Contrary to popular belief, Iroh was not a stupid man.

He knew many people thought of him as a fat, jolly man, oblivious of the world beyond tea and pai-sho. Gone were the days he was considered the fire nation's greatest strategist, smartest and most skilled general. The title of the dragon of the west has been forgotten. After the war, he was merely the old man who helped in saving Ba Sing Sei.

Not that what people believe was true. Quite the opposite in fact. His mind was still harp as a blade, his eyes still fully aware of what's happening around him. He was not sightless to anything, not even his nephew's infatuation for a certain water bender.

No, he was not unaware of the shy glances the he shot her way. He was not blind to the quick reddening of the young fire lord's pale cheeks whenever the girl would absentmindedly touch him. The stuttering did not help hide it, of course.

He knew Zuko was a special young man. His experience with women was not always every pretty, especially with the sweet little girl he once took on a date. Zuko's banishment caused his opportunities with women his age be hindered. Iroh understood that.

The boy needed a push. And who better to do that than his uncle? It would be easy – compared to all the battle strategies Iroh has been swamped with because of the war – all he needed was the betrothed couple and perfect timing.

And maybe some tea.

It was no surprise that Sokka would ask Suki to marry him. It was a constant the group held on to dearly, something to look forward to. What the real surprise was where Sokka's has chosen to have the ceremonies.

Everyone stare at Sokka, their mouths agape. They looked at him as though he had grown an extra head.

Sokka merely look at them with mild amusement. Iroh had warned him about this.

"Well?" he inquired innocently. "What do you think?"

They merely continued to stare at him in silence, bewilderment still etched upon their features.

"Wh-why?" Katara asked, still in shock.

"Well it's near Kyoshi Island so it's good for Suki and dad's still healing up so going home is going to be a problem. It's the best option."

"What about Gran-Gran?"

"Master Pakku said he'd take care of it."

They turned their gaze towards Zuko, who, like them, was surprised by the news.
"I still don't see why you'd do it there but okay, I guess." Zuko said, "I don't have anything to do with it anyway."

Sokka beamed at them. "Good, 'cause there's a lot of things we need to do before we can get that place presentable and you guys are going to help me." The whole group groaned when Sokka presented them with a scroll even longer than the one he used for their schedule.

0~0~0~0~

"I'm the fire lord, the leader of my own nation. I DON'T SEE WHY I SHOULD BE DOING THIS!" Zuko angrily screamed, blasting dire high above him.

He, along with everyone else in the group, was on his knees, scrubbing away the courtyard he and Aang used for practice during their stay in the Ember Island beach house.

He was surprised Sokka had chosen that place for his wedding. He, himself, did not hold any happy memories in the house, let alone the water tribesman. But Sokka was pretty adamant when Zuko spoke to him after the group left when he announced his desired place for his wedding.

"I don't want to trouble anyone with traveling to the South Pole." He reasoned with Zuko. "And big celebrations with guys aren't really a thing in Kyoshi Island."

Zuko was regretting his decision when he was in the courtyard, on all fours, a sponge in one hand and a bucket of water in the other. It was apparently tradition for the men coming from the Southern Water Tribe to do all the manual labor required before the ceremonies. This included cleaning and decorating the courtyard for the ceremonies. Zuko had to fire every one of the helpers working in the house.

"Oh, shut up, Sparky." Toph said from her corner. Futilely, she threw Zuko a wet sponge, only to have it land three feet away from him. "You're the one who agreed to this. This is all your fault."

"C'mon guys, it's not all bad." Zuko looked up to see Aang. He, to Zuko's dismay, strapped two wet sponges on his feet. Aang took a deep breath and, without another word, shot off from his spot and started to skate.

Zuko was not sure whether he considered the Avatar an idiot or a genius as he skated around the courtyard. He was certainly cleaning the place a lot faster than they were a few moments ago. Aang let out a cheer of laughter as he swerved away from Toph, casing a giant wave of soapy water to land on the girl.

"Oh, you're ganna get it!" she laughed. She started to bend the ground Aang was staking on, making large, totem-like structures to pop onto his path. Aang took this as a challenge. Swerving, jumping over, and even destroying the things using air bending.

Zuko stood up and retreated towards the shaded pathway, watching the two. Aang gleefully skated around with ease, narrowly avoiding the obstacles Toph kept sending his way. Every now and then, Zuko would hear the two comment on how weak the other was or on how easy the other was making it for them.

A small smile crept through his features; it was almost a relied to see Aang like this. Back to his normal, joyful self. Far from the young man Zuko saw after the war; tired, worn-out with lines on his face that he only previously saw on his uncle. The laughter and the light teasing was a comfort to hear.

"They're cute, aren't they?"

Zuko turned to see Katara standing right beside him, her eyes glued to the couple in front of them. Her features, Zuko was certain, mirrored his.

He turned his gaze back to the two. Aang and Toph merely continued their little game, oblivious of the people around, watching them under an amused gaze.

"Oh, to be young again." She sighed.

Zuko smirked at her. "You make it sound like we're a thousand years old."

"We might as well be." She said, her eyes never tearing away from the two. "You know the first thing I thought of this morning? Whether or not Appa was feed and if Sokka finally cleaned his ceremonial clothes" she let out another tired sigh. "I miss the days when all I had to worry about was; if the snow outside deep enough for me to burry Sokka's boomerangs."

"It could be worse."

"What could possibly be worse than worrying about getting Sokka's clothes clean?"

"You could be buried under a ton of paper work every day." He said dryly.

"I almost forgot, Mister Sparkypants here is Mister Fire lord now. Well, at least you have Mrs. Fire lord to keep you in good company."

Zuko shot her a confused look. Did uncle marry him off when he was heavily sedated after the war?

"Mai." Katara said, after seeing Zuko's look.

A look of realization dawned on him. He quickly let out a bitter laugh and said "If company you mean an unending stream of complaints then yes, I am in good company."

Before Katara could retort, Zuko continued. "And it's not like you're alone here either." He indicated the two who were still fighting in front of him, now using their bending skills to their limit.

"Yeah, it's like having Sokka as a kid again."

"You mean-"

"Yup."

"So the Ember Island Players were-"

"Yup."

"But I thought you-"

"I don't want to talk about it." She said tiredly. Before he could stop himself, a small feeling of hope spread around him. He quickly caught himself and shook it off. She finally faced him and said "C'mon, we should stop them before they get mud everywhere."

Zuko and Katara were too busy pacifying the situation that they were totally unaware of the two pairs of eyes watching over them.

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity to help my nephew gain the happiness he denies himself." Iroh said, chuckling as he saw Zuko and Katara stand beside each other. The two an almost parental aura around them as they stood over the two younger benders. Her hands were on her hips, cocked over on side while Zuko had his over his chest, his eyebrow undoubtedly raised.

"And thank you for giving me all the fire nation's ceremonial swords." Sokka replied.

They continued to watch the scene below them. Aang and Toph were staring at the ground as Zuko and Katara spoke to them. They looked like two kids receiving retribution from their parents. This was funny to watch seeing as, technically, Aang was the oldest among them.

"What's your plan now?" Sokka asked, breaking the silence.

"Young man, one does not wait for fate to strike, sometimes, one must impose his own will to shape destiny."

With that, Iroh walked away, leaving a bewildered Sokka at his wake.

HEY! Well, technically this is my third Avatar fanfic but this is the only one I'm proud of. I think. Anyway, tell me what you think of it. :)

Disclaimer: If I owned Avatar, Zutara would have been end game.