True Balance . Prince Zuko

XVIII

water
eighteen
XVIII

"Pardon ma'am? Are you ok?"

"I need you to hide me." Lelo told her with wide eyes, searching the crowds momentarily before pretending to look at the display, "Please."

The woman stared at her in shock, "Are you running from someone?"

"Just please—" Lelo began, desperation slowly filling her up until a tiny hand reaches for the woman's skirt. A beautiful little girl looks up at her mother in question, a carved toy of an elephant in her hand. The sight of barely even a child, made her heart stop and the memory of her blistered palm trying to protect the man Prince Zuko had been trying to harm made her freeze.

"No, I'm sorry." She began to smile, but it was right and forced. The woman looks from her child to the girl in front of her in confusion, "I'm just playing a game with my friend. Please forgive me, if I worried you."

The woman stared at her like she was crazy, Lelo's heart beating erratically. She reaches out a hand to grab her when Lelo's wrist is forced away. Her face turning to me, Prince Zuko. His eyes glare down at her, his hand holding her wrist tightly. Lelo can feel the game piece running hard against her veins.

"Please," she began loudly forcing a laugh, her eyes watching the crowds that slowly glanced their way, "You found me! Time for you to hide."

Her eyes glance at the child gripping onto her mother's dress. The daughter's eyes are wide and unsure as her mother tries to understand the situation. Zuko glares at her before following her glance, the child stares at him and when he looks back at Lelo, he can see the pleading in her eyes.

"I-" Zuko struggled to speak, the girl's eyes pierce at him but when he begins to grow self-conscious he realises she isn't staring at his scar. Before he can control the words, "I thought I lost you."

Lelo caught the grinding of his teeth but using the adrenaline, she tried to laugh towards the woman, "Of course not. I'm just very good at hiding."

The daughter grins up at the two, her smile is illuminating and Lelo feels her body relax. Her memory flashing back of Jee. She would have been around his age. Her innocence made her heartbeat slow into defeat. Not believing the guts inside her that flared with fluttering creatures, Lelo softly takes Zuko's hand inside hers. His own hand was hard and difficult to grab but once he realised what she was doing, he tried to follow her lead. Their hands falling into one another's.

"We take hide and seek very seriously, despite our age." Lelo tells them, the woman's eyes glance between then unsurely, "We're actors on our island. Star-crossed Lovers."

The woman's face relaxed but Lelo could see the reservation behind her eyes, the daughter jumps suddenly her hands trying to pull herself onto the table, "You're actors!?"

Lelo looked at Zuko with pleading, although to the woman it looked like a command, "Y-yes. In a play. We are travelling in the offseason but we like to practice in the meantime."

The woman relaxed more at Zuko's explanation, her body visibly relaxing at the uniform he wore, "Well, in that case, have something for your play if it suits you."

"Yes! Yes! This one! This one!" Shouts the little girl, her hands clumsily grabbing through the display to grasp a necklace. Her mother is quick to stop her before she destroyed the entire stall. The girl jumps giddily as her mother looks at the one her daughter as chosen.