For Ty Lee and Zuko, the night following their visit to the mental institution was restless and uneasy.

Ty Lee was simply angry. She couldn't sleep with her mind analyzing every detail of her interactions with the princess, combing over each moment, searching for any clues that this was going to happen. She had decided to go to the palace in the morning when Zuko told everyone about Azula, but could not predict how she would contribute to the conversation just yet. She tossed and turned, wishing Mai would be back from Omashu in time to go with her.

Zuko couldn't sleep much either. Now that the initial shock of his sister's disappearance had worn off, a new feeling had manifested in him that he mostly identified as a strange form of admiration. Despite Dr. Liu's troubling reports and Ty Lee's mentioning of a few first-hand experiences with his sister's intermittent outbursts, Azula had managed to pull herself together for this one task.

She had held her own secrets and formulated a plan as if it were another one of Father's tests. Zuko was stunned at the news of her escape, of course, but at the same time he was not. This was his cunning, ambitious, terrifying little sister after all. It was almost expected.

Most of the representatives that had gathered for the marathon of meetings would still be present until the end of the week. However, Zuko had requested via letter that Aang, Katara, and Sokka arrive early in the morning to discuss something of the utmost importance. Toph and Iroh were still in the Earth Kingdom. Toph was presumably busy training her recruits in metal bending, but Zuko had a sneaking suspicion that she simply wanted to avoid an entire week of meetings.

His uncle, on the other hand, had intentionally left Zuko on his own for these meetings as some kind of competency test. Well, Iroh hadn't said that explicitly, but this was the first time he hadn't been present for such an important stretch of talks. Zuko had quickly scrawled a letter to his uncle detailing everything that had happened, but there was no way it would reach him quick enough and it certainly wouldn't be enough time to travel from the booming tea business in Ba Sing Se to the Fire Nation palace for a morning meeting. Zuko knew his friends wouldn't be gathered together for much longer and decided to act while he could. He was sure his uncle would understand and be receptive to talking when he arrived at the capital in the future.

In the letter he sent to Aang, Katara, and Sokka, the Fire Lord had also included the fact that Ty Lee might join them as well. Upon reading this letter, all three friends agreed to attend with curiosity piqued at the somewhat unusual request.

So, when dawn broke over the palace grounds, the group of five had already gathered in a private meeting room.

Sokka yawned and reached for a plump little purple fruit sitting on a plate in the middle of the table. He took an enormous bite and spoke first, "It's been awhile since I've woken up before sunrise. What's the important news?"

Katara looked disapprovingly at the fruit juice dribbling down her brother's chin, "He's right. None of the meetings for the past week and a half have started so early, is everything okay?"

Zuko and Ty Lee exchanged a glance. Time to rip off the bandage. The Fire Lord cleared his throat and announced, "I was informed yesterday morning that my sister has escaped from the mental institution where she was being held."

Three different facial expressions graced three different friends. Ty Lee observed them all, gauging the severity of their reactions. Sokka's eyebrows shot up as he choked down the fruit he was eating, clearly readying for some kind of outburst. Katara crossed her arms with a concerned sort of grimace and glanced at Aang, while the Avatar himself remained quiet and thoughtful.

"Your sister? You mean Azula? Azula, your sister?" Sokka had apparently finished his fruit.

Zuko had to restrain a slight smirk at the remark, "Yes, that sister."

Before Sokka could interject again, Zuko began telling the group everything he knew about the incident. They already knew that she was a patient with Dr. Liu, so he started at the point where he stopped visiting her. The Fire Lord detailed the circumstances under which his sister was being held and then launched into the chain of events that Dr. Liu had enlightened him with yesterday, leading to the escape. Ty Lee sat next to him, ready to support his story with any piece he might forget. But, to his credit, Zuko did not need her help at all. He even admitted that the orders to cool her cell came directly from him and mentioned the many visits Ty Lee had made to see her.

"Dr. Liu has launched an investigation as to how she was able to escape. But I asked all of you to be here because you are my friends and have had personal experiences dealing with Azula. I trust you to help me make the best decision regarding what to do next." The young Fire Lord rested his hands on the table and felt some of the tension he had been harboring since hearing the news about his sister finally release.

Sokka was again the first to speak when Zuko finished, "So, we obviously have to send out a search party right? The other nations have to be warned that she's on the loose."

"I suppose she could be a threat to civilians and others if provoked," Katara spoke next, although she seemed hesitant of her own statement.

Ty Lee huffed, "She isn't a threat to civilians. Do you all think she's just going to go on some kind of insane murderous rampage at the slightest issue? Whenever we traveled with her, we never harmed innocent people. We never really harmed people at all. We were just tracking you guys."

The Water Tribe siblings shared a sarcastic laugh. "Oh sure, the chi blocking, knife throwing, and hot blue firebending were all just tracking methods." Katara rolled her eyes.

"We were on opposite sides of a war. We couldn't exactly waltz up to you and talk you into handing the Avatar over. Besides," Ty Lee narrowed her eyes at the pair dressed in blue, "you guys fought back too, you know."

"Hey, boomerang and I will always protect our friends."

"Okay, okay." Zuko could see this would not be a particularly helpful tangent to go on. "I think all Ty Lee means is that she doesn't see Azula needlessly attacking people. And I don't either, to be honest."

"Come on, Zuko. She needlessly attacked me during your Agni Kai!"

"That was different! You were her enemy and she—she wasn't well. You saw her, you know that." Zuko bit his cheek as the memory surfaced in his mind. Ty Lee watched him, somewhat surprised he was so staunchly defending his sister.

Katara was careful to phrase her next statement, "I know, Zuko, but… is she any better now? Because what I'm gathering from your story is that she's outside, at full-bending strength, still unstable, and probably angry at you for the cooling treatment. I just wonder if anything has changed since she was admitted."

Zuko frowned at this, uncertain of the answer. Ty Lee was thinking quietly to herself. Azula had made decent strides from her first visit, but had she really learned anything? She still suffered from occasional hallucinations, one causing a serious accident, and seemed to have the same distrustful and easily irritated mindset. Who knew if the visions would continue outside of the institution? But the acrobat had a nasty feeling they would, because as far as Ty Lee knew, Azula had never really addressed any of the emotional weight dragging her down with Dr. Liu and that was a problem.

Katara watched them debating in difficult silence as her brother fidgeted waiting for a response.

"The pause isn't really reassuring," she said in a gentle tone.

Zuko sighed, "I don't know. That's the truth. I don't know if she's really better or made any progress. I think she's more stable than she was on the day of the comet, but I… I haven't personally seen her in a long time." He looked to Ty Lee.

She was staring at the table in front of them and said out loud what she'd been thinking for quite some time, "I don't think she's better or worse."

Zuko was surprised at that, "What do you mean? You've been telling me she's been getting better for months."

"What I mean is, I think she's the same old Azula as she was before the comet. Yeah, she's not in the middle of some crazy breakdown like she was on that day, and I only saw her totally out of control once on my first visit, so in that sense she's better. But the things she's angry about… It's the same as it was five years ago. She hasn't spoken to Dr. Liu about much and is still suffering on her own. I know she won't lash out and attack anyone now that she's free, but I don't know that it's good for her to be roaming around alone."

Sokka turned to face Zuko, "Well, that's as good a reason as any to start looking for her. Who's gonna do it?"

"Hold on."

The four friends refocused their attention to the youngest man at the table. Aang had remained silent for the entire conversation thus far, listening and watching instead. He had changed remarkably since the end of the war, quite literally turning from a boy into a man. Growing nearly a foot helped speed that transition, but his personality had also matured. The airbender was still a goofy boy at heart, but he'd had to grow up quickly out of necessity. The world needed him to maintain balance, a hard task for anyone, let alone a young man of seventeen years. Or an old man of one hundred and seventeen.

He was well-respected by nearly everyone in each nation and even his close friends could recognize the changes in him. A balanced voice of reason, for personal and international conflicts alike.

"I think we should be cautious. If we send out a search party or squadron of soldiers to track her down, that could cause a bit of panic. We need to keep in mind that Azula didn't escape from prison; she isn't a criminal wanted by the other nations. Remember, at the end of the war, the heads of the nations and grand council members agreed that her admission to the mental institution was a fair way to compensate for her actions during the war. As Ty Lee said, we heard no reports of her hurting innocent civilians or doing anything other than carrying out her mission to capture me. From what I've heard, she didn't go off the rails until that day at the Boiling Rock prison. Even then, her response was to send away nearly all of her closest advisers and officials."

Ty Lee lowered her gaze as she was again confronted with that day's events. Katara leaned forward in her seat to retort, but Aang calmed her with a cool smile, "Yes, I know that she almost killed me, but I'm still here and I'd like to help her. Anyways, some of the meeting's attendees likely wanted a harsher punishment, but the admission to the mental institution is what was discussed and agreed upon after the war."

Here, Aang paused and closed his eyes. After a moment's reflection he continued, "I'm sure the people at the meeting wouldn't be too keen on knowing Azula broke out before the doctor released her, but if we say something, they'll surely put out their own search party. And if we sent one of our own out first, well, we wouldn't be able to keep a search party looking for the Fire Nation princess quiet. I worry this news could spread to other nations, enticing those ill-thinking attendees to hunt her down. I don't think that's what any of us want. If it is as Zuko and Ty Lee say, and Azula truly isn't a risk to others, then I think we should wait a few days. On the off chance that any suspicious news arises, we will begin the search for her immediately. Otherwise, we can keep our ears to the ground and watch for her from a distance. What do you guys think?"

The opinions were split fifty-fifty.

Zuko was quite pleased at this suggestion. He had been worried that all four of his friends would want his sister's immediate capture. And even his gut reaction to hearing the news had been similar. However, he had momentarily forgotten the agreement that was made immediately after the war and was glad the Avatar brought it up. This option seemed to be the best one for keeping Azula safe. Zuko only wished he could know where she was to set his mind more at ease.

Ty Lee felt much the same way as Zuko, happy that Aang seemed to be prioritizing the princess's safety but still worried about her wandering around on her own. The person she was most nervous about hurting Azula, was Azula herself. Ty Lee hoped her words back in the patient care room would prove true. "That won't happen. I'm not stupid."

As for the Water Tribe siblings, Katara was torn. On one hand, she could follow Aang's line of reasoning and saw the merits of his suggestion. On the other… She had witnessed Azula's descent into madness first hand, and was justifiably nervous at the idea of her walking around with no check to her power. But she trusted Ty Lee, as strange as that was to say. Her years spent on Kyoshi Island with Suki were enough to prove that she was a good person that happened to be on the opposite side during the war.

Sokka disagreed completely and still wanted a search party sent out as soon as possible. He was used to Aang's more pacifist ways by now, but Azula was nuts. She should be reeled in to prevent any accidents from happening. Judging by the nods and looks everyone else was shooting to each other across the table, however, he could tell he was outnumbered.

Crossing his arms and sighing he said, "Alright. I see where this is going. But if anything suspicious and having to do with weirdly powerful benders or fire or—or scary women pops up in the news before the end of the week, then we'll start a search."

A chorus of voices responded, "Agreed."

"Okay then, let's get some real breakfast. That fruit didn't cut it."

Sokka's voice trailed down the hallway as he headed towards the dining room that provided more substantial breakfast options each morning for the visitors. Katara and Aang followed behind him, walking arm in arm.

Ty Lee stretched, satisfaction and worry still churning in her stomach. I guess this is the best we can do right now. She turned to leave and head to work for the day, but Zuko stepped in front of her first.

"Ty Lee, I'm sorry."

She looked up at him, confused, "What are you talking about?"

He looked nervous. The young Fire Lord had a sleepless night thinking about how he'd been acting recently. The stress, regrets, and guilt he'd been feeling for the past few months caused him to be less than polite to Ty Lee regarding her concerns about Azula. The trip to see Dr. Liu yesterday was only one indication of that.

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. I should have taken you seriously when you told me to go visit Azula, but I wasn't ready to see her yet. You were right. She's my sister and I should have been there for her, even though she's a little… difficult. And I should have been there for you too."

"Oh. Um, thanks, Zuko. That's really nice of you to say." Ty Lee smiled awkwardly. She still harbored a little resentment towards him, but supposed this was a big step in returning their friendship to normalcy. "Difficult is putting it a little lightly though, don't ya think?"

He laughed quietly and rubbed the side of his jaw, "Right again. Well, I better get going to breakfast myself. The meetings will be starting up again soon."

They left together and continued down the hallway. After a few twists and turns, a buzz of sounds emanated from a door propped open on the left-hand side. Zuko waved goodbye, "Keep your eyes open for any "scary women", alright?"

Ty Lee passed by him, heading towards the front entrance, "Sure, I'll be seeing one at the end of the week."

"Huh?"

"Doesn't Mai count?"

She didn't turn to look back as she kept walking, but grinned at Zuko's sharp intake of breath as he stubbed his toe on the doorway. "See you later, Zuko."