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Things were unlivably tense almost as soon as they left the Fire Nation. No surprise, when the entire crew is made up of people who are pissed at anyone in charge. This was most likely the plan when Firelord Ozai ordered that the bottom of the military barrel was to be scraped and dumped onto the worst boat in the navy for his son's journey. Most on the crew didn't have much experience with being on a ship and had no idea how to keep it running, so it was rather fortunate for the prince that Lieutenant Jee was here.
It was insulting to be a part of this ‘mission’. He had been a perfectly good soldier, then an exemplary sailor, and had never slipped up. He was well on his way to being a captain, having his own crew, when he caught smoke-lung. Now, he is unable to catch his breath as easily, or shout much. Even though he's still a perfectly fine leader, he's not considered as useful as he once was, and has been relegated to babysitting duty for the banished brat.
They've been on board for two weeks and no one has seen the boy except the medic and his uncle. Spoiled thing was probably still having a tantrum over being punished for whatever he did. The crew whispered about what it must have been, with each idea being more and more awful than the last.
“I got my rank lowered for not bowing low enough to a general.” Akio sneered. “But fully banished? You'd have to kill someone. Or worse.”
“I did hear something about a burn.”
“Isn't the prince a bender? Did he burn someone?”
“I heard it was him that got the burn, but my source is a drunkard, so who knows.”
Jee rolled his eyes and finished his meal quickly. The little royal prat didn't know he was helping spread all these rumors by keeping himself locked away. Serves him right. Jee tossed his utensils in his bowl and left it in the sink before making a quick retreat to the charting room. He, at least, could be of use around here while their ‘captain’ hid away from the world in his shame.
He knows that many of the crew are already talking about mutiny, which he should bring to the attention of either his technical superior or General Iroh. At the moment, though, he kind of agrees with the sentiment. Their country has fallen far if their next in line is a pampered little shit that doesn't even have the guts to come out and face what he's done. For now, he will busy himself and keep things running smoothly. Maybe they'll dump the royals at some earth kingdom port and everyone can go on their way, disappearing into obscurity and freedom.
He found himself lost enough in his thoughts that, when the metal door is forced open with a squeal, he was startled enough to jump. An older man, portly and kind looking, stepped inside. “I am sorry to disturb you. I am just coming up for some fresh air.” He came to stand near him, eyeing the map unfurled on the center table. “What is our status?”
This must be the General. He straightened with his arms clasped behind his back. “Steady, sir. We passed the Fire Nation border yesterday morning, and we are currently headed to Lu Dae.”
Iroh nodded and gave him a warm smile. “Good. Thank you, Lieutenant.” With that, he wandered back out of the room and closed the door with another loud screech. Jee felt his anger bubble up once more at the thought of the old man going to give his reports to the prince, who couldn't even be bothered to come ask for himself. The man balled his hands into fists and barely held himself back from punching the wall.
—-------
“Ah, look who decided to join us.” Zixuan pointed with his spoon at the man coming into the mess hall. Healer Mau waved, though it was clear he didn't have much energy. He sat down hard on the bench and nabbed a pot sticker from the man next to him.
Jee pat him on the back. “Where have you been?”
Mau groaned and rubbed at his face. “I have been kept very busy with the prince.” He said. “I couldn't leave until General Iroh was happy with the state of his health.” Mau quickly shoved the pot sticker in his mouth, grabbed a few more, and stood back up. “I'm going to get some rest. Let me know if the prince calls for me.”
Jee and the others watched the healer leave. He had looked terrible, with deep bags under his eyes and wrinkled robes. That man had been overworked and might have to go back? Unacceptable.
“So the prince gets to hog the healer?” Chang scoffed from further down the table. “What happens if one of us gets hurt? We gotta wait until the General decides his precious nephew is taken care of first?”
“What the hell is he even doing in there?” Ming thumped her bowl down angrily. “I know that little brat hasn't done anything around the ship, so what's going on?”
They look to Jee, who should know better than anyone. He is, after all, next in line of command. He flushed at the attention and grumbled “I don't know, but I intend to find out.”
—-----------
“I am sorry, Lieutenant.” The general said from the doorway, keeping Jee's view inside obscured. “Prince Zuko is not taking visitors.”
Jee kept his face neutral, despite how his chest clenched with righteous anger. He simply bowed and turned to leave. The door closed behind him.
—--------
“I can't take it.” Aiko told the other deck hands on the morning of their third month at sea. Jee walked by, pretending he didn't hear.
“I want off of this ship.” Chang growled at dinner. Jee continued to eat his noodles, keeping quiet when others around the room nodded.
“The royals don't deserve us.” Ming declared once they reached port. Jee felt justified when the rest of the crew muttered in agreement.
When General Iroh came on deck to come ashore with them, they pounced. The man looked as though he hadn't expected this, but he kept them at bay well enough that he could have been training for this his whole life. Five men attempted to tackle him at once, but the fat old man used an impressive amount of strength to shove them off. The benders among them blasted at a quick pace that would have made any lesser man immediately lose their footing. General iroh, however, took this as a sign to retreat. He ran back down the hall toward his nephew, sending his own fire at them when he could.
Jee was at the front of the mass, clanging down the hall in his armor and bumping into the others as everyone tried to get to the man. To their surprise, the entire hallway became engulfed in flames, inescapable and deadly hot, that forced them all to stop and duck away. The benders tried to keep it from making it to them, but many in the group still got singed.
Once they had recovered enough to pursue once more, the prince's door had shut firmly, followed by the sound of the wheel lock being turned tightly. That didn't stop them from pounding on the door and attempting to open it.
Once they had exhausted themselves and the rabble of the crowd died down, the voice of the general was heard from the other side of the door. Jee leaned close and motioned for them to quiet down. It was faint, but he could hear the man begging.
“-him go. We will leave, you may have everything on the ship, but please let me take my nephew.”
Jee relayed the plea to the crowd, who instantly reignited their fury and expressed their opinions. Jee remembered the man's kind smile, his tired features. He may be a royal, related to the horrible Firelord, but he had seemed like a gentle old man. He couldn't imagine the awful things his peers were wanting done to him. Jee cleared his throat and shouted to get their attention.
It scraped his throat raw, leaving him feeling like he had swallowed mucus. Once the group was calm enough, he powered through the discomfort. “We will let them leave with only their shirts on their backs. Let them see what it's like for the rest of us!”
It mullified the crew, and made Jee feel at least a bit less guilty. He couldn't live with himself if he allowed these men and women to kill under his watch. Especially a child, no matter how awful.
He leaned against the door and said “Alright, general. You and the boy will be allowed off the ship, with nothing taken with you. Do you understand?”
A beat of silence, then “Yes, I understand. Thank you.”
After a few moments, where Jee worried they weren't going to take the offer, the sound of the lock being slowly undone could be heard. Jee stepped back as the door opened and the man stepped out with what looked like an almost dead body.
The crew watched in muted horror as the prince was brought out to them, barely able to cling to his uncle and limp past them down the hallway, clothed only in a loose robe cinched around his thin waist. His head was mostly shaved, with a small patch in the back. The rest of his head was wrapped with gauze stained yellow with infection. The boy was crying and frail, and nothing at all like they had imagined. Iroh held him up as best as he could and guided them closer to the stairs. Zuko, Prince Zuko, wobbled with each step and huffed with exertion. Healer Mau stepped out behind them, having been in the middle of a healing session when they had come to get the boy. He glared at everyone he passed, but saved his deepest and angriest scowl for Jee.
Jee was deeply confused. He had crafted an image in his mind of a smooth skinned, pampered little prat, with a haughty attitude and whiny voice. Not this… pathetic display. Not an injured boy.
They all silently watched and followed as the prince was made to take each of the steps up until they reached the deck and winced in the harsh sunlight. Jee kept close, making sure that no one tried to harm them as they passed, but also to try and piece together what had been going on. This was why no one had seen much of the royals or the healer. But why weren't they told? What had happened to the prince?
Moorah, an engineer from the colonies, clung to Jee's sleeve in distress. “Lieutenant…” She eeked out, eyes frantically flitting between the miserable sight and her superior. Jee felt like he had been broken out of a stupor by this and found his voice.
“Wait.” He stepped around them to block them from stepping on the gangplank. Iroh stopped and adjusted his hold on the boy, who didn't seem fully aware of what was happening. Jee swallowed past his ruined throat and said “I don't… why ?”
Iroh furrowed his brow in confusion. “please, Lieutenant. Let us pass.”
Jee looked to his crew for support. Many of them were just as confused, just as silent, and offered no assistance. The only one who seemed to have something to say was Healer Mau, who was practically vibrating with anger.
“you all should be ashamed!” He shouted to the gathered soldiers. Many hung their heads and took a few unsteady steps back. “You want your freedom- fine! But to threaten someone who has already lost so much? Someone who already sacrificed himself for us?” Mau spat on the ground at them.
Jee held up his hands to show how at a loss he felt, hoping his expression conveyed what he couldn't say. While Mau didn't seem to be able to see past his own anger, General Iroh paused and studied his features. “What confusion is there, Lieutenant? You look as though you are the one being sent out to die.”
“I-” Jee had to cough into his hand for a moment and grimaced when it came back with bloody phlegm. “I didn't know he was… hurt.”
The ship falls into a deep silence, quiet enough to hear the seagull-pigeons squawking nearby, as Iroh tried to make sense of this. He gripped the boy closer to himself and asked firmly “What do you mean you didn't know?”
Jee looked around himself to the crew who all watched the conversation with wide eyes. “We… we were only told that the prince was banished. There was nothing about him being…” he gestured to the injured teen currently trying to keep his feet steady. “We thought he was avoiding us.”
“So you were going to throw us off the ship because he was in his room too much?” Mau demanded.
Well, put like that it sounded ridiculous. “We thought he was being spoiled. And… we were worried for what it would mean for the rest of us that the healer and the captain were basically off limits to the rest of the crew.” It was a weak defense, when having to put it into words, and made them sound childish and impulsive. Jee supposes they had been.
Iroh gave Mau his nephew to keep him upright and stepped toe to toe with the Lieutenant. Jee gulped in anticipation. Iroh looked him up and down and said “now that you know, what would you command the crew to do?”
He looked back at the many men and women behind him and turned to say with absolute conviction “beg for your forgiveness.”
The Dragon of the West waited a moment before he smiled and gave him a single nod. “It is much appreciated. Though-” he gestured back to his nephew and the healer. “I am not really the one you need to apologize to.”
Jee stumbled a step forward, then fell to his knees, head bent to the floor. “Your Highness. I beg your forgiveness.”
Prince Zuko gasped and whispered something to Mau, who told him quietly “-no,no, you did nothing wrong. He has wronged you .” He waited a moment more, then felt a hand touch his shoulder.
“Rise. You don't bow to me.”
Jee hesitantly sat back up to face the boy now kneeling in front of him. “You are my prince. I… I made a lot of bad decisions.”
“Me too.” He said morosely, eyes averted.
“Don't punish the crew. I should have stopped it.”
Zuko looked past him at the gathered group, blushing under their many gazes. He turned to plead for his Uncle to help him out.
Iroh nodded in understanding and helped him to his feet. Once the boy was steady, he called out to the crew “is there anyone who would wish us to leave?”
No one moved.
“My nephew, I would say the best course from here is to accept their apology and move forward. We have not been harmed, and it seems to all be a misunderstanding. One that we can remedy, if you feel ready.”
Zuko furrowed his brow in thought, trying to sift through his fever and the excitement of all that had happened in the span of only a few minutes. “Uhh… Yes. Sure. That sounds good.”
“Wonderful.” He pat the boy on his shoulder and kept his hand there to help guide him back to the stairs. The crew parted for them. “Then I think we had better get you back to bed. Perhaps once Healer Mau releases you from bedrest the Lieutenant would be kind enough to show you how everything works.”
The prince hummed under his breath, but seemed too exhausted to use words. They disappeared back down into the darkness of the ship, leaving everyone else to figure out what to do with themselves. Mau rolled his eyes. “You all should probably get back to work.”
“Right!” Jee clapped his hands together. “Everyone! Back to your stations!” The group grumbled lightly, but seemed happy enough to have something to do, instead of thinking about what a shit show that had been. Jee put a hand out to Mau before he could dissappear as well. "I, uh... I hurt my throat. Could you-?"
Mau sighed and nodded. "Come down to Prince Zuko's quarters. I'll get you a tonic. And maybe you can get to know our captain while you're at it."
Jee was quick to follow him down into the ship. He'd like that very much.