Smoothen the Ragged Edges

by bumizumi

Summary:

Izumi only wished to prove herself as a worthy Firelord, one capable of leading her nation in a time of peace when she turned twenty.

Finding love wasn't part of her plans, but like a true Fire National, she would take it in stride.

---

Abandoned fic.

Notes:

Hi yes, I rewrote a Capable Leader by completely scrapping the whole plot.

May Bumizumi bless us.

Chapter 1

"Dad."

Zuko hummed, raising his head from the scroll he had been reading, meeting his twenty year old daughter's eyes with a casual attitude.

But Izumi wasn't feeling casual.

Not today.

She clasped her hands behind her back, puffing up her chest slightly as she looked her dad in the eye, who was looking at her with mild amusement, "I want to help you."

He smiled softly at her, gesturing for her to sit down on one of two very comfortable seats in front of his desk.

She cleared her throat, not moving to take a seat, "I want to help you in running the nation."

This time she recieved some sort of response, her dad's singular eyebrow disappearing into his hairline as his eyes widened, the left one still thinner than the other one, owing to his scar.

"You want to what Turtleduck?", He asked, clearly taken aback by her words, if him letting the scroll drop was any indication. The wooden pins at the end of the scroll made a slight thump sound as it landed among.....well, even more scrolls.

She reaffirmed her words with more determination than she had after seeing his desk be a mess, "I want to help you govern the Fire Nation dad. You were younger than me when you saved the world and defeated Aunt Azula and I'm just... I'm just me.", Her voice showing her disappointment at herself at the last word.

Her dad stood up immediately, all work forgotten upon seeing his only daughter look unsure in herself, and he walked towards her, arms already extending to enlope her in a hug, "Oh Turtleduck... you're are so wonderful and smart, and my greatest honor is always going to be the fact that you're my daughter. There is no need for to you-"

She leaned into his chest, welcoming his gentle yet firm hug as she hid her face in the crook of his neck, "I just want to make you proud dad."

He leaned back from the hug, placing his hand under her chin as he gently raised her head, meeting her eyes, "I will always be proud of you Izumi."

She took a step back, her eyes full of the charm which her mother fondly called the deer-puppy eyes. It was specialty which she had apparently inherited from her mother, much like her facial structure, "Dad. I want to work! I am almost twenty one and all I do is study statemanship instead of actually doing statemanship! And when I do work, it's scanning agreement for any loopholes and things like that, I'm tired of it! Besides, I'll be the first person in four generations to rule in an era of peace, and I want to maintain that era of peace!"

Her father sighed softly, his fingers massaging his temple as he closed his eyes.

"I'm sorry Turtleduck, for being a tiny bit overprotective, don't worry. I trust you, and tomorrow we can go to Lord Taejin's office together."

She gave him a small smile, to which he responsed with more than enthusiasm, pulling her into yet another hug all the while thumping her slightly on the back, as though she was a unruly toddler who was choking on a morsel too big for her.

"I love you Turtleduck."

"I love you too."

*****

"I still can't believe that this is the same man who you said breathed fire every other day as a teenager.", Izumi remarked, lounging upon a particularly comfortable sofa. It was red in color, as was most of the furniture in the palace, but the interesting thing was that the symbols of all four elements had been carved into the wooden frame of the sofa, which was visible as soon as the stuffing ended.

But then again, Grandpa Iroh had started to admire all four nations after the Seige of Ba Sing Se, so she didn't know why it came to her as a surprise.

Her grandpa chuckled, a good natured twinkle present in his amber eyes, "Zuko is very soft only for the handful people on his lost. I believe you and your mother are both listed as the first names, separated with a small dot, my little tea leaf."

She smiled back at her grandpa, who was sitting on an equally comfortable chair matching the sofa, part of a custom made set, "But thank you. Tugging on his heartstrings is the best way for me to get him to agree whatever I want, and I don't think I would have known that till you told me."

"You were five then."

"And I got a new turtleduck pond built near my then soon to be training room, so.... yes!"

The two of them chuckled, before being interrupted with something they hadn't expected.

*****

"Hello Izumi."

She blinked once.

Then twice.

"Aunt Suki? Aunt Katara?"

The two of them smiled, sitting comfortably in their private living room, the one which was present in her parent's suites, rarely seen by anyone other than the family and the few servants her mother trusted.

But then again, her father and the rest of Team Avatar were practically family, even if everyone other than her parents were currently on the other side of the ocean, helping to make sure that Republic City was developing, a mixture of all the three cultures of the world, with the rebirth of a new one.

But then again, it had been time since she had met them, although judging by the expressions on the two women's faces, it seemed that it was all about to change.

Her mother entered the room with an uncharacteristically sympathetic yet firm expression. It contrasted with her father's expression like day and night, whose face had creases on it from frowning out of worry.

Slightly frustrated at being kept out of the loop, she subtly raised an eyebrow at her mother who curled her left index finger.

Whatever was going was a very recent development, her mother's signs, told her that.

"Zumi.", Aunt Suki started, her hair held back in a ponytail, as sunlight glinted off her betrothal necklace, "We're going to Ember Island. Your parents agreed to this, and its for your own safety."

Slightly taken aback, she raised both of her eyebrows, eyes wide, "Safety?"

Aunt Katara looked at her with an expression of understanding and concern, "Izumi, there's a triad bloodbender on the loose in Republic City. With Tenzin and Suyin being kids, and Aang and Toph collecting witnesses, we thought that it would be best for us to go to Ember Island, far enough for the kids to not be hurt."

"...But.. but what am I going to be doing there?", She asked, still not processing whatever was happening.

It felt like a lucid dream, and the stained windows didn't help either. Her head aching, she closed her eyes tightly, hoping to make sense of whatever was going on.

"We thought that you'd like to spend time with the kids and us, and Yakone can target you as well if you don't com-"

"Yakone?"

"The bloodbender."

Her father had said that he was a tiny bit overprotective, but as she heard about her mother, Aunt Suki and Aunt Katara coming with them to keep them safe in case the minute possibility of being attacked happened, she highly wanted to ask what did tiny mean to him.

"Where is everyone else?", She asked after a few minutes, as soon as her mind started working again,

"Bumi and Lin are taking care of Suyin and everyone else, even though it's really Lin who's in charge. They should be near the turtleduck pond. Bumi had shore leave so he agreed to come along, but I think he came so that he could flirt with the girls on Ember Island.", Aunt Katara said in all seriousness, making her remember how often she had exactly talked to her childhood best friend and the subject of dating never came up between them.

Well... time to meet everyone else then, She thought, making her way out of the family chambers.

Chapter 2

Notes:

Hi yes hello, I have no idea when the next chapter will come out, but l knowing me it will either come out in 5 years or 5 days.

Have a great day.

Also, I highly suggest you to listen to Universe by EXO while reading the part where Bumizumi talk at night..

"Lieutenant Bumi."

"Crown Princess Izumi."

The two of them broke into a dumb and wide grin, something which people would expect from Bumi, but not from the usually composed Crown Princess of the Fire Nation.

But meeting one's friend after nearly 2 years of being deployed could have that effect on anyone, let alone her. Phoning a person could only do so much, and it paled in comparison to actually seeing him.

Bumi held out his arms, already sure of what was going to happen as his childhood best friend ran towards him, hugging him tightly.

He pulled from the hug, eyeing her with a certain cheekiness which was synonym to him, "Well well well. And here I was thinking that I was going to have a nice week of flirting and dating, and then you show up."

"Eww Bumi, what does that even mean you-", Kya called out from where she was showing a two year old Suyin how to feed the turtleducks, guiding her hand as the toddler threw bits and pieces of oatmeals into the pond.

He turned around, hands at his waist as he yelled back, "I MEANT THAT I HAVEN'T MET THE OTHER HALF OF A WHOLE IDIOT IN 2 YEARS- Hi mom. Aunt Suki, Aunt Mai, Uncle Zuko, Grandpa Iroh.", The tone of voice changed immediately as he spotted their parents walking towards him, his posture stiff within seconds.

She wondered if he behaved the same way in the United Forces, having enlisted in the Navy some 2 years ago.... in a less than amusing manner. Bumi always claimed that he didn't remember anything his first few days in the barracks and that was all because they had dropped him on the head.

It would have been amusing if Aunt Katara and Uncle Aang hadn't been worried out of their minds, with Aunt Toph pulling out an entire search party to find him.

"Hi Aunt Mai!", A twelve year old Lin waved cheerfully, getting up from where she was currently..... burying Tenzin in the ground??

Izumi glanced at her mother with concern for the thirteen year old airbender, who was scowling. Suprisingly, her hadn't put up a fight against Lin, although she suspected that it not due to the highly unusual preference of being tightly packed in soil, but simply because Lin would have handed him his butt on a silver platter with cold lemonade and mochi.

"Toph really should visit us more.", She heard her father remark as he picked up Suyin from Kya's lap, cradling her against her chest, causing Suyin to burrow into his chest, easily won over by the natural heat her father gave off. That was a perk he had over her mother, reminiscing about how she always fell asleep within moments of being nestled into his arms as a baby.

Her mother elegantly walked towards the two of them, and despite being shorter than Bumi, it was clear who really was in charge of the conversation between the two of them.

Izumi just decided to watch with mild interest, while her Aunts spoke something to Lin and Kya, and her father cooed over Suyin. Tenzin had been released from his earthen prison and was quickly welcomed into a conversation about Butter Bison Tea by her grandfather.

"I take it that you have been practising throwing knives."

Bumi gulped before nodding, "Yes Aunt Mai. It came helpful the time I had to cut a rope from the sail while I was locked in- nevermind."

Her mother looked at him with approval, nodding appreciatively as she reached out to pat his shoulder, which was highly awkward due to Bumi being no less than a giant, while she and her mother were... a little below than the average of the Fire Nation.

"So Kya, Lin, how's your bending going on-"

*****

"This is nice.", Izumi muttered, leaning against the railing as she gazed at the sky, lit brightly with the stars and the moon, wind gently blowing, treating her hair as nothing more than than falling leaves. It was almost as if Yue was determined to bless Caldera with one peaceful night after nearly a week of an unbearable heatwave.

Bumi grinned at her with his signature wild man grin, something which was the unofficial name for the way he smiled, "I'm just happy to be back on land. I mean sure Uncle Sokka taught me sailing and stuff but ugh, it just becomes too much after a while. I just hope that when I get promoted or something, the most I'll have to leave will be for a year. At the most."

She raised her eyebrows, taken aback. She considered calling Aunt Katara to confirm whether the man next to her was the same person she knew. The boy she had known as a child was always ready for an adventure, sometimes going as far as to steal Appa so that he could check out the Caves of the Two Lovers for himself.

She placed her hand on his surprisingly muscular arm (What else was she expecting? He had literally been in the Navy for the past two years-) prompting him to look her in the eyes, "Bumi. Answer me honestly, are you fine?"

Her arm was shrugged off from his arm, his grin slipping from his face, "Cut it Zumi."

It only increased her concern for him. Sure, they might not have talked much in recent times, but he was still the person she could confide everything to. It felt like someone had shot lightning at her, ugly and creeping into her heart with a black stain when she saw him frowning, something she couldn't even have imagined his facial muscles were capable of expressing.

It hurt her, plain and simple. It hurt her to even think that he was-

"Your highness? Princess? Did you listen to anything I said?", He snapped his finger in front of her eyes, bringing her out of her thoughts as she blinked, trying to come back to reality from wherever her mind had wandered off.

"Huh?"

"Maybe you should see mom, I don't think that you're-"

"I'm worried about you Bumi, the last time I saw you frown was when... when... I don't remember when!", She said irritably, annoyed at him for ignoring himself just because she zoned out for a few seconds.

He sighed, his body slumping slightly as the railing supported him, "I knew what I was signing up for Princess. Besides, I've been taking sleep medicine - the one with no dreams - and I'm fine.", He suddenly perked up, looking at her with a goofish face, "Well on the bright side I have way too many stories, and I'd love to tell them to you!"

"You're annoying."

"That's what you love about me."

"I despise you with everything in my heart Bumi."

"Says the person who started thinking about the meaning of life when I just frowned-"

"Do you think that everyone else is fine in Republic City?", She asked out of the blue, turning her head towards him so swiftly that he yelped and took a step back.

"My dad's the Avatar, he'll handle it. I mean... he's scary, I won't lie. Mom banned bloodbending for a reason and dad told me that they're finding a lot of terrified witnesses. It's going to... hard, I guess? But, what makes you think that Aunt Toph will let him get away from THE CLUTCHES OF THE LAW!", He said the last words in a joking shout, gripping her arm tightly for the added scare factor as they both burst into laughter.

"I missed you. I mean it, really. Calling you every other was great, even if I had to do extra work for hogging the phone for hours. Nice to be back with you.", He said, not giving her a moment to catch her breath as soon as she had calmed down.

"Missed you more."

"Pretty sure that's not possible."

"What makes you think it isn't?", She quipped back, only to freeze as though she had just been poisoned. She thanked the darkness for hiding her red face, because she definitely didnot mean to say that out lou-

"I forget that you have beautiful eyes.", He spoke out of nowhere, the only difference being that he was standing in the light, showing his horrified expression as soon as the sentence ended. It wasn't the words he spoke as much as it was the tone of his voice, sounding less like a friendly compliment and more like a secret language only two lovers could share. She wasn't sure whether he said you with reverence or wistfulness, or a mixture of both.

Was she that beautiful?

"I...Zumi..I should go pack my bags we're leaving tomorrow GOOD NIGHT! SORRY FOR WHATEVER I BLURTED OUT!", He nearly yelled in a panic, running away at a speed she had only ever heard about in the tales her mother read to her about people who used their bending to run faster than any other human or beast.

She wasn't able to understand what had just happened, and by the looks of it, neither did Bumi.

*****

"Bye Grandpa Iroh.", She said softly, hugging her grandfather tightly, who squeezed her shoulder gently before breaking the hug.

"Goodbye to you too, tea leaf."

"It's just for a week."

"Even a moment without you seems to be eternity for me Zooms.", He said earnestly, pulling her into a quick hug yet again.

She turned towards her father, "Dad please stop crying."

"I can't.", He said, a single teardrop present in his unharmed eye, pulling her into yet another tight hug.

"Dad, I'm not a baby.", She muttered, already preparing herself for endless teasing from her extended family. Her mother had pulled herself away from a ten minute hug herself after much effort and her cheeks more pink than Aunt Ty Lee's robes.

"Love you dad."

"Love you turtleduck."

Reluctantly, her dad let go of her and after a last smile, she finally climbed up the ramp of the Airship, a few servants having already deposited their luggage inside.

The first she saw as soon as she stepped was the reason why she hadn't gotten sleep last night.

"Hello Bumi."

"Hi Zumi, I just wanted to say that-"

She cut him off with a smile on her face, determined not to make things awkward, "-that you've been in love with me for years?"

"I am not that desperate to get out my bachelor status, so no thank you.", He replied good naturedly, a grin plastered on his face, "I just wanted to say that I hadn't seen the other half of my brain in a long time, and it slipped out.", He shrugged, his body leaning against the wall.

"I'm glad you're my best friend."

"So does this mean that you'll help me tape Tenzin to his bed when he's sleeping? Kya and Lin are in with me!"

Notes:

Bumizumi: (say something from the heart)
Bumizumi, the next day: HAHA IT WAS NOTHING BESTIES FOREVER-

But on a serious note, they are best friends (with hidden crushes) in this chapter and it is ONLY pining for a while after this. And they're of course best friends even when they get married coz HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS!!

Chapter 3

Notes:

Suyin just eats sand.

"This place has really changed a lot. From tasteless to bland.", Her mother remarked idly, staring at their beach house, which was in a state of slight disarray, servants moving in and out like bug-ants in a swarm, some of them carrying bags of things they had left there the last time, while a couple of them could be seen through the windows of the second story, cleaning the rooms they were supposed to stay in, while guards sparsely surrounded the perimeter.

But Izumi wasn't worried by the quantity, she knew that they were of the Royal Guard, some of the most elite soldiers in the entire nation, capable of taking out a small army.

Now that she thought about, she was worried, because either Yakone was powerful enough to... to well cross the ocean for petty revenge or her father was preparing for something beyond that, and both of them were equally worrisome.

"Earth to Izumi. You there?", Kya nudged her, bored from using her waterbending to freeze and unfreeze the water used for mopping in the buckets, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

She stuck out her tongue, feeling slightly immature, but then again that was exactly what she had missed.

Stuck in the Palace, with a majority of people around her age not as well meaning as her, she had missed being just herself, especially since her actual friends, the ones who knew her like the back of their hands, were busy in University.

"How about we just go to the beach?", Bumi suggested, trying his best not to be dragged into cleaning the house as he eyed the huge selection of brushes and mops scattered on the tiled patio, before he turned to the where beach was, his eyes glinting as he faced the sea.

"Yeah mom let's go to the beach! I can show Zumi that trick you taught me and I can freeze Tenzin- don't run away Tennie- And Lin can show off her sandbending!", Kya eagerly asked, already reaching for the bag which contained all their swimgear along with some toys for little Su to play with.

Aunt Suki glanced at Aunt Katara's face, who still seemed to be unsure about leaving the house itself unarmed, before her mother interjected, "I'll take care of that. Don't worry.", She eyed Suyin curiously, who was trying to earthbend the patio with a small stomp, not realising how much more she really needed to work for that level of mastery, "Besides, I think Su would like the icecream shop they opened a while back. Zumi can show it to you."

Izumi nodded, the ice cream shop was indeed one of the best shops present just in front of the shore, and had been established a few years earlier, easily becoming one of the more popular hangouts for some teenagers and a place to bribe the younger siblings for other teenagers.

Her mother placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently before she moved towards the doorway, signalling for a few servants to clean the floor of the house while the others were already heading towards the beach, with Aunt Suki and Lin chasing Suyin.

Like always, she was thankful for Agni for making her an only child. While the matters of court and working took patience, she could only imagine what kind of mental will could hhave someone chase a toddler.... a toddler who was trying to eat sand?

"SU NO DON'T EAT SAND!", She yelled, running quickly to catch up with everyone else, who were nearly at the beach, with Kya rushing into the water at the first opportunity.

Thankfully, Aunt Suki picked up the excited toddler up in her arms before she could actually swallow the sand, while Lin bended it out of her mouth, small bits of saliva stuck to it.

"Ugh.", Bumi made a face of disgust, scrunching up his face as he looked at Suyin, who was wriggling to be let out of the grasp she was being subjected to, before Izumi volunteered to take care of her, in case they were afraid of another incident.

"Who's gonna spend time with Cousin Zumi? Who's gonna play with Cousin Zumi?", She cooed, holding Suyin gently in her arms, even as she was prepared to tighten her grip at any moment lest she try to run away again.

"I will!", Bumi squeaked out, placing his hands on her shoulder as he stuck his tongue out her.

"Supid.", Suyin muttered, turning away from a gawking Bumi as she tried to bury her face in the crook of Izumi's neck.

"AHA SHE THINKS YOU'RE STUPID AS WELL!", Kya yelled, rushing towards them, her index finger pointed at Bumi with triumph, who scowled as he unbuttoned his tunic.

"Ew, Bumi don't strip down to your underwear.", Lin remarked, her hand shielding her eyes from the view in front of her.

"How else am I gonna get to find a girl to date me?", He replied back, carelessly handing his shirt to Aunt Katara before he howled and ran towards the water.

"Supid."

"Yeah he's stupid all right.", Izumi muttered back, all the while thinking how to spend time with a three year old, when said three year old was a bundle of mischief.

She could only pray to Agni that her future children wouldn't turn out like her.

"So Suyin. What do you know about- NO DO NOT PUT SAND IN YOUR MOUTH AUNT KATARA I NEED HELP-"

*****

"This is nice.", Kya remarked idly, sitting on the sand, before she leaned back, suported completely by her elbows and forearms.

"I missed this. The smell of the sea, making sand sculptures and the sum shining brightly all the time.", Tenzin agreed with his sister, attention on a small beetle crab passing by.

"This is the first time I'm coming here, atleast you have memories to miss.", Bumi said in an irritated tone, swatting away at a few insects buzzing around his head, "Don't you some sort of cream for this?", He questioned Izumi, raising an eyebrow.

"I mean... you're the only person they're near. Maybe the fact is just that you're way too sweaty.", Lin replied to him, bumping fists with Kya, who completely forgot that she needed both of her elbows and she fell down, specks of sand in her hair.

*****

The first thought in Izumi's mimd was that it really was too hot to be wearing more than one layer, and that too a very thin layer.

She frowned slightly, sifting through her closet trying to find a thin cotton shirt, hopefully opaque and big enough that it wouldn't be a huge issue if she didn't wear a bra. While it was unspoken that after the first dinner, they would mostly have dinner separately in their rooms, the first day had to spent together.

She wondered if Aunt Katara could do something about the heat, with her being a waterbender and all, but ultimately decided to ask her later.

"Hey can I come in?", Bumi's voice came through the door, accompanied with a set of two sharp knocks, before a softer knock followed it.

It was their signal that they just need to talk because they were bored, something they had come up as kids, when Kya annoyed Bumi to no end.

"Nope!", She replied cheerfully, pulling out a large shirt, which although comfortable, would require her to wear a bra.

"Okay oops sorry.", His reply came his footsteps audible to her the second his sentence had quietened, before it disappeared all together.

She quickly pulled her hair into a ponytail, too tired to actually put her hair into a topknot, and quickly went to his room, the door already opened.

"So what did you want to talk about?", She asked him, leaning on the doorframe with her arms crossed.

He shrugged noncommittally, his lower lip sticking out a little bit, "Just wanted to ask if you wanted to listen to any stories. I mean, I have a lot, and that time I had to fight off-", He caught a glimpse of her expression, and he must have liked it, since he smiled a little bit before continuing, "-a pirate with nothing more than a broken sword. I don't know. Just wanted to talk, and you're the only person who actually listens to my stories. Other than Momo that is, and I think he flew off more than once."

She smiled back at him, "Anytime Boom."

"You really suit the pulled up hair.", He stated, getting up from where he was lying on the bed and walking towards her, presumably ready to grab dinner.

Like always, she was right about Bumi.

"Anyways I'm starving Zumi. What's for dinner?"

*****

"I'm making dinner from now on. You guys have way too spicy food.", Bumi panted, stuffing bread into his mouth with a sense of desperation only a dying man could have.

"Do you want water?", Aunt Katara asked, thumping him on the back as he choked on the bread he was stuffing his face with, and he nodded, his face and eyes red.

"Here you go.", Aunt Suki murmured, handing him a glass of water which he gulped down with urgency, spluttering slightly, water dribbling down his chin.

He looked adorable, if Izumi was being honest, not to mention hilariously comical.

She caught Lin looking at with something she couldn't really understand, and chose to ignore it in wake of her best friend nearly dying. Or at the least, his reaction made it seem that way.

"Yep, yep. I guess I'm fine now, mom no-", Bumi insisted, trying to push away a bowl full of kheer from his face, coughing slightly, but atleast he wasn't nearly laying on the floor, or bent over the table.

"Leave him Aunt Katara, he pretty much hates anything with a thick consistency ever since the last four months-", She started, getting up to take the bowl from Aunt Katara's hand, not wanting to make him uncomfortable.

"Thanks Zumi."

"Thank me when I make you pay for my ice cream."

"That works."

"Could the two of you stop? I mean sure we all know that you're best friends but it's getting a bit too much you two.", Kya pouted a little bit, grabbing the bowl from her hand, before she started eating it.

"Wait I was gonna eat that!", Lin insisted, crossing her arms as she leaned back.

Kya just stuck her tongue out at her.

Notes:

Wow I'm so excited for the next chapter.

Chapter 4

"Good morning.", Izumi muttered to herself, propping herself up on her elbows as she looked out of the window next to her bed, before she sunk back into the plush mattress and rubbed her eyes, trying to scrub away the last indications of sleep out of herself. She turned her head, staring at the alarm clock on her bedside table, only for it to inform her that it was 5 in the morning.

The curse of being a firebender, as her grandfather called it. Wanting to sleep till late, but after a while it was just impossible to.

She closed her eyes, wanting to fall asleep again, but it didn't really work, her mind restless with completely irrelevant thoughts, ones which she would have discarded without a second thought on a normal day.

Finally accepting the fact that she was not going to fall asleep easily, atleast not in the next 15 minutes, she got up, stretching slightly to get any tiredness out of her body, easing some of the stiffness she was experiencing. She squinted as she looked out of window yet again, catching a figure moving towards the house hurriedly in the dim light, sand kicking up where the unknown figure stepped.

Her eyes widened, already imagining the worst. It... it couldn't be him- they had reached Ember Island just a day ago an-

The person had a key.

That much was apparent, as she saw the person search their pants for something, take out an item resembling a key and then insert it into the lock, even nodding at the click of the gate.

Her feet moved of its own accord, and she opened the door of her room with haste, rushing downstairs without her left slipper, the right one worn incorrectly, making a clip-clap sound, something which was a sure indicator that maybe she should stop for a second and fix her slippers, but she kept on moving.

"Kya?"

"Zumi? You wake up this early?"

"You're coming back home at 5am from Agni knows where, I think you're the one who was some explaining to do."

Kya sighed, still standing at the doorway, teying her best to avoid making eye contact of any sort with Izumi.

"Can I atleast come in?"

"Where were you?"

"By the beach, waterbending."

"Should I call Lin to check whether you're telling the truth or not?"

"No, seriously! I was waterbending! Trust me!"

She raised her left eyebrow, unconvinced by whatever Kya said, but chose to not question it further.

"Fine... come in."

*****

"GOOD MORNING IT'S BUMI TIME EVERYBODY!", Bumi yelled as he sprinted down the stairs, trying to get everyone wake up from the slog they were currently in.

His mother was looking like she hadn't slept a wink last night, Izumi was glancing at Kya, who was also yawning, Lin and Aunt Suki straight up looked like they wanted to murder someone with a chopstick and Tenzin was... was... Tenzin.

Only Suyin looked energetic enough to face the day, although he supposed that it was just the toddler energy flowing through her.

"Shut up Bumi.", Lin mutters, sounding a bit too tired for someone who turned nine two months ago.

Not that nine year olds couldn't be tired, especially one whose sibling insisted on getting in trouble everywhere. He guessed that Su must have kept her up for most of the night, and by the time the toddler had run out of energy, it left Lin with a few hours of sleep.

He narrowed his eyes momentarily, slightly suspicious of the way Izumi was looking at Kya, but he ultimately chose to ignore it. If it was something he was supposed to know, then either of them would have already told him.

Dragging a chair to the dining table, he sat down lazily, left leg crossed over the right one.

Tenzin scowled at him, shifting away from the foot currently prodding at his knee.

"So... why does everyone look so irritated?", He finally asked, reaching forward to put some food on his plate, preferably food made without heavy spices and a sprinkling of death.

"I forgot how hot this place is.", Aunt Suki muttered, sweat on her brow as if she had just spent the last hour chopping wood.

"Can't you use your bending to cool up this place?", He questioned his mother, raising an eyebrow as he stuffed Lort Cha into his mouth, taking care to avoid the Fish Sauce.

"I'll see what I can do.", She replied, bending the sweat off herself.

Only Izumi and himself were unaffected, something which didn't go unnoticed by Lin, who promptly questioned it.

He shrugged, "Sweat doesn't really bother me after I trekked through mud."

"Mud bend?", Suyin questioned, looking up where she was scribbling on a piece of paper.

He shook his head, reaching for a glass of watermelon juice, "I'm a nonbender. Can't do that. Besides, the troop I was in had only non-benders. I couldn't do much other than try to get out pf there and run for my lif-

He stopped, realising that he hadn't exaggerated a single detail about what had happened to him. He wasn't sure what had lead to that, especially since he didn't want to- make anyone doubt that he couldn't handle things, just because he couldn't well-

His mother and siblings were looking at him, any tiredness gone from their eyes, and Izumi looked concerned.

He quickly amended his words, "I somehow made a makeshift sled out of some wood, and all I needed was the elastic of my pants and some glue but the first one was obviously out of the question, so I used a rope I found somewhere and then-"

*****

"Wow, this place is pretty nice.", Kya remarked, sipping cold milkshake as she leaned against the railing of the house.

"I know. Say what you want, this is the best place for a vacation I have ever seen.", Izumi replied casually, looking at the beach from the balcony, Kya standing next to her.

"Too hot.", Lin muttered, wiping away the sweat on her face.

All of a sudden, Tenzin sent a huge gust of wind at the three of them from where he was standing at the ground.

"THAT'S NOT WE MEANT TENZIN, BUT THANK YOU.", Izumi yelled at him, slightly impressed by how good he really was getting at airbending. But then again, she hadn't met any airbender other than Uncle Aang, so maybe it was just the level airbenders were at that age.

After all, airbenders started bending when they were infants, compared to firebender children who started bending at six, waterbenders at four and earthbenders at- well, she didn't remember. Six, maybe.

"YOU'RE WELCOME!", Tenzin shouted back, a huge grin on his fave before he ran towards Aunt Suki, probably to ask her to let him use the Kyoshi Fans she always carried.

"So where were you today?", Izumi asked the moment Lin had went inside the house to take a cold bath.

"I was... some bending practice.", Kya admitted after a few seconds.

She eyed Kya with curiosity, "You're already one of the best benders of your generation. Does Aunt Katara know?"

"I think she's knows that I'm a good bender."

"I mean the part where you sneaked out of house to practice."

"No, she thinks that I'll get how to the octopus arms by next month. I just want to suprise her."

"You can already do that, can't you?", She asked with slight hesitation.

"They come out a bit wobbly.", She admitted, her gaze lowering to the floor.

"I'm sure you'll be able to do it Kya.", Izumi said earnestly, placing her hand on Kya's shoulder, meaning every word she said.

*****

"Bumi why are you scowling?", His mother questioned, no doubt slightly surprised upon seeing her ever cheerful son sport an expression other than a huge grin and eyes twinkling with mischief.

Bumi blinked, not realising that there was a scowl on his face and a slightly dark look in his eyes. A smile appeared as quickly on his face as quickly the scowl left it, "Yes mom?"

She eyed him a bit warily, "I'd say you look jealous if I didn't know better."

He smiled a bit nervously, hoping that she wouldn't notice, "Jealous of what?"

"You've been staring at the boy Izumi is talking to."

"That's not being jealous, it's being protective like a good friend.", He quipped back, handing her a packet of mildly spiced fireflakes, especially made for the tourists who visited the Fire Nation and couldn't handle the heavily spiced and hot cuisine of the Fire Nation, "Besides, I'm happy for her, you know? She's blushing like crazy, so it's clear that she likes him."

"Maybe they'll make you the best man.", Tenzin remarked as he walked by.

"Hopefully."

When Izumi finally came back from the pier with a huge grin on her face and a date night, something inside him said that he wanted to make her smile like that, even if he found it ridiculous. She was his best friend, and he had made her laugh more than anyone else, than that guy ever had, but he still wasn't able to quell the niggling on the back of his head as he smiled and cracked a few jokes about being Uncle Bumi to Izumi's future little brats.

It was just protectiveness he felt, he told himself that night as Aunt Mai handed Izumi a knife, one to be concealed in her dress for the minute possibility that anything may happen on the date.

Izumi would never carry any weapons around him, that much he was sure of.

Notes:

bumi: yeah i wanna be uncle bumi to zumi's future brats

izumi, years later, pregnant: IT TAKES TWO TO TANGO? YOU WERE THE OTHER ONE? WE ARE MARRIED?

Chapter 5

Notes:

ah yes, not me saying that this fic is on hiatus and then updating it anyways

“Zumi?”, Bumi asked, rapping the door with his knuckles, a small frown on his face. It was becoming increasingly common to see a slightly irritated expression on his face ever since the past 2 days.

That was something new, he faintly wondered. It wasn’t as if he had never frowned or scowled in his life, the fact remained that he had never frowned because of Izumi.

If anything, Izumi was the person behind most of his smiles, including the time when they had bonded over being non-benders, at least till Izumi started had bending when she 9. Even then, she seemed to be the only person other than Grandpa Iroh and Uncle Sokka who were truly able to convince him that he wasn’t a disappointment and- he truly couldn’t count the number of times she had made him feel better with nothing more than a smile.

He waited for a response, and when none came he was briefly tempted to try knocking again, but he chose to respect her privacy, heading for his room instead.

The door of his room seemed to have rusted on the hinges within seconds, a creaking sound being the only greeting he was welcomed with as he flopped on the bed, groaning as his abdomen hit the mattress, and he quickly flipped over, staring at the ceiling as he tried to gather his thoughts.

Contrary to how his siblings viewed him - too loud, too clumsy, not knowing how to talk tactfully – he did have a brain inside his head, the reason why he had gotten promoted pretty quickly, talks of nepotism be damned. He did notice various subtleties, but he always settled on not talking about the details he had noticed, so he supposed that it wouldn’t be anyone’s fault for assuming the opposite.

Recently if Izumi’s very successful date was mentioned in close proximity to him then it was a wise enough decision to leave him alone. And it was happening because he couldn’t identify what emotion he was feeling, or rather that he had been trying to avoid coming to terms with himself.

He would have thought it was simply protectiveness that he felt, just like how felt about Lin and Kya, even Keshini, a girl who had got promoted at the same time as him, sparking a friendship between the two. But lately- he was starting to wonder if he was feeling something else.

Jealousy.

Out of every emotion he would have chosen to never feel again if given the chance, jealousy took the winning spot by a large margin. It… it was something horrible, something he knew that he knew that he would never stop feeling, not unless all those years of being called a failure till Tenzin was born suddenly vanished. Not till his father owned up to his faults as a parent, not till the world apologised to him- but he had come to terms that he wouldn’t have a nation, while his siblings would. It was the reason he had joined the Forces- to step out his entire family’s shadow.

He could only describe jealousy as how possession by spirits were talked about in old folk tales, something ugly which festered deep inside one’s soul, till all that was left was a shell, hiding something not quite human, but still human.

He didn’t want to feel jealous about or over anything- let alone his best friend.

He was brought of his thoughts when Izumi’s voice came from the other side of the door, “You wanted to talk?”

He hurriedly got up and opened the door, a mellower version of his wild smile present on his face, and she started speaking in the way she always did when she always got nervous, a bit fast paced and playing with her hands.

“I just needed some time to myself and–”

He didn’t hear a word beyond that, only a single thought present in his mind, making him numb to the rest of the world.

I’ll ruin our friendship if I don’t get to know why I’m feeling this soon

***

She continued babbling, trying to make sure that Bumi didn’t feel a bit miffed at not even receiving a response to his calls, just silence when he had tried to talk to her- when she noticed the way he was looking at her.

It… it was a look which he had never given her before, and it reminded her of the look Grandpa Iroh had on his face whenever he talked about his wife.

She quickly stopped talking, waving her hand in front of his eyes to grab his attention, something which brought him out of his daydreaming.

“Bumi, you fine?”

Bumi blinked, as if just noticing her standing in front of him, “Huh? Sorry I kinda blanked out.”

Her eyes widened, realising what was causing him to be snappy,, “Oh Agni, you're jealous.”

She was slightly disappointed in herself for overlooking that Bumi might have been jealous- all with her going on a date and him being well- well stuck with making sure that Kya and Suyin didn’t get into trouble. Tenzin and Lin were less unlikely to act irrationally, so she didn’t include them into the ‘kids’ category.

His reaction was almost painful to watch, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead, hands making wild gestures as he tried to deny her accusation, stuttering on some of the words.

She placed her hand on his shoulder, pulling him into a quick hug, “It’s fine Bumi, but I really didn’t think that you’d get jealous over me getting a date and you not.”

He pulled back from the hug, an expression of gratefulness of his face as he nodded, his head shaking vigorously, “That’s right, I’m really jealous of you- you’re really smart you know? Figuring it out and all.”

Izumi found his behaviour suspicious for a number of reasons- he would never admit that he was jealous in a million years, not to mention that his compliments were accompanied with a cheeky comment at the end, not a nervous smile.

Surely being single wouldn’t sting that hard?

Besides, there was still the look of longing when he looked at her- and she wasn’t sure what to make out of it.

“Oh Agni, I’m wrong, right?”, She said breathlessly, realising her mistake.

“…Wrong about what?”

“You already have a girlfriend, don't you? Or boyfriend? And you’re just missing them.”, Izumi said, her expression turning into a teasing one- so that Bumi wouldn’t feel much out of place.

Being a prankster and the life of the party was Bumi’s thing, she was certain that nobody in their small friendship group could beat him in that particular area.

To her surprise, he didn’t make any jokes- funny or unfunny- and looked her in the eye, and asked in the most monotone voice he could possibly muster, “Very funny. Stop making fun of me, you know that I haven’t seen anyone seriously in like an year.”

“I forgot.”

“You forgot to get Kya back from the beach.”

“That was on purpose. I’m not talking to her till she apologises to Druk for calling him scary.”

“That’s valid, I guess.”, Bumi shrugged.

“Bumi, I’m going to set you up on a date, one which will take your mind off whatever you’re so… so un-Bumi-like over. I’ll make sure that you’re your old self again.”, She said, only to be surprised when the she felt something softly whisper no to her, as if she didn’t want to do that.

‘Don’t do what?’, she faintly wondered.

Make Bumi happy, or send him on a date?

Her eyes widened momentarily as she realised what happened and stammered out, “I think I know just the girl. She’s the daughter of the head of the tourism industry, and lives here on Ember Island. We’re best friends actually. Like- best girl friends, it’s not like you’re not my best friend. She is too-“

He cut her off with a small gesture of his hand, his usual languid smile on his face, “You don’t need to recite an essay about how I’m your everything- But I'm not really interested.”

“For me?.”

“Zumi, not interested. Thanks for the offer though.”, He replied, but Izumi couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was wrong.

***

“Mind telling me why aren’t we going on a second date? You seemed to enjoy the first one.”, Jochi asked, crossing his arms as he looked at her with an expression of faint hurt present on his face.

Izumi hated that she was doing this to him, but something in her knew that while she would be happy if she dated him, it wasn’t something she wanted.

“I’m sorry Jochi, I really am. It’s just that- I don’t even know how to explain it to you.”, She said, hoping that she wouldn’t hurt a frankly- very nice person anymore.

“Wow, so was I just someone you dated to experience how Royalty doesn’t live?”, He asked, arms crossed.

“No, that’s not what I meant-“

“Goodbye princess.”, He said curtly, walking away from her as fast as he could, all the while maintaining his dignity.

Izumi wanted to shout at him, tell him that her feelings were like a muddy paint palette, nothing clear to her, but she couldn’t blame him.

She supposed that she was lucky enough that he left her with a slightly snappy goodbye, because had the roles been reversed- she was embarrassed to admit it- but chances were that she wouldn't have behaved in a highly dignified manner, having inherited her father’s temper.

She glanced at the seashore, where Bumi was talking to a girl- a girl much prettier than her, and her heart nearly stopped beating when realised-

“I love Bumi.”, She muttered, staring at him.

She repeated her words, as if the first time was simply something that had slipped off her tongue, taking time to savor the words she spoke this time, “I love him, I…I love Bumi.”

He caught her looking and gave her a small wave, a huge smile on his face, to which she waved back numbly.

Notes:

THE PINING IS COMING

Chapter 6

“Not gonna lie, I genuinely didn’t think that I’d meet you here.”, Keshini said, a teasing tone present in her voice.

Bumi shrugged, “Well, I didn’t expect to meet myself as well, but life is full of surprises.”

“Please stop with the jokes, you’re not funny.”

“Izumi would beg to differ.”, Bumi spoke without a second thought, the words slipping from his tongue as he stopped walking.

Izumi.

He glanced at where Izumi was standing, her boyfriend seemingly walking away from her. Seeing the small frown on her face, he decided to remedy it by waving cheerfully at her as she stared at him. She nearly jumped, waving back at him. Judging by the look on her face, it was as if she was looking at him without seeing anything.

He wondered what was wrong with her, having behaved oddly ever since their conversation in the morning, but it wasn’t as if he could say anything, still confused about his feelings himself.

“You fine?”, Keshini questioned, placing her hand on his arm.

“Never better.”

“You look like that day you drank too much and-“

“-And that memory haunts me. Please don’t.”, He spoke quickly, not wanting to be reminded of that particular night.

It was better to pretend that that memory never existed.

“You’re not looking at me while I’m talking to you.”

He waved her off, a faraway look in his eyes, “Yeah yeah, you’re not my mom.”

She made a small ‘humph’ sound, as if the idea of being related to him was a ridiculous notion, “Thank Oma for that. I’m not interested in being anything beyond friends.”

“You’re talking as if I forced you to talk to me.”, He quipped back, quite fond of the banter they shared.

“Anyways, I need to go back home. I just came here for my cousin’s birthday- and I’m not interested in disappointing a nine year old. Especially when I’m here for like… one day.”

“See you when I’m back to work.”

“Yep, gotta go.”

***

Izumi was staring at an old picture their parents had taken, some 5 years ago.

It was just a few days before Bumi had enlisted, and their entire extended family had come together to wish Bumi luck.

She still remembered that night. She hadn’t been able to sleep the entire night, and instead chose to pray to every spirit that ever existed for Bumi to be safe. And… and the next day, when he hugged her- she had held him for a few seconds more than needed.

Even though they never spoke about it, with the memory eventually buried under what came after it, it chose to surface in her mind that day.

She faintly wondered if something in her had known what he would truly mean to her.

And now Bumi had a girlfriend.

She was truly a miracle, she supposed. A late bender, with the future of being the first female Firelord in 3 centuries, and now her heart was getting broken the very day she had discovered what-

Bumi balanced her, and now it felt as though the scales were tilted, making her fall into a deep abyss.

She supposed that she could confess to him, but if she went by his expression and how he reacted when anyone assumed that they were a couple- the very idea of being in love with her was a joke to him. A harmless joke, nothing more than a few laughs.

One could argue that Bumi would take it as a joke, but Izumi knew him better than most- lovers or not. There were simply some things which even Bumi didn’t take in jest, and love was one of them.

All she could do was wait till he revealed his relationship to her when it was comfortable enough for him.

Her mind wandered back to when Bumi had firmly refused for the date she had offered to set up, but more specifically his sentence about how he was her everything. Like everything else regarding loving her, it was clearly a joke to him.

***

“You’re looking sad.”

“I am sad.”

“Why?”

“Because- I can’t tell you.”

Lin stared at Izumi with a look which would have suited a tired mother more. Her very expression said ‘Please stop’.

But Izumi wasn’t sure whether she could stop loving Bumi or not.

***

“Wanna talk, Zumi?”, Bumi asked, his eyes clearly showing concern for her.

“Not really Boom. I…I wanted to ask if you want to talk to me?”

Bumi shrugged, leaning back till he fell on his bed, “I don’t have anything to talk about too..”

“This is-“, Izumi started speaking, only to stop when she couldn’t find a proper way to describe how she was feeling. She went with the easiest word in the end, “-different.”.

Bumi hummed, and Izumi found herself wanting to reach out and run her fingers through his hair.

It was a gesture which wasn’t common in the Fire Nation, mainly because of how intimate it was. She knew that Bumi didn’t follow Fire Nation customs, but some things were hard for to let go of. Despite being best friends, she and Bumi didn’t see each other often, and it sometimes lead to a sort of awkwardness on her part, and she found herself hesitating.

“Can I touch your hair?”, She asked in a quieter voice than what she had intended.

It made the moment seem more suited for a universe in which they loved each other.

“Go ahead.”

She tentatively moved to sit next to him as he lay down, and ran her fingers through his hair. It wasn’t a grand act for love which would never exist, but… but she wished that she could do it whenever she saw Bumi. She wished to run her fingers through his hair as he told her tales from his latest adventure, then lean down to kiss him on the forehead; he would smile cheekily and she’d curl up against him.

She wished that it would happen one day, even if it wouldn’t.

“Everything is different.”, Bumi muttered, causing her to stop moving her hand as her eyes widened momentarily.

“Is it?”

“We used to talk for hours- and now we can’t talk about anything. We’ve been silent for what… fifteen minutes? And the most you ever did with my hair was ruffle it at times. You’re right, things are different.”

“Just because things are different doesn’t mean that it’s bad.”, She quickly withdrew her hand,

“Stop quoting Grandpa Iroh.”

“I’ll stop quoting him when… never, actually.”

“How’s your boyfriend?”

She stiffened, and she knew that Bumi would have noticed that. He could read her
like an open book, and while it was something which usually comforted her, the only thing which she could think of was that he’d see the love in her eyes.

“Nice enough. But there won’t be a second date.”

Bumi frowned, pushing himself off the bed as he sat up, “What?”

She lowered eyes, a small frown present on her face as she remembered how she had hurt Jochi, and he didn’t deserve it.

Bumi interpreted it in a different way, his eyes darkening before he smiled at her, if only to make her feel at ease, “He must have been a jerk to dump you.”

“I dumped him.”

His smile slipped from his face within seconds, his features contorted into a confused expression , “Wha- Didn’t you like him?”

“I…I don’t- Not now Bumi.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

***

“I… I think I l- love her.”, Bumi muttered to himself, still staring at his reflection in the mirror.

His mind was still fixated on the moment when Izumi was running her fingers through his hair. If he was truthful, he hadn’t had anyone- female, male or anything in between – ever treat him with this type of affection. And… and something in him tol-

All those times when he had felt jealousy regarding her wasn’t a twisted form for protectiveness, he had been in love with her all the time.

Even that time on the Palace balcony, he… he loved her.

“I’m in love with Izumi.”

He loved her, and all he could do was smile as she found someone good enough for her. That guy seemed to be a good enough man, and she had still dumped him. He wasn’t even a bender that-

Running fingers through his hair might have been a way of showing affection to her best friend for her, but it was so much for him.

It was everything for him.

“You’ve been in he- Bumi? Bumi, you okay?”, Tenzin asked, bursting into the bathroom on their floor, his annoyance changing into concern the moment he got a good look at his face.

“Huh? I’m okay, it’s nothing, I’m fine.”, He raised his head, turning to look at his younger brother, hoping that he wouldn’t question him for more information.

“You looked like someone kicked a deer puppy-“

“Maybe because someone did kick a deer puppy.”

Tenzin gave him a look which clearly said that he didn’t believe a word of what he said, but he didn’t question him further.

***

“Mom.”, Izumi said in an even tone, walking towards her mother.

“Yes Zumi?”, Mai asked, raising her head from the book she was reading. Her neutral expression changed into one of concern within moments as she looked at her daughter’s puffy face, slightly pink eyes.

“Sweetheart, are you okay, do you need to talk?”, She asked quickly, getting up to wrap her daughter in a hug.

Izumi clutched her mother like a lifeline, not speaking for a few moments before she finally spoke, “I’m fine now.”

“Now?”

“Something… happened.”

“You can always talk to me or-“

“I’m fine, thanks.”

***

“Hey… Zooms. Nice weather we’re having.”

“Absolutely Boom.”

“We’re in a cave what are you talking about?”