It doesn't go unnoticed. Suki gives him a grim yet grateful nod.

"It wasn't long after we found Appa in the woods near the Serpent's Pass. He was all filthy and full of porcupine-boar spines. And he was very scared about something."

Sighing, she lets his arm go.

"We'd just coaxed him into trusting us and cleaned him up when Azula attacked. She wanted to hold him hostage in order to get to the Avatar, but I made sure he escaped." She wrinkles her nose unhappily. "My distraction with that job gave Azula the advantage, and the fight was lost once he'd flown away."