Zuko Drabble #10
First Flame
Eight years old; Ozai had given up on his son ever bending fire. He, himself, had started at age five, Iroh had as well, and Azula, the prodigy, began at four years old. Clearly, Zuko was deficient, talentless, useless.
Zuko spent hours every day concentrating on the fire he somehow knew lived inside him. His mother fretted. Zuko was a little boy with dark circles under his golden eyes, an almost perpetual frown and a strange hunger in his eyes. Ursa scolded him gently and drew him away from his efforts with books and walks through the gardens. He spent the time with his mother and enjoyed it, smiling and laughing, his good humor returned, but always at the back of his mind were thoughts of fire and of shame.
His journey to find the fire inside would become a template for Zuko's life…….struggle, perseverance and determination were the qualities that brought him success………sometimes. Nothing much came easy for Zuko.
The boy was stunned, therefore, when one day, (he was about halfway between eight and nine years old), he sat on his bed with closed eyes, thinking dreamily about the latest story his mother had read him (it involved dragons) and felt his hand grow warm. His eyes shot open and saw, no savored, the tiny flame hovering shakily on his palm.
"Maybe the dragons helped me," Zuko wondered, awe clear in his voice.
He was thrilled and relieved most of all. Maybe now his father would be proud of him.