Chapter 3: The Boiling Point

It was dark in the metal cell. Zuko lost count of the minutes as time passed, but he was sure he was in there for a few hours. The iron door ahead of him only let a little light leak in. His head was lowered as he was leaned against the back wall and thought back on how he got here.

He and Sokka had arrived on the Boiling Rock after crashing the war balloon. The Fire Prince knew that getting in would be easy. It was getting out that seemed all impossible, especially now. They had found guard uniforms and disguised themselves. He and Sokka split up to seek out answers about any war prisoners. Zuko didn't learn of any that were here, and when he met up with Sokka later, he told him the news. Sokka was really upset, naturally. Zuko didn't blame him, but he was starting to see a problem with them getting out. Zuko tried one of his Uncle's proverbs to help Sokka, but it failed miserably. He just didn't have a way with words like Uncle Iroh did. Just as Zuko and Sokka were thinking that they were in trouble, Sokka spotted Suki in the distance down in the prison courtyard. The leader of the Kyoshi Warriors was dressed in the same filthy red prison garb as all other prisoners.

Zuko had waited outside of Suki's cell as Sokka went in to talk to her. Their reunion was cut short when a female guard came to speak to Suki. Zuko only acted on instinct to protect Sokka and Suki. His protective instinct cost him to be founded out, as Sokka pretended to help the woman capture him when he slipped out of Suki's cell.

Sokka had whispered to Zuko that to not worry and that he would come for him, but Zuko wasn't one to rely on such petty words. If anything, Zuko was seeing this as his punishment for all the bad things he had done. Sokka should leave him here, and when the warden handed him over to his father, Ozai, and then his punishment would turn to purgatory.

Why should I expect him to come back? I deserve this…

The iron door to his cell suddenly opened, letting light flood inside with great intensity. Zuko squinted until his eyes adjusted, not at all surprised to see the warden standing in the threshold flanked by two guards.

"Well, well, well…I would have never thought to find you in here…Prince Zuko," the warden chuckled, sneering as he entered the cell.

Zuko glared directly back at him. "How did you know who I am?"

"How could I not with a scar like that?" he snorted. "Besides, you broke my niece's heart."

Zuko pushed himself off of the wall, perking up. "You're Mai's uncle?"

"Yes."

"I never meant to hurt her," Zuko said, lowering his eyes.

"Quiet!" the Warden snapped. He then smirked at the prince. "You're my…special prisoner now. And you best behave. If these criminals found out who you are…the traitor prince who let his nation down…Why they would tear you to shreds!"

"So what's in it for you?" Zuko growled, folding his arms. "Why don't you just tell my father and collect a reward?"

The warden widened his grin. "Oh in due time, believe me, I intend to collect."

He turned and left after his words, the iron door screeching shut and shutting Zuko into darkness once again. Zuko clenched his jaw, trying to figure out how this could get any worse.

He didn't stay in the cell for much longer until it was time to be let out. Zuko was put to work mopping the floor in the mess hall. He came across Suki, who instantly recognized him. At first she gave him a glare that could kill. She was mopping along with him. As Zuko was thinking of something to say to her, Sokka came around the turn of the staircase grinning at them.

"Good! You two know each other!"

Zuko was relieved to see Sokka again. Now they could figure out a way to get out of this hellhole. As Sokka came over to them, Suki stopped mopping and slightly glared at Zuko again.

"Well yeah, he kinda burned down my village, remember?"

"Oh…uhh…sorry about that," Zuko mumbled.

"Relax, Suki, he's on our side now," Sokka said as he gathered them up to the side. "Anyways, listen up. I think I have an escape plan."

Suki and Zuko exchanged glances, then went right back to staring at Sokka as all three of them kneeled to converse the plan in private.

"I checked out the coolers again. The whole point of them is to contain Firebenders, right?"

"Yeah," Zuko muttered.

"So they are completely insulated to keep the cool in. And to do that, it needs to keep the heat out. Am I right?"

"Just get to the point, Sokka," Suki grumbled, growing anxious.

"It's a perfect boat for getting through the boiling water!"

"The cooler as a boat?" Zuko grunted. "Are you sure?"

"I'm telling you! It'll work! I walked around the perimeter. There's a blind spot between two guard towers. It's the perfect launching point! I already tested it out. We can push the cooler into the water and ride the current. It will push us right across!"

"But-" Suki began, but Sokka interrupted her.

"If we don't make a sound, no one will notice! And bing bang boom, we are home free!"

Suki shook her head. "But how are you going to get the cooler out?"

"Yeah, how are you going to get the cooler out?"

The sudden voice made them jump. Looking up, the three saw the large man named Chit Sang that had been thrown into a cooler earlier. He was leaning over the railing of the stairs overhearing them. He vaulted himself over and landed next to their huddle session.

"W-what? W-we…didn't…we…didn't say that!" Sokka quickly squealed, laughing.

Zuko glared at the larger man. "Yeah, you heard wrong."

"I heard you were hatching an escape plan, and I want in," Chit Sang said.

"There's nothing to get in on," the Fire Prince warned.

"Yeah, the only thing we're hatching is…uhh…an egg!" Sokka gulped.

Suki slapped her forehead and Zuko heaved a sigh. Chit Sang didn't buy the bait at all, not that anyone could fall for Sokka's words like that.

"Okay, well, I come with you or the warden hears about this egg too," Chit Sang bartered.

"I guess we have no choice," Suki sighed, looking to her boyfriend.

Sokka nodded, "Okay, you're in. So now we need someone to unbolt the cooler from the inside." Sokka pulled out a wrench from his belt. Zuko took it and hid it in his prison garb.

Chit Sang grinned darkly. "Oh, I can get ya inside."

Zuko caught his drift and smirked. They went to work, leaving Suki and Sokka to watch. Zuko grabbed his mop and started mopping, moving backwards towards Chit Sang. He purposely bumped into the large Firebender.

"Hey! What are you? Stupid?" Chit Sang yelled, getting the prisoners and guards all along the mess hall to turn their heads. Chit Sang grabbed Zuko and slung him around.

Zuko tore away from him, sliding agilely on his feet. "Hey! You watch who you're shoving!"

Zuko slammed into Chit Sang's chest, pushing him several feet backwards. "I'm taking you down, you little punk!"

They got into it, bluffing the fight and egging on the other prisoners who started to cheer. Chit Sang easily grabbed Zuko and whipped him around, slamming him onto the floor. Zuko slid across the floor away from Chit Sang. He was quick like a fox to propel his legs around and flip himself onto his feet just as the larger man went to body slam him. When Zuko landed on his feet, he shot a fireball from his fist, aiming for the floor at Chit Sang's feet. Chit Sang jumped up and stomped it right out.

A guard immediately came forth, pointing Zuko out. "No Firebending! Into the cooler!"

The guards tackled Zuko to the ground. They hauled him off quick. The Fire Prince was only able to get a quick glance to Suki and Sokka before they were out of sight.

Once the guards threw him into the cooler and left him, Zuko immediately got to work. Chill bumps rose on his skin from the cold chamber, and touching the icy metalwork didn't help. Zuko had to use Breath of Fire technique to help keep him warm as he worked. The cooler had a simple design, and so he was able to unbolt all that he needed to within a half hour. He resumed a huddled position on the floor of the cooler, arms wrapped around his legs shivering as he waited for Sokka to turn up.

He was relieved to hear the cooler door open. Sokka stood before him in his Fire Nation prison guard outfit, helmet and all. A sly grin was on his face. "I can take you back to your cell if you have learned your lesson," he said seriously, mocking as a guard quite well.

Zuko smirked, taking a deep breath and letting out a plume of fire from his mouth to warm him as he got to his feet. "Yes, I have." He showed Sokka all of the bolts lying in his shirt with the wrench. "Completely."

Sokka leaned in, raising the visor on his helmet. He whispered to the Fire Prince, even though there seemed to be no other guards around at the moment. "I got Suki and Chit Sang out of their cells a few minutes ago. They will be waiting for us at the shore."

Zuko heard footsteps up the hall, coming their way. He quickly grabbed Sokka and pulled him into the cooler, sliding the metal door shut. "Someone's coming!"

There were two guards that came around the corner, a man and a woman. They were talking as they headed for their destination, hardly noticing anything else even as Sokka and Zuko slid the door open to hear better. They were talking about a new shipment of prisoners. Sokka grunted when he heard the man say war prisoners among the list.

Sokka looked to the exiled prince, his expression grim.

Zuko thinned his lips, a small sigh escaping his lips. "War prisoners. It could be your father."

"I know…"

"Well? What should we do? Do we go along with the plan, or do we wait another night?" Zuko inquired, trying to ignore the biting cold of the freezer.

"I don't know…" Sokka sounded frustrated. "Is it right for me to risk Suki's freedom…all of our freedom on the slim chance that my dad is gonna show up?"

"It's your call, Sokka," Zuko stated calmly. "This is your dad. I'm with you on any decision you make, and you know that Suki is too."

"No…we should go. I can't risk this anymore," Sokka sighed.

Sokka made sure the cooler door was shut while Zuko got the final bolts undone. Together they started pushing it until warm air was slipping through from out side. The cooler was heavy. Sokka slipped out first, then Zuko. They managed to work together to unhinge the cooler and start it down the cliff towards the shore. Chit Sang and Suki were quick to come and help them get it into the water.

"This here's my girl and best bud. They are coming too," Chit Sang said, pointing to the other stranger prisoners.

Sokka muttered something low and then sighed. "Fine. Everyone into the cooler…let's go."

Chit Sang was holding it on the shore while his buddy and girlfriend hopped in. Suki and Zuko came up behind Sokka as he was getting his belongings that were hidden under a rock.

"Are you sure you want to go? You were the one who said you wanted to redeem yourself…redeem your honor," Zuko asked calmly, smelling the boiling water easily. "Rescuing your dad is your chance."

"Your dad?" Suki grunted, stepping forth and peering at Sokka with worry.

"If I had just cut my losses at the invasion, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess. Maybe sometimes it is just better to call it quits before you fail," Sokka sighed, looking to the boiling water that rippled up onto the rocky shore.

"No, it's not," Zuko growled. "Look Sokka, you are going to fail a lot before things work out."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Sokka snorted, shouldering his supplies and squinting at Zuko.

"Even though you will probably fail over and over and over again…"

"Seriously, not helping!"

"You have to try every time. You can't quit because you are afraid you might fail!"

"Hey!" Chit Sang hollered at them. "If you two are done wasting time, can we get a move on?"

Sokka took a moment, Zuko's words hitting him hard. He suddenly dropped his pack and shook his head. "No…I'm staying." He turned to Suki and Zuko, his hand going to Suki's shoulder. "You guys go. Especially you Suki…you've been here long enough."

"I'm not leaving without you Sokka!" she retorted, grabbing his hand into her own and smiling.

"I'm staying too," Zuko stated, smiling at Sokka.

"Not me! I'm out!" Chit Sang called. "Let's roll, baby!"

Chit Sang pushed the cooler all the way into the boiling water. They started floating away from the shore, the steam clouding most of their vision, even their view of the coming dawn above.

"We just gave up our only way of escape," Sokka sighed. "I hope we didn't just make a huge mistake."

"Come on, the sun's coming up! The new prisoners will be arriving on the gondola any minute!" Zuko whispered harshly.

They took off for the nearest flight of stairs to take them up, not even looking back at the drifting cooler. As they were halfway up the staircase on the side of the tower, the alert bells were going off. At first Sokka thought that they had been caught, but soon saw a harpoon being shot out. It clipped the side of the cooler, and they immediately started to pull it back towards the prison.

"Damn! The cooler didn't work! They got found out!" Sokka hissed.

"Look! The gondola is coming down!" Suki yelled, pointing up.

They watched the gondola slide to a stop on its station. The alarm bells soon ceased, but Sokka, Zuko, and Suki had already forgotten about Chit Sang and his friends. When the gondola doors opened, they watched intently for his father. After the last one got off of the gondola, Sokka groaned out loud, fingers going to his temples.

"That's it. We risked all of this for nothing!" he cried.

"Wait, one last guy just stepped out. Is that him?" Zuko asked.

Sokka looked back towards the gondola. His eyes instantly widened when he saw his father step out with handcuffs linking his legs and wrists. His sharp blue eyes were scanning the area, and he had been stripped of his belongings, only wearing the red wardrobe of the prison guard.

"Dad!" Sokka exclaimed. They finally found him. It was time to bust him out of here for good.

Momo skittered around chasing a bug. The lemur weaved in and out of the camp and around Aang and the others. Katara had finished getting the small pit ready. Since she no longer had a flint, and Zuko was gone, she looked up to Aang. He played with his fingers nervously.

"C'mon Aang, you can do it. Just because Zuko isn't around doesn't mean you are gonna get it wrong," Teo said, urging him to do some Firebending.

"Ya, I'm hungry!" the Duke piped. He received a sharp elbow to the ribs by Haru.

"Okay, here it goes! Uhh…Katara? Can you please move aside for a moment?"

"Sure," she said, and got up away from the pit.

Aang took a deep breath, readying his pose and then shooting his fist out. A small fireball ignited from his fist and hit home on the pit, catching the wood on fire.

"I hear no screaming, so you must have done it right! Good job, Twinkle Toes!" Toph chuckled, clapping.

"Uhh, thanks Toph."

"I'm starting to get worried now," Katara sighed as she started getting the food ready. "Shouldn't they have been back by now? Why would they take Zuko's war balloon anyway? There is plenty of food around here."

"Pssh! You know how guys are! They gotta have their…guy time!" Toph exclaimed, waving the Waterbender off. "I bet they are having a competition on who is the manlier man!"

"Manlier man?" Aang laughed, sitting down.

"Yeah! Sorry to say it Sugar Queen, but I think Zuko would win that one easily."

Katara glared at the young, blind Earthbender. "Why? Because Zuko is destructive and the oldest out of all of us?"

"Well, there's that," Toph said, wiggling her toes. "And then there's the fact that Zuko doesn't whine about everything."

"Sokka doesn't whine that much," Katara sighed. "Besides, at least Sokka has his priorities straight."

"Okay, let's just drop this before it gets out of hand," Aang said, not wanting to upset Katara. He knew Toph was only picking, but Katara was still touchy with Zuko, and he didn't want it to turn into an argument. Aang shrugged. "I think Zuko and Sokka are…manly men…in their own way!"

"Yeah, compared to you!" Toph snickered.

Aang gave her a glare, and then heaved a sigh. "I'm gonna go feed Appa now."

Katara was looking out of the air temple, towards the deep trench. The shadows were heavy now that the sun had set below the horizon. She shook out of her thoughts and went back to cooking.

"Relax, Katara. I'm sure they're fine," Toph finally said without a hint of sarcasm.

Katara twitched a smile. "Thanks, Toph."

Zuko was so tempted to light up a flame in his dark cell. After they were sure that Hakoda was off of the gondola, Sokka left to go join the other guards and make sure where they were taking his father. Suki and Zuko had no choice but to slip back in with the other prisoners in the rush of Chit Sang's capture. Zuko was placed back into his cell after being taken away from Suki. They knew Chit Sang was being interrogated by the warden. Zuko only hoped that Chit Sang wasn't a tattletale. If he was, then Sokka was in deep trouble, along with Suki and himself.

Even though the Fire Prince was tired and knew he needed rest, he just couldn't in the fact that he needed to be on his toes now. Sokka was still disguised as a Fire Nation prison guard, wandering around. He just hoped that he was able to find Hakoda with no problems.

A couple of hours after being thrown in his cell, Sokka called to him threw the tiny, rectangular window in the iron door. "Zuko? You there?"

"I'm here," he quickly whispered, coming over to the door.

"I just got done talking to my dad. We came up with an escape plan together!" Sokka whispered lowly, smiling slightly and raising his visor.

"What are you doing here?" barked a man's voice.

Sokka jumped, turning to see a female guard and a male guard at the base of the nearby staircase.

"I was just uhhh telling this dirty lowlife what I think of him!" Sokka replied, slapping his visor back down.

"Well, you can do that later. He's coming with us," the male guard said.

Sokka grunted. "Why?"

"Because we have orders straight from the warden. That's why!" the female guard snipped.

"Can I just get ten more seconds to rough him up a bit?" Sokka asked, punching a fist into his other hand and grinning.

"Fine, make it snappy," she sighed, smiling and shaking her head.

"What a newbie," the male guard chuckled.

Sokka slipped inside. Zuko was already ahead of him, and had rolled his bedroll up to use as a punching bag for Sokka. Sokka pretended to punch him by punching the bedroll, while Zuko cried out in fake pain.

"We have a plan, but it's gonna need a big distraction. Be in the yard in one hour!" Sokka whispered harshly.

The door to the cell was sliding open. Zuko dropped the bedroll and Sokka tackled him. The guards tore them apart, and Zuko was immediately taken away. Sokka had no choice but to watch them go, worrying exactly what was going on and why they wanted Zuko.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?" Zuko growled as they pushed him along the hallways. They never gave him an answer. Instead, they opened another iron door, this one leading into an interrogation room with a chair inside. Zuko was shoved inside, and as he caught his footing to turn and face the guards, they were shutting the door. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"C'mon, Zuko. We all know that's a lie."

Zuko grunted, surprised to see Mai enter the room looking angry and upset. "Mai!"

"Surprised?" she asked, putting a hand on her hip.

Zuko slid into the chair, lowering his head. He couldn't understand how Mai could find him here, even if the warden was her uncle. Zuko knew what he did to Mai was wrong, but it was the only way to keep her safe.

"How did you know I was here?" he asked.

"Because I know you so well."

"But-"

"The warden is my uncle, you idiot," she snapped, looking away. She watched Zuko put his hand to his forehead, his topaz eyes closing hard. "The truth is, I guess I really don't know you."

He looked up, noticing the letter he wrote before he ran away from the Fire Nation to chase after the Avatar. Zuko wasn't proud of it, but he meant well by it, even if Mai didn't think so.

"All I get is a letter?" she asked, looking hurt. "You could have at least looked me in the face when you ripped out my heart."

"I didn't mean to hurt you. I was just trying to protect you."

"Didn't mean to?" she snorted. She raised the scroll to read it, but Zuko quickly stopped her, growing annoyed.

"Just don't. This isn't about you, Mai. This is about the Fire Nation," he growled.

"Thanks, Zuko. That makes me feel so much better," she said bitterly, throwing the scroll at him.

"Mai, I never wanted to hurt you. But I had to do this to save my country," he said, trying to be civil.

Her expression was still bitter. "Save it? You're betraying your country!"

"That's not how I see it," Zuko muttered.

She turned away, folding her arms. She was quiet for a long moment, and then sighed. "Then about us?"

Zuko looked away. "I really care about you Mai, whether you believe me or not…but I just don't have those feelings for you anymore."

"Yeah, I figured that," she mumbled.

"Azula is here…isn't she?" Zuko whispered.

Mai turned back to him. "Yeah."

The alarms went off. They saw all the prison cell doors being automatically opened. The prisoners flooded out, heading outside into the yard. Zuko knew it was about time to be heading out. He had to figure out a way to get away from Mai.

"What's going on? This isn't right," Mai said, watching as the prisoners cleared out of the building. The guards outside Zuko's interrogation room had run for it, probably to see what was going on. Mai turned back to her ex-boyfriend. "What are you planning?"

"Plan? How can I plan anything like this?"

"Azula knows you are here. She knows your new friends are here too. Are you guys trying to escape?" Mai asked briskly.

A guard came flying into the room. "Ma'am! There's a riot going on! I'm here to protect you!"

"I don't need any protection," Mai grumbled.

"Believe me, she doesn't," Zuko chuckled.

"I'm sorry but I am under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens."

Zuko knew the plan was in motion. He had to get out now. He shot a spray of fire at the guard's feet. The guard immediately jumped and went to Mai to block her out of protection. Zuko ran for it. He heard Mai yell something and she shoved the guard aside. This barely gave the Fire Prince any time to slam the cell door closed and lock it. Mai was glaring at him threw the tiny window. Zuko closed his eyes, looking away from her and took off running for the yard.

There were prisoners brawling all over the place. Many were shooting out flames and fireballs in the heat of it all, as well as bringing up dust in the yard. It didn't take Zuko long to spot Sokka, Hakoda, Suki, and Chit Sang against the wall.

"Zuko! Finally!" Sokka called as Zuko slid to a halt next to them. "Okay, so now all we need to do is grab the warden and get onto the gondola. We are going to use him as our captive!"

"And how do we do that exactly?" Zuko asked.

Sokka's eyes widened. "I'm not sure!"

Zuko growled out. "I thought you thought this through?"

Sokka was freaking out now, his voice rising high. "I thought you told me that it was okay not to think everything through?

"Maybe not everything, but this is kind of important!" the exiled prince snapped.

Hakoda was quiet beside his son, watching Zuko closely. Chit Sang was pointing at something, and he turned back to them.

"Hey fellas, I think your girlfriend is taking care of it," the large man said, and pointed her out.

The men watched in shock as Suki sprinted across the brawling yard, leaping onto the heads of many prisoners and using them as a runway. She was able to cut the distance to the watch tower in seconds and used her amazing acrobatic abilities to vault herself up onto the top floor where the warden was. Hakoda was the one to get them moving after her. They had to catch up quick.

By the time they caught up, Suki had already taken out several guards and had the warden against the wall tied up with a gag in his mouth. She grinned at them as the men caught up, breathing heavily from all the running.

"We've got the warden! Now let's get out of here!" she called.

"That's some girl," Hakoda said as he caught his breath.

Sokka grinned sheepishly. "Tell me about it!"

They made their way to the gondola, using the warden as a way to pass the guards easily. They loaded up, and Zuko pulled the lever. He was quick to break it to where no one could stop the gondola. He ran for it just as the guards decided to attack him. He leaped off of the edge to make the traveling gondola. Sokka was able to catch his arm and help him into the gondola safely.

"What were you thinking?" Sokka griped.

"I was making it to where they couldn't stop us," Zuko explained.

"Way to think ahead!"

"Who's that?" Hakoda asked as he watched below to the gondola station.

They ran over. Zuko's heart skipped a beat as he saw Azula standing there with her usual smirk. Ty Lee stood at her side as they both looked up to the ascending gondola.

"That's a problem. That's my sister and her friend," Zuko answered Sokka's father.

Ty Lee was quick like a cat to leap onto the gondola's line and with amazing speed and balance start towards them with sure steps. Azula grabbed a guard's pair of handcuffs and then shot herself up into the air with her blue fire like a jet pack. She attached the handcuffs to the line, and started to propel herself along the line with her shooting blue flames.

"This is a rematch I have been waiting for," Suki stated lowly, her fists forming tightly.

"Me too," Zuko agreed, using the window to vault himself up onto the gondola's roof.

Suki and Sokka were quick to follow him while Hakoda and Chit Sang stayed inside the gondola to watch the warden. Ty Lee and Azula made it to them in no time and jumped onto the roof to join the others. Sokka drew his sword, getting ready.

The fight was on as soon as they landed. Ty Lee went straight for Suki, and the two women went at it with their martial arts. Suki was able to knock Ty Lee right off of the gondola, but the younger acrobatic was flexible enough to catch herself and run through the inside of the gondola to come up behind Suki in seconds.

Zuko kept blocking his younger sister's blue fire while Sokka was behind him. He would shoot out his own flames, and when Sokka saw an opening, he went for it with his sword. Azula merely ducked and was up just as quick to spray out more flames. Zuko blocked for them again, and shot out his own, his mind racing on how to win this battle on such a small area.

As Azula was dodging like a snickering coyote, she was surprised when Sokka popped up again. In order to evade his attack, it brought her right to the edge of the gondola where she almost lost her balance. Zuko shot out more fire from his fists. Azula jumped to dodge those blasts as well, but knew her feet would slip she was so close to the edge. Instead, she made her body fall down, and she caught herself in a push up position. She glared up at Zuko and Sokka, who were surprised at how she caught herself. Azula brought her feet through, shooting blue fire from them and making Zuko and Sokka split up. She was quick to get to her feet.

"Cut the line!"

Zuko was startled. That was the warden below them. He heard Hakoda and Chit Sang yell something, and then there was a brawl beneath them. He kept focus on his sister, but knew that their time was now up. The guards were going to cut the gondola's lines. The warden would rather die then lose his perfect reputation.

The gondola suddenly started rocking and slowing down, until it halted to a complete stop. Down at the gondola station, Zuko saw that they had used large pieces of metal to wedge into the gondola's lines and make it stop without the lever. The sudden force made Sokka lose his balance and go over the edge. Zuko was barely able to catch him in time as he dangled nearly a hundred feet over the boiling lake. Luckily, Azula had been caught off balance too, and so she was distracted momentarily.

"They are about to cut the line!" Ty Lee called down. Down at the gondola station, a couple of guards were using a large cross cut saw to cut the gondola line.

Azula looked worried for a moment. It was surprising to know that they didn't know the Firelord Ozai's daughter was on the gondola. Soon she saw another gondola coming down from across the way. She quickly smirked, as it was heading down for the station below back on the island.

"Then it's time to leave!" Azula called. She used her rocket booster technique to shoot her over to the next descending gondola. Ty Lee quickly joined her. "Goodbye Zuko!" Their gondola was still standing still, and it wouldn't be long before the line was thoroughly cut.

For a moment, their gondolas were level as the one descending passed. Azula just couldn't wait to watch Zuko's gondola fall into the boiling lake. Ty Lee didn't look as hateful; she actually looked worried as she watched them.

Zuko cursed under his breath. He, Sokka, and Suki slipped back into the gondola. Zuko ran over to Hakoda who was watching the guards cut the line. Chit Sang had the warden under control in the back.

"They are cutting the line! The gondola is about to go!" Zuko called.

"I hope this thing can float!" Hakoda retorted.

"I don't think it will!" Suki yelled.

"Wait! Who's that?" Sokka shouted, pointing out the window.

"It's Mai!" Zuko grunted.

Zuko was surprised to see Mai down at the gondola station. She was taking out all of the guards, even the two who were sawing the lines. Mai kicked the metal that was being used as a wedge out from the lines. The gondola immediately shuttered and started moving again. She looked up to them as the gondola was ascending once more.

Zuko was relieved for her help, even though their relationship was over. However, he knew Azula wouldn't take it so well. Zuko was now worried for Mai's life as they got farther and farther, and Azula got closer and closer to Mai.

Eventually, Zuko had to let it go. The gondola stopped on the other side of the lake, and they had to get out. Sokka had to pull on the prince to get him to go. It wasn't as though Zuko could see what was going on down there anymore. He took off with Sokka and Suki. Hakoda ordered Chit Sang to drop the warden in the gondola, and he was happy to oblige. The two older men followed on behind the teenagers. Their running escape quickly brought them to a massive cliff that overlooked the ocean.

"Crap! How are we gonna get out of here?" Sokka grumbled.

"My sister was on that island," Zuko told him.

"Yeah, and she is probably right behind us! We need to get out of here!"

"What I mean is that she had to of come in something," Zuko sighed, looking around the cliffside. The ocean breeze was salty and cool as it brushed between them. Zuko spotted a massive royal war balloon and called out at the others. "There! That's our way out!"

Sokka cried out in happiness. They made their way down the cliff towards the royal air balloon. It didn't take them long to hijack it and take off towards the Western Air Temple.

Zuko was finally able to take a much needed breath of relief, but soon he frowned, worrying about Mai. Her act to save them probably just cost her life. He glanced over to Sokka and Hakoda. The father and son were laughing in victory. Hakoda grabbed Sokka around his neck and rubbed his knuckles into his son's head.

They still had a long flight to the air temple. It would be dark before they made it back, but they would definitely have a story to tell. Katara would probably be so happy to see her father as well.

Katara was pacing. Something was wrong. They should have been back by now. Aang just watched her, his head going from left to right, right to left, as he watched her pace by the fountain. He held his air staff, and Momo was on his shoulder. He tried to think of something that would make her feel better, though he was starting to worry himself.

"Hey, it's alright, Katara. I'm sure Zuko and Sokka will show up any moment now in the war balloon! You are gonna start making a trench if you keep pacing like that!"

"What if they were captured? What if Zuko killed Sokka? What if that tiger killed them?" Katara snapped, frustrated.

"Zuko wouldn't kill Sokka and…wait, what? Tiger?"

"Yeah, there's a tiger in the forest! I've seen it a few times. It has never hurt me…and Appa never acted like it was going to hurt anyone, but you never know!"

"Hmm…I think I am gonna have to go see this tiger! They are so rare; they are usually Spirits in physical form!"

"What? Are you sure?"

"Sure I'm sure!" Aang snorted, grinning. "I bet the tiger didn't do anything to Sokka and Zuko! You know what? I bet Sokka and Zuko are just lost!"

"Sokka's instincts?" Katara giggled.

"That's right! Sokka's instincts! I bet Zuko is getting a kick out of that!" Aang laughed.

The huge air bison that was slumbering nearby was quick to wake and get to his feet. Appa roared out across the canyon. Even Momo started shivering, trilling and flying over to Appa for more protection. Toph, Haru, Teo, and the Duke were sleeping inside the temple, but it wouldn't take much to wake them up from Appa's roars.

They saw a huge royal war balloon from the Fire Nation descending down towards their platform. Toph came running out of the temple, closely followed by Haru, Teo, and the Duke.

"Fire Nation!" Katara yelled. She hoped it wasn't Azula of all people.

They all got together; ready to fight against the troop of Firebenders that would come down from the lowering walkway. The engine was cut off, but the balloon remained afloat right out from the platform. Aang and the others just about fainted when they saw Sokka and Zuko walking down the walkway.

"What are you doing in this thing? What happened to the war balloon?" Katara asked, surprised.

Zuko was grinning. "It kinda got destroyed."

"Sounds like a crazy fishing trip," Aang chuckled.

"Did you at least get some good meat?" Toph asked, sounding hopeful.

Sokka nodded. "I did! The best meat of all! The meat of friendship and fatherhood!"

Suki, Hakoda, and Chit Sang were heading down the walkway now. They joined Sokka and Zuko on the platform with the others.

"Dad!" Katara cried, running forth.

"Hey Katara," Hakoda whispered, hugging his daughter closely.

"How are you here? What is going on? Where did you two go?" Katara asked, smiling wide.

"We kinda went to a Fire Nation prison," Sokka chuckled.

Katara grabbed her brother and pulled him over to her and Hakoda. Father, son, and daughter all hugged each other. Zuko twitched a smile at the scene, but it quickly fell away. Toph sighed in aggravation at his side.

"Seriously, you guys didn't get any meat?"

They all laughed.

A/N: Again, so sorry for the wait! I have been so busy over the weeks that I didn't have much time to work on this! I am hoping that since things are starting to slow down, I will be able to update this story more! This chapter was meant to break up Mai and Zuko! Yes, you know what that means! XD Next chapter ZukoxKatara will officially begin! :) Now remember, this story is going to go way past the series finale! This build up along the series here is just to help bring Zuko and Katara together. Anyways, I need to stop babbling lol. I should have the next chapter up faster...of course that is what I said in the last chapter lol. Thanks for reading and reviewing everyone! :)