Author's Note: With this chapter we enter the actual timeline of the series, at least for more than a few sentences. We do not continue straight from the last chapter, but rather make a little jump to I think it is episode 3, where Zhao appears for the first time. This is mainly because I don't think that I could add anything to the first two episodes. Also, just for protocol, as I'm writing this, I currently suffer from a larger internet outage, so I cannot look upon the episode's transcript, and you'll have to bear with my recollection and more or less free interpretation. Anyways, thanks to everyone for following this and please review!
A Fire Nation Military Port somewhere in the southern Earth Kingdom, 100 years after the first appearance of Sozin's comet
Ming sat in her largely empty room and looked at her image in the mirror. She was not the thirteen years old that moved into it anymore. Though the room had not changed a bit, just everything a bit more worn. She had not added a lot of personal stuff to it, the only thing would be a painting of her and Zuko, made a few months before his banishment. It had been their 8th anniversary. She remembered it, mainly because it was also the date of their first kiss, shy and somewhat uncomfortable, both blushing wildly afterwards. She sighed at the thought how innocent their smiles were back then. She felt a deep sadness that always got hold of her when she thought about her husband. These happy times would never come back, not that there was no possibility of having happy times, but the innocence would be gone forever.
Sorrow washed over her, like it always did when she thought about him. They did not send any letters to each other, her father had forbidden her to do so, and she was not receiving any from her husband. Considering his personality, she thought, he may be too ashamed to tell her that he was not making progress in his search for the avatar. He wanted his honor, his home, his life back, and this seemed the only way to him. Ming though, wished deeply in her heart that he would just come and take her away from her father, far, far away. She did not need a palace around her, did not care about honor or whatever else, she would've been happy just living with him, anywhere, and however simple. But Zuko would probably get mad doing so. She chuckled, she lived for quite some years in the palace herself, but still felt that she knew more about the lives of the ordinary person than he would. Even now, being on a boat all the time, he couldn't really have met that lot of people.
Her gaze wandered to her own image again. Her hair reached down a little bit over her chin by now, her forehead covered in a fringe. She would have to shave her head again in just a few weeks, when the anniversary of his banishment came. It was still black, but the lacquered look her hair previously possessed was gone, mainly due to the shortness. Her eyes were black as always but were less round and had a wearier expression to them, weary and tired, but sometimes they shone with a proud look of defiance in them. Her skin had probably suffered the most in the three years she was now living in this room. It was still pale, but sometimes had an unhealthy, yellowy shimmer to it. The bruises also did not help it. Her father had always hit her, even before she had entered the palace. After she had left it, it got worse. He would be angry at her for the smallest of things and the aggression became worse and worse. About half a year ago he started burning her as well. Nothing that would become a big scar, nothing that would scar at all, after all, he still wanted to sell her off into a more advantageous marriage and therefore scars were intolerable. But still her forearms would have burn marks on them on most days, making her wear long sleeves even on the hottest days.
After a while she had learned to not show her pain, nor her fear or any other expression to him. She would tolerate the pain, even the burnings with no expression on her face, not even a sound when he hit her, just a stoic stare, not even bothering to look at him. He was not worthy of it.
She shivered; a cold breeze had entered through the open window. Her clothing was too wide for her, not that much, but still considerably. Even the white shirt-like dress that covered her underwear. Ming knew she did not eat enough, but she could care less. In her time at the military base, she went from slim to thin to skinny, almost visibly starving herself in silent protest to her father.
She touched her cheek; the red sting was still visible. She and her father had gotten in one of their arguments this morning. It was a frequent occurrence, and it frequently ended in a red sting on her cheek. The theme of the argument was the same as eighty percent of the time. Those stupid annulment papers. How often would she have to tell him that she would never set her name on those until he finally accepted defeat?
At the port around the same time
Their ship had been severely damaged in their recent fight with the avatar. Zuko and Iroh stood before it, the prince as grumpy as ever, annoyed by the break they had to take to make repairs as well as by the port itself. "Uncle, please make sure we're ready to set sail again as soon as possible. I don't want to waste time here. Also,", he lowered his voice almost whispering, "no one here must know what happened to our ship.".
Iroh looked at his nephew and sighed, then smiled. "I'm sure the crew works as fast as they can, Prince Zuko. Also, the reason why we are here…", he stopped as a dark figure appeared behind his nephew, a guard at each side.
"I would also like to know why you are here, Prince Zuko.", Zhao's harsh voice interrupted, "Greetings, General Iroh, hero of our nation.", he added, nodding to the old man.
"Former General. Nice to meet you, Captain Zhao.", Iroh said quietly.
"It is Admiral by now. Anyway, what happened to your ship that you need to enter my port to make repairs? I see, the damage is quite severely.", Zhao eyed especially Zuko with strong, visible contempt.
"Yeah, uhm, well,", Zuko began stuttering, "it was unbelievable. Uncle, tell Admiral Zhao what happened.", causing Zhao's uncomfortable gaze to wander to the former general.
"Indeed, it was, nephew, but it is quite a long story. I doubt that the Admiral has time for our little adventures.", Iroh said, smiling innocently. Both of them wished nothing but the Admiral to go away.
Zhao smiled back at Iroh, "But please, I'd be honored to hear about your encounter. It must've been quite dramatic. Please have a cup of tea with me and tell me everything, I insist.", he waved off Zuko's protest with a gesture and led them further into the base.
Zuko was visibly boiling with anger at this development, though Iroh tried to calm him down and lighten the tensed mood, asking if Zhao had Jasmine tea. Of course, he had.
They sat down in his office, a big map was covering the wall behind him almost completely, while their seats and a little table with the tea were placed next to a rack with various weapons. The walls were otherwise not decorated at all and there were no windows, causing some candles to be the only light sources, making the whole scene appear in a golden-reddish light.
Iroh was quietly sipping his tea while the other two men quickly got from a tense talk to an outright argument. Suddenly Iroh noticed that if Zuko continued talking like that he would let something about the avatar slip. He probably did not notice it himself all up in anger. Iroh had to step in and did so by "accidentally" throwing himself against the rack, causing all the weapons to fall out with a loud shattering sound. The other two were immediately silent, looking at him. He gathered himself and the weapons from the ground quickly, excusing himself, before sitting down again. Holding his cup in his hand again he smiled at Zhao and asked, "By the way, Admiral, before we forget. Over the last three years we have heard nothing of your daughter, Lady Ming. I hope she's doing well.".
Zhao eyed the old general suspiciously, "Yes, my daughter is fine. She's in her room, preparing herself for the arrival of her new husband.", it was an outright lie, but Zhao wanted Zuko's nerves on a breaking point, and he knew that his daughter was one of his weak points.
Zuko had just taken a sip of the tea but spit it out at this information. Ming was here, but apparently, she was moving on. He thought about their last meeting, the pendant he still wore under his armor. Did this mean nothing to her? Angrily he stood in an instant and walked over to the Admiral, "I demand to see her, now.".
Zhao was apparently unimpressed, "Denied. You're nothing but a banished prince, no honor, no father, no friends, no allies. My daughter deserves a better match than you.".
"Ming would never do that, besides my father loves me, he will welcome me back home with honor once I deliver him the avatar.", Zuko was shouting at the older man by now.
Zhao just turned his back to him and said calmly, "If your father would love you, he would've welcomed you back home by now, avatar or no avatar."
Zuko lunged forward at his father-in-law, "That's not true!", but was held back by two guards.
"You have the scar to prove it.", Zhao said, chuckling at the struggling teenager.
"Maybe you would like one to match!", Zuko hissed, shocking his uncle.
"Is that a challenge?", Zhao asked, now turning towards his son-in-law.
"Yes.", Zuko said, a firm expression on his face.
"Alright, Agni Kai, at sunset. If you win, I'll let you and your ship go. If I win," he grinned, "you and your ship will stay here until I have the Avatar, and", he added, "your marriage to my daughter will be annulled.", the last part caused Zuko to again, try to lunge at the admiral, but the guards still held him down.
In Ming's room
The door was suddenly opened. Her father never cared to knock. He stepped in and grabbed her shoulder, turning her towards him. She saw his grin and immediately knew; he was up to no good. "I have good news for you, daughter. By this time tomorrow you'll be free to marry General Chan's son. How does this sound?"
Ming's eyes grew wide, something must've happened to Zuko. Her expression changed quickly to anger, "Disgusting. What happened to my marriage, I have not signed those stupid papers, nor will I ever.", this earned her a slap in the face.
Her father's grin was still on his face, "The question to ask is, what will happen to your husband, my dear daughter. Zuko was here just a few minutes ago, he didn't ask me anything about you, but he challenged me to an Agni Kai at sunset. So, for now, I suggest that you dress up a bit. You'd want to give him a beautiful last picture of you, don't you? Before you become a widow.", his grin widened when he saw how her face fell apart at his words. He left her in her room like that, just slowly shaking her head, trying to undo what she had heard about.
Later when sunset got nearer, she really did what he said and looked through her closet, searching for the most beautiful dress she could find. If her husband really was here, she wanted to be as beautiful as she could for him. The dress she ended up with was in a very light red with a high collar. It left her shoulders free, but descending from golden arm pieces, had wide, long sleeves. Her waist was covered with a broad obi in a deep red, held close by a light red and white girdle. The lower part of the dress was adorned with a white printed motive of cherry petals blowing in the wind, reaching from the bottom of the dress up to the obi. She then put on a jewelry set, earrings and a matching pendant, that Zuko had gifted her years ago. Dark red stones framed in gold, and adorned with a golden pattern, showing phoenixes. She looked in the mirror, feeling a bit like her old self again. For a finishing touch she applied a dark red lipstick, matching the jewelry. She wanted to show him that he was still important to her, that she never stopped loving him. Taking a deep breath, Ming stepped out of her room.
In the yard, at sunset
Zuko was kneeling down in his combat trousers, listening to his uncle's last advice before the duel would begin. "Don't forget your fire bending basics, nephew. They are your strongest weapons."
He heard him before he saw him. Zhao walked over to him grinning, also wearing combat trousers. He called over, "My prince, I thought having only one witness to your humiliation would be a bit sad, so I took my freedom to invite another special guest. I'm sure you'll have nothing against it."
At first Zuko didn't know what to make of this remark. Then he saw her. Ming looked breathtakingly beautiful, though she clearly had changed in the last years. Her body was no longer that of a girl, but of a young woman, though she seemed incredibly thin. He was instantly worried about her eating enough. Her dress was blowing in the wind, making her appear even more fragile. With a delicate gesture she moved one hand to her face to stop her short hair from blocking her vision. Zuko wondered why she had cut it. He had always adored her hair; this cut made her look even younger than she was. Her face was longer than he remembered, her features becoming more and more that of an adult, more and more elegant. Her lips were fuller and painted in a dark red tone, her eyes were not as round anymore as they were when she had been twelve years old. And she was wearing the jewelry he had gifted to her on one of their anniversaries, back in the Fire Nation. With the setting sun behind her, her whole appearance made him stare at her, fascinated, a warm feeling spreading in his chest. He smiled at her, reminding himself not to wave his hand at her. He didn't want to appear a love-blinded fool just ahead of an Agni Kai.
Then he saw her expression and it made him shiver. She glanced at her father in a grimace of pure disgust, as if she had spotted an ugly insect on her dress. Slowly she walked over to his uncle. Ming greeted Iroh with a smile and bowed respectfully, "It is good to finally see you again, uncle.".
The old man bowed before her as well, then he took her hands in his, "It is good to see you too, Ming. My, my, just three years we have not seen you and now just look at yourself. The girl I once knew has become a beautiful young woman.", and leaning in, whispering in her ear he added, "once they start fighting, stay behind me. We don't want you of all people to catch fire.", she nodded, still smiling at Iroh.
Ming looked up at Zuko, who was smiling at her. She returned it, but with much more sorrow in her eyes. She did not care about her father's fate, but she was worried that he would live up to his threat and indeed make her a widow, killing her husband right in front of her.
As the sun finally set, Zuko and Zhao turned away from each other, so the Agni Kai could begin. Ming was afraid, what would happen next. She held one hand at her chest, grabbing her pendant, her other hand gripped Iroh's shoulder for support. The old man reached up and stroke it in a gesture of comfort.
Both fighters turned around, black cloth falling from their shoulders, and entered their fighting stances. They began shooting fire balls at each other before moving on to more complicated forms. While Zuko fought angrily, Zhao gained the upper hand more and more throughout the fight. Ming saw this and fear gripped her heart, especially when her father managed to cause Zuko to stumble backwards before falling over. The grin on her father's face while her husband lay on the ground, for a moment struggling to keep consciousness was too much for her to keep calm. Panicking she yelled his name, "Zuko!", while Iroh also tried to call out for his nephew to remember his bending basics and break her father's root.
When Zuko had landed on his back everything around him went black for a moment. Then he heard a voice calling his name, her voice, clearly in panic. His eyes shot open in an instant, seeing Zhao towering above him, grinning down at a seemingly helpless opponent. He heard his uncle calling out for him to break the admiral's root and thought this was a great idea. From his position on the ground, he rolled over, standing on his hands and flailing his legs around, catching Zhao off guard and sending him to the ground. He indeed remembered his basics and began to attack Zhao more and more powerful. Suddenly it was clear to the viewers that Zuko had gained the upper hand, he knew it, Zhao knew it. The admiral was trying to deflect the attacks, but in the end, he was sent flying to the ground, rolling over a few times. This time Zuko towered above him, ready to burn him the scar he had promised.
Zhao looked into the eyes of the scarred Prince, and after a few moments of nothing happening, shouted at him, "Do it already!". Ming held her breath, the Zuko she knew would never do it, then again, she had no idea what happened to him in the past three years. Then Zuko moved his arms, shooting a fire blast in her father's direction, but did not hit him, instead the ground about half a meter next to her father's head was burned back and smoking.
"Your father raised a coward." Zhao snarled at the prince.
Zuko was already working towards his ship, but turned around, "Next time, I won't hold back.", he snarled back, while he quickly went over to where Ming and Iroh stood. Without a word he grabbed her hand pulling her with him. Ming was surprised, but happy about this. Not only was she not a widow, but finally had the chance to leave this port and her father for good. Smiling she caught up with Zuko's fast steps, exchanging a quick, but hopeful glance with him.
Suddenly they heard an angry voice behind them and just as they turned around, they saw her father bending fire towards them. Ming looked at him, shocked. He was clearly calculating to kill both of them. It was already too late for Zuko to dodge the attack, so Ming shove him to the ground in an effort to save him. She had anticipated to feel pain, lots of it, and had closed her eyes in advance, but the pain never came. She opened first one eye, then the other and saw Iroh standing in front of her, holding her father's foot, dodging his attack, before throwing him back on the ground.
Zuko got up from the ground and stormed towards the admiral with an angry grunt, but was held back by Iroh, "No, nephew. Do not taint your victory.". Ming stared at the man that was her father, angry, hurt, disgusted by the man himself, and also by his actions. She just shook her head, no words could match her feelings right now, so she bit her lip and turned around, taking Zuko's arm and began walking to his ship as casual as if she would've done this all her life. The Fire Nation Prince was taken aback by this, but then smiled at her, struggling a bit to keep her pace.