The Fire Within - an atla fanfic (Zuko x OC)

I Need No Sympathy

I followed Zuko and Iroh on the docks as they went to get repairs done on the badly battered ship. I didn't really want to follow them, but Iroh had suggested I get accustomed to how things were here.

"Uncle, I want the repairs made as quickly as possible. I don't want to stay too long and risk losing his trail." Zuko said in his usual tone.

"You mean the Avatar?" Iroh questioned. I followed them shyly, keeping to myself.

Zuko fumed. "Don't mention his name on these docks! Once word gets out that he's alive every firebender will be out looking for him and I don't want anyone getting in the way."

"Getting in the way of what, Prince Zuko?" A man said.

I looked up and saw a pretty ugly guy who was dressed in fire nation clothes; I assumed he was some sort of high ranking official.

"Captain Zhao." Zuko responded with distaste.

"It's Commander now. And General Iroh --great hero of our nation." Zhao said whole giving a short bow.

"Retired general." Iroh corrected.

Zhao looked at me with interest for slightly too long for my liking. "And who might you be?" He asked.

"Her name is Ash-Lee." Zuko said while giving me a warning glance.

I narrowed my eyes slightly and then gathered my composure as I realized he was making my name sound more authentic.

Zhao eyed me carefully. "You've got light hair, I've never seen it like that before."

"Days in the sun tend to do that." I said curtly, giving him a slight bow. I didn't know the gestures of this place, but I assumed bowing was correct.

Zhao ignored my comment and looked back at the prince. "The Fire Lord's brother and son are welcome guests any time. What brings you to my harbor?"

"Our ship is being repaired." Iroh replied

"That's quite a bit of damage." Zhao said, examining the ship.

"Yes... you wouldn't believe what happened." Zuko said, while looking at Iroh and I for support. "Tell Commander Zhao what happened."

"Yes, I will do that. It was incredible." Iroh answered. "What... did we crash or something?" He said, sounding unsure.

"Uh, yes!" Zuko replied.

"Right into an Earth Kingdom ship." I added in, sounding much more sure than the both of them were.

"Really? You must regale me with all the thrilling details. Join me for a drink?" Zhao challenged Zuko.

"Sorry, but we have to go." Zuko replied, taking a step to keep walking.

"How about you, missy?" Zhao asked, giving me a strange look.

I scrunched up my face. "I need to stay with Prince Zuko and Iroh."

Zhao looked at me and my two acquaintances. "Hm... so that's what you do." I he stated suggestively.

Zuko looked at Zhao with anger as I looked at the ground, trying my best to hold my temper. Was he assuming I was a prostitute?

"Prince Zuko, show Commander Zhao your respect. We would be honored to join you. Do you have any ginseng tea? It's my favorite." Iroh said to Zhao while placing a hand on Zuko's shoulder.

Zuko and I exchanged an angry glance and begrudgingly followed Zhao and Iroh down the dock.

Zuko and I lagged behind. "I don't like this guy." I whispered.

Zuko nodded. "You shouldn't."

We walked into Zhao's tent and settled down.

"... By year's end, the Earth Kingdom capital will be under our rule." Zhao said as he went over plans.

As I listened to Zhao, I was able to piece together the Fire Nation's existence much better. They were conquerors, and Zuko's father was the man on top. I tried to hide my fear.

As Zuko and I sat down in chairs, listening to Zhao, I couldn't help but feel entirely uncomfortable. I looked over at Zuko cautiously, who made eye contact with me for an awkward moment. Zuko was a bad person. He wanted to take the avatar who was the one who could stop the 100 year war. And who knows what Iroh had done. I was placed in a box full of war criminals.

"The Fire Lord will finally claim victory in this war." Zhao continued.

"If my father thinks the rest of the world will follow him willingly, then he is a fool." Zuko retorted.

Zhao sat down at the desk in front of us. "Where did you come from?" He asked me.

I released my hands from each other and fumbled my fingers together. "I'm from the city." I responded reluctantly.

"From the capital city." Zuko added in.

I nodded quickly. "My father is a... noble." I said with a hint of questioning. "But now I'm here."

"I'm going to drop her off at one of the fire nation colonies; she is doing an internship there." Zuko added.

"That's why one of those earth kingdom ships hit into ours!" I finished. "Because we were going to the fire nation colonies." I smiled slightly to myself, proud of what I had made up with Zuko.

"Uh-huh. I believe I'll have to trust you." Zhao responded, suspicious. "What's your fathers name?" He questioned.

"None-yah." I snapped at him.

"None-yah what?"

"Non-yah business!" I retorted.

Zuko tried to contain his laughter. and I giggled too, satisfied that someone found that funny. I assumed Zuko had never heard a joke like that before.

"So, how is your search for the Avatar going?" Zhao asked Zuko after a few moments, totally ignoring me now.

Iroh knocked over a bunch of weapons and we all stared at him. "My fault entirely." He said sheepishly.

"We haven't found him yet." Zuko responded to Zhao.

"Did you really expect to? The Avatar died a hundred years ago-- along with the rest of the airbenders." Zhao questioned.

I looked at Zuko in confusion as he stared at Zhao's desk in distaste. I nodded slightly to myself and added genocide to the list of Fire Nation qualms I had discovered.

"...Unless you found some evidence that the Avatar is alive." Zhao said after a moment.

"No. Nothing." Zuko said; still looking away.

"Prince Zuko, the Avatar is the only one who can stop the Fire Nation from winning this war. If you have an ounce of loyalty left, you'll tell me what you've found." Zhao said authoritatively while standing up from his chair.

"I haven't found anything." Zuko responded defiantly. "It's like you said. The Avatar probably died a long time ago. Come on, Uncle, Ash-Lee, we're going."

We stood up to leave but guards came and blocked us.

"Commander Zhao, we interrogated the crew as you instructed. They confirmed Prince Zuko had the Avatar in custody, but let him escape." A guard said to Zhao.

I internally panicked as I realized this could jeopardize my chances of finding a way home.

"Now, remind me... how exactly was your ship damaged?" Zhao questioned Zuko

I looked to my left to see Zuko looking down in defeat, which only made my fears worse.