The next morning, Zuko woke up before the sun rose, but he could feel the pull of it somewhere below the horizon. There was an hour or so until dawn, he figured. Appa groaned and opened one large eye to regard the young prince sleepily. Zuko scratched his nose, and was met with a contented, and slightly moist snuff.
“We’ll have to get up and moving soon,” Zuko told the bison, speaking quietly so he wouldn’t disturb Katara. Appa let out a low grumble in reply, then let his eye drift shut again. Zuko climbed into the saddle and found some dried fruit, and the bread from the day before for breakfast. Then he relit the fire and found the supplies to make the strong dark tea the Midden had in the morning. By the time he went to wake Katara, the sky was beginning to lighten. It was bright enough that Zuko could see that Katara’s eyes were a bit puffy, but he didn’t say anything about it as he passed her a cup of tea.
“How much sleep did you get?” Katara asked, her voice still raspy with sleep.
“Enough,” Zuko said with a shrug. Katara looked up at the sky. It was turning slightly purple in the distance, but there were still lots of stars out. She looked at him guiltily.
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not tired,” Zuko assured her. “Besides, I can always nap while we’re flying.” Katara nodded in agreement, then she shot him an absolutely wicked grin.
“Maybe while we’re up there,” she said slyly, “you can show me the silver sandwich you were telling me about.” Zuko groaned and rolled his eyes.
“I should leave the speeches to Uncle,” he muttered. His attempt to remember one of Iroh’s inspirational speeches ended in mild embarrassment when he realized that while he could remember some of the lessons his uncle had imparted, he hadn’t quite gotten the wording right.
“You raised my spirits,” Katara laughed. “Maybe you should have your uncle write his speeches out for you when you see him again.”
“If,” Zuko snorted reflexively. Then he froze as the weight of the word landed. A moment later, he heard Katara move in behind him. She put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it gently.
“When,” she repeated firmly. “We’ll find him, Zuko. If my father is working with the White Lotus, he’ll know how to send a message to your uncle. We will find him.” Zuko didn’t trust himself to speak just then. He lifted his hand up to his shoulders and placed over Katara’s. They stayed that way for a few seconds. Then Katara impulsively threw her arms around him and gave him a hug from behind before she went back to her breakfast.
Read the rest here
