Lotus

Epilogue

"Mom, can you please calm down?"

Ursa's running around dizzied her eldest child. The ship rode close to the harbor, sailing so slow that he bit his bottom lip. Izumi had been keeping him busy with tea time and he had to suffer through the agony of wearing his mother's old party robes and having his hair done up in pig tails.

Izumi nailed the coffin when she commanded Mai to powder up his face and give him red lipstick. The guards looked like they all had stomach aches, but Zuko knew they were all traitors for laughing behind his back!

He watched his mother drag their luggage out with a summer hat and white swimming robes.

"We still have fifteen more minutes!" he whined, "It's not like Aang and Zula are leaving Ember Island on another trip."

"I could care less."

Izumi already skipped out with Mai and Kiyi in tow. He sent a deadly glare to the guard who sent them a double look.

It didn't help that Mai was dressed in a two piece suit, with her bodice only covering her breasts. The wrap she had on did nothing to cover it up. Kiyi did worse in a one piece "We're going to visit your first neice! Be a bit more considerate."

"Hey!" Zuko barked. The sailor they hired for the trip had been ogling Kiyi and kept his eyes off the wheel. "Eyes on the road!"

"Yes sir!"

"Are you even listening?" his mother asked.

"Forget about him mother, he's in 'Zuzu' mode," Kiyi drawled, turning right to check out the horizon. White capped waves and little dots of tourists stood in front of beige and red homes over the hills. "And of course he's excited about meeting his little Aren't you, Zuzu?"

He tried to snatch himself away but Kiyi already had her arms around his neck, "I swear if you call me that one more time, I'm losing it!" She laughed.

"I'm liking the weather. Nice, for a family dinner this evening," Mai murmured, looking down over the now five-year old Izumi. "You ready for Komodo Dragon, Zum-Zum?"

"Yeah!"

The harbor came soon after. Zuko soon found himself smiling in anticipation. A servant was supposed to be waiting by the ship to help them with their luggage.

In the midst of ordering the guards around and watching them head on out to their own vacation homes, he spotted a familiar tall figure approaching the ship.

"What took you so long?!"

The afternoon hit just as Aang walked up Zuko laughed through Izumi's squeals and Mai's gentle scolding. Kiyi beat him to the chase when she rushed over to Aang to hug him.

"Oh Agni! We're so happy to see you," Kiyi stepped back. "Zuko aggravated everyone on our way here. Try to talk some sense into him," Zuko bumped her away with his shoulder.

Aang grinned, "Good to see you."

They slapped on a hug. Zuko sensed something spectacular. Aang looked as though nothing horrible in this world could wipe the smile off his face. It has been two months since he and Azula's first child was born.

Zuko remembered the fire hawk squawking, flying into his office with the scroll attached to his leg. Hotaru arrived two weeks before Azula's due date and came out screaming for the world to know .

Ursa and Kiyi screamed with joy that early morning before they all decided to call a tired Azula and Aang on the new invention Zuko had as a gift from Sokka, courtesy of Republic City: something called, a telephone.

After Izumi's loud greeting and Ursa's tight and tearful hug, the Royal family ambled over to the new summer house settled near Ozai's family home.

It was in a quiet spot away from the loud beach and busy harbor. Zuko nodded. Aang's home stood tall, dwarfing the old family home by turning it into a courtyard. Ornamented stone snaked around pillars.

Firelilies and moonflowers filled the clustered courtyard. Zuko suddenly grew quiet. The women and girl caught him to the chase. The last time he saw his sister was the day of her wedding. It's crazy knowing that he was seeing her again, with the newest member of the Royal family.

Aang unlocked the double doors. Still, silent, the family walked in. Azula was nowhere to be seen. No sound of a baby. Aang gestured for them to enter the sitting area and took their luggage down the main hall.

"Where's she?" Kiyi whispered.

Ursa went ahead first. As they entered, Zuko heard a tiny sob.

He chuckled at the sight of his mother standing in the middle with her hands clasped over her lips. No talking. His mother wiped her tears and found a seat closest to Azula, who had the tiny infant in her arms. Shuffled steps, quiet whispers filled room. He got a good look of the baby's face, propped up in between mother's face and shoulders.

Her little body dressed in a white onesie, the baby's tiny feet slumped in Azula's arms.

"That's Aang alright," he murmured.

"I've already had three people ask if I'm her baby sitter," Azula scoffed. She looked odd, in a good way. Maybe it's a 'mother' thing, but Azula glowed. Her hair went up in a loose bun. Slight dark circles under her eyes failed to make her haggard. With no makeup, Zuko thought as though he was looking at a completely different person. A beautiful one.

"The boys will die to get her ," Mai said with a smirk.

"Leave the kid alone," Kiyi grinned, hopping in front of Zuko. "Look at those cheeks! And she's little for a two month old."

"She eats like a whale."

"That's probably why you look like you haven't slept," Ursa quipped, smiling at the tiny fidget the girl made. "What do you think about your new cousin, Izumi?"

Izumi buried her face in her mother's shoulders and muffled, "She's little."

Quiet laughter filled the room. Aang walked in just as infant started to squirm. Silently, they waited for her to finally awake. She wiggled a little more until she started quivering. Azula propped her up for Ursa to hold.

"Bring her right here,"

The girl blinked he eyes open once she snuggled in her grandmother's arms. She sneezed, staring at grandmother. Kiyi started wiping her tear stricken face. Hotaru gurgled, fascinated by the woman holding her. "Very good. knows I'm trustworthy."

"She looks delicious," Kiyi wailed.

"Really, Kiyi?"

"Zuko, does this look like a demon child to you?" Kiyi asked. "Thank Agni she didn't take after her mother."

"I wonder what your little brat will look like," Azula muttered.

"As if. My future brat will not look like a demon!"

Like clockwork, they all fawned and cooed over the baby. Zuko finally reached out and held the girl in his arms. Experience saved him. The newest family member seemed at peace, dozing off again…until she let out a big one.

"Was that really a fart?" Mai grinned as the child wailed. She stood to pull her away from Zuko.

"Oh Agni!" Zuko hollered, "It stinks!"

"She's an airbender," Azula said. Mai made kissy noises at the baby before handing her over to Azula. "Did you think she'd be quiet?"

They spent the evening talking about the seas outside, Hotaru's erratic sleeping schedule and Azula's plans to begin training again.

By the next morning, Aang woke Azula up.

"Where're we going?"

The seas thrashed when Aang pulled Azula down. By late morning, the beaches would crawl with people, but for now, on this morning with else back home fast asleep and Ursa care of her granddaughter, they deserve this little walk. They walked until they reached the far back of Ember Island. A cave's mouth greeted them.

"This is where we ran away that night to,"

Azula nodded, "I remember."

He walked behind to wrap his arms around her waist. She closed her eyes when his lips pressed against her temple, "I love you…"

"You're trying to get me back in that cave like last time."

Which involved them in the sea cave, naked.

Aang froze, "Well...yes."

Azula scoffed, planting a kiss over his lips. She supposed he did deserve it. "That sounds disgustingly poetic, but your welcome."

THE END

End Note – Thank so much for your reviews. Tyleepoof, holmesfreak and all the others, thanks for letting me know what you think. It was great writing this. Kept me busy while working lol.

NOTICE: I need a beta!

Now, I am coming up with another Aangzula fic. Tyleepoof definitely helped with discussing it and I feel confident enough to write another one. This one has a special pairing I would like to explore. For this story, I am in search of a beta reader. I know that since everyone has busy lives, I don't expect corrections on my document. Skimming through it and letting me know how you feel about it is fine with me. Again thanks so much for reading this story.

Hope you guys have a great summer.