I don't own Korra. Bumi/Honora forever! Inspired by fanart found linked in profile.
Young Bumi had a problem. He was in love with a girl, a princess no less. That was not necessarily the problem. The problem was that she was his best friend and he didn't know anything about talking to girls.
His uncle's advice was to "show her the Water Tribe charm." When asked to explain further he said nothing. Needless to say Bumi couldn't do anything based on that.
Next he went to his father. First Aang told him to "take her penguin sledding." The two of them would go penguin sledding together anytime they were both in the South Pole, not that anyone knew who the girl in question was.
When they next visited the Fire Nation his father made a suggestion: "Ask Zuko, he I'm sure he could tell you what to do." He tried to argue, but his father won out in the end.
So that's how he ended up here, in the Fire Lord's office, seeking his advice as to how to court his daughter.
"So Bumi, my boy, tell me what's on your mind." said Zuko. The Fire Lord liked Bumi and saw him as the only boy who was allowed within twenty feet of his daughter. He had his mother's manner, his father's positive outlook, and none of his uncle.
"Well you see, sir, I'm having romantic problems and my father told me I should ask your advice. I don't want to waste your time though." Bumi said as he got up to leave when he was interrupted.
"Nonsense! Sit, sit. If you leave I have to go back to work. There's only so much paperwork a man can take before his mind explodes." Bumi nodded in response. "Now tell me her name."
"That's not important." he answered. The Fire Lord looked at him suspiciously for a moment before deciding not to pursue it. "She's just a friend. I like her and all, but I don't think she would be interested in me. I can't figure out how to make the leap from friends to more."
"Ah. When I was young Mai used to be a friend of my sister's. Azula liked to torment me, but Mai didn't take part in it. In Ba Sing Se, Azula set us up on a date and we've been together ever since. Well... there were two break-ups along the way."
"How does that help me?" Bumi asked the Fire Lord. The Fire Lord raised his hand to the teen and he continued.
"Sometimes you just need to let it happen. You're overthinking it. You just need to talk to her and tell her how you feel. The worst thing she could do is say no."
Bumi nodded again. Many things came to mind that could happen that were, in fact, much much worse. One of them was the man in front of him figuring out who he's referring to.
"Well I should be going now." Bumi said as he walked through the door. He could hear the Fire Lord grumbling through the door. He walked into the hall. He turned the corner and found himself face to face with her.
"You've been here for a day and I have yet to see you. If I didn't know any better I would think you were avoiding me." she said with an expression of fake hurt. After a second she cracked a smile and they both laughed. Then she wrapped her arms around him.
"You see right through me as always, Princess." he said with a mock bow. She swatted at his head in response. He was the only person in the world who could get away with that tone when talking to her.
"So why were you in my dad's office? Planning what you're getting me for my birthday?" she asked in her superficial princess voice. He loved that voice.
"Your birthday is in eleven months, I think it's a bit soon for that." he answered. She pouted, seemingly upset that they could talk about something other than her. "He just rambled on and mentioned something about going on one of his field trips."
"Oh, spirits, not a field trip. He promised he would never do that again. Do you remember the last time?"
"How could I forget? Lin wouldn't stop crying for three hours." The field trip proved that Lin was, in fact, deathly afraid of dragons.
"I have half a mind to go and yell at him for it, but I have to go meet Uncle for tea. And you're coming with me." she said as she grabbed his arm and dragged him off.
It was a short walk to Iroh's room. He insisted that all of the kids call him Uncle, and none of them thought of him as anything else. At ninety years old he was still the same as he had been in his "younger" days.
They walked in and saw he was already at the table, which was set with three teacups.
"Ah, Bumi, I was expecting you to join us. It's always a pleasure to see you. Sit and have a nice cup of Jasmine tea." The two of them sat in the seats on the side of the table opposite Iroh.
"So, Bumi, what are you planning to do during your stay?" Iroh asked the boy with a look that implied he knew more than he let on.
"Nothing really, just hanging with Her Majesty here." Bumi answered. Iroh laughed in response.
"Ah, youth. You don't seem to realize what's out there until you lack the time to do it, but if you saw it you might just miss something far more important."
"You and your confusing advice, Uncle." the princess said as she blew her bangs out of her face. Bumi understood it though.
They talked and drank tea for a half hour before the princess realized she had promised she would meet Kya at the royal salon.
"I'll find you when you're done. Remember Kya has the ability to really talk without end when she wants, so you may be gone for a while." Bumi said.
"I know. Bye." she said. She kissed her Uncle and ran out. Bumi made for the door, but Iroh spoke before he could make it out.
"You'll have to try harder if you want to win her affection. My niece is not one to pick up on subtlety. She's very much like her father in that regard." He took another sip of his tea.
"What are you talking about, Uncle?" Bumi asked, trying not to let the panic seep into his voice. Iroh let out a laugh.
"You aren't as good at hiding things as you seem to think. Don't bother trying to hide it, you can't keep anything from Uncle." Iroh answered. Bumi dropped his head in defeat.
"Am I really that obvious?" Bumi asked. He sat himself down where he had been before.
"Not necessarily. The men of my family are not the most forthcoming in terms of their thoughts. Compared to them you are an open book." Bumi had to admit that the Fire Lord was incredibly hard to read.
"Okay, fine. I like her. I want to tell her, but I know it would end badly. So I won't." Iroh looked at the boy, smiling.
"You sell yourself short, Bumi. Any girl would be lucky to have you." Iroh said with a reassuring smile.
"She's a princess, and I'm just a peasant from the Southern Water Tribe." Bumi replied, head down in show of his surrender.
"And yet she never has cared about that before. To her you're just Bumi. You don't love her because she is a princess. You love her because she is her." Bumi thought over the older man's words. "Now if you'll excuse me I promised your brother I would play Pai Sho with him."
Bumi wandered the palace until he found himself by the turtle duck pond. He sat at the edge of the water and looked at the little creatures. He sat there for hours, staring at them.
"My dad and I would sit here, feeding the turtle ducks when I was a little girl. It was nice." the princess said as she sat down next to him. She turned to him and smiled. A full smile that made her eyes sparkle. He knew he had to say something.
"I have something I want to say to you." he said in a gentle voice. She eyed him cautiously, worried by the sudden change in tone.
"I've known you for pretty much my entire life. During that time we've done all sorts of crazy stuff. We went penguin sledding, we swapped all of your mother's knives with pieces of candy, and you set my sister's hair on fire. We've grown close over all that time. You're the best friend I could ever hope for. I guess what I'm saying is-" he stopped.
She was kissing him. Straight on the lips. He froze in the shock of it all. She drew back before he could respond properly.
"Oh spirits. I misinterpreted what I said. I'm such an idiot sometimes! I'm sor-" she stopped.
He was kissing her this time. She responded faster than he had and returned it. They sat there like that for a few minutes before she drew back with a worried look.
"What's wrong?" he asked. She pointed behind him. He turned to see their parents standing there. Zuko looked particularly angry.
"I already said I'm sorry, Zuko. Had I known it was your daughter I wouldn't have sent him to you." Aang said in an attempt to calm the Fire Lord down.
"Told you." Katara said in a hushed tone to Mai. Mai only kept her usual stoic face and handed Katara ten gold pieces.
"Bumi, I suggest we run. If we hurry we can make it to Appa before they catch up." the princess said to him. He nodded and they ran off. She took a second to send a fire blast back to hold the adults back.
Once they turned the corner she grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. She gave him a quick kiss before running again.
He stood there completely content before realizing the Fire Lord had nearly reached him. It was totally worth it though.