Chapter Text
It was late morning when the stranger appeared in the garden.
Zuko wasn’t expecting to run into anyone at all. His mother had been one of the few to stroll through the little contained patch of nature. But for six months his mother had been gone with nothing to suggest she would ever come back. The only people he’d see here would be servants cutting through to get somewhere a little faster. But even they didn’t come here during the rainy season, when the ground was perpetually muddy. It was cold, unpleasant, and ugly without the flowers that would bloom later this year. Zuko had just realized how dirty his shoes were getting and that he was going to track mud inside and then get probably get scolded when he finally noticed the man there.
Zuko hadn't noticed him until he was only a few feet away. Partially because he was preoccupied with his own thoughts, but mostly because the stranger was dressed in green. A warm dark green almost the same shade as the plants around them. He was large and broad shouldered. His head was turned in the opposite direction, serenely looking over wet clumps of foliage as if this wasn’t the most miserable place in the world to be.
The man seemed to sense someone looking at him and turned to meet Zuko's gaze. His skin was dark, and his eyes were green just like his robes. Zuko took a step back automatically, gripping the basket in his hands a little tighter. The stranger bowed his head, very slightly. Not low enough for a normal citizen or even a government official, definitely not low enough for a servant. “Hello, Prince Zuko, what are you doing?”
Zuko startled a bit at being addressed suddenly. He glanced around. It figured, the one time he was out of sight from any guard is when he’d run into some weird guy who clearly didn't belong here. But the stranger didn’t make any move or expression that suggested he meant him harm. Zuko looked down into the basket, where four little turtle ducks huddled together in a blanket nest. He took a cautious step forward and tilted the basket just enough so the stranger could see them too. “I’m moving these turtle ducklings, so the cat owl doesn’t get them.”
“Where are you going to keep them so that they will be safe from the cat owls?”
He straightened back up, looking down into the basket and then back up at the man. “Well, I asked Mira-she works in the kitchen; I asked her to help me make them a house. She keeps a seed mix for me whenever I want to feed them so I thought she might want to help. She didn’t know how to make a house, but she said her cousin was a carpenter...”
“Hm.” was his only response.
They stood for a moment, before Zuko’s need to fill the silence took over. “So, she asked him to make the house, and I put it between the tree and the flower bushes over there so it can’t blow away, but it’s also hidden. It’s a little farther from the pond than their last nest was, but close enough, I think.” He’d already made a plan to return the next morning, before fire bending training, so he could lead them to the pond with a handful of seeds. He'd do it over and over again until they learned if he had to. He wasn't sure how good turtle duckling memory was.
“I see,” The man said. He paused for a moment as if to think. “Where’s their mom?”
“She’s gone, the cat owl ate her.”
The man didn’t say anything else. He just looked down at the small creatures in the basket contemplatively. “I was going to ask if you wanted help, but you seem to be doing fairly well by yourself, so instead I’ll ask, ‘Would you like some company?’”
Zuko shrugged, not finding any reason to say no. It was only a few steps until he found the little house. It was clearly made out of scrap materials, as each wooden piece was a different, clashing color. The roof was metal and already a bit rusted on the edges, but it would keep water away from where the turtle ducklings slept, and more importantly it would keep them away from the eyes of the predator that made them orphans. The man crouched down next to Zuko as he gently picked up each turtle duckling and placed them near the entrance of their new home. He pushed the blanket inside and did his best to reshape it into something like a nest. Then reached for the sack of seed mix he’d brought with him and rewarded the four little creatures for going along with him without fuss.
“What made you want to help them?” The strange man asked, still crouched. His broad shoulders made it look as if he would have a difficult time balancing in such a pose. But he remained sturdy as a mountain.
“Well, they don’t have anyone else now.”
“The cat owl has to eat too, he may starve if he can’t find food,” The man countered. His tone was still calm, so it didn’t exactly sound like he was arguing Zuko’s point. Even still, it made him feel defensive.
“The cat owl can eat mice and other things. It's almost warm again so all the sleeping animals will come out. Me and Mom have fed the turtle ducks here for years. They’re only here because of us.” Talking about his mom hurt. He wrapped his arms around his legs and rested his chin on his knees.
“So they’re your responsibility?”
“I guess.” Zuko didn’t think he could really call it a responsibility. His studies and fire bending training were responsibilities. Things he had to do to become a good Fire lord one day. Nobody would ever have told him he had to protect the animals in the garden. They were part of the decoration, only there to add to the scenery. His mother was gone, and he was the only one who cared. Even the woman from the kitchen had probably only fulfilled his request because she had to. “They don’t have a mom. They...they should get to feel safe. They might get eaten when they grow up, and they’ll die at some point anyways. But they should get to feel safe when they’re little. And nobody else will do it. So I will.” He might have said that last part too forcefully. But the stranger didn’t seem to take offense. Both watched as the little turtle ducklings devoured their seed pile before crawling around Zuko’s feet. They peeped and pecked gently at his shoes. He knew they probably just wanted more food, but he liked to pretend that they were thanking him. He lightly scratched one on the head with his pointer finger, causing the three other ducklings to clamber over their sibling to get to Zuko's hand. It elicited a small chuckle from the man which turned into a coughing fit.
“I guess the same can be said for anyone,” The man said after catching his breath. He stood with some effort, the bones in his legs cracking loudly. “Everyone will die, but it would be nice to feel safe and loved until then.”
For a long moment it was quiet, save for the little peeps of the turtle ducklings and the thoughts in Zuko’s head.
“I came here to meet with your father. I have a pretty hard decision to make. But I think you helped me just a bit. Thank you.” The stranger bowed his head. “My name is Janyu, by the way. I’ll be seeing you again soon. Goodbye, Prince Zuko.”
火┃土
“The Fire lord requires your presence, Prince Zuko, we need to get you ready.”
He couldn’t think of any reason he was being summoned. His mind grasped for one as the servant rushed him to his rooms, dressed him in his formal wear and then all but shoved him into one of the smaller meeting rooms in the palace. Zuko was met with the sight of a room filled with several people sitting around a long table. Half were dressed in green and the other in red. His father sat at the center, an empty space on his right side. He stood dumbly for a moment, taking it in. He’d never been included in any meeting before, and he wasn’t exactly sure where he was supposed to be or what he was there for-
His father answered that first question with a sharp motion toward the empty seat to his right. Zuko sat down quickly without a word.
He first noticed the person sitting right across from him was a girl about his age. She was dressed in a light yellow and pink color scheme with flower details, which contrasted against her brown skin. She mirrored his sitting position but stared down at her lap. Her dark black hair was half done up in a large bun, with a pink flower and several hair pins that dangled on either side of her face. She looked as uncomfortable as Zuko felt.
“Good to see you’ve made it, Prince Zuko.”
Zuko turned and blinked in surprise. Next to the girl, right across from his father was Janyu. It had been about a month since the encounter with the strange man in the gardens. Zuko still thought of him sometimes, like whenever he went to check on the turtle ducklings. But beyond those occasional passing thoughts he’d basically forgotten about it. The fact that this random summoning could somehow be related hadn't even crossed his mind. Janyu was looking even more tired than Zuko remembered, but still just as broad and steady as before. Unsure of whether he was allowed to speak, Zuko only stared back as a response.
“This is my daughter, Princess Dai Yu.” Janyu continued, seemingly unbothered by Zuko’s lack of a response, and indicated the girl next to him.
Dai Yu sneaked a glance at him while barely lifting her head or moving at all. She looked at him for only a second before breaking eye contact to stare at her lap again. Just long enough for Zuko to notice her eyes were the same bright green as her father’s.
“We will proceed now,” The forceful voice of the Fire lord cut through before Zuko could even think to say ‘Hi’ to her. At the Fire lord's command a long scroll sprawled with inked characters was laid out on the table, and one of the green clad men began overlooking it carefully. The room was painfully quiet the entire time.
“I see that the previously discussed conditions have been kept,” The man reading the scroll said. Zuko assumed he must be an advisor, like the ones that worked for his father. “The Earth Kingdom of Nanfang shall willingly become a colony of the Fire Nation upon the union of Prince Zuko and Princess Dai Yu in marriage-”
Zuko’s mind blanked, if he hadn’t been in such close proximity to the person who scared him the most he might have fallen out of his seat. He glanced at Dai Yu, who was watching him. She looked concerned at his reaction but didn’t seem the least bit surprised.
“-under the conditions that Daishan will be appointed governor of the new colony, and the current citizens of Nanfang will not be required to pay taxes to the Fire Nation and will continue to only pay taxes to the local government. However, any Fire Nation citizens that may migrate there in the future will continue to pay taxes as they do now, and any Nanfang citizens that move to a different colony or to the archipelago will be required to pay tax as any other Fire Nation native citizen...”
Zuko grasped at the information. He knew from geography lessons that the Earth Kingdom wasn’t exactly one nation, rather it had a history of breaking and uniting and breaking again. They were from Nanfang, a kingdom in the southeast part of the continent that was relatively new, at least compared to Ba Sing Se or Omashu. One of their own advisors spoke next. He was an old man whose face Zuko knew well despite never having directly interacted with the man himself. “Are you sure you want him to be Governor, my lord? It may be in our best interest to appoint our own.”
He had directed the question towards the Fire lord, but it was King Janyu that responded harshly “It is in your best interest that the Nanfang people accept you as their new governing body with as little backlash as possible, Daishan has been at my right hand almost as long as I’ve been king. I believe the transition will be smoother with a face the people know and trust.” He Looked at the man sitting to his right, who Zuko assumed to be Daishan.
“Is there a reason you did not appoint yourself?” The Firelord asked.
“After an entire life on the field fighting...I’ve lost my parents, brother, friends and my wife to this war. I am about to lose my daughter and my country as well. I am tired, and I would like to retire in peace.” Janyu responded bitterly. Zuko heard his father scoff.
“You are probably the only smart man I’ve ever met from the Earth Kingdom. You have realized the superior strength of the Fire Nation and it’s inevitable victory, and because you willingly accepted your fate, your people are going to have a much easier time.”
Janyu only scowled in response.
“First and foremost, a date needs to be agreed upon.” The Fire Nation advisor stated.
“Yes. We request that it happen before the end of spring.” Daishan spoke up for the first time.
“The end of spring? So soon?” The advisor huffed. “That hardly gives us a month to plan and execute an entire wedding.”
“Plenty of time then, since I assume you want to have your outpost and factories already built by midsummer,” Janyu replied evenly. “Or are you waiting until the next summer to move in on Ba Sing Se?”
The advisor looked as if he was going to retort but the Fire lord cut him off sharply. “That's enough. We’ll have the wedding here at the end of spring and move to start construction on the outposts immediately after.”
The advisor shut his lips tightly and picked up a brush to write in a date on a part of the scroll that had been left blank.
“And the...princess will reside here afterwards?” The advisor questioned. He was back to the professional tone from before. Though the way in which he said princess sounded weird.
“She will need to acclimate to Fire Nation culture as well as be trained in her bending sooner rather than later. I believe that is best done here,” The Fire lord said.
“I agree,” Janyu said. Dai Yu's head jerked towards her father, but he did not look back at her. Zuko could swear his own father seemed equally surprised, as if he had expected to argue that point, although his features were much more subtle. More blank spaces on the scroll were filled in with each new agreement reached. “I do request that they sleep in separate rooms and do not consummate their marriage yet.”
“Of course, for how long do you prefer they do so?”
“At least until she is sixteen, I’ll leave it up to your judgement after that,” Janyu said. The Fire lord agreed, several more brushstrokes were added onto the scroll. Dai Yu and Zuko looked warily at one another.
“To be clear, we are treating the marriage as legitimate and real immediately, on the basis that they will consummate the marriage at some later time.” The advisor spoke aloud as he wrote. The scroll was finished. Both parties looked it over carefully before King Janyu and the Fire lord each signed it on their children’s behalf and made it official with their insignias in wax.
Zuko and Dai Yu just watched.
“Now, tell us what you know of Ba Sing Se,” the Fire lord demanded as they finished. “Zuko, you can leave now. You aren’t needed for this part.”
Zuko wondered why he was needed for any part of this. They could have had this meeting without him and told him afterwards that he was going to be married in a few months, for all the difference it made.
“You go ahead too, firebug,” King Janyu said quietly to his daughter. They exited the room and stood momentarily in the hall. Zuko had no idea what to say, and Dai Yu was just staring at the floor.
After a painfully long, silent moment, he heard her voice for the first time. “Um, Dad said…you have some turtle ducks?”
火┃土
“You’re kind of pretty,” She said as he led her to the garden. Zuko scrunched his nose up at that. In his entire eleven years of existence, he couldn’t ever remember once being called pretty.
“You look like my mom did, especially your eyes.” She added, seemingly undeterred by his expression. “But I guess that makes sense. She was Fire nation too.”
Dai Yu was messing with her hair, which Zuko noticed was very long, now that they weren’t sitting across from each other.
“You don’t look like anyone I’ve ever seen.” He said, taking in the green eyes, freckles, and skin darker than his. After he said it, he wondered if it was kind of rude, to point out how different she was. But she didn’t seem particularly bothered, she was currently looking around at the palace decor and the guards they passed, who stood still and watchful as they always did. When she didn’t respond, he decided to ask what had been on his mind since they left the meeting room. “So did you know about, um, about all of that?”
“Yeah,” She said. “Dad asked me if I wanted to get married months ago. I can tell you didn’t know.”
“They asked you?” Zuko was taken aback. “You said yes?”
“Well, people in my country won’t die anymore, now that they won’t be fighting with yours.” Her face fell, and she fidgeted with her hair more. “I didn’t know I’d have to move so soon though.”
“Oh.” Was all he could say. He thought about Lu Ten, and Uncle. Uncle still hadn’t come home. Zuko figured if he could have kept Lu Ten alive and Uncle happy just by getting married and moving far away, he would have done it too. He silently guided them through large doors that led to the garden. It was a typical sunny spring day, and Zuko immediately felt a little too hot in his layered formal wear. As soon as they were in eyeline of the pond, the turtle ducks began quacking with anticipation and swimming to the edge where Zuko always sat. He really liked that they recognized him. It was a kind of comfort that somebody in the palace wanted him around and showed it so outwardly.
Dai Yu followed Zuko's lead to sit in the grass close to the water, tucking her legs underneath herself to accommodate her dress. The turtle ducklings he saved earlier that spring were still fuzzy and small, and very much at peak cuteness. They swam in animated circles which made her smile. A passing servant must have seen them and anticipated their need, because after a moment one showed up to give them a seed mix.
“Thank you.” Dai Yu said, the servant bowed her head. Looking curiously at Dai Yu before leaving.
They fed the turtle ducks in a calm silence for a while. Zuko’s mind tried its best to absorb everything that had just happened. Arranged marriages were the norm for Fire Nation royalty, of course. But he hadn’t expected it to happen for a long time. He’d only just become Crown Prince Zuko less than a year ago.
“I’ll finally get to learn fire bending, so that's nice.” Dai Yu said, cutting his thoughts off.
“You’re a fire bender?” He asked, surprised. With the exception of her hair, Dai Yu really didn’t look like Fire Nation at all.
“Yeah, which is really weird, Dad can bend earth and mom wasn’t able to bend anything,” She said. “There aren’t any other fire benders in all of Nanfang. So I never got to learn how to do it the right way...are you good at fire bending?”
“I’m...okay. My sister is a lot better,” He admitted reluctantly.
“You have a sister? They didn’t tell me that!” Her entire demeanor brightened.
Zuko pursed his lips. “Azula. She’s mean though.”
“Maybe she’ll be nice to me because I’m a girl? I always wanted a sister.”
Zuko doubted that, but he didn’t say anything. Azula was currently staying at Mai’s house for a sleepover. He was incredibly thankful that she wasn’t here to bother them, although now that he thought about it, that might have been intentional.
“So, what are their names?” Dai Yu asked, indicating the turtle ducklings.
“I never thought about naming them,” Zuko replied honestly.
“But you’re practically their dad.”
“What?”
“My dad said you rescued them because they didn’t have a mom.”
“W-well, yeah…” Zuko face heated up, at the idea of Janyu telling her that.
“That's fine, I can think up some names.” She smiled bright. They spent the next hour talking about names and any other random thing they thought of. Zuko learned that she could play pipa, just like her dad. He told her that he could play the tsungi horn, but he really didn’t like to. She told him about her mom, who had been a tailor from Yu Dao, and died two years ago. She asked if he’d ever been to Yu Dao, and he admitted that he’d never left the archipelago at all.
They were the same age, well, Dai Yu was five months older. She grinned with smug triumph after they figured that out. It was all new territory for Zuko. While his sister had gone to school, he had been tutored in the palace from day one. He didn’t interact with other children besides his sister, Mai, and Ty Lee. He'd avoided all three as much as possible ever since the fountain incident.
Hanging out with Dai Yu felt different. He wasn't being ganged up on or made fun of. Maybe that was only because she was alone with him with no other girls around. Maybe she would turn on him once she met Azula and start acting crazy like every other girl did. He hoped not. She did talk over him quite a few times, seemingly unable to keep her thoughts inside her head long enough for him to finish his sentence. But she always quickly apologized before letting him go on. It would have been annoying if it didn’t seem like she actually really wanted to hear what he had to say. Only his mom ever seemed to want to listen to him talk. He hadn’t talked this much in months.
“Hey Firebug, it’s time to go.” King Janyu’s voice interrupted their conversation abruptly. They hadn’t noticed his arrival at all. Dai Yu stood up and grabbed her father’s hand. Her hair was completely undone from the style it had been in, she’d been messing with it throughout the entire conversation. She’d tucked her hair pins into her belt, having long since pulled them out. Janyu brushed a few strands out of her eyes and cupped her cheek.
“Couldn’t keep it up for just a few hours, huh?” He said with a tight smile. “Goodbye Prince Zuko, we will be seeing you again at the end of spring.”
“Bye Zuko!” Dai Yu waved with her free hand as she was led away.
“Bye.”
Left alone again by the turtle ducks, he thought about his mother.