CHAPTER 16

Zuko:

"Kiara?" I called, trying to wake her up. "Someone get the medic!"

I quickly scooped her up into my arms and ran to the infirmary. The medic wasn't in there, but I laid her down gently on the cot, waiting for the man to arrive. When he finally did, the first thing he checked was her temperature while I stood to the side, watching her. Until he spoke.

"Prince Zuko, I'm going to have to ask you to leave," he said politely.

I, however, didn't understand. "Why? What's wrong with her?" I asked.

"I can't know the answer to that question until I can examine her. Her temperature is high, and her breathing is irregular. Her temperature in the same room as yours makes it difficult to differentiate. I'm very sorry, Prince Zuko, but you'll have to leave the room at least. If it makes your feel better, the door can stay open."

I nodded, slowly leaving to stand outside.

~~~~~
Three days. Kiara's been sick for three days. She has been staying in her own room since the day she collapsed, and she hasn't woken up yet. She hasn't eaten anything in those three days. And I hear the crew talking about it.

"Miss Kiara still hasn't woken up."

"Prince Zuko checks on her every day. He must be really worried about her."

It's true. I did check on her every day. Her fever was slowly going down, but why hadn't she woken up yet? Every member of the crew has been worried about her, wondering if she would wake soon. They all wanted her to wake up. But I was different. I needed her to wake up.

To keep myself occupied, I was working up a plan with Lieutenant Jee. At the moment, we were both leaning over a map while he spoke to me about what he knew about the Avatar's whereabouts.

"We haven't been able to pick up the Avatar's trail since the storm," Jee said. His finger pointed to our location at the northwest extremity of the Earth Kingdom, close to the eastern most extremity of the northern air nomad lands. "But, if we continue heading northeast-" His sentence was cut short as the light coming in from the window was blocked by a large shadow.

Another Fire Navy ship.

"What do they want?" I asked no one in particular.

Uncle, who sat with a crew member, playing Pai Sho, spoke up. "Perhaps a sporting game of Pai Sho!" he said hopefully.

I rolled my eyes slightly. Kiara would've smiled at that. But my attention was on the men boarding my ship from the larger one. Before long, a herald stood before me with a 'wanted' poster of the Avatar. "The hunt for the Avatar has been given prime importance," said the herald, lowering the poster. "All information regarding the Avatar must be reported directly to Admiral Zhao."

That bastard's an admiral now?

"Zhao has been promoted? Well, good for him!" Uncle exclaimed while making a move on the Pai Sho board.

My reply to the herald was sullen. "I've got nothing to report to Zhao. Now get off my ship and let us pass."

The herald looked around, as if he was searching for something. "Your servant he's told me about is nowhere to be found, I see."

"She is none of your concern, nor Admiral Zhao's. Now let us pass."

He was trying my patience. Why was Zhao so set on Kiara? She was nothing to him. But if he got his hands on her, who knows what he would do? I thought he'd for sure be married. Then again, who would marry that creep? Especially when he's after a sixteen-year-old girl. That was just sick. Sure, Kiara was beautiful inside and out... Wait, did I just say that? It didn't matter. Kiara was my best friend, and no matter how hard I tried to get it out of my head, she was my property.

"Admiral Zhao is not allowing ships in or out of this area."

"Off my ship!"

As the herald and his two guards left, I sighed angrily and Uncle was spouting something about how my men would win should they play against him again. I knew he would convince them one way or another. So I left.

Where did I go? That's simple. I went to Kiara's room. Normally, she'd give me some kind of advice, and that would turn into an argument, which would result in her leaving, and I would realize she was right. But as I walked into her room, I sighed again. She was still unconscious.

"Kiara, I don't know if you can hear me, but I need you to wake up now," I whispered while sitting beside her bed. I spent an hour and a half like that. Just talking to someone who could possibly not hear a word I said. But she was the person who listened. I vented to her and she didn't judge me unless I was being 'unreasonable,' as she called it. I always thought that I was completely reasonable and doing the right thing, but as she reminded me on the day of the storm, my honor wasn't the most important thing.

When I left her room, I went straight to the foredeck to practice what my uncle taught me. After a while, I was beginning to sweat, and Uncle came out.

"Is everything okay?" he asked. "It's been almost an hour and you haven't given the men an order."

With a sigh, I replied, "I don't care what they do," and looked out to sea.

"Don't give up hope yet. You can still find the Avatar before Zhao."

He sounds like Kiara. She's always so optimistic. I looked at him, showing more emotion than I had since Kiara collapsed. "How, Uncle? With Zhao's resources, it's just a matter of time before he captures the Avatar." I looked back to the water, placing my hands on the metal rail. "My honor, my throne, my country. I'm about to lose them all."

Uncle placed a hand on my shoulder, and I slumped forward in defeat. "Zuko, even if that does happen, you will still be my nephew. I could care less about the rest of it." I squeezed my eyes shut at his words, feeling my eyes sting for the first time since I was banished. "I'm sure Kiara will stay by your side as well."

That was true. When she had first met Zhao formally and I told her to run if anything happened, she said she would come back. She told me she trusted me. Ki had taken four years to warm up to me. We were eleven when we finally declared our friendship toward each other. Azula had witnessed that moment and Father was furious when he found out. I was forced to lock her away for a week until he was convinced I had learned my lesson and she had learned her place as my servant. Our friendship was kept secret from my family and the guards from that moment on. Only Uncle knew.

While my uncle spoke to me, a voice began calling for me, and I spun around to see the medic coming toward me. His face was one of shock and relief.

"Prince Zuko!" he exclaimed. "It's Miss Kiara." I stiffened. "She's- She's awake."

And I was gone. Many of the crew looked at me as if I were possessed or something, but I had to confirm it. Upon entering her room, I was met with the sight of her sitting up in her bed. The cook was spoon-feeding her some soup while he sat beside her.

"Kiara..." was my weak attempt at speaking to her. I was relieved.

As I came closer to her, the cook stood and exited the room, closing the door. I don't know what came over me, but seeing her awake after so long, I dropped to my knees beside the bed and just looked at her, my mouth slightly open.

"Prince Zuko, you're going to catch flies," she giggled. She lifted her hand and pushed my chin upward to close my mouth. She soon became flustered with my staring. "Stop staring at me. It's creeping me out."

"You're awake." I said it so quietly, I wasn't sure she heard me.

"What happened? How long was I asleep?" she asked.

"You collapsed the day of the storm," I replied. "It's been three days."

Her eyes widened. "Three days? I have so much work to do! I'm so sorry!" She began apologizing, and threw the blanket from her legs, beginning to get up. But I pushed her back down. "What are you doing, Prince Zuko? I have to help the cook, and do laundry, and clean the rooms."

I shook my head. "Kiara, this is an order. You're not going to work until the medic decides you're completely recovered."

"But-"

"No 'but's. Do as you're told."

Kiara simply huffed and crossed her arms, pouting at me. And it made me chuckle. Cute. Wait, what?

Kiara:
After talking for a bit, Zuko left, saying he had some important things to do. The medic came back in for one last check up before he retired for the night, and then Iroh visited me. The gentle man was smiling ear to ear when he saw me. And I smiled back, happy to see him as well.

"How are you feeling, Kiara?" Iroh asked.

"I'm feeling fine, Iroh," I replied with a small smile. But then it fell as I asked him a question that had been bothering me since I saw the relief in Zuko's eyes. "Please, Iroh, I have to know..." He waited for me to continue. "Was Prince Zuko worried?"

"He was. He visited you frequently every day. Some of Zhao's men boarded the ship today and demanded information about the Avatar. That, along with you being sick, upset him greatly. He spent over an hour in here, just talking to you."

I was shocked. I hadn't expected the prince to be so worried about me. "Where is he now? I have to apologize."

"He's nowhere on the ship. Why do you need to apologize to him?"

"Because I made him worry. I thought it was just a small cold. I didn't know it would make me become unconscious for three days." To say the least, I was distressed. "Do you know where he went?"

Iroh shook his head. He then told me that it was music night, the first one we would ever have, and he wanted me to sing. I politely refused, saying that I would next time. With his help, I left my room and went onto the deck, enjoying the music made my the crew, and the surprisingly beautiful love song that Lieutenant Jee sang. As the night came to a close, I made my way to Zuko's room to wait for him.

Before long, the prince entered, looking tired. He looked surprised when he saw me sitting on the bed. "Kiara, I thought I told you-"

"I know. But I have to apologize," I said before he could finish, and stood.

"For what?" Zuko sounded genuinely confused.

"For making you worry. I should have rested when I was told to. Instead, I overworked myself and collapsed, making you worry for three days. For that, I'm sorry," I explained.

I looked down at my feet, bowing slightly in apology. "Don't do that, Ki," he said. I heard him step closer to me. "Don't act like I'm him. Don't bow to me, and don't apologize for something you had no control over." He grasped my chin, making me look up at him. "Yes, I was worried, but it's because you're my friend."

Suddenly, his arms were around me, pulling me close. I wrapped my arms around his torso, hearing a hiss of pain that made me let go quickly and escape his hold. Before he could say anything, I had turned him around and pressed a hand to his back, and another hiss escaped him.

"Prince Zuko, where were you?" I questioned.