For Serene Ice Dragon, who told me to write it down rather than just lying in bed narrating it to myself.

Author's note: I made up the calendar system for this. It is solar-based, consisting of four seasons each broken up into 13 weeks, beginning on the solstice/equinox of the season in question, and the first day of the season is always a Sunday. New Year's is not considered a weekday, and falls on the day before the spring equinox.


100 ASC, Summer week 1, Monday

It's been a while since I've kept a journal. My old one probably got destroyed when my ship got blown up last winter, but it was really just a log of my hunt for the Avatar, and I've never been much of a one for journal-writing in general. This seems like a time for starting new things, though, so I'll give it a try.

My coronation is tomorrow. Katara is furious, saying I shouldn't be out of bed yet, but everyone agrees that it can't be put off. The Fire Nation needs a ruler, and even though I still feel like I got run over by a herd of camelephants, I need to show the world that I'm alive and functional. I'm not really looking forward to it. I'm scared I might fall over in front of everybody.

Yesterday still seems almost surreal. Fighting my sister was something that needed to happen just like my coronation needs to happen, but that didn't make it any less difficult. And it was. Not only because as crazy as she is, she's still my kid sister, but because even crazy, she was still very, very powerful. Katara was nice enough to point out that I'm lucky to be alive (I know she means well, but it still reminds me of how my father would say the same thing), but it's just as true that Katara's lucky to be alive. I don't want to think about what Aang might have said or done if I'd had to tell him I'd gotten the love of his life killed. It probably would have been safer if I'd gotten myself killed as well. As it was, I collapsed as soon as the adrenaline rush wore off. I don't remember anything else until I woke up a few hours ago in my own bed, so I'm guessing Katara must have carried me inside somehow. I can't imagine she could have done it without help, small as she is, but nobody else was around. I can only assume that the others showed up, but from what I hear, they weren't in the best of shape either.

Honestly, I'm kind of surprised that they all survived. Especially after Toph told me about how she and Sokka and Suki had taken out all those airships. I'm glad they're alive, and I really want to hear Sokka's side of the airship story. Toph's description had quite a few gaps.

They haven't found Mai yet. Ty Lee was with the Kyoshi warriors and the rest of the invasion force in the Capital City Prison, but according to her, Mai had been taken somewhere else a few days before and hadn't come back. It would be just my luck that the Avatar and his friends all make it out fine, but I end up losing Mai. In any case, there's not much I can do right now, and I know that Ty Lee and the others are still looking for her.

Katara's coming in, and she doesn't look happy. She says I need sleep, and she's threatening to take my journal away.


Same day, a bit later

The good news is that I'm feeling better enough to be bored. The bad news is that I'm bored. Crap, Katara's coming again.