𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛

┏━━━━━━━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━━━━━━━┓

The sun beat down on them and the rocky terrain as their ostrich horse moved sluggishly. They had only been travelling for a couple weeks, but they had run out of food quickly and hadn't seen any towns to restock. La'kea had gone hungry before, her body was managing it's fat storage easier and she didn't feel the effects has harshly as she could have.

The same couldn't be said for Zuko, his face had hollowed out and it seemed every few minutes his stomach made a different noise. More than a couple times, it felt like he was about to pitch from the saddle. Dividing their limited water supply was all she could do to keep them afloat.

She gave a small gasp as their ostrich horse suddenly stumbled to the side, the stifling heat had been affecting the poor animal too. The prince jerked on the reins, and kept them upright with a small nudge of his heels. The ostrich squawked at them but continued onward to the bridge that looked like a small breeze would tear it apart. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be any other method of crossing the ravine.

"What do you think," Zuko's breath was warm against the back of her neck. "Should we risk it?"

Leaning forward slightly, she peered down at the full river beneath the bridge, "Even if we do fall, we'd only land in the water and I could get us out." Taking that as confirmation, the prince stirred them on, only for the ostrich-horses foot to fall through the rotting planks. She gripped the ostrich's feathers as it reeled in panic. Gritting his teeth, the prince pulled the reins harshly, steering them off the bridge as the horse panicked.

Zuko's stomach gurgled loudly and he grabbed his abdomen in pain. He abruptly grabbed her arm, "Do you smell that?" As soon as he mentioned it, the smell of cooking meat hit her, her mouth watered. The prince pulled the reins taunt, and they looked towards the source of the smell, just around a rock ledge sat a man stoking a fire. On the fire roasted a hefty slab of meat. Surely he doesn't need all of that, she thought as Zuko grasped the hilt of his dual swords.

She suddenly grabbed his arm, stopping him from pulling out the blades. "What?" He hissed, and La'kea pointed to the tree the man walked over to, where a very pregnant woman rested. The man rubbed her round belly affectionately, and the woman said something that made him laugh. Gritting her teeth, the islander nudged the ostrich horse forward with her heels. 

La'kea, half turned in her seat, looked up at him with gratefulness and warmth. Silently thanking him. Zuko just gently shook his head, lips pinched in a tight line as he steered them forward. 

They continued their trek across the dirt road, trudging forward relentlessly when Zuko suddenly slumped against her. The waterbender stiffened, twisting in place just in time to watch the prince slip sideways. With a yelp, she grabbed fistfuls of his shirt, only to succeed in dragging herself down with him.

Landing with a thump on top of the still unconscious prince, she rolled off him onto her back with a grunt. To make the situation easier, the ostrich horse shrieked in panic, preparing itself to bolt out of fright. But the creature only made it two steps before La'kea flung her hand out, staring murderously. It squawked as it was frozen mid step, it's own blood holding it in place.

Standing up, she grabbed the ostrich-horse's reins and tied it off to a nearby tree. Once she was sure it wouldn't run off without her intervention, the islander ran back over to the prince's side. His wide brimmed hat had fallen off, and his face was turned to the side with his eyes closed.

Trying to quell her panic, she turned his face back up, looking for movement behind his eyelids, at the moment he was still breathing, chest rising and falling. Taking slow breaths, the waterbender calmed herself down and brought two stiff fingers to either side of his temple. Inhaling and exhaling slowly, she closed her eyes, blocking out the miserable heat and the loud impatient squawking of the ostrich. Feeling the ebb and flow of all the blood in his body, and very gently with as little pain as she possibly could, the islander tugged.

The prince gasped sharply, eyes flying open to see her leaning directly over him closely to his face. La'kea slowly pried open her eyes, surprised to see it had worked, she had never used her bending over a person with the tranquility method before. He sat up, holding his head as he reached for his discarded hat, "What happened?"

"You passed out," She explained simply, uncorking her canteen from her belt and passing it to him. "Here, you need water."

Zuko stared up at her, "But this is yours."

The corner of her mouth twitched upwards, "Acute observation, but I'll manage, and you need it more than me." Sighing hesitantly, the prince reached for it, hand brushing against hers as he accepted it.

They continued on the road for another few hours without incident, before finally arriving at a decrepit and rundown Earth Kingdom town. Instead of the traditional Earth green, most of the huts and houses were a dusty brown color. The poor ostrich horse wobbled with every step, but they drove it all the way to a merchant stand. Passing a group of Earth Kingdom soldiers who's eyes followed them down the road.

Slipping off the horse, Zuko waited for a moment to help her down from the saddle, he didn't like how easily his hands fit around her shrinking waist. The islander stretched her legs with a groan, happy to be on her feet after hours of travelling. "Do you think we could rest here for the night?"

He frowned, looking around the town, but hesitated when she placed a hand on his arm, "Maybe."

"Could I get some water," The prince rasped to the merchant, holding out two of their last coins, "A bag of feed, and something hot to eat?"

The man shook his head behind the stall, sounding apologetic, "Not enough here for a hot meal. I can get you two bags of feed." The back of La'keas neck tingled and she looked around to see the soldiers staring at them, they turned back quickly.

A pair of childish giggles distracted her, and she leaned around Zuko to see two young boys launch an egg directly at the soldiers. Raising her eyes to the sky, she shrugged, not her problem. At the sound of the soldiers angry cry, the boys made a run for it, disappearing around the corner.

Even hearing their footsteps as they rose to their feet, La'kea and Zuko didn't turn away from the stall.

"Hey," One of them demanded roughly. "You throwing eggs at us, stranger?"

She brushed against the prince lightly to give him support as he answered curtly, "No."

"You see who did throw it?"

Zuko finally turned slightly to face them, a hand on the hilt of his sword, "No." By the spirits, she wished she had a weapon, even a measly little dagger.

"That your favorite word, no?" One of the men demanded.

The man in the front of the group was eyeing La'kea, who glared right back. "Egg had to come from somewhere."

The prince turned back to the stall. "Maybe a chicken flew over," He stated flatly, and she swiveled around to hide her snicker. The merchant returned from the back of his shop with the bags of feed, but the captain of the soldiers stepped forward before they could even reach for it.

"Thanks for your contribution," He sneered, passing the bags behind him. "The army appreciates your support. You better leave town. Penalty for staying's a lot steeper than you can afford, stranger." His eyes raked up and down La'kea, "Trust me." She resisted bending his tongue from his mouth, even as she felt like her bones were shriveling in disgust.

Zuko's eyes narrowed as he watched the soldiers walk away. "Those soldiers are supposed to protect us from the Fire Nation," The merchant explained unhappily.

"Lot of good they're doing," She scowled.

The man nodded in agreement, "They're just a bunch of thugs."

The prince started marching over to his mount, La'kea not far behind him, but before either of them could mount. The egg tosser from earlier appeared on the opposite side of the ostrich.

"Thanks for not ratting me out," He said appreciatively, grinning at them with a gap-toothed smile.

Zuko didn't deign to respond, simply lifting La'kea up into the saddle and following after her. They didn't get very far before the boy was in front of them again, a hand on the reins. "I'll take you to my house and feed your ostrich-horse for you," He offered, already leading their ostrich-horse away.

La'kea leaned forward, "How far out of town is your house?"

"Oh, it's on the outskirts," The boy explained happily, "No one ever bothers us there."

She turned to look at the prince with a half smile, "Did you hear? No one ever bothers them there." He rolled his eyes, but gave a begrudging nod and let the boy lead the mount.

Looking around the farmyards of the boys family, the prince noted the excessive noise of alarm every animal gave. La'kea stared over the fence curiously, getting distracted enough that Zuko had to walk back and grab her arm to tug her along.

The boy, who's name they learned was Lee, walked besides them carelessly, "No one can ever sneak up on us."

Zuko gave a dry snort, "No kidding." He looked over to where the islander was having a staring contest with a pig-rooster perched on a fence post at her eye level. Giving a mocking laugh when it crowed abruptly, sending her scuttling back behind him.

An older man walked over to them, dressed in a farmers work clothes. "Are you a friend of Lee's?" He asked cautiously.

The boy in question ran back out of the barn before they could explain. "This guy just stood up to the soldiers. By the end, he had them practically running away!" La'kea silently thanked the boys exaggeration retelling of the story to cover for them.

The farmer's wife finally walked over, rubbing her hands with a rag. "Do these people have names?"

Zuko bowed his head, hiding his face underneath his hat, "I'm uh..." La'keas mind immediately wiped itself blank.

"They don't have to say who they are if they don't want to, Sela." The older man saved them graciously, understanding their compromised position. "Anyone who can hold their own against those bully soldiers is welcomed here. Those men should be ashamed to wear Earth Kingdom uniforms."

Sela spoke up quietly, leaning into her husband, "The real soldiers are off fighting in the war. Like Lee's big brother, Sen su." La'keas lungs constricted. "Supper's going to be ready soon. Would you like to stay?"

Feeling Zuko tense beside her, she stepped forward, pasting what she hoped was a warm smile on her face, "That's very kind of you, but we shouldn't intrude."

"Nonsense," The older woman waved her hand, "Gansu could use some help on the barn. Why don't you help work for a while and then we'll eat." She gestured to La'kea, "While they work, could you lend me a hand prepping dinner?"

Something about that didn't sit right with her, but she resisted the urge to frown at the family that was offering them hospitality. Zuko hesitantly agreed, following the older man to the barn while she followed Sela to the house.

They had been working for a while when Sela finally broke the silence La'kea hadn't bothered to break. "So," The kind woman started, "You two must have traveled far."

The islander nodded, her back to the other woman as she focused on keeping the knife between her shaking fingers while dicing. "Yes."

"How long have you two been together?" Sela asked innocently, so casually that La'kea almost didn't catch her actual meaning.

Sputtering, the knife slipped from her rigid fingers, slicing cleanly through the side of her palm. She cursed her stiff hands, thinking that she should be up on the roof helping instead. How ironic that the precise sword master was out there swinging a hammer. While the slave that had swung a pickaxe for three years was in here carefully slicing vegetables. The older woman quickly appeared, wrapping bandages around the deep incision and asking if she was alright.

"I'm fine," She assured the hostess, "We're just- Not together like... that."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Sela apologized, wide-eyed. "You two just seem awfully close?"

Even if the older woman had only known them for a couple hours and was stretching to ease her own discomfort. La'kea liked to think her and the prince were indeed close, she'd go as far to say he was... a close friend. "We've known each other for years," She revealed truthfully, "I'd be inclined to believe we're close."

Meanwhile, Zuko hammered away clumsily away at the nails holding the roof tiles together. Lee observed the stranger from the edge of the roof, "You don't seem like you're from around here."

The prince shook his head, giving a muffled confirmation, he stopped mid swing as the boy spoke up again. "Where are you from then?"

He lowered his hammer, "Far away."

"Ooh," Lee said in understanding as the prince continued his task. "Where are you going?"

"Lee," His father scolded sternly, "Give it a rest. Stop asking the man personal questions, got it?"

Sighing in disappointment, the boy rested his chin on his arm, "Yes... So is that lady your girlfriend?"

Zuko swung the hammer in surprise, slamming down onto his thumb. He gave a muffled groan of pain, shaking his swollen and red thumb as he wished La'kea was there. Until the boy's question processed fully in his mind to his mortification.

"No!" He snapped a little too quickly to be inconspicuous. "She's not my girlfriend." A pair of dark eyes popped into his head and he shook himself, looking back on his work.

Lee was silent for a beat longer, "How'd you get that scar?"

The prince gave a short grunt as the hammer hit his thumb again.