Zuko isn't easy to fool, even though Jinora is very good at trying.

She's too ill to go explore the Caldera with Iroh and her siblings, she says. But she certainly doesn't look ill right now, practicing her airbending in the courtyard with fervor beside him while he reads over bill proposals under the shade of a tree, assuming his responsibility as babysitter.

Whenever Tenzin's children come to visit, Izumi usually breaks into a cold sweat and suddenly decides to take a trip to some Earth Kingdom state far away for an urgent meeting, leaving Zuko to deal with four rambunctious, overeager airbenders. But Katara once said with a tear in her eye that Aang would be proud to see that Zuko is one of the few people in the world patient enough to deal with the grandchildren he never had a chance to meet.

Zuko looks up from his document, considering Jinora for a moment as she rides around on her air scooter, a maneuver invented by her grandfather, blue tattoos adorning her forehead and wrists the way they once adorned his.

Not a day goes by where he forgets Aang, and Jinora is a beautiful but painful reminder of the best friend Zuko ever had.

But he tries not to let his melancholy show on his face, especially in front of an overly perceptive Jinora. She may be the tamest one out of all her siblings, but to his displeasure, it's rather difficult to keep a secret from her.

Then again, maybe Zuko isn't one to talk. He was much worse at that age, with all his angst and melodrama, not to mention his questionable taste in hairstyles.

"I saw you speaking with Iroh earlier." He tries to sound as nonchalant as he can, which is difficult because, well, he overheard the entire conversation. And he would say he didn't mean to overhear, but that would be a lie.

She sighs, gracefully moving her limbs through intricate stances, wind rippling the surface of the nearby pond. "What did you hear?"

There isn't any point in omitting information, is there? Being sheltered from the truth never did him any favors as a teenager. "Everything."

"Ugh. Just my luck. So now you know that I've confessed my love to your grandson, who just so happens to be twenty-six years older than me and next in line to be Fire Lord. And he had to spend fifty-eight minutes letting me down gently because I started crying."

It lasted fifty-eight minutes? Well, Zuko shouldn't be surprised. Time usually flies by whenever he eavesdrops on his grandson.

Zuko walks over to Jinora, observing the turtle ducks with her as they waddle out of the pond before them, positively fuzzy and unbelievably tiny. "My uncle would offer tea in a situation like this."

"I hate tea."

"The feeling is mutual."

She laughs. She's starting to sound a little like Katara, voice smooth and relaxed as an ocean. "Aren't wise old grandfathers like you supposed to give sagely advice in this kind of situation?"

Zuko grimaces, and she laughs even harder. He isn't that old. "In my experience, I've found that well-intentioned advice can often backfire."

Jinora smirks. "Really? Or are you just trying to hide the fact that you aren't very good at giving love advice? Something tells me this stuff is a little tough for you to navigate."

Well, there might be some truth to that. There is a reason his grandson is still single, after all. "What gives you that idea?"

"The fact that you and my grandma aren't married."

And like that, he is left speechless.

But Zuko plays it cool, raises an eyebrow. He was Fire Lord for decades. If he could do that, then he can handle this. "Now, where did this come from?"

"Grandma tells me a lot of stories. I know all about the cave and the field trip and the lightning."

That's certainly one way to sum up his and Katara's romantic tension as teenagers. The cave and the field trip and the lightning. Sokka's wit definitely lives on in his great-niece.

"We were just friends." He can't count the amount of times he's said something similar to that in past decades.

Jinora rolls her eyes, ignoring him. "Sure. Well, I think Grandma would like it if, after all these years, you finally revealed to her how you felt. You'll never know what'll come of it unless you say something. Right?"

He sighs. "There's no point in arguing with you, is there?"

"Nope."

Then it's decided. Zuko makes a mental note to add a trip to the South Pole to this week's agenda.