Chapter Text
“Hello, Zuko here.”
The Avatar and his friends whipped around to face him. Their expressions ranged from shock to fury, and the waterbender gripped her flask, nostrils flared.
"Uh,” Zuko continued, resisting the urge to back away, “I saw you guys flying around down here, so I just thought I'd wait for you here. I know you must be surprised to see me.”
“Not really,” the Water Tribe boy said, knuckles white around his boomerang. “You've chased us all over the world.”
“Right." Zuko raked a hand through his hair. "Well, uh, anyway, what I wanted to tell you is that I've changed." He paused. The Avatar's friends blinked at him. "I'm good now," Zuko clarified. "I've defected from the Fire Nation, and I think I should join your group. Oh—” He turned to the Avatar, “—and I can teach firebending to you. See, I, uh—”
The waterbender—Agni, he should know their names by now—stalked forward. “You can’t possibly think that any of us would trust you.” Her voice dripped with incredulity. “I mean, just how stupid do you think we are?”
"Exactly," the Water Tribe boy echoed. "All you've ever done is hunt us down and try to capture Aang.”
“Yeah!” the earthbender chimed in. “I wasn’t here for any of that, but shame on you!”
The Avatar did not speak. He continued to stare at Zuko, his staff half-raised.
Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose. The badger-frog had not foreseen this response. “Look, I've done some good things. I mean, I could have stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That's something.”
The bison in question let out a gravelly roar. It pinned Zuko in place with black, almond-shaped eyes, then licked him from chin to forehead.
“Ugh — ” Zuko stumbled backwards. He swiped a hand across his face, and his palm came away covered in a sheen of spit.
The earthbender tilted her head. “Appa does seem to like him. Hey, Appa, do that again."
Zuko grimaced as Appa moved forward, but the Water Tribe boy threw out an arm. “Wait,” he said, eyes narrowed. “He probably just covered himself in honey or something so that Appa would lick him. I'm not buying it.”
"Honey? You’ve got to be — " Zuko drew in a measured breath. “What I meant to say is, I can understand why you wouldn't trust me. I know I've made some mistakes in the past."
“Like when you attacked my tribe?”
“Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?”
“Or when you guys filled me in on none of this?”
Zuko closed his eyes. He inhaled once, twice. A ribbon of smoke escaped his lips. Several breaths later, he opened his eyes and spoke. “I admit I've done some awful things.” He turned to the Avatar and bowed. “I was wrong to try to capture you, and,” he bowed to the Water Tribe siblings, “I'm sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe. And I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you. I swear to—"
“Wait, you sent Combustion Man after us?”
Zuko blinked at the Water Tribe boy. “Well, that's not his name, but yes."
“Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to insult your friend.”
“He is not my friend!"
The earthbender ground her hand into her fist. “That guy locked me and Katara in jail and tried to blow us up! I say it’s rumble time.”
Zuko looked to the Avatar, his voice edged with desperation. “Why aren't you saying anything? You said you thought we could be friends—you knew I could be good. Tell me if that has changed.”
The Avatar's eyes were wide as he met Zuko's gaze. They stared at each other for several heartbeats, and Zuko half-expected to find himself laying on a bed of leaves, his Blue Spirit mask by his side.
Then, the Avatar looked away. "There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done. We'll never let you join us.”
There was a note of finality in the Avatar’s voice, and it burned.
“You’re not listening,” Zuko growled. Heat flared beneath the skin of his palms, and he surged forward, sparks crackling at the back of his throat. “I understand you don't trust me, I understand you're angry, but I'm not asking for forgiveness! I'm trying to explain that I'm not that person anymore!”
The Water Tribe boy drew back his boomerang, but the Avatar held up a hand.
“I am listening to you,” the Avatar said. “And I was ready to listen back in that forest, but you weren’t. You had your chance long before Ba Sing Se. I don’t want to fight, so please leave.”
"You heard him." The waterbender flicked open her flask. “You need to get out of here. Now.”
The Avatar raised his staff in agreement, and the earthbender dug her heels into the temple floor, palms flattened into blades.
Zuko searched their faces for a degree of leniency. He saw nothing but the anger of his past actions reflected towards him. "Fine,” he bit out. “How about this?" He sank into a seiza and offered up his hands, wrists pressed together, palms facing the sky. "If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner.” He bowed his head and waited for a response.
Silence from above.
A drop of sweat beaded at the tip of his nose.
Then, a strangled growl cut through the air. A stream of water slashed across his hands, and Zuko stumbled backwards, clutching his stinging palms to his chest.
"How dare you try the same trick twice." The waterbender stood over him. Her eyes were shards of sea glass, and another coil of water hung in the air, a serpent poised to strike. "Get out of here, and don’t come back. If we ever see you again—if I ever see you again—” She drew in a breath, “—well, I'd better not see you again."
"Hold on." The Water Tribe boy crossed his arms, his brow furrowed in concentration. “Just—bear with me. I don't want him here, trust me, but we can’t just let him roam around. He knows where our camp is. It’s better for us—and literally everyone else—if he’s locked up somewhere.”
“And if he tries something?”
The Water Tribe boy shrugged. “Practice for Aang.”
"Fine." The waterbender withdrew her attack. “Toph!”
The earthbender appeared at her elbow. “You don’t have to yell. I’m blind, not deaf.”
“Just—" The waterbender clenched her jaw. "Make sure he can’t bend. Don't underestimate him. He has this leg thing he does—"
“I wish I knew how to do that,” the Avatar said mournfully.
“Well,” Zuko began, but a look from the waterbender silenced him.
The earthbender cracked her knuckles. “The name’s Toph,” she announced, widening her stance. “Get comfortable, Sparky.” She struck the earth with her left heel and threw out her arms.
Rock thundered from the ground, binding Zuko into a permanent seiza. At her direction, Zuko placed his wrists onto the temple floor, and sun-warmed stone rose to anchor them in place.
Toph circled him a few times, then dipped her chin in satisfaction. "There's no way he can bend like this."
The Water Tribe boy stowed his boomerang away. "Good enough for me.” He clapped a hand onto Toph’s shoulder. “He probably would’ve burned through all our rope. Who knew an earthbender would be so handy?”
“The Avatar, probably."
The waterbender eyed Zuko's bonds. She waved her hand a few times, and a clear, quivering globe of water rose from her flask. With a flick of her wrist, she broke the globe over Zuko's head, drenching him in a sheet of ice-cold water. Bound as he was, Zuko could do nothing but glare.
"Now it's good enough for me.” With that, the waterbender turned on her heel and headed towards camp. The Avatar and the rest of his friends followed.
Zuko watched them leave, squinting through dripping bangs. Uncle’s words rose unbidden to his mind. You never think things through, Prince Zuko.
...
On the day of the invasion, Dad had ducked into Sokka's tent for a last-minute talk. A warrior’s heart-to-heart, he had said, tucking his helmet away, revealing a face lined with age and suet. With his hand heavy on Sokka’s shoulder, he offered a final piece of advice:
When you sail on a ship of wood, it's not wise to take Fire Nation prisoners. Sanna’s Mercy has no place here. Do you understand?
Dad, come on, Sokka had scoffed, jamming his wolf helmet onto his head. Teeth, white and jagged, had lined his vision. Maybe I don’t have my kakiniit, but I’m not a kid anymore.
Before Dad could respond, a long, sonorous note had echoed throughout the encampment. He and Dad had joined their tribe, indistinguishable among a sea of painted faces and grey-blue pelts. As they say in the south: a single drop of water cannot extinguish a qulliq, sail a ship, or put a seal to rest.
That had been one sunrise ago.
Today, Dad was gone, and Zuko was several spear-lengths away from camp. His hands and wrists were anchored to the temple floor, bowing his back forward in a deep curve. From across the pagoda, Sokka could make out the line of his shoulders, a sinew bowstring held taut.
Sokka rolled his own shoulders and looked away. Aang was staring at the temple floor, tracing swirls in the grit with his staff. A stream of water wound through Katara's hands, and Toph leaned against the fountain, picking at her nails and flicking the pieces away.
They didn't have the time for this.
Sokka cleared his throat. "Guys, I’m calling a team meeting. We need to talk about Prince Jerkface over there.”
Aang fumbled with his staff at the sound of Sokka’s voice. “Oh, um, I was actually thinking? About that. What are we going to do?"
“You’re gonna have to be more specific, buddy.”
“I mean, like. I don’t know, he just looks really uncomfortable? We can’t keep him here, can we?”
“I can,” Toph said.
Katara let out a huff. “You want to know what was really uncomfortable? Being chased all over the world.” She waved her hands, and a beaded trickle of water responded to her movements. Momo lept into the air, snapping at the stream. “Besides, he said he wants to be here. He’s clearly trying to fool us again, but I bet he didn’t expect us to take him up on his offer.”
“It makes sense if you think about it,” Sokka added. “The invasion failed, and,” he grimaced, "a lot of our people got captured. They think Aang’s an easy target. Who has the most experience with Avatar hunting? Zuko. It’s strategy.”
Aang hugged his staff to his chest. "Strategy. Right."
"Don’t worry, Aang. If he makes one wrong move, I’ll take him out.” Katara sliced her palm through the air, and the water plummeted to the temple floor. Momo scrambled away with a screech.
“Actually,” Toph piped up, "that won’t be necessary. I believe him."
Everyone stared at her with varying expressions of shock.
“I’m guessing from the silence that you’re all staring at me with varying expressions of shock.”
Sokka closed his mouth. “Um, no, we weren’t. What do you mean, that won’t be necessary?”
“It means that he’s not lying.” Toph picked a speck of dirt from between her toes and threw it over her shoulder. “You guys do remember that I’m an earthbending master, right? Zuko's heartbeat was pretty steady. A little fast, but I'm pretty intimidating. Unlike you chuckleheads."
Sokka stared at her. "I can't decide which part of your statement I disagree with the most."
Toph grinned at him with all her teeth. "And what are you going to do about it?"
“Toph,” Aang said loudly, “does that mean Zuko was telling the truth about everything he said?” His voice shrank. “Even the stuff about wanting to teach me firebending?”
“That’s what the earth told me.”
Katara scoffed. “Oh, please. He’s a pretty good liar. This is just like Ba Sing Se. He’s trying to make himself seem vulnerable. He’ll probably start talking about his mother the next time one of us comes close to him.”
Aang rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry, Toph, but I’m with Katara on this one. I’m not trying to doubt your skills, but even if he is telling the truth, he did a lot of bad stuff. He can’t expect us—expect me—to just... forget all of it.”
"Yeah," Toph snarked, "I'll never forget everything he did."
"You weren’t even there for half of it!” Katara snapped.
“Then tell me about it! You guys make references to ponytail jerkface all the time, and I never get them. What exactly happened? What does he even look like?”
“Well,” Sokka said, “he no longer has a ponytail.”
“Wow. It’s like I can see him.”
“Shut up, I wasn’t done. So, imagine a borecupine—"
"Imagine?"
"He’s a horrible person,” Katara cut in. “He’s possessed with some sort of sick loyalty to his dad—who, once again, is the Fire Lord. You can’t trust anything he says.”
Toph crossed her arms. “I can, though. It sounds like you’re all just letting your hurt feelings keep you from thinking clearly.”
“You weren't there when he had us attacked by pirates!”
“Or when he burned down Kyoshi Island!”
“Or when he tried to capture me at the Fire Temple!”
Toph huffed. “I’m not saying let’s all play the liuqin and sing The Way to Ba Sing Se, but considering his messed-up family, he could have turned out a lot worse."
“Give him time,” Katara said darkly. “He’ll get there.”
"In the meantime, Aang still needs a firebending teacher."
Aang’s eyes darted from Toph to Katara. He crossed his arms and lifted his chin. “I'm not having Zuko as my teacher, and that's final."
Sokka slung an arm across Aang's shoulders. “You’re darn right you’re not, buddy.”
“Well, I guess that settles that.” Katara flipped her hair over her shoulder and reached for her rucksack. “Now, there are some leftover noodles from Ba Sing Se. With some—”
Toph let out a growl. She pulled herself to her feet, and Sokka swore the ground trembled beneath him. “I’m going to go talk to him.”
“Who, Zuko?”
“No,” Toph snicked over her shoulder, “the other Fire Nation prisoner I bound to the earth.”
Sokka watched her stomp away. “I wish people would stop undermining my position as the sarcasm guy,” he muttered, grabbing his boomerang. "Are you guys coming or not?"
"Nope," Aang said. "I live here now."
Katara rose. "No, you don't."
"No, I don't," Aang agreed, and they followed after Toph.
...
The Avatar and his friends were strategizing. Zuko knew this because he, too, tended to raise his voice when strategizing, and wave his arms, and hurl insults, and... On second thought, they seemed to be arguing. Zuko angled his good ear towards the group, and gusts of wind swept across the pagoda, bringing with it snatches of conversation. What he managed to discern was unsettling: his surrender hadn't been enough.
What more did the Avatar need? What more could Zuko give? Did he want Zuko to denounce Father until his inner flame sputtered, starved of air? Zuko was undeserving of the Avatar's trust, this he knew, but soldiers did not need to trust in one another to win a war: they simply needed to trust in a common cause, and fight on threat of final breath to succeed.
Zuko dropped his chin to his chest. What would Azula do? What would Uncle do?
Azula would never allow herself to be captured in the first place. Surrender was the paragon of dishonor, and only one's own hand, guided by Agni, could fully assuage such a loss. Uncle, on the other hand, would ask for tea and a game of Pai Sho.
Hello, Avatar. Would you like to play Pai Sho? If I win, I teach you firebending. If you win, I'll return my inner flame to Agni, and you'll never have to see me again.
It sounded stupid even to him, and his inner flame rose to meet his frustration. Zuko clamped his jaw shut, his back molars grinding together. He took in several breaths through his nose and exhaled through his teeth. Steam escaped his lips in a thin stream, but no flames followed. He relaxed, only to repeat the cycle again when he overheard the word borecupine.
It was a relief when, several degrees later, the earthbender approached, her friends in tow. “Hey, eavesdropper,'" she greeted, looking somewhere over his left shoulder.
Zuko's scowled. "What do you want." He drew back as the others arrived, forming a semi-circle in front of him. "I mean, um. What?”
The Water Tribe boy placed an elbow on Toph’s head, which she knocked off with a growl. “Toph here can tell when people are lying. Vibrations through the earth and whatnot. So." He pulled out his Agni-damned boomerang and jabbed it into Zuko's face. "Tell us your story again. And don’t bother lying.”
The boomerang hovered in front of his nose. Zuko resisted the urge to set it on fire. “I want to teach the Ava—”
"No," the waterbender cut in. "He might’ve rehearsed his story. Tell us something else.”
His ally the badger-frog crossed his mind, and without thinking, Zuko said, “I did rehearse what I wanted to say.”
The waterbender’s face darkened. “I knew it. This is all an act.”
“Except no,” Toph said, “it’s not.” She fanned her toes across the temple floor. “He’s telling the truth.”
“Except, no, not really. You guys are going about this all wrong.” The Water Tribe boy pushed past his sister. Once again, he leveled his boomerang at Zuko’s face. “Tell us a blatant lie. We need a baseline.”
Zuko stared cross-eyed at the boomerang. “I like your boomerang.”
“I said a lie, sootmaker.”
“No,” Toph snickered, “that was a lie. Maybe he should join so I can talk to someone with a sense of humor."
"Tui and La." The waterbender stepped forward. "Tell us a real lie, Zuko." Then, under her breath: "Not that you haven't been doing so already."
Zuko bit back a retort. “Um, I’m the Avatar?” At Toph’s prompting, he continued. “I hate fire flakes. I miss the Wani. Uh, I don’t want to join your group and defeat Father, and I’m not sorry about everything I did to you.”
“All lies,” Toph announced. She paused. “Damn, you’re really bad at lying. Do you want some tips? Let’s talk heartbeat.”
The Water Tribe boy sputtered. "Toph! What are you, in cahoots with him?"
"Impossible. I've never seen this man before in my life."
“Um.” Zuko cleared his throat. “I’m not telling you how to do your jobs or anything, but is this supposed to be an interrogation? Because, if so, it’s really not…” He trailed off as the Water Tribe siblings glared at him. “Nevermind.”
“Well.” The Water Tribe boy pulled back and crossed his arms. “I guess we have our baseline, but let me be level with you here, buddy.” He shook his head. “Not looking good.”
“What’s not looking good?” Toph demanded.
“I’m honestly not sure,” the Avatar replied. He was several footsteps behind the group and appeared to be edging away.
“Do you have questions?” Zuko hedged. “That you would like to ask?”
“Truth.”
The waterbender frowned at Toph. “What are you saying truth to? He didn’t state anything.”
“I was reading in between the lines. What he actually said was: I’m tired of everyone, so hurry up. And that’s the truth. I’m a master of subtlety.” Toph then stamped her foot and roared, “Get back here, Aang! Stop being a pussy!”
The Avatar froze. He turned around, clutching his staff. “I guess, I have a question? Do you really want to join us? And teach me firebending? How do we know you’re not, you know, trying to capture me again? Because, remember that one time with the Pohuai Stronghold? And the Blue Spirit? And—”
“Yes, because I was there.” Zuko released a measured breath. “I mean, yes. I remember all of that. I really do want to join your group. I’m not asking you to trust me, but I am asking you to take a chance.”
“That was so sincere it actually hurt,” Toph said. “Are you guys seeing this? I mean, I’m not, but are you?”
The Water Tribe boy squinted at Toph. "How do we know Toph is telling the truth?"
“Of course I’m telling the truth.” Toph paused. “Truth.”
"Then who ate the last of the mangoes?"
"Well, I never said my skills were infallible..."
The Water Tribe boy made some sort of indignant, sputtering sound, and the two erupted into an argument. The Avatar looked increasingly uncomfortable at the mounting tension and re-doubled his efforts to edge away from the group. Zuko shifted in place. Each shout from above was a razor-edged sai against his temples, and the beginnings of a headache pulsed at the back of his skull. Finally, he heard a sharp pop as the waterbender opened her flask.
"Everyone, shut up! And Aang, get back here. This is clearly a waste of time. Why don't we just drown him?"
"Um," the Avatar said, "what if we did not? Do that. We shouldn’t do that.”
"I agree that this is a waste of time, but not with the drowning thing, unless absolutely necessary. A true warrior needs to interrogate him." The Water Tribe boy paused. "That’s me, by the way.” With a scowl, he jabbed his boomerang into Zuko’s face. “No more games. Tell us why you suddenly dropped your Avatar-hunting urges and decided to join the good guys!"
It was the boomerang that did it.
Zuko snarled in a breath, ballooned his cheeks, and unleashed a flickering, red-orange blast of flame into the air. It caught the boomerang head-on, and the Water Tribe boy staggered backwards with a choked cry.
The satisfaction lasted a heartbeat. Then, a wave of water roared over his head. It left him gasping for breath, eyes stinging, tunic plastered to his chest. Regret, heavy and cold, curled within his stomach as the waterbender loomed over him.
"Try that again, and I'll wash you off this temple. Apologize." Behind her, another wave rose within the fountain. Water sloshed over the sides, darkening the temple floor.
"I wonder what’s for dinner,” the Avatar said loudly. “Is anyone else wondering what's for dinner? Because I am.”
The waterbender ignored him. "Well? I'm waiting."
"I," Zuko said, then sighed. He looked at the Water Tribe boy. "I shouldn’t have done that. I apologize for lighting your boomerang on fire."
The Water Tribe boy cradled his boomerang. It appeared to be intact, but scorch marks blackened one end. "Apology not accepted."
Zuko shifted his gaze to the Avatar. "I'm also sorry for everything. I know how it looks, I know , but I'm telling the truth. I don’t know what I can tell you to make you believe me, but I am not your enemy anymore. Let me prove it to you. I will, I swear on Agni's eternal flame.”
Silence followed his oath. Far off, a flock of humming-toads flitted from pagoda to pagoda. Their calls echoed throughout the temple—warbling, high-pitched croaks.
"Well," Toph said at last, "he just swore on Agni's eternal flame. Don't leave him hanging."
The Water Tribe boy sheathed his boomerang. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter if he swears on Agni’s flames or Sanna’s fingers. We can’t trust him. Thanks, Toph, but I’m out of here.”
"Same here." The waterbender capped her flask. "I'm going to start on dinner. Come on, Aang." She stalked away. The Avatar and her brother followed, the latter shooting one last glare at Zuko.
This left Toph, who turned to Zuko once the others were gone. “I ate the last of the mangoes," she said conversationally. "Everyone thinks it was Aang, including Aang himself.” A smile crept across her face. “No one expects the blind girl.”
“Why are you telling me this.”
“Because no one will believe you. But,” Her toes spread across the temple floor, and she winked somewhere over his left shoulder, “I do.” Then, she left for the Avatar's camp.
The Avatar and his friends did not return for the rest of the afternoon. At dusk, someone tried once, twice, to light a fire with a pair of spark rocks. On the third try, the flames caught, and a flickering, orange speck appeared in the darkness.
Zuko watched the fire leap and crouch. He followed the rhythm with his chest until, deep into the night, sleep claimed him.