Burn Me *Prince Zuko Fanfiction*

Confessions and Deals

The next morning, I awoke to an empty room and loud blasts sounding from outside. I sprinted out of bed and down the hall. Passing Katara in the kitchen, I bolted outside to see Aang and Zuko training. I breathed a sigh of relief, for a second, I thought we were under attack.

"Now, let me hear you roar like a tiger-dillo!" Zuko ordered a tired-looking Aang.

Aang stretched his arms out and released a pathetic sounding roar with a weak stream of fire coming out of his palms and mouth. The boy turned to Zuko with a sheepish smile on his face at his weak attempt.

"That sounded pathetic!" Zuko lashed out. "I said roar!"

Aang steadied himself on his feet and took a deep breath and roared. Fire bent out of his hands and mouth. The heat drifted over to me, and I stared at the boy, in awe of his power. Momo jumped down and scurried behind me, seeking refuge behind my legs. Zuko nodded his head in approval at the boy. Then, his eyes drifted over to me, a sad smile crossed his face.

"Who wants a nice, cool glass of watermelon juice?" Katara called out as she held up two watermelons with straws.

"Ooo. Ooo, me, me, me, me!" Aang cried greedily as he dashed toward the house.

"Hey," Zuko yelled and gripped the back of Aang's robes. "Your lesson's not over yet" Aang struggled to free himself from Zuko's grip. "Get back here."

Aang was pulled up and dragged away, looking rather disappointed. Suki turned her head to the boys.

"Come on, Zuko," she called out as she took a sip of her juice. "Just take a break. What's the big deal?"

"Fine," Zuko huffed and released Aang. The boy dashed off leaving a trail of dust behind him. "If you want to lounge around like a bunch of snail-sloths all day, then go ahead!"

The group looked at Zuko's retreating frame, then back to me. I scanned their faces, wondering why they were all staring at me.

"Aren't you gonna check on him?" Katara asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Oh piss off!" I yelled as walked past Sokka and snatched his watermelon from his hand and took a sip. "Besides, I think it's good to give him space."

"Well, maybe Zuko's right," Sokka muttered. "Sitting around the house has made us pretty lazy. But I know," he stood from his spot, "just the thing to change that. Beach party!"

Sokka stripped into brown shorts and dashed off toward the open waters. Shaking my head, I looked back at the spot where Zuko left. Turning away, I followed after my brother. Katara dashed by me. As she reached the water, she leapt offshore and waterbent a surfboard made of ice. Her boy moved around the waves gracefully.

The sand trickled in between my toes as I stepped on the shore. Following my sister's lead, I took a running start at the water and created a board of my own. Bending through the waves, I dashed after Katara. Laughing as I passed her. The two of us began to race. We bobbed and weaved through the waves. The water trickling along my skin. A large wave came my way and I curved my body into it as it crashed around me.

Ducking under the wave, I raced toward the closing and made it out just as it crashed to the shore. I darted back toward another wave and dove straight in, allowing the ocean to swallow my form. I looked around as the waves continued to lap above before forcing my body to the surface. Whipping my head around as my hair drifted around me, I saw Katara surf back to the shore. Pulling the water around me in a stream, I made my way back to the sand.

Water dripped from my frame as I ran over to a frantic looking Sokka. He was trying to fix his sand sculpture that had been scorched.

"Zuko's gone crazy!" He cried picking up the sand. "I made a sand sculpture of Suki and he destroyed it! ... oh and he's attacking Aang."