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Katara stands among the hundreds of people of all nations that came to witness the new Fire Lord’s speech after the war was finally over.
Word was sent out that any and all people, rich and poor, foreign and native are welcome to visit and be there for the coronation and the speech. A place to stay would be provided for everyone in the most luxurious parts of Caldera City. And sure enough, many people did come to see it for themselves and Zuko remained true to his word.
Granted, the amount of people that came surprised him, but Iroh explained that once word got out that he was helping the Avatar and prevented his sister from becoming yet another tyrannical ruler, possibly even more so than their father was, a lot of people took his side. Zuko was worried there wouldn’t be enough houses for everyone to stay in, but in the end they managed.
They stand there, mostly quiet, some talking in hushed voices. Katara can make out some of the conversations, but it’s usually the same thing over and over.
“When will he come?”
“I don’t know! What’s taking so long?”
“Do you think he’ll keep his word?”
“I hope so, we really can’t do this war thing much longer…”
She drowns them out. She knows Zuko will be the kind and benevolent ruler the people need him to be. She knows that right now, he’s behind the red velvet curtains of the balcony, probably doing some breathing exercises to calm down. Knowing him, he’s probably close to hyperventilating. Hopefully Aang manages to calm him down. She says a short prayer to Tui and La in her mind for everything to go smoothly.
Finally the curtains part and out steps the crown prince, soon to be Fire Lord. A murmur goes through the crowd.
Zuko stands there in all his glory, a long red royal cloak draped over his shoulders. He stands upright and confident, giving off an aura that demands authority and respect, yet suggests that despite the fact that he should most definitely not be trifled with, he is still open to compromise and hearing the other person out.
Katara holds her breath. She’s never seen the prince like this before. He was of course always elegant, albeit rough around the edges – she supposed that the lessons in etiquette and proper royal behaviour stuck with him even after all those years – but this is a whole new experience for her.
When he speaks, her heart does a somersault. He was always kind of awkward whenever he spoke during their trips. Of course, Katara figured it was because he still felt guilty and wasn’t really used to being wanted. But now he speaks confidently and just like a respectable monarch should. She feels a surge of immense pride for her lover.
He invites Aang onto the stage and the crowd roars. Katara is happy for her friend but still only has eyes for Zuko.
The ceremony goes as planned. It was agreed that the Avatar should be present for the coronation as a sign to the people that he approves of the new Fire Lord, to strengthen Zuko’s position, because they expected backlash sooner or later. After the ceremony is crowned and Zuko and Aang fill the people in on their plans to build Republic City. It’s clear the idea of a benevolent Fire Lord working with the Avatar towards a better future gives people hope. Even those that seemed sceptical at first seem to soften at their words and Katara is relieved. The war is won and most people like Zuko, but Katara was not born yesterday. There are bound to be people who either want Ozai back or want to abolish the monarchy altogether. But that’s a problem for another day.
Once the celebration is over and people start drifting off to explore Caldera City, Katara makes her way into the palace to find the young Fire Lord. He’s leaning against the railing of the balcony on the opposite side of the palace that faces the garden. It occurs to Katara that she hasn’t actually been to the palace yet, much less the gardens.
She puts her arms around his waist gently – Zuko still got jumpy sometimes when he didn’t expect to be touched and it always pained Katara to see it because she couldn’t help but imagine what he had to go through possibly even before the Agni Kai to flinch at every sudden movement like a wounded cow-deer.
Sure enough, he tenses a little at the unexpected feeling of hands sliding over his waist and closing over his stomach, but he feels the familiar warmth of Katara’s body pressed against his back. He smiles and covers her arms with his own.
“You were amazing. I’m so proud of you.”
“Thank you, Katara. It means a lot.”
He turns around in her arms to face her and looks down into her ocean blue eyes, taking in her scent. She smelled like morning dew and fresh air after a storm. He leans down and cups her face in his warm palms, gently stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.
The kiss is warm and soft as most of theirs are. They both know the other has been through much more than they should have, both physically and emotionally,. They are always gentle with each other because of it.
Eventually they pull apart, cheeks slightly flushed and grinning from ear to ear. They stand there for a while just relishing the moment. The war is over, the people are mostly appeased and they’re there together, finally enjoying a moment of peace.
Zuko catches Katara eyeing the garden over his shoulder.
“Oh! You haven’t been yet, have you?”
“No. Care to give me a tour, Your Majesty?”
“It would be my pleasure, milady.”
They bow to each other solemnly and immediately burst out laughing.
“Zuko?”
“Yes?”
“Let’s not do that again.”
The firebender chuckles and gives her a quick peck on the cheek.
“Sure. Shall we?”
He offers her his arm which Katara accepts with a grin and they make their way to the palace gardens.
Katara is mesmerized. She has never seen this many flowers in one place before. There were gardens in the Earth Kingdom, but none quite so cared for and mostly filled with grass and bushes. This was a whole new experience. There were flowerbeds every few steps and each flower was different. The sight and smell of the garden was almost overwhelming to Katara. The little flora that grew on the South Pole either lacked scent altogether or it wasn’t very pleasant. She has seen some beautiful flowers during their travels, but between finding bending masters for Aang, helping people and villages oppressed by the Fire Nation and – for a while – having to keep away from Zuko, there wasn’t much time to fully appreciate them.
Once she gets used to the harmony of smells she approaches the nearest flower bed and Zuko follows. He names each and every one of them and talks about their qualities and use.
“These are great for tea. We mostly grow them for Uncle. Those have healing properties. Great for an upset stomach and headaches. This one is for burns.”
He notices Katara wince the last one and puts his arm around her shoulder. “Come on, let’s go a little further. There are the ones we grow solely for aesthetic reasons. I like them best.”
The flowers Zuko leads her to, are by far the most beautiful ones Katara has ever seen in her life. She’s heard stories of flowers that only grow in Caldera City, but always dismissed them as a rumor. Surely, they had to grow elsewhere in the Fire Nation if not the rest of the world right?
Wrong.
The flowers were of all shapes, colors and sizes and some had colors she has never seen in her life. She smells each and every one of them and is surprised to find out she likes them all. Zuko silently watches her a few paces away, letting her enjoy the flowers – and greatly enjoying the sight of her himself.
There is something magical about the way Katara acts when she gets excited about something. She lights up, twirls around the flowers and has the biggest smile on her face. Zuko wishes they could stay like this forever. Just the two of them, walking around the garden and Katara gleaming with excitement.
Finally she seems to have calmed down and gestures to Zuko. “Tell me about them.”
“These are white roses. Azula likes them. The lilies were my mother’s. I’m actually surprised Father didn’t get rid of them.Then again he never did go to the gardens much. Lu Ten liked tulips so Uncle had those planted as well. He also had the tea roses planted. Because they have ‘tea’ in the name. No I’m serious,” he adds as Katara snorts, “He said so himself! I swear to Agni he makes the worst jokes I’ve ever heard.”
He walks a little bit further and points at a patch of flowers with petals so tiny, Katara barely noticed them at first.
“And these are mine.”
Katara squats and inspects the miniscule pink, white and yellow petals.
“What are they? Why didn’t you pick something more… prominent?”
“The pink ones are mountain mallows, the yellow ones are arnicas and the white ones are yarrows. They all commonly grow after wildfires in large numbers. I like that about them. It’s sort of a reminder for me that despite what happened to me, I can still make the best of my life.”
Katara sits down on the grass and picks one of the mountain mallows inspecting it closer.
“They’re pretty. I like them too.”
She twirls it around between her fingers and suddenly Zuko gets an idea. He kneels down and starts picking flowers of all three kinds.
“What are you doing?”
“You’ll see. I think you’ll like it. Close your eyes.”
Begrudgingly, the girl obliges. After a while she feels something settle on her head. She forces herself to sit still and not grab for it.
“Done! But keep them closed,” Zuko says as he helps her up. He leads her over to the turtleduck pond, which is unusually still today. He suspects the turtleducks are somewhere in the garden.
“Open.”
The waterbender opens her eyes and lets out a gasp as she sees her reflection in the water. A flower crown made of all of Zuko’s favourite flowers rests on her head. She touches it gently with one hand, careful not to damage it. She always thought they were pretty when she saw them on girls in the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation, but never had one of her own.
“Zuko, this is so pretty, I love it! I always wanted one. But I never learned to make them and I think buying one just isn’t the same.
Zuko chuckles at this but doesn’t object. “I’m happy you like it. I can teach you to make them yourself if you’d like.”
Katara’s eyes widen and gleam at the words and Zuko’s heart skips a beat. Agni , she’s beautiful, he thinks to himself, taking her in, her blue dress, her hair flowing over her shoulders and the flower crown on her head. He could swear he’s looking at a fairy.
They spend the rest of the afternoon picking flowers and making flower crowns. Katara gets the hang of it pretty quickly and decides that she needs to make some for all their friends as well. She frowns a little in concentration and is very proud of herself for every knot she gets right. Zuko watches her and melts a little inside. He can’t believe that this marvellous girl that could have any man she could possibly think of would, pick him. But he sure wasn’t going to complain.
A few hours and six flower crowns later, Katara is finally done. She’s about to stand up but then stops.
“Wait. One more.”
“Oh? Who else do we know? Trust me Uncle is not into flower crowns much.”
Katara giggles and Zuko falls in love all over again.
“Not for him, Zuko. For you! You also need one.”
“I do?”
“You most certainly do.”
“But I already have a crown,” he objects, pointing to his Fire Lord headpiece.
“But that’s just jewellery. This one is important!”
They both have to laugh at this and finally Zuko agrees. Katara resists the urge to make a tiny one for his top knot only and puts extra effort into this one. When she’s done, she proudly presents it to Zuko.
It’s the most beautiful flower crown he has ever seen. Not just because it was made of his favourite flowers but because Katara made it. Anything that has to do with her is instantly more beautiful in Zuko’s eyes. He puts it on.
Thank you, Katara, I love it.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”