Flames Of Fate (Zuko X Reader)

Chapter Thirty Seven: Sulphur

Scylla watched the colorful sky for eternity. Perhaps it was shorter than that even, but she felt a sense of contentment here. There were no humans, no war ships and gone was the stench of sulfur and smoke. It was now replaced by the scent of grass and daisies carried by the soft wind.

In the distance she saw (Y/N) rolling down the valley, her long hair had pieces of wildflower and grass sticking through her long mane of hair. She’d get up and run back up after landing at the bottom but she somehow seemed impossibly pretty still.

Scylla didn’t have a clue where she was. One would assume this was the Spirit World because time seemed but a concept here but it wasn’t. This place felt warm and safe; this place was both familiar and unfamiliar. It was like hearing a song for the first time only to be overwhelmed by a deep-rooted sense of nostalgia.

The gentle wind ruffled strands of her bangs across her cheeks.

All she could hear was the distant laughter of (Y/N) and the flowers shifted by the flowing wind.

Then a sound shattered the silence; a familiar bell.

The first chime seared through her head.

(Y/N) in the distance stopped her frolicking and turned to Scylla. They shared the same haunted look. The primal fear in (Y/N)’s eyes made Scylla’s heart sink. She stood up and tried to reach out for (Y/N).

Then the next chime blared through her ears and she felt a force drag her back. She screamed and clawed at the air around her. The force dragged her off, leaving (Y/N) alone, and Scylla knew the scared look on the child’s face would be seared in her memory.

Through the dark forest, the relentless force dragged her, and suddenly, everything plunged into an inky blackness. All she could perceive were the slow and rhythmic droplets of water—the sound she had become all too familiar with, the sound of her dank, cold confinement, the very box in which she had languished for years.

When Scylla's eyes finally fluttered open, she felt an overwhelming numbness and emptiness within. Before her, a weeping man gazed with hope in his eyes. She recognized him from the market, the one who had abducted them. He regarded her as if she held the key to salvation, a frail smile touching his lips as he welcomed impending death.

"Finish your job, Scylla," the gruff voice of the Fire Lord commanded, echoing through the fractured recesses of her mind, consuming her thoughts.

Then, in an abrupt and cruel shift, the fragrance of earth and wildflowers vanished like an ephemeral dream, replaced by the acrid stench of sulfur and the sickening scent of burning flesh.

_____

Meanwhile: Zuko's POV.

Zuko felt an urgent need to seek out his Uncle. Following the unsettling encounter with Azula, he couldn't shake off the persistent feeling of guilt gnawing at him. In a sense, Azula was right. His mother had doted on him, but it had always seemed like it was a counterbalance to his father's constant opposition.

His father, Ozai, appeared to favor Azula over him, and Zuko had come to realize that it was because she was a highly skilled bender. She was on the verge of becoming a master bender, while he was still grappling with the fundamentals.

Fortunately, Zuko found his uncle in the court, engaged in a game of Pai Sho with one of the attendees. The warmth of Iroh's jolly smile as he sipped his jasmine tea brought a sense of comfort to Zuko.

Upon spotting his nephew, Iroh nodded at the attendee and rose from his seat as the Prince approached.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite nephew, Prince Zuko," Iroh greeted warmly.