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- Ozai’s
There wasn’t a lot Mai remembered from Fire Lord Ozai’s coronation aside from a sea of red, her parents' promise of loyalty towards the new Fire Lord, and a terrified boy dressed in white.
Of course, part of what made the look of terror on Zuko’s face so memorable was utter lack of reciprocity on the part of anyone else. Briefly after the coronation, Mai heard her father speaking with some of the generals and newly appointed advisors to the Fire Lord. They discussed their hopes for this new era and how they believed that it would be Fire Lord Ozai who finally won the war and spread the glory of the Fire Nation to the rest of the world.
She could hear the pride in her father's voice and wanted to believe it was true. But as she listened to the men speak of Ozai’s glory and greatness, her mind wandered back to the image of Zuko’s wide eyes and terrified face. It was infectious - almost like he was trying to warn her about something. The second she saw him on that platform, she felt a jolt of fear run through her.
She didn’t think she’d ever forget the look on his face. In the days following the coronation, she often thought about it, and about him. A lot had happened in the span of a few short days - his grandfather had died; his father was now Fire Lord and his mother was gone too.
Ursa’s disappearance had not gone unnoticed, but Mai had yet to hear anyone mention it. In fact, she asked her mother about it only for Michi to state that it wasn’t their place to wonder.
That was that.
But Mai still wondered about Ursa, about what had happened, and weirdly, about Zuko too.
He was still only Azula’s older brother to her. Sure, she’d always had a crush on him. But it never amounted to anything more than the flush of her cheeks as he walked by and a few short conversations between the two of them. But Mai had never seen anyone so terrified before.
She didn’t find out why until a few days after the coronation. She was at the Royal Palace to see Azula. Azula had needed to cut their afternoon short, leaving Mai and Ty Lee alone. The two of them sat in the garden for a bit before Ty Lee excused herself home.
Mai decided to stay for a bit. Her mother had been increasingly adamant about Mai remaining friends with Azula ever since Ozai’s coronation and Mai figured she had the perfect excuse to avoid home for just a bit longer.
Besides, she liked the palace gardens. She sat underneath the apple tree, taking in the lushness of the garden when she saw Zuko walking towards the fountain.
She hadn’t seen him since the coronation and somehow, he looked worse. His eyes were rimmed with red and he looked like he hadn’t slept in days.
“Oh,” he said hoarsely when he saw her. “I didn’t realize you were still here.”
“Sorry,” Mai said, slowly getting up off the ground.
“It’s okay. You don’t need to leave,” he replied quickly.
She nodded her head. “Thanks.”
“I thought you were playing with Azula,” he said.
“She had to leave,” she replied.
“Why are you still here then?” he asked, curiously.
Mai shrugged. “I like the gardens. Besides, home is boring.”
He nodded slowly before sitting on the ground next to her.
Mai felt her cheeks heat up and forced herself to take a deep breath before asking, “Why are you here?”
He shrugged. “I just like being here.”
“It’s pretty,” Mai supplied.
He nodded. “It was my mom’s favorite part of the palace.”
She could hear the misery dripping in his voice.
“I’m sorry Zuko,” she said quietly.
“You haven’t - I mean - if you heard anything, you’d tell me, right?” he asked eagerly, as if his mother's disappearance was just some palace gossip.
“I haven’t heard anything. No one’s said anything about it,” she replied.
She watched him as he blinked in surprise and then another to hold the tears welling up in the corner of his eyes back. “Oh.”
“I thought you knew,” she murmured.
He shook his head. “I woke up and she was just gone. And my dad was Fire Lord. And that was that.”
Mai blinked in surprise as she tried to piece it all together in her mind. Mai wasn’t stupid. She was quiet, which allowed to overhear the musings that went on in the palace without others knowing. She knew that Ozai was the second born and that a week ago, Iroh was Crown Prince. She knew that Azulon was old, but still fairly healthy. She knew that Ozai was ambitious and that Iroh had just lost a son. The hint of a story began to form in her mind but stopped as she tried to understand how Ursa fit into it all.
“No one’s told me anything,” he added miserably.
“I’m sorry Zuko,” she said again. Her voice was soft and warm and Zuko hadn’t heard anyone say anything that genuine in so long.
“Thanks.”
His voice was so filled with grief that it was overwhelming. She didn’t know what to do, or how to help.
“Your Crown Prince now,” she stated. She didn’t know why she suddenly thought of that, or what possessed her to say it aloud, but she needed something to break the melancholic silence hanging between them.
“Yeah,” he said, the words not registering.
“You can boss Azula around now,” she stated. “You’re going to be Fire Lord one day.”
He froze.
“I mean, you can always pass it to Azula, if you want!” she added hurriedly, sensing the palpable anxiety in the air.
“I didn’t even realize that,” he whispered.
“That you could abdicate?”
He shook his head. “That I’m going to be Fire Lord.”
“You’ve never thought about it?” she frowned.
“Not really. I was fourth in line. It was supposed to be Lu Ten,” he said.
She was silent for a moment, racking her brains as she thought of something to say.
“I mean, you have a long time until then,” she finally said.
“I guess.”
“You’ve really never thought about it?” she asked before she could help herself.
“No,” he answered.
She let out a dry laugh.
“What?” he asked.
“Nothing. It’s just refreshing to see that status doesn’t matter to everyone.”
He frowned. “What’s that supposed to me?”
“Have you met my parents?” she asked bitterly. “All they care about is status and power.”
“I guess we have that in common,” he said. His eyes went wide for a moment before he quickly added, “My dad, I mean. My mom isn’t - wasn’t - like that.”
Mai nodded her head, processing what he had just said and filing it away in her mind with the other information surrounding Ozai’s new place on the throne.
“I hate it,” she admitted. “Nothing else matters to them. Not even me.”
She would have never admitted that aloud if it wasn’t him and if it wasn’t that exact moment in the courtyard.
He nodded in agreement. “Azula has always been dad’s favorite. He’s always said that she was born lucky. And that I was lucky to be born.”
She blinked as she heard that. “He said that to you?”
He nodded.
“That’s - that’s not right. I’m sorry Zuko.”
“I’m sorry too,” he mumbled.
They sat in silence for a moment, listening to the sound of the turtleducks in the pond and the distant chatter of the palace.
“You know?” Mai started. “By the time you’re Fire Lord, the world may be completely different.”
He frowned. “What do you mean?”
“It’ll be years from now,” she said. “By that point, we probably will have won the war.”
“Hopefully,” he said.
“I’m serious! After the coronation, I heard all the generals and admirals talking about how Fire Lord Ozai is going to be the one to end the war and finally spread the glory of the Fire Nation all over the world.”
“Maybe,” he said.
Zuko normally wore his emotions on his sleeve, but this was one of the rare occasions that Mai couldn’t tell what he was feeling.
“Regardless,” she said. “I think you’ll be a great Fire Lord.”
She looked around the courtyard before leaning closer to him. “Better than Azula would be,” she whispered.
He broke into a grin at that. “She’d probably strike down the first person who looked directly at her.”
Mai let out a little laugh and Zuko smiled a little wider as he heard it. He searched his mind, trying to think of something else that would produce that same sound, but nothing came to him.
“Well,” Mai sighed, getting up off the ground. “I should be heading home before my parents worry. Bye.”
“Wait,” he exclaimed.
She turned to him.
“Thank you,” he said. “What you said - it means a lot.”
“Anytime,” she said with a small smile.
- Zuko’s
He found her before the coronation. She was sitting in the courtyard, underneath the apple near and in front of the fountain.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, sitting down beside her.
She frowned. “You’re going to get your robes dirty.”
He shrugged. “It’s fine.”
“You’re about to be crowned Fire Lord,” she stated with a raised eyebrow.
He didn’t respond.
“What’s going on?” she asked, reaching for his hand and locking her fingers with his.
“I don’t know if I can do it,” he said.
She could sense the panic in his voice.
“Hey,” she murmured, reaching up to gently cup his face.
He turned towards her.
“Zuko, I know you better than anyone. You’re going to be an amazing Fire Lord,” she said.
“I don’t know how to do it. I don’t know how to lead or how to make everything alright,” he whispered. “Mai, we’ve done so much harm in the world. We’ve hurt so many people.”
She nodded. “I know.”
Her hand dropped away from his face and onto her lap.
“What?” he asked in surprise.
“I know. I’m in the same boat you’re in,” she said bitterly.
“You didn’t have a choice.”
“Neither did you,” she countered. “You just wanted to go home. Me? Everything I did - all the people I’ve hurt - it’s because I didn’t have the guts to stand up to Azula sooner.”
“We didn’t know any better,” he protested. “We were taught that we were doing what was expected of us - the right thing.”
“I know,” she said. “But that doesn’t change anything.”
“You can’t change the past,” he agreed, wrapping an arm around her. “But that doesn’t mean the future has to look the same. Look at Ty Lee. I mean, she’s part of the Kyoshi Warriors now. You guys attacked them, but she still managed to make amends.”
Mai nodded. “I just,” she sighed. “Zuko, I spent so much time in that cell thinking about everything.”
“You made the right decision,” he said.
“I betrayed Azula for you thought,” she admitted. “Not because it was the right thing to do, but because you were going to die.”
“Mai,” he whispered, holding her a little tighter.
She shook her head. “When we were in that cell, you were telling me all these things about the Fire Nation, about good and bad, and I just - it didn’t make sense. It went against everything I had been taught and told.”
“It was the same for me,” he said quietly. “It wasn’t until I saw how much harm we’d done to others that I understood.”
“I lived in Omashu. I saw how much they hated us, but I didn’t ever once consider that we were doing the wrong thing.”
“It’s not easy,” he admitted. “There were times where I just wanted to ignore it all. It would have been easier. But, I couldn’t.”
She didn’t reply, deep in her own thoughts.
“Did I ever tell you about the day I tried to join Aang’s group?” he asked, resting his head on top of hers.
He felt her shake her head.
“It was a disaster. I burnt Toph’s feet and the assassin I hired to kill Aang showed up.”
“You hired an assassin?” she exclaimed.
He nodded. “When we got back home, I was worried that Aang was still alive. So, I hired this guy who could combustionbend to track them down and kill Aang.”
“Combusionbend?”
Zuko nodded. “When I finally got to where they were staying at the Western Air Temple, he showed up. It was a disaster. The night before, Toph had snuck up on me and I accidentally burned her feet. And then he showed up. It wasn’t until I helped fight him off that they let me in. Even then, it took me a while to earn their trust.”
“Do you think they’ll ever forgive me?” she asked.
“I’ve done a lot worse than you have. You know about that,” he said darkly.
She sighed.
“Katara may take a bit to come around. She’s really stubborn. Toph is going to love you. Sokka and Suki already think you’re really cool because of what you did at the Boiling Rock. And Aang is the nicest person I’ve ever met. It’s a little annoying honestly. And besides, they all warmed up to me,” he added.
“Yeah, but you took Aang to see the dragons, Sokka to break his father out of prison and helped Katara track down the person who killed her mother,” she replied.
Zuko shrugged. “I didn’t expect them to forgive me,” he admitted. “I knew that they had no right to do so, but I did my best to make amends. It was a process.”
“How do I do it?” she asked, “Making amends.”
“You say you’re sorry. You admit that what you did was wrong, and you show that you’ve changed,” he sighed.
She leaned her head against his shoulder and let out another sigh. “This is how I know you’re going to be an amazing Fire Lord.”
“Huh?”
“Because you helped me,” she answered honestly. “As much as I don’t want to admit this, if you didn’t tell me all the things you did at the Boiling Rock, I’m not sure how long it would have taken me to realize that what we were doing was wrong. But, when I was in jail, I just sat there in my cell thinking about everything. About how much people hated us in Omashu, and how awful it was and how right they were to be angry at us. And about everything I saw in the Earth Kingdom, all the destruction and the senseless violence. And then I realized that what we were doing wasn’t right.”
She paused for a moment before adding, “I betrayed Azula because I love you, but I don’t regret doing it because I know now that I should have done it sooner. But you helped set me on the right path. And I know that you’ll be able to set our nation on the right path.”
Zuko nodded slowly, “You’ll be around right?”
She frowned, “Of course, I will.”
“Good,” he said. “I don’t think I’ll be able to do this without you.”
“Zuko, you can do this,” she said. “Don’t forget that I’ve known you ever since you were a kid. I’ve seen you grow and change. I know you and I know what you’re capable of. You already ended the war.”
Zuko let out a breathy laugh.
“What’s so funny about that?” Mai asked in confusion.
He shook his head. “Do you remember my dad’s coronation, how a few days afterwards we sat here and talked?”
Mai nodded. “I think that was one of the first conversations we ever had.”
“Yeah. Well do you remember what you said to me then? About how when I became Fire Lord, there wouldn’t even be a war? You were right.”
“I normally am,” she said with a smile. “I also remember that I told you then that you’d make a great Fire Lord someday.”
“Thank you, Mai,” he said and leaned his forehead against hers.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“I love you too,” he replied before leaning down and giving her a quick kiss on the lips.
“You should probably go,” she said when they broke apart.
He nodded slowly.
“I’ll be in the first row,” she said.
“I’ll be the one next to the Fire Sages,” he joked.
She rolled her eyes and got up and extended her hand down towards him.
She was true to her word and stood in the front during the ceremony. If she were going to be honest, Mai still felt a little awkward around Zuko’s new friends. It wasn’t that she didn’t like them, just that she had hunted them all over the world she wasn’t sure that she would have forgiven herself if she were in their position.
But she thought about what Zuko said about making amends. They were under no obligation to forgive her, but that didn’t mean that she shouldn’t try.
As she watched the Fire Sages officially crown Zuko Fire Lord and listen to his speech, she couldn’t help but feel pride well up in her chest and think about how different this was from the last coronation she went to.
Even five years later, Mai could remember the fear in his eyes. It was such a stark contrast from the scene in front of her today It struck her how much he had grown up - how much they had both grown and changed since that day - how much everything had changed since that day.
And as she heard him talk about a new era, one of peace and harmony, Mai couldn’t help but smile, thinking of everything to come and the bright future that lay ahead.
- Mai’s
As much as she loved Zuko, Mai wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea of becoming Fire Lady. Of course, she didn’t want to bring it up at first. Her mother had taught Mai to suffer in silence and she had every intention of not letting it get to her.
That was until a few days before the wedding. Mai had spent much of the previous months picking out dinnerware, designing invitations, and being poked and prodded by an elite team of Royal Tailors. She was sick of all the wedding prep.
Regardless, she decided to suffer in silence figuring that it would pass after the wedding.
That was until the subject of children was brought up.
The second she heard the word, Mai excused herself from the conversation, slamming the door shut behind her.
“So,” Zuko started that night at dinner. “I heard you got mad at the wedding planners today.”
She blinked in surprise, trying to silently figure out who had told on her.
“I did,” she responded coolly.
“Are you going to tell me why,” he sighed.
Mai set down her chopsticks and looked at him. “Because I’m tired, Zuko.
“The wedding is in a week, it’ll be over soon,” he said reassuringly gently reaching for her hand.
She shook her head. “You don’t understand. It’s not just the wedding. It’s everything that comes after.”
“Mai, if you’re having second thoughts,” he started.
“I’m not having second thoughts about marrying you,” she interrupted. “It’s about being Fire Lady. Once we are officially married, I’m going to be crowned Fire Lady and then people are going to expect me to spend the rest of your life being a wife and mother and that’s it. And as much as I love you, I will not just be your wife.”
“I don’t want you to be my wife,” he said.
“What?”
“No, I mean just my wife. You’re my partner and the person I love most in the world. I don’t want you to give up who you are.”
“It’s not about you,” she sighed. “It’s everyone else. Today, I left because someone asked me how many children I was going to have. As if that’s the only thing that matters.”
“Someone asked you that?”
She sighed. “I don’t expect you to understand because you’ve always been expected to lead and to rule. Even Azula, she was held to the same standard you were. But, it was different for me. My mother expected me to be the perfect child and that meant learning how to one day be a good wife - how to take care of a family and run a household. My mom was happy doing that, and I’m happy that she lived the life she wanted to live. But that’s not what I want.”
She took a sip of her water before adding, “As much as I love you, I do not want to be known as ‘Fire Lord Zuko’s wife’ in the history textbooks.”
He nodded. “And you shouldn’t be. So, what do you want then?”
“What do you mean?”
“I can talk to my advisors about a new title or something,” he suggested.
She shook her head. “It’s not about the title, it’s about the expectations.”
“I know this is going to make a lot of your advisors mad, but I’m not going to spend my entire life redesigning the palace.”
“Okay,” he agreed.
“You’ve rebuilt this nation,” she stated. “There hasn’t been a Fire Lady in over twenty years, and I think it’s time we changed what that meant.”
He broke into a grin. “Let’s finish up and go into my study. I think we should write this down.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“I’m going to have to explain this to my advisors tomorrow,” he clarified. “I want to make sure I don’t miss anything.”
She shook her head, “I think I should be the one to tell them. They’re going to have to get used to me anyway.”
He grinned at the thought.
They resumed dinner, the topic of conversation turning more lighthearted as Mai complained about how much she hated wedding planning and Zuko pretended he knew what half the things she was talking about were.
When they finished, they walked over to Zuko’s study. Mai sat at his desk.
“I don’t know how you focus,” she muttered as she looked at the sloppy stacks of scrolls and empty vials of ink spewed across his desk.
“Will you just write?” he sighed.
He stood behind her, nodding his head in both pride and amazement as he watched her write.
Tomorrow was going to be interesting, he thought. He couldn’t wait.
The look on his advisors' faces when they saw Mai in sitting in the former-war and now meeting room the next morning was enough to let them both know that it was going to be a very long day.
Still, Mai clenched her jaw and held her ground as she watched them sit.
“Fire Lord Zuko,” General Zhaohui greeted. “Lady Mai.”
He looked directly at Zuko. What is she doing here? he seemed to be saying.
“Mai will be joining us for a bit,” Zuko stated, sitting down and turning his attention to her.
“Thank you Zuko” she whispered, gently squeezing his hand under the table. She turned her attention to the group of men sitting before her. She cleared her throat.
“It has come to my attention,” she started, her voice was loud, clear and full of convocation, “that there are certain expectations about the role I play as Fire Lady.”
Whatever Zuko’s advisors had expected, it had not been that.
They listened silently as Mai spoke, stating that while she would uphold tradition where it mattered, she was not going to spend her days wasting away in the palace.
“You can’t just get rid of tradition!” General Zhaohui protested. “You’re going to be the first Fire Lady in over twenty years, there’s great honor in that.”
“I’m not getting rid of tradition,” Mai replied calmly. “All I’m saying is that I can best serve my country by doing something.”
“What exactly do you want to do?” he asked cautiously.
“Education,” she stated.
“What qualifications do you have for that?” he cried out.
Zuko gave him a sharp look and watched in satisfaction as the older man’s eyes widened.
She kept her calm as she answered. “I spent almost a decade at the Royal Fire Academy for Girls. I have a better knowledge of how it operates than anyone in this room.”
“You think that just because you went to school, you’re qualified to run our nation’s education policy?” he questioned.
A few of the men behind him snickered.
Mai exhaled sharply but didn’t break her composure. “You didn’t let me finish General,” she said coolly. Her tone was enough to send a shiver down Zuko’s spine and he wasn’t even the one on the receiving end. “I’ve also lived as a citizen of the Fire Nation. Not as a member of nobility or in the Royal Palace, but as one of the people you are making decisions on behalf of. I’ve spent time learning, reading, and talking to people. I know their needs and their wants, and I know that I am more than capable of making decisions on behalf of them. I also have a better knowledge of the problems facing our nation's education system better than anyone - the gaps in transitioning to the new curriculum and the propaganda still embedded in it.”
Before she could help herself, she added, “Besides, in the almost ten years since the war has ended, there has been little interest in our nation's children. Do you know how many kids have lost their parents in the war, or what kind of help they need. Focusing on national education is just the start, there is so much work to be done. Ensuring that these kids have shelter, food and access to school is just the start.”
“You can’t just command our nation’s education system!” General Zhaohui snarled.
“General Zhaohui,” Zuko snapped.
“I apologize for the harshness of my tone, Fire Lord Zuko,” he said.
“I think it’s Mai you should be apologizing to,” Zuko said, eyes narrowing on the general.
He stuttered out a quick apology and Mai nodded her head in acceptance.
“I’m not commanding the education system,” Mai responded. “I’m making informed decisions about what I think is best for our country.”
“Still!”
“General Zhaohui,” Mai said. “I have to ask, do you have a problem with me running the education system, or do you have a problem with the fact that I’m not going to be fulfilling the traditional duties of Fire Lady.”
“Tradition exists for a reason,” he argued. “You’re going to be a part of the Royal Family. You need to set an example for the rest of the nation of what family should look like.”
Mai heard Zuko exhale sharply and could practically feel the crackle of his anger in the air. She reached for his hand under the table, gently stroking the back of his hand with her thumb to let him know that it was alright, before standing up.
“I’m not turning my back on tradition. However, I’m going to make it very clear that when I do become Fire Lady, I will not be reduced to Zuko’s wife or the mother of his children. As Fire Lady, it will be my duty to play an active part in making the right decisions for this country. This is not up for debate.”
They all looked at her in stunned silence.
“Gentlemen,” she said with a nod before walking out of the room.
“Fire Lord Zuko,” General Zhaohui protested. “You have to say something, she’s out of line.”
Zuko raised an eyebrow. “Actually, Mai is right, this is not up for debate. As Fire Lord, I make decisions about what is best for this nation. Having Mai in charge of our education system, is what is best for this nation.”
“You cannot turn your back on tradition!”
“We’re not turning our back on tradition. We’ve worked hard to restore balance and to grow, this is just another step. And as Mai said, this is not up for debate. I called this meeting as a courtesy and while you may disagree with my decisions, you will have to live with them. Now, what’s next on the agenda?”
Zuko did his best to concentrate during the rest of the meeting, but his mind kept wandering back to Mai. She had handled herself, but he couldn’t help but be a little worried about her.
After what seemed like an eternity, the meeting finally ended and Zuko made his way through the palace looking for Mai.
He found her in the courtyard, sitting on the bench by the fountain.
“Hi,” he said, learning down to gently kiss her forehead before sitting next to her.
“Hello,” she replied nonchalantly.
“So. That was some meeting.”
She nodded.
“I don’t care if they hate me,” she stated. “I’m not going to let them get to me.”
“Good. You shouldn’t. We both know that General Zhaohui only claims to care about traditional values and family only as long as they don’t apply to him. Besides, he didn’t seem to care about family values when my father was in power.”
She nodded. “He reminds me of my dad. He was fine with me learning how to throw knives as long as it didn’t hurt his reputation and as long as I knew what my future was supposed to look like.”
Zuko reached for Mai’s hand. “It’s going to be different now. I promised that I would do my part in ushering in a new era, that starts with us.”
“Good,” Mai replied, before resting her head against his shoulder.
The coronation itself was a grand affair. Of course, it followed the wedding, an exuberant and spectacular affair in and of itself. After all, it was a royal wedding and one to a sitting Fire Lord. But Mai was to be crowned the first Fire Lady in a generation.
She had spoken to the Fire Sages beforehand, ensuring that while the ceremony set the stage for what Mai’s role would be, it still paid respects to the traditions that mattered.
She felt the Fire Sages gently place the headpiece on her head and closed her eyes for a moment, just to think about all that was to come and the responsibility she now had. She let out a breath before opening her eyes again. She looked at her husband and smiled softly at him before turning towards the crowd.
- Izumi’s
Mai could tell from the nervous glances Zuko kept giving her that he wanted to talk about something.
They were sitting on the beach at Ember Island, watching as their great-grandkids played somewhere in the distance.
“What?” she asked softly, feeling his eyes on her again.
He sighed. “What would you think about moving here?”
“Here?” she frowned.
“To Ember Island,” he responded, eyes shifting back towards the kids.
“Zuko,” she said softly, “What’s going on?”
He sighed, “I’m tired Mai.”
She nodded. “Me too.”
He cleared his throat. “What do you think about abdicating?”
She raised an eyebrow. For some reason, her mind wandered to the day Zuko found his first grey hair, and how excited he had been. He was putting his hair up in his usual top knot when he saw it. He rushed over to Mai and showed her, with a smile. It was a weird thing to be excited about, but the two of them had spent so much of their youth convinced that they were about to die at any given second. Old age felt like a victory.
But that day was over thirty years ago.
“I think I’ll support you with whatever you decide,” she said.
He nodded. “I think it’s time to retire.”
“Now?” she asked.
“Soon,” he replied. “I want to talk to Izumi first. Make sure she’s okay with this.”
“Zuko,” Mai sighed. “She’s grown up knowing that she’d be Fire Lord one day. You’ve prepared her for this. She’ll be okay.”
He was silent. “She’s coming with Iroh tomorrow.”
Mai raised an eyebrow, “You want to bring it up to her then?”
He nodded. “I think we deserve a break.”
“I think you’re right.”
Izumi arrived the next day. She greeted both her parents with a hug, before noticing the nervous expression on her dad’s face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Nothing,” Mai said, placing a hand reassuringly on her daughter's shoulder. “I think we need to talk though.”
Zuko nodded.
“What’s going on?” she asked again, this time with panic in her voice. “Are you guys okay?”
“Of course! We’re fine. We just have something we want to tell you,” Zuko reassured her.
Izumi’s eyes narrowed with concern. “Okay.”
Zuko went into the kitchen to make a pot of tea, as Izumi went to greet her grandkids. Mai worked silently beside him, making some snacks for them all. It was peaceful. They moved around the kitchen with a familiar rhythm.
“So,” Izumi said nervously. “What did you want to talk to me about?”
Zuko set the pot of tea down on the table and poured her a mug.
He cleared his throat. There was no point in beating around the bush.
“What would you think of me abdicating?” he asked calmly.
Izumi blinked and looked at him for a moment before turning and staring at her mother.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
He frowned. “I’m fine.”
Izumi looked at Mai. “He’s okay, right?”
Mai sighed. “Izumi, your father and I are both fine.”
“Then why are you talking about abdicating?”
“Because,” Zuko sighed. “I was crowned Fire Lord at sixteen. I’ve been Fire Lord for almost seventy years. I’m tired, Izumi.”
Izumi nodded slowly. “Are you sure you’re ready? This country is like your child - you’ve both dedicated your lives to it.”
Zuko let out a little laugh and Mai rolled her eyes.
“What?” Izumi protested.
“This country isn’t our child, Izumi. You are,” Mai sighed. “Your father and I have worked hard and dedicated our lives to rebuilding after the war, but he’s right. It’s been almost seventy years, and that was after ending a war. We’re tired. And besides, it’s time for the younger generation to take over.”
“She’s right,” Zuko supplied.
“She always is,” Izumi grumbled, bringing a soft smile to her mother’s face.
“Does that mean you’re ready?” Zuko asked.
Izumi sighed, “I’m not sure. But I will be.”
Zuko nodded. “Okay.”
Izumi’s coronation was six months later. It was a warm summer day, not unlike Zuko’s own coronation. But neither Mai nor Zuko could comprehend how much things had changed since that day.
“We’re going to be late,” Mai hissed as Zuko led her into the palace gardens.
“We’ll be fine,” Zuko insisted, sitting on the bench by the fountain.
“Zuko, our daughter is about to be crowned Fire Lord. We should be there,” Mai protested as she sat down next to him.
“Our daughter is about to be crowned Fire Lord,” Zuko repeated.
Mai nodded.
“Did you ever think this day would come?” he asked.
Mai nodded. “I mean, for a while, I didn’t. You worked so hard to establish a new era of peace and make amends that I didn’t think you’d ever want to abdicate.”
Zuko was quiet, waiting for Mai to finish.
“But then,” she sighed. “You got old.”
Zuko scoffed. “I got old?”
“Fine. We both got old. Happy?”
Zuko nodded in satisfaction and Mai rolled her eyes.
“Do you remember the first coronation we went to?” she asked suddenly.
Ozai’s coronation.
Zuko nodded, unsure of why she was bringing this up.
“That was over seventy years ago,” she said. “And the only thing I can remember is how terrified you looked.”
“It wasn’t a great day,” Zuko said dryly.
“It wasn’t,” Mai grimaced. “But nothing is the same as it was that day, and that’s a good thing. We’ve done so much. You helped end a hundred-year war and then you helped move past that, making amends, repairing broken relationships and restoring this country’s honor.”
“I couldn’t have done it with you,” he said.
“I know,” she teased.
“I’m serious,” he said. “You’ve done so much - you’ve done so much work for the kids. All the schools built, and all the adoption programs set up - that was because of you. And, I couldn’t haven’t done it without you. You’ve been by my side for the better part of the last seventy years, and I don’t know what I would have done.”
He thought of all the times she'd gently placed his hand on his during meetings to calm him down, all the looks she gave him to let him know when he was being stubborn for no reason, all the times she’d whisper the names of ambassadors in his ear because she knew that he forgot.
“You know, it’s mutual,” she responded. Her mind wandered to all the times Zuko had stood up for her when his advisors had tried to work against her during her early days as Fire Lady. All the times that he had stayed up late with her, talking through her plans and helping where he could. All the times, he’d sneak out of royal banquets with her when he could tell that she was getting irritated, stealing just a moment of peace, sitting together on the balcony, before anyone noticed.
“It’s been quite a journey,” he remarked.
She nodded. “But now, it’s Izumi’s turn. Now, we rest.”
Zuko smiled as he thought of the house waiting for them on Ember Island - the one they had gotten shortly after they got married. He thought of all the memories there, the height charts they had made of Izumi, the family portraits that hung all over the house, the tea pots they had gotten from Ba Sing Se, and the collection of clay imprints of her hand they had made throughout the years. And the ones they had made of Izumi’s kids. And Izumi’s grandkids.
“Now, we rest,” he repeated, smiling at the idea and thinking of the days to come. “She’s going to do great.”
“She had us as an example, of course she will,” Mai responded.
And then, like she’d done a million times before, Mai leaned her head against Zuko’s shoulder, feeling his arms wrap around her. They stayed like that for a moment, taking it all in. She thought about Zuko’s coronation, how they’d sat just like they were doing now as they wondered what was to come.
She thought about everything that came after, the assassination attempts, the rebellions, the New Ozai Society and all those who had worked against them in those early years and how they managed to overcome it all. She thought about Republic City, and how hard Zuko and Aang had worked to establish it. And she thought about how much things had changed within the country, the way they had worked to make things right for their own citizens, to establish an era of peace and love. Slowly, the factories went away, and villages began to heal. People started writing poems, painting, singing and performing plays as they began to move forward and embrace this new era.
It had been a hard seventy years, but it had been worth it.
It was time for a break, though.
Slowly, Mai pulled herself away from him. “Come on, our daughter is going to become Fire Lord now.”
“Our daughter is going to become Fire Lord now,” Zuko repeated with a smile.
They both had to hold back a few of their own tears of pride as they watched the Fire Sages crown Izumi. When they had a moment alone with her, they each embraced her, reminding her how much they loved her, how proud of her they were, and how excited they were for what was to come.
Then, the following week, they officially moved out of the Royal Palace and into their house on Ember Island.
“So,” Zuko said, sitting next to Mai on the beach, watching the sunset. “What do you want to do now?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“You’re the one who always complains about being bored,” he said, reaching over to grab her hand with a smile.
“After everything, I think I could get used to boring for a bit,” she said. “Besides, life with you is never boring. I’m sure by next week, you’ll be directing the Ember Island Players or something.”
“There’s an idea.”
She shook her head in amusement as they fell into a comfortable silence, watching the sunset. As if they had all the time in the world.