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Chap 10

An idea had come into Lan's head. "Really?"

"Of course, she was caught both times, but she was gone almost a week the second time."

"Huh." Lan's mind began working furiously, and she stood up. "I have a headache. I'll see you tomorrow."

None of the other girls cared enough to watch her walk off.

It took only two days for Lan Chi to perfect an escape plan, although perfect, she would have said, was not the best word to use to describe her scheme. It was rough, and full of holes, and just as liable to fail as to succeed. But the combination of the heat and her boredom and frustration caused her to throw common sense away, as she was starting to do more frequently.

Escape would not be a problem. Not for a student of Piandao and the Yu Yan Archers. She would go out the window of her chamber, much as she had the night of the mixer, and then, she would literally go over the wall. The entire school was ringed by ancient hedges grown thick and sturdy over several hundred years. She would simply scale the wall. Once over the wall, she would be in the vast capital city. She could go anywhere she wanted.

The only problem was - she didn't know where to go. Her choices were severely limited, she had to admit. She had no friends. She had no money. She had no means of transportation. All she had was the ability - and the desire - to run away. At this point, though, she did not even really care where she went. She just wanted to prove that she could escape, and she wanted the thrill that came with it - with breaking the rules.

The answer came to her suddenly. She would go to the palace. She would go see Hua and Jianyu. She would see them, and they would fuss over her as they had when she was younger. They might even have news of Iroh! The fact that Zuko might very well be there did not enter her mind more than a dozen times. The fact that Ozai and Azula would most probably be there as well she refused to think on.

So, it was settled, in her mind. She was going home.

It was all far simpler than she had expected. Not long after midnight on the night she had chosen, she made a dummy for the bed, a task at which, she reflected, she was becoming an expert. She knew, however, that it would only buy her eight to ten hours' head start, if that. She put on her sparring clothes but left off the hated robe that advertised her as a Royal Fire Academy of Girls student, and, after rummaging in her roommates' drawers, selected a scarf to conceal her all-too-identifiable hair.

Hideous. She looked hideous. Ah, well, she should blend into her surroundings more easily.

She went out the window and onto the ground with little difficulty. She gained the safety of the hedges easily, as well, and, in minutes, she was on the other side of the wall. She stood on the deserted street in front of the school, the spire of the palace visible from where she stood, and started off in that direction.

She passed long rows of houses and the open market, as well as a city park. She had already decided that she could not attempt to enter the palace under cover of darkness, even though it was tempting. Perimeter security would be tight, she knew, too tight to allow her the opportunity to climb the wall. Therefore, she had planned to go in the front door, with the throngs of Fire Nation citizens there as tourists. She hoped that Ozai had not discontinued the program that Iroh had convinced his father to establish twenty years before - a program that allowed ordinary Fire Nation subjects the chance to look upon the splendor of their ruler's home. That was key to her plan. She had not even considered what she would do otherwise.

She made her way across the city, always keeping to the shadows. She was not afraid, though - not at all - just cautious. She had stolen a dagger from the bending hall, and was confident that she could defend herself, but preferred to avoid all people, if possible.