Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender

A foreign bed…but a bed nonetheless. Still, it was not his bed, and Zuko found he was restless that night. His heart was acting up in his chest, sending painful throbs throughout his entire body. It had not been from the fight with the Avatar and the Waterbender; no…it was something internal.

A hand lazily drifted through the air towards his face, gingerly touching the area around the eye that had been permanently scarred. That area of skin would always be warmer than the rest of his body temperature, and he would never regain full site out of that eye again. Had he covered that eye, everything would appear rather blurry.

To hear Azula's words…it was something that the old Zuko would have loved. He wanted to be excited…he helped capture Ba-Sing-Sei for the Fire Nation. His father would love him again…he'd be accepted back into the Fire Nation, maybe even regain his title as Crown Prince.

But still, something did not seem right. And as Zuko turned on his side, pulling the thin sheets over his broad shoulders, he felt his heart pang again. How could he rest knowing that his Uncle was trapped in the crystal catacombs deep beneath him? It bothered him…this victory did not mean much to him.

Zuko believed…always imagined, that when he went back to his homeland, his Uncle would be at his side, sending him one of his broad smiles and patting him on the shoulder. But this victory was nothing as he had expected. While he was sleeping in a nice, warm, bed, his Uncle was rotting away in a crystal prison.

A prison that not even the Dragon of the West could break out of.

Zuko turned around, so that his back was now facing the window and he was staring at the large, double door that led out of the room. Azula had given him the King's chamber. He did not know what it meant. Was she tricking him again? Was some twisted plot going on in her head? His fists clenched the sheets. If so, he'd have to stay three steps ahead of her.

Zuko shut his golden eyes, though he knew sleep would not grace him that night. Azula…she had done him wrong a many time. Whether it be something as foolish as when they were children, or when tricking him into almost becoming a prisoner of the Fire Nation. Could he believe her? She was like the snake in the Garden of Paradise. Zuko clenched his teeth. Damn, why did he succumb so willingly to temptation?

And what had his uncle ever done wrong to him? Sure the jolly, old, fat, firebender was annoying at times, but hadn't the old man always led Zuko on the right path? Never had that man done him any wrong…and yet he had turned his back on such a friendly face for more power. His Uncle always knew what to do…so did Azula. Why was it just he that was confused?

The Avatar was sure of his duty. His father was sure of his duty. Everyone was sure of what they had to do, why not him? What was right? What was wrong? He was so damned confused! Why could everything not just be black and white? A long list of things that were bad and things that were good.

He needed guidance that was sure. And both Azula and his Uncle were natural born leaders. Sure, Zuko could lead an army; he could execute brilliant battle tactics…was that not what a leader was? No, a leader had to be sure of themselves, and as the Prince pondered things to himself, he realized something. He did not know who he was. Who was Zuko? He wanted to know this. His Uncle and Azula wanted him to be what they saw in their own minds. What about what he had seen?

Though he called himself a Prince, wasn't he the one to always follow other's commands? If his father said jump, he'd ask how high while Azula would simply smirk and tell him to do it himself. If his Uncle told him to stop, he would stop. And Azula…how easily had she persuaded him with her words of love? How could Zuko be himself when everyone wanted different things from him?

Zuko simply wanted to be Zuko. He didn't want to be the Zuko that Iroh wanted him to be, or the Zuko that Azula wanted to be. Hell, he didn't even want to be the Zuko that Ozai, Aang, and the rest of the Avatar's group wanted him to be. Zuko wanted to be himself.

But exactly who was that?

That was the main question, and Zuko realized that no one would give him this answer. He would have to find out, and laying here in this bed that was not even his would get him no where. He had to go off on his own and find who he really was. He had to pave his own path.

And when he was ready, Zuko knew he would return and face his father, his uncle, his sister, and the Avatar. But until then, he was not ready. Slowly rising from the bed, he swung his feet over the side and stood on the cold stone floor. Though he longed for the heated fires in all the rooms of the Fire Nation Palace, he knew that would have to wait. The most important thing on his agenda was to find himself.

Pulling on his clothes, grabbing two broadswords he had taken from a guard, and packing a small bag of provisions, he headed through the double doors of the king's chamber. He would simply disappear…and he would not take Iroh with him. His Uncle was clever, he would get out of that situation if he tried hard enough. Azula wouldn't really care. And the Avatar…

Secretly he hoped he'd never see the bald headed menace again in his life.

So Zuko set out on a journey, the first step of thousands being as soon as he stepped out of the stone walls of Ba-Sing-Sei. There was no road ahead of him on the path he had chosen, and that was the way he wanted it. A new start, a fresh beginning.

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Umae: Well, that's the end of the chapter. Just something I wrote up before the idea left my head. –Shrugs- R & R please! Flames shall be used to roast marshmallows. Tell me if you want me to make it a story or keep it as a One Shot.