Zuko led the way over to June's table. The bounty hunter glanced up at the group with an unimpressed expression, her gaze trained on Zuko in particular. "Oh great. It's Prince Pouty. Where's your creepy grandpa?"

"He's my uncle. And he's not here."

"I see you worked things out with your girlfriend," June continued, glancing over at Katara.

"I'm not his girlfriend!"

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"Okay, okay. Sheesh. I was only teasing. So, what do you want?" June asked, taking another sip of her drink.

"I need your help finding the Avatar."

"Hmm. Doesn't sound too fun," June murmured, looking away from Zuko.

"Does the end of the world sound like more fun!?" Zuko snapped, clenching his fists as he took another step towards June.

"What my brother is trying to say," Azara huffed, stepping forward and pushing Zuko to the side, "is that we need to find the Avatar soon or the Fire Nation's going to burn your home and the entire Earth Kingdom to the ground. So, your options are to help us or find another place to live. Your choice."

June raised an eyebrow at Azara's words before nodding and getting up. "Alright, I'll play."

They walked outside, heading towards the two large beasts. Appa and Nyla growled at each other, circling, and seemingly ready to pounce. Appa was the first to relent, licking Nyla, before the two of them laid down together. Nyla jumped back up as June approached with a piece of meat for him.

"Nyla. Who's my little Snuffly-Wuffly?" June cooed, rubbing his head, before jumping out of the way as Nyla shot out his tongue. "Whoa! Careful there." June turned to Team Avatar as she held Nyla's mouth closed. "Okay. So, who's got something with the Avatar's scent on it?"

"I have Aang's staff," Katara called from Appa's saddle, holding the stick out.

June collected the staff before holding it in front of Nyla. The shirshu took a few sniffs of the staff before he jumped up and began walking around in circles. Nyla continued sniffing around in a circle, before he finally laid down and covered his nose with his paws, whining.

"Well, what does that mean?" Zuko asked as June knelt down to pet Nyla.

"Means your friend's gone."

"We know he's gone. That's why we're trying to find him," Toph scoffed as June stood up.

"No, I mean he's gone gone. He doesn't exist," June revealed, turning back to the group. Everyone's eyes widened in shock at the information.

"What do you mean Aang doesn't exist?" Sokka exclaimed, looking nervous. "Do you mean he's . . . you know, dead?"

"Nope. We could find him if he were dead. Wow, it's a real head-scratcher. Well, see ya." June jumped on top of Nyla and prepared to leave.

"Helpful. Real helpful," Azara sighed, looking away with a frown.

"Wait. I have another idea," Zuko interjected, clambering for his pack. "There's only one other person in this world who can help us face the Fire Lord. I'll be right back with a smell sample."

Azara covered her nose with her hands as she stared in disgust at Uncle's old sandal. "There was literally nothing else you have to remember him by? Nothing else?" she huffed as Sokka buried his face into her back to try and hide from the scent.

"I think it's kind of sweet," Toph conceded, tilting her head to the side.

"I think you mean sweaty," Azara corrected as Zuko held the sandal up in front of Nyla.

Nyla took a few sniffs of it before straightening up. "Let's do this," June stated, before whipping Nyla. The shirshu quickly ran off, following the scent trail.

"Hey! Wait up!"

The group hurried onto Appa's back before the sky bison took off. Nyla led them farther and farther into the Earth Kingdom until finally they spotted the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se in the distance. A large crack seemed to have formed in the remote edge of the wall, bits and pieces of rubble strewn about.

"We're going to Ba Sing Se?" Azara asked, raising an eyebrow as she shared a look with Zuko. Appa landed next to Nyla, who was scratching at some of the rubble.

"Your uncle's somewhere beyond the wall. Nyla's getting twitchy so he can't be too far. Good luck," June offered before whipping Nyla again and running off.

Zuko sighed as he watched June go before turning back to the rest of the group. "It's been a long day. Let's camp and start our search again at dawn."

Since it was already rather late by the time they arrived at the Outer Wall, they chose to set up a rather minimal camp. A quick dinner and then off to bed. Toph bended herself an earth tent while the rest of the group lounged around on Appa.

Everyone slept soundly for a brief period of time. But then Toph sensed a disturbance. Azara woke up as a ring of fire surrounded them. The group of teenagers hurried to their feet, ready to fight whoever had come across their camp. But before they could attack, they spotted four familiar old men standing up on the rocks, looking down at them. Azara smiled at the sight of the familiar masters.

"Well, look who's here!" Bumi laughed, snorting loudly. Jeong Jeong lowered the flames around their camp before the four masters—Piandao, Jeong Jeong, Pakku, and Bumi—made their way down to the teenagers.

"What's going on? We're surrounded by old people," Toph spoke up, sounding confused.

"Not just any old people. These are great masters and friends of ours," Katara explained before walking over to Pakku and bowing respectfully. "Pakku."

"It is respectful to bow to an old master, but how about a hug for your new grandfather?" Pakku suggested, holding his arms out.

"That's so exciting!" Katara exclaimed after a moment, running forward to embrace Pakku. Sokka gasped from behind her, clearly surprised at the news. "You and Gran-Gran must be so happy to have found each other again!"

"I made her a new betrothal necklace and everything."

Sokka ran over, hugging Pakku tightly as well. "Welcome to the family, Gramp-Gramp."

"You can still just call me Pakku." He gently pushed Sokka away, looking slightly annoyed at the teenage boy.

"How about . . . Grand-Pakku?" Sokka suggested, waving his arms around.

"No."

"It's good to see you again, Master," Kesuk added, bowing to Pakku respectfully.

"You as well, Kesuk," Pakku returned before straightening up. "I heard you and Princess Yue have been working hard to restore the Northern Water Tribe. Though you seem to have gone off course just a bit."

"Perhaps a slight bit," Kesuk conceded as Pakku glanced between him and Sokka.

"Well, as the closest thing I have to a grandson, I'm glad to see that you're getting along with Sokka and Katara, Kesuk." Pakku walked off, chatting with Katara about wedding plans, as Kesuk and Sokka shared an awkward look.

"We don't have to treat each other like step-grand-sibling-things . . . right?"

"Definitely not."

"Oh, thank spirits."

Azara smiled and walked over to Jeong Jeong, his spiky white hair just as crazy as she remembered. "Master Jeong Jeong, it's good to see you again," Azara bowed, Jeong Jeong returning the gesture with a kind smile.

"I hear that you've made great progress in your firebending, Azara. As I knew you would."

"Thank you, Master. Guys, this is Jeong Jeong. He was Aang's first firebending master and he taught me how to bend lightning," Azara introduced Jeong Jeong to the group.

"Master Piandao," Sokka called, walking over to his former master, and bowing respectfully.

"Hello, Sokka," Piandao replied, bowing back before turning his gaze to Zuko and Azara. "I'm glad to see three of my former pupils here today."

"Three?" Sokka asked, glancing back at Zuko and Azara, who bowed as well.

"Who do you think taught Zuko how to use his swords?" Azara pointed out, crossing her arms over her chest with a teasing smirk on her face.

"But . . . that's only two."

"Azara can be quite the markswoman when she has a knife," Piandao replied, causing Sokka's eyes to widen in surprise.

"You can throw knives?" he exclaimed, looking happily stunned.

"I did when I was bored. More of a backup skill," Azara replied as Sokka stepped beside her.

"Any other fun secrets my girlfriend forgot to tell me?" Sokka joked, causing Azara to shake her head playfully at him.

"I'll let you know if I think of any," Azara winked before walking off to chat with Suki and Toph.

Piandao followed Sokka's gaze with a smile. Reaching out to grab Sokka's shoulder, Piandao decided to offer the young Water Tribe boy some friendly advice. "You know, Sokka, the flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all."

"Oh . . . that's nice," Sokka trailed off, clearly not getting the metaphor.

"He means, you don't meet a girl like that every dynasty," Pakku translated for Sokka, a slightly unimpressed expression on his face. "Though I'm sure your grandmother would be more than thrilled to meet your girlfriend in the South Pole."

"Oh . . . right," Sokka replied, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly as a light blush settled over his cheeks.

"So, wait. How do you all know each other?" Suki asked, looking around at the masters.

"All old people know each other. Don't you know that?" Bumi chuckled, snorting again.

"We're all part of the same ancient secret society. A group that transcends the divisions of the four nations," Piandao explained, his hands folded behind his back.

"The Order of the White Lotus," Zuko spoke up, taking a step forward. Azara's eyes widened in recognition, thinking about the White Lotus tile Uncle had given her all those months ago.

"That's the one," Bumi confirmed with a smile.

"The White Lotus has always been about philosophy and beauty and truth. But about a month ago, a call went out that we were needed for something important," Jeong Jeong explained as Pakku turned to Zuko and Azara.

"It came from a Grand Lotus: your uncle, Iroh of the Fire Nation." Zuko smiled, sharing a look with Azara at the information.

"Well, that's who we're looking for," Toph spoke, raising a finger in the air.

"Then we'll take you to him."

"Wait!" Bumi exclaimed, pushing Piandao and Jeong Jeong aside. "Someone's missing from your group. Someone very important . . . where's Momo?" he demanded, standing rather close and up in Sokka's face.

"He's gone. And so is Aang," Sokka replied, leaning back awkwardly.

"Oh well. So long as they have each other, I'm sure we have nothing to worry about. Let's go!" Bumi shouted. He slammed himself into the ground before launching himself away with a rock column, chortling loudly.

The rest of the group walked along quietly, catching up with Bumi, before heading for the White Lotus camp in the Agrarian Zone. "So, Bumi . . . how did you end up escaping your imprisonment in Omashu?" Sokka asked offhandedly.

"Escape? I didn't escape. Everybody else escaped. There I was back in Omashu, waiting for just the right moment. I didn't know what or when, but I knew I'd know it when I knew it." Bumi then went off on a mostly incoherent tangent about how he freed Omashu from the Fire Nation during the eclipse.

"Wow! You took back your whole city all by yourself!" Suki praised, looking amazed.

"So, what about you guys? Did you do anything interesting on the day of the eclipse?" Bumi questioned. Sokka and Zuko shared a look before shaking their heads nonchalantly.

"Nah."

"No, not really."

The group finally reached the White Lotus camp, which was surrounded by a protective wall of earth. Bumi lowered the earthen entrance before leading the way inside the camp. "Well, here we are. Welcome to Old People Camp," Bumi joked as the group filed inside.

"Where . . . where is he?" Zuko asked, looking around for Uncle.

"Your uncle's in there, Prince Zuko," Piandao replied, pointing at a tent on the other side of camp. Zuko nodded, looking worried, before he walked over to the tent. Azara watched him go before following after him. Zuko sunk to his knees outside of the tent as she reached him, his head bowed as he stared at the ground.

"Zuko, what's wrong?" she questioned, kneeling beside him.

"Uncle hates me, I know it," Zuko sighed, looking away. "He loved and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned against him. How can I even face him?"

"Because he's already forgiven you, Zuko," Azara pointed out, placing a reassuring hand on her older brother's shoulder.

"How can you be so sure?"

"You left home to help Aang. You chose your own path, took control of your own destiny. That's what he wanted for you since forever." Azara smiled softly as she lowered her hand back to her side. "He'll be proud of you, Zuko. I know I am."

"You really mean that?"

"Of course, Zuzu," Azara added, pulling him into a tight hug.

"You just had to ruin the moment with that stupid nickname, didn't you?" he sighed, but hugged his sister back anyways.

"Go. Go speak to him," Azara urged him, pushing him towards the tent. Zuko smiled and nodded before slipping inside the tent.

Azara decided to leave Zuko and Uncle alone, returning to where the other teenagers had gathered. The White Lotus members had graciously offered them tents for the night, promising to regroup with everyone in the morning.

Azara rose early, leaving the others to catch up on some sleep. Walking out of the tent, Azara smiled softly when she spotted Zuko and Uncle sitting around a fire, chatting. She made her way over to the two before taking her seat beside Zuko.

"I told you that he'd forgive you," she teased, before turning to Uncle. "It's good to see you free and healthy, Uncle."

"And it's good to see you alive and free as well, Azara," Uncle returned, sipping some of his morning tea. "I'm sorry I could not come to your aid sooner."

"It's alright, we figured it out," Azara replied, accepting a bowl of breakfast from her uncle.

Eventually, the other teenagers woke up and gathered around the fire with Uncle, Zuko, and Azara. "Uncle, you're the only person other than the Avatar who can possibly defeat the Father Lord," Zuko stated, getting the meeting right on track.

"Fire Lord," Azara corrected, nudging her brother gently.

"That's what I just said!"

"Hmm . . ." Iroh trailed off, looking deep in thought at Zuko's words.

"We need you to come with us."

"No, Zuko, it won't turn out well," Iroh stated with a sense of finality, staring back at his nephew.

"You can beat him! And we'll be there to help," Zuko assured Iroh, his hand clenched into a fist with a determined look in his eyes.

"Even if I did defeat Ozai, and I don't know that I could, it would be the wrong way to end the war. History would see it as just more senseless violence, a brother killing a brother to grab power. The only way for this war to end peacefully is for the Avatar to defeat the Fire Lord," Iroh decided, setting down his bowl.

"And then . . . then you would come and take your rightful place on the throne?" Zuko asked, looking at Uncle with some hope.

"No. Someone new must take the throne. An idealist with a pure heart and unquestionable honor. It has to be you, Prince Zuko."

"Unquestionable honor? But I've made so many mistakes," Zuko argued, looking away.

"Yes, you have made mistakes, Zuko. You've struggled; you've suffered, but you have always followed your own path. You restored your own honor, and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation," Iroh stated, causing Zuko to look away.

"I'll try, Uncle," he vowed seriously, nodding to Iroh.

"Well, what if Aang doesn't come back?" Toph asked, sounding concerned.

"Sozin's Comet is arriving, and our destinies are upon us. Aang will face the Fire Lord." Uncle paused, taking a deep breath as he closed his eyes. "When I was a boy, I had a vision that I would one day take Ba Sing Se. Only now do I see that my destiny is to take it back from the Fire Nation, so the Earth Kingdom can be free again."

"That's why you gathered the members of the White Lotus," Suki realized, motioning to the rest of the camp.

"Yes. Zuko, you must return to the Fire Nation, so that when the Fire Lord falls, you can assume the throne and restore peace and order. But Azula will be there, waiting for you."

"I can handle Azula," Zuko stated, looking determined.

"Not alone! You'll need help."

"What did I tell you about trying to face Azula by yourself, Zuko?" Azara reminded her brother, a similar determined look in her eye. "Azula's my fight too. We'll handle her together."

"Agreed."

"Katara," Azara called, turning to the waterbender, "we also might need some of your healing hands, knowing how these things usually turn out."

"And some help with putting Azula in her place," Zuko added, though Azara didn't look entirely happy with his phrasing.

"It would be my pleasure," Katara nodded, a small smile on her lips.

"What about us?" Sokka questioned from beside Azara. "What's our destiny today?"

"What do you think it is?" Iroh inquired, staring over at Sokka, who looked down.

"I think that, even though we don't know where Aang is . . . we need to do everything we can to stop the airship fleet," Sokka stated, turning to Toph, Suki, and Kesuk.

"And that means when Aang does face the Fire Lord, we'll be right there if he needs us," Toph replied, nodding in agreement.

They broke off into their teams, preparing for their separate battles. After she was sure that their supplies were secured on Appa, Azara turned and headed over to Sokka. He was examining the map that Piandao had given him but looked up as he heard Azara approaching.

"You ready?" she asked softly as he rolled the map up.

"As ready as I'll ever be. You?" he returned, tucking the map into the eel hound saddle. "Facing your sister . . . are you sure you're ready for it?"

Azara took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. "I'm ready. Frankly, I should have been ready a long time ago."

"Just . . . be careful. Please."

"I'm always careful," Azara spoke with a small smile, before sobering slightly. Realizing that it was nearing time for them to say goodbye, Azara glanced down at the cactus bracelet sitting on her wrist. "You know, we never got an official second date."

Sokka blinked for a moment before realizing the truth to her words. "Yeah, I guess we never did. Maybe when this is all over . . . we can get that second date. Finally."

"No interruptions, no annoying siblings, no war, no end-of-the-world scenarios . . . just us," Azara agreed, smiling softly. They stepped forward, hugging each other tightly.

"Don't do anything Zuko would do. Please," Azara sighed, burying her face into his shoulder.

"I'll try not to," Sokka chuckled as he gripped her tighter.

They pulled back for a moment before leaning in and sharing a goodbye kiss. It wasn't long or desperate. After all, there were plenty of people milling around. A private, emotional goodbye was not an option. This kiss was soft, yet firm. Comforting, yet filled with longing. It was a promise, a promise that they would see each other again. That this would not be their final goodbye to each other.

Pulling away, they rested their foreheads against each other's for a brief moment, before finally releasing each other. "I love you," Azara stated, squeezing his hand.

"I love you too," Sokka returned, still managing a smile. But when Azara turned to head over to Appa, it fell from his lips. He turned to mount the eel hound, watching Azara walk off with a sorrowful expression on his face.

As Azara walked towards Appa, she paused when Uncle called out to her. "Watch over your brother," Uncle spoke, glancing up at Zuko. "You know how he gets."

"Oh, believe me, Uncle, I know," Azara replied, her tone light despite the gravity of the situation.

"And when it comes to Azula—"

"—Uncle," Azara interjected, cutting him off. "I know you think she needs to go down . . . and I know she's done a lot of things that people would call irredeemable, even to you. But she's still my sister. If I have to defeat her, I'm going to do it my way."

"I understand that Azara. I just don't want your vision to become clouded."

"I don't think my vision has ever been clearer, Uncle," Azara stated honestly, standing up straighter. "I know what we have to do today. And that comes first. But so does repairing our family. I'm not going to let what happened between you and my father happen to me, Zuko, and Azula . . . I can't."

Uncle nodded in understanding before motioning for Azara to climb up Appa. "You know, my niece, you speak for much wisdom for a young woman of your age."

"I may have picked up on a few things along the way," Azara returned, glancing around the White Lotus camp. "And maybe . . . in the future . . . there will be room for an old woman in a set of those robes."

"I think that is very likely," Iroh agreed with a smile before turning to Zuko.

"So, if I'm going to be Fire Lord after the war is over, what are you going to do?" Zuko asked Uncle, who smiled at his question.

"After I reconquer Ba Sing Se, I'm going to reconquer my tea shop, and I'm going to play Pai Sho every day," Iroh vowed, flipping a Pai Sho tile into the air, and catching it with his hand.

Sokka grabbed the reins of the eel hound as Toph clung to his back. Suki and Kesuk sat behind them. Zuko sat stoically on Appa's head, the reins in his hands. Azara and Katara sat together in Appa's saddle. It was the calm before the storm. Their final breath of free air before they plunged into the belly of the beast.

"Goodbye, General Iroh," Katara called to Uncle, who nodded pensively.

"Goodbye, everyone. Today, destiny is our friend. I know it."

Azara shared one last longing look with Sokka before Appa took off, the eel hound leaving the White Lotus camp not long after.

A.N. Just a reminder—the whole Sokka finding out about Azara's knife skills with Piandao was an AU section, so in my canon, this is the first time he found out about the knife throwing skills.

Ah, we're so close to the end! During the next two chapters, there will be a bit of jumping around between POVs, though the main part will still be focused on Azara and the Final Agni Kai portion of the battle.

Thanks for reading, voting, and commenting as always!