𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐄𝐑𝐍𝐎 𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐍 | prince zuko

ᵉᵖⁱˡᵒᵍᵘᵉ

"But what if I can't move it?" Zhihao asked as he watched his mother reposition the rock in front of him, gulping nervously at the thought.

"Then we'll try again until you can. Concentrate and stand like this so you are more grounded. Focus on the rock and nothing more; it didn't take me a day to create a monolith as big as Appa or melt a cliffside into the sea. Even if you simply lift the rock a few inches above the ground, any movement is great progress." she smiled encouragingly, stepping back and nodding to the rock.

Zhihao took in a breath and stood in the proper stance his mother had shown him, looking down at the medium-sized rock that sat in the grass before him. He concentrated on the rock, blocking out the sounds around him so he wouldn't be as distracted. After many silent moments, the rock began to tremble before it slowly rose into the air, his eyes widening in shock as he watched it lift from the ground.

"Very good! Now, make a punching motion to propel it forward." Yan instructed with a wide smile. Zhihao nodded and did as told, watching as the rock flew forward and landed into the turtle duck pond with a splash. He lowered his arms and turned to his mother with an excited grin, his former sadness washing away almost immediately.

"Did you see that, Mother? I did it!" he happily cried, bouncing on his heels. Yan smiled and nodded, clapping her hands at her son's accomplishment. "I couldn't have done it without your guidance."

"You did very well, my darling. If you want, we can even have Āyí Toph instruct you further, or we can find King Bumi; they both would be willing to teach you." she smiled, the boy nodding eagerly. She bent down and placed a kiss on his cheek, causing him to wiggle out of her embrace and wipe his cheek with embarrassment with a giggle. "Now, go find your sisters so you three can get ready for your tutoring."

Before Zhihao could run off to search for his sisters, squeals and laughter entered the garden as Zuko entered with the two girls. Guiying sat on her father's shoulders while Jingyi walked at his side, smiling ear to ear at her youngest sister's giggles of joy. When the youngest child saw her mother, she bounced on her father's shoulder, a signal Zuko knew when it was time to set her down. The second the girl was set onto the grass, she bound across the garden into her mother's open arms.

"Mama, me and Jingyi learned something new. Wanna know? Papa, tell her!" Guiying spoke excitedly as Zuko smiled and approached his wife, kissing her forehead first before getting into anything.

"Jingyi learned how to create arcs and rings with her flames and Guiying learned how to make her fire bigger. They are very fast learners." he smiled as Guiying nodded with confirmation and ran off with her brother and sister to play around the garden.

"That is very good for them. Zhihao learned how to lift a rock and successfully propelled it into the pond."

"That is good, but why do you look troubled?"

In the years that they had been together, Zuko had learned to read Yan's expressions and knew when something was bothering her. Based on the expression she wore at the moment, he knew something was on her mind that she was thinking over. "I worry for him, Zuko. He is a smart boy, you know this as well as I do. He cannot help the whispers he hears whenever we leave the palace; he knows what the people say about him and I can see how much it affects him. He even said so himself that he was not a real prince." she explained with a heavy sigh, watching Zhihao as he laughed with his sisters.

The Fire Lord sighed and followed his wife's gaze as he stared at his son. He too knew how much Zhihao struggled with accepting himself when he was always told otherwise that he was different from his sisters or immediate relatives. "I will speak with him and tell him that he belongs in this family just like you belong here. I know how difficult it can be for him, but he is a prince regardless of what everyone says."