Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA
A/N: Many apologies for taking so long to get this up. It was originally going to be longer, but I decided to split it into two chapters. I'm still working on that one. Hopefully, it won't take as long get done.
Chapter 10: Family
It was an hour until sunrise, but Zuko was fully awake. His arm was wrapped around Katara who was beside him and had her head resting comfortably on his chest. He reached over with his other hand to touch where he now knew that their child was growing within her. His trembling hand stopped short and he retracted it quickly, turning his head away. A silent tear ran down from his unscarred eye.
Katara had awoken to the heavy pounding of the young man's heart, but had yet to reveal that she was conscious. She had surreptitiously watched as his hand withdrew as his heartbeat increased further. She lifted her head and gazed down at him with her eyes filled with curiosity and concern.
She asked, "Zuko, what's wrong?"
"It's…it's nothing." He sighed. "Sorry for waking you."
Her eyes narrowed, "Oh no you don't. You're not going to get out of this that easy. I can tell that something is bothering you. So what is it?" After a second of thought she continued a look of distress and hurt coming over her features, "It's the baby isn't it? You, you don't want it!"
He grabbed onto her shoulders and replied quickly, "No Katara, that's not it at all! This is our child, and although there might have been more convenient times for it to come about I couldn't be happier about it." He could see in her face that she believed him, and thus her curiosity had grown stronger. "It's just that I'm…I'm scared."
She smiled understandingly and hugged him, "It's alright, so am I. I think everyone is when they first become parents."
He pulled away a bit, "It's not just that. What if…" His hand mindlessly ran along the bottom of his scar. "I'm scared that I'll end up becoming like my father and hurt it. I, I don't want that to happen."
She could tell from the shaking of his voice and the forming tears in his eye that this was truly tearing him up inside, the idea of hurting the child terrifying him. She took his hands as they sat up upon the bed, "Zuko, you are not your father. I don't believe you would, or even could, do anything to harm our child."
"You don't understand." He pleaded. "One of the times I visited uncle, he told me that good and evil are always at battle within me."
She looked deep into his eyes, "That's right they are, but they're battling inside of everyone else as well. It's called being human." When she saw him begin to accept her words and relax, she pushed him back down on the bed, "Now lay down. We've got less than an hour until you have go get Aang for lessons and I don't feel like losing my pillow just yet."
He chuckled softly as she reburied her face back into his chest and sighed contentedly at the warmth. He stroked her back until he heard her breathing even out, signaling that she was asleep once more, and moved his hand to her abdomen.
He whispered, "You have no idea how lucky you are to have this woman as your mother, but don't worry I plan to make sure you realize it. Hopefully, she'll be able to keep us both on the right track."
Nearly an hour later Katara awoke again to find that her husbandly pillow was in fact gone, but there were also sounds coming from the hallways. She grudgingly got up off of the bed, leaving its warm softness behind, and stuck her head out the door. She blinked a few times at what she saw. Toph was leaning back against a wall, laughing at what she was obviously feeling through her bending. Teo and Haru had also come out, and both were each chuckling, the later trying to hide it, at the sight before them. Walking down the hallway, grumbling about laziness was Zuko, dragging the end of some cloth. He nodded as he passed her, and she had to catch herself as she almost laughed at the sight of what he was pulling behind him. On top of the blanket that was trailing the ground was Aang, who had the other end wrapped about him and his head burrowed into a pillow. They had soon disappeared from view, but the four were soon overcome by another wave of laughter when they heard a loud splash, followed by an even louder scream of shock.
It was soon determined that neither of the two could firebend, and that they agreed to go look into the origins of firebending. In a short time Aang and Zuko were flying off on Appa, heading out toward the ruins of the city of the Sun Warriors. There they discovered a large carved mural of a man holding a flame in each hand, and a large dragon on either side of him.
Aang asked excitedly, "Do you think this could be a depiction of the Avatar?"
Looking up Zuko replied, not knowing just where he was getting the knowledge, "No, it isn't. It's the first firebender, Ryu."
"Wait, Ryu? Wasn't he?"
"Yeah, the first Fire Lord, my ancestor. Now come on, lets get going."
They avoided the booby traps placed throughout the city, and found a chamber where they needed to perform some ancient forms to reveal a large round gold stone. They were found arguing in the black goop that flowed out to trap them by the remnants of the Sun Warriors. They were forced to stand in judgment by the last two dragons, a red male and blue female. Zuko couldn't help but appreciate the irony of that later on.
After passing the judgment one of the warriors came running up to the chief, the Sun Stone as they called it in his hands and a distressed look upon his face. As the two descended the steps from the alter between the two caves that served as the dragons' dens they could see cracks running down the gold stone. The chief took the stone and stomped over to the two.
He demanded, "What did you do?"
The two were shocked, and Aang was the first to reply, "He's the one that touched it!"
Zuko turned toward his companion in shock and anger, "Yeah but all I did was pick it up."
The chief thrust the stone into his hands, and ordered, "You had to do something, now show us exactly what you did!"
"I didn't do anything to it! It was probably that stupid trap of yours that cracked the blasted thing!" He shouted back angrily, heat coming off of him.
Then the stone glowed to all of their surprise, and then it was as if all the heat the young man holding the gold stone was producing was sucked in to it. Zuko cried out as flames sprung from his hands of their own accord, and it felt as if the stone was draining the energy right out of him. The cracks on the stone began to spread as the flames engulfed the golden object. The chief had tried to take the stone back, but he couldn't get past the flames that had started to swirl about the spectrum, much as the flames from the two dragons had. Finally light began to be emitted from the cracks, and a second later it was as if the stone exploded, throwing Zuko back onto his butt.
As the smoke cleared, and everyone stood from their ducking positions, they looked to see Zuko sitting on the ground with what could only be described as part of the stone still in his hands, and a somewhat dazed look on his face. They were scared out of their confusion by a kind of high-pitched squealing attempt at a roar. They all looked up to see a serpentine creature, no more than two and a half feet long, moving through the air with utter ease. Four little legs lashed out helping to propel it in all sorts of directions, just as much as its tail did. Its long body was white, and a black marking ran down its back, from which stripes extended down.
One of the warriors gasped, "It's a dragon!"
The chief muttered, "The stone was an egg."
The baby dragon's golden eye caught sight of the firebender sitting there with the remains of its egg in his hands. It let out another cry and sped down, wrapping itself around Zuko neck. It didn't squeeze but rather it nuzzled its head into his cheek. At the sound of its last cry the other two dragons emerged from the dens once more, but this time landed on the ground. After a few moments of gazing at the newly born creature they both lowered their heads, their hair brushing against the dirt.
Aang looked confused, "Wait a minute, I thought dragon's had wings, like those other two?"
"Not all." Zuko explained, a hand stroking the dragon's head. "These two are actually considered lesser dragons, but there are tales of another kind. It goes back to the creation of these islands and the first firebender."
"Yes, the great dragons." The chief commented, "It was said that Agni created them and gave them birth down in the lava deep below the surface. That it was their bursting forth that spread the molten material that became our islands, and that they brought life, such as plants and animals, from the rest of the world to prepare it for humans. Legend tells us that they were giants that could fly without wings, much as your bison does, and eventually gave birth to the dragons that we know today. When that happened they retreated to their den, the Fire Caverns, only emerging again to teach the first firebender."
Aang quirked an eyebrow, "Fire Caverns, I've never heard of those before."
Zuko shook his head, "You wouldn't have. The truth is that I've never been there either. It's considered such a sacred place that only the Fire Lord and highest of Fire Sages are allowed to enter. I heard once that it's actually considered blasphemy for the Avatar to enter it."
"That's crazy" Aang shouted. "Shyu, the sage that helped us at Roku's temple, said that the Fire Sages were meant to serve the Avatar. So why can't I go in?"
The chief spoke up, "Actually, that's not technically true. The sages came about like we Sun Warriors did. While we were the military, their purpose was to spiritually serve the people and the dragons. I don't know when they began following the Avatar. Anyway, you can learn all about that when the war is over. You should likely head back to your companions soon. As for you, young prince, that dragon has chosen you. I would suggest that you care for it greatly, for that creature is one of the world's greatest treasures, a gift from Agni."
Thus not only did the two learn more about firebending, the knowledge allowing them to get over their difficulties, but they also gained a new companion. Zuko had decided to name the young dragon, that they'd determined was male, Syaoran. When they returned to the temple late that night, only Katara welcomed them, all the others having gone bed. Syaoran, who had snapped at the young airbender every time he'd tried to handle the dragon, took a sniff or two of the young woman and immediately began nuzzling her cheek. After they each said their good nights, Zuko set up a basin and filled it with coals that he heated just as the Sun Warriors told him. He smiled as the reptilian lay down upon the glowing embers and drifted off to sleep.
He turned and looked about to see that someone had further set up the room. The dresser had been filled with neatly folded clothing, surprisingly nearly half of it was blue and white, and some of it was in Earth Kingdom colors. On a small table that had been brought in were a few pieces of Water Tribe armor that Katara had worn the previous day. In front of and between the two pictures was the headpiece that his uncle had passed on to him at the prison. The bed had been made, set up seemingly for two with two pillows side by side.
He smiled as he heard the door shut behind a couple of footsteps. He said, "I see you've been settling in. Weren't the others suspicious about you moving into my room?"
She smiled as she sat upon the edge of the bed, "I told them that we've traded rooms. You get up before, and usually go to bed after, anyone else so there's no chance of them finding us in here together."
He sat beside her and asked, "So this means that we're not telling them about us."
"Not yet." She sighed as she leaned onto his shoulder. "We'll tell them before I start showing, and before we get married."
"Hold on." He blurted. "I know that my mind is still a jumble, but I thought that we were already married. I doubt you would spend the night in the bed, let alone the arms, of someone that wasn't your husband."
Katara chuckled, "We are, but by some private Fire Nation phenomenon. Uncle Iroh told me that we were married in every way that matters, but that doesn't mean that I can't still want a ceremony to show others how I feel for you and how you feel for me. It's something that prevents anyone in the world from disputing that we are one. Besides, it should reduce the beating that you're going to get."
His eyes went wide, "What beating?"
"From at least my dad and brother, but they'll likely let some of the others join in. After all, you got me pregnant before we were officially married in their minds."
Zuko slid his arm around her, smiling as an idea began to form in his mind. He gently leaned them back so they were lying down. He said, "Then I suppose that I'll just have to accept the consequences, because I don't intend to let anything stand between us again. And I promise you I will do anything that I can to give you the wedding that you want. Unfortunately, I'm not that well versed in Water Tribe customs, so why don't you start telling me all about it."
The two drifted off to sleep with Katara explaining the wedding that she had dreamed of since her Gran-gran had first shown her the dress that both she and Katara's mother had worn at their weddings.
The next day, after putting Aang through an exhausting workout, Zuko sat in the eating hall. He was thinking of ways that he could give Katara what she had described to him while he was feeding Syaoran, tossing small scraps of meat into the air for him to twist and turn to catch. Katara had told him that unlike in the Northern Water Tribe her people required a suitor to present anything as a proposal, and he'd had come up with something that ought to do just fine. The only problem was that he had no idea of how to make it happen. That was when he saw Sokka, oiling the blade of his sword.
A few of the others came running at the sound of sticks clacking against each other. Haru and Teo found the two young men going at each other with a nearly unbelievable vigor, Sokka with one stick, Zuko with two. They were striking and blocking, attacking and dodging, the sparring match ranging all over the fountain area. With a powerful swing Sokka busted through the stick that Zuko had brought up to block, and he just barely shifted out of the way. He moved up onto the fountain's ledge, still fighting, and performed a twisting leap over Sokka's head, and swept his leg out as he hit the ground.
Sokka complained as he drew himself up, "This is a sword fight. You're supposed to use the sword, you knit wit."
Zuko looked at him squarely, already preparing for his next attack, "I'm hoping that that master you trained with didn't tell you that."
Sokka replied as he blocked the other's blow, "Well, no he didn't, but it's kind of implied by the name. You use swords to fight in a swordfight."
"Actually, the first rule of swordsmanship I learned was never to rely solely upon the sword. It's nothing more than an expansion of a powerful weapon." Zuko then deflected a downward swing off to the side with his remaining stick sword and brought his other hand up from where it had been at his sash. Everyone stopped and gasped as they saw the dagger's pearl blade stop just short of Sokka's neck. He added, "The second rule was to never think that just because you take an opponent's sword away that they're unarmed."
Haru crossed arms as the prince sheathed the dagger, and the two threw the sticks back onto the woodpile. He said, "That still wasn't fair."
Zuko replied, "In a fight where your life is on the line there's no such thing as being unfair. I can assure you that both Ozai and Azula will use any dirty trick in the book, and plenty that aren't, to win." Turned back toward Sokka. "Now then, you and I need to talk."
The talk was short; Zuko didn't even have to guide the conversation toward the Water Tribe warriors that had been captured. Sokka had brought it up on his own, and Zuko answered his questions as best he could. He knew the look on the blue-eyed young man's face, and explained that he wasn't letting him go without help. They left that night in the war balloon, leaving a note that they were going for meat. In truth, they were headed for the Boiling Rock, The Fire Nation's maximum-security prison.
Disguised as guards the two had made their way through the prison, but had found no trace of any of the Water Tribe Warriors. Instead, their search had found someone neither had expected, Suki.
Smashing Zuko against a wall Sokka growled, "I thought you said she escaped with your uncle."
"I thought she did. Both cells were blasted apart and empty when I went there to help them. I haven't got a clue why she's here." He then gasped, "Do you think they could have been recaptured? I haven't heard any of the guards talk about my uncle, but do you think they could have him here too?"
Sokka released him, shaking his head, "I don't know. We'll have to find out from Suki. Come on."
Zuko stood guard outside the door while Sokka talked with her. She explained that she had been taken from the other prison the night before the day of black sun, and brought there because she was the leader. She was calmed greatly, knowing that Li's, or rather Zuko's, as she now understood; uncle had escaped with her comrades. They were interrupted by a quick knock on the door, the signal that someone was coming. Before long they heard the sounds of struggling in the hall. To keep up their guise after Sokka sneaked out, he'd helped arrest his companion.
That afternoon the prisoners were led out into the courtyard where the warden himself addressed them. He stood up on a balcony a few guards behind him restraining the newest prisoner. Zuko's arms and legs were cuffed, and he was then thrown down onto his knees to be seen by everyone, his shirt torn away by the two guards on either side.
"You will all now see the punishment that awaits anyone that tries to escape the Boiling Rock! And eventually see what happens to traitors to our great nation! I do hope this dissuades the rest of you from being as reckless and foolish as this young man has been!" The warden yelled out to the crowd. He then withdrew a leather flail from his belt and raised it high for all to see.
Sokka watched from his position down by the prisoners with other guards, and as close to Suki as he could get, as the man brought the leather tendrils down upon the other. He had to give his firebending comrade credit for not shouting out as each crack signaled another lash. From where he and Suki stood they could each see smoke or a few sparks escape his mouth and nose when he was hit. After forty resounding cracks without one scream, though the pain was evident in his expression and the tears from his eye, the warden straightened and nodded to his guards on either side of Zuko. They lifted him, for he couldn't stand on his own, and took him down a set of iron steps to a catwalk, where a cylinder with tubes connected was built into the wall. They opened it and steam formed as they did.
"Let this be a lesson to you all! That there is no escaping the Boiling Rock!"
Sokka asked, "What are they doing with a cooler cell out here?"
Suki answered, "I heard that it's used to make examples out of people. It's there so everyone can see it…and remember. Though, I've never heard of anyone being flogged like that before being thrown in."
A large man, Ji Seng, who was lined up behind Suki interrupted, "I've heard of one guy it happened to. Got the warden real angry at him."
Sokka, though annoyed that he'd listened in on them, asked, "What happened when they let him out."
Ji Seng shrugged, "The same thing that happens to all the bodies of prisoners. It got chucked out into the lake."
Suki gasped, "Body? You mean?"
He nodded and ran his thumb across his neck, letting out a slight ripping sound.
Sokka placed a hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, he'll make it. Right now we have to get ready for the new load of prisoners I heard was arriving tomorrow."
The young Water Tribe warrior was pleasantly surprised the next morning as he stood, disguised, among the guards. The gondola had arrived and the new prisoners stepped out one by one. A few were Fire Nation, but the last five were each from the Water Tribe, Hakoda, and the captains of the four other ships. They were lined up as the warden addressed them, and he cruelly smiled as two of his guards dumped a body before them. Zuko's back was covered in blood that had crystallized in the cooler cell, but the lash marks had looked to have cauterized, eliciting a sneer at the sight from the warden.
The warden said, "Look well. This young man got in here to try to get someone out. He hasn't revealed whom he came for yet, but we will find out. This is what happens to anyone foolish enough to try and escape. I have a perfect record here, and I don't intend to lose it anytime soon."
He was about to continue but was stopped by the looks on his prisoners' faces and the murmurs of the guards around them. He looked at the object of their curiosity to see Zuko pushing himself up onto trembling legs, and raising a defiant glare toward him. The warden growled as he watched the traitor prince force himself to straighten, squaring his shoulders.
The warden turned and ordered, "Take them all to their cells NOW! And you scum remember that we can do to any of you what we did to him anytime we want, particularly if you try to escape." He stalked up to Zuko, but addressed his guards, "This one goes to an interrogation chamber."
They spent over two hours trying to get information from the young man, but nothing of any true relevance came from it. The warden had revealed that he was Mai's uncle, and had even questioned him about why he had refused the knife-throwing girl. Zuko had simply said that he'd already met the woman that he was meant for, and tried to tear his way free of the chair in order attack the man when he'd commented about her likely wanton nature. In the end the two were each left in a rage at the other, though the warden feeling he had the upper hand, and Zuko being practically dragged off by the guards to his cell.
Meanwhile Sokka had made contact and formulated an escape plan with his father. He'd also explained the happenings since the failed invasion and how they were working with a firebender, which left his father a little concerned. They'd shared the details with the other tribesmen, Suki, and Zuko, who was still shackled at his hands and feet. The plan was to cause a prison riot and take the warden as a hostage. It was set to occur the next day.
Hakoda asked, "Will you be able to manage with those?"
Zuko shrugged, "I'll manage." He then continued through his stretches, still stiff after his night in the cooler and time in the chair. As the older man turned back to his companions, he smirked and muttered to himself, "After eight years, I'm rather used to these anyway."
The morning came and Zuko once more found himself brought into the interrogation chamber. Thrown into the chair, although left in his shackles instead of being retrained via the chair, he heard a passive female voice order the guards to leave. He stood and turned to face Mai. She was leaning against the wall.
"So I was right. You left for that Water Tribe whore." She said, her voice icy.
"I returned to my wife," his eyes narrowed, "and don't you ever call her anything like that again."
"Why her? What about me wasn't good enough?"
"The burning occurred before Azula had the Dai Li wipe my memory, and brought me to the Fire Nation."
"You could have left her." She mumbled.
"If you truly believe that than you're more of a fool than Azula thinks that I am." He turned toward the door. "Katara is the part of me that I'd lost somewhere along the way, and now that I've found her" he looked over his shoulder with an expression that carried both sincerity and warning. "I'm not going to lose her again. I think we're done here. So I'll just be off to my cell now."
After that they argued about how he believed that he was doing the right thing for the Fire Nation, which he intended to save it from what it was becoming. The argument grew more heated until Mai actually took a swing at him, and he leaned back to dodge. He grabbed her arm, spun it behind her, and pushed her into the chair. He locked the door behind him, and slunk through the halls to the courtyard, where he found the others. With the help of Ji Seng they started the riot, on the condition that he and his two friends could come. Soon, thanks to Suki, they had the warden and were on the gondola, escaping. Until they saw that Azula and Ty Lee were following after them.
A battle ensued on the roof of the gondola, Suki versus Ty lee and Zuko and Sokka versus Azula. The guards, who were then working to cut the ropes the car traveled on, had stopped the car. Mai, rage very clear on her face, had apparently gotten out, and had just begun up onto the ropes, despite the guards trying to stop her.
Seeing what was happening Sokka shouted down into the car, "Everybody out now! Shimmy up the rope before it's cut!"
While the three held off the girls the others shimmied up the ropes like chameleon sloths, leaving the warden in the gondola. Ji Seng, who'd been in the prison the longest, had joked to the warden that he hoped the thing floated. The three girls saw that the rope was about to break and quickly lunged toward the opposite rope for the second gondola. Seeing that this gave them the opportunity to get to the others, Zuko grabbed Sokka's sword and leapt for the other rope. Before Sokka or Suki could stop him or join him their rope broke and they held on as it swung down. As he hung from the rope he looked up at them, a smirk across his face. Azula was about to unleash a burst of flame, but she was cut short by a few jabs that left her arms limp. Ty Lee gave him a quick nod that he returned, and with a flame blast from his mouth followed immediately by as strong a swipe of the sword as the chain connecting his arms allowed the rope snapped and fell. Ty Lee grabbed the back of Azula's shirt as the three swung back toward the prison's side.
The others had just climbed up onto the ledge of the terminal as they looked to see their accomplice crash against the cliff face, still hanging onto the rope. He carefully stuck the sword in the back of his shirt so it wouldn't fall before he started his trip up. To his surprise as he pushed himself up the craggy wall with his feet and pulled on either hanging end of the rope he was yanked up in jerks as he climbed. He looked up to see not just Sokka but most of the others, including Ji Seng, pulling on the ropes. When he made it to the top Sokka immediately snatched his sword back, and worked at wiping the blade to get rid of any jerk germs as he put it.
Zuko looked up at the bigger escaped prisoner and asked, "Why help me instead of running?"
"You helped us get out of there. Honor demanded that I help you." He smiled mischievously, "Not many people still cling to the old ways."
The prince's eyes widened in realization, but after a moment he smirked and made a gesture with his hands. He said, "But those that do can always find a friend." He then commented to the others about how Azula arrived and they found the large air ship. When they made their way for it he commented to Hakoda and Sokka, "I've got something to talk to you two about later."
The others gasped and prepared for a fight as the large vessel descended into the ravine. Nothing could have prepared them for the sight of Sokka standing there with a huge smile on his face as a gangplank was extended over to the ledge of the temple. Their surprise was furthered when the Kyoshi Warrior and five Water Tribe men exited into the temple. They were a bit hesitant about the three Fire Nation people, who seemed to keep their distance from all the others. However, the small heartfelt reunion nearly blinded the group to the last person to depart from the air ship.
Zuko kept off to the side, not wanting to disturb the emotional scene, and worked his way toward the hallway leading to his room. Well, technically it was his and Katara's room, but they hadn't told anyone about that and he certainly wasn't planning on telling her father. He made it to the other side of the room when a strong hand grabbing the back of his shirt stopped him. He turned to see Toph with a raised eyebrow.
"And where do you think you're going?"
"To take a bath."
"Not yet you're not." She said, never releasing her grip. She turned, "Hey Sugarqueen! Best get your fancy water tricks over here. Sparky needs some healing, and if you DON'T STOP STRUGGLING YOU'LL NEED EVEN MORE!" With her last shouted word she gave one mighty tug and yanked him off his feet so he tumbled back, landing on his back with a wince.
The others stared down at him with wide eyes as they beheld his bruised arms, and his face showed a black eye swollen shut and a fat lip.
"What happened while you all were gone?" Katara asked. Her two male relatives and even a couple of the captains, who were like uncles to her, looked away, a couple even whistling a bit. Casting a glare at them, she hauled the firebender onto his feet, an arm around her shoulders, and led him off toward the fountain.
When they were out of earshot he chuckled, "Well, you did warn me."
"Huh?"
"I told them that I was going to do this, no matter what they said." He answered as they reached the fountain. He dropped onto his knees in front of her, clasping her hands. He looked up straight into her eyes and continued, "I, Zuko son of Ursa, hereby plead for your, Katara daughter of Kaya and Hakoda, hand in marriage. I plead that you accept my offering of my aide in the rescue of your father, tribesmen, and friend, and look upon my proposal with favor."
There were tears in her eyes and a giggle barely contained at the obviously rehearsed recitation. They began to break free as she saw the look in his eyes form when she hadn't replied after about ten seconds. She yanked him up as she laughed, "Like there's anyway I was going to refuse. Who taught you that whole spiel anyway?" She had pulled him in for a kiss, but was interrupted by a timely clearing of a throat.
They turned their heads to see Hakoda standing in the doorway, a warning in his eyes.
Zuko sighed, "He did."
Her father commented as he walked forward, "I also explained there wouldn't be any kissing until you two were married." At her expression he continued, "Don't give me that look. I got that enough from your mother, may she rest in peace. He explained there was some Fire Nation thing that meant you were married, but wouldn't give any details. That doesn't mean he can just put his paws all over you. You'll be properly married before anything like that. But first there's something I have to ask you." He put his hands on her shoulders and looking her straight in the eye. "Does he make you happy, feel safe, cherished…"
She smiled, and answered earnestly, "I love him."
He searched her eyes for a moment and released a breath with a small smile, and then turned toward Zuko. He said, "Treasure her."
Zuko bowed with confidence and respect, "Long beyond the day all the stars burn out."
"Right, I'll hold you to that." He said slowly, not completely understanding the sincerity implied by the old Fire Nation saying, but getting the gist. He turned back to Katara. "Two weeks is too short a time for a betrothal in my opinion but I suppose I can understand it. Wanting to show your feelings before the end of this and anything can happen to either of you. Then there's that whole Fire Nation thing that has married you two, which I still don't understand or appreciate, but I accept now that I spoken with you and seen the looks in both your eyes. So we decided two weeks should be enough time to prepare."
Her eyes widened, "Two weeks?"
"We agreed that it would give us enough time for everything that needs to be done. We'll meet up with them at the isle of Kokomo." Zuko said.
"Meet up with them?" She looked toward the young man beside her, "And just where are they going?"
Hakoda stepped in to save the lad from his daughter. He explained, "You see, Katara, we're going to take the airship the day after tomorrow, and…run a few errands. Meanwhile, you all will use the bison-"
"Appa." She corrected.
"-Appa, to head straight for the island in about a week. Anyways, we'll explain the rest when we tell everyone else the plan, and announce your engagement. For now, how about you take care of him, but wait a couple minutes. If your temper is even half of what your mother's was I want to be out of the way when you see everything." As he walked away he turned and smiled, "By the way, the other tribesman, Sokka, and I are all going to be keeping an eye on you two. So remember that there's no kissing or anything."
He was a few steps down the hall when he heard a shout of pain, and then Katara's reprimanding voice. She was yelling at him about something she had told him before about worrying her half to death by disappearing with her brother to go off who knows where. Then she went on about how he came back bruised and battered never minding the fact that some of it had been due to her tribesman. There was a gasp after a rustle of clothing, his shirt without a doubt, and that was followed by a smack and another painful shout. He hurried a bit to be out of earshot as another rant likely followed. Hakoda had to chuckle, remembering his late wife's similar penchant for poking at any of his wounds in an aggravated attempt to get him to avoid such outcomes.
Back at the fountain, after Katara had finished her heated words, she asked quietly, "Did you tell them the rest?"
He quirked an eyebrow, "I'm here, aren't I?"
She giggled softly, "So we're going to wait till after the wedding?"
"Unless you want be a widow," he laughed, "or have a castrated husband. Not that your brother hasn't already threatened me with that already. The terrible thing was that after they beat me up Suki started them on the whole idea of what we should name our children. I must have heard a hundred different possibilities."
Katara wrapped her arms about his shoulders and rest her head next to his. She sighed, "It's not a bad idea though, thinking of names. How about this you think of a name for a boy, and I'll decide on one for a girl."
"Yeah, alright. Umm, how about Kazuma?"
She looked at him, "That was quick. Where'd you come up with that?"
He averted his eyes, "It was the name of my cousin's fox-hound."
"You want to name our son after a pet?" She shouted, as she stood straight. She then gave him a slap on the back of his head.
Later, a freshly healed, though still rather sore and not just from injuries he arrived with, Zuko and an all too content, having vented and once more bathing in the joy of her upcoming nuptials, Katara joined all the others in the dinner hall around the fire. Naturally, the three former Fire Nation prisoners were off to one side, a few of the others sending threatening scowls their direction at times, primarily Haru and The Duke. Well, the boy was sending rather cautious glances, as if afraid they'd attack at any moment. The Water Tribesmen had strategically placed themselves on either side of the erratic circle between the two groups. Toph was reclining in a stone chair she had formed, a slightly annoyed look on her face as she obviously felt Sokka sit right up against Suki. Aang seemed quite tired; probably from all the 'homework' Zuko had left him.
Once everyone had gotten their dinner, Hakoda glanced over at the two. He commented, "So, are you going tell them now?"
They looked between them and nodded. They rose and Zuko announced, "Everyone, we would like to tell you all something very important. W…"
"We're getting married!" Katara interrupted in a squeal.
There was silence for a moment, the only sound was Zuko muttering, "Don't everyone congratulate us all at once."
"Bout time!" Toph laughed. "So, when you two lovebirds tying the knot?"
"Two weeks." She answered.
Almost immediately the two were swarmed, Zuko being reminded of the threats and Katara being congratulated. A few of them were confused, such as the three boys who had not traveled with the group for very long. Teo seemed the most excepting, having not held anything against the prince just for being from the Fire Nation. Haru was sitting there with a little disappointment showing on his face. The Duke just seemed plainly confused, having no experience with such matters. The most drastic reaction however seemed to be from Aang.
He sat there, at first staring wide eyed at the couple, but after seeing the others gathering around them, particularly congratulating them, he looked desperately at the ground. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Katara was going to marry ZUKO in two week? That couldn't be right though, Aang had always assumed that he would marry her from the day that he had first met her. He'd become convinced that she was destined for him after encountering Aunt Wu. True she had told him that one must make their own future come true, but that didn't mean that her prediction of Katara marrying a powerful bender was rubbish. After all he was the Avatar, capable of bending all four elements and summoning the power of his predecessors. Who could be more powerful? However, in this case he did the only thing that he could think of. He fled.
His departure wasn't very discreet, as at least half of the people gathered turned toward retreating form. There were a few murmurs questioning his leaving, primarily from those who hadn't much if any time with the boy. Though there was a silent understanding communicated between the ones who'd traveled together and had seen the obvious affection he'd demonstrated. Katara politely began to excuse herself from the crowd, and when she found Zuko move to accompany her she rested a hand on his chest.
"It would probably be best if I were to do this by myself. He's likely a little sensitive right now, and too many of us approaching would overwhelm him." She explained to him.
He wasn't completely convinced, but after seeing the look in her eyes he sighed in resignation. He quietly replied, "Good luck."
She walked out in the direction that her young friend had disappeared, hoping that the oncoming emotional onslaught would not be as heartrending as she feared. The kiss on the submarine had opened her eyes to just how infatuated with her that he was, and she had been apprehensive to how he and some of the others would react to their announcement. This was just further proof that she had every right to worry, but it was probably better to get this over with. He had to understand and accept that she couldn't and wouldn't love him the way that he wanted.
She found him sitting up on the rafters at one of the open-air balconies near the other end of the temple. In the pale moonlight shining down and reflecting off the canyon walls she could see the small drops of tears falling to the ground. She walked slowly out toward the edge, the moonlight shining down upon her, and she sat upon a bench.
She looked up to where he sulked. She said, "Aang? Aang, come on down here. I think we need to have a talk."
"Why?" came the sniffling reply. "Shouldn't you be with Zuko?"
"I've come to talk with you right now." She answered, ignoring the tone when he said the firebender's name. "So get down here or I'll pull you down with a water whip."
Aang landed softly as he always seemed to, but just stared at her from his spot.
"Listen Aang, I'm sorry if this hurts you, but we need to come to an understanding."
"It's supposed to be us!" He suddenly exclaimed. He rushed to her, grabbing Katara's arms with a desperately hopeful expression on his face. "It's not too late! You can go back and tell him that you've changed your mind. And better yet the wedding can still happen but it can be you and me instead. Think about it, we can be happily married, and we could live in any of the temples that you want. We can travel anywhere we want on Appa. We…"
"Aang, Aang stop!" She pleaded.
Before she could say anything else, he'd pulled her down and pushed his lips to hers. It was much like the time on the submarine, but there was less guilt in her this time as he did this knowing that she was betrothed to another. The one sided kiss lasted all of a couple seconds with him moving his lips over hers and even trying to push his tongue into her lips before she finally squirmed away from his hold.
"STOP IT!" She reprimanded. She stepped back and held up a finger to stop him as he tried to reach for her again. She continued with an earnest tone, "Aang, please this must stop. I do love you, but not in the way you seem to want. You are my best friend. I pray to all the spirits that you always will be, and you'll always have a special place in my heart. However, the love I feel for you is like the love that I feel for Sokka or Toph or even Suki, but what I feel for Zuko is something I've never felt before, like he fills a part of me that I didn't even know was missing."
Aang squeezed his eyes shut and turned his head away. His entire body was tense as he listened to the heart shattering sincerity in her voice. He had to believe it by just listening to her, but there was a soft voice deep down within him that just wouldn't allow it. For now he just gave a quick nod, unable to say anything without his voice betraying how he felt. Katara with watering eyes at the obvious hurt she'd caused hugged him, but he pulled away.
He summoned all his willpower to say, "Listen, give me some time will you? This is going to take a little while." There was a pause before he muttered, "Goodnight."
"Goodnight Aang." She whispered before walking off to her room. She wasn't sure she could handle being around everyone else after breaking the boy's heart.
Toph came out onto the courtyard with the fountain to find her firebending friend lying on a blanket on a stone bench with a pillow under his head. He was gazing up toward the star and moon filled sky, occasionally giving a puff of flame to keep Syaoran warm. The baby great dragon was coiled up asleep on the young man's rising and falling chest, a place usually occupied by a certain waterbender's head at night. He had gone to their usually shared room but had been prevented from entering by one of the solidly built Water Tribesmen, who now stood guard outside. Apparently Hakoda hadn't been kidding when it came to the matter of making sure he didn't try anything before the wedding.
He thought, 'Oh well, one more night shouldn't be too bad. They're leaving tomorrow, and I should be able to get past Sokka without too much trouble. All I'll have to do is throw a chunk of meat down the hall to distract him."
"How you doing Sparky?" She laughed as she felt him jump in surprise. "Oh come on, you're usually better about hearing me coming."
Once resettled he commented, "Subtlety never was your forte."
"Who needs it?" She scoffed. "It'd be better if people just said what they meant."
"So, from your reaction I take it that you already knew about our relationship."
It was not a question.
"Oh please, Iroh told me about the whole Burning thing when we left you strapped to the floor. I even know all about Sugar Bun."
"Sugar what?"
She quickly explained her reasoning, which resulted in him slapping his forehead.
He sighed, "Well, it's a good thing you came out here anyway. I was going to talk to you about this tomorrow, but as you're here…"
"Just spit it out."
"Will you be my best man?"
Now it was her turn to be surprised. She gawked, "M-me, but why? Why not Sokka, or even the Mustache Kid?"
He smiled, "It can't be them. The best man is supposed to be the groom's best friend, last time I checked Sokka is just as willing throw me into the ravine as he is to allow this. As for any of the others, well I just don't know them well enough." He looked up hopefully at her. "So how bout it?"
"Let me think about it." Toph replied, and walked away toward the hall. He looked up when she stopped. Without looking back she said, "I'll do it on one condition. Stop calling me shortstuff."
He laughed as he lay down, "You got it…sis."
For a moment she turned back toward him in shock and confusion. For an instant she had considered that he had just called her a sissy, but immediately she threw that off. She knew him better than to believe that he'd be foolish enough to call her something like that. He knew she'd throw him through a wall if he did. Finally, the true implication of his words rang into her mind, and she smiled.
"Night, Sparky." She called back with a wave. As Toph walked down the hallway in her mind she thought, 'You better take care of my brother Sugarqueen