PROLOGUE
When the war finally ended, there really wasn't time to focus on all the personal matters. Aang was the Avatar—and therefore Katara was proud to stand by him and they both ignored the relationship problems they were having. Sokka's leg was badly hurt, but there were soldiers who dealt with worse—so Sokka suffered in silence. And Zuko had a nation to run—he couldn't dwell on the fact that he hadn't seen Mai since the Boiling Rock. He had to get the world back in order, and the fact that Mai disappeared as soon as her uncle freed her from prison had to be put away in the back corner of Zuko's mind until all the politics were straightened out.
A year after the war, when Zuko still heard nothing from Mai, all his love for her grew a little smaller and smaller each day, the space it left replaced by endless work. (And maybe a little drink, here and there.)
And two years after the war, when Mai's parents had lowered their obvious grieving for their only daughter to just a distraught little sniffle, Zuko decided that he had to let go of Mai too.
Two years three-months after the war, when Katara was alone and Zuko was alone...well...who could blame them for finding comfort in each other?
But that comfort led to like and that like led to love, and two years six-months after the war, Katara found herself wearing Firenation clothes and sleeping in the first-floor guest bedroom of the Firelord's palace.
Three years and three months after the war, Katara replaced her mother's engagement necklace with her own engagement necklace. And everyone was happy.
Three years seven-months after the end of the war, though, someone came along and unraveled everything.