A/N: WEEKEND! WHICH MEANS…MORE WRITING! Ok then...continuing on…
The second day Zuko spent at his homeland went by in almost a blur. The day was clear and perfect. The warm weather was calming, bringing many people to the harbor and beaches to relax. He spent the day wandering aimlessly, and stopped his walks only to speak with Kaida for a short while and his uncle, who had a warning to give…
"Zuko, listen to me. Your father is planning to use Kaida to put Fire Nation ahead in the war. You need to watch out for her. I am doing my best, but your father is also doing his best not to let me get in his way." Uncle Iroh's serious face bore into Zuko's half surprised one. He nodded numbly and saw his uncle relax. Zuko walked off, half in a state of confusion.
The Prince spent a good deal of the afternoon by the docks, thinking about the dream he was forced into the night before…
"Mommy!" cried a little golden eyed boy. He happily ran up to his smiling mother and hugged her tight.
"What is it little Zuko? Did you have fun at the beach?" her voice was filled with interest as they talked in the moonlit garden.
"Yes mommy! I made a friend too! We made a sandcastle! And we even saw a crab too!" His voice was fast and excited. His mother laughed softly and raised a hand.
"Slowly Zuko, slowly! Sounds to me like you had a wonderful time. I'm glad." She smiled and pulled her little boy close to her, he rested his head on her shoulder. "What was your friend's name?"
He paused, "I don't know. I didn't ask. But she said she'd be back tomorrow! I can ask her then! Right? Can we go tomorrow? Please!" His face dawned a small pleading pout.
"Alright! Alright, we will go tomorrow. I promise." She beamed to her little son who put his head down on her shoulder again and buried his face into her long dark hair.
The next day…she never kept her promise, and Zuko was alone again.
Prince Zuko shut his eyes, squeezing away tears his father never let him shed. That was the last night he saw his mother. The last promise she had made to him. He barely said goodnight to her, and now he never could again.
He only returned to eat dinner, but left his father's palace to sit by the sea again and watch the sun go down. Before he left, he caught a glimpse of worried, violet eyes watching him. He sat alone by the shoreline now as the sky darkened, clearing his thoughts. Those violet eyes bore into his still even when Kaida was no longer nearby. The sky grew deep blue and nighttime stars filled it once more. The ocean had become dark and ominous. He could still hear each wave crash against the rock. He heard someone climb onto the rocks he sat upon behind him.
"Good evening Prince Zuko. I am not bothering you am I?" Kaida's timid voice whispered from next to him. She sat down on a rock beside him fluidly. "Your uncle was worried about you."
Even in the dark he could feel her gaze burning into his skin. He sighed to himself and reassured her she was not bothering him. If it were any other person, he would have hurled a flaming fist at the person, but he could not bring himself to be mad at this girl for some strange reason.
Kaida looked over to the troubled Zuko, who sat staring off into the dark water. She studied him carefully with shifting blue violet eyes. She saw his calculating expression jump to a surprised and questioning one at the water.
"What is that?" He had his gaze fixed on a patch of glowing red water a short distance away.
"I don't know," Kaida replied truthfully, but was very curious to find out, as was Zuko. She stood up and began to slip off her kimono top, hastily pulling off her tomoeri. She had on a long sleeve midriff cut shirt underneath.
Zuko noticed this and had to ask, "What are you doing?"
"Going swimming." She kept her knee high boots and wrist guards on. "I am going to see what that is," she pointed to the reddish glow from the dark sea. Kaida began to climb down the rocks to the surf.
"W-wait!" Zuko ungracefully tried to follow, struggling with his armor, "I'm going too!" He clambered down the rocks, finally freeing himself from his armor. He wore his loose grey shirt and pants, as well as his wrist guards and boots like Kaida. He rushed down the rocks to catch up.
Kaida looked back and smiled for a moment as she saw the Prince act without his usual dignity. She raised her arms and landed a flawless swan dive into the black water. The liquid was chilly in the warm night air, but felt good after a few freezing moments. She looked up to see Zuko hesitate on the rock he perched on.
"What's the matter? Can you not swim?" She choked back a smirk at his face. He furiously turned towards her in the dark.
"Of course I can swim!" He took that moment to awkwardly trip over a small stone and land a face first fall into the water.
Kaida couldn't help but break into giggles at his feat. He rose to the surface with a cross pout.
"That's NOT funny." He put in, to no avail to cease her laughter.
"Your right," she calmed down instantly, with an occasional snicker, "I apologize Prince Zuko." She dove under and swam under the dark water with a smile. Zuko followed with a cryptic grin as well.
Commander Zhao was distracted from his late night walk by splashes and laughter coming from a shadowy dock. He made his way over, suspecting anything from a fish, a child, even enemy spies. Zhao conjured a small fireball and held it up to light the shaded port. He saw nothing and kept walking until he reached the rocks that separated him from the inky water. He noticed a red kimono and the Prince's armor discarded along the craggy hill. At first his face was full of enigmatic thoughts, but melted into a sinister grin as he slowly extinguished his makeshift candle, letting himself fade into the crepuscular darkness of the dock.
Zuko swam hastily to the surface to gulp in air in large quantities. He looked around for Kaida, seeing her almost silently break though the glassy water. The odd glow was close by, and the water had become hotter than by the shoreline. The water was very deep, both of them had to tread water constantly. Kaida gasped in a large breath and dove under to dive to the glowing puzzle on the seafloor, Zuko followed behind her.
Imprinted in the ground was the Fire Nation symbol of flame glowing as if lined in fire. Kaida noticed it was really the flowing of a volcanic pocket, which explained the glowing it released. She noticed a small design encircling it. It looked similar to a calendar…
She raced up to the surface to drink in some air, becoming dizzy for a moment. She saw Zuko surface nearby in the pale moonlight. She tread water in place for a few moments, thinking about what she had observed at the seafloor. She dove back down and began to study it once more, deciphering its complex signs in her mind. Kaida's eyes widened when she came to a hazy conclusion. The comet…
She swam steadily back to the docks with Zuko after he finished looking. She didn't tell him her suspicion, he didn't say anything anyways. They swam constantly until they reached the dock in the murky, black water. Just as they began to clamber up onto the rocks, a sudden light lit up the area, blinding the two for a moment. The ominous face and grin of commander Zhao was shaded in the solitary light in a demonic way.
"Have a nice swim?" He figured they must have found out about the comet calendar the Fire Lord had said himself to guard. Not many people were permitted to know of the Fire Nation's plot to victory. His face contorted with concentrate mixed with his grin as he blasted at the two with a giant barrage of fire. Kaida dunked Zuko under and pulled him deeper as the hot flames blasted into the water, forming a cloud of steam and burning hot salt water. Kaida could feel the fire lick into the sea close to them as they rested on the seafloor. But soon they began to feel light headed, but feared to come up for air. Kaida motioned for him to rise, but he hesitated, questioning her judgment. She had sunk into a crouch and shot herself upwards to the atmosphere like a rocket. She began to Waterbend, sending waves and streams of water viciously towards Commander Zhao, who recklessly fired his attacks despite the shower he was unwillingly getting.
Zuko took the time to gulp in some air and try to attack the Commander with damp fiery attacks, which didn't do much. Kaida threw spheres of the salty surf at the Commander's face blinding him for a moment. Both Kaida and Zuko took the chance to grab their stuff and hightail it to the stronghold in the dark of night. They both not cared to think of the trouble they would face the next day…