Suki was looking forward to returning home.

After their hurried departure from the Southern Water Tribe, her friends, plus Zuko and Mai, had flown north in search of friendly territory. The decision had basically boiled down to the Southern Air Temple or Kyoshi Island, and given that Aang had decided he wasn't ready to face the Air Temple, and the evidence of what had happened there, again yet, Kyoshi Island had won out.

As Appa flew high over the ocean, with Aang directing him, Suki sat with Sokka, Katara and Toph at the front of the saddle, while Zuko and Mai sat holding hands and talking among themselves at the back.

Suki did not know whether to trust Zuko. She had been willing to let him get on with his life in Ba Sing Se as long as he left them alone, and indeed he had left them alone. However, it was quite a jump from a distant live-and-let-live arrangement to one where Zuko was intimately involved with the group. Still, she wasn't as opposed to it as Katara seemed to be. The waterbender shot disapproving glances at them every so often.

Eventually, they sighted land, and as Appa approached the coast they could make out the familiar landscape of Kyoshi Island. It had been months since Suki had left with her warriors to go to the mainland and help those who needed it there. With everything that had happened since, that suddenly seemed a very long time ago. She looked over the side, and made out the shape of the Unagi under the water. For the first time in what felt like a long time, the Kyoshi Warrior breathed the air of home.

However, as the Sky-Bison flew inland, something felt... off, somehow. The atmosphere didn't seem quite the same, but Suki couldn't quite put her finger on it. The others shared her disquiet; Sokka glanced at her worriedly.

And then the town came into view, and the reason for the change in atmosphere became all too apparent.

For the Kyoshi statue in the centre of town had been fitted with an enormous Fire Nation flag.

"Aang, turn Appa around!"

Aang was already on it, and the Sky-bison was soon looking for a place to land in the forest clearing.

As Appa landed, Suki was shaking. Her home was inviolable; never, in 100 years, had the war ever come close. Now, it seemed, it had been occupied.

She dismounted, and rounded on Zuko.

"Did you know about this?"

Zuko put his hands up. "Believe me, I didn't."

"Really? You're the Prince of the Fire Nation, and you expect us to believe you didn't know?"

"Yes! Father didn't tell me anything, and I only found out what I did know through spying. Not once in any of the meetings I eavesdropped on was this place mentioned."

"He's telling the truth."

Toph had finally dismounted Appa as well.

"Can I just say, how amazing it is to be able to "see" again?"

"Good. Now tell us the entire story again, for Toph," Katara instructed.

And Zuko did, with Mai also contributing details.

Toph listened for five minutes, and then nodded. "Either they are fantastic liars, or they really have had a change of heart. They are telling the truth."

"Well now what?"

"We should probably go and investigate," Sokka offered. "See what the Fire Nation is actually doing here."

After they had disguised Appa and made sure he had enough to eat, the seven of them began to walk towards the town.

Katara dropped back to where Zuko and Mai were walking. Suki heard her whisper something that sounded threatening towards them, before she sped up and rejoined the main group.

As they entered the town though, the thing they noticed was how few Fire Nation military personnel were actually there. There were two of them standing at the foot of the Kyoshi statue, and another one at the other end of the square. Still, they made sure to hide around the side of a building so they were not seen."

"It's not like the Fire Nation to leave somewhere so lightly garrisoned," Zuko whispered to them.

"Everyone else must be participating in the attack on the South," Mai replied. "Plus, this is not exactly a hotbed of rebellion."

"Not yet, anyway," Suki muttered.

"Suki? Katara? Sokka? Avatar Aang?" A voice came from behind them.

The group turned around to find Oyaji, the leader of the island, behind them. He gestured. "Come with me."

He led them to the training hall that the Kyoshi Warriors had used before they left. Suki well remembered years spent in this building, training relentlessly to get to where she was today.

"Suki! I'm so glad you're back. But where are the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors?"

"They are safe," Suki reassured him. "What happened here?"

The man sighed. "Kyoshi Island stayed out of the war for a hundred years- until three weeks ago. A massive Fire Nation fleet arrived, started shouting about the Avatar being dead, and occupied the island. They said they needed it as a naval base."

"And where is this massive fleet now?"

"They left a couple of days ago, heading south, but nobody told us where they were going."

"I'm sorry," Suki apologised guiltily. "I should have been here."

"You would have been arrested and would now languish in a Fire Nation prison. You have nothing to apologise for," Oyaji said firmly. "Which is more than I can say for you."

He turned to Zuko.

"Why are you bringing the Prince of the Fire Nation to our island? We can't keep a prisoner here."

"I'm not a prisoner, thank you very much," Zuko replied haughtily.

"Did that once, don't intend to repeat the experience," said Mai.

"They are working with us now!" Aang said brightly.

Oyaji's eyebrows shot up. "What? But wasn't he chasing you last time you were here?"

"We saw things that made us change our minds on who we wanted to win this war."

"Right." Oyaji's tone indicated that he didn't quite believe them.

"We need to get the Fire Nation off this island."

"There are only something like three guards, it should be easy!" Toph exclaimed.

"There's a larger camp outside town with more soldiers, and even if you do defeat them, what are you going to do when the fleet returns?"

"Actually", Sokka interjected, "I have a plan for that."

Two Hours Later

Wearing full Kyoshi Warrior armour and makeup, Suki walked alone into the town centre.

At her approach, she heard townspeople whispering, especially since, at Sokka's suggestion, they had made one alteration to her uniform. Instead of her usual headdress, the one with the four prongs that marked her out as the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, she wore Avatar Kyoshi's own headdress. Sokka had thought there would be some useful symbolism in her wearing it.

The two Fire Nation guards by the statue looked up as she approached. She saw one of them do a double take, and look up at the figure of the real Avatar Kyoshi above him. "Avatar Kyoshi?" He said stupidly.

"No, you idiot, Kyoshi is much taller than that!" The other guard chastised him.

"It looks like her!"

The two guards were so busy bickering that Suki was able to stroll right up to them and draw her war-fans. A second later, both were unconscious on the floor.

"Hey!"

Suki turned around to see the third guard running towards her. "You're under arrest!"

"Do you really want to arrest the Avatar?"

"What do you take me for, an idiot? You're not the Avatar, the Avatar is an Airbender."

Damn, Suki thought. Still, it had been worth a shot.

"You're just a cheap impersonator who just attacked Fire Soldiers. You're going to prison for a very long time."

"Oh I don't think so." Suki settled into a fighting stance.

The Firebender swung his fist, and sent a plume of flame towards her in an arcing motion. Suki rolled under it and charged towards him, a fan in both hands. With one, she knocked his hand aside, causing his second fireball to hurtle off harmlessly into the sky. However, he jerked his head back to dodge her strike with the other fan, and kicked her backwards.

"You think you can liberate this island alone?" He mocked her. "So brave! So noble! So stupid."

He came at her again, making several quick punches that sent fireballs towards her. Suki dodged most of them and activated her retractable shield to block two. Her fans swung towards him again, but it was his turn to block her attacks. She managed to kick his stomach and he flew backwards.

"I do think I can liberate this island, yes." Suki replied. "Maybe that is stupid. But I definitely don't think I can do it alone. Which is why that's not what I'm doing."

The Firebender barely had time to comprehend the meaning behind her words before a boomerang crashed into the back of his head. Sokka ran into the square.

"Suki! That was the most awesome thing I've ever seen!"

"I'm glad you think so. Was that hopeful enough for them, do you think?"

"Undoubtedly."

"How is the other part of the plan going?"

Meanwhile

Zuko and Mai entered the tent of the Fire Nation commander, while Firebenders positioned on either side of the door gave the Royal Salute.

Now was their big chance to prove their loyalty to Team Avatar. Zuko had not expected to be trusted, but being trusted would make his job a lot easier.

The commander had been poring over a map, but looked up as he entered. "Ah, Prince Zuko, what an unexpected surprise."

"Just, uh, checking up on the war effort in the south. I heard the Avatar was still alive and I wanted to make sure we were throwing everything we have at him."

"You may rest assured that we are, Prince. Is there anything else we can do for you?"

"I have a suggestion." Mai said. "This island is stalked by a deadly sea monster called the Unagi."

(This was information supplied by Sokka, who had carefully instructed them what to say. Hopefully nobody knew that they had defected yet, and this could be used to their advantage.)

"Ah, yes, the Unagi. I know of it well. It attacked one of our ships the day after we got here, but it went away once we burnt it off the hull."

"The Unagi is a nuisance, and Kyoshi Island is not a high value target. We don't even need it to hunt the new Avatar, because the old one is alive. I say we pull out of here."

"And what would you suggest instead?"

Zuko looked at the map.

"There must be a myriad of small islands in the south sea that you could use instead."

The man raised his eyebrow.

"Come on, you have to be a bit more specific than that, surely."

"How about that one?"

Mai was pointing to the island that had the Southern Air Temple on it.

"It's a lot closer to the Pole."

The officer looked at it. "It would make sense, but I can't do it without an order either from High Command or from the Firelord."

"Consider this your order then. I am the Prince of the Fire Nation, and will be Firelord one day."

"But what about Ozai?"

"Just tell him I gave you the order."

The officer nodded.

That was easier than I thought it would be, thought Zuko. He ended up staying by the side of the commander as he ordered the embarkation of all their supplies onto the one ship remaining on the island and sent messenger hawks south, telling the fleet to meet him at the Air Temple. Then, just before the captain embarked, Zuko and Mai left him, telling him they would follow along shortly.

Once they rejoined the others, they watched as the Fire Nation ship receded into the horizon.

"You did a good job." Aang told them.

"Through talking to them. You haven't fought any firebenders yet." Katara sniffed.

"That was Sokka's plan, not mine."

"So when are we getting out of here?"

"Not for a while yet. I just received another vision. I need to speak to my past lives again."