For the Love of Him -or- The Betrothal

Hey! Welcome back all! Ready for chapter two? It's a bit funnier than the last one (not that either are particularly funny though...IT'S A ROMANCE, NOT A HUMOR! I'M TRYING TO BRANCH OUT!) especially at the beginning...anyways, here you go!

Oh, and thank you to Red Hawk K'sani for setting me straight on a few points. Heh, I figured the Zhao part out just after I posted the first chapter and I went back and changed it, but it seems to be slow in updating that...Also, I'll go back and fix Iroh's name as soon as I can! THANKS AGAIN! Gives cookies

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own Avatar: TLAB. Nickelodion does. Sadly. Still. Still wish I did, still want to make the plot do what I want it to, but I still don't so I still can't. Anyways...I still do own the OC, one 'Miss Ajuna'. This is still my first romance, ever, of any series, so I still have no idea how it will go. It still probably doesn't help that the series still hasn't been fully shown yet, so I still have no idea if this completely destroys or deviates from the actual course of events. Constructive comments will still be enjoyed, however flames will still not be tolerated. Thank you for your time, and I'm sorry for still using the word 'still' so much.

Chapter 2- Waltz for One


The following morning, waking-ness greeted Prince Zuko by flashing a brilliant shaft of morning light directly into his face. "Hnnn..." he grumbled unhappily, yanking his pillow out from under his head and shielding his face from the glare by covering his head with it. "Too early," he mumbled into the cool softness of the cushion. Someone, his uncle most likely, knocked once, twice on his door, it's angry metallic sound grating on the prince's ears. "Too early!" he rumbled again, louder this time, enough so that whoever it was could clearly hear him.

"Get up Prince Zuko! You have to train if you still wish to defeat the Avatar!" his uncle's voice rang, a gentle but firm command.

"Hnnn..." Zuko mumbled again, rolling over onto his stomach, yanking his covers up over his head and getting a firm hold onto his futon. His dreams had finally subsided, leaving him in peace, and he was loathe to let sleep go without a good fight. "Get up!" Iroh demanded again, banging harder on the door. When Zuko just burrowed deeper into his bed with no audible reply, the general sighed, rolled his eyes as he turned the handle and let himself in. Stubborn Boy. Always did like to sleep in. he thought to himself as he crossed the threshold...and froze just inside the doorway.

"What happened in here? Where did the tapestries go? And why are there these scorch marks on the walls?" Iroh asked, placing a hand on one of the black and sooty streaks on the wall as he gazed with wide eyes around the nearly barren room. "Do you know Zuko?" The prince went stiff at his uncle's words, grimacing into the sheets. He'd have to get new hangings and books from one of the unoccupied rooms to replace the burned ones later. Well, there wasn't anything he could do about that now, he shrugged mentally, pretending to be asleep by way of fending off his uncle's questions. He didn't want to discuss those dreams again, especially not with his uncle. He'd just zone out or ask for tea midway through anyway.

That dream again...poor kid. Iroh shook his head sadly at his nephew's cocooned form and tapped an exposed foot with his cold boot. He couldn't help but grin a bit when the foot was yanked back under the covers with a little yelp. "Ah well, I'm sure the tapestries are just being cleaned. The staff here is good about keeping this place spotless. Get up and meet me on the deck in thirty minutes. We'll run through the basics again. Maybe we'll do the advanced sect again as well...after some tea, of course," Iroh's voice quieted as he turned and headed for the door, wandering out and shutting it behind him with a metallic clang and wandering back down the hall, his long robes swishing softly on the floor behind him. Maybe that will take his mind off his defeat...you would think he would be over it a bit more...it has been two years. I suppose it would be...unforgettable...though.

As soon as his uncle's footsteps faded away, Zuko looked up, two dark eyes peeking out from the blankets, peering about over the pillow. A sparkle of hope glimmered faintly in them as he slowly stretched, sighing happily as his muscles settled back into place. He liked stretching. Firebenders seemed to be naturally tense, and the release it gave felt good. For a moment he considered just going back to sleep, but his uncle's words rang out from the back of his mind. Would his uncle really let him go over the advanced sect again, he wondered as he shook the covers off.

He stood slowly, stretching again and yawning as he blinked quickly, trying to adjust his eyes to the bright light of the room. It really was too early to be up, he decided as he gazed out the window at the barely risen sun, squinting as it reflected through a nearby iceberg, throwing a handful of rainbows down onto the deck's top. "Pretty..." he sighed as he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his dark pants1 and started searching for a shirt, bypassing a bin that was stuffed full of the burnt objects on his way to his closet. I'll have to toss those out too, he thought to himself as he slid the door open.

Inside he lit a candle with a flick of his finger against the wick and a flash of fire. Light pooled out from the waxy column, casting the room into shadowy relief and filling it with a warm reddish glow. It seemed that everything associated with the Fire Nation had a reddish tone to it, be it the clothes, the ships, the food, it didn't matter. Zuko smiled to himself, rocking back on his heels, taking in the warm atmosphere. He liked red. He'd been surrounded by it all his life, and it was relaxing to him.

Somewhere on the ship, a gong sounded, it's wavering echoes bouncing around inside the hull of the boat, building slowly until the entire ship could hear it's tones. The prince quickly snapped out of his revere and gently sat the candle down, heading for the small drawer of one bureau that contained his shirts. Time already? He scowled as he selected one, the same dark burnt color as all the rest and slid it over his head, pausing to free it when it snagged on his ponytail before sliding it the rest of the way down and yanking on it to release a few wrinkles. Now I won't have time to eat anything before I meet Uncle. Not that I would eat much of anything anyways... his somber thoughts bounced about inside his head, causing his eyebrows to furrow in slight concern. He hadn't been able to eat much lately it seemed, and his lack of appetite was beginning to show. He sighed, letting himself slide to the floor for a moment. Is something wrong with me? I can't eat, want to sleep all day, and when I do that dream comes back. It's been coming back stronger lately...I wonder if it's an omen... his thoughts began to wander.

A few moments later he was shaken back to reality by the gong's second tone. He leapt to his feet, regaining his cool composure with the effortlessness of years of practice and headed for the door back to his room, blowing the candle out and setting it back on it's table on the way. He bent and scooped his bed things up and tossed them back into a corner of the closet, effectively clearing the floor of his room before he shut the closet door again and heading out to the hall. Once there, he turned left, heading off at a slightly quickened pace for the deck, letting his arms swing freely at his sides. Every now and again some soldier or other would cross his path and step aside with a 'Good morning Sir.' or some other such greeting. Zuko just growled and shrugged them off. He wasn't in the mood for their scraping and bowing today.

He stopped once on his way to meet his uncle and stood before a tall, dark portrait of a man wreathed in flames, whose eyes seemed to glare shamefully down at him. Zuko glared back with all the ferocity he could muster, barely stopping himself from tossing a handful of flames at it. Instead, he backed up a step and bowed stiffly at the waist. As he stood there, still bowed over, he murmured under his breath, "Soon. I will capture the Avatar soon. And then you will restore my honor to me. And I will be able to return home...Father," he almost spat the last word. Two years at sea had given him all the time he needed to build up a store of bitterness towards the man who he had once worshiped above all but who had rejected him in return. The bitterness still seething in his eyes, Zuko straightened back up, narrowed his eyes at the portrait of his father and turned and stormed off towards the deck.

Just outside the door that led to the deck, General Iroh was seated at a low table, calmly sipping his first cup of hot tea for the day. "The first one is always the best...hot jingsang...my favorite." He looked up, glancing back at the door as it creaked open and his nephew stepped briskly out. "Ah, there you are! Come, join me for some tea!" He gestured to a cushion across the table from him, motioning with a smile for Zuko to sit. The prince looked as if he was about to say something but then snapped his mouth shut and silently took the offered seat. "Here," Iroh passed a hot cup of the tea to Zuko "It's jingsang, m-"

"Your favorite, I know Uncle," Zuko interrupted as he gazed sullenly into the tea's hot depths. He took a small sip and then sat the cup back down. It seemed that not even jingsang -it was one of his favorites too- could stimulate his appetite as of late. He sat a moment longer, watching the curls of steam rise from the hot tea as he waited for his uncle to finish. When Iroh finally set his cup back down, Zuko slid himself back from the table and leapt to his feet, eager to start training. "Now, you've had your tea. You will teach me the advanced sect," he said, more a command than a request.

"That's not exactly what I meant..." Iroh mumbled to himself as he set his cup down beside Zuko's. "All right, I will teach you. But first you must warm up. Drill the basics again," he commanded, pouring out another round of tea and waving for two soldiers to step forward and face the prince. Not this again...If we're going to do the basics, can't we at least drill a different run for once? Zuko wondered as he assumed his proper position, forming the third point of the triangle formed by himself and the two warriors. They bowed, bending to almost 45 degrees at the waist. He nodded back, a slight tilt of the head as he struck the first pose and readied for the fight to begin.

"Go!" Iroh called, raising a hand to signal the battle's start from his seat at the table. Together, the three benders sprang to life. The first soldier and the smaller of the two, leapt into the air, sweeping his foot down in a blaze of falling sparks towards the prince. Zuko darted ahead, shooting under the airborne bender, dancing around the falling embers and aiming a flaming punch skywards. He heard a satisfyingly loud thump as the fire connected with his target and he spun to face the other, who by that time had also begun his attack. Instead of leaping straight for Zuko, the second warrior has chosen to stay at a distance, and was firing multiple blasts of flame towards the prince as he slowly worked his way closer in a spiral fashion. One after the next, Zuko dodged the fireballs, leaping, dodging, even blasting a few out of his way with his own round of flames.

Deciding to go on the offensive, he stepped up to a slight run, his long ponytail flying wildly behind him as he sped around the deck slowly gaining on his sole adversary. In order to keep ahead of the attacking prince, the soldier sped up as well, running ahead of his charge. Suddenly, as Zuko finally got in range, he stopped, changing directions and sprinting back the other way. Not realizing that the prince had stopped chasing him, the soldier kept right on running, not willing to let the prince catch up with him. Out of what seemed like a completely empty patch of air to the charging bender, Zuko appeared, flying towards him at an alarming speed, before he leapt into the air, flying high up and into the sun's glare.

He hung there for a moment, a dark silhouette, brilliantly outlined by the morning sun. Then, with a cry to wake anyone on the ship who might still be sleeping, he fell, plummeting down, a fiery comet aimed directly at the remaining bender. There was a flash, from which even the battle-hardened Iroh had to throw up an arm to shield his eyes from, and the sickening sound of bones cracking and an odd sizzling sound. Slowly at first, then quicker, the blinding light faded away, leaving the two combatants frozen in plain sight, as if they were actors on a stage at the end of a dramatic play, waiting for the curtain to fall. Zuko was balanced squarely on one foot, with his other smashed into a large dent on the stunned warrior's shoulder. Or what was left of it. The man shuddered once and crumpled to the ground, grasping at his ruined arm in pain. There was a huge bruise there, where Zuko had broken the bone straight in two, and the sheer intensity of the fire had not only burnt the cloth encasing it away, but it had melted the armor and part of the helmet on that side of his head, which had run down and hardened around his misshapen shoulder, leaving a blackish, hardening wound.

"Well?" Zuko asked his uncle, still frozen in place. "Am I warmed up enough to move on to the advanced sect yet?" His eyes flickered over to his uncle, fixing him with a look filled with the thrill of battle and the fire of the power he felt at defeating his opponents. It was a look Iroh hadn't seen since his days on the battle field and he was surprised at just how much it disturbed him to see it again after all these years, that look of the willing combatant, fighting not only for his own honor or to prove that it could be done, but the look hinted with sheer enjoyment at sending someone crashing down in utter defeat.

"Y-yes...I believe you are..." he said, a quaver to his voice.


1- He slept in pants, just in case anyone wanted to know.

Anyways, that's chapter two...I know I said I'd wait until I got ten reviews...but then, patience was never a good quality of mine...and my friends wanted to read it! Abi, you know who you are! R&R THIS TIME! That goes for the rest of you too!

P.S. Oh, and I'm sorry that I'm not so good at battle scenes...I hope it was okay!

Bye now! And Happy Banana Hunting!