"I'm ready. I'm ready to face Zuko." Kuri said firmly as she ducked into the room.
Zuko was already there of course, and she watched as he faced Fire Lord Ozai.
Fire Lord Ozai was sitting on the far side of the room, drinking tea. The Fire Lord was surrounded by several Royal Procession guards. He set his teacup down upon seeing the prince.
"Prince Zuko? What are you doing here?" Ozai asked patiently.
"I'm here to tell the truth." Zuko said.
Kuri bit back a gasp. Was he crazy?
"Telling the truth during the middle of an eclipse." Ozai said, amused. "This should be interesting."
Kuri smirked. Crazy like a fox.
He sent the guards out of the room. One by one the guards filed out, closing the doors behind them.
Kuri held close to her hiding place, praying the shadows would hide her. Zuko stepped in front of her, almost…protectively?
"First of all, in Ba Sing Se, it was Azula who took down the Avatar, not me." Zuko confessed.
Kuri smiled.
"Why would she lie to me about that?" Ozai asked, genuinely surprised.
"Because the Avatar's not dead. He survived." Zuko revealed.
Kuri had to stifle a shout of triumph. Take that Fire Lord!
Ozai was shocked and horrified. "What?!"
"In fact, he's probably leading this invasion. He could be on his way here right now."
Kuri covered her mouth. That was enough talking! He was ruining the element of surprise!
Ozai rose from his seat and pointed toward the door. "Get out! Get out of my sight right now if you know what's good for you!"
"That's another thing. I'm not taking orders from you anymore." Zuko said, preparing for battle.
Kuri stepped back out of his way. Why did men always have to fight? She didn't want him to get hurt!
Ozai was angry. "You will obey me, or this defiant breath will be your last!"
Zuko pulled out his swords. Kuri knew he had to see this through. "Think again. I am going to speak my mind, and you are going to listen."
Ozai sat down, dismayed at the turn of events.
Kuri breathed a sigh of relief.
"For so long, all I wanted was for you to love me, to accept me. I thought it was my honor I wanted, but really, I was just trying to please you. You, my father, who banished me just for talking out of turn." Zuko pointed a broadsword at his father. "My father, who challenged me, a thirteen-year-old boy, to an Agni Kai." Ozai glared at him. Kuri clenched her fists at the injustice. "How could you possibly justify a duel with a child?"
"It was to teach you respect!" Ozai said scornfully.
"It was cruel! And it was wrong." Zuko cried.
"Then you have learned nothing!" Ozai said angrily.
"No, I've learned everything! And I've had to learn it on my own! Growing up, we were taught that the Fire Nation was the greatest civilization in history. And somehow, the War was our way of sharing our greatness with the rest of the world. What an amazing lie that was. The people of the world are terrified by the Fire Nation. They don't see our greatness. They hate us! And we deserve it! We've created an era of fear in the world. And if we don't want the world to destroy itself, we need to replace it with an era of peace and kindness." Zuko stood up to his father, and pulled Kurai out of the darkness. "I was once hard and cruel like you Father; you made me that way! And this young woman, this Queen, called me on it! She saw potential in me that you never did, and so did my Uncle!"
"So they've gotten to you have they?" Ozai growled.
"You dare scorn him!" Kurai cried. "You had your chance! You loved someone once, and were given the choice; but you scoffed at it and chose power. You hypocrite. You chose wrong."
Zuko smiled at her. "Spoken like a true Queen."
"You bring dishonor on the Fire Nation, Prince Zuko."
"No," Zuko turned away. "I bring hope. And that's the one thing you can't stand."
Zuko kissed Kurai and the two made their escape together.