Blazing Crystal (Revised Version)

Chapter 26: Glaciers

Chapter 26: Glaciers

The hay moved beside me causing me to open my eyes groggily. Looking over at the young man who slept on the pile of hay next to me, I saw him grimace and turn in his sleep. His eyes were shut tight and his body shook at the dream that seemed to be plaguing him. As he grimaced once more from the nightmare, I quickly rolled so I could face him. Going to grab his arm, I stopped when suddenly he spoke.

"Mom..." His one word made my eyes widen. He was dreaming about his mom. From what I recalled, the only thing he knew was that his mom disappeared one night and was never seen or heard from again. He didn't go into much detail other than that. I'd asked him about her back when I was prisoner on his ship, and he told me he wasn't sure what happened to her. "Don't go... Don't..."

My fingers brushed against Zuko's forehead, pushing a few strands of hair from his face. When I did so, his restless body stilled and he sighed with relief. As he relaxed back against the hay, I lowered my hand from him wishing I could do more. His hand stopped me before I could break contact though, and I was surprised to find his dark amber eyes suddenly staring at me.

"It's hard to sleep when you do that..." He kept my hand against his cheek as he turned his body towards me.

"Sorry I woke you... I was just worried... You looked like you were having a bad dream..."

He grimaced from my perception, and I felt his hand squeeze my own for comfort. "Not really... It was memories... Just really bad memories."

"About your mom...?"

He let out a heavy sigh. With a nod, his hand released my own. He sat up and ran a hand through his messy hair trying to calm his nerves. Sitting up myself, I looked over at him with concern. He looked greatly disturbed from the memories he was forced to relive.

"I wish she were still with me..." He said softly. "She always knew how to comfort me when I was upset. She was one of the kindest women I knew in the Fire Nation. Other than Uncle, she was the only other person in my family who truly loved me..."

My heart tightened at his words. "What do you remember about the day she disappeared?"

He hung his head. "Not much... I remember that right before my last sighting of her, Azula had told me that father was going to kill me. Uncle had lost his son during the great battle of Ba Sing Se. With greed, my father told Fire Lord Azulon that since Iroh no longer had a bloodline the birthright to the throne should be given to the youngest son. I remember my Grandfather was outraged at my father's selfish words, and he told him that he would be punished for his actions. Then Azula joked father was going to have me killed, and mom overheard her... Later that night, I was woken by mom... She told me that everything she had done was to protect me... She told me that no matter how things may seem to change, I should never forget who I am."

His voice shook when he spoke a few seconds later.

"That was the last time I saw her... I... I wish I could go back... go back in time and tell her how much I love her... I never told her that night..." He covered his face to hide his tears. "I miss her..."

I scooted over and wrapped my arms around his waist to console him. He suddenly placed his arms around me for comfort, and pressed his face into my hair letting his tears soak away. I let him cry silently without saying anything, knowing he needed to let his emotions out.

He stopped crying after a few minutes, and quickly tried to wipe away any sign of his tears. "Distract me," he said softly, his voice cracking slightly. "Tell me something you did at the South Pole... I... I don't want to think about my past right now..."