Well, thanks to those who took the time to leave comments, I appreciate it. I totally wasn't expecting to update until the middle of November, after Ty Luko Week finished up, but I decided to anyway. I'm having a lot of fun writing this and didn't want to stay away from it for too long.

For those who have been reading this story, I will start to develop the plot soon, and make the romance secondary, just because that's how it should be, and because this isn't a fluff story. However, there will be a lot of chapters for fluff. =) Anyways…here's chapter six.

Chapter Six: Preparations

Zuko awoke when the sun let off powerful rays which burned his eyes as he opened them. He looked around and was confused for a moment as to why he was sleeping on the ground. That was something royalty shouldn't do or resort themselves to. As he tried to get into a sitting position, he struggled from his early morning brittleness and the light weight of something lying upon his chest.

He looked down to see the sleeping face of Ty Lee, who remained resting. She let out small, relaxed breaths and her hair scattered over the bare chest of the shirtless prince. Primarily he was confused as to why she of all people was sleeping on him but reminded himself of the events of the passed day.

He gently tried to remove himself from beneath her so he wouldn't wake her, but that wasn't an easy task either, because one of the girl's arms was wrapped around his body and held him tight, making him extremely uncomfortable. It must have been a cold night, or else she would not have done so. Zuko sighed slowly and looked up into the sky. It was very early but Zuko was an early riser. He rose with the sun.

"Ty Lee" he whispered in a hushed tone, weakly nudging her shoulder. It was a few seconds of this repeated process until she had waken, looking flustered. Noticing her arm was around Zuko's body, she quickly removed it, a nervous blush creeping on her face.

"Sorry, sorry!" she squeaked out, starting to get up herself. She still wore her pink robe and saw Zuko's shirt he wore on the previous night on the floor beside her. As hard as she tried to resist, she couldn't resist sneaking a quick glance at his well built core. She was fond of stronger boys. However, it wasn't a quick glance, because it lasted a while.

"What are you looking at?" he questioned nervously.

"Oops! Uh…why aren't you wearing a shirt? Just because it's the Fire Nation doesn't mean it's always hot" she stared at him curiously through half-closed eyelids.

"Firebenders don't feel cold. You should know, they're you're people" he responded.

"Oh yeah…" she responded dumbfounded, something not very rare.

"I'm heading inside," Zuko said as he rose to leave. "Did you hear anything of when the ceremony is?"

"Azula said it was going to start at noon," Ty Lee responded, looking up into the sun, shielding her eyes from being exposed to too much. "I think you should have about five or so hours to get ready"

"Whatever," he sighed. "This is just a drag"

"Oh? But everyone's gonna cheer for you! They love you now!" the girl exclaimed, beaming a smile and raising her arms as to emphasize her point.

"They shouldn't though…I didn't kill him," he said weakly. "Azula did"

"It's okay Zuko…I'm sure it wouldn't matter anyway because they probably do love you" she tried to cheer him up, but to no success. She gave him a small, reassuring pat on the back.

"I'm going. See ya around" he said as he left. Ty Lee did nothing but watch him go, saying nothing either. She felt bad for the poor boy, he always seemed so troubled.

Zuko had entered the palace and made his way to his hallway, placing a hand along the wall to support his currently weak and tired legs. He passed by Mai's room, she was still asleep, and then passed by Azula's room.

"I didn't know you liked her this much" he heard his sister snicker from her door in a teasing tone. She stood within the doorway, dressed and ready to go for the day. He had no idea why but she must have been pretty excited for the ceremony although it would only last a small while.

"I don't know what you're talking about" he looked away from her, scowling, continuing his walking.

"I'm sure you're perfectly aware of what I'm talking about" she smirked. "You like her, don't you?"

"I don't like her!" he defended. Luckily for him, Ty Lee chose not to follow him into the palace, but instead, went to the turtle-ducks. If she heard him say what he just did, she would undoubtedly be hurt.

"Hmm….so you take her on a date, get her excited, sleep with her, and tell me you don't give a care for her?" she continued. "I must be missing something here"

Zuko couldn't do a thing but have his blood boil for her. She certainly was right, but she was completely wrong. "You don't know anything, Azula! Just shut up!" he hissed as he stormed off. She didn't push the matter further. She was amused.

The prince made his way to his room, but not in a good mood. "Stupid Azula. Always thinks she's so smart and knows everything. I hate her"

He'd left his room and made his way to the shower, for he was sweaty from his firebending session the night before. He put the water to the hottest it could go and sat in the tub. He let the warm water wash away all of his troubles. One by one, they were all soaked away. Bad father, gone. Wrong ceremony, gone. Evil, hated sister, also gone. His tensions…gone.

Ty Lee hummed as she skipped across the halls of the palace, still wearing her robe and slippers, heading for her room. She remembered to grab a small nail to push her painting into the wall when she got there. Holding the work of art in one hand, raised to the wall, she brought the small nail in her other hand up to where the portrait was to be hung. She tried to push the nail in but couldn't. She wasn't very strong in physical strength and the small surface of the nail hurt her thumb.

"Need help with that?" she heard a familiar voice behind her. She turned around with a smile on her face to greet her visitor.

"Hi, 'Zula!" she welcomed. "I can't push it in"

"Let me try" Azula offered, grabbing the small craft from Ty Lee's fingertips and pushing it into the wall. For her, it wasn't a difficult job. She was a cut above other women when it came to strength. "That was easy"

"Thanks a bunch!" she near gave into the temptation to hug her childhood friend, but decided against it. "So, what has you awake this early?"

"I should be asking you that same question" she smirked. She was going to have fun with her airheaded friend's mind.

"Umm…well, last night you see, I was sleeping-" she paused, feeling her face about to turn pink. Was she really about to tell Azula what happened? It would be better not to. "I just woke up early, that is all!" she forced a half smile.

"Did you wake up, or did someone wake you up?" Azula couldn't stop herself from holding back a suspicious looking smile. The smile of a devil.

"The first one" she replied, trying not to sound nervous.

"So…is ZuZu warm?"

"…..Um…what?" Ty Lee looked down, feeling nervous.

"I saw you two outside while I was coming back into the palace last night. I was away for a while," Azula answered. "Do you like him?"

"Well…he's really nice, but I wouldn't say I like him"

"Of course," Azula looked down to her friend's wrist. "Where did this come from?"

"Oh, Zuko bought it for me! Isn't it so pretty!?" she smiled, giving Azula a better view of the craft by raising her small hand to the princess' face.

"I'm sure he did," Azula spoke. "It's a magnificent piece for sure"

"I'm glad you like it. If you want to wear it, I'll totally let you, I would just want it back"

"Very well. I'll see you tonight at ZuZu's little ceremony. You will be attending, yes?"

"Yeah" Ty Lee smiled, watching her walk out of the room when, suddenly, she stopped.

"Don't take advantage of Mai" she near laughed without turning around and resumed walking out of the door. At first, Ty Lee couldn't make sense of Azula's remark, but it eventually stuck out clear to her. Could Mai..still have feelings for Zuko? She looked down to her feet, frowning and thinking back to what had happened last night with Mai. Ty Lee finally understood why she was acting the way she was, and was disappointed with herself.

The next few hours passed by with very little excitement going on. Mai had risen and prepared herself for the day. The four friends sat down at breakfast together and ate a rather silent meal. Azula near brought Mai's childhood crush of Zuko out but decided it would be too cruel even for her, so she didn't. Mai could already be pitied enough as it was. Ty Lee was mostly the only one who spoke, rambling on about the turtle-ducks that morning.

When the kids had dismissed themselves, they returned to whatever they were doing before. Zuko was personally reminded by Fire Lord Ozai that he would need to look decent for the day's events. He was told that mostly the entire Fire Nation population within the area would be attending. He had combed his hair back and put it up into a style similar to his father's. Another hour and the ceremony would begin. Zuko lay down on his bed, ready, and stared at the ceiling. He could hear some gathered people waiting outside already.

Ty Lee had decided to go to Mai's room and talk with her for a while of several topics. The one she would wait to bring up would be Zuko. She wasn't sure how she felt about him but she wanted badly to know how Mai felt for him. The two sat and talked for at least a half hour. There was so much to talk about.

"So what should I wear today?" Ty Lee asked excitedly.

"Whatever you want. So long as it isn't orange. What an ugly color" the Goth girl responded.

"Umm…I know! I'll wear a dress!" she chirped.

"Amazing thinking…"

"We should so do each other's hair. You'll be so pretty!"

"I prefer doing my own"

"Aww, but that's no fun!" Ty Lee pouted.

"Life's not fun"

"Unless you make it fun" Ty Lee countered.

"No"

"Please!"

"No!"

"Please, please, please!" Ty Lee begged, holding her hands together and sitting on her knees. She made a cute puppy face at Mai, although it didn't make a difference.

"If you do anything ridiculous, you will find yourself hanging by your throat on your wall. Clear?" Mai gave in, sick of Ty Lee acting like a child.

"Yay!" Ty Lee hugged Mai. "This'll be so much fun!"

"Fun for you"

"C'mon! Let's get started!" Ty Lee dragged Mai into the ladies' room and sat her down. She tried various ways to do Mai's hair but found it best to let it fall freely. She felt that Mai looked a lot better with her hair down. It was longer than it looked. Above each of Mai's ears, Ty Lee tied crimson colored ribbons.

Mai looked into the mirror when Ty Lee had finished and wasn't shocked, although she expected to be. She thought she looked fairly well.

"Do you like it?" Ty Lee asked, disappointed in the style being too plain, although it suited her best.

"Ribbons?" Mai asked seriously.

"But they look really cute"

"Whatever," Mai sighed. "Your turn"

"Okay! I can't wait to see what it looks like!" Ty Lee squeaked like a child being given candy. Mai struggled to undo her friend's braid but eventually did. She let the obnoxiously long hair straighten up before playing around with it, trying to find a way to best fit her friend. She eventually went with a rather plain look also. Small clips were above each ear, separating a colony or hair from the rest. In the back, Mai used a larger, fancier clip that stuck out nicely. She also used ribbons, pink ones, to tie into the girl's brown hair.

"Done" Mai said without excitement.

"Thanks Mai! It looks really good" Ty Lee credited.

"I'm sure Zuko will love it" Mai said sourly. She didn't know why she said it but she felt she had to. Ty Lee was shocked to hear this, not necessarily because of what she said, but the way her voice sounded when she said it. It was almost as if Mai was upset with her.

"Okay…I'm sure Zuko will love yours too" Ty Lee responded, trying to make nothing of the comment. She really didn't want to be talking about this, not right now when they were boding as friends.

"Don't be naïve, Ty Lee," Mai started, glaring at the younger girl.

"What do you mean?" Ty Lee asked, although she was perfectly aware of where Mai was getting at.

"You just like to spend so much time with him don't you?" she accused.

"Mai! Stop acting like this. What's the problem?"

"As if you don't know" Mai scoffed.

"Do you mean…you still…like him?" Ty Lee asked softly, in a hushed tone.

"…" Mai said nothing, letting Ty Lee know that she was correct in assuming Mai still liked him.

"I'm…sorry. I didn't know. But we just went out to talk and stuff. We're not in love or anything" Ty Lee reassured.

"How do you expect me to believe that?" Mai questioned. "A date it was, and dates mean you like him"

"It wasn't a date!" Ty Lee defended, knowing she was incorrect right after. The day went much differently than she expected and it really did seem as if were a date. But it wasn't meant to be.

"That's what I heard" Mai supported her claim.

"From who?"

"Azula"

Ty Lee paused and stared at her friend, puzzled. After a few seconds, she burst out laughing, much to Mai's surprise. "Mai, you can't ever believe what comes out of Azula's mouth! She's the biggest liar in the Fire Nation!"

Knowing Ty Lee was right, Mai did feel a little ridiculous. Maybe she was too quick in assuming what had gone down between her crush and her best friend. "I suppose you're right…as odd as that may sound"

"Don't be mean to me. I'm your best friend"

"Whatever"

Ty Lee hugged her friend and Mai returned her embrace lightly.

Azula looked into the mirror in her room and saw her beautiful reflection. She was ready and headed outside her room into the halls. She headed straight for her brother's room and opened the door. Zuko was lying down upon his bed, wearing fine silk robes of the best quality the Fire Nation had to offer. Gold trimming shone brightly from the edges. His hair was up like his father's.

"How are you feeling?" Azula asked.

"Like you care"

"Why can't I care for my dearest brother?" she asked.

"Because you care for nothing but yourself" Zuko pointed out.

"Be very lucky that I'm not frying you as you speak. Be happy that it's your lucky day"

"I never asked for it. You lied to father"

"To help you"

"To help yourself" Zuko corrected.

"How so?"

"I don't know. But it's not something you would do. You're planning something"

"You're annoying me"

"You're annoying me!" he shot back.

"I asked for nothing but how you felt. But you can't show enough care for your sister to answer that can you? You sicken me"

"If you care…I'm fine. I just want to get this over with"

"Very well, I'll take your word for it," Azula responded. "But just know…that as easily as I've restored the life you have left, I can take it away"

"You don't scare me"

"Convince yourself of that, it doesn't hide the truth" Azula suggested.

"Whatever. You can go now"

"And I shall. I'll see you outside soon, dear brother" she laughed.

Zuko got up not long after she left. He looked out the window and saw Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula standing where he was to be introduced. They seemed to be talking and seemed pretty excited also. The crowd had grown massively since he last noted, or rather guessed, their size. He figured it would be best for him to make his way down at about this time.

Zuko walked down the stairs and got to the main level of the palace. He arrived upon the entrance he was to come from. He could hear the crowd screaming excitedly and couldn't help to smirk. He looked past the doors and saw none other than Fire Lord Ozai turned around, looking back at him. Zuko's eyes immediately went to his face and fell upon a smile. He wasn't sure if it was a happy smile or a cruel smile, but it was a smile.

He walked forward and wore a smug smile upon his own face. This was the day he was once again a true Fire Nation Prince.

End Chapter Six

I really wasn't expecting to add a new chapter for a while, so I'm glad I did. The next chapter will be Zuko's return ceremony for sure.

I've decided to make the catfight over Zuko a little more interesting with Mai getting more involved. =) I even added a Mai Lee bondage scene. =)

Anyways, I will say again, this time for sure, that I won't update until after the first week of November.

TY LUKO WEEK IS COMING!

November 1: CHILDHOOD -or- PERFORMANCE

November 2: UPSIDE DOWN -or- ANOTHER LIFE

November 3: FREEZING -or- NEGLECT

November 4: CIRCUS -or- SAFETY NET

November 5: SCARS -or- SLIPPERS

November 6: GLARE -or- KNOWING

November 7: BENDABLE -or- AURAS

Those are the prompts. I will most likely do all of them and maybe even add some more one-shots unrelated to these prompts. Therefore, I will be totally busy and won't update for a while. If you are interested in participating also, there is a link on my page to get all the info you need! =)

Read and Review Please!

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