Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: the Last Bender or its characters

Pointers: 'italics' means that the character is thinking

Summary: He hadn't seen her since the day he was banished, but he could still remember the way the wind had drifted her away. Zuko x OC

Book 0: Memories

The Last Airbender?

"An airbender? In our city?" Azulon sat up straight, not believing the words that had came out of the general's mouth. "That can't be. My father had eliminated all the airbenders!" The Fire Lord said as the general had stood up.

"She was found in the capital." The General said, "We performed the test to see if she was the Avatar and she is not." He had then gave the signal for the soldiers to bring in the child.

Two guards held a small child by her wrists as tears were escaping her eyes. "Please, let me go. I didn't do anything wrong!" She cried as Azulon looked at the child. She had long brown hair that had a slight red tint, almond shaped eyes that were a bright hazel. Her skin was pale, a milky white. She had to be around the same age as his grandfaughter from the roundness of her face and her height.

"So, she's not the Avatar but just an airbender?" Azulon then rubbed his beard, "She probably wouldn't even be able to help us look for the Avatar considering how young she is. A relative of hers must be an airbender and probably knows the whereabouts of the Avatar." He then walked around the fire and walked down the stairs to stand before the child. The brunette gave him a hard glare, tears still finding their way down her face. "Who is your father?" He asked her.

"My father is an earthbender named Kazu." She answered him, "My mother is a nonbender named Jia."

"How about your grandparents?" He then asked her as she looked down in thought.

"Jodoshin is my grandfather, the only one grandpa I knew. He died a long time ago." She answered him as his eyes widened slightly and then he closed his eyes and gave her a nod.

"So, Monk Jodoshin is your grandfather. He must of escaped and migrated to the Earth Kingdom." Azulon then turned away from her, "Where are your parents now?"

"I don't know." She answered, "I haven't seen them in a long time."

Azulon then placed his hand atop of the girls head, her hair was unkempt. Dirty. She looked like she was struggling for months for she was thin and had on rags for clothes. "You've been living on the streets?"

Before she could answer, two women had walked into the throne room and then stopped halfway when they saw the young girl being held by two guards. "Azulon, what is going on here?" Ilah, a grey-haired woman with bright amber eyes, had asked her husband as she walked over toward him.

"This girl is an airbender," Both of them gasped in surprised, "but she is not the Avatar." He continued on.

"So, what are you planning to do with her?" Ursa asked father-in-law as she gave the girl a soft expression. The child quickly looked down the ground, unable to accept the kindness the woman was trying to offer.

Ilah looked at her husband, "Send her back where she came from. There is no use in killing her since she knows not where the Avatar or her family is for that matter."

"So why not keep her?" Ilah asked her husband, "She is just an orphan child."

"But she is not a Firebender. What is the point of raising her here?"

"Nobody will have to know. She would simply appear to be a nonbender or only airbend here, at home." Ursa tried to persuade her father as she walked over to the child and knelt down, placing her soft palm on the girls dirty cheek. The young girl cringed, afraid she would going to be hurt but then noticed that the woman simply was giving her a smile. "I'll take care of her." She then asked the generals to release the young girl before taking the girl's hand.

Azulon sighed at his daughter-in-law and then looked to his wife who gave him a firm nod, agreeing with the idea. "She is your responsibility then, but if she causes any trouble for us then you will take the blame for it Ursa."

"I understand." She held the girl's hand firmly as the wild-haired child looked up at Ursa with curious eyes. "Come on, let's get you changed and be prepared for dinner."

"Thank you." The girl mumbled as she continued to look down at the marble floor which was covered by a red carpet in the hallway.

Ursa smiled at her, "What is your name?"

"My name is Jiyuu." She answered as the woman's smiled even wider.

"Do you know what your name means, Jiyuu?" She asked as the little girl tilted her head to the side in thought.

Silence filled the hallway for a few minutes, "No, I don't. What does it mean?"

"Air is the element of Freedom and that's exactly what Jiyuu means; freedom." The woman explained as the young girl know understood.

"Father never really told me that. Mom just said he named me Jiyuu because he thought it was pretty." She shrugged her small shoulders, "But do you think that its bad that I'm an airbender?"

"I think you're fine the way you are, Jiyuu. It shouldn't matter what element you possess and most airbenders were kind, giving, and loving people. They did not deserve what happened to them."

They had suddenly stopped and Ursa had opened the door to the large room, "This will be your room since its not too far from mine and my son is right next door."

Jiyuu was a little surprised when the woman said she had a son. She would probably be meeting him soon and she had hoped that he wasn't mean like the rest of the Fire Nation people she had met so far. Ursa was the only kind woman, the other woman seemed nice as well, and the Fire Lord wasn't exactly too mean to her but she didn't necessarily like him.

It was dinner time and Jiyuu was fully bathed, her hair washed, brushed, combed and styled;. She was looking like she was royal herself. Her hair was tied up in the same red ribbon that she had before but now it was mended and cleaned. She wore a red long-sleeved, kimono-like outfit that ended to her knees, and had a black ribbon tied to the back like an obi. She was sitting next to Ursa who was sitting next to Ozai on her left. The order of the table was Azululon at the front center with his wife Ilah next to him with Ozai at their right and Iroh at their left, right next to Azulon. Iroh's son Lu Ten next to him. Next to Jiyuu was Zuko and then Azula.

"Welcome to our family, young Jiyuu." Iroh had said kindly as the eight-year-old smiled.

"Thank you, Prince Iroh." She said as she looked at the boy next to her, her first time meeting Zuko.

He didn't seem pretty happy that she was sitting next to Ursa, he probably was use to sitting here. Before she could even suggest to switching seats, their plates were filled with food. She looked at Ursa and then back at the plate of stir-fried cabbage with garnished fried fish atop of it and a little small bowl of rice next to it. Everyone was waiting and she wasn't sure why until she had watched Azulon pick up his chopsticks and take less than a mouth full of cabbage. Once he ate, everyone began to eat.

Jiyuu picked up the same amount of cabbage as she had seen Azulon and then chewed it. She thought it tasted delicious until she felt her tastebuds catch aflame. It was incredibly spicy, more spicy than the Fire flakes she ate before. Her eyes went wide and her cheeks puffed up, she looked at Ursa who was busy speaking to her husband Ozai. She looked around as people were chattering about and then she noticed Zuko staring at her. He gave her a curious stare until it seemed he realized that the food was too spicy for her. "Drink some of your juice."

She looked at him curiously until he pointed with his chopsticks the glass of pink liquid with the strawberry slice on the edge on one side. She placed her chopstick down and took a sip of the cold drink and she felt her tastebuds cooling down. "Thank you." She said as he didn't say a word but place a clump of rice in his mouth and ate away.

Jiyuu managed to eat most of the cabbage and fish without having to drink all of her juice. She found the juice to be the best part of the meal so far. The plate was taken away and then a bowl of soup was in front of them. From what she could tell there were types of seafood and eggs in it. As before, they waited until Azulon took a spoon full of his soup before eating.

The problem with this dish wasn't the spiciness, it was just nasty. She wanted to barf but she knew if she did that then she would humiliate herself and probably cause some problems. Whatever that really chewy seafood was, it annoyed her. Ursa wanted to laugh when she saw the child struggle to chew the thing. She made a weird face with her eyes narrowed and her brows furrowed as she chewed hard. "Is this your first time eating Octopus, Jiyuu?" Azulon asked as the girl's face immediately turned red from embarrassment since all eyes were now on here.

"Yes, My Lord." She answered just like Ursa had taught her, "Its... really, really chewy."

The Fire Lord's expression remained stoic as usual, but his voice wasn't as stern as when she first met him. "You must not chew so hard."

Jiyuu then stopped chewing, "Oh. Sorry."

"Do not apologize." Ilah then stepped in, "This your first time trying new food in another nation."

Everyone was so kind and understanding, which made Jiyuu wonder if she had been wrong when she though everyone in the Fire Nation were mean, rotten, and evil people. Jiyuu finally swallowed it down, but it felt strange because the texture was so soft. She shivered a bit, but drunk more of the juice of the soup than the food.

When the bowls were taken from them, they waited for the next dish. Everyone was talking again, but Jiyuu was still mulling over her embarrassment for the Octopus. She then looked to Zuko who was being annoyed by his younger sister, Azula. "Dum-dum, they'll probably assign you take care of Jiyuu whenever mom isn't around. Have fun with that."

Zuko was agitated, but the airbender felt guilty. "I don't need anyone taking care of me." They both turned to look at her as she gave them a hard stare, "I'm fine on my own."

Then the butlers came with trays of full of bowls. When they placed Jiyuu's serving, it was a small bowl of three scoops of this cold, solid, snowball like food. Jiyuu tilted her head to the side, curious as to what it was. One was white, one was brown, and the other was pink. Just what was it? "Its ice cream." Ursa seemed to answer her mental question, "Its very cold and so take small bits."

Jiyuu picked up her small spoon since she had seen everyone pick up theirs after Azulon and then took a small scoop of all three flavors. She smiled at the taste and then gotten an even bigger scoop regardless of Ursa's warning. And she had wished she listened because she had gotten a brainfreeze. She dropped her spoon on the table and slapped her hands on her head, cringing. All eyes were on her and then everyone began to laugh. Ursa had then rubbed the girls back and after thirty seconds, the feeling was gone. "T-That was horrible!" Jiyuu pointed at the ice cream, "I'll never eat this again no matter how good it tastes."

"You just ate too much and in a hurry." Lu Ten explained which made Jiyuu look at him. He was older than them, probably around twenty-two. He looked relatively younger than that, but she knew he was older because he wore soldier armor. "Oh and when you get brain freeze, warm the roof of your moth and it will go away faster." He gave her the tips, but she wasn't really paying attention because she was still heated about the whole ordeal.

"That was embarrassing." Jiyuu said as she walked down the hallway alongside Zuko, who decided he would walk around with her after some convincing from his mother.

Zuko looked at her, "Things like that happen all the time. No use in be upset about it, I mess up a lot."

The airbender looked at him with surprise, "Isn't it bad if you mess up?"

"Yeah, but my mom said that its normal even though I hate it when I do." He admitted as she nodded her head.

"Your mom is very nice. She kind of reminds me of my mom, she was nice too."

"What happened to her?" Zuko asked as Jiyuu shrugged her shoulders and made an "I don't know" noise. "So, you don't remember how you got here?"

"Not at all." She answered, "I wish I knew how, but I don't. I guess I don't really care since its been so long, but I do miss my dad."

"You remember him?" He asked as she nodded her head.

"My dad was a very strong earthbender, but he had the personality of a monk. He was strange, but he played games with me everyday." She smiled at Zuko, "Do you and your dad play games?"

The boy frowned, "No. My dad is too busy to play games with me."

"Oh," She frowned, "How about we play games? You know, it would be fun."

Zuko shrugged his shoulders, "As long as they aren't those girly games like my sister plays."

"Girly games? What do you mean girly games?" Jiyuu asked as he stopped in front of her door.

"Like cartwheeling and stuff," He gave an example. "Anyway, get to bed. See you tomorrow, Jiyuu."

"Good night, Zuko." Jiyuu waved at him before going inside of her room and then closed the door, she leaned her back on the door and slowly began to cry. "Dad..." She whimpered as she cried half the night away.

Jiyuu had woken up that morning and decided to go to the courtyard. She had missed breakfast that morning since she didn't wake up at the same time as everyone else as firebenders. She didn't get lectured for it since it was her first actual day in the Fire Nation palace, but she was told by Azulon that she will have to take in the Fire Nation traditions which meant breakfast in the morning with everyone else and such. When she reached outside, she had seen that nobody was out here and that's when she decided to practice some airbending. She hadn't mastered all her airbending but from the scrolls her grandfather had made just in case there was an airbender to be born in his family, she had practiced some of the moves. Most of the scrolls were at home and so she only knew a few. She had mastered that one technique that her grandfather told her that Avatar Aang had created.

She created a large ball of air and then jumped atop of it, half way sitting and standing as she zoomed around the place. "That's pretty neat." She then loss balance and felt to the ground face forward.

A hand appeared before her and she noticed that it was Zuko's, "Thanks." Jiyuu said as she then got on her feet. "Its called an Air Scooter."

"Still not better than firebending." He said as she slowly frowned, "I challenge you to a duel!"

"Oh yeah? Fine!" Jiyuu got into a stance, "I'll show you how air is the better element!"

"I'm General Zhou Yu! You will never defeat me or my soldiers, foe!" Zuko said, getting into a character which caught Jiyuu off guard but she quickly played along.

"Oh yeah! Well I'm Gan Ning of Wei! And there's no chance that a pretty boy like you can beat me!" Jiyuu had beat her chest in a "manly" matter which made Zuko burst out in a fist of laughter. "Hey! Stop laughing!"

"Its just," He held his stomach as he laughed, "You looked so stupid doing that."

The airbender narrowed her eyes at him, "If you keep this up. I'm not going to play games with you."

"Okay, okay." He waved his arms dismissively, "Gan Ning! If I win, you join Wu."

"If I win, you'll be my servant!" Jiyuu grinned cockily, really getting into character.

Zuko nodded his head before doing a high kick and blasted a fireball from his foot. It wasn't large and lethal, it was small and evasive enough for Jiyuu to fight back. She had cut the fire ball in half with a slice of air she performed by doing a slicing motion with her hands. "You show some skill, Gan Ning."

"Ha!" She let out a hearty laugh, "They don't call me one of the best pirate for nothin'!"

The Prince smirked, "I'll show you that Wu is the Kingdom of peace!"

"What are you guys doing?" They both stopped and turned to see Lu Ten standing at the path across the courtyard.

"We're playing warriors!" Jiyuu explained, "And you stopped me from kicking Zuko's butt."

"Hey!" Zuko turned to face her, "You were not going to kick my butt!" He shook his fist at her as she stuck her tongue out at him.

Lu Ten smiled at them both, "Oh yeah?" They both looked at him, but it was too late. He grabbed them both, "I'm Cao Cao of Wei and I'm gonna kick both your butts!"

"L-LU TEN!" Zuko flailed his arms about as Jiyuu kicked her legs as he spun them both over his shoulders. He soon lost footing and they all fell on the lush grass and ended up laughing.

"Let's get him, Zhou Yu!" Jiyuu gave the older child a mischievous look as Zuko nodded his head in agreement. They both sat on Lu Ten, causing him to struggle from getting up.

"Hey!" He said as Zuko then took a letter from his back pocket. "Ooooh! Look what I found, Jiyuu."

The airbender looked at him curiously, "What is it?"

Zuko then opened the letter all the way, "Dear Xiaoli, your smile reminds me of the fire lilies of the summer and the sweet plums that bloom in sprin-"

"Give that back, Zuko!" Lu Ten yelled at his cousin, but Zuko ran away as Jiyuu giggled at the corniness of the soldier boy's confession to to a woman named Xiaoli.

"Keep reading!" Jiyuu waved as she then ran after Lu Ten, jumping on his back to halt him from chasing Zuko.

"This isn't funny guys! Give it back!" The man was now growing agitated of the kid's antics only due to his embarrassment.

The future prince continued reading, "It is hard for me to tell you feelings towards your beautiful face and so I decided to pour my heart into this letter, hoping that when you read it that you'll feel all the love I have embedded in it."

Jiyuu continued to laugh as Lu Ten's face became another shade of red. "Come on! That's enough!"

"What's going on out here?" Ursa asked with a smile on her face, seeing how much Jiyuu and Zuko had been getting along. Even Lu Ten was out here playing with them, which was usually rare.

The airbender sped over to her, Zuko following in tow with the letter in his hands. "Me and Zuko found a love letter than Lu Ten was going to write to a girl named Xiaoli!" She explained as the woman shook her head.

"That isn't nice. Lu Ten put a lot of feelings and effort into that letter, it must of took him days to write it. Give it here," she had taken the letter from Zuko and watched the soldier boy walked over to her with his eyes glaring at the kids and then took the scroll.

"Thank you, Aunt Ursa." He said as she smiled and gave a firm nod.

"I'm gonna get you two, just you wait!" Lu Ten said in a playful menacing manner before ruffling both their hair and leaving.

Ursa smiled at them and then held out her hands for both of them to take, "How about some ice cream?"

Jiyuu cringed, "I don't think I'm ready for that stuff again."

"Well, Lu Ten taught you how to avoid brain freeze, no? I know you like it." The woman said with a smile.

"Chocolate is the best!" Zuko said as the airbender looked at them both.

"All right." She said as she walked with them towards the dining area for some ice cream.

Two months later...

It was dark and dreary outside and Jiyuu was at her window seat staring at the rain. From her room, she could see a field of fire lilies and whenever she decided to stay in here, she was usually staring at them. The rain was falling hard and it seemed like it would never end. She placed her hand on the window as she thought about her father and her mother, hoping that they were well. She hadn't been exactly truthful to Azulon and the others. She knew where her parents were and she left them because she exposed herself and she didn't want them to suffer any sort of punishment for keeping an airbender. It was her way of saving them even if it meant they would have to part with their only child.

"Jiyuu?" She turned toward her doorway and saw Zuko standing there, "You all right?" He asked as he closed the door behind him and walked over toward the window seat.

She nodded her head, "It's just time like these where I think about my parents. I wonder what they are doing and I hope they don't miss me too much."

"Do you plan to look for them one day?" He asked her as she then looked at him and pulled her knees toward her chest, resting her chin inbetween them.

"Yeah." She answered him as the room was then filled with silence, the rain hitting against the glass and the slight crackle of thunder the only noise.

"Lu Ten and Uncle Iroh are leaving tomorrow to go to the Earth Kingdom." He broke the silence, "Are you going to say goodbye to them with me?"

Jiyuu frowned, "I really don't want to say goodbye to them. I wish they could stay."

"But they have to take the Earth Kingdom down, so we can conquer it!" Zuko explained, but she continued to frown.

"You don't think that this war is bad?" She asked as Zuko shook his head, "You don't think its right to invade another place and take it from them?"

The future prince shook his head again, "No. Grandpa is making the Fire Nation worldwide. It will be better, it may not look like it now, but it will be."

The airbender sighed softly, "I wish."

"Jiyuu?" The boy called her name, causing her to look up at him.

"Hm?" She hummed to let him know that he had her attention.

"What was it like in the the Earth Kingdom?" He asked her as she tilted her head to the side in thought.

She then let out another hum, "Well... I lived in the country area so there was nothing but farms and stuff. So, it wasn't really special."

"You were poor?" He so bluntly asked which caused a sour look to go across her face, but then she dismissed it.

"Basically, but that didn't matter to me. I loved my family too much to really care if we had a lot of money or not, but because we were poor... He was subject to bullying from other Earthbenders who were helping some of the Fire Nation soldiers with extreme taxes." She explained to him as he frowned.

He patted her head which caused her to narrow her eyes at him, but then they softened when he noticed that he did this out of concern. "My mom does this to me whenever I'm sad. She usually hugs me, but I don't want to hug you because your a girl."

A dull expression came across her face, "But your mom is a girl."

"She's different." He then pulled his hand away and then looked outside, "We should go out there some day."

"To the Fire lily field?" She asked as she then followed his gaze outside. "Why would we go out there?"

"Because the moon and the stars look really bright out there. There's too many lights in the city but since this faces away from the city, you can see things much more clearly." Zuko explained as she smiled.

Jiyuu's hazel eyes then looked at Zuko's, "That's a good idea. We should do that."

A knock came to the door and then Ursa walked in, "Oh, here you both are. I was worried when I didn't see you in your room, Zuko. I'm glad you were keeping Jiyuu some company." She walked over them and then placed her hands on both their heads, they both leaned forward in her touch. Jiyuu noticed that all affection that came from Ursa was always warm and loving, inviting all the time, and she couldn't help but yearn for it whenever she had felt sad like this. Even though Zuko cheered her up and took her mind off her family, Ursa's touch had seemed to take away every trace of it.

"Did you tell Jiyuu about Lu Ten and Uncle Iroh's departure?" She asked her son.

"Yeah, she said she will go with me." He answered as Jiyuu frowned again, kind of wishing that both Lu Ten and Iroh could stay.

Ursa had seen the frown on the girl's face, "What's wrong Jiyuu?"

"Can't they stay a little longer?" She asked, but Ursa shook her head sadly.

"I wish they could stay longer too, but Uncle Iroh and Lu Ten are soldiers and it is their duty to partake in this war. They are fighting their very hardest for Grandfather Azulon and for the rest of us, so do not fret or be sad. Make sure they have a safe fight and they'll come home to play and eat with us again, okay dear?" The woman tried her best to cheer up the airbender, it did a little but she was still upset about them leaving.

"But what if... What if they don't come back?" Jiyuu frowned deeply as Ursa pulled the young girl into an embrace. "I don't want them... to die."

A hand stroked her back and she found herself crying. She had grown attached to them, especially to Lu Ten. It would be hard to lose other people that she had cared about. "How about you spend as much time with them right now. I'm sure they aren't busy."

Jiyuu's face certainly brightened at the idea, "Come on, Zuko. Let's mess with Lu Ten!" She said as she grabbed his arm and they ran out of her room, leaving Ursa to chuckle at the mess she probably made.

As they ran down the hallway, they had seen Lu Ten enter the library. The both peeked in and saw him looking through scrolls, "Lu Ten, Lu Ten!" Jiyuu cried his name as they both walked into the room and the man turned to look at them.

"Hey you two!" He said as they walked towards him. "I'm sure you both know I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Yeah, but I wish you didn't have to." The airbender frowned, "But Ursa said that you'll come back and there's nothing to worry about."

Zuko nodded his head, "We know for a fact that when you and Iroh come back, the Earth Kingdom will be ours!"

"That's right!" Lu Ten ruffled both their heads as they laughed. "How about I read you two my favorite story."

Both children looked at each other skeptically, "What's it about?" Zuko managed to ask.

"I'll just read it to you." Lu Ten said as they sat on the soft couch at the far corner of the library and Lu Ten pulled up a chair to sit in front of them. Zuko and Jiyuu looked at each other excitedly before turning their attention to the young man. "There was once a beautiful girl named Zhinv, a star, in heaven and a handsome young man named, Qianniu star. Both of them fell in love with each other deeply. However, on heaven, the love between Gods was forbidden. And their love was finally found the Empress, who was the grandmother of Zhinv. Niulang was punished to fall down to the earth, and Zhinv was penalized to do the non-stopjob of weaving the brocade day and night. The job of Zhinv was weaving endless colorized clouds in a marvelous kind of silk, and the clouds changed in accordance with the change of time and seasons."

"That's so mean!" Jiyuu said as Zuko shushed her, causing her to blush and look back at Lu Ten.

He looked at the airbender with a smile before continuing, "Since Niulang left, Zhinv shed tears all days long and still missed Niulang too much. She worked hard every second as to wish to satisfy Empress and let Empress allow Niulang's return. One day, several fairies begged Empress to allow their earth trip in Bilian Pool. At that day, empress had a good mood and agreed them. These fairies also suggested going there together with Zhinv when they saw she was so sad. Empress both could not withstand seeing her granddaughter was so unhappy all the time, and also agreed their suggestions on the condition that they should go and come back as soon as they can."

He then watched as Jiyuu looked pretty confused and then she finally asked a question, "So, she basically let Zhinv go to earth to see Niulang?"

"Precisely, but you can't ask your next question since you must listen to find out." He shook his finger as Zuko sighed. "What's wrong, Zuko?"

The young boy looked at his cousin, "This is some sappy love story, isn't it?"

"No, its history. Now let me continue." He looked back at the scroll to find out where left off, "After Niulang fall down to earth, he was reborn in a farmer's family. Later, his parents passed away and he lived with his elder brother and brother's wife. But this couple treated Niulang badly, and separated the family with Niulang. They just gave Niulang an old ox and a broken wheelbarrow. Since then, Niulang led a life with this old ox. They worked hard to assart the wild land and do the farming as well as build their house. But actually, Niulang's life was isolated and lonely except this speechless ox. In fact he did know this ox was also a god on heaven, and it was Gold-Ox Star. One day, the old ox suddenly mouthed and said to Niulang: Niulang, go to Bilian Pool; some fairies are having bath there, and you hide the red clothes, because the fairy wearing red will be your wife. Niulang was shocked and asked Ox:"Borther Ox, you can speak! Is your word true?". Ox nodded, and Niulang arrived and hid in the reed of Bilian Pool to wait the arrival of the fairy. In a short time, these fairies flew down and put off their clothes to have a bath in pool. Niulang quickly came out and took the red clothes away. The fairies saw him and suddenly put on their clothes and flew away like bird except the fairy without clothes, and she was Zhinv. Zhinv was worried and shy when her clothes were stolen. At this time, Niulang appeared and let Zhinv be his wife. Zhinv found carefully this young man was indeed her Qianniu star. Hence, Zhinv became Niulang's wife. After marriage, this couple loved each other and led a happy life; also they had one son and one daughter. "

"Okay, so you mean to tell me," Zuko interuppted as both Jiyuu and him blushed deeply, "He saw her naked and then decided he was going to marry her?"

Lu Ten rubbed the back of his head, "Well, basically. Let me finish." He looked back at the scroll, "However, the Empress was quite angry when she knew this, and appointed the heavenly army to catch Zhinv. On this day, when Zhinv was cooking, Niulang came back and cried to Zhinv that Ox died. Before the death, ox told Niulang to denude his skin, because some day it was needed for flying. Zhinv knew that this ox was God-Ox Star who was demoted to earth just for speaking out some impartial words. They buried the ox well. But later, the gales happened. The heavenly army suddenly appeared and caught Zhinv away. Zhinv was very sad and suddenly heard the word from Niuliang:"Zhinv, wait for me!" Zhinv in the sky turned around and saw Niulang shouldering two baskets where their son and daughter sat. Niulang wore the ox skin and flew behind her and her infants were crying aloud. When they almost came together, Empress appeared by clouds. She pulled out a hairpin from her hairs and took a draw amid them."

"A large heavenly river (the Milky Way) appeared between this couple. They could not go across any more. This family was separated unconditionally and unreasonably. Zhinv crazily cried on one side, and Niulang together with his infants cried on the other side. They can not meet any more. All the fairies and gods at present were touched deeply, even Empress was also a little bit moved by their love and then agreed that Niulang and his infants can stay on heaven, also they can meet once a year. The meeting day is lunar 7. Since then, both of them lived on both sides of the Milky Way, and they looked at each other from afar. In autumn's evening, people can easily find two brighter stars lying in the both sides of Milky River. They are Niulang and Zhinv. And beside Niulang, there are two little stars, which are their son and daughter. On the evening of the second summer month's seventh day, a large number of pied magpies built a temporary bridge with their bodies for this couple's meeting. It is said that on that seventh day of the second summer's month every year, people under the grape shelf can hear the heavenly music latently and also hear this couple is affectionately talking."

Jiyuu was in tears, "That story was so romantic!"

"That story was stupid." Zuko said, rolling his eyes. "Girls always like that love stuff. Where was the action? The fighting? The honor and blood?"

Lu Ten smiled at his younger cousin, "When you grow older, you'll understand that love is just as important as or more than your honor."

"Lu Ten," Jiyuu called out to him.

"Yes, Jiyuu." He looked at her as she placed her hands together.

"When I get older, can I be your wife?" She asked shyly as the man smiled.

"You would make a fine wife, Jiyuu. But I would be a little old by the time you become of marrying age." He said as the airbender pouted.

The brunette crossed her arms, "No you won't! You'll be 30!" She tried to count on her fingers, "You can wait for me."

"You forgot he has a girl he likes," Zuko nudged her side, "remember? Xiaoli?"

The airbender pouted, "But I am prettier and better than Xiaoli!" She said as Zuko rolled his eyes.

"You never even seen her!" He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I just know that I am!" Jiyuu got off the couch and walked over to Lu Ten, giving him a hug. "Right, Lu Ten?"

The man laughed and returned the child's embrace, "You are a beautiful girl, Jiyuu and any man would be lucky to have you as their wife. But I have loved Xiaoli a long time just like Zhinv loved Niulang."

The girls eyes had gotten glassy as she looked away, "So? That doesn't mean anything. When I grow older, you'll fall instantly in love with me because I will be more beautiful than any star in the sky."

"Isn't someone full of themselves?" Zuko mumbled under his breath as he got up from the couch, "Come on, Jiyuu. Let's go get some snacks."

The girl nodded her head before turning to Lu Ten and giving him a kiss on the cheek, "See you tomorrow!" She waved at him before following Zuko to the kitchen.

The Next Day...

Jiyuu and the others had stood at the docks as Iroh, Lu Ten, and the rest of the soldiers were preparing for departure. Zuko had looked at the girl beside him as tears continuously poured from her eyes and she kept trying to wipe them away with her long, kimono sleeves but to no avail. They kept flowing and flowing every time she wiped them away. Iroh frowned at the saddened girl and knelt down in front of her and she ran to him and he returned her embrace. "It hurts me to see you so sad like this, Jiyuu."

"Because I don't want you and Lu Ten to leave, Uncle Iroh." She cried as she he noticed how she trembled within their embrace. Ursa watched with sad eyes as Lu Ten frowned as Jiyuu slowly let go of the older man as he rubbed atop of her head.

"When I come back, lets play a game of Pai Sho and have a cup of tea, hm?" He suggested as she smiled as she sniffled, she nodded her head quickly. "I hope by the time I come back, you'll be an even better player."

"Its a promise, Uncle." She said as he then moved away as Lu Ten knelt down.

The soldier looked at her, he was dressed in his armor and he seemed almost unrecognizable with his helmet on. He removed it and handed it to his father as he gave Jiyuu a small embrace. The airbender almost clung onto the young man, nearly begging for him to stay alittle longer. "I will miss you, Jii."

The girl noticed his nickname for her and a small smile appeared on her face, "You have to come back, you know. You and I are supposed to get married when I'm older."

"I know, I know." He placed his hands on her soft, pale cheeks and wiped her tears with a swift stroke of his thumbs. "When I come back, we can talk about our wedding, okay?"

Jiyuu's eyes lit up and a smile came across her face, "You mean that? You seriously mean that, Lu Ten?"

He nodded his head, "Of course. We can even have our wedding in the city of Ba Sing Se once its ours."

The airbender nearly jumped for joy and hugged him tightly, "I have a lot of planning to do!"

"You sure do." He said with a laugh as he returned her embrace before letting her go. She gave him a peck on the cheek as he then ruffled Zuko's hair and gave Ursa a hug, a bow to his uncle Ozai and the others before going onto the ship to join his father. Once he was on deck, he waved to them as Jiyuu continued to wave back. They kept waving to each other until they were out of sight.

Ursa then took hold of Jiyuu's hand, "Let's go back home."

The airbender nodded her head as she looked back to the vast ocean and let out a sigh before joining Ursa, Ozai, and Zuko in the carriage.

A few months later...

Both Zuko and Jiyuu walked alongside Ursa down the path across the courtyard. Azula had ran over to them while Ty Lee was at the back laughing quietly, which Jiyuu seemed to catch. The airbender had tried to distance herself from Azula because she knew how cruel the girl could be. "Mom, can you make Zuko and Jiyuu play with us?"

Zuko spoke emphatically, "I am not cartwheeling."

"You don't have to. Carthweehling's not a game," She then mumbles under her bream, "dum-dum."

"I don't care. I don't want to play with you." Zuko then looked at Jiyuu, "Me and Jiyuu play better games than the games you play."

"We are brother and sisters." Her voice became sickly sweet for Jiyuu's taste, "It's important for us to spend time together. Don't you think so, Mom?"

"Yes darling," she then turns to the two, "I think it's a good idea to play with your sister. Go now," she fluffs both their heads a few times, "just for a little while."

Ursa walks off, leaving Zuko and Jiyuu who look at at each other and then at Azula with skepticism. Azula picks an apple that was hanging from the tree, "Here's the way it goes." She said as as she paced in front of them then places the apple on Mai's head. "Now what you do is try to knock the apple of the other person's head. Like this." Mai looked very unhappy as Azula fires a blast at the apple, whose stem catches on fire. Mai, surprised, stands there while Zuko instantly springs to action to save Mai, who he thinks is in danger. Azula looks smugly as Zuko stampedes over to Mai. He jumps on her, knocking the burning apple off her head, but also knocking them down into the pool.

"See, I told you it would work." Azula said to Ty Lee.

"Aw, they're so cute together." Ty Lee giggled.

Mai gets up as Zuko walks off, "You two are such...ugh!"

Jiyuu follows after Zuko, "Hey! Don't leave!" She says as she flails her arms to try to stop him. He keeps on going until Ursa, coming out of the buildings, approaches the dripping wet Zuko and flailing arms Jiyuu. "I was just coming to get you. Uncle Iroh sent us a letter from the war front." She then notices her son's soaked appearance, "You're soaking wet."

Zuko moves with a gesture of frustration, "Girls are crazy!"

Once Zuko was change, they all went to the living room as Ursa read them Iroh's letter. "If the city is as magnificent as its wall, Ba Sing Se must be something to behold. I hope you all may see it someday, if we don't burn it to the ground first.

Zuko and Azula laughed while Jiyuu pouted, "They better not. Me and Lu Ten are supposed to get married there." She mumbled as Ursa smiled at her.

"Until then, enjoy these gifts. For Zuko," The boy ran over and picked up a dagger offered by a servant on some tray, "a pearl dagger from the general who surrendered when we broke through the outer wall. Note the inscription," Zuko unsheathes the dagger, "and the superior craftsmanship."

"Never give up without a fight." Zuko read.

Jiyuu looks at one tray as the servant lifts it down for her to see as Ursa continued on, "For Jiyuu, a beautiful flowered headband from Lu Ten. When he saw it, he thought of you." The airbender's face lit up as she picked it up and adjusted it into her hair. Azula was standing in front of another servant and he offers her something on a tray. "And for Azula, a new friend. She wears the latest fashion for Earth Kingdom girls." As Ursa speaks, Azula picks up a doll wearing Earth Kingdom green. The younger girl makes a face of disgust.

"If Uncle doesn't make it back from war, then dad would be next in line to be Fire Lord, wouldn't he?" Azula asked their mother.

Zuko runs around practicing with his new dagger as Jiyuu watches in amazement before catching Azula's questioning, her face becoming sour. Ursa's voice revealed her disappointment, "Azula, we don't speak that way. It would be awful if Uncle Iroh didn't return. And besides, Fire Lord Azulon is a picture of health."

"How would you like it if cousin Lu Ten wanted dad to die?" Zuko asked.

His sister merely shrugged, "I still think our dad would make a much better Fire Lord than," she looked at the doll with disdain, "his royal tea loving, kookiness." She holds out the doll and makes its head burst into flame.

The week after...

Jiyuu watched Zuko practiced with his knife, she pretends to shoot an arrow and Zuko acts like he is hit. He fakes death and falls over while Azula behind him is seated on a chair. "You waste all your time playing with knives. You're not even good."

Zuko gets up, his cheeks flaming. "Put an apple on your head and we'll find out how good I am."

"Don't do that Zuko, that's not safe." Jiyuu said as the boy turned to look at her and then huffed.

Azula then got up and walked over to them. "By the way, Uncle's coming home."

Jiyuu's eyes lit up as both she and Zuko asked, "Does that mean we won the war?"

"No. It mean's Uncle's a quitter and loser." Azula said as Jiyuu narrowed her eyes.

"What are you talking about, Azula? Uncle's not a quitter and neither is Lu Ten!" The airbender argued.

Azula smirked, "Oh yes, he is. He found out Lu Ten died and Uncle just fell apart." Jiyuu's eyes widened as tears started to fall down the corner of her eyes and down her cheeks while Azula leaned against a nearby pillar, "A real general would stay and burn Ba Sing Se to the ground, not lose the battle and come home crying."

Zuko turned to Jiyuu, who fell down to the floor in tears. He looks at his sister, anger embedded in his voice. "How do you know what he should do?" He looks at his friend sadly, "He's probably just sad his only kid is gone... forever."

The brunette trembled in the boy's arms as her sobs became muffled as the boy pressed her closer to him, his clothes lowering the sound of her cries. Azula grinned evilly before turning to see her mother at the doorway, frowning as she had gathered that Jiyuu had just discovered of Lu Ten's sudden death. She cut Azula a look, knowing very well that she shouldn't of been the one who told. "Your father has requested an audience with Fire Lord Azulon. You two, best clothes, hurry up. You do not have to go Jiyuu, you are grieving right now and you should rest."

Zuko had hesitantly let go of Jiyuu as Azula mocked their mother. "Fire Lord Azulon. Can't you just call him "Grandfather"? He's not exactly the powerful Fire Lord he used to be. Someone will probably end up taking his place soon."

"Young lady! Not, another, word." Ursa's voice had rose as Azula runs past, "What is wrong with that child?" She whispered. As Zuko had turned to look at Jiyuu, who had buried her face in her hands and then at their mother who gives him a nod before he turns to go to his room.

Ursa held Jiyuu into her arms, "It'll be okay, Jiyuu. Its a tough time for you and we will all miss Lu Ten greatly, but remember this..."

Jiyuu looked up at Ursa, her eyes a slight tint of red from crying so hard and her voice growing horse. "What?"

"Lu Ten will always live in here," Ursa pointed at the girl's heart, "and that's what matters the most."

The girl placed her hand over heart, "In here?"

"In there. Your heart." Ursa then hugged the girl tighter and picked her up, "Let's go to you room."

Zuko had walked down the hallway, fear still evident on his face. He never seen his grandfather so angry before, especially at his father. He had seen Jiyuu looking out the window at the moon that had shined brightly and lit up the dark hallway. "Jiyuu?"

"I can't sleep." She said, her voice scratchy. "I kept thinking about Lu Ten."

The boy frowned as he walked over to her, "It'll be okay."

"... But I really love, loved, Lu Ten." She corrected herself which caused her eyes to water once more.

"Come to my room, we can talk until you get tired." He said as she nodded her head as he held onto her hand and walked towards his room.

They continued to walk down the moonlit hallway, holding each others hand, and looking ahead. Jiyuu had wiped her tears with the back of her free hand and when she did, she felt Zuko's hold on her hand tighten. She looked at him, but he did not turn to face her. She softly smiled as they reached his room, they had sat on his bed. "So, what happened in the throne room?"

Zuko stiffened, "I think my dad got in trouble with Grandfather Azulon."

"Why?" Jiyuu asked, worried.

"Because he suggested to be crowned the Crown Prince since Uncle Iroh failed to get Ba Sing Se." He explained as Jiyuu's teeth clenched.

"That's mean!" She said as Zuko frowned.

The door behind them opened and Azula was leaning against the doorway. "Dad's going to kill you." She said in a sing-song voice before going back to her usual tone, "Really," she turns to look at him with a leer, "he is."

Zuko responded sarcastically, "Ha-ha, Azula. Nice try."

"Fine, don't believe me, but I heard everything. Grandfather said dad's punishment should fit his crime." She imitates Azulon, "'You must know the pain of losing a first born son, by sacrificing your own!'"

"Liar!" Zuko shouted as Jiyuu narrowed her eyes, trying to decipher if what Azula was saying the truth or not.

Azula then sat on his bed, "I'm only telling you for your own good. I know, maybe you could find a nice Earth Kingdom family to adopt you and Jiyuu."

"Stop it, you're lying!" Zuko said, holding his blanket for security. "Dad would never do that to me."

"Your father would never do what to you?" Ursa then entered the room, "What is going on here?"

Azula acts innocent, "I don't know."

Ursa grabbed Azula, "It's time for a talk!" She said as she leads her out the room.

"Zuko, she's probably lying like she always does." Jiyuu tried to cheer him up as she watched him curl up in a ball. "Zuko?"

"Azula always lies... Azula always lies..." He chanted as the airbender frowned.

That Night...

Jiyuu wakes up, suddenly in her room. She looked around as she then sees a shadow at the corner of her room placing a letter on her desk, "Who are you?"

The shadow freezes and then turns to face her and walks towards her. Jiyuu closes her eyes in fear until she feels a hand on her face, she could tell from anywhere that it was Ursa's hand. "Ursa?"

"Jiyuu. I have to leave, but I have written a latter to you." She said as Jiyuu looked at her curiously.

"Where are you going?" She asked as she felt the woman pull her in an embrace.

"Somewhere far away." Ursa answered as she kissed the girl's forehead, "I want you to always be strong and take of Zuko for me."

Jiyuu could feel her eyes welling up with tears, "Your never coming back?"

"I have to go."

"U-Ursa!" She reached her hand out towards the woman, but she left the room and closed the door. Leaving Jiyuu to fall in her bed and cry in her pillow.

That Next Day...

Zuko gets up out of his bed and runs down the hall as he calls for his mother, "Mom? Mom, mom!" Azula, who leans against a pillar, was playing with Zuko's knife. Steps out from behind the pillar as Zuko passes. His voice revealed his panic, "Where's mom?"

"No one knows. Oh, and last night, Grandpa passed away." She informed him.

"Not funny, Azula. You're sick. And I want my knife back, now." He grabs for the knife, but she dodges and holds the knife out in front of her, taunting him.

"Who's going to make me? Mom?" She tease as he grabs the knife and runs out of the room.

He runs into the garden where Ozai looks out over the pond. "Where is she?" His father does not reply and he knew that could only mean she was gone. He looked down in despair. He turned and went to Jiyuu's room, opening the door to see her sitting by the window. "Jiyuu? Mom is..." She turns to look at him, her eyes red. "Did you see her last night?"

"Yeah." She answered before looking back out the window, "She told me she was going far away."

Later on that day...

At the ceremonial plaza somewhere in the palace, packed with people, was where Azulon's funeral was being held. On the dais stands the gold sarcophagus and the Fire Sage presiding over the ceremony. Around the sarcophagus stand members of the royal family, including Ozai, Azula, Jiyuu and Zuko, all dressed in white.

"Azulon, Fire Lord to our nation for 23 years. You were our fearless leader in the battle of Gar Sai. Our matchless conqueror of the Hu Sin provinces. You were father of Iroh. Father of Ozai. Husband of Ilha, now passed. Grandfather of Lu Ten, now passed. Grandfather of Zuko and Azula." The Fire Sage turns and approached the sarcophagus. He reaches in and takes the Fire Lord's diadem. Ozai walks forward, "We lay you to rest." Fire Sage holds the diadem above his head as two firebenders on the left and right light fire to the sarcophagus. With the fire of the funeral pyre burning behind him, the Fire Sage crowns the new Fire Lord. "As was your dying wish, you are now succeeded by your second son." He puts the diadem on Ozai's head, "Hail Fire Lord Ozai!"

As Ozai stands up from being crowned, the audience bows low. Azula and Zuko, wearing white, bowing to their father with Jiyuu following suit. Azula has her customary cruel grin. Zuko looks over at his sister in fear, then looks ahead as Jiyuu frowns deeply.

Four years later...

"Jiyuu!" The girl turned around looked for the person who called her name. Jiyuu was now twelve-years-old and was growing to become a lovely young woman. Her hair was now down to her mid-back, her skin still a milky pale, her eyes a little bigger but still in their almond-shape, but revealed more of her hazel eyes. She wore the usual Fire Nation royal family clothing which was the regular militant attire except hers was form fitting and her top was more of a belly shirt and the sleeves were loose and long covering up her hands. Her hair was in its usual ponytail held up by the red ribbon, but attached the ribbon was the red and bold flower from Lu Ten's headband. She had unattached it from the mental band and pinned it to her ribbon so that both precious items would stay with her forever. "Jiyuu!" A voice called again which made her continue to spin around in a circle to discover who it was.

Then out from nowhere was Zuko, panting heavily. His hair was in its usual ponytail and he wore his red, black, and gold prince armor. "What?" She said as she walked over to him, "Your always chasing me down."

He immediately stood up and slightly snarled at her, "I was going to tell you that I wanted you to see something."

"If its another trick you learned, I'll pass!" She placed her hand up, "Its not so fun watching you learn new stuff and then breaking things in the process!"

"Hey!" He snapped, " I haven't broken things."

She folded her arms, "Oh? You haven't? How about my vase of flowers from Yun? My jewelry box from Quan Zhao? My expensive ring from Xin Sun Ce?"

"You mean all that useless junk that those men buy you? I did you a favor!" He said as Iroh then walked over to the two.

"How is my favorite Prince and Princess doing? Bickering as usual I see?" He said with a smile. "My Jiyuu, you have grown so much. You are a lovely, young lady."

The airbender grinned, "Of course! I told..." She paused, "Lu Ten that I will grow to be beautiful and so I have to keep my promise."

The man chuckled, "I'm sure he would be cursing the Gods if he knew that he missed out on such a beautiful, young woman."

"Don't feed into her ego, its already to big to go through doors." Zuko said as he folded his arms.

Jiyuu glared at him, "Just because I know I'm beautiful doesn't mean that I have a big ego."

"Then what does it mean then? Explain." Zuko said as she huffed.

"It means I have confidence in how I look and that nobody can bring me down!" She shoved her way past him, "Jerk!"

"You two have been bickering for the past year, what's been going on with you two?" Iroh asked, generally concerned.

The Prince sighed and then pinched the bridge of his nose, "She's been busying herself with... with her suitors!"

"Suitors? I see. She'll be of marrying age in four years and so it is about that time." A mischievous grin came across his face, "Are you jealous, Prince Zuko?"

His nephew gave him a sour expression, "Jealous? Of them? I say good luck to them, I don't know how they can marry someone who is so arrogant like she is."

"My nephew, I'm pretty sure that it upsets you that one she gets married that you and her will not be living under the same roof. She will be making a new family." He placed his hand on his nephew's shoulder, "Its all right to admit that you will miss her."

The thirteen-year-old growled, "That's not it, Uncle! You just don't understand." He stormed off the same way that Jiyuu stomped off to.

"I'm afraid that I do, nephew." He then rubbed his stomach, "I could go for some roast duck and a cup of Jasmine tea. Mmmm." He hummed as he walked down the hall towards the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Jiyuu was sitting by the pond in the courtyard. "Stupid jerk. He's been nothing but a jerk to me since my birthday." She mumbled, "Maybe he hates me or something."

"Jiyuu?" She looked up to see Zuko, she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, its Prince Yells-a-lot." She watched the turtle ducks swim in the pond, remembering way back when she, Ursa, and Zuko would feed the birds bread and talk out here for hours or just nap on Ursa's warm lap. She missed the woman dearly.

"I was going to apologize to you for how I've been acting." He said as she looked at him, her eyes meeting his. She could tell when he was lying because he would look away, but when he was genuine he would keep eye contact for as long as possible. "I know I've probably hurt your feelings."

The airbender sighed, "Not really. I'm pretty much use to it since its been almost three months that you've been acting that way."

"Its just that in a couple of years, you'll probably be engaged to someone and then you'll get married and leave. I don't want be alone here with my father and my sister, even though I'll still have Uncle." He looked at her as he saw her smile.

"I guess I never really thought that I was getting close to marrying age. You'll have to get married sometime soon too since your the crown prince and all." She dipped her finger the pond water and swirled it around as the ripples continued to grow.

Zuko sighed, "Yeah, but I hate to think about it."

"Well, that's life. You grow up without wanting to and have to deal with the responsibilities of the ages you go through." Jiyuu said as her friend placed a hand on her shoulder, "What?"

"Why do you still wear that thing that Lu Ten gave you?" He asked which caught her off guard.

"Why can't I wear it?" She asked him, "Is it a problem for me to wear something he had given me?"

Zuko narrowed his eyes, "Your not letting him go. That's why."

The female glared at him, "I loved Lu Ten! How could I possibly just let him go? And besides, he bought this for me. It's not like I can just throw this away if I wanted to. He thought of me when he got this and so this makes this valuable to me. I know he's never going to come back, but I would like to think that a part of him will always be with me."

The Prince did not say a word and once she looked at him, he was staring out towards the setting sun. "As long as you know that he's never coming back, there is no reason for him to have your heart."

Jiyuu's eyes widened as he stood up and reached his hand out to her, "Where are we going to go?"

"To the firelily field." He said as she took his hand and lift herself up. He soon let go of her hand and she looked at him and then down at the space between their hands. A sudden memory of when he held her hand before, way back when they were children. Quickly, she grabbed his hand which caught him off guard, but he didn't turn to look at her. He continued on ahead, just like he did when they were kids. It brought a smile to her face as they walked alongside each other towards the field of fire lilies.

When they got there, Zuko laid down and looked up at the moon and she laid down next to him as her eyes widened. He was right, you could see the stars clearly, the moon was big and full, and it seemed like every star there ever was was in view. "Its beautiful here."

"I told you it was." He said as he looked at her from the corner of her eyes and saw how in awe she was at the bright star.

She smiled at the warm, quick breeze that blew passed them and caressed her cheeks. "Hey Zuko," She called to him and he looked at her in response, "do you ever wonder why Ursa left?"

"I try not to think about it." He answered her truthfully, "I just know that she did it for me. She told me that everything she had done was to protect me."

"She wrote me a letter telling me how much she loved me and how she saw me as her own daughter and that I should look out for you." She said, "Its really hard to do that when you never listen to me."

Zuko let out a slight chuckle, "I guess that's my problem. I don't listen to a person who doesn't even listen to herself."

"I guess that makes sense." Jiyuu let out a soft chortle.

Suddenly, Zuko sat up and Jiyuu did as well. "What?"

He looked at her and then at the night sky, "Nothing. We should be getting back."

"Zuko, I want to ask you something." She said as he stopped himself from standing.

"Do you," She looked down at the fire lilies between them, "see me as your sister?"

Zuko looked back at the sky, "No. You're more of my best friend, I don't know what it feels like to have a sister since mines is demented."

Jiyuu had burst out in a fit of laughter, "Demented? I guess that is the best way to describe Azula."

"Like I said, we should get back before they start to look for us." He said as she stood up next to him.

"Right," she and Zuko walked alongside each other back inside the Fire Nation palace.

Name Meanings:

Jiyuu is the Japanese name meaning "Freedom."

Xiaoli is the Chinese name meaning "Intellectual."

Ages:

In the beginning:

Azula is 7

Jiyuu is 8

Zuko is 9

Lu Ten is 22

After four years:

Azula is 11

Jiyuu is 12

Zuko is 13

History:

Zuko and Jiyuu were portraying a fight before Gan Ning joined the Wu Kingdom.

Zhou Yu was Sun Ce's sworn brother and Xiao Qiao's husband. He joins Sun Ce in defeating the warlords of Jiang Dong and contributes to the founding of the kingdom of Wu.

Gan Ning was a gruff and experienced young general of Wu, who is often portrayed as a cocky warrior who does not take fights seriously but still manages to enjoy them thoroughly. He used to be a pirate before serving under Huang Zu in China.

Other:

What did you guys think? I looked back on my one story and thought I wanted to do a remake of it, but a little different. I hope you guys liked it. R&R!