An Avatar: Last Airbender fanfic, with a touch of AU thrown in, along with unforeseen circumstances, and a more rebellious Zuko.
Summary: When Lu Ten went to Ba Sing Se with General Iroh, he came back to his homeland alive and healthy. His eminent return leads to unforeseen circumstances, and a decidedly different future.
Warnings: Zuko-Centric, contains violence, relatively AU, minor changes in the timeline!
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83 ASC, Month of the Sun (July), Wednesday, 12:00pm
Lady Ursa looked at her small son. He lay in her arms, completely silent, only soft snores escaping him once in a while. He was perfectly lovely, she thought, and decided to ignore the fact that half of that statement was a mother's bias. His blue-black hair curled around his little head, and she knew that when he opened his eyes, they would be gold, not the usual uncertain baby blue you could find in most infants. After all, he came of Roku's line, and Sozin's blood ran through his veins.
"Aunt Ursa?" asked the tall, muscular teenager who sat by her elbow, his slowly deepening voice steeped in fascination at the sight of the little baby in her arms. It was fourteen year old Lu Ten's first time visiting his baby cousin. He had never seen a newborn before, and the little, fragile form before him filled him with a sense of protectiveness that he knew would stay with him as long as he knew his cousin.
"Yes, Lu Ten?"
"What are you going to name him?"
Ursa slowly mulled over that question. She knew that Prince Ozai would most likely want to name their child, but she had her own ideas. She had always liked the name Zuko, which for her stood for the main characteristic features of fire: passion, and fierceness. But on the other hand, she liked the name Geming better. Rebellion; it was the perfect meaning, a sign of changing times and new beginnings.
"I quite fancy Geming. What about you, my child?"
"Geming...Aunt Ursa, what is the meaning?"
"I will tell you, but you will have to keep it a secret from Prince Ozai, Lu Ten." Ursa said playfully, perfectly conscious of the fact that the fourteen year old would never tell anyone if she asked it of him. After all, she didn't think Prince Ozai would appreciate a son with the name meaning of 'rebellion'. She would have to think of a different way to write that name when she'd show it to the Prince. "It means 'to rebel' or 'rebellion'."
Lu Ten looked at her blankly, before chuckling under his breath. Yes, that was definitely something his uncle would not approve of. He would most likely like a name with the meaning of 'proud' or 'strict'. To name her son 'rebellion' was completely Aunt Ursa. And Lu Ten was glad that his uncle most likely wouldn't bother checking the meaning apart from how it was written.
Yes, he had a feeling that his small cousin would bring a lot of changes to the Fire Nation.
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Cultural Notes: In this fanfic, I will expand on Fire Nation customs quite a lot. Firstly, in my version, the naming of a newborn child is VERY important, as it determines its future and main personality traits. Secondly, Ursa calls Ozai 'Prince' because even though they are married, they are royalty, and he has a higher position that her. It is quite similar to the old customs of married couples calling each other Mr Surname or Mrs Surname, or a queen calling the king 'Your Majesty'. Thirdly, and lastly, because this note is taking too long, the spelling of Fire Nation names is similar to Chinese or Japanese names. You can know the meaning of a name by looking at its spelling, and can change its meaning by changing a couple of characters in the name, even though you're not changing the pronunciation.