𝑯𝑰𝑫𝑫𝑬𝑵 𝑫𝑹𝑨𝑮𝑶𝑵, 𝒂: 𝒕𝒍𝒂

➳ 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯: 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘦

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"How could it be that tiny serendipitous events 

could change everything?"

- Aditi Khorana

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KIDA WAITS UNTIL THE OWNER OF THE TEA SHOP LEAVES BEFORE CONFRONTING ZUKO. Sorry — she waits to confront Lee. That's the identity he built for himself, but Kida recognizes him and whatever he's up to, she's not going to let it slide. She can't imagine continuing to work and pretend everything is normal knowing that someone so dangerous could be planning something terrible.

Kida waits for the tea shop to be relatively empty, and for his uncle, who's going by Mushi, before pulling Zuko into the storage closet and closing the door behind them.

"Hey!"

"What are you doing here?"

"What?"

"Don't you recognize me?" Kida demands.

"Why would I? My uncle and I just got into the city."

"I know who you really are, Zuko," Kida scoffs. "Don't you remember leaving me to freeze to death?"

Recognition flashes in Zuko's eyes and his eyes narrow in suspicion. "You're that firebender travelling with the Avatar. Does that mean he's in the city?"

"I'm travelling alone. I thought I was escaping the Fire Nation and the war, but apparently not. And, I'm really not happy about it," she warns. "So, I'm going to ask you this one more time. What are you doing here, Zuko? What do you want?"

"What I want is to be left alone," Zuko states monotonously, as if he couldn't care less. He moves towards the door.

Before he can leave, though, Kida moves fast and pulls out the knife she hides in her belt (a habit she's yet to shake), using it to pin one of Zuko's sleeves against the wall opposite the door. The force of it causes the shelves to shake and a few canisters of tea fall to the ground. "Give me one reason I shouldn't go to the Dai Li right now and tell them that the Fire Nation prince and his uncle are in the city."

"Go ahead," Zuko scoffs. "I'm sure they'd believe you."

"I can be pretty convincing," Kida retorts.

"Like convincing the Avatar and his friends that you aren't a firebender?" Zuko challenges. When he notices Kida clench her jaw, he smirks, knowing he struck a chord. "That's the reason you left, right? Because they found out that you're everything they hate, everything they've been fighting again since the beginning. It hurts, doesn't it? Being banished from the people you consider your family."

"I have no family," Kida states, but her voice wavers slightly. "I just want a fresh start and that's not going to happen if I don't stop you from whatever you plan to do here. Trust me when I say that you're the last person I would want to run into. I'm only asking nicely one more time: what are you doing here?"

"Lee!" someone calls from outside the closet. Suddenly, the door bursts open. It's his uncle, Iroh. "I heard something fall. Is everything okay?"

"Answer the question," Kida demands, ignoring Iroh. Her patience is running out.

Iroh looks back at her, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Do I know you from somewhere? Your eyes look very familiar."

"She knows who we are, Uncle. We have to get rid of her." Zuko rips his sleeve from the wall and settles into a battle stance.