Burnt Out - Zuko x OC

Loved You For All Of My Life

When I got back to the top of the canyon, I vomited. My body hit the ground as I rolled off the crawler's back and all of the water that I'd stolen from my dad's canteen refused to stay in my stomach. I gripped the dirt as my body violently convulsed.

Eventually, the spasming muscles in my stomach settled down. I flopped onto my back and wiped my mouth off on my hand. The sharp stinging in my fractured wrist made itself known, though it was the least of my worries. The crawler that was proving to be loyal laid down beside me, nuzzling his massive head against my side.

"We have quite the journey ahead of us, bub." I said, speaking to the crawler. "If we're going to be together for a little while, I might as well give you a name, huh?"

Before I'd left, my father told me that Enya, my mother, lived in a cave nestled on the side of the Black Cliffs. It wasn't a very large island and, from what I'd gathered, was uninhabited. But we'd have to travel hundreds of miles and over a fuck ton of water just to get there. The crawler and I had an unspoken agreement. He'd handle the ground work and I'd keep him safe over the ocean.

"I think you look like a Nero. What do you think?" I asked him. He nuzzled further into my ribs, offering me warmth and companionship through the cold, lonely night.

*****

Nero was fast. It took us only a fortnight to travel across the Earth Kingdom. Though, a giant insect-reptile hybrid was bound to draw some unwanted attention. We had to take longer routes in order to avoid colonies and villages, sleeping in thick tree branches during the day and traveling through forests at night. For a little while it felt like I'd gone back to my roots, just like the good 'ol days. That space of time between being banished and joining the avatar's gang.

I found out rather quickly that Nero was terrified of water. It was like pulling teeth, dragging him to the cliffside where we needed to take off from. If you couldn't guess, canyon crawlers are rather stubborn creatures. Ultimately I had to lure him to the edge with a sea vulture carcass.

We traveled over the ocean without much incident. Nero refused to move an inch on the narrow slab of earth I'd conjured up from the ocean floor. So unlike how I'd traveled across Full Moon Bay, that one piece of earth joined our little family and carried us all the way across the ocean. We sat high above the waves when we were far from the shore, that way I could watch out for any incoming Fire Nation ships. When we got closer to the little fishing islands that made up Crescent Isle, we stuck closer to the surface so we couldn't be seen.

I hated bone bending. It wasn't something that I did often, not even when I found myself in a whole lot of trouble. I'd used it on Shin because of what he'd done to me and to my father just to show him exactly what it was he'd created. But on that tiny island that was just big enough for Nero and I, it was an unfortunate necessity. My boy was hungry, and hunting was impossible in the middle of the ocean. I didn't anticipate needing a fishing rod and there was no way he was going to dive for his dinner. So the fish offered themselves to us willingly, with a little bit of persuasion from yours truly.

A week later, the Black Cliffs finally peeked at us from over the horizon. It was a foggy, thunderous night when we came up on them. Stinging raindrops fell all around us and the ocean waves seemed to grasp for my ankles, as if they craved another dance with me ever since we met at Full Moon Bay.

That slab of ocean floor carried us until it butted up against the staggering wall of the island. I hopped onto Nero's back, gripping his wet fur tight, and leaned down next to his face.

"I need you to come through for me one more time, babe." I shouted past a deafening crack of lightning while fishing my switchblade out of my pocket. The wound I'd cut into my own flesh a few weeks prior had just fully healed, and here I was ripping it open all over again. Blood poured out of my palm and over Nero's snout, mixing with rain water. I prayed that it'd be enough for him to take me where I needed to go.