DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER

Well, I waited a long time to finally write my first FanFic and here it is. I still have little idea where this is going to go but I hope you guys can help me out.

Takes place directly after Season 2 of the original series.

The Avatar is assumed to have been slain. Zuko, accompanied by Azula, returns home after betraying his uncle, who is locked away in a prison cell beneath the Royal Palace of the Fire Nation. Having restored his honor, Zuko knows nothing of where his life is headed, or whether or not his father, Fire Lord Ozai, will accept him. However, a certain girl opens up a side of Zuko he never knew existed, and steals a place in his heart. The Avatar's gang and some of Zuko's new companions are set out to end the war and save the world from turmoil. They wish to restore honor to the other Nations of the world and bring back peace and justice to all. This is their story and the legend of Avatar Aang.

Chapter One: Welcome Home

Several weeks had passed since the day Princess Azula of the Fire Nation struck down the Avatar in Ba Sing Se. The Lightning from her fingertips pierced the body of the young child who fell into the arms of his friend, Katara of the Water Tribes. Panic ensued and the evil princess smirked at her greatest accomplishment: slaying the world's hero, the one who was going to defeat the Fire Nation and restore peace to the world. The Dragon of the West, Iroh, protected the Avatar and Katara long enough for them to escape and make their way elsewhere. The Dai Li then captured the traitor and the Fire Nation siblings of royalty left the city. The Earth Kingdom had fallen and victory of the war was in sight.

Zuko lay in a bed of the Fire Nation ship he was traveling in on his way back home to the Fire Nation. His sister was not in sight. She was most likely planning war strategies to conquer the other remaining nations, he figured. Her friends, Mai, the always bored, emotionless assassin, and Ty Lee, the hyper-active and over cheery acrobat, were also in the same ship. The two of them were also not in sight.

Zuko thought about that day back in Ba Sing Se, where he had to make the hardest decision of his young life. He had to choose between staying with his uncle or regaining his honor. His uncle was the only person to stand by his side during his three years of banishment, a debt he could never repay. He didn't understand why, however. His uncle was always the caring kind and maybe, just maybe, he loved the scarred prince. Not a chance, Zuko thought, he only stayed with me so I wouldn't be alone. He doesn't care for me. His other option badly outweighed his first. If he had stayed with his uncle he would have gained one man's love but the hate of an entire nation. If he chose to return home he would have gained a nation's love and one man's hate. And easy decision, he figured. He refused to let the subject bother him anymore and turned in for the night after a long, hard day.

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The GAang was asleep on top of Appa, Aang's one hundred year old flying bison. There was no general direction they were headed but one thing was certain: stay away from the Fire Nation. Toph was holding herself close. She disliked not being on solid ground very much, mostly because it took away her way of seeing. It blinded her, a feeling she did not like. Sokka was lying flat on his back with his limbs spread out as far as possible. His belly moved up and down at a very relaxed pace. His obnoxiously loud snoring and sleep talk about meat were exactly what kept Katara awake. She was the only one of the group not in a slumber. Her body rested in a sitting position on top of Appa's large head. He let out loud groans of exhaustion every once in a while. He was becoming tired. Suddenly, Katara felt somebody's body stir against her own. She looked down at the peaceful face of the young Avatar resting in her lap. She smiled at him.

"Aang...are you awake?" she asked.

"…Where are we, Katara? What happened?" he asked in return, still feeling dizzy and tired. He felt the grip around his body tighten as Katara hugged him harder than he had ever been embraced before. She placed her forehead in the groove of the young boy's neck. He smiled in return and wrapped his arms around her as well. The burn mark of Azula's lightning strike on his back bothered him very little. After all, it had been a while since he was last conscious, not that he was aware.

"I like your hair" Katara said to him, giggling, much to his surprise.

"W-What…? I don't have hair" he said, shocked at her remark. He felt the top of his head and noticed that he did indeed have hair. "I can't believe it! You were right…How long was I out?"

"It was a few weeks. I was afraid you weren't going to wake up," she replied. The tears in the back of her eyes were starting to burn. She wanted to cry, but she wouldn't let herself. She was a strong girl now. "You had everyone so worried."

"Katara, sorry…I-"

"Don't be sorry. It wasn't your fault at all" she finished for him, trying to keep the boy from being disappointed in himself. "I know you wouldn't leave the world…not me." The last part was a whisper, not meant for the child to hear.

"…But what happened? Where are we going?"

"Azula struck you with her lightning and you fell, back at Ba Sing Se. Zuko's uncle helped us escape. Ba Sing Se was taken over and the Earth Kingdom fell…Everyone's here but we don't know where we are going" she finished up.

"I failed…the world…" he started after taking in all the information.

"No you didn't, Aang!" she interrupted. "I know you'll save us. Save everyone!"

"How can I?!? The Earth Kingdom fell and I don't know what to do!" he spat. "I'm just a boy. I can't take on an entire army alone!"

"You're not alone" Aang and Katara looked behind themselves to see Sokka trying to get comfortable on Appa's back. They had wakened him. "Now shut up. I guy can't go to sleep when you're blabbering."He lay back down, attempting to fall into his disturbed slumber again. Aang and Katara continued to stare at the water tribe warrior, wondering if he'd realized what happened. Then it hit him, shown by his jumping to the head of the flying beast. "BALDY'S AWAKE!!! Wait...can't use that one anymore" he said and hugged his adolescent friend.

Aang giggled, "It's nice to see you too buddy!" He returned the embrace and broke it after a few seconds. Toph had awoken as well and smiled at the recovery of the young Avatar.

"Well, well…Twinkeltoes. Welcome back" she said to him as she sat in the center of Appa's back. "Nice hair" she joked and laughed at him.

"Hey Toph! I'm glad to see everyone's okay!" he said joyfully. He bent down to meet Appa's eyes. "Hey there buddy! Are you glad to see me? I sure am to see you!" he said while rubbing the great beast's forehead. He was answered with a huge groan from his longtime friend, and everyone laughed. He returned to his friends and sat in the small circle they had formed on the beast's back. "Something's not right. I can't place my finger on it" he said, deep in thought. He was interrupted by MoMo landing atop his head. "That's it! MoMo!"

He grabbed the flying lemur off his head and hugged the furry little creature. Everything seemed right to the group for the first time in a few weeks. Smiles covered the faces of everyone.

Their family was whole again.

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Mai watched as her childhood friend attempted to show her a few new moves she taught herself. All she saw was Ty Lee repeating what she had showed Mai everyday for the last few days. What have I gotten myself into? she thought. In all honesty she was not very impressed. She would rather be polishing her knives or trying to talk with her childhood crush, the Prince of the Fire Nation. However, she decided to leave him alone. She knew he wasn't feeling very well. After all, he had not come out to the deck of the ship even once during their three week trip back home. He wasn't ready for people just yet.

"Ty Lee, can I go now? I admit, you are very good at twisting your body into awkward positions and flipping several times in the air. I'm impressed" she attempted, trying anything to leave her friend alone.

"But wait, Mai!" the cheery girl pouted. "This is the best part!"

"I think I've seen enough. I am out of here" she said as she left her friend's quarters with strong, undeniable steps.

"Aww...Mai, you're no fun," the girl whined. "Wait, I have an idea! Why don't we play-"

"NO! I am going to my room. Do me a favor and don't come unless something urgent comes up" and with that she was gone, leaving her best friend to herself.

"Okay…bye" Ty Lee responded, the sadness in her voice very obvious and very fake.

"Don't try that. Bye."

Mai had gone through the narrow halls of the ship and returned to her own room. The room next to her own was that of Zuko. The two across the hall were Ty Lee's and Azula's. The workers slept in a big, crowded room at the bottom of the ship, next to the prison cell that held none other than the Dragon of the West.

Mai lay on her bed polishing her throwing knives with a fine cloth. She had plenty of them hidden in her clothes. One never knows when he/she will need them. Eventually, after she finished cleaning and saw the silver shine, she got out of her bed and looked out the hallway. She was going to see Zuko and she didn't need any of Azula or Ty Lee's crap about it. Seeing that the halls were clear she decided to make a run for it. Being an assassin, she could run as fast as she liked without making a single sound. Even the Zuko was her neighbor, his room was still at least twenty feet away, so she had to be quick.

She eventually reached the door of her childhood crush and peeped in it. "Zuko…" she whispered, not wanting to alarm the boy. No response. So she took it that he was asleep and walked to his bed. She looked down at the rough face of the prince. His crimson colored scar covered half of his face. She reached down to touch it, but Zuko suddenly stirred. She stopped, thinking of how uncomfortable the situation could become if he saw her. Luckily, he turned around and rested the scarred side of his face on the pillow.

She sighed, lucky not to have been seen. She continued to look at him. Although her crush was no longer the degree it was when they were younger, she still liked him. She thought about whether they could ever be together. The war was over and the children would most likely stay at home, with the exception of Ty Lee, who may return to the circus. She knew how much the place meant to her friend.

Mai looked at Zuko one last time and walked over to the opposite side of the bed so she could see his face clearly. She reached down and placed the smallest, softest of kisses on his cheek. She left the room with a small smile on her face and a blush on her cheeks.

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After Mai had walked away from her, Ty Lee decided to check on what Azula was up to. Skipping and humming, big smile on face, she approached the door of her longtime friend. She didn't need to knock; Azula wouldn't mind is it was her. And she would be in a good mood now that the war was basically over. So she tried.

"Hey Azula!"

"What do you want?" the girl questioned. She looked busy with something.

"Whatcha doing?" she replied, a little too interested. She walked up to behind Azula and looked down at the map. "OH! Are you planning on taking a vacation! Can I come?"

"No, Ty Lee. I am busy so I would appreciate if you left me alone" she answered. It was obvious that she tried to keep her cool, but she was aggravated about something. Sensing this, Ty Lee tried to push the subject, just to annoy her friend. She smirked.

"Okay then, I'll just stay here" she smiled. It's funny when she gets mad Ty Lee thought. She sat on Azula's desk and looked down at her, making the princess uncomfortable.

"Don't play games with me" she warned. She got up while Ty Lee got down. She loved being a princess of the strongest nation in the world. Everyone cowered in fear when she wanted them to. "You've five seconds to get your ass out of the door or I'll move it for you" she said, not showing any signs of any emotions.

The younger girl moved out the door but kept one foot in, giggling all the way. "ALL of you" the princess specified. "Five…four…three…two…ONE!" The girl did not move, giggling instead. Azula shot a bolt of lightning inches away from her friend's foot. The girl screamed and fell back.

"Geez, Azula…I was just messing around with you" the scared girl said. "But what are you doing?"

"Nothing. Now go annoy Mai." She ordered.

"But Mai left m-" she was cut off when the door was slammed in her face. She looked around and saw a few guards around her age walking up the flight of stairs. She smirked. She was going to have fun with them.

"Hey there, cutie!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Azula resumed her work. She had orders from her father to plan a quick and effective way to take command of the Water Tribes. The Air Nomads were dead and the Earth Kingdom had fallen. The peasant water tribesmen were the only ones left. She marked the map and sought a quick ambush strategy. This was going to be way too easy, she figured.

She heard a horn and felt the ship begin to slow. This was it. They were home. She wondered what would become of Zuko. "This should be interesting…" she whispered devilishly to herself.

End Chapter One

Well this was fun to write. I know this chapter wasn't all that good and was somewhat boring but I promise it'll get better because this chapter was just to build up the story for what is yet to come. Seriously, you'll find it much better if you read on! =)

So, my first fic, was it good to start? Did I get the characters in character? Lemme know what you think!

Review please! You don't need to be logged in to do so!