So here we are at the final, 25th part. Be warned: I went the cliché route for the ending. What can I say? The heart wants what it wants. :P It's been a wild ride, and I'm so grateful that you guys stuck around for it. You have my sincere gratitude for helping make this story what it has become. Special shout-out to Atlafan1286 for never failing to brighten my day with a comment. You rock. :)

-Eight years later-

Zuko paced back and forth in front of the looming forest, listening intently for any sound of his dragon. Nothing. He was just about to raise two fingers to his mouth and whistle for Druk to return to the clearing when he was distracted by a long, bored sigh from Toph.

"Remind me again why you dragged all of us out here, Twinkle Toes," Toph growled as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Rabid cobra wolves have been terrorizing this area of the earth kingdom, and the local authorities have been unable to get rid of them," Aang explained.

"That's what I thought. I was just wondering if I had been misinformed, considering I haven't sensed a single cobra wolf yet."

"That's because they're in there," Sokka pointed to the thick forest in front of them with his sword blade, "and we're out here. That's why Druk went in to herd them out into the open. But you already knew that, Rockhead."

"Yeah, just thought I'd make you guys explain again since you haven't brought up any better topics. No offense, but you three dudes suck at interesting discussions. We need the rest of the group to keep the conversation going." Toph put her hands on her hips. "Speaking of which, where are they? Aang, Zuko, you two better have good explanations."

Aang sighed wearily. "Bumi is running a fever, so Katara stayed behind to make sure he's doing alright."

"Of course she stayed behind. Sexist, much?"

Aang blinked. "What? That doesn't have anything to do with it! She's the healer, not me, and she's way better at deciphering two-year-old gibberish."

"Yeah, 'cuz you're too sexist to try to learn," Toph retorted.

Aang rubbed his eyes with a long-suffering sigh. "I'm not having this argument."

"Thought so," Toph said with a satisfied smirk. Her arm shot out to point at Zuko. "What's your excuse, Highness?"

Zuko threw his hands into the air. "Flying hog monkeys, Toph! Anika is eight months pregnant! She can't go around battling rabid cobra wolves."

"Why not?" Toph demanded. "I would."

Sokka shook his head teasingly. "I fear for your future children."

"Don't lose any sleep over it, Meathead," Toph shot back. "I'm not having any. I'll leave the diaper-changing to you losers."

"Suuure," Sokka crooned. "I don't know, I can see you as mommy Toph someday... how are things going with you and that Kanto guy?"

"None of your busi-"

"Look alive, everyone!" Aang interrupted. "I can hear them coming!"

Zuko backed up so that he was in a straight line with the rest of his friends, listening intently. Sure enough, a dull roar that could occasionally be separated into individual growls, yelps, and agitated hisses was emitting from the forest.

Zuko reached his arms behind him and gripped the handles of his duel broadswords. They slid from their sheaths with a crisp, metallic shhing. Zuko sliced them experimentally through the air, smiling as the swords swooped flawlessly with practiced precision. "Bring it."

The words had barely left his mouth when a group of about twenty cobra wolves burst into the clearing. They looked like a more deadly version of an eel hound, but thankfully only waist-height. Patches of matted grey fur grew sporadically between their leathery scales, and their red eyes held a bloodthirsty gleam. Two fangs jutted out from their foaming mouths, and Zuko couldn't help but feel a sharp jolt of terror as the larger, more aggressive-looking cobra wolves immediately sprinted towards his group of friends.

One of them lunged towards him, its foaming mouth wide open for a bite. Zuko lunged forward to meet the beast, embedding his swords into the exposed chest of the cobra wolf as he did so. He thrust them back out with a spray of sticky black blood.

"Zuko!" Zuko didn't even have time to move as Toph let out a shout and shards of earth zipped past his head to slam into a second cobra wolf. Zuko turned his head and realized that it had almost bit into his neck.

He backed up, panting from the adrenaline pulsing through his body. "Thanks, Toph."

"Don't mention it."

"You saved my—"

"No, seriously, don't mention it." Toph raised a boulder-shaped hunk of earth from in the ground bedside her and crushed three cobra wolves with it. "We need to focus on killing these things."

"Right." Zuko glanced over at the Avatar as he slashed into another attacking cobra wolf. To his surprise, Aang was knocking the wolves back with blasts of air instead of taking them down. Zuko groaned. "Aang, if you don't start killing these things, they're going to be killing us."

Aang blew a funnel of air in the face of another beast, sending it tumbling backwards. "All life is sacred, Zuko."

"All life is-? They're rabid cobra wolves, Aang! RABID COBRA WOLVES."

"Cut the guy some slack," Sokka panted as he sliced his sword across the neck of a cobra wolf, killing it instantly. "Your dad is like ten times worse than these cute little fellas, and Aang spared him."

"Ooooh." Toph paused in her earthbending to give Sokka a high-five. "Nice one."

Sokka grinned. "I try."

Zuko rolled his eyes. "When are you guys going to stop with the dad insults?"

"Your dad was a psycho who tried to destroy the world as we know it. You don't get that kind of roast information every day," Sokka teased. "Let's just hope you're better daddy material than your old man."

Zuko flinched involuntarily and stabbed the next cobra wolf that lunged at him straight through the heart with so much force that its corpse got stuck to the sword. Zuko planted a foot against it's scaly body and jerked the sword free with shaking hands. What Sokka had meant as playful banter had hit too close to home. What if he wasn't a good dad? Ozai had poisoned his only experience of having a father. What if he became the kind of abusive monster his father had been?

Aang must have noticed the haunted expression on his friend's face, because he cleared his throat. "Not that Zuko's nervous, but two years ago when I was about to become a first-time father, I was terrified. Air nomads aren't exactly known for being devoted parents. I was raised by monks and never had a traditional family unit. It never bothered me because that's just the way things worked, but it made me unsure of my ability to be a good father. Zuko's going to do great. I mean, he was practically raised by Iroh during his banishment, and there aren't many better father figures out there than him."

Zuko took a deep breath and felt his nerves ebb somewhat. "Thanks, Aan-"

"Fire Lord Zuko!" Zuko's head instantly snapped towards the urgent voice, and his gaze landed on a man riding an eel hound. "We've just received a messenger hawk from the Fire Nation Capital. You're needed at the palace!"

"Why?" Zuko barked as he sliced at a cobra wolf. "What's the matter?"

"It's your wife, sir." Zuko's heart turned to ice in his chest, and his broadswords fell from his hands in shock. Toph thrust a fist into the air, and a wall of earth rose between their group and the cobra wolves as every head turned to stare at the messenger.

"What's wrong with Anika?" Zuko asked.

"She's gone into labor."

"B-but..." The blood drained from Zuko's face as his mind spun wildly, trying to make sense of the situation. "She's not due for another month."

The messenger wrung his hands. "The message said that she had suffered a fall. It seems to have started childbirth earlier than expected."

Just then, a cobra wolf burst through a weak spot in the earth wall, teeth barred and venom dripping from its gleaming fangs. Three others followed from behind the first. Sokka turned and sliced one of the beasts in half, his face hard and tense. "Zuko! Get out of here, now!"

Zuko didn't need to be told twice. He sprinted from the group and raised two fingers to his mouth, then sounded a long, sharp whistle. A blur of red rose from behind the trees and swooped down to fly steadily beside him. Zuko leapt sideways and landed on Druk's back. He gripped his dragon's mane and leaned forward to talk to him. "Home, Druk. Take us home as fast as you can."

"Rrrrrk!" Druk roared in understanding and soared high into the sky. Zuko grit his teeth as he did a few calculations in his head. It had taken him four hours to get from the Fire Nation Capital to this part of the earth kingdom on Druk, and it would take a messenger bird even longer. That meant that Anika had gone into labor hours ago, and he wouldn't get there for hours more. He cursed under his breath at the shitty set of circumstances. He'd imagined being by Anika's side when she delivered their child, not missing everything. What if something terrible happened? What if the baby didn't make it, or what if Anika died in childbirth?

No. Zuko shook his head and forced the thoughts from his mind. Anika would be fine, and so would the baby. They had to be. Zuko settled in for a long ride and spent the next few hours in tortured anxiety.

To his surprise, it was only two hours before he set his eyes on the familiar silhouette of the Fire Nation Capital. Druk had sensed his master's urgency and had somehow managed to fly so swiftly that he cut the time in half. Zuko stroked his dragon's neck as the beast flew over the palace. "Thank you, Druk." His companion rumbled contentedly in reply as he landed lightly on the courtyard in front of the palace.

Zuko leapt from his back and sprinted into the palace, heading for the small medical ward where he assumed Anika was. The servants in the hallways all stopped what they were doing to stare at him as he passed by, beaming in a way that helped ease some of the frantic panic inside of him. Snatches of phrases like, "congratulations" and "healthy baby girl" fell on his ears like cleansing water on a wound. He had a baby girl, and she was alive and well! He was a father! He was—Zuko's ecstatic thoughts ground to a halt as he made it to his destination. They hadn't said anything about Anika being okay. What if?...

He pushed open the door to the ward, only to be greeted with a collective cheer from the doctors, sages, and servants inside. Zuko ignored the various calls of merriment and congratulations as he made his way to the only thing he was capable of noticing in the room: his wife, holding a small blanketed bundle in her arms. She smiled up at him as he approached, happiness glowing in her exhausted eyes.

Zuko anxiously searched her for signs of something wrong as he reached forward and rubbed her arm in concern. Damp strands of hair clung to the sides of her tired-looking face, but somehow she still managed to look more beautiful than he'd ever seen her. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Anika smiled at him reassuringly, then asked, "would you like to hold her?"

Zuko's eyes widened, and he swallowed hard with a slight shake of his head. "I-I don't want to hurt her. How do I?..."

Anika laughed softly and held out the tiny bundle. "Just be gentle and support her head. You'll do fine."

Zuko held his breath as he gingerly took his child and pulled her into his arms. The baby girl whimpered faintly during the transition, and she splayed out her impossibly tiny fingers before settling in. Zuko's heart swelled in his chest as he gazed down at her perfect, tiny features. It seemed impossible that he had played a part in creating this living, breathing human with her little nose, tiny mouth, fluffy tuft of soft, jet-black hair... Her little eyelashes fluttered open, and Zuko found himself gazing into bright, golden eyes that mirrored his own.

Tears began to build behind his eyes as it really hit him for the first time: this was his daughter. His daughter. He was suddenly filled with a warm, all-consuming, unconditional love like he'd never experienced before. He loved Anika with all his heart and soul, but this type of love was something new. Something proud, pure, and protective. Something-

Zuko was torn from his thoughts as a sage cleared his throat. "Fire Lord Zuko, the sages have studied your heir, and we have determined that she most likely has the spark, but it's not as strong as would be ideal. We're sorry. We remind you, however, that it's not the end of the world. She could still grow to be a-"

Zuko cut off the sage's statement with a laugh as he brought his gaze back down to his daughter, completely flawless in his eyes. "Like father like daughter, I suppose. I didn't have the spark at all when I was born." Zuko reached up with a single finger and traced it across his daughter's impossibly soft cheek. "I don't care if she grows up to be the most powerful firebender in the world or if she can't bend at all." Zuko sat down on the edge of the bed and turned to his wife, locking his gaze with Anika's as he said his next words. "She's perfect."

"Yes, I thought you might say that," the sage said, his normally matter-of-fact tone suddenly gentle and warm. "We will leave you two, then. I and the rest of the Fire Sages wish you all the happiness this world has to give." With that the sages filed out, and everyone but a few lingering doctors followed them to give the couple their space.

Zuko gently placed the baby back into his wife's arms. "Now we just need a name," Anika murmured.

"I've been thinking about that," Zuko said. "How about Izumi?"

Anika looked at their daughter thoughtfully. "Izumi... it suits her. What made you think of it?"

"It means fountain, or water. If it's okay with you, I'd like to name her in honor of the important Water Tribe people in my life: the guy who became my first real friend my own age, the healer who saved both of our lives at different points..." Zuko's throat tightened with emotion, but he cleared it and managed to murmur, "and the woman who guided me through some of the darkest times of my life, who I also happen to be madly in love with."

Anika waved off his words with an ezasperated roll of her eyes. "I just pushed a human out of me, Zuko. I'm too exhausted for your romance."

Zuko smiled as he watched a happy, flustered blush color her cheeks all the same. He could still coax them out of her after years of being together, and he loved her for it. "You can brush me off all you want. I still love you."

Anika smiled contentedly, then replied, "I love you t..." Anika let out a yawn before continuing, "too, you dork."

Zuko winked playfully. "Ahh, but could a dork make this perfect of a baby?"

"Pfft, I did all the hard stuff." As if to make her point, Anika released another sleepy yawn.

Zuko nodded in agreement. "That you did. You need rest." He leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on Anika's forehead, then gathered their sleeping daughter into his arms and settled into the chair beside the bed. "Go to sleep; We'll be right here."

"But what if she needs..."

"Shhh, sleep. She'll be fine; her dad's holding her."

Anika smiled teasingly as she settled down onto the bed. "That's what I'm afraid of." By the time Zuko thought of a witty comeback, Anika was fast asleep.

Zuko held the warm, softly breathing bundle that was his daughter securely in his arms as the gentle, familiar snores Anika only made when she was absolutely exhausted floated fondly to his ears. An intense, glowing happiness he'd never thought was possible spread from his heart to every atom in his being. In that moment, Zuko understood love on its purest, most basic form. For the first time, he felt—without anything to cloud it—the love between a couple, between a parent and their child, between people and the things they hold dear.

The force that everyone knows to some degree.

The passion that makes us human.

The fire within us.