A.N.: Thanks for the review! Here's Chapter Five! I just hope I haven't made a hypocrite out of myself with this chapter in relation to the Author's Note at the end of the last.

Chapter Five: Understanding and Forgiveness

Zhi slowly pushed aside the fog of sleep; something had a hold of his foot and was shaking it back and forth. "Mmm?" murmured the young soldier, opening is eyes and sitting up; Zhi was surprised to find that the hand wrapped around his boot belonged to the mystery girl.

"Oh.. can I.. help you?" he asked, a little unsure at first. The girl let go of his foot and sat down next to the bars, facing him. Zhi noticed that she was wearing the cloak that he'd covered her with the night before and he gave her a cautious smile.

Suki watched as Zhi rose to a seated position, "I want to thank you," she said, eyeing his injured shoulder, "for the cloak." The young soldier nodded and spoke, a touch of nervousness in his voice, "Ahh, it wasn't anything at all. I saw you shivering and such and… it is awfully cold in here and… you know; I've got my armor so I was warm enough…"

The mystery girl cut him off, "Your shoulder is hurt?" she asked, more a statement than a question. Zhi nodded once more, "Yes, I got… tossed into a table; I think it was a table anyway," he said, gently touching the area around the joint with his left hand.

"I think I can treat it for you if you come and sit with your back against the bars here," replied Suki, placing a hand on one of the bars separating their cells. Zhi didn't reply right away, he stopped to consider things, She might just hit me again… nah, no, I don't think she'll do that. I don't even know what's wrong with my arm.. how could she know? She could be a nurse!

Satisfied with his conclusion, Zhi moved over toward the bars, "So, are you a nurse or something?" The girl gave him an odd look, "No," she said flatly. The Fire Nation soldier turned around and sat with his back against the bars as he had been instructed to do.

"Oh.. uhm, I didn't know. I don't even know your name yet," replied Zhi, no longer so certain of just what the girl would do to his arm. Suki got a good grip on his right arm with her right and put her left arm through the bars and around his chest to keep him steady while she manipulated the joint back into its socket.

She could feel him wince as she brought his arm up, he was clearly making an effort not to shout or whimper as the pain increased. Suki was just one little movement away and… with a pop, the joint was reunited with the socket. Zhi sucked in air through his gritted teeth and relaxed.

The mystery girl released her hold upon him, "My name," she said, giving him a little pat on the shoulder, "is Suki."

Zhi slowly lifted his arm, the pain returned with slightly less intensity and he groaned a bit at the feeling. "You're going to need to rest that arm in a sling for a few days before the pain goes away," said the young warrioress, "do you have any rope or string with you?"

Zhi turned around to face Suki, sitting cross-legged in front of the bars, careful of his arm, "I think so… hold on," the young soldier removed the strap that normally held his sword, then he removed the coin pouch on his belt and it's connecting string.

"Will these do?" he asked, passing the string and strap though the bars to his neighbor. Suki took the items with a nod and tied them together, she then removed the hood portion from the cloak, which she discovered could be unlaced with a small red string weaved through the two pieces.

She instructed Zhi to sit back against the bars again then applied the improvised sling to his arm. The young soldier relaxed and let his arm rest, the sling worked perfectly, the pain reduced to a dull soreness.

Zhi turned back toward his neighbor, "Thank you very, very much, Miss Suki. I was certain it was broken or something," said the soldier bowing his head in respect.

"It wasn't any problem, I've seen dislocated shoulders before," replied the young warrioress.

There was a pause as the two sat there, facing each other, trying to decide what to say or ask next. Zhi had chosen one of many questions he hoped to ask but the girl spoke first, "Why did they lock you up in here, Zhi?" asked Suki, tilting her head to one side slightly.

Zhi thought for a moment, "Well, that's a rather long and confusing story. Let me see… well, I suppose it starts with the Princess, she managed to get into the city here, no one's really sure how she did it but she convinced the Dai Li to…" Suki raised a finger and the young soldier paused. She knew how the Princess had entered the city, and knew it was only a matter of time until she would have to tell Zhi.

How is he going to react when I tell him his Princess is a murderer? Wait.. Dai Li? Zhi was still waiting for her to speak before continuing his story, a curious look upon his face. "What, or who is the Dai Li?" asked Suki, finally breaking the silence.

"They're… well, sort of like a secret police," said Zhi, thinking back to his briefing, days before, "rather like the Ministry of National Security we have back in the Fire Nation. But I really don't know that much about them. They are or.. were lead by a fellow named Long Feng who effectively ran the city before Princess Azula managed to sway the Dai Li to join her cause. They're the ones keeping us here."

Suki nodded slowly, "I see." So the Green Robes have a name and they sided with the Fire Nation! The pieces were beginning to fall into place for the young warrioress; she knew now, how Azula had managed to gain power enough to have her imprisoned.

Zhi gave a nod and continued his story, describing the bloodless taking of the city, the occupation of the Palace and, what he believed to be, a countercoup that had potentially taken the lives of his comrades. "I'm not really certain, at this point, who controls the city, but I'm fairly certain it isn't my people."

The young soldier's story filled in many of the blanks and Suki's suspicions that Zhi was a prisoner of war had been confirmed. Bloodless.. well that's good, at least. But if the city is no longer under Fire Nation control, why are they still holding me here? she wondered to herself.

It was now Zhi's turn to ask a question, "May I ask you something?" Suki put her thoughts aside and nodded, "You may," she said, awaiting the question.

"Why did they lock you up in here? And.. why did you hit me…?" asked Zhi, carefully touching the bruised part of his nose. Suki gave her response some thought, where to start?

The captive Kyoshi islander described her warrior group to the young soldier, her mind wandering back to the pleasant training sessions with her friends and Sokka, conducted in the dojo back home. "You're a warrior? Really?" asked Zhi, quite visibly interested. He knew now, that, had they met anywhere else, it would have likely resulted in combat and he felt relived that such was not the case.

Suki smirked, realizing she had caught the soldier's interest, We're not so terribly different, both fight for a cause, both have lost friends and of course.. we're both locked up in here. The young woman's smile faded, however, when she reached the portion in her story that involved the Fire Nation Princess.

Zhi listened intently as she spoke of the Avatar and his bison, she knew the Avatar! It isn't everyday you meet someone who's met the greatest threat to your nation, thought Zhi, feeling a bit uneasy. Suki tried to choose her words wisely, she felt a bit uneasy herself, when I tell him what the Princess did, he may get mad and not talk to me anymore. The young warrioress had to admit having someone, anyone to talk to, had made imprisoned life a bit more bearable.

Suki began with the discovery of Appa and the encounter with the Princess and her friends, she watched as Zhi listened carefully, an unreadable expression of deep thought upon his face. Even if he doesn't believe me.. I have proof, thought the young warrioress, remembering the scar, burned across her left forearm, left there by one of Azula's blue bursts of flame.

She reached the part at which she and the other female warrior had been loaded into the back of the wagon under cover of darkness, Zhi still seemed lost in thought and this began to worry the warrioress.

For the young soldier, the news of his Princess, the honorable and cunning Azula, committing atrocities seemed unbelievable. Since enrollment in any form of school and even earlier in life it was drilled into the minds of the Fire Nation's children that the nobility was infallible and could commit no wrong.

That can't be, she's lying, she has to be, though Zhi, but as he peered over into the eyes of the girl in the other cell he knew she couldn't be lying. The young soldier held his chin in one hand, eyes now staring down at the iron floor, a battle was raging in his mind; between what he'd been taught and what he knew.

"I can prove it to you," said Suki, the unpleasant pangs of uncertainty wearing away her resolve. Maybe I shouldn't have told him. But… I had to tell him. "I can prove it," she said again, pulling back the cloak and holding her scarred arm out, through the bars.

Zhi looked up from the floor, his eyes tracing up the girl's fingers to the ugly scar, his expression changed from one of deep thought to a look of shame and sadness. He reached slowly over and took Suki's hand in his, giving it a soft squeeze before letting his hand slip back into his lap.

"I'm sorry…" said Zhi, slowly, his tone matching the look upon his face, "I understand why you hit me now," he said, with a bit of a nod.

Suki sat quietly for a moment, a bit surprised by Zhi's taking of her hand. He really feels sorry, truthful regret and compassion; this boy doesn't fit the Fire Nation stereotype at all, she thought, peering down at her hand as she drew it back through the bars.

She looked up at Zhi, he sat there, waiting, hoping for forgiveness for being associated with the Princess. "I'm sorry to, I shouldn't have hit you," said Suki, trying to reassure the young soldier, "you aren't the Princess and you never harmed me or… my friends, you've been kind to me and I thank you for that."

Zhi gave her an impulsive grin, the blood surfacing in his cheeks giving some color to his pale face. The young soldier could feel it and covered his cheeks with his hands and looked away, over at the torch on the wall, embarrassed.

Suki covered her mouth with one hand, stifling a soft giggle, Well, I know he's certainly happy to be forgiven, she thought wryly.

The familiar creak of the cell block door echoed down to the two captives, their morning meal had arrived. They both watched as the serving guard sauntered down the hallway toward their cells, he was a short and rather ugly fellow and must not have been a particularly competent bender to be employed as a guard.

As before, once Zhi received his food, he assailed the guard with insults, hoping to get a response. The guard fumed but did not speak and simply clenched his fists and walked away.

Suki had said nothing in the guard's presence and was quietly eating when the cell block door was slammed shut. She turned to Zhi, who was trying to pull apart his chunk of bread, "Why do you yell and sing at him like that?" she asked, pointing down toward the cell block door.

"Easy," said Zhi, with a grin, "first, I don't want them to think I'm weakening or something and second I want to hear what that fellow's voice sounds like."

"You know, if you really make him mad, he may stop feeding you," replied Suki, giving the young soldier a knowing look. "Well," said Zhi, frowning a bit, "I… hope he doesn't, I mean, I don't really eat much, but still." "Also," said Suki, taking a sip from her cup of water, "why would you want to hear his voice?"

"Knowing what he sounds like may come in handy later on," replied Zhi, appraising his bowl of rice, as if it were a rare gem. Before Suki could question the boy further, he held the bowl through the bars, offering it to her, "Want this?" asked Zhi simply.

"You.. don't want it?" asked the young warrioress, giving Zhi a confused look. "Nah, like I said, I don't eat much," he said, shrugging one shoulder. Suki carefully took the bowl in both hands and set it down on her tray, "You don't have to do this, you know. I get enough to eat."

Zhi shrugged again, the grin from before crossing his face, "If you really want me to give you a reason," said the young soldier, his cheeks reddening, "think of it as a thank you for talking to me, I mean.. I'd have likely started singing to myself by now, in a few days I'd have probably gone crazy!"

Suki rolled her eyes, a smile spreading across her makeup smeared face, "If you say so," she said, scooping up some of the rice in her now-empty water cup. If Sokka were here I'm sure he would have done the same thing, as she ate, the young woman's thoughts drifted away from the prison.

Zhi, still hungry, but content, rapped his fingers rhythmically on his food tray. He watched as Suki ate and stared off into space, curious as to what the girl was so deep in thought over.

The warrioress once again became aware of her surroundings and sighed quietly, daydreams can only take one so far. She realized she'd left her neighbor in silence; he simply sat there tapping his fingers, making no attempt to interrupt her. Suki spied the golden flame pendant around Zhi's neck and this prompted her next question for the young soldier.

"Zhi," asked the young warrioress, eyeing the necklace, "do you have a loved one back in the Fire Nation?"

"Hmm, like family? I've got family, yes.. or did you mean…" said the young soldier, his voice trailing off. Suki nodded, "Like a girlfriend or something."

Zhi lightly bit his lip, thinking to himself, "Well, no… I mean, of course there were girls I liked but I rarely said anything to them, you know? The ones I did actually talk to were polite, but usually refrained from speaking with me afterwards," said Zhi, shrugging.

"That was cruel of them, not to talk to you like that," said the young warrioress, matter-of-factly. "I suppose," replied Zhi, his eyes peering down at the ground, "but I understand how they felt, I mean, I'm not exactly a spectacular physical specimen," said the young soldier, forcing a chuckle.

Suki shrugged helplessly, "I saw your necklace there, I just thought it might have been a gift from someone special to you," said the girl, pointing at the flame pendant necklace. Poor guy doesn't seem to have very high self-esteem, she thought to herself.

Zhi's eyes instantly lit up and he gave Suki a wide smile, "This," said the soldier, holding the pendant in his left hand, "is my good luck charm; it wasn't a gift, but a reward! Would you like to hear how I got? It's a good story."

The young warrioress smiled at her neighbor, his enthusiasm and quick attitude change was rather reassuring after seeing how down he had become discussing matters of love and the like. "I would, how did you get it, Zhi?" asked Suki, scooting a bit closer to the bars separating the two captives.

Zhi rubbed his hands together excitedly; he loved to tell The Story, on top of that, hearing the warrioress say his name was pleasing to the young soldier, it made him feel like she was beginning to trust him and this only made him smile more.

"Well," Zhi began, exuding an air of pride, "this story takes place when I was about… twelve, yep, I was twelve at the time. You see, I lived within walking distance of my IntermediarySchool back home in Zhujing, which is in the Shu province, and every afternoon after school I'd walk home."

Suki gave Zhi a nod and he continued, "Zhujing is a costal city, there's big shipyard there, that's where my mother works.. but that's beside the point. See, Zhujing is the provincial capital and the largest city in the Shu province, it's where Governor Quae and his wife Lady Yàn have their palace."

Zhi took a few breaths and compiled his thoughts; it had been some time since he had last told The Story, "When I would walk home, I'd go through a fairly large marketplace, lots of street vendors, you know? Anyway, while I was passing through I went by a pretty reputable import shop. You'd never guess whose carriage was out front!"

"Who did it belong to?" asked Suki, becoming curious. "Why, none other than Lady Yàn! See, in the Fire Nation, our nobility is very highly regarded, you're lucky if you get even a glimpse of a Governor or his wife. So I was passing by with my books and such tucked under my arm when I saw her, of course, everyone else did too and a crowd formed right there in front of the shop."

"So how did you get the necklace? Was it hers?" asked the warrioress, peering briefly at the pendant. "Mmm, just wait and see. Anyway, as she was leaving she had to thread her way through the crowd; I managed to squeeze in through the crowd myself, to get a better view. Well, when I got just close enough to see her I noticed something laying on the ground in her wake. It was this necklace!" said the young soldier, changing his seated position.

"Sounds like you found it; you said it was a reward, right?" asked Suki, tilting her head to the side slightly. "Oh, yes I found it," said the young soldier, "but I wouldn't have dreamt of keeping it. I shouted for Lady Yàn to wait but she just waved to the crowd, smiled and climbed into her carriage and was off!"

"I just dropped my books right there in front of that shop and ran after her, I mean.. it was my duty as a citizen of the Fire Nation to at least try to return it. I suppose I'm a pretty good runner because I did manage to catch up with that carriage… had to run around some vendors though.. wasn't easy. Once I caught up I shouted to her and lucky thing, she had the carriage come to a stop to see what I wanted."

"Well, the first thing I did was stand at attention, just like I'd seen the soldiers do, and then I held out the necklace and told her that she must've dropped it. She took it, looked it over and gave me a pat on the head, said that it was hers and that I'd done a very honorable thing in returning it. She was so pleased that she offered to give it to me as a reward!"

"My, so that's how you got it? A reward from a noblewoman," said Suki, a bit surprised, "we haven't got any nobles on KyoshiIsland, we do have elders though. I can understand why you care so much about it."

Zhi nodded and smiled, "Yep! It's quite a reward, Lady Yàn said she hoped it would bring me luck, she also suggested that I give it to a girl I liked… it is sort of a woman's necklace after all," said the young soldier, inspecting the pendant in his hand, a funny look on his face.

"It is lucky though! I've made it through several major battles without so much as a scratch," said the young soldier, proudly. "Hmm… what happened to your books though?" asked Suki, raising an eyebrow.

"Books?" replied Zhi, "Oh! My books… yeah… I sort of lost those. I went right back after talking with Lady Yàn but they were gone," said the soldier, looking rather embarrassed. The young warrioress laughed softly, one of the very few times she'd had anything to laugh about since the encounter with the Princess.

Zhi rolled his eyes and shrugged, "I was able to get new ones… Oh, now I think it's only fair if I ask you something," said the soldier pointing at the girl in the next cell. "Oh? What's that?" asked the warrioress, placing her hands on her hips and cocking her head to one side.

"Have you got a loved one back on KyoshiIsland?" asked the soldier, folding his arms over his chest, awaiting a reply. "He…" Suki paused as memories from her first meeting with Sokka and their reunion at Full Moon Ferry Landing came flooding back. She opened her mouth to speak but the memories became slowly tainted with doubt.

The young soldier on the other side of the bars became quickly aware of his neighbor's apprehension, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to," he said, softly.

Suki shook her head and found her voice, "No, I'll answer the question," she said sternly, "There is a boy, I've only gotten to see him for a short time, twice… its been a long time and… I'm not even so sure anymore."

The young warrioress shook her head slowly, sighed and peered down at the black iron floor, what if Sokka's forgotten about me? It's been so long…

"If he's forgotten about you," said Zhi in an almost cold tone, "he's a fool." Suki immediately looked up at the Fire Nation soldier; he simply sat there quietly, a rather surprised look upon his face, as if he'd not expected to speak aloud his own comment.

A.N.: And there you have it, Chapter Five! I really liked writing a lot of this chapter; I just hope it fits together with the previous one. I'm a bit worried that I didn't do so well on this one, for a few reasons. Anyways, please tell me what you think! I should be getting started on Six shortly.

Edits: Thanks again to PetertheChameleon! He's convinced me to make some changes, as you probably noticed I had Suki make Zhi a sling for his arm, which is far more accurate, before I left this out. More changes me be made to this chapter, not sure yet.