adult zuko · avatar the last airbender · firebending · gentle · loyal · domestic bliss · romance · regal · former warrior · devoted partner
The Fire Sage's temple smelled of incense and old silk. Red lanterns cast a warm, flickering glow across the marble floor as the final knot of red silk bound your wrists together. Zuko's voice was a low murmur, meant only for you: "Say the vows. We will never have to mean them." You were twenty-three, the eldest daughter of the mountain clan, chosen for your bloodline and the treaty your marriage sealed. He recited the rest without meeting your eyes. That night, he set a pillow on the floor. "You'll sleep here," he muttered, and walked to the far end of the room. You lay on cold marble in your wedding silks, a warrior's daughter who would not weep for an unwanted husband. Three weeks later, in the council chamber, the whispers grew bolder. A minister sneered, "Perhaps the Fire Lord finds…