A/N: My first smut fic. Enjoy! (:

Disclaimer: I do not own the Avatar Universe.

Luminous - A Ba Sing Se Birthday

Katara opened the door to her Ba Sing Se home. She had come home from a day of being showered with gifts by her friends who had also taken her to the most renowned restaurant in the upper ring of the city. Though their efforts had been appreciated, she regretted the feeling of guilt building inside her. She wanted to deny it, but she could not help but feel their attempts in fulfilling her birthday wishes had been done in vain as what she truly desired remained in the Fire Nation, out of her reach. Being the Fire Lord, did after all, have its own set of demands and responsibilities. All of which she understood. It was for that reason, she did not object to his apologetic letter regarding his deepest regrets on the matters of her birthday. She accepted him wholly, with all the strings attached to his being, both good and bad.

As she entered her home, she dropped her keys and immediately made her way to the wash room. She filled the opulent room-centered tub with water and prepared herself for a long bath to help her meditate on her thoughts.

An hour later, as she exited her washroom and made her way into her bedroom, she found a most mysterious parcel laying centered on her bed. She walked over and grazed her finger across the package, examining it. It was no ordinary parcel. It was soft and seemed to have a cushioning material laying underneath the fine, lustrous silk that embodied it. She began untying the elaborately knotted silk ribbon that seemed to hold the whole entity together and felt slightly guilty at the thought of undoing the obvious hard work that had been put into preparing the delicate package. As the ribbon came undone, the cushioning walls supporting the shape of the parcel slowly fell down revealing that which it had so carefully concealed. Petals. Fresh petals of reddest variety still holding a strong yet subtle floral scent.

"Happy Birthday."

She turned and there he stood before her in his black stealth clothing.

She swiftly crossed the room and wrapped both arms around his neck, kissing him ardently. "You're here…" she said in nearly a whisper as she broke apart to take a breath.

"Always." He placed his forehead on hers and brushed his nose against hers with eyes closed. He placed one last kiss on her lips and embraced her as he nuzzled his head on her cheek, his hands clasped together on her lower back. Without a moments notice he lifted her off the ground and walked her over to her bed, placing her gently on her sheets over the soft petals. Never taking his eyes off of hers, he crawled onto the bed until he was half way above her body. He reached for her nightdress and proceeded to move upwards, taking her dress with him. When his head reached hers, he paused and then gently proceeded to pull her dress above her head until it was completely off. His hands met her wrists which now stretched above her head as he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her right cheek, his lips lingering before parting. He lowered his left hand and began roaming her ribs, his other hand gently caressing her fingertips above her head while he looked at her.

"How was your day?" He asked quietly.

"Fun but tiring…" she answered, half dazed.

He lowered his head above hers, his lips a mere sheet away from hers. He paused.

"Then I'll be gentle today."

She took his mouth in hers and kissed him possessively while he opened her mouth with his tongue, grazing her teeth, her palette, everything within his reach, performing his exploration with the perfection earned through months of practice.

He broke the kiss and began moving down her body. As he reached her breasts he paused and looked into her eyes before taking her nipples in his mouth. She arched her back, spread her legs wider in yearning and moaned as the feeling of the tickle of his tongue against her delicate skin. She could feel his hard length growing harder against her leg and felt the urge to grind against him

"Zuko…"

He looked up and made his way to her neck gently caressing his wet tongue against her skin. He began lacing kisses down her neck, to her collarbone, to the space between her breasts, to her stomach, to the space just above her heat, and finally to her heat itself. He licked it slowly, intensely, doing so with extra gusto when he reached her clit. Her breathing became heavier, her chest heaving up and down with pleasure and excitement. Before she could say or do anything he was above her, hands pulling her legs apart as he gently guided his erection inside her. Torturously slow. Savouring every inch of her soft wetness as he made his way in.

He stopped midway, using all the self-control he could muster.

"What is it you most desire, birthday girl?" He asked in a low growl.

"You, endlessly." She said breathlessly, trying desperately hard to keep her composure.

He thrust into her in one swift movement, fully engulfing his erection within her tight, wet core, eliciting a cry of his name in pleasure, a soft moan, at the sound of which he felt his erection grow ever harder inside of her. He kissed the top of her forehead and opened his eyes and looked into hers as he pumped within her in a steady rhythm.

For a short moment, he slowed down. With eyes closed he slowly brushed his mouth along the side of her face, memorizing the feel of her skin, sometimes placing soft kisses on his favorite spots: her eyebrows, cheekbones, and the corner of her lips. When he reached her lips, he took them in his and sucked until she opened her mouth, in which he began exploring.

Within moments, he pulled away and left a kiss just underneath her jawline and buried his head at the crook of her neck as he began pounding within her. Each thrust harder than the last.

When she though she could no longer handle it she pushed her self up towards him, in which he aided, flipping them over and her position now straddling him. She leaned down to him, her hair a brown curtain around his head. He smiled a smile he only ever showed to her. She placed a soft kiss on his lips and began riding him like a wave, pushing a little harder at each end; attempting to hit the wall of pleasure they both so desperately ached for. His eyes rolled back, the pleasure threatening to reveal the animal incarnate inside of him.

"Katara…" he moaned as she seemed to tighten even harder around him. He growled at the sensation and placed his hand on her bottom, supporting her, pushing her along with her rhythm. He was so near his peak. She was pushing him, but he wanted this to last.

He abruptly leaned upwards, and pulled her body towards him, breaking their rhythm but holding her close, not breaking the link that connected them as one.

"I love you," he whispered in her ear.

"I love you," she replied breathlessly, her words holding the weight of a feather.

He then laid her flat on her back, still not breaking contact. As she laid there, long hair spread around her, chest heaving, he couldn't help but feel his heart swell with amour. She was beautiful. He felt himself unable to restrain a smile and felt a small blush appear on his face at which she giggled.

"Are you mocking the Fire Lord?" he asked, transforming the smile on his face to a coy grin.

He suddenly took the underside of her legs and placed them over his shoulders. He leaned down and thrust into her once but forcefully, eliciting a loud moan from her.

"Right there, Zuko!" she claimed, half speaking half moaning.

He placed his index finger on his mouth, "shhh…" the ends of his lips slightly curling upwards.

He began pumping, even pounding – at precisely the angle she desired.

"Here?"

She replied with moans, each one growing louder with the intensity of his thrusts. Her breathing growing rapidly with each moan. The sight of her brought Zuko higher and higher, closer to his peak. He desperately wanted it to last longer but the sight of her made him lose it all. When he thought he could no longer handle it, he deliberately pulled out only to slam back in at precisely the same angle, hitting the spot he knew so well. The spot he knew would make her erupt. At the instant of impact, she did just that. She moaned his name desperately – bordering on screaming. At the same instant he felt the pressure of his erection grow, inside and out. She tightened around him, harder than he could ever imagine, sending him higher than he ever had before. He clenched his eyes closed and growled, saying her name as he pulsed inside of her.

He lowered her legs and leaned forward, still inside of her, to kiss her on the lips as she slowly tried to gain control of her breathing. He gently lowered himself and laid his head on her chest, so his eyes met the side of her neck and his lips the space where her neck and chest met. He wrapped his hands around her back, hugged her tightly and snuggled his head deeper within her neck.

She began closing her eyes, at which he placed kisses underneath her jawline,

"Don't go to sleep, I still have something for you." He reached up and coolly placed kisses on her lips.

"Close your eyes."

"With pleasure," she teased, giggling.

"But don't fall asleep!"

He propped himself on his elbows and reached for the night table. He opened the small compartment and pulled out a long slender box in red.

He leaned down until his lips hovered just above hers.

"Happy Birthday." His lips brushing hers as he spoke.

She opened her eyes and gasped at the sight before her, her eyes glowing at the reflection of the stone she immediately noticed to be precisely the same color as his eyes.

"Zuko… it's beautiful."

He focused his eyes on hers with an intensity that seamed to sear through her soul.

"Katara, will you do me the honor of taking my hand in marriage?"

She cupped his face between her hands kissed him reverently. As they both opened their mouth for a breath, she whispered a barely audible, "yes" into his mouth, bushing his lips with hers.

He reached for the red box encasing the symbol of their eternal unison. He opened it and slowly lifted her upwards, using his hand as a support and placed the betrothal necklace around her neck. He looked at her and kissed her fervently as he laid them both back down.

She broke their kiss and looked up at him profoundly.

He was hers, body and soul. And she, his.

She looked at him with an earnest smile, noticing the gleam in the eyes that looked back at her. Eyes that loved her unconditionally. Eyes as luminous as the fire that burned within the furnace of his body, possessing the energy and passion of a thousand suns.

A/N: I had to write this twice. Stupid decided to log me out as I was writing. I clicked saved and suddenly got an error message and couldn't retrieve my writing.

Hope this turned out as good as the original.