I love writing this, I really do. So off I go again! Kaori is a little like Jin, I suppose, don't you think? A bit more wild, but similar.

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Chapter Seven : Perfect Storm

Zuko twitched where he lay, squeezing his eyes shut tighter. Something kept hitting his face, over and over again and harder and harder. It was annoying and he didn't like it, but it did not stop. His eyes opened slowly, only to shut again as something hit his eyes. It took him a moment, then he shot up, eyes wide in panic. Rain. It was raining. And hard to. He glanced upwards, noticing that the sky was covered in thick, gray clouds.

"Kaori," he said loudly, reaching over and shaking her shoulders. "Kaori get up,"

She mumbled something, opening her eyes slowly. "Teken?" She said slowly, blinking twice. "What's going on…?"

"It's raining. And it's getting harder," Zuko said.

Kaori sat up quickly, glancing up at the sky. "I told you it would rain," she muttered.

Within moments, the rain was coming down so hard that Zuko could barely see Kaori in front of him. The wind blew hard, slashing Kaori's hair in front of her face. To the right of them, there was a flash of lightning and a loud crack of thunder. The small boat rocked from side to side, bullied by the harsh seas.

"Teken! We've got to get control of the ship!" Kaori yelled, trying to get Zuko to hear her over the wind. Zuko grabbed onto the oars, trying to steer the ship, but the waves tossed it hard.

"It's no use!" He yelled, pulling hard on the oars. Waves lapped up the side of the boat, sloshing water down near their feet.

"We have to try!" Kaori shouted, trying to throw the water out of the bottom of the boat.

Zuko pulled hard on the oars, trying to keep the boat from toppling over. The sea was fierce against them, lightning lit up the sky and thunder bellowed in their ears. A sudden wave hit their boat, rocking it hard. Kaori let out a yelp, grabbing onto the side of the boat tightly and watched in horror as the wave hit Zuko. His hands reached out to grab onto the ship but missed by an inch. His back hit the side of the boat and he flipped over it, hitting the water with a splash.

It was like déjà vu for him- the water was icy and rough, throwing him around everywhere as he tried to pull himself to the surface. His body was pulled left and right with the waves and each time he tried to move up he was pulled down again. His lungs were burning and he felt the familiar light headedness that he had felt not long ago. For a moment he managed to break to the surface, gasping for air, catching sight of a terrified Kaori stretching out her hand for him, screaming something, but before he could speak a word or make a move, the water had pulled him down again, claiming him as it's own.

There was no possible way for him to reach the surface again, the water was to angry, to harsh, to strong. He was a Fire Bender, water was not his element, not his skill. He had no power over this water, it was in control. His eyes were getting heavy as the fire in his lungs grew stronger. He let out the last gulp of air that was stored in his throat and felt the burning of the salt water in his throat. His hands and legs felt limp and he felt like he was floating in…nothing, really.

In front of him was a shape and as it came closer, his vision grew fuzzy. A…mermaid? But those were in legends, they weren't real…but it was a girl, her hair was flowing all around her…beads in her hair…beautiful… Zuko reached out a hand towards her, he wanted to touch one of the beads. She swam towards him, her clothes flowing- clothes? Since when did mermaids wear clothes…? And where was her tail- this mermaid wasn't doing the legend correctly and he wanted to tell her that, but the world was becoming increasingly darker. He watched as the mermaid blew out the air in her mouth, and he felt a sadness grow in him. Now the mermaid didn't have any air, now she would drown too. But..she was a mermaid, so she could breath underwater.

As the world grew darker, he thought he saw the mermaid reach for the air bubbles that drifted up towards the surface. He saw her grab them and pull them back down, saw her bring them towards him, slipping them past his lips… He felt her wrap an arm around his waist and sweep her other arm downwards, propelling them upwards. He felt the cold breeze of the wind hitting his face and then all went dark…

"Live, dammit, you will live!"

Zuko's eyes fluttered open slowly, the fuzzy figure of a girl above him. He felt raindrops hitting his forehead but as he blinked, he saw that the clouds looked lighter almost, at least a little.

With a gasp, he sat up, clutching his chest, and Kaori sat back in the boat, closing her eyes.

"God you scared me…" she whispered.

"Kaori…" Zuko breathed in and out quickly, trying to catch his breath. "The storm- I was- I fell- I didn't-" He looked at her. "Did you save me?" He glanced her over, taking note of her wet clothing, it must have been her then…not a mermaid.

Kaori nodded, breathing slowly, her eyes still closed. "Yes, Teken, that was me," She opened her eyes a little. "I thought I didn't make it in time,"

Zuko sat back, putting a hand on his chest, trying to get control of his breathing. His lungs felt raw, a feeling he had hoped to never feel again, but at least it wasn't as bad as the last time. "Thank you," he said after a moment.

Kaori looked exhausted, like something had taken all the energy out of her. "It was so hard to get you out of the water…I almost…I almost didn't make it…" Strands of hair were plastered to the side of her face. She stared at him through what little she had her eyes open. "You can't…you can't tell, Teken. You can't tell anybody…"

Zuko looked at her curiously. "Tell anyone what?" he asked, but she had already fallen asleep.

As she slept, he took the oars and began to row the boat. The skies were clearing slowly and he sighed. There was no way their map had made it through the storm, but the least he could do was try and navigate them to an island so they could restock. He rowed in silence, staring out at the water or sometimes at Kaori.

After an hour, he saw Kaori crack open her eyes.

"Teken…" she whispered. "Ships…" Then her eyes closed again. Zuko turned around, shock filling his entire body. She was wrong on one account- there wasn't many ships, only one, and he knew that ship by heart. It was his ship, his very own ship. The boat was headed in the direction of the ship, too, propelled by the wind. As they got closer to it, he heard guards on board calling out that there was a small boat approaching. Zuko couldn't help but smile as he saw Uncle Iroh come to the railing to look out, and he swore he small a smile break out on his uncle's face.

The boat was lifted up and Zuko stepped out of the wooden ship and onto his metal one, more than happy to be on a steadier ship. He heard Kaori shuffle behind him but Uncle Iroh had enveloped him in a hug.

"You're here! Have you been at sea all this time? Everyone was so worried- I was so worried!" Uncle Iroh exclaimed, hugging his nephew happily.

Zuko pushed him away slightly, smiling at the old man. "I'm alright, and no, I haven't been at sea this whole time,"

Uncle Iroh looked past Zuko's shoulder, raising an eyebrow as he caught sight of Kaori. "Well, I can see that!" He nudged Zuko's shoulder. "So…what have you been up to this whole time?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

Zuko rolled his eyes and turned around to see Kaori standing up, her eyes wide and rather fearful. "Teken…" she whispered, "This…this is…where are….why are…."

"Someone get a blanket for her," Uncle Iroh called out. "Can't you see she is soaking wet? Where are your manners?" He motioned for a guard to go and get her a blanket, then he gave Kaori a smile. "My apologies, miss." He looked over at Zuko. "Did you happen to go through that storm,"

Zuko nodded. "We almost didn't make it,"

Kaori stepped out of the small, wooden boat quietly, glancing around her. She came to stand behind Zuko, whispering so only he could hear, "This ship…they're fire benders, Teken…we need to get out of here…"

Zuko stared at her, unsure of what to say, and Uncle Iroh raised an eyebrow in confusion. He turned though, smiling as he saw a guard approaching with a blanket…and another figure.

"I hear we have visitors!" General Zhao exclaimed, holding out his hands. "I've come to see with my own eyes for I simply did not believe what I heard!"

Uncle Iroh nodded and laughed. "Yes, my nephew has returned to me in the most dramatic fashion, but returned none the less,"

Zuko felt Kaori tense behind him. "Ne..phew…?" she whispered and Zuko wanted to turn around and quickly explain things to her. By not being able to explain, he felt that things were getting worse.

"No….it can't be…."

Zuko looked at Zhao, who appeared to be in a state of furious shock. He was looking at Zuko, hands clenched, but…no… Zuko glanced behind him, moving to the left a little. He wasn't looking at him…he was looking at…Kaori?

"What is it, General Zhao? Is something the matter?" Uncle Iroh asked, looking as confused as Zuko felt.

Zhao scowled, a small burst of fire coming from his hands. "You!" he yelled, and Kaori let out a hiss, her eyes narrowing.

"I would never forget that ugly face," she said, her own hands clenching until her knuckles turned white. Zuko blinked. What was going on?

"You've grown so much, I see," Zhao sneered at her, taking a step forward.

"You…you're a monster," Kaori yelled.

Zuko looked back and forth between them, then moved in front of Kaori. "What's going on, Zhao?"

Kaori grabbed Zuko's shoulder, turning him to face her quickly. "You know him?!" she exclaimed incredulously.

"I..I.." Zuko began, and Zhao laughed.

"Oh, I've known Prince Zuko for a long time, longer than you have," Zhao answered, raising an eyebrow with a smirk.

Kaori stared at Zuko, her eyes widening. "Prince Zuko?" she said quickly. "That's not your name, your name is Teken, you're not…tell me you're not Zuko! Tell me that you're Teken!"

Zuko stared at her, his mouth opening and closing- he could not answer her, and in his silence she knew his confirmation. With a howl, Kaori pushed away from Zuko, her eyes wild and hurt. Zuko reached out to her but she slapped his hand away.

"Don't touch me!" she exclaimed and Zhao laughed again.

"Did you not know?" He said, laughing harder. "You poor, pathetic, naïve girl! You've been in the presence of the Prince of the Fire Nation and you didn't know!"

"Shut up!" Kaori screamed, taking a step towards Zhao. She raised her hands to him and Zuko took a step forward, only to be stopped by Uncle Iroh, who shook his head, watching the scene carefully. Zuko looked at Kaori with panic in his eyes. She couldn't fight Zhao- Zhao was a fire bender and a good one at that. He was strong and skilled in his trait. And Kaori…she was just an island girl. He had seen her be hit by Tonu and Zhao was greater than that boy.

"You…you killed my parents!" Kaori cried, her eyes narrowing and her body tensing up.

Zhao's eyes burned and he smirked, his expression evil. "Yes…and you should have died along with them…you filthy little air bender!"

Kaori let out a yell, running towards Zhao and jumping into the air, spinning once so that a blow of air was thrown in Zhao's direction. He struck out his arm, breaking the air.

Zuko stared at Kaori, his eyes wide and his body frozen in shock. What had Zhao said? An…air bender? But it wasn't possible! The only air bender alive was the avatar and he knew for a fact that Kaori wasn't the avatar! She was an island girl- there could only be one avatar and he had fought that boy many times! So what was Kaori? How was she an air bender? And how had he not known? For a moment he paused- there were signs all around him that she had been…he simply hadn't noticed… The way she jumped over the fire…down in the water…the way she moved the air bubbles and propelled them upwards… He should have known…

Would it have changed anything?

Kaori shot another blast of air towards Zhao, breaking past one of his bursts of fire, when two guards came from behind her, tackling her down, each laid against her, keeping her hands down as she struggled. A third rushed up to her, putting a piece of cloth in her mouth.

Zuko pushed past Uncle Iroh. "What do you think you're doing?! Release her immediately!" he yelled, watching in horror as the guards pulled Kaori up, binding her hands behind her back. She struggled wildly, her eyes furious.

Zhao looked over at Zuko as if he was just a passing thought. "This girl is very dangerous. She is in my custody now. She will receive the treatment that every air bender has received." He glanced at the guards. "Take her below my ship, to the prisoner's hold."

Zuko stepped forward. "But this is my ship! You have no authority here!"

Zhao shook his head. "Not anymore. You have no authority, banished prince. This is my ship now and she is my prisoner." He smirked at Zuko and walked down a flight of stairs, disappearing from sight. The guards followed after him and Kaori looked back at Zuko. Her eyes were narrowed and he swore that if she was a fire bender, he would be dead. Her gaze pierced him, causing him physical pain. Her eyes spoke volumes, more than she ever could have spoke. As they disappeared, Zuko let out a yell, beginning to run towards where they had gone but Uncle Iroh stopped him.

"Do not hold me back Uncle!" He yelled, pushing Uncle Iroh off of him.

"No, Prince Zuko, General Zhao has every right to finish the job that he had started,"

Zuko stared in horror at his uncle. "NO! I won't let him!"

"Zuko," Uncle Iroh said, looking calm. "Keep your anger under control. It will do no good if you're temper is wild when we develop our rescue plan,"

Zuko was silent for a moment, taking a deep breath, letting his Uncle's words flow over him. "Rescue?" he asked, and Uncle Iroh nodded.

"Let us go devise a plan inside. We can have some tea. I've got some saved for you,"

He put a hand on Zuko's back, leading him inside and Zuko took another deep breath. He wanted to go straight down there and release Kaori but Uncle was right. This was something that took time, took precision. He would do this right and he would set Kaori free. All of this, it was his fault, and he wouldn't let his mistake be her death.

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