The morning after Luna and Ty Lee had their Girl's Day began like the last week had for Ron: he woke up at an hour that previously he would have balked at, helped Luna prepare breakfast for the group, then helped Mai with Tom-Tom until midday, when he would go to the healer Nelia to work as an apprentice of sorts to glean as much information on the Dai Li as he could until dusk, when he would then return to the flat.

At least, it would have gone like that had Iroh not spoken up. "You know," he began, "It would be a good idea if you maintained the ruse that you and Mai are Tom-Tom's parents."

Now, Iroh, being Iroh, timed his comment so that both Mai and Ron were in the middle of drinking their morning tea. While they both tried to recover their lungs, Azula quietly smiled, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. Thankfully for her, only Iroh seemed to notice as both Ty Lee and Luna were more amused by Ron and Mai's antics, and Tom-Tom was blissfully unaware of anything going on. Tom-Tom was on Mai's mind, however. "And what about Tom-Tom?" she asked between coughs.

Iroh smirked, "It would not be the first time that I've taken care of a toddler," he remarked before sending a significant look towards Azula. "Besides, the future tends to have many surprises, so practice would be good for you, Princess Azula."

A faint blush was the only clue Iroh had that Azula heard him. Ron, on the other hand, posed his own question: "And where would we even go?" he asked. "There are not that many restaurants open when I get back from Master Nelia's."

Iroh grinned, "Near Firelight Fountain there is. It's called the Badgermmole Mound, impossible to miss." he replied. "You'd blend right in as a couple getting away for a night."

Somehow, Ron suspected that there was another reason that Iroh had seemingly pre-planned this, but he had no objections. Neither did Mai, for that matter. Which is why, after a relatively busy day at the clinic, he and Mai left Tom-Tom in the hands of Iroh and Azula and took off in the direction of Firelight Fountain and the Badgermole Mound. Neither of them quite knew how far to take the ruse, but, independently of each other, they both decided to go only as far as the other would normally allow them.

They eventually arrived and were quickly seated. Soon, they were waiting for their food, but as they quickly realized, silence on a date was just as quickly banished as it was obtained. "Thank you for helping me with Tom-Tom," Mai began. "I am sure that there was some reluctance to take a toddler along on our journey, but I worry about what would have happened had we left him."

For a moment, Ron didn't say anything. He had been the one to bring those concerns up, but at the same time, he had also been the one to step up and help take care of Tom-Tom. He did eventually speak though, "He has been so good. Compared to other members of our group, he's the one I worry about the least."

Mai actually smiled at that. "He does take after me more than our parents in that regard," she murmured.

Ron would have responded, but their food arrived at that moment, and any conversation that started after that was always about benign topics. They even engaged in some light flirting, though, if they were both being honest with themselves, they both needed to work on it.

After they had eaten, they sat at the Firelight Fountain for a while. Both of them were enjoying the comfortable quiet where conversation was sparse, and neither felt the need to speak more than was needed. That was, until a trio of Dai Li came into the square, clearly drunk, leading them to quickly hide behind the fountain. "What do you think they're doing?" Mai whispered to Ron.

Ron was about to state the obvious, but one of the Dai Li began ranting. Loudly. "I still don't think holding that Bison is a good idea. I mean, just look at Fong! And he only threatened the Avatar's girl!"

Ron and Mai looked at each other with horrified expressions. They too had heard about General Fong, though from Azula's intelligence reports, and the results had been devastating. The idea of the Wraith of the Avatar being brought to Ba Sing Se sent shivers down their spines. One of the other Dai Li spoke up though, also loudly; clearly this group got loud when drunk. "I don't see the problem, so long as he doesn't get into the facility beneath Lake Laogai, there won't be any problems."

"Speaking of," the other remarked, "We need to be getting back. We don't want the Grand Secretariat to take one out of our hides.

They grumbled but began walking off. Silently, Ron and Mai stalked them, an understanding between the two of them that this was important enough to act quickly. Thankfully, these Dai Li were drunk enough that they never spotted the pair of shadows they had obtained. Both Ron and Mai were well-versed in the arts of stealth. So well-versed that they managed to slip into the facility behind their quarry. Ron pulled out his wand and whispered, "Directio Appa," causing a light shimmering strand to shoot out from it. "He's close," he muttered.

Mai raised an eyebrow. "Limited range?" she queried.

Ron nodded, "A kilometre at most. The trick will be getting him, and then us, out of here," he quietly replied.

Mai hummed. "One will solve the other. Let's move quickly."

Ron nodded, and silently they crept through the corridors of the Dai Li's base of operations. Every so often, Ron would recast his spell until it finally led them to a locked door. Mai turned to him, question clear on her face. "Alohomora," he muttered, causing a click to be heard and the door to open as easily as could be.

Quietly, they entered the room. It was large, almost as large as the quarry Harry had flown around in the First Task, Ron mused. There was a hole in the roof, and at the centre of it was Appa, chains around his legs tied to boulders in the wall. At first, the Bison reared up aggressively, but he quickly calmed down once he saw who it was. "Easy, big guy," Ron quietly murmured, raising a hand to pat Appa's nose. "Aang and the others are here in Ba Sing Se. I don't know where, but I get the feeling you'll be able to find him."

Appa huffed in what Ron assumed was an affirmative. A quick spell later and the chains around Appa's legs dissolved into rust, and not a moment too soon, as loud thumping could be heard outside the room. "Up and away?" Mai queried.

Ron nodded. "I don't have a better plan," he replied before looking up, "Don't mind us, big guy, but you don't have stirrups."

Mai joined him beside Appa as the Bison laid down so they wouldn't have far to go. "Well, you first. I'm wearing a dress, after all."

Ron hummed and started up, "Not to worry, my eyes are always front."

Mai waited a few seconds, until Ron was about halfway up, before she spoke up and began her own ascent. "Mine aren't," she replied with a grin.

Ron actually paused his ascent and looked down at her in surprise, "What? I'm a young woman." she remarked on seeing his expression, "We're allowed to fantasise too, you know."

Ron just shook his head clear of the many new distracting thoughts. However, one did stay with him as he finished his ascent: "Maybe this ruse isn't much of a ruse after all," he muttered.

Much to his relief, Mai didn't hear him. Or didn't react if she had. Considering the girl grew up around Court, the latter was decidedly more probable. The door flew off its hinges, and a group of Dai Li rushed in. "Up and Away, Appa!" Ron shouted, grasping a hold of Mai with one hand and holding on tight to a clump of Appa's fur in the other.

Appa, thankfully, needed no further prompting and shot out of the hole in the roof. If they had to guess, the Dai Li in question were the same ones they had tailed because all of the boulders that they presumably launched to stop them never made it anywhere near them, stopping completely after escaping the room into the cool night. Once they had been in the air for a bit, Mai leaned forward so she could speak to him over the rush of air, "Where'd you learn to handle large animals like that?" she asked.

Ron was suddenly very glad that he had things to focus on to distract his mind from the fact that a girl was pressed up against him, "One of my brothers works with large creatures that are often tempermental." he replied before readjusting his grip on Appa, "You pick up a thing or two around him."

Mai hummed, but any reply was cut off when Appa suddenly descended just inside the Lower Ring. Sliding down, Ron patted his nose. "Can you find Aang and the others on your own?" he asked.

Appa grunted before taking off again. Silence reigned for a moment before Mai spoke up, "I'll take that as a yes," she remarked. Then she turned to him, "Well, we're not far off from the flat, shall we?"

Ron hummed and offered her his arm, which she took. They walked in relative silence until they finally returned to the flat. Only Iroh remained awake, sitting at the table looking over some papers. "Ah, you're back," he murmured, by way of greeting. "Did you have fun?" he asked, looking incredibly smug with himself.

Mai smirked and answered for the both of them, "Ron takes me on the best dates." she replied, pulling Ron away, leaving Iroh chuckling to himself. When they reached the door to the room that Mai shared with Ty Lee, Luna and Azula, she turned to him with a smile on her face, "The next time we get some privacy, I'll show you just how much I enjoyed tonight." she whispered before kissing his cheek and heading in.

Ron stood there for a few minutes, dumbfounded, before heading to his own bed. His thought on the bison suddenly felt more accurate than ever before.

They both would have pleasant dreams that night.

Long Feng scowled at the battered form of Harry, it was honestly annoying just how resilient he was. Adding on to that, the recent break-in and loss of the Avatar's Bison led to a massive headache building behind his eyes. "Your continued defiance does you naught but harm. If you just give me what I want, I can end this right now."

Harry snorted, "Please, I know that as soon as I give you what you want, you'll just kill me." he retorted, "Besides, you call this torture? I just call this a Tuesday."

Long Feng growled before huffing off, leaving Harry with one of the Dai Li. Much to his surprise, this one had something resembling a heart as he cleaned the cuts. "I am sorry about this," the agent said, "But Long Feng has protected Ba Sing Se for longer than most people in the city have been alive. We all owe him our loyalty."

Harry hummed, not paying attention to the stinging of the disinfectant. "I hold no grudges against the grunts." he mused before thinking aloud, "Her Highness is searching for me, therefore it would be logical to assume the General is too." he murmured, not seeing the face of abject horror on the man's face, "I wonder if Ba Sing Se will be renamed afterwards? The saying is most apt."

"What saying?" the man asked, unable to keep the dread out of his voice.

Harry, for his part, cocked his head to the side, "One of the oldest: Demons run when a Good Man goes to War."

Azula wandered in the Mindspace, still without Harry. Ever since his capture, she had tried to link with him, either during the day or at night as she slept, unsuccessfully. "My son is nothing if not consistent," the ethereal voice of Lily said.

Turning to face the woman, Azula frowned, "I wish, for once in his life, that he would make things easy on those who love him," she replied.

Lily sadly smiled, "If only." she agreed before conjuring a table to sit at, "But it was something he shared with his father: his will to shoulder burdens without letting anyone assist him. Not even I can see him at this moment."

Azula looked down, looking far older than she was. "Long Feng had better hope that Harry is just being dramatic. Because if so much as a single hair is harmed…"

Lily interrupted, "You would be able to manifest my powers if you trained." she said, causing Azula to pause, "Something that might be a good idea anyway for when you, inevitably, have to face the Fire Lord."

Azula sighed, "Once I get Harry back, I'm not so sure that we wouldn't just find a small corner of the world and wait for the War to end."

Lily frowned. "If there's one thing I know from watching over my son for so many years, he cannot sit and wait."

Azula shut her eyes. "I know."