Hi, as promised here's the new chapter BEFORE new year. I actually had to cut a few pages because it was too large, those pages are all I have of chapter 9, so I'll have to ask for your patience again. I have somehow become absorbed writing those future chapters I've talked so much about, they're coming along very nicely. Now I'm sure most of you will be surprised about this chapter, some even disappointed, but I assure you, this had been part of my plan since the very beginning and it will get better (or worse, depending on what you think).
Thanks for the reviews, specially to KunnegAndris and Flip Ants.
To KunnegAndris: If that's what you think about the Fire Nation I'll just advise you to wait until we get to the part where you see everything from the perspective of an Earth Kingdom citizen and see what the war has done to them.
To Flip Ants: That's the kind of review I'm looking for, and yes you're totally right... but I was actually aiming for the ominous foreshadowing. I think we're facing a cultural clashing here, Sweet! You see in spanish literary tradition, specifically latin-american tradition its quite normal to use foreshadowing as a way to tell a story (Think of One Hundred Years of Solitude by García Márquez, or Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo), this I find particularly awesome since it was actually a standard characteristic of Greek epic (Homer). But I might have exaggerated, I'll try to keep an eye on it.
Don't forget to check the maps at undeclinable D OT deviantart D OT c om , I'l try to post the most recent version during the weekend. My offer is still standing for anyone good at drawing to help me with some maps and stuff, I'm even considering commissioning some drawings for this fanfic to one of the great artists on deviantart, but I'll have to seriously reflect on it.
I received a very flattering PM asking where I learned to write and if I knew other fanfics like mine, my answer is the same as Borges': I just read a lot (classical scholar, duh) and I really don't think my prose, specially my English prose, has any laudable quality, but I do think the plot I have been hatching for this story is original enough to merit some of your attention. To answer the second question: No, I don't know any other fanfic similar to this one, hence, my need to write it. But I do know many fanfics way better than mine, in fact, if I were Bryan Konietzko or Michael Dante DiMartino I'd hire all of the guys I'm about to enlist.
Here's the best fanfics I've had the pleasure to read on this site: Enslaved by sharkflip (best Avatar fanfic I've ever read, sadly on hiatus ;_;); Another Brother by AvocadoLove (Avatar, on hiatus); Fire Rising by Sorgens Kammer (Avatar, on hiatus again); Rescue Me by hootowl (Avatar, slow updates and the development of the plot on the latests chapters has been a serious disappointment for me); Middlewood and A Lot Like Loke by yvj (Kim Possible, excellent plots but sadly no updates since 2010 and 2013, respectively); The Lotus Bloom by captainkodak1 (Kim Possible, completed); Anathema's Abode by Twisted Creampuff (Danny Phantom, no updates since 2012) and Neon Genesis Evangelion: Genocide by Rommel (best fanfic I've ever read, this guy should be a professional novelist).
And once again I find myself forced to ask for a serious beta (someone actually willing to dedicate time to proofreading and suggesting). I'm begging here guys, there's some 80 word pages of unchecked chapters to organise AND I still have to seriously proofread what's already published.
The usual disclaimer; do read and review.
„Aber wer fest auf dem Sinne beharrt, der bildet die Welt sich."
"He who is firm in will molds the world to himself."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Hermann und Dorothea, IX. 303.
Kori Morishita, –the only daughter of the former paramour and currently second wife of Hun Morishita, mayor of Yu Dao for the last twenty years– could claim that she had seen many things in her life. Her father was Fire Nation pure breed, a son of merchants who had emigrated to the newly founded colonies in search for fortune, and they had found it. Her mother was the granddaughter of slaves liberated by Fire Lord Sozin, they had first worked as servants to families of Fire Nation farmers. Kori's grandparents had been the first generation of local children to have received public Fire Nation education, they had learned to read and to write and a trade, they had eventually become successful merchants themselves. Her own mother had even studied law, and finally had archived full insertion into Fire Nation society, she had been a young woman with good prospects and a promising future, until she fell in love.
During the first two generations of the integration of Earth Kingdom locals into Fire Nation culture it had been common for former slaves to look for masters to serve under the title of hired servants. They just could not fully accept the freedom that emancipation brought, nor could they adapt to a life style completely alien to them. The same had happened with women, scared to death at the prospect of having to work for themselves, living independently and outside a man's protection and authority, thousands had taken advantage of Sozin's paramour laws to escape into a more familiar, trustworthy and secure environment under a man's care. Even if legally they had long been free women, without anything but their own fear and indolence to prevent them from getting a basic education or learning a trade to shape their own lives independently as Fire Nation women did, the great majority had continued to live practically as slaves, before they had been harem girls, after the annexation they had simply changed that title to that of paramours, living as kept women of Fire Nation men.
Despite the enormous difficulties, a great level of re-education had been archived, mostly in education, economics and industrialisation. People had mingled and married between the two cultures, now families went together to the the temples of Agni and to the shrines of the Earth Spirits; entire towns celebrated in harmony the greeting of the sun during summer and the thanksgiving to the mother spirit earth during the harvest. Firebending children played ball with earthbending ones; particularly in Yu Dao it was very common to see firebenders and earthbenders working together in the fabrics and forges, it was even possible for some selected earthbenders to receive military training and join the Fire Nation army to help in the war effort. And it was not rare that many autochthonous children to travelled to the main islands, to know the fatherland.
Kori's mother had been one of Yu Dao's most promising children, many of the Fire Nation instructors expected her to one day occupy an official post, because if anything, the Fire Nation had been specially interested in breaking the old power structures of the conquered territories mainly based on slavery, great landowners and the harem, thus they had strived for women to quickly gain positions of authority, just like in the Fire Nation. But Kori's mother had turned it all down for love, even when Hun Morishita's first wife still lived; she had openly decided to be with the man she loved at all costs, she had become his paramour, disappointing many of her teachers and Fire Nation girl friends. She had chosen to live with and for the man she loved, she had said. What was the point of having liberty if you can't devote yourself to the one you love? She had asked. And thus Yu Dao's most promising star had ended up in almost the same position as her grandmothers.
Kori had been born as the daughter of a paramour, thus she had the right to a small inheritance and full Fire Nation citizenship. But she had been born with what her father called the will of fire, she was decisive, strong willed and passionate, she had been raised in the most traditional Fire Nation lifestyle her father could offer her, she had thus developed a great loyalty, love and pride for her nation and she had received a very strong academic formation. Kori had been so promising that she had received a scholarship from the Royal Fire Nation Academy for Girls where she had developed an interest for the military sciences and trained in combat skills. But she had also received a great inheritance from her mother.
Kori Morishita was an earthbender, one of the selected few to had been granted permission to train and study earthbending's combat techniques, her stubbornness was a testament to it. From her mother she had inherited also a very intimate, if limited, sense of religion and respect for the spirits, something which had bothered her father to no end, but from her she had also learned compassion for the unfortunate and a very Earth Kingdom-like sense of community that sometimes clashed with the Fire Nation's more individualistic views of life. Her life had come about from the clash of two cultures, and in the shock-wave of the clash she had been raised, nurtured in a bicultural family, a bicultural city and bicultural lifestyle, thus it was not surprising that some of these often conflicting elements sometimes caused strife in the heart of Kori.
The most tormenting to her was her mother. Kori loved her, and precisely because she loved her she had developed a grudge against her mother's decisions and very disturbing doubts about herself as a woman. Kori despised the fact that if she had been born in the Earth Kingdom she would have been condemned to be a slave forever, she hated the fact that if it were not for Sozin's liberation wars, she would live in a world were women were mere objects to be used and sold, where the concept of rape did not even exist, because as objects women were not legally recognised a will. As a fruit of the fertile and innovative thinking of the Fire Nation, she deeply resented the fact that half of the world still lived in those dark ages where thousands lived and died on a master's caprice, where medicine was so far behind that people still believed that sacrificing a cow-hen to the forest's spirits would cure a fever or stop a drought. Were the use of new irrigation methods and machinery were viewed as an insult to the earth spirits and those who fabricated and developed them were accused of dealing with demonic spirits and performing unholy actions and were buried alive as punishment, causing hundreds of thousands to starve because of the ineffective agriculture. A world where giving credits, that is, opportunities to better one's situation was forbidden on pain of slavery.
Even if it was unconscious, her mother represented that part of life to Kori, she had grown up under the shadow of her mother's failure, constantly hearing about the dangers of making the same mistakes as her, and this of course she resented, even if she did not realise it herself. By renouncing a life of success in the traditional Fire Nation style, Kori's mother had impersonated what Kori thought was wrong with the world. Thus it was to her great frustration when she discovered that what her mother represented was also a part, albeit a very small part, of the Fire Nation, of her nation.
Kori wanted to become a soldier, she knew she could be very good one, she had the skill, the knowledge, the education and training required, she possessed an unparalleled loyalty and sense of duty and she had a mental toughness superior to that of many men. But even the Fire Nation laws did not allow women to form part of the regular army, except in times of extreme emergency. The most she had been offered was a post in the home-based militia forces, basically a police force that was part of the army only insofar as they were reserve forces.
Kori's attire, composed of the colours red and green, reflected her mixed heritage, her life and her personality. A source of constant conflict and mixed feelings. And it was with mixed feelings that she had returned home after two years in the Fire Nation capital. With her dream of fighting in the front lines for her nation shattered, she had reluctantly accepted her father's offer to train earthbenders and command the rescue forces of the city. Then the suitors had come.
As a well educated daughter from the mayor of the most thriving and economically fruitful colonial city, there were many men interested in gaining her hand, it was obvious and natural that her role should be to support her father in gaining advantageous alliances with other influential merchants or politicians, even more so since her older half-brother had died in battle, leaving her father without a male heir.
And Kori had hated them, every last one of her suitors that had come after her like hungry bat-wolves when they realised she was the heir of her father's entire fortune, many of them had looked down upon her as a child of a paramour, who was spared from being called a bastard only because Sozin's laws and the necessity of an increase in the population. Whenever she thought of them or the old perverted merchants who lusted after her young body as much as they lusted after her money she got sick to her stomach, and for the very first time in her life she was forced to face her resentment towards her mother and her disappointment towards her mother's weakness, a weakness that even Kori herself could only describe as womanly.
She understood that her nation needed fruitful marriages, and that part of her duty to her nation and to her family as a woman was to provide heirs. She really did not mind fulfilling her natural role, but she hated the thought that she was not entirely free to do so on her own choice, she hated the idea that her "motherly instincts", as her mother called them, would one day force her to give up her freedom and prospects for a man. So far she had not, but she had not archived her dreams either.
She had turned down every suitor, from the rich, lascivious widows, to the pompous hot headed boys. It turned out that her expectations of men, even Fire Nation men were too high.
Or they aren't men enough. She thought. Even before her journey to the Fire Nation she had made herself a good reputation as a street fighter, and before that, as a tomboy who would beat up bullies and rich kids just for fun. Her mother had despaired trying to turn her into a lady, and Kori was proud to say that she had forced her mother to give up on that aspect, she was a warrior, no matter if her mother or the decrepit lady at the recruitment office thought otherwise just because she happened to be born with a cunt and a pair of tits instead of two balls and a dick.
And most of her extended family supported her, she had five male cousins, of whom two were firebenders and three were earthbenders. None of them had ever beaten her in a fight, neither barehanded nor bending. Since there was little to do at home but teach mediocre earthbenders how to build small houses and repair stuff, and sometimes helping evacuate people when the river overflowed, Kori had dedicated herself to hone her fighting skills and train with her cousins, then her cousins had turned sixteen like her and left for war.
She had never felt so much solitude as she felt when she waved goodbye to her cousins, wishing with all her might that she could go with them, to fight and live and die at their side for their glorious nation. Her female cousins were dear to Kori, but they lived in different worlds, her older cousins had gotten married right after their twelfth birthday, and the younger ones were all engaged, waiting anxiously for their time to leave the nest. Kori could understand their desire to be loved and to fulfill their social role, but she could not figure their lack of ambition in other areas.
Kori was going to turn seventeen in just two months, and recently she had been forced to reflect on the fact that sooner or later she was going to lose, even if she managed to avoid marriage until she had reached some sort of administrative position on her own merit, she knew she would not be satisfied, and she was well aware that she would never forgive herself if she wasted her youth in petty activities until social pressure or her own "motherly instincts" forced her into marriage, Kori could not help but see marriage as shackles.
But now, as she rode through the streets of Yu Dao towards her father's mansion that could well be described as a palace, she saw a light of opportunity and amazement. She had just finished helping relocate the refugees from the Makapu village into shelters, afterwards she had escorted the mayor of Makapu and some old hag called Madame Wu and her lackeys into prison, they were to be tried on charges of fraud, misuse of authority, negligence and the involuntary murders of the victims from the volcano. According to witnesses, Madame Wu had brainwashed several village officers and convinced the village to stop monitoring the volcano during the last twenty years, had it not been for prince Zuko's intervention the entire village would have perished. Kori could not help but hate them for endangering innocent civilians, risking the life of their prince, but must of all she hated them for being superstitious, unscientific, disobedient of regulation... In short: for being un-Fire-nation.
As she descended from her komodo-rhino, Kori handed her spiked meteor hammer, her weapon of choice, to a servant boy. And dazed towards her father's chambers, which had been turned into a hospital room. At the entrance she saw her mother accompany the local treasurer and his wife and an envoy from the home islands away from the commotion. Kori saluted the captain of the guards that was personally watching over the entrance to the room. Inside was her father talking with General Iroh at the side of the bed, on the edge of the room was a very tired looking colonel Mak and some soldiers, a medic and a small squadron of nurses ran about. In her father's bed was prince Zuko.
Kori looked at the bare chested boy in front of her. He was a few months younger than she, but his body evidenced that he was in top physical condition, and his scar made him look older, sinister and dangerous. And Kori found nothing but compassion and admiration for her prince.
During her time in the Royal Academy, Kori had chanced a few times with princess Azula, the princess had never spoken to her, but Kori had nonetheless observed her, with the natural curiosity that a loyal subject would have for his liege and lord, and she had not been disappointed, princess Azula had exceeded her every expectation, clever and beautiful, disciplined and effective, and a firebender prodigy unlike anyone since the late Fire Lord Azulon; Kori had grown a tremendous respect and admiration for her princess, and a little bit of envy, since from her position of power princess Azula could easily find a way to serve her nation as she best saw fit, including in the front lines. At the time Kori had thought that she would never meet a more worthy person, until she met Zuko.
The first time she heard his name was during her first months at the academy, apparently prince Zuko had insulted some general during a war meeting, as punishment he had been burned and banished. It had been the talk for months, at the time Kori had no other element to judge him other than rumours and the fact that the punishment seemed far to severe for such a small fault, and like the rumours, the gossiping eventually faded until the horrible day when the news of General Bujing's first great defeat reached the fatherland, at first it seemed like the two events were not connected, but two days later she received a letter from her father, her half brother was dead. The one person in her family who had supported and understood her, the gentle brother who had never tried to force her become anything and had always accepted her as she was, had died during a suicide attack.
Kori had exploded in rage when she found that the reason prince Zuko was banished, was that he had protested against Bujing's plans to lure the Earth Kingdom army using the forty first division. Her half brother had been the commander at the head of that division. Since then she had never missed a chance to inquire about the young prince who so dearly had paid his loyalty to his subjects. When she heard that Zuko was in danger and trapped in Mt. Makapu she had not even waited for her father's orders to march at full speed with her rescue squad to help. In the way they had been joined and even surpassed by general Iroh on his way to the village. Once in Makapu, Kori had quickly given command of the evacuation to one of her officers and gone after the old general with a few earthbenders to see if she could be of assistance, a gigantic wave of lava had greeted them.
She was sure that they were all going to die, the wave had come after a section of the volcano's cone had collapsed and with a height of at least sixty metres and a speed of over three hundred kilometres per hour, it was impossible for them to escape, much less save the prince. She had cried in anger and frustration at her failures, she had at that moment realised how truly empty and meaningless her life had been, she'd die an unaccomplished woman, and like her mother she'd be remembered as great talent with much promise who ultimately amounted to nothing.
Agni, help me! Spirits of the earth and mountain, save me! She had thought as she felt her trembling feet go numb in anticipation for the end. And the spirits had answered her, in the distance she had seen a figure emerge from the trench full of lava that was meant to protect the village, she was sure she was hallucinating; and when she saw the man stop the lava as easily as a master waterbender would stop a weave in the sea and then drain it of its heat, she thought that she was already in the spirit world. But it had been real, they had been saved, and their saviour was none other than prince Zuko. She had been happy enough not to notice the irony.
Kori took a closer look at the sleeping prince. The medics said that he seemed perfectly fine but for a slight fever, and they were reluctant to believe that he had been anywhere near a volcano, much less trapped inside its magma chambers. They were professional Fire Nation trained medics, they knew very well the effects of even slight exposure to volcanic ash and gasses, it was common for people to die chocked on the tiny bits of hot crystal present on volcanic ash before sulphur and other gases could even intoxicate you. And Kori did not blame them, she would not have believed it either, but she had seen him.
The town was bustling with rumours about the whole event, there had been many witnesses, not only her and her whole squadron, the rescue team from Pohuai, the patrol troops of colonel Mak, general Iroh and a few hundred or so villagers had seen prince Zuko stop the volcano, it had been the one and only subject of conversation on the way to Yu Dao.
And general Iroh's hands were now proof for the world to see. He had immediately ran to hug and help his fainted nephew after the prince had beaten the lava and collapsed, the old general had not even registered that prince Zuko was still drenched with lava, only the steering pain of his palms being burned made the general stop to take a good look at his nephew. They had to soak the prince in water, evaporating it on contact before they could carry him to safety. During the journey the pieces of the now solid lava had fallen from his body as if the prince were a broken statue or a model covered in burned clay.
Kori had barely paid any mind to anything but the prince. The rescue teams had quickly recovered the few survivors that had been trapped near the volcano and her team of earthbenders had hastily made a wall in case Mt. Makapu erupted again, but she had thought only of the prince and the miraculous feat he had performed, all the firebenders had agreed that they had never seen anything like that, some doubted that even general Iroh or even the late Azulon could have done what the young prince had done, at least with the same ease.
Kori saw that her father and the rest began to leave, the prince needed some rest, she knew that she had to follow, but she did not want to, she wanted to stay and guard her prince, she wanted to be at his side when he woke up, to thank him for her life and her men's lives and those of her countrymen. Kori wanted to speak with him, but she didn't know exactly about what. She had never seen a man risk his life for other, and this prince had done so for his people, twice. He had saved the girl that accompanied him and ordered her to warn the village and evacuate even while his life was still in imminent danger, he had literally not rested until the villagers were safe, he had saved them and displayed an incredibly powerful bending skill. He was the ideal of a prince, she thought, specially when she looked at the scar on his left eye, to Kori it was the living proof that prince Zuko did not fear opposing his own father if he felt that the best interest of his people were not being served. It was a reminder that this prince had once stood up for his people, for Kori's brother and paid for it.
In that bed, with his eyes closed and a very serene look, prince Zuko still looked half a boy, but he had acted with a bravery greater than any man's, in Kori's mind, prince Zuko was a man, a brave, strong and valiant man, the first real man that she had met, and for some reason she felt that she owed him even more than her life, she had finally seen a ray of hope for her nation's future and perhaps her own freedom.
The last time prince Zuko woke with a steering pain scorching his body, it had only been his left eye that tormented him. He hissed as he tried to move his arms, there was not a single spot on his whole body that did not feel like his face had felt the day his father had burned him. Through the blinding tears that escaped his eyes he caught a glimpse of his chest and arms, he had half expected to see them the same way his left eye was, completely roasted and reddish. But he found that everything seemed normal.
With a groan he adjusted the position of his neck, only to be stopped halfway by the sensation of scratching his burning back against volcanic rock. Zuko sighted as he looked up to the roof, it took him a moment to become conscious of the fact that he was under a roof, on bed in a very clean and majestic looking room, it was a sign that something had gone terribly wrong.
Where am I? He wanted to ask, but his throat was sore, as if he had screamed for days until he lost his voice. Then he heard them.
Steps. He thought. Zuko somehow managed to turn his head to see who it was that walked at the side of the bed, there was no one, but he could still hear clearly the steps, even the wrinkle of the clothes as they moved. Zuko closed his eyes and concentrated, he didn't know why, but he began to imagine in his head the layout of the room and pinpointed the exact location of the person walking, some ten metres outside his room and closing in.
With the same natural and familiar manner that a normal man did not even think about placing one foot before the other while he walked, Zuko inhaled, searching for more information in the smell.
Woman. He thought and before he became aware of it, he sensed his blood slowly building up pressure between his tights, he felt sweat in his forehead, and an anxious anticipation and excitement like he never felt before crawled through his chest.
The door opened and Zuko saw indeed a woman, a very beautiful woman, clad in a light armour. Her breastplate, which covered precisely just her breasts, as well as her fauld and pants were deep green, probably leather covered with komodo-rhino skin. She wore no plackart nor greaves, which left her belly and her shins and calves down to her ankles exposed, and ostentously displayed her muscles as well as a few scars and bruises. Her shoes, pauldrons and vambraces were scarlet red, as well as a waist-sash over her fauld and a ribbon that kept her brown hair in a braid, two perfectly cut bangs at the side of each eye left her forehead visible.
Zuko gulped in excitement, this woman looked strong and determined, her brown eyes reflected dim rays of light from the outside. Zuko did not even notice that both the outside and the twilit room he was in were almost in complete darkness as night danced in the sky, yet he saw the woman perfectly as she walked close to him, as if it were plain daylight Zuko absorbed in every detail of her, from her face to her hands, from her nimble feet to her strong belly, and the perfect roundness of her navel between her impressive abdominal muscles.
On reflex Zuko tried to call out to her, only to have some half pronounced sound come out of his mouth. The woman's eyes widened in surprise, she took a near candle and saw that he was awake, she immediately ran outside and called for a medic.
"Prince Zuko's awake!" She said, and Zuko heard as a myriad of different people began to run about and enter the room to check on him. With them came finally a distraction from his pain and the woman, and Zuko realised just how hungry he was, as if his stomach had been drained and cleared of all its inner liquids, and once again Zuko instinctively took a deep breath and searched for food, absorbing every last smell in the room in hopes of identifying something edible.
A medic quickly took his temperature and offered him some water.
"How are you feeling your majesty?" He asked.
I'm hungry and everything hurts. He wanted to say, but only fragments of those words escaped his mouth, the rest were some hollow sounds vaguely resembling a human's voice.
What happened? Where am I? As if reading his mind the medic answered while he checked his eyes and mouth and limbs for any damage.
"You are at Yu Dao your majesty, in the mayor's house. Your message was successfully delivered and the village evacuated. Many claim you actually stopped the volcano, I expect you'll be needing to report to the capital and the council of mayors here in the colonies soon." The doctor said as he placed a hand in his throat and measured his blood pressure, after a few moments he continued.
"Whatever happened it seems it did nothing to you, you are in perfect health but for a few bruises and the sore throat, as its expected after breathing in volcanic ash. You should get rest and refrain from any extenuating physical activities until we learn more."
Zuko tired to remember what had occurred but he only got as far as when he and Katara reached the peak of Mt. Makapu, the rest was just a blush of black and red and physical pain-like sensations, and of course, the feeling of is whole body being burned.
"You've got visitors your majesty." Another medic informed him.
Zuko looked up and smiled as he saw his uncle enter the room, but the greatest relief came when he saw Katara, she was safe despite the tears that moistened her checks, perhaps because those very tears that made her face shine in the half darkened room she looked stunningly beautiful.
"He'll be fine, the doctors found nothing wrong with him." Said general Iroh, he had spent the last hour trying to console Katara, the poor girl kept blaming herself for Zuko's minor injuries, even after they had seen that he was well and healthy. There was a chance that he'd recover his voice in the morrow or soon after, but it did little to ease her guilt and concern.
Katara had told him everything that happened in the way to Yu Dao and Iroh could not help but find good and somewhat encouraging to see that Zuko had managed to bond with a girl that had so little in common with him to make her worry so much. And he found even better still that the emotion was reciprocal enough for Katara to convince his nephew to look for a flower on the top of a volcano for the sake of a stranger in need. It was all a great sign of his dear nephew's emotional growth and proof that his natural kindness and compassion where still in him. This made Iroh so happy that he would have gladly forgotten the whole affair with the volcano if it had not been the cause of so many great repercussions.
The old general was fully aware that this event could not and would not remain hidden, not even a day had passed since the incident and prince Zuko had already risen from the depths of oblivion and rumour in the upper echelons of the Fire Nation nobility to the open fame and gossips of a national figure. In the past he had managed to keep his nephew under the radar and out of public perception, even his banishment had not caused as tremendous scandal as he had feared, and during three long years of exile Zuko had passed unnoticed to the world, more than enough time for even the court to slowly forget him. And now Zuko had just given them a very strong wake up call, notoriety was the last thing Iroh needed for his nephew.
First of all, the local authorities of Makapu were to be tried along with some alleged clairvoyant named Mdme. Wu. Iroh was sure that at least a thousand or more merchants would sue for compensations since it had been the authority's negligence and Mdme. Wu's influence that had allowed for such a tragedy to happen. An entire village had been destroyed and at least three thousand were dead, many more wounded. And Zuko would have to stand witness of it all in front of a court.
Not satisfied with the attention a trial would get him, his nephew had also displayed an astonishing skill with bending by stopping the volcano, something no one had ever done since Fire Lord Sozin had saved Avatar Roku's island almost a hundredth years ago. Iroh would have liked nothing better than to hide the whole lava bending from the world and from the prying eyes of the court and his secret allies, but such a thing was impossible.
At least three hundredth witnesses had seen everything, they had clearly seen Zuko swim out of lava, stop a wave of it and drain it out of heat. For the first time in his life Iroh cursed colonel Mak's dutifulness, his old subordinate had not slept nor rested until he delivered a report to his superiors in Pohuai and a copy of it to the Royal Palace in the home islands, with it he had sent signed testimonies of his men and from the rescue team from Pohuai.
The daughter of Yu Dao's mayor had done the very same, except she had included the testimonies of local bystanders as well as her own, she had even asked Iroh himself for his testimony, which he had reluctantly given. The old man knew at that point that any attempt of lying or hiding anything would be too suspicious and it would draw even more attention and scrutiny if his own testimony were to contradict everyone else. He had no choice but to describe everything as it happened and hope that his nation's own incredulity would somehow soften the facts into a more credible story, but that would not save Zuko from being the centre of attention the following months.
Even if Iroh somehow managed to keep the bending out of it, Zuko would still need to explain his actions to the court, it was one thing to defend your ship when attacked and your honour when challenged, to risk his life needlessly and act at his own discretion was another thing. Iroh did not want to think what would happen if Ozai found out that a water tribe peasant, the same water tribe peasant that had caused the death of one of his most loyal supporters, was responsible for almost getting a prince of the Fire Nation killed. Thus Iroh needed to cover two fronts, Zuko and Katara, they needed to act very carefully. Now Zuko would be watched not only by the Fire Nation but by Iroh's secret friends.
Iroh sighted as he saw Katara wipe her tears with her blouse. There was also the matter that this little girl was in a very precarious position, because unlike Zuko she had no name, no allies, no money and no bending to defend herself. Whatever happened Iroh needed to make sure that the girl did not get involved in the trial, for her own safety she needed to temporary stay clear of Zuko, and Iroh did not like that one bit.
For the first time in his life Zuko had someone he could call a friend, someone who would cry for him, worry about him, and most importantly persuade him to help the weak. Again Iroh thought of his dream, if his suspicions were true and the spirits had something to do with Zuko's sudden strength as they had with his own dream, Katara was going to become a very important player and support in Zuko's future, he needed to protect her and help her become strong even if that meant separating her from Zuko for the time being. He himself knew that it was all risky, but he could not let his love for his nephew blind him into staying, Iroh knew that right now there was little he could help him with and his presence would only attract unwanted eyes on Zuko, plus it could hinder Zuko's own chances and reputation if it people suspected that he had received help of any kind in getting to the military tests in Pohuai. Iroh would have to trust in his nephew's own strength and prudence.
He had made up his mind, after he talked with Zuko in the morning and convinced him to keep Katara out of his testimony he'd take Katara with him to a secure place and train her, and ask her what her own objectives were, then after Zuko was done with his tests, Iroh would begin with his plans to return him home safe and sound. But Iroh would at least give his nephew the coffer he had brought from the Fire Nation, he had the odd and uncomfortable feeling that the young prince would need it.
After he offered Katara a cup of warm tea and reassured her that everything would be fine he finally spoke.
"Miss Katara, listen, I'll have to ask yo to trust me now, we'll need to leave Zuko alone for a while, in the mean time I'll be teaching you waterbending."
Zuko could not figure if it was he or the medics that were most dumbfounded by the whole evaluations and his body's subsequent developments. Only three days had passed since the whole incident with the volcano and it had only taken a single night of rest for him to recover completely. He had gotten back his voice and the small bruises had disappeared from his body. His red stained eyes were now pure white and brown, like those of a newborn.
Thus the medics had allowed him to speak alone with his uncle, Zuko had been thrilled at the prospect of getting up to date with the events of the capital but his uncle had told him that he had no time to stay and chat with him, apparently there were some business that required his attention and since he could not legally help him in going to Pohuai for his tests, he was forced to leave. Somehow their reunion had been rather dry, but the old man had found the way to make his sympathies known as well as his happiness in seeing him unhurt, before the old man left, he had given him a small coffer with personal documents to which Zuko had paid little mind. His uncle had also mentioned that Katara was suffering from severe stress because of the incident and he was taking her away to allow her some rest to clear her head, and asked him not to mention her involvement when officials came to ask his version of events.
Zuko was confused about it but he had not questioned any further. Of what events was his uncle talking about? He only learned it after mayor Morishita and an envoy from Pohuai came with some magistrates to ask him what he remembered. As his uncle requested, Zuko told them that Katara was a girl he had met on the road and escorted her to Makapu, once there he had been disturbed by Madame Wu's antics and the carelessness of the villagers who no longer supervised the volcano's activity. Zuko explained that out of curiosity and a mere desire to stretch his legs he had decided to take a look at the volcano himself and the girl had offered to accompany him. There he had fallen into a hidden crevice, after seeing that the volcano was going to erupt, he had ordered the girl to flee to safety and order an evacuation, afterwards he had fainted.
Zuko got the strange feeling that he was a suspect of some crime when everyone began to ask him for details of what happened after his alleged fainting. The envoy from Pohuai explained that so far his story matched that of the witness's. He had been seen entering the village with the girl and visiting Madame Wu's establishment. Afterwards he was seen in the market and many remembered his criticism of the village's management. The lady from the inn confirmed that on the morning of the eruption he had left with the girl and walked towards Mt. Makapu. And colonel Mak and his men confirmed that the girl had indeed come to them, asking for help and had shown them a golden ring with the Royal insignia and the prince's passport. General Iroh had personally confirmed the story with the girl and had escorted her to her family when he left the city, since there were no anomalies and her story matched the events described by several other reliable witnesses, there was no need to question the girl any further.
But Zuko's story was incomplete, or so the envoy thought. After three hours of retelling the story several times over and being asked to identify people he may have seen that day, the time at which he might have been somewhere, Zuko began to lose his temper. A medic that had come to check on him seemed to notice this and informed the questioners that it was perfectly possible and normal for people to suffer amnesia after traumatic events, even more so, the fact that he had in all likelihood inhaled volcanic gasses and ash would not only increase the possibilities of memory loss but it would in all probability made a person hallucinate and lose the sense of time and place, even consciousness to a degree, like a drunken man.
This seemed to partially convince mayor Morishita and the other magistrates, but the envoy was not done, he went through it once again, and when Zuko repeated that he remembered nothing after seeing the girl leave to look for help, it was the envoy who lost his temper.
"Then, prince Zuko, do you say that you do not remember at any moment being engulfed by lava, being dragged downwards to the trench built in front the village and then swimming out of the lava, and firebend the volcano and its lava into submission?" Asked the envoy exasperated.
Zuko would have laughed at the ridiculousness of the very notion had it not been for the seriousness in the envoy's voice and eyes. That man sincerely believed that there was some truth to it.
"No, I do not remember at any time doing any of these things you suggest I did. I also don't remember flying nor shitting gold and rubies in case you were wondering." The sarcasm spilled like vermin from his voice, a few chuckles could be heard from among the magistrates, but the envoy did not find any amusement in the witty retort.
"Prince Zuko, we have signed testimonies from three hundredth and twenty four civilians from various backgrounds backed by the testimonies of fifty three soldiers all of which, including colonel Mak, Lt. Shei and even general Iroh, claim that you stopped that volcano after you swam out of hot lava. Not to mention the fact that anyone that sees what's left of the village and measures the quantity of solidified lava on its borders can see that it's obvious that the village should be completely covered by some fifty metres of rock, but it's isn't. Something stopped that lava, prince Zuko and if you have the ability to do such a thing it is imperative that high command is properly informed."
Once again Zuko answered negatively, putting an end to the questioning. After the committee had left Zuko got his meal and with it the realisation that since he had woken up he had eaten too much and very fast. Only that day it was the third time he ate and midday had not yet arrived. At first Zuko thought it was his imagination, a side effect of the fainting, but now after he had been left alone he realised that his senses had become sharp, very sharp. Just like during the day the sound of the wind moving the leaves, steps and breathing are almost unnoticeable and suddenly become clear and potent during the night, Zuko could now hear the doctor's murmurs from outside the room as clearly as if the man stood at his side. And it was this way that he found that the medics and nurses, even the servants talked about the unusual quantity of food he'd ingested that day, and it struck even more odd when Zuko felt the hunger call from his stomach, he wanted even more still.
For a time he tried to reflect on what the envoy had told him, but the idea sounded more ridiculous the more he contemplated on it, and whenever he tried to remember he got nothing but a black and red blur. His stomach growled, he felt a sensation that sometimes people feel on rare moments of life, he felt hungry but at the same time he didn't crave for food, he felt thirsty but his throat was dry and fresh, he'd had his good share of water. Zuko didn't know it, but that contradicting sensation was normally felt by people with a nauseating, tired awareness, when the mind was sloppy and lazy, Zuko on the other hand felt alive, and hyperactive, like a boy who had too much sweets, and his stomach growled one more time.
Out of pure instinctive reaction he sniffed at the air, looking for nourishment. He could still sense clearly the juicy smell of the streak he'd just eaten, the saltiness of the rice and the acute and refreshing flavour of the ginseng tea was impregnated on the odour emanating from the now empty cup, Zuko could have sworn he was drinking it. A few metres away were some flowers, tulips, he identified with the keenness of a learned botanic, two days had passed since they were cut, his nose could still smell the faint traces of water running from inside the petals, slowly drying away.
Then a new and captivating aroma caught his attention, the same way that an otter-shark is drawn to the smell of blood on the water, Zuko perceived something in the air, and he searched for it hungrily, thirsty, with an unquenchable desire and desperation and excitement.
Two servant girls wear cleaning the floor on the hall outside his room, the door was closed but Zuko could still hear their movements perfectly, and smell their bodies as they moved. Through the tiny keyhole on the door Zuko formed an accurate mental image of what they were doing. One was mopping the floor standing at the left, the other was kneeling and scratching away the dried mud footprints that the men had left when they came. They were talking about him, about the rumours of what he had done and about his scar, the girl with the mop insisted that it had been caused by the volcano, while the kneeling girl argued that it could not have healed so quickly and said that she had heard that the prince had once been in a training accident. Normally this type of conversation would have pissed off Zuko right away, and Zuko himself was surprised when he quickly dismissed the subject and concentrated on the girls with a yearning unlike anything he'd ever felt before.
Zuko quickly lost interest in the girl with the mop, he smelled her sweat and her breath as she talked, it was obvious that she was pissed and tired. But the kneeling girl was different, her sweat came with an enticing salty aroma that called for him, but there was something more basic, more primal and animalistic about her, inviting.
Zuko took a deep breath and slowly recreated in his head the girl as she scratched, the rhythm of her breathing along the occasional panting. The way her chest moved as she cleaned, Zuko could even smell her sweat as it fell on drops, some mixing with the soapy water, travelling down through her clothes. But Zuko smelled something else still, calling him, coaxing him, it was everywhere near her, in her breath, in her sweat and her hair and her skin.
The moment Zuko realised she was in bloom he felt himself aroused... and it scared him. He had yet to know a woman's warmth, and although he had taken his courses of biology and anatomy and he understood how the human body worked, he was very nervous now that the felt it, the force of nature calling to him, telling him that this girl was ripe.
Zuko had barely begun to feel his body change and react differently towards girls when he was exiled, forcing him to a life of almost complete seclusion, and distancing himself from the kinder sex. His mind had been so focused on his search that he had consciously repressed the natural curiosity and attraction that boys from his age felt. He had chosen to ignore the actions of his men when he gave them a free day in a port, though he clearly knew that they went in desperate search of female company. Zuko had often heard them brag to each other once they were at sea, clinging into that sweet memory until the chance appeared to have more fun. It was not unusual for them to sing songs about women in the music night that his uncle organised once a week, some songs were disturbingly graphic and descriptive, but Zuko had ignored them too.
Now a woman was there, and her body was calling to him, Zuko had to force himself not to get up the bed, having forgotten almost everything he knew about proper decorum and decent behaviour- He had to think of his honour just to keep himself sane, but his hand still went straight into his pants.
Lord Mek Kang looked at the girl in front of him without any pity.
"Do it." He commanded, and he actually smiled when her sobs and her trembling hands froze at the order.
Mek knew almost all about her, he knew that she was born in the south, in a small village on the coast between the main land and the Hau island, not very far from his own home. Mek knew she was sweet and kind and pretty, he knew the taste of her lips and she shape of her breasts, he knew the colour of her private hair and her favourite food. He knew the names of her family and friends. He knew she needed him. But there was one thing that he didn't know. Lord Mek Kang didn't know if she had enough strength to rise from the dark and cruel fate that she had brought to herself, if she had it in her to do what needed to be done, if she would be useful to him, in short he didn't know if she was going to die by his hands.
"Do it." He said again.
"I... can't..." She stuttered between sobs. Mek leaned close to her, from behind her he embraced her, and slowly took her hands in his and guided them to the knife that laid at her feet.
"He hurt you." Mek whispered in her ear. "He deceived you, he betrayed you... He starved you... He hit you, he raped you, he sold you... And your friends, he killed Peizi." Mek could feel her fear, she had been broken, humiliated, tortured... She had been enslaved. Mek needed her to find the strength to free herself, and that strength was only to be found in her hate, her anger and her thirst for revenge but it was buried deep beneath her heart, under a thick layer of fear.
"Look at him!" Mek grabbed her chin and forced her to look at the man tied to a chair in front of them. They were in an underground lair, almost entirely dark except for the light of two torches in the wall behind the man, but those torches clearly showed the hanging bodies of seven men at the sides of the chair. The girl's chin trembled when she saw the scene again, Mek sighted. It was to be more complicated than expected, but if he succeeded it would have all been worth it.
The girl's name was Nuo. She was the daughter of a fisherman and for the first fourteen years of her life she had lived in happy tranquillity, then she had met the scumbag in the chair. He had seduced her, he had promised her love, marriage and a happy life; he convinced her to elope with him… and then her nightmare had begun. The bastard had kidnapped her and forced her into prostitution; for the last six years he had filled his pockets with the suffering from her mind and body; her life would have remained in shatters had she not been stirred by the sight of her younger sister.
By chance Nuo had caught sight of her younger sister and immediately recognised her while standing in one of her usual corner waiting for clients. Her shame kept her from reaching out to her, lest it be discovered that she had fallen on such a dishonourable life, but Nuo had nonetheless followed her in hopes that she might gain courage to tell her that she was alive. Then she saw her captor take her dear sister on a date, exactly like he had done to her six years ago. A fire that she had thought dead rekindled in her heart, she needed to protect her sister.
Nuo had heard rumours of an organisation of fallen women like herself, they owned and managed their own brothels, protected their girls from harm and abusive costumers, and provided a nice roof, food and company, and gave some sense of dignity and respite to their honourless lives. She didn't know if it was true or false, but it was her only hope, the local militia was bribed by her pimp so going to them would be of no use. Risking a serious beating for abandoning her corner, Nuo dared to ask around other brothels to see if any knew anything.
Mek barely repressed a cackle when he remembered Nuo's arrant disbelief when he turned up at her corner to ask for her services. He wore silken robes of vivid red with white embroiderings of silver thread. Around his neck shone a necklace of pure gold, with rubies and sapphires encrusted in it. It was surprising alone that a man of such standing dared to come to this rundown village, alone and unguarded, wearing such a conspicuous attire. But even all his jewels and rich garments paled when one contemplated his face. Men was not a man of modesty, but even if he had been, he would have been hard pressed to deny that he was undoubtedly the most handsome man in the Fire Nation. The young Lord felt a great amount of pride in knowing he could make a streetwalker blush with his mere presence.
Just when she went on to her knees to begin her work he stopped her. "Come with me he" he said, she had reluctantly followed him to this place, the rest of course was history.
Despite what Lord Kang would have Nuo believe if she survived this encounter, he had long planned to get rid of the ruffians that kept her and her companions enslaved and in forced prostitution; not because what they were doing was immoral and illegal, not because they were bribing public officers, not even because they had caused more than a few street quarrels over disputed territory. If he had wanted to do it because of any of those reasons, he had more than enough power and influence to put that trash behind the bars, even if they were technically outside his own province and jurisdiction.
But these scoundrels had actually attacked one of the brothels he secretly controlled with a front man. Or woman. He thought.
To make it worse, he had planned to make an investment that required a base of operations in this village, since the scoundrels were a hindrance to his plans, their fates were sealed. The bodies hanging the back of his lair were belonged to the ringleaders of this small operation and two of the bribed officers who turned a blind eye to their crimes. With their death, Lord Kang not only solved the mentioned inconveniences, but he actually gained the opportunity to attract the clientele these dead men left behind, he had to remember to transfer some of the many call girls who worked for him in other provinces to this establishment. And now thanks to this unexpected meeting, he could gain another little bird to whisper in his ears, if only that bird still had enough resolve to fly.
Lord Kang had learned long ago that information was the closest thing to power in the world, and in order to protect and nurture his own, he had begun to train and disseminate these spies at the tender age of ten. Obviously not all of them were whores, and very few actually made any work that could be considered dangerous, the trick to successfully extract information without arousing suspicions or inviting danger, was to do so with finesse, using many sources and hearing with different ears.
Some of his most reliable birds were not the lovers or paramours of great lords, but rather the servants, the cooks, the shoemakers, the fishermen, even the smallfolk of a guard, a captain, a bookkeeper, or simple errand boy. Men knew the value of even the tiniest bit of information, he understood that even rumours had their worth. That was the reason he often employed whores to be his ears and eyes, a man as sly and shrewd as I'm knew that often men talked more freely with a base woman than with their wives and counsellors, thus it always paid to have an insight, however small, to their inner thoughts, their private worries, their personal opinions and character, even those spied did not necessarily reveal sensitive information.
Mek watched as Nuo battled within herself, if she could overcome her own demons, she'd have the strength to be useful to him. He'd offer her the chance to leave behind this horrible part of her life; he could make her a servant in one of his targets houses, a seamstress in the palace of one his rivals, he could even get her a nice farmer husband on a far away province. If she did not have it in herself to come to terms with what she was and what she had done, he'd offer her work in one if the brothels he controlled, as long as she could be of some use to him, he'd help her, but he needed to see that she could help herself.
Time for a little push… Mek pulled out a necklace that he was sure she'd recognize. "I found this in his clothes." He weaved the tricked in Nuo's face while pointing at the half dead bastard in the chair. Nuo's eyes became kindled with anger, consuming whatever fear and doubt that was left. It was her sister's necklace.
"You bastard!" She screamed, laughing herself at her enemy. Stabbing him madly, enveloped in a mad daze of wrath; howling like a rabid wolf-bat. She kept burying the knife in the man's chest over and over, long after he was dead, until she ran out of adrenaline and collapsed sobbing in the floor, entirely covered in gore.
Mek no longer smiled amusedly, he simply observed in silent respect. Whatever may be said of him, he'd never allow anyone to claim that he did not pay proper respect for those who earned it, and this girl had just defeated the greatest obstacles life could have cursed her with: fear and resignation. She had stood up and protected what was precious to her, she had fought and used whatever means she had at hand, she was no longer a foolish seduced girl, nor was she a cowed and downcast slave-whore. She was a woman, a free and strong woman, and it was his honour to help her rise again.
"You've just committed murder." He said, and surely enough, she returned from her daze and looked at him, the cruel determination had left her and only guilt and fear remained again. But Mek would help her get rid go those in due time, after all, he saw no regret in her eyes.
"I… I didn't…. I…" She mumbled between sobs.
Mek gently lowered herself to her, and tenderly cleaned her bloodied face with a handkerchief. "I know they deserved it." He said reassuringly. "I killed them too." And he gestured towards the hanging bodies. He patiently waited as Nuo blew her nose with his gold embroidered silk handkerchief and cleared her never ending tears. After she calmed down, he rose and offered her a helping hand. She looked at his eyes and took it.
She trusts me.
Nuo finally recognized the high quality and expensiveness of the handkerchief she had just stained with tears and blood. She gasped as she tried to apologise.
"I'm so sorry, I'll pay you back I'll…"
Make delicately placed a finger in her lips, stopping her rant.
"Pay no mind, I've just found a treasure worth ten thousand of those". Spoke the young lord as he looked her directly in the eyes.
"What?" She asked confused.
Mak answered by simply giving her a chaste peck on the lips. It lasted less than two seconds, but Mek Kang knew that with an innocent peck he had just seduced a woman that had worked doing the most vile and perverted of things with strangers. He was confident that no one had ever seen her so defenceless or so vulnerable, and he knew that none of the men who had had her was even half as handsome as he was.
"You." He whispered.
"Come with me and I'll help you protect your sister." He said as he began to walk away, Mek heard her rapid footsteps follow him outside his lair into the night, he smiled for he knew that she'd follow him to the underworld if he asked her.
"Please if you would be so kind to stretch your arms my prince." Spoke the doctor as he took a look at Zuko's back.
"Do you feel any sort of pain or uncomfortableness?" He asked, and prince Zuko simply shook his head. Even if he had felt a minor sensation of discomfort he would have kept it to himself, he had been bedridden for four days and finally today the doctors had agreed that it was time to let him get some exercise, though first they had to examine him one more time.
"If his majesty would be so kind as to take a deep breath." Asked the doctor and Zuko immediately complied, he almost cringed when the doctor placed his ear against his chest and began to count.
"Now exhale slowly." Zuko was more than happy to do so.
"It seems you are in perfect health. Your heartbeat is normal, your lungs function properly, the fever has disappeared and you have been eating very healthily." The medic explained, but Zuko did not buy it, at least not the last part, it was as clear to him as anyone that he had been stuffing himself like a pig since he woke up, though he didn't necessarily ask for anything extravagant, he did ask for a second and third helping of whatever he was offered. For the time being he thought that he had just been recovering lost energy and resting for the first time in three years, the long amount of time he slept, from ten to twelve hours a day seemed to confirm his self diagnosis, so he let it pass, even if the curious eyes of the servants that attended him and the hushed whispers from the guards and nurses indicated that they had noticed his appetite.
At any rate Zuko was thrilled at the prospect of finally getting to move around, he patiently awaited as the doctor spoke with his colleague and discussed the pertinence of letting prince Zuko into the training ground to test his body further. Zuko did not miss the fact the both mayor Morishita and the envoy from Pohuai were kept informed about his progress and would likely be there if he was granted permission to train.
"Your majesty we have concluded that you are in perfect condition to go to the training facilities, your body is in top physical condition as far as we can see." The doctor explained, Zuko lost no time in rushing out of the room into the hall, only to stop midway to ask a servant were the training grounds were.
As expected from the mayor of the richest and most developed city in the colonies and perhaps even in the entire Fire Nation, the house was vast and splendid, only a few stories short of being an actual palace, it was a testament both to the thriving economy of Yu Dao and the success of its mayor as a merchant and politician. Mayor Morishita had built it out of his own pocket and planned to leave it to whomever succeeded him in his post as mayor, as was Fire Nation tradition. Whomever occupied an official put was expected to do much of the work with his own money, using the state treasury only for matters that were beyond his means, and only with the approval of his peers and from the court in the main islands.
This was rarely necessary, since in Fire Nation political ideology it was expected that successful citizens donated money, manpower and resources to public benefit, not to mention the fact that to be appointed to any and all official magistracies a man needed to fulfil his post with his own money and that of his allies. A man who successfully administered his private goods was always welcome to pursue a political career, not because of any naive and childish idea of common benefit, but because it brought prestige and honour, and power, the three things that enticed the most in Fire Nation ideology. Thus once elected a man spent his money on hospitals, education, and general infrastructure not because of any sense of community or empathy, but because it was a sing of power and wealth, and intelligence, it showed that a person was economically successful and rich enough to pay other's expenses, and smart enough to know that by investing money on these things instead of luxury and debauchery he contributed to the growth and thrive of the very land from which he sowed his fruits. Or as was the other example, if a man wished to remain rich, he needed the economy to prosper, low rates of unemployment, an educated population that would less likely need to steal and hinder its neighbour; ultimately it was self benefit what was sought, as was typical of the Fire Nation.
Mayor Morishita was a perfect example of what was considered a successful man and politician, and he even had enough remaining wealth to build training facilities worthy of the best army in his own house, normally everyone was invited to use them, public schools brought here the children for bodily exercise, as did orphanages, private instructors even hospitals brought patients here for physical therapy, common people that wished to merely attain fitness we also welcomed. This gave mayor Morishita even more prestige.
Zuko readily tested the pool and bars and weights under the watchful eyes of his medics, the envoy and the guests of the mayor, including the mayor's family. Zuko sometimes cast a few glances to his unexpected audience, it was obvious that they all had come to see him, to see if he was capable of performing miracles, or simply because most of them had never seen a member of the royal family. Zuko could not help but get a bit nervous.
He shyly tried to focus on his exercise and the medics' instructions, he guessed that he might have been able to ignore an audience of males, but the female presence was twice that of men. Two of the three rows of seats that stood at the end of the mayor's gym were filled with girls of varying age, the daughters, sisters and wives of influential and rich men from the region that wished to make the acquaintance of an important visitor like a prince. The laughs, giggles, murmurs and sights made Zuko all too aware of his shirtless status, he even saw a girl blush when he accidentally met her eyes as he was doing pull-ups in the bars.
Zuko vaguely remembered similar experiences back in the palace, when noble girls sometimes were invited and took the opportunity to watch him train in the palace gardens, but not at this scale and certainly not at his age, back then he had been a boy, a very innocent and naive boy that took little to no interest in the kinder sex, now we has painfully certain of what thoughts roamed in those girls' heads when they saw him tighten his muscles as he lifted some weights, he had those very same thoughts as his hidden erection proved, but it was more than that, he could feel it, smell it.
Zuko remembered having read in one of his biology classes that most species of animals had very clear mating instincts, the female would segregate some sort of odour that indicated that she was available, the male counter part would in turn segregate other smell and perform some sort of ritual to demonstrate his interest. Zuko would have though that he fitted right now into that analogy, except that it was no analogy, he could clearly smell the enticing call from some of his female audience, his nose was bombarded with all those beautiful, mysterious and lascivious smells.
As he stretched in preparation for a run Zuko caught the eye of two of the treasurer's daughters, the youngest one was barely ten, and though could sense her curiosity and excitement, he did not get from her a smell that his brain identified with that of a bloomed woman, his instincts over her were those of a protective elder. It was very different with the elder sister, if her blushing cheeks were not enough proof her interest, he felt in his back her penetrating look, lasciviously engraving his every movement in her memory, and her sweaty smell was something that Zuko would have described as an aphrodisiac perfume.
Zuko found himself slowly enjoying the attention, each second more than the last, he did not even realise that he had gradually stopped doing exercise for exercise's sake and had begun responding to nature's call. He paused at times to allow for a better view, he purposefully exhibited his muscles and made more movements than necessary.
"Prince Zuko if you would be so kind as to proceed with firebending." Suggested one of his medics, oblivious to the hormone war and subtle flirting that was taking place between Zuko and his audience. Zuko simply nodded, he was finally full of enthusiasm, exited, he forgot for a moment that he was training, he was now performing. Zuko made just a couple of the traditional firebending movements before he stopped short.
"I'm bored." He said, plainly, softly almost elegantly, his doctors did not understand what he meant.
"I beg your pardon your majesty" A medic finally dared.
"Firebending's no fun without a sparring partner." The prince explained. The doctors looked at each other nervously, they had not yet considered the possibility of a sparring match, they had simply wished to assert the prince's overall physical state.
"Is there a problem?" Asked Zuko as he walked past them, his confidence could be felt across the place, it had a very princely touch to it, the kind of impression one gets when talking to someone that has ruled all his life and was used to being obeyed. The medics quickly shook their heads and bowed in acceptance.
"Is there any volunteer?" Zuko asked and looked at the seats, he knew for a fact that at least a dozen of the men watching him were firebenders, and at least three were war veterans. For some reason Zuko felt doubt in most of these men, nervousness, it made him smile.
"If my prince would allow me the honour..." Spoke finally one of the few soldiers present, the man was in well into his forties, but remained fit, he had broad shoulders and strong arms, enough to intimidate anyone without even displaying his stature, with almost two metres tall, the soldier was at least a head taller than Zuko.
"The honour is mine soldier." Zuko bowed in respect and after the traditional handshake, they both took their stand, twenty metres from each other right in the middle of a hastily made ring. They took a look at the mayor, who's honour was to preside over duels and all sorts of athletic events, with a nod mayor Morishita announced.
"Begin!"
Zuko felt a sudden change in the environment, as if time had stopped, he no longer heard the cheering audience, nor the clapping children, not even the wind. He was entirely focused on his opponent, Zuko saw as the soldier threw a fire blast at him, but to the prince, it all seemed agonisingly slow as if the soldier were moving under water, Zuko could find no other way to describe the slow motion in which he saw his opponent.
Danger! His gut almost spoke to him as the blast left the soldier's was dumbfounded to see that his hand was already extended in front of him, his mind was somehow fast enough to perceive how his body moved instinctively, yet slow enough not to control those movements. The soldier's flame crashed and dissolved against Zuko's palm.
The prince did not hear some of the soldier's gasp in admiration, it required a lot of skill and concentration to meet a fireblast head on. Zuko himself gasped at what he did next, his opponent had kicked another blast, this time twice as big, enough to make it dangerously reckless to try and stop it. Zuko knew he had to dodge, any idiot with half a brain knew that against big fire blasts the only two options were to send a blast as big or a firewall to stop it, or to dodge, and dodging was by far the safest choice, Zuko did neither.
Once again Zuko saw as his arm extended and met the blast, but this time he did not oppose the flame, instead he guided it, as soon as contact was made Zuko's legs turned three hundred and sixty degrees, a perfect circle while his hand took the blast along for a ride and the released it in the same direction that it came. The soldier barely had the time to jump out of the way, in the mid jump the soldier saw another small blast come at him, he was in midair and could not move away, he desperately fired with both his fists, just in time to stop Zuko's attack from hitting him, but not enough to avoid the explosion of the collision.
Zuko was the first to worryingly run at the man as he was thrown into the floor like a sack of potatoes. The audience breathed in relief when the soldier stood up with only the hit and a few burned hairs as damage. The soldier bowed in acknowledgement of his defeat, another volunteer stepped up and was defeated just as easily, and so did the next opponent, and the next, and the next one after him. Zuko never realised that he had beaten five firebenders in less than ten minutes, time was so slow to him once the combat started that he thought half an hour had passed. The public had fallen mute in awe, even an exceptionally skilled firebender would take his time in dealing with that many opponents, if not for the care he had to take in not getting himself burned he had to take into account his breathing rhythm, firebending was ninety percent breathing, a tired firebender was a defeated firebender, it was essential to take rests and clear his mind, otherwise he'd run out of power or risked losing control and burn himself.
"I'll fight him!" A voice cake from the crowd. It was the mayor's daughter, Zuko's heart skipped a beat when he recognised her, it was the girl from the night of his awakening, she wore the same armour of green and red. The mayor and his wife hurriedly tried to stop her with all sort of excuses, the prince is tired they said, an earthbender was not fit to train with a firebender, untraditional, they argued, but it was no use, she wanted to fight, all of them turned to him, it was his call.
Zuko had to regain his composure and ignore the throbbing erection in his pants before he looked at the girl in the eyes. She was beautiful, but she was also unladylike, her arms, legs and abdomen were throbbing with muscles, she didn't swing her hips as she walked, nor did she smile clumsily, her face was serious and strong, she looked at him almost disdainfully, challenging him.
"Is my prince nervous about fighting a little girl?" Asked the mayor's daughter, causing a few undignified gasps from the audience and a reprimand from her parents. Zuko could have sworn he saw disappointment in her eyes at his lack of response, like he had failed her, perhaps that was the reason Zuko did what he did next.
"I see no little girl, just a warrior taunting me, let's see if you fight as though as you talk..." Zuko answered the challenge.
"Your majesty!" Protested the mayor and Zuko sent him a very menacing glare, enough to quiet him on the spot. Zuko didn't see the excitement and relief in Kori's face.
The mayor reluctantly gave the signal to start, it was obvious that he was not used at being bossed around, but ultimately he was a pure breed Fire Nation citizen, obedience to one's superiors had been branded into his character.
Zuko's erection immediately dried up, he felt threatened once again, his gut told him that this opponent was dangerous. The first rock that came at him proved that. For the first time that day prince Zuko was forced to dodge, the rock crashed at his back and tore a hole in what had previously been a wall, some twenty metres away, this girl was serious about it. Zuko smiled.
Two or three minutes went by with a stalemate, Zuko dodging the rocks that came at him and Kori making walls to cover the blasts and flames. The girl was studying him, attacking only when she felt safe, defending the rest of the time, Zuko knew that she would give the initiative to him, and when he did, he'd have the floor open up under him, but he found he was wrong the second he finished his thought.
Kori stamped the floor hard with her foot and sent a line of rock pikes against the prince, Zuko was forced to jump into the air to avoid being impaled or crushed.
Adrenaline rushed to his brain as Zuko thought for a moment that she was going to try and hit him with a rock at that moment, he did not understand why but he prepared his fist for a blast as he saw Kori step hard on the floor and waited for the rock to come, but it didn't, instead of sending a rock at him, Kori had propelled herself from the earth at him, with one of her legs bent, ready for a kick. Zuko's eyes widened at the realisation that he had no choice but to meet her head on in midair or receive a very dangerously looking leg up his gut.
Against all his education and ideals of gentlemanly behaviour he blocked her kick with his hand and punched her hard across the face. They both hit the floor with a loud smack. Zuko's mind was desperately trying to reason what had just happened, he had hit a lady right in the face, in front of a very big crowd, he tried to tell himself that he should try and see if she was unhurt, but a sensation of danger coupled with his most basic and animalistic survival instincts told him it was not over.
Zuko barely managed to get out of the way of a rock that emerged under him, had he not done so, he would have found himself with his whole ribs pulverised. He knew this was getting dangerous, he had to stop it, reason and decor stated that he should call it quits, surrender his manly pride in order to protect the girl's safety, he had to behave gentlemanly and let the girl win... but he didn't. He kept fighting.
It was too dangerous to allow his opponent to gain distance, she could keep throwing rocks at him for hours, Zuko's fire was at a disadvantage. Before she could get up Zuko managed to land another hit in her face again and a strong kick to her exposed belly, judging by the sound that escaped her lips it was obvious that he had forced all air out of her, had she been a firebender she would have had no choice but to surrender, but she wasn't a firebender and she kept fighting. She raised her right hand and tried to hit the ground, it was a desperate attack, she wanted to earthbend the floor below them into a crack to separate them, even if it meant both would get hit by the fractured earth.
Zuko somehow knew what she was planning and managed to intercept her fist with his left hand and then hit her again in the ribs with his right, the pain in her gave Zuko the opportunity to twist her right hand behind her back while he grabbed her by the neck with his own left arm, she was trapped in a strangle hold, with her face against the floor.
This was it, Kori was defeated in all aspects but the formal, she needed to accept her defeat, but she refused. With her free hand she managed to bury her elbow into Zuko's ribs hard, she did so again, and again and again, until the prince finally screamed in pain, when he did she hit his nose with the back of her head, hoping that he would let her go, but Kori underestimated the prince's strength and resolve, instead he twisted he arm deeper into her back, making her scream in pain. His grip tightened and he kept twisting.
"I yield!" She finally said.
Immediately Zuko freed her from his strangle hold and helped her on her feet. The medics hurried to their side to tend their wounds, Korri's parents were evidently angry with him, but they were far too worried about their daughter to try and scold him for fighting with a girl for real.
Zuko's face was completely messed up, blood dripped from his nose and mouth and his ribs hurt like hell, he had never gotten so beat up in his entire life, and he had never met such fierce resistance and decisiveness from an opponent that had no hope of victory.
"What a great warrior." Zuko said panting to no one in particular, as he tried to catch his breath, everyone heard him and no one lost time in whispering his own opinion and his own version of the story. With those words he won the respect, loyalty and eternal gratefulness of Kori Morishita, and the animosity of her parents, along with a terrible reputation among the high class ladies of the city.
Katara remained speechless as general Iroh served her more the famous pig-chicken soup. Katara had never tasted anything so delicious in her life, she couldn't believe that such a variety of spices existed, nor that a soup that looked relatively easy to prepare could acquire such contrasting textures and combine so many different flavours. Even the rice came in various flavours and colours, they had water mixed with juice and leaves and sugar that was incredibly sweet to the taste and was drunk cold, such a thing would have been unthinkable in her tribe… in fact pretty much everything she had tasted was impossible to make with the Water Tribe's limited resources and climate. Katara had to recognize that the Fire Nation was indeed blessed to have so many natural advantages and such variety of food that was incredibly easy to acquire in comparison to the Water Tribes.
They had arrived two days ago at a house in the outskirts of Chenliu, a small colonial village located right in front of the bifurcation where the Daquin river turned into the rivers Chen and Liu; in the north-western Taku province. It was a magnificent place, bigger than most cities in the area, but surrounded by hills on all sides and vasts forest and swamps. Because of its relative isolation the central government had delayed its appointment as a city, but it was nonetheless a very important cultural centre, a place founded by Fire Lord Sozin with the sole purpose of serving as an adaptation centre for his new subjects and an indoctrination point where the traditional Fire Nation's holidays and festivities were to be assimilated to the Earth Kingdom's. Later historians would consider this village as the biggest syncretism experiment ever to be purposely created and guided by a government.
Katara had seen little of the village as of yet, having spent most of the time inside her new house with the general, helping him clean and set up… and worrying for prince Zuko.
What little she had seen of the village had been in many of their quick escapades to buy food and clothing. The general had been generous enough to get her blue coloured cloth and thread, to make more of the tunics she used to wear, having perceived her reluctance to dress herself in the traditional Fire Nation red or white.
She honestly didn't understand how or why she had not yet been punished for putting the prince in danger, and she was frankly to afraid to ask, but she still asked the general for news of his nephew whenever a messenger boy came with letters to him. The old man kept reassuring her that the prince was perfectly fine and that he'd meet up with them as soon as he finished his tests. Most of this was confirmed by the general gossip she heard whenever she and the general went to town, it seemed that there was little else to talk about, even the officials and guards and firebending teachers would find it convenient to elaborate on the many prodigies attributed to the prince. Almost everyone agreed that there were previous examples of firebenders powerful enough to battle a volcano, almost all the Avatars for instance, and that judging by the unanimity of the many testimonies there had to be some truth to the accounts, but almost everyone seemed reluctant to fully believe prince Zuko to be such a powerful bender.
Most of her time was spent training with the general, the old man had a suspiciously precise knowledge of waterbending. When she summoned enough courage to ask him about it, he answered that he had studied waterbending for years, such a thing surprised Katara, she had always thought that only waterbenders studied waterbending, the same way only earthbenders studied earthbending and so on.
Iroh seemed extremely pleased with what she had managed to learn from Zuko. In the very firsts sessions he had managed to clarify things to her that Zuko never could. An although the general could not actually bend the water to show her how something was done, he could imitate the movements so precisely that Katara almost expected water to obey his very command. He was also incredibly patient and understanding, and always led by example.
In the evenings the general gave her reading and writing lessons, it embarrassed Katara to no end that she could not yet read the most simple of sentences without pausing incessantly, trying to remember the pronunciation and meaning of every third character. Still the general thought that she was progressing very fast; no small amount thanks to his motivation, she was sure; he had brought with him many books about the Water Tribes, most about songs, traditions and history, and of course waterbending. However the burning desire to access that knowledge did not exempt Katara from the shame and sadness that caused her the realization that she was actually learning more about her own culture and history from a Fire Nation general in a Fire Nation colony instead of her own tribe and family. The irony that it was precisely the Fire Nation who had done most harm to her tribe and culture did not escape her either, but she felt far to defenceless and vulnerable to point it out, even in front of someone as amiable and understanding as general Iroh.
And there was also the cooking lessons, somehow this Fire Nation general could turn the most banal conversation into a lesson, he always offered to let her watch as he prepared their morning food or dinner and he always welcomed her help with kind suggestions and very useful tips. Katara had never met a man with whom conversation flowed so easily and naturally, in that aspect he was the total opposite of his nephew.
As she finished her soup and readily asked for more Katara reflected on the many adventures she had lived since she left her tribe. She found it odd that she was more interested and amazed by what she had already learned and what she was sure she'd come to know than by the nostalgia she had feared she'd feel away from her family.
But when she went to sleep, all the day's excitement would burn out, and Katara would be forced to reflect on her mistakes and intentions, on her current situation and fear for her future, but now she had something else to fear for, she had an ominous feeling that she wouldn't see the prince again and that prospect scared even more than the idea of never returning to the South Pole, for some reason Katara only wanted to see Zuko again.
The banquet that had been secretly planed in his honour had turned unexpectedly grim because of his duel that morning, mayor Morishita's thanksgiving could not have sounded more forced, and it was obvious that everyone in the great hall was on their toes trying their hardest not to say anything that could offend anyone, thus all conversation had turned stiff and overly formal, in short Zuko was glad that it was all over.
Even when he was a boy and attended to the great banquets and festivities in the palace he had never enjoyed petty talking, Zuko was far to passionate and honest, and the regular guests were far too subtle and conniving, even outright deceitful for any meaningful conversation to happen. Zuko usually kept quiet in order to avoid any embarrassment and posterior teasing from his sister. That's why Zuko had no one he could in all honesty call a friend, and whatever acquaintances he had made in his youth had deserted him the moment he was vanished.
That experience had made Zuko distrustful of other people's intentions, and his three years in the sea had not helped him one bit with his social skills, it was true that he had learned to trust his crew as soldiers, but he had never trusted them as friends. It was humiliating for him to admit but he suspected that not even his crew had a good opinion of him as a person.
The prince was beginning to regret accepting Miss Morishita's challenge that morning, not only did that decision now seem as childish and reckless as it truly was, but his refusal to gentlemanly give up in order to prevent any harm to his opponent had gained him the animosity of the local high society and forced him to silently suffer his own regret and the cold stares in the banquet. As he walked passed the corridors towards his recently assigned chambers he heard the whispers of the servants and guards with incredible accuracy, and he wished he hadn't, for the mayor's daughter was well loved, the sight of her beaten face had undoubtedly shocked everyone in the mayor's house.
Zuko wished that the girl had at least attended to the banquet, he would have apologised immediately, but it seemed that the bruises in her face had deterred her from any public appearance, which only made the Zuko's regret bigger and his situation more awkward and embarrassing, for the girl was known to be strong and wilful, not a little girl to be intimidated by anyone and yet he had managed to hurt her enough so as to cause her not to attend a banquet in her own house, or so the servants thought.
Zuko entered his chambers with more regrets than he could count, he decided to search for the mayor's daughter first thing in the morning and apologise. He was about to take his shirt off when he finally smelled it. He had missed the aroma for a moment because of the turmoil in his mind but now he could clearly sense that there was someone else in his room, Zuko went on guard.
As if on cue a shape emerged from within the curtains near the balcony, on the far side of the room. Zuko gulped when he realised that it was none other than Kori Morishita herself. Prince Zuko had never expected her to come to try and even the score so quickly, if ever. He expected to need to prostrate before her and her family to ask for forgiveness, but here she was. Without lowering his guard Zuko started.
"Miss Morishita I..." He was interrupted when he felt that there was no anger in her, nor any hostile intention in her movements nor face. Just confusion, wonder and nervousness. She walked to him stepping between the door and himself. It was precisely the lack of hostility what made Zuko take a step back in confusion. From the window at the left Zuko saw that moonlight finally entered the dimly lit room, only that and a small candle on top of the desk on the study room on the far corner provided what little illumination there was. Zuko was too focused on his unexpected visitor to notice that he could see perfectly despite the almost complete darkness. And what kept him most focused was the fact that the girl in front of him was not wearing her usual armour or a fine dress, she was wearing a simple semitransparent robe, and nothing else.
"Thank you." She said after a pause.
"I..."
"You are the first person to take me seriously in a fight." She interrupted him. "You treated me like the warrior I am, you didn't care that I am a girl... No one had ever taken me seriously. Not even my father... You are the first one my prince."
Zuko was speechless, never, not even in his most wild, perverse, hormone infested dreams he had thought about a situation like this would occur to him. A half naked woman whom he had fought, defeated and seriously hit had come to his room in the middle of the night to thank him for the bruised face, the black eye and almost broken nose he had given her.
Zuko truly wanted nothing more than to go to his knees and apologise, but his gut told him that for some reason incomprehensible to him she would be very offended by this action, the last thing he wanted was another fight in his room, the scandal and shame would have destroyed whatever remained of his honour. But he was stung by the hunger and sudden lust, a thirst like he had never felt before in his life so surrounded his senses.
He could only describe what he felt as if the sense of thirst from the throat of a man stranded in the desert and the hunger of a shipwrecked survivor were transferred and perceived by and through his manhood. He felt the throbbing erection in his pants and his breathing accelerated in excitement. It took all of his willpower not to jump at the girl in front of him, Zuko closed his eyes and grabbed his own hand with the other and clenched as hard has he could hoping that the pain would return him to reality, hoping the images of him kissing her, tasting her, licking her would disappear.
His efforts came to naught when he felt the girl grab his face and kiss him. Zuko had never kissed a girl before, he had never even been curious about the whole subject when he studied anatomy in the Fire Nation, and he had been to focused in his search for the Avatar to heed the not-so-subtle advice from some of his crew members when they offered to take him to some brothel to have fun. Their lewd conversations, as well as their own accounts of successes with women were lost to the young prince. But this was not a conversation, or a twisted reckoning of some old and probably half-truth memory of some lewd adventure. This was a real woman, a very real and pretty and half naked woman kissing him.
With a gasp they finally separated, struggling for air, they looked at each other nervously, trying to ignore the shyness that came to those inexperienced in the art of love.
"I... What?" Zuko half stuttered between breaths as he cleaned the sweat from his forehead, still unsure about what this all was, but completely certain about what he wanted, and how bestial and perverted it made him feel.
"I figured that I still owe you something for being the first person to defeat me, for saving my people, and for being the first man to treat me as an equal... I thought it fair to allow you to be the first to know me... as a woman."
Zuko's eyes widened with surprise and anticipation as he realised what she meant.
"My lady I'm not what you think I am." Said Zuko desperately fighting the hunger, while Kori unbuttoned his pants and with her hands grabbed his throbbing manhood.
"My prince, you are exactly what I think you are." She said as her robe fell to the floor and with a blushing smirk she pushed him into the bed.
When he opened his eyes Sokka felt nothing but the seething pain in his bounded wrists, the swelling of his face and his bruised ribs. He still didn't know where he was or who had captured him, all that he remembered was the fear of being caught in the storm. He recalled trying desperately to hold on to his small boat and the terror of watching his oars break and fly away, a gigantic wave had tumbled his boat over, and he had hit his head with the boat as he tried to swim to the surface.
Sokka had woken up in a beach, drenched in freezing water, and he had hurriedly ran towards a nearby forest on search for heat and water. Sokka was sure that it had been his distraction that allowed a few warriors to sneak on his back while he picked some fallen berries, he only sensed their presence when they had already launched to tackle him. He had tried unsuccessfully to scream and defend himself, but a very well placed punch to the gut had forced his breath out of him, and what he messed had been a kick to his face had knocked him out. He vaguely remembered seeing some green and metal, and feeling the rope tighten around his wrists before darkness took him.
Despite the pain and dizziness, and a very sore and blackened eye, Sokka turned himself to look at his surroundings, he was inside some wooden building, and judging by the foul stench, the close space between walls and the wooden bars in his window and entrance, he guessed he was in a cell in some kind of prison. The snores and groaning, suggested there were other cells with other people inside.
He took some respite in the fact that he was confident he could convince whomever was in charge that he was no criminal, now he just needed to wait until an authority came to interrogate him. Sokka was sure that when they learned that he was Hakoda's son, they'd even help him in tracking down her sister and the traitorous prince Zuko. Where they not all enemies of the Fire Nation after all?
A few hours of more pain passed before Sokka heard footsteps approaching, it was already dark and through the bars he saw the light of lamp advance towards him. When his captors stood in front of him they pointed the lamp towards him, Sokka was blinded for a moment, but he did hear something that turned his heart cold.
"Here's the new slave, we found him in the forest."
He was utterly petrified and all words of protest died in his mouth, slowly his eyes adjusted to the light and he saw in front of him three women, fully clad in armour, with a skirt that would otherwise have been ridiculously comic to watch. This gave him some confidence, he was sure that he could escape and defeat these opponents in a fair fight.
At least these girls aren't the terrible Kyoshi warriors I heard so much about. He thought, Sokka didn't know how wrong he was.
As she walked through the halls of her father's house, Kori Morishita did her best to hide her awkwardness from the servants, she forced herself with all her might not to smile or to burst in giggles at the expectation. Right now she was heading for the training room, much to her parents opposition and bewilderment. She chuckled as she thought about the dumbfounded and confused faces her family and their usual guests made when she showed up for breakfast laughing with prince Zuko and chatting amiably, that had been three days ago, right after her first match with Zuko and the ensuing banquet, the morning after her first nightly visit to the prince's chambers.
Everybody had expected her to begrudge the prince for defeating her in such a violent manner, and that was the main reason why she had showered the prince with every friendly gesture and favour she could think of. She had sat next to him on every meal, she had helped him deal with the annoying doctors and trained with him everyday. Kori had even convinced the prince to let her escort him through the city on a tour, they had been to the bazaar and the theatre, to the ostrich-horse races and the lake, Kori had even helped him to organise his belongings and prepare his departure. They had done everything together like old childhood friends would, Kori wanted nothing more than to show everyone that not only did she not resent the prince for hurting her, but that she was grateful to be respected as a rival on equal terms. Somehow the message was lost to her parents... And to pretty much everyone.
Not that it mattered much to her, if her plan succeeded, she was confident that she could finally be free of the restraining shackles that her family had become to her, and perhaps she might yet archive her dream with the help of her recently found lover... If she dispelled a troubling doubt from her mind.
Despite what the official propaganda said, and the reality that in the Fire Nation no slavery was allowed, and the fact that one could honestly say that overall there was a great deal of freedom in her nation. Kori was perfectly aware that a lot of remnants of darker, older, and worse times still remained in the Fire Nation's laws, costumes and ideology. To Kori the most unfair was the fatherly authority.
As head of a family the man had complete power over his children, and depending on the type of marriage, over his wife. So much that none could own anything, and whatever a son or daughter earned or inherited wouldn't belong to him or her, but to their father. Only with a father's death did the children gain any real legal freedom and economic independence. This was the law and Kori had had enough of limitations in her life, she was going to become a soldier, she had decided, and for that she needed two things: strings to get her accepted into the army despite her status as a woman, and a way to free herself from her economic dependence of her father and the influence of her mother. Kori was painfully aware that if she had been accepted the first time she applied for the army, her father would have simply stopped giving her money and taken whatever she earned during her service, effectively forcing her into leaving the army.
But prince Zuko had miraculously arrived when she was about to give up on her dream to showed her that there was someone willing to respect her as a person and as a warrior. And he just happened to be an ideal solution to both of her problems. Banished or not, the prince was sure to have some influence he could use to help her get enlisted... and if he were to take her as a paramour he'd also be freeing her from her father's authority, just like a husband could gain legal control over his wife when he married, so did a man over a paramour.
Kori happily smiled as she entered her father's great gardens and approached the training grounds, she could hear her lover's firebending in the distance. With a breath she slowed her pace, there was just one thing she needed to convince herself of, before she opened up to the prince about her intentions.
It wasn't the fact that in an irony worth of the greatest story, she was going to end up doing exactly what her mother had done, although for entirely different reasons. It wasn't that she was going to willingly ask him to take her from her father in a very scandalous and slighting manner, that is to say that she was going to leave her father's authority as a daughter to enter the prince's as a paramour instead of a wife, like most women would prefer. Kori was not stupid or naive enough to believe that such a thing could happen. She was going to be grown up and mature about it, even if the prince had wanted her for a wife, as a member of the royal family he needed the Fire Lord's consent to marry, plus there was the fact that the prince no doubt had already been promised in marriage to some important high born lady, and she was just a merchant's daughter, money was not enough. The prince would no doubt look out for the interest of his nation even in choosing a wife. But there was no impediment for him to take a paramour, they were both of age, they needed only to register their relationship before a civil officer and she would be free.
But ultimately none of this troubled her, she wasn't even bothered by the fact that she had basically planned to seduce the prince into helping her and had so far succeeded, what bothered her was the fact she knew deep down that was something more than that. She had felt it when she first saw the prince in Mt. Makapu, with nothing but ashes and solidified lava to cove some parts of his body. She had felt it again when she saw him fight, when she saw him sleep, and eat and walk. Whenever she was close to him she had felt an urge deep down her, a desire so carnal and so strong hat she could not even describe, she only knew that it was a calling sensation as tortuous as thirst, as craving as hunger and as desperate as the needed to visit the toilet.
Kori was well aware of the fact that despite her last minute plan, it had been very unlike her to sneak into the prince's chambers like that, so quickly, so hurriedly, so desperately. It bothered Kori to no end the knowledge that she wouldn't have acted so rapidly and so recklessly for another man, even if the same benefits were at stake. Prince Zuko was irresistible to her. She was afraid to admit the possibility that she had been seduced as much as she had seduced.
With a deep breath she entered the training room and saw her prince smile at her, she blushed.