Dance Of Dreams

Glamour, captivation, fantasy - that was a royal ball in the Fire Nation. Elegance, entertainment, sophistication were what was expected when you brought together the rich, the famous, and the royal.

Along the stone walls lay a twinkling array of lights that were lanterns, mutely lighting the atmosphere. A half-acre of floor gleamed, the color of aged honey. There was gold linen and masses and masses of red flowers that represented it's culture. But even these paled when compared to the glow of silks, the fire of jewels: the citizens of the Fire Nation.

Mai entered the palace with her family, as expected of her. She was curtsied to. Her hand was kissed. As digusted as she was, she endured it all. Mother had reminded her time and time again how important it was to remain polished and refined at all times, to be thankful that she was invited at all to such an "eloquent event" as she had stated.

She sighed, and her gaze lowered to the ground. It needn't stay there long, because she was harshly elbowed in the gut. Infuriated she turned to face her dear friend Ty Lee. Her expression returned to it's sullen state.

Before she had the chance to greet her, Ty Lee and taken hold of her chin and rotated it towards the back center of the room, where the throne stood.

"Princess Azula is looking quite lovely tonight, isn't she?" Ty Lee giggled with childish delight. Although she was indeed a Princess, Azula rarely wore a dress, much less a golden-colored gown made of pure silk. It was a certainly a sight to behold.

But it wasn't Azula that Mai was looking at.

Aloof and regal, the royal family of the Fire Nation sat on the throne, watching the event take place. Fire Lord Azulon sat in the center, on the largest throne of them all. It was only natural that the leader take the most elegant of seats - it proved he was powerful.

On the Fire Lord's left sat Prince Ozai and Princess Ursa, in their traditional Fire Nation attire, while their children stood beside their grandfather on his left. Aloof and regal? So they were and so they looked.

But it was Prince Zuko that had Mai unable to tear her gaze away.

He was dressed like a soldier, his armor glinting even in the dull lighting of the room. A sword lay unmoving on the belt of his clothing, his hand closed over the handle as if he were preparing for battle. His head was held high, and his expression unreadable.

He was breathtaking.

Instinctivley, her hand reached for the top right of her chest, feeling the racing inside that was her heartbeat. Although it was only a crush, her heart seemed to do that alot lately whenever she saw him. It would soar when she saw him walk around the palace with his mother, and it would skip whenever she saw his smile - which was rare since she was always around Azula.

On the other side of the room, Azula noticed Mai's gesture and a sinister smirk crept to her lips. "She looks darling tonight, doesn't she Zuzu?" she mumbled so only Zuko could hear.

He cringed at the nickname, but kept his stance. "Who?"

"Mai." Azula gave a low sound of approval, as if to provoke her brother. "Simply fantastic."

He scanned the crowd and found her, but there wasn't any approval. She wore a ripe red dress that was cut beautifully, even conservatively. The color said one thing, the style another. "She looks like a baby," he muttered, though he knew it sounded like a lie. Mai was much too precocious and too intelligent a child.

Sensing the hesitation in his tone, Azula scowled. Looks like her plan backfired. But there were always other ways. "Grandfather, may Zuko and I go greet the guests? I'm sure they'd be delighted," she cooed. She recieved merely a grunt of permission, and before Zuko could protest, he was being dragged into the pool of people.

"Oh look!" Ty Lee squealed, clasping onto Mai's arm. "Azula's headed this way, and Zuko is with her." The last part of her statement was added in a high note, and Mai knew she was being teased again. Part of her wished to escape onto the dance floor, while the other wished for him to come with her. Please ask me to dance, she silently prayed.

"You both look lovely tonight," Azula told them. "Though your gowns are probably alot cheaper than mine," she added, smiling wickedly. "Don't you agree Zuzu?"

"Stop calling me that. I guess they look alright," he mumbled, not even looking at either of them. He could care less of the present fashion statements the Fire Nation had to offer. As he was royalty, he rarely had to choose his own clothing.

"Well, Mai?" Azula pressed, knowing how pitiful her companion looked when put under pressure. "Aren't you going to thank him?"

Her cheeks flushed bright red, and she began to feel her face burn up. "Thank you."

When he said nothing, Mai was ready to retreat to the corner of the room. She would much rather be neglected by everyone else then him alone. To worsen the matter, Azula nudged her brother violently. "She said thanks, stupid. Don't just ignore her like that."

He rolled his eyes. "You're the stupid one Azula."

"I'm hungry," Mai quickly stated. "The food smells amazing." Quickly, she fled for the long table covered in food. She decided that she'd endured enough embarrassment for one evening. Damn it, why did Azula enjoy teasing her so? It only made her look bad in front of all her friends.

"That's so rude, Zuko," Ty Lee pouted. "She was only trying to be nice to you."

Zuko felt a pang of guilt. As irritating his sister could be, there was no reason to take it out on her friends. As Ty Lee dragged a smirking Azula to the dance floor, Prince Zuko stood alone, his hand rubbing the back of his neck in confusion. What should he do now? Almost as if they were reading his thoughts, they danced past him, and Ty Lee suggested that he asked her to dance.

Knowing that he was setting himself up for trouble, he slowly made his way to the food table. He scratched his head shyly at Mai's back. "Um...sorry for being mean to you earlier. I was just frustrated. Azula really gets on my nerves. I don't even know why you're friends with her in the first place. It was obvious that she was just trying to get me mad in the first place," he ranted. "So, I guess...what I'm trying to say is...do you want to...you know...dance?"

When she said nothing, he rolled his eyes. This was getting ridiculous. "I know I was being rude when I ignored you, but this is no reason to treat me the same."

Still, he didn't receive a reply. Sighing, he crossed his hands across his chest, standing his ground. When Mai finally turned around, there was a chicken bone sticking out of her mouth. Slowly, she looked up, her eyes widening. The Prince was less then a foot in front of her. Zuko raised an eyebrow. "Did you not hear a word I just said?" he asked.

In both excitement and surprise, she spit out the chicken bone. It landed square on Zuko's cheek and slowly slided off. Her eyes grew wider, and she was at a loss for words. "It's okay," Zuko mumbled, wiping off the saliva. "I guess I deserved that."

Mai simply stared in bewilderment. "Uh..." she started.

"Are you going to ask her to dance or what, stupid?" Azula stated, dancing past him once again.

Somehow Mai found the courage to contradict Azula's words. It was much too obvious that Zuko was disgusted with her. She sighed sadly. "It's okay. You don't have to dance if you don't want to."

Zuko's hand reached to rub the back of his neck once more. "It's not that..." he mumbled.

Her heart skipped a beat. "Excuse me?"

"Oh, wait," Azula teased, popping up behind her brother. "I forgot that he can't dance." She laughed, nudging Ty Lee to laugh along with her. "Zuzu can't dance. Zuzu can't dance," they chanted.

Zuko growled. "Shut up, both of you. I can dance!" As if he now had a point to prove, he grabbed Mai's hand and raced to the dance floor. I can't believe this is happening, Mai thought. They stood awkwardly in front of eachother, waiting for the other one to make a move. "So...I guess I should put my hand on your hip...right?" he asked. For the first time, Mai saw the helplessness in his eyes. She saw now that he was just as scared as she was.

She nodded. "And you have to hold my hand, like this." She grabbed his hand and laced her fingers with his. The simple touch made her heart pump like war on a battleground. She jolted.

"Did I do something wrong?" Zuko asked, his eyes clouded in confusion.

"N-no. I just thought something bit me that's all," she lied. "Okay, now we just step back and forth."

"That sounds boring," Zuko stated. But even as he said so, he found his feet stepping on hers.

She laughed. It was her first genuine laugh since the ball began. Zuko felt his heart jump as well, for he'd never heard her laugh before. It was a sound he kind of liked. They shared no more words as they let the music carry them, and swayed as though they'd danced like this all the time. She was enjoying it, perhaps far to much. Inside she was privately hoping Zuko was feeling the same way.

Finally relaxing, she felt her eyes close and her head rest on the curve of his shoulder.

Sooner or later midnight would strike, and the dream would be over.

Author's Notes: This is a one-shot made of pure Maiko fluff. I included Azula, because her nasty-ness is just one of the things I enjoy writing about. Please review.