Deciding to leave Azula to her own devices, Azara walked around, trying to dodge some of the boys who perhaps didn't want to wait in the crowd around Ty Lee. The party was in full swing as Azara wandered around, giving her plenty of cover to just exist in the crowd. She decided to get some more punch when the sound of an argument grabbed her attention.

"What are you doing?" Ruon-Jian demanded, flipping his hair out of his face.

"Stop talking to my girlfriend!" Zuko snapped as Azara sighed, resting one of her hands against her head as she muttered out a series of curse words.

"Relax, it's just a party," Ruon-Jian replied, walking over. As he took another step forward, Zuko knocked him across the room and into a vase, which broke from the force.

"Zuko, what is wrong with you?" Mai snapped, getting to her feet, and grabbing him by the shoulder.

"What's wrong with me!?"

"Your temper is out of control! You blow up over every little thing! You're so impatient and hotheaded and angry!"

"Well, at least I feel something, as opposed to you. You have no passion for anything! You're just a big blah!" Zuko yelled as a moment of silence fell over the whole party.

"It's over, Zuko. We're done," Mai huffed, turning away from him, and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Who broke my nana's vase!?" Chan screamed, running over. Ruon-Jian pointed at Zuko, causing Chan to storm over. "That's it! You're out of here!"

"I was just leaving," Zuko snapped before storming out of the building.

"Have fun by yourself, loser boy," Ruon-Jian called after Zuko, causing Azara to roll her eyes.

"Nice," Chan chuckled, high-fiving his friend.

Turning to find her friends, Azara spotted Ty Lee first, who was surrounded once more by a horde of teenage boys. Grabbing her by the arm and tugging her out of the huddle, Azara pointed over at Mai. "We should probably go. Can you go help Mai? I'll find Azula. Do you know where she went?"

"Last that I saw her, she was out on the balcony with Chan," Ty Lee revealed, causing Azara to nod and walk off.

Heading out to the balcony, Azara sighed as she only spotted Chan out on the deck. "Have you seen my sister?" she asked him, placing her hands on her hips.

"Who's your sister?" he asked, turning around to stare at Azara.

"The one who told you that your outfit was sharp enough to pierce a battleship," Azara replied in a deadpan as Chan straightened up.

"That's your sister?"

"Yes. Now, a couple people saw her out here last. Have you seen her?" Azara prompted, starting to grow impatient.

"No, I haven't," Chan replied, walking over. "You're really sisters?" he repeated, clearly in disbelief at Azara's words.

"Yes," Azara snapped defensively as Chan looked her up and down. "Do you have any idea where she could have gone?"

"I suppose you're both hot, so that would make sense."

"Where's my sister?" Azara huffed in a deadpan with her eyes narrowed.

"Why do you only want to talk about your sister? I was hoping we could have a nice chat about—" As Chan drew closer, Azara narrowed her eyes at him. Grabbing his arm and twisting it, Azara drilled her knee into his back, pushing him to his knees. Chan yelped out as Azara held him down.

"You even try and touch me again and I'm dislocating it next time," she huffed, pushing Chan down before walking away. "My sister's too good for you, loser boy."

"You know, I can see the family resemblance now," Chan muttered as he stared after her.

Walking back into the house, Azara spotted Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai over by the door. "Are you alright?" Azara asked Azula, who nodded despite looking mildly disappointed.

"Boys are stupid," she replied calmly as Azara nodded in agreement.

"Boys are stupid," Azara agreed before looking over at Ty Lee and Mai. "Now, let's go find our stupid brother."

"I'm pretty sure I know where he went," Azula stated, sharing a look with Azara.

Leaving Mai and Ty Lee at the beach, Azara and Azula climbed the stairs up to their old family vacation house. As Azula had predicted, they found Zuko sitting on the porch, leaning against one of the pillars, and holding something in his hands that Azara could not identify.

"I thought we'd find you here," Azula sighed, placing a hand on her hip.

"Those summers we spent here seem so long ago. So much has changed," Zuko stated, leaning his head back on the pillar.

Azara glanced up at the house before holding out a hand to Zuko. "Come on, let's go. No need to hang around here."

"Come on, this place is depressing," Azula insisted, staring up at the building before walking away, heading back down the trail. Zuko grabbed Azara's hand, accepting her help, before the two walked down to the beach after Azula.

As they walked over to Ty Lee and Mai, Azara elbowed Zuko in the side. He shot her a look, which she ignored, gesturing over at Mai with a flick of her head. "Fix that. Don't be stupid," Azara warned her brother, before walking over to where Azula was sitting.

"Hey," Mai called to Zuko, causing him to turn to her.

"Where's your new boyfriend?" Zuko prodded, causing Mai to turn away, a hard glare on her face. Azara shook her head at Zuko. She knew she wasn't the best flirter on the planet or the best with relationships. But compared to Azula and Zuko, maybe she wasn't half bad. Zuko sighed before moving to sit next to Mai. "Are you cold?" Mai smacked his hand away as he tried to wrap an arm around her.

"I'm freezing!" Ty Lee piped up as Azara's mind traveled to a different place for a moment.

"I'll make a fire," Zuko stated, standing up, and turning towards their old vacation home. "There's plenty of stuff to burn in there."

Zuko returned a few minutes later, his arms full of a collection of crap from their childhood. Azara helped Zuko set up a fire but sat back as he started to burn some of the more sentimental items. The fire grew slowly as Zuko added more to the pile, tossing an old portrait of their family into the fire. Azara stared at the image of herself, seated between Azula and Zuko at their parent's feet.

The poor child didn't know what the world would have in store for her.

"What are you doing?" Ty Lee asked Zuko, who instantly became defensive.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" he huffed, glaring over at Ty Lee, who glanced down at the fire with a sad expression.

"But it's a painting of your family," Ty Lee pointed out as Zuko narrowed his eyes at her.

"You think I care!?"

"I think you do," Ty Lee replied confidently as Azara looked away.

"You don't know me, so why don't you just mind your own business?"

"I know you," Ty Lee scoffed, staring into the fire.

"No, you don't. You're stuck in your little 'Ty Lee world' where everything's great all the time."

"Zuko, leave her alone," Mai snapped as Zuko turned around.

"'I'm so pretty. Look at me. I can walk on my hands. Whoo!'" Zuko slipped into a handstand before he fell onto his back, laying on the sand for a moment before speaking once more. "Circus freak." Azula giggled at his statement as Azara shook her head, shooting her sister a look.

"Yes, I'm a circus freak. Go ahead and laugh all you want. You want to know why I joined the circus?" Ty Lee asked as Azula sighed.

"Here we go."

"Do you have any idea what my home life was like? Growing up with six sisters who look exactly like me? It was like I didn't even have my own name." Ty Lee dropped to the ground, kneeling in front of the fire. "I joined the circus because I was scared of spending the rest of my life as part of a matched set. At least I'm different now. 'Circus freak' is a compliment!"

"Guess that explains why you need ten boyfriends, too," Mai piped up, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'm sorry, what?" Ty Lee scoffed, glaring over at Mai.

"Attention issues. You couldn't get enough attention when you were a kid, so you're trying to make up for it now."

"Well, what's your excuse, Mai? You were an only child for fifteen years, but even with all that attention, your aura is this dingy, pasty, gray—"

"—I don't believe in auras," Mai interjected, tilting her chin up.

"Yeah, you don't believe in anything," Zuko scoffed, looking over at his girlfriend.

"Oh, well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy as the rest of you," Mai shrugged, not looking sorry at all.

"I'm sorry, too. I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once instead of keeping all your feelings bottled up inside. She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?" Zuko snapped as Mai leaned back on the rock, cradling the back of her head with her hands.

"What do you want from me? You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well, it wasn't. I was a rich only child who got anything I wanted . . . as long as I behaved . . . and sat still and didn't speak unless spoken to. My mother said I had to keep out of trouble. We had my dad's political career to think about."

"Well, that's it, then. You had a controlling mother who had certain expectations, and if you strayed from them, you were shut down. That's why you're afraid to care about anything, and why you can't express yourself," Azula explained as Azara stared into the fire.

"You want me to express myself? Leave me alone!" Mai yelled, standing up.

"I like it when you express yourself," Zuko complimented, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't touch me! I'm still mad at you!"

"My life hasn't been that easy either, Mai," Zuko replied harshly as Mai turned away from him.

"Whatever. That doesn't excuse the way you've been acting."

"Calm down, guys. This much negative energy is bad for your skin. You'll totally break out," Ty Lee warned as Zuko rounded on her.

"Bad skin? Normal teenagers worry about bad skin. I don't have that luxury. My father decided to teach me a permanent lesson on my face!" Azara looked away as Zuko pointed at his scar, glaring into the fire as Ty Lee fumbled for a response.

"Sorry, Zuko, I . . ."

"For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy. I'm back home now, my dad talks to me. Ha! He even thinks I'm a hero! Everything should be perfect, right? I should be happy now, but I'm not. I'm angrier than ever and I don't know why!"

"Maybe Dad's acceptance wasn't what you were after all along," Azara pointed out calmly, staring into the fire at Zuko rounded on her.

"Look, just because you felt the need to do everything in your power to betray—"

"—If you're about to insinuate everything I did from the second I left the Fire Nation was purely out of spite, you don't know me at all, Zuko," Azara cut him off, glaring into the fire as Azula and Zuko shared a look.

"You're right, we don't know you," Zuko stated as Azara turned to glare at him. "You're a completely different person."

"So, what you're saying is that I'm the crazy one out of us three?" Azara scoffed, getting to her feet, and glaring between her siblings. "Well?"

"You did commit treason," Azula pointed out calmly, glancing up at her sister.

"Yeah, what of it?" Azara scoffed as Zuko rolled his eyes.

"This is exactly what I'm talking about!"

"What are you talking about, Zuko?" Azara demanded, crossing her arms over her chest.

"How could you just turn your back on your family and act like nothing happened?" Zuko asked as Azara shook her head, glaring over at her older brother.

"If you didn't want me here then you shouldn't have dragged me back here against my will, Zuko!" Azara snapped, the fire raising dangerously with her temper.

"He didn't say we didn't want you here," Azula corrected, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh, so you want to act like everything's just fine then? Like everything that happened over the last few years was just a figment of our imagination?" Azara drawled sarcastically, glaring over at Zuko. "Well, I'm fucking tired of pretending everything is okay! Everything is not okay! Everything hasn't been okay for a fucking long time!"

"Well, your decision to leave didn't help, Azara!" Zuko yelled back as Azara rolled her eyes.

"We've already had this conversation before Zuko. Remember? In the Catacombs, where you betrayed me and you," Azara rounded on Azula, who glanced up at her, "shot one of my best friends in the back with lightning. So, don't go around claiming that I'm always the only one in the wrong here."

"You could have joined us!" Zuko snapped angrily.

"Right, because we're all so happy together! A walking poster for a perfectly happy family," Azara scoffed, looking away.

"We're not going to fix anything if you just hold all your emotions back, Azara," Zuko told her as Azara turned to face him fully.

"What do you want me to say, Zuko!? That I still hold resentment against you because you were Mom's favorite and she never seemed to actually want Azula or I? That the few months I was away from here were some of the happiest months of my life and that makes me feel so guilty? That I wonder if my relationship with either of you is even salvageable while Father's around? That part of me thinks that we'll never be a happy family again after all the shit we've put each other through?"

"What are you talking about?" Zuko asked in a quieter tone.

"Never mind," Azara huffed, moving to sit down when Zuko yelled at her again.

"No, we're talking about this right now, Azara!"

"You know, you can't just pick and choose when you want to be my older brother, Zuko!" Azara shouted back at him. "One minute you're consoling me and the next you're trying to blast my head off and calling me a disgrace! Which is it!? I'm so tired of dealing with your mood swings!"

"I'm not angry at you, Azara!" Zuko snapped as Azula glanced between her siblings.

"There's a simple question you need to answer, then. Who are you angry at?" Azula asked, staring up at Zuko.

"No one! I'm just angry," Zuko retorted as Azara raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing her brother's words.

"Yeah, who are you angry at, Zuko?" Ty Lee piped up, staring over at Zuko.

"Everyone. I don't know," Zuko sighed, his frustration clearly rising.

"Is it Father?" Azara guessed with her head tilted to the side.

"No, no."

"Your uncle?" Ty Lee suggested.

"Me?" Azula asked calmly.

"No, no, no, no!"

"Then who? Who are you angry at?" Mai demanded, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Answer the question, Zuko."

"Talk to us."

"Come on, answer the question."

"Come on, answer it."

"I'm angry at myself!" Zuko finally snapped, throwing his arms down, and causing the fire to shoot up in front of them. Azara didn't look away as the fire grew higher before eventually dying down to embers.

"Why?" Azara asked, looking up at her older brother, who faltered for a moment.

"Because I'm confused. Because I'm not sure I know the difference between right and wrong anymore."

"You're pathetic," Azula scoffed, looking away.

"I know one thing I care about," Mai piped up, walking over to him. "I care about you." Azara grimaced as they shared a kiss.

"Well, those were wonderful performances, everyone," Azula sighed, clapping sarcastically.

"I guess you wouldn't understand, would you, Azula?" Zuko asked, wrapping an arm around Mai. "Because you're just so perfect."

"Well, yes, I guess you're right. I don't have sob stories like all of you. I could sit here and complain how our mom liked Zuko more than me and Azara, or how Azara chose Zuko over me when the time came to it, but I don't really care." Azara stared sadly over at her twin, who continued to stare into the burning embers. "My own mother . . . thought I was a monster." Azula paused as Azara reached out, squeezing her shoulder. "She was right, of course, but it still hurt."

"What Lo and Li said came true. The beach did help us learn about ourselves. I feel all smoothed. I'll always remember this." Ty Lee smiled, rubbing a smooth stone from the beach.

"You know what would make this trip really memorable?" Azula asked as she stood up with a smirk on her face.

They returned to Chan's house, Azula leading the way as if she was leading an army into battle. She knocked lightly on the door, which opened soon after, revealing a confused Chan. "We've got some bad news, Chan," Azula sighed dramatically, a hand resting on her hip.

"Party's over," Zuko snapped, his eyes narrowed.

They fanned out around the house. Zuko easily kicked a table in half as the other teenagers scrambled to get out of the house. Mai threw out some of her knives, slicing through some paintings hanging from the walls. Ty Lee climbed up onto a support beam, before swinging around. She grabbed onto a chandelier, swinging to the next, and causing the last one to crash to the ground. She continued on her way, dropping chandeliers as she went.

Azara stood over by the drinks station, swirling her arms together, heating up the air around all the glass. Raising the temperature high enough, Azara swung her arms, pulling the heat back with her. She walked away as all the glasses shattered at the quick change in temperature, glancing over at Chan as he dropped to the ground, crying at the destruction.

"Let's get out of here," Azara called, wrapping her arms around her siblings. Ty Lee grabbed onto Azula's other side and Mai leaned into Zuko as they walked out of the destruction that they had just caused with content looks on their faces.  

A.N. So that's the Beach episode! I thought it was relatively fluffy enough to not need a little fluff AU, so I hoped you guys liked it! 

Just so you guys know, I have about three chapters left, which are mostly OC stuff, and then it's the Invasion and Part 2 of Book 3 stuff. Will probably update again in about a week or two depending on how it goes. Thanks for reading, voting, and commenting!