Objectivism
Chapter 2: Heavy is the Crown
It was a ritual Roku began a few weeks into his Avatar training. Every night, before he went to sleep, the young Avatar unpinned his hairpiece and placed it reverently on the bare bedside table beside his simple bed. He stared at the object, using it as a focal point, something to begin his reminiscences with. He enjoyed the Southern Air Temple and he loved the monks, especially Gyatso. But Roku also missed the Fire Nation. He missed home, he missed his love and he missed his friends, especially Sozin, Prince of his native country and next in line to be Fire Lord.
Roku was allowed no worldly possessions during his training. So, he couldn't bring portraits or a favorite book or the last letter that Ta Min had written him. But Sozin, always so intelligent and always finding ways around the rules, had given his best friend the very crown that adorned his topknot; the prince's crown. It was beautiful, old, an artifact even. When Sozin had matter of factly unpinned the crown and handed it over, Roku was shocked. Princes just don't give away their crowns. Sozin was special, though. He was funny and passionate and a fiercely loyal friend. He hadn't wanted Roku to go off into the world of Avatar training with nothing to remember his homeland and his royal friend by.
Roku recalled putting the crown into his hair for the first time. He had hardly noticed its weight. The heavy stylized flames that made up the headpiece, a beautifully crafted work of art, graced his head as if they belonged there. He felt special wearing the crown and forever linked to Sozin. And when he looked at it, Roku thought of home.
Years later, when everything had changed and Sozin was more an enemy than a friend, a person whom Roku no longer understood, a person he could not stand behind, the Avatar continued to wear the crown. His wife, Ta Min, looked at the hairpiece with sorrow and anger. Sozin had betrayed them and their friendship. The Fire Lord had betrayed everything good and become a monster. She could not understand why Roku hung on to the damnable thing. Roku would just smile at her and pat her hand and tell her that he couldn't give up on Sozin completely. Maybe there was hope for the Fire Lord. Once he had been a carefree prince, kind and decent, after all. Somewhere inside, that prince must still be alive.
Ta Min was right, as it turned out. The prince never returned and Sozin betrayed Roku in the end, leaving him to die. As he closed his eyes, Roku thought of his wife, glad that she had escaped the volcano. Then he thought of Sozin and the crown that had meant so much. He hoped that one day, if it was ever found, the crown might become a symbol of friendship and hope once again.
Zuko turned the crown over and over in his hands. He wasn't sure yet how he felt about it. His great grandfather Sozin had given it to his great grandfather Roku. That was a lot to deal with right there. He was Avatar and he was Fire Lord, two bloodlines that seemed at odds with each other. But maybe he could make it work. Maybe he could find a balance between the two and maybe one day, he and the Avatar could be friends.