Ash [Prince Zuko - Book Two]

❃Chapter Twelve❃

Rain trickled down from the sky, soaking Asake down to the core. A cool breeze blew through the walled area she found herself in, trying to hide underneath a makeshift earthen tent one of the homeless must have created. The tent was too small for her, only hiding away her feet from the rain. She didn't care enough to cover the rest of her body, though; the rain created a numb feeling in her, which was exactly what she needed.

Her stomach ached deeply, and she wrapped her arms around her waist, curling in on herself. A few days had passed since she last saw Lisha, and she was glad that the girl didn't try to find her. Asake realized that she made a mistake in letting Lisha in, and that she was better off alone. That way, she wouldn't have to bring the girl down in flames with her.

She screwed her eyes shut, listening to the soft noise of the water hitting the earthen ground. Her own tears mixed with the salty water running down her face, a break in the numbness she felt. Deep down, she craved that human connection, the one that promised her that everything would be okay. But that wasn't what she needed, deserved. This life she had lived thus far had proved to her that maybe she was doing something wrong, that she was being punished for something she or her family had done.

She was a mistake, the unwanted child, the one who was just plain different from other people. Because of that, she was punished for it.

Gritting her teeth together, Asake forced her eyes to open, forced herself to sit up, forced herself to get up and start walking. She wasn't going to let herself die from her pain. No matter how bad she felt, how numb she felt, she wasn't going to cave to it. When she fell from that tree just a few days ago, she knew she didn't want to die. The weightless feeling was exhilarating for a second, but then reality kicked in, telling her that life was better than death. She was going to honor that until Death came knocking on her door.

Asake trailed close to the inner wall, her left shoulder brushing against the tall structure. She let out a gasp as pain struck her like lightning. Her knees buckled from the pain, but she managed to stay standing, panting hard. Her left shoulder felt like it was slipping out of its socket, almost as if her arm was going to fall off, and when she looked at it earlier, the area was all purple, blue, and deformed. If she had questioned whether or not her shoulder was broken in the past, this definitely told her it was.

She had no money to get it checked out, though. An idea struck her. It was time to get a job here in the city and start blending in to make a better life for herself.

—

Asake stumbled through a small park, heading toward one of the more dingier-looking sides of the Inner City. The rain had stopped hours ago, but she hadn't had the best time trying to find a job. No one seemed to want to hire a thin, scraggly-looking girl wearing the dirtiest clothes they had ever seen.

She blew out a sigh, ruffling her uneven bangs. She hung her head low as she walked forward, exhaustion rolling through her body. She hadn't been sleeping the past few nights, too afraid of what might lie within her dreams. She was also afraid that someone might steal from her or harm her in any way. She didn't want to chance it, so she remained awake, getting more delirious as the days went on.

Asake flexed her left hand underneath her shirt, grimacing when her numb fingers brushed against the rough fabric of her shirt. She kept her left arm in the sling, hidden away from prying eyes. To most people, she just looked like a girl with one arm, which wasn't too far from the truth. She wasn't able to use her left arm ever since she hurt it, so she had to rely on her right arm to do all the work.

At her side, her swords hung limply, forgotten. She didn't want to unnerve the Earth Kingdom people if she pulled her swords out on someone, but they were there for protection. She wished she had time to practice using the right-hand sword to practice or to even practice her firebending, but there were too many people watching.