"To my reader, I will preface this work by saying that I tried to poke a little fun at the Zucest trope through moments of teasing between the two characters, however I assure you, this will not be a Zucest ramble!
Again, I'd love to hear your reviews and thoughts, and I thank you for the time you give as you read this.
I will forewarn the reader of elements of suicide and self-harm present within this short story, and if you are sensitive to such content, it would be best that you tread carefully," -Sean A.
She approached the palace, in a long and hooded robe, her stride gently moving along in the night as the lanterns illuminated the entirety of the capitol city. She made no rush to get to the gates, but as she stood before the guards, the four present at the door stepped forward to block her off from the door. She stood still for a solid minute before slowly removing her hood, and as she did, each of the guards immediately recoiled, an officer demanding her arrest. Their pikes were forced out, placed to her neck in an instant. She slowly raised her hands as a sign of surrender, but even the sight of her hands was enough to cause the guards to tremble in their armor. Soon enough she was surrounded on all sides by eight guards, placing the tips of their spears to her neck. The officer stepped forward to identify her, taking her by the face and observing her from all sides.
"Gentlemen! Take her into custody," the officer demanded. The soldiers stood still as he looked around at them.
"Now!" the captain demanded as they immediately lunged forward, stripped her of her robes and searched her from head to toe, parting her with her bag that was over her shoulders before. They fitted her with cuffs and fist restraints around her ankles and wrists, gagged her, and placed a dark bag over her head. She complied, her body nearly limp except to keep her standing. She spoke nothing and posed no form of opposition in the slightest. They dragged her into the courtyard and surrounded the yard itself with members of the guard, men filing in from all parts of the palace according to strict protocol. They were prepared for this. She was brought to her knees in the courtyard, and lowered by her neck, three guards placing the tips of their spears as she kneeled, curling over herself. She remained silent and unmoving. A voice came out of the background.
"What is so important that you have to wake me right now?" he asked.
"There has arisen an incident at the gates sire!" The captain iterated.
"What happened?" he asked, rubbing his eyes. It was but three hours into the morning.
"Someone has made their presence known from the most-wanted list my lord!" the captain assured him.
"Who?!" Zuko pushed.
"We need you to confirm my lord!" he said, directing his lord over to the figure kneeling over in the courtyard, "She has been compliant as far as this point," he said.
She… there could only be one so cunning to provoke the guards into such fear. The hairs on Zuko's neck stood on their ends and he broke out into a cold sweat for a moment.
"I'll take care of it," Zuko asserted with a low voice, "Call of the guards," he said.
"But sir-"
"Call off the guard!" Zuko asserted as the captain motioned. The guards present swiftly exited the courtyard and reentered the palace again. Zuko was the only one present, save for yu yen archers present on the rooftops surrounding the open courtyard. Their arrows knocked and readied for deployment, lowering their aim as the firelord stepped into the firing line.
Zuko approached the figure knelt over, and took a knee before her. He knew who it was… he could tell just by the way she breathed. He slowly removed the bag, untying the gag, releasing her hair to fall in front of her.
"I've been so worried about you," he said.
"Have you really… Zuzu?"
Ursa entered the firelord's chamber. Zuko had assured her time and again that she needn't kneel before him. He loved his mother, and asserted that she is still his dear mother, firelord or not, but regardless of this matter, she knelt as she appeared before him.
"Mom," he said, standing to meet her. He hugged her and held her for a moment.
"Zuko, my darling son, what is this I've been hearing?" she asked. Zuko looked off into the distance with a stare for a thousand miles.
"She's here," he said. The two words alone made her gasp lightly. Her demeanor changed to one of fear as she folded her hands before her, "She's been cooperative, and hasn't moved since she has arrived. We have her held in the basement right now, and she is being watched twenty-four-seven," he iterated. She shook her head.
"You know how dangerous she is… you know how I fear her," Ursa uttered.
"I know," he said, "But it's better she be right here where I can watch her every hour of the day than to let her loose outside these walls," Zuko assured her.
"What if she hurts Kiyi?" she demanded. Zuko held his mother and sighed for a moment, looking her back in the eye.
"If she so much as moves but an inch toward Kiyi…" he began. He shut his eyes and paused.
"…What is it?" she asked, placing her hands on the sides of his face.
"…I will end her… for good," he said softly, "and she will know this." Ursa took a deep breath, opening her eyes to see her son's silhouette, dwarfed by the flames having risen as he spoke to her.
"I fear for you too, you know," she said to him, kissing him on the forehead, "I love you, Zuko," she said. He sighed in response for a moment.
"I love you too, mom… I will take care of this," he said, "For now I will have you, Ikem, and Kiyi watched every hour of the day. I won't be taking any chances here," he asserted. Ursa nodded, kissing him on top of his head again before nodding and leaving his presence.
Zuko entered, passing the team of guards who parted as he opened the door to her room, and hearing the door close to her room, she opened her eyes.
"Wake up," he demanded.
"Can't this wait for the morning?" she asked, sitting up.
"It can't," he asserted again. She sat up on her bed, smirking and stretching out, yawning sweetly as she watched him cross the room to where she sat over the edge of her bed.
"What could you possibly need at this hour Koko?" she asked.
"Why are you here?" he asked.
"I thought this was home… isn't this my room?" she asked coquettishly, looking around at all of the facets of the room.
"You know what I mean," he pushed, "Why are you here, Now?"
"I've spent all these last few years on Ember Island getting all better," she teased, "I just felt a little homesick is all," she said to him.
"I made sure to put the guards there on high alert for you," he said.
"Have you ever known the guard to be that competent Zuzu?" she asked. He rolled his eyes for a moment.
"I've tried to care about you before. I've tried to help things get better between us, but you're always pulling new tricks and trying to hurt the people that I love," he said somberly.
"What makes you think I need help?" she asked.
He groaned aloud, facepalming…
"I can't risk it this time," he said, the mood of the room began to change, and she felt it herself.
"I've spent hours upon hours, training, meditating, studying, and honing my skills for when you decided to show up next… I've even learned to create lightning of my own," he said.
"Wow that's excellent! I'm so proud of you," she teased. His head lowered.
"…If you make one move… one small slip in the wrong direction," he began, his voice getting lower and hoarse, "I will end you, in an instant," he asserted, turning to her and looking her in the eye. Her facial expression changed, seeing him this way. She looked off to the side.
"I'm better, Zuzu…" she said, "Don't you still have any hope for me?" she asked. He shut his eyes for a moment and sighed, turning to leave from the room. He bursts through the doors, mirage emerging from his shoulders.
The sun had risen, and he broke for the midmorning, sipping at a cup of jasmine within the garden. Footsteps crunched through fallen, autumn leaves behind him. He knew them. He paused for a moment, gently placing the cup down on the miniature brewing table before him, and decanting a new cup of tea for his guest. She sat down on the opposite side, taking the cup. He looked away, off to the side of the garden.
"…I can't tell you how worried I was about you," he broke the silence with, "I spent a lot of nights thinking about where you slept, and how you'd been getting by," he said to her.
"You don't think I can take care of myself, do you know me at all?" she poked. She looked at him with a tilted head, eying the image of his face in the midmorning sun. His eyes had sunk into his skull, bordered by bags beneath them. The color of his face had gradually dissipated, turning his skin translucent with time. It appeared as if he hadn't shaven in the last few days, and thus his facial hair emerged, slightly patchy in some parts.
"Zuzu, you don't look so good," she said, the hairs on his arms stood up hearing this, and he felt knots work their way up his neck as he shuddered, "You haven't slept or eaten at all these last few days have you?" she asked.
"No," he said beneath his breath, still looking off in the distance.
"How have you been these last few years?" she asked.
"Awful," he responded curtly.
"That bad?" she snickered with a raised eyebrow.
"Everyone hates me, including the fire nation," he said to her. He hadn't picked up his tea at all yet.
"How are things with Mai?" she asked. His demeanor dropped as she asked this, "Oof, that bad?" she poked. He rolled his eyes.
"She hasn't spoken to me in a few years. I've tried sending letters to check on her, but she hasn't returned any of them," he responded.
"That's cold… even for me," she said. He shook his head, "I'm sure you're doing just fine Zuzu," she assured him, sipping her tea.
She entered the Firelord's chambers that day as he led meetings and addressed the petitions of the citizens. He looked incredibly bored, but whispered over to a servant of his, who placed a pedestal beside him. She smirked, climbing the stage to be seated, closely beside him.
A governor enters with intentions to petition a matter, "Lord Zuko; I have come on behalf of the western provinces of the fire nation to demand you cease this taxation on imports. There is not enough money in our commerce to sustain this levy!" the governor raises. Zuko remains silent amidst the man's complaint.
"I will have to rally a union of organizations to boycott this taxation in protest if you do not halt these tariffs!" he pushed again. Zuko continued silently as Azula looked over. She leaned over to whisper in his ear.
"He is a smuggler. A halt in tariffs would mean his ships won't be searched," she uttered softly. He looked over to her with a raised eyebrow. He looked to the complainant, observing his tattoos on his arms and neck. He squinted.
"The taxes will remain, and I will have your ships searched at once for illegal contraband!" Zuko rose. All of the color drained from the man's face as he lightly nodded and strode out into the corridor as the message made it's way through his advisors to customs. The man broke into a full sprint down the hallway, getting out of the palace at once, but hawks travel faster than feet. Azula giggled for a moment, as he continued to stare forward.
Zuko broke out of his chamber to rest for the afternoon. He sat outside in the courtyard, where the fountains sprayed, and he often found himself beside the turtle duck pond. Ursa had just left to walk Kiyi home from the academy per her usual day routine. Azula sat next to him. He looked over to see her at the edge of the pond as the ducks began to approach them.
"Don't hurt them," he demanded, "We like the turtle ducks."
"I'm not going to hurt them," she said, tearing off a piece of stale bread and laying it at the edge of the pond where the ducks reached their little heads over the edge sideways. He looked clearly relieved as she did this gently. Azula looked over to him as he stared down at the ducks, feeding them from his hand and petting their delicate heads as they approached him. He watched her closely. These ducks were too young to remember her, and frankly, most of them seemed to like her, approaching her and scrounging around for bread crumbs in her hands. She giggled at the feeling. She looked over to him, staring aimlessly at the pond.
"What's troubling you, brother?" she asked.
"Just some stuff about the meeting today. The advisory council has been on me about finding someone for a while now. They want me to produce an heir. They've gotten harder to deal with recently, and I don't know what to do about it," he said
"I'm surprised Zuzu, this is the first time I've seen you where girls aren't hopping on you," she snickered.
"It was never that way," he contested.
"Only because you were oblivious," she poked, "maybe if we got together we could save the bloodline to ourselves!" she said as he immediately recoiled, wide-eyed and scooting away to the other side of the pond as he shuddered. She laughed all the while he did this.
"Have you considered an arranged marriage?" she asked.
"Yes; I've sent emissaries to all four nations…"
"Yikes! You must be desperate," she said to him. He sighed, exasperated for a moment, nodding.
"The approval rating has dropped so low inside and outside the fire nation, and nobody wants to send their daughter to marry a failure like me," he said, somberly, "Why does everyone hate me!?" he demanded, standing to his feet. The turtle ducks scattered as he did this and his face fell to his hand.
"Zuzu," she said, standing to him, "I know you don't think everyone hates you. You and I both know that can't be entirely true," she said.
"Just enough people to be a problem," he retorted.
"I'm sure things will be alright. Even dad had this trouble you know," she said, rubbing his back. She felt the knots all along his spine.
"You could use a massage," she said coquettishly as he shuddered again.
"Stop… doing that," he said unsettled. She laughed at his discomfort as he shook his head.
Enter the courtroom, and the advisory council stands before him.
"All emissaries regarding courtship of nobility within the fire nation and earth kingdom have returned," one of them stated.
"Any word?" Zuko asked. The man sighed, shaking his head. Zuko rolled his eyes with a disgruntled look.
"My dad always told me I was unwanted, but I didn't think it was this bad!" he raised sarcastically.
Azula lightly punched him in the shoulder, "Don't joke like that," she said, "It makes mom feel bad," she continued. A representative from the fire sages stepped forward. Zuko did not have the authority to imprison them as firelord due to international agreement that sages were to be uninhibited by their governmental authorities, and are to be overseen under the authority of the avatar alone.
"The head fire sage's patience has been tested by your ineptitude, lord Zuko," he said. The flames in the room began to rise, as the man who stepped forward fetched dirty looks from across the room.
"Your inability to marry and produce an heir fails to fulfill the duties assigned to you as the firelord. There is talk of the abdication of your position already," he uttered daringly. There were glares from everyone, even Azula, who glanced over at Zuko. With this frustration, the shadows of the flames highlighted the contours of his skull… He almost resembled his grandfather Azulon. She smirked for a moment, placing a hand on his leg. He looked over to her and took a deep breath.
"Leave," he demanded, "everyone out," he continued. Everyone proceeded from the room leaving Zuko and Azula alone, with her hand gently scratching at his back. He sat there among the flames before him. It was hot enough that he began to sweat.
"C'mon Zuzu, let's get out of here," he said, standing up. He hesitated for a moment, before sighing and standing with her. They exited the courtroom, and then the palace thereafter.
The two take a walk through the park and wind up a field beyond the capitol city where he seats himself down among the meadows of fire lilies.
"I forgot what these felt like, I always hated them as a kid, but I guess they are kind of pretty," she said, picking one up between her delicate fingers. She took in the scent that they emitted as Zuko observed her in the afternoon sun. For once she held something living without burning it…
"Has she changed?" he thought to himself.
"What happened to you?" he asked. She gave him a raised eyebrow for an answer as he tilted his head and shook it for a moment.
"You're going to have to be a little more specific, Zuzu," she smirked.
"Where have you been these last few years? What-…" he paused at a lack of words for the situation, "Why have you decided to show up all of the sudden?" She laid back in the meadow and he sighed, lowering his head.
"I'm not mad," he began, "I'm just so confused," he said.
"By what?" she asked, still observing the flower as she laid.
"Every time I saw or heard of you for almost two decades, you were either trying to torment me or trying to kill me… or both!" he raised his hands, "But suddenly you show up and you're cooperative, and you're helpful, and…" She raised her head and grinned.
"And?... go on now, I'm enjoying the complements," she said.
"What… What changed?" he asked. She sighed and laid back into the flowers snickering to herself. She placed the flower down on the bridge of her nose and shut her eyes for a moment.
"I found myself on Ember Island again after I was thrown overboard from a boat. I washed up on a piece of wood when someone found me," she began somberly, "And so a nice family took me in, and looked after me until I was back on my feet. I decided I wanted to stay, and everything started to feel like a new beginning. I didn't have to look over my shoulder, I didn't have to worry about mom," she said fluttering the little flower in her hands.
"I talked with the mother of the family and told her about what I'd been seeing and what all had happened over the last few years, and she made this tea for me," she said, "It tasted awful, but over time… I started to feel… safe," she said, raising her head from the floor of the meadows to look at him.
"I found a boyfriend… but he broke up with me… but at least I didn't kill him," she joked with a smirk, shrugging her shoulders, "See, that's progress!" Zuko wasn't incredibly amused.
"Wait… so was she an herbalist?" he asked.
"Something like that, she said she studied at some institute in the earth kingdom and learned a lot about the spirits and plants there and such," she continued, laying back and relaxing as she shut her eyes.
"All that time I spent worrying, and you were with a new family," he said.
"Hey, I needed this, I needed to be away from the fire nation. I couldn't feel safe with you chasing me, trying to stuff me in a straitjacket all day!" she asserted.
"I'm sorry," he said, "We were scared of you, and what you'd do to us."
"And you should have been," she added, rolling her eyes, "Let's not talk about this too much, this is depressing."
"Well, what do you want to talk about?" he asked. She snickered for a moment before tackling him and wrestling him down into a pin on the ground.
"What are you doing?!" he demanded with raised eyebrows. She just grinned at his discomfort with the situation.
"Oh nothing, just checking to see if I remember all of your old spots," she said. His eyes went wide as soon as he felt her fingers brush his ribcage.
"No!" he demanded pointing a finger at her that she bit the tip of and laughed as he pulled it back.
"Ow! What has gotten into you," he raised, throwing her into a reversal. She wrapped her legs around him and brushed the same spot on his ribcage and soon his panic turned to hysterical laughter.
"Stop!" he demanded, his voice stifled by his laughter.
"You take yourself too seriously! You know it pays not to be so moody all the time," she says, pinning him back on the ground again. They found themselves shaded in grasses beneath a cherry blossom tree, in its blooming season
"Lay still," she said.
"Wait wh-"
"Because I'm tired Zuzu, now lay still," she said as she laid her head down on his chest, nuzzling into him. He sighed, laying his head back as they rested. He smirked for a moment, shaking his head.
"You mean you don't remember me pinning you down and spitting on you?" she snickered. He grinned in return as she napped where she lay.
He exited his room in the night, holding a case in one hand, and a small picnic basket in the other. The look on his face was somber, and solemn, and he sighed as he closed the door to his room behind him. He had tried to prepare himself for this moment, keeping himself from being overwhelmed with emotions, but it never helped.
He wore street clothes as he stepped out from between the guards at the gates, even opting not to don the ornament in his topknot. His hair draped down this evening. He walked quietly, only breaking the sound as his footsteps contacted the gravel, and he entered the gates behind the royal temple.
Avatar Szeto…
Firelord Azulon…
Firelord Sozin…
…
He stopped for a moment, setting the basket down, next to the lantern he once held, and drawing two pictures from within. He placed them against two adjacent memorial stones, pictures of a young men, and before them, he lit two sticks of incense.
He opened the case, unveiling a pipa guitar, one of the many instruments he learned how to play growing up. He was notably most gifted to play the Tsungi horn, but he liked to play this most of all. He fiddled with the strings a moment, and before long, he spoke to one of the memorials.
"It's been so long since you and I saw each other… I'll never forget the day I heard you passed on the battlefield," he said, "They sent you away to a war you thought was right… and you're the one who paid the price." His voice was low, and soft. He turned to the memo
"So many mistakes… so many heartbroken families," he continued, "So many wives, children, and families were left behind, and for what?" he asked.
"I want you both to know that I've tried so hard to be a good firelord, even though I've done a bad job of it," he said, "I don't want more families to know what we went through. This war wasn't ours, but you still fought bravely."
"I miss you man," he said, his voice breaking a bit, "…Happy birthday," he said. He looked over to the other memorial…
Iroh…
"I thought I might find you here today," Ursa said softly from behind him, he did not turn to look at her "… Is it okay if I stay?" she asked. He sighed and nodded as she sat just behind him.
He plucked the strings lightly and soberly before the two memorials, the teardrops falling over the fingerboard as he played through the brief tune. His mother hugged him from behind as he completed the final cadence, kissing him as he shed tears.
"They would both be proud of you… I know it," she said.
The fire sages entered the room in a wedge formation. None of them kneeled or posed themselves with any reverence. Azula sat closely beside him with a look of disdain written across her face. Knots worked their way up and down Zuko's spine as they approached… awfully close to the stage for his liking. The Great Sage stood out from among them. Zuko grumbled.
"What do you want?" Zuko demanded, Azula placing one of her hands on his leg. The great sage still held his title, being the same sage that turned against the Avatar as he had tried to contact Avatar Roku.
"We have come to the decision to give you an ultimatum, Lord Zuko. It has been determined that you have not served your country as its leader to the liking of any of your subjects, or of your allies. You have three days to produce plans for a courtship or an arranged marriage, or we will unionize the governors and citizens of the fire nation, and we will call your reign into question, and send you into a permanent exile once more!" the great sage dared.
"How dare you disrespect me in my court!?" Zuko raised, standing to his feet. The flames along the stage howling before him, flaring with numerous different colors throughout. The great sage took a number of steps backward. The flames soon died back down.
"Why can't any of you understand that there isn't a woman in his existence that understands what I am! There isn't a woman with patience enough to put up with the shame and disgrace that I have borne my entire life! The people of my own country hate me, and the rest of the world does too! Where am I supposed to find someone to produce an heir with!?" he demanded, the flames across the room rising again. The fire sages grew silent. He looks around, realizing he had stepped forward from the stage. He turns back to where he stepped off from, seeing Azula seated, looking down at the sages in disgust.
"… I have an idea," he pushed sarcastically, "How about my sister?" he grinned devilishly. The fire sages recoiled in shock of the proposal. Even some of the guards broke their attention to ensure they had heard that correctly.
"Every secret of my life, all of my shame and hatred for myself, all of the family that hates me, she knows all of it, but still loves me, and I love her too," he adds, holding out his arms as the fires rose behind him. Azula snickered, giggling behind the flames themselves at the disgust of the sages. The fire sages congregate, whispering among one another, before the great sage stood before him again.
"This would not have been the first time the royal bloodline has been continued through an incestuous relationship, such a proposition has been deemed acceptable, and we will be alerting your subordinates of this," the great sage uttered. Azula stood from her place behind the flames.
"Leave," she hissed. All of the sages recoiled at her voice. Even they feared her, filing out of the great hall as Zuko placed himself back on the throne. She snickered as they cowered away.
The flames calmed down as he took deep breaths, burning low and dim.
"Mai's not coming back," he said lowly as the flames continued to dim. He lowered his face to his hands and heaved uneasily for a while as she made her way over to him out of sympathy for the state of her brother, rubbing his back gently.
"Even if she never comes back, Koko," she began, "You will be strong, the way you always have been."
He grew disconsolate hearing this, "And we will still be here with you," she added. A few minutes passed and the room gradually darkened as he took deep breaths and began to calm down. She gave him time to recover himself for a moment before standing.
"Come on, you're not going to sit here and sulk all day," she demanded, "Such is unbecoming of a firelord," she added. He sighed and stood to follow her out.
Word gets out that Zuko has thought of marrying his sister to preserve his bloodline, due to the rumors spread by the sages to discredit him, and the shocking news spreads across the world quickly, prompting visits of all sorts. He dodged reporters, nobles, and people from all over with questions that he was not prepared to answer. Azula found personal entertainment from hissing them away and scaring them off with little flutters of fire their way, giggling as they ran in terror.
Zuko dismissed his advisory council, thereafter a meeting regarding the wedding preparations, which was harrowing for him to think about. The thought of marrying his sister… was deeply unsettling on a visceral level, making him nauseous the more that he thought about it. He shuddered for a moment as she teased him, kissing him on his face and referring to him as "husband," repeatedly to his chagrin. Suddenly he physically felt someone enter the room, a group of people emerged from behind the curtain that shielded the door.
Ty Li, Suki, and Ursa had visited Zuko together, Ty Li and Suki still in uniform, and after the three had entered… so did Mai.
"Why didn't anyone tell me you were here?" he asked, lighting up a bit, standing to them and approaching them.
"Because you had more important things to worry about Zuzu," she poked from behind him, filing away at her nails, discarding the dust into the flames.
"Zuko, what are these rumors about marrying your sister?" Inquired Ursa, having approached Zuko closely. The others having silently observed up until this point. He had to look and ensure he saw correctly the first time. His lack of sleep often played dirty tricks on his perception. His mother raised her two hands to the sides of his face as he looked slightly up to her.
"They aren't rumors, mother, this is the truth." The others looked wide-eyed in total shock.
"You're…. Marrying your… sister?! The same one that tried to kill you over and over?!" Ty Li inquired.
"It's complicated Ty Li, I don't expect you to understand," he said looking off to the side.
"Zuko, what is there to understand? She's your sister?!" Asked Suki.
"This is exactly it Suki," he said, standing and walking to them as Azula remained behind the fire, "She is my sister, and she knows who I am and what I am, and still cares about me regardless. She knows all of my secrets, and I am incapable of hiding anything from her. Despite this, she still cares about me." He turned to walk back onto his throne
"Zuko… how… what do you," Mai went on in shock, "What about your bloodline? How could you taint this with… incest?! You can't do this!" It would have been a relief to have heard her voice after so long, had the circumstances been better.
"Don't you lecture me about my own bloodline! You abandoned me and left me in my time of weakness. Did it ever occur to you that there are things about me that I wasn't ready to reveal to you? Things that make me hate myself? Shame I can never be rid of? Do you really think it's that easy to simply share all of my shame and guilt in a time where I feel like the world hates me and is collapsing around me. My own nation and every other nation has turned to me to restore everything my father and his father and his had spent the last century destroying, and everything I did was another step in the wrong direction. You lied, You didn't care; you were looking for a reason to leave and you found one, and used it to leave me behind in a time where I needed you most. How dare you claim that I love my secrets more than I loved you? I loved you more than I ever have loved myself, and when you left, I fell apart, but I had to move on. I found someone new who wants me now, and knows all of my secrets, and she doesn't care. She knows what I am ashamed of and adores me regardless. I have always loved her, even if I have hated her, my sister, and now we will always be together. There isn't another woman in my nation or the remainder of the world that would waste her time with me, but I know of one that would. Why shouldn't I marry my sister?" Ursa is reduced to tears, receiving comfort from ty Li and suki
"Zuko, stop this!" Mai urged
"I can't, the fire sages came to me and demanded I find someone to marry and produce an heir with, otherwise they can have the nation rise against me and remove me from the throne, and exile me… for good this time."
"Then perhaps it's time for you to leave the throne… and the country." Mai said. There was a grave silence as the others looked at Mai in shock. Mai was unshaken, standing before him with a stoic expression, but he remained facing the throne. Even Azula raised her eyebrows and shook her head for a moment.
The flames grew brighter, and stronger throughout the room as Zuko's back is turned to her. He is shaking, "You would like that wouldn't you… to never have to see me again…" his voice is hoarse and deeper, and as the flames grew brighter Ursa cowered, and Zuko took a deep breath, noticing his mother, and the flames went back down.
"Get out," he said calmly, and they all left him.
Azula came to him holding him as he stood, appearing to be a shell of himself. She held his hand and looked at him, and in the light of the nearly dimmed fire… she kissed him on his face. The fire grew brighter suddenly, and Zuko pressed into her pulling her at the waist, running his hands through her hair.
"All my life I thought you would never cave brother," she said snickering, stroking his chest.
"They will be back… and they'll probably have the avatar with them. They won't be asking me for the throne that time." He turned toward the fires for a moment.
"Then we," she said pressing him against one of the pillars, "will just have to be ready for them. She leaned in, briefly kissing him on the lips. He sat there dumbfounded and wide-eyed. He paused, staring off for a million miles before running off. Azula burst into hysterical laugher as she heard him hacking away from the other side of the great hall. The servants rushed over to help him as Azula flopped onto the ground in tears by that point.
He sat out on the balcony overlooking the fire nation in cloudy red skies, brewing a strong storm. Zuko remained alone, one of the few moments he had without Azula to refresh him. Ursa quietly enters his room with Ty Li. He looks ill, pale and his face deadened. He hadn't slept in days. He is nodding when Ursa places her hand on his shoulder from behind the chair. He is gravely startled, heavily gasping as he recuperated. Ursa quietly addresses him, almost timidly.
"I'm sorry; I'm starting to become him again, and there's nothing I can do to prevent it. The avatar will be here soon enough with intentions to fulfill his promise. The fire sages and the force of the imperial guard could be behind him, all demanding I release my grip on the throne, walk away from my birthright, and leave my country…," he paused gravely, his voice breaking, "…and I won't even have Iroh to be there for me this time."
Her heart broke for her son as he stood, facing out from the balcony, propping his hands on the railing.
"My only hope for companionship and the peace of my nation is to marry my sister."
Ursa held him for a moment. He wept into her as a child with his mother.
"It's can't be your only hope Zuko," Ty Li proposed.
"I don't want to hear about Mai. Thinking about her just frustrates me. I loved her so much, but she turned her back on me when I needed her so badly, when I was weak, and tired, and afraid."
"My darling son," said Ursa sitting him down, "… Wanting to marry your sister is only half of what concerns me. What is greater is that when you spoke of marrying her, there was rage and spite in your voice and in your heart. I don't want for you to marry your sister surely, but far more than that," she said, softly taking his hand, "I don't want for you to make the mistake of marrying someone you don't truly want to be your wife, especially not out of such spite."
He stared at her, his head leaning over, exposing his hollowed appearance in the evening sun which frightened her to look at for a moment.
"I know your sister loves you, and I know that you love her, and I know that I love both of you, but I believe that you were wrong when you said that there isn't a woman on this earth who would want you the way that you are."
"What can I do? I feel so lost, so abandoned, like everyone has lost all of their hope in me. All of the world is ready to get rid of me, and cast me out again. This time, I won't have any hope of anything going back to normal. I'll just be wandering… lost… without a home forever." His voice trailed hopelessly into a whisper. Ursa's chin trembled for a moment as she closed her eyes and took a breath. "I can't do that again. I couldn't do that without Iroh."
Suki emerged on the other side of the chair and as Zuko looked over to her, she was startled, recoiling slightly, before taking his other hand.
"Zuko," Suki remarked as Ty Li looked over. Zuko looked over to her, tilting his head, "I'm sorry to interrupt, it's just that… We can't get Mai to come out of her room, and we think she is going to try to hurt herself," she began to breakdown, "please, we need you to go in for her. We've tried all we could to get the door down but she just slid out what looked a suicide letter and her room has gone silent the last few minutes." Ursa recoiled in shock. Zuko stood immediately,
"What?! Where is she?!" He inquired.
"She's in one of the guest rooms right now," Ty Li said, leading him to the door of the room where she stayed. He gently approached, knocking on the door. The others kept their distance. Azula among them. Zuko looked over to her, and she looked nervous, breaking into a cold sweat.
"Mai…, let me in." he said softly. There was no response
"Mai, open the door, or I'm going to break it down!"
The left door opened in a hollow fashion, suggesting the doorknob had been flicked open, with no one on the other side. He slithered in quietly, shutting the door behind. He witnessed her sitting with her back to the other door. She had clearly been in pieces.
"Show me your arm…" he said silently.
"Get away from me," she hoarsely whispered, curling up. Zuko grabbed her and pulled up her sleeve to reveal a long cut which had been drawn from the inside of her wrist to her elbow. It had bled profusely. His eyes went wide and he placed his other hand to his heart.
He took the knife that she had used before and swiped his cloak off, cutting several very long strips from it.
"Give me your arm," he said as she pulled back in withdrawal, "Mai!" He grabbed her arm from her, she winced in response, wrapping it tightly around her forearm. She turned toward him as he tied the straps down, and he took the other arm to find it clean.
Without her approval he swiped her up and delivered her outside as everyone exhaled with relief. He carried her to an infirmary within the barracks attached to the palace for the imperial guard and they alerted a doctor immediately. As soon as she was seen Ursa urged him out of the room with her, Zuko looked back to witness Mai looking back at him as the doors to the trauma OR were shut.
By now Zuko was in a cold sweat, lightheaded and off balance. The others urged him to sit down on a couch present in the corridor leading to the barracks. Azula quickly took the spot next to him, swiping his hand as he nodded, breathing very heavily as his mother took his other hand. He swiped both of his hands back to his head and gripped his hair, shutting his eyes, and clenched his teeth together. Azula noted this instantly, taking her belt off and folding it to put between his teeth. The others looked at her for a moment.
"It was something they did to stress patients while I was in the mental health facility, so that they didn't gnash their teeth," Ursa nodded. He stood so as to walk away but Azula grabbed him by his cloak, throwing him back onto the couch.
"You're not going anywhere right now until you calm down. Now, Breathe deeply," she told him.
She noticed his top knot to have become disheveled, and she removed the ornament and strap so to let his hair fall, which she pulled behind him and gently stroked. His breathing eventually slowed down and Azula brought him to lay his head into her lap. He covered the remainder of his face and mourned silently as the others sat around him.
He eventually uncovered his face and turns upward with his back to the couch, "I don't know what to do here," he said.
"From what it sounds like there isn't a lot that you can do," Suki stated.
"Right now, Zuzu, what you will do is wait, and breathe. You won't accomplish anything in this state."
Zuko sighed deeply, and all of them waited in silence for two hours, napping until one of the physicians emerged. Everyone raised to their feet.
"The cuts were very deep, and she lost a lot of blood, but with a few transfusions and some suturing, she is stable."
There was a sigh of relief among all of the group present.
"For now," the physician continued, "she needs to rest." Azula led Zuko to her chambers where she led him to the bed, removing his chest piece and parted his robe that he would cool off for a bit, she turned him, bringing his head over her chest as she laid flat on the bed, facing the ceiling. She herself already wore a robe that she usually donned for sleepwear. They snuggled that way to rest for the evening. She pulled a cup of water from the nightstand.
"Drink," she said. He did as he was told, drinking the remainder of what was left as she poured another and demanded the same.
"Why-"
"Because you are dehydrated, now drink,"
He did as he was told, finishing the next glass, as he laid back down.
They waited around for a few hours, laying that way, he was lulled out of his restlessness by the sound of her heartbeat, and found some semblance of calm, but with his thoughts racing, he would not sleep. She noticed this, feeling him stir.
"What makes you want to marry me so badly, Zuzu?
He paused, not answering, and still restless.
"I don't know," he began, "I just spoke what was on the top of my mind and it seemed like a good idea," he said.
"And What about it makes you think that?" She asked. He paused for a long time.
"You're still here," he said, "You're my sister, and I've always loved you… even if I didn't want to see you or be around you, or if i was scared of you or mad at you… part of me always wished things were better then."
She grinned, "Mom loves you too you know; have you considered marrying her?"
"She already is," he said
"And?" She continued.
"You and your sick sense of humor," he said wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in.
"I'm trying to make a point not humor," she said, rolling her eyes.
"What point?"
"Perhaps you aren't really in love with me, just desperate for a way out of this mess," she said, "and I also think you're desperately lonely."
He paused before raising his head, "I never asked you how you felt about this," he said.
"No, you didn't," she said.
"You didn't seem to oppose it much when you kissed me," he said.
"Well, the prospect of maintaining the purity of our bloodline has always fascinated me, and I did find you attractive growing up, but it didn't help that mom always loved you more."
"That's not true," he raised
"Really? Isn't it so?" She teased
"No, she always loved you… She just hated my father."
"That's something I can agree with you on." He paused for a long moment, sitting up and looking off to the side.
"Do you ever feel like this family is cursed?" He asked.
"Cursed with what?" She asked.
"I don't know; secrets, lies, hatred, selfish ambitions," he said.
"It's not the family that's cursed Zuko, it's the nation, it's all we ever were," she responded.
"What do you mean?"
She groaned, "did you ever pay attention in history? This nation and all of the wars in it were founded on those things. It's part of being the fire nation, Zuzu, Fire burns, and anyone who stands in the way, gets burned," she said.
"You sound like dad," he said.
"Because I listened to dad, Zuzu."
He gave a long pause, "How do you feel about us getting married?" He asked. She sat up to look at him.
"You mean You're not afraid I won't be rid of you and take the throne for myself?" She asked with a smirk.
"If you wanted to do that you wouldn't have told me," he said.
"See, there, you're learning how this works," she said taking him back from his seated position on the end of the bed.
"So smart, so handsome, and you have a cool scar," she said straddling him as he laid back on the bed, pinning his arms overhead.
"What girl wouldn't want to marry you?" She asked. Leaning closely into him. His eyes were averted for a moment as she locked her lips with his before breaking away. His heart beat away in his chest
"What about you?" He asked.
"What about me?" She flirted.
"Don't you ever get lonely? Doesn't being a lonely sociopath ever leave you… I don't know, longing?" He asked.
"Sociopath? What makes you think I'm a sociopath?" She teasingly inquired.
"The fact that you tried to kill me over and over again," he brought up.
"Fire under the bridge, Zuzu," she said, walking her fingers up his abdomen, "and I may be decisive and intelligent, and cunning, but I'm no sociopath!" She smirked.
"… What do you think I should do here?"
Azula sighs rolling her eyes, "you need to go talk to Mai," she answered.
"What makes you say that?" He asks.
"Because if you don't I'll have to zap you," she said, kissing him, "and… because I am also both desperately lonely, and have been for a very long time now," she kissed him again, "and you're supposed to be my fallback plan," she joked. Zuko blinked, rather wide-eyed with a raised eyebrow.
"If it all does go bad, and you are forced into exile… I will go with you, and I'm sure that mom and Kiyi will too," she said, "and you won't wander alone," she says, placing her face on his chest."
"… That doesn't sound… so bad," he said.
"Good, then stop worrying about it!" She demanded of him.
He entered the room to which she had been moved. Her hand had been patched up and wrapped thoroughly. It is likely that she was still under the influence of painkillers. He gently shut the door and sat in the chair… waiting.
She occasionally stirred and tossed to the side. She twitched in her sleep and he smirked, something he adored about her when they were together. She turned in her bed, wincing due to putting weight on her arm. Her eyes were open, and the two caught eye-to-eye. She rolled the other way.
He was torn between the decision to let her rest or to speak.
"… why are you here?" She asked.
"Because I wanted to see you were okay," he said, standing from his chair.
"I'm alive… you can leave now," she groaned. Her voice was always deadpan, but this time her voice was low.
"Why'd you do it?" He asked.
"Go away, Zuko," she raised her tone.
"Not until you tell me why you did it. I'm confused, Mai, the last time we spoke you didn't want anything to do with me, you wanted to leave me behind. You came in yesterday trying to convince me to give up my throne and go into exile, the same way that my father had sent me away. I found a solution to the problem and… you react this way?"
"What do you care?" She asked.
"Mai… you genuinely don't have any idea do you?" She did not answer.
"How can you still not understand how much I care about you?" He asked.
"Zuko," she turned, "It's over," she said.
"You said that once, but people who have stopped caring don't react this way," he said.
"When I was told that you had found someone new, I just… stopped thinking that you cared. It's been years since I've seen you, and as much as I've missed you, I've had to force myself to try and move on for so long." She crossed her arms again, refusing to speak. He shut his eyes and shed tears for a moment, sniffling.
"Do you really think I could've lived with myself if you had left us?" He said, his voice breaking, "do you really think that I could live without you?" He heard her sniffle, he might have gotten to her, but she still refused.
He sighed, taking a number of deep breaths, and the room got warmer. He wiped away his tears.
"… okay," he said. He left, gently shutting the door.
His mother stood alone outside of the door. He closed his eyes and sighed, standing proudly with his head as high as he could manage, and he slowly reached for the ornament in his topknot that he slowly unfastened, and gave to her.
"Take Kiyi and Ikem, and pack your things… we're leaving… tonight." She was silent, hanging her head in response, clutching the ornament.
He entered his room, blowing open both doors, throwing down his chest piece. He knew the drill by now.
He packed lightly, in a single ruck, as he knew how. He donned his armor, moving to his cabinet to his most valuable possessions. He opened the drawer to a number of things. He raises the ornament, the one he inherited from his great grandfathers both, and packed it away. He took pictures, scrolls, a storybook of Love Amongst the Dragons. He sent for a number of servants.
"Take these things to my flagship, immediately," he commanded. The servants did as they were told. He donned a long travelers robe, tying it in the front and looking at himself in the mirror. His face looked better. He drank from a pitcher of water, setting it down as he was done.
He wore armor, but he still felt lighter than he had in a long time. His chest piece and robes still laid on the floor. He approached a final object of his possessions… it was a conch shell and a picture. He stuffed the picture in his pack with his helm, and he took the conch with him. He donned the hood and exited the room, finding others waiting for him. He turned to Azula.
"If you are coming with me, pack your things, lightly, we leave tonight," he said.
"Zuko…" Suki said softly.
"It's over, Suki," he asserted. Azula left to pack as she had been directed.
"This isn't the first time I've been forced from my home," he said to all present, "but it will be the last," he said, making his way through. He walked down the hallway.
"But the world needs you!" Ty Li shouts, "If you don't hold the fire nation in your hands, somebody else will! Some politician will take it back. They'll free your father and undo the balance and the peace that we've worked so hard to build! You can't give up!" Her voice broke as she began to fall apart.
He stopped and sighed for a moment, "the world is the avatar's problem, my nation hates me, whether they need me or not," he said, walking back to meet her. She embraced him.
"Don't go… please."
"I don't know what else to do Ty Li," he said, "I haven't been given a choice. If the world needs me, they'll have time to figure it out." He tried to make his way out from her embrace but she would not let go. He held her for a solid few minutes, before He looked over to his mother who shed tears.
"Are Kiyi and Ikem packed?" He asked.
"Not yet," Ursa said.
"They've never been banished into the night before… it's time we welcome them to the family… properly," he said, turning and heading down the hall, beckoning Ty Li to come with him.
He gently opened the door, silently, preventing any creaking, and walked to the stand beside the hospital bed, and there he left it. He grinned, maybe she'd find someone stupid to give it to.
He left at once, making his way out the front door of the palace. A five guard team followed him as he made his way to the harbor where the ship had been anchored. The captain, having received cargo from the palace was out front discussing matters with the servants.
"Ready the ship for departure, we leave tomorrow morning," he said, boarding the ramp and heading to his quarters. They reminded him of his previous quarters.
"Lord Zuko, we are awaiting fuel supplies, the shipment will not arrive until noon tomorrow. We will have to delay the departure," the lieutenant said matter of factly. Zuko slammed the cabinet closed, jarring the man as he stood.
"Fine, just get us going as soon as you can," he resigned. The soldier bowed and left immediately.
"You know you can always push them to move a little faster," Azula said. Zuko sighed.
"I've moved past that. I can't be the angry teenager I was before. I'm better now," he said.
"Is that why your storming off in the middle of the night?" She asked.
"I'm not storming off, I'm being banished!" He raised.
"This will prevent any conflict from breaking out, the fire sages are able to rally politics across the nation against the capitol, and they've threatened a coup."
"Can't you just… kill them all?" She proposed. He sighed.
"As much as I wish, I can't do that either. Aang wouldn't like it. He'd come running out to get rid of me as soon as he got word of what happened."
"You mean you can't get rid of him too?" She smirked, "relax Zuzu, I'm teasing you," she said. He sat down on the bed, and she sat next to him.
"This isn't the end you know, we can find new lives elsewhere, simple ones that don't involve the stress of royalty."
"You sound like uncle now."
"Really? Spirits, what have I become?" She asked. Zuko grinned and shook his head, and Azula embraced him.
"Think about it, A new life; you and me brother. We can have the family together again, the loving family that we always wanted growing up," she assured him. He held her in return.
"Yeah, that actually sounds nice," he said.
"And occasionally we could always take a ferry out to Ember Island just for old time's sake. We can disappear and be normal people again," she said. They laid back in the bed together.
"I have so many awful memories of being in quarters like these," he said, "the first time I stepped in, I didn't know what to feel. My face was still healing, so I had to stop myself from crying, or the tears would burn," he said.
"That didn't stop you in your room that night," she said. Zuko paused very somberly.
"I can't believe this is destiny; I'll never forget that day... It made me who I am," he said,
"None of us will Zuko," she said, directing his face over to her, that she would also see his unscarred side. She kissed him on his face and left to go settle into her own quarters.
The morning came and Ursa arrived with cargo on a cart hauled by a few servants.
"Mommy, where are we going?" Kiyi asked.
"I Don't know yet Kiyi," she said, looking to Ikem, attempting to be calm and reassuring, but she was also afraid. The ship was of a more compact size than the imperial class ships that surrounded it, but this would make for easier navigation and the ship would move substantially faster.
Zuko stepped out onto the docks to greet them with a solemn face and a nod to Ikem.
"Good morning Lord-"
"Stop calling me that," he cut him off. The others paused, allowing him to pass. A servant showed, delivering a message.
"The avatar is to arrive this afternoon … Zuko, the fire sages will also be present," he announced, bowing before him.
"Thank you, you are dismissed," he answered. He discarded the letter over the wall and into the harbor. His mother looked to him with concern.
"We won't be around long enough to see them anyway; let them meet someone else," he said. He looked across the shoreline, and upward to the volcano periphery where the city resided, understanding he would never see it again. He once had felt this way before… same spot in the harbor too.
He always knew that the hunt for the avatar was just a wild goose chase, but a part of him wanted to believe he could return home and be a great prince again. He took a deep breath and turned back to board the ship again at mid-morning.
Soon enough the shipment arrived for loading.
"Get this inside immediately! We leave at no later than noon!" He commanded. The family had already loaded themselves and prepared for departure. The crew members loaded in swiftly, under the overwatch of Zuko's eye. He was trailed by a cape attached to his armor. Kiyi ran out to see him.
"Zuzu!" She shouted, he swept her up and kissed her as she giggled.
"Zuzu? Now where did she pick that up?" Azula smirked. Zuko propped Kiyi on his shoulders and she wrapped her arms around his head. This was easier to manage without the ornament.
"What are they doing?" She asked
"Oh, they're just loading up fuel for the ship to run on," he said.
"Where are we going?" Kiyi asked.
"We," he said lifting her over his head, "are going to take you to see the entire world Kiyi," he said. Her eyes lit up and got very big.
"What about her studies?" Azula asked.
"There is a tutor aboard among the crew here who used to teach at the academy. He will be homeschooling her as we travel." Ursa had entered the loading bay, heard the conversation, and nodded approvingly.
"Lord Zuko! All shipments are now aboard!"
"Good we're leaving at once!" He shouted, "let's clear the loading bay!" He shouted. The hydraulics systems that raised the boarding plank sounded and Kiyi covered her ears. Zuko signaled them to follow him as they entered the stairwell and rose to the bridge. Kiyi marveled at the sight, getting to shake hands with the captain and hold the wheel. Zuko smiled at this.
"I think this will be good for us, a second chance," he said. His face appeared lighter.
"It will be," Azula said holding him from behind. Her hair had been let down like she did on Ember Island. The signal was sent for departure, and Zuko raised Kiyi to take the horn line and pull. She was amazed at the sound it made, unable to contain her glee, as she ran back to tell her mother and father. Ikem smiled from ear to ear. They raised anchor and began the move.
"Setting a course for:" the captain prompted.
Zuko looked around, "Take us to Ba Sing Se harbor," he said, "We'll stop by my uncle's tea shop," he said.
"Navigation: Ba Sing Se Harbor, away." The captain announced, "alter course 34 degrees eastward." They felt a tug of the ship as they turned dramatically. The ship was nimble, always taking new direction well.
"I'll be in my quarters," Zuko assured, Azula following him down for rest, as they had not slept all night.
They rested together in the bed and Zuko was startled, awakened by a message from the captain.
"Lord Zuko, an airborne object has been spotted homing in on our location, it's a… flying bison.
"Shoot it down!" Azula responds giggling
"Noo, don't shoot it, ugh. I'll be right out," he said, rising from the bed and making his way toward the bridge and as he did he looked out the window, the bison landing and the avatar disembarking immediately.
Zuko yawns and makes his way out onto the deck as the avatar approaches.
"Zuko! What happened?!" He demands.
"The fire sages wanted me gone. They threatened to rally the people against me, unless I produced an heir."
Katara approached, the two of them looking flustered
"I don't expect either of you to understand okay?" He answered, turning away to view the seas, "They wanted me gone anyway, and the only other option was marrying my sister."
"But you worked so hard to… wait what?!"
"See! Everyone's against me no matter what I decided." He looked out over the horizon, islands passing by.
"I have a second chance, to take my family and go away like I did before, for good this time. I'll start a new life, and we can have the happy family we always wanted before… one without my father in the picture."
"But… aren't you meant to be the firelord? Isn't that what Iroh told you?" Katara asked. Zuko sighed.
"I don't know. My uncle… I don't want to talk about it," he said abruptly.
"I'm sorry, I forgot," Katara resigned apologetically.
Zuko approached the two of them again, "The world hated the fact that I was firelord, and so did everyone in my own country."
"Zuko this is… so unlike you," Aang Said.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"You just gave up on something that you had waited your whole life for, doesn't that… bother you?" Katara asked. Zuko sighed.
"A lot has gone on these past few days, and I didn't give up my throne. I was forced from it. The fire sages planned on rallying every fire nation governor on the continent against me, and I couldn't find anyone to produce an heir with."
"What about Mai? I thought you loved her?" Katara asked. He turned back to view the ocean, walking over to the barrier, before looking back at them again.
"Mai hates me; it doesn't matter how I feel about her anymore," he said, turning back and eying the horizon again.
"But if you leave the fire nation-" Aang began.
"I know! It'll go back to the way it was before and they'll hand it off to my father! Don't you think I know that? What do you want me to do about it?! I don't have an army, I don't have loyal citizens, I'm just as good as I was when I was banished," he resigned, leaning over the railing. The other two paused. There was a moment of silence, he turned back to notice Kiyi had strayed onto the deck.
"Zuzu? What's wrong?" She asked.
Zuko beckoned her, "Nothing, Kiyi, everything is going to be alright," he said as he sat himself against the barrier of the deck. She placed herself within his lap and he embraced her.
"There's nothing I can do… I'm out of options," he resigned, "I'm sorry." The others sat against the barrier of the deck with him.
"Hi Aang," Kiyi greeted. Aang gently smiled and waved back as Katara took his hand.
Aang looked back out into the distance for a moment, bearing a thoughtful appearance. Suddenly, he had a look come over his face of resolution before he stood, leaping up to place himself on Appa's shoulders and setting off into the sky. Katara was taken aback by the gesture.
"Whoa… what's gotten into him?" Zuko asked, noting that he had left Katara behind. She shrugged her shoulders in response.
"I hope he'll be back soon, otherwise you'll have to bunk with my sister," he said pleasantly. Katara's face wore a look of shock before she began taking deep breaths.
Ursa resided within the inner quarters of the ship, taking notice of Katara's presence as she walked by in the hallway.
"Are you looking for something dear?" She asked.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I was just… wandering," Katara answered.
"I understand, these ships can be confusing at times," she says. She notes a troubled look on Katara's face, "is something wrong?" She asked.
"Well, I guess I'm worried about Zuko. He's waited his whole life to get to this point, and it seems like he's just going to give it all away," she said. Ursa placed hands on her shoulders.
"He was very anxious for a long time about this. I worry for him too, but since the idea of leaving emerged, he has seemed relieved almost," Ursa mentioned, looking off to the side.
"This seems so unlike him to be running away is all," Katara resigned.
"He's not running away though, is he now?" Azula said. Her voice sent chills up Katara's spine as all of her hairs raised at the sound. Ursa's hands were comforting though.
"He's just picking his battles. He's done a better job of that since he became firelord," she continued.
"Zuko always fought for what he felt was right, even if… it wasn't?" She said unsure.
"Zuko is a complicated man. I wish I could say the right thing to make it easier or better for him, but right now I just don't know. Even if we do go back, he could use time away from the fire nation," Ursa assured her.
She looked over to Azula entertains her self with little flicks of flame in the air around her.
"How about I get you girls some tea?" She offered.
Zuko played with Kiyi on the deck as she giggled and ran. Zuko swept her up as she laughed in his arms, taking her back to the bridge where he found his mother and two of the girls conversing over tea. He smiled at the sight.
"Let's get you some water Kiyi," he said, requesting a servant fetch a flask for her to drink from. He sat at the table with the others as they spoke about tea and their favorites. Azula always favored jasmine, which was ironic to say the least. He leaned back and crossed his arms, resting in his chair.
"Flying bison on approach," the captain announced. Zuko, having been half-asleep, rose to his feet, emerging into the deck where Appa landed. Suki, Ty Li, and Aang disembarked, approaching the bridge.
"Is everything still peaceful back at the palace?" He asked. They were silent looking among one another and whispering back and forth. Suki approached him.
"We're sorry, we know you didn't have a lot of options to go with about yesterday, and we want you to know that we're here," she said. She held an assuring facial expression and Zuko took a deep breath, and gently smiled.
"Thank you both; I think things will be alright…" he said, looking back to where everyone congregated over tea in the bridge, "in time."
Suki looked a bit nervous whispering back and forth with Ty Li
"Tell him!" Ty Li demanded hushedly.
"Okay!" She said, turning back to Zuko, "there's… one more thing," she continued. Zuko seemed to perk up at this detail.
"Is everything alright?" He asked.
"Yes… it's just…" there was a delicate pause as they listened to the waves and the wind crash against the boat. He looked confused for a moment, glancing back and forth between the two of them. Eventually Suki gestured her head over in a particular direction toward where Appa rested. As Aang stepped aside… a thin figure appeared, clutching a conch shell…
Her hand and wrist remained bandaged, but his eyes lit up when he saw her, taking a deep breath and standing tall. They glanced at one another before she emerged out from Appa's shadow, approaching him with her eyes to the ground. She stopped but a foot and a half in front of him, her eyes still lowered.
"Mai…" he whispered. She took a second before raising a pair of glistening eyes to him. His heart beat at the sight.
"Don't leave," she said very softly, "not again…" she held onto the shell tightly. He was taken aback, he looked back to see everyone in the bridge having emerged, Ursa and Katara with their hands over their mouths and Azula simply smiling with her arms crossed. He looks back to see her. It was as if she had inched closer as he looked away.
"…Okay," he said between the two of them. She sank into him again as he held her, kissing the top of her head. He looked over to see Aang with a gentle smile and a nod.
"Okay," he said.