Accidental Avatar 2-RocknRoll

That night, elsewhere...

A/N: So... you guys are AmayaxZuko fans... If you ship em, let's hear those ship names. Also, Who has some good pop culture references we can throw in?

"We're going home!" Zuko called happily from another room, every word cutting me up inside. "After three long years! It's unbelievable!"
I didn't know what to do, so I did what I always did. I internalized it. Buried it.
"It is unbelievable," Iroh responded suspiciously. "I have never known my brother to regret anything."
"Did you listen to Azula?" Zuko asked, trying to convince his uncle it was true. "Father's realised how important family is to him. He cares about me!"
"I care about you!" Iroh said loudly, almost desperately.

I sat quietly in a corner, watching them, my expression blank to hide my thoughts that were whirring wildly in my head. I was so engrossed in my thoughts; I missed the little spat that ended up pulling me into the argument.
"Amaya!"
"What!?" I snapped.
Zuko and Iroh blinked at me in surprise, clearly not expecting that reaction.
I sighed and rubbed my temples.
"What?" I asked again, calmer.
"You have been very quiet since Azula left," Iroh said quietly. "What are your thoughts on all this?"
I spread my hands out in front of me and shrugged. "Why ask me? I'm an outsider."
"It is because you are an outsider that your opinion would be unbiased and without judgement," Iroh said calmly.
Zuko was tapping his foot impatiently.
I folded my hands in my lap and looked down.
"I think she was lying," I said quietly, waiting for Zuko to snap at me.
"You don't even know her!"

I remained silent, letting him yell at me as I steadily got angrier. I had bypassed phase one, get super loud and angry, and was currently sitting in phase two. Deadly quiet and plotting your downfall, kind of thing.
"I'll be going to bed now," I said when Zuko stops, breathing heavily. "That is if you're quite done?"
My voice was calm, with only a hint of a quiver in it. I wouldn't cry. Not here. Not in front of them.
"Amaya, he didn't mean-"
"It's alright, Iroh," I said, my back to them both. "I was asked for my opinion, and I gave it. Zuko chose to share his opinion, and we have come to the understanding that we shall simply disagree on this matter." 
I started walking to my room. "Good night."

👀👀👀

"Wait!" Iroh yelled, running down the hill towards Zuko.
I followed at a much more dignified pace, my mood from the previous night having not improved at all.
"Don't leave without me," Iroh breathed heavily.
"Uncle! Amaya!" Zuko smiled up at us, and I almost smiled back. "You changed your mind!"
"Family sticks together, right?" Iroh said warmly.
"Sadly, I'm not coming," I said cooly, putting a heavy dose of sarcasm on "sadly" and fighting the twinge of guilt when Zuko's face became crestfallen.
"Why not?" he asked, frowning in confusion.
"I'm not one of your people," I responded, waving a hand in the direction of Azula's ship. "I wouldn't be accepted, and there is a possibility I would be killed. Or worse, thrown into a cell somewhere to rot."
Zuko chuckled.
"You need to sort out your priorities," he held a hand out to me, but I kept mine firmly crossed over my chest. "I wouldn't let them. Father wouldn't let that happen to any friend of mine."
"Somehow, I seriously doubt that," I muttered sardonically. "There are worse things than death. Personally, I'd rather not risk finding them all," I tipped my head politely to Zuko. "It was fun, but it looks like this is where we part."
"It needn't be that way," Iroh said, and he cast me a look.
I remembered the discussion we had before I went to bed.
"I believe you were right when you said that Azula was lying. I hope you will help me keep Zuko safe."

Once we reached the pier that Azula's ship was moored by, I paused before Iroh touched my arm. I gave an annoyed grunt and followed him closely. I subtly started bending the water on either side slowly and quietly, so it would come up over the pier, and when the signal happened, I was going to freeze it so the soldiers couldn't move. I knew anger would be an excellent trigger to increase the power of my bending, but I was a novice. That would be just as bad as not being strong enough. So I focused on my breathing, trying to get everything back in its little bottle deep inside.

"Brother! Uncle!" Azula called to Iroh and Zuko, pointedly ignoring me.
I was fine with that. If she tried to address me, the frayed control I had would vanish, and I would tear her ship apart with my bare hands. I was far too close to going beyond my usual limit of anger. I had only ever blown up that badly once, and even then, I was vaguely aware I could get angrier. The soldiers closed ranks behind us, and I tensed, casting a quick look back.
"Are we ready to depart, your Highness?" a soldier called up hesitantly.
"Set our course for 'home', captain."
"Home..." Zuko said nostalgically.
"You heard the Princess!" the captain yelled as they climbed the gangplank.
I felt the soldiers behind me, and they pushed me slightly.
"Raise the anchor! We're taking the prisoners home!"

The captain froze, obviously aware of his mistake, and Azula stared at him like she couldn't believe anyone could be that dumb before she snarled.
"Your Highness! I..." the man stammered.
This was it. I gave up trying to control it all and just exploded with a furious yell. The water started to get choppy.
"You lied to me!" Zuko yelled up to Azula.
"Like I've never done that before," she responded smugly.
The soldiers around her moved forward, and I unleashed hell on the soldiers between me and escape. My bending was sloppy and sometimes off-target, but the amount of water and its force was enormous. I absently wondered how powerful I could be if I could learn to harness this kind of power.