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(Revised 5.3.21)

"I-" she began to say but was cut off.

"Get them to medical NOW!"

Clara looked to see Mal Ten had a nasty-looking gash across the back of his neck. He must have scrapped it against the bolts in the wall. Blood was flowing freely from it. Masaru didn't look as injured in comparison, however, she could see that his lip had been split and a black eye seemed to be forming.

Looking away from all the blood Clara glanced at the guards that held her. To her relief, one of them, the one on her right, was a guard that had recently started to watch her regularly like Masaru and Mal Ten. She couldn't remember his name but his grip on her shoulder wasn't as tight as the other guard's. They were holding her so she relaxed her telekinesis, only using it to keep her head up.

Once the unconscious Masaru and Mal Ten had been carried off out of the room, Zuko turned back to Clara, his expression hard.

Although her mind knew what had almost just happened, her body felt numb all over from what Mal Ten had tried to do.

My heart is racing... heads heavy...

Zuko was looking down at her expectantly. Clara didn't want to speak but knew the faster she explained the situation the faster she could be alone. She met his gaze unblinking.

"If I tell you he- Mal Ten I mean, was trying to r*** me, will that make a difference in what happens next?" Clara could actually feel the guards' surprise at this statement from the way they gripped her shoulders. Zuko, as much as he was trying to keep up the cold angry expression, couldn't fully hide the surprise in his eyes. But they narrowed a few seconds later, suspicion written all over his face.

Clara did her best to keep her body from visibly shuddering. Her stomach was agitated like she had been running for too long. Her eyes felt hot and she swallowed dryly. She needed to get through this before breaking down.

Just breathe… she reassured herself. You can cry when they leave…

"There's no reason for me to lie," she went on. "I could have escaped just now but I didn't... Instead… I screamed to get someone in here... I didn't expect to see you though Prince Zuko." Clara bowed her head slightly. She knew she might get brownie points for being respectful to Zuko. At the very least he won't completely see her as an enemy if she remained polite towards him... She hoped...

Clara lifted her head to look back at the Fire Prince. He looked like he was contemplating what should be done next.

He tried remaining stoic, similar to Azula, before speaking. "My father believes you to be invaluable to the Fire Nation and nothing can happen to you before he sees you himself. However," his expression was less cold but only just a little, "For your safety, I'll see if I can arrange with the Captain to get you better living quarters. In the meantime, I think it would be wise to have you under supervision at all hours again. Two guards at minimum in the room so that..." His voice trailed off, he didn't need to say it.

The guard on her right straightened up and spoke, "Prince Zuko, I would gladly take part in relieving you of that burden if you wish." The guard bowed his head a little before he turned to glance at Clara and back at the Prince.

"What is your name soldier?"

"Katsu Osam my Prince," the soldier said letting go of Clara's shoulder to stand at attention. Zuko nodded and asked when was the last time he rested.

"I got back on duty two hours ago sir." Nodding again Zuko motioned for the other guard to let go of Clara. She stiffly stood, telekinesis back in place so she wouldn't collapse, and glanced from Katsu to Zuko. The latter was looking at her too.

"I need to speak with the girl alone," he informed them. "Please wait outside until I leave. I'll bring another person shortly and you two will watch over her tonight." The other guard moved to lock the cell when Zuko stopped him. "Leave it open for now."

The guard seemed hesitant but did as the Prince said before he followed Katsu out, leaving Clara alone with Zuko.

While she was relieved to be with someone she thought highly of, Clara wished everyone would go away, at least for a bit. She longed to be able to just be by herself, back home in her own bed. She swayed for a moment before concentrating again. Her heart was still racing and her hands felt clammy.

She swiftly bent forward, bowing, praying this wouldn't take much longer. "To what do I owe the pleasure of a private audience with you, Prince Zuko?" Clara looked back up to find Zuko studying her. Trying to keep her breathing even and body stable, she waited for him to speak.

"I've witnessed what you can do back in Ba Sing Se," he told her. "You're strong but lack in every other area of fighting, yet that should not hold you back, not with what you're able to do."

Clara just blinked back at him waiting, she could feel tears wanting to spill out due to the panic attack coming on. Zuko's expression remained mostly neutral while she could see through his eyes that he was confused.

"...You're wondering why I haven't tried to escape aren't you?"

Zuko's lips pursed into a flat line confirming Clara's suspicion. Inhaling and exhaling deeply Clara decided to tell as much as she could that didn't technically break what Azula told her would get her and Iroh in trouble. Clara was smart enough to realize Zuko wasn't aware of Azula's threat that made her stay put. He would be outraged if he found out considering his bond with his uncle, despite the current standing of their relationship.

"I'm... in no hurry to meet the Fire Lord. But..." she paused. "I have no idea where my friends could be right now with the chaos the Earth Kingdom has become. So... escaping seems pointless."

"Going home is pointless?" His question made her forget about her oncoming panic attack temporarily.

Oh...! trying to figure out where I'm from? Now that's interesting…

Clara shook her head, "I'd LOVE to go back home. But... that's... impossible for me." She heard Zuko's annoyed huff before she continued, "Sorry... I'm not trying to annoy you… It IS true when I say that my way home is close to impossible."

"So you are from the spirit world then?" Clara's eyes widened, not knowing if she should tell him the lie she had given Masaru.

He's eventually going to be joining Team Avatar… it's just right now that he's blind to his true destiny… should I tell him the truth though-

It was then that her body turned against her and she couldn't stop herself from collapsing to the ground. Zuko lurched forward, catching her before she fell onto the metal flooring.

"What happened?" Zuko looked stunned for a moment before collecting himself.

Heart pounding and tears finally spilling from her eyes, Clara swallowed, trying to find her voice. She didn't think it was the drug Mal Ten had given her that made her voice refuse to come out though. She was going into shock.

She couldn't hold her tears any longer. Alarmed, Clara using all her strength managed to look at the wall. Zuko looked alarmed now as her breathing speed in and out of her lungs.

This is a bad one…

Sobs spilled out from her throat, quiet at first but slowly grew in volume.

Through her sobs she tried to apologize, "P-Prince Zuko-" sob, "I'm s-sorry. I… I tried to not-" sob, "show this… in f-f-front of y-you… H-he drugged me... and I- I can't move again..." Her chest hurt as the tears continued to fall. Eyes shut tightly as if she was trying to keep her tears in.

For a minute, her heavy breathing and sobs were all Clara heard as Zuko was quiet. Finally seeming to gather himself, whether from surprise or uncomfortableness of her show of vulnerability, he cleared his throat before gently setting her down on her bed. He covered her in the blanket before standing.

"By tomorrow... I should be able to get you into a better room." He didn't say anything else before turning to leave.

"Th-thank you."

Zuko stopped and for a moment, was just standing there. Clara managed to turn her head to see him in the corner of her vision. Zuko appeared to be thinking hard on something before he turned back to her.

"The soldier who assaulted you tonight will never come near you again. I can promise that." He looked like he wanted to say more but quickly opened the door and left. Katsu came inside, standing at attention. Clara wished she could hide her swollen eyes. Her breathing was still fast and her heart didn't slow but she desperately tried to slip away to sleep. She did her best to control the tremors, telling herself that she'd never had to see Mal Ten again.

You're okay... Zuko won't let you see him ever again... You're okay... Just breathe...