Fic: bravery is but a word [ATLA, KuZu, Merpeople AU]

[quillpunk]

• Rating: T
• Categories: M/M, Gen
• Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender
• Relationship: Zuko/Kuei
• Characters: Zuko, Keui
• Additional Tags: Ficlet, Pre-Slash, Pre-Relationship, AU - Merpeople
• Status: Complete
• Wordcount: 1123
• Series: Part 7 of Monthly KuZu Mini-Prompts
• Published on AO3: 2022-05-04

Notes: Monthly KuZu Mini-Prompts, 2022: May - Merpeople

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any associated trademarks.

---

Zuko slipped through the reef, twisting and turning to get around them with as few ripples as possible. His breath was high in his throat, fans sweeping out and retracting just as quickly. He spun, up and down and right and left. Sunlight shone through the top of the ocean, a seemingly never-ending torch cutting the water in two.

He searched, gold eyes glowing. His gaze swept around as he continued to push onward, his lips curling in displeasure and his body tensing further.

The pearl was gone, though.

He couldn't find it, and he'd been searching for what felt like ages now, unending misery curling through him. He was tired and sore and so fucking disappointed. The pearl was his mother's, after all, and it was all he had left of Ursa.

He scowled, shaking his head as he cut through the water with quick, efficient movements. No, the pearl had to be here. It was the last place he'd had it, so he just had to keep scouring the surfaces. It would have sunk, wouldn't have floated away, he thought.

Pressing his mouth tight together, he swam deeper and deeper. Further out and deeper than he'd ever gone before, the light decreasing in increments, a slow delay that eventually just turned to pure darkness. There was no sunlight down here, but Zuko couldn't give up. He refused to give up.

His body slowly began to glow, a soft light that allowed him to see even this deep. It was foolish, stupidity—it'd only draw predators to him. But. Well, but how else was he to search?

He licked his lips, saltwater meeting him. Eyes wide, the darkness enveloped him entirely, cutting him off from the rest of the world. He tried to make his body as small as possible, tried to reduce the light he gave off to the lowest possible, but he wasn't sure it'd make a difference.

And soon enough, he knew it didn't.

There was a moment of stillness, where the waves froze and the water seemed to sink. Then there was a great buoying, a great push. Zuko tumbled through the water, spinning around and frantically trying to claw his way out of the sudden current. But then it ceased, again. The water calmed, a far more natural stillness.

It took him a long moment to realize that there was a figure before him, now. Zuko's heart skipped a beat, and he hissed, drawing himself up into his biggest form. Fans swayed out, and he banished his claws in the water, cutting right through it.

The figure swam closer, the water shifting and pushing Zuko back again. In a fit of madness, Zuko let his glow increase once more, wanting to see who it was that was before him.

And—fuck.

They were big. Gigantic. The tail alone was at least twice as long as Zuko's, and the claws were bigger, too. This was... not good.

"Who are you?" Zuko demanded, voice cold. He was still trying to appear bigger, but it made him feel foolish, like a child trying to appear an adult. Still, he needed all the advantage he could get if he was going to scare this merman off.

What even was he? Not fire, not like Zuko. There was no great heat coursing through the other merman's veins, no glow to his eyes.

The other merman moved closer to him once more, tails lazily pushing him forward. Zuko's lips peeled off his teeth, a snarl erupting from his stomach. He bared his teeth wildly, raised his hands before him and made sure that he was ready to claw at the first thing within reach.

But. But, the other merman stopped before that. He gazed at Zuko from eyes the color of seagrass, dark hair locked into a long plait. He stared at Zuko for a long moment, long enough for Zuko's heartbeats to count to thirty, and then held out a hand. The bigger merman coughed, and then he said, "This is yours."

There laid a sparkling, white pearl in his hand. Zuko's eyes widened, and he darted forward before his mind caught up with his actions, grabbing the pearl before it could be hidden.

"Mine," Zuko said, baring his teeth as he launched backward, tail moving wildly to get him out of range.

The other merman nodded. "I know," he said, voice mild. He clamped his hands together before him, and he added, "I saw you lose it. I looked for it. I'm glad you got it back."

"Looked for it?" Zuko's eyebrows furrowed. He asked, "Why would you look for it?"

"It's important to you."

"Oh," Zuko's mouth pulled down as he thought, hand clenching on the pearl. (It wouldn't break, strong as it was.) He still couldn't make sense of it. Why would it matter to a stranger, that the pearl was important to Zuko? Why would he care? Even bothering to look for it? What could he possibly get out of it? (Zuko wasn't even the heir to the Fire Nation anymore.) He shook his head, demanding, "Well, what do you want in return?"

"Ehm," here, the strange merman ducked his head, swimming lower in an attempt to be smaller and, presumably, less intimidating. It didn't really work. The merman continued, fingers fiddling, mumbling, "You're very pretty."

Zuko blinked. He stilled, his tail propelling him closer to the other merman (again) against his better judgment (also again). He licked his lips, drinking in the salty taste. "Okay," he said.

"Okay?" the merman made a strange noise, a kind of strangling in the throat. "Okay, what?"

Zuko shrugged. "My name is Zuko," he said, finally remembering that they hadn't introduced themselves. "You can court me," he added.

"Court—" The other's mouth snapped shut. It sounded strangled again. It repeated, "Court you? You'll let me court you?"

"Sure," Zuko shrugged again. It wouldn't last, anyway. He'd been courted before, by Mai and other lesser important people, and it always ended the same way. They got tired of him, got tired of being an outcast in the Fire Nation, or realized that he was never going to get his title back, and they all left. This one wouldn't be any different, so really, what was the harm?

He'd leave Zuko soon enough.

"I'm Kuei," the other merman said, breaking Zuko out of his thoughts. He had a strangely determined look on his face, and he said, "I'll work hard," very seriously.

Zuko's lips twitched, despite everything. He began to swim away, but he couldn't help peek glances behind him. Kuei was still looking at him, gloating motionlessly in the dark, and Zuko wondered vaguely what that strange tingle in his stomach meant.