𝑺𝑬𝑬𝑫 𝑶𝑭 𝑰𝑪𝑯𝑶𝑹 •𝒃𝒙𝒃•

26 ~ price of forgiveness

Zuko stumbled backwards, head snapping to the side. Guren went after him, hand reaching forward, grabbing the boy by the front of his shirt just to bring him back in for another punch. The next one hurt more, pain flaring up in his knuckles, but he didn't stop.

"After all that you've done, you think you can just waltz back into our fucking lives?!" He pushed Zuko away, watched him trip over his own feet and crumble to the ground. Just like that, Zuko stayed on the ground, not bothering to get up. Guren stepped towards him and bent down, grabbing him by his shirt yet again. "Things don't work like that!" As he held him, he whipped his other fist forward. "Aang almost died because of you!"

Still, Zuko welcomed each hit with open arms. He didn't struggle, he didn't fight back, he didn't even say a single word or argue back against Guren. Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

"Fight back, you coward!"

He didn't, and it angered Guren more than fighting back would've.

"Fight!" Another hit. "Back!"

Zuko clenched his eyes shut and shook his head. "No!"

That stilled Guren's onslaught of punches.

"I didn't come here to fight!"

His nails dug into the palm of his hand as he pulled his arm back up, fist shaking in anticipation. His heart drummed in his chest, adrenaline pumping through his veins. His lips parted as harsh breaths left him, eyes darting at each part of Zuko's bloodied face. As he prepared himself to continue, he faltered upon spotting the blood on his fist.

It was Zuko's, and his own.

In an instant, he released his hold on the other boy and stepped back. Zuko coughed, blood splatting against the vibrant, green grass.

Ah, to think that he contemplated-

Guren looked at his hands, at the shakiness of them, and at that which stained them. For a single, fleeting moment, he looked back at Zuko, before he turned around and walked away.

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Like that, he left him on the forest floor and walked away, flexing and relaxing his hand, wincing at the burning sensation of his knuckles. He was bleeding. He was in pain. He was angry. He was everything bad, and yet not even a spark of flames appeared. He should've made peace with it already, but it seemed that he had not...

And now he had Zuko to deal with as well. He...knew he'd see him again, it was inevitable, but he didn't think it would be so soon. He wanted to talk with Aang and the others first, talk about everything that happened, everything that led to this moment, and then deal with Zuko.

But no! No, it had to happen now, of all times!

Now Zuko wanted to join them to teach Aang Firebending? Was he serious? Did he think one good deed was enough to erase all the bad he had done before? Especially after what happened in Ba Sing Se.

Damn it.

_

It took him a while to pinpoint the exact place of the temple, but he managed. He didn't know why this place was the first thing to pop into his mind when he thought about where Aang would go. It...simply made sense. He wasn't sure Aang would even be here, but since Zuko was near this place...it only meant that Guren's guess was correct.

After all, Zuko never failed to find the Avatar.

Sighing, he stood on the edge of the cliffside and stared down at the concealed temple. Now, all he needed to figure out was how to get down there...

Shame he didn't bring a rope.
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Thankfully, his childhood hobby of climbing pretty much anything came in handy in situations like this one. Albeit...he was more used to climbing up rather than down, but...oh well.