The Banished Commander (ATLA fanfiction)

Twenty-two

Zara's P.O.V.

I scream out before grabbing my wrist, pulling it into my chest. I look at the fire nation army around me before immediately fleeing into the forest. 

"Zara! Wake up!" I hear Sokka call out 

I quickly shoot awake before looking around, taking a deep breath before seeing the others all looking at me with a worried look. 

"Zara, are you okay?" Katara asks 

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I brush off as I get up, starting to gather my things into my bag "We should get going." 

"We all know that was a lie. What's really going on?" Toph says 

"Is it something to do with your mark?" Aang asks "I know there have been rumors that some of the marks can hurt the users." 

I go silent before looking down at my mark. 

"It's nothing alright." I say "Don't worry about me. I should be the one worrying about you guys right now." 

"Don't try to pull that older crap. We're around the same age." Sokka says 

"Look, we haven't had to fight whatsoever, but we need to get moving. We need to get to Ba Sing Se as fast as possible." I argue 

The others look at me before starting to gather their stuff and getting ready to head towards the dam. 

-~- 

I look around the damn before I see a familiar face looking over at patrols before chuckling softly. One looks at me before smiling. I watch as Toph walks over to the ticket booth before I hear arguing. 

I look over to them to see Toph arguing with the ticket lady before Sokka looks back at me, motioning for me to head over. 

"You need to be here so we can get your ticket." He whispers 

I see Toph smirking before getting handed tickets, immediately handing them out to us. 

"The next boat doesn't leave for a few hours." She explains "We have time to rest, and time for Zara to explain everything going on with her mark." 

"No. We're done with that subject." I say "But we all need to rest." 

I look at her before sighing as she leads the way towards the rest area, watching as everyone is rushing around us. 

"Hard to believe you guys didn't recognize us." A voice says with a small laugh 

I look up to see Suki sitting on the edge before smiling as she takes her hat off. 

"You and the girls working?" I ask 

"Yeah. This was the place that needed the most help from us." She says 

I nod before looking down at my wrist, ignoring the burning before looking at Sokka is gushing over Suki. 

"Oh yeah Zara, there's someone that wants to see you. He should be here anytime." Suki says 

"And I hope that you're as excited as I am to see you." A voice says from behind me 

"Dad?!" I ask before looking behind me to see my dad

Zuko's P.O.V.

"You think Zara's been reunited with Jian?" I question 

"I don't know. We'll find out soon enough. He said that the next time he's in, he's staying in." Iroh says 

I look at him before nodding as I lean against the counter as I watch the people come in and out of the shop. 

"You going to try and talk to Zara the next time that you see her? Try to win her over before Jet does." Iroh asks 

I freeze before glancing at him before shaking my head. 

"Probably not. She's with the avatar, who I still have to catch in order to get my honor back." I grumble 

"Oh poor nephew, but if that's what you want to do, then alright." He says 

-~- 

I see Zara sitting in the window before looking back towards me with a smile on her face. I see the worry in her eyes before she immediately tries to cover it up. 

"What made you want to stay here?" She asks 

"Gives you time to rest. I can tell the mark is bugging you." I start "And I thought it would be a good idea for us both be able to rest without having to take turns." 

She chuckles before looking back out the window, watching as the different people wander by the inn we're at. 

"Zuko, why can't you see the evil that your father is doing?" She asks "Is it really that hard to see after traveling the world?" 

I sigh before taking a seat next to her before taking her hand. 

"I don't know how to describe it I guess." I start "But just like you want to make your dad proud, I want to do the same thing." 

She looks at the mark again before squeezing my hand as she looks back up at me. 

"I know it's stupid, but that's the best way to describe it." I say 

-~-

I sigh before going to get more tea ready as the big rush hour hits before the next ship arrives. 

Zara's P.O.V. 

I look at my dad before smiling softly. 

"Why didn't you tell anyone that you were alive?" I ask 

"The reason I had to fake my death in the first place." He explains "Ozai wouldn't have been too happy if I had returned after saving a whole village against us." 

I look at him before sighing as I look at the mark before I hear a commotion. 

"The mark bugging you?" He asks 

"Yeah. It's been burning since Zuko and I went our separate ways." I explain 

"Hmmmmm, that's weird. I haven't heard about it growing this late in life." He starts "We'll have to look more into when we get to Ba Sing Se." 

I nod before looking at the water, seeing the ship as it's pulling into docks. 

"Zara, there you are!" Katara says "I know you were enjoying spending time with your dad, but we're no longer taking the boat." 

"What?" I ask 

"The two other travelers that we were with, somebody stole their tickets and we're going to go through serpents trial to get to Ba Sing Se." She explains "But with your mark, we don't know if you want to come with us." 

I take a deep breath before glancing at my mark then back at the water. 

"Alright, I'm in. I can't leave you guys this far into the journey." I say "Let's get going." 

"Really? What about your dad?" She asks 

"I can meet you guys in Ba Sing Se." He says "Get going, it's going to be a long walk. Better do it in daylight." 

I look at my dad before smiling. My dad smiles before hugging me, holding me close before placing a kiss to my temple. 

"I'm so proud of you. I'll see you soon." He whispers 

"I love you dad." I whisper before letting go

I look at Katara before nodding as we head towards the gates, looking back once before smiling at my dad as he starts to help others get onto the ferry.