ZW2012 Heartstrings

He sleeps as she heals him.  The strength he drew from the comet that saved his life has passed – and it had to be the comet, she thinks, just as it was with the oasis water and Aang, she isn't that special, of this she is sure – leaving him wounded and weakened.  Healing him while he sleeps seems a kindness.  The work is slow and he'll always bear the mark of it.  With her help, it may not be as violent or jarring as the scar on his face, but it will remain with him, a starburst that imploded in his gut and spider-webbed up to his heart.  

She sends her water away with a flick of the wrist, but lingers. Her fingers reach out to trace the pink lines that edge toward his heart, spiking outward like the lightning itself.  Caught in her own reverie, she jumps when he groans softly and pulls her hand away before his eyes blink open.

"Sorry to wake you," she half whispers. "I just finished another healing session.  Go back to sleep."

He nods and murmurs his thanks, eyes already fluttering closed.

She gently eases off the bed and heads for the door, pausing to look back at him.  She knows she shouldn't, but the words are out before she can stop herself.

"Zuko?"

He turns his head to look at her, eyes waiting.

She twists her hands together. "Did you know that I'd be able to heal you, when you…? You know."

His gaze remains level. "No."

"What made you, I mean… why?"

It's here that he falters.  He shifts uncomfortably and his eyes focus on her feet. "You would have done the same for me."

"But I'm not a firebender." She doesn't know what makes her say this; she knows that while this is a valid point it is also not the point at all.  And he knows it too.

"All the more reason, I suppose.  But that's not what I meant."

And she nods, as though this explains everything, but it doesn't.  She turns from the doorway as he turns to face the wall.  

That night she lies awake.  She thinks to herself that now two boys in her life bear scars in return for the pleasure of knowing her, though the reasons behind them are fundamentally different.  One, because he could not give her up, and the other because he was willing to give up everything.