In case anyone has already read The Ever Changing Sea, and read the version in which Azula is killed - I changed it, and she is instead rotting in a Fire Nation dungeon all during this story. Yes, there's a point to that. Which you will find out in book 3.

The waterbender dropped a handful of herbs into a stone bowl. The fresh scent of them filled the air as she crushed them with a pestle, then tipped them carefully into a waiting bowl of water.

It had been nearly two months since the fall of Azula. Fire Lord Zuko and his wife, Mai, had left for the Fire Nation soon afterward, taking with them the former Fire Princess. They had not, however, taken Ty Lee with them; the former acrobat's injuries had been too extensive. The acrobat's spine had been shattered in the fight that had made Azula a prisoner. Katara's eyes dulled at the memory. She quietly picked up the bowl of water and herbs and turned toward the bed.

Ty Lee was lying on her stomach. She was bare to the waist, her body encased in a system of ropes and metal rods to keep her broken back from moving. Her gray eyes were half-closed as she watched Katara. "You're going to do it again?" she murmured.

"Yes." The Water Tribe woman set the bowl down on the bedside table and crouched down to the invalid's level. "I shouldn't have to do this anymore," she promised softly. "One more treatment, and you won't have any more chips of bone floating around."

"Okay." The former acrobat smiled hopelessly. "Get it over with."

"I'll be as quick as I can," Katara said, rising again. She bended the water from the bowl and pulled it around her hands, like gloves. The liquid began to shimmer with power, glowing a faint blue. "Ready? I'm starting now." She lowered her hands and rested them gently on Ty Lee's spine, on either side of the three damaged vertebrae. The glowing water sank through the young woman's skin and into her body; Katara felt for the few remaining bone chips, and began to move them carefully back into place.

The invalid made no sound, but her fists clenched on handfuls of her sheets, and moisture beaded on her face. The waterbender concentrated, and felt sweat begin to trickle down her own cheeks. It was a ticklish business. She had to ease the bits of bone into place without inflicting further damage on the delicate spinal cord, and it took a great deal of skill and focus. Her eyes narrowed. One more little bit. Easy…easy… The last tiny fragment slid into its place, and Katara fused it there. "There. Finished." She let out her breath and slowly moved her hands away.

Ty Lee uttered a whimper, letting her hands relax. There were tears on her face. The waterbender took a clean rag and gently wiped them away. "It's done now. It's okay. I won't have to do that again," Katara said. "You'll be in much less pain. We can start rehabilitating you when you're ready."

The former acrobat was silent for a moment. "Can I ask you for a favor, Katara?" she asked softly. Her voice quivered.

"Of course." The waterbender smiled, brushing the hair back from Ty Lee's face. "What can I do for you?"

Ty Lee closed her eyes. "I want to ask King Kuei if I can be tried and executed here in the Earth Kingdom, instead of the Fire Nation," she murmured. "He won't do it, though, unless Zuko agrees to it. If…if you were to ask Zuko…"

Katara bit her lip. She wanted to scold the young woman and tell her that she wasn't going to be executed, but she knew the odds were against her. She inhaled deeply. "Why would you want that?" she asked instead, her voice gentle. "I would think you'd want to go back home, even if you might end on the guillotine there."

The gray eyes opened and looked up at her. "It won't be the guillotine, Katara," she said quietly. "I'm considered a traitor. If I'm convicted of high treason, I won't be eligible for beheading. Traitors get the threefold cleansing of Agni."

A frown crossed Katara's face. "The threefold cleansing? What's that?"

The invalid closed her eyes again. Her voice was weary. "It's penance for my sins. To cleanse my body, fifty strokes of the whip on my back. To cleanse my mind, twenty days without food, light or companionship, spent in a hole in the ground. And finally, to cleanse my spirit, I'll be burned to ashes at the stake." She stopped. "I don't think I'll be shown mercy," she murmured, a hopeless smile twitching her lips. "Mai in particular has no reason to give me any."

"You did try to tell me where she was," Katara said.

"I did. It wasn't enough." Ty Lee sighed deeply.

The Water Tribe woman couldn't help but pity her. She stroked the former acrobat's pale brow. "Are you sorry for what you did, Ty Lee?" she asked gently.

"Interesting question." The invalid smiled bitterly. "I guess I could go the obvious route, and claim I was blinded by Azula, and it was all her fault, right? But I think I owe you an honest answer." She traced a random pattern on her pillow with her finger. "I…made a decision. I chose to fear death – and love Azula – more than I loved Mai, or Zuko, or even my own country. And I guess that does make me a traitor." She paused. "Yes, I am sorry, Katara. But…it doesn't matter. I'm still a traitor. I stabbed my best friend in the back, and tried to kill the Fire Lord. Really, I should go back to the Fire Nation and face justice! But I'm a coward, I guess. I'm tired of pain. I…I want to die quickly." She shut her eyes; tears slid from beneath her closed lids. "I wish it was over."

Katara's heart ached. She brushed the tears away from Ty Lee's cheeks. Since the fight, she hadn't seen a single real smile on the girl's face. "I'll see what I can do," she promised.

"Thank you." Ty Lee's voice was barely audible.

The healer sighed, glancing out the window. The sun had already set; it was probably close to midnight. "You should rest," she said gently. "Get some sleep, and I'll see you in the morning." Ty Lee nodded a little, without opening her eyes. Stooping down, Katara dropped a kiss on the damp cheek, and then turned away. She, too, needed sleep.

When she reached home, she found Toph waiting for her in the front room. The lanky earthbender was leaning against the wall, her arms folded across her chest. She looked up as Katara shut the door behind her. "Hey."

"Hey." Katara leaned against the door, weary in every sense of the word. Her heart still ached for the former acrobat. "You were waiting for me."

"Yeah, I was." Toph moved forward and rested her callused hands on the waterbender's arms. "You shouldn't work so hard, Sweetness," she said. "You're exhausted!"

Katara felt a twinge of annoyance. Toph had been nagging at her about it for days. "Yeah, yeah. I know."

"Seriously." Toph shook her finger at her. "You shouldn't push yourself like this!"

"I have to." Katara pushed away from the door and shrugged off Toph's hand in sudden irritation. "Her spine was shattered, Toph. She needs healing, and I'm the best healer in this city! Besides, everyone else has abandoned her. She needs me."

Toph's face hardened. "No one 'abandoned' her. She betrayed everyone who would have stood by her. It's her own fault! And why should you kill yourself to shield her from the consequences of her own actions?"

The waterbender's cheeks flushed with anger. She knew that she was being unreasonable, but she was tired and frustrated, and in no mood to back down. "I'm not shielding her from anything! I'm just refusing to treat a human being like dog dung!" she snapped. "Besides, it's not like she snapped her own spine!"

"Excuse me?" Toph was angry now – her cloudy eyes flashed. "Are you actually throwing it in my face that I'm the one who hit her? What in the hell was I supposed to do, Katara? Let her kill Zuko? Whose side are you on, anyway?"

"So what, you're proud that you put her in a wheelchair?" Katara snarled.

"What? No! What the hell is that supposed to mean?" The earthbender's face was red. "It was a fucking battle, Katara! A battle! People hit each other in battle! I don't know if you noticed, but they were trying to kill us. Should I have just left you in that cell?"

"Oh – what, are you sorry you rescued me, now? Well, you can go to hell!" The waterbender turned away and started to walk away.

Toph caught her by the arm and jerked her back, pinning her against the wall. Katara cried out in pain and rage. "Don't you walk away from me!" the earthbender snarled. "What the hell is your problem?"

"Let go of me!" The waterbender tried to jerk free, but Toph's grip was like iron. "Damn it, let me go!"

"No! You're staying here until we work this out!"

"There's nothing to work out!" Their faces were inches apart now. "I'm healing Ty Lee, and you can't stop me. Especially since you're the one that hurt her in the first place! So you can just stay away from her!"

"You bitch!" Toph pulled back a fist.

Both women were suddenly very still. Katara watched as Toph's arm shuddered, and her fist clenched so hard that it shook. Her blazing anger turned to ice. "Are you going to hit me, too, Toph?" she asked coldly. "Go ahead. Hit me!"

Toph's face crumpled. The rage drained out of her like the air from a balloon. Slowly her fist lowered; her grip on Katara's arm loosened, and her arms fell to her sides. She turned her face away. "No." Her voice was a bare whisper. There was a long silence as the earthbender struggled to master herself. "I'm through," Toph said quietly, after a while. Her voice shook. "Good night, Katara." Without another word, she left. The door slammed behind her.

Remorse flooded the waterbender's heart. She wanted to run after her and plead for forgiveness! She wavered; then her legs buckled underneath her, and she fell to the floor, bursting into sobs. For what felt like hours, she wept. Finally, exhausted, she lay still; her body still shook. She vaguely heard the voice of a servant, and felt gentle arms lifting and helping her to her room. Her blankets received her. Groaning, she fell into a troubled sleep.