"Zuko?" Katara gripped the top of her robe. "GET OUT!" Zuko flinched.
"You said you were coming back." He said.
"I wasn't gone for that long!"
"Long enough for me to make tea."
"You're a Firebender!"
"I heard you crying!" Katara opened her mouth but nothing came out. She shut her mouth and lowered her eyes, her fingers clenching the fabric tightly in her fist. Zuko sighed and walked to the couch that was in front of her. He sank down onto it and leaned over.
"I'm sorry Katara."
"There's nothing to apologize for."
"That's not true. I got so caught up in you, I didn't give either of us a moment to slow down and think."
"Sorry." Katara muttered.
"No, Katara." Zuko said quickly and turned, throwing his arm over the back of the couch. "Katara, this is nothing you did. Ok? This isn't about blame. I just wasn't thinking." She didn't say anything and Zuko sighed again.
"So, you aren't mad at me?" She asked as she stared down at the water pooling around her feet.
"What? No. No, of course not." Zuko held out his hand to her. "Are we still friends?" Katara looked up at him and saw him smile. She returned it and put one hand in his.
"Of course." Zuko gave her hand a squeeze.
"We'll slow down. Till you're ready." The smile came easier to Katara now.
"Thanks." They paused again, still holding hands. "Can we still kiss from time to time?"
"Oh blazes yes please."
The winter season was the travel season for the Fire Nation elite, so the imperial city was almost completely cleared out. With colonization, it had been fashionable for people in the cities to travel to more rural areas where it snowed. Now that the nations were reaching a friendlier disposition, tourists came to the island continent in droves, which brought in a wave of financial security for the servants who were unemployed during the cold season.
Things were not so friendly as of late that people made the trip to the capital however.
After Katara had dressed, she and Zuko took a walk around the city. Chang was with her, as well as three other masked guards. The Fire Lord may be the sun, but Zuko preferred to walk around instead of hiding behind a screen of fire or inside a palanquin. There was still the issue of his safety to deal with. The looming presence of the guards created a wide radius between them and the other city dwellers.
"So, where is Azula?" Katara asked.
"She's still in the Matsu Institute. The doctors say there hasn't been any change." Zuko stopped and rolled his head back on his neck to look up at the sky. "Well, there has been one change."
"What's that?"
"Instead of harping on about, our mother, she's been demanding to see, him."
"Ozai?" Zuko nodded and they went silent as the street they were walking on widened. By the very nature of who she was, and her place in the world, Katara knew what that could mean. Only a few months after the Treaty of Yue had been signed, there were instances of rebellion. A secret cabal that went by the name of "Ozai's Army" had begun setting fire or otherwise vandalizing anything that held the image of the young Fire Lord. When no image was readily on hand, effigies were burned instead.
Iroh had been quick to stamp out the more, juvenile arms of the group, but he had reported with no uncertainty that there were deeper, more political roots. There had been whisperings that even the Lady Mai's father had joined, looking to displace Zuko and restore Ozai to the throne with Azula as his heir.
"It's good that she's at least lucid right?"
"Funny that her lucidity only comes at a time when I might be facing open rebellion because of it." Instead of sounding angry, Zuko sounded bitter, and tired.
"Why are they so unhappy?"
"The people are unhappy because the economy has suffered. They now have to buy what they previously had received as tithes. There are tariffs on our exports. Part of the peace deal with the Earth Kingdom included negligible tariffs on their exports. The Fire Nation has lost territory so with that went rents and capital. And I'm sure you know what's on the docket for the next Inter-Nation Council meeting."
Katara winced. Following in the Earth Kingdom's steps, the UTP was suing for reparations from the Fire Nation.
"How bad is it?" She asked. Zuko sighed and rubbed his face with both hands, pulling down on his cheeks before letting go.
"Not depression levels bad, yet, but it's not been going well. Oddly enough, the reason why the upper class is mad at me is one of the things saving my nation."
"What's that?"
"I let go of all the mystique around the Fire Lord. No more hiding behind screens, no more exotic behaviors, and there's been a reigning in on the celebrations and festivals. I am no longer a god, only royal."
"Why would they be upset about that?"
"Because those who are closest to god are touched by divinity. They used to have more clout by being so close to the Fire Lord, now they are only men with fancy titles."
"That seems, petty."
"Sure, but petty is hard to stamp out."
"So what are you going to do about the, malcontents?"
"The best way is to execute Ozai and exile Azula. Though it would be better to have her executed as well."
"Zuko, that's brutal!"
"It's why I haven't done it." Zuko sighed again. "But there would be little reason to kill me if their replacements were dead."
"This is insane." Zuko laughed and turned to her with a wry smile.
"Hopefully you won't have to worry about politically motivated assassination." Katara swatted him.
"You have an awful sense of humor."
"At least this way I'll die laughing." Katara swatted him again, and he just smiled wider.
They spent the day walking around the city, sending Chang to interact with the few lingering merchants that were still around. It was interesting walking with Zuko in comparison to travelling with Aang. Being the Avatar, Aang was just as recognizable but was free of an armed escort. Aang could, and frequently would, interact with any passerby that struck up a conversation with them. Very few people had any negative feelings about him, and those that did were typically residing in the Fire Nation, so much of the interactions were pleasant and entertaining.
With Zuko, there was an air of discomfort. This Fire Lord was more accessible now than any other had been, ever, and yet everyone they came across stayed distant. Everyone would bow respectfully, and Katara noticed a spectrum of discomfort. Some small children attempted to greet them, many bellowed out Katara's name, but all were silenced by their parent or guardian.
Where Aang was loud, brash, and cultivated the feelings of appreciation - for himself - Zuko was quiet and stoic. He didn't seem bothered by those that openly jeered at him, but neither did he react much to those who greeted him warmly with more than a nod and wave.
The biggest difference, is what made each man angry.
In one town, far in the Earth Kingdom's interior, not many people knew who the Avatar was. They were an isolated people, who only knew about the outside world from the few Fire Nation soldiers that held an outpost fifteen miles outside of their town.
They didn't care about anything that had happened. When Aang had regaled them with his stories and explained how important he was, the villagers only wanted to know if they would be spending more money there.
Under the guise of disapproving of their materialistic ways, Aang fumed and chastised the town. They, in turn, tossed the Avatar out by his robes, and informed Katara that if she wanted to stay, she was welcome, as long as she paid.
Here and now, Zuko's temper was stoked by the actions of a small child.
"It's the FIRE LORD." A boy, around the age of six or seven, gasped loudly. Katara smiled and glanced over Zuko's shoulder to look. The boy's mother shushed him and he looked perplexed.
"But it's the FIRE LORD mama. And he's with the water lady!"
"Yes, yes. Quiet now." The mother said and glanced up at her husband, who glowered down at the both of them.
"Mama, why is his face burned?" The boy asked, with no change in volume.
"Enough boy." The father said, and smacked the back of his son's head. At the sound of the hit, Zuko whirled around.
"Who dares commit violence in my presence?" Zuko bellowed. The mother, gone ghostly white, fell to her knees to hold her wailing son. The father, equally pale, bowed low.
"My apologies Fire Lord. I only meant to correct my son's irreverent behavior." He said and Katara could see him shaking slightly.
Zuko was radiating heat.
Without a word, Zuko walked past his guards and to the small boy. The mother, against her better judgement, did not move but clung to her still sobbing child.
"What is his name?" Zuko asked the mother.
"Isamu my Lord, and he meant no disrespect, he only-" Zuko held up a hand and cut her off.
"Isamu, attend your Fire Lord." He said. Still sniffling, Isamu turned in his mother's arm.
"I disrespected my father and he burned me. Because it is a father's right to discipline his son." He said sternly. Isamu's eyes turned to liquid again and his lower lip trembled.
"It is shameful, what that monster did to you." The mother said and grabbed her son closer. Her husband looked over, eyes wide with fear. Katara watched in shocked amazement; when every interaction, every single facet of Zuko's person was loaded with political pressure, this woman was dragging him out into extreme vulnerability.
No wonder her husband looked like he might die on his feet.
"Surely a son most obey his father?" Zuko asked, his voice light. The woman said nothing. Zuko shifted to the father, who turned his face down again, still bowing all this time. "But a father must delight in his son."
"I do Fire Lord. He is a most honorable and joyous son."
"Then I will not have you strike him again in public. The life between father and son must be harmonious." The man gulped and stood upright.
"I will take the great general as example then, my Fire Lord." Now even Zuko betrayed a look of surprise, though he quickly suppressed it.
"You should mind your opinions more." Zuko said before turning and walking back to the group. The man deflated and staggered back on his feet.
"Not a word Katara." Zuko muttered as he got closer. "Not right now." Katara stayed quiet and faced forward.
Now, taking over the chiefdom didn't seem so bad.
After meandering through the city proper, they made their way through the botanical garden. It was a open garden, a wedding gift from Fire Lord Azulon to Zuko's mother, though he said they never once visited it.
On the grounds were plants that produced every flower and every fruit that could be found within the Fire Nation. For a small fee, patrons of the garden could take a small basket and collect whatever produce they wanted. This had been insubstantial for many years, as most people could simply travel to the places where the flora had originated. Now, with the Fire Nation open, many foreigners came to visit Ursa Memorial Botanical Garden and the funding it generated adequately covered the maintenance.
As the royal group entered, Katara was handed a basket at no charge.
"What would you like to pick Katara?" Zuko asked as they stepped further into the humid growth.
"I haven't seen so much fruit in my life." Katara said with a laugh. Most people from the Water Tribes got their vitamins from the animals they hunted, or from dried fruits and vegetables they had traded to get. Even while travelling, Katara had never before been to a place that cultivated so many varieties.
"My mother's family kept a well stocked greenhouse in their village."
"Well that's nice."
"It was where she found out she was to marry my father."
Katara winced, but then swung her basket playfully. "Well," She started. "What was your mother's favorite?" Zuko inhaled sharply and Katara felt her heart stop.
Letting out his breath, she saw his shoulders relax. Zuko then offered his arm.
"I would love to show you." They walked along and the group relaxed enough that Zuko managed to pick some of the things himself. He named each flower and every fruit they passed, or as Katara pointed them out.
"This one is my favorite." He said as he quickly snapped a vine off a tangle. Tiny white flowers dotted the thin strands and he held them up for Katara to touch. "It's called a Kudzon Vine and the flowers give off a scent when they're brushed up against or swaying in the breeze."
"They're lovely." She said and tapped the vines. Sure enough, she could smell something sweet as she brought her hands up to her face.
"Turn around." Confused, Katara turned. She rolled her eyes as she felt Zuko put his hands on her hair.
"Where did you learn to braid?" She asked as she felt him twist the vines.
"You're kidding right? You realize we in the Fire Nation take great pride in our long hair." Zuko said as his fingers moved deftly with her hair. "Done."
Katara turned, and as she did so, she caught the edge of that same sweet smell.
"How do I look?" She asked as she tossed her hair. Zuko smiled and reached out to tuck a loose strand behind her ear. As he pulled back, he let his fingers trail across her cheek.
No words, only a smile.
"Fire Lord, it is time we returned." Chang said. Still looking at her, Zuko took in and released a deep breath.
"Yes, thank you Chang."
Travelling back to the palace wasn't a distance, but Katara felt like it took an eternity. She had become keenly aware of Zuko's presence and she would swear that she could feel the vines of flowers twisted in her hair. His touch lingered on her face and she burned.
She wondered how quickly it would consume them once they were alone in the palace again.
Once they had reached the inner courtyard however, Katara saw a woman she knew was Zuko's steward waiting for them.
"Fire Lord." The steward said as she bowed.
"Rin? What brings you out here?" Rin stood and gave him a bland look. "I forgot something didn't I." Rin blinked. "It was important wasn't it." Rin let out a small huff. "You're upset with me aren't you."
"It is amazing that the Fire Lord is so perceptive and yet so incredibly, forgetful." Katara snorted a laugh and even Zuko grinned.
"I am so glad I amuse the Fire Lord." Rin continued.
"Oh Cousin, you know I take everything you say with the utmost seriousness."
"We are NOT cousins!" Rin shouted and stamped her foot. Immediately, she took a quick breath and straightened.
"The Fire Lord has guests." She said evenly.
"Guests?" Zuko repeated.
"The Fire Lord will recall that his personal guard was to arrive this week." Zuko groaned and hit his face with his hand.
"Oh blazes I forgot that Suki was coming." Katara perked.
"Suki is here?" She asked. Rin turned her blank stare to Katara.
"The Lord Sokka has joined her."
"Sokka's here?" Katara was running before she had even realized that she had moved. She hadn't seen her brother in months and had expected not to until summer when the ice had thawed enough for travel.
His rooms were next to Katara's so she found her way there fairly quickly. Without knocking, Katara burst into the entrance room and found Sokka taking off his boots.
"Katara?" He said, boot in hand.
"Sokka!" She jumped at him and he hugged her, still holding the boot.
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm visiting Zuko."
"Where's Aang?"
"He didn't come." Sokka stayed quiet as they still hugged.
"Why are there flowers in your hair?" Katara pushed him away and reached up to pull the vines out. Instead, she paused, and lowered her hand.
"We went to the gardens in town. I think they're pretty."
"Sure they are. I just didn't think they were your thing." Sokka said and sat down on the couch.
"You didn't tell me you'd be coming here." Katara said as she watched him remove his other boot. He got to wear leather now that he was following Suki.
"I was going to write you as soon as I arrived to see if we could meet before you went home." He said and huffed as he tossed the boots aside.
"When are you going home next?" She asked him as she crossed her arms over her chest. Sokka slumped back in his seat and laid his head on the back of the couch.
"I might be going with you."
"Things not going well with Suki?"
"They aren't going at all!" Sokka threw his hands up in the air before letting them fall on his face. "She has forbidden me from talking about marriage under pain of breaking up."
Katara sat next to her brother and leaned over to look at his face. As it was being covered, she could only see the beard that was starting to grow in, thicker than she had ever seen it before.
They were all getting older it seemed.
"I'm sorry Sokka."
"Eh." Sokka grunted and threw his arms over the back of the couch. "It is what it is."
"Still. I know that must suck." She replied. Sokka turned to her and raised an eyebrow before sitting up.
"How are you and Aang?" Katara brought her legs up onto the couch and tucked her feet under her. She had never told her brother about the inner workings of her relationship with Aang, or her frustrations with home for that matter. She knew that if she had, Sokka would have come between her and anyone, including the Avatar, to stand up for her.
She didn't want to risk his friendship with Aang over something so minor.
"We, well. It's complicated." She said as she crossed her arms over the couch and nestled her chin there.
"Ah. So does he know yet?" Katara tilted her head up to look at Sokka, perplexed.
"Who? Know what?"
"Aang. Does he know that you left him yet?" Katara smiled and laid her head on her arms.
"The egomaniac hasn't even noticed that I'm gone." Sokka studied his sister and sat up, slapping his hands on his knees.
"Want to hear a secret?" Katara didn't bother sitting up.
"Sure Sokka."
"Suki wasn't training Kyoshi Warriors to guard Zuko." Katara lifted her head.
"What?"
"Suki was training Ty Lee and other Fire Nation girls in tessenjutsu to guard Zuko." Now Katara bolted up.
"What?!" Sokka laughed.
"Yup. The reason it's taken years is because Zuko didn't think it would send the right message to have Earth Kingdom warriors protecting the Fire Lord. So she's setting up a school here with Ty Lee in charge and the security detail being made up of Fire Nation gi- women. Ladies. Fire Ladies."
"Ty Lee?"
"Oh right. You two don't like each other." Sokka stood and stretched. He froze, arms out, as the door slammed open. Zuko was in the doorway, panting.
"WHY IS TY LEE HERE?" Sokka lowered his arms as Katara slapped her hand over her eyes.
"Oh right. You two don't like each other either."