Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Gunshots and explosives ranged out, spraying debris and ashes everywhere. Over the fire of tanks, deep loud roars sounded from within the ruined city. A monstrous giant figured stalked in the dusk, drawing attention from tanks, guns, and anything the military could get their hands on.

Despite all the chaos and waves of panicked fleeing citizens, a young woman pressed forward. Passed the blockade, passed the last line of defense, and deeper into the city. She drove as far as she could before getting blocked by fallen pieces of buildings. The ground shook beneath her as fire and gun shells rained from above. It wasn’t hard to find her target.

A massive blood red dragon in the center of the chaos. A single swing from his tail took down whole squads of fighter jets; a single step crushed tanks underneath. The woman blew hard on a whistle. Though it made no sound for her, it cut through the air straight to the beast.

Everything fell eerily quiet. The woman began to wonder if she made a mistake when two bright golden eyes shined through the smoke. Soon the dragon’s head emerged, staring down at her and right through her soul. Shivers of fire escaped his maul, heating up the area and causing the woman’s resolve to wane some.

No. She came this far.

What else could she lose? Caldera was destroyed; countless lives lost. One more added to the mix would not make a difference if her gamble was wrong.

She took a deep breath.

“Did we offend you? Why are you attacking?”

The dragon tilted his head, seemingly confused by her question. Maybe surprise was the more accurate word.

“Please dragon. This is our home. If we upset you, then let us make it right.”

He rumbled lowly and continued to stare at her with those bright burning eyes. The woman was starting to wonder if her theory was wrong when the dragon spoke.

“I am no mere dragon. I am Ozai, King of the Dragons.”

Her mouth fell open. She was right! Dragons could communicate!

The victory was short lived when he extended a paw towards her. She flinched, expecting to be crushed underneath, until it rested gently beside her palm up. A gasp escaped her lips.

He wanted her to…?

The woman hesitantly touched one of his claws then glanced up searching for any warning signs. He continued to stare. Expectedly this time.

A test.

A reckless, foolish idea, but backing down now surely would mean death. The woman hoisted herself onto the dragon’s palm. Once settled, he rose to full height, eyes not leaving her once. The woman stood and stared back with trembling hands clenched at her sides determined not to coward back.

“You are quite brave for a human.” He rumbled. “What are you called?”

“Ursa.”

“Ursa…” He repeated, fire slipping out of his mouth once more.

She swallowed once, then twice, before finding her voice again.

“Dragon King Ozai, why are you attacking?”

“Retribution.” Ozai growled lowly.

Ursa’s heart skipped a beat. “What for?”

His gaze shifted towards the rows of tanks right outside the city. A cease fire was called as the military held their breath, waiting and watching for the giant’s next move.

“Do you truly wish to know, Ursa?”

She stood straighter, voice now determined. “Yes.”

Ozai rumbled. Without warning, his digits curled over Ursa, closing her inside his fist. Ursa let out a surprised scream while she ducked and covered her head. Once secured, Ozai dropped down on all fours while keeping the paw holding Ursa close to his chest.

The military opened fire again when the dragon charged towards them. Ozai merely leaped over the defense line, out of the volcano crater where the city resided, and disappeared into the jungle.

~*~

It was easy to slip away from the remaining humans. Their flying metal contraptions quickly lost sight of him once entering the jungle. After some time, Ozai reached the intended destination. He breathed fire onto the ground, causing a cavern to open up.

After slinking through, Ozai turned his attention to the human curled up in his paw. She was still alive. He felt her trembling body and hot shallow breaths against his scales. Ozai stood and uncurled his fist. The human had not seemed to notice yet; still curled in on herself crying softly. A pang of guilt surged through the dragon, despite his efforts to remain apathetic towards the human.

“Are you well, Ursa?”

The human flinched then sat up breathing hard and clutching her chest.

“G-Great Sun Spirit…” She gasped then glared up at him. “A bit of a warning would have been nice!”

Ozai chuckled, surprising both of them.

“My apologies for the hardship.” He offered the tip of his claw and helped Ursa to her feet.

“You’re quite gentle for a dragon.”

“Well, I’m not a monster.”

This time, Ursa laughed some.

“Where are we?” She asked, noticing the cavern filled with glowing ruby crystals.

“A place to speak without your warriors listening. Here I will explain my reasoning. Only, if you swear to never speak of this place.”

“Is it your home?”

Ozai rumbled lowly, answering her question. “Do I have your word?”

“Can I ask you something first?”

He blinked slowly. Ursa took that as a yes.

“Why are you trusting me?”

“Why did you first approach me? I could have very easily killed you, even mistakenly.”

Ursa shrugged her shoulders some. “I had a theory, and took a gamble.”

Ozai exhaled more streams of fire. “As am I.”

“Okay.” Ursa nodded. “I promise. Not a word to anyone.”

Another low rumble rose from his throat, satisfied with her response. Ozai placed her onto his shoulder then walked deeper into the carven with slow steady steps.

“I will start from the beginning.”

Chapter Text

The last golden specks disappeared under a layer smooth face cream. The label lied about the foundation being lightweight and breathable. With a heavy sigh, he threw the now empty container in the trash beside the broken files then drew up his hoodie.

“Maybe I should just skip. Nothing says freak like coal for lunch.”

“You’re not a freak, Zuko.”

“And the scales! You can still see them even through the makeup!”

“They’ll just think it’s glitter lotion. Like those sparkly vampire movies girls are so into these days.”

“Sparkly vampire? Really mom?” Zuko huffed.

Ursa chuckled and handed him a bowl of coals. “A sun fairy was my other choice, but I thought you’d preferred vampire.”

“I wished I was a vampire instead of a dragon.” He muttered.

“Zuko, this is a new school not an execution. Just try to socialize, make new friends, and-“

“And stop getting into fights.” Zuko finished for her. “But they’re the ones who started it! Jerks are drawn to me like moths to a flame! Someone has to put them in their place!”

“Zuko, you’re a 16 year old boy like every other guy in your class.”

“But I’m not like them. Not really.”

“You are where it counts. In here.” Ursa pointed to his heart. “Everyone at that school has problems of their own. Deep down, we’re all the same really. So if you get along with everyone and keep your temper, everything’s going to be just fine.”

Zuko tsked. “I guess.”

“Promise me, Zuko.”

He rolled his eyes, but gave in regardless. Mom was annoying sometimes, but he could never say no to her. “I promise.”

“That’s my boy.” Ursa removed his hood then kissed his head between his horn stubs. “I love you.”

“Yeah love you too.” Zuko muttered.

He abandoned his breakfast then sulked out the door while pulling up his hood again.

Another new school. Another town. One near Caldera no less. Zuko couldn’t imagine what hoops Jee had to jump through to get White Lotus’s permission to transfer them so close. Though it’s been over a decade since a dragon sighting, fear still hung heavy in the air.

Fear of the monsters.

Zuko kicked a can. He knew what he was. It would only be a matter of time before this town knew too. Then it’s off to the next one. Or worst, a cold sterile cell in a research lab in the middle of the South Pole or some other Agni forsaken place.

Frustrated, Zuko kicked the can harder. It bounced off a mailbox then hit a parked car, triggering the alarm. Zuko swore then ran further down the sidewalk. He skidded to a stop when he saw a girl around his age walking ahead.

She wore all black coupled with long flowing sleeves and thick boots despite the summer heat. A stark difference to the airy warm colored clothed wore by most people in the Fire Nation. The girl didn’t seem to care.

Zuko was impressed. Walking around without caring what other people thought took guts. A car full of rowdy teenage boys pulled up beside her, whooping and hollering. The girl flicked them off, earning obnoxious laughter from them. Zuko snorted.

Looked like he wasn’t the only outcast at this school.

“Hey, check out the new kid.”

Zuko swore as the car reversed and boys jeered at him.

“Oh sorry. I saw crap in my mirror but turns out it was just your face!”

“How original.” Zuko said deadpan as they high fived each other.

He knew what he promised his mother, but if these jerks were in his school, it was going to be another broken promise.

~*~

Zuko’s pointed ears twitched under his hood. No matter how hard he tried, he still picked up on the meaningless chatter from the students in the halls. It was all the same pointless thing. Zuko growled lowly when caught some of them giving him side eyes. Something collided with him, spilling hot liquids all over his chest.

“Watch where you’re going!” Zuko snarled. “That’s…”

He trailed off when he realized it was the girl from the walk to school. Up closed, he saw her black eyeliner and dark lips that popped against her ivory makeup.

“So hot…”

The girl raised an unamused brow.

“T-The tea! I meant the tea is so hot…”

“It’s coffee, actually.”

“Right yes. It smells nice. Brown sugar and spice latte with oat milk and a dash of ginger.”

She raised her other brow. “Good guess.”

“I-I have a good nose.” Zuko laughed awkwardly. “Um, let me buy you a new one... uh…”

“Mai. And don’t bother. Just watch where you’re going next time and we’ll call it even. Deal?”

“Yeah, sure. Deal.”

Zuko sighed as she walked away. Spirits, why was he like this? He turned to leave when another student purposely bumped into him.

“Whoops.” He chuckled.

Zuko sneered. It was the jerk from this morning! The boy pointed towards Mai then to Zuko before silting his throat with his finger. Zuko growled, causing the boy to laugh again.

“Freak.”

With that, he walked off still shaking with laughter. Zuko pulled his hood tighter. Why did he even bother?

~*~

“I’d like everyone to give a warm welcome to our new student, Zuko Kaji.” The biology teacher, Mrs. Abiko patted Zuko’s shoulder. “Smile, young man.”

Zuko rolled his eyes then offered a halfhearted wave.

“Hello, Zuko here.”

Snickers sounded through the class.

“Straight and to the point. I like it.” Mrs. Abiko nodded. “You make take your seat.”

“Hey Zuko! Come sit with us!” A Water Tribe girl dressed in pale blues waved him over. “Aang here still needs a partner.”

“What? But we’re partners!” The Air Nomad boy beside her hissed.

“The more the merrier right?” she moved to the other side of the table and gestured to her seat.

“Uh thanks.” Zuko sat down awkwardly.

“I’m Katara and this is Aang.”

Zuko nodded a greeting then turned to Aang who quickly glanced away. Zuko sighed. He tended to get that reaction from people.

“Alright hotshot.” Katara raised her brow mischievously. “What’s your secret?”

Cold sweat ran down Zuko. How did she find out so quickly?! “W-What secret?”

“Your name.”

“Zuko’s a pretty common Fire Nation name-”

“No. Kaji! It’s the same name as that dragon scientist! You know, the one who first proposed dragons can communicate like humans!” She leaned in closer, excitement shining in her eyes. “The one who saved Caldera!”

Zuko froze. “W-Wasn’t that the military?” he asked dumbly.

“That’s what they want you to believe! The scientist disappeared a while back and the government’s covering it up.”

“How do you know that?”

“Katara’s a monster fangirl.” Aang chimed in. “Obsessionist really.”

“They’re not monsters Aang! They only attack when we encroach on their land. It’s been 16 years since the Dragon King was seen and yet, people still treat them like a threat.”

“Um yeah, that’s what happens when you destroy an entire city.” Aang said matter-of-factly.

Zuko sank into his seat and wished the ground would swallow him whole. He had to get away from these nerds. They knew too much.

Mrs. Abiko cleared her throat loudly. “Table three. Is there anything you would like to share with the class?”

“No ma’am.” Aang said politely.

Mrs. Abiko tsked then continued with the lesson. Afterwards, she passed out frogs on trays while explaining the dissection steps. Zuko poked the frog causing Aang to winced at the squishy sound.

“The student council said they were going to ban live dissections.” Katara whispered heatedly.

Aang raised his hand. “Uh, can I be excused? I’m not comfortable with-“

“I told you Mr. Wan that you needed a written excuse beforehand.” The teacher snapped. “Now, as I was saying, like insects and reptiles, frogs are ectotherm and cannot regulate their internal body temperature. What we used to call cold-blooded.”

“Why did we stop? Did the amphibians object to being labeled cold-blooded?” Mai asked while twirling the scalpel.

Laughter filled the room.

“No Ms. Inoue.” Mrs. Abiko groaned.

Katara slammed her hands on the table then stood. “I however, object!”

“Please sit down Ms. Imiq.”

“No! As a student, I have a right to refuse to participate in this needless mutilation! We have the technology now to do this digitally, yet we continue to practice this inhumane act!”

“Ms. Imiq-”

“Cold-blooded or not, they still have rights!”

“Enough!”

The class descended into chaos. Zuko longingly watched Mai twirl the scalpel, cool in the middle of the storm.

Suddenly his skin started to itch. His eyes shifted to Mai’s tray where the frog twitched to life. He squinted his eyes then let out a faint gasp. It wasn’t a frog at all. The scaly creature rose then locked eyes with Zuko, making his skin crawl even more. It then turned its attention to Mai and opened its mouth to bite her arm with its many rows of sharp teeth.

“AHH! OH NO!” Zuko screamed and held up his tray. “IT’S STILL ALIVE”

“Mr. Kaji!”

He stumbled out of his seat and tossed the tray around making the frog jump.

“WATCH OUT! WE GOT A JUMPER!”

Zuko threw the frog high in the air causing everyone to stare at it. While they were distracted, he snatched the creature attempting to bite Mai and stuffed it into his hoodie. Zuko then attempted to catch the airborne frog but missed on purpose and fell. The entire class erupted in laughter.

Mai rolled her eyes. “Idiot.”

Mrs. Abiko dragged her nails across the chalkboard. “Stop it! Settle down everyone!”

The bell ranged allowing the students to file out. Zuko overheard Mai talking to her friends.

“And I actually thought he might be cool. Whatever.”

A small defeated smile crept onto Zuko’s face. The day kept getting better.

Much to his surprise, Aang offered him a hand up. “Neat trick.”

Zuko started to accept his hand before he pulled back and stood on his own. “Just a bad joke. Forget it.”

“You two!” Mrs. Abiko hand both Zuko and Katara pink slips of paper. “Lunch detention.”

“For exercising my rights?”

“Interrupting class. You know better.” She pointed to Aang. “Run along now Mr. Wan. That was the lunch bell. Unless you would like to join your friends in detention as well.”

Aang swallowed. “Nah, I’m good. I’ll see you later, Katara.”

“If you see On Ji, tell her to do her damn job!” Katara shouted back.

“You just earned another lunch detention for foul language.”

“Seriously?!”

Zuko ignored them and focused on holding onto the creature wiggling around in his hoodie pocket. Unfortunately, Mrs. Abiko was the dentition monitor as well and was determined on keeping them the entire demanded time. Zuko sat at the table and tried no to squirm. He had to get rid of the creature fast.

Not even ten minutes in, the speaker came to life.

“Would Mrs. Abiko please come to the principal’s office?”

The elderly woman sighed wearily. “Stay here.”

Now as his chance! Minutes after Mrs. Abiko left, Zuko bolted out the room. He hissed when he noticed Katara following him.

“Leave me alone!”

“Why are you ditching?”

“Why are you ditching?!” he shot back.

“It’s rude to answer a question with a question.”

Zuko rolled his eyes. He was about to make another break for it until he came across a large poster of a huge familiar red dragon attacking a city. Big bold letters read “Defend. Protect. Serve.” Under it was the number for the dragon alert system to report sightings.

It’s been a while since he’d seen one of those. Zuko turned his head, ashamed.

“Are you alright?” Katara asked concerningly.

Before he could answer, a frog hit the side of his head. Zuko turned and saw the jerk and his gang laughing.

“Dance froggy!”

“Ugh Chan!” Katara crossed her arms. “Shouldn’t evolution have weeded out guys out of gene pool eons ago!”

“No. Cockroaches have remained unchanged for millions of years.” Zuko smirked.

“Hey, that’s an insult to cockroaches everywhere.”

The two shared a laugh.

“You’re clearly not a moron. So what was up with that frog dance back in class?”

“Did you like it?” Zuko teased.

“I got some notes. Like doing it in the middle of my speech for example.”

“Yeah. Sorry about that.”

“But, I did like when you hid something in your pocket.” Katara took a step closer and got in his face, forcing Zuko to look at her. A red tint immediately formed on his cheeks from the sudden closeness. “Sooo… You’re gonna show me?”

Zuko glanced around. “Just… keep it quiet, okay?”

Katara nodded, excitedly.

Neither noticed Aang trying to flag them down. He lowered his arms disappointedly as they ran outside together.

Zuko and Katara couched behind a corner. After checking if the coast was clear, Zuko pulled out the creature.

“No way! A Kaida!!!” Katara gasped.

“It’s like a little tiny dragon.”

“It’s a Kaida, my dear Zuko. These things live on dragons eating the slime between their scales like an interspecies mutualistic relationship.”

“Sorry I asked.” Zuko shuddered. “How do you know all this stuff?”

“I read books about this all the time. A lot is hidden from the public unless you know where to look.”

The Kaida snuggled close to Zuko and purred.

“Aww it likes you.” Katara gushed.

“You think?” Zuko petted its head.

“Absolutely! You should name it.”

He always loved animals, but Mom and the White Lotus never let him have any. Mom was worried about the mess and the government lackeys thought he was going to eat it live or something crazy. (Though Dr. Hanji would love that. He could hear it now. “What an interesting development!”). Regardless, this made the little Kaida curled up in his palm all the more tempting.

“How about…” Zuko tapped his chin. “Druk.”

“Druk it is!” Katara smiled.

Zuko felt his cheeks warm again. Druk suddenly bit his finger causing Zuko to drop him in surprise. Druk then used the opportunity to make his grand escape.

“Don’t let him get away!” Katara shouted.

“On it!”

Katara giggled as Zuko chased the creature and failed miserably as Druk ran circles around him. After another failed attempt, Druk disappeared into some bushes leaving Zuko behind flat on his stomach utterly defeated. Katara doubled down in laughter. Zuko soon found himself laughing too, harder than he had in a while.

Maybe this school year wasn’t going to be so bad after all.

~*~

“Alright ladies! Line up! I’m your new coach teacher! You can call me Coach Ito or once you come to love me, Jee.”

“Hey Jee. Was wondering when you showed up.” Zuko smirked. “Gym teacher? Really? That’s your cover? You’ve really come down since the last school.”

“The whole vice principle thing wasn’t my style. I could only yell at the kids. Here, I can get a lot more physical.” He shoved the dodge ball hard into Zuko’s stomach. “No more dentitions Kaji. Got it.”

Zuko nodded then winced when Jee blew the whistle right by his ears. “ON THE LINE!”

Prick. He knew Zuko had sensitive hearing. The half smirk afterwards proved Jee knew what he did.

Zuko rolled his eyes.

The boys separated into two teams with the jocks occupying one leaving the others to themselves. They grabbed the dodgeballs then started pelting each other, starting with the weaker students until only Aang and Zuko remained. Chan and his posse chuckled.

“Just two losers left.”

“Eat this Chan!” Aang threw a ball at him, which Chan easily dodged.

“My turn.” He grinned.

“You really are king of the jerks.”

“What can I say? It’s good to be king.”

The boys launched the balls at him, more than Aang could dodge at once. Aang braced himself for impact when Zuko suddenly grabbed all of them midair.

“Enough!”

“No way…” Chan gasped.

He then ordered his team to throw the rest of the balls. Zuko dodged each of them leaving the rest of the class in awe. Chan’s previous victims cheered, furthering his anger.

Zuko threw the balls at him, one after another as the crowd egged him on. Chan fell on his bottom and clutched his chest in pain. Feeling confident, Zuko launched the last ball right at his face, but Jee caught it at the last second.

“Catch the ball with your hands, not your face Chan! The rest of you, hit the showers!” He shot a warning glare at Zuko. “Strike two Kaji.”

The boy tsked. That jerk started it!

Zuko stormed off the locker rooms before Jee could give him an earful about keeping a low profile. No one was there, much to his relief. Zuko quickly changed as Aang walked in and leaned against the lockers.

“You didn’t have to do that. He was already down.”

“I know. I just got sick of hearing his crap.”

“I hear that.” Aang chuckled some. “It was cool though. Hey, you can take that show on the road! It’ll sell more tickets than the Ember Island Players!”

Zuko smirked some. “Not that high of a bar.”

“Oh come on. They’re not that bad.”

“Not that bad? They absolutely butchered Painted Lady: Ghost of Juang Hai. That’s like the easiest play and they still managed to mess that up. They did not say flameo and hotman a hundred years ago.”

“Well, that’s not very flameo of you, is it hotman?”

“Ugh. You and my mom, I swear.”

The boys’ smiles fell when Chan waltzed in with his team and surrounded them.

“Get lost, air head.” He sneered at Haru.

Aang bristled at the insult. “Or what, your highness?”

“It’s okay, Aang.” Zuko stood. “Go.”

“There’s no way I’m leaving-“

“Aang.” Zuko said firmly. “It’s fine. I can handle this.”

“Yeah. Go back to the jungle, nomad trash!” Chan barked.

He hesitated a bit before leaving with a deep pit in his stomach. Chan cracked his knuckles and glared at Zuko.

“You know what happens now?”

Zuko huffed. “Traditionally, this is where I beat you until you beg for mercy like spineless slugs, but I promised my mom I wouldn’t get into any more fights sooo…”

He launched himself off the side of the lockers, over Chan’s back, then bolted out of the room.

“GET HIM!”

Zuko ran into the gym then threw the remaining dodgeballs at the boy, knocking some out. He aimed for Chan’s face again, causing the boy to flinch. When no impact came, Chan looked up and saw Zuko scaling up the side of the wall onto the beams.

“What the-“

Zuko climbed onto the rooftop then jumped down into the courtyard in front of Jee making a phone call.

“Hey Jee.” He said smugly before running off.

“ZUKO!” Jee swore as the rest of the football team chased after the boy.

Agni, he was not getting paid enough to babysit this brat!

Zuko ran into the school, jumping in between stair railings and leaping from balcony to balcony with reckless abandon. The team copied, with some actually succeeding in pulling off the stunts. Zuko was still much further ahead though. He egged them on, enjoying the frustrated glares and insults. Zuko ran into the empty cafeteria that only had one door. Chan, the only one to had kept up, ran up behind him breathing hard.

“You don’t want to fight me.” Zuko warned.

“Don’t worry. It’s not going to be a fight.” He punched his hand. “Just a beat down!”

Zuko snarled. Deep fire flared up inside as Chan reeled back to swing.

“LEAVE ME ALONE!”

Fire shot out of Zuko’s mouth straight at Chan. He covered his face and jerked back as the flames seared his eyebrows off.

“Dude what the hell!!!”

Zuko stared back in shock.

“Monster.” Chan took a shaky step back. “You monstrous freak!”

Jee burst in out of nowhere, knocked Chan out from behind then grabbed Zuko, covering his mouth.

“Way to keep a low profile, kid.” He hissed. “What the hell did you do this time?!”

“I…”

Zuko’s mind raced. His chest was still warm and puffs of smoke still escaping his mouth. Deep down, he knew there was no going back to pretending to be normal.

“I breathed fire.”

Chapter Text

Zuko winced at the bright light shining into his eyes. He could just barely make out Dr. Hanji’s wide excited smile seconds before she shut off the light.

“Well, this doesn’t look too bad!”

“Are you kidding me?! My face looks like someone used it to wipe up glitter vomit!” Zuko snapped as the machine whirled to life and scanned him over.

“More like sparkly cat litter.” Jee jeered.

Dr. Hanji snorted. “Perhaps!”

“Is this it Doc, or should we expect other surprises?”

“Well obviously Zuko’s innate strength and resilience has been growing since birth. But his natural flight or fight stimulate created a hyperstimulated state, which manifested itself in incendia respiro.” Dr. Hanji giggled. “Fire breath!”

Jee grunted while Zuko hissed. “I knew it.”

Dr. Hanji examined the charts. “It’s quite fascinating! The lungs activated the mysterious sack in front of the heart. At first, we believed it was a vestigial trait from the human-dragon hybridization, but further studies show it’s filled with plasma which explains the high body temperature and incendia respiro.”

Zuko and Jee side eyed each other.

“In Fire Tonge, Doc!” Jee groaned.

“An inner flame.” Dr. Hanji placed a hand over her heart. “Just like the dragons.”

Zuko angrily looked away.

Just like Ozai.

“You’ll learn to control in with time, but until then you’ll have to stay out of situations with potential conflict.”

Zuko slid off the exam table and collapsed onto a nearby chair. “Like high school?” he scoffed.

“High school! I remember high school!” Dr. Hanji laughed. “That didn’t work out for me either. The other kids used to call me Shitty Glasses. To be fair, I did have unusually large glasses for the time and didn’t bathe much, so they did have a point.”

Jee pulled the doctor aside. “What I’m asking is, when will Zuko constitute a threat?”

“To humanity? Zuko?!” Dr. Hanji gasped. “Oh no no. He’s a sweet boy; not a pandemic.”

Zuko rolled his eyes. Clearly they forgot he could still hear them. He gingerly touched his still warm chest. The doctor was right. Something was stirring inside.

Fire.

Zuko took a deep breath then slowly exhaled. Warmth spread from his lungs and up his throat. Soon enough, a stream of fire gently blew out, similar to the street performers he saw during the brief time they lived on Ember Island. Despite himself, Zuko chuckled.

“It’s only a matter of time before-“ Jee started.

“Zuko.” Ursa sighed.

Both Jee and Zuko straightened up when Ursa walked into the research room.

“Hi Mom.” Zuko said somewhat nervously.

Ursa worriedly checked him over then glared at Jee.

“Who’s brilliant idea was it to bring him here?!”

Jee groaned while Dr. Hanji let out a low whistle and excused herself.

“How have you’ve been, Ursa? It’s been a while.” He said with a forced smile. “Look, I don’t like this either. But there was a little ‘incendia respiro’ incident at school today.”

Ursa marched up to him, still fuming. “That’s what we call a ‘You Problem’. I have a legal contract with White Lotus stating my son have a normal life as humanly possible in exchange for my dragon research.”

“And that’s exactly what I’m doing! Your son’s a fine kid, especially for a boy without a father.”

Zuko tsked then kept playing with his fire breath. There was no stopping mom when she got hot and bothered about something threating his ‘normal life’.

Soon, Zuko figured out how to form rings of fire. An idea struck him. He formed another fire ring then sent it over to Jee.

“I’d be happy to give you my full report on him… over dinner sometime.” He raised an expecting brow.

The area illuminated over Jee’s head. He glanced up and saw a fire ring glowing over him like a halo.

“For Agni’s sake!” he shot daggers at Zuko.

The boy smirked while Dr. Hanji covered her mouth in poor attempts to hide her laughter.

“Not bad, huh?”

Jee growled as Ursa sighed. Zuko’s teasing smile slipped and dread filled him once more as his mother gave him a disappointed look.

“Oh darling…”

Zuko dropped his gaze. That’s right. Like Jee’s halo, her - their - dream for normal life just went up in flames.

~*~

Sparks dance around in the air before sizzling down with a loud hiss.

“It’s an old gag. A classic.” Jee reached into the container and threw more powder that lit up the room. “The flash powder ignites on contact and proof! Performers use ‘em all the time for festivals.”

“What?!” Chan sneered. “That is a load of bullcrap! The freak’s mouth shot flames!!!”

He lunged for the flash powder container. Jee causally moved it to the side, causing Chan to crash onto the principal’s desk and send papers everywhere.

“Chan, we’ve discussed the policy on name calling.”

“But-“

“And Zuko, your prank could have caused serious injuries.”

“It did! My eyebrows are totally burned off!!!” Chan pointed to his patchy eyebrows.

“Chan, I’ve had you in here so many times, your name should be on that chair on a brass plate.” Principal Takahashi helped him up. “Now since you’re both at fault, you can choose suspension or work together to clean up the damage. Your call.”

“Yeah right! Like I’m gonna do anything with lava lips here!”

Zuko tightened his fists.

“Fine.” Principal Takahashi shrugged. “But remember, if you’re suspended then you cannot participate in any sports activities.”

Chan growled frustratedly. “FINE!”

“And you, Zuko?”

Suspension sounded great actually. Zuko caught sight of Jee narrowing his eyes at him and sighed. “I’ll do it.”

Principal Takahashi folded his hands. “Excellent.”

~*~

“Cleaning up damages” was actually code for cleaning the entire cafeteria after the school day. Dried up food and mystery puddles covered the floor alongside the lingering burn marks.

Zuko paused from moping and glanced at Chan scrubbing away. Despite his strong dislike for the bully, Zuko knew he had to at least try to make amends. Ursa worked too hard to give him a normal life. He couldn’t simply throw it away, regardless of how much his body changed.

“Look Chan.” Zuko stood in front of him, forcing the boy to look up. “I’m truly ashamed of my thoughtless dangerous prank. I’m sorry.” He offered Chan a hand up. “Truce?”

Chan shot to his feet, livid. “Are you kidding me?!” He threw his dirty brush onto Zuko’s outstretched hand. “I know what I saw. You’re some kind of freak! Stay away from me!”

He snatched Zuko’s mop then stormed off. Zuko stared at the brush as his shoulders sagged. Why did he even bother?

A faint scent waffled through the air, conjuring up the image of the ocean and old books.

“Could have told you how that one would have gone.”

Zuko turned and saw Katara leaning against a table watching him in amusement.

“You got detention too, huh?”

“I got a ‘foul’ mouth remember?” Katara climbed onto the table and folded her legs. “You going to Ruon Jian’s party Saturday night?”

“I wasn’t invited.” Zuko bent down and scrubbed the floor under the table she was on.

“No one was. It’s a ‘parents are out of town’ party where everyone just shows up.”

“Yeah, that’s not my kind of scene.”

“Oh come on.” Katara peaked over the edge, her braid flopping to the floor. “You just tried to shake hands with Chan Watanabe. This is ten times easier than that!”

Zuko gave her a skeptical look. His eyes then drifted towards the glass door where he saw Mai reading outside. Katara noticed his shift then followed his gaze.

“Everyone is going.” She repeated. “Everyone.”

Zuko broke out of his trance and returned to scrubbing. “Maybe I might stop by.” He hummed.

Katara straightened up and pumped her arms in a quiet celebration. A small smile grew on Zuko’s face.

Maybe it won’t be that bad.

~*~

Zuko adjusted his hood then peaked around the corner. Ursa’s reading lamp had just gone out, bathing the house in darkness. He took a deep breath. It would be fine. He’d seen this done in movies hundreds of times.

He crept to the door but paused at the decorative wall mirror. Although he had checked many times beforehand hand, Zuko once more examined his face and neck for any scales the makeup failed to cover. The glimmer was not nearly as obvious in low lights, but he swore ever since breathing fire, his scales shone even brighter like the fire was trying to escape through every pore on his body.

Freak.

Zuko pulled the hood tighter before grabbing the door handle. The hallway lights immediately turned on. He swore.

“Zuko. Kaji.”

He turned and sheepishly greeted his mother. “H-Hi mom…”

“Don’t hi mom, me.” She jabbed his chest with a finger. “Where do you think you’re going, young man?”

“Well uh… it’s like this.. I… I’m kind of going to… a p-party…”

Ursa blinked. “You were invited to a party?”

Zuko winced. It sounded even worst when she said it.

“Oh darling! I’m so happy!” Ursa hugged him.

Okay. That hurt even more. “Your confidence in my people skills overwhelming.” Zuko said dryly.

“This is wonderful news!” Ursa let go, though her eyes were still beaming. “You made friends! Did they invite you? Was it a girl?”

“Kind of. I mean, yeah a girl did invite me.”

Ursa lit up even more. “Oh?”

Zuko flushed. “N-Not like that!” He backed out the door. “It’s just going to be a couple of dorks sitting around playing video games. That’s all.”

“Well, I hope you have fun. Be back by midnight.”

Zuko flashed her an awkward smile before taking off. Ursa tightened her robe as she watched him leave. She was glad for her son, truly. But she couldn’t shake the worry consuming her.

Hopefully, everything will be just fine.

~*~

First house on top of the hill. Zuko checked the address Katara gave him then looked back at the house. It was large and fancy, reeking of suburban wealth. What Ruon Jian was doing at dump like their high school when his parents could afford this, Zuko would never know.

He knocked at the door then waited a few seconds. Zuko’s sensitive ears picked up music blaring inside. He cautiously turned the handle and was surprised to see it was unlocked.

“Um… hello?” Zuko peaked inside.

This was definitely not a few dorks playing video games. The whole school was there dancing to the upbeat music. Zuko pulled down his hood and pressed his way through the tight crowd. His heartbeat sped up.

Were they staring? Did they see his scales?

Did they know?

Zuko’s inner flame stirred. He rushed to a table overflowing with food and grabbed a drink in hopes to drench the flames. Zuko winched at the sharp smell.

He was about to take a sip regardless when he caught sight of Mai sitting on a couch nursing her own drink. She too looked out of place in the loud party scene with her dark clothes that blended into the low lights. But unlike Zuko, she seemed more bored than flustered. Zuko’s feet moved before his brain caught up.

“Hey Mai. Uh, so about my dork show in biology class.”

“What?”

Zuko flushed and glanced away. “S-See there was this thing a-and I had to catch it-“

“What are you talking about? Zuko right?”

“Y-Yeah.”

Mai gestured to the seat beside her which Zuko gratefully accepted.

“First party?”

Zuko let out a dry laugh. “That obvious?”

“Lighten up. It’s no big deal. These things are actually such drags, but Ruon Jian’s parents have the best booze in town.” Mai swirled her cup. “Beats my mom’s whiskey any day.”

Zuko glanced at his own. So that what this was. He wondered if mixing dragon flame and alcohol was a good idea.

“Yeah. Best in town.”

Mai hummed. “Could you get me a refill?”

“Sure. Absolutely.”

Zuko took her cup and made a beeline to the food table. His scale itched along the way. Zuko pushed the feeling aside and focused on refilling Mai’s cup. When he returned, he saw Chan grabbing Mai’s arm trying to force her up.

“Look Mai, I know you don’t want to talk, but this guy is bad news! Stay away from him!”

“What is wrong with you!” Mai yanked her arm away. “This is exactly why I dumped your ass!”

“I’m telling you! He can do freakish stuff!”

Zuko growled, puffs of smoke escaping his mouth. He marched over, ready to get between him and Mai when the front door flew up and music came to an abrupt stop.

“CHAN!!!” The crowd parted as a tall man stormed through. “What part of grounded didn’t you understand?!”

He grabbed Chan’s arm and dragged him out to the whispers and stares of his classmates. The music started back up and party continued. Zuko took a calming breath, then handed Mai her drink.

“Thanks.” She nodded to the balcony. “Let’s get out of here.”

Zuko couldn’t agree more. From there, they could see clear over the jungle to Caldera’s city lights glowing brightly against the night sky. Just below, Zuko caught sight of Chan’s dad forcing him into a car then speeding off.

“Wow. I guess the rage issue doesn’t fall very far from the tree.”

“No kidding.” Mai smirked.

“I bet he wished his dad would just disappear.”

Mai threw him a dirty look. “It’s late. Excuse me.”

She shoved her cup against Zuko then left.

“What? Oh! I… uh… okay.” Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose. “Idiot!”

“Struck out with Mai, huh?”

Zuko opened his eyes and saw Katara before him. Her hair was freed from its usual braid, hanging loosely over her baggy Demin jacket that covered a light blue dress. Despite Zuko’s irritation, he was glad to see her.

“Can you teleport or something?” he joked.

Katara chuckled and leaned against the railing beside him. “You know, usually you’re supposed to meet up with the person who invited you.”

“I thought you said this was ‘Parents are out of town party where everyone just shows up’ type of party.”

“Yeah. It’s an unwritten rule though.”

“Well you could have mentioned it. That was in the movies.” Zuko grumbled.

“Were you basing all of this off of movies?”

“No.” Zuko lied.

Katara chuckled some. “It’s cool. Hey, at least you didn’t bring an entire crockpot of stew to your first party.”

Zuko snorted. “You did?”

Katara shrugged. “Gran-Gran insisted. Turns out sea prune stew isn’t a popular dish at Fire Nation parties.”

“Yikes. Even I know not to do that.” He smirked at her.

“Shut it you!” Katara playfully shoved him. “I’m trying to make you feel better!”

Zuko’s shoulders dropped and smile slipped.

“Sorry about Mai.” Katara said sincerely.

“Don’t be.” Zuko sighed. He should have expected as much. “I just wish I knew what I said to set her off.”

Katara took a sip from her cup. “Her dad died last year.”

Zuko swore and face palmed. “How stupid am I?! I absolutely know how much it sucks to grow up without a dad!”

“You too, hmm?”

Zuko’s expression sadden. “Your dad…?”

“Working aboard. I haven’t seen him since I was 8. Yours?”

Zuko dropped his gaze. “Never met him.”

Katara placed a hand on his arm. “I’m sorry, Zuko.”

Zuko’s scales flared up, causing him to jerk away. Katara quickly removed her hand, surprised and sadden. Before he could apologize, a small figure scurried up his leg and perched on his shoulder.

“Druk?!” Zuko gasped at the Kaida. He thought the little dragon was gone forever.

“What is he doing here?!” Katara whisper-shouted.

“THERE’S A RAT IN HERE!!” someone screamed.

“Whoa! Something just crawled up my back!”

“It’s in my purse!!!”

Zuko and Katara looked around in alarm as Kaidas filled the room, climbing onto people and raiding the food table.

“Why are there so many?!” Zuko yelled.

“Oh no.” Katara rubbed her necklace. “Kaidas always come before their master! Which means-“

A violent earthquake suddenly shook the house and split the floor in half. People screamed and ran towards the exit. Even more panic spread when a large golden silted eye peered through a window and looked directly at Zuko.

He froze.

It couldn’t be.

The massive figure straightened to full size and loomed over house and people, burning eyes not once leaving him.

“DRAGON!!!”

Full chaos broke out. Zuko remained frozen in place, unable to look away from the very being that he had only heard stories of. The one that haunted him since birth.

“Zuko! Snap out of it!” Katara frantically shook his shoulders. “We gotta run! It’s- It’s-“

He swallowed hard.

“Ozai.”

Chapter Text

He couldn’t move as Ozai’s massive hand descended, threating to crush them underneath like insets. Only when Katara yanked him out of the way did Zuko snap out of his trance. Both fell back, narrowly missing the large claws that dug into the cement floor. A low annoyed growl escaped Ozai’s throat, scaring the couple even more.

Zuko leapt up and grabbed Katara. “RUN!”

Hand in hand, they joined the panicked crowd fleeing for their lives. The ground trembled as Ozai followed with thundering footsteps. The street lamps shook and flickered before bursting, bathing the street in darkness. Zuko and Katara ducked behind a parked car while Ozai continued his search.

Katara covered her aching ears. “It doesn’t make sense! Why now?! Why here!!!”

“Because I’m here! He’s looking for me!”

“Why?!”

“Because he’s not only Ozai King of the dragons. He’s also…” Zuko peered around the car at the towering dragon. “… my dad!”

“Have you gone crazy?!” Katara balked.

Ozai let out a mighty roar, then dropped to all fours and stalked closer to the car, forcing the teenagers to fall quiet. Sharp inhales sounded above them.

“I-Is he smelling for you?” Katara whispered.

“He must know my scent. I’m not kidding about him being my dad.” Zuko grabbed her shoulder. “You have to run, Katara!”

The girl shook her head. “Not without you!”

Sharp claws dug into the car they were hiding behind causing both of them to jump. Zuko instantly shielded Katara as Ozai effortlessly lifted up the car and tossed it aside. He glared down at the two and growled once more with fire and smoke escaping his maw. Zuko glared back, as burning anger replaced fear.

“I said RUN!!!”

Terrified, by not just the dragon but also Zuko’s sudden harden shift, Katara took off as fast as her legs could carry her. She risked a glance back at Zuko facing down the dragon. As guilt pierced her heart for abandoning her friend, she was suddenly pinned down by Ozai’s tail. The wind was knocked out her body as she struggled to breathe under the weight.

“NO!” Zuko yelled. “LET HER GO! YOU’LL CRUSH HER!!!”

He grabbed a motorcycle and threw it at Ozai’s snout. The bike shattered on contact, earning a slight chuckle from the dragon. Zuko saw red.

“I said let her GO!!!”

He breathed fire onto Ozai’s face, temporarily lighting up the dark street. Ozai brought down his hand again but Zuko jumped out the way and bolted towards the jungle. Ozai followed, sliding his tail off Katara, leaving her jacket tattered and back bruised.

Katara pushed herself up while wheezing and shaking. She could just barely make out Zuko’s fleeing form in front of the massive dragon stalking him once more. Tears ran down her cheeks.

“Zuko…”

~*~

The boy didn’t get very far.

Not matter what he threw at Ozai - trashcans, lampposts, another motorcycle - nothing slowed the dragon down. Ozai released a large wave of fire upon him. Zuko screamed and covered his face. Much to his surprise, the dragon fire didn’t hurt despite his hoodie being burnt off, leaving nothing but his smoldering undershirt and jeans.

Zuko marveled at his arms, now covered in even more golden scales. Ozai’s heavy footsteps once again reminded him of the danger he was still in. Zuko made another run for it, but was swallowed up by an enormous scaley hand before even getting close to the jungle’s tree line.

“Put me down!!!”

Ozai stood then continued into the jungle with Zuko firmly secured. He struggled with all his might to break free to no avail.

“Where are you taking me?!” Zuko demanded.

Ozai ignored him and kept walking. Anger boiled up inside Zuko. He took a deep breath then released a heavy stream of fire onto Ozai’s face; this one fuller than the last. The flames rolled off the dragon harmlessly, earning a low chuckle from the dragon.

“Excellent, Zuko.”

The boy gasped. How did he know his name?

“Let me look at you.”

Ozai brought Zuko closer to his face. So close, Zuko could clearly see his reflection wincing in the dragon’s eye. The pupil dilated as it took in Zuko’s exposed scales, making him feel even smaller and vulnerable, yet he couldn’t look away.

Zuko was well experienced in being the subject of gawking; curiosity at best, hate at worst. This however, was neither.

Ozai rumbled lowly. “You have your mother’s nose.”

Zuko’s eyes watered. He flinched as Ozai ran a claw tip across his head then growled lowly.

“Your horns are damaged.”

Anger burned away the conflicting emotion threatening to spill out of his eyes. Zuko shoved Ozai’s claw away then bared his teeth.

“Just kill me already and get it over with!”

Ozai grunted. “If I wanted to kill you, you’d be dead. Do not make such foolish assumptions.”

Zuko flinched back as Ozai proceeded walking, the conversation clearly over. He shivered as fear crept back in. If Ozai didn’t want to kill him, then what did he want Zuko for?

The walk was silent, saved for the dragon’s heavy footfalls and creaking of trees as they passed by. Zuko didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t physically fight Ozai like the White Lotus, or talk him down like Mom. Ash, he couldn’t even escape properly! All he could do was wait and see what the dragon king had instore for him. At the very least, Zuko lead him away from Katara. Hopefully, she was safe now.

After some time, Ozai stopped before an open field. He took a sharp inhale then breathed a massive stream of fire at the ground. Zuko covered his face with his arms to shield his eyes. The ground melted into lava then slid open like some sort of trap door. Ozai put Zuko onto his head then dropped to all fours and entered. Zuko held onto one of his horns to not fall off.

“We are an ancient race, Zuko.” Ozai spoke at last. “So old, we’ve become myths to the humans. They call us invaders when it is they who infested our world. We are Elder Agni’s true heirs, not them.”

“The Sun Spirit? He’s real?” Zuko asked.

Ozai grunted. “Has Ursa taught you nothing?”

Zuko bristled. “More than you ever have!”

“Yes. That, however, changes now.”

Ozai came to a stop and placed Zuko down. The boy gawked at the red crystals protruding from all sides. This place; it felt familiar. He broke off a piece and turned it over in his hand before pocketing it.

“Where are we?”

“Home, Zuko. Your true home.”

“No way. This place isn’t my home! That doesn’t change just because my father’s a dragon!”

“I am not just a dragon. I am Ozai, King of dragons!” he stood and glared down at Zuko. “And though you are my son, you are weak!”

Enraged, Zuko ripped up a large crystal twice his size and threw it against the wall. It scattered, sending shards everywhere.

“I’m strong enough!”

“No. The human world has made your heart soft. You must be hard and ruthless if you are to rule over the dragons.”

Roars came from deeper in the cavern.

“Listen. They’re assembling. They’ve caught our scent.” Ozai lowered his hand. “Come.”

Dread filled Zuko as he climbed on. More dragons no doubt meant more trouble. Once secured, Ozai drew closer to the commotion. Zuko’s heart rate sped up as the air became thinner and temperature hotter.

“There is a war coming between human and dragon. A war that can end everything. Balance must be restored. It is a terrible burden to bear, but for the good of all, you have no choice.”

“You think I’m going to be king of these creatures?! I AM NOT A MONSTER!!!”

“You are my son!” Ozai roared angrily and pointed a large digit at Zuko’s heart. “Royal blood and sacred flames courses through you, making you superior to all! Dragon and human alike!”

“That’s why you brought me here?!” Zuko balked. “You ignored me for sixteen years then you show up out of nowhere to train me for something I don’t even want?!”

A gasped let Zuko’s mouth as they exited the tunnel. The cavern opened up, revealing a sea of lava below them and several tunnels’ entrances along the walls each containing a dragon of various forms. Hundreds of Kaidas scurried in every direction as their masters sized up Zuko.

“I am your king!” Ozai announced then held up Zuko. “And this is my son!”

“First you desecrate our race; now shame our ceremony with a weak half breed!”

“It’s bad enough you keep us from exterminating the human vermin, now you mate with them!”

“WHO DARE CHALLENGES THEIR KING?!” Ozai roared. “YOU ZHAO?! OR YOU KAEN?!”

The dragons backed down with bowed heads and low whimpers.

“I thought so.” Ozai hissed. “I have made my choice! Behold!”

Ozai thrusted his hand forward, nearly causing Zuko to lose his balance.

“ZUKO! MY HEIR AND YOUR FUTURE KING!!!”

The dragons glowered at him, stripping away the remains of Zuko’s resolve. He glanced back at his father, nervous.

“W-What happens now?”

Zuko was suddenly hurling through the air as a familiar scream echoed in the background. In the seconds it took him to realize what Ozai did to him, Zuko crashed into the hot lava face first.

The burning liquids seared his left side as the rest of his skin melted. Zuko righted himself and thrashed around violently, struggling to keep his head above the lava. The dragons gathered around watching with contempt and disgust. Only Ozai looked on expectedly. Zuko locked eyes with him before sinking under the burning waves.

It was quiet.

The screaming had stopped and Zuko’s mind dulled. Everything burned. Fire had never bothered him before, but now it utterly consumed his whole being. This is how he would die; scarified by his father’s crushing expectations, melted in the center of the earth far from the sun and loved ones. Mom will never know what happened to him.

Perhaps, this was the universe’s way of righting itself.

Something sparked in Zuko’s chest. His inner flame grew brighter and brighter, covering his whole body and painfully transforming him from the inside out. With a powerful force, Zuko shot out of the lava pit then landed on the plateau.

He slowly rose to his feet, body still steaming. The last of his clothes were completely burned off leaving a full body armor made entirely of gold and scarlet scales. Zuko examined his hands in shock. His nails had grown into claws similar to Ozai’s and the horns on his head had regrown into sharp bright red spikes.

Zuko touched his chest. In the place of his heart, was a glowing diamond shaped hole pulsing with life. He tightened in hands into fists and growled angrily as fire coursed through him. Unable to hold it any longer, Zuko threw back his head and roared fiercely. Fire spewed straight from his mouth and blanketed the entire ceiling. The dragons backed up in fear and awe at the sight. Ozai nodded approvingly.

“Well done, son.”

When the last of the fire left him, Zuko turned to face Ozai but the room continued to spin uncontrollably fast. Zuko’s eyes rolled back as his legs gave out. Before he hit the ground, everything went black.

Chapter Text

Everything hurt.

It hurt to move. To breath. Even to think.

His body laid there slowly dissolving. He couldn’t remember how he got there or what he was doing beforehand. He remembered being so angry, rageful even, but also terrified and utterly helpless.

Bits and pieces came drifting back.

A large golden eye. Glowing red crystals. Snarling teeth. A sea of fire.

Hushed whispers floated above him.

Let us be grateful the young prince survived the trail.

It is the first of many. He needs to be strong if he is to live here, yet alone rule.

That voice; it sounded so familiar.

Indeed. But in doing so, do not neglect your first role; one greater than king.

What role could possibly be greater than-

A groan crawled up from his throat. “D-Dad…”

The ground shifted and rose underneath him. “Zuko?”

Before he could respond, darkness pulled him back under.

~*~

Something wet dragged across his face.

Zuko groaned and cracked open his remaining eye then hissed at the blinding light. A figure obscured his vision and let out a little whine.

“Druk…?”

With some effort, he forced himself to sitting position. He had the worst headache imaginable and the left side of his head felt like it was still on fire. Zuko gingerly touched it to check the damage but immediately yanked his hand back as the pain worsened.

Desperate for answers, Zuko checked his chest for his glowing fire heart thing. It was gone, along with the rest of his body armor and spikes leaving, leaving golden scales all over his exposed body. Zuko brushed his head searching for horns but was shocked to discovered short crispy locks instead of his usual long hair. The horns remained, pointed and sharp; unfazed by time. Zuko gripped his head.

So it wasn’t a dream?

Druk scurried onto his shoulder then licked his face again.

“Hey that…” Zuko trailed off when the ache between his scales lessened. “…feels pretty good. Thanks.”

The Kaida chirped then continued cleaning.

Zuko stood and gathered in his surroundings. He was in a crater in the middle of the jungle. A small flash on the caught his attention. Zuko picked it up and realized it was the red crystal he plucked earlier. He looked back further in jungle where a subtle yet familiar scent lingered.

“Really? You dunk me into a lava pit then leave out to dry in the middle of nowhere all without a single word?!” Zuko growled when no response came. “Some dad you are! Thanks for nothing!”

Zuko held out his arm. “C’mon Druk. Looks like we’re walking.”

The Kaida wrapped his slender body around Zuko’s forearm.

Zuko tied some leaves around him then glanced behind him at the canopy of trees before bitterly walking away.

~*~

Zuko didn’t know how long he walked. Though he could see the top of Caldera’s sky scrapers peeking through the tree branches, it was still a long ways’ off. Despite Druk’s best efforts of keeping his newly formed scales clean from infection, Zuko still felt weary and sluggish.

He had never been sick before even with a common cold. Ozai’s scent still lingered ever so faintly. There was no way in Koh’s lair Zuko was going to ask him for help. He’ll find his way home – his real home – on his own.

When night fell, Zuko was still nowhere close to civilization. Unable to see and utterly exhausted, he sat down and leaned against the base of a tree. Druk whined and pulled his ear urging Zuko to keep moving.

“Quit it. Just need… to rest my eyes for… an hour… or two…”

~*~

The light pressing against his eyelids was gentler this time. A welcomed relief from the past few hours. Zuko groaned and turned over. He hoped it was the weekend and mom would let him sleep in some more.

Wait. Where was mom? He couldn’t smell her. None of these scents were of his home.

Zuko jerked awake, growling and baring his teeth on instinct. A large wooly dog beside the sleep mat he was resting on startled and ran out the tent flap. Zuko’s confusion furthered.

Where was he? The large but modest tent and brightly colored poncho covering him was definitely not White Lotus. Before he could make a break for it, someone walked inside with the dog following him.

“Zuko! You’re awake.”

“Aang?” he gasped. Come to think of it, Chan did mention Aang living out here somewhere. “What happened?”

Aang sat down beside him. “I found you passed out at the edge of my garden. You’ve been asleep for an entire day.”

Zuko swore. This wasn’t good.

“Sooo… is that like a costume or…”

Zuko flinched and looked at his hands and arms. The same as he remembered them.

“Uh well…” he sighed bitterly. “No. I’m… I’m part dragon. Son of the Dragon King.”

Aang hummed. “That explains the baby dragon.”

Druk, still wrapped around Zuko’s arm, stuck a fork tongue out at him.

“Is that your son?”

“Of course not!” Zuko balked. “He’s my Kaida. Well, he’s not actually mine. He just follows me around and cleans my scales sometimes.” Zuko rubbed Druk’s chin, causing the Kaida to purr.

“I get it. Same with Appa. Right boy?” Aang rubbed the dog’s head. “You hungry? I make a mean bowl of cereal.”

Zuko gripped his stomach, not realizing how hungry he was until then.

“Uh…do you have any coal?”

“Cereal and coal coming right up!” Aang sprung up and raced to the other side of the tent where a small kitchen was set up.

Zuko pulled the blanket tighter around himself to hide his body more and took in the area more. The place was cramped but kind of cozy in its own way. Across from Zuko was a small tube T.V. playing the news. Zuko bitterly glanced away from old footage of Ozai destroying Caldera.

“Have you heard from Katara yet?”

Aang paused for a moment. “Of course I have. Ozai’s all over the News and, the dragon alert levels are red which are like, the highest it’s been in a decade.” Aang handed him a bag of coal. “She’s such an Ozai fangirl, I swear.”

Zuko cringed. After what happened at the party, he highly doubted Katara had any admiration left for the Dragon King.

He quickly ate the coal but noticed Aang staring. The boy sheepishly apologized.

“Sorry I’m just-“

“Freaked out. I get it.”

“Confused. Your mom’s human right? Not to sound offensive, how does that work?”

“Don’t!” Zuko glared at him.

“I mean, you aren’t the least bit curious on how a human and dragon were able to-“

“Aang!”

“Okay. Okay.” He backed off. Appa whined and covered his face. “But your dad is king of all monsters. Which makes you like, a prince. That’s kind of cool.”

“No! Not cool!” Zuko turned off the T.V. “First of all, he did this to me!” He threw off the blanket and gestured to his scaley body.

“It’s not that bad…” Aang tried to soothe over.

Zuko angrily paced back and forth. “So not only is my dad a monster, he’s also psychotic! He kidnapped me from Ruon Jian’s party, berated me the whole time, then threw me into a pit of lava!” He crunched the paper bag in his hand. “I’m not big enough! I’m not strong enough! I’m a total disappointment unless I do everything his way! He-”

Zuko paused when he saw the overflowing bag of receipts and bills in the corner.

“Y-Your dad. He’s on a trip or something?”

“Guardian and yeah. Something like that.”

“When does he get back?”

“That’s a good question…” Aang placed a hand on Zuko’s shoulder. “We’re friends, right? You can keep a secret?”

Zuko nodded.

Aang glanced around nervously then closed the blinds.

“I think Gyatso was captured by the Fire Nation government. Not the official one, but the secret government that works in the shadows.”

“Uh huh…”

Maybe Aang’s the one watching too many movies. The White Lotus didn’t abduct humans.

“The pieces fit! He just vanished without a trace!” Aang collapsed onto the couch. “He wouldn’t just up and leave me. So clearly he was taken or held up somewhere he can’t reach me.”

Zuko’s heart tightened. “Did you report it?”

“Of course not! If the police knew I was living here alone, they would dump me off in Ba Sing Se or Republic City. At least here, I actually have a home.”

Appa laid his head on Aang’s lap. Aang affectionally rubbed his head. “Appa and Katara are the only family I got left. I can’t leave them.”

Zuko dropped his gaze. “I’m sorry.”

He peaked out the window. “You can’t tell anyone, alright?”

“I promise.” Zuko said sincerely. “That’s really rough, buddy. Sorry for complaining so much.”

Aang laughed some. “If anyone’s earned the right to complain, it’s you. I mean, you were passed out in my garden wearing a leaf skirt for spirits’ sake!”

Zuko snorted. He did look ridiculous.

“Speaking of, you could refrain from mentioning it was my dad who crashed the party last night, that would be great.”

“Deal.” Aang and Zuko shared a fist bump. “What were you doing at that party anyway?”

“Katara invited me.”

“Katara invited you?!” Aang asked heatedly.

“No no. She just told me about the party.”

“But she was there at the party before all the stuff with your dad went down?”

“Yeah. She didn’t mention when you talked to her earlier?”

Aang crossed his arms and looked away with a defeated expression. “She told me that night she didn’t have any plans for that night.”

Zuko awkwardly rubbed his neck, unsure of what to do. Suddenly, the landline phone rang.

“Hello?” Aang answered. “This is he. Who’s this?”

He handed the phone to Zuko. “It’s for you.”

Zuko accepted it, equally confused. “Uh, hello?”

“Zuko!”

He sighed. Time to face the music. “Hi mom.”

Chapter Text

“How is that an entire elite military force having this hard of a time finding a 120 foot giant?!”

“But Ursa-“

She hung up, cutting Jee off abruptly then let out a frustrated groan.

Zuko hissed as he snapped off his last horn with his bare hands, then threw it into the trash bin, disgusted. “Go easy on him, Mom. It’s not Jee’s fault that Ozai’s back.”

Ursa huffed again, then rubbed some ointment on Zuko’s tender face scar. “Well, it’s certainly not your fault.”

He stepped back and angled his head away.

“Zuko…Are you blaming me for this?” Ursa tilted his head as concern filled her. “Everything I’ve done, coming here, the deal, White Lotus, every choice was all to protect you.”

He pulled away, heatedly. “Well, it didn’t do much good! Nothing can stop the biggest monster in the world!”

“Your father is a great many things, but he is not a monster.” Ursa said firmly. “You don’t know the things he’s been through. The good things he’s done.”

“I know he did this to me!” Zuko pointed to his scar. “I almost died ! He just freaking threw me into a lava pit like yesterday’s trash! I-“

Zuko stopped short when he saw Ursa’s horrified expression and glassy eyes. In the heat of the moment, he completely forgot about keeping that part a secret from her.

“He what?”

“But I-I’m fine now. See? Besides, he did defend me from the other dragons so…”

Zuko cringed. Why was he defending him?!

“I’m sorry.”

Zuko gently wrapped her into a hug and rested his chin on the top of her head, marveling on the several inches he’d put on since he last saw her.

Ursa shook her head. “It’s not your fault. It was never your fault. Things are… complicated. Dragon culture is so different from ours.”

Ours. She said that like Zuko truly belonged to just one side.

Ursa pulled away and looked him firmly in the eyes. “I am no means justifying what Ozai did to you. It’s as I said. Complicated.”

Zuko studied his mother for a moment. “Do you still love him?”

Ursa clutched her necklace as her face held a far away expression. “That too, is complicated. But he did give me you.”

“Maybe it would have been best if he didn’t…” Zuko muttered.

“Darling-“

“I know! It’s complicated! Just like me! I’m not human or dragon!”

“You are my son! Everything’s I’ve done, every choice I made, was for you. My miracle.”

Zuko sat on the toilet lid and buried his face into his hands.

Ursa leaned against the sink and threw her head back with a sigh. “Well, now that you’ve met your father, I’m sure you have questions on how you were conceived.”

“MOM!” Zuko’s head shot up with a red tint forming under his golden scales. “I-I have questions but THAT is not one of them!”

Ursa snickered at her son’s reaction. “It couldn’t have been simpler.” She smiled fondly. “You father showed me this interesting trick.”

“Nope!” Zuko covered his ears and rushed out the room, utterly embarrassed. “La la la! I’m not listening!!!”

“Now you’re just being rude. This is why you don’t have any friends your age.” She teased.

“What?!” Zuko balked. “I-I have friends! Katara invited me to the party. And! I was at Aang’s house when you called! So there!” Zuko crossed his arms indignantly.

“Aang sounded like a nice young man over the phone and that poncho he made was lovely. I’d love to meet him and Katara at the next school function.”

“School?! You can’t seriously expect me to go to school like this?!” Zuko gestured to his scales.

Ursa’s teased smile fell as she pitied him. “I’m sorry dear, but you know what the White Lotus contract demands.”

Zuko tsked. Integrate with human society or get locked away in a lab. And with his rapid body changes, the second option looked more and more plausible each day.

“Can’t you talk to Jee? I’m sure they’ll let me skip a few days after-“

Ursa placed her hands on his shoulders with a rare intensity in her eyes.

“I don’t like this any more than you do. But it’s not just the White Lotus who are worried. We have to show them that you’re safe.”

“Safe?” Zuko repeated hoarsely. “Mom, I’m not gonna… I’m not…”

Guilt flooded Ursa’s face. “I know baby. I know.” She kissed his forehead. “Prove them wrong.”

Zuko managed a nod, but truthfully, he was not sure if he could.

~*~

School had always been a source of anxiety for him. It was hard to believe there was a time Zuko used to beg his mother to let him attend. He seriously considered skipping, but there were more White Lotus agents tailing him than usual.

Mom said he just needed to attend school. She didn’t say anything about class itself. Still, Zuko wanted to make sure Katara was okay. He had an idea how.

Zuko sneaked into he building before the crowd of students trailed in. Aang’s poncho from before helped him blend in with the colorful posters taped to the walls. Zuko scaled walls and lockers to avoid the early birds.

As much as he hated to admit it, his body was much nimbler now that the lingering sting from the lava finally wore off. Zuko made it to Katara’s locker in no time. After checking if the coast was clear, Zuko inspected the combination lock before accidently ripping it off.

“Crap!”

Rushed, he placed the note asking Katara to meet him outside the cafeteria on the top shelf. Upon more consideration, he placed the red crystal on top of it as an apology for the lock. (And maybe Katara liked shiny rocks. She was always messing with her necklace like Mom does. Yeah. She’ll like it. Hopefully.)

Zuko closed the locker door then set the lock back carefully so it wasn’t obviously broken, inviting just anyone to snoop through Katara’s things. Just as he left the locker area, the warning bell rang. Zuko swore again. He spent too much time messing with the locker door.

He adjusted his hood and hunched down, trying to look as small as possible while making a beeline to the library. Zuko prayed to the Sun Spirit and any other listening that no one noticed him. He almost made it until a pink girl with a long braid passed him then gasped.

“It’s him! Zuko!!!”

He straighten up alarmed as his pupils dilated with fear. Much to Zuko’s surprise, the whole school started cheering.

“ZU-KO! ZU-KO! ZU-KO!”

He flushed and awkwardly waved. “Uh… hello…”

A group of excited students surrounded him, talking all at once and taking pictures with their phones. Zuko pulled his hood down further.

“What you did at Ruon-Jian’s party was so brave!”

“Yeah man! Thanks to you I’m only partially grounded. My folks don’t even care about the party now!”

“You’re my hero!!!”

“I-It was no big deal.” Zuko stammered.

“But it was the dragon king! The scariest monster out there! Weren’t you scared?”

Zuko shrugged. “I just ran. He chased me. Uh… kind of grazed me a bit.” He gestured to his bandaged face.

The students gasped in awe.

“He’s so humble!” the pink girl who spotted him praised.

“Badass.” Ruon-Jian nodded in approval.

Zuko laughed awkwardly again and scooted to the side. “Really, it’s no big deal.”

There were so many people and scents surrounding him, Zuko didn’t notice a pair of hands grab him from behind until he was already on the ground.

“Damn right it isn’t!” Chan sneered. “Freak!”

“Whoa dude, chill.” Ruon-Jian stepped in. “This guy totally saved our asses.”

“Get off me! There’s something one with that freak! He’s not human!”

Cold sweat covered Zuko. He pushed himself to his feet and slipped away as the crowd of students turned against Chan. Zuko knew he shouldn’t had come, regardless of what Mom said. How was he supposed to hide while he was like… this?! The other students may like him now, but it was only a matter of time before they saw his true self. He snapped out of his mental spiral when a familiar voice called his name.

“Katara!”

“You’re okay!” They said at the same time before Katara hugged him.

It was sudden but not unwelcomed. She pulled back then gasped when she saw his bandages. “Oh no. Your face.”

“It’s fine. Just for show.”

“See, I told you he was fine.” Aang walked up from behind Katara and offered a fist bump

“Aang hey.” Zuko returned the fist pump.

“Oh neat, you wore the poncho!”

“Yeah sorry. It was the only thing that fits right now.”

“You do look taller.” Katara mused.

Zuko looked around then pulled them close into a huddle. “Listen, you can’t tell anyone what I told you about Ozai. The government is already breathing down my back as is.”

Katara and Aang shared a shocked expression.

“The secret government?!” Katara asked excitedly.

“No. Just the regular one that’s in charge of dragon defense. Swear you won’t tell a soul.”

Aang folded his hands and bowed. “I swear. Air Nomad honor.”

“May La strike me dead if I tell.”

Relief washed over Zuko. “Thank you.”

“Of course. You’re one of us now.” Katara said encouragingly.

Aang hopped up and threw an arm around Zuko’s shoulder. Zuko lifted his arm, letting the boy dangle more comfortably.

“Right on, Hotman! We should wear matching ponchos from now on!”

The trio laughed. Zuko felt his chest warm, this time with something besides fire.

Katara tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Actually Zuko, now that you’re well, there’s something I wanted to ask you about home-“

The bell cut her off with a sharp shrill.

“Mr. Avatar, I know you’re glad to see you friend, but please get off him and get to class. All of you.” Mrs. Abiko said firmly.

Zuko lowered a disappointed Aang down.

Mrs. Abiko gave him an approving nod. “Glad you see you’re well, Mr. Kaji.”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Now on to class before you’re late.” She shooed them off.

They walked off before Zuko turned around and faced Katara.

“Oh, what did you want to ask me?”

Pink dusted her cheeks. “Uh… well-“

“Tick tock children!” Mrs. Abiko pointed at her watch.

“We’ll talk later.” Katara rushed past him to class.

“Okay…”

Zuko forced himself to calm down. Katara will find the note soon and they could talk then.

~*~

Zuko shifted from side to side, waiting expectedly. Though he saw Katara briefly this morning, Zuko was glad she wanted to talk more. Just as long as it wasn’t about Ozai or dragon stuff. Maybe she’ll bring Aang too and they could just hang out or whatever normal kids did.

“Normal kids…”

A few students passed by and waved. Zuko waved back with a smile.

He could get used to this.

The familiar coffee scent drifted towards him. Zuko turned to see Mai.

“Mai! Hey. Um I-“

“Hey yourself.” She sat beside him with a small smile. “First time I leave a party early and this happens.”

“Yeah… uh, sorry about the whole dad thing.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m not a glass doll you have to creep around.”

“Right!”

“Ty Lee told me what happened. Using yourself as dragon bait was sick. I didn’t know you had it in you.”

Zuko rubbed the back of his head. “Me either.”

“So, you got a date for Homecoming yet?”

“No.”

Mai looked at him expectedly. A second passed before realization hit him.

“Do you want to go to Homecoming with me?”

“Pick me up at eight.”

Zuko gaped at her. “Seriously?”

“I don’t see why not. You’re a lot less boring than I thought.” Mai tied his poncho strings into a bow. “Wear something nice, okay? Not this. Better. I want to see where this goes.”

“Yeah. Okay. I’ll see you then.”

Zuko watched Mai leave in utter disbelief. No way that just happened. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of blue disappear inside. Zuko immediately chased after it.

“Katara! You got my note! Did you get the rock too?”

She wiped her eyes and refused to look at him. “Yeah. I got it.”

“I thought you may like it since you wear that necklace all the time and-“

“I have to go.” She whispered hoarsely.

“What?” Zuko frowned. “But what did you want to talk about?”

“Nothing!” She snapped. “Leave me alone!”

Zuko’s heart sank as he watched her run off. Her scent mixed with salty tears, furthering his guilt.

Why was he always messing things up?

~*~

Zuko reclined the seat all the way back and let out a desponded sigh. Fire escaped his lips and dispersed across he ceiling.

“Hey! Hey! No fire breathing in the jet!” Jee scolded from the piolet’s seat.

“Sorry.” Zuko muttered and covered his face with his forearm.

“What’s with you kid? Being everyone’s hero ain’t what it cranked up to be? Or you got last minute jitters about taking Mai to the dance?”

“That’s not-“ Zuko sat up. “How do you know about that?!”

“I’m your guardian angel kid. I know everything about you. Except why you’re moping around like a pig fresh out of mud.”

Zuko fumbled with the drawstrings of his poncho. “I think I offended Katara somehow. I left her a gift, and now she doesn’t want to talk to me.”

“You mean after you destroyed her locker and snooped through her things.”

“I didn’t snoop! And the locker wasn’t that damaged!”

“Yeah okay. And I’m a flying sky bison.” Jee’s voice dripped in sarcasm. “You always complain about school and now that you’re Mr. Hero and taking a popular girl to Homecoming, you complain about that. There’s just no pleasing you.”

“I’m not complaining! I’m just worried. Katara’s mad at me and I don’t know why. I really care about what she thinks of me and…”

Zuko trailed off when he didn’t recognize any of the landmarks outside.

“This isn’t the way to Dr. Hanji’s lab.”

“Thought we take a little detour. See if you recognize anything.”

Zuko gritted his teeth. “I told you, I don’t know where the dragon cave is.”

“Maybe.” Jee subtlety rested his hand on the stung gun on his hip. “But I bet your body does. So, what do you say junior? We getting warmer or colder?”

Zuko gritted his teeth as he stalked up to Jee.

“I’m not a freak radar!” He growled.

Jee whirled around and pointed the gun at him. “Back to your seat!”

Zuko flinched. “Jee-“

“That’s Commander Jee! Now do as I say!”

Zuko’s heart tightened. Jee had always been strict, but he had never pulled a weapon on him. The pain in his heart twisted, then grew hot and spread across his veins, forming hard golden scales on his exposed skin.

“I knew it.” Jee sneered and raised the stun charge. “You’re just like them. I hate to do this to your Mama, but it was never going to work out anyways. Humanity’s survival comes first!”

Zuko barely paid him any attention. His senses heighten and body braced for something he couldn’t physically see yet but knew deep inside.

“Dragons…”

“So you admit it! You’re siding with them!” Jee spat.

“No. There!”

Zuko pointed out the cockpit window just as a large boulder hurled towards them. Jee swore and yanked the controls. Zuko gripped the back of the seat as the jet flipped, barely avoiding a head-on collision. The boulder took out the wing causing them to spin out of control. The top automatically flew opened and ejected the seats with Jee and Zuko still holding onto them. Below them stalked two large dragons waiting impatiently. Zuko recognized them from lava pit. The loudest opposers when Ozai presented Zuko as his heir.

“Hold on kid!”

“Sorry Jee.” Zuko pulled the parachute string then jumped off.

“ZUKO!!!”

The fire inside Zuko grew. His bandages unraveled and horns and spikes reappeared, shredding his poncho in the process. Zuko ripped the remains off then landed hard. The jet exploded behind him, setting the jungle on fire.

He glared at the dragons sizing him up like prey.

Zuko formed his claws and snarled. He wanted nothing to do with his father, but he refused to go down without a fight.