After resting a short time, Chiara began feeling restless, so she and Zuko left the room. As they walked through the temple, their memories of being there before when he was searching for the Avatar were still vivid.

"It's hard to believe this is where you started your journey looking for the Avatar as an enemy," she said as she held onto his arm. "And now you're starting your journey here as his ally."

He smiled as he thought about her words. "You're right. Destiny is a funny thing."

She was giggling at his imitation of Iroh.

When they arrived in the courtyard, they saw more than just Aang, Sokka, Katara, and Toph, and Chiara was surprised to see another familiar face among them.

"Teo!"

"Chiara?" he said when he saw her. "It's good to see you again."

Still in his wheelchair he approached them.

"I can't believe you're here," she said, amazed at how much older he looked now that he was young teenager. "Remember Teo?" she asked Zuko.

"How can I forget," he said unenthusiastically.

"You all know each other?" asked Aang.

"Yes," said Chiara.

"They came to the Northern Air Temple," said Teo.

"Teo was going to help me fly," she said. "I thought it would be the closest thing to being an airbender."

Aang laughed.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" asked Katara.

"I never got the chance," said Chiara.

"I wouldn't let her jump off the air temple," said Zuko seriously.

He was confused by their laughter unsure of why the others found it so funny that he prevented her from leaping to her death.

"So what are you doing here?" Chiara asked Teo.

They all sat down in the courtyard while he told them his story of meeting the Avatar and how he and his father joined in the invasion on the Day of Black Sun. After listening to Teo, Zuko and Chiara learned The Duke's history with Jet and the Freedom Fighters and Haru's escape from the prison rig and how they all came to be part of the invasion team.

Later, after lunch, Chiara looked up at Zuko.

"Is it okay if I walk around the temple?" she asked.

He was reminded of their first visit there.

"I'll go with y..."

"No," she interrupted placing her hand on his arm. "You stay and socialize. It's been years since we've been here, and I just want to look around."

He nodded. "Okay. Do not stray too far," he said imitating Iroh which made her laugh.

"You're adorable," she whispered in his ear as she stood up.

As soon as she disappeared, Zuko suddenly felt out of place sitting there by himself with his long-time enemies-turned-allies. Chiara's presence had been like a cushion between him and the others providing a sense of comfort from the awkwardness. Her absence made the uncomfortable situation more painful as he watched them talking among themselves while avoiding eye contact with him. He wondered if Chiara left with the intention of encouraging him to bond with them on his own. He felt like a baby bird pushed out of its nest too soon. He could not imagine how he was supposed to bond with the same people he had angrily chased all over the world or with those who had their families broken up because of his own family's blood lust. He sat there quietly lost in his own thoughts as the others continued their conversations not paying him any mind.

Chiara slowly strolled around the large garden area looking at the images on the stone walls just as she had done years before, and as she walked she gathered flowers in her arms. She inhaled the scent of each one she picked, and when her arm was full of the colorful blossoms, she took them to the stone pile that was still present. The stick with her hair ribbon which was now ragged and faded still remained in the center of the pile. She began placing the flowers around the stones just as she had done years before, and then she knelt down in the same spot and softly sang a Fire Nation requiem.

The others were still carrying on their various conversations until Toph interrupted them.

"I hear singing," she said.

"Really?" asked Sokka. "I don't."

"Shut up and listen."

They got quiet, but they could barely make out Chiara's soft voice singing. Zuko recognized the song, and he knew exactly where she was and what she was doing.

"It's Chiara," he said softly, though not intending the words to be audible. Suddenly, the eyes that had been avoiding him most of the afternoon were all looking at him, except for Toph's which were looking just to his left. He now saw an audience expecting an explanation. "She's singing a Fire Nation song for the dead."

"Uhh...is that some sort of warning that we're about to be attacked?" asked Sokka.

"No," said Zuko. "Years ago, right after I was banished, we came here first to look for the Avatar. Chiara found the bones of..." He hesitated as he looked at Aang who was looking at him wide-eyed. Zuko looked down, feeling guilty. "She found bones, and she was upset. She sang a song for the dead to honor them." He could still picture her crying over the skull of an infant who had been murdered. "She built a monument covering the bones and placed flowers around it and put her hair ribbon in the center..."

"Wait," said Aang as he looked at Sokka and Katara whose eyes were now wide with recognition, "we saw similar monuments at the other air temples."

"Chiara built them wherever she found the dead." Though it had often been a group effort with him and his crew for the larger monuments, Zuko gave sole credit to Chiara since they would not have been built otherwise.

Aang, Sokka, and Katara were stunned to learn that the monuments they had seen had been built by her.

"She sang at each one to honor them," said Zuko. Images of her encountering the remains from the different temples flashed through his mind. "My uncle said the burials were hard on her, that she was too young for the violence," he said sadly.

"I always knew there was something different about her," said Katara.

"She was always so compassionate and caring," he said.

"Will she be okay?" she asked. "Should I check on her?"

"No," he answered. "She probably wants to be alone."

Everyone remained silent until they could no longer hear the haunting song.

When the conversations began again Zuko once again felt isolated, and he desired to go find Chiara, but he forced himself to remain in the company of the others. It was not until Teo, The Duke, and Haru broke off from the group to continue their exploration of the temple that he went to look for her. After checking the garden and finding it empty, he walked through the rooms of the temple finally finding her in the room with the giant Pai Sho table where she was reminiscing her and Iroh's game years before.

He stood at the entrance watching her as she ran her finger along one of their tile drawings they had traced on the table long ago.

"I miss him too," he said as he approached her. He stood next to her as she was sitting on the large stone table, and he took her hand in his. "I'm going back to the camp to grab our supplies so we can share them with the others."

She nodded. He helped her as she went to jump down, and keeping hold of her hand he led her out of the temple, and they started their walk back to their campsite.

When they arrived, they gathered their supplies together. The Order had provided them with a lot of useful items, including money, which all fit into a large bag that could be carried by one person. After packing it all up, Zuko lifted the bag over his shoulder not allowing Chiara to carry anything. On their way back to the temple, she was eyeing the different tree saplings. Spotting what she was looking for, she pulled out the small axe hanging from a ring on Zuko's bag.

"Hold on," she said. "I want to get this tree."

He turned around and seeing the axe in her hand, he intended to cut the sapling for her, but by the time he set the bag down, she had cut it herself.

"Let me get that for you," he said as he picked it up.

She stepped over to another sapling and started chopping at its base.

"Chiara," said Zuko, frustrated that she was swinging the axe again, "I'll get it."

"You won't let me carry anything, and they were just two small trees," she said. "It's not going to kill me."

He took the axe from her. "Can you please just take it easy?" he asked. "You were nearly dead a few days ago."

"And Katara's healing really made a difference," she said. "I feel so much better."

"I just don't want you to overexert yourself." He took the sapling from her hands.

"You thought putting food on a plate was overexerting."

"And your point?" he asked her.

"My point is..." She looked at him. "You're not going to let me win this, are you?" she said in a defeated tone.

"No."

She was softly laughing as she shook her head. After placing the axe back in its ring, he picked up the bag again and then the two saplings, and they continued walking back to the temple.

In their room, Chiara pulled out the teapot, spices, dried noodles, and a spool of cord, placing them all inside their cooking pot. Before she could pick it up, Zuko took it for her, so she grabbed her saplings, which he took from her, and they walked out to the courtyard. He started making a fire for her while she began making stew. When the pot was hanging over the fire cooking, she started working on making a bow, and Zuko worked on the arrows.

Late that night long after dinner, Zuko and Chiara were in their room lying down relaxing.

"Are you okay?" she asked him. "You've been really quiet."

"I guess I feel out of place."

"I know it must be hard for you," she said sympathetically.

"You guys are all friends. I...I don't really belong. I'm the only one from the Fire Nation, and it's my people—my family—who are responsible for their suffering."

Chiara sat up and looked at him. "It's understandable that you feel out of place, but you're not," she said. "You're right where you need to be. All four Nations are represented here as allies. You're here to make this world a better place for all of us. Regardless of what your people have done, you will be the one to help fix it."

He was amazed by her comforting words, so he sat up and kissed her.

"You would make the most beautiful Fire Lady. If only my people could understand what a treasure you could be to them."

Tears came to her eyes but did not fall, and she reached up and tenderly caressed his face. He was about to kiss her again, but there was a knock at the door before it opened.

"I'm taking Chiara to the river," said Katara to Zuko as she entered.

Her demanding tone did not go unnoticed by Zuko, but he held his temper for the sake of peace.

"Maybe I should go with you," he said as he stood up and helped Chiara to her feet.

Katara felt offended. "Like we need to be protected by a man?"

"It doesn't hurt to have a bigger group," he said, desperately trying to control his anger.

"Toph's going with us," she said. "Does that make you feel better?"

"It would make me feel better if I was going with her."

"Well, this is for girls only," she insisted.

Zuko knew he was not going to win this argument.

"Look, I know you guys are really good waterbenders, and I trust you to watch out for her, but please be careful."

Katara was initially impressed with his concern, but she reminded herself that it was Zuko, and she refused to trust him. Suddenly, Toph walked in the room.

"What's taking so long?" she demanded.

"Zuko's worried we girls can't handle ourselves," said Katara.

He was not going to let her get to him. "I'm worried that my wife is a target for bounty hunters," he said with a forced calm.

"You should've thought of that before you married her," snapped Katara.

Chiara placed her hand on Zuko's arm before he snapped back.

"We'll be okay," she said softly.

He looked in her beautiful eyes and melted.

"You should get some rest," she said to him. "You've been working so hard lately taking care of me and worrying about the Avatar."

He knew he would not be able to sleep unless she was with him, but he did not want to discourage her from going.

"Okay," he gave in. "Be careful."

She nodded and turned towards the girls, and then she went down on one knee before Toph making a gesture on the floor.

Toph laughed and bowed to her. "Wow, I have the Princess of the Fire Nation kneeling before me," she said. "I'm honored."

When Chiara went to stand, Zuko took her hand helping her to her feet. As he held her hand he kissed it, and she smiled at him as they walked out the door.

"I can see why the Prince of the Fire Nation married you," said Toph when they were outside the room.

Zuko heard her comment and laughed to himself, but then the room felt empty. Going to the mat, he lay on his back and stared at the ceiling. He could not stop worrying about Chiara being away from him. It was the first time they had been so far apart since she was in prison.

The girls ascended the steps leaving the temple area.

"How did you meet the Avatar, Lady Beifong?" asked Chiara as they walked upstream.

"Oh...well...," started Toph, "he was a fan."

Katara giggled. "Aang beat her..."

"Whoa, whoa, hold it right there, Sugar Queen," interrupted Toph. "Aang didn't beat me. He cheated."

"He didn't cheat. He knocked you out of the ring."

"But he did it with airbending during an earthbending tournament," argued Toph. "That's cheating."

"You were in an earthbending tournament with the Avatar?" asked Chiara.

"It was after Earth Rumble VI," said Toph, "of which I, of course, was champion."

"You were the champion of Earth Rumble VI?" asked Chiara excitedly. "I saw Earth Rumble I."

"How did you see that?" asked Toph. "I thought you lived in the Fire Nation."

"The General and I traveled through the Earth Kingdom years ago."

"That's why you recognized the Beifong name."

"Yes. We stayed in Gaoling," said Chiara. "I wish I could've seen it when you competed. The Boulder was the champion when I saw it."

"You mean The Pebble," said Toph.

Chiara started laughing at her nickname for him.

"I totally beat him."

"What name did you go by?" she asked.

"The Blind Bandit."

"Oh, that's great," said Chiara as she softly giggled.

"Yeah, it was pretty great."

"So you met Aang when he challenged the champion."

"Yes," said Toph, "but like I said, he cheated."

Katara scoffed which Toph ignored.

"When we were exiled before we went to Ba Sing Se, I recognized one of the competitors' voices," said Chiara. "He tried to take the General, Prince Zuko, and I to collect the bounties."

"I bet that was Xin Fu," said Toph. "Was he alone?"

"No. He was with another older earthbender."

"Those two losers trapped me in a metal box. That's how I learned to metalbend."

"You can metalbend? That's incredible."

"Yep. I'm definitely incredible."

"Yes, you are," giggled Chiara. "We encountered them in a cantina in the Misty Palms Oasis."

"Wait...," interrupted Katara. "...the Misty Palms Oasis?"

"Yes."

"We were there," she said. "It wasn't long after we battled Azula in that ghost town. I thought an oasis sounded refreshing."

"It wasn't my idea of refreshing," said Chiara.

"Mine neither. But we did get to visit Wan Shi Tong's Library. That's how we learned about the solar eclipse."

"I heard of the library. It must be incredible."

"It probably was before it sank," said Toph.

"It's gone?"

"Toph tried to keep it from sinking," said Katara. "That's when the sandbenders stole Appa."

"So that's how Appa disappeared. I saw Aang's posters in Ba Sing Se. Prince Zuko found him under Lake Laogai."

"So...so Zuko really did set Appa free?" asked Katara.

"I told you he wasn't lying," said Toph.

"Why did he do that?" Katara asked Chiara.

"He had intended to use him to get Aang, but I guess the General talked him out of it. I was busy talking to Appa. He looked so sad chained up."

They stopped at a spot where the river was narrow and the moon was visible.

"This looks like a good spot to relax," said Katara. She looked around. "Toph can you send some of these rocks out in the water."

"No problem."

She placed three large rocks in the middle of the stream, and Katara led the way into the warm water where they sat down on them, Chiara between the girls. They faced downstream allowing the current of the water to massage their lower backs. The moon was shining brightly down upon them, and Chiara was immediately beginning to feel recharged.

"This feels really good," she said.

"So...growing up in the Fire Nation," said Toph. "That must've been...interesting for a waterbender."

Chiara laughed. "I had to keep my bending secret. Only the General and Prince Lu Ten knew about it."

"Prince Lu Ten?" asked Katara.

"The General's son. He died in battle," she said sadly.

"And you grew up with Zuko?" asked Toph.

"Yes."

"The Fire Nation destroyed your family," said Katara. "How can you forgive them? I'll never forgive them for taking my mother from me."

Chiara could hear the bitterness in her voice.

"I don't blame the Fire Nation for what happened to my family," she said. "It's a great nation, but they're being led in the wrong direction. They need a Fire Lord who will lead them on a path of peace. Besides, two of my favorite people are Fire Nation. I love Prince Zuko and General Iroh."

"And that's another thing, I know Iroh helped us before, but wasn't he the Dragon of the West? How many villages did he destroy?"

"General Iroh is not the same man he was years ago. Whatever he's done in his past, he's redeemed himself in my eyes."

"But your own family was slaughtered by the Fire Nation, Chiara! By men like him! How can you even look at him after that?"

"Imagine being raised by the Fire Lord and being told that it was your duty to conquer the other nations. General Iroh is one of the bravest men I know. He managed to break free from a lifetime of war and violence against other nations and reject that ideology. He's considered a traitor by some of his people when he's actually a true son of the Fire Nation. He may have destroyed lives in the past, but he's recognized the error and has changed his life, and it's cost him nearly everything. I admire his courage in sacrificing everything to do what's right."

Though Katara still wanted to be angry, both she and Toph were impressed by her words.

"I guess you feel the same way about Zuko," said Katara, the bitterness sounding in her voice again.

"I do. He's another who's one of the truest children of the Fire Nation. His honor was everything to him, but he has more honor than he'll ever know."

"It wasn't very honorable of him to betray us in Ba Sing Se."

"To realize his error and correct his mistake takes a great deal of humility, courage, and honor. He spent years diligently searching for the Avatar, and he tried so hard to capture him so he could return home, and when he finally had it all back, he gave it all up to rescue the General and me from prison."

Chiara felt the flutter in heart as she spoke of her husband.

Katara was unsure if she could ever reach that level of forgiveness and acceptance, but she decided not to argue with her.

"So what's it like being married to Zuko?" asked Toph.

Chiara laughed at her question. "Like I'm married to my best friend, which I am. Like I always feel complete when he's with me, and like there's something missing when he's not. I've always loved his fiery eyes," she added, her voice a bit dreamy as she pictured them in her mind.

"He seems self-conscious about his scar," said Katara.

"He's got a scar?" asked Toph.

"Over the left side of his face," answered Katara.

"How bad is it?"

"It's pretty large," she said.

"How did he get it?" asked Toph.

Katara looked at Chiara.

"He didn't tell you guys?" asked Chiara.

She shook her head. "No."

"I...I don't think I should be the one to tell that story. Besides, I wasn't present when it happened...which might have been a good thing. I'm not sure I would've been able to keep control, and I probably would've made things a lot worse."

It was not the first time Chiara tried to imagine how Ozai might have reacted had she run out into the arena during the Agni Kai with the intention of protecting Zuko.

"Too bad you couldn't have healed it," said Katara drawing up a small stream of water and guiding it around.

"By the time I saw him, it was too late to heal completely."

"You tried?" asked Katara.

"Yes. It would've been much worse, and he was told he would be blind."

"Is it that bad?" asked Toph.

"It's...noticeable," said Katara.

"It's a symbol of how honorable my prince is," said Chiara.

The girls were now even more curious as to how Zuko got his scar.

"And it gives him character," she added.

Toph laughed. "You really see good in everything and everyone."

"Even his sister?" asked Katara.

"Hmm...," said Chiara thoughtfully. "She didn't kill me like she threatened. I guess that's something good."

"Probably so she could keep torturing you," said Katara darkly.

"It was worth it to see my husband again."

"Wow, Azula is your sister-in-law," said Toph as she considered their relationship. "That is a horrible thought."

"And Fire Lord Ozai is your father-in-law," said Katara.

"Imagine those family reunions," said Toph.

She and Katara laughed.

"They weren't so bad in the beginning, especially before Prince Ozai became Fire Lord," said Chiara. "Our families used to vacation together on Ember Island."

"What was he like?" asked Katara.

"He was so different from the General. The General would often play with us at the beach and even dance with us at the beach parties." She smiled as she fondly remembered their days on Ember Island. "But Prince Ozai never joined in with the kids."

"I didn't think anyone danced in the Fire Nation," said Katara.

"We danced at royal balls years ago when Fire Lord Azulon was still alive."

"You met Fire Lord Azulon?" she asked.

"Several times at royal dinners and royal balls. The first time I met him was at a formal royal ball shortly after I arrived in the Fire Nation. The General had me by his side when he greeted his father."

"What did he do?" asked Toph.

"He just smiled at me and said Prince Iroh made me quite a princess." She hesitated as she had not thought about Azulon's words since he spoke them to her, and then thoughts of him ordering Ozai to kill Zuko went through her mind.

"I guess he was right," said Toph, snapping her out of her thoughts. "You really are a princess."

"That was the first time I danced with Prince Zuko," she said softly as she enjoyed the more pleasant memories in her head.

"Zuko dances?" asked Katara.

"Everyone in the royal family learns to dance."

Katara had a hard time imagining Chiara being part of the Fire Nation royal family.

"It's so hard to believe a waterbender grew up with the royal family of the Fire Nation," she said. "Did Azulon know you were from a Water Tribe?"

"I doubt it."

"What did Iroh say when he brought you there? What did he tell people about where he found you?"

"He just said I was an orphan that he discovered."

"And nobody ever questioned it?" asked Toph.

"He said it was his choice to take me into his household."

"So did you grow up with Azula too?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Was she always...evil?"

"No. She didn't seem so bad when she was really young. I used to watch over her at the beach on Ember Island. There were a few times I secretly waterbended to keep her and Zuko safe in the water."

"That must've been awful being tortured by her," said Katara. "Especially after growing up with her."

"In prison she said she wanted to break me," said Chiara sadly. "She nearly did in the end."

"How?" asked Toph.

"She told me Prince Zuko had been executed because of me. I had lost my Water tribe family, and I thought I had lost the last family I had, General Iroh and Prince Zuko. She had already told me that the General had been executed, but when she told me my husband was dead too...I...I had nothing left."

"I'm so sorry, Chiara," said Katara sympathetically.

"When Prince Zuko found me in the cell, I thought I was hallucinating. Sometimes it still feels like that. Every night I dream I'm still in that cell; at least, I hope they're the dreams and this is real."

"This is real, Chiara," said Katara placing her hand on her arm in comfort. "You're safe now."

Chiara gently smiled at her.

They continued enjoying the water as it flowed over their bodies.

"So you spent nearly three years on a ship with Zuko when he was trying to find the Avatar?" asked Katara. "What was that like?"

"It was like being home on a ship. Wherever the General and Prince Zuko were was home to me."

Though Katara missed her home in the South Pole, she thought about her travels with Aang and Sokka and realized that, in a way, she felt similar to Chiara.

"What did you do all that time?"

"I helped the cook, I did laundry, I sewed..."

Katara huffed. "He had you working like one of the crew?"

"Isn't that what you do, Katara?" asked Toph.

"Well...yes...but it's different..."

"How is it different?"

"Zuko was making her work for his whole crew," said Katara.

"Actually, Prince Zuko often complained when I worked," Chiara corrected her. "He insisted I was royalty and the work I did was beneath me, but I enjoyed it. I liked keeping busy. And it wasn't all work. I also played Pai Sho, and we enjoyed music night."

"Zuko had music night?" she asked.

"No, but the General did. I played the erhu or pipa or sang. We also practiced sword fighting, and I trained with the firebenders."

"Really?" asked Toph. "But you're not a firebender."

"True, but I use some of their techniques in my waterbending."

"Like the ones you showed me?" asked Katara.

"Exactly."

"Three years on a ship," said Toph. "I couldn't handle that."

"The hardest part was being surrounded by water and not being able to really practice waterbending," said Chiara.

"That would be too hard," said Katara. "I don't think I could do it."

"I hid it for so long in the Caldera, so it wasn't much different."

"Whatever happened to his ship?" asked Katara. "Was it destroyed during the attack on the Northern Water Tribe?" she asked hopefully.

"No. Admiral Zhao attempted to assassinate Prince Zuko by blowing it up."

"Really?!" asked Katara. "Were you on the ship?"

"No. Just Prince Zuko." She could still feel the pain in her heart at the thought of his death. "I was heartbroken when I saw the explosion. I thought...I thought he was gone," she said sadly.

"How did he survive?" asked Toph.

"He said he was on the bridge and the blast blew him into the water. He was bruised and had some broken ribs which I healed."

"With your special medicine?" asked Toph smiling.

Chiara smiled. "Yes."

"Zhao," said Katara disgustedly. "He was the one who killed the moon spirit."

"Yes. I despised him," said Chiara in a similar tone. "I hated listening to him talk about his plans for destroying the Water Tribe. He was awful. I had planned on stopping him from destroying the moon spirit, but I was too late."

"You were there?" asked Katara as she sat up straight and looked at her. "Wait...were you the one in the Spirit Oasis behind him?"

"Yes. If I had gotten there sooner I might've been able to prevent him from destroying it, or I would've died trying."

"Whatever happened to him?"

"Justice prevailed," she answered. "Prince Zuko and I confronted him after he left the oasis, but the ocean spirit dragged him to the depths. There was nothing we could do to help him."

"I guess justice did prevail," said Katara as she relaxed again.

"The General told me of Princess Yue's sacrifice," she said sadly.

"Did you know her?" asked Katara.

"Yes. We were friends. I never got a chance to say goodbye."

Through the soft sound of the running water, Toph heard footsteps in the woods nearby. "Somebody's coming," she whispered.

They looked at the river bank, Katara and Chiara both tensed up ready to attack any unwanted visitors.

"Hey," said Chiara as she relaxed and perked up when she recognized Zuko. "Are you okay?"

He shrugged. "It's getting late, and I was getting worried."

"Sounds like you're being overprotective," said Katara as she glared at him.

"Aw," said Chiara. "You should've gone to sleep and gotten some rest."

"I couldn't sleep," he said.

"Do you want to come relax in the water?" she asked.

He walked in the water, passing in front of Toph, and stood near Chiara.

"Here," she said as she held her hand out to him. "Sit here." She moved slightly to her right to make room on her rock.

He took her hand and he sat down on her left side between her and Toph.

"We'll let you two lovebirds alone then," said Katara as she stood up.

"But I'm enjoying this," said Toph. "I like this Fire Princess a lot better than the other one."

Zuko laughed, but then realized he felt the same way.

"Come on, Toph," insisted Katara as she walked in front of them towards the river bank.

"Okay," said Toph a little reluctantly. "I miss having my feet on dry ground anyways."

The girls walked out of the river and disappeared into the woods, but as soon as they were out of sight, Katara convinced Toph to stay nearby to eavesdrop on them.

"You really should've gotten some rest," said Chiara to Zuko.

"I can't sleep when you're gone."

She put her hand on his back. "Sit in front of me."

"What?"

"Sit in front of me, on the riverbed."

Moving off the rock, he sat in front of her deeper in the water. Her hair flowed downstream gently rolling against his back and surrounding his body.

"Lean forward," she said as she ran her hands over his shoulders.

He did as she said, and after rubbing his back, she began massaging him with water.

"This...this feels incredible," he said.

She continued her massage on his shoulders, slowly working her way down his back.

"Now I know what Uncle meant," he said, his muscles melting at her touch. "Why didn't I let you do this before?"

She giggled.

"Oh, Prince Zuko," started Chiara imitating Iroh, "you are so tense; you should let Chiara give you a water massage."

He started laughing. "I love you so much."

Toph was quietly laughing at Chiara's imitation of Iroh.

"You really are tense," she said as she continued the massage.

"I've been worried about you," he said.

"I know. I'll be fine now."

"Not if Azula gets hold of you again."

"Don't worry," she said.

"I wish we could go back to the cabin and just quietly live there forever," he said.

"Aw," she smiled.

"I've never been so happy as when we lived there with Uncle, except when we lived next door to each other," he added.

"I miss those days," she said as she moved to the middle of his back.

"This feels great."

When she finished working out the tension on his entire back, she placed her hands on his shoulders.

"Sit up and lean your head back."

He did as she directed and laid his head back so it rested against her chest. She took water and massaged his head while using her healing technique.

"This feels so good," he said softly. "Can we just stay like this forever?"

"I wish we could," she said as she thought about the difficulties they were to face.

She continued massaging his head until he was so relaxed he was nearly asleep.

"I love you, Chiara," he said sleepily.

In the meantime, Katara and Toph left to go back to the temple.

"They sound really cute together," said Toph.

"I don't know," said Katara. "I still don't trust him."

"Oh, c'mon. They sounded sincere to me."

When she felt like she had done all she could to relieve his tension, Chiara stopped massaging him, put her arms around him, and held him.

"How do you feel?" she asked him.

"I feel great," he said still sounding like he was half-asleep.

"Should we go back?"

"No. I want to stay like this forever," he said dreamily.

She tenderly caressed his head, and they remained there for a while as the moon continued crossing the sky. When Zuko realized he was falling asleep, he reluctantly sat up.

"I guess we should go," he said not wanting to leave that moment.

"Whenever you're ready."

"After what you just did, I'll never be ready to leave."

She felt content that she could do something for him after he had so tirelessly taken care of her.

He stood up, took her hand, and led her to the shore where the water dropped off their skin and clothes, and then they walked back to the temple where they went to their room and went to sleep.