The Highest Bidder
Chapter Six: I Digress
Because I was still upset with Zuko, I couldn't sleep; so I went up to the deck to find some inner peace. Even a telekinetic cannot go to sleep angry. It's bad for the nerves; and if a person falls asleep, she wakes up just as angry as before. I was surprised to find Zuko there at the bow of the ship. I had thought that General Iroh had persuaded him to try to catch a few naps before sunrise. Apparently, it was as useful to Zuko as it was for me.
The banished prince was moody for the most of the time that I spent on the ship with him; and for a long time, I believed that he was a hot-tempered boy who hadn't figured out that life was unfair to everyone, even to those who had it easy. Although I was still irritated with him, I empathized with his situation. His entire life was based on the hope of searching for the master of all four elements, which explained why he was so easily annoyed when his authority was questioned by the naïve crew. According to General Iroh, I was the only other person that knew about the impact of the voyage on the sea.
As I approached Zuko closer, I realized that he was looking over a large scrap of parchment in his hands. To make my presence known, I beckoned the scroll to me. Zuko sighed with obvious annoyance as the parchment struggled out of his loose hands and flew over his shoulder. His amber eyes glanced at me as the scroll rolled itself up neatly and gently fell into my outstretched hand.
"Hi." I said apathetically. Smiling seemed over the top; and frowning was a provocation.
He didn't reply. He just turned around to look at the long sheet of ocean that surrounded us all on every end. As I approached beside his armored self, I unrolled the scroll. It was the map that indicated the territories of the four nations. According to my calculations, we were still on Earth Kingdom waters. We were safe. Although I recognized Prince Zuko as the youngest of the Fire Lord's royal children, the Fire Nation recognized him as a traitor. Banishment was not a negotiating term.
I was banished as well, but obviously, I was a criminal. I still am one; I just don't care.
"What are you doing up in the middle of the night?" he asked me as I surveyed the map with obvious interest. "I thought my uncle told you to go to bed. I was under the impression that your kind needs sleep."
"My kind, Zuko? There's no one like me," I told him bluntly, shoving the scroll into his chest. "My kind…" I turned to him. "Where do you get the right to belittle people, Prince Zuko? Is that some kind of birth right or do you have a problem with communication?"
He frowned.
"Awfully rude for a Fire Nation nobleman's daughter," he said curtly.
"All right, I take it back," I said with a shrug. "Prince Zuko, I understand your situation. You know that, don't you?"
"You can't understand. You've never been in my place."
"I know why you search for the Avatar," I said, concerned. "Do not take me for a fool. I'm not stupid."
He considered me for a moment. He doubted it.
"Uncle told you, didn't he?"
"Yes." I confirmed shamelessly. He became irritated, but I continued anyway, "Zuko, it's not something to be ashamed about; Iroh told me why you stood up to Fire Lord Ozai, and it makes perfect sense. You had the Fire Nation's interest at heart—"
"I disgraced Father in his war room, Mura. There's nothing honorable in that." Zuko retorted hotly. "You say that you're this good person, Mura, but all I've heard from you is your support for crimes that have happened in the Fire Nation. We don't accept treason, Mura!"
"Stop acting as if I'm a traitor," I said angrily, stepping toward him aggressively. "I came up here to calm down and you're just making me more irritated with you!"
"And what are you going to do about it, Mura?"
"What are you going to do, Zuko? Are you going to put me back in place, is that it?"
He and I stared at each other for quite a while.
I honestly wanted to be his friend, but every time that he accused me of the past, it caused me so much fury that all I could do was to shout back at him. It was very immature that we would fight like this, but I assumed after the first three or four arguments, our little discussions would turn into nasty quarrels.
I digressed; after all, my whole point for appearing on deck was not to make the situation worse. I didn't want to make my stay upon Prince Zuko's ship any harder than it had been. Although he didn't seem to have the urge to want to trust me, I wanted him to since it was his father who had put us in our place as of that night. General Iroh somehow thought that it was a good idea to carry me along in the journey. I could tell on that day I boarded that Iroh sincerely believed—or wanted to believe—that if Fire Lord Ozai saw that Zuko and I captured the Avatar, both of us would be free.
However, after half a year of searching for a man who possibly wasn't even alive, I realized that Fire Lord Ozai sent his son on Mission Impossible. The only way Fire Lord Ozai would accept Prince Zuko's return was if his name was labeled on a body bag; however, I wasn't going to be the one who told the prince that news.
Zuko pushed pass me to stand at the edge of the bow of the ship. I hesitated to speak again, knowing that if I tried, it would stir him again.
I was about to walk away without another word when Zuko asked me a question that made me halt, mid-step.
"Why," he asked with such conviction, "does my uncle believe that you could help me catch the Avatar?"
I said nothing.
He turned to look at me.
"You've been gone from the Fire Nation for four years. I thought you were dead until we found you on the shores. After all this time, why does Uncle Iroh think that you, someone who hated what we stood for, could help me return to home?"
"I never hated my home, Zuko." I said truthfully. "I loved it there."
I stepped toward him cautiously, curious to know if he had calmed down, or if he was just on the brink of a temper tantrum again.
"Look," I began with a sigh, "General Iroh told me what happened to you because I personally asked him. He figured that I would have asked in the long run. The crew members think that you were in a training accident. Obviously, it's not. Even for me, I thought your scar came from Azula."
"You really don't like her, do you?" he said with a slight smirk.
"No." I said seriously. "I don't. But," I pressed on, "I found out that it was Fire Lord Ozai who gave you that scar. Quite honestly, and I do mean honestly, your father is quite an unreasonable, arrogant, highly destructible man who values the qualities of an uncontrollable monster, however," I sighed, for Zuko looked at me with a cocked eyebrow, "I digress."
I waved my fingers to catch the scroll from his hands which loosely had held the map of the four nations.
"I think I can help you with your quest, and I'm not just saying that because I've been on this boat forever with only a few waves of my hand to convince you. I actually know a few things about benders and not just Firebenders either. Though," I added, "I do realize that Firebenders have nasty tempers, Zuko."
He frowned slightly at my improperly place joke.
"I'm not a witch," I explained, "I'm a telekinetic. And I'm just capable of moving light, paper weight objects. Well, you've seen what I can do."
"It's impressive," he said, "but it's not going to be much help against a master of all four elements."
"I took out at least ten of your men, and I was barely trying," I reminded him. "What you don't know how to do is how to talk to people."
"I speak fine."
"You're very articulate," I said sincerely, "but calling common folk 'peasants' and calling me a witch aren't exactly ways to get answers. You're not exactly Mr. Calm Britches either."
He considered my information.
I smiled when he nodded his head.
"Great. Now why don't we start over, hm? Prince Zuko, I've heard about you; you're on a quest for the Avatar. Well, how about I show you what I can do then you can decide whether I'm suitable to board your ship or otherwise?"
Zuko humored me as he took my offered hand.
I pushed his shoulder.
"Watch this."
From the deck, there was rubble, weapons, and empty cups and kettles scattered across the surface. Zuko stood behind me as I located each item.
When a telekinetic concentrates on an item, it's very much like taking the heel of your hand and massaging it against your temples right above your cheekbones. When more than one item is located via brain waves, it adds more pressure to the temples, along with the back of the head, nape of the neck, and along the roots of a person's head of hair. These pressure points are not as bad when several little objects—like the ones that I named—are hovered into the air because it's a lot like pressing your forefinger into your temple. However, lifting a ten ton ship, pending on the experience and pain tolerance of the telekinetic, is comparable to banging your head against the wall lightly then slowly becoming a harder impact against the wall. Either way: over an extended period time of like an hour or two in constant concentration is very painful.
I wanted this information to be known to just explain of what I could do on a very basic level, which was what I was demonstrating to Zuko that night. With the rubble that was expendable, I showed Zuko that with simple flicks of a hand, I could combust it into an open explosion. The blasts rang through the air with a deafening blow. With the weaponry, I guided each sword, axe, and mace into the air while destroying the rubble; along with those two actions, I poured Zuko and me a cup of tea in the air. The hot kettle and the two cups floated toward Prince Zuko graciously. He stared with a stumped expression on his face.
I was interrupted when the Fire Nation guards and a sleepy Iroh bombarded from the deck of the ship in a rush; Iroh's face drew a blank, awe-inspired stare as knives and clubs danced with maces in the air. Realizing that the entire crew had been awoken by my demonstration, I quickly subdued the dancing weaponry; the knives bowed into the wood, maces separated from the clubs and positioned neatly against the edge of the boat; and the remaining heap of the rubble and debris fell instantly to the deck.
Zuko grabbed the floating cup of tea that was poured for him. The one that I poured for myself floated generously toward Iroh, who took it, still stunned.
Zuko, now thawed from his astonishment, quickly recomposed and turned to his men.
"What?" he snapped at them.
"Sir," said the Lieutenant, "we heard loud noises up here. We thought you were being attacked."
"Well, I'm not," said Prince Zuko.
Iroh turned to the lieutenant.
"Don't mind him; I'm sure he appreciates your concern." He turned to Zuko with a wide grin. "At least it's reassuring that we have a crew of light sleepers, isn't it, Prince Zuko?" He sipped his tea then added, "And a great tea server."
The begrudged lieutenant turned on his heel and beckoned the guards to continue as they were. I looked at Zuko, bashful.
"I didn't mean to wake them." I said.
"It doesn't matter," Zuko replied. He sighed. "All right, I guess you can be helpful."
"Great," I said. "Well, I'm going to bed."
"You're leaving?" he asked, surprised.
"Well, I haven't slept. It's dangerous enough to practice without a good night's rest at any rate. I have to be alert. The stuff that I just did isn't too much of a mind game. If you asked me to fight off another dozen of your soldiers, it would be a tad difficult."
"So you wouldn't be helpful then if I was to be ambushed," he said.
I smirked.
"Prince Zuko, I said it would be difficult. I didn't say that I wouldn't be able to do it."
He returned my smirk.
"Be early, Mura. We set a course through Earth Kingdom waters."
"Expect to find the Avatar hiding in a mole hill, Sir?" I asked him diligently.
"At this rate, it couldn't hurt to look."
"Whatever you say, sir," I yawned. "I'll see you at daybreak."