And I'm back! Really getting into the swing of things- I'll continue updating more for this next week and then there might be a slight pause for a week- I have finals :P And then I'm done my first year of college!! Woot!! I survived! After that, we'll really get into the story- I believe the old one on my old account had….70 chapters? Now, these were short chapters, but eugh :P Don't read it yet lol, trust me, it's not as good as the one now. What I'm really focusing on right now is making things….more realistic? Things aren't just happening- they're flowing into each other- like how Kaori couldn't just put on the cloak and look like Uncle, no, they had to realize that she didn't have his width, lol.

Anyway, comment my lovely readers : ) Because I absolutely love getting your comments- each and every one of them : )

And hehe! You will have to keep reading to find out what happens! Onward though!!!

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Chapter Twelve : A Little Pain

Kaori stared up at the sky, watching the clouds slowly pass by. She was drifting, laying in the bottom of the boat, letting the ocean pull her along. Her stomach was tight with a dull ache; sure, she had managed to haggle some supplies from the man, but it hadn't nearly been enough. He had given her a bag of food- some fruits and some bread, and a jug of water. The bread was gone, nothing but crumbs now, and there were about two pieces of fruit left. As for water, only a third remained. She had been drifting for two days now, staring up at the sky.

She watched lazily as a cloud passed by, one that looked like a tree. She didn't know where she was going, she didn't know where her island was. The ocean was in complete control as far as she cared.

Kaori reached up her hand slowly, tracing the outline of the tree-cloud with her finger. She wanted to see a tree…just like how she wanted to see Teken- no, that wasn't his name, she reminded herself. Zuko. It was Zuko. She knew that.

He had walked away from her, turned his back and left her standing there, hand reaching out towards him, mouth parted slightly in protest. Yet she hadn't been able to move; she had thought for sure that he would say yes. That he would come with her.

Kaori frowned a little. It had been foolish to think like that- he was prince of the Fire Nation; why would he want to come live on a quaint little island? She lived a simple life, even if she was royalty.

With a little sigh, Kaori closed her eyes. She was just so tired. The water pulled on the boat, pushing it forward to who knows where. She didn't care.

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Zuko gripped the railing hard, staring out at the water surrounding him. They had shipped back out to sea the day after he had left Kaori by the boats. It was good; they were getting farther away from where ever she was.

He stared at the water- it seemed to be the one thing always around him; water. He had grown used to the feel of a swaying boat beneath his feet, and yet… He had been on land for weeks with Kaori and that had seemed… It had been alright.

His chest clenched and he closed his eyes. Her expression when he had walked away… It was like he had torn out her hope and thrown it on the ground, which he supposed he had done. She had said she had found someone…and that someone had been him. For the first time, someone had chosen him.. The last time he remembered someone caring about him was before his mother left. Someone who loved him…other than Uncle, but that was a different type of love, and so had his mother's. Kaori…not that she loved him, though the idea sent a strange sensation, like butterflies, through his stomach and he quickly pushed the thought away. But her idea…the fact that she said she had found someone…she had wanted him to say yes…to come with her. And then what?

The images flashed through his eyes. They would live on the island together peacefully. They would watch the sun rise and set, he would hold her in his arms, feel how warm she was against him. He would grow old with her, see every smile and hear every laugh. She would remain her crazy self, showing him places in the island no one else knew about, hanging glass on the ceiling just to see it sparkle…

An air bender… He opened his eyes, staring at the water in front of him. She was air, he was fire…it seemed…crazy…and yet, he knew, deep down that something about her would hold her in his mind. Perhaps it was her air- fire fed on air, it could grow with it.

"Prince Zuko,"

Zuko did not turn around, simply stared out at the world. "Uncle," he said simply. From the corner of his eye, he saw his uncle come to stand beside him.

They were silent for a moment, and then Uncle Iroh spoke. "The elements are strange, nephew, each one with their own characteristics. Most people know people of their own element, they do not know how they will be affected by the others,"

He paused, glancing at his nephew and then continued. "Earth is hard and strong, yet mixed with water, it can be molded and softened. Set with fire, earth does nothing, it is not affected by it. Air…" he paused, noticing that Zuko's gold eyes had slid over to him. "Air," Uncle Iroh continued. "is light yet powerful. Fire is dangerous and violent. To much fire and a person can become consumed by it, but it needs air to live. Water will put fire out and earth is not effected by it, but air…"

"What about air?" Zuko said quietly, muttering his words.

Uncle Iroh smiled. "Fire cannot live without air… To much air and it will be extinguished, yet with just the right amount of air, it can grow and thrive and burn brighter than it ever has… Without air, fire will slowly diminish, becoming nothing at all," He shrugged his shoulders with a little chuckle. "Just a thought, nephew."

Zuko looked at his uncle hard. "Are you saying I should have gone with her?"

Uncle Iroh shrugged again, looking out at the water. "I am saying, Prince Zuko, that if you give fire a small taste of air, it will want to grow. It will always wonder."

Zuko turned away from the railing, making as if to go back into the ship but he turned around sharply, frowning. "It doesn't matter, she's gone now. Safe. And I have to return home. I have to capture the avatar, that's what I've been trying to do for years."

Uncle Iroh frowned the slightest. "Prince Zuko," he said, his voice stern yet fatherly. "There is more than one kind of honor. It is for you to decide which one you want to have in your life,"

Zuko turned away from his uncle, full of frustration, and strode into the ship. He clenched his hands into fists, his knuckles white. Throwing open the door to his room, he stepped in, slamming the door behind him. With a frustrated groan, he pounded his fist against the metal wall, leaning forward to rest his forehead against the cold metal, closing his eyes. There was no easy fix for this. For years he had tried to return home, for years he had dreamed of seeing his father smile at him and tell him how proud he was.

But who was he kidding? Would that really happen? Could he even catch the avatar? Was it really all that important? The questions rang in his ears, hurting his chest. This was all to much to think about, all to complicated. Zuko wanted so many things and yet he couldn't choose. Kaori…he wanted to see her again, just see her, talk with her maybe, hold her if she'd let him… He felt so normal around her, like he wasn't Prince of the Fire Nation but he was just…Zuko.

And yet, his honor… The thing he held above all else.

But what if what Uncle had said was right? What if there was more than one kind of honor? Honor in capturing the avatar…but what if there was honor in choosing a different life?

Exhausted all of a sudden, Zuko laid down in bed, turning onto his side. He stared at the Fire Nation emblem for a moment then turned away from it, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

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"Oh my god, there's no possible way!"

"No, no, it's her, it's really her!"

"Get out of the way, I'll take her!"

"Someone get water!"

"I'll get blankets!"

"Look at her, her lips are so dry!"

"The poor dear, probably hasn't eaten in days!"

"Is she breathing? Has anyone checked to see if she's breathing?"

Kaori heard the voices but she couldn't put names to any of them. They all mashed up together, rolling around in her ears as some sort of buzz. She could hardly feel her own body, she felt dried up. The only thing she felt were warm hands slipping underneath her, lifting her from the hard cradle of the boat. Her eyes opened slightly, seeing a blur of faces before closing again.

She felt water at her lips and she drank it down greedily, choking on it when she was done, almost coughing all of it back up, but she managed to force it to stay down. She felt hands on her, changing her clothes, putting wet clothes to her forehead, carrying her places, feeding her, giving her water- so much help from so many people.

She opened her eyes again at one point, staring at a face until it finally became clear. Aliruko…it was Aliruko. The small girl's pudgey face stared back at her with a wide smile; she was saying something but Kaori couldn't make it out.

She simply raised out a hand to her friend, smiled a little, then closed her eyes once more, letting the assisting hands take over for her once more.

Aliruko…all these people… She was home. Her island. Her home had found her again, just like she knew it would. It had not left her.

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Sorry for the short chapter! I didn't want to write everything at once, lol. More to come soon : ) Uncle Iroh was sort of explaining why this pairing could work out, by the way. I hope you liked it :D