The Experts

The Avatar's face fairly glowed with embarrassment. He shuffled about and fidgeted with his hands, picking at his simple yellow tunic and pants and then playing with the necklace that hung almost to his waist. Wide grey eyes bore a terrified look.

"I take it this thing you want to discuss has nothing to do with the affairs of the world?" Zuko asked as he finished the final character of his signature. He looked up at the sixteen year old and smirked. "You seem nervous, Aang," he ended understatedly.

The two shared a strong friendship, with each appreciating aspects and qualities of the other and Aang looking up to Zuko as he might have an older brother. Zuko enjoyed that, never having experienced the feeling with his blood sister, Azula.

"Um, you're right. I don't know how to begin. It's embarrassing," he whispered and then shut the office door tight, turning the lock.

"Does it have to do with you and your 'sweetie'?" The twenty year old Fire Lord couldn't resist. Aang and Katara had chosen that sickening term of endearment after the end of the war and it had stuck. The rest of the gang hated it. Well, Ty Lee was an exception, but then again, anything with a hint of romance sent her swooning.

Zuko didn't think it was possible, but Aang turned an even deeper shade of red.

"Yes," he confessed. Sitting down finally, he pulled his chair up as close to the desk as possible and then with great seriousness declared, "I want to make love to Katara. I think that it's time."

Zuko knocked over his inkwell and cursed as the flood of rich, thick black soaked into document after document.

"Let me help you with that," the Avatar giggled. Using his waterbending, he removed the ink from the papers and returned it to the inkwell. The documents were still stained, though, and Zuko cursed again. "Sorry," Aang shrugged.

The Fire Lord sighed and looked ashamed. "It's not your fault. I was too busy wondering how you've gone all this time without, you know, making love. Mai and I, we…" He stopped himself short before confessing too much.

"Exactly," Aang exclaimed with delight. "That's why I came to you. Mai and you have been doing it forever. I need some advice, some of that experience; please, Zuko?"

It was the older man's turn to blush. "I, well, I don't know what to tell you, Aang. We, when we started, Mai and I just sort of figured things out." His expression got a bit dreamy then as he recalled those early, awkward but still exciting days. "Now, I know what pleases Mai and she knows what pleases me…." He faltered for a moment under Aang's intense and interested gaze. "Why don't you ask me something specific? You know the mechanics of everything, don't you? Please say that you do!"

"Oh, yeah, I know how it all works. And Katara and I have touched each other, a bit, but I want to know more about what to expect, and how to make her happy." The redness in his face had died away, and Aang finally looked comfortable.

"You probably want your first time to be perfect, right?" The Avatar nodded eagerly. "Throw that idea away." Aang frowned but held his tongue. "Consider it the first step on a pathway that leads somewhere really wonderful. You still have a long way to go, but with each step you get closer." Zuko was reminiscing again. It took a poke from Aang to snap him out of his daydream. The Fire Lord cleared his throat and continued. "Some of the stepping stones might be rough, and you might trip over some others, but you move forward anyway. And before you know it, you've reached your destination and you and Katara are both happy and fulfilled and all that stuff."

"I see; so it might not be great at first, but it will get better and better."

"Right; and you need to listen to Katara and watch her closely. Her body and her face and her voice will tell you a lot. Honestly, Aang, you've just got to, ugh, this sounds so trite, but follow your instincts." Zuko raised his one eyebrow, wondering if the strange conversation was over.

Aang jumped up from his seat and bounded to the door. "You know, Zuko, sometimes you give really good advice. Thanks."

"Okay, good luck; let me know how…on second thought," Zuko shuddered, "don't."

Katara's pacing grated on Mai's nerves. Their relationship was a bit volatile to begin with, each often irritating the other, so it was no surprise when The Fire Lady snapped. Well, snapping for Mai equaled a bland remark accompanied by a narrowing of her eyes.

"I'd like the rug to last a bit longer." She went back to reading her book and sipping her tea.

"Fine." The waterbender flopped down on the sofa beside Mai and began to twist a lock of brown hair around her finger.

In the past, Mai wouldn't have asked anything or delved into the source of the other woman's distress. But this Mai was different from the Mai who had fought Katara in Omashu. She'd had to relearn how to express her own feelings. Being with Zuko had taught her that, though reserve was still a basic part of her nature. And showing genuine interest in the feelings of others was rather new to her too. It wasn't that she was cold. In fact her passions were deep and fiery, something that her husband knew intimately well. But she found it awkward and felt uncomfortable when confronted with the intense feelings of others.

Heaving a great sigh, Mai spoke again. "Something's bothering you." She put her book down and looked Katara in the eye.

"I was hoping that you could help me with something. Everyone knows that you and Zuko are, well, physically close…a lot," Katara began.

"Who is 'everyone'? And Sokka and Suki aren't exactly celibate," Mai retorted tartly. "Why don't you ask them?"

Katara squirmed and made a disgusted face. "I am not talking to my brother about, about that. And I don't want to hear from Suki what he does either. Ewww!"

"Fair enough," Mai acquiesced.

"I think that Aang is planning something. I think he's finally ready to have sex."

"Okay…and you've waited this long why?" Mai raised her hand to stop Katara answering. "I know, I know, he's only sixteen now. I understand." And she did, though there was no way she could have held out until eighteen like Katara had. She and Zuko expressed so much through touch rather than words and lovemaking had been a natural extension of such communication. "So do you want to know what to expect or…"

"I'm not afraid," Katara stated almost defiantly, crossing her arms over her breasts.

"Good; the first time will probably be a bit weird and painful and far from perfect."

Katara recalled the talk her grandmother had given her not long before they found Aang encased in that iceberg. She'd thought it sort of funny then and wondered who in the world she would ever do such things with anyway. The only boys were Sokka and a bunch of toddlers. But Gran-Gran had thought it important regardless and explained how a man's body and a woman's body came together as an expression of love, sometimes resulting in a pregnancy. She knew about the pain a woman experienced her first time. But that was it. Katara wanted to know what lovemaking was like.

"I know that, but I want to know what it feels like." She flushed a bit and bent her head.

"It's like nothing else, first of all. The rest of the world doesn't exist anymore and it's so intense and I feel so complete and full and blissful." Like Zuko had earlier with Aang, Mai got lost in her thoughts and her body began to tingle just recalling some of her and Zuko's best moments together. "You need to be creative and open to anything and you need to really get to know your partner's body." She couldn't believe that she had willingly revealed so much.

"Sounds amazing," Katara said softly. "Thank you, Mai. I feel better."

Mai replied with genuine warmth. "You're welcome. I hope everything works out."

"Aang asked me about sex today." Zuko let out a groan of pleasure as Mai rubbed the kinks out of his back. "That was weird. Agni Mai, that feels so good."

She laughed and the sound, as it always managed to do, aroused her husband. "Katara asked me some questions about the same thing. My weird trumps your weird."

"Wonder why everyone comes to us?" Zuko grabbed hold of Mai's hands and pulled her around so that she perched on his lap. "Sokka asked me for advice not long ago."

"And Toph's talked to me. I guess our sexual prowess is legendary." Mai rolled her eyes, but her words were only partially sarcastic. She and Zuko were good in bed, perfect partners, completely in sync with one another, willing to experiment, equally comfortable with rough and tender.

Snickering, Zuko leaned in and then kissed Mai quick and hard on the lips. He withdrew and she instantly longed for more. Pouting, she let her feelings be known. Wanting to please, Zuko picked Mai up and flipped her onto her back. He kissed her again, this time slowly and sweetly. She parted her lips and let him in and so their dance began.

"Maybe we should write a book," the Fire Lord joked after they were spent, panting together atop red silk.

"Imagine your council's reaction." Mai couldn't help but giggle. "Fire Lord writes sex manual."

"I think most of them have caught a glimpse here and there anyway. We're not always discreet, Mai."

"No, and we're never going to be." Mai was insistent. She'd spent too long hiding things and adhering to stupid expectations. "But certain things, I want to keep private."

She whispered in her husband's ear and he nodded, eyes already glazed over with lust.