Chapter 8 – Bato of the Water Tribe
Darya had taken to sitting on top of the helm. Not in it, mind you, but perched like some great gold and red bird. Her airbending robes flapped around her and she let her yellow hair blow freely. She had her feet tucked under her as she crouched down, ready to launch herself into the air.
It was only a few hours after they had left Zhao's port behind, but Darya could hardly stand the uncomfortable armor that she had been disguised in. The horrible presence of Zhao was also dissipating, which was something else that added to Darya's positive mood.
The kiss between her and Zuko the night before still tried to creep into her mind, but she was determined to avoid dealing with it as much as possible. I am just going to sit up here, enjoy the air, and wait until Aang flies out of the clouds to save me. Or I will grow old and die here.
She had no intention of addressing her growing feelings for the fiery prince, not wanting to make a decision in either direction. I couldn't possibly start a relationship with him, not to mention he probably regrets kissing me. Maybe he hit is head or something, because there is no way that he actually wanted to kiss me or has any feelings for me. And I am having trouble thinking about fighting him in the end. I can't stand this! Everything was black and white, easy, and now it is all messed up! Damn Zuko and his attractiveness! Why couldn't I meet a nice earthbender.
Darya shuddered at that thought. Earthbenders and airbenders did not get along very well. Darya couldn't imagine being tied to the ground. At that thought, she stood up on the helm, the wind coaxing her to join it in its freedom. Darya opened her glider and jumped, tucking her feet onto the foot rest. She swung around the ship, hovering above it as it slowly pushed through the waves. A flock of sea birds flew above her, and Darya decided to join them.
They squawked in anger as their flight was rudely interrupted. They wheeled about and Darya laughed as they continued to voice their annoyance with her. She dove to the left and swung around the ship in a large arc. Then she put on a burst of speed and shot up into the air to gain altitude.
I wish I could stay up here forever. She thought as the ship became a small dot below her. The firebenders below knew that she had nowhere to go with them surrounded by water, and had taken to ignoring her flights. Zuko would usually keep an eye on her, but since the events of the previous evening, she had not seen him. Which she was eternally grateful for. She didn't know how she should act around him let alone talk to him. He had replied to her goodnight, and that had been a sign for her, but as soon as she had woken up, she was doubting it all again.
Stop it, Darya! She yelled at herself. I'm done thinking about this. I need to escape and return to Aang, not worry over some boy.
Darya allowed the air currents to push her up and down as she followed the ship below her. She knew she had to escape soon, but to where? Aang could be anywhere, and after the run-in with Zhao, they had lost any leads they had before. But Darya knew something the others didn't: the destination was the North Pole. Even if she couldn't find Aang along the way, she could at least meet him there. He may be there already, but she highly doubted it. Even if she had been on the ship for over a week, she was sure Aang had gotten side tracked.
I'll make a run for it at the next port. She decided. It didn't matter where they were, she just had to get away. Things were getting complicated with Zuko, and she needed to make things clear again. Darya felt determination rise within her. She was excited at the prospect of seeing Aang again, as well as getting her hands on her swords again. It had been too long and she was worried she would get rusty.
She laughed at herself as she began to float back to the ship. She had been asleep for a hundred years without getting rusty, and here she was worried that a week would impair her skills.
Darya noticed Iroh sitting at a table on the deck of the ship and dropped out of the sky to land lightly on the table. The tea tray on it shook slightly, but no tea was spilled. Iroh, however, was so startled he nearly fell out of his chair. Darya lurched forward and steadied him before jumping into the chair that was placed across from him. Her heart gave an unpleasant jump as she realized that she was getting to close to this man as well. He was like the father that had given her up so many years ago, and that thought scared her. How can I face them in battle? Darya shook her head to clear her thoughts before she got a headache again.
"You look troubled." Iroh stated, tossing Darya back into her thoughts. She cursed under her breath about the horrible observation skills of the old man.
"Nothing that would concern you." She lied smoothly, or so she thought. However the slight twitch in the old general's eye told her he saw through her. Once more she cursed him. "I'd rather not think about it right now if that's alright."
"That is alright with me, but do not let your emotions become bottled up. I find that when something is bottled for too long, it will eventually explode. However, for the time, let up forget it and play a game of Pai Sho." With that, the two began to play a game of Pai Sho, and Darya attempted to forget her problems for the time being.
Darya was knocked off her feet as the ship rocked violently. She stumbled into the wall and put a hand out to stop herself from falling over. With a small burst of air she righted herself and ran for the nearest door to the deck.
What she saw made her mouth fall open. A monster crouched on all fours on the deck. It's black and tan fur bristled with ill intent and its shriveled nose twitched continually. The creature lashed out its tongue and struck a man in rags. He froze instantly and fell, only to be scooped up by another creature. This one was far more beautiful than the beast behind her. She had black hair partially pulled back in a bun and dark Earth Kingdom type clothes.
As Darya strode forward, the woman picked up the frozen man and placed him on the back of the creature.
"He's paralyzed." Zuko stated, clearly angry yet curious. The woman turned to him and Darya felt a pang of jealousy as she realized how beautiful this woman really was. As soon as she felt it she squashed it, burying it deep and trying to forget about everything that had happened between her and Zuko.
"Only temporarily." The woman purred, bringing Darya back to the present. "The toxins will wear off in about an hour. By then he'll be in jail and I'll have my money."
Darya was growing more curious now. She had never seen a creature like this, nor had she heard of one with the ability to stun its opponents. She watched the creature warily. It was clear to see that it was blind due to the lack of eyes, which meant it must "see" with its nose, which continued to twitch irritably.
"But how did you find him on my ship?" Zuko continued. He was still angry, but it seemed his curiosity was rising as well.
The woman swung herself back in the saddle before replying. "My shirshu can smell a rat a continent away." She patted the creature lovingly as it growled.
"Well, I'm impressed." Iroh added, making Darya roll her eyes at his tone of voice. Of course he had to try and hit on this woman.
The woman gave a bark of fierce laughter and cracked a long whip, making the shirshu bolt off the ship and down the dock. It was then that Darya noticed that they were near land. This was it, her time to flee had come.
I need to get my glider. Her glider was the only thing she actually owned on the ship and she was not about to leave it behind. She had left it in "her" room and Darya was just thinking about how to get it when Zuko turned to her. It had been the first time that had seen each other that day, but Darya refused to feel uncomfortable. She had made her decision: return to Aang and forget about Zuko as anything more than an enemy. She could see his emotions clear on his face. First came a soft look, then uncertainty, then embarrassment, and finally confusion as Darya held his stare coolly. Within, Darya fought her own battle as she watched the final emotion of faint hurt pass his face before he too wore a mask of indifference. The lines are drawn then, she thought with a hint of sorrow. Anger at the Fire Lord prickled the back of her head and she felt it crawl down to her heart. If it wasn't for him, she would have no problem with falling for Zuko, but because of the selfish actions of one man, she was forced to instead fight him. She just prayed that she would be able to end the war before Zuko turned into another Fire Lord.
"Lieutenant Jee!" Zuko barked, tearing his eyes from Darya. "Tie the airbender's hands and make sure she does not go near that glider."
Darya's eyes widened in shock and the anger that was bubbling under the surface broke through.
"What?! Don't you dare lay a hand on me!" she growled fiercely, making Jee, who had been coming up behind her, pause. Zuko only narrowed his eyes before letting off a volley of flame that Darya tried to dodge, only to find herself closer to Jee than before. With a look of regret, he grabbed her hands and forced a piece of thick rope around her wrists, tying them together.
"What is the meaning of this Zuko?" Darya snarled, fury burning bright in her eyes. How could I have kissed him! He's a monster!
"We are going ashore and I don't trust you to not run off. You," he called over a masked soldier. "Go get her glider. I want to keep both of them in my sight at all times."
The soldier dashed below deck to follow Zuko's orders. Darya glared at the prince with loathing, her sorrow from their loss replaced with fire and rage. The soldier returned quickly with her glider and Darya let loose and animalistic growl to see him hand it over to Zuko.
"Let's go." Zuko ordered menacingly. Iroh, Zuko, and Darya began to trek through the forest, following the massive pawprints of the shirshu.
Darya stomped along, not caring when Zuko shot a glare back to her or when Iroh gave her a sympathetic look. They were no longer companions, they were the enemy. What was worse was she was their prisoner. This was the first time Zuko had actually treated her like the prisoner she was and it made Darya's blood boil. While they walked she planned on several different ways to kill Zuko, each one more violent that the last.
They didn't have to wander far before the sound of yelling and something crashing reached their ears. Before long a rickety building came into view. It was three stories, squat, and looked to be patched together half-heartedly. Through the windows they could see men dancing, drinking, fighting, and arm wrestling. Amidst them they could see the woman at a table, her shirshu laying down near the door.
They forced their way through the crowd, Darya hoping to find a knife sticking out of someone's waistband or a way to slink into the crowd, but Zuko grabbed her arm before she could, forcing her to walk with him.
"Out of my way! Step aside filth!" Zuko ordered, making Darya roll her eyes. Yes, because that would help their situation. The men stepped aside to watch the arrogant prince drag her through them. Curious glances dashed to her tied hands, and she realized that Zuko had stupidly put them in danger of some greedy bounty hunters.
The walked up to the table that the woman was at. She was currently arm wrestling a man that had to weigh at least twice what she did.
"I need to talk to you." Zuko demanded, leaving no room to refuse.
"Well, if it isn't my new friends, Angry Boy and Uncle Lazy. Oh look, you found yourself an Angry Girl. Congrats." The woman purred. Iroh laughed heartily as the woman slammed the man's huge hand on the table, ending the fight abruptly. A pile of money spilled out from the cheering crowd and fell onto the table in front of the woman.
"Your beast trashed my ship. You have to pay me back." Zuko ground out, clearly loosing patience fast.
I'd love to help, but I'm a little short on money." The woman relied. Darya chuckled. She was starting to like this woman. "Drinks are on me!"
The crowd cheered loudly, drowning out Darya and Iroh's laughter. Zuko cracked a small, feral smile that stopped Darya's laughter in her throat. For a moment he looked just like Zhao had on Fire Temple Island. She shook her head to clear that image and Iroh looked at her curiously. Darya turned away, wanting to confide in him, but knowing that she could never do so again.
Zuko grabbed the woman's hand as she was about to take a drink from her cup. "Money isn't what I had in mind."
They all watched as the woman stared from his offending hand to his eyes. She smiled flirtatiously and nodded, standing up at the same time.
"Let's talk outside, my name is June by the way."
The trio followed the bounty hunter outside until they found themselves next to the shirshu.
"I need you to find someone." Zuko began, pulling out an object from inside his sleeve. Darya gasped and fresh hatred coursed through her. It was Katara's necklace. It meant the world to her, and here it was in the hands of the enemy. Then realization dawned on Darya. They were going to track her down, and she had to be with Aang. Zuko really was stupid to take her along. Aang was under her protection, assigned to her from Avatar Roku, nothing was going to stop her from getting to him.
"What happened? Your girlfriend run off on you?" June teased. Darya couldn't help it. The idea of Zuko and Katara was too much. She nearly collapsed in laughter, bringer her tied hands to as close to her stomach as possible.
"I like you, you're funny!" Darya added to the end of her laughter, wiping the tears from her eyes as best as she could. June grinned at her, and once again Darya found herself liking someone on the opposing side. Maybe I'm just cursed, she muttered to herself.
"It's not the girl I'm after," Zuko ground out, his eyes firmly ignoring Darya, "it's the bald monk she's traveling with."
"Whatever you say." June said flippantly.
"If you find them, I'll consider the damage to my ship paid for."
"Forget it!"
June turned and began to climb up the saddle.
"Plus we'll pay your weight in gold." Iroh added to the annoyance of Zuko.
"Make it your weight and we got a deal." June smiled as she stepped down from the saddle.
"You got it!" Iroh laughed heartily.
June grabbed the necklace from Zuko and ordered them to get on. The beast was more than large enough to hold them all. Iroh waddled over quickly in order to be the first to sit behind June. Darya shook her head at his antics but proceeded to climb on. She did not want to have to sit behind Zuko and hold onto him. She may have sworn Iroh as an enemy again, but she would much rather grab onto him.
Zuko waited until the shirshu had caught the scent before he tied Darya's glider to his back and clambered on rather clumsily. Darya ignored the heat that comforted her from his body as he sat behind her, keeping a few inches of space between them.
"Nyla will be able to track your girlfriend down in no time. Hold on!" June ordered as the shirshu lifted its nose into the air before leaping after the scent it had caught. Darya shot out her arms instinctively and tried to grab onto Iroh but the rope prevented her from doing so. She felt herself tipping off the side of the beast before two iron bars held her upright. She sucked in a breath as Zuko held her tightly, the heat that radiated off him growing exponentially. Darya cursed the blush that bloomed on her cheeks and she refused to acknowledge him. However, he did not remove his arms and the awkwardness of the situation was too much for Darya.
"You can move your arms now, I'm not going anywhere." She hissed.
"Why should I trust you?" Zuko rumbled behind her. She could tell he meant it to be a rhetorical question, but he didn't act well. There was an actual question hiding under the surface and Darya remembered the hurt that had been in his eyes earlier. Had she hurt him that much? They were barely friends before he had kissed her, and now he was hunting her friends with the help of a bounty hunter and a monster. And he was hurt by her? However, the softer side of Darya, the side that Zuko himself had already seen was battling with the anger within her. She knew the anger was not good, but she desperately wanted to hold onto it. It was much easier to hate him than it was to like him.
Darya turned her head slightly, her blush coming back as she noticed his face much closer than she had thought.
"It-" she was having trouble thinking of how to vocalize her thoughts. "Zuko, it will be easier this way. You have to know that too."
She needed him to understand that they couldn't repeat or continue what happened last night, despite how either of them may feel.
"Whatever." Zuko growled, but Darya could see that sorrow return. Only this time, it stayed and it broke her heart a little. The sorrow was beyond their situation, it was deeper and darker than just a lost romance. It was suffering that had happened for years.
"We can talk when the war is over." Darya added, despite the warning in her head telling her to leave it. Zuko met her eyes and she saw the sorrow only grow.
"We both know who will win this war." He said, his voice surprisingly quiet.
"Yeah, me." Darya smiled, attempting to lift his spirits a little. Zuko snorted and she was happy to see that a smile ghosted across his face before it returned to its original stone.
"Now turn around and stop talking before you fall off again." He ordered, although with less force that usual. Darya gave him one last smile and turned around, his arms not feeling as awkward as before.
They rode for another half an hour before stumbling upon a greenhouse. In front of it they found an old lady and a rather fluffy cat. After questioning the lady it was clear that she was a little lose in the head.
After following the trail for a while more, they found themselves in front of a shrine in a small village. Another older woman came out of the shrine as Zuko was complaining.
"Why are we stopping?" Zuko snarled, annoyance clear in his voice.
"Because the girl must of spent a lot of time here." June replied evenly.
Zuko growled and hopped down from Nyla. He grabbed the necklace from June in a huff and shoved it in front of the shirshu.
"We have no time for this!" he barked.
Apparently, the shirshu did not care for this because it lashed out it's poisonous tongue, just narrowly avoiding Zuko. Darya and Iroh laughed.
"Oh look, he likes you." June chuckled as well.
The older woman who had stepped out of the shrine interrupted the moment by smiling flirtatiously at Iroh, who smiled back.
"Care to hear your fortune, handsome?" she asked silkily.
"At my age there is really only one big surprise left, and I'd just as soon leave it a mystery." Iroh replied.
Darya smiled, but the smile soon fell when the woman turned to her sharply. Her mouth was open in a silent exclamation before she found her voice again.
"You! He spoke of you!" but before the woman could elaborate, Darya found herself whisked away on the shirshu. Her head was spinning a bit from the brief exchange. Aang had been to that village, so he must have mentioned her to the old woman. How the woman had recognized Darya was another mystery.
They ran more and Darya was worried the running would never end. How far had Aang travelled during the week of her absence? They ran into an abbey where the sisters were making sweet smelling perfume.
"Smells good." Darya muttered to herself. She had never been one for perfume, but this stuff smelled divine!
"We're getting close." June said as she cracked her whip again. The shirshu roared and leapt out of the gate and back into the wilds. Darya could feel the beast tremble under her in anticipation and she readied herself for a fight.
They burst from the trees and onto a wide trail, and to Darya's amazement, Sokka and Katara stood only a few feet from her. Nyla stopped and huffed, content at accomplishing its goal.
"Sokka! Katara!" Darya cried in joy. Both water tribe teens spun around when the monster entered the path, and their eyes opened wide in fear and amazement. Here was the girl who had gone missing in the storm astride a monster and with-
"Zuko!" Sokka cried in anger. He drew his club from where it rested on his side. June ignored him and hopped down from her perch.
"So this is your girlfriend." She said as she sashayed towards Katara. Zuko hopped down and stalked towards Katara. Darya bristled as he did so. "No wonder she left. She's way to pretty for you."
Zuko ignored her as he stood in Katara's face. "Where is he? Where's the Avatar?"
"We split up! He's long gone." Sokka thrust himself in between his sister and his enemy.
"How stupid do you think I am?" Zuko growled.
"Pretty stupid." Sokka snarled back. He turned quickly and grabbed Katara by the arm. "Run!"
"No!" Darya yelled, but it was too late. The shirshu had lashed out as its prey tried to flee. The two teens fell heavily in the dirt. "Don't you touch them!"
Darya yelled as Zuko and June walked up to the paralyzed water tribe members. They both bent down and turned them over onto their backs. Darya could see that even though they were paralyzed, their eyes held hatred as they glared at Zuko.
"What are we supposed to do now?" Zuko growled.
"It's seeking a different scent – perhaps something that the Avatar held." June pointed out as the shirshu began to sniff a roll of parchment that had fallen out of Sokka's pack. The shirshu looked up suddenly and let out a faint roar. Zuko and June grabbed Sokka and Katara and threw them onto the overloaded shirshu before getting on themselves.
Several minutes of running later and Darya found herself surrounded by the sweet perfume from earlier. She kept glancing back to check on Sokka and Katara, but could only see their legs dangling from behind Zuko. She shot a glare at him for capturing her friends, but otherwise she left him alone. They had already said what had need to be said.
"What's it doing? It's just going around in a circle!" Zuko huffed, his hot breath washing over Darya's neck. She shivered slightly, but found her attention shifting as the shirshu leapt in the air. She caught sight of a flash of red and gold as she was thrown from the monster.
"Aang!" she yelled with Katara, who was apparently getting some feeling back. Darya scrambled to get up from where she lay only to find Aang cornered by the now righted shirshu. She growled and tried to bend the beast away, but her hands were still bound. She turned and saw a broken pot laying on the ground and ran over to it, tripping slightly in her haste.
She began to saw at her bindings as Appa crashed into the scene and began defending Aang. Darya's relief at seeing him was short-lived as Aang began to fight Zuko. She sawed at the ropes faster as Aang and Zuko exchanged a fierce volley of attacks which lead to them being blasted onto opposing roofs. Her ropes finally cut as Zuko ran to attack the still unconscious Aang.
"Zuko!" she roared, catching his attention. He looked at her in surprise as a blast of hot air slammed him off the roof and onto the ground. He grunted and staggered to get up. Out of the corner of her eye, Darya saw June and Nyla begin to fight Aang. She knew he could handle them, so she turned to concentrate on Zuko. She sent several blasts of air at him which hissed with steam. She poured her anger into each blast and found herself annoyed that none of them hit. He danced past each one nimbly and began to fire back.
Darya and Zuko entered a fierce dance of wind and fire, their attacks swirling together instead of hitting their target. Deep down, Darya knew she wasn't trying her hardest to beat him. She wanted to want to hurt him, to damage him, to add another scar. But she couldn't; not even a little bit. She had seen past the Fire Prince mask he wore and knew that he was pulling his punches as well. She had seen him spar with Jee, and he wasn't even fighting that hard. Between them was a cloud of steam which hissed and snarled in anger. Darya thought she saw a figure dancing in the steam, but it disappeared when Aang let loose a tornado of air which knocked Zuko into a wall.
"Darya, are you alright?" Aang asked before Zuko could get back up. She looked at him in relief to see that he was unharmed from his fight with June. She nodded quickly and smiled before turning back to the advancing Zuko. Katara's necklace still dangled from his wrist and it was clear that Aang had seen it. His eyes hardened to steel.
"You have something I want!" Aang roared with more fire than Darya thought possible. Aang sent a volley of air at Zuko as Zuko returned with several punches of fire. Darya swerved to avoid the two attacks and leapt onto one of the roofs to survey the scene. She could tell that Aang needed to fight this battle himself, considering Katara's necklace was on the line. Darya could see the way that Aang was desperate to impress the waterbender, so Darya decided it was best to watch and interfere only when necessary.
She could see Sokka and Katara run over to the large pots of perfume that surrounded the center of the abbey while Aang and Zuko danced around an old well. As Darya was about to launch after Aang and Zuko in order to make sure Aang didn't fall into the well, the sound of pottery shattering filled the courtyard and Darya spun around to watch the perfume drench the shirshu. It began to cry and lash it's tongue out wildly. Fortunately, it missed Aang as the Avatar dodged Zuko's attacks. However, the prince did not fare as well. He fell to the ground with a hard "thwump" as the poison paralyzed him. Darya saw her chance and she took it.
She swung down from the roof and bolted towards Zuko. She had to dodge the still rampaging shirshu, but she still managed to make it over to his side. With quick movements, she untied her glider which was still slung across Zuko's back. Zuko snarled at her as she pulled off her dragon glider.
"You know as well as I do that this," Darya gestured to the surrounding chaos, "could have been avoided. Use your brain, prince, I believe I told you that last night."
With that Darya, Aang, Sokka, and Katara disappeared into the sky on Appa, leaving an incredibly confused and embarrassed Zuko behind.
The gang was back together, and Darya was more than happy. The four teenagers relaxed on Appa's saddle as the sun set in a glorious explosion of red, pink, and gold. Darya had finished relaying her adventures on board the Fire Nation ship and the other three had quickly filled Darya in on all the events she had missed. When Aang came to the tale of the blue spirit, he gave Darya a long look which made her feel incredibly uncomfortable. Aang had never looked at her like that before, as if she was hiding something. She hated more that she was indeed hiding part of her adventure from her friends. She would keep the details of her time with Zuko to a bare minimum. She feared their reactions if she were to reveal that not only had he kissed her, but she had actually enjoyed it.
"So where do we go?" Aang asked, clearly apprehensive. Darya had learned all about the incident with the messenger and had heard the regret in Aang's voice.
"We're getting you to the North Pole." Katara replied.
"Yeah," Sokka spoke up, "we've lost too much time as it is."
"Don't you want to see your father?" Aang quickly asked. Darya felt a pang in her heart to see Aang acting so selflessly. Granted, he was trying to make up for being incredibly selfish, but this was good to see in the young Avatar.
"Of course we do, Aang. But, you're our family too, and right now you need us more." Sokka scoffed.
"And we need you." Katara added with a light blush. Darya kept her eyebrows down, although it was a struggle. Apparently Aang's affections are not one sided.
"I wish I could give you a little piece of home, Katara. Something to remind you-" Aang began to say after a few moments, his hands behind his back.
"I'll be ok-" Katara began to say sadly.
"Still, just a little trinket. Maybe something like . . . this!" Aang jumped up and proudly showed Katara her missing necklace. Darya laughed at the shock on Katara's face and felt proud of Aang. She had been distracted by the crashing perfume pots and had not seen him successfully recover the necklace.
Katara jumped up with a cry of delight. "Aang, how did you get that?" she exclaimed.
"Zuko asked to be sure I got it to you." Aang said, smiling as Katara put on her necklace. Darya laughed at his joke, imagining how angry Zuko probably was at losing his one lead on Aang.
"Oh that's so sweet of Zuko! Would you give him a kiss for me when you see him?" Katara continued to joke.
"Sure!" Aang laughed. However, he quickly fell silent as Katara gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek.
Darya would have laughed at his reaction, but she was miles away. Katara's words had her travelling back in time to the kiss that she had shared with Zuko 24 hours earlier. Darya needed space, so she quickly mumbled an excuse about stretching her legs and leapt into the air with her glider.
She soared next to Appa for countless minutes, her mind and heart at war. In the end, the only thing Darya could definitively say was that she was missing the scarred prince.
Many miles away, on a steel ship that belched smoke, the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation lay in his bed. He was staring at the dull grey ceiling, desperately trying to get the face of a particularly perplexing airbender girl out of his mind. He continued to fail miserably as he recalled the last 24 hours he spent with her. He had been yelled at her, kissed her (a momentary weakness he was quite surprised with), ignored her, fought her, been yelled at again, and then abandoned.
No, not abandoned. He chastised. She was a prisoner and she had successfully escaped. She was a prisoner and nothing more became his mantra, however hollow it felt. Zuko was confused and the smell of the wind and something slightly minty which clung to his blankets did not help him in anyway. He had often caught the same smell as he sat near Darya in the dining hall or while they talked congenially on the deck.
And when I kissed her. Zuko groaned and rolled over, burying his head in the pillow, which only exacerbated the scent that clung to it. I will have the sheets washed in the morning. He was still feeling the sting of her cold look that she had held when she had appeared on the deck that very afternoon. He was not sure what to expect, but the ice that was in her eyes felt like a punch to his stomach. He had opened up to her, albeit unconsciously and very minimally, but that was a lot for him! And anger had taken over him. But then she had smiled while they rode the shirshu. But it was her words of hope that had made him smile back, even faintly. He hoped and prayed that she was right. He wanted the Avatar to win, but that would mean he had lost his throne, probably his whole nation, and probably the death of his father. Zuko's thoughts turned tumultuous again.
Zuko sighed and decided that for one night only, he would stop thinking. His thoughts were only becoming more jumbled and he felt a headache growing. So, once his decision was made, he fell asleep with only one solid thought in his mind. He missed her.