A/N: Does happy dance It took me forever to decide on the course of this chapter, but I finally got it. Sorry my fight scene chapters are a little on the short side, but that's just how it is. I hope you enjoy it!

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"Azula." Zuko whispered, just loud enough to hear. We all sat there for a moment, frozen with fear and anxiety. Then Sokka asked the question everyone had wanted to ask.

"How'd she catch up to us?" My brother was hysterical. His blue eyes were wide and his hands flew to his head. He pulled out his wolf tail in his anxiety, letting his hair fall to his eyes. "We're dead." he said simply. "We're going to die."

"Calm down." Zuko shot back. "Just steer the bison back over their path."

"What?" It was more of an exclamation than a question. Sokka was going to bubble over with adrenaline at that rate. "Why can't we just do what we did before?" Zuko turned, shooting the water tribe boy a look as if to ask 'how stupid are you?'

"The plan from before won't work because there aren't any clouds to cover us."

It was then that Aang chose to speak up. "Zuko, I think we should keep going on our path. We can fly over land and lose them." I could already sense the oncoming conflict and it read disaster.

"Aang, the way we're going, they have a direct shot at us with the catapult. If we double back on them, they need to turn around to shoot at us. That gives us time to evade them." It was obvious Zuko had a better plan and much more experience. He'd been on a Fire Nation ship for nearly three years; he knew their faults much better than any of us. But it was clear the Avatar wasn't giving up.

"Once we turn around, they'll have time to turn around too. We've got at least three hundred yards on them." Aang argued. I had to admit, he had a point.

"We've got about two hundred fifty yards." Zuko corrected, pointing over the edge. "And right now they're between the land and a sandbar. It'll make up for the space between us since it'll be hard for them to turn around." Aang's eyes narrowed as he glared at his firebending teacher. Why wasn't the Avatar giving in? Why wasn't he listening to Zuko?

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Azula was looking over her map after she had added another red dot to it. There was a small island with neat calligraphy underneath it: Kinko Island. There were several other red dots littered up and down the coast. Select areas had them closely bunched together while others were more spaced apart. The princess's eyes narrowed. Why was this so?

She racked her brain trying to remember what had happened that week with all the red marks. Her crew had to make several stops that week. Once was for supplies, another for repairs, and another for lost supplies from the encounter with the Avatar. The stops were one hundred miles apart, roughly. The firebender picked up her ruler, measuring between other red marks that had been dated. Sure enough, those that were four days apart had about four hundred miles between them. Azula smirked as she stood with her map, making her way out of the room.

The princess couldn't help but smile at her discovery. So the bison traveled a hundred miles a day? Already, the gears in her mind were turning, calculating days, distance, and in the back of her mind, a plan. As the girl rounded the corner, she was nearly run into by a soldier.

The young man skidded to a halt, apologizing. "But, Princess Azula, I have news." he said, huffing. Apparently, it was big. "The Avatar has been spotted. The helmsman and captain--" Before the soldier even got the rest of his sentence out, Azula was off at a sprint, calling a short thank you over her shoulder. The young man blinked. Since when had the princess ever said that?

Azula threw open the door to the steering room without warning. "What's happening?" Akuzo and the helmsman, Kuzi, looked up. The princess vaguely noticed Hurun was sitting at the table, calmly drinking tea as he looked over his notes to the Fire Lord.

"The Avatar is within range of the catapults." Akuzo replied. "They have not tried any evasive maneuvers, so we don't think they have spotted the ship. What do you wish to do?"

Azula narrowed her golden eyes in thought. She took a deep breath as she weighed her options. They were in range of the catapults but they wouldn't be for long. That furry beast was faster than the ship and the princess knew it. And as she thought, more and more options flooded her mind. Looking toward the two young men, she said something she never thought she would.

"What do you think would work?"

Hurun couldn't help but spit his tea out, sputtering. Kuzi stared wide eyed while Akuzo's mouth dropped. The captain was the first to regain his composure. "We could wait until we have a better shot. It seems they haven't spotted us yet."

"I just don't want the Avatar bending water again." Azula said. "That will put us at another stand-still." The gears were still turning, powered by adrenaline.

"Princess, may I suggest something?" Kuzi asked, holding up a finger. Ever since he'd been punished by the fiery girl, he had learned to be very cautious and respectful around her. The princess nodded. "We could fall behind to the horizon so they are always within sight. When they land, they'll make camp. That's when we can move in." Azula said nothing, only thinking harder.

Akuzo busied himself with looking over a map. He ushered his secret girlfriend over, pointing to it. "We're here, right between the coast and that sandbar." Azula nodded, seeing that the sandbar went on for several hundred yards. She assumed it was once an island but the water level rose. "It might be an advantage. It could make it harder for the Avatar to bend water since we're located in something like a channel." Azula smiled slyly as she figured out her plan.

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"Why aren't they attacking us?" Sokka asked, halting the heated argument between Zuko and Aang. We all looked over the edge of the saddle. The foreboding ship was just as close as before and it seemed to be picking up speed. Zuko shook his head.

"They're getting a better range." The firebender turned to Aang. "Unless you want to be roasted alive, turn around now!"

"I still--"

I cut the Avatar off. I was tired of him being so stubborn and I was going to speak up. "Aang, Zuko has more experience with this sort of stuff. He knows the faults of the ships and with your plan, we're going to need to hurry if we want to get away." My friend looked at me with anger in his eyes, but it dissolved to something like sadness. He took his seat on Appa's head, ready to say the magic words.

He never got the chance.

"Fireball!" Zuko yelled from the back. The Avatar leapt up while my brother scrambled to Appa's head. Pry, push, kick. The movements were much easier for them now and they were faster. A giant splash erupted on the surface of the water as the rock collided with it. The fire from the projectile was sent flying back to the ship, but it was knocked away.

I stood between the two boys, pushing and pulling the water. It wasn't going high enough to come over the edge of the ship. "The sandbar is in the way!" I told them. Aang took a position next to me as Zuko pried more flames from another rock. The Avatar kicked it into the ocean and continued to help me with the water. We weren't having much luck.

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Azula smiled as she watched little more than a bucketful of water come over the edge of the ship. She silently thanked Agni for that sandbar. It was aiding her in her plan greatly. Akuzo was lighting the projectiles while Kuzi brought the princess her spy glass.

The princess was still beaming when she picked up the tube, bringing it to her eye. Her face fell as she saw three figures standing on the bison. The Avatar and a girl were both looking as though they were waterbending. With each of their movements, a little more water came over the edge of the ship. This wasn't what bothered the princess. Next to them was a young man. A firebender. Her brother.

She dropped the spy glass, the glass shattering.

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"Aang!" I yelled. "Bend the sandbar!"

"I'm not good with sand!" he yelled back, kicking another rock into the ocean.

"Do it!" Zuko yelled, throwing a fireball back to the ship. I watched as Aang tried to bend the sand from so far away. The light color was fading ever so slowly under the water, but only in a certain spot. It was up ahead of the ship.

Zuko pried more fire away from yet another rock, holding it until Aang kicked said rock into the ocean. The firebender then split the ball of flam in two, giving the Avatar half of it. "Wait." Zuko said. I could see he was waiting for the moment all three of us could attack at once. The weak spot in the sandbar was coming up… "NOW!" They both sent out the flames while I brought up a wave. Once he'd launched the fire, Aang helped me.

There wasn't nearly as much water as before, but I did see at least five dots littering the water. I felt Appa lurch as my brother spoke. "Hold on! I'm turning Appa around!" The three of us fell, holding tight to the saddle as my insane brother turned us around in no time flat.

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"What the hell are they doing?" Azula yelled to no one, dripping wet. Akuzo was right beside her, looking up at the furry beast that had turned around. The captain jumped up, redirecting the twin balls of fire headed their way. They flew back toward the Avatar's giant pet as he ordered what was left of the crew to load all of the catapults. He lit them and ordered them to launch. The princess stayed on the metal floor, staring up at the monster with unwavering eyes. They were so close she could see them. Zuko pulled the fire away from the projectiles while the Avatar pushed the rocks back into the ocean. They came dangerously close to hitting the ship.

Azula's eyes narrowed. They'd need to turn around to follow them. "Kuzi!" she yelled. "Turn us around!" The princess ran to the back of the ship, followed by Akuzo. Her plan was ruined now but she would not let them escape. She readied her lightning while the captain did the same with fire. They launched their dangerous attacks at the same time.

The lightning was dodged while Zuko shot the fire back at the two, sending them backward. The princess glared daggers up at her brother. "YOU'LL PAY, ZUZU!" She screamed even louder when her brother gave a mocking thumbs-up.

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A/N: I'm glad I finally got another attack from Azula in there. It's not as good as the first, but it's a little different. You'll find out what she was planning in the next chapter, promise. That just seemed like the perfect place to end it…

grins

I hope you enjoyed it!

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