With the comet approaching soon, very soon, the group woke up early the next morning and began loading their belongings onto Appa while the bison ate; they needed to start making their way towards the Fire Nation.
"Ok, that's everything." Sokka announced once he was confident that he had secured everything onto the saddle.
"Not it's not," Toph objected and so the other's looked to her, wondering what it was they had all missed. "Where's Aang?" She asked, obviously everyone was quick to look around and when they realized that Aang was in fact missing they all darted inside to search the house for the Avatar.
"Aang? Aang?" Zuko called once the group was upstairs.
"Come on lazy bones, let's go!" Toph called out but when she got no response the group split up and began frantically searching the house.
They searched the whole place from top to bottom, but found no sign of Aang. That is, not until Sokka found his staff. But with no other sign of him they decided to check the beach, where they found footprints leading into the ocean.
"So he went for a midnight swim and never came back?" Suki asked
"The kid survived underwater for a hundred years, how could he have drowned between last night and this morning?" Azula questioned sarcastically, though she was mostly ignored.
"Maybe he was captured," Katara suggested but Sokka shook his head.
"I don't think so. There's no sign of a struggle." He said
"I bet he ran away again," Toph theorized, couching down next to Sokka.
"He left behind his glider and Appa," Sokka argued.
"Then what do you think happened to him? Oh, sluthy one." Toph shot back
"It's pretty obvious," Sokka said as he stood up, "Aang disappears before an important battle, he's definitely on a spirit world journey!"
"But if he was, wouldn't his body still be here?" Zuko asked and suddenly Sokka's confidence deflated.
"Oh yeah, forgot about that." He said
"Then he's gotta be somewhere on Ember Island, let's split up and look for him." Katara said, being quick to make the plan.
"I'm going with Zuko!" Toph excitedly announced, attaching herself to the arm of her friend.
"Um...?" Azula said as she and the others all stared at the young earth bender in confusion.
"What?" She asked, "Everyone else went on a life changing field trip with Zuko, now it's my turn!" She exclaimed
"Right… Uh, Katara and I will check in town." Suki said and Sokka nodded.
"I'll take Appa and fly around, maybe I can spot him from the air." He decided and as everyone split up and went their separate ways Azula approached Sokka.
"Looks like I'm with you," she said and while she expected the Water Tribe boy to absolutely loath the idea he simply nodded to her.
"Let's go," he said.
The two of them climbed onto Appa and began their search over the island, and when they didn't see any sign of him they began flying over the ocean.
"How far are we going?" Azula asked when she noticed that Sokka had headed out very far; so far in fact that Ember Island was now nothing more than a distant dot.
"As far as we need to in order to find Aang," Sokka distractedly replied from where he sat steering Appa. Azula nodded and simply returned to peering over the saddle, scanning the sea below for the Avatar. "Do you really think he froze himself again?" Sokka finally asked and Azula looked over to see that he was in fact serious. "What you said before, about him surviving underwater for a hundred years, you don't think he's trying that again do you?" He further explained, he didn't want to think about it but the reason Aang ended up frozen in a block of ice was because he was afraid of being the Avatar, and on some level he still is.
"From what I understand he didn't freeze himself on purpose the first time," She said it like it was a question and so Sokka nodded in confirmation. "Then I doubt he'd try to." She said, trying to be reassuring. However that is not exactly her best skill and the reassurance seemed to only count for less and less with each hour they spent flying.
"Come on, let's head back." Sokka finally said, when they returned to the house, however, they were greeted by the sight of the others all sitting on the front steps.
"Judging by the looks on your faces I'm guessing you guys didn't find Aang either," Sokka said when they landed, him and Azula quickly dismounting the bison.
"No, it's like he just… disappeared." Zuko answered gravely
"Wait, has anyone noticed that Momo's missing too?" Toph questioned, apparently despite being blind she's the only one who notices anything around here.
The moment he heard that Sokka whirled around in panic, "Oh no, I knew it was only a matter of time!" He exclaimed, "Appa ate Momo!" He shouted as he pried open the bison's mouth and stuck his head in. "Momo! I'm coming for you buddy!" He shouted,
"Sokka, Appa didn't eat Momo. He's probably with Aang." Katara stated but Sokka responded by turning his head and glaring disbelievingly at her.
"That's just what Appa wants you to think," he said before fully crawling into the large creature's mouth.
"Isn't that thing an herbivore?" Azula asked but Sokka ignored her as Appa shut his mouth, leaving only his legs kicking the air outside.
"Get out of the bison's mouth Sokka," Zuko ordered, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Aang is nowhere to be found and the comet is only two days away."
"Thanks for the reminder captain bring-down," Azula commented and Zuko only growled at her.
"What do you two think we should do?" Katara asked, and it wasn't a sarcastic question. Based on the way she, Suki, and Toph where looking at them, while Sokka came sliding out of Appa's mouth in a puddle of drool, it was obvious that they were honestly looking to their ex enemies to make the plan.
"I don't know," Zuko finally said but they just kept looking at him expectantly, even Sokka raised his head up in the background. With no other idea, Zuko looked to Azula.
"How should I know?" She asked, "Why are you looking at us anyway?" She continued,
"Well you guys are kind of the experts on tracking Aang," Katara reasoned,
"Yeah, if anyone's got experience hunting the Avatar, it's you two." Toph said in support of the idea.
"Ironic," Azula commented, "but true." She finished before looking to Zuko. "However I usually found him by tracking you," She said but Zuko was still lost in his own world of thought.
"Everybody get on Appa," he finally announced and so without a word the others all got up and piled onto the bison, Sokka slipping on the drool he was covered in more than once.
When the Water Tribe boy finally made it onto the bison he was met with a swift towel to the face, and pulled it off just to see that Azula had thrown it.
"Wipe yourself off before you come near any of us," she snapped, he only grumbled and did as he was told.
One agonizingly long flight later and the group found themselves outside of an Earth Kingdom tavern just around the time of sunset.
"Ok you dragged us all the way out to the Earth Kingdom which if we don't find Aang is going to be burned to the ground in just about twenty-four hours, now I see why father had me take over your job, you just try and get yourself killed." Azula remarked as they all dismounted Appa.
"We're here because there's someone who can help us find Aang," Zuko responded
"Who?" Katara questioned, "No offence but I can't think of a single person we could find here that's able to help us," She continued as they walked through the door, but Zuko simply pointed ahead.
"I can," he answered; he was pointing to a girl with pale skin, raven black hair, and was wearing a dark maroon colored outfit, sitting at a table while she crushed a man's neck with her legs.
"Oh yeah, that weird bounty hunter with the giant mole." Sokka commented
"Mole? Her skin is flawless," Suki commented
"No, she has this giant mole creature she rides around on." He further explained.
"Bounty hunter with a giant pet mole?" Azula asked, eyeing Zuko with a smirk. "You sure know how to pick 'em." She teased and Zuko sighed.
"Please, don't say anything to her," he requested, knowing that with June's tolerance for people, or lack thereof, anything Azula said could cost them her help.
"So how is she supposed to help us?" Suki asked
"Her 'giant mole' is a Shirshu, it can track a person's scent anywhere in the world, including Aang's. It's the only chance we have at finding him." He explained and as he did the woman in question threw her drink into the air, took out a very large man moving to attack her, and caught the drink without spilling a drop.
"I don't know who this lady is, but I like her!" Toph announced with a wide and very impressed grin, obviously having seen the woman fighting and easily subduing the man who was twice her size.
"Wait, she helped you attack us!" Sokka exclaimed accusingly but Zuko merely shrugged off the anger of his friend.
"Yup, back in the good old days." He said and Azula couldn't help but frown, not that anyone noticed of course.
"No kidding," she thought to herself before she promptly followed the others over to the woman's table.
"Oh great, it's prince pouty." The woman commented, Azula mentally agreed with Toph about liking her. "Where's your creepy grandpa?" She asked, oh yeah, Azula could learn to like this one.
"He's my uncle, June, and he's not here," Zuko answered defensively, clearly still sore over what the play had portrayed him and Iroh as.
"I see you worked things out with your girlfriend," June commented, to which both Zuko and Katara went extremely red in the face and very defensive.
"She's not my girlfriend/I'm not his girlfriend!" They both exclaimed at the same time, causing Azula to eye her brother skeptically.
"Ok, ok, sheesh. I was only teasing." June brushed off.
"Teasing is lost on them, believe me." Azula said as June took a sip of her drink.
"Whose this?" She asked
"My sister," Zuko replied and June actually chuckled at that.
"I'm sorry," she said
"Don't be, we worked things out." Zuko replied
"No kidding, I'm sorry for her. I know I'd hate to be related to you." She continued as she took another sip of her drink. Zuko struggled to maintain his composure while Azula let out a giggle; she was liking this girl more and more with every word she said.
"So what do you want?" June finally asked,
"I need your help finding the Avatar," Zuko replied but June remained emotionless.
"Doesn't sound too fun," she responded, and that's where Zuko's patience wore out.
"Does the end of the world sound like more fun?" He all but shouted, even getting in her face a little.
Finally June put down her drink and got up, leaving some coins on the table.
"Ok fine, assuming my other option is death." She mumbled as she began heading for the door, the others following her example, except Azula held Zuko back.
"Between her and the play I'm really confused, did you and Katara used to-"
"No," Zuko cut her off before heading out the door, leaving his sister snickering behind him.
Outside Nyla was sniffing Aang's staff and promptly walking around, sniffing in a circle, before lying down and placing her paws over her nose.
"Well what does that mean?" Zuko questioned, remembering very clearly that this didn't happen last time.
"It means your friend's gone," June answered while scratching her pet's ear.
"We know he's gone, that's why we're trying to find him." Toph said as if it was obvious, Azula couldn't help but think that the blind girl was in denial.
"No I mean he's gone gone, he doesn't exist." June said darkly, sealing the reality for everyone.
"What do you mean Aang doesn't exist?" Sokka finally asked, the strange wording of the statement bothering him. "Do you mean he's, you know, dead?" He continued to ask.
"Nope, we could find him if he were dead." June told him, somehow that came as a relief to everyone. "I know; it's a real head scratcher." June agreed, "see ya," she said before turning away, apparently not caring one way or the other if the end of the world comes about or not.
"Helpful, real helpful." Toph said in annoyance.
"Wait," Zuko said, halting June's departure. "I have another idea, there's only one other person in this world who can help us face the Firelord. I'll be right back with a smell sample." He explained but as he began digging through his stuff up on the saddle all of his friends, and even June, exchanged curious looks.
Who else could help them defeat the worst man on the planet?
The answer became clear when Zuko jumped down holding his uncle's flip-flop.
"And here I thought that smell was coming from Sokka's laundry," Azula said and if Sokka weren't using one hand to pinch his nose he probably would've followed through on his desire to strangle the princess, or he likes to think he would've done it anyway.
The sample seemed to be strong enough, big surprise there, and Nyla was quickly heading off on a path, team Avatar piling onto Appa and following right behind her.
"My laundry doesn't smell that bad!" Sokka defended quickly
"Nothing smells that bad," Azula bluntly replied. "But it can't be far behind," she continued and again Sokka looked as though he wanted to strangle her, but again he didn't.
They traveled through the night, and despite the severity of the situation Azula was trapped in her own thoughts. They were going to find uncle, forget about Zuko facing him; she was going to have to face him. He'd never liked her, not as a child and certainly not now. But let the record show, she's never been all that fond of him. In her eyes he's always been a phony, and if she's being honest, he still is. He acts like he's some great hero, like he's the wisest old man in the Fire Nation. He acts like he's so brave and strong, but he's a coward. Not because he mourned the loss of his son or gave up his siege of Ba Sing Se, no those things Azula understands now. But what makes him a coward; is that he chose the easy path. When she was a child he knew that she wasn't very fond of playing with dolls, yet those were the only presents she ever received from him. When mother left he became Zuko's protector, and when Zuko was banished he was all too willing to volunteer as a caretaker for him. It's not that Zuko didn't deserve that love as a child, it's that Zuko was always being picked on and so it was easy to love him.
But her?
She was never an easy child. She hid her emotions, at the end of the day she's always been just as broken as Zuko but uncle never cared enough to see that. Like mother he's always believed his niece to be a monster. She was too much work to care for, and just like mother, uncle let her suffer because of it.
Toph brought Azula back to reality, though not through the use of words. No, the blind girl had fallen asleep and finally her limp body slumped over and landed with her head on her new friend's lap. She stirred slightly, but when there's no earth beneath her Toph can be a surprisingly heavy sleeper and so all she did while stirring was make herself comfortable. Azula, however, had no idea what to do and just stared down at her friend in surprise.
"She's a lot like you, you know," Katara's voice said, Azula looked up to see the Water Tribe girl smiling gently at her. "She acts all tough and fearless, but at the end of the day she needs someone to lean on as much as the rest of us." She explained.
"Does this mean you watch me when I sleep?" Azula questioned and Katara chuckled.
"Just don't wake her up, she doesn't get peace like that often." She said, turning away and lying down on her side facing away from Azula.
Azula looked down at Toph, then back at Katara who had turned away.
"Yeah, me either." She muttered.
They didn't stop flying until late the next night, and when they finally landed they found themselves outside of a very familiar wall.
"We're going to Ba Sing Se?" Zuko asked as he and the others dismounted Appa.
"Your uncle's just beyond the wall, Nyla's getting twitchy so he can't be far. Good luck," she said before riding off.
"Two days nonstop and she doesn't even want to rest for five minutes?" Azula asked
"I guess not, but we should." Zuko decided, "It's been a long day, let's camp here start again in the morning."