Chapter 6: I get it from my insane family

At quarter to seven in the morning one day, two months after the Festival of Lights, Katara gets woken up unceremoniously by her phone. Cursing groggily, she flips over on her bed and gropes at her nightstand until she finds her phone.

"Dear Katara," a text on the phone reads. "I will be arriving this Thursday at Caldera City for some work, and will be leaving the next day. I would be delighted if you would meet me for lunch on Thursday. Kind regards, Dr. Pakku."

Katara types out a quick reply: "sure, really excited! I'll pick you up by the Roku Library at 11:45"

For a few minutes after, she lays in bed, heavily debating whether or not to fall back asleep - last night had been a crazy night of revisions for upcoming exams, after all, and she is running on four hours of sleep currently - when she catches the teetering pile of notes on her desk and sighs. She should probably get back to revisions. There are six weeks to go until final exams, and she needs to get some more studying done, especially if she's going to spend some time with Pakku in two days.

Once she's sat at her desk, showered and warmed by her genmaicha, she picks up her phone to video call her brother. He answers on the second ring.

"Hey, sis," he answers, in that casual, amused lilt of his. His face fills the screen as he walks down a busy Kyoshi Island street, deep blue hoodie that reads "SWT SWIM TEAM" pulled over his head. "What's up?"

"Hey Sokka," she replies, grinning widely. "Nothing much, revising again. Where are you?"

He grins back widely. "Off to see my supervisor - " He stops dead on the street, peering into the camera suspiciously. " - who, it turns out, you've met!"

Katara suppresses a grimace. "Yeah. It was at the Palace thing that my friend invited me to - "

"Why do you always make friends with the cool people and my classmate is just obsessed with cabbages?"

"Wait till I tell Suki what you said - "

"Obviously I didn't mean her, and anyway, she's not my friend, she's my girlfriend - "

"You can be friends with your girlfriend! That's why it has the word friend in it - "

"Don't be such a girl, Katara - "

"Sokka," she snaps. "I'm going to stop you before you say something really sexist and then I'm actually going to have to tell Suki. I met your supervisor at the Palace and we got to talking about how cool you are - you're welcome, by the way - and anyway, I called to tell you that Pakku's coming to Caldera."

Sokka's step falters. "Man, I'm so jealous! I miss the old guy - he's so crazy..."

But there is something hesitant and put-on in his tone, and Katara does not wait for one second to call him out on it. "What's going on? I thought you love Pakku!"

Sokka sighs, pausing on the street and leaning against a lamp pole. In the background, a pair of women on a motorcycle rush by, laughing giddily. "I do."

"Then what did you do? Are you in trouble with him?"

"No... it's just that... he likes me fine, he's just not a fan of Suki."

Katara's mouth forms an 'o' of understanding. She grabs the mug of genmaicha in both hands and blows on it thoughtfully. Pakku has always been a bit sexist - he'd out and out laughed at her once when she said she was going to become a doctor - but he'd mellowed out since he'd married Katara's Gran Gran. And Suki definitely wasn't a traditional woman by any stretch - she'd recently shaved the side of her head and covered her arm in a sleeve of tattoos, she's got piercings in places that would make Pakku faint with horror, and she does not believe in the institution of marriage and so will never become Sokka's wife. If she were alive a thousand years ago, when the fabled Kyoshi Warriors were alive, Katara has no doubt that she'd be their leader. And although this would not have been Pakku's choice in companion for his grandson, Katara is surprised that he is this wound up by Suki, who by definition got along with everybody.

"I mean, it's weird, but this one time he visited us in Kyoshi and he seemed to really get along with Suki, and after that something just flipped in him and he's just been extra weird around her. And with Dad's wedding coming up soon, it's going to be really awkward, you know?"

Katara sighs. "Sorry to hear, Sokka." She traces the rim of her mug. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Sokka's voice is low and sly, as it is wont to be when he's annoying his sister. "Well... you could bring your boyfriend to the wedding."

Katara's head snaps up. "What? What do you mean?" Her heart hammers in her chest. Does he know about Zuko?

"I hear you and Suki talk, and I think after the fifth time Suki asked for pictures of 'you know who' - " he punctuates the three words with air quotes - "I kind of caught on. Am I right or am I right?"

She feels bad outright lying to her brother, so she just shrugs noncommittally. His face lights up with glee before he shakes the phone in what she assumes is an accusing, yet congratulatory, manner.

"I knew it! Who's the guy?" He doesn't know it's her professor. Bless Suki.

"Just... some guy from the university."

"What's his name?"

"... Lee." The fake name that Zuko gives when he books restaurants for the two of them.

"What's he studying?"

"He's also in medicine, actually."

Sokka rolls his eyes. "Nerd." But the effect is undercut by his grin. "When do I get to meet him? I can't believe you haven't told me! Me, your very cool, very loving brother who needs to make sure this guy passes the Sokka Standard of Who May Date Katara - "

"Lame, Sokka - "

"Whatever. You know I'm right. I - oh shit, I gotta get going, I'm almost late for Piandao and he'll have my balls on a plate if I'm late again. I'll call you later!"

He hangs up rapidly, and Katara is left staring at her reflection on her phone - shocked, and somewhat pleased.

As she gets back to studying, her phone pings with a text from Sokka: "happy for you lil sis, bring him to the wedding so that I can do my brotherly duty. no joke. dude's gotta be inducted."

She grins, mulling the thought. It may not be such a bad idea.

"Katara. Legs wider, stop squirming."

She grabs a pillow from his bed, burying her face in it and whimpering as Zuko eases another finger inside of her. She would stop squirming, but the sensation of Zuko working her open is as foreign as the day they first had sex, and when Zuko adds a third finger she can't help but gasp and jerk.

He taps a quivering buttock in reprimand. "Stay still, or I tie you up."

The idea is not without its merit, but Katara has missed Zuko too much in the last week to want anything complicated apart from him fucking her until she can't stand. His business conference had taken him to Ba Sing Se, and mastrubating over video, exciting as it was, did not hold a candle to the real thing.

Now, he kneels behind her, fully dressed in the business suit he flew in wearing, Katara on her knees with her ass in the air. She can tell that Zuko is impatient, too, by the greedy and demanding way that he touches her, rubbing her clit with the same rapid rhythm with which he pumps three fingers into her, stretching her out.

"Fuck," he groans, "you're so fucking wet - knew you'd be, you'd gone a whole week without me touching you, haven't you, Kitten? And now you're so desperate for it, so desperate for my cock, I could tell by the way you pounced on me the second I arrived home - been thinking about your pussy the whole time - " he breaks off to pull his hand away from her entirely, silencing her whine by dropping lower and licking at her steadily.

An orgasm builds up inside her, the flame of it ignited from a week ago, when she tried touching herself just after he left to no immediate relief. Now, she squeezes her eyes shut and shakes her head - she doesn't want to come like this, not without him inside her, and mercifully, he understands. He does not waste precious time by taking his clothes off, but instead unzips his slacks and pulls his cock out, running the tip through her wetness with a low growl before pushing inside her with one deep stroke.

Immediately, he holds her steady by pulling her head back by her hair, before pounding into her with abandon. She moans loudly, unabashedly, taking a brief moment to thank whatever gods may be for soundproof walls, before Zuko robs her of all thought by letting go of her hair, grabbing her hips, and fucking her properly.

"So loud, Kitten, have you missed me?"

She moans her confirmation, and he smacks her ass in retaliation. "Yes," she gasps, eyes watering with the orgasm threatening to take control of her, "I missed you so much, I tried to touch myself but my fingers were no good, I needed your cock so much - "

He snarls, picking up the pace and rubbing furious circles onto her clit. "Cum for me, Katara, cum around my cock, just like that, come on - "

Under his undeterred encouragement, she does, sobbing his name into the pillow as he follows suit with a groan that resembles her own name. He flips them over to their sides immediately and pulls her close, her pussy still working through the aftershocks on his cock. A few minutes later, he pulls out, flopping on to his back.

"Hi," he murmurs, voice low and soothing. From where he is lying, his hair unraveling from its impromptu bun and his tattoos dancing with his deep breathing, she feels like she might be ready for him again. She hooks her thigh over one of his, pillowing her head against his shoulder and running her thumb along his lower lip.

"Hi," she breathes back.

He taps her nose. "What are you thinking about?"

She looks at the dragons covering his chest and they glare back at her defiantly. "My dad's wedding. I have a plus-one."

He frowns immediately. "Who's your plus-one?"

She rolls her eyes. "Not that way. I can bring a plus one."

He goes silent for a second. "Oh," he finally says.

She bites her lip, peeking up at him. He's still as a rock, staring up at the ceiling with an incomprehensible look on his face. "Do you... want to go with me?"

His throat works as he swallows, and he reaches up to twine a lock of her hair around one finger. "Are you sure it's such a good idea?"

She frowns. "What do you mean?"

"After... my family."

This is the first time either of them has mentioned the Festival of Lights incident - the fiasco with his dad has gone unmentioned. So have their I love you's.

"This will be different," she says quietly, tracing the tail of the dragon that flicks out by his hip. "I think everyone would like to meet you."

He is even quieter. "You think? Even though I'm..."

Older? My professor? The nephew of the Fire Lord? She doesn't fill in his sentence, but nods against his shoulder. "Yeah. Suki especially."

He breathes in deeply, the dragons dancing along his chest. "Okay. I'd love to be your plus-one."

She kisses his shoulder. "Thank you."

That night, she lays in her own bed thinking about the chasm of things left unsaid. Not once since the Festival of Lights have they said the L-word again, and Katara thinks once again about whether he actually meant it. In the heat of the moment, it felt like the right thing - she can still remember how wounded he looked, and how she wanted to soothe him - and she thinks she meant it, means it, but there is no telling whether Zuko means it as well.

Not to mention all the implications it brings if they really do love each other. Is he really the person she wants to build a future with? One day marry, maybe have children, grow old with? And if he is, does he feel the same way as her? Even at forty, he looks incredible; she's sure he will age like fine wine, but what if she doesn't? Is she the person he wants to spend his life with?

She groans, turning into her pillow, when her phone lights up again. It's a text from Zuko.

Miss you, it reads.

She does not sleep that night.

Pakku is waiting for her at Roku Library when she swings by at the designated time, looking exactly like home, but in the most stupid ways. He dons his blue and white parka, thick pants, and fur leggings. Winter though it may be, Katara is sure that Pakku is suffering underneath all these layers - the weather now resembles only the most balmy Water Tribe days.

She throws her arms around him when she reaches him, and after a second, he pats her back reluctantly. He's not one for showing affection, but his granddaughter has always been an exception.

At the cafeteria, Pakku fills her in on her dad's wedding preparations.

"The village elders were hesitant about giving Hakoda their blessings on the day, but Kanna stamped the hesitation out of them immediately, of course."

Katara is pleased to hear the note of pride in Pakku's voice when he talks about her grandmother. "That's good," she replies, twining her noodles around a pair of cafeteria chopsticks. "Someone needs to put them in place. When are Sokka and Suki arriving?"

His face darkens at that. "A week before the wedding," he replies, and if there are any misgivings between him and Suki, it does not go mentioned.

They talk about school, about her impending exams and subsequent summer holidays, about Hakoda and Bato, and soon Pakku is tugging uncomfortably at the collar of his parka.

"You could take it off, you know," Katara suggests lightly, trying not to laugh too hard at how miserable he looks.

"And wear what?" Pakku snaps. "I am from the Northern Water Tribe; I will dress as such."

"You could take a break and wear something else."

The expression on Pakku's face shows that he's never taken a break before in his life, but Katara knows that she is winning this argument by light sheen of perspiration on his face.

Katara leads them to the university gift shop and buys Pakku a bright red t-shirt with the embossed symbol of their university - a dragon's head. Katara sends a picture of the disgruntled Pakku to her dad and Sokka.

"You know," Pakku finally says as they exit the gift shop, "I know of quite a few people from Caldera University."

Katara smiles. "Do you?"

"A couple of my students went on to become professors, and one of them works here. You might actually know him, his name is - ah, there he is!"

The fates all hate Katara, and she should have seen this coming, but she is no less surprised when Dr. Sozin stops in his tracks and turns towards them, eyes flicking between her and Pakku in shock.

"Dr. Sozin," Pakku greets smoothly. "Of course, I know him as Zuko; he was the brightest student in my class. I don't suppose the two of you know each other?"

Katara looks at Zuko, wide-eyed, but he just stands there in shock. His hair is falling out of his topknot, and his trench coat and turtleneck combination almost has Katara distracted - until she catches sight of the stack of papers under his arm. Pathology: Lecture 14.

"Yes," Katara finally stammers, "he's my pathology professor."

"Ah, excellent." Pakku strides forward and extends his hand in a traditional Water Tribe greeting; after a second of gawking, followed by reshuffling papers, Zuko grabs his forearm. "So, you are the pathology professor of whom Katara speaks fondly."

If the ground opened up and swallowed her now, she would consider it a blessing.

"Has she been behaving well?" Pakku asks sternly, and Katara wishes wildly for her brother, if nothing else than to share a familial moment of exasperation.

Zuko mumbles something in reply, picking at the buttons on the sleeve of his trench coat, before clearing his throat and meeting Katara's eye. "Exceptionally."

Pakku smiles after a second, turning back to his granddaughter. "Of course, this is not to say that Zuko himself behaved well in my class - I recall a brooding, sulky young man who was prone to quite the temper tantrum - "

At this, Zuko abandons all pretence and groans into his hand, just as her phone pings in her hand.

"haha," is Sokka's reply to her picture of Pakku, "he has no idea what's going on." She cannot help but laugh.

Sokka, she thinks, you have no idea.

Dinner that night is the three of them, as Pakku has insisted on catching up with his former mentee. It gives Katara the opportunity to learn more background - Pakku, the best doctor and medical professor in the Northern Water Tribe, had spent a year in Caldera City around the beginning of Fire Lord Iroh's reign.

"Of course, soon after, I came back to the Water Tribe to spend time with my Kanna and her family, which is when, I believe, my little Katara got the inspiration to become a doctor. And of course, if any woman could skip a year of pathology, it would be Katara."

"Thanks, Pakku. I guess."

Pakku ignores her tone. "I became her mentor soon after that - that's something the two of you have in common. You're both quite alike; extremely stubborn, disciplined, and hard-working."

Katara eyes Pakku's evening parka. "Yeah, I wonder where we got the stubbornness from."

The conversation ebbs and flows for a while, and Pakku turns his attention to Zuko, who seems to be putting in a fighting effort to blend into the background.

"So, Zuko, have you found a nice woman to settle down with?"

"Pakku!" Katara snaps, face heating. "What the hell?"

"Watch your language, Katara," Pakku snaps. "I'm merely asking a question."

"It's a personal question! Maybe he doesn't want to answer it - "

"It's nothing serious; you'll understand when you are of marrying age - "

"I'm his student, maybe he doesn't want to say - "

"Yes, well, I'm his mentor, Katara. Honestly, where did you learn this tone from - "

"From my insane family - "

"Uh, yeah. I have," Zuko cuts across the conversation, extremely interested in the pot of tea in the middle of the table.

This shuts Katara up quickly, but Pakku is pleased. "Good. A strong marriage is the solid foundation on which life grows. Is it Mai? I remember that the two of you were quite a pair."

Zuko glances at Katara quickly. "No."

Pakku frowns. "Shame. The two of you were attached at the hip - why, I remember opening the broom cupboard on campus one day to find - "

"It's someone else," Zuko interjects quickly.

Pakku leans forward in interest. "Who? A doctor?"

"She's in medicine, yeah."

"Bright girl?"

"The brightest," Zuko replies quietly.

Pakku leans back, lacing his hands over his stomach. "Well. Great to hear. I'd be interested to meet this woman one day."

Katara stares down at her bowl of ramen, and if Pakku notices the silence clouding the conversation, he doesn't comment on it.

After dinner, Zuko shakes both their hands, gives Katara a purposeful look, and walks away. Katara hugs her grandfather, and promises to see him in two weeks, a couple of days early for her dad's wedding. After, she turns a corner and bumps right away into Zuko, who is leaning against a wall and staring out at the street.

"Your place or mine?" he asks.

At his place, Katara encounters the following choice: either sit down and talk about what's going on between them like adults, or -

Zuko grunts when Katara flings herself on him. She twines one arm around his neck and the other grips his hair as she nips at his mouth. He wraps his arms around her to steady her and responds in kind, sweeping her off her feet and walking to the bedroom. Once there, one of his hands begins to sneak up past the hem of her tight, deep blue dress and towards her inner thigh. She stops him with a hand to his chest, shoving when he doesn't let up.

He acquiesces reluctantly, peeling his lips away from her neck. "What is it? Are you ok?"

She takes this moment to gather up her gumption, staring at the latticed wooden ceiling in his room where a paper lantern shines in solitary resilience. "I'm wearing new lingerie."

His grip on her hips flexes. "Good news for me."

"I thought I could..." she trails off, too embarrassed to continue. After a second, she rolls him over and kisses him hard, and he lets out a surprised noise. She gets off the bed and he props himself up on his elbows, looking at her quizzically.

She takes a deep breath and begins to lower the straps of her dress, staring now at the floor where a stack of medical newspapers lie. She pulls down the straps of her bra next and peeks at Zuko - he's staring at her with an expression somewhere between curious and aroused. She shimmies out of her dress so that all she's wearing is her new lingerie, pretty and pink and barely covering anything. She shivers when he lets out a deep breath that ends in a smothered growl, shaking her head when he makes to stand up.

He looks at her, betrayed, and she bites back a smile of amusement. They both know this game - she'll stop if he touches her. It drives him crazy each time, and Katara makes it a point to see how quickly she can get him to break. She walks over to his bedside table, fishing inside for a new toy she's hidden there the other day. His eyes grow wide when she finds it; the deep blue, veiny dildo that's just this side of too big.

She crawls towards the middle of his bed, and she can feel his eyes on her ass the whole time. She settles against the pillows and spreads her legs open, adjusting to get comfortable and then smiling shyly at Zuko.

His expression is smouldering, dangerous. You're in trouble, it says, and it makes her all the wetter.

She puts the dildo down besides her and begins by massaging her breasts, pinching her nipples through the fabric and stifling a gasp of pleasure. She pops one finger in her mouth and sucks, looking at Zuko, who has his hands fisted on the sheets. She pulls her finger out, and it makes a lewd popping sound, and his breathing becomes more laboured. She pulls the cups of her lingerie down so that her breasts spill out, circling her nipples with the wet finger.

She sighs as pleasure begins to crowd the edges of her eyesight. Her fingers drift down, past the valley between her breasts and past her naval, to touch her clit lightly through her panties. She whimpers at the feeling, circling her clit and feeling her wetness seep through her panties. Zuko groans in reply, making a jerky movement as though to touch her. She shakes her head at him, pulling her fingers away and grabbing the dildo. She teases her nipples with the tip of the dildo before sliding it towards her mouth, licking at the top as she would with Zuko's cock.

She hears him huff out a breath before he unzips his pants, freeing his cock. Her eyes glaze over at the sight and she sucks on the tip of the dildo. He wraps his hand around his rock-hard cock and she sucks the dildo into her mouth, chest heaving and panties getting steadily slicker. She laps at the dildo like she would his own cock, and thinks that he might be imagining the same mental image when she hears his hand speed up. After getting it slick, she pulls it out of her mouth and runs the dildo, tip-first, down the length of her body. She pulls her panties to one side and notches the head against her opening, spurred on by Zuko's laboured breathing.

She takes a deep breath and pushes the dildo inside her slowly. She whimpers at the feeling, working it in and out of herself steadily. Her other hand clutches at the pillows by her head as she bites her lip and gyrates her hips onto the fake cock she works inside herself. She arches when it hits the right spot, gasping something like his name, and he is suddenly reared above her, lips pulled back into a snarl as he works his cock furiously in his fist. His other hand lands besides her head, close enough to stroke her cheek.

"Don't stop," he demands, the first words either of them has spoken in a while. But the comment is unnecessary - she's racing towards her orgasm at a blinding speed, looking up at him through tears of overstimulation, and it's when she looks down to see his cock, huge and swollen at the tip, dripping precum on to her pussy, that her body seizes up in orgasm.

"Oh, fuck - fuck, Zuko, oh god..."

For a moment she just lies there, mind fuzzy with the orgasm, before she spots him still stroking himself. This is not the plan, she thinks to herself, knocking his hand away quickly and climbing off the bed, one hand keeping the dildo inside her. She tugs on his hand as she sinks to her knees, and Zuko gets the idea. He sits on the edge of the bed so that she's on her knees between his legs. She looks up at him and ties her hair into a messy, high ponytail, before resting one hand on his thigh and slowly working the dildo in and out of her oversensitive pussy.

For a moment, he does nothing but stare at her. Time to up the stakes.

She tilts her head to the side, pouting. "Dr. Sozin," she says, and she smiles inwardly as his eyes flare - she knows how much it turns him when she calls him that, "don't you want to fuck my face?"

"Oh fuck," he breathes, gripping the base of his cock and using his other hand to pull on her ponytail, so that her face is tilted upwards. "Open that pretty little mouth for me," he murmurs, and she does, sticking her tongue out. He runs the tip of his cock on her tongue and she tastes the salty precum there. After a deep breath, he slowly pulls her forwards so that his cock slides down her mouth and into her throat. She chokes but he doesn't stop - she hasn't given him the nonverbal symbol to stop by tapping his thigh. Soon, he hits the back of her throat.

"Look at me," he commands. She does, her eyes streaming, and he traces her lips where they are stretched out around his cock with his thumb. "My little cocksucker."

She clenches around the dildo helplessly, unable to be embarrassed at how wet she is and the mess she's dripping on to the floor. He fucks her mouth at the same pace that she works her dildo into herself, and soon he is muttering filthy words as he surveys her possessively, his cock hitting the back of her throat rhythmically.

"Such a sweet little mouth," he murmurs through clenched teeth, his fist still tight in her hair. "Such a naughty girl... is this how you kept yourself entertained when I was away, hm? Fucking your sweet pussy with the dildo?"

She moans an affirmative around his cock and he grunts, speeding up. "Agni, that's so hot, spread your legs a little more for me, let me see... just like that, good girl... are you going to cum? With my cock down your throat?"

She is, and her vision is getting blurry, and just as she's about to get there Zuko pulls out of her mouth quickly, squeezing her cheeks with his other hand to keep her mouth open.

"Cum for me," he demands, and she does, just as he ejaculates all over her tongue and down her breasts. She nearly collapses with the exhaustion of it all, but he leans down to pull the dildo out from her, still panting. He rests his head on her shoulder for a second before scooping her up into his arms and walking, wobbly kneed, to his large tub. He runs her a bath and there they lie, wrapped in each other's arms, murmuring sweet nothings, the overwhelming tasks of tomorrow forgotten in the cocoon of warmth.

But tomorrow arrives with unstoppable alacrity, and planning their trip to the Southern Water Tribe is in full swing before Katara can put down her pen to stop studying.

"ok so", Sokka writes, "plan is that we meet at Kyoshi and then we go home together on northern airlines - you owe me money because i already booked 4 tickets, assumed your little friend is coming"

Katara smiles. "little friend?" Zuko is anything but little - she thinks of yesterday's events and swallows, crossing her legs.

"i'll be the judge of whether he can be your boyfriend"

"whatever Sokka", Katara replies. She'll let it go since Sokka, the plan guy in the family, had sorted out the majority of the administrative headache, leaving Katara with more time to prepare for exams.

But the next phase of planning is its own headache. The Royal Advisors apparently have volumes to say on the Prince of the Fire Nation traveling to the Southern Water Tribe by two planes, both of which are economy class, especially when Fire Lord Iroh's private jet will not be used said weekend. Even when Zuko fights back, even when Azula steps in to support her brother (with a raised eyebrow at his chosen method of transportation), even when Lu Ten himself lends his support, the Royal Advisors did not budge. It is only when the Fire Lord himself intervenes on Zuko's behalf that a compromise is reached. The first leg of the journey, from Caldera City to Kyoshi Island, will be by the Royal Family's own private jet, and the second leg will be economy class with Sokka and Suki.

On the Friday that they fly out, Katara gets up early in the morning and texts Zuko, who, it turns out, has already been awake for a few hours. He has thrown together a haphazard selection of items for the South Pole - a fact that Katara has warned a stubborn Zuko will come back to bite him in the ass when he's freezing. Katara has packed the night before, responsible woman that she is, and goes through her itinerary once again.

"Present for Dad and Bato, all my study stuff, passport, plane tickets..." she mutters to herself, pacing around her flat to do any last-minute packing or tidying up. At quarter to seven precisely, the doorbell rings, and Katara swings it forwards to see Zuko, and a surly looking guard behind him.

Zuko interprets her expression correctly. "Sorry," he winces, "it's just Royal Family protocol for traveling."

She shrugs, self-conscious, and tugs her bags through the door, where two guards sweep them up and into the waiting limousine. She turns to Zuko, incredulous, and he rubs the back of his head.

"Protocol?" she asks.

"Yeah."

The airport is no better: there is no such thing as immigration or standing in the queue for the Prince of the Fire Nation and his companion, so they go straight to the private jet and are in the air in the time it usually takes to check her bags in.

Katara looks at the luxurious surroundings, all clean, white, and leather, and sips on her glass of water, having refused the champagne offered by the stewardess. She turns to talk to Zuko, intent on sharing with him just how weird this experience is for her, only to find him looking airsick.

"Are you okay?" she asks.

He nods, looking a little green. She pats his arm in consolation. "We'll land in the next hour or so," she consoles, and he gets even greener.

There is nothing to come of conversation when he is in this mood. He closes up and all Katara has to do is wait for him to be amenable to sharing. To this end, Katara fishes out her studying material, studiously avoiding her pathology coursework, and begins revising.

Fifteen minutes before the plane is due to land, the captain announces their descent. As Katara puts away her material, sighing and stretching, Zuko clears his throat.

She turns to smile at him. "Feeling better?"

"I'm just... nervous," he explains. "I'm about to meet your brother."

"You've met my family before! You've met Pakku."

"He didn't know I was dating you."

"He knew you as a person and really likes you. Don't worry about Sokka, he will too. And Suki already likes you, so she'll keep Sokka in line. Besides, remember when I first met Azula? I don't think she liked me at first but I think we're getting along really well now!"

"It's different for you," he mutters, sullen. "Everyone likes you."

This is not true, but telling Zuko when he has entrenched himself in this opinion will be like convincing Toph to let Katara do her nails. She just wraps her arm around his and kisses his cheek, and they watch the little island come into view. They land and disembark quickly, heading over to the main airport with the entourage of bodyguards and their multitude of suitcases.

Both Zuko and Katara beg the chauffeur to drop them a bit away from the airport, not wanting Sokka's first impression of Zuko to be innumerable wealth, and after some flat-out begging the protection detail concedes. They tug their suitcases towards the departures hall, and Katara is the first one to stop short at the sight of a wolf tail.

She gives Sokka no warning, catapulting into him as he half-turns at the sound of thudding footsteps. He immediately wraps his arms around his little sister, and soon after, a third pair of arms wraps around the two of them, smelling like a spring morning. Suki.

After a minute, Katara steps back, scrubbing her eyes and beaming at two of her favourite people for a second before Sokka ruffles her hair. She swats his hand away, annoyed, but Sokka cannot stop grinning.

"Hey, sis," he greets. "Nice to see you."

Suki has a more eloquent welcome for Katara. "It's been so long, Katara, we've missed you so much! You look really good."

"You too," Katara replies, eyeing Suki's newest tattoo on the back of her shoulder - a sharp and ornate fan.

"Cool, huh? It's a symbol of the Kyoshi Warriors!"

They exchange a few more pleasantries before Katara turns around, expecting to see Zuko right behind her, but he's nowhere to be found. She exchanges a look with Suki, and Sokka catches on.

"Where's your... friend?"

"I don't know, he was here a second ago - "

A voice to Katara's left clears its throat, and they all turn to stare at Zuko. He looks abashed and guarded.

"Hey man," Sokka greets, and Suki's and Katara's eyes swivel towards him. "Arrivals are just down that hall, take a right, and then - "

"Sokka," Katara interrupts quietly.

It comes to him in pieces. Silence, for a beat, and then Sokka's smile freezes. He takes in Zuko's glasses, his neat trench coat, the lines around his eyes. His face goes carefully blank as he looks down at Zuko's outstretched hand, and when Sokka glances at Katara there is something brewing under the surface. Suki looks nervously between the two men, before interjecting on behalf of Katara.

"Honey," Suki begins cajolingly, "this is Katara's - "

Sokka raises a hand and Suki becomes quiet. Without taking his eyes off Zuko, whose hand has been lowered and whose face registers some form of defiance, he addresses his sister.

"When you say he's also in medicine..."

"He's my pathology professor," Katara says quickly. "You know how I'm a year ahead with that? And it turns out he's Pakku's mentee - "

"Right." Sokka puffs out his chest. He squares himself up for a decision, the same way he's always done since he was a little boy. "Right," he says. "Get the hell away from my sister."

"Sokka!" Suki snaps, but Sokka is not done.

"You are not coming to my dad's wedding, and if you so much as get near my sister again - "

"Listen, I didn't mean to - " Zuko interrupts, jaw tight and hand clenching the strap of his carry-on briefcase.

"If you ever get near her," Sokka continues loudly, as though Zuko had never interrupted, "I will personally make sure that everyone at Caldera University knows exactly what you've been doing to a student. I will make sure that Pakku spreads the word within the medical community. You understand me? Come near my sister, and I swear to La himself that I will ruin your entire career."

A/N:

Hi all! How have you been?

Sorry for the long delay. I've had to step away from everything for a while to deal with my mental health, and I'm back with one of the last chapters! There will either be one or two more, depending on how I feel about an epilogue. I think we're reaching the end of the story I want to tell with these two, but I'm considering the following next (let me know what you'd think):

1. One chapter from Zuko's POV, either before or after the events of Extracurricular.

2. Switching the trope around - older Katara/younger Zuko. Think about a hot, young Zuko who's an intern in a prestigious newspaper, who falls immediately in love with the older and very beautiful CEO.

All thoughts, on the chapter, the new story ideas, anything else you'd like to share, very welcome!

See you all soon :)