Chapter 1

Almost four years later…

“Fire Lord, please- you must listen to reason…”

Zuko stopped walking down the sconce-lit corridor and turned around to face his bevy of elderly advisors.  “I’ve been listening to your reasoning- for two years now!  And I’ve told you time and time again: I will not marry until my sister has been caught and the regime she has been building to take back the Fire Nation has been found and dealt with.”  He snorted and a small flame flashed from his nostrils.  “I don’t care if I have to wait until Sozin’s Comet comes back again- Azula is my top priority!”

The handful of gray-haired advisors bowed respectfully even though their leader, Yao Fen, continued to try and press the point despite his Fire Lord’s irritation.  “Of course she is, my lord.  Yet you are now twenty years of age, well past the time when you should have been married and sired an heir.  You must have an heir, Fire Lord, should anything… unfortunate… befall you.”

Sparks shot from Zuko’s golden eyes.  “I assure you, Yao Fen- I will marry and provide an heir.  However, I will do it when I am good and ready!”

In a swirl of dark red cloth, he turned around and stalked away, leaving his frustrated advisors to bow once more in his wake.

He had almost reached his sanctuary- the courtyard, with its pond and family of turtleducks- when a familiar voice called out, making him wince.

“I don’t need to feel your stomping to know you’re pissed off.”

Zuko turned around to see a beautiful young woman clad in a green tunic and cream pants reclining comfortably in a stone chair that he knew had not been present in the courtyard previously.  He blinked a few times at her.

“Toph?”

She gracefully stood up and grinned at him, her stone chair sinking back into the ground as she walked toward him.  “Been a long time, eh, Fire Lord?”

His good eye widened as she sauntered closer.  He had last seen her over three years ago when she had informed everyone she was going to travel in order to “coat herself in a healthy layer of her element from every corner of the world.”

And now, she had blossomed into a lovely and slender, if short, young woman.  Her hair was pulled up on top of her head in some sort of twist, but her bangs were still long and covered her pale, sightless eyes.

“Y-yeah.  Three years, at least.”

Her grin broadened and she forcibly pulled him into a hug- a rough one.  “You look good, Sparky.”

He returned her friendly embrace, thinking to himself how he was going to be sporting bruises later.  “I’m not falling for that one.  I’m not Sokka.”

Toph laughed and released him, taking a step back.  “Have you heard from Snoozles and Fan-girl lately?  I stopped by Kyoshi Island on my way here and Ty Lee said she hadn’t seen them in a while.”

Zuko folded his arms over his chest.  “I received a letter from them about six months ago.  Last I knew they were at the North Pole, paying respects at the Oasis to Sokka’s old girlfriend.”

She winced but kept grinning.  “Ouch.  That can’t be easy for Suki.”

“She wrote that it was her idea.  Sokka needed closure, and she was tired of arguing with him about Yue.”

Toph’s face grew more somber.  “Closure, huh?  That’s pretty nice of her, considering.”

Zuko sat down on a nearby bench.  “So what brings you back here?  You said once that there wasn’t hardly any dirt left in the Fire Nation because of all the volcanoes.  I would’ve thought you’d return to Ba Sing Se and swap stories with my uncle for a while.”

“I did already,” she replied, plopping down on the grassy lawn of the courtyard.  “That’s why I’m here.”

Immediately he was on edge.  “Is he all right?  I just saw him a couple weeks ago and he seemed fine…”

“Relax, Sparky.  Uncle’s fine.  But he has news for you that he thought you’d want to know about.”

Zuko lifted his only remaining eyebrow.  “Then why didn’t he just write a letter?”

Toph grinned and produced a sealed scroll.  “He did.  He just wanted to deliver it in style.”

He cautiously took the scroll from her, a knot in his stomach as he tried to guess what might be written inside.  Is he sick?  Did he hurt himself somehow?  What if he found Azula?  Or Mom?

Slowly he opened the scroll and began to read as Toph cheerfully began to pick her toes.

Dear Nephew,

I apologize that I have not been able to make it back to the Fire Nation for your last birthday celebration.  These old bones are aching something fierce, and the long boat ride back would have been much too painful.  However, I will give you your gift next time you are able to come visit.  So for now, my temporary gift to you is the presence of our lovely Earthbending lady.

Zuko rolled his eyes at his uncle’s double meaning of “presence.”  “So you’re here to stay?”

Toph grinned.  “For a while, anyway.  I’ll have to run off to the Southern Air Temple pretty soon, though, for Katara’s surprise party.”

Something in his chest clenched at the sound of Katara’s name.  “Surprise party?  But her birthday isn’t until mid-winter.”

A sly expression crossed the young Earthbender’s face.  “It is?  And how would you know that?”

Heat rose in his cheeks.  “It… I… Well, your birthday is in the spring, isn’t it?”

“Duh.  All the best Earthbenders are born in the spring.”  She smirked.  “Plus, you were there for my thirteenth birthday party.”

“Right before you left on your ‘dirt quest.’”

She laughed.  “Yup.  And it’s been great.  I’ve never felt so at one with my element.”

Zuko paused.  “S-so… What is this surprise party about?”

The evil grin returned to Toph’s face.  “What?  You don’t know?”  She flicked a piece of unidentifiable yuck from between her toes.  “Aang’s going to propose.”

Silence.

Finally, “…What?”

“It’s supposed to be written in that letter, Sparky.  I thought you’d finished reading it already.”

He lifted the letter and continued to read, his heart thudding heavily.

I have recently received an invitation to a surprise engagement party for Aang and Katara, but will not be able to attend due to my poor aching bones.  (Aching bones indeed, Zuko thought skeptically)  Since I know you have not seen the Avatar and your other friends in quite some time, I have taken the liberty of informing Aang that you will be there for both of us.

Zuko lifted his gaze from the paper and stared at Toph, who still maintained her mischievous grin.

“…Katara… is getting engaged?”

“That’s what it says, Zu-zu.  Why?  Is there… a problem?”

“No.  Of course not.  It’s just that she’s so young-“

“She’ll be eighteen this winter,” Toph pointed out.  “Most Water Tribe girls are married when they’re sixteen.  Aang’s been waiting to ask her until he was old enough to marry her.  And he’ll be sixteen this fall.”

Zuko wasn’t so dense as to not notice the tinge of sadness in his young friend’s voice.  “Er… Toph…?”

She waved him off.  “No worries, right?  He’s been in love with her for-ev-er.”  She smiled faintly.  “It’s right that the Avatar who saved the world should get a happy ending with the girl of his dreams.”

“Toph, I…!”

“Enough,” she interrupted.  “So are you going to go or not?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to soothe the ache between his shoulders.  “I doubt I’d be able to leave for that long.  I’ve got a bunch of strategy meetings to attend to regarding finding Azula and her conspirators, plus I need to open the new orphanage in the rebuilt section of the Capitol, not to mention my advisors are all over my ass about me getting married and producing an heir…”

“Zuko.”  A sympathetic look was on the young woman’s face.  “Don’t give me your weak excuses.  You’re going, and that’s that.  And do you know why?”

“I’m afraid to ask.”

“Because if you don’t, you’re going to regret it for the rest of your life.”

Zuko gave a forced laugh.  “Yeah, I suppose Aang would be a bit put out if all of his friends didn’t come to one of the most important celebrations in his life.  And having the Avatar pissed at you is probably not a good thing.”

Toph’s expression didn’t change, but she didn’t say anything further on the subject.  “So how are you and Needles doing?  Uncle didn’t tell me much.”

He shrugged, looking away even though she couldn’t see it.  “Not much to tell.  We’re the same as we’ve always been.  We criticize things, we argue, we make up, start all over again.  Nothing unusual.”

“Sounds like a great relationship.”

“Well, I can’t really complain too much.  She’s been the perfect Consort for nearly four years now.  She knows the ins and outs of court life, she behaves impeccably during political dinners, and is always a gracious hostess.  She’d be a perfect Fire Lady.”

“Then why not marry her and put your advisors’ nerves at ease?”

Zuko crossed his arms again.  “I… I will.  As soon as I find my sister and put a stop to the unrest she’s been stirring up with those rebels she’s gathering.”

“Which might take years.”

“It might.”

Toph gazed at him- or rather, towards him- thoughtfully.  “You know, Zu-zu… Some might say that you’re using your hunt for Crazy as an excuse.”

“Excuse for what?”

“To not get married.”

He scowled and stood up.  “I know my duties, Toph.  As Fire Lord I am responsible for protecting my people, ensuring their survival, managing any difficulties that come their way, and producing a child that will take over as ruler when I am gone.  And I will do what is expected of me.”

Toph’s knowing smirk returned.  “Somehow, I think you’re going to do something everyone but you expects.”

                                                        .o(O)o.

Fire was everywhere.  Blue flames battled red as hysterical laughter echoed throughout the chaos.  He had the upper hand- that much was certain.  He shifted his stance, regarding her with the knowledge that HE was the better fighter this time around.

The air seemed to turn heavy, feeling thick and charged.  She smirked.

He knew what was coming.  He readied himself, clearing his mind of inner turmoil and focusing on the electricity balled in his opponent’s fist.

Her eyes, which had been locked on him the entire battle, suddenly shifted to his right.  She struck, sending her blue lightning heading straight and true.

He turned, his stomach tightening and his heart lurching, for he knew who her target was.  He ran, moving as fast as he could, his mind on one thing only.

“Don’t let her die.”

The lightning hit him and he fought to redirect it as his uncle had taught him.  His mind was not clear, his thoughts were not focused- and his heart seized.  He managed to redirect part of the attack, but not all of it… and it was enough to protect HER.

He fell to the ground, twitching as remnants of the electricity shot through his body.  The pain in his chest increased as his heart fought to keep beating.  He managed to roll onto his back and he forced his eyes to open slightly.

And saw a pair of blue eyes gazing at him in disbelief.

Katara, he tried to say, but no words would come out. Please be okay.

His eyes slid shut and darkness enveloped him.  The heat from his body began to leave him and he knew this was the end.  He could only pray that SHE could defeat her.

Of course she would.  SHE was a better bender than he was.

“Zuko, don’t you die on me!”

Warm hands rested on his chest.  The pain began to drift away, like the tides of the ocean, pulsing and retreating, until nothing remained except body aches that reminded him that he was still alive.

He opened his eyes once more, and this time those blue eyes were overflowing with tears.  He gazed at her.

“You saved me.”

She sniffled and gave him a watery smile.  “You saved me first.”

“So we’re even.”

“…Yeah.”

He sat up and looked at her.  Long brown hair curling around her shoulders.  Eyes the color of the clearest oceans.  Skin softer than a newborn turtle-duck’s down.

He lifted his hand to her cheek and gently brushed his thumb over the skin there, marveling at how perfect it felt under his fingers.  He opened his mouth to tell her everything: why he risked everything to help find her mother’s killer, his reasons for choosing HER to join him for his fight against Azula, why he had jumped in front of his sister’s attack in order to save HER life…

“Thank you.”

Wait.  Thank you?  That’s not what I was going to say!  Wait, Katara, I…

Zuko sat up fast in his massive bed, his body broken out in a cold sweat.  He ran a hand through his tussled hair, his breath coming out in rapid pants.

Dammit.

He threw back the crimson coverlet covering his lower half and walked over to the wardrobe, pulling on a black silk robe and tying the belt in jerking motions.

Why the hell am I dreaming about HER?  That happened nearly four years ago.  I’m with Mai, and SHE’s going to be getting engaged to Aang… there’s NO reason for me to be bringing up old memories.

But the dull ache in his chest wouldn’t go away.  And he didn’t need Toph’s amazing blind insight to know why it was there.