Disclaimer: I own nothing...

Palace Couple

But now, it was finally time to live their lives together in the Royal Palace...

Katara said one last good-bye to her family before getting in the limo. She walked down the lane and slided into the car seat, followed by Zuko.

They passed several buildings, and Katara just sat there staring out her window nervously. Zuko noticed this and smirked. He slid over, tenderly put an arm around her shoulder, giving Katara shivers run up and down her back.

"Don't worry, you'll fit in perfectly." Zuko said sarcastically. But Katara wasn't moved at all by his little comment. She just scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Stop being sarcastic. I'm just nervous." she replied. Zuko shrugged and slid back to his seat. They drove for another few minutes until they came to a complete stop. The driver parked the limo in front of palace entrance, where a large group of servants were standing waiting for them. Then, as soon as the driver parked, he walked around the car to open the car door.

"We have arrived, your highnesses." Katara walked out and entered the Royal Palace with Zuko again. Immediately, Mr Iroh ran out to greet them and escort them to their new separate rooms. Once they got there, Katara looked around and saw that her new room was right across the hall from Zuko's! And, not only that, the two doors were French doors! So he was able to see everything she did, but she was able to do that too.

"Here are your rooms, your highnesses. In about an hour, his and her majesty has arranged to see you two in the meeting room. Please be there in time." And with that, Mr. Iroh left, leaving Zuko and Katara to their rooms.

Katara dropped her bags on the bed and wandered around her room. It was just the kind of room she had always imagined. It had an ocean theme. The walls were a pacific blue color, with a nice and light seashell pattern. It was very peaceful. She changed her clothes into something more comfortable than her very itchy dress in a corner where Zuko wouldn't be able to see her. When she finished, she decided to take a little stroll around the palace, just to get used to things. She quickly sole a glance at Zuko's room, and saw it very different than hers.

She walked around the palace several times, passing by numerous people. She even ran into Mr. Iroh a few times. Then, she began to feel a little tired and headed to the rose garden. She sat down on a bench and took a deep breath, smelling the roses. Then, all of a sudden, Aang appeared right in front of her!

"(gasp) Aang?!" Katara asked standing up.

"(gasp) is that you, Katara?" Aang said surprised.

"Oh my god, what are you doing h ere?" Katara asked.

"Um, well, my uncle(Gyatso) is good friends with the Queen, what are you doing here?"

"Well, um, I'm...the new Crown Princess." she said nervously.

"Really? Oh, wait, I know that! I guess I forgot." Aang said being goofy. Katara chuckled at his little joke. Then, a voice popped up behind her.

"Uh, you are needed in the meeting room, your highness." the servant behind her said. She looked down at her watch and saw that an hour had already passed.

"Um, I'll see you soon, Aang!" She quickly ran towards the meeting room with the servant chasing after her, complaining about some "NO RUNNING" rule. Aang just smiled cheerfully and kept walking through the garden.

Katara had made it to meeting room just in time. She quietly took a seat next to Zuko.

"Ah, so, Princess Katara, how do you like it in the palace so far?" the Queen said. Katara thought for a second until she finally replied.

"Um, well, it's certainly...big and clean." Katara said.

"Yes, thank you. We have an excellent cleaning service working here in the palace." the King said. "So, how are things going on between you two?"

Zuko and Katara just stared blankly at each other, racking their heads of what to say.

"um..." they both said.

"No need to answer, it's written all over your face." her majesty chuckled. Zuko and Katara had blank expressions once again. They checked each other's faces to see if they had anything written on them. But they saw nothing.

"You two must like each other, even if it is just an arranged marriage." her majesty sighed.

Like each other? Not in a million years! They both thought.

To be continued...

Um, for the garden scene, Katara and Aang don't really know each other that well, since they just met at the lunch table the other day. It's only Toph so far that knows Aang well.

-zkjanie