Okay...I'm going to start the drama now...And you think your family has issues.
Kiroh was talking quietly to his uncle and cousins when Zana came walking up to him. She smiled mischeiviously.
"We can bail." Kiroh arched his eye brow and looked at her skeptically.
"What did you do?" Zana smiled and shook her head.
"Nothing." Kiroh squinted his eyes, for some reason he didn't truly trust her.
"Liar." Zana rolled her eyes and took Illa from him. She turned and looked at Sokka. "Excuse us Uncle Cheif Sokka, but we wanted to go and play with our cousins, since our time is limited." Sokka smiled and nodded.
"I'll be with Katara and her...you're dad." Sokka said almost biterly and walked off. Kiroh shook his head and turned to look at Iryue.
"You commin." Iryue just shrugged his shoulders and followed them out to the back courtyard.
Katara smiled as her brother walked up greeting them. Srio and Tuzo stood up and bowed, well Tuzo bowed Srio just stared at Sokka with his big gold eyes. Katara pushed herself up, again, but this time Zuko grabbed her arm to help her. Sokka nodded a thanks to Zuko then looked back to his baby sister. He looked down at her swollen stomach and rested his hand on it.
"Another one? I hope this will be the last?" Zuko scoffed and looked to his wife, truly hoping she didn't agree, she wasn't that old. She could have three more at the most before she got to old. Katara signed and shook her head.
"I don't know yet. It's not really in our hands." The Chieftess laughed knowing exactly what the Fire Lady meant. Sokka only frowned.
"Well you know how that happens. If this ruffian would keep his hands off of you, you wouldn't have so many kids in the first place." Zuko narrowed his eyes but before he could say anything Katara intervened.
"Look Sokka, this 'ruffian' is my husband, and your current Fire Lord and host. And besides that It's usually me putting my hands on him." Zuko jerked to look at his wife a small blush lighting his cheeks. Sokka shook his head and looked at his wife.
"That's is something I didn't want to hear."
Tuzo rolled his eyes at the adults and looked around to find his siblings and cousins, only to see them walking out to the back courtyard. He looked back to his parents and uncle and aunt. He bent down and picked up Srio, and walked over to them.
"Can I go with the other?" Katara looked at her son then up to her husband who nodded quickly. Tuzo, with Srio on hip, walked out to catch up with his elders siblings.
Zana smiled and poked Iryue in the arm, making sure to poke his armband. She giggled and stood tip toe to look right at him.
"So who ya gettin married to?" Iryue glared down at her his eyes showing very little emotion. Kiroh cleared his throat and sent Illa down, letting her run and start terrorizing the up coming Tuzo and Srio.
"Um Zana. Iryue has an arranged marriage." Zana's gleeful giggling stopped and she stared at her brother then back to her cousin.
"But you are younger then us? Why are you being forced into marriage? And who is she? What does she look like? Is she nice or is she hateful?" Kiroh rolled his eyes, always with the inquiring quesitons. Illa came running back up and looked up at Zana with knowing eyes.
"They haven't met yet. He meets her next year when they get married." Zana shook her head. She didn't like that.
"You shouldn't have to marry for the good of you're nation." Iryue's eyebrow twitched as his ice cold gaze fell upon his cousin.
"My parents married for business. Not everyone can have the leisure to marry for love like your parents did." Zana growled and balled her fists.
"Well that is how it should be! I am not marryign some doof my dad picks out! You shouldn't have to either!" Kiroh looked at his sister now knowing why his father wanted him to tell her about the suitors. Zana growled again and threw her hands in the air storming off. Iryue cocked an eyebrow and looked after her. Kiroh noticed that Tuzo was standing patiently waiting for his chance to speak with him. So he bent down and handed Srio to Iryue.
"You take the little ones and go get her. We will join you shortly." Iryue snarled his nose and glared at Kiroh.
"I don't have to do anything you say." Kiroh narrowed his eyes and glared at his younger cousin.
"You will do as I say. You may have more muscle then me, but I am still you're older cousin and I know that I can make you." Kiroh hissed his warning. Iryue just rolled his eyes and took his sister by the hand dragging her off to find where Zana had ran off to.
Kiroh's face softened and he turned back to his younger brother, who was now seeming very interested in the ground.
"You wanted to talk with me didn't you?" Tuzo nodded his head but kept his eyes to the ground. Kiroh leaned back against a tree and put his hands behind his head. He knew his younger brother extremely well, and knew that if he came across as rigid then Tuzo would clam up and not say a single word.
"Then talk." Tuzo looked up at his brother with wide eyes almost like he was afraid to speak. Kiroh looked down at his brother. He was a thin boy, with a less than muscular physique. There was alot of likeness between the heir and the sovereign. Both were lean and slightly feminate looking in the face. But where as Kiroh had a dominating masculinity over all, Tuzo wasn't so much. Tuzo had long, thick eyelashes, that many of the Ladies of the Court had fawned over. HE had rich golden eyes and luscious hair that was thick in the small pony tail.
Kiroh gave his brother a warm smile to try and ease the younger sibiling.
"Well...I ...guess I...need advice..." Tuzo's soft voice said quietly. Kiroh heard the uneasiness in his brother's words and drapped an arm over his shoulder.
"Look anything you need to say, go ahead and say it. A freak like me has no room to judge." Tuzo giggled at that. Truth was almost every aspect of their family was freaky. Their parents entire relationship, the twins, Tuzo's inability to bend as the son of the fire Lord, and Srio's ...well Srio was the normal one.
"Promise you won't tell father?" Kiroh gave his brother a stern look.
"You know better then that." Tuzo's soft face contorted.
"Or mom or ZANA. You know what a big mouth she is." Kiroh laughed and nodded, making a cross over his heart.
"Promise. Now what is it." Tuzo blushed lightly and looked at the ground kicking a pebble.
"I think I am a little different." Kiroh frowned knowing that his brother was talkign about somethign other then his incapablilities.
"How so?" Tuzo blushed deeper and tried to look ever further down, his head sinking between his shoulders.
"I don't really like girls, like the other boys my age..." Kiroh frowned having a slight idea where this might be going but decided to try and have his brother actually say it before he made assupmtions.
"Well you're only fourteen, you have plenty of time." Tuzo felt tears well in his eyes and his blushed deepened to a cherry red.
"No...Kiroh...I mean that..." Tuzo felt the tears burning down his face and he clenched his teeth together tryign to stop them. Kiroh took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He bent down and wrapped his arms around his younger brother, letting the confused boy cry into his shoulders. Tuzo finally caught his breath and whispered harshly into Kiroh's shoulder.
"I like boys..."
Okay yeah next chapter, more family problems...that the parents don't seem to know about...
