Sam

It had been about two weeks since Zuko woke up and today, the girls would be arriving from the prison in Kushitoa. I had been working with the girls that we freed and these girls would be no exception. This time would be a bit different though and I wasn't sure how it would go over. Zuko would be accompanying me. Zuko had re-purposed one of the vacant apartment complexes in Capital City to be a shelter for all of the freed girls. He felt personally responsible for them and was concerned about their well-being. I, myself, was worried about him.

"Zuko, are you sure you can handle this? This will be a very long day and you only just started getting around normally. I don't want to see you set yourself back."

"I have to, Sam. They counted on me to get them out of there and I let them down. As for my health, I'll be fine. I don't plan on being on my feet much." I scoffed. Yeah, I knew how much he'd sit down. We had ridden a rhino together to the shelter. He sat behind me and steered the beast. I had been married to him for going on ten years now and I still never learned how do ride one of these independently. I had no intention to either. I liked the closeness Zuko and I felt when we rode together.

We arrived at the shelter and Zuko dismounted then helped me down. I felt guilty for him helping me. He was the one who needed helping. But when I protested, he insisted. And it certainly wasn't worth an argument. We walked into the shelter to check on things. He followed me since this was his first time accompanying me. I went up to Fu Sen who ran this shelter.

"Good morning, Fu Sen. We have six girls coming today from Kushitoa. I want to make sure their rooms are ready. Which ones are they staying in? Oh, and yes, Zuko is joining me today." I added when I saw him look at Zuko.

"Yes, of course, your majesty. It's an honor to have you here in our establishment, Fire Lord." he said bowing to Zuko. Then he looked at me "As for the girls coming, here are the keys to the rooms they'll be staying in. I know you like to inspect them yourself, Fire Lady." he said, handing them to me and bowing again.

"Thank you Fu Sen. If I have any questions or concerns I'll let you know." I said and then turned to Zuko, "I usually look at the rooms first to see what they need. Then I gather what's needed." I said as we started walking to the rooms.

"Why not have Fu Sen do this, Sam? Doesn't seem like work fit for a Fire Lady."

"I feel responsible for these girls, Zuko. I want to personally make sure things are as they should be. Especially since these girls come from the Koya Desert - where I hail from. I feel a connection to them. More than I ever have before."

We walked into the first room and, it was simply furnished, which is how I wanted it. There was a bed and next to it was a chair. Between them, there was a lantern hanging from the wall for light if they needed it and a small table. They didn't each have their own bathing rooms unfortunately. They would have to share them.

"Wow, this is what all the rooms look like? It's so small. Couldn't we give them something…more homey?"

"Well, this is actually similar to the common houses in the Koya Desert. Many of them are simple. Mostly because people didn't spend a lot of time in their homes. There was always some community event going on that kept people busy. Besides, being in the desert, houses often became very hot. It was more comfortable out in the open. I put together a team of seamstresses to embroider the blankets like this. These are exactly like back home. Even the lantern is very Koyan." I explained. Zuko was looking at it with fascination.

"How long do they stay here for?"

"Well, that depends on the individual. Some a couple of weeks but most a few months until they figure out what they want to do. I try to keep them in the Fire Nation or one of the other Bending Nations but some of them don't stay."

"Why don't you want them to leave?"

"If they go home, there is a high likelihood they will be recaptured. Or worse. Starting over here is the safer option. Plus…actually I've been wanting to talk to you about this. I have some programs in mind for these girls to help them get on their feet. We can talk about them tomorrow, but I think it would be beneficial to them."

"All of the programs you have suggested have been wild successes so I'm willing to approve any programs you want."

"No, I want to discuss it with you first. A lot of times you think of things that I didn't." Zuko deliberated for a moment then nodded. I finally got the rooms ready and just in time. The girls arrived only moments later. We had a meeting room where I met with most of them. Zuko would sit in the back on the chair that Fu Sen moved for him.

The girls all came in and they were still filthy. They hadn't gotten baths while at the prison. I saw Zuko stand quickly beside me, supported by his cane - a temporary necessity - then got tipsy with dizziness. He stood for a moment, regaining his balance.

"Why are these girls not cared for? I instructed them at the prison to care for them. Remind me when we get home to send a hawk to them to summon the warden to the palace."

"Will do, my love. Now sit back down before you push yourself too hard." After he resumed sitting, the girls were staring at him. It was then I realized - they recognized him as their savior. They all sat down on benches and I sat in my chair. I then spoke to them in my language.

"As I'm sure you're aware, you are safe now. I'm sorry that you were left at the Prison. It was our Fire Lord's intention to bring you back here with him but he was ambushed by the very people who held you against your will and he was injured badly." At this, the girls demeanor changed and they became fearful again. "Don't worry, they have been dealt with and will not be coming for you. We have rooms for each of you. In the coming days, we will discuss what you want to do going forward. We also have provided you all with clothing so you can get out of…those. There is a dining hall for everyone and you will all eat there." Once I finished, I turned around to Zuko and spoke in our language, "Zuko. Did you want to say anything to them? I can translate." Zuko stood up gingerly, using his cane and walked over to me and placed his hand on my shoulder, holding himself up.

"I am very sorry this happened to you ladies. We are going to do everything we can to help you. I know you have had it rough for a while, but we want to improve that. You do not need to fear anyone here. No one will enslave you again. You have my word on that." Zuko finished and I translated for the girls. They all looked relieved and I could see they relaxed.

"I am going to leave you all for today and we will convene in a few days once you are acclimated to your new surroundings. We will work together and we will help you find a life again. Before I go, do any of you have any questions?" They asked their questions and I answered them as best as I could. Then I turned to Zuko. "I am going to show them all to their rooms. Did you want to come along?" Zuko smiled.

"Yes, I do." We all stood up and showed them all to their rooms. Their faces lit up when they saw the small pieces of home in their rooms. They all smiled and thanked us, bowing to Zuko and myself. I stole a glance at Zuko and he had tears in his eyes. He enjoyed helping these girls. Once we finished with everything, we made our way back to the rhinos. We climbed up onto the rhino and we started heading back to the palace.

"You know, those girls are taken with you." I said. Zuko blushed. "I don't mean like that. They know you saved them. And they are very grateful to you. They said they would gladly live in a nation with a ruler like you." I told him. "I'm so proud of you, hunny. You changed all of their lives." I said. I WAS proud of him. He is a good man.

"I am just glad we got them out of there. I hated seeing them how they were. And I'm glad all of those people at that house are dead."

"That makes two of us, my love." I said. I leaned my body back against Zuko and snuggled against his chest. I reached my hand up to his neck and pulled his face down to kiss him until he quickly pulled away.

"Woah, Sam! Careful or we will steer off a cliff!" he said after a close call.

"But what a way to go." I said laughing. Zuko looked at me appalled and then laughed as well. We got home just in time to greet Izumi after school. This would be the first time Zuko was able to greet her and it would be a surprise. When Izumi and Geshna came walking around the corner and she saw him she dropped her bag and ran as fast as she could, slamming into Zuko and making him fall back.

"Easy Izumi! Remember, Daddy is still sore." I said, reaching down and helping Zuko to his feet. She looked really upset.

"I'm sorry, Daddy! I didn't mean it! I'm sorrrryyyyyyyy!" she said, starting to cry.

"It's ok. I'm alright, my turtleduck." He said quickly to calm her down. "How was school?"

"Good! We finally started learning how to read today!" she said, recovering quickly.

"Oh, yeah? Tell me all about it." Zuko said. Izumi sat on his lap while he sat on the steps as she told the story. After a couple of moments, I reached down to Izumi and took her hand, urging her off of him.

"Come on, Izumi. Daddy needs to lay down. You can continue with your day once he is in bed." She didn't protest and did as she was told. She followed us to the bedroom, talking Zuko's ear off, like she always did. I swore all little girls were the same. They sat together until it was dinnertime. After the day's activities, I had dinner brought to us in the bedroom and then we went to bed for the evening. Finally, things were starting to return to normal.