Blazing Crystal

Flowing Friendship

Sixty-five days. I'd been with Zuko and his uncle for sixty-five days. Placing the ink-pen back in its holder, I saw Zuko pacing back and forth across the room. He'd been restless for the last three days, and I constantly questioned him about his sanity. He told me he was anxious to capture the Avatar before Zhao. It seemed that Zhao was determined to capture Aang and take away Zuko's chance of going home.

After a few more paces around the room, I let out a heavy breath. Standing from the table, I rolled up the paper to put it back beside my cot. As I headed across the room, I stopped to let Zuko pass, and then continued toward my cot.

Placing the scroll back beside my pillow, I turned to glance at the anxious prince once more. He looked like he needed a distraction. How could I distract him?

Then the thought hit me.

"Hey Zuko... Want to spar?"

Zuko froze in his step, and his eyes darted over to me with question. "Spar... with you?"

Immediately I felt embarrassed. Quickly I turned away and crossed my arms. "Never mind. That was a stupid suggestion. Sorry I brought it up."

There was silence for a moment. Then Zuko spoke again. "Training with you could be dangerous. My fire could hurt you."

Turning back to him, I smiled weakly. "I'm not that weak Zuko. I could take you."

He grimaced at the memory of our last fight. Then he nodded in agreement. "Fine. We'll spar for a little bit. It would be nice to train against another element for once in my life." He stepped over to me so he was towering my frame. "I have a few conditions though. You can only use the water I provide for you on deck. Taking water from the sea is unfair. Also, if you feel at any time I might hurt you, tell me so we can stop immediately."

I rolled my eyes. "You won't hurt me."

"Fire can be unpredictable, Crystal. One wrong move and I could hurt you by mistake."

I spoke with confidence. "I'll be fine."

About an hour later Zuko and I were standing on deck prepared to spar. We didn't bother to tell Iroh about our plans, deciding he would probably be against it and stop us. Before I left the room, Zuko had tossed my water tribe clothing at me. They'd been washed up some, but were tattered and very loose. Leaving the coat off, I pulled on my water tribe shirt and trousers. I could tell I'd lost weight as soon as I put them on, and I had to tie the trousers with a small rope for a belt. Pulling on my boots afterward, I realized it had been a very long time since I'd been in my own nations clothing. Terrifyingly, the clothes I wore felt strange to me after weeks of Fire Nation attire. Tying my hair up with ribbon, I tried not to think about it too much.

"We'll spar for a little bit. Don't get too tired. Let me know when you've had enough."

Zuko was irritating me. I wasn't a fragile little girl. I could fight him no problem. Sure, this was my first spar ever, but I was confident I could hold my ground. He would be the one to surrender.

Some pots had been filled with water and placed on deck for me to use. A few of the crewmen I held conversations with stood anxiously to the side, not liking what was about to transpire. Lieutenant Jee was against it from the start when he heard our plans, but Zuko's word was the final word. Jee ended up standing by the rest of the crew, watching the scene with uncertainty.

"Whenever you're ready," Zuko encouraged. He backed his foot and got into a solid stance ready to fight.

Standing in my own stance, I smiled with thrill. I'd never gotten the chance to train with someone else before. This would be so much fun!