The next day Katara awoke on top of Appa. 'How did I get up here?' Katara asked herself.
She opened her eyes slightly so she could see where Zuko was. He was sitting on Appa's head while steering him skillfully.
She cursed silently as she thought about how she must have gotten up on Appa. How long had she been out? Were they almost to Ba Sing Se?
Katara sat up as quietly as she could while putting up her hair so it didn't look too ghastly. She tried sneaking up on Zuko so that she could give him a good punch in the arm for picking her up while she was sleeping and putting her on Appa.
However, he caught her hand before it made contact with his arm. "I wouldn't suggest doing that up here Katara. I don't want you and I to fall off Appa into the water," Zuko said seriously.
Why didn't you wake me up?" Katara asked hotly. She gave Zuko a glare that would have seriously hurt him if looks could kill.
"Well, I waited until about 9, and you still weren't up at that point in time, so I decided to just put you on Appa. You needed the rest," Zuko stated simply.
"What time is it now?" Katara asked. She really hoped that she hadn't slept in too late.
"It's about 3,"Zuko said. Katara's mouth dropped open. She couldn't have slept for that long, had she?
Since she had been sleeping for such a long amount of time, a wave of vertigo hit her and she fell backwards ready to feel Appa's soft fur, but she didn't feel it. All she felt was a pair of strong arms holding her up.
She looked up into Zuko's eyes and said, "Sorry, just a little dizzy."
Zuko gave a soft chuckle and set her down on Appa's saddle. "You were out for a long time…" he said.
"Are we almost there?" Katara asked Zuko quickly. Zuko looked under where they were—they were over Ba Sing Se right now.
"We should be arriving right about now," Zuko said as they were getting closer and closer to the ground.
They landed right in front of Iroh's tea shop ready for a fun evening. Iroh was standing outside waiting for them.
He smiled as he said, "You came! I thought you would have tried getting out of coming. You never really enjoyed these gatherings," Iroh said thoughtfully.
"I'm fine as long as you don't try and make me do something I can't do," Zuko responded.
Katara looked at Iroh and asked, "Do you need any help Iroh?"
"Oh, thank you Katara. As a matter of fact, I need some help brewing the tea that we are going to have. You can help too Prince Zuko," Iroh said.
"We'd be happy to help, right Zuko?" Katara asked.
"Of course… Although, I'm not that good at making tea…" Zuko trailed off into his thoughts.
"Prince Zuko, you really should keep practicing the art of tea making. You will never learn if you never try," Iroh said with an encouraging smile.
Zuko quickly changed the subject. "So, is anyone else here yet?" Zuko asked his uncle with an irate tone.
"Actually, we had to change the date we were meeting to tomorrow due to the conflicting schedules. Lady Toph and the Avatar were going to a festival today, so they won't be here till tomorrow. I believe your brother and Lady Suki were going to Ember Island to see the Ember Island Players perform "Love Amongst the Dragons," and Lady Mai was spending the day with Haru at a nearby village," Iroh finished happily.
"You don't mind us staying here for tonight, do you uncle?" Zuko asked, "We don't have anywhere else to stay."
Iroh gave a hearty laugh. "I'll let you stay on one condition," Iroh said. Katara heard Zuko groan and couldn't imagine why.
"You have to go out for a few hours with Lady Katara here. I have some old friends coming over, and I would normally let you stay, but since the war just ended, I think you should get out and have fun while you can. You won't have as much time once you really start being fire lord," Iroh finished.
Katara blushed at the prospect of hanging out with Zuko for a few hours. Secretly she wished that this actually worked out.
Zuko sighed. "Must you always do this to me?" he asked sadly.
"So you'll do it?" Iroh asked hopefully. Zuko looked towards Katara. Katara wasn't sure what would happen if she said yes or no.
"I don't mind either way, Zuko," Katara said slowly. Zuko mumbled some things under his breath before he finally spoke.
"If you insist, I suppose we'll do it. If it's all right with you Katara," Zuko finished. Katara just nodded.
"Thank you nephew! I appreciate your enthusiasm!" Iroh stated happily. Katara wondered if he was purposely trying to make Zuko mad, because there was smoke coming through his nostrils.
"Stop patronizing me uncle! You always make me do things through blackmail!" Zuko practically shouted.
"Stop your whining and help me make that tea. Then you can go and have fun!" Iroh finished.
Zuko looked at Katara with an apology written on his face, and they went further into the tea shop to help Iroh.