As soon as Appa landed at the Western Air Temple, Zuko jumped out of the saddle and immediately began setting up his war balloon.
"Are you sure we can't help, Zuko?" asked Aang walking up to him. "Appa'll be faster."
"Last time I checked, prisons don't have bison daycares," he said as he fired up the engine.
While the balloon was filling with hot air, he pulled his bag from Appa's saddle along with his dao and Chiara's jian. He stared at them and sighed.
"I need to leave these here," he said.
"Are you sure?" asked Sokka. "Don't you think you'll need your weapons?"
"My uncle always said I never think things through. The only way I'm going to get into that prison is as a guard or a prisoner, and I prefer the guard option. In either case my dao won't do me any good." He pulled the canvas with their wedding picture out of his tunic, and after unrolling it, he gazed upon it for a few minutes trying to impress every detail of the image into his memory.
Tearing his eyes away from it, he rolled it back up, tied it with the golden ribbon, and held it out to Katara.
"Will you keep this safe for me?" he asked her.
He presumed she would be the most responsible of the group he could entrust with it.
"Of-of course," she said taking it from him, her eyes wide that he would trust her with something so delicate and important to him.
"If...if I don't make it back, can you maybe see that my uncle gets it?"
She looked at him and then nodded her head once. He went to step on the balloon, but he felt something tugging his sleeve. He looked down to see Toph clutching the fabric.
"You have to come back, Sparky," she said. "And I'm counting on you to bring Princess back too."
"He's done it before," said Aang optimistically. "Twice. And that was in the center of the Fire Nation Capital. Right, Zuko?"
He turned towards Aang. "Uh...yeah, but...but I had a lot of help..."
"And then there was that time with the Rough Rhinos when you were the Bl..."
"Yes, yes, I get it!" interrupted Zuko sharply. "I'll do my best to bring her back."
He took a step but was suddenly restrained and nearly knocked over as Toph had wrapped herself around him in a hug. Seeing that Zuko was not resisting her, Aang lunged forward and flung himself onto him.
"Are-are you trying to stop me from going?" asked Zuko clearly annoyed by the liberties they took with his personal space.
"We're giving you a hug, Hotman."
"Yep," said Toph. "Get used to it."
He just sighed. "You guys are more sentimental than Uncle."
"If it makes you feel more comfortable, it's for Princess Chiara," she said.
"It doesn't." The solemn tone of his voice did not betray the smile he was hiding.
He waited until they released him before he quickly stepped onto the balloon. When he turned around he saw Sokka following him on board and he brought his hands up and held them out to keep him at a distance.
"Whoa, you should've gotten your hug in when the others tackled me."
"I'm going with you," said Sokka.
Zuko dropped his hands. "But I told you I may not be coming back."
"I know, but I kind of feel responsible for Chiara getting captured. I promised you I would help keep her safe, and I feel like I failed."
"I'm sure you did your best, Sokka," said Aang worried that Zuko might go into his own version of the Avatar State and take out his anger on Sokka.
"We were surrounded," he explained. "We fought them as best we could, but there were too many of them."
"I understand," said Zuko softly, remembering when they were attacked in the Earth Kingdom.
"And since you're going to a prison, I already have experience as a Fire Nation soldier," he said proudly.
Zuko decided not to argue, and truthfully, he knew he could use the backup. "As long as you understand what you're getting into," he said adding fire to the engine.
Katara stepped on the balloon to hug Sokka. "I hope you bring her back."
"We'll meet you guys back here," said Zuko. "But you might want to start looking at the maps for a new location. If we get her out, they may be expecting us to head back here. We should have an alternate campsite we can move to."
"Good idea," said Aang.
"Be careful," said Katara.
Zuko nodded.
"We'll try," said Sokka. "But we are jumping into a volcano."
The war balloon took flight as they left to head towards Boiling Rock Prison.
--------------------
It was a beautiful morning as Zuko was guiding the war balloon through the clouds heading southwest towards the prison. He was shooting fire into the tank while Sokka, who was staring out at the sky, glanced over at him. Zuko caught his eye, and they both awkwardly looked the other way.
"Pretty clouds," said Sokka, not really knowing what to say.
"Yeah," said Zuko as he glanced at the clouds. "Fluffy."
When Sokka whistled, Zuko looked at him.
"What?"
"What? Oh, I didn't say anything," said Sokka. He stared off into the sky before turning back to Zuko. "You know, a friend of mine actually designed these war balloons," he said trying to make conversation in order to alleviate the uncomfortable silence.
"No kidding."
"Yep, a balloon...but for war."
"If there's one thing the Fire Lord's good at, it's war," grunted Zuko shooting more fire into the tank.
"Yeah, it seems to run in the family," he said with a slight glare.
Zuko turned towards him. "Hey, hold on. Not everyone in my family is like that..."
"I know, I know, you've changed."
"I meant my uncle," he said hoping he was safe. "He was more of a father to me."
"He must be proud of you," said Sokka, his voice softer. "Leaving your home to help us...that's hard."
Zuko thought back to his life in the palace and trying to live up to Ozai's expectations, and then he compared it to the life he had been living at the air temple with the Avatar's group, a life not much different than his treasured time at the cabin. He had felt so free, so unburdened, living with the Gaang. "It wasn't that hard."
"Really?" asked Sokka. It was a difficult for him to imagine after having grown up with a close knit family and a childhood that had been far more nourishing. "You didn't leave behind anyone you cared about?"
"I brought the person I cared about," said Zuko.
Sokka smiled.
"Besides Uncle, she's the one person who stuck by me through...through everything. I'm so lucky to have her," he said softly.
"Yeah," said Sokka, his eyes dropping. "My first girlfriend turned into the moon," he said sadly.
Zuko, not making the connection to Princess Yue, wondered if that was some sort of metaphor for death or being dumped. "That's rough, buddy."
Turning away from the engine, he leaned against the rail gazing out over the sea and horizon thinking about Chiara. He felt reassured by Tezam and Zara. It had been nearly a month and he was relieved to learn she was still alive; and to hear that she healed Zara was consoling. He knew that her ability to heal was what she cherished most in her waterbending, and a small smile formed on his face as he hoped healing at least one person might have brought her some comfort during her incarceration.
--------------------
Hours later Zuko was still keeping watch while lost in thought despite Sokka's snoring. Along the horizon he could see thick clouds forming and climbing higher in the sky, but as they came nearer, he perked up when he realized it was steam billowing from a small mass of land in the sea.
"There it is."
Sokka woke up and stood next to Zuko to look at the island in the distance.
"There's plenty of steam to keep us covered," said Zuko. "As long as we're quiet, we should be able to navigate through it without being caught."
They continued moving towards the island. Flying through the steam cloud, Zuko began feeling more anxious knowing he was getting closer to Chiara. His plan was simple. He would get inside the prison, find her, get out, and they would fly back to the air temple together. Of course, he knew it would not be that easy, but as long as nobody recognized him and they were not seen escaping, he was sure they they could do it. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted when the balloon began a steep descent.
"We're going down!" he said adding more fire to the tank. "The balloon's not working anymore."
He started throwing fire blasts directly up into the balloon.
"The air outside is just as hot as the air inside so we can't fly," said Sokka.
Zuko was thrown to the side as the balloon continued dropping from the sky. "So what are we supposed to do?" he asked.
"I don't know," said Sokka. "Crash landing?"
The balloon skidded across the lake splashing Sokka's hand with boiling water. He quickly placed his other hand over his mouth to keep from screaming out loud while he shook the hot water from his skin. They continued skidding across the lake until the war balloon crashed into land throwing them both out onto the ground. They looked at the balloon.
"How are we going to get off the island if the balloon won't work?" asked Sokka.
"We'll figure something out," said Zuko.
Sokka started gathering the parts of the balloon together. "What you said about your uncle saying you never think things through—you weren't kidding."
"Hey, I never wanted you to come along in the first place," he said helping Sokka push the damaged balloon into the water.
After hiding the evidence of their arrival, they both turned and stared up at the prison.
--------------------
Finding their way inside, they made it to a storage room where they disguised themselves as guards. Zuko was anxious to get out and search the prison. After spending time walking around, they finally just stood on an upper level and watched everything going on in the yard, but they did not see Chiara anywhere.
When hours had gone by and there was still no sign of her, Zuko did not know whether to feel worried or not. He hated the idea of her being imprisoned, but if she was not there, then they would have to find a way off the island and start their search for her from the beginning, and he would not know if she was alive or dead.
Before working on an escape plan, he wanted to make absolutely certain she was not there. They waited until it drew close to shift change among the guards and they went to the guards' chow hall to see if they could find out any information.
"I would've put her in isolation if I were you," said Zedak.
"What do you have against her?" asked Nai.
"She thinks she has to be in everybody's business."
"She's just trying to help everyone," said Dako. "She's so beautiful," he added a bit dreamily.
Zuko wondered if they were talking about Chiara.
"Keep in mind who you're speaking about," warned Nai. "She's off-limits."
"I don't care how beautiful she is; I wouldn't touch that Water scum spy except to beat her again," said Zedak.
Sokka heard a deep growl emanating from Zuko who was suddenly enraged by Zedak's words, but Sokka put his hand on his arm.
"Who are you talking about?" asked Sokka stepping ahead of Zuko.
Nai glanced up at them. "You guys must be new here."
"Yeah, we just got shipped in," he said casually.
"The Fire Princess is here."
"I wish you would quit calling her that," growled Zedak.
"Who's she?" asked Sokka feigning ignorance.
"Prince Zuko's wife," said Dako.
"Fire Nation traitor," spat Zedak.
"Oh, Prince Zuko is married?" Sokka asked innocently.
"Where have you been?" asked Nai.
"Uh, we've been stationed in...uh...one of the outposts...in the Earth Kingdom," he answered.
"He married some beauty from the Water Tribe," said Dako.
"Not only that," said Nai, "but she was the daughter General Iroh adopted years ago and raised in Caldera City."
"So a union between the Water Tribe and Fire Nation," said Sokka thoughtfully stroking his chin. "That seems like a smart move."
The other guards laughed, except Zedak.
"Hey, make love not war. Am I right?" said Sokka.
"That's not what the Fire Lord thought," said Dako.
"I heard they executed her," said Nai. "But it turned out that she and Prince Zuko escaped."
"Then a friend of the warden spotted her in one of the colonies and they found her near the Western Air Temple, so they arrested her and brought her here," said Dako.
"Does the Fire Lord know she's here?" asked Zuko, speaking for the first time.
"Who knows?" said Nai. "Apparently, the warden had it out for her, so he punished her by putting her in the labor sector."
Zuko was worried about her.
"I think he expected her to be dead within a week," she said.
Zuko tensed up, and Sokka sensed he was worried.
"But she's not, right?" asked Sokka.
"Not only is she not dead, but she's been the best thing to happen to this place," said Dako.
Now the two teens were surprised, and Zuko was wondering if any of these guards were the allies that Tezam had mentioned.
"Really?" asked Sokka.
"Best thing," said Zedak. "You're all traitor sympathizers."
The others laughed at Zedak's anger.
"Don't start encouraging the noobs to side with the spy," he said standing up.
"But she is," insisted Dako.
Zuko was curious. "How so?"
"She's got healing abilities," said Dako thinking about her healing his injury. "She's been helping everyone in the prison: prisoners and guards."
"She's still Water filth!" snapped Zedak furiously before storming out of the room.
Zuko was angry at Zedak's insults.
"Don't mind him," said Nai. "He's just upset because he can't intimidate her."
"And he's tried," said Dako.
"Tried?" asked Zuko wanting to know what Zedak had done to her.
"Princess Chiara always challenges him when he punishes the prisoners, so he loves abusing her," said Nai.
Zuko took notice of Nai's address.
"She sounds pretty cool," said Sokka.
"Exactly," said Dako. "Most everyone thinks so too now."
"Can...can we see her?" asked Zuko.
"She's working," said Dako.
"Where?" asked Sokka.
"I left her with Jiro," said Nai. "She's probably working laundry or in the kitchen."
Zuko was growing more excited at the thought of seeing her; and that she was alive and well was sinking in making him even more anxious to meet with her.
--------------------
Zuko and Sokka followed Dako to the laundry buckets and then to the kitchen, but Chiara was nowhere to be seen.
Dako shook his head. "Maybe Zedak moved her to the quarry," he said. "He was pretty upset in the chow hall."
"They make her work in a quarry?" asked Sokka.
"Zedak does. That or the construction site, but Nai tries to keep her in the kitchen."
"Nai?" Zuko remembered Tezam saying his daughter would help him.
"She was the one in the chow hall with us. Anyways, I got to go get ready for my shift. You'll see the princess around. Listen for Zedak yelling; that's usually a sign."
He walked off leaving Zuko and Sokka to wander around the prison, but they never found Chiara, so they decided to separate and search for her.
By the time prisoners were being sent to their cells for lockdown, Sokka spotted her. He took a step towards her just as two guards came around the corner. He remained where he was and watched to see which cell she went into. He was now anxious to find Zuko again and ran off to look for him.
Unable to identify the prince among the guards throughout the compound, and long after lockdown, Sokka waited at the spot they planned on meeting.
"Hey there...fellow guard. How goes it?"
Sokka was sure that much awkwardness could only come from Zuko, so he lifted his visor. "Z?"
"Hey," said Zuko. "I couldn't find..."
"I found her!"
A feeling of excitement filled the prince. "Where is she? Is she okay? Did you talk to her?"
"I didn't talk to her. I just saw the cell she went into."
"Let's go."
They headed to Chiara's cell.
"This is it," said Sokka before scanning the area to make sure they were alone.
Zuko took a deep breath before slowly opening the door and stepping inside while Sokka remained in the hall. The prince was anxious to see her, and he could hear his heart beating as his eyes scanned the cell. It was empty.
"Sokka," he whispered when he opened the door. "Are you sure this is the right cell?"
"Yeah, why?"
"It's empty."
Sokka stepped inside and looked around before double-checking the number on the door.
"I know this is the cell she went in," he said.
"Well, she's not here now." Zuko felt frustrated as his hope of seeing her was dashed.
"I don't know where she could be," said Sokka. "Let's go."
They left the cell, but stayed nearby to keep an eye on it.
It was nearly an hour later when they saw Chiara walking by herself back to the cell. Zuko's heart leaped when he saw her. After she disappeared inside, he quickly ran over, opened the door, and entered. He saw her long, ebon braid as it fell down her back past her waist, and as soon as she turned around his eyes locked onto hers wishing the cell was bright enough to see the beautiful sea green, and he was unable to stop himself as he lunged towards her in an attempt to wrap his arms around her.
Startled and creeped out by the sudden and unwanted, seemingly amorous, embrace of a guard—one she suspected might have been hitting the fire whiskey—she immediately brought her hands up to his chest and pushed him away from her forcing him across the room. She took a defensive stance ready to attack him again unconcerned with any punishment she might endure for assaulting a guard. Zuko had not expected her reaction, and it took him a second to realize he still had his helmet on before ripping it off his head. As she took in his face, the hard look in her eyes softened as they widened with excitement and she ran towards him jumping in his arms wrapping her arms around his neck.
"I'm so sorry," she said tearfully.
He was softly laughing as he held her tightly.
"I love you," he said.
"Oh, I love you, my Prince."
His heart stirred at her loving address he had long missed.
"I've missed you so much," she said.
He felt the same way and did not want to let go of her.
"I'm sorry I attacked you," she said still holding onto him.
"It's okay. I'm sure my sternum will pop back into place."
Worriedly, she let go of him and placed her hand on his chest. "Oh...I'm so sorry..."
He smirked as he gazed into her eyes. "Don't be sorry," he said. "I'm glad to know that's the welcome you would've given anybody else." With his hands on her wet cheeks, he pressed his lips against hers, his amorous affection every bit welcome to her.
"I can't believe you're here," she said, tears of joy still flowing down her face.
He wrapped his arms around her with one hand resting on her head holding her against him as she buried her face into his neck. It occurred to him that she felt thinner than he remembered.
"If this is a dream I don't want to wake up," she said.
"It's not a dream."
She let go of him looking in his eyes while still in his arms. "But if it's not a dream, then you can't be here. It's too dangerous," she said worried about him. "I think it's a trap to lure you here."
"I'm not so sure it's a trap. It took us nearly a month to find out you were here."
"You are so stubborn. I wanted you to stay with Aang."
"You're my destiny, Chiara. I won't stop looking for you," he said as he wiped the tears from her cheeks.
"When you have a mind to do something, you do it," she said smiling, but shaking her head at his obstinacy. "How did you find me?"
"Sokka infiltrated a group of soldiers who said you were here, and an older couple confirmed it."
She threw her arms around him again and lay her head on his shoulder. He laughed and held her tightly.
"I've missed you," she said.
Despite their situation, she felt safe in his strong arms at that moment and she never wanted him to let go of her.
"How are you going to get out of here?" she asked.
"We hadn't planned that yet."
She released him again and looked up at him. "We?"
"Sokka insisted on coming with me."
"Oh, I need to speak to him."
"What for?"
"His father's here."
"Sokka," called Zuko softly towards the door.
Sokka opened the door and looked in. "Hey, Chiara, I am so glad to see you," he said in a tone of relief.
"It would've been better if it were outside a prison," she said. "But thank you for having my obstinate husband's back."
"Yeah. He's pretty determined."
"Also, your father's here."
His eyes grew wide. "What?" he asked excitedly as he stepped inside. "Really?"
"Hakoda of the Southern Tribe," she said.
"That's him."
"He's on the first level." She told him the cell number.
"Do you two mind if I...?"
"Go," said Zuko with his arms still wrapped around Chiara and not taking his eyes from hers.
When Sokka left, Chiara looked back up at Zuko.
"You stubborn guys. I hope you have a way out."
"Yeah...about that...," he said somewhat timidly.
She sighed. "Did you ever consider you could've helped Aang win the war first, and then you could've had me released?"
"I didn't even know you were alive. I was sure Azula had you."
Her eyes got big. "You went to the Capital, didn't you?"
He nodded guiltily.
"Oh, Prince Zuko, that was so reckless."
"The White Lotus helped us," he assured her. "No one else ever knew we were there."
"But if it had been a trap..."
"It wasn't, and it doesn't matter now. I found you and we'll find a way to get out of here." He released her and looked at her. "You're bruised," he said as he tenderly touched the fading mark on her face.
"It's nothing."
"A bruise on my wife's face isn't nothing," he said deeply. "You're thin and you look pale."
"I've been working a lot."
"That's what the guards were saying."
"You spoke to the guards?"
"Yeah. They didn't know it was me though." He touched her soft hair. "How long has it been since you enjoyed the moonlight?"
"A moon cycle."
"Oh, Chiara," he said as he tenderly caressed her face. "I'm so sorry."
She shook her head. "Don't be."
"It must've been so rough for you here." He held her hand leading her towards her mat.
"It's actually been a lot better than the last time I was in prison."
"You shouldn't be in any prison..."
"But seriously, this has been like a spa compared to being imprisoned by Azula."
He shook his head. "Unbelievable. This place is one of the most notorious prisons in the Fire Nation." They sat down on the mat. "You've impressed a lot of the guards."
She shrugged. "I just helped whoever needed helping."
He smiled as he held her hands.
"We were looking for you today, but we couldn't find you. One of the guards said you were probably working in the quarry."
"Not today. Jiro took me to the infirmary."
He had a sudden look of worry. "Were you hurt?"
"No. It wasn't for me. The doctor likes to ask questions about my healing, and we were discussing anatomy and various non-waterbending treatments. I had also told him about your ability to relax the muscles through firebending, so he was showing me the result of his attempt to experiment on himself. I healed it for him..."
"He burned himself?"
She smiled. "It wasn't bad. I tried to help him correct his technique, but he's still having trouble with it. Maybe if we win this war you can show him one day."
He looked down at her hands as he held them in his own.
"You weren't in here earlier," he said. "Where were you then?"
"There was a prisoner who was sick."
"How did you get out of the cell?"
She pulled water out of her damp shirt and made her ice lock pick.
He grinned. "You're incredible."
--------------------
Sokka went to the first level where he found the cell number Chiara had given him. He entered, and seeing his father sitting on the mat, he approached him. Hakoda looked up at him.
"Thank goodness you're okay," said Sokka.
Hakoda jumped up and stood defensively ready to attack him. "If you take one step closer, you'll see just how 'okay' I am," he said deeply.
Sokka lifted the visor on his helmet. "Dad, it's me."
His father relaxed as he saw Sokka's bright, blue eyes, and his own eyes brightened as he looked at his son. "Sokka, my son." He embraced him and held him. "You know, Sokka, you should be more careful with this guard outfit on. I almost punched you in the gut." He released him. "So what are you doing here?"
"I'm here to rescue you."
"How did you know where to find me?"
"Chiara told me."
"Chiara? The traitor waterbender?"
"She's not a traitor, Dad."
He was puzzled. "The one that's married to the Fire Prince?"
"Yeah. In fact, Zuko's here too."
"Sounds like a major problem," said Hakoda crossing his arms.
"Actually, he's on our side now."
His father looked skeptical.
"I know," said Sokka. "I had the same reaction. After all he's done, it was hard to trust him. But he's really proven himself."
"The Fire Prince Zuko? Didn't he almost kill the Avatar in Ba Sing Se?"
"His sister did..."
"But he was fighting with her."
"Yep, but he's changed now," said Sokka. "He's been working with Aang."
"And you're sure it's not a trap?"
"I'm sure. And if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be here."
Hakoda was confused. "I'm afraid I don't understand."
"I came with him to help rescue Chiara. He's with her right now. We're going to find a way to get out of here."
"Oh...," said Hakoda looking away.
"What's wrong?" asked Sokka.
"Well...I kinda told the waterbender that she should've been executed," he said, his voice filled with shame.
"You what?! Dad, why would you say that to her?"
"I didn't know she was on our side. I mean, she's from a Water Tribe and she's married to the Prince of the Fire Nation who tried to kill...or helped try to kill the Avatar. What was I supposed to think?"
Sokka sighed. "I guess I see that. But executed?"
"I was angry. I'll apologize when I see her."
Hakoda sat down on his mat as Sokka peeked out the door to make sure there were no guards around.
"So where's Bato?" he asked. "Where's everyone else from the invasion?"
"The others are being held at a prison near the Fire Nation palace. They singled me out as their leader and sent me here." Sokka sat down next to him. "But before I left, I met some young women who said they knew you. The...Oshinama Fighters?" he said unsure.
"You mean the Kyoshi Warriors," said Sokka smiling.
"That's right."
"Their leader is Suki, but I don't know where she is," he said sadly looking away.
Hakoda looked at him. "So, do you have a plan?"
"Not yet. We lost our war balloon, and I don't know if there's another way off this island."
Hakoda smiled and patted Sokka's back. "Sokka, there's no prison in the world that can hold two Water Tribe geniuses."
"Then we'd better find two," he said despondently.
Hakoda burst out laughing making Sokka laugh as well.
--------------------
"...So we lost the war balloon," said Zuko after describing the details of their search to Chiara. "We don't know how we'll get out of here, but I'm sure we'll think of something."
The door opened.
"Have you thought of a way out yet, Sokka?" he asked.
"Prince Zuko?"
Zuko and Chiara looked up to see a guard who was staring at them wide-eyed as he recognized the prince by his scar.
====================
====================
A/N: Looking at what's ahead, I just realized how long the Boiling Rock arc is. Apologies if it seems like the story's at a standstill, but when I started writing it, it was me just having fun with the characters and I typed up every idea that came to my head.
And what happens at the prison won't stay at the prison...