Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Avatar characters.

Over the next few days, I was awakened every morning by Kiku.

"Lady Aya, your friend, Lady Ren, is at the door waiting for you." I groaned and finished opening my eyes. Looking outside I saw that the sun was only barely rising. Kiku tapped her foot against the floor then walked into my room. She pulled out my clothes for the day and began to lay them neatly out. I sat up in bed and was dressed with a little help from Kiku. She fixed my hair quickly and pushed me out the door into Ren.

"Aya, I can't wait! I'll get to meet Prince Zuko in only two days! Can you believe it?" She grasped my arm and we began the short walk into the main entrance to the palace. There were other people making their way inside so we veered off to the right to meet with the other girls. Natsumi, I was pleased to see, wasn't there. They were all chatting and Ren left me. For the past couple days the Prince had been trying to meet every one of the potential brides, starting with number twenty. Ren's turn was coming up and she wanted to know every possible shred of information about Prince Zuko. I followed her. Even though I didn't want to admit it, I was too, was curious about Prince Zuko. I stood by the wall, listening to their talk.

"He likes to firebend with is Uncle. He showed me the training area." One of the younger girls was telling the group. She was about eleven or twelve, a little strange that she had been chosen as a bride. However, several of the girls were only a year or two older.

"He even showed me some of his…" The girl blushed. "Some of his moves." The other girls laughed and continued asking questions about the Prince. I chuckled along with them. I would be able to talk to the Prince the day after Ren. I had a plan, one that probably wouldn't work, but I had to try it anyway. Sokka was counting on me. And I was counting on Prince Zuko.

……………………………

"Aya, you must tell me everything he says! Do you want to know anything else about him?" Ren had come over and was helping me pick out the dress I would wear to meet Prince Zuko. She looked through my trunk as Kiku stood waiting to help me dress. There was a knock on the doorframe and all of us turned. Sokka was standing in the doorway, his cheeks beginning to turn a violent shade of red. I heard Ren giggle behind me.

"My Lady," he mumbled. "Aki sent me up here to let you know that you're going to be late." The rest came out in a rush as if he wanted to get away as quickly as possible. I nodded as he stood waiting for my command of leave. He was shifting from foot to foot.

"You can go, Sokka." I said waving my hand. He left and Ren laughed loudly. Kiku clucked her tongue and started shifting through my trunk.

"Come on, just wear this one." She pulled out a black and red kimono and started putting it one me. She brushed my hair into a bun and pushed me and Ren out of the room. I waltzed downstairs, holding Ren's hand as if we were dancing. Kiku shook her head but I could see a smile forming on her lips. Ren and I went all the way down the steps until we came to the main living area. Sokka was waiting by the door, talking to Aki about something. He certainly looked much happier than he had a few days ago. I stopped in front of them where Kiku clucked like a hen and started straightening me out.

"You're a mess." She sighed as she started fixing my hair. I grinned at Aki who returned the smile. Sokka watched me, his eyes wide.

"My Lady, you are looking lovely to-day!" Aki said as he bowed deeply. I giggled. Sokka looked down on the ground.

"Well, of course she does! We must have her looking beautiful for our Prince!" Ren said standing next to Aki.

"What?" Sokka cried suddenly his blue eyes starring at me intently. "You're going to see Zuko?" Aki smacked the side of his head gently with a scowl on his face.

"Prince Zuko, Sokka. He is the Fire Lord's son." He said sternly. Sokka rubbed the side of his head while alternately glaring at me and Aki. He muttered something unintelligible under his breath and cast his eyes once more on the ground. Kiku patted my shoulder softly and gave me a kind shove towards the door. I smiled at her and brushed her hand away. Putting on the stuffiest face I could muster I stuck my nose high in the air and looked around at everyone in a mock superior way.

"I must be off, servants, to meet the Fire Lord's son, Prince Zuko. I will do everything in my power to seduce him and make him mine. I will say nothing offensive in any way and only subtly suggest that we should become engaged. Please, leave me so I will not have to be disgraced by your inferiority." Ren was laughing behind her hand and Kiku was looking at me with a disapproving stare. Aki rolled his eyes.

"Come on Aya." Ren linked her arm with mine and with a wave we set off on the short walk to the palace. My parents would already be there, almost certainly not waiting for me like the other mothers and fathers had done. I was already getting, hopefully, married to Yoko. They wouldn't waste their time briefing me on how to act in front of the prince. As we approached, I noticed that the crowd of young possible brides had gathered at the steps as well as a nervous looking guard. When they noticed Ren and I, they converged upon us, wishing me luck or telling me how wonderful I looked. My eyes never left the guard, however. I excused myself from them, leaving Ren behind as well. I strode briskly up to the guard and lowered my eyes.

"Sir, do you know where I might find Prince Zuko?" The guard nodded and smiled.

"Are you Lady Aya?" He asked quietly. I nodded and he waved a hand to the entrance. "I am to escort you to him, my lady." He said. He moved forward and I followed looking back only once to Ren who waved briefly to me. The young man led me through the palace hallways, ones that I had only just traveled through recently. Why had they sent an escort? It was not like I would get lost as I knew almost every passageway. Only the very top sections of the palace were off-limits. It was where the royal family lived and we all knew that Lord Ozai disliked being disturbed. We had finally come to a small room and the guard knocked three times. A voiced sounded from inside and he opened the door. Looking inside I could see the prince and his uncle seated at a table and having tea. The guard gestured that I go inside and he shut the door behind me. I knelt before them and then stood, waiting.

Lord Iroh was smiling pleasantly though he had dark circles under his eyes and he looked a little tired.

"You must be Lady Aya. I recognize you from the entrance hall. Please have a seat." He waved his hand to an empty cushion next to Prince Zuko. The prince had looked up but he was only smiling faintly as though he had not come willingly.

"Lady Aya, would you like something to drink? I was just about to leave and I believe that my nephew was planning to go for a walk." Lord Iroh looked across the table at Zuko and nodded. The prince sighed under his breath and stood. Turning towards me, he offered me his arm.

"Would you like to join me?" He asked. I nodded, stood, and grasped his arm lightly. He led me out of the room not once looking back at his uncle. I followed Prince Zuko as we once again walked through the palace halls until we came to a private garden. He went to a bench and sat down, unconsciously dropping his arm from mine. I stayed standing, marveling at the garden's splendor.

There were flowers and plants here that could not have been found anywhere else in the palace, except maybe in the over private gardens. The colors almost hurt my eyes, they were so bright, and the sun only added to its beauty. I sighed with pleasure. He looked up at me in a startled way and waved his hand over the space next to him.

"Have a seat." He murmured. It was more of a command than an invitation. I sat and once more looked around. The silence between us grew longer and longer, and soon it was most uncomfortable.

"You…you really don't want to be here, do you?" I asked, watching him. Zuko looked at me in surprise.

"What makes you say that?" He asked. I smiled and averted my eyes.

"I'm sorry, prince, but it just seems that way. I can understand of course. You have been quite busy with the other young girls. I know it can get tiresome." He chuckled softly next to me and I was afraid to look up.

"Yes, yes that is very true. All of them ask the same questions over and over. They all want to know the same things. They all talk about the same things. Only once in a while do they say something interesting." He sighed and leaned back against the stone bench. I nodded my head slightly. There was a period of silence, not as awkward as before.

"What do you want to know? Anything?" He asked suddenly. I glanced up quickly only to discover that he was watching me intently. My eyes immediately went back to my lap.

"No, my prince, nothing in particular. They have told me most of it anyway."

"Ah, I see."

Silence.

"What do you want to know, Prince Zuko?" I believed my question surprised him for he started suddenly.

"What?"

"Would you like to know anything about me? Isn't this why you were meeting the girls in the first place? To get to know them?"

"I-I guess…"

"I'm a firebender, though I hardly know any forms at all."

"Really?" He seemed generally interested.

"Yes. My father forbids me to learn. I think he is afraid that if I do, I would beat him." I smiled, knowing it was true.

"Unfortunate."

"I believe so. I know you are a firebender, Prince Zuko. I once passed by your training area when you first got back. It was amazing."

"Thank you." He sounded embarrassed. "My father expects perfection." I tensed.

"So does mine, though he is a bit lax." I smoothed my dress.

"I have had a bit of a problem adjusting here. It was easier to be only known as a prince while I was away. Now it is harder to be a prince." I nodded.

"I have always wondered what it is like to be a true noble."

"But you are noble, are you not?"

"Yes, I suppose in birth but I have trouble acting like one." He chuckled quietly and I looked up. Thankfully, he was looking away but his scar was close to me. I could identify each groove and see how the colors changed from the dark red around his eye to the lighter red on his cheek. It looked strange and unreal, and I could hardly believe that his own father had inflicted it upon him. He must have felt my gaze as he turned to look back at me. I moved my eyes swiftly down onto the bench.

"Why do you do that?" He asked.

"What do you mean, my prince?"

"How come you can't look at me?" His question was so innocent that I couldn't help but smile.

"I am not allowed to."

He sighed audibly.

"I have been away too long. I can't even remember even the simplest customs of the Fire Nation. There was quiet and I could hear the faint chirping of the birds.

"Look at me." He said after a minute.

"Pardon me?"

"Look at me. Look into my eyes." He commanded. Slowly, I raised my eyes and found his face. His golden eyes were staring purposely into mine. I found it, strangely, hard to look directly at his face while he looked right back. He was very still. I wanted to look away but was afraid he would command me not too. I shifted uncomfortably. Finally, my eyes moved automatically to the bench and he let out a loud sigh. I hadn't realized I had been holding my breath until that moment.

"It took you longer than the others. Most of the younger ones would look longer, though." He was quiet for a minute as I tried to regulate my breathing.

"I'm sorry if I've made you uncomfortable." He said genuinely. I mumbled a reply still looked at the same spot. Another period of silence followed and I began to wonder if this is what he had to go through every day for the past couple of days.

"You have changed a lot, Prince Zuko." I said finally. I could feel his body shift beside me.

"So many people have said. I guess I have." I didn't know if he meant from the time of his departure or from the time he had gotten back. Then, I remembered the real reason I had wanted to talk to him.

"Prince Zuko…" I started. "I wanted to ask you about the Avatar." When I looked up, his yellow eyes were on me. This time, my own eyes lingered for a moment longer then slipped away.

"Where do you keep him? And I was also wondering about…" I trailed off with a thoughtful on face. I could sense his eyes on me. "I was wondering about the waterbender. What are they going to do with her?" He made a strange sound in his throat as if in surprise.

"How did you now about her?" He asked.

"A…a friend told me." I didn't want to mention Yoko in case it got him into trouble. I knew that if he ordered me to tell, I would but I would refrain from doing so willingly. I didn't want to mention Sokka either. He sighed.

"I don't know. The Avatar, they told me, is kept in a room somewhere in the palace. It is made completely of metal with no earth behind the walls. He is always chained and his mouth is covered. I think they may have broken his arms or at least hurt them badly enough so that he cannot bend any element." I watched him with horror. This had all been done to a boy, a twelve-year old boy! How could the Fire Lord do something like that, even to his enemy? I knew, though, that it was something he would do. He would do anything to win the war even if it meant torturing a child. He had already maimed his own.

As the Prince's face turned toward mine, I hurriedly looked at my lap. I felt so sad, so…empty. This was not what the Fire Nation wanted. This was something much worse. This was something that was almost unthinkable. I knew that being loyal to the Fire Lord meant life, but what the Avatar was trying to accomplish was what was right. It was something that we could all believe in…peace. Would the Fire Lord kill every person not loyal to the Fire Nation? I believed he would. He was capable of doing anything. He would let nothing get in his way; not his family, not the Avatar, not even the pain of his own people.

Suddenly, an unexpected tear ran down my cheek and fell into my lap. Surprised, I wiped another one away from my face. I realized that the prince was staring at me and I turned away, embarrassed. But I couldn't stop the tears. They were rolling down my cheeks and onto my dress in rapid succession. I didn't want Prince Zuko, above all people, to see me crying. I could feel my face turn hot and used my sleeve to wipe away the tears on my cheeks. Then there was a warm hand perched delicately on my shoulder. I looked with astonishment into the face of the prince, his face slightly guilty.

"Are you okay?" He asked awkwardly. "Please, I'm sorry I said anything. I didn't know…" I shook my head and tried to smile.

"I think it's better if I know." I said in a shaky voice. "I'm sorry, Prince Zuko. It's not your fault." He withdrew his hand and there was a period of discomfited silence as I tried to make myself look more respectable, at least as if I hadn't been crying at all. I could feel the prince shifting uncomfortably next to me.

"There's a lot of hope for you, Prince Zuko." I said quietly.

"What do you mean?" He sounded a little worried, maybe wondering whether I would start crying again.

"When the Fire Lord is gone and you take his place," I said. "Many people believe that you will end the war if he does not. Many think you should follow in his footsteps."

Silence.

"Others, however, hope that you will follow a more peaceful path. They hope that with the Avatar, you can bring the nations together. They believe that you will be a great Fire Lord and that you will bring peace to us all." I couldn't help myself. I was one who believed in Prince Zuko. I knew others did, but I knew mine was the strongest.

"I do not think he wants me to become the Fire Lord." Zuko whispered. I heard disappointment in his voice. "I know he does not want me to rule."

"We still have hope, my prince." I said looking sadly at my lap.