open action {tea shop ... in the middle of a harpy attack?}❚entry nineteen

[pyromatics]

[Zuko's just come into the tea shop after a few days of being away from it and outrunning harpies (of all things) while he had taken to doing some investigating with the barriers and whatever else had been going down. His dark clothing is covered in splotches of drying mud and is torn in various places no thanks of narrowly escaping metal claws of

Comments

[hooksword]

[Well? Fuck.

Jet heard Zuko's voice and ducked quickly into the kitchen, moving to the sink and grabbing a glass of water. He's not in the mood for a fight -- well. That's sort of a lie. He's always up for a fight with a firebender, but he's found enough tentative respect for Iroh to not launch into a fight with Zuko immediately.

Besides, despite the healing, he still hurts like hell.

He fills his glass of water and then makes a beeline for the stairs. Maybe Zuko will just assume it was a hallucination or something.]

[pyromatics]

HEY! Are you deaf?!

[Zuko enters the kitchen just as Jet's making that beeline out the back exit for the stairs. He blinks. There's no one there. But Zuko could have sworn he had heard the tap running.

He moves to the sink and watches the water drip-drip from the tap. Someone was definitely here, there was no way Zuko was hallucinating. The damn harpy didn't knock him in the head too hard...

Towards the back of the kitchen and cautiously out the exit into the back hall Zuko goes, straining to hear anything that might tip off the so-called 'illusion' he had seen.]

[hooksword]

[Ugh. There was nothing he hated more than running from Zuko. It was humiliating, and he was quivering with the effort that it took not to turn around and charge back down the stairs.

Except given the condition that he was still in, he wasn't sure that it was a good idea. Plus, he still had to try to suss out just what the hell Iroh wanted from him - why he was showing him this kindness at all.

He'd just wait for the old man to get home, and, slipping into his room.. stumbled when his sore knee twisted under him and dropped the glass of water. Shit. People were going to be able to hear that from downstairs.]

[pyromatics]

[Zuko comes to a stop just in front of the stairs when he hears the glass shattering on the floor above. His head snaps to the side and he stares up the staircase.]

... You can't run and hide forever... [Speaking to himself mostly Zuko takes the stairs two at a time, gripping the railing and using it to pull himself up each jump. Once he's at the top he rushes down the hall to where the bedrooms are located, not even bothering to stop at the bathroom or linen closet in case the bastard's playing hide and go seek in there.

Since the door to his room is left open and there's no one in there that Zuko can see, his attention immediately switches to Iroh's room, the only place left to go unless Jet wanted to make a break out the second floor window.]