Chapter 27: Going South (Part 3)

"She left her phone in the room," Mai sighed as she entered the boys' suite.

"I can't believe this." Zuko shook his head. "Where could she have gone?! What was she thinking?!"

"The resort has their staff out there searching for her." Katara placed a gentle hand on Zuko's shoulder. "If they can't find her, they'll call the police."

Jet stared despondently out the window. He had never seen a snowstorm quite like this before. And Azula was somewhere out there. What if the staff couldn't find her? What would happen…

"Jet," Sokka said quietly. "Jet!" he repeated after a lack of response.

"Huh?" Jet turned around.

"They're going to find her."

"Yeah…" He wanted to believe it too.

Ty Lee started zipping her winter coat. "It's really coming down."

"Ty Lee!" Katara said admonishingly. "Where do you think you're going?!"

"Outside. To look for her some more."

"Are you out of your damned mind?!" Haru questioned. "It's too dangerous – "

"But this is all my fault!" Ty Lee burst into tears. "I-If I hadn't lost my temper earlier, if I hadn't picked a stupid fight, if I – "

"Ty," Mai said softly. "This isn't your fault. You didn't make Azula wander off on her own."

Ty Lee threw her arms around Mai, crying into her shoulder. "I'm so sorry. I was so stupid. I know you two didn't hit me on purpose – I don't even know why I said that! I'm just… such a mess right now."

"It's okay." Mai hugged her back. "Let's just put that aside for now and figure out how we're going to find Azula."

"Okay," she whispered.

"So what's the plan?" Zuko snapped. "How are we going to find her? Because last I checked, standing around doing nothing isn't going to solve anything." He turned abruptly to Sokka. "You're the plan guy – tell us what to do!"

"I… don't know." Sokka looked hopeless. "I want to find her too! More than anything! But we risk losing anyone else who goes out there…"

"So what?!" Jet had finally had enough. "We can't just sit here and wait! I can't just sit here and wait." He went to grab his coat.

"Jet's right," Zuko said, putting on his snow boots.

"Don't do this," Katara urged. "The staff will find her – "

"But what if they don't?" Jet shouted. "I'm not gonna wait to find out."

Zuko nodded. "We'll go together."

"I'll go too," Mai said with some hesitancy. "We can't just leave her out there."

Ty Lee put on her winter hat. "I'm coming with you."

"Count me in," Sokka said with determination. "But we're going to play it smart and go in teams: Ty Lee and Mai on one team, Jet, Zuko, and me on the other."

"Sokka, wait!" Katara cried, standing in front of the door.

"Katara…" Haru said gingerly. "I don't think you're gonna be able to stop them from leaving."

"I know." She took a deep breath. "That's why I'm going too."

"But – "

"I'm a healer. If Azula's out there hurt… I can help," she smiled weakly. "But I'm going with Sokka to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"What?!" Sokka demanded incredulously. "Actually, that's fair. Okay, so then Team A is Ty Lee and Mai, Team B is Jet and Zuko, Team C is Katara and me, and Haru… you should wait here for any updates with the staff search party. Call us immediately if you hear anything."

"Got it, Chief," Haru acknowledged with a salute.

"Okay let's move!"

Helpless. Lost in the cold, the dark, the incessant snowfall, Azula was completely helpless. She didn't want to die. She really didn't want to die. Damn it, she could help herself if she didn't keep fading in and out of consciousness. She could help herself if she could move. Her fire breath was the only thing keeping her from freezing, but she could only do that when awake. Lightning would be better for visibility, but her mind was too fearful to conjure it.

Why had she gone off on her own?! What was she trying to prove?! It all seemed so trivial now. She could die out here. Alone.

Her screams were nothing compared to the howling wind. But as long as she was conscious, she had to keep trying.

"AZULA!" Jet and Zuko repeatedly shouted into the blizzard as they walked over to the last place Jet saw her.

"This is useless," Zuko muttered. "We're never gonna find her like this."

"You're right. We need to think. We need to think about where she would have gone."

"So Azula and Mai came down here on the snow tube, crashed into Ty Lee, they all started fighting, and then at some point Azula walked away?"

"Yeah. I remember it was just before they shut down the slopes. Do you think… Azula wanted to try skiing one last time?"

"That wouldn't surprise me. She's always been highly competitive, even with herself."

"She's been frustrated this whole time being behind everyone. What if she tried something really dangerous? Just to say she did it."

"Like a black diamond?" Zuko asked, his eyes wide with fear.

"She might have… but the black diamonds are pretty far away. I don't think she would have risked having the slopes close by walking all the way down there. I bet she went to the closest blue square."

"But if she were stuck on a blue square, surely the staff would have found her by now. Unless…" Zuko gasped.

"What?"

"She must have fallen off the trail!"

"AZULA!" The boys raced toward the nearest blue square, which was only one hill away from where they were standing. "AZULA!"

"Jet…"

All his hairs stood on end. He thought he heard his name carried in the wind. "AZULA!"

"Jet!"

"THIS WAY!" Jet shouted.

"Jet! Jet!"

They followed the voice, trekking through the merciless snow and wind, until finally, he spotted her. She was lying prone in the snow by a tree. "Azula!" He sprinted toward her, with Zuko following right behind.

"Jet," she exhaled faintly. "Jet, I'm cold."

"I'm here." He threw his arms around her. "You're going to be okay."

"I'm here too." Zuko kneeled beside her, taking her hand. "We're going to get you back to safety."

She nodded, smiling weakly. "I can't move. I can't move my leg."

"It's okay," Jet said, scooping her up bridal-style, causing her to cry out in pain. "I know it hurts, but I've got you. Just hold on."

Zuko proceeded to text everyone that they found her and that she needed medical attention right away.

Jet walked briskly back with her cradled in his arms. He didn't even notice the tears streaming down his face until his cheeks became unbearably cold. He was crying… he hadn't cried in… he couldn't even remember the last time he'd cried. Why now? Why now that they've found her? She was going to be okay, and here he was crying. It didn't make any sense.

Maybe he blamed himself – he had left her alone after all. She had been right next to him and he didn't even notice she was gone. But now… now that she was safely in his arms, he was never going to let her go again. He had lost too many people in his life. But he would never lose Azula. Never.

Conditions were too dangerous to get Azula to a proper hospital, but fortunately the resort had an on-site medical ward. Katara stayed with her to help too, healing her as best as she could. While Katara was able to patch up her superficial injuries, she couldn't mend Azula's broken femur. At least it seemed to be a fairly minor fracture, but she'd need surgery nonetheless.

"I'm sorry for ruining everyone's vacation," Azula muttered.

"You didn't ruin anything!" Sokka assured.

"Yeah," Ty Lee agreed. "If anyone ruined anything, it was me."

"No one ruined anything," Mai said. "The stupid blizzard was the only thing getting in the way of our skiing."

"But you guys could be having a nice dinner, enjoying the hot tubs, doing literally anything other than sitting here with me." Azula looked down at her lap.

"It was going to be an early night anyway," Katara smiled. "Some people have early flights to catch."

"Speaking of," Zuko said, "I was able to get our flights rescheduled so we can stay here a few extra days to let you recover from your surgery."

"Zuzu." Azula smiled warmly at her brother. "You didn't have to stay behind for me."

"Of course I did," he smiled back. "You're my sister."

"I rescheduled my flight too," Jet said.

"You…" Her voice caught. "You did?"

"You don't have to do this alone."

"Katara and I will be around too!" Sokka grinned. "I mean… it's not as grand of a gesture since we planned to be in the Southern Water Tribe for winter break anyway." He chuckled nervously. "Still, we're not going to leave your side. Anything you want, you got it. We'll be your humble servants."

"Speak for yourself," Katara laughed.

Azula snickered.

"So who is flying back tomorrow then?" Katara asked.

Mai, Ty Lee, and Haru raised their hands, the former two looking rather guilty.

"Sorry Azula," Ty Lee murmured. "I promised I'd spend some time with my sisters."

"And I promised Tom-Tom a visit," Mai added.

"It's okay, I understand," Azula assured. "Have a safe flight tomorrow, okay? Text me when you get in."

"And you'd better text as soon as you're out of surgery."

"I think I'll be too loopy to text after surgery," she laughed, "but Zuzu can text everyone on my behalf."

"And I'll film you when you're waking up so everyone can see what you're like after anesthesia," Jet teased.

"I didn't realize you had a death wish," Azula teased back.

"I'd pay to see that video!" Sokka grinned.

"Yeah, me too," Mai chuckled.

"I bet I could make it go viral," Ty Lee said excitedly. "It'd pay for itself!"

Azula scoffed, feigning annoyance. "Don't you guys have some packing to do?"

"Actually, it is getting pretty late…" Haru said under his breath.

"Okay, fine, we'll leave you alone," Ty Lee grumbled. "Feel better, Azula! I'll be sending you positive energy from the plane."

"Good night, Azula," Katara said sweetly. "You're going to do great tomorrow."

"We'll be right here waiting for you when you wake up," Sokka smiled.

"The surgery will be a piece of cake," Jet assured. "It'll be done before you know it."

"Is there anything I can get you before we go?" Mai asked.

"Actually, yes… could you please get me a clean change of clothes, something comfortable?" She lowered her voice. "And also help me change into them…"

"Of course. Be right back." Mai left the room.

Her other friends started filing out after Mai, giving Azula their final well-wishes and goodnights.

"Zuko, do you have a moment?"

"Yeah…" He turned back around. "What's up? Everything okay?"

"I was just wondering… did you… let Ursa know?"

"I did. She's really worried about you and wants to know if there's anything she can do."

She let out a self-pitying laugh. "Nothing she can do from the Fire Nation."

"Azula, you… you know she can't come to see you – "

"Why not?" she spat. "The weather's supposed to clear up tomorrow – "

"It's very last-minute – she can't just abandon Kiyi to fly to a different – "

"She abandoned us, didn't she? Not just when we were young but when Kiyi broke her leg during the talent show, she left immediately without thinking twice about it. And you know if I were Kiyi, she'd drop everything to be here."

"That's different – "

"How?"

"Kiyi's a child."

"Yeah, well, I was once a child who needed my mom too."

"I know," he whispered, looking down.

"I… I know I can't expect her to be here. It just would have been nice." She took a deep breath. "Well I'll let you go."

"Have a good night, Azula. Try to get some sleep, okay?"

"Yeah. You too." She watched him leave the room. When she was alone, she pulled out her phone and texted Mai.

Azula: Could you also bring me a notebook and a pen?

Mai: On it. Be back soon.

She sighed, setting her phone down by her side. Logically she knew this was a routine surgery, logically she knew she'd wake up and everything would be okay, but… on the off chance something were to go wrong tomorrow… she didn't want to leave this earth without admitting her true feelings.

So she would write it down. Leave a note somewhere in her clothes. A note with her biggest confession, everything that was in her heart.

"You can see her now," a nurse smiled. "The surgery went perfectly. Azula is doing great, though still rather out of sorts from the anesthesia."

Jet, Zuko, Sokka, and Katara all jumped to their feet.

"Oh, sorry, only two visitors are allowed in the recovery room at a time."

"Well obviously you should go," Katara said to Zuko.

"I'm going too," Jet and Sokka said simultaneously.

Thinking how happy Azula would be to see Sokka by her side, Jet was about to defer the second spot to him, but then Zuko spoke up.

"Jet. Let's go."

Sokka opened his mouth to object but then huffed and sat back down.

"You'll see her soon," Katara comforted.

Jet and Zuko followed the nurse to the post-operative room, where Azula was sitting upright on one of the beds.

"Hi," she greeted through heavy lids and a hazy smile.

"Hi, Azula," Zuko said softly. "How are you feeling?"

"Hungry. And chilly. The nurse said I may not be able to form short-term memories for a bit, isn't that fun?"

"Well at least you remember that much," Jet chuckled.

"Can we get burgers?"

Zuko smiled. "Anything you want."

"Where's my sweatshirt? I had a sweatshirt, my BSSU one. It's cold in here! Also I'm hungry."

"Uhhh…" Zuko started.

"I'll go find it," Jet promised before snaking out of the post-op room. But as soon as he entered the hallway, he saw a different nurse approaching with a BSSU sweatshirt in hand.

"Hey, does this belong to your friend in there?" the nurse asked.

"Yep. I was just going to fetch that for her, so thanks."

"Your friend was a real handful by the way," the nurse laughed, handing it over.

Jet noticed a slip of paper fall from the pouch pocket. "Y-Yeah," he chuckled, surreptitiously slipping his foot over the note. "I bet she was." He waited for the nurse to leave before collecting the scrap of paper from the floor. He furtively checked his surroundings to make sure no one he knew was behind him. And then he unfolded the paper.

In Azula's handwriting, it read: "Tell Jet I love him."

Author's Note: I'm so sorry to have to do this to you all, but I'm not going to be able to update next week since I will be with my family for the holidays. I'm also not positive I will be able to post the week after that because it will be my birthday weekend and I have plans. I will try my best to update in 2 Sundays, but if not then I will definitely update in 3 Sundays. Sorry to leave it on such a cliffhanger! I hope you'll forgive me. Thank you so much for reading!