The Phoenix: Missing Scenes

In these "missing scenes", the title will be when it takes place, and it will list which pairing(s) is/are involved in the lemons included in each posting.

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender. If I did, there would have been a love triangle somewhere in there that wasn't shallow.

Beginning of Chapter 24, after Zuko's bath (and insert mental image. Yum)

Pairing: Katara and Zuko.

Zuko had been stewing in the hot water for around a half an hour, periodically reheating the water with his firebending and attempting to massage the tightness out of his muscles. Two weeks of unused limbs caused Zuko to feel stiff and sore, so this bath was possibly one of the best solutions to that problem. Plus he sort of smelled terrible, so just getting plain clean was his other objective.

His mind flickered around with multiple thoughts, from what the Fire Nation was like this time of year or what his father looked like right now. He skimmed over thoughts of his friends; thinking of Aang's newly grown hair, Toph's oddly beautiful blind eyes, Sokka's sarcasm and charm and then finally pausing on Katara's lips or her curvy body. He thought of her round ass, tight from running and bending, and her full chest. He imagined himself running his hands up and down her sides, following the dip of her waist and the curve of her hips. He shuddered at the thought of his mouth exploring every inch of her skin. His cock reacted and twitched, causing the water to ripple slightly.

There was a sharp rapping on the bathroom door and Zuko sat up quickly in shock, only to groan out in pain and lean back against the edge of the tub.

"What?" he growled.

"Hey, I was just seeing if you were still alive," Sokka said from the other side of the door with a hint of concern. "Katara said you've been in there for a while."

Zuko sighed heavily and replied, "Yes, I'm fine. I'm enjoying my first real bath in weeks. Leave me alone."

"Okay, okay, fine. I'll go tell her you're still breathing so she can stop pacing around like an expectant father."

Zuko shook his head and shouted towards the door, "Tell her I'll be out in just a few minutes. Though it will take me until morning to walk back to the room."

Sokka's laughter was muffled by the door, but Zuko could tell the warrior was probably clutching his stomach due to the sheer volume of his voice. "I'll be sure to let her know."

His footsteps faded away and Zuko sank deeper into the tub for another ten minutes before pulling himself out. He grimaced at the strain it put on his muscles, but he managed to get out and stand on his own without holding onto the wall, which he considered a big step forward. He grabbed his towel and carefully rubbed himself dry, flinching when he bent over and dried his legs, but otherwise was relatively successful in that task as well. He searched the room in the dim lantern light and found there were no clothes left for him, just the towel. With a huff of annoyance, he wrapped the fluffy cloth around his waist and walked stiffly to the door.

He pried it open and looked down both ends of the hall to see if anyone was around. Luckily, the corridor was abandoned. Zuko sighed with relief as he walked through the doorframe. He limped down the hall, using one hand against the wall to keep himself steady and upright. The trip back to his room was much easier than the trip to the bathroom, but he still looked like a waddling child in it's first attempts to walk.

When Zuko reached the door to his and Katara's room, he hesitated. He had said to her that they were going to continue what they had started in the bathroom, whatever that may be. He considered what he was willing to do. Yes, he cared about this girl but was he willing to completely go all the way with her? Was he going to be one of those men that just fuck a girl in the middle of the war without strings attached to the event?

No. He wasn't. He cared about her immensely, like he had said to Sokka. If he was going to do this with her, he was going to do it right.

With a deep breath, he slid open the door and was greeted with the sight of Katara sitting in the lotus position, arms rested against her thighs and her eyes closed. He assumed she might have been meditating in the candle light, and it made her look ethereal. He gulped at the sight of her beauty and mentally chided himself for gaping at her when she didn't even notice.

When the door closed behind him, her blue eyes opened to stare at him. They darted right to the towel around his waist and it seemed as if they were going to burn the fabric right off of him. She smirked and stood from her previous sitting position.

"How was the bath?" she asked in an even voice as she leaned casually onto her right leg, jutting out her hip.

Zuko swallowed and smiled the best he could, "It was good." A sly smirk replaced his apprehensive smile. "Though it would have been better if you were there."

"Oh did you miss me taking care of you?" she teased as she turned around, headed to their bags, and began digging through the items within.

"No, I wanted the chance to take care of you."

She paused in her ministrations, whatever they may have been, and turned to face him, her eyes lidded and a playful grin on her lips. "Oh really? And what would you have liked to have done?"

Zuko felt his lips quirk into a seductive curve as he stepped to the futon and sat down as smoothly as he could, towel still low on his hips and his leg poking out from the opening in the fabric. He noticed her eyes flick to the shown expanse of skin and he felt a rush of heat go through his chest and flow down to his crotch.

"How about you come over here and I can show you?"

Katara's eyes widened in realization and her cheeks flushed red. Wordlessly, she stood and walked to the door. Zuko panicked when he saw her do this, thinking she was going to leave him because he crossed a line. But his anxiety was crushed when she turned the lock on the door and slowly turned back to face him, blue eyes dark and teeth tugging against her lower lip.

"Is there anything in particular I need to do before you show me?" her voice was low and sultry. He smirked at the change in her tone and patted the futon.

"I'll take care of any changes that need to be made," he purred in response. She slowly sauntered towards him and knelt right in front of him, her sapphire eyes never breaking contact with his gold. Wordlessly, he reached up and cupped the back of her head and pulled her towards him. His lips pressed against hers gently as his free hand ghosted up her arm and then over her shoulder to go down her back, his other hand joining and ghosting down her spine. She leaned in and wrapped her arms around his neck as her legs scooted her body closer. Zuko's hands made it down her back and cupped her round bottom. Then, he swiftly lifted her with as much strength as he could muster and placed her in his lap.

She broke the kiss and silently stared at him questionably, and he just responded just as quietly with a confident and smug smirk then leaned in to kiss her again. His arms were wrapped tightly around her waist as their kiss became more fervent, their lips caressing each other in soft passion and growing lust. Zuko's hands moved down her hips and gripped the bottom hem of her tunic and he broke the kiss briefly to pull it over her head. Their lips joined again after her top was discarded and his fingers began to roam the bare skin that was newly revealed to his eager hands. He traced the dip of her spine and his thumbs ran along her ribs and then back down to caress her hip bones. A soft moan escaped her and he took that opportunity to slip his tongue into her mouth, slowly teasing her.

Her hands were gripping his shoulders as she involuntarily began grinding her hips against him. He was getting pretty hard, especially now that there was this gorgeous waterbender straddling him with just a towel to cover him. He felt her smile into the kiss as he flexed his hips upward and pressed himself against her.

"Eager, are we?" he purred after breaking their lip contact. She just nodded as he leaned in and began to suckle on her neck and run his hands up to her upper bindings to unravel them. His fingers swiftly found the hidden knot and tugged on it slightly, releasing it and causing the bindings to loosen and fall off. He pulled away and marveled at the sight in front of him. Her nipples were like drops of chocolate against her tan skin, standing erect against her breasts. Below them was the faded pink star-shaped scar left behind from Azula's lightning.

Zuko ran his hands up her sides and then ran them along the edge of her ribs, just brushing along the edge of the scar with his thumbs. She flinched and started to pull away, her face flushing with shame and embarrassment. But he quickly wrapped his arms around her torso and lowered his head to kiss the center of the scar. His lips pressed gently against the blemished skin and he looked up to see her turn her head away in shame.

"Hey," he whispered. "Look at me."

She turned her head and stared at him blankly. He leaned towards her and kissed her lips gently and caressed the scar once more with a tender touch. When he pulled away, he smiled and murmured, "You're beautiful."

Katara smiled slightly and pecked him once more. "You're just saying that."

Zuko shook his head and smiled warmly. "No, I'm not. It took bravery to get that. Bravery is beautiful. No matter what, you're perfect to me."

She blushed furiously before he pulled her into another searing kiss. His hands moved from her back and cup her breasts in each palm. When he pinched the cocoa nipples, Katara broke the kiss and gasped out at the sensation. Zuko smirked up at her with hooded eyes and leaned down to catch one of them in between his lips. Her back arched into him and she pressed her chest into his mouth as he gently bit and sucked on the puckered skin and she moaned again at his caressing touch.

"Hush," he whispered as he released the nipple with a wet 'pop'. "Do you want the others to know what we're doing?"

She shook her head silently and began to grind into him even more as he moved to the other breast. He moaned loudly into her skin as she ground down his dick in the most enticing way. She just chuckled seductively and murmured, "Do you want the others to know what we're doing?"

He looked up and shook his head. His eyes were lidded and dark when he demanded in a hushed tone, "Lay on the bed and take off your pants."

"Is that a request?" she smirked at him.

"It's an order," he growled. "Now."

She nodded and swung her leg around so she was no longer on top of him and laid on the mattress next to him, slipping her thumbs under the waist band of her leggings and pulling them down her thighs, revealing white bindings and her toned muscles. Zuko laid back slowly to avoid any strain on his muscles and turned onto his side so he was facing her. He felt his towel loosen around his waist, but he didn't care. His hands made their way to her hips as she turned onto her side and he pulled her closer, so their hips where pressing against each other.

His hand found the knot of her lower bindings and nimbly untied it. He then slid the fabric down her taut ass and firm thighs, not breaking eye contact as he did it. Katara's cheeks were flushed and he could feel her heart racing in anxious anticipation as he finally undressed her completely.

"Now, Katara," his voice suddenly changed to serious. "I don't want to go all the way tonight."

Her eyes widened slightly and then her eyebrows went up in confusion. "Why?"

His thumb began caressing her hip bone again as he sighed, "I don't want whatever we have to be based off of sex. And I told your brother that I wouldn't be starting anything serious during this war... So I want to do this right. And if that means taking our time with some of these things, then I will do it."

She nodded wordlessly and leaned in to kiss him. He returned it eagerly and wrapped his arm around her waist. He broke the kiss and pressed his forehead against hers.

"Not saying I don't want to," he chuckled. "Believe me, I do. I want to make love to you all night and bring your body to new heights that you've never known. But it wouldn't be right at this moment."

"Why do you say that?"

He paused and stared at her, trying to figure out the best way to reply. With closed eyes, he took a deep breath, opened them again and stared at her intensely as he said, "Because we're not in love."

Her eyes softened and a smile spread on her face, "That's fine. I'm not quite ready, either. When the time comes, we'll know."

He nodded and kissed her again, now pressing his tongue in her mouth without hesitation and running his hands all over her bare rear. He moved down the outside of her thigh and then back up in the inner part, pausing mid-thigh in a silent request to her to let him continue. She rolled onto her back, bringing him with her as she parted her thighs for him. He struggled for a moment to keep himself upright, but managed after a few seconds.

His hand inched up and reached the apex, fingers daftly running along her sensitive lower lips and running through the downy hair that covered them. He felt her shiver underneath him and sigh out in pleasure. Her hands began travelling down his torso, caressing his abdomen and feathering touches over his own lightning scar. He smiled into their kiss as her fingers traced the raised edges of his harsher wound, knowing the gesture was out of admiration and not anything else. They were scar buddies, having dealt with the hand of death together and successfully escaping in each other's arms. As her hand left the scar and began moving southward, he realized the towel had fallen off now that her hands were closing in on his manhood. And he wouldn't have it any other way or with any other woman.

As he began caressing her wet clit with his fore and middle fingers, she gasped out and grabbed his dick. He inhaled sharply and pulled out of their kiss to rest his forehead on her shoulder. They both began stroking and panting as the pleasure of touching and being touched coursed through their veins.

Zuko slid one finger into her tight opening and she moaned out as he began to slowly thrust it in and out to the rhythm that she was stroking him. He then added another finger and curled them as he stroked along the rippled inner walls. She was panting out and moaning his name as his palm began grinding against her sensitive nub.

"Oh… Zuko… Oh my gods…"

He began kissing her neck as he pumped faster, thrusting his inept fingers into her like he wanted to with his dick. Her stroking was coming faster now as her orgasm was approaching. When he ran his teeth against her skin, she shuddered and gasped out as her inner walls tightened around his fingers in waves, squirting out her nectar and coating his fingers in juices. He kept pumping and rubbing in hopes to get her to come again, but he felt his own orgasm grow quickly in his stomach and spine as her stroking came faster during her climax.

With a few last strokes of her deft hand, he felt the white hot orgasm flow through his body and his seed shot out of him, his stomach tightening and his back going ramrod straight as he tried to suppress a groan. He was partially unsuccessful, instead shooting out a weak stream of blue fire from his lips towards the ceiling. Katara slowed her stroking, as did Zuko and they both collapsed in post-orgasmic lethargy. He leaned up and captured her lips in a gentle kiss as he removed his hands from her core and wiped his fingers on his discarded towel. He pulled away and laid against his pillow and smirked at the waterbender, who was quickly starting to fall into slumber.

"You just bent blue fire," she mumbled lazily as her exhaustion began to overtake her body. He chuckled and looked up above him, where a slight scorch mark dusted the juncture of the wall and the ceiling. He would have to clean that up before they left. Or at least let Aunt Wu know it was an accident.

With a smile, he looked down at the girl lying next to him and whispered, "Go to sleep, Katara."

She nodded and her eyes fluttered closed. With a soft smile, he pulled the towel out from under him and tossed it towards the door. Then he slid his arm under Katara's neck and pulled her head onto his chest. He pressed a kiss onto the crown of her head and slowly succumbed to slumber, a smile still playing on his lips.

A/N This was revised on December 19, 2013.