Zuko was pissed. "She got away again!"
Azula had already escaped from the asylum three times in the year and a half since the war has ended. She would get out, hide for a couple of months, get caught by June the bounty hunter, just to break out a couple of months later. He's already paid June's fee three times. He did not want to pay it again.
"Let's see if the Avatar can look for her." He won't charge me.
Aang did respond to the letter and he, Sokka, and Katara took off looking for her.
"How did she escape?" Sokka questioned.
"I don't know, but Zuko said it was the fourth time she got out."
"THE FOURTH!" Katara yelled.
"They keep giving her a new cell which is configured differently, but she gets out every time."
"How did they get her back the other times?" Sokka questioned.
"June, but she costs too much, so Zuko doesn't want to pay again."
"Why doesn't he pay us?" Sokka questioned.
"You can charge him if you want, but the Avatar is supposed to help people, not make money off them."
"They could at least pay for costs if they can afford it. We could help more people if we got paid," Katara pointed out.
"We could, but maybe we should just ask for donations when we're out of money. I would feel bad if people didn't ask for my help because they felt obliged to pay me."
"Where was she the other times June found her?" Katara asked.
"The first time, she was on Whaletail Island. The second time she was in Omashu and the third time she was in Chin Village."
"So she was never that far from the Fire Nation," Sokka said.
"And she was in places where none one from our group would be," Katara said. "if that's the pattern, then she's not in Ba Sing Se as that's where Toph and Iroh are."
"And she's not on Kyoshi Island, since that's where Suki and the other warriors are." Sokka added.
"And they'd recognize her at the tribes or the Northern Air Temple," Aang said.
"So what's left?" Katara questioned.
"She could have tried the Fire Nation this time after hiding away from it the first three times."
Aang, Sokka and Katara decided to start searching the little islands.
After three weeks, however, they came up with nothing and wrote to Zuko saying they had not found any signs of her.
He asked them to keep looking, and they decided to re-strategize.
"Maybe we should do a sweep of the places she had been before. They are all fairly close together and she must have known someone there if she hid until June's shirshu found her," Sokka said.
The next plan was to visit Whaletail Island, Kyoshi Island (just in case Ty Lee hid her), Chin Village, Gaoling, Omashu and the Foggy Swamp.
This trip took five weeks, and they still didn't find her.
"I think he should just pay June," Sokka declared. They agreed and abandoned the search after two months of trying.
Zuko groaned when he got their letter. "She charges more each time I have to send her. She says for increased annoyance."
Mai laughed. "I'm sorry, but this is just comical at this point." Maybe they should let her go. She must be sane if she keeps getting away without leaving any evidence as to how she got out.
Again, Zuko sent a request for June to come find Azula. Four days later, it reached her home in Ba Sing Se.
"Your brother wants me to find you again," June said as Azula lied in her bed, lazily. The first time, he contacted June right away. The second time, he waited a couple of weeks until the royal guard gave up. The third time he waited a month and now he waited two months. He really doesn't want to pay her, but he still keeps paying her.
"How much will you get him to pay this time?"
"I'll see if I can boost it another ten percent."
"How long do you think it will take before you have enough money for us to run away?" Azula asked her.
June kissed her. "Oh I have enough already. I just like chasing your cute butt down."
Azula chuckled "Tell me when to run. We have to make sure Zuzu doesn't get suspicious." Azula was amazed that he hadn't figured it out already.
"No one knows you're here. I've never brought anyone else to my house."
"Really? Does that make me special?"
"You know why you're special, and it's not just that thing you do when you heatbend your tongue."
"Speaking of special tongue action," Azula pulled June back into bed.
The following week, June was in the Fire Nation palace once more. Zuko balked at a 10% price hike, but he eventually agreed to 5% more.
"Try to find her quickly."
"Finding her is easy," June said. "Getting her stubborn ass over here is the nuisance. Do you know how many burns I have gotten from her?" Granted most of them were sex-related accidents, but Zuko need not know that.
"I know. I just can't figure out how she keep escaping."
Maybe it was because June kept breaking her out. What Zuzu doesn't know won't hurt him.