Everything Changed on Ember Island
Azula heard about the attack on the communication tower by a Water Tribe "witch" and a scarred Fire Nation boy. She instantly recognized who they were and figured out their bearings from the later reports. The princess tracked down the Avatar and his friends easily at the Western Air temple. It only seemed fitting they would be there. The siblings fought one another and nearly lost their lives when they tumbled off the balloon they were on during the melee. Azula caught herself on a cliffside using her crown and while the gaang saved Zuko from a free fall into the gorge below before speeding off and away.
Zuko realized that there was nowhere in the Earth Kingdom they could really hide if Azula found them so easily. He offered a solution where he knew no one would think about looking. The abandoned beach house was on a private stretch of island that belonged to the Fire Lord. The island was a vacation resort called Ember Island and Ozai hadn't used or kept up the place since his wife Ursa was banished years ago. No one except Zuko and Azula had been there since then, but neither of them desired to return. The beach house brought up too many memories and trauma they'd rather forget.
With it now being the off-season for tourism there, no one would expect anyone else to be on the island except year-round residents. The gaang were thrilled to finally be able to sleep in beds again. They were especially excited to have a shelter with a roof and walls and to cook in a kitchen instead of on an open fire. Katara looked at Zuko appreciatively. She felt like she would be able to breathe a little easier with space she could call her own after the chores were done. Zuko smiled shyly in return and nodded. He was glad to be able to give her something other than a headache for once.
Sokka and Suki immediately went to explore the island and perhaps get in a little personal time. Toph rolled her eyes and pretended to gag. There were too many heartbeats going willy nilly right now. She only hoped Aang would be alright once he realized that none of those heartbeats were for him.
"Oi, Twinkletoes! Let's get in some bending practice by the beach. I want to see if I can manipulate the sand a bit." she barked. Aang looked at Zuko and Katara staring at each other and hesitated. Why were they looking at each other so hard? Were they about to fight? He hoped nothing was wrong. Their friendship was still pretty new, and he hoped that they were getting along.
"Uh, Ok Toph. Yeah, let's go. Katara and Zuko do you wanna come too?" he said with a hint of concern. His question must have been enough to break the spell because Zuko coughed and Katara blinked rapidly.