Chapter 5: Fever Pitch
"I missed you more than you'll ever know," Aang crooned as he held onto Appa's muzzle tightly, the bison nuzzling and licking him repeatedly.
They had flown Appa to a remote islet on the far side of Lake Laogai to avoid any Dai Li agents searching for them so that they could enjoy being reunited again in peace. Even after nearly half an hour of getting cuddles and pets from everyone, the sky bison was so touch-starved that he whined and leaned after them whenever they began to pull away. Katara, Sokka, and Toph were settled on the ground between his large paws, rubbing his nose and scratching under his chin, while Rinzen sat on top of his large head, stroking one of his fuzzy ears and feeling it flick instinctively toward her hand whenever she drew it back. Momo curled up against one of Appa's horns, nuzzling into his fur and chittering quietly with satisfaction.
Rinzen couldn't help but keep thinking about the chains that had been cut through with what Sokka had said had been a broadsword. If her guess was correct, and Zuko really had somehow found Appa and freed him, she owed him a huge apology for all of the times she had doubted that he had really changed. It was times like these when she really wished she could read Appa's mind just to find out what had happened.
Appa groaned in complaint when her hand stilled on his ear and she couldn't help a soft chuckle, scratching behind his ear again gently.
"Good boy," she murmured soothingly and he rumbled as he closed his eyes again contentedly.
"I think we've got a good chance at talking to the Earth King now," Sokka said suddenly from where he was settled against Appa's front leg as Rinzen peered down at him.
"Well, I vote for getting out of Ba Sing Se as soon as possible before the Dai Li catch up to us," she answered dryly, although she wanted to at least see Zuko and say goodbye to him before they left. "They've already got control of the Earth King, it's not like he'll listen to us."
"I'm with taller Twinkletoes. The sooner we get out of this city, the better," Toph agreed, but Aang looked a little more hesitant.
"I don't know, Rin," he said slowly, continuing to stroke Appa's nose absently. "Sokka's got a point. We've got Appa back, so there's nothing really stopping us from at least trying to talk to the Earth King." He glanced at Katara, who looked just as torn as she chewed her lip in thought. "What do you think, Katara?"
"Well," Katara hedged, still biting her lip anxiously. "I don't know. On one hand, Rin and Toph have a point. Long Feng and the Dai Li are too powerful, they've got too much control over the city for us to be able to get through to the Earth King."
"But it's the whole reason we came here in the first place," Sokka argued, getting to his feet. "We have to try."
"I guess if the Earth King knew the truth, things could change," Katara conceded and both Aang and Sokka perked up, grinning widely.
"I don't trust this new positive Sokka," Toph decided and Rinzen snorted with amusement.
"You and me both," she deadpanned. Toph held up a hand expectantly and Rinzen obediently leaned down to high-five it.
Aang suddenly hurried to the edge of the islet, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. "Uh-oh." Rinzen sat up on Appa's head, squinting a little to see three ships sailing across the lake.
"That must be the Dai Li looking for us," Sokka realized, grimacing as he turned to Katara. "Well?"
Katara paused for a moment before nodding decisively. "Let's fly." They climbed onto Appa's back as Aang pushed himself up with a burst of air to settle beside Rinzen.
"Yip-yip!" he shouted and within moments, they were airborne.
Rinzen was used to flying on a sky bison without a saddle, so she looped an arm around Appa's horn instinctively to steady herself as the sky bison climbed steadily higher into the air, but she could hear the other three shrieking and grabbing onto his fur to stay on his back. Appa groaned a little, craning his head worriedly to try and peer back at them, and Rinzen patted his head soothingly.
"We're okay, big guy," she crooned. "Everyone's just a little nervous without your saddle." She turned to Aang, who looked just as worried as she felt. There was a lot of work to be done when it came to making Appa feel comfortable again. "We should get a new saddle, spirits know where the old one went." He nodded, stroking Appa's head reassuringly as well before guiding him toward the city again.
As they flew over the upper ring, approaching the large palace, Rinzen couldn't help but feel that nagging sensation again that she should see Zuko and confront him about Appa, and she didn't know if they would even have the time to talk afterwards if the Earth King chose to kick her and the rest of the group out.
"Don't freak out, but I need to take care of something," she called over the rushing wind and Sokka picked up his head from where it was buried in Appa's fur.
"Are you crazy?! What could be more important right now than seeing the Earth King?!" he shouted back.
"He's got a point," Aang reasoned, raising an eyebrow skeptically. "Are you sure this can't wait?"
"It's important," Rinzen insisted. "Just trust me, okay? You can send Momo to find me if you need me, he always knows where I am. I won't be far from the palace, but I need to do this."
Aang bit his lip, but nodded reluctantly. "Okay. Just be safe."
"I will. Thank you." She drew him into a quick one-armed hug and patted Appa's head gently before snapping open her glider and leaping off.
The rush of wind around her felt incredible as she guided an air current along her glider to help her fly towards the street leading away from the palace. Landing on the street, she snapped the glider closed, surprised to see that she had conveniently landed just a few doors away from The Jasmine Dragon. The shop itself was still closed with a large sign over the door that read, "Opening Soon!" in cheery lettering. She circled around to the stone steps leading to the apartment above the shop, climbing them before knocking on the door and hoping Iroh and Zuko were home.
Iroh opened the door, looking frazzled. "Rinzen!" He didn't sound as happy to see her as he normally did and she found herself frowning worriedly.
"Is this a bad time? I didn't know if I'd get to come by later, so I just-"
"No, no, it's not, I just..." He glanced over his shoulder anxiously into the apartment. "Zuko isn't well," he confessed.
"Why? What's wrong with him?" Rinzen resisted the urge to peer over his shoulder as well.
"He's...well, come inside, in any case." Iroh ushered her inside and she leaned her staff on the wall. "He's sleeping at the moment, but he's through here." She followed Iroh through a doorway into a bedroom, where Zuko lay on a sleeping mat, covered in sweat and tossing and turning fitfully in his sleep.
"What happened?" she prompted, lingering in the doorway as Iroh took a seat beside Zuko, grabbing a cloth to dip it in cool water from a bucket beside him and then draping it over Zuko's forehead.
"Zuko made a very difficult choice today, and it has put his body and spirit at odds, hence his high fever," he explained as he worked and Rinzen watched Zuko shiver instinctively when the cloth was placed over his forehead. Iroh hesitated before admitting, "He found your bison and freed him."
Relief flooded through her like an icy bucket had been upended over her head. "I suspected that he did." She bit her lip before moving into the room, taking a seat on Zuko's other side carefully. "Sokka recognized that the chains had been cut by a broadsword and I'd hoped it was Zuko, but I wasn't sure."
"He didn't intend to free Appa at first," Iroh clarified, frowning slightly. "He originally planned to take him hostage until you and your brother came."
"And then what?" Rinzen pointed out wryly. "No offense, but I'm pretty sure Appa could take him out in a split second. Not sure he thought that through."
Iroh cracked a wry smile. "That's what I told him." He carefully continued patting Zuko's forehead with the damp cloth. "But he made the choice to let Appa go all by himself." He looked back up at her and his expression was almost pleading with her to believe him. "He wants to change, Rinzen. I know he does."
Rinzen glanced down at Zuko, his expression tense as he shifted feverishly, and hesitated before reaching out to slip her hand into his. Even his palm was sweaty and hot, but she clutched onto his fingers tightly anyway. "I wanted to believe that he did for the longest time," she admitted quietly. "I've always known you wanted to change, but ever since I found out you were both here in Ba Sing Se, I hoped that he did, too." When she looked up again, Iroh was still watching her anxiously. "This is the first time I really believe it," she reassured him and he relaxed, a soft and warm smile spreading across his face as he reached over to squeeze her shoulder.
"That means the world to me." Zuko groaned quietly in his sleep, turning away from the cold cloth on his forehead, and Iroh grimaced as he sat back a little, dropping the cloth back into the bucket. "I need to go down to the shop and get some herbs to make a tea that might curb his fever." He glanced up at Rinzen. "But if you have to return to your brother-"
"No," she reassured him quickly, making up her mind as she laced her fingers with Zuko's instinctively. "He'll send Momo for me if he needs me. I can stay with Zuko while you go to the shop."
Iroh gave her a grateful smile. "Thank you, I really owe you." He got to his feet. "I won't be long." He hurried out of the room and Rinzen heard the apartment door close behind him. Exhaling quietly, she sat back against the wall, watching Zuko toss and turn restlessly in his sleep. He was shirtless under the blanket that covered him up to his chest and each time he shifted, it slipped further off him. Rinzen carefully tugged the blanket back up, tucking it around his shoulders as he tried to push her hands away in his half-conscious state.
"Stop that," she scolded him mildly. "You need to sweat it out."
The sound of her voice seemed to finally sink in as he stirred slowly. "Rin?" he rasped, cracking his eyes open to peer at her hazily. "What're you doing here?" His voice broke on the last word as he turned his head away from her to cough hard.
"Just babysitting while your uncle ran out to grab some stuff," she explained, reaching over him to grab the ladle sticking out from the bucket of water. "You'll want to stay hydrated." Reluctantly, he took the ladle from her, sitting up just enough to swallow down the water inside. The blanket slipped down from his shoulders to pool in his lap and she dropped her gaze away from him instinctively, relieved that he was at least wearing pants.
"Did you get Appa back?" he asked as he dropped the ladle back into the bucket unceremoniously. She managed a small smile as she glanced up again to find him watching her warily, albeit looking somewhat dazed with how high his fever was.
"Yeah, we did." She hesitated before shuffling closer to wrap her arms around his torso gingerly. He was practically scalding to the touch, but she felt him slip his arms shakily around her in return. "Thank you. It means everything to me that you let him go."
"Mm-hmm." He ducked his head against hers as she felt his arms go lax around her, his energy clearly spent, and she nudged him back down onto the sleeping mat.
"Get some more rest. I'm not going anywhere. Hopefully." He cracked a tiny smile before closing his eyes, his breathing evening out again as she drew the blanket back up to cover his shoulders. She grabbed the cloth Iroh had discarded into the bucket to wring it out and drape it back over Zuko's forehead to try and bring down his fever, wincing in sympathy as he shivered and tried to turn his head away from the cold, damp sensation.
A soft chittering at the window caught her attention as she got to her feet, relieved to see Momo perched on the windowsill and grumpily scratching at a piece of parchment tied to his leg. If they had had time to write a note to her, then things clearly couldn't be as bad as the Earth King kicking them out of Ba Sing Se. Gently, she untied the parchment and opened it, allowing Momo to clamber onto her shoulder as she read the note scribbled in Aang's messy handwriting.
Things are all good with the Earth King. Long Feng's been arrested. The Dai Li's been keeping letters and documents from us that we just found. Come by the palace when you can, no rush. Hope everything's okay.
Rinzen glanced around for a quill, glad to find one resting beside an inkwell on a table nearby and turning the note over to write a response back.
That's great. I'm with Lee right now and taking care of some things, but I'll try to be there soon.
Momo glowered sullenly at her as she reached up for his leg, clearly disgruntled at being used like a messenger hawk.
"Hey, you signed up to be in our group, so you need to earn your keep," she scolded him quietly as she tied the note to his leg again and scooped him off her shoulder to walk him to the window. He chirruped sadly at the reprimand as she set him gently down on the windowsill, his ears drooping, and she scratched under his chin. "I'll give you a peach later if you behave." He perked up at the promise of fruit before leaping off the windowsill to fly towards the palace and Rinzen couldn't help a chuckle as she returned to take a seat at Zuko's side again.
He opened his eyes slightly and reached for her hand to take it the moment she sat down and she marveled at how naturally their fingers laced together. His fingers were warm and rough against hers, although she suspected the heat came from the fever and not the natural fire smoldering just underneath his skin.
"Everything okay?" His voice was still hoarse and sounded like his throat was coated with sandpaper.
"Yeah, everything's fine." She reached up to brush her fingers through his hair and he leaned into the touch absently. "You should go back to sleep, your uncle will be home soon."
"Hmm," he answered noncommittally, clearly considering something before he pushed himself upright shakily, wavering slightly, and she caught his shoulder instinctively to steady him despite how hot it was to the touch.
"What're you doing? Lay down before you pass out or-" Before she knew it, he was reaching out to place his free hand on the back of her neck, tugging her in and pressing his lips against hers roughly. His nose bumped against hers and she vaguely noted that his eyes were closed before belatedly realizing that she should probably close her eyes as well. It felt odd to have someone's lips on her own, especially when they were dry and slightly chapped, but she found herself leaning in after him instinctively as he pulled away, feeling slightly breathless and dizzy.
"Sorry," he apologized as she opened her eyes to find a small, tentative smile tugging at his lips. She did her best to try not to think about how they had just been touching hers moments earlier. "But I've tried to kiss you and been interrupted about twice now. Didn't want to get interrupted a third time."
"You've...what?" She felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment at how dazed she sounded and he looked somewhat disappointed.
"You didn't notice? Not even at the train station?"
"I mean, Katara kind of pointed it out when I told her about what happened at the train station, but I thought she was kidding," she admitted and was surprised to see him biting back a smile again.
"Well, I mean, it was kind of obvious."
"Shut up, I never said I was observant," she muttered, gently shoving his shoulder. "Lay down and get some sleep now."
He obediently lay back on the sleeping mat, his eyes still on her. "So as far as first kisses go...?" he prompted expectantly.
"Not like I have much to compare it to," she pointed out wryly. Before she could stop herself, she added impulsively, "Kiss me again when you're not running a fever and we'll see. You're just lucky that this isn't contagious."
She turned bright red at her own daring, but Zuko only huffed quietly with amusement as he closed his eyes, murmuring, "Sounds like a plan."
Rinzen hesitated before leaning down to press a soft kiss against his forehead and his lips curved up into another tiny smile as his breathing evened out again. Just as she sat back again, she heard the apartment door open as Iroh returned and felt secretly relieved that he hadn't come in just minutes earlier. She climbed to her feet and slipped out of the room to find him unpacking a large bag of herbs onto the kitchen counter.
"Anything I can help with?" she offered and he glanced over his shoulder before shaking his head with a small smile.
"No, that's all right, I can take care of brewing the tea from here. How is Zuko doing?"
"He's okay," she answered honestly. "Woke up a couple times and I got him to drink a little water, but he's back to sleeping now. Momo came earlier with a message from Aang that I should head to the Earth King's palace to take care of something."
"Do you need to go now, then?" Iroh frowned slightly. "I can take care of Zuko by myself if that's the case."
"Yeah, I do, but I'll try to come back as soon as I can," she confirmed.
He relaxed a little as he nodded and waved her toward the door. "Go on, we'll see you soon." Rinzen grabbed her staff from where she had left it by the doorway, waving over her shoulder in response as she headed out of the apartment and back to the street, where she took flight with a burst of air from her feet to launch her into the sky with her glider.
As she approached the palace doors and tilted her glider down to land on the top step, she noticed the conspicuous numbers of Earth Kingdom soldiers milling about the courtyard compared to the number of Dai Li agents who had been patrolling the area when they had last snuck into the Earth King's palace during his pet bear's birthday party. She reached for the giant door handle to push it open.
"Stop right there!" A uniformed general that she recognized from the outer wall of Ba Sing Se stepped out from behind a stone pillar, blocking the doorway. "You can't just waltz into the Earth King's palace!"
Rinzen blinked at him. "General How, it's me, Rinzen. The Avatar's sister? Aang told me to come to the palace."
General How frowned back at her bemusedly before he glanced up at the arrow on her forehead and winced in embarrassment. "Right, sorry about that. I guess we're all a little on edge, since we just had a security breach-"
"With Long Feng, I know," she reassured him. "Can I go in or...?"
"Yes, of course." He opened the door for her and followed her inside before shutting the door behind them. "Your friends and the King are just down here." He led the way down the massive hallway and Rinzen glanced around as she followed him, marveling at the giant green and gold banners and decorations everywhere. They was almost too lavish and lurid for her to look at them for long. General How knocked on a door before pushing it open to reveal a dim study with a crackling fireplace containing a large green fire.
Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph were gathered around a large wooden table, a box full of scrolls in front of them and a thin man with tiny spectacles and long green and gold flowing robes beside them. Rinzen presumed he was the Earth King, but hadn't expected him to be as thin and fragile-looking as he was. Aang looked up first before smiling broadly at the sight of Rinzen.
"Hey, Rin, good thing you're here. Is everything okay with-?"
"Ooh, Lee," Toph and Sokka chorused with wide grins even before Aang could finish his question, clearly having rehearsed it ahead of time, and Rinzen rolled her eyes.
"Everything's okay for now, he's just running a really high fever, so I had to stay with him while his uncle ran out to grab some medicinal herbs," she explained as she came into the study. Remembering her manners belatedly, she bowed quickly to the Earth King. "Your Majesty."
He gave her a warm smile. "Hello. You must be Avatar Aang's sister, Rinzen. He's spoken very highly of you. My name is Kuei."
Rinzen felt a little glow of warmth in her chest toward her little brother as she sat down in an empty chair beside Aang, squeezing his shoulder lightly. "I appreciate that," she addressed both her brother and King Kuei. "I'm really glad things worked out. Especially after we've wanted to speak with you for so long."
"Your Majesty, not to interrupt, but we need to make further arrangements regarding Long Feng and the Dai Li," General How prompted from the doorway and King Kuei frowned before getting to his feet.
"I understand." He glanced at the group. "I'm afraid I have to take care of this, will you all be all right?"
"We'll be fine, thanks," Aang answered reassuringly and King Kuei smiled, nodding back to him before following General How out. "Look at this. It was attached to Appa's horn when the Dai Li found him," Aang added to Rinzen, passing a small scroll over, and she took the note to read it. From what she could understand, there was a man named Guru Pathik who lived in the empty Eastern Air Temple and claimed he could teach Aang to control the Avatar state completely.
"You really think this Guru Pathik can do that? Teach you to control the Avatar state?" she asked curiously as she passed the note back to Aang.
"It's worth checking out," he answered with a small shrug. "If I can get control of the Avatar state, it's a pretty big advantage for us, especially before the invasion on the day of black sun."
"So we're going ahead with it?" Rinzen instinctively glanced at Sokka, since it had been his plan originally. "The solar eclipse invasion?"
He nodded. "We're going to need to plan a full-scale invasion now that we've got the Earth King's support." He glanced down at the scroll he was holding then, his eyebrows furrowing. "But Katara and I found this report that says there's a Water Tribe fleet at the mouth of Chameleon Bay led by our dad."
"And there's a letter from my mom that she's in the city and wants to see me," Toph added, sounding more excited than Rinzen had ever heard her. Then again, Rinzen knew how much Toph had wanted her parents' approval since before she had joined their group.
"I hate to say it, but maybe we should consider splitting up," Katara spoke up at last, biting her lip worriedly.
"Split up?" Aang sounded stricken. "But we just got the family back together!"
"Just for a little while," Katara reassured him quickly. "Sokka and I can go see our dad while Toph sees her mom, and you and Rinzen can go to the Eastern Air Temple to meet Guru Pathik."
"Wait. Someone has to stay back to plan for the invasion with the Earth King," Sokka realized suddenly and exhaled quietly in resignation, passing the scroll containing the report of their father's whereabouts to Katara. "I guess that'll be me."
Katara paused before pushing the scroll back into Sokka's hands. "No, Sokka. You should go to Chameleon Bay and see Dad. I know how much that means to you. I'll stay behind with the Earth King."
Sokka's eyes were suddenly very bright as he reached out to hug Katara tightly. "You are the best sister ever," he said fervently, pressing his face into her hair as she patted his back with a fond chuckle.
"Easy there, big brother."
"So it's settled then, we can all plan to head out tomorrow morning?" Rinzen suggested, glancing out the window to find the sun starting to sink past the horizon. So much had happened in one day that it almost didn't feel real that they had gotten Appa back and that they had gotten the Earth King's support for the solar eclipse invasion. "Aang and I can take Sokka to Chameleon Bay on Appa and then go to the Eastern Air Temple from there."
"That sounds good," Aang agreed, glancing back up at Rinzen even though he still looked a little uneasy at the thought of them splitting up. "Maybe you should go see Lee before we go. Make sure he's doing okay."
"I was actually thinking I'd go now," she admitted. "See if his uncle needs any help, maybe stay overnight with them. I'll be back in the morning so we can go."
"Ooh, Lee," Sokka muttered under his breath absently as he studied the report in his hands, more out of habit than actually teasing her, but Katara still elbowed him sharply, earning a yelp in response.
"Leave her alone, if she wants to spend time with someone other than us, she can."
"Thank you," Rinzen told her gratefully as she got to her feet. "I'll see you guys in the morning." They all bade her goodbye and she left the study in much higher spirits than she thought she would be going in.
As she made her way out to the courtyard, a loud groan caught her attention and she found Appa nestled in a stable on the far side of the courtyard, his large brown eyes focused on her. With a soft chuckle, she crossed the courtyard to rub the sky bison's nose gently.
"Hey, buddy," she murmured fondly. "We're going to take a trip to the Eastern Air Temple tomorrow. You remember that place, right? It's where you were born." She scratched under his large chin and he closed his eyes, soaking in the affection. "It'll be good to fly long-distance again, I bet you've missed it. I know I have." Appa licked at her fingers with a contented rumble and she pressed a kiss against the arrow on his forehead. "It's good to have you back, big guy." Appa nosed at her gently in response and she reluctantly stepped back as he whined a little, leaning after her. "I know, I'm sorry, but I've gotta go see Zuko now." He perked up at the mention of Zuko's name and she couldn't help a tiny smile. "Yeah, you like him now that he freed you, huh? I'll be back in the morning, I promise." She patted Appa's nose one last time before heading out of the palace gates and down the narrow street to The Jasmine Dragon.
She climbed the stone steps to Zuko and Iroh's apartment, knocking before cracking open the door to peek inside. "It's just me, can I come in?" she called.
"Yes, come on in," Iroh called back from the kitchen and she stepped inside, leaning her staff back against the wall before making her way to the kitchen to join him. A heavy medicinal scent laced the air and she wrinkled her nose instinctively.
"I'm guessing that's the tea?"
"Unfortunately, yes. Highly effective, but horribly abusive to the nose. No self-respecting tea should smell like this," Iroh deadpanned as he poured out the murky-looking tea from the kettle into a cup that he held out to her. "Take this to Zuko and make him drink all of it, please? He needs at least a few cups through the night to bring his fever down. I've already given him one, so he should be used to the taste by now. Not that it'll keep him from complaining about it." He rolled his eyes fondly, making Rinzen laugh a little.
"I'll get him to drink it." She slipped into the bedroom with the cup of tea to find Zuko asleep and fidgeting restlessly, his blanket having been kicked off and balled up into a corner of the room. "Hey," she murmured quietly as she took a seat by his side, nudging his shoulder to wake him. He started awake almost instantly at her touch, jerking upright and startling her into almost dropping the teacup. "Take it easy, it's just me," she reassured him quickly and he exhaled a little shakily as he registered who was in front of him, pushing himself upright properly to lean heavily against the wall.
"Sorry," he muttered, his voice still hoarse as he scrubbed a hand over his face and she held out the cup carefully.
"Your uncle told me to give you another cup of tea."
He wrinkled his nose. "Another one?" He took the cup obediently from her despite his reluctance and took a sip, shuddering slightly at the taste and stifling a cough into his free elbow.
"You're going to have to get a few more down through the night, so you'd better get used to it now," she warned him and he groaned a little in complaint even as he downed the rest of the cup in one gulp and set it aside. "Is it at least working?" She reached up to touch his forehead, frowning at how hot and dry his skin still felt.
"Don't feel any different," he answered dully as he shifted to lay back down, his eyes already falling shut. She found herself instinctively brushing his hair back from his forehead and he tilted his head into the touch, mumbling, "Where'd you go? Woke up earlier and you were gone."
"I had to go to the Earth King's palace to meet the others." She bit her lip, debating whether to tell him now, before admitting, "Aang and I are going to the Eastern Air Temple in the morning."
"You're leaving the city?" Zuko opened his eyes to focus on her, looking somewhat alert for once despite his high fever. "Are you coming back?"
Something about the vulnerability in his question made her nod quickly. "Of course I am. As soon as I can. There's just something we need to do at the temple, but it shouldn't take more than a few days." He relaxed a little at that, nodding slightly as he closed his eyes again, and she leaned down to press a kiss against his forehead lightly. "You're not getting rid of me that easily."
He huffed a breathless chuckle that turned quickly into a cough as he turned his head away from her instinctively. "Wasn't planning to." The unfamiliar note of fondness in his voice, rough with exhaustion and sickness as it was, made something in her heart swell as she pressed another kiss to his flushed cheek.
"Go to sleep. I'll be here until morning if you need me." He hummed quietly in response as he dozed off slowly and she got to her feet to collect the cup once he was asleep, returning to the kitchen and leaving the bedroom door slightly ajar so that she or Iroh could listen for any sign that Zuko needed them. "He surprisingly didn't complain as much as I thought he would," she said as she placed the cup in the sink and Iroh shrugged mildly.
"He does behave better when you're around. Why do you think I sent you to give him the tea instead of giving it to him myself?" He gave her a cheeky grin and she rolled her eyes as he poured out a cup of steaming tea that smelled more like citrus than the medicinal kind he had brewed earlier, passing it to her. She took a sip and found that it was a flavor she had never tasted before.
"I don't think I've tried this one before," she noted, frowning curiously at the amber-colored tea. "What kind is it?"
"A new one that I've been considering for the grand opening of the shop tomorrow," Iroh informed her. "Orange. What do you think?"
She debated the question as she took another sip slowly, savoring the taste. "It's really nice," she told him honestly and he looked extremely pleased as he picked up a quill and a piece of parchment.
"Orange tea, success," he murmured to himself as he scribbled it down. "Maybe I can add a lavender kind to the menu as well."
"I think that's a great idea, yeah," Rinzen agreed as she took another sip of the delicious orange tea. It seemed to tingle on her tastebuds like a real orange would, but instead left a pleasant, mild aftertaste where the orange would have turned tangy and sour.
Iroh glanced at the doorway to the bedroom, his expression turning worried again as he set the parchment back on the counter. "I should stay up with him tonight to keep an eye on that fever," he noted quietly.
"We can take turns," Rinzen offered, already planning to stay up so that Iroh didn't have to stay awake all night on the day his shop was opening. "I can take first watch." Hopefully, she could just stay up with Zuko the entire night so that Iroh wouldn't have to.
Iroh bit his lip before nodding. "As long as you're all right with that. I know I can't ask you to-"
"It's not asking if I'm offering," she pointed out wryly. "It's okay, really. I'll sit with him."
"If you're sure. Take the kettle of medicinal tea with you and pour him a cup once every two hours," Iroh instructed, nodding to the second kettle on the other end of the counter. "And wake me after midnight."
"Will do." Rinzen had no plans to wake him after midnight, but made sure not to mention it as she picked up the kettle and a teacup before taking them into the bedroom to sit by Zuko's side. He was fully asleep again, albeit shivering and shifting around restlessly as he kept murmuring quietly in his mostly-unconscious state, but she couldn't quite hear what he was saying.
She settled in for a long night next to him, not looking forward to having to leave Ba Sing Se for the first time since she had arrived in the city.
I DID IT. I managed to write it out just a little less than a week before my semester starts!
Hopefully, I can keep going since it's from this point where I really know where I want to take the story, but schoolwork is probably going to get in the way. Apologies in advance! I hope you enjoy this chapter in the meantime!