Outcast

Chapter 4: The Warriors of Kyoshi

Yet another day on the fire nation ship with the hot head prince who is obsessed with finding Aang, and his tea drinking uncle who is actually the one person keeping me from jumping off this ship. Iroh tends to bring me tea throughout the day and we have short conversations. He tells me stories of his days as a general and how he has seen the world. He also tells me funny Zuko stories from when he was a little kid, and how much he has changed throughout the years. He shared with me that he is very concerned for him. Those stories and conversations make me want to believe that Zuko isn't all bad like the rest of the fire nation. That he is just in a rough stage in his life. But despite that, it doesn't change the fact that I need to get back to my friends.

As time went by, I was sitting on my bed trying to meditate when I heard Zuko yell with anger from across the hall. I got up and poked my head out and saw Iroh talking with Zuko in his room just a few doors down.

"Give me the map!" Zuko says. I then walked down and poked my head in the room without them noticing I was there. Zuko was looking at the map with an angry expression as always.

"There have been multiple sightings of the Avatar, but he is impossible to track down." Iroh says and he fans himself.

"How am I going to find him, Uncle? He is clearly a master of evasive maneuvering." I then let out a laugh and their heads both looked in my direction. I quickly put my hand over my mouth and opened the door all the way. I let out a small cough and put my hands behind my back.

"I uh, was just... passing by..." I then gave a big smile and started shuffling backwards but Zuko walked over and grabbed my arm and pulled me back into the room. "Hey! Let go of me!" He let me go and gave me the map that he was looking at.

"Explain to me what his thinking process is with his movements." He demanded and hovered over my shoulder waiting for me to magically tell him the answer to his problem.

"How am I supposed to know?" I say as I turn my head to look at him.

"You laughed when I said that he was a master at maneuvering. Why?" I laughed a little again and his expression got more impatient. "What is so funny?"

"Just the fact that you really think a 12 year old boy is strategically maneuvering through the ocean." He gave me a confused look. "Ok, look, I will help you track down Aang but only because I want to get off this ship and join my friends again." his facial expression changed to a more less angry one. "From the short amount of time I spent with Aang. He was unpredictable and just wanted to do things you expect a 12 year old boy to do. So, my best guess on what Aang is doing is making pit stops to have some fun or he simply has no idea where he is going." Zuko and Iroh simply looked at me and then at each other.

"No, that can't be it. He is moving all over the map as if he is trying to lose my trail."

"Or that he is lost." He just stared at the map and then took it out of my hands. "Well, I did what you asked so now I am going to go do something productive." I began walking out the door when Iroh stopped me.

"You know, Why don't I teach you a few firebending moves?" I quickly turned my head and my face lit up.

"Wait, really?"

"What!" Zuko says angrily. "But uncle, she is with the Avatar."

"Yes, I know, Prince Zuko. But every firebender should know how to wield their abilities properly. We don't want her accidentally hurting someone or even herself." Zuko just grunts and crosses his arms. "You know, you could use another lesson too. Why don't you join us."

"I'll pass. I don't want to give our enemy an advantage." he then walks out the door. "I'm going to get some food." And with that, he is gone. I looked at Iroh and gave him a big smile.

"Now come along, we shall practice on the deck." You then follow Iroh to the deck and he starts teaching you the history behind firebending and how they originated from dragons. He then talked about how dangerous firebending can be and how to properly control it. We went through breathing exercises and started with controlling small amounts of flames in the palm of my hand. He then had me practice doing small fire attacks using my hands and feet. It was difficult for me to create powerful flames, but Iroh says that over time and practice, they will grow bigger and stronger and that is when I will need the most control. As we were in the middle of our lesson, We both felt the ship change direction sharply causing us to stumble. Once we gained our balance, Zuko rushed outside holding a plate of fish in his hand which I thought was odd.