Disclaimer: We don't own Avatar.
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Chapter 3: Selections
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Zuko hadn't expected the necklace and proposal to go over as well as it had. After a whole day of listening to his council members bicker over every issue that came up, he'd developed a pessimistic view. Thankfully, Mai's only problem was the lack of time she got with him, not that he wasn't treating her well enough. The Water Tribe style necklace had been a stretch, too, but at Sokka's wedding, he'd gotten the idea stuck in his head. Fire Nation traditions would do well enough for the wedding, but the necklace would be the perfect way to send a message to all those girls hoping to steal him away from Mai. He led Mai back to the party. "I need to talk to your father," he whispered. "Is he upstairs?"
Mai nodded, a bit disappointed that he was leaving, but knowing that the reason had to do with her. "I'll stay with Katara. See you."
Zuko kissed Mai's forehead and waded through the throngs of girls to reach the stairs.
Mai went in a different direction and found Katara. Mai was suddenly unable to talk, though, as the things she would have said got caught in her throat. She managed to replace her old mask, however, and was back in her safe place.
Katara was eyeing the necklace around Mai's neck, which looked distinctly like a betrothal necklace, but she stayed quiet, deciding to let Mai decide what she wanted to talk about.
"Um, hello? I'm Topekaia. You must be Mai."
Mai whirled around to see a rather odd looking young woman standing in front of her. She was dressed in a long dark red skirt with golden edging and a golden yellow blouse. She was smiling a gentle but confident smile, her gold eyes glittering under unusually expressive eyebrows.
"Who are you?" Mai asked, irritated at being caught between mask changes.
The young woman showed little surprise at her retort. "I am Topekaia. I just moved here from what used to be the Fire Nation colonies. Fire Lord Zuko told me I could meet you here, and when I saw you I simply came over. Sorry if I startled you."
Mai tried to reclaim her mask. "Yes..." It wasn't working. Maybe some polite formality would work. "Fire Lord Zuko sent you?" Mai's eyes drifted to the stairs where Zuko had disappeared. Why hadn't he warned her? "What did he send you for, if you don't mind my asking?"
"Well, he interviewed me earlier today between his meetings. Apparently I am to protect you, as in be your body guard, but I am going to pretend to be your lady in waiting. I'm sorry, I thought he had told you."
Mai's face turned red. "That man..." She glanced at Katara and then back. "All right, suit yourself. I guess I need someone to keep me from getting bored when Zuko isn't around. You'd better be good at conversation."
Topekaia seemed surprised at this. "Um, conversation?"
Mai nodded. "Either you talk to me or you know how to fight. I'll want someone to practice with. How are you with these?" Mai brandished a knife.
Topekaia smiled. "I can converse if that's what you want. I just wasn't expecting that to be my job. Besides, I am a fire bender, not a shuriken expert."
Mai shrugged. "Figures." She glanced at Katara again as she put away her knife. "Well, I expect I'll be able to make you an expert. You'll have to learn how not to be pinned to the wall." In a rare moment of trying to befriend someone, Mai winked. "Since you apparently passed Zuko's inspection, you can't be bad, so I guess you're my friend now. This is Katara."
Topekaia smiled again. "Hello, Katara." She turned to Mai. "Thank you. It's kind of odd for me to be here in the Fire Nation. I've lived in the colonies all my life. You have so many rules and policies."
Mai smirked. "We… I mean… Zuko is trying to fix that. Fire Lord Zuko, I mean." She shook her head. "I'm so informal about him. Sorry."
Katara couldn't contain her curiosity any longer. "Excuse me, Mai, but is that what I think it is?" Katara nodded towards Mai's necklace.
Mai grinned, startling Katara. "If you mean: 'Is that a Water Tribe style engagement necklace?' Then yes, it is what you think it is."
Katara grinned back. Then something occurred to her. "Where did Zuko go?"
Mai grinned again. "He's upstairs talking to my father… Mysteriously."
Katara grinned at Mai, knowing what that meant.
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Mai's mother clapped her hands together sharply. "Attention, everyone! The ceremony is about to begin!"
Some of the girls appeared interested, and some appeared annoyed. The former governor of Omashu and the Fire Lord came down the stairs, both beaming excitedly.
Mai silently glided to the low table and sat down. She looked distantly around the room, making sure that everyone could see her bored look.
Mai's mother clapped her hands again.
Some annoyed-looking servants brought out some trays of food and placed them in front of Mai, along with an empty one for her selections.
"What does this mean?" Katara whispered to Topekaia.
"All these foods symbolize possible futures for Mai's children. They do this at weddings, too, but by then, the couple eats together. This is just for her."
Katara frowned. "What do all those foods mean?"
Topekaia decided to give Katara a play-by-play commentary.
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Mai examined each option carefully, but made no move to touch one. Any such movement would mean her choice was finalized.
The first tray was for meats. A clam-crab was in the center of it. Mai mused that that was the one her mother wanted her to choose, as it symbolized military strength. However, Mai knew it would be bad for Zuko's new peaceful image if she were to choose such a thing.
Mai's gaze shifted to the fruits. They were much easier to choose from. She quickly took an orange for good fortune, even though she hated the color of it. She also took slices of melon, a symbol of family unity. She hazarded a glance at Zuko as she held up the melon.
Zuko got her message. It said: "Our family will stay together." He grinned in response, nodding slightly to show he understood.
She also took the slice of pomegranate, and sent Zuko a shy smile. The many seeds symbolized many sons.
Zuko appreciated this one, too, and nodded approval.
"You forgot one of the fruits!" Mai's mother shouted indignantly.
"We… ran out of room…"
"Find some place to put the apple!" Mai's mother stalked over to the servant. "Never mind, I will!" She came back over to Mai. "Just take this one, Mai," she said, and placed the apple on Mai's head, as it was the only part of Mai she could reach without bending over.
Zuko laughed hysterically, and Mai locked eyes with him. Soon, both of them were laughing in a very undignified manner.
Mai tipped her head forward and caught the apple before placing it on her plate. "Peace and hope," she said through her continued outbursts.
"And young love?" Zuko offered.
Mai was back laughing in full force. "I'm sorry, everyone," she said, and scooped up the banana of education.
Turning back to the more complicated meats, Mai selected duck. Just your average, run-of-the-mill duck. Not turtleduck, which could possibly have offended Zuko. Run-of-the-mill duck symbolized marital happiness, anyway.
Then, with a triumphant smile, she took peacock swan.
Mai's mother huffed a bit, but remained relatively silent. She was a bit offended that Mai was telling everyone she'd selected a husband; the willfulness of that statement was annoying. But since the Fire Lord was the lucky man and he was in the room, the wife of the ex-governor knew it would be unwise to object.
"I have finished my selections," Mai said solemnly.
The former governor offered Mai a decorative knife to cut her food with and some finely carved chopsticks.
Mai gave him a smirk and pulled out some throwing needles and a flying dagger instead. She took small bits of the meats and quickly ate the fruits.
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"Is all of that important?" Katara whispered.
"Yes. If you'll notice, there's a pair of scribes recording Mai's every movement." Topekaia indicated these scribes, standing behind Mai.
"Even her laughing with Zuko?"
"I'm sure they recorded that especially," Topekaia said. "Among the nobility, that much free expression is slightly… uncouth."
"That accounts for a lot," Katara muttered.
"You said it." Topekaia sighed. "From what I've heard, our Lady Mai over there does her best to keep her every emotion under wraps. Is that true?"
Katara nodded. "Extremely true."
"I'll have to talk to her about that," Topekaia concluded.
With the ceremony over, Mai's father grinned proudly. "My daughter Mai is finally old enough to be married."
Zuko crossed the room and stood behind Mai with his hands on her shoulders. "On top of that, she's mine. Do you all see this necklace she's wearing?" His hand, for a moment, was close to dangerous territory as he fingered the apple gem charm. "As long as she wears it, she is accepting her role as my future wife. I borrowed from the Water Tribes on this one, so it is official. After speaking with her father, it has been decided that we will be married this time next month." Zuko leaned around to kiss Mai's cheek.
A second later, the entire assembly was in shock. Not merely from the Fire Lord's display of public affection, but from the sound coming from Mai. It was a giggle. The giggle seemed to echo through the room.
Zuko was pleased. He moved to running his fingers over her neck, outlining the necklace's ribbon. "That was beautiful, Mai," he whispered.
"What… was…that?" Mai's mother, had she been a firebender, would have blasted through the roof. "You know better than that!"
Mai's smile disappeared. She looked down, blushing with shame.
Zuko felt something in him snap. That display of contempt was more than he could take. He put on a mask of his own, one of polite calm, but not boredom. He walked regally to Mai's mother, and seemed to take her into confidence. "Do anything to disrupt her happiness, and you'll have to deal with me. Understood?" His eyes betrayed his anger.
The noblewoman could find nothing to say, so she nodded.
The former governor of Omashu stared at his daughter as if he'd never seen her before. "I can't remember ever hearing her laugh like that… she's happy." The old man shook his head, looking from Mai to Zuko. Then he bowed. "I thank you for bringing my daughter out of her state of numbness."
Mai covered her mouth to hide her gleeful smile, and quickly wiped her tears away.
Zuko grinned at Mai's father. Then he looked to Katara.
Katara gestured to Mai.
Zuko saw Mai trying desperately not to overflow with emotions. He strode back over to her, and then took her hand away from her mouth, hiding her hand in his own. Then he wiped her tears away. "I hope I've made my point. You're free to go home," he said to the guests.
Katara ran up to Mai and Zuko as the guests started drifting out, Topekaia in tow.
"That was great!" Topekaia said.
"I especially liked that last part," Katara said with a laugh. "Who knew Mai could laugh like that?"
"I did!" Zuko said triumphantly, hugging Mai. "I've discovered a few ways to get her to do that." He rocked Mai a bit.
"I can't believe you said all that out loud." Mai watched Katara and Topekaia, but was beginning to be lulled to sleep. "Zuko, do you want me to fall asleep? That's what will happen if you keep that up."
"Not really, but I wouldn't mind." Zuko hid his face in the side of Mai's neck. "It would be comfortable."
"Calm down, you two; Mai's mom is watching," Katara cautioned.
Zuko looked up from overwhelming Mai and smirked. "I wouldn't stop kissing my girl for Azula. Why should I be embarrassed in front of anyone else?" He then put is face in Mai's hair.
"You are such a dork." Mai squirmed, her skin tickled by Zuko's breath. "Are you free tomorrow?"
"I'm never free," came Zuko's muffled voice. "Sorry."
Mai sighed, looking Katara in the eye. "He's hopeless," she said as Zuko began kissing her neck. "He's also getting too comfortable."
Katara and Topekaia giggled, but Zuko didn't budge. "If you ask me, I'm not comfortable enough." Zuko abruptly spun Mai around, pressing his lips onto hers.
Katara nervously looked at Mai's mother. That woman was watching indignantly. "Maybe you shouldn't…"
Zuko opened one eye and rolled it.
Topekaia elbowed Katara. "Do they do this often?"
Katara shrugged. "When Zuko's stressed, Mai calms him down this way. When he's happy, he celebrates with Mai like this. I'm guessing it's a cure-all."
Zuko released a now half delirious Mai and held her, breathing hard. "Usually we hide, but in this case, I'm impatient. Do you mind? Once she gets like this, the real fun is about to begin."
"Don't… talk about… me like… I'm not here!" Mai felt as if maybe she wasn't completely all there, anyway. All the practice Mai had allowed Zuko had made him a great kisser.
"Is she going to be all right?" Katara asked Zuko.
Zuko laughed. "She's done this before. She'll be fine… more than fine, actually."
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Later, after Zuko had left and as the servants were cleaning, Mai leaned over to Katara and whispered, "I need a personal interview with the new girl. Could you please distract my parents so they don't blow it?"
"What do you mean 'blow it?'" Katara asked, already eyeing Mai's parents.
"I mean, that they can't know what her real job is. She could just be considered a handmaiden… but a bodyguard… not so much."
Katara nodded because she had no reply. She wasn't sure about the relationship between Mai and her parents, but she decided not to pry.
As Katara moved over to Mai's parents, Mai attempted to free Topekaia from the clutches of her mother. "Mom, I want to talk to my friend," she said. "She's been assigned as my handmaiden by Fire Lord Zuko. So, please leave her alone."
Mai's mother was a bit surprised that Mai had taken an actual stance on something besides Zuko, but backed off, anyway. As soon as Mai and Topekaia were a safe distance off, Katara caught her with a polite question.
Mai whisked Topekaia off to another room.
"You said you were from the colonies, right?"
"Yes, I was born here, but my family moved away when I started my fire bending training so that I wouldn't be forced to join a war that they didn't believe in."
"How could they not believe in it when everyone was telling them it was the right thing?"
"Well, my parents were believers in the idea of balance. They didn't think that the Fire Nation was any better than the others."
"I envy you, then. I never really gave it a second thought."
Topekaia shrugged. "Most people didn't. They were brainwashed by Fire Lord Azulon into believing that the war was for the better."
"Why did you come back to the fire nation then?"
"I came back to be a part of piecing this nation back together and making it what it once was."
So there is a noble cause behind this, Mai thought. She hid the approval she felt. "So you approve of the new Fire Lord?"
"Personally, I don't believe there is anyone better qualified for the job."
Mai couldn't hold back her grin. She turned her face away for a moment, but the grin refused to go away easily.
Topekaia noticed Mai's reaction but made no comment.
When Mai had her face under control, she turned back to Topekaia. "And how do you see the job you were assigned?"
Topekaia paused for a moment to think. "In the colonies, I was a fire bending teacher; here I am a lady in waiting. It's a definite change, but I'll manage. I rather enjoy helping people."
"Is it a change for the better? It's not as productive."
"That will all depend on you." Topekaia smiled warmly.
Those were confusing messages. When she heard the words: "That depends on you," she automatically thought of Azula. It sounded like a threat. Something was expected of her. She shifted uncomfortably. "How so?"
"Oh no, I don't mean it as a threat! I'm only saying it will depend on how much I like you, and so far, I do."
Mai blinked. That was another odd thing to hear. Not many people openly admitted to liking her. The Avatar and his friends did, Katara in particular. But this newcomer… And how had she realized what Mai was thinking? Mai was used to being difficult to read. She had come to terms with that a long time ago. But her new handmaiden was reading her like an open scroll!
"I hope I didn't say anything inappropriate; you look confused." Topekaia stepped closer, obviously concerned.
"No!" Mai replied, more to the invasion of space than to the question. "Nothing inappropriate, but I'm… not used… to… You see me. I mean… well…"
"Sorry," Topekaia replied, stepping back uncomfortably. "I'm a touchy-feely person, I didn't mean to invade your space." She looked quite put out.
Mai sighed. Hadn't Zuko been trying to make her more outgoing? She didn't like making people so distraught, but she didn't know how to fix it. Well, she'd just have to try. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't be so sensitive. I usually just take a lot of time to get used to people. I could… make an exception in your case…" Mai braced herself. That had taken a lot of guts.
"An exception? For me?" Topekaia looked surprised. "Why on earth would you do that?"
"Because you care so much." Mai looked away, hoping the view of the palace out the large window would give her some fortitude. "It doesn't usually matter to people… but to you… it does. So, I'll make an exception. You can be… touchy-feely, as you call it. Just… warn me. Please."
"Very well, then. You know, you remind me a lot of my sister. We are polar opposites."
Mai furrowed her brow. Was she supposed to add to that observation? "Um… My best friend and I are polar opposites. More than you can imagine, probably." The thought of Ty Lee simultaneously made her shudder and smile.
"Oh really? That's very interesting. I didn't think of Katara as an excessively happy person."
"I was not referring to Katara. Katara I can handle on a daily basis without much hassle. My real best friend, or, I guess I should say, long-term best friend, goes by the name of Ty Lee. She's… excessively happy. Nothing makes her depressed. She can't frown for over five minutes."
Topekaia laughed. "How terribly irritating!"
That had been the first time someone had called Ty Lee irritating besides Zuko. Azula had treated Ty Lee like she was an unintelligent pet, and not really found amusement in her… but Topekaia? She was laughing! Mai almost laughed herself.
Topekaia pulled herself onto the window sill, and gazed off at the palace. "So, when do we move?"
Mai's eyebrows shot up. She hadn't thought of the matter in such terms. After calming herself, she put on a sly grin. "What? You don't want to be interrogated by my mother for years to come?"
It was Topekaia's turn to look uncomfortable. "Well, I…um…oh, well she's awful! There, I said it. How do you live with that woman? If she was trying to interview me, I don't know what she got from it! I never got a word in edgewise."
Mai threw her head back and laughed. Between outbursts, she looked at Topekaia with a smile. "Well, I lived with her too long myself. I usually survive by not giving her anything to question or scold me about, and mostly avoiding her altogether. Make up business to do at the palace or around the city, and she'll leave you alone!"
"I'll find things to do. Trust me!" Topekaia looked thoughtful for a moment. "You have a nice laugh; you should do it more often."
Mai blinked, then stared. "I have a nice laugh? Really? Oh." She blushed. This was an odd thing for her to hear. An honest compliment was hard to come by for Mai, and she was somewhat taken aback.
"You do. Obviously your mother wouldn't tell you, so I thought I would. Though Fire Lord Zuko might," she teased.
From Ty Lee, Mai had been able to look away and smile, but from Topekaia, this teasing was unexpected. A shock went through Mai and she took a little jump backwards. "Why would… yes, I guess… he does enjoy my laugh. He's told me so."
Topekaia wagged her finger in the air. "I knew it!" Suddenly she turned and looked down through the window. She turned back to Mai. "Um, are you expecting someone?"
Mai blinked. "No." Why would someone ask her that?
"Well then," Topekaia pronounced matter-of-factly, "down he goes." Instantly, she was sliding down the wall outside Mai's window, firing fire balls at the intruder.
Mai watched in surprise. "What is going on?" she asked. She could barely make out the outline of a man climbing up the wall. "Topekaia… I'd be careful if I were you," she said.
"Oh don't worry about me," Topekaia called back, "I'll just…" She turned to kick the man off balance when she realized exactly who she was facing. "Fire Lord Zuko!" Suddenly caught off balance, she tumbled downwards.
Zuko caught Topekaia's arm. "Well… you're doing a good job…" he said nervously. "Sorry about that."
Totally flustered, Topekaia snapped as they climbed upwards, "Who do you think you are climbing up walls… in the evening no less! And what am I supposed to do? Wave?"
Zuko almost laughed at that as they reached the window. "All right, I'll tell you everything if you'll stop yelling. I don't know how many people know where I am now. This was my attempt to escape. Would you kindly calm down?"
Topekaia straightened her hair calmly. "I'm calm…I'm calm."
Mai had just watched them both climbing into the window, and was trying to decide what she should be feeling right now. She decided on not showing anything at all, as that was the most familiar.
Zuko glanced at Mai but decided Topekaia was a more immediate concern. "I've actually done this before."
"She wasn't expecting you. I asked; I don't usually jump out of windows."
Zuko shrugged. "Usually, if she'd been expecting me, it wouldn't be as much fun. She's fun to fluster. But besides that, I did it to get away from all those servants. And as long as Mai's parents don't know I'm here, we can have some peace."
Topekaia shrugged, still put out by Zuko's sudden appearance.
"Katara has Mom occupied downstairs as far as I know. My father I lost track of." Mai finally had found something to say.
Zuko had at last taken care of Topekaia and moved over to Mai. "I don't think your father is as formidable as your mother. As long as he doesn't say anything, we'll be all right if he finds us."
Topekaia's gaze shifted from Mai to Zuko and back. "Um, I think I'll go unpack now." She winked at Mai on her way out.
With Topekaia gone, Zuko's arm snaked around Mai's waist. "Now for what I came for." He quickly kissed Mai's cheek. "Come with me." He tugged her along to the window.
"Where are we going?" Mai asked suspiciously. She tried to break away or slow down.
Zuko frowned, seeing she was intent on ruining his fun. "I want to do something romantic. Don't ruin it, please!" He pulled her closer, looking childish.
"Romantic? More romantic than your proposal?" She squirmed playfully, trying to move out of his reach.
"Not necessarily… but… You thought that was romantic?" He stared into her eyes intensely. "I'm glad… I want to be freer. With no one looking. Just us. No servants." A passionate look crossed his face. He stroked Mai's cheek gently, still training his intensely desirous gaze on her eyes.
"Fine. I'll come with you."
Zuko hooked his arms under Mai's legs and shoulders, carrying her to the window. He gave her one exultant look before leaping onto the roof.
Mai let out a little yelp and held on to Zuko's neck. "I can do this, too!"
Zuko chuckled. "Humor me, please. I feel like I'm stealing my true love away from the fortress of my enemy."
Mai sighed. "You are such a dork." Seriously. Who in their right minds used the phrase "true love?" It just wasn't done.
"I'm a happy one," Zuko whispered, and kissed her once before leaping from the roof and landing in the street, Mai cradled close to his chest. "Was that fun?" He hugged her closer, tucking her head under his.
"I was worried you'd lose your balance," she confessed.
"You were worried about me?" Zuko asked.
"You were carrying me, Zuko! Of course I was!"
Zuko stood up, moving his arms around Mai's waist and letting her stand up. "I want to take you somewhere… and I want to have some fun getting there."
Mai's interest was piqued. "How much fun?"
The slow, sly smile on her face made Zuko even more excited. "Want to be sneaky?" He took Mai's gasp as encouragement. "I want to sneak into the palace with you. That's where I left your real birthday present… but first, I plan on reliving some of the old days."
"The… old days?" Mai inquired.
"Yeah. Back in Ba Sing Se when we got bored and wanted to know more about the Earth Kingdom, and then we started digging through all the Dai Li's archives, but kept from being caught. Don't you remember that?"
"Of course I do." Mai nodded, and now adrenaline began to pump through her veins.
"You up for it?" Zuko leaned in a bit, his own share of adrenaline building up.
"Of course," Mai said and glanced at the walls of the palace. "Are we taking the door?"
"They don't know I'm gone, actually," Zuko said sheepishly.
Mai shook her head. "So… we're going to test your defenses, aren't we?"
"You got it."
Mai fingered the apple gem hanging around her neck. "All right... we'll just have to be careful with the guards. Wouldn't want to hurt them… maybe we shouldn't fight at full strength…"
Zuko grinned. "But wouldn't that make it… boring?"
Mai gasped, then giggled. "Let's go!"
Zuko handed her a black cloak.
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A few seconds later, the guards on the wall were startled by the sight of a young man's silhouette and that of a young woman in a cloak climbing up onto the wall. "Halt!" they called.
The man and the woman's heads snapped to look at them. They remained silent.
"You can't enter the—"
The woman's head whipped around from the man to the guards before throwing flying daggers and pinning them to the wall.
Before either of them had a chance to say anything, the man was in front of them and hissing in a whisper, "I'm the Fire Lord." He released them from the daggers. "Keep your mouths shut."
"How do we know you're—"
A ball of fire appeared in the man's palm, and they saw the tell-tale scar. "Don't tell anyone I'm taking Lady Mai into the palace."
He ran back to Mai and took her hand, placing her daggers into it. Then they were gone.
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Zuko looked at Mai meaningfully, and she shot daggers at intervals up the wall. She pulled herself up and stopped in front of a window.
Zuko climbed up behind her, collecting her daggers as he went.
"What are we looking for?" Mai whispered.
"General Chao has some shady friends. I want them to come into the light."
"Are we going into the shadows to drag them out?"
Zuko smirked. "Sort of. This is the general's office. There should be missives or correspondences here. Are you ready to find some answers?"
Mai laughed darkly. "Just like the good old days."
"Except we're not in Ba Sing Se. And this information will be useful."
Mai pulled a drawer open and flipped through its contents. "Ty Lee isn't here to read everything out loud, either."
"That's good. The general's room is next door."
Mai nodded. She pulled out a scroll. "Governor Xun purchased land suitable for mining. Says here it should be suitable to… their purpose."
Zuko read over Mai's shoulder. "What purpose is that?" he asked, mostly to himself.
"Wish I knew. But we should put this back."
Zuko nodded, seeing her point. He scanned the shelves. He selected a scroll. "Admiral Toru is not on their side. They aren't going to speak with him."
"They who?" Mai groaned.
"Whoever they are, it should be members of the Order. I can never tell who they are."
There were noises in the hall. Both Zuko and Mai stiffened. They had been battle trained to know the sounds of approaching footsteps. They knew they were in a compromising position. They looked at each other, deliberating.
Mai closed the drawer she'd been rifling through, and then stood next to Zuko.
Zuko seized Mai's hand, and led her to the window.
Adrenaline was pumping through both their bodies. They hadn't done things like this since the end of the war.
"Up or down?" Mai whispered.
"Up. Time for phase two."
Mai grinned. The adventure hadn't reached its end, after all!
Zuko jumped out the window, pulling Mai along with him.
Mai shot out another knife ladder, and both of them climbed up the side of the wall.
"There!" Zuko gestured to another window.
Mai ducked inside, and then she gasped. The room was draped with silk curtains and lanterns decorated the ceiling. A low table was set up, with tea and fruit tarts. There was a couch against one wall, with several pillows all along it.
"What do you think?" Zuko asked, coming up behind her and closing the shutters.
"I… I'm… wow…" Mai swayed. "Did you… do this… all by yourself?"
"I got advice from Uncle and Sokka," Zuko admitted, but his eyes were full of pride.
Mai turned to examine him. "But… you would have had to write to them…"
"I did. A lot."
Mai smiled. "You planned this for… how long?"
"Months."
"And you had it planned for the night you proposed to me?"
Zuko nodded.
Mai ran into his arms. "Thank you, you big dork!"
The mixed signals Zuko was getting drove him crazy. Then he decided she was trying to hide her emotions. "Mai…" His voice was rough. "Would you like some tea?" Making tea would calm his nerves, and possibly give him enough time to form some sentences that Mai would like hearing.
"Sure, if you'll serve me properly." Mai sat on one of the floor cushions in front of the table, putting on her comfortable mask of propriety.
"I have served tea in the upper ring of Ba Sing Se. I am highly qualified, my lady."
"Prove it!" Mai sat up, breaking through her mask to shoot him a playful look.
"I will!" Zuko answered in the same tone, with a huge, goofy grin on his face.
Mai laughed.
"I ordered the rarest kinds of fruit tarts for you, and lots of different kinds in case you end up getting bored."
"When did you find time to do all this?" Mai's eyes stung as she looked around.
"I can always find time for my lady."
"Yes… your lady…" Mai smiled slightly, staring down at the table.
"Are you all right? You look like you're going to faint!"
"I'm fine… I just didn't know you'd… that you'd do this for me."
Zuko sat across from Mai and looked her steadily in the eyes. "You underestimate me," he said.
Now Mai was crying. She wanted to dig herself a hole and jump in, but instead she was crying, and she couldn't stop. "It's just… you had to sacrifice so much time, and energy, and planning, and you're the Fire Lord, and you're always in a meeting, and while you could have been relaxing you were doing this for me?" Mai shook her head. "I can't believe it."
"Is… that… bad?" Zuko was so confused. Should he try to get her to stop crying? He couldn't decide if she was sad or happy, and seeing this much emotion from Mai all at once was sort of boggling his mind.
"No." Mai finally looked up and smiled through her flood of tears. "I… I'm flattered, Zuko."
"I was hoping you would be." That was good. That answer was short enough that he wasn't rambling, and long enough to get his point across.
Mai had a lump in her throat the size of a dragon, and decided it would burst if she didn't say something. She'd never felt quite like that before, and filed the contemplation of that feeling away into a mental to-do list. "I'm more than flattered." She stood up, and quickly moved around the table, sitting in front of Zuko and grabbing one of his hands. "I'm really grateful."
Now Zuko's head had really started spinning. Not only had Mai been showing more emotion in five minutes than she had in their entire relationship, but now she was taking initiative and thanking him for something? Usually she'd make a joke about how he couldn't stop fussing over her… but this… he kind of liked this, too. "I'm glad," he said. Wow. That was articulate. He cringed, wondering if she would complain.
Mai leaned in and kissed Zuko on the lips. Then her arms were around his neck and she was almost giddy with happiness. What crazy mood swings. Well, she figured once she'd decided to show emotions, the emotions themselves were making up for lost time.
Once again, Zuko had been caught off guard. This new development, while far from unwelcome, was just the thing to shock him.
Mai pulled back and smiled. "All right. Now that I've sufficiently thanked you—"
"That's it?" Zuko pouted.
Mai laughed, and wiped the traces of tears from her face. "For now, Zuko, for now. Now that I have thanked you properly, let's get back to this date you've so thoroughly planned."
Zuko nodded, shakily rose to his feet, and made tea.
----------
A couple hours later, Mai and Zuko were back on Mai's roof outside her room.
They bid each other good night before Mai climbed back in through her window.
Topekaia was sitting on the couch, reading a scroll, with several similar ones stacked up next to her on the couch.
"You're still up," Mai pointed out.
"Oh, yes." Topekaia put down her scroll, grinning playfully. "I wouldn't want to miss seeing your face when you arrived back. That was quite an evening the Fire Lord had planned."
Mai's mouth dropped open. "You knew?"
Topekaia shrugged nonchalantly. "I came in and you were gone, so I knew you must be with Zuko, so I checked the roof, but no Mai, so I assumed you'd be at the palace. Zuko interviewed me in his quarters and even then he had a substantial spread going. It was a little much even for a Fire Lord so when I couldn't find you, I just put two and two together. And your expression," she pointed out, "was well worth the wait up."
Mai was flustered once again. She stared at Topekaia, unable to rearrange her mask. "What about my face?" she reached a hand up to test her features.
Topekaia giggled in a totally uncharacteristic manner. "Oh...well, I don't know..."
Mai frowned. "Not fair. Now I don't know what I've let slip past my watch." Mai stalked in an exaggerated way to her bed and threw herself across it. "When I'm being watched for facial expression, something has definitely shifted in the way of the world."
"Oh, stop all that nonsense!" Topekaia admonished from where she had positioned herself near the door frame. "It's about time you got rid of that irritating mask anyway. There is not a single thing that's happened that's worth pretending to be bored over." She threw a pillow from one of the chairs at Mai's head and said, "Now go to sleep."
Mai dodged and caught the pillow, staring once again at her new handmaid incredulously. "You. Threw. Something. At me." She shook off her shock and threw the pillow back. "I'll go to sleep. Just promise not to wake me up in the morning. I know firebenders have the ridiculous habit of waking up at sunrise."
Instantly Topekaia's eyebrows rose. "Oh? Very well then. I'll just enjoy the power of the sun without you. Good night."
"Night," Mai murmured, not even bothering to take her hair down before drifting off to sleep.
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