A/N: It occurred to me that sending a hawk to the Earth King when they all have phones didn't make a ton of sense, so from now on I'm going to say that world leaders use hawks for messages they don't want intercepted. National security! Also, let's assume Roku died peacefully in his sleep.

And y'all thought On Ji was done...SORRY.

As soon as Sokka had texted him, Iroh closed up the Jasmine Dragon. It was unprecedented. Confused students and regular patrons whispered their theories on why the tea shop that hadn't closed in recent memory had its shades drawn and doors locked. Zuko stood by the side door to discreetly let members of the Gaang in when they arrived. Sokka thought the Jasmine Dragon would be the safest place to meet, and Iroh was the closest nearby adult they all fully trusted.

Suki had been one of the first to arrive and remained clung to Sokka's side. Aang was deep in thought, leaning on his arms on the table. He'd known he was the Avatar for 5 years or so now. Thus far, it hadn't put him in any real danger. It impacted him, sure. He had to leave the Southern Air Temple, which he had been really upset about at the time. But it had brought great things into his life. Good friends, a deeper connection to the world, the opportunity to live differently than most of his Air Nomad peers.

He'd been able to mostly ignore the fact that he was the Avatar. Yes, he did his training each summer and didn't have a huge choice in his major. Even though it was different than he was expecting, he was living a relatively normal life for someone in his early 20s. But today, his identity wasn't just putting him at risk, it was putting his friends at risk. Sokka could have been hurt because of him. He pushed the thoughts away when the door opened. If anyone would be more worried than him, it would be Katara, and he had no intention of adding to that.

Katara burst into the room, practically elbowing past Zuko as she ran to her brother and friend. Seeing that Suki was wrapped around Sokka already, Katara seized Aang in her arms. She pulled his head into her neck. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

He smiled quickly. "We're okay, Katara. It wasn't a big deal, I think Sokka and I were just spooked in the moment."

As Toph arrived, Iroh brought a round of tea for the table. Breaking the silence, Sokka spoke. "Thank you for letting us meet here, Iroh."

He nodded, sipping his tea. "Of course. I'm glad you came."

"Alright," Sokka started, "I've already sent a message to the Earth King. He'll likely send out the Dai Li to start finding out who attacked, and why."

Katara unconsciously gripped Aang's arm tighter. Aang rubbed her hand gently, trying to calm her down. "So what do we do in the meantime?"

"We can't just pretend nothing happened."

"Stop." Aang sat up in a moment of clarity. "You all could be in danger because of me, none of you should be doing anything about this." He hated seeing her like this. He hated seeing all of them like this.

The entire table disagreed immediately in a rumble of discontent.

"Aang, we're not going to let you take this on alone." Katara placed an arm around his shoulder reassuringly.

"Come on, Airhead. We knew what we were getting into when we signed up." Toph cracked her knuckles. "They're just lucky I wasn't there this time."

Aang's eyes closed and he breathed a sigh of relief. He knew they wouldn't back down, and he was secretly glad. He looked up. "Zuko, you really didn't sign up for this. You're the Fire Prince, you can't get hurt on my watch."

Zuko paused, deep in thought. "You're right, I am the Fire Prince. I have a responsibility to my people, and to the world. The Avatar is good for the world. I think I'll stick around." He smirked.

Iroh nodded. "He's right, Aang. You need friends you can trust now more than ever. Whoever has attacked is doing so before you are a fully realized Avatar. They know once your training is complete, it will be significantly harder to defeat you. It is important that you master the elements as quickly as possible."

"Oh, I could teach firebending. You already started with Master Jeong Jeong, right?" Zuko leaned in, trying to catch Aang's gaze. "Spirits Aang, drink some tea and calm down."

Katara handed Aang his cup, running her hand up and down his back. If only she knew it was her touch really making him feel overwhelmed. The attack had certainly helped clear his mind of the dream, but seeing Katara, smelling Katara, was bringing it all rushing back as she touched him. "Alright, that's settled then. We've written the Earth King, Zuko will teach him firebending, and Toph and I will keep training him. What's next?"

Iroh nodded. "I think it would be wise for all of you to get out of Ba Sing Se for a little while. Maybe even take a vacation from the city while the Dai Li figures out what is going on."

"Leave the city? Where would we go?"

Sokka laughed suddenly after a pause. "Next week is Ember Island Weekend."

Ember Island Weekend was a tradition among the students of Ba Sing Se University. It was a bit of a misnomer because they had the whole week off from classes. While students went all over for the break, many preferred Ember Island for its warmth, secluded beaches, and lack of Dai Li officers to break up parties.

"Wait!" Toph sat up. "That's perfect! No one would expect the Avatar to go to a trashy college party town, especially after an attack." It was true. They had never gone before, usually opting to do some specialized training or catch up on sleep during the week off. While they had a good time, he did take his training rather seriously.

Aang blinked. Suddenly nothing sounded better than getting out of Ba Sing Se and away from the anxieties that had flooded his head since that afternoon. He'd been to Ember Island before, and it was beautiful. He felt a smile spreading across his face.

Iroh and Zuko exchanged a glance. "We can use the family beach house. No one ever uses it, so we should be fine there."

"The important thing is that you get out of the city just until we're sure it's safe. You may as well have some fun if you can on the way. Drunk college students are not exactly the most observant. Most of the residents leave Ember Island to avoid them as well."

Sokka looked at Aang. "So, it's a plan?"

Iroh smirked knowingly. "Aang, you could bring that new lady friend of yours."

He looked at Iroh with surprise. "We just got attacked, and you're suggesting I bring a non-bender on a trip?"

Katara released her death grip from his arm and slowly sipped her tea.

Suki glared. "Hey, us non-benders can hold our own."

"You're right, you're right," he said, holding his hands up in mock defeat while Suki swatted his arm. "A non-fighter," he amended.

"Aang, you aren't a fully realized Avatar yet. That should be your focus. Let us handle the rest." Iroh smiled reassuringly.

"Us?"

"Us elders. We've been around a while and held things together while you were a child. We will handle this too. I will talk to the Earth King and figure everything out. We will fix this by the time you are back. And yes, bring your friend. People have seen you together, so she is probably safer with all of you than alone."

There was a knock at the door. "Dai Li!" Iroh stood to let them in.

A few uniformed officers came into the tea shop. "Avatar Aang, we heard about the attack. We're locking everything down, your apartments are being guarded and we have teams looking for the assailants. We'll have patrols throughout the university as well and are interviewing witnesses as we speak."

Iroh clapped the stiff officer on the shoulder, much to his apparent distaste. "See, Aang? We've got it under control. Leave the city, and do your training in the desert like we talked about." He turned around and winked.

Team Avatar looked at each other, smirking at Iroh's attempt to throw off the Dai Li. "Alright, let's pack. We'll leave for the Si Wong tomorrow morning."

Aang had debated whether or not to ask On Ji if she wanted to join them after their awkward conversation. He'd been ignoring her texts all day with everything that had been going on. But Iroh's words had worried him. He didn't like the idea of putting someone in danger. She would be safer with them, ironically, drunk on a tropical island. He also wanted to forget about everything that today's events had brought up, and On Ji would make a wonderful distraction.

He took his glider to her place that evening, texting her for the first time when he landed. She came out cautiously, still not sure about how she felt about earlier that day, but concerned after hearing from a sister about the incident at the Farmer's Market. "Aang, I heard what happened. Are you okay?"

He nodded, pulling her into a light hug. "Totally fine. I'm sorry I was AWOL all day, especially after this morning." He held her at arm's length. "We had a lot going on today. Look, I wasn't all awake when we talked this morning. The truth is, I like you, and I'd like to see where this goes."

Were the feelings as strong as the ones he had for Katara? No, but it was the truth. On Ji was fun to hang out with. She didn't seem super concerned about his status as the Avatar and they had a good time together.

She smiled. "Well, that's good news, I guess."

"That's not why I'm here though. I have a really weird proposition for you." She raised her eyebrows and he laughed. "Nothing like that. Do you want to go on a trip with me and everyone tomorrow morning?"

"A trip tomorrow morning?"

"We need to get out of town after everything that happened for a little while. I thought you might like to come." She didn't answer, so he changed his tune quickly. "Zero pressure. I'd understand if you were nervous being around us after today." He didn't want to freak her out, either, by telling her that she could be in danger. Earlier, he'd asked the Dai Li to keep tabs on her just in case.

She considered his offer. Getting whisked away on a mystery vacation sounded fun, and she was dating the Avatar after all. She should have expected things to be a little chaotic. "Where are you going?"

He made a face. "Sorry, I can't tell you until we're in the air, or after I get back."

She laughed. "How am I supposed to pack?!"

"We'll be warm, I can tell you that. Wait, does that mean you'll come?"

She shrugged. "What the hell. May as well."

Aang could start to picture how nice this weekend might be. They would practice bending, drink a bit, and swim. They would get to relax from the stress of classes and the attack. He really did have fun with On Ji. Did he love her? No. But he liked her, and she was sweet. Besides, Iroh had suggested he act his age. What was more college kid-like than bringing a girl to Ember Island Weekend?

When Aang landed on his balcony, he heard the familiar sound of siblings arguing.

"Go home, Katara! You're overreacting."

"No! I should be near you guys just in case."

Sokka groaned loudly. "The Da Li is surrounding this place and Aang is the AVATAR, Katara."

"It doesn't matter- Oh, hey Aang." Katara paused the argument to greet the airbender who slowly opened the door to the balcony. She scrunched her eyebrows together. "You should really keep that locked, you know."

"Katara!" Sokka slapped his forehead. "Aang, tell her she doesn't need to sleep here tonight."

Aang laughed. It was always in Katara's nature to be overprotective and he had stopped trying to fight her on it long ago. He flopped down on the couch. "Sokka, Katara is a grown woman. If she wants to sleep on this dirty couch all night, so be it."

She beamed. "See Sokka? I'm staying." She had obviously already packed for their trip, a bag was waiting by the balcony.

Momo chittered excitedly at Aang's arrival, searching his pockets for treats. "Hey, Momo. Want to go on a trip?"

As they prepared for the trip, Katara started cooking the food she had brought. They wanted to get there as quickly as possible, meaning very few stops. "So…" she started, when Aang dropped a small bag by the balcony and started helping her pack up the food. "Is On Ji coming?"

"Yeah, she is. I can't believe she would come on a trip without knowing the destination."

Katara's heart seized. This was getting painful. She shuddered at the thought of going on vacation with them. She reminded herself that her friend's happiness was important, especially after the attack. "She's cool."

Aang looked up almost happily for a moment, but something in his face faltered. "Really? You think so?"

His eyes on hers made Katara freeze. She didn't know how his impact on her had changed so quickly. It was like he had control over her body. Every time he looked at her now, she couldn't think or breathe or speak. "I mean, I guess, I don't really know her that well, but she seemed nice, um, the other night, and if you like her then she probably can't be that bad, right?"

"Right. She's nice." Aang was socially inept for the most part, but even he knew that Katara's response was weird for someone who was normally so articulate. He chalked up the strangeness to jitters from the attack and continued packing.

Within a few hours, they were all prepped. As if one, the three collapsed on the couch. Katara groaned. "We need to sleep. We have to leave in a few hours."

The boys mumbled in agreement, but none of them moved. Slowly, each of them drifted off into sleep on the couch, Momo curling up in Sokka's lap.

They woke up with a start when there was a loud knock on the door. "Dai Li! On Ji has just arrived, Avatar Aang."

Awoken from his sleep, Sokka slid off the couch to go to the bathroom. Aang was not as quick to wake. He was wonderfully warm. But when he realized why, he nearly jumped sky high. Somehow during the few hours on the couch, Katara had tucked her head under his chin, leaning almost entirely on his chest. Or, maybe he had pulled her in. His arms were around her, locking her in place. He didn't know how it had started. But what he did know was that On Ji was currently in the elevator. He pushed Katara off him lightly. She flushed red realizing the position they were in. Aang stood, laughing a little uncomfortably. A small knock came on the door. "I should get the door for On Ji."

Katara cursed under her breath before grabbing his arm before he couldn't move. Her eyes were wild and unlike her. He couldn't tell for the life of him what was going through her mind. "What is it, Katara?"

"Don't take On Ji."

Her words sliced through him as he looked at her pleading blue eyes. It was like he had just been hit by a brick. Was she saying what he thought she was saying right now? He stared at her, eyes wide in horror, and not sure what to say or do.

Sokka, emerging from the bathroom, opened the door. "Oh hey, On Ji. Come on in."