A.N. I know, I know two updates in one day. I'm crazy and I clearly don't have a very active social life. But I some had extra time this afternoon and reading all the comments you guys left me about this book just made me so happy, so I decided to be a nice author. Thank you so much for reading this and leaving such lovely comments! It really brightened my day!

Azara smiled warmly at Sokka's reaction, relieved that Hakoda was among the new prisoners. "You go talk to your dad. I have to get Zuko and Suki back into their cells before someone notices." Sokka nodded, wishing Zuko and Suki good luck, before turning back to Azara. "See? Not for nothing," Azara winked, pressing a kiss to his cheek, before following after Zuko and Suki.

With Zuko and Suki back safely in their cells, Azara went about her day blending in with the other guards. She was sure that Sokka was catching up with his dad, and hopefully coming up with a new plan. She didn't want to interrupt their time together. So, she just waited in their usual spot above the yard for Sokka to finally show up.

Leaning against the wall, Azara glanced to her right as she heard footsteps. Spotting Sokka walking over, Azara pushed off the wall and hurried over to him. "There you are! How's your dad? Is he okay?" she rambled as Sokka smiled widely.

"He's fine. And we even came up with a new plan together," Sokka explained, causing Azara to perk up.

"Really? What is it?"

"We're going to take the gondola," Sokka revealed, instantly causing Azara to deflate.

"The gondola?" Azara repeated, staring dumbfounded at her boyfriend. "Are you sure? That's not exactly the most lowkey escape route. Or the easiest to get to."

"I know, but unfortunately it's our only one," Sokka spoke, glancing around in case anyone else was potentially listening in.

"Okay, well, how are we going to get past all of those guards?" Azara asked, glancing up at the gondola tower.

"We'll create a distraction in an hour. That'll give us enough cover to get to the gondola with as few guards in the way as possible," Sokka replied, though Azara was still unsure about the whole plan.

"And what happens when they cut the line, sending us into the boiling lake?" Azara asked, trying to be supportive, but still not wanting to sign up for another suicide mission.

"That's where the hostage comes in."

"The warden won't care. You could take a hundred hostages and he'd still cut the line," Azara pointed out, though Sokka simply smiled at her point.

"Even if he is the hostage?" Sokka suggested, causing Azara's eyes to widen.

"You know, I forgot how crazy your plans always were," she joked, leaning on the wall. "I still don't like it, but I guess we have no other choice."

"That's the spirit," Sokka joked before straightening up, becoming more serious as he placed his hands on her shoulders. "It's going to work. You're not going back to prison of any kind. I promise."

"I trust you," Azara nodded, about to lean in when she spotted two guards walking over. Thinking quickly, she pushed Sokka against the wall, her hand holding his chest in place. "I told you to leave me alone!" she warned, raising a fist.

"What are you—"

"—Let him go," a female guard ordered, causing Azara to release her hold on Sokka, and take a step back as the two guards approached. "You can beat him up later."

"Why later?"

"The warden wants to see him," a male guard spoke up, turning to Sokka, whose eyes widened in shock.

"Why?"

"I don't know, I didn't ask."

"Maybe I could schedule another time with him? How's tomorrow?" Sokka suggested, trying to walk away when his path was blocked by the two guards.

"He wants to see you now."

Azara and Sokka locked eyes for a moment, subtly nodding to each other, before Azara walked off to initiate the plan. Finding Suki and Zuko in their respective cells, Azara quickly explained the plan, before moving on. She didn't want to draw attention to herself. It was bad enough that the warden was suspicious about Sokka.

After about an hour had passed since she had discussed the plan with Sokka, she made her way towards the control room. Spotting the levers to all of the cell doors, Azara smirked. She straightened up, walking over to the guard on duty with confidence in her step.

"Hey, I just got the orders. Let the prisoners out into the yard," Azara told the guard, who turned to her, looking startled.

"But we're in the middle of a lockdown."

"Well, glad to see that you think your word is more important than the warden's. I'm sure he'd love to have a private discussion with you about the dangers of insubordination," Azara threatened, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Wait! Don't tell the warden. I'm just a little confused."

"I know, me too, but what the warden says goes. Between you and me, I think he's a little cranky because one of the prisoners tripped him this morning, so probably best to not push him right now," Azara replied to the guard, hoping to finally convince him.

"Yeah . . . you're right. We're letting them out!"

Azara smirked as the doors opened, letting the prisoners out into the yard. "Well, I'll just be going to my post then." Azara shrugged nonchalantly before walking off. Once she was around the corner, however, she broke out into a run, sprinting straight for the prison yard.

By the time she reached the main yard, a riot had already broken out, causing Azara to sigh. Pulling off her guard helmet, she tossed it to the side before running into the fray. "Hey!" Zuko called, running after her as she fought past a prisoner with a fire blast. "Wait up!"

"What took you so long?" Azara asked as they ran together towards the corner where Sokka, Suki, and Hakoda were already waiting for them.

"Mai's here," Zuko explained as Azara's eyes widened in shock at the news.

"How'd that reunion go?" she asked offhandedly. She ducked a charging prisoner, rolled to her feet, and kept running forward as if nothing had happened.

"As well as it could have after I broke up with her through a note—"

"—You broke up with her using a note!?" Azara snapped, pausing to shoot her brother a glare. "Are you kidding me, Zuko!? I don't care how hot and cold your relationship was, you don't break up with a girl through a—"

"—We can discuss this later!" Zuko huffed as he was grabbed from behind by a guard. Zuko threw the guard off of him, before leading the way over to Sokka, Suki, Chit Sang, and Hakoda.

"Azara! Zuko! Good, we're all here. Now all we need to do is grab the warden and get to the gondolas!" Sokka listed off as they all crouched down by the tower.

"And how do we do that?" Zuko asked. Sokka turned to him, his eyes slightly wide.

"I'm not sure."

Azara and Suki shared unimpressed expressions as Zuko and Sokka began to argue back and forth. When it became apparent that neither boy had thought up any useful suggestions, the two teenage girls turned to each other.

"You got the warden?" Azara questioned, standing up.

"You got the gondola?" Suki returned with the same tone. The two girls shared a smile, before breaking off from the group towards their respective missions.

As Zuko and Sokka continued to argue, Chit Sang cut them off. "Hey, uh, fellas. I think your girlfriends are taking care of it."

While Suki ran over the tops of the rioters' heads, Azara ran towards the gondola tower. Using her rocket propulsion, she boosted herself up to the first level. The guards, stunned for a moment at the sight of her odd colored flames and an assailant dressed like a guard, eventually sent fire blasts her way.

Dodging and blocking their volleys, Azara quickly ran down the hall. Sliding under one guard, Azara knocked him off his feet before roughly pushing another against the railings. She ran forward again, jumping and pushing off the railing with her foot.

Doing a front flip, she activated her rocket propulsion again and headed towards the top of the tower. Landing in a somersault, Azara rolled to her knees before bringing her fists together. A powerful fire blast left her hands and knocked back two guards just from the sheer power of her flames.

Getting to her feet, Azara charged the other guards, who quickly lowered into defensive positions. They released fire blasts at her, but Azara was faster. Sliding on her knees under the fire blasts, she spun on her knee, and knocked back a guard with a fire slice. Bringing her feet around, she kicked off the ground and shot a fire blast behind her at another guard.

She turned to check on Suki's progress and smirked as Suki crawled up the side of the tower like some spider monkey. Turning back to her own battle, Azara spotted another wave of guards running towards her. Planting her feet, Azara raised her arms, and threw up a fire wall in between herself and the new guards.

The line of guards managed to break through the fire wall but quickly grew confused when they didn't see Azara standing where she had been before. Jumping up from behind the gondola string coils, Azara released a large fire comet from her foot, knocking three guards back into each other, and then into the railing behind them.

As Azara finished off the guards on top of the gondola tower, Suki made quick work of the warden. "Sorry, warden. You're my prisoner now," Suki taunted as she tightened his headband around his mouth and slammed him into the wall chest first. As the others ran up, Suki turned to them. "We've got the warden! Now let's get out of here!"

Sokka, trying to catch his breath, looked up and around for any sign of his girlfriend. "Wait, where's Azara? Is she okay?"

"Uh, Sokka."

Hakoda nudged Sokka in the side before pointing at the gondola tower, where Azara was handling the rest of the guards. She jumped in the air, doing a somersault over some guards before releasing a powerful blast down at two guards, knocking them down. Landing gracefully on her feet, Azara used a fire whip to throw two more guards against the railings.

"That's some girl," Hakoda commented, turning to his son.

"Tell me about it," Sokka beamed, leaning on the railing, before turning back to the rest of the group. "Come on, let's go!"

Azara turned to face another group of guards. Growling in frustration, she jumped forward, releasing two quick fire blasts at the guards. "Where are they?" she muttered to herself, before throwing up a spinning kick at the guard on her left. She knocked out another with a fire comet, leaving just the one in the center left.

Azara was about to finish off the last guard when he was knocked to the side by another fire blast. Surprised, Azara stood up when she spotted Zuko leading the way up. "Well, it's about time you guys caught up," she joked, before leading the way to the gondola. She yanked the door open before standing to the side.

"Everyone in!"

While the others filed into the gondola, Zuko ran back to the controls. Zuko pushed the handle down, starting up the gondola. Azara ran to the back of the gondola, watching as Zuko finagled with the controls. The gondola moved farther and farther from the platform as Zuko started to kick at the lever, trying to break it in half. Growing nervous, Azara gripped the edge of the window tightly.

"Zuko, come on!"

With one last kick, Zuko broke the handle before making a run towards the gondola. Jumping off the platform as a new set of guards released fire volleys at him, Zuko extended a hand forward. Sokka reached down and grabbed Zuko's hand, preventing him from plunging down into the boiling lake. Azara helped Sokka pull Zuko inside before turning to her brother.

"What were you thinking?" Azara demanded, helping her brother stand up again.

"I'm making it so they can't stop us."

"Way to think ahead," Sokka praised, nodding at Zuko.

"We're on our way!"

"Wait! Who's that?" Hakoda asked, pointing down at the platform.

Peeking out of the gondola, Azara sighed at the sight of Azula and Ty Lee standing on top of the tower. "That is a major problem," Zuko muttered, glaring down at Azula.

"It's our sister and her friend. This isn't going to be fun," Azara replied, standing beside Zuko.

Azula snagged a pair of handcuffs from one of the guards before running forward. Ty Lee, ever the acrobat, jumped up to the line and ran across it, her hands out to balance herself. Azula ran to the end of the platform before using her rocket propulsion to reach the line. Once the handcuffs were secured on the rope, Azula used her firebending to push herself towards the gondola.

"This is a rematch I've been waiting for," Suki stated, looking determined as they stared down at the approaching teenagers.

"Me too," Zuko agreed as the four teenagers climbed to the top of the gondola.

Zuko and Azara stood side-by-side on one end as Sokka and Suki prepared at the other. Ty Lee jumped over first, landing in front of Sokka and Suki, who both lowered into defensive positions. Azula landed next, immediately getting into a stance as Zuko and Azara raised their hands. Azula glanced over at Azara, looking surprised for a moment, before she immediately recovered, her eyes narrowing at the sight of her siblings together.

"I'd like to say I'm surprised that you're somehow with Zuzu, Azara, but I'm really not. Did he offer you a free haircut to sway your opinion?"

"Don't do this Azula," Azara warned, her eyes narrowing.

Azula merely smirked back before lowering her leg, sending a fire slice towards her siblings. Azara blocked it with flames of her own, causing Azula's eyes to widen in surprise again at the sight of Azara's new flame color. Straightening up, Azula regarded Azara with an analytical gaze.

"I see you've learned a new trick. It won't change things."

Azula spun around, releasing two fire blasts from her fingers. Zuko stepped forward, blocking the blasts, before stepping to the side. Azara used the opening and released a fire slice at her sister. Azula jumped to avoid it, landing in plank position. Glaring at her siblings, Azula drew her legs under her and forward, sending out another fire blast. Zuko and Azara jumped to dodge it, the blast breaking up the other fight going on behind them.

As the fight between the teenagers continued on, the gondola suddenly slowed before stopping abruptly. Azara stumbled around as the gondola swung back and forth. The rest of the group were similarly affected, everyone trying to grab purchase on the slick roof. Looking up, Azara gasped as she spotted Sokka slipping off the gondola.

"Sokka!"

Jumping forward, she managed to grab his hand in time. Zuko ran over and helped Azara to pull Sokka back up onto the roof of the gondola. Ty Lee jumped up onto the line, looking back at the prison to try and figure out what was going on.

"They're about to cut the line!" she announced, causing the teenagers to share concerned looks.

Azula's eyes widened in fear for a moment before she noticed the approaching gondola on the other line. "Then it's time to leave," she decided before using her rocket propulsion to fly off the top of the gondola. "Goodbye, Azara, Zuko." Ty Lee jumped across as well, landing easily on the other gondola beside Azula.

Climbing back inside the gondola, Azara looked between the prison and the edge of the volcano. "They're cutting the line! The gondola's about to go!" Zuko informed Hakoda and Chit Sang.

"I hope this thing floats," Hakoda sighed, glancing down.

"Okay, what do we do now?" Azara asked, looking around at the group. "Come on, we didn't come this far just to fall into the lake."

But before anyone could respond, the gondola suddenly started to move again. The group raced to the back to see what was happening down at the tower. Azara could spot a lone figure battling the guards, defending the controls and coils from them.

"Who's that?" Sokka asked, pointing down. Azara's eyes widened in surprise when Mai turned around, shooting one last glance back at the gondola.

"It's Mai!" Zuko exclaimed, looked shocked as well. They watched as Mai took out the guards with her knives, pinning them to the walls and floor with cold accuracy. Azara shared a look with Zuko, who instantly looked conflicted.

"Well, I think we owe her a pretty big fruit tart when this whole thing is over," Azara sighed. She turned to see how much farther the gondola had to go before reaching the crest of the volcano. "We're almost there."

Once the gondola docked at the upper tower, the group hurried off. Except for the warden, who was thrown back into the gondola unceremoniously by Chit Sang. "Sorry, Warden. Your record is officially broken," Hakoda taunted before they raced away, heading down the side of the volcano.

"Well, we made it out. Now what?" Suki asked, sharing a look with Azara.

"This is what I was worried about. We don't have the war balloon anymore," Azara replied, turning back to look for Sokka and Zuko.

"Zuko, what are you doing?" Sokka called, running back to Zuko, who was staring down at the prison with a calculating gaze.

"Our sister was on that island."

"Yeah, and she's probably right behind us, so let's not stop!" Sokka exclaimed, motioning rapidly with his arms.

"What I mean is she must have come here somehow."

"There!" Azara pointed out, staring at the large airship docked on the beach. "Come on, let's get out of here before they catch up!"

They hurried to board the airship. Azara and Zuko rushed to the front to take over the controls. "You know how to fly one of these things?" Sokka asked, standing behind them as the siblings worked together to get the airship ready for takeoff.

"Enough," Azara replied as Sokka's eyes widened.

"What does that mean?"

"Enough to get us out of here. Might be a little rocky so I'd grab onto something!" Azara shouted over her shoulder before pulling the levers down. The ship slowly lifted off from the ground and headed out to sea, but not quite at the right height.

"A little higher!" Sokka yelped as they skidded on the top of the ocean. Azara stumbled to the left, running into Sokka, who steadied her with his hand.

"Working on it!" Zuko retorted, pulling another lever that sent the ship flying up higher.

Sokka grabbed the steering wheel and steadied them on course, heading back towards the Western Air Temple. Pressing the appropriate buttons and pulling the right levers, the three teenagers finally managed to have the airship flying properly towards their destination.

"See, I told you it'd work out," Sokka joked as Azara slumped against the wall.

"We are never doing that again."

"Agreed," Zuko sighed, rubbing his face tiredly.

"Good work, kids," Hakoda praised, walking over to the three teenagers. "And thank you for coming to rescue me."

"Dad, I'd like you to meet a few people." Sokka perked up, walking to stand beside his father. "That's Chit Sang. We don't know him very well, but he kind of overheard our plans, so we had to include him. That's Suki over there. She's the Kyoshi Warrior I was telling you about. And this is Zuko. He used to be a bad guy, but now he's on our side. And this is—"

"—Azara, your girlfriend," Hakoda deduced, smiling at Azara. She walked over, slightly nervous about meeting Sokka's father for the first time.

"It's an honor to finally meet you, Hakoda. Sokka and Katara have told me so many stories about you," Azara spoke, smiling widely at her boyfriend's father.

"It's nice to meet the girl who can make my son blush just at the mention of her name," Hakoda replied jokingly, teasing his son, who, ironically, blushed bright red at the accusation.

"Not every time. Just . . . most of the time," Sokka corrected lightly, causing Hakoda and Azara to share a laugh.

"Well, I hope he's treating you well. If there's any problems, you let me know."

"He's a complete gentleman," Azara replied, smiling at her boyfriend. "And I'm sure Katara would step in even if he wasn't."

"You're probably right," Hakoda conceded, chuckling again.

Everyone settled into their respective parts of the airship. Chit Sang was snoring on the floor. Zuko, Azara, and Suki were standing by the controls, chatting about their adventures. Sokka and Hakoda sat at the table in the corner of the control room.

"Azara's sweet," Hakoda mentioned offhandedly to his son, who flushed again. "You should bring her to the South Pole when this is all over. I'm sure your Gran Gran would love to meet her."

"Yeah, that would be nice," Sokka agreed with a small smile.

"Where did you find her? I thought you said you didn't find her during the invasion," Hakoda spoke, leaning on his elbows.

"She found us, actually. She, uh . . . the Fire Lord had her brainwashed by the Dai Li to hunt us down after the invasion. We managed to knock her out of it and even though it's taken some time, she's starting to be herself again."

Hakoda sat in stunned silence for a moment. First, the Fire Lord fries half of his son's face off for speaking out of turn in a war meeting. Then, he goes and brainwashes his daughter and forces her to become an assassin and hunt down her friends. What in Tui and La was wrong with him?

"That's . . . I don't even know the right word to use," Hakoda sighed, looking away.

"I know. But she's healing. Slowly but surely."

"That's good. I'm happy for you two."

"Thanks, Dad," Sokka beamed, obviously proud that his dad approved of his girlfriend.

It was already quite dark outside by the time that they landed the airship outside of the Western Air Temple. Zuko, Sokka, and Azara led the way down the gangplank, smiling sheepishly at their waiting friends.

"What are you doing in this thing? What happened to the war balloon?" Katara asked, walking over with a confused expression on her face.

"It kind of got destroyed," Zuko replied, sharing a look with Sokka and Azara.

"Sounds like a crazy fishing trip," Aang chuckled, standing beside Katara.

"Did you at least get some good meat?" Toph asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"We did. The best meat of all. The meat of friendship and fatherhood," Sokka responded, causing Azara to shake her head at him. At Sokka's words, Suki, Hakoda, and Chit Sang walked off the warship, smiling at the group.

"I'm new. What's up, everybody?" Chit Sang called, waving his hand.

"Dad?" Katara gasped, before running over to hug him.

"Hi Katara."

"How are you here? What is going on? Where did you go?" Katara rambled, looking between her father and her brother.

"We kind of went to a Fire Nation prison," Sokka began to explain.

But before he could fully go into details, Katara pulled him into the family hug. The Water Tribe family was finally reunited again despite everything the universe had thrown at the three of them. Azara and Zuko shared a wide smile at the scene. Azara wrapped an arm around her brother, pulling him into a side hug without a word.

"Seriously? You guys didn't find any meat?" Toph complained again, her priorities clear.

A.N. Southern Raiders episode is next! With that scene where, you know, someone interrupts a moment.

Thanks as always for reading, voting, and commenting!