Four days later, Luke was beginning to wonder where Alex was. At dinner Zuko had told everyone that she felt very ill and would be absent for a few days. When asked if they could see her they were turned down with a firm, "She's too sick."

Now, Luke may not have known Zuko all that well. But he knew for sure that he was being too caring. He knew that if someone had gotten sick they would have been put to work anyway. They were too short on crew to sacrifice even one person.

So he came up with two solutions. 1) He had feelings for her. And 2) he was hiding something, most likely her.

Yeah, he was going to go with door number two.

Excusing himself from dinner, Luke looked every place he could think of. Just as he suspected, Alex was not in the Prince's room, but she wasn't in the prison hold either.

He was walking down the hall when he heard something coming from close by:

"Oh, where are you now? I'm trying, to get by with never knowing at all. What is the chance, of finding you out there? Or do I have to wait, forever?" a voice was signing.

He followed the sound to…a closet?

Unsure of what he would find, but not really caring, he unlocked the door and opened it to see Alex sitting on the floor in the back of a very small, very crowded closet.

When he opened the door she smiled weakly. She would have jumped up and embraced him but she hadn't eaten in four days, she was more than a little weak.

Horrified, he raced in and helped her up. He felt sick as he discovered how light she felt.

He took her out into the hall and shoved a piece of hearty bread at her that he was going to eat later.

He was staring at her in horror as she ate the small loaf quickly. She smiled.

"Thanks, it feels good to be full again."

He wanted to hold her, he wanted to tell her he had been so worried. He wanted to tell her he loved her.

But he couldn't do anything except stare, "How long were you in there?" he demanded.

She shrugged, "I lost count. Since Monday though."

He was dumbstruck. She had been in there for four days?

"How did you get in there? Did he do this to you?" he demanded again, stepping closer.

She held her hands out, "Who's 'he'?"

"You know perfectly well," he swallowed, "Zuko, he did this to you. But why?"

She blinked, "He thinks I was lying about my firebending, about it being my first time and all." She felt like breaking down and crying right now.

"but, I don't understand," he was perplexed, "If you were in there, why didn't you yell, or scream, or anything?"

She bit her lip and closed her eyes. In a shaky voice on the bridge of tears she said, "I was afraid he would hurt me."

He couldn't keep himself away anymore. He didn't care who was watching, "I was so worried about you…" he trailed off. He grabbed her and pulled her close, come on." He dragged a startled Alex down the hall.

Zuko had just come down the corridor when he saw Luke open the closet. He had heard everything she had said. And he was furious. How dare they. He had put her in there for a reason. And now he was going to see what was going on.

He instinctively went to Luke's room. Sure enough, the door was closed. Looking through the discreet peephole, he witnessed the events that unfolded right before his eyes.

She was with Luke, of course. He was leaning against the wall that lay directly behind the top of his bed. His arm was around Alex, and she was leaning on his chest, her eyes open and afraid.

Luke gulped. He looked at her, "Alex."

She looked up into his eyes, "Yes Luke?"

"I need to—what I wanted to say was—" no matter how hard he tried he couldn't get the words to come out of his mouth.

She was startled, "Luke, what's the matter?" she asked in a worried voice.

"Alex, Alex I—" he didn't bother finishing.

In once swift and fluent motion he bent down and hugged her fiercely.

Zuko felt something inside him explode. Whether it was his anger, or his heart, he had no idea. He was wondering why he cared so much. He had locked her in a closer after all. But he felt a certain triumph when he saw her sitting there in shock.

But his thought was destroyed when she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him back with just as much intensity.

Zuko had it. He walked back to his room and went to sleep, taunted by the nightmares.

A few minutes later a very dazed yet happy Alex walked into her chambers. She didn't care if Zuko knew she was out. She was too thrilled about what had just happened. She collapsed on her bed happily, staring at the ceiling. It was quite at first.

Then she heard it.

The words that would haunt her forever.

"Please—no please. Not mother, don't hurt her. Hurt me, don't hurt mother."

Startled, she sat up and looked towards Zuko's bed. He was lying on his right side, mumbling in his sleep.

Curious, she snuck over and knelt beside him. She could hear him muttering about his mother, and his father. And death. She listened in horror as events were unknowingly described to her by him whilst he slept. She almost broke down crying as she visualized what was happening. She now regretted almost everything she had said about him or to him. Almost everything.

He was shaking from the intensity of his nightmare. She hesitated, then laid a cool hand on his bare arm. She could feel him shuddering underneath her fingers, and she subconsciously rubbed his arm soothingly.

Then she heard the words that made her heart both break and erupt from the confusion and the feelings.

"No, no, I couldn't have. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't mean to kill you. I'm sorry Alex, please don't be gone."

She was speechless. He actually cared. And whether or not she would ever hear him apologize when he was awake, this was good enough for her.

Standing up slightly, so that she was hovering over him. She could see his frightened face. It was twisted into many different levels of insanity and horror collided.

Briefly covering her mouth to keep herself from sobbing, she bent down and whispered in his ear, "I forgive you. I'm not going anywhere."

And then she did something she never thought she would do, and certainly not with this man. She bent forward a bit more and kissed him softly on his scared cheek.

On the brink of tears she whispered, "You aren't alone Zuko, there are people who care." She bit her lip and paused, "I care."

She silently stepped back and walked back to her bed, collapsing from exhaustion.


Zuko opened his eyes the next morning, but made no attempt at getting up. He sat there, staring at the fire nation insignia on his wall. He had had so many nightmares. But there had been one point when he felt truly happy, for the first time in two years.

In his nightmare he had killed Alex. He had strangled her to death. But then he had stood back in horror and looked at the corpse of a beautiful young woman. In his nightmare he had knelt to the ground and begged for forgiveness.

And then, when he thought things would only get worse, a faint voice whispered to him.

"I forgive you. "I'm not going anywhere."

He had known this was Alex, and it comforted him to know that at least in his dreams he was forgiven for all the evil things he had done.

He had no idea that what he had heard her say was real, he had no idea that the one person he somehow wanted to care about so much had kissed his cheek that night. He had no idea that she truly cared.

He looked over and saw her sleeping peacefully. Taking a chance, he got out of bed and walked over to her bedside. Kneeling awkwardly, he said the things he wanted to say, assuming she couldn't hear him.

"I'm sorry for what I did to you. I don't know what came over me," he laughed quietly, "wait, that's a lie. I do know why I did it. You do things to me, I feel things when I'm around you. That day, when I stupidly hurt Luke, I normally wouldn't have given a damn. But I saw you, and I saw how much you cared. I guess I just wanted you to care about me as much."

He laughed again, "what am I saying. How could I expect you to? I locked you in a closet for god's sake." He sighed, "I'm not really good at this sort of thing. But I guess what I'm trying to say is that that night, when we were—yeah. But that night, part of me wanted it to be real. Even if it was only a small part, I guess I hoped you had felt the same thing."

He held a hand out, hesitated, and drew it back, "I know you can't hear me, but it's what I wanted to say. Don't expect any mercy anytime soon though. I won't treat you any kinder or better than the rest of my crew."

He left.

Alex lay there in a stunned silence. She had been lying on her side with her eyes closed, thinking. Then she had heard him speak, she hadn't moved, for fear of him getting angry. She had never expected that to happen. She thought back to before she had landed here, when she had been home. She had often searched the internet for fan fiction and read every scrap she could find.

She sat up and looked at the door, "Now that there lady's and gentleman, is what back home they would of called someone being out of character." She laughed at her silliness and got dressed.

Well, really there was nothing to put on. She realized with disgust that she had been wearing the same clothes for over a week.

Walking down the hall she searched for anything she could use to wash her clothing. She didn't care if she was on a ship full of odd behaving men, she was going to figure out something.

She happened upon a small, discreetly hidden room. Inside she marveled at what she saw. It was a revolutionary laundry room. Inside was a large tub for clothing, (it was labeled) the user would pour the water in from a large bucket of the stuff that was sitting beside the tub. After that, the person would boil the water using firebending, adding some soap from a small box. After the items were washed, bending was used to dry them again.

Intrigued, she stepped inside. It made her nervous to know it didn't have a door. If she wanted to wash her clothing she would have to momentarily strip. There was no way she was taking a chance with all of her clothing at once, she had a plan.

After making sure no one was in sight, she quickly pulled her shirt of and threw it in the tub. Immediately she pulled on her jacket and zipped it up. Of course, she was in a hurry so she didn't bother to zip it up all the way.

She noticed that the material of the coat was very stretchy. That gave her an idea. After once again making sure the coast was clear, she took off her pants and threw them in also.

She quickly found a stool and, pulling the coat down as far as it would go, sat down. She knew how ridiculous she must appear, sitting on a stool almost completely naked.

After her pants and shirt were washed and dried she put them on, sighing at the clean feeling. She looked in dismay at her coat – which was stretched beyond repair – and decided to stow it in a small bin in a hidden corner of the bath, for later use.

The moment she stepped on deck she was ambushed by the soldiers and workers, who asked her is she felt better.

Having a vague idea about what had happened, she thanked them politely and told them she felt much, much better.

Iroh motioned for her to come over to him—and Zuko.

Alex knew she would have to face Zuko. But she had to pretend like nothing had changed between them at all.

"Yes Iroh?" she asked with a smile, completely shunning Zuko.

Iroh smiled, "Well, after your display on Monday, my nephew and I have decided you should be allowed to train with the other benders."

She smiled, "thank you so much Iroh." Then she thought for a moment. His nephew and him? Does that mean Zuko had gone along with it? Had he suggested it?

Iroh sighed, "There is a slight problem however." She nodded and he continued, "Well, I know since you arrived you may have felt out of place. Also, there is the fact that even though you are a very skilled bender, you will need protection if the time comes when you would need armor." He smiled, "We've decided to make a pit stop. It's about time you were outfitted with a proper set of armor."

She was elated at this news, but frowned at first, "Thank you Iroh, but what about Luke, he doesn't…" she nodded, "Oh yes, I get it." She realized now that Luke could easily fit into any of the soldiers spare armor, and they usually had many hand me downs. She knew that she herself could fit, but she was both delighted and astounded that Iroh cared enough about her to know that women should have their own, custom fit armor, as men's wear did not fit properly enough to allow adequate movement.

"Besides," uncle smiled, "we are in need of some supplies. I Zuko along with you and a list. I trust you could manage that?"

Her thoughts wired. Part of her was offended that she was to spend an entire day alone with Zuko, but the other part of her was leaping for joy. There was only one minor problem.

"But sir," she said, puzzled, "Doesn't everyone think he's dead? No offense of course," she smiled at him and instantly regretted it. She looked back at Iroh.

He laughed, "My, you are observant. But between you and me, the fire lord did not wish for this "news" to leak out. It might give the other nations a feeling that they could win now that the heir was dead." At the look on her face he added, "No, the fire lord does not know that his son is alive. I would prefer to keep it that way."

She smiled and bowed her head, "I respect your wishes General Iroh."

He then filled her in on the details. They were stopping in an earth kingdom town that was under siege by the fire nation. Iroh assured her that any soldiers that recognized Zuko were friends of his, and they would not bother them while there. Also, there was a very small chance that an earth kingdom dweller would tell, seeing as all the nearby officers were playing dumb.

So, delighted beyond belief, Alex joined the firebending lesson while they traveled the remaining hour to the city, which was called Marin.

The other men greeted her warmly, and at first went easy on her. But when three privates were thrown to the ground, they stopped that right away. She meant business.

She also made the entire lesson much more enjoyable, and even Zuko noticed a rise in his crew's spirits. Instead of being dead serious about a practice, they would occasionally laugh and cheer the others on. Surprisingly, their progress was excelling as well. Iroh said it was because they enjoyed their lessons more, and now worked harder in order to beat the quick to learn Alex.

Midway through a spar between two privates, the great city came into view.

Alex gasped, it was beautiful, simply stunning.

Soon they landed and Iroh gave them a surprising amount of money. Alex assumed it was for the supplies and everything else when Iroh smiled, "Don't sacrifice any quality."

It hit her, "You mean?" she gaped. There was no way all this money was for her armor, no freaking way, "Iroh I can't"

He laughed, "I'll compromise with you Alex. How about you find the best armor both of you can find," he smiled, "I believe my nephew could use another set as well, his is a bit charred after all." He grinned, "Go get ready, there's still a few minutes before you can get off. Zuko will meet you at the bottom."

Alex quickly ran off. No one had even noticed her own little bathroom, so she had staked claim to it. She had installed a makeshift door with a screen, and now felt comfortable there. And to her utter joy, Alex had been scavenging the bathroom and found more treasures. It was apparent that this ship had been previously owned (yet was still in mint condition) and a woman had been onboard. She now realized that this was probably her private bath and grinned to herself. Among other things she found where a sliver brush and comb set-never been used, a few ties for her hair, and a small tube of what she assumed was the equivalent to modern day lip gloss.

Excited, she got ready. She knew that off the ship she was permitted to dress and appear any way she wanted. In her flurry she completely forgot that her companion was Zuko.

Zuko was waiting for her at the bottom of the ramp. He was dressed in his usual casual attire and was happy to note that his cuts and burns had healed on his face (he had found the cook, who made him more of the stuff he had given Alex). He did not wait long however, for he glanced up at the ramp and did a double take. Alex was walking down, but he had not recognized her at first.

The most noticeable thing about her of course was her hair. She was permitted to wear it in any fashion she preferred when off the ship. And she had taken full advantage of this fact. She had done little but take it out and give it a quick combing, but it still made a statement.

Her hair was long, reaching a few inches below her shoulders. It was naturally curly, and had the same texture as when she had had it up in a tail. Soft curls were visible among the waves, which started a little below her chin. Otherwise, her hair was mostly straight from the crown to her chin. It framed her face and accented her features. Sick of her dry and chapped lips she had applied some of the "lip gloss", which was clear.

She smiled at Zuko as she touched the dock, "Well, are we going or what?" she smiled, walking on ahead.

Startled he caught up with her. He couldn't help staring every few minutes. It was a very good thing for her (and both of them?) that he wasn't too much taller than her, or else he would have a very interesting view along her neckline.

He averted his eyes, "Where should we go first? He asked." He turned his head and noticed three servants trailing behind. Far behind. And they weren't even watching. He knew they were here to carry their things back to the ship, but he couldn't help feeling a little sorry that people from the ship were here.

Alex shrugged, "it doesn't really matter to me." Her eyes lit up as she spotted a clothing shop. "Oh, they might have what we're looking for." She subconsciously grabbed his hand and led him in that direction, pulling at first. But when they were walking at a comfortable pace he noticed she made no move to let go of his hand.

Of course, neither was he.

But she was too busy trying to avoid venders along the streets to notice what she was doing to the full extent.

They entered the shop in the same manner. A small bell tinkled over the boor, attached to the hinge.

The shop keeper, a pleasant looking fire nation woman, smiled at them as they walked in. at first she did not recognize the prince, for she had never seen him in person. And anyway, she was much too busy to worry about that now. She noticed them walk in hand in hand and had happily sprung to life. Men who were courting women often spent loads of money on them.

Alex dropped his hand gently and they walked towards the smiling shop owner. She smiled at the two teens, "Well, what can I get you?" she smiled again, "A coat for the young lady? Some jewelry? I have some great—"

Alex immediately knew what the sales lady was thinking and looked at Zuko nervously. "No ma'am," she interrupted suddenly, "What we really came her for is—some armor."

The lady frowned a little but perked up at the price of armor and led them to a discreet room in the back of the shop.

She immediately ignored Alex and turned to Zuko, pulling out a tape measure she started to take measurements.

Alex giggled to herself at the astonished look on his face. His gaze met hers and he smiled.

Oh my god, she thought, he actually smiled. And at me nonetheless.

That same swooning feeling came back to her briefly. She humored herself in imagining the look on the lady's face when she heard that Alex needed armor herself. She knew at the moment she looked nothing like the fighting type, more like the typical fire nation teenager.

The shop keeper left and came back with a pile of armor. She then smiled and left the room, closing the curtain behind her, telling him to check the fit and she'd be back in a few moments.

Zuko had caught the mess of armory and was trying to figure out what to do with it all when Alex, laughing, went over.

Taking a few pieces from him she smiled, "let me help you with that." She placed all the pieces on a long bench, sorting them out quickly. He marveled at her ability to do so. If he attempted this it would have taken over an hour.

She picked up the chest piece and turned around to face him. Zuko noted stupidly how her hair swished when she moved.

She smiled awkwardly and handed him the piece. He stared at it for a moment before realizing she wanted him to put it on. He knew then why she looked so uncomfortable. It was custom for wives to suit up their husbands for battle, and the same went for buying new armor.

He pulled it on, marveling at the snug yet very breathable feeling of it. After he had pulled on the rest, he noted with embarrassment that the straps along his side, on his arms, and his legs needed to be tighten.

Alex saw his dilemma and took pity on him. Shaking her head in wonder she walked over, "let me help you with that,"

But as she reached to tighten an arm strap she looked at him, the picture of sheet seriousness, even though they both knew she was joking.

"Not that I'm playing the role of your future wife," she pointed out as she tightened the arm and side straps.

Zuko gave a small, low, and unbelieving laugh. She looked up at him and he noticed sheepishly that she was fastening his leg harness.

She smiled, "What, you don't think you'll ever get married?" she turned back to the straps, "I though if you were the heir you'd have to."

He gave the same laugh, "Well, since everyone thinks I'm dead that isn't a problem anymore." In his mind his conscience was running through the list of why no woman could ever love him again. He ignored it, annoyed that that stupid little voice had come back.

She stood and gave his chest piece a pat, "All set." She stood back and secretly admired him.

He liked the feel and the fit of the armor, and when the sales lady came back he told her he would buy it. Once he had removed the armor and the lady had placed the items in a box she said, "All right, that'll be eighty—"

"Actually," Zuko interrupted, "We need one more set."

She seemed agitated but had her fake smile plastered on, "Of course sir, I'll go get an identical—"

"No," he said firmly, "it isn't for me." Alex kept herself from laughing and stepped forward, Zuko – almost proudly – put his arm around her shoulder.

Alex forced herself to keep smiling through the awkward situation. Zuko cleared his throat and looked down at her, smiling, "It's for her."

The lady's jaw dropped about three feet, "But surely you must be kidding sir." She laughed, "I'm sorry sit, but it just isn't possible that anyone would be stupid enough to hire such a girl. Look at her, I bet she can't even start a fire."

Zuko felt Alex move to attack the lady but he gave her a look that said, 'let me handle this.'

He glared at the lady, although he attempted to be polite, "well, I guess that makes me and my uncle the stupidest people in the world," he gave a small laugh, "I believe you've heard of him." At the lady's blank look he said, "My Uncle, the great General Iroh, Dragon of the West, hired this girl. If you have a problem with that I expect he'll be happy to hear your opinion of him."

The lady gulped several times, "General Iroh! Oh heavens I am dreadfully—" she stopped and stared at Zuko suspiciously, "Did you say uncle?" he nodded and her face turned pale. General Iroh only had one sibling, his brother Ozai. If this scared young man was Iroh's nephew, that meant that he must be…

She gasped, "Oh my goodness. Prince Zuko! I am terribly sorry, I'll get right on your order sir." She disappeared into a back room.

Alex looked at Zuko funny and for a moment he wondered what she was on about now when he quickly removed his arm from her shoulder, "I uh—"

She laughed and gave him a one armed hug, "Thanks for sticking up for me," she wanted to smack herself again. Did she just hug him like she used to hug Josh and Kyle?

She opened her eyes wide. Oh my god, she was speaking in past tense. She meant how she hugged them, right? Of course, silly mistake.

The lady came back and led her into a back room. Zuko waited awkwardly outside and contemplated what he had done. Why had he allowed her to take his hand? Why had he allowed her to do up his armor? Why had he allowed himself to touch her like that?

Even though deep down he knew what was going on.

'Am I falling in love with her?' he thought.

The voice was back. No, not really. She's just making you think you are. It's all a trap. You saw how she hugged you like that. Sure, it appeared casual, but that'll lead to other things. Remember that night in your room? If I had money I would bet you all the money in the world that she did not really want to be that close to you, that she resented touching you. She's only--

He cut the voice off as another voice said, rather nervously, "What do you think? Is it up to your standards or what?"

He looked up and saw her. He was astounded. The woman's uniform was similar to the men's, except that it fit better. The "skirted" part of the armor was much shorter, and he noticed that each piece hugged the body generously. The most noticeable piece was the chest piece. It hugged her curves perfectly (It was custom fit so it should). It came down from the shoulders in a curve similar to that of the men's collars. It was like a rounded square. There was no collar, and the top of the armor ended low enough to be feminine, but high enough to be both decent and protecting. The shoulder pads were inexistent. Instead, the arms connected with the chest with a small circling of metal that covered the bindings. The same grey undershirt was worn, but again it fit perfectly. The boots were not pointed, they were a nice, rounded toe, much like regular boots. Another feature he noticed about the chest plate was the design. He knew all the uniforms had designs. Most were the same save for captains, generals, and of course admirals. Her armor was made of the same dark red color, but the chest plate had an unusual pattern. The golden color used to line borders was used on the plate. From her shoulders straight down it went (besides lining it as usual) and curved over the from just under the bust line, with a straight line down the center.

He knew he was staring but didn't care. The lady still looked shocked, but now she was eyeing them curiously. They both took that as a cue to leave. Now. They bought their items and left the shop, completing the rest of the list.

Throughout the rest of the day Alex found herself laughing with Zuko. She had a feeling this happy mood would disappear the instant they were in sight of the ship, but it was nice while it lasted. They were both enjoying themselves. Between joking about the amount of tea Iroh asked for to who could skip a stone the farthest.

This happened last, actually, as they waited for the servants to go about the numerous shops and collect their items. Meanwhile, Alex was helping Zuko get in touch with his inner child as she taught him to skip stones across the water. They were waiting at a small, unpopulated beach far from the ships. Both of them felt a secret joy at finally being alone.

Alex knew that the reason he was so different from what she had always known him as was due to the fact that people had been dictating what he was to say, even though it was his personality. Now that the show was stalled she was beginning to see the real Zuko.

Well, most of him anyway.

After skipping a stone a record distance of three skips (for him, Alex had done ten) he walked through the sand and collapsed next to a reclining Alex, who was leaning back on her elbows.

He was lying down completely, hands behind his head, looking over the horizon at the sunset.

"I never really noticed it before, but it's really wonderful, isn't it?" he asked silently.

She looked over at him, "Yeah it is." They were sitting close together, although he was higher up on the beach than she was, at least by a few inches.

"It makes you think about things," he mussed, "Like how alone you are, when you watch a sunset with no one to share it with." He looked awfully sad and depressed.

"Do you think you're alone now?" she asked, wanting to get to the bottom of this right now, so she could get these thoughts out of her mind.

He thought for a moment, "I think so. I'm all ways alone, no matter how many people are around."

She looked at him, startled by his insightful views. She bit her lip, wondering if she dared to do what she wanted to so badly.

She gently leaned onto his chest, resting her head underneath his chin. Automatically he put an arm around her, pulling her close to him, around her back and gently gripping her shoulder.

"You're wrong, Prince Zuko," she whispered, "You're not alone."

He was both shocked yet happy. He knew that once they returned to the ship things would change. The Prince Zuko everyone throughout the world thought him as would return, and he would banish any thoughts of her, and this moment. This was definitely going along with that—that one in his room.

She closed her eyes for a moment, she knew they had about ten seconds to enjoy this, but she didn't care.

'You know,' she thought, 'if this is what he's like "Out of Character (OOC), then maybe I don't mind so much. Screw everyone else. When I get back I'm writing a story about all of this.

Yet, as they walked back to the ship silently, she wondered if she even wanted to leave.