Another week passed. The three of them spent nearly every waking hour in the Lower Ring trying to get results. Frustratingly little came from their hard work. There was news of another death, but when they tried to check it out they were herded away by guards. Progress was very slow indeed.
Katara wordlessly watched the steam rising from her cup. Today, it was Aang's turn to watch Zuko. She had gone back to the Jasmine Dragon to take a break. Bringing the cup to her lips, she took a sip. She couldn't take her mind off of the new death. It was so hard to take in. People were suffering, dying around her! She had once vowed to never turn her back on the ones who needed her, and she still held onto that promise. It just hurt to know that she had done nothing to help these people. Could she have prevented any of these deaths? Maybe if she had done something, anything, a little more, she could have.
'No, Katara, you can't think like that,' she thought to herself as she held the warm cup between her hands. It wouldn't help to anchor herself down on all the could-have's and would-have's She had to keep her chin up.
"You were with the avatar and the scarred boy, weren't you?" a voice asked. Katara looked up to see an old man standing at her table.
"Uh… yes," she answered uncertainly. She thought it odd that he recognized Aang, but not Zuko. Then again, not everyone knew what the firelord looked like, especially now that he was dressed in Earth Kingdom clothing.
"That boy's got a Fire Nation heritage from the looks of him," the old man continued. "You need to keep him out of the Lower Ring. And especially that inn. I seen him go there late at night."
The mention of Silent Falls Inn piqued Katara's interest. Why did the old man mention it? "What's wrong with the inn?"
"I lived most my life in the Lower Ring before moving here," the old man explained, leaning down heavily on his cane. "But in all my years, I've never felt a more vile presence than that place. The owner and those girls… You three need to stay away from that inn." He regarded her with an almost frightened look and turned away.
"Wait!" Katara called, standing up and scurrying after the old man. "Explain yourself!"
"I only came to warn you to keep that scarred boy safe," the old man said as he continued to hobble towards the exit. "I don't want to see him end up as a corpse. If you see a girl with one of those neck cuffs, you keep far, far away."
Katara returned back to her table after the old man left, her eyes glassy and unfocused as she thought deeply about what he had said. Zuko went to Silent Falls frequently to visit his friend. But Seiya had a neck cuff too. What did that mean?
Maybe it was time to talk with Seiya. She was a rather mysterious girl. How did she disappear from the Fire Nation for seven years and end up in the Earth Kingdom capital?
She ran past soldiers loading supplies onto komodo rhinos at the harbor. Along the shore sat large metallic battleships. The sun had just risen, still cut in half by the horizon. The water burned orange.
Long ramps extended from the ships onto the harbor. Soldiers shuffled up and down the ramps, hauling cargo and leading the lumbering komodo rhinos. Seiya stopped on the edge of the harbor, staring desperately at the ships as she searched for one soldier in particular. A strong ocean breeze lifted her hair and dress.
"Seiya?" a voice asked. The little girl whirled around. Lu Ten gave her a gentle smile. "Did you come all this way on your own?"
"Are you leaving?" Seiya asked sadly.
"Yes." Lu Ten crouched down, putting a hand on Seiya's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I should have told you."
"Where are you going?"
"To the Earth Kingdom," Lu Ten answered. "To Ba Sing Se. In a few month's time, we'll break through the walls of their capital and claim it for our country. It'll be the greatest thing my father and I have ever accomplished."
Seiya leaned forward and threw her arms around his neck. "I'm going to miss you," she said.
"I'll miss you too," he replied. "But I'll keep you in my mind every day while I'm gone. Promise me you'll be right here for me when I get back?"
"I promise."
It was clear that Arlei wasn't pleased from what she just heard. Her jaw was tense and she refused to speak at first. Seiya had expected this kind of reaction, especially considering what Arlei had done in the Jasmine Dragon. But she wouldn't have asked for this kind of request if it weren't of the utmost importance.
"Are you sure?" the older woman finally asked, her voice tight with controlled rage.
"I am. Please, Arlei. I'd trust him with my life. You'd understand if you saw how he treated me when I was a child. He was one of the few people who was kind to me."
Arlei closed her eyes, turning them completely black under her dark, painted, eyelids. She drew a long breath in and blew it out slowly through her mouth. "I'll value your judgment over mine when it comes to them," she said. "If you think this is what's best for the little ones, I'll do it."
Seiya threw her arms around Arlei. "Thank you so much!" she cried. Arlei hugged her back.
"Stay safe, Seiya," she whispered. "Rest assured, he and I will leave first thing in the morning." With that, she vanished from Seiya's room. Once she was alone, the young girl found herself staring at the old scarf on her nightstand and remembering what Zuko had told her just a few nights before. He had told her that tonight he was going to take her some place special. She felt excited. But at the same time, a part of her felt terribly sad. How long was she going to continue to act as though nothing was wrong? As if she was the same Seiya that washed his clothes and shared toys together with him? As if seven years of the most unimaginable horrors hadn't happened? Zuko had an inkling of awareness that those years had changed her, but he had no idea. Yet the thought of telling him terrified her. She couldn't bear to put her experiences into words.
It was nearly time. He'd be waiting in the back alley like he always did. And just like the past few night, Seiya was tempted to keep away from him for his own sake. What if the master found out about him? The thought of him knowing about Zuko terrified Seiya. And yet, despite this, she couldn't bear to keep him out there waiting.
Seiya rose to her feet and hurried out of her room. She stepped out into the night, and he was there. He led her out of the alley, past the Lower Ring, through the Middle Ring, all the way to the Upper Ring. It was further than they had ever gone.
"Tonight's a clear night," he said. "It's perfect."
"Where are we going?" Seiya asked. Suddenly, she heard a low rumbling. With a gasp, she pulled away from Zuko and drew back. Looking to the source of the noise, she saw a large white silhouette moving in the dark. "What is that?"
"It's the avatar's bison," Zuko answered, stepping to the side to give Seiya a better view. "It took a little convincing, but he let me borrow him for the night."
"Why?"
"You'll see. Don't worry, he's friendly. Just give him a pat on the nose and let him get to know you. See?" Zuko walked over to the bison stroked a hand over his arrow. The bison let out a deep, content rumble.
Seiya timidly approached the animal. He watched her with his gentle brown eyes. Seiya reached down and rested a hand on his dark nose. The bison closed his eyes and puffed air out of his nose.
"He likes you," Zuko remarked. Seiya rubbed the spot between his eyes.
"What's his name?"
"Appa." Zuko held his hand out. "Come on. I didn't bring you here just to meet him." He led her around to the bison's side. Seiya spotted a large saddle on Appa's back. "Are we going to ride him around town?"
"Well… yeah, in a way," Zuko said as he helped Seiya up into the saddle. Then he climbed up after her. Seiya peeked over the edge of the saddle. "Come on over here," she heard Zuko say. He was sitting towards the front of the saddle, just behind Appa's head. His hands held reins that were attached to the bison's horns. Seiya scooted beside him.
"Are you ready?" he asked her. Seiya nodded. "You may want to hold onto the saddle," Zuko warned. Seiya obeyed, gripping the stiff leather rim that ran entire the circumference of the saddle. Then, he whipped the reins. Appa climbed to his feet. Seiya's grip tightened as she felt herself being rocked by the beast's movement. She didn't miss the sly look Zuko shot her when he said, "Yip yip."
"What—?" Suddenly, Seiya felt the saddle jerk heavily and the wind hit her face. She ducked down and gripped the saddle even tighter as she saw the rooftops around her rush past. Her heart raced when she realized they were ascending up into the sky. "Zuko!" she cried fearfully.
"It's okay. I got you," Zuko assured, wrapping an arm around her waist. She quickly clung to him with both hands. To terrified to watch the ground disappear below them, she kept her eyes glued to the saddle between their legs. "It's amazing, isn't it?" Zuko marveled.
"He can… he can fly?"
"Yeah. Pretty cool, huh?" Appa stopped rising and maintained a steady altitude. They soared through the sky, occasionally passing over small wisps of cloud. "Seiya, it's okay. Look up."
Seiya shook her head, her gaze drilling into the saddle. "I can't!"
"I'm up here with you. So is Appa. Neither of us is going to let you fall. Just take it slow, bit by bit, and keep holding onto me. Come on—you can't miss this view." Even with the wind, she heard his quiet, reassuring words clearly. They reached in and touched something deep down inside of her, instilling calm that managed to dispel her fear. She felt his arm around her, firm and unyielding. In that moment, she felt as though no harm in the world could reach her. And because of that, Seiya looked up.
Her breath was stolen away by a view of the night sky unlike anything she had ever seen before. The clouds were at her level, passing by like large, lazy sheep. The moon had never been closer. "I can't believe I'm up here!" A cloud came close by. Driven by curiosity, Seiya let one hand go from Zuko and reached up, letting it pass through the white wisp. She felt a cool dampness on her fingers like morning dew on grass.
"Look down," Zuko offered. Seiya hesitated. Then, she felt both of his hands hold her by the waist. "Don't worry, I won't let you fall. Take a look." Clutching the edge tightly, she leaned forward and looked back down to the city. It was a breath-taking sight. The thousands upon thousands of rooftops looked like tiles in a mosaic piece. Walls snaked through the city, and the king's palace could be seen standing tall above everything.
"I never thought I'd be able to see a view like this," Seiya called over the wind. She laughed excitedly. This was the most free she had ever felt; it was exhilarating. She suddenly felt the saddle tilt as Appa turned and quickly retreated back to clinging onto Zuko for her life.
"Do you want to go back down?" he asked.
"No," Seiya replied quickly. "I don't… don't take me down yet." She gazed back up at the sky, unaware of the worried look Zuko shot her. Seiya hadn't realized what she had let show in her voice.
But she was content with soaring through the sky with him. For another half hour, they flew in complete silence. No other words were needed. That's what she liked best. They didn't mind the quietness.
Finally, Seiya said, "I need to go back."
With the reins, Zuko guided Appa back to the ground. When they landed, Seiya took a moment to straighten her hair back into place. Zuko reached over and fixed a stray lock. This time, Seiya didn't flinch at his touch. The two of them dismounted from Appa's saddle. As they walked towards the Middle Ring, Seiya confessed, "No one has ever done anything like that for me. Thank you."
"Well I think we're a little too old to be sharing toys again," Zuko joked. "I figured we should upgrade to flying bison rides."
Seiya didn't say anything. Suddenly, she stopped walking. Zuko looked back at her. Her face was suddenly somber. Her hands plucked nervously at each other. "Prince Zuko," she began nervously.
"Technically, it's 'Firelord' now, but it's okay to just call me Zuko," he corrected. "What's wrong?"
"I appreciate what you're trying to do," she said, her words spilling out quickly. "I've truly had fun. But we can't go on like this, pretending like nothing's changed. My life is here now. You're firelord; you belong in the Fire Nation."
Zuko reached for her arm. "I'm not pretending—I'm just happy to have you back. And who we are now… you know that doesn't matter."
She withdrew away. "I know it does," she insisted firmly. "You need to leave. Go back home and pretend you never met me. It'll be better that way."
There was a look of utter disbelief on Zuko's face. "Is this about what happened seven years ago?" he asked. "I'm sorry, Seiya. I never meant to turn my back on you. I never wanted you to get hurt!"
"Well I did!" Seiya suddenly shouted, her eyes welling up. "I was hurt in the worst ways possible! You have no idea—no idea! And I cried and screamed for you or anyone to help me, but nobody was there for me!" Tears streamed down her face. "I don't know what they told you when I disappeared from the Fire Palace. I don't know if you even bothered to look for me—if you even wondered what had happened to me!"
"Seiya." Had it been any other time, it would have hurt her to see the pain on his face. But right now, with all the buried anger and anguish finally surfacing, it didn't matter to her. "They told me you had… the cliffs… they told me you'd jumped—."
"They sold me!" Her last words seemed to reverberate in the cold air.
When they hit him, Zuko could only stand in stunned silence. Finally, he said, "They… they did what?"
"Were you never aware? It was a vile practice that the Fire Nation did as part of their conquest during the war—winning the favor of the corrupt by selling them flesh—girls that wouldn't be missed but were precious enough to be considered commodity! The firelord—your father—got rid of me this way! It was a win-win in his eyes—a way to gain political leverage while getting rid of the servant that was meddling with his son. I remember waking up to being dragged out of bed by his soldiers to haul me away! But they didn't throw me in prison. They chose to chain me up, sell me, and ship me to the colonies like livestock! And when I got there, I was forced to… You think almost losing your birthright is bad?"
She crossed an arm over her chest. Her whole frame was shaking. "I lost the right to my very own body! And I…" Her words dissolved into crying. Memories resurfaced—vile, horrid memories that made her want to peel away her own skin in order to get rid of those filthy sensations.
She didn't look up as Zuko gently put an arm around her, staring far off into the night as he tried to imagine what living nightmare she must have gone through.
"It's okay," he murmured. "Seiya, don't cry. I'm here for you now." Suddenly, he felt something wet on the back of her neck. He raised his hand and, to his shock, saw blood on the tips of his fingers. Quickly, he turned Seiya by the shoulder and peered at her neck. The moonlight wasn't bright enough for him to see. He lit a bulb of fire in his palm and held it close to her.
He felt his heart skip in horror. There was a stream of blood leaking out from underneath her neck cuff, flowing down her back. He wiped the blood away with the side of his fingers and grabbed at the neck cuff, aiming to remove it to find the wound. "You're bleeding!" he said.
The moment he touched the cuff, Seiya broke away from him. "Don't touch it!" she cried hysterically, holding her neck delicately with her hands.
"Seiya, what's wrong?"
"I'm fine," she replied shakily. "Please, just stay away. Stay away from me."
"But—."
"You said I should start demanding things for myself! Well I want you to leave me alone! If you still care at all about me, you'll at least honor that." She turned and hurried away.
Zuko was at a loss for words. He couldn't say anything as she disappeared. He could only stare sadly into the darkness where she had disappeared, still confused at where everything had gone wrong. Tonight was supposed to be the night when he finally got her back. But as far as he knew, he had only succeeded in making her more upset than ever. Beside him, Appa touched him gently with his nose. Zuko turned to the bison and placed a hand on his forehead. "What have I done?"
Why, why don't you let me burn
Why don't you count down and break out and let me burn
Oh why, why don't you let me burn
Why don't you let me burn
Why don't you let me burn
Oh why, you're raising the demons in my mind
Oh why am I waiting for chains
Throwing me to the ground
"Let Us Burn" by Within Temptation