Greed Vs. Charity

His boots made a hard echoing sound throughout the chamber, as Avatar Aang traveled through the dark, dank tunnels of the Fire Nation prison, the one for federal criminals. It was almost unbearably cold here, and in the stillness, he could feel the fear and misery clinging to every particle of his skin and clothes.

As he neared a bend in the walkway, he realized he was getting close. The Firelord had told him where she would be located. One more step and he would be-

A guard came from seemingly out of nowhere and blocked Aang's entrance to the staircase with his burly frame.

"Sir, I cannot allow you to pass."

There was no explanation, no apology accompanying this simple statement. Such was the nature of strict, unerring authority.

Aang smiled in response and in the hopes that this would get him out of having to pull out his last resort, said pleasantly, "I'm sorry. I didn't see you there, otherwise I would have explained myself, as I did with the guard at the front. You see, I was asked to come here on a special request from the Firelord."

The guard was not swayed by this and stood as erect and immovable as he had before. Aang sighed and did what he had hoped from the beginning that he would not have to do. He flipped the hood of his cloak off his head and waited for the guard's reaction.

In his mind he counted: 1, 2, 3-

Before Aang could even blink, the guard was apologizing profusely, and had stepped out of the way. Sputtering, he said, "My humblest regret Avatar Aang, I didn't realize it was you!"

"Never mind. It's fine, you were only doing your job. Besides, the whole purpose for me wearing the cloak is for no one to know it's me. I don't like special treatment."

They exchanged bows, and Aang was about to continue on his way, when the guard warned, "Avatar, you should know that we only keep the worst of them down there. It's dangerous. Whatever business you're here for, are you sure you want to risk it?"

Aang paused only for a moment, to send the guard a reassuring smile, before he descended the stairs.

The girl was almost exactly as Aang remembered her to be the last time he had seen her, five years ago. The only differences he could see would be that she looked slightly older, that her beauty was now worn around the edges (perhaps from all those years in prison) and that those fierce golden eyes had lost that once fiery spark.

She had been broken.

He was about five feet away from her cell, but hesitated to get any closer. Not out of fear, (No. Fear was something Aang rarely felt anymore. He was too wise for it now.) but out of procrastination for what he was about to do.

Finally, he could hold it off no longer. Stepping forward, Aang knelt in front of Azula's cage, ignoring the sounds of the other prisoners around him.

It took a moment in her delirium, for her to recognize him, but once her eyes had focused, there was no mistaking that blue arrow. "It's you! Where's my filthy traitor of a brother?!",

He looked her in the eyes and she looked defiantly back. He stared for a long time, not to stare her down, but to read her, to try to see what she was thinking. What he saw there was not what he had expected. There was no wickedness and no cunning. Only madness, fear, and greed. But not the same kind of greed. It was not power she yearned for anymore, but something else, something no human being should be denied. She was greedy for the air she hadn't felt on her skin in five long years, the blue of the sky she missed seeing, the taste of freedom she was denied everyday.

So, when the ex-princess shot a ball of blue flame directly at his face, and the Avatar deflected it with the easy flick of a hand, he saw it not as an evil, malicious attack, but as the actions of a frightened animal defending itself. Aang knew she feared him now. He could see it in those eyes.

Her terror was unfounded however, as he had not come to harm her, at least not in a way that would cause her any physical pain. But still, Aang could not bring himself to do the deed he had come for. Taking Azula's bending away was not something he wanted to do. Zuko had suggested it however, as he believed it was necessary so as to make sure she did not harm herself, or worse, someone else. Many of the guards had complained of terrible burns over the years and Zuko had decided that as Firelord, it was a duty to his people to make sure they were safe. But Aang believed that this would be crossing the line between justice and cruelty. The only thing the girl had left was her bending. Take that away and what was she worth then? So in a moment of extreme charitability, Aang decided to procrastinate some more.

Aang allowed her to walk ahead of him when they got outside, giving her the illusion of superiority, of dominance. Of course, initially, the guards were reluctant in letting Azula out of her cell, but out of both respect for the Avatar, and fear of his new companion, they all stepped aside. At first, after Aang had explained his plans to the guards and they had given him permission to take her out, she had been suspicious.

"What is this? Some kind of trick? You think I'm a fool? Where are you taking me? Tell me! I demand you to tell me!" She had screeched as the guards pushed her up the stairs.

"I'm taking you outside." He explained calmly, at the same time, waving off the guards, motioning for them to let her be.

"What?" Clearly she did not believe him.

"You may come if you wish. Or not. It's up to you Azula." And with that, Aang had walked ahead of her, leaving her a decision to make. He would not force her.

Just like he suspected she would, Azula had followed him up the stairs.

However, before she stepped into the sunlight with him, she made one last protest, "I do not need your charity." She spat out the last word, like it was poisonous.

"Very well" He had responded kindly. "I'll just ask the guards to put you ba-"

"No!" she shouted and that had been the end of it. Aang had moved aside and let her walk past him.

Now he watched as after one greedy gulp of fresh air, she fell to her knees and broke down into manic sobs. Apparently, all it had taken was a glance at that clear blue sky.

They must have been outside for at least an hour now.

She was too distracted by that wonderful breeze, the power of the sun coursing through her veins to even notice Aang's presence. He knew it was dangerous to be letting her walk around freely, but the only person he was endangering here was himself and if she tried to attack him, he could easily overpower her. She was in front of him after all, so he could watch her every move and her hands were still shackled anyway. Besides there was something helpless in the way she stumbled over rocks and tripped over roots, something pathetic in the way she refused his help, trying to hold some semblance of dignity by walking on her own. He could not explain it, but somehow he knew she would not attack. There were times when she would turn around to look at him and he knew she was checking to see if he was still behind her, making sure she was not left alone in this now horribly unfamiliar world.

Azula did not like him, did not appreciate his charity and certainly would never have returned the favor had they been in each other's shoes, even now. But she did see he was no harm to her and felt secure, maybe even comforted by his presence. Perhaps he made her feel safe because he was the Avatar. Or perhaps, now realizing that he was the only one to be truly kind to her, she did not feel the need to attack him. In her muddled mind, Aang was now no longer something to be feared, but something to let be. Something little more than a slight annoyance out of the corner of her eye, because for now he kept his distance. He could be used as protection in her vulnerable state, even though she would never admit to anyone that she now needed it. Azula never saw people in terms of their value as a person, but only in terms of how useful they were in helping her attain her ends. Right now she wanted to be alive, and she knew that he would keep her that way. That was all, and Aang knew it.

However, as soon as she started making a beeline for the gates that led outside the prison grounds, Aang grabbed her elbow and snatched her back, away from them. He then stood in front of the gates still holding her arm. Endangering himself was one thing, endangering others was another. She got the message and backed away, glaring at him as she ripped her appendage out of his grasp. His hand caused a strange, warmth to spread through her body, something that did not even begin to compare to the heat that she felt inside when firebending. Something entirely different from that altogether. It had made her uncomfortable.

Aang simply took this action as a sign of her resentment and did not notice her confusion in the slightest.

Another hour later, Aang told her it was time to go back, and he, not wanting to have to force her, attempted to ask her to go back politely a few more times. When she continued to not cooperate, Aang sighed.

He had known from the start it was a losing battle. At least, the negotiating was. Getting her back inside would take more.

Once again, from her mouth, she hurled a ball of fire directly at his face and once again, Aang snuffed it out with a small breath of his own. Too quick for her, Aang pulled her toward him by her shoulders, spun her around and held her by her arms, her back to his front. Then he pushed her up the hill, back to the prison, as gently as he could. The whole walk back she fought him, her sparks and hair flying about her face, and the whole walk back, Aang was weighed by a slight sense of guilt. He had somehow succeeded in making her trust him, feel safe with him. And now he could not shake the feeling that in some odd way, he was betraying her.

Once inside, the guards took over, steering her straight back to her cell, shackling her feet again.

After a while, she stopped struggling.

When the Avatar approached the bars separating them again, Azula was too exhausted to manage more than a nasty snarl in his direction.

The first guard stepped forward, and just as Aang asked, he unlocked the cell again. Aang stepped forward into the small space, the only place Azula could truly call home anymore.

She curled away from him, into a corner, breathing hysterically. Her fear of him was back. And Aang was sorry she had to fear him at all. He approached her slowly and then went down on one knee in front of her. He raised his hand and she backed up, turning her face away. Gently he placed it on her forehead. Aang held her chin with his other hand and turned her back to face him. For a moment she stared at him, but his hand had a calming affect on her. Almost peacefully, she closed her eyes, as if she knew what was coming.

They were so close, their breath mingling, their noses almost touching.

Like he did with her father, years ago, the Avatar pushed Azula's head back and stood up. He was glad her eyes were closed, for if they were not, she might have become horrified again at the sight of his illuminated tattoes.

Out of luminescent eyes, Aang watched her and concentrated all of his energy on that one hand…..

When Aang left the prison that night, he felt better than he had when he had first arrived.

As he walked the path leading to the gates, he thought of how Zuko would be displeased that Aang had let his unstable little sister out of prison that day. However, he would be even more unhappy when he found out what the Avatar's latest act of charity had been.

Though for now, Aang was perfectly okay with that.

Meanwhile, in her cold, lonely jail cell, Azula entertained her deranged mind by burning prison mice alive.