Again I suck at fight scenes, sue me. But there is a slightly different ending!
They both stood, eyeing each other. Zuko was breathing heavily while Zhou was barely working a sweat.
Iroh, observing the battle shouted,"basics Zuko! Break his route!" He knew that the only chance of his nephew defeating the more experienced, cocky Zhou, was if he followed his training.
Zuko calmed down visibly. He was hotheaded at times, but he was no fool. Before he was able to attack again, Zhou shot fire at him.
Knowing only one technique for stopping fire, Zuko threw his arms up and sliced them down through the flames. He was thrown back, but kept his footing.
Again, Zhou firebended at Zuko and again Zuko slid his arms through the flames and was pushed back. The forth time, Zhou used both his fists and punched out with them, summoning enough fire to knock the stubborn prince down despite his technique.
It felt all too familiar to Zuko, laying on the scorched ground. As quickly as he could, he attempted to lift himself up but gasped. Zhou was already there, leaping through the air and crossing his arms with deadly precision. He landed loudly on one knee in front of the fallen teen.
His smile had disappeared, reveling a blood lust that chilled the other Firebender. Zhou raised his arms, one fist aiming at Zuko's good eye, the other preparing a blast that would cripple the prince's vision more. He punched out, and the golden glow only made the prince's expression of terror stand out.
Zuko shouted a primal shout of defiance, he placed his hands underneath his back and flipped himself onto his stomach, spinning his legs enough to put out the flames and knock the commander off his feet. The momentum from the spin was also used to get Zuko back on his feet.
It happened so quickly that observers had to blink a few times and wonder if they saw that right.
Zhou was back on his feet in an instant, but his advantage was lost. It was Zuko's turn to smirk as he shot flames out at Zhou by inching his feet forwards.
Unable to regain his balance, Zhou flailed his arms around wildly and back up. Each step brought forth flames from the prince, and each cry of desperation from Zhou brought a bigger smile to Iroh's face.
With one last kick in the air, Zhou was sent spinning onto the ground, where he rolled to avoid the heated dirt. Zuko took his chance and ran up to the fallen middle aged man.
He positioned himself to proclaim his victory, and scar the commander's face so the reminder of his defeat would always be with him. Zuko looked down at the man and wondered if he should do it, if by doing so would he sink down to Zhou's level. Seeing the Prince's hesitation, Zhou snarled, "do it!" And Zuko exploded into action.
He shot a burst of hot, dense flames, but not at the fallen man. Instead, he left a black scorch mark on the ground, by the commanders head. It was Zhou's turn to be confused. "That's it? Your father raised a coward."
Ignoring the insult, Zuko relaxed his fighting stance and said,"next time you get in my way I promise, I won't hold back."
As he turned to walk away, Zhou stood and kicked a blast of fire at the prince's back.
It never got there.
Zhou watched with confusion as the flames disappeared and frost coated the ground. The heated air became cold enough to freeze the sweat on Zhou's skin. When the white flurries brought by the icy wind vanished, a boy stood, smirking at Zhou.
The boy had the blue eyes of a water bender, and white untamed hair. His wore a red FireNation cloak, but underneath was a white shirt and brown pants tied with string. Even starving peasants in the earth kingdom wore better made clothes than this boy.
Zhou's shocked expression became one of calculating rage. Zuko, apparently realizing the dirty attempt, lept at Zhou. Only to be stopped by the newcomers pale hand.
The newcomer chuckled and shook his head. "ha! Mutton chops is a sore loser!" The frosty teen, thinking this was hilarious, let out a childish stream of giggles. Zhou's face twisted in disgust at his disrespect. Iroh shook his head a stood by the strange boy, placing a comforting hand on Zuko's shoulder. "Even in defeat, my nephew has more honor than you. Thank you for the tea. It was delicious!" Zhou watched open mouthed as the three left, then white haired boy floating on a chilly breeze.
Zuko, touched quietly asked,"did you really mean that uncle?" His uncle, smiled and said,"of course! Jen sang tea is my favorite." Jack laughed loudly and the air grew colder in his mirth, cooling the prince's now hot face.