The Officer and the Princess: The Flames Of War

Chapter 53

"But she was usually the one causing the trouble." Sung said with a laugh. He could think of one instance in particular, somehow Naomi had talked the two of them into filling up water balloons and climbing up to the top of Castle Yang and dropping those balloons on unsuspecting passersby down below, one of those balloons had landed on Sung's fathers head and he looked up at them with an annoyance that Sung had never seen his father express. Sung could hear his father now telling him and Zuko to stay put, that he was going to have a very long talk with them. He and Zuko had turned around and Naomi was nowhere to be found. The two of them had spent the rest of that afternoon scrubbing dishes as punishment, Naomi mocking them for their misfortune...unaware that Sung's father had been close by listening and she two shared in their punishment. "I miss those long summer days when we were children. Things seemed simpler then."

"They were." Zuko said with a nostalgic sigh. "Back when we were young and dumb."

"I don't know about you but I'm still plenty dumb." Sung said as he leaned on the guard rail and watched the front of the ship cut through the waves. "I knew going into the Jungle was most likely a trap...but Kang told me to go and I was so fixated on catching Kurn that I didn't think properly...led my soldier's into a ambush...got my friend killed." Of course if Duru was here he probably wouldn't see it like that, Duru would probably have some witty comment to say, about how someone had to catch a hit meant for Sung, so it might as well have been him. "It was only through Luck that we were able to organize ourselves enough to create a corridor. I stayed behind with a rear guard to give the rest of my  army chance to escape, I was the only survivor from that rear guard." Sung sighed. "After this, I'm hanging up the Uniform for good, I'm tired of the soldiers life. Now I want to go back home, settle down...try and start a family of my own."

"I hope you don't hide yourself away this time." Zuko said as he leaned next to Sung. "I may need an advisor in Lordly manners." Zuko said with a elbow to Sung's side.

He shook his head. "No, I'm done running from the past. I think I already said it before, or I heard someone say it or I just imagined it...but the only good thing about this war was that we all reunited, you me, Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula. You're all very important to me in very different ways. I missed you all and we certainly have a lot of lost time to make up for. I expect to be informed when Zuko Junior is born. I want to see my little niece when she comes int the world." Sung said.

Zuko nodded. "Believe me Sung, you'll be one of the first to know, and I expect to be informed when you intend to marry my sister."

"I will." Sung said with a laugh. "I did tell you once that someday I'd be your brother in law."

"I hope that someday is soon." The voice of Azula called from behind them. Sung turned to see her walking up the steps that led below deck, she was still dressed in the armor but she had done away with the crown. She had a rather mischievous smile on her face. "At the rate you take to give me heartfelt confessions we'll both be old."

Sung turned to her and smiled warmly. "What's the rush?" Sung asked her. "They say good things come to those who wait."

Azula tilted her head back and sighed dramatically. "Sung darling, I think I waited long enough, it took you months to tell me that you had feelings for me, am I going to have to wait years before you pop the question?"

What Sung decided to do next was indeed a very spur of the moment affair but she was right, after everything they had been through together, all the good and all the bad...it had been long enough. Sung pushed himself off of the guard rail and walked over to her and took her hands. She leveled her beautiful ember eyes with his. "Azula...will you marry me?" He asked, finishing with a smile.

Instead of a smile in return Sung received a frown. "Well...I was expecting something more...well I don't know what I was expecting." Then she smiled one of her beautiful smiles. "But yes...I'll marry you Sung Yang. I hope you don't expect me to be a stay at home house wife though, if there is an adventure to be had then I want to share it with you."