A Moment, Please.

Chapter 34

Warning The Promise Part 1 spoilers!  Just so ya know.  I know this chapter is kinda short, but I swear on my pet  guiene pig Canderson’s live that the next one will be MIND-BLOWING! Consider this the appetizer for your dinner. ;)

As I watched the setting sun, I sighed. I smiled to myself, as a slight breeze blew against my face. I closed my eyes. My hands reached to the ugly scar which now ruled over my left breast.

 It had been almost a year. A full year since the war ended. Life was much different now. That's for sure. Aang and Zuko were working hard to get the fire colonies out of the Earth Nation. With the help from all of us of course. While I helped, I did my part mostly in the Fire Nation. Aang and Katara had been dating for almost a full year, and Suki fell in even more in love with Sokka.  I’m still not sure what she sees in him.

The Harmony Restoration Movement had been going good, up until recently. There's been some tension with King Kuei and Fire Lord Zuko. So he and Aang were there at the moment, trying to clear all that out.

(AN: ugh, his name is so hot, but I can't love him)

Zuko and Mai are still going strong, and I finally have gotten over my love for Zuko. With my current boyfriend, Akio. He was working with Zuko on the HRM, and the whole removing the colonies. He was a high ranked general, and we meant after we got hurt in the war. He roomed a few doors down from me, and soon enough we started talking. The talking led to a nightly wheel through the gardens of the hospital, and then to our first date. A Hospital dinner in his room, where we spent hours together.

While Zuko and Aang, and everyone flew around trying to keep the peace, I was forced to stay in my home in the upper ring of the Fire Nation Capital. Out of the blue I would get horrible pain in my chest from where I was struck with lighting. It was a horrible, crippling pain that could bring me to the ground sometimes. It was decided by everyone I was unfit to fly, which was fine by me.  I needed “stability”. Ha, my life, stable. Image that.

The war was over, and I was in love. That was all that mattered. Plus I finally had my own home. A place that would be solid, for me to come home to every night. It wasn’t big or fancy… Okay so it was good size, and kind of fancy. Hey, I deserve it.

Toph, now officially living in the Earth Nation, started up her own bending school. 
Bei Fong Metalbending Academy 
Fancy name, I know, the perfect place where Earth benders could learn metal bending. And well, the only place. Ahaha. Though I had learned a small bit of metal bending from Toph, I did plan on enrolling when I was fit enough. I was sure that my spells would die off soon.



It was a warm summer day, as Akio and I took a walk near Royal Caldera City. He had just returned from Yu Dao, where almost all my friends were at the moment. I knew Zuko was back, but I wasn't sure about anyone else at the moment.

 I wore a simple, thin red fire nation dress. The neck line wrapped around my neck, covering my stomach and chest. It then curled under my armpits where it met to an open back. I was no longer afraid, or ashamed to have my scars. Though, I didn’t like showing off the soft, pink fleshly one on my chest. Only a few people have ever seen it. The skirt was long, and blew against my legs as we walked along the street. Under my thin red dress was a deep near-black purple, that fitted my body until my hips were it slowly pooled out around my near black slippers. My hair was down, the first layer braided back behind my head. The rest was left free to blow in the wind. We were near the palace, and just a few blocks from my own home. 

It felt strange. My Home. I hadn't had a "home" since I was six. I lived in a prison, I traveled, and now this. I loved it. I loved my life.

We came up to the guards, and they allowed us into the inner gardens. They knew who we were, and Zuko wouldn't mind. It was me, after all. We walked for a while, not really speaking.  We came up to the pond, and I spoke.

"So why did you bring me here?”

He sat me down on the stone bench, in view of the palace, but also near the gate we had just come in through.  Our eyes met, my brown-blue ones, and his grey ones. After my near death I gained a small piece of my old eye  and hair color back.

"Because, I know you love the water, and this is the best place for peace and joy. With beautiful water works." 

I smiled at him, looking down at my hands. Which were in folded with in his own.

"You're so wonderful to me. Too wonderful, it seems at times." 

He return my smile, he bent down,  as he still held my hands.

"I like to, though… and…Well, it's about to get better." 

I raised an eyebrow, still smiling.

What in the world is going to happen?

 He released my hands, and pulled a medium size box from his outer coat.  He held it up to me, and I reached out for it. My hands shook.

“Here, open it."

 
I glanced up at him, quickly, hoping I wouldn’t cry. I opened the box, and let out a small soft shock filled sigh. In the box was a pure golden round disk it fit into my palm, and was covered in lavish jewels. My eyes were glassing over.

"Oh...Akio… it's… it's, so… beautiful. I-I don't know what to say."

 
He looked up from it to me. His eyes were glassing over to. I wasn’t sure if I could believe this moment or not. I could feel my breath getting labored, as more tears filled my eyes. I glanced back down at the box, looking at each red, yellow, and orange jewel. They came together to make a breath taking flame.

"My mother wore this on her wedding day, and her mother before her, and her mother before even her. I want to see you wear it on your wedding day."

 
I looked up, and met his cool grey eyes.  The first tear fell to my face.

"Akio, are you asking what I think you're asking?" 


From the shadows, Zuko watched. Though the tea on the tray he was holding was cooling it would wait. He sat it down, having lost the feeling for his uncle’s tea. He wanted to see this. Akio had told him all about his plan, and now Zuko got to see it live, in action.

 He watched Akio giving her the box, and Amaya gaped at it. Then she looked up at him, her eyes glassing over. Her eyes searched over Akio as he spoke to her. She asked something, and then her ‘O’ turned into a smile. She nodded her head as tears streamed from her eyes, and threw herself at him. He fell back, and she kissed him on the lips.  Her eyes were closed too tight, and tears still fell. But they were happy tears.

Her lips on his. It should be Amaya's lips on Zuko's but now it never would be. She would marry Akio. She would be his. The 23 year old spoke of nothing but of Amaya while in Yu Dao. He was ready to marry the 17 year old, and it seemed like she was ready to marry him...