Author Notes: Small snippets of fluff. The characters' deserve it and you amazing readers deserve a breather. However, we'll be back to our regularly scheduled angst next week.

CW: Some mention of the act of giving birth.

—

"Almost there." Ursa said, her hands plunged into the water of the bathtub. Katara clamped hard on Zuko's hand and pushed one last time. Then it happened - after what felt like hours of struggle - a cry from her child. In Ursa's arms, the infant looked so small from the premature birth, but it's cries were strong. The moon was high in the sky, signaling the transition between days. An auspicious time to be born.

"It's a boy." The woman said, putting the child in Katara's arms, as she went to cut the umbilical cord. A sob escaped the waterbender's throat as she looked down at the wrinkled, little face of her son. The warmth of so much love caught in her chest.

Zuko brushed back Katara's sweaty hair, then gently kissed her forehead. "You did so well." He murmured with a smile. The waterbender cried harder. The tears were bittersweet ones. Happiness caught in her chest at her newfound family, but sadness sunk in her stomach at the people she'd lost. The people that should have been there that day.

"Zuko, can you go tell the doctor to send in the wet nurse?" Ursa asked. The firebender looked between Katara and the door. Despite the immediate political needs, both him and Ursa had refused to leave Katara's side for the entire duration of the birth. "Don't worry, you can come right back." His mother added. The firebender nodded and jogged out the room. Katara watched him as he went.

"You got a wet nurse for me?" Katara asked, bending water across her son's body to begin cleaning him off. His little nose scrunched up at the feeling of the water, but he didn't cry. Maybe he's a waterbender?

Ursa came over to the tub and began pumping fresh water into the basin. "I'm sorry if I overstepped. I know you've been busy the last few months, and wanted to make the transition into motherhood easier. I have a chest of baby clothes and toys too."

"No, it's perfect. Thank you so much…"Katara began, tears streamed down her face again as words tumbled out of her mouth. It was as if she had no control over her emotions. "I just… I couldn't prepare for my son properly. I don't even have a name…What if I'm a horrible mother?"

The older woman stopped pumping water and kneeled beside the tub, "We all have those fears. You will mess up, but we all do. However, there are many ways to raise a child - and you are not alone."

Katara sniffed and nodded, handing the infant over to Ursa who had her arms outstretched. The older woman stood up and went over to the counter where she had placed multiple salves and towels. She swaddled the boy in purple fabric. "Katara, you are family and I swear to you, I will love your son, like I love you. Like one of my own."

—

Despite healing herself in fresh bath water, exhaustion unlike any she had felt in her life, weighed on her after the birth. Ursa and Eese, the wet nurse, helped her out of the tub and cleaned her up. Then took her to her bed. Zuko stood in the corner of her room with her son into his arms. Him gently bouncing and smiling at the infant was the last thing she saw before closing her eyes.

Katara woke in the early morning. Zuko sat next to her bed, one hand holding papers, the other softly rocked a bassinet that must have been brought to her room. She placed a hand on his knee. He set the parchment down, and covered hers with his still cold hand.

"Has your bending returned?" The waterbender asked sleepily.

Zuko shook his head. "No, but we'll worry about that later." Katara didn't push. Last night, somewhere between labor pains and pushing, the waterbender had put two and two together about his drop in body heat after the attack.

"Have you been here all night?" She asked, shifting to look into the crib. Her son was there serenely asleep

"Don't worry about me. How are you feeling?"

"Good. Still tired though." The waterbender replied as she observed the infant's tiny, smushed face. His nose and mouth reminded her of Aang's, but he had a shock of brown hair that was hers. "There are so many people I want to honor by naming him after them. But I also want him to be free of the expectations of their legacies. "

Zuko considered this for a moment, "I think having the ability to be your own person is a gift."

Katara looked back at the little face, "I think he looks like a Tenzin. What do you think?" She remembered the name from an Air Temple she and Aang explored years back. She always thought it had a nice ring.

Zuko smiled and intertwined his fingers in hers, "It's a good name." As if he knew they were talking about him, Tenzin began to wake up, his little arms wiggling in the swaddle. Zuko gently picked him up from the cradle. The Fire Lord, despite circles of exhaustion under his eyes, looked giddy as the infant made happy babbling noises in his arms.

He then placed the boy in Katara's arms. "You're going to make a great father when the day comes." She said, the words tumbling out of her mouth.

"I think that day is already here."

They sat in silence for a moment, Zuko wrapped his arm around Katara's shoulders. The waterbender leaned into his chest, her heart warm. Both stared down at the small, premature infant. There were larger, world changing questions that needed to be addressed. But in that moment, it was the three of them.

—

Katara had forced Zuko to take a nap after finally admitting to not sleeping. He didn't want to leave her side, so he curled up next to her and passed out almost immediately. The waterbender now sat in her bed as the morning sun rose higher in the sky. She reached for some of the parchment on her bedside table and began reading amidst the light snores. Most were orders for aid for the Capital, they bore some of Zuko's scrawling handwriting. However, at the bottom of the pile was Iroh's funeral plans. Katara let out a sigh looking down at her child in her arms. Iroh would have liked to meet you.

At that moment, a soft knock came from the door and Ursa quietly came in holding a tray of food. The older woman smiled looking between the waterbender and Zuko, who now had his head pressed against Katara's thigh - still asleep.

"He loves you so much." Ursa whispered, placing the food on the bedside table and taking a seat. Katara passed Tenzin to her. He was such a well tempered baby, he didn't fuss being shifted around.

"I love him too." Katara said with a sigh, looking at the bowl of rice and bamboo shoots on the tray. A pang of anxiety pierced her stomach as reality began leaking into the room. "It's not going to be easy explaining this to the assemblies and Bato, though."

"No it won't, and I'm sure the parentage of your son will be put under scrutiny."

Katara looked at the older woman. She knew she wasn't being malicious, just merely stating the facts. "I suppose we could always bring Toph to court, and have her question me. If it came to that."

"Hopefully, it won't." Ursa said, rocking the child gently. A smile on her face. "Have you decided if you are going to stay here indefinitely?"

"Zuko offered, but I don't want to impose." The waterbender responded feeling bashful all the sudden. The idea of staying indefinitely implied so much. So much that she wanted, but hadn't talked over with Zuko. "Also, the political situation…"

"Katara, you're family - you're not an imposition. Also, the politicians will eventually get over themselves. The next scandal will happen, and they'll move on." The older woman said as she looked down at the child. "Besides, I would love to be a grandmother."

Tears threatened the waterbender's eyes again. She blinked them away. Tenzin was born into the world with both so much, and yet, so little.

"I would like to stay."

—

"Who's handling the recovery effort?" Katara said, placing her tile on the Pai Sho board laid out on the bed. Beside her, Tenzin napped in his bassinet, his stomach full after being fed by the wet nurse.

"Asayo," Zuko replied, squinting at the board. He was struggling to keep up with the waterbender this game. After a moment, he finally placed The Wheel. "She's the best leader we have, and she knew that you were pregnant."

The waterbender moved The Boat with a soft click of wood on wood. "What excuse did she give for your absence?"

"She's telling the assemblies I'm recovering from the attack….Which isn't a lie."

Katara took one of his tiles. "After today, we should see if I can heal you. I think the attacker blocked your Chi - which I should be able to fix."

"Stop worrying about me. You're the one who just gave birth." The firebender said, capturing one of her titles.

"Zuko, you know how I am. I can't stay still for long."

"I know, I'm sorry. I just… want to make sure you're okay."

Katara nodded and carefully stood up from the bed. She was already feeling antsy from laying around all day. Her legs welcomed the movement, but she was still sore in intimate places. Zuko watched her, as she scooped Tenzin from the bassinet and bounced him gently in her arms. The waterbender hummed a lullaby Gran Gran used to sing when she was a small girl - a slightly melancholy melody.

Zuko moved to stand next to her. His fingers played with the soft ends of her hair, as she continued to hum. "You're beautiful. I think motherhood suits you." He whispered into her ear.

A blush rose on her cheeks, and her heart pounded.

"Did you mean what you said earlier?" Katara asked, finishing the song. "About being his father. Even though we haven't…formalized anything yet?"

"Yes." He replied with no hesitation, his golden eyes meeting hers. There was certainty in his expression. "I don't need things to be 'formalized' to know that I love you and this child."

A smile broke across the waterbender's face and she kissed his cheek briefly. "I love you." My family.

—

That night, Katara crept out of her room with Tenzin in her arms. His blurry blue eyes watched her as she quietly walked down the hallway and into the courtyard. There was an ache in her chest that drew her into the ever comforting moonlight and by the pond. The infant's face bunched up in displeasure as the cold night hit the bare skin of his face. Katara internally chuckled and clutched him closer to her breast. Maybe it's a good thing he won't be raised in the South Pole.

The falling red leaves crunched underfoot, as the waterbender went to kneel by the pond. It's surface was smooth and untouched. Katara then raised Tenzin slightly, as if presenting him to the moon. She didn't know why she did it, but in that moment she felt a rush of warmth. Like so many months ago, the stars twinkled in the darkness and the moon looked down on her. Then she heard Yue's voice, no longer forgotten, say Congratulations Mother of the Air Nation. A whisper on the fall breeze, and this time, Katara knew if she had not made it up. A soft smile appeared on her face as she looked at her son.