Chapter Text
One thing that made it absolutely clear that Zuko was pregnant, apart from Toph's constant reminder that she could literally feel and hear the baby, was that Zuko was exhausted in a way that no one had seen him before.
They have all seen Zuko tired after training or after a long council meeting or after traveling for days. Most of them have been worried about Zuko, now Fire Lord, working himself to the ground to repair his family’s mistakes. He went on months of worrying Sokka sick when he barely slept or ate from how stressed he was from the workload and pressure that he was facing.
But that exhaustion was different. It’s been years since his coronation, and Zuko had found a somewhat balanced way to manage all his duties and fulfill them. Now, Zuko didn’t avoid eating, and he was balancing a healthy life with the firelord duties, but he seemed to be carrying a tiredness that had settled deep into his bones.
Zuko hated appearing weak, in every sense of the world. He hated admitting that he needed help or rest, but this exhaustion that came with pregnancy didn’t care about the Fire Lord pride.
_
Katara had seen Zuko resting during the day after a taxing meeting; she had seen him pretend to listen during a boring council meeting. But she had never seen him fall asleep during the middle of the day.
It felt wrong the first time it happened; almost impossible. Because Zuko was one of the most alert people she knew, if not the most.
Even back when they were teenagers traveling together, exhaustion had never seemed capable of fully catching Zuko. Aang would frequently doze off on Appa; Sokka was capable of falling asleep halfway through a conversation, and Toph could nap literally anywhere.
Zuko never did that. Not even during the war when everyone was exhausted and had circles shadowing their eyes. Zuko always stayed slightly awake, slightly alert. Expecting danger, Katara knew.
So, the first time Katara looked down during a healing session and realized Zuko had fallen asleep, she simply stared.
The room was nicely quiet, warm. Sunlight was filtering through the windows, mixing with the cool glow coming from the water around Katara’s hands.
Zuko had looked terrible that day. When she caught a glimpse of him, she saw how Zuko was looking awful. Pale, dragging his feet, which he was clearly trying very hard to pretend he wasn’t. Katara immediately saw through him.
“Sit,” Katara said even before saying hello.
“I’m fine, and hello to you too.” Zuko rubbed a hand over his face.
“Hi, Zuko. Now sit.” She was not going to negotiate.
“I have paperwork.”
“It can wait. Sit.”
Zuko let out a sigh, then reluctantly complied. Soon Katara’s healing water drifted through his body delicately; checking circulation, heart rate, and general health. Checking the tiny little life that was growing inside Zuko. Katara smiled, everything looked healthy, strong.
While studying the flow of Zuko’s heart energy, she realized something had changed.
Her eyes snapped towards Zuko’s face, and stared.
The tension was gone, the muscles in his face were relaxed, his shoulders too. Zuko’s jaw wasn’t clenched, his breathing had deepened.
He was asleep. Completely asleep.
His head had tipped to his right side while resting half raised on a comfortable cushioned sofa. Dark lashes rested against pale cheeks, and the permanent crease between his eyebrows had disappeared.
Katara couldn’t help but stare, because she had never seen Zuko look so young in a long time. He looked peaceful, safe.
For a strange moment, even though his features were of a man and not a sixteen year old boy, Zuko looked more like that version of himself than the Fire Lord.
He looked like that boy that didn’t know how to rest, that didn’t allow himself. Katara lowered the water immediately; she wasn’t about to wake him up when he so obviously needed it.
Instead, she adjusted a blanket over his middle. Zuko slightly moved, so Katara followed her instincts and continued to monitor Zuko’s health with her water, as it seemed to act like a lullaby for the Fire Lord.
Zuko was barely three months pregnant, but they were already so fond of their little niece–Katara had the gut feeling the baby was a girl.
A few minutes later the door opened with Sokka stepping inside. Katara immediately raised a finger to her lips. Sokka looked confused, then his eyes landed on Zuko. The mild concern vanished, and his expression changed instantly to a soft one.
Sokka simply smiled, then raised his eyebrows and gestured with his head, communicating with Katara without words. Look at this, can’t believe he is asleep.
Katara nodded and raised her eyebrows too. I know.
Sokka approached his partner quietly, careful not to wake him up. He crouched beside Zuko and brushed a hand through his long, dark hair.
Zuko leaned unconsciously towards the touch despite remaining asleep. It was a sight that warmed Katara’s heart. Sokka kissed Zuko’s head and settled nearby to wait.
That moment happened again and again.
Because Zuko’s first trimester of pregnancy insisted on completely draining him. Katara saw the signs whenever Zuko moved more slowly, when there was a slight delay in his responses and a heavy look behind his eyes.
Whenever she saw the signs, she would conveniently decide that the Fire Lord must have another healing session.
Sometimes the excuse was legitimate, but sometimes it wasn’t. But Zuko never once doubted Katara’s healing and judgement.
“I should check the baby.”
“You checked two days ago,” Zuko said while letting his palm rest on his middle.
“I’m checking again.”
“Toph says that little parasite is strong and fine.”
“She needs to stop calling the baby that!” Katara was so offended by that nickname that Toph had insisted on.
“You try to stop her from saying what she wants,” Zuko let out a yawn.
“Come on, just a few minutes.” Katara grabbed Zuko’s arm, guiding him to the closest seat.
“It’s never a few minutes. I keep…napping during these,” Zuko said as it was something so terrible. His face showed disapproval of his own acts.
“Come on, don’t be so dramatic for once.” Katara smiled and soon she watched Zuko completely let go.
Sometimes Zuko fell asleep within minutes, sometimes he fought it for half an hour. There were instances in which Katara would watch him stubbornly try to fight and stay awake while his eyes slowly drifted shut.
It felt significant for Katara. Zuko was in a very vulnerable position, but he still felt safe to fall into a deep sleep with her.
Behind the door, Toph and Sokka had been waiting.
“And, he is out.” Toph announced, feeling the change of Zuko’s heartbeat.
Sokka let out a sigh of relief. Zuko had looked so close to passing out from how tired he was that day. “Thank Tui and La.”
“Sweetness nap-trapping him with healing is so genius of her.”
“I owe her my life,” Sokka nodded in agreement.
_
If anyone asked, Toph was not worried about Zuko.
She didn’t pay attention to his heartbeat, to his vibrations. She wasn’t keeping track of how many times he yawned or swayed because of how tired he was.
She didn’t ask the servants if Zuko looked paler than usual. That would be ridiculous.
She definitely wasn’t joining Katara and Sokka’s mastermind plan to trick Zuko into resting, or steering Zuko towards places where the Fire Lord could sit down whenever his footsteps were getting slower and sluggish.
(She was.)
The enormous trees in the palace gardens were her best trick. Zuko loved the gardens, and the palace staff was instructed to avoid disturbing the Fire Lord while he visited them, unless it was necessary. It was a moment for Zuko to meditate, to unwind, to visit the pond with turtleducks and reset about his day.
That afternoon was warm and peaceful. Zuko had a diplomatic gathering which Toph had escaped as soon as possible, Zuko followed soon, and they ended up sitting beneath one of their favorite trees.
Toph gently pulled Zuko’s sleeve, guiding the pregnant Fire Lord away from everyone. Sokka had another meeting, so Toph had taken upon herself to complete the mission make Zuko rest.
She stretched her legs out across the grass while Zuko lowered himself beside her with a sigh that seemed to come from an old man.
“You make Iroh sound youthful.”
“I feel eighty,” Zuko muttered while getting comfortable against the tree.
Toph snorted. “You sound like it.” She stretched her arms, feeling a nice pull in her muscles. “Not me, though. Can’t relate.”
“Well you are not growing a human being.”
“I sure know I’m not,” Toph scoffed and shuddered.
For a while they sat in comfortable silence. No one was bothering them, birds chirped overhead, the slight wind moved the leaves above them. Top listened to Zuko’s breathing gradually slow.
Then slow further. She focussed on it, then realized Zuko was about to fall asleep.
She felt his shoulder bumping hers. She smirked, the giant idiot was tipping over.
Zuko straightened himself up, then bumped again. And again.
“Uh…” Toph let out a sigh, feeling Zuko fight the sleep.
When she was about to tell him to stop fighting it, she suddenly felt Zuko’s head bump against hers. Six feet of exhausted Fire Lord simply gave up.
It wasn’t exactly an ideal situation for her, she had to admit. Zuko was heavy. He was tall, full of muscle, and now he was dead weight on her head. She had expected Zuko to doze off against the tree, not this.
“Come on, Sparky, really…” she muttered while moving and causing Zuko to slide sideways. He was so exhausted that he was literally sleeping on her without realizing.
Toph opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.
Zuko was out cold. Not drifting, not dozing. Completely gone.
His breathing had immediately deepened; Toph felt how his entire body relaxed, in the most awkward, uncomfortable position possible for her.
Her arms were trapped, Zuko was half resting on her lap, like a puppet that had it’s strings cut and fell on top of her.
“...seriously?” she asked in a whisper, facing in Zuko’s general direction.
No response. Obviously.
The man had abandoned consciousness.
Toph let out a groan after feeling one of her legs already tingling. She attempted to move her foot and immediately Zuko made a small sleepy noise. The kind of noise that nobody should hear from the terrifying Fire Lord. Toph snorted from her own thoughts; she still could believe how anyone could find Zuko scary..
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.” She stopped moving.
She was proud of herself for getting Zuko to sleep, but she didn’t imagine it would be so uncomfortable for herself.
Eventually, Toph moved again. She cursed in a mutter, thinking she had woken him up. Instead, Zuko relaxed even more and was nearly drooling.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
Toph gave up.
She just sat there. Trapped. Her limbs would probably be numb forever. The greatest earthbender in the world would lose her abilities because the gigantic Fire Lord decided to pass out on top of her.
After giving up and almost dozing off herself, she became aware that a palace servant had found them.
The poor woman nearly had a heart attack thinking that something was wrong with the Fire Lord.
“My lady–” she was almost panicking. “My spirits.”
“Quiet.”
“The Fire Lord–”
Toph felt the woman look around helplessly, moving on her spot.
“--is taking a nap.”
“Excuse me, my lady?”
Toph let out a tired sigh, unmoving from her spot. She let out a blow of wind to move her bangs slightly as a strand was tickling her.
“The Fire Lord is taking a nap.”
“...a nap.”
Toph nodded with her eyelids half shut. “A nap.”
“Should…should we wake him up?”
“No.”
“But, my lady–”
“No.”
The servant retreated.
Ten minutes later a guard arrived.
“You are forbidden from waking him up,” Toph threatened them, getting annoyed.
But the word spread quickly through the palace and more guards kept coming.
The Fire Lord had apparently collapsed beneath a tree and Lady Beinfong forbade anyone from attending him.
They kept arriving, and Toph stayed sitting motionless.
The guards had entered crisis mode.
“Should we inform the healers?”
“No,” she spat in a whisper.
“Should we inform Lord Sokka?”
“No.”
“My lady, the Fire Lord–”
“Is perfectly fine, and you are very close to disturbing him.” Toph’s expression darkened when she felt Zuko close to waking up. “Go. Away.”
Nobody argued after that.
But a bizarre situation kept developing, as half a dozen palace guards stood nearby. Servants hovered nervously. What was happening was unprecedented, the Fire Lord was down and everyone was too terrified of Lady Beinfong for anyone to contradict her wishes.
Everyone was desperately trying to protect the sleeping Fire Lord, while Toph tried her very best not to bark violence towards them.
A servant suggested waking the Fire Lord and bringing him to his chambers, as he didn’t seem well. Toph threatened her.
Eventually everyone accepted that they were now participating in whatever strange situation that afternoon had become.
Almost a dozen palace staff were standing uncomfortably and anxiously near them. The Fire Lord was in a deep sleep. Toph was trapped.
Nothing could be done about it.
Nearly an hour later after Zuko fell asleep, Sokka was done with his meeting and he almost ran towards the gardens after being informed that something very strange was happening.
At first he thought it was some emergency, and his heartbeat went highwire searching for Zuko. Then he noticed everyone was trying not to stare–but staring, towards a big tree.
“What happened? Where is Fire Lord Zuko?”
A servant pointed towards the tree when no one answered. Sokka followed her gaze, and soon every anxious thought was gone.
He moved close enough and there was Toph. Sitting stiffly beneath the tree. Scowling at the world.
Sprawled on top of her lap was Zuko.
Sokka stared, then made a strangled noise. He covered his mouth to muffle a laugh.
Toph immediately pointed at him. “Don’t.”
“I’m trying,” Sokka almost doubled over trying to conceal his amusement.
“Don’t.”
“I’m trying really hard.”
The sight was ridiculous.
Zuko was massively taller than Toph, and Toph looked like she had simply accepted her fate while almost growing wrinkles from how much she was scowling.
“You’ve been sitting here the whole time?” Sokka asked in a whisper, now on his knees from laughing.
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
“An hour.”
Toph glared in his direction. The palace staff visibly flinched while Sokka got tears in his eyes from laughing so hard. “You think this is funny?”
“It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Eventually, Zuko stirred, coming back to consciousness. He looked up and saw Toph, then saw Sokka cross legged next to them smiling hard. Zuko’s face turned red.
“You drool.”
Zuko straightened up then covered his face with one hand.
“I almost lost my arms.” Toph stretched out.