The Fire Princess Returns

It would be a day long remembered, a day long mourned. It started as a bright day beneath a single thick spread of white clouds.

Kyoshi Island had only been attacked once during the entire Hundred Year War. This was in no small part due to the diligence of the Kyoshi Warriors, who protected its shores with almost xenophobic intensity. It wasn't until the Avatar returned that the Fire Nation brought its destructive ways to the island, and even that brief skirmish left much of the main fishing village burning. If not for the help of the Avatar himself, much could have been lost. One thing was known to all the residents of Kyoshi Island about that day, though- their Warriors tried their best, and had all fallen before they allowed damage to come to their home.

As such, on one specific day in the era when strife in the former Fire Nation colonies had replaced the old world war, it was with no small amount of fear that various residents of Kyoshi Island noticed a thick column of black smoke rising up from the section of the island where the Kyoshi Warriors had their dojo and living huts.

Where a strange man had carried a bucket of sand earlier that day.

Someone in town rang the Danger Gong, and pre-selected responders dropped what they were doing and tried to find a way to help.

All but one, that is.

Azula waited just beside the front door. The Danger Gong was sounding in the distance, and frantic footsteps could be heard within the small hut. She tensed, leaned forward, and steadied her breathing. As soon as the door burst open, Azula tackled the emerging Ty Lee and tumbled with her back inside. They struck the floor together, Ty Lee on bottom, and the breath whooshed out of her lungs. While the acrobat gasped for air, Azula calmly stood up and pushed her hair out of her face.

It was then that she remembered what color her hair was. The locks that hung over her eyes were the natural reddish-brown that she had only ever seen on herself. On Suki. Azula- herself- had black hair, didn't she? Like Zuko?

Like Ozai?

In her confusion, she didn't even notice when Ty Lee rose to stare at her. "Um, Suki, are you okay? What's with the rough tackle-hug? Mai always told me that it was important to 'arrest my momentum' before colliding with people I want to hug."

Azula ignored her. She was Azula, wasn't she? She could Firebend, and the flames she produced were blue. She had those memories of Firebending... well, snatches of memories, but she didn't have any of the Suki memories she was supposed to. She had to be Azula. None of it made sense, otherwise.

Like it made sense now?

"Um, Suki?" Ty Lee leaned forward to stare eye-to-eye. "You okay? The gong is ringing, we're supposed to be reporting for duty. The other girls might be waiting for us. And what happened to your facepaint? It's like it's been scraped off."

Azula blinked. She couldn't fall apart. She had to be perfect. There was no other way out of this nightmare. Growling, she grabbed a few strands of her own hair and ripped them out of her scalp. Holding them up in Ty Lee's face, she spat, "Explain this!"

Ty Lee frowned. "Ouchie?"

Gripping the hairs even tighter, Azula willed them to burst into flames. The blue glow tinted Ty Lee's painted face as the acrobat's expression turned to shock. "Explain," the Fire Princess said as the strands turned to ash in her palm, "why I have Suki's hair, but can Firebend. And you will address me as Azula, traitor."

Ty Lee backed away slowly, a hand rising to her mouth. She shook her head and dropped her gaze to the floor. "I'm so sorry. So very very very sorry. So sorry..."

Azula waited her out. The gong continued to sound outside.

Ty Lee swallowed, and once more met Azula's gaze. "Listen, Suki, I know you're probably mad-"

"THAT IS NOT MY NAME!" The scream left Azula's throat raw, but the pain helped her focus. She couldn't lose her temper, not if she wanted answers. "Don't call me by that lie! It's all a lie! I don't even know what's real anymore, it's your fault, and I won't let you confuse me anymore! Tell me what's going on, and tell me why I have Suki's hair!"

Ty Lee flinched at the scream, and again when Azula referred to 'Suki' in the third person. "Okay... okay... Azula. I'll help you. I only ever wanted to help you. It's okay." Her breath hitched, as though she was sobbing, but she didn't stop. "Azula, that's your hair. It was the same color as your mother's. Lady Ursa."

Azula narrowed her eyes. That couldn't be true, could it? Ursa had black hair in the portraits Azula had seen. The Fire Princess felt a cold dread settle in her stomach when she realized she couldn't actually remember what her mother looked like. There were no images of the woman in her mind, just like there were none of Suki's life and family. She found herself sinking into one of the chairs at Ty Lee's little kitchenette table. "What was done to me? I don't know what's real anymore," she mumbled.

Ty Lee moved toward her, and Azula found herself enveloped in a hug. "It's okay. Everything is going to be okay."

How dare she?

An elbow to Ty Lee's face was effective enough in making the acrobat jump back again. Seeing Ty Lee quickly cup her nose, something inside of Azula twisted. "I- I-"

Ty Lee shook her head. "It's okay," she said. Taking her hands away, she continued in a soothing tone, "There's no blood. It's okay, Azula. It's okay."

The Fire Princess nodded. She had to stay strong, if she was going to figure out what was going on. "Tell me what I want to know."

"What do you want to know?" Ty Lee quirked her head to the side like a curious puppy. "Is it okay if I put some tea on? I think we both need some calming influence. I'll make some chamomile!"

Azula sighed. "Fine. Do it quickly." Ty Lee didn't dawdle in filling the teapot and putting it over a flame. When she left it to boil, she turned back to Azula. "Now," the Fire Princess said, "tell me about the past."

"Um?"

"Who is Azula?"

Ty Lee thought about it. "The daughter of Ozai and Ursa. Princess of the Fire Nation. My friend.Fire Lord for a day. Sick girl who needed help. A beautiful woman. A Firebender. Uh, that's all I can think of?"

Azula nodded. So far, so good. "Do I know Suki?"

"Um?"

Azula resisted the urge to sigh. "Let me put it in more concrete terms. The last time that I- the last memory of Suki's that I have is seeing Azula up close at the Boiling Rock. There was a fight on the gondola. I- you and Suki fought each other to a draw. Then, she escaped with Zuko, Sokka, and his father Hakoda. We went to the Western Air Temple. Or did it not happen that way?" She stood up and stared down at Ty Lee. "Did you defeat Suki? Did she fall to her death into the Boiling Lake? Is that why you tried to replace her with me? And how did you color my hair?"

The teapot whistled. Ty Lee hurried over, added the leaves, and poured two cups. She carried both to the table and slid one to Azula. Only after she had taken a sip from her own cup did she finally say, "Your hair was always this color. Azula, I don't know how to tell you this, but... those memories aren't real. There was no prisoner named Suki at the Boiling Rock. Sokka and Zuko just freed Hakoda. When they escaped, I fought Sokka, and didn't win." A flicker of a smile reached her face. "We fought to a draw, like you said. Zuko fought... Azula. You. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Azula kept her breathing steady. No, it couldn't have happened that way. Some of her memories were muddled, some didn't exist where they should, but she remembered that. She remembered being on top of the gondola, the way it shifted in the wind and lurched when the line was being cut. She remembered her bare arms crossing against Ty Lee's, remembered Ty Lee fleeing when the other gondola was brought over to bring the acrobat and... Azula... back to the prison before the line was fully cut. It was all so clear.

What had happened after that? She tried to remember, and recalled the facts smoothly enough. Mai had saved them in order to save Zuko, had unlocked the controls so that the gondola was free to take them away. It was easy to conjure pictures to go with it, the story was so familiar...

But the truly vivid memories were those that came with the recollection of Mai's face, of the cool fury in the knife-thrower's expression. Of seeing the girl standing at the opposite end of the landing platform with a posture that was at once proper and defiant.

Her teeth ground together, and she could feel the allure of the blue flames.

"Drink your tea," Ty Lee said softly. "Please, we need to deal with this calmly. It's okay. I promise. It's okay."

Azula's hand went automatically for her cup and raised it to her lips. She stared at the warm liquid, at the bits of leaves wafting on the currents at the bottom. Her stomach went hollow as her rapidly moving mind began putting pieces of the puzzle together.

She put the cup down. "Switch with me."

Ty Lee blinked. "What?"

"It's a simple request," Azula said. "Give me your cup. You drink from mine."

"S- Azula..."

Azula raised her hands and summoned an inferno in each of her palms. "Are you trying to help me sleep, hm? Like you have been for the last week? Why don't you tell me why I haven't had any dreams lately, Ty. What have you been putting in my tea? Not that I can trust anything you say, apparently. Traitor."

Ty Lee flinched but didn't let go of her own cup. "Please, you're confused, I-"

"Drink it," Azula said softly. She raised a flaming hand towards Ty Lee's face. "Or I'll you'll learn first-hand what I did to my father. Oh, didn't you know he was on the island? I'm surprised, considering how much news you keep track of from all over the world. But I'm sure you'll hear all about it once you wake up."

Ty Lee looked up at her, but Azula made sure that she showed no weakness, no sympathy. It wasn't hard; all she had to do was think of the lies and manipulations that the supposedly simple and caring acrobat had perpetrated over the last week. The last month.

The last year and a half.

A lifetime?

Trembling, Ty Lee picked up the cup and began drinking. Only her throat moved as she chugged it down, but the shadows cast by Azula's flaming fists danced across the acrobat's painted face. At last she finished and put the cup back down. Azula noticed that Ty Lee's eyes were already glassy. Perhaps the concoction wasn't meant to downed so fast.

Oh well.

Azula let the fires die, and Ty Lee slumped off her chair. "Goodnight, my friend," the Fire Princess said. "And goodbye."

The Kyoshi Warriors got the fire put out at Suki's hut. They were dressed inconsistently, some in full uniform and makeup while some others were still in their civilian clothes. A handful wore their silk green dresses but hadn't bothered with the facepaint. When the Danger Gong rang, they didn't stop for anything.

They had saved most of Suki's home, but they were still trying to identify the man whose body had been dragged out. A healer from the island was trying to see if he was still alive. With nothing else immediate to occupy their attention, the Kyoshi Warriors did a headcount. Everyone was there, even the off-duty Warriors, except for two. Suki and Ty Lee.

This was worrisome.

Vice-Commander Chijin looked around at the other girls. "Painted and armed Warriors will come with me to check on Ty Lee. Everyone else, suit up for trouble and guard the fishing village and docks."

Above, the fields of clouds swirled and darkened, readying for a storm.

Azula had managed to finish most of her preparations. She had used Ty Lee's makeup kit to dress her own face up again, on the assumption that an anonymous member of the Warriors would be harder to track than someone who- for all she knew- was known to the entire island as the sick experiment from the Fire Nation. She had also raided the hut for supplies, tossing food and clothing into a sack. Like most of the Kyoshi Warriors, Ty Lee didn't keep her katana at home, but she had several sets of war fans, so Azula appropriated two of them, one to arm herself with and another as a spare.

She was just tying up the sack when there came a knock at the door.

Azula scowled. They couldn't have waited another five minutes?

"Ty Lee?" a voice called through the door. "Are you home? Did you hear the Danger Gong?"

Azula had to get away. These people were all in on it. She could never discover the truth if she let them recapture her. They'd take her back to... wherever, and steal her memories again! Maybe this time they'd just kill her. But how could she escape? They would have the hut surrounded, if they were following the procedures that Azula herself had taught them as Suki. She had sparred with those girls before, and knew she couldn't defeat them all, especially not if they came at her together. It was impossible!

But Azula had done the impossible before.

All she had to do was be herself.

For a second, she almost gave up. It was hard not to think of Azula- of herself- as a monster. Kyoshi Island still called to her, still felt like home. Was she willing to let a monster loose on this place?

Another knock. "Ty Lee? We're kicking the door in if you don't answer."

Azula took a deep breath and let her mind loose.

First of all, she had to escape. The hut was surrounded. Enemy numbers were too great to fight. That meant deception and misdirection. She couldn't assume that they would trust 'Suki,' so she had to conceal her identity from them. Then, if she were going to escape the island, she would need to sow confusion, so that an organized manhunt and blockade couldn't be established. To do that, she needed to exploit fears, psychological weaknesses, cultural blind spots, and humanity's good old-fashioned tendency to panic in the face of the unthinkable.

Azula's mind supplied all the details as she grabbed for a kitchen knife, crouched over the unconscious Ty Lee, and began sawing the girl's hair off.

"Okay, push it in," Vice-Commander Chijin said to the other Kyoshi Warriors outside Ty Lee's hut. They all drew back a few steps, and readied themselves to ram the entrance-

Then a painted Kyoshi Warrior with her long brown hair hanging haphazardly over her face and shoulders burst through the door in a rush. She coughed into her arm, seeming in the grip of some kind of fit, but between her hacking, she managed to hoarsely bite out, "Invaders on the island! Hurry, we have to save Suki! They thought they knocked me out, but they've still got her!"

Confused minds wheeled, but Ty Lee- for surely it must be her- dashed off, still holding back coughs with a hand over her face, and waved for the others to follow her. In the face of disaster, the chain of command broke down. They all rushed off after her, leaving Ty Lee's presumably empty hut behind.

Amateurs. If Azula were staying on as their commander, the Kyoshi Warriors would be subjected to plenty of emergency drills after this! Imagine, just running off after a sketchily-identified figure without any kind of plan or information. Disgraceful!

Well, it was playing to her advantage now. She ran as fast as she could, heading back away from town and its outlying homes, towards the forest. This time of year, the foliage was thick and green, and not entirely by coincidence it was remarkably similar in color to the uniforms of the Kyoshi Warriors themselves. It was a big help when they patrolled the island's shores, looking for smugglers or spies landing at the uncivilized portions of the island. They could watch invisibly, and strike from nowhere. Azula plunged into the tree line, and the others followed without considering that such an effect could work just as well in reverse. The Fire Princess led them along for a while, putting as much distance between her and the rest of her entourage as possible, then stopped suddenly and eased her way behind an especially thick bush.

The other Warriors continued running.

Azula counted, making sure they all passed her, before she emerged from her hiding place and untied Ty Lee's hair from around her head. She kept her own auburn hair tied up, lest its color distract her, and began moving quickly back the way she came. The first phase was complete, now it was time to escalate. She made a buzzard-beeline for the most revered spot on Kyoshi Island- the Avatar's Shrine. Nestled in the thick of the Kyoshi Warriors' dojo and cluster of huts, it contained relics and ancient art of Kyoshi herself.

Azula slowed as she approached it. The converted temple was sacred to everyone who lived on the island, and the Kyoshi Warriors especially. They had built their homes and training centers around it in order to protect it, and they were encouraged to visit it regularly and try to feel Kyoshi's spirit within. The island's clerics claimed that the boots, weapons, and kimono on display still had an ethereal connection to the dead Avatar. Such a little, fragile shack, but well-loved.

Azula had vowed allegiance to this place, as Suki.

Steeling herself, she took a wide-legged stance on the dirt path, and punched a fist towards the shrine. A blue fireball flew out and sailed straight through the structure's entrance. It exploded within.

That should draw some attention, when the smoke was seen. For now, she had other targets, other distractions. The Warriors' dojo was worth hitting, as long as she was nearby, then the ancient statue of Kyoshi right in the middle of town was ideally positioned to be an effective attention-splitter, if she could find a vantage point that would let her burn it from afar.

Above, the storm clouds darkened.

Vice-Commander Chijin was reluctantly forced to admit to herself that she had been completely fooled. The 'Ty Lee' who led them on this merry chase had for all intents and purposes evaporated into the forest, and now they had no idea where either Suki or Ty Lee were. Or if they were even alive. She slowed and leaned against a larger tree that would serve as a handy landmark back for the other Warriors, and barked out a, "Halt!"

One or two of the lower-ranking Warriors who wore identical headdresses approached out of the foliage and stopped at Chijin's tree. "Stop the others here," she told them. "I'm going on a little scouting mission." Chijin put her fans away, and grabbed the lowest branch of the tree. She hauled herself up, digging her boots into the bark, and began scaling the trunk. Her family had originally been loggers who lived at the crest of the hill near the island's center, so she knew her heights and tree-climbing.

At the top of the tree, Chijin paused and looked around. There was no activity in the forest either ahead or back the way they had come, but something on the horizon caught her eyes. Several somethings.

Columns of smoke were rising from the Kyoshi Warriors' section of the island. Their mystery arsonist was still at large.

"Unagi breath," she hissed.

Azula had left the burning dojo behind and was running down the path back towards the docks when she encountered a cluster of four Kyoshi Warriors rushing up to greet her from the direction of the town. So, not all of the girls on active duty had been at Ty Lee's place, and even if she still had the long hair she stole from the acrobat, there was no way she could make that trick work in this context. She could try to bluff them as Suki, but there was no telling how much they knew about her. For all she was aware, everyone on the island had realized that she remembered herself when they saw the various fires. These Warriors could be intending to attack her regardless of what she said.

Well, let it never be said that Azula was too proud to steal someone else's smart strategies. Good thing she had picked up a katana before she lit the dojo on fire. Palming the handle, she aimed herself at the lead Kyoshi Warrior.

The girl- it looked like Hanuke, a junior member who had taken well to Ty Lee's chi-blocking lessons- slowed her run as Azula approached her. "Suki, is that y-"

As soon as she was close enough, Azula skidded to stop and drew her katana from the scabbard at her side. She didn't completely unsheathe the blade, but she didn't need to; she angled the sword so that her drawing motion smashed the handle right into Hanuke's mouth. The Warrior went down hard, and only then did Azula draw her katana fully out of its scabbard.

The other Warriors following her stopped their running abruptly, coming to a rest far short of Azula's position. As one, they drew their own swords.

Distant thunder sounded in the clouds above.

Azula dashed at the nearest girl- Reppai. Azula had been training the girl to be more effective with the katana, but Reppai's swings were still weak because she had trouble remembering to keep her arms straight. Azula swung her own sword upward with all her strength, and when Reppai tried to block it incorrectly, the force tore the weapon out of her hands. Before Reppai could recover, Azula brought her weapon back down again, bashing the butt of the handle on the girl's head. Reppai dropped senseless.

At this point, Kosokoso came at Azula from behind, trying to use her extra height to stab her own sword between the Fire Princess' shoulder blades, but Azula heard the girl's boots crunching on the dirt path- Kyoshi Warriors stealth tactics didn't adapt well to ongoing combat- and sidestepped. Azula curled her leg and threw it out into a sideways kick that batted the katana out of the way, then followed up with a kick right into the open space between Kosokoso's front and back chestplates. Azula thought she heard a rib snapping, and the other girl cried out in pain. A final kick knocked Kosokoso off her feet.

The last Warrior circled Azula warily. Ah, Kowagaru. She was a veteran warrior who had joined and trained even before the Avatar's return, and she had no obvious weaknesses. Her sword work was an inspiration to all, and she could transition quickly back to using her war fans, or even fighting unarmed. She could give even Suki a run for her money in a sword duel.

The Fire Princess took one hand off her katana, and used the other to swing her weapon in a sideways cut at her opponent. Kowagaru used her own sword to deflect, catching Azula's blade and redirecting it to the side instead of trying to stop it outright. Azula let the other girl have her way, and let go of the katana even as she exhaled strongly, brought her other hand inward, and punched it straight into Kowagaru's chest armor. Normally, such an attack would do nothing more than break Azula's knuckles, but in this instance, the blow was softened by a concussive blast of fire that cushioned Azula's fist in warm air.

The shaped explosion also had the bonus effect of sending Kowagaru flying like she had been hit by a charging komodo rhino.

Four down, none getting back up. Leaving her sword, Azula took off in a run again. She had more fires to set.

Vice-Commander Chijin had just arrived back at Kyoshi's Shrine, now an orange blaze that was more fire than wood, when she saw a blue fireball fly across the distant sky and land smack in the middle of the fishing village. Something exploded where it had fallen, and another column of black smoke wafted into the air to the join the dark gray storm clouds above.

She was a grown woman, a strong person, and a mighty warrior, but just then Chijin really felt like she needed to cry.

Instead, she took a deep breath and turned to the other girls she had led out of the forest. "All of you, form a bucket brigade to the unagi's beach and do what you can to save the shrine. I'm going into town to organize defense and rescue. Sohai, you're in charge. May the Spirits aid our efforts."

Azula didn't remember enough Firebending moves to snipe Kyoshi's statue from outside of town. However, it was easy enough to figure out some kind of haphazard long-distance bombardment method. All she had to do was extend her arms to either side of her, take a low bow stance, and then spring up into a spin. Fire accumulated around her spiraling fists as she rose into the air, and swung off into the distance when she reached the leap's apex. The only problem was its lack of accuracy. Azula was slowly finding the range, getting the fireballs closer and closer to Kyoshi's statue, but the only things she were hitting were homes and shops in the middle of town.

She wasn't ignorant of the damage she was causing, but she knew that Azula wouldn't care.

Only Azula could save her now.

Crouching low again with one leg straight and one folded tightly, Azula launched herself forward at a low flying angle. She felt heat get pulled out of the increasingly humid air and form fire around her hands, then bunch up into a little heart of destruction before snapping off and away.

This one hit Kyoshi right in the center of the chest. The rest of the wooden statue quickly caught fire.

There, done. Time for her exit strategy. As Azula peeled off her armor and silk dress, thunder rolled down from swirling skies.

Vice-Commander Chijin found Oyagi, Elder of the fishing village, instructing a team of citizens in setting up a hand-powered water pump that they could use to dowse the flames. Around them, the village smoked and burned in pockets, but without quick action, the entire town could soon be engulfed. Chijin felt another wave of unbearable heat smack her face as a nearby building caught the blaze. "Elder!"

Oyagi turned to her. "Ah, Chijin. Have you found Suki?"

"What? No, I've been trying to stop all the fires! The other warriors are trying to save the shrine, but..."

He shook his head sadly. "Your spirit is commendable. Your decision was probably wrong, but I don't think even I could have seen Kyoshi's Shrine ablaze and not tried to do something."

She tried to swallow, but in the heat, it took several attempts. Finally, she said, "What do you want me to do?"

Oyagi looked back as the other villagers began working the pump, and a spout of seawater flew towards one of the burning buildings. "One more person won't make a difference here, but we might yet save the rest of the world. Vice-Commander Chijin, I want you to dispatch a letter to Fire Lord Zuko on my authority. Tell him that we woke up to our worst nightmare."

It took a while to sneak her way through the town's outskirts. Most of the denizens had gone to fight the fire, but there were still a few around trying to save themselves, or taking even worse advantage of the situation to loot and destroy. Azula no longer looked like a Kyoshi Warrior in one of Ty Lee's pink field-dresses, but she didn't know how recognizable her face was to these people, so she stayed cautious.

Finally, she reached the docks, and found where so many people had been running to.

Crowds were gathered in front of each of the moored boats. Some were able to surge forward unimpeded to jump aboard the ship and use them to escape what they probably saw as a besieged deathtrap of an island. Other crowds were kept back by guardians, shouting that they wouldn't allow their boats to be stolen by cowards.

Azula recognized one such man. He wielded a cutlass, and his bushy gray hair and eyebrows only added to the deranged look on his face as he screamed at the crowds. "Back off! Back! You try to take my boat, then you'll be a pirate! And I'll deal with you like a pirate!"

Azula pushed through the crowd, using a heated hand to shove people out of the way as needed. She broke through the front of the cluster, but stopped well short of the man's waving cutlass. "Captain Toru!"

He blinked and followed the sound of her voice, but when he saw her, he only gave her a hard stare. "Back!"

"It's me, Commander Suki of the Kyoshi Warriors! Remember, from the tavern raid the other night? You told me rumors about a... fugitive."

His wild eyebrows shot up, and he moved his cutlass into a more defensive position as he wave her forward with his other hand. "Come on, I'll keep these pirates back from you!"

She dashed out of the crowd and stepped lightly around him. Others tried to follow her, but another wild slice of the cutlass stopped them short. Azula herself paused just behind Toru and grabbed his shoulders. "I need you to set sail! I'm on official Kyoshi Warrior business, and I need your boat so that I can catch the person who did all this. You'll be reimbursed for your assistance, later."

That brought him up short for a moment, but then he schooled his face and nodded. "Any way I can help the Kyoshi Warriors, I'm happy to oblige. Get on the ship." Half turning towards his boat, he shouted, "'hoy, lads! We're launching! Set the sail and straighten her!" Deckhands scrambled over the ship as Azula ran aboard. Toru paused only to swipe at the crowd again, then he chopped his cutlass down on the mooring rope and jumped from the dock to the deck. The crowd surged forward again, but the winds caught the sails and pushed the ship into the bay. Some people fell off the docks into the water, but most simply dispersed after a moment to find another means of escape to try to steal.

Azula leaned on the boat's railing and watched as Kyoshi Island shrunk away. The fires were still smoking over at the Kyoshi Warriors' little settlement, and more of the town itself was burning than Azula had last seen. The clouds above were dark, and flashed occasionally with lightning, but no rain came. The damage could well be catastrophic, and there was no doubt that people were dying on Kyoshi Island today.

Azula still had it, it seemed. The Fire Princess was well and truly back.

A single pair of tears fell from her eyes and landed in the bay. "What kind of a monster am I?"

The roll of thunder was her only answer.

TO BE CONTINUED