Chapter 44

They all stayed around a few days for Jet's coronation—and the betrothal ceremony. King Bumi himself hung around an extra day for that, despite his announcement that he had big plans and needed to leave town as soon as possible.

"Why?" Aang asked him yet again. "Why has all this had to happen so suddenly?"

At last Bumi told him. They sat in a quiet corner of the palace as the betrothal celebration was winding down. Bumi had a tray of Hu's slimy snacks in his hand and after one half-hearted offer to Aang, had proceeded to work his way through them on his own as he talked.

"Years ago," Bumi began, "when I was a young man, I got lost in the swamps outside the city for days. While I was there, this beautiful woman took me in. I guess I kind of lost it for a while because I didn't care if I ever got out."

Aang nodded. He had an idea where this was heading.

"Anyway, she finally made me leave and told me that I would be king of Omashu, that it was my destiny," he continued. "I didn't want to be king. I wanted to stay with her. But she insisted. Finally to get me to leave, she said that when my time as king was done, she'd let me know to come back to her. That I could come back there and never have to leave again."

Then the old king turned to Aang and in his eyes, the Avatar could see a reflection of the young man Bumi had been, the young man in love with a mystery woman, a spirit. "A few months ago, I began to dream of her again. She told me to start finding a king—that my time was done," he said in quiet excitement. "The last few weeks, the dreams have been so powerful, so strong. It's been like I was already back there with her."

Aang gave his old friend a sad smile. "Do you want to ride there on Appa tomorrow?" he asked.

"Could we?" came the reply, almost boyish in its excitement.

To Aang's surprise, when Jet heard they were going to the swamp, he asked to come along. "I've got a little unfinished business there," he would only say.

The next morning, they landed in the center of the swamp at Hu's place. Hu came out to greet them with a sad smile of his own.

"Hu!" Bumi crowed merrily. "Do you have any of those wonderful little hors d'oeuvres around?"

"No, sire, I don't," Hu answered apologetically.

"That's okay," Bumi replied easily. "And I'm not sire anymore, just Bumi. Boy, am I glad to pass all that off onto young Jet here. It was past time for a younger head to wear the crown." He gave Jet an affectionate pat on the arm.

"You kept Omashu and the swamp safe through a hundred years of war," Hu stated. "No one could ask more than that. But you look a little tired. Would you like to lie down and rest a spell?"

Bumi nodded, yawning as Hu showed him back to a little green bedroom in the gigantic trunk of the swamp tree. He lay down and Hu placed a soft blanket across him as the old king closed his eyes for the last time. Within seconds, Bumi's skin had grown feverish.

Aang bent his head slightly and went into the avatar state to say goodbye.

Sure enough, Bumi sat in a beautiful garden bower, relaxing in Lian Shen's arms. But it was not the Bumi asleep at Hu's place. It was the same young man Aang had met in a dream, the same young man who'd fallen in love with a spirit.

"Aang," he called to him. "Come in and visit a while! Lady Lian Shen, do you mind?"

"Of course not, precious," Lian Shen replied, placing a soft kiss on Bumi's cheek. "But only for a moment. I've been waiting on you for so very long."

"That's okay," Aang replied. "I was just coming to say goodbye, Bumi. I think Lady Lian Shen means to keep you here a while."

"As long as possible," she replied silkily. "Someday you'll see each other again. But not for a very, very long time."

"But we have another guest as well," Lian Shen stated with a smile as Jet suddenly appeared beside them. She rose to greet him with an outstretched hand. "Jet, darling, what brings you here?"

He took her hand and gave Lian Shen a very respectful bow. "Lady, you told me to come back to see you when I knew who I was," he said softly, then he looked her in the eyes. "I know who I am now."

She favored him with a devastatingly beautiful smile. "Yes, you do. Now go. Go and be the protector you were meant to be. Go fulfill your destiny, darling," she said. Then she added, "But give us a kiss before you leave," and proceeded to plant a sincere one right on his lips.

Jet stood there just a little dumbstruck as she sauntered back to where Bumi sat, more amused than jealous. Then Jet faded away back to reality.

Then Bumi stood and crossed over to stand before Aang. "Aang, you were the friend of my childhood, then the friend of my old age. I'll miss you," he said extending his hand. The two men clasped forearms, then embraced.

Aang looked around the bower and back at Lady Lian Shen, who was already beginning to pull Bumi back into her arms.

"No, old friend," he said with a smile, "I don't think you will."

Aang returned to the swamp where Jet and Hu stood with him beside Bumi's bedside.

Hu patted Aang on the shoulder. "I'll take care of him," he said with a smile. "Don't worry about Bumi. He's fine."

Quietly, Aang and Jet walked out to Appa and headed back into the city.

Meanwhile, Smellerbee walked from the market toward the leather shop, stopping for a moment to watch the work being done to the fountain in the square. A crew of workmen had been busy cleaning and repairing it, and now water was flowing freely from all four spouts.

"Way to go, guys," Smellerbee commented to herself sarcastically. "Come fix it on the day I'm moving."

In the shop, Pipsqueak and Longshot loaded up yet another heavy box as she placed a basket full of hot meatpies on the counter. "Come get it," she called to them.

The guys headed toward the food as she looked around for Eun Min and The Duke. Finally she heard a giggle from the storeroom. Through a crack in the door, she could see them standing there, The Duke whispering something in her ear. Eun Min smiled up at him brightly and he kissed her.

Smellerbee smiled and took a couple of steps back away from the door before calling, "Lunch!" The two young people came out of the room, Eun Min still giggling and blushing a little.

It had been a long afternoon the day of the big contest. Once they'd gotten back to the leather shop, Eun Min had bravely taken The Duke aside and told him—not everything, but enough. She couldn't lie any more—not to him, not to herself.

He'd listened quietly. In the end, she'd hung her head. She hadn't wanted to see his face.

But he'd put his hand on her chin and made her look at him. "That wasn't you," he said. "That was them. You're still you, Eun Min. They never touched you."

Eun Min had believed him.

Smellerbee watched the two young people as they ate quickly, but with frequent glances at each other. She was more than ready to get to the new shop they'd leased up town. It would be so much closer to the palace. She'd begun to feel like her family was back together again.

After lunch, Pipsqueak loaded the last big box onto the wagon and the group headed up the street, only Smellerbee and Longshot hanging behind a moment. They stood there, their arms around each other and looked at the small shop. It held many good memories. It was a little hard to leave it.

Then Longshot looked down at her and said, "You know we'll be needing more room. With Pipsqueak and Eun Min staying on to help out, there just isn't room enough here."

"I know," she answered. "And I hope someday soon we'll be needing to add a nursery."

Longshot looked down at her and smiled. Then he kissed her. Smellerbee hoped someday came quickly.

Sokka met them at the shop to help unload things. Once they had unpacked the last of it, he pulled The Duke aside. "You sure you don't want to stay here?" Sokka asked the young man. He'd noticed how The Duke had kept close to Eun Min.

"I'm a fisherman," The Duke replied. "It's part of me. I can't leave that." But he looked across the room at Eun Min where she helped Smellerbee unpack the dishes in the kitchen. "But that doesn't mean that I can't come visit. A lot." Sokka watched as he walked up behind Eun Min to take a pitcher from her hand and place it on the top shelf.

Privately, Sokka thought that was a good idea. They were both very young. No need to rush things. Besides, he needed someone willing to travel to Omashu to oversee the new trade venture he was planning to start.

When he told Suki the same thing back at the apartments, she retorted, "Those two are not much younger than we were when we got married. Are you saying we rushed into things?"

"No, honeycakes, not at all," he answered, gathering her up in his arms. "If I'd waited another day to marry you, I would have died of longing. You put me off just to torment me."

"Maybe," Suki teased. "I just wanted to be sure you really, really wanted to be with me."

Sokka nuzzled her neck playfully as he said, "Oh, I really, really wanted to be with you. Still do."

Then Suki gave a little yelp. "What is it?" Sokka asked in concern.

"I felt the baby move," she said in a whisper. He immediately escorted her to the sofa and pulled up her tunic to spread his hand out across her belly. She didn't think he'd be able to feel it this soon, but she didn't say so. Instead, she just sat there and enjoyed being there in his arms, his hand warm against her skin.

Three months later, they were all back in Omashu for the wedding. Suki was really showing, Toph was beginning to show, and Katara and Smellerbee had only just found out.

"What? Is there something in the water around here?" Mai asked them as they gathered in her apartments for a bridesmaids' party.

"If there is, you'd better be careful," Katara teased.

"I'm safe," Mai replied with a smile. "You've got to be exposed to that virus to catch it."

"So you guys haven't?" Eun Min asked with a little smile.

"Nope," Mai answered. "Not that we haven't wanted to. Jet's just a real old-fashioned kind of guy."

"There's nothing wrong with that," Toph answered. "Zuko's an old-fashioned guy too. He has some very strong ideas about honor."

"Sokka too," Suki declared. "I swear he wouldn't even hug me in private for fear of starting something."

"That's hilarious," Smellerbee commented. "I never really thought about it, but Longshot and I had such a funny courtship. We lived together for years before we got married. But the first time he kissed me was at the earth shrine during the ceremony, and it took a good three days before we got up the courage to actually have sex with each other."

Then the group looked at Katara expectantly, but she was blushing. "Katara!" Suki said with a laugh. "Confess! What about you and Aang?"

"The Avatar and the Sugar Queen didn't wait?" Toph asked in surprise.

"It was really cold that night," Katara managed before everyone burst into laughter. When the guys came by a few minutes later for dinner, they all burst into hysterical giggles again at the sight of them, wiping their eyes and leaning on each other, but none of the women would say a word about why.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sokka asked Jet quietly. "Women are like this. Are you sure you want to marry one?"

Jet looked across the room at Mai as she laughed with the rest of them. "Yeah," he answered firmly. "That one."

Zuko and Toph had offered the villa on Tuzai Island to Jet and Mai as a honeymoon destination, but there was a huge trade delegation due in from Ba Sing Se and they knew they'd have to take a raincheck on it.

Instead, after the ceremony and the huge banquet in the palace reception hall, they'd gone up to the king's apartments in the palace. Jet shut the huge doors behind them with utter relief.

It had been a crazy day—a crazy week—a crazy three months. Ever since his coronation, the work had gone on nonstop. Mai had stuck by his side like glue giving him pointers, helping him remember names, telling him who was affiliated by blood or by business or by political association with who.

They'd had very little private time to just be together and that time had been heavily chaperoned once they were officially betrothed. Her mother had come back to Omashu to stay with her—to Mai's delight and chagrin all at the same time.

Political dinners and meetings ended up being some of their best time together. At least they could talk quietly together at the head of a banquet table.

Now, however, they were alone at last.

He looked across the room where Mai stood before the dressing table she'd taken over from him. She still wore her elaborate wedding gown. It was beautiful—all red and green and gold. He decided to try taking it off of her.

However, his attempts to disrobe her were complicated by her attempts to disrobe him. Before long, they stood in a tangle of embroidered silk. Somehow, he managed to pull her free of the yards and yards of fabric that encased them both and effortlessly tossed her onto the bed wearing only her underslip.

Outside, the sky had grown dark and a winter snow had begun to fall, the huge white flakes shining in the light of the flickering streetlamps.

"It's cold in here," she said, crawling under the heavy silk comforter.

"You've been cold since the day I met you," he teased, dropping the last of his clothing onto the floor and slipping into the bed beside her.

She wrapped herself around him, as much for warmth as anything else at the moment. It felt good to hold him and be held by him. Soon she was warm enough to shed her slip and they lay together skin to skin.

She ran her hand across his chest, her fingertips catching the raised line of a scar. "You are forbidden to get hurt ever again, you know that, don't you?" she asked. "I don't care if you can walk home afterward."

He laughed and kissed her hair. Then he propped up on his elbow and looked at her. She was so beautiful, so elegant. He traced the line of her cheek with his finger. How was he worth something as perfect as this?

The exotic scent of her perfume drifted from her dark silky hair where it brushed against his fingers. He could feel her breasts rise and fall against him with her breath.

His hand was at the small of her back. She fit so well against him, her body curving into his. She looked up at him, her eyes steady, her mouth soft. He needed her so badly he ached. He could feel himself tremble with it as he touched his lips to hers.

The kiss was like expensive wine, heady and intense. It consumed him.

He was at her mercy.

Then a sharp, sudden fear ran though him. He'd dreamed this, he realized. He'd dreamed about this exact moment in the swamp. He pulled away from her and asked lightly, "You're not going to laugh at me, are you?"

But though his words were teasing, Mai could hear the vulnerability behind them. She looked into those dark emerald eyes and she could see the uncertainty.

To the world, Jet was so strong, so decisive, so confident. But in that moment she could see past all that.

His hurts weren't just physical.

And deep inside, he was afraid. He was afraid she would hurt him. He was afraid she would leave him.

"I wasn't planning on laughing," she replied solemnly. Then she carefully, thoroughly took down the last of his defenses and loved him with her mind, her heart, and her body.

And afterward as he slept in her arms, Mai guarded him with everything she had. He was king of Omashu. He was the most powerful man in the entire city. He was one of the most powerful men in the world. He was a great ruler now and would become an even greater ruler.

But he was hers.

And she had a warning for anyone who wanted to hurt him, to disturb his peace.

She was armed.