Hello everyone!
I am soo sorry for taking so long. I had been kept quite occupied with some matters, but thankfully, I am able to upload this now. Next chapter's gonna be up in two weeks. :D
Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender and any of its characters do not belong to me. :(
Enjoy!
"Fire Lord."
Zuko regarded the five soldiers, who were prostrated on the hard floor of the ship's deck, with slight uneasiness. Iroh shot him a look. The prince lowered his gaze, aware of his uncle's reprimanding glare. He awkwardly gestured before looking away, while Iroh simply sighed in defeat.
"Very well, now. No need to stay flat there all day. You may get up," Fire Lord Iroh commanded wearily. He spared the prince a sideways glance as he walked with his young nephew in tow. The former general shook his head.
It has been months since the end of the Hundred Year War, and Zuko, though he was the Crown Prince, and therefore, heir apparent to the throne, declined to be crowned, saying he was not yet ready, and pleaded that Iroh take the position of Fire Lord, instead. Iroh winced at the memory.
It had taken them long, tiring, and extremely frustrating arguments before Iroh had finally reached his limit and had agreed to comply with the prince's wishes before things got too far and he might wind up burning his own nephew to the ground. However, truth be told, Iroh was still quite a redoubtable opponent, and even though he relented, he had been able to exact a deal with the prince: he will only hold the position until Zuko's eighteenth birthday, and after that, he will be allowed to retire and set up his own teashop. Upon hearing this, the prince had been terribly worried about being on his own, and consented only after Iroh had assured him that he would still stay in the palace as long as Zuko needed him.
Zuko lengthened his strides and soon, he and his uncle were walking side by side. Gold eyes darted cautiously towards the older man. They walked in silence for a few moments before the prince decided to break the silence.
"Uncle?" Zuko ventured hesitantly.
"Hmm?"
"I, uh, I hope you are not mad?" he said sheepishly. His uncle merely grunted before turning to him and raising an eyebrow.
"Mind your speech. You must be able to talk and tone your words in such a way that there will be no confusion from your subjects with regards to what you truly mean."
"I—what?" Zuko looked blankly at his uncle, who heaved a sigh.
"When you said that you hoped I wasn't mad, you worded it like a statement, but you made it sound like a question. You need to say things correctly, Zuko. Don't forget we have a deal. I am correcting you now while you are not yet on the throne," clarified Iroh. The prince stiffened.
"But you said, you will still stay with me in the palace," Zuko said weakly.
"That's right. But there is a world of difference between when a Fire Lord corrects a Crown Prince, and when a fat old man corrects a Fire Lord. I have taught you the royal protocol enough for you to know that it is highly disrespectful for anyone to correct a Fire Lord, regardless of however high the position of the one who does the correcting."
Zuko thought about this and dropped his eyes to his boots, watching the laces swing back and forth as he walked.
"I thought you would have been glad to be Fire Lord, Uncle. After all, it really was in your birthright, until Father…" the prince said quietly, before the words died on his lips upon the mention of his father. The man who never loved me, Zuko's gold eyes hardened briefly. The man who would readily throw his son—his infant son—from the palace walls just because he thought that it was a shame to have an alleged non-bender as a firstborn.
Feeling a warm grip in his shoulder, Zuko looked up. His uncle was looking at him, eyes filled with determination.
"You will not be like him," Iroh firmly asserted to his nephew. "You are a good person, Zuko. My brother was not. Ozai was weaker than you because he was stubborn enough and selfish enough to ever consider the possibility that he was in the wrong, while you eventually acknowledged the mistakes you made, and you learned from them. You will never make the same mistakes he did."
The Fire Lord released him, and the prince stared for a moment at his uncle before cracking the tiniest of smiles.
"And anyway, whether I was entitled to it or not, I have lost my interest in ruling a long time ago," the older man cheerfully rambled on. "Those days when I was a fearsome general and all that blah were over. Now, I want nothing more than be able to sip a decent cup of tea every day for the rest of my life, and be able to put some smiles on a few faces by making tea for them."
"I have to say, Uncle, the tea you make is the most pleasant-tasting tea I ever drank in my whole life. I never really liked the tea they served in the royal palace when I was a child," Zuko chuckled. "I never got used to it, I guess. It tasted really bitter, and I knew that Azula never liked it as well, regardless of all her bravado and her taunting of me."
Zuko froze, realizing what he just said. Iroh also stopped walking and turned to look at him, his eyes filled with sympathy. Zuko turned and looked out to the cold waters, inhaling the chilly air.
They were headed to the Northern Water Tribe for a visit that will aim to establish a concrete and formal alliance with the water benders in maintaining peace throughout the world. His uncle hoped that if they manage to secure the support of the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom, it would be easier for everyone else to interact, especially in trade matters, which were strained during the war. It also gave Zuko the opportunity to learn more about maintaining these alliances, and for the other parties to warm up to the Crown Prince, so that his eventual accession to the throne will be more welcomed and smoother.
But politics was the last thing in Crown Prince Zuko's mind at the moment. He was already deep in thought, recalling the memories he shared with his sister during their turbulent childhood. Azula, the prince thought, where are you now? Following the final siege during the last days of the war, Azula had disappeared. She pretended to be insane and being the cunning young woman she always was, she took advantage of their momentary pity and escaped from them. Zuko couldn't help but wonder what became of her now. For all the torment she caused him, he still missed her for some unknown reason. He shook his head. No, no, he reproved himself, I should not be thinking like this. For all I know, she could be out there somewhere, plotting my death.
Exhaling the prince turned once more to his uncle, and with a curt nod, he let himself be led by the older man. His uncle did not ask any questions and for that, Zuko was grateful. He shifted his thoughts into something else, preferring not to consider his sister at all… for now. Zuko knew well enough that the time would come that he would have to deal with his sister, and he knew that that moment was soon to come.
Though unknown to him, Zuko was actually correct. Because in an island several miles off the east coast of the Fire Nation, a young woman sat alone in an abandoned hut, meditating with several lighted tapers in front of her. A sinister smile formed in the lips of the Fire Nation's former princess. Opening her eyes, Azula stared into the depths of the flames, her gaze turning the orange flames into blue.
"I'll be seeing you soon, Zuzu," she whispered as lightning flashed from outside the small window, the sounds of rolling thunder serving as a herald of the impending danger as the storm began to pour down.
That's it for now!
Reviews please! It motivates me to publish more. :D
See ya soon! *Hugs*
