Spark [Prince Zuko - Book One]

❃Chapter Fourteen❃

Finding Iroh hadn't been that difficult until they realized that he had been kidnapped by Earth Kingdom soldiers. It was up to Asake and Zuko to find him, and, surprisingly, they worked well together. He hadn't been rude to her at all while they were tracking Iroh down; he actually had been a little nice to her. But once they found Iroh, his mood turned sour again, and he treated her with cold indifference, like she was nothing to him. Which she was, but it still didn't feel right for him to treat her like that. A tiny sliver of her heart thought that there was something between the two of them. Her heart thought wrong.

The days after finding Iroh were long and boring. Asake stayed in her room most days since Prince Zuko was still upset with her. She didn't really mind anymore; she was tired of trying to prove herself to Zuko. Daza avoided her at all costs. Iroh stopped by every evening to tell her about their journey of finding the Avatar. Not that she cared anymore.

The Avatar was her ticket home, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to go back to the Fire Nation anymore. The Fire Nation was her home; she had grown up there. However, the people there probably hated her, especially her father. She didn't think she could ever see him again, she was still so upset with him. She wasn't sure what Lady Taiky would believe, but she doubted it was anything good. A battle raged inside Asake, and she wasn't sure which side to lean toward. There were both good and bad sides to both, and it was almost impossible to choose.

Asake sighed, shaking her head. She shouldn't be thinking about that again. She knew which side she should be on: Prince Zuko's. He was her prince, and she worked for him. There should have been no question whether or not she should be with him. There shouldn't have been any doubt in her mind about him, but there was. She hated that.

She leaned back on her bed, closing her eyes. Asake tried to settle her mind because she didn't want to think about anything anymore. The gentle waves underneath her didn't help, though. Today, unfortunately, her seasickness came back with a terrible vengeance. Asake turned on her side and took deep breaths, feeling frustrated. Why couldn't she handle the sea? It wasn't like she absolutely hated it. She actually enjoyed being out on the open sea; it was her stomach that couldn't handle it at all.

Soon, the wave of nausea dissipated, leaving behind a vile taste in her mouth. Asake grimaced and sat up, brushing her dark hair out of her face. A bad feeling settled in Asake's stomach, which prompted her to get ready. She knew that Zuko would be angry with her if she didn't get up soon; he would probably tell her that she had wasted the day away in her room. Even if she got up early, he would still be angry with her; he would snap at her, asking her why she was up so early. It seemed like she could do nothing right around him.

She slipped off her silk nightgown and pulled on her regular clothes, which consisted of tan leggings, a red dress that stopped at her knees, and black boots that went up to the middle of her shins. That was the only outfit she hadn't worn yet; the rest of her clothes were currently getting washed, so she was stuck with her more dressier outfit. She probably didn't need the armor, so she didn't put them on. However, she did wrap the sheath of her sword around her waist. She would never leave her room without it. As long as it was with her, she knew she would be safe.

A soft knock echoed around her room, and Asake sighed. How did she know something was going to happen? She turned toward the door and grabbed the cool knob. Before she opened the door, she took a deep breath and hoped that whoever was out there was in a good mood. She didn't want to face another angry person right now. The door swung open, and Daza stood there, as stoic as ever.

"What do you want, Daza?"

"General Iroh sent me to retrieve you," he said. "He said he wanted to talk to you."

"About?"

"He didn't say."

Asake nodded, walking out into the hallway. She shut the metal door behind her and followed Daza to the deck of the ship. As she scanned the area in front of her, she was met with the sight of hundreds – no, thousands – of ships behind them. Her breath got caught in her throat as she realized that they were heading away from them. She turned around and spotted Iroh, who was standing near the railing. She walked over to him.