They continued riding on for nearly a week, stopping only to sleep for the night. Finding a place not far from a river that seemed isolated enough, they decided to make another camp as they had done before. Towards the end of the day after setting up the tent, they had time to relax.

"I'm going to the river," said Chiara.

"I'll go with you," said Zuko still worried about what happened to her at their last campsite.

When they reached the river, she started walking out in the water while Zuko followed her, and they both started swimming. After enjoying their swim, they sat in water and talked.

"I want to practice your waterbending moves with you," he said to her surprise.

"Really?"

He nodded. "You always practiced firebending; I think I should learn waterbending. Uncle said he learned lightning redirection from waterbenders. There's probably so much more that I could do as a firebender if I practiced with you."

"I would love that," she said.

He splashed her. "So does that count as waterbending?"

She softly laughed. "As much as throwing rocks counts as earthbending."

He laughed at her reply.

"Remember when you waterbended at Azula?" she asked him.

"No," he said. He looked at her. "I was waterbending?"

"It was after she threw rocks at us."

"Oh, I remember," he laughed. "I did waterbend." He thought about it. "What...what did you think when I said that?"

"I thought you executed your form perfectly."

He was laughing.

He had rarely wondered about her past when they were growing up together, but since learning she was a waterbender he had been more curious but was often hesitant to ask.

"Do you remember the village where you came from?" he asked.

She thought about it for a few seconds.

"No."

"Really?"

"The only thing I remember is my mother, but the only image I have of her, her throat had been cut and she was burned."

He was shocked, and he thought back to what Iroh had said about her mother. "I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to make you think about that," he said regretting his question.

"It's not something you really forget. It seems to be the oldest memory I have. I remember the General's first words to me. 'This is something you should not see,'" she said imitating his voice.

Zuko found her imitation of his uncle adorable.

"He took the diadem off her head and placed it around my neck. Then he picked me up and carried me away from the village telling me not to make a sound. I thought I was going to end up like my mother after he stuck me in a bag. I remember hearing other men talking, and then I felt something stab me in the arm." She lifted up her sleeve and showed the faint scar. "But I didn't make a noise. I just kept my hands over my mouth and held as still as I could. I expected another more painful one."

"I-I remember that," he started. "I mean, I remember you having a bandage on your arm when I met you."

She nodded.

"You must've been terrified."

"I was, but looking back I guess I was kind of...resigned to my fate. Even at that age I knew if I screamed there would be no one to help, and I certainly couldn't fight the General, so I just waited to die."

Zuko was stunned to hear her story.

"It seemed like I was in that bag forever. Eventually, he let me out and gave me some food and water. We traveled for days it seemed. We stopped near a river and he was cleaning the soot off my skin; it was still black from the attack. He brushed my hair. He would talk to me, but I don't remember anything else he said. I remember sailing on the sea being surrounded by the water. I remember the first time I met Lu Ten...and you," she said as she looked at him.

"I remember that day too," he said as he thought about it. "Your first words to me were, Yours are fire."

She smiled at him. "I'm surprised you remember."

"I'll never forget. That was the second best day of my life."

"Really? What's the first?"

"Our wedding day."

He leaned towards her and kissed her, and then he took her hand in his and held it under the water.

"Do...do you ever miss being with the Water Tribe?" he asked her.

"I'd miss you and the General more," she said. "Before we left the Northern Water Tribe, he told me he wouldn't force me to return to the Fire Nation. When I chose to go with him, he worried that I would be denying my nature, but I told him I would be practicing self-control."

"So that's why he called you a self-control bender."

She giggled.

"That must've been hard for you," he said. "You finally got a chance to bend your element freely, and then you gave it all up."

"I loved my life in the Fire Nation. It was home to me, and more than that, you and the General make it home wherever we are."

"I understand that now. I thought being Crown Prince was home, but...it's not. You make it home wherever we are." He lifted her hand out of the water and kissed it. "Uncle said you're a treasure. He's right."

He kissed her again.

"Did they know who Uncle was at the North Pole?" he asked as he had been thinking about her time in the north. "That he was the Prince of the Fire Nation?"

"He was very honest with them when he spoke to Chief Arnook. He even offered to be kept as a prisoner in exchange for my training."

"Really?"

"Yes. I told him it wasn't worth his imprisonment, but luckily it didn't come to that. They just assigned some warriors to follow him around for a few weeks. I told him it was like having his Imperial Firebenders with him, so he called them his Imperial Waterbenders."

He laughed.

"I'm surprised they let you go back to the Fire Nation," he said.

"They didn't want me to. The General told them that the request for my training was only on the condition that I was free to choose whether or not to go back to the Fire Nation. My father's cousin tried to talk me out of leaving when the time came."

"You have family there?"

"Yes."

He heard the sadness in her simple answer, and he saw the tears that filled her eyes as she thought about Surak.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I tried to save Surak during the Siege, but I...I couldn't." Her tears flowed down her cheeks. "There was so much blood."

"Was he the one you spoke of at the resort?"

She nodded.

"Oh, Chiara," he said as he wrapped his arms around her and held her. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea you lost family...more family." He thought about how depressed she had been at the resort, and he now understood just how difficult the Siege had been for her as he realized it had been on a more personal level. She had not just been grieving over the death of some stranger but of her own relative.

He continued holding her caressing her head, and they sat lost in their thoughts for a long time.

As he was thinking about her family and the losses she had suffered, his thoughts drifted to his own family.

"Did Uncle ever tell you about my great-grandfather?" he asked her.

"Fire Lord Sozin?"

"No. My great-grandfather on my mother's side."

"I don't believe so."

"He was Avatar Roku."

"What?" she asked sitting up and looking at him. "Really?"

"Yes. He told me when he was in prison."

"So he was Aunt Ursa's grandfather," she said thoughtfully. "And you're a descendant of an Avatar."

"Uncle says it's why there's a struggle within me, because of the struggle between Avatar Roku and Fire Lord Sozin."

"I think Avatar Roku's winning," she said softly.

He smiled.

"That-that's incredible," she said still in awe. "I told you you had his eyes."

He laughed as he remembered her teasing him at the Southern Air Temple. "I guess you were right."

Often Zuko and Chiara went swimming while their dinner was roasting since it was a nice break after working all morning and afternoon, and one day, they were holding onto a log and talking as they floated in the current. As they were conversing they did not realize that they had traveled quite far down the river. As they continued downstream, they came to a long bridge spanning the river, and when they got closer to it, they heard voices and then saw a group of men.

"We need to get out of here," he whispered to her.

She looked at him. "Go under."

He wondered what she intended to do, but he went under the water. She took his hand and pulled him down deeper, but he found he was able to breathe. He realized he was inside part of a bubble as she was waterbending the water around them to take them back upstream.

"Are you okay?" she asked while still concentrating on her bending.

He looked at her. "This is incredible. This is what you did when we were on the raft?"

"Sort of. It wasn't as much work because it wasn't like the river's current."

"If I had known back then that you were safe, I would've let you go in again."

She softly giggled.

"I was really mad at Uncle for letting you do that. I couldn't understand why he didn't seem to be worried about you. It was like he didn't care. And then you nearly froze to death."

"You did a good job keeping me warm." She got chills at the memory of being wrapped in his arms and held against his warm body, and suddenly the river current jerked them back downstream as she nearly lost her concentration.

"Are you okay?" he asked when he felt the river push them back.

"Sorry. I was distracted," she smiled relieved that it was too dim for him to see her blushing. "I was just thinking about how warm my firebender was."

He smiled, but now he was blushing too as he remembered holding her. "And my waterbender is amazing," he said looking around their bubble.

When they suspected they were out of sight of the bridge they surfaced, and as they walked onto the shore, Chiara removed the water from their clothes as usual.

They had been at their new camp for a few weeks living quietly in the forest enjoying their daily routine.

"Where are you going?" Zuko asked her after breakfast one morning

"I'm going to forage for a while. I saw some berries down by the river."

No sooner had she reached the bush she had seen earlier than Zuko was by her side helping her.

"Some of these are huge," he said as he pulled off an enormous berry.

"I wish we could find some fruit trees around here."

"Have you looked?" he asked.

"Not since we moved here."

"Do you want to take a walk then?"

She looked up and smiled. "Yes."

He placed her hand on his arm and they walked into the woods not far from the river bank looking around for fruit trees.

"When the Rough Rhinos caught Aang and me, we had just discovered a grove of apple and pear trees," she said.

Zuko's lip curled as he thought about that night. It was something they had never discussed. It seemed to him that she had been just as intent on keeping his secret as he was.

"I...I remember the Rough Rhinos...when we were with Uncle."

"Yep, same guys."

"It's good you were able to get away from them," he said.

She could feel the blush rising to her cheeks. "Well, if it wasn't for the spirit of the forest I would've been Zhao's prisoner."

"There was no way that was going to happen," he said deeply.

They continued walking through the forest looking for fruit.

"What you said to Zhao about the rumors," he started, "you were never with any girls at the port."

She softly giggled. "Rumors have to start somewhere."

He smiled. "I like how you tried to convince him it was the Avatar."

"That really upset him."

He found it funny that she had deliberately tried to mislead Zhao, but then he thought about her offer to him, and he became more serious.

"He wouldn't have kept his promise to you," he said softly.

She understood what he meant. "I suspected as much, but I had to try for the Water Tribe."

It just occurred to him that she had been willing to sacrifice herself for her own people. Before he knew she was Water Tribe, he had trouble understanding how she could offer herself to Zhao for strangers, but now it made sense to him—she was willing to do it for her own people. But despite her sacrifice, he was sure that Zhao would not have honored the agreement.

"He would've waited until you had four or five kids and one on the way so you couldn't stop him."

She shook her head.

"I think our alliance between the Water Tribe and Fire Nation is better," he said. He leaned close to her. "And one day it'll be more productive."

She giggled as she placed her other hand on his upper arm.

"Of course, the Blue Spirit would've rescued you on your wedding day with Zhao," he said.

"That would've been quite the surprise to him since you were dead."

"He might've believed it was the Avatar then."

She gently laughed.

"So did you know back then the identity of the Blue Spirit?" he asked her.

"You disappearing off the ship at the same time the Avatar was rescued from Zhao, the mask of the great Water Spirit..." She shrugged.

He was chuckling as he remembered them changing the end of Love Amongst the Dragons when they were younger.

"I only wish I had thought to do it," she said.

"In the end, Zhao thought you had. Why did you make him believe it was you?"

"If he escaped, I didn't want him to expose you."

He was always amazed by her love and concern for him, and the lengths to which she went to protect him. He stopped again and turned towards her and kissed her.

"I love you so much." He embraced her and held her appreciating everything she had done for him.

When he released her, he held her hand on his arm again and they continued walking now forgetting all about the fruit trees as they walked into a small clearing.

"So was it really hundreds of Yuyan archers and twice as many firebenders?" she asked him.

He started laughing. "I hate to admit it, but the Avatar did most of the work with his airbending. And twice he could've left me. In the fortress I was surrounded and he had a chance to escape on his own, but he came back for me, and after we escaped, an archer knocked me out. He knew who I was then. He could've left me there for Zhao, but he didn't."

"That's not Aang's nature," she said.

"He rescued me for you."

"What?" she asked surprised. "What did I have to do with it?"

"I was so angry when I came to. I was angry that I failed to capture him and that he rescued me and I would feel indebted to him. I shot a fire blast at him and he jumped away, but before he left, he said, 'this was for Chiara.'"

She felt touched that Aang rescued Zuko.

"I-I don't think it was just for me," she said softly. "He could've left you at the North Pole too, but he didn't."

He realized she was right. "I don't know why he didn't leave me there."

"Because he's an airbender and all life is precious."

He gently laughed as he stopped and turned towards her again, and he leaned down tenderly kissing her lips.

"You know," he started as he released her, "since you know the identity of the Blue Spirit, I'm going to have to kill you now." He pulled out a sword as he stepped back.

She pulled out hers. "I think I like my first encounter with the spirit better."

They both blushed at the memory of their forbidden kiss, and Zuko slowly lowered his sword.

"You're right. Let's just reenact that," he said as he took a step towards her.

She immediately took a step back and brought her sword up between them. "Oh, no. I won't let you steal from my lips again."

He had a devilish grin. "I might just steal more than that," he playfully threatened.

They began sparring, and Zuko was anxious to defeat her, but Chiara kept up with every aggressive move he made.

"Come on, hundreds of Yuyan archers, and I'm just one girl," she taunted him.

He laughed at her provocation, so he moved to trip her up, but she jumped back and brought her sword down only for him to raise his and block her attack.

Their playful fight continued.

"The longer this goes on, the more I plan on stealing," he threatened, though he feared he would be unable to beat her.

She giggled. "You keep threatening me, I may just apprehend you and turn you in."

He swung his sword at her, and when she blocked it, he reached out to grab her, but she quickly jumped back to avoid him.

"Take the traitor prince dead or alive!"

They turned to see a squad of soldiers coming from all directions and surround them.

Two of them focused on Chiara, while the other eight attacked Zuko. Disarming one of his opponents, he blocked another, and kicked a third all while defending himself against those that were firebenders. Chiara was quick to disarm one of her opponents, and slicing his leg, she disabled him and quickly kicked him away before blocking another attack from the second. Once she dropped him she brought the hilt of her sword down on his head, and then she immediately attacked one of the eight as she was determined to protect Zuko. As she finished with another soldier, she turned to see one of the men take aim to impale Zuko from behind as he was fighting the firebenders in front of him. She immediately threw herself in between them just as the enemy's sword was stuck in her upper chest beneath her right collarbone. Zuko turned around, and when he saw the man holding the sword and the blood flowing down Chiara's clothes, he felt the heat rising in his body. The man stepped back pulling his bloody sword from her chest, and fear seemed to fill his whole being when he saw the fire in Zuko's eyes as he wrapped his left arm around Chiara. With a movement of his sword a ring of fire surrounded them, and in a flash the men who were still conscious ran off screaming as they were covered in flames.

"Chiara! Chiara!" He gently touched her face.

You have to go," she said softly. "You and the General must get away from here."

"Not without you."

He laid her on the ground and cut off part of his tunic which he placed beneath her clothes and pressed over the wound to slow the bleeding. He quickly sheathed their swords, picked her up, and then he carried her back to camp as fast as he could.

"Hang on, Chiara. I'm going to get you to Uncle."

As he approached camp, he called out. "Uncle! Uncle!"

Iroh stood up as he saw Chiara in Zuko's arms and covered with blood.

"What happened to her?"

"We were ambushed by Fire Nation soldiers."

Iroh pulled a mat out and laid it on the ground. Zuko laid her on it, and then he opened her top over her shoulder to see the wound. Iroh knelt next to her with a bucket of water and a cloth. He was dismayed to see the size of the wound.

"It is quite deep," he said as he wiped some blood away.

"You've got to help her, Uncle," said Zuko desperately, worried that she was unconscious.

"Start packing," said Iroh, not taking his eyes off the wound. "I will take care of this."

"Will she be okay?"

Iroh hesitated. "I don't know. I wish we knew of another healer."

Zuko thought about Katara, but he had no idea where she would be, and he doubted she would ever help him after Ba Sing Se.

"Or if only there was a full moon tonight," said Iroh. "Even that might help."

Zuko quickly packed their camp while Iroh dressed Chiara's wound. After dealing with her, he went to help Zuko and find out more details about their attack.

"How is she?" asked Zuko anxiously.

"I dressed her wound, but she's still unconscious. What happened to her?"

"We were sparring and some soldiers recognized me," said Zuko. "We weren't even bending."

"How many?"

"Maybe ten."

"Only ten against you two? How did she get hurt?"

Zuko hesitated as he thought about her sacrifice. "One of them attacked from behind; it was meant for me, and she took it," he said, feeling ashamed. "She was fighting to my right, and then she was...she was behind me."

Iroh paused in thought.

"It's clear that we will not be able to run forever, Zuko. We may need to find a place that will take Chiara and keep her safe for a while, and we will go and search for the Avatar."

"And where will it be safe for her? The Fire Nation is attacking every village and city. She'll never be safe."

"It's more dangerous for her to be with us. She will blend in with the Earth Kingdom. She's done it before, so she will adapt. It is her nature."

Zuko hated the thought of parting from her even temporarily. He went and knelt by her side. Iroh had bandaged her shoulder and made a makeshift sling to stabilize her right arm against her chest so she would not move it.

"Chiara," he said as he tenderly caressed her face.

She opened her eyes. "You have to go before they find you," she said softly.

"We're going right now."

As he picked her up, tears leaked out of her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," he said. He carried her over to his ostrich horse and helped her on, and he got on behind her. "Just put your head back and rest," he said.

She felt weak from the blood loss, and she closed her eyes and tried not to think about the pain in her chest.

"We'll try to stay as close as possible to the river," said Iroh.

During their journey Zuko offered her water to drink often, but after the third hour of riding he could not wake her up.

"Chiara," he said, but she was still unresponsive. He looked down and saw fresh blood on her bandages. "Uncle! She's bleeding."

They rode off into the woods towards the river and stopped, and Zuko brought her down and laid her on the ground so they could look at the wound again. Iroh removed the bandages.

"This is not good," he said to Zuko's dismay. "We may need to cauterize the wound, but it would have to be done internally." He poured water over it.

Chiara regained consciousness, but she was weak.

"I will go see if I can find a doctor," said Iroh.

"No," said Chiara. "Please leave me here. You both must go."

"We won't leave you here," said Zuko. "I won't leave you here." He looked up at Iroh. "Go, Uncle, see if you can find someone who can help her. I'll stay here."

Iroh nodded, and then he stood up.

"I'll head north. If I am not back in two hours, assume the worst."

When he was gone, Zuko carefully picked her up and carried her down to the river. He walked in and sat down so she was mostly immersed. The moon was up, but it was not full, so the light from it was not strong. As Zuko held onto her, he looked at her. He had been through a lot in the past year which caused him to rethink his destiny, and having spent most of his life with Chiara, he knew he could never choose the Fire Nation over her again just as she had given up living with the Water Tribe for him and Iroh. He thought about what Iroh had said about leaving her in the Earth Kingdom. He knew his uncle was right and that it would probably be the safest option for her especially in her current condition. But he hated the idea of another search for the Avatar. He felt that however long it would take this time to find him and help him defeat his father was too long a time to be away from his wife. He preferred instead finding some place they could escape to where they would never be bothered by the Fire Nation. His mind drifted to the Northern Water Tribe where the Fire Nation was unable to conquer the ice fortress. His uncle had stayed there once, so they might be willing to allow them to stay there again. But then he wondered how long it would be before another siege was made against it and their lives disrupted again.

"Prince Zuko," said Chiara softly.

"I'm here," he said, relieved that she was conscious. Lifting his hand from the water, he tenderly caressed her face.

"Please don't stay here for me," she said weakly. "I beg you to go. You have a destiny beyond me."

He took her left hand in his. "You address me as Prince. If I can't stay here and take care of my own wife, how can I take care of a whole nation?"

A tear fell from her eye at his compassion. "What kind of servant would I be if I let my prince die?"

"You are not my servant," he said.

"I am your humble and loyal subject," she said.

As usual his heart melted at her words, and he wondered if she knew the effect they had on him. He tenderly kissed her lips.

"You are my equal, and even more than I am. I've made too many mistakes in my life, and even now I'm in exile again and being hunted like an animal."

"You chose exile to save the General; that was not a mistake. Without you he would've been executed."

He took solace in her words.

"And without you we would've starved," he said.

"You would've managed."

"Why did you do it, Chiara?" he asked, his heart broken as he worried that she was going to die. "You could've healed me instead."

"There are some injuries I can't heal. If he had struck you in the heart, I would've lost you. I already lost one family and my Lu Ten. And I thought I lost you in the explosion. You and the General are my family, and I can't let anything happen to you. You've been two of the greatest gifts in my life," she said to his surprise. "I wouldn't trade our time together for anything on this earth. And now you need to go. You can't be caught because of me."

"We won't be caught."

He tenderly kissed her hand, and then she slowly reached up with her left hand and tenderly caressed his cheek under his eye.

"I have always loved your eyes. The color of fire," she said weakly.

His heart was beating faster as he remembered the first words she spoke to him when they were children. Suddenly, he felt worried as her eyes closed.

"Chiara?"

"Please go," she said so softly he could barely hear her.

Tears fell from her eyes.

"I won't leave you," he said softly as he held her tighter.

As the moon crossed the sky, Zuko worried that Iroh's two hours were almost up.

"Lee! Lee!" Iroh called.

"Here," he replied as he stood up in the water still holding onto Chiara.

As he walked out of the river, the water fell from their clothes.

"Conserve your strength," he said to her.

As he approached his uncle, he saw there was someone else with him. Iroh placed a mat on the ground underneath a tree, and Zuko tenderly placed her down on it before taking her left hand in his. Iroh held a lantern for the doctor who removed the dressings covering her injury.

"This looks like a sword wound," said the doctor. "It reminds me of the wounds of soldiers who have been injured or killed in battle."

Iroh and Zuko looked at each other.

"What happened to her?"

"She was attacked by Fire Nation soldiers," said Iroh.

The doctor shook his head. "They have been a scourge on our kingdom attacking even small villages of women and children. What else did they do to her?"

"This is all," said Zuko.

"Then she is very lucky to still be alive."

"Will she be okay then?" he asked hopefully.

"Only time will tell. She has no fever, which is a good sign."

Zuko tenderly caressed Chiara's head.

"What is your name?" the doctor asked her.

"Lin," she said softly.

"Lin, I'm going to place some herbs in the wound," said the doctor. "They will keep it clean, help it heal, and they should help with the pain." He pulled a small bag out of a larger one.

"I'm from the Water Tribe," she said.

"You are? I'm so glad you told me before I did it. This would not have worked so well for you."

Chiara nodded having known her treatment would be different.

"Can you still help her?" asked Zuko.

"Do you have any water?"

"Here," said Zuko as he handed him the pouch.

The doctor pulled two small cups from his bag, poured some herbs into one of them, and then added some water. He stirred it and then strained the herb infused water into another cup.

He looked at Chiara. "This is going to hurt at first. It will take a few hours before it helps with the pain."

Chiara nodded. "I understand," she said softly.

"Are you ready?" he asked her.

"Yes."

She held her breath as the doctor poured the water into the wound. The pain was excruciating. She never cried out, but tears rolled down her temples; and as her grip tightened on Zuko's hand he felt the greatest sympathy for her as he realized she was going through this for him. Iroh was reminded of how silent she remained as a child, even when her arm had been cut. When the doctor finished, he covered the wound and wrapped the bandages around her again, and as he worked their wedding bands caught his eye.

"It would probably be best not to travel too far with her yet." More tears fell down her temples which Zuko wiped away. "Keep these herbs and do what I did twice a day," he said handing the bag to Zuko. "It'll be much more effective if you allow the herbs to stew in heated water for a few hours. Just make sure the water isn't too hot before applying. And cover the wound with a clean cloth before wrapping."

He began packing his things into his bag.

"Thank you, doctor," said Chiara softly.

"Yes, thank you," said Zuko.

"You're most welcome," said the doctor.

He stood up and Iroh walked him to his ride.

"Please don't stay here for me," she softly begged Zuko. "Those soldiers were after you and the General. I'm not worth you getting killed or captured."

"You're worth it to me," he said. "I'm not leaving you here by yourself. I won't leave you."

She felt disheartened by his refusal, and she worried about his safety.

Meanwhile, the doctor was talking with Iroh.

"I understand you want to get as far away from the Fire Nation as possible," started the doctor, "especially after what happened to her. There aren't too many places left that are safe, but if you need somewhere to stay for a while, there's an old, empty cabin a short distance from here. It sits in the woods and is very isolated and private."

"Thank you. That sounds perfect."

"Follow the road until you come to the sharp curve. Instead of following the curve, continue going forward into the forest. You'll eventually come to the cabin in the clearing, and continuing forward will take you to the river."

"I appreciate all your help, especially at this late hour," said Iroh.

"You may be able to earn some money by selling fish in the town."

"We may do that," said Iroh.

"If I may ask, how is it that she's living in the Earth Kingdom and not with a Water Tribe?"

"Her family was murdered by the Fire Nation, and she was orphaned as a young child."

"I see. Is she your nephew's wife?"

"She is," answered Iroh before realizing he had never mentioned his and "Lee's" relationship, and he suddenly tensed up.

"To see the Prince of the Fire Nation show such love and compassion for a child of the Water Nation, it's very promising," said the doctor softly.

Iroh looked at him feeling worried, but the doctor handed him a tile. Iroh looked down at it.

"The White Lotus opens wide to those who know her secrets," said the doctor. "Welcome, Grand Lotus."

Iroh breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"The prince's compassion makes for a good Fire Lord," said the doctor.

"He will make an excellent leader," said Iroh. "But for now, his marriage to her is unknown to the Fire Nation, and I fear it will not be accepted."

"I don't know," said the doctor thoughtfully, "I believe it's a sign of a better future for all of us."

"There are still too many prejudices."

"He has shown that there is hope that prejudice can be overcome."

When the doctor left, Iroh returned to Zuko and Chiara.

"The doctor was kind enough to direct us to a private cabin in the woods," he said to them. "We should go there."

"Can we transport her?" asked Zuko.

"Yes. He said it's not far."

"Are you going to be okay?" Zuko asked Chiara.

She nodded. He picked her up as gently as he could, and after they climbed on the ostrich horses, they proceeded to leave for the cabin.