howlingplayground | Arranged Marriage

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Arranged Marriage

It's a trope near and dear to our hearts. Arranged marriage.

Maybe it's for the family. Maybe it's for a friend. Maybe you know the person and have been expected to marry them for years. Maybe it's the wedding day and you have no clue who it is you'll be tied to for your natural life. Maybe you've been married a while, and you're just now starting your life, away from the expectations of others. Or maybe, the "others" are watching, waiting, making sure this marriage sticks.

Prompts for those who need them:

Reasons:

1. Station → You come from a royal, noble, or otherwise distinguished family who has chosen a suitable spouse for you.
2. Feud → You are being married to put an end to the bitter enmity between your two families.
3. Economics → Your economic state and/or your station will improve through the union, though one of you may be marrying down.
4. Empire → You and your spouse are merging your businesses and/or property to create something more influential or profitable.
6. Tribute → You have been offered as a gift or appeasement, alternately you're the spoils of war.
8. Bloodline → Carrying on your distinguished family name has fallen to you and the equally well-bred spouse of your family's selection.
7. Disapproval → Your marriage has been arranged to keep you away from the person with whom you truly wish to be.

Scenario:

1. First meeting → This is the very first time you're meeting your future spouse.
2. Courtship → To get to know each other and encourage affection, your family has approved of you going on dates.
3. Engagement party → Be it a huge, formal affair or a small, intimate get together, you're celebrating (or pretending).
4. Wedding day → The big day!
5. Reception → The big party!
6. Wedding night → Every meme needs a smut prompt, right?
7. Honeymoon → Where will you go with your new spouse and what will you do there?
8. Been at this a while → Just starting to get to know the other person

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"That's why I invited June and Nyla to the palace. If anyone can find her, I hope it's them." He says, finally looking at her. "If she is alive, I'd like to bring her back here." He says, offering her the chance to say no, though he knows she won't. "Even if she did kill my grandfather, the threat has passed and I'm safe."

Meaning, the reason she left is gone. He's as safe as he could be. Sure there is still some question as to if the Dai Li are loyal to anyone at this point. But, that's a problem for another day.

"I also wanted to ask Master Pakku and your grandmother to stay."

She nods in agreement. "Of course." As if she would ever turn his mother away.

His offer surprises her a little, and she frowns a bit as she thinks. "I wouldn't mind asking them, but I don't think they would stay," she admits. "Gran-Gran's already missing being home."

As much as she would've liked them to stay, she wouldn't force them to either. They were both getting old, after all.

Zuko sighs. "I was afraid of that. I want you to have family close, but if they're not comfortable here, I understand." He says, gently. Maybe Sokka will stick around and stay. He needs friends too, Sokka isn't the only one. He wonders if Aang will also stay, or if he will be traveling, helping put things to rights.

"But if you ever want to go see them, I'm sure we can arrange something." He'll use the navy to get her there, or they can call Aang. A ride on Appa never really hurt anyone.

"Yeah." Hopefully Sokka would consider becoming the official representative for the Southern Water Tribe, as their father and Pakku had suggested. That way at least he could come visit her when he had business in the Fire Nation.

As for Aang...he most likely would need to travel as well, but like Sokka, there would be moments when his duties would bring him back to the Fire Nation. So she knows she'd still see him.

Glancing up at Zuko, she smiles. "Thank you. I appreciate that." She's sure that they'd be busy and might not be able to visit too often, but it was still a nice gesture.

Zuko has a feeling that Sokka will be staying with the Earth Kingdom, and the Kyoshi warriors. Or perhaps somewhere in between. He and Suki obviously aren't prepared to call it quits yet, and while the Fire Kingdom is Ty Lee's home, he knows she'll be quite happy to leave it behind.

They will never be too busy for her to visit family. He plans on getting them a pair of eel hounds and seeing about keeping them about the palace. They'll run fast enough. One of them has no family left, and Zuko will not admit it, but he's trying to adopt her family as his own.

"You'll be Queen, Katara. There's no reason to thank me." He says softly. "With you being yourself, I'm sure the servants will come to care for you, deeply."

Considering her family had been a big part of the push to have them married, they'd better adopt Zuko as part of them, or Katara will have Words for them.

There's a touch of shyness in her smile. "I'll do my best," she says. Pakku had warned her that not everyone would be happy or accepting of the arrangement, particularly some of the old Fire Nation lords. But she would do what she can.

If some of the old Fire Nation Lords have a problem with his Queen? They can attempt to take her in a fight. He'd sit back with a nice cup of tea and let her handle them. Of course, he'd jump in, but he'd meant what he said: Katara can defend herself.

He eats, slowly, not really hungry but knowing that he needs to eat. Especially if he's going to heal at all from the lightning. "I'd like to ask my uncle to act as regent as we go look for my mother. What do you think?" She's going to be his partner. They both better get used to it sooner rather than later.

The laughs softly as she takes a bite of her food. "That sounds fine, but are you going to be able to get him to leave his tea shop?" she says with a teasing smile.

He smiles. "Well, he's already here..." He says, finally starting to eat. "If I just leave him a note, it's not like he'll have much choice, is it?" Not that he would do that, but the thought is hilarious. He is going to ask his uncle tonight. Right after he speaks to Aang. Because if Aang doesn't want to help - understandable, at the moment - then they'll need to secure other transportation.

He finishes about half his food, before looking at Katara. "I'd like to show you something, after dinner, if you wouldn't mind? Something I'd like for you to do, when we marry."

She giggles. "As long as he doesn't take off before we do." She knows Iroh wouldn't do that either, but the mental image of them all racing to escape the palace was pretty funny.

Placing down her own utensils as she finishes eating, she glances at Zuko curiously. "What is it?" she wonders.

He chuckles. "I think we could beat him out of the palace." He says, setting his utensils down. Then he stands and redoes his robes. Silently, he holds a hand out to her. "I'd rather show you." He says, softly.

There is a part of the garden that has been closed off for years. It's grown wilder, uncared for, but there are certain water elements that, no doubt, would appeal to Katara. If she's willing to restore it, that is.

Taking his hand, she rises to her feet and follows him. As they near that section of the garden, Katara can already feel the energy of the water, and even with its wildness she almost feels a connection to this area.

"Oh wow..."

The section before had been beautiful with flowers from all over the world, lovingly tended by the servants, and his mother. There is a small waterfall, tumbling over a rock formation, into a pool where lillies used to be. But now the water isn't clean and is clogged by the plants.

"If you would like it, its yours." He says softly, letting her see what he remembers. "You can change it, or do anything you want with it." He gestures back to where they'd started their conversation with the turtleducks. "If you want to join it to the larger garden, that's fine too. I just thought..." A deep breath. "I thought you'd like a place that was just yours."

Despite the obvious work that needed to be done, she can see and feel the potential in this place. She turns to him with a bright smile, placing a hand on his arm.

"Thank you," she says, the softness in her tone doing nothing to hide the genuine gratitude.

He puts his hand over hers. They have to learn to get along, learn to be a married couple, and learn to rule all at the same time. This? This is the easy part. Giving her this part of the garden was so simple, so easy. He knows that she won't do anything that she doesn't want to do. He's glad she likes the garden, though.

"I just thought..." He rubs the back of his neck, embarrassed. "I want you to be happy here." He finally says.

Her smile softens, and she's suddenly aware of her heart in her chest. Leaning up a bit, she places a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you, Zuko," she says again.

Maybe - just maybe - she could be happy here.

She kisses his cheek and he blushes. He can't help it.

He takes her hand, and turns her to face him. "Do you..." He takes a deep breath. "Katara, you know I'd never force you to do anything right? But, do you think you could be happy here? With me?" He asks the questions softly, still holding her hand. He takes a deep breath.

"Katara, without the interference of all the old men and women in our lives, would you marry me?"

Her eyes focus on their hands for a long moment, before she looks up to meet his eyes.

"I - " She pauses, trying to find the right words to explain her thoughts. "I think...I think I could be happy here with you. But I...if it hadn't been suggested, I don't...I don't know if I'd have ever thought of marrying you." She gently squeezes his hand to stave off any immediate response. "And it's nothing to do with you. I think you're a good person, and I know you would have taken care of any woman who might have married you. I just...hadn't considered marry you before because...well, we're friends. It just...never really occurred to me."

Kind of like how it had never occurred to her that she could have married Aang until later.

She doesn't answer the question. That's his first thought. His second is she sounds so tentative, and he's not used to that, not from Katara. He's used to her decisiveness, her firm resolve. It's something that makes up Katara and something he admires. She always seems to know what's right, whereas he struggles so much inside and outside with deciding what might be the right thing to do or say.

He takes a deep breath. He understands her reasoning. He never would have thought of her as a choice either. Not that he didn't admire her, or that he didn't like her, just - as she'd said - they were friends, not romantically linked. And that's fine. "I want you to -" He stops, freezes, really. He saw something, something out of the corner of his eye.

Suddenly, Zuko pulls her down to the ground and spins, lashing out with a line of fire that's met with another line of fire. Well, they sent 'benders, this time. Five people melt out of the shadows, their faces hidden. He looks at all of them. "You alright?" He asks Katara.

"Kill the pretender, leave the savage." One of them orders, and then the five attack.

She gasps, feeling the blazing heat as the attacks collide. Looking up, she sees the five hooded figures through narrowed eyes.

"Fine," she assures him, rising to her feet to stand beside him. When the figures attack, she pulls the water from her water sack, using it as a whip to lash out at the assailants with one hand, her other hand calling the water from the nearby waterfall as a wave, hoping to use the muddied water to impede their vision.

While Katara took care of the two back there, Zuko faced the two plus the one who seemed to be the leader of this little cabal. He took a deep breath and stood there, for a moment. Then, when they flinched, he attacked. His fire whipped out, lashing out at them. He hears the water crash behind him and the sputtering from the other two, and smirks. He crashes into one of them, throwing him over his hip, and facing the other two.

Fire lashes out at Katara and Zuko steps in the way of it, watching her back.

She doesn't even need to turn around to know that he's there - she can feel his presence, where he is, and trusts him to look out for her, just as she does for him.

As the one Zuko knocked away starts getting back up to attack again, another wave of water knocks him down, freezing his in place.

Letting her deal with those, his eyes narrow at the two in front of him. He's steady, steadfast, and ready for them. His fire lights up the failing light of the evening. He eventually beats the two into submission, and then looks back at the ones she'd taken care of.

The guards come running in, just as he kneels on the leader. He narrows his eyes and looks up at them. "Take them. I will discuss things with them, later."

He is... not pleased with his guards. He looks over at Katara and offers her a hand. He doesn't ask if she's alright. He knows she is.

It actually wasn't difficult to subdue their attackers. Once she has them taken care of, she steps back as the guards come - late, of course - to take them away.

With a slight sigh, she turns back to Zuko and takes his offered hand. "You know," she says after a moment, "I would have thought people would at least wait until after we were married to make attempts on my life."

Zuko can't help the snort of amusement that escapes him as the assassins are lead away. "I don't think they were after you." He says, tiredly. This isn't the first attempt on his life. He doubts it will be the last. Until he gets the older Fire nobility in line, they will be a problem.

He sighs and walks with her out of the wildspace in the garden. "But, it is something to consider." He says, gently. "They will continue. After me, after you, after both of us. Suki offered the Kyoshi warriors but I'm not there yet." He explains. "If you can't... that's fine, Katara."

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