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Gran-Gran hadn’t yet been told that her only granddaughter was dating the Fire Lord. Sure, she knew they were friends. And after his many, many apologies to her for, well, the manhandling and the whole invading the village ordeal, she even thought he was kind of sweet.
It wasn’t that Katara didn’t want to tell her grandmother, it was just hard enough to tell people she was dating the Fire Lord without them having lived through most of the war.
She had been sitting across the table from the old woman for what felt like hours even though it had only been a matter of minutes. She circled the rim of her tea cup with her finger over and over as she watched her grandmother quietly eat her breakfast.
“More tea, Gran-Gran?” She smiled a bit too widely, her intentions not to seem suspect making her all the more suspicious.
“Yes,” Gran-Gran eyed her strangely, “thank you Katara.”
“Great!” She carefully pulled the tea from the pot and sent it into her grandmother’s cup with an artful swirl.
Katara wasn’t sure she had blinked yet all morning.
She knew Zuko’s ship was to arrive within the hour. He would be there on a diplomatic mission, well two really. The first in his official capacities as Fire Lord to represent his people during the Southern Lights festival, second and more importantly to reintroduce himself to Gran-Gran.
“You’ve hardly touched your tea,” Gran-Gran furrowed her brow further at her granddaughter.
She had seen the girl in every phase of her life, its ups and downs, its great losses and great triumphs. There was very little in the whole wide world that made her Katara squirm.
“Pakku will be back from the North,” Katara deflected as easily as she would fling water from her skin, “that’s exciting.”
“You seem excited about something yourself,” Gran-Gran slowly sipped her tea.
“Me? Well, sure! Ha, of course!” Katara felt a bead of sweat drip down the back of her neck, “all of our friends are arriving today. I’m sure when Sokka wakes up he’ll be just as excited as me.”
“Is that Fire Lord of yours joining?”
“Of mine?!”
Katara felt a chill zip up her spine.
What did her grandmother know? It better not have been Sokka who squealed. Unless he had kept his mouth shut and it was just incredibly obvious. She felt frozen in place as her memory of their first encounter flooded her mind. He had his big stupid ship and his big stupid helmet. He’d kicked Sokka’s ass and manhandled their grandma. He made the children cry and -
And that wasn’t him anymore. Not at all. Well, he still had a big stupid ship she supposed. But now when he showed up the children ran to see his boat come in. He loved taking time to greet them and sometimes even to show off a few firebending tricks. Surely Gran-Gran knew.
Katara felt her brains sloshing around between her ears as she stood up from the table far too quickly, her tea still left untouched.
“Well!” she exclaimed as she began to tug on her boots, “would you look at the time! I better be going!”
Her grandmother looked at her like she had just grown two new arms.
“I have… waterbending… stuff…” she yanked on her coat and gloves, “okay love you Gran-Gran, bye!”
She whisked herself out the door not bothering to check the expression on the old woman’s face. She caught her breath and then straightened her spine to head toward the docks.
Well fuck me. She thought to herself. Between her plans to stay up all night watching the lights and her Gran-Gran anxiety, it was going to be a very, very long day indeed.
–
Well fuck me. He thought to himself as he stood on the deck of his ship and grinned at the horizon, vague icy shapes starting to come into view. It was going to be a great day.
“It’s going to be a great day,” he said aloud to no one.
Zuko had woken up feeling uncharacteristically peppy, he bolted out of bed and nearly gave the ship’s first mate a twirl as he passed by doing his rounds. It freaked them out. It always freaked his crew out when he was peppy. Not happy, he’d been plenty happy, but this light-on-his-feet, sunshine and rainbows version of the Fire Lord was just downright strange.
He had already exchanged his regalia for the deep blue coat and fur lined boots Katara had presented him with before his first official visit all those years ago. Having grown past the age of, say, eighteen, it was a little more snug than when he had first worn it. But he didn’t mind. He didn’t really even need such a heavy coat, but Katara had helped fashion it herself so whether or not his own body temperature in conjunction with the fur lining made him feel like he was at the bottom of a swamp, he didn’t care. He wouldn’t have cared if it was three sizes too small. He would find a way to keep it on him. It was a piece of her. A piece of her home. It always ultimately felt like her arms around him.
In her last letter before he left she had indicated some amount of anguish over how best to break the news to her grandmother.
Zuko remembered her grandmother. Zuko remembered the wads and wads of discarded paper piling up in the royal corner of his royal office as he tried to get his apology letter to her just right before sending it back south with Katara all those years ago. He remembered shipping the Water Tribe artifacts, remembered sending copious varieties of teas and perfumes, silks and accessories over the years. Anything to try and stifle the inward cringe he felt recalling the first time he had met her.
He thought he should have been nervous too, to tell this woman who had lived through the brunt of the war that, hi, hello, her granddaughter was sort of, maybe, definitely with the Fire Lord. But he had never had a bad interaction with Gran-Gran since. She always seemed happy to see him with her grandchildren. Her own son, Chief Hakoda, was one of his closest allies. He was continuing his mission to try this thing called “confidence”. And he was learning perhaps there was something to it.
Yes, he was going to maintain a positive attitude. Besides, how much harder would it be to win over Gran-Gran who already liked him than when he had to win over Katara in their teenage years when she absolutely despised him.
Zuko smiled to himself thinking about how dumb he had been. Well, he cut himself some slack, not dumb without reason. It was okay though. It was. He knew just how much he had grown. He knew that once he decided to approach the world with love and kindness, it seemed almost impossible to be that terribly lost child ever again. He also knew that he loved Katara. He had for so many years. So what was there to be worried about?
He heard the first harsh barks of the nearby turtle seals enjoying their mornings from their icy rafts. In the distant haze he began to see the outline of land. He crossed his arms over his chest and kept his feet firmly planted. He wanted to watch it all come into view. He wanted to catch her sweet blue eyes as soon as he was close enough to shore. Zuko felt his heart flip when he thought about rushing off the ship to greet her. He didn’t care who was there to ogle. Let them. It had been months now, if her grandma saw them kissing, so be it.
–
There had been so many Southern Lights festivals throughout her life, even during the worst of times, and yet every year watching them burst to life in the sky still amazed her all the same.
It was a little bit harder year after year to be out in the cold for all night, but so long as they had a good fire lit, Kanna would manage. She was born in snow and ice. It was as much a part of her as anything.
She smiled softly and felt her heart swell at the scene around her. Lanterns and bonfires lit all around, families and children gathered by the dozens to spend the night together, musicians and dancers circling, young waterbenders performing for the older generations. She felt proud knowing her Katara had been training them along with Pakku. She gazed lovingly at her son Hakoda regaling Sokka and his friends with tales of his youth. She didn’t fail to notice two young folks inconspicuously missing.
Gran-Gran wasn’t an idiot. Let it be stated that Gran-Gran had lived too long not to know what was going on with her granddaughter and the Fire Lord. For years, every time they looked at each other it seemed like they both thought the other hung the moon and stars. She was only surprised it had taken this long. Everything in its own time, she felt the weight of her new betrothal necklace, everything in its own time.
She had to admit, it was a bit fun watching Katara blush and stammer like a little girl. She had grown so much in the past few years, finding new ways to continue to lead the world, lead her people, to a better future. She would be lying if she said she didn’t mind catching a glimpse of the little girl she once was.
Everyone thought it was her son who was the big prankster, but he obviously had to get it from somewhere. She delighted in her feigned ignorance and really dialed it up throughout the day, really making sure to emphasize the young ruler’s visit over everyone else’s.
No sooner had she thought of him had he appeared with a cup of spiced tea in hand. The young Fire Lord gave a courteous bow to his elder.
“Would you mind if I sit with you,” he held the tea out to her.
“Well,” she took the cup and felt its warmth seep through her gloves, “I don’t know that the Fire Lord would want the company of an old lady, but go ahead.”
He bowed again and sat beside her. She noticed he wasn’t wearing gloves. He must run hot, she assumed.
“You can just call me Zuko.” He sent a bit more flame into the fire in front of them, “There. It seemed too small to really keep you warm.”
He was right. She could feel the heat soothing her joints almost instantly.
“No need for gloves then young man?” Kanna loved playing the old nagging lady, scrunching her nose and knitting her brow.
“Oh, I -”
She waved her hand and dropped the act.
“I’m only teasing,” she gave the boy a pat on the back, he seemed so eager to please, “is this your first festival?”
“Yes,” he rubbed his thumb across his palm, “it’s an honor to be here.”
“As Fire Lord,” she raised her brow at him, “or as yourself?”
“Both,” he smiled at her, “both.”
“Hmm,” she took a sip of the tea, “I bet it’s more fun just being Zuko.”
“Well,” he blushed and scratched the back of his neck, “mostly, yeah. It’s good to be here with friends.”
They smiled at each other warmly. Zuko turned his gaze to the sky and Gran-Gran sipped her tea slowly.
She decided to be a little more mischievous before being truly earnest.
“I remember you,” she didn’t turn to look at him, “you had quite a grip for a boy no older than my Sokka.”
She watched out of the corner of her eye as the boy turned flaming red. She could almost giggle at his stammering.
“I had children crying for days,” she shook her head slowly for emphasis, “when you took the Avatar, I thought all hope was lost.”
Gran-Gran had to keep from bursting out laughing. She thought the Fire Lord was going to melt clean through the ground and into the water below the ice.
“You must have had some training,” she sighed dramatically, “I know my grandson put up a good fight, but between you and me he was never going to give you a run for your money.”
Before she could break the act and pull him back to reality, she heard her granddaughter’s voice behind them.
“Gran-Gran! Zuko!” she bounded up to them keeping a nervous smile plastered on her face, “You’re… hanging out!”
She saw a devious grin in her grandmother’s eyes and the mortified blush on Zuko’s cheeks.
“What did you say to him!”
Gran-Gran laughed and beckoned for the girl to snuggle up with her.
“Seriously,” Katara slowly lowered herself to the ground cautiously, “what were you guys talking about?”
The old woman looked at the pair - nervous buzzing in Katara’s eyes, thousand yard embarrassment in Zuko’s. Alright, she decided, pranking over.
“I may be old you two,” she put her hands on both their shoulders, “but I’m not blind.”
“You KNEW?” Katara nearly leapt to her feet, “Sokka told you, didn’t he?”
“Relax child,” she smoothed her hand over Katara’s hair, “your brother didn’t say anything. I’ve seen the way you look at each other. And I know how jittery young lovers can be.”
She made sure to really emphasize the word “lovers”.
“Gran-Gran,” Katara blushed furiously, “don’t call us that…”
“What?” she shrugged, “I’ve been around the block. No need for shame at my age.”
“Kanna,” Zuko put his hand over his heart, “I know what I did in the past was wrong -”
“Please,” the old woman cupped the boy’s face, delicately placing her weathered hand on his scar, “call me Gran-Gran.”
She smiled and the pair smiled back. Gran-Gran first pulled Katara in close and then motioned for Zuko to join. Besides, if he did run that hot, his body temperature alone would do wonders for her aching body.
She kissed Katara gently on the forehead. She was happy for them.
Suddenly, someone pointed at a green streak in the sky. At first it appeared as a faint wisp, and then all at once everything burst into a brilliant array of greens, pinks and blues. The lights had appeared and now the festival could truly begin.
Katara sighed in relief. Zuko smiled to himself, proud that the day had indeed gone well. And Gran-Gran sat as always in wonder of the lights, but also about the changing world around her.
She squeezed her granddaughter and the Fire Lord tighter. They would keep each other warm all night.