Zukaang Week: Day 7 - Scars
Title: Dancing Dragons - Scars
Characters: Zuko, Aang (main)
Rating: T
Warnings: boys kissing (this is the part where you go "finally!")
Summary: The aftermath of Zuko's kidnapping.
Zuko observed his surroundings absent-mindedly while he tried to calm his racing thoughts. He could understand why Toph had pointed this place out for the dragons to finally land and the party to set camp. It was a very similar cavern to the ones that made up Kineartha on their home continent only, instead of a village, this cavern hid away an underground forest, made entirely out of crystallized ore. The crystal forest was the most breathtaking place Zuko could remember ever seeing. All the plants glistened in soft colours in the dim lighting that made it passed through the cracks in the stone fissure that covered most of the valley.
However, Zuko couldn't truly appreciate the beauty around him as he slumped in a small clearing a small distance away from the camp. Anxiousness burned in his stomach, and he was uncertain if he could relax around this teammembers anymore.
Zuko had finally come clean. He had finally told his friends just who he was. The first child of Phoenix King Ozai, Prince Zuko, who had been thought dead, assassinated in the tender age of thirteen. That hadn’t been the truth of it at all. In reality, Ozai himself had almost killed his own son in an angry fit, almost burning his face off. Ozai had then left his son to die, only for the king’s brother Iroh to come across the boy and spirit him away to tend to his wounds.
The experience had left Zuko with a pale scar on the left side of his face and the youth had grown his hair out on that side to avoid drawing attention whenever he was visiting the capital. Zuko was eternally grateful to his uncle and was willing to assist him with bringing his father down. Zuko could still clearly remember the malicious look on his father’s face when that man had attacked Zuko when the boy had refused to use his summoning power against the Watribans in the upcoming war. Zuko had no illusions of how his father regarded him, even when the truth hurt.
Of course, that was the most painful truth of Zuko's past. The story he had told the party was the same he had told Sokka and Toph in the jail cell in Zhao's fortress. Not that that version of the events was a lie. Ozai had indeed decided that immortality made heirs useless to him. That was why he had ordered his most trusted commanders to keep an eye out for the prince, who could have survived his beating of physical blows and magic.
It was also the reason Azula had betrayed their father. Paranoid to a fault, Azula had never trusted their father to not do the same to her as he had done to Zuko. So when she caught on to Ozai's plan to remove his offspring from the picture, she hadn't wasted time before abandoning the capital. Zuko really hadn't expected to meet up with her in a location this remote; he had been certain Azula would try to fight their father and maybe even try to usurp the throne from him for his betrayal. But maybe Azula did have the will to fight. She didn't seem to resistant towards joining their quest to defeat Ozai.
"Zuko?" the voice calling his name snapped Zuko back into focus of his surroundings. He belatedly realized that the voice had been calling for him for a while now, only now it rang clearer as the speaker was closer. Hurrying to his feet, Zuko tried to look more unaffected than he felt as he cleared his throat and responded: "I'm right here, Aang."
Indeed it was Aang who emerged from among the trees of rock and crystal a couple of moments later. The warrior had a relieved smile on his face and Zuko's lips twitched involuntarily in response. There was something strangely infectious about Aang's smiles.
"Sorry," Aang began and Zuko rolled his eyes at the start. If Aang was going to be treating him like this now when he never before had minded speaking exactly his mind to Zuko, then Zuko would just have to correct him.
"You've never minded yourself around me before," the summoner snapped. "So don't start now."
Aang's face twisted into an unrecognizable expression, before the warrior shook his head and spoke: "Actually, I was trying to figure out the best way to say: 'Sorry if I'm interrupting your brooding over your bad memories,' but I couldn't figure out how to make it sound any less inconsiderate."
Zuko released a startled snort at the sudden bluntness, and his first reaction was to insist that yes, he would indeed prefer to brood alone. But, Zuko fought that response down and instead said: "I said I'd tell you how I got my scar one day."
Pausing for a moment in surprise, Aang observed Zuko's face curiously. The warrior walked the rest of the distance to Zuko and reached out a hand, still with that indecisive turn of his lips. Zuko tilted his head to accommodate the hand better as it pushed his hair away from the scar running down the side of his face. Aang clicked his tongue once before finally querying: "Was it your father who did that?"
Unable to properly nod while Aang was holding his head, Zuko merely hummed an affirmative. "There's more to it than what I told everyone." Zuko met Aang's gaze and allowed the other to observe his emotions. "It's painful and I haven't discussed it before, so talking to a huge crowd..."
"It's okay, Zuko." Aang's thumb caressed Zuko's cheekbone in comfort, because Aang seemed to realize what he was doing and pulled his hand away with a deep red blush on his cheeks.
"How about..." Zuko licked his suddenly dry lips, wondering where his anxiousness came from when Aang was the one embarrassed. "How about I tell you what happened now?"
"Yeah, yeah sure." Aang sounded strangely breathless, but Zuko refused to dwell on the matter as he begun to describe events from long ago: "My father has been plotting this war for years, trying to make anything he could get his hands on into a weapon. When my summoning powers emerged when I turned thirteen, my father wanted to use that too."
"I don't dislike being a summoner, nor do I get queasy at the thought of killing someone in battle, but I wasn't comfortable with the idea of burning down houses and fields whenever my father demanded it. So I told him I wouldn't do it."
The rage on Ozai's face had been unspeakable. A man who was so used to controlling everything being defied and denied by his own child. The man struck Zuko in rage, but then the anger had calmed into something slow and sinister.
"We'd been hunting tunnel lizards at the Emband caverns near the capital." Zuko wondered if his friend knew it was a common sport for noblemen. "There were no witnesses when my father attempted to kill me. Slowly and painfully. Thankfully, he didn't finish the job, but he left me there to die. Fortunately my uncle found me on time and nursed me back to health."
"I won't let him hurt you again." Aang word's were so unexpected that Zuko almost laughed in surprise, but the determination in the warrior's voice and the intensity of his gaze merely brought out a soft smile.
"I can take care of myself you know." Zuko thought he might have been grinning when Aang gave him a tender smile and didn't retreat when Aang stepped closer to him, almost close enough for their chests to touch.
"I still want to help," Aang said and lifted his hand, back to the same place it had visited before, only this time it stayed. "We can work together, like partners."
Aang was so close now; his intentions had never been clearer. There was excitement in Zuko now in place of his previous anxiousness and the summoner barely managed to speak: "I think I'd like that."
The smile on Aang's face widened into a grin momentarily, before it was replaced by the softest expression Zuko had ever seen on the hyperactive warrior. Zuko would have liked to see more of that expression, but his eyes slid shut without his own say so when Aang leaned in the short distance between them to connect their lips in a kiss.
Characters: Zuko, Aang (main)
Rating: T
Warnings: boys kissing (this is the part where you go "finally!")
Summary: The aftermath of Zuko's kidnapping.
Zuko observed his surroundings absent-mindedly while he tried to calm his racing thoughts. He could understand why Toph had pointed this place out for the dragons to finally land and the party to set camp. It was a very similar cavern to the ones that made up Kineartha on their home continent only, instead of a village, this cavern hid away an underground forest, made entirely out of crystallized ore. The crystal forest was the most breathtaking place Zuko could remember ever seeing. All the plants glistened in soft colours in the dim lighting that made it passed through the cracks in the stone fissure that covered most of the valley.
However, Zuko couldn't truly appreciate the beauty around him as he slumped in a small clearing a small distance away from the camp. Anxiousness burned in his stomach, and he was uncertain if he could relax around this teammembers anymore.
Zuko had finally come clean. He had finally told his friends just who he was. The first child of Phoenix King Ozai, Prince Zuko, who had been thought dead, assassinated in the tender age of thirteen. That hadn’t been the truth of it at all. In reality, Ozai himself had almost killed his own son in an angry fit, almost burning his face off. Ozai had then left his son to die, only for the king’s brother Iroh to come across the boy and spirit him away to tend to his wounds.
The experience had left Zuko with a pale scar on the left side of his face and the youth had grown his hair out on that side to avoid drawing attention whenever he was visiting the capital. Zuko was eternally grateful to his uncle and was willing to assist him with bringing his father down. Zuko could still clearly remember the malicious look on his father’s face when that man had attacked Zuko when the boy had refused to use his summoning power against the Watribans in the upcoming war. Zuko had no illusions of how his father regarded him, even when the truth hurt.
Of course, that was the most painful truth of Zuko's past. The story he had told the party was the same he had told Sokka and Toph in the jail cell in Zhao's fortress. Not that that version of the events was a lie. Ozai had indeed decided that immortality made heirs useless to him. That was why he had ordered his most trusted commanders to keep an eye out for the prince, who could have survived his beating of physical blows and magic.
It was also the reason Azula had betrayed their father. Paranoid to a fault, Azula had never trusted their father to not do the same to her as he had done to Zuko. So when she caught on to Ozai's plan to remove his offspring from the picture, she hadn't wasted time before abandoning the capital. Zuko really hadn't expected to meet up with her in a location this remote; he had been certain Azula would try to fight their father and maybe even try to usurp the throne from him for his betrayal. But maybe Azula did have the will to fight. She didn't seem to resistant towards joining their quest to defeat Ozai.
"Zuko?" the voice calling his name snapped Zuko back into focus of his surroundings. He belatedly realized that the voice had been calling for him for a while now, only now it rang clearer as the speaker was closer. Hurrying to his feet, Zuko tried to look more unaffected than he felt as he cleared his throat and responded: "I'm right here, Aang."
Indeed it was Aang who emerged from among the trees of rock and crystal a couple of moments later. The warrior had a relieved smile on his face and Zuko's lips twitched involuntarily in response. There was something strangely infectious about Aang's smiles.
"Sorry," Aang began and Zuko rolled his eyes at the start. If Aang was going to be treating him like this now when he never before had minded speaking exactly his mind to Zuko, then Zuko would just have to correct him.
"You've never minded yourself around me before," the summoner snapped. "So don't start now."
Aang's face twisted into an unrecognizable expression, before the warrior shook his head and spoke: "Actually, I was trying to figure out the best way to say: 'Sorry if I'm interrupting your brooding over your bad memories,' but I couldn't figure out how to make it sound any less inconsiderate."
Zuko released a startled snort at the sudden bluntness, and his first reaction was to insist that yes, he would indeed prefer to brood alone. But, Zuko fought that response down and instead said: "I said I'd tell you how I got my scar one day."
Pausing for a moment in surprise, Aang observed Zuko's face curiously. The warrior walked the rest of the distance to Zuko and reached out a hand, still with that indecisive turn of his lips. Zuko tilted his head to accommodate the hand better as it pushed his hair away from the scar running down the side of his face. Aang clicked his tongue once before finally querying: "Was it your father who did that?"
Unable to properly nod while Aang was holding his head, Zuko merely hummed an affirmative. "There's more to it than what I told everyone." Zuko met Aang's gaze and allowed the other to observe his emotions. "It's painful and I haven't discussed it before, so talking to a huge crowd..."
"It's okay, Zuko." Aang's thumb caressed Zuko's cheekbone in comfort, because Aang seemed to realize what he was doing and pulled his hand away with a deep red blush on his cheeks.
"How about..." Zuko licked his suddenly dry lips, wondering where his anxiousness came from when Aang was the one embarrassed. "How about I tell you what happened now?"
"Yeah, yeah sure." Aang sounded strangely breathless, but Zuko refused to dwell on the matter as he begun to describe events from long ago: "My father has been plotting this war for years, trying to make anything he could get his hands on into a weapon. When my summoning powers emerged when I turned thirteen, my father wanted to use that too."
"I don't dislike being a summoner, nor do I get queasy at the thought of killing someone in battle, but I wasn't comfortable with the idea of burning down houses and fields whenever my father demanded it. So I told him I wouldn't do it."
The rage on Ozai's face had been unspeakable. A man who was so used to controlling everything being defied and denied by his own child. The man struck Zuko in rage, but then the anger had calmed into something slow and sinister.
"We'd been hunting tunnel lizards at the Emband caverns near the capital." Zuko wondered if his friend knew it was a common sport for noblemen. "There were no witnesses when my father attempted to kill me. Slowly and painfully. Thankfully, he didn't finish the job, but he left me there to die. Fortunately my uncle found me on time and nursed me back to health."
"I won't let him hurt you again." Aang word's were so unexpected that Zuko almost laughed in surprise, but the determination in the warrior's voice and the intensity of his gaze merely brought out a soft smile.
"I can take care of myself you know." Zuko thought he might have been grinning when Aang gave him a tender smile and didn't retreat when Aang stepped closer to him, almost close enough for their chests to touch.
"I still want to help," Aang said and lifted his hand, back to the same place it had visited before, only this time it stayed. "We can work together, like partners."
Aang was so close now; his intentions had never been clearer. There was excitement in Zuko now in place of his previous anxiousness and the summoner barely managed to speak: "I think I'd like that."
The smile on Aang's face widened into a grin momentarily, before it was replaced by the softest expression Zuko had ever seen on the hyperactive warrior. Zuko would have liked to see more of that expression, but his eyes slid shut without his own say so when Aang leaned in the short distance between them to connect their lips in a kiss.