Chapter Text
The next day, Zuko made his way to his first council meeting for the day. He was discussing the arrangements for removing his troops.
“Firelord we cannot remove all the troops from the southern border, There will be nothing to buffer the colonies-”
“-General Shu, if we are to end the fighting, we must bring our men home. The longer we occupy earth kingdom territory, the more fighting will break out with returning Earth Kingdom troops. We cannot risk more war.”
“These men have fought and died for their nation; how dare you throw away the progress we have made-
Zuko put his head in his hands. This had been the temperament of every meeting in the last few weeks.
“Look, we have been through this before. We need to remove our soldiers if we ever are to achieve peace. The Earth King has given his word that his soldiers will not attack the colonies. We need our soldiers’ home if we are ever to recover from the conflict.”
Zuko was struggling to maintain control. He was inexperienced on matters of court life and politics, he knew nothing of economics, and the people who were knowledgeable on such matters were the ones resisting him.
He had no way of knowing the truth.
He wished Uncle was here.
Uncle would know what to do. He would know how to make people listen; he had enough experience to know when he was being gaslighted by his generals. He could make people listen without yelling and arguing.
He didn’t have to resort to violence like Zuko.
After discussing the matters of foreign affairs, Zuko turned to school reforms and welfare for orphans.
This particular matter was one that Zuko would not budge on.
“I would like books retrieved from the libraries of Ba Sing Se university, along with professors and historians. We must continue our search through the Vaults of the Caldera and other sites in the fire nation.”
“Firelord Zuko, our school system and curriculums have been perfected for years. We have the most accurate…”
Zuko shook his head. “We have propaganda. The Avatar, who may I remind you was around 100 years ago, attended our public schools for a short period of time. The history had been changed, and we must seek out the truth.”
General How stood up, surprising everyone.
“Your majesty, we have spent years upholding the cultural and historical spirit of the nation. It is what brings us together. Firebending alone has advanced years beyond what it was before the war…”
Zuko stared the General down.
“I will not be persuaded out of this decision General How. My stance on the matter is final.”
General How smirked and uttered the words Zuko hoped he would never have to hear again in this room.
“I challenge you to an Agni Kai”.
Zuko mustered up as much courage as he could and tried to keep his voice from trembling.
“I accept your challenge”.
Zuko waited in his office until sunset. He tried to get more work done, but his hands shook and his mind was elsewhere.
He tried to talk himself around the situation, to perhaps find another way. Zuko wasn’t scared to lose to the general, but rather of the precedent he was setting with the fight.
If he fought an Agni Kai with every general who disagreed with him, he would fight one every day. If he refused to fight, he was dishonorable and a coward.
Zuko was good at fighting. All he has ever done is fight. It was not a new experience. It was a solution that was readily available and one he knew how to maneuver.
But Zuko was sick of fighting. He was sick of struggling all the time. He was sick of everything being so difficult and violent.
He didn’t want to have to fight for people to listen.
Shortly after Katara allowed Zuko to walk around, Sokka had demanded a tour. No one else besides Uncle had shown him around, and Sokka was convinced that Zuko knew of various secret passages around the castle.
Eager to finally be out of bed, Zuko obliged.
“Does anyone else want a tour?”
Toph shook her head. “I gave myself one, but thanks!”
Zuko looked around the room for someone else to accompany him. Suki and Uncle were playing Pai Sho, but the rest of their friends were nowhere to be found.
Sokka elbowed him in the ribs. “Guess you’re stuck with me!”
Zuko chuckled. “Yeah I suppose so.”
Sokka dragged him through the halls. Zuko tried to point out various objects and rooms of importance, but Sokka didn’t seem interested. He was rather enjoying himself, goofing around like a normal teenager. It was nice.
Sokka was nice.
He had his hair in a fire nation topknot today. Zuko had never seen him with anything like that before. It rather suited him.
He should probably stop staring.
“Come on, jerkbender. I know there must be secret passages somewhere!”
“Honestly, I couldn’t tell you even if I did remember- “
It was then that Zuko realized where they were.
They were nearing the Agni Kai hall.
Zuko quickly spun around, grabbing Sokka’s hand.
“wait, I think I might have missed a room…”
Sokka was staring at their hands the whole time Zuko dragged him to a room.
He looked up as they entered and frowned.
“Oh, we were? Sorry about that.” Zuko said hastily, feigning ignorance.
Sokka let go of his hand and walked down the hallway.
“What’s in here?”
“Sokka, I’m not sure if we should go in there…”
“Why not? It’s not like you are going to get in trouble” Sokka smirked.
“Besides, it’s not like we are alone like this very often.”
Zuko blushed violently, and Sokka threw open the doors.
They walked inside.
“WOW, this place is HUGE! What is it for anyway?”
Zuko sulked at the entrance.
“Its for Agni Kai’s, fire bending duels. They are disputes over honor.”
Sokka mouthed the word wow as Zuko ushered him outside.
“Come on, I think I remember a passage where Azula would hide as a kid…”
As Zuko entered the Agni Kai chamber with a prayer shroud around his shoulders, he desperately tried to bring the memory of Sokka’s adventure into the forefront of his mind rather than that of his first duel.
It worked for about 30 seconds.
There were a lot of distractions. Agni Kai’s were very public events. All his generals, most of the noblemen, and many residents of Caldera city were in attendance. He even saw quite a few servants peeking through the curtains.
This made any conversation, any movement, and every intention a public affair.
As the gong sounded, Zuko turned around to face his general. General How was around 50, muscular, and sturdy. Zuko, being rather lean and short, was at a serious physical disadvantage.
Luckily, Agni Kai’s were not fistfights.
How struck first, landing fiery punches left and right. Zuko dodged them easily and quickly assessed his fighting style. The general fought like a bull, with big and heavy blows.
This was great for Zuko, since he was small and fast.
He dodged many blows before striking back himself. He utilized many air bending-like movements that he saw Aang incorporate into his fire bending, and it was extremely effective.
Zuko had the general pinned within 2 minutes.
With his fist near the general’s face, he saw genuine fear in the man’s eyes.
The fear disappeared when Zuko threw a fire punch at the ground.
The crowd roared, and Zuko turned around and walked away. He left the chamber without giving the general another glance, another thought.
Zuko headed towards his room. He opened the door to find Ming waiting for him.
“Is there anything I can help you with your majesty?” She asked him, voice trembling.
He gave her a soft smile and asked for tea. She left.
Zuko did not see Mai in attendance tonight. He was hoping to see her, to know that at least he had one friend out there.
It was then that the events of the night caught up to him.
The crowd had been the same as before.
The people had been the same as before.
The room even smelled like last time.
Zuko curled in on himself, trying not to cry. It was just all a bit too much, and he wished desperately that his friends were here. He wanted his uncle.
He wanted Sokka.
Zuko managed to stop shaking by the time Ming arrived with his tea. He looked upon her with newfound eyes and realized that if he was to be alone in this, he should make some Allies.
“Would you like a cup?”
Ming looked at him, shocked.
“You are perfectly welcome to have some tea if you would like.” Zuko repeated.
He poured out two cups of tea, to which Ming seemed appalled.
“My lord, please allow-“
Zuko chuckled. “It’s alright, I’ve got it. You can sit down if you want.”
He handed her a cup.
Ming tentatively took the cup but remained standing.
“How is your daughter?” asked Zuko.
Ming was extremely troubled by this question.
“m-my daughter?”
“yeah, from what I remember from when I was little, you had a daughter a few years older than me”.
“Th-that is correct.”
“Has she come home yet? I know she was a lieutenant,”
Ming shook her head violently.
“No milord, she has not.”
Zuko frowned.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Where is she stationed?”
Ming looked very surprised to hear this response. She believed the Firelord to have been threatening her daughter’s position in the military, as many servants had been with the previous Firelord. Instead, this new turn of events had rather perplexed her.
“Sh-she was near Yu Dao as far as I can tell. She is in the 85th division.”
Zuko’s face fell. The 85th division was the one filled with newer recruits and had been stationed to protect the colonies. One of the most difficult for him to remove.
“I know where they are. I’m trying to get them home as soon as I can. As far as I know, there hasn’t been any fighting.”
Ming looked rather relieved.
Zuko took a sip of his tea.
It had a faint taste of almonds. It was also severely over brewed.
Zuko spit out his tea as indiscreetly as possible and took the cup out of Ming’s hands.
“Do you know who prepared this tea?”
Ming was growing more nervous by the minute.
“I believe the assistant cook, why?”
Zuko gave her an awkward smile.
“Other than being brewed poorly, I believe it is laced with cyanide.”