I do not own Avatar the Last Airbender, sadly…
This is the start of my new Fanfiction. It will be Zutara, yeah, but it might take a while to get the two of them to see that… yes it is one those post-war stories where the two of them get stuck together due to keeping the peace, I know the plot is overused, but I was hoping to take it and make something new out of it… ;) I wrote parts of it before the finale, and yes I am aware that Kataang happened… but that's what you get from a show where the intended audience is 7 to 12… anyway some of the parts (like Azula going crazy/ Iroh not returning to the Fire Nation) are not included in this story (I personally love Azula and think she only went crazy for the creators to show her weakness and that it was greatly over exaggerated…)
the double dash ( -- ) means a change of scene, while a blank line between two paragraphs means a change in time in the same scene…
Chapter 1) A New Beginning
Aang stumbled back through the gilded, grand doors that had led him to the throne room. His expression held an equal mixture of regret and optimism as he looked to his friends. The throne room no longer held anything of value; tapestries were burned, statues and armor were smashed. Aang stepped over the ancient suit of rusty armor he had been thrown against when the battle first began and stumbled to Katara. The waterbender caught him as he collapsed into her arms, sinking to the floor with him in her embrace.
"Aang," she smiled. The airbender closed his eyes as he leaned against Katara. Footsteps rushed into the room, and Katara turned to see who it was, her hand instinctively going to her long drained water skin. Sokka walked over and leaned to see Aang over his sister's shoulder.
"It's over," the watertribe boy said, "you did it." Sokka dropped the sword he had carried into the room onto the ground, the clanking of steel made Aang flinch. Sokka looked at the weapon; his own sword made from the meteor was long gone, lost to the confusion of the time. While he was exhausted, the warrior refused to let his guard down enough to join his friends on the floor of the throne room.
"Where's Toph and Zuko?" he finally asked. As if to answer his question, Toph ran into the room, her armor disheveled as she skidded to a halt. Cursing the fancy, slippery flooring of the palace under her breath, she alerted them to one more, tiny problem.
"Azula!" Sokka exclaimed. Aang sat up and got to his feet.
"Where is she?" he demanded. Katara rose as well.
"Zuko's handling it," Toph explained, "down the hall." Aang sprinted from the room before Katara could call out to him to wait. Toph sighed and ran after him, her bare feet slapping against the floor as she ran, leading the water tribe siblings to confront the action.
Aang skidded to a halt in the threshold of a side room off the main hallway and paused. Zuko held Azula up to the wall, pressing her armor against the wall making escape impossible. Azula noted Aang's entrance with her same cool composure, not even flinching. Zuko watched his sister's eyes flick to Aang for only one second before returning to focus on him. Katara, Sokka, and Toph appeared in the doorway seconds later.
"Zuko," Sokka shouted without thinking, "we've done it. The Fire Lord's been defeated!-" he noticed the position the prince was in and shut his mouth.
"Is that so Zuzu?" smiled Azula. Zuko ground his teeth together at the mention of the hated childhood nickname Azula had given him. She grinned and watched as Zuko pondered over how to continue. She doubted her brother had it in him to kill her, but she did not extend that thought to the others in the room. Zuko took a deep breath and let go of Azula. She looked at him with slight surprise as her feet hit the ground but returned to her stoic expression.
"What are you doing?" asked Sokka as he watched Zuko step away from his sister.
"Exactly Zuko, what areyou doing?" mocked Azula. She made sure to keep Zuko between the avatar and his friends and herself in case one of them made a move. She grinned and silently wished one of them did, just to get Zuko out of the way and have one less person to deal with.
"You defeated him?" asked Zuko, standing so his back was to neither side. Aang nodded; his glider was still extended towards Azula even though it with almost useless. He was ready to hurl a bit of airbending in her direction should she take Zuko's kindness for granted.
An explosion shook the palace, rocking the occupants in the room off balance. Zuko fell to his hands and knees along with the others. Seeing her chance, Azula darted around her brother and towards the door. Just as she neared the threshold, the opening was blocked and Azula hit the surface, falling to the ground. Her golden brown eyes glanced up to see what had gotten in her way.
"Uncle!" smiled Zuko, getting to his feet.
"Uncle," Azula groaned. Iron stepped though the doorway, leading in two armed guards. Zuko recognized their armor from the day Azula almost tricked him onto her ship. The two soldiers stood before Azula, keeping an eye on her while Iroh placed his hand on Aang's shoulder. While the two shared no words between them, a silent conversation had taken place. Aang looked up and smiled, then turned to Zuko. Iroh looked in his direction as well.
"Come Zuko," his uncle said, "we have much to do."
"I'll be right there," Zuko replied, "I need a minute." His uncle nodded and walked from the room. The two guards watched him halt at the door and turned to Azula. She glared back at him, feeling everyone's eyes, aside from Zuko's, on her. She rose with her dignity mostly intact. Turning to her brother, she muttered under her breath,
"You're a coward Zuko," she turned and left the room with the two soldiers flanking her. Zuko had either ignored the comment or had not heard it, and proceeded across the room where he disappeared into the courtyard. The room was silent.
"Did I miss something?" asked Sokka as he scratched his head. Toph shrugged and turned to leave the room.
"Now what?" asked Katara.
"We tell everyone we won," Aang replied, "the world has waited a hundred years for this."
"Suki!" Sokka exclaimed out of the blue, "where is she?"
"She's down the hall," sighed Toph. Sokka ran from the room and Katara put a comforting hand on the earthbender's shoulder. The two girls walked from the room as Aang jumped from the window, his torn glider above him as he struggled to take to the air. Using more airbending then he was used to, he had little time to survey the damage down to the palace, but he did have time to note that the entire south wing had been decimated. Fire in town illuminated small rebellions of townspeople who had already learned the fate of their nation. In each burning structure, Aang saw remnants of the comet's power, the comet that would have allowed the fire nation to win the war. Instead it had led to its ultimate demise. The Fire Lord was not the only one who discovered he could use the comet's power.
As the fireball had appeared in the sky, the Fire Lord had been in the middle of his battle with Aang. No matter what element he battled with, no matter how much force he threw at him, Aang's attacks never hit hard enough to gain the upper hand in the fight. As the window allowed the comet's light to enter the room, revealing it had finally decided to come, the Fire Lord chose his own fate by turning away his back to Aang for just a moment to try and take control of the comet's massive power, leaving Aang his opportunity.
The avatar glanced down and landed in the courtyard where Appa lay on his side. One of his six furry legs was scorched, his fur singed black and most of it had burned away. Aang put his hand on Appa's nose; the creature opened his large eyes and emitted a soft moan.
"Don't worry buddy," Aang said, trying to keep his composure," Katara will heal you and you'll get better." Appa gave a gentle lowing sound and rolled onto his belly so Aang could pull off the saddle and armor. As he did he noticed Iroh in a room on the second story of the palace. With the saddle freed, Aang leaped into the air and flew with his damaged glider to the room. Perching on the window sill, Aang waited for the Fire Lord's brother to notice him.
Iroh turned to grab something off the table and glanced over at the avatar. He waved him in; Aang leaped from the window.
"We've won, what do I do now?" Aang asked somewhat timidly. Iroh turned to him with a sad, solemn face.
"Let the world know what you've done," Iroh declared gently, "but don't let your enemy decide the terms at the meeting." Aang raised an eyebrow and then understood what the retired general meant.
"But you're not the enemy," Aang stated, "and neither is Zuko!"
"But the rest of the world doesn't know that," Iroh sighed, "and I doubt that they'd believe it even if you told them." He pointed at Aang for emphasis. "I fear they're out for blood." Aang watched him leave the room and felt the breeze from the window float over him.
--
"First we'll have to pull back all the fire nation soldiers. We'll probably have to do something with the generals though. All weapon and machine production needs to be stopped. And then the whole matter of Azula needs to be handled," Sokka said aloud as he paced. He turned to Momo who sat placidly on the desk, batting at his tail, "are you getting all this?" Momo jumped up and hissed at the blue eyed boy, then leaped onto the bookshelf.
"I've got it," Toph smiled in mock seriousness.
"Thank you Toph," Sokka replied, he paused and turned to see her lying on the floor relaxing, "why must you do that?"
"Army, weapons, Azula," Suki's voice recited, "anything else?" Sokka turned and watched as Suki held up a piece of parchment with the start of his list.
The door flew open as Aang entered. He strode over to Sokka and sat down in the chair the boy had just used a moment ago.
"Now what Sokka?" Aang asked.
"We have to hold a meeting to decide what happens to the fire nation," Sokka explained, "since they've caused everyone damage, it would be fair to let everyone decide the punishment."
"It took him half an hour to decide that," Toph laughed, "you should hear the letter he started writing."
"You have letters?" Aang brightened, "who are you sending them to?"
"The leaders of all the nations," Suki explained, "they just need to be sent by messenger hawk."
"I'll do it!" Aang volunteered. He grabbed a handful of sealed scrolls and disappeared from the room. In a moment he reappeared in the doorway and asked, "where are the messenger hawks?"
--
Zuko paced the back room attached to the war meeting room. His uncle sat with him, calmly drinking a cup of jasmine tea. He offered a cup to Zuko, but the boy declined. He pressed his ear to the door again, hoping to hear what they had decided.
Sokka's notes, once the hand writing had been deciphered, had sent the highest standing people of each nation hurrying to the fire nation capital. While Katara had questioned her brother's judgment before, she truly wondered if any thoughts had come to him while addressing the letters. King Bumi, freed from his coffin prison, was as crazy as ever. The bear loving king of Ba Sing Se sat next to him, Bosco sandwiched between them, as if he could help. Sokka almost felt sorry for the poor creature -almost. Among them were assorted nobles Toph had mentioned. Representing the water tribes were princess Yue's father, who gave Sokka a nod as he entered the room, along with the watertribe sibling's father, Hakoda. Master Paku and some high standing waterbenders had joined as well. The air nomads had only one representative, Aang, who was attempting to run the meeting. Zuko and Iroh had been escorted to the back room earlier by a very stone faced Sokka.
Aang's first order of business was restoring balance to the world. He had heard so many people tell him he had to do it, but when it came time to follow through, Roku's wisdom was absent. The others of the group had their own opinions about it.
"Destroy them all," was one suggestion.
"Burn this city to the ground," came another idea.
"Make these people rebuild our towns," suggested another.
"Let us run their government to keep the peace." After everyone had added their opinion, Aang stepped in with his own ideas.
"We can't take the fire nation of the map," he announced, "they've already tipped the balance."
"I will not stand for this if they aren't punished for the war they've started," one of the earth kingdom nobles said as he rose to his feet. His neighbor pulled on his sleeve and persuaded him back into his seat.
"Their armies destroyed our cities," someone said. Sokka looked up.
"What if we had the Fire nation pay for and rebuild the places they've destroyed?" he suggested. A murmur shifted through the room.
"What about the places they can't rebuild?" questioned Yue's father, "or the amount of people they've killed?"
"They could pay compensation?" Sokka offered, unsure at whether they would buy the idea. The murmuring continued until the Earth king spoke up.
"What about the armies?" he questioned, "they are still occupying Ba Sing Se. I doubt they will leave without being defeated or hearing from the Fire Lord to return."
"Yes, about the Fire Lord," Hakoda interrupted, he turned to Aang, "he is dead, correct?" Aang nodded.
"Who's the Fire Lord now?" asked Master Paku.
"We should take the title," exclaimed an earth nobleman.
"I guess Prince Zuko would be the new Fire Lord," Aang said.
"Kill him off as well," ordered another man.
"No," Aang stated forcefully, "we can trust Zuko."
"But he's the son of the Fire Lord," one of the waterbenders argued, "they're all the same." A strong mumblings of the agreement went down the table.
"Would you listen to yourselves," Katara chastised, making her voice heard for the first time, "you're acting just like the people you said you hated." The gathered members were silent for a moment. Sokka looked to them.
"I think we should let Prince Zuko become Fire Lord," he stated, "he's done so much to help accomplish what we've achieved." The people grumbled but agreed, still voicing their concerns.
"What if he turns on us?" asked one of the waterbenders.
"The world can't handle another war," another man sighed.
"It won't have to," Aang promised, "this will work."
"Just to be safe, I suggest we select a group of people, say two from each nation to keep the Fire Lord in check." The gang was silent as the room chorused its agreement over the new idea. Hakoda turned to his two children.
"If he'll do the job you say he will, then those people will never need to act," he reassured them. Sokka nodded in understanding.
"So Zuko will become Fire Lord with this group of people keeping watch over what he does to keep another war from starting," Aang repeated. The group nodded.
"I doubt a group of um -six- people can stop a war from breaking out," one of the men in green stated. He leaned back on his chair with his arms folded across his chest.
"And what would you suggest to keep the peace?" asked Hakoda, leaning over the table slightly.
"They can't watch his every move, and I doubt he'd seek their assistance on anything," the man explained, "we need a stronger bond then a council can offer, something more personal."
"Like a marriage," snorted Bumi.
"Exactly," the man said, hitting the table with his fist.
"We don't have the right-"Sokka started to say.
"We have every right to keep the fire nation from dreaming of another war," one of the waterbenders said, "and if telling the new Fire Lord who he'll marry is a way, then we should take it."
"I don't see how a wedding will stop a war," Toph interjected.
"Because the bride won't be fire nation," the man explained, "she would never allow an attack on her people."
"The prince wouldn't accept this," muttered one the earthbenders.
"He'll have to," the waterbender said, "the only question now is, whom?"
"But the earth kingdom has no princesses," the earth king said. He turned to Bumi who nodded in agreement.
"And neither do the water tribes," Master Paku sad after a pause. Yue's father avoided the master waterbender's eyes as he stayed silent.
"There must be some girl who is of age and from an important family," mumbled one of the earth kingdom nobles. Silence filled the meeting room until King Bumi drew everyone's attention to himself.
"What about your friend Aang," he said pointing a bejeweled hand at Katara.
"Me?" Katara panicked, "no, I couldn't- I'm not-" Toph burst out laughing as she felt Katara's stress next to her.
"Katara can't marry Zuko!" Sokka stuttered searching for a loose end with the idea, "she's not royalty. Right dad?" Hakoda, still caught up in the idea that his daughter would have to marry the new Fire Lord, paused before he attempted to answer. Yue's father spoke up in his place.
"Technically, Katara is in the same position my daughter was," he spoke, "the daughter of the leader southern watertribe anda master waterbender at that, would be equivalent, since no actual princesses exist."
"What about Toph?" begged Katara, "her family's a high ranking earth kingdom name."
"Sorry Sugar Queen," smiled Toph, "I'm not of age." The earthbender felt sorry for her friend as she tried to talk her way out of it. Aang sat in stunned silence; he now knew how Sokka had felt when he could not explain the invasion plan properly. All he had to do was tell them it was a stupid idea and think of another, but the meeting had gotten away from him, out of his control. Mastering the elements was nothing compared to this.
In an hour's time, the meeting was concluded; the fate of the fire nation resided in the written pact in Aang's hands. During the meeting he had come up with no other solutions to keep Katara from being forced into a political marriage to save the world. The waterbender herself had exhausted every argument she could think of, only to be proved wrong or shot down.
Aang opened the door separating the members of the meeting from Zuko and Iroh. The prince stopped pacing and looked to them. The whole group had gathered in the doorway to watch the two men sign the paper and have the avatar finish with his own signature. Katara gloomily watched from her seat; Toph remained beside her, she could feel the action from there, there was no need to be closer.
Aang handed the scroll to Zuko who laid it out on the table, where the tea had been placed only moments before, for his uncle to read it with him. Iroh nodded absentmindedly as if expecting most of the items on the list. Once he read the marriage proposal, he raised his eyebrows and an amused smile came to his old face. He felt his nephew tense as he read the document. Zuko turned to look at the group, disbelief in his eyes. Aang and Sokka had both dropped their eyes to look at the floor when they saw him look up. He was met with cold stares from the other members. He noticed Katara was not among them. She and Toph were still seated in the main room. He caught a look of disdain from her direction and scowled. His uncle had explained to him that under the risk of igniting another war, they had to agree to the entireproposal. The prince clenched his hands into fists as he thought about what they had demanded. They had allowed him to take the throne as Fire Lord, but then he had to immediately remove all troops everywhere they occupied outside the Fire Nation under their orders. All the war machines and balloons had to be disassembled and destroyed. The soldiers were to head home, and the standing army could number no more than a hundred persons. War ships had to be disarmed to avoid being sunk. The next section explained as to how a small group of persons would oversee every action the Fire Lord proposed and approved it before it could be put to effect. The group would consist of two members from the watertribe, two members from the earth kingdom, and what seemed surprising to both Iroh and Zuko was that they would allow two fire nation people as well. The persons had yet to be decided, according to the document.
Zuko did not mind the military suspension; instead, as he signed his name, he wondered how Katara had let herself be talked into this marriage. They had finally started getting along towards the end of their time together helping Aang, but he had known the avatar had a crush on her. How the boy had let this happen was as much as a mystery as to why Katara had let it happen. Iroh signed his name under his nephew's and passed the brush and ink to Aang. The avatar paused for a second, all eyes in the room on him. He wrote his name, sealing the document. The group nodded and slowly left the room, filing back outside. The people finally felt a sense of peace that the world could return to a place without war. The room emptied, except for Iroh, Zuko, Katara, and Toph. The earthbender had gotten to her feet and was trying to coax Katara from her chair. Iroh moved to them and put a gentle hand on the blind girl's shoulder, silently telling her to come with him and leave Katara to her thoughts. Zuko turned and stared at the back of her head as he heard his uncle close the door.
"So," he sighed, breaking the silence, "how'd you get yourself into this?"
"You probably think it's funny," Katara snapped.
"Do you think it's funny?" Zuko asked. He turned away from her and crossed his arms over his chest. He felt his anger rising but pushed it back, taking deep, calming breathes. Katara refused to answer; instead she mirrored his position and turned away. They sat in silence until the door was thrown open.
"Katara come on!" came Aang's voice; his cheery attitude seemed to have returned to him, "I've got to show you something!" Katara stood and followed him from the room, leaving Zuko alone. The boy sighed and rested his head in his hands, staring at the wall.
--
Toph made her way across the palace. Maids and other servants hurried by, but made sure to give her a wide berth. In the month since Aang had defeated the Fire Lord, things, on the surface at least, had seemed to fall into place. The palace had been the gang's home while they remained in the Fire Nation. Aang was almost never there, he had his work cut out for him to pick out the council members. Sokka and Suki had made a habit of walking the palace gardens when they were free. Toph watched them -through her earthbending- her jealousy slowly fading with each passing day. Suki had become closer to her then she could have previously believed. Today though, Toph had other business to attend to without thinking of the two lovebirds as they stopped by a garden of sweet smelling flowers in the courtyard.
Pushing open one of the doors in the hallway, Toph found herself immersed in a frenzy of activity. Maids scurried about carrying fabrics and already designed clothing. She found a familiar presence in the center of the turmoil. Katara leaned her head on her hand as she nodded absentmindedly at the fabrics presented to her. She noticed Toph enter the room and waved away the maids, happy for a distraction.
"Toph," smiled Katara. She jumped to her feet, fixed her skirt and rushed over to her friend. The two girls had long since begun wearing their outfits more suited to the climate in the Fire Nation, in part because they had no other clothing, but also the weather had been unbearably hot. Katara led her to the door and pulled her down the hall she just come through.
"Aren't you too busy to go for a walk?" questioned Toph, a smile on her face. Katara rolled her blue eyes.
"I'm sick of all these wedding preparations," Katara sighed, "it's bad enough I'm getting married, but now I have to pick out colors and approve dresses for the wedding I don't even want to take place."
"I think you're making too big a deal out of this," Toph laughed, "how hard can pointing at a dress and saying 'that one' be?"
"You try it sometime," Katara grinned, her stress ebbing slowly away. They paused at the gardens, a lone tree stood guard over a small pond.
"I haven't seen this courtyard," Katara stated, she saw the water as a turtle duck climbed out of the pool.
"Have you even left that room?" asked Toph, "it's been three weeks since the meeting."
"I've gone for walks," Katara said defensively, "and I've had tea with Zuko's uncle a few times."
"Have you spent time with Zuko?" asked Toph. She felt Katara tense at the subject of her fiancée.
"Not at all," Katara stated frankly, "I've been avoiding him." She stepped closer to the water and lazily bent some the liquid up into her hands. Katara closed her blue eyes and slid through some simpler moves. She had forgotten how calming it could be to just waterbend for no reason. The last time she had to do anything was to heal Appa after the battle almost a month ago. The bison had since recovered, and his fur had almost all the way grown back in.
Katara dropped the water back into the pond and slipped her shoes off. There was barely any use for them in the palace unless she walked to oversee construction on the southern wing, something Toph had taken to heart. The earthbender had since 'lost' her shoes and refused to have a new pair made for her. Katara looked to her friend and patted the ground next to her invitingly as she dipped her bare feet into the cool water. Toph took a seat next to her friend, but she set her feet flat against the ground, hugging her knees. She listened as Katara gently kicked her legs, splashing the water into the air.
"So, "Toph smiled, "what color is my dress?" Katara turned and sent a wave of water into her face, laughter soon following as they threw playful insults at each other.
--
"I shouldn't have asked," Toph sighed as she stood surrounded by three maids a week later. The women had struggled with the girl every step of the way. Toph had experience with servants, but none as demanding as these. They were worse than the ones her parents had that she had grown up with. Katara waved them aside and adjusted the fabric of the dress on Toph's shoulders. With bowed heads several of the servants presented Katara with an assortment of jewelry and ribbons. Picking matching pieces, Katara handed them to Toph.
"Here," Katara said, her mind lost in thought. Suki poked her head into the room and smiled.
"Wow, Toph, you look great!" Suki complimented.
"I'll have to take your word for it," Toph grinned. The blind girl pulled at the skirt, lifting it as if she was going to walk down stairs. Both Suki and Toph wore the same style dress; each one was forest green, the fabric coming to the floor. They were fitted around the waist and held up with a halter style tie. Suki turned to Katara, careful on how she praised her question.
"When are you going to put on your dress?" she voiced. Katara looked down at her underwear. She had yet to change since she had come from her bath.
"I'll have to soon," Katara said, glancing out the window at the sun, "it's supposed to start at midday.
"Did you want help?" Suki offered. Katara looked to the mirror as Suki placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Katara, I know this can't be easy for you, but we'll be there for you, ok?"
"Thanks Suki," Katara said. She gave her a small smile and watched them leave, hopefully to hurry Aang and Sokka into their outfits and be ready. Katara nodded to the three maids who busied themselves fetching the wedding dress and accessories.
--
Footsteps echoed down an empty hallway. Doors to bedrooms flanked both sides of the corridor every hundred strides. Glancing at a passing window up to the sun, Zuko guessed he had only an hour's worth of time until the wedding. He rounded a corner and spotted the two guards that his uncle had posted at the door nearby. Zuko motioned them aside and walked into the room. The bedroom appeared empty at first glance, until Zuko saw a shadow shift to his right.
"I'm not in the mood Uncle," the figure hissed.
"Azula," Zuko said, "come here," he demanded, then his voice softened, "I need to talk to you." Azula appeared from the darkness of her room, pulling open the closed curtain as she walked towards her brother. Unlit candles flared to life as she placed her hand to them, filling the room with light. Zuko was force blink a few times before he could see his sister clearly.
"Why are you here?" asked Azula, her golden brown eyes searched for answers Zuko had yet to give. She continued in a mocking tone, "today's your big day, the day you'll become nothing more than a puppet ruler." She turned to examine her nails the candle light.
"Azula," Zuko sighed, "you have nothing to gain by holding onto father's beliefs." Azula stared her brother down; the siblings' eyes locked into a heated battle.
"You're a traitor Zuko," Azula hissed.
"You'll be a traitor if you don't stop living in the past. The Fire Nation lost, but I have a chance to fix the mistakes that father made. I don't expect you to apologize, because I know you won't. All I'm asking for is for us to be on the same side." Azula thought for a moment as she stared at one of candles on a nearby table. She reached out to one of the candles and lifted the flame onto her fingertip. She watched the flame dance for a moment before extinguishing it with her thumb. One of her eyebrows raised as a smile came to her face.
"Sure Zuzu," she smiled, "as long as I can go to your wedding." Zuko seemed more surprised that his sister had actually agreed to what he had asked then to her request.
"Good," Zuko stated, regaining his composure, "here." He produced a small, box sized package and handed it to Azula. She looked to the simple wrapped item and then back at Zuko.
"What is this?" she questioned. She tugged at the string bidding the paper together.
"Your dress," Zuko said, he turned and walked to the door, "the guards will escort you there. You'd better not try anything Azula, there'll be many master benders attending." The door closed as Zuko left the room to finish getting changed into his full attire.
Azula set the wrapped package on her bed and pulled the tie free of the wrapping. The simple paper fell away to reveal a red dress. What the Fire Nation princess was unaware of as she slipped it on was that it was the exact design as the dresses Toph and Suki had on, only in red instead of green. Azula stood in front of her mirror and looked at herself, studying the dress. It fit well enough, and the color suited her tastes perfectly. She rolled her eyes trying to picture herself in any other color. Shuddering at the thought of wearing blue or green –again-, the princess freed her hair from its tight bun and let it hang down her back. She was used to doing things on her own ever since she had sent to hunt down her brother and uncle but not back at home. Azula had yet to see a single servant or maid. She was sure her uncle had sent orders to have them stay clear of her room. Trying the front pieces of her hair atop her head, she replaced the Fire Nation emblem and smiled at her work. She moved towards her door and waited for what Zuko had referred to as 'her escort'.
--
The largest palace garden had been transformed days earlier into a place fit for a royal wedding. Seating had been set up so the many visors, of each nation, could watch the union that would hopefully bring about peace. As the guests began to fill in the seats, Toph, Suki, Sokka, and Aang met under one of the trees. Sokka and Aang had long since been escorted by the girls down to the garden. Sokka and Aang were each wearing their nation's colors, blue and yellowy orange, respectively, and were dressed in the best clothing the town's tailors could offer. Not only had the news of the wedding brought talks of peace around the world, but more locally it had boosted the failing economy which had survived on the production of war materials. Every item needed to decorate had to be bought locally, which seemed to calm the local's anger at the fact that the bride was not from the Fire Nation. They had yet to learn about the paper Zuko had signed that had bound his fate, something he would make sure that never happened. Almost every business had improved through the purchase of flowers, the creation of the dresses, and the buying of the gifts for the seemingly happy bride and groom. They only appeared happy because they had yet to see the other in over a week.
Aang looked to the sky; judging by the sun, the ceremony was to start soon. The seats were filling up with guests faster as the time drew closer to the start of the wedding, each guest wearing their nation's colors. While the first bunch of guests had chosen to seat themselves far from anyone of a different nationality them themselves, as seating grew more scarce, watertribe' men found them seated next to fire nation nobles who in turn discovered an earth kingdom citizen on their other side.
Sokka noticed most of the people in red were admirals or generals and their families that Zuko had ordered home within the month. While many were still sailing back, a good number had made it in time to watch their new Fire Lord be married.
"Look who's coming," Toph announced. Her bare feet were hidden under the long green dress, so she felt the two girl's vibrations as they approached. Suki's eyes narrowed while Sokka panicked as they saw who Toph was referring to. Dressed in their own finery, Ty Lee and Mai casually made their way over to the group. Ty Lee waggled her fingers at Sokka and smiled cheerfully at the rest of them. Sokka remembered Mai from the prison break, thinking back to how Zuko had mentioned she had been his girlfriend.
"Why is everyone so quite?" asked Ty Lee, "weddings are so fun!" Her bubbly nature seemed not to have been damaged by the sentence Azula had given her and Mai. Aang recalled Zuko sending countless messenger hawks out to locate the two girls, but mostly to discover where Mai was.
"You're boring me," Mai finally stated, "Come on Ty Lee, let's sit down."
"It was nice seeing you," Ty Lee called as Mai pulled her away. The two girls walked back and sat amongst a group of other Fire Nation citizens. Mai's father was seated a few people down, watching the interaction with confusion on his face.
The sun was only inches from being in position to start the ceremony when another set of people joined the crowd. Iroh took his seat in the very front; he was dressed to impress in red and gold. Sokka noticed two guards step aside and remain at the door, making room for a woman in red to make her way towards the front. The group watched as she got closer. At first she seemed to pay them no heed, her golden eyes searching the crowd. Many of the fire nation admirals and other military officers bowed their heads as she passed. Azula sure to note which ones did not. Amongst these, she made sure to send an evil smile at Chan, the boy who had held the party on Ember Island. His jaw dropped as he watched her pass. Azula quickened her step and made her way to the group in the front. She felt Iroh's eyes on her back as she spoke to them.
"It's going to start soon," she said, "you'd better get in position."
"Azula, if you try-" Sokka started to say, his blue eyes narrowed.
"That's no way to talk to your future sister-law," Azula said, her voice held a tone of feigned hurt. She was enjoying every minute of this. Azula had almost forgotten how great it was to play with people's emotions. Being confined to her room for that month had done little to dampen her skills as a 'people person'.
Zuko, dressed in his black and red outfit, appeared, signaling the start of the ceremony and walked to where the vows would take place. A fire sage and one of the men from the northern watertribe waited down the aisle. Both cultures felt that all customs had to be conformed to make the marriage a legitimate pact between their nations. Zuko stood at the front of the crowd, waiting. Never before had he been so nervous. He was going to be the Fire Lord; unofficially, he already was, but the title would really be his today.
The sun was directly overhead; Aang and Sokka had moved to Zuko's left side a few feet away while Toph, Suki, and Azula waited further away to his right. Music sounded from the surrounding hallways and the guests turned towards the door. Katara appeared from within the palace. As she stepped into the sunlight her white dress sparkled. Pieces of blue material added to the dress, showing her true colors and matching her blue eyes. She met her father at the base of the steps and Hakoda walked her down the center aisle. A gentle breeze ruffled her hair which she had left down for the occasion, except for a small bun in the back. Every step she took brought her closer to Zuko, closer to her future life. She tried to keep a smile on her face, hoping no one could tell it was forced. She glanced up at Zuko, noticing the others standing nearby as part of the bridal party. Slightly shocked, Katara noticed Azula standing beside Suki. The princess' red dress stood in contrast to Suki and Toph's green ones, but it completed the pattern of having every color present. Katara ignored Azula's piercing gaze and amused smile and stepped beside Zuko. Hakoda released her arm, gave her a strong smile, and took his seat next to Iroh. Both waterbender and firebender refused to look at each other, instead they both turned to the two men conducting the wedding and the ceremony began.
The sun was nearing the horizon as the final vows were exchanged. Katara felt her legs begin to go stiff under her dress. When she had first been told that the wedding would start at noon and then the reception would begin at moonrise, the amount of time between the two had not seemed so long. As she watched shadows form on the ground, the two men directing the wedding grew silent.
"You may kiss the bride," nodded the water tribesman. Both Zuko and Katara paled at the thought. They hesitated, excuses running like wild fire through their minds. If I pass out I won't have to,Katara thought; she bit her lip and looked up. Her eyes came to Zuko's nose; behind him she saw Aang's broken expression and the side of Sokka's face as he glanced away. Zuko sighed, as much as he wished for a situation to free him, his honor hinged upon this. He felt Azula's blazing eyes on him and meet them with his own. He understood why she had been soadamant on coming as he watched her laughing expression. Neither bride nor groom had the courage to the stop the wedding after the long day of standing before everyone and relented. The kiss was short and somewhat awkward, but ended with cheers from the guests. Azula found herself laughing out loud at her brother's face, even while Suki shot her death glares.
"May I present to you, Fire Lord Zuko," the fire sage announced as he placed the golden crown atop his head that the Fire Lords before him had all worn. The sage continued, "and Lady Katara."
A formal clapping accompanied the pair as they walked down the aisle and into the palace, arm in arm. As soon as the servants shut the doors, Katara pulled her arm free of Zuko's embrace.
"Are all Fire Nation weddings that long?" Katara asked, "and when the sun is out at the hottest time of day?"
"They'd normally start at dawn and the reception would last until the sun set," Zuko explained. A pair of servants hurried in to escort the pair away to change into their other clothing. Katara happily let them lead her away to change out of her white dress. Once in the room, she was assisted in pulling off the wedding dress and slipped into a more desirable ocean blue one. Its design was similar to the ones Azula, Suki, and Toph wore, but it had more layers, like waves on the ocean, and it was held up by only a single strap over her right shoulder.
The reception was to take place in one of the dining halls. The guests would have already been told where to go and would have begun their gossiping. Katara and Zuko entered via the main entrance, their silent pact to play their roles of a happy couple fresh on their minds. Brilliant colored dresses and ribbons distracted Katara as she looked around the room. Iroh approached them first, the happy atmosphere of the room increasing by the moment. The old man gave them a knowing smile and placed each of his hands on each their shoulders, on Zuko's right and Katara's left. Zuko met his uncle's eyes, a wordless conversation taking place. Katara watched the exchange and could only guess what was being said.
Aang skirted over as Iroh nodded and walked off. Katara felt his tenseness as he tried to act like nothing had changed between the three of them.
"This place is really pretty when you're not trying to fight your way through it," he mumbled.
"Nice one twinkle toes," Toph laughed as she punched him in the arm.
"Thanks Toph," Aang replied a little shakily, rubbing his bruised bicep. Katara smiled at their antics until a group of six men walked over. Zuko raised an eyebrow as they neared them. All six men inclined their heads to both Katara and Zuko and gave a greeting to Aang.
"Oh right," Aang suddenly remembered, "Zuko, these men have been chosen as the members of the council. There are two from each nation." Zuko was silent as he looked over the group.
"The two earth kingdom men looked to be merchants of a high class while the water tribesmen were less awestruck at the presence of power. Zuko wondered if they had been advisors back home. The fire nation men were two lesser nobles; without the ability to bend, they had advanced as far as they could in the political game. Zuko mused over the possibility of any of the other four men having bending abilities. Silence overtook the group, but the surrounding guests did not seem to take note.
"Um, they had a meeting before this," Aang announced, "and they discussed what they felt were important topics for the future." Aang turned away to hide the red in his cheeks.
"We were discussing the future, not only of the world, but of your family." One of the earth men said. Zuko worked to keep his expression fixed as he remembered they could overrule any of his laws or judgments and could make their own regarding anything within the palace or involving the two of them.
"Would you like to share what you've decided?" Katara questioned. Zuko felt her brace for impact beside him, even though the two had yet to touch since their walk down the aisle.
"We have explained the importance," stated one of the fire nation men, "of securing the future throne." Both Zuko and Katara tensed; they knew where this conversation was headed but neither of them was ready to hear it said out loud.
"Isn't it a little early to think about that?" coughed Zuko. Katara folded her hands across her waist, gripped the blue fabric at her hips, and tried to focus on something on the ground.
"This is no longer just to keep the throne," a water tribesman explained, "because your marriage was to keep the peace in the world, the wedding won't be enough for many of the people. They'll want physical proof that you two can work together and are serious." The newlyweds refused to even glance at each other. A smile of amusement came to one of the man's faces from the fire nation before he excused them.
"We'll be enjoying the party then," he said, "good luck tonight." Zuko nodded and felt Katara flee into the crowd. His golden eyes watched her go, her blue clothing quickly bending in with the others from her tribe.
"Was that allthey talked about?" asked Zuko, trying to hide the disgust in his voice as he turned to Aang.
"No," the avatar said, "but I wasn't paying attention to the other things, they were too boring." Zuko laughed as the boy who he had joined up with at the western air temple let his true nature shine through. Aang joined in his laughter.
"Will you be staying here for a while?" asked Zuko.
"No," Aang sighed, "Appa and I are headed to the southern watertribe with Suki, Toph, Sokka, and his father tomorrow."
"Katara will miss you," Zuko said without thinking. Aang's face reddened and he looked away.
"I haven't told her yet," the boy muttered.
"You'd better," Zuko said, "or she'll be mad at me!" Aang nodded and walked off to find Katara. Pausing as he watched the avatar walk off to find her, the newly crowned Fire Lord hopped to not need to face Katara if she got mad at him. He had fought her enough to know she was a formidable enemy, even without her water bending.
Katara stopped walking once she had made her way to the door. Looking into the room she noticed the different colors had just stated to mix. Here, as before, red clothed people only kept to themselves, yet now they seemed more mixed. Katara leaned against the wall and closed her eyes.
"Not having a good time?" asked a voice from the curtain to her right. Katara looked to see Azula smiling at her with her all-knowing eyes.
"Don't give me that look," Azula said, "I was only wondering why you weren't enjoying your own party.
"You know why," Katara snapped. Azula shrugged, she pushed herself gracefully from the wall and moved to stand face to face with her sister-in-law. She cringed at the thought but regained her composure as their eyes met, distrust present in both pairs.
"What's wrong Katara," Azula smiled mockingly, "nervous about tonight?"
"Not at all," Katara said through clenched teeth. Azula gave her an amused smile and laughed to herself as she turned to leave, happy she had finally hit a nerve.
"It has been a most memorable day," Azula laughed. She left the hall, her footsteps echoing down the empty corridor as she disappeared. Katara sighed and closed her blue eyes for a moment. Glancing out a nearby window, Katara noticed the almost full moon. A smile graced her lips as the midnight air wafted into the room. The blinds stirred; the waterbender leaned against the stone railing across the window. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Aang making his way to her.
"Katara," Aang sighed.
"You're leaving tomorrow," Katara replied sadly, she had expected it. She knew he was taking Sokka, Suki, and her father back to the South Pole. Thinking of her home, Katara wondered if she would ever see the small village again. Much would have changed since she had left; Master Paku's students should have rebuilt the village to stand proud once more. She missed Gran Gran most of all since her departure almost a year ago. She smiled to herself, thinking of Sokka taking a leadership role, but she knew that Suki would keep an eye on him to keep him on a straight path.
"Yeah," Aang nodded after a moment of silence, "Zuko wanted to make sure you knew." Katara turned away for a moment.
"When?" she asked.
"At noon," Aang explained. Again, Katara replied with only a nod of understanding. She turned towards him and wrapped her arms around his tiny frame. Aang, momentarily shocked, returned her embrace and gave her a strong smile. The two separated and Katara turned to the crowd. The musician had picked up a cheery tune and the guests seemed eager to dance. The blue eyed waterbender felt a presence at her right; without turning she could tell it was Zuko. She seemed hardly surprised she could recognize his presence behind her without any hint. He nodded to passing couple and offered Katara his arm; it was an empty gesture and they both knew it, but it seemed to please everyone around them. Zuko led Katara into the center of the room with the other gathered people as the music changed again, this time to a more romantic, slower song. The royal couple began the dance, all eyes on them as they followed the music. Katara's hands rested lightly on Zuko's shoulders as they moved. She could feel his fingers on her waist as they twisted and turned. She was surprised to find the music easy to dance to, and even more surprised when after the first song ended some of the older Fire Nation couples joined in. Katara recalled Aang telling them that the kinds in the Fire Nation School he had attended knew nothing about dancing. She noticed that this was not nearly as fun as the dancing Aang and herself had done, but it still held the same feeling. She glanced to her left and saw her brother and Suki dancing alongside of them. Suki's head rested on Sokka's shoulder as they moved back and forth together. The song ended and Zuko bowed out, letting Aang take his place. Under any other circumstances the Fire Lord would never let anyone dance with his wife unless they were related, but since Aang was the avatar anda friend of both the bride and groom, the boy was allowed to step in. Katara smiled at him and they stepped to the new beat. At first Katara felt Aang's nervousness inhibit his dancing, but she coaxed him out of it enough that they could enjoy the dance almost as much as at the dance party.
When the song concluded, Katara bent over leaned over to whisper in Aang's ear. Pausing, Aang looked around and saw what she meant. Katara watched the boy make his way over to where Toph stood alone, seemingly watching the dancers. The blue eyed girl knew that behind her placid face the blind child was bored out of her mind. After a second's hesitation he asked her onto the floor. Katara smiled as Toph pulled him though some Earth Kingdom dances to the Fire Nation music.
The dancing continued on, allowing Katara to dance with her father, Iroh, and again with Zuko. As their dance ended, Katara fought to keep her eyes open. Luckily for her, the music ended, signaling the end of the dancing as well as the after-wedding party. Zuko offered his arm once more and led her from the center of the room. The two walked back up the way they had entered through and left the room of departing guests.
The two Fire Nation noblemen noticed the pair's departure.
"Do you think we put enough emphasis on producing an heir tonight?" asked the shorter of the two men.
"We'll never be able to emphasis it enough. The two of them seem to have a mutual hatred for each other and the subject could tear their relationship apart," explained the other as he pulled on his mustache.
"Hmm," sighed the first. He watched the doors close and nodded the second man. They joined the crowd of guests and headed into the night.
Pulling away from Zuko as the door shut them away from the others, Katara picked at her blue dress and she turned her back to him. They were led down the wide hallway, away from the dining hall and down lavishly decorated corridors. At the end of the hall, two solemn faced servants held a set of double doors open for them.
An extravagant room awaited their entrance. Zuko realized his uncle had been busy to make the room look so inviting. He had never been in this room before; it might have been the only place that neither he nor his sister had dared to step even a foot inside. Memories aside, the giant bed looked warm and comfortable, even on a summer night like the one surrounding them. A small door, parted from the room by a lightly translucent curtain, was the threshold to the large bathroom with all the most modern conveniences the Fire Nation could offer.
Katara took a step inside the room and slipped off her shoes. Crossing the space in slow steps, she pushed open the closed window and glanced outside. The moon illuminated her face from above as she turned to Zuko.
"Does the Fire Nation have that tradition as well?" asked Katara. All emotion was gone from her voice; it was as if she had bottled it all up inside. Zuko saw her blue eyes lazily focus on the bed and understood what she was referring to. He nodded and wrapped a hand around the bed post, averting his eyes from her moon bathed figured. Katara acknowledged his nod before glancing back to the moon for strength once more and closing her blue eyes tights, moving away from the window and out of the moonlight.
--
Katara bit her lip and tried to focus on her breathing. Tears streamed from her eyes and she gripped the bedding under her body. She wished Toph or Suki could have been here with her. She knew they would be no help, but just having someone with her would have made it more bearable. She knew that Suki was in the South Pole with Sokka and her father. Toph had accompanied Aang on his trip to drop the three of them off, but she was unaware if the girl had stayed or left. Because Toph would be unable to see on the ice and snow at the Southern Water Tribe village, she guessed that the girl would have left with Aang to go elsewhere. To where, Katara was unsure. Suki's letter had left Toph's decisions out. Katara only knew that Sokka had asked Suki to marry him and they would have had the wedding by the time the letter got to her in the Fire Nation. Sokka's messenger hawk, Hawky, had memorized the way from the pole to the palace from his numerous trips between the Katara to Suki and Sokka as they exchanged letters.
Her thoughts were ripped to the present as another wave of pain coursed through her body. She was surrounded by maids and midwives. Almost nine months had passed since her wedding with Zuko. The fact that she had become pregnant from just that one night of their wedding was a surprise to the both of them, but Katara was pleased she would not have to relive it. It had been the most awkward moment of her life, easily pushing the wedding kiss into second. Since then though, they had played their roles well. Zuko took over ruling the Fire Nation, constantly turning to his uncle for advice. Katara, once everyone discovered she was with a child, had shut herself up in the library. Iroh seemed to be the only link between them. Katara enjoyed the old man's company and his taste in tea as well.
Another spasm of pain coursed through Katara's body. With another deep breath, she heard a delighted gasp of the midwife assisting her and a high squeal of her newborn child. Katara forgot about her breathing and collapsed into the pillows propping her up on the bed. Her blue eyes slowly opened, blinking once or twice, and then rested on the small bundle of red in one of the lady's arms. The woman handed the child to Katara, who tenderly cradled her in her arms.
"Congratulations Milady," the woman smiled, "a beautiful baby girl. She seems to be healthy and strong. I will leave you now to inform her father." Katara watched her leave, noticing her assistants leaving the area clear for when the Fire Lord arrived.
Katara took the chance to gaze at the child in her arms. Her eyes were closed and she had stopped crying. Katara felt her body moving under the red blanket and thought back to the babies she had helped deliver before the war had ended. Each one of those baby's hands and feet had been so tiny; they were so helpless and dependant on their parents to do everything for them. Under the blanket, she felt her daughter wriggling, as if she was trying to snuggle deeper into the blanket that Katara held to her chest. Smiling to herself, the master waterbender silently promised to herself that she would protect this child, her child, from any dangers that arose from being a princess of the Fire Nation; she would not stand for anyone to harm her.
An almost silent knock sounded at the door. Katara turned and smiled as Iroh pushed open the door to the room. Zuko followed his uncle silently, his golden eyes meeting Katara's for only a moment before turning to the baby in her arms, his features softened slightly. Iroh sat down in the stool beside the bed and Katara handed the sleeping child to him as he extended his open hands to her. He took her up in experienced arms and watched the child continue to dream. The dragon of the west had delayed his move back to Ba Sing Se just to met his grandniece. He had told them his tea shop could wait another few months when he had heard the news. Zuko raised his eyebrows at the baby, surprised at how small and fragile she was. Zuko wondered for a moment how she would ever get any bigger and how anyone could be that small when they were born.
"What will her name be?" Iroh asked as he placed the baby back in her mother's arms.
"Kasumi," Katara replied, "her name will be Kasumi." She watched the baby lovingly as she said her name over and over in her mind. She felt Zuko's golden eyes rest on her as she gently rocked the blanket back and forth.
Yay! First chapter done! Kasumi is a Japanese name, but I'm bad at making up my own names for characters, so I'll stick to the ones I find on baby names .com ;) I've continued the unofficial tradition that the girls of Katara's family have K names! Kana, Kya, Katara, and now Kasumi… I didn't notice until I named her...
I've pretty much covered all the topics that usually occur in a post-war Zutara in one chapter, so now the story can move on… (More than 10,000 words, I'm so happy!) Remember to review and tell me what you think of it so far! ...