After hours of shoveling, firebending and bucketing water overboard, the ship was freed, but not without damages. With a few days for sailing behind them, they made it to the first port they had seen in months.
Hikari was excited. The day started with a beautiful sunrise, followed by the spotting of land. With the cold of the Southern Water Tribe a few days trip behind her, warm weather awaited. She was sure it would be a wonderful day. After all of the yelling she got from Zuko about helping the Avatar escape, being slow and other excuses he made to get at her, she was ready for this change.
When they arrived at the port, the brunette felt...small. All of the other, supposedly, warships seemed to be at least three times bigger than their dinky little boat. It brought up a sudden thought that made her cringe.
Was the Fire Lord trying to keep his son from finding the Avatar?
The moment the ramp hit the dock, the girl skipped down, "Land ho!" When she got to the bottom, she tripped over thin air, scrapped the palms of her hands and landed on her face, "It seems to be that I've lost my land legs."
"Hikari," Zuko stood behind her with Iroh to his left, "Get up."
"Geez, you're probably grumpy from all the sleep you lost."
He ignored her, "Uncle, I want the repairs made as quickly as possible. I don't want to stay too long and risk losing his trail."
"You mean the Avatar," Iroh clarified.
"Don't mention his name on these docks!" He made some wide arm movements, "Once word gets out that he's alive, every firebender will be out looking for him, and I don't want anyone getting in the way!"
"Getting in the way of what, Prince Zuko?"
Hikari had been standing and in the middle of dusting her clothes off when the voice interrupted. There was an older man standing in front of them. He had greying, brown hair, pulled back into a top knot like Iroh's. Creepily enough, he had the matching side burns as well. He wore red and black armor that almost matched the suit the prince had worn in his fight with the Avatar. His eyes were amber as well.
To be totally honest, he creeped her out.
The man walked over to the trio with his hands behind his back. Her friend waited for him with his arms crossed. So even the little, angsty boy did not like this new man? While he usually did not like anyone, this was a new bit of attitude being shown. It made her believe, all the more, that she needed to stay away.
Zuko spoke with extreme distaste, "Captain Zhao."
"Zhao" smirked, "It's commander now. And," He bowed to the elderly man, "General Iroh. Great hero of our nation."
"Retired general," Iroh bowed back.
"Oh!" The Commander approached her, "And who might your lovely companion be?" He took her hand and kissed the back of it, "I am Commander Zhao and I welcome you to my harbor."
Hikari bowed back, "My name is Hikari." She sent him a glare, "And I don't like you."
Her father figure lightly hit her shoulder, "Hikari, show the commander some respect! That was very rude."
"He's flirting with me," she whispered harshly. "I don't take that lightly, especially from someone who's probably forty years older than me."
The commander laughed, "Don't think anything of it, General. She has the spirit of the Fire Nation in her. It's refreshing to see in this time of war."
She took a giant step back behind the two males she trusted the most. She wanted nothing to do with this man. He screamed "stranger danger" to her. On top of that, he attempted to hit on her, which was disgusting. She did not like him at all. He almost scared her...almost.
"The Fire Lord's brother and son are welcome guests anytime." The creep looked at them, "What brings you to my harbor?"
Iroh gestured to the damaged ship, "Our ship is being repaired."
"That's quite a bit of damage."
"Yes." Zuko held up one finger, "You wouldn't believe what happened." He glared at his elder, "Uncle! Tell Commander Zhao what happened."
"Yes. I will do that." Iroh happily began to relate the story, "It was incredible!" He then asked Zuko, "What? Did we crash or something?"
"Yes! Right into... an Earth Kingdom ship!"
Hikari face palmed, "You two are unbelievable." She walked up to Zhao looking unamused, "They don't want to embarrass themselves in front of you. But...what actually happened was-"
"Hikari," Zuko warned.
"This is for your own good," she snapped. "We were making rounds in the South Pole, you know, looking for the Avatar. We had been there for a while, see. We decided to come back and start looking in another spot. While turning the ship around, we accidentally triggered an avalanche that covered the entire bow of the ship!" She turned and winked at her two friends, "See, the damage is done. That wasn't hard at all, now was it?"
Iroh decided to play along and shook his head in "defeat", "Hikari, I had so much faith in you."
The prince played his part by quietly glaring at her. She just grinned, knowing she had done the right thing.
"Really?" She turned around to face Zhao once more, "You must regale me with all of the thrilling details." He got into the prince's face, "Join me for a drink?"
"Sorry, but we have to go," was the cold reply.
She could have jumped for joy, watching Zuko turn his back on the invitation. She could make her escape too! All was going to be right with the world! And then...
Her father figure placed a hand on Zuko's shoulder, "Prince Zuko, show Commander Zhao your respect." He bowed his head to the creep, "We would be honored to join you. Do you have any ginseng tea? It's my favorite."
The two men of war walked off, seemingly enjoying conversation. The boy, anger filled as usual, was seething at the thought of even having to join that man. The girl on the other hand, crossed her arms and quietly pouted, dreading the thought of the man making a move on her again.
"Can we agree that we both hate this arrangement," Hikari asked.
"Yes." The prince grabbed her hand, "Come on, let's get this over with. I don't want to be near him longer than I have to."
"What about me?! He's, like, fifty and trying to flirt with me! That's so wrong and creepy and just ick..." She looked at her feet, "I feel very uncomfortable around him."
"Then just stay close to me and uncle."
Heat rose to her face. She was not ready to say it to his ego, but she felt safest with them. Even since they had begun to warm up to each other, she felt safe. She knew very well that they would protect her.
She squeezed his hand a little harder, "I know. Thank you."
They made their way to a very large tent, guarded by two soldier. Once inside, they were all served tea. To at least be a little polite, the young girl drank her cup. All the while, Commander Creep went about filling the banished prince in on the future plans of the fire nation. It was so boring and boastful, that she began dumping out tea onto his expensive rug, trying to see if the guards, sir creeps-a-lot or even her father figure would catch her in the act.
Zuko would glance at her from the corner of his eye from time to time. When he did, and if the commander's back was turned, she would make a face, trying to get a reaction. Iroh had to "cough" a few times because of it. She even got one of the guards to walk out because he was so amused by her childish behavior.
The commander stood in front of a map of the world, his back to the trio of guest, "And by the year's end," Zhao drawled on, "the Earth Kingdom capital will be under our rule. The Fire Lord will finally claim victory in this war."
"If my father thinks the rest of the world will follow him willingly, then he is a fool," Zuko shot back.
"Two years at sea have done little to temper your tongue."
Hikari glared, "That's no way to speak to your prince, banished or not, he is still royalty. He's not wrong either. No one will give in without a fight. Even if you parade around with the news of the Fire Nation winning the war, no sane person would give up their freedom in the blink of an eye." She raised a brow and feigned an innocent expression, "I wonder... Could that be why the war has lasted for 100 years?"
She received a dirty look before the next question was directed to her friend, "So, how is your search for the Avatar going?"
Iroh had been looking at some of the mounted weapon and accidentally knocked them over. They crashed, making a lot of noise. The retired general cowered at the commotion and the damage. While the female in the room stifled her laughter, their host looked unamused.
"Eh... My fault, entirely," the old man apologized.
Zuko was glaring at the ground, "We haven't found him yet."
"Did you really expect to? The Avatar died a hundred years ago. Along with the rest of the airbenders." The commander suddenly smirked, "Unless you have found some evidence that the Avatar is alive?"
"No. Nothing."
"Prince Zuko, the Avatar is the only one who can stop the Fire Nation from winning this war. If you have an ounce of loyalty left, you'll tell me what you found."
"I haven't found anything." The prince stared him down and mocked the previous words stated, "It's like you said. The Avatar probably died a long time ago." He stood, "Come on, Uncle, Hikari, we're going."
It was almost a gift that the girl had not completely processed the command. As Zuko approached the door, the guards stopped his retreat by crossing their spears while a third soldier entered the room. The man went up directly to his operative authority.
"Commander Zhao, we interrogated the crew as you instructed. They confirmed Prince Zuko had the Avatar in custody, but let him escape," the soldier reported.
"Now remind me," Commander Creep got uncomfortably close to the prince, "how, exactly, was your ship damaged?"
"We told you the truth." Hikari stood and crossed her arm, "The bow of the ship got covered by an avalanche, caused by a miscalculation. You have no right to hold us here. It's abuse of your authority, Commander."
"Oh? And this miscalculation..." He walked into her personal bubble, "Just happened to be the Avatar?"
"Your nose suits you. Goes to show how much you like poking it where it doesn't belong."
"I'd watch your tongue, girl. You are addressing a high ranking officer of your nation's military. At first, you were amusing, but now, it's getting irritating. The next time you speak out of turn, there will be consequences." He gestured to the chair she had previously been sitting in, "Now please, take a seat."
She turned her back to the man. With as much dignity as she could muster, she sat herself down, crossed her legs, and glared. As much as she wanted to lash out, she was well aware it was time to sit down and shut up. She just hoped that she was not giving him any sign of fear.
Iroh and Zuko pulled their seats up on either side of her. She felt safer by this action. In the long run, the uncle/nephew duo recounted how they came across the Avatar, not forgetting to mention he was twelve. Hikari, extremely upset and having been threatened, kept quiet in silent vengeance. He wanted her to be quiet, she would be quiet.
The entire time, Zhao had been pacing in front of them, like a parent scolding a child, "So a twelve-year-old boy bested you and your firebenders. You're more pathetic than I thought."
"That was insulting," the girl thought.
The prince took it personally, "I underestimated him once, but it will not happen again!"
"No, it will not." The commander stopped in front of the prince, "Because you won't have a second chance."
"Commander Zhao, I've been hunting the Avatar for two years and I-"
"And you failed! Capturing the Avatar is too important to leave in a teenager's hands. He's mine now."
The girl was visibly seething. Maybe she was not the one with the challenge of capturing the key to ending the hundred year war, but he had no right. Creep of high power or not, he had no right to insult or take the task away from the prince. He had no right to even be insulting the royalty of his beloved nation.
Zuko attempted to jump at the man. Thankfully, two guards caught him and held him in place.
"Keep them here," Zhao commanded.
Enraged, the teenage boy kicked the table in front of Iroh, breaking it in two, sending the objects that were on it flying through the room.
Iroh, almost in amusement, calmly said, "More tea, please."
The girl sat quietly. She was angry. She was also afraid. Zuko's anger was getting worse. Zhao was keeping them there. That creep had the nerve to flirt with her, then threaten her. She was beginning to dread the end result. While Zhao was not there, she was perfectly fine with hiding her face from those in the room. Her nerves were getting to her.
She felt a hand on her shoulder, "Hikari..."
She shook her head, "I just need to breath. I just need some air, Iroh."
His hand began to rub her back. He was familiar with her anxiety. She had many bouts of anxiety and panic attacks for the first month and a half. It helped her to work on breathing exercises. She even learned to meditate to help. In their current predicament, she was too stubborn to do anything about it, in fear of the man in charge discovering her weakness. The guards would likely relate it to him at a later date.
The moment she hear footsteps approaching, she put on her brave face and looked to the opposite wall, making no sound.
"My search party is ready. Once I'm out to sea, my guards will escort you back to your ship and you'll be free to go," the commander stated.
"Why? Are you worried I'm going to try and stop you," Zuko asked angrily.
Zhao laughed, "You? Stop me? Impossible."
"Don't underestimate me, Zhao!" The prince got to his feet, "I will capture the Avatar before you!"
Iroh stood to stop him, "Prince Zuko, that's enough."
"You can't compete with me!" Zhao tried to stand over him for intimidation, "I have hundreds of war ships under my command and you? You're just a banished prince. No home, no allies. Your own father doesn't even want you."
"You're wrong!" The prince was accepting the challenge, "Once I deliver the Avatar to my father he will welcome me home with honor, and restore my rightful place on the throne!"
"If your father really wanted you home, he would have let you return by now, Avatar or no Avatar. But in his eyes you are a failure and a disgrace to the Fire Nation.
"That's not true."
"You have the scar to prove it."
Her friend attempted to hit the Commander. Sadly, he missed. The two glared each other down.
"Maybe you'd like one to match," Zuko argued.
"Is that a challenge?"
"An Agni Kai. At sunset."
And Agni Kai was the thing that got her walking headache his scar in the first place. He was not thinking this through. She was well aware that sometimes, these fights were to the death. Commander Creep was the first candidate in her head to do such a thing. He would probably brag about it to the Fire Lord too.
"Hikari."
She realized her saviors were waiting for her. She nodded and followed them. She did not want to be left alone while that man could get his hands on her. She was scared of him. He made her wary, feel uncomfortable and extremely unsafe.
She was so deep into her thoughts that she had not even realized it was sunset. They were at the place of the fight. Embarrassingly enough, she remembered nothing of what had happened within the last few hours before this moment. The question was, did she even want to remember?
"Remember your firebending basics, Prince Zuko," Iroh reminded him, "They are your greatest weapons."
"I refuse to let him win," Zuko replied.
He looked at her for a brief second before turning to face his adversary. His cape dropped from his shoulders.
"Good luck," Hikari thought.
Zhao on the other side of the arena repeated the prince's actions, "This will be over quickly."
A gong was rung, signaling the start of the fight. Both met in the middle of the arena, taking up firebending stances. To her annoyance, Zuko started the fight.
"Why would he do that," Hikari asked. "He's giving Zhao the chance to see into his fighting style. It's a waste of energy and a disadvantage."
"It's Zuko's way of showing he is not afraid. It's his wall to show he is skillful and powerful." They both watched as the commander merely blocked the attacks or redirected them as Iroh continued, "After all of the insults Zhao has thrown at Zuko, his rage is burning brightly and he wants to take it out on the man who ignited those same flames."
There was a brief pause in fighting. Even from where they stood, they could see the prince's chest rise and fall quickly. He was out of breath and tired.
"Basics, Zuko! Break his root," Iroh encouraged.
The fight seemed to drag on. Her friend was getting thrown back, bit by bit because of the force of his opponent's flames. Zhao continued to step forward, covering more and more ground. The relentless fire was ceased when the enemy used both hands to send out a rush of flames. The other was hurled on impact, skidding over the rough terrain. His opponent quickly jumped over and was ready to end the fight.
Just when it seemed to be that all was over, the prince knocked the older's feet out from under him. Suddenly, the tides had changed. With the teenager on his feet, now undeniably confident, he stepped forward sliding fire at the commander's feet, forcing him away. The man was caught off balance and stumbled backward. The move was repeated, continuously throwing the other away. Zuko directed a powerful kick at his adversary, following by one more to knock Zhao on his back.
The victor stood over the defeated, ready to give the final blow.
From the ground, the commander shouted, "Do it!"
Hikari covered her face and looked away. She heard the blast hit something, but there was no screaming. In fact, when she uncovered her eyes, she saw the blackened spot on the ground. She put her hand over her pounding heart and sighed in relief.
"That's it," Zhao demanded. "Your father raised a coward."
"Next time you get in my way, I promise, I won't hold back," Zuko swore to him.
He turned his back to the older man. Said man was getting up from the ground. Iroh calmly walked forward. She was not sure entirely how it happened, but the commander attempted to attack his triumphant opponent. Iroh caught the attack and sent the man sliding across the arena. Hikari ran forward and assisted in keeping her friend from doing more damage.
"No, Prince Zuko. Do not taint your victory." The retired general addressed the man in a condescending tone, "So this is how the great Commander Zhao acts in defeat? Disgraceful. Even in exile, my nephew is more honorable than you. Thanks again for the tea. It was delicious."
The brunette stuck her tongue out at her fallen before trailing just behind the prince. She really hoped that this would not happen ever again.
"Did you really mean that, Uncle," Zuko asked.
"Of course. I told you ginseng tea is my favorite," Iroh replied.
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A/N: HHHHHEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYY
So for those of you wondering why I'm updating this story and not Song on Wings (if your a reader of that) it's because Book 1 has been pre-written and completed. I have other stories with pre-written chapters as well. As much as I would love to keep up with Song on Wings, I'm afraid to get invested with it right now.
Anyway, this chapter is just a small glimpse into Hikari and Zuko's relationship along with our main character's outlook on Zhao. And let's be honest, they guy is the biggest jerk and an absolute stalker. I mean, who really liked Zhao?
One last thing, there's actually a bonus part to this chapter. It's absolutely cannon to my story and it will be coming up in a side series I have (as of the moment) named The Lost Tales of Hikari. There are a couple of chapters in it, but I want to add more to it before it get's published, so just be aware and keep an eye out.
Till next time guy!
Tootles~
-Muse