iii. memories
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"The Shu Jing province is asking for a remission of taxes because of the flooding that destroyed their harvest this year," Zuko says, eyes roaming over the scrolls he holds as he and Katara walk down one of the halls of the Fire Palace. It's late, and their main source of light comes from the sconces that line the walls.
Beside him, keeping pace with his distracted stride, Katara shuffles through scrolls of her own.
"The governor is requesting to keep the extra money so that they can buy food to make up for their food shortage, but we need the money here in the capital to pay for war reparations." He frowns. He dislikes having to clean up other people's messes, but it seems like that's all he's been doing all his life, ever since he came into his own, once his mother was gone and Iroh helped him figure out how to stand on his own two feet.
He'd hoped once the war was over, that would stop, but he is still up to his neck in providing supplies and trade deals for the nations his ancestors oppressed.
"Tell them to send the money anyway and have one of the neighboring provinces send them extra food in exchange for blacksmithing help," Katara says. "You studied under Piandao; you know that region has access to some excellent smiths. That way both provinces have something they need and we can still make our payments on time. We won't have to ask for Aang's help to appease the Earth King—well, the Earth King's officials," she amends, "while we scrape the bottom of the barrel for funds to make our payments on rice taxes."
Zuko stops walking for a moment, and Katara scoots to a stop beside him. He kisses her temple and says, "This is why you were the absolute best choice for me to marry."
"Was it a competition?" she shoots back, but her smile, though distracted, is pleased.
They keep walking in the general direction of their bedroom, but they are so absorbed in their discussion that both of them jump when Mai and Ty Lee round the corner and greet them. The women are dressed in their Kyoshi Warrior garb and Mai holds a small black bundle in her hands.
"Hi, guys!" Ty Lee grins and waves.
"Spirits, Ty Lee, you're going to give me a heart attack one of these days," Zuko grumbles.
"I haven't yet, and I've known you for years," Ty Lee replies cheerfully, reaching out to pat his shoulder affectionately.
Katara is still studying one of the scrolls, but Mai shoots out a hand and knocks it away from her.
"Hey!" Katara says, finally looking up, affronted. "I was reading that!"
"I know," Mai replies drily.
"So...what's up?" Zuko asks. It can't be anything too urgent—Mai and Ty Lee are two of Suki's best warriors, and if there were a problem, they'd be quick to act and wouldn't stand here making small talk, or some semblance of it.
Mai sighs and pushes the bundle toward him. "You two need to get out."
Zuko raises his eyebrow. "...What?"
"Suki's orders," Ty Lee chirps, starting to count off reasons on her fingers as she speaks. "She says you two are working too hard, and when you work too hard, you get tired, and when you get tired, you won't be able to fight as well if it comes down to it, which we all hope it won't again, but you never know, and..."
"You need to chill out," Mai cuts in, "and live a little."
"So you're giving us black outfits?" Katara lifts a shirt from the pile that now resides in Zuko's arms. "What's that got to do with 'living a little'?"
Mai smiles, the curve of her lips small but serene. "Ask your husband," she says, "and tell him not to get caught on the spike by the eastern gate this time."
Katara turns to Zuko with a raised eyebrow.
"Uh...yeah," he says, shifting his shoulders awkwardly. "They want us to sneak out of the palace."
"...Why?"
"Because it's fun, apparently." He glares at Ty Lee, who flips onto her hands before she grins at him. "And we've been working too hard."
"You have," Ty Lee retorts from her position upside-down. "You're too busy and too responsible; when's the last time you two even skipped a meeting just for fun—"
"—and that's our cue to go." Mai rolls her eyes. "Suki and Meng are on guard tonight; we just finished our shift. They're outside your room now. Go get changed and...gallivant or whatever."
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"Whatever it is they're going to do" turns out to be sneaking out of the palace with only two "hidden" guards, dressed in black under the new moon's prevalent shadows, sneaking through city streets with no particular purpose in mind except breathing without the weight of formal strictures on them.
"I used to have some purpose when I did this," Zuko grumbles in Katara's ear when they've stopped in the shadows near an alleyway.
"Are you really complaining that we haven't found anyone committing crimes yet?" Katara asks skeptically, her own whisper breathless from the quick pace they've been keeping.
"It's not that they're not committing them," Zuko points out, "it's just that we haven't found them yet."
"Does the Fire Lord really need another vigilante to deal with?"
And Katara is off walking again, leading him through the shadows toward the near-abandoned marketplace.
"I'd need my mask for another Blue Spirit sighting to be reported."
Katara laughs, the sound bouncing softly into the dulling night.
Another dark corner, and they stop again to reorient themselves. They should head back, soon—it's past midnight now and they have meetings early.
"But your mask would make it a lot harder to do this," Katara points out, and pulls him in for a long kiss.
And this, this is better, if much more self-serving, than catching criminals or long-ago nights flying on Appa, seeking vengeance for old wrongs.
This is like he's exactly where he's supposed to be.
"There are guards—" he mutters, pulling away.
Katara grins up at him. "You think they haven't figured out we like each other yet?"
Zuko sighs. "Let's just get home."
They turn toward the palace and take their return pace a little more slowly now that they don't have a sense of urgency, of finding where they're headed in the dark.
"But let's do this again sometime soon," he says.
Katara squeezes his hand, and he returns the gesture.
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tbc.
