I was sooooo proud of that last ending! What do you think about Zuko deciding not to fight the Avatar (a.k.a. Aang) anymore? I think that it put an awfully unexpected turn into the story! Hope you like it! More surprises this chapter, plus we actually see Aang, Katara, and Sokka! READ AND REVIEW!

Rescue

Zuko stood in the middle of the great hall back in the Fire Nation palace. He was surrounded by hundreds of citizens, their body heat reaching him even more than the flames around the base of the stage. He could smell the pungent scent of brimstone swelling around his body. Even the oxygen was thin and making it difficult to breathe. A ceremonial robe hung loosely over Zuko's bare shoulders and flung to the ground as he spun to face his opponent. He turned to face the Fire Lord, his father. It was a nightmare all over again. Zuko' eyes widened in horror as a ball of flame rocketed at his face. Zuko tried to block, but was frozen solid. "No! No! Not again!" was all he could mumble. He was unable to neither move nor cry out. As the flames licked at his face, Zuko gave one last painful scream as he sat up shaking from his nap.

His chest was heaving with his panting and forehead peppered with beads of sweat. Zuko stumbled to the river's edge and sank back to his knees. Splashing the cool water on his face, one of his hands traced his wide scar surrounding his eye. He allowed his hand to linger there as he banished all of his hellish memories. "It was just a dream," Zuko growled to himself as he stood, fire causing the sizzling water traces still on his hands to evaporate.

He sighed and looked back over to the fire where Zana and Iroh were still sleeping. The sun was still high in the sky so he couldn't have been sleeping for too long. Zuko decided he needed a way to let out some of his aggravation. He decided to meditate-that had always made him feel a bit better, for the time being, at least. Zuko trudged further downstream, so he would not be disturbed if his companions awoke and untied his tunic. He carelessly flung it off to the side and away from the water so it wouldn't get damp. Sitting down cross-legged, he laid his hands in his lap, but stopped the process when he realized he had no meditation candles. He gave an aggravated grunt when he decided he'd have to make due with his own fire in his palms.

Zuko began to center himself and his chest heaved with every concentrated breath he took. The tiny flames hovering above his palms fluctuated then burst into great fires along with the rhythm of his breath. He envisioned only darkness, a void and nothing else. That helped to calm him.

His concentration was soon broken as a figure appeared in the void. It was a slender frame in dark clothing. He didn't have to look hard to tell that it was Zana. No matter how much Zuko concentrated, he was unable to remove the picture from his center. The distraction was not a good one. She was what was pulling him away from focus, but still, Zana came nearer to him and spoke, "Zuko," she said his name in such a way… He wanted to hear it again and again, but only from her. She made it sound so good.

Zana had woken with Zuko's cry. He had had a bad dream, but she thought better of it to go over and comfort him. The dream had obviously upset Zuko and Zana believed it was best if she let him alone. With one eye partially open, she watched him move away and remove his tunic. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of his lean muscle. She had known what was under there, Zana had felt his power when he'd pinned her up against the tree, but the actual sight of Zuko's naked chest exhilarated her for some reason. She quickly shook off the feelings tough-there was no need for them.

What he did next baffled her. Zuko sat down and held his palms up. With his eyes closed, he created small fires in each hand. Those flames rose and fell like a heart beat. Zana couldn't help but be curious, so she got up and went over to his side. She stood beside him, waving her hand in front of his face. "Zuko?" she asked, a little concerned when he did not respond. "Zuko?" she asked a little louder that time. Zana was about to repeat herself again when he suddenly reached out; flames extinguished and grabbed her arm. Zana gave a little yelp of surprise just before Zuko's lips met hers. His eyes were still closed-even his scar was softened slightly, but soon hers closed as well when she gave into it. Zuko's touch was stiff, but warm and searching. Zana had landed on her knees in front of his legs and she found herself slowly inching forward for more depth. Her hand elevated slightly as she fought the urge to place it in the center of his sleek chest. Zuko pulled away too soon in Zana's opinion, but he had secretly wanted to keep going as well. She opened her eyes soon after the contact was broken.

"What was that for?" Zana tried to sound a little offended, just in case it was all a misunderstanding, but she didn't know how it could have been. "It shut you up, didn't it?" Zuko joked, his voice was slightly husky. He had had to tear his lips away from Zana's-he couldn't deny that he'd wanted so much more… "I…uh…just wanted to know what you were doing…" Zana stuttered, staring at his lips and wondering what it would be like to touch them again. "Meditating, now be quite," Zuko jested and pulled her to his side so their hips were touching. "Join me if you want…" he went back to his concentration. Zana blushed deeply and began to mimic his moves. "After this, we spar…" Zana trailed off and Zuko grunted in agreement. He wanted another chance to whip her.

If Zana had opened her eyes again, she would have seen Zuko looking back at her intently, shocked at himself for having done that. He knew deep down that it would just complicate things even more, but he couldn't help it. He had wanted so badly to do that. Zuko returned to face forward, but using his meditation as just a ploy so she could not really see what he was thinking. His lips curved into a mischievous grin as images of he and Zana moved through his mind…

Meanwhile, Aang, Katara, and Sokka were all wandering on the shores of a mass of land. Appa had become worn out from flying them away from the Earth Kingdom, so they had decided to stop at a nearby island for a rest-the very island that Zuko, Zana, and Iroh were on. The trio had left shortly after the incident with Aang and the Avatar State. "Why can't we fly again?" Sokka wined. "Because Appa is tired from lugging along your fat butt this entire time!" Katara was tired of being nice to her older brother and his childish behavior. "Come on, guys!" cried Aang, "There is bound to be some food in these woods," he kept encouraging them.

"Ohhhhh, food!" Sokka's stomach rumbled in compliance. "I can hear a river up ahead!" Katara yelled happily. Aang and Momo sped forward. It was a hot day and everyone needed to cool down for a while. Sokka chased after the Avatar and the Water Bender, only hitting his head on a branch and stubbing his toe on a root once or twice. Both of them were already at the river's lapping edge by the time he stumbled out of the dense brush. Katara was filling her canteen and Aang was playfully splashing Momo.

Sokka collapsed to his rear on the pebbled beach, "Hey, Katara, why don't you catch a fish or something? I'm starving!" His sister raised an eyebrow, "With that kind of attitude, you can catch your own dinner tonight." "You mean we're actually staying here tonight? On this little island? Here?" Sokka ranted. "We can't even sleep on Appa because that dumb animal is passed out on its back!" his annoying complaining voice was beginning to get on Katara's nerves. As her brother was talking, she coyly swiped him with a backhanded Water Whip. Sokka let out a yelp as he was drenched and his hair hung to the sides instead of up in its usual bun. "Hey, that's not fair!" Aang was already on his back laughing like crazy. He loved it when Katara got back at Sokka for his attitude. If he were the one to do it, he probably would have hurt Sokka, so he pretty much left it up to Katara.

A cry came from downriver, causing the three of them to gasp in shock. Even from how far away the supposed fight was, they could see bursts of fire engulfing air. "Fire Nation…" Aang said as Momo pounced up onto his shoulder. "Well, what are we waiting for? We have to see if anyone needs help!" Sokka shook off with a sudden burst of energy and courage and dashed in the direction of the battle. "Sokka! Wait up! We don't know what's going on," Katara called ahead while running after him. Momo jumped to the earth as Aang bent the air around him to help elevate himself so he could see further. He landed and called ahead, "It looks like a one-on-one fight." He easily caught up to Katara and Sokka who had taken out his club, just in case. This was the story of Aang's life-he had to stop all pain and suffering and to save the innocent. It was his job as the Avatar.

After the two Fire Benders had meditated for a while, Iroh had woken up and gotten restless from waiting. He went over and shook Zana to start a conversation. Needless to say, this disturbed Zuko from his own day dreams/meditation and there was no more peace. "Are you still up for sparring again today, or will you lose for the second time?" Zana teased as she pulled Zuko to his feet. He eyed her and returned her semi-flirtatious remark, "I am if you are…" All Iroh could do was look back and forth from boy to girl, trying to decipher what was going on. "Did I miss something?" his face contorted in confusion. They both turned away and smiled to themselves at how right Iroh was.

"Let's do this," Zana said under her breath as she and Zuko got into ready stances. His muscles rippled as his body shifted, causing a slight hitch in her breathing. Zana had to blink hard to return her focus to the task at hand. Without warning, Zuko charged first, bellowing a cry that would have frightened any other opponent, but not Zana. With a low grunt she slid out of the way of his blow and struck him on the back with her elbow. This caused Zuko to tumble forward. He proceeded to wipe his mind clear of the kiss Zana and he had shared earlier and instead had his daydreams take its place.

There was a maniacal glint in his eyes as he spun around to face her again. His teeth gritted at one fantasy: he had defeated Zana, and she was the prize… Zuko snarled as one of his jump-kicks released a powerful flame and he quickly followed with a spin aimed at her feet. She saw it coming, but didn't quite react in time and lost her balance. She had forgotten what a completely different person he was during a fight-no mercy at all. Zana hit the earth with a thud, but righted herself quickly, "You got lucky," Zana sneered, her pride scraped. "No," Zuko grunted with another flaming blow, "I just know how you fight!" He was advancing quickly on her, but was thrust backwards a few feet with a low-aimed kick from Zana. He landed back on his own feet with an aggravated growl.

"But you haven't seen me Water Bend!" Zana cried, bringing forth a column of river beside her. The column was flung forward at an incredible speed with a flick of her wrists. Zuko was able to counter quickly with a blast of his own element. The deafening hiss of the opposite elements clashing could be heard from far. But I know how to fight one… he thought, recalling his last battle with the Avatar's friend.

The vicious sparring kept on waging with very few attacks actually making contact until Zuko skillfully dodged one of Zana's fists and snuck in behind her. He thrust one arm around her narrow waist and the other around her already sore neck. He spoke through gritted teeth, "Do I win?" his voice was deep in her ear with male satisfaction. Zana couldn't help but freeze at the sensation of Zuko's body up against her back, but she quickly snapped into reality and clasped the bare arm around her neck. She was about to flip him over her head when there was a loud crash behind them in the forest.

"Fire Nation, we have to be quiet," Iroh stated the obvious as a crest of smoke rose above the treetops. The teens didn't move a muscle and Zana stayed in Zuko's grasp, but even he didn't know it was more a reflex of protection. They all proceeded to listen in silence.

"Look!" cried Sokka. He was able to see the battle just up ahead and across the river. "No…" said Katara, "It's Prince Zuko," she hesitated a little. It was a bit of a shock to see him again after their encounter at the North Pole. "He's got someone!" Aand yelled back at them, "We've got to help!" From their point of view, it looked as if Zuko was slowly suffocating the girl. They were both standing still, but their heads turned at the sound of Aang's voice, "Zuko, leave her alone!" The Prince refocused to them across the river, "Be quiet!" he hissed. The girl's eyes became wide with what Aang saw as terror, but it really was in recognition of Zuko's ticket into the Fire Nation.