This is a story for all of the Zuko fans out there and those of you who believe that there is something better out there for him. (This is my first fanfiction story, so I hope you like it!) This story takes place after the first episode of the second season and very soon after Zuko and Iroh cut off their hair, symbolizing their ties to the Fire Nation Royalty. If I get just a few comments I'll update it!

Encounter

Zuko and Iroh stood with a heavy pain inside each of their chests. They were no longer part of the great nation that they had called home for so very long. Iroh looked up at his young and brave nephew, at just sixteen he had been banished, nearly killed on more that one occasion, and had taken on a task that many men had perished attempting-capturing the Avatar. He knew Zuko had longed so much to go back to his father and what that would have meant to him, but from the start, Iroh knew that it had all been an evil ploy to capture them, the "traitors" of the Fire Nation. He would not hold his nephew's blind hope against him because, deep down, Iroh had wanted to return also.

Zuko's amber burning eyes flicked to the forest from which they had run-there was the distinct sound of armor clanking behind them. He knew that they were of the Fire Nation. Growling, he sheathed his dagger and turned to run. Without a word, they sped forward. Normally, Zuko wouldn't have run from any fight, ever, but he was too pissed to do anything but cause more damage to what little life he had left. They sprinted further and further away from the ship that was intended for their return as prisoners of their own nation. Iroh kept up well with the spry Zuko, all the while huffing and puffing for his life. The loose dirt constantly shifted beneath their shoes and caused some slippage, not enough to make them fall, but enough to slow them down slightly. Their path ran along the clear river that slowly ushered pink and brilliant cherry blossoms down stream. They dodged jutting rocks, low-hanging branches, and giant trees in their way.

All Zuko could hear was his own desperate heartbeat and the clanging growing nearer behind them. He was not afraid, though, he was never afraid. The adrenalin only caused him to surge forward faster. The two wanted men came to a bend in the river that was flanked by a high cliff. Scrambling around the blind turn, Zuko let out an oof as he ran headfirst into another being. He only took a second to process what had happened before Iroh barreled around the corner and knocked into them. Zuko had his hands on the cloaked figure's upper arms and he briefly looked down into a pair of bright blue eyes. He thought he heard the person whisper his name under its breath, but there was no time to decipher anything else. Zuko quickly shoved the figure to the side and was soon halted again by coming face to face with a troop of Fire Nation soldiers. Arms in a readied stance, he glanced back to Iroh. He was standing just in front of the cloaked figure who also had a platoon of Fire Nation soldiers behind him. Zuko was able to quickly deduct that the Fire Nation had followed that person as well. That just meant more men for Zuko to take his anger out on…