This is the first chapter that has made me seriously tempted to write from a different point of view. Alas, for the sake of not breaking style/pattern now, we shall stick with Zuko.

In Which Lines Are Drawn

Travelling on a shirshu with so many people was not a comfortable experience. Even less pleasant were the glares and hurt expressions being directed Zuko's way. It upset him more than he cared to admit, though he could understand Sokka, Katara and Aang's growing resentment. To them, he was just the guy who had betrayed them for his own selfishness. They had no reason to care about him. Zuko tried his best to put the matter out of his mind and focus on the task at hand. He couldn't afford to be distracted.

He kept his eyes peeled for any glimpse of Appa. The bison was probably the only way Aang, Sokka and Katara would be able to escape if given the chance. Appa, however, did not make an appearance. That was a little surprising. Were the toxins still in effect? Just to be on the safe side, Zuko requested that they stop and seized his chance to take the bison whistle. Aang looked as if he'd been slapped.

"Are you really going to go through with this?" Aang asked in a hurt voice. "I thought we were friends."

"Shut up!" Zuko hissed, pocketing the whistle. "I was just using you, idiot."

"You're a bad liar."

Zuko flinched at Sokka's comment. Sokka stared back at him grimly from where he lay paralysed. Damn him for being so perceptive.

"I'm just doing what's necessary," Zuko responded in what he hoped was a controlled voice. "I don't care if you don't understand."

Katara probably would have reached out to him if she could move her arms. "Zuko, please, just stop this. You know you're only going to regret it."

He made the mistake of meeting her gaze. It made him remember hushed conversations in the darkness and the warmth of her touch as she'd held his hand. He bit his lip and walked away before he did something stupid. Those three were dangerous for how easily they got under his skin.

June was getting impatient, so the group clambered—or, in the trio's case, were loaded—back on the shirshu and they continued travelling. Tomoki was a chatterer and tried to keep a flow of conversation going, but he mostly just got grunts of response from Jee and Zuko. June only opened her mouth to tease and was more focussed on getting back to the ship to claim her money, so she didn't care to humour the firebender either. In short, silence would have reigned had Sokka not decided that he felt like chatting as well.

"So, how long have you guys been part of Zuko's crew?" Sokka asked.

Jee told him to be quiet. At the same time, Tomoki answered that it had been almost three years.

"That's quite a long time," Sokka said, deciding to ignore Jee's comment.

"Most of us have been with Prince Zuko from the beginning," Tomoki said in his easy way. "I guess now with the Avatar captured, the crew will be disbanded and we'll be assigned somewhere else."

It was odd that Tomoki sounded a bit melancholy near the end of his speech. Zuko had thought his crew had been so sick of him and his mission that they'd be eager to escape from the ship. They'd all grumbled about him enough times. Still, he didn't flatter himself in thinking it had anything to do with him. Tomoki was probably sad to think of being separated from the other crewmembers. Or maybe Tomoki disliked the thought of being stuck with a captain who wouldn't allow music night or shopping expeditions or all those other pointless activities Iroh and the crew had loved but which Zuko had only resignedly tolerated.

"What will happen to me?"

The small voice came from Aang. Zuko tensed and tightened his grip on his teapot uncle. There was an awkward silence. Perhaps even Tomoki and Jee were not immune to the fact that the Avatar, the so-called great enemy of the Fire Nation, was just a child.

"I suspect you'll be imprisoned," Jee said finally. "Killing you would only give birth to another Avatar."

Katara let out an angry hiss and called them "horrible" and a whole lot of other names for trying to imprison a kid who had done nothing wrong. Sokka also demanded to know if Zuko was okay with this.

"Is getting your banishment revoked really worth having your friend imprisoned for life?" Sokka yelled.

"He's not my friend."

Sokka made a frustrated sound. "You—"

"Shut up!" Zuko snapped. "If you can't keep your mouth shut, I'll have the three of you gagged!"

That made them all fall silent, though the resentment festering was stronger than ever.

"My, my," June said in her lazy drawl. "Aren't we an emotional bunch today."

No one said anything. Zuko knew what small graces he still had with the trio were fast dwindling. Still, this was the only way to make everything right. It didn't matter if they hated him now.

"How much farther to go?" he asked.

"Maybe two hours," June answered. "Nyla can't go as fast when she's carrying this many people."

His brow creased. "What of the paralysis? How long will that last?"

June chuckled. He felt the vibration of her amusement against his back. "Relax, Tiny. I never let a bounty get away."

Zuko had to be content with that. Still, with the rate Sokka, Katara and Aang had been talking, it seemed the paralysis was wearing off a little. He'd have to make sure he got his timing right. The problem was that he was sitting at the front of the shirshu and couldn't really see what was going on behind.

He was still trying to figure out what to do when they passed near a stream. Something white was glimpsed in the treetops.

"We should stop here," June said. "Nyla needs to drink."

"Fine by me," Zuko said, jumping down from the shirshu.

The others followed suit. Tomoki and Jee dumped their captives unceremoniously on the ground before replenishing their water flasks alongside June at the stream. Zuko wasted no time in approaching the trio. He'd been waiting for this chance. Aang was the closest, so Zuko leaned in as if to examine the ropes binding the boy, just in case someone glanced his way.

"Can you move yet?" he asked in a voice too soft for anyone else to hear.

Aang's eyes widened. "You—"

"Not so loud," Zuko whispered furiously. The last thing he needed was for the little idiot to open his big mouth and ruin everything. "Can you move or not?"

There was a spark of excitement in Aang's eyes that even Zuko's reprimand could not dampen. He wriggled awkwardly against his bonds. "A little, but I'm all tied up so it's hard to tell."

"What's going on?" Katara asked. "What do you want with Aang now?"

Zuko ignored her and glared at the airbender. "This conversation didn't happen."

Aang got the hint. His only response was to call Zuko a friend betrayer and to say that he didn't want to see Zuko's face again. It was terrible acting, but then Aang was such a weirdo sometimes that Zuko doubted Jee or any of the others would notice. Satisfied, Zuko left the trio and went to carry out the next part of his plan.

For this part, he needed Tomoki. Zuko was aware that Jee and Tomoki had been keeping him under watch, maybe out of suspicion or maybe just because he was their prince. That worked in his favour. He placed his uncle down away from everyone and headed deeper into the forest. He was not surprised when Tomoki followed and asked him where he was going.

"Toilet," Zuko said unabashedly.

"Oh." Tomoki scratched his cheek. "Well, er, I'll accompany you. As a guard, I mean."

Zuko shrugged to show his acquiescence. Once he had found a private spot out of earshot from the others, he turned to Tomoki and ordered the man to wait for him.

"But—"

"I don't think you need to watch me," Zuko said at his driest.

Tomoki didn't. There was nothing else he could do but stand in place and wait for Zuko to return.

Zuko quickened his pace once he was out of sight and hurriedly tugged the bison whistle free from his pocket. He blew on it for several seconds, ignoring the fact it sounded silent to him. That glimpse of white earlier had looked more like Momo, but where Momo was, the bison was sure to be close. Appa would come.

That part taken care of, Zuko reached into his other pocket and pulled out a small bottle. It was the perfume Aunt Wu had given him before he'd left Makapu Village. Back then, she'd said he would know when to use it. Of course, by the time he had realised he could use the scent to "blind" the shirshu, who had no eyes and relied on smell to see, Aang, Katara and Sokka had already been paralysed. His choices had become very limited then. In his child's form, there was no way he could have got the three of them away on Appa, even if he did manage to distract Nyla. He'd hesitated too long.

Zuko was not hesitating now. It wasn't that he was at peace with his choice. Far from it. He'd just realised the moment the Avatar was helpless at his feet that he couldn't follow his father's orders. Not if it meant handing the boy over like an object to be locked away. Not if it meant betraying Katara and Sokka's trust. They were his friends. He cared about them. Honour gained through betrayal wasn't honour at all.

So Zuko had salvaged what he could. He'd come up with a plan: reckless, impulsive, but with a higher chance of success than if he'd tried to make a stand back in that forest clearing. It was true that the thought of going against his father made him sick to his stomach, but he also couldn't pretend anymore that the end would justify the means. Helping his friends was something he had to do. Besides, he and his uncle were still cursed. Trying to convince Jee and Tomoki of his identity had been difficult enough. It would be pointless to even attempt returning to the ship or the Fire Nation without first breaking the curse.

"This is the only way," Zuko said, almost like a mantra.

He didn't give himself a chance to reconsider and stripped off his clothes. Then he pulled out the beans and stuffed one into his mouth. The pain was instant, crippling him to his knees. It felt like hands were pulling him this way and that so he could be reshaped. He clenched his teeth hard so he wouldn't make a sound. Even then, it wasn't easy.

Suddenly, the pain stopped and he was left slumped on the forest floor. He took a moment to catch his breath before struggling to his feet. His whole body felt like jelly. He flexed his fingers and stretched his limbs, getting used to the feeling of being back in his teenage form. Once satisfied that he had everything under control, he moved swiftly to where Tomoki was waiting.

"He's taking a while," Tomoki muttered. "Should I just go to him?"

As silent as a panther-shark, Zuko dashed forward and clamped a hand over his mouth to stifle any cry of alarm. The struggle was brief and ended with a thud. Carefully, Zuko lowered his unconscious crewmember to the ground.

"Sorry," he said with a stab of guilt, "but I need your clothes."

He stripped the man and tugged the uniform onto his own body. They were the same size, so even the boots fit comfortably. Tomoki had been wearing the helmet without a faceplate, but Zuko fixed the mask to his face. Now it would be easy for anyone to mistake him for the older firebender.

Zuko's stomach twisted, reminding him of what he had to do next. Keeping in motion was the key to not losing his resolve.

He blew once more on the bison whistle, just to be safe, and then hurried back to the stream where everyone else was waiting. Katara, Sokka and Aang were still slumped on the ground. June was tending to her shirshu, and Jee was watching over the clearing and no doubt waiting for Tomoki and Zuko to return. As such, Jee was also the first to catch sight of him.

"Where's Prince Zuko?" Jee asked. "I thought he was with you."

There was a chittering sound and Momo swooped down from the treetops. A split-second later, Appa forced his way through the branches and headed straight for his master.

"Momo!" Sokka, Katara and Aang all cried joyfully. "Appa!"

Jee shifted into a bending stance. "Keep them away from the Avatar!"

June leaped onto her shirshu and brandished her whip. Zuko sprinted to her, uncorking the bottle of perfume. He tossed the contents straight onto Nyla's nose. The shirshu let out an awful screech and reared up on its back legs, knocking June off and going wild with sensory overload. The venomous tongue lashed out. Zuko threw himself to the side, but June was not so lucky. She hit the ground and stayed there. Nyla disappeared into the trees.

"Have you gone mad?" Jee exclaimed. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Zuko flipped back to his feet and shot a ball of flames at the lieutenant. Jee blocked it easily, but that was to be expected.

"You … you're not Tomoki." Jee's eyes widened. "It can't be—"

Zuko responded with a barrage of fire attacks, trying to fend the older man off as he backed closer and closer to the trio. "Appa!" he yelled.

The bison obliged him by spinning and thumping his tail against the ground to create a powerful air blast. Jee was caught up in the blast and sent flying against a tree. Zuko seized his chance and turned to get the ropes off everyone. Momo had already started gnawing at Aang's with his sharp teeth. That was going to take too long, so Zuko created three precise flames to weaken the ropes and pulled them apart with his own hands.

"Look out!" Sokka warned.

He turned just in time to shield himself from a stream of flames. Jee had recovered and was advancing upon them with furious intent.

"Can you move enough to get on Appa?" Zuko asked them in between countering and deflecting attacks.

Aang made a valiant effort to get to his feet, only to wobble and pitch forward onto his face. Katara and Sokka looked at him helplessly.

"I'll take that as a no," Zuko muttered.

This was going to be a pain. Still, he had known there was a chance that full mobility might not have returned. It was fortunate that Appa was still saddled.

He edged closer to Sokka and reached for the back of the boy's collar. "Looks like this is the only way."

"What are—"

Sokka yelped as he was tossed high into the air. Appa, thankfully, was smart enough to catch on to Zuko's plan. The bison caught Sokka with the saddle and then waited for the next two. The problem was Jee, who had been advancing fireball by fireball and was now dangerously close. Zuko cursed under his breath. He knew he was capable of taking Jee out in a fight, but this wasn't a training exercise. Lieutenant Jee was no pushover and it would take time to beat him. Zuko didn't want to drag this out or have to hurt another member of his crew.

Momo came to his rescue by creating a distraction and flying straight at Jee's face. Zuko quickly tossed Katara onto the saddle and then reached for Aang.

"Damned lemur!" Jee swatted at Momo, who was sent spiralling away.

Aang made an alarmed sound. "Don't hurt him!"

Jee didn't bother to pursue Momo, but he did look pissed off. Zuko knew because he'd seen that expression countless times when tempers had been tested too much on the ship.

"Why?" Jee suddenly demanded. "Why are you doing this? Do you want to become a traitor as well?"

Zuko's stomach seemed to drop several inches, but he stood protectively in front of Aang. "I'm not a traitor."

"You're assisting the Avatar and his friends to escape!"

A blast of fire followed these words. Zuko diffused the flames with a downward slope of his arms, then kicked out a stream of blazing orange in retaliation.

"Give it up!" Zuko snapped.

Jee was too stubborn to do such a thing. What Zuko hadn't anticipated was for Jee to aim his flame-surrounded fist at the teapot. Zuko's body stilled as if he'd been jabbed with shirshu venom. His mouth was too dry and his pulse throbbed painfully in his throat.

"Lieutenant," he managed to get out in a thick voice. "You don't want to do that."

There was an awful moment where they just stared at each other. Then Jee lowered his fist and his voice sounded oddly resigned when he spoke.

"I can't," he agreed.

Zuko didn't hesitate. He tossed Aang up to Appa and grabbed the teapot. Momo flew overhead to join the others in the saddle. Zuko was about to follow when his feet took on a mind of their own and rooted him to the ground. He glanced back at the lieutenant. Jee had not moved.

"I …" Zuko swallowed and found he didn't know what he wanted to say.

"What are you waiting for?" Sokka yelled.

Zuko snapped back to attention. Teapot tucked under his arm, he half-jumped, half-swung up on to Appa. Then he grabbed the reins. "Yip, yip!"

Appa took off with an eager rumble. The forest clearing was left far behind, and so was the lieutenant.

oOo

"You sneaky bastard!" Sokka grinned at Zuko so widely that it was like his face might split. "You really had me fooled for a while there."

Zuko couldn't even dredge up a smile. Now that the adrenaline rush was over, the full reality of what he had done hit home. He sat down in the saddle and removed the helmet and faceplate so he could breathe better. It didn't help. The urge to vomit was overwhelming.

"Do you want to become a traitor as well?"

Dimly, he was aware of the others talking. Of them expressing their relief that he hadn't betrayed them. Of their demands to know why he hadn't given them any warning of his plan, or how he'd got rid of the shirshu, or how he'd even got big again. Their chatter was a buzz in his ears, but he couldn't focus enough to answer. All the food he had eaten at lunch heaved in his stomach.

A traitor. Was he one now?

He'd told Jee that he wasn't. In his heart, Zuko knew he was loyal to the Fire Nation, but then how else did one describe his actions? He had gone against the Fire Lord's orders. He had chosen not to capture the Avatar, the one thing he had to do in order to have his banishment revoked. No one was going to understand. This was … he had just lost any guarantee of being pardoned. His father would never forgive him. Getting his face burnt for speaking out of turn and refusing to fight in the Agni Kai would be nothing to the punishment he would receive this time.

"Are you … are you crying?"

Sokka sounded a bit embarrassed for him. Zuko realised with a start that something wet was indeed spilling down his cheeks. He swallowed and buried his face against his knees.

"They're going to brand me a traitor," he rasped. The words got stuck in his throat. "I can't … I can't go home now."

No one said anything. Just like that, the happy bubble of relief had popped.

"Zuko," Aang said, but then he trailed off. Even the master of incessant talking had been silenced.

Zuko kept his face hidden. He did not regret helping his friends. There was no doubt in his mind that he had made the right decision. But he couldn't help crying over what he had been forced to give up in the process. He cried because he and his father were just too different: that where one saw strength, the other saw shame, and today he had realised there was no way to please his father unless he wanted to lose himself completely. He cried because he still yearned for the palace and the land that had been denied to him, for the life that was supposed to be his but which now seemed far beyond his reach. Too far for him to ever grasp.

He cried because he was only sixteen years old, and it felt like he had just lost everything.

Arms wrapped around him and pulled him into a hug. The softness of the person's chest told him it was Katara. Then skinnier arms latched onto his other side, and a bigger hand came to rest on his shoulder. Even Momo got in close. Zuko hiccupped a little as he realised all of them had come to comfort him.

"We'll figure something out," Katara said gently, "so don't give up hope. It'll all work out somehow. I know it will."

Sokka and Aang chipped in with similar assurances. Zuko made a noncommittal sound and kept his face pressed to his knees, not wanting them to see his tears. Even if Katara was right, even if they did find a way for him to return home without capturing Aang, he knew that everything had changed. With one choice, he had annulled almost three years of desperate struggling and dreams.

Did that make him a traitor? That was a question he no longer knew how to answer.

Sad when the right choice doesn't make everything all better. Poor Zuko.

Also, well done to cresswellshipper17, who was the only person (at least to say as much in a review) that Zuko was playing double agent. And if people are still wondering why Zuko didn't just do the whole perfume schebang before convincing Jee and Tomoki of his identity, just consider that he was tiny and wouldn't have been able to lift anyone, it's harder to take people off guard when they view you as an enemy, and he probably would have ended up being taken out himself.

Next up: the new traitor meets an old traitor. Oh, and Aang does not like breathing.