Thirteen Years Old

Zuko sat on the floor in a public firebending class with five other boys and three girls. This particular class was for kids from ages fourteen to fifteen, and had only started one month ago. The Fire Lord wanted his son to learn at a faster rate, so he made it so that Zuko would be in a higher level. Zuko actually used the class as a way to get out of the palace and maybe even make friends his own age. He had made one friend so far, a boy named Tui (tway). With only having class twice a week, he considered it quick because almost no one treated him like a normal kid, being the prince of the country.

One of the boys went to sit by Zuko and said, "I wonder what's taking so long for him to answer the door." It was his friend, Tui.

"I don't know," replied the prince, "but if he got captured by earthbenders, maybe my uncle can substitute him!"

"What's with you and your uncle, Prince Zuko?" Tui asked, slightly narrowing his eyes.

Wearing his training outfit, Zuko rubbed his bare arm. "Well-" He pointed to the door, "Hey, he's back!"

Their teacher walked to the front of the room as he said, "Sorry about that, class, but it appears that we will have a new student joining us. Her name is Diyi (tie-yi) and should be coming in shortly."

"Great," said Tui, "just what we need; more girls." He stood up and went back to where he was previously sitting.

"Oh, here she comes!" said the teacher. A girl with black hair walked into the room. Her hair was below the sides of her chin and was gradually cut upward to be very short at the back of her head. She kept the hair at her left behind her ear. She had on a red, sleeveless shirt, gray pants, and black boots. A bracelet with alternating bead colors of red and black was tied around her left wrist. Zuko turned around to look at his new classmate, but when he saw her, his eyes widened a bit and his jaw dropped slightly.

She walked passed him and stood by the teacher, who put his hand on her shoulder and said, "This is Diyi, she had just recently moved to this city and will be joining our class. Now Diyi, you can take a seat by… how 'bout Prince Zuko?" He pointed toward the prince. Zuko quickly closed his mouth and sat up straight.

"Alright," she said. Diyi walked over to Zuko. He blushed a bit when she sat down next to him. "Hi," she greeted with a kind smile.

Zuko calmed a bit and managed to smile. "Hey."

The next day, which was the last class of the week, Zuko and Diyi still sat by each other. Their teacher was giving instructions on how to do a firebending sequence.

"As I demonstrate this, kids," he said, "I'd like for you to take notes. I will be explaining it again as well. Now, get some paper, a brush, and ink." Diyi put her hand on a stack of paper that was between her and Zuko. Right then, he accidentally put his hand on her's.

He quickly took it away and blushed, "Oops, s-sorry..."

Diyi smiled and said, "It's okay, Prince Zuko." She took three pieces of paper and handed them to the prince.

"Um, thanks," Zuko quietly thanked her as he took the paper. Diyi got her own sheets, and then got her brush ready. Zuko picked up his brush and dipped it into the ink, his face starting to turn back into its usual, pale color. Tui, who sat diagonally in front of him, turned around to face the front.

Later that day, the class was having lunch. Zuko sat with his legs crossed and with his elbow on his knee. His hand propped up his head. He watched Diyi talk and laugh with the other girls. A slight smile was on the prince's lips and was in his own little world.

Tui sat down next to him. "Hey, Prince Zuko," he greeted. When he didn't respond, Tui poked Zuko's arm hard.

"Ouch!" Zuko put his hand over his arm as he turned around to his friend.

"Sorry, but you didn't say anything. What were you staring at?"

"Nothing," Zuko replied with a very subtle blush and at a calm tone.

"…Were you looking at the girls?"

"No way," Zuko said with a slight smile to cover up his act. He took a bite of his food using his chopsticks to try to avoid answering any more of Tui's questions.

He paused for a moment, "How can you stay so calm?"

Zuko swallowed, and replied, "From meditating." He continued with his meal, while Tui gave him a look of suspicion.

After the class finished, Zuko sat on the floor, gathering his notes. A pair of boots stopped by his papers. He looked up to see Tui with his arms folded.

He bent down and pulled the prince up by his arm, "Come on, you're going to ask her out."

Zuko continued his charade. "What are you talking about?" They were facing each other now.

"Prince Zuko, are you kidding? Ever since Diyi came, you've been acting a bit jumpy, you keep staring at her…" Zuko's face got red. "And you blush almost every time I say something like that." The prince turned his head away and looked at Diyi, who was standing up and reading her notes.

"Diyi's smart, and kind, and funny." Zuko looked back at his friend. "But I can't go up to her and ask her out." Tui smirked. The prince stared at the boy for a second. "…What?"

Tui put his hands on Zuko's shoulders, "Let's go, Prince Zuko."

"No! Tui!" He pushed back.

"Ouch!" They both stopped.

The prince stopped shoving his friend. "Sorry. But still, let go of me!"

"Okay." Tui gave him a rough push, and because it was unexpected, he almost fell on his face, but he was able to catch himself by taking a few steps. Zuko looked up and blushed. Diyi was looking down at him with a smile.

"Um…Hi, Prince Zuko," she said with a bit of laughter in her voice.

Zuko quickly straightened his posture and smiled. "Uh, hey, Diyi! Uh…I was wondering." He shrugged his shoulders as he continued, "if you weren't doing anything later…maybe we could…go on a walk or something?"

Diyi paused for a moment before she answered, "Sure!" Zuko smiled a bit wider and blushed less noticeably.

"Really?" He coughed into his fist. "When and where do you want to go?"

"You can choose where to go." Diyi got on the floor and wrote something on a blank sheet of paper. "Would it be okay if you picked me up in about an hour?" She stood up and handed him the paper. "Here's where I live." Zuko took the sheet and looked it over.

"Alright, so, see you in an hour," he said starting to walk away.

"Yeah, see you later." Zuko walked back to where his notes were still laying. The prince leaned over and picked them up. Tui came over and stood beside him.

"So, how'd it go?" he asked

"We're going out in an hour," Zuko replied.

"Really?"

"That's what I said!" the prince exclaimed jokingly.

Tui chuckled quietly. "Well, good luck with it, Prince Zuko."

"Thanks."

Zuko told his father where he was going to be. The Fire Lord's response was calm, but Zuko did not agree with him.

"What? Father, you can't be serious."

"I am. You'll never know what will happen."

"But, Father, I can't take three guards with me!"

"…Very well, you will take two guards."

"Father!"

"There could be traitors, Prince Zuko. You should be thankful that I did not send any guards to your firebending class."

"But-"

"My decision is final. You will take two guards with you, or you will not go at all."

Zuko let out a sigh. He had lost the battle.

About an hour later, Zuko stared at the paper Diyi gave him. He looked up at the house in front of him. Here it is, he thought. The prince stood at the door, wearing his uniform, and took a deep breath. He reached out with his right hand and knock on the entrance way three times. A few seconds later, it was opened by a woman.

"Hello. Is Diyi ready yet?" Zuko asked politely.

"You must be Prince Zuko. I'm Diyi's mother. Please, come in and have a seat," she said kindly. Zuko walked in, while the two guards stood at each side of the entrance with their spears at their side. The prince casually looked around at the interior of the small house, and then sat down in a wooden chair. It was not a dwelling he was used to living in, but it was nice and cozy. "Diyi's almost ready," said her mother, "She should be out soon. Would you like anything while you wait?"

"No thank you, ma'am, I'm fine," replied the prince courteously. A couple of minutes later, Diyi walked into the room. Zuko stood up. "Hey, Diyi. You look great," he said with a smile. She appeared just as pleasured of his arrival.

"Thanks, Prince Zuko." Diyi wore a black, short-sleeved shirt with a crimson long sleeved shirt underneath. Fire patterns decorated the sleeves of her t-shirt. She also had on a red skirt lined with black stripes on the edge and sides that fell above her knees and went over her gray pants. Her pant legs were tucked into her black boots. She still had her bracelet on too.

"Diyi," said her mother, "be sure you come back before dinner."

"Yes, Mom," she responded as the two walked out the door.

"Prince Zuko, are you prepared to depart?" asked one of the guards.

"Yes, we are ready," he replied. Then the prince turned to Diyi, "Uh, my father made me bring two guards with me. You're probably not used to having them around… no offence, so I hope you don't mind."

She smiled. "None taken. And I suppose that the guards are alright as well."

"Would it also be alright if our walk was at our private lake?" Zuko asked, shrugging his shoulders.

"Let me guess, your father wanted us to go there?" Zuko nodded in response. "It's alright with me. Lead the way." The prince began to walk, and Diyi stayed at his side.

A few minutes later, they reached the lake. The two guards stopped following when they were about thirty yards away. When Zuko didn't hear any footsteps behind him, he stopped and turned around.

"Why are you no longer following us?" asked Zuko, not that he minded them stopping.

"Orders of the Fire Lord, sir," one of them replied.

"Now they tell me," Zuko mumbled, rolling his eyes. "So you will stay here the entire time?" he asked, trying to confirm everything.

"That is correct, unless you require assistance, of course," the other guard answered.

"Very well, resume your post."

"Yes, sir," said both guards. Zuko and Diyi turned to walk away.

Once the two teens were out of hearing range, the younger of the guards muttered, "Good luck, lover boy." The second guard chuckled and elbowed his partner, and he quietly laughed along.

"How do you like the firebending class so far, Diyi?" Zuko asked, trying to start a conversation.

"I think it's great," she replied. Diyi looked over at Zuko and narrowed her eyes slightly. "But why do you go there? Couldn't you get a private tutor instead?"

"I could, but sometimes I need to get away from the palace."

"So, do you like being the prince?"

"Well, along with the positive things, I have many things I could easily live without. So, it's alright, I suppose."

"Do you have any siblings?"

Zuko nodded once with a sigh. "Yes, one sister, but I would rather not have one at all."

Diyi tilted her head slightly. "Why is that, Prince Zuko?"

"Alright, but you can't tell anyone what I'm about to say," he said in serious tone.

She smiled and straightened her neck, "I promise I won't tell anybody."

"Okay." Zuko looked around to insure himself no one was around. "Princess Zula is evil."

"Come on, Prince Zuko, she can't be that bad," Diyi said with a slight laugh.

"Oh, no? When I was four, we had lunch alone together because my father was at a meeting. Then I went out of the room, for a reason I don't remember, and left my bowl of noodles on the table. And then when I got back, some of them were crawling."

"Ew!"

"Yeah."

"So what did you do about it?"

"I did what any mature child would so," he said with a smile, "I ran to tell my father on her." Diyi laughed at his joke. "Do you have any siblings?"

"Yes, an older brother, but like my father, he had been drafted to be in the war. He should be in the 41st division sometime next year."

"Oh…Well, I hope that he'll be okay." Zuko knew that it was highly unlikely that her brother would be, since he will be a new recruit. From being prince of the Fire Nation, he knew of all the things the Earth Kingdom was capable of doing to their enemies.

"Me too, we were very close." A few moments passed with no sound but the gentle slosh of water when the breeze pushed it just the way it did with the rustling trees and grass. The Fire Lord's ruby colored bird flew across the clear sky, with its ribbon-like tail flowing behind it. It cawed once, alerting the palace of an incoming message that was in the pouch on its back. It cawed again as it flew over the trees, out of sight.

"Uh, so," Zuko started, "have you ever been out of country before?"

Diyi turned her head toward him, "No, my mom said that it would be too dangerous to leave the Fire Nation, but I'm guessing that you've done it many times."

"Yes, I have. Mostly because my father wanted Princess Zula and I to see what the war is like or to actually do things that have to do with it. And one time Princess Zula did another rotten thing to me at the South Pole. She knocked me off the ship, when we had stopped, and I fell face first into the snow." Zuko thought for a second, and then seemed to have gotten an idea. "About the only time I enjoyed going out of country was when my mother took me to the South Pole for some quality time when I was still very young.

"I remember that she used to hold my hand when I got nervous around the towering icebergs and snow covered land. It was all very overwhelming at the time." Zuko looked over at Diyi to make sure he was not just making a fool of himself.

"I'd imagine so," Diyi said, as if reading his mind.

The prince smiled at her, and then turned his head around and frowned, "I asked her if we could go back there again. She said that if she could, she'd take me there each year. But… she couldn't keep her promise."

"What happened?" Diyi asked at a kind tone.

He glanced over at her, "She…" Zuko sighed and looked away, "got ill… and… you know."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Zuko just nodded. They were both silent for a few seconds. Diyi looked at the prince, then turned her head slightly down. She reached out with her hand and took his. The prince looked down at his hand. He smiled, looked up at Diyi, and closed his fingers around her hand. She smiled back at him.

When they got back to the other side of the lake, the Fire Lord was there talking to the two guards. Zuko narrowed his eyes slightly in confusion. He looked over at Diyi and pointed to the three adults with his eyes and head. Diyi nodded, knowing what he meant. They walked toward the group.

"Father, what's going on?" Zuko asked.

Ozai turned from the guards to his son. "A message had just arrived, and it requests that you, Princess Zula, and I are to attend a meeting in the southwest area of the Fire Nation."

"What is it about this time?" Zuko asked with little interest.

"It is a general meeting about the war," he replied. "We will be there for three days and the journey will take four days total. So pack your belongings and we will leave first thing tomorrow morning."

"Alright, but may I take Diyi home first?"

"Yes, you may, but be sure to pack as soon as you return to the palace."

"Alright, I'll be back soon," Zuko said as he and Diyi walked away.

Ozai turned back to the guards, "Follow him there to insure his safety, but leave some distance between you and him."

"Yes, sir," they said again. The Fire Lord nodded once, and the guards went to catch up with the two teens.

About ten minutes later, the four were at Diyi's house again.

"Well, we're here," said Zuko with a sigh.

Diyi opened the door. "Yeah, and right on time too." She smiled.

Zuko smiled back, "Yeah. Uh, so, see you when I get back."

"Alright." Diyi leaned over and kissed Zuko on his cheek. "See you then." His eyes widened slightly, and when he relaxed a little, the corners of his lips pointed a bit further up.

"Yeah, okay," he said. Diyi smiled a little bit wider and went through the door. Zuko stood frozen as the door closed in front of him. The guards walked over to the prince and stood at his sides.

"Are you alright, Prince Zuko?" one of them asked.

He looked up at him and replied, "Um, yes. Lets go, I need to prepare for our journey."

"Yes, sir." They walked ahead of him. Zuko followed them slowly, and then looked back. He saw Diyi at the window with a smile. She waved at him. Zuko smiled and waved back at her. He turned around and went to catch up with the guards.

Zuko smirked at how stupid he acted before. And while thinking of himself acting stupid, he remembered when his voice would crack only about a year ago. His uncle would always tease him about how he sounded. His voice would crack practically in every sentence he spoke.

A thought of his sister made him frown. At least she wasn't there at the time. Zula would have made him so humiliated that he would probably lock himself in his room most of the day.

Someone else came to mind and made him smile his very rare smile. His uncle. Iroh was always so good to him. He would try to make him laugh every now and then, make him have fun. He also taught Zuko firebending throughout his banishment. Iroh even stood by his side when others did not. He has been treating him as if he were his own.

Zuko rolled onto his side and let out a sigh. He looked through the narrow window that was on the wall opposite to him. It was dark with countless amounts of stars scattered across the sky. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted back to sleep.

A/N:

Four Years Old

Princess Zula is in fact Zuko's sister, but it's only a theory, for now, that she's older than him. No one knows if Zuko ever called Ozai "Daddy". It's a little kid thing, so I had him say it.

Seven Years Old

I had Zuko ask a bunch of questions because he asked Iroh, "If I'm gonna rule this nation one day, don't you think I need to start learning as much as I can?" I also had Zuko act happy because he probably didn't have many responsibilities of being a prince yet, and would act more like a normal kid for a while. I don't know if Zuko and Zula had a rivalry or not, but if they did, it might have been amusing. And I also don't know if there's a such thing as a military camp in the Avatar world, I just had to have an excuse to get Zula out of the palace.

Thirteen Years Old

Tui and Diyi are my original characters. In Chinese, "tui" means "push" and "diyi" means "first". I don't know if Zuko did or even wanted to go to a public firebending class, or if they exist at all. I also don't know if he had a private lake, if his mom died that way, if she even died, or if she ever took him to the South Pole. You might wonder, "Why does Ozai care about Zuko's safety so much?" The reason I did that was because Zuko's the next heir to the throne. Ironically, when I wrote Thirteen Years Old on paper, it took me thirteen pages.