Author's Notes

I forgot to credit the previous chapter's song! It's a modified version of "All With You" by Taeyeon.

Also, forgive me for this chapter. I won't say anything further. *hides*

-TheGreatestConWoman-


Due to health concerns, the Council of Elders granted the Fire Lord a week's worth of rest, after which the second round of negotiations for Yu Dao shall begin. Zuko used the week to spend time with Chiyo, as well as help Uncle Iroh run the Jasmine Dragon.

Chiyo on the other hand was just a little bit anxious. Shortly after arriving in Ba Sing Se, she sent two messenger hawks confirming her safe arrival, one to Hira'a, and another back to the Fire Nation Capital. Having run away without proper leave will certainly cost her.

But she couldn't care less. After a long, long year, she finally got to be with her boyfriend again. "Boyfriend..." She chuckled at the thought as she watched him wipe down the last of the tables.

Over the year, his dark hair had gotten longer. Out of the traditional top knot, some unruly locks fall to partially cover his golden eyes, making him look even more mysterious and secretive. His physique had grown from lanky to a lean, muscular build. Chiyo grinned as she could imagine him working out in the palace courtyard sweat falling down from his face to his chest...

"What's with that beautiful smile on your face, love?" Zuko had approached the counter where she was wiping the cups dry. "I do hope you are thinking of me..."

His crooked smile still had the same effect on her as it did before, and he knew it. She blushed and looked away, throwing the rag she had used to wipe the cups to his face. "I wasn't!"

"Oh?" He easily jumped over the counter, landing in front of her, trapping her between his arms as he held the counter behind her. "Your cheeks say otherwise."

"Shut up!"

"Sure thing." Zuko leaned in and kissed her before she could protest more. He pressed his body to hers, loving the way her body fit perfectly with his.

As if they were made just for each other.

He lifted her up on the counter without breaking the kiss, earning a startled gasp from her. Testing the waters, he focused his attention on her lower lip, sucking, nibbling gently. One of his hands wound through her long dark hair, while the other rested on her thigh.

Soft, breathless moans escaped her, muffled by Zuko's unrelenting and unforgiving lips. Chiyo's mind was clouded with this new emotion. And before she forgot how to breathe, she pulled away, gasping for air.

But he was far from done. His lips trailed to her cheek, along her jawline, down to her neck where the gift he had given her rested. Her eyes slid close. "Zuko..."

Her reactions, the way she whispered his name, were deliciously pleasing to Zuko's ears. And he wanted more. He sucked on the sweet spot just above her collarbone, delighting in the way her body arched towards him.

"I am now... heading downstairs... to have my evening tea!" Iroh shouted slowly from upstairs, alerting the couple in the kitchen. "I am now... walking slowly... to the stairs!"

They burst out into laughter at Uncle Iroh's obviousness before they righted themselves. Zuko gently held Chiyo's waist and help her off the counter. "Say, would you like to go out with me? Tomorrow?"

"Like a date?" She raised a brow up at him, tucking a loose lock behind her ear,

"Yes." He grinned. "I would like to properly take you out on a date."

"I am now... half-way down... the stairs!"

"What do you say?"

How could she resist him when he looked at her like that? She thought it unfair that he could look so angelic and devious at the same time. "It's a date." She stood on the tips of her toes to kiss his cheek.

"I am now... almost down... the stairs!"


Zuko was surprised when Chiyo asked to go back to the Lower Ring of Ba Sing Se, but he indulged her anyways. On the carriage, she talked about her stay in Hira'a, the play they were working on, Noren and Noriko, and most especially, their daughter Kiyi.

"Fire Lord Zuko, Lady Chiyo, we're at the gates of the Middle Ring. "The coachman opened the door for them and they stepped out into the sun. Both dressed plainly for their date, they still looked a bit out of place in the Lower Ring.00

They passed by the soldiers that guarded the middle ring in silence, but Chiyo still shot them a piercing glare as they passed.

"Something wrong, love?" Zuko didn't fail to notice that her upbeat mood had changed.

"It's nothing." She shrugged and tore her eyes away. "Just a memory."

Zuko guessed it had something to do with the uneasy guards of the gate so he whispered something to the coachman before sending him away back to the Upper Ring.

They wove through the busy market district of the Lower Ring. A number of the original refugee tenants who chose to stay after the Fall of Ba Sing Se easily recognized Chiyo.

Yet, they still called her by her other name.

"Lily!" An elderly man waved from his shop. "Are you and Lady Reiko gonna come back anytime soon at the eatery? And how is that young boy you were always with? Kai, was it?"

She smiled and bowed to him. "I'm afraid I'm just here for a visit, Mr. Ting. And Kai's doing okay. I'm guessing he went back to his hometown after the war."

"Hmm.. thought so." The old man squinted against the light to get a better look at her companion. "Hey... Aren't you Mushi's nephew?! From Pao's teashop?"

"Actually—" Chiyo had elbowed his side and he took the hint. "Y-yes! I am Lee."

"Well, don't you two look great together!" He complimented the couple and leaned in. "I thought you'd end up with the Kai boy, but this one's a good catch too!"

They said their farewells to the man and walked further down the road. Chiyo hooked her arm through his and giggled. "So, where do you want to go, Lee?" She giggled as she watched him scowl.

"I still think 'Chiyo' is a better name than 'Lily'. I mean, who names people after flowers?"

"Flowers are pretty." She pouted.

"Yes, they are. And so are you." They had stopped in the middle of the road, and Zuko placed his hands on either sides of her face, his thumb running over the soft skin of her cheek. "But they are fragile. And you are anything but fragile."

Her cheeks flushed at the unexpected compliment. "T-thank you."

He took her to the Firelight Fountain, fortunately untouched by war destruction. "We'll come back here later tonight. You should see it with the lanterns lit." Zuko gazed up at the lamp posts and the lanterns, a distant memory, long forgotten.

"Lee?"

He could've sworn it was just a figment of his imagination, but he turned around in reflex, and found who had called him.

Jin.

Their surprise was furthered when they saw who was right next to her. "Kai!" Chiyo waved happily and tugged Zuko's hand, taking him to them. "I figured you would have gone back home!"

"I did." He brought a hand up to scratch the back of his head. "After the war, I came back home. I was just here in the city to visit."

Zuko wrapped an arm around Chiyo's waist possessively. "So, who are you visiting?"

"This girl." He smiled and ruffled Jin's hair playfully. "And speaking of visits, you should come by our hometown. Yona misses you terribly, and my mom has been asking about you all the time." Kai gave Chiyo a small smile.

She nodded, beaming. "We will! Soon!"

"We should get out of the sun." Jin looped her arm around Kai's. "I know! How about we all get lunch together?"

Zuko and Chiyo exchanged a look, both debating whether it was a good idea.

"Yeah, sure."


The servers placed plate after plate of food in front of them. Amon and Aron, the twins who inherited the eatery from Lady Reiko waved at them from the counter.

"So, how did you two meet?" Jin asked casually as she reached or her bowl of noodles.

"We actually met before Ba Sing Se. When we were young." Chiyo answered, picking up a slice of meat with her chopsticks and placing it on Zuko's bowl of rice.

"Where?"

"Back in the Fire Nation."

"Oh, so you're Fire Nation."

"Yeah," Chiyo shrugged. "So is he." She cocked her head towards Zuko.

"Oh... I didn't know that." Jin nodded. "But wait, you didn't recognize each other when Lee and I went on a date here."

Three people choked on their food after Jin's remark. They awkwardly reached for their cups of water, downing it all in one go. But Jin wasn't done. "So, like, we had our date here while Lily was still a waitress, right Lee?"

Zuko responded with nod of his head and looked away.

"I mean, she even went out of her way to give us back the change—"

"So... how about you two?" Chiyo intercepted her. "When did you and Kai start dating?"

Kai's emerald eyes widened, sensing where the discussion was about to go. "Oh, uh—"

"We met by the Firelight Fountain one night. Funny story, that one! What did we say back then? Oh, right! I said 'I kissed a guy and he ran away!' Then he replied with, 'I kissed a girl and I ran away'!" Her laugh was genuine, and she failed to notice the awkwardness among them.

"We should eat!" Kai pushed the plate of dumplings towards Chiyo. "I'm sure Chiyo and Zuko are hungry from travelling."

"Wait, who's Chiyo and Zuko?"


They parted ways after their awkward lunch. Chiyo promised to visit Kai's hometown soon, and the latter reluctantly agreed to let Zuko come with her. Jin hugged Chiyo in farewell, finally caught up with all that has happened so far. "You should come to visit us here, too, Fire Lord Zuko." She extended a hand towards him.

He took her hand and shook it. "I will. The coupon for the free tea still works with Uncle Iroh's new tea shop. Do come by."

"Maybe I will." She smiled.

They set off in different directions. Both Chiyo and Zuko were silent through their entire walk around the Lower Ring. "So..."

"Right..."

They looked at each other before breaking into fits of uncontrollable laughter. Passers-by turned to look their way but brushed them off as just youngsters in love. "Why can't we have one normal date?!"

Zuko was once again captivated by the way she laughed, how her closed eyes crinkled at the sides, how her pink-tinged cheeks look, accented by a dimple he never knew existed until now, how the corners of her lips enticed him with their secrets...

How can the simplest of her actions move him so much?

He found himself wishing, as he always did when he was with her, that the day would never end.


Night came too soon for Zuko's liking. As he had promised, he took her to the Firelight Fountain.

Chiyo was struck silent in awe of the beautiful scene before her. The light of the lanterns and lampposts made the running water of the fountain shimmer like a pool of diamonds. There were few people milling around, used to the magnificent view, but seeing it for the first time lit, a single tear fell from the corner of Chiyo's eyes. "I-It's so beautiful at night..."

He wiped the tear with his thumb. "Don't cry, love."

"I-I'm sorry... I'm so stupid. I-It's just that... it's so beautiful. I've seen a lot of things, but I've never seen the fountain at night like this, and it's just so-"

"Now you know how I feel every time I see you, Chiyo."

"Zuko..."

He led her to the lip of the fountain, an arm wrapped around her to keep her warm and close. "I don't know how it is possible, but, whenever I look at you, you always take my breath away. It always feels like it's the first time I am seeing you. Even back then, when I was young, I couldn't believe a boy could look so pretty!"

She giggled, both of them reminded of the debut that started it all. Neither of them could have imagined they would be here now, together. And they silently thanked all the circumstances that led them there, good and bad.

"Sometimes, I find myself thinking about our future. Fire Lord Zuko, and Fire Lady Chiyo... What our family, our children will be like." He mused as he stared deep into her eyes. "Then I realized... it didn't matter."

"What do you mean?"

"As long as I have you by my side, everything else will fall into its rightful place. I know it. I feel it."

Chiyo smiled and held his hand in both of hers. "Hey, Zuko..."

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Warmth was all around them. But those three words burned through him in the most satisfying, most beautiful way possible. He could spend his days, hearing her say it over and over again, those words that were meant just for him.

"I love you more, Chiyo."