A.N. So, here's the chapter that I'm sure many of you were looking forwards to. Sorry for the delay, but I hope you guys like it!

The next morning, Azara stared glumly at Omashu. "I have a bad feeling about this. I'll almost guarantee that we're about to walk into a trap."

"I don't think so. I'm sure the governor wants his son back as much as we want Bumi. It's a new day. I have a good feeling about this," Aang smiled, holding a sleeping Tom Tom to his chest. Azara sighed, staring out at Omashu with suspicion. There was something off, but she couldn't put her finger on it just yet. Sokka came up behind her, staring at her worriedly.

"You okay?" he asked quietly as Azara turned to face him.

"I don't know, I just . . . have this feeling."

"Feeling? What kind of feeling?"

"I'm not sure," Azara replied, turning back to Omashu. "And that's what worries me."

The group walked cautiously through the empty streets of occupied Omashu in relative silence. Aang led the way up to the designated meeting place as Azara glanced around suspiciously at the town. Climbing up the scaffolding, Azara glared up at the new statue of her father. Shaking her head, she returned to climbing, the last of the group to make their way up to the platform.

Bumi, who was entrapped in a metal coffin contraption, was lowered down as the sound of approaching footsteps made Azara turn. But her blood immediately ran cold at the sight of three familiar faces. Azara's eyes met her sister's for the first time in nearly three years, matching gold irises reflecting the morning sun as the sisters stared at each other. "Azula," Azara whispered out in surprise, though Azula did not look nearly as shocked as Azara felt.

"What?" Sokka questioned, looking back at Azara as she continued to lock eyes with her sister. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee stopped walking forwards, Mai and Ty Lee naturally turning to Azula to speak. Azula walked forwards a few more steps, a familiar smirk tugging at her painted red lips.

"Aren't you going to say hello, Azara?" Azula drawled, her arms folded behind her as Katara, Aang, and Sokka turned to Azara questioningly. Taking a step in front of Aang, Azara stared back at Azula. Her face was neutral, but inside she was nearly crumbling.

"What are you doing here?" Azara asked, ignoring her sister's earlier question.

"You guys know each other?" Aang questioned, looking between Azula and Azara. Katara and Sokka shared a similar shocked look.

"You're not going to introduce us to your new friends, Azara?" Azula continued, causing Azara to look away for a moment.

"Guys, this is Ty Lee, Mai." She paused, knowing the next words were about to send her new friends into a spiral. ". . . and my sister, Azula," Azara introduced, not missing the look of shock and surprise on her friend's faces.

"Sister!?" Sokka exclaimed as Azula smirked.

"Twins, actually," Azula added.

"Fraternal twins," Azara corrected, turning back to Azula.

"Whatever. We're still blood, Azara, unless you've forgotten who you are by running around with these peasants."

"What do you want, Azula?" Azara repeated, feeling drained and wanting to leave immediately. She knew that this exchange was going to be a bad idea.

"Father sent me to find Zuko and Uncle after their betrayal at the North Pole. And you or the Avatar if I could find you along the way," Azula stated, studying her nails with a bored look on her face. "He wants you home, you know. We all do." Her voice had trailed off at the end, and Azara didn't miss the small change in her sister's face, but the mention of their father instantly soured Azara's mood further.

"You and I both know that's bullshit," Azara shook her head, glaring up at the statue of their father before turning back to her sister. Azula didn't change her stance but shifted her gaze away momentarily.

"Worked on Zuko," Azula scoffed, causing Azara to stiffen momentarily. So, Zuko had survived the North Pole. She had been caught up in, well, trying not to die, to keep an eye on him. All Sokka ever told her was that the rope had been cut and Zuko was gone. She wasn't sure how he got out of the North Pole, but he was alive at least. And somehow had already run into Azula.

"I'm not Zuko."

"No, you're not. You're smarter than he is. So, I'm going to make you an offer. Join me, Ty Lee, and Mai in bringing the Avatar to Father, and he'll forgive you for everything." Azula glanced over at Aang, who glared back at her.

Azara didn't hesitate to scoff. "You actually thought I would take you up on that offer?"

"I thought you had better sense than you obviously do," Azula replied evenly, her gaze narrowed.

"Maybe I don't, but you can tell Father and everyone else in the whole goddamn Fire Nation that I will never ever betray my friends and help him," Azara snapped aggressively, her eyes narrowed into slits. "Over my dead body."

"Enough! We had a deal!" Aang interrupted, walking forwards with Tom Tom in his arms. Azula turned her gaze from Azara to Aang, the same bored expression returning to her face.

"I'm sorry, but a thought just occurred to me. Do you mind?" Azula asked Mai, who motioned for her to continue. "We're trading a two-year-old for a king. A powerful, earthbending king?" Azula glanced up at Bumi, who nodded in affirmation. "It just doesn't seem like a fair trade, does it?"

"You're right. The deal's off," Mai announced, the metal coffin holding Bumi raising into the air.

"Whoa, see you all later," Bumi chuckled as he swung around.

"Bumi!" Aang yelled, charging forwards. Azula sent a blast of blue flames at Aang, but he leapt high, avoiding the blast. Aang opened his glider and flew back around towards Bumi's coffin. Azula smirked before running forwards, grabbing onto an open hook, and activating the pulley system.

"Azula!" Azara growled out in frustration, staring up at her sister and Aang before winding up her arms to jet propel herself up. Azula, who had already reached the top of the scaffolding, quickly chased after Aang and Bumi as Azara reached the top of the scaffolding herself. Seeing Azula chasing after Aang, Azara rolled forwards and released several fire blasts at her sister.

Azula turned around to block the fire blasts as Azara hurried to her feet, her heart thudding heavily in her chest as she sprinted to catch up with Azula and Aang. There was no way she could let her sister capture Aang. Azula turned and released a large fire blast at Azara, who slid under it, never once breaking her forward movement.

Aang, with Azula caught up in her battle with Azara, slammed the frozen metal chain above Bumi's metal coffin, causing Bumi and Aang to plummet towards the mail slides. The sisters stopped momentarily, watching in surprise as Aang created an air ball, cushioning their fall and causing Bumi's coffin to start sliding down the chutes.

As Aang disappeared around the bend, Azula continued to dodge Azara's fire blasts. "Give up!" Azara demanded, her fists raised as she prepared for Azula's retaliation. The two sisters glared at each other before Azula smirked and flipped backwards, landing perfectly into one of the passing mail carts.

Azara growled in annoyance as Azula sped away, hurrying to grab one of the mail carriers for herself. "Showoff," Azara muttered to herself as she jumped into her own mail cart. Kneeling down to reach higher speeds, Azara jet propelled herself down the chutes, catching up to Azula, Aang, and Bumi. "Get away from him!" Azara demanded, jumping to her feet, and sending a fire slice towards Azula.

"I should have known you were going to be this difficult, Azara," Azula shot back after breaking through the fire slice. "Stop and think about what you're doing!"

"You first," Azara scoffed before sending another fire blast at her sister. The shared volleys of fire blasts when Azara noticed Appa approaching, Sokka and Katara on his back. "Aang, go!" Azara yelled, before propelling herself forwards again. Her cart knocked into Azula's causing her twin to stumble lightly. Azula turned to glare at Azara, who was already in a defensive stance.

Azula huffed before jumping up and sending a fire blast at Azara, who promptly dodged. Although the looks on their faces could be described as murderous, the two sisters resembled dancers more than fighters. Each move was appropriately blocked and parried without a second thought. Azara growled as their metal vambraces clicked against each other's.

"Giving up?" she asked, glaring at her sister.

"You wish," Azula snapped, before igniting a fire dagger and knocking Azara back. Azara dodged Azula's swings, before returning some of her own. Their carts bumped into each other again as both sisters swung around, their fire kicks sending each other flying. Azula, shaking herself out of her stupor, righted herself and landed into a passing mail cart without much difficulty and continued after Aang.

Azara scrambled as she fell before using her jet propulsion to slow her descent. She could see Appa approaching, but the ground was quickly approaching. Grunting, Azara released a fire blast from her feet and flipped backwards, her feet landing on a column of the mail system. Kicking off the wall, Azara flipped over and landed in the back of Appa's saddle. "Are you alright?" Katara asked, staring back at her with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine. You guys?" Azara questioned, glancing between Sokka and Katara.

"One of those girls took away my bending," Katara spoke quietly, looking down as Azara grabbed her shoulder in comfort.

"Chi blocking. Should fade in about an hour or so," Azara explained as Tom Tom clambered into her lap. Azara glanced over at Sokka, but he kept his back to her as they flew down to grab Aang, who was standing alone at the end of the mail track.

"Where's Bumi?"

"He wanted to stay," Aang shook his head, though his expression was calm and not upset like they had been expecting.

"We should get out of here before they catch up."

"What about the baby?" Katara asked as Tom Tom tugged lightly on Azara's braid.

"I'll return him tonight," Aang promised as Appa flew into the mountains again, settling in the cover of the hills as they waited for night to fall.

Azara slid off Appa, holding Tom Tom tightly in her arms. Sokka, Katara, and Aang clambered off Appa behind her, Sokka instantly moving to walk away from Appa. Watching him pace, Azara knew he was frustrated with her. There was a rather large Komodo rhino in the room regarding her family, but Aang and Katara didn't seem to have any interest in addressing it.

Sighing, Azara slid to the ground, one arm wrapped around Tom Tom's stomach. "Alright, let me have it," Azara spoke, looking up at Sokka as he stopped pacing for a moment. Katara and Aang exchanged concerned expressions as Sokka turned to Azara, his expression hard.

"Why didn't you tell us you had a sister? Better yet, why didn't you tell us you had a crazy sister, who's also apparently your twin, who's intent on capturing Aang and maybe the rest of us? The sister with the blue flames and her crazy knife throwing and acrobat bending-stopping friends?! Are there any other crazy siblings you have that we should know about? Maybe a cousin?" Sokka ranted as Azara stared up at him calmly.

"No, just the two," Azara stated as Sokka shook his head.

"And you didn't think it was important to tell us about her? Why haven't you ever brought her up before?" Sokka questioned, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I haven't seen her in two, almost three, years. I honestly didn't think I would see her again until we invaded the Fire Nation," Azara admitted, shifting her hold on Tom Tom.

"So, you're not close then?"

"No, we were really close when we were younger, before . . ." Azara sighed, gently pulling the grass out of Tom Tom's mouth. "I'm sorry, okay? I'll let you know the next time some other member of my family is trying to kill us," Azara snipped, causing Katara to walk forwards.

"Maybe I should take the baby," Katara interjected softly as Azara allowed her to grab Tom Tom from her lap. Turning to Sokka, who had his arms crossed over his chest, Azara's eyes narrowed.

"Why do you even care? The fact I have another family member chasing after us should be the least interesting thing that's happened all week," Azara scoffed, as Sokka's lips pursed in frustration.

"Because besides the obvious safety concern, you tend to tell people your friends things about your life. Like how many siblings you have or whether or not those siblings could potentially start chasing you and your friends," Sokka replied sarcastically.

"I don't like to talk about my family, if you hadn't noticed," Azara stated, glaring at the ground.

"I'm not asking you to give a play-by-play of your whole childhood, Azara, just the big picture," Sokka responded as Aang and Katara exchanged worried glances again. "You couldn't even tell us about your twin sister, for Spirit's sakes!"

"Big picture?" Azara asked, jumping up. "Alright. What shall I start with? Perhaps the fact that me and my sister were incredibly close growing up because our mother didn't love us the same way she loved Zuko. Or how about the fact that after my Mom died or left or whatever, my father isolated me from my siblings so that I was easier to manipulate," Azara listed, taking steps towards Sokka with each phrase. The Water Tribe boy dropped his arms to his sides, staring at Azara with concern.

"And then he burned half of Zuko's face off and I decided to go with Zuko, and in doing so, did exactly what I promised my sister that I would never do," Azara continued, moving to stand arm's length away from Sokka. He reached out a hand and wiped several tears from her cheek. Azara didn't even realize she was crying. "I left her. I promised I would never leave her, and I broke that promise. I did exactly what Mom did," Azara choked at the end, more tears rushing down her cheeks.

A much younger Azara trudged in between Azula and Zuko, her head bowed. They were walking back to their bedrooms, their father off in some meeting immediately following his coronation. Azula walked in the lead as Azara started to drag her feet. Noticing her lagging behind, Zuko slowed his pace and turned to his sister.

"Azara?" he called, as Azara looked up at him, unshed tears in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"I miss how things used to be," Azara replied, glancing back at the hallway to make sure no nosy servants were wandering around.

"What do you mean?"

"Mom's gone. Lu Ten's gone. Uncle left. Dad's Fire Lord now," Azara spoke, staring at the floor. "Our family is broken."

"Our family isn't broken," Zuko insisted, though Azara didn't look convinced. Struggling to think of things to say to his sister, Zuko thought back to his mother's words to him. "Hey, Azara, remember that no matter how things may seem to change, never forget who you are." Zuko paused before adding a few thoughts of his own. "I know it's tough right now, but what happened doesn't change that we're family. We'll always be family."

"Where did you learn that?" Azara asked, tilting her head to the side at Zuko's wise words.

"It's what Mom told me before she . . . left," Zuko explained as Azara's eyes widened in surprise.

"Before she left?" Zuko nodded in affirmation. "When?"

"That night," Zuko replied, confused as to why his sister was suddenly asking all these questions. At least it seemed to pull her out of the state she was in before. Noticing Zuko's confusion, Azara quickly pulled her brother into a hug before he grew more suspicious.

"Thanks, Zuko." Pulling back, Azara bid Zuko good night before walking towards Azula's room, which was directly next to hers. Throwing open the door, Azara walked inside despite Azula's complaints.

"Ever heard of privacy?" Azula huffed as Azara stared out the window, her hands clenched.

"Did Mom say goodbye to you before she disappeared?" Azara asked, staring out the window to keep her composure.

"What?"

"Did Mom say goodbye to you before she disappeared?" Azara repeated, her voice louder and snapping at the end. Eyes widening at Azara's state, Azula shook her head.

"No." Azara turned back to the window, her breathing starting to pick up. "Did you?" Azula questioned after a few tense moments. Azara shook her head, a tear leaking out of her eye. Azula slid off her bed and grabbed her sister's shoulder. "Hey, why are you so upset?"

"Zuko got a goodbye," Azara revealed causing Azula to look away for a moment before scoffing.

"Of course, he did," Azula sighed, before turning back to her sister. Zuko's favoritism with their mother wasn't exactly a new discussion topic between the sisters. "Hey, we don't need her; we don't need any of them."

"Who do we have besides them? They're our family."

"We have each other," Azula pointed out as Azara nodded in agreement. "We're sisters, and no matter what, sisters have each other's backs."

"And they don't leave each other behind," Azara added, causing Azula to nod as well.

"And they don't leave each other behind," Azula repeated, as Azara held up her pinky. Azula held out her own, their fingers entwining.

"I promise to never leave you behind, Azula, not like Mom."

"Not like Mom," Azula agreed, the sisters sharing a smile.

Azula stood outside, staring at the moon as she scoured the hillsides for any signs of her sister or the Avatar. "What are you doing?" Ty Lee asked, walking over as Azula turned to greet her.

"Searching for clues."

"It's nearly midnight," Ty Lee pointed out softly as Azula continued to stare ahead. "You know it's okay to miss Azara, Azula. You two are sisters after all."

"My sister is a fool, just like our brother and uncle. She could have been welcomed back like a hero if she betrayed the Avatar! But instead, she runs around with those peasants and—" Azula cut herself off, realizing she was losing control of her emotions. Quieting and straightening up, Azula trained her gaze ahead of her once more.

"Azula—" Ty Lee tried, but Azula cut her off.

"—Thank you, Ty Lee. I'll see you tomorrow when we resume our search," Azula stated and Ty Lee knew better than to push her.

"Goodnight, Azula," Ty Lee replied softly, before walking back inside. Azula sighed, staring at the moon for a moment, before turning and heading inside as well.

Meanwhile, Azara stared up at the moon as she sat in the back of Appa's saddle. Aang had wanted to place some distance between Omashu and them before setting up camp for the night. She could hear shuffling behind her but didn't turn around. Feeling a blanket behind wrapped around her shoulders, Azara turned to see Sokka beside her. "I'm not cold," she spoke, glancing away.

"I know," Sokka replied quietly, staring at his shoes.

"Then why did you give me a blanket?"

"You always curl into that blanket when you're stressed," Sokka stated, glancing up at the moon. About to retort that she didn't, Azara paused for a moment and lifted the blanket to her nose. Lightly breathing in the scent, the edges of Azara's lips twinged upwards at the same comforting scent—campfire and sea salt.

"I'm not stressed," Azara replied, her hands landing in her lap. A few moments passed before she sighed, knowing that lie wasn't even slightly believable. "Okay, that was a lie. But thank you."

"I'm sorry," Sokka stated, causing Azara to turn to him. "I should have known your family was a touchy subject and I shouldn't have pushed you on it. You've already opened a lot for someone who's . . . dealt with what you have. I should have recognized that and your boundaries. We don't have to talk about your family ever again."

"Thanks, Sokka. I suppose it's not exactly healthy to keep it all bottled up, but . . . I'll be ready to talk about it one day, just not right now."

"I understand." A few moments of silence passed by before Azara smiled softly.

"But, if you were wondering, there shouldn't be any more relatives of mine that should be chasing us," Azara joked, causing Sokka to crack a smile.

"Not even a pet?"

"Do turtleducks count?" Azara asked, a playful smile on her face.

"Of course."

"Then I'd be worried," Azara winked, causing the two to break out into fits of laughter. Katara and Aang shared a relieved expression as Azara and Sokka fell into a normal conversation. 

A.N. So, I hope it lived up to everyone's hopes and expectations. This will clearly not be the last Azula and Azara will see of each other, so stay tuned. As always, thank you to everyone for reading, commenting, and voting on this story! The next chapters will deal with the Swamp episode!