take me home tonight
Title: take me home tonight
Author: dark_puck
Rating: PG-13/T
Word Count: 1144
Warnings: Near-drowning, implied drowning
Summary: Prince Zuko's search for the Avatar brings him to the deserted South Pole, where the Southern Raiders disappeared without a trace several years before...
Notes: Written for avatarbigbang 's minibang.
Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation calmly watched a pod of hourglass orcas cavorting in the distance.
Today was a quiet day, despite the rotating watch Uncle insisted on in Southern waters. The only sounds were the distant song of the hourglass orcas and Lieutenant Jee's idle strumming on his pipa.
Weirdly, they sounded good together.
"Good eating on one of those," commented one of the twins. Zuko didn't bother to see which one.
"We're not equipped for whaling," he said.
"Besides," added Tenok, leaning against the rail on Zuko's right, "you don't want to hunt the whales out here. Southern waters're haunted."
Zuko rolled his eyes. Not that old rumour again. After the Southern Raiders vanished without a trace five years ago, it had spread through the Navy like wildfire. "We are not hunting whales," he informed both men. "We're hunting the Avatar."
Tenok muttered something under his breath that Zuko pretended not to hear. His authority issues were many and vast, but he was a brilliant navigator. Uncle had advised him at the start of the voyage simply to ignore the man when he was insubordinate.
"So why do you think it's haunted out here?" the twin - Zuko checked - Seiichi asked.
He could hear Tenok's grin. "Because up until five years ago, the Southern Water Tribe lived here."
The prince glanced sharply at him. This was the first time he'd heard the Water Tribe brought into it. "Explain," he ordered.
Tenok shrugged. "Under your granddad's orders, the Southern Raiders systematically captured all the Southern waterbenders, both as part of his Avatar hunt and to prevent them from breeding more."
"I know that," Zuko snapped.
"They took the last waterbender over sixty years ago," Tenok went on, ignoring him. "But five years ago, a rumour sprang up - they said the Chief of the South was looking for a waterbending master. Southern Raiders went in, of course, and were never seen again." His grin was vicious. "Nor was the Southern Water Tribe."
Zuko frowned. "I never heard that."
"'Course not," Tenok answered. "Azulon forbade all mention of it. Officially, the Southern Raiders were lost at sea during a storm. He fabricated a distress call."
Seiichi frowned. "How do you know that?"
"Because," Tenok said, "I was on the ship that picked up the only survivor."
The hourglass orcas were even closer to the ship now that night had fallen. Their song rang through the air and kept Zuko up late. He frowned, watching the pod off the bow. He couldn't remember any other group of marine animals stay near his ship for so long.
Tenok's story had spooked him, he decided. It had been pretty creepy, especially when the older man implied that the lone survivor had died shortly after telling a garbled tale of sea wolves and men with whaletails.
The spirits didn't work that way, as Zuko well knew.
Men did, but Tenok wasn't a murderer.
Was it just him, or was the song closer? He looked down to see if one of the hourglass orcas was alongside the boat.
There was a girl floating in the water.
"Man overboard!" Zuko shouted, then dove in after her.
The water was freezing.
Zuko barely bit back a cry of shock, and ramped up his body temperature before his limbs could seize up. Whalesong surrounded him, even more eerie underwater, but the prince righted himself and swam for the surface.
His legs locked together suddenly, and he began to sink. Startled, Zuko reached down and brushed against ice. His good eye went wide, and he heated his hand even more to melt himself free.
Arms wrapped around his shoulders and breasts pressed against his back. "Shh," said a female voice even as he struggled. "Just relax." She nibbled his ear and practically purred, "It'll all be over soon."
Zuko tipped his head back and stared into cold blue eyes and lovely face of a Water Tribeswoman. Brown hair floated behind her back loosely, but was pulled away from her face. Twin loops of hair lazily drifted upward as she pushed him further away from the surface.
Zuko's lungs burned with the need for air. He tried to reach up, but his arms were iced to his sides. All he could see was the Water girl's smiling face and her blue eyes as darkness clawed at the edges of his vision.
Suddenly, she shrieked and let go of him. Something struck him hard in the back of the head as she vanished from his line of sight, and he yelled in pain.
Panicking, Zuko tried to swim for the surface, but he had no air to free himself with, he couldn't make it, he couldn't... couldn't...
Something yanked his hair and dragged him up, then a mouth pressed over his and air was blown into his lungs. Just as suddenly, his legs were free. He pulled back and started to swim for the surface.
The Water girl appeared in his way, and Zuko could now see she wasn't human - while her upper body was normal, her body changed to that of an hourglass orca at the waist, and she had flippers instead of legs. Her lovely face was distorted by anger. "You're mine," she hissed, and lunged for him.
A man in red swam between them; with a flip of her tail, the whaletailed girl dove deep. Faster than Zuko believed possible, the man whirled.
It was Tenok.
Grabbing Zuko by the arm, Tenok thrust him further upwards and gestured for him to keep going. Zuko swam as hard as he could, Tenok just behind him, when he saw the whaletailed girl coming for them from below.
Tenok lunged for her and caught hold, pinning her to him.
Then Zuko's head broke the surface, and he drew in a breath of sweet, fresh air.
"Prince Zuko!" Uncle shouted. Zuko looked up to see him holding onto the end of a rope; the other end was near him. As fast as his frozen limbs could move, he tied the rope around his waist and wearily indicated he was ready. He watched the water as Uncle and Lieutenant Jee hauled him up, waiting for Tenok to break the surface.
An hour later, he was still waiting.
"Prince Zuko."
Zuko numbly accepted the tea Uncle pressed into his hands, but did not drink. He continued to stare out over the icy waters of the South Pole.
Uncle sighed softly. "Prince Zuko, look." He turned the young prince towards a column of light jutting up into the sky. "It might be the Avatar," he said.
After a moment, Zuko said quietly, "Set a course for the light." He then turned back to his vigil over the water.
A pause, then he heard Uncle stride away to give the necessary orders.
Finally, he was going home.
Zuko wondered if it was worth it.
a fading memory
- End -
Author: dark_puck
Rating: PG-13/T
Word Count: 1144
Warnings: Near-drowning, implied drowning
Summary: Prince Zuko's search for the Avatar brings him to the deserted South Pole, where the Southern Raiders disappeared without a trace several years before...
Notes: Written for avatarbigbang 's minibang.
Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation calmly watched a pod of hourglass orcas cavorting in the distance.
Today was a quiet day, despite the rotating watch Uncle insisted on in Southern waters. The only sounds were the distant song of the hourglass orcas and Lieutenant Jee's idle strumming on his pipa.
Weirdly, they sounded good together.
"Good eating on one of those," commented one of the twins. Zuko didn't bother to see which one.
"We're not equipped for whaling," he said.
"Besides," added Tenok, leaning against the rail on Zuko's right, "you don't want to hunt the whales out here. Southern waters're haunted."
Zuko rolled his eyes. Not that old rumour again. After the Southern Raiders vanished without a trace five years ago, it had spread through the Navy like wildfire. "We are not hunting whales," he informed both men. "We're hunting the Avatar."
Tenok muttered something under his breath that Zuko pretended not to hear. His authority issues were many and vast, but he was a brilliant navigator. Uncle had advised him at the start of the voyage simply to ignore the man when he was insubordinate.
"So why do you think it's haunted out here?" the twin - Zuko checked - Seiichi asked.
He could hear Tenok's grin. "Because up until five years ago, the Southern Water Tribe lived here."
The prince glanced sharply at him. This was the first time he'd heard the Water Tribe brought into it. "Explain," he ordered.
Tenok shrugged. "Under your granddad's orders, the Southern Raiders systematically captured all the Southern waterbenders, both as part of his Avatar hunt and to prevent them from breeding more."
"I know that," Zuko snapped.
"They took the last waterbender over sixty years ago," Tenok went on, ignoring him. "But five years ago, a rumour sprang up - they said the Chief of the South was looking for a waterbending master. Southern Raiders went in, of course, and were never seen again." His grin was vicious. "Nor was the Southern Water Tribe."
Zuko frowned. "I never heard that."
"'Course not," Tenok answered. "Azulon forbade all mention of it. Officially, the Southern Raiders were lost at sea during a storm. He fabricated a distress call."
Seiichi frowned. "How do you know that?"
"Because," Tenok said, "I was on the ship that picked up the only survivor."
The hourglass orcas were even closer to the ship now that night had fallen. Their song rang through the air and kept Zuko up late. He frowned, watching the pod off the bow. He couldn't remember any other group of marine animals stay near his ship for so long.
Tenok's story had spooked him, he decided. It had been pretty creepy, especially when the older man implied that the lone survivor had died shortly after telling a garbled tale of sea wolves and men with whaletails.
The spirits didn't work that way, as Zuko well knew.
Men did, but Tenok wasn't a murderer.
Was it just him, or was the song closer? He looked down to see if one of the hourglass orcas was alongside the boat.
There was a girl floating in the water.
"Man overboard!" Zuko shouted, then dove in after her.
The water was freezing.
Zuko barely bit back a cry of shock, and ramped up his body temperature before his limbs could seize up. Whalesong surrounded him, even more eerie underwater, but the prince righted himself and swam for the surface.
His legs locked together suddenly, and he began to sink. Startled, Zuko reached down and brushed against ice. His good eye went wide, and he heated his hand even more to melt himself free.
Arms wrapped around his shoulders and breasts pressed against his back. "Shh," said a female voice even as he struggled. "Just relax." She nibbled his ear and practically purred, "It'll all be over soon."
Zuko tipped his head back and stared into cold blue eyes and lovely face of a Water Tribeswoman. Brown hair floated behind her back loosely, but was pulled away from her face. Twin loops of hair lazily drifted upward as she pushed him further away from the surface.
Zuko's lungs burned with the need for air. He tried to reach up, but his arms were iced to his sides. All he could see was the Water girl's smiling face and her blue eyes as darkness clawed at the edges of his vision.
Suddenly, she shrieked and let go of him. Something struck him hard in the back of the head as she vanished from his line of sight, and he yelled in pain.
Panicking, Zuko tried to swim for the surface, but he had no air to free himself with, he couldn't make it, he couldn't... couldn't...
Something yanked his hair and dragged him up, then a mouth pressed over his and air was blown into his lungs. Just as suddenly, his legs were free. He pulled back and started to swim for the surface.
The Water girl appeared in his way, and Zuko could now see she wasn't human - while her upper body was normal, her body changed to that of an hourglass orca at the waist, and she had flippers instead of legs. Her lovely face was distorted by anger. "You're mine," she hissed, and lunged for him.
A man in red swam between them; with a flip of her tail, the whaletailed girl dove deep. Faster than Zuko believed possible, the man whirled.
It was Tenok.
Grabbing Zuko by the arm, Tenok thrust him further upwards and gestured for him to keep going. Zuko swam as hard as he could, Tenok just behind him, when he saw the whaletailed girl coming for them from below.
Tenok lunged for her and caught hold, pinning her to him.
Then Zuko's head broke the surface, and he drew in a breath of sweet, fresh air.
"Prince Zuko!" Uncle shouted. Zuko looked up to see him holding onto the end of a rope; the other end was near him. As fast as his frozen limbs could move, he tied the rope around his waist and wearily indicated he was ready. He watched the water as Uncle and Lieutenant Jee hauled him up, waiting for Tenok to break the surface.
An hour later, he was still waiting.
"Prince Zuko."
Zuko numbly accepted the tea Uncle pressed into his hands, but did not drink. He continued to stare out over the icy waters of the South Pole.
Uncle sighed softly. "Prince Zuko, look." He turned the young prince towards a column of light jutting up into the sky. "It might be the Avatar," he said.
After a moment, Zuko said quietly, "Set a course for the light." He then turned back to his vigil over the water.
A pause, then he heard Uncle stride away to give the necessary orders.
Finally, he was going home.
Zuko wondered if it was worth it.
a fading memory
- End -