Where There Is Smoke, There Is Fire [Avatar: The Last Airbender Fanfic]

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Flicking through archives was boring, but he had a noble cause. He knew that Izara's father would have some reports from his time serving in the Navy and wanted to see if he could find them. Although he wasn't sure how Izara would feel about it, he thought it would be nice to at least give her something else to remember her father by. Perks of being the Fire Lord. He had declined help from the staff to find what he was looking for since it was about him doing something thoughtful for her.

Finally, he found the correct time frame and shifted his weight in a tiny jump of excitement. Using his fingers to go through each sheet of paper, he eventually found the right one. It was a stack of reports bound together from Zaigan, and Zuko carefully pulled it out. They were all from when he was blocking the supply line at Kovu Cliffs, and he carefully looked through them until he was satisfied that this was what he wanted.

Izara was meeting him after her afternoon shift, so he planned to find what he was looking for after his work for the day was done and show her later. He left the archives and trudged back up the stairs to his own chambers, where she was meeting him. While he was waiting, he brushed his hair and pulled it back, trying to look somewhat presentable. The archives were a rather stuffy, dusty place, so he also changed his clothes.

Perfect timing, he thought as she knocked on the door to let him know she was there. He called out to allow her entry, and she entered, closing the door behind her and smiling at him as he emerged from the bathroom.

"Hi," he said with a boyish smile and ushered for her to sit down.

Now she was here, he had a teapot set up for them and used firebending to bring the water to the right temperature. He held the metal steeper in his other hand, already prepped with green tea from his Uncle. She observed him carefully, still unsure why he'd asked her to come and see him.

"So, I wanted to show you something." He said while holding his hand under the teapot to warm the water inside.

"Mmm?" She enquired with a questioning inflection.

"Your father. I know you don't really remember him, but I wanted to find something to help you understand what he was like." He wasn't looking at her, watching the water begin to bubble instead, but he felt her gaze sharpen.

"Did you find his old navy reports?" She asked curiously.

"Quick on the uptake." He huffed softly. "I did. If you don't want to read them, I understand. But I just thought you'd like the option."

Finally making eye contact with her, her face was a blank mask. She was either unsure what to feel or wanted to hide it from him. He held her gaze momentarily and saw it gradually soften as she lowered her guard. It must have been instinctual for her to be ready for anything; he didn't take any offence to it. Although she had seemed to adjust to life in the Palace, some things never went away. From what he could glean, she had a tough life after her parents passed, so it would have been so ingrained for her to never relax.

After what seemed like an hour of complete silence between them, she eventually smiled at him, breaking her composure. Now that he'd gotten a reaction, he focused back on the water and realised it needed to cool for a moment before he put the tea in. He'd let it get too hot while he'd been distracted as he tried to calculate what was going through Izara's mind.

"Why did you do that?" She was intrigued but sat back in her chair nonchalantly.

"I remember my mother from when I was younger, but aside from my Uncle, most of my memories of my family aren't great." He absent-mindedly brushed his fingers over his scar. "I thought it would be nice for you to better understand what your father was like. As I said, no pressure. Just perks of being the boss, I guess." He shrugged and smirked to lighten the mood.