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Chapter Text

Zuko slowly sat up, trying to make sense of what happened. One moment he was arguing with a triple-headed spirit about the whereabouts of the Avatar, the next moment he was on the ground with a pounding headache after Uncle pushed him into a ditch.

He wanted to yell at somebody, spirit or Uncle, he didn’t care, this was unacceptable. The old man was always disrespecting his decisions, trying to stop him interrogating the spirits he found, and Zuko didn’t even want to think about how this spirit was laughing at him. Maybe he didn’t need to threaten it, but he was done with all of them.

He glanced around, but he didn’t see neither his Uncle, nor the spirit. Did Uncle head back to the ship already? He couldn’t imagine his Uncle just leaving him alone on the hill, but where could he be? He readied himself to yell and huff and stomp all the way back, when he saw a pile of clothes under a bush. His Uncle’s clothes, more precisely.

Zuko looked around with alarm. Did Uncle in his old age discover some latent exhibitionist tendencies? If so, he was in great trouble, Zuko wasn’t tolerating public nakedness in his family!

His grumbling got interrupted by somebody’s stifled crying from the other side of the bush. He checked it warily, only to come face to face with a probably six-year old child. A very obviously unclothed, sniffling and shivering child. He eyed the kid with a feeling of foreboding, but he needed to make sure of his hunch.

He knelt before the little boy, trying to remember, how to be gentle. After two and half a year on the sea, usually frowning and yelling and swearing, it was hard to change his demeanor. He tilted the kid’s chin up, recognizing in the child’s features his Uncle. The amber eyes, the nose, the cheekbones were all familiar. But he asked him either way.

„What’s your name, kid?” Zuko was proud of himself, he managed to make his voice almost neutral, instead of gruff. The boy was blinking up at him fearfully.

„I am Prince Iroh, son of Fire Lord Azulon and Lady Ilah. Who are you? Where are we? Have you kidnapped me? I want to go home! Let me go home!” The boy, his Uncle, proceeded to hit Zuko’s chest with his tiny fists.

Zuko’s attempts at calming his child Uncle down were met with extreme resistance. Zuko managed with great difficulty to dress the kid in his discarded tunic, then picked him up, his de-aged Uncle kicking and screaming all the way. He could understand his feelings, but this was ridiculous. Despite all appearances, he didn’t want to harm his Uncle. Never ever.

He tried to shush the child, promising everything he could think of, but it was all in vain. He was close to tears too, his headache worsening. As a last resort, he began to sing his Uncle’s favorite song about a little soldier boy. It seemed to do the trick, the kid grew silent in a minute, his head resting now on Zuko’s shoulder.

He patted the boy’s head slowly, gently, remembering how it always calmed him down, when his mother found him snivelling after a nightmare. The child’s breathing slowed down. Soon he was fast asleep in Zuko’s arms.

Zuko put him down gingerly, then stood up to search for the spirit. He refrained from shouting, not wanting to wake his Uncle. He noticed how nothing made a sound or moved, there were no wind, no bugs humming, no birds chirping, nothing. He tried to light a flame, but he didn’t succeed. Where were they? He whispered harshly, aggressively in the unnatural silence surrounding them.

„What have you done to my Uncle? What do you want from us? Show yourself, you coward!”

The spirit appearing in front of him seemed displeased by his words. His body swirled and fluctuated, just the three heads were steady, six burning eyes watching his every move. „Coward? Boy, you barged in my home, demanded my attention, threatened and attacked me without provocation, and you have the insolence to insult me further?”

Zuko wanted to respond, to scream and rant about his treatment, but he couldn’t speak, couldn’t move, he was completely paralyzed. His feeling of impending doom returned. It seemed like the vortex of the spirit’s body surrounded him, constricted him.

He tried to escape, but he couldn’t, so he settled for staring defiantly in the spirit’s eyes. The spirit held his gaze, and Zuko felt how he peered deep in his soul, evoking forgotten or buried memories.

After a while the triple-headed spirit loosened his hold on him. „You forgot, who you are. When you know it again, your uncle will return fully to you.”

Zuko was bewildered, and he voiced it too. „But I know, who I am! I’m Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation, son of Lady Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai!”

„No, that’s your name and title, not who you really are. You need to find yourself, just then will you find, what you seek.” It was the kind of meaningless drivel, his Uncle spouted without end. He didn't need it from a conceited spirit too.

„What I seek is the Avatar, not some spirit mumbo-jumbo! Turn my Uncle back!” Zuko was past being tolerant of the spirit. If he could have, he would have hit it in the nose for being so aggravating.

„Liar.” It was spoken with amusement and gentleness. The spirit didn’t seem to be miffed anymore. „Go now!”

The spirit disappeared and sound returned. It was loud after that eerie silence. Zuko didn’t know, what to do. His only confidant was now a child, and the spirit didn’t help. What did that mean, know who you are? He was sure of himself, he was Zuko, Prince of the Fire Nation, Heir to the throne, he just needed to find the Avatar to go home! What was there more to find? This was, why he hated spirits, they didn't make sense.

Zuko sighed, then lifted his sleeping child Uncle up. He gathered his Uncle’s discarded clothes too. He swore a bit mentally, then began to march back to his ship. Maybe Lieutenant Jee would know, what to do.

Chapter Text

Zuko was truly upset with the spirit, his Uncle, himself, and the world in general. The way back to his ship was mostly uneventful, but this didn’t mean, that he didn’t see how the people in the town pulled their children back in fear, noticing him alone with a half-clothed kid in his arms.

He heard all of their whispers, their wild guessing, their vile comments. He knew, he wasn’t liked, but it was off-putting, how much they distrusted him.

„Where is the kind old man?” One of the kids looked directly at him with suspicion. „He always gave me some sweets. You don’t seem to have sweets.”

„Did he ditch the old general? Or maybe he sacrificed him? I always knew, it will come to no good, if they visit the spirit.” That was a middle-aged man with a particularly stupid face. Zuko glowered at him, but then he heard another one of the townspeople speak, this time a woman.

„And the child? Where did it come from? Did he kidnap somebody’s child?”

That elicited some horrified gasps from the idiot peasants, and more child-pulling behind the worried mothers. Zuko bared his teeth, fighting very hard with himself, not to just growl and snap at them. His crew needed the services this port offered to them, and more importantly, he didn’t want to wake his sleeping Uncle. So he suffered their collective idiocy in silence.

„Do you think, that the spirit ate the…” A child’s frightened yell.

„He is horrible, just look at his sca-” A teenage girl’s drawl.

„Did you hear, what his fath-” The voice of a gruff vagabond.

„I heard from one of his crewmen, that…” The stage whisper of a merchant.

Zuko shut the voices out, ignoring everyone and everything in his path, and just stomped back to his ship. It was almost a relief seeing his rusty ship and his incompetent crew.

Emphasis on almost. They were the worst the navy could spare, the riff-raff nobody wanted. Maybe not Lieutenant Jee, he was oddly competent, but he too had problems with respecting authority. Zuko’s authority, notedly.

Deep down Zuko knew, that he wasn’t the best captain, that on other ships the captains yelled less and were respected more, but he found early out, that yelling and demanding was the only language his crew understood.

They never took him seriously in the first few weeks, when he was just recovering, and everything hurt, even speaking. And afterwards, when he was able to not just speak, but shout, Zuko was paying them back for every fake I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you, sir.

Even Uncle was disrespected in the first month, till they had a run-in with a pirate ship, and Uncle single-handed defeated a dozen of armed men. Then came two months relative peace until the first and last mutiny against him, lead by their healer, of all people.

The mutineers got off lightly, Zuko leaving them on a desert island, but they remained without ten sailors and a healer. In the next port Uncle recruited five new crewmen and a nurse. And then initiated the Music Nights and the monthly rest-day.

Damn Jee and Uncle and their coddling of the crew. If he wasn’t extra hard on them, they were just lolling about. Like now. One of the watchmen was sleeping on his post, the other picked at his fingernails, and the third were nowhere to be seen. He took a deep breath.

„What’s the meaning of this? Do you think, that our ship would watch itself? What if I was a thief or a stowaway?”

„Then you would fail at it too. Your trample could be heard from a mile away, Prince Sicko,” the freshly awoken watchman muttered under his breath, but Zuko heard him. The other watchman was pretending not to hear it, looking anywhere but at him.

He stared at the man, till he flushed and looked away. Zuko didn’t deign to answer verbally the cruel remark. If he began to reprimand him, he won’t be able to stop, and then he would wake his sleeping child Uncle, and the kid surely would cry, and he didn’t want to deal with crying children. Or children in general. He loved his Uncle, but he needed his adult Uncle back now.

So he promised himself to put the sleepy watchman and his partners on latrine duty for the next two weeks, stomped to his Uncle’s cabin, put the kid down on the cot, covered him with a light blanket, then left in search of Lieutenant Jee.

Zuko found him with the helmsman, talking about their next destination. He wasn’t going to wait for them to finish their discussion. He needed the lieutenant at once.

„Lieutenant, I have something very important to discuss with you. Come with me right away. Helmsman, back to your work.” He didn’t wait for their reaction, just turned around, and marched back to his Uncle’s cabin.

He heard the lieutenant sigh, and the helmsman moaned But we’re in port, there are people on leave, but he didn’t care. He had much more pressing concerns, than his crew’s attitude.

„What’s so important, sir? Couldn’t have waited, till we determined the Mamushi’s route?” Jee was annoyed with him, but what was new? He was annoyed with him right back.

He ushered the grumpy lieutenant in the cabin, then stopped short. His child Uncle were nowhere to be seen. He began to search under the cot, the desk, his tossing things haphazardly making Jee uneasy. „What are you searching for, sir? Maybe I can help you?”

„We need to find Uncle!” Zuko was sure, Jee thought him a madman, so he tried to explain. „He is a child. And he doesn’t remember us. Being an adult. I hate spirits.”

„What have you done?!” His accusation was insulting. He didn’t do anything. It was all the spirit’s fault.

„It was the spirit’s fault! And I need to find myself, before he can turn back. But I know, who I am!”

That last wasn’t an exasperated wail. It wasn’t. But it made Jee pinch the bridge of his nose, and his eyebrows to narrow. He didn’t need judgmental Jee now, so he diverted his attention back to the problem on hand.

„Are you helping me or not? We really need to find Uncle.” Zuko saw the lieutenant literally swallow his initial reply, then nod tersely.

„I will search for him on the lower deck, you can check the upper deck. If you find him, inform me immediately. Do not frighten him. He thinks, Grandfather is the Fire Lord, and he wants to go home. We meet again in this cabin in an hour.” For once Lieutenant Jee wasn’t questioning his command. He departed promptly, leaving Zuko alone with his thoughts.

Chapter Text

Zuko always thought, his cast-off cruiser was small, compared to the modern warships, but now… Now he thought, it was too big. They searched with Jee everywhere: their own rooms, the crew quarters, the mess hall, the kitchen, the engine-room, the cargo hold, the komodo rhinos’ pens, even the cells, but they didn’t find his de-aged Uncle.

The crew was wary, they didn’t like the surprise inspection of the whole ship. They were grumbling, but they all complied with their request without too much trouble.

In the last hour Zuko and Lieutenant Jee found three different hiding places for alcohol, a stash of very fine chocolate, two illegally acquired, fluffy and cute pets and a lot of junk in the cells, probably from Iroh’s shopping sprees. They confiscated the alcohol, Zuko stole on of the chocolate bars, both of them pretended not to see the animals and ignored the things in the cells.

Now Zuko sat on his bed, chewing a bit of chocolate aggressively, while Lieutenant Jee paced the room. He didn’t speak, but this didn’t hinder him donning his judging face again, and throwing accusatory glances at Zuko.

They needed to inform the crew about Iroh, about him being a child and currently missing. But who knew, what the crew would do in this case.

Zuko wasn’t too optimist in what regarded his crew’s reaction. His Uncle was the only one they feared and respected. With him gone, it was more than likely, that they will mutiny. He wasn’t looking forward to it.

His brooding was interrupted by a knock on the door, then nurse Keiki barged in, with child Iroh under their armpit, the kid laughing delighted, pretending to fly. He didn’t care for the adults in the room, immersed in his own world.

„Prince Zuko, I found this child wandering near my office, but as you were conducting an inspection of the ship, I didn’t want to distract you, and he wasn’t any trouble. But we need to address this. Who is this child and why is he on this ship? He said, his name is Prince Iroh, but it can’t be true, right?”

Neither Zuko, nor Jee said anything, but the nurse must have read their expression accurately, because they frowned.

„What have you done again?” Zuko was irritated by the question. Why did everybody assume that he was at fault?

„I didn’t do anything to him. A spirit cursed him, but it can be lifted.”

„Yes, if he finds himself. Do you think he could manage it?” Jee added his sarcastic remark. It angered Zuko more than he liked. It hurt not to have any encouragement. He missed his Uncle.

„Lieutenant Jee, you are disrespectful and I won’t tolerate it. I know who I am. And I will find another cure.”

The skepticism in their eyes reminded him of his firebending teachers. It made him feel small and helpless again. But he stifled that thought, and tried to concentrate on the present.

„Lieutenant. Call the crew together on the main deck. Everybody must attend, even the ones on leave.”

„They won’t be happy to be called back, sir.” Receiving a death glare from Zuko, Jee backed down. „Yes, sir. Right away, sir.”

Zuko turned to the nurse. „Nurse Keiki, will you remain with my Uncle until I inform the crew?”

„Of course, Prince Zuko.” They glanced at the laughing child in their arms. „Prince Iroh, would you like to rescue a dragon with me from the evil princess?”

Zuko felt his heart clench seeing his little Uncle’s joy. He promptly squashed down his jealousy. His Uncle deserved to be happy. He was glad, that the kid wasn’t crying and full of fear anymore.

He stomped on the main deck to his hastily assembled crew. They were grumpy, they were muttering again, but seeing their prince, they stood at attention. Zuko took a deep breath, then tried to explain the situation.

„Listen. We have a slight problem. Uncle and I discovered a spirit, who turned my Uncle into a child as punishment. At this moment he doesn’t remember his adult life, and he thinks, his father is the Fire Lord. Don’t contradict this. Be gentle with him. If somebody hurts him, I will terminate that person. And don’t worry, there is a cure.”

He was ready for his crew to be angry, incredulous or downright rebellious, but their reluctant acceptance was bewildering. They just looked at each other, an sighed resignedly so synchronously, that it was scary. Then one of them spoke up.

„What do we say, if he asks who you are or why is he on this ship? What if he wants to go home?”

Zuko didn’t think so far ahead. But this question was smart and important, so he tried to guess their course of action on the fly.

„I’m Prince Zuko, his cousin and I’m on a noble quest to find the Avatar. He wanted to come with me, but there was an accident, and he lost his memories. We won’t go home for a long time, because we are having fun visiting the ports. We are basically on a global sight-seeing.”

The crew mulled over his answer, accepting it. Then one of them dared to ask another, a much more uncomfortable question.

„And what’s the cure, Prince Zuko?”

Zuko wasn’t sure, what to say, but when his silence became too long, and the crewmen began to murmur and shuffle their feet in agitation, he just blurted out the truth.

„I need to find myself.”

This time the crew was more vocal, more insolent. Zuko’s headache was returning with a force. Their wailing was unbearable.

„I can’t believe it. Surely there must be another way!”

„No! He will be forever a child!”

„This is absurd! You didn’t find the Avatar, why would you find yourself?”

„This is a tragedy! We will sail on this sea of tears and despair forever, even after our death, never knowing peace, waiting for you to find yourself and the Avatar. Even our grandchildren's grandchildren will wither, but General Iroh will remain a child on a ship full of ghosts. What a- mmhhhhh.”

Zuko couldn’t regret slapping his hand on the overly dramatic crewman’s mouth somewhat forcefully. Theater nerds, all of them.

„Silence! You overstepped your boundaries. Tomorrow you have an extra hour training! Now go back to work, and no slacking off! My Uncle isn’t here to coddle you! I mean, he is, but he is now a child, and he can’t spoil you rotten!”

He balled his fists when he heard a whispered We’re doomed, but he didn’t react with words. But he made sure to remember, who said it. The deck needed a thorough swabbing again.

Lieutenant Jee caught up to him as he entered his room. Then they both stared bemused at the disarray. Colorful fabrics were stretched in every corner, pillows and rugs were piled up in the middle of a circle of teacups and plates of gingerbread stolen from the kitchen. On the bed roared the nurse and under the desk hid his giggling Uncle, a lotus tile fastened to his forehead.

Before they knew, they were roped into a play of steal the dragon’s hoard and feed the starving lotus-monkey. Against his better judgement Zuko felt a smile forming on his face. The nurse and the lieutenant stared at him wonderingly, and Zuko frowned quickly. But they didn’t mention it, just upped the silliness. Soon his de-aged Uncle was rolling on the floor howling with laughter.

They were making a clown of themselves. They weren’t children anymore, they were serious adults with serious jobs, but they weren’t ashamed to just play with a kid. They couldn’t judge him, if he participated in this too. For the first time in a very long time Zuko let his guard partially down and enjoyed himself.

Chapter Text

„I don’t need a nap! I’m not tired!”

Zuko’s usually too small cabin now seemed enormous. Exhausted, he gave up the chase for now, collapsing on the bed.

„Prince Iroh, plea-” Lieutenant Jee wasn’t more successful in catching Zuko’s fleeing kid Uncle than nurse Keiki or Zuko himself. Uncle Iroh continued his tantrum on the other side of the cabin, stomping and yelling and throwing things at them. It was so unlike his calm and collected Uncle, it was scary.

„No! I won’t sleep! I’m seven! I’m not a baby anymore!” Uncle’s scream reverberated in the room. „I want to play! I want to go shopping and sightseeing! I’m hungry!”

That last was a lie. Zuko saw the amount of gingerbread his Uncle ate. He drank a lot of tea too. He was just searching for an excuse to not sleep.

Zuko’s headache was back again. Were all kids this difficult to handle? He wanted to yell at his Uncle, to throw a tantrum back, but first of all, he didn’t want to see lieutenant Jee and nurse Keiki judging him again after their semi-pleasant afternoon, or worse, forcing him to rest too, when he had so much to do. The Avatar wouldn’t find and capture himself alone, then gift himself to Zuko. He almost snorted at the image appearing in his mind: the Avatar wrapped up in a gift box with a bow on top and Zuko’s name on the tag. They could go home. Wouldn’t that be nice?

And secondly, his Uncle was just an overtired and overexcited kid, even after his half an hour nap earlier on Zuko’s shoulder, and he didn’t deserve Zuko’s anger. All of this was that spirit’s fault. Bloody spirit, he wanted Uncle back to normal, now!

Zuko tried to tune out the ruckus in his cabin without much success. He massaged his temple absently. He was so tired, if he wouldn’t be the captain of this ship, maybe he would be the one to take a nap.

Wait. Maybe that was the solution. This was just a spirit-induced nightmare, and if he slept, maybe he would wake up to an adult Uncle again. It was a good idea, worthy of trying it out. His headache and exhaustion thought so too.

„Good. Then you go play, Unc- …Prince Iroh. I take a nap.”

„Sir. Are you sick?”

The alarm on the lieutenant’s face was almost comical. He glowered at Jee, then shook his head. Uncle stopped yelling, a pillow falling from his hands on the floor, blinking at him with big sleepy eyes.

„But you’re big now! You can do what you want!”

As if! If it would be so, he would be back home, not on this rusty ship with an incompetent crew chasing a legend.

No. He couldn’t think so. He would find the Avatar. He would show them, all of them, that he was worthy of the throne, of the Fire Nation. He wasn’t a coward. He would have his honor and his father’s regard back.

Zuko looked at his child Uncle with a frown. The pounding headache wasn’t helping keep his temper in check. He didn’t think about who he was quoting with his next words or that he was much harsher than intended.

„A man needs his rest. I’m tired, I will sleep. You can continue to play in my cabin, but please be quiet. Nurse Keiki, please wake me up in an hour! Lieutenant Jee, go back to work!”

The lieutenant and the nurse exchanged glances, communicating silently. Zuko didn’t understand, what was there to discuss. At least Jee shrugged and nurse Keiki nodded, but they didn’t object. Zuko thought, he should be grateful for small mercies.

But before they could go, Uncle Iroh began to cry in earnest.

„I’m a prince! I don’t want to be silent and I don’t want to play alone! I want my nanny to play with me! Where is she? Why isn’t she there with me?”

Oh. He knew that feeling. He was lonely and scared, surrounded by strangers who were stronger than him and whom he didn’t trust fully. Who attempted to force him to do something he didn’t want. Those few hours of play with them didn’t negate the wrongness of the situation. He missed his family and he didn’t have a familiar face in the crew, like Zuko had Uncle. Jee and the nurse stood frozen. Before they could move, Zuko acted.

He wasn’t good with crying people, but singing helped once. So he approached the kid slowly, kneeling before him. When he didn’t bolt right away, he gathered him in his arms and began humming softly, rubbing his back rhythmically. After a while Uncle Iroh stopped squirming, stopped resisting. He let Zuko put him on the bed, then watched Zuko climb in too.

Zuko continued to sing, now a lullaby heard from his Mother. His de-aged Uncle yawned, then shut his eyes. In a few minutes he was asleep.

Lieutenant Jee saluted, then left the cabin on tiptoe, but nurse Keiki lingered. They stared at Zuko almost fondly, but Zuko knew better. Nobody liked him on the Mamushi apart from Uncle. That gaze was surely for the child, who snored softly.

„You are good with kids.”

„I’m not. If I was, he wouldn’t have cried.” Zuko knew that he wasn’t good with people. That was Uncle’s strength. But the nurse shook their head.

„You are. You succeeded where we failed. You calmed him down and put him to sleep. But,” they glanced at the slumbering child on Zuko’s bed, „we need to speak about what will happen after this. He sleeps now, but he will be shortly awake. And he will realize anytime now that he wears almost nothing or that there is nothing in his size.”

Zuko looked at his Uncle too. Yes, that was right. Nurse Keiki continued to speak.

„You know that none of his old attire will be good for him, and he can’t wear just an oversized undershirt. He’s a prince, he will need at least two sets of casual clothing and a dress wear, if not more. If he doesn’t have that, he will be suspicious. So, my question is, when are we going to buy them?”

Zuko grimaced, thinking of the suspicious and hostile townsfolk and of the strain this would mean on their budget.

„Can’t we just say his clothes were stolen, and alter some of my old outfits for him? Don’t we have a crewman who was a tailor before he enrolled?”

„Prince Zuko. Do you think Prince Iroh will be satisfied with some hand-me-downs?”

They were right. Zuko bade his nap adieu. The only time he wanted to rest a bit, and he was thwarted. He got up, startling the nurse.

„Remain here, with my Uncle. If he wakes up, don’t let him wander alone on the ship.”

He strode purposefully to the door, shutting it behind him quietly. He heard the nurse’s weak call of his name, but he had things to do. He needed to go over their budget again, maybe they had some reserves. Or they could sell something. He had some unnecessary things: old clothes, theater scrolls, weapons… He wouldn’t touch the junk in the cells, that was his Uncle’s, even if he didn’t remember it right now.

„Lieutenant Jee! Come with me! We need to buy some clothes for my Uncle. You have our budget for this month. Do we have the reserves for it or do we need to sell something?”

Jee gaped at him, clearly surprised, then stared at the sky, pinching the bridge of his nose and cursing the nurse softly. Just afterwards did he look back at Zuko.

„Prince Zuko. Please, go back to your Uncle. He needs you. Let me handle it, sir.” Zuko wanted to object, but before he could utter a sound, the lieutenant raised a hand. „Please. I will handle it. Trust me, please.”

Zuko shut his mouth, and nodded. He could do that. Jee wasn’t Uncle, but he was competent. He could try to trust him.

When he returned to his cabin, nurse Keiki welcomed him back with a guilty expression, but Zuko wasn’t in the mood to decipher what they could have done to feel guilty. Uncle Iroh was all right and sleeping, on first glance nothing was missing or broken, so he dismissed them, then sat on the bed next to his child Uncle. He listened to the kid’s smooth breathing, then shut his heavy eyes for a moment.

Zuko was asleep in no time. He never noticed that his Uncle took his hand in his sleep, or that the nurse came back and covered them with a light blanket. He never caught sight of lieutenant Jee checking on them with a thoughtful expression. He slumbered on.

Chapter Text

Zuko woke up to somebody giggling, jumping on his chest, and then laying on top of him. It was fortunate, he remembered in time his child Uncle was there with him, otherwise, he would have fought back, and maybe hurt him. He shuddered at the thought.

Said child Uncle was trying to burrow his head right under Zuko’s arm, making some really weird noises in the meantime. It sounded like something between purring and barking, with an occasional chittering sound. Zuko envied the kid’s ability to just bounce back from his hurt and fear and distrust of them, and be this happy and playful. And he envied what all of this meant.

Seeing the child playing and laughing, without a care in the world, awakened in him something ugly and forbidden. Something half-feral and traitorous.

Since becoming the Crown Prince, he never had the opportunity to just be a regular kid. Was he wrong for wanting to be that carefree and if not happy, at least content? Was he a bad nephew for wishing for himself what his Uncle had? Was he a bad son, for questioning his Father in secret, alone, after a nightmare? Was he a traitor for thinking sometimes, when he couldn’t quash and banish the thoughts in time, that his exile was unjust, that he was robbed of something?

His throat was tight with fear and deep, inexplicable sadness, his hands clenching the light blanket in a death grip.

He didn’t understand, he never understood his Father’s decision. But he was loyal, he would find a way to capture the Avatar and go back home again, where he could be… not a child, but somebody with their honor restored and working for the well-being of the Fire Nation. He was almost sixteen, practically an adult, he had a duty to his people. He needed to measure up to the challenge.

Still, he longed to be somebody else for once, not the prince people wanted him to be. He wanted to be just Zuko, somebody who could do what he wished without judging or prying eyes following his every move. He wanted to be the child he couldn’t be since his mother disappeared. He wanted to have a moment like this.

Before he could drown in his traitorous thoughts and his shame for having them in the first place, his de-aged Uncle bopped him, then barked at him with sparkling eyes. Could he do it? Should he do it? They were alone, and his child Uncle hopefully won’t remember what happened once he was back in his adult form, but now it would make him happy. So he pushed his doubts away and barked back.

Of course, this was when the nurse came back to wake him and caught him in the act. He knew, that they wouldn’t judge him, that they were playing together not so long ago, but they were looking at him with a strange expression again. Zuko felt exposed and embarrassed, so he reached for his best defense. Anger.

Or better said, he would have reached for it, if not for his kid Uncle, who seeing nurse Keiki, sat down on his stomach quite heavily. He didn’t have enough air for yelling. And he didn’t want to upset him again. Seeing him cry twice in a single day was enough. He glared at nurse Keiki but softened his tone when speaking.

„What do you want? Don’t you know, how to knock?”

„You ordered me to wake you up after an hour. And I knocked. But there wasn’t an answer, and I wanted to make sure everything is all right.”

„As you see, we are fine. If that’s all, you can go.”

Uncle Iroh had another idea. He jumped up and latched onto the nurse’s leg.

„I’m hungry! Will you bring me some cakes again? And tea?”

The nurse smiled down at him, patting his hair. But then they raised their head and looked Zuko right in the eyes as if speaking to him.

„I may have something better to give you. The cook made pancakes and hot chocolate for dinner, just for you. Don’t you want to try them?”

Zuko saw his de-aged Uncle’s eyes widen with wonder. He was almost vibrating in his excitement.

„Pancakes! Yes! Zuko, come on, we must go before the others find out and eat them all. Come on!”

Zuko generally ate alone in his room, but for Uncle Iroh, he could make an exception. He nodded, and trailed after the two, listening to his Uncle’s chatter about some imaginary animal on the way to the mess hall. It was better than listening to the milling crew’s mutterings about unbreakable curses and impossible missions. They didn’t have faith in him, that was clear.

He didn’t want to care, but he was human too. He cared, he very much cared, even if he hid it constantly under yelling and stomping. That was just easier than laying himself open to even more hurt and disappointment. Even Uncle hurt him sometimes with his lack of understanding. He needed to find the Avatar. He needed it.

They were near the mess hall, when nurse Keiki looked back at him briefly, then turned to his Uncle.

„Don’t lotus-monkey-kitten-puppies jump high on lianes?”

„Oh, yes! We do it all the time! I will show you how!”

He grabbed the nurse’s hand and tried to jump high, but he wasn’t quite successful. Nurse Keiki turned to Zuko with a barely concealed mischievous smile, trying and failing to seem serious.

„Prince Zuko, please, help your cousin in his quest. He needs an arm to grab on on his other side too. Please, assist me in lifting him up.”

Zuko felt caught in something outside of his control again. But this was about Uncle, not him. He found the kid’s other hand, Uncle Iroh jumping with their help. This was how they entered the mess hall. The few lingering crewmen stared at them, but their eyes didn’t hold the usual derision in them. It was something softer, kinder. The situation wasn’t painful or humiliating. It was just awkward. Strange. Maybe a bit embarrassing, but not bad.

„Prince Zuko! Prince Iroh! Nurse Keiki! You are just in time to try my famous pancakes! They won the first prize three times in the Spring Competition in my town. Here, try them!”

The cook was too enthusiastic for Zuko’s taste, but Uncle Iroh liked him instantly, judging by the big smile on his face, and he could have sworn there were sparkles around him. Ah, yes, the cook was his favorite person as an adult too.

He tried the pancakes. It was tasty, soft, and sweet with some spices he couldn’t identify, but were reminding him of their homeland. Shame or not, he gobbled it up in two bites, and he was on his fourth helping when he noticed the saucer-eyed cook watching him.

He paled. He wasn’t behaving as a prince should. And the cook was tearing up. Was he offended? But then he looked away from him, yelling at the man on kitchen duty.

„Shun! Shun! We need the secret stash too!”

And then there were more tasty pancakes, the cook buzzing around them.

„Try the hot chocolate too! How is it? Do you like it?”

It wasn’t anything like Uncle’s tasteless or bitter tea. It was rich, sweet, and bitter at the same time, a bit hot from the chili put in it. Zuko found, that he liked it very much.

For the first time, he was almost reluctant to leave. When they finally stood up, the cook, Naoki as he learned, pushed a chocolate bar in his and his child Uncle’s hand, winking at them and leaning a bit closer.

„If you want to have chocolate again you just need to ask. No need for other methods of acquiring it.”

He flushed. He wanted to defend himself, he was their superior, he could do what he wanted. But Naoki’s eyes didn’t hold anger, just understanding. It was refreshing. Maybe he was rightly Uncle’s favorite person.

He left the mess hall in better spirits than ever before, his de-aged Uncle skipping down the hallway, his and the nurse’s chatter filling up the silence again.

Chapter Text

Lieutenant Jee was waiting for Zuko when they came back from dinner. He left Uncle Iroh in the care of Nurse Keiki and followed him to his Uncle’s cabin. What he saw there was better than what he imagined they could do with their tight budget. He was immediately suspicious. Either Jee cut something vital from their budget, touched his Uncle’s hoard in the cells, or simply stole some of the things.

 „Lieutenant! Where did the money come from for these?”

„I took the initiative and cleared out one of the cells. We will need it if you find the Avatar, sir.”

„You had no right to sell my Uncle’s things, Lieutenant! And don’t even think you can distract me with mentioning the Avatar!”

Lieutenant Jee just nodded, but he didn’t seem particularly chastened.

„Maybe not, but he didn’t use any of them, and I doubt he even remembered what he bought. I think he needs clothes and some toys more now than statues and old trinkets, and I believe in my place he would do the same. Of course, I made a list of everything I sold or traded for something. When the curse breaks and he wants to, we can come back for those things.”

He was right. Zuko knew that but it didn’t feel right. His Uncle didn’t consent to it. His thoughts must have been written on his face, because Jee shifted a bit, then cleared his throat.

„I apologize, sir, but I will be frank with you. We don’t have any reserves to spare. We can’t cut back the men’s pay or the money for necessities like food and ship maintenance if we don’t want a mutiny on our hands. And I don’t think you want us to rob the merchants. This was the only way. I’m sorry for not consulting you beforehand, but I did what I thought was the best course of action.”

Then Jee handed him the list with the items sold. Two life-sized statues of some obscure Earth Kingdom poets that Zuko hated with a passion were traded for three different sets of casual clothing and a nightshirt. A set of ugly cat-spider figurines was sold for enough to buy a set of dress wear. A fancy tsungi horn bought for Zuko that he threw away and wouldn’t miss was traded for a pair of boots and some underwear. A broken table, that remained unrepaired for a year, was traded for two stuffed toys. Uncle’s old, painfully colorful shirt that wasn’t even in his size and everybody felt nauseous just looking at it was the last item on the list. The money was used for buying a few scrolls with old fairy tales.

It seemed Jee really thought this out in the short time he had to resolve the problem. And he was right. If his Uncle wanted these things back, they could buy them again. But not the tsungi horn. That was Zuko’s and he didn’t want it back. Ever. He pinched the bridge of his nose and breathed out slowly.

„Lieutenant Jee. Next time please consult with me before you do something like this. But you were right. My Uncle’s current needs and well-being are more important than some forgotten trinkets. So. Thank you.”

„I understand, sir.” Then he saluted, bowing a bit lower than before. „Thank you for trusting me to help.”

Zuko turned back to the items laid out on the bed. He thought the lieutenant would go away, but he stayed, just watching as Zuko put the clothes in the chest and the scrolls on the shelf. It was becoming uncomfortable. He didn’t know what more Jee wanted from him, and he never had any patience for mind games. He snapped.

„What is it?”

„The crew asked if they could hold a Music Night for their little prince. It was scheduled for next week, but they think this could help him adapt to the situation. And it would be good for the morale of the crew too. They could see that just because General Iroh is a child, this doesn’t mean that they would be deprived of rest or entertainment. Will you give permission for it?”

Zuko knew that the crew didn’t like his captainship nor did they have any faith in him. After all, hearing the news this afternoon their first thought was that they were doomed. If this could appease them, then he would make an exception and let them hold a Music Night ahead of schedule. He nodded.

„Will you join us on the main deck, sir? We would be honored if you would join us.”

Zuko snorted. He didn’t have any honor and he was sure the crew couldn’t care less about him participating in their fun. He wanted to refuse the invitation, but Jee spoke again before he could.

„Your uncle could use a familiar face too. For now, everybody is a stranger and he seems to like you even as an amnesiac child. And if he is overtired or frightened, me or Nurse Keiki won’t be enough to calm him down.”

„All right, Lieutenant Jee. I trust your judgment. If you think this will make a difference, then I will join you shortly.”

„Thank you, Prince Zuko.”

This time the lieutenant left Zuko alone. He sighed. He didn’t know why, but loud music always made him uneasy, and the sound of some instruments was a painful reminder of what he lost. His home, his Mother, his life in the palace… He didn’t want to deal with the memories. Maybe he could ban the tsungi horn and the luo? That could help.

He took a light blanket with him. His de-aged Uncle was dressed just in a tunic, and the nights weren’t so warm anymore. He didn’t want him to catch a cold.

Stepping on the main deck he felt a bit stupid. His child Uncle sat on Nurse Keiki’s lap in a too-large jacket. He should have known that somebody would give the kid a coat. Most of the crew liked his Uncle, they wouldn’t let him freeze.

He covered the kid’s feet with the blanket, then searched for Lieutenant Jee. They spoke together to the crewmen who usually used the tsungi horn or the luo. What surprised Zuko was their acceptance. They just put those instruments down without grumbling or muttering. It was weird, but it felt good to be obeyed without backtalk. He didn’t even need to yell.

Zuko sat down next to his Uncle, Lieutenant Jee staying with them too, keeping an eye on everything. Zuko relaxed a bit. Jee was observant, he would notice if something was amiss. He could trust him to keep them safe.

The Music Night began slowly, the cook, Naoki, singing a ballad about a sailor and his lover, then the crew heartened up, playing and singing more cheerful songs. This was the most carefree Zuko saw them be. Uncle Iroh was enjoying the night too. He clapped and swayed to the music, demanding more. Even Zuko was humming along.

After a while, his child Uncle clambered onto Zuko’s lap. Zuko hugged him close without a thought. In the last hours, he found out that he liked hugging. He couldn’t go around demanding hugs from the crew, that would be weird, but with a child as affectionate as his de-aged Uncle he could let his inner hugger-self be free.

„Sing something for me, please? I like your voice. It reminds me of home. It makes me feel safe.”

Zuko’s thoughts spiraled out of control. Maybe he read his adult Uncle’s actions wrong. Maybe his invitation to sing or play an instrument wasn’t just an attempt to include him in the activities of a mostly hostile crew in the hopes of finding some common ground. Maybe that wasn’t out of pity for the banished prince or a wish to have something familiar and normal from home, even if it was painful for Zuko.

He resented his Uncle for always inviting him, for trying to make him participate in the crew’s fun. It was a waste of time, and he needed to learn everything about the Avatar. He didn’t have the time, nor the right anymore to have hobbies or leisure time. Normalcy was a privilege he could have back when he captured the Avatar and brought him home.

But maybe his Uncle didn’t feel safe, just like him. Maybe it was for them both. And his de-aged Uncle needed normalcy even more desperately, so he sacrificed his pride and pushed his apprehension to the back of his mind. His Father wasn’t there. He didn’t need to explain himself for not behaving as a prince should in public. So he sang.

It was a song he heard from fishermen on Ember Island. He sang about the homeland, about people waiting for them. He sang about luck and the ocean’s favor. He sang about Agni being proud of them and blessing their days. He sang and the crew quieted down and listened. They let him lead, let him set the rhythm, but they joined in on the refrain. There wasn’t any cruel remark, any sneer directed at him. They sang together, and for the first time in two and half a year, Zuko felt like he was part of something bigger. Like he belonged there.

Chapter Text

„There is a monster under my bed. Could you check it, please?”

Zuko blinked blearily at his sniffling Uncle. It was maybe two or three in the morning based on the minimal noise he could hear on the ship. After the Music Night, most of the crew slept, just the nightshift was somewhat awake and active: a few watchmen on the board, one engineer in the engine room, maybe the cook, and the soldier who functioned as a bodyguard for his de-aged Uncle. Said soldier tried not to shift from foot to foot under Zuko’s gaze.

„He didn’t want me to check the room, Sir. He just ran out and demanded to see you. And he was already sniffling. It wasn’t my fault, really. I didn’t do anything wrong, Sir. I swear.”

Zuko made a face and rolled his eyes at the soldier’s excuse for good measure. He was tired and he didn’t want to be better than that right now. Maybe in the morning, he would try to intimidate the soldier into forgetting his childish behavior, but at the moment he didn’t care.

He searched for a clean handkerchief then wiped the sniveling kid’s eyes and nose. He tried to be gentle, to not hurt him. Even so, he felt that he was rougher than necessary. He shook his head, regretting that he didn’t have any experience in handling children. Did he do well or not? He couldn’t tell.

He met his Uncle’s pleading eyes, who squeezed his badgermole toy harder, knuckles white with the effort.

„Come on, show me that monster. I am here to banish it and protect you.”

Uncle followed Zuko to his cabin clinging to his hand and hiding behind him once they were at the door. Zuko opened it to two glowing eyes blinking at them from under the bed. He lit a flame in his hands earning an Oooh from his child Uncle and a shout from the soldier.

„Yumi! Bad girl! What are you doing he- I mean,” the soldier tried to backtrack when Zuko whirled around glaring at him, „what is that thing and why is it there?”

Zuko glared harder. Seeing that he didn’t fool anybody the soldier sighed in defeat.

„I’m sorry, Sir. I will put her in a cage until we arrive at a friendly port and I can sell her. You don’t need to dispose of her, I will do it. I swear.”

Zuko glanced back at his child Uncle who was already halfway burrowed into the animal’s fluff. So much fluff, he was practically disappearing in it. The enormous rabbit-cat seemed delighted with the attention. He remembered seeing her under one of the beds in the crew’s cabin. He pretended not to see her at the time but he couldn’t do that now. Zuko turned back to the sweating soldier.

„What’s her name?”

The soldier seemed confused by the question but he answered promptly in a more hopeful tone. His explanation quickly descended into rambling.

„She’s Yumi. She’s a very rare Angora breed from Sunbeam Island. She’s a real treasure and just a year old. She’s so young! It would be a shame to sell her or kill her, really. And she is useful! Right! Her fur can be used for making yarn. And her meat is… No! No, no, no, her meat is bad! Bad, I say! But… but she’s very affectionate and very good with children and adults alike, I swear! Please Sir, can I keep her? She won’t bother anybody, I know it, she didn’t bother the others in these five months, really. Sir, please?”

His kitten-puppy eyes didn’t work on Zuko, but Uncle Iroh’s did. He came back to them while the soldier defended Yumi and now he joined in the pleading.

„Yes, can we keep her? She’s so nice! And soft! So soft! Can I sleep with her?” The last question was asked from the soldier who nodded repeatedly, glancing at Zuko.

Zuko yielded to their combined pressure with an angry huff.

„Fine! She can stay. But you make sure that my Unc- Prince Iroh can easily play or sleep with her whenever he wants! Do you understand?”

„Yes, Sir!” The soldier’s cheeky salute didn’t reassure Zuko who now had his kid Uncle clinging to him with delight. He eyed disdainfully the now cheerful soldier.

„What’s your name?”

„My name? Why?”

„Why? Don’t I have the right to know the people’s names on my ship?” Without wanting it his voice became loud and shrill at the end. Zuko clamped his mouth shut. He didn’t want to alarm his de-aged Uncle who now looked at him with a frown.

„Shouting is bad. Please don’t do that anymore.”

„Like you can talk! Remember this afternoon when you didn’t want to take a nap?”

Zuko knew he was childish and maybe a bit harsh but it was unfair to be admonished for yelling at three in the morning by a seven-year-old tantrum-throwing kid. So he pouted then grimaced when the soldier had the guts to snicker.

„There isn’t any danger so I’m going back to my cabin. And I will find you in the morning,” he pointed at the soldier, „but you won’t like it. Good night.”

„Wait! Are you angry with me? I’m sorry,” Zuko came to a halt when his Uncle’s lips quivered and tears gathered in his eyes, again, „it’s just… Mother always says that the bellowing lion vulture will be snatched up by the hungry dragon. If they get eaten for being loud then what about people? I don’t want you to be eaten by a dragon just because you yelled!”

Zuko felt ashamed of himself. He was the worst. He patted the child’s hair, trying to offer comfort.

„Don’t worry, I won’t get eaten by a dragon. They aren’t near.” He couldn’t tell Uncle that the last dragons were killed by him, earning for it the moniker The Dragon of the West. Zuko stopped the hair stroking and hugged his de-aged Uncle. „I’m sorry too for upsetting you. I will stay until you can go back to sleep, okay?”

He lifted the kid on the bed, then the rabbit-cat too. Her fur was softer than he imagined. His hands lingered a bit longer than necessary in the fluff before he snatched them away. He put the badgermole toy in his Uncle’s arms, then sat down next to him.

He looked at the soldier. He needed to learn the names of the crewmen on his ship, he couldn’t go around anymore guessing who was who and who did what. Without his adult Uncle, it was disadvantageous not knowing.

„Will you tell me your name finally?”

„Um, yes, Sir! Sorry! I didn’t want to disrespect you, I swear! I’m Haruto. I'm just a simple farmboy from Sunflower Island, nothing special, really. You don't need to remember me.”

„But I remember you. You’re the one who said that we are doomed, right? Did you swab the deck?”

The look on the soldier's face was worth everything.

„I did, I did! You don’t need to make me swab it again, really. Please, Sir, I-”

„Why are we doomed?” Uncle seemed wide awake again. Zuko noted with amusement that the soldier, Haruto, flushed bright red.

„We aren’t doomed! I was wrong, I didn’t mean it. I swear, we aren’t doomed! Please, Sir! I won’t say something like this again, and I won’t break the regulations, and I will be quiet, really!”

Zuko doubted that Haruto could be quiet even if he wanted to be. Anyway, he didn’t seem malicious just thoughtless. So he tried to calm him down.

„I won’t punish you for the same thing again. Go back to your post. I will stay here for now.”

The soldier saluted and left. Zuko snuggled closer to his child Uncle, hands tangled again in the rabbit-cat’s fur. Her purring was the best lullaby. Zuko didn’t mean to stay the whole night but they were both asleep in a matter of minutes, safe and sound in each other arms.

Chapter Text

Zuko woke up before sunrise to somebody poking him repeatedly and trying to peel his eyes open. He swatted at the hand that kept prodding him, then pushed the perpetrator away. Just when he heard a faint thud and a loud ow did he remember that he slept in his uncle’s room.

„Uncle!”

He peered over the side of the bed at his child uncle who lay on the floor rolled halfway under the bed, tangled in the blankets. Luckily he didn’t cry again. Maybe he was too shocked. Or too hurt? Zuko jumped out of the bed reaching for the kid.

„Uncle, I’m so sorry! Are you hurt? Where are you hurt? Do you need anything? Why aren’t you answering? Hey, do you hear me?”

„You called me uncle. Twice. Why?”

His de-aged uncle seemed bewildered for a few moments. Then he grinned impishly.

„I can be your uncle! And as your uncle and superior, I can make you do everything I want, right? So lift me up and put me back to bed. Then bring me my clothes and help me get dressed then you must bring me breakfast. Oh! Can it be something sweet? And jasmine tea! That’s my favorite. Mother says that jasmine tea makes you calmer, smarter and makes your smile blinding. See, I have a great smile!”

Zuko could admit to himself that his child uncle was cute. But he didn’t want the kid bossing him around, so he tried to salvage the situation with the first thing he could think of.

„I didn’t call you uncle, that was a swearword. I used it because I was surprised, sorry.” Zuko cringed a bit, that was a stupid excuse – maybe he really needed to begin drinking jasmine tea – but he soldiered on.

„So no, you aren’t my uncle or my superior,” even though he was, „but I can help you back on the bed or get dressed. Then we can go to breakfast together and can ask the cook for jasmine tea too. I’m sure he would like to make it for you.”

The child frowned at him. He clearly wasn’t buying Zuko’s explanation.

„You’re lying. Uncle isn’t a swearword. And I am totally your superior. I didn’t learn about a Prince Zuko when we studied the main royal line. You must be some distant cousin, so my rank is above you.”

The kid was suspicious and rightly so, but Zuko was just as stubborn if not more than his de-aged uncle. If he needed to invent a new cuss for his de-aged uncle to forget about bossing him around even in child form then he was going to do it.

„Even so, I’m a Prince too and I’m older. I’m sorry I swore in front of you. Come here, I will help you get dressed, then we will find Naoki and see what he has for breakfast, okay?”

„No need, I can do it alone.” The kid was pouting. But he was dressing by himself and he was doing it well. Once he was dressed he ran out of the room almost knocking over poor Haruto. The rabbit-cat bounced after him, managing to really knock over their guard. As Haruto fought with the rabbit-cat clinging to his hair, Zuko followed after his uncle at a more sedated pace.

In the kitchen their cook, Naoki, and his assistant, Shun were already fussing over their little Prince Iroh. They didn’t have any sweets, but they promised some for lunch. Zuko ate in silence and drank the damned jasmine tea. Maybe it really will help him think his actions through. Naoki rewarded him with a mug of hot chocolate too. It made him feel… warm. Seen. Accepted. It was good.

The mess hall was silent, most of the crew sleeping through sunrise after their Music Night. Just that sleepy watchman was up and staring daggers at him. But Zuko already punished him, so he ignored him as best he could, focusing on the cook’s story about his fifth child and a fire ferret stealing the child’s pants. Uncle’s laughter rang loud and clear in the mess hall and even Zuko was snickering. Then their guard, Haruto arrived with the rabbit-cat on his head licking half his face and most of his hair off, and Zuko couldn’t hold back anymore. He laughed.

The sleepy watchman stormed out. Haruto sat down. His de-aged uncle tried to use Uncle as a cuss.

„Uncle! You are so slobbery!”

„Prince Iroh, please, don’t swear.” Zuko was really committed.

The cook, the assistant, and the guard all turned to him and they had the same bewildered expression. Zuko felt his face heat up but he wasn’t backing down, not when his freedom hung on it. He stared back at them. Haruto was the first to cave.

„Prince Zuko is right. It’s rude to swear. But I can teach you some friendly variants if you promise not to use this word anymore.”

This is how Zuko and his de-aged uncle learned about the purple-spotted camelefant, the monkey feather, and the let the sky shine upon you much to the delight of the child. Judged by the sparkling eyes Zuko was sure he would use everything he learned in a short time. Dignified Prince or not, uncle Iroh was just as eager to learn and use them as he was when he first heard the crew cuss. Maybe it ran in the family? Or was it a child thing?

He needed to tell the crew not to use real swearwords around his uncle. He didn’t want them to corrupt him.

He left uncle with Haruto, instructing him to find Nurse Keiki once they finish breakfast and leave the little prince with them, then to go to bed. A man needed his rest after all. In particular when a rabbit-cat abused them so thoroughly.

He went to find lieutenant Jee. He didn’t want his uncle to be a child forever. The kid was cute but he needed his adult uncle and if the spirit wanted him to find himself then he would find himself. He hoped Jee would have a plan.

Chapter Text

Haruto committed the worst mistake in his life and he had a mighty list of those. He should have rested as Prince Zuko suggested but instead, he stayed to chat with the nurse and the little prince. Then it evolved into playtime and he enjoyed himself until… the floor was lava and Prince Iroh was especially good at climbing the furniture.

Nurse Keiki and Haruto tried and failed to lure him down from the top shelf in the nurse’s office, even though they offered him cakes, toys and stories told and performed by the two of them but to no avail.

The little prince sat cross-legged with Haruto’s traitorous rabbit-cat in his lap. At least the child’s constant chatter about lotus-monkey-kitten-puppies and Yumi’s loud purr drowned out Haruto’s frantic thoughts about deserting and hiding in an Earth Kingdom swamp for the rest of his life. As the child’s guard if something happened to Prince Zuko’s de-aged uncle he would be killed, resurrected, and killed again, he just knew it. Even nurse Keiki was shaking with fear.

Maybe a nice Earth Kingdom family would adopt him, he just needed to stay alive until they arrived at the next port. He tried to figure out the best hiding spot on the ship. Maybe their easily irritated and snappy engineer would hide him, or Naoki, the cook?

No, the engineer was a better choice, even Prince Zuko seemed tame compared to her. She was vicious, but widely respected for her right hook and immense knowledge about her chosen field. She fought for and with everything and anything and it made her eyes sparkle and her voice deepen…

Haruto tried to think about an adequate bribe for her. What did she like after all? He didn’t know her that much, she was scary. And competent, and beautiful and capable of murdering him in his sleep…

Or would it be better to make offerings to Prince Zuko instead? At least he was upfront in wanting to kill his crew. Maybe some hot chocolate, pancakes, theater scrolls… Everybody saw how fast he wolfed down the food or how he reacted to the crew’s antics the day before. He was as dramatic and as pessimistic, as the best of them.

They knew about his little theft too. Naoki’s secret stash of chocolate wasn’t so secret after all.

The Music Night was another eye-opening experience. Their disliked prince who didn’t know how to lead a ship full of disillusioned soldiers was just a typical teenager, with the temper of a cornered honey wasp-badger who was in dire need of help and acceptance. Without his constant scowl, yelling, and posturing he fit right in.

And then there was the case of Yumi. Prince Zuko didn’t punish Haruto for having an animal on the ship, he was even allowing his child uncle to play with the rabbit-cat. And he wasn’t sure but it seemed like he petted the animal too. That longing in his eyes couldn’t be only his imagination. And all of them saw how easily and eagerly he hugged their little prince.

…That white lie about Uncle being a swear word was downright cute.

Maybe he shouldn’t desert until this curse was lifted and their brat of a prince got back the only adult who seemed to accept him with barbs and all.

Nurse Keiki was shaking with barely suppressed laughter. Haruto was panicking next to them, but he wasn’t in immediate danger so they just enjoyed the show. Haruto’s facial expressions were very amusing to watch.

Of course, they glanced from time to time at Prince Iroh and his companion. It would be their funeral if the child fell and injured himself, but the kid was put and having the time of his life on that shelf so they let him be. After all, everybody needed to experience the floor is lava or climbing a tree… or the furniture. Best if it was in a controlled environment with a nurse at hand in case of emergency.

They liked this variant of General Iroh. The child was creative, happy, and mischievous. He even got Prince Zuko to participate in his antics. That walking scowl needed some relaxation, some loosening up.

Nurse Keiki really liked this situation. The curse was the best thing to happen to the princes. It made the crew uneasy, that was sure, but they liked the little imp and they saw a primarily unknown side of Prince Zuko too. They saw him be considerate to the child. He was ready to protect him, he hugged him, consoled him, even sang for him. He was gentle and caring with his de-aged uncle. It was truly incredible. And what was beyond belief, they saw Prince Zuko smile and laugh when playing with the kid.

That smile transformed the prince’s face. It softened his features and made him look like the teenager he was. It made nurse Keiki painfully aware of how they must have failed this kid if this was their first time seeing him smile.

That shy smile, that hopeful and longing gaze… It made them realize that the prince wanted to be included, wanted to belong, he just didn’t know it was permitted. That he didn’t know they waited for him to approach them for so long but in the face of the prince’s grumpiness they just gave up.

Without his adult uncle, Prince Zuko wasn’t so sure of himself. Of course, he postured like he knew everything but he did ask for lieutenant Jee’s or nurse Keiki’s help what he wouldn’t do before. He tried to yell less when in the company of Prince Iroh. In these two days, he showed more of his personality than in the past two years.

Prince Zuko acted like a human being and the crew reacted favorably to it. Naoki was well on the way to adopting him. After all, those who wolfed down pancakes and hot chocolate like there was no tomorrow should be fed and cared for. Haruto was thankful for having permission to keep Yumi. Even lieutenant Jee was looking at Prince Zuko with less judgment in his eyes and with more consideration.

Of course, there were those who disliked or even hated the prince. That watchman who was punished for sleeping on the job, Yuuto or something was too angry. Nurse Keiki hoped he wouldn’t try to do something to Prince Zuko or child Iroh when they were this vulnerable. They vowed to keep an eye on them. Even misfit princes needed protection from the world sometimes.

Prince Zuko sat on Jee’s bed chewing the tip of a brush with an empty piece of paper before him. He was deep in thought, the ink dripping slowly but surely on Jee’s sheets but he couldn’t be mad at him. After all, it was Jee who forced the pacing prince to sit down already and think about his childhood, what he liked, disliked, valued, or hated with a passion.

The prince wanted help with the curse but Jee wasn’t much more clever when it came to spirits. That was General Iroh’s expertise. He sighed. Prince Zuko glared at him, but it was without heat. He was distracted. They needed to find out what changed, what he lost from his personality. Hee didn’t feel in him to judge the prince for it. Everybody lost a part of themselves in this war.

Jee had regrets too. He didn’t see the prince as a person until General Iroh was out of the picture. He liked the child version too, but he wanted the adult General back. His calming and jovial nature, his military knowledge, and his capability to understand what his nephew wanted were dearly missed. In his absence, it was Jee’s responsibility to make the ship run smoothly.

Prince Zuko was just a teenager, unsure of his position and in need of a reliable adult in his life. Of course, he was hiding that insecurity under a very thick layer of anger and bravado, but Jee saw him now. Saw him trying to right a wrong, saw him play and laugh, saw him be a real person, not a mask put on for protection. He saw a part of his real personality and it made him curious.

He didn’t know that Prince Zuko was good with kids. He didn’t know that he respected General Iroh’s possessions even though all of it was mostly useless junk. He didn’t know that he liked sugary things or that he wasn’t above petty theft. He didn’t know that the prince knew how to sing or smile. He didn’t know that the prince knew how to be gentle or quiet or considerate of others. He didn’t know that the prince knew how to fulfill a request or ask for help. And that he trusted Jee enough to rely on him not once, not twice but thrice, that he sought him out for guidance…

It made him rethink some things he took for granted.

It was a shock to realize it. He knew it, of course, he was aware of the prince’s age, but he didn’t put two and two together until now. Prince Zuko was a kid when he became their captain. Was he even prepared for it? Did he learn how to lead, how to strategize? Was he aware that their mission to capture the Avatar was a sick joke? Was he just ignoring it for some reason?

He should give the prince some lessons under the pretext of consulting him on their course. He should give him the files on their crewmen, he needed to know them, to be prepared for everything.

Maybe he should try to include him in the strategy meetings with the helmsman and their engineer again. In their first month on the Mamushi Jee tried to invite him but he refused, even though General Iroh always participated. Maybe this time Prince Zuko would be more open to his ideas.

He waited for the prince’s sign before he sat down next to him as they revised his answers. Prince Zuko deserved some respect after all.

Chapter Text

Zuko sat on lieutenant Jee’s bed and tried his hardest to remember what he liked or disliked. He scratched the words out then jotted them down again. The list wasn’t long but his work was ugly, ink-stained, cramped. His tutors from the palace would have a heart attack if they were to see it.

Zuko looked at Jee. The lieutenant leaned against the door, with his arms crossed, eyes unfocused, clearly lost in thought. Zuko almost didn’t want to disturb him, but he was done and he really needed a competent adult’s insight. He braced himself for the sarcasm the lieutenant was prone to, already prepared to yell and put him in his place if he dared to mock him.

„I’m done.”

„May I read it, Sir?”

Lieutenant Jee’s voice was quieter and less harsh than it used to be. Zuko held out the slightly crumpled paper and Jee took it without any comment on its appearance. He sat down, his lips moving silently as he read Zuko’s notes.

„You wrote Pai Sho and playing the tsungi horn in the once liked but now hated with a passion category. Do you want to tell me what changed? If you don’t want to speak about it I won’t force you, Sir, but it could be important.”

Zuko contemplated the answer. Was he ready to speak to Jee about this? No, he wasn’t but it was needed. He wanted Uncle back and they didn’t have a better idea for now. Jee was trustworthy, he wouldn’t tell anybody. So it was soul-searching and soul-baring time, yay!

„It was fun to play Pai Sho with Uncle and Mother. Every time we played they would tell me about their day, they would ask me if something interesting happened, and we would order tea and scones and just be together. It wasn’t important who won. But once they were gone it was just me and my tutors. And I’m not good at it so they forced me to play at least an hour every day to learn logical thinking, even when I was tired or hurt from firebending practice. I read every book on Pai Sho and learned much more strategy than I ever wanted. Of course, the tutors never wanted to talk because I could have lost my concentration. Now when Uncle wants me to play with him it feels forced, so no. I don’t want to.”

Zuko glanced at Jee. His brows were furrowed but there was no judgment on his face for now. He continued.

„The tsungi horn was my favorite instrument. And everybody said I am talented, you know? I liked to play it for my Mother and Azula. My sister loved the sound of it and she always sang along. Yeah, until the day she discovered her bending. Then nothing else could exist for her. If she came to hear me play she was punished by her tutors for doing something useless. But that didn’t stop us right away. On moonless nights I sneaked near her windows and played for her a bit. It was our secret. Now it just reminds me of what I lost when I was banished. I can’t stand it.”

The lieutenant’s face did something weird. It crumpled a bit then it smoothed out into a more neutral look. Zuko didn’t want to decode it. Jee read the next item on the list.

„You wrote turtleducks and something I can’t decipher to your likes.”

„I like turtleducks, so what? They are cute. And...”

The lieutenant stayed silent, almost motionless, just his thumb stroked over the words. Up and down, up and down. Zuko concentrated on the slow movement.  

„And we had this pond full of turtleducks. Mother and I always fed them together, sometimes we even pet them. Once the mother turtleduck bit me. It wasn’t pleasant but she was just protecting her chicks. I wasn’t trying to hurt them but I did something stupid and she felt threatened.”

Thinking about his childhood was painful. Zuko wanted to pull up his legs on the bed and curl up a bit, to rest his chin on his knees and hid his face in his arms but he knew he shouldn’t. He was in boots, they would stain the lieutenant’s clean bed. He should be considerate.

Then he noticed the puddle of ink that dripped from his brush on the sheets. He was sure the lieutenant noticed it, after all, he sat almost next to it. It was weird how he didn’t say anything. Zuko dipped his index finger in it trying to shape the spot into a turtleduck. The sheet was already past saving. He would send somebody later to change it.

„The other thing on the list is hugs. I discovered recently that I like them. When I was little Mother used to hug me often but once she was gone… Father or Azula was always so busy anyway, and they never were the hugging types. Uncle too, he was a general, he had more important things to do than to seek me out. I know I’m not a child anymore and it isn’t something grown-ups do but it feels nice to be hugged, you know? With my de-aged Uncle, it isn’t even weird. He is so young, he needs it.”

„You don’t have to be ashamed. Adults hug plenty too. Nurse Keiki, our cook Naoki and hawker Shun regularly take part in our bi-monthly hugging contest. Yes, we have those too. Don’t look at me like that, Sir.”

Seeing Jee’s awkward expression, Zuko tried to comply. And he was way more curious than weirded out.

„So for the crew, there is the Music Night and the hugging contest. Do they do any other things for fun? No, I don’t want to hear about what they do in port.”

Lieutenant Jee searched his face for a minute or two but he probably found what he wanted because he answered the question without grumbling.

„The weekly boot-throwing competition and the bi-weekly shouting contests are very popular, Sir. The monthly rat-roach races could be heated, but still many are interested in them. They are fun and great for relieving stress. For the quieter crewmen, there is the Poetry Club. Every three days they have a poetry reading session. The joint evening meditation and morning Yoga practice Nurse Keiki does every Sunday is good for relaxing too. If you want, you can take part in them too.”

How had he missed all of this? Did Uncle know about it? Did he approve of it? Was the crew really this stressed? Was it because of the mission or Zuko himself? He didn’t know anything about his men. He was the worst leader in history.

He stood up.

„We should end this session for now. It’s almost lunchtime and I want to check on Uncle too.”

„Of course, Sir. I will be in the mess hall and later with the helmsman if you wish to continue.”

As Zuko strode toward Nurse Keiki’s office, he felt a bit lighter than before. He watched the few crewmen hurrying out of his way and couldn’t help but think about their childish competitions. Would they really let him participate in any of them? Then he dismissed the thought. He was their Prince, their superior. It would be beneath his dignity to attend for example the shouting contest. Anyway, it wouldn’t be fair, he would win it. He was the best at shouting, he had years of experience under his belt.

Chapter Text

The nurse’s office was silent.

Uncle snored softly on nurse Keiki’s bed buried under Haruto’s wide-awake rabbit-cat who purred like there was no tomorrow. The kid had his head on a plate with some left-over sweets, with chocolate smeared around his mouth and his cheeks. His sticky fingers grabbed the hand of the asleep guard lying half on the bed, and half on the floor. Even nurse Keiki was yawning by their desk, resting their forehead on some important-looking documents.

Zuko didn’t know what they did to be this tired, but nobody was injured or in danger, and he didn’t have the heart to wake them. Uncle needed to rest. Haruto too. He nodded at the half-asleep nurse and tiptoed out of the room, going alone into the mess hall to eat. Maybe he would join lieutenant Jee and the helmsman today.

He heard the ruckus well before he was anywhere near the mess hall. Was there another mutiny now that Uncle couldn’t help him fight? Zuko ran, flames ready in his hands, smoke already coming out of his nostrils, until he reached his destination. There he stopped dead in his tracks, watching with disbelief as one of his men flew out the door, thudding into the wall, followed by a few plates and a chair. The roar was inhuman. After that, he peered more cautiously into the room.

The mess hall was, well, a mess. And in the middle of it was their new komodo rhino trying to trample a sparrowkeet - another unauthorized pet he ignored before but now couldn’t - and a dozen of his men trying to capture them. They jumped and shouted and threw napkins and tablecloths and behaved like absolute morons who never saw animals before.

Zuko ignored the urge to laugh hysterically and did the next best thing. He stepped inside and shouted.

„Stop it! Stop right now!”

It said something about his lung power that he was heard at all. The men stopped. Zuko dove out of the way of the komodo rhino which chased the desperately chirping sparrowkeet, now with a tablecloth caught on its horns.

„Where is lieutenant Jee? Where is the handler?”

One of the braver men lifted his chin towards the kitchen door shut tight and barricaded with debris. Faint thumping sounds could be heard from the other side.

„They are trapped there. We can’t reach them till this monster runs freely.”

They both jumped out of the half-crazed animal’s way, which now sported a table on its back. They found the sparrowkeet sitting on top of its head, chirping its ears off.

Those trapped inside the kitchen would be fine. Those inside the mess hall would be not if they stayed.

„Out! Everybody out! Help the injured and shut the door!”

Zuko sent the injured crewmen to nurse Keiki. He sat down with the remaining crew members just outside the mess hall.

„What happened?”

„Isamu’s sparrowkeet tried to burrow itself into our new komodo rhino’s nostrils. The bird surely made its business on the rhino’s tongue when it tried to take it out. After that Gao was powerless to stop it.”

Isamu? Gao? He needed to learn the name of the crewmen. Urgently. He didn’t know who was who, and what they did, and without his uncle or Jee it could become a problem rapidly.

The man took pity on him.

„Isamu is our helmsman. Gao is the handler of every animal on this ship. Don’t punish them, sir, this isn’t their fault. It’s just an unfortunate accident that the bird picked on the new animal. The others are accustomed to its shenanigans.”

„So there is a pet sparrowkeet everybody knew about and kept a secret from me, and this sparrowkeet just happened to piss off the only animal on this ship that is just half-trained and easily angered. Am I right?”

The men opted to look everywhere else but him, one of them whistling innocently. Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose and definitely didn’t swear. At all. Not a little bit.

„Okay. We will talk about this later. Why are the animals in the mess hall? Why is lieutenant Jee trapped in the kitchen?”

„Tomo is- I mean, the bird knows where to find its owner and flew to the mess hall. And we couldn’t keep the rhino from following. When handler Gao tried to calm it down and capture it, the animal pushed him over, right into the lieutenant, and they both stumbled into the kitchen. The latch fell shut and in the rampage, one of the cupboards fell over and barricaded the door.”

„Then why were you jumping and shouting like crazy? Why were you agitating the animal further?”

Great. More innocent whistling and looking anywhere else but into his eyes.

„…We were trying to capture it? To direct it back into the stalls?”

 „Are you stupid? Don’t you know anything about animals? If you spook one of them you need to calm them down not to upset them further!” The men flinched. Zuko didn’t bother to tone his volume down. They deserved it, and more. He would punish them once the komodo rhino is safely back in the stall and lieutenant Jee is back out of the kitchen.

The men exchanged looks. The braver one held his hands out making placating motions, saying things like Yes, sir, we understand, sir, sorry, sir.

They were treating him like he was a dangerous and skittish animal. Again, Zuko felt the urge to laugh hysterically, and he stifled it once again. It wouldn’t help. He breathed in. Out. In. Then out.

„Okay. What should we do now?”

„Maybe we could look inside to see if the rhino calmed down enough to follow one of us back into the stall? I have a peach with me, I heard they like it.”

True, there weren’t any sounds for a while. They opened the door. The komodo rhino sat in the middle of the room munching happily on somebody’s lunch. The sparrowkeet hung on the horn in the middle of its snout and swung to and fro without a care in the world. They ignored the crewmen piling into the mess hall.

„We should…” The men indicated the barred door. The thumping was frantic in there.

„Yes, you should. Hurry.”

Lieutenant Jee fell out of the kitchen, handler Gao, Naoki, the cook, and helmsman Isamu right after him, ready to battle.

There wasn’t anything to battle.

„You take the rhino back into the stall and report to me in half an hour. You catch your bird and report to me in ten minutes. You all, clean the debris away. Lieutenant Jee, Naoki, are you all right?”

„Yes, sir. Thank you for your concern.”

„We need to talk about the crew and their behavior. They kept another animal a secret from us, let a half-tamed komodo rhino escape the stall, and angered it further instead of calming it down. I find their incompetence and insubordination unacceptable. I think we should punish them wit-”

„No, sir.”

Right. The lieutenant was one of the people who disrespected him regularly. He thought Jee was more tolerant of him now, but it really was just his imagination. He tried to mask his hurt.

„It’s lunchtime and you didn’t eat. Right now we sit down and eat. Then we are going to talk to the crew and find fitting punishments for them, sir. Together. I agree today’s events can’t happen again, it’s dangerous for everybody. But you need to take care of yourself first, sir. The crew and your uncle need you in top form.”

Zuko couldn’t quite hide his shaking shoulders. Of course, Jee saw it. He was too observant sometimes. He made an aborted motion like he was going to touch him before he remembered who he was.

Naoki didn’t have any qualms about it. He pulled Zuko into a side hug before going back into the kitchen to make him a plate.

Chapter Text

Helmsman Isamu came back with a still sleepy Haruto and a very excited prince Iroh, who had the sparrowkeet nested on his shoulder, a finger under the bird’s beak. Zuko narrowed his eyes. If this was what he thought it was...

„Look, Zuko, it’s a sparrowkeet! She’s a beauty, see? Can we keep her?”

Zuko turned away from Uncle’s kitten-puppy eyes. The helmsman fidgeted under Zuko’s glare.

„It’s not what you think it is, sir! I ran into them on my way to my cabin and the little prince just happened to see Tomo in my hands and he wanted to pet her and I couldn’t possibly say no to him, right?”

Zuko glanced at Lieutenant Jee who took this as permission to speak.

„Helmsman Isamu. Why do you have that bird on the Mamushi? You know that it’s illegal to have any animals besides komodo rhinos and messenger hawks on a ship. And today your irresponsibility could have had very grave consequences. You could be court-martialed for it. At the next port you must dispose of that bird and you will be heavily punished.”

The helmsman paled. Haruto didn’t look at anybody, maybe because of his own illegal animal on board. His de-aged Uncle was ready to cry.

„What? Why? She is so soft! And beautiful! And the best bird in the whole world! Why would you want to send her away? Zuko, please, can’t we keep her?”

The helmsman joined in the pleading. „Please, sir, don’t take Tomo away! She was a gift from my little daughter. I didn’t see her or my wife for years! I just wanted to have something from home. I will put her in a cage and she won’t bother the komodo rhinos anymore, I promise. I will take any punishment just please, let me keep her.”

The lieutenant looked at Zuko.

„Prince Zuko. What do you think?”

Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose. In the last ten minutes he had time to think, and the shock and disbelief he felt at the situation at hand turned into slow simmering anger. His uncle was alright. Jee was too. His crew will be. He knew that, but if his de-aged uncle were the one to come into the mess hall when the komodo rhino was on the loose he could have been seriously injured or worse. He should at least confiscate the bird.

But.

He made an exception for Haruto and his rabbit-cat. He blamed his child uncle, his weaponized kitten-puppy eyes, and his own reluctance to see him cry. He was turning soft.

„Helmsman. Today’s incident cannot happen again. It was dangerous, there were injured people and it could have been more serious. You and your bird are partially responsible for it.”

„I understand, sir. I accept any punishment you deem necessary and at the next port I will dispose of Tomo.”

„No need for that right now.” Zuko looked at Lieutenant Jee who had a neutral expression on his face. It unnerved him a bit, he wasn’t used to this not-judgmental Jee. He looked back at the helmsman. „You are on probation for a month. At the next five ports you are going to be on watch duty, with no permission to leave. And for the next three months you won’t have any free time because you will be having extra duties besides teaching me how to navigate. And right now, you will put that bird in her cage and keep her in it at all times. If she causes another incident because of your carelessness, you will be held fully accountable and I will be the one to dispose of her. Permanently. Do you understand?”

If the last words were more like growled than said who could blame him? He overlooked the existence of that bird once and where did that lead? He couldn’t be careless again.

„Yes, sir! Thank you, sir!”

Helmsman Isamu practically ran out of the mess hall with his sparrowkeet. Uncle Iroh sat on the bench next to Zuko.

„Zuko? What happened? Why is everything broken and messy?”

„Did you meet the injured people I sent to the nurse’s office?”

„Yes. Nurse Keiki immediately sent me away. But they weren’t that injured. I saw worse.”

„…What? When?”

Did Uncle suddenly remember the war? That he was a general with thousands of soldiers under his command? Was he an adult in mind in a child’s body right now? Could he help with breaking the curse? For a few moments, Zuko dared to hope.

„A few months ago, Father sparred with some people from the colonies in the middle of the night. It was dark and he couldn’t see well because of it so they had burns and they were bleeding. Mother said that’s what happens when you are just too excited to wait until morning. I mean, Father is the Fire Lord and he is awesome, of course, they were excited to spar with him! Who would wait? But she doesn’t approve of fighting at night, obviously, because it keeps her up and that makes her tired and cranky. Mother said, this happened before too, but this was the first time I was there. Zuko, why are people from the colonies so obsessed with sparring with the guards and with Father after sunset?”

Because they wanted to assassinate the Fire Lord and his heirs. Because they would love nothing more than the total eradication of their family. Zuko had his own story. But he couldn’t say this to a child.

„I don’t know. Maybe they are reckless or want a challenge. Anyway, they shouldn’t have underestimated your father. But Un- Prince Iroh, are you alright?”

„Why wouldn’t I?” Then the kid narrowed his eyes. „You wanted to say uncle again, right?”

„I won’t swear again, I’m sorry, it’s just a habit. A very bad habit.”

Lieutenant Jee had a very sudden and very suspicious coughing fit. Haruto too. They were saved from reprimand when handler Gao arrived to make his report.

„Sir, the komodo rhino is back in the stall. The latch is secured and I put another lock on the door.”

Zuko’s anger returned with a vengeance. He didn’t know much about the handler but it was his responsibility to ensure that animals didn’t just escape their stall and wreak havoc on a warship.

„Handler Gao. Could you please explain it to me how was a half-tamed komodo rhino capable of leaving the stall and going on a rampage in the mess hall? We have clear safety protocols for the animals, why weren’t they followed? It was fortunate that there were just a few people injured and some property damage but it could have been much worse. What if those injuries were serious? What if it attacked me or Prince Iroh? What if it hurt him or trampled him? You could be executed for treason right here and now without any questions asked, did you know?! Not even court-martialed!”

At the end of it he was yelling, again, and handler Gao was on the floor kneeling, his child uncle openly gaping at him, and the few crewmen who helped clean the debris away were all clustered next to Naoki, the cook, silently watching for now, all pale and sweaty.

It was the bird’s nastiness that pissed off the komodo rhino but it was handler Gao whose negligence made the animal’s escape possible and they knew it too.

Zuko was sure the sound of his racing heart and heavy breathing could be heard even outside of the mess hall. Then his de-aged uncle crawled into his lap, breaking the spell everybody was under. The few crewmen who were involved in the chase kneeled one after another next to the handler, admitting that they were guilty too of making the situation more dangerous than it already was.

It was surreal. Zuko hugged his child uncle closer, hiding his face in the kid’s hair. For once the child was silent.

Father would have killed those responsible for the mess on the spot. Fire Lord Azulon too. He should be like them. He couldn’t.

„Lieutenant Jee. I leave their punishment up to you.”

„Of course, sir.”

Zuko heard words and half sentences like probation for three months, and loss of privileges, and reduced rations for a month, and extra latrine cleaning duty, because they weren’t part of the official war efforts and Jee too wasn’t like the Fire Lord. And just like Zuko, he knew that they couldn’t afford to lose those people. Without his adult Uncle there to help they wouldn’t be able to hire more.

After the last mutiny they were understaffed even now. His crewmen were incompetent, disrespectful and grouchy but not fully mutinous so they stayed. Zuko just needed to be more sever, more vigilant. And to put them through a refresher course of the regulations and safety protocols on a warship.

He hoped that Lieutenant Jee would help him with that. He would ask him later. Right now, he stayed where he was, just breathing through the anger and worry. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder, firm and grounding. He let it happen. It was a welcome weight.

Chapter Text

Neither life nor time did stop just because Zuko was upset.

After the rampaging komodo rhino incident the crewmen were more cautious around him and Prince Iroh for a few days. When Zuko continued to shout but nobody died or was expelled they slowly heartened up. They didn’t complain so much as before the incident, but they were as dramatic as ever. And now they tried to include Zuko in their shenanigans.

They could have had more success with their little prince Iroh but they just. Didn’t. Give. Up. It was annoying. And sometimes a little bit comforting. If asked, Zuko would deny it, of course.

It was the third week with his de-aged uncle and Zuko now had a new routine that involved more people than ever.

His days began at dawn with an hour-long morning Yoga practice with Nurse Keiki and Uncle Iroh. Uncle mentioned once how he wanted to be like a real lotus-monkey-kitten-puppy, nimble and deadly, and Nurse Keiki thought this required discipline. Why they prescribed daily Yoga practice for both of them Zuko didn’t know, he didn’t want to be like those imaginary animals, but he did the Asanas anyway. A few of the Sunday morning Yoga practitioners joined them too.

After that came his firebending training with Lieutenant Jee and handler Gao, while Haruto and Nurse Keiki instructed his child uncle. He could hear the delighted shrieks even from the other side of the ship.

Zuko never dared to laugh during training.

They began with the lieutenant teaching him some advanced katas, then came an hour of firebending combat against the both of them where he was required to use those katas actively. The handler was surprisingly good at combat, even though he lost focus easily. Zuko liked to remind him where he was and why he needed to keep up and be aware of his opponents. His anger at the handler helped fuel his fire. Jee was more focused, Zuko never could surprise him.

He had hand-to-hand combat training with engineer Hua twice a week. She was one of the buffest people on the ship, capable of snapping Zuko in half if she wanted.

He didn’t know why the engineer volunteered for sparring with him, they never interacted before, but truth to be told, he enjoyed their time together. She was inventive, bold, and she fought dirty. In a few sessions, she taught him how to move to be able to use his surroundings, his height, and his weight to his advantage. It was great.

Haruto always came to watch them for a few minutes and always ended up fleeing when Hua focused on him. Zuko didn’t know what that was about, but he wasn’t going to ask them. No, thank you, their drama wasn’t his problem. He had enough on his plate already.

He had daily strategy meetings with engineer Hua, helmsman Isamu, and Lieutenant Jee. He learned so much about navigation, strategy, leadership, and even about his crew. Lieutenant Jee had books and files on everything and everyone. He learned everyone’s name slowly but surely.

His child uncle occupied his time in the afternoon. He demanded that they play, he wanted to hear stories, but sometimes he just wanted to cuddle and nap with Zuko. And he always wanted to eat their meals together.

Since the incident, Zuko was rarely allowed to eat alone in his room. Uncle Iroh, Nurse Keiki, and Lieutenant Jee found all kinds of excuses to make him eat in the mess hall together with the crew. His de-aged uncle sometimes dragged Haruto or helmsman Isamu to their place when he wanted to chat about their pets. With time, it became less and less awkward to sit there and talk to them.

Naoki, the cook became one of his favorite people. He was always quick to make him another plate if he saw that Zuko liked something or to make him a cup of hot chocolate. He wasn’t too shy to pat Zuko’s shoulders when he was satisfied with his appetite.

The only one who seemed to hate the sight of him in the mess hall was Yuuto, the watchman he punished for sleeping on the job. The others either didn’t mind him there or hid their dislike better.

A few of the braver crewmen invited him to join their evening meditation and Prince Iroh accepted it in his name. The experience wasn’t that bad, but he liked better to meditate alone.

He loved the Poetry Club. When he joined it, Yuuto quit.

He didn’t want to participate in the boot-throwing competition, or in the shouting contest. He didn’t dare to participate in the hugging contest. He liked hugs but he wasn’t ready to open up and make himself vulnerable.

He kept his distance from the rat-roach races and he didn’t let Uncle Iroh participate either. He didn’t need an attack against them in the heat of the moment. He didn’t like the dark looks he kept getting from Yuuto. Who knew what he planned? He should keep an eye on him.

And he should find the cure for his de-aged uncle. Lieutenant Jee tried to help Zuko but even after three weeks, they weren’t closer to the solution.

He missed the stability his adult uncle’s presence gave him. He never admitted it aloud but it was great comfort that he wasn’t alone, that his family didn’t completely abandon him, that he had somebody he could depend on. Child Iroh was cute and mischievous, with his heart on his sleeve and he loved the kid but he didn’t want to be his uncle’s uncle. He missed being ignorant of his uncle's plight. He missed being the younger one.

He missed being a nephew.

(He missed being a son.)

He needed to find the Avatar.