Hey everybody! I was going to wait for a while before working on this next chapter, assuming I wasn't going to have many readers. Then, everything changed when the reviewers attacked. Sorry, couldn't resist. ;) Anyway, I actually got two reviews, so I was suddenly very motivated to crank out this chapter. A special thank you to AngelAmongTheStars for your critiques and encouragement! It really meant so much to me.
I don't know if I'm required to put this or not, but there is a suicide attempt in this chapter...? Nothing serious or really graphic, mostly just a few suicidal thoughts. Once again, I don't know if you need to know that, but there it is.
Enjoy! Please review!
I woke up in a small cell in the ship. Ow... I cringed. Okay then. Guess I'm not going to move, you know, at all. That monster... What the hell is wrong with him?! I was just lying there. Tied up, unable to move, unable to bend. Completely defenseless. And he went and burned me because I wouldn't answer him! I always knew that the Fire Nation was horrible. I didn't know that they started being evil so young, though.
I heard heavy footsteps approach my cot.
"Miss? Are you awake?"
The old guy.
"Yes."
He gently helped me sit up, and I bit my tongue to prevent myself from making any noises of pain. Don't show your weakness.
"I've brought you some food and tea. You must be hungry after yesterday's events."
I shook my head. I had already made up my mind. I wasn't going to accept anything from these bastards who took me from my home. If that meant starving to death, then so be it. At the least, it would provide an escape from this place. He studied my face carefully. I wiped it clean of any thought or emotion.
"I am Iroh. The angry young man you met earlier is my nephew. What is your name?"
I grunted.
"I know you are not mute, I heard you speak earlier. You may as well tell me your name."
I shot him a dirty look. "What? If I don't, will you burn me too?"
Iroh bowed his head sadly. "That was an accident. My nephew allowed his temper to get out of control, and as his anger was directed towards you, he accidentally burned you. I assure you, he would not have done it otherwise."
I snorted and turned away. The man was clearly delusional. That or an evil genius trying to gain my trust.
I heard more footsteps and I stiffened slightly. An Earthbender can distinguish between people's footsteps if they've been around them enough. And being dragged across the village by Zuko definitely imprinted his gait in my mind.
"Uncle? Mind giving us a moment alone?"
Don't go! He'll kill me! Don't show your fear. I heard the old man leave and the cell door shut behind him. I was alone with the Firebender who had taken me from my family, and burned me.
"If you're going to kill me, let's make it fast. I have better things to do than sit around and wait for you to take me out." I spoke loudly.
He sighed. "I'm not going to kill you. Why would I bother taking you prisoner unless I wanted you alive?" he snapped.
That's it. Starving will take too long. I began to beat my head against the wall as hard as I could.
"Hey! Stop that!" I felt arms wrap around my waist and pull me from the bed. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Zuko yelled.
I blinked. Darn. I didn't get enough hits in.
"You think I'm gonna let you keep me here? Torture me? Make the rest of my life miserable? No way. I told you I wouldn't escape, but I never said that I wouldn't die!" I hissed.
He seemed stunned at my words, which caused his grip to unconsciously loosen. I slipped away and returned to hitting my head on the cold wall.
"Guards! I need some help with the prisoner!"
It took five guards to tear her away from the wall. Which was very impressive, considering how small the girl was. She was five inches shorter than me, and probably weighed only a hundred pounds, if not less. She was just... Strong? Impossible. No one could be that powerful. I have to say, it... Almost concerned me that this seemingly unmoving, stubborn girl had already made up her mind to take her own life. Maybe I should have just left her... No. With power like hers, she would have found a way to escape, and bring the rest of the Earthbenders with her. It's for the best that I've isolated her from the others. Besides, Father will be pleased with me, having a prodigy like her in his custody.
She had clearly done some damage, as her forehead already had a nasty coat of black and blue bruises.
"What is the matter with you?" I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose.
"Please." She looked tired. "I just want to die. Kill me, please. I don't have anything left to live for. Are you really going to be so cruel as to keep me alive?"
Her big, forest green eyes pleaded with me. But for some reason she wasn't crying. How strong is she? She's just told me to kill her, she's been dragged away from her home, for Agni's sake, but she's not crying?!
"I'm not going to kill you! Ugh, someone go get my Uncle!" What am I supposed to do with a suicidal prisoner?! I don't have any leverage over her if she is unafraid of pain. She could just run around like a crazy person, and we would have no threats that would stop her.
Uncle entered the room. "Zuko! What happened?"
I shot a glare at the Earthbender. "She tried to kill herself, that's what happened!" Muttering something under her breath, the short girl looked away.
I leaned in close to her face, speaking slowly. "You are my prisoner. No one is killing themselves on my watch. I need you to be alive when I bring you to my father!"
She stared at me in annoyance. "A name would be helpful. Do I look like I know your family history?"
I rolled my eyes. "You should. My father is the Fire Lord, you idiotic peasant!"
Her tan face drained of all color. "No!" she screamed. She broke free of the guards who were holding her, and she lunged at me, taking me to the ground.
I wrestled to get on top of the crazy Earthbender, only to have her back knuckle me in the nose. I pinned her arms to the ground, ignoring the blood streaming steadily from my nose. She spat in my face and twisted away. I didn't want to use fire; that would just take us back to square one. So instead, I tackled her around the waist and put her on her face.
"What's the matter with you?" I shouted.
She wouldn't stop writhing. "No! I won't go there!" she screamed.
She's hysterical. She's absolutely lost it.
"Stop fighting, you're just making it worse on yourself," I said in annoyance.
She turned her head to look at me, breathing heavily. She let out a short, humorless bark of a laugh.
"You are a fool, then, Prince," she growled. "If you think for one second that I will ever stop fighting. I will never stop. In a week, you will be begging for me to get off your ship. I'm more trouble than I'm worth. I think you will learn that very, very soon."
I narrowed my eyes at her. "You underestimate me, peasant. You think I'm going to let an Earthbender like you get away? Mind games don't work on me. That is something that you will learn very, very soon." I pushed her head to the ground roughly.
"I want a set of guards on her twenty-four seven. Congratulations, Earthbender. You just put yourself on suicide watch."
She glared at me with big, deep green eyes as the soldiers and I walked out, two men taking positions up just outside her cell.
"This isn't over, flame demon."
I shook my head with a smirk as I pulled the cell door closed. "Big talk from such a small girl."
She growled and made to yell something else at me, but I just walked away.
I shouted in frustration, unleashing a barrage of attacks into the air above the ocean. Breathing heavily, I yelled at the night sky.
"What the hell? Why me? Why did I help them?!" I punched a fist of fire into the once calm air, suddenly very angry with myself.
I couldn't believe what I had done. So a company was making a raid. What else was new? So my ship happened to be passing by at the most inopportune time. What else was new?
"I should have said no!" I shouted.
Of all the stupid things I could have done... I had to say yes. I just had to agree to take part in the raid.
"That bastard," I growled. Slow, steady steps came up behind me. I knew it had to be Uncle. Who else on this Agni forsaken ship would dare to approach me when I was like this.
"Leave me alone, Uncle. I don't want to talk right now," I said, annoyance seeping into my voice.
He came up anyway, of course. Since when did my wanting to be alone stop him from spouting wisdom?
"You helped your countrymen. Is that such a bad thing?"
I turned to him angrily. "That Captain knew just how to push my buttons. He got me to volunteer and I volunteered my men, because I got angry. Yes, that's a bad thing! I shouldn't have had to help! I shouldn't have been out there at all!" I shouted.
"You must learn to control your temper, Prince Zuko. If you can be convinced to rise up everytime your honor is questioned, then this will not be the last such occurance," he said sagely.
"If I don't defend my honor, no one else will," I muttered. "I'm just so... Ugh! And that girl! She did the same thing! She got me riled up, and I took her prisoner. She deserved it, but now I have to deal with an annoying, suicidal Earthbender!" I stormed down to my cabin, the previous day's happenings playing through my head.
"Prince Zuko, it is wonderful to see you," the captain said, bowing slightly.
"Get to the point. Why are you on my ship?" I hissed.
The man smiled slightly, clasping his hands behind his back as he paced up and down the deck.
"You see, Prince Zuko, my men and I are making a raid on the village of Shago, a small village nearby. There are many powerful Earthbenders living there, and two companies before my own have fallen to them. I am not willing to risk the same fate befalling us."
I narrowed my eyes, suspicion beginning to come upon me.
"I don't see how this has anything to do with me, Captain."
He turned to face me again, eyebrows raised. "I thought it would be clear by now. I would like to request the assistance of you and your men. Power in numbers, after all."
My lip curled slightly. "You are on your own, Captain. I have my own mission to pursue, and it's much more important than any trivial Earth Kingdom town."
He laughed. "Yes, of course. I'm sorry, but I would never have thought those rumors were true. So you truly are dishonorable."
I took one step and was in his face, flames expelling from my clenched fists.
"What did you say?" I growled.
He stepped back, raising his hands in defense. "I mean no offense, Prince Zuko. I just didn't think I would see the day when a prince of the Fire Nation, the heir to the throne, no less, would turn his back on his country."
I met his state unblinkingly. Our eyes locked in place for what seemed like hours, but was probably only seconds.
"Fine," I snapped. "I'll help you."
His smile did not reach his brown eyes as he nodded crisply. "I thank you, Prince Zuko. I did hope that you would agree." With that, he walked across the bridge laid out between our two ships, and I hit my head in frustration.
That spoiled little brat is going to rue the day he put me on this ship. Speaking of which, who does that?! I groaned softly, making sure not to attract the attention of the guards. How dare he?! Capturing me is one thing. Separating me from my element? That is just unforgivable. I had barely been on this ship for twenty-four hours, and I could already feel the effects of being away from the earth. A small tray of food clattered softly to the steel floor in front of me, containing a bowl of rice and a cup of tea. I turned my head away, waiting for the man who had brought it to leave.
"If you don't start eating, we'll have to inform Prince Zuko. Believe me, you don't want that. You're lucky that he's left you alone so far. If he hears about this... He will be pretty mad."
I snorted. "From what I can hear above deck that's not exactly a rare occurrence around here."
The man laughed a little. "Fair enough. But you really should eat. You don't want to starve, do you?"
"Yes."
I bit my tongue immediately afterwards. Crap! Why did you say that?! I raised my head to look the guard in the eye. I shot him a defiant look. So what? It's not like they can make me eat. And today's only the second day here. I'm not exactly malnourished.
He knelt on the floor next to me, and I pulled away.
"Don't come any closer," I warned him.
He shook his head. "Look, kid, I'm not going to hurt you. I hate that this happened to a girl your age. Really, I do. I'm trying to make this as easy as possible on you. So just listen, will you?" the guard said in exasperation.
I eyed him carefully. For the most part, he looked like an average Fire Nation soldier: ebony hair in a ponytail, pale skin just barely darkened by the sun, and those muddy yellow eyes... but his eyes still had an innocent glow to them, not beaten down by death and fighting. He was defenitely younger than the other soldiers I had seen from within my cell; probably only a few years my senior. Slowly, I nodded, not moving anymore.
"Okay. I'm listening."
He pushed the food tray towards me. "Do you really think that starving yourself is going to do any good? Maybe you'll be able to go home one day, who knows? But you definitely won't make it home if you kill yourself."
I leaned back against the cold wall of my cell. "I'm not going home. I'm going to the Fire Nation, and I won't ever see my family again. You're Fire Nation, you of all people should know that when an Earthbender enters the Fire Lord's palace, they don't come out again."
"You don't know that."
I sat back up again, seriously angry now. "Oh, I don't? Sorry, my mistake. I must have just made up all those stories! I know what I am talking about! I'll either die or be imprisoned for the rest of my natural life." He opened his mouth to speak, but I raised a hand. "Just leave me alone, okay? I don't want any pity from you."
Closing my eyes, I laid down on the lumpy cot that served as my bed.
"What's your name?" the young man asked.
I turned back to face him with a huff. "If I tell you my name, will you go away?"
He smiled and nodded.
"Misuki," I muttered.
He stood. "My name's Akan. Nice to meet you, Miss Misuki."
I rolled my eyes and faced the wall again. "Yeah. Sure thing."
Might as well sleep. I'm tired, and it's not like I have anything better to do in this spirit-forsaken place... I dozed off into a restless sleep of dreams and nightmares, intertwined and vicious. Just when I was happy, just when I was being pulled into splendor... The darkness would strike.
It was a pretty good metaphor for my life at the moment.
I ran down the road, boots pounding on the hard packed soil. I looked around, fear consuming me. I didn't know why I was afraid, but I was afraid. My frantic eyes landed on a small, weather worn cottage about a hundred yards away. Relief washed over me. It was my home. Home, where I would be safe. I sprinted towards it, ignoring the fact that the street, which was usually bustling with men on their way to or from the mines or women and children shopping, was completely empty.
Panting, I rushed through the door, joy flooding me. My mother stood by one of the many shelves that lined the walls of our family's store, placing a stack of fabric on it. I hurried to hug her, my heart full to bursting with a mix of emotions. She turned to me, a smile and a laugh on her lips. Then, her face froze in terror, silent screams coming from her still open mouth. I spun around to see what had caused this sudden panic, and my heart stopped.
Prince Zuko was standing in the doorway, Haru limp in his grip. I tried to go to him, but was knocked back with a blast of fire. He tossed Haru to the side, and I realized why the streets were empty.
He had killed everyone.
I woke up with a scream, sitting bolt upright. Gasping for breath, I hugged my knees to my chest. I could feel the sweat running down my back, and tears welling up. No. Don't cry! I scolded myself. Don't show your pain, don't show your weakness, don't show your fear. Don't let them see that it hurts.
My father had given me these words years before. I lived by them; they were our family's code, my code. I grimaced, clutching at my stomach as it growled angrily. I remembered Akan's words from earlier, and glanced at the tray of food still sitting on the floor by my bed.
"He's right," I whispered fiercely. "I promised them. I said I would come back one day. I can't do that if I'm dead. For spirits' sake, what is wrong with me?"
I picked up the bowl of now cold rice, and began to eat. Finishing, I sighed with satisfaction. Even in my poor little village, I had gotten more than this to eat, but hey, it was better than nothing, I figured.
"I'm an Earthbender. We don't give up that easily" I murmured, standing.
All the suicide plans that had been floating around my head since I came aboard were out the window. Smiling, I stretched my aching muscles, as I began daydreaming about all the ways I would love to hurt Prince Zuko.
A/N Okay, Zuko's reason for being a part of the raid made a lot more sense in my head. I don't know if it worked or if it feels forced, but there it is, nonetheless. Please review! I am a beginner author who is desperate for feedback, in case you hadn't noticed... Thanks for reading! -Nerdy J
