Oops. I realized I totally lied in my last chapter…I said there would be no kissing and there just happened to be a couple…maybe you should just ignore my rantings…I seem to state the obvious and hand out false information…yeah, so…wait! never mind! Read! Read every word! I need your input! Gah…just…here's my chapter…

Chapter Ten

"They must have landed on one of these islands." A faint smirk played about Azula's lips she spoke. "The game of cat and mouse has begun. And poor ZuZu never has been too good at it."

Mai frowned slightly. She still wasn't comfortable with Azula's double-crossing. The young noblewoman still thought of Zuko often. Her crush had never really gone away. "So we're going after Zuko?" she asked flatly.

"No," Ty Lee answered for Azula, jumping down from a tree to land right before her stoic friend. "We catch the Avatar by following Zuko, thereby catching Zuko, and by doing so catch the Avatar. Right, Azula?"

The Fire Nation princess rolled her eyes. "We follow the Avatar and wait fro him to meet with Zuko. That's when we'll spring our trap."

"You plan on fighting everyone at once?"

Azula shook her head and smiled at Mai. "Of course not. You recall the Dai Li?" Mai nodded. "They've been following us. We have our own army, girls."

Ty Lee stopped her acrobatics to stare at Azula. "But—"

The princess cut her off. "Ty Lee; I want you to go ahead again. They won't suspect you of anything if they spot you alone. When you find them, signal us."

Ty Lee's shoulders sagged in resignation. "How? I can't firebend like you."

This time, the smile that crossed Azula's face seemed nearly evil. "Do you still carry flash powder?" Ty Lee nodded. "Use that, as a demonstration for the Avatar, of course. That will signal to us where you are. We'll follow you then and let the Avatar lead us to my brother and uncle."

"Azula…"

"Yes?" Her voice held a definite bite and Ty Lee backed down.

"Do you want me to signal every night?"

"One should suffice, Ty Lee."

The acrobat nodded and then leapt away, heading to a fishing village nearby. She would find a small boat there, she knew. Soon, she would be off to sail around the islands, searching for the Avatar. Again. This was no fun and, what was worse, Azula's quest for ever more power was pulling Ty Lee in deeper than she ever thought she would go.

And now she was on her own, about to row between islands, all in the quest to help the ruin of the world. Ty Lee sighed. All she wanted was to go back to the circus. At least there, she knew what was going to happen. At least there she brought smiles to people. And she was happy. This didn't make her happy. Not in the least.

As Ty Lee moved away, Mai glanced towards Azula. "Do you think she'll do as she's told?"

"She knows better than to betray me."

"There's another one!"

Hearing Sokka's enthusiastic announcement, Toph groaned and fell back. "Great," she muttered. "More searching."

Sokka turned. "Well, we wouldn't have to take so long on the islands if you would just tell us whether or not anyone is on there," he retorted.

"You try to see everything through a network of roots and tunnels, with animals running around. I've been trying."

"Then try harder," Sokka growled.

"You try harder!"

The two began to bicker making Aang turn around. "She can't do everything, Sokka. We're trying to find her as quickly as we can, but it's going to take a while."

Sokka huffed out a breath and sat back down, arms crossed over his chest. "Just take us down, Aang."

The bald monk nodded and guided Appa down. Again. It was getting monotonous, and frustrating, trying to find Katara this way. Why did Zuko have to make it so hard? And why hadn't Katara managed to send them a sign?

"Because you promised her you wouldn't come after her. She thinks you're not coming."

"But I am. I am coming."

"But she doesn't know that. You made a promise; you should have kept it."

"I could never leave Katara. Ever."

"Aang."

The airbender turned, Sokka having startled him out of his thoughts. "What?"

"We better find some cover. I don't like the look of those clouds."

Aang turned and looked to where Sokka was pointing. There, just to the east, giant clouds were forming, dark thunderclouds building higher and higher. It was a massive storm. "Where can we go?"

"There's a network of caves nearby," Toph answered, rising from the ground. "It seems pretty uninhabited, but I can't be sure."

"All right. Let's go."

Sokka frowned. "What about Katara?"

Aang turned. "We can't find her in the middle of a storm, Sokka. It's too dangerous. We'll have to wait it out."

"But what if something happens?"

Toph laughed suddenly. "To Sugar Queen? Dream on, Sokka. She can handle herself for a few more days. Don't worry so much."

Sokka watched as Aang and Toph moved off. After a moment, he followed. "I can't help it," he whispered to their backs. "She's my sister."

Katara had been avoiding Zuko all morning. Though she admitted she liked him, she still was uncertain about the depth of her feelings. And his. To all appearances, Zuko didn't seem to like her too much. And now she was stuck here on an island with him. With what looked like a major storm coming. And, goodie of goodies…she would be stuck in this small cave with him and his uncle—though Iroh was pretty nice—all through the storm. And who knew how long that would last?

She sighed and walked out of the cave they had found earlier and out onto the rocks beyond. The wind was blowing fiercely, lifting her hair and causing the dark strands to flare out behind her. A light rain began and Katara smiled, raising her hands in welcome. Oh, how she loved the rain. In the rain, everything seemed to be washed away, leaving both body and soul cleansed. It was truly beautiful.

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She was beautiful.

Zuko was trudging back from his expedition. He and his Uncle had worked nearly all morning to cut down a tree and chop firewood. A storm was coming and Katara couldn't depend on his body heat to keep her warm (A/N: darn. And we were all so hoping…).

As he left the trees and began walking back to the cave, Zuko stopped, staring at the sight before him. It was raining gently and Katara was poised at the edge of a small cliff, arms raised in welcome. She fairly glowed, even the dim morning light. Her hair, always so lovely, blew around her, teasing her waist, and emphasizing its small size.

It wasn't until his uncle walked into him that Zuko noticed he was no longer moving.

"Is something wrong, Prince Zuko?"

Zuko shook himself, tearing his eyes away from Katara. "No. I was just thinking," he replied.

As Zuko moved, Iroh spotted Katara and smiled knowingly. She had begun to dance and poor Zuko was stumbling as he tried to carry the firewood and watch her at the same time. "A beautiful sight, isn't it, Nephew?"

Zuko nearly fell. "What?" he asked quickly.

"The sky," Iroh replied, trying to hold back his laughter. "The clouds and the sun are dancing quite beautifully."

"D-dancing, Uncle?"

"Dancing. One would almost believe it was a dream, but it most certainly is not."

"Not a dream?" Zuko had the sudden feeling that his uncle wasn't just talking about the sky.

"Of course not, Prince Zuko," Iroh replied, his tone full of secret laughter. "It's right before your eyes, is it not?"

Zuko slipped into the cave and placed his firewood far from the mouth. "I suppose not, Uncle."

"You must admit that one could very well fall in love."

"What?!" This time, Zuko turned, eyes wide.

Iroh's smile began to peek out. "This place. It's lovely enough to fall in love with." He blinked innocently. "A man could very well get used to such pure beauty. The water is a lovely, sapphire blue and sometimes, just as the sun us rising or setting, it seems as if the whole ocean is set ablaze."

"Ocean Fire?" It was a concept Zuko had heard of before. His mother had once sung to him of how the seas were set ablaze in the memory of two lovers and that, as the sun kissed the horizon, their lives became as one, as the ocean caught fire.

"Why Prince Zuko. I never believed you were so fond of those old love songs."

Growling low at his uncle's tricks, Zuko turned away. "I'm not," he said tersely, just as Katara walked into the cave.

"Not what?" she asked.

Iroh turned and sent Katara a brilliant smile. "We were just debating on whether or not my Nephew should call you in from the rain. But it appears as if there was no need."

Though she seemed doubtful, Katara said nothing and merely shrugged, taking a seat towards the back of the cave. "When will we be able to have some tea, Uncle Iroh?" she asked instead.

"As soon as Zuko builds our fire."

The young bender groaned. This was going to be a long storm.

Did you like it? More clichés, I'm afraid, but what can you do? But! Just think about what might happen if Zuko and Katara both stomped off and got lost in the storm together? Oooh…do I have your attention? Please review!