Title: Midsummer Madness

Author: Burning_Ice

Rating: R

Summary: Katara learns that there are both advantages and drawbacks to being a female water bending master, and pays back a favor to an old friend.

Beta: Ellarose C

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Disclaimer: Avatar is owned by Bryke and Nick. Zutara, however, belongs to us all.

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Chapter 23: The Tavern

With a soft sigh, the slumbering waterbender nuzzled deeper into Zuko's collarbone, a small, contented smile on her lips. Zuko couldn't help but return it and squeeze her arm gently. He wondered how she could sleep so soundly. His own mind was reeling, but he figured her exhaustion had something to do with the previous sleepless night with Toph and Aang, the strenuous mind bending, and finally the intense lovemaking.

A bit of ash fell from the ceiling and onto her shoulder and he brushed it away. He would have fun explaining to the guards how the walls had come to be charred - almost as fun as explaining to Sokka where they had been all night. How did it even happen? He remembered arching back and grabbing the bedpost, and, and... BREATHING.

Zuko shook his head. He would have to ask his uncle about that, too. He usually just zoned out when the man would start talking about tantra or women out of embarrassment. In hindsight, that might not have been the smartest thing to do. Hindsight was always twenty-twenty.

He chewed on his lower lip.

Katara shifted and threw a bare leg over his thighs, murmuring something about the Swamp Spirit. He tucked a stray hair behind her ear and whispered for her to go back to sleep.

He wondered if it was fate. He wondered if this was destined to happen the instant he let her touch his scar, maybe even the instant he had landed on her icy shores in his boat over a year ago. Wondered if the very sight of her had planted a seed in his chest that would eventually grow into the undeniable blossom of attraction.

The east was beginning to lighten with false dawn. He could see it through the window. Normally he would just be waking up and readying himself to greet the new day, but now he closed his eyes and buried his nose into Katara's hair, blocking out the sun, blocking out the morning that would bring with it the roles they had to enact. They wouldn't be able to kiss or touch or be alone together. They would have to watch what they said around Aang until Katara figured out how to break it to him. They would have to pretend.

Zuko really hated living a lie, but he felt like he attracted the predicament like the komodo rhinos attracted flies.

He rubbed his eyes and sat up, then reached over and touched his bedmate's shoulder.

"'Tara, wake up."

Cracking an eye open against the light, Katara looked up at him, her expression first surprised, then confused, then finally embarrassed. She reached up and touched her mother's necklace guiltily, fiddling with it as she chewed on her lip.

Zuko waited patently for her to say something.

"Last night..." she started.

"Last night," he agreed.

She shook her head dismissively and lay back down into his lap, her head pillowed on the blankets.

"I feel like I've been trampled by a badger mole..." Katara said evasively, then rolled onto her back and smiled up at him, "but in a good way."

Zuko relaxed and let out a breath he had not realized he had been holding. He wasn't sure how he expected her to react, but he had been unconsciously preparing for the worst. He reached down and stroked her cheek, a frown contorting his features. He didn't remember Mai saying anything about being sore. Then again, she never really shared anything, she just expected him to get it right without any direction.

The scarred prince shook his head. He would have to stop comparing them or he would build Katara up the exact same way Aang had, and if he did, she would probably flee him the exact same way she had Aang. Taking a breath, he concentrated on the situation at hand.

"Are you all right? Did you hurt yourself?"

Katara reluctantly sat up and inventoried her body. She was sore and exhausted and her skin was sticky with dried sweat, but she didn't detect anything wrong. She had used her bending before she fell asleep to minimize the risk of any unwanted duplication, in case for some reason the swamp-serum was not working.

"No, no damage..." She climbed over him and out of the bed, but he caught her hips before she could slide onto the floor.

"You're bleeding!"

"Of course I bled, it was my first time..." Katara blinked at the naked man. He was much clearer in the dawn light then the moonlight. She smiled - she liked the view - and she reached down to run a finger across the scar on his chest.

"Umm..."

"Zuko, those girls in the swamp didn't call me 'Water Tribe virgin' to be ironic." Katara crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. She flopped down beside him again, and then glanced over at him with an impish smile, "My pectoral muscles are sore. You should massage them."

Zuko raised his good eyebrow, a mischievous grin on his face. "What about your thighs? They are probably sore too, right?"

...

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...

It had not taken long to get them both dressed and back on the airship, and though the medical staff was polite, they hardly seemed fooled. Katara made a mental note as she pushed her door open to talk Zuko into making some sort of donation to the place. They definitely deserved it.

She had not been expecting Suki and Ty Lee to be chilling on her bed when she walked in, but they looked like they had been waiting for her.

"There you are!" Ty Lee rocketed to her feet gracefully, then studied the girl. "Oh boy!! Katara! You're not a virgin, you did it!! That's so great!! I'm so proud!! See, I TOLD you we should have checked Zuko's room."

Katara dropped her water skins and stared at the acrobat. "How did you know?"

"It's written all over your aura," Ty Lee explained.

"Plus, you've been missing all night and you're walking funny," Suki cut in, then sighed dramatically, "Now it's only Toph who's still an innocent young thing..."

Ty Lee, on the other hand, began drilling her for details. "Was it good? I hope it was good! It better have been good! I'll kick Zuko's butt if it wasn't good!"

"It's okay Ty Lee, It was good!"

"Good! 'Cause I would have hit him in pressure points he didn't even know he had!" Ty Lee punched a fist into her open palm menacingly, "So how was it?"

"Well, I'm not sure, I don't really have a basis for comparison except in the swamp, we-"

"Eee! She did it more than once!!" Ty Lee hugged her friend in delight, "Mai always complained about Zuko's technical skill, I was worried for you."

"She was ready to pull Zuko aside and give him some tips on how to please a woman," Suki muttered, smiling conspiratorially.

"I was, I don't beat around the bush," she grinned, her voice laced with suggestion, "but then Suki reminded me that there was no way to do it without really revealing that we shared an ex girlfriend, unbeknownst to him." Ty Lee bent over and stood on her hands.

"So, what are you both doing here, besides tallying my sex life?"

"Practice, remember?" Suki told her, sobering up and using her captain-voice. "I'll let your tardiness slide this time on account of last night being your 'first night', but keep in mind you won't have access to that particular excuse ever again."

Ty Lee looked at Suki, horrified. "Suki! She probably feels horribly achy, you're still going to make her practice?!"

"I second Ty Lee." Katara flopped face first into her bed, her voice muffled as she said, "Apparently, I can't even walk straight."

"Katara, how many more days until the new moon?" she asked sternly, and the younger water bender stiffened.

"Thruugh," she grunted into the covers.

"And how many crazed fire benders are out for your blood?" Suki reminded her.

"Ouuuunnne," she moaned again into the mattress.

"And how many semi-boyfriends' lives will you put in danger if you need special protection?" Ty Lee asked.

Damn acrobatic turncoat. Katara thought and hauled herself up, "I thought you were on my side!"

"Here, stand up."

Katara did so reluctantly.

Ty Lee circled the bed and regarded her friend's body, chewing on her thumb thoughtfully. She shifted back and forth and then suddenly launched three or four well-aimed jabs at her comrade's torso, after which Katara felt the pain dramatically lessen. The jabs hurt, though, and she rubbed her stomach.

"Ok, that should pinch your nerves enough so that you don't try to kill yourself with a fan." Ty Lee grinned.

"Can I at least take a bath first?" Katara pleaded.

"You'll only have to take another after the practice. We're going to be sweating."

"Should I get my dagger? It's in my bag."

"Yes," Suki said as she stretched and got up, "and one of your more supportive undershirts."

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"I don't think we should be here." Mai leaned over the table, nursing a pint of something that she deemed tasted more like piss than ale. The bigheaded bartender had insisted that it was the best in the house for the two pretty young ladies.

"You whined all afternoon that we had not had a 'decent meal' since we turned rogue." Azula drained her fifth mug; people (men) kept sending them over while smiling and waving. The princess, however, showed no signs of being the slightest bit buzzed, more evidence that it was, in fact, not alcohol.

"This was not what I had in mind. It's tough." Mai straightened and prodded at the meat on her plate.

Azula grinned evilly, tossing her hair and taking a bite of the skewered meat, enjoying the opportunity to wage war with her food. It was, in her opinion, a pleasant surprise; she had never worked her jaw muscles so thoroughly before, and the tougher the fight, the more satisfaction you reaped when it was over.

"You know what your problem is?"

"I'm sure you're about to tell me."

"You're not adaptable."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mai prodded at a vegetable that might have been a water chestnut on an acid trip.

"It's something that Uncle told me once," Azula shrugged, then hissed at something nonexistent over her right shoulder. Usually Ty Lee kept Mai in line, so the acrobat's presence was sorely missed. It could be said that the aristocrat hardly ever whined at all when her ex-girlfriend was around to soothe her with the positive attention that she tried to pull from Azula in a negative form. Well, perhaps not 'hardly ever,' but she whined at least four times more without the circus freak than with her.

Mai raised an eyebrow and tentatively tried a bite of rice. She crinkled her nose in distaste. It was, however, extremely difficult to sit starving and not eat anything while there was a plate of steaming food in front of her.

"It tastes like sawdust," she informed the princess. "We should go someplace nicer, I have plenty of money."

"We could be recognized at a high end restaurant. Here, I've seen most of these people's faces on wanted posters from here to Ba Sing Se. I doubt that we're in any danger - from the guard, at least."

"What do you mean, 'the guard, at least'?"

As if on cue, one of the scarred, burly men slammed a hand down on their table. He had a long braided beard, tattoos on his neck and a shaved head. He was also extraordinarily inebriated.

Flanking him were two of his friends, one tall and gaunt, but actually rather attractive - if you ignored the knife scars that carved up his face and the eye patch over his right eye. He looked a little bored with the whole ordeal and was playing with his long brown hair. The other was old and chubby with a long beard and beady eyes almost covered by his enormous eyebrows. He carried an axe that was almost as big as he was, and his armor was covered in spikes, making him look like an despondent cactus.

"W'hasa pretty gal's lick ya two doon 'ere?" he asked, swaggering over the table. "Yer zum good 'ookers, ya'no?"

Mai nudged Azula "Is he saying we're lookers or asking if we're hookers?" she asked under her breath, fingering a dagger.

Azula stood up, examining her nails, uninterested. "What do you want, peasant?"

"Meen mah boyzz 'ere on derin 'ow much ya charge, zzzz new 'ere, haven't seen ya."

Azula cackled, flashing them a flirtatious Ty Lee grin that made Mai miss the girl more. Nobody ever smiled at her like that anymore. Zuko never even did.

"Oh boys, we are FAR too expensive for the likes of you," Azula tossed her hair over her ear and looked at Mai, "My friend here, she costs an entire kingdom - believe me, I know - and I cost your life."

She must have made a face or something that Mai couldn't see from the angle, but all three men, drunk as they were, took a wary step back. Perhaps as hardened criminals they had a sixth sense and knew when they were outmatched.

"Actually, though..." Azula's fingers traced along the collar of her top, "I wouldn't mind having a bit of fun with someone. Like I said, though, it'll cost you your life, payment up front."

Mai stood up hurriedly. "Azula! You swore no more killing!" the aristocrat hissed, grabbing the princess's forearm.

Azula whirled on her, her eyes wide and teeth bared in rage, "You wretched bitch, have you any brains at all under that hair?!"

"'zula?" The older one snapped to attention. "As in Princ'ss 'zula wit' a two hund'rd thous'nd coin bounty on errr head, Princess 'zula?"

Azula leapt, twisting in the air as the men scrambled to grab her. She landed on her stool as the three of them drunkly crashed into the table, sending her and Mai's plates flying and cracking the wood under their weight.

"Eey! Git 'ack ere!!" the man slurred and grabbed for her again, but she slammed her fist into his face, then her knee into his stomach and he crumpled to the floor, clutching his cheeks, blood cascading from between his hands in such a torrent that suggested his nose was badly broken.

Mai stumbled to her feet and surveyed the room, checking the angles. There was not much to pin a stampeding man to, and she cursed her luck, dodging to the side, hoping to get them in between her and a wall. She hated throwing to kill. She dodged to the left, barely evading a huge ax, and reluctantly flung several shiruken. They slammed through the older man's feet and easily pierced the leather and bone, pinning the man and tripping him, and putting an end to any future exertions like walking or standing.

Azula catapulted herself onto another table, knocking over several mugs of ale - though nobody seemed to mind. Most were cheering and banging the table, enjoying watching their fellow riff-raff get emasculated. Mai tripped over the drunk one while trying to reach her fiancé before she got carried away. She jerked to a stop; she looked down in horror to find that he had her leg and was drawing his sword with his free hand. She yanked, but his grip held, and she grabbed another bunch of knifes from their sheaths and stabbed them down, pinning his sleeve to the floor. By then he had sword in hand and lurched up at her, but he didn't get far, though, before he sprawled on his stomach, surprised by the unexpected immobility of his wench-grabbing arm.

The final man was gasping for air, pinned against the wall by his neck. Azula grinned up at him, her fingers grasping a tiny stilletto digging so far into his side that her fingers were inside the wound, and blood ran down her arm to her elbow. It was soaking through his cloth shirt.

"Spirits, it's been too long!" she sighed against him, twisting her digits and the knife deeper, stroking her fingers across what she suspected was his liver. "Oh, you're petrified, poor thing, and silly me, I haven't given you your money's worth yet - you won't scream, will you?"

"Hey!" Mai called across the room, careful not to use her friend's real name again. The rest of the bar had not seemed to have heard it over the cacophony of the bar. Azula did not hear her over the din of cheering drunk crooks, or if she did, she ignored her. The boy thief coughed, a mouthful of blood spilling over his scarred lips.

Pressing her hips into the man's, pinning him to the wall with them, she reached up and licked a line of blood from his mouth with the tip of her tongue.

"Oi!!" The bartender banged on something hard to catch the attention of the masses. "Now, who here wants to buy a drink for the two most dangerous girls we've seen in here since June left for the Earth Kingdom?"

There was a chorus of 'here here's, and Azula stepped away from the wounded man with a cruel smile, then wiped his blood from her fingers on his shirt as he slid to the floor. Someone tapped her very tentatively on her clean elbow.

"Restaurant policy." It was one of the barmaids/whores. "You kill em, you drag em out back." She gestured with a thumb, but then raised her voice to a shrill screech, "I think she might need help with the big ol' one, though. He's as fat as a platypus bear!"

Several men jumped up to help as a pretense for emptying the princess's victim's pockets and relieving them of any valuables. Mai and Azula watched as their prey was hauled out and chucked in the dirt to sober up, heal, or die.

"Watch our stuff, Mai, I forgot your knife in that scarred up bum's side."

Mai didn't seem to care - at least, she didn't complain. She was too busy trying to edge away from all the men who were now eagerly making offers.

Azula padded out to the back and scrounged around. She passed the older one with the broken feet hobbling off, leaning heavily on the side of the building. It only took one look at her for him to find the strength and the pain tolerance to run the hell away. Next, she stepped over the unconscious bald one with the bad attitude. She gave him a stomp on the face for good measure, making sure his nose was broken beyond repair. Finally, she found the youngest one.

His expression once again turned from agony to terror, and he tried to back away on his elbows, and he inhaled to scream. Azula covered his mouth with a finger and surveyed his once handsome face.

"You know," She informed him, "You remind me of someone. So, maybe I won't kill you. Maybe, if you're fun. I won't promise anything." She dropped to her knees and yanked the knife out of his abdomen.

"Get the hell away from me you psycho bitch!" He hissed, then howled as the knife was replaced in his side.

"No no, all wrong, you will have to be more respectful than that." She grabbed a handful of his hair and yanked him up to a kneeling position. "Oh.... this will be fun. Have you ever been to Ember Island?"

...

...
Katara whimpered as she held the lunge, her right leg positively on fire maintaining the ninety degree angle. Suki was correcting Ty Lee, and the water bender was starting to suspect the acrobat was doing things wrong on purpose to make the workout more difficult for her.

She heaved a sigh of relief as she saw Toph marching across the green, Momo perched on her shoulder. Katara made a mental note to always unpack the blind girl's things from then on if she would only distract Suki from the lesson.

"Hey, Fan Girl, Sugar Queen, Big Top, where are all the guys?" Toph asked, and Katara squinted. Was Toph wearing what she thought she was wearing? Since when had Toph started to fill out?! She was Toph! Katara half expected her to grow into a body-building man.

"Sokka said he was going to take Aang out to explore the city," Ty Lee said. "Remember? Like we did yesterday."

"Don't tell me about it, my skin is still itchy from having to pull on and off so many shirts."

"At ease, girls, take a breather."

Katara dropped gratefully into child's pose, resting her forehead on the ground as she caught her breath, sweat dripping down her neck and arms. Someone, probably Ty Lee, was patting her on her back, and she heard Suki and Toph talking.

"They're all running around, talking about some sort of party tomorrow night..."

"It's the engagement party, the Earth King and the Fire Heiress will be officially engaged, they can start planning the wedding then," Ty Lee explained. "Don't you guys keep up with the royal gossip at all?!"

"Not all of us have twelve sisters writing us letters about this and that every hour of the day," Suki told her, amused. "You should see Kyoshi Island, Katara, we had to expand the aviary to make room for all the hawks!"

"I bet," Katara said into the sand.

"You need a few more jabs?" Ty Lee offered sympathetically. "You look miserable."

"Yes please, PLEASE," Katara told her from under her arms, "PLEASE knock me out!"

...

...
...

The Fire Lord had just finished washing when his servants caught up with him. The royal steward outlined his schedule for him as Zuko flinched every time one of his ladies-in-waiting ran a comb through his hair. It was far more tangled than usual in the back, and he blamed Katara fully for it.

"Then at ten, you are to see three petitioners, and then at eleven thirty, you have a meeting with the Sun Sages, then in the afternoon, I was told you would be escorted by the Avatar - you will both, I assume, be present for the signing of your cousin's marriage contract - I believe the two families have finally come to an agreement over her dowry and stipulations. Then tomorrow afternoon and evening, there is an elaborate banquet in celebration, all the nobles will be there, I assume you have arranged for an escort that is not the Avatar?"

"Huh?" Zuko had only been half listening, paying more attention to the yanking of his scalp, then corrected himself. "Pardon?"

"An escort, a female one," Manu, his steward clarified. "It would be unbecoming of you to show up without one, I could send for the Lady Mai... or I could ask around to see if any of the nearby families have a poised and beautiful daughter you could borrow for the evening."

The women doing his hair swept it all back into a formal bun and sighed. He was pretty certain her name was Lyre, though he had trouble telling them apart as they seemed to move in giggling, similarly-clad flocks, usually ladened with laundry or food.

Zuko thought about it. He would much rather spend the evening with Katara than an ambitious fire maiden who would take the evening as her own personal opportunity to outline to him all the reasons why she would make an amazing Fire Lady. Unfortunately, he knew the waterbender would be hesitant because Aang would be there, and she was trying to keep their affair under wraps until a bit more time had passed. Zuko didn't like it, but he didn't blame her. He didn't want his young friend to feel like his girlfriend had dumped him just to run off with the Fire Lord, even though it did have certain elements of truth to it.

"I'll arrange it," he sighed, trying to remember if Ty Lee or Toph owed him a favor.

"Good." Manu returned to his list. "I have taken the liberty of outlining the speech you are to give during the toast - I'll leave it on your desk - and then while you are there, I strongly recommend that you talk to the Earth Kingdom ambassador about increasing trade. Yesterday evening we received a messenger hawk from your uncle saying that he will not be able to make it tonight as he is unwell, so you will not have him as an advisor."

Zuko nodded. "Did he say why he was sick?"

"I have a copy of the letter..." The man ruffled through a few scrolls. "He said, 'My apologies, Nephew, a burn from an old flame is not as healed as I thought. It makes my chest ache, and I do not feel up to the voyage. I have a sinking feeling that it is contagious. Iroh.' I have left the original on your desk."

"Can I see the one you have?"

The man handed it over and Zuko studied it. His uncle's sentences were short and choppy, and he only did that when he was trying to say something without actually saying it. Zuko had noticed that habit when Iroh was trying to lead him to the conclusion of a lesson or a realization of a fact.

My apologies, Nephew, a recent burn from an old flame is not as healed as I thought. It makes my chest ache, and I do not feel up to the voyage. I have a sinking feeling that it is contagious, and may soon ensnare us all.

Iroh.

He reread it, swallowed, and then stood up.

Lyre made a sound of protest, as she was in the middle of securing his bun, but held her tongue.

"Where is Katara? Is she on the grounds?"

"Master Katara?" The man frowned, "I am not sure, I believe I was told she and the Kyoshis are spending the morning in the outdoor training grounds. Chieftain's Son Sokka and the Avatar have gone into the city to the theatre - Master Sokka said something about pitching an accurate play of the Avatar's journey." Another woman walked in, carrying his ceremonial armor and struggling under its weight.

"Okay," Zuko sighed. "I'll be down to the throne room as soon as the ladies are done. Please fetch Katara for me, it's urgent."

Through the reflection on the mirror, he watched his steward bow and exit the room, leaving the door open. The elder servant with his armor cleared her throat.

"Fire Lord Zuko, if I may be so bold...?"

"Go on," Zuko rubbed his forehead, trying to clear his mind.

"Perhaps your highness might want to put on a different shirt, one that covers his highness's neck a bit more?"

Embarrassed, the teenager craned his neck around and studied it in the mirror. "Damn it, Katara!" He had not even noticed the bruises! "Yes, please, a different robe."

After they had fetched him a more concealing top, the two women lifted the pads over his head and then began flipping the snaps of the chest plate. As they worked, he studied himself in the mirror and found himself lacking. He looked very much like a scared seventeen-year-old, not the leader of a country.

He could feel the butterflies fluttering around in his stomach. Katara had told him that there had been a bit of a love triangle between his mother, his father, and his uncle, but she had only mentioned it. Zuko could feel it in his bones, his uncle had seen his mother.

Recently.

It had to have been in the last few days, in fact, which meant she was alive.

It was a relief, and he relaxed, but then the butterflies turned to bats. It meant that she was avoiding him. It meant that she didn't want to see him. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry. Did she hate him? Was she disappointed? Insecurities piled up in his brain like leaves as he tried to puzzle it out, each idea bringing him closer and closer to dissolving into hysterics.

...

...

"I think that went well," Sokka preened as he and Aang exited the theatre.

"They promised not to cast a woman as me!" Aang was pleased.

"I told you all they needed was a little direction." Sokka browsed through the stalls as they walked, ignoring the people pointing and whispering that the Avatar was amongst them.

"Is it just me or is almost every woman here pregnant?" Aang asked, grabbing onto his friend's arm, uneasy from the staring.

"It's called a baby boom," Sokka explained, picking up a forged ring and holding it to his face. "Think I should put a ring on my eyebrow?"

"No. So, what's a baby boom?"

"All the soldiers come home and... uhh, want to start families with their, uhh... wives." The warrior picked up a handful of imported Water Tribe beads and examined them.

"Sokka, can I ask you something?"

"Yea?"

"Something personal?"

"Sure, why not." Sokka picked up a bag and examined it, comparing it to the outfit he had on.

"If you could, would you pick Yue over Suki?"

"What brought this on, Aang?" Sokka asked as he put down the bag he was admiring, stunned.

"Just wondering... you don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"I don't know." Sokka stroked his chin. He looked upset, but tried to indulge his friend. "I think that I would pick Suki."

"Why? 'Cause she was your first kiss?"

"What? No, 'first' has nothing to do with it." Sokka scratched the back of his head, "It's because she challenges me, she pushes me to do things that I wouldn't have thought I could do."

"So, it's cause she beats you up?"

"No, Aang." Sokka ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated.

"Oi!" They both turned around. The cart owner stood there, arms crossed. "Supporters of the Fire Lord can't shop here!"

Aang and Sokka looked at each other, totally lost.

"Did you hear me?!"

"Excuse me!" Sokka balled his fists. "Do you know who this is? This is the Avatar!!"

"Sokka, maybe we should just go." Aang tugged on Sokka's sleeve.

"Tell that to my sons who died for nothing in the North Pole!" the man insisted, slamming his hands down on the table. "I was told they were killed when the Avatar became a koi fish and sunk the ship he was deployed on!!"

"Sokka!! We should go!" Aang tugged harder, "Lets go! Right now."

Looking from his friend to the shop keep, Sokka's shoulders slumped.

"All right, let's go, Aang."

...

...
"Good girl, Nyla." June patted her best friend on the snout and held the doll under her nose. The shirshu whuffled and snuffled at the thing and then began sniffing around the beach. June stepped back to stand next to Ursa, and the two women watched as the animal sniffed around.

"How long's it been since you were on Fire Nation soil?"

"Too long," Ursa replied, fiddling with her nails. They lapsed into silence, which June spent studying the woman through the corner of the eye. Ursa glanced at her and faked a small smile, then looked back at her nails, slightly uncomfortable from the scrutiny.

"Nyla has a trail," June said suddenly, "Mount up." With a few long bounds, the bounty hunter crossed the distance to her pet and nimbly scrambled up into the saddle. Ursa swung her leg over her ostrich horse and followed behind, pushing the beast to its limit to keep up with the galloping mammal. Although the bird had stamina, asking any creature to maintain high speeds for so many hours was difficult.

Right, then left, then back, the group wove through the trees, June gently steering the blind beast through the trees and around the rocks as the shirshu stayed glued to the trail. June felt the rush of the chase; now they were getting somewhere! Soon they would find the spoiled princess and she would collect her bounty, soon she could begin training with Piandao and become a sword master. June smiled and leaned forward in the saddle as Nyla loped up a hill, paused, and then followed a path along it.

Hills gave way to slopes which gave way to mountainside, and then the trees broke. The animals filed into a clearing where the ruins of an old house stood. Nyla snuffled around, slamming through the old doorway and taking down the wall. June had to abandon the creature's back or risk being knocked off by debris.

"Show yourself, Princess Azula," she called, surveying the area. There was no sign of a fire, though fire benders did not need tinder to cook, but most everything had been disturbed, beds had been unmade, and dust shaken from curtains.

"The trail is cold here," Ursa yelled, and June walked along the roof to where it looked over the old overgrown courtyard.

"How do you figure?"

"The Mongoose Dragon dung is several days old, they must have camped here for a while then moved on."

"Nyla and I will do a sweep of the area, we'll see if we can find the newest trail, I hope the girls did not come and go much. You search the house, see if you can find a hint of where she went." June whistled and called for her mount, which cantered around the side of the house, a huge toothy grin on her face.

Nyla thought Nyla did good.

June jumped on her as she passed, then ordered over her shoulder, "I'll come back for you at sundown. Stay here."

Ursa watched the woman ride off to do her sweep and rolled her eyes. She was the customer, and the Fire Lady, and a higher rank in the order than the younger girl was. It took guts to order her around as she did.

A quick sweep of the house turned up some singed and bloody sheets, some discarded foodstuffs, and 'I'm waiting, mother' scrawled in ash across the wall of what must have been Azula's bedroom.

Ursa blinked back tears.

So, that's how she wants it...

She sat down on the bed and gasped, the midday light shining in through the hole in the wall. There were brown splotches all over the blanket and mattress. Someone had to have been bleeding pretty hard, and she knew it was her daughter. She just knew it.

The older woman turned on her heels and found her ostrich horse. The poor creature was panting heavily and trying to graze and sleep and drink from the dregs of the dragon trough all at the same time. Ursa unloaded her belongings and swung up into the saddle, clicking her tongue at the reluctant beast.

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Zuko yawned on the dais while the meeting droned on, vaguely wondering where Aang was - he still hadn't come back from the market with Sokka. He was not overly worried; the streets were easy to get lost in, and one could end up walking for hours through what had initially started as a half hour stroll. Plus, they all knew how much Sokka secretly liked to shop.

Why were his mother's family and the Earth Kingdom ambassadors so picky about their negotiations? Back and forth, trading animals, gold, jewels, titles, deeds, companies... it was starting to get ridiculous. They should be pleased that she was marrying a king, and the king should be pleased that the Fire Nation accepted his proposal, even though it would probably be dangerous for a Fire Nation noble in the Earth Kingdom for the next few years.

He wiggled back and forth. Even on the cushions, his feet were beginning to fall asleep, and he decided to exercise a bit of political power. Parting the fire that surrounded the dais, he walked out onto the floor.

"Enough arguing, if an agreement cannot be reached in the next hour, we'll reconvene in one month's time."

Everyone began to protest, and Zuko smirked inwardly. Nobody would want to push the proceedings back any further, so it was good incentive to finish it up.

"Fire Lord." One of his advisors waved him over, and Zuko stepped closer to the man as the negotiations increased in volume behind him.

"Master Katara is here."

"Good, send her in." Zuko turned to go back, but the man cut in quickly.

"Perhaps you'll go out to see her, she has been... exerting herself, and is neither clean enough or properly attired to be seen at such a prestigious meeting."

Zuko was about to open his mouth and argue that she was his guest and that she should be able to 'come and go' as she pleased, but then thought better of it. He knew her well enough, she was vain, and would not appreciate walking into a room of the most prestigious Fire Nation nobility soaking wet and sweaty from bending practice.

"Silence!" Zuko turned and the room hushed. "We will take a recess. I will expect the papers ready to be signed when I return." He gave them a haughty grin and they bowed, still muttering under their breath.

He found her sitting against the one of the gilded columns outside the meeting room with her hair tied up and her face flushed. Zuko smiled and walked up to her, wishing he had been present while she had been 'exerting herself'.

"Give us some privacy," he told the guards stationed on either side of the door, and they obediently bowed and moved off down the hallway out of earshot.

"Thank you, so much." Katara's voice wheezed, as though she had panted out all the mucus on her windpipe. "I think... Suki... wants to kill me."

"It's just some tough love." Zuko fished into his sleeve and pulled out the letter from his uncle. "What do you make of this?"

"Can you hold it in front of my face?"

"Katara!"

"My arms are killing me - that dagger gets really heavy really fast!"

"Now aren't you glad I picked out a small blade?"

"Mmhmm, sooo, yes?"

Zuko sighed and unrolled it, holding it out for her. She read it through once, then found a second wind and snatched it from him, rereading it frantically.

"He saw Lady Ursa, he had to have!" Katara struggled to her feet. "That's what you were thinking, right? Have you written to him?"

"I don't know what to say..." Zuko scratched his hair.

"Say that you'll send him all the tea he can drink."

"I already send him tea."

"Zuko!"

"What?!"

"Do you always give up all your leverage so easily?"

"I think you have been spending too much time with Toph!" That reminded the Fire Lord of the damn celebratory banquet. He frowned, "Katara... I need an escort tomorrow night, for a party."

Katara stiffened and looked away, "I can't, Aang's here and..."

"I know, I know." Zuko put a hand on her shoulder. "Pick someone out for me, will you? Ty Lee or Toph might agree to do it, or Ty Lee will introduce you to all her aristocrat friends."

"That's silly, Zuko, why?"

"It's tradition, and if I'm going to have to have a girl following me around until further notice, I want her to be someone you approve of." He looked down the hallway at the guards, wishing they were not there, wishing that he could touch her.

"I'll think about it." She shifted back and forth uneasily. "I don't really know what makes a good pretend date."

The door to the room opened and one of the sun sages stuck his head out, his long beard making him look like the unagi. "My Lord, they have reached an agreement. It would best to come quickly and sign everything away before they begin arguing again."

"We'll continue this later," Zuko promised, nodding his head and then turning to go. "Remember what I said."

"Remember to write your uncle!" Katara called after him.
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Aaaalriiiight, sorry about the longer than normal wait . . . I am lazy and busy, a dangerous combination.

So, thank you for reading, I hope you liked it, I was really excited, someone wrote me a little drabble that I put below italicized. They didn't leave their name or anything, but you all should check it out.

Zuko needed her; needed the wholeness that he felt with her. He wasn't sure if it was love or if he was ready to give his heart to her, but he couldn't imagine living the rest of his life with out his 'Tara. He leaned in to kiss her again, but his sated lips met Katara's barring hand.
Katara studied him as the confusion spread across his face. For the first time, she really looking at the young man who had seen her at her best and her worst. Zuko was the only person she knew who could match her passionate nature, mentally and physically fulfilling her as a individual. Somehow, she knew he would be the only person who could understand that about her. It was missing with Aang. She was never herself with him, just some child's dying dream. With Zuko, she was Katara. Nothing else. And that was the most beautiful realization she had ever had.

A tear slid out from her eye, and Zuko tensed nervously.

"What's wrong? I swear if you say you're fine again –" He was cut off by Katara's sudden desperate embrace. It felt as those she was trying to bury herself in his collar bone. Zuko had no idea what brought this on, but held her naked form securely. "'Tara..."

Hearing his name for her made something leap inside her stomach. She kissed his scarred check, nuzzling the uneven flesh. "I'm so glad you have this scar."

Zuko heart fell. "Katara please don't joke like that."

She kissed him again. "I'm not joking."

The Fire Lord was more than uncomfortable. He knew full well how the wretched thing looked and felt. Mai never liked it. He turned his head in a feeble attempt to hide the mark from Katara. "You don't have to pretend... I'm not – it must repulse you."

Katara pulled back to look at him, a few tears still running down her face. She shook her head in disbelief when she realized he was serious. "No... Zuko." She cupped his cheek and pulled him back to look at her. She could see the pain in his eyes and smiled reassuringly. "With your scar, you don't look like a monster."

So, not part of my fic, I didn't write it, but it's a fanfic for my fanfic, which I thought was really neat. Think how deep it could go! Man... trippy...

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Well, I will have another chapter up soon, hopefully, In addition to fanart and drabbles, I am taking bribes in the form of a paper on the history of photography, as that is what is standing between me and fanfic-writing time.

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Any speculation on the future? I can never tell when I am foreshadowing too bluntly or too subtly.