"Welcome to the Jasmine Dragon, how may I serve you today?", Zuko verbated to the customers sitting before him.
"Two cups of green tea please.."
Zuko wrote the order diligently but his mind was occupied elsewhere at the moment. He opened the kitchen doors and handed the slip of paper to Uncle, who began to work on the order. He hurried back to the crowd of customers in the dining room. The shop was packed with people thanks to that idiotic circus down the street.
"Just what the hell is so entertaining about that circus anyway?", Zuko thought irritatedly. He continued to take the impatient customers' orders. He flitted from table to table, scribbling rapidly onto his little notepad. Zuko finally got to his last table. The elderly couple sat near the large window, patiently waiting for their order to be taken.
"Thank you for your patience. What can I get for you?" Zuko asked the nice couple. They seemed to be very serene compared to the other jerks yelling for their tea behind him. "Isn't tea supposed to be for calm people?" He dismissed the rude thought and smiled warmly at the customers.
"Well, aren't you a handsome young man." the small old woman said with a smile. Zuko could not help but blush at her comment. These were nice people.
"Oh please, I've seen beetle-hawks that look better than him!" the crabby old man retorted with a dirty look. Maybe they weren't all nice people.
"Oh, don't mind him, dear. We'd like two lotus teas please." the elderly lady chimed pleasantly. Zuko had a hard time hearing the woman over the noise in the room.
"Ma'am, what was that? Two lotu-" Zuko began as he glanced absently out the huge window beside them. Amber eyes widened as he noticed an unmistakable girl in blue walking across the street. His attention to the couple dissipated as he stared at Katara, merely a few yards away from him. Zuko's heart skipped a beat.
"Her again? Why is she here?" Zuko thought frantically. "Okay... calm down. There's no reason to panic. But she knows I work here, so I need to stay out of her sight."
"Okay, two lotus teas coming right up!" he said hurriedly, zipping out of the dining room and into the kitchen.
"Uncle! I saw Katara! She's in the city!" Zuko panted, his face red with exhaustion.
"Oh, is your girlfriend here to see you?" Iroh remarked pleasantly, brewing some tea. Zuko merely brought his palm to his face in frustration. He didn't even have the energy to yell at his Uncle's foolishness. Knowing the old man would not help, he took a seat on a stool at the rear of the kitchen.
Iroh glanced at his distressed nephew and shook his head slightly.
"Zuko, let's talk after the day is over." Iroh said seriously, different from his usual nature.
Zuko looked up for a second at his Uncle's change in tone, genuinely surprised. But the boy was too upset to say anything and continued to sit quietly.
By a few hours later, Zuko hesitantly stepped out from the kitchen to find Katara gone. He sighed and continued to take orders. Slowly, the shop's busy day dwindled to a close. Zuko started to feel anxious about what Uncle meant when he wanted to talk. It was just so out of character for him to act that way.
Zuko was wiping down the tables as Uncle strode into the dining room. The sun's faltering rays shone into the window, decorating the small shop in hues of orange and pink. It was quiet; no noise came from the empty square outside, and not a single customer lingered in the shop. The tea shop finally began to feel like a tea shop, a place of serenity and peace. Zuko basked in the silence of the store for a few moments. Then, Uncle began to speak.
"How do you feel about Katara?"
Zuko's head shot up to meet Iroh's eyes. Iroh stared back at his nephew earnestly. Zuko, however, was taken aback by his uncle's question. He looked down at the floor in utter confusion.
"How do I feel about...Katara?", Zuko thought.
"You don't have to answer me, Zuko. This is something you need to answer for yourself."
Zuko looked to his Uncle and nodded thoughtfully.
Iroh sighed and shifted his gaze outside the window, studying the quaint buildings along the street.
"My nephew, I want you to be happy. I can tell that right now you are not. You are lost without your goal of honor, without a purpose."
The banished prince wouldn't look at his Uncle, but the words rang true in his mind.
"You are much greater than your father. You understand peace. Ozai has never understood that, and never will. He was never even a father figure for you in your life. My brother, he is terribly wicked."
Iroh turned and locked his eyes with his nephew's.
"You must help the Avatar to defeat him, Zuko. Ozai is ripping the world apart with his madness."
"And what can I do? I belong to neither side, Uncle! The Fire Nation has shunned me, and I am the Avatar's number one enemy! How can you expect me to face my father's wrath alone?!" Zuko shouted in defiance.
"Through Katara, Zuko, you can reach the Avatar. That girl is smitten with you, and you seem to be fond of her as well. If you can get closer to her, then you can also reconcile with the Avatar," Iroh calmly replied, not fazed by Zuko's outburst.
"But Uncle, she means nothing to me! And...I mean nothing to her.." Zuko said, deflated. In the end, no matter how much the young prince denied it, he wished he meant something to Katara. In the end, Katara did mean something to him.
"Zuko may be nothing to her, but Shin..." Iroh noted matter-of-factly. "He certainly means something to her."
"If I reveal my identity, and I must if we are to fight Ozai, how can I reconcile with them? All the trust Shin may have built will be broken," Zuko replied.
"My nephew, in this world, names mean nothing. Even though Shin may be different in Katara's eyes, you are still the same person with either name. If Katara and the Avatar cannot understand that Shin's good nature is also the good nature of Zuko, then I would rather you not join their group at all," Uncle remarked wisely.
Zuko contemplated his uncle's words."Could they really find the heart to forgive me? After all I did to them...could I forgive someone for doing what I've done?"
He thought deeply and realized that he couldn't. However, he was different from Aang. Zuko was raised to hold fire against others, while Aang was raised to forgive others. Aang was the Avatar for a reason: to bring balance to the world. And balance can not be found without forgiveness.
"And after all, what other choice do I have? I can't live in hiding anymore, wasting my days pointlessly. I need to take action. And I can't do it alone."
Zuko looked up at his Uncle, his eyes filled with determination.
"You're right, Uncle. I'll do it. I'll join Team Avatar."
"Woooo! That was the best circus performance I've ever seen!", Sokka exclaimed as he munched on a bucket of bean curd puffs from the circus.
"It's the only circus performance you've ever seen," Toph said, rolling her eyes but smiling as well.
"Hey, I'm with Sokka on this one, that circus was amazing!" Aang agreed enthusiastically.
Katara walked along the dark streets with her friends silently. They all had a long day and yet she seemed to be the only one to be tired from all the activity. She looked forward to just going home and making herself a relaxing cup of tea before bed.
"Tea..." Katara thought.
Shin came to her mind once again. There always happened to be something that reminded her of the boy. When the group reached the house, Katara unlocked the door and let her friends inside. Sometimes she really felt like the mother of the group!
It was rather late; everyone had already eaten dinner at a small restaurant near the circus. Katara was relieved that she didn't have to think about cooking at this late hour. Bidding her friends goodnight, the waterbender giggled as she remembered the fun day she had had. Sokka's excited shouts as the wrestlers tumbled on the stage were annoying at the time, but she remembered it rather fondly. Even Aang trying his best to get past security to get a signature from the platypus-bear was pretty fun.
The Water Tribe princess used a brush and untangled her knotted hair while gazing in the mirror. In the quiet moment, she remembered Shin and smiled softly. She noticed a small figure enter her room through the reflection.
"Fun night, huh, Sugar Queen?" Toph commented.
"Yeah, it was pretty great," Katara remarked softly.
Toph didn't bother to change her clothes and jumped in the bed, pulling the covers to her chin. Katara rolled her eyes. She had gotten used to the earthbender's habits; it was no use trying to change them.
"So, did you see Shin anywhere?" Toph winked, turning to face Katara.
Katara looked away and a small frown made its way onto her lips.
"Actually, no. I glanced into the tea shop where he works at, but I didn't see him," Katara replied, slightly disappointed.
"Oh, so you're stalking the kid now.." Toph joked. "Well, I'm sure he was just on break or something when you came by. Don't sweat it."
"Thanks," Katara smiled at the blind girl. "I really hope I can see him again.." Katara said as she turned back to the mirror.
"I'm sure you will soon enough. After all, bumping into you is his speciality." Toph remarked playfully. Katara grinned at her friend's words. She hoped Toph was right.
"Well, I think I'm gonna get some shut-eye. I'm bushed!", Toph said as she stretched her small arms towards the ceiling sleepily. "Night, Sugar Queen."
"Goodnight, Toph." Katara said. She stared into the mirror while she wove her hair into one long braid. Standing up from her seat, the waterbender made her way to her soft, white bed. Katara turned off the lamp and slipped into the warm, light covers. Her mind began to wander as she relaxed into the bedding.
"I hope I will get to see him soon...But how?" Katara murmured in her mind as she drifted to sleep.
A/N:
Thank you so much for reading! Sorry for the late chapter...! We hope you enjoy :) I'm so happy that Zuko's joining their group. Lots of fun things in store, so keep reading/reviewing/favoriting/following...xD That's a lot of slashes. We'll update the next chappy sooner:)~!