When Worlds Collide: Book Three, Fire

Chapter Three

/////Sam's POV\\\\\

As soon as we passed through the door of the palace, many servants surrounded us. They offered food and drink, which Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai accepted, but I just shook my head. 

I slipped away from the commotion, and started to make my way to my room. The teachers had crammed symbols and words into my head all day, and I felt like a nap. Zuko could wait, right? 

I clumsily opened the door, and Zuko was suddenly there, leaning against the wall. 

"Did you forget something?" he asked, and I jumped. 

I sighed, and shook my head. "No," I admitted, and opened the door wider. I stepped in first, with Zuko close behind me. "What did you want to talk about?" I asked, plopping down on the bed. 

He shut the door before answering, and when he turned to me, his expression was grave. "Can you keep a secret?" he asked, and I rolled my eyes. 

I've been keeping secrets since arrived in this world. "Of course I can." 

He glanced nervously back at the door, and in a hushed tone said, "The Avatar's alive." 

I rolled my eyes, and rolled on to my stomach, staring at him. "I know. I've been saying this all along." I rested my chin in my hands, and tilted my head. "What made you freak out about this all of a sudden?" 

He sighed, and shook his head. He muttered something to himself, but I couldn't understand. "Sam, I need you to tell me where he is." 

I narrowed my eyes, looking him up and down. "No." 

He glared a little, and sat down at the edge of the bed. "Please, Sam," he tried. "This is important." 

"I don't even know where they are," I snapped. "I'm kind of cut off from them, remember?" 

"Azula knows about the day of the eclipse," Zuko said softly, and I froze. 

"What are you talking about?" I asked, playing dumb. I averted my eyes from him, and picked at a loose thread on the bed quilt. 

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," he said. I felt the bed shift, and then he was lying next to me, staring up at the ceiling. 

"How?" I whispered. "How did she find out?" 

"When she was disguised as a Kyoshi Warrior," he stated. 

I put my head in my hands, and sighed. "I have to do something. Maybe I can send them a letter or something. I could easily do something like that, right? I could-" 

"Sam," Zuko interrupted, and I took in a shaky breath. 

"All that preparation," I whispered. "Wasted. We went through so much in Ba Sing Se, all in vain." 

He stayed silent, but I felt his eyes on me. 

"Can you do me a favor?" I asked, laying my head down, and staring at him. 

"As long as you stop ignoring me," he chuckled, and I smiled slightly. 

"Distract me. Please." I placed my arm underneath my head, and raised my feet into the air. "Just... help me forget what's happening." 

He was quiet for a bit, which made me nervous for some reason. His eyes held a lot a questions, and I could tell that he was holding something back. 

"What?" I raised an eyebrow. "Do I have something on my face?" 

He chuckled and shook his head. "How was school today?" he asked, smirking. 

I glared, and rolled my eyes. "That's what you decide to ask me? You sound like my parents." I sighed, deciding it was a good enough question to take my mind off of the startling revelation. "It was awful. Those stupid teachers think I'm a moron just because I can't read what they put in front of me." 

He laughed at me, so hard that he was even clutching his stomach. 

"It's not funny!" I snapped, pouting. He ignored me, and kept laughing, so I pushed him off the bed. 

By the time he sobered up, I was sprawled across the bed, and refused to move. 

He sat on the floor for a bit, still grinning. "If you need a tutor, I could-" 

"I don't need a tutor, I need to be taken out of that stupid place," I sighed, before rolling over to let him back up on the bed.