The Power of Guilt

by TurquoiseRose16

'Whenever he thought about what he had done to them in the past, the guilt was almost unbearable. He could feel its icy grip tightening around his lungs and a lump would form in his throat. He wanted, desperately, to apologize but he knew that they would reject it, making it so much harder to even be in the same room as them.' Sometimes guilt is the start of a new life.

1. Prologue

Looks like this is my first Avatar the Last Airbender story. And to any of my readers who are waiting for updates on my other stories, I apologize for the wait. I've been busy all year with school and now that summer's here, I seem to have developed a horrid case of writer's block. Again, I'm very sorry. I will be updating as soon as the ideas begin flowing. This story, however, has been floating around in my brain for as long as I can remember and it's about time I get it down on paper- er on Microsoft Word and .

Get ready for some Zuko angst, because it will be coming full force in later chapters. But don't forget there will be Zutara, of course. Because what pair is better than that?

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender. If I did, Zutara would have actually happened and the Zuko angst would have been deeper and more in depth.

~~~~~~~~ ATLA~~~~~~~~~

'Hello, Zuko here...

I think it's time I joined your group and taught the avatar firebending...

One slip up; give me one reason to think you that might hurt Aang and you won't have to worry about your destiny anymore. Because I'll make sure it ends, right then and there. Permanently...'

The words swarmed and festered in her mind; replaying over and over to the point of annoyance.

'He is one room away. Him. The same person who had ruthlessly chased us for the past few years. Who had tried to burn us, and capture us, and kill us. And he is here. Just who does that arrogant ass think he is? He just shows up out of the blue and expects us to forgive him in a split second. No. No,no,no. The others may trust him, but no way in hell will I. Not again. No, he has to go.'

She paced the small expanse of her room, muttering for hours. She only stopped when she heard a soft scuffle from outside her doorway.

Creeping toward the opening she peered out into the darkness. A small flickering flame danced near the fountain, causing the water to be cast in fiery hues.

'I'll bet he's thinking of a plan to destroy us at this very moment. No one is up at three a.m. for no reason. I knew we couldn't trust that lying bastard.'

She crept closer and watched him from behind a stone pillar.

Nearly an hour went by before she came to the realization that he wasn't doing anything that could be classified as morally 'wrong'. Giving up, she turned and headed back to the confines of her room.

If she had stayed a bit longer maybe she would have seen the small whips of smoke rise off his flame from the drips of water that ran down his cheeks. Or maybe she would have seen the way he plunged his hand into the icy water to extinguish the flame he detested so much. If only she had stayed a moment more, then maybe she would have understood why he was truly here.

~~~~~~~X~~~~~~~

Yes, yes. I know that was short, but that's why this is called a prologue. And also why Chapter 1 is going up with it tonight. Or technically this morning. It is almost two a.m. This is why I love summer. It is the only time where I'm allowed to be nocturnal.

Please R&R

~ TurquoiseRose16

:)