𝙒𝙝𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙁𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨 ⚠ slow updates ⚠ *editing*

The Burnt Soul of Zuko

*Edited 7/31/22*

Hestia awoke in a cold sweat, jolting up in her bed. Her messy braid of hair clung to the sweat that accumulated on the back of her neck and parts of her jaw. Her heart thumped near wildly in her chest. It almost hurt with each beat her thumping organ took. She clutched the robe over her blooming chest and glowered at her red sheets.

Her parent's deaths plagued her dreams again. She could still vividly remember finding their bodies strewn out on their bedroom floor. The storm that brewed that night had violently shot lightning across the sky, lighting up the home and she got a full view of their injuries. She didn't think a human body could have so much blood or burns.

Hestia shook her head from the traumatic memories and took a deep breath to calm herself. Her room was dimly lit by melted candles. Her room hardly had any ventilation, windows, or openings, aside from the door. It seemed like she could suffocate on the warmth the candles resonated, or maybe that was just her. She never seemed to be cold often, perhaps that's from being a firebender.

It'd been three years since she found out she was a firebender. Since...well, a lot happened in the last three years. The whole palace had already been filled with gossip and whispers, and the news of her bending had spread fast. Though, she received no consequence of "attempting" the Princess Azula's "life", she was watched carefully, and closely, by the palace guards. Well, not when she was with Iroh. Okay, maybe when she was with Iroh, too. She was never truly alone, they thought of her as a threat. And threats could not be left unsupervised.

She was surprised she wasn't thrown from the palace. She thought maybe they wanted her to be a soldier, that her bending could be an asset to the Fire Nation Army. Which was what she had suspected because ever since she began to firebend, Iroh had been teaching her to master and control the flames.

A flare of slight fear twinged through her.

Why did it have to be fire? She pulled her knees to her chest and hugged them. Out of the elements she was born from, it was fire. She closed her eyes and sighed. She just wished she could change things, maybe go back in time and save her parents from dying.

It was no accident. She knew they had been murdered, by who, well — she'd find out. Sooner or later. 

Knocking on chamber doors caused her to flit her eyes to the red entrance. The large door creaked open, Zuko's head poked through the ajar space.

"Tia? Are you awake?" his golden eyes met her blue ones.

"Jeez...you didn't wait for me to answer..." Hestia pursed her lips. "What if I had been changing?"

The prince went ablaze, realizing his mistake, "Oh, I'm sorry!" He retreated and shut the door, which confused her. But then his voice seeped through the wood, "Can I come in?"

Hestia rolled her eyes. "Just come in, you dork!"

Zuko entered her room again, slipping through the door, and making a rush for the bed. He plopped on the covers, grinning at Hestia. He must've sensed something was wrong about her, because his eyebrows knitted together, and he frowned slightly.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"It was just the nightmare again."

"Oh," he didn't need a monologue-explanation. He'd witnessed her night terrors again and again. No matter what he tried to do, he couldn't console her or try to even help her. 

"So," Hestia folder her legs into crisscross, stifling a yawn. "What's going on today?"

"I was hoping we can hang out!"