𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐒 // zuko

The Reunion

the reunion

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"Zuko?" The little girl turned to her friend, who hummed in response. "What do you think the future is like?"

The boys eyebrows furrowed in thought. The two usually shared deep conversations, but this question never came up.

"I don't know. I do know one thing, though. He faced his friend, his cheeks turning a slight red as he grasped her hand innocently.

"What?"

"I'm going to marry you one day."

<>

While she sat on the beach of Wuu Bi Island, Saria allowed the icy wind to create goose bumps that climbed her arm. She stared out to sea and listened to the whispering waves. They made faint noises as they crashed into one another before crawling onto the dry sand, reaching for the earth. Her bare feet dug into the soft sand, the cool grains tickling her toes. She was fortunate to have lived beside this beach her entire life. There were barely any sandy beaches within the Fire Nation that weren't overpopulated with locals and tourists, like Ember Island.

"Saria!" The girl rotated her head towards the voice calling to her to discover her younger brother, Aiko running towards her. He had a tense look on his face, indicating something bad had happened. Saria stood quickly and walked to confront her breathless brother.

"Are you okay? What happened?"

"You need to come inside. There's something you need to see."

Saria followed Aiko back to their house and attempted to ask him questions, which he did not answer. He headed to the dining room of their home, where their mother sat holding a letter.

"What's this about?" Saria asked worryingly. She could feel tension thick in the air as she transferred her gaze from her mother to Aiko, waiting for someone to provide answers.

"It's your father," Her mother responded, sorrow glistening in her eyes as she met Saria's. "He's found the Avatar."

Oh.

The Avatar.

The distressed and puzzled look on Saria's face had dropped.

"So? That's a good thing, right?"

"There's more." Aiko took the folded letter from his mother's grasp and passed it to Saria, whose eyebrows furrowed as she read its content.

To my family,

The Avatar is alive. Not as a water bender, but as the same air bender who disappeared years ago. I don't know how he's been hidden for 100 years, but I found him and am going to capture him once and for all.

However, the banished Prince Zuko stands in my way. He's on the same quest and captured the Avatar before allowing him to escape. He's a traitor to his own nation and an embarrassment to the Royal Family.

Saria's face fell even further, this time in shock. She hadn't heard of her former friend, Prince Zuko, since he was banished from the Fire Nation. She started to believe he had died at sea.

"Zuko's alive?" She muttered, mostly to herself. 

My son Aiko, you will take a boat to me immediately. You are going to aid me in my quest. Your skills in the art of fighting will come to great use.