I don't own anyone from Avatar: The Last Airbender. I do own Markaia and Sam, and others who don't belong in the original story. Sorry it took me a few days to get things up, you guys. I'm usually busy running my Facebook Page for this Watermelon 23 account, and I also only work when my best friend Sam (she's my artist who created most of my covers and such) can work with me. However, right now she's having some issues so I've been comforting her like a best friend should. Anyways, this was beta'd by F1nal Front1er (in my opinion, the best beta in the world and I wouldn't have as many viewers if I didn't have my beta ._.) and please, read and review. I could use some inspiration from the people, whether or not I'm doing a good job.
We ate in silence with nothing but the quiet morning chirping coming from a few birds flying up above. I felt Zuko's eyes on me occasionally, and it would make me feel hot, causing him to chuckle. When we had finished eating, Zuko put out the fire and went to go wash out the plates, tea pot, and tea cups for Iroh.
"How long until Ba Sing Se?" I asked Iroh, who was putting away some things into his bags. He turned to me smiling.
"It won't be long. We should get there around dinnertime." I leaned against the boulder I had slept against. "Why are you so eager to get to Ba Sing Se? Still going through with that plan of yours?" I shook my head and looked down at the ground.
"I really don't know." I pulled my hair to the side and ran my fingers through it mindlessly, more or less to keep my hands busy. In reality, I had forgotten about my plan since yesterday, and now I was really lost. "Tell me what I should do. I know that an eye for an eye will leave the world blind, but really what else can I do? My parents didn't die for nothing-"
"Markaia, you must remember that your parents aren't the only ones who have suffered the wrath of the Fire Nation," Iroh interrupted. I stopped fiddling with my hair to think about it. It was true. There were so many others who have died at the hands of the Fire Nation, so I wasn't the only one who wanted revenge.
"I-" Iroh held up his hand.
"Yes, I know you understand. This is the reason we must help the Avatar in taking down my brother. The truth is that the Avatar is the only one who can truly defeat my brother; it was what he was born to do." I nodded silently, continuing to comb my hair with my fingers. Iroh stretched. "I believe the thing you can do, Markaia, is reunite with your friend Sam and help the Avatar. He needs the support."
"I guess you're right," I concluded, putting my hair back so it hung down. "I'll see what Sam and the groupies have to say. Sam and I were the only ones who really got along; I didn't get along very well with the waterbender and her brother." Iroh chuckled.
"Zuko also has trouble getting along with them. Sam is the voice of reason!" I laughed lightly. That much was true at least. Zuko came back with the washed tea pot, plates, and tea cups.
"Here, Uncle." He handed Iroh the plates and then wiped his wet hands on his pants. "Are we all ready to go?" Zuko glanced over to me. I nodded and picked up my bag, slinging it over my shoulder.
"I'm ready," Iroh agreed before picking up his bags. He walked ahead of us, and Zuko stayed back with me.
Around noon, we passed a village once again, and we stopped there for lunch. This time, Zuko and Iroh insisted that I go inside with them.
"Why do I have to go inside?" I grumbled. We walked in through the door, avoiding walking into people who were coming out.
"So you don't get into another dramatic scene again." Zuko sighed. I stood there silently beside Zuko, trying to keep out of the way of people trying to go out, while Iroh was talking with the waitress to get us a table.
"I wouldn't do it again," I mumbled to myself. I had a nice view of the restaurant from the front door where we were standing. Everything was nice, especially the designs on the many shoji doors. There were families here for lunch as well, so children ran around the restaurant, eventually caught and scolded by their parents. There were adults having a drink with their friends, and women having their lunch chatter with their female neighbors.
"Come along, Zuko and Markaia," Iroh finally said. Zuko pulled my arm along while I gazed around the restaurant. Waitresses were expertly dodging people passing through without dropping anything they were carrying. I could hear the cooks from the back shouting to one another over the sounds of food cooking and the constant chatter of the guests.
"Here are your seats." The waitress who was showing us to our table smiled. "What can I get for you to drink?" I sat down next to Zuko, though not by choice (he still was holding my arm), and Iroh sat across from us at the small table.
"Tea for the both of us." Zuko answered politely. Iroh nodded.
"I will also have some tea." The waitress nodded before handing us small menus. She looked over to Zuko and I.
"What would you folks like to eat?" She smiled brightly at us. Iroh looked at the menu and ordered what he wanted. Zuko looked at me.
"What do you want to eat?" I shrugged and he sighed before handing the waitress the menu.
"We'll just have some fried fish." He then turned back to me. "Is that alright with you?" I nodded. I watched the waitress walk off and close the shoji doors behind her. I liked that some restaurants like this had doors for privacy.
"Are we going to reach Ba Sing Se soon?" I asked quietly, fiddling with my dress slightly. The waitress came back in with our pot of tea and three cups.
"Your food will be out shortly."
I watched as she left once more, leaving us to our privacy. "We should be there soon, by tonight at the latest." Iroh sipped his tea. I rubbed my knee that was under the small table. "Why are you so eager to get to Ba Sing Se. You've been asking about it ever since we left the Fire Nation. Do you have something planned, Markaia?" he asked. Had he really forgotten or did he just want me to say it in front of Zuko? If it was the second case, then I wasn't going to fall for it.
Shrugging, I watched as Zuko poured tea into my cup before filling his cup. "I planned that I was going to do whatever Sam wants me to do. It's not like I was going to do anything else," I lied. I was going to do something else, but that was only an 'if'. "What are you going to do, Zuko?"
"Help the Avatar," he answered simply. I nodded, grabbing my cup carefully and sipping the hot beverage. The waitress came in with three plates and handed them out to us. Iroh had some kind of meat and rice, and my plate was identical to Zuko's: fried fish and lemon slices with a side of rice.
"Thank you." Iroh smiled to the waitress, and she nodded before leaving and closing the doors. I picked up my chopsticks and poked around my food. Now that Iroh had reminded me about what I was planning, I really didn't feel like eating.
Would Zuko not allow me to do what I had planned? That kiss we shared had changed everything. This trip had changed everything. Sam marked the start of the change, and Azula provoked the change. Mai and the Fire Lord were the energy that drove the change. Would it be best to not tell him anything at all? I knew the risks; if he found out, he would hate me or be mad at me forever and I might lose him. Should I just sit back and do what Iroh suggested and help the Avatar? Believe me, I would've loved to just help the Avatar do his job, but there was that feeling of helplessness if I didn't do something on my own.
"Why aren't you eating?" Zuko asked me quietly as he grabbed my wrist and rubbed the back of my hand with his thumb. I shrugged and poked my fish more. Just to satisfy his curiosity, I broke a piece of fish off and ate it.
"I'm just thinking." I said that without thinking; it was kind of ironic. I mindlessly stuck another piece of fish in my mouth with some rice, and then drank some hot tea. The one thing that was keeping my mind from being fully engulfed in these thoughts was Zuko's hand comforting mine. I saw Iroh catching a few glimpses at us with small smiles on his face.
I soon finished eating the remainder of my food without even tasting it. Iroh left to go pay for our meal, and Zuko was drinking the tea and leaving me to my thoughts. My eyes couldn't help themselves from glancing every so often at Zuko. He brought me comfort, and I couldn't really find it in myself to hurt him by following through with my plan. Plus, since when did I ever go through with my plans?
"Is something wrong?" Zuko didn't look at me. All he did was put his cup down and stare at the floor. It was a shame I couldn't see his scar from his right side when he sat like this. The scar wasn't just a scar; it defined Zuko. I shook my head and looked away from him.
"No, not really," I said earnestly. I rubbed my hands together to keep them busy. Mentally, I sighed and slapped myself. What was I going to do? I needed to make up my mind. There was no doubt how I felt about Zuko - the dreams, the kisses, his reactions - and yet I still wanted to hurt him by continuing my plan. He was one person I couldn't hurt no matter what; he was priceless. Then there was Sam. Sam would be so hurt if I did go through with my plan, and she would also be furious. I had gotten myself into so much trouble after she had tried so hard to save me.
"Tell me; what are you thinking about, Markaia?" Zuko whispered softly. I hesitated. He had such an easy temper with me and I didn't want to set him off and ruin something we were building. "You can trust me." He turned to me, touching my hand. I stared into his eyes, showing him my hesitation and fear. His eyes were unwavering and their color was so warming. The scar on his face made him so handsome.
"I-I..." I wanted to tell him, but I felt scared, scared he would be angry and never really trust me. He gave my hand a light squeeze before urging me on with slight desperation in his eyes. I looked away from him and looked at my knees instead. "I was just thinking about what I was going to do after we got to Ba Sing Se."
"And that is?" he asked. I gulped.
"I wanted to...confront...yeah...confront Mai and Ty Lee," I felt him grip a little tighter, but it didn't feel that angry yet, "and..."
"Spit it out," he said, slightly irritated.
"And let them take me to your father. I wanted to try and get information from him, maybe even try to get revenge for what Azula did..."