Asami had to admit, this was one of the more awkward dates she had ever been on. Not because she didn't want to be here or because his company was unpleasant, but it was becoming very clear that Zuko didn't have much dating experience. he kept fidgeting with his hands in an attempt to come up with something good to say.

"So... Do you come here often?"

It wasn't a terrible conversation starter. But considering how bad it could have been and how long it took for him to say something, Asami went with it.

"Only on special occasions. Kwong's is a hard place to reserve. I try to see it for special occasions."

Zuko had figured that. With the intricate decorations, immaculate tables, and quality of the staff so far, Zuko could easily imagine this being a place the nobles in his time would love to go to.

These thoughts distracted him, allowing him to say his following line without any forethought.

"So I'm special huh?"

Immediately once the words left Zuko's mouth, he wished he hadn't. It sounded so, so bad. Like some cheesy pick-up line that an idiot once tried to use on Azula. Zuko fully expected Asami to expect in a similar fashion, turning him away or ending the date. Or set him on fire.

Instead, she smiled and seemed to enjoy it.

"Well, it's not every day I spend an evening with a cute someone I almost ran over. So yes, I'd say you're special."

Zuko hoped to Agni that his face did not match the burning he felt in his cheeks

Thankfully, the waiter came to serve them at that moment, saving Zuko from trying to come up with an adequate response to that compliment.

"Good evening sir and madam. I have the menus here. Would either of you care to start with an appetizer?"

Zuko, who had never been here before, had no idea what the appetizer would even be. Thankfully, Asami did know.

"We can take some of the steamed rolls. Did you want anything?"

"No. That sounds fine to me."

"Very well. I will return when you are both ready."

As the waiter left, Zuko took a moment to look at the menu. And he realized that he should have thought about this sooner.

Most of the things on the menu were unfamiliar to him. The options included salmon wrapped in seaweed, beef lined with steamed vegetables, and raw fish served with udon. He grew up in the Fire Nation so he was used to spicy meats and fish growing up. Which he was trying to find.

"Having trouble?"

Zuko looked away from the menu to notice Asami staring at him. And Zuko felt bad for accidentally ignoring her.

"Sorry. I'm just not used to... anything like this."

In truth, Zuko actually didn't have much experience with restaurants, let alone high-class ones. Anytime he had meals with nobles or wealthy families, it had always been at the palace. And whenever he had eaten out, Zuko had preferred smaller street places. The food there tasted a bit more genuine, and the people there tended to be more honest.

Fortunately for Zuko, Asami seemed to be one of the honest types.

"That's alright. What do you usually like to eat?"

"I'm not too picky. But spicy stuff is always good."

"Then I'd recommend the Sichuan dish. It's a noodle bowl with a lot of meat. It's a bit hot for me, but maybe you'll like it. it also goes well with the fruit drink."

Zuko smiled. "Guess I know what I'm getting then."

Since that issue had been taken care of, Zuko could put down the menu and focus on Asami. This turned out to be another problem because Zuko hadn't miraculously discovered how to start a conversation. Putting them back at awkward square one.

Zuko is starting to feel a bit of a sweat on his back. He has an idea of what he should be doing thanks to Kiyi, but he has no idea how to get it done. He knows she should talk and keep Asami interested, but he's not sure how to do it. Since she's playing with her bracelets, he knows he's failing.

But then he notices something else. The way her eyes keep darting up and down. How she takes quick glances at his face before looking away. And he knows what's on her mind.

So Zuko takes a risk.

"You can ask about it if you want."

Asami quickly gathers herself.

"No. I'm sorry. I can't believe I keep staring."

"It's fine Asami. Believe me, I'm used to people looking at it. I know it's hard not to notice."

Asami meant it when she said she felt bad. She was the one who had asked him to come here, and it was clear that he was trying. But unfortunately, she had her mother's curiosity.

"Used to it? You've had it for a while then?"

"Years. Yeah," Zuko said slowly. "It was... supposed to be a lesson. Make me a better firebender. The only thing I learned is how much he hated me."

Asami tried her best to tread carefully. She knew being this nosy wasn't polite. But she honestly couldn't help herself.

"He?"

"He... used to be important in my life. Now I'm just glad he isn't in my life anymore," Zuko said truthfully. "I ended up going with my uncle after that. I learned to be a better firebender from him. Then I spent some time with my mom, and now I'm in this city."

Zuko wasn't a good liar, but he was pretty decent at telling the truth. He didn't know if he would ever have to give Asami the full context, but his answer seemed to satisfy her.

It also led to something Zuko hadn't expected. She reached out and softly squeezed his hand.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you. No one deserves something like that."

Surprised but also happy, Zuko hoped his blush wasn't too noticeable.

"Thanks. But things are better now. I mean, I'm here with you, so..."

Zuko wasn't sure how, but that seemed to work. Asami had a slight blush herself now, so was doing well. Right?

He didn't get to think about it too much because the waiter came back. And the two of them had their orders ready.

The rest of the date actually didn't end in mayhem, which Zuko was thankful for. He was prepared for it to go poorly, but this was one of the few instances where he was happy to be wrong.

Asami turned out to be charming and a good listener.

"Wait, you got the job by accident? He just saw you fighting some other benders?"

"I guess he liked what he saw. He offered me a spot that same day."

"Wow. Talk about a lucky break," Asami said in amazement. "I've read about pro-benders that had to fight for years to get attention. The Catgators had to perform for almost a decade before they got any recognition."

"I wish I knew who they were," Zuko said thoughtlessly. "Sorry. Like I said, I just stumbled into the sport. I'm still trying to remember everything important."

Asami raised a brow. "You didn't hear about it back home? Or was it just not on your radar before?"

"Um, a mix of both I guess. My mom lived in a small village. There wasn't a lot of news that went around there," Zuko said, not technically lying. "And my uncle was more of a traditional bender. He wasn't really a fan of the sport."

If Asami noticed how Zuko used the past tense, she didn't comment on it. Instead, she smiled gleefully at him.

"I say we fix that. I can get us tickets no problem. What do you say?"

Zuko didn't mind the idea. Asami was good company, and he would like to spend more time with her. But he didn't like the idea of her spending her money to take him out all the time. Which is why he had a different idea.

"How about this..?," Zuko inquired as he leaned closer. "Buhtaka said he's trying to get me a match soon. Once a date is settled, I'm sure I can get you a free seat."

Asami seemed flattered. "I like the idea. But isn't there someone else you could take? You did mention your family. I don't want to impose."

"Most of them are busy. And besides, you treated me to a nice night. Why can't I do the same for you?"

Asami seemed surprised by the way he offered it. But also flattered.

"Alright then. But if I'm seeing your first match, I expect you to win."

"Already intended to. But I appreciate the motivation."

Zuko listened as Asami talked a bit longer about pro-bending. Then the waiter came back.

"Would either of you like something else? Or should I bring the check?"

Zuko just nodded at Asami. He was fine.

"I think we're good. You know where to put the tab."

As the waiter left to take care of the payment, Zuko realized something. Technically, the date was over. The food was gone, and so it was over. That meant that he technically was free to go home.

Which, surprisingly, he didn't feel like doing just yet.

"Asami?"

Her head perked up as she dug into her purse.

"Yes?"

"Do you... live nearby?"

"Not too far. Why?"

Zuko hoped that Asami didn't see him wiping his palms on his pants.

"Well, if you don't mind... I mean, it's up to you, but... I had the idea of maybe... we could walk together?"

Asami let out a small chuckle. "I would like that. Just let me get my coat."

As she went to get her coat, the waiter came to leave the receipt on the table. Zuko leaned over to whisper to him.

"Can you keep a secret?"

The waiter didn't respond verbally. His brow just raised.

"Thanks for the service. You're good at your job."

Zuko discretely passed the man a gold coin. Not showing his surprise of pleasure, the man simply pocketed the coin. Only when Asami returned (dressed in a red coat that Zuko thought looked nice on her) did he show his gratitude.

"Sir. Madam. I hope you enjoy your evening. It had been a pleasure."

He added a bow, which did surprise Asami. But she chose to focus on her companion.

"Shall we?"

"Right. Of course."

The two of them left Kwongs, Asami's arm around Zuko's. Asami was happy for the company, while Zuko just hoped this wasn't a step too far. Aside from Mai and that one awkward date in the Earth Kingdom, Zuko had never gotten this far on a first date. He liked it, but he was just hoping he was doing it right.

It seemed like it was working, with Asami smiling at Zuko the whole walk. But he also noticed that she was blowing a bit of air. And her ears were turning a little red.

"Are you cold? I could help with that."

Opening his palm, Zuko let out a bit of fire that heated them both up.

"Thank you. Sometimes I forget how cold it can get at night."

"No problem. Just happy to help."

The two of them continued to walk for a while, with Zukos starting to enjoy the lights of the city at night. Neither of them said very much, but it didn't feel awkward like before. Right now, they were just happy to walk and have each other's company.

Eventually, the two of them reached a place that Zuko hadn't expected, but in hindsight probably should have. He knew Asami had money because of the restaurant they went to. So it made sense for her to live in a mansion that Zuko was sure could have housed dozens of refugees back in his time.

Zuko was about to say goodbye, but Asami surprised him. She stuck a piece of paper into his hand. And she also grabbed his shoulder to bring him in closer. Just so she could give him a kiss on the cheek.

"I had a good time Zuko. Don't forget to call me."

Asami let herself back into her home, leaving a stunned and frozen Zuko out in the doorway. He stayed like that for several moments, processing what had just happened to him.

And then he smiled.

Zuko was shocked that the date had not ended as a flaming disaster. He was thankful, but he was still surprised. He wondered if this was the universe repaying him to an extent. He doubted it, but he would appreciate such a gesture.

In any case, the sun was long gone. His commitment to Asami for the night was over now that he had walked her home, which meant that he was free to move on to his new hobby.

Zuko waited until he was far enough from Asami's mansion before he ran into an alley that he checked to make sure was abandoned. Once he knew he was clear, he got to work on getting ready. It was easy since he had a part of his costume on under his jacket.

He took the gloves out of his pocket when he took off the jacket. Then he pulled out the mask he had hidden inside the large back pocket in the jacket.

He would be without swords for a night, but that was fine. He could manage.

Hiroshi Sato noticed the smile on his daughter's face as she entered the house.

"I take it the date went well?"

"It was... fun."

Hiroshi raised a brow. "I noticed that hesitation Asami. Was something wrong?"

"No. Not at all. He was just a little shyer than I expected. But it was cute after a while."

Hiroshi smiled again.

"Do you intend to see him again?"

"I already made plans to. He even invited me to see his first solo match."

Hiroshi's smile did not falter in the slightest.

"Match? A pro-bender I take it?"

"Yes. One of the first to do solo matches. He said he can get me in for free."

"Really? So he's being nice to you?"

Asami smiled in knowing.

"I'll help you meet him soon daddy. I think you'll like him."

Hiroshi's smile remained static. "I look forward to meeting him."

Across the city, Zuko was still jumping rooftops. Around the fourth building, he felt the eyes focused on him. He wasn't sure if it was due to the years he spent in the wilderness of his time with Druk, but Zuko had a pretty good instinct for when eyes were on him. Even Azula, as talented as she was, found it difficult to catch Zuko physically unaware.

Zuko knew that someone (or maybe more than one person) was watching him. But he couldn't make out where they were. His eyes darted across the buildings, but the stalkers were either in camouflage or hidden inside the buildings. Either case would make it difficult for him to respond. So he had to change the setting.

Zuko went back to running. If the watchers couldn't keep up, then he would lose them eventually. If not, he had a plan so he could get behind them.

The possible assailants likely had better knowledge of this city's rooftops than he would, so he had to go to a place where he could gain a terrain advantage. Not his island, that would be too risky. But there was a close relocation.

Zuko ran across the buildings to the darker section of the city. A place he knew well enough to work around.

The pro-bending gym was locked and closed for the night. But since Zuko had gone there every day, he knew the different points of entry and exit. He looked for those whenever he wasn't learning how to perform a fight. And one such entry point was a creaky window on the roof. One that Zuko was skilled enough to open and crawl through within seconds.

When Zuko's masked form went into the building, the people following him went as well.

They were all dressed in dark clothes and masks covering the top parts of their heads, and each one had metal sticks strapped to their backs. Each uniform was engraved with the red symbol of equality. They each crawled through the same window as the masked vigilante, hoping to catch him inside.

But when they landed on the floor of the gym, they didn't see him. They all knew that he was inside, but no one knew where he went.

One of the soldiers, the lieutenant second only to Amon, gave the order.

"Spread out and find him. Amon made his desires clear."

The soldiers began to check around the gym. They moved around equipment and checked the closets, but no one could find him. That's because none of them bothered to look up.

Having found a spot on the ceiling to latch onto, Zuko looked at the people on the ground. And he recognized the symbol that they had on their uniforms. He had seen it at the park a few days ago. But that had been a part of a peaceful protest. Since when did these people have fighters? And what did they want with him?

Zuko wasn't going to get his answers by hiding on the ceiling. He was going to have to confront them directly and figure this out. Luckily, there was one person far enough from the group for Zuko to gain some leverage.

Jumping down from the ceiling, Zuko landed as silently as possible behind one lone equalist. He then ripped the sticks from the man's strap and put them up to his neck.

"Hey!"

Turning both of them around, Zuko aimed the dangerous side of the sticks at the man's throat and used the man's body as a meatshield. That way, none of the man's group could approach without endangering him. And they knew that, judging by how none of them approached either or went for their weapons.

"No one makes a move!"

The man in charge, the one with the strange mustache, stepped forward between Zuko and the group. He held up his hands in a sign of peace.

"Look, we're not here to fight you. We're here with a message from our leader. I assume you've heard of Amon."

Zuko didn't respond. But that didn't stop the lieutenant from continuing.

"He has taken notice of your actions. You protected a woman from a dangerous bender. That would make you an ally to us non-benders."

Behind his black mask, Zuko's brow narrowed. It seemed his actions were being perceived in a way he hadn't intended. But given that the Equalists were starting to get more of his attention, he figured he would play along for now.

Taking the sticks away from his hostage's throat, Zuko returned the weapons and sent the man back to his allies. This gave the lieutenant a chance to present a scroll.

"Amon will hold a meeting for all Equalists tomorrow. He was wondering if you would be interested."

Zuko took the scroll from the man and read it. It had the location, time, and everything else written.

"With you at our side, I'm sure we can..."

The lieutenant didn't finish. Zuko didn't give him a chance to. Rolling the scroll closed, Zuko used the walls to crawl back to the window. he snuck out before any of the equalists could follow.

With a concerned look on his face, the lieutenant told his men to move. They had to report back to Amon. And figure out what sort of response to give.

Returning home, Zuko took off his mask to read the scroll once more. So he knew where Amon was going to be and when. He just needed to figure out how to respond.

Going there was probably a good idea, but Zuko wasn't entirely sure. The Equalists seemed to be under the impression that he was a non-bender, and he didn't think they would react well when they found out he wasn't. But if he had his swords with him, he could use those and try to avoid his bending.

But there was also the question of whether he should try to fight them at all.

He had been near their rally at the park a few days ago. He knew what they supposedly wanted. Equal standing with benders. He could sympathize with the plight, even if he wasn't sure of their methods yet. He had just met armed men who served them, so he wasn't sure all of their protests were peaceful.

But even if they weren't peaceful, could it still count as self-defense? he didn't think every bender in the city shared his sympathy, so Zuko couldn't blame them if they wanted to defend themselves.

This issue was getting more complex the more Zuko thought about it. He needed to calm his head.

The first thing he did was walk up to Druk, who was finishing up his evening meal, and he scratched the giant lizard behind the ears. After that, he saw in a meditative pose beside the dragon's warm body. Using the heat to center himself, Zuko reached out to the spirit living inside of him.

Zuko was no longer outside the mansion on Fire Nation Island. He was now inside a room that looked suspiciously like Kwong's. And a spirit of black and red was staring at him.

"You called me, vessel."

Airbender Island...

"Dad, I really don't think this is a good idea."

"I know son. You've made it clear. But I have complete faith in your abilities. I'm sure this city will prosper even without my aid."

Tenzin was not nearly as sure. But he knew that there was no chance of convincing his father to reconsider his choice. Especially since the boat was here now.

"I hope you're right. I'll miss you, dad."

To Tenzin's surprise, he was given a hug by his father. A full, warm hug that Tenzin instinctively reciprocated.

"I will miss you, my son. You and the rest of our family."

Those weren't the words of a man who was just going on a vacation. Tenzin knew what Aang meant. He had already wired Kya and Bumi to let them know.

"You're not getting away that easy grandpa!"

Out of nowhere, Meelo descended from the air and grabbed Aang by his leg.

"AHA! Meelo's got you!"

Smiling, Aang feined defeat.

"Oh what a terrible day this is. The avatar has been defeated by a powerful bender."

"Don't forget his sisters."

Jinora and Ikki both ran past Tenzin and grabbed a piece of Aang. While the old man hugged his beloved grandchildren, Penma walked up to her husband. She rubbed her round belly.

"They couldn't sleep when they found out you were leaving," she explained. "I hope it's not a problem."

"Not at all. It warms my heart to see them."

Tenzing didn't say anything out loud, but he was glad that his kids were. He was glad that his father was able to spend these happy moments with them.

But the moment had to end. The boat was ready to go, and Aang didn't want to keep the crew waiting. Waving goodbye to his family one last time, Aang got on the boat to head South. There was one face he was eager to see.

"I know you saw everything through my eyes Vaatu. What do you suggest?"

"Firstly, I suggest a better outfit next time. And maybe pick a restaurant yourself. Impress her. I would also suggest..."

"I'm talking about the Equalists Vaatu. What do you suggest I do about them?"

"Try to be more specific next time vessel. And to answer your question, I suggest you find their leader and kill him."

Zuko was taken aback.

"That's a little extreme. Why jump to that?"

"Because this group is working off of a false concept based on an impossible ideal. Equality between humans is a lie."

"A lie?"

"Yes. Even if bending did not exist, there would still be humans born with missing limbs or impairments of the mind. And humans would still discriminate on trivial things. Perhaps things like skin tone or eye color."

Zuko hadn't thought much about it, but there was some logic to it. Even benders didn't have equality among themselves. He grew up with enough comparisons to Azula to know that. But that didn't mean that Zuko agreed with everything Vaatu said.

"Even if true equality isn't possible, the protest I saw the other day was about non-benders not wanting to be treated as second-class. I can't just ignore that."

"True. Even humans without elemental connections have potential. But if you want my advice, I suggest you go to this Amon figure and see what his philosophy is. His false assumption could give you more insight."

Since the Equalists seemed to think he was a non-bender, they might be more at ease and honest with him. And it would help him figure out if they truly were dangerous or not.

"I'll go to the place tomorrow. I'll see what they are all about."

"Very well vessel. Oh, and do try to cause some mayhem. I haven't been a part of any uproar in this city yet, and I would like to change that."

Zuko chuckled. Vaatu truly would never change.

"I'll see what I can do."

Opening his eyes, Zuko was back in the physical world. Druk had wrapped his body around Zuko as he slept, and Zuko figured it would be wise to follow suit.

He had an objective for tomorrow night. And some rest would help.

Sorry about not updating for more than a year. The issue was a mix of real-life problems, job changes, and a lack of motivation. But hopefully, this chapter gets a good response so I can keep going.

This is where I will stop for now. Zuko now has a potential girlfriend, and he is getting used to his nighttime adventures.

Now he only has to deal with the Equalist threat.

Anyway, please leave reviews, tell me what you think, and I will see you all next time.

Bye!