This chapter kind of got away from me, so it's a bit longer… But it is the last one so I didn't think you would mind.

oooooooooo

Chapter 6

"Here. It's just like you left it, darling." Ursa led her daughter into her room after she was thoroughly washed of her time spent amongst the commoners. Now that she was appropriately dressed, Kiyi almost looked like nothing changed. But in reality, everything did.

"Are you going to speak to Zuko after this?" the girl walked over to her dresser and sat down, staring at herself in the mirror.

"He's not here right now. That's right, you don't know… Him and Mai are coming back this afternoon for their engagement party."

Kiyi looked at her mother's face in the mirror.

"Yes, they finally settled on a date… I'm so proud. So you see, I can't do it at the party…"

"So you'll do it when everyone's gone home?" Kiyi asked.

"I don't think it's right, ruining their good mood with something like that."

"Do you understand that right this second someone could be chocking the life out of Azula?!"

"Darling, why would you say something like that…" Ursa sat beside her daughter with a worried expression, "We never asked for her to be harmed, we simply wanted her to come home. Would that be the worst thing in the world, if she came home?"

"It would. You promised-"

"Alright! I'll talk to your brother after the party." Ursa grabbed a strand of Kiyi's hair, "And I'll send someone to take care of your hair, it's a little uneven."

"My sister cut it. It's perfect." Kiyi said, mostly to annoy her mother.

"I know you're overwhelmed now, but things will be back to normal before you know it."

After saying that Ursa slowly made her way out of the room, but not before glancing back one more time at her daughter. Sitting and staring at the mirror sadly really wasn't like her Kiyi.

oooooooooo

The party started at six o'clock, but Kiyi made sure she came to the ballroom early. She put on the dress that was laid out for her, she shooed away a hairdresser her mother sent and put her hair into a little bun herself. She couldn't leave her room without two guards following her, which was annoying, but also expected.

She patiently awaited her brother's return, knowing there was no way she could miss it, since he always had a horde of people surrounding him with questions and news. When she noticed this mass of people entering she sprinted across the room and elbowed her way into Zuko's line of sight.

"Hey, Z… Can I talk to you about something?" Kiyi was advised against using the nickname Zuzu in front of the press.

"Sure, Kiyi. How did the private painting lessons go?"

"The what?"

"The painting lessons on Ember Island?"

He didn't even know she ran away. Of course, he didn't.

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about… You see-"

"Excuse me, Fire Lord, but I have just received news that the cooks have absolutely nothing vegetarian to offer for the Avatar." a servant interrupted her.

"That can't be true… They must have some rice in the kitchen, let me talk to them." Zuko gestured the man to lead the way, "See you at the party, Kiyi."

As she watched him walk away, Kiyi realized there was no way she could tell him the whole story before the guests start arriving. She'd just have to wait.

The party was boring as usual. A lot of very important people attended, all the people that knew her as the Fire Lord's cute little sister Kiki, or Kimi…

Mai's brother Tom-Tom was there, being his usual arrogant self. Kiyi whished more than anything that she could tell him how not two days ago she got firebending lessons from none other than Princess Azula herself. That would shut him up for sure…

Then, just when she found a quiet corner of the room, she felt someone drag her behind one of the pillars, while putting a hand over her mouth. She couldn't say anything, but she did try to struggle her way out of the person's grip until she recognized her. It was Azula, all dressed up to fit into the formal party.

Since Kiyi calmed down, Azula let go of her slowly.

"What are you doing here?" Kiyi asked.

Azula looked around to see if they were being watched before speaking, "I came to get you out."

"But you can't… They'll never leave you alone if-"

"Listen, I'm an adult, I know what I'm doing. I know you're not exactly being tortured here, but I want you to live the way you want to because… Well, you know."

Kiyi smiled widely instead of a response and jumped forward to hug her sister. Azula returned the hug carefully, not really able to remember the last time she was a part of one.

"Alright… Easy now, we mustn't draw attention to ourselves." Azula said and Kiyi immediately let go of her.

"I see you took my dress advice."

"Yes, that was brilliant. I put this ridiculous thing on and no one paid any attention to my face."

"But there are a lot of people here who know your face very well. Not just our family, the whole Team Avatar is here."

"Don't worry, we'll slip out just as easily as I got in." Azula said, "You must be happy to have proved me wrong."

At first Kiyi didn't know what she was talking about, but then she remembered, "You told me the first night, that if someone had to choose between helping themselves and someone else, they would always choose themselves. But I didn't. I came back home, so you could be happy."

"Yes, you did."

"And you did, too. You could have just stayed away and you would have been free. But you came here, risking your life for me."

Azula hadn't even thought about that. Kiyi broke the rule, but so did she.

"Oh, no." Kiyi said suddenly, looking over Azula's shoulder.

"What?" Azula knew better than to turn around.

"It's Katara. She's heading over here."

Seeing Kiyi's expression, Azula concluded Katara must have been pretty close, so she simply waved goodbye as to not seem suspicious and walked to the other side of the pillar where the woman couldn't see her.

"What are you up to, Kiyi?" Katara finally made her way through the crowd, "You must be excited for your brother…"

"Yes, very much so…"

"Oh, you're getting so big, you know that?" Katara reached forward and pinched the girl's cheek, "I love that dress on you."

"Thank you." Kiyi said and smiled, thinking that would signal the woman that the conversation was over, but Katara just kept standing there, like she was waiting for something.

"And how's the baby doing?" Kiyi finally figured out what it was.

"Oh, we're both doing just wonderful." Katara rubbed her already visible belly, "You know, we've been talking about names a lot lately, Aang and I. You know, all ancient airbender names are so interesting, but I think the child might like something more-"

"Sorry, Kat, I just remembered Mother told me I should tell you to go find her as soon as I saw you."

"Oh, did she say-"

"She just said it was very important…"

Katara nodded and slowly walked away, keeping an eye out for Ursa. Well, Kiyi wasn't planning on staying long enough to have to explain that. She looked behind the pillar where Azula was supposed to be hiding, but there was no one there.

Then her sister appeared behind her somehow and started pulling her by her hand into a hallway.

"I stand corrected, this ocean of small talk is essentially torture." the woman said and Kiyi smiled.

They hurried trough he hallway in total silence for a few minutes.

"So how are we getting out?" Kiyi asked finally, looking a bit concerned.

"I never go anywhere without a plan. Don't worry, I know this palace. There's a secret passage right-" Azula saw something and pushed Kiyi aside so they could hide from a pair of guards who were coming their way.

"When did they start patrolling here?" Azula whispered to herself. She clearly remembered sneaking down there while she was a child and playing stupid games with her friends. Of course, Mai must have remembered that too. She was probably the one who assigned the guards.

Kiyi would have been happy to inform her of that before they were almost caught, but she didn't know what her sister's plan was. She just assumed it was perfect.

"No matter." Azula added, seeing the worried look on her little sister's face, "We'll go some other way. Maybe the southeastern stairwell. It's guarded, but not heavily… Or… Kiyi, what do you think we should do?"

"Me?" the girl's face lit up.

"Yes, you. You live here. Where should we go?"

Kiyi thought for no more than a couple of seconds and started leading them towards the back of the palace. There were a lot of hallways and passages, but Kiyi looked like she knew what she was doing. They managed to evade every guard for some time, but at last a man appeared in front of them.

"You shouldn't be sneaking around here this time of night, Kiyi…" he started before he moved his gaze to the woman she was with. His entire face went white in a single second as he stood there frozen.

He obviously knew exactly who Azula was and he didn't plan on staying there and dealing with her wrath. He dropped his weapon and started running away, yelling for help.

Azula almost instinctively got herself ready to fire a bolt of lightning, but then realized she couldn't. It would be seen as an act of aggression. The public already saw her as a complete monster, she shouldn't give them more reason to hate her. But he would surely call more men.

"I'm sorry, I made a mistake." Kiyi said, defeated.

"No, it's… We're still getting out. Come on, we must hurry."

Azula pulled her sister's hand again and ran with her as close to the back gate as possible without running into a guard. When they did, they hid in an empty room, hoping no one would think to check it.

It seemed to work for a few minutes until the door to the small room opened and Mai looked at them from the hallway. Azula immediately placed herself in front of Kiyi, but no one said anything. Mai didn't draw her knives. Azula didn't firebend.

"Please." Kiyi said quietly, thinking a long explanation would just make things seem worse.

Mai looked at the girl she came to love like her own little sister. Then she looked at the friend whom she feared her whole childhood.

The next movement in the room was Mai closing the door, pretending she didn't see anything of interest.

"This floor is empty! Everyone upstairs!" they heard Mai's order from outside.

Azula was beyond confused, but the two of them didn't really have time to discuss it right there and then. After they left the room, getting out was easy with all the guards following Mai's orders.

oooooooooo

Azula had a specific ship in mind for their escape, but they had to swim to it to be sure they weren't seen. They found a tiny place in the cargo hold where they would be safe from detection and Azula managed to steal some dry clothes for a start.

They dressed in silence, with their backs turned to each other, both of them worrying about what the other one was thinking. Azula wondered if Kiyi was already regretting running away again, if she might have been better off had she never found the journal that set her on this path. Kiyi wanted to know if her big sister already regretted throwing away her first and only chance at a normal life for someone she barely knew. The answer to both their questions was no, but neither of them dared ask.

"Thank you. I don't think I remembered to say it in there…" Kiyi broke the silence, sitting new to her sister on the floor.

Azula didn't really know how to respond. What do people usually say to that? She somehow felt the thank you was unearned, even though she did just risk her life for the girl. It was a strange feeling.

"So where are you going after this? Staying with me or do you have your own plan?" she asked to change the subject.

"I think I'll stay with you for now." Kiyi gently rested her head on Azula's shoulder, absolutely shocking the woman, "If you don't mind."

"No, I don't." she managed to say finally.

"Do you still have your dia- journal?"

"No, I left it behind when I decided to get you. Why?"

"Well, whenever I had trouble falling asleep, I would read something from it over and over again. Usually the school adventures with your friends."

"You know, I remember a lot of stories I didn't have the patience to describe in writing. Anything particular you're curious about?"

"How about something from when you were chasing the Avatar?" Kiyi shifted her head a bit to be more comfortable leaning on her sister and then closed her eyes.

"Well, has Mai ever told you about the time Tom-Tom was kidnapped?"

"No way! When?"

"He was no more than a toddler, I doubt he even remembers… Ty Lee and I arrive at Omashu to see Mai, and she tells us someone from the resistance had taken her brother. Cowards, taking on the weak because they cannot match up to the strong… I decided to take matters into my own hands, because the stakes were too high. Mai and I agreed on using a bluff, but when we came to the meeting I recognized the Avatar. It was the first time I'd seen him."

"So he took Tom-Tom? That doesn't sound like Aang…"

"I don't think he did… Even then, I didn't think so, but it didn't matter. Whoever did take him greatly underestimated how protective big sisters can be…"

oooooooooo

"Azula, you need to see this! Wake up!"

The Princess opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was her sister's excited face as she was shaking her awake. It was the third day of the two of them being stowaways on a cargo ship and frankly, they were both sick of it.

"Not so loud… What is it?" Azula looked left and right, worried Kiyi's overly enthusiastic wake-up call might have attracted some unwanted attention.

"I woke up first, so I went to see if I could steal some food for us, but instead I saw this! Look, read it…" Kiyi handed Azula a scroll.

It was a royal proclamation by the looks of it.

"… Even though Princess Azula has been seen infiltrating the royal event and leaving with the Lady Kiyi, the Fire Lord ensures it was in fact not a kidnapping or an attempt at assassination by the disgraced princess…" Azula read but then stopped for a second to look at Kiyi.

"Keep going." the girl urged her.

"Blah, blah, blah… Furthermore, the Fire Lord hereby revokes the promise of reword upon the Princess' capture and discontinues the search for her." Azula stopped talking as her eyes went over that last sentence over and over again. Making sure it was real.

"I told you Zuko would come through!" Kiyi beamed watching a smile overtake her sister's face.

"Do you understand what this means, Kiyi?" Azula asked carefully, almost like she was afraid to show any kind of happiness.

"You're free! You can do whatever you want… You can even go back to being a Princess."

"No. That's not what it said. Zuzu didn't say my charges were dropped, he just said the search was called off. This, Kiyi, means that I can settle down anywhere outside the Fire Nation and no one can come and drag me to a trial." Azula couldn't help but sound a bit excited. After all, it's been so long…

"How about me?" Kiyi asked.

"They explicitly said it wasn't classified as a kidnapping which means, for the time being, no one will come looking for you either." Just as Azula was finishing her point, Kiyi cut her off with a hug.

oooooooooo

6 months later…

"I'm back." Azula said, while closing the front door. She was carrying quite a few grocery bags and now she could finally set them down in the kitchen. Well, it wasn't so much a kitchen as the part of the main room appointed as the kitchen. After deciding to give up on crime they've both had to adopt a more modest lifestyle. However, it was more of a step down for Kiyi.

"Your continuous need to state the obvious simply baffles me." Kiyi said, not moving her gaze from the book she was reading at the table.

"What?" Azula glared at the girl, who didn't see it, but could feel it.

"That's what you tell me when I say things like It's raining or Your hair's getting quite long…" Kiyi answered with a smile. Almost like she was mocking her sister. "The fact that you are back is obvious, because if you were in fact not back, you would be unable to tell me anything."

"Oh, I'm sorry…" a small smile appeared on Azula's lips too, "It was an abbreviation for I'm back so get those books to your room and set the table because we're eating soon."

She was referring to the dozen books and notebooks her sister had laid out across the dining table. After all, that was the only decent place in that house one could do their homework.

"Can I just finish this section?"

"Sure." Azula looked over the girl's notes briefly, then patted her shoulder and carried on with unpacking the bags.

"How was the market? Anything interesting happen?" Kiyi spoke after a few silent minutes.

"Of course, I was briefly kidnapped by a watertribean gang and had to quickly rise through the ranks by employing my unique knowledge of-"

"Come on… I meant like, did you meet anyone?"

"Sure. I arrived at the vegetable stand and three men felt to their knees instantly, asking for my hand in marriage…"

To anyone listening it might have sounded like Azula's sarcasm was a sign of hostility, but Kiyi knew better. When Azula spoke in that particular tone, her Kiyi tone, it was her way of being friendly. It wasn't hard to spot if you knew what to look for. It was a little warmer, a little less reserved and often accompanied by an almost smile.

"I know you're joking, but they should…" Kiyi said, before hearing voices from outside their front door.

"My Lord, I cannot possible let you in alone."

"It is our duty to protect you."

"I command you to wait for me outside."

Recognizing the last speaker, Kiyi looked over to her sister.

"Want me to open the door?" she offered.

"No. The mighty Fire Lord can do it himself." Azula said and positioned herself between Kiyi and the door.

The voices suddenly quieted down and Zuko went in alone. He'd clearly changed a lot since Azula saw him last. He was a bit taller now, bigger, his hair long again. He did everything to look like a proper Fire Lord, but his scar was still just as striking as ever.

"If you've come to try and take Kiyi," Azula spoke up first, "I have to warn you, you're in for the fight of your life. I don't intent to lose this time."

"I'm not. I swear it." Zuko stopped where he stood, "I simply came to check up on you. Both of you."

He shifted his gaze from Azula to Kiyi and then back to Azula. It was clear he was studying her appearance too, trying to deduce what kind of a person she was now. There is no telling how long the two siblings would have stared at each other like that, in tense silence, if Kiyi wasn't there to make the first move.

The girl got up from the table, hurried to her brother and put her hands around him before Azula could warn her to be more careful. In just a moment Zuko's serious expression melted into a smile as he returned the hug.

"Zuzu, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you anything."

"It's my fault." he said, "I've been absent. I…"

"You trust Mother far more than she deserves." Azula added, still ready to jump at the earliest sign of hostility from him.

"I did. I'll admit that." Zuko sighed, "But when she finally told me what's been going on I let you go, didn't I?"

It looked like Zuko was fishing for some kind of thank you from Azula, but he soon realized he'd get none.

"Thank you for that…" Kiyi said instead of her sister.

"So you two are really happy living together like this?" Zuko gestured to their quite modest home, "I had to see it to believe it."

"Of course, we are. Azula's working and I'm finally going to a normal school…" Kiyi begun.

"Contrary to what our mother would have you believe, I am perfectly capable of coexisting with another human being." Azula cut in, "Our sister is well taken care of. You can check her teeth and nails if you don't believe me…"

After saying that, Azula relaxed, turned around and went back to unpacking her groceries and setting the table for dinner. It was a bit rude, but ignoring was preferable to threatening.

"She's joking, but she's been really wonderful." Kiyi started, "She has a sweet teaching job now that people are not trying to catch her every two days... And she's writing a book which, based on the chapters I read, is going to absolutely kill!"

"It sounds great, but…" Zuko paused, "I did speak to mother before I came here…"

Azula almost bit through her tongue trying to not say anything and let Kiyi handle it.

"I know she asked you to convince me to come back home," Kiyi said, sitting down at the table, "But for me, this is home now."

"Actually," Zuko sat down as well, "she said Zuko, bring your sisters home…"

Azula interrupted him with a snicker.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing… I find it funny how you still cannot lie to save your life. She wouldn't say that…" Azula sat down opposite him.

"She did. But that's not what I'm going to do. Because she told me everything that happened… The reason Kiyi escaped, the letter she hid from me, the dagger she brought for you and after hearing it all, I have to say… I think our family works best if we have a bit of space each. Because we're all insane…"

Azula and Kiyi couldn't help, but laugh at that.

"No, no, no…" Zuko continued with a smile, "Mai's been right for years. This whole family, none of us can act like normal people. So I thought I'd just let you two be happy and you could visit sometimes. You know, come to the wedding, maybe. Just to see Mom a bit."

"Yeah, I can do that." Kiyi said, "Can Azula come?"

"Of course." Zuko nodded, "We'll have to have a casual royal pardoning before, but yes."

"There's no way I'm doing that."

"Don't worry, I'll convince her." Kiyi said.

"No, you won't." Azula spoke again, stricter this time.

Kiyi didn't deny it, but she did nod slightly at Zuko.

"You know, Azula," the Fire Lord started, catching his sister's attention, "I placed that reward for your capture a decade ago and no one's ever been close… What I'm trying to say is… I was sure you were dead. I didn't want to deal with it, but I was pretty sure. And I'm glad you're not."

Azula was quiet, but then noticed both her siblings staring at her.

"What do you two want?! I'm glad you're still alive, Zuzu… Enough?"

"Yeah, enough for me…" Zuko said and turned to Kiyi, "You?"

"I'm almost jealous…" the girl answered, "I missed you, Zuko. You know, you can come by here anytime you want."

"I don't think my security detail would like that very much."

"Then don't bring them…" Azula cut in, "We're three firebending descendants of Avatar Roku. I don't think there's a soul alive try would be stupid enough to try something."

oooooooooo

Here you have it.

I went for a happy ending because… Well, cause I like happy endings so sue me…

Anyway, Azula acts against her golden rule about always looking out for number one and gets all the good things happen to her… Zuko decides to start being a good brother…

I'm actually really sad this is done (even though it took me considerably longer to finish it than I would have liked). I sincerely hope you enjoyed it :)

For anyone who liked this even a little bit, I would like to refer you to another story of mine, called While The Parents Are Away because it features a grown-up Azula reconnecting with the Gaang (in a way). It's in the LOK section because it stars the Gaang's children and adult Azula is like a secret treat… So if you've enjoyed LOK as well, give it a try.

I will also direct your attention to another "Azula on the run" story I'm starting… It's gonna be an Azula/OC romance so anyone who's sick of that… Maybe just try the first one I mentioned…

And in the end, a big thanks to anyone who commented, favorited the story, sent me a message or just spent their time reading this…. Thank you all :)

And remember, it takes hours to write stories, but just seconds to write reviews.