Thank you to psiwhisper; i was thinking of quitting, but i may not.
I apologize: chapters will be a bit longer between postings, due to the fact that i'm now doign Tae Kwon Do, along with the rest of my busy life. :-)
Hopefully this is a bit longer than the others. Oh, as for the title- i couldn't really think of anythign else, so.. ya.
A flash of white light… a dark, metal room came into view as I opened my eyes.
I lay back on the straw mat, looking out the window. Had I been dreaming? Or was that real?
A minute later, a door creaked open and then shut. Quiet footsteps echoed through the metal hallway. The rattle of a few keys, and another door creaked open with a groan.
"Uncle?" called a quiet voice, "I'm sorry for waking you up. I couldn't sleep." The sound of the falling rain on the deck above was the only sound in the prison hold. "I thought I was doing the right thing: I have a destiny to fulfill. I can finally go home…" The young voice was thick with emotion.
I stood up, and tiptoed to the door. I looked through the metal bars on the door to my cell. The door to the cell across the hall was open. In the semi-darkness, I could see one man meditating on the ground, and another man standing next to him. The man on the ground had a small flame in each hand, as he meditated; these grew and shrank as he breathed slowly. "I brought you some tea, Uncle," said the other man. He was now kneeling beside the meditating man. No response… the kneeling man tapped the other on the shoulder for a moment
The flame in his hand rose sharply, and sank back down just as quickly. He sat there quietly for a moment. "Zuko… I had faith in you. How many times have I told you that you must decide your own destiny- it is not set in stone- you must make it. It would take more than tea for me to forgive you. You can never buy forgiveness."
"Uncle, I brought the tea, because I thought you might want some- I would never try to bribe you…" The man on the ground continued meditating, the flame resumed it continual rise and fall.
"Zuko, I have chosen my destiny. You must choose yours. Now I suggest you get some sleep." He rubbed his hands together, and the flames extinguished. The cell was not pitch black, except for the distant lightning which gave a moment of light into the dark hold.
The standing man nodded his head slowly, bowed, and backed out the cell.
He locked the door, and turned around. I quickly dived onto my mat. The scrape of a key, and the door to my cell opened. "Here, enjoy it," said the young man. He put the cup of tea on the ground, locked the door, and began to walk away.
As the footsteps receded, I stood up, took the tea, and went to the bars in the door. "Zuzu, is this ginseng?"
"Ya," he answered quietly, as he started walked up the stairs. I warmed the cup in my hand (firebending), and drank a gulp. A moment later, there was a flash of fire (and realization), and the young man faced me, on the other side of the door. He unlocked the door, and threw open the door. A whip of fire ignited in his hand. "What the heck (alternate language used, haha) did you call me?!?!"
"Well, Azula used to call you that; and seeing as you're so chummy with her now…" I sipped my tea, "Thanks for the tea, Ginseng is my favorite."
"Oh, mine too," said the old man from across the hall. He had heard the ruckus, and was now standing and looking out of the bars in his door. He chuckled, "small world, eh?"
I smiled. Gulping down the last of the tea, I handed the cup back to Zuko. "I like your tattoo." In the light from his fire whip (still in his hand), I winked and pulled the door shut. Zuko's eyes narrowed… he locked the door and walked away.
(Cut to a fancier bedroom on the ship) A few minutes later, in his room, Prince Zuko pulled off his shirt. He strode over to the mirror. The scar stared back at him… he took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. He turned his left shoulder towards the mirror. A dragon breathing fire looked back at him. He lay down, and shook his head…
"Besides Ginseng, there are many other good teas. Now let's see… Jasmine is very good- a favorite with the ladies; black tea is good in the morning; hmm… what else is really good…?" He paused for a moment, memories of teas dancing through his mind.
"So how have you been, Uncle?"
A pause of silence… I looked through the bars again, to see if the man was still there. Indeed he was still there, but he had the most peculiar expression on his face. His eyebrows shot up, soon followed by a broad smile on his face… "Roku!"
R&R! If i get the time to write it, this will be pretty interesting, i think. Lots of ideas in my head... now to get them onto paper.
psiwhisper, thanks for the replies. i fixed the last line. Roku is a character i've introduced; a firebender. the tattoo connection will be known over time.