"Just my luck," Rie muttered. "We get pass one crisis and another pops up."
It was a few days since Zuko had been shot with the arrow and everything was generally back to normal. Nice weather, good food, Iroh drinking tea, and Zuko trying to find Aang, since he had lost the trail during his recovery. Grant you, Katara was still stuck in Zuko's room (Rie was reluctant to tell the crew to try and make the hold safe for living), Zuko and Katara weren't trying to kill each other, and Rie was getting more normal visions and hadn't had a Roku-induced trance since that night in the galley. But all in all, things were normal.
Then came another storm, this one worse than the one during which Iroh explained Zuko's behavior. Needless to say, no one was outside.
Rie was sitting in her cabin, reading a scroll the captain had found. (Oddly, whenever Rie read something in the Chinese-like language that was written here, the words would morph into plain old English.) The scroll was a history of the Four Nations.
Lacking better entertainment, Rie had taken the scroll to read, and was almost through with the last section, Air Nomads. As she was getting to the part about the Four Air Temples, her door burst open and flew off the hinges. "Dammit!" Rie swore as her clothing was drenched. "Great, now what can I do? It's not like I can stay in here." Rie stood, blasting fire every so often to keep her clothes drier. Shrugging, she walked off. "Zuko and Katara's room it is. I mean, it is the biggest," she added, smirking to herself as she took the now-wet scroll and headed for the Fire Prince and Waterbender's cabin. Knocking, she waited until someone got up and let her in.
"What happened?" Katara asked, handing Rie a towel.
"The stupid door burst open, that's what happened," Rie explained, toweling off her hair. "And now my room is being flooded, seeing as how the door blew off! D'you two mind if I stay in here for right now?"
"I don't mind, but ask him," Katara said, pointing an accusing finger at the other side of the divider. (Katara slept on the door side of the room.) "He's been all moody lately. Not that he isn't always, but it's been worse lately."
"I have not been moody," came Zuko's voice from the other side.
"Uh-huh. If you say so," Katara replied. "He's worse than my brother some days," she whispered to Rie, who laughed quietly.
"Do you still have the extra outfit I loaned you?" Rie asked. Motioning at her clothes, she continued, "I can't very well wear this. I'd get sick!"
"It'd be payback for the cure-all," Katara said, handing Rie the outfit.
"Hey, the cure-all was payback for you two stubborn teenagers not drinking the soup!"
Zuko pulled aside the divider. "Will you two be quiet? I'm trying to meditate."
"Well, I hope you can meditate with Katara on that side of the divider while I change," Rie said. Zuko rolled his eyes and sighed. Slight tendrils of flame emitted from his mouth.
"Fine. But no more talking." He turned away and must have gone back to meditating, because the other two didn't hear a sound except his breathing. Katara rolled her eyes and went on the other side of the room. Rie went to the far corner and changed out of her sopping wet outfit. As she was about to let Katara know she could come back on this side, Rie fell into a trance.
Roku helped Rie up. "Sorry for startling you. I have some important information for you."
"You always have important information for me," Rie muttered dryly. "So far, you've sent me to be a matchmaker, told me where Aang was, and helped me eavesdrop on a conversation. What's it this time?"
"Aang will be heading to the Earth Kingdom capital of Ba Sing Se," Roku said. "I need you to tell Zuko something different. Tell him Aang is heading for Omashu."
"Okay, and, why?" Rie asked.
"Princess Zula's ship will follow this ship until Zuko captures the Avatar. After Zuko captures Aang, Zula will attack the ship, capture Aang, and kill all others, even you. If you send the ship on another route, then Zula will follow that one, leaving Aang in peace."
Rie cocked her head. "Why not just take that mini-ship all these Fire Nation boats have and fool Zula? Make her believe that this one is following Aang and the other is a decoy."
"She'd see right through it."
Rie looked dejected, but only for a minute. "Exactly. Which is why Zuko, Katara, Iroh, and I will go on the mini-ship." Realizing that she had confused the spirit, Rie explained her plan. "Zula will plan on us trying to trick her, so the minute she sees the mini-ship, she'll follow it, right?"
"Right."
"But, Zula will have assumed that we knew she would fall for that trick, so she'll follow the main ship, thinking she fooled us. But since I anticipated that, Zula will be off following the wrong boat while my job is made simpler by having less people on a smaller ship!"
Roku obviously didn't get it. Rie sighed in exasperation. "Zula will outfox herself by thinking we were trying to trick her into following the smaller ship as a decoy and instead following the big ship, the real decoy." Roku finally got it.
"You will have to leave tonight, then."
Rie looked out the window. "Tonight? It's a virtual monsoon out there!"
"Zula won't see either ship very well in this weather, so she might not even see the mini-ship," Roku pointed out.
"Good point," Rie muttered. "But how will we keep our supplies dry while we load the mini-ship?"
"There's a hatch out in the passage. That leads to the mini-ship and its storeroom. No one will be wet. I suggest you take at least five members of the crew. One to steer, one to cook, and three to help keep the ship on course to Ba Sing Se."
Rie nodded. "Okay. What about cabins? I don't think Zuko and Katara will want to be stuck sharing a cabin again."
Roku looked at the divider. "There are only three cabins and a small crew quarters on the mini-ship."
Rie groaned. "I'm not gonna tell them. Iroh can. Speaking of which, shouldn't I snap outta this trance and tell them?" Roku nodded and Rie was suddenly on the floor, slumped.
"Ow," she muttered getting up. Katara heard her and poked her head in.
"Rie?"
"I'm fine. Go get Iroh and tell him to meet us in here. I've got some really bad news." Katara nodded, and obeyed. Zuko got up from meditating.
"What's the problem?"
Rie looked out of the window. "Zula."
A short time later, Rie was helping to load up the mini-ship's storeroom. "I think that's enough tea, Iroh," she commented as the general brought in a twentieth thing of tea. "We need room for food, too, ya know."
"You can never have enough tea, Madam," Iroh said. "Still, you are right." Rie rolled her eyes as she went to get another crate. Coming around the corner, she saw Katara, carrying a small crate, slip, and fall right into Zuko, who caught both her and the crate. Katara blushed as she murmured an apology and thanked Zuko for catching her. Rie snickered as she saw Zuko blush slightly as well and mention it was nothing.
"Looks like they're in an uncomfortable position," Rie whispered under her breath. Rie had to try hard to contain herself from laughing out loud. "This is priceless."
"What's priceless?" The general had come up to Rie without her knowing.
"Nothing," Rie said hurriedly. Iroh gave her a look, but didn't say anything more. Both Rie and the general took the last two boxes and loaded them up.
"That's everything," Rie said, closing the storeroom door. "Are Doctor Zhi and the crew ready?" The doctor was going with them, in case of another poison arrow.
"Yes, Madam." The doctor and the five crew members were standing, ready to go.
"Let's go," Rie ordered. "Oh, and Prince Zuko, I hope you realize that my mini-ship wasn't part of the deal. It's still mine, you didn't buy it." Zuko glared at Rie, but didn't say anything. Rie assumed that he was ticked off at having to be stuck with Katara for who knows how long. Well, tough, Rie thought. If Aang is to kick Ozai's butt, then he's gonna have to deal.
"Are you sure this ship doesn't have a prison hold?" Zuko asked for the tenth time.
"Yes, Prince Zuko, I'm positive. There's not enough room on it. And besides, I wouldn't put Katara in the hold anyway. I'd use it for supplies," Rie said. Zuko shot Rie a hate-ridden glance, but didn't argue, since the main ship would stop at ports more often and could lose a few supplies without it making a major difference and the mini-ship couldn't.
Once everyone was safely in their cabins (and Rie's door was securely shut), the captain of the main ship let the smaller ship out into the sea.
Almost instantly, Rie felt the choppy waves and strong winds batter the little ship. "Let's hope we can make through the night without sinking," Rie muttered, climbing into bed and trying to get to sleep. In a few minutes, she was out.
Rie was the only one who actually a good night's sleep. That was obvious the next morning, when she came out on deck, yawning but in good spirits, and everyone else was groggy and Zuko more bad-tempered. Katara hadn't gotten any sleep at all. She was sitting on a barrel next to the railing, her head occasionally dropping to her chest. "I'd say good morning, but it appears I'm the only who had a good night," Rie muttered, joining Iroh at the railing. "How far did we get last night?"
"See for yourself." The general handed her a spyglass. Rie took it, pointed it in the direction of the main ship's position last night. It was several miles away. And right behind it was Zula's ship.
"We got out just in time, "Rie remarked.
Suddenly, something hit the ship. Everyone latched onto the railing. Rie looked over the edge. An elephant koi had rammed the boat. "Stupid monstrosity of a fish," she muttered.
Splash! Rie looked behind her, afraid that Katara, drowsy, hadn't grabbed something to keep her on the ship. Katara was fine. Zuko had fallen overboard.