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

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"You'll do fine." He promises her. He knows she will. Honestly, he's heard a few things about her and none of it is bad. He's not surprised by that, at all.

He goes to reach for her hand and stops, awkwardly realizing his hands are slimy from Appa. He smiles a bit. "I'm to play Pai Sho with Uncle in an hour. I should get cleaned up." Hopefully, she'll be there.

Not like she's never had to deal with Appa before. Still, she laughs softly. "You should probably go do that," she agrees. "I might freshen up a bit too."

She hadn't even so much as broken a sweat against the confrontation with their attackers earlier, but she still needed something to do for that hour.

Then, with a teasing smile, she adds, "I can't wait to see Iroh kick your butt at Pai Sho, though."

Edited 2020-08-30 07:53 (UTC)

"Hey!" He says, indignant. Sometimes, he's still Zuko, the brat Prince, even if he is Fire Lord now.

"I can hold my own against him. I've gotten better." He really has. But not good enough to beat his Uncle. His Uncle destroys him at Pai Sho every single time.

She snickers. "Well then, you'll just have to show me when you play against him."

Honestly, there were still some things about the game that she didn't quite understand. But it was still fun seeing Iroh beat Zuko regardless.

"I will!" He says, fervently. He's going to get his ass handed to him. Oh well. "I'll see you there, Katara." He says, with a crooked smile.

Zuko leaves her be, and goes to get the Appa slime off of him. At least the giant bison still likes him. He's not sure if Aang ever will again, even if this is what's best for the world. Sometimes, sacrificing everything for the world is just too much.

Relaxing in the bath, he stares at the ceiling, thinking about Katara, and what it will be like to be married to her. They'll be young. She's only about fifteen, and he's not quite seventeen. Though... He turns his head and glances at the calendar. Yeah, even if they decide to hurry the wedding along, he'll be seventeen before it can happen. But, this is what the world needs, and he'll do it, if it means that the world is safe.

When he goes to dress, he slips easily into comfortable clothing and leaves his hair down, before wandering to his uncle's room. Iroh is waiting for him with the Pai Sho table ready. "Are you ready to lose again, nephew?" He teases.

Zuko just rolls his eyes and takes his seat.

After Zuko leaves, Katara takes a quick bath herself, thinking over all the events of the day. There were certainly worse things than marrying a friend, but she couldn't help worrying a little. Not about the idea of marrying Zuko itself, but all the danger surrounding his position. Many people outside of the Fire Nation were still wary, and some people within the Fire Nation would oppose him.

He needed help, that much was certain. And if she was to marry him, then she would do everything she could to do that.

Once she finishes getting dressed, she has to ask for help finding Iroh's room. By the time she arrives they've already started, and she offers them a smile as she takes a seat to watch.

Zuko's studying the board, but he's very aware when Katara comes in the room. He's briefly distracted from the board, but he forces his attention back to it, knowing that his uncle can beat him quickly, but hoping to draw it out for a while.

He makes a move that makes Iroh blink. Good. He surprised his uncle.

Sokka is also watching the game, carefully running his brand new sword along a whetstone. It's a gift from Zuko, for the loss of his space sword. (Then again, there's a bounty out on the space sword, just in case.)

Katara takes a seat beside her brother, looking over the board with a confused frown. Serves her right for coming in late, she supposes.

Sokka isn't much help either, despite the whispered explanation he tries to give her about what's happened so far. Eventually she waves him off, and decides just to watch and figure things out from there.

Zuko hears the whispered explanation. It's not wrong but it's not right either. He'll have to teach Katara how to play eventually.

Despite paying attention to the board, he and Sokka are talking about Sokka picking up dual swords the way that Zuko uses his broad swords. Zuko doesn't think it a good idea, and explains that Sokka needs to find his own way with the swords, just like Master Piandao says, and has said to both of them.

He eventually loses to his uncle. "Good!" Iroh says, smiling. "You're getting better."

Zuko shakes his head. "You'll ever be the master, uncle."

While Zuko and Sokka talk about swords, Katara is still studying the board, trying to understand better. She gets a little more of it while she studies Iroh's moves, but she'll definitely need some pointers.

Once the game is over, she sits back a bit and smiles teasingly. "You lasted longer than I thought you would," she jokes, "so that's something."

"Hey!" Zuko says, partly teasing. He knows that Iroh will always be the master of Pai Sho. He's fine with that. He knows that he has a lot to learn from his uncle.

A knock at the door draws his attention. He knows that sound. "I should return to work." He ignores Iroh's protest. "You'll join me for breakfast?" He asks, looking over his shoulder at Katara.

She's silent for a moment as she considers her answer, taking a quick glance at Sokka. Then, hesitantly, she says, "Actually, would it be okay if I watched you work?"

If she's going to be Fire Lady, then it would help to understand what he does, wouldn't it?

Zuko pauses, thinking for a moment. It's not that he doesn't want her to help - he does - he just doesn't want to dump her into the fire so quickly, so to speak.

The knock comes again, and he holds out his hand to Katara. "I don't see why not. It's mostly paperwork, this evening." Or, it would be now. He's not going to subject her to his damned advisors, just yet. She'll get enough of that later.

With a smile, she takes his hand and rises to her feet. "Well, at the very least, I can keep you company."

Because paperwork, even if it wasn't difficult, could just get tedious and boring.

Bidding Iroh and Sokka goodnight, she walks with Zuko as they exit the room.

Zuko holds her hand, as they walk. The night is warm, but not overly so and there's a decent wind out of the north that cools it into comfortable temperatures. His hair ruffles in the breeze.

Nodding to several of his guards - a few he's sparred against since becoming Fire Lord - he leads the way to his office. It's plain with a set of masks on the wall from Love Amongst the Dragons and Zuko's paired broadswords close by.

His low desk is piled high with scroll after scroll after scroll. Being Fire Lord, especially one after Ozai, means a lot of paperwork. He's still getting missives from ranking members of the army and navy, asking him what to do next. He needs to decide what, exactly, to tell them.

There's not really anywhere to sit, save behind the desk, or on the very few pillows scattered around the room. "I can ask the servants to bring a few pillows in, if you'd like?" He asks, apologetically. His office is not a place of relaxation.

As they enter the office, she winces a bit in sympathy at the sight of his desk, buried under a mountain of scrolls. She'd always known, if a bit distantly, that the work required to being Fire Lord was difficult, especially in the aftermath of the war. But she'd never really given thought to exactly how much he really had to do.

His words have her glancing up at him for a moment, then around the room again. "No, that's okay," she replies. It's not really about comfort, after all, so she could probably grab one of the pillows already there and just bring it over to sit with him at the desk.

He knows how his office looks. It's barely organized chaos. It's not clean and neat or anything that a Fire Lord's office should be, but it's his.

He settles at the desk - it was his mother's; he'd rescued it from her things in storage. He starts at the top of the stack. First, he goes through and triages the missives that are sitting there waiting for him. He snorts at a missive from Kuei and hands that to Katara. There's no secrets of state or anything. It's just a missive of Kuei's adventures through the Earth Kingdom, and how he hopes to hear about the Dai Li soon.

The Dai Li are certainly a problem for all of them. They're an elite force and not knowing where they are, or who they're loyal to, is a big issue.

"Who, besides Grangran and Master Pakku do you want to invite to the wedding?"

Taking the letter, she can't help a small smile as she reads it. At least he notes that Bosco is doing well.

Looking up at his question, she thinks for a moment. "Well, my dad, of course. I'm guessing Sokka and Toph would already be invited. Maybe Suki and some of the other Kiyoshi warriors." She tries to think of other people she could invite. Haru, maybe? Teo, Pipsqueak, The Duke?

Aang would have also been an obvious one, but she isn't sure if being invited to the wedding would hurt him more than not being invited.

"Hakoda is absolutely invited." He wouldn't try to keep her father from their wedding. That would be cruel, and he won't do that to people especially ones he's going to be related to.

He smiles, crookedly. "Suki and the Warriors will be there, most likely as security, if they have their way." He doesn't mind, but he'll talk to Suki about it. "Aang will be invited." He doesn't know if the Avatar will attend but Zuko will invite him.

"I have to talk to Sokka about a few things to do with the wedding, so yes, he's coming. Toph I also need to talk to." He has a few thoughts about their wedding being more than just the joining of the Fire Lord with a Master Water Bender.

"Anyone else?" He asks, picking up another paper.

She hesitates just a moment; she's still worried about Aang and how all this would affect him, but part of her does want him to be there. If nothing more than having support from one of her best friends. Still, she knows it might be difficult for him. She'll have to talk to him later herself.

Setting that aside for now, she thinks a bit more, then offers a few more names. Haru and the others were still friends, so what could it hurt to invite them?

"And let's see...Oh, I'm not sure if they'd come, but maybe the Swamp-benders?" They were definitely the opposite of the noble-type, but their presence might make things interesting at least.

He writes down every name dutifully. He's not going to turn down anyone that she wants to invite. Including, the Duke and Pipsqueak. If that's who she wants, then they will be invited.

But then, she mentions the Swamp-benders and he laughs. "Alright, we'll send word to them as well." She certainly doesn't want a quiet, noble, serious ceremony and party.

He sighs and rubs his burnt eye, putting a letter in another pile. It's bothering him tonight, but he knows that he has to at least sort all these missives tonight. He doesn't have a personal secretary to do it for him. That's another thing that he has to see to... eventually.

"So you should talk to the kitchens and tell them what you want at the feast, so they can prepare." He closes his burnt eye and keeps reading.

She can't help a small giggle. She doesn't really expect them to come, but she definitely wouldn't mind if they did. A quiet and serious ceremony isn't really her style.

She glances up as he rubs his eye, and she can't help a worried frown. "Are you okay?"

He sighs. He should have known that she would notice. It's not, exactly, a secret. His uncle knows, so do the Fire Nation healers that had attended him after the Agni Kai.

"When my father..." He begins, putting the paper down. "When we were in the Agni Kai and he burned my eye. He damaged it." He says softly. It's embarrassing. It's horrible. It's something that he doesn't want people to know. "It gets tired, and I have trouble seeing out of it sometimes." He shakes his head. "No one, besides Uncle, knows. I... don't want their pity."

She takes a breath at his admission. It made a bit of sense that there would be some damage to it, but somehow she had never considered that before.

"Is...there anything to help for it?" She wasn't sure if even her healing could help such long and rather old damage.

He shakes his head. "At first, in between hunting Aang, I looked for healers that could help. Nothing has helped." He admits. He shrugs. "I can compensate for it. It doesn't affect my bending, or my swordsmanship. But this time of night? It gets tired." He hates having this weakness. He hates having to admit this weakness. This isn't one of Uncle's parables that allow him to turn what he sees as a weakness into a strength. He's got an eye that gets easily tired, and is blurry in bright light. There's nothing anyone can do about it.

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