¤ 40 - A Monster

[honorinflames]

[caught between the gnawing stagnation that living in his place brings, and the weird tension of a murder having occurred recently, Zuko seriously needs something to take his mind off of things.

He needs a hobby.

So, he's heading out to the stables, hoping that the mongoose dragon is still there... and that it won't maul him once he finds it]

[filtered to Xena]

Hey. Uh... I was wondering if you were still offering lessons, now that we're back.

I wanted to--

[/filter]

[but then, as he enters the stables and his eyes adjust to the light... he's met with something even more intimidating than a mongoose dragon. There's a small crash as he staggers back a few paces]

--Why is there a polar bear dog in the stables??

Comments

[akito]

The polar bear dog is Naga-san!

[ BIG FLUFFY DOG THAT LIKES GETTING PATS. *u* ]

[celestial_wizard]

A... polar bear dog...?

[ She knows a cat with wings. The idea of a polar bear dog shouldn't be that much of a stretch, gosh. ]

[sexyhitchhiker]

Somebody from your world showed up with it. [good job, zuko]

Zuko

[forgedinbattle]

I'm really not the teaching type, but if you're interested....

[You can practically hear her shrug.] It'd be something to do. Sure, why not?

[imalwaysright]

Polar bear dog? [He'll pause for a moment before remember that]

Oh, that's Naga.

[polar]

[And behind him, someone enters the stables carrying a big sack of feed in one arm, and a bucket of water in the other. She watches him crash backwards as she laughs loudly.]

Relax! She won't bite unless I tell her to.

Zuko

[waterbends]

[ The answer doesn't come until the next day or so. ]

Oh. You found Naga.

[honorinflames]

[he whirls a little when he hears the laugh, but still mostly stays defensively facing the giant animal]

What? But that's...

[whoa, wait. She looks like someone from the Water Tribe]

[honorinflames]

...Naga-san?

It has a name?

[honorinflames]

Yes! A polar bear dog! In the stable!

[this is no time to be confused, lady! there's a giant monster on the loose!]

[honorinflames]

...What?? Who?

[no one tells him anything anymore]

[polar]

[Korra sets the bucket of water down before calling to her friend.]

Hey, Naga! C'mere.

[Zuko gets a quick glance.] Hold this for a sec. [The bag of feed is deftly tossed his way as the giant animal makes a beeline for Korra, her tail wagging.]

Good girl!! [Hugs and kisses, yes.]

[honorinflames]

Wha-- [oof! he's not expecting the bag of feed to be quite that heavy, so he staggers back a step before he catches himself.

...And then goes another step back when the giant animal bounds over]

That thing is yours?

[sexyhitchhiker]

Korra, I think. [that might be the extent of her knowledge. Oh well.]

Xena

[honorinflames]

[hey, having an apathetic teacher will be a nice change of pace]

...Does it have to be with horses?

[honorinflames]

...You know its name too??

[seriously, how much had he missed??]

[imalwaysright]

Uh, yeah. It's kind of hard to miss it when it was right in the middle of the lobby.

[honorinflames]

Why didn't you tell me!

[not that he knows who 'Korra' is or anything. It's just the principle of the thing]

[polar]

[More pats and hugs and such before Korra looks at Zuko.]

Yeah, her name's Naga. I'm Korra, and who ar-- [She sees the scar and stops.]

Oh crud.

[honorinflames]

[alright, alright, he gets it. He's unobservant. And that only makes him sound more annoyed]

Well, what is it doing in the stable?

[sexyhitchhiker]

It slipped my mind.

What, is she a friend? [you have friends??]

[honorinflames]

[he doesn't really notice the recognition yet. He's too busy turning to set the bag of feed down. He's not going to stand around holding your stuff forever, lady]

Why is it in the stable? Those things aren't safe.

[honorinflames]

No.

[no, he doesn't have friends, dummy]

No one I know would have an animal like that. [--only horrible bloodthirsty lizard things]

[polar]

There's nowhere else for her to stay without being cooped up! And anyway, she's safe as long as you don't threaten me or my friends. I tamed her, so she's fine.

[honorinflames]

Yeah, she doesn't look dangerous at all. [oh, teenage sarcasm. He's got plenty of it]