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Zuko didn't have to ask where his wife was if she wasn't in the bedroom by the time he finished training. There were only a few places where Mai would go and this late in the day, with the Sun almost set there was only one place he would look.
But before that he made a quick trip into the kitchen to make Mai's favorite tea and snacks. In the past he would get called out for doing work unbefitting of a Firelord but who would tell him what he could or couldn't do for his beloved wife. Mai worked hard, much harder than many thought she would so Zuko loved doing these kinds of things for her.
He wasn't being overly soft in his opinion and even if he was then so be it.
Without knocking he entered into what was supposed to be his office but in this time of day it was Mai who sat there more than he. "I brought you a little something." He smiled from the doorway, and knew he caught a glimpse of Mai smiling too.
There was no hesitation as he crossed the distance between them, one hand carrying the trey and the other tilting Mai's chin for a chaste kiss.
"Thanks, Zuko." There was no one in the whole world who could make the fierce, and sometimes feared, Firelady blush other than Zuko. "How was training?"
"Fine. Would have been better if you were there to watch." Zuko set the tea and snacks in front of his wife. "I know there's a lot of work to do... but I don't want to watch you... you don't have to do all of this tonight." Mai had a bad habit of overworking herself once her mind was set on something. It was a trait that Zuko shared with his wife.
Making it all the more ironic when the two would scold each other for it.
"And I can't let you do everything by yourself either. You train hard enough, you go to those boring meetings, you go on missions, there's no need for you to do everything either." The paperwork was a lot, in fact if Mai didn't do it Zuko was sure he would hardly ever sleep in their bed. They were a team. A damn good one.
"Okay, fine. But..." Zuko waited until Mai was finished with eating and drinking, "...as the Firelord I declare that you, Firelady Mai, have to get a good nights sleep by my side." He picked her up into his arms and grinned as she rolled her eyes. He was so dramatic at times. But... he knew she loved him.
"As Firelady I don't think we need to go to sleep right away." Mai didn't say anything more than that but Zuko took the hint and kissed her again while carrying her out the door. She didn't have to say she missed him, he could tell by the way her lips overlapped against his and the gentle way in which she ran her fingers through his ponytail.