12 Days Of Shipmas (A Multi Fandom Compilation)

Five Gold Rings (Zutara from Avatar: The Last Airbender)

The kids became instantly excited about the idea of performing for the Firelord, and Katara set about working on something that they could maybe put to music that their visitors would enjoy. But her mind was only half on the task as she kept an eye on the sun in the sky, judging the time. Their lessons had started early as usual, and Makita had said the delegation was due at noon, so she probably had an hour or so.

Seeing as her and Sokka were on the general council, as well as knowing the Firelord personally, she felt it would be appropriate to be there when the party arrived. So once the kids had got the hang of the few tricks they were going to present, she sent them on their way so she could dash home and run a comb through her hair.

For a moment, she felt a flush of embarrassment as to why exactly she was fussing over her appearance, but then she rationed that he was royalty after all, and it was important to represent her people with class and dignity. But there was a part of her that she couldn't ignore that very much wanted to show Firelord Zuko that she wasn't a child anymore. That she was a leader too, to both her people and to waterbenders around the globe.

The first thing she noticed when she arrived at the town square was that Sokka was missing. She assumed she had been the only one to get late notice of the Firelord's visit, but now she worried her brother had been left out entirely. Sokka had a tendency to be a little...rambunctious in his opinions, but she was going to be livid if somebody thought it was a good idea to leave him out of the delegation. However a quick ask around led to the discovery that he was out leading a hunting party and would be back before nightfall, in time for the welcome feast. Knowing her brother, his priority would be his stomach, and then seeing their old friend, so she guessed it was okay he was missing the first of the pleasantries.

Half the village had amassed by the time the first hint of a procession greeted them. "Look!" some of the children had cried in elation as giant spider-birds made of fire swooped over the horizon, dazzling the tribe with a beautiful display accompanied by horns and drums that gradually got louder and louder. Slowly, over a dozen carriages came into view being pulled by eager tiger-bears, the snow around the whole contingency becoming visibly slushy from the warmth even from this far away.

The first of the caravans to arrive barely came to a halt at the town's entrance before several young fire nation men and women were hoping out and creating and aisle for the occupants of the next vehicle to embark between, most notable of which was the Firelord himself.

"Announcing Firelord Zuko!" a squire proclaimed, and the town's cheering wrenched up a notch to become almost deafening.

Katara was too taken aback to clap or scream though along with her people; she was too busy taking in the man that had taken the place of the boy she used to know.

The first noticeable difference was how tall he'd gotten, and he'd always been foot or so higher than her. But in his billowing red robes he looked even more impressive, and she realised he'd gotten broader too. Gone was the scrappy kid desperate to prove he was worthy to the world, and in his place was a man who knew exactly where he belonged.

Then, it was the smile. He gave it freely, to the children who ran to give him sweets, to the council members who stepped up to greet him, and to his associates who seemed to be fretting over his every move.

"It's fine," she saw him assure them as he talked to the people of the tribe. Or, at least, that's what she assumed he said. She had let half the crowd push in front of her as she stood and watched, not feeling it was right to claim any kind of privileged position over her fellows. Yes, she knew Zuko, but it felt like a lifetime ago now, and she would say her hellos when the opportunity presented itself. She wouldn't throw herself at him like a fan.