Silence hung heavily between the pregnant waterbender and the Fire Lord.
"So…" Zuko said, in a lame attempt to spark some sort of conversation. He was leaned against a wall, arms crossed. Both Katara and himself knew that they had been just that close to being a happy couple, but in the end, both had went their own ways - Katara with Aang and Zuko with Mei. And that fact probably fueled the awkward air between them.
"How's Mei doing?" Katara ventured, resting her arms on top of her swollen belly.
Zuko glanced up, it was hard for him to see her pregnant. It just looked…felt…wrong. "Fine, I think." He answered. Katara was silent, as if waiting for more.
But Zuko wasn't going to willingly talk about the forever-stoic ex-lover.
"You think? Did something happen?" Katara urged. "You guys have been together for seven years, haven't you?"
"No," Zuko replied with a casual shrug of his broad shoulders. "We broke up after three years."
"Oh. I'm sorry."
"No problem."
Another silence.
"Don't you find it funny," Katara started quietly. "That after not seeing each other in seven years, it got so awkward between us?"
"I don't find it funny." Zuko answered plainly. He kept his eyes on the floor, he was afraid that if he looked up now, everything would fall apart.
"I don't like it, Zuko."
"Don't like what?" He asked.
"I don't like how I get the feeling that you've been purposely avoiding us for seven years." Katara said, her voice rising ever so slightly. "What happened to the invitation to Sokka and Suki's wedding four years ago? What happened to Toph's Sweet Sixteen birthday party – you know how important that was to her. What about my wedding, Zuko? What happened to all those invitations to a group reunion?"
Zuko clenched his fists, "I was busy, alright? I had no time for trivial celebrations like those!" He looked up and glared at Katara.
"So you're saying that your friends aren't important enough for you?" Katara demanded, balling up her fists.
"I didn't say that!"
"You're saying that my wedding wasn't important enough for you? I thought we were best friends, Zuko!"
"I didn't know!" Zuko snapped, furiously. The lie was starting to feel like the truth now, "I didn't get any stupid message, remember?"
"What about everything else, Zuko? Did you only come today because Aang had to personally go and inform you?"
Zuko gritted his teeth, "Damn it, Katara! Do you think it's easy to be Fire Lord? I'm sorry if I missed some stupid birthday party, I'm sorry if I missed a few weddings. What is wrong with you anyway? I came today, didn't I? Isn't that good enough for you?"
"Zuko." Aang voice made him turn around in surprise. The Avatar looked both hurt and annoyed. "I think that's enough."
He didn't say anything else but turned away and trained his eyes on the floor, letting his bangs fall across his eyes. He listened as everybody shuffled, awkwardly, into the room.
"How is Aunt Wu?" Katara asked, calmly, though there was still an angry undertone to her voice.
"She's fine. I guess the trip was just too much for her." Aang answered.
"Yeah, she's gotten pretty old." Sokka added. "There's way more wrinkles and stuff."
"Sokka! Don't be so rude to your elders." Suki scolded.
"What? It's only true."
Finally, Zuko straighten up. He didn't know how much more he could take – going back to his old friends after seven years was harder than he had expected. Everybody turned to look at him, except for Toph. "I'm going to go to my apartment." He announced in an even voice. "Have to unpack and see what my guards are up to."
"Already, Zuko?" Suki said, worriedly. "You just got here."
"Yeah, why don't you join us for dinner tonight?" Sokka grinned, "There's gonna' be lots of meat!"
Zuko chuckled a bit, "Oh, okay. I'll drop by tonight." He headed for the door, "I'll see you guys till than."
They nodded and he left. The Fire Lord was about to head out the door when he heard footsteps approaching him. Startled, he turned around to see Toph walking towards him. "Wait up," She said, "I'm coming with you."
He nodded and they were on their way to his apartment. "Still not wearing shoes, I see." He pointed out.
"Why were you lying?" Toph asked, ignoring his comment. "Did you think you could fool me? I've only gotten better over the years, Sparky."
"Lying…"He repeated with a sigh, "I was hoping you wouldn't notice."
"You got the invitations, all of them, didn't you?"
Zuko took a deep breath before answering with a nod he knew she couldn't see. There was no point lying to her anyway. "Yeah." He admitted quietly.
"That brings me back to the first question – why?"
"Well…" He drawled, thinking. Why, exactly, had he ignored them? They were all his best friends; they'd done so many things for him and with him.
"It's Aang and Katara isn't it?" Toph interrupted. "Geez, Sparky, stop being so slow."
"How'd you know?" He asked, sharply.
"It's so obvious, duh. Didn't you notice that your heart rate pitched when you saw them together?" Toph snorted, "You're still as slow as ever when it comes to these things."
"No I'm not. How do you think I ended up with Mei? I'm not slow about love."
"Yeah, look at how that relationship turned out." Toph was being painfully blunt.
"Yes – well…" Zuko faltered, damn, he was getting out smarted by a girl five years younger than him.
"Aw, don't get so frustrated. You're just slow, admit it."
He flushed, "Shut up, Toph."
"Mkay'" She sang.
.::::.
When the two arrived at the apartment, they were…surprised to say the least.
Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance and Toph just blinked. "There's a lot of stuff in there." She commented.
Zuko waved a worker towards him, "Please explain to me why there is so many unnecessary gear here."
"Please…Please define 'unnecessary', sire." The worker said, obviously afraid that the Fire Lord would explode. Though Zuko was never as relentless as Azula or Ozai, he still had a massive temperament problem.
"Robes, head-gear, Fire Lord stuff – you know what I mean!"
"But, as Fire Lord…"
"I don't care what the stupid rules about public appearances say. We're in the Earth Kingdom for heavens sake – take it all away and just leave the normal things, please!" Zuko demanded, angrily.
"B-But, sire…"
"NOW!"
"Y-Yes, sire!" The worker squeaked and hurried into the building. Almost immediately, lines of workers marched out carrying useless furniture and articles out. These usually included animal carpets, fur coats and other luxury nonsense.
After being banished and forced to live a relatively simple life for three years, Zuko had grown accustomed to simple things and absolutely hated all the luxurious stupidity in the castles.
Toph let out a low whistle, "Sure is taking a long time, huh."
"There's a lot of stuff."
She hummed her agreement.
.::::.
After Toph had snooped through every single inch of his apartment, she left. "Don't forget about tonight, Sparky. Miss it and you will be smacked in the face with every kind of element - plus a boomerang."
Zuko sank deeper into the tub of soapy water. He was torn, part of him wanted to attend the dinner and the other part didn't. But he knew that either way, he would have to do go. He ducked into the water before getting up and quickly drying himself. The attire he chose today was casual and comfortable and that, he was glad for.
He wore a beige under-robe, a mahogany cover-robe with dark brown linings, an orange sash and black, loose pants. His hair was down and cut the same length as the day he joined 'Team Avatar'. He smiled slightly, it felt good to be independent again. No stupid man-powered carriages he absolutely HAD to sit in, no servants helping him into his robes and best of all? No stupid nobles to irritate him day in and day out.
As he came up to Katara and Aang's house, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Ready?
No.
Did he have a choice?
No.
Well, better get it over with.
Zuko knocked on the door and waited. It didn't take long before the heavy wooden doors flung open and he was yanked in. "Zuko! Glad you came!" Sokka sounded almost relieved. "Everybody is waiting for you."
He frowned, "Was I late?"
"No, you're on time - but I got hungry."
"Ah, that explains it."
"Come on, I can't wait to start eating. Suki makes the best cow-hippo stew EVER." Sokka led the Fire Lord to the dining hall where everybody was seated at a table. Though he didn't like to admit it, Zuko felt his mouth start to water when all the wonderfully delicious fragrance hit him. Hey, he hadn't eaten anything for the whole day.
"Zuko, you made it!" Aang smiled, gesturing to an empty seat beside Toph. "Sit down so we can get eating, I'm starved."
Aang was sitting beside Katara, of course, and Sokka sat on her other side with Suki across from him. Zuko sat down across from Katara and beside Toph. "Smells good." He commented.
"Thanks!" Both Toph and Suki said at the same time.
"Katara can't cook so we took over." Suki told him. "And yes, Toph can cook."
"Yup, traditional Earth Kingdom style!"
"Must have taken a lot of skill." Zuko commented. Toph shrugged.
"Enough chit-chatting, can we eat now?"
And so they did.
The food was...different. It wasn't quite like Katara's simple and light-tasting meals, or the spice filled food of the Fire Nation. Zuko didn't know how to describe it, he just knew it was oh-so good. Conversation had been light, teasing and easy throughout the meal. The gang talked about safe topics like Sokka's immaturity, the weather, Momo, funny memories and so on.
Once everybody was finished, Sokka and Aang were put to cleaning duty while everybody else lazed around in the living hall. Even though he didn't want to admit it, Zuko knew he was having the most fun in a long, long, long while.
He was playing a rather intense game of Pai Sho with Suki who was, admittedly, very good at the game. Sokka, Aang and Toph were entertaining Katara with heavens knows what, but there was laughter all around.
The game of Pai Sho finally ended with Suki crowned the winner. Zuko scowled as the others teased him about it. The Fire Lord? Losing Pai Sho? He grumbled under his breath, it was time to ask Uncle for help.
Sokka, Aang and Toph were congratulating Suki, who looked pretty smug. Zuko looked up at Katara and frowned in puzzlement.
"Katara, are you okay?" He asked, which made everybody else turn to her as well.
A thin layer of sweat covered her forehead, she was breathing harder than usual. "Y-Yeah." She answered, her voice sounded pained.
"The baby." Toph breathed, eyes stretching wide.
"What? What about the baby?" Aang asked, panic starting to rise in his voice.
"It's coming. I can feel it."
Before anybody else could react, the maid came rushing in, a grin on her face. "It's Aunt Wu! She's woken up."
Zuko could feel The Avatar's panicked eyes on him. What, was he suppose to suddenly know childbirth now? Sighing, he got up. "Okay, everyone," He started. "Sokka, Toph, do you know who the midwife is?"
The two nodded. "Good, go and get her now." Zuko turned to Suki and Aang, "You two stay with Katara and try to calm her down."
Katara grunted, "Do you even know anything about childbirth, Zuko?"
He glared at her, "No, Katara. But at least I'm trying to get something done."
"But what about Aunt Wu?" Aang asked, worriedly. "Somebody needs to look after her."
"I will - she's awake, it can't be too hard." Zuko turned to Toph and Sokka who was still sitting down. "Well? What are you waiting for? Hurry up!"
"Okay, okay!" Sokka said, jumping up and running out the door with Toph following. Aang and Suki got up to help Katara into the bedroom.
"Show me where Aunt Wu is." Zuko said once the trio disappeared into the room. The maid nodded and quickly scurried into a guest room.
Aunt Wu was lying down on her bed, she had a wet towel placed over her forehead. She was awake, but still groggy. "Um," Zuko coughed, he had never really met the fortuneteller. He had only passed by her on that Shishu, and Uncle had flirted with her, but that was about it. "Aunt Wu?"
The old woman coughed, "Who are you?" She demanded weakly. "You're none of the Avatar's friends."
"Actually, I am." Zuko said, patiently as he walked towards her. "I'm Fire Lord Zuko, Son of Ozai and Ursa."
"Oh! The Fire Lord!" She said and started to hack. "G-Get me some water, please!"
He stepped aside as the maid came with a glass of water. She helped Aunt Wu into a sitting position and held the cup to her lips. The fortuneteller gulped down the water. Once she was done, she sighed, "Where is the rest of your friends?" She asked, looking suspiciously at the Fire Lord.
"Katara is going into labor." Zuko explained, ignoring her suspicious glare. He had seen enough of those to be immune to it. "Aang and Suki are with her. Sokka and Toph went to hunt down the midwife."
Aunt Wu was staring at him intently. Zuko shifted, uncomfortably. He was used to people staring at him but something about her gaze was different. It felt like it was boring into the very core of his being. She gestured towards the maid, "Leave."
Okay, now it was starting to get a little weird. "Wh-What are you staring at?"
"Come here."
He blinked, "What?"
"I said come here!" Zuko obeyed obediently, not at all liking how the old woman was treating him. Aunt Wu grabbed his collar and pulled his face down to hers. His eyes widened as he stayed frozen in shock. The fortuneteller stared intently into his eyes before letting go. Zuko jerked away, smoothing his shirt. "Golden." She murmured.
"What did you do that for, woman?" He demanded, annoyed.
Aunt Wu sighed and suddenly looked older than what she was. "I had...a vision."
Oh great, more spiritual, fortune telling junk. Zuko rolled his eyes, this was going to be fun.
"My fortune telling is not junk, thank you." Aunt Wu snapped, glaring up at him.
"What? How'd you -"
"In my vision!" She interrupted loudly before continuing with a solemn expression. "Fire fought with air. The baby is born dead."
There was a silence before Zuko said, confusedly. "That's...it?"
"Yes that's it!" Aunt Wu snapped. "The baby will be born dead, air and water do not produce anything. The color of the infant's eyes will speak of the real, destined father!"
Zuko blinked, "So, what does that have to do with me?"
The fortuneteller hissed, "You're so stupid, Fire Lord!"
"Calling me names isn't going to get us anywhere!" Zuko growled, feeling his temper rise. "You just had some stupid dream about heavens knows what and you expect me to do something! It's a dream, woman. It could be anything!"
Aunt Wu said nothing she closed her eyes. "Go - Go and tell the Avatar of my vision. As for me, I shall be leaving. I am no longer needed here."
Zuko opened his mouth and was about to protest. "I said, leave! And call that girl in, will you?"
He scowled before whipping around and walking, briskly, out the door. "The old woman wants you in there." He said to the maid who was standing outside.
"I heard that, young man!"
Stupid old woman, he thought as he walked into the bedroom. He went to stand beside Suki. Katara had been changed into a white gown; Aang sat beside her, his hand holding hers protectively. Suki was on the other side, talking nonsense and trying fruitlessly to get her attention off the pain.
"How's she doing?" Zuko asked, trying to ignore the unpleasant twist in his gut.
"Her water just broke." Suki answered glumly, "Is that midwife person here yet?"
"Nope."
"WAIT A MINUTE!" Zuko jumped slightly at the sudden burst of sound. He whipped around to see three, panting figures by the doorway. Sokka held up a palm, his shoulders heaving. "We…found her…!"
"Toph tells me…that her water just…broke, correct?" The midwife said, her chubby cheeks red.
Toph nodded and walked into the room to sit down on the foot of the bed. "Yup, heard you guys all the way outside."
Aang nodded, still a little bit shocked. "Good, she's about ready to go than. My name is Bei Feng," Bei Feng moved towards Aang. "But this is no time for introductions."
Katara gave a loud grunt.
"I need all the males to get out of this room and stay in the living area." She instructed, sternly.
"What! But…I'm her brother, a family member, I should have all the right to –"
"Sokka, you pass out at the sight of childbirth. We don't need more problems here." Suki interrupted, "And don't lie to me, you know you feel dinner coming up." Sokka hung his head guiltily, "Now get out of here!" He nodded, turned on his heel and padded out sulkily.
"But Mrs. Midwife ma'am…"Aang started. Zuko came forward and grabbed the Avatar by the sleeve of his shirt.
"Come on, Aang. This isn't the time to protest." He said as he dragged the struggling man out the door.
"Zuko! Let go of me – Katara needs all the support she can get." Aang protested and wriggled out of his grasp. He turned around and was about to head back into the room but the door was slammed shut. There was a click of the lock and silence.
"Argh!" They were sitting down at the living area. "I hate this! It's so nerve wrecking! Like Ozai all over again."
"Oh, come on, Aang. It's not that bad." Sokka said, stretching his legs out. "Ozai was a psychopath – this is only your first child." He glanced at Zuko, who was seating, cross-legged on the ground. "No offence."
He shrugged, "None taken."
"Easy for you to say!" The Avatar snapped, "Try putting yourself in my shoes."
"Um, guys, I have something important to tell you." Zuko started when he saw that Sokka was about to say something. Something probably so incredibly stupid that it would spark some sort of stupid argument that would end in stupid consequences leaving him, Zuko, in the stupid middle.
They both turned to look at him, Aang, still grumbling and Sokka, looking insulted. "What, Zuko." Aang said.
"Aunt Wu had a vision." He than preceded to tell them about the fortuneteller's dream. Aang and Sokka listened, their interest growing as Zuko recited the words.
"That's it?" Aang asked, quietly. He was hunched over and had a look of disbelief etched all over his boyish face. "That's it?"
"You know, that's not very specific." Sokka commented with a shake of his head. "That could mean anything, besides, it was just a dream. Bei Feng herself said the baby was perfectly a-okay just a couple days ago."
Zuko nodded, "It was just a dream from some old lady with a fever – it's probably not going to happen anytime soon."
Aang did not look like he was listening. His face suddenly twisted in anger. "You're lying!" He burst, jerking up and pointing an accusing finger at Zuko. "You're lying! You're just jealous that Katara chose me instead of you! That's why you didn't come to our wedding – do you think I had bought that lame excuse? Did you think I didn't notice that you liked her? The crystal cave, the ridiculous mission – everything!"
Zuko blinked and listened in shock. Sokka didn't look any different. They shared a look.
"Avatar Roku said that I could! He said that I could have a child with the person I was destined to be with. That person – its Katara!" Aang continued, his voice climbing in volume. "Why would you pull off such a…stupid, unbelievable lie, Zuko?"
"Avatar!" A woman's voice made all three men turn. It was Aunt Wu. She was standing at the end of the hallway, wearing her travelling robes. She looked mad. "Calm down! Fire Lord Zuko is not lying – I did, in fact, have a vision!"
"A-Aunt Wu?" Aang mumbled, lowering his finger. "What's going on?"
"I am leaving for home." The fortuneteller announced, huffily. "I am no longer needed here as the baby is bound to be born dead."
"Don't say that!" Aang jumped to his feet. "The baby is going to be fine and I AM the destined father!"
"Avatar, you, of all people, should know by now that the spirits are not to be questioned." Aunt Wu said, with an air of calm that held an intimidating feel to it. "This is the vision that I have received and I came here to bless your baby. However, I have been told that your baby will not make it, therefore there is no use in my presence!"
"I said," Aang began, clenching his fists. He would have gone on had Zuko not placed a hand on his shoulder and startled him.
"Aang, don't." He said quietly. "Calm down."
He felt the younger man tense but relax reluctantly. "It's just a dream, right, Zuko?" He murmured under his breath. "It won't happen?"
"I can't promise you that." Zuko told him, honestly. "But anything can happen."
Sokka got up as well, "Yeah, Aang. Don't get so worked up over it – we'll just have to wait and see."
"Fine. Be stubborn." Aunt Wu huffed and walked towards the exit. Her maid followed close behind, carrying her bags. "But I shall be leaving anyway. If I do not get a letter in the next three days asking for my return – I will just assume that my vision was correct." She slid on her shoes, opened her door and stepped out. The maid followed suit. Her voice dropped, "And you were wrong." There was a pause before she smiled cheerfully, as if nothing had ever happened. "Now, I shall be on my way. Tata!" The door slid shut and the three men exchanged a glance.
Sokka opened his mouth to say something but the bedroom door flew open and Suki stuck her head out, beaming. "The baby is born." She must of felt the tension as a frown graced her lips. "Well, take your time, she's ready for her father to meet her."
"Her?" Aang piped, "She's a girl?" He straightened up and walked, hurriedly into the bedroom.
"Aw…" Sokka pouted. "Why is it that I'm getting interrupted so much today?"
Zuko shook his head, "Let's go, Sokka."
Thank you SO MUCH for the reviews, views, alerts and favorites! It has meant a lot to me. I hope you enjoyed this chapter too.
R&R
