Epilogue: Infinity is closer than you think

Azula shuffled around in the kitchen, irritated that even after living in this house on Ember Island for as long as she had, she had no idea where anything was in this room. She procured a glass from the top shelf and had a perplexing wrestling match with the wine bottle to get the damn cork out.

Finally, filled glass in hand, she walked out to the moonlit beach.

"Fire Lady."

Katara raised an eyebrow as she looked at the glass Azula handed her. "I'm not calling you 'Fire Lord'. This is a whiskey snifter."

"It holds liquid," Azula said as she sat in the chair beside Katara. "With the trouble I had getting that particular liquid into it, you aren't going to complain. It was your idea to send all the servants away."

"You enjoyed it last night."

And that day. There was something to be said for total privacy. They'd had sex in some very interesting places. She would enjoy the expression on Zuko's face when she told him why his beloved beach chair was broken.

It was perhaps the first time she and Katara were totally alone anywhere in the Fire Nation. If Katara felt as awkward around Azula's servants as Azula felt sharing an apartment with Katara's grandmother and a toddler…well, they'd both been missing out.

Not that she could ever regret Kanna or Ana.

Just last week, Ana had looked at her and called her 'Momma'. There were still no words to describe that memory or how it felt to hear that every day. It gave her a new appreciation for what such a term could mean. Maybe she would never be completely comfortable calling Iroh 'Father', but she knew trying made a difference. He smiled every time. If only Ursa didn't break down into tears every time.

Azula enjoyed this quiet honeymoon with Katara, but she missed their little girl. It was going to be hard watching them leave to return to the South Pole. Azula had to stay to iron out all the careful details of her coregency with Zuko, but she had a firm date for when she would meet her family in the South Pole. If it came down to it, she'd ride her dragon there.

Katara rubbed Azula's foot with her own. She took a sip of her wine and paused with her nose wrinkled. Katara spat into her palm. "There's cork in this wine! How in the world did you open the bottle?"

"I couldn't find the corkscrew," Azula admitted.

Katara sighed and flicked her wrist. She levitated the wine midair and somehow managed to shake the bits of cork out of it. Back into the glass it went. "You're so silly," Katara said indulgently. Her foot began to rub against Azula's again. "I bet you can tell me every detail about how this wine was made, but you can't even open the bottle without a corkscrew."

She could, but she didn't have to admit to it. Azula leaned over to kiss Katara's bare shoulder. "I made you dinner, and I poured you wine. What do I get in return?"

"You also made an unholy mess in the kitchen."

"Cooking is messy," Azula replied. She gave Katara's skin another kiss and inhaled a pleasant breath of Katara's scent. "I'm glad I have servants who are much cleaner than I." She paused. "Would you entertain the thought of riding a dragon?"

Katara's laughed nervously. "You should have told me that before I started the wine."

Azula whistled, drawing a wince from Katara, and Rakka flew towards them a moment later. Her dragon landed and slithered up the beach. She crooned and accepted a scratch along her eye-ridge. Then she cracked a yawn that revolted both Azula and Katara.

"Gross. What has she been eating?"

"Apparently rotten fish." Azula shivered and waited for her stomach to settle. This late in the day was rarely an issue, but after that stench… "You sit behind her head."

"We're really doing this," Katara said helplessly. She put her glass of wine on the beach table after a longing look. She settled onto Rakka's strong neck and held onto her horns with a death grip. Azula climbed up behind her and grabbed the horns as well. Rakka's undulating flight pattern had gotten better the last few months, and she was far more aware of the human riding her than she used to be, but it still required a steady seat.

Eventually they would be in-tune enough with each other that Azula could fly just cranial to her wings. It was the seat of battle, but that wasn't appropriate for tonight.

Azula clucked quietly and concentrated on the thought of flight, and Rakka gave a gentle push off of the beach. Katara gasped, and her body flexed against Azula's. "Use your thighs," Azula said in her ear.

Katara was sitting as tight as Azula had her first flight, but Azula was firm in her seat. Even if Katara relaxed, it would take a great deal to break Katara from her arms.

They flew over the moonlit beach around the island. Perhaps it seemed fast to Katara, but Rakka was gliding lazily on the strong breeze. Some teenagers were sitting around a bonfire on the beach near the town of Ember Island, and Azula seized that flame and turned it blue.

The kids all shouted, and one girl screamed as Rakka swept over them. Rakka roared happily and roared louder when they flew by the Ember Island theater. The few people who'd escaped the play on the veranda gaped at them as they swept by.

Katara began to laugh, and Azula laughed with her. Rakka provoked shouts and screams from the people in the streets below, but Azula coaxed her higher, and Katara gasped as Rakka quickly gained altitude. They flew through the low-hanging clouds and Rakka banked in a wide spiral. Azula's stomach didn't appreciate that motion. She took them back to the ground out of self-preservation.

Katara's laughter as they staggered onto the beach made it worth it. "That was amazing!"

Rakka preened, and Katara turned to give the dragon a hug around her snout. Rakka crooned. When Katara stepped back, the dragon took off gently from the beach and flew in low circles around them, breathing blue fire rings and flying through them.

This time she and Katara shared a beach chair and watched the dragon play. Katara moved carefully against her and picked up her wine glass. Her hand rubbed soothing circles against Azula's belly. "How are you feeling?"

"The same as when you asked me an hour ago," Azula teased. She took Katara's hand. "I have another request."

Katara kissed her indulgently. "What do you want, oh mighty Fire Lord?"

Well, that stroked her ego. This wasn't a request from the Fire Lord though. "Let's walk on the ocean again."

Katara's smile was gentle, and she stood up. This time she dumped out her wine and set the empty snifter on the table. Katara began to walk down to the ocean, and she called over her shoulder, "I think we can do that."

Azula hastened to follow.

They pushed through the breakers, and Katara buoyed them up onto the surface and extended the ice bridge beneath their feet. They walked hand in hand towards the moon, happy in their silence. When they did stop, Azula asked, "This is where we started, isn't it?"

Katara rolled her eyes though she smiled. "I remember a few months of getting to know each other before that."

Azula wasn't deterred. "Do you remember what you asked me?"

They stood on that bridge of ice and turned towards each other. The full moon lit Katara's face. When she looped her arms around Azula's neck, Katara's long look was all love and tenderness. "How close have you been to infinity, Azula?"

Azula met her wife's eyes soberly. "Kiss me again, and I'll tell you."

Katara smiled softly and kissed her. And kissed her again. And again. "Guess what?" Katara said. "I happen to have an endless supply of kisses."

-end-

AN: Thank you everyone for reading and/or reviewing and any discussions involved therein-and a special thanks to Aurelia le who is beyond awesome and pointed out so many typos I missed so that I could correct them. This story has been an amazing experience for me. I've never finished anything of this scope before. I wrote this story for myself, but I'm happy some people got some enjoyment out of it. So, thank you all again!