Under the Cherry Blossom ↠ Zuko x OC ✔️

02 | The Southern Water Tribe

Peanut snuggles into Arlington's side, causing her to stir in her deep sleep. She suddenly awakes from her slumber.

Arlington sits up and holds Peanut close to her chest. Tears silently fall from her eyes. 'I'm on a ship with a tempered teenager, who's threatening to kill me, an old chubby General from the nation that started a 100 year war, and I have no way of getting home.' Peanut notices Arlington's distress and snuggles deeper into her embrace, hoping it would cheer her up.

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On the deck, Zuko looks on the horizon. An enormous beam of light shoots straight into the sky.

"Finally!" Zuko exclaims and turns towards Iroh. "Uncle, do you realize what this means?!"
The General stays focused on his card game, while calmly replying, "I won't get to finish my game?"
Zuko whips his head around, so he's facing the light. "It means my search is about to come to an end."

Iroh sighs uninterestedly and places his tile on the table.
Zuko points at the beam of light. "That light came from an incredibly powerful source! It has to be him!"
"Or it's just the celestial lights. We've been down this road before, Prince Zuko. I don't want you to get too excited over nothing. Please, sit. Why don't you enjoy a cup of calming Jasmine tea?" A relaxed Iroh says.

Zuko furiously face Iroh. "I don't need any calming tea! I need to capture the Avatar! Helmsman, head a course for the light!" He roars.

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Arlington puts on the potato sacks she calls clothes and works up the guts to leave her room.

She pokes her head out her door, making sure the Royal Pain isn't near. She releases a sigh of relief and begins to walk down the hall. Arlington's golden green eyes scan the hallway.

Metal bolts hold the walls together and metal hinges are on the doors. On the ceiling there are small lamps with metal cages around them.

At the end of the corridor, Arlington pulls open a door. The sun stuns her for a moment, but she quickly recovers and walks outside.

Zuko practices his firebending, shirtless, with two other soldiers. A blush creeps onto Arlington's cheeks as she watches from the shadows.

Iroh observes, clearly not happy with his nephew's performance. "Again." He commands.

Zuko opens the fight by spreading his arms in the direction of the two firebenders, showering them with flames. His adversaries block Zuko's attack with ease.

Zuko shifts his weight to duck under a retaliation blast of the firebender to his left. The firebender to his right jumps forward to aim a blast at Zuko's feet. The Prince propels himself out of the way. He twists around in mid-air and directs another fire blast with his hand to the firebender that retaliated first, and another with his foot to the firebender that aimed for his feet. Both soldiers jump out of the way of Zuko's flames.

Zuko lands and stretches his fists out toward his adversaries, ready to face another attack. Arlington's eyes watch intensely. 'Woah. That's impressive.'

Iroh sighs. "No! Power in firebending comes from the breath." He moves his both hand up in front of him to emphasize the breathing motion. "Not the muscles. The breath becomes energy in the body. The energy extends past your limbs and becomes fire! Get it right this time."