More Than Friends // zukka

The Giant Serpent

The next morning crept up way too fast for Zuko's taste. It felt like he had only been asleep for a few minutes when the sound of heavy rain on the windows of his bedroom woke him up. Soft grey light fell through the small windows and gave the room a gloomy atmosphere that made Zuko want to stay in bed for the rest of the day.

But a knock on the door extinguished any hope that the Water Tribe boy was still asleep and wouldn't notice Zuko still being in bed.

"You up, sleepyhead?" Sokka inquired through the closed door.

"No!" Zuko sighed.

"Come on, we have a tight schedule. We need to arrive in Hiroga before sundown!"

"Ugh, I hate this weather. Can't we go tomorrow?" Zuko pleaded, burying his head.

Sokka opened the door and leaned on the doorframe, shaking his head. A mischievous smile crept onto his face, and he raised an eyebrow at the Fire Lord. Although Zuko really didn't want to leave the warm and cosy bed sheets behind, he was glad that Sokka had a strong sense of determination and organisation.

"We cannot. Do you want to find your mother or not?" the blue-eyed teen asked.

"I do, but look at this weather. How are we supposed to get anywhere?"

"Hey, have you been hunting down the Avatar for more than two years or what? You know how this works!" Sokka reminded him, but Zuko flinched.

"I'd forgotten how much I hated having to travel around, searching for someone who doesn't want to be found..." he uttered.

"Yeah, but this time you'll have me and my trusty boomerang to help!" Sokka said.

After Sokka had left him to get ready, Zuko dragged himself out of bed and put on some plain clothes. He figured he'd be drawing less attention to himself dressing like a normal citizen rather than wearing his Fire Lord robes. The only thing left to do before they would start their journey to Hiroga was to have breakfast and pack up their belongings. By the time Zuko entered the living room, Sokka had already prepared breakfast and his bags stood ready by the door.

"Ah, how nice of you to grace me with your presence, your highness!" he joked.

"Careful, boomerang boy or I might send you back to the south pole," Zuko said, glaring at Sokka, "and you'd have to admit that you weren't fit to help me, after all!"

"You wouldn't last a day without me," Sokka replied, "and now eat!"

Even though Zuko would never admit it to Sokka, he knew the Water Tribe warrior was right. While Zuko was skilled in finding the right people to help look for someone, he had a poor sense of timing and planning. As his uncle had told him many times, he never really thought things through to the end.

After breakfast, they loaded their bags onto a small carriage dragged by an ostrich horse and headed towards the eastern gate of the mountain city. The rain had momentarily stopped, but the sky still looked dark and another thunderstorm was looming in the black clouds.

Once they had left the safety of Omashu, Zuko felt a cold breeze creep up his shirt and he shivered. Initially, he had thought that the woods would keep the wind away but the cold air found its way through the branches and tree crowns just to bother Zuko personally. And he was about to give way to his anger when he heard a suppressed scream up ahead.

"Did you hear that?" Sokka asked, turning around and squinting ahead.

"I'm not deaf. Sounds like someone's in trouble. We should probably have a look..."

"No, we don't have time for distractions. It looks like the thunderstorm is going to break down on us soon and we don't want to be caught off guard!" Sokka interjected.