Title: This Side of the Bridge

Author: Amber Esme Hermione

March 19 - Spirits

The quack of a turtle-duck draws Zuko's eyes from the head cradled in his lap. His fingers trace marked skin suffused with spiritual energy. No one dared disturb the Fire Lord at his vigil. Everyone from his highest admiral to the newest servant knows that if the Avatar is in the spirit world nothing else exists.

Zuko guards Aang's body beside the pond where he used to sit as a child. The days with his mother are not the ones he recalls now. He remembers warmth and life in the center of an ice fortress. He holds back unnecessary breath of fire to word off Danton cold. His ears ring with the echo of splitting ice.

But through Zuko's inner turmoil Aang's body remains tranquil, or at least Zuko prefers to think of him that way.

From what his partner shares of the Spirit World the Fire Lord knows it is a dangerous place. The best one can hope for is indifference from the sundry apparitions. The truth is that in the Avatar's many lifetimes the reincarnated spirit has made more than a few enemies; on both sides of the chasm that is Aang's responsibility to bridge. The least Zuko can do is protect him on this side.

Tattoos dim, gray eyes flutter, and the the Avatar returns from the Spirit World in the arms of a very concerned Fire Lord.

"Honestly, Zuko, I almost expect to be tied up again by the look on your face."

A/N: ZukAang Week 2013! While I was writing this I had a hard time deciding if this was going to be for "Spirits" or "Memories". I think it turned more into the former by the end.