Chapter Text
Zuko felt strange. Very strange. Right about now, he had expected to feel currents of electricity writhing across his body. He didn’t. Bewildered, he tries to think on what had led up to this, and what he’d seen just moments prior. He still didn’t want to open his eyes, after all, he had no clue what’d he see. Thinking for a bit, he deduces that he’s in any of three places: A dungeon, the Spirit World, or, horribly, still infront of his father. Finally, facing his fears, and leveraging his options, Zuko opens his eyes. He regrets opening them immediately.
As he looks around the modest room he’s in, something clicks and he recognizes where he is. His quarters. On his ship. Said ship that Zhao had blown up. Having a solid hypothesis that he was, infact, in the Spirit World, he shoots up out of the meager blanket and notices something else. His head’s cold. Really cold. He dreads looking in a mirror, but he knows he’ll have to eventually. All in due time, he supposes.
Ozai stares down at the crumpled form of what had been his son with nothing but disdain. A shame he’d wasted lightning on him. He’d noticed that the disgrace of a Prince had moved into a stance probably meant to deflect lightning, no doubt taught by his failure of a brother, but the boy had been a second too late. At least Zuko had done him the favor of staying until the eclipse ended.
Well, he thought. One traitor down, one to go. He knew the “feared” Dragon of the West would likely put up a bit more of a fight, but he was still in a prison cell. At least, he hoped. He would like this to be easy.
Zuko had finally worked up the courage to look in a mirror. Opening his cabinet, and grabbing a small, clear mirror, he looked down into it. Well. That’d been the reason his head was so cold, then. Looking back up, he finally considers the prospect he might, just might, be alive, and a few months younger. He’d have to think about this. That was a problem for a future Zuko. One in about 20 minutes, roughly, when his Uncle would knock on the door to his quarters for tea.