The Archer [Zuko]

➳ 4 ➳

I know how much Zuko hates sitting next to me in the caravan. He is so tense right now; I can feel his muscles every time the caravan jostles. It's almost funny, but I don't dare laugh out loud in front of him. Instead, I have a blank look on my face as I stare out the window. Daintily, I spread my skirt out on the seat, brushing against Zuko's leg. He jumps away from me, letting out a sigh.

"How much longer?" Zuko asks the driver of the caravan, leaning forward. 

"About five more minutes."

Zuko leans back with another sigh. I glance at him and nearly burst out laughing. He has a large frown on his face as he stares away from me. It's so funny the way he's acting right now. He's so awkward and nervous and just an overall mess. And it's all because of me.

"How great is this?" I ask him.

"How great is what?" 

"How great is it that we're all back together again?" I clarify. "You, me, Ty Lee, Azula, and Mai. We're all back together again."

"You weren't meant to be here," he mutters, not even looking at me. He crosses his arms over his chest, leaning closer to the window. He's trying to get away from me. "So, no, it's not great that we're all back together."

"Aw, is poor Zuzu upset that I'm here?"

His head whips toward me, his lips curling into a deeper frown. His eyes carry all of his anger in them; I can see fires burning behind them, ready to hurt anyone who attempts to get close to him. "Do not call me Zuzu."

"Is Azula the only one who can call you that?" I blink innocently, giving him a soft smile. "You have always had a soft spot for her. She's your sister, so I understand it."

"You don't understand anything that I've been through."

That's true, I guess. I don't have any siblings, and I wasn't burned and banished by my own father when I was thirteen. However, I do understand what it's like to be hated by my own people. The Yuyan Archers don't like me at all because I shouldn't have their tattoo on my face since I'm a girl. It doesn't help that I'm a much better archer than they are. I don't understand his life, but he doesn't understand mine, either. That's where his faults lie; ever since he was a little boy, Zuko loved to tell other people that they don't understand him and what he's been through. He's never even asked me why I hated going home when I was little, why I didn't want to be back with the Yuyan Archers. He's always caught up in his little world, never giving time of day to anyone else. 

"No, I guess I don't understand what you've been through," I say lightly, "but you have no idea what I've been through." A questioning look appears in his eyes, so I shrug. "You don't deserve to know, though." Turning my head away from him, I glance out the window. I've gotten him under my spell for right now, which is exactly what I wanted to happen. 

"What happened to you, Heiza?"

For some silly reason, when he said my name just now, a small thrill runs down my spine. Instead of using his angry tone, he is gentle, something I never would have thought Zuko could be. "I told you," I say, throwing him a glare over my shoulder, "I'm not telling you."

"Why not?"

"Just like the same reason you don't tell anyone how you truly feel about coming home." I look back at him and purse my lips together. He has a strange look on his face, like he is actually worried about me. "Sometimes, it's better to keep secrets . . . well, a secret. That way, you're the only person who knows how things were, and you'll be proud of yourself for how far you've come from the past."

"That's actually inspiring," Zuko said softly. He doesn't look as tense right now. 

"Yeah, I can be that sometimes." I swallow and shrug. I have no idea why I'm acting like this in front of him. None of this awful childhood nonsense was part of my plan. I didn't have a terrible childhood; it was more of a boring childhood than anything else. "I can be a lot of things if I set my mind to it."