|•|W I T 卄 E R||•| Zuko X Reader ⚠SLOWBURN⚠

Worry

"...I saw Mom." You said.

Hakoda froze, "Oh."

"...She told me to keep on living," You mumbled, putting your gloves back on, "So even though I look tired, you don't have to worry, Dad."

Hakoda stared at you wistfully. The fact that you even needed that to be said to you, and the fact you said that you could stand on your own broke his heart.

He didn't even get to watch you grow, after all.

"Oh, Y/N..." He pulled you into a hug, "I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you all. I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. I know how much you love us, Dad. The memories we made in the past comforted me," You stated, "Let's try to move forward. Life can end and start in the most unexpected ways, so let's live it."

"I'm so proud to have you as my daughter, Y/N." Hakoda muttered.

You smiled, "Thank you for saying that."

Hakoda stood up, "I'll go check up on your brother and sister now."

Nodding, you waved as he swished the tent's cloth out of the way and left.

There was something you had to face. Oka was planning to attack the Water Tribe. Your father spent so long fighting in the war to protect your homes, and you couldn't let that be for nothing.

Gran-gran was still there, too.

Someone else entered the tent. Looking behind yourself, you saw Zuko standing at the tent's entrance with a stern expression.

"Hey," He said. "Just wanted to relax a bit. Meeting so many new people is kind of stressful."

You smiled at him and gently patted the floor beside you. He sat down, sighing. There was something in his hand.

"What'cha got?" You inquired. "Butter-fly." He smiled, opening his hand. You started to grin, but there was a somber look on your face.

"Things like that are what we have to fight for," You muttered, shutting your eyes. "Gosh, it feels like it's been a thousand years since then."

Zuko chuckled, "The memories are still fresh in my mind. I... Cling to them a lot. I cling to you a lot."

"Oh, so you're clingy?" You smirked.
"Shut it, gremlin." Zuko sneered.
"Prick!"
"Gremlin!"
"Prick!"
"Gremlin!"

The two of you laughed. "We used to argue so much." You giggled.
"Well, at least it was fun." Zuko hummed.

You sighed and gently placed your hand upon his hand which was holding the butter-fly. "Even though a lot of bad things happened... I'm glad I got to meet you."

"I'll make sure I never hurt you or Iroh again." Zuko whispered.
"I believe you." You hummed.

Zuko stayed silent for a moment, before saying, "I overheard some of the conversation you had with your father."

He furrowed his eyebrows a bit, "It sounded like he really cares about you, even though he was gone for so long."

"Yeah... It's been a while since I've seen him, but he's almost the same as I remember him." You muttered.

Zuko's eyes drifted towards the ground. "You have a good father-I think."

You smiled, "I think you'd be a good father, Zuko."

Zuko's face turned red and his eyes shot wide open. He slowly turned his head to you, mouth agape. "H-Huh?"

You snickered, "You heard me."