Disclaimer: All rights belong to Nickelodeon, Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, and all the men and women that created the A:TLA show, books, and comics. I take no credit, and I do not mean to break any copyright rules. This is simply a work of fiction made for enjoyment. No money is being made. The lyrics are from the song "Fall Away" by twenty one pilots
Rating: General Audiences. Warning: some scenes contain dark themes and minor violence
Author's Note: How would you guys feel about a Zutara Reincarnation fic? I'm really trying to work on my original writing, but I've had this awesome 9 or 10 part enemies to lovers reincarnation fic bouncing around my head for a while.
Chapter 5 - Prisoners
Everytime I feel selfish ambition
Is taking my vision
And my crime is my sentence
Repentance is taking commission
'Cause I will save face
For name's sake, abuse grace
Take aim to obtain a new name
And a newer place
Zuko stands in front of the long mirror, staring at his reflection. He looks like the perfect prince - hair done up properly, his silk robes clean and tailored to his exact build, his chin held up high. The only mar in his image is the massive burn scar covering the left side of his face. He can't help that. His father can't fault him for it.
He sees movement behind him and another face appears in the mirror next to him.
"Are you nervous?" Mai asks. She catches his eyes in the mirror.
"I haven't seen my father in almost three years. I've changed. I don't know if he's changed. Who knows that he thinks of me? Does he even want me to be back?"
"He's your father. Of course he's pleased that you're back."
"He's pleased that I captured the Avatar."
She doesn't understand his relationship with his father. Mai's parents may not be the best, but at least they do genuinely care about her. She isn't afraid of being banished or physically harmed for messing up. He'd much rather have some of his privileges taken away than be put in a fight to the death against his father.
"He's proud of you. You have proven yourself." Mai lifts the corner of her lips up slightly. "I'm proud of you."
He can't tear his eyes away from the image he sees in front of him. Everyone keeps congratulating him for what he's done. Everyone keeps telling him they're proud of him. But if he means so much to them, why did they all abandon him for so long? Why did no one reach out to him earlier?
The only two people who cared about him while he was struggling were Iroh and Katara. And now, when he's finally accomplished his goals, they aren't at his side. They've both abandoned him, Iroh literally and Katara emotionally.
Do the people here only care about him when he's "perfect"? Are these the people he really should be around?
Mai watches him silently. "You're overthinking it, Zuko," she says. "Just be yourself."
Be himself. He knows she means it in the best way, but it's horrible advice, especially where his father is concerned. Last time he was himself, he was punished in the worst possible way. He doesn't have the luxury of being himself.
"I have to go," he says. "I don't want to keep him waiting."
She nods. He walks out of his room and down the hallways. This wing of the palace hasn't changed much. Some new decor. Some new furniture. More banners of his father and of Fire Nation victories. Less sketches with his mother in them.
He stands in front of the doors to the throne room. He stares at them, not quite ready to take the step forward. The flame insignia of the Fire Nation looms over him. He had a banner of it in his room in the ship. He woke up looking at that banner every day, a daily reminder of what he was working for. Now the sight of it makes him feel like a lost child who can't prove his worth.
He takes a deep breath and steels his expression. This is it. The moment he's been looking forward to and fearing. His moment of destiny.
He steps inside the room. A long hallway lined with pillars leads to the throne, an ornate chair sitting in the middle of a fiery brazier. He can see the silhouette of his father, but not his face.
Zuko's heart races. He's not excited now. He's terrified. He doesn't want to face his father.
He forces himself to keep walking until he's only a few feet away. Then he kneels down and bows before the Fire Lord.
"You have been away for a long time," his father says. "I see the weight of your travels has changed you."
Please let it be in a good way, Zuko begs. Don't see through me. Don't see my inner struggles. They aren't important.
"You have redeemed yourself, my son," Ozai says, and Zuko can suddenly breathe again. He keeps his expression neutral as he sits up straight and his father stands and walks over to him, right over the flames.
"Welcome home."
Now Zuko can see his father's face. But it isn't just his father's face; it's Zuko's face, minus the scar. They have the same golden eyes. The same jawline, same nose, same face shape. Same skin color. Zuko is a spitting image of his father.
His father paces in front of the brazier. "I am proud of you, Prince Zuko," he continues. "I am proud of you for never losing sight of your destiny. I am proud of you for defeating General Zhao in an Agni Kai. Most of all, I am proud of you for your most legendary accomplishment: capturing the Avatar."
Zuko, keeping his head down, grimaces.
"Azula told me everything," his father continues. "She explained to me how beautiful the Avatar is. How young and innocent she looks, but how fierce she can be. Azula told me how she tried to manipulate you, but you held strong. She told me of your battle with her, how you masterfully held off all her attacks. Azula doesn't impress easily, so I know she wasn't lying."
What? Zuko struggles to keep surprise off his face. What has Azula told their father? Azula saw Katara once, briefly. Didn't even talk to her. There was no battle. Zuko was the one who manipulated Katara, not the other way around. Why would Azula lie?
"Thank you, Father," Zuko says.
"You have not only pleased me, but you have paved the way to an unchallenged Fire Nation victory in the years to come. Rise, Zuko, as crown prince. Rise as an honorable soldier. Rise as my son!"
Zuko stands in front of his father. He can't help the pride that wells up in him. His father, commending him? Complimenting him? This is Zuko's dream, finally reality. All his earlier fear and anxiety melts away.
He bows. "I am happy to be home."
After he leaves his father and after the glow of happiness, of acceptance, has faded away, the confusion returns. He heads to Azula's room and opens the door. She's laying in bed. He knows she's not sleeping.
"What are you doing?" he asks.
"You're going to have to be more specific," she says without opening her eyes.
"Why did you create a false story about how I captured the Avatar?"
She smiles and then pretends to yawn, sitting up and stretching her arms out dramatically.
"You seemed so worried about father accepting you again. I figured I'd embellish your story, add in some spice, make you seem more heroic. After all, anyone can lock up a girl. Not everyone can fight the Avatar and win."
"But why?"
Azula looks fake shocked. "I'm a very generous person, Zuko. Or have you forgotten?"
He narrows his eyes at her. "You never do anything that doesn't benefit you."
"What ulterior motive could I have?" She gets out of bed and walks past him. "Unless, of course, the Avatar were to escape. Then who better to send after her again than the person who defeated her the first time?"
She's setting him up for the future. He can sense it. He just doesn't know why yet.
"I thought things could be different this time," he says. "I thought we could move past this competitiveness."
"Competitiveness?" Azula laughs lightly. "Oh, Zuzu, there never was a competition. We'd have to be evenly matched for that to be possible."
She returns to her bed and lays down again. "Goodnight, brother. It's nice to have you back home."
Zuko knew he'd changed a lot over the past years. He hadn't realized that Azula had changed, too - and not in a good way.
Katara hears footsteps approaching. She leaps to her feet and stands in the middle of her cell, ready to face whoever's coming.
Four guards approach. One opens the cell door. Two enter and take hold of her arms.
"Hey," she protests, trying to shake them off. They hold her too tightly.
The fourth guard approaches. He opens a flask of water and offers it up to her. She understands what's happening; they don't trust her around any water, so in order to let her drink, they have to secure her tightly.
It's smart and cruel. Katara feels humiliated drinking like a baby, but it's better than not drinking anything at all. At least, that's what she tells herself.
When she's done drinking, the guard ensures that the lid is screwed on tightly before the other guards let her go. She watches them emotionlessly, hoping they don't notice that she never swallowed the last drink of water.
The last guard is about to exit the cell when he looks back suspiciously. Katara watches him levelly. He walks over to her.
"Open your mouth," he instructs. She narrows her eyes and then quickly spits out the water, bending it around her body and whipping it at him. He reacts quickly, summoning up fire and aiming it right at the small water stream.
It disintegrates quickly. The guard glares at her before exiting the cell.
"That little trick is going to cost you," he warns her as he locks the door. "You're not going to escape here. Get comfortable."
Katara watches them until they exit her sight. When they're long gone, she falls to the ground, holding herself tightly. She can't ignore the stinging in her eyes, but she doesn't want to cry. Crying won't do anything.
She can't help it. The tears stream silently down her face. She wipes them angrily away. Is this really what her existence has become? This is pathetic.
She fingers her necklace. I really need you right now, Mom, she prays.
Nothing. She's really all on her own here.
She thinks of her brother. She hopes that wherever he is - if he's alive, that is - he's doing better than she's doing. She hopes he's settled down in a nice Earth Kingdom village somewhere, found new people to fill his life. She hopes he's had better luck than her.
Katara thinks of the other prisoners she passed on her way here. They all looked so sad and hopeless. She hopes she doesn't become that way. She doesn't care what the guards say; she's going to keep fighting. She won't ever quit rebelling. One day they'll slip up. And she'll be ready.
She won't ever resign herself to this miserable of an existence. She's the Avatar. A prison cell isn't going to get in the way of her destiny. It isn't going to get in the way of her seeing her brother again.
So no matter how humiliating they treat her, no matter how boring and lonely she becomes, she's going to keep fighting. She won't give up.
She touches her necklace again. Maybe she is getting an answer. Her parents taught her to never submit. Her parents may be gone, but the ideals they taught her live on inside of her.
Thank you, Mom. Thank you, Dad.
"There it is," Suki says, pointing. "Whale Tail Island."
She and Sokka are on a small boat in the ocean. It had taken them two days on the water, but now, in the dark evening, they can see the fire light of the Fire Nation base.
Sokka leans forward eagerly. "It's bigger than I thought it would be."
Suki grabs their bags and gathers up their belongings. "That's good. They're less likely to notice a missing person."
Sokka grabs the oars and rows them towards the beach. Suki throws on a black robe over her dress. She's not wearing her Kyoshi Warrior uniform and make-up for the first time since Sokka met her. He understands why - if they get caught, she doesn't want the blame to be traced back to Kyoshi Island. Still, he can't get over how different she looks.
When the boat hits the shore, they jump out and pull it on the beach and hide it behind some rocks. Sokka pulls on dark robes and then follows Suki as they make their way to the huge walls that protect the Southern Raiders.
Suki throws a grappling hook over the walls. The metal makes a dull clinking sound as it hits the rock. She tugs on the rope to make sure it's securely fastened and then turns to Sokka.
"This is it," she says. "You ready?"
He takes a deep breath and then nods. He has no idea where his sister is at this very moment, but he has this image in his mind of her stuck in some dark, dirty prison cell. She's probably really lonely. He can't leave her. He has to help her.
"Let's go."
Suki starts pulling herself up the wall using the rope. When she reaches the top of the wall, Sokka follows. They run, keeping their bodies low, along the wall. They don't encounter any guards until they reach the main guard tower. A pair of guards are sitting around, drinking and playing cards. Suki makes a motion and she and Sokka take one each, jumping up from behind and covering their mouths before knocking them out.
Suki inspects their uniforms. "Not Fire Nation," she says.
"I thought you said this was a Fire Nation base."
"It is. But not all the Southern Raiders are Fire Nation. A lot of them are Earth Kingdom men who sold out when the war started." Suki glances out of the guard tower to the small city. "We'll have to go in deeper."
Sokka follows her as she descends the staircase. They emerge inside the walls. Suki ducks from house to house, keeping a close eye out.
As they near the center of the city, they see a couple of men lounging around outside a tavern drinking. Suki nudges Sokka and points at them.
"See the little flame insignia on their uniforms? That means they're Fire Nation."
Sokka watches the men for a minute. "How are we going to get one away from the rest?"
"We wait."
They stay crouched in the alley until the men start finishing their conversation. Sokka's heart is racing; he hates this waiting. He just wants to get it over with. Than anticipation is killing him. He's never been the most patient of people.
Finally, one of them men says goodbye to the others. He starts walking away. Suki and Sokka follow, staying hidden in the shadows. When the man takes an empty street, they jump out and subdue him. Suki sweeps his legs out from under him and flips him over. Sokka ties his hands behind his back and shoves a gag in his mouth.
He squirms and struggles against them. They drag him back to an abandoned alley and Sokka takes his gag out. Suki points a razor sharp fan against his neck.
"Yell and I won't hesitate to silence you," she threatens. The man swallows.
"What do you want?"
"We need information on Fire Nation prisons," Sokka says. "Tell us what you know?"
The man laughs. "If you're looking to break someone out of a Fire Nation prison then good luck."
Suki presses the edge of her fan closer to his throat. He gulps.
"Uh, what do you want to know?"
"For starters, where are there prisons?"
"There are two main sites. Boiling Rock and the prisons by the palace. Boiling Rock is for the most dangerous ones and for war criminals. The one by the palace is for Fire Nation citizens and the prisoners that the Fire Lord wants to keep a close eye on."
"Where would a powerful Waterbender be taken?"
The man gives Sokka a weird look. "There are no more Waterbenders."
"Say there is. Where would they take her?"
"Probably to the prison by the palace. If there were still Waterbenders, it would be dumb to put them on an island completely surrounded by water."
Suki looks over at Sokka. "Anything else?"
Fire Nation prison by the palace. That's enough information for now. All he needs is a map of the Fire Nation.
"Let's go," Sokka says.
"Not so fast."
Sokka and Suki whirl around. The group of guys who had been drinking with the man they'd taken cover the alley exit.
"You're coming with us."
Suki flips the man they'd questioned onto his back and then she and Sokka take on the men. Unfortunately for them, the men are Firebenders and after a minute the two have to concede.
As the men escort them to the center of the city, hands secured behind their backs, Sokka looks over at Suki.
"I'm sorry," he says.
She shakes her head. "Don't be. We'll get out of this."
The Fire Nation men laugh, but Sokka trusts Suki. He's seen her in action before. And he knows he'll do anything to get to Katara. Breaking out of captivity here is nothing compared to the challenges they'll face rescuing Katara from the Fire Nation.
It might just take a little more time.