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

Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Zuko's bladder woke him a couple hours later, and he did his best to be stealthy as he got up from the bed without waking Izara. Judging by how she didn't stir, she must have been too exhausted to be disturbed by his movements. Once he'd gone to the bathroom and relieved himself, he headed downstairs, intent on getting some work done while she rested. A decent pile of paperwork was on the coffee table, and he was still working through it. Hopefully, Izara would rest soundly while he got some things done. He sat down and got to work.

It took him through until the late afternoon, and Izara eventually came down from upstairs. He didn't move from his spot, just watching how she descended the stairs without much difficulty. She looked pale and a bit tired, but a hint of a shy smile on her face put him at ease. He sat back against the front of the lounge as he looked at her, his heart swelling with fondness and concern. He'd moved to sit on the floor a while ago, spreading some of his work into piles, sorted based on urgency to start from the most pressing and continue from there. She came over and sat beside him, her expression becoming a little sheepish. Her gaze was on the papers, purposely not looking at him as she rubbed the back of her neck.

"Um, I want to apologise." Her eyes darted around, only briefly landing on him before moving away.

Zuko relaxed, his shoulders dropping with his exhale. He picked up some papers and put them behind him to shuffle closer to her. Now that there wasn't a physical boundary between them, she dropped her eyes to the floor again. He rested his elbow on the lounge cushion, then his jaw on his hand to show she had his full attention.

"It's true that I did manipulate you to get the reaction I needed, but I just wanted to be seen as the bigger prize at that moment. If they took me, that means they wouldn't hurt or try to take you." She explained with trepidation in her voice.

He breathed slowly and nodded. "I can understand that. I can't say I appreciate the manipulation, but I know you were trying to protect me."

"I shouldn't have acted like that before. I know you saw right through me, but I apologise anyway." She faced him squarely, tucking her legs partly underneath her, but still didn't look at him.

"It's okay. It stung a little because you made it personal, but I understand."

"You understand?" She asked him with an eyebrow raised in question.

"You've been trying to push me away for a while." He answered, but her expression didn't change.

Zuko desired to tell her everything and put everything out in the open so she knew exactly what he was thinking and feeling. Before they moved forward together, he wanted to help her deal with the recent past. The reason it happened was because she was protecting himl. He shuffled a little closer and held out his hand, asking her to hold it. She gently put her hand in his but didn't look at him yet.

"So, I wanted to come here with you to take you away from everything for a few days. I hoped that maybe you would talk to me about what happened to you, but every time I try to bring it up, you brush it aside like it's nothing. I'm sure you're probably doing it to stop me worrying, but it's only making me worry more. It must have been worse than I could imagine if you won't tell me about it..." He started slowly, and her worry faded as she realised he was okay but concerned about her.

"I can't take your pain away. I just want to be able to share the burden, even if it's only one of knowledge. Before, when you told me about manipulating me, I knew it was because you were just trying to push me away. I-I can't handle it." As he finished, his eyes were on his lap, staring at their interlinked hands. He knew his eyes were glassy but tried to stave off the tears.