Oyaji led them over the crest of the hill and headed towards Kyoshi's shrine on the highest part of the hill. Azara stared up at the shrine as she walked inside, noting the quaintness of the place. Granted, Kyoshi did have a whole island named after her, so maybe a grand temple was not needed. "This temple was converted into a shrine to Kyoshi. The clerics tell us these relics are still connected to her spirit," Oyaji explained proudly as the group fanned out around the temple.

Azara stared up at Kyoshi's headpiece as Sokka and Katara examined other artifacts. Tilting her head to the side, Azara could see how Kyoshi's personal dress influenced the Kyoshi warriors.

"Please don't touch!" Oyaji stated, causing Katara to drop Kyoshi's kimono and Azara to whirl around in surprise.

"These fans . . . they were her weapons, no?" Sokka asked, picking up one with his fingers.

"Also refrain from touching the fans," Oyaji sighed as Azara glanced down at the pair of boots next to Kyoshi's kimono.

"These were her boots?" Azara questioned as Momo popped out of one of them. "Her feet must have been enormous!"

"The biggest of any Avatar," Oyaji nodded, sounding proud.

"Congrats to her," Azara muttered awkwardly as she pulled Momo out of the boots. Then, it suddenly hit her. "Wait a minute . . . big foot, little footprint? There's no way—" Azara started to piece together before Sokka cleared his throat, cutting her off.

"Special outfit? Hat and pipe? These things mean anything to you guys?" Sokka sighed causing Azara to roll her eyes mockingly.

"Of course, my apologies. Please, continue," Azara huffed, before crossing her arms over her chest, Momo moving to perch on her head.

"Aha! There's no way Kyoshi could have made that footprint. And therefore, there is nothing linking her to the crime scene!" Sokka announced, raising a finger in the air.

"Brilliant, Sokka," Katara added in a deadpan as she stood beside Azara with a similarly exasperated look across her face.

"Okay, great. But, if Kyoshi didn't kill Chin, then who did? Who made that footprint?" Azara asked, glancing between Sokka and Katara. "I think we're going to need more than just a footprint to exonerate Aang from the murder."

Oyaji beckoned them to examine a painting on the back wall of the temple. "This piece is called 'The Birth of Kyoshi.' It was painted on sunrise of the day this island was founded. Why, it was today in fact, 370 years ago."

"370 years?" Sokka exclaimed, grabbing Oyaji by his kimono. "Wait, are you sure it was today?"

"Seeing as it's Kyoshi Day, yes, I'm sure," Oyaji replied, pushing Sokka off him and dusting himself off matter-of-factly.

"This ceremony didn't take place at sunrise. It took place at sunset," Azara pointed out, staring up at the painting. "Look at the shadows."

"They point east. So, the sun must have been in the west," Katara concluded, stepping forwards.

"So what?" Oyaji shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest.

Katara opened her mouth to speak before she was pushed aside by Sokka. Azara glared over at him before helping Katara up. "If Kyoshi was in the ceremony at sunset, then she couldn't have been in Chin committing the crime. She has an alibi," Sokka explained dramatically, standing with his arm out and pipe raised, his monocle swinging around his head.

Katara then ripped the pipe from his hand and slammed it onto his head, causing Sokka to fall to the floor. He rubbed his head, looking up at Azara for support, but she shook her head. "You deserved it, and we both know it." Momo chittered from her shoulder as Sokka looked at the ground.

With the newfound evidence, the three of them hurried to return to Chin Village. They quickly tracked down the major and asked him to meet them at the prison to discuss their findings with him and Aang. Katara, Azara, and Sokka stood side by side as they waited for the mayor to show up.

"You guys are sure about all of this?" Aang asked, his head and arms still bound by the wooden blocks.

"Don't worry, Aang, Detective Sokka over here has put together quite the compelling case," Katara replied sarcastically, but still shot Aang a reassuring smile. Sokka puffed out his chest, but Aang did not look entirely convinced.

"And what's the back up plan?" Aang questioned after a moment.

"Worst comes to worst, we just break you out of here," Azara shrugged, causing Sokka to groan in protest. The sound of footsteps caused the group to look up to see the mayor strolling into the prison.

"This better be worth my time," the mayor sighed dramatically as Azara raised an irritated eyebrow, her lips pursed.

"Honorable Mayor, we've prepared a solid defense for the Avatar. We did an investigation and found some very strong evidence," Katara explained, looking confident.

"Evidence? That's not how our court system works," the mayor scoffed, causing the group to gape and stare at him.

"Then how can I prove my innocence?" Aang asked as the mayor smiled, leaning towards the bars.

"Simple. I say what happened, then you say what happened, and then I decide who's right," the mayor explained as Azara rubbed her face tiredly. "That's why we call it justice, because it's 'just us.'" The mayor laughed loudly as he exited, causing Azara to groan.

"This is worse than the Fire Nation! And that's saying something," Azara muttered before turning to her friends.

"Now what?"

"Well, there's still a trial, I guess. We just have to be prepared," Katara stated, though the confidence in her posture had faded.

Without any other option, Aang's trial was set for that afternoon. Azara sat in between Katara and Sokka as the mayor recounted Chin's murder to the assembled villagers. "Everyone loved Chin the Great because he was so great. Then the Avatar showed up and killed him, and that's what happened." The mayor smiled before returning to his seat.

"The accused will now present its argument," the guard sighed before stepping to the side. Aang smiled encouragingly at his friends before a confused look overcame his face.

"He forgot the evidence, didn't he?" Azara winced as Sokka leaned forwards.

"You can do it, Aang. Just remember the evidence," Sokka encouraged, a kind smile on his face.

"Right, evidence," Aang nodded, before looking away. "Ladies and gentlemen . . . I'm about to tell you what really happened. And I will prove it with facts. Fact number one." Aang blanked for a moment, causing Azara to sigh.

"The footprint," Sokka whispered harshly as Aang jumped up.

"Oh, yeah. You see . . . I have very large feet." Everyone glanced down at Aang's feet, which were not, in fact, very large with unimpressed expressions. "Furthermore . . . your temple matches your statue. But . . . I was in a painting at sunset. So, there you have it, I'm not guilty," Aang concluded, smiling and standing awkwardly in his bindings. Sokka, Azara, and Katara forced encouraging smiles onto their faces, Sokka holding a thumbs up.

"He's dead," Sokka replied, as they continued to force their smiles.

"Do we break him out now?" Azara whispered harshly, glancing up at the mayor, who looked pleased with himself.

"I think I have an idea," Katara stated back, before scrambling up and running towards Aang. She grabbed him and tugged him away as Sokka and Azara sat next to each other, trying to not let their despair and anxiety show. Murmurs started to fill the amphitheater as Aang and Katara disappeared behind the temple.

"Do you think this is going to work?" Sokka asked, as they waited for any sign of Katara and Aang.

"If it doesn't, grab Katara and Aang. I'll make a distraction, and we can get the hell out of this crazy village," Azara whispered, glancing behind her at the villagers.

"What kind of distraction?"

"I don't know . . . burn something?" Azara shrugged, before sighing and looking at the ground. "I'm working on it." They sat in silence for a few moments when Sokka glanced over at Azara worriedly.

"Are you okay? You've been kind of quiet today. Was it those guys and their Komodo rhinos?" Sokka asked, causing Azara to shake her head.

"No, it's not them . . . and like I said before, I'm not related to any of them. Every crazy relative I know about is already out hunting us . . . except my father," Azara rambled, trying, and failing to use humor to mask her swirling mind. "What about you?"

"Alright. Today kind of took an unexpected turn," Sokka shrugged, causing Azara's chin to clench involuntarily. Her nails dug into the rock bench as she stared at the ground.

"Right, with Kyoshi Island," Azara murmured, causing Sokka to raise an eyebrow and turn to her.

"I meant the incident this morning," Sokka replied, causing Azara's eyes to widen. "Why did you think I meant Kyoshi Island?"

"No reason," Azara stated, looking away from him for a moment before turning to stare forward. "I just didn't realize that you liked . . . that place . . . so much."

"Oh, yeah . . ." Sokka trailed off causing Azara to sigh, her gaze unwavering from the temple.

"Yeah . . ." Azara sighed as Momo nestled between the two of them.

"I, uh, I—"

"—You don't have to explain it to me, Sokka. I just thought there were other . . . places . . . that you preferred. But, hey, not the first time I've been wrong before," Azara spoke coldly as Momo glanced up at Azara before turning to Sokka. His eyes widened before he cleared his throat.

"There are other places I care about," Sokka emphasized, but Azara still refused to meet his gaze.

"Right, the North Pole, how could I forget," Azara drawled as Momo crawled up her arm and perched on her shoulder.

"Not the North Pole! I mean, at one point, yeah, but it's different now," Sokka replied before shaking his head. "And if I remember correctly, the North Pole was your favorite too." Azara choked momentarily, before turning to look at Sokka with her eyes narrowed.

"The North Pole was a beautiful . . . place . . . but it wasn't the right time to . . . have a favorite place."

"I agree," Sokka nodded as Azara turned to stare at him with a neutral expression.

"But, since then . . . I thought I found my favorite place," Azara sighed, causing Sokka to turn his full body to look at her.

"You did?" Sokka asked, hope dribbling into his tone

"I thought I did, but then today happened."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean most people have only one favorite place at a time because places don't really appreciate it when you have more than one favorite," Azara explained, sending Sokka a look.

"I do have a favorite," he insisted, but Azara shook her head and looked back at the temple.

"Right, Kyoshi Island."

"No, my favorite place is . . ." Sokka trailed off as he tried to come up with a new metaphoric place. "Ugh, can we stop with the metaphor!"

"What metaphor?" Azara teased, a coy look on her face despite her own frustration. She was enjoying pushing Sokka's buttons a little too much. Before Sokka could respond, the sound of footsteps broke them out of their conversation.

"What are you guys arguing about?" Katara asked as she retook her seat next to Azara.

"Nothing!" they shouted in unison, before looking away from each other.

"Forget it, what's your plan with Aang?" Azara questioned, leaning over towards Katara.

"You'll see," Katara whispered, glancing up at the villagers before turning back to the temple. "I brought back some stuff from Kyoshi Island to try out."

"Try out?" Sokka inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Katara raised a finger over her lips to tell Sokka to be quiet, before running back out to the center of the pavilion. "Mayor Tong, I'd like for the court to hear one last testimony!"

"I've already told you, it's just me and the accused. You can't call any witnesses!" Tong complained, standing up from his seat.

"This isn't just any witness. I'm going to call . . . Avatar Kyoshi herself!" Katara announced, swinging her arms back to reveal Aang dressed in Kyoshi's old clothes. Azara raised an eyebrow and shared a confused look with Sokka as Katara ran over.

"What are you doing?" she whispered as Katara took her seat again.

"Well, she is Aang's past life. Maybe wearing her stuff will trigger something," Katara explained as Azara shrugged, knowing that they didn't exactly have a plethora of other options.

"I do believe in the power of stuff," Sokka added, playing with his monocle.

"This is a mockery of Chin Law!" Tong exclaimed angrily, glaring down at Aang.

"Please! If you could just wait one more second, I'm sure Kyoshi will be here!" Katara pleaded as all eyes fell on Aang, who was hiding behind the fan.

"Hey, everybody! Avatar Kyoshi here!" Aang spoke in a high-pitched voice, causing Tong to huff and march down to him.

"This is ridiculous! For the murder of Chin the Great, this court finds the Avatar—" Tong started to announce before Aang was suddenly engulfed in a tornado of earth. The darkness spread to engulf the full village, blocking out the sun as Azara, Katara, and Sokka huddled together. The tornado disappeared, revealing Avatar Kyoshi in Aang's place.

"I killed Chin the Conqueror," Kyoshi stated clearly, staring up at the crowd. "A horrible tyrant, Chin was expanding his army to all corners of the continent. When they came to the neck of the peninsula where we lived, he demanded our immediate surrender. I warned him that I would not sit passively while he took our home. But he did not back down. On that day, we split from the mainland. I created Kyoshi Island so that my people would be safe from invaders."

Kyoshi lowered her head as the tornado reappeared around her, sucking the darkness back with it. Sunlight filtered back into the pavilion as the tornado shrunk and disappeared to reveal a weaker Aang. He stumbled and groaned before Katara rushed forwards and caught him. "So, what just happened?" Aang asked, looking up at Katara.

"Uh . . . you kind of confessed. Sorry," Katara sighed as Tong stood up, dusting himself off.

"And I find you . . . guilty! Bring out the Wheel of Punishment!" Tong announced, eliciting cheers from the villagers as Sokka and Azara shared concerned looks. Katara returned to her seat, grabbing, and squeezing Azara's hand in fear.

"It'll be alright, he'll figure something out," Azara stated comfortingly, but the hope didn't reach her eyes.

"The accused will now spin the Wheel of Punishment to determine his sentence," the guard stated in his same monotone voice.

"I said I will face justice, so I will," Aang spoke before grabbing the Wheel and giving it a hard spin.

"Come on, torture chamber!"

"Eaten by bears!"

"Razor pit!"

"Community service! Please land on community service!" Katara pleaded as they huddled together in anticipation. The wheel slowed, before landing on a painting of a man in a bowl with a fire underneath the bowl.

"Looks like its boiled in oil." The villagers cheered as the Gaang looked horrified.

However, the cheers of the crowd were soon drowned out by the explosion of a bomb. Azara shielded her face from the blast before standing up and glaring at Mongke as he appeared over the ridge on his Komodo Rhino.

"We've come to claim this village for the Fire Lord! Now, show me your leader so I may . . ." Mongke trailed off as another Rough Rhino sliced his Guan Dao staff through the statue of Chin the Great, causing the statue to crumble into pieces. ". . . dethrone him."

"That's him over there!" one of the villagers yelled out, pointing at Mayor Tong, who hid himself behind the Wheel of Torture.

"You, Avatar, do something!" Tong demanded, pointing at Aang.

"Gee, I'd love to help, but I'm supposed to be boiled in oil," Aang replied sarcastically as he stared up at Mongke and the other Rough Rhinos.

Mayor Tong stood up from behind the wheel and pulled it to the side. "There, community service. Now serve our community and get rid of those rhinos!" Tong yelled, causing Aang to smirk before rushing forwards. He leapt in the air, throwing off his Kyoshi outfit and charging towards the Rough Rhino with the Guan Dao.

Opening Kyoshi's fans, Aang threw the Rough Rhino off his rhino and into the ocean with his airbending. Mongke glared at Aang, before turning to the other Rough Rhinos. "Rough Rhinos, to the town!" As the Rough Rhinos turned to Chin Village, Azara charged forwards, closely followed by Katara and Sokka.

As Katara dealt with the chain-wielding Rough Rhino, Azara chased after Mongke. "Mongke!" she yelled, trailing behind him as he turned around. "Leave this village alone!"

Mongke chuckled as Azara glared up at him. "We'll leave if you come willingly back to the Fire Nation. Your father has placed a high bounty on your head for your return." Azara rolled her eyes before raising her hands in preparation.

"You wish," she scoffed before releasing a fire blast at Mongke, who dissipated it with his own hands. Azara dodged the barrage of fire blasts Mongke sent her way as she was chased through the streets of Chin Village. Skidding around a sharp corner, Azara turned and sliced through the beam of a food stand, causing the roof to cave in on Mongke.

Letting out a breath of relief, Azara tensed as she heard the archer Rough Rhino come up behind her. Facing the archer, Azara jumped back as Mongke blasted through the food stand roof. Azara's eyes flitted between the two Rough Rhinos when the archer released two arrows towards her, a spool of rope attaching them.

Sending a fire slice at the arrows, Azara's eyes widened in surprise as the arrows cut through the flames undeterred and continued hurtling towards her. The spool of rope released, revealing a net. Azara yelled out as she was caught in the net and thrown to the ground. She growled in frustration and tried to slice through the rope again, but her flames had no impact on the rope.

"The rope's fireproof, Princess. But, please, by all means use up all your energy now," Mongke chuckled, before turning to the archer Rough Rhino. "Get her out of here, I'll find the Avatar." Mongke rode off on his Komodo Rhino as the archer nodded silently and tugged on the rope, dragging Azara's body towards his own Rhino.

Cursing herself, Azara glared at the ground. She couldn't go back to the Fire Nation, and she'd be dragged kicking and screaming every step of the way there. Trying to come up with an escape plan, Azara looked up at the sound of a boomerang flying through the air. A small smile formed on her face as the boomerang sliced through the rope, releasing her.

"Let her go!" Sokka demanded as he and Katara stood side by side. As the archer grabbed his bow and arrow, ready to notch an arrow, the boomerang returned and knocked him in the back of the head, knocking him off the Komodo rhino.

"Guess the Fire Nation is going to have to wait," Azara smiled, pulling the rope net off of her head. Sokka and Katara ran over to help her out of the net. Grabbing Sokka's outstretched hand, Azara pulled herself up and stepped out of the remaining rope. "Thanks for that. Guess they learned from our last meet up," Azara sighed, staring down at the fire-treated rope.

"Yeah, well, I couldn't just leave my favorite place behind," Sokka stated confidently, causing Azara to smile lightly and cross her arms over her chest.

"Really? Your only favorite place?"

"My only favorite place," Sokka agreed, before pressing a quick kiss to Azara's cheek. Azara's eyes widened as her fingers brushed over her cheek, her whole face turning redder than the Fire Nation insignia. Katara hid a giggle behind her hand as Sokka smiled reassuringly at her despite the small twinge of red on his own cheeks.

Clearing her throat, Azara straightened up, despite the redness in her cheeks. "Come on, we still have to find Aang," she stated, grabbing Sokka and dragging him with her as Katara led the way.

It didn't take them long to find Aang, who still had Kyoshi's paint on his face. He had taken care of Mongke himself and the rest of the Rough Rhinos had retreated, leaving the village relatively unscathed. For his community service work, the villagers quickly rejoiced and prepared a festival in honor of Aang.

Azara stared up at the fireworks as she stood in between Aang and Sokka, clutching the bowl of unfried dough she had been handed.

"From now on, we'll celebrate a new Avatar Day in honor of the day Avatar Aang saved us from the Rough Rhino Invasion," Mayor Tong announced to the villagers.

"What is this?" Sokka asked him, staring down at the bowl of unfried dough.

"That's our new festival food! Unfried dough! May we eat it and be reminded of how on this day the Avatar was not boiled in oil!" The villagers cheered as the group looked down at their unfried dough with apprehension.

"Happy Avatar Day, everyone!" Katara spoke before shoving one into her mouth. Azara wrinkled her nose before shoving one into her mouth begrudgingly.

"This is by far the worst village we've ever been to," Sokka commented as Azara turned to him, an amused smile on her face.

"Agreed,"she sighed before staring back down at the bowl.

A.N. Another update! I hope you guys enjoyed a little more Sokka/Azara interactions. Next chapter is the Blind Bandit episode! Thanks so much to everyone who's stuck around!