Hey, was just looking over old stories and thought I'd re-write this for you guys… Hope you enjoy it. ShellyMay.
As we came closer to the palace I could see Azula yelling at an old man with a Fire Nation headpiece in his hands. Appa growled, landing at the opposite end of the courtyard to Azula.
"Sorry, but you're not going to become Fire Lord today." Zuko shouted to her as he jumped off of Appa. "I am."
Azula scoffed in obviously disbelieving. "You're hilarious."
Moving to stand beside I'm called out to her "And you're going down."
The old man moved to crown Azula but she stopped him with a raised hand. "Wait. You want to be Fire Lord Fine. Let's settle this. Just you and me, brother. The showdown that was always meant to be. Agni Kai!"
"You're on." I turned to him, shocked that he was prepared to fight her one on one.
"What are you doing? She's playing you. She knows she can't take us both so she is trying to separate us." I whispered hurriedly, pleading with him to listen to reason.
"I know. But I can take her this time." He sounded so sure of himself but I knew what she could do, I'd fought her myself and lost every time.
"But even you admitted to your Uncle that you would need help facing Azula." I tried one more time.
"There's something off about her, I can't explain it but she's slipping. And this way, no one else has to get hurt." He reasoned and looking at her closely I could see what he meant. This was not the cool and calculated Fire Nation Princess I'd faced in the past.
I moved to the end of the courtyard to watch as Zuko and Azula kneeled facing each other before rising.
Azula pulled of her Fire Lord robes as she called out "I'm sorry it has to end this way, brother."
"No, you're not." Zuko muttered in his first stance.
Azula smiled knowingly and assumed an awkward and shakier version of the fighting stance. Before I knew what was happening blue and orange flames filled the courtyard as the two siblings fought it out once and for all. Zuko had the upper hand from the beginning although my heart still leapt with every one of Azula's attacks.
At a pause in the fighting Azula looked behind her to see the damage to the palace by her brother, enraged she leapt forward to attack and my heart picked up its pace again. I was so worried about everyone, their faces flashed in front of my eyes smiling and laughing. The kisses I'd shared with Aang before the invasion and on Ember Island replayed in my mind.
I was brought back to the fight by Zuko taunting Azula "No lightning, today? What's the matter? Afraid I'll re-direct it?"
I couldn't control my own actions. I ran forward as he took the stance for redirecting lightening. "Oh, I'll show you lightening!" She begins bending but her movements are sloppier than before. She finishes generating the lightening and instead of attacking Zuko she aims the lightening at me. Everything slowed down. I watched as Zuko leaped in front of me, trying to re-direct it from mid-air. Lightening shot into the sky as he collapsed clutching at his chest. Electricity arced around him before dissipating. "Zuko!" I was running forward water covering my hand to heal him. Only to be forced to leap away as another lightning bolt was shot at me. She laughed manically before rushing towards me for an attack. I ran away from Azula's attacks my mind thinking only of how little time Zuko had before my healing abilities would be rendered useless.
I somersaulted away from an attack and hid behind a large pillar. "I'd really rather our family physician look after little Zuzu if you don't mind!" I peeked around a saw her standing on a roof to the side of the courtyard, she was bending more lightning. I used large streams of water to block her attacks and ran to new pillar, crouching a clutched my head in my hands and took a deep breath before standing up and peeking at Zuko sprawled on his back clutching his chest.
"Zuzu," Azula yelled from the roof. "You don't look so good!"
Breathing deeply a stepped out from the pillar bending a wall of water over the roof where Azula had been standing, only to find that she had disappeared. Half a second later she flew down behind me and I ran out into the courtyard using various fountains to skate away from her repeated attacks. I ran out of water to bend and stumbled onto the metal grating of the palace drains. Looking up I saw a chain looped around a hook on the pillar. I grabbed it quickly as Azula came around another pillar and advanced to attack
"There you are, filthy peasant!" She yelled. I stood my ground determination steeling me in place. I mean come on technically speaking I'm the princess of the Sothern Water Tribe! Quickly I sent a stream of water towards Azula to get her where a needed her. It worked she dodged and rolled right onto the drain, attempting to attack while she tried to stand up. Before she can do any damage I bend the water from the drain around us and froze it in place.
Satisfaction washed through me as her eyes darted around in panic. I closed my eyes and concentrated on melting the ice around me allowing me to chain Azula to the drain before completely melting the ice and breathing deeply. After a second I finished restraining Azula and ran to Zuko. He was moaning as I kneeled next to him and moved his hands away from his chest. It was horrifying. The smell of burnt flesh permeated the air making my stomach roll, the fabric of his tunic was seared away exposing a gaping hole in his chest. Carefully I pressed my water-covered hand into the wound concentrating on his chi to heal him as best I could, gritting my teeth when he grimaced and sighing in relief when he finnaly relaxed and opened his eyes.
"Thank you, Katara." He whispered to me weakly as tears flooded my eyes.
"I think I'm the one who should be thanking you." I told him as I helped him up and we turned to look at Azula who was still struggling, rolling around breathing fire. We had done it. We had beaten her.