Zuko emerged from the stairs leading to the upstairs lounge of the Jasmine Dragon to find no one there, but the Companion was lying on the low table as usual. He glanced warily at the book full of supposedly crazy stories about himself and his friends, which had given him quite a few unwelcome frights already. Then a voice in his head suddenly said, "Well, I could do with a little craziness right about now."

Wondering whether his better judgement had disappeared with the last of Iroh's delicious roast turkey-duck during lunch, he took a seat on the couch and opened the book. He browsed through the pages until his eyes fell on the title Theft Absolute. He looked down at the summary: 'Because anybody who could break into the North Pole has to have thought theft through better than that... AU bit of "The Cave of Two Lovers".'

Looking further down, he saw that he and his uncle were listed as main characters. Well, he could've guessed that much, considering he was the only one he knew that had ever tried to 'break into the North Pole', as the summary had said. Taking a deep breath, he started reading the story.

"What are you doing? These people just showed you great kindness."

Great kindness. Yeah. And what had that ever gotten anybody?

"Everything I've done, I've done for you."

He hadn't even been awake enough to say goodbye.

"Then the best thing we can do for them is get as far away as possible," Zuko said harshly. "Azula's looking for us. What do you think she'll do to someone who showed us great kindness?"

"She is looking for us, that is true. But this is still the Earth Kingdom. She can't just burn everything to the ground and order the survivors to talk. She will have to be more… subtle." Iroh raised a gray brow. "What will bring news to her ears more swiftly, nephew? Two refugees who leave in the night… or an ostrich-horse thief?"

Zuko paused. Why hadn't he thought of that? He now recognized the scene: it was back when he and his uncle had eaten dinner at the young healer's - Song, he vaguely remembered her name to be - home, and taken her ostrich-horse afterwards. Thinking back, he wondered why she hadn't reported her loss to the authorities, because if she had, Azula would certainly have caught word of it and hunted him down faster. He could only assume that she had taken pity on who she believed to be just a couple of homeless refugees and let the matter go. The thought deepened the feeling of guilt in his heart. Shaking his head to clear it, he continued reading.

It hurt to think. He'd been so close to going home, to his father wanting him again-

Azula always lies.

Can't say fairer than that, he thought.

But Uncle had been there, when her lies came crashing down on them. Even after he'd said… awful things. The Dragon of the West, able to divert even Azula the prodigy's power-

Don't think of her as Azula. Don't! She's - another obstacle. Like Zhao. Like the fortress. Like the North Pole.

And he'd beaten all of those. All of them.

He found himself nodding at the story. It was true, he had faced all those obstacles in his search for the Avatar, and one way or another, he'd managed to overcome them all, whether by a strength within him he didn't know about or just sheer luck.

My father said she was born lucky. He said I was lucky to be born.

He remembered telling Aang so after he'd just captured him during the Siege of the North. Well yes, he definitely wasn't more skilled than his sister, but he seemed to cope just fine with his luck. And considering all that had happened, and where he was now, his luck had certainly served him well.

Maybe he hadn't won, the Avatar was still out there-

But the Avatar was still out there. No one else had grabbed the slippery little Airbending brat. He hadn't lost. Not yet.

And now I'm the firebending teacher and personal friend of 'the slippery little Airbending brat, he thought with a chuckle. Funny how fate works out sometimes.

We're not refugees. We're fugitives being hunted.

How can we turn that in our favor?

Deception. Azula might be better at flat-out lying, but he'd learned to hide a thing or two. She was still better than him hand-to-hand, always had been. But she had no idea he'd learned to use a sword. Like a common soldier. Like someone who couldn't even bend-

Like a refugee.

Use it as a mask. Hide their trail, in a way Azula would never suspect, until Uncle could recover. Until they had time to figure out what to do next.

Zuko couldn't help but be amazed at how the story had rather accurately reflected his thoughts at the time. He had been thinking the same, leading to the creation of his alter-ego the Blue Spirit. His sword skills had proven useful as well as a means of self-defense on occasions when he had to hide his bending. Looking down the page, he caught sight of the next line.

I wish… Lieutenant Jee was here.

Lieutenant Jee? Now that was something else he hadn't thought of. Even after the North Pole, he'd never once wondered what had happened to his men after Zhao had recruited them. Of course, back then he had seen their leaving as an act of betrayal, but looking back now he realized that they probably weren't acting entirely of their own free will either. He felt regret and shame simultaneously, regret at not properly thanking them for all they'd done for him, and shame that he'd never thought of them afterwards. Until now.

He had no idea if their ship had survived the Water Spirit's attack at the North Pole. He hadn't dared ask Azula. Even dizzy with the thought of going home….

They're my men. They're safer drifting in the ocean than under Azula's eye.

Agni, he hoped they'd lived.

The real Zuko hoped so too. If they really hadn't survived the North Pole... after how he'd misunderstood them... but even after the war was over, he'd never heard of them again. Maybe they had settled down in the Earth Kingdom, hiding their nationality and slowly starting a new life in a new country. He sincerely hoped that was the matter.

My men. My ship. Uncle.

They were part of his search for the Avatar. But he was responsible for them, too. That was what a prince was.

Never forget who you are.

Moving slowly, aching, he got out of the saddle.

Holding the reins, Uncle gripped his shoulder, and led the steed back to his pen.

Zuko waited, shivering a little. Odd, the night hadn't seemed that cold earlier. "Do you think we can find a port?" he asked abruptly, as Iroh returned. "I want to know - the ships…."

"Yes; I, too, wish to know if Lieutenant Jee survived the siege," Iroh said soberly. "I made inquiries, before we had to depart with such haste. There was no word."

No. Not again-

"But there was no word that they were dead, either. Never give up hope, nephew." A comforting pat on the shoulder, and a knowing smile. "Come. We have a long walk ahead of us."

And it's going to be a lot longer, Zuko thought ruefully. "On one condition, Uncle."

"Condition?" Iroh tried to look innocent.

"Yes," Zuko said grimly, settling in for a long march. Just another obstacle. Azula's… just another obstacle. You can do this."You're never gathering tea leaves again."

He chuckled at the last line, and then was when he suddenly heard Sokka's voice behind him. "Hey Zuko, what you're reading?"

He hastily closed the book and looked up at his friends. "Oh, so you guys are back from your walk?"

"Yup. Feels good to wander around Ba Sing Se casually, and all the people greeting us didn't hurt either," Sokka grinned. "So what story have you found now?"

"Oh, nothing much." Zuko paused for a moment, and then he said, "Have you noticed how sometimes the stories in this book aren't so ridiculous after all?"

Sokka looked slightly bewildered. "I guess. Sometimes."

"Yeah. Weird, isn't it?"

"Suppose so."

Many thanks to the amazing Vathara for her permission to use her story! By the way, I've been receiving quite a few suggestions for stories to be featured in the Companion, so here's a quick note: I usually favor oneshots more because they can be read by the Gaang in one sitting and don't have to be read over the period of a few chapters. While I still feature chapter fics, I probably won't be able to use them as much as I wish to. So yeah, just a little notice. Hope to see you all soon!