Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA

Thanks for the reviews everybody! As always, I appreciate all of them. Sorry that this chapter is late, my puppy chewed up my power cable so I had to type it on my phone :(

One of you brought up Katara seeming a bit immature and out of character for the last chapter...that was slightly intentional. Struggling with your relationship and the knowledge that it has to end for one reason or another can make people act in ways that they normally wouldn't, and Katara is struggling morally with acknowledging an attraction to somebody else. I imagine Katara to be slightly immature when it comes to relationships because Aang is really her first one, having grown up during wartime. I appreciate your feedback though, and I'm really sorry if I broke your immersion in this story with it. I hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Also, a few of you brought up some inaccuracies in the previous chapters, I swung back and fixed as much of it as I could find. My bad for mixing up chi and chakra, I was actually thinking about that one episode where Aang opens up his chakras and it didn't correct itself in my head. Likewise I made some mistakes with Toph looking at things, that one is also tough for me because I've never written for a blind character before, so a lot of it is just habit. Thanks for letting me know, I always appreciate constructive criticism and I always try to go back and fix it.

Also! Side note! Apparently the weekend before last was a reader's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! It's was birthday too lmao I hope you're having a good one!

"My lady, there's been a hawk. Your father will come to port today!"

Katara sat up, her hair still tangled from sleep. She'd hidden away in her room after the masquerade, refusing anybody who had come to see her. Even Aang. Satori had been the only one in the room when she'd returned, and she had been under strict instruction to inform any visitors that Katara was feeling sick, which she'd done with increasing frequency as the night continued. Meanwhile, Katara had spent the night stroking Ka gently until she fell asleep.

But now she pulled herself from her bed, a combination of excitement and sick anxiety filling her as she dressed herself in a simple tunic. She let Akatsa do her hair when she gestured, braiding the top back and tying off two long locks in the front. All of it was intertwined with strands of silver and oceanic pearls, making her hair catch the light. She washed her face with a quick turn of her hand, rinsing grease and morning grit from her eyes, freshening her skin. Katara sighed, feeling better like she always did in the water. Things would sort themselves out. Her father would know what to tell her.

And he was coming today! And Sokka, and Suki! She felt her spirits lift, her smile stretching almost painfully, but she didn't mind. Her family would be here, and with more members of their tribe...she wouldn't feel like a lone meer-penguin, adrift at sea. Well, she had her own attendants, but after two years of being totally immersed in her tribe, she was starting to miss it. She missed feeling needed, and feeling surrounded by the love and strength of her people. She missed them so badly that it ached, and her father would have at least ten, maybe fifteen people on his larger ship.

With a smile, she rose from the plush blue chair. She might be dressed simply, but her father would always see her as the princess of his tribe. Katara smoothed her hands over her thick braided hair, enjoying the silky feel of it.

She left her room with a smile and a spring in her step. But when she saw Toph and Roraima sitting outside of her door, she stopped mid-step.

Toph's head lifted slightly, her pale eyes opening, then blinking a few times. Roraima was dozing, a stream of drool running from her bottom lip to the crisp green cloth of her pajama pants. She woke with a jerk when Toph elbowed her. The two women were leaning on each other on a chaise lounge.

"Hey, we've been here all morning," said Toph in a low, rough voice. Her expression was irate. "What the hell happened last night? Aang ran off, we didn't see you at all, and when we came by your room, your attendants refused to let us in. You're lucky that Satori is nice, or I'd have thrown her out the window."

"We were really worried," said Roraima quietly. She yawned. "Toph said you were sleeping in your bed, or we'd probably have forced our way in. We didn't see you at all..."

Katara didn't want to lie to her friends, nor did she want to tell them exactly what had gone down the night before. And Toph, a talented earthbender, would know the moment that she started lying. So she took a deep breath and composed herself, briefly thinking through what did and didn't need to be said.

"I, um, I did go to the party. I was a little bit early, so I walked around looking at the stuff. Then a guy asked me to dance, I didn't see any of you, and...and I got upset and left," she finished lamely. Toph's eyes narrowed; she could tell that Katara was dancing around some stuff, but the frame of the story was the truth. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you came to my room. I was really tired." That wasn't a lie either; she had been tired, but that wasn't exactly why she didn't want them in her room. Toph's lip twisted slightly, but she didn't call Katara out. She knew that something was up. But she didn't know enough about it to question her.

"What were you upset about?" asked Roraima, not following the nonverbal cues that Katara knew Toph well enough to catch. Toph smirked smugly, knowing that Katara couldn't evade Roraima's questioning.

"I don't want to talk about it yet," mumbled Katara, her eyes falling to the floor. That was definitely true. Roraima, deciding not to push it, slipped her arm around her friend.

"It's fine," she reassured her, squeezing tightly. "Another time, I guess. Oh, Aang is looking for you too. And your family! We heard they're going to be here today!" Toph sighed through her nose, resigned to not getting any answers today.

"Yeah...I know." Katara's muttered words didn't escape Toph. Her eyes flickered to the smaller girl, but Toph didn't give off any sign of having heard her. "I mean, I'm really excited to see my family. I have a lot of stuff to talk about with my dad."

"Yeah, I bet you do," said Roraima, squeezing Katara's hand. Toph followed them as they walked down towards the city gates. "It was so great to meet Aang. You two look so cute together, he's really funny. I wish I had somebody like that...I bet my parents would let me date the Avatar. He's not technically nobility, but I guess he's sort of king of the Air Nomads, isn't he? Being the last one?"

"They don't have kings," replied Toph. She, paying close attention to Katara during the conversation, noticed the tension in her friend's body at the mention of Aang. Something was up, even if she wasn't sure exactly what it was. But that didn't bode well for Aang, or for their group. Aang and Katara had been central figures in their friend group; they'd equalized everybody's dramatically different personalities, existed as the core of the gang. Toph was sure that their friendships would all survive a fallout, but she knew that things wouldn't be the same. "Air Nomads didn't really have a caste system like the other nations. They had spiritual leaders, but that wasn't something done by birthright."

"Fascinating! I'll have to talk to Aang more about that stuff. I don't know very much about the Air Nomads. Or I guess Katara probably knows almost as much as he does by now!" Roraima laughed cheerfully, totally oblivious to the undercurrents of the conversation. Katara, well aware that Toph could sense the tension in bodies, tried as much as she could to force herself to relax.

As they rounded the corner, Aang appeared, Momo perched jauntily on his shoulder. He froze, large gray eyes darting quickly to each woman before closing as he smiled bashfully.

"Hey ladies," he said, waving and walking towards them. "I, uh, I was looking for you, Katara. Your dad's ship pulled into port, they're on their way to the city."

Katara's suffocating guilt was smothered, replaced with anticipation. She couldn't help the wide grin that stretched across her features, nor could she stop the joyful hug that she gave Aang. He hesitated for only a moment before hugging her back, his arms tight around her. Katara relished the closeness, the intimacy of their relationship, the joy that she knew he shared with her.

"Thanks, Aang," she whispered, grateful that he'd run to find her first. He'd always been thoughtful like that. Maybe she could work things out with him. "Come on. Let's meet them at the gate."

The four of them set off for the gates of the Fire Nation Capital.

Katara stood, trembling, at the open gates.

She wasn't permitted to leave them without a full guard, courtesy of the Fire Nation. Several armed men had accompanied them to the gate itself, but they informed her that they needed to sign out Komodo Rhinos if they wanted to go further. She halfheartedly agreed to wait there, and so far nothing.

She knew that it was a few hours' travel from the port to the capital, but she'd also had a smaller caravan when she'd done it. Her father's larger entourage would take more time to cross that distance, and of course any minor issue could slow them down. Still though, she couldn't help but feel anxious. It had only been a few years since the end of the war, hatred and resentment were still fresh among the nations. Of course he'd be accompanied by warriors, but Katara still worried.

It didn't help that the sun pounded down on all of them, the full heat of a Fire Nation summer casting rays on the small group. Aang, Roraima, and Toph waited with Katara, and all four of them sweated profusely under the boiling sun.

"Ugh, I hate this country," grumbled Toph, her head tipping back as she leaned into one of the small camp chairs that had been offered to the group by waiting attendants. Katara couldn't help but stand on her toes, struggling to see her father's caravan over the shimmering horizon. Though sweat trickled down the center of her back, sitting just made her feel too idle. "Full of hotheads, constantly sunny. I mean, not that rain is any better. Whatever happened to a good old cloudy day?"

"I don't mind waiting," said Aang, hands in his pockets as he stood beside Katara. "At least it's a nice day out. Right Momo?" The lemur chirped from his sprawled, shaded position under a camp chair.

"They're approaching the gates! I can feel them, maybe a mile out!" Toph shouted, still slumped in her chair. Katara jumped excitedly, finally catching sight of the outline of her father's caravan. It looked like a lot of people, plus several large wagons pulled by arctic camels. Flags bearing their national crest were carried at the four corners, brand new and catching the early morning sunlight.

"Oh, look! The Fire Lord is here! This is really cool, a formal greeting between national leaders...I've never seen this before, besides my cousin Kuei," said Roraima, turned back to face the palace. Katara turned too, surprised despite the knowledge that her father was a chief. Of course Zuko would personally come to greet him at the gate; it was a sign of respect between nations.

Sure enough, a royal caravan approached behind them, carrying a large and ornate red palanquin. She assumed it was the royal one; it was more elaborate than any she'd seen in the capital thus far, with intricately carved gold pillars and lush curtains. She'd learned a lot about Fire Nation culture, but dignitaries being carried by servants was by far her least favorite. She had to admit, however, that Zuko struck a very imposing figure stepping down in his broad-shouldered royal robes.

"About time you showed up, Sparky," said Toph, raising a hand in lazy acknowledgment of the young man. Zuko's attendants gasped, but he breezed past the casual greeting.

"Some of us have stuff to do," said Zuko mildly, crossing his arms as the Southern Water Tribe royal caravan approached. "Glad you could all make it though. I'm sure the Chief will be glad to see all of you first."

Katara felt a deep blush heat her cheeks when his gold eyes locked on her with the last sentence. Her mind flashed back to the man in the wolf helmet, wondering if it was possible...but his expression didn't give away anything besides courtesy. She had, however, been staring at him for too long. She dropped her gaze quickly.

"Y-yeah," she stammered before clearing her throat and shrugging. "I know. I'm excited to see him too." She stared at the ground in confused embarrassment, hating that she was standing between Zuko and Aang. Aang gave her a searching look before reaching out to take her hand; she wanted nothing more than to yank it away and just stand by her damn self for once. She did notice, however, Zuko bridling slightly at the silent claim made by the Avatar. He stepped away from them and resumed his place at the head of the welcoming party.

As her father approached, Katara resisted the intense urge to run and greet him. They were being recognized as a formal nation now; they needed to follow the courtesies that had been established long before any of them were born. She needed to act the part of a princess today, even if she'd never felt further from one.

Her father walked at the head of the caravan, as was traditional for the Chief. To his right walked Bato, and to his left walked Sokka. Behind Sokka, Katara could see the cheerful smile of Suki, and behind her walked the Kyoshi warriors in full regalia.

As they passed through the gate, Katara met eyes with her father, who returned her smile with love. Her hand tightened on Aang's, even though she wished nothing more than to be free to run and greet her family. It had only been a week and a half, but it felt like ages since she'd left the South Pole.

"Chief Hakoda," said Zuko, bowing low, his fist curled under the palm of his other hand. "The Fire Nation Capital is honored to host you and your family. Welcome." Her father returned the bow politely.

"Fire Lord Zuko. My family is grateful for your hospitality." His words were cold and short, the traditional response. Katara flinched, forgetting that her father still held a deep and intense grudge for the family that he'd lost in the war. He likely didn't intend to come across as resentful, but Zuko surely felt the frostiness emanating from the older man. Regardless, he didn't show any sign of discomfort. Chief Hakoda turned from the welcoming party and opened his arms to his daughter, formalities over for the moment. "Katara!"

Katara flung herself quickly into his arms, sighing in relief at the warm embrace. She felt home again, with so many of her tribe here.

"Aang! How have you been? It's been so long!" Chief Hakoda reached for the slender boy, wrapping him up into a tight hug with a free arm. "I heard you've been in Ba Sing Se, doing great things in the name of peace." Aang shrugged, cheesing despite his bashful blush.

"Just doing my best sir, Chief," laughed Aang good naturedly. He reached for Katara's hand, grasped it tightly. She cringed but didn't pull away. The way that her father looked at Aang, the affectionate light shining in his deep blue eyes, reminded her of how he looked at her and Sokka sometimes. Suki too, now. She knew why he loved Aang so much, why he treated him like a son most of the time.

But when he turned to face the Fire Lord again, his gaze was decidedly unfriendly. Hostile, even. Zuko swallowed noticeably, though his courteous demeanor didn't change. Katara couldn't help the tiny flame of resentment, rebellion even. Why did her father have to hate him? Zuko was a part of the uprising too, part of their gang. He'd saved her life before. And he doesn't have a family either...

"We'll accompany you to the palace, our largest suite is being prepared for you and your people. Please make yourselves at home, and don't hesitate to find me if you need anything. Kyoshi warriors, you have your own suite on the first floor. Our meeting for the trade agreement is tomorrow morning."

Katara had to admit that she was impressed with his composure. Her father wasn't an easy man to stare down, especially when he had that hard mask covering his emotions. But Zuko held his head high, maintained eye contact, like the proud ruler of a nation that he was.

Out of the corner of her eye she caught her father watching her. Quickly Katara averted her gaze, blushing slightly at being caught, but he didn't say anything. After giving her an odd look he returned his attention to Zuko.

"Sounds great. Let's get going, my men and women would like to settle in." He brushed past Zuko, shoulders back. Zuko, too polite to bring attention to it, summoned his servants with a wave of his hand and walked alongside them. It was generally frowned upon for a Fire Lord to walk through the city, but because he accompanied royal guests it wasn't too big of a deal.

He walked alongside Chief Hakoda, head held proudly high. Katara walked just a little bit behind them, Aang beside her. Thankfully he'd released her hand; she felt deeply guilty whenever he touched her.

"Katara, come up here with me." Her father waved his hand, and she quickly jumped forward to walk between him and Zuko. "How has your stay been? Have you been sleeping enough? You look well."

"It's been great!" she said enthusiastically, eager to cool the air between the two men. "Like a little vacation. Everybody here treats me like a real princess."

"You are a real princess," said Zuko, his voice low, almost husky. Katara turned in surprise, her cheeks flushing deeply when she met his intense golden stare. She was silent for a moment before she remembered where she was, and much too late she forced a weak laugh.

"Maybe here," she said, smiling. "Not really a thing in the South Pole. I mean I guess we used to be sort of like that, but that was generations ago."

"I know." He smiled warmly at her. Katara returned it for a moment, forgetting that she was surrounded by family. But reality returned soon enough, and she straightened, not replying to him.

She glanced towards her father, but he didn't seem to notice. Or at least, he didn't say anything.

"Hey little sis!" said Sokka, bursting through the line of guards to throw his arm around Katara. Suki slipped in behind him, grinning excitedly. "I hear you've been living it up here. I can't wait for you to show us the fun stuff to do around here. Besides that one time that we came here and dethroned a Fire Lord...unless that's the only thing to do here..." He glanced threateningly towards Zuko, who merely rolled his eyes in mild annoyance.

"Good to see you too, Sokka," he sighed, not bothering to force a smile. "I'm sure you'll find something to do. You know, as the son of the Chief you can sit in on all of his meetings with him."

Sokka's grimace told them all what he thought of that idea.

"Yeah, sure, let's put a pin in that. Instead of taking my girlfriend on a romantic komodo-rhino ride through the famous Valley of Flowers, I'll just sit in for my dad on the international courtesies meeting. Or maybe, instead of taking Suki to dinner for two on the rooftops, I'll fall asleep at the standing army treaty!" His overly cheerful tone dripped with sarcasm. Suki punched his arm lightly.

"That's enough," she sighed, blue eyes rolling affectionately. "We got it. No responsibilities."

"When has he ever had responsibilities," muttered Katara, not entirely joking. While she desperately loved her brother, she also felt a light twinge of annoyance at the way he brushed off the duties that they had all taken on in the name of upholding peace. She'd spent two years healing, building, and training others. She'd only just established a sufficient number of waterbenders to support the tribe while she was gone, and even now she wondered how the walls were doing, if they'd built the shelters that she'd planned with her father, if anybody had arrived with wounds too advanced for her one decent pupil to heal. And meanwhile, Sokka spent his time mooning over his girlfriend, flouting his role as the chief's eldest to stay with Suki. Aang, Toph, even Suki herself all dedicated themselves to progress, but Sokka couldn't seem to evolve away from the lazy brother that she'd always known.

Sokka didn't hear what his sister said, but Suki glanced at Katara with a worried frown.

"Well...we're here now, so you can kick back a little bit," she said hopefully, reaching out to squeeze Katara's arm. The waterbender's mouth quirked. "I know you've had a lot of weight on your shoulders for a while. Just have fun, okay? Go out, spend some time with Aang!"

Katara couldn't stop the frown that pulled at her lips, though she school her expression within seconds. She kissed somebody else just last night...well, he'd kissed her, but she couldn't deny that she'd wanted him to. Whoever he had been.

Her eyes flicked right again. Zuko wasn't looking at her, instead murmuring low commands to his assistant, who tagged at his heels like an over-excited puppy. When he turned back, she noticed that his eyes flicked momentarily towards her.

"Here we are!" exclaimed Zuko's master of the guard, an older man with a long white beard and a proud face. He bowed deeply to both the arriving party as well as his own Fire Lord. "The royal palace. Chief, esteemed Fire Lord."

Zuko and Chief Hakoda bowed their heads in response, and just like that the Fire Nation attendants disappeared into the halls.

"Chief, it's been a pleasure hosting Katara. If you have any requests of us, Anzo here has been assigned to manage your suite, or you can always ask me for anything."

"Thanks. It was good seeing you again Zuko, we'll just take the rest of the night to settle in."

Zuko nodded and turned, leaving Katara alone with her family.

Chief Hakoda turned to face his daughter. He put his hands on her shoulders, looking her full in the face. Katara hadn't realized how tall she'd become; she reached her father's chin now. She'd always imagined him to be gigantic, but Zuko was actually a little bit taller than him now. The fact that she knew that bothered her slightly.

"My sweet Katara," he sighed, smiling gently as he touched her cheek. "We need to talk."

Katara sat comfortably in a low chair, in a private office connected to her father's suite. It was a great deal larger than her own, although she understood the logic behind the household planning. Of course the chief of the Southern Water Tribe was entitled to larger rooms.

Chief Hakoda sat across from her, leaning heavily onto his thighs. For some reason he didn't quite look her in the eyes. Regardless, Katara was eager to give her report, so she sat up straight and did her best to summarize what she'd been learning.

"So, I talked to Zuko and General Iroh. They really want to help us, but...and this is between us...Zuko's claim to the throne is on ice right now. He's trying to pacify his citizens, make them confident that he's not another tyrant, and so he has to be carefully about which nations he favors. He said he can help, but we need to go through a third party; both of us decided that it would be optimal to use the Northern Water Tribe as a go-between. They can give us additional resources to get through the winter, and when they finish legally trying the commander and the captains under him, they'll be able to recover the stolen goods and compensate Chief Arbook. The only thing is that we have to convince him."

Chief Hakoda nodded, not interrupting his daughter as she briefed him. Even after she was done, he sat in contemplative silence. Before she could ask him what was wrong, he finally spoke.

"Thank you, Katara," he said hesitantly. "I'll speak with Chief Arnook. That's certainly an option, if we can convince him to trust the Fire Lord. If we can trust the Fire Lord." Katara's mouth opened in surprise.

"Of course we can trust him," she said suddenly, her brow furrowed. "It's Zuko. We've trusted him before, I don't see any reason to distrust him now." She jumped a little bit when she looked up and found her father's deep blue eyes locked on her.

"Katara..I've been meaning to ask you," he said slowly, clearing his throat. "How are you and Aang doing?" Katara felt her mouth to dry; he'd noticed more than she had given him credit for.

"Um...fine, I guess," she said quietly, her hands gripping her skirt tightly. Her father's eyes flicked down and she cursed her terrible lying. "I mean, it's different than it used to be. He has his things, and I have my things. I don't know. I guess we've been distant." She looked up. His eyebrow was arched. "I've been distant."

"I noticed," he replied, his hand reaching out to take hers. "Katara, you don't have to do anything that you don't want to do. Not to make other people happy, not even to make your family happy. If you think you're growing apart, sometimes the best thing to do is cut each other loose. You're growing up, and people change."

Katara nodded, feeling the awful discomfort that had plagued her all day begin to ease. She sighed in relief. She felt scared to lose Aang, scared to lose their friends, but knowing that her father stood behind her gave her more strength than she'd had all day. She closed her eyes and let the guilt ease as he pulled her into a deep hug.

After a long hug, he pulled back.

"So. What's going on with you and the Fire Lord?" His voice was more stern now, and Katara quailed under the unspoken accusation. She didn't know why she felt guilty again, since seducing Zuko into a marriage was technically the pretense that she had been sent here for.

"N-nothing!" she snapped a little too quickly. His eyes narrowed, but she swallowed and stuck to her guns. "Nothing dad. We're friends, that's all."

"Hm...alright. Nothing against him, I just don't think anybody from this nation would be good enough for you. And really, I don't trust someone as young as he is with this much power. He's better than his sister for sure, but he'll be easily corrupted. This nation is overflowing with prejudice and arrogance." The anger in his tone surprised and pained her.

"He's not like that," she said softly. Her father didn't seem to hear her.

Katara was glad to be in her own rooms again, in her own private space where nobody but Ka accompanied her. Ka groomed herself luxuriously, using her soft paw pads to rub her antlers gently.

She bent the water delicately, sliding the warm liquid over her skin and washing away the soaps. Sinking into the steaming pool, her eyes closed.

She had to talk to Aang. She knew, today when her father asked her about him, that they needed time apart. She needed time to grow into her role in the world, and so did he. She needed time to know herself. Sinking until she was up to her eyes in the pool, she blew bubbles of frustration. How would she tell him? Would be really be alright? Would it destroy their friendship?

When her eyes opened, they were facing the deep red curtains that blocked the office window that she knew of now. She stared at them, letting them push the anguish from her mind and settle her into a soothing state of ease.

'Open them.'

The voice shocked her out of her daze, and she jumped from the pool in horror. What kind of person was she becoming?

Katara quickly dried herself and fled to her room.

Not a super Zutara heavy chapter, but a necessary one! Hang tight, next chapter will be pretty exciting! All reviews are more than welcome!