Embers

Ch 3 – Treading Water

.:::.

Sailing on a proper boat is something I had sorely missed. However, the looks from the crew were less than appreciated. Some clearly despised my being within a hundred feet from a Water Nation ship, much less sailing together with them. It also didn't help that my two guards had forcibly accompanied me wherever I went- not to mention them being the very same guards who torched the town. However, seeing as we were in the process of rebuilding it, it mattered not.

Katara was clearly at home on the boat, bending the water to quicken our pace. Her smile… it was comforting. I couldn't help but grin. Not long lasted either, when the captain of the ship interrupted my thinking.

"Hey if you're going to sail with us, you'd better help out as well. We could use a firebender to light our way."

"Well you're gonna have to get one of my guards to do it; I've lost my stuff."

He was obviously comforted by this news. He even called me by my proper title on his way out. Since I wasn't a threat, the crew slowly opened up to me, although they were wary of my guards. By nightfall, I managed to get by dinner without any suspicious looks. My guards even contributed some komodo sausage to the pot, although it was a bit spicier than the others were used to. Compared to the very watery, very slimy sea prune and boiled seal blubber stew they were serving, it was a welcome addition.

The air began to creep into chilliness as the stars began to appear. I sat at the fore of the ship, right beneath the bow. The lantern was flickering out due to the wind while the seas began to get choppy. I tried to bend some fire but nothing would happen. Not even a spark, or a simple candle's amount of heat would come out of me. This couldn't be happening. The realization of what happened set in, and I felt an anger slowly building within me. I went over my forms, even the breathing exercises, but I couldn't muster a single flame.

"Arrghh! What is wrong with me!"

Again I tried pulling some unseen fire out of my body, and again I failed. High kicks, low swipes, and punches failed. I kept kicking and punching an unseen enemy until my stomach wound lurched, and I dropped to the ground in pain. Apparently, Katara must have been watching, because she immediately yelled "ZUKO!" And came flying down the stairs towards the deck. Using the seawater around her, she moved her hands around my wound, closing it back up again, and clotting the wound.

"You've got to stop exerting yourself, or you're gonna get killed."

"Without my bending, I might as well be dead. You've been stripped of your bending too, right? You know how helpless it feels like to not be able to bend."

"Don't say that. I know you feel vulnerable now, but as soon as we reach the North Pole I'll be able to heal you. For now, just try not to move so much anymore..."

And there we sat. My head in her arms while we both watched the starlit sky's reflection on the ocean. The waves died down to a glassy obsidian, and every pinpoint of light was matched by it's reflection on the water. Her blue eyes also caught the glimmer of the starlight as she stared at the night sky. Suddenly, something warm crept out of my heart and into my limbs. This feeling… I hadn't felt it since I was with Mai. It was so joyful, so invigorating. I wanted to stay there the whole night, breathing in her beautiful scent. I propped myself up, locking eyes with her.

What I saw had shocked me. A tear floated in her eyes, shimmering like the stars themselves. All I wanted right then was to make her stop crying, to hold her close. I felt myself leaning in, the unstoppable force bringing me closer to her. I knew I was going too far, that I was going to regret it, but I couldn't stop myself at all. The next thing I knew, our lips connected, lightly at first but still together. I pushed in, and so did she, with a bit more force than I thought, pushing me down on to the deck. We laid there just kissing, and strangely, we were happy. Katara's single tear slid down our faces, the ice cold drop of water trailing down my chest. I knew what she was thinking, what we were both thinking, but still we just lay there in each other's arms, under the silent stars until sleep took the night away.

***

Hi guys, with this third installment in the Embers story, I'd like to hear some of your thoughts/comments on this. I hope you enjoy this story, it's gonna get REALLY good soon, just you wait. I'll try my hardest to get a chapter out every 2 days, but I cant promise anything. Email me if you want to talk, or just send me a message.

Regards, Digibentobox