Zuko jolts upright with a gasp, startling both Sokka and Aang awake in the process. Not entirely awake, Sokka reaches out toward the wide-eyed firebender; Zuko jerks away from his touch as if it burns and immediately starts scrambling away from the two of them.
There's something both wild and desperate in his gaze as he stares, first at them, then around the dimly lit room, that reminds Aang of an animal caught in a trap.
He forces himself to remain still and hopes that Sokka is awake enough by now to do the same. Instead of addressing Zuko he waits, watching as his firebending teacher and friend (he hopes) continues to look around, panic in his eyes, his breath coming hard and fast.
He's looking for a way out, Aang realizes.
In the next second he's apparently found what he was looking for and practically bolts, out a side entrance leading to what used to be a small ledge with half walls overlooking the edge of the temple. Anyone else would still find themselves more or less trapped, but Aang already knows from experience that Zuko's fully capable of scaling the side of the temple if he feels the need, and that it's entirely possible he just needs air and a bit of space so he can collect himself.
Sometimes Aang feels like he's just a twelve-year-old boy, albeit one who has had the fate of the world somewhat unfairly placed on his shoulders.
Other times, though, he feels much older.
Sokka's looking toward him for help, as if he's not sure which would be worse, leaving the firebender to his own devices, or going after him. Aang resists the urge to sigh.
"I'll check on him in a minute," he says. "The sun should be rising soon anyway, and we should be meditating."
Relieved, Sokka nods. "I'll take care of breakfast. I think Zuko was supposed to be next in rotation." He is, Aang knows, but there's always been an unspoken agreement when it comes to breakfast, since Zuko is usually working with Aang in the mornings, starting with meditation at sunrise.
Zuko's never said anything, but he always makes sure to finish teaching Aang in time to start preparing lunch, so he must have figured it out at some point.
Aang fully expects the side area to be empty, and it is. He waits as long as he possibly can before going looking for Zuko, but there's a point where he won't be able to pretend he's still expecting to meditate, so eventually he has to get moving.
He finds Zuko on top of the temple, sitting cross-legged as easily as if he were an airbender himself, his face to the eastern horizon. Aang settles down next to him without comment, figuring the firebender probably already knows he's there.
His teacher doesn't pay him any more attention than he has any other morning, so Aang closes his eyes and tries to focus on his breathing as the first rays of the morning sun began to spread out across the land, embracing them gently and warming them with its touch.
Aang feels something loosen in the older boy sitting next to him, and something in his own chi responds in kind. He doesn't fully understand it, but can tell it's a good thing, so he shifts ever so slightly and allows himself to sink just a little further into his breathing.
For the first time since Zuko started dragging Aang along with him for these sunrise meditations, the firebender breaks the silence before the sun is fully risen.
"Sorry," he says, eyes still closed, voice not quite focused. "About earlier. I didn't mean to-"
He doesn't finish. And because Aang has been tuning into his teacher's breathing since day one, he hears plainly as the next breath shudders its way through Zuko and threatens to completely destroy his calm.
"That's okay," Aang says without opening his eyes. Sometimes it's easier not to look. He wills his own breath to remain even, wishes he could lend some of his own steadiness to the older teen, even if only for a moment. He hesitates for a moment before continuing, "Sometimes I dream about what it was like a hundred years ago. I don't always know where I am when I wake up, especially when the dream is something that really happened. It can be-confusing."
Zuko takes another shuddering breath. "Not a dream," he corrects, his voice low. "A memory."
Aang nods without opening his eyes. He has no idea if his teacher is looking at him or not.
"I expected to be on a ship," the teen admits. "I certainly wasn't expecting to wake up next to the Avatar."
"At least you didn't try to capture me." Aang risks trying to lighten the mood, just a little. He hears Zuko snort abruptly before his breathing evens out.
By the time the sun has fully risen, Zuko's breathing is almost back to normal. Aang doesn't complain when they start warming up, and he tries his best to be the attentive, focused student he so often struggles to be. He stretches, and does push-ups, and sit-ups, and practices his horse stance, and tries not to look bored.
He knows this stuff is important, he really does. He just wishes push-ups were more exciting.
Zuko shoots him a side-long glance as they move into forms, one that Aang can't quite decipher. He doesn't explain himself either, and since Aang is doing his best to be a good student, he doesn't ask. Instead he focuses on trying to imitate his firebending teacher as exactly as possible.
They're still doing the forms without fire. Aang feels a little guilty about that. After all, he is the Avatar. He ought to be able to practice with fire, even if he accidentally burned himself the other day.
It wasn't even that bad of a burn.
He catches Zuko looking sideways at him again.
"What?" he asks, before he can stop himself. Making a face, he backtracks. "I mean, it's not my place to question my teacher."
His teacher stops mid-punch, and turns to actually study him.
"Are you feeling all right?" he asks, and Aang blinks.
"Fine, why? I mean..."
Zuko frowns and looks him over. "You're acting weird." His eyes narrow, and Aang realizes he's been caught as the older boy's scowl deepens. "I'm not going to take it out on you, just because I'm in a bad mood. It's not your fault I embarrassed myself over a bad dream this morning."
It's Aang's turn to frown. "What?" he asks. Zuko crosses his arms over his chest and visibly resists the urge to glare.
"You don't have to worry about getting hurt during training just because I'm having a bad day," the firebender explains with painstaking care.
Aang stares at him. "I know that," he says, but then his brain catches up. "Zuko, I'm not worried you're going to hurt me. I just thought that you've already had a rough morning, and didn't want to make it worse. I know I'm not always a good student." He shakes his head, but doesn't laugh, because he doesn't want to hurt the older boy's feelings. "Firebending makes me nervous when I'm supposed to do it. I know you can control it, and I know you wouldn't hurt me. I'm not afraid of you."
Zuko just kind of looks at him for a moment, like he's not sure what to do with that information. Aang waits a moment, to see if he'll say anything, then takes a breath and starts on the next set of forms.
His firebending teacher joins him for the next set, and together they finish their practice.
Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender does not belong to me.