Chapter 2: What Are You Doing?

Zara had been in awe of the war balloon that Zuko had managed to obtain. Such a giant object was able to be lifted into the air by means of fire bending! The fire prince had taken on that job as she looked out at the world around them. Her orange-gold eyes took in the sights eagerly and she asked him so many questions about everything she could think of. If he was annoyed, he didn't show it beyond his gruff grumpiness-- she had a feeling that was his default mood. But after so long, he stopped just answering questions and instead began to divulge his adventures from around the world. His surly demeanor softened when talking about his Uncle. Sadness warred with fondness and guilt.

The girl remembered a man during her captivity. Azulon had originally caged her, the previous fire lord. He was a miserable old man whom the current fire lord took after. But there was the other son, one who was rather portly yet strong. He was a force not to be reckoned with...with a gentle smile. He would bring her tea whenever he came back to the palace. It was their secret but he had promised her that when he became the next fire lord, he would set her free and she could go home... it was a promise that couldn't be fulfilled when his younger brother was declared the new fire lord. But when he came to apologize for not being able to let her go, she forgave him. She made a promise to him that she would never give up, that she wouldn't give in. And he reflected that promise with a smile and showing her a single Pai Sho tile, one with a pretty flower on it. To this day, she still didn't understand why he showed her that tile but she knew it meant something.

"What are you doing?" Zara asked, trying to keep her face blank as she watched Zuko from her seat on a fallen log. She had leaned forward and put her cheek in her palm as watched him talk...to a frog. All those adventures and so much ingenuity... he set her free... and now he loses his mind?

Zuko had just finished proposing to teach the Avatar firebending and the frog just watched him before ribbiting. Was that a yes? Was this the Avatar that both Azulon and now Ozai were so worried about? He sighed and went to sit next to her. "I'm practicing. It's not like I have a good relationship with the Avatar and his comrades." His voice was still sullen but it was softer, like he wasn't feeling very confident.

"...and you chose to talk to that creature than with me? You know I can actually respond, right?"

He huffed, running a hand through his short hair. "Like it matters! They'll probably attack before I even greet them... and if, by some miracle, they let me talk, there's no way they'll let me near the very person I've spent so much time trying to capture! This is such a stupid plan!"

She raised her eyebrow, asking, "So why do this if you think it will fail?"

Zuko stayed quiet for a moment before taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "Because it's the right thing to do... and it'll make my uncle proud."

She snorted. "So even now, you're focusing on what everyone else expects of you. Do you want to do this or are you only doing it for your uncle?"

He stood up, clearly upset at her words. "Shut up! Why does it matter why I am doing this?! It's still the right thing to do! My father is a monster and the only way to stop him is with a fully-trained Avatar!" Flames sparked at his clenched fists. "And who cares if I want to make Uncle proud?! It's my business, it's my decision, and I'm gonna do it whether they like it or not! Even if they won't accept me at first, I can't give up! I'll just have to follow them until they do let me train him!"

Zara stood up and took a single step, her own flames sparking around her foot as her orange-gold eyes locked onto Zuko's. "Then do it. Stop talking to creatures and psyching yourself out. I didn't choose to follow a coward who loses his confidence at the first step. Make your plan, commit to it, and if it blows up in your face, try again. Your uncle is no coward and neither are you."

His body position, tense with the expectation to fight the formerly caged girl, suddenly relaxed at the realization that she wasn't about to attack. She was actually trying to...cheer him up or something, he wasn't quite sure. But it was rather assuring. "...right..."

"Your uncle would be proud of you no matter what you do. But do it because you want to and not to please anyone else. I remember a man who was once destined to become the fire lord... he was a general and the previous crown prince. He looked at me, the greatest secret that his father, that your grandfather, kept and he visited me so I would not be lonely anymore, so I would not be only visited by a hateful senile old fool who dreamed of a world under the fire nation flag. I asked him why he was so nice to me...do you know what he said?" At Zuko's shaking head, she chuckled and replied, "He said that sharing tea with a friend makes it taste better..."

The sound of a hand hitting a forehead could be heard but she paid no mind to it. She was slipping into better memories. "He was right. He had a plan of letting me go once he was crowned the fire lord so I would not be recaptured. He said it was best to follow the appropriate channels. And when that failed, he came right to me and apologized to me. He begged me not to give up because my light, even in that gilded prison, was too bright to allow to snuff out. I had no plan, no real way of gaining my freedom...but I still did no give up and I promise him that I would wait and listen until the time was right. That I would be free one day and we would share tea again outside of that room. And for over 3 years, I held onto that memory and imagine my surprise when a young man, the returned prince, entered that room and chose treason by stealing the fire lord's heirloom prize? Breaking protocol and risking his station and his life to let a caged bird free? Keep that conviction. Strategy is nothing if you lack the conviction to follow through with your plan because you might fail..."

Zara stretched and ran a hand through her thick red hair. "Now, are you finished talking to that frog? Can we just go get the answer you seek or do you need more time to prepare?"

10 minutes later, she was slumped against a tree, laying in the shade as she watched the prince try to mimick his uncle and his sister for ideas on what to say to get the Avatar and his entourage to accept his offer. Her eyes fluttered shut, determined not to watch any longer. After that whole speech, it was reduced to wasted breath and an admittedly nice trip down memory lane.