Author's Note

Thank you to the user who pointed out that chapter 34 led to Southern Raiders again. I appreciate that. It's fixed and leads to the rest of the chapter. Thank you for reading so far and I hope you enjoy the finale!

Katara leads Aapa while I sit in the back. Its supposed to be a peaceful ride, but I can't stop thinking about Aang. Obviously, he'll show up; he can't ditch last minute. But, what'll happen when he does show up? Can he really defeat my father? He's had rushed lessons, and he hasn't even redirected lightning before either, so how could he do it now? Aang said that the Air Nomads are pacifists. He doesn't even eat meat. How is he going to stop my father?

"Don't worry, Zuko," Katara's reassuring voice said, breaking my thoughts. "We can take Azula."

"I'm not worried about Azula," I replied. "I'm worried about Aang. What if he doesn't have the guts to take down my father? What if he…looses?"

"He won't lose," Katara said calmly. "He'll win. He has to."

I nodded. Yeah, Katara's right but, Aang is the nicest person I've ever met. How can a kid that nice, and young as he is, take out my father? What if Father wins? Then we'll have no home to return to. Then they'll be nothing left. "Don't worry, Zuko," Katara said, still looking at me. "Aang can take him. He's the Avatar. He can always find a way."

"Katara, what if…what if one of us…"

"Zuko, stop. It's okay. We're all here for you. I'll be here for you." Katara's voice was calming. She let go of the reigns, leaving Aapa to fly by himself, and sat next to me. She put a hand on my shoulder. "Zuko. We're all here to help Aang. What is it you're so worried about?"

I paused. My head was turning over with lots of different ways to beat Azula but none of them ended well. "Katara, Azula is a skilled fighter. She had the ability to Firebend since…well, birth. She is the most powerful Firebender I have ever met, and seen for that matter, and she beats everyone she fights." I paused. Katara continued to look at me. "I, on the other hand, have not always been connected to Firebending. I am not as skilled as my sister in Firebending; she could easily take me down. What if…one of us gets hurt?"

"We'll be fine. Trust me," Katara said, putting her hand on my shoulder. "I have the ability to heal someone if they get hurt-"

"But what if it's you, Katara?" I asked, interrupting her. "What if she hurts you? You can't protect yourself from her lightning with your water! You can't hold of her fire forever! She'll keep the water low since Aang can use it too. She won't fight easy, Katara! She might hurt you and…I can never forgive myself if she does!"

Katara's comforting look faded. "Is this what this is all about?" she asked. She smiled again. "Don't worry. As long as we work together, and stay calm, we can take her on. She can't stop us both." I smiled at her, this time, I had more confidence. Katara's right. We can take her on together. As long as we have trust in another, and Aang, we can finish this.

We pulled up to the Royal Palace, where Azula is kneeling on the steps in the plaza. A Fire Sage readies a crown but stops when he sees us. Aapa roared and Azula turns around to see us. He landed and Katara and I hopped off. "Sorry, but you aren't becoming the Fire Lord today," I said.

"You're hilarious, Zuzu," Azula laughed.

"You're going down, "Katara said, next to me.

"I am going to become Fire Lord."

Azula smiled at me. Something seems a bit off about her. Her hair is a mess and she seems a little more…mad. The Fire Sage tried to continue to crown my sister but she stopped him. "You want to be Fire Lord so bad?" she asked. "Well, fine. We'll fight for it. Just you and me, brother. We'll have an Agni Kai." She sounded serious. She must mean it. "You're on," I replied.

"What are you doing?" Katara asked. "She knows she can't take us both! She's separating us!"

"I know," I replied. Its best this way. She won't get hurt if I face Azula alone. "But, even you admitted to your uncle that you needed help facing her!" Katara tried again.

"I know. But…there's something off about her. She's slipping. Plus, this way, no one else gets hurt."

Katara gave me a worried glance before she nodded. "Be careful," she remarked before she stepped to the end of the plaza. Azula and I glance at each other before we turn around. I kneel down. If it has to be this way, so be it. This way, no one gets hurt. I'll just block off all of her fire until she wears herself out. Then I can finish her off. Azula won't be fighting right either. She's slipping.

I stood and turned back around to face Azula. "I'm sorry it has to end this way, brother," Azula said sarcastically. I readied my stance. "No. You're not."

Azula stars the Agni Kai with a stream of blue fire. I jump up and pull my hands down, destroying her fire. She sends a wall of fire at me, so I counter with another, both walls colliding and vanishing.

Azula is fighting differently this time. Usually, she's the one with the defensive approach while I use offensive. She switched her styles, leaving me on the defensive. Some of her fire misses, causing buildings to burn down in blue flames. Every now and then, I glance at Katara, out of the corner of my eye. Thankfully, she's never been hit and I hope to keep it that way. If she gets hurt…

I create a powerful fire punch and send it Azula's way. She stopped attacking enough for me to attack. However, she blocks that. So I create a fire ball and fuse it with another. She jumped out of the way and my fire blasted the building behind where she was standing. She looks back as she lands. Then she looks at me, a scared, but mad, look in her eyes. She's lost it. Azula has slipped. There's no turning back now.

She jumped backwards and sent a trail of blue fire behind her as she ran in circles around me. I failed a punch at her. I paused. Aang uses his feet a lot in his bending. It's not a common practice in Firebending but that doesn't mean I shouldn't try. I crouch down and spin a wave of fire around me, causing it to actually hit Azula. She flew backwards. The fire diminished.

Now, her hair is completely undone, except for a little of the bun she had earlier. Azula isn't acting like herself. Something happened to her. I've lost my sister. She's not even using her lightning. I can at least try. She has to still be in there. At least a little bit.

"No lightning today?" I asked. "What's wrong? Are you afraid that I'll redirect it?" I quickly entered a new stance, this one helps with lightning redirection.

"I'll show you lightning!" Azula cried. I have to keep calm. Uncle said the only way it works is with breath control and by staying calm. If I'm not calm, I can lose the energy and could most likely die. I open my eyes again to see Azula's stance is off. She seems kind of limp, which is extremely dangerous.

She pulls her arm back, generating lightning at her fingertips. She thrust her arm forward, except, not at me. I quickly turn my head to where she shot the lightning to see…Katara! "No!"

I jump in front of the lightning. I try to gather the lightning in my fingertips but I fail. Instead, it enters my body. I managed to redirect it anyway, away from Katara and outside of me.

I hit the floor. My chest is throbbing. This must be what Uncle means by…disastrous consequences. "Zuko!" Katara yells, faintly.