Young Zuko felt confident as he stood in front of the large doors leading to the arena. He stood proud as his manservant helped dress him in the traditional formal wear for an Agni Kai. The room was silent and still. Zuko felt like he was missing something, but he couldn't remember what. Zuko knew he was good enough at bending and would best any of the generals in an Agni Kai. This was going to be easy. He had no reason to worry.
"My young lord," the manservant said tentatively, interrupting Zuko's thoughts.
Zuko looked over at the servant. The manservant looked down, suddenly unsure of what to say. "Be safe out there, my young lord. I will be rooting for you," he whispered, then fled the room as if he was not supposed to say those words.
Zuko shrugged the comment off and instead took a focusing breath and cleared his mind. He walked down several hallways leading to the hall where the Agni Kai would be held. Zuko opened the large doors into the arena without hesitation, taking in the crowd around and above him. It was silent in the hall, but Zuko could feel the power of everyone's gaze as he turned his back to the arena and knelt down to await his opponent. It only took a few seconds of waiting before a trumpet blared and Zuko stood and turned around.
Zuko's eyes swept the arena before reaching the gaze of his opponent. Zuko's confidence fell away and Zuko sagged as a wall of emotions hit him like a wave of fire and he fell down in agony as Zuko met the gaze of his father. "Please," Zuko begged immediately, falling to his knees. "Please! Father!" Zuko cried out in anguish. "Father, I only had the Fire Nation's best interest at heart. I'm sorry I spoke out of turn!" He bowed his head in a sudden panic and knelt in a full bow to his own father. "I did not mean any harm!" Zuko felt his heart rush underneath his skin and he looked down at his hands to find them shaking uncontrollably. He clasped his hands together to stop the shaking and he held them up to his father as he continued to plead. This was not how things were supposed to go. He spoke out against the general. He was supposed to fight the general, not his father.
"Get up," the Fire Lord commanded. "You will fight for your honor."
Zuko felt tears pour out of his eyes and he shook his head vehemently. "I meant you no disrespect, Father! I am your loyal son!" Zuko urged. He couldn't hear anything around him except for his own heartbeat and the sound of his father's voice above him. It felt like the world had fallen away.
"Rise and FIGHT, Prince Zuko! You will fight for your honor!" The Firelord repeated, making Zuko cower beneath him in fear.
"I won't fight you," Zuko whispered, before repeating it again, hesitantly meeting his father's eyes. "I can't fight you, Father."
"Then you will learn respect. Suffering will be your only teacher," Firelord Ozai declared, stepping so close to him that Zuko could feel his body heat coming off of him in waves.
Zuko looked up at his father one last time before he felt heat pressed against his face and a deep and agonizing pain seared into the left side of his face. Zuko felt the heat of his father's hand press against his left cheek before Zuko was lost in a cloud of pain and confusion. Someone was screaming and the smell of burning flesh filled the air. The world was swimming and the only thing Zuko could feel was the pain of feeling his father's hand pull away, leaving no feeling at all. Zuko was lost to the darkness.
Zuko shifted uncomfortably in his seat, subconsciously rubbing at his left eye. Home. What a weird word. The banished Prince was finally home in the Fire Nation; forgiven. It felt like a lie.
Everything felt weird. Through the curtains of the palanquin, the prince saw the people of his country bowing before him as if he had never left. Mothers and their children lined the street along with their husbands and fathers calling and cheering for their princess and prince, home at last, but Zuko couldn't help but remember walking through villages across the Earth Kingdom and seeing similar mothers and children looking up at him in fear as soon as they saw his scar and gold eyes. Zuko was not a foreigner here, but he still purposefully shifted his body so only the right side of his face was seen by the crowds.
Azula, as always, was glowing with all of the attention. She smirked and sat poised on the other side of the bench in the palanquin. She looked regal and powerful, having grown since the last time she had visited her nation. She looked the part. As the Princess of the Fire Nation, bringing news of the Avatar's death honored her with great glory. Zuko hoped he looked at least like he belonged here beside her.
Zuko felt Mai's hand creep into his own. Mai and Ty Lee sat between Azula and Zuko. Ty Lee was leaning forward, beside Azula, beaming out at the crowd and yelling names out at the people she recognized. Mai was more subdued, looking straight forward, offering a few curt nods to the crowd. She looked cold in that instant; miles away from the shore of the Fire Nation. The hand inside Zuko's was warm and comforting, however, lending the little comfort she could in such a public setting. Zuko grasped her hand almost too tightly trying to put Mai's training to practice and keep his face straight. Mai did not outwardly object to his painful grip, which he appreciated.
"Isn't it great to be back, brother?" Azula twisted in her seat to face her brother and she offered him a smile. "Our nation welcomes us back together; the powerful siblings of Firelord Ozai. I couldn't have done it without you."
Zuko's leg bounced up and down with nerves and he only gave Azula a forced smile. All he could feel in the moment was nerves. Mai poked his knee none too gently on the side of the knee reminding him of their lessons, causing him to take a calm, surreptitious breath in. "Of course, Azula."
The palanquin came to a stop at the center of Caldera City and the roars from the crowd rose in volume as the royal siblings and their allies stepped out into the sun. Zuko looked up, shielding his face with his hand and squinting at the palace above him, large and glinting under Agni's light. Zuko let another breath pass through him as the idea of "home" settled within him. He was finally here.
The group was led to a platform that stood above the city. The two sisters, Li and Lo grinned creepily at the upcoming group and they gestured for them to step backstage and wait to be introduced to the Fire Nation once again.
"Your Princess Azula," one of the sisters called, her voice muffled by the curtain of the stage. The screams from the crowd was deafening, however. "Your Princess Azula, clever and beautiful, disguised herself as the enemy and entered the Earth Kingdom's Capital. In Ba Sing Se, she found her brother Zuko, and together they faced the Avatar!"
A large gasp shook the crowd as they hung on every word from Li and Lo's lips. "The Avatar has fallen! The Earth Kingdom with it! Azula's agents quickly overtook the entire city. The great walls of Ba Sing Se have fallen by Princess Azula's hands and her close, and cunning agents Lady Mai and Ty Lee."
The other sister continued the war story, but Zuko couldn't hear any of it as he focused on breathing and calming his inner fire. "The armies of the Fire Nation have secured yet another victory. All hail the power of the Fire Nation!" The whole crowd roared, but their voices only got louder as Li and Lo began to introduce the war heroes. "Your Princess Azula!" Azula took a deep breath and bared a smile as she parted the curtain and stepped onto the stage, grinning at her subjects.
"And after five long years," the sisters continued, "your prince has returned!" Zuko took his cue and stepped onto the platform through the part in the curtains. He didn't know where to look and he fought to keep his face straight as he joined his sister's side. Anxiety was coursing through him and he found it hard to breath. He looked into the crowd and met a few of the gazes in the crowd. He saw a few people point and openly stare at his scarred cheek, but many people looked up at him in wonder. No one had seen their prince in years, and Zuko could see in their eyes that they were amazed to see the young man instead of the little boy they had last seen. Zuko stood a little taller, glad that he saw no hint of fear in the crowd. However, he couldn't help the little worry that still hung at the back of his head telling him that all of this was not meant for him.
Behind him, Mai and Ty Lee stepped onto the stage and the crowd cheered for them out of politeness, not really knowing who they were. Zuko looked behind his shoulder for a moment, catching Mai's eye. Mai did not outwardly emote anything, and Zuko could tell she was barely suppressing her annoyance at having to stand on stage in front of people. She may have grown up as the Royal family's friend, but Zuko was learning that she did not like attention directed at her very often.
"You killed my family!" Came a cry from the crowd, and everyone's attention suddenly swiveled towards the yell. An old man looked vehemently up at the war heroes and shook with his rage. "You didn't save anything! You killed my only children how could you-" The old man was silenced by a group of soldiers in full uniform. One threw a bag on the old man's head before dragging him away, leaving the center of the city in an eerie silence. Zuko followed the old man with his eyes remembering the same look in his uncle's face only a few weeks ago as he betrayed him. Zuko felt the urge to call off the guards, but he held himself back.
"There was no killing of any innocent people in Ba Sing Se," Azula clarified, her voice magnified by the silence. "Only enemies of the Fire Nation died in that battle. The Avatar is dead. Rest assured, people of the Fire Nation; you are safe here. Long Live the Firelord," she finished. The whole audience bowed at her words, holding their fist in their other hand in the signature bow of the Fire Nation. A shiver made its way down Zuko's spine.
"Long live the Firelord," he repeated with the crowd. -
Zuko stared at the training ground below him. He was standing on one of the many balconies of the palace watching his sister in the early morning. Her bright blue flame poured into the sky and cast shadows across the valley as the sun began to rise. Zuko gritted his teeth and stared down at his clenched fists. He breathed deeply and opened one of his hands and willed a flame to appear in his hand. After a few moments, a sudden burst of fire erupted from his hand, and Zuko clenched his fists again in panic, extinguishing the flame. Zuko growled at himself and slammed his fists on the railing of the balcony. He didn't know what was wrong. Everything should be fine. He was home. Home. Home. Zuko kept chanting that word, but as the hours passed by the word meant less and less.
In Ba Sing Se, when he had joined his sister, his fire had been bright red and he had been in total control. He had been the strongest he had ever been. Then, as soon as he stepped foot on the ship to the Fire Nation, his fire started to act out of control. Zuko didn't know how it had happened. His uncle would know what was wrong, but Zuko refused to see the man he had betrayed. "He betrayed me," Zuko corrected himself, shaking his head. "He'll just say some stupid proverb anyway," Zuko grumbled to himself, training his eyes back on his sister. His eyes followed her movements, committing them to memory.
"You're up early."
Zuko glanced over his right shoulder, unsure of who had crept up on him. Ty Lee waved at him tentatively over his left shoulder. She was in a sleeping robe, looking like she had just woken up.
"I wake up with the sun," Zuko supplied.
"Ah, firebenders," she nodded in understanding. "I always wondered how that worked. Azula would always be pulling Mai and I out of our beds when we were on the road." Ty Lee let out a soft laugh. In the morning, she seemed more mellow and quietly perceptive. "I always enjoy sleeping in."
Zuko hummed non-committedly, not in the mood to continue the conversation, but Ty Lee ignored him.
"It's a nice morning to be home," she continued conversationally. "I always love the coolness of the morning in the Fire Nation. I don't get to see it that often."
Zuko shrugged. "It's not that special."
Ty Lee nodded. "It was cooler in Ba Sing Se, wasn't it? The city was full of so many smells, but nothing can compare to home."
Zuko grunted again, causing Ty Lee to twiddle with the end of her braid.
"You haven't met with the Firelord, have you," Ty Lee stated quietly; a whisper in the wind. Zuko sent her a dark look as a warning. Ty Lee held up her hands in a placating manner. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to hit a sore spot. I just wanted to make sure."
"Why do you care?" Zuko barked back.
Ty Lee's chipper manner switched as she sent him a pointed look. "Because I care about you Zuko. You were one of my closest childhood friends. I admit, I don't know exactly who you are now, but I still worry about you." She paused. "We all do."
"What does it mean to you? Are you going to report to Azula about how I'm feeling?" He retorted.
Ty Lee crossed her arms and frowned at him. "I'm trying to be nice, Zuko, unlike you." Ty Lee turned away. Zuko growled at himself.
Ty Lee's voice called out to him before she left. "If you're avoiding your troubles, I wouldn't. Running away from them won't solve them."
"I don't need your help."
"Of course, your highness." Ty Lee snapped. Zuko snapped his head up to look at her, shocked to see her smiling at him brightly, but the smile did not reach her eyes. The look seemed so familiar to Mai's fake smile. "I'm going to get breakfast. You should too."
Zuko growsed and turned away from her, resuming his morning brooding. He didn't want people telling him what to do, no matter their intentions. Zuko hung his head. Ty Lee meant well, and she knew more of what was happening than she usually let on. She wasn't who he was mad at.
"Your Highness?" came a stern voice from behind him. Zuko cast a glance behind his shoulder and straightened as he saw one of his father's stewards standing in the archway to the balcony.
"Yes?" Zuko asked tentatively, dusting off the imaginary specks of dust off of his robe.
The steward frowned at Prince Zuko, but it seemed to be his resting face. "Your father requests an audience with you."
"Now?" Zuko asked incredulously, eyes widening.
The steward raised a heavily plucked eyebrow. "Yes, Your Highness. Now."
Zuko quickly pulled on his formal outer robe that he had previously set aside and he twisted his hair up in a top knot. Zuko inclined his head to the servant, letting him guide them towards the hall where his father would receive him.
The great doors to the war meeting room stood hauntingly in front of Zuko. Prince Zuko tactfully hid the nervous laughter that threatened to crawl up his throat. As he was led into the room, Zuko was met with the source of his nightmares. The great firewall at the back of the room was the first thing Zuko noticed as he stepped into the echoing room. The room seemed to go on for eternity, darkness eating up the shadows as the towering, bright orange flames cast dazzling light across the room in a haunting dance. Zuko felt like he was thirteen again, following his uncle into his first and last war meeting. Zuko's short breath and clammy hands were the only signs of his nervousness.
Even early in the morning, the Firelord sat in his raised position behind his own flames. Zuko could not make out the features on his father's face, only seeing hooded eyes and a glinting, golden crown poised in the top knot of the Firelord's hair. It was deathly silent the entire time it took for Zuko to walk the length of the room. He knelt down in a deep bow, kowtowing before his father, letting his forehead rest against the carpet before the Firelord. Zuko bit back the terror and memories that coursed through his mind.
"You've been away for a long time,"the Firelord said, breaking the silence. "I see the weight of your travels has changed you. You have redeemed yourself, my son." Zuko held his breath at his father's voice. It had been so long since he had heard his father's voice. Zuko dared to take a glance up and he watched the wall of fire recede and his father get up from his throne. His father's footsteps echoed through the hall, and Zuko watched as his father got closer and closer to him, his face finally becoming illuminated. The features were more defined than those in Zuko's memories, and Zuko felt tears spring to the back of his eyes, and he blinked them away quickly. Firelord Ozai cast his gaze down at his son, and his lips curled up, almost being mistaken for a smile. "Welcome home...son."
Zuko held his breath, unable to look away from his father. He couldn't say anything either as he stared up at his father in a mix of wonder, fear, and anxiousness. Too many memories were running through Zuko's mind. Thoughts of days at Ember Island, running into his father's arms; his father glowering at him after a spar session between Zuko and his sister. Memories of his father patting his shoulder mixed with the terrors of his nightmares of his father bending over him with a flame held in his hand. Zuko couldn't process the situation, so he stayed silent. Firelord Ozai did not seem bothered by the silence.
"I am proud of you, Prince Zuko." He paused for dramatic affect. "I am proud because you and your sister conquered Ba Sing Se. I am proud because when your loyalty was tested by your treacherous uncle, you did the right thing and captured the traitor," Ozai went on. "I am the proudest of all by your most legendary accomplishment….You have slayed the Avatar."
"What?" Zuko asked in confusion, interrupting his father. Zuko shut his mouth, fearing that his father would reprimand him for speaking out, but his father didn't seem to mind at the moment.
"Azula explained everything to me. She said she was amazed and impressed at your power and ferocity at the moment of truth. I commend you. You must have been wonderful to watch." Firelord Ozai got a glint in his eye as he stared down at his son. His hand fell on Zuko's shoulder, making Zuko jump in surprise. "Azula showed me the prize you brought me the first night. You have done a great service to your country, Prince Zuko. You have regained your honor." Firelord Ozai gave a few awkward, heavy pats to Zuko's shoulder before letting go.
—-
Azula picked at her nails, grinning at her brother cruelly. "Why are you so paranoid, brother? Something wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong with me," Zuko snapped under his breath.
"Not saying there was," Azula sighed.
"Maybe Zuko just needs to get used to things again, Azula," Ty Lee added in her cheerful voice, clearly trying to break the tension growing between the siblings. "I know it took me a little while to get into the swing of things when I joined Azula. When you get accustomed to a certain environment, it takes a while to get used to something different especially if that change occurs suddenly." Ty Lee turned to Zuko. "I went to the circus soon after I graduated from the Royal Academy, and my aura couldn't have been brighter! But Azula came one day saying she needed my help, and well...I am always there for people when they need help."
"To a fault," Azula added. Azula's words were cunning, but she gave Ty Lee one of her rare, true smiles, hidden underneath her words.
"Mai had a hard time adjusting to living in Omashu too. It was weird for all of us to separate from each other in a span of a few months, or years in your case Zuko!" Ty Lee added. She nudged Mai with her elbow, urging her to talk.
Mai's frown deepened and she folded her hands in her lap. "It was boring, but it wasn't that bad," Mai barely explained.
Zuko sat a little forward in his chair, expecting Mai to say more, but she remained quiet as Azula set her sights on her. "She was hoping we were there to kill her," Azula described, filling the silence that Mai left behind. Mai remained quiet as Azula spoke for her. "New Ozai is now a much better place, and much more entertaining. Are you thinking about returning with your family to New Ozai?"
Mai pursed her lips. "Not if I can help it," was her short reply.
Azula shrugged, as if she was used to Mai's short replies. Zuko looked between the two girls with a confused twist to his brows. Admittedly, Zuko had spent most of his time in his chambers during the trip to the Fire Nation and had tried not to be in the same room with Azula and her friends if he could help it. He never realized how Mai became tight lipped as soon as Azula stepped into the room. Looking back at their childhood, Zuko noticed the same pattern. However, whenever it was just Mai and him, she was the one always leading the conversations. Zuko wasn't about to make this known to his sister, but he stored this bit of information in the back of his mind to bring up later with Mai, or at least pay attention to.
"Of course I need you here, Mai. You are always welcome here." Azula pushed her chair back and stood up. "I think I'm going to go back and train a little bit. Do you want to join, brother?" Azula challenged, smirking at Zuko.
Zuko scowled at her, and moved his food around on his plate.
"Come on, brother," Azula called. Zuko gave her a dark look, but got up anyway to follow her. Zuko could feel Mai and Ty Lee's gaze on him, but he refused to look back at them. He didn't know what to convey to them in just one expression, not that he felt like sharing anyway. Zuko just felt like he was off from his visit with his father and he couldn't quite understand it himself.
Azula swept them onto the training grounds, a bright smile glaring on her face. She put her hands on her waist as she waited for her brother to get into his beginning stance. Neither sibling spoke as they began their 'training' session.
Zuko's fire was pitifully weak compared to his inner fire at Ba Sing Se. His fire was barely hot, and was of a dull red color, giving Azula little challenge. She, however, did not hold back. She seemed like she wanted to show off all the new tricks she had learned for her older brother.
"Are you tired yet, Zuzu?" Azula drawled, easily sidestepping one of his bursts of fire. "It doesn't even seem like you are trying."
"I am!" Zuko gritted out, grinding his teeth together.
Azula tutted her tongue. "Looks like all that time on the ship didn't do you much good. Do you give up?"
"Never."
Azula's fire was intense, and Zuko was lucky that even though his fire wasn't as strong, his reflexes were still sharp.
When Zuko's fire started to just come out as puffs of smoke, Azula put her hands down and sighed. "Ugh, this is not as much of a challenge as I had hoped. Something got you down, Zuzu?" she walked with him over to the sidelines, handing him a glass of water, which he hesitated to grab. "It would be useless to poison you, you know?" Azula explained tiredly. "What's wrong with you? Has Mai gotten to you yet? She has been in a strange mood lately."
Zuko only glared at Azula.
Azula shrugged. "Fine; don't tell me."
Zuko squared his shoulders. "I know you lied to Father."
Azula took a rag and wiped down some of the sweat around her face. "What a travesty," she sighed dramatically. "Look: the Avatar is dead. Our father now owns his heart. It doesn't matter who did it." Azula paused for a beat, letting the known lie settle between them.
"How does this situation benefit you, Azula. I know there's something you're not telling me."
Azula sighed. "Of course it benefits me, brother. You're home at last! What more could I want or worry about." Azula paused again, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Unless you think he somehow miraculously survived…"
Zuko swallowed uncomfortably. He reached up to touch his scar surreptitiously as he remembered the first person beside a royal healer to touch his cheek. He remembered her brief words and the vial of water she kept closely tied around her neck close to her necklace. "No. It is impossible for him to have survived," Zuko declared shortly. "The Avatar cycle has ended with the heart Father now possesses." Zuko looked up and glared into Azula's eyes.
"Then you have nothing to worry about." Azula clucked her tongue, and moved to pick up her discarded outer robe. She cast a glance over her shoulder and saw Zuko's troubled look. "Unless the Avatar is still out there...but you said that was impossible."
Azula reached out and patted Zuko's shoulder, a similar placement to where Firelord Ozai had placed his hand earlier. Azula and Zuko shared a tense look. "Thanks for a good sparring session, Zuzu." Azula walked away, leaving Zuko alone.
"Why am I always the one to come find you?" Mai rasped, coming up behind Zuko, hesitantly putting her arms around his shoulders. Zuko jumped in surprise and a light spark erupted deep in his stomach as his hand wrapped instinctively around her forearms. Zuko looked up at Mai relishing in the feeling of someone close to him. After a day and a half not being sure if he belonged, her calmness was comfortable.
"I guess you just have a knack for it," Zuko replied, exhaustion depleting his tone.
Mai pressed against him, pulling a little closer. In the years out at sea and a childhood like his, Zuko was not used to physical comfort. However, in the few days of their new relationship Zuko was becoming used to Mai always touching him in some way, from her finger to her whole side, as she gently held him together. He found he didn't mind it.
"How has your day been?" he asked. He twisted in her grasp and grabbed her arms and led her towards a set of chairs pushed to the side of the training grounds.
Mai rolled her eyes. "Too long."
Zuko laughed, his smile easily gracing his face. "Already?"
Mai groaned. "Yes. Your sister made me go to several early morning meetings in her absence to take notes and report information about the upcoming law and budgeting changes in the Fire Nation. Some of the information was vaguely interesting, but it's not like the council really cared about the value of my opinion in the discussions. It's better now that I'm here with you," Mai explained honestly. Mai sighed, not explaining further. "How was yours?"
Zuko nodded, looking away pensively. "Yeah, I've done a lot this morning too, starting with another meeting from my father. It was nice."
Mai raised an eyebrow at that. "Nice? That's a strong word."
Zuko rubbed his thumb against a patch of Mai's hand. "I don't know what I really expected. He accepted me as his son, finally." Zuko swallowed hard and looked away from Mai's piercing look. "He told me he was proud."
"That's good. He should be," Mai said, looking at Zuko seriously.
"I don't know," Zuko repeated. "I haven't done too many things in my life to make him proud."
Mai opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but she closed her mouth again. She pulled away from him a little, and tapped Zuko's knee. It was a familiar gesture that made Zuko sit up and face her at attention. Mai shifted so that their knees lined up and she was facing him. "We haven't practiced your mental walls yet, today. Come on," Mai guided.
Zuko looked deep into Mai's eyes and began his slow breathing, evening out his features. He formed his face into a blank slate as he placed each careful wall up, ready for the mental practice.
Mai asked several questions, ranging from simple questions to ones that poked his buttons purposely. "Why do you like fire flakes? What was the Avatar's name? Do you regret going against your uncle?" Mai asked, and Zuko twitched his knee slightly, and Mai flicked his knee in response.
"You really know how to choose the hard questions," Zuko said under his breath. "He is a traitor," Zuko regurgitated. "Why would I need to talk to him ever again?"
Mai stared patiently, silently forcing him to focus. "Maybe because he is your uncle?" she said, matter of factly.
Zuko opened his eyes and sent her a warning look. "Next question," he instigated.
"What do you like about me?" she asked instead.
The corner of Zuko's eye twitched. "I like your….." He paused as he surveyed her. "Your intelligence, sarcasm...your eyes when they're not covered up by your bangs." Zuko leaned forward and brushed at Mai's bangs.
She jumped slightly as the hair tickled her face. She sent him a look, and a smile broke onto Zuko's face. "What about me?" Zuko asked coyly.
Mai hummed and did not look away, grasping his hands in hers as she pulled closer. She reached a hand out for his cheek and she rubbed her thumb tentatively against his right cheek before reaching up with her other hand for his left. "I like your stubbornness, your smile….bravery." Mai shifted in her seat like she was slightly uncomfortable sharing so much emotion. "I think you're pretty okay."
Zuko laughed, his cheeks rounded in Mai's palms. "Pretty okay? Is that all I get?" Zuko leaned closer to Mai's face and darted in to press his lips against hers for a brief moment.
Mai smirked. "We've only been together for about two weeks. Pretty okay is what you're going to get right now."
Zuko sighed in fake exasperation, causing Mai's lips to curl in an almost smile. Zuko pressed his nose into Mai's shoulder and hid his smile against her neck. She squirmed for a moment before her arms rested on his comfortably.
There was a cough behind them and they both jumped away from each other, Zuko blushing and Mai looking as impassive as ever. A steward stood behind them with his gaze turned away from them as he coughed once again into his fist. Zuko ground his teeth. "What is it?" he bit out.
"The Fire Lord wishes for you to attend to the banquet plans for this coming weekend."
"Now?"
The steward shifted his weight on his feet. "Immediately, my prince."
Zuko groaned under his breath. "Alright, I will be right there."
Mai patted his knee. "I need to get to more meetings too. See you later?"
Zuko kissed Mai's cheek, sighing. "I'll try."
Hey readers! Hope you didn't miss me updating for a second time last week, I got side-tracked by some stuff. I think I'm going to mainly stick to updating Tuesdays and it will be a surprise if I update again in the same week. Editing takes more time than I think lol. Please tell me how you are liking the fic so far. I love to see comments from you guys, but kudos work too :) Until I write again, TTFN!