Suki and Sokka wouldn't allow her to call the beach trip a bust, but it was definitely not as relaxing for Katara as she had hoped. Zuko was called away every night to eat dinner with his sister at the royal family's beach house. Katara, having not talked to Zuko about what she had overheard, was anxious about it every time.

It didn't help that he didn't seem to have much to say each time he returned.

On their last night in the beach house, Zuko ignored Azula's summons and stayed with them. Suki found a closet where a bunch of old board games were stashed and they jerry-rigged a system to make a drinking game out of Capitalism!

In the morning, as Katara cured everyone's hangover before rushing to clean everything up, they realized that may have been a bad idea.

Going through the airport was easier this time since they were leaving the country, and Katara relaxed. She was able to enjoy first class, burying herself under everyone's blankets and wearing the eye mask that came in a sealed cellophane bag. Zuko got them champagne again and Katara heard the sound of the instant camera before a wave of laughter.

Smiling, Katara ignored them and attempted to move her arms over the bulk of four blankets to drink from her glass.

Customs in the Earth Kingdom gave her anxiety, but that was normal for any time she crossed a border. Still, they passed quickly and they moved together out of the airport.

"Did we want to get dinner?" Katara asked.

"No offense Katara, but I would like to spend some alone time with my bride-to-be." Sokka said, putting his arm around Suki's shoulder.

Katara rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine."

"Want to go to the Jasmine Dragon with me?" Zuko asked. Feeling small, and unable to really say no without making it awkward, Katara nodded.

"Sure." She said.

The taxis pulled up and Sokka and Suki waved as they grabbed one. Another followed and Zuko held the door open for Katara. Despite sending so much time with him, and sitting next to him during the flight, Katara felt cramped when Zuko slid in beside her and shut the car door.

His presence was much like his clothing, larger than she assumed and far too comfortable. He seemed relaxed and Katara put her elbow on the armrest inside the car door. Propping up her chin, the highway traffic passed over her eyes as she thought.

But to be fair, she wasn't really thinking about anything. It was as if a neuron in her brain would suddenly go "Zuko!" and the others would nod sagely, as if coming to agreement over the concept of him as a being. Other thoughts like "I should see a therapist." or "Spirits, what does being Queen even mean?" were met with similar chemical murmurings.

Zuko just sat next to her like one of those salt rock lamps. He felt calming, but his actual calming properties were yet to be determined.

When they got to the teahouse, Zuko pulled out their luggage and Katara started to fidget. Zuko, as he typically did, always looked casually formal. His jeans alone cost more than her whole outfit and his shirt came from a store Katara had never heard of. He would be fine strolling into the teahouse regardless of his standing as a prince.

Katara on the other hand was wearing hand cut jean shorts, a tank top that she picked up at a music festival, and tattered sandals.

Iroh's comment about her youth clothing her in something enviable was falling flat at the moment.

"Ready?" Zuko asked, rolling her suitcase to her.

"Sure." She replied, grabbing the handle.

They walked in together and Zuko smiled at the hostess before immediately diverting to the right. Walking past the main tea room, Katara realized there was a hall that fed to multiple rooms, even turning a corner.

"What's in there?" Katara asked.

"Let me show you." Zuko said and stopped at a door, opening it gently.

"Oh." Katara peered in, looking at the neat little space.

"They're for private events. There's some temporary walls to open them up in a bunch of different configurations." Zuko explained.

"How come I didn't notice them at the party?"

"A lot of them were open, and they don't actually fill the length of the main building. A lot of the nobility actually had their tables in here."

"There was nobility?" Katara asked, half-laughing with shock.

"I'm telling you, there's almost no difference between rich people and nobility except that rich people can make a vague claim to having an actual job." Zuko replied and smiled.

"So where are we going?" Katara asked.

"To the last one." Zuko said, shutting the door and continuing on. When they got to the last one, Katara could smell the cooking meat before Zuko even turned the handle.

Katara smiled as she saw Iroh, dressed in a kimono, crouched next to a grill with his sleeves tied back.

"Welcome back. You are just in time." Iroh said, glancing up at them briefly before flipping over cuts of meat with his chopsticks. Katara and Zuko rolled their suitcases to stand next to the wall before kneeling at the table.

"Thank you for doing this Uncle." Zuko said, picking up his own chopsticks and flipping over meat.

"After you had such a stressful time, I was glad to offer some respite." Iroh replied.

"Stressful? Suki and Sokka got engaged." Katara remarked.

"Yes, I heard! That is very exciting news." Iroh said and sat back. As Zuko took over the cooking, Iroh freed the sleeves of his kimono while looking over at Katara and smiling.

"Do you suppose he will supply his own flowers?" Iroh asked her and Katara snorted.

"Are you kidding? Sokka is a meticulous planner, he wouldn't let anyone else near it." She replied.

"When do you think they'll have the ceremony?"

"I'm not certain. It was a surprise to find out they wanted to get married."

"Seriously?" Zuko interjected as he added vegetables to the grill. "Sokka has a domestic streak a mile wide."

"Yeah but neither of them seemed the type for the frill." Katara replied. Zuko shrugged and focused on his basting.

"Not every wedding needs frills." Iroh added and Katara sighed.

"And not everyone gets the wedding they want." She said, leaning against the table and resting her cheek on her fist.

"Are you engaged, Katara?" Iroh asked. Katara raised an eyebrow but shook her head, awkwardly as she didn't move it from its stand.

"No, just prophesizing." She said idly.

"Which we already established you are bad at." Zuko stated and Katara rolled her head back to glare at him.

"Well, I will go and get the tea. Maybe it can help part the veils of the future for you." Iroh said and huffed as he pushed himself up.

Katara smiled and blinked leisurely, looking around the room. It was nicely decorated but reminded her of a hotel room. It lacked personality.

"Are you doing okay?" Zuko asked.

Katara leaned back and flopped onto the table, watching him remove the food from the grill. He delicately laid everything out on plates and started to stir little dishes of sauce.

"When did you learn how to cook?" She asked instead of answering.

"Like I said, I lived with my uncle for a good number of years. Some of that time we were marching with his army down the western coast of the Earth Kingdom." Zuko said. "Some nights if I wanted to eat, I had to make it myself."

"You don't sound like either nobility or rich people." Katara said.

"And look at you, your royal highness, slouching all over the table." He quipped.

Frowning, Katara sat up and took up her chopsticks, tapping them on the tabletop.

"Zuko there's something I wanted to ask you." She started.

Zuko looked at her, sliding over a plate.

"What's up?" He asked.

"Did you ever-" Katara jumped as the door opened and Iroh returned with a tea tray. Setting it down, she helped him unload it as Zuko slid over his own plate.

"Tell me Katara, did you get to enjoy Ember Island? I know it is one of Zuko's favorite places." Iroh said.

"Is it?" Katara asked slyly, casting her gaze back to Zuko.

"We used to take family trips there when I was a kid." He said and shrugged one shoulder up, picking at his food with his chopsticks.

"His mother had a fondness for the local theatre troupe there as well." Iroh paused to chuckle. "They were awful."

"It's a shame we didn't get to take in a show." Katara said and picked up a grilled green onion.

"I had wanted to." Zuko said with a sigh.

"Did they not have a show?" Iroh asked.

"They did. They're doing a run of 'Tales of the Avatar,' but Azula kept calling me up for dinner." Zuko said.

"Did you get everything sorted?" Iroh asked.

Katara narrowed her eyes as she looked between the two men.

"Solved enough. I'll have to wait and see." Zuko answered.

"What-" Katara began but stopped as Iroh picked up the teapot.

"My goodness, I haven't even poured the tea. Here, Katara, let me have your cup." He said.

The tea was good, a tangy sort of sour that went oddly well with the grilled meat. They talked and Iroh told stories of Zuko as a child. There was an incident with a turtle crab that, from Zuko's face, didn't seem like an accurate retelling.

To make him feel better, Katara related how, when she was first learning to control her bending, she had soaked Sokka while out fishing. And that for a long time, she would often have to change her direction so that her water went where she wanted it.

It was then that the conversation turned to bending in general, and the benefits of using other elemental styles. Katara agreed that it might work in principle but that the elements were too different to see any real use out of the other styles.

"Zuko, show her the Wyvern form." Iroh said and gestured with his chopsticks. Zuko smiled and put his hands down on the table as he stood.

"Here." Zuko said, holding out his hand. "It'll look familiar."

Katara felt her face warm as she looked at his hand but placed hers on his palm. His hand was warm and dry.

Helping her up, Zuko got into his stance and Katara tried to mirror it. Firebenders were light on their feet and displaced their weight differently, so it was an awkward placement. Zuko chuckled and walked to her, gently moving her feet by pushing on them with his. Then he held her waist as he angled her hips. Then he pushed out her arms, patting them when they were in place.

"Okay, so the movement is just based on circles." Zuko said as he took his stance again. "Just follow me."

She watched his movements, trailing her arms like a weird after image. When she fumbled, he stopped and approached her again.

"Here. It's like your water whip." He said and took her hands. Pulling them through some motions, Katara did recognize the feeling. But the water whip needed a deeper stance since she would have to pull the water around her. This form worked because the Firebender could produce their own flame.

"It's not useful. It wouldn't be able to hold much water." Katara said, stepping quickly away from Zuko.

"But it could hold a nice array of ice shards." He replied and sat back down at the table. Katara blushed and returned to her seat, taking up her teacup and drinking.

"Are you enjoying the tea, Katara?" Iroh inquired.

"Yes. But it's," Katara looked down into her cup, tilting it. "Different."

"It's sakura tea. The cherry blossoms are pickled." He said.

"Uncle!" Zuko sputtered and Katara looked at him.

"I'll go and get some more." Iroh said, smiling in a grandfatherly way.

Zuko sighed and rubbed his face.

"What's sakura tea?" Katara asked as Iroh rose and picked up the tray. He chuckled as she shuffled to the door.

"It's served at weddings. It's a lovers' tea." Zuko answered.

Katara spun around to see the door shut.

"He does know you have a girlfriend, right?" She asked.

"I don't actually." Zuko said and Katara turned back to him. "Not anymore."

"What?"

"Mai and I broke up. It wasn't going to work out the way we had thought it would."

"Oh?" Katara asked, her voice shaky and lilting upwards to make it a question.

"She showed me that I deserved better than just living a repeat of my parents' marriage." Zuko shook his head and reclined on his cushion. "When I get married, I want it to be for love."

"Right. The future." Katara said. She frowned and nodded. "That makes sense."

"It's what we've got to deal with right? As royals?" Zuko said and Katara groaned.

"Don't remind me." She muttered.

"Hey, I've got your back. Anytime you want to talk about statecraft, you can give me a call." Zuko said.

"Statecraft?"

"Sure. But we're friends, you could ask me anything." Zuko said and Katara blinked. "Except for anything about school."

"School?"

"Summer's almost over, Katara."

"Right." Katara said flatly. It was like her lungs couldn't take in enough air.

"Did you need help moving?" Zuko asked.

Katara looked at him, feeling like her body was moving slower than the rest of time.

"Uh, no. Sokka and I usually make a day of it." She answered. Zuko nodded and picked up his teacup to examine the contents.

"Well you'll have to let me know if there's a goodbye party." He said.

"Yeah." Katara drifted but caught herself and shook her head. "Yeah, no, of course."

What just happened?