She is preparing herself for the afternoon as she bathes behind a curtain. Why there is a need for this remains a mystery. He is silent as he waits for her. Nothing much is going through her mind as she performs the cleaning routine, all she knows at this point is that she loves him.

She has prepared something for the both of them, a drink, a toast to something that they share. Their relationship. She hopes that it will last the rest of their lives. Intimacy, yes that is the right word to use. So she inhales deeply and leans back into the bath. She will make him wait, she will make him crawl with anticipation as she bathes her slender body.

There is something about the way he touches her, the way he holds her that makes her body tremble with slight impatience. It doesn't make much sense, she knows this but she cannot help it. She loves him and wants to be with him forever.

She thinks about her days in the Earth Kingdom, of the war, of the way this man, Aang brought peace and balance to the world and how the world thanked him. How she kissed him, oh how it felt when he kissed her. She shuts her eyes as the memory comes to mind.

She is distracted though, in that moment she is distracted as his head pops behind the curtain. There is impatience imprinted on his features but there is also longing. He comes to her, and she kisses him. She realizes, not for the first time, that he is a gentleman. He is a gentleman of the highest level as he holds her and brings her to the mat where he had been waiting. And then there is no longer impatience, no longer anticipation as they become one.

Yan

X

There are reasons why I have not broken my engagement to Toph. I will not bore you with the speech that I can make regarding this issue. What I will say is that she is the best thing that ever happened to me. I sit on the fur pelts she is sleeping on and run my fingers through her shoulder length hair as I watch her sleep. I know she would kill me if she were awake but I don't think that will happen since she is apparently dead beat after yesterday's confrontation with Katara.

She spent the rest of the day with Zuko, talking to him, arguing with him and making sure that he got the message that Katara was letting him down, and that he needed to let go of her. To my surprise, he nodded his head finally and agreed with her. It sounded genuine, the way he let her know that he would no longer carry on with his determination to love her and Toph was comforted. But as a fellow man, I know he was lying.

When you love someone, you will never, ever let them go. And this is the only reason I will tell you of for now… I love Toph. Ever since she left home and ran away when she was six, ever since she punched me on the arm and warned me not to tell anyone, I became absolutely crazy about her. I supported her decision even though I knew it was stupid. I mean, what are you going to do when you're six, penniless and not even ready to face day care?

I was eight and already betrothed to her at that time, even though neither one of us understood the meaning of the word. I caught her sneaking out of the compounds of her home one night when the moon shone high in the sky. The face she had on, the one that told of her determination and yet oozed with her uncertainty will live with me forever. When she heard me inch my way toward her, she shouted at me. Freeze! She had said. You will tell no one, or else. Those were her choice of words, not very pleasant but that, in my mind, was how she showed affection.

When asked, she told me where she was planning to go, and I did what I'm sure she didn't expect, I gave her my blessings. I consider this as I press my lips to her cheek. I have kissed her before, but it was chaste and innocent, on her hand. I don't think I will ever forget how it felt like to have my lips on her skin.

She stirs as she turns on her side and moans incoherently. Not unlike Zuko and Katara, we haven't consummated our relationship and I'm not ashamed to say that at 28, I am still a virgin. I think about the way her eyes were wet with tears as she shouted at me one night when I was tipsy and accusing her of sleeping with the Avatar. Since you are too dense to understand what I'm all about, let me spell it out for you... I, TOPH BEIFONG AM A VIRGIN!

I close my eyes as her moans grow clearer.

"What does she have that I don't?" the rest of her words come out blurred into each other. I smile tightly down at her form and sigh inwardly. I thought time would change things, but apparently, they just make her feelings for the Avatar grow stronger.

X

Iroh sits down in his teashop in Ba Sing Se. At his old age, all he wants is to become someone who is able to share with the world what he has loved all his life… tea. He smiles fondly at the sight before him. A couple, the boy has his hand pressed to the side of his partner's face. The girl, possibly around Katara's age, or possibly that of the Northern Water Tribe princess if she were still alive, holds his hand and kisses his palm.

Ah, young love. Iroh has admitted (on many occasions) that he is a romantic at heart. Had it not been for his father's adamant insistence that he studied Military Tactics in University, Iroh would gladly have indulged in his love for literature. He sighs longingly and nods at the boy who smiles at him pleasantly and nods back.

There is an overwhelming sense of relief that comes when he notes that Zuko is now engaged to Mai. He has always liked the girl, especially the way she looks at Zuko, the way she smiles at him every time she sees him. Mai is certainly a perfect match for Zuko, he thinks as he scratches his chin. She has the perfect poise for the position of Fire Lady. Yes, yes indeed, the girl will make a very good one.

He especially adores her for what he knows she did at the Boiling Rock. She saved Zuko despite the fact that his (sometimes foolish) nephew wrote a letter telling her that he was breaking up with her. At the thought, Iroh chuckles. Zuko is a great Fire Lord, but there are times, some very isolated incidents where his judgment falters.

"Ah, Zuko," he says silently. He is just happy that Zuko has someone he loves, who loves him back. As if on cue, Mai ventures into the teashop and calls him with the appropriate posture of a nobleman's daughter. He smiles at her as he stands to give her a hug. The girl indulges in a small smile and wraps her arms around his middle. He laughs heartily as they part and he offers her a seat and some perfectly good jasmine tea.

"Mai, it is certainly a wonderful thing to see you!" he says as he pours her a cup. "I thought you were staying in Omashu during Zuko's meeting with King Bumi?" He queries as she takes the cup from his hand, drinking from it discretely. Indeed, a good Fire Lady will she make, he thinks as he looks at her. "The Fire Lord needs you at his side, after all, you are his fiancée," he states and her face grows paler than usual.

"Uncle," she speaks carefully, measured as she searches for the right words. "I have ended my engagement to Zuko," she says and he can sense slight depression in her voice. This alarms him for two reasons 1) she seldom speaks with such open emotion and 2) the fact that there is now no one in the position of future Fire Lady. Now, who will be the one to assist Zuko as he runs the country? Iroh shakes his head as he exhales heavily.

"What did my nephew do this time?" he asks with slight disappointment at the boy's seemingly rash behavior. "Whatever it is, I'm sure you and him can fix it," he urges but she shakes her head solemnly.

"I'm afraid we have agreed to go our separate paths," she informs him. He wonders what could have happened between Zuko and this young woman. "He…" she continues and he looks up from his teacup. "… called Katara's name when we were… you know," she trails off and his eyes grow with surprise and a slight tinge of embarrassment.

"Oh my…" he pauses for a moment as he allows the words to sink in. "Oh dear," he says and places a comforting hand on that of Mai's, whom he has already come to see as his daughter. "Maybe he was just confused," he supplies but cannot bring himself to make eye contact with the noblewoman "I'm sure he didn't mean any of it," he states and she waves at him.

"He loves her," it is a statement, a factual one at that. Iroh doesn't know where to hide his face. He has never been this ashamed of his nephew in all his years. "It doesn't matter," she tells him as she shakes her head and, he notes, holds back the rare tears that threaten to spill. "I just want him to be happy…" she stops for a moment. "Now, maybe you can teach me how to make a decent cup of tea." And that is it, they never speak about it again.

Zuko

X

We share the same tent despite what has happened. Toph obviously doesn't know about this. After all, I have promised her that I will let go of Katara who now, as I enter the tent, is combing her long, brown hair. I have always loved it when she has her hair down, I smile at her hesitantly and she returns the gesture. This is relieving to me for some reason and I feel like I can, for the first time in a long time, relax in her presence.

"So how is everything?" the question comes out sounding more accusing that either of us expect. "I mean…" she pauses for a moment, trying to figure out what to say next. "Have you eaten?" she queries as I take a sit opposite from her. "I cooked some extra," she tells me and gestures to the pot of food set down on the table. I decide that I am hungry after the whole day of being all on edge and eating is probably a good idea.

"What have you cooked?" I ask as I stand and move toward the pan. She smiles at me, this time without pausing and I can feel myself warming up. "You cooked this?" I question as I see the Ma Po Tofu that sits within the vessel. Her smile widens with what I imagine is pride.

"Yes, I thought you would like a taste of home," she tells me as I take a bowl of food and settle back down on the pelts.

"I am home," I reply without missing a beat and her smile falters. "Listen," I tell her as I set the food down on the ground. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for everything," I say. For the whole day, I've been thinking about the fact that I confronted her and stormed out of our tent abruptly and am now starting to feel more than a little guilty. She doesn't reprimand me. Instead she holds my hand.

"I'm sorry about… about this whole intimacy thing, I just… I just… you know, I think about Aang a lot," her features are sober now and I sense the tension growing between us. "But trust me when I say that I want things to change," she says as she slowly and gently presses her lips to mine. I am tempted as hell to give in to temptation. It would be so simple, make love to this near perfect specimen of a woman, hold her, touch her, caress her, but no, I won't. And so after a moment of giving in, I pull away, wipe my lips and head out of our tent. I do not stop, not even when I feel her heart cry.

A/N: ********** IMPORTANT**********

i realise it might be a little too subtle... so i had to say something... many of you were very anxious about getting to know what happened to aang, well all i have to say at this point is... the woman in the first scene is NOT katara ;) and the man is Aang btw

chapter 6! woots! love the feedback! your suggestions for the flashback are awesome! i would like to thank you, PrincesaDeFuego for the whole Iroh suggestion, even though i did change it up a bit. and also, i love Yan, he's such a good guy :') what are you thoughts on him? READ AND REVIEW PEOPLE!