Opposites Attract (Zuko x Reader)

🔥 voyage ❄️

That afternoon, we set sail. Appa sat on the main deck. I didn't know exactly when Team Avatar would take off, just sometime soon.

"Hey, Y/n," Aang poked his head into my tiny quarters. "We're leaving now."

Oh. Very soon, then.

I followed Aang up to the deck, where Sokka, Katara, Pakku and two of his students who had also come were standing.

"Katara, I want you to have this," Pakku said, holding up a necklace with a long pendant. "This amulet contains water from the Spirit Oasis. The water has unique properties. Don't lose it."

Katara took the necklace and hugged him. "Thank you, Master Pakku."

"Aang, these scrolls will help you master waterbending," Pakku said, handing him a box. "But remember, they're no substitute for a real master. Sokka..." Sokka stepped forward, looking eager. "Take care, son."

Sokka's shoulders slumped, and I bit back a laugh.

Pakku pointed off the side of the boat. "Fly straight to the Earth Kingdom base to the east of here. General Fong will provide you with an escort to Omashu. There, you will be safe to begin your earthbending training with King Bumi."

"Bye, Y/n!" Katara said, crushing me in a hug. "Safe travels!"

"You too," I said, also accepting a hug from Aang and Sokka. "Good luck!"

The three climbed onto Appa, and Aang flicked the reins. "Appa, yip yip!"

"Say hi to Gran-Gran for me!" Katara called as they flew away.

The four of us watched as they disappeared into the thin clouds.

"We will be there in a few months' time," Pakku said. "Assuming everything goes according to plan."

🔥❄️🔥❄️

Surprisingly, for once everything did go according to plan. There were hardly any storms, and our rations lasted us throughout the entire voyage. We didn't have to make any emergency dockings. The two young men aboard both respected my space, and Pakku kept order quite easily.

Tonight, Pakku stood at the prow of the boat as the rest of us ate dinner. It had gotten colder again as we sailed south from the equator.

"According to my map we should be there by the end of the week," Pakku said, turning back to us with his bowl and chopsticks. "Perhaps even sooner."

I cheered. I loved the ocean, but even I was sick of it after so long at sea.

"Y/n," one of the students, Yuuki, said, sending me a smile and standing up, leaving his empty bowl on his seat. "How about that sparring match?"

I grinned back. "Oh, you're on."

Pakku and the other student, Naoki, cleared the chairs as Yuuki and I prepared to fight. He attacked first, punching some water in my direction. I dodged, catching the last one and hurling it back.

"Come on, Y/n," Yuuki teased as the orb shot over his head and landed back in the ocean. "This isn't a game of catch!"

I formed a water whip and lashed out at him. He summoned some water from the sea and froze it into the form of a sword, slicing through my whip.

"Very good, Yuuki," Pakku said from the sidelines. "You've improved quite a bit."

Yuuki smiled, and I dropped the whip in favor of some ice daggers, which I launched in quick succession. Yuuki parried them with his ice sword, then stamped his foot and sent a rift of ice sliding across the deck towards my feet. The ice encased around my right foot, but I melted it and sent it right back at him. He summoned the water up to his hand, adding the water from his now-melted ice sword, and blasted me with it. I didn't stop it in time, but it wasn't strong enough to do much more than soak me. I called more water from the sea, swirling it around me until it took on the shape of the long-tailed dragon, although not quite as long as the one I'd made in the fight against Katsu.