Chapter 14: A Match and a New Beginning

General Iroh yawned and stretched as he made his way out to the deck. The sun had barely just risen and the whole ship was still asleep, giving the old man at least an hour or so of peace before the ship and soldiers within it woke up to start the day. His old eyes squinted against the morning sun as he came out on deck and his lungs took in their first breath of the cool morning air. Once his eyes became accustomed to the light, the old general looked around him and was surprised to see that he was not the only one up and enjoying the morning. Sitting upon the railing on the opposite side of the ship, Tamara had her face tilted towards the rising sun, her eyes closed, as she enjoyed the main source of power for their element. With a kind smile on his lips, the old man made his way towards her, making enough noise so as to not startle her, but not enough to disturb her entirely. As he got closer, Tamara opened her eyes and looked to see who was coming towards her. Sliding off the railing, the healer greeted the general with deep bow and a warm smile.

"Good morning, Sire." she said and General Iroh gave her a smile in return.

"I trust you slept well last night, miss?" he asked.

"I did, Sir. Thank you. And you?" The old general's smile grew wider. 'Such manners.' he thought to himself. 'If only my nephew could be so polite.'

"I did." he said with another stretch. In truth, the old man had slept better than he had in the past few weeks; with Tamara on the ship, things seemed so much more relaxed- though she had only been with them for a day. "So, my dear. What brings you out at this hour? I thought I was the only one to get up this early."

Two hours later, the prince woke up and dressed in his training outfit. He stretched and warmed himself up before he made his way out to the new morning. Soldiers were waiting for him as Prince Zuko walked across the deck. To his surprise, Tamara was up as well and sitting comfortably at a small table with his uncle, both drinking tea and conversing happily. The healer stood and bowed to him and his uncle offered to pour him a fresh cup of jasmine tea.

"No tea, Uncle. I'm ready to start training." his uncle sighed and shook his head. The mornings were usually like this; his nephew was always so eager to train that he forgot that tea could help him as well; not physically, but mentally.

"Very well, Prince Zuko. Start with your basics-" he started, but the prince interrupted him with an exasperated sigh. "You must keep in mind that your basics are crucial to your training. If you forget them, you will find it harder to become a true master of fire bending; to know the basics by heart means that you already know a bit about the advanced set. Now, as I was saying, start with your basics and then move into the next set." The prince nodded and made his way to the center of the deck, flanked on both sides by two soldiers, the unlucky men whose turn it was to spar with the young prince.

All three men took a deep, relaxing breath before they started, their hands up in fighting stance. Without warning, one of the soldiers launched an attack at the prince, who quickly blocked it and sent one of his own. And so the match began, each soldier taking up the spar with Prince Zuko until it was time for both to attack at once. General Iroh watched with an approving glint to his eyes as he watched his pupil; he knew that his nephew knew the basics, but Prince Zuko was still too anxious to learn the more advanced sets. He first needed to learn and master patience before he did anything else and the old general knew that his nephew was indeed beginning to understand that.

General Iroh stole a glance over to the girl beside him and watched as Tamara's eyes followed every move that the fighters made. No longer a soldier, but a healer once more, Tamara offered her services in case anything went wrong during the sparring matches. General Iroh had welcomed that offer with open arms- there was no true healer to be had on the ship, only a few men who knew how to wrap bandages- but as he watched her now, the old man could not only see the healer's spirit in her, but the fighter's spirit as well. Leaning in close to her, the old general whispered something in her ear. Tamara only smiled and shook her head, replying that it was a silly thing to do. They kept up the secret conversation for some time before Tamara finally gave in and went back to her room to get ready. Iroh smiled to himself and turned his attention back in time to see his nephew overthrow one of the soldiers. Before the next soldier could step in to continue the fight, the old man intervened and halted the match.

"What is the meaning of this, Uncle? I've only just begun the training session, why do you want to stop now?"

"I think these soldiers could use a break, let's try someone new."

"Who?" his uncle simply smiled and pointed beyond Prince Zuko's shoulder. Turning around, he was surprised to see Tamara walking towards him, her hair up in a tight bun and her healer's vest replacing her robe. The bandages were still around her wrists, but no one seemed to notice them as the healer walked up to face the prince. Prince Zuko looked surprised for only a moment and then he nodded his head in agreement. They bowed to each other and waited for General Iroh's signal.

"Now remember, this is a duel. Please try not to kill each other." They nodded and got into their fighting stances. "Begin." The prince was the first to attack, forcing arcs of fire to race towards the healer, who easily dodged them. As he attacked again, she dodged it once more and came straight at him. The prince stopped and waited for her to strike, but at the last second she dodged to the left, forcing the prince to spin around and keep up with her. The healer's right foot stomped and slid across the deck, kicking up a huge wave of flame as the prince spun around, forcing him back several steps.

Tamara was not as strong as the prince in battle, but what she could not do in strength she made up for in agility; her light-footed attacks helped to throw off her opponent and then she would come in with heavier attacks once she felt the time was right. The prince punched his arm forward and sent a stream of fire in front of her, blocking off her retreat and forcing her to face him. The fire stopped for only a moment as the two teens circled each other, sweat beginning to roll down their faces and their breaths quickening. Tamara jabbed forward and let a steady stream rage forth, but the prince easily deflected it, cutting through it with a quick downward slice of his hand.

As the two streams of fire raced passed him, the prince breathed in and brought his hands together, bringing the two streams back to one. With a quick punch, Prince Zuko pushed the flame back towards Tamara, who was forced to duck and dodge underneath it before getting burned. The prince again attacked and forced her back, remembering the one rule of breaking the root of the opponent. Everyone on deck expected that to be the end of the dual, but all were surprised when Tamara righted herself and went on the offensive, kicking up a blast of fire back towards the prince.

The spar continued on for several more minutes until both fighters charged towards the other, their arms alight and ready. The spectators on deck watched in surprise as neither fighter stopped, but collided with each other. A storm of smoke filled the air as the two hit, sending out a small, but angry, blast. As the smoke cleared, the men saw the prince and the healer flat on their backs several feet apart, meaning that the attack had forced them back. The old general ran forward as both sat up and let out an amazed chuckle as he helped them to their feet.

"You two should be proud of yourselves. I can see that you have both improved greatly since the last time you fought." Turning towards the healer, General Iroh said, "Tamara, your speed and agility are amazing and both are a great advantage in any fight." Prince Zuko nodded in agreement and Tamara bowed to both of them with a thank you. "I call this dual a draw." the old man called out happily, to the agreement of everyone within hearing range. Prince Zuko bowed respectfully to his sparring partner and Tamara mirrored him, much to the men's surprise. Several times they had seen the prince almost throw a fit if he could not overthrow his opponent, but now he had a satisfied look on his face and he was accepting the general's decision well. This girl was truly special if she could keep the prince's temper down.

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The same calls reached Tamara's ears as she and General Iroh walked down the village marketplace, the same one that the healer had been at yesterday. With their arms weighted down with packages, both fire benders made their way down the crowded road side by side, stopping at the various shops to see the merchandise. The healer learned very quickly that old general loved to shop, as was apparent by the soldier following behind them, various items stacked up high in his poor arms. Prince Zuko had left only an hour after their sparring match, his energy pumping and his muscles warmed up and eager to go after the avatar. General Iroh, on the other hand, had brought Tamara along for company and to do a bit of shopping, realizing that she would need several pairs of clothes and other things now that she was going to be staying on the ship.

They stopped at any stand that sold clothes and soon Tamara had acquired several robes, vests, and pants in different colors. These she had paid for herself, but she could not convince General Iroh to allow her to pay for everything. The old man was crafty and, when he realized that she was going to be stubborn and not take his money, bought items while the healer was distracted or pretended to buy things for himself if she was with him. Within his packages, two pairs of blankets and sheets, a mirror, a comb, and a thick, dark maroon robe for the upcoming winter season were hidden, and the kind man knew that once they were back on the ship, Tamara could do nothing but accept the gifts.

The early signs of sunset found the shoppers making their way back to the ship, their arms having been weighted down just a bit more before the day was through. Just before they reached the docks, Prince Zuko and his small band walked up, disheveled and weary from their long trek into the surrounding forest in their hunt for the avatar. Once again, the soldiers came back empty-handed and their prince in a foul mood. Tamara greeted him with a polite bow and he nodded in return, his anger momentarily leaving his golden eyes. His gaze then shifted to his uncle and, for what seemed like the thousandth time, rolled his eyes as he saw the piles of what his uncle called "treasures" being carried onto the ship, to wait for a new place that the old man would undoubtedly find for each item. Tamara followed up after the two men of royalty and walked in to the dining room where the items were being placed for sorting. The healer walked in just as General Iroh was showing off his new treasures to his nephew and Prince Zuko retaliating and asking why they needed so much junk.

"It's not junk, Prince Zuko." General Iroh stated, holding up an odd decoration. "This will bring some color into this room; Agni knows that it needs it." Prince Zuko sifted through the packages with his eyes.

"What is that?" he asked, pointing in a corner where a small tree sat.

"What do you mean 'what is that'? It's a bonsai tree, of course. Keeping it alive and beautiful helps teach patience and keeps the mind calm."

"I thought that was what your tea was for. Why would you waste money on a bush when your tea does the same thing?"

Tamara looked on in wonder as the two men bickered back and forth. She knew of the prince's explosive temper and could not help but wonder if what the general was doing was a good idea. But as she watched them, Tamara noticed that the tense muscles lining Prince Zuko's arms and jaw were relaxing little by little and the angry glint in his eye was turning into one of quiet amusement. A small, knowing smile played across her lips as she realized that the old uncle was trying to get his nephew's mind off the avatar by making him argue over meaningless things. A quiet chuckle escaped her as she watched General Iroh hold the small plant in front of his nephew's face, explaining to him that it was not a bush, but a tree. When the prince said he could care less what it was and that, to him, it was a waste of money General Iroh wagged a finger at him.

"See, you are like so many others; you can not find the beauty and helpfulness in simple things, but Tamara knows what I'm talking about. Don't you?" he asked. The healer gawked at him for a moment, not expecting to be a part of the strange argument.

"Yes, sir." she said, looking from one man to the other.

"There now, you see," the old man said joyfully, walking up to stand next to his back up.

"Tamara understands such matters. That is why I bought one for you as well. Unlike my

nephew, you have the patience to deal with such matters. If I gave one to him, tomorrow morning it would be nothing more than a burnt twig." a jolly laugh shook his entire body as General Iroh produced a second tree and placed it on the table in front of the healer. He then went and retrieved the other wrapped gifts and deposited them down next to her small pile.

"I thank you, Sire," she said with a small bow, "but you didn't need to get anything for me-"

"Nonsense, Tamara." he said, cutting her off with a wave of his hand. "Think of them as welcoming gifts. You should at least have some comfort while on the ship and it is my pleasure to help get you settled in."

The next week and a half were calm and uneventful with the ship on it's steady course making only short stops in order to hear any rumors of the avatar's whereabouts. Tamara made use of her time in getting to know the ship and its crew. She was free to come and go as she pleased- much more freedom than had been given under Zhao's command- but even though she had these privileges; Tamara did not take full advantage of them. In her eyes and rank, she was still a servant and continued to act like one. When she was not in the presence of either Prince Zuko or General Iroh, the healer could be found helping out with the chores and did her fair share of the work. On countless occasions, either the prince or the retired general would find Tamara hard at work alongside several men; from folding laundry and doing dishes to hauling up water to wash the deck. In this way, Tamara was not only helping the crewmembers run the ship, but helping herself as well. By forcing herself to work alongside the men under Prince Zuko's command Tamara was slowly overcoming the fear that Zhao had implanted in her.

After the first few days, the healer learned that there was nothing to fear with these men and that several of them were polite and friendly, as well as talkative if they had someone there to listen to them. From these conversations, Tamara was able to learn a great deal about many of them; such as who was friendly or who wanted to be left alone. She routinely met up and conversed with the lieutenant, the helmsman and the three men who worked the boiler room where the fuel for the ship was kept, and found that she enjoyed their company and they in turn enjoyed hers. They were more friendly and outgoing than most of the other men of the ship and Tamara realized that it was the older men who were nicer, showing respect to almost everyone and given back to them in return. When there were chores to be done, the healer and the men would engage in conversations in order to pass the time and from them the healer learned a great deal about each of them. Every soldier on the ship had been forced to accompany the prince on his mission and several had families that they had been forced to leave behind. Even Lieutenant Ji told her stories of his home in the Fire Nation and the wife and daughter of six whom he could not wait to get back to.

General Iroh could not help but notice a change wash over the ship. With a girl on board, the ship was now in better order and the men were more polite and watched their language. Even Prince Zuko was calmer now, his temper not nearly as intolerable as it had been. The old general had to thank Tamara for that; her presence was sorely needed and now that she was here, things were beginning to run smoothly again. It was as it had been two years ago; the healer had indeed not only helped Prince Zuko, but the ship and everyone on board as well.

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Okay, sorry for the delay in updates, but with school and all it is getting difficult. But I have been working on the chapters little by little, getting them done one at a time. Hope you enjoy the next couple of chapters and sorry to those of you who feel that the romance between Zuko and Tamara is not coming fast enough.