Drabble: Uncharted
Written for the avatar_500 prompt #67: World.
Uncharted
At age seven Zuko wanted an adventure, to sail the seas fighting Water Tribe barbarians or travel across land and defeat Earth Kingdom soldiers attempting to stop the Fire Lord’s plans. He would travel through uncharted territories, winning battles and finding lost treasures. And when he returned from is journey, Mom would be there to meet him and Father would be proud and Azula could no longer tease him for not being good enough and the Fire Lord would give him the highest honor.
---
Iroh walked to the end of the ship where his nephew seemed to be doing his best to glare the coastline into submission. Iroh let a sigh fall from his lips before schooling his features. He placed a hand on Zuko’s shoulder.
“This territory has not been charted by the Fire Nation. It would not be wise to send our ship any closer to the coast.”
Iroh tried to hide his disappointment when Prince Zuko quickly shrugged off his comforting hand.
“The Avatar has not been seen for a hundred years, so he’s most-likely somewhere the Fire Nation hasn’t looked yet. We’re going,” Zuko said with conviction that Iroh had learned to both admire and dread.
“Might I suggest we moor here and take the steamer with a few of our more able crew members to shore? If there are any dangerous obstacles then we will not be risking our ship.”
Iroh watched Zuko’s jaw tense and prepared himself for the shouting that sometimes followed when his nephew suddenly deflated. It was so unexpected that Iroh had to quickly school his features into a more neutral expression before his nephew had finished turning to face him.
“Have the crew prepare the steam boat,” he ordered while storming past.
Trying to lighten the atmosphere, and prepare Zuko for the inevitable failure of this mission, Iroh called out to his nephew. “Perhaps we should take Private Lee with us? I hear he is an excellent cartographer.”
Zuko stopped and turned with a glare. “Our mission is to find the Avatar, not to waste our time drawing maps of places the Fire Nation has no interest in.”
Despite Zuko’s stormy expression, Iroh continued to smile disarmingly at his nephew. “It would be a good record of where we have already looked, Prince Zuko. Plus, I’m sure the local Navy would appreciate our contribution to making the waters a safer place.”
Zuko turned again, but before he walked away, he glanced over his shoulder with an obviously annoyed expression. “Fine. Private Lee can come with any materials he needs as long as they don’t get in the way of our actual mission.”
Zuko had stomped away below deck before Iroh could say anything else. The smile that had been permanently plastered to his face in front of his nephew finally fell and Iroh began thinking of things he could do to cheer up his nephew when another fruitless search was over.
Uncharted
At age seven Zuko wanted an adventure, to sail the seas fighting Water Tribe barbarians or travel across land and defeat Earth Kingdom soldiers attempting to stop the Fire Lord’s plans. He would travel through uncharted territories, winning battles and finding lost treasures. And when he returned from is journey, Mom would be there to meet him and Father would be proud and Azula could no longer tease him for not being good enough and the Fire Lord would give him the highest honor.
---
Iroh walked to the end of the ship where his nephew seemed to be doing his best to glare the coastline into submission. Iroh let a sigh fall from his lips before schooling his features. He placed a hand on Zuko’s shoulder.
“This territory has not been charted by the Fire Nation. It would not be wise to send our ship any closer to the coast.”
Iroh tried to hide his disappointment when Prince Zuko quickly shrugged off his comforting hand.
“The Avatar has not been seen for a hundred years, so he’s most-likely somewhere the Fire Nation hasn’t looked yet. We’re going,” Zuko said with conviction that Iroh had learned to both admire and dread.
“Might I suggest we moor here and take the steamer with a few of our more able crew members to shore? If there are any dangerous obstacles then we will not be risking our ship.”
Iroh watched Zuko’s jaw tense and prepared himself for the shouting that sometimes followed when his nephew suddenly deflated. It was so unexpected that Iroh had to quickly school his features into a more neutral expression before his nephew had finished turning to face him.
“Have the crew prepare the steam boat,” he ordered while storming past.
Trying to lighten the atmosphere, and prepare Zuko for the inevitable failure of this mission, Iroh called out to his nephew. “Perhaps we should take Private Lee with us? I hear he is an excellent cartographer.”
Zuko stopped and turned with a glare. “Our mission is to find the Avatar, not to waste our time drawing maps of places the Fire Nation has no interest in.”
Despite Zuko’s stormy expression, Iroh continued to smile disarmingly at his nephew. “It would be a good record of where we have already looked, Prince Zuko. Plus, I’m sure the local Navy would appreciate our contribution to making the waters a safer place.”
Zuko turned again, but before he walked away, he glanced over his shoulder with an obviously annoyed expression. “Fine. Private Lee can come with any materials he needs as long as they don’t get in the way of our actual mission.”
Zuko had stomped away below deck before Iroh could say anything else. The smile that had been permanently plastered to his face in front of his nephew finally fell and Iroh began thinking of things he could do to cheer up his nephew when another fruitless search was over.