Chapter Text
“He was one of the best friends I ever had, and he was from the Fire Nation, just like you. If we had known each other back then… do you think we could’ve been friends too?”
Aang sat with his arms wrapped around his knees, watching Zuko struggle to climb out of the shallow pit below. He didn’t want Prince Zuko to become his enemy at all. Zuko had just rescued him from Zhao’s fortress prison, even after trying to capture him so many times before.
“My destiny is to capture you, Avatar.”
Zuko staggered to his feet, the Blue Spirit mask hanging loosely from his belt. His palms burned with heat, anger always threatening to ignite at any second. And Aang could feel it too. The boy quickly stood and cautiously stepped back.
Whoosh.
The sound tore through the air before either of them could react. An arrow pierced through Zuko’s shoulder, making him stumble violently. Zhao and the Yuyan archers were catching up.
One hand pressed against the bleeding wound while the other drew his swords. Zuko didn’t even need to look back to know who had attacked him. And if they discovered that the Blue Spirit was actually Prince Zuko, he was almost certain he would be sentenced to death.
Aang reacted first. He grabbed Zuko’s arm and shouted, “Run!”
The two of them sprinted through the forest while dodging arrows. Aang kicked up a massive cloud of dust and blasted it behind them. They needed to lose the archers quickly, and taking to the sky was always his first instinct as an airbender. But he couldn’t leave Prince Zuko behind. Not when Zuko had been injured protecting him.
When another arrow grazed Zuko’s calf, Aang knew he couldn’t hesitate any longer. He immediately hoisted Zuko onto his back, startling the prince. Small spheres of air formed beneath Aang’s feet, propelling him forward at greater speed. Zuko was older and bigger than Aang, but carrying him wasn’t difficult at all. Besides, the prince wasn’t exactly in a position to attack him right now. Zuko simply stayed silent and stared ahead.
On the way back to the Taku ruins, Aang made sure to collect several frozen wood frogs for his sick friends.
Sokka and Katara lay on Appa’s back, each with a frozen wood frog in their mouths. Nearby, Zuko sat bandaging his wounds with the limited medical supplies Aang had given him.
“Avatar… why did you save me?” Zuko asked, his voice rough and weak.
“You saved me first,” Aang replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He walked over and awkwardly helped remove the arrows lodged in Zuko’s legs. “Um… thank you, Zuko. I wish we could be friends.”
Zuko frowned. This Avatar was nothing like he had imagined - too kind, too trusting, and honestly, a little foolish. The kid acted like a child. Because he was one. At the very least, he should’ve resembled his predecessor, Avatar Roku, somehow.
“Ew.”
“That’s disgusting.”
“Looks like your friends are awake, Avatar. I’ll be leaving now.” Using one of his swords as support, Zuko slowly pushed himself to his feet.
“Wait-” Aang shot up in panic.
“Stop right there!”
Katara had recovered enough strength to sit upright. The moment she saw their pursuer standing so close to Aang, her expression darkened. Water spiraled around her hands, instantly sharpening into deadly icicles pointed straight at Zuko. If he made even the slightest wrong move, she wouldn’t hesitate to strike.
“Katara, let me explain!” Aang quickly stepped between them. Though honestly, where was he even supposed to start?
“Katara, freeze his arms and legs,” Sokka ordered from behind her, boomerang already raised. Katara obeyed immediately.
Zuko calmly allowed the ice to spread over his limbs. A little water like this was nothing - he could melt it with fire whenever he wanted. Still… for some reason, he found himself curious about what the Water Tribe boy would do next. Staying a little longer might help him gather useful information.
“Alright. Start explaining,” Sokka said, lowering his boomerang slightly but not putting it away. “And keep it short.”
Katara remained silent, arms crossed as she stared suspiciously at Aang.
“You guys… Zhao captured me, and Zuko rescued me. He’s injured.”
“He saved you?” Katara frowned deeply.
She couldn’t believe it. Zuko - the Fire Nation prince who had chased them across the world trying to capture Aang - had saved him? It sounded absurd.
“Wait a second… that mask. You’re the Blue Spirit?!”
“Hmph.”
“Don’t ‘hmph’ me. The Blue Spirit is a traitor to the Fire Nation, and you’re a Fire Nation prince. Nobody’s buying that.”
“Please, just trust me this once,” Aang pleaded desperately. “He got hurt protecting me. I can’t leave him behind.”
“Fine,” Katara finally said. “But if you attack Aang, I’ll kill you.”
“Thank you,” Aang said with a grateful smile.
The three of them sat together while Zuko leaned silently against the wall opposite them, his limbs still trapped in ice.
“So Zhao captured you while you were looking for medicine for us?” Sokka finally sat down as well. “Is he nearby?”
“Pohuai Stronghold,” Zuko answered. “Zhao’s prison. He uses it to imprison benders.” His voice sharpened with irritation. He hated Zhao. If the Avatar and his friends could ruin the admiral’s plans, all the better. Besides… what exactly was Zhao imprisoning benders for?
“How do you know all this?” Sokka narrowed his eyes. “Aren’t you working with Zhao?”
“I would never work with him!” Zuko snapped immediately.
“Alright, alright, hothead. So are you really the Blue Spirit?”
Zuko said nothing.
Right. Sokka decided not to push the subject further.
“Then why do you want to capture Aang?” Katara finally asked the question that had been bothering her this entire time. The Fire Nation wanting the Avatar made sense. But Zuko wanting to capture Aang while also saving him? That was contradictory.
Zuko almost replied, You know nothing about it. But the words caught in his throat. Instead, he suddenly remembered Uncle Iroh and all of his irritating little philosophies.
“Pride is not the opposite of shame, but its source. True humility is the only antidote to shame.”
Stupid philosophy.
Katara had nearly given up on getting an answer when Zuko finally spoke.
“For my honor.”
“…”
Silence settled between them after that, and before long, exhaustion pulled Zuko into sleep.
Aang quietly scooted closer to Sokka and whispered, “Sokka… I’m sorry for taking your supplies without asking.”
“I know,” Sokka sighed. “The moment I saw all those bandages wrapped around him, I figured it out.” He still didn’t like the prince. But the guy had gotten hurt protecting Aang. For now, Sokka could tolerate him.
“You’re really kind, Sokka,” Aang said softly, full of gratitude.
“Yeah, well, we’re not keeping him around. We’ll drop him back at his ship.” Sokka crossed his arms. “And tell him to stop chasing us.”
Aang nodded quietly.
The next morning, once Katara and Sokka had fully recovered, the three of them agreed to let Zuko travel with them on Appa. Bruises and untreated cuts still covered his body. Whether Zhao was still searching for him or not, the Water Tribe siblings couldn’t just abandon the Fire Nation prince in that condition.
Zuko had said it himself. If he were captured again, he would die.
An unspoken truce existed between them and Zuko, one with no decided end date. Maybe after today, everything would return to the way it had been before. Or maybe not. Who knew?
With help from Aang and Sokka, Zuko climbed onto Appa’s saddle. The prince guided them toward his ship, a massive steel vessel anchored beside a river.
“Uncle Iroh? Why is he standing out there?” Zuko muttered to himself.
His uncle rarely came out onto the deck. Most of the time, he stayed inside drinking tea, playing Pai Sho, or chatting with the crew.
Appa let out a loud growl that drew Iroh’s attention upward. The moment he saw Zuko in the sky, relief spread visibly across his face.
They landed on the right side of the ship.
“Well then, Your Highness,” Sokka teased, “do you need an escort too?” He jumped down first and offered Zuko a hand. Meanwhile, Aang and Katara walked over to greet Iroh.
“Avatar.” Iroh bowed respectfully with his hands pressed together.
The two of them returned the greeting politely.
“We found Prince Zuko injured in the forest,” Aang explained. “Please take care of him.”
They had promised not to mention the Blue Spirit.
Sokka carefully helped Zuko over, and Iroh immediately rushed forward to support his nephew.
“Zuko!”
“I’m alright, Uncle.”
“Zuko, please… don’t argue with me this time. Go inside and rest. I’ll have a healer come treat your injuries immediately.” His voice sounded earnest, caught somewhere between an order and a plea.
Iroh waved over a nearby crew member who had been standing there in confusion. The sailor obeyed immediately and guided Zuko back to his room. Surprisingly, Zuko actually listened.
“Avatar, I sincerely thank you,” Iroh said warmly. “You and your friends possess truly kind hearts.” He smiled gently. “Would you care for some tea?”
“Yes, please,” Aang replied.
Soon, a small table and several chairs were arranged on the deck. Iroh invited them to sit while he prepared the tea.
“You use firebending to make tea?!” Aang stared at the steaming kettle in amazement.
“Please, just call me Iroh,” he said with a chuckle as he poured tea into four porcelain cups.
“Fire is one of the four elements that sustain life. Without it, we would have no cooked food, no warmth, and no light.” His voice was calm and steady, almost like that of a storyteller. “Opposite fire is water. Water gives us drink, fertility, and blessings. Earth is equally important, it is where people live, farm, and gather resources. And without air…” He smiled softly. “Neither humans nor any living thing could survive.”
There was something soothing about listening to him. And the tea was delicious, too.
“Avatar.”
“You can call me Aang. And these are Katara and Sokka.”
“Aang,” Iroh continued gently, “we are deeply sorry for interfering with your journey to save the world. No matter the reasons behind our actions, what we did to you and your friends was wrong.”
“But…” Katara frowned in confusion. “Isn’t the Fire Nation trying to kill Aang?” First Zuko, and now Iroh. Why did these two act one way while speaking another? She couldn’t understand them at all.
“Fire Lord Ozai wishes to destroy the Avatar,” Iroh corrected quietly. “But many ordinary people simply wish to live peaceful lives. Instead, all of us have been dragged into an unjust war that has disrupted the balance of the world.” His gaze drifted toward the hallway Zuko had disappeared down. “Prince Zuko… my nephew…” Iroh sighed softly. “That boy is also a victim of his father, of harsh teachings and cruel expectations.”
Then he looked back at Aang.
“Avatar Aang, you must travel to the North Pole as quickly as possible. There, a waterbending master can help you master waterbending.”
Eventually, they said their goodbyes.
Iroh promised he would keep an eye on his nephew. Though all three of them knew perfectly well that the hotheaded prince would probably ignore his uncle’s advice and continue sneaking around as the Blue Spirit.