Comment From AllWolfXFox: I have re-written the chapter I have written so far but it is still sticking with the story so far that has been written. Though new or old information has been added or taken away.
Not As It Seems
Flashbacks or Dreams
Thoughts
"Speech"
*Sound*
Chapter One
Zuko tossed and turned in her sleep from the reoccurring nightmares that haunted her in her sleep. She dreads the element of fire, but she knows she has no choice. She is a fire bender, and all fire benders must learn how to bend fire. Thus the memories of past events within the palace walls replayed in her head. Like a horror scan, taunting her and frightened her.
"No! Ozai! Please spare her! She did nothing wrong!" Zuko's mother, Ursa cried, while holding her daughter, Zuko close to her chest. Zuko had failed the fire nation's basics ritual. Because of this, Ozai was furious to the point of burning his daughter to the ground.
"No child of mine will be such a waste of space and mere talent in my presence!" Ozai's voice boomed.
"No! Please!" Ursa pleaded. Ozai ripped Zuko's crying form away from Ursa, and threw her hard into the pillar nearby. Zuko coughed on impact and crashed to the floor.
"Fine then. If you are so willing to die for this trash. Then so be it!" Zuko lifted her head up to see her mother cowering at Ozai's hand with a horrific expression.
Flames lit Ursa's body.
Zuko turned her sweating body.
After her mother died, brutally by Ozai's hand; burned into ashes right in front of her, and here she was willing to do anything to get close to her father, or strong enough so that she could harm him herself for what he had done to her mother. After all this. It had become harder and harder to control the power of fire. Every time she went to train elsewhere on her own, Zuko would do something different other then fire bending.
"UGH! Come on!" Zuko stomped the ground. It retaliated with a wave of movement before some small stones moved at her feet. The stones lifted up half a foot in the air for a few seconds before they dropped to the ground with a thud. Zuko feel to her knees as she shook.
"No! Come on!" Zuko yelled. A hand touched her shoulder. Zuko flinched thinking it was her father coming to hurt her after what he had seen, but it was her Uncle. Smiling.
"Now now. It's alright." He whispered. Just like her mother did when she was upset. Zuko's face held nothing but pure sock. Then her lip began to waver and tremble as she threw herself into her Uncle's chest and cried.
Zuko was nine years old when her father decided to take her training tenfold. Ozai had forced her to pretend to be a boy so that the fire nation would not be frowned upon with a female heir, but Ozai had taken more of a liking to his second daughter, Azula.
Zuko breathed in sharply as another memory reoccurred.
"YOU'RE A FAILURE TO THE FIRENATION! NO WONDER YOUR MOTHER DECIDED TO DIE!" Ozai slapped Zuko's face. Azula was in the background, snickering at her 'brothers' attempt to bend fire. Zuko had moments like these with her farther all the time to show how much she had improved on Firebending, but she couldn't. It frightened her.
Zuko knew her mother didn't decided to die, and knew Ursa was murdered by her own father. This had made her loathe her farther ever since. Ozai pulled at her hair to bring her up.
"AH! STOP!"
"You will learn to bow to your leaders you bitch!" Oazi yelled and dragged Zuko's struggling body to the master bedroom where he locked the door when they were both inside.
Those moments were the worst.
"Get over there!" Oazi thrusted Zuko onto the bed. Zuko trembled at her father's voice, but curled her hand into fists in rage.
"No! Leave me alone!" Zuko yelled. Ozai pounced on her and wrapped a large hand around her small neck.
"I think it's time we did a little of father to son time, don't you agree?" Oazi sick voice whispered in her ear close, with a sound of his tongue moistening over his lips.
Zuko's eyes flashed open and sat up; breathing hard and sweating all over. She looked around in fright and saw nothing but the walls of her Uncle's home. Zuko turned to the open window and got up. She walked to it and stared at the moon lit sky that shone over Ba Sing Sa. Zuko rubbed her face in her hands and tried to control her breathing, then turned to look at herself in the large mirror in her room.
She hand earth kingdom night ware on, trousers that came down to the ankles and a loose top over her upper body. Her chest would have been visible to the obvious statements if it hadn't been for the bandage that was wrapped around her chest. Her shot mattered brown-black hair soaked in her sweat and some locks stuck to the side of her face. Her scar stood out still as the same as the day she got it. Zuko's right eye sparkled golden as ever. However, the scar that burned the left side of her face was a milky white gold which made Zuko no longer able to see out of her left eye.
Around her neck under her clothes, if not carefully looked, was a red ribbon necklace that hanged around her neck like Katara's. Only on it, was a small pendent of a dragons scale. The dragon scale was pure gold and still held its untouchable shine that was given to her by her mother at the age of three. Zuko knew full well how Katara felt when your last possession was taken from you of the memory of a loved one, especially your mother. Zuko felt terrible when she had threatened to burn the water bender girl's necklace, and returned it before the Pirates could intervene, but Katara had no idea what it was about and probably still held hate and anger towards Zuko.
Zuko sighed and stared out of the window once more. Even though nightmares still haunted her from time to time. She was free. Not having to go around looking for the Avatar, or be ordered by The Fire Lord, was a breeze. Zuko was happy living with her uncle in Ba-Sing-Sa. Even though at times it was annoying. She loved her Uncle, even though she still had a hot temper. Zuko now could control fire better thanks to her Uncle, along with the other elements.
During the time. Only Zuko and her Uncle knew of her secret about her able to control the other elements. She wasn't a master but she had learnt a trick or two. After finding the Avatar Aang in the South Pole, Zuko could breathe in relief that she didn't have to hold the Avatar's responsibilities.
She practised little by little after making tea with her Uncle, to see any new tricks she could come up with. She found out that she could move sand and metal if she really tried and with her eyes closed. She felt every vibration in the earth as people walked by and sometimes Zuko practise this by blind folding herself and walked around now and then outside or within the tea shop.
Also, Iroh had mentioned to her about able to heal people with water. Zuko remembered Katara able to heal wounds before from time to time when she had run into the Gang. However she wasn't a specialist. But every now and then, when she found something in alley ways or whenever she could find an animal that was injured she would try to use the water to so. At first it didn't seem like it would work but when she kept trying she managed it.
She also found out she could bend things that had any type of liquid in them. Like flowers, wood to a certain length and living things. She knew that she could bend people if she tried, but somehow to her if felt... wrong, so she only did small things like rats or birds. She also came to the conclusion that if she could bend things that had a liquid in them which resulted to water. Then she came to the theory of that, that maybe it would do the same with the other elements. She never tried because she thought it would be cruel. Considering bending blood was the least harmful if done right. But with Earth, it would have to be braking or moving the body's bones. Air would be taking the air out of people bodies. Finally, fire would be heating up the bodies and lowering it to a certain temperature.
Result: Death.
That is what Zuko realised, that each element could heal, help and take a life.
So, from the time she and her Uncle had the bounty over their heads. They had taken refuge in Ba Sing Sa, and to be honest, Zuko loved the peace and beauty of it. No wars and no fighting. Zuko had missed it sometimes, but, it was better than nothing.
Sadly, you can't always get what you want.
To Be Continued...
Word Count: 1,523
Next Time: Chapter Two
"What do you want?" Zuko asked in her boy gruff voice.
Jet fought for control, but in vain as Jet's fingers realised his swords on their own...
He's a Fire bender! I know it!