The look on her face was the most disturbing of all to see. Once it had a horrible beauty to it- the kind of gaze that was carved from looking out with perfect conviction. Even at its worst, that face was something to behold. Then it all snapped like a puppet's strings and the lifeless marionette was all that was left.

Every now and then, there were reports of life though. They weren't encouraging.

Long days spent crying and even longer nights spent screaming kept even the rehabilitory guards nervous and on their toes. The hoarse croaks that emanated after had an equally unsettling effect. The bittersweet days of silence that followed left one shift requesting immediate transfer to he didn't care where so long as it was away.

It wasn't a month before the warden put out the special requests for isolation and privacy. The paperwork tore through the bureaucracy's normal red tape like lightning on a mission. If they could help it, nobody wanted to hear those screams. Especially, nobody wanted to hear them at night.

Transportation was a careful affair that involved a few apothecaries to ensure she remained sedate the whole trip to her new home. Once settled in, a new security detail took over that was disciplined and unsympathetic. Carefully screened and chosen for dispassionate compassion, they were a crew of fifteen men and women who would change out every six months with a similar crew so as not to get too attached.

She was cared for with machine-like precision. Never fed a crumb more than usual, never let an inch of freedom, she was under near-perfect surveillance. Not a watch got sloppy or tired because shifts were rigorously checked every hour. Nobody played pai-sho here. No special guests, no anything.

The screams continued though. This was a truth of her world. This was the truth until the first person who wasn't a part of regular security detail walked up the two checkpoint path one mild winter day.

She was alone, as was public knowledge, and information on her description and general temperament had been distributed among the ranks, but the crew weren't to let this be said. She and only she was to be cleared and sent up. The only uncertainty in this new addition was just how long she was to be behind closed doors with the prisoner.

While this was an issue to the guards on detail, it didn't trouble the first person to see the prisoner in nearly three months one bit. What did trouble her was what she needed to say, or how she was to go about earning the inmate's trust. She was host to a million little worrying questions that floated lethally in her mind, but never made it to her expression. Deadpan, she hiked upwards, mentally grumbling beneath the stress, This all would be so much easier if she'd just learned to relax once and awhile.

"She's not eating," the woman had said. She remembered that.

"Not at all?"

"The moment the food is pushed through the grate, it's returned charred. We've lost a few plates too."

"Water?"

"Blasted into steam."

Then, silence had stretched in contemplation.

"How long?" the Fire Lord had asked.

"This marks the end of the second day. We believe she'll at least let the food and water in tomorrow, but not because she'll actually take them."

"Hm."

Another contemplative silence settled.

"Sir, to be frank, she'll be dead by two, maybe three more days time and I'd like to know if my group should be prepared to force-feed her."

His good eyebrow was up and a very slight smile touched the corner of his mouth. "That'd be something else…" he said softly to himself. He looked back into the woman's eyes. "I don't think we'll need that just yet General Yeng. I'll have to consider how to deal with this… Matter in private. I'll send an answer to you by morning."

General Yeng bowed slightly and took her leave.

Once the door clicked shut, Fire Lord Zuko slumped a little into his chair and looked past his desk, tired.

"You know this kind of thing was going to happen."

He sighed. "I actually thought it'd be before now. I can't believe it took her this long to get suspicious of the food."

The shape that'd mostly been unnoticed came away from the wall to sit at the edge of Zuko's ornate desk. She placed her hand on his supportively and squeezed. "What do you want to do then?"

"Force-feedings'd just make it worse. It was fine back when she just lay there, but now? Somebody could get hurt while trying to open her mouth. And I know I can't go. Bad enough I keep pumping Father for information about Mother, but this? Azula might just try to kill me again."

Quiet came again. The crackle of the twin lamps in the room spoke the hour and just how late it was getting.

"What if I went?" Mai said.

Zuko started at this, blinking. He looked up at Mai, concern etching his face. "Do you think that's smart? I was told she was muttering your name before she fought with me."

Mai sighed, folding her arms and looking nonplused. "Yeah, I heard that too, but we can't just let her die. Not the best way to kick off that age of 'peace and love,' you know?"

Nodding, Zuko glared balefully at his desk's surface. Pinching the bridge of his nose he muttered, "Why can't she just sulk like Father does?"

"Because she's Azula," Mai said. "She built her world on fear and intimidation and then Ty Lee and I broke that to save your butt…" Flashing a warm smile at Zuko, she put a hand on his shoulder. He placed his on hers, smiling up at her as well. "Looks like it broke her too."

He gave her hand an affectionate squeeze, the smile fading and his gaze going beyond his desk to wherever his sister taunted him from the mountains.

"It'd be dangerous," he said.

"I know."

"We could try sending a messenger hawk to Ty Lee, or maybe send for Aang and see if he could remove her bending like Father's…"

"Both of those would take too long," Mai said.

A grimace worked onto Zuko's face, folding his scar tissue at odd angles and wrinkles. "There's got to be a better way…"

"Maybe," Mai replied. "But you've got a lot on your mind and I don't see anybody else getting concerned about Azula quickly. Well, not unless she was her old crabby self and made them."

The grimace smoothed and his good eyebrow moved to show his worry and contemplation. His head tilted slightly down when he said, "I don't like this idea."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, neither do I," Mai said, reaching out to guide his gaze up to her. "But she used to sort-of be my friend, so maybe I can do something."

Twenty feet from a house set deep in the mountainside, made with steel bars in high windows, and a door looking as though it would intimidate a small army, Mai muttered, "Me and my big mouth."

Four guards patrolled around the house not looking tired or bored. They were alert, sharp and Mai saw that they could give even her a run if she tried a direct assault. The others she had checked with on the way up were just as focused and had watched her very closely. Maybe they stared because she was the first interesting thing that had happened to them all day. It was also possible she was the most interesting thing that had happened to them in the two months they'd been watching Azula. Approaching the waiting General Yeng, Mai thought better. If they were watching Azula, every day was interesting.

"Morning," General Yeng said.

"Hey," Mai said once she was in front of the commanding officer. Her eyes flicked to the door and bars, seeing if Azula was in a fire-spitting mood.

General Yeng caught the glance and made a wry smile. "Yeah, she's in there. We tried pushing some food through just in case, but…" The general held up the smoked remains of a cast iron plate. "I'm surprised she still has this much fire in her, but I'm not surprised, you know?"

"She's like that. When she gets something in her head, she's set on it," Mai replied, not even looking at the officer, just staring at the door with its many locks.

Nodding, General Yeng joined the girl's gaze. "I can see that."

Turning back, she looked Mai over critically seeing the specially styled hair, the heavy eye-liner and other marks of money and easy-living. Yet, woven around that façade was a stance that showed she was at-ready. Bored, spoiled, palace brat on the surface, but if you were actually watching her, you'd know to steer clear. Maybe this would be okay. Maybe, but General Yeng still had reservations.

"You sure about this?"

Mai rolled her eyes. "Look, can we just get it over with? If everybody keeps asking me, I'm going to forget I'm doing a favor for my boyfriend here and turn around."

Caught off-guard, this earned a chuckle from the hardened Professional Security Officer. "Fair enough," she said. "Helms One!"

A tallish, sharply muscled guard in helmet and free-moving armor came up. He stood at-ready near General Yeng. The general looked Mai over and said matter-of-factly, "Pat her down. Make sure she's unarmed."

Mai openly blanched at this.

"Sorry, ma'am, protocol," General Yeng said.

Stepping back, Mai said, "Hang on, hang on. I can do it myself." Glancing around, she added, "Do you have a bucket or bag or something?"

"Helms One" walked over to a table near the house and picked up a large tray. When he returned, he wordlessly raised it in front of Mai. Sighing, she began the process.

Five minutes later, though he didn't look burdened by the weight, Helms One grunted under the strain of maintaining the tray's height. General Yeng remained off to the side with an expression mixing impressed with disbelief. The tray, which was no small device, was piled with knives, shuriken, stilettos and even a pair of sharpened chopsticks while Mai continued patting herself down as though she was looking for an errant change purse.

"I think that's everything," she muttered.

"I'm sure it isn't, but I think you're as disarmed as we'll get you," General Yeng said with a smirk. "C'mon."

Mai followed behind, watching Helms One carry the tray delicately to the table set against a wall. He then took up his original position near the table and with his arms behind his back, where no one would see, he set to work massaging the insides of his wrists back to normal.

As Mai and General Yeng approached, two of the guards broke patrol to stand at either side of the massive door. General Yeng lifted a tray and jug of water from a table near the door and handed them to Mai who gave the lumps of bread and unidentifiable a sour expression.

"This door only unlocks from the outside," the general said removing a ring of keys from her belt. She began the slow process of working through the locks. "We won't keep it as tight when you're in there, so if anything goes wrong we can remove you as quickly as possible. You'll be monitored at all times to ensure your safety."

"Joy," Mai said watching the locks and bolts turn.

"Hey," General Yeng snapped. This caught the girl's attention and she looked the general square in the eye. "This isn't a joke. I know you have history with the prisoner that might help, but that does not change the fact that she is still incredibly dangerous. She may kill you. Do you understand?"

Mai looked up at the door, her expression unreadable. After a long moment, she said, "So what else is new?" She looked at the last unmoved gears. "Are you going to open the door or what?"

General Yeng stared, then shook her head. "Your funeral." She nodded to the two patrols who took a stance on either side of the door and fired into two specialized locks. There was a loud clang as internal mechanisms gave way to guided firebending, followed by the noise of several clicks and dropping metallic weights.

Moving behind one of the patrols, General Yeng picked up the bow and arrow that were beside the door and leveled it just over the guard's shoulder. She nodded to the other patrol, who grabbed at the door's handle and pulled slightly, opening just the scantest of cracks.

"You've a guest!" General Yeng bellowed. "Get in the corner with your hands where I can see them!"

At first, no response came from inside and Mai stood holding the food watching the tableau of still soldiers before her. Then, softly, the sound of shuffling movement came and some light clangs came from within. Once satisfied by what she saw, the general nodded again to the patrol holding the door and the portal opened enough to let Mai in with her food.

"You know how to get out if you want to," General Yeng said never taking her eyes from whatever waited inside. "It will take one minute from when you let me know to have the door open. Good luck."

The guards stepped back just far enough to let Mai pass, but never lowered their gaze, never let even the slightest relaxation creep into their positions. They trained on what was beyond the portal perfectly. Easing past, Mai stepped inside to darkness and the sound of the door swiftly slamming behind her followed by a handful of the locks moving into place. It took a minute for the noise of clanking gears to die away and Mai looked around the space that held probably the most dangerous person in the world.

Once her eyes had adjusted to the relative gloom of the area, she first saw that the house was bisected by a tight lattice-work grate. Covering the entire width of the prison, it was at once more beautiful than prison bars and at the same time more disturbing. At best, a person would get three slim fingers through each hole, which may be good for a lock pick, but there was no lock to pick in sight. Looking even closer, Mai spotted heavy bolts at corners and intervals around the grating, suggesting the prisoner wasn't going anywhere without considerable work and warning. Various spots on the grating looked charred and scorched from Azula's side.

As Mai walked closer to the grating she could feel hard, smooth rock under her feet. A quick glance down revealed the floor to be made of ceramic plates. Ceramic plates that were very fire-resistant, she wagered.

The two lone windows let the only light in the building and cast it into the prisoner's eyes, obscuring any visitors and making it harder for Azula to sneak about. Though they weren't deep, shadows marked the corners of the over-sized cell. In these shallow shades of gray Mai's former "friend" squatted: her arms and feet shackled to restrict her full range of movements, but with just enough give to let her wander the small confines mostly unencumbered.

Mai sat down a foot shy of the grating and looked at the hunched figure wearing the torn and battered prison uniform Mai knew too well thanks to her temporary incarceration. A less than welcome silence hung in the air as she tried to figure out what to say.

Before anticipation actually built her to a sweat, Mai heard the jingle of chains and she refocused on Azula, watching her carefully, her whole body tensing in an instant.

Azula brought her hands in slowly and carefully till the restraints stopped her just shy of hugging herself, and Mai couldn't tell whether this motion was deliberate or not. Still hunched in the corner, Azula turned her head, almost glancing over her shoulder. The eye that peeked was glassy and unfocused, waggling lazily about until it caught Mai in its journey. Once focused, the eye seemed to send a violent signal that caused all of Azula's body to shudder; she froze for a moment like a wild animal in the middle of torchlight. Then, just as quickly as she'd stopped, her head ducked back down and her breathing intensified.

Mai started breathing a bit harder too.

Azula moved her head again, but not in the uncaring wobble of before, instead twisting it quickly, making sure both eyes looked out. They squinted at Mai, trying to see through the tricky sunlight, then disappeared again.

Swallowing, Mai licked the inside of her mouth. Blinking, she felt sweat break out on her upper lip as she thought, Well, I was expecting a lot… But I wasn't expecting this.

Azula then made a noise that caught all of Mai's attention. Shallow, gargling and phlegm-filled, it rattled deep in her throat to rise and meet her mouth just shy of her teeth and it gave Mai the creeps. After a decidedly longer time than she wanted, the noise died away (had Azula been clearing her throat?), and in something that sounded like a smoke-blackened version of her former voice, Azula said, "What are you doing here?"

Mai had essentially spent her entire life with a bored, deadpan expression, and it was because of this that Azula didn't pick up on the fact that her heart was hammering hard enough to leap out of Mai's chest. So instead of some blocked and starting over-emotional squeak, in a calm, almost-interested voice, Mai said, "I brought you breakfast. They said you weren't eating."

The cackle that burst from Azula was glass on glass and just as jagged. "How sweet. My old friend… Mai brought me breakfast. I may just weep openly." Another manic shot of giggles went through her violently and Mai thought she heard sniffling.

"All right then," Mai said rising. "I'll leave these here and-"

"Wait!" Azula hissed.

Mai stopped, her knees almost unbent.

Azula turned on the spot and Mai was able to get her first good look at her former friend. She first noticed the hair, which spilled all around Azula's head and was tousled at odd clumps, laying across her face with one strand stuck to her mouth. From there, she focused on the face: so deeply sunken, the eyes carried bruised circles scored deep in once porcelain features and her cheeks were more pronounced than ever. The cheeks cued Mai into just how bony the girl appeared. Where once lean muscle wrapped around sharp features, now it was more like something ghastly pushed out from underneath. Even her clothes, which, regardless of the fabric and cut, Azula once could make the peak of fashion by force of will alone, were nipped and torn at the edges as though she'd been picking at the sleeves and cuffs religiously. From those torn cuffs what showed of her body wasn't encouraging. Chewed nails and dirt-caked fingers and toes that were just as bony as her face stood out pale against the dark.

The overall effect of Azula's new visage slowed Mai's heart in sympathy. The old Azula may have been under there, but for the time being, this freaky bone girl with crazy eyes was driving the camelhorse now. Easing back to return to her sitting position, Mai raised a careful eyebrow. "What?" she asked.

Never quite rising, Azula scrabbled across the ground till the chains kept her face just shy of the grating. Up close her eyes seemed even worse- all want and need openly screaming through them. Yet, Mai didn't start back. She trusted the chains and grate would hold up just fine. For now.

"You're… Here." Azula croaked.

Mai blinked. "Yeah…"

"Why?"

Mai sighed and glanced off to the side, a bit bored. "To feed you, duh." She then looked back into the void of Azula's face.

"No!" the creature growled through clenched teeth. "Whyyyyyy?"

Mai leveled her gaze. "Because it's this, or they force feed you, and Zuko doesn't want to lose people because you're being a drama queen."

Azula tilted her face down, eyes giggling through the top of her head right at Mai. "Oh, Zu-zu. Why isn't he here then?"

"You'd just try to kill him."

"True, true… But I could try to kill you too…"

"You haven't."

"Just wait," she said, baring her teeth in equal parts smile and challenge.

"I'm not afraid of you," Mai said.

Azula glared from behind the grate, then snapped forward straining against the chains, crying, "Do you think I don't know how abundantly clear that is right now?"

She seethed- a dog at the end of her leash, teeth bared and a growl in her throat. Then all energy dropped from her and she sagged back, her head tapping the ceramic beneath her. She blinked, her energy used for the day.

"I'll make a deal with little Zu-zu," she said from her dead position on the floor. The voice that came was distant and still ragged. "I'll keep eating so long as you keep coming. You don't even have to come all three meals. Watch me not care."

"Me?" Mai blinked.

"Bring Ty Lee. Bring the whole traitorous bunch of you." She sat up, positioning herself on the grounded spot where the chains came from under the tiling. Spreading her arms in display she added, "Watch the results of your actions."

Mai noticed the sliding tray at the bottom of the grate with the trick door just big enough to fit the plate and slight jug of water through. She put the contents there and popped them to the other side. Azula didn't move except for her eyes, which remained on Mai at all times.

"I'll see you tomorrow for lunch," Mai said. "I hate getting up this early and you know it."

She rose then and knocked the pre-approved rhythm on the door. The gears started up and she waited.

"Breakfast it is!" Azula jeered.

Mai turned as the locks worked. "Lunch. You can eat the one time I come, I don't care what you do after that."

The door opened and she could see General Yeng standing behind a patrol, both at the ready as they were before, as though they had never moved.

"You'll see!" Azula screeched from behind. "I'll have you! I'll have you all!"

Mai didn't look back, and merely sidestepped past the guards and into the suddenly harsh sunlight.