The Little Dragon

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Tuesday, July 14th

Kaida

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    All of us walked towards the door and they did a series of knocks and a slit appeared and was soon filled with a pair of eyes, "who knocks at the guarded gate?"

    "One who has eaten the fruit and tasted its mysteries." My hands tingled with curiosity. I walked closer to them, and the person's eyes were shut behind the slit closing and the door opening. Iroh and the Pai Sho player enter, Zuko and I attempt to follow them, but the door is shut in our faces. Iroh slides open the door's window. "I'm afraid it's members only. Wait out here."

    I frowned and plopped myself on the ground with a huff, "I want to join." Zuko frowns and crosses his arms. He leans over to a nearby plant and sniffs it, before sitting down next to me.

    "It's just a bunch of old men talking, what's there to join?" Zuko said with his hands out.

    I look at him with a black face and he leaned back and gave me a 'what?' look. "You know you are the most boring person I have ever met." He frowned at this.

    "So what? I'm just not interested in what a bunch of old men are saying! What's so boring about that?" He said defensively, crossing his arms again.

    I laughed and lightly pushed his shoulder, not enough for him to move, but enough to make him feel it. "I'm joking! Why are you so serious all the time!"

    Then he gave me a hard look, "you used to be serious all the time too." He said it in a way like he had been thinking about it for a long while before now.

    "Serious? Am I different now?" I said shifting my body to face him head-on. He nodded his head. "What? Really?" He nodded his head again, not saying a word. "What's so different about me now?" I think I have been acting as normal, if anything, he is the one who changed.

    "It's not a bad thing." He rests his arm on his leg, perching up his face. His hand covering the side of his face closest to me. "You just talk a lot more. And there is a lot more passion and purpose to you. I don't know how to explain it so don't ask."

    "I think you talk a lot more too!" He gave me a side glance. "All you used to talk about is Avatar this and Avatar that, it's good that we can talk about another topic," I said honestly, slumping against a pot.

     "Did I really?" Then he sighed again. "I just don't want to make you uncomfortable, you know, I understand you are friends with him." He looked down at his hands.

    "You understand?" I said brows raised. He nodded his head.

    "Yeah..." There was a pause, "you- you looked really happy with them." Then he looked over to me, meeting my eyes, "and they seemed happy with you too." He sighed leaning back on the same pot as mine. "I just," he sighed again, "I just don't want to take that away from you."

    Is this the Zuko I know? The real Zuko? I pinched my arm, yeah I'm not dreaming. Then the blush hit me and I had to look away, "thanks." I could only mumble it out. I saw his shadow move over mine.

    "What wrong." He tried to look at me. I moved away, "Kaida?" He moved closer, "what's wrong? Let me see your face." He moved my hair out of my face.

   I slapped a hand to my face to avoid him seeing my blush, "nothing." I said pushing his face away from mine, "that was just really nice of you."

    "Nice of me?" I nodded my head. "Hey, I'm going to come closer again." I heard him move and instantly I stood up out of shock. To my dismay, I instantly got light-headed and wobbled. "Woah be careful!" Zuko shouted at me. Then we both toppled, crashing one of the plants.

    When I opened my eyes, Zuko was leaning over me. He looked at me worry in his eyes, then his eyes widen as if he remembered something from the past, and that made him smile. "Doesn't this make me a top type of guy?" He chuckled as my face lit up again.

    Then all of a sudden the door opens and Iroh steps out, causing Zuko to jump off me and roll off to the side, but it was too late Iroh had seen it. His mouth opened but I jump on it, standing up, my face still burning. "What's going on? Is the club meeting over?"

     I think Iroh chose to forget everything he just saw. "Everything is taken care of. We're heading to Ba Sing Se." He smiled, and I felt Zuko's heat next to me.

     "Ba Sing Se? Why would we go to the Earth Kingdom capital?" Zuko beat me to the punch.

     "The city is filled with refugees. No one will notice three more." The friend we made spoke looking at Iroh with a smile on his face. I wanted to know what they talked about! I wanted to stomp my foot with anger.

    "We can hide in plain sight there. And it's the safest place in the world from the Fire Nation. Even I couldn't break through to the city." The door opens and a man steps inside the flower shop. Our eyes shot over to him.

    "I have the passports for our guests, but there are two men out on the streets looking for them." He looked over to the two of us. Well, we knew of the two men looking for them. Maybe I should rough them up a bit again before we go to take revenge on what they did to Toph. Or well, one of them, I think the teacher is innocent.

    We moved to the window to see them holding our wanted posters into people's faces as they passed by. "They are going to get it." I raised my fist. That guy just never learns.

    "Do you know them?" Zuko asked again. I nodded my head.

    "They treated my friends poorly," shook my head as I remember what the announcer did to Aang and Toph.

    Zuko moved but Iroh put a hand on both of us, "we better get going, our escape is in the back." He forced us to turn and head to the back where we saw plants being unloaded for us. I used my hands and blew a whistle for Hyo.

    Seconds later Hyo showed up and tilted his head at me, I don't think I will be able to take this guy into Ba Sing Se. I hugged him close, "I'll come to get you in a few weeks." I sighed my heart hurting, "go give the gAang some company." I whispered so that Zuko didn't hear. "They probably need you." I sighed to myself.

    Hyo let out a sad little whimper. I shook my head, "I'll see you soon buddy." I stroked his scales which were coming in strong. He gave me one last look, a look of someone that you won't see for a long time. I gave him a wave before he blasted into the sky.

    "Kaida we need to go!" Zuko yelled, I clenched my fists. It was like I was at square one again, and the gAang never existed. There was a pool of sadness forming in my stomach. I wanted to be with my friends.

     "Hey." Zuko grabbed my shoulder and turned me around, "we need to go, what's wrong."

    "I had to say goodbye to Hyo." I pushed him out of the way. I had to say goodbye to someone that important to me for what? For Zuko's happiness? Rage filled me in a second. 

    "Kaida wait." He grabbed my wrist.

    "You're stopping me now?" I whirled ripping my hand out of his grasp. "I thought we needed to go." I hissed, I could feel the steam rising off of me.

    He let out a sigh before starting, his eyes soft, "I'm sorry." All the rage flowed out of me in a second. "You can go back to them." He looked over his shoulder at where Hyo has flown off. "Uncle is practically all healed, I'll be fine." He raised his hands up to my shoulders. "Kaida, I want you to be happy. I realized that at the Water Trible, and right now your happiness is somewhere else." He bent his shoulders and looked at me dead in the eyes.

    All of the strength flowed out of me, I leaned in and hugged him, "I'm staying. I will know when they need me." He hugged me back tighter.

    "Alright. Just-" There was a pause. "Just be happy, okay?" He said awkwardly and it made me smile.

    "Yeah, okay." I nodded into his chest.
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