I know, it's very late, but this one was difficult to write...
Anyway, here's my contribution for Day 2; another "Katara's-life-in-the-Fire-Nation-after-the-war".
It's actually ridiculous; here I was thinking the fic for Day 1 would be the longest one this week and this one ends up being even longer, I don't know why it's so hard for me to write stuff with a normal length... X/
Not so much Zutara-action in this one, I'm afraid, sorry if it's boring...
How Katara would try to win the people's confidence if she was to become Fire Lady is just something I've been thinking about a lot, and hopefully this turned out pretty well in that aspect :)
Hope you like it, despite the lack of Zutara-fluff! There will be a lot of that in the upcoming fics, I promise ;)
*I don't own Avatar or any of its characters!
Jubilant
Katara woke to the soft sound of even, heavy breathing. A smile broke across her face as she opened her eyes and was greeted with the face of the sleeping Fire Lord. She'd never get tired of this; waking up beside him and watching his calm expression as he slept.
Yet, there was something in the back of her mind that gnawed at her and ruined this perfect moment.
It was the morning after the festivities of the one-year anniversary of the end of the war. The peace had finally started to settle in, and people where more than willing to celebrate. The preparations for the celebration had started months ago and the feast had lasted for days. And indeed had Zuko sealed the feast with a statement that would unleash a chain of more festivities.
Katara's fingers brushed the new necklace that had been strapped around her neck only a night ago. She was filled with so much happiness, yet at the same time there was something that bothered her, and it wouldn't let go.
Careful not to wake Zuko, Katara untangled herself from the sheets and grabbed a dressing-gown from a chair next to the bed. She strolled over to one of the many windows in the Fire Lord's chamber and gazed out into the daylight. In the distance, past the large gates surrounding the palace, Katara could see the citizens up and walking in the morning sun. This had been her home for the last couple of months and she supposed she'd better get used to it, seeing as she soon would be sitting on its throne next to Zuko.
With a frown on her face, Katara turned around and stalked into the dressing room interconnected with the bedchamber. She had started keeping at least a couple of her own robes in the Fire Lord's quarters; you never knew when she'd be spending the night in Zuko's bed and being caught walking around the palace in nothing but a dressing-gown was not something she wished for.
She absent-mindedly pulled out a long-sleeved sky-blue dress and disappeared behind a screen to get changed.
She stopped by the door to throw a last glance at her still sleeping husband-to-be, and then slipped out the door and leaving Zuko's quarters.
First, Katara headed for her own chamber to wash up and pull her hair into an elegant Southern Water tribe updo. Then she left for the dining hall to get some breakfast.
All the curtains had been pulled back and Katara was greeted by daylight as she stepped into the great room. She received a warm smile from General Iroh, who was already seated at the end of the large table. Katara returned the smile and sat down next to him. In front of her was a whole buffet of various breads, cheeses, meats and a big bowl of fruits.
Iroh poured some tea into a cup and held it out to her. "Good morning, Lady Katara."
Katara took the teacup and smiled a thanks. "Good morning."
Iroh took a sip of his own tea and gestured at her necklace. "I must congratulate you. I'm sure you will make an excellent addition to the royal family", he said happily.
Katara let out a breath and forced a smile.
The General tilted his head to the side slightly and looked at her with concern. "Is something wrong, my dear?" he questioned. Then his eyes widened. "You are not regretting accepting Zuko's proposal, are you?"
"No", Katara answered quickly. "No, of course not. I love Zuko, with all my heart, and I want nothing more than to be with him." Katara paused and a frown found its way onto her face. "It's just that... by marrying Zuko, I'm not just becoming his wife...", she trailed off.
Iroh watched her for a moment. "You're concerned about the responsibilities of being Fire Lady", he finally said.
Katara nodded. "How will the people react to their Fire Lord marrying a commoner from the South Pole? And I know nothing about how to rule a nation, except for the things I've seen Zuko do. I don't know how to take care of a whole people..."
"Katara", Iroh said gently. "I have grown to know you as one of the most compassionate, caring persons I know. And if I'm not mistaken, you've always been the one to take on responsibilities. You have all the most important features in you already."
Katara sighed. "Maybe. But I hardly know anything about the Fire Nation, or the people for that matter..."
The old General's face turned thoughtful. "Every city has two sides", he finally said. "There is the one we surround ourselves in every day; the part where people live in wealth and prosperity – the Fire Nation is a very wealthy kingdom. But there are always those who does not get their share in that wealth. In the countryside, there are a couple of villages that are near the breaking point, as you may have noticed during your travels. I'm afraid my brother did not care about the people in those villages. However, maybe it could be useful to you if you would visit that side of this city-"
Iroh was interrupted as the doors to the dining hall swung open and Zuko walked into the room. He was dressed in one of his lighter Fire Lord robes, it was formal but didn't have too many layers, and his hair was pulled back in a top knot, the golden crown shining on top of his head.
"Good morning", he greeted cheerfully and leant down to place an affectionate kiss on Katara's cheek. He grabbed a dark red, round fruit Katara couldn't remember the name of and tossed it into the air only to catch it, before he took a bite. He walked over and took a seat on the other side of Iroh.
"You're in an awfully good mood today, nephew", Iroh said and looked at Zuko with a raised eyebrow.
"Why wouldn't I be?" Zuko answered and smiled widely at his uncle. "I'm having breakfast with my uncle and my wife-soon-to-be", he continued and turned to Katara with a dazzling smile, that Katara couldn't help but return.
"So, is everything prepared for the announcement?" Zuko asked and turned back to Iroh.
"Yes, we will be ready for the two of you in an hour", Iroh replied and shot a glance at Katara.
She had completely forgotten about the announcement. In an hour, her and Zuko would stand in front of the whole capital to declare their betrothal. Her breath caught in her throat. She wasn't ready for that. But you won't be alone – Zuko will stand right next to you, she tried to calm herself.
Pushing her concerns aside, she engaged in a conversation with her companions and had some more tea and a couple of fruits.
An hour later, as she stood at the very same place Zuko had during his coronation, looking out over the crowd of citizens, Katara was reminded of Iroh's advice. Indeed, she had seen some of the places that didn't take part in the wealth during her travels through the Fire Nation with Aang and the others. Maybe it actually was a good idea to get to know that side of this city as well. She noted that she'd have to thank Iroh for the advice later.
Katara was running in the moonlight. Running and jumping from roof to roof in the central part of the Fire Nation capital. She had sneaked out of the palace; with the help of some water she had gotten on top of the wall surrounding the palace and then lunged herself onto the roof of a nearby building. She could have just said she wanted to take a walk and left through the main gates, but then she would have to bring a whole procession of guards; the future Fire Lady was not to walk around the city in the middle of the night all alone. But for this mission to be worthwhile, she needed to go alone.
And for the record, where would be the fun in taking the easy way – the one that was expected of her? She felt free as she swung over the rooftops. It felt good to do something that exercised her body. She hadn't trained properly in weeks.
Suddenly there was no more rooftops in front of her. She spotted buildings maybe a hundred feet away, and between them and her a water canal.
Deciding bending would be the best way to continue, she looked about, and as she couldn't see anyone, she pulled a pretty large amount of water up to her from the canal.
Katara threw herself at the pillar of water and let it lower her to the ground swiftly. She wasted no time and sprinted towards the canal, bringing the water with her and creating a temporary bridge over the canal which she could easily slide over by freezing some of the water underneath her feet. Landing safely on the ground on the other side of the canal, she put the water back into the furrow and turned to look around her.
These buildings were not as extravagant as the ones surrounding the palace. She realized she was closer to the lower town now and decided to continue by foot. The streets were darker than in the central city, only occasionally lit by lanterns strapped to wooden posts.
As she walked on, the buildings became smaller and smaller and after about a half hour, she came across the first ramshackle house. These became more and more the further she walked until she stopped at a street where all the houses looked like this. Some of the roofs had holes and entire walls had collapsed. There were no street lights, the only light coming from the moon and the feeble candles lit in the houses, confirming to Katara that people – soon her people – actually lived like this.
Katara felt a stab of pain and was immediately reminded of the different rings in Ba Sing Se. During all these months she had stayed in the capital, she had never even thought about the city it self – she was too isolated in the palace.
It was quiet. The only sound was a low hum of voices coming from a building to her left. Relative to the other buildings around Katara, she observed that this one had fared quite well. Above the door hung a sign with fading red words. The Wilting Fire Lily it said.
Katara scoffed humourlessly. Suitable name, she thought bitterly and strode towards the house. Opening the door to what seemed to be a tavern, she was met by soft light from candles placed all around the room. There was at least a dozen persons scattered around various tables. The ones sitting closest to the door looked up at her as she stepped inside.
Katara pulled at her hood, making sure it concealed her face. Eyes like hers weren't common in the Fire Nation and she was the Fire Lord's intended after all; surely even these people could recognize her.
She walked over to an empty table in the corner of the room and took a seat. She let her eyes sweep across the room to the other tavern guests. Absent-mindedly, she wondered how they could live in hovels and still afford to visit the tavern, until she noticed they all had similar tin cups, and the steam that arose from some of them. She realized this "tavern" probably didn't offer anything else than tea.
Suddenly a conversation floated over to Katara's ears from the nearest table. "I think she will be good to the Fire Nation. Maybe some variation in the blood line is just what we need", Katara heard an old woman say.
"Nah, I don't trust her", a man sitting next to the woman said. "Isn't she just some country wench from the South Pole? What does she know about ruling a whole nation? How could she possibly know anything about us?"
"Now you're just being mean, Ganjou", the woman replied. "I trust the Fire Lord, and he must have chosen her for a reason."
Ganjou scoffed. "I heard she's a pretty one. Big, exotic blue eyes."
The older woman hit him in the back of his head. "I'm sure there's more to Lady Katara than that! I have high hopes for her."
The third companion at the table then spoke for the first time; "Don't let yourself hope for too much", he said in a bitter voice. "I hoped that the new Fire Lord would have more sense than his father and pay attention to our problems, but here we are, a year later and nothing has changed." He paused for a moment and looked down at the cup in his hands. "It doesn't matter where they come from, they're all the same. None of them cares about us", he finished.
"But you're forgetting that these two fought at the Avatar's side – they ended the war", the woman said to her companion.
The man looked up at her. "Ever heard the phrase 'Power corrupts'?" he said and took a sip of his now cold tea.
To this, there came no reply and Katara decided she had had enough. She silently rose and stalked out of the tavern, ignoring the curious looks she received.
A frown had formed on her face. Was that really how people thought of her? And Zuko, for that matter. People thought they were corrupted and didn't care about the people, like Ozai?
Katara was about to take off back towards the palace, when she heard a low groan. She turned her head towards the sound and saw a man on the ground. He leant his back against a wall and pressed a shaking hand to his side.
Katara walked over to him and knelt at his side. The stench told her he hadn't had a bath in months. Katara put a hand on his shaking arm and gently pulled his hand away from his side. Even in the dim light, she could see that the wound was deep, on its way to get infected. She slowly reached into her cloak and opened her water pouch, pulling the water to envelope her hand.
The man winced as her hand appeared again and Katara offered him a comforting smile. She placed her hand over the wound and evoked her healing abilities inside her. The water started glowing and the man gasped.
She worked on the wound in silence for a few minutes, all the while aware of the man's mesmerized stare. When she pulled her hands away, nothing was left but a tiny, white mark. The man gasped again and when Katara looked up at him, she was met with a mix of astonishment, gratitude and a bit fear.
Katara reached into her cloak again and produced a gold coin. She took the man's hand and sealed it around the coin with a smile.
"Are you...?" the man trailed off in bafflement.
Katara pulled her hood back a little, enough to reveal her face and nodded. She placed a finger over her lips and rose from the ground. She smiled at him one last time before turning around and starting to walk away.
"Thank you", she heard the man call after her. She stopped and gave him a nod over her shoulder, then continued to walk back the same way she'd come.
As she ran across the rooftops in the central part of the city, Katara wondered how she could have stayed so ignorant for so long. Did Zuko know about this "other side" of the capital? How could the past Fire Lords have let it go so far?
Though one thing she knew for certain; she would not let it stay this way for long.
When Katara woke the following morning, the first thing she did was to go search for Iroh.
She found him sitting in one of the conservatories with a cup of tea in his hand.
"Ah, good morning, Lady Katara", he greeted with a smile as she approached.
Katara didn't return either the greeting nor the smile. She knew it was rude, but this was too important for such waste of time.
"I went to the lower town last night", she went straight to the point and sat down in front of him at the table. "It's just like you said; it was a completely different side of the city. Much like Ba Sing Se", she said with a frown.
"Yes, it is much like the capital of the Earth Kingdom", Iroh agreed, not at all bothered by her uncharacteristic behaviour. "All great cities are, unfortunately, the same in this matter. The only difference is that in Ba Sing Se, it has been accepted and allowed to form the society."
"But how come I haven't heard of any of this until now? How come Zuko's not been informed? We have to do something about it!" Katara said heatedly.
A frown appeared on the General's face as well. "You see, Katara, matters have been very delicate since Zuko was crowned Fire Lord. Many things have been much more urgent to deal with, such as rebellions towards Zuko, attempts to free my brother from prison and simply readjust the world to an era of peace, whereas the lower town has been this way for decades", Iroh answered thoughtfully, before sharpening his gaze on Katara. "But I agree with you that it is about time we focus on helping the people in our city."
Katara nodded and furrowed her brows. "But I don't want to put this on Zuko's shoulders; his burden is already heavy enough", Katara mused. Then she looked up at the General. "Maybe you can help me, Iroh?"
Iroh smiled warmly at her. "It would be my pleasure. When do we begin?"
Katara's face brightened up. "Well, now", she said with a smile and rose from the table. "I'll inform Zuko we're going out, so I'll meet you at the front gate in maybe an hour?"
"That will be perfect, I'll make sure we've got all we need", the General replied with a wink.
Katara smiled widely as she turned around to go find Zuko.
Three hours later, Katara and Iroh reached the open space where Katara had stopped the previous night; the street with the tavern. In daylight, she realized it was a square. Here and there were little stands selling fruits, which according to Katara didn't look too fresh, and strange-looking meats.
Katara had ordered the guards to stay on at least sixty feet behind herself and Iroh, and they had not yet reached the square.
This place looked even worse in daylight; Katara could now see that almost every roof had large holes and the streets where covered in dirt.
Katara then noticed a flash of movement from the corner of her eye, and turned her head to see what it was. She saw a little girl, probably not older than eight, swiftly sneak up to a stand selling mushy apples and reaching to grab one. As the man behind the stand caught sight of her, he immediately started yelling.
"Keep your filthy hands off my apples, you little thief!"
As the man raised his arm to hit the girl, Katara took off towards the stand and just as his hand came down towards the girl, Katara stepped in front of the child. She raised her own arm to deflect the blow and winced at the pain that shot through her forearm.
"Stop that!" she bellowed and bored her eyes into the man's. He stared at her in bewilderment, but eventually pulled his arm back and took a step backwards.
Katara turned away from him and looked at the girl. She was malnourished and her clothes where torn.
Katara turned back to the stand and produced a silver coin from her pocket. Tossing it to the man, she grabbed three apples and knelt in front of the child.
"Here you go", Katara said and held out the fruit for the girl to take. "What's your name?" she questioned with a gentle smile.
The girl carefully accepted the apples and stacked them in her arms. "Qui La", she then answered quietly.
"That's a beautiful name", Katara said softly. "Where is your family, Qui La?"
The girl gave a tiny smile at the compliment. "They're waiting for me to get back with food..." She averted her eyes as if feeling ashamed.
"How many are you?" Katara continued questioning.
"Six."
Katara tilted her head so that she could see Qui La's eyes. "Well, then three apples is not nearly enough. Let's buy some more food and then go find them, shall we?"
The girl looked at Katara in bafflement and then nodded with another tiny smile.
Katara smiled back at the child and added; "My name is Katara, by the way." Then she rose and turned around and waved to a guard, who was now stood in a side-street just outside the square, to come over to her.
As the guard stepped out into the square, a confused mumbling arose from the crowd standing about, watching the turn of events.
Someone seemed to have noticed Iroh now as well, because suddenly someone gasped and stuttered; "It's the Lady Katara and the Dragon of the West!"
The mumbling increased in volume and there were a few other gasps as well.
Katara turned back to the girl, who now looked rather afraid to be in the presence of soon-to-be royalty. "The Lady Katara...?" Qui La mumbled.
Katara just shook her head with a smile and knelt in front of her again. "There's no need to call me that. Just call me Katara." She gestured to the guard. "Now, let that big strong man carry the food; we've got some shopping to do", she said and held out her hands to take the apples.
Qui La placed the fruit in her hands in astonishment. Katara rose and handed the apples to the guard, then turned back to the girl and held out her hand. "Come, let's buy some food."
The child just stared at the hand for a moment, then looked up at Katara with a bright smile and took the hand.
A half hour later, Katara and Qui La, hand in hand, reached the girl's family's house. Behind them walked the guard with a basket full of food.
It had taken about ten minutes for the girl to loosen up, but after that she had started talking, telling Katara about her brothers and sisters. In return, Katara had told Qui La about Sokka and the South Pole and how she had discovered Aang in the iceberg.
As Qui La pushed the door to her house open, Katara turned around and took the basket from the guard with a smile and a polite nod, telling him to stay outside. Then she stepped into the house after the girl.
Katara felt a pang of sadness as she saw that the house was as dilapidated on the inside as it was on the outside. Though, she told herself, she had done something good for the family, at least for now.
A woman stepped into the room from what Katara supposed would have been the kitchen, had the ceiling not fallen in and covered half the space.
The woman's eyes widened at the sight of Katara. "Qui La, who is this?" she questioned, surprise colouring her voice.
Qui La smiled widely. "This is Lady Katara", she said excitedly. "Katara, this is my mother", she then said and gestured to the woman.
The woman's mouth fell open as she stared at Katara. "The Lady Katara...?" she said astounded, copying her daughter's reaction when she had found out who Katara was.
The little girl practically bounced up and down. "Yes! She stopped a man from hitting me and then bought food for us!" she told her mother happily.
Katara laughed at Qui La's excitement and stepped forward, holding out the basket for the woman to take. "It was the least I could do", she said gently.
Qui La's mother snapped out of her bafflement and took the basket, before bowing deeply. "Thank you, my lady!"
Katara placed a hand on the woman's shoulder. "Please, that's not necessary. I'm just glad I was there and could help", she said sincerely. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a handful of gold coins and placed them at an empty spot in the basket. "Here, this should last for a while", she said and then turned to Qui La. "So you won't have to steal again any time soon." Her tone was gentle, seeing as she knew the girl hadn't had a choice.
When Katara looked back to Qui La's mother, she saw that tears had formed in her eyes. "I cannot say how grateful I am", she said truthfully.
Katara smiled warmly and gave the woman's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "It was my pleasure", she answered, then turned and knelt in front of the little girl once more. "I must be going now, I abandoned my escort." Disappointment showed on the girl's face at this. "It was very nice to meet you, Qui La", Katara added and the girl's face brightened up a bit.
"Will I meet you again?" Qui La asked hopefully.
"I'm sure you will", Katara assured. "This is not my last visit. But until then, be a good girl and stay out of trouble, okay?"
Qui La nodded with a smile and threw her arms around Katara's neck. Katara hugged her back, before she rose and turned to leave.
Before she could step out of the house, Qui La's mother's voice reached her ears. "You will be a wonderful Fire Lady, Your Majesty."
Katara turned her head and gave a smiling nod to the woman, and then closed the door behind her.
Stepping out onto the street, Katara was greeted by Iroh's smiling face. Apparently he had caught up to her.
"I believe it augurs well for the Fire Nation, having you as the future Fire Lady", he said with a raised eyebrow.
A faint blush spread across Katara's face as she started walking back towards the square with Iroh.
The following few days, Katara spent in the lower town, taking notes on everything that needed her attention.
She visited the infirmaries and ordered her head guard to make sure all of them where given proper medicines and healing gear, and actually healed a couple of the patients herself.
She investigated the food sources of the lower town, creating a better system that would deliver fresh vegetables and fruits and teaching the salesmen how to take care of the food before selling it.
And three weeks after Katara's first visit in the lower town, the reconstruction project was ready to begin. She had hired educated architects and construction workers, but had also offered anyone in the lower town to come help in the rebuilding for wages, and in doing so, giving many opportunity to start build a proper economy.
Of course, all of this cost a great deal. But since the war had ended and Zuko had replaced Ozai as Fire Lord, the investment in developing the military had decreased significantly, and Katara had persuaded Zuko's advisor to let her use the spare funds to bring the lower town back on its feet.
Katara felt quite proud of her work, she knew Zuko did too. And this was only the beginning; as soon as her attention was no longer needed in the reconstruction of the capital, her work would move on to the poor villages in the countryside of the Fire Nation.
She had taken it upon her as her responsibility and goal to make sure no one in need would be ignored in the Fire Nation. After all, she would never turn her back on people who needed her.
So, when she, two years after the end of the war, stood in front of the whole capital and many visitors from all around the world, Katara felt none of the worries she had felt a year ago. She stood there next to Zuko, in a light white-blue dress with golden rimming and a golden crown attached to her hair. And in front of her, she saw nothing but cheering, happy faces. She saw citizens from the central part of the capital, citizens from the lower town and villagers from the various villages she had helped, along with people from all around the world, all come to witness a royal wedding. And all so wonderfully jubilant.
"I've never seen the people this happy", Zuko said beside her. He turned to her with admiration in his eyes. "You will be the most loved Fire Lady in all times."
Katara smiled widely at him. "Maybe", she said. "But only next to my beloved Fire Lord."
Zuko smirked and pulled her close. "Deal", he said, before leaning in and sealing their agreement with a breathtaking kiss.