Jaded Petals ↛ Zuko x OC ✔️

06 | Kyoshi Island

Three years had passed, which was more than amount of time that Daiyu was supposed to stay on Kyoshi Island. Taolan, who was not really Daiyu's uncle, had trained her for those three years and she had managed to master the element. She had gained friends and even joined the Kyoshi warriors. She was the only bender out of the warriors, but they had much appreciated her Earthbending skills and saw it as a valuable tool whenever things got beyond their control even though it was rare for them to have ever fought anyone outside of the island. Iroh had sent her letters every week and every now and then, she had a personal letter from Zuko as he had told her his small adventures in finding the Avatar. They weren't much since they had been traveling around the South Pole for a long time, and she could tell that it was wearing down on him.

Changyang had wrote her letters too, even Enlai and Liwei with a letter once a month from the Fire Lord once in a while to ask her about her progress and if she would be returning to the Fire Nation. The only reason why she stayed on Kyoshi Island was her fear of going back to the palace by herself was because of her being of age of being a concubine and because Iroh had persuaded her not to return without him.

Today was the day she received all her letters for the new week, sitting in her room in Taolan's home and reading what Iroh had wrote her today. A few weeks ago, they had found the Avatar and she was surprised to know that it was a twelve-year-old, airbending monk. She thought that all the airbenders had died, but miraculously the Avatar after Roku had survived. Zuko seemed quite excited too on her letter before, but then frustrated since he was not able to successfully capture him a few times. Still, it made her happy to know that he had hope in returning home. She could tell how much Zuko wanted to get back under his father's good gracious and return to the Nation that he loved and adored, and also wanted to rule one day. If only she was there to save him when he was in an Agni Kai with Ozai. She wondered how badly his face was scarred as Iroh had portrayed it. "Daiyu, are you okay? You've been in your room all day." Her door had slowly opened revealing a girl with short, auburn hair and chocolate brown eyes.

Daiyu had immediately sat up, "I was reading letters from my family." She smiled softly, Suki giving her a small smile. "You sure do have a lot of family, huh?" Daiyu shook her head, "Only two of them are family, three are from friends, and one..." How was she going to explain about the one from Fire Lord Ozai, "was from someone I sort of knew." Suki knew that Daiyu wasn't telling her the whole truth. "You know, I know you grew up in the Fire Nation, you've told me that. That last person didn't seem like someone you felt comfortable with." Suki was good at reading people, wasn't she? "Well, it's from Fire Lord Ozai." Daiyu had answered truthfully, her Kyoshi Warrior leader looking with wide eyes. "What? Why is he sending you letters?" The Earthbender had patted her bed, indicating for the nonbender to sit next to her. Suki had walked over and sat down, Daiyu still holding Iroh's letter. "The Fire Lord wants me to be his concubine or at least he was considering it." She had informed her in which her friend had gasped. "It's not really a surprise you know. That's all the Fire Lord can really see me as. I can't be a wife to anyone in the Fire Nation and so the next thing is a concubine."

"But you don't want to do that, right? Daiyu you are so pretty and talented, one of the smartest people I know. You've taught us, the Kyoshi Warriors and I, about astronomy and math and such pretty calligraphy and history..." The green-eyed girl smile at the brunette's words, "Thank you, Suki. You're a magnificent person too and I have loved meeting you all and sharing my knowledge with you all, but..." Daiyu had closed her eyes had Suki had held the girl's hands, "I have found homes in the people that lived there and... I never want to let them go. And they might not be there now, but they will be there soon and I want to be there with them even if it means I must endure being the concubine of the Fire Lord." Her friend had frowned deeply, squeezing her friend's hands. Just the thought of being a concubine had made Daiyu ill, but if she could continue to live with Iroh and Zuko, she had felt that she was willing to risk giving up her body for them. "You must really care about them." Suki had then said as Daiyu opened her eyes, giving her a small smile. "They both mean a lot to me. I'll give up everything for them."