By Your Side (Zuko x Reader) (Sequel to Torn Heart)

Chapter 13

No one's POV:
The next day, Zuko found himself alone in the gardens, watching the turtleducks. Everything was right again. The Avatar had to be truly dead now, Y/N at least tolerated his father, and Azula was behaving...for now...as far as he knew.
Zuko sensed someone's presence and looked around, seeing his father coming up beside him. "Father," he jumped up and bowed momentarily.
Ozai sat on the bench Zuko had been on and the latter stayed standing, "How are you, my son?"
"Fine—Good," Zuko kept his eyes on the turtleducks—simply to watch them, not because he was nervous. Not at all.
"Where's Y/N today?"
Zuko fought a smile at the fact that he remembered her name, "She's with Azula and the girls today...They're shopping or getting their hair done, something, girls things, you know. I'm happy—"
"Your sister told me she's from the Earth Kingdom, is that true?" Ozai interrupted.
"Y-Yes,"
"Ba Sing Se?"
"No," Zuko said, before he could think better of it, "She's from a smaller village on the coast."
Ozai frowned and Zuko pressed on, "What do you think of her? She's lovely, isn't she?"
            "Yes, very pretty," Ozai admitted, "But do you think it wise to court a girl from an insignificant little village? You're not serious about her, right? She's just a pastime."
            Zuko's first instinct was to say yes, Y/N wasn't important to him, but he knew that wasn't true. He needed to hang onto her, and he wouldn't be able to lie good enough about this anyway. "No, I'm serious about her. I really like her. I might even want to marry her."
Ozai chuckled, and Zuko tried his best to ignore the shudder he gave, "My son, girls like Y/N make for fine distractions, but if you're to be Fire Lord you need to sire a heir. You need a wife of good stock—like Mai."
            "Mai's great, but we didn't work as a couple. I just don't love her. Y/N I love. Isn't that the important part?"
            Ozai made a derisive sound—almost a snort, "I didn't love your mother."
            "Y-You didn't?"
            "You never were the brightest torch in the room, Zuko," his father grumbled and Zuko pretended the comment didn't sting.
            "Love is fine for the peasantry. But we are royalty, we don't have the luxury of such things. We were made for better, yes?"
             "Yes, sir,"
             Ozai stood, "Good boy."
             "You love me though, right?" Zuko blurted, surprising himself. He'd never dared to ask, not because there was no doubt, but more because he shouldn't have to.
             Ozai turned to face him and smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes, "My son, how could you ask such a thing? You are my heir, the hero of the Fire Nation. All of that messy business is behind us now that you've learned your place. Let's not cause more problems with silly questions or silly girls, understand?"
             "Yes, sir," Zuko said again.

My POV:
Shit was hitting the fan on my end too. "You seem so down today, Y/N," Azula side-eyed me from where she sat getting her hair done.
I met her gaze the best I could out my periphery, another servant's hands in my hair, "I guess I'm just worried about Zuko is all."
"Worried about him?" she purred, "Why? He seemed fine to me."
You don't know him like I do, was the first thought to come to me, but instead I said, "He just seems like he gets jumpier and jumpier every day. He tries to hide it, and sometimes he relaxes, but something is making him nervous."
"Hmm, I wonder what..." Azula mused, in a tone that made my skin crawl, "You said he doesn't hide anything from you so..."
Just like that, something in me snapped. From the weight of my guilt, to the back and forth with my boyfriend, to Azula's passive-aggressive bullshit, I was done.
I jumped out of my seat, ignoring the servant behind me yelping in surprise, "I've had it! Cut the shit and tell me the truth, Azula."
"The truth?" the princess echoes, midway through examining her nails. Her tone was still innocent, but the look she gave me made my blood run cold.
"Zuko said you like to lie, and you've been lying circles around me since you laid eyes on me, but I'm done with your games, Princess. How do you really feel about me and what do you know?"
Whatever mask of naivety she wore fell away, as Azula gestured to the servants to leave us. Once we were alone, she stood too, with the grace of a tigerdillo ready to pounce and made me regret facing her head-on.
"You want the truth? It's unbecoming of both of us, but fine—you are nothing more than an Earth Kingdom slut, playing princess dress-up. You and your people—your tiny nothing village, your little band of misfits traipsing after the Avatar are like ants to the Fire Nation. My brother's too weak to notice. You have him fooled—and Ty Lee and Mai, but not me! You're all too small minded and that will be your downfall,"
By now she was inches from my face, but I forced myself to stay still, "I don't care what you think. I love Zuko and he loves me. Ty Lee and Mai are my friends—I want to be friends with you too. But if I'm too small-minded because I value others, then that's fine with me."
"You value others, do you?" Azula spit back, "You watched me strike down your friend without barely blinking!"
That's right-I had been friends with the woman who had killed my friend these past few weeks! What was wrong with me?!
"You think Zuko loves you!?" she continued, "You think he values you as much as you do him!? You want to see how deluded you are!? Ask him if the Avatar is really dead!"
My breath caught in my throat. "What are you talking about?" I choked out, losing my composure completely.
Azula laughed as the room started to spin, "You want to know why ZuZu's so jumpy? Huh? Ask him—and don't come crying to me when your little charade ends. Just see yourself out!"
The last part of her sentence was drown out by the door closing behind me as I raced out.
             I stormed down the hall towards Zuko and my bedroom, panicked thoughts spinning out of control.
             It can't be.
             It's impossible.
             Aang. Is. Dead.
             He can't be alive.
             Because if Aangs alive...
             I abandoned him.