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Everything Happens in Ba Sing Se	By : CanadianGirl Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > Het - Male/Female > Mai/Zuko Views: 4070 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
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Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Chapter 6: He's a Man Now - Part 1
Mai and Zuko, Fire Lord and Fire Lady, sat in the council room, waiting for the various council members to make their way to the weekly meeting. On the agenda for the day was the state of the Fire Nation's economy. The thought of it made Mai yawn. Zuko narrowed his good eye and looked at his wife.
"You don't have to stay. I know that it's dull."
"I'm staying. I said that I would attend these meetings and I meant it. But who knew running a country would be so damned boring? Wait a minute; I did." She stared down at her shiny black fingernails, examining them closely for chips. "Oh, I hear them now. Yippee."
Zuko sniggered and then did his best to put on a serious face as the mostly older men filed into the room, each of them bowing quickly before their lord. As predicted, the meeting was painful to get through, but at least the news about their nation was promising. Their post war economy was picking up slowly but surely and trade with other nations was strong. As the meeting drew to a close, the oldest council member, a dried up old man who also happened to be extremely bright and insightful, cleared his throat and then raised his hand as if he were at school.
"Permission to speak, my lord?" His voice was papery and thin, like the empty husk of some seed or other.
"Speak," Zuko replied.
From the other side of the room, Kenji, Zuko's friend and closest advisor, gave him a warning look. The Fire Lord groaned quietly and wondered what was coming. Mai managed to put her hand on Zuko's leg without anyone noticing, and rubbed up and down the silk fabric of his pants soothingly. Grateful for her comfort, he put his hand on hers, the wide sleeves of his robes, covering everything. It was a favorite game of theirs; touching, sometimes intimately, while the council babbled on before them, making sure that none of the men could see exactly what they were doing. Occasionally, one of them would pick up on something and give Mai a slightly disgusted look, one that said, 'How inappropriate!' She would stare the man down, mischief and humour in her eyes.
"My lord, your twenty-first birthday is fast approaching."
"Yes, so what?" Zuko replied impatiently.
"It's traditional to have some sort of national celebration; you are officially a man, after all, when you reach that age. I was wondering if you were planning something." Councilman Suzuki cleared his throat again and looked about the room.
Zuko peered over at Kenji who shrugged and offered no help whatsoever.
Mai intercepted, speaking in a cold, clipped tone. "Zuko is the Fire Lord; he was the Fire Lord at seventeen years of age. He is a husband and he has shouldered more in his short life than any of you have in your long ones. He's been a man for quite awhile already." She leaned in close to Zuko and whispered, all while looking at the councilman, "And don't I know it." Zuko's desire flared suddenly hot and bright. He bit down on his tongue, drawing blood, in a vain attempt to quell the flames.
Suzuki gazed at Mai disdainfully. Her presence at important meetings and her hand in decision making, no matter how much time passed, still bothered some of the council's most traditional members. Mai met his eyes and dared him to say anything. He didn't, of course.
Zuko was touched by his wife's words and gave her hand a squeeze. Daringly, Mai moved their joined hands upward, and brushed her fingers against her husband's quickly growing arousal. Zuko gasped audibly and all the council men swiveled their heads to stare intently at the Fire Lord.
"Are you all right, my lord?" Suzuki spoke in a voice thick with phony concern.
"Quite fine, thank you. As for this celebration you're talking about, I say 'no'." Zuko's tone was firm and regal sounding.
The man snorted his disapproval. "But your father and your uncle and your grandfather all had such celebrations. Don't you think the people would enjoy it?"
"My birthday celebration will be with my wife and my uncle and my friends, in Ba Sing Se. It's a private thing, as far as I'm concerned."
The councilman huffed and then crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, there goes another tradition."
"For Agni's sake," Mai declared. Her hand curled around Zuko and her fingers pressed hard. "Stop being so childish; Zuko can do what he likes on his own birthday. Get over it!"
"That's not my only concern."
"Here it comes," Mai said under her breath. She rolled her eyes and grabbed Zuko harder. It was all he could do not to yelp.
"Spit it out, Suzuki; you won't be happy until you do." Zuko was irritated now and it showed. His good eye was narrowed again and he tapped the arm of his chair with his free hand.
"An heir, my lord; all of us feel that it's time to produce one. You've been married for two years already and together before that." Those last words were said under his breath. "An heir will bring that added sense of stability to our fine nation. Besides, it's best to learn now rather than years down the road whether the Fire Lady is fertile or not."
Mai's entire body stiffened and her eyes blazed with a cold fury that few people had ever seen. Zuko's eyes blazed differently. His were alight with fiery anger. He pulled his hand away from Mai's and brought it out into the open. Smoke curled from his fingertips and he looked ready to strike the offending man down.
"Let me take care of it, Zuko; please!" Mai turned and looked deep into her husband's eyes.
He nodded. Mai got up from her seat, strode gracefully toward Suzuki, and stopped mere inches from the man. Leaning forward just a bit, so that her eyes stared directly into his muddy brown ones, she spoke only two words. "Get. Out."
Suzuki's mouth hung open and he twisted his body so that he could see the Fire Lord instead. He was stupid enough to question Mai's authority and the deep respect that the Fire Lord carried for his wife. "Surely you're not allowing her to dismiss me? Isn't that up to you, my lord?"
Zuko was frighteningly furious now. "You dared to speak about my wife as if she were nothing but a brood mare, here only to give me children. You dared to suggest that I would get rid of her should she not bear any children. Mai can do whatever she wants with you and I suggest you accept dismissal gracefully. In my father's day, you would have been challenged to an Agni Kai, you would have lost and you would have died. Do as Mai said; get out."
The councilman stumbled on his way to the curtained entrance, almost falling. All the other men averted their eyes. None of them wanted to be seen sympathizing with the recently fallen. Their fates could be similar. Once Suzuki was gone, Mai returned to her seat and took Zuko's hand, openly this time.
"I hope that no one else has anything to say about my wife's ability to have children or the exact timing of her first pregnancy. That matter is personal, something between a husband and a wife. Both of us are aware of the eventual need for an heir. And both of us look forward to having a family. There is no need to worry. But, we will decide when, not you, Chibo, not you, Tanaka and not you, Misato. Do you understand?" The Fire Lord looked from one man to the next, giving each a deliberate stare.
They nodded their agreement and the remainder of the meeting focused on the economy once more and possible replacements for Suzuki.

"Well, that was intense," Mai declared as they enjoyed lunch out in the garden. "That Suzuki is beyond simply being an idiot. I almost pulled a blade on him. I wanted to. He deserved it, that officious old prig."
They sat beneath the shade of a huge oak, blanket spread out on the patchy grass and picnic basket open before them. All kinds of wonderful foods were stored inside, waiting to be eaten by the royal pair.
"How did he end up on the council again? I can't remember; it was four years ago." Zuko smiled a bit, shifted closer to Mai and draped an arm across her shoulders.
"I believe that Toph said he was honest." Mai giggled and then grabbed a piece of mango. "He certainly was."
Zuko still looked serious. "I hate when people say things like that. I hate when anyone speaks about you disrespectfully. After four years, they still can't figure out that you're an intelligent woman with something to contribute, not just a means to an end. Damn, I hate them all sometimes. Thank Agni for you and Kenji."
"You defending my honour is terrifically romantic, Zuko. Maybe we can work with that tonight."
"Huh, oh, yeah, sure…tonight." Zuko thought about what Suzuki had said. Producing an heir was important. He wondered if perhaps it was time.
"What's wrong? You don't seem overly enthused about the idea of sex with your wonderful wife." Mai handed her husband a rice ball and then bit into one herself. "And you usually are," she added with a smirk.
"Sorry, Mai; I'm still a bit upset."
"Forget about Suzuki. The guy is history. Don't let him upset you anymore."
"I shouldn't but I can't help it."
"Okay, then let's talk about your birthday. Are you looking forward to the gathering at the Jasmine Dragon?" She leaned into Zuko's chest, making herself comfortable.
He kissed the top of her head before answering. "I am looking forward to it. You know how much I love it there. It's a second home. Having our friends along is a bonus."
"Good, good, then focus on that. We're leaving in a little over two weeks. I suppose that you'll be working extra hard then to make up for your time away?"
"I'm afraid so; speaking of work, I should go to my office, Mai. I'll see you at dinner." He wriggled out from beneath her with regret. But sometimes the Fire Lord needed to make sacrifices.
"I'll see you before dinner," Mai corrected. "Tea in two hours."
After a quick kiss, Zuko made his way back inside the palace and Mai went back to eating. She hated to see good food go to waste.

Once they were settled in bed that evening, the lamps all extinguished, only the faint silvery light of the crescent moon making a dent in the darkness, Mai began to kiss her husband. He kissed back but only half heartedly and when she reached further down, a pang of disappointment hit her.
"Um, well, this hasn't happened since, wait, it's never happened. What's going on?" She pulled herself up into a sitting position and peered curiously down at Zuko.
"I, um, I, it's not that I don't desire you, Mai. Agni, you know how much I do. It's just, all that talk about heirs kind of has me spooked. I feel like all the council members are hiding in the bushes or behind furniture, watching, waiting, to see if I perform my duty and you perform yours. It's too weird, I can't."
"Oh, come on; you're telling me that the council members have given you performance anxiety?" Her gold eyes were wide with astonishment. "Who cares what they think?"
Zuko put a finger against his temple and tapped. "My mind understands that, but," he gestured down to his manhood, "apparently, his doesn't."
"I'm going to hunt that Suzuki bastard down and when I find him, he'll regret the day he first drew breath." Mai reached for one of the knives strapped to her leg. She spun it round and round.
Zuko, mesmerized, watched the blade spin. "No, you won't."
"I know," Mai sighed. "But a girl can fantasize, can't she?"
With those words, she lay down, turned over on her side and went to sleep. She was restless all night.

One week later
"In here," Zuko beckoned to Kenji. "No one will hear us."
The Fire Lord's advisor wore a bemused expression. "What is going on with you, Zuko? You've been acting weird all week."
They were inside a tiny room, hardly more than a closet really, windowless and claustrophobic. Zuko was fidgety and an interesting shade of pink was beginning to colour the skin of his cheeks. He dragged a hand through his loose hair and let a hiss of air escape from his lips.
"Do you remember at the meeting last week, when Suzuki kicked up the fuss about heirs?"
"Of course I remember. That meeting was more entertaining than most." The middle aged man let out a loud laugh and Zuko immediately shushed him, looking like a stern parent more than a worried young Fire Lord.
"Agni, this is hard for me to talk about. Mai and I haven't, I haven't been able to, you know, perform since then. Mai's getting very frustrated and so am I. I keep imagining all the council members spying on our activities. I can't shake it, Kenji."
He couldn't help himself. Kenji howled with laughter. One look at Zuko's face was enough to make him clap a hand over his mouth. "Sorry, Zuko, really, I am. But it is funny, you have to admit. Anyway, from what I know, you'll get over it eventually. Hey, you're going to Ba Sing Se in a week. There are no advisors there, no pressure. You'll be celebrating. Everything will return to working order then. Stop worrying!"
Zuko looked almost hopeful. Then his face dropped. "Another week: Mai will be unbearable to live with. Wish me luck, Kenji, wish me luck."
Zuko's friend clapped him affectionately on the back. "Good luck, buddy. You might just need it."
- 6
- 7
- 8
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Everything Happens in Ba Sing Se