Author's Note: Hi, y'all. Just to let you know, updates might be a little spotty. The hubby and I are seriously gearing up for Phoenix Comic Con now. For him, that means picking up the book from the printers, finishing his art prints, and doing miscellaneous little things. For me, this means crocheting little plush critters until my fingers fall off. And as I haven't been able to figure out how to crochet and write simultaneously, that means my writing is going to be limited to what I can get done in between plushieness. But I'll do my damnedest to not have too long a gap between chapters. :)

"How could she? I thought...we...she can't..." His thoughts were full of betrayal and pain and his words were halting and harsh. He stood up and snapped open his glider, knowing nothing more than the need to be out of this place, away from the cheering and the celebrating and the sight of Katara looking so damn beautiful in Zuko's arms, but before he could even gather himself to take off a rough, strong hand latched onto the front of his tunic.

"You run away now, Twinkletoes, you can kiss any chance at friendship with her goodbye." The earthbender's grip was immovable as the rock she commanded, and her glare was for once settled directly on him. He gulped. Without looking away from him, she spoke to the others.

"Twinkles and I are going to go have a little chat. We'll catch up with you at the reception." Without giving him a chance to respond, to say or do anything, she turned and dragged him stumbling through the immense crowd, her hand still firmly latched onto his shirt. And though he knew he could get away, he was too hurt and heartsick to put up much of a fight. She was leading him from the celebratory crowds and the sight of the two on the balcony. For now, that was enough for him to follow her anywhere, because anywhere had to be better than here.

After they'd stepped off the balcony, back into the room behind the curtain, leaving Iroh to complete the final announcement and the declaration of holiday, Katara's shoulders dropped and her eyes closed in sadness.

"Zuko, I...he's got to be so upset right now." The firebender led her to a comfortable couch and sat beside her, taking her hand in his own.

"I know, 'Tara, I know."

"He didn't deserve this. Not from me. I should have waited, should have tried to find time to talk to him." She wouldn't look up, so he placed his fingers under her chin and urged her eyes to his. In that golden gaze she saw remorse, sadness...and determination.

"He was going to find out eventually. I admit, this was probably not the most ideal way for that to happen, but it did. Now we just have to figure out where to go from here." He took a deep breath, grasping both of her hands with his. "Katara, I know this might not be the best time, but I -"

"Well that was interesting, wasn't it?" Iroh's voice cut in. Zuko turned to glare at his uncle and was met with a look so blatantly innocent that he knew the old man had deliberately timed his statement to cut off what his nephew had been about to say.

"Uncle," he growled, but the Dragon of the West was unrepentant.

"I believe it's time now to adjourn to the reception hall. Your official presentation as a couple will be taking place in thirty minutes, and then the reception begins. There will be plenty of time later to talk about whatever you wish." Iroh's voice was firm but caring. Zuko sighed. With a smooth motion he rose from the couch, holding out his hand.

"As much as I hate to admit it, Uncle's right. We have things we have to do."

"I understand," Katara replied softly, standing and threading her arm into his. Without another word the three left the balcony room and began making their way to the reception hall.

The tiny courtyard was quiet, private. It wasn't unusual for there to be no guests in the small grassy area with its one bench and single tree, but Aang didn't even see any servants.

"They're all at the reception," Toph answered when he asked. As though he needed another reminder of his loss. He slumped onto the bench in a huff.

"Why, Toph?" he asked, indignant. "Zuko could have anyone in the world practically. Why did he have to take Katara from me?"

"He didn't take her from you," the earthbender said with more gentleness than was her wont.

"Yes he did! Katara was mine first!"

"Quit talking about her like she's a damned possession!" Toph exploded. "She's not yours! She never was! Sugar Queen does now and always has belonged entirely to herself. And if you're too pigheaded to see that, then maybe you didn't deserve her heart to begin with!" Aang just stared, unused to the anger that was radiating from the usually sarcastic girl. He felt he had to say something, anything.

"But...I've loved her since the day she found me." His voice was quieter than he'd intended, but all of the emotions running through him combined to make him feel wearier than he had in a long time, maybe ever. Toph sighed in response.

"Twinkles, you may know her enough to love her, but Zuko...he loves her enough to know her."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, pouting. With an exasperated huff the earthbender dropped to the ground.

"In all the time you've spent with Katara, you've tried to talk her around to your way of thinking. Because you're the Avatar, because you advocate peace, whatever. Remember when she took off with Zuko's help to track down her mother's murderer? You spent days upset because she wouldn't listen to you, because you were right and she wasn't and violence was not the answer."

"And it wasn't! Katara even admitted that she didn't kill him!"

"You're missing the point entirely."

"Well then, what is the point?" he asked petulantly.

"The point is that you were trying to talk her out of doing something she needed to do. Whether she killed the man or not wasn't even important -"

"How can you say that? All life is important!" he burst out, and before he knew it he had a rock mask covering the lower half of his face, effectively holding his mouth shut. He was so shocked that he didn't even think to bend it away.

"Katara is important! At least, you keep saying she is. And yet the one time she needed you, needed all of us, no one was there for her. No one but Zuko. He understood her. He didn't try to change her mind, didn't try to talk her out of anything. He did exactly what we all should have done. He stayed by her side and helped her do something she felt she had to. He supported her where you wouldn't. And he did so without being asked to. He offered to help because he could see she needed that closure. Because he understood that there are more important things than forgiveness. He saw her, Twinkles. He saw what she wanted, what she needed, and instead of making her feel bad, instead of trying to make her something she's not, he basically held out his hands and said 'how can I help?' That's my point. While you were too busy being self-righteous, he was busy supporting the woman you claim to love." She let the rock dissolve so he could speak again were he so inclined. And he was.

"So because he was willing to help her go kill a man that means he cares more than I do?" Aang's voice was stubborn, but for once Toph responded with something like patience.

"No. He was willing to let Katara be Katara rather than trying to convince her to think and feel in ways she didn't. He accepts her, loves her, for everything she is...and for everything she isn't. I have never..." she trailed off for a moment, idly bouncing a rock back and forth between her hands. "I have never felt anything as solid, as honest, as what the two of them have between them. It's amazing. And I am so happy for both of them." She stood up and turned to leave the courtyard, but spoke one last time over her shoulder.

"Feel however you want. Feel angry, feel betrayed, whatever. But just know Katara would never deliberately hurt you. And stop and think what a true friend would do for someone they care about. She'll need our support, all of us, in the coming days. Things aren't going to be all sunshine and sparkles for those two.

"And think on this as well. Is your jealousy enough to risk losing the friendship of the woman who has stood by your side in everything, even though you didn't do the same for her?" The earthbender walked out of the courtyard then, leaving a confused, hurt boy sitting on a bench alone with his thoughts and wondering when his world had changed so drastically.

The reception hall was decked out beautifully in varying shared of red and blue, gold and silver, the entire effect breathtaking. Small candles interspersed with torches lit the enormous room, filling the entire area with a warm yellow glow. It was grand. It was gorgeous.

It could have been colored in neon and filled with fish for all Katara noticed.

Walking into the large room, her hand firmly on Zuko's arm, the only thing giving her any comfort right at that moment was the feel of him against her. She knew he was just as shaken as she was but he'd had years of training on how to banish all personal feelings and act in a manner befitting nobility, so she tried to emulate him as best she could. Holding her head high, fixing a proud yet slightly overwhelmed expression on her face, she took a deep breath as the herald announced them.

"Presenting Fire Lord Zuko and the Fire Consort, Master Katara!"

Any and all conversation stopped, the crackling of the torches the only counterpoint to her own breathing. It seemed to Katara that the entire room, the entire world, was waiting on them. And then she looked at Zuko and found those golden eyes she loved so much gazing back at her, confidence in their depths and grace in his bearing, and she took a deep breath. Nodding once, a small gesture, she stepped out into public for the first time as the official bride-to-be of the Lord of the Fire Nation. She forced all thoughts of Aang to the back of her mind. She'd known when she agreed to this that she would have to play the part – now was the time to begin.

It wasn't as difficult as she thought it would be. Many of the delegates and dignitaries that they spoke with were ones she had already faced over a council table and she soon found her tension draining away, falling gracefully into her new role with such aplomb that it would have startled even her, had she wondered about it. The first half of the reception was the formal half, designed solely to permit the betrothed couple time to make connections and affirm their status with those privileged enough to be invited. As such she kept her public smile in place for far longer than she ever had before, finding the task both easier and harder than she anticipated. Eventually, though, they had made their way to the small dais at the end of the room and stepped up to the table. This was the signal that the meal was about to start, and the collection of people milling about began to head to their own tables. Katara sat down with a sigh, allowing Zuko to push her chair in for her before taking his own seat. He reached for her hand and she turned to face him.

"You are doing beautifully," he whispered sincerely. She cursed the fact that she knew she was blushing and did her best to ignore it. "And now that the formalities are done, we just have to get through dinner and then we can go find your family."

"Our family," she murmured, glancing away across the room as she did so. When she returned her gaze to his, however, she saw him staring intently at her. Unsure what was going through his mind she gave his hand a light squeeze, one that he returned while letting his lips curve in a small smile.

"Our family," he agreed, and she found herself wondering what he was thinking that brought the look of slightly awed disbelief to his eyes. At that point the servers arrived with the first course of the meal, Zuko and Katara being served first. As their plates were set in front of them and uncovered, she looked at her food and gasped in delight. Wide eyed, she turned to her betrothed.

"Zuko! Pickled fish? Where did you get this?"

"Oh, I spoke to a few people," he said nonchalantly, taking a bite or his own food – something that appeared to be sausage-like. "I know it's more of a Northern Water Tribe dish, but I remember Sokka saying you both had liked it while you were there, so I made some...inquiries." He made it a point to focus on his own plate but she could tell he was watching her reaction regardless. She gave him a grin and took a bite of her dinner, unable to suppress a moan at the taste of the familiar dish. Another bite followed, and another, and in short order she had cleaned her plate and was washing down the seafood with several swallows of the lightly-flavored chilled tea that had been poured for her. Not long after, Zuko had finished his own appetizer and sat back. A quick glance over the floor showed him that most of the gathered guests had also finished their opening courses as well and he nodded discreetly to the head of servers. Conversation picked up around the floor while the servants slipped in and out unobtrusively, collecting the emptied plates and cups in skillful silence. In the break between the clearing of the tables and the serving of the main dishes, Zuko stood to address those gathered.

"Honored visitors. Friends. Family." His voice wasn't loud but it carried and Katara knew that even those in the clear back of the hall would be able to hear his words.

"I'll be brief. We wish to thank each and every one of you for joining us for this happy occasion. Your support of our intended union means so much more than we could ever express, and we are honored that you are willing to stand with us as we all prepare to step forward into the future – a future we all have a part in creating. Thank you once more, from the bottom of our hearts. And now - let's enjoy our meals." He appeared slightly overwhelmed by the applause as he took his seat again and Katara reached over to lay her hand on his arm.

"That was wonderful, Zuko."

"Not too pompous?" he asked anxiously. She stifled a smile and shook her head.

"Not at all." Just then she was distracted by the arrival of the main course. A large bowl was set in front of her but before they could even lift the lid she recognized the aroma of the food and turned to her companion excitedly.

"Stewed sea prunes! Oh, you are amazing!" Anything further she may have said was converted to happy mumbling around mouthfuls of down-home cooking she thought she'd be giving up forever. Across the room she could hear an excited yelp and nearly choked as she realized it was her brother's voice. Raising an eyebrow at the firebender beside her, she found him chuckling under his breath. He looked at her with a smile.

"What, you think I'd go to all this trouble just for you? In case you weren't aware of it, my future father- and brother-in-law are also fond of Water Tribe cuisine." She did a double-take, eyes wide, before deciding to let it slide and just enjoy her meal. His piece said, Zuko turned to his own food as well and conversational silence descended over the hall.