*。☆。
★。＼｜／。★
˚ ₊ ♡ ❰ MIRACULUM ❱
*✧ ─── ❝ ❪ CELESTIAL ADVICE ❫ ❞

⋆ 🌪. CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
˚ ₊ ♡ 112 a.a ─── book two: earth

UKI DIDN'T SLEEP. THE CEILING STARED BACK AT HER ALL NIGHT, THE silence pressing down like snow before a storm. The flyer sat tucked beneath her pillow, but its presence felt heavier than steel.

By dawn, she sat upright, tension coiled beneath her skin like a taut string.

She moved like a shadow through the house. Her steps were light, but her thoughts were deafening. Iroh greeted her with his usual warmth, serving a breakfast of rice porridge and ginger buns, but she barely registered the taste. She chewed and swallowed out of habit, the food turning to paste in her mouth. The hot steaming tea at her side almost as cold as the North before she took her first sip.

When they left for the teashop, she followed, just behind them, close enough to listen, far enough to think. Her eyes swept the streets like searchlights, skimming walls, lampposts, alley corners.

Zuko's foot came down on a damp corner of paper, just outside a pottery shop. Uki's heart seized. She could see the curved shape of Appa's tail curling up along the torn edge, could see the black letters stamped across the crease.

But Zuko didn't notice.

He stepped over it without so much as a glance, his gaze fixed ahead. The flyer stuck to his heel for half a second, then fluttered away behind him, face down, blending in with the street muck.

Uki's breath caught in her throat.

Too close.

She quickened her pace, letting the wind carry the flyer further down the street before stooping to snatch it up. She folded it swiftly, tucking it beneath the sleeve of her tunic. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears.

Iroh turned to ask her something, surprise by her unexpected rush, but she waved him off with a tired smile. "Just thought I saw something," she muttered, and he, ever gracious, let it go.

By the time they reached the teashop, Uki's mind was already far away.

She tied her apron with shaking hands and took her spot behind the counter, pretending the seams of her life weren't beginning to tear apart.

The bell above the door chimed steadily throughout the morning. The scent of roasted oolong and fresh ginger wafted through the air. Iroh bustled about the shop with cheerful energy, chatting with patrons and offering tea wisdom to anyone who would listen. Zuko loitered in the corner, mostly silent but attentive, occasionally stepping in to help when the crowd swelled.

She caught herself staring at him more than once.

A tray nearly slipped from her hands when the bell chimed too loudly. She cursed under her breath and forced herself to breathe. Focus, she told herself.

Uki took a grounding breath, eyes settling on Iroh as he walked with a metal tea kettle—before she took note of three other gentlemen.

They were dressed pristine, their garments looked finely woven and well made for the blistering heat the city endured in the middle of the day. They looked even more dressed up than Yuanyun did in his university robes.

"So you are the genius behind this incredible brew?" the finest dressed of them all asked as he followed after Iroh.

Iroh had turned around and Uki and Zuko both paused to glance in their direction.

"The whole city is buzzing about you!" He cheerfully boasted, a smug look on his face as he took another sip—flashing the finely crafted rings on his fingers and the glimmering jade stones in them. "I hope Pao pays you well."

Iroh, seemingly oblivious just smiled broader, "good tea is its own reward."

"But it doesn't have to be the only reward." The man spoke calmly, "how would you like to have your own teashop?" he inquired.

Uki blinked, mouth gaping slightly.

"My own teashop?" Iroh echoed in stunned surprise, grin brightening, "this is a dream come true."

Uki grappled with the tea tray again as Pao came rushing toward Iroh. She winched as one teacup went flying—she closed her eyes waiting for the sound of shattering porcelain, but it never came.

Blinking one eye open, she saw Zuko next to her, in his hand the fallen teacup.

"Thanks." She muttered, averting her eyes as he placed it back on her tray.

"What is going on here?" Pao demanded, fidgeting nervously with his sleeves before resolutely standing in front of Iroh, as if hiding him from the vulturous eyes of the man in front of him. "Are you trying to poach my teamaker?"

"Sorry, Pao, but that's business for you, am I right?"

"Mushi, if you stay, I'll..." He trailed off, "make you assistant manager—wait senior-assistant manager!"

"I'll provide you with a new apartment in the upper ring."

Uki glanced nervously between the two arguing men.

"The teashop is yours to do whatever you want with." The man continued, "complete creative freedom."

"I even get to name the shop?" He asked in awe.

"Of course."

"—uh. Senior executive assistant manager?" Pao pleaded on last time.

Iroh barely spared him a glance as he handed his teapot to Pao and bowed to the new man—the one who was making his dreams come true.

Iroh, excitedly turned to Zuko and Uki. "Did you hear, this man wants to give us our own tea shop."

"That's erh—great Mushi." Uki balanced her tray on one hand to give the man a thumps up and an awkward smile.

Zuko, in a very Zuko-ish way did not say anything.

"That's right kids, your life is about to change for the better!"

Uki wasn't quite sure about that.

"I'll try to contain my joy." Zuko monotonously replied, leaving his own tray on an empty table to step outside.

"I'm sure he is very excited Mushi." Uki tried to console Iroh as he smile faltered slightly. "You know how he is—moody teenager and all that."

"Thank you Lian."

Uki bowed quickly, untying her apron to following Zuko outside.

She barely made it through the doorway when something slammed into her chest—a crumpled piece of paper, shoved into her hands.

Her heart dropped.

It was a flyer. The flyer.

"Did you know?!" Zuko's voice was low, dangerous, barely leashed. His eyes burned.

Uki's throat closed.

"I-I—Zu--Lee wait" She tried to pull him back by the sleeve of his tunic but he pushed her back to slacken her grip.

His expression twisted with betrayal and disbelief.

"You knew."

"I just found it last night!" she snapped, panic rising. "I wasn't hiding it—"

"Don't lie to me," Zuko hissed. "Not about this."

Uki took a step forward, voice shaking. "Zuko, please. You can't go after him. Not here. Not like this."

"And why not?" he snarled.

"Because things are changing—you are changing, can't you see?" Uki pleaded, "you can actually make a life for yourself here."

"I don't want a life here." He spat out, the embers in his eyes roaring. "My life is back home, beside my father."

Uki flinched at the word, but didn't retreat. She stepped forward instead, gently, her hand reaching out again.

"Zuko, there's nothing waiting for you there. Not the future you think"

He took a step back.

"Your uncle is here," she continued, quieter now.

She hesitated. Then, with a breath: "And I'm here."

That made him stop. For a heartbeat, he said nothing. He didn't move. The fire behind his eyes dulled just slightly, like coals flickering uncertainly in the wind.

"I don't care."

Zuko spun around before she could respond, his fist crushing the flyer with a sound too loud for mere paper.

She watched him go, shoulders stiff, head bowed. She could see it—he wanted to burn the flyer. Maybe he wanted to burn the truth.

Maybe he wanted to burn her.

⋆⋅ ━━━━ ‧ ༻✩༺ ‧ ━━━━ ⋅⋆

UKI DID NOT RETURN TO THE APARTMENT EVEN AS THE MOON SHONE BRIGHTLY ABOVE HER AND THE COLD MADE HER SHIVER. Instead Uki found herself on the same bridge again.

The lanterns along the bridge flickered softly, their light casting long shadows on the cobblestones. The water below moved in slow, rippling waves—mirroring the heaviness inside her.

She wrapped her arms tightly around herself and leaned against the stone railing, eyes drawn upward.

The moon hung high—full and pale, casting a silver glow over the city. Still. Watching.

"Yue..." she whispered. The name escaped her lips before she could think better of it.

She closed her eyes.

"You would know what to do, wouldn't you?" she murmured.

There was no answer. Only the wind brushing past her cheek like a memory.

The air stilled. The street noise quieted.

Uki opened her eyes, slowly. The moonlight shimmered brighter than before, bathing the river in a strange, soft glow.

"I hate to see you so troubled Uki."

Uki startled.

The voice was calm. Familiar. Not loud, but it filled her chest.

She turned. No one stood beside her—then her eyes were drawn back to the water—where instead of her own reflection...

Yue.

"Is this real?" she whispered.

A breeze rustled through her hair, warm despite the cold. Comforting.

"Real enough," Yue's smile was calm—beautiful like the first snow. "You came seeking clarity, didn't you?"

Uki swallowed hard, her throat tight. "I don't know what I'm doing anymore. I don't know what's right."

"You've always known," Yue said gently. "You just don't want to choose."

Uki gripped the railing, jaw clenched. "If I help Aang, I betray Zuko. If I protect Zuko, I risk everything the world still has hope for. I—I can't stand between them."

"You already are," Yue said. "Because your heart is in both places."

Uki bowed her head, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. "He hates me now. Zuko. I saw it in his eyes. He thinks I lied to him."

"You withheld the truth because you feared what he'd do with it. That's not betrayal."

The silence stretched again, broken only by the soft lapping of the river below.

"What if I lose them both?" Uki's voice cracked. "What if trying to protect everyone means I protect no one?"

"Then you face the consequences," Yue replied. "But you choose. With courage. I have never known you to give up or back out because someone told you to. You know what is right Uki."

Uki looked up at the moon again, lips trembling.

"Will you stay with me?" she asked, voice small.

"I never left."

Uki closed her eyes, heart swelling with warmth and when she opened her eyes again she was alone once more.

But something in her posture had changed—her shoulders straighter, her gaze clearer.

She touched her sleeve, where the flyer still sat hidden.

She knew what she had to do.

The waterbender pushed herself up from the cold stone, casting one last glance at the still water. The surface shimmered gently in the moonlight—where Yue had appeared only moments before.

Then she turned and disappeared down the quiet street, her steps steady but heavy.

Somewhere deeper in the Lower Ring, hidden in a narrow crease of shadow across from their modest apartment, Uki waited. Her breath was shallow, her body still, eyes trained on the dark windows above.

Time pulled strangely—stretching long and slow between each breath, yet slipping past her like sand through her fingers.

A part of her still clung to hope.

That Zuko wouldn't do it. That he'd stay inside. That he'd listen, just this once.

But her heart already knew better.

A quiet creak broke the silence, and Uki's gaze snapped upward.

There—second story. The faintest shift of curtain. Then the window eased open with practiced care. A shadow moved within, cloaked in black. The glint of moonlight caught the steel of his blades as he stepped onto the ledge, wearing the Blue Spirit mask.

Zuko.

He shut the window behind him without sound, then dropped down, catching himself on the lower ledge before landing softly on the street below.

Uki pressed herself further into the alley's edge, her heartbeat loud in her ears. Zuko never looked back. His movements were swift, deliberate. She followed at a distance, her footsteps absorbed by the sleeping city around her.

The farther he led her from the familiar lanes, the tenser Uki's chest became.

They passed shuttered bakeries, emptied plazas, alleys choked with steam from the underground pipes—until Zuko finally slowed.

They were close to the outer wall of the Middle Ring—where the Lower Ring bled into more fortified government districts.

Zuko ducked into a side alley, vanishing behind a stack of old crates. Uki crept to the corner, careful not to draw attention. She pressed her back to the wall, inching forward until she could see.

A lone figure stood beneath the flickering light of an old lantern—cloaked, unmoving. Dai Li.

The agent was walking as Zuko ran passed him, shouting some jab at him before he vanished behind the corner, leaving only dust in his wake.

Uki followed, eyes narrowed as the Dai Lee ran after him.

She only caught the end as she saw Zuko hold his sword against the throat of the man. "If you don't want to end up like him, you'll do what I say and tell me where you are hiding the Avatar's bison."

Uki swallowed nervously.

⋆⋅ ━━━━ ‧ ༻✩༺ ‧ ━━━━ ⋅⋆
wordcount: 2239

Yue, my darling I miss you. I loved their little interaction and I hope I'm building her relationship and everything with Zuko well! Can't believe season 2 is almost done tho!