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infinite

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"Do you regret the beginning which ended so badly, or just the ending itself?"

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So it's been a bit longer than I had anticipated to start working on a new chapter. Sorry about that. Though, to be fair, I didn't end on quite the cliff hanger. I feel like I deserve credit for that.

I have a test tomorrow on Greek and I got sick at examining the optical illusions in Greek architecture so I decided to take a break.

I want to thank everyone for all of the wonderful reviews! Thank you for reading!

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morning

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Zhao's face was a rainbow of bruises. He sat stiffly in his chair across from Zuko, two bottles of beer sitting in front of them. The bar was hot despite the cold winter descending around them, flakes of snow falling outside. Zuko eyed the condensation on the amber glasses for a brief moment before meeting the other man's gaze defiantly. In his hand beneath the table he gripped his knife tightly. "I told you to stay away from us."

"She was asking for it." Zhao said rigidly. The crowd was thinning out slowly, just a single man perched at the counter with long black hair. Zuko briefly recognised him as Katara's ex-boyfriend, some social activist type. "She was begging for me to do her."

Zuko snorted, cocking his head slightly. "Is that why she was fighting you?"

There were cuts down the side of Zhao's face, unmistakably crimson in the dull lighting. He steeled his gaze at the younger man. "All the good girls will fight you. Your little sister did at first."

"And then you break them down into basic forms." Zuko shot back blankly, his heart lurching at the mention of Azula. "You're lucky I don't gut you for what you did to her."

Zhao's mouth stretched into a mockery of a smile. "Azula used to beg for it, you know. Your father would have her down on her knees, begging."

Zuko's hand twitched. "Leave her out of it."

"I'm sorry. How insensitive of me. I should just let the dead lie, shouldn't I?"

"Be bad form not to."

Zhao nodded at him mockingly. "Look at you. Your father never imagined you'd grow a backbone. Shame it happened now. He had been so disappointed with your inability to step into his footsteps. Your mother was a bad influence."

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The grave was dug shallow in the rain, dark earth turning to mud. Zuko watched as his father slowly dug into the earth and lifted out each shovelful in a steady rhythm. Azula watched with wide eyes and mud smeared across her face. "Mother was bad, wasn't she?" She looked up to Zuko, squinting her eyes against the downpour of the rain.

"She was good." He claimed blandly, turning away from her and facing the dark red blanket. "You monster."

Azula made a noise as if she had been slapped.

"What did I do wrong?"

The digging stopped. Their father leaned on the shovel, his cold eyes taking in the two children before him. "You didn't kill him like you were supposed to."

Zuko closed his eyes. His lungs still burned from the struggle to breathe, his arms and back still stung from his father's hits. "I'm your son." He whispered, his words barely heard over the loudness of the rain.

His father's eyes looked black in the darkness, glittering oddly in the shadows. "No you aren't. I want you gone by tomorrow morning." He stepped out of the shallow grave and hauled his wife wrapped in the red blanket up before tossing her into the grave. "Finish this and pack your things." His father handed him the shovel.

Zuko bitterly took it.

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"You're working with Kuei." Zuko stated calmly, tilting his chin up slightly. "What does he want?"

Zhao gave a short laugh before grimacing at the pain. "He wants Little Red Riding Hood. He paid a great deal for her, and then she slipped away after the fire. My business associate is not pleased with how the events had played out."

Zuko scowled. "She's her own person. He can't just buy her."

"Except he did. You see that mark on her? He branded her with his own initials. Stuff like that doesn't just vanish." He paused. "You're fond of her, aren't you?"

"I want her to be happy."

"Kuei would rather cripple her before letting her go. You see, Kuei likes hurting girls like her. He met her when she was a child and he messed her for a while. Then he returned, because sometimes the game doesn't end that fast. He's the sort of man that'll never stop playing until one of them is dead. Do you understand?"

Zuko felt the hilt of the knife, his hand clenching around it tightly. "How much money does he want?"

He sighed loudly. "You're not listening. He'll never give up until she's dead." Zhao looked at him hard. "If I were you I'd snap her neck. Kuei will make sure she'll never escape him." Zhao downed half the beer before slamming it back down hard on the table between them. "You thought Azula had issues. That was nothing. Kuei wants to break her apart and explore what exists within her bones." He pressed his hands down on the table as he leaned towards Zuko.

He cringed. "Stop bringing up Azula into this conversation."

Zhao grinned with his teeth. "I'm never going to be sorry, you know. I miss her some nights still, when she was still sane. She was so much fun when she cried."

With a smooth motion he stabbed Zhao's hand with the knife.

"Tell Kuei to back the hell off." Zuko hissed before leaving the bar.

The waitress was screaming.

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"Zuko?" Toph asked as she stepped away from the table. She had set dishes and cutlery out already, trying to arrange them properly the way Katara had taught her a couple weeks before. "Is that you?" She heard the door shut in response.

"Yeah."

She let out the breath she hadn't realized she been holding. "Good. I think dinner is done soon." Toph stepped closer to the stove, hand grasping the spatula carefully as she flipped the bread over in the pan. "Where were you?"

"Discussing things with my father's friend."

She nodded, listening to him walk down the hallway. "There's a salad in the fridge. Could you get it out please?"

Zuko did as she asked, watching her lean over the stove. "How are you doing that?" She reached out for a plate and delicately slid the sandwiches from the pan to the dish. He recognised it as one that she had made herself, her traditional symbol carved into the clay. "Cooking?"

She shrugged at him. "I can smell it when it's cooking. I can't do much, but I can at least make grilled cheese." She handed him the plate before taking the eight steps from the stove to the table. "How's Iroh?"

Zuko set the plate between them. "Fine." They both slid into chairs across from each other. "How were your classes?"

"Boring as hell." She paused, widening her eyes just slightly. "I just couldn't see the point, you know."

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He walks her home every evening after her late classes. Sometimes she meets him at the Jasmine Dragon when he's working a late shifting, opting to wait for him while drinking tea and provoking Meng. Iroh sometimes drops by the visit, his laugh filling the tea shop entirely.

"It is good to see you again, Toph." Iroh would greet her every time the doorbell jangled. She would step into the warmth of the room, snowflakes caught in her short black hair. "How are you feeling tonight?" He would set out the fine tea set, pouring random cups of tea to try to surprise her with.

Every time without fail she would properly dissect the flavours. Iroh would muse over the blends again and again, or sometimes telling stories from when he was a General in the military, "Hey, Sparky." Toph would greet Zuko from where he stood passively, turning her body in that direction. "Take a cup."

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They walked together down the street, wrists brushing slightly. Toph kept her head stubbornly tilted downwards. "Sokka told me the movie would be good." She broke out into conversation suddenly, her cane hitting the ground evenly.

"What is it about?" He asks after warning her of the slight dip in the sidewalk

Toph shrugged. "Some warrior princess who ends up throwing herself into a volcano."

Zuko gave a slight chuckle. "Way to spoil it."

"Blame Sokka. He spoiled it for me." Toph wrinkled her nose. "Do you smell smoke?" She looked up at the sky, her words sounding sharp. Zuko looked down the street and heard the wail of sirens. He grabbed her hand tightly and began pulling her towards the noise.

They rounded the block and froze, Toph running into Zuko's side. An apartment building was burning, fire devouring the entire structure entirely. "Shit." He swore as he tightened his grip. "That's my building." Her eyes widened as she began to pull away. Zuko kept a hold on her. "Don't go anywhere." He warned her as he scanned the area.

A figure stood with his back to a wall just a couple streets down looked towards them, waving daintily towards the two.

"We're leaving." Zuko didn't drop her hand until they were back at her flat. Toph was quiet, face pale and drawn. Her hair smelt like smoke.

"Are you okay?" She finally asked him, digging in her pockets for her key.

He didn't respond.

Toph led him into the house, her hand groping the shelf for something small that she pressed into his hand. "Here. You can stay here."

A silver key glinted up at him.

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Despite living in the same space together, Toph remained elusive. She crept around him much better than she should have been able to, slipping past him towards the door where she would leave.

It took him three days to understand that the fire terrified her.

She had felt the heat against her face, heard the roar of it engulfing the entire building. The great cracking noise it made as it began to break apart, floors caving into ashes. Smoke was caught in her hair.

He doesn't give her a chance to run away, because the moment she slips in the door a little after midnight he has her in his grip, not letting go. "It's okay." He tells her quietly.

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When they finally kiss, it tastes like jasmine tea and promises.

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For the first time in forever, neither of them feels the sharp sting of loneliness.

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