highschool [ zukaang ]

19 ; ozai

omg this was so fun to write

guys-

im...

have fun? reading??

tw: murder, attempted suicide

♡

• 3 years before •

Ursa was scrubbing dishes in the sink filled with soapy water. There was a pile of plated and cups and any other porcelain dish you could imagine.

Zuko had come into the room several times to show her drawings he had made of his friends. 

"Who's this? You've never drawn her before," She brushed a strand of dark hair from her face, leaving small soap bubbles on her temple.

"Oh, this is Mai," Zuko smiled. "She's cool."

"That's very nice of you to draw your friends," Ursa said. "And they're very nice, but I have to finish these. But after I'm done, I'll come and draw with you."

Zuko grinned and ran back into the dining room. Ursa sighed and looked out the window in front of her, soft light blinding her momentarily. She shut the white lace curtains and continued working.

Ozai was going to come back from the office late at night, so Ursa could finally have some time with her son. He was always stuck with Ozai, doing minimal tasks for him as he worked at home such as bringing him paper from the printer that was on his desk already.

Ursa placed the last knife onto the dish rack, and dried her hands on a towel. Zuko peeked his head around the corner briefly to see if she was finished.

but then his mother screamed, the door was kicked open. Ozai was standing there, his tie undone and shirt slightly open. He was sweating, and looked beyond angry. 

Zuko watched from next to Ozai, hiding behind the door frame. His father walked slowly towards Ursa, spewing curses and slurs at her. Zuko didn't know what he was talking about, he wasn't really listening. He was staring at his mom, he wanted to run to her,  but he couldn't move. He willed his feet to move forwards, but they wouldn't.

Zuko looked down before he heard metal scraping against metal. Ozai had pulled a knife from the dish rack. Ursa was backed up against the counter, crying and apologizing over and over. Zuko finally moved, carrying him down the hallway and towards his mom. 

He came to an abrupt stop when Ozai plunged the knife just under her rib cage. There was a wet crack, almost a crunch as he twisted the knife. Ursa gasped for breath, grabbing at the knife. Ozai pulled it out of her. Zuko stared at his mom, who was choking on blood. Ozai held her by the neck until her hands stopped struggling against his grip. He kept shushing her and saying it was alright. 

Zuko fell to his knees, tears streamed from his cheeks. He wanted his dad to comfort him, and as much as he hated Ozai in the moment, he couldn't help it.

Ozai held the knife towards his son with wide eyes, speckled blood on his face. Zuko let out a strangled cry, backing away on his hands and knees. He looked at his mom and wiped his eyes of tears. 

"No, no, it's okay," Ozai reached a bloody hand towards his son. "Come here."

Zuko crawled towards him, vision blurry with tears. "D-Dad... Momma is... She's-"