Broken Promises • Zuko x OC

VII

Darkness

That's all Bai could see; nothing but inky blackness. There was no sign of light anywhere, and there was no way Bai could figure out where she was.

Suddenly, everything turned into light. Colors of red, black, and gold abruptly came into Bai's vision. She knew these colors too well. There was only one place she could be in and it made her skin crawl.

"No. There's no way. It's not possible!"

But unfortunately, it was possible.

When Bai looked around, she noticed she was back in the palace.

"I was thrown out of here? How can I be back?"

Suddenly, she noticed she stood in Firelord Ozai's war room. The painful memories started flooding her brain all over again- making her feel nauseous and lightheaded.

"No! I've got to get out of here!" She thought aloud.

But before she could escape the room, Zuko and Firelord Ozai stood in her way- blocking the only exist.

"Bai! I just listen to me! I was only-"

"Save your words, Prince Zuko! No need to waste them on this vile beast." Firelord Ozai spat.

Yao and Iroh peered around the mighty pillars they hid behind and joined the chaos- watching everything unfold.

"Why Bai? Why did you do it?" Yao sobbed.

"And to think... I had so much hope for you. You've disappointed us all." Iroh added.

Bai looked at the four men hovering over her. There was no way she could escape. She would have to sit here, under their wrath.

"Men, I think it's time to finish her off for good." Firelord Ozai sneered.

They all slowly began to raise their fists at Bai. Bai started sobbing loudly. She knew there was no way to run or hide. She had no other choice than to accept her unkind fate.

"I'm sorry, Bai." Zuko whispered.

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

"AHHH!" Bai screamed.

She noticed her surroundings and felt a small wave of relief when she noticed nothings changed. She was still on this spirit forsaken ship. She wasn't sure how long she's been locked in this room. She figures it's been a few weeks- maybe even closer to months. And all through that time, she's been having the same nightmare over and over again.

Bai wants to forget; it's all she wants. It's even caused her to stay awake at night- just so there's no chance she can have the nightmare. She's sick of the horrid memory flooding her mind over and over again. But she can't forget.

She won't forget.

And Bai knows that deep down. Besides, she has the scar on her left arm to remind her. She managed to take away the pain and infection by waterbending. She would use the water she didn't drink to heal her burn. Now, there was no more pain, but the burn was intense enough to leave her with a nasty scar. Bai could still feel the heat and pain from Firelord Ozai's attack. Everytime she thinks about it, she feel sick to her stomach. She knows she shouldn't be surprised from the Firelord's attack, but she  is. Everything happened so fast- faster than she can comprehend.

But no burn or scar would ever be more painful than knowing how everything happened.

Bai still can't believe Zuko told. She thought he could be trusted; he was the first person Bai had ever trusted. She knew she could tell Zuko her anything she wanted, and he would always keep his lips sealed. He had nothing to gain by exploiting Bai's privacy.