Blades and Fans

The Scarred

There was a small ceremony held for the dead; their bodies cremated and stored in jars. The townspeople wanted to spread the ashes in their new home once they were safe from the Fire Nation and behind the walls of Ba Sing Se. Zuko and the Kyoshi Warriors let the townspeople mourn in peace as they continued loading up the supplies for the trip. Zuko felt uneasy seeing the bonfires, seeing the towering flames that consumed the victim of his people's war. He concentrated on work and helping where he could. His unease did not settle as he felt eyes on him; he could tell they were Aikio's. Ever since he woke up, she had been eyeing him all morning, he wondered if giving in and talking was a good idea. It was true that with him able to talk, it made things a little more convenient when communicating, but it also made him look more, suspicious especially with her. Though he had to admit, she looked rather smug when he caught her glancing at him. "What did she and Suki talk about?" he wondered as he gave her a glare under his mask.

Suki then started to give out orders, positioning her Warriors as the ceremony was concluding. Ami was to stay with the healers to help keep the wounded stable and comfortable during their trip while Aikio and Kikki would drive the carriages. She then ordered Tam and the Blue Spirit to remain at the rear of the caravan to make sure there were no stragglers or attacks from behind. Suki would then take up the lead, guiding them towards Ba Sing Se. Zuko followed the orders and mounted upon his Ostrich horse as they trotted off riding down the dirt road. The journey was long, the carriages slowly traveling down the road as not to aggravate the wounded. Though Zuko didn't mind, he enjoyed or rather didn't complain about the traveling. It let him relax once in a while. He let his eyes shut, taking a brief nap as his beast followed the group.

Suki road ahead, leading the caravan through dense woods and rolling hills. But when her eyes traveled back to the carriages, she could catch the smallest glimpse of the blue demon mask through the crowd. Every time she saw him, even for the smallest moment, her heart stung as the thought of her having to force him out made her guilty. She didn't want him to leave, she wanted him to stay with the group and with her. She didn't want to admit that her judgment was clouded by her emotions, but she knew Aikio was indeed right. They knew nothing about him; he was a faceless man who they allowed to travel with them. Maybe he was as dangerous as Aikio believed, or he was the hero she hoped he was. Either way, she needed to talk to him before they sat down to talk with the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors. He deserved the benefit of the doubt, especially after all he's done for them.

Suki's eyes then glanced up at the sky, watching it as it was overtaken by the orange hue of the setting sun. She ordered for the caravan to stop and set up camp for the night.

The Kyoshi Warriors and the Blue Spirit began setting up tents, which took much longer than usual. Suki noted that for next time. It was already dark once they were finished, and the refugees settled in as dinner was cooked. Bowls of rice and vegetables handed out to everyone who was hungry. Once the Blue Spirit got his own bowl, Suki knew this was her chance to talk to him as he headed alone to his tent.

"So, are we gonna talk to him yet?" Aikio whispered as she watched the Blue spirit heading off after giving him his food.

Suki let out a heavy sigh at Aikio's eagerness. "I think it'll be best if I talk to him alone. I don't want him to think we are ganging up on him. We just want to get to know him, right?" she said raising a suspicious brow as she eyed Aikio.

"Fine, just get it over with," Aikio scoffed as she turned to head to her own tent.

Suki simply rolled her eyes before taking a few calming breaths and turned her gaze back to the Blue Spirit. "Let's do this," she said to herself as she made her way over to him.