Chapter 3 - The Odd Pair
He shut the door to the examination room behind him with a hasty slam as he exited. How dare that nurse suggest he was intending to do anything indecent towards that Water Tribe peasant! He paced back and forth across the reception room in an aggravated huff. How was he supposed to know that he did not need to remain in the room while the check-up was going on?
When he was younger and whenever he received a check-up back at the Fire Palace, there had been others in the exam room with the doctor and him. Of course, those other people had usually been servants, but occasionally, his Sister hovered around.
Zuko scowled. Azula only ever bothered to stick around during his check-ups so that she could insult him whenever the doctor made a comment about his health. By which, that usually meant that she would ask the doctor if her Brother had suddenly developed some new kind of illness or disease whenever she got the chance.
Once, Azula had brought along her two lackeys. Zuko's scowl grew deeper. She probably only did that so she could have an audience when she disparaged him. Still, whatever she had told them that day must have been pretty bad. Her stoic lackey with the hair buns, Mai if he remembered correctly, kept averting her eyes when the doctor had Zuko take off his shirt so that the doctor could listen to the Fire Prince's heartbeat. No doubt because Azula had made up some story about him being repulsive and grotesque. The stoic lackey probably found him hideous and unsightly. The other lackey, the one with the ponytail, what was her name again...? Ty Lee, that was it. She just giggled nonstop the entire time.
Zuko continued to stomp back and forth throughout the empty waiting room. He was a prince! Of course he cared about those in his service! For however short that was anyway. He definitely had no intention of keeping the peasant. She would be too much of an additional burden. He would turn her loose before he left town. He had spent too much time here already.
Zuko took a few steps towards the clinic exit. Why wait? The peasant was with someone who could take care of her and get her healthy again. What was he even doing sticking around here anymore? He did his good deed for the day. His Uncle-like conscience should be satisfied with this much. Gripping the handle to the outside door, the Fire Prince paused again. Then, he growled in frustration.
He knew he couldn't leave a job half-done. Like it or not, he had assumed some semblance of responsibility for this girl when he had interfered. He should at least give her a fighting chance instead of just ditching her here at this clinic with nothing. He could gather her some supplies so that she wouldn't be completely helpless. He still had to get his own supplies anyway, so it wasn't like he really had to go too far out of his way anyhow. He could just double up on the items he was already going to get at any rate.
Looking back at the closed exam room door, Zuko frowned. He had no idea how long this medical examination was going to take. Reaching over the reception desk, he grabbed a quill and slip of paper. 'Shopping. Returning soon.' Satisfied that would suffice, he stormed outside.
Zuko paused as he reached his ostrich horse. He barely had any money left after his impromptu purchase at the docks and would likely not have any left if this clinic nurse had anything to say about it. This Water Tribe peasant had completely drained him of all his traveling money and was clearly more trouble than she was worth. Reaching into his saddlebag, he pulled out a familiar blue mask and his Dao broadswords. He needed to stop stealing, but what other choice did he have? He needed to eat. His horse needed to eat. And the Water Tribe girl should probably be fed as well. A cart rolled by and the Fire Prince was gone, blended right into the shadows while the ostrich horse neighed softly, still tied to the post in front of the clinic.
The firebender traveled along the rooftops, already knowing where he was going from his initial walk through the port town. While the merchants were in the streets hawking their wares, no one was watching the storage rooms in the back of their shops. The earlier commotion with the cart pile-up and subsequent street brawl still held the attention of plenty of gossiping people. With everyone focused outward as they laughed and discussed the midday excitement, no one would notice a single, masked man using that distraction to slip through cracked windows. No one would notice the broken, small metal locks or the missing bag of rice, bag of animal feed, or other odds and ends. At least, no one would notice until the masked man was long gone.
Zuko paused as he passed by a small apothecary. The firebender knew the Water Tribe girl had been burned by firebending. Not even close to how bad he had been burned, but she still carried multiple smaller burn marks. He had felt the scarred skin through the threadbare clothing when he carried her briefly to the clinic.
The Fire Prince stared at the apothecary. He knew that suffering. How the burn would ache and throb. How the wound would sting and hurt. He knew that pain. Better than most. Probably better than anyone. His own scar itched in irritation.
Before he even understood what he was doing, the firebender's body moved on its own, sneaking into the back of the shop and swiping some burn ointment and a mixture of aloe. Both medicines were easily recognizable to him. The firebender had used them both far more often than he would care to admit. Zuko was in and out of the building within moments like a specter.
Piling his scores behind a collapsing chimney on a rooftop a short distance from the clinic, Zuko cautiously headed over to the clothing shops at the far part the marketplace. These were the stores he had not bothered to observe as he walked the streets earlier. Clothes had not been on his initial mental shopping list.
He dismissed the higher end looking stores without a second glance. Fancy cloths made for poor traveling clothes and they tended to not last very long without proper care, which he doubted the water peasant could maintain right now. Besides, those shops seemed to have more merchants and more eyes on their merchandise.
He continued to observe from the rooftops for a couple minutes longer before he spied a simple Earth Kingdom tunic of pale yellow and green hues amongst a rack of other clothes at the edge of a less crowded shop. Navigating his way over there, the firebender slid down the side of an awning pole and snatched up the tunic, belt and all, stuffing the clothing into a small bag around his shoulder. Just as he was about to ascend back up the pole, Zuko noticed another bin with multiple pairs of assorted and mix-matched, simple sandals. The Water Tribe girl had been barefoot when he helped her earlier.
Zuko dropped down from the pole and quickly made his way over, staying low to keep out of sight. Reaching into the bin, he grabbed the first two sandals he could. Two right sandals. Frowning behind his mask, he pulled out another. Right again. A silent curse. A third right. He was about to just say forget the whole thing and these would do when a loud shout of "Stop thief!" rang in his ears from off to his left. Head snapping up, Zuko spied a merchant waving his arms trying to alert the nearby Fire Nation patrols. Several eyes turned in his direction. He had taken too long.
Dropping the duplicate right sandals, Zuko's hand shot back into the bin a fourth time before he kicked it over, spilling footwear all across the market area. Sliding the pair of sandals into his tunic as well, he darted down an alleyway just as he noticed a duo of Fire Nation soldiers running towards the shop. A swing of his Dao swords cut the ropes holding up a stack of barrels which crashed down to block the entrance of the alley. Turning the corner, and more importantly getting out of sight, Zuko scrambled back onto the rooftops and took off out the area as fast as he could. More patrols were entering the marketplace because of the increased shouting and activity.
What was he doing? He had set off on his own to figure things out on his own, be his own man, see the world with his own eyes. Not even a week into his solo journey and here he was fleeing across rooftops like a common criminal. Fire Nation soldiers who should be bowing to him and showing him respect were now chasing after him. He was, is, a loyal son of the Fire Nation, and yet his own people pursued him. Granted, right now it was because he was acting like a thief. But if they caught him, then they would realize his identity and he would find himself brought before Azula in a heartbeat. She was usurping his rightful place on the throne, and she was doing a damn good job of it. Just another hardship that life casually tossed his way.
Reaching his stolen goods stash at the crumbling chimney, the Fire Prince hid himself from sight and listened. He could hear the shouts of the patrols in the streets below, but the voices seemed to be running off in the wrong direction. It appeared that he had managed to get out of there fast enough that the soldiers hadn't gotten a good idea of which direction to begin their pursuit of him.
Breathing in relief, the Fire Prince stared at his pile of pilfered supplies. "Stealing again? We talked about this Prince Zuko."
Zuko spun around on his heels instantly at the sound of his Uncle's voice, but there was no one there. His eyes whipped around wildly, looking for the man, but after a few moments passed, nothing. He calmed himself. 'Great, now I'm hearing things.'
"Of course you're hearing things. How else will you learn?" Again, his Uncle's voice returned.
"Where are you?!" he demanded tensely, mindful to keep his voice from carrying too far. He had parted ways with his Uncle, but clearly the man had followed him in secret and was now judging his actions. No response came. He waited another minute as he slowly caged his anger.
He started to gather up the stolen goods into a bag. "I took these items, because I had no other choice. I wasted my money freeing that water peasant like a fool and now I don't have enough left for anything else."
"You wish to provide for the both of you two?" asked Uncle's voice, sounding jovial.
"I don't wish for anything. I made a choice. Now I have to be responsible for my actions," shot back Zuko. "Isn't that what you've always tried to teach me?" He was arguing with himself, he was sure of it. But why did his other self have to sound like Uncle?
"So a responsible thief then."
"A hunted thief," corrected Zuko. "Or did you forget my Sister is pursuing me? I can't exactly make money easily."
"And despite this, you still decided to lend a hand when and where it was needed. I am so proud of you."
The Fire Prince scowled. "Keep your pride to yourself. This is all I'm doing. Nothing further. I'm giving her this stuff and that's it. I'm done with her. That's for the best. I can't trust anyone else to help me."
"Hmm... a hunted man sometimes wearies of distrust and longs for friendship."
Zuko paused. Since when did he start to sprout proverbs like his Uncle? "I don't long for friendship!"
There was no response this time. Another couple of tense moments passed and the voice in his head still did not return. Growling to himself, Zuko quickly gathered the rest of the items and made his way back to the clinic. He swiftly stashed everything away into his now nearly bursting saddlebags. The ostrich horse seemed to protest the additional weight, but was effectively bribed with a small cube of stolen sugar.
Zuko slipped into the still empty reception room. His note remained on the desk untouched. Snatching the paper, he tore up the note and discarded it into the rubbish bin next to the desk. Slumping down into a seat, he heard the fire patrols darting around every which way outside.
A short while later, the door to the examination room opened softly with the nurse supporting Katara gently as she led her forward. The nurse's eyes seemed to zero in on Zuko like an eagle hawk. "I've patched her up as much as I can for now. She has bruises and burns all over her body and the trauma of repeated concussions to her head. She was severely malnourished and dehydrated. I fed her a bit, but her stomach can only take so much right now. Plain, simple meals like porridge or soup, nothing heavy or solid or she'll throw it right up. She needs sips of water too. It's a miracle she's still standing as it is. By all rights she should be confided to bed rest for the next week at least. However, you appear like you are preparing to travel right now, aren't you?"
A curt nod was Zuko's response. "I need to keep moving."
"Then leave the girl here. I'll help her get back on her feet properly," replied the nurse firmly.
Seeming to need no further prompting, Zuko stood and made to move to the exit. "Fine by me. I've wasted enough time here in this town already." He was about to be out a large sum of money, but he did not need a water peasant following after him, slowing him down. Besides, here the girl could get appropriate treatment and recovery. That was something he did not know how to provide. He was still trying to figure out why he had even gotten involved with her in the first place.
"Zu—Lee," called out Katara, catching herself as she spoke his name. Both of the other occupants in the room shifted their focus in her direction. Katara felt their eyes on her and she looked down. The nurse had been talking fast, with lots of details, and to honest, most of it was too much for her tired mind to focus on right now, but Katara had zeroed in on one of the last words: confided. She would not be confided, never again. "I want... I want to go with you."
Zuko nearly face faulted. However, the nurse spoke up first. "No, no, no dearie. You don't have any reason to go with him. He is releasing you. You don't have to be a slave girl."
"I don't have anywhere else to go," squeaked out Katara faintly. The words frighted her more when she said them out loud. She had no idea where she was or how to find her Brother or Father. A Water Tribe girl all alone in the world, was a terrible thing indeed.
'That makes two of us.' The thought swept across Zuko's mind abruptly. He had to fight himself to not say that out loud.
"But that still doesn't mean you have to go with him," countered the nurse swiftly. "Besides, you clearly need more rest and you can get that here in this clinic."
A dormant fierceness mixed with a natural stubbornness sparked somewhere within the Water Tribe girl. Zuko, no, Lee was a thread of familiarity from a time that felt so long ago. Sure, her run-ins with him had been few and they had not been the most pleasant as she recalled him hurling fire at her and her friends, but he was familiar in a place where she knew no one and nothing. At the very least, he had taken her to receive medical care immediately after buying her and that was much more than any other Fire Nation person had ever done for her in the last several months or ever in fact. That had to count for something, right? "No, I want to go. I need to go. I can't stay here. I can't get left behind again."
The nurse continued to protest to the Water Tribe girl as Zuko's mind turned inward. 'Why? Why would anyone ever willingly want to travel with me? I'm a banished prince; no home, no people, no allies.' Not a penny to his name and a difficult road in front of him. This would not do. He needed to put a stop to this now. "Well I don't want you to travel with me," he cut in.
"H-Huh?" came the confused reply from the Water Tribe girl.
"I don't need anyone following me. I'm traveling alone. I have things I must do and figure out on my own. I don't want anyone else. I don't need anyone else," he rationalized. This entire trip into the port town had gotten severely sidetracked. What was he even doing here?
"But..." Katara started weakly.
"You're dead weight," Zuko shut down immediately. "And I don't have time to take care of you."
There it was, a tickle of light returned to Katara's blue eyes, stubbornness and an unwillingness to be written off as useless. "You purchased me. Got me away from the slavers. And now you are just abandoning me?"
Zuko pinched his temple with his hand. "I'm not abandoning you." He paused. "Wait, is this what this is about? I don't need a slave. I release you. You are free. There, is that what you needed to hear? You can make your own decisions and your own way."
"Then... I decide to travel with you," she replied matter-of-factly.
He could feel a headache coming on. Why was she being so frustrating about this? "Why? Why are you so set on this? You don't own me anything if that's why you think you need to follow me."
"Why did you help me then, if you didn't want me traveling with you?" she countered.
This was getting nowhere. "I don't know." No, that was not right. His conscience would have kept eating away at him if he had turned a blind eye after he saw her on that pier. He had enough inner demons hounding away at him already. He did not need another. Not that he was going to say that. "You looked like you needed help, so I helped. End of story."
Katara could see that she was wearing him down. Zuko represented freedom and freedom was something that she needed now that she was no longer a prisoner. That was much better than being stationary and restricted in an unknown town full of strangers. She had been immobilized for so long and she feared that if she stayed still here, then she would remain here indefinitely. The unknown road and traveling onward signaled hope. Maybe out there she could find her Brother. Did he know she was still alive? Had he searched for her? Was he still searching for her? She needed to find out. "Please..." she asked genuinely.
Zuko could feel his resolve crumbling. He just wanted to get moving already. The longer he lingered in town, the more likely someone might notice his resemblance to the wanted posters he saw spread throughout the town. "Fine." He pulled out the last of his money and shoved it into the hands of the nurse. "I trust this is enough for the treatment."
The nurse looked slightly bewildered at the exchange between the two teenagers. Then even more so at the gruff boy paying for the treatment of a girl that he clearly was trying to separate himself from. Perhaps the nurse's initial misgivings had been unfounded. This boy was plainly rough around the edges, but he appeared to be more honorable and honest than the usual brutes in this town. She looked down at the money he had given her. Several crumbled up bills and loose coins. In all honesty, it appeared a tad short for the amount of treatment she provided, but these two seemed like they needed to catch a break somewhere.
The two were making for the exit when she called out, "Hold up," as she disappeared into the storage room. Returning a few minutes later, she handed Katara a pouch of medicines. "Here, some antibiotics; take two daily, once in the morning and another at night before bed and preferably with food in your stomach. Do this for the next week at least to prevent infection. Some anti-inflammatories, take one as needed to reduce fever or any swelling, no more than two a day. Some extra bandages and wrappings to keep your burns clean as they heal. Some dried soup powder packets; mix with about a cup of water. Use these over the next couple of days, because your stomach will probably have a difficult time with solid food until it can readjust. Some... "
Interrupting her, Katara pushed the bag back towards the nurse, embarrassed. "I... it's too much. I can't pay for all that."
"Nonsense girlie," countered the nurse as she fastened the pouch closed and secured the strap around Katara's back. "You're going to need these medicines if you hope to get better while traveling out there instead of staying here like I still recommend you do. Don't worry about the payment. Consider it... my way of giving you a fight chance at surviving the week. I can't just let a patient suffer in front of my eyes. Goes against what every doctor and nurse believe in."
"But," started Katara.
"Just accept it," spoke up Zuko. As the Water Tribe girl looked at him, he glared. "I want to go and you're holding us up."
Katara gave a slight bow. "Thank you... for everything."
The nurse smiled. "Just stay safe out there. That will be thanks enough." She narrowed her eyes towards Zuko. "You watch out for her and keep her safe, boy."
He simply grunted in response, exited the building, and moved over to check on the ostrich horse. Katara gave the nurse a quick wave goodbye as she walked to follow. The nurse watched as the small girl seemed a little hesitant to approach the large animal when it turned its head to look at her. The boy seemed to grumble something in annoyance as he motioned for her to move to the animal's side.
A moment later and he lifted her up and onto the horse and took the reins in his hand as he walked alongside the animal and rider, leading the group towards the town exit. The girl leaned forward on the horse and held close to its neck. The boy fussed at her about making it hard for the animal to breath with her like that and moved her arms to hold onto front horn of the saddle to balance herself as they moved. Watching the pair disappear into the crowds, the nurse prayed she wasn't making a mistake letting them go off on their own like that.
They traveled in silence from the time they left town until the sun began to get low in the distance. The steady flow of traffic rapidly tapered off the further they got from the port town of Gangkou. A couple of passing strangers, mostly Fire Nation colonists, seemed to give curious looks at what appeared like a slave girl riding on the ostrich horse while Zuko walked instead of the other way around. Zuko paid them no mind. It was not their place to judge his actions. Besides, if he had the girl walk on her own then the pair would not have even made it a fraction of the distance he wanted to cover before nightfall.
There were several moments when Katara appeared as if she was going to ask a question only to pause as the words disappeared in her throat and she looked away from the Fire Nation boy walking alongside the ostrich horse. Gone was her earlier bravado from back at the clinic. Here, in its place, was the return of the hesitation and uncertainty that had taken hold of her from her time on the prison rig. Zuko, on the other hand, was just fine with the peaceful muteness.
A couple of hours later, he led the ostrich horse over to a rocky outcropping near the beaten path. Stopping, he began to remove the packs and saddlebags from the animal and place them on the ground. "What are you waiting for?" he asked with a slight annoyance.
"What?" came the startled response.
"Get down," he ordered curtly as moved the luggage closer to the rock outcropping.
Katara frowned, realizing that she had no real idea how to dismount from the ostrich horse. Slowly swinging a leg over so that both were on the same side, she balanced herself somewhat on the edge of the saddle and attempted to slide back to the ground. She succeeded in collapsing into a twisted mess as her legs, sore with a couple hours of riding and coupled with her previous injuries, buckled almost immediately. "Ow..." she managed pathetically as she slowly sat back up.
"Now what are you doing?" complained Zuko as he glanced at her. "Stand up. You need to take the horse to go get water. I'm going to set up camp."
Slowly rising once more, Katara tested a step cautiously, then another, gradually gaining confidence that her legs were not going to collapse again. Taking the reins of the horse, she paused a second time and looked around. "Where...?"
Pointing vaguely to the left of the rock outcropping, Zuko answered brusquely. "There. That direction. Weren't you paying attention while we were walking earlier? There's a small stream over there." With that, he stomped off in the opposite direction so that she couldn't bother him with any more of her nonsense. Let her figure the rest out on her own. If she was going to travel with him, then she could at the very least make herself useful. Why did it seem like he was still going to have to do everything around here and now for two people no less? She was already appearing more unhelpful and more burdensome than he had expected her to be. How hard was it to keep track of where her own element was?
He spent the next several minutes gathering dry wood and kindling before he returned to their campsite. Dropping everything in a huff, he dutifully removed the nearby underbrush, arranged a small encircling of rocks, and stacked the wood in an orderly square shape within the rock circle. Satisfied, he took a step back and scanned the horizon to ensure there were no passersby. Then, he punched his hand forward with a nimble swiftness. The wood was set ablaze and burned steadily.
Zuko removed his bandaged disguise from over his scar. He blinked momentarily as his vision adjusted back to normal. Then, the firebender knelt down next to the campfire and watched it for a time, ensuring it was not about to go out. The flames flickered gently and he felt his breathing steady in rhythm with crackle of fire. His own element was calming. It always was.
A startled shout snapped him out of his trance as he jumped to his feet. His Dao broadswords seemed to materialize within his hands as he sprinted in the direction of where the Water Tribe girl had walked off too. 'Stupid! How could I be so stupid?!' he shouted to himself inwardly. He should have never left her alone for so long. They weren't that far from the port town yet. There was the very real chance of brigands roaming nearby to ambush unsuspecting travelers. He had run into several of them himself prior to reaching the port town.
Bursting through the bushes and the trees, he skidded to a dusty stop a couple of feet next to the girl as she knelt beside the stream, her hand deep within the steady current. His eyes scanned the immediate area wildly as he held his ready stance, swords drawn and determined to locate the threat, but he saw no Fire Nation soldiers, no bandits, no animal predators.
This single-sided standoff lasted another half minute until the firebender realized that it was only himself and the Water Tribe girl in the clearing next to the tiny stream. He lowered his swords slightly while keeping them out and at the ready. Finally, he turned towards the water peasant. Her clothes clung to her closely, damp and dripping with water as if she had half fallen into the stream.
Maybe there was no outside danger. Maybe this was all a water savage trick. The Fire Sages had warned him about how crafty and tricky people from the barbaric Water Tribes could be. Perhaps the danger was closer to the campsite than he realized. He raised his swords once more at he held one towards the water peasant. "What happened?" he demanded gruffly.
Katara stared wide eyed at the firebender's dramatic appearance and ferocity. He had removed his bandages. She stared at his scar for a moment. When he growled, she quickly averted her gaze, making a mental note to herself not to stare. The face scar was clearly not a topic for discussion. Then, she looked at her hand and slowly back at the stream. Quietly, she said, "It glowed," as if that answered everything.
Still coming down from his adrenaline surge and tensely surveying the area a second time in case he had missed something, Zuko was rapidly getting annoyed at the girl. Was she being vague on purpose? What kind of water savage trickery was she getting at? It didn't make any sense to him. "What glowed?"
Reaching back into the stream, Katara cupped the water in both hands and lifted them back up and towards Zuko. The firebender had to fight the urge to take a step backwards. He couldn't allow himself to show unease to someone who might be potentially trying to deceive him. As Zuko stared uncomprehendingly at her outstretched arms, Katara sheepishly whispered, "The water?"
The Fire Prince almost face-faulted again, but caught himself. "The water?!" he echoed loudly and incredulously. He sheathed his swords with a singular fluid motion. There was no threat, no danger. "The water glowed? You cried out because you thought the water glowed?" He could feel his exasperation growing at a rapid pace. "You probably saw a trick of the light as the sun set."
Scowling, he turned to leave, determined to distance himself from the silly girl so fascinated by light reflecting off of the water's surface. He bristled as he felt a tug at his sleeve, spinning on his heel so fast he almost bowled the girl over. "Don't touch me, peasant!" he roared loudly.
She recoiled low, her hands up defensively yet again. It was a déjà vu of the same scene just earlier today. She was afraid that he was going to strike her. Zuko had never struck a girl before, outside of a sparring match where both sides were at the ready and understanding of the fight. He was not about to hit a simple peasant girl. Why couldn't she understand that? This entire situation was bizarre. Stupid girl. Stupid water. Stupid Earth Kingdom. Why was his life so complicated? Why did he have to deal with all of this? This was not fair. It never was.
He breathed in and out slowly in an attempt to calm himself. Glaring at her as she opened her eyes again shortly after realizing there was no strike incoming, he turned to leave once more. Zuko paused at the sound of the Water Tribe girl's voice, "I was just going to show you."
The firebender sighed loudly as he looked over his shoulder. "I don't want or need to see your ridiculous waterbending tricks." He impassively noticed the look of hurt and sadness as it crossed her face. Why was she so focused on getting him to see... whatever it was she was trying to show him? He relented slightly. When she did not move, he signed again. "Fine, go on. I'm waiting."
The look of hurt quickly changed to one of excitement. Was it really that simple to make her happy? He watched as she approached the small stream. He watched as she reached into the water with her right hand. He watched as he saw the water pool around her hand in a small bubble. He watched as she raised the bottom of her shirt slightly to reveal an angry burn scar across her waist. He felt his anger spark as his own scar flared in irritation. No one deserved to be burned like that for any reason. It was just... wrong.
He watched as she brought her watery hand to her waist. He watched as she closed her eyes and concentrated. He watched as the water did indeed begin to glow a faint brilliant blue hue making her look absolutely angelic in the amber twilight of the evening. He watched as the burn scar seemed to recede at the touch of the water. He watched as she released her held breath, the glow fading away suddenly and the water flowing freely as it soaked the bottom half of her clothes and pooled at her feet. He watched himself as he drew closer, almost in a spellbound trance as he examined her waist, reaching out and tracing his fingers along the smooth, newly unblemished skin. He watched as she looked at him expectantly.
"It's healed," Zuko muttered lowly in surprise. He had heard that some expert waterbenders had the ability to heal, but he had never seen the gift in action. He had always assumed it was some kind of water savage propaganda or perhaps some kind of make-believe bending. None of the other elements could heal after all. Whatever it was, he would have never expected this young girl to possess such an ability.
"Yeah..." replied Katara quietly. She was also in awe of the gift she had just learned about herself.
Her reply seemed to make him realize his close proximity to her with the same force as a kick from the nearby ostrich horse would have. Spirits! He touched her waist! Zuko stared at his outstretched hand. He was still touching her waist! The firebender jumped back several steps in the blink of an eye, as if he had just been shocked by lightning. Wiping his hand on his own garments as if to make a display of removing any peasant germs, the Fire Prince tried to change the subject. "Well, you still smell," he managed lamely. With that, he disappeared back the way he had arrived.
Katara blinked in surprise as Zuko sped away back towards camp. She replayed what just happened in her own mind. Color flushed on her own cheeks in embarrassment as she realized herself just how close he had been to her as well. A rustling from the bushes indicated that Zuko was returning. He had only been gone for a brief time; however, the firebender appeared to be clutching a bundle of items.
"Here," Zuko said briskly as he shoved the items into the Water Tribe girl's hands.
She fumbled with the items slightly but succeeded in holding onto them all. The firebender murmured something about not taking too long as he grabbed the reins of the ostrich horse and led the animal back to the campgrounds.
Katara spread out the items he had given her. There was a simple faded yellow and green tunic with a dark green belt sash, a pair of sandals, and to her surprise, a small bar of soap. She brought the soap up to her nose and was a little taken back. The bar had a pleasant smell of some spice that she couldn't quite place, but that she found aromatic. This was clearly something Zuko had picked up in town for her, because he didn't have this scent on him.
Zuko hitched the ostrich horse to a large overturned tree near the rock outcropping with a long leash so the animal could graze a little bit. What was that? She had been looking at him with such expectant eyes. She had allowed him to get that close to her without protest. There was so much trust she had given to him right there. To him! A complete stranger! He had only known the girl for the span of the better part of an afternoon. It was just weird. This whole situation was just weird. Waterbenders themselves were weird. Everything was weird. And it made him uneasy to think about it. He added another log to the fire and worked on making some rice porridge for the evening meal.
Dinner was just about ready when the waterbender returned to the camp ground. The sun itself had nearly set and darkness was encroaching the area. Zuko's campfire provided a warm and comforting glow.
"Thank you," Katara acknowledged softly, unsure of what else to say. She was wearing the tunic he had given her. Fortunately, and to the firebender's relief, it was longer than he had initially estimated. She had used the long green sash to belt it across the middle as the material stopped just before her knees. Effectively, she had turned it into a makeshift single piece dress.
Her shoulder. Another boon to the tunic he had gotten her. Whereas those terrible slave rags had been sleeveless to allow for people to quickly take notice of the Fire Nation brand on the shoulders of a slave, the tunic that Zuko had grabbed had good length sleeves that allowed the Water Tribe girl to cover up her brand. 'Good,' figured Zuko. He himself didn't think too much of the mark, but if it was visible, then it would draw unwanted attention and questions. Best that it was hidden then.
Additionally, Zuko nodded to her in acknowledgement as he noticed the sandals she wore. He almost cracked a thin smile as his luck finally worked out for once. Somehow, with that final no-look grasp, he had managed to secure both a left and right complete sandal set. It had been worth almost getting caught if he had managed to get the correct footwear. He eventually looked up to catch Katara's nervous gaze as he realized that he had been staring at her for quite a while.
He tried to make himself look busy as he unpacked some bowls from one of the saddlebags. "At least you look presentable now," he returned with a snap to his tone as he attempted to hide the fact that he had, in fact, been staring.
A moment later, he glanced back up again as the Water Tribe girl continued to stand there with those old slave rags in her hands and a look of indecision on her face. 'Does she intend to keep those pieces of scrap?' he pondered. That wouldn't do. They didn't need to carry those useless things around. "Get rid of the rags," he ordered. When the Water Tribe girl looked at him unconvinced, he added, "Unless you want to keep those slave clothes for some ridiculous reason."
Zuko started to pour out spoonfuls of rice porridge into the bowls at his side as he watched the Water Tribe girl near the campfire. Almost gleefully now, the girl seemed to find joy in dropping the faded red, threadbare slave rags into the flames. She sighed in relief, her arms crossed, hugging her own elbows, as she watched the scraps of cloth burn away.
The Fire Prince caught himself staring not at the burning clothes in the campfire, but instead at the Water Tribe girl looking down at the flames. Now that she had cleaned up a bit with a bath and a fresh set of clothes, she didn't appear as enfeebled as she had before. To be fair, she was still skinny and sickly-looking, but well, he didn't know, she seemed somewhat different than the other girls he had been encountered in his life. 'Maybe it's because you've never really seen a girl that lovely shade of caramel tan,' his teenage brain mused unbidden.
The Fire Prince coughed abruptly as he practically choked on his own errant thought. He nearly dropped the almost full bowl of porridge he was just about finished pouring. He turned his head to ignore the Water Tribe girl who was looking at him in confusion. 'What was that? Where did that come from?!' he scolded himself silently.
Composing himself quickly, he raised a bowl of rice porridge up as he offered it to the girl. Best to just eat quickly and go to sleep. He was clearly more tired than he realized. He shook the offered bowl furiously when the Water Tribe girl took longer to take it from him than he figured she should.
Katara accepted the bowl of porridge he offered her with a hesitant smile. Zuko tensed stiffly as her fingers brushed against his when the bowl traded hands. She settled herself down opposite him across the fire and slowly began to eat. Zuko found himself stealing looks at her as the meal progressed in awkward silence. Why was it so difficult not to stare? It was like he was acting like he had never seen a girl his own age before.
He wolfed down the rest of his porridge with all haste and pulled out a second bedroll and a blanket from the luggage. With an afterthought, he pulled out his back-up pair of clean pants as well and threw all three items into a pile on the Water Tribe girl's side of the campsite.
Then, he retreated to his own bedroll. Settling in for the evening, Zuko turned his back towards her and shut his eyes tightly as he attempted to banish the unfamiliar thoughts his traitorous mind kept focusing on.
Unfortunately for Zuko, his mind chose that moment to place the scent of the soap that he had stolen in town when he was hastily gathering supplies. 'She smelled like cinnamon.' Twisting over in his bedroll as he fluffed his pillow by punching it, he shouted "Gah!" in annoyance, startling the ostrich horse as the animal kicked up dirt on him.
