"Prince Iroh, we're here."

The Dragon of the West didn't know if he was ready to have the conversation he knew was about to occur; he was not Ursa's husband, merely her brother-in-law, and even then, he didn't know her that well. Of course, he had been on friendly terms with her, and knew enough about her prior life to feel a throbbing guilt in his heart over what his father had done to her; Fire Lord Azulon had ruined her life, and stolen her youth from her, and though he was his father, Iroh could admit the despicable nature of his actions, and the reason he had done what he had was part of the reason he had come all the way to Hira'a.

He had to meet somebody, somebody who was important not just because of their relation to his niece and nephew, but because of their relationship to his grandfather. Fire Lord Sozin had been dead for more than seventy years, but his shadow cast long over their family, and the family who lived in the house that sat before him. Iroh, despite never knowing the man, felt guilt for the very actions he had committed, knowing how heinous they had been; he knew of the great things he wanted to achieve, and he believed in that dream, but that didn't mean he was infallible- no man or woman ever was.

He turned to face the Imperial Firebender who was standing by his carriage, and smiled at him, "Thank you for coming all this way with me. I'm sure the security wasn't necessary, but it is appreciated." he simply acknowledged the man and his comrades for the work they did in protecting him.

"It is no worry, your highness. We live to serve and protect you." he bowed to him, the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation letting out a little chuckle.

"Oh, I know. Now, I would like to go inside alone, if that is alright."

"We wouldn't dare to refuse your command, your highness, even if it goes against our duties." another of his guards spoke up, assuring him of their loyalty.

"Good." he smiled, before gesturing to the house, "I don't think I'll be here for that long." he admitted, before pacing on over toward the doors of the house; he could see a few bystanders on the street, who looked rather confused to see a Prince of the Fire Nation walking through their quaint, isolated village in the eastern islands.

When he reached the door, he knocked on it, and waited patiently for somebody to refuse him. As Prince, he could legally enter the house, as was his right, but he didn't want to be impolite. He did have to wait for a short while, but quickly enough, the door was unlocked, and then opened; a young woman, probably only a few years older than his son, looked at him with a rather perplexed face.

"U-uh... your highness." she bowed to him, obviously surprised to see him at the door, "I didn't know you were coming here."

"Well, I didn't announce myself. I thought that my father and brother... mightn't approve of this visit." he admitted, before glancing past her shoulder, "Is she here?"

"Lady Rina is in her greenhouse." she clarified, before making a slight grimace, "She has not taken to the news well... Magistrate Jinzuk only passed a few months ago- it was a heart-attack." she explained, the Prince sighing, shaking his head; he didn't want to bring any more unnecessary grief to her, but he knew that he ought to see her, before she too passed.

"That is sad news." he grimaced, feeling sorry for the old woman who had lost both her husband and only child in the span of a few months, "Can I see her?"

"I will tell her that you want to see her." the woman nodded, before she tensed up, "Did you know Lady Ursa well?"

"She was a good woman." he simply acknowledged what he thought of her, "Fate has been unkind to this family."

"I know." she nodded, before she winced, looking away from his gaze, "Ikem too."

"Oh." his eyes widened, remembering that name from his conversations with Ursa; her first love, who had nearly gotten himself killed by Ozai's guards, "Did something happen to that boy?"

"He went into the forest three years ago, and he's never come back." she explained, her expression, near the point of shedding tears, suggesting she knew him personally, though Iroh couldn't discern how; she then sighed, bowing to him once more as she dropped her head down, almost in shame, "I apologise, I'll go inform Lady Rina at once."

The Dragon of the West stood at the door, and placed his hands behind his back while the girl went to go inform Rina; he assumed she was a servant, or perhaps a family friend who was tending to the old woman given her circumstances. Without any other family members, she would obviously find it a challenge to care for herself. He glanced around the street, and saw some children who were looking at him intently, obviously wondering what he was doing there. He made a small smile and waved to them, and they waved back, surprisingly enough; perhaps his stout figure and warm smile really did help people get along with him, despite his royal status.

He heard the girl's voice once more, "She's waiting for you." she told him, and Iroh turned around, "Come in." she added, and with that, he did, pacing down through the hallway at the front of the building, making his way to toward the rear, where he assumed the access to Rina's greenhouse would be; that was something else he'd heard about from Ursa, who mentioned it as being a very calming place for her to spend her time.

He made his way toward the girl, who gestured to her right; he glanced down the other hallway, noting the slightly dimmed sunlight that was emanating through the glass of the greenhouse; he paced toward it, taking note of the wide variety of plants inside, as well as the old woman who sat on a cushion, with her legs cross and head turned away from him.

"I had a feeling you might come here." she spoke up, Iroh stepping a little bit closer, reaching his arm out toward her.

"I- I apologise, Lady Rina. My... I can't believe I didn't say anything." he grimaced, realising that by not even going against his father's plans, he'd led the events that had transpired occur; he loved his niece and nephew, but he wished that their very existence hadn't come at such a cost to the lives and happiness of others.

"It is not your fault, General Iroh." she turned her gaze toward him, eyeing up and down his body, "I've heard you look like him." she noted, addressing the individual who was to blame for her woes; he had been told that in his youth, he was a spitting image of the portraits of Fire Lord Sozin, back when he was just Crown Prince.

"I've been told the same." he admitted, "I am sorry for that, too." he added, addressing the thing that Rina had probably had felt anguish over her entire life, "That was... unnecessary, and cruel." he simply stated it how it was; Avatar Roku had not deserved to die, and Fire Lord Sozin's actions were so heinous that the man himself regretted them greatly, despite the fact of what he did twelve years later.

"I cannot remember my father." she admitted, turning her eyes toward her plants, "But my mother told me stories of him. That he was tall, handsome, and a kind, generous man; that he served our world with all his heart. I wish I could have met him, properly."

He stepped closer to her, "I wish things could have gone differently." he admitted, before he gestured down beside her, "Do you mind if I sit?"

"No, go ahead." she allowed him, and with that, he sat himself down beside her; she sighed, glancing up towards the transparent glass windows that sat above her, "I have two grandchildren I've never met. Jinzuk never met them either." she admitted, tears dropping down her cheeks, before she turned to face him, "What are they like?"

"They are both cute." he admitted with a little chuckle, "Zuko's a playful little boy, and he's got a kind heart. He feeds the little turtle ducks in the palace gardens with my son; that's what he used to do with her."

"That's nice." she admitted, before blinking a few times, "And what of my granddaughter?"

"Azula is just a baby, but I can tell she'll grow strong. She doesn't cry that much, and she's... inquisitive. More than most babies I've ever seen." he acknowledged, Rina's smile showing him that those thoughts of her grandchildren, even if only for a moment, outweighed her grief for her daughter's untimely passing, "She looks like her."

"Does she?" she looked at him, a little surprised, "I'd think the royal blood would run through and through." she admitted, making Iroh chuckle.

"I think they're as much her as they are... him." he acknowledged, thinking about how his brother was as a child; he just hoped that they would turn out better than him- more than that, he knew he had to make sure they didn't become like their father.

"I guess your father succeeded... didn't he?"

"The blood of an Avatar runs through the royal family." he acknowledged what had been achieved, before pursing his lips upward, feeling hopeful on the futures of Ursa's two children, "I believe it might do more good for our country than he might have presumed."

"My daughter was... kind... good. She was a lot of things, the kind I think a Prince or Princess should be." she acknowledged, before turning her eyes away looking toward one of her plants, "There's something I think you might want."

"Me?" he raised a brow, Rina reaching behind the plant, drawing out something he only recognised from court portraits; if things had gone differently, it would have been sitting on his head his entire life, but his grandfather, in an act of friendship and kindness, had gifted it to his friend, Avatar Roku- the Crown Prince's headpiece.

She offered it toward him, and Iroh reached to touch it, knowing where it had come from- it was more his by right than anything visions of a great conquest told him, "I mean... it ought to be on my head, all things considered, but I..." he trailed off, turning away, filled with shame once more over what Sozin had done, "I can't take it, not after what he did."

"No, I know that." she shook her head, agreeing with him, "It belongs to them." she clarified her intentions, "They are both the giver and receiver. They were born to wear it."

"They're..." he began, before raising his chin up, "They are worthy, and it is their right." he agreed with her.

She placed the headpiece in his hands, and pushed his fingers toward it, making him grasp it, "Will you please... I... I don't have much time left in this world." she asked of him, pleadingly, the anguish in her voice all too noticeable, "I will see my daughter and husband... and my father and mother soon enough, but I need- I need you to give them this."

"I will, Lady Rina." he assured her, "You have my word." he stressed, placing a hand on his chest to emphasise the point, before his eyes widened, realising there was something she could do, something perhaps even more powerful than the thing he had placed in his hands, "Would you like to write a letter? You could... you could tell them what you want them to know."

Her eyes brightened, and she pursed her lips upward, "I would like that, your highness." she admitted, before taking a long, deep breath, "Tell Jizhen to fetch me a scroll." she explained her desire, the Prince rising to his feet.

"Of course." he admitted, before turning his gaze back toward where the girl had been standing, only to realise she wasn't there anymore; he glanced down into his hands, looking at the headpiece, and wondering when, and how he'd show it to his niece and nephew, and explain the story of how it came to his hands.

Perhaps he'd tell them the story he'd learned through his own rebellious teenage years, sneaking into places he really shouldn't have; he knew at the time, however, that learning about the fates of Fire Lord Sozin and Avatar Roku was important for him, and now it was vital for his niece and nephew.

She spoke up once more, "General Iroh."

"Yes?" he turned back to face her, the old woman's bittersweet smile becoming a fearful grimace.

"You'll... end the war, won't you?"

"I will make sure there is no need to fight. No more..." he began, before clenching his left hand into a fist; even just trying to imagine what happened to the Air Nomads sickened him, "I won't let all of this be in vain."

"That's all I can ask for."


The afternoon sun shone down upon the valley, and gave Azula a good view to eat her lunch with; it was calm and serene, unlike the rather stuffy interior of the tank-train, which was presently sitting off to the side, turned off while the workers inside and her guards enjoyed a little break. They had been travelling for a good day since she found her uncle, and now, all she knew was that she would not stop until they reached Omashu. If her uncle was so intent on reaching the city, then they'd get there at haste, but she knew that the military presence was large, and hiding her uncle from his own soldiers would be a challenge

His location couldn't be given away while the threat of the assassins was still present; she didn't know how well connected her father's plot was, but she had a feeling that many were on his side, enough so that any information about her uncle's location that was given to the military would find its way to the very men who were intent on killing him. She knew she shouldn't be worrying about the threats that awaited them, and just got into eating her meal, which was already sitting in front of her; a nice rice dish, though it didn't come with much else, given it was hard to store a lot of food onboard the tank-train, not to mention only one cook had come with them.

"My niece, are you not hungry?" Iroh asked her, the Princess shaking her head.

"I'm fine, Uncle." she tried to dissuade his concerns; she picked up the chopsticks in front of her, and began to chew down on her meal.

"I know you're worried, Azula." he acknowledged her fears, "You have every right to be. This is not the kind of situation a fourteen year old girl should be in."

"Well, Uncle, I am." she addressed the fact of the matter, "I can't do much about it but prepare for the worst case scenario. You know what that is, don't you?"

"Yes, I do." he nodded, "We're in serious danger, but I'm sure that as long as we can keep my presence on your tank train under wraps, your father's assassins won't know where to find me."

"Perhaps they already know you're with me. I can't exactly hide with this massive thing." she gestured her right hand toward the tank-train.

"That's... well, you're right." he sighed, raising his teacup up to his lips before taking a sip, "The army will know you're coming, and there'll be checkpoints everyone around the sieging forces."

"We'll have to hide you well, Uncle. Once we're close enough, I assume there might be some way for us to access the city on foot."

"There is." he nodded, "Last time I was there, King Bumi explained to me that the sewers can be accessed to enter the city, without having to pass through security." he explained, the Princess raising a brow.

"Uncle, just how many times have you met this man?"

"Oh, well, I met him in the field of battle once. He's a terrifying opponent, despite his age, and this was... well, almost thirty years ago. I've seen him a few times since, and my membership of the organisation meant that I could come to his city after... Ba Sing Se."

"Your journey around the Earth Kingdom." she reminded herself of what he had done after the loss of his son, "So, I assume it was more worthwhile than you made out, Uncle."

"I'm not wholly truthful when it comes to my private endeavours, my niece." he admitted with a little chuckle.

Azula pursed her lips upward, considering that her uncle's lies, though slightly unnerving to hear about, were also reassuring; the more he kept to himself, the more they could use to protect themselves from Ozai's machinations. She took another bite from her meal, and licked her lips, wondering if the meal was really suitable for the Fire Lord who sat across from her.

"Uncle, is the meal to your liking?"

"Why, it is." he beamed at her, "Though, I could use more of it." he acknowledged, the Princess snapping her finger, which indicated for the servant, who had been standing waiting to serve them to approach; she bowed toward them both, and held a professional smile on her face.

"Your majesty, your highness, what is it that you need?"

"Was there any leftovers from the meal we're eating? My uncle is in need of some more."

"The cook did have some left over." she confirmed, turning to face the Fire Lord, "How much would you like, your majesty?"

"Another full bowl, please." he requested, before turning his eyes down, "I just have to finish it off."

"I see." she glanced down to his near empty bowl, which he quickly scooped the contents up from into his mouth, before handing her the bowl.

"Send my compliments to the cook. He certainly does know how to make a meal."

"You appointed him to my ship yourself." Azula raised a brow, making him chuckle.

"The Royal Palace does have the best cooks in the country." he agreed with her, before picking up his tea cup, "Would you like some tea, Niece?"

She blankly looked his way, and wondered if she even had the right to refuse; he was the Fire Lord after all, and his word was law.

"I will have some." she accepted his offer, and with that, he flipped over the ceramic cup that had been sitting on the table in front of them, and poured some tea into it.

"It's quite the view, isn't it?"

"Calming." she made a one word observation of the vista, which she did approve of, if only for the fact that looking out into it made her forget what she was doing; if only for a moment, she could just appreciate something that was completely unrelated to her efforts and duties as a Princess of the Fire Nation.

She took another bite from her meal, and wondered what might be going on with the boy who she had intended to capture, and his friends; she could only hope they hadn't gotten themselves into the kind of trouble that she'd have to get them out of. She was in no way intending to act as the saviour to the Avatar and his friends, and really only wanted two things from them; their respect and trust, which would be vital, given what she understood might come from her father's desires for the throne. Even if she was interested in learning more about the Air Nomads from Aang, let alone the world of a hundred years prior, that was merely a lingering interest from her journey, and not relevant in the slightest to the threats that faced both her and her nation. What was more relevant to her was making sure she and her uncle could remain safe from the dangers posing them, and find a way to safely convene with and earn the trust of the Avatar.

She picked up the cup of tea, before narrowing her eyes, considering what might follow their meeting with her uncle's associates, "Uncle, do you have a solution for the assassin problem?"

"Are you offering one?" he raised a brow, the Princess shrugging her shoulders.

"Well, I know you'll need some protection. We'll both need it, and the Imperial Firebenders are useful, but Uncle, if we had to leave the Royal Procession behind, in case Father began to openly pursue you, then we'd need to-" she began, only to be cut off by the servant approaching the table with her uncle's bowl refilled.

"Your-" she spoke up, before realising she'd cut the Princess off mid sentence; she bowed her head down in shame, "My greatest apologies, your highness, I didn't mean to interrupt your conversation with his majesty."

"It was more of an exposition, actually." Iroh joked, before he gestured down in front of himself, where the servant girl placed the bowl, "Thank you. That's all I'll be needing for now."

The Princess was tossing up whether she ought to chide the servant, but decided against it, knowing that getting antsy with her would only leave a bad impression on her uncle; she was meant to be the cool and calm one, unlike her elder brother, who despite being good at lying and hiding his emotions, tended to be far more prone to outbursts than her. The events of the past week suggested perhaps the lack of challenges she had faced, relative to her skills and mental fortitude, might have stopped her from having those same outbursts that plagued her brother. Mastering firebending truly wasn't much of a deal compared to comprehending and accepting the idea that her father was a traitor and would-be kinslayer.

"As I was saying." she spoke up, declaring her intention to speak once more, her uncle nodding as he began to chew down on his meal, "We will need to find a way to protect ourselves with as little loose weight as possible. As useful as the Imperial Firebenders are, they're more than ready to stop you from being killed in the field of battle against the enemies of our nation, but less so against other highly skilled firebenders."

"Well, how do we stop these highly skilled firebenders, Princess Azula?" he asked her, his hands raised up to his chin, clearly curious to hear what she had to say.

"I know somebody." she pursed her lips upward, making him chuckle.

"Oh, you just want to have a social life, admit it." he prodded her, the Princess rolling her eyes.

"I will admit I have more than one reason to seek Ty Lee's assistance, but that is the most important of them: she has incomparable skills when it comes to chi-blocking, and that will help us deal with every possible threat, which understandably, consists mostly of benders, specifically firebenders."

"That's true, my niece." he agreed with her, "So, we're going to recruit your friend?" he asked her in clarification, "Or are we going to woo her with free food and tea?"

"I don't think circus-performers are the richest people in the world." she admitted, before chuckling, "Bribing her with essentials might actually work, Uncle. Plus, she'll be able to enjoy my presence once again." she proudly declared, making him nod, though he seemed rather skeptical of her confidence in wooing her friend, "What, you don't think she likes me?"

"I'm sure she does, but I don't think she likes you because of your social skills." he acknowledged bluntly, Azula slamming her hands onto the table in front of her, nearly spilling her cup of tea.

"Excuse me?! I have social skills, Uncle." she retorted, her uncle's amused grin making her way to throw a fireball into his face.

"Well, you do." he conceded, "But you ought to work on them. If you're going to try and make the Avatar our ally, you'll need to be able to talk to people without scaring them with the threat of death and violence."

"I didn't threaten him with-" she began to argue, before grimacing, "Urgh, I really shouldn't have mentioned that bit about Father."

"Oh, did you tell him what Ozai might like to do with him?" he asked, the Princess turning her eyes away.

"Just shut up, Uncle." she snarled at him, before taking a sip from her cup of tea, "I did." she added quietly, making him shrug his shoulders.

"Honesty is not always the best when it comes to diplomacy."

"What, so now you like my lying?" she asked, the Fire Lord scrunching his lips up.

"The question is when and when not to lie, not whether it is good or not." he proposed, the Princess nodding, thinking that was a fair idea.

"Hmph, that's right." she agreed with him, "So, should I paint a great, flower-filled image in the head of the Avatar of our great nation, or be as blunt as a hammer?"

"Somewhere in between." he gave his answer, indirect as ever, "We aren't always right, and if you acknowledge the flaws in our nation, then you might be able to see how they might be fixed, and how the Avatar might help us with that."

"I can't see what he can do that you can't." she argued, crossing her arms, before she winced, "Other than turn into an inconceivably powerful being channelling the power of a thousand past lives."

"I cannot do that, unfortunately." he conceded, "Being the Avatar is a great burden, but also a privilege. They have the power to change the world, and it is best if we participate in that change rather than railing against it. That will only bring more misery, to both the world and our nation in particular."

"What can be done?" she asked him, "We can't surrender to the other nations, Uncle. We have to wield the power we have and use it... somehow. We've taken the world, and now we're placed to finish Sozin's dream." she argued, "Isn't that what we should be doing?"

"Prosperity is a good thing, but not when it comes at the cost of harming the livelihoods of others." he simply told her, referring to the goal the Fire Nation had always had in their war against the other nations; bringing prosperity to the world, which wasn't just their own nation- Sozin imagined a future where there was only one nation, and they would be prosperous, technically-advanced and united in aspiration for a world that was ruled by a benevolent and gracious monarch, the Fire Lord.

"How can we change it?" she asked, before grimacing slightly; she couldn't trust the world in the hands of a bunch of incompetent idealists.

She needed somebody who knew what the world was like, and how to deal with all its complexities, and that person was sitting right in front of her, "You're... Uncle, you're the person who ought to rule the world. You are the only one capable of doing it."

"The world doesn't need to be ruled by one man, Azula." he argued, making her narrow her eyes at him.

"What... so you're just going to give up our victory, for peace?"

"I-" he began, before turning away, "I know you don't wish to see our struggles turned to nothing, my niece. I know... I know that better than most people." he acknowledged, referring to the event that haunted them both; she didn't want to think too much about her cousin, knowing it would only make her angry.

She turned her eyes away, imagining what her cousin might think of what she had done with herself; she didn't know if he'd be happy or disappointed in her choice to go off on a journey by herself. He was always one to go on about becoming smarter and stronger, though he always said it in a way that seemed so much nicer than her father. Improving oneself didn't mean one had to become a soulless killer; she knew she had feelings, and she had grief, and acting like she didn't would just be as stupid as giving into those feelings. She had to wield them, like her father told her to wield her anger; he was right, but just not in the way that he thought he was.

"I can't let him down." she admitted, before wincing, realising what her uncle really wanted, "And you can't, either."

"That's right, Azula." he smiled at her, before gesturing down to the food in front of her, "You better eat your food. It's going to get cold."

"And the tea." she observed, before shaking her head, "How absent-minded of me." she chided herself, before taking the chopsticks back into her hands.

She was unsure if the food would distract her that much from her thoughts, but she knew that she could console herself with the fact that instead of being dead, her uncle was sitting right in front of her. She had spent those days on the ship panicking, and when she faced the assassins, she feared the worst; now with somebody she could trust by her side, she knew that she could achieve her dreams- she just had the added bonus of Iroh being the exact person she needed to impress. The throne might be many years away, but being Crown Princess was within her reach, and that could break her straight lips into a small, grateful smile.


With two scrolls fastened to her belt, Mai knew what she was going to do as she made sight of the post office; the street-lamps lining each side were lighting the otherwise dark streets, as the sun had set around an hour prior, and a cool breeze was running across her, blowing her dark robes around. She had exchanged her usual clothes, which to her luck, were basically undamaged from all the fighting she had experienced since she left her home a few days prior, with drab, simple robes, similar in colour, but of a much simpler design. They reminded her of the traditional commoners clothes she had seen in her school books, which mostly consisted of long dresses or baggy pants, along with tunics that were usually covered with long robes that kept out the intense tropical sun.

Her own outfit consisted of an outer robe with a dark-coloured tunic underneath, with some pants that were tightened by bands on her calves, which were similar to the bands of fabric that covered her forearms, making the clothes underneath her robes a lot less flowy and loose, which would come in hand if she had to fight some guards and run away over the rooftops, though during the daytime they'd likely be too constricting to wear, given the sweltering heat of the sun in the Fire Nation, not to even mention the humidity. She had a hood over her head, and kept her eyes down, trying not to look at the pedestrians that passed her by. She had a bag slung over her shoulder, which served no purpose other than to make her look like she was going to the market, which was just a little further down the street past the post office.

She kept her eyes focused on the few guards who she could see walking down the street; they were just on patrol, and she was sure they weren't the kind of people to be looking for her. After all, Ozai's plot involved hidden assassins and conspirators within the military, not the run-of-the-mill guards she'd encounter in the capital. She didn't, however, want to catch their attention, and continued to pace past them, and they didn't even think to address her, just quietly talking amongst themselves. Mai had thought herself lucky, until she was proven wrong when a voice addressed her, sounding unusually concerned.

"Girl, what are you doing walking out by yourself?" she heard one of them address her, and she turned her head around just enough so she could lock eyes with the guard who addressed her.

"Shouldn't I be able to do that if you do your jobs correctly?" she retorted, making his eyes widen, before he snickered, obviously realising she was correct in her judgement.

"We are doing our jobs." he assured her, "Just stay on the main streets." he added, "We've been getting reports of thieves and other undesirables running around." he warned, to which she raised her chin up, eyeing the guard and his comrades.

"Well, go find them. There's no point talking to me." she argued, before continuing on her way.

"Good night." one of them waved to her, and she rolled her eyes at the thought of their unnecessary conversation, knowing they couldn't see her.

She considered that perhaps they were trying to flirt with her; she couldn't be sure, but she didn't want to find out, given that she was focused solely on her mission. She knew what was at stake, and turned her eyes to the post office, noting the area where the messenger hawks sat, awaiting to be sent off at a moment's notice. The establishment was closed at that time of night, which was why she had gone when she had; though she could have just gone in and sent her messages publicly, she didn't have enough money to pay for the messages she sought to send, which were to go all the way to the Earth Kingdom. She eyed the front door, and wondered if she could break the lock open with her sai; she glanced back, and realised there were far too many pedestrians about. Even if it was nothing like the middle of the day, they'd clearly see her breaking in, so she needed to go find a place to enter that was out of sight.

Mai continued on past the front door, and noted an alleyway running along by the side of the post office; she glanced down in, just checking if there were any pedestrians, and to her luck, it was empty, at least for that moment. She didn't waste any time, and paced on down in with haste, eyeing up the side of the post office, trying to find any doors or windows she could go through to get inside and reach the messenger hawks. She saw a rear door by the end of the building, and noted that it was completely dark inside from what she could see through the small windows that sat along the exterior wall- none of them were big enough to fit a person, so she immediately chose to try her luck with breaking the lock of the door.

Sparing a moment to eye up and down the alleyway, she noted that she could hear voices down the alley, but couldn't see any people, which made her feel a little bit nervous. She didn't dare show it, and calmly reached into her robes to draw out her sai, and immediately jammed it into the lock. It was clearly well built, and she had to twist and turn the lock to loosen its hold on the door, before she swiftly kicked the door open, snapping the lock in the process. The sound was a little loud, but since she couldn't see anyone in the area, she just hoped nobody had heard it, or at least, not taken much note.

She stepped inside, and closed the door after her, eyeing around the dark room she found herself in. Glancing over to a shelf covered wall, she noted a large number of scrolls, presumably those sent to the post office to recipients who lived in the capital. She ignored them, knowing that she had no reason to go through the personal letters of people. Mai stopped herself, however, and took a moment to consider whether Ozai's assassins might have sent a message to the post office, given that it seemed, from Zuko's explanation about how he'd first learned of the assassination plot, that they were sending messages indirectly via places where there'd be less oversight from the Fire Nation government, who regularly checked messages going in and out of the palace, though she was sure Ozai found a way to send messages without Iroh finding out about them.

She knew that though some potential intelligence lay on the shelves before her, that was not her priority; she couldn't do much with such information given that Zuko no longer had his place in the palace as a Prince. If they could not use the evidence publicly against his father, it would only be useful to inform Azula or Iroh himself, and by the time the intelligence reached either royal, it might be out of date. Mai paced over to another door, pushing it open, and finding herself in what seemed like the foyer of the post office, where a desk sat along with a few cabinets, presumably filing away the personal information of customers so they could be clarified when they came to receive messages. Again, though it might be of use to her, it was not her priority; she continued forward, making her way toward the door that would lead her to the cages that housed the messenger hawks themselves.

Mai opened the door up, and glanced into the open-air cage area, and noted how she could see out onto the street, this was obviously a bit of a danger, so she crouched down and tried to use the birds as cover from potential onlookers. She eyed each of the cages, and found one relatively out of view from the street, and broke it open with a slash from her sai. The bird was a little surprised by her opening the cage, and she reached down into the bag that sat nearby, and pulled out some feed, which consisted of small, cut up and dried pieces of meat; she knew she had to keep the animal calm if she didn't want to alert anyone, so she offered it some of the meat in her palm, and it accepted it, taking a few bites to eat all of it. She then reached behind it, and opened up its letter holder; she drew one of her letters from her belt, and eyed it, remembering it was the one she wanted to send to Azula.

She just hoped that the contents of the letter would be easily understood; she could not directly tell the Princess of what her father had done and planned to do, as there was a reasonable chance of spies being on her ship. The other letter to Ty Lee was a whole lot more blunt, and she hoped that the Princess would understand her desire for her to meet the acrobat and read that other letter, which would give her the information she would need to declare Ozai a traitor beyond reasonable doubt, when the time came for that.

She placed the rolled up letter inside, and then gestured for the bird to climb onto her arm, which it did, with the incentive of getting a little bit more food which she held in her left hand. Once it was on her arm, she gave it the meat and strode over toward the releasing point, which considered of a small wooden thatch and platform, which she opened up, before drawing out a black ribbon she had hidden on her belt, which she tied to the holder, which would indicate the messages intended receiver to be a member of the royal family.

"Go." she told the animal, and it heeded her command, flying out of the hatch and out into the sky above the post office, before it began to soar out across the city; she let out a momentary smile, just glad she could finally tell her friend what was going on, albeit cryptically- she needed to know, of all people.

She immediately turned back around, and eyed the other birds, knowing she would need another to take her message to Ty Lee; the acrobat needed to know what was going on, and she needed to have information that would be of use to their mutual friend. Most importantly, Azula and her could do what she and Zuko couldn't, which was to track down the Fire Lord and ensure his safety. She opened up another cage, and once again reached down to pick up some of the dried meat, offering it to the bird; it made a squawk and she cringed, glancing back to see if anyone was looking her way. She didn't see anybody yet, and sighed with relief, before she gave the bird the meat, which it accepted without any further sounds.

She then reached back and placed her scroll into its holder, before offering her arm up, which the messenger hawk climbed onto, "Don't ruin this." she warned the bird with a cold whisper, despite being sure it couldn't understand her.

She then pulled out another ribbon, which had on it marked the name of the circus Ty Lee was working at; 'Shuzumu's Travelling Circus', and tied it to the bird's holder. Hopefully, the message would find its way to the circus quickly enough, and she wouldn't have to worry about the inevitable cover story for her and Zuko's disappearance reaching her. If it did, she was afraid that nothing would stop the acrobat from rightly sending a message to the nearest Fire Nation army exposing Ozai's treachery and forcing the Fire Lord and his brother into an open conflict. She took the messenger hawk over to the hatch, and placed it down, ready to send it off as soon as she opened the wooden hatch once more.

"You there!" she heard the sound of a voice calling in her direction, and she saw a man dressed in an outfit that indicated he was some kind of government worker, "What are you doing in there?!" he accusingly asked her from the other side of the bird cages, and she immediately moved to open the hatch.

"Go, fly!" she demanded of the bird, which squawked once more as she pushed it, and set off into the air; she turned around and saw that the man was opening the front door of the post office.

She knew she had little time, and immediately dashed back inside, before she ran back into the back room, closing the door behind her. Before the man could reach her, she pushed a small wooden cabinet in front of the door, jamming it shut; she knew he'd be able to walk around, but it would give her enough time to get out. She moved to the rear door which she had entered the post office through, and glanced out to hear the man shouting out for the guards. She pulled the hood she had over her head tighter, and just hoped that he hadn't gotten a good look at her face. If a bounty was made for her, she was sure that either her father or Ozai would realise quickly enough her identity and location, and people would come for her and Zuko.

She didn't want to get her mother and father involved, knowing that their closeness to Ozai might bring danger to their lives, either as hostages, or simply for the Prince to tie up loose ends to prevent them from coming to realise the reality of the situation. There was no holiday to Ember Island, there was only Ozai's machinations and his injured, beaten son, hiding in a warehouse as he feared for his life. She ran as fast as her feet could take her, and didn't stop to check for guards; she needed to get away from the post office, and back to the warehouse without the threat of being followed. She would probably tire herself out to avoid anyone from even getting a hint of their hideout, but that was the small price she would be willing to pay to avoid Zuko being found. He probably couldn't fight off some poorly trained guards in his condition, and that was less an insult toward his abilities but rather an indication of how close Ozai's assassins had gotten to killing him.

"Down the alleyway!" she heard the man's voice in the distance, and the sounds of footsteps coming after her; she immediately moved to turn to the left, knowing that the best place for her to go would be the night market- the pure number of people would allow her to hide in plain sight.

Mai slowed her pace down as she began to approach more people, and flicked her hood off, trying to blend in with the other market-goers; the light of paper lanterns made the street glow an orange hue, and though she could still hear the footsteps after her, it was quickly drowned out by the sound of people conversing amongst themselves. She glanced back, and saw six guards pacing down the street and recognised that they were the same ones she had talked to earlier; perhaps she could convince them by just acting like she had been at the market the whole time. She turned to face a stall that was selling meat skewers, and she stepped closer, deciding to go buy some as a cover.

"Hello, young lady, would you like to get yourself a skewer. Or two, maybe?"

"I want two." she confirmed, "One for myself," she began, drawing out some coins, "and one for my boyfriend. He's come down with a cold, so he couldn't come with me." she made two half-lies; Zuko wasn't really her boyfriend, even if her mother and father thought he was, and he wasn't actually sick, at least not with a cold.

"Oh, that's terrible." the stall owner made a conciliatory pout, before taking the coins into his hands, giving her two skewers in paper bags, "I hope he gets better soon."

"As do I. He needs to get back to work." she admitted; they needed to leave the capital sooner rather than later, and as soon as he was capable, they'd go and try and find work on a ship so they could get themselves to Shu Jing, or at least, somewhere further from the palace than the streets of the capital.

"Have a good night." he raised a hand to her, before gesturing down the street, "You could go to Lady Ganshi's stall. She sells herbs that might help with that cold."

"Oh." her eyes widened, realising that such a herbalist might be able to provide her with the kinds of things that would help Zuko tolerate his pain, and made it easier for them to leave the capital sooner, "Thank you." she made a simple bow of respect, before turning around, noting the guards who were walking past her, obviously looking for her.

"There's always something going on, isn't there?" the stall owner asked her, perhaps rhetorically.

"We live in a dangerous city." she warned him, before she paced after the guards, wanting to make sure she could keep an eye on them as to avoid their path; she would check with Lady Ganshi about her herbs, and with any luck, she'd return to Zuko without having any worries.

"They must be fast. How can we find somebody here?" she heard one of the guards lament, and she took a bite out of her meat skewer, before pursing her lips upward; she mightn't be as good as Zuko when it came to sneaking about, but she had a feeling she could brag a little when she came home with a skewer for him and her messages successfully sent.