"No!" I replied. Does he not know what sarcasm is? "This goes against everything the monks taught me," Aang said, standing. "I can't just take out people I don't like!"

"Sure you can!" Sokka said. "You're the Avatar! You're supposed to bring balance to the world. I'm sure the universe will forgive you."

"It's not a joke, Sokka!" Aang yelled. "You guys don't understand what I have to go through!"

"We do understand, Aang. It's just-" Katara tried.

"It's just what, Katara? What is it?" Aang asked.

"We're trying to help!" Katara yelled back.

"Then if you find a way to take out the Fire Lord without taking his life, then I'd love to hear it!" He walked away.

"Aang, don't walk away from this!" Katara said.

"Let him go, Katara," I said, putting my hand on her shoulder. She stopped walking. "He needs time to sort this out by himself." I watched Aang walk off to the beach house. Then, he sat down with Momo.

"Are there any baby pictures of you here, Zuko?" Toph asked, inside the kitchen with me. She handed me a plate and I put it under the water. I glanced at the counter next to me. "Uh...no," I said, kicking the counter from below and knocking the picture over. "Are you sure?" Toph asked.

"Uh, yep! I'm certain!" I replied quickly, scrubbing a dish furiously.

"I'm pretty sure you just knocked one down," she said, glaring at me.

"Oh you mean this-" I dropped it, purposefully, "oops! My bad! I'll just pick that up!" I bent down to pick up the glass from the frame and snatched the picture from the floor and shoved it into my pocket. "Sorry, that was just a little saying my mother put in the kitchen a little while ago, that's all!" I lied, rubbing the back of my head. Toph glared at me. "If you insist," she said, shrugging.

In the morning, Sokka packed up inside of Aapa's saddle. "Okay, that's everything," he said, satisfied.

"No it's not," Toph said behind me. "Where's Aang?"

"Wasn't he with you?" Katara asked.

"No," Toph replied.

Everyone ran to the beach house. "Aang?" I called. "Aang!" Toph, Sokka, and I check the left side of the beach house. I opened a door to see if Aang was inside. Toph came up to me and shrugged. I walked outside to check there. Sokka had already beaten me to it, and was holding Aang's staff. "That's strange, he said. "He left his staff."

"Aang's not in the house either," I said. "Let's check the beach."

We all walked towards the beach. Sokka stopped. "Look, there's his tracks." He followed them to the water. "They end here." Suki stopped next to him and stared off at the water. "So he went for a midnight swim and never came back?" she asked. Aang left. Maybe he didn't want to face his destiny in defeating Father. Maybe he left for some peace and quiet to thin about a new strategy on beating him. Whatever it was, he never came back.

"Maybe he was captured?" Katara suggested.

"By who?" I asked.

"I don't think so," Sokka said. "There isn't sign of a struggle. It just looks like he walked off."

"I bet he ran away again," Toph said.

"Doubtful," Sokka said. "He left his glider and Aapa."

"So what do you think happened to him, oh sleuthy one?" Toph asked, obviously annoyed.

"Isn't it obvious?" Sokka asked. "He magically disappeared before a big mission? He went into the Spirit World!"

"If he was, wouldn't his body still be here?" I asked. I should know since I tried to capture him while he was in the spirit world. "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that part," Sokka said, rubbing his chin.

"Then he has to be somewhere on this island!" Katara said. "Let's split up."

Toph hugged my arm. My cheeks got warm again. No one besides my mother and Uncle have ever been this close. "I'm going with Zuko!" she exclaimed. "What? Everyone else went on a life-changing field trip with him! Now it's my turn!"

Sokka and Aapa took off while Suki and Katara went together. "A life-changing field trip?" I asked. Thankfully, she let go of my arm when they all left. "What's that all about?"

"You went with Aang and he learned Firebending. You went with Sokka and he came back with his dad and Suki and a few others. You went with Katara and she warmed up to you. It's my turn now."

"Uh-huh..." I said. Is that what everyone is calling those trips? 'Life-changing field trips?' Or is it just Toph. "I bet it's hard, to see your father like that," Toph said.

"Like what?"

"Like...a bad guy. He is planning on using the comet to tear down the world as we know it. I bet that's hard."

"A little. Knowing my father doesn't love me is hard and not having a mother who actually does love me is harder. The only person I've ever had closest to a parental figure once Mother left was Uncle."

"I feel the same way about my dad," Toph said, looking down.

"Like what?" I asked again.

"Like, he doesn't love me. My mom too. They expect me to be the perfect little lady that I'm supposed to be just because I'm royalty. Its not fair," she said, throwing her arms into the air. "So I ran away. That's when the badgermoles taught me how to sense my surroundings. I came back, hopping they forgave me and was willing to do better but they didn't. And then I ran away again when I was nine."

"Uh-huh."

"I know I shouldn't complain. They gave me everything I wanted. Everything but their love. It's the one thing I really wanted from them. You know what I mean?" she asked. I stopped walking and sighed. "Look, I know you had a bad childhood, but we really need to focus on finding Aang," I said. I continued walking.

"This is the worst field trip ever!" Toph complained and started walking again. Her childhood sounds like mine. She wanted her parent's love but they didn't give it to her. I only had one parent love but then Mother left and now I don't have any. However, I never ran away from home. Father wouldn't let me. I wish I could go back to those happy days, when my family was happy and they loved each other. Before Mother left. Before any of this.

Except, if that's the way it was...I don't think I would be with Aang. I don't think I would've had the urge, the push forward, to go in the right direction. To go against my Father. To realize this war is wrong. Maybe...I'm living this way for a reason. Maybe the universe sent me this life so I could see the truth in the Fire Nation's power and try to help stop it. Maybe the universe put me on this path so I could help the Avatar learn Firebending. Would he have a teacher if I didn't come to help? Would he be able to stop Father if he can't learn all four elements? Is there a reason the universe set me on this path?

"Any luck?" Toph asked.

"Nope," I replied. "it just seems like he vanished."

"Maybe he did," Toph said, shrugging.

We met Sokka back at the beach house. "Judging by how you guys look, and that there is no Aang, I bet you didn't find him?" Sokka checked."I didn't find him either."

"It's like he just...dissapeared," I said.

"Has anyone noticed that Momo is missing too?" Toph asked.

Sokka turned to Aapa. "Oh no! I knew it was only a matter of time! Aapa ate Momo!" He opened Aapa's mouth. "Sokka, Aapa didn't eat Momo," Katara said.

"That's just what he wants you to think," Sokka said, climbing into Aapa's mouth.

"Get out of the bison's mout, Sokka," I said. "We have a real problem. Aang is missing and the comet is only two days away."

"What should we do, Zuko?" Katara asked.

I stood from the steps I was sitting on. "I don't know!" They wouldn't stop looking at me. "Why are you all staring at me?"

"Well, you are kind of an expert on traking Aang," Katara said.

"Yeah, if anyone's got any experience with hunting Aang, you do," Toph agreed. I pause. The only reason why I could find Aang all this time was because I just so happen to pass by him. Uncle was always with me and I couldn't seem to find him on my own.

I bet someone can help me. Hmm, think, Zuko, think! Everyone is counting on you! That's it! June! She has that shirshu! His sense of smell is better than any animal alive! June could help! Her ardvaarkmole can track down Uncle! He always brought us to these stops where we just so happen to pass by Aang. Uncle is the master tracker, not me! "Everyone on Aapa, we got a bit of a flight ahead of us," I said.

Everyone hopped on without second thoughts. A little while later, Sokka breaks the silence. "Zuko, I don't want to tell you how to do your job but why are we flying towards the Earth Kingdom? There is no way Aang is there."

"Just trust me," I replied. "I know what I'm doing." That shirshu ought to know where Aang is.

We stop in front of the Earth Kingdom tavern. "And the reason you brought us to a shady Earth Kingdom tavern is what?" Katara asked. They followed me inside. I pointed to June, having an arm wrestling match with a muscular man. "For June," I replied.

"Oh yeah, that weird bounty hunter with the giant mole," Sokka said, snapping.

"Mole?" Suki questioned. "Her skin is flawless!"

"She has a giant mole that she rides on," Sokka explained.

"The shirshu," I explained. "It's the only animal who can track Aang's scent from anywhere in the world, it's our best bet."

Some men began fighting June when she won the match. She threw her drink into the air and slammed him onto the table, swiftly catching her drink. "I don't know who this June lady is but I like her!" Toph exclaimed.