Summary: Zuko made a different decision in the caves below Ba Sing Se and helped the Avatar fight his sister. The Gaang are all on the run again, this time chased by Azula with Iroh and Zuko on the team, when they meet a young woman who gives Aang hope of a future for the Air Nomads


Warnings/Spoilers: Mentions of death, torture, violence, Sexual Situation, Rough Language and Poor Grammar.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 1 - Meetings

Misora tasted the fruit offered to her by the vendor, nodding her thanks for the sample before turning her attention to the sounds of a loud young Water tribesman. She watched the boy, a young man really, haggle with one of the vendors, while a girl, his sister probably, pulled an Earthbender alongside him. She smiled at the tender way he handed out the food he'd purchased, giving out the portions to both the girls, even a little begrudgingly giving up a larger portion for himself. However, she nearly choked on the peach cherries when she saw the orange colors adorning the smaller boy in the group. Spitting the pit onto the ground she gawked at the boy, the Avatar. She had been search for months and the day that she had truly given up, he stands not ten feet from her. She watched them for at least an hour before the Waterbender even noticed her. The girl moved in front of the Avatar, blocking Misora's view of the twelve year old.

Katara had just been about to go over to the auburn haired woman dressed in Earthbender greens when chaos took over the crowded market. She heard Sokka yell behind her, Toph pulling her back with a scream of "Stay together, Princess," and Aang ran past her to knock the woman out of the path of a Salamander-dragon. They landed in a heap rolling under a vender's table just as the ground she had been standing on was occupied by the fiery beast. They looked at each other before scrambling into a crouching position.

"Hi, I'm Aang," he said, with a grin over the commotion, screams from villagers and the sounds of the Dai Li and their beasts ravaging the town could be heard all around them.

"Uh, I'm Misora," She said, reaching out to grab the boy as the Salamander-dragons crashed through their table. She pulled him into a standing position, his bald head reached her shoulders, and he had used his bending abilities to make himself lighter than air. They moved away from one another and took a fighting stance. The boy's friends came to gather around them; forming a crescent moon shape and facing the enemy.

She smirked at them, youths representing the nations so well, working together. All that was missing from the group was a Firebender. Just as that thought entered her mind a boy roughly her age and a plump elderly man joined them. They were dressed in the greens of the Earth kingdom but one look at their golden skin-tone and eyes betrayed them as Fire nation. Her body tensed as they all grouped together and the Dai Li focused on the six youths and one adult. She would trust the Avatar, for now, if these were his friends and that would have to be enough.

"Azula's with them, I though we'd lost them after Ba Sing Se," the Fire nation boy stated, out of breath, and suddenly noticed the new addition to their group, "Who are you?" He glared down at the gray eyed girl, her long braid going over Aang's head and hitting the tip of Sokka's nose as she turned her head quickly to stare up at him. The Water nation boy howled once, drawing the attention of the Dai Li fully upon them.

"Ahh, Zuzu, look at what you've gotten yourself into. Father will be so disappointed when I tell him how you died siding with his greatest foe," Azula's cool voice came over the crowd as the Dai Li parted for her

"The Avatar is only the foe of those who would enslave and kill others for their own gain," the young man shouted, his voice loud, his words clear and strong. Misora felt drawn to them; as though his words meant more. Then it all clicked together; Princess Azula had said Father, this was Prince Zuko and the older man must be Iroh, the Dragon of the West. She had seen the posters; but the pictures had depicted two very different men. It was no wonder they had gone so long hidden from the Fire nation; even with Zuko's scar. As the siblings spared with words Aang edged up to her, grasping her sleeve lightly.

"Are you an Earthbender?" Aang asked her, his voice quiet as they began to line up to fight. She shook her head as a knife hilt was pressed into her hand. She looked to her left, up at the young man who would be Fire Lord if they were to survive this fight but he never looked at her, his face still trained upon his sister.

"Give up the Avatar and your deaths will be painless," Azula shouted as the Dai Li and the small force of Fire nation soldiers lined up as well.

"Not much of a choice is it, Niece? Either way we die? I, myself choose to die with my honor intact," the round man said, bowing a bit before taking a Firebending defensive pose. Voices all echoed the sentiment, Misora's voice the loudest of them all. In retrospect her next move was either utter brilliance or completely foolish; in the end it didn't matter since it worked. She screamed a war cry, the Fire nation knife held close to her body as she ran full speed at Azula. In this moment Aang realized she wasn't a member of the Earthbending nation. She darted past the fire thrown at her by the Firebending foot soldiers, a lightening bolt just barely missed her as she jumped into a flip right over the Fire nation's Princess and cut off her bun. The hair fell quickly but she still caught the tiara the had adorned it and with a spin used the pointed crown to slash a ribbon in the younger girl's cheek. She disappeared into the crowd before anyone had a chance to react.

"That was the coolest thing I've ever seen," Sokka whispered reverently, his voice taking on a quivering high pitch. Toph was looking in the direction of Aang, hoping to catch his eye. That woman was not apart of the Earth kingdom, she knew movement like that; Aang moved that way.

"Save it for later, Toph," Katara whispered; the Earthbender nodded but gave the Waterbender a look that said it would be discussed. They watched Azula raise her hand to her cheek, the blood running down her hand and into her sleeve.

"That was incredibly stupid, peasant," she spat, anger edging into her voice. Zuko was looking around for the girl only to find her resettling back into her spot next to him; the tiara his sister had worn tucked into her yellow belt, the blood staining her tunic. She still held his knife, the same one he had cut his own hair with, in her left hand. He smirked as his sister fumed and the irony was not lost on him. Misora smirked as the Princess in Earthbender robes shook in anger, smoke escaping her nose like a dragon.

"Do we have a battle cry?" the scarred youth next to her asked Aang.

"No, I don't think so," he said, a confused look on his face.

"Oh, good," he said, as he inhaled deeply before he began throwing giant fireballs at the Dai Li soldiers with a laugh. Misora gave a shout as she ran at a tall, dour looking girl. The girl finally had to look of interest as the two began fighting, the pair equally matched. They fought, as the others battled around them began attacking the enemy.

Toph had taken out a good portion of the Dai Li with the aid of the group's two Firebenders. She was laughing all the while as the two men worked in tandem to defeat the Firebenders. Aang was busy with Azula, who kept trying to target the girl who had cut her face and hair. Sokka and Katara were after Ty Lee, who couldn't stop flirting with the Water tribesman. The fight was going well, the added aid of Iroh and Zuko plus the skill of Misora, put them at the advantage. But once Sokka and Katara fell to Ty Lee's pressure point talents Aang lost his concentration. With a gasp the Waterbender fell to the ground distracting Aang enough for Azula to get one good blast in. The Airbender flew into a building, the already unsteady roof collapsing upon him. Toph and the Firebenders closed ranks around their downed troops.

Misora noticed the change in the tide of the battle and made a another decision that she knew would change her life. Backing up from the stiletto wielding girl she began to move the air around her. With a dancers spin she threw a wall of wind that knocked back a third of the forces against them, including a stunned Ty Lee and Mai. She ran over to the group, jabbing the Waterbender and her brother in quick succession, bringing them out of their stupor. The Prince grabbed her upper arm as she tried to make her way to the Avatar. His grip was strong and he pulled her close to him. His breath was hot against her face but she felt a shiver run down her spine.

"You're an Airbender," he said in statement.

"One of many," she said, her voice hard and her breath cold upon his neck. Azula's voice broke through their conversation.

"I'm calling you out, Airbending wench," she shouted, "Face me,"

End Chapter 1

Just a start, I'm not stopping my other stories, this was already written. Please Review, anything makes me write faster and gets you cookies!