Chapter Text
Part I.
When Katara was born, her parents had been worried. Kya and Hakoda couldn’t see a red string on her. Like the one connecting their wrists. Or the one tied to Sokka’s ankle and extending past their icy shores. Or the short one with frayed ends and braided into Kanna’s hair loopies. Could their daughter ever have a great love like theirs?
When Zuko was born, his parents had been relieved. Ozai thought good riddance. Love would only be in the way of a Fire Prince. The future Fire Lord, if his plans panned out. Ursa thought her child shouldn’t ever feel the same longing she felt for the person on the other end of her string stretching to a faraway island.
Part II.
Hakoda looked away from his wailing children and stared at the red string hanging from his wrist. The first time he had seen the clean-cut end, it was Katara’s pleading voice that pulled him out of his disbelief. Kya, his wife, his great love, truly was gone now. Hakoda thought, maybe it was alright that Katara doesn’t have a red string on her. Then there couldn’t be a chance that she would ever feel the same emptiness in his heart.
Ursa left the capital with only the clothes on her back and followed the string to Hiraa, to Ikem, to her great love. Her joy was immense. Just as heavy as the guilt of leaving behind her children. But her innocence was a cheap price to pay for Zuko’s life.
Part III.
Katara felt unhinged whenever the longer days in the South Pole would come. She lost what little control of bending she had when the moon watched over her. And she couldn’t see that bright star. She’d see it first thing when she looked up the night sky. She would point to it and Sokka would tease her, “Katara, the stars close to the Seven Sisters aren’t very bright.”
Unlike most Firebenders, Zuko basked in the dark of night rather than the high sun. There was one star, very bright. The only nights he couldn’t see it were those when the rainstorms rolled in. On summer nights, his cousin would take him stargazing upon the ridges of the caldera. Even though Lu Ten himself couldn’t see the one star.
Part IV.
After he had gone to all the air temples and still hadn’t found the Avatar, Zuko set on a course following his star. He tried not to make it obvious. But he always gave directions to the helmsman at night. And General Iroh remembered Lu Ten’s poor excuses from when he snuck his little cousin out of the palace. Obvious or not, his star eventually led him to a desolate Water Tribe village, to the Avatar!
Aang wanted to ride a giant koi. Sokka grew more excited every day that Appa flew as if following his red string. Katara was happy for him, but also jealous. Why didn’t she have one too? Sometimes she took solace in her star. If Sokka or Aang couldn’t see it, then it must be especially for her. She wanted to follow it. But the Avatar needed to master all bending arts first.
Part V.
Katara learned to dull the tug of her star. When night came, she’d focus on the moon instead. Her Waterbending and the Avatar’s peace had to come first. Though sometimes… whenever all of them would be up on their feet avoiding being caught by the Fire Prince, she’d feel the pull settle. She thought it was the fear replacing her longing.
If he followed it on certain times of night, his star would lead him to the Avatar multiple times. To Crescent Island, to the Spirit Oasis, to Ba Sing Se. Most importantly, to the Western Air Temple. But the star’s pull on him didn’t settle, even as he went to the Sun Warrior ruins with Aang. Once they learned from Ran and Shaw, he figured that like his bending, maybe his star found a new purpose.
Part VI.
Zuko suspected something when he took Katara to the Fire Navy outpost. Despite the vengeful purpose of their journey, it was the calmest night of his life. When he couldn’t feel the tug, he immediately looked up the sky. Somehow his star was less bright. Did the spirits deny him his red string and gave him a star instead?
They were all walking up to the beach house when he took his chance. “Would you guys want to stargaze out in the beach later tonight?”
Toph huffed. “Will you be describing them to me, Sparky?”
Zuko flushed in embarrassment. “No- I’m sorry- I mean,” he paused. “I could?”
“Ok great!” She punched him in the arm and that settled it for everybody.
Later that night, his certainty grew tenfold. Sokka was telling stories about the stars. The ones from their tribe and the ones he read in Wan Shi Tong’s library. In the middle of a story about the Seven Sisters, Sokka teased Katara. “Was it down from the Sisters or up?” he asked.
“Neither. I told you already, Sokka, it was just my childish imagination!” Katara looked hurt saying it.
Sokka mustn’t have noticed her pain. “Right. If a star was bright, everybody would see it!”
After that, Katara stayed quiet staring at the flames until the embers died down. Zuko’s eyes never left her, even as he kept on with the valiant effort of describing stars to Toph. He drew the shapes on the sand. He began talking about colours and hues and he tried hard to explain them. When Toph couldn’t get him, Katara would compare it to something Toph had experienced in their travels together.
This was his chance, Zuko thought. Toph was still eager to hear about the stars. Sokka and Suki were going up to the beach house, carrying Aang, who had fallen asleep on the sand very early into the night. Katara seemed to be staying behind.
“Sokka pointed us to the Sisters earlier, right? There’s a really bright star a bit below it, to the left. I had to describe it to my cousin too. He said he couldn’t see it.” He noticed the small movement from Katara. If his good ear had been to her direction, he would’ve heard her little gasp, too.
“That’s stupid. Sokka said that if a star was bright, everybody would see it! Except blind people like me, of course,” Toph said. “You’re starting to talk nonsense, Sparky. Let’s go up the house and sleep. You’re teaching Aang Firebending tomorrow!”
Toph got up and he followed suit.
No, you’re only being hopeful.
Part VII.
Sokka is right. Sokka is right. Sokka is right.
But she couldn’t deny the calm that bloomed in her heart the moment she forgave Zuko, either. It was the first time she truly felt like not fighting the star’s pull on her. Was it the same star he last pointed to Toph?
Toph went straight to bed when the three of them reached the beach house. Katara considered asking now. On the steps outside the Fire Lord’s beach house, beneath pale moonlight, when her star was shining less brightly than she was used to. She sat on a step and stared up the sky.
“Hey Zuko, do you see it, too?” She was sure he hadn’t gone in yet. She heard his soft steps approach her and felt him sit next to her. When he looked up, it seemed to her as if her star blinked so much brighter.
“Was it ever this bright for you?” he asked back.
“Not before I gazed at it with you,” was all she said. When she turned to him, she found it a pleasant surprise to see his golden eyes already looking at her.
They watched their star trail across the sky for the rest of the night.