so this is my first A:TLA fic. i hope i did a decent job, but i always feel like my work sucks. i'm thinking of writing a multi-chaptered tokka/linzin fic about lin's real dad, but knowing how slow i am at writing, i'll probably be 90 before it gets finished. oh well. on with the story.

At first, Zuko tries to not make a big deal out of it. The way he sees it, Fire Lords are not supposed to have mental breakdowns over losing their first love. And besides, he's seventeen, for crying out loud. He'll find someone else. Someone more worthy of being the Royal Consort than a perpetually bored knife-thrower.

Not that he can think of anyone at the top of his head.

—

Suki tries to set him up with a couple of her fellow Kyoshi Warriors. The first girl, to Zuko's annoyance, has an inability to shut up about her pet poodle-monkey. He suspects this setup was Ty Lee's idea, so he doesn't see her again.

But that's perfectly fine. No need to think about marriage just yet. It's Fire Lord tradition to have children later in life. He's only eighteen. No biggie.

—

The second girl says less than ten words the entire meal, which he thinks is an improvement. They go on a few more dates, but eventually Zuko comes to the conclusion that he needs to focus on finding his mother, so he breaks things off with her.

—

Uncle believes Zuko's doing the right thing, but has a tendency to tell him things he already tells himself. "You're barely twenty," "there's tons of time, "don't get discouraged," et cetera.

While visiting Ba Sing Se, Zuko attempts to reconnect with Jin. It turns out she married a member of the Terra Team and lives in the Middle Ring with him and their two kids.

Awesome. Great. Amazing.

—

Aang notices something's wrong with him when they're all at dinner in Republic City. Of course there is. Everyone's with someone. Katara's showing off her new betrothal necklace. Sokka and Suki are arguing, but that's their way of showing affection to one another. And Toph brought her new boyfriend, some hotshot banker that apparently one of her Metalbending students introduced her to.

He says it's nothing, and blames his crabby mood on not getting enough sleep the previous night.

—

He sees her at the Avatar's wedding. She hasn't changed a bit. He spends a good portion of the reception contemplating whether to go over to her table and make small talk or not.

Ultimately, he decides against it. He knows how boring she thinks that is.

Sokka sits down next to him — the cactus juice he snuck in reeking from his every pore — and asks Zuko to be Best Man at his and Suki's wedding, if they ever have one. Knowing how Suki feels about marriage, he agrees to do it, thinking he's off the hook.

Then, Sokka says what Zuko knows everyone's been thinking:

"You're going about this dating thing the wrong way, man. I mean, we're all, like… adults now. We all thought you and Mai would have gotten back together by now."

Just because it's true doesn't mean it doesn't sting.

And it definitely doesn't mean he isn't screaming at Sokka that he has no idea what he's gone through.

Seriously, the nerve of some people.

—

After a short period of breaking up, Sokka pops the question to Suki. To everyone's shock (and Zuko's chagrin), she accepts.

He gets one of the Metalbender cops to help him plan Sokka's bachelor party, since a.) he has no clue how to go about these things and b.) it would probably cause a giant controversy if both the Fire Lord and the Avatar were caught at a brothel. They decide on the Unagi, one of the casino boats that frequent Yue Bay, and it goes off without a hitch.

The rehearsal dinner is another story.

Zuko arrives at Kuang's a little later than everyone else. After the wedding rehearsal, he rushed over to the telegraph office to get all the notes his Domestic Advisor had sent him and before he knew it, twenty minutes had passed. He apologizes to Sokka and Suki and grabs the only empty seat at the table he can find, which happens to be in front of a gargantuan floral centerpiece.

"Ty Lee's sitting there."

At first, he thinks he's hallucinating.

He has to be. How is… how could they?

How could they invite her?

Of all the seats in all the restaurants in all the world… he had to sit the one across from Mai.

He doesn't respond, which prompts her to peer over the mass of flowers and drawl, "Some things never change, do they? I hate flowers with a passion, and you're still a humongous prick."

Zuko doesn't sleep that night.

—

Other than Suki going into Bridezilla Mode, the morning passes rather uneventfully, in Zuko's opinion. He tries to busy himself the best he can, but his thoughts creep over to the inevitable. He's twenty-nine, for Agni's sake. Why the hell does he still feel like he did as a teenager?

Finally, two o'clock rolls around. He gets in line with Ty Lee, the Maid of Honor, who catches him up to speed on her life regardless of whether he wants her to or not — Haru's doing great, his business is really taking off, the kids are at their Grandpa's house, and other stuff Zuko manages to tune out until it's time for them to walk down the aisle. He tries to walk straight ahead and not look over into the aisles, but that plan fails as soon as he briefly locks eyes with the one person he was attempting to avoid.

He manages to keep a poker face throughout the ceremony, despite what seems like everyone around him weeping with happiness. He gives Sokka the rings he's been keeping in his pocket since this morning, and applauds with the crowd when the couple kisses. You know, just so nobody'll think he's being unsupportive, which he isn't. He's just a bitter old soul, and he's probably going to die a bitter old soul.

It's not until he has a few glasses of lychee wine at the reception that he loosens up a bit. Thank the Spirits Sokka isn't anti-booze, he thinks. Aang and Katara keep giving him judging looks every time he asks one of the waiters to refill his glass. And can they blame him? He hates parties. He hates having to give speeches—

Oh shit, he forgot about the toast.

Hakoda walks up to the front of the tables and announces that before they start the dancing, they're going to hear from the Best Man and Maid of Honor. Zuko tries to catch his attention and tell him to go ahead with the dancing, but he either doesn't see it or ignores him on purpose. Defeated, he has no choice but to improvise the entire speech.

This is not going to be good.

"So… uh… what's up, guys?" Smooth. "I'm… okay, to be honest, I've been so busy lately I haven't been able to write a speech. So I'm going to try and wing it even though I've had a little wine, so…" Chuckles from most of the crowd. Aang rolls his eyes. "Bear with me, alright?

"The first time I met Sokka, I was hunting the Avatar to try and restore my honor." He snorts. "Seriously, how many Best Man speeches start off with that? But anyway, little did I know that this guy right here—" he points at Sokka— "would become one of my best friends. Or any of you, for that matter. Even the Avatar himself!"

Katara looks like she could probably strangle him right about now.

"But this speech isn't about me. It's about Sokka and Suki. The best couple because they don't call each other pet names and agreed to have an open bar at their wedding."

Sokka, in tears from laughter at this point, stands up and shouts, "Hear, hear!"

"To Sokka and Suki."

"To Sokka and Suki," the reception repeats.

—

Zuko's in the cake line when he feels a tap on the shoulder.

"Hey."

Guess who.

"Look, I, uh…" Mai takes a swig of her drink. "I'm sorry."

He raises an eyebrow. "Sorry for what? You were right. I am a prick."

"But you're also the Fire Lord," she says. "You could probably have my head for saying that. Treason or something, y'know?"

"Oh… right. Well, I don't think calling the Fire Lord a prick in neutral territory counts as treason, but you can't hold me to that. I'll have to ask one of my advisors." Why is it just like old times again? He thinks. Must be the wine.

"You guys have an extra seat at your table," she observes.

"Uh, yeah. Uncle was supposed to come, but…" he trails off, not wanting to think about the past few weeks he's spent in Ba Sing Se.

"Oh." Her face doesn't change expression, but she asks, "When did he—"

"About a week ago." It feels like years. "H-he was sick for a while, though, but he didn't let anyone know about it until he couldn't run the shop anymore."

Why is he telling this to her? She probably doesn't care. She's her own person with her own life and her own problems and—

"I'm sorry." She reaches over with the hand that isn't holding her glass and pats him on the shoulder.

"Yeah, me too."

"I guess it would be really bad taste to ask if I can take his spot, then."

"Huh?"

She leans in and whispers, "Okay, I wouldn't ask if it were any other couple at my table, but Ty Lee and Fu Manchu are one step away from finishing first place in the World's Most Disgusting Public Display of Affection."

"Oh, please. Have you even been around Aang and Katara lately? I think they're still reigning champions."

"No. You have no idea. If I have to sit there and listen to them talk about their kids for one more second I'll probably end up using his facial hair to sharpen some of my knives."

And for the first time in what seems like ages, Zuko is smiling.

Genuinely, truely smiling.

"I think Uncle would be honored if you took his spot."