Chapter One

Following his Agni Kai with Azula, Zuko's return to the Palace was a good first step towards order out of chaos. Although his first few days were spent in a hospital bed, when he awoke the third day and saw Katara – and not Mai – he was grateful, but felt a sense of confusion as well as regret.

Katara could tell. She also understood, but couldn't resist the urge to tease him about it. "Not the one you were expecting?" she wondered innocently, speaking as she gently cleaned his wound.

He made a face, both from the sting of pain and from her words. "You're very good at that guilt thing. I hope you're aware of that." His expression softened, however. "You know I'm grateful to you," he admitted. Katara looked up from her bandaging and smiled, nodding, as he went on. "I just... seeing her would have confirmed that she was okay. I just want to know for sure, you know?"

Katara's hands hesitated - just for a moment - but it was enough for Zuko to leap on, especially when a jolt of fear stabbed into him. "You've heard something?" he demanded.

"No," she answered, her face guarded. "But, Zuko – from what Sokka told me about your escape... She betrayed Azula for you. And Azula, even before then, was hardly the type to forgive betrayal..."

She trailed off when she saw his face. His unburned eye was wide, and his face was pale. "No," he whispered. "No, no." He shook his head slowly, his eyes unfocused. "I'm sure she's fine. She-she has to be. Azula... she wouldn't... she couldn't..."

Katara bit her lip, busying herself with the bandage. Her silence, however, spoke the words she didn't loudly. Zuko covered his face and hunched over, his shoulders shaking. Carefully, she reached up and rubbed his back.

It had just never occurred to him that Mai would have been killed. It had never occurred to him that Azula would kill her. It had never crossed his mind, not even once, that Mai would ever lose a fight...

Mai's stay in the prison system was short compared to Ty Lee's. Azula wasn't foolish enough to imprison her on the Boiling Rock with her uncle, but she was foolish enough to believe that that would make a difference to him.

Koryu, Mai's only uncle, the brother of her political father, was stubborn, headstrong and arrogant. He hated all criminals – that much was true – but he hated war prisoners even more, just for being stupid enough to become prisoners of war. He started his career in the military as the lowest guard of the dingiest prison in the entire Nation. It was his determination and grit that brought him higher and higher in the ranks, and he became warden at a relatively young age because of this.

Despite his devotion to his career, however, Koryu was never able to overlook his tiny, brooding and neglected niece in her childhood, and now was no exception.

He rapped his knuckles on the bars of Mai's cell. She looked up, her eyes unguarded and her face drawn with exhaustion. She had been in the prison for a month – it had taken him a long time to find her – and it showed. Her face was grey and her hair, her one vanity, was unkempt and messy.

"Uncle Koryu," she murmured, her voice uncertain, as if he was a phantom and not actually real.

"Open the door," he snarled at the guard beside him. The guard opened her mouth to protest, but a glare was all he needed and she obeyed, her moves jerky.

When the door opened, Mai stayed seated, her eyes wide and fixed on Koryu. He hadn't seen her this confused and distraught since she had heard that her mother was pregnant.

Slowly, he walked forward, holding a hand out to her, "Mai," he said softly. "You're free, now. Come out."

Mai tore her gaze away. She brought her knees to her chest, hugging her legs tight. "I betrayed Azula," she murmured, her voice flat. "You can't betray Ozai, too."

Koryu was startled. Mai had always called the Firelord by his title and not by his name - until now. Despite her neglected upbringing, she still had respect – love, even – for her nation's politics. Hearing this slip of the tongue was like someone setting a heavy weight on his gut.

He walked in and knelt down in front of her, shooting a glare at the guard to get rid of her (which worked). Mai looked at him, her face ashen and pale. He held out a hand again, and this time she placed hers in it. Her fingers felt like ice, and her nails were broken off and bloody.

"Mai," he repeated slowly. "You're my niece. Blood will always be thicker than politics. You know that."

She smiled a little. It was true, after all – he had been the one who had told her of Zuko's capture on the Boiling Rock, long before he had even considered telling the Firelord. Azula had only found out by spying on her.

"I'm... an idiot," she murmured, shaking her head slowly. "I've betrayed Azula – everyone - but..." her eyes slid to his, and she said the words that he loathed but – somehow - also understood. "I'd do it again. I love that stupid bastard, Uncle."

"Ugh," he winced, scratching at his forehead and pulling a face. She choked out a laugh, a small sound, and her eyes filled. She shook her head, lowering it to her knees, and her hand squeezed his.

Eventually, he was able to coax her back to the capitol. She stayed with him at his house that lay on the outskirts – his holiday home, since his real home was actually located within the Boiling Rock – as opposed to her family home; he wanted to ensure that Mai's recent freedom stayed a secret, lest he be forced to return her to prison.

For a while, all she did was eat and sleep. He had seen it in the past, with prisoners given sudden freedom after accepting their fates. Try as he might, he couldn't persuade her to do anything else, not even practise throwing her knives.

It was only when she heard – though he had no idea how, since he certainly hadn't told her – that Ozai had declared himself Phoenix King that she seemed to come back to life. The day she heard it, she emerged from her room, her eyes bright and furious, her hands hidden in her sleeves.

"Phoenix King," she spat, startling him out of writing his reports. "What a fool."

"Mai?" Koryu was bewildered.

Her eyes met his, and he was both startled and happy to see the old fire in her eyes. "The Avatar is alive," she continued, her words darts of poison. "And Ozai is ruining everything."

"Mai," he tried to break in, but she cut him off.

"He had better be with them," she went on. "He'd better help. He'd better help them win and take Ozai down. Or I'll kill him."

Zuko. She was talking about Zuko.

"I'll help you kill him," Koryu replied with a grin. Mai smiled, the gesture reaching her eyes for the first time in months... and he knew she was going to be fine.

When Mai heard of Zuko and Azula's Agni Kai, Koryu was hesitant in offering details. "Yes, he's alive. But he was injured, and both Ozai and Azula were defeated – alive, but defeated. Going to visit him, in this moment of chaos, would be dangerous."

She didn't look at him, her fingers in her mouth. It shocked him. He had always thought she had broken that childhood habit years ago. Although he knew that she had taken it up again in the prison, he had thought that once she was free, it would cease. Seeing it now, out of nowhere, betrayed her feelings and displayed her desperation to be allowed to join Zuko.

"Mai," Koryu began carefully, sensing her waning patience. "You can't go yet. I can't even go yet. Everything is being sorted out -"

"Everyone," she snapped out. "You mean everyone is being sorted out. The loyal and the disloyal, the good and the damned."

Koryu opened his mouth, but again she cut him off. Her voice was suddenly soft. "I know," she whispered. "I know. I just hate it."

Koryu nodded slowly. "Yes," he agreed. "So do I."

Mai blinked, lowering her hand from her mouth. "You, Uncle? You hate it?"

He sighed, rubbing his forehead slowly. "I must be getting soft in my old age," he answered gruffly, and she smiled, but said nothing else. He decided not to elaborate.

When Mai and Zuko reunited, Mai led the way. Zuko was desperate to make amends, desperate to prove he loved her. Mai, despite her relief and her longing, was still anxious. She teased him, was honest with him and kissed him with all of her heart... but she was doubtful, scared, and deep down, she wondered...

Why didn't you look for me?

Why didn't you try to contact me?

Do you love me as much as I love you...?