Author's Note: Yes, another new story. I thought it interesting though. This time, I'm not going to explain too much, just read, I think everything important will be revealed along the way. With this we will more or less follow the story timeline, just adding an additional character, and maybe one- or another-time skip, idk. The OC added is called Kemori but will often be referred to as Mori. For a starting point, we start in Book 2, a little while after Zuko left Iroh alone. I hope you enjoy it and please review!
Somewhere in the Earth Kingdom, 100 years after Sozin's comet
An incredible sadness had taken hold of the former general. His nephew had refused to travel further at his side, and his fear that the boy would lose his way grew by the hour. Aside from that Zuko had also taken the ostrich-horse with him and he himself had been quicker on his feet in his past. He feared, he would soon lose all trace of his nephew.
Iroh sat down under a large tree; he needed a break. He began making tea in a small pot he had carried along. Suddenly there was someone coming towards him. He looked up and smiled. The person in question was a girl, a teenager, sixteen years old if he counted correctly. Her skin was tanned, she had blue eyes and black hair that was tied up except for a fringe covering her forehead and a few bangs framing her face. She wore Earth Kingdom clothing. Long tight trousers in a light yellowy green and a robe of the same color over it. Its wide sleeves were tucked in dark green bindings from her elbows down to her hands and her feet and calves were covered by smooth dark brown boots. She also carried a small backpack.
She waved her hand at him as she approached the elderly man. Iroh stood up and bowed with a Fire Nation greeting. She mirrored it, smiling as wide as she could. "It is truly good to see you, Mori. After all that time of just writing we have a lot to talk about.", he gestured towards the tea pot.
With a calm, soft voice the girl answered, "I wish we could've met sooner, Sifu. I saw Zuko ride off earlier. Why did he leave?", Iroh sighed as the girl sat down beside him.
With a sad tone in his voice he said, "He thinks, traveling with me will only hinder him finding his own way."
The girl looked surprised, "And you just let him leave? I thought my Sifu would be more persistent. Anyway, I'm glad I caught up with you then. You look like you could use some help."
Iroh smiled at his former student. Three years had they not seen each other, yet it felt like she was never truly gone. Maybe because she really was never that far away, except for their adventures at the poles. He had kept her updated with small letters, and she had followed along, always hiding, working things out in the background. If he needed information or just a free passageway, Mori would take care of it. He was indeed proud of her.
Her voice shook him out of his thoughts, "Are you hungry? I caught some fish earlier."
Surprised he looked at her, "I always learn something new about you when we meet. I didn't know you could fish."
Mori shrugged her shoulders, "My dad taught me when I was small. Where I'm from it is more or less a basic thing to do."
Iroh stroked his beard, "I should've guessed so.", afterwards they grilled the fish and drank the tea, talking about what happened in the past three years. "I really enjoyed this. Say, Mori, will you help me keep track of my nephew for a while now?"
She smiled at him, "Of course, Sifu. I'm always glad to help you."
A few days later
Mori enjoyed travelling with her old master. They had done so before when she was younger. Though, she must admit, he had aged quite a bit while travelling with Zuko. She wondered where he was now. Thinking of his survival skills, or sometimes, lack thereof, he was probably very hungry. She worried about him. The prince had always been a friend since their first meeting, but he had clearly changed in the past three years. To which amount she could not say, but concerning Iroh's worries about him finding his way, he probably changed quite a bit. Thoughts swirled in her head as she went for the nearest village. Iroh was waiting in the woods, probably making tea. Since he was wanted for treason by the Fire Nation, she left him there. She had only a few coins in her bag, but it would be enough to buy some food.
Once she returned to the clearing she had left him on the old man was not to be seen and she instantly worried much about him. He had been like a father to her for over a decade, despite that he was a nice person in general and her former master. Mori saw the small teapot and two empty cups. So, he must've met someone. In a little distant she also saw traces of earthbending. Someone had apparently tried to attack Iroh, but there were no other traces of a fight. Thinking of his personality, Mori assumed, he invited the attacker to a cup of tea and was successful in that. She raised an eyebrow. There were things in her Sifu's character she would never fully understand.
Since Iroh was not there, he must've gone with the earthbender, she assumed. And if he didn't even leave her a note, it must've been urgent. She could only think of one reason that would alarm the old man that much, his nephew. Maybe Zuko was in danger. Anyway, she decided, she would follow the earthbender's traces as fast as possible.
As she approached a seemingly deserted little town, she could already hear the fighting noises. Then, just before she could intervene, she heard her Sifu scream in pain. Tears appeared in the corner of her eyes as she stood between two houses, taking in the scene. Her eyes widened as she saw Iroh's body on the ground, Zuko kneeling next to him, his head in his hands. There was also a group of teens, seemingly from three different nations, and almost all benders. And she knew two of them. Panic shot through her veins. Would they still know her?
Slowly and silently, she walked towards her Sifu. Katara approached as well, though she hadn't noticed Mori. With a soft voice she said, "Zuko, I can help."
The firebender shot a blast at her, screaming at her, "Leave!"
This was where Mori decided to step in. Quickly she grabbed Zuko by his shoulders and pulled him into a tight hug. Tears falling from her face she yelled over to the waterbender, "Go on, quickly!", she felt Zuko struggling in her hug. He had no idea what had just happened, who did this.
Katara hurried over to Iroh's unconscious form and began healing him. Mori tightened her grip around Zuko even more, pressing his head into her shoulder. She whispered in his ear, "Zuko, it's me, Kemori. Stop fighting, she might be his only chance.", she felt that he wanted to pull away, but she wouldn't let him do that, not now. Just when she saw that Katara had treated Iroh's wound and every one of the group was on the bison she let him go.
The banished prince stared in her blue eyes. With disbelief in his voice, he choked out, "Mori? What are you doing here?"
She smiled at him as she tried to wipe away her tears, "That's a long story, we should look after your uncle first, don't you think?", Zuko looked into her eyes as if he was searching for something, then he nodded. Mori took a large piece of cloth out of her backpack. It was actually her blanket, but she could care less. Together they managed to lift Iroh onto it and then each of them took one side of the blanket. Thus, they carried the old man to an abandoned house.
When they finally laid him down in a bed both teenagers collapsed against the nearest wall, next to each other. After gasping for air for several minutes Mori boxed Zuko slightly in the arm. "Ouch!", he looked at her questioningly, "What was that for?"
The girl grinned at him, still out of breath, "For always getting caught up in your foolish ideas, and also, for not hugging back, you moron."
Zuko blushed a little but smiled at her. In just a moment he had realized how much he had missed her in the past three years. Tired he looked over to his uncle's sleeping form. "I knew he was not a lightweight, but I didn't imagine him to be that heavy.", causing Mori to laugh at him. Then she stood up again and brushed the dirt off her clothing. "What are you going to do?", he asked. Fear gripped him that she would leave them alone.
With a look over her shoulder she said, "Don't worry, he just left his tea pot and cups at a clearing. I'm going to get them.", she set down her backpack, "You'll find some food in here, maybe you could cook something while I'm away.", she said, grinning at his helpless expression.
Mori returned at sunset. A certain smell filled the air, she couldn't put a name to what it was, but it seemed to originate from the house. As she went in, she saw Zuko sitting by the fire pit, stirring in an old pot. The smell came from the pot. "Uhm, hey Zuko. What are you cooking?", she asked, suppressing the urge to put a hand over her mouth and nose.
His eyes lit up as he saw her. Then he looked down, slightly embarrassed, "Well, I tried something.", she sat down next to him and looked into the pot. It was a white mass, containing some bigger chumps. Mori didn't want to put her friend in a sour mood, so she held up a bowl accompanied with the brightest smile she could manage. He was seemingly surprised, but then smiled back and filled her bowl and his own.
Hesitantly she tried whatever it was he cooked. For a second she grimaced, but quickly regained her composure when she felt him looking at her. "I-I had worse, I guess.", she could see that it made him proud, "But, well, you know, I don't think of you as a spoiled prince or something, but it shows a little that you didn't have to cook for yourself that often.", she said, smiling apologetically. His shoulders instantly slumped. She patted his shoulder, "Don't worry, you'll get better over time.", but it didn't really lift the mood.
The next morning, he woke up at sunrise, next to his uncle. The old man was still sleeping. Zuko heard the front door and concluded that Mori was also awake. He stood up and followed out of the house. Fascinated he stood in the doorframe for a few long moments. It was a feeling familiar to him from his childhood. Watching Mori bend fire, her graceful movements flowing from stance to stance, the brightness of her flames dancing around her, would always make him stare in wonder. He also noticed that he didn't know some of the stances she practiced.
Then suddenly, she noticed him. Smiling she greeted the prince, "Good morning, Zuko. Do you want to practice too?", all words seemed stuck in his throat, silently, he nodded. He went up to her and they began mirroring their movements. Mori corrected his stances from time to time, but in a friendly manner, like she had always done, he thought.
Caldera, 92 years after Sozin's Comet
Iroh walked over to his nephew, who was brooding at the edge of the garden pond. He sat down next to the eight years old. "Hello, prince Zuko."
"Hello, uncle.", the child said with a sad voice.
In his usual calm manner Iroh said, "I heard about what happened in the throne room."
Zuko looked up to his uncle, "You mean, how I failed and Azula did not?"
The old man nodded, "Yes, and I thought there might be someone to help you out."
Surprised Zuko looked over to his uncle, the old man continued, "Would you like to come over to my residence and meet her?"
"Her?", the boy asked.
"Yes, come on.", and as both stood up Iroh said, "She's my best student, I think you could call her my prodigy. Come, I'll introduce you to one another."
As they walked over to Iroh's residence, Zuko wondered who this might be. He imagined his uncle's student to be far older than him, maybe the same age as his cousin, Lu Ten. Concerning that she was his uncle's prodigy, that woman must be a fearsome individual. He shivered at the thought.
Finally, his uncle unlocked the door to his residence. He called out, "Kemori! Are you there?"
Zuko suddenly heard quick footsteps from the upper floor. A figure came running down the stairs and stopped just before his uncle, bowing. "Sifu! You're back!", Iroh chuckled at her and motioned for the girl to raise from her bowing position.
Turning halfway to his nephew he said, "Nephew, this is Kemori. Mori, this is my nephew Zuko. He needs a bit of help with his bending. Would you be so kind to give him a few tips?", the girl nodded, smiling at the boy. Zuko still wondered about her. He had anticipated some kind of nobleman's daughter, but that girl had tanned skin and blue eyes, very clearly not Fire Nation. Maybe she was from the colonies? But then, how did she end up becoming his uncle's student? She wore a red tunic with black forearm guards and a broad girdle, her black hair was tied up in buns at both sides of her head, leaving only a fringe covering her forehead.
"Hi, Zuko.", she said, bowing to him as well. He mirrored her greeting but struggled to find the words. She must be around his age. Oh good, he thought, another Azula, as if one was not enough. He was snapped out of his thought as both, his uncle and the girl, tried to stifle their laughter. He blushed a bit.
All of sudden she grabbed his arm and pulled him with her, "Come on, your firebending won't improve from standing here.", Iroh laughed as his student pulled his nephew out to the courtyard.
To Zuko's surprise, Mori was not like Azula at all. The first thing she did was to sit down in the shadow of a large tree and listen to what had happened to him. Not once did she look away from him. She just sat there, quietly listening and nodding from time to time. Once he finished, she raised a hand to her face in a thinking gesture.
"So, you have a specific problem with landing, eh? You jump, you kick, but then you land on your behind.", she concluded. He nodded, blushing and looking at the ground. A small hand lifted his chin, "Don't worry so much. I'll help you fix that.", so, they started training together and on the end of the day he could do the set he had failed to previously. Mori stood next to him as he showed it one final time. Once he finished, she clapped in her hands, "That was perfect, Zuko."
The boy smiled back at her, "I could only do it thanks to your help."
She shook her head, "I don't think so. You would've done it either way, I just helped accelerating it."
Curiously Zuko asked, "Uncle praised you a lot before we came here, can you show me what you're working on at the moment?"
This time, Mori blushed, "He did? Oh, well, sure, I guess.", they switched places and Mori started a set of spins and kicks that Zuko hadn't seen anything like yet. He just sat there, mouth agape, staring at her. It almost seemed like a dance to him. Once she finished, breathing heavily, he choked out, "That was … amazing!", he exclaimed while she was shyly rubbing the back of her neck. "Do you think, I could come here more often? I mean, I would love to learn that too.", he asked energetically.
And so, over the course of the next few years they became very close friends, even more so, when Iroh became Zuko's master too and they could train all day together, until everything came crushing down on the day his father challenged Zuko to an Agni Kai. Mori was forbidden to watch it. She was not a Fire Nation noble. But she heard him scream. Fear had taken hold of her heart. She debated with herself if she should storm in, but then she reminded herself that that would probably be a death sentence for her, and that Iroh would surely step in to save his nephew's life.
Somewhere in the Earth Kingdom, 100 years after Sozin's Comet
Their training session was abruptly interrupted by their stomachs' growling. Exhausted Mori let herself fall to the ground and laughed wholeheartedly. "I guess, we should think about breakfast now.", she said as Zuko pulled her back up again. "I'm going to try and collect some berries, and you, well, you can make some tea."
Zuko hesitated, "About these berries, be careful about wild plants. Uncle and I had an incident with a White Jade plant earlier."
Mori chuckled, "Don't worry, Zuko. I live in the Earth Kingdom for three years now, I know my way around these plants.", with that she walked off, leaving Zuko to stare at her walking form.