parallel lines

chapter xxv

Word Count: 3,715 words

CHAPTER XXV. 良藥苦口

---

"We've got work to do."

That was the last thing the boy heard before he had awoken from what seemed to be a dreamless sleep. Rubbing his much darkened vision eyes, he tried to look around his comfortable bed, thinking about sleeping in despite the voice telling him to get back on his feet.

He sat down by the edge of the bed, his vision has now recognize the colors surrounding him starting by the foot of his bed and his feet recognizing the feeling of smooth carpet but he didn't pay it much attention. Right now, he was still dizzy from forcing to sit up, so he shook his head in attempt to stop his vision from doing so. He sat in silence before making a move on and stood up, working his arms through the fabric of the sleeves of his robe, finally getting out and headed for the deck at the ship.

The ship that was heading for the Fire Nation for the return of Princess Azula and after three years of banishment.

Zuko looked at the mountains that were now darkened in contrast to the dark sky and the cold breeze matched the theme his world was turning to. He didn't think he'd wake up so soon from his sleep, been a while since he had manage to sleep long enough to remember the rest of his dreams, when Natsuko was still around to let him tell his problems around.

He didn't want to hear her name again, but that wasn't the first time he had told this lie and he wasn't sure if this was an exact lie either. When he learned that she was an airbender, he didn't know what force in play came unto his mind to let her slip away from him every time he had her, in the Northern Water Tribe or the time he met his sister after a long time. Even after meeting with her every night for the whole time they were in Ba Sing Se, at least after he and Uncle had the tea shop on the Upper Ring.

Uncle... was he doing fine? He wanted to tell him a lot of things, but it wasn't like he would be able to get back the trust of his uncle after betraying him in that fight with Natsuko. Even when Azula told him otherwise, he felt like he had done the something wrong in the process. He felt stupid for leaving Uncle and went with Azula instead, or even letting Natsuko down and tried to let her come with him even if they both knew that it wouldn't happen.

"Aren't you cold?"

After rekindling the massive liking for one another in a particular night at Ba Sing Se. Azula set them up after he had basically professed to the Dai Li and his sister about what possible emotions he had for the girl, letting him and Mai spend a gloomy night in the once impenetrable city. He remembered the time when he came across Jin on his unknowing date with Mai outside, even when Jin asked about the girl in white and all those things when he left the tea shop. The same girl in white was seen beside his knife throwing now-girlfriend when he turned around to face her. His eyes widen at the sight of Natsuko but he rubbed his eyes to think if that was her.

He was going insane, probably. No one saw Natsuko after the fall of the Earth Kingdom and the death of the Avatar, not even him. The only thing that was left of the girl he knew was of the hair comb he left her.

"I've got a lot on my mind. It's been so long, over three years since I was home." he looked down at the mention of home before looking back at the distance again while Mai had a unsatisfied expression on her face, "I wonder what's changed. I wonder how I've changed."

Mai fake yawned at Zuko's speech like statement before putting a smirk on her face, "I just asked you if you were cold. I didn't ask for your whole life story."

Zuko knew what he did was a force of habit, thinking that the person with him was the same person he was with for the remainder of his time banished from the Fire Nation. Usually, that person would urge him to go on until he hadn't any more to say, feeling a sense of his problems weighing him down were finally gone. But with his place now, sitting pretty and everything silenced him from any more emotions to express in the face of the Fire Nation, no fear, no happiness, in actuality no expression but just lust for power. Mai wrapped her arms around him with a smile on her face, the most he has seen from someone like Mai. The girl barely smiled as a kid and yet here they were, being the girl he was waiting back at home, "Stop worrying."