A/N: The second chapter today, as promised :)


"Oh, Arisu," Father smirked, "How nice to see you,"

"This crazy man is your dad?" exclaimed Sokka, who was immediately shushed by one of the soldiers.

Zuko continued to stare at me incredulously, and I could feel myself go red.

"Your mother's been so worried about you," continued Father, who was still smirking, "I suppose you'd be wanting to go home?"

I started to feel guilty. I didn't want to make Mother worry about me, but I didn't want to stay home either. Travelling with my new friends offered so much freedom, so much choice.

"No," I frowned at him, "I would appreciate it if you untied my friends."

"No," He replied, sarcastically in the same tone, "So you're making friends with Water Tribe peasants now? Go away, Arisu, you're getting in my way,"

"So is that why you kept me locked up in the house all the time?" I asked, finally coming to the realisation, "Because I was getting in your way? Because I wasn't a FIRE BENDER, or a BOY?"

All these things I'd known before – but pushed to the back of my brain – started coming back, and I realised the reason he kept me in the house all the time.

"It was for your own good," said Father, coldly, getting impatient.

"BECAUSE YOU THOUGHT I WAS USELESS!" I screamed, getting angry, "And that all I could do was cook and sew!"

"That's what women do," replied Father.

"You're a horrible father!"

"Well if it makes you feel better," he said, "I'm NOT your father,"

He motioned for the guards to get me get me out of the way. And one of them came up to tie me to a pillar.

"What?"

"I'm always away at sea, always have been," he continued, "It always made me wonder what was wrong when the doctor announced you were a Waterbender,"

"I'm a WHAT?"

"I have no time for you," he said, turning away.

I was so shocked, that I didn't say a word, not even when the doors opened and an old man came out instead of Aang, not even when he started tearing the temple apart, or even when bursts of lava came out of nowhere.

I didn't say anything until Aang appeared, and the four of us jumped onto Appa, and even then, all I said was, "I'm fine," when Katara asked me if I were okay.

I'm a...waterbender?


Zuko barely made it out of the temple when it was falling apart, and when he got back on his ship, he didn't say a word to anyone.

He walked straight to his bedroom, ignoring 'Sir, are you alright?', 'Where do we go now?' and 'Zuko, dinner is ready! The cook prepared the most delicious roast duck!'.

He closed the door behind him, changed into more comfortable clothes and laid in his bed.

It has been three years since they saw each other. Why did he have to be tied to a stupid pillar?


A/N: :) Thanks for reading! This one was a bit short, but because I'm crazy, I decided to split the episode into two parts anyway :P

Please review :)