It had now been six weeks since Kouji had been brought to the palace, and Zuko's other aides had made a habit of sniping at him every chance they got. They resented this unranked child barging in on their business, particularly since the Firelord hadn't made his position there official — he kept forgetting.

For the most part, Kouji ignored it — he was away from Lǐ Qí, and he didn't have to go home — but he wore Earth Kingdom clothing almost exclusively, to stand out and to spite them, and he made certain his topknot was round in the style of Earth, not fanlike in the style of Fire.  Never did he snipe back, however, unwilling to risk his precarious position.

One day, Zuko called Kouji into his study.

Nervous, the boy approached, wondering if he was going to be sent away now.

"I'm sorry I've put this off so long," the Firelord began.

"Put what off?" Kouji asked, a little confused.

"Making your position here official."

Kouji's heart leaped, and his face lit up.  "Really?"

The Firelord gave him his little almost smile. "Yes. Really."

"That's great!"

"I'm not sure exactly what kind of contract you were expecting. So I thought we'd discuss that now." This was supposed to be Zuko's lunch break — it hadn't taken Kouji long to realize that he almost never used it for its intended purpose.  However, Kouji was a bright young man, and had arranged for lunch to be delivered to the Firelord during these time periods anyway. 

"All right," he agreed.

After the discussion was over, Zuko almost smiled again. "All right, I'm glad that's finally settled."

"Yeah," the boy agreed, a little bit stunned at how friendly Zuko had been during the negotiations, even when they argued on whether or not the boy doing a man's job should get a man's contract, or whether or not Kouji needed to have a guardian.  In the end, his contract was an adult contract, save only for the clause that made Zuko his guardian, until he was of age or they decided to terminate his employment, whichever came first.

Both Firelord and colonist were pleased by this, though Kouji privately wondered precisely what being Zuko's ward would entail.

As the next several days showed, absolutely nothing had changed in their relationship, other then perhaps a little more friendliness in their interactions.  The boy soaked up that friendliness like a sponge, to the point that Song began encouraging Zuko to spend more time with him.  "He needs a friend, Zuko," she would tell him.

Zuko, therefore, made a habit of inviting Kouji to sit in his study with him while he was fighting through paperwork.  The boy accepted these invitations, and they would talk while Zuko did battle.  After the first two times, Kouji began to help him out, taking over the more illegible documents and rewriting them for the Firelord's benefit.

The older boy's gratitude for this assistance showed just how used he was to this difficulty.

And then, on the Firelord's eighteenth birthday, Zuko was presented with a gift from a very shy Kouji.

Startled, he asked, "What's this?"

"A-a present, L— er, Zuko," the boy replied, shifting from foot to foot.

"Thank you," the young man said, still sounding rather boggled.

"You're welcome," Kouji said with a shy smile.

Zuko opened the box to reveal a small dagger.

"I… I thought you might like to have something like that," the twelve-year-old stammered.  "So nobody would know you had it…"

"I appreciate it. Really." He got through his surprise at the gift to almost smile at his friend.

Kouji brightened instantly at that.

"Thank you."

There were several things Zuko disliked about his new position. Not the least of which was sitting through Official Functions, such as the one planned for his birthday.  It's my birthday, why can't I do what I want to do for a change? he fumed, when he finally managed to escape.

And then he was pulled into a shadowy corner, and soft lips pressed against his.  He relaxed a little. Song made everything better. "Evening."

She smiled up at him.  "Evening, Zuko."

"How're you doing?"

"Better since I got out of there."  She sighed and leaned her head against his chest.

"I know what you mean," he muttered, sliding his arm around her. "It's my birthday, dammit, why can't I do what I want?"

She looked up at him and smiled.  "What do you want to do, then?"

"Not a long boring party where everyone wants to dance with me and make me do things and—"

Song kissed him again.  It was several moments before that kiss was broken, and Song was breathing heavily, looking up at him with dark, inviting eyes.

"Oh, wow," he said, when he finally regained his ability to speak.

"Is this what you want, Lord Zuko?" she asked him, lips inches from his.

Yes.

"I—" He paused a minute. "Yes, I mean, yes, of course, but— I-I don't know, maybe… I just… I think it's probably better if we wait until after we're married…"

She blinked at him, then after a long moment, she said, "If you're offering what I think you are," she kissed him again, "then the answer is yes."

He froze for a moment, mentally going over what he'd just said. He flushed darkly. "That— I— I had a whole speech planned and everything, I wasn't planning on asking yet, I—"

She shut him up with yet another kiss.  It seemed to be working well so far.

He relaxed a little against her, hoping he kept his self-control enough to maintain his resolve.  Song, however, seemed willing to hold to his request to wait; after a few minutes, she pulled away and looked up at him, amusement glinting in her brown eyes.  "Is there anything else you want to do, Zuko?"

"I don't know," he said, honestly.

"We could go for a walk," she suggested.

"All right."

She slipped her hand into his and led him outside.  He followed willingly, twining his fingers with hers.  It was, perhaps, inevitable that they wound up by the turtleduck pond.  He was happy to while the time with her there. He knew he'd pay for it and not be able to sleep the next night, trying to make up for lost time, but it was worth it.  There, standing by water that reflected the moon, she kissed him again, taking care to respect the boundaries he'd set.

*          *          *

While everyone was pre-occupied with the festivities, a Dai Li agent snuck into the palace, searching for the planted subject.  On finding his target, he quietly woke him, whispered the trigger phrase, and smiled softly as the tool slipped into the receptive state.  Orders were given, the tool was forced back to sleep, and the agent slipped out.

No one noticed, save the curiously blank-eyed noblewoman who ran messages for an ally of the Dai Li in the palace. Such was her conditioning that she would not remember seeing him.

*          *          *

The next morning, Firelord Zuko was in an unusually good mood.

Kouji noticed, and commented on it.  "Did something happen at the party, Lord Zuko?"  The boy had been permitted to skip the party, since he was only twelve and nobody else his age was going to be there.  The fact that the only person his age with whom he interacted was Yì Suì had not been commented upon.

"After," he said, unusually brightly.

Kouji arched an eyebrow at him.  Zuko told him what had happened when he met Song in the hallway after the party, and the younger boy laughed.  "So you're engaged now?"

"I think so, yes," he said, still oddly bright.

"That's great!" Kouji exclaimed, grinning up at him.

Zuko almost smiled back.

"Anyway," said the boy, deciding the happy time was over, "I've got your schedule for today."

"All right, let's see it."

Work progressed as usual, until that afternoon, when Zuko returned to his study after his meeting with Song. He opened the door, drowsily content…

And it exploded.

This cliffhanger brought to you by Phoenix King Ozai's silly helmet.  AHAHAHAHAHAHA.