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Chapter 13: Budding Passion

Zuko POV

We'd just saved the helmsman. I felt relieved to know that he was uninjured on deck. The rest of the crew seemed to be accounted for too. Just as another lightning strike painted the sky, I saw a familiar flying-sky bison shoot straight out of the water in front of our ship. It flew up towards the clouds with swift speed.

I was both amazed and excited. "The Avatar!"

Lieutenant Jee glanced over at me and shouted over the storm, "What do you want to do, sir?"

At first, all I wanted was to chase after the brats, but then I stopped myself. I'd finally come to realize that it wasn't safe for us to be in this storm any longer. I got some sense at last, as my uncle would say. "Let him go. We need to get this ship to safety."

Uncle nodded. "Then we must head directly into the eye of the storm."

Just as Iroh finished his last sentence, the ship lurched sharply. We all stumbled but managed to catch ourselves on the slippery deck. However, as all of this occurred we heard something from behind us. It was a piercing female scream. It was a scream I never imagined I'd hear in such a wild storm. Turning my body completely around, I looked down the ship deck to see one of the guards was standing at the rail looking at something. The ship had leveled out by this point. The same guard at the railing shouted in horror, "Man overboard!"

The crew near me gasped, but I was already running. No one needed to tell me who it was. I already knew. There was only one possible owner of that scream.

Rushing over to the guard, I shouted, "Where did she fall?!"

The guard quickly pointed down below, and I darted my eyes to the raging waters. To my complete bewilderment, Crystal was still above the water; she had made herself a sheet of ice for a raft. From what I could see though, her raft was being bumped against roughly by waves, and the warm water below was melting her flotation device.

"Get me some rope!"

The guards scrambled around at my order, and only a moment later a long rope was tied around my waist. The other end of the rope was secured to a metal mast on the ship. Uncle had come over and was watching the scene before him helplessly. "She's definitely persistent, but she's not going to be able to hold it up much longer. Her ice is getting smaller by the second!"

"I'm diving in," I stated. My heart was pounding a hundred times a minute. Everything was happening so fast. "Pull me up when I have a hold on her!"

As soon as I finished my sentence, Iroh gasped. "Crystal!"

My eyes shot back to the rough sea, but where Crystal's ice had once been there was nothing but water. She'd lost her strength and fell in.

Without hesitating, I raced to the rail and jumped over. I knew how to swim, especially since I'd gone to Ember Island so many times growing up. Diving perfectly into the water, I resurfaced quickly and swam through the pounding waves as fast as I could. My legs and arms burned, but I refused to stop. Crystal was in trouble... I couldn't lose her! I wouldn't lose her!

It was dark, the rain was hard, and I couldn't see anything around me but water. Diving under, salt burned my eyes as I tried to see through the dark endless abyss. I knew she was nearby, but without any light I would never be able to see her. As I began to panic and fear the worse, lightning struck above and light filled my vision. That's when I saw where she was. Or more so, that's when I saw her necklace reflect from the light above.

Her body drifted a few feet in front of me, her hair tangled and floating around her. I didn't take much more time to look over her dark figure. I quickly swam towards her and grabbed her around the waist. Then with one arm and two legs, I kicked us back up to the air we both needed.

Breaking surface, I coughed heavily as my burning lungs took in the oxygen they'd currently been lacking. The rope started to tug against me, and I knew that meant the crew was pulling us back towards the ship. As they did so, I used one arm to pull Crystal's unconscious body against me. The waves continued to pound us roughly, and I held on tighter to her not wanting to let her go.

To my relief, she managed to find her own breath. As she coughed out the sea, I wondered if my arm squeezing against her body helped to push the water out of her lungs. She gasped for air, her eyes opening but out of focus. She started to kick her body again, and I assumed she still thought she was drowning.

"Hey! It's okay! I got you!"

She stopped kicking, and to my relief her panic subsided. Coughing up more water again, she fell limp against me and went out cold once more. She was exhausted. She was freezing. She was lucky to be alive. More lightning shot across the sky, and when it did I saw another thing that concerned me: she was pale.

It seemed a good five minutes passed of me trying to hold us both up above the waves. Finally we were hoisted out of the water and back up towards the ship. I used both of my arms to hold Crystal to me. She was still completely out cold. When we reached the ship rail, three crewmen raced forward to help take her from me and gently place her on deck. Uncle grabbed my own arm and pulled me over the rail too. I stumbled and landed on my knees, my whole body trembling with exhaustion. Ignoring my burning limbs though, I crawled over to the one I was truly worried about.

Iroh stepped over just as I reached her, and knelt to press his fingers to the vein on her neck. "Her pulse is weak. We need to get her out of these clothes and check for damage. There's no telling what she injured from the trauma she just faced."

The guard who had originally shouted about her falling, said over the pounding wind and thunder, "She rolled right into the ship rail, sir. I fear she broke something from the impact."

"Jeez," Lieutenant Jee spoke. "That girl is one determined fighter. She would've frozen the whole ocean if she had the strength to."

The crew began to mutter around us, while I continued to inspect her unconscious body. "Crystal… What the spirits were you doing out here?"

One of the other crewmen spoke up to answer me. "She was fighting off the waves, sir. I saw her. There were a few that would've capsized the boat if it hadn't been for her."

The original guard added in, "She saved my life too. I would've been the one overboard if it hadn't been for her."

Uncle looked straight at me, as I stared at her pale face with horror. I had been so clouded with fury, I had not realized Crystal was out in this mess. My heart ached as I realized how foolish I'd been.

"Prince Zuko… We need to take her below. It's safer than being out in this mess." I nodded, knowing he was right. Last thing we needed was her being thrown off the ship again. Soaking wet myself, I managed to place my arm under her back and my other below her knees. Hoisting myself to a stand, I held her close to me as I followed Uncle as quickly as I could below deck.

A few moments later we had her back in our room. A few of the guards had followed behind, each of them drenched from the rain. "Sit her down on the floor first," Uncle stated. "I don't want her on the cot until we have her dry. We need to get her out of this dress."

"Wha-what? Uncle… I don't think-"

I was cut off.

"She has her wrappings underneath. It will be fine," Uncle insisted. "Someone fetch a towel and the ship physician!"

Two men ran out of the room, leaving us with only two other guards. As Uncle went to pull her body up so he could remove her heavily drenched outer clothing, her eyes shot open again. This time it was from pain. Uncle had grabbed her arm to get a grip on her, and we all knew at that moment she had done something to it. She cried out in agony and shoved against Uncle's arm. He jerked his hand away quickly, and Crystal fell backward once her support was gone. Quickly, I jerked my arm behind her back to stop her from hitting the floor. She cringed from the pain she still felt, and I could tell her eyes were still out of focus. She wasn't completely conscious quite yet. Her body shivered as the wet on her started to make her sick.

"Crystal… It's okay," Uncle promised. "You're safe now."

Her eyes were barely open, but I could tell she was trying to focus on the world around her. I assumed she was struggling to stay awake.

With Uncle and another guard's help, we managed to get her outer clothing off. The dress she'd been wearing was in desperate need of a wash since it was covered with salt water. She wasn't completely alert as we did so, but I could tell she was trying to move her one good arm to help us. However, she passed out again from exhaustion, and I had to continue to hold her up.

Once her outer layer was off, I was relieved to see Uncle had been right. She wore white chest-bindings and some white shorts with a skirt. It was pretty common for girls in the Fire Nation to reveal a similar amount of skin, so I tried not to let it bother me. However, I couldn't help but trail my eyes along her frame. She had much more curves than I expected… and her chest definitely wasn't flat…

A smack on the back of my head brought me back to reality. Uncle scolded me. "Forget your teenage hormones for now Prince Zuko!"

The door to the room opened again, and while I rubbed the back of my head a guard came in with a very large towel. Uncle took it quickly from his out stretched hand and wrapped her shivering body inside it. As he did so, I couldn't help but notice something on her stomach, right near her bellybutton. There was another scar, and this one looked much worse than the one on her face. The skin was just like my own. It was a pinker shade and looked rougher than the rest of her body. What horrible experience did this girl go through when she was younger?

Uncle broke through my thoughts. "Get her on the cot. Is Quan on his way?"

"Yes sir. He's grabbing his supplies," the same guard who brought the towel answered.

I helped move her from the floor to the cot. Placing her carefully down, Uncle grabbed her blanket and pulled it over her. He sighed heavily when she was finally lying peacefully before us. He took her arm as she slept, the one that she'd made fuss over when he grabbed it before. This time he was slower and much more gentle.

"How is it?" I asked eagerly with worry. I was kneeling beside Uncle still sopping wet. I knew I would need to change also, but I did not want to leave Crystal for a second.

"It's definitely swollen. I fear she may have broken her lower arm." He turned his head towards the guards who still hovered in the room. "It's alright gentlemen. She's safe now. You can all return to your duties."

We knew he was just trying to push the crowd out of the room. They begrudgingly did so, and soon it was just the two of us and an exhausted waterbender.

"Prince Zuko… You should go dry off. I'll stay by her side."

I shook my head. "No… I'm fine. I'm not leaving her. It's my fault this happened. If I hadn't been so focused on the Avatar we wouldn't have gotten stuck in this storm. Also, I would've noticed Crystal on deck if I hadn't been so blind."

"Be that as it may," Uncle began. "I can't have two sick teens on my watch. Go get on some dry clothes and then you can come right back."

With defeat, I hung my head and stood. As I headed out the room though, I stopped at the door and looked back at Crystal. Her eyes were shut tight and her mouth held a grimace. She must've been in terrible pain. I hated seeing such a strong girl so weak and beaten.

Opening the door, I regretfully left the room to dry off.

Crystal POV

The first thing I felt when I started to come to was an awful headache. The second thing I felt was pain shooting through my right arm. The last thing I felt was a warm hand brushing gently across my face. The repeated sensation lulled me back to sleep only for a moment. When I woke up sometime later on, I found my headache had improved and the soft touch was gone. However, there was still a pain shooting through my body that only made me want to lie as still as I possibly could.

I wasn't really sure what happened after I fell into the water. As soon as the wave struck me and I went under, I could only remember small details. I remember for a moment I thought I was dead. Then the next I was choking up the sea and gasping for air. I can remember voices, and I recall being carried somewhere. However, the rest was a complete blank.

Opening my eyes slowly, I quickly shut them as light from the room once again burned my vision and caused a pulse in my head. Taking in a few breaths to calm the pain, I opened them again and this time kept them apart. My vision was blurry at first, but slowly the world around me came into focus. When I could finally see, I wasn't surprised to find I was in my room limp on my cot. There were voices out in the hall, which I could vaguely hear.

"...just need you to keep an eye on her."

Another voice spoke, but I couldn't hear that one.

"…I'll be back…I know what I'm doing…"

The door to the room suddenly opened, and I looked over to see Zuko and Iroh step in. When they saw I was awake, they both seemed relieved. Zuko was the first to rush over, and he knelt down beside me placing the back of his hand on my forehead. His hand felt cool, and I felt my eyes start to fall again as my body relaxed.

"She's still warm… Hey… Stay awake…" Zuko's voice felt distant, but I tried to listen and obey. "You need to eat and drink. Then you can sleep."

At the thought of food, my stomach tightened and twisted. Shaking my head, I said hoarsely, "I- I'm not hungry."

This worried Zuko, but Iroh came over and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. The wise man then spoke kindly to me. "Crystal… I know you don't feel well right now, but the only way you'll get better is by eating. Jiho's prepared you some soup in the kitchen. I'll go retrieve it. In the meantime, try and drink some water. You need to hydrate." He held in his hand a canteen, and I saw Zuko take it. "I'll be back in a moment."

Iroh left us then. As soon as he left, the room fell silent. Zuko seemed eager for me to drink something, so the moment Iroh's presence left us the young man was taking the cap off of the canteen. Then a second later, his arm slid under my back and he lifted me up. The movement of my body helped me realize just how weak I actually was. The moment my upper body left the cot, I felt as if gravity was pulling me down with all its strength. My right arm started to shoot with pins and needles, and it took everything I could to not let my head fall back.

The moment the canteen was pressed to my parched lips, I realized then how thirsty I was. Drinking as much as I could, I felt slowly that some of my nausea was starting to fade. When I was done, Zuko managed to lower me once more. I went to move my right arm, but quickly stopped when the pain started up again.

"I'm so relieved," Zuko said softly. "You've been out for two days. We were starting to worry."

As soon as Zuko spoke to me, I remembered once more everything that had happened. Breaking my arm… Falling off the ship… Almost drowning…

Delayed fear suddenly shot through me, and a moment later I started to cry. Shutting my eyes, I could feel the tears pouring down my cheeks. Sobs escaped me and my body trembled as I thought about what could've happened.

I almost died. I could've died.

My family… My tribe… Zuko…

If I died I would've never seen them again.

"Crystal…" Zuko brushed his hand across my forehead and down to my cheek. He wiped a tear with his thumb. "Shh… You're safe now. I'm sorry… This is my fault. You and Uncle were right from the start. We should've headed away from the storm, but I was too blind by determination to listen. You were almost killed because of my foolish decision."

I cried some more, and struggled to breathe as sobs continued to escape me. To my surprise, the young prince suddenly placed his arm under my back again and lifted me once more. This time he carefully pulled me to him so my face could press to his chest. My arm pulsed at the movement, but I ignored the pain as warmth flowed through me.

"Shh… It's over Crystal… You're safe... You have nothing to fear."

I cried a little more, but the panic was calming. As I stopped my sobs, I finally fell into just sniffles.

Zuko spoke again once he felt and heard I had calmed. "What were you thinking staying on deck in such a storm? If that guard hadn't been near you…"

"I know," I whispered. He fell quiet when I finally started to speak. My voice was broken from crying. "I-I just wanted to help… I thought I could handle it… I was stupid to think I could fight a storm… I'm sorry…" I pressed my face harder into Zuko's chest. He ran a hand through my hair to try and soothe me.

Pressing his face into my brown locks, he whispered softly, "Stop apologizing… I know why you did it…" He sighed heavily. "I'm not mad… I'm just frustrated with myself for not realizing you were in danger."

My cries calmed, and instead I took in breaths to try and gather myself.

"But there is one thing I realized through all of this," Zuko said softly.

I relaxed in his hold, and my eyes opened slowly. My throat hurt from crying, but I managed to ask, "What's that?"

He hugged me tighter. "I can't imagine being on this ship without you."

His words surprised me, and I wondered if they surprised him too. My skin burned from his statement, and I knew it wasn't from my fever. His words both flustered and comforted me.

"I remember one thing I thought when I went under," I responded. "Apart from never seeing my family again, I was terrified I would never see you again." My eyes shut once more. "The thought of being dead and never seeing you again made me want to fight harder. Is that how friends feel towards one another?"

Zuko fell quiet in contemplation at this last part. Then he whispered softly, "I don't know… I'm not used to this friend thing."

I smiled weakly. "Guess we're similar in that way."

He let out a heavy breath. "You should lie back down." He helped me lower back to the cot, and I cringed as my arm continued with that same stabbing sensation. Looking at my injury, I saw my arm was wrapped up firmly with gauze to the point where I couldn't move it and it was resting on my upper stomach. He noticed my discomfort and asked if he'd hurt me. I shook my head to let him know it wasn't his fault.

As I lied there, Zuko spoke to me about what I missed while I was asleep. We'd made it to the eye of the storm, and eventually were able to anchor off shore. The next morning, after the ship was checked for damage, we set course once more back on a path northeast. Zuko begrudgingly told me that the avatar's trail had yet to be found. Eventually we reached an area of water that Zhao somehow had authority over, and when news of Prince Zuko's arrival rang through the air, Zhao refused to let Zuko's ship move any further. Zuko told me he had suspicion that Zhao had the Avatar in custody, and that he was trying to hinder us from interfering. This news made me sit up with terror only to cringe in pain. Zuko quickly shoved me back, telling me to stay calm.

"Don't worry…" He spoke with comfort. "By tonight, the Avatar will be free once more."

I was confused by his confidence. "How… how do you know that?"

He gave a small smile. "Just trust me."

A moment later, Iroh stepped into the room carrying a tray of food and tea.

"Here you are, Crystal. Jiho prepared your favorite Water Tribe dish. I've also put some herbs in your tea that will help your pain."

As he walked over, Zuko smiled kindly to me.

"I'll be going now…" He went to stand. "Get some rest. I'll be back soon."

Just as he started to leave me, I grabbed his wrist with my good hand. He looked down at me in surprise. "Be careful… Whatever you're planning… Please be careful."

He nodded. Taking my hand from his wrist, he pressed it to his mouth. Then the next thing I felt was his soft lips on my knuckles. Shivers ran down my spine as he kissed my hand. I blushed heavily once more.

"I'll be fine…" He dropped my hand then, and brushed another tear from my burning cheek. "Stop worrying about others and focus on your own health."

He left then, exiting the room to begin his mission. Watching him go, I felt my heart ache the moment he disappeared from my sight. My hand still tingled from his affectionate touch.

Iroh seemed to be beaming when I finally turned my eyes towards him. He said with both thrill and amusement, "And so the buds of love began to blossom."

His proverb finally opened my eyes. My good hand clenched as I realized what was happening to me. I had never had feelings towards another before. Despite everyone trying to hook me up with Bato's youngest son, I felt nothing of affection towards the young man named Areto. Only irritation.

But Zuko…

Zuko was different. I wanted to be near him. I cared about him. I was concerned for him. I treasured our time together. And my heart soared whenever I felt his touch on my skin.

I couldn't deny it any further...

I was falling in love with Prince Zuko.

After I managed to eat some food, and Iroh made sure I was comfortable, I asked Iroh to stay with me until I fell back asleep. I didn't want to be alone worrying about Zuko's safety. Iroh stayed, knowing the herbs he put in my tea would soon take their effect and I would be asleep. As I lied back and tried to get comfortable, I felt my good hand suddenly hit against the scroll I kept on my cot. Grabbing the scroll with shaky hands, I realized that I hadn't marked anything since the day I sparred with Zuko.

Why did I stop…?

I already knew why though… I didn't feel like a prisoner anymore. I didn't hate being on this ship. I stopped keeping track of the days because I was actually happy with my captors. They had treated me as a guest. They had all been kind and concerned for me. Plus, a certain prince had stolen my heart...

"Crystal… Are you okay?"

I nodded to answer Iroh. With arms that felt like sea prune jelly, I managed to hand Iroh the scroll. He took it with question, and opened it curiously. When he saw the sixty-five ink drawn tallies, his eyes widened in surprise.

"You can burn it…" I said softly. My eyes began to drag, and my body felt like it was sinking into the cot. "I don't need it anymore…"

My eyes finally shut, and my consciousness began to leave me. The last thing I heard was Iroh say softly, "I'm so glad to hear… Things are finally coming together..."

I had no clue what he was going on about. Peaceful sleep took me over.

Zuko POV

My head was killing me when I came to. The last thing I remember was managing to get the Avatar across the bridge away from the prison stronghold. We'd both convinced Zhao to open the gate, especially when I placed one of my dual blades against the twelve-year old bald monk's throat. At first he thought I was going to hurt him, but he caught on quickly and didn't freak out. Once we were just at the end of the bridge, an arrow shot out of nowhere and hit me straight on my mask. I'd blacked out from impact.

Opening my eyes, I saw through blurred vision it was sunny outside. Morning… I'd been gone all night!

Managing to look at my surroundings, I saw through the blinding light that I was in the forest safe from Zhao. My mask was on the ground beside me. Then my eyes shot to a large tree root across from the one I was slumped against.

The Avatar sat cross legged on the root, his eyes staring down at the ground below him. He had perfect balance. When he saw I was awake, he began to speak.

"You know what the worst part about being born over a hundred years ago is? I miss all the friends I used to hang out with." The Avatar was having a full blown conversation with me. I had no clue why. "Before the war started, I used to always visit my friend Kuzon. The two of us, we'd get in and out of so much trouble together. He was one of the best friends I ever had…" He looked at me with hope as he continued. "…and he was from the Fire Nation, just like you. If we knew each other back then, do you think we could have been friends too?"

My brow twitched. Friends… The Avatar…

I scowled at the thought. Tightening my hand in a fist, I shot fire at the young boy who easily jumped up and out of the way. He landed swiftly on another root near us.

"Wait…" He held his hands up in surrender. I managed to get to my feet as he spoke some more. "Before you scare me off, I just need to ask for my friends… How's Crystal?"

His question surprised me for a moment. I grimaced at the memory of her frail body lying in so much pain on the cot back in our room.

The Avatar noticed. "What? Is she okay?" He tightened his fists with concern.

Grabbing my mask from the dirt, I didn't meet his concerned gaze. "She's fine… We had a small mishap, but she was looked over and is recovering."

The Avatar sounded horrified. "What mishap?!"

I sighed heavily, wishing more than anything I was back with Crystal and not having this conversation. "That storm we were in a few days ago… she fell overboard… I managed to jump in and save her. She woke up yesterday and other than a broken arm she's fine."

Air suddenly hit me and I stumbled back. Once I caught myself, I was shocked to see he was suddenly a foot away and his eyes were enraged. I froze in both amazement and uncertainty. He scowled, and I could tell he was trying to sound intimidating. "Listen here, Prince Zuko…" His tone turned heavy and dark. He pointed a finger at me sharply. The young child in him seemed to disappear for a moment. "Sokka and Katara are like family to me, and that means Crystal is too! If I find out again that she's been hurt under your care, I won't be as forgiving!" He jumped away from me back onto a root. "We'll get Crystal back from you! Once I master all four elements, my friends and I won't hesitate to fight you and get her back."

I grimaced at the spite he was throwing towards me. However, I stood my ground with tight fists. My teeth grit at the thought of losing Crystal. "And I won't hesitate to fight back."

He turned sharply and jumped up in the trees. Right before he took off from the limb he landed on, he shouted down at me, "You better take care of her!"

"And you better run before I try to capture you!"

He glared, and then took off through the forest disappearing from my line of sight. Once he was gone, and quiet surrounded me, I sighed heavily and turned to make my way back to the ocean bank.

I refused to let anyone take her away from me.

When I got back to the ship two hours later, I was exhausted and made my way back to my room. The workers on the ship were amazed when they saw my all black outfit and the mask in my hand. As I rounded the corner of the hall, I almost ran into Uncle who was coming from my room. He held in his hands some old bandages and a rag.

"Prince Zuko… You were out pretty late."

I ran a hand over my eyes to try and brush the sleep from them. "How is she?"

Uncle wasn't surprised that question was the first one I asked. "She's doing fine. I got her to eat some breakfast just now. She still has a small fever, so I gave her some more herbs. She's just falling asleep. You may be able to catch her before she's completely gone." I nodded and started to head to the room. Uncle stopped me though, asking, "We're you able to accomplish what you set out for?"

Nodding, I answered, "Yeah… I was…"

He seemed to ponder this. "Hmm… Well that's good." He handed something to me, and I looked at the scroll with confusion. "Crystal said we can burn it. I'll let you do the honor." Nodding, I took it with curiosity. What was she so ready to destroy?

Uncle left me then, singing softly as he went, "Winter, spring, summer, and fall… four seasons… four loves… four seasons… four loves…"

As his voice faded, I opened the scroll and was surprised to find it was the parchment she was writing tallies on. She'd been keeping track of the days of her imprisonment. She'd wanted to do so to keep time and count how long she'd been away from her family. Every tally was a day that symbolized her imprisonment.

Burn it…?

If she wanted us to burn it, that could only mean one thing…

She didn't feel like a prisoner anymore.

I was filled with elation at this realization. She was happy on the ship with us. She enjoyed being with me.

Lighting a flame, I burned the paper and watched as it became nothing but ash. The ash floated to the ground at my feet.

She wasn't my prisoner anymore. She was Crystal… A girl I cared about and wanted to see happy.

The Avatar had nothing to worry about. From this day forward, I would protect her to the best of my ability. I loved her too much to lose her.

There! I admit it!

The feelings which I had been so confused about before... I finally understood what they meant. Love… I loved her. Crystal had won my heart...

A few minutes later I entered my room and found I hadn't been fast enough. Crystal was out cold on the cot again, but I could tell her skin was returning to its smooth tan self. Her breathing sounded ten times better too, and I could see she was much more relaxed than when I left before. Her splinted arm was cushioned on some extra fabrics placed to her side, and her lips were parted slightly as she dreamed on.

Kneeling beside her, I couldn't resist the urge to brush my hand through her soft wavy hair. As I pushed a few strands aside from her face, I said softly, "Sorry I was gone so long." Leaning down, I kissed her lightly on her right temple. My lips on her warm skin sent an odd sensation through me. I quickly pulled away trying to figure out what I was doing, but as I stopped I immediately wanted to do it again. Resisting the urge, I stood and backed from her cot.

The Avatar's words came back to me.

I would heed his advice. "I'll protect you, Crystal. I will do my best to not let anything hurt you again… I promise."