Chapter 1- Engagement

All parties looked on expectantly, or in Mai's case, impatiently, for Zuko to start talking again. And when he did, his voice was at once proud, scared, and eager.

"Right… well, Mai and I are getting married!"

(scene change)

Katara just sat stunned for a moment before a blooming feeling of happiness mixed with something she could not quite place flooded her system. She smiled broadly at the pair, who were in turn staring into each other's eyes as any perfect couple should.

"Way to go Hot-Head!" Toph said, smiling herself while still trying to look nonchalant, "You finally grew some courage and popped the question."

"Zukooooooo!" Sokka chimed in, looking entirely forlorn. "Why didn't you consult me first, I could have told you this was the worst decision you've ever made." His voice dropped to a more conspirational tone reserved for when he did not want the walls to hear, "Marriage… it changes people…"

Suki smacked Sokka on the side of his head with the flat of her fan. "It hasn't changed you now has it?" She asked in seeming anger, but she dropped the subject quickly to turn back to the subject at hand. "When did this happen?" She asked, and picked up her tea, bowing on it gently, "And we need to see the bracelet."

Mai took that opportunity to roll up the sleeve on her left arm, showing a gold engagement bracelet inlaid with alternating onyx and ruby stones set into the gold. The clasp was a simple but elegant dragon's head with emeralds set in as eyes. In all it was a lovely token, and had probably taken months for an experienced jeweler to make.

Zuko struggled to not look overly proud, but failed miserably. He sat up straighter, drew his shoulders back slightly, and actually broke into an all-out grin. It was an eerily out of place expression on the Fire Lord's usually neutral (or scowling) face and Katara in particular felt a pang of emotion, almost a sadness.

She'd been with Aang for three years now, and he had not made a move to really show his commitment. She knew he was still young, after all, he was only sixteen, and Katara herself was only eighteen. But even so, she'd heard of pre-betrothal gifts being exchanged between both parties, as a sort of promise to each other. She longed for the day when she could exchange her mother's betrothal necklace with one given to her by the man she loved. And while she knew Aang loved her, she wished he would show it a little more.

"Zuko decided to be really mushy last week, our anniversary, and set up this big dinner for us, the new play by the Ember Island Players.—" Ty-Lee jumped in at that point in the conversation.

"The one about Kyoshi?!" She cried, and clapped her hands happily, "That one is supposed to be really good." The rest of the group rolled their eyes. The Ember Island Players were still a terrible group of actors, but eh Fire Nation still adored them, and now that the war was over, they were going on a world tour, bringing with them a new selection of work from all around the world. Of course, the plays they did were heavily modified, and therefore they were lesser than the native productions. In fact, they were the laughingstock of the Fire Nation, at least to the rest of the world.

Katara zoned back in as Mai continued. "So anyway, during intermission, the director comes on stage and says that Zuko is there. And the crowd cheers. So he stands up, waves, and then takes my hand."

Katara, Suki, Ty-lee, and even Toph all leaned in as the story continued. "And then has me stand up too before proposing in front of the entire audience."

The girls all squealed softly when the story was finished, and Sokka nodded his solemn approval. Aang was smiling from ear to ear and shot a very embarrassed Zuko a "thumbs up" sign.

"It's not that big a deal." Zuko muttered, and took a long drink of tea.

"Of course it is!" Aang said, grinning from ear to ear. "Zuko, congratulations!" He raised his glass in a toast, and the rest of the group followed suit.

"Thanks…" He said, still looking too happy for the normally stoic young man he was.

The meal carried on for several hours, and it was only after the entire group was sufficiently stuffed full of their favorites that they retired to the gardens. The moonlight made the small ponds glisten in the night, and Katara could feel the power of the moon spirit coursing through her. She always loved the feeling of the full moon, even if it also brought up memories of Hama. She'd gotten word that Hama had passed away not too long before going to the Fire Nation, and had sent enough resources to give her a proper Water Tribe funeral. As much as the woman had become a monster, it was because of the monsters that had captured her, indeed, Katara pondered (generally on the nights of the full moon) whether Hama could have been her mentor if she had never been taken away. How different would her life have been? Would she have trained under Master Pakku? Would he be her grandfather today?

But her thoughts were broken as a soft shadow fell over her as she sat by the pond. Looking up, Katara smiled when she saw Zuko standing there.

"Mind if I sit?" He asked, and Katara made motion to the spot next to her. "You look thoughtful."

"The full moon makes me think of Hama." She answered, and Zuko nodded. He'd heard parts of the story during their trip to the Southern Raiders. "She passed away before Aang and I left to come here…"

"And you were thinking of the 'what ifs.'" Zuko concluded, and pulled a small piece of bread from his robe to feed the koi fish. Katara nodded back at him. They'd always been able to finish each others' thoughts.

The young Fire Lord started to tear the bread into pieces and toss them into the water while he continued. "I used to think about the 'what ifs' a lot actually." He said, smiling softly. "If my father hadn't banished me, you'd probably be in the Boiling Rock right now." Katara grimaced, but Zuko waved a hand at her to let him finish. "But the 'what ifs' don't change what is. You're here, celebrating the soon to be second-happiest day of my life."

Katara rolled her eyes at him, but couldn't help but find herself smiling. "Good point. I'm just being a big blah at the moment, aren't I?"

"No. You're being who I used to be."

"Same thing." Katara shot at him, and they both lapsed into familiar silence until Mai came to wrest her fiancée from her company for a moment.

"Just think about today, today's about happiness. Find what makes you happy." Zuko said, in wisdom that just hinted at the similarity Zuko would show to his Uncle later in life.

But the words "find what makes you happy" reverberated in her skull, and she found herself looking around for Aang. The young airbender made her happier than she could remember ever being. And she found him using the water to sculpt one of the carefully trimmed plants into a sculpture of Momo, which puzzled the little lemur terribly. She smiled and walked over to him. "Why are you terrorizing Momo?" She asked, her voice carrying the faintest hint of a chuckle.

"Because he needs someone to play with." Aang said, and used the water trapped within the small bush to animate it so that it could reach out and touch the confused Momo's nose. Momo started and swatted at the hand before touching the plant-lemur's nose as well. Katara simply rolled her eyes and hugged her boyfriend from behind. He paused in his plant-bending and turned his head enough to kiss her softly. "But I think he doesn't like the plant much…" He said, and turned more in her arms to return the embrace. Yes, this was what Katara really wanted, to be in the strong tattooed arms of the Avatar, Aang, the man she loved.

But then all too soon it was time to retire. Her brother and Suki left for the comforts of their bedroom, eyes glinting with the promise that neither would be getting much sleep. Zuko and Mai did likewise, though with much more subtle grace than Sokka showed ("Woo-hoo! Gonna sleep with my wife!"). Katara and Aang however, were left to their own devices when Toph left them for the comforts of the dark room in the basement she had requested. "See ya." She said, waving one hand absently behind her, Ty-Lee followed, saying something about redecorating the room so that it would be perfect for Tophs aura. "My aura? I can't even see my aura."

"Right…" Ty-Lee said, looking very disappointed. "Well. It won't matter. It'll still help you become a fuller person." She said, and patted Toph on the head like she was some kind of pet. Toph for her part used her space-bracelet to wrap around Ty-Lee's wrist and pull her off before letting go. "Aww…" She said… but still followed after the master earth bender. "You'll like it, I promise!"

Katara smiled and took Aang by the hand softly. "I think it's time for us to go to bed too." She said, doing her best to not look too hopeful.

"I think you're right." The Avatar replied. "Let's go before Toph causes a rock slide." Katara smiled at him fondly and kissed him, still finding it a bit odd that he had grown so much, he was slightly taller than her now, and while it was more than pleasant, it was still not what expected when kissing him.

"Well, you could just move the earth yourself." Katara commented, and felt herself blush scarlet while Aang looked sheepish.

"Katara…" He started, and she sighed.

"I know, monk oath." She finished, As the Avatar, there was nothing to stop Aang from getting married and having a family, but as an Air Nomad, men and women were traditionally separated into different temples, only coming together at certain times of year. Air Bending was passed on differently than the other arts, and occurred more randomly, no one had as of yet figured out the pattern.

But this celibacy thing was really starting to get to her. And she could tell it was wearing on him as well. They were watching all around them as their family and friends got married. First Sokka and Suki in a traditional Kyoshi Island ceremony ("The theme of weddings is 'whatever the bride wants.'" Sokka had joked just before taking vows.) and now Mai and Zuko as leaders of the Fire Nation.

"So, what are we going to do?" Katara asked, breaking the silence that had fallen between them in the stoic beauty of the garden.

"I don't know…" Aang said, his face twisting into a mask of uncertainty she had only seen once before: when he was preparing to face Fire Lord Ozai. "Why don't we sleep on it?"

Katara nodded, and together, hand in hand, they retreated to their separate bedchambers, parting with a chaste kiss and fleeting glances.

Author's End Note: Trouble in paradise? Maybe. But don't worry, there will be Kataang good ness (followed by Zutara goodness) later. I promise. As always, read and review. I love hearing what people think of my writing, good, bad, or otherwise.