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Published:
2025-04-27
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2025-06-19
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3/?
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No Scar to Tell the Story

Summary:

King Kuei reclaimed his kingdom from the hands of the Dai Li and is trying his hardest to take everything back under control.

But then, he discovers that he has a supposedly dead Prince Zuko in his custody. The Dai Li had kidnapped the eleven-year-old prince shortly after the Siege of Ba Sing Se has fallen. They attempted to ransom him back, but the newly crowned Fire Lord Ozai showed no interest. The child has been locked away within the Dai Li’s walls ever since.

Kuei is NOT okay with this.
He needs to scream. He will do that. But first he needs to get the boy out of that nightmare.

--
Prisoner Zuko angst and Kuei (who I guess is ooc because he's no clueless and dumb) protective feels.

Chapter 1

Notes:

Well… What can I say? The concept just appeared in my head yesterday and I wrote more in a day than during a whole month. It’s not necessarily what I wanted to write (glances with tears in my eyes at my unfinished fics and original story) but it is what it is.
And I quite liked it so here we go super unexpected update from me. Enjoy :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

 

It had been nearly three weeks, but finally, things began to settle, and Kuei managed to get a full night of sleep. There was still so much to do – so many people to check, so many positions to redistribute… But his kingdom was, at last, on a good course.

After decades of its King being a blind puppet of the Dai Li.

Better late than never, Kuei kept repeating the mantra each time it was not appropriate to scream at the top of his lungs.

The door to his office swung open abruptly – not an uncommon occurrence these days – and his newly named Head Minister, Ming, marched into the room.

“Your Majesty, there’s something you need to see.”

Kuei removed his glasses, as if that alone might make the problem disappear, but he gestured for Ming to continue.

“I’m almost done digging through Dai Li’s documentation,” Ming began. “Psychotic bastards as they were, their reports are reliable. Everything so far checked out. And, uh… I’ve found some prison records.”

Kuei groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “We’re still waiting to hear back from the Water Tribe if their healers can help with the brainwashing victims. There’s not much else we can do right now.”

“Not Lake Lagoai prison, my king,” Ming said. “This is about the prison on the West Wall. Turns out Long Feng had some prisoners there as well, occasionally taking them for interrogations. Or testing.”

“Dear spirits,” Kuei sighed as a shiver ran down his spine. “That’s bad. But I already ordered a review of all inmates to check if their sentences were justified. That should clear things up in a few weeks."

“Yes, my king,” Ming nodded. "There have already been some irregularities found, but thankfully, most inmates are actual criminals. It’s just... there's one prisoner that's a problem. And I double-checked before bringing it to you. It really seems to be the case."

“What prisoner?”

Ming swallowed hard. “My king… It appears we have the supposedly deceased Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation in our custody.”

Kuei put his glasses back on to make sure Ming wasn’t brainwashed. “What?”

“There are multiple records mentioning him,” Ming said, his voice tight, “but it seems only the Dai Li knew who he really was. The West Wall’s warden believes he’s just a firebending offspring of a captured officer.”

"Their prince died shortly after we crushed the Dragon of the West," Kuei argued. "Two princes, if I recall correctly. The Dragon’s son at our gates and another who succumbed to grief and sickness."

"The documents don’t specify how the Dai Li obtained him, but it happened around that time," Ming explained. "A few weeks later, he was officially proclaimed dead by Caldera."

Kuei swallowed hard. “Wait… Wasn’t he a child?”

“He still is,” Ming said grimly. “Prince Zuko is fifteen. He’s been eleven when the Dai Li captured him.”

Better late than never… The mantra worked no more.

“Dear Oma and Shu… What?” Kuei asked with his throat tight. “Why? He was just a child. Why keep him? And in a prison with actual criminals?”

“The boy was supposed to be used for a ransom but the newly crowned Fire Lord Ozai – the boy’s father… He either thought Long Feng was bluffing and the boy was dead or he’s more of a monster we think him to be.”

Kuei could only stare at Ming. No word would go past his throat now.

“Ozai dared the Dai Li to kill the boy and announced Prince Zuko has died to the general public,” Ming said. “Obviously, Long Fang didn’t do so, and carried on with plan B.”

“What was plan B?” Kuei asked, though he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

“You might want to sit before I go into the details, Your Majesty.”

Kuei hadn't even realized he had stood up from his desk at some point. He crossed the room to a small table near the window and gestured for Ming to follow. Pouring his best calming tea — a blend that rarely left his reach these days — he braced himself and listened.

They drank through four pots by the time Ming finished.

 

 

The records of the initial interrogations were full of details that made Kuei’s stomach churn.

For the first few months, the Dai Li had taken everything the boy could offer by force, because young Prince Zuko was not a talker. After that, they had tried to brainwash him into obedience and train him as their firebending secret weapon. But the plan backfired – quite literally – when they discovered that their methods didn’t work on such a young mind. So they decided to wait.

But Prince Zuko – unaware of their terrible plans – hadn’t made it easy. The boy fought and tried to escape whenever an opportunity presented itself, and often even when it hadn't. When the West Wall warden’s methods weren’t enough to break him, Long Feng had him taken under the lake for a few weeks for what the documents labeled “re-education.”

Which both Ming and Kuei knew had to mean torture, though neither said the word aloud.

“So… well,” Ming sighed after a long pause. “Knowing the Dai Li, it's safe to assume everything documented actually happened. So we're left with a violent, dangerous, and officially dead young firebender who has every reason in the world to hate the Earth Kingdom.”

“You said there’s nothing about him for the last three months of the Dai Li’s rule,” Kuei pointed out. “Are sure he’s still alive?”

“I checked prison records and a firebender named Li is still there, alive,” Ming said. “The fake name was mentioned a few times in the documents about Prince Zuko.”

Kuei took a long sip from his cup. His hand was shaking.

Ming continued, his hands folded in his lap. “The last record describes the most violent escape attempt yet. One Dai Li agent died after taking a fireball to the throat. Several prison guards were burned, even some inmates got caught in the crossfire. After that, the prince was taken to re-education again for two weeks, then severely punished once back in prison. No details were provided this time. Judging by his history, he tends to behave for a few months after major punishments before trying again.”

“A fifteen-year-old boy,” Kuei muttered.

Ming’s throat bobbed as he nodded. “It’s very hard to stomach, my king, but there’s no denying the facts. The boy is dangerous.”

“He’s been kidnapped, abandoned, and tortured as a child,” Kuei said, rubbing his face with both hands. His cheeks were damp. It had all happened right under his nose. “We can hardly blame him.”

“I’m not blaming him,” Ming said, his voice calm. “I’m just saying it’s not safe to release him. He’s no longer just an innocent child. It’s safe to assume he would use the first opportunity to retaliate for what’s been done to him. It’s dangerous to our people – guards, servants, staff members… Not to mention you, my king.”

“It’s not right.”

Ming nodded and pulled another pile of notes out of his bag. “I’ve been thinking… Stopping the mistreatment is simple enough. He’s a minor, so not keeping him with adult criminals would be a good move too, although isolation might be just as bad… We could see how he reacts to better conditions and decide from there.”

Kuei felt like he might throw up all the calming tea he'd been drinking. It had done nothing to calm him in these circumstances. “It’s wrong,” he said quietly. “We can’t even tell if the boy was violent to start with, or if we made him this way.”

“He’s Ozai’s son,” Ming said after a moment. “There’s a good chance he wouldn’t have grown up to be a good man.”

Kuei needed to scream, and he did, “It’s still wrong!”

“I know, Your Majesty.”

“It’s my fault.”

“It’s not –”

Kuei sat up straight, cutting him off. “Get me a soldier’s uniform. Sergeant’s will do. And some trusted men to help with transport. And get someone to prepare a secure room, not a cell. Preferably not too flammable.”

“My king, it’s too dangerous.”

Kuei stood up. “I’m done being a coward, Ming.”

Ming sighed, gathering the documents. “I will need an hour, sir.”

“Good,” Kuei said, his mind already spiralling at the through of the upcoming meeting. Should he disclose who he really was? Tell the boy the whole truth? Or just get him out of the nightmare with offering no explanation what changed? “Oh! Ming?”

“Yes, my king?”

“Get someone else to take Bosco on his afternoon walk.”

 

 

“The warden claims he’s been continuing with all the procedures ever since the Dai Li lost power,” Ming, also dressed up as an ordinary soldier, reported. “Says he’s willing to incorporate any new procedures as long as they tame, I quote, dipshit ashmaker.”

Kuei fixed the collar of his slightly too loose uniform. “And what was his reaction when you said we are here to take the prisoner.”

“He literally hugged me, sir,” Ming said. “Saying he owns all of his grey hair to that, I quote, fucking bratty volcano.”

“And where is the volcano?” Kuei asked, trying to appear more collected than he felt in front of soldiers picked up for this task.

“The last budling on the right,” Ming said. “Isolation cells.”

Kuei cleared his throat and nodded to his people. “No harm to the boy. Keep security tight enough that he can’t try anything reckless. He’s going to be distressed by new faces and the sudden change in routine — we need to handle him carefully.”

 

 

Kuei gasped when he saw the figure huddled in the corner of the bare stone room.

The boy’s bare feet were chained too closely together to walk properly. His hands were hidden behind his bent legs, but Kuei would have bet his kingdom they were shackled too. A mask – a muzzle –  covered the boy’s face, a thick strap pressed across his lips and thinner ones framing his nose and fastening the contraption tightly around his head. His clothes were filthy, and the smell of blood and sweat was strong enough to make Kuei’s eyes water.

A prison guard, limping slightly, approached the cell behind Kuei and crossed his arms. "The ashmaker, in all his grace," he said. "He’s been on decent behavior since his last stunt, but you better be careful, gents."

Kuei nodded, his eyes on the boy who barely twitched since they entered the room. With long hair and straps his face was barely visible.

"Right," Kuei said, and it must have been divine intervention that kept his voice steady. He gestured to the soldiers on his left. "Help the prisoner up. And I’m going to need the keys to all that steel."

A few things happened at once – the soldiers moved forward, the boy pushed himself further into the corner, and Kuei noticed a jiggling chain that wasn’t only a decoration.

"Wait, first you gotta unleash the ashmaker," the guard said, digging through his pockets.

A short chain was bolted to the wall at hip height, linking to a collar around the boy’s neck.

“What is that for,” Ming asked from Kuei’s right. “The cell is locked already.”

The guard shrugged, checking another pocket. “Consequences of his last stunt,” he said. “He behaves for two days, and he gets some down time on the third. So far, worked wonders.”

Kuei wondered how the man would speak if he knew he was addressing the Earth King. Apparently, a simple uniform and a slightly different hairstyle were enough to keep up the disguise.

Finally, the guard produced a small, rusted key and handed it to Ming. Kuei located the padlock, took the key, and stepped forward. The boy’s breathing quickened.

“I’m going to unlock that… chain,” Kuei said, refusing to call it what it was – a leash. He tried to meet the boy’s eyes, but between the dim light, the long hair, and the straps, it was impossible. “Don’t move. We want to avoid a struggle and anyone getting hurt. All right?”

There was no reaction. Even when Kuei moved close enough to risk a kick, the boy didn’t twitch. He quickly unlocked the padlock, though his stomach sank when he realized the chain would still dangle from the collar for now.

“Good,” Kuei said, stepping back. He glanced at Ming. “Do you have all the keys?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then, help the prisoner up and let’s go.”

Kuei wished they were already on the cart heading back to the city, where they could at least remove the muzzle and convince the boy he wasn’t going back under the lake.

The walk was slow. The soldiers matched their pace to the boy’s short, constrained steps without rushing him. From his position at the back of the group, Kuei could tell the boy – Zuko – wasn’t looking around or resisting. Kuei cringed seeing his bare soles on the gravel road.

Finally, they reached the cart. The soldiers had to lift Zuko up because he wouldn’t be able to make such a long step with the chain. It made the boy let out a choked yelp, despite his men’s careful handling.

Kuei wanted to say something, but no right words came to his mind. It seemed they would have to get the boy to the healer quicker than they initially planned.

The soldiers set Zuko down on a bench in the middle of the cart, sitting close to either side of him, with one more standing behind. Kuei and Ming took the bench opposite.

Kuei cleared his throat. “The men in green robes who were previously handling you are no longer in power,” he said. It got a full body flinch reaction from the boy. “Please, don’t try to fight us. Follow instructions, and no one will hurt you anymore.”

Oma and Shu... Kuei's throat tightened. With the oversized clothes and massive guards flanking him, the young prince looked so small and fragile. Kuei knew Zuko could kill a man — but right now, it hardly mattered.

"The rest stays for now," Kuei continued gently, "but we would like to remove that thing from your face." He gestured at Ming. "My friend has a key — he’ll need to fiddle with it a bit to find the right one. All right?"

The boy lifted his chin slightly, but his eyes remained hidden beneath his hair.

“I’m not going to change my mind about removing it, so it’s fine if you don’t want any of us get close to your head right now,” Kuei assured the boy. “And you can stay silent even when its off, if that’s what worries you. So how it’s going to be?”

The cart jolted slightly as they rounded a corner, and a muffled grunt came from behind the muzzle.

Kuei glanced at Zuko’s hands, which looked uninjured, the fingers clenching tightly at the fabric of his pants. “Show me one finger if you want this off. No reaction and I won’t bother you anymore until we reach our destination.”

A long moment passed, but finally, the boy extended his index finger for a few seconds.

“All right,” Kuei said. “My friend will do his best to be gentle, right?”

“Of course,” Ming said, already fiddling with the keys.

Kuei had intended to remove the collar as soon as possible too, but seeing how deeply reluctant Zuko was to any contact – even help – maybe it was better to wait. The boy flinched violently when Ming touched the muzzle but forced himself to stay still.

After a moment, there was a click, and Ming loosened the straps. They hesitated, exchanging a glance, but the boy saved them the trouble – spitting out the vile contraption himself. Kuei picked it up carefully –  two metal plates, still wet from the boy’s mouth –  and tossed it behind his seat, out of sight.

“Much better,” Kuei said. He was honestly surprised by his composure. “The ride will take half an hour.”

Zuko didn’t speak, he barely moved, but a few times Kuei could feel the boy’s golden eyes drilling holes in him. He doubted Zuko could recognize him as the Earth King without the attire. Kuei’s identity remaining secret was an important part of the plan they had made with Ming on the way to the prison.

The cart stopped in the restricted part behind the palace where Kuei’s guard and soldiers sparred at times. It was the best place where they could keep the boy secured but not inside another cell.

“Here we are,” Kuei announced. He didn’t miss the quiet grunt when the guards made Zuko stand up. “It’s a short walk.”

Zuko didn’t answer but this time he was clearly looking at the new surroundings. He kept it subtle, still marching forward with the soldiers, but there was clearly something going on in the boy’s head. Kuei couldn’t blame him.

“Ming,” Kuei whispered, “I think we should get him to a medic today.”

“I do too, my – sir,” Ming corrected himself in time. If not, the horrible circumstances it would be quite amusing experience for Kuei to witness his people to try to act normal around him in soldier’s disguise. “In the evening perhaps. First, let’s get rid of all that metal and let him rest. And maybe give him a basin to wash.”

They reached a small room that had been an empty storage space just an hour ago. Now it was furnished with a bed, a small table, and a battered chair that had seen better days. A window overlooked the courtyard, its frame now reinforced with thick bars.

Kuei quietly ordered one of the soldiers to organize a warm basin of water, some towels, and soap for the boy to clean himself inside the room. It wasn’t yet time for trips to the showers.

He wanted to scream when he caught Zuko’s expression as the boy glanced between the bed and the window — luxuries absent in his previous cell.

“We are going to remove the chains.” Kuei said, getting the boy’s attention. “Just don’t do anything stupid, all right?”

“Yes, sir.”

The quiet, hoarse voice startled Kuei. He hadn’t expected a verbal answer after the communication issues in the cart.

Ming quickly dealt with both sets of shackles, revealing poorly tended wounds — definitely another reason to see the medic as soon as possible. Only the awful collar remained, resting heavily against Zuko’s collarbones. The boy clenched his fists and closed his eyes, waiting patiently for Ming to finish.

Something clicked, but the collar remained in place. Ming circled around Zuko and held out the chain for Kuei to see.“They didn’t give us the right key. I tried each one I have. Twice.”

Kuei sighed and nodded. Before he could think of something to say the soldiers with the basin returned. It appeared they also grabbed a change of clothes for the boy – probably too big, but still better than the rags he wore now.

"You can wash yourself, change into these clothes, and rest," Kuei said. "Someone will bring you food soon, and later we’ll talk about getting you to a doctor. Do you have any questions?"

Kuei cringed internally at how stupid that sounded. Of course the boy had questions – he had no idea why his nightmarish reality had suddenly changed.

“About the next few hours, I mean,” Kuei clarified quickly. “There will be time to talk about the bigger picture.”

“No, sir.”

Kuei gestured for his men to leave.

"There will be a guard at the door," one of the soldiers said, casting one last glance at Zuko before closing it behind them.

Kuei let out a long sigh and turned to the soldier with a questioning look.

"Your—uh, sir," the man corrected himself, "I’ve learned it’s better to keep cornered prisoners aware of most security measures. Fewer reckless ideas that way."

"Oh… Then, good thinking," Kuei said. "Keep watch here. And please — one of you, get him something to eat and drink. Only the Spirits know how long they kept him in that awful gag.”

The soldiers moved to carry out the orders, and Kuei headed toward his quarters with Ming.

"What’s your first impression, Ming?"

"To be honest, it went way better than I feared, my king," Ming said, unbuttoning the stiff collar of his uniform. "How he behaved, I mean. What we saw in the prison… Much worse."

Kuei wholeheartedly agreed. "It’s over. That’s the important part. I need to focus on that — otherwise, I’ll start screaming, and it’s going to look very bad for me to lose my mind so soon after reclaiming my kingdom."

Better late than never.

 

 

Notes:

Another proof that Prisoner Zuko, some angst but with comfort as endgame is my comfort reading and writing… So, this happened out of nowhere. I hope that people who wished me to update other series aren’t too disappointed… I would love to, and I tried, but words were not wording :(
I’m comment-deprived for obvious reasons, so I will get anything you decide to throw at me. This was actually amazing to write after a block, almost 4k in just a day. I forgot I CAN do that.
This story was born from a fusion from my older idea and a new one, but I don’t have a precise direction. I just wanted to write so I did. I have some more things I would like to do, but I would love to hear from anyone who like what I wrote so far. What would you see Kuei and Zuko do? How to navigate that situation?

It’s literally been ages since my last update, so I would love to say hello to people who read my previous stories and those who found this lil story and enjoyed it :))