Mai stood beside a docked gondola on the roof of the Boiling Rock prison beneath a hazy, dark sky. The sun had not yet risen and a faint breeze stirred her hair. She flexed and clenched her hands so the thin white scars stood out sharply against her pale skin. Her pebble was still clutched between two fingers.

"Are you cold, miss?" said one of the two guards standing behind her. "It's still a half hour until dawn."

Mai looked at her. The guard held up a red cloak. On the clasp was etched the crest of the Fire Nation.

"Thanks," Mai accepted the cloak, but folded it over one arm. "I'll see if I like it. For now, I'm enjoying the cool air."

The guard shrugged, bemused. "We should depart, miss."

"Not yet," said Mai. "We're waiting."

The door to the roof opened just then, and two more guards emerged, flanking Ty Lee. When she saw Mai, however, she broke free of them and ran to her.

"Mai!" she smiled, but her brow was furrowed. "What's going on?"

"We're getting out of here," Mai said with a small smile. "My uncle just told me that Zuko and the Avatar have defeated Azula and the Fire Lord."

Ty Lee's mouth fell into an "Oh!" shape but she made no noise. Then she said, hesitatingly, "Is Azula—?"

"I think she's still alive," said Mai. "My uncle didn't say different."

Ty Lee nodded. "I'm—I'm glad she's alive, but I'm also glad—" She broke off and looked up at Mai, who gave a small, grim smile.

"Yeah," she said softly, "me too."

"Are we taking off, then?" the guard said impatiently from behind them.

"Not yet," said Mai. "We're still waiting for more people."

"More…?" the guard muttered as the door to the roof opened again.

Four more prison guards emerged, with Li Yut, Agri and Nysa between them. All seven looked rather confused.

Mai crossed her arms and smirked. The Kyoshi stared.

"All right," she said, waving a hand to the guard as she turned around. "We can go now." She stepped into the gondola and held the door open for Ty Lee.

"Oh, Mai!" Ty Lee laughed. She leapt into the gondola and threw her arms around Mai's neck. "I told them you weren't as grumpy as you seemed!"

"Thanks," Mai said, squeezing Ty Lee back. "…Thanks for everything."

"What's going on?" Li Yut cut in as the Kyoshi stepped into the gondola.

"We're free!" said Ty Lee, releasing Mai, who, a small smirk still on her face, called out to the guards still on the platform, "Send us off, please."

The guards frowned and shrugged at each other, but they pulled the switch—now repaired after Mai herself had broken it weeks before—and with a jerk the gondola set off over the boiling lake.

"The Warden, my uncle, told me that the Avatar has just defeated the Fire Lord," said Mai. "And Zuko has defeated Princess Azula. I told my uncle to release us, since Zuko will want Ty Lee and me back."

"Why us, though?" Agri interrupted. Nysa and Li Yut watched Mai suspiciously.

Mai sighed. "Because the Avatar will want you back, won't he? And you said your friends are in a prison near the capital, so you can get them out when we arrive. Besides," she propped her elbows on the gondola windowsill and leaned against the wall. "It's probably going to be boring, since it seems we've missed all the action."

"'Boring'?" Agri shouted. "People were fighting for their lives—"

"She doesn't mean it like that!" Ty Lee interrupted, waving her hands at Agri. "Sarcasm is how Mai expresses affection."

"What?" Agri said. Nysa laughed.

"Oh yes," Ty Lee beamed. "That means she actually really likes you guys!"

Agri snorted, her face red. Nysa giggled. Li Yut, however, remained solemn.

"Even if the fighting's over, there will still be a lot of work to do," she said seriously. "A lot of displaced people will need help rebuilding their lives."

Mai fingered her pebble and looked out the window. The haze of the boiling lake had not quite cleared yet, but a red sunrise was just visible beyond the approaching mountain ledge.

"Well," she said, and flexed her arms, rolling the pebble between her fingers. "Maybe it won't be so boring after all."

**I love name meanings, but I'm not very familiar with Asian names, so I was having trouble trying to think of what to call the three Kyoshi warriors. In the end, they're not Asian names at all: 'Li Yut' is an exaggeration of the first syllable of the word 'lieutenant,' since I imagine she is Suki's second-in-command. 'Agri' comes from the word 'aggressive,' since she's the most belligerent of the three. And 'Nysa' comes from the word 'nice.' **