Thank u thank u thank u to every one who reviewed! All of your tips/praise/awesomeness inspire me! Anyway, this chapter is pretty long, grace yourselves O_O

Chapter 31

Mai couldn't believe what she just heard. It wasn't right. It had to be a mistake. Maybe it was a relative of his. Or someone who looked alike...? It had to be. She looked back up to Kat, who was talking. Her lips were moving but Mai heard no sound. Everything was spinning. Kat took hold of Mai's arms and shook her hard, and yelled something she couldn't comprehend. Vibrant memories were flashing in her head now, some horrible, like the time in that village where Zuko first saw the man who locked her up. And others that were perfect, one was when she was little and dropped her ice cream, so Zuko gave her his. One when they had gone to Ember Island. Mai was lying in bed, and when she woke up, she could see the reflection of Zuko getting ready in the bathroom. Her head was telling her to look away, but she couldn't. He was wearing nothing but a thin, white towel that was wrapped just below his hips. She focused on the muscles in his arms, tightening, loosening, then tightening again. Only when he reached to pull his towel off was when she forced her eyes closed, but still imagined what she could have seen.

"Mai?!" A loud shrill came from above her. She squinted against the bright lights around her, and slowly lifted her self up.

"Thank goodness you're okay. We were worried there for a second." Kat said with relief, and pulled them both onto their feet.

"What happened?" Mai mumbled, her voice slurred.

"You kind of.. fainted." Kat said with a crooked smile, then her face suddenly got serious,"And, I'm sorry about... yeah... But you shouldn't worry, I've heard rumors of the Fire Lord being very ... protective of you... It's true, isn't it?" Kat asked.

Mai blinked and nodded. Something was screaming at her to roll her eyes.

Kat gave another small smile,"Well, anyways, back to the reason you really came here for. I talked to one of the doctors before the chief told me about the ... news... Anyway, he said that the memories should keep returning, mostly in dreams or while you're sleeping. If you keep remembering things as quickly as you are now, you could gain all of your memory back by the end of the month!" Kat exclaimed cheerfully. As if anything about this situation was cheerful. Mai struggled to pay attention to anything Kat was saying. Why was he alive? How was he alive? There was so much... blood. There was no way, it had to be impossible.

"I have to go." Mai said, probably interrupting Kat was saying.

Kat blinked,"O-oh. Alright. Take it easy..." She trailed off as Mai rushed out the doors.

---

Katara gripped onto Appa's reins and swiftly guided them out of the way of the fire balls blasting towards them. She whipped the reins, causing Appa to dart forwards through the air. It was fast, but not fast enough. The piercing scream of the fire flying across the sky kept getting louder and louder until Katara knew it was too late. She whipped the reins one last time, somehow making Appa to go faster, and leaped off the backside of the saddle. She could catch a glimpse of the fire just miss Appa's tail, and was relieved, even if she was falling out of the sky. She flung herself over to reach her pouch, and felt for the cap. Her fingers were sweaty and the air was working against her, making it almost impossible to open the lid. She grunted and forced her fingers onto the cap, using all of her strength to open her pouch. She could see the ground getting closer and closer from the corner of her eye. At the last second, she somehow managed to pop open the lid. She gasped, then waterbended the water into a small ice ramp. She slid down it and onto the muddy grass, then took a huge breath. But Katara knew it wasn't over yet.

---

Mai rushed through the crowed, ignoring the stares she was getting from everyone. She just closed her eyes and kept going, as fast as she could. Even when she ran into someone she kept going.

"Mai?" Came a voice, most likely the voice that belonged to the person she had just ran into.

"Mai?!" Came the voice again. The voice belonged to a man, a much older man than she thought, who had a long gray-ish beard and golden eyes, that reminded her much of Zuko's.

"S-sorry." Mai stuttered nervously. She spun back around, only to be pulled back by him. "Who are you?" She asked, trying not to scream.

He gave a confused look. Then shook his head and laughed. Despite how angry, confused, scared, hurt, and annoyed she was, his laughter seemed to calm her down.

"You always had a great sense of humor." He said, wiping a tear from his eye.

Mai propped an eyebrow, "What do you mean?...You know me?"

The man's shoulders slowly fell, and he released her, "I did... " Mai could see that he was beginning to understand that she wasn't kidding. "I was wondering what had happened, why Zuko has been away for so long..."

"You know him?" Mai asked, shocked.

"I do. It's just been a while that we've spoken, and I grew worried. So, I came to visit from Ba Sing Se."

As soon as she heard those words, another memory flashed in her head.

She was in a small room in a large castle, with Ty Lee. Someone had just left, but she couldn't remember who.

"Finally she's gone." Ty Lee said with a sigh, throwing herself onto the bed behind her.

"What do you mean?" Mai asked.

Ty Lee rolled herself over and looked at her, "I mean... Well... I don't know, really. She's just been giving me this creepy vibe lately."

"Hmm." Mai moaned. But she actually had noticed this "vibe" as well.

Then Ty Lee suddenly gasped and sprung forwards, as if she had just remembered something.

"Guess what?!" She asked, a playful smile taking shape on her lips.

"What?" Mai asked, uninterested.

"I heard Zuko's here!" She exclaimed.

Mai could hardly keep down the excitement bubbling in her chest. He was here. Zuko was here.

"What?! I mean.. You're sure?" Mai asked, trying to keep calm.

"Well, I guess I'm not positive. But I heard two guys in the city talking about how they had just seen a boy that looked exactly like the Prince! And how many guys in the world have huge scars that cover the left side of their face?!" She giggled and rolled onto her back.

Mai looked down, so her bangs covered her eyes. She hadn't seen Zuko in so long, she wondered what he looked like...

Then the memory was gone.

Mai blinked and shook her head.

"Mai? Are you feeling alright?" Came the man's voice from beside her. She felt him propping her up.

"Yeah.." She mumbled, resting the palm of her hand against her forehead.

"I assume you have a long story behind all of this...?" He asked, and smiled apologetically.

Mai snorted, "I guess you could say that."

---

Zuko stared out over the forest, pushing back the thoughts of that ...monster... He wondered what Mai was doing. If she was still mad at him. If she was thinking about him too. He thought about the time they were coming home from Ember Island. They were picked up in a ship, which was either his Father's way of saying sorry for the stupid vacation, or, this was the only thing closest to you that was coming home, so, here you go.... Zuko guessed it was number two.

Ty Lee and Azula were discussing plans, which left Mai and Zuko alone. Mai kept her eyes hidden behind her bangs until Zuko brought himself to say something.

"Mai.." He let out a sigh,"Mai I'm sorry I flipped out the other night..." He rubbed the back of his neck.

"You don't have to apologize." Mai said, and showed him one of her rare smiles that made Zuko's heart pound in his chest. He stared into her eyes for a long moment, with out saying a word. She's the one. The words rang in his head. Zuko knew he loved Mai more than any one else in the world, but... he'd never been so sure of it before. He swallowed hard, then brought himself closer to her. He pressed his chest against hers, wrapped his arms around her slender waist, then slammed his mouth against hers. Mai stood there, frozen. She's kissed him plenty of times before, but never like this. He took hold of her arms and held them above her head, somehow pressing himself harder against her. Mai knew she had to try focusing on something else, or else she'd make some embarrassing sound. She forced her stare to the floor, the wall, Zuko's chest... No! Her head shouted at her. Zuko ran his lips across her cheek, then her neck. Mai bit her lip, trying to think about anything other than Zuko's hot breath against her skin, Zuko's fingers running through her hair... Her mask was about to break. Just calm down. She thought to herself. Without noticing, her hands slid up his chest. She hesitated at his shoulders, desperately trying not slam her mouth against one of them. Zuko could feel her hands trembling against him. He smiled and gently bit the soft skin just below her chin. Then, she lost it. Her mouth locked against his, her hands reached under his shirt, her hips pushed up against his. Her nails dug into his shoulders, but Zuko couldn't feel it. All he could feel was the heat of her body against his.

"Zuko!" Sokka's voice yelled from behind him.

"What?" Zuko asked, taken off guard.

"Geez, that's like the one hundredth time I've yelled at you! What are you thinking about?!" Sokka asked, his eyebrows raising in suspicion.

"N-nothing. Just-" He clenched his teeth,"It's nothing."

"Then why is your face all red?" Sokka asked, a playful smirk planted on his face.

"It isn't!" Zuko yelled, his face getting redder.

Sokka rolled his eyes, "Whatever makes you happy."

Zuko groaned and turned to bury his face in his arms, but before he could, something caught his eye.

"Hey...Is that... Appa's fur?! Look-" He pointed to the white, fluffy piles of hair on the ground beneath them.

Sokka looked down, then blinked, "You're right..." He agreed. Zuko lowered the war balloon, and they both jumped to the ground. They both examined the scene for other clues of what happened. "It looks like they were ambushed..." Sokka started, shooting Zuko a worried glance.

"But from who? It doesn't look like it happened too long ago, and if they were ambushed, the attackers would still be here and most likely shoot us down too." Zuko said, folding his arms. Sokka bit his lip.

"Maybe they knew Katara was coming... Maybe the trap was only meant for her... " Sokka gulped, then frowned deeply,"I'm such an idiot." He muttered to himself.

"Don't blame yourself for this." Zuko said seriously. Sokka ignored him and looked away.

"But it's true!" Sokka yelled after a couple moments of silence. "If I just forced her to stay, or convinced her to let me go with her, or..." Sokka stopped himself from saying 'or wouldn't of stopped to go to that town,' but he was afraid that would stir something in Zuko he'd regret.

"Don't act like it's the end yet. You can still find her." Zuko said gently. Sokka looked at him, there was a hint of pain in his eyes. Sokka nodded. He now felt horrible. He probably sounded like a coward or a wimp, giving up so easily. While Zuko had lost something so precious to him for so long, and still hadn't lost hope. All Sokka could do was give him a weak nod.

---

All Iroh could do was stare at Mai after hearing her story. He was more than shocked. Not only at what he heard, but because Zuko hadn't told him any of this.

"I-Iroh..?" Mai asked nervously.

He shook his head slowly, then trapped her in a hug. Mai blinked and awkwardly hugged him back.

"I'm so sorry, Mai..." Iroh said, leaning back and wiping his eye.

"Me too.. I-I mean, since Zuko kept it all from you..." She played with her fingers nervously.

"It's alright... I understand he's busy, and must have been very depressed by your absence... but..." Mai could tell he was hurt.

Iroh sniffed, shook his head, then smiled,"Sorry, it's nothing. It's getting late, I should walk you back home-"

Mai's eyes widened," T-the palace is fine." She interjected quickly. She didn't know why, but she couldn't face her parents right now. She needed to sort things out first.

"Alright then." Iroh agreed and smiled hesitantly, then lead them both back to the palace.

---

"Mai!" Came the cheery and worried voice of Ty Lee. She ran up and slammed into Mai, wrapping her arms around her. "I'm so glad you're here! You'll never guess what-" Ty Lee blinked when she saw Iroh. "I-Iroh! It's so good to see you again!" She said and grinned. It had been a long time since they'd seen each other. Iroh grinned back, "It is good to see you as well," He bowed slightly, "Ty Lee."

She shook her head, "Oh yeah! As I was saying, Ursa left!"

Mai's eyes widened and Iroh propped an eyebrow, "You didn't know?" He asked.

"No! She left again! And-"

"Why did she leave?!" Mai yelled.

"We don't know! We just told her Zuko's leaving with Sokka to go find Katara and she ran off! So Toph ran after her and I stayed behind to tell you." Ty Lee explained frantically. Mai looked down, lost in thought.

Iroh stroked his beard, "I'm assuming Zuko found her?"

Ty Lee turned to him, "Yes, he did... He didn't tell you...?"

Iroh nodded, "No he didn't..." Then he muttered something they couldn't comprehend. It sounded like I think I know why..

"There isn't time to worry about this, we have to go!" Mai interrupted the two, and dragged them both out the doors.

---

Katara ran and ducked behind a tree, as two more balls of fire were shot at her. She groaned and caught her breath, gracing herself for another explosion. She bit her lip, this is enough, She thought. If she didn't face whoever this was, this would never end. Katara leaped out from behind the tree and dashed closer to where the fire balls were coming from. She dodged each blast, missing some explosions by mere inches. She ran and ran, but the fireballs kept coming. This could be a trap, Katara thought. But she didn't care. She had to find Aang. She kept running until she reached a huge mountain, with steam rising from the top. The smell of ashes was getting stronger and stronger. Firenation. She used to dread the word. But now, she wasn't so worried about walking right into their trap. Whoever it was, they couldn't be more than rebels or punks that just happen to disagree with an heir of peace and balance. So, she kept running. By the time Katara was getting close to the wall of the mountain, her legs were aching and she was about to collapse. She somehow managed to keep running, and gasped when she was a blue flame coming towards her. Katara reflected it with some water pulled by the grass beneath her, then looked to see if it was who she thought it was.

"You really are an idiot. You realize you just walked into a huge trap, don't you? And don't think you'll be getting out so easily, either. Even the Avatar himself hasn't been able to get out yet." Came the sly, hideous voice of Azula from behind her. She laughed hoarsely, shooting another flame at Katara that knocked her against the rocky wall. She grunted, then dusted herself off.

"What do you even want with him?!" Katara screamed at her, "You've lost, Azula. And capturing the Avatar will do nothing to help you win!"

Azula snarled at her, "Really?! You seem pretty confident about that. I guess you'll have to see him for yourself!" She shot another flame at Katara, which sent her flying back into the side of the mountain. Katara recovered in a flash, then whipped a stream of water from the ground, then flew it towards Azula. She pushed herself back with a blast of fire, then shot another blast towards Katara. They both kept reflecting and shooting and falling, but neither gave up. Katara realized this wouldn't end, so she decided to try something new. She bended water from the tree Azula was standing in front of, and swatted a branch at her, causing her to fall to the ground. Azula growled at her then steadied herself. She took a deep breath, then yelled, "Akane!" Katara blinked with confusion, then yelped as the ground beneath her began to shake.

"Meet my friend, Akane. He's a former Dai Lee agent." Azula said with a smirk. Katara gasped as two hands made of earth flew towards her, trapping her against the wall.

It's over now, both Katara and Azula thought in unison.