"I... I'm so sorry, Zuko. I didn't--I..." I take a deep breath. I hold it inside me. Then, I let it go.

"After I left the South Pole, Lia and I went to stay with Uncle in Ba Sing Se. Before you get mad at him, know that I made him swear on Lu Ten's grave that he wouldn't tell you about her. When Toph asked me to go back to the South, I left Lia with Uncle. I'm not sure how, but after Araden I ended up in Ba Sing Se. Lia and I were on our way to Ursa to find you and we took the northern route so we could stop in Sen for a few days. While we were there, she disappeared. We woke up one morning and she was just... gone. I've looked everywhere, but it's like she vanished without a trace." I keep my eyes on the ground and my hands clenched tightly together.

I can't look at him.

I know what I'll see in his eyes--it's a hate that I felt myself for far too long. Is this our destiny, then? Always going back and forth, circling each other, hating and fearing and fighting forever?

Is that what the spirit meant when she said the world was at stake?

I can feel the anger pouring off Zuko, and the heat as he whirls away, sends fire blasting from his mouth into the air. Trying to calm himself.

"Zuko, I--"

"Don't." That's all. Just that one word. But I flinch from the force of it--how could I not? I knew he would hate me. I knew it would hurt.

I just didn't know that it could possibly hurt even more than losing Lia hurt. At least there's a chance that we'll find Lia.

But Zuko? I have lost him forever.

**__**

"GranGran?"

"Yes, Lia?" This time, Ursa didn't bother to look up from where she was braiding flowers together. They were making wreaths to brighten up the forgotten city.

"Tell me about my Daddy."

Ursa laughed. "What do you want to know?"

"What's he like?"

"He's very brave. He never gives up, even when it seems like he can't win. He's kind, and he's strong." Ursa's hands worked tirelessly, but her mind was on her son. "When he was your age, he was always asking questions. He was so curious about everything! Just like you."

Lia beamed. "What about my Mommy?"

"What do you mean?"

"You said you know her."

"Oh, that. No, I don't know her. When I was in the Spirit World, one of the spirits gave me a mirror that allowed me to see into the Physical World. I used to watch over your father."

"So you know how my parents met?" Lia's wreath laid at her feet, forgotten. Ursa laughed. "Yes, I do."

"Tell me! Please?!"

"It's a long story."

"Pleeeaase?"

Smiling, Ursa nodded. "All right. It was several years ago. A brother and sister from the Southern Water Tribe were fishing when they found a boy frozen in an iceberg..."

_________

Okay guys, apparently I'm out of net gigs, so my updates will be slower. I now have to transfer everything from my computer to my phone and it takes awhile. :( I'm working on getting unlimited net so I don't have to worry about this, but in the meantime... sorry.