Chapter 13

So far, the night shift had been uneventful. Izara had been posted outside the Fire Lord's room and was pacing through the hallway just so she didn't have to stand still for 8 hours straight. It was around 2am, and everything had been quiet so far. She had been told that it usually took guards a little longer to be put on the night shift since it was statistically the most likely time someone would try and attempt an assassination. Of course, Izara already knew that, but apparently, she had proven herself well enough to have the honour of protecting the Fire Lord himself, even if she was filling in temporarily. She had settled in well, and everyone had been friendly to her. Kazan being here helped, too, since they had been friends for years while he was posted with her Uncle Uzan.

It was nice to finally feel after such a long time that she was doing some good and that people here really valued her presence. She never really got that with her Uncle since she was a glorified maid. She had taken a chance coming to the Capital and was glad she did. Thus far, it had been the best thing in her life.

As she did her usual patrol outside in the gardens, she checked the windows were closed and locked and that all the doors were. It was a normal part of the job that had become second nature for her to do every hour. Still, she did her best to ensure she didn't let the monotony cause her to make a mistake or miss something. In fact, that was one of the most challenging parts of a job like this. It would be expected for people doing the same thing over and over again to lose focus, but it wasn't an option when guarding the Fire Lord himself.

Everything was quiet, but she suddenly heard strange noises from the Fire Lord's room. It sounded like some groaning, and alarm bells rang loudly in her head.

Something was wrong.

Without thinking, she ripped the window open, breaking the latch as she did, dagger drawn and ready to fight. At the sound of her coming in, he woke up and sat up in his bed, staring at her in surprise. Using firebending, she lit all of the candles in the room and stayed on her guard. Her eyes darted around the room, trying to find out why he was making the strange sounds. She stalked over to the windows, confirming that they were closed. Had someone broken into the room? Had someone hurt him in his sleep?

Her dagger glinted menacingly as she prepared for the worst, but the Fire Lord's voice distracted her.

"Uhh, I think that was me…." He offered cryptically, and she looked over at him in confusion.

She spared no time approaching him and inspected him to ensure that everything was okay, but her eyes went wide as she saw his hand shake as he ran it through his hair. As he pushed it away from his face, she saw that he was sweating and his shoulders were tense. Ignoring that he was shirtless in favour of her panic, she saw that he was covered in sweat, and his other hand was fisted tightly in his sheets. His eyes were panicked but not scared, and she didn't quite understand what was happening.

"My Lord…" She wasn't sure what to say, but her anxiety faded into concern. Her eyes lost their determination, and her brow knitted together in worry as she knelt at his bedside.

"I was dreaming. It was a bad dream." He replied to explain his state, but that didn't make her feel any better. Now that she wasn't concerned about a threat, she was just concerned.

"Are you alright?" Without thinking, the hand not holding her dagger reached out to rest on the hand he had fisted in his sheets.

When he glanced down at her hand, to his surprise, she pulled back after realising that it wasn't appropriate. She knew very well how tormenting nightmares could be and regularly woke up in a similar state to him after going through the same thing. Her understanding of how he felt seemed to have caused such a reflexive reaction from her to want to comfort him. Although it was definitely crossing the line to touch the Fire Lord, he hadn't flinched from her touch but had relaxed into it.

"Sorry." She lowered her head in a mix of deference and apology and heard him huff faintly.

"No, don't be. Thank you." His voice was soft and kind, but she still didn't have enough confidence to raise her head.

Hearing shuffling sounds, she saw him move in her peripheral vision. She stood up and stepped back to give him space. Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he stood up and began to walk toward the bathroom. Not entirely sure if that was her queue to leave, she stood and made her way towards the door.

"Could you… stay for a moment?" He had stopped walking to talk but didn't turn to look at her.

"Of course, my Lord." She replied aloud since he wouldn't see her nod, and she politely stepped back into the empty space in the middle of the room and stood to attention while he was in the bathroom.

When he emerged, he seemed to have cleaned himself up but was still on edge. Izara could still see his hand twitching occasionally as if he was forcing it to stop shaking. The silence between them for the next few minutes wasn't awkward, just uncertain. Izara didn't move a muscle, contrasting to the Fire Lord, pacing the room mechanically as he calmed himself down. Hoping that her presence made him feel safe, she stood guard next to the window, standing to attention. His breathing was slowed and controlled, and his hands fisted and relaxed in time with his breaths. She couldn't help but wonder what was in his nightmares that caused him such a reaction.

She didn't react as he stopped pacing and looked over at her.

"I'm sorry. I must have frightened you. Thank you for your concern." She noticed that his voice seemed more stable, and he was more relaxed.

"So long as you are alright," Izara replied, although she wasn't sure what to say. She wanted to offer some words of comfort but didn't think it was her place to do so and let her voice show it instead. "Is there anything else I can do for you, my Lord?"

"Uh, could you just stay in here?" He asked hesitantly and continued after she felt her eyes widen. "Just until I fall asleep."

"Of course. You have nothing to worry about with me here." Her urge to help came out in reassurance of his safety, but when he smiled, she got the inkling that he knew exactly what she meant. She meant it to help ease the concern about seeing those nightmares once he fell asleep.

"Thank you, Izara." He said knowingly, confirming her thoughts.

He returned to bed and made himself comfortable again with nothing else said. She only relaxed around 10-15 minutes after his breathing changed, signalling that he had gone back to sleep. Although she wanted to stay here a little longer, she knew she needed to go back outside to ensure he was alright. If not, when the guard rotation occurred, they would be alarmed when they couldn't see her. Someone may have already noticed her missing.

The window was still partially open due to her energetic entry, and she hopped back outside through it, then pulled it shut behind her as quietly as she could. The remaining few hours in her shift were uneventful…

Zuko was taking a walk in the beautiful royal gardens. It was still early in the morning, the colours of dawn on the horizon finally giving way to the blue of day. He tried to get up a little bit earlier, at least once a week and take a walk-through before anyone was there for the day, especially on days that he knew would be full-on and stressful.

Akin to the usually deserted garden, he noticed someone sitting on the palace's roof. He immediately recognised the person's back as belonging to Izara, from the long, deep brown braid moving in the wind. He stared at her for a short time, wondering exactly what she was doing up there before he decided to go and ask her himself.

With the help of some firebending to propel him up high enough, he landed almost silently on the rooftop. He strolled his way over to the young woman watching the sky. It was after her shift had finished, so he was confused why she hadn't gone inside yet. She didn't seem to notice his approach and ensured that his footsteps were audible so he didn't startle her. A slight turn of her head a moment later let him know that she was aware of his presence.

"Izara, may I join you?" He stood with his hands behind his back until she nodded in confirmation. He sat down, leant back onto her elbows and looked up at her, and she gave him an awkward smile before he spoke again. "You're up late." He made a joke, considering the hour of the day, not being late unless you worked through the night like she had.

"I couldn't really sleep. Just one of those times where you toss and turn for no apparent reason." Izara replied, and he nodded in understanding.

A few nights ago, Izara had burst into his room, ready to defend him after he had a horrible nightmare about fighting with his father. He must have made some noises in his sleep that alarmed her, and although he was shaken by the dream, her presence made him feel a lot better, so much so that he had asked her to stay until he had fallen back asleep.

"Speaking of sleep, I wanted to thank you for the other night," Zuko mentioned off-handedly. Still, he was earnest despite addressing it so casually.

"I'm not sure I actually helped. If anything, I probably startled you more, coming in through the window like that." Izara laughed softly, and Zuko knew she was trying to make him feel better.

"No, not at all. In fact, your presence was quite calming. I knew I was safe with you there. Now that I think about it, your entrance through the window was quite impressive." He laughed, pleased that she had a good sense of humour.

"I apologise for breaking the window latch too." She pursed her lips.

"Without trying to make you feel worse about it, most of the window frame had to be repaired. You pulled it open with such gusto." Zuko remembered the builder tutting himself as he assessed the damage.

"Sorry." Izara shrunk down.

"As I said, I was impressed. Nothing to apologise for. You were doing your duty." Zuko tried to ease her guilt and noticed her slump ease a little as if his words worked. She sobered for a moment, her demeanour changing.

"We all have strange dreams or horrible nightmares from time to time. The least I could do was make you feel like you could sleep soundly. I can't imagine how much stress your job creates, so getting a good rest is so important." The genuine concern in her voice made him smile for different reasons than her earlier joke had.

"I'm grateful for your assistance. In fact...come with me." He walked off purposefully and gracefully leapt down from the roof, and she followed suit.

Zuko led her to the library, where he ate most of his meals. If he tried to eat in his office, he wouldn't actually eat because he would be too busy working. If he attempted to eat in his chambers, he would stare at his bed and go to sleep instead of eating. The library, however, was relaxing enough for him to just sit and eat, though he still forgot to eat sometimes.

"Wait here. I won't be long." He gave her a soft command as he steered her into a seat at the table with several books he was reading sitting open on certain pages.

Before he even walked back through the door, she figured out what he was doing from the smell wafting through the hall. The kitchen staff walked in with full trays of various types of food, some that she didn't even recognise. Once they had finished placing the trays, plates and cutlery in front of her, Zuko sat down after thanking them for their hard work.

"If you can't sleep, then you may as well have something to eat. It's my way of saying thanks." Zuko smiled at her, and she returned it with one of her own. "How is the night shift so far? Aside from someone making strange noises." He asked her as he began putting a few bits and pieces of food on his plate.

"Uh, I've enjoyed it so far. I've never been a morning person, so it doesn't bother me to have a different sleeping schedule to most people." Izara responded and began putting some food on her plate, only doing so after he had started.

"I've been hearing some excellent feedback about you. I'm not surprised they got you to fill in, even if it's only temporary. Guozhi, Luan and Daiku have been really happy with your progress. Suki wants you to stop holding back, though." He added with a chuckle and a pointed stare. Maybe he would be able to get some information out of her.

"Holding back? Honestly, I'm nothing too fancy. I'm in awe of Suki's skill and the other Kyoshi Warriors. They're truly incredible. So graceful, but with such strength and power." Izara was clearly trying to direct the conversation elsewhere, but Zuko wanted to prod a little more.

"So I presume you picked up a lot of things while you were with your Uncle, but you still have to be incredibly smart to take in so much. Did you do any training with the military while you were there?"

A frustrated huff was her first response. "My Uncle was assigned to assist in training new recruits for the army when I came into his care. I snuck out of our house, followed him to the training grounds, and watched. When he got home one night, I showed him what I had seen, and he laughed at me. Not as in a 'Isn't that sweet' laugh, but a laugh as if I was that bad that he couldn't help but find it hilarious. The second time I asked him about firebending, he said that if I needed to ask for help, then I wasn't going to be a good enough firebender anyway and that I should give up."

Zuko had stopped eating at this point and just listened to her talk. She finally met his gaze and saw an angry expression on his face, and he was gripping his cutlery tightly.

"That sounds familiar to me…For what you have taught yourself, you have done very well. I'm also starting to wonder whether I should encourage your Uncle to retire somewhere far away. It may prevent me from punching him for how he has treated you." He continued eating, and the sound of Izara's laughter made him stop yet again.

She just laughed for at least half a minute, and he watched with a smile, glad to see that cheered her up. Colonel Uzan should have been encouraging and helpful rather than making her feel useless. He knew how terrible it was to feel worthless all the time. He thought they had been through similar life situations, which maybe was why he could relate to her so well. A part of him felt protective of her, but he didn't dwell on it. It seemed that their situations were similar but opposite. His own father had treated him like Izara's Uncle had treated her, and his own Uncle was more like a father figure.

"My Lord, I would very much enjoy seeing you punch my asshole of an Uncle in the face. If you decide to punch him, please make sure I am there to see it." She continued to chuckle softly.

"I may get in trouble, but I will keep it in mind." He smirked devilishly, and it made her laugh again.

"You are kind of a big deal around here. Don't know who you would get in trouble from." She responded, going along with his joke.

Her golden eyes lit up when she laughed, and her shoulders relaxed, making her feel better. Zuko enjoyed seeing her looking happy since her expressions were usually entirely blank. It seemed that she would get some dark enjoyment from seeing her Uncle take a hit. He wondered how he could do it without his advisors finding out, just to see her laughing face again. Maybe it was time for Blue Spirit to re-emerge?

After some more small talk, primarily impersonal things, they finished eating, and Izara got up to leave. Zuko also stood up, trying to be polite and chivalrous, as he was taught as a young boy. He was going to encourage her to stay longer and talk more with him, but he doubted she would agree, so he saved her the need to turn him down. She also needed to rest since she clearly hadn't gotten much sleep.

"My Lord, I am grateful for the meal and thank you for sharing it with me." She bowed low to show her gratitude, and he raised his hands in a gesture that he was more than happy to accommodate her.

"There is…one…no…two things you can do in return." He linked his hands behind his back and took a deep breath before continuing. His chest puffed out slightly more than usual. "One, you can train with me tomorrow." He held the correct amount of fingers up as he spoke.

"Of course, my Lord. I'm happy to help however I can. What time would you like to train?" She asked in response, and he tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling as he thought about what he had on tomorrow.

"Late afternoon is probably good for you now, right? How about 4 o'clock? I can leave the office a bit early." He offered, and she nodded in answer. "And two, I'll be grateful if you can keep an ear out for me while you're on night shift."

Her nod this time was much slower and more profound this time. There was a brief silence between them, but it wasn't awkward. The breeze outside was making the only noises, aside from the sound of the palace workers doing their duties.

"Excellent. I'll see you at 4 tomorrow then. Thank you again." Izara bowed, but he called her name before she could turn to leave.

"Izara. I must say that I don't think I've ever met anyone like you before. Thank you again." His voice was a bit softer and more profound than it usually was, and he wasn't quite sure what he was insinuating.

"Of course, my Lord. Whatever it is you need, I am at your service." She bowed low again.

"Goodnight, Izara. Rest well."

"Goodnight, my Lord." She gave him a smile that warmed his heart, and she disappeared through the doorway.

Zuko watched her leave before he took a deep breath to steel himself. He could acknowledge quite easily that Izara was an attractive woman. Still, he couldn't stop staring when she smiled at him. He was starting to very much enjoy her company, which he didn't find surprising. She was kind and bright, had a good sense of humour, and was very proud. He was pleased that he had decided to invite her to the Capital and that she had also agreed to come. It appeared to him, at least, that she was much happier already. He felt his heart thud in his chest as he thought of her smile and sighed exasperatedly.

He heard Sokka's laughter from down the hall in the opposite direction that Izara had gone in and knew that he needed to distract himself. His robes dragged on the floor behind him as he walked briskly down the hall and turned left, following the sound of Sokka talking to Suki. They stopped after he called out to them and backtracked to meet him.

"Hey, man. What is happening on your side of the palace?" Sokka spoke up first and then continued eating something that looked like small biscuits. Suki gave him a little wave of greeting.

"You guys know Izara, the new guard, right?" He couldn't stop his voice from wavering and continued once they had nodded. "So, the other night, she came into my chambers after thinking I was being attacked. I wasn't, but I had a bad dream. I asked her to stay until I went to sleep and just ate with her to thank her. I don't know why."

"WHAT?!" Sokka threw his hands up in shock, tossing the small biscuits all over the hall, and Zuko almost leapt backwards at his sudden outburst.

Being used to his antics, Suki didn't react at all and spoke to him quietly. "Hon, you dropped your biscuits. Or threw them…whatever." She exhaled as he ran around, picking them up and brushing them off before he continued eating them again. "Why didn't you say something sooner? Have you been sleeping okay?"

"Actually, I've been sleeping okay, but it was just that one night she happened to be right outside my chambers, checking the windows." He answered, pleased that his friends were concerned about him, but he was okay. "I went back to sleep pretty quickly afterwards. I felt okay with her there."

Sokka and Suki shared a knowing look with each other, seeming to have a conversation with their eyes before they both looked back to their Fire Lord friend.

"Zshuko. Lishen up mah frien." Sokka swallowed his mouthful of food and put his arm around Zuko's shoulder before continuing. "I think you clearly have a crush on this girl, and you should ask her out. Wouldn't this save you from being accosted by the noble families who want to organise marriages for their daughters?"

"I don't know if I'm ready for a relationship or if I even like Izara. I am happy to admit I find her attractive, but there's got to be more to it than that." Zuko had stopped walking by this point, and they were talking in the middle of the hallway.

"Look, I know it's been a while for you since Mai, but you're a charming guy. Just ask her out!" Sokka leapt animatedly over to Suki, put one hand on his hip, and pointed the other right in her face, making her tilt her head back. "Like this. Izaaarrraa. You are a woman, and I am a man. We should go on a date." Suki stood wide-eyed as Sokka yelled his best impersonation of Zuko's voice and then gently placed her hand over his face and pushed him away. Sokka landed quite loudly on his rear end with a grunt of complaint.

Though he desperately hoped he didn't look like that when interacting with Izara, he laughed anyway. He had become quite close with Sokka over the years, and he rarely failed to make him laugh, no matter the situation. Sokka was a good friend, and though nothing could stop his appetite or strange antics, he knew when to be serious. He was grateful for Sokka's confidence in him, despite the peculiar way he was expressing it.

"I'm so glad he didn't ask me out like that." Suki rolled her eyes at him before turning towards Zuko, ignoring Sokka's groans as he got to his feet. "Look, I think you like her, but take your time. See if you can spend more time with her and feel things out. The others will be here soon, so you can also talk to them about it."

"Thanks, guys," Zuko looked at his friends and smiled awkwardly.

"Anytime, my friend. I am a genius in many ways, but I will admit that the female mind is quite a difficult mystery to crack." Sokka placed his pointer fingers on Suki's temples, and she just sighed and pursed her lips. Behind her exasperated expression was genuine affection that she couldn't hide.

Sokka gave him a thumbs up before they bid each other goodnight and headed back to their respective rooms. He did tend to forget that he was Fire Lord sometimes when he was with Izara, and her presence the other night had been an incredible help. He couldn't reasonably deny that his heart had beat faster when he had seen her lately, but Suki was right. He would take his time and feel things out. With a sigh, he shut the door to his chambers, stripped off his clothes from the day, and hopped in the bath before going to bed for some much-needed rest.

Meanwhile, in her empty shared room, Izara was in the bath and had been for about 5 minutes now. She couldn't get Zuko out of her head, though. He was so different to anyone she had ever met before, and he had said the same thing about her earlier. She wasn't sure how he meant it, but hopefully not the wrong way. She thought of how he had smiled at her when he had said it and couldn't quite put her finger on what sort of smile it was. It seemed like a mix of contentment and admiration. The image of him in her mind made her smile as she stared into space. She ended up considering him for so long that the water had cooled down, and her skin was so wrinkly that she probably looked like she was 600 years old.

Once she'd dried off, she pulled her hair out from its braid and returned to her toiletries on the bathroom counter, including a hairbrush. After getting rid of her knots and tangles, she pulled her mostly clean bedclothes back on since she had only worn them this morning and had just had a bath to pass the time. She would be able to rest for an hour before she would need to get ready for her shift and report in, so when she returned to her shared room, she spent the time reading before she got ready for work.

After she signed in and went to her post, she kept her promise and stayed on high alert to listen out for the Fire Lord, wanting to ensure she did everything in her power to keep him safe…