Well, I'm back and pumped up, ready to start the next chapter! WHOO! Yes, I'm psychotic.

Okay, so I know I don't make Ozai sound very evil, but, I'm not very good at doing that kind of thing over a short period of time. Srry, I guess I should have had little scenes of what was going on in the Capital before, but I guess I just don't think of these things before they're too late.

Also, I am deciding to start following the rules again. (srry) Until puts ATLA back onto their story listing, this fic will remain really clean. I've worked hard on this story and don't want to risk it getting deleted.

This means that I'm replacing most of the previous chapters to make this story more "T" rated. For those of you who actually read the authors notes, I just wanted to put this down so you don't get all confused about what happened. For those of you that don't... well, you'll read the notes to find out eventually, so, I can wait.

Chapter Who The Heck Knows: Dancing With The Spirits

The room was silent. Well, that was an understatement. Odette stood in the room, so angry that see-through fire raged and danced around her partially glowing form. Kianna stood next to her, calm and glaring at her father. The Fire Lord was in a whole lot of trouble, and everybody knew it, too.

"Ozai, you dare, YOU DARE speak with my sister in such a way!" Odette steamed, approaching the terrified ruler.

"She cannot be your sister! She is my daughter!" Ozai defended, taking a step back with each step the air goddess took forward. "Her mother and I have three children, and you are not one of them!"

"SHE IS MY SISTER AND THE NIECE OF AGNI! SHE POSSESSES POWERS FAR BEYOND YOUR COMPREHENSION, AND YET YOU TALK TO HER LIKE YOU ARE GOD!" The fire around Odette was no longer see through, and it roared and crackled dangerously. She had every intent of masacring the Fire Lord right then and there.

"She is my daughter and I DEMAND respect from her!" Ozai The Moron pressed on, still not backing down. Kianna quickly walked up to her sister, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder. The fire did not harm her, and Odette calmed down, the flames shrinking away.

"You demand respect from her..." Odette shook her head, sighing in frustration. "Kianna, I don't know how you've put up with this for so many years." Odette spoke, her voice shaking slightly. Normally, a spirit's voice didn't shake. How ungodly would that be? But the goddess was so thoroughly pissed off, Kianna was surprised that she hadn't blasted the bastard Fire Lord to bits already.

"Because I still have the safety of my siblings to think about." Kianna stated, not at all affected by Odette's power. She was used to it, and had enough of her own to not be afraid by it. "But now that they're older, stronger, there is no reason for me to be." She turned, adressing her father. "You are not King of the World, Ozai, nor will you ever be. Nobody shall ever have that title except God. If you do not accept that, then shame be on you, and all of the other Fire Lord's who had continued this despicable war. I will have you know that the end of your rein has been in sight for a long, long time.

"You believe that you are all powerful? That you can control the world? I will have you know that more than half of the Fire Nation is apalled by this war, and wishes for the other nations to win. That for the long years that I have been gone I have been assembling an army of warriors from all nations, including our own. This army is huge, and our connections are strong. We could over power Fire Nation in a heart beat, so is our training. But this is a world army, one that is sworn in to protect the fate of this world in a whole, not just their own nation." Kianna paused, taking a breath and letting the information sink in with the Fire Lord.

"Guards, seize her! Seize her and her companions, now! Kill Kianna!" Ozai realised that the guards were not moving. And it wasn't from fear of Odette, either. The Fire Lord watched in horror as they removed their armor, revealing black and gold outfits with the golden phoenix picture at their backs. Zuko did the same. Kianna hadn't replaced the guards, either. The guards had NEVER been loyal to Ozai. They were one of Kianna's key sources of information, and had been members of the Phoenix Army long before Kianna had stepped in as leader.

"Looks like you're low on loyal subjects, father." Zuko stated, glancing at his fellow Phoenix soldiers. Three were from Earth Kingdom, two of which were earth benders. Six were fire benders, two water benders, and five were air benders. Kianna had been correct about a great deal of the Air Nomads surviving. Many of them lived in Fire Nation. All of them, except Aang, served Phoenix.

"Zuko, you too!"

"Are you really that surprised?" Odette questioned, her voice cold. "Zuko has not been loyal to you for awhile now, Ozai. He had been, too. But you, YOU were the one to change that. You scared your own son and banished him to find someone that everyone believed to be dead and never comming back. YOU, Ozai, turned your most loyal subject. And now? Zuko is one of the strongest members of the Phoenix army, and can even come dangerously close to defeating Kianna, who has the blood of a goddess. I will have you know that if he HAD fought you in the Agni Kai, Agni would have given Zuko his power so that he would win. Agni praises Zuko greatly, and he spits at your name. Why? Because YOU are the disgrace. You have brought shame to your nation, and your son will be the one to restore it's former glory. Now you have the choice. Back down. Surrender to defeat, and be shown mercy. Or, face your son in an Agni Kai. But, I assure you, he WILL fight. And he WILL win."

"I will not lose to my son. Zuko, if you challenge me, I WILL kill you in the match."

"Funny thing, father" Zuko walked forward, stopping next to Odette and Kianna. "I was just about to say the same exact thing." His eyes flashed with deadly defiance, power flowing through his veins and pumping his inner fire. As had been with Odette, fire was encircling the Prince, showing that he was every bit as ready for this battle as Kianna had made him. Zuko wasn't going to lose. No matter what, Zuko would win.

Katara watched with worry written clearly on her face as Zuko prepared to fight his father. She said nothing, merely watching as Zuko paced around the room. Finally he groaned and collapsed in a chair, burying his face in his hands. Katara rushed forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and kissing the top of his head.

"Katara... thank you..." Zuko murmured, leaning back against his wife. Katara blinked and looked down at him.

"For what?"

"For being here with me. For marrying me. For loving me." Zuko reached up and pulled her to him, pressing their lips together and holding her close. "If I don't come back-"

"Hush." Katara whispered, placing a finger to his lips as her own trembled. "Don't... don't say that. You're comming back, Zuko, so... so believe that you are. Please. You're comming back. You are. " Katara whimpered and hugged him tightly, biting back tears. She knew that he would win. He had to win. Kianna and Odette had no doubts, but, still. Katara felt an awful twisting in her stomach at the thought of Zuko never comming back, of him losing. But it wouldn't happen. It couldn't. Not now. Not after everything that they had been through. Zuko was going to win.

But it never came to that. Kianna walked into the room moments before Zuko was about to step out, and she shook her head.

"You can relax, now. Ozai jumped from his balcony. Apparently he'd give up before he lost to his son." Kianna shook her head. "The coward."

Katara felt a flood of relief and hugged Zuko in a death grip. He was safe. And he was going to be Fire Lord. Katara blinked when she realised it. If Zuko took the throne, the war would be over. There would be peace. She wouldn't have to worry about raising a child through a war. Because there wouldn't be one. Zuko asked for Kianna to let them have some alone time, and sat with Katara in his lap, looking into her shimmering sapphire eyes. Katara gave him a sound, loving kiss that made Zuko feel like he was melting under her touch.

"I love you so much..." Katara murmured, her shoulders heaving and crystal tears streaming down her cheeks. So much relief mixed in her that it just made her cry. Zuko held her close, comforting her and rubbing her back.

"I love you, too, Katara. With all of my heart... I really, really do." Zuko took a deep breath, eventually shooing Katara off of his lap so that they could get ready for bed.

A few minutes later Katara curled up to her husband, head resting on his toned chest while he gently stroked her hair. "Goodnight, Zuko." Katara murmured.

"Goodnight miss worry." Katara jerked her head up to see Zuko grinning at her. She scowled and hit him playfully, only to have Zuko chuckle. He reached up and growled playfully and Katara squeaked as he gentle-tackled her down to the bed, giving her ear a gentle nip before he placed a small kiss on her lips. Finally he curled back up to her and closed his eyes, sleep quickly grabbing hold of him. Katara snuggled closer and sighed blissfully. She truly did belong in Zuko's arms.

Katara woke the next morning when she heard voices in the room. One of them she recognized as Zuko's, the other she had never heard before. She was only half awake, but she still caught some of the conversation.

Yeah, Zula, I know... That had been Zuko's voice, and she'd heard the name Zula before. Wasn't it Zuko's younger sister?

Well, I just wanted to be sure... She sounded worried. Another voice in the hallway made Zula leave, and Zuko climbed back into bed, noticing that Katara was awake. He smirked evily and scooped her up in his arms, kissing the top of her head.

"Somebody's up early." He stated, nuzzling Katara happily.

"You're one to talk..." She groaned in a groggy voice. "Wh-what time is it?" She managed through a yawn.

"Not even sunrise." Katara blinked and looked up at her husband.

"How the heck do you get up this early! Are you insane?" Zuko chuckled and kissed her forehead, shaking his head.

"My sister had to talk to me. I guess I should be getting up, though. I've got a long day ahead. Katara... I'm being sworn in as Fire Lord today." Zuko whispered the last part, and waited for Katara's reaction.

"Oh." She didn't look too pleased, but she didn't seem too upset, either. "So, um... what should I do today?" Katara didn't want to end up lost in the palace, or anything like it.

"Well, why don't you spend some time with Zula and Kianna today? I'm sure Zula would like to meet you, and they're probably just going to wander around today." Zuko suggested, still not letting go of the young waterbender. She was beginning to wonder if he ever would.

"Okay, so... can I go back to bed now?" Zuko laughed quietly and laid her back down on the bed. He gave her a quick kiss before he got up to get ready for the morning. "See you later, Zuko..." Katara whispered, now doubting that she'd be able to fall back asleep.

"See you. Have fun today, alright? Just enjoy yourself. Chances are, we might not be able to leave this place too soon, but I'll make sure we do eventually. I'm rebuilding this government from scratch." Zuko walked into the bathroom and Katara smiled. He was going to make a great leader.

I know, I know. The chapter skipped around quite a bit, but, hey. Attention span, remember?