It feels nice to finally have a good backlog of chapters for you. Updates should be every two weeks for a while. Hopefully, that will give me some much-needed time to finish More Than Blood Can Stand.

Chapter 7

"Hurry, My Lord, hurry!"

Zuko raised his eyebrows at Yunah, who was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet outside the war room. As soon as she was sure she had his attention, she began walking briskly down the hall.

"Wait up!" He had to jog to catch up with her.

"You're late," she said in exasperation.

This was not news to Zuko.

"I can't wrap up a war meeting early because of a party."

She sniffed. "We're not even at war anymore. Why do you still have to go to these?"

"It makes the generals feel useful," he shrugged.

"Yes, sir, I understand that," she said. "But this is an important royal function. Couldn't you make an exception?"

"It's not like they can start without me," he groused.

Yunah narrowed her eyes and fixed him with a stare that reminded him strongly of Katara when she was acting the mother of the group. "You're still late."

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly and gave her a mock bow. "Yes ma'am." But he also increased his pace accordingly, until the two of them were just shy of running through the halls.

He followed Yunah into an antechamber off the banquet hall, then came to an abrupt stop.

Mai was lounging on a bench along the side of the room, one arm draped over the back and the other fiddling with the ornamentation on her dress. And what a dress it was, with high quality silk shimmering down her body like rippling flames. Her hair was swept up into a jeweled pin in the shape of a sprig of firecracker flowers. And all of it a beautiful, vibrant orange. She looked amazing. And livid.

He snickered, and her head snapped up.

"Nice dress," he couldn't help but say.

She seethed. "If I find out that you had anything to do with this-"

He held up his hands. "No! I promise. All I said was to keep it traditional."

"Hmph."

He swallowed down a nervous gulp. "I, uh, asked them to leave you alone. I figured you wouldn't want to be bothered with wedding planning."

"I don't," she snapped. "But really, Zuko. Orange?"

"There won't be any more orange," he agreed, nodding. "Yunah?"

She bowed from the corner of the room. "As you wish, My Lord."

"Although…" He sauntered across the room to where Mai was sitting and made a show of studying her, a grin creeping up on his face. "It's amazing what a good color it is on you."

"No it isn't." Mai stood up abruptly, avoiding looking in his direction. "I'm going to throw up before the night is over."

He had to swallow a laugh, because while he did feel bad about her wardrobe issues and he would absolutely make sure everything was fixed before the wedding, there was something in him that absolutely loved it when she was annoyed. Her characteristic control slipped, and all he could do was soak it in.

The firecracker flowers in her hair were so appropriate. She was cold and inert most of the time. But light the right fuse, and - bam - such a brilliant show. She sparkled when she was angry.

"My Lord. It's past time," Yunah said, holding the handle to the wide banquet room door.

"Right," he said, placing his hand on Mai's back. She stiffened, but didn't protest. "Let's go."

Yunah pushed the door open, and the band stopped playing what sounded like a beautiful rendition of the Sulan River Melodies to switch to The Flame of Justice, the piece he'd chosen to have played whenever he entered a room. He didn't have much musical taste - tsungi horn playing aside - but it was certainly a step up from his father's preferred March of the Glorious Conqueror.

They waited for the music to swell before they entered the room, where they climbed the dais to stand in front of the assembled crowd of courtiers, dignitaries, and assembled nobility. A voice to Zuko's right cried, "Fire Lord Zuko and his intended bride, Mai, daughter of Ukano and Michi."

A very polite cheer rang from the crowd, along with a smattering of applause. Mai bowed, and the people below them returned the gesture. And then the band returned to the Sulan River Melodies, the crowd went back to their murmuring, and they were no longer the center of attention.

"Is that it?" Mai asked incredulously. "No speeches or making a big fuss out of me?"

"That's it for now," he said. "I told Yunah to keep it casual."

"I'd rather you'd told her to keep it not orange." She wrinkled her nose. "But casual is also a welcome change. I was afraid it would be a big show."

"They'll get the big show next week." He winked, and was gratified with the slight blush that rose on her cheeks.

They descended the stairs of the dais together. Servants bustled around with trays of finger food and drinks, and they both snacked while making small talk with the closest attendees. It was a low stress public event, a rarity in his life, and Zuko had to admit he was enjoying it.

If only Mai could be enjoying it as much as him.

His ears pricked up as the band began playing a new song. "That's the Phoenix's Flight. Aang taught it to me." He turned to her with his hand held out. "Do you want to dance with me?"

"No."

"Come on," he coaxed, his most endearing smile in place. "It's part of the cultural heritage that my ancestors have taken away from us. Don't you want to help me restore it?"

Mai eyed the clearing in the middle of the floor askance.

"I don't care how traditional it is, or how important you think it is to bring back lost cultural heritage. I have never danced before in my life, and I am not starting now. And certainly not in front of all these people."

"Oh?" he said, leaning in closer. "Would you prefer to do it in private?"

She hissed a breath through her teeth, spun on her heel, and crossed the room to speak with Li and Lo. He swallowed a smirk - he knew it was pushing things, but it had been fun - and allowed himself to be drawn into a conversation with Ikiak, the ambassador from the Northern Water Tribe.

They talked exports and tariffs and reparations for a few minutes, before Ikiak said, "But enough business. You must introduce me to the future Fire Lady!"

A glance across the room told him that she was still speaking with Lo and Li. Or rather, she was standing by sullenly while they kept up their strange cooperative poetry routine. Mai looked ready to kill herself.

He led Ikiak across the room. She saw him coming, and he could tell by the tensing of her muscles and the way her eyes darted to the exits that she was considering bolting.

But there was nowhere for her to go, and she must have realized it. Her lips thinned, and she leaned back against a pillar, folding her arms across her chest and tapping her fingers on her arms.

At least she hadn't put them into her sleeves. Little victories.

"Mai," he said as soon as he was within conversational distance, "let me introduce you to Ambassador Ikiak."

She didn't move from her position, so Zuko put his hand on the back of her arm, just above her elbow.

She stiffened for a moment, but then the muscles in her face relaxed and she took a step forward, at the same time jerking out of his grasp.

"Ambassador," she said smoothly, sliding into a proper bow. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is mine," he said, returning the bow. "Allow me to express the well wishes of my people in advance of your wedding. Chief Arnook would like me to send his apologies that he will not be able to attend the ceremony, but that he is pleased to see Fire Lord Zuko finally settling down and hopes to visit the Fire Nation with his wife soon after, so that the two of you can get to know each other. He hopes you will have much in common."

Zuko only just managed to turn his laugh into a cough. The thought of Mai having something in common with Chief Arnook's timid, frail wife, who was old enough to be her mother, was laughable.

The smallest of smiles graced her lips. "Chief Arnook is too kind. I'm sure we will have plenty to discuss."

Ikiak nodded in agreement, then turned to Zuko. "Have you seen Ambassador Haoran tonight? There were some matters I needed to discuss with him."

"No." Zuko pursed his lips, not ready to broach that subject. "I don't believe he's here tonight."

"You mean the Earth Kingdom didn't send a representative to the banquet?" Ikiak said, shaking his head. "That is a shame. Well, in any case, the Water Tribe wishes you happiness."

And with that, he bowed. "If you two lovebirds will excuse me, I see General Mak over there. There was an urgent matter I needed to address with him."

"Of course." Zuko smiled and reached an arm out to snake around Mai's waist.

She froze and dug her nails into his wrist with clear intent to extract herself from his grasp, but the smile didn't fade from her face. "Thank you for your kind words, Ambassador."

As soon as he walked away, Mai wrenched his hand off her waist and took three steps away.

"Stop touching me," she hissed.

His heart clenched, and he felt a stab of both the shame of rejection and guilt. He should have apologized, but instead what came out was a defensive, "It's our engagement banquet. If we act like strangers, people are going to talk."

"That's an excuse, and you know it."

"Now isn't this just adorable! Trouble in paradise?"

Mai spun around, and her glare was replaced with a brittle smile as she came face-to-face with Lady Anzu.

He could feel the conflict in her. She was furious at him, and probably willing to make a scene if he pushed her far enough. But she also didn't want to lose face in front of the person who amounted to her understudy.

Pride eventually won out over anger. She snaked her hand around his elbow.

"Lady Anzu. How nice to see you."

"The feeling is mutual, I'm sure," she returned easily. Then, to Zuko, "My Lord, allow me to tell you how genuinely happy I am for you. I wish you every joy."

He blinked.

"Uh, thank you?"

He was having trouble knowing how to respond; he hadn't been expecting her to be so gracious after the way he'd treated her, and especially not after the exchange he'd heard she'd had with Mai earlier this week.

But still she smiled, gentle and sweet, her eyes sparkling. "I'm sure the entire nation is looking forward to having a Fire Lady again, and is eager for your wedding."

"Probably, yes?" He cleared his throat, wondering if he was missing some subtext that Mai was picking up. "I understand my grandmother was much loved."

"Oh, I don't think it's the person so much as the title. There have been good and bad Fire Lords, and we as a people have honored them all, have we not?"

Mai scoffed. "I'm not asking anyone to honor me."

"Of course not!" Anzu covered her mouth with her hand and giggled. "So long as you have beautiful firebending children to continue the royal line, I don't think anyone needs to think anything particular about you."

Both Zuko and Mai stiffened at this, though probably not for the reasons Anzu imagined.

"Oh, I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. Fire Lord Zuko is such a strong bender, after all. Still..." She tilted her head, as if deep in thought. "No one in your family can bend, can they Mai? And nonbenders can't inherit the throne. It would be a shame if the Council had to invoke the Chaerzin Mandate again." She tsked, shaking her head so that the tendrils of hair framing her face bounced distractingly.

A ball of dread settled in the pit of Zuko's stomach. He knew that if the Council found out about his arrangement with Mai, that would be precisely their first move. They would have to be so very careful.

But to his astonishment, Mai let out a dry laugh. "Just think of how many babies we'll have to have in order to finally get that bender." She smirked up at Zuko. "We're going to be awfully busy, aren't we?"

He knew she had only said that to get under Anzu's skin, but even so he felt his cheeks heat and his heart start to hammer in his chest.

And she had gotten to Anzu. She let out a noise that was halfway between a gasp and an indignant shriek. Then, with a muttered, "so vulgar" and a halfhearted bow in Zuko's direction, she fled to join a group of courtiers along the adjoining wall.

Mai clung to his arm for half a second longer, then practically shoved him away from her.

"Don't you have someone else to talk to?"

Her cheeks were flushed, her hands were balled into fists, and her eyes were sparkling with anger. It nearly took his breath away. He loved it when she showed so much emotion. So really, he couldn't be blamed for what came out of his mouth next.

"Actually," he said, "it's about time for us to form a receiving line so we can greet all the guests individually. As a couple."

Her face darkened as he held out his arm to her, and her hands twitched reflexively towards her sleeves. His smirk widened into a full-out grin. "Shall we?"

"How much longer is this going to last?" she muttered just loud enough for him to hear. They had been in this infernal receiving line for an eternity. Her cheeks hurt from all the fake smiling she'd had to do, and she was exhausted from allowing herself to appear to be the affectionate, blissful bride-to-be to all the guests, while simultaneously finding subtle ways to let Zuko know she was anything but, while also hiding from him the part of her that was exactly that.

Zuko looked like he knew what she was thinking, and smothered a smile. "All the official parts are over, and we've greeted most of the guests. We can leave whenever we want."

We. As if he had no plans to stay if she weren't there. Her stomach fluttered nervously.

It was strange seeing him like this. He had been in an unusually good mood all night, almost happier than she'd ever seen him. She wasn't sure whether to be flattered or annoyed. He was clearly thrilled at their engagement, even if it wasn't under quite the circumstances he would have wanted.

His good mood seemed perfectly at odds with her gloomy one. Though she supposed he was used to that from her, by now.

"Do you want me to call a palanquin for you both?" Hinata asked from Zuko's other side.

"No," she said immediately. There was no way she was going to ride in an enclosed space with Zuko, especially with the mood he was in.

"Coward," he teased. Then, to Hinata, "I'll walk her home."

"I am capable of walking myself."

"Yes, you are," he agreed. "And I don't need a guard following me around everywhere. But for some reason the people of the Fire Nation like to know that the members of the royal family are well protected."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't give me that people of the Fire Nation nonsense. You just think a moonlit stroll would be a romantic end to the evening."

He grinned and shrugged sheepishly.

"All right, then." She started walking towards the door. "Let's get this over with."

They walked in silence for a few minutes, Hinata tagging along a respectful distance behind. The streets were quiet and empty, which was not unusual for this time of night. With the crowd gone, Zuko had stopped trying to invade her personal space, and his good mood deflated a smidge. But there was still a self-satisfied swagger to his posture that made her roll her eyes.

"What is wrong with you?" she finally asked.

"Huh?"

"You're so… happy. It's not like you."

He shrugged, turning his head up to look at the stars. He let out a big breath, and then it all came out of him in a rush, as if the words had been stuck inside of him for too long.

"Think of it from my perspective. Two weeks ago I was lying in my sickbed, about to die. This banquet could have been my funeral banquet. Or worse, it could have been announcing my engagement to Lady Anzu. It's like dodging two lightning strikes in a row. It's exhilarating. Even you would be happy under those circumstances."

She shook her head vehemently. "It's not just that. You're happy because you think we can go back to what we were before. I told you I don't want that, and you promised you wouldn't make me. But all night tonight you've been flirting with me. Don't deny it," she said, seeing him about to speak.

"No, I won't deny it," he sighed, his shoulders slumping. "But can you blame me for trying?"

"Yes. You agreed to a platonic relationship."

"Okay," he said slowly, "you're right, I did promise. But you promised, too. Platonic means friends. How was the way you treated me tonight anything approaching friendly?"

"I don't know how to be friendly with you without it turning into something more." She wished she could take the words back as soon as she said them. That was far more vulnerable than she had intended to be.

But Zuko nodded soberly in return. "Neither do I."

"Maybe this was a big mistake," she said in her gloomiest of gloomy voices. "If I never change my mind - and I don't intend to - we're going to spend the rest of our lives resenting each other."

"It's not a mistake," he said firmly. "I would rather spend fifty years with you like this than one married to someone else."

Her cheeks suddenly felt hot, and she was glad for the darkness to hide her blush.

"We'll figure it out," he continued. "I refuse to spend the rest of our lives fighting. If I could put aside my feelings for you for the good of the Fire Nation during the war, I can do it now, too."

"For the good of the Fire Nation?" she asked wryly.

He lifted his eyebrows almost seriously. "Absolutely. They have a saying in the Earth Kingdom: the people's happiness depends on the smile of the queen."

"The Fire Nation is in trouble, then," she scoffed.

"It means," he said, "that if the king can't keep the queen happy, he can't keep his other subjects happy, either."

"Good luck with that."

"It doesn't take luck; it takes hard work. And I promise I won't ever stop trying." He put out an arm and they both stopped walking. "You tell me what you want from me, and I'll do my best to be that for you. But I need you to stop fighting with me. I need you to be someone I can trust."

Letting go of her walls meant opening herself up to hurt, too. But he was right. They couldn't spend the rest of their lives fighting. They had to make things work somehow. She sighed, rolled her eyes, and started walking again. "I suppose we can be friends again."

The grin that split his face made her stomach flutter, but she tamped that down by employing one of her mother's favorite techniques: changing the subject.

"What was all that nonsense with the Water Tribe ambassador earlier?"

He groaned. "Nothing. Just Ikiak trying to gain points with me."

"At the expense of the Earth Kingdom?"

"Hmm," was all he said, and it couldn't have been more obvious to her that there was more to the story than he was telling her.

"Zuko. Why wasn't the Earth Kingdom ambassador at the banquet tonight?"

"Oh, you know," he sighed, rubbing a hand across his eyes. "Something about the Earth Kingdom protesting me choosing a Fire Lady who waged war against the government of the Earth Kingdom and its people."

Mai smirked. "Am I causing an international incident? How exciting."

"Not really. Kuei has already said he's coming to the wedding ceremony. This is more of a symbolic protest."

"That's a shame. I could have had fun with that."

"At least it wouldn't have been boring," he grinned, then tilted his head, concentrating on something. "There's a bonfire burning close by." He nudged her with his shoulder. "Maybe someone is celebrating our engagement."

"Hmph. Just as likely they're protesting it."

"You're probably right." He frowned. "I can make it illegal for anyone to criticize you, if you want."

She shrugged. "Let them have their fun. I would probably protest me, too. Besides," she said, as they turned down her street, "it's just words. They can't really do anything to-"

She broke off as the flower shop came into view.

The "bonfire" Zuko had sensed earlier was engulfing both the shop and the living quarters above it.