Zuko stood in the Earth King's throne room, his fists clenched as he stared down at the floor, his mind numb. He couldn't believe all that had happened in the last day, even in the last hour - it was all too much to process.
"We've done it, Zuko," Azula crowed from where she was lounging on the Earth King's throne next to him. "It's taken a hundred years, but the Fire Nation has conquered Ba Sing Se."
"I betrayed Uncle," Zuko said, unable to hold it in.
"No, he betrayed you." Zuko turned towards Azula in surprise. "Zuko, when you return home, Father will welcome you as a war hero."
"But I don't have the Avatar!" Zuko said, the fear creeping up inside him. "What if Father doesn't restore my honor?"
Then all of this - betraying Uncle and Kioni, leaving behind any chance you had of being together - will all have been for nothing.
"He doesn't need to." Azula came up beside him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Zuko, today, you restored your own honor."
Zuko glanced at her, unsure, and then down at the floor, slipping a hand into the pocket of his robes and curling his fingers around the delicate green-gold hair chopsticks he'd picked up from the floor of the crystal catacombs. He closed his eyes briefly, picturing the heartbroken look in Kioni's eyes when he'd walked away.
"Oh, by the way," Azula continued conversationally. "You and that Earth Kingdom wench - you didn't actually fall for her pathetic trap, right? Surely there was nothing going on there?"
Nothing except tender embraces and playful banter and kisses that made your head spin and those deep green eyes trusting accepting loving-?
"No," Zuko cut off his train of thought before it could spiral out of control. "Nothing at all." Azula scrutinized him for a moment, and he didn't meet her gaze, still staring resolutely at the ground.
"Good," she said after a moment. "Because there's someone here who's been waiting to see you again. Girls!"
Zuko glanced up in surprise when the next minute, a loud squeal filled the air. He turned towards the source of the noise and barely had the chance to glimpse a flash of pink before he found himself with an armful of very excited girl.
"Zuko, it's so good to see you!" Ty Lee gushed, her brown braid bouncing joyfully and her gray eyes sparkling as she pulled back to look at him. "Wow, you look great, I mean, I thought the scar would be way worse, but it's not even that bad and have you been working out? Because seriously your arms look awesome, and wow, I really like what you've done with your hair it's so rugged and ohmyAgni wait until Mai sees you!"
Zuko blinked, stepping back, slightly overwhelmed. He hadn't even seen his sister's bouncy acrobat friend since well before his banishment, and to be honest, Ty Lee was a lot to take in even if you spent every day with her, let alone not having seen her in over three years.
"I would be able to see him, Ty Lee, if you weren't standing in the way," another voice said dryly. Zuko glanced over Ty Lee's shoulder to see another girl leaning against a pillar, hidden in the shadows.
His eyes widened as Mai stepped out from the darkness and walked towards them, dressed in robes of light green. She was much taller than he remembered, almost as tall as him probably, and slender in a poised way. Her features were sharp and angular, but the grayish-amber eyes were the sharpest feature of all, and the one Zuko remembered most.
"Mai," Zuko said, as she approached, struck by how different and yet how similar she looked.
"It's good to see you, Zuko," she replied, one side of her mouth quirking up in the barest hint of a smile.
"Uh, you too." Zuko scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, unsure what to say.
"Princess Azula." The four teens turned to see a Dai Li agent standing in the entrance of the throne room, his head bowed and his eyes fixed on the floor. "There are a few people here you need to speak with regarding, er... what happens next."
"Yes, of course," Azula waved her hand dismissively, and the agent backed out of the room. "I never realized how much administration comes with being the ruler of a country. Honestly, it's quite boring, I don't know how Father has managed to do it all," she said to the others.
"Ugh, I'm out." Mai rolled her eyes, starting to walk away. "I don't need to be here for all this boring chit-chat."
"Zuko, why don't you go with her?" Azula offered, her eyes narrowed. Zuko glanced up as if brought out of deep thought. His eyes flickered between his sister, who was smirking knowingly, and Mai, who had a hint of expectation in her eyes.
"Uh, I was actually going to um... go get my things," Zuko floundered, waving his hands. "You know... from the apartment."
Azula's eyes narrowed even further. "Hm, fine, do what you want. But remember, these poor delusional peasants don't know they've been invaded yet, so do try not to set anyone on fire, won't you Zuzu?"
Scowling at the nickname, Zuko stalked past Mai and Ty Lee and out of the room.
"Let me out!"
I pounded on the door of my cell, taking all the hurt and anger and frustration out on that stupid metal door. I banged my fists against it, thrumming with all the fury of a wounded dragon, but the metal did not budge.
"Do you know who I am?!" I screamed out, slamming my hands against the door. "I am the princess of Omashu and I demand you release me immediately!"
"Shut up!" a low voice called in response, and I flinched back as one of the guards kicked my cell. I made a noise of frustration and kicked the door back in response, but that only succeeded in sending a sharp pain flaring up my leg.
Cursing loudly, I hopped up and down on one foot for a while before banging my fists against the door one last time and sliding down the inside, putting my head in my hands in despair.
Deep down, I knew that there was no hope of escaping this prison cell, and that I was only exhausting myself more quickly by banging and making a racket, but it was the only way to distract myself from dwelling on the crushing reality of what had happened. The aching of the bruises that covered my arms and feet were nothing compared to the emotional pain.
I hadn't seen Iroh since the Dai Li had dragged me out of the crystal catacombs and back down into the dungeons below the palace and thrown me in this metal cell. I figured Iroh was in a cell similar to mine, probably nearby, but I hadn't heard or seen him. I hadn't seen anyone except for the firebender guards prowling the area.
I hoped he was okay. Or at least, I hoped he was better than I was. I couldn't shake the look on his face when I'd been carried out, or the look when Zuko-
The pain came flooding back like a tsunami and I pulled my knees to my chest and buried my face between them, trying desperately not to cry, but the tears came anyway. At first, I tried to hold them in, shaking silently as they poured down my face, but finally I let out a big, shuddering gasp and just let myself cry.
How could he just leave us? Sobs wracked my body as I remembered how he'd smiled at me in my new dress, taken my hand as we walked through the palace, the toe-tingling kiss we'd shared in front of the tea shop last night...
How had that all happened in the last twenty four hours? It felt like a lifetime ago. Before she came into the picture. I clenched my fists, a surge of hatred going through me as I pictured Azula's calculating brown eyes and her devilish smirk.
No. It was easy to hate Azula, to blame Azula, too easy. But it hadn't been Azula who had walked out on us, on everything we built and the prosperous, happy life we could have had. It hadn't been Azula who'd left, just abandoned us trapped there, helpless, to go try to kill the Avatar.
Oh, spirits, Aang was dead.
That thought alone brought a fresh wave of tears and I pressed my fist against my mouth, shaking with grief. How... how was any of this possible? How could Zuko, who I thought had become this kind, sweet, if not hilariously dorky, boy that I'd fallen for - how could he just stand by and watch as a twelve year old boy, a child was murdered? How?
The worst part of all of this was, I knew exactly how.
The lure, the temptation, was just too much for him. The possibility of regaining his honor, his father's love and acceptance, meant more to him than the love and acceptance he already had from me and Iroh. I had thought, just maybe, that the happiness we shared for those few days in Ba Sing Se would have been enough for him. Evidently, I was fatally wrong. We weren't enough, I wasn't enough. I never had been.
And somehow, that realization hurt the most of all.
Zuko opened the door into the apartment and it swung forward with an loud creak, causing him to wince slightly. As he stepped into the living area, he couldn't help but notice the melancholy sense of emptiness that hung over the area like a dark cloud. It was ridiculous, the apartment had been occupied and buzzing with life just that morning, but suddenly it seemed deserted and abandoned.
Or maybe that was just Zuko's guilt speaking to him.
Stop it, he told himself firmly. You did what you had to do. Just get your things and get out of here.
Zuko tried to move through the apartment without feeling anything, but really, it was impossible. He passed the window in the living area and remembered the shocked look on Kioni's face when he'd snuck up on her, he walked though the kitchen and remembered the smile on his Uncle's face as they'd shared a pot of jook, and he walked into his bedroom and saw the porch of the tea shop and remembered the sweet kiss he and Kioni had shared.
Groaning with frustration, Zuko slammed a fiery hand into the wall, causing a burn mark to appear on the side of his room.
Sighing to himself, Zuko pulled open his bottom drawer and took out his dao swords, staring at them in his hands for a moment. He twisted them around to grip them, and for a fleeting moment, Zuko wished he'd had the Blue Spirit mask so that he could be someone other than himself.
He paused, surprised by the thought. Why would he want to be someone else? Right now was a great time to be Prince Zuko, heir to the Fire Nation throne. They had just conquered the Earth Kingdom. The war was, by all intents and purposes, won. The Avatar, the constant thorn in Zuko's side for the better part of three years, was gone. He was finally going to go home.
He ought to be ecstatic. Yet all Zuko felt was confusion, and an odd sense of hollowness.
Going home. The idea felt so foreign. What was home even? Obviously, the Fire Nation Royal Palace, with all the splendor and privilege that comes from being a prince. But that hadn't been his home for so long now, so long that he couldn't even remember the person he'd been when he called the palace his home.
Since he'd been banished, he hadn't had a home. Three years, with no place to call his own. But that wasn't true - he'd had his ship. Their apartment in the Lower Ring. Even this apartment. This is where he had a home.
Zuko didn't even realize he was moving until he found himself standing in front of Kioni's bedroom door. Part of himself warned him that this was a bad idea, that he needed to make peace with what he'd done and let it go, but the smaller, more persistent part of him caused him to push open the door lightly.
Her room was relatively clean, and didn't look that lived in - which made sense, considering they'd only lived here for two days. His eyes scanned the room, landing on the small canvas rucksack that carried all of her belongings. Despite himself, he walked over and picked up the sack. The bag was unusually light, and Zuko lifted open the front flap, surprise to see that there was nothing inside.
Puzzled, Zuko tipped the bag over the bed and shook. A tiny, circular disk fell out, bouncing on the bed a few times. Zuko set the bag down on the floor and picked up the object, turning it over in his hand, and his eyes widened when he saw what it was.
In his hand rested a white lotus tile.
Kioni's butterfly swords lay in their case under the bag, and Zuko picked the case up as well, pulling the swords out and rolling them over in his hands. They were smaller and shorter than his, almost like very long daggers rather than swords, but they worked nearly the same - two parts of a whole, never really functioning unless they were together. He twisted them in his hands again, recalling the time when he and Kioni had sparred, and he thought that she was almost - almost going to kiss him.
That had been before. Before Jin, before the kiss, before everything. Zuko sat down hard on the bed as he was flooded with memories of confessions screamed at him in a darkened cave by a face distraught with hurt and betrayal.
Had it really been true? Was it even possible that she was about to say what he had been thinking?
He recalled Azula's words - that Kioni was only playing him, was trying to orchestrate the destruction of the Fire Nation through him. In a practical way, it made sense. It was a solid, strategic plan. The scariest part was, before the events of the day, Zuko felt like it might have worked. He felt like he might have been able to do anything for her.
But no - it couldn't be, could it? She couldn't have actually loved him? Zuko hadn't felt what it was like to be loved since his mother disappeared. It was an emotion so distanced from him, he didn't even know what it meant anymore.
Clutching his hand, Zuko let out a growl of frustration. This was going to drive him crazy. He had to find out what Kioni meant by that, otherwise he might never have a moment's peace again.
I wiped my eyes, finally having exhausted myself after a good long cry. Surprisingly, I felt slightly better - or maybe just not as awful. The tense pit in my stomach loosened slightly, and the pain had faded from a sharp sting that demanded to be felt to a duller, aching throb.
"Kioni."
I froze, lifting my head as dread settled throughout my body. No, it couldn't be, this isn't happening.
"Kioni, are you-"
I scrambled away from the door until my back hit the edge of the other wall, and when I looked up, I saw the last person I wanted to see peering through the bars of my metal cage. His eyes widened when they landed on me, and I imagined how I must have looked - loose, disheveled hair, grimy face, torn and burnt clothes.
Too bad I didn't care.
I turned my face away from him resolutely, refusing to let him see me cry, especially not over him.
"Kioni," Zuko began again, almost earnestly. "If you hadn't... if you hadn't fought, if you had run... you could have-"
Despite my resolution to not look at him, I couldn't help swiveling around to stare at him incredulously. Was he actually being serious right now?
"I could have what, Zuko?!" I burst out, standing. Zuko took a step back, his face surprised through the bars. "I could have escaped into the city, only to be captured later by your sister's soliders? I could have left with Katara? And then what? That doesn't change the fact that you betrayed me!"
"I didn't have a choice!" Zuko protested. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"Of course you had a choice!" I yelled, my heart twisting in my chest. "You could've chosen not to follow your sister! You could've chosen not to stand by as as she killed Aang! You could've chosen a life where you were happy, where we were all happy, here, in Ba Sing Se! You could've chosen to stay with the people who actually cared about you! You could've chosen me!"
Zuko was silent, and I looked down at the floor, my hands shaking.
"But you didn't," I said quietly, mostly to myself. "You chose to leave this place behind, after all the good things that have happened here. You chose to leave me and Uncle behind, aftereverything we've done for you. You chose your sister, and your father, and to go back to the nation that banished you in the first place. I'll tell you this, Zuko: you chose wrong. I hope he's worth it."
With that, I turned away from him, refusing to let him see the tears spilling over my eyes.
"Did you really mean it?" Zuko asked softly after a few minutes of silence. "What you... what you almost said to me back there?"
I squeezed my eyes shut and bit my lip so I hard I drew blood, praying to all the spirits to remain strong.
"Please, Kioni," he begged, and I heard him grip the metal bars of my cage. "I need to know."
I stayed silent, not turning around.
"Fine!" Zuko cried, stepping away. "Don't tell me! Rot in that cell for all I care!"
He stomped away angrily, and I slid down against the wall again, shaking with tears. I gasped out a breath as I cried, the warring emotions battling inside me so strong I felt like I was going to be ripped apart from the inside.
I never want to see you again.
Please don't ever leave me.
Get away from me.
I love you.
Zuko stomped away from Kioni's cell, his fists clenched with anger and confusion. She didn't understand anything! She never had, she only pretended to care about him when he stopped being Fire Nation, she never actually cared about who he was truly.
But she said she loved you, a voice in his head whispered. And you left her.
Growling with frustration, Zuko clutched his head and shook it furiously, trying to rid himself of these confusing thoughts. Why did everything always have to be so complicated? As he walked through the dungeon and back towards the door, Zuko overheard some guards talking near where Azula said his uncle was being held.
"I can't believe General Iroh is a prisoner now. A member of the royal family - Fire Lord Ozai's own brother!"
"I know. I served under his command during the first siege. He was a great leader and a great man..."
Zuko whirled around furiously to glare at the two Fire Nation soldiers standing guard. "You two don't know what you're talking about!" he yelled. "General Iroh is a traitor to his country!"
"Please, forgive us, Prince Zuko, I-"
I betrayed Uncle.
No, Zuko, he betrayed you.
You betrayed me!
"Get back to work!" he roared, shooting a fireball at their feet. The soliders yelped and leapt back as Zuko stormed out the dungeon door, slamming it hard behind him.
He stormed all the way back to the throne room, where Azula was still lounging on the Earth King's throne. She had changed into her typical Fire Nation wear, which left Zuko feeling rather out of place. There had been some red clothes laid out for him in the room he was staying in, but when he put them on, he just felt... strange. Like he didn't belong.
"Zuzu, what a pleasant surprise," she drawled when she saw him. Zuko clenched his fists, hidden in his sleeves. Agni, how he hated that name. Which was exactly why Azula insisted on calling him that. "I've finished the arrangements for our trip back to the Fire Nation - we'll be gone by tomorrow night."
Zuko stepped back, reeling. Tomorrow night? That was so... soon.
"But you're the leader of Ba Sing Se now," he said, trying to understand. "You would really give up control of this whole city?"
"Don't worry, dear brother," Azula smiled maliciously. "I've found the perfect person to leave in charge - someone who will execute the Fire Lord's will mercilessly and without question."
Azula gestured behind her, and a woman dressed in green with vacant eyes and a garishly bright smile stepped into view. "Supreme Bureaucratic Administrator Joo Dee!"
"The Earth Nation humbly accepts this opportunity to serve the great and powerful Fire Nation," Joo Dee smiled, her voice intoning at strange points and sounding strangely monotone yet bubbly at the same time. "Care for a mint?" She thrust a bowl of mints in Zuko's face and he stepped back warily.
Zuko blinked in confusion at the grinning woman in front of him. "You're... not Joo Dee," he said slowly, watching the woman apprehensively. He didn't remember all the details of the woman who had escorted them in to 'serve tea', but he recalled her name was Joo Dee and she certainly wasn't the woman standing in front of him now.
"What are you talking about?" Joo Dee let out a tinkling laugh. "Of course I'm Joo Dee!"
"I..." Zuko started in bewilderment, but Azula cut him off.
"Ba Sing Se will be safe in her care," Azula smiled, satisfied. "And we can personally deliver our uncle, the traitor, back to the Fire Nation."
"You don't need me for that," Zuko said suddenly, causing Azula to turn to stare at him in surprise. "I'm staying here."
Azula's eyebrows twitched slightly; she hadn't been expecting that. "Zuko, now that we've defeated the Avatar, Father will welcome you as a hero. You're the Fire Prince again, and you'll have your old life back."
"I already said, I'm not going with you!" Zuko shouted, before turning on his heel and storming off again.
Azula watched him, her lips pulled downwards into a frown. What was with Zuko lately? She knew he'd always been moody and temperamental, but it seemed to be so much worse. Ever since he'd returned from Iroh's pathetic tea shop... Azula stopped in her train of thought, her mouth pulling down further into a scowl. She had a sneaking suspicion about what made Zuko so reluctant to leave Ba Sing Se.
Well, she thought, staring after the spot where her brother had left. That can be easily fixed.
"Ty Lee!" Azula yelled, slamming open the door to the Ty Lee's room. "Stop what you're doing and listen to me!"
Ty Lee looked up from her vanity, where she had been brushing her hair, her gray eyes wide with confusion. Of course she's sitting at the vanity, Azula thought, rolling her eyes.
"My brother is being difficult, as usual," Azula sighed, sitting down on Ty Lee's bed. "He refuses to come back to the Fire Nation with us, and I suspect his attachment to Ba Sing Se has something to do with that horrible Earth Kingdom girl he was hanging around."
"The princess?" Ty Lee questioned, her eyes going wide, and Azula's hand clenched, her claw-like nails digging into the bedspread. "Why, were she and Zuko dating or something?"
"A princess of a conquered nation is no longer a princess," Azula hissed, and Ty Lee's eyes widened further. "And I have a feeling something happened between her and my brother... he's not going to tell me what though."
"I thought you already threw her in prison though," Ty Lee said.
"I did, but apparently, keeping her in Ba Sing Se is no longer an option..." Azula drifted off in thought for a moment, her eyes focused on something behind Ty Lee's head. Confused, Ty Lee turned, but there was nothing there.
"Anyway!" Azula straigtened. "Clearly this needs to be dealt with more, ah, delicately, so I've decided we need some extra persuasion to make Zuko to come back with us. We know that Mai and Zuko had childhood crushes on each other..."
"Totally!" Ty Lee giggled, perking up.
"...so let's get them reacquainted," Azula finished.
"How do we do that?" Ty Lee asked, all wide eyed innocence.
"As always, just follow my lead," Azula smirked. "I have a plan."
Zuko walked into the royal gardens, following the bright lights he could see a few feet ahead of him. According to Azula, they were supposed to have dinner with some admiral who would be escorting them back home or something like that, but the devilish light in her eyes told Zuko that she was planning something else. He didn't know exactly what, but that certainly didn't stop him from being on guard.
As he walked closer, he could see a red canopy with lanterns hanging down from the edges, and a white clothed table underneath it. He approached, looking suspiciously at the candles on the table and the steaming dishes of food laid out. Zuko heard footsteps and looked up to see Mai approaching.
"Where is everyone?" Mai asked as she walked up to him. "Azula told me that Admiral Liang was visiting and wanted to join us for dinner. All of us."
"She told me the same thing, Mai," Zuko frowned. "She's up to something..."
Mai pursed her lips and glanced down at the spread in front of them. "Well, the food doesn't look that awful. I guess we shouldn't let it go to waste."
Zuko shrugged, and both he and Mai pulled out the cushions and sat down, starting to eat. "Hmm, almost tastes like Fire Nation food," Zuko mused as he took a bite of dumpling. "Just isn't seasoned enough."
As the two continued eating, the strains of music reached their ears. Zuko tilted his head slightly to see a Dai Li agent playing the yuequin - and quite badly at that. He gritted his teeth and reached for another dishing, lifting the lid to see meatballs and dumplings.
Zuko froze.
As his mind whirled with memories, the broken, discordant notes of the Dai Li agent split the air. "Can you please stop that?" Zuko shouted, causing the Dai Li agent to flinch back. "You're giving me a headache!"
"Sorry," the agent said sheepishly. "I haven't practiced in a while."
Zuko scowled as the Dai Li agent walked away, his head hanging, and his scowl grew even deeper as he heard some very familiar and distinctive snickering and giggling coming from behind one of the bushes.
"I know you're back there, Azula!" he cried, standing up. Agni, sometimes Zuko really did not know what was wrong with his sister. "Don't you have something more important to do?"
There was a pause, and then Azula rose from behind the bush, looking as dignified as she possibly could. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said haughtily, brushing imaginary dirt off her robes. "I was just telling Ty Lee to stop messing around in the bushes. It's undignified."
"Hey!" Ty Lee protested, jumping up next to Azula.
Zuko rolled his eyes so fiercely it felt like they would pop out of his head. "Let's get out of here," Mai muttered next to him, and he shot her a grateful look.
"Good idea," he replied, and the two of them walked off. Just before they exited the palace garden, Zuko looked over his shoulder to glare at his sister, who assembled her face in a look of innocence that didn't fool anybody. As soon as Zuko turned his back again, Azula smirked.
All according to plan, she thought.
"Ugh." Mai made a face as she glanced at one of the food stalls that was displaying fresh fish, her nose scrunching up in disgust at the smell that wafted through the Middle Ring market place. "Do people actually eat any of this?"
She turned to Zuko, questioning and condescending, and he heard the unspoken question. Did you actually live like this?
"It's not so bad once you get used to it," he replied truthfully, not knowing why he was defending Earth Kingdom food when he had complained about it to Kioni so many times before hand. Mai raised her eyebrows, but before she could speak, another voice rang through the air.
"Lee! Is that you?"
Zuko froze as Mai glanced over her shoulder curiously, and his eyes closed briefly as he cringed at the familiar voice. "Lee, I can't believe it! It's been so long," Jin gushed as she approached them, and Zuko turned around with a nervous look on his face.
"Lee?" Mai smirked from beside him, looking heavily amused. Jin turned towards her, her face flickering with surprise.
"Who's this?"
"Oh.. hi Jin..." Zuko said, scratching the back of his head. "Um... er... this is my friend, from... from the circus!" Zuko let out a tiny breath of relief. "Yeah, she's the knife thrower." He could practically feel the skepticism radiating off Mai, but he kept his gaze fixed on the confused girl in front of him.
"But... what happened to Aria?" Jin asked. Zuko tensed up and Mai's eyebrows rose even higher.
"W-what?"
"I don't know, I thought you two were sort of an item," Jin continued, looking innocently perplexed. Mai crossed her arms over her chest, her mouth tugging down into a frown. Who wasAria?
"She... I..." Zuko stammered, freezing up. "Uh, she's not... here," he coughed out finally, looking down at the ground. Jin's face softened in understanding, or at least what she thought she understood.
"I'm sorry it didn't work out," she said gently. "If it helps, I thought you two were really cute together." Zuko glanced up in surprise and confusion before he realized - she thought Kioni had broken up with him or something. The thought caused the pit in his stomach to tighten.
Jin clearly thought the topic was too painful for Zuko to talk about (which wasn't entirely false), so she turned to Mai, a smile lighting her face. "So, knife throwing, huh?" she inquired in a much brighter tone than before.
"Oh, yes," Mai replied slyly, despite the feelings of annoyance creeping up in her. "I can show you, if you like. Go and stand over there, Lee."
"Wha-" Before Zuko could speak, Mai put two hands on his back and shoved him in the direction of of the fountain in the center of the square. As Zuok stumbled in front of the fountain, he glanced up and realized with a jolt that it was the fountain - the Firelight Fountain. He hardly recognized it when the square was so bustling with activity.
"Ha, I hope she's better at throwing knives than you are at juggling!" Jin laughed from her spot and Mai shot her a quick smirk over her shoulder.
"Hmm, still not quite right." Mai put a hand on her chin and mused theatrically, while Zuko's brain was still trying to catch up with the events of the last few minutes. Suddenly, Mai's hand darted out, quick as a flash, grabbed a fish from one of the stalls and dropped it on Zuko's head with a large plop! "Much better," she grinned before walking a distance away.
She broke off an icicle from the cart that was keeping the fish cold and twirled it around in her wrist, eyeing Zuko in a way that made him wonder whether keeping quiet about the whole Kioni thing was really a good idea. Of course, it had seemed like a good idea until about two minutes ago, when Mai was fingering an potentially lethal weapon and eyeing him.
"You see, it's all the wrist, really," she smirked. Jin's eyes widened with fear behind her, and Zuko gulped, closing his eyes, praying that Mai wouldn't try to miss because he knew her and knew the only way she would miss was if she was trying to.
Mai threw the icicle and it flew through the air, piercing the fish on top of Zuko's head and pinning it to the rim of the fountain behind him with a disgusting squishing noise. Behind her, Jin's hands flew to her mouth in awe.
"Wow! That was amazing!"
"Wanna try, Jin?" Mai asked, handing her an icicle. "It's really not that hard," she lied, smirking, and Zuko's eyes widened as she turned her smirk on him.
"Oh!" Jin looked surprised for a second. "No, I couldn't possibly..." She glanced down at the icicle with curiosity. "Well, maybe just one."
"Hey, wait-" Zuko started, but before he could finish, Jin threw the icicle at him. Panicking as the icicle flew directly towards his face, Zuko ducked out of the way as the icicle skimmed his shoulder and hit the spot where his nose had been seconds before.
Unfortunately, in his mad scramble, Zuko slipped on a patch of water and tumbled directly into the fountain with a large splash.
He struggled into a sitting position, sputtering, and pushed the wet hair out of his eyes to Mai smirking at him, one hand on the fountain's edge. Behind her, Jin had her hands over her mouth again, looking distinctly embarrassed but also like she was trying hard not to laugh.
"Now we're even," Mai grinned, looking supremely smug and Zuko was thrown for a loop as he recalled what she was referring to. When he had been around nine or ten, Azula had forced him to join a game with Mai and Ty Lee, where Azula had put an apple on top of Mai's head and then shot a flame at it, lighting it on fire. Zuko had panicked and pushed Mai into the fountain to stop her from catching fire, which made both Azula and Ty Lee laugh and make fun of them.
He couldn't believe Mai actually remembered that.
Zuko opened his mouth to speak, but Mai's eyes gleamed with amusement and she took off, laughing. Both surprised and annoyed, Zuko pushed himself out of the fountain. "Hey, wait!"
"I'm so sorry!" Jin called after him as he ran after Mai, his wet footsteps squishing on the ground every time his feet touched the stone.
"Are you crazy!?" he yelled after Mai, who tore down the alleyway, chortling with glee. "You could've gotten me killed!"
"Whatever, Lee," she tossed back at him, grinning.
"Just... wait up a second!" Zuko caught up to her and grabbed her arm, tugging her lightly to a stop. Mai halted and turned to him, her eyes suddenly soft and vulnerable. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and glanced up at him shyly, her cheeks coloring slightly in the darkened alley.
Zuko stopped also, his cheeks becoming rather warm. "You finally seem to be enjoying yourself," he said, looking away and fidgeting with his hands. Mai's hand came up and covered one of his, causing him to freeze and tense slightly.
"Maybe I finally have something to enjoy," she replied softly, gazing at him expectantly. Zuko fidgeted even more, feeling uncomfortable.
"Mai..." he started, looking away uncertainly. "A lot has changed since the days when you used to throw mud in my face." Mai's lips quirked upwards slightly, and she turned Zuko towards her, putting a hand on his cheek.
"Not everything has to change, Zuko," she whispered.
Zuko closed his eyes, torn. On one hand, it felt wrong to be doing this when days ago he'd been feeling so strongly about another girl, a girl who was now sitting in a prison cell because of him. On the other hand... what's done was done. Zuko couldn't take back what he had done, and he didn't want to (did he?). His life was great.
That part of your life is over, he told himself when Kioni's face flashed in front of his closed eyelids. You need to let go, and move on. It does no good to dwell on the past, not when your future looks so bright.
So he leaned forward and allowed Mai to kiss him, wondering if he kept telling himself that, he would eventually believe it.
"Get up, dirt-eater."
My eyes flickered open and I covered them with a groan as the soldier prodded me with his boot again. The moment I sat up, still groggy with sleep, handcuffs snapped around my wrists, pulling them behind my back.
"Hey!" I protested as I was yanked upwards, stumbling to my feet. "What's going on?" The soldier marched me out of my cage and through the dungeons, and I glared at him, fully awake now.
It was surprising I'd even managed to sleep at all, but after nearly thirty six hours of being awake, the emotional and physical trauma of the day had started to take its toll and I'd falled into a restless slumber, punctuated by flickering dreams of sweetness and heartbreak, of love and of loss.
"We're leaving," the guard answered gruffly, his voice muffled by that idiotic looking metal mask covering his face. "Back to the Fire Nation for you."
"The Fire Nation?" I cried, my mind reeling. I was sure I was going to spend the rest of my days locked up in Ba Sing Se; suddenly, that seemed like the more inviting option.
"Princess Azula's orders," the guard added, giving me harsh shove forward, as I had stopped moving in my shock. I yelped quietly as I stumbled, shooting a vicious glare back at him, which he ignored. Well, I assumed he ignored it, but I couldn't actually see his facial expression behind the mask.
I squinted against the harsh light as we stepped out of the dungeon and walked through the palace grounds. I had completely lost track of the time of day, being locked up in that dark dungeon for almost two days, so I was surprised to see daylight when I stepped out. The sun was just starting to set over the horizon, and I realized I must have been asleep throughout most of the day.
The guard marched me through the streets of the Upper Ring, drawing many shocked and confused looks from the citizens walking around. I wondered how much the citizens of Ba Sing Se knew about the coup - judging by the frightened glances and hushed whispers that followed us - not very much.
Finally we reached a station, and my guard shoved me aggressively into the train, causing me to stumble into my seat. Having my arms chained behind my back did not do any wonders for my sense of balance, so I awkwardly tipped into the seat and then flopped down. Embarrassed and angry, I glared at the soldier, but he remained impassive behind the mask.
We were just about to take off when a gruff voice called from outside, "Hold up! One more prisoner for the train!"
My eyes widened as Iroh walked through the doors, his arms chained behind his back. He looked... well, to be honest, he looked bored and vaguely annoyed, as if he was attending a lecture by a particularly idiotic professor and not being dragged off to prison. This comforted me slightly - Iroh didn't look frightened like I felt.
His eyes scanned the train compartment, growing only the slightest amount when they landed on me. The only open seat was next to me (no Fire Nation soldier wanted to sit next to a dirt-eater), so Iroh's guard led him to the seat and shoved him forward. Unlike me, Iroh kept his balace and sat down serenely on the seat, only the tiniest tightening of his brows giving away his anger.
I wanted to say something to him, so badly, but I knew that anything we said would be heard by the soliders and probably used against us in some way. Still, Iroh's presence beside me was comforting.
As the train started and the rumbling and creaking of the train moving along the pathways started, Iroh leaned in the slightest amount and whispered to me out of the corner of his mouth, "How are you doing, Kioni?"
"I.." I'm fine, I wanted to say, but the words caught in my throat. Something about the softness and concern in Iroh's voice drew the truth out of me. "I'm afraid, Uncle."
"Don't worry, child," Iroh replied quietly. "Everything will be all right."
I thought of Aang's broken body falling through the air, of Katara's tearful and disbelieving face, of that determined light in Zuko's eyes as he was fighting the Avatar, so foreign and yet so terribly, awfully familiar... I didn't know what words I would have used to describe what I was feeling or thinking, but all right definitely wouldn't be included.
"How do you know?"
Iroh was silent for a bit, turning his head to gaze out the window as the rolling plains and hills of the Ba Sing Se countryside zoomed past us. "Everything will be all right in the end," he said finally, his voice soft with wisdom and sadness. "If it's not all right, it is not yet the end."
I opened my mouth to reply, but the next second, the guard snapped, "Hey! No talking!"
Iroh shot such a glare at the guard that I nearly recoiled myself. Yikes. I could see why people were afraid of the Dragon of the West; the only reason I couldn't see that guard's fear was probably because his face was hidden behind his mask.
We finally reached the end of the track, and Iroh's guard pushed him out first before the rest of the soldiers followed. My guard stood behind me again as I trudged slowly off the platform, my wrists starting to ache with the weight of the chains.
"Keep moving, peasant," the guard barked, kicking the back of my ankle and causing me to trip. I let out a cry as I landed hard on my knees, barely adjusting my body weight to keep from face-planting into the ground. The soldiers around me snickered and I seethed furiously as I pulled myself upright again.
"That's princess to you, you disgusting oaf," I snapped back. "Show some respect." For a second, the guard's eyes narrowed through the slits in his mask, and I thought he was going to hit me or something, but he merely grunted and shoved at my back to get me to start walking again.
"You ain't princess of nothing anymore," he replied as we walked through the Outer Wall. I could see the docks in the distance, and the lines of Fire Nation boats. "In fact, where you're headed, you'd best keep that title quiet if y'know what's good for you."
"Why? Where am I headed?" I demanded. The guard let out a low chuckle.
"Like I'd tell you anything," he smirked. "But you ain't gonna be so mouthy after a couple weeks in that place, I can tell you that."
I shoved down the spike of fear that ran through me, the tiny part of my brain that cowered and pleaded for them to let me go, and instead continued to walk straight-backed to the docks and towards my sentence.
"Awww, look Ty Lee!" Azula smirked, as Mai walked towards them, pulling Zuko along by the hand. "The two lovebirds have gotten back together!"
"They are, like, totally adorable!" Ty Lee squealed obediently. Zuko resisted the urge to roll his eyes, but it was quite difficult.
As the two of them approached Azula and Ty Lee, Mai tugged him to a stop, turning to face him. "So, are you coming with us?" she asked, her eyes unusually soft. "With me?"
Zuko faltered, the uncertainty prickling over his skin again. "I... I'd like to, Mai," he fumbled. "I'm just not sure I..."
"Look at those poor, unfortunate souls," Azula cut him off, and Zuko turned to glare at her, but stopped as he realized who she was looking at.
Guards were leading both Kioni and his uncle up the gangplank of the ship his sister and her friends would be boarding, chains dragging behind them. Zuko froze in his tracks, unable to take his eyes of them.
"I wonder if they'll even survive the trip home," Azula continued, sounding more amused than concerned.
Kioni turned her head suddenly, as if she could sense him staring. She met his eye, causing Zuko to inhale quietly, and then her eyes flicked downwards and widened. She glanced up at him again, and Zuko's breath caught in his throat at the shock and hurt there; it took him a second to realize what she must have seen - the close proximity with which he and Mai were standing, not to mention their linked hands, pointed in a pretty obvious direction.
Something in Zuko clenched painfully at the look in Kioni's eyes - normally those green orbs were bright with emotion, whether it be happiness, amusement, or even anger, but now they just looked dulled with pain.
"Well, we must be going," Azula said, seemingly oblivious to the exchange. "I suggest you bid farewell to your girlfriend, brother."
"No," Zuko replied, his voice coming out surprisingly strong. He didn't take his eyes off the spot his uncle and Kioni had been, even when they disappeared through the entrance of the ship. "I... I'm coming with you. I'm going back to the Fire Nation."
Unseen to her brother, Azula's mouth curved in a triumphant smirk.
"Do what you want Zuzu," she said nonchalantly she boarded the ship, Ty Lee following her and Mai and Zuko bringing up the rear. "It's your decision."
This chapter is based on the Avatar comic Going Home Again, which is a part of the Lost Adventures and basically takes place between books 2 and 3. I just used it as a base to deal with some of the aftermath of Crossroads and also set things up for book 3.
~~ Character and Maiko analysis below ~~
So happy-cheerful Zuko is gone and angsty!Zuko is back! Poor little Zu-zu. You see a bit of his confusion here about whether or not Kioni actually loved him. I think this would have been very hard for Zuko to believe, because honestly, he's not used to people loving him, and even less used to people expressing that love. So you can see why it would throw him for a bit of a loop.
He's convinced himself (or at least tried to) that she didn't mean it, and that she was playing him and didn't actually love him. Azula planted this idea in his head, but I think Zuko's latched onto it because it's easier for him to believe that than believe that she loved him and he betrayed her. So he's convinced himself that that part of his life is done, which brings us to Mai.
Ahh, Maiko. I actually really like Mai as a character. The first time I watched the series, I hated her. But then as I continued to rewatch it and see it from an analytical point of view, I grew to realize what an awesome badass she actually is.
I think Zuko and Mai really like each other. I do. I think there's a lot of affection between them, due to their lingering childhood crushes and the fact that Mai was the only one really there for him when he came back to the Fire Nation. But I don't think it's love, and I don't think it would have lasted. Maybe if Zuko hadn't been banished, they would have worked out nicely, but he was, and he has changed a lot in the past three years.
I just feel like Mai knows the person Zuko was and doesn't really know who he is now, and vice versa as well. We don't get that much Mai development in the show, but I can definitely believe she has changed immensely in the three years Zuko was banished. I think they would grow apart eventually because they're just not compatible anymore.
(Also? He threw her in jail? And he looked surprised when she showed up before the coronation which means he wasn't expecting her, so I am just wondering... did Zuko just forget Mai in jail? If someone has an answer to this, please let me know, because it's been bugging me.)
So why did I have Zuko get back together with Mai anyway? Simple. He's confused, he's lonely, and Mai is there. Is Zuko using her to get over Kioni? Maybe a little bit. Okay, maybe a lot. But they do genuinely like each other at this point, so there will be a bit of Maiko in book 3.
Thoughts? It was strange writing from a comic instead of an episode, I must admit, but I kind of like it. It gives me more freedom in terms of elaboration on certain scenes. I hope you liked it~
Next up: The Awakening.