The Dragon Princess and the Wolf Warrior

Chapter 46 [~|~] Siege of the North (Part 2)

"I can't believe I lost him," Katara murmured sorrowfully.

"You did everything you could, and now we need to do everything we can to get him back," Sokka spoke to his sister, trying to console her as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"We'll find him, Katara. Zuko could not have gotten far. Aang will be fine," Azara added, nodding encouragingly at Katara. With a last glance at the Fire Nation assault, which had restarted with daybreak, Azara flicked Appa's reins. "Yip yip!"

Appa grunted before leaping into the air and flying straight into the blizzard that was building over the glacier. The visibility quickly dipped once Appa reached the blizzard, making their jobs of finding Aang and Zuko in the storm all the more difficult. 

Azara sighed as she looked closer at the ground, directing Appa to fly lower as the visibility decreased further. She knew deep down that Zuko would refuse to lose here; he wouldn't be beaten by the weather. But, Azara also knew that Zuko had a habit of getting himself into stupid situations, such as this one. She just hoped they found both of them alive. 

As the hours continued to pass, worry and restlessness grew within the group as there was still no sign of Aang or Zuko. "Don't worry, Prince Zuko couldn't have gotten far in this weather," Yue assured Katara, who did not look comforted at the information.

"I'm not worried that they'll get away in the blizzard, I'm worried that they won't," Katara sighed as Azara reached back, grabbing Katara's hand with her own, and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"Trust me, Zuko's too stubborn to die like this. If I had to guess, they're either still trudging through this snow or camped out somewhere. They'll survive, we just have to find them," Azara promised before turning back to the front. 

"Zuko is your brother, right?" Yue asked Azara, who sighed and turned back to converse with Yue. 

"My older brother, yeah," Azara conceded, more concerned about him than she was willing to admit to anyone else. 

"And you're confident he's capable of surviving out here?" Yue questioned innocently, causing Azara to nod in confirmation. 

"If there's anything Zuko is, it's stubborn. He'll survive this. They both will," Azara stated confidently, before turning back around. "They have to," Azara whispered to herself as Appa continued to fly over the frozen tundra. After a few more tense minutes, a beam of light rushed past them, causing the group to jump into action.

"There! That must be Aang," Katara pointed out, leaning over the saddle.

"Yip yip!" Azara commanded, flying Appa straight over to where the blast of light had travelled. Spotting two figures out in the snow, Azara directed Appa to land next to them. Azara's eyes widened as she spotted Zuko holding aang by the collar of his shirt. Katara slid down and off of Appa to face Zuko, who threw Aang to the side in response. 

"Here for a rematch?" Zuko asked, raising his hands to prepare for a fight.

"Trust me, Zuko, it's not going to be much of a match," Katara spat, blocking his fire blast easily before using the snow to lift him up. Katara lowered her hands, slamming Zuko back into the ground, knocking him unconscious. 

Azara and Sokka slipped down off Appa, rushing over. Sokka moved to free Aang from his rope binds as Azara kneeled next to her brother. Feeling for a pulse, Azara let out a breath of relief as she felt his strong heart beat. He was okay, for now. 

"Azara, leave him! C'mon we have to go!" Sokka shouted from Appa's saddle, Aang leaping on top of Appa's head and grabbing the reins.