Ch. 13 Apprehension
Song
I don't remember falling asleep.
I rub my eyes and stretch out my aching spine. I expose my left eye first surveying the bleary room and then my right.
Judging by the cots filled with people and the orange clad healers moving about the room, I must be in a hospital tent.
I wiggle my toes excitedly, but it's lost on the healers bustling past me.
"I don't know what to do Tallulah! He'th being thuch a thubborn ath! He won't even let me look at him!" A skinny elderly man with a lisp bellows entering the tent.
Tallulah? The lady who lent Zuko and me our emuhorses. I hope she got them back.
"shhh." The portly nurse responds and points to a chair. "You can tell me more in a minute."
The angry man waves his cane erratically before another nurse I don't recognize threatens to throw him out.
He sniffs as if slighted, but hobbles to comply. I know that man from somewhere.
He places his head in his hands.
"Who is it sir?" The lady places a hand on his slumped shoulders.
"Ith that General Grump." He said hysterically waving his cane again with renewed passion barely avoiding thumping his colleague.
It's that doctor from my old camp. Without his exuberant smile.
The lisp had thrown me off.Overcome with comprehension, I muffle my mirth in my mattress. Of all people Zuko would be put in the care of! When I lift my head, I see how dirty my near burning left me. My ashy face left a deep imprint on the once pristine white surface.
"Glad to see your up." I quickly turn over and relieved I smile at Katara.
"Morning." My voice cracks from lack of use. I cough and the tingling stops.
The bags under her eyes indicate that she had not slept as I did last night, but at least she's eaten. I couldn't see in the dark, but as I gaze at her now it's undeniable that her belly looks more swollen than before.
I tell her that. Her worried expression falters and she laughs.
"Let's get you cleaned up." We carefully tiptoe to get out of camp.
As we were leaving the tent, I hear that old healer confess rather loudly, but without the lisp "The General did seem more human that normal. That, Tallulah, could indicate a decline in his health."
Or change in his heart.
Katara does not speak until we walk to a tent, which she explains, is the feminine bathhouse. "I'll get you some new clothes to wear." She kindly says about to leave.
I unbraid my hair. An shudder pulses through me as I recall what I'm wearing.
"No heels please." I verbalize as she begins to turn away
---
Zuko
That smile is going to give me nightmares! I practically wanted to scream at the injustice of him coming back into my life.
He insisted I kept off my feet. I responded with an exhale of smoke. Being as skittish as he was he left the room for a moment. I had a few reports from the frontline and then he reentered my tent.
He then insisted that he should examine me. I 'calmly' explained that I didn't trust doctors. He asked me why. I told him I was poisoned by one at his camp and he also turned out to be a traitor. Thinking he was making a breakthrough, he pledged his allegiance to the alliance. I told him he couldn't convince me. Pointing his cane at me, he wanted to know if I trusted anyone. My nurse I answered. He snottily said that she was his subordinate. I ordered him to leave.
Simple as that.
I don't know if I should've been amused or angry. I suppose I pity him, but not enough to let him doctor me. Not when that Agent Phoebus could be lurking around bribing more doctors.
I can't believe Ty Lee lost him. At least we've got Azula, Mai, and Shang.
That should cause a struggle for power among the last of Azula's officers and we'll be able to end this war.
At least that is what I bet Toph on when she returned to camp. She responded that I had better be right because I didn't have the cash to back that up.
'Unless he wants to be Fire Lord.' Aang interjected and then snapped his mouth shut.
My mouth had run dry and my earlier battle adrenaline disappeared.
I had left soon after, hid my blue spirit mask, and was bombarded by the then happy-go-lucky doctor come dawn.
He's lucky he caught me at my best. I crack my knuckles absently.
Simple as that.
---
Song
After my bath, I ate a hearty breakfast with Katara, Missy, and Aang.
"If Sokka was here, you wouldn't think I was such a pig." She explained as she wolfed down a piece of meat. Aang laughed, but couldn't hide his appetite. He only managed to eat a date and left the room.
"where have you been Miss Song?" Artemis asked watching me with sorrowful eyes. "You didn't even say goodbye."
I can't tell the child that I was nearly burned to death.
Katara seeing my loss of words swallowed an enormous chunk of fat.
"She went to see relatives. She had to leave quickly or she would've never met them." She fibs and douses a cup of water to conceal her twitching lips.
I raise my eyebrows. Could she read the love upon my face?
She throws a wink in my direction and want to hide. Yep I'm an open book.
---
Zuko
"Zuko." A familiar voice wakes me from my nap. Allowing no appearance of surprise, I sit up yawning.
My barely focused eyes fall on Song and drowsily I say hello.
"How are you?" she asks anxious while I blink my eyes to overpower my half-unconscious mind.
"Bored." I state the first thing to come to mind. My Adam's apple bobs uncontrollably now that I can see her in front of me. Her dark hair is damp, but her skin is pink and clean. Her dark eyes remedy my earlier doubts about my feelings. Damn.
Somehow, I had fallen hard.
She forces a smile painting a wistful look about her face.
"I've come to say goodbye." She murmurs clasping her hands behind her.
---
Song
"What." He looks livid as he throws his sheets off. He slams his feet on the ground cursing softly as he withdraws one foot
"I was told to join a group of nurses who were heading south." I gulp as he stands up from his creaky cot "I just wanted to thank you for saving me…"
He turns and looks down at me expression softening making me aware of our proximity.
"I couldn't let my pyromaniac sister kill you off." His golden eyes enigmatic.
My earlier promise to be bold urges me to continue, but I can't. Instead I laugh half-heartedly at his speech.
---
Zuko
Her false laugh rattles me as she looks away. So this is how it ends.
She glances back at me and sighs.
"Would you like me to look at your leg?"
This leg could have a purpose after all.
"For old times sake." She adds mouth tipping up at the edges, but eyes sad.
I sit back on the bed and push up my pant leg.
She unravels the bandage and peers at the damage.
"You've must have dislocated your knee. You're going to have to let that doctor put it back into place."
I snort. "Or you could do it now." You're not leaving me that easily.
"I… I guess I could." She raises my foot and rotates it back in forth.
The pain sears, so I cough to conceal that.
She bites her tongue, and jerks my foot to the left popping the joint back into place.
I grind my teeth until the feeling is gone.
"Better?"
Tempted to lie, but gratitude for ending the pain allows my mouth to betray.
"yes."
---
Song
"Anything else?" I question methodically. I wrap up his burn.
He looks thoughtfully, he motions for me to help him up, and I do. We awkwardly stand near each other. His arms fall from my shoulder tracing their shape.
I do the unthinkable. I stand on my tiptoes and kiss him. He seems stunned upon impact and I force myself to pull immediately away. I then turn to leave.
I'm ready to speed off, but I'm spun back around.
---
Zuko
"Where do you think your going?" I ask her in a daze at the turn of events.
"To find where my belongings are." She says flushing and not looking me in the eyes.
"You'll need to do that, but you're staying here." I say regaining my senses.
She looks up at me with probing eyes
I then kiss my nurse properly.
---
The End
Epilogue
"After the war, they disappeared without a trace. They left before they were given honor, so this is why their story is told and will be forever told." Her voice has a pitch of conclusion that doesn't go unnoticed
"Is that the end mommy?" A little voice questions sadly. Her gray eyes water sadly, she dips her her head down, and rubs a few stray tears awy.
"Calm down Kiwi." Her brother says musing his dark curly hair. "That ending was really mushy." The little boy scrunches his tan nose, but his sapphire eyes look as though he enjoyed some parts.
"Tang!" his sister said indignantly.
"Time to sleep." The twin's mother interrupted and tucked them in.
As she kissed their foreheads she pondered when she would receive her next correspondence from The Prince and The Nurse.
---
Author's Note
The end? Muhahaha maybe
Sorry it took so long… this chapter had little action and it came out choppier than I intended but it'll do for now. Throws confetti and candy.
Thanks bunches to my amazing reviewers! I certainly hope this ending is satisfactory.
In case, you are wondering. I picked Native American names for Katara's children. Kiwi is short for Kiwidinok meaning woman of the wind and Tang is short for Tangakwunu meaning rainbow. I choose it because it reminded me of Kataang
This story accumulated 63 reviews! I am so proud. I'd like to thank sugarland31, GoddessOfCsilla, Jean Warren, Firework, Brix, storm-of-insanity , FiregirlJadea, FireGurl107, and Ireth Kalt. If I forgot to add anyone I'm sorry fanfiction has not been cooperating with me earlier.
You guys are all awesome! Now all I need to know is if I need to add anything else before I work on another project. I enjoyed working on my writing skills this summer, but I need to focus on school for the time being.
I also want to watch the next season of avatar before I post more. You never know what inspiration will come from that. Once again thanks!
Nuclear Kitty