know that…well…what do I know? But the situation is too silly, and the look on her face…oh, Agni, the look on her face…

Any other girl would've turned on her heels and stormed off, just as I feared. But her, in that moment? What did she do? A faint smile curls across her face as she tilts her head, a strange gleam in her eyes.

That's when I knew she was unlike any girl I'd ever known…

"You enjoying yourself?" Her voice is light, amused.

I shake my head, still fighting the giggles. "Not really, no, I mean, but…yeah, I guess so…" I rub the back of my neck. "It's just…if you could see your face right now…"

She giggles. It sounds like wind chimes softly ringing at sunset. "Yeah…I can see that." She giggles again, a short, soft snort, then reaches up to brush a few stray strands of hair off her face, tucking them behind her ear. "Well, if you don't mind, I think I'm going to go kill my brother now."

I don't know where the words come from, just that they, well, they spill out. I'm reaching towards her, gesturing at the spot to my right, and this strange voice I barely know is saying, "Well, um, that's cool, but if you want, you can, um, sit down next to me and, um, we can plot your revenge or…something…"

Her smile grows wider, and the gleam in her eyes grows stronger. She nibbles lightly on her lip. I'd be lying if I tried to say that I didn't swoon a little bit when she did that.

"Well, seeing as it is what I came over her to do…" She shrugs. "Not the revenge part, just the, well, sitting down and getting to know you part." She steps forward, stops, points to the spot on my right I've just waved at. "Right side, right?"

I nod. "Yes, if you don't mind."

She nods, steps forward, and settles down next to me, copying my pose as she lays her head back against the wall behind us. She takes a deep breath, lets it out, and says, "You know, it's not that bad."

I turn to her, blink. "What isn't?"

She points at my face. "Your scar. It's really not that bad."

Instinctively, I reach up, brush my fingers along what was once my mark of shame, of pain, of dishonor. I shrug. "Yeah, I know."

She arches an eyebrow. "Then why do you always ask people to stand on your right? I mean, I've watched you with your crew. They always move to the right to talk to you."

I lay my head back against the wood, finishing the cigarette in my fingers and tossing it away. "It's not because I'm insecure or anything, it's just that…well…I'm blind in my left eye." I take a deep breath, let it out. "The…the accident…well…it didn't do wonders for this side of my face." I reach up, tap my withered left ear. "My hearing is kind of messed up in this ear, too, so it's just easier if people stay to my right."

She nods slowly, taking this in. "That must get frustrating."

I shrug. "Not really. You get used to it, after a while." I shake my head, smiling. "You can get used to anything, after a while, if you put your mind to it."

She smiles back at me. "Or maybe you're just stronger than you think you are."

I turn away before a blush can sneak up and betray me. I cough into my hand, trying desperately to get the butterflies under control. "You know," I say, a strange, tingly sensation creeping into my chest, "you're already beautiful, you don't need flattery to keep me talking to you."

She scoffs. "Well, you're one to talk, throwing around a word like beautiful."

I turn back to her, face serious. "It's not flattery if it's true."

I expected many things at that moment, none of them good. That's a bad habit of mine, to over-think things, to always expect the worst. I fully expected her to slap me, to stomp off, to go grab her brother and bring him and his friends back to kick my ass for my forwardness. At the very least, I expected her to roll her eyes and call out my lame-ass attempt at flirtation for what it was, the lame efforts of an ass.

But she did none of those things. She did the one thing I wasn't prepared for.

She blushed, and she smiled, and she swallowed a soft giggle…

The strands of hair had snuck back out from behind her ear. Hurriedly, as if to cover up her own fluster, she reached up and put them back in place. I found myself wishing that they would slip out again, so I could have a chance to put them back behind that ear myself. We turned away from each other, facing forward, trying to regain our composure, and ruining it by catching each other sneaking glances out of the corners of our eyes. Finally, I cleared my throat and said, "You're…um…Sokka's sister, right?"

She nods. "I am, indeed."

I chuckle. "You know, you really do need to go kick his ass. The chief's son shouldn't be playing those kinds of tricks on his little sister."

"Little? I'll have you know that I'm twenty-years-old, mister."

I turn to her, fear of disappointment clutching my heart. "Wait…twenty? So…umm…" I find my eyes drifting down to the necklace. "You're not…umm…married, are you?"

She giggles. "No, silly, I'm not." She touches the necklace. "This was my mother's, and her mother's before her. It's…kind of a family heirloom, of sorts." She shakes her head, smiling. "What, you think someone who was married or, at least, betrothed, would come sit down at the edge of town and flirt with the dashing Fire Nation boy every girl in the tribe lusts after?"

"Heh…I doubt they lust after me." I hook a thumb back down the way I had come. "Though, I'm pretty sure a girl who was at least betrothed propositioned my not a half-hour ago."

She sighs, clucks her tongue. "Oh, yeah, tall, skinny girl, well endowed, hair a lot lighter than mine?"

I nod. "I take it she has a reputation?"

She giggles. "Well, you know, every village needs a few ornaments. You know, the idiot, the beggar, the crazy old guy and/or crazy old lady…"

"…the village komodo-rhino…"

She looks to me, laughter in her eyes. "The what-now?"

"You know, the village komodo-rhino, because everyone's had a ride."

She pokes me in the side. "That's good, I like it. But yeah, that's her. Steer clear." There's a short pause, and then, "So…what is…umm…what's your language called again?"

"Nihongo."

"Ah, right. So, what is the way to say, How are you doing today?"

"Kyō wa ogenkidesuka."

She furrows her brow. "What was that again?"

I say it again, and again, slowly walking her through it. She's a fast learner. Her pronunciation is still subpar at best, but she works hard, making me talk her through each step, inflection, and even tongue movement. I can tell that, with a little bit of practice and some regular lessons, she could gain at least a rudimentary mastery of my native language fairly quickly. As soon as that realization popped into my head, a crazy idea came running in right behind it.

"So," I asked, picking my words carefully, "are you interested in learning my language?"

She nods. "Actually…yeah, I am. I'm just interested in learning things in general, and languages in particular. I mean, I know it's the language of the enemy, but…it's also the language of you and your crew, who've become…well…our friends." She smiles. "And it's such an interesting-sounding language. I just…I'd like to learn more." She sighs, rests her chin on her propped-up knees. "Hell, I'll settle for learning how to read at this point."

I round on her. "You don't know how to read?"

She makes a face. "Not really, no. There's not much…well…formal schooling down here, not for a long time, and there wasn't much to begin with, before the war. The North is where all the civilization is, to tell you the truth, and even there, according to my grandmother, women aren't encouraged to learn to read and write." She turns to me. "It's not like that where you come from?"

I shake my head. "Not at all. I mean, it was different for me, because I come from the upper class, but at least there, women are expected to be just as educated as the men." I reach back, rub my neck. "In fact, if you like, I could…well…teach you."

Her face brightened like the sun, and my heart did a somersault in my throat. It was the most beautiful smile I'd ever seen, and I knew then that I was lost, that I would do anything, anything at all, to see it again.

It was right then that I realized that I had a major crush…

"You would do that?"

I bowed my head. "It would be an honor." I hesitated for a moment, but then stuck out my hand. She stared at it, before slowly taking it in hers. Thank the gods she took the lead in the shaking, because I was awkward as hell at it. The clasping of hands is definitely a Water Tribe custom; we stick to a complex system of bowing in the Fire Nation.

"I'm Zuko," I say.

She giggles. "I know. Everyone knows that."

I shrug. "Yeah, but still, I felt that I should…well…formally introduce myself, you know?"

She nods, then releases my hand. She reaches down, snatches the pack of cigarettes from the ground, and pulls out two. One she hands to me, and the other she sticks in her own lips. She leans forward, playful expectation in her eyes, as I snap my fingers and produce my small flame, lighting first her cigarette then mine. She takes a long, slow drag, blowing out in a way that can only really be described as…well…seductive. I'd be lying if I tried to say that it didn't cause my mind to slip a few gears.

Finally, she spoke.

"I'm Katara."

I smile. "Nice to meet you, Katara." I chuckle. "You know…I've wanted to meet you for quite some time."

She giggles. "Oh, I know, and vice versa. But my brother can be devious, when he puts his mind to it." She turns the full force of her smile on me. "But I can be devious, too."

I wink. "Well, I'm glad you were devious today."

Her smile widens. "So am I."

Hey! Look at that! I'm back! Basically, the girlfriend's at her parents this weekend, so I was left to my own devices. All yesterday, I spent reading other people's fanfics, because I'm crazy like that, and typing up an original work of mine, and well, this plot bunny took up residence in my head and starting running around and around. Finally, I had to sit down and do something about it, and this is the result.

The basic premise of this story is that Katara and Sokka didn't find the Avatar. Aang's still locked away in his little iceberg, or whatever, and so life goes on. I started thinking what that would mean, how it would change things, in the little world I sketched out in my last fic, and the story just kind of sprang from there. The result, like I said, is this.

I'm not going to lie, I really have no idea where this is going. Well, I have an extremely vague idea, but that's about it. I haven't the faintest clue how I'm going to get there, or if I ever am, or how long it's going to take. This is going to be a very slow-moving story, for the most part, with lots of fluff and fun. I'm really happy that, because of that, I can finally work in this little idea I had, that I really wanted to put in A Different Path, that being that the different nations would speak different languages. For the record, Suomi is name for Finnish in, well, Finnish, while Nihongo is the word for Japanese (from what I can tell) in Japanese. I know, the Water Tribes should probably speak some kind of Inuit language, but Google Translate doesn't have a setting for Inuit, and I just like the way that Finnish flows (kind of like water, heh heh), so the Southern Water Tribes speak what we would call Finnish. The Fire Nation speaking Japanese should be an obvious choice.

I'm going to take this moment to apologize, by the way. As I just hinted, I'm using Google Translate for the different languages. Thus, I apologize profusely for what results. Hopefully, any native speakers floating around on here will understand and forgive me.

Oh, real quick: Why does Zuko speak all the languages? Because, remember, he was royalty for the first eighteen years of his life. Royalty get a level of education that's hard for us commoners to understand, especially back when they were expected to both rule as well as reign, and part of that education is in languages. For example, Queen Victoria was fluent in four languages (one of which was fucking Hindi), while Elizabeth I spoke fucking eleven. Thus, Zuko would've been required to become fluent in all the major languages of the world in which he lives, which in my mind equals about seven or eight, plus whatever else he's picked up over his years of wandering.

Christ, this note is almost as long as the fucking chapter. I'll stop now, and get on with the fluff.

In the next chapter, Zuko settles into a routine, one which he finds rather agreeable. Stay tuned!