The journey back to civilisation was uneventful, though they had been on high alert, jumping at every noise and staring at shadows as they rode through the woods. Few words were exchanged between them, neither entirely sure how to react to their companion.
Zuko was there to greet them at the border to the Fire Nation, along with many guards. Azula had clutched at Sokka unconsciously as her brother surveyed the pair, but rejected his help on dismounting the mongoose-lizard, meeting the Fire Lord with her head held high.
Sokka stood back for a moment, watching the siblings reunite. It was awkward to say the least, neither moving a muscle as they watched the other. After a moment, Zuko broke eye contact, nodding to one of his guards, who began to unload the mongoose-lizard of the bags obtained from the bandits.
Zuko looked to Sokka, who smiled unsurely in response, before turning away and heading back towards the palace. Sokka stood for a moment and then tapped Azula on the shoulder.
"Come on," he said.
Azula snarled angrily but acquiesced, striding after Zuko. The remaining guards fell into step alongside the pair, their hands clutching swords and polearms.
The palace was a hive of activity, people bustled around doing their jobs like ants in a nest. Azula glanced up at the walls, noting the stuffed dragon heads had been removed. Her golden eyes narrowed, resenting her elder brother for his disregard of their family's history.
The scarred Fire Lord lead them to the Throne Room, where he settled himself upon his ancient seat. He signaled for the guards to leave them.
"Your majesty," one spoke out in disapproval, "how can we protect you if we are elsewhere?"
Zuko regarded him evenly.
"I can handle myself against an underfed and exhausted girl, General. Not to mention Sokka is here as well."
The look the general gave Sokka very clearly conveyed his faith in Sokka's ability to defend his ruler, but he bowed low and exited with all his men.
For a moment, the three stood in silence, before Sokka coughed, gesturing to the fallen princess.
"One prisoner returned as promised, your Fire Lordiness," he said, chuckling nervously.
Both royals glowered at the statement, but Zuko nodded once, his dark countenance lifting slightly.
"Thank you, Sokka. You've proven yourself a friend of the Fire Nation once again," he told his friend.
Sokka shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck at the praise.
"Never thought I'd be told that. Man, my life has taken a turn for the weird," the Water Tribe warrior remarked.
Zuko grunted, turning his gaze to his little sister who matched his stare with defiance in her eyes.
"Azula. I see you're the same as ever," the former exile greeted her.
She hissed under her breath, her scowl becoming more pronounced.
"I wish I could say the same for you. It would brighten my spirits to see you fail over and over." Her voice was still weak, but sharper than before.
Zuko's face was stone, her twisted laughs not affecting him in the slightest.
"I would not speak of failure, Azula. You didn't win the Last Agni Kai."
The girl scoffed, her mouth twisting into a smirk.
"No. But as I recall, you did not come away unscathed. If it weren't for the water peasant girl, I would be seated where you are. Tell me, how is your chest?" She asked.
Zuko rubbed the scarred flesh on his abdomen through his robes.
"Fine. Katara's a good healer. Or perhaps you're not as strong as you think - your lightning didn't kill Aang either," he replied.
"Ask the peasant here how strong my lightning is," she jabbed a thumb at Sokka. "It certainly dealt with that pathetic bandit."
Zuko regarded Sokka, his scarred eye seemed to stare into the warrior's soul. Sokka grinned sheepishly.
"Okay, so we ran into a few outlaws, it was no big deal. We sorted them out easily enough," Sokka insisted.
"Were you injured?" Zuko inquired.
"Uh. I might've been stabbed a little bit. It's just a scrape, nothing to worry about," Sokka waved his hand in a placating manner.
Zuko raised his remaining eyebrow, but simply nodded.
"I'll send for a healer to see to you. In the meantime, you can get some rest, you've earned it," Zuko dismissed him.
"Thanks. I think I might grab a bite to eat first though," Sokka smiled, beginning to leave.
He stopped just before the doorway and turned back.
"What's to be done with her?" He cocked his head at Azula.
"That remains to be seen. What does it matter?" Zuko said.
Sokka shrugged.
"It's just... well, locking her up didn't work. Maybe you should try something else?"
Azula stared at him blankly as Zuko frowned.
"What did you have in mind?"
The Water Tribe warrior shifted in place for a moment.
"Hey, beats me. I just know you can't fix something by pretending it isn't broken."
With that final remark, he headed out of the Throne Room.
The new day started bright and early for Sokka. Some charitable fellow had the presence of mind to leave a small bowl of seaweed dumplings for a breakfast snack at his bedside table, so he enjoyed the food while he prepared for what lay ahead.
Dressed and ready, he wandered out the door, not completely certain of his plans for the morning. Perhaps he would look over his airship and ensure it was ready for the return trip home, which would hopefully be soon. The Fire Nation was nice and all (these days at least), but it wasn't the South Pole.
Casually whistling to himself, he traversed the halls of the Royal Palace before he was suddenly grabbed from the side and whisked into the shadows. His hand immediately fell to Space Sword's hilt, before he felt the cold, metallic touch of a sharp blade at his throat.
"Don't say anything," a female voice declared.
Sokka froze in place, waiting patiently as the knife was pulled away. The second it was away from his flesh, he spun and shoved, pushing the woman behind him against a wall and grabbing her hands.
For a moment, the two stared at each other. Sokka took in the glossy black hair and silver eyes, and hurriedly released his captive.
"Mai. Fancy meeting you here," he greeted the Fire Lady with no small amount of confusion. "Heard Zuko had you put elsewhere for your protection."
Mai's eyes narrowed further as she picked up her fallen knife. Swiftly sheathing it, she glared at him.
"My beloved husband still has a lot to learn," the dour woman declared.
Sokka did not envy him the lessons he was sure to be receiving soon, mighty Fire Lord or not.
"Sucks to be him. As much as I enjoy being accosted and threatened, was there a reason for you dragging me into this dark corner? I mean, I know I'm handsome and all, but I wouldn't do that to Zuko if that's what you're after," he grinned.
Mai's expression cut deeper than Space Sword could ever hope to, killing Sokka's smile instantly.
"Azula. I know she's here." Mai told him.
Sokka winced, but then he shrugged.
"Well, yeah. The asylum didn't seem to help, did it?" He said.
"Nothing will help her," Mai stated darkly. "Keep an eye on her. If she even blinks wrong..."
Sokka stared at the woman in disbelief.
"Are you really asking me to- Mai, she was your friend. Surely it won't come down to that," Sokka protested.
Mai just looked at him.
"I know Azula, what she's capable of. Snuff the flame before it becomes a wildfire."
Message delivered, the knife-thrower turned away, marching down the hallway. Sokka hesitated a moment before following after her.
He caught up with her as she entered the Throne Room, the guards at the door letting her pass uncontested. Zuko stood inside, looking up from a piece of paper at their arrival.
"Mai?" Zuko gasped. "I thought..."
Mai fixed her husband with a glare.
"We'll talk later," she stated.
Zuko nodded, looking to Sokka.
"Where's Azula?" The southern boy asked.
Zuko sighed, rubbing his scarred eye.
"Still asleep. I let her have her old room, with a few guards outside."
"Men you can trust?" Sokka asked.
Zuko looked at him for a moment.
"I trust all my guards."
Sokka laughed, nodding.
"I guess there would be no point in having them if you didn't. So, is that it? 'Cause Gran-Gran's seal jerky is waiting for me back home."
"Sorry Sokka, your food will have to wait. I need your help still," Zuko told him.
"Everyone does in the end. Okay, what is it now? Want me to fight more bandits?" He questioned.
Zuko shook his head.
"You were right. The asylum's not the right way to go about fixing Azula," Zuko began.
"Let me guess. You want me to turn her from a psycho into a relatively normal human being. Man, I always get the tough jobs. Can't you get Aang to do it? He loves that kind of stuff."
It struck Sokka how exhausted Zuko looked, the bags under his eyes were so pronounced as the Fire Lord ran a hand over his face.
"Aang's still busy in the north. And even if he wasn't, Katara would never allow him near her. Besides, you were the one to talk to her before."
"Like that ever amounted to anything," Sokka replied. "Fine. I'll do it. But don't blame me if it doesn't work."
The Royal Palace was a marvel, truly. Built at the height of the Fire Nation's power, it was resplendent, thoroughly coated in finery and dripping with opulence.
Azula couldn't help but sigh to herself as she sank into her bed, laden with crimson silks and stuffed with turtleduck feathers. It felt heavenly after the wooden boards in the Asylum or the cold, hard ground she had endured in her brief moment of freedom.
True, it wasn't as good as it could have been. Though the Princess's chambers were of the highest quality, even they paled in comparison to the majesty of the Fire Lord's personal quarters. Sadly that particular avenue had been closed to her.
Some nights she wondered about what might have been. It was a somber thought. Her defeat at the hands of the waterbender had destroyed her utterly, but time had opened her eyes - the path she had taken was doomed to fail.
Yet, luck was with her. The water tribe peasant had prevented her from earning a very unfortunate fate, delivering her from a band of vicious outlaws and the unpredictable wilderness.
She lay on her bed with only a single candle, flickering with deep blue flame, to light her room. She could hear the guards posted outside talking amongst themselves. It would be easy to take them out, even in her current weakened state.
But what would be the point? There was nowhere to run. She was so tired now. Was it so bad to give in? She'd lost, but a princess surrenders with honour.
There was a knocking sound. Azula frowned, raising her head to stare at the door. The sound came again.
"Azula? You awake?" A voice called.
It was that infernal snow savage. What could he possibly want? She considered just ignoring him for a moment, but then rose from the bed and opened the door.
He stood in the doorway, his eyes raking over her. Azula supposed she looked a lot different now, washed and dressed in something other than rags from the asylum. After a moment she cleared her throat, and his eyes shot up to hers.
He opened his mouth, and then closed it again. She scrutinized him as he mulled whatever it was he wanted to say over.
"Are you alright?" He eventually asked.
Was she? Azula wasn't even sure. Certainly she was better off now than she was only a day before.
She settled for a curt nod and he smiled slightly, running a hand through his short hair.
"Listen, can I come in?" Sokka asked, still lingering in the doorway.
She didn't respond, but turned away and sat back on her bed. Sokka took that to be an invitation and shut the door behind him. For a moment he stood, and then spied a chair and sank into it.
The pair regarded each other for a long while, and the Sokka coughed.
"Um. So, you're not going back to the asylum. That's the good news. But you're 'on probation', sort of. If you can show Zuko you know how to be a decent human being, he won't have your bending taken away and shove you in a cell with daddy dearest."
Azula bared her teeth, raising her right hand. A ball of writhing blue flame sprang into life on her palm.
"I'd like to see him try," Azula growled.
Sokka stared at her and shook his head in exasperation.
"That? That was precisely the thing we want not to happen," he said. "Okay, here's the deal. I've been press-ganged into helping out on this, so we're just gonna have to find out some common ground or something."
Sokka thought for a moment.
"Do you have any hobbies or something? Ones that don't involve burning stuff or conquering places, I mean."
Azula's face was stony, but then she spoke.
"When I was little, before Father made me stop, I used to-," she suddenly clammed up. "No. It's none of your business."
Sokka wasn't sure if that was progress or not.
"Hey, don't be like that. Your dad isn't gonna stop you now. I won't tell anyone, either."
Azula didn't respond. Sokka watched for for many minutes, before giving up for the time being. As he rose from his chair to leave, Azula suddenly spoke.
"I used to have a hawk. I trained it to hunt and intercept other hawks. But Father didn't approve, he thought it too girlish. One day, he took me out to see the hawk, and burned it in front of me. From then on, he would teach me to firebend like him, so I wouldn't be weak and die like the hawk."
Sokka froze in his tracks. Did Ozai have no limit for cruelty? It didn't seem like it.
"I had a hawk too, y'know. He's called Hawky. I don't see him much since he lives in the Earth Kingdom, but I bet I could have him brought over. He could use the exercise, I bet."
He gave her a small smile. Azula's face was neutral as she gazed back at him, but she nodded.
"Great. In the meantime, maybe I could show you what I do in my spare time. This boomerang of mine can do some neat tricks," Sokka looked at the sleeping robe that covered her. "I'll leave you to get dressed first."
Azula watched him go. Spending time with the water peasant was hardly her idea of fun, but it was better than rotting in the asylum.
Besides, how else was she to know what he was capable of? Keep your subjects close and your enemies closer.
Who knows, she might even get the chance to see him injure himself with his own weapon. The thought was a warming one.