Part 22

Katara's POV:

The palace died down a bit over the next few hours, wedding gifts already swarming in from citizens offering anything from baked goods to jewelry even before the ceremony itself. Royal staff members scurried through the halls already planning each detail. At this rate the wedding was set to take place by the end of the week. Quite tired from all of the excitement of the day Katara and Zuko bid the others farewell for the night, retiring to the Lord's chambers. Stripping out of her lavish gown she found she was no longer fearful of revealing herself in such a way to her future husband. Zuko sat on the edge of the bed, eyes focused on the opposite wall as she slipped into her nightgown.

Katara moves her way over to stand before him, teasing him with a grin, "Scared to see a naked lady, huh?"

His face grew a dark shade of crimson, laughing the question off , "N-No I just don't want to make you uncomfortable."

"Understood..."

The brunette collapsed back onto the bed, letting out a soft yawn stretching her body out. Eyes focused on Zuko he stood from his seat, removing his robes settling in only a pair of black shorts for the night. His eyes shot over, catching her stares in action. In a swift motion he jumped back onto the bed beside her, as if to mimic her own action.

"Long day?"

"Sure was, I guess we can get used to many more of those."

"Eh, they get better."

Katara rolled onto her side to face him, icy fingers trailing his bare chest.

"Lucky for you I like keeping busy, but I have a feeling with Iroh so thrilled we won't have much to do ourselves wedding planning wise-"

"Oh he's been planning things for weeks now! I'm sure he's already worked out each detail."

"Ha, it's good to have him around, I'm terrible with that stuff."

"Well that makes the two of us."

"Now I want you to be honest with me-"

"What is it?"

"Well how do you think our friends will react to this? I mean I'll admit, I played the act of hating you for so long pretty well..."

"I think Toph already had a feeling things would turn out this way, I can't really speak for the rest of them.. I'm sure they'll have to see it to believe it. Iroh already began to send out the more personal invitations, so we can look forward to all of that attention soon."

"Oh I'm sure."

Zuko placed his hand on her chin, gently guiding her head to his.

"We're happy, they'll see that..."

Eyes locked on his own, she placed one hand on the back of his neck, pulling him in closer. Lips pressed hard together they moved in unison, fingers intertwined within his dark locks. In a swift movement he guided her body to lie back, lips still moving as one. Zuko pulled away for a short moment, a smirk forming.

"You're so beautiful..."

"Oh shut up..."

Pulling him in she pressed her lips against his, Zuko reluctantly pulling away again.

"I wasn't finished..."

Soft kisses trailed down her cheek to her neck followed by a gentle nip at her skin. In-between kisses he murmured into her skin, "You're so... beautiful..."

Her face grew hotter as each moment passed, lips slowly trailing to her chest. Almost as to tease her he moved up from her chest, lips making their way back to her own. She pulled him in close, fingers still dug into his hair. Their kiss deepened, Zuko pulling away one last time.

"I can stop if you want me to-"

Lust fueling her actions she smirked, pushing him onto his back. Now positioned on top of him, straddled against his waist she decided it was only fair to return his teasing actions. Leaning forward her lips moved with his own, one hand stroking her hair, the other gently grasping her hips. Rolling them over, the girl now on her back, his body pressed hard against her own. The kiss deepened as she could feel a warm hand slipping underneath the thin nightgown she wore. Soft moans escaped lips as his hand explored her skin, moving up to her breasts. His lips moved back down to her neck, kisses trailing down ever so slowly. Desperate for each touch her moans and panting grew louder, quickly filling the room.

His hands trailed down her body, her back instinctively arching . Zuko's lips made their way back to hers, eager fingers soon reaching the lace of her panties. Slipping one hand beneath the thin garment she latched onto his hair tightly, begging for more. A single finger teased her tight entrance, slowly moving its way inside. Another followed sending chills down her spine. Her moans grew louder with each thrust, lips pulling away from hers his sole purpose now to please her.

Through each moan she managed to whimper out, "I want you..."

That thrilling request was all he needed to move forward. Sopped fingers slowly slipped out of her, pulling the garment off entirely. Placing a single kiss on her forehead, "I love you..."

Slipping his shorts and boxers off he revealed his entirety to her, member already fully erect. Teasing her entrance with only the tip she took a sharp breath in. The pain was sharp but bearable, she had been waiting for this moment too long to chicken out. She wanted him, every aspect of him. It wasn't long before the pain faded entirely, replaced by a peculiar sense of pleasure. Slow strokes grew harder as moans continued to escape from her lips. Leaning forward Zuko placed his lips hard against her own, muffling the sweet sounds. Bodies becoming one she held onto him tightly with each thrust, face buried into the crevice of his shoulder. Lust and love both fueling their motions it wasn't long before both reached their climax nearly simultaneously.

Slowly releasing himself from her grasp he collapsed down beside her, arms wrapping tightly around her slender body. Katara turned to face him, kissing his lips once last time before calling it a night.

A/N: Figured I'd throw some smut in here somewhere lol