A/N: Next Chapter! I made it before college!


It had been a day since we'd left Toph's home and now we were preparing to make camp. The sun was just beginning to set over the forest as we landed in the forest, and when Appa was firmly on the ground we dropped to the earth. As soon as we did I cringed when I realized what was around me. We were standing in a big pile of Appa's fur.

"Hey, you guys picked a great campsite," Toph said, her own bare feet planted in his fur. "The grass is so soft."

Trying not to shriek from the thought of standing on some giant beast's dead fur, I walked to some ground that didn't have white fur on it and sighed with relief. When I looked back, I saw Kale looking over at me amused and I narrowed my eyes at him. He smirked and turned away reaching up to grab a sleeping bag from Sokka.

"That's not grass," Sokka explained. "Appa's shedding." More shivers went down my spine and I inched a bit more from the sky-bison's dead fur.

Katara must have been feeling the exact same way as she hopped off the fur too. "Ew! Gross!"

Aang smiled as he stood beside Katara. Patting his best friend Appa, he said, "That's not gross; it's just a part of spring."

At the mention of spring, I felt a new dread fill inside me. Spring… That meant summer would come soon… That also meant Sozins comet would be here in no time. The thought made me want to curl up in a ball and hide. If my father managed to gain access of that comet, there's no telling what he'd do with that amount of power. He could wipe out the whole Earth Kingdom!

"Which is why you must stop him," Roku suddenly said in my head. His voice made me jump a bit in surprise. It had been days since I'd heard him speak to me. Honestly, I wasn't happy with what he said. Why did I have to stop the Fire Lord? How was I supposed to kill a man who still in some way was my father? I quickly said to Roku in my head: You got the wrong girl.

Aang was still talking when I refocused on his conversation. "You know, rebirth, flowers blooming, and Appa gets a new coat."

"Ah… The beauty of spring," Katara muttered. Then Appa suddenly stuck out his long tongue revealing hair on it making me cringe even more. As the giant sky-bison sneezed hair flew everywhere and both Katara and I shrieked when it hit us.

With luck, I managed to get away from the shedding sky-bison and headed into the forest to gather fire wood. As I entered into the woods, I felt relieved to be away from the piles of dead fur back behind me. Kale had followed me trying to hide his amusement at my quick retreat. "You're cute when you're all girly," Kale said, stopping beside me as I bent down to pick up a stick. I decided to collect the firewood to stay away from the dead fur for a while.

Scowling, I grabbed the stick and turned to him annoyed. "I'm not girly," I defended. "I just don't like the idea of standing in Appa's dead fur. It just grosses me out."

He smirked, and it was then I noticed something was being held behind his back. My eyes widened. "Don't you dare!" He laughed and rushed forward, a handful of Appa's fur in his hand. "No Kale!" I cried, and then took off running. He was fast, being top of the class at warrior training, and in no time I was grabbed around the waist and fur was dropped on my head.

Screaming, I yanked away from Kale and batted at my hair to try and get the dead fur off of me. When I was certain I'd got it all, I turned and glared at Kale who laughed hard at my freak out moment. "Kale!" I shrieked, rushing forward to grab him and shove him down. He grinned and jerked out of the way in the nick of time causing me to go right past him. As I did, I felt his arm wrap around my waist once more and he turned me toward him. My body was immediately pulled to his and the force sent us off balance. We both fell on the ground, Kale cushioning my fall as we hit the earth.

As Kale laughed more at our situation, I blushed deep red when I found my face pressed against his chest and his strong arm was still around my waist. "Sorry Amber," he managed to finally say after another few seconds of laughter. "I couldn't resist. You're just too cute when you freak out like that."

It was obvious I should've been furious with him for throwing dead fur all over me, but deep down I knew I couldn't be mad at him. He was just joking around, and I actually liked that about him. He was so carefree at times. Sighing, I tried to roll off of Kale, but instead he hoisted me forward slightly so my face was right above his and our lips were only inches apart. "You forgive me?"

Smiling, I pressed my forehead to his and closed my eyes as I felt his breath tickle my lips. "Of course I do." His lips met my own then, and I melted into his kiss enjoying the moment. When we pulled apart, he smiled up at me with those deep brown eyes I loved so much. "But…" I said, and I saw Kale's eyes widen a bit surprised that there was a 'but'. "Don't think you're off the hook. I'll find some way to get you back for this."

He smirked and suddenly rolled us over so he was the one on top and I was on the bottom. During this big turn of events I gasped, and now as I lied on the ground with Kale holding onto both my wrists, I was out of breath and flustered. "Will you now? Is that a challenge?" he asked, leaning down so his face was mere inches from my own.

"Um… Yeah…" I said, though I wasn't really sure.

He leaned forward then, his nose touching my own. "I'll be waiting then."

A throat cleared suddenly, and we both immediately rolled away from one another surprised by our intruder. Sitting a good six inches apart, we looked up to see Sokka standing about three feet from us, and he looked disapprovingly at our situation. "I can't leave you two alone for five minutes, can I?"

My heart pounded in my ears, and I knew my cheeks were beat red. Looking over at Kale, I saw he was a bit flustered himself.

Sokka stepped over to me and stopped when his shadow fell over me. "I told you to stay six inches from him."

Smiling weakly, I said, "You didn't say when."

He crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "I thought it would be clear I meant at all times."

Standing up, I crossed my arms too. "Chill, Sokka. Kale and I were just-"

"I don't want to know," he said, cutting me off with his hand in my face. "Keep your goo-goo stuff to yourself. All I want to know is when you plan on getting that firewood?"

Rolling my eyes, I smiled over at Kale who was already on his two feet and smiling back. "I'll be back in a bit," I promised, and then turned to go fetch more kindle for the fire. Sokka tagged along this time, saying he'd give me company in case it got dark. Kale smirked and wished us luck, walking back to camp.

When we managed to get enough wood for the fire we started to head back toward camp. The sun was lowering in the sky and it was growing darker by the second. As we walked side by side, I looked over at Sokka who was looking at the ground in deep thought.

"Hey Sokka…" I began after a moment of quiet.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking over at me with question.

"I know I don't say it much," I began, shifting the sticks in my hold. "But I do mean what I'm about to say… You're an amazing older brother, and even though were not related by blood and all, I'm glad I was placed in the water tribe so I could have you as a sibling."

He smiled and I felt him step a bit closer to me so our arms were almost brushing one another. "I'm glad you were too. I couldn't have asked for a better sister. And... I'm sorry I overreacted with Kale back there. I guess it's just my brotherly instincts kicking in."

Blushing beat red, I said, "It's okay. We weren't doing anything, but I'm sure that's not how it looked from your direction. I'm really glad to have such an amazing protector though."

Another moment passed, till suddenly Sokka asked, "Do you think Zuko would do the same if you were with him... I mean... Do you think he would protect you?"

His question took me a bit off guard, and I frowned as I looked down in thought and pain. Zuko... No matter how much I didn't want to be the Fire Lord's daughter, I couldn't deny that Zuko was my brother. I loved him no matter how eagerly I wanted to forget my past.

"I don't remember a lot about my past, but from what I recall Zuko would always be there for me. He would always protect and watch out for me when our mom couldn't. That was when we both lived very different lives." I paused and held the sticks closer to me. "I don't really even know him anymore, so I'm not sure if he would today. He's probably mad at me for choosing you all over him."

Sokka stopped walking, and I stopped as well. Looking at him with question, I saw his eyes tighten with an emotion I couldn't decipher. "I think he would protect you though… When we were at the North Pole, I heard Katara tell me how he begged her to save you when you were severely injured. I think if he didn't care about you and want to protect you, he would've just left you in the snow to die... Zuko see's you as his sister. If he didn't he wouldn't be trying so hard to get you on his side."

At Sokka's words I felt my heart sting a bit. I did remember Katara telling me that story... about how if Zuko hadn't been there at the North Pole I would've most likely died from Zhao's abuse. Smiling slightly, I felt my eyes water as I pictured Zuko. No matter how much occurred in our lives, and how far we were torn from one another, I knew there was still a brother sister bond there that would never be broken.

For the first time since the North Pole, I missed my older brother Zuko greatly.

"Yeah… Maybe your right," I said softly. "But as long as were on different sides of the war we can't ever have the same bond that you and I share." Sokka fell silent taking in what I said. Then we continued to walk through the forest, both of us in deep thought.

By the time we returned to the campsite, I found Kale was already helping to set up the tents. Sokka and I dropped the wood we collected in the center of the campsite and I lit a fire to shed light over the dark air. As we all worked together to put up the tents and prepare to cook dinner, I noticed Toph was seated against a rock just chilling. At first I was about to say something, but I decided I didn't want to start something with her. She just joined the group... I didn't want to scold her.

As I started up some supper for all of us, I heard Katara walk over to Toph to try and get her to help. I guess Katara had more guts than me. "So Toph, usually when setting up camp we try to divide up the work," she said standing in front of the girl who didn't even move when Katara spoke.

"Hey, don't worry about me. I'm good to go," she said, then closed her eyes as she lied back on the dirt.

Katara's jaw dropped but she remained cool as she said, " Well, actually, what I'm trying to say is, uh, some of us might fetch water while someone else might set up the fire pit or put up the tent." Momo suddenly flew over and dropped some nuts in Katara's hand, then flew away. "Even Momo does his fair share."

"Katara, I'm fine. I can carry my own weight. I don't need a fire, I've already collected my own food, and look…" Toph used earth bending to create a rocky tent over her. "My tent's all set up."

As Katara went to say something else, I stood from the soup I was making and walked over. "I think what Katara is trying to say Toph, is that if you're in this group, then you have to work with us. We're a team, so you're now part of this team. That means that even if you're all set up, you still have to help others. I mean, Aang doesn't use a tent, but he still helps..."

Toph smirked. "Look Princess… I'm here to teach Aang. That doesn't mean I'm part of your so called team. Yes I joined you, and I want to be your friend, but being a team member just isn't me. So I don't really understand what the problem is?"

Katara sighed, muttering, "Never mind." Turning she left to get back to work, and it was then I noticed the guys were watching what was going on with uncertainty.

Turning back to Toph who was lying under her earth tent, I said with a weak smile, "You know… If you help out, maybe you'll see that being on a team isn't as bad as you make it to be. If it wasn't for my family, Kale, and Aang, I wouldn't be where I am to this day. A team is family Toph. If you want to be a part of this family, then have a heart and help us out."

She sat up saying, "You know… You're words really mean a lot."

Immediately I knew she was being sarcastic, and I rolled my eyes muttering, "Whatever… Just think about what I said." Turning I walked away from Toph and headed back to the soup.

As I finished preparing the food, and I placed some in a bowl for everyone we sat around the fire eating and enjoying the warmth of the flames. Looking back over at Toph I saw she was still in her earth tent and there was a piece of straw in her mouth. Staring at the bowl I filled up for Toph, I sighed placing my half eaten bowl in front of me. Standing I made my way over to her, and as I did I earned looks of question from my family.

Placing the bowl at the mouth of her tent, I said, "Look Toph… I know how you feel. You're living a whole new life now, and you're away from your family, not to mention your traveling with a bunch of strangers. You're probably not used to meeting new people, and I know this is tough for you. Isolating yourself from everyone though… it isn't really going to help."

"Yeah... And how would you know that?"

I smiled weakly. "Nine years ago I was in your same shoes. I woke up in a place I didn't know with strangers all around me. I was terrified of the people I met and didn't know who to trust. To protect myself I tried to find places to be alone, and sometimes it was nice... but being alone would also remind me of the people I did trust. I found I was happier in the company of my water tribe family than in a cave by myself."

Toph sighed and sat up so she was somewhat looking my way, though I'm sure she could only see me through the earth. "I get your point. But I'm not isolating myself from anyone… I'm just saying that I see no need for me to help when I'm not even using your resources."

Biting my lip I looked over at the others and saw them watching us from where they sat. Turning back, I said trying to remain calm, "Well Aang doesn't really use a lot of our resources but he still helps. I'm not saying you have to Toph, but it would be nice if you could maybe help find wood, or maybe make the fire pit, or even help us put together supper. We're all-"

"Yeah, you said it before: A team." She crossed her arms. "Look Princess… I'm here because you told me to choose my own path. You invited me to come, and so I did by taking your advice. Don't get mad at me for not doing anything, when I'm about to teach Aang earth bending and save the world."

I let out a hard breath, scooted the soup closer to her, and turned away to leave. As I walked away I said softly, "Fine Toph. Do whatever you want."

When I walked back to the others, I saw they weren't sure what to do about Toph. We decided not to worry about and after cleaning up dinner we all went to sleep. Katara and I slept in our tent, while Sokka and Kale slept in the other tent, Aang slept beside Appa, and Toph slept in her isolated rock. Her and Katara had a bit of a tizzy before we went to sleep, but things eventually calmed and we were able to drift.

Just as I was in a deep slumber, something abruptly woke me.

"Wake up Amber… You have to leave!" Roku shouted, causing me to jump where I lay and open my eyes. I looked around at the dark camp with disbelief. Leave...? Nothing was bothering us.

Groaning, I pulled my sleeping bag over my face and said half asleep, "Ten more minutes."

"Amber! You must get the Avatar out of there! Your sister Azula is coming! You can't allow Aang to be captured!"

Azula... Why would that be a...

The words finally sunk in and this time I was awake. Gasping, I quickly crawled out of my tent and ran across the campsite. We were on a hill that overlooked the valley below, so I could see through the light of the small moon a strange object coming toward us. From what I could tell it was a giant machine that was powered by steam. From the distance one could compare it to a long metal bug.

Oh crap! Roku was telling the truth.

Immediately I shouted across the camp, "Guys! We've got to go!"

The only person to really move was Toph, who rushed out of her tent and cried, "Princess is right! There's something coming toward us, and it's big!"

Everyone emerged from their tents then, Aang already standing beside us with question and droopy eyes. Kale, Sokka, and Katara looked half out of it as they tried to wake up. "What is it?" Aang asked, rubbing his eyes. Momo stayed asleep on his shoulder.

Toph answered, "It feels like an avalanche… But also not like an avalanche."

Sokka rolled his eyes muttering, "Your powers of perception are frightening."

Stepping forward I immediately gave my own explanation. "It's not an avalanche. It's Azula. She somehow found us and is on her way. We need to go!"

"How do you know that?" Katara asked, amazed by my knowledge of our coming enemy.

Frowning, I looked down with regret and uncertainty. Please don't think I'm a freak... "Avatar Roku told me."

A laugh rang from the group and we all turned in surprise to stare at Toph. She realized none of us were laughing with her, and she immediately stopped having a puzzled look. "That was a joke right? There's no way she spoke to a dead dude."

"Sorry Toph…" Katara said. "We haven't caught you up to speed yet. Amber's a-"

"There's no time to explain," Kale suddenly said. "If it is Azula coming, then we need to pack up camp quickly and fly out of here. She'll capture us all if we don't hurry."

"You sound like you know her," Sokka commented.

"I do," Kale muttered. "She bullied me in the hall when we were kids. I'd try to avoid her whenever I could. I was her punching bag because I was the youngest servant in the palace."

"She sounds great," Toph muttered.

I frowned. "We need to pack up camp like Kale said. Last thing we need is my sister catching up to us."

Katara, Aang, and Sokka sighed, turning to pack up the tents and supplies. As they did that Kale and I wrapped up the sleeping bags and managed to carry all our supplies back onto Appa's saddle. The whole time we did Toph just sat there, waiting for us to leave. As much as I was glad Toph was here to teach Aang, she was starting to get annoying with this lazy nature of hers. She could note we were in a hurry, but decided not to assist.

When we finally loaded up on Appa, who was very exhausted from the day's flight, we headed off into the sky trying to get away from my sister. As we went we all looked back at the valley below. From above everyone but Toph could see the machine my sister was in. It was like an iron long rectangular ship, only it was on land and moving by steam. It was fast too, and left a cloud of dust behind it as it raced toward the spot we'd been.

Trusting what Roku spoke, I frowned as I looked down at the giant machine Azula was most likely inside. Why was she suddenly after us, and more importantly the avatar? Did father send her when he saw Zuko was having no luck capturing Aang? It almost made me outraged to know dad had given up on Zuko and sent Azula in his place. That must've been a slap in his face after three years of trying to find Aang.

Then an unsettling feeling hit my stomach. If Azula was chasing after the avatar, then what happened to Zuko? Was he captured by father and imprisoned? The thought made me worry deeply.

As we flew for a good thirty minutes we noticed Aang was starting to sway and Appa was lowering to the ground. At once we made Aang land Appa on a grassy hill, and we all once more tried to set up camp. We decided not to put tents up, and just grabbed the sleeping bags.

"Maybe we lost them," I tiredly said, helping Kale put down the sleeping bags.

He yawned as he placed down his own sleeping bag. "I sure hope so, because I could really use some sleep."

We continued to set up camp, though we noticed Toph hadn't done anything to help once again; she'd just grabbed her own bag and began to walk off saying, "See you guys in the morning!"

We all looked like we wanted to say something, but we decided we were too tired to fight tonight. All of us except for Katara who said, "Actually, can you help us unload?"

The group cringed knowing what would come next.

"Oh boy... Here we go," Kale muttered.

Toph looked back at us and said to her, "Really? You need me to help you unload Sokka's funky-smelling sleeping bag?" To make the situation worse, I saw Sokka take a whiff of his sleeping bag and cringe. Aang and Kale tried not to laugh at my brother's foolishness.

"Yeah… That and everything else. You're a part of our team now and-"

She interrupted Katara with irritation. "Look… I didn't ask you to help unload my stuff. I'm carrying my own weight. And just like I told Princess over there, I don't need a team." Toph then started to walk away, but I knew Katara wasn't done.

"That's not the point! Ever since joining us you've been nothing but selfish and unhelpful!"

Me and the guys shot one another looks of uncertainty as the two girls continued to fight. Toph was next in this little catfight, snapping, "What?! Look here sugar queen! I gave up everything I had so I could teach Aang earth bending, so don't you talk to me about being selfish!" She then walked away from Katara, plopped down in the dirt, and created an earth tent once more.

"Sugar queen!" Katara shrieked, and then stepped forward. Toph closed her tent so Katara wouldn't be able to get inside. "Di- Did you just slam the door in my face!" Katara was pounding and kicking on the tent door, her face going red from fury. "Toph!"

Immediately I rushed forward to intervene, grabbing Katara by the shoulder and pulling her back. "Calm down… You know no matter what you do it isn't going to change Toph. Just stop and leave her alone. If she wants to be a part of the team, then she'll have to decide that on her own. We can't force her."

Katara calmed and walked away deciding she was too tired to fight Toph anymore. It was probably two in the morning as we all crawled into our sleeping bags and tried to sleep again. We couldn't do that however, because Katara had opened her big mouth once more. "The stars sure are beautiful tonight. Too bad you can't see them Toph!"

Groaning, I pulled my sleeping bag over my face wishing they'd just knock it off and go to sleep. The earth next to me suddenly shifted and I heard Katara shriek as her body suddenly landed somewhere else. Looking out from under my sleeping bag I saw she'd landed on Sokka, and he didn't look happy. Shoving her off, he sat up saying, "Hey! How is a guy supposed to sleep with all this yelling and earth quaking?"

"That thing is back!" Toph suddenly shouted, sliding her tent door down and scrambling out. She placed her hand on the earth seeing something the rest of us couldn't.

Groaning again, I sat up wishing it wasn't true. Sokka must have felt the same. "Well, how far away is it?" Sokka lied back and covered his head with his sleeping bag. "Maybe we can close our eyes just for a few minutes."

Getting up, I walked to the slope of the hill. Looking in the distance, I could see from the light of the moon the smoke was only a few miles away. "I wish we could… But I think we have to go now."

Exhausted and pleading for much needed sleep, we all climbed on Appa who groaned in aggravation that he couldn't sleep either. The only one who was actually sleeping was Momo, and he was lucky because we could actually carry him. As we flew this time, we decided to seek higher ground hoping maybe the giant machine wouldn't be able to climb.

When we finally landed again on another grassy hill, we all dropped off of Appa beyond exhausted. Sokka, Kale, and Aang all plopped down where they landed as Sokka said, "Okay. Forget about setting up camp. I'm finding the softest pile of dirt and falling asleep."

"That's good," Katara muttered. "Because Toph wasn't going to help anyway."

Toph, who was already plopped down in the dirt, snapped, "Oh I didn't realize baby still needed someone to tuck her into bed."

Aang spoke this time, trying to calm everyone down. "Come on guys, there's something after us that may or may not be Amber's sister Azula. Let's try to get as much sleep as we can."

Katara lied down in the dirt with a huff, while I just sat.

"It could be Zuko," Katara muttered. "We haven't seen him since the North Pole."

"I don't think it's him this time," I said softly, feeling it in my gut. "He wouldn't have the resources to get a machine like that."

"Who's Zuko?" Toph asked.

Sokka answered, "Oh, just some angry freak with a burn on his eye whose tracked us all over the world and happens to be Amber's older brother."

Sighing, I pulled my knees to my chest saying, "I know it isn't him. Even if I don't always want to listen to Roku, I believe him this time. I have a gut feeling it isn't my brother."

Kale was the one to speak this time. "We believe you, Amber… Now everyone go to sleep."

As we all began to drift once more, Momo began to make noises and we all groaned wishing the little lemur would shut up. Sokka quickly shushed the creature saying, "No Momo… Sleepy time."

Momo continued his rant though and I had a feeling I knew what the little guy was so jumpy about. "No! Why?" I whined, getting up from the dirt and walking to the edge of the raised hill we were on. There in the distance was once again the giant machine, heading straight toward us. It was gaining fast, and I was starting to get irritated.

"Don't tell me," Sokka whined. Everyone was standing a moment later, and they all came over to stop beside me and look at the machine.

"That's impossible! There's no way they could've tracked us," Aang cried.

Toph weakly said, "I can feel it with my own two feet."

"Let's get out of here!" Katara ordered. "We need to get more distance between us."

Aang stopped us. "Maybe we should face them. If it's not by chance Amber's sister, then maybe whoever's in it is friendly."

"Always the optimist," Sokka muttered.

My eyes widened as I realized we were going to do what Aang said. If it was my sister then she'd capture us all in a flash. There had to be another way to get away from her. Just as I thought this, the machine came to a stop a good 500 yards away, and we all watched with terror. The ramp to the machine lowered, and sure enough three lizard like creatures emerged from inside the machine. As I looked closer and could see better from the rising sunlight, I saw my sister in the middle, with Mai and Ty Lee on both sides of her. Reunion number two was on its way.

"It's those three girls from Omashu! It is Amber's sister!" Katara cried. "You've got to be kidding me!"

Toph stood now and tightened her fists. "We can take them. Four on three!"

Looking a bit puzzled, I shot Kale a look mouthing, Four?

He shrugged, equally confused by her statement.

"Actually Toph, there's six of us," Sokka said.

Toph smirked. "Oh. Sorry. I didn't count you and Kale. You know, no bending and all."

Sokka and Kale both looked outraged and shouted at the same time, "I can still fight!"

Toph sighed, "Okay. Okay. Four on three, plus the two no benders."

As the lizard like beasts approached us swiftly, I said, "Look, as much as I would love to see my sister again… I say we get out of here fast! We may want to fight, but were all dead tired. We'll be captured in minutes!"

Everyone agreed and we all rushed onto Appa who didn't look one bit happy. As we flew away again, Katara said to me, "I can't believe your crazy sister and her friends followed us all the way from Omashu."

Sighing, I pulled my knees to my chest. "She'll do anything to get what she wants. She always has... I just can't believe the Fire Lord is sending her after us now. What happened to Zuko...?"

Sokka placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "I'm sure he's fine."

I relaxed and shot him a grateful smile.

Toph scowled, "I still think we could've taken them."

Katara cried, "Are you kidding? The crazy blue fire bending and the flying daggers are bad enough, but last time we saw them one of those girls did something that took my bending away. That's scary."

At this I was a bit surprised. "Ty Lee can take someone's bending away?"

Katara shivered when I asked. "I don't know how, but when she hit me it was like my bending was blocked; like she put some type of lock inside me that I couldn't break through."

Kale frowned running a hand through his hair. "It's called chi blocking. I've seen it done before back at the palace. It's when a person can hit someone right in their weak spot and block their bending abilities. Only the greatest fighters of the fire nation know how to do it, and that's only like three or four. Ty Lee must've learned it from one of them or on her own. The affects are temporary, but they immobilize the strongest soldier in a fight."

We all frowned at this new information. So Ty Lee had learned a new skill over the years I'd been away from her. Guess I didn't really know a lot about my friends anymore. We all had grown up and gone our separate in the last nine years.

After flying for another hour the sun had shown itself over the horizon and we all wished it would go away. We knew with the light none of us would sleep. We ended up having to land eventually, because Appa fell asleep in the sky. Landing (or more like crashing) in a forest area, we all heard Appa snore as he lied on the ground completely worn out.

Sliding off of the giant beast, we began to try to get ready to follow his lead, but a fight sprung up again, and this time it was bad.

"We could have gotten some sleep earlier if Toph didn't have so many issues!" Katara snapped, her mood sour from lack of sleep.

Toph jumped up from where she lied shouting, "What!"

As the fight continued I began to doze off, not really wanting to be a part of it anymore. When I faded back in though I heard Toph shout, "Besides! If there's anyone to blame it's sheddy over here!" Opening my eyes, I looked over to see Toph grab a clump of Appa's fur and drop it on the ground. "You wanna know how they keep finding us? It's because he's leaving a trail everywhere we go!"

Aang looked red in the face as Toph accused his best friend. "How dare you blame Appa! He saved your life three times today! If there's anyone to blame, it's you! You're always talking about how you carry your own weight, but you're not! He is! Appa's carrying your weight! He never had a problem flying when it was just the five of us!"

Quickly I was up on my feet wide awake, and I rushed in between Aang and Toph trying to take control of the situation. "Hey! There's no need for that!"

Toph scowled and picked up her bag tossing it on her shoulder. "I'm out of here! Find yourself another teacher!" She turned and started to walk off, and I watched her go with horror. If she left, Aang would never learn earth bending.

"Toph! Wait!" I cried, rushing forward to grab her shoulder and stop her. She threw earth up behind her creating a wall so I almost ran into it.

"Leave me alone! I don't want to hear about your team anymore, Princess!" Toph snapped, and then she ran off into the forest.

Silence passed, and I turned to the others wondering what they were all thinking. Aang looked surprised with himself, while Katara was filled with regret, Kale seemed amazed, and Sokka looked horrified. Biting my lip, I debated what I should do. If Toph left, then Aang wouldn't have an earth bending teacher, and then Sozin's comet would arrive allowing the Fire Lord to have unbelievable power. He'd surely destroy the Earth Kingdom and then move to the water tribes if Aang wasn't able to master all four elements.

"You have to go after her," Roku practically ordered. "She's Aang's only hope."

At first I wanted to just ignore Roku and tell him to buzz off, but I knew he was right. No matter what, Toph needed to teach Aang earth bending. Also she was a twelve year old girl running off into the woods alone, and I felt bad letting her go off on her own. I didn't want her to be alone, even though I knew she could protect herself. Still...

"I'm going after her," I said. "If she leaves then we'll never get Aang an earth bending teacher in time!"

"What?! Amber! Wait!" Kale shouted, but I was already running into the woods in the direction I hoped Toph had gone. As I ran I thought in my head over and over that if I didn't find Toph, then there was no way we'd find another earth bending teacher for Aang.

It seemed like an hour that I ran through the endless forest, and I began to fear greatly that I'd lost Toph for good and had gotten lost myself. Slowing to a walk, I tried to catch my breath and just started walking through the sunlit forest. The trees shaded me as I walked, and I listened to the sounds of the creatures as they lurked around me. My body was exhausted from no sleep last night, so I was using all my strength to stay awake.

"Toph!" I called, wishing I would just find her already and convince her to come back. "Where are you?!"

Truth was I felt bad for her... She had given up her whole life to be with us. She was looking for comfort and trust. In the last few hours the people she was starting to trust had pretty much told her she was a terrible person and wasn't welcome. In some way I felt responsible, because I too had yelled at her. My heart hurt at the thought of being the reason Toph left. She wasn't used to being around others her age. She wasn't used to socializing. We all should've been more patient with her.

Suddenly the forest came to an end, and my eyes widened when I saw nothing but desert sand before me. It was like I was entering a whole new world. Looking around, I saw nothing but sand in front of me... Hot and endless sand. I backed up not sure if going out in the desert was such a good idea.

Then something caught my eyes in the sand. Foot prints! The probability of them being Toph's was small, but I had to have hope they were hers.

Rushing forward, I began to trek through the sand hoping and praying to the spirits that I would find Toph quickly. The sun was beating down hard on me, and I knew my exposed skin on my arms would burn if I didn't find shade soon. It seemed like I walked through the desert for an hour, but I knew it was only a few minutes, when I approached a very dilapidated town.

The town was more like ruins, and the stone buildings were old and busted. As I got closer to the town, I saw the buildings were burned and pieces of furniture and pottery were shattered everywhere. The fire nation had raided this place, and left it to be a ghost town. This fact made me hate the fire nation even more. As I continued to walk past the empty broken buildings, I once more began to call for Toph. If she had somehow ended up in this area, then maybe she'd taken refuge in one of the buildings for shade.

"Toph! Are you here?" I stepped on a piece of broken pottery and gasped when it shattered under my boot. Stepping back, I looked down to see the pottery shattered had contained jewelry. Kneeling down, I lifted a pearl necklace and felt my heart twist. I wondered what poor woman had lost it in the raid. As I stared at the necklace, the entrance beside me that led into a desecrated building suddenly had a noise echo through it. I gasped at the sound only to see a sand-mouse run outside and around me fleeing across the town.

Sighing with relief, I turned back to the jewelry setting the pearls back on the sand. Just as I stood to continue my search, a strong hand covered my mouth and an arm around wrapped around my upper body yanking me inside the building. I screamed behind the hand and tried to kick back at my captor. It was definitely a he, and he was strong. As I struggled in my captors hold, I felt his firm arm wrap around my waist harder which locked both arms to my sides. With a muffled scream, I tried to fight off my strong captor with my elbows and feet, but I heard a familiar voice say, "Amber! Stop! Calm down! It's me!"

My eyes widened and I immediately calmed when I heard Zuko speak behind me. He let me go when he saw I stopped struggling, and I stumbled forward. The building we were in had holes in the ceiling, so light came in giving me sight. I turned to my brother with a mixture of amazement and disbelief. From the light coming from outside, I saw my brother Zuko for the first time in what felt like months. He was different, with his black hair no longer tight in a ponytail but messy and much longer than before. He also looked like he'd gotten more sun, and his clothing was that of a commoner. He looked like he had been living on the streets for weeks. Beside him stood an ostrich horse which I had no doubt he'd stolen.

Now that I looked over Zuko, I could tell a lot had happened since the North Pole. He must've been in hiding or something, and he'd put his hair this way as a disguise. He actually looked a lot better with his hair down and grown out anyway. It made him more... innocent.

"Zuko… Wha- what are you doing here?!" I ran forward with elation and threw my arms around him. He gasped and stumbled back in surprise. He relaxed when I hugged him harder. "I thought I'd never see you again!"

He sighed, and hugged me closer to him. "I followed Azula here. She's heading into the center of the town where I assume the avatar is. I'm not going to let her get him before me."

My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. I pulled from Zuko in shock. What was Aang doing here? Then I thought about something else.

"Wait… Were Mai and Ty Lee with her?"

He was a bit taken back by this question. "Um… No. It was just her on this creepy lizard thing." This made me feel beyond worried. Did that mean Sokka, Katara, and Kale were facing Mai and Ty Lee then? That would be a difficult fight. And where was Toph? These last twelve hours had been chaos!

"What are you doing here by the way?" Zuko suddenly asked, looking me up and down beyond surprised to find me in the desert. "I mean I'm glad to see you, don't get me wrong, but you don't seem to have arrived here with anyone." He stepped forward and stared me down with burning question. "Did the Avatar ditch you in the sand?"

"Of course not," I muttered. Then I met my brothers gold eyes. Smiling weakly, I answered, "I was looking for a friend… She ran off and I told the group I would go find her. I got a little lost along the way. I guess now I'm protecting Aang from Azula though. I need to go help him before he gets hurt."

Zuko was shocked. "Your not going to help him! Azula is ruthless! You need to stay here where your safe!"

I scowled. "I'm not weak, Zuko! I can handle Azula! There's no way I'm going to let you or her get Aang. I'll stop you!"

My brother narrowed his eyes, and I noticed he didn't like this response. "And how are you going to do that? Are you going to fight me? Remember that Azula's the one you should be more worried about right now. You can't fight the both of us, so pick your battle." Zuko then hopped on the ostrich horse and looked down at me with hard eyes. "Stay out of the way Amber. I don't want to hurt you." It was more of a warning than a suggestion, and I watched with terror as Zuko forced the animal forward out of the building so he could race to where Aang and Azula were.

With great concern that Zuko would hurt Aang and get hurt himself, I raced after him out of the building shouting, "Wait Zuko! Don't!"

Zuko ignored me, speeding up the beast and racing through the town toward where Aang and Azula were. Deep down I knew I was going to regret this, getting into a fight with both my fire nation siblings, but I had a duty to protect Aang and I also didn't want to see my good friend hurt. This wasn't about the Huo or Roku's plan. This was what I wanted.

Aang! I'm coming!

Following the animals tracks through the abandoned ghost town, I rounded a corner to see Aang, Azula, and Zuko were in the center of the town and they all looked ready to fry each other. Zuko was in between Azula and Aang who had been facing off, as if to tell them that Aang belonged to him. Tightening my fist, I tried hard not to light a flame and throw it at Azula as soon as I saw her. The sight of her made me a bit mad knowing it was her fault I didn't sleep once last night. She owed me beauty rest.

"Back off Azula! He's mine!" Zuko snapped, getting into a fighting stance as he prepared to fight Azula.

From where I stood I could see our sister scowl. "I'm not going anywhere!" She too got in a fighting stance ready to attack. Aang must've decided to prepare himself too, because he grabbed his staff tightly as he prepared to block whoever made the first move.

"Amber! You must intervene! We can't allow Aang to be captured!" Roku ordered. "Your brother and sister will defeat him together!"

"What do you want me to do?" I said under my breath. "Walk up to them and start a conversation."

"If that works," Roku said. "Just protect Aang!"

Rolling my eyes, I stepped forward into view deciding to get it over with and saying, "Well, well… I never expected this... Azula and Zuko, about to go head to head all so they can gain honor from some guy who could care less about his family. You know, you two should do what I'm doing; you just need to stop worrying about what dad thinks and start thinking for yourselves. You'll find life is pretty easy when you don't have a crazy Fire Lord breathing down your necks."

Everyone was startled when I spoke, and they all looked over at me amazed by my appearance. Aang's eyes widened like he was seeing a ghost. "Amber! What are you doing here? I thought you were looking for Toph!"

Smiling weakly, I said, "Guess I took a wrong turn somewhere in the forest. I'm sure we'll find her later."

He shook his head. "This is why you should stop running off! Sokka's going to lock you up one day!"

I broke a genuine grin at his words. "That would be fun for him to try."

Azula scowled at Aang. "Enough of this foolish talk!" She then turned and glared at me with her piercing gold eyes. "Well, well… Amber... You're still a traitor I see. At least now you and Zuko have something in common. Father is very disappointed in you both."

Zuko growled and I saw his fists steam. "I'm not a traitor, Azula! I've never once been disloyal to father! I've been on the Avatar's trail for weeks just so I can reclaim my honor!"

As my brother and sister had a heated stare down, I looked at Aang and mouthed, 'Run'. He nodded and began to back away.

Azula shouted at Zuko as the avatar tried to sneak away, "Oh yeah! Then how come you haven't captured the avatar yet? Hmm… Oh I know! Because you don't want to! You're a traitor just like Amber!"

"Actually… Zuko's not a traitor. He really does want to capture Aang and bring him to the Fire Lord," I said, trying to keep their attention from Aang, who was a good three yards away now. "You would know that if you had joined this chase months ago."

My coldhearted sister cackled and then shot Zuko a smirk. "Aw, Zuzu… Looks like Amber's trying to defend you. I thought she had changed, but I can see she's still the same little sister we both remember."

My brother shot me a look, and I was surprised when I read the emotion on his face. He was annoyed with me, and I assumed it had to be because I was defending him. It seemed he didn't want my help. I quickly shut my trap.

Azula suddenly growled and turned firing blue fire at Zuko who quickly blocked and fell back on the dirt hard. As this happened Aang grabbed his glider and tried to fly away, but Azula shot a wave of blue fire knocking Aang from the sky. He was able to use his staff to safely land, but I could tell Azula wasn't done. "No!" I shouted, running forward and lighting my own flame ready to help Aang. "Leave him alone!"

Shooting a blast at my sister, she quickly blocked my purple fire but it made her slide back a bit. As I shot another blast at her she dodged and my fire hit the stone wall of a building creating a heavy explosion of debris. Pieces of the building flew everywhere and I winced at how strong my flames really were. Azula looked at the crumbled wall with amazement, and then she turned back to me with rage.

"That's it! I'm tired of you Spirit Freak!" She hissed, and I watched with terror as she charged her hands with lightening preparing to strike.

Something hard smacked into my body shoving me to the ground just as the lightening shot toward me, and I gasped as I heard the strike above me and my savior. As I was pressed into the dirt, I heard Zuko snap, "Stay down! Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

Scowling, I hissed, "No. I'm trying to protect Aang."

He pressed me down harder. "Just stay out of this Amber, or I will hurt you," he threatened. "Don't get in my way!" Then Zuko rolled off of me, and as I tried to stand back up I saw him and Azula were chasing after Aang once more through the abandoned ghost town. They couldn't capture Aang… If they did all our work would be for nothing! I knew I had to stop them. No matter how much I hated being Roku and Huo's little spirit girl, I wanted to protect Aang of my own free will. He was like a little brother to me. I would always protect my family, even if it meant fighting them too!

Spitting the taste of dirt from my mouth, I managed to get on my feet so I could return to helping Aang. My vision became blurry though and I stumbled falling forward. It was probably because I hadn't slept in more than twenty four hours and I hadn't eaten or drink anything in what felt like forever. Not to mention the sun was beating down on me and sucking me dry. Usually the sun was a fire benders friend; today it was my enemy.

Just as I fell forward, I felt a familiar strong hand grab me by the shoulder and steady me. When I tiredly looked up to see who it was, my eyes widened to find Uncle Iroh looking at me with worry. "Are you alright, Amber?"

My uncle looked different too. Instead of having his gray hair in a topknot it was loose and long. His beard was also longer and his clothing were old and torn. Staring up into his gold eyes, I said, "Uncle… What are you doing here?"

He smiled weakly. "I couldn't let your brother come here alone. There's no telling what that boy will do next."

The sound of an explosion rang out across the town we were in, and I gasped looking over to see Zuko crash out of a building and land on the street hard. Worry filled inside me as I stared at Zuko, who lied on the ground groaning. "Zuko!" I cried, trying to rush over to him. Uncle Iroh stopped me again.

"Stay here Amber so you don't get hurt. I'll go help him," Uncle ordered, and then took off toward Zuko.

This was getting a bit annoying. Was everyone worried I'd get myself killed or something? I'd taken warrior classes in the North Pole and I'd escaped more near death experiences than I could count.

The sound of a crash echoed through the town suddenly and I gasped searching for where the sound had come from. Aang flew up in the air, and Azula's lightning shot toward him missing him by a hair.

"Aang!"

Just as I went to step forward, I heard Kale's voice shout, "Amber!" Turning to look behind me with surprise, I widened my eyes when suddenly Kale threw his arms around me and pulled me into his warm embrace. "What in the world were you thinking running off on your own?! You had me worried sick! I feared you were lost in the woods!"

Pulling away from him, I looked up into his brown eyes feeling a bit dumbfounded to see him, and ashamed for making him worry. "Sorry… I was trying to stop Toph, but I have a bad sense of direction I guess." He laughed slightly and hugged me closer to him, relieved to see I was alright. Closing my eyes, I smiled glad to be in his arms. It was cut short though, because we both heard the sound of fire blasts being shot in the background.

Pulling away from Kale again, I turned to see Azula was in a battle against Sokka, Aang, and Katara, the buildings around them blazing with bright orange fire. They all had formed an arch around Azula and were fighting her. She seemed unfazed as she shot fire at my water tribe family and Aang, only making me worry for their safety. "We have to go help them," I said. Kale and I immediately rushed over to where my sister Azula was throwing her blue fire at everyone, and just as she fired again the ground beneath her shifted sending her to the ground with an 'oof'.

That could only mean one thing. As we arrived where the others stood, I was relieved to see Toph standing on the other side of where my sister was still on the ground. She looked like she was enjoying having Azula's face in the dirt.

"Toph! I'm so glad you're here!" I cried with relief. "I was looking everywhere for you!"

She smirked. "You went the wrong way then, Princess."

Blushing slightly in embarrassment, I said, "I know… I have to work on following people. It's not one of my best skills."

Katara and Sokka smiled over at me, glad to see I was okay. "At least you made it out of the forest," Katara said. "That's progress."

"Not really… That was luck," I responded with a weak smile.

Azula stood now, her eyes shooting at me with fire in them. "My big sis Amber… She always seems to make more and more friends as the days go by..." She sneered. "You're becoming the greatest traitor of the fire nation as we speak. Conspiring with two water tribe peasants, an earth bending chick, and the Avatar. When father gets a hold of you, you'll wish you had died nine years ago." She then looked over at Kale and smirked again. "Ah, and I see you've managed to make another traitor too. The Fire Lord will have your head as well boy!"

Kale stepped a bit in front of me as if to protect me in case Azula attacked. Frowning at my sister, I calmly pulled Kale back to let him know I wasn't afraid. He looked like he wanted to protest, but he decided I knew what I was doing and backed up so he was right beside me.

Looking back at my sister, I asked with pain, "Why are you doing this Azula? Can't you see that father doesn't care squat about any of his children? No matter what you do, the Fire Lord will never give you the honor you seek. He threw Zuko out on the ocean. What makes you think he won't do the same to you?" She didn't like the words I spoke, because I saw her hands tighten into fists and steam began to flow from them.

"What would you know about father? You haven't seen him for over nine years," she hissed. "I'm done with you. With all of you!" Then she backed away and turned to run. She didn't get very far, because as soon as she turned she bumped into Uncle Iroh and stumbled backward. Catching herself quickly, she looked around at the eight people surrounding her in both terror and uncertainty. Zuko had arrived beside Uncle and looked ready to slice our sister in half. He was covered in dirt but other than that uninjured.

As we all prepared to fight, Azula frowned and held her hands up in surrender saying to us all, "Well, look at this. Enemies and traitors all working together... I'm done. I know when I'm beaten. You got me. A princess surrenders with honor."

Her words were deceitful, that I could immediately tell. Tightening my fist, I watched her eyes as they showed nothing but lies. Some of the others let their guards down as they relaxed from their stances, but I stayed guard. As I watched my sister, something flashed through my mind.

Agony… Pain… Blue Fire… Death... You will die to save another.

Why was I thinking of that fortune all of the sudden? It had been weeks since those words had bothered me, so why were they hitting me so suddenly? Then it hit me. It hit me clearly. Azula was the blue fire Aunt Wu had spoken about so long ago. If Azula was the blue fire, then that meant this could be the moment Aunt Wu spoke of: the moment I would sacrifice myself for another. As a smirk pulled on Azula's face, my eyes widened as her hands charged and she suddenly shot a blast of lightening toward uncle.

"No!" I screamed, running forward as the lightning traveled toward the one man that I truly cared for. As the lightning struck him in the chest, I shoved into Azula slamming her on the ground. Both of our bodies crashed to the earth as I pressed her down screaming, "You monster!" She sneered at me, and in a single second her fist punched me in the face knocking the wind out of me. As I fell off of her, I saw through blurry eyes water, fire, earth, and air get shot at my sister. As smoke surrounded my sight, I coughed and covered my eyes as the air burned them and made them sting. When I was able to see again, Azula was gone, and the town fell quiet as if death had surrounded it once again.

Silence passed as the dirt settled, and I weakly stood on my feet searching for my uncle. When I saw him I felt dread fill inside me. He was lying there on the dirt covered ground, his body still and his eyes closed. Zuko knelt beside him, and I could see he was shaking as tears fell from his eyes. Katara, Sokka, Aang, Toph, and Kale all stood to the side, none of them sure what to do to help with this situation.

With pain building inside me, I stepped forward feeling my own tears begin to cascade down my cheeks. As I approached, Zuko suddenly shouted, "Get away from us!" His broken eyes shot threatening looks toward everyone - even me- and the others backed up warily. Even after everything Zuko had done to us in the past, I could tell Aang and the others felt sympathetic toward him. That's why they hadn't left yet.

Katara stepped closer to my brother and unconscious uncle saying, "Zuko… I can help!" I knew what she meant. She had healing abilities, and she could save my uncles life. Zuko wouldn't have that though. He let out a blast of fire behind him causing my sister to scramble backwards as he shouted, "Leave!"

The group decided there was nothing they could do, and with broken hearts they turned and started to head away from Zuko and my dying uncle. My chest tightened as I stared at my uncle whose chest was terribly burned and his breathing was hard and labored.

It was supposed to be me… I was supposed to sacrifice myself and save him. Why didn't the fortune come true? My uncle would probably die, and it was all because I didn't stop Azula in enough time. Shutting my eyes, I tried hard not to scream at the top of my lungs in fury. Why did everyone I love continue to get hurt?!

A hand took my arm suddenly, and I heard Sokka say, "Come on Amber… We have to go." He started to pull me along, but my feet wouldn't move. They wouldn't move because I didn't want to go. It was time to make a choice. A choice I knew would not make the spirits happy, or my water tribe siblings. Sokka and Katara... They would forgive me for this. They would understand.

"Amber! Your uncle will be fine! You must stay with Aang," Roku shouted, reading my mind and knowing what I intended to do.

No matter how much I wanted to help Aang and the others, I knew I had to stay. This was my uncle… The one man who truly loved me back at the fire nation. He was like a father to me, and I refused to leave him when he needed me most. I'd abandoned him and Zuko in the past before, and I knew now was not the time to do it again. I would stick by my brother and Uncle until I knew they were okay.

Sorry Roku, but I'm choosing my own path at the moment. You and Huo can just sit back and let me live my life.

Pulling from Sokka, I said trying hard to hold in my tears, "I can't… I can't leave not knowing if my uncle's okay... You all have to go on without me."

Kale came in front of me then, his hand grabbing my shoulder as he looked into my eyes with agony. "Amber… I know you're worried about him, but Iroh would want you to stay with Aang. He wouldn't want you to leave your friends for him."

Shaking my head, I yanked from him as well. I had to stay strong. They needed to understand. "I don't care... I'm tired of doing what everyone else wants... I'm staying... I won't abandon him now that he needs me..." When I said him, I wasn't sure if I was just talking about Iroh or Zuko as well.

Everyone looked a bit taken back by my reaction, and I saw Sokka torn by my words. He didn't want me to stay here, but at the same time he knew he couldn't force me to leave. Tears filled in Katara's eyes as she realized what I was saying. Aang and Toph hung back, and I saw they too were upset knowing what I was about to do.

"Think about what you're about to do… If you stay with them, then there's no telling when we'll see you again," Sokka said, his eyes going moist as he realized too what was about to happen. He didn't want to be separated from me. "It could be long after this war is over."

My face was drenched in tears, and I looked away from everyone as I said with a broken heart, "I love you all more than anything… And I know this is me being selfish..." Looking back up, I met Sokka's eyes once more. "But I have to do this. I can't leave my uncle like this. I'll never be at peace with myself not knowing if he's alive. You all have to understand."

The group around me was silent as they took in what I spoke. Wiping my face, I tried to stop crying and stay strong. This was for the best. This was my choice. It was time to make my own decisions and stop letting others rule my life.

Arms suddenly encircled me, and my eyes widened as my sister hugged me close to her. "You're not selfish... Don't ever thing that," She whispered. "I'll miss you so much." Her own tears stained my shirt as she tightened her hold. "Is this really what you want… To stay with your uncle?"

Nodding, I hugged her back glad to know she was so understanding. "It's the right thing to do."

"Then just promise me one thing," she said, her voice controlled as she tried to stay strong for me. "Promise me you'll take care of yourself?"

"I promise," I whispered. "I'll be fine, and I'll see you all again soon."

She pulled away from me after another few seconds of our embrace, and then her arms were replaced almost immediately by Sokka's. He held me close as he said, "I don't want to say goodbye, but I know this is what you want. If we force you to come with us, then you'll just be distracted and heartbroken… I know I have to let you do this. I'm proud of you, Amber… you'll be okay... you always are."

"She will be okay," Kale suddenly said. Sokka pulled away and we both looked at him with question. "I'm staying with her."

It was with these words I saw Sokka relax. He felt much more comfortable with the thought of Kale being at my side. Looking at Kale, I felt grateful that he was sticking beside me. That's why I loved him… Because no matter what he was always there for me. "Are you sure?" I asked, not wanting him to do this and regret it later. "You don't have to-"

He smiled weakly cutting me off. "There's no way I'm letting you out of my sight. I just got you back."

Feeling relief, I rushed forward and hugged him tightly, glad I had him in my life. It would be nice to have one familiar face from the group.

As Aang and Toph wished me and Kale good luck and said a painful goodbye, I watched with a heavy heart as they began to leave the town toward Appa. Sokka said something to Kale before he left, and I saw Kale nod in response. I assumed it was something about keeping me safe. As my water tribe family, Aang, and Toph walked away, I felt my heart sting as the distance between us grew greater and greater. As much as I hated this good-bye, I knew this was what I wanted.

Iroh needed me… And so did Zuko.

A hand took my own, and I looked at Kale with tear stained cheeks. "I'm right beside you," Kale promised. "No matter where you go." At that moment I knew I wasn't alone.

Nodding, I turned back to where Zuko was still crying over Iroh's body. Rushing over to him, I ordered, "Move!" I shoved my brother aside and immediately inspected the wound from Azula's lightning strike. To my relief, it had missed Uncle's heart and all his major arteries. There was a chance I could save him, and I was taking it. Zuko recovered from being pushed over and looked at me with fury. "What are you doing here? I told you to leave!"

Glaring at my brother, I hissed, "Shut up! He's my uncle too! Don't think I don't care about him any less than you do!" Zuko was taken back by this and seemed to not know what to say. Seeing that he was no longer going to try and force me to leave I went into full doctor mode, my only goal being now to save my uncles life.


Well that's this chapter. I'm sure some of you won't be happy I chose to have Amber stay with Zuko and Iroh, but that's how I had it planned in my head for the last few weeks I've been writing this story. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and want to read more. Thanks for the reviews, and also thanks to everyone who is reading along. You all mean a lot to me.

~Faithy Waithy