"Captain! Set a course west! The Avatar is headed into the Fire Nation!"

Currently I was playing Pai Sho with Iroh and being pounded. It was the morning after we rescued Iroh from his kidnapping. Zuko had disappeared overnight, which I knew because we were sharing the cabin again. In the morning, Zuko was still gone and I quickly went to inform Iroh down the hall. He told me not to concern myself too much.

"Zuko's always disappearing. He'll turn up eventually."

To get my mind off of Zuko's absence, Iroh challenged me to Pai Sho which I begrudgingly accepted. I already knew I would lose, and sure enough Iroh was in the lead. Just as I went to place down a tile, the door to the helm we sat in swung open. Zuko rushed into the room shouting out his orders. When Iroh heard, the old man jumped up faster than I'd ever seen.

"The Fire Nation! Prince Zuko! I really must protest! You are banished! If they catch yo-"

"They won't," Zuko defended, looking at his uncle believing his own words. "The Avatar is so close! I can't lose this opportunity!"

I was worried by this news. I just had to ask. "Why is he headed into the Fire Nation? What could he possibly want that he would risk capture?"

Zuko surprisingly answered me. "I questioned a man at the nearby village. It seems the Avatar is headed to Roku's temple to try and contact his past life."

My eyes widened. His past life… Could the Avatar really do something like that? And if so, why would Aang need to speak to his past life? What's going on?

Zuko turned back to the captain. "How long will it take to reach Roku's temple?"

"About six hours sir," the man stated. He had already started to change some gears and turn the wheel. "That's if we give it all we've got."

"Then give it everything. I will not lose my chance!" Zuko turned back toward me. "In three hours you will return to your room. I can't have you trying to escape or fight me again."

I sighed heavily. Crossing my arms, I hung my head in dismay. "Fine…"

He was surprised by my obedience. He shot me a puzzled expression, but didn't ask. He left us then to go prepare for his quest. Once he was gone, I returned to the Pai Sho board thinking about my next strategy.

Three hours later I found myself returning to my room as Zuko had ordered. I didn't want to be locked in my room for the rest of the day, but I knew arguing with Zuko would do no good. I was tired of fighting with him, and honestly I didn't want to walk around freely in the Fire Nation. I did long to see my family again, but I knew they would escape and be perfectly safe. As long as they weren't under Zuko's captivity, I was happy for them. One day I would see them again, but today just wasn't that day.

When I stepped into the room, I wasn't surprised to see Zuko was already there dressed up in his heavy armor. He wore the armor whenever he planned on chasing after Aang. I preferred his casual attire, but I didn't comment.

Walking past Zuko, I plopped down on my cot and kicked off my shoes. The whole time Zuko watched me with burning question. Sitting cross legged, I stared at my hands wishing that he would stop looking at me with his pondering gold eyes.

"Why aren't you fighting me?"

His sudden question took me off guard.

"Do you want me to?"

Zuko stared at me for a few more seconds. "No… It's just strange. I thought you'd argue again, but you're actually behaving."

"I'd rather be locked up willingly than thrown in a cell again. Besides, I have no desire to be out and about walking freely when we're in Fire Nation territory. I still think my family and the avatar are crazy for attempting whatever they're trying to do."

He went to say something else, but then he stopped and sighed heavily. "You're strange," he muttered. Turning, he walked across the room over to the table against the wall. He picked up something and walked back over to me.

"Here… I found some books you can look at while you're stuck in here. They look like they describe plants and animals and stuff. I know you're always asking me about things, so maybe you can learn some stuff on your own."

I stared at the three books he held out toward me in amazement. Taking them from his hands, I said with a grateful smile, "Thank you."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "No big deal… I got them from Uncle's stash. There's more where they came from." He walked over to the chain in the room while I inspected the books. I knew how to read, but I wasn't great at it. At the South Pole my father and mother tried to teach us what they knew. We learned to write on some parchments and read from some scrolls. Sokka and Katara had both learned much faster than me. Opening to the first page, I already struggled with the words.

Zuko chained me up, and then made his way to the door. As he went to leave, he turned back toward me. "Uncle said he'd check on you soon."

Meeting his gaze, I asked softly, "You won't hurt them will you?"

He took a moment to sink in my question. Finally, he looked away crossing his arms. "No… My only mission is to capture the Avatar. He's the only one I want."

I grimaced. "I wasn't just talking about my family."

He frowned. "I'll do whatever it takes to capture the Avatar."

He turned on his heel and left the room. I watched him go with agony. Would he really hurt a kid for his honor?

With a heavy sigh, I picked up the book again and lied back trying to distract my worries. The book was about plants, and there was a number of drawings that helped me get through the words I couldn't read. Before I realized it, I was so engrossed in the book that time seemed to fly by. At some point during my reading, I felt the ship speed up and wondered what was happening. Then the ship started to jerk violently telling me we were definitely under attack.

Standing up quickly, I rushed across the cabin and pressed my ear to the wall. Shutting my eyes, I tried to listen to the world outside. Shouts could be heard, a loud smash, and the ship creaked as it was hit. The jerk of the ship forced me away from the wall and onto my butt. What was happening? Was it my family and Aang? I hated being downstairs and unable to see anything. I was worried about my family. I was worried about Aang. I was worried about Zuko.

At the last thought, my eyes widened and my face burned.

Zuko…Why was I worried about Zuko?

It seemed the ship shook violently for another hour, until finally it was still. The fight was over, and with it only brought me more anxiety. Pacing back and forth frantically, I wondered if my family and Aang were captured. Please don't be captured! I couldn't imagine what would happen if Aang was actually imprisoned by the Fire Nation. I did know one thing though: we would all be doomed.

A knock on the door suddenly sounded. "Crystal. It's Iroh. I'm coming in." A second later Iroh walked into the room. His face showed concern and I could see he wasn't thrilled with everything that had transpired above.

I had to ask. "What happened?"

The old man sighed, walking over to me and sitting cross-legged on the floor. "Zuko foolishly tried to shoot your family and the Avatar out of the sky." My eyes widened. "Of course he missed them!" Iroh quickly said, trying to calm my worries. "They're fine the last we saw them. We managed to get into the Fire Nation without being stopped, and Zuko has taken his personal steamboat to go to Roku's temple on his own." He rubbed his face looking exhausted. "However, I fear Commander Zhao may be following him."

My heart skipped a beat. Zhao… If he got a hold of Aang and my family… well I feared the worse.

Iroh noted my worry. "Crystal… I'm sure they'll all be fine." He looked at the books scattered on my cot. "Ah. I see why Zuko took the books now. Have you learned anything exciting?"

He was trying to distract my worries. I took in a deep breath trying to calm down. Picking up a book about animals, I blushed. "Yeah… It's difficult to read some of the passages, but I'm getting through."

Iroh gestured for me to come sit near him. I did so, trying not to get tangled in the chain attached to me. "What are you struggling with?"

Handing over the book, I hung my head in disappointment. "A lot of it. The small words are easy, but the big words look like scribbles."

"Did you learn how to read on your own?"

I shook my head. "No… My mom and dad taught me what they knew. My mom wasn't as literate as my father though. When we were younger dad taught us the best he could, but after my mom died he stopped to focus on the war. Sokka learned quickly and continued to teach us, but I couldn't get a grasp on it like my sister was able to."

Iroh nodded. "Well… I taught my son Lu Ten how to read. I'd be happy to help you out."

He turned to a page in the book and handed it back toward me.

I took it with surprise.

"Of course, that's only if you want me to," Iroh assured.

I smiled, grateful for his kindness. "Yeah… I'd like that."

"Great… Then why don't you read me what you know, and when you hit a word you don't know I'll help you out."

I nodded. Staring down at the page, I started to read enjoying Iroh's kindness and his distraction.

Zuko POV

I growled as I fought against the chains I was currently restrained in. Zhao and his men stood at the temples inner chamber doorway, waiting for the Avatar to come out. Waiting to take what rightfully belonged to me. I growled again. I almost had him! I almost had that brat! I would've had him if I had a tighter grip, and those Water Tribe brats hadn't encouraged him to go in.

My eyes shot over to the two kids who were chained to the pillar across from me. I'd chained them there, and I sort of regretted it since Zhao had arrived. There was no telling what the man would do with two poor kids from the Southern Water Tribe.

The boy looked over at me with blue eyes a little darker than his sisters. He glared daggers. "Hope you're happy with the mess you got us both in!" I looked him over seeing some similar features between him and Crystal. They had the same nose, and their eyes were shaped the same. However, apart from that there wasn't much similarity for them being twins. Her sister had the same nose too, and I could tell that she and Crystal had a similar build but that was about it. "Hey! Are you even listening to me?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I didn't get us in this mess, peasant! It's your fault for flying into Fire Nation territory!" The boy (Sokka I think) was close to my age, so it was strange talking to a guy that wasn't my senior. He was the same height as me, but not as physically built. "Next time you want to be captured by the enemy, why don't you just walk straight to the Fire Lord himself!"

Sokka scowled. "Shut up you spoiled stuck-up prince of shi-"

"Sokka!" The girl finally spoke up. "Knock it off! Have you forgotten he has Crystal? If you anger him he might hurt her."

The girl… Katara if I recall correctly… She must be worried sick about her sister.

Sokka fell silent, and I saw his eyes only burn more with hatred. "What have you done to her?"

I scowled. "I haven't done anything to her. She's doing fine."

"You've had her in a cell for two months! I doubt she's okay," Sokka snapped.

I went to snap back, but then I stopped. Sighing heavily, I leaned back against the pillar and stared up at the ceiling. "She isn't in a cell."

The two water tribe kids fell silent at my words. After a moment, the girl Katara spoke up again. "Is she okay? Your soldier hit her hard when we escaped back at the South Pole."

Nodding, I looked over at Zhao and his men again. Zhao was pacing impatiently. "She's fine… I'm not the monster you all think I am."

Sokka gritted his teeth. "You're Fire Nation! You will never be anything but a monster! If you hurt Crys, I swear I'll kill you!"

"Sokka! Stop it!" Katara snapped. "Yelling isn't making this situation any better."

He went to retaliate, but then let out a heavy breath. "Yeah… You're right." He kept his gaze on me. "You can't keep her forever. We will get our sister back."

I scoffed. "Right… You three have done so well so far."

He growled, struggling in his restraints. "You could release her! She isn't of any worth to you!"

His last statement sent me into silent thoughts. She isn't worth anything to you… I'd been trying to tell myself that for weeks. However, the statement was a lie. Crystal was worth something to me… I just wasn't sure what it happened to be. Sokka noticed my silence and shot me a surprised look. His sister did as well.

Katara spoke up again. "What is she to you?"

"My prisoner," I muttered. "That's all."

Sokka narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Before he could question any further, Zhao began to shout. The Avatar was coming back out, and I tried to return focus to the shut door. I had to escape and get back to my boat. If I didn't, Zhao would imprison me and take me to my father. Without the Avatar or the waterbender, I would be severely punished for breaking my banishment.

Crystal POV

"A-Agr-grimony is most used in mo-modern her- herbal practice as a mild astir- astringent and a ton-is."

Iroh nodded in approval as he read over my shoulder. "Everything was pretty good. Just remember that 'I C' makes an 'ick' sound. So that last word would be 'tonic'. Other than that, I think we've made great progress today. Why don't you take a break while I grab us some dinner from the kitchen?"

Iroh left to go fetch us some grub. While he was gone I stared at the books some more. My head was starting to hurt from the words I struggled to read. I wondered if Sokka had trouble with big words like me. I doubted it. Iroh and I had been trying to read for the last three hours, and so far we'd only gotten through five plants and six animals. I did learn what those winged creatures were the other day though; ostrich-horses were my new favorite animal.

With a sigh, I closed up the book and scooted back onto my cot. Lying back, I stared up at the ceiling feeling worry again.

Sokka… Katara… Aang… I hoped they were still okay and out of the Fire Nation's clutches. I wanted to be with them just so I knew they were okay. I missed them so much, but I knew there was nothing I could do to be with them. If I tried to escape, I'd just end up back in a cell with an angry prince.

Only a few minutes after Iroh left, the door to the room opened again. Looking over in question, I saw Zuko come in looking exhausted. He said nothing to me as he tore off his armor and dropped it on the floor. Walking across the room, he stopped at his wooden chest and yanked off is boots. When he was back in his casual attire, he rubbed his face with dismay.

I waited anxiously, fearful at the thought that maybe Zuko had captured my family and the Avatar. He said nothing still as he tore off his shirt and dropped it on the floor. He was shirtless and I could see red marks on his arms from what seemed to be chains. I assumed he'd been held captive by someone and managed to escape. My guess was Zhao caught up to him.

"Did you get through the books?"

I'd been staring at the marks on his arms, so when he finally spoke I jumped. Meeting his eyes, I saw he waited for me to answer. "No… Iroh's helping me. He said he'd be back so we could read some more." I ran a hand through my hair. "He's teaching me how."

Zuko nodded, walking over to his cot. He stopped though, looking back at me with question. "Teaching you?"

I blushed. "Yeah… I don't read much."

He seemed to take this in.

"Hey Zuko…" I stopped, biting my lip when I realized I might be crossing the prisoner line. I just needed to know if they were okay. "What happened? Did you capture the Avatar? Did Zhao capture him?" I felt my body shake at the thought. "Is he okay?"

He gave a nod. "Don't worry… They're all fine. They escaped from the temple and are flying back east. We're already following their path."

I sighed with relief. They were okay… They were safe… Thank goodness.

"Hey…" he suddenly spoke again. I gave him my attention. "Do you think I'm a monster?"

His question took me off guard. Where was this coming from all of the sudden? Running a hand through my hair, I said softly, "I did when I first met you… but over these last few weeks I can't anymore. You're just a normal teenage guy to me. Getting to know you has helped me see that you have a good heart."

He hung his head, taking in what I said.

That was when realization hit me. "Sokka... You spoke to Sokka, didn't you?"

He nodded. "Yeah… Your brother doesn't like me too much."

I sighed heavily. "It's not just you, Zuko. Sokka hates anyone Fire Nation. My sister does too. It's because the Fire Nation took our mother from us at a very young age. Even if the nicest Fire Nation man walked up to my brother, he would call him a monster too."

There was silence for a moment. Then he spoke again. "I don't want people to see me as a monster."

"I know… I wouldn't expect you to." I stood so I could be close to the same height as the young man with me. "Maybe if you do become Fire Lord, you can show the world you aren't a monster." I rubbed my shoulder. "You can end up helping the world instead of destroying it."

Meeting my eyes, I could see my words impacted the prince. "The Fire Nation isn't destroying the world… We're helping it."

"I know I won't be able to change your views," I softly responded. "But I can tell you my own. To the rest of the world, the Fire Nation is a plague. Harmony has been destroyed. The Fire Lord just wants power and control over everything, and he doesn't care who he hurts to get it."

"That's not true," Zuko muttered.

I frowned. I knew I couldn't argue with him. I didn't want to upset him any further.

He let out a hard sigh. "I'm going to go meditate down the hall. I'll be back soon." I nodded, having nothing else to say. He started to walk out the door, but then he stopped to speak one last time. "I just need some time to think." He left me then to go to his thoughts.

Sighing, I turned and walked back over to the cot. Plopping back on it, I sighed again and fell back looking up at the ceiling. Zuko's absence for some reason made me feel alone. My heart ached and I frowned. I'd probably gone too far, talking about his father like that. He probably hated me for what I'd just said. Why couldn't I keep my big mouth shut?

"I don't want people to see me as a monster…"

I curled up into a fetal position and stared at the wall beside me. Zuko was far from a monster. He was kind and generous. Deep past his cold demeanor was an affectionate young man trying to come out. I wanted Zuko to see that side of him: the good side.

Quickly I shut my eyes, wondering why these thoughts kept flooding through me. Why did I care about Zuko's feelings? Why was I so eager for him to find the good side?

Why did he make me so confused?

Zuko POV

Standing at the door to my room, I hesitated about entering. My earlier departure had been a bit immature. Instead of conversing with Crystal about my feelings, I'd stubbornly left her without another word. It seemed whenever we tried to have a meaningful talk I would always shut my mouth and walk away. I was never good with confrontations, and being with this girl reminded me of that.

It wasn't that her comments made me angry or hotheaded. In all actuality, her comments made me doubt my own father. It was awful to think that for the first time, I didn't really see my father as a man disappointed in his son. Instead, I saw him as a heartless man who couldn't care about me one bit.

No! My father does care! He loves me! He only wants what's best!

With a heavy breath, I entered the room. Inside, I found it was quiet and the candles were starting to dim. The books she'd previously been reading were stacked up on the floor beside her. She was already asleep on her cot, her body beneath her blanket. She always looked so delicate when she slept. I was terrified one wrong move through the room would shatter her into a million pieces. Stepping over to her, I saw she was lying on her stomach, and her hand was sandwiched between her cheek and pillow. Her hair covered part of her face, and I knelt down beside her so I could gently brush the dark strands back. To my surprise, the corner of her lip turned up as she slept on.

Jerking my hand away, I felt my fingertips tingle from the warmth of her skin. My hand ached to brush against her once more, but I quickly resisted. Standing to my feet, I turned away from her and headed over to the few candles still burning. Blowing them out, I found my way to my cot and crawled on it. Lying back, I stared at the darkness around me. As I did, I couldn't help but recall something my mom had once said to me.

"One day, you'll find a girl who will completely sweep you off your feet."

"Yeah right… I doubt I'll ever find a girl like that. Girls are icky anyway."

My mom giggled and hugged me close to her. "Silly Zuko… When you're older you won't think that way. You'll find your special other. I once found my own, and it was the best moments of my life."

"You mean you and dad?"

She fell quiet for a moment. Then she hugged me tighter. "Listen closely to me son. Always follow your heart. Don't let anything tear you away from the one that you love most. You have to fight for her with everything you have, or else you'll just be a prisoner to your own sorrow."

"You're the only girl I love, mommy."

She sighed. "Thanks Zuko… I love you too."

My heart ached at the memory of my mom. Shutting my eyes tight, I tried to push the pain away. However, what she said to me seemed to echo in my head:

"When you're older you won't think that way. You'll find your special other…"

Turning on my side, I stared through the dark at the direction where Crystal continued to sleep. There was no way I felt for her any more than a friend. She was just a friend. Nothing more.

My fingers still tingled from the warmth and smoothness of her skin.

Just a friend… she was only just a friend…

My heart ached at the lie.