The heat was burning on the volcano, the night sky illuminated by the lava. Ryoko looked around, her long hair whipping around her, only to find an older man blocking the lava from injuring him. He was deteriorating every minute, his knees weakening until he couldn't bare it anymore. 

She felt herself move closer and closer to him though she just wanted to walk away or even better, wake up.

The lava was surrounding them, inching closer and closer as they shield their eyes.

Ryoko jumps awake with a scream heard throughout the ship, clutching her chest. Her clothes were normal, drenched in sweat though. She breathes heavily trying to forget the dream. She heard footsteps rushing towards her quarters and she groaned in guilt. The door slides open revealing a soldier, Iroh, and Zuko. 

"What happened, Ryoko?" Iroh asks looking around the room for any danger. Ryoko sighs, sitting up from her bed to face the men. 

"It's fine, it's nothing, Iroh. I'm sorry to bother you all. You can leave." The soldier left with a bow of his head, leaving the other two there. They looked unsure still even if half asleep. "I'm okay. You can both go," she mumbles to them, turning back into her bed, facing away from them. 

Zuko and Iroh glance at each other, hesitant to actually leave. Iroh nods first. "Goodnight, Ryoko." He exits the doorway, leaving Zuko standing in there. He frowned at the girl whose eyes were wide open, yet had her back turned to him. 

"Goodnight," Ryoko hears his voice say before he closes the door letting the darkness take over the room again. 

---

The sun embraced her as she walked out of the inside of the ship onto the deck. There wasn't a cloud in sight. It was quiet, that made her suspicious.

Iroh sniffs the air as Ryoko goes to stand next to Zuko who looked through the telescope. "Why wasn't I woken up? I shouldn't be oversleeping." Her voice was stern, as if ready to punish somebody and herself for her own mistake of sleeping.  

"I told them not to disturb you for the morning. We were worried," Zuko says nonchalantly without taking his eyes off of the telescope. Ryoko turned away, composing herself and walking to the middle of the deck away from him. 

"There is a storm coming. A big one," Iroh says looking into the sky. Zuko looks away from the telescope for the first time and stomps over to his uncle.

"You're out of your mind, Uncle. The weather is perfect. There is not a cloud in sight."

"They say the clearest skies bring on the harshest storms," Ryoko speaks up from the middle of the deck. 

"Don't tell me you're getting metaphorical like my Uncle." Iroh interrupts the two before they could continue. 

"A storm is approaching from the North. I suggest we alter our course and head southwest." Ryoko clasps her hands together, straying towards the two. 

"We know the Avatar is traveling northward, so we will do the same." Ryoko sighs at the boy, giving him an unreadable expression.

"Prince Zuko, don't you think it would be better to wait out the storm and then continue? The Avatar will still be there when we go back to that direction." Zuko scoffs at her while Iroh continues to plead.

"Prince Zuko, consider the safety of the crew." Zuko approaches his uncle with a glare.

"The safety of the crew doesn't matter." The three turn their heads, their attention being brought to one of the crew members walk on the deck from downstairs. Zuko keeps the glare on his face, striding towards the lieutenant. "Finding the Avatar is far more important than any individual's safety." He leaves without another word, heading through the same door Ryoko went through minutes before. 

"He doesn't mean that. He's just all worked up," Iroh says defending his nephew. Ryoko stares at the door, lost in thought. What did her dreams mean? She feels a hand on her shoulder and she regains focus on Iroh.

"Perhaps you should get more rest. You will be useful with all your strength." Ryoko smiles at him and shakes her head.

"I'm fine, Iroh, really. Don't worry about me. I'm worried about him though. He's getting reckless and obsessed with the Avatar. I don't know if he will ever move on until he has him in his grasp." She looks up at the clear sky once again, watching birds fly over. 

They were clear in their direction, where they needed to go. Ryoko was not sure at all. She wasn't as positive about her journey to being good enough as Zuko was about restoring his honor. He had the goal of capturing the Avatar and returning home despite the possibility of there being no hope. Ryoko felt lost. She realized her father would never be able to accept her for reasons of his own even if she helped capture the Avatar, would she even gain the respect she desired? 

"That is why we are here, Ryoko. I know your father sent you to us for his own reasons, but you have been a gift in disguise." Ryoko looks down and nods. She leaves without another word, her steps barely making noise on the metal floors of the ship. 

Ryoko touched the insides of the walls in her quarters. She really was so tired, Iroh was right. She needed the rest but she couldn't allow that for herself. She was not weak, she repeated to herself. Troubled sleeping wasn't going to keep her down and weak. She was strong enough to take on her father, even if she wasn't aware. 

She sat in her bed, her head in her hands. If she could sleep for a few minutes, maybe she would be better. Ryoko heard the thunder then and sighed. Iroh was right of course. She jumps up from her bed, adjusting herself. She tightened her hair in the ponytail, letting the strands fall to the sides of her face. 

She went down where everyone from the crew was, the deck. Zuko looked out into the ocean with disdain. "Oh. Looks like your uncle was right about the storm after all," the Lieutenant from earlier says. Iroh gives a shy smile to ease the tension between Zuko and the man.

"Lucky guess."

Zuko turns to the lieutenant in anger. "Lieutenant, you'd better learn some respect, or I will teach it to you." He walks away with his fists clenched, Ryoko walking forward after him. 

The Lieutenant wasn't done with him. "What do you know about respect?" Iroh shakes his head rapidly at the lieutenant to not start with Prince Zuko while Ryoko's eyes slightly widen. "The way you talk to everyone around here, from your hard-working crew, the commander's daughter, to your esteemed uncle, shows you know nothing about respect." Ryoko stands next to Zuko, watching as his amber eyes stared out into nothing listening to the lieutenant rant. "You don't care about anyone but yourself." He twitched in anger, Ryoko stood in front of him, her hands on his arms trying to look in his eyes. "Then again, what should I expect from a spoiled prince?" Zuko clenched his jaw and shrugged off Ryoko's hands, getting into a fighting stance towards the lieutenant who follows in suit.

"Easy now." The two men put their wrists together, the smoke rising from the friction. Iroh stood in the middle of the two. Ryoko put a hand to Zuko's chest, trying to find some way to calm him, annoyed at the two. 

"Enough! The both of you!" Ryoko yells as Iroh cuts between them and slapping their wrists away.

"We're all a bit tired from being at sea so long. I'm sure after a bowl of noodles, everyone will feel much better." The lieutenant walks away without question as Zuko turns away from him and Ryoko. 

"I don't need your help keeping order on my ship." Iroh sadly walks up to his nephew, putting hand on his shoulder. Zuko in return shoves his hand off of him and storms off toward the end of the ship. Ryoko smiled sadly at the man who did so much for his nephew whenever he could. 

"I'll talk to him, Iroh. Don't worry. Get inside before the rain starts." Ryoko walks off after the boy and Iroh watches her departing figure. Even when he His heart warmed seeing the girl who cared about Zuko as much as he did be there for him in his hardest times. 

Ryoko stood next to Zuko without saying a word, watching as the sky became darker over the deck. "He doesn't know what he's talking about," is all she says without movement. She wasn't sure what to say to him. "You should get inside before the rain starts, you don't want to get sick when we find the Avatar." Zuko stayed silent and she sighed turning away, but felt her hand get grabbed roughly. 

She glances back at the boy who barely turned his head. His sad countenance struck her and she turned back and held his right hand with her right, holding onto his arm with her left hand. She sighed closing her eyes, leaning her head on his arm. The wind started to pick up slowly, despite the calm between the two alone on the deck. Ryoko almost lulled to sleep in the serenity of nothing being around but quickly awoke from the drops of rain that were starting to fall. She ripped her fingers from his and felt her forehead that was wet from the rain and looked up. "We should get inside, let's go," she tells him still looking into the sky. She turned her head to him and she quietly took his right hand with her left, interlocking their fingers to guide him back inside. 

Zuko looked down at their hands, feeling her grip his hand tightly again, ignoring the fluttering feeling inside.

Ryoko led him to his quarters, and sleepily sat down on the cushion on the opposite side of the bed. She observed his scar on his face, remembering the day he got it, for speaking out against the general and the fire lord for soldiers who would be sacrificed. 

She was only a year younger than him at 12, and watched as her friend begged for mercy to his father. She could feel her father's smirk behind her, his once gentle hand gripping her shoulder harshly. She grimaced as the fire lord threateningly walked towards his son. "You will fight for your honor."

"I meant no disrespect. I am your loyal son." He bowed before him, his eyes pleading with his father.

"Rise and fight, Prince Zuko." Ryoko shivered, knowing the fire lord would do as he pleases despite his son's pleads.

"I will not fight you." 

"You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher." Ryoko wanted to look away, she turned her head to see her best friend gaze with devious eyes at her brother's pain but she felt hands on her head turning her forward.

She felt her father lean down into her ear, his eyes never looking away from the bright flames. "A warrior never looks away." Ryoko teared up, wanting to close her eyes and shield her ears but fearing her father as well she listened to him and she listened to the screams of Zuko and watched in horror as his father scarred him. 

"Ryoko." She opened her eyes widely, waking herself from her dozing mind and focused on him again. 

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Zuko stood up and walked over to her, crouching before her. He put a hand on her shoulder, wanting to delicately touch her face that stared at him sleepily. Her gold eyes were smaller from the fact she was about to sleep any moment. Her usually tense figure was no longer, her walls were put down. 

"You haven't slept, Ryoko." He paused, gazing into her eyes. He then went stiff and stood up. "Sleep over there. You won't be of use to anybody falling asleep." Ryoko's lips twist into a frown as if in disappointment, but Zuko shook his head and she nods getting up, with his help and fell down onto the soft mat and closed her eyes. Zuko watched as she drifted off easily and turned back to the cushion she sat at and sat himself. He glared in front of him, thinking of memories from his childhood. 

Iroh in the lower levels watched the reactions of the crew as they heard his confession of the reality of Zuko's scar. "After the duel, the fire lord said by refusing to fight, Zuko had shown shameful weakness. As punishment he was banished and sent to capture the Avatar. Only then could he return with his honor." The light from the fire in the center illuminated the crew's terrified faces. 

"So that's why he's so obsessed. Capturing the Avatar is the only chance he has of things returning to normal." 

"Things will never return to normal. But the important thing is, the Avatar gives Zuko hope." 

"What about Commander Zhao's daughter? Was she banished as well? We assumed she was sent to supervise him," the lieutenant brings up. 

"Her father offered her to the fire lord to accompany Prince Zuko soon after he was banished. She joined our ship after we had left." Iroh did not speak any further, not wanting to reveal how her father showed little care for his daughter, and how she first adjusted to the ship. He wanted them to be seen by the crew in the same light he saw them. 

Ryoko opened her eyes slowly, bringing up her hands to wipe the sleep from her eyes. She turns her head, only seeing the light blocked by Zuko. "Zuko?" she mumbles but is overshadowed by the loud crashing of lightning on the ship. She pushes herself up and looks around with urgency. The two teens meet eyes and without words rush out of the room and to the deck where they met the rest of the crew. 

The ship shook violently as everyone tried to keep foot on the ground. "Where were we hit?" Zuko asks loudly.

"I don't know," the lieutenant answers him. 

Iroh makes his way to the three pointing up. "Look!" Up above, smoke was waving around where the helmsman was hanging by a finger. 

"The helmsman!" Zuko runs over along with the lieutenant while Iroh and Ryoko stood below with caution. Zuko quickly climbed the ladder to get to the man with the lieutenant at his feet. The lightning got closer, the light shining in the darkness of the storm until it came down on the ship meeting Iroh's fingertips. Ryoko stares with wide eyes as he redirects it off the ship and into the water. 

Before Zuko, the lieutenant, the helmsman returned to the deck, Ryoko rushes over to Iroh with urgency. "How did you do that?" Iroh glances up at the girl with her fascinated eyes. 

"One day you will see, for now we have more to worry about." 

Zuko came and stood next to his uncle and Ryoko, his hand impulsively reaching for her, his eyes wandering up to the sky where Appa flew overhead.

"The Avatar!" Zuko yells out.

"What do you want to do, sir?" Zuko falters, looking down at Ryoko for a second before he turned to the lieutenant. 

"Let him go. We need to get this ship to safety." Ryoko smiles slightly at him, knowing the difficulty of choosing between what was right. 

"Then we must head directly into the eye of the storm." They waited on the deck until the rain started to clear up, the light blue color being revealed in the sky. 

"Uncle, I'm sorry," Zuko says out of the blue. He let go of Ryoko, looking down in shame.

"You apology is accepted." Iroh pats his hand on Zuko's shoulder but this time Zuko didn't shake his hand away but accepted it. Without another word, Iroh walks away but Ryoko stays. 

"I'm proud of you, Zuko." Delicately, her fingertips brushed the back of his hand. She felt his fingers reach up but the crash of the water came to their ears. Appa flew over the two, the water dropping across the area as Aang looks down at the two. Ryoko strays off, locking eyes with the Avatar. A part of her wondered what the Avatar felt when he stared into her eyes that locked with the past Avatar Roku's at the temple. Even when on the ship alone with Zuko, Ryoko found ways to be reminded of the Avatar and what she was involved with, and she never knew how to feel about it.