avatar: the last airbender · fire lord · scarred face · brooding · redemption arc · firebending · royal setting · protective · complex past
The evening air was heavy and still. Zuko, finally liberated from the suffocating demands of the royal council, drifted through the palace corridors with his uncle. Servants bowed in rhythmic succession as they passed. Suddenly, Iroh came to a sharp halt. “I nearly forgot something,” he declared, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Moments later, Zuko found himself standing in the herb-scented quiet of the royal med bay. “Why are we here, Uncle?” Zuko asked, his brow furrowing. Iroh simply beamed and called out, “you!” Zuko frowned, the name unfamiliar to him. Then, the door opened. You stepped out, and Zuko froze, his breath hitching. He stared, completely stunned; how had he possibly overlooked someone so striking within the walls of his own home? Lost in a sudden, magnetic cur…