Avatar [ Bear & Sugo ]

Patience. Yeah. Like Shanzi was capable of that. "Mmmh. Fine." She shrugged and turned her back to him, "Follow me." She didn't wait to see if he followed, just started leading through the crowd with confidence, heading towards the tents towards the back where they actually slept. She entered one that was larger than most, able to hold several people.

There were four beds in the tent, though only one was untouched, obviously set for someone that wasn't there. "We knew she would come back eventually. She always does." She commented about the bed, heading towards the personal belongings of the space that was obviously Mizuki's. There were few true belongings, but outfits a plenty. Most were suited for dance, though some more dressy. She dug through the pile until she had tossed half of it aside, pulling out something small - a whistle type of instrument.

"She won't be using this for a long time." Shanzi tossed it to him, smoothing her outfit back out, "I'm going to guess west gate. Blow the whistle twice. Short blows. Toru will come. If you find Toru, you can find Mizuki." She paused, then sighed, "And don't... Hurt him. He has it in his head that he has to save her from everything. Always has had a soft spot for her."
 
Zuko looked at her and took the item. "If he doesn't try anything, he wont get hurt." Zuko said walking out of the tent after she'd finished instructing him and from there he began to fire bend. Without a care for the people around him he used his fire bending to send himself up, in the method that fire benders used their fire to create thrust and send themselves through the air. He moved towards where she'd told him to go and then he looked out over the forest around him. Seeing if he could see anything of interest but unfortunately he could not.

He reached down for the 'flute' or whatever it was that the woman had given him and lifted it up, it was fairly ornate, a nice design and looked like it might have been expensive at one point. But it looked old. Zuko lifted the object up and blew into it twice, as he had been instructed. He looked out with a vigilante eye, looking for movement. Fire burning inside of him, ready to fight if he needed to.
 
The first one to notice Zuko's arrival was Toru, given away not because of the whistle, but because of his rather dramatic landing towards the west gate. The fire send shivers down the man's spine enough that goosebumps raised on his skin, the memories of all the horrors him and his band had suffered playing through his mind. The shrill call of the whistle bleating out twice made Mizuki respond, her skin going pale. "Well, seems that time is up." She let go of Toru, cupping the sides of his face gently. "I'm serious. Don't worry about me. I won't get hurt." It was the best assurance she could give, because she couldn't promise this time. There was no guarantee of how Zuko would react when she returned to him, or how things would go moving forward. He probably wouldn't understand the reasons behind it. After all, even with his family banishing him they had taken care of him. He didn't know the bond that she had with her group.

"Tell Ren that we are going to Omashu. I don't know the plans from there, but if I can leave clues then I will. I plan on going forward with our original plan. Keep your distance from here on out." He gave her a grim smile and pushed her shoulder, mostly because he knew that if she didn't leave now then he wouldn't let her leave at all, but also because he couldn't take the feeling in his chest. Mizuki had always been the one of most action from the three that had grown up together. Toru had been the protector, rescuing the others when they needed help and getting them out of sticky situations if need be. And Shanzi, though as cold as she had become, had once been the heart of the group.

Her heart was heavy as she had to walk away from her oldest friend, her hands wringing through her hair as she thought of what she would say. As she came through the last of the trees and finally saw Zuko, she realized that she had absolutely nothing to say. No smart remarks, no apologies, no excuses. She felt... Sheepish, almost, like an errant child that had been caught doing something they shouldn't have done. But no, she deserved freedom. She deserved her home and her people. The words came before too long, nonchalance on her face. "Whatever happened to a shirshu tracking me?"
 
Zuko looked out over the trees that lay before him, waiting for something, anything. It had been a while now, would something really happen? Should he blow the whistle again? No. the woman, who's name he'd neglected to even get, specified just twice. So he waited a little more and he was rewarded.

Mizuki, black hair, tanned skin, wearing an earth kingdom outfit, just like the boy had said came stumbling out of the bushes playing with her hair. She looked somewhat innocent, like she'd done nothing wrong. Zuko dropped from the wall, which was bout 20 foot high and landed a few meters in front of her moving towards her. She made a snide comment, which Zuko ignored looking behind her, 'don't hurt him' the woman had said. The other guy, whatever his name was, where was he? Was he hiding from Zuko, waiting in ambush to attack? Zuko checked the tree line with his eyes seeing nothing and then grabbed Mizuki's arm pulling her towards him.

He kissed her, rather surprising he would think but he kissed her, kissing her soft lips gently while squeezing her forearm and then parting from the kiss moving his lips near her ear. "Don't make it, so I can't trust you. You stupid idiot." He said in a berating tone. He wanted to trust her, wanted to know that he could leave her somewhere and come back to find her not trying to run away. Had he been too harsh? Is that why she was trying to get away? He wasn't sure. "You scared that seamstress half to death. Man comes in with his partner, wave money around and then the seamstress loses the girl?" He said with a slight chuckle finding it quite amusing.

He was mad at her, however the fact that she'd not run off and got herself raped at the hands of a fire nation grunt made him happier than he was mad. "There is no place in fire nation occupied territory safer than being next to me, please do that again."

He wrapped an arm around her waist and then guided himself back to atop the wall with fire bending. It was an odd sensation the first time you 'flew' with fire bending, there was a warm sensation as the flames Zuko made swirled underneath the two providing propulsion, but there wasn't an unbearable amount of heat, no where near. When he'd got himself up there he then walked, with Mizuki to just outside the centre of town. When Zuko was within eye shot of the town square where the commander stood guiding the operation. Zuko turned to Mizuki and grabbed we hips throwing her over his shoulder "I accidentally called you a fugitive, keep your mouth shut and hide your face against my back." He said carrying the woman through the town square towards their carriage. When he was stopped by the captain he looked to him. "Clearly I've found her, you can call off the search." He said opening the carriage climbing in and sitting Mizuki down.

"Wait here, and there is a whole division of fire benders out there who think you're a fugitive. Don't leave here." He climbed out, instructed the boy driver to lock the doors of the carriage and make sure Mizuki stayed in. Just in case, her ordered two soldiers to stand at either door of the carriage also with orders not to go into it. He made sure Mizuki watched him do it.

20 minutes later Zuko returned, opening the carriage after dismissing the soldiers and then sat down across from her a wick basket in his hands. He removed the kid from the basket and pulled out red fabric, red fabric in the shape of a dress, multiple layers of different coloured red formed the looser fitting dress, he hung it up by the thread on the curtain rod before pulling out the red corset to go under the dress to hold Mizuki's figure, a black pair of stockings also accompanied this attire with a pair of nice red slip on pumps. Thankfully the seamstress had actually managed to get Mizuki's measurements before she ran off.

Zuko leaned out the window to the boy. "Go. Make good time." He said before leaning back into the carriage and looking at Mizuki. "Get changed, now." He was much less gentle with how he spoke it could be noted, highly likely to do with her trying to run off!
 
Mizuki had expected him to be angry. She had expected the same behavior that every other fire bender had ever shown her - blind rage that could only be directed and not controlled. But instead she was greeted with... A confusing situation. She would have known how to react if he had slapped her, would have known precisely what to do if he had yelled. But a kiss?

Her body froze, mostly due to shock, but also because she could feel the familiar prickle of being watched on the back of her neck. If she had turned, she would have seen her dearest friend getting a last good glimpse before his closest companion was swept away again by the fire nation. His face was hurt, more so from the familiarity that Zuko displayed than anything else.

Mizuki could feel that confusing swirl of emotions in her chest again, the sensation making her quite uncomfortable with all things considered. Zuko's whispered words made her feel guilt, but not much. "You can never trust my kind." And that much had been shown to be true. They lived as nomads with little concept of "home" and smaller concept of "ownership". They were known to steal what they had to and had been banned from many cities for their behavior. They were looked down upon for their transient lifestyle but overall were not terrible people.

His next words about safety made her brow quirk, mostly because he seemed... Like he had been genuinely worried about her. She had escaped from custody but he worried about her safety. That notion was filed away for further inspection when She could devote more time and attention to it. She was offered no chance to protest before he propelled them into the air, Mizuki clinging to him as if she was sure that he would drop her.

Her stomach felt like it dangled by her knees and she was visibly upset by the time they landed, her face as white as a ghost. "Lets not so that again," She murmured, barely having time before she was being slung over his shoulder.

There was no need to protest as he carried her back to the carriage and locked her inside. He had learned an important lesson. By the time he returned, she had been given enough time to become sullen. His command made her brow quirk, her attitude back now that she wasn't troubled with silly emotions.

"What's the point of all this? The charade and pleasantries?" She asked, refusing to move as of yet, "Do you actually plan to wed me to prove that the fire nation can turn any wild beast into a docile house pet?"
 
He looked at her with a sullen look, clearly not happy with what she had done and he then reached across, a hand sliding up her leg to her hip as the other found her other him and pulled her over to him. He could have moved for her, but he didn't have to. She would move for him. He sat her on the bench next to him and pulled her in against him as if they where cuddling, her head resting against his shoulder. He leaned in towards her, brushing her black hair behind her ears like he was about to whisper sweet nothings to her and began to speak. "You're already aware, of why you're in my company." he spoke in a rough tone. He'd already told her, vaguely, why she was here. She conspired against the Fire Lord, the Fire Lord's task masters got nothing from her. So the Fire Lord sent this woman to Zuko, with the intention of her being some sort of peace term. Here's this girl! She's gorgeous, flexible, well-endowed and a virgin. Rape her until she gives you the information I want and then you can come home. Was the jist of the message, not exactly what Zuko had told her but she could probably infer that, she wasn't stupid after all.

"He wants me, to get from you, where your friends that conspired against him are." he said, reminding her, just in case she had forgotten. "I know, where they are." he said his tone more series. "I know, where your friends are, I could kneel you down in the courtyard of that town, execute you and tell them that your friends are the circus folk, and they conspired to kill the Fire Lord." This was all a hush whisper, if someone was on the roof of the carriage trying to eavesdrop, they where getting nothing. "They would go back to the Fire Nation, and be tortured before they where executed, and I would return a Hero who found conspirators and brought them to justice." He let the words hang with her, let her think on them. He could return home just fine by killing her and her friends that he knew existed, and exactly where they all where right at this very moment.

He pulled the picture from his robes, the picture he'd let her model her hair after, the picture of his mother and held it in his palm so she could see it, still whispering to her. "I don't know, where she is." he said softly, his voice void of the anger he held for her. "I don't know, what he did to her." He being his own father, The Fire Lord. "I don't know, where I can find her." he paused for a moment. "If I'll find her alive." he said in a slow draw out manner. There was then a significant pause in his train of thought, and a lack of speaking.

"I enjoy your company. Mizuki." he said gently. "For more than just the two intimate moments we've shared. I don't want you docile, that makes you less fun. So if marrying you has that happen, I'll gladly deny an offer of marriage from you." he said with a playful smirk at the concept. "She, is my family." he said the picture still in his hand, his finger moving over the cheek in the picture of the beautiful Fire Nation woman. "I don't care, about my sister. I don't care, about my father. My Uncle, is a nice man. He accompanied me, helped me. Tried to get me back to the Fire Nation, but that's not what I want right now, and he'd understand that." he slipped the image back into his robes. "Those are your family." he said talking about the circus folk. "Yes, I'm pulling you away from them. Yes I could let you go back to them. But when someone asks me where you are, someone who knows who you actually are and why you're with me. What do I say? That you killed yourself? Like they'd believe that. Also, I enjoy not being imprisoned. So I wouldn't lie, if someone confronted me I'd tell them you where with a band of Circus folk, tell them what was going on and then they'd likely burn your family to the ground when they found them." he let that hang also.

"You, are safest when you're around me. They are also safest when you're around me." He looked to her. "I'm not going to let The Fire Lord take away your family like he took away mine." he pushed her from the hug he had her and and lent himself into the corner of the carriage bench looking out of the curtain that was closed of course but left a slight gap. "Now get changed, we'll be at New Ozai in a few hours, you can't be looking like an Earth Nation Serf when we do." He didn't look at her as he spoke, only out of the window.
 
She was, at first, extremely unsatisfied with what he was having to say to her. Yes, she knew precisely what the fire nation itself had wanted out of her, but what did he as a man expect from her? He knew precisely where her friends were, and even with that information he had moved about his merry way and had only returned her back to his custody to continue with the charade of them being a happily engaged couple. He didn't seem to want her to be his slave, as he let her have far too much freedom, but he didn't value the extent she had taken it to already.

It took a great deal of effort on her part, but she listened to him without interjecting the entire time, her lips forming a hard line as she tossed over all that he said. A great deal of it was to have an effect on her, but there were large nuggets of truth that he had stored in there. So many things that she was sure he had never confided in another person before. She chewed at her lip even still after his repeated command for her to dress, her eyes almost distant.

"My people are not my family." The words came out harsher than she intended, perhaps because they were said with a bitterness that she hadn't expected, but also because she hadn't said them before to anyone. There were few that knew about where she came from, and fewer still that made the connection. "Shanzi and Toru are all I have left to remind me of who my family once was." And that much was the whole truth, the reason behind why her connection to the two had remained so strong and so constant throughout the years. They were the only sense of home that she could feel, the only friends that she hadn't pushed away.

She didn't look at him, but she did gather the robes, running the red silk over her hands slowly as she fought with herself. Ren knew a piece of the story, but dare she divulge in its entirety?

It spilled before she had a chance to think it over fully.

"They were just my neighbors once. We played together. We were kids together. Even then Toru was the protector and Shanzi was... Young." She could still see them as they used to be - Toru, large even at that young age, with a much rounder face, and Shanzi quite a plump young girl with large eyes and a gentle heart. "Our village was attacked in the middle of the night. Fire nation soldiers invaded. They were looking for someone, a prisoner of war that had escaped and was last seen running towards our village. They set every house on fire looking for him. We didn't know what was happening at the time, I just remember being told to hide. I hid for as long as I dared before I smelled the smoke."

That memory still stung like it was fresh, her nostrils flaring as if she could still smell the acrid scent of her home burning, the distant sound of screams as people lost all of their belongings and others their lives. "I don't remember much." That much was a lie, as the memory was burned into her brain of trying so hard to get out of the house on her own and being turned back at every chance. The smoke had been thick, filling her lungs and making her cough. She had given up hope and started to scream with the rest that were dying. She was still screaming when Toru found her. He'd lead her to safety through the fire and rushed the now three of them away from the worst of the flames.

"My parents never came home." That truth hurt, because they didn't. One body wasn't discernible from the next when the ashes finally settled and when the smoke had cleared. She busied herself in changing into the corset, something fancier than what she was accustomed to but by no means too complex for her to figure out. The next piece of the story was the hardest for her, because it had been the turning point for her life. It was the point that had turned Mizuki from a frightened child into a rebel-to-be. "The only ones that came back were the soldiers. We were taken into custody and questioned for days." Her movements were deliberate and she put extra concentration into her work, "They cut out Toru's tongue for lying and there was nothing I could do to stop them."

She hated that admission. She had been but a child but she had played it over and over again. She should have been stronger, should have fought harder, should have run faster. There were so many things that they could have done differently, should have done different. "I had to watch the person that saved me be mutilated and I was powerless to stop it." Mizuki pulled the dress onto herself and smoothed it out, settling down and tugging on the stockings deliberately slow. "I have worked for years so that I would never be powerless again. I learned to dance so that I would be useful. I learned to lie. I learned to steal. I learned to kill. I killed everything in myself that made me weak. Because I can't afford to be that again. I can't afford for someone else to get hurt at the hands of the fire nation."

The last thing that she fixed was her hair, carefully putting it back into the traditional fire nation bun. "I'm not worried about Ozai. I'm going to kill him."
 
He didn't look straight to her, but he watched out of the corner of his eye. He wast he'd as the green fabric slipped over her leaving her in the bandages and the underwear that he had watch her slip back on earlier after they'd had their fun in the carriage. He kept an eye out of the window, through the small gap the curtain gave, no one could see in from outside, they'd get a treat if they somehow did however. He listened with half an ear to her story. He was sympathetic to her yes, but this was the story of tens of thousands of people. She should have a word with the Avatar, the last nomad, ask him how he feels about what happened to his home. The fire nation burned all in their path and if that was people's families - so be it.

The corset slipped onto her body and she tightened it up after figuring out how the clothing went. He watched her suck in and tie the corset, leaving her with a figure that was almost madness, he could see the corset but people who could only see the dress couldn't. She spent a long time talk and thinking, stood up in the carriage in just her underwear and a corset. Then she slipped on the dress letting it fall along her body, still Zuko looked with an eye and listened with half an ear.

The the dress slipped on over her, perfect fit, the seamstress had done a excellent job with the dress, it looked as rich as what his mother used to wear. Then she sat, pulling the stockings onto her as the story continued. She was almost seductive in the way that she slipped into the more entrancing piece of clothing, her foot and thigh wriggling into the black nylon actually caught Zuko's attention as he turned his head slightly to watch. Then her hair went up and like an assassin tying a bandana around her head she said her intention Zuko smiled.

He gave a few moments of silence after what she'd said. While he knew that a lot of people suffered like she had, he wasn't going to say that, he wasn't insensitive like that. A hand placed its self on her hip pulling her body over towards him and into a cuddle on the Corner of the carriage. He didn't say anything, he didn't need to he just cuddled her for the moment.

It had turned night outside the carriage, darkness plunged around them the only light coming from the lantern up by the boy and the lantern in the carriage. He looked down at her involved in the cuddle with him whether she likes it or not. "You look great." He said addressing towards her dress. "We aren't far from New Ozai now. When we get there, you're asleep, okay? It will give me a reason to dodge and questions and give us accommodation immediately." He looked down into her eyes as he spoke, he felt like they'd become intimate in the past two days, more so than the sex they'd shared that had been fairly void of intimacy. He pulled her up against his arm and looked down at her. "You do acting well enough right?" He said softly "look like you've fallen asleep in the arms of someone you can trust" he starting guiding her into hugging him as the carriage started to move across the bridge to the main gate of new Ozai.
 
There was something very therapeutic about confessing part of her past to him, perhaps because she had kept it bottled up for so many years, but also because it did show that she trusted him in at least some way. Her heart felt lighter for having confided in him and she liked the fact that he didn't seem phased at all by what he had been told. Her story was like so many of the others, she was just another victim of the cruelty of the fire nation... But yet, she was one that was more tangible to him. She was a person to him more than just a stranger and that was possibly something that would sway him and make him help her cause instead of stopping her... Maybe.

By the time that she was finished, he pulled her close and she eased herself into his grasp slowly, melting against his side as if it were where she belonged. There was a small comfort in his arms, though she could still feel the turmoil inside herself. True, she had confessed her story to him partially in an attempt to sway him, but there could have been a thousand lies she could have told instead. She'd told the truth, something that she did on very rare occasions.

It bothered her to know that she felt comfortable enough to confide in him, even more so in the fact that she had confided in him the bits of her life she had shared with so very few people. What was it about him that made her feel like she could trust him? Was it that uncomfortable stirring that was in her chest? Mizuki didn't like the emotions that she was being forced to feel, she didn't like the familiarity of his side and didn't like the way she felt safe in his arms.

There was only one place she should feel safe - on the stage. It was the place where she was in control, where her body and her power was something that caught attention and made men of all stances in life feel like she was the most important thing. She didn't want to feel safe by him, she didn't want to feel anything for him. He was just a means to an end.

She had to keep that in mind as he spoke again, complimenting the dress that felt far too foreign on her body and far too... Proper. In her home, her clothing consisted mostly of tops that covered just enough and loose-fitting skirts that revealed almost all of her legs. They were outfits made for free movement and for dance. She didn't feel the same corseted and dressed so formal.

"I was a good enough actress that I got myself into your father's bed without suspicion," She quipped at his comment, leaning against his side more willingly now that she had something to put her attention towards besides her own thoughts and the heavy silence that had formed around them. Her eyes closed after a bit and she let her body relax against him. Without thinking, her arm wrapped around his middle softly, her body nestling against him until she found a softer spot in the crook of his neck where it met his shoulder.

Truth be told, she almost didn't have to act. The warmth of his body and his soft inhale and exhale was a rhythm enough that made her lull into an almost-asleep state, her body relaxing beyond what she had intended it to. She could hear them passing through the gates of New Ozai, their journey coming slowly towards its end.
 
Zuko smirked slightly at her comment after she closed her eyes. Was she a good actress? Was she really? Or was she in fact so attractive that The Fire Lord had let his guard down. Zuko was willing to bet on the latter. While he thought about this there was a shuffling going on next to him, as Mizuki nuzzled, wrapped and snuggled her way up against him like she was an extension of his body. Zuko couldn't help but smile, it truly was, adorable. His fingers began to muse through her black hair as the gates loudly opened at the front of the large Stone fortress that was New Ozai. Then there was the shuffling of metal outside of the carriage before the door opened and a rather generic looking Fire Nation soldier stood their, looking into the carriage at Zuko and Mizuki, dressed in noble fire nation robes, Mizuki 'Asleep'. "My Lord." the guard began. "I will need to see your papers before..." Zuko turned his head, showing the burn on the side of his face, right over his eye, a burn that couldn't be mistaken, the burn of the exiled prince. "I-I.." the guard said caught off guard, not knowing what to say in response. "I must fetch my superior." the guard finally said before Zuko held up his hand.

"No." Zuko said calmly before looking down to Mizuki, making sure she hadn't stirred, running his fingers through her raven hair before looking back to the guard. "You'll allow us through, and provide us with private accommodation. I trust you're not too incompetent to see how tired she is? I will speak with your superiors in the morning." he said. The hour was getting late that was for sure, 10? 11pm? Something like that, Zuko looked at the guard with a steady look and then the guard jumped to attention. "Yes, your highness." Zuko may not have so much control over the higher echelon but simple soldiers? They knew who he was, they knew to give him what he wanted.

The soldier closed the carriage door and exchanged words with the boy who was still riding atop the carriage. The carriage began to move again and Zuko simple returned to musing through Mizuki's hair, she was close, close enough that he didn't have to move to whisper to her. "Just stay 'asleep'" he added emphasis to asleep of course "Until we're in the accommodation they provide alone, I don't know who's going to end up turning up and causing issues." The carriage continued on up the large city that was once called Omashu, the second largest city in the Earth Kingdom and the capital of one of it's states. It was only outdone by Ba Sing Se, the true capital of the Earth Kingdom. The city its self looked like four mountains, in and among all of the mountains that actually surrounded it.

About 10 minutes later, the carriage stopped, Zuko had been running his fingers through Mizuki's hair the whole time, it was therapeutic, her hair was soft, and the product she'd used at the tavern made it smell great. Zuko let his hand move away from the raven hair that sat atop Mizuki's head and pulled the curtain back looking outside. A guard in rather nice looking armour was walking down a flight of stairs towards the carriage. Zuko sat just looking at him. "Prince Zuko." the man yelled at a distance before finally getting right up to the carriage. "Would you care to keep your voice down." Zuko said impatiently as his hand sat gently on Mizuki's head. "What is the meaning of this." Zuko asked looking to the man who'd obviously stopped the carriage. "What is the meaning of..." the man laughed. "What is the meaning of you barging into our city like you own the place." Zuko smirked. "I do, own the place." Zuko said softly to the man with a cold stare. "The second I stepped foot in this city I became the commander of all troops, the commander of all dealings with New Ozai and you know..." he was cut off.

"Is that so." a grainy voice that caused Zuko to roll his eyes said from the front of the carriage. She walked up alongside the carriage and stood up on her toes looking into the carriage. "What do you want Azula." Zuko said as the fire nation princess tilted her head to the side whimsically as she looked in at Mizuki who Zuko had a slightly tighter hold on. "Who's the girl brother." Azula said into the carriage looking down at Mizuki who's sleeping face nuzzled into Zuko's neck. "She's from one of the Hu Xin provinces on the west coast. Her family moved there from the homeland, her father is a successful merchant." he said with a lie. He was a good liar, but Azula was a good interrogator. Azula turned up her nose. "She's awfully too pretty for you." she dropped back down on her feet properly after having insulted her brother and Mizuki could feel Zuko inhale after having hold his breath for the whole interaction. "It's late. Give him somewhere to stay and I want to talk with him in the morning." Azula said and then she could be head walking away with a yes ma'am following after her.

Zuko slid the curtain shut and a lump was swallowed in his throat before her returned to scratching at Mizuki's scalp with a gently hand, the carriage rolled on again. Not long after, no more than 5 minutes they pulled up and the carriage driver opened the door to the carriage. "Thanks." Zuko said handing the boy a reasonable bag of coins and then slowly unwrapping Mizuki from him before stepping out and reaching into the carriage and pulling her out into his arms, carrying her like she was newly wed to him. "Please take our bags inside." he said to the boy. "Then you may find yourself somewhere to stay or start making your way home." Zuko carried Mizuki for a minute or two before finally the soft comfort of a bed could be felt on the back of Mizuki's head. Zuko sat at her feet and then dropped his head back onto the bed, his legs hanging off the edge as he looked up at the ceiling, he said nothing.
 
Pretending to be asleep was almost as boring as watching grass grow, though it did offer Mizuki a chance to hear conversations that would have otherwise not been spoken. People tended to speak more freely about others when they thought the subject was unaware. Zuko had several encounters while she was 'asleep,' from soldiers to his own sister, a girl whose voice made her skin crawl without even having to see the woman.

There was a strong urge in her to pretend to wake up so that she could make her presence known to Azula as more than just some pretty face, but she knew that Zuko would be upset if she did anything other than what she was told. Instead, she let out a soft sigh, as if she had dreamed something more pleasant than the silver-tongued cunt that had previously been speaking. She could tell that Zuko had been holding his breath for quite some time, finally releasing it once Azula was long gone.

When the carriage came to a stop finally, she felt him lift her up into her arms and curled her against his chest as if they had just wed. Her head stayed nestled into his neck, her arms wrapping around him slowly as she faked herself into a slow and gentle nuzzle into his skin. She didn't let go of him until she felt that he'd laid her down on something soft - a bed, she was sure - and she'd heard that the room was quiet enough that surely there was no one else there. The pressure of him sitting down got her attention, his weight falling back as he laid next to her.

Mizuki let the silence hang around them for a few moments before she opened her eyes, glancing around the room quickly to confirm what she knew by hearing. "So," She was at first unsure of what to say, mostly because she'd gotten more information than previously, but also because she wasn't sure where she stood with him, "Your sister mustn't think much of you."

She slid down the bed until she was next to him and propped herself up on an elbow, looking over his face curiously as she tried to read the emotions that he was feeling at the time. "If we are to meet her in the morning with me being 'awake' this time, I suppose you should be telling me what back story I need to follow." She said, letting her free hand move to trace the curve of his jaw slowly.

That strange feeling was back, and she didn't fight it this time, instead letting it come naturally, as she had spent far too long pushing it back. Mizuki let her fingers slide up his jaw again before they cupped his cheek, her touch soft but grip firm. She followed the urging of the dull ache in her chest and leaned down to him, her lips pressing against his.

Unlike before, when her kisses had been full of the heat of sexual passion, this one was different. Still passionate by many means, but lacking in the sexual drive as before. But even still, she couldn't keep her hands off of him. She leaned until her body pressed against him, soft and almost tentative in her touch though loving above all else.

Her lips pulled from his when she felt her lungs would starve for air, her breathing ragged and cheeks flushed, though not from lack of oxygen. She kissed him again, brief this time, before letting her head lay against his shoulder in much the same way as it had before when she had been pretending. "I won't be running away again, you know." She said, her voice hardly above a whisper.
 
Zuko let his eyes close at her first statement, not giving her a response. It was only when he felt her almost slither down the bed that he opened his eyes to look at her, when he turned his head her hand starting to dance across his jaw, over to his cheek. He slowly started to sit up looking into Mizuki's eyes before she took control and pushed him back down with a kiss. A deep, long, kiss. The sound of their lips intimately chafing the only noise in the room. When she parted from the kiss Zuko spoke slightly. "Mizuk..." she kissed him again. For less time this time, but her breasts squished up against his chest and he smiled around the kiss softly. When she parted her lips this time it was slow, slow enough that saliva easily managed to arch between their lips.

Zuko smirked at her statement. "I would.. really advise against it." Zuko said slowly sitting up, causing her to be pushed from his neck slightly but only for a moment. He sat her up with him, pulling her against him on the edge of the bed. It was rather picturesque if anyone got a look. Two fire nations nobles intimately interacting in the comfort of a bed room, well, that's what they'd see. Zuko ran his fingers over the fabric of her dress looking at her. "There is a whole Army here. You don't want to get caught running around suspicious like by them." he said as he stood up from the bed letting her sit there. It was almost a sensational feeling that he had from just getting up from her, leaving her grip, almost letting her down. He moved over to the door and opened it, reaching outside to pull in the three bags left by the boy. He opened one, pulling out a large roll of bandages. "There is more important things to do, than discuss your persona. It's been two days." he said looking at her. "I want to dress your chest again." he looked at her with the concerned look of a lover.

He moved across the wooden floor of the rather luxurious room. Placing the bandages down on the bed. "Get undressed." he said looking down to her. "and remove the old bandage. I'll start running the water." he leaned down, as if to kiss her, and gently ran his hand over her cheek his forehead pressed against hers before he gave her a mere two second peck on the lips. He turned from her, leaving her on the bed as he moved towards the bathroom, a nice little en-suite that sat next to the master bedroom of the near enough mansion Azula had put Zuko in.
 
It was an amusing enough thought to picture herself trying to go through the crowds unnoticed and to slip out through the large city streets and find her way over the wall. It was funny to think of the antics that she would surely go through, but not something that she wanted. Though Zuko was by no means her group that she wanted to be with, she was truly safer if she stayed with him. And now that she had fulfilled her duty and returned to her people at least once to assure them that she was alive and well, then she was satisfied to stay by his side. Even an animal on a leash was still capable of causing damage if the leash holder grew to be too comfortable...

There was a visible disappointment in her face when he pulled away from her and stalked to the door, though she understood why soon enough. He pulled their bags into the door and brought out rolls of bandages. Her nose wrinkled at the thought of stripping off her bandages and looking at her chest again. It was still sensitive enough to touch but it was probably healing well enough. She was more concerned with the brand that burned off an on throughout the day. The thought of being re-branded to erase the mark was tempting enough, if it hadn't been hell enough to endure it once.

His tender touch was enough to catch her off guard, the gentle touch behind it and the sentiment making her heart clench. She felt as if someone was squeezing all of her insides and her breath caught in her chest. It lasted for only the moment of the kiss and his parting made her feel strange, a pain that was completely and utterly mental, but hurt as much as if it were physical. This feeling, whatever it was, had grown stronger from her pushing it down in her mind, rather than being stomped out as she had hoped.

Mizuki was careful as she removed her clothing, setting the dress on a chair by the bed so that she wouldn't cause the material to wrinkle and unlacing the corset with care. There was a sweet relief in being free, her skin tingling in the fresh air. She hesitated only slightly as she unwrapped the bandages from around her middle, glancing at the mirror in their room. Her skin looked much better, the bruising having turned for the most part to being yellow, though some cuts still looked as if they were in the process of healing slower than anything else. Her fingers were slower and more gentle to unwrap her brand, the skin still fresh with the wound.

Lastly, she stepped out of the pumps and slid the stockings down her leg, setting it down by the chair as well. She tugged her hair out of the top knot and let it fall loose on her body, glancing in the mirror to make sure that it looked casually tousled and hung over her body beautifully. She felt almost nervous as she entered the bathroom, leaning against the door frame. "Ready for me, lover boy?"
 
He looked over to her, with a some what dissatisfied look on his face. "You're well aware you're in here for completely different reasons." he said looking over to her before he slid a stool out onto the center of the open room. The room was tiled nicely with a large tub in one corner of the room, however the whole room was easily usable as a wash room due to it's sloped nature towards the sinkhole in the center. He waited for her to sit before he began running water, he was still fully clothed but that didn't matter too much.

He held in his hand the end of the hose as it spewed nice warm water out over the rooms floor, he moved over towards where Mizuki sat and began pouring it over her shoulders, down over her chest that had been so viciously groped only a week back at the most. The water cleansed the dirt and with that some of the mucky finger prints that remained on her. He then clipped the hose into a hook that was hanging down over the center of the room and let the water rain down on Mizuki as he reached down into her hair, running his fingers through her wet hair straightening out any knots as he did.

The water from her hair also slipped down over the rest of her body, aiding in the cleansing. "You heal fast." he said absentmindedly, this was the first time he'd looked at her torso not bloodied and purple, it was still rather repulsive but it looked much much better. A few more days and all it would be was a few scratches. His hands continued to massage her scalp as the water rained down over her. The water splashed from her shoulders onto his trousers but he didn't seem to mind, he wouldn't be wearing these clothes for a while anyway. "The seamstress is bringing you more clothing first thing in the morning. She and her father said they would work all night." he said down to Mizuki as the water continued to rain down over her naked body splashing against Zuko.
 
"What?" She played completely innocent, pushing off the door's frame before walking over to him and taking her seat with a smirk, "I'm behaving." She could do nothing but smirk at that, as for once it was absolutely true. She wasn't up to mischief and wasn't trying to talk him into sex, she just couldn't resist to tease him. But she didn't push the issue, letting him do his work to tend to her wounds and doing her best not to flinch at his touch. It wasn't as unbearable as it was several days before, but they were still tender from the abuse and her body still recovering from the trauma it had been through. The heat did wonders to relax her muscles and help her ease up enough so that she wasn't tensing at every touch, which helped more than anything else.

His comment brought her back to talking, the smirk returning, "Yes, and you're wet, since we're going to state the obvious." She joked, reaching out to touch his almost completely soaked pants, "Have you suddenly become shy about me seeing you naked?" She asked, brushing her own fingers through her hair slowly and smoothing it out. His comment on the seamstress made her think of the dress - something so elegant and gorgeous. It wasn't something that she was by any means accustomed to wearing on a regular basis, and by no means something that she felt comfortable in.

"Perhaps I should hide in a closet to get a giggle. Losing a client twice would certainly be a story to tell." The thought of how the seamstress must have felt when she returned to the empty room where she'd left an emotionally disraught lover surely must have been hysterical, though few but Mizuki would agree. "I take it that I'm going to be wearing nothing but the finest dresses, since I'm your fiancee?"
 
He reached down for her arm while she went on, poking fun at him, making jokes. He ignored most of it. He had something he had to do first before he could flirt back and tease her. He pulled her to her feet pulling her into him as he stepped out of the stream of water, standing her out of its way. He moved from her, two large circular stains of water on his shirt from where her breasts had pressed against him. He reached for the rack at the entrance to the room pulling a fluffy towel and moving towards her, dabbing it against her torso instead of rubbing, he didn't want to cause her any discomfort.

When most of the water had been dispatched he placed the end of the bandages just under her arm and grabbed her hand putting it there to hold it in place. Then he began to wrap her, tightly, in the bandages. It was almost like a corset in its self, squeezing her reasonably endowed breasts up against her body, making her look much more flat chested than Zuko knew she actually was. He wrapped the bandage, around and around until he reached just down to her hips, slightly after where the bruising stopped as it was very clear that the guards hand't wanted to remove Mizuki's trousers as they'd clearly been told to avoid her nether region. With the quick tie of a knot, fresh bandages wrapped Mizuki's whole body. He looked up at her. "Yes." he responded simply to her before moving back into the room and turning off the water flow.

Still holding the towel he moved into the bedroom again shouting back into the bathroom. "Come on, I'll dry your hair for you." he said in his gentle tone, the intimate tone that he so far had only seemed to show her, dealing with anyone else he was much more blunt and straight forward. He threw the towel down onto the bed and grabbed the bottom of his shirt pulling it over his head revealing his toned upper body, he threw it to one side with the bags as he also took off his wet trousers throwing them there too. He didn't take too long however to move to the bags and pull out a loose fitting pair of trousers which he slipped on and fastened a belt around leaving himself topless as he moved across the room sitting on the bed pointing to the floor in front of him. "That's not a choice." he said towards her with a raised eyebrow.
 
There was no fun to be had with him at the moment, it seemed, as he was far too intent on what he was doing to pay her any mind. She was appreciative, at least, of the fact that no matter what she had said his hands had remained gentle. Either way, she knew that part of the joking was her way of staving off the feelings that she was developing towards him, as it was easier to keep him at arm's length if the relationship was more of a joke than anything else. But with him acting the way he was, it was becoming steadily harder for her to find things to make light of.

She stopped trying to after a bit, letting him finish what he had to do before he proceeded to wrap her. His touch was gentler than her own had been though the bandages were far more snug. She could feel the material bind her injured breasts up against her body to hide not only the wounds but also masked how well endowed she was. When he finished, he tied a careful knot that sealed the bandages in place, his handiwork something to be truly admired.

Though he wasn't being mean by any means, she couldn't decipher him. His tone was the one that he used for her exclusively, though he seemed to be... Distant, almost. She watched him change, feeling only a slight sorrow that he didn't stay nude as she did. Rather than squabble over whether or not she would dry her own hair, she took a seat on the floor in front of him, brushing her hair back so that it all fell down her back. Mizuki was quiet for a long time before she spoke again, her voice without jest, and definitely softer than before.

"Zuko?" She didn't turn her head, but she did want his attention, "I'm not... I'm not the type to marry, you know." She said after a long minute of thinking over her words, perhaps because she didn't know how else to word it. And though that was more or less the truth, her next words were a lie that she had told herself until it was close enough to the truth. "I don't love people anymore... Not like that, anyway."
 
When she sat his hands wrapped in the fluff that was the towel found themselves wrapped around her hair, shuffling back and forth over the raven hair that sat on Mizuki's head. He rubbed against her hair for a good minute before he heard his name spoke by her, then the shuffling stopped. "hmm" he uttered looking down to her as she continued to speak. He let her talk and then he slipped off the bed and sat next to her. She, clad in bandages around her torso, wearing literally no clothing. Him, wearing only pants, his torso and toned upper body completely visible to her. His hand slipped down onto her bare thigh and then he reached across for her other, pulling on it, pulling her to straddle his waist as they sat on the floor, letting her slump down onto hit crotch. The only thing stopping their genitals from touching was the thin piece of fabric covering Zuko's lower body.

A kiss planted on her neck, and held... Her jaw, and held... The corner of her lips, and held... Her lips, and held longer. His hands holding onto her bare hips as he lent into the passionate kiss that he gave her, rocking her hips against his crotch in a dry humping motion as he kissed her using the flexibility her dancers body provided. From her knees to almost being flat on her back with her knees still touching the floor, his hands rubbing against her hips, rotating her hips as he did, forcing er to dry hump against him before he broke the kiss and let her fall onto her back on the floor, he leaned over her, one hand planted itself next to her head, the other followed, planting itself also next to her head as he loomed over her, her legs spread open like she was ready to take him inside of her as he sat between them, his muscular form hovering over her to protect her from anything that could come towards her. He then leaned in very close, so close she could hear the very beat of his heart. "Why are you lying. Mizuki." he asked in a blunt manner looking into her eyes. "Your mouth tells me one thing. Then I kiss it, and it tells me another." he said looking into her eyes, that kiss she gave him on the bed when she 'woke up' wasn't a kiss of a woman not in love.
 
Mizuki had expected a reaction out of him, perhaps for him to make jokes at her or snide comments as he had before, but he didn't. His body spoke in ways that his mouth could not ever say. His hands were firm as they grasped her, positioning her on him much as she had taken in the carriage, her thighs gripping him willingly but her eyes reluctant to look at him. She knew that she had lied. She knew that he had probably heard the lie. But she didn't care. She didn't want to admit it to herself that she felt something for him, because she just couldn't take the thought of what if she really did love him. He wasn't just Fire Nation. He was the son of the very man she had risked her life to kill.

But even still she couldn't help but respond to him at least physically, her skin rippling with goosebumps at the tickle of his breath on her neck and the slow kisses that he placed on her. It was a tenderness that she craved from him, the side that was reserved for these private moments when it was just the two of them. She could feel his hips rock against hers and feel their bodies almost together. Her hips didn't move against him on their own at first, but they didn't stop when he stopped thrusting her up against him. By the time he let her go and eased her onto her back, she was craving him.

He closed the space between them further, so near that she could feel his warmth and hear his heart, the steady thud seeming to echo her own. Mizuki made herself make eye contact with him, his words making her inner conflict only grow. She touched him, let her hand cup his cheek and slide down his neck slowly, then his chest until she was rubbing his side. Her hand moved to wrap around his waist and slowly back up his back. "I didn't lie," But again, that was a lie, because she was kissing him again, holding him as if he were going to leave, "I don't. I don't love you." But even those words sounded more like she was trying to convince herself more than him.
 
Her hands where all over him, she literally couldn't help herself. Kissing him, rubbing his muscular upper body, gripping onto his waist. "Stop lying." he said down to her in between her passionate kisses before he lifted her up off the floor and dropped her onto the bed climbing on top of her, his hands placing themselves on her thighs, spreading her legs wide before he slipped himself between them. She was completely nude, her pussy was fully on show but she hadn't seemed to care. All he had to do was slip down his pants and start fucking her, there was literally nothing to stop him, he could easily over power her. But he was more interested in the taste of her lips right now, he'd never thought he'd be on a bed with a woman as gorgeous as Mizuki without the unrelenting want to just fuck her brains out, but right now he did have that, he just wanted to kiss her, to make love to her without penetration, to make her feel like she didn't need to hide what she felt.

His crotch ground against her, rubbing against her as he lay atop her. He pulled the bed sheets over the top of himself covering them in the darkness of the sheets as he wriggled around under the sheets with her his feet rubbing against her calves before he pulled her close, his knee rubbing between her legs against her bare pussy as he kissed her on the lips in the darkness of the sheets. He held the kiss for a few moments and then flicked the bed sheet off of them, letting the dim light of the room flood onto them. Her right hand, then her left hand gripped in just one of his hands as he pinned her to the bed. He was grinning from ear to ear, rolling around with Mizuki in a bed seemed to make him rather entertained, teasing her in more ways than one, a knee against her crotch, a few choice words to tease her. He straddle her waist, pinning her hands above her head as he sat on her, making it impossible for her to move. "Just admit it." he said pulling her hands over towards him, letting her hands slide over his abdominal as he looked down at her. "You've fallen for me." he said in a blunt manner. "I don't know what caused you to, but you have. I've never been kissed with as much passion as you showed tonight." He leaned down and kissed her nose before playfully whispering. "It's not a bad thing you know, you're going to be living with me for a few months, and you'll be the only woman I have to service. It would be better if you where in love with me." he said before leaning down to her neck and sinking his teeth in deep into the flesh before letting go leaving the bite mark and falling from straddling her to instead lay down next to her.
 
He had gotten her started and now she felt like she couldn't stop, like her hands needed to feel him and affirm what she felt on the inside. She didn't say that she loved him by any means, but her actions spoke far louder than her words. If she didn't she would have protested by now on some form, would have pulled away from his affections like the many times before when her friends tried to be more than just that. He moved the two of them from the floor to the bed without her letting go of him, she was far too gone in her emotions, far too gone in her want of him.

His body continued its assault on her, grinding against her with his hips and so close to fucking her but not quite. She wanted him on all levels at this point, her body being teased into arousal despite the fact that she wanted nothing more than to just be with him. He read her like a book, his hands and mouth on her as his knee kept rubbing against her sex, her body arching into his every touch until she found herself letting out a soft moan from his gentle stimulation between her legs. Again Zuko was trying to drive the point home to her, his words telling her what she already knew but refused to acknowledge even in the privacy of the room.

The truth was that she had fallen for him, quite unexpectedly and quite hard. But it was an attraction that was still quite new to her, and still very frightening for her to experience. She hadn't been vulnerable before in this sense and it bothered her down to her core to think that he could become her new weakness.

He brought a sharp hiss from her as his teeth bit her neck, bringing her body to arch against him like a bow being drawn, her hands gripping his skin tight enough that it caused the flesh to turn red. When he released, she could feel the throb in her skin from his teeth, aching in tune with her beating heart. Rather than continuing to stoke the fire that had started inside of her, he took his spot next to her on the bed, laying down as if he were quite content to go to sleep for the night. But she was by no means content. She leaned over him again as she had not even an hour before, when the emotions had run free and she had let them loose unintentionally.

They had had sex just that morning but still she felt so strange about the intimacy of the words in the back of her throat, felt more naked than when she was completely unclothed. She didn't kiss him at first, her lips moving across his ear slowly and then back down it so that they tickled his lobe, her eyes closing. The room was so quiet that she could hear only their breathing. There was no one else nearby. They were as alone as they could be in a city as large as New Ozai. But still she fought with the words, almost choked by them.

It was a long silence, but they came eventually - "You're right... I love you."
 
He stretched out his arms as she snuggled up close, nuzzling into his ear lobe and then tickling it with her lips, he was waiting for her kiss but she didn't. He smirked softly his fingers streaking through that perfectly fire nation styled Raven hair. Then she dropped her little bomb and he looked slightly to her with a gentle smile. He nuzzled against her and kissed her cheek before whispering gently. "I know you do." She may consider herself a good actor but she was far from good at hiding her emotions, he'd felt it since they'd sat in the tavern and mimed a relationship, she enjoyed it, she enjoyed his touch and his dancing fingers.

He stretched again laying flat on the bed, the comfy bed, much better than any floor of a tavern ever could be. "There is some night wear for you in one of the bags. The seamstress put it together before I got out the door, she was adamant you'd need it." he said looking to her and nodding his head in the direction of the bag. He had gotten her so worked up, pushed her to the edge of how horny she could be just to tease her. But he had no intention of having sex with her.
 
Mizuki had perhaps expected something a little more than what he gave in return. He acknowledged her admission but there was little beyond that. There was a slight sting at the lack of returned emotions, but she pushed that hurt away. She had done enough of letting him see her emotions, too much in fact. He had seen a softer side of her that she hadnt known existed and she felt uncomfortable with that. The only person she had previously let her be seen weak was Toru, and that had been for necessity's sake. They had been weak together and grown strong, him into a sturdy rock of a man and Mizuki into a delicate but thorned flower.

"So she could create a night gown but no actual clothing?" She murmured, rolling off the bed to rummage through the bags. She did indeed find what was considered night wear - a silk crimson gown that would hang loose from her shoulders but cling in to her waist, decorative ruffles in intricate gold designs on the bottom. Mizuki held the thing out and inspected it, enjoying the smoothness of the material and the fact that the vast majority of it was sheer and see-through except for the busy area.

It wasn't what she would have picked by any means but it was what she was saddled with. She slid the night dress over her head and found it fit quite well, coming down to about mid thigh and hugging her legs lightly. The woman knew her craft well.

"When I make some gold, I'll go to the seamstress myself and have actual clothing made. The people of your nation severely lack in comfort." She stated, slipping back into the bed with him and tossing the blanket over herself. "Besides, none of the clothing is suitable for dance. It would rip before I even started."
 
"I just asked her to make you a dress for our arrival." he said looking to Mizuki as she climbed out of the bed and walked across the room elegantly, her butt shook nicely as she did, he watched, of course. "She insisted you needed night wear." he wasn't lying, it was the truth, he'd gone in and specified he needed a dress in her size and she obliged, however she said that Mizuki would need something for the night before she could bring what of Mizuki's new wardrobe they could in the morning. He watched her pull it out, it was a sexy little piece, he didn't expect it as much when he'd stuffed it in the bag but on her body, god it looked good.

He watched her move towards the bed, around it, clothed, even though it was rather loosely now. He shook his head at her aside statement about his 'peoples' clothing. "You've worn literally one dress." he said to her as she climbed into the bed and threw the blanket over herself. He didn't even think, he just did, he reached over grabbing his lover and pulling her over to him, letting her cold tanned cheek rest on his bare chest as he scratched a finger against her nose slightly, cleaning a little mark from her nose as she spoke again. "I highly doubt, you'll have the need of clothing that gives ease of dance." He said softly.

Zuko held his hand up and exhaled softly as the candles that where providing the light for the room all snuffed out. It was an odd trait of fire bending that was rather useful. Unlike Water, Earth and Air bending, Fire Bending could be done without any fire to use. You couldn't Earth bend without some stone, you couldn't water bend effectively without some water and you couldn't air bend without some air, but that was obviously in surplus. However Fire Bending came from nothing, fire created, so naturally, one could also snuff out that same fire. The room was dark, only the slight bit of moonlight that snuck in through the window was able to achieve any semblance of light in the room, and they cuddled close. The darkness made the kiss that he gave her more sneaky in nature too, he moved his head down to her and kissed her on the lips for a brief moment, a kiss goodnight. His fingers then ran through her hair softly and he laid his head flat on the fluffy pillow. "Mizuki..." he whispered slightly, his voice not even carrying through the silence of the room. "I guess. I guess I love you too." His hand pushed her head to his chest, almost as a method of stopping her from getting away, and he closed his eyes, fingers musing her hair as he started to drift to sleep.
 
His way of talking about her future in the fire nation made her lips curl into a bit of a scowl, as the thought of no dancing was about as exciting to her as the thought of masturbating with a cactus. She brushed it off, though, because even if he didn't think dance was in her future, she knew that it was so ingrained in who she was that it had to be a piece of her still.

But nestled against him under the blankets in the soft glow of the moon, it was much easier to think of what life would be like for them. Though Zuko was by no means a prince that was to be wanted by all simple country folk, he was still extremely desirable. He could offer a life in which she didn't have to take off her clothing for a crowd and where she didn't have to steal to eat. He could offer her protection and care, a warm bed and a place to call home. He could even, maybe one day, offer love.

After the kiss good night, she had expected no more from him until the morning came. Instead, she heard his voice again just barely audible to even her. It was even more surprising to hear the words spoken, her head tilting to see the outline of his face in the darkness. His hand rested on her head and secured her down to his chest and she smiled, kissing his chest. "Good to know, lover boy." She murmured back to him, eyes already heavy from the warmth of his body and the day they'd had.

In the comfort of his arms, she slept deep enough that dreams didn't haunt her and nightmares didn't come.

The sun had barely started to peek over the edge of the sky when she woke, the light still naturally dim in the room. Mizuki did her best to slowly ease away from him, sitting at the edge of the bed and stretching slowly, enjoying the luxury of feeling her muscles move. She slid off the bed and onto the floor, letting her body move until every inch of her was awake and her body limber. The day was going to be full of surprises and difficulties.

Rather than crawl back into bed, she took a seat at the vanity, working a brush through her hair until it fell like silk down her back, her eyes glancing at Zuko every few minutes
 
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