[Earth on Fire] Zuko x OC

Chapter 1: The Princess of Omashu

DISCLAIMER FOR THE ENTIRE STORY: All characters, dialogue, scenes, settings, and storylines that you recognize from the series Avatar: The Last Airbender do not belong to me and are the intellectual property of Viacom, Nickelodeon, Michael Dante DiMartino and Brian Konietzko. Any original content and characters are mine.

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"I'll take three mangoes, two papayas, and a bottle of lychee juice please," I said, glancing over the other delicacies available in the bustling Omashu market.

"Good choice," the shopkeeper smiled. "Can I interest you in one of these necklaces as well?" he asked, holding up a chain with a glowing green rock pendant. "It's made of genomite," he explained as I watched with wide green eyes. "Makes for an excellent snack."

"I'll take two," I decided, handing over a few more gold pieces. "One for my grandfather as well."

"Ah, yes, King Bumi does love creeping crystal," the shopkeeper said. "Thank you, Princess. Have a wonderful day!"

"You as well, Liu!" I waved as I walked through the streets of my kingdom, enjoying the pleasantly busy atmosphere of the city. I was thankful for the ability to be able to roam without encountering trouble; even as the granddaughter of the king, most people payed me no mind. Granted, dressed in a simple tunic and pants, I was a lot less noticeable than when I donned my palace gown.

Glancing around, I took in the sights and sounds: shopkeepers haggling with customers, children screaming with delight as they ran around the square while their mothers stood and gossiped nearby, the delivery system carts whizzing down their tracks - Omashu was truly a peaceful kingdom, a wonderful place for a girl to grow up.

So why did I feel so trapped?

Sighing, I sat down on the edge of a delivery cart intersection. I pulled out a mango and bit into it, enjoying the juicy sweet flavor as I gazed across my city. What I wanted more than anything else was to travel the world, but I knew my grandfather would never allow it. After both my parents were killed in the Fire Nation war, Bumi had grown deeply protective of me, his only granddaughter.

As I was mulling over my thoughts, a loud scream captured my attention. Looking up, I gasped and jumped out of the way just as a cart full of people sped through the intersection, knocking over a few other carts, skidded down a roof and landed in one of the passages.

Leaping to my feet, I stared at the cart. I could see three people, two dressed in blue and the third with an insane amount of white hair on his head. Intruders! Thinking quickly, I leapt into one of the carts they had knocked over and used my earthbending to propel myself into the chute behind them.

They were quite a ways ahead of me, but I used my bending to get within range. I stood on the cart like a surfboard, weaving through the tunnels so I didn't lose them. The boy in blue turned around and looked at me. I narrowed my eyes back at him and he turned to the front.

"We've got company!" he warned. The other two turned to stare at me as well.

"Aang, do something! Use your airbendng!" girl cried. I blinked, almost missing the turn. Airbending? Had I heard right? As far as I knew, the Air Nomads had been wiped out ages ago.

"Yeah, good idea!" the voice that came from the big haired man was much too high to belong to an adult. "That'll make us go even faster!" Before my eyes, the cart shot forward as dust was propelled backwards. Coughing, I narrowed my eyes further and shot myself forward as to not lose them.