Zuko closed the door on the way out of his Uncle's tea shop, and sighed, before making his way down the dark and deserted streets of Ba Sing Se at night.

It had not been long since they had arrived in Ba Sing Se together, posing as simple fugitives from the Fire Nation. Their start in the city had been humble, a far cry from their privileged lives as members of the Fire Nation Royal Family, but now they were about to go up in the world. Word had got around about Iroh's tea-making abilities and soon rich investors were flocking to offer him a shop of his own, in the Upper Ring no less.

For all his protestations that tea was it's own reward, his Uncle had been quick to accept, and he had called it the Jasmine Dragon. The tea-shop would not be ready for a few weeks yet though.

As far as Zuko was concerned, he had bigger things to worry about. A few weeks ago that might have been hunting the avatar, the quest that had consumed his life in the three years since his banishment, but even that now took a back seat to his main concern: Mai.

Zuko had seen them, his sister and her two companions, being led to the Palace in chains. One part of him had appreciated the irony; for all Azula's claims about being the smarter child who was going to arrest him and being him home in chains, it was she who languished in a cell and he who was free. There was little love lost between the two siblings, and Zuko had not had that much to do with Ty Lee, so he found himself not really caring about their imprisonment. Besides, if Azula was a Prisoner of War she wasn't hunting him.

Mai, though Zuko did care about. She had been there to see him off on his quest, and Zuko had thought of her every day during those three long years. She presented a front of being incredibly gloomy and unhappy to the rest of the world, but in front of Zuko she opened up and showed that there was so much more to her than that. Now she was in the city, and she needed rescuing.

The Blue Spirit would have to pay her a visit sometime.

Zuko was suddenly brought out of his reverie by a noise, and a flash of movement in the corner of his eye. He did not want to risk firebending, even at night in an alley; he hadn't even done it when that madman Jet had decided to attack their workplace with swords trying to claim they were Firebenders.

He had been right of course, but that wasn't the point.

Instead, Zuko drew his twin swords and advanced forward cautiously. He sprang around the next corner towards the source of the noise and found a small Rat-Hare staring back at him.

"Oh". Zuko lowered his sword and the creature hopped away.

Just then he felt something strange grip his ankles and suddenly he was over; in a panic he dropped his swords as he was pulled down an even darker alley. The grip suddenly ceased, and he rolled over to find two figures standing over him, their faces covered. One of them pointed a sword at his head, and the other just stood there glaring at him.

"Don't even think about Firebending." The figure with the sword said. It was a female voice, Zuko realized.

The other figure spoke up, in a voice that was strangely familiar. "Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation."

Zuko tried to deny it. "No, Tea-shop worker Lee of the Earth King-"

"Don't lie to us, we know full well who you are." The figure said, and as she flicked open a pouch at her side and brought forth a stream of water, solidifying it into an enormous shard of ice that she brought uncomfortably close to his throat, Zuko recognised her.

"So do I. You're that water bender, the one who travels with the Avatar. Is he here then?"

"You mean you don't know?" Katara's voice was full of disdain, but Zuko detected an element of surprise in there too. "I would have thought you'd be keeping a close track of him because of that quest you've been annoying us with."

"I've had bigger concerns over the past couple of months than you, don't flatter yourself."

"What could be bigger than your glorious campaign to restore your honour?" Katara responded sarcastically.

"I don't know if you noticed, but my dear sister was after me and my uncle too, not just you. We're fugitives from the Fire Nation too. Add to that the fact my girlfriend's been captured-" Zuko stopped, realizing he'd said too much.

"Your girlfriend?" Katara mocked. "Which one was she then? Oh well, I suppose it doesn't matter. We're just here to threaten you."

Zuko feigned nonchalance. "Can you hurry up with that then? I need to be getting home."

"If you insist," the other girl said.

Katara leant in close, and snarled. "If you come near the Avatar ever again, you will never see your beloved Fire Nation or your Girlfriend ever again. Your quest will end right there. We will make sure of it. Permanently."

The other girl put in for good measure, "you also burnt my village, and I haven't forgotten."

Then they were gone, leaving Zuko with more questions.

The Fire Nation Capital

The Messenger hurried through the Palace, making his way towards the throne room where the Firelord awaited him. Urgent news had come in from Fire Nation spies in the Earth Kingdom city of Ba Sing Se, and Ozai needed to hear it right away. He burst into the throne room, and was confronted by the Firelord himself.

Ozai was sitting at the far end of the room, with flames surrounding him, as was customary for the Fire Nation head of state.

"Your Majesty," the messenger bowed.

"We have received some grave news from the Earth Kingdom. We had lost contact with the Princess Azula and her companions a few days ago, but it has just been confirmed that they have been taken prisoner by the Earth Kingdom and are currently imprisoned in Ba Sing Se."

The Firelord stood up. "So, my daughter proves herself to be just as weak as my son."

This was not the reaction the messenger had been expecting; maybe an outburst of paternal concern, not a cold hearted rejection of his daughter at the first bad thing that happened to her.

"All of my problems are in Ba Sing Se. My idiot son, my traitor brother, and my weak daughter are there, and so is the Avatar. Honour demands I strike back at the Earth Kingdom for this."

Ozai turned back to the messenger, having paced the length of the room.

"Find my Council of War and bring them to me. It's time I dealt with these problems...personally."