Since returning from exile, Zuko had avoided his sister. At first it was because he'd gotten caught up in his Father's sudden approval. But then he'd been told that she wasn't feeling well. By the time he could tear himself away, Azula had been sent out again to brief the new governor that will be sent to Ba Sing Se.

He wasn't avoiding her on purpose.

"ZUKO! What right do you have doing this to me?!" Azula stormed into his room. He could feel that she was about ready to explode. Both in temper and temperature.

"What? What did I do?" he turned and held his hands up.

Azula was so angry, she was shaking. She waved a crumpled scroll in his face. "Did you know? Did you know about THIS?"

Zuko carefully straightened the scroll and unrolled it. He scanned the page and frowned. "No, I didn't. Teo was assigned to a regiment? Did he... ask to be?"

"NO! And even if he had, I wouldn't have let him! It's too dangerous for him without me to protect him. He's not a... a common soldier! I can't believe he would do this to me," Azula's rant had taken all the steam out of her. She sat down hard on Zuko's bed.

"He won't be on the front lines. Look, here it says he's been dispatched with the Engineers' Corps. He'll be stuck in a camp repairing tanks. You said he was good at that, right?" Zuko sat beside his younger sister, trying to sound comforting. He hadn't ever spent time with the Mechanist's son, so he tried to rely on rumors. And those rumors were that he was insane. Anyone that willingly jumped out of a war balloon must be on the cactus juice.

"I... I guess..." she said quietly.

Zuko took a risk and put his arm around his sister's shoulders. "Is there anything I can do?" he asked quietly. He hadn't seen Azula this upset since they were children. Not since their mother left.

"Come to Ember Island with me?" Azula jumped up from the bed, standing in front of him. "It'll just be like old times! I just have to run the new recruits through drills and we can leave right after!"

It was the only thing that his sister had honestly asked of him. The Fire Prince smiled. "Sure. Are Mai and Ty Lee coming? We could see 'Love Amongst the Dragons' again."

"Oh no. If I had my way, I'd burn that theatre to the ground!" She shook her fist, but both siblings erupted in laughter.

"Yaaaaaaaaahhhooooooooooooo!"

Not much could be heard after that, since the resulting explosion of the mountainside deafened those that gathered to watch. After the initial dust cloud settled, the crew searched the open field for their target.

There.

Rei was the first to reach the spot. He had volunteered this time and was ready with the usual kit. "You're a crazy one, kid."

Teo was covered in dirt and dust as he lay on his stomach at the landing site. "That's what they tell me."

The older man held out a water skin first.

"Is that what you were hoping for?" the young man asked between taking a drink and pouring the rest of the water over his head.

"Yeah, that's what we wanted. I know it ain't glamorous, but all this new stuff has to be built and stored. Somebody has to clear the land to make room. And not everyone has access to a damn earthbender to do it," Rei took the empty skin back and then held out his hands.

The young man unhooked the glider from his harness and handed it off, then struggled to his feet. "Yeah. Besides, people gotta work, right?" Teo was handed the glider again and had expertly folded it up, then used it to hobble to the temporary base.

"Exactly. There's more than enough regular people out there. Anyways, I got something for ya. From a friend of mine," Rei dropped his voice as they headed into the camp.

"Okay. Well, drop it by my tent and I'll get to it later," Teo said, heading towards the river to wash up.

Once he got back to his tent, Teo found the box Rei had left. Inside were several small items. Nails, screws, cogs, springs, a block of wax, fuses, twine, candle wicks, coins, and a girl's doll.

He made himself comfortable on his mat and set to work. His task had been simple: Build an explosive out of common objects. Let them get planted at the side of the road so that they would surprise an enemy passing by.

Teo didn't ask who they were for. He didn't want to know. Especially not while he carefully took the stuffing out of the doll to make room for the nails. His hands shook as he worked, causing him to stop and retrieve the small glass vial from the hidden pocket in his bag.

He lay back against his gear and looked at the small vent hole in the ceiling of his tent. He couldn't help think about Azula.

As soon as he reached camp, he'd sent a letter, telling her how he'd been requested to join this group of engineers that heard about his work. How he'd been told to pack his bag in the middle of the night. He'd only barely been able to tell his Father goodbye. And Azula had been away with her mentors at the time.

It was a temporary posting though. The demolition here wouldn't take long. Then, they'd told him, he could go home. It was only a couple of months. He closed his eyes as he felt his whole body relax. The effect of the opium had kicked in. A few minutes more and he could get back to work.

Once he was done, he would write Azula again.

She was probably too busy being near her father and brother to write back.

He just needed to finish this doll. Then he could go home and tell her himself.

Just... one... more...

Teo stitched the doll shut and pulled the yellow dress down over the ugly stitches. It looked passable, he supposed.

He carefully placed the doll in the box and set it aside. He should sleep. Just for a few minutes.

As soon as he closed his eyes, the shouting outside his tent startled him awake.

"On the orders of the Fire Lord, the traitor will be executed!"

His tent flap opened and Teo was pulled from slumber, staring up at the faces of five of the Royal Guard.

~ The chapters keep on coming. I hope you are enjoying the story so far. ~