Author: Foxfire Inari
Prompt: #002 Ends
Title: Sacrifice
Word Count: 1,789
Rating: K
Author's Note: Fire Palace? Carriages? I'm not too sure about either of those, but they'll do.
"I'm sorry, Zuko, but you have to understand I just can't live like that." A frown creased Katara's brow and she looked down to the highly polished floor of the throne room in the Fire Palace. Her tanned fingers worried the hem of her formal robes as she avoided the eyes of the Fire Lord.
"I ... understand," Zuko replied with stony resignation. His reaction to her words was immediate—his feet shifted and his back straightened, his posture suddenly rigid. With hands clasped behind his back he strode from the room, leaving Katara alone.
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With his trademark scowl firmly in place, Zuko scanned the dining room, his eyes flitting from one guest to the next. A seemingly dismissive wave of his hand beckoned a servant to his side.
"Where is Master Katara?" he inquired in a hushed tone.
Replying in the same hushed tone the servant said, "She has left, my Lord. Early this afternoon she packed her things and caught a carriage to the port." The servant left after another casual flick of the Fire Lord's wrist.
___________________________________________________________
Dinner, having long been cleared, had turned into mingling and dancing of the guests. Many of the men, mostly military officers and high officials, stood along the outskirts discussing politics and the latest advancements in military tactics while the women moved throughout groups of men and women, chatting amicably with other guests and luring their husbands to the dance floor. Fire Lord Zuko, of course, was not immune to the whims of his wife as she led him to the floor with the others.
As Zuko gazed at his wife with a smile that did not reach his eyes, he thought ruefully of his station and all the sacrifices it entailed. Marriage for political advantage was everything and love just did not factor into the equation. His wife fit the bill perfectly. Her family, a strong clan in the Fire Nation, was influential and she was subservient, gentle and a fire bender. Yes, she was perfect for the position and everything that his people wanted and needed. Unfortunately she was everything he did not want.
