A/N: Wow. I wasn't expecting so many people to review this story! Not that I'm complaining. I actually owe you guys an apology for not updating sooner. Hurricane Sandy really fucked up my neighborhood, so the library and internet spots were all messed up. I could only get on today, so I'm posting this chapter immediately. Sorry for the wait.

It'll be an interesting challenge, putting my own spin on Aang and Zuko and the Promise comics in general. And since I had a crap ton of free time on my hands, I took the liberty of mapping out the rest of this story up until Zuko makes his decision to search for Ursa (which we ALL knew would happen, so don't go giving me the stink eye for handing out spoilers).

Unfortunately, the longer I worked on this chapter, the more I realized that the tone is almost completely different from the first chapter. As in, I put more thought into this, more effort, and cursed a lot less. I realize I use cursing in narrative as a crutch (not just to portray people as human-fucking-beings), especially in humor. So, this time around I'm experimenting to see if I can match the humor of the last chapter without cursing as much.

Another shocker…parts of this chapter come off as serious business. I don't know where THAT came from since I sat down with the intention of making everyone laugh. But as I flipped through the Promise comics again and rewatched key episodes of the show, I realized that Aang's back story is a lot more angsty than is given credit…in fact, it's as angsty as Zuko's, and that's saying something. The guy is a big old angst-sandwich!

Plus, Zuko isn't exactly a sunshine-and-rainbows kind of guy. And in this chapter, Aang comes to a frightening realization that all of his gloom and doom points to something much deeper and troubling…which doesn't exactly make for good humor right now, but sets up some funny plot points later…I hope.

I won't elaborate. You'll see soon enough. However, I will say that I'm going to try my damndest to stick to the theme of "Zuko's family is fucking nuts, run like hell!" without getting too serious. At the same time, I'll explore various concepts relating to home and family and all sorts of stuff, hopefully without lecturing you guys.

In fact, each chapter now has a theme. Last one was simply "Bloodlines." This chapter's theme is "Home." It's a loose theme, but…well…whatever. I tried. I squeezed eleven pages out of this. Deal with it.

Next time, I'll work on this story when it isn't a fucking hurricane outside. That might help.

"Home"

If it was true that you cannot pick your family, then at the very least one should be allowed to handpick the special place referred to as "home." However, they also say that you can't go home again, and as it turns out, this was another unfortunate truth that Aang would come to learn before the night ended.

Now for the young Avatar, "home" used to be the Southern Air Temple. The memories of the now derelict monastery left a painful ache in his heart; which stung much worse when the wind blew, and he could almost hear the voices that were silenced during the first Sozin's Comet…distant laughter of games long ended mingled with the screams of his fellow monks, who had done nothing to deserve their gruesome fate save for the fact that they were born at all.

(A/N: Hey, kids! Suicidally depressed yet?)

Aang had gone back to visit the temple once after the war had ended. Just once. He had gone alone with Appa and Momo (who were as much a part of the temple as he was and deserved to accompany him) with nothing more than the robes on his back and the special funeral incense that Zuko had given him as a gesture of remorse on behalf of the Fire Nation. At a glance it was a pittance, but Aang realized that the monks would have preferred a simple ceremony such as this; and as he watched the sticks burn and the scented smoke rising towards the moon, he could imagine that his prayers were being carried along and would reach the monks wherever they were now.

He did not return to the temple again. It was very clear that it was not the home he remembered. It was just a bone yard now, and he would leave the remains of his people untouched. They should be able to rest in peace.

This had left Aang in a greater dilemma than you would think. With the war over, all of his friends were returning back to their homes (that is to say, eventually; there was still a stinking pile of political bullshit to sift through and negotiate, all leading up to that fateful meeting with the Earth King last year…), and it was very apparent to the last Airbender that there simply wasn't a home for Aang to return to.

Oh, sure, he could always crash at the South Pole with Katara and Sokka…they did consider him an honorary member of their tribe. But the last time he had gone to visit Chief Hakoda and his fellow Water Tribers, they had tried to serve him seal blubber stew; and when he tried to explain his vegetarianism to the men of the tribe he was met with a bunch of blank stares.

Stares like the kind Aang had given Roku after the latter announced that he had a genocidal Fire Lord on booty-call and like to tape ice cube to his nipples.

Catching the hint, the monk had decided to go the hipster route; and declared that "homes" were too mainstream and not worth thinking about. He had confided this belief to Toph, who he thought would understand since she was much more used to flaunting her disregard for authority and rules. She was also in a similar boat as he was, especially with every new bounty hunter her well-intentioned parents sent to collect her and bring her home.

But she had just laughed in his face and set up her Metalbending Academy in Yu Dao. Apparently Toph Beifong had even less regard for hipsters than she did for the social elite.

So, really, Aang was relieved when the Harmony Restoration Movement was drawn up. Not only would it help to restore balance to the world (which was kind of his job now) and right the wrongs done to his people a hundred years ago (or at least would give their spirits something interesting to watch), it was an excellent distraction. By pouring himself into the relocation preparations, he got to see new places he could never visit before because of the war. He got to spend more time with Katara and Sokka (but mostly Katara, whom he was much more fond of kissing at the end of the day). Most importantly, it gave him more time to figure out what the fuck he was going to do when everything had calmed down.

Oh, there would probably always be some sort of crisis to attend to. He was the Avatar. But that didn't mean that deep down he didn't need a place to unwind and recharge…perhaps a place he could settle down with Katara one day.

But all of that blew up in his face when the Harmony Restoration Movement came within an inch of escalating into an all-out war with the Fire Nation. Thank you, Roku (you miserable old fuck).

It was only now as he climbed off the roof of the Jasmine Dragon—the same place he had gone to celebrate with his friends after the war had ended; the same place he had received his first official kiss with his girlfriend—that this was as much of a home as he was ever going to get. It was the place where he felt most secure, the place where things fell into place and made sense again. If that wasn't what home was then he was a hogmonkey's uncle.

And Aang wouldn't have had it any other way. It was the one thing he and Zuko had in common.

The Jasmine Dragon was warm and inviting, perhaps more so than usual. The last Airbender instantly felt a sense of peace and tranquility wash over him as he stepped over the threshold and caught the faint scent of chamomile in the air. It wasn't just the aroma of perfect tea…it was the delicious smell of sanity; of common-sense; and most importantly, it was all of those things and the smell of perfect tea.

Aang breathed in and let his muscles relax. The very first thing to fall under the gaze of his stormy grey eyes was a very sleep-tussled Zuko sitting at the table closest to the kitchen (with a fluffy green blanket draped over his shoulders, no less). It was such a drastic change from the flowy imperial cape and the golden-spiky helmet (which was so ostentatious it looked like it had been lifted out of Ozai's closet during the man's Phoenix King episode) he found himself able to grin in relief.

Things were definitely back to normal. Especially the part where Iroh was force-feeding Zuko as much tea as he could cram down his throat in one sitting.

I'm home…

"Hey," he said. "How are you feeling?"

Zuko straightened up in his chair and grimaced. "Like I got trampled by a herd of stampeding kimodo rhinos. But…that's actually an improvement. So thanks."

Aang felt sheepish. "Yeah…sorry about that whole…trying to kill you thing. That can't have helped much."

The apology was waved off. "I was the one who made you promise. I was kind of asking for it. Anyway, it's okay now. Uncle's taking careof everything until I'm back on my feet again. From what I understand, he's been sending messenger hawks to General Mak to update him on my condition." Zuko gave the monk a tired, but happy smile. "I don't know what I would have done without him."

From the kitchen, Iroh grinned to himself before fiddling with a stack of menus someone had left on the counter. It was the absent-minded task with the sole purpose of looking as if you aren't eavesdropping really…except you are.

"Thank you for bringing him to me, Avatar," he said. "He really should have come earlier, on his own." Here, he shot Zuko a pointed look that made the young monarch stop smiling and shrink down under his blanket. Iroh held that look as his nephew took a defensive sip of his tea. "Sometimes he forgets that he always has a place here. He may be Fire Lord now, but he is still a stubborn boy."

Zuko grimaced and put down his still steaming cup. He pressed his knuckles against his eyes, as if he had a bad headache and was trying to shut out the sound of his uncle's voice.

"You all right?" Aang asked. "You look…sick."

"I feel like I've been asleep for a week."

"No," the monk replied lightly. "Just four days."

"Hm."

This was good. They were talking, sending back this light, easy conversation; as though the whole Yu Dao drama never happened. Aang sighed contentedly as he poured himself a cup of tea and took a long, appreciative sip. Why hadn't they been talking the whole time? This was effortless, this was…

Zuko was looking at Aang expectantly, and he realized that he actually wanted to hear about the situation in the Fire Colonies. Fuck.

Talking was always easier when they were talking about nothing.

Reluctantly, the young Avatar put down his cup of tea. "The Earth King agreed to talk," he said. "When you're ready, we'll meet him in Yu Dao. A small group of the city's residents are gonna join us, too."

Which was all well and good…except that the last peace summit Aang had to sit through was the bloodbath of a discussion regarding war reparations…particularly those that should be made by the Fire Nation. It had been long, excruciating, and thankless. All of the other world leaders and generals thought that Aang was letting the "ash makers" off easy, while in reality Zuko was getting shanked out of a crap-ton of money.

The thing about peace negotiations was that it sounded nice on paper, but when it came time to sit around and do the talking, no one ever walked away happy or satisfied. It always ended in more histrionics, hurt feelings, and emptied wallets…among other things.

Aang sensed Zuko's lack of enthusiasm and decided it would be best to get the unpleasant crap on the table as soon as possible. He threw him the ultimatum he knew he wouldn't like one bit. "Whatever happens, though, Yu Dao can't stay a Fire Nation colony."

But to his surprise, his Firebending teacher just nodded, like he knew this all along. Seriously? If he knew this then what had they even been fighting for? Aang frowned and scrutinized Zuko more closely, saw just how deep his worries ran just in how visibly exhausted he looked.

He just wanted the colonies to be treated fairly. More seething dislike for Roku in the wake of this realization. Zuko had never intended to fuck up the tentative peace the Harmony Restoration Movement provided for the two nations; he just realized belatedly that uprooting so many people would cause more harm than good.

And Roku still wanted to waste his ass. That old fucker.

Zuko slumped into an almost defeated position, looking so much like a sad panda that Aang immediately felt sorry for him. He knew exactly how thankless of a job it was to work for peace. But Zuko hadn't let the possibility of making people angry stop him from doing what he felt was right.

He had enough on his plate as it was. Aang decided then and there that he shouldn't…no, he couldn't drop the bomb on him that his own great-grandfather wanted to put him on ice. That would be cruel…unfair...in other words, it would be a real dick move.

Besides, what good would it do? They had already resolved everything. There was no need to rock the boat as far as Aang was concerned.

"It can't go back to being an Earth Kingdom city, either," the Fire Lord commented.

Aang smiled broadly, trying his upmost to radiate the message, I agree, and I am not keeping anything from you because that would be wrong and amoral and dishonest and totally in your best interests right now!

"I know," he said. "It has to be something new."

"But what?"

Aang shrugged. "That's why we need to meet."

After all, it was a new kind of world they were trying to build; one where different kinds of people could live together, to use their different cultures to build a thriving society, working as a team. Sure, there was an issue as to what exactly that would mean for the former Fire Colonies, but so long as Zuko was on the same page as he was, there shouldn't be any problems. And this time, Aang didn't have fucking Roku whispering sweet nothings of regicide in his ear.

Zuko looked down at his lap, lost in thought for a moment. After a pause, he looked up and locked gazes with the monk, grey eyes meeting gold.

"On the way to Yu Dao, I had a dream," he said.

Well that was nice. Dreams could be kind of awesome. Once, Aang had a dream that he had shamed the former Fire Lord by pointing out that he wasn't wearing any pants. Another time, Appa and Momo had a samurai battle being cheered on by a flock of koala-sheep.

I have GOT to lay off the drugs, Aang reminded himself. Considering what things he hallucinated out of sleep deprivation, he could only imagine what crazy shit he'd start seeing if he tried LSD.

"You and I faced off against each other on a mountaintop," Zuko continued. "Wind and rain and lightning raged all around us. Behind me was Ozai, and behind you—"

Oh, fuck. THAT dream.

"—Roku," Aang continued, feeling his heart sinking in dread. "And below us, the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation armies battled each other. I think I had the same dream."

And if it was same dream, the one where Roku was happily encouraging him to kill Zuko right in front of him, then it was going to be pretty fucking difficult to keep the man's homidical tendencies a secret. Aang wracked his brain frantically, but couldn't see any way of fixing this. Hopefully, though, this meant that Zuko already knew the truth and was taking it rather well. Unexpectedly well, in fact.

Or, he just was too sleepy to think about what it all meant. Come to think of it, Aang wasn't a hundred-percent sure that the Fire Lord even noticed Roku was there half the time.

"In yours," Zuko spoke up. "Did you…end me?"

Aang's shoulders slumped dejectedly. He was deeply ashamed for having taken anything the senile fucker had to say seriously. "Yes."

There it was. It was all on the table. The unfortunate, depressing truth of the matter. Roku had snapped his fingers, told him to be a good little Avatar and kill the nice Fire Lord, and he…he had actually listened. Though to be fair, it wasn't really Roku's prodding that had done it; it was more to do with how Zuko had spread his arms, painting an invisible target sign on his chest, and had been all, Come at me, bro! Almost like he wanted him to…

…wait…

…wait…

…oh, bleeding fucking monkey feathers on a pile of dead hookers. It was so much worse than Aang thought.

Zuko closed his eyes, and the monk felt his heartbeat speed up in alarm. Okay, he thought frantically. Calm down. I'm sure it's not what I think it means. Zuko was just…um…thinking about the good of the world. I'm sure he didn't ACTUALLY want me to kill him. Look how happy he is right now!

Actually, the Fire Lord looked as if he had a bad stomachache on top of a migraine sprinkled with powdered sugar and despair. But…um…hey, look! He was drinking tea! Zuko liked tea! That had to mean he was feeling good about life…right? Or at least okay with it…right? RIGHT?

"You know what I felt, just as you did that…" Zuko said slowly as he removed the fluffy green blanket from his shoulders, draping it over the back of his chair. He still would not meet Aang's gaze. "…right before I woke up?"

As many funky, supernatural things the Avatar was capable of, mind-reading wasn't one of them. So no, Aang didn't know what Zuko had felt…but he could take a wild guess that he would be willing to bet a lot of money on. Betrayal? Fear? Loneliness? Anger? Any one of those would have been vying for the right to be his first guess.

"Zuko," Aang interrupted, feeling a dire need to explain himself. "…I—"

"Relief."

Note to self: Don't go gambling.

The monk sat there, slack-jawed as his friend finally looked him in the eyes. There was so much sincerity and determination blazing in his expression that Aang couldn't help but believe that he had meant what he said. Spirits, he meant it. He was relieved to find himself on the receiving end of some potentially fatal Avatar whoop-ass. Hell, he had stood there and said, "Go ahead, Aang! Do it!"

He couldn't deny the truth anymore. I think….there might be a slight chance…that Zuko could be having suicidal thoughts.

You think?

Better question: What do I do? Oh, Spirits, what the holy fuck do I do? You find out that a friend wants to die. Where do you go from there? Was Aang supposed to improvise some sort of intervention? Scream for Iroh so that a more capable adult could handle this? Or sit there and listen to Zuko ramble on and on, praying that this was all some dark, horrible misunderstanding?

Prone to wishy-washiness, he settled for the latter.

"I was wrong to ask you for that promise, Aang," Zuko told him, sounding repentant enough to give the boy a glimmer of hope. "I've struggled for so long to do what's right—to even know what's right. Then, when the war ended, I thought the struggle had finally ended, too. I thought I finally won for good."

Okay…this was probably leading somewhere positive. Sure, this was absolutely reeking of an afterthought such as, but I thought WRONG! However, as Aang fumbled for a silver lining in this monologue, he realized that technically speaking, the fact that Zuko was continuing to struggle at all was a good sign…maybe. It could mean that he intended to keep struggling.

"A visit to Ozai in prison changed that," the Fire Lord admitted. "I realized the struggle was actually just beginning. I didn't think I could handle it, so I asked for your help. But…" his expression twisted in remorse. "…asking you to end me if I went bad—that was like asking you to figure out right and wrong for me." He looked away in shame. "I didn't just want you as my safety net. I wanted you as my escape hatch."

Good. Admitting he was having a problem was supposed to be the first step to healing. He clearly realized he had done something wrong. Suicide wasn't the answer. This was going well, and Aang didn't even have to lift a finger. Maybe he should become a therapist…he was clearly amazing at it.

Oh, he would so rub it into Sokka's face later. Dr. Wang Fire could kiss his talented monk ass.

"I can't put that on you," Zuko continued, oblivious to Aang's silent gloating. "I understand that now. The struggle isn't something a Fire Lord can escape." He met the Avatar's gaze, looking solemn. "I'm sorry, Aang."

Yes! Finally! Someone was admitting to his face that making that promise had been a fucked up decision on both their parts! Everyone, literally everyone, had just stood there encouraging him to go through with it. It was so, so delicious to hear that he had been perfectly justified in his hesitation. Everyone else had been so fucking wrong and he had been right. Ha-fucking-ha!

The mirth was short lived as Aang realized suddenly that he'd have done better if he had caught on to Zuko's suicidal tendencies then-and-there and gotten him help…which probably would have averted the entire Yu Dao crisis…maybe.

Okay, so maybe Roku wasn't the only asshole in the room. But at least Aang was willing to own up to his mistakes. At least he could admit it out loud.

Well, whatever. It had all worked out. There had been no war, no casualties, minimal property damage, and best of all, Zuko was still alive. And he very clearly didn't want to kill himself anymore. He had realized on his own that death would not solve all of his problems. Aang was proud of Zuko.

He grinned. "You don't give yourself enough credit, Zuko. Deep down, you've always known what's right. I mean, you were right about Yu Dao," he added pointedly.

Zuko smiled to himself. "Yeah. I guess I was."

See? Look how happy he was. Everything had to have been fine, now. Aang almost felt silly for worrying in the first place. It was obvious his Firebending teacher was made of much sterner stuff than most people.

Still…he should probably make sure. Just in case.

"…so," Aang spoke up, squirming awkwardly in his seat. This was going to be phrased interestingly. "When you fell into the chasm I created…did you feel…relief…then, too?"

Zuko gave him a funny look. "No," he said in a startled tone of voice; as if the question was too absurd to even contemplate.

Which was good. Aang didn't need the Fire Lord throwing himself off any cliffs trying to recreate the warm, fuzzy feeling. Everything was going to be just…fine.

"As soon as my foot slipped, I knew you wouldn't let me die," he clarified.

The monk was nodding along happily until he realized that something was wrong with what Zuko had just said. He paused, replaying that statement in his head, over and over again until it suddenly clicked. He wasn't relieved…because he knew that Aang wouldn't let him die…

…wait a minute…

Aw, fuck.

Maybe this was the reason people liked to say "you can't go home again." The Jasmine Dragon suddenly seemed bleak and depressing…though that could have been because Aang's tea was starting to get cold.

Lucky for Aang, the concept of "home" in its abstraction was already familiar to him. Having spent most of his young life raised by a nomadic race of Airbenders, he was already comfortable with traveling from place to place and embracing the winds of change…to a point (he had thrown that huge hissy fit back at the Northern Air Temple, after all). So he knew already that "home" was not merely a house with things in it. It was wherever one felt most secure and at peace.

In other words, "home" wasn't a place at all. It was a feeling. And for Aang, it would always be with the people he loved. Including Zuko (though not quite like that, so get your minds out of the gutter). Too bad this philosophy was starting to bite him in the ass as he found himself gradually losing more and more faith in humanity. His outlook on life was growing more bleak as people would continue to cause problems for him and disappoint him. People like Roku, among others who would remain nameless…

…for now.

Still, it was very scary when Aang had realized that everyone would be splitting up. What was he supposed to do when he was left all alone? He was the Last Airbender, and it was starting to sink in just what that meant for him. It was a lonely and frightening position to be in.

Eventually Aang would learn that being the Avatar would open up more doors than usual, which was an excellent opportunity to try new things and make new friends. His "family" grew with every passing day. The world was full of love and security, and the fact that everyone was going their separate ways after the war in no way meant that his "home" was falling apart. One day he would understand that separation is merely an illusion; that the love he felt for his friends (and even for the monks) would always remain within him wherever he went, no matter what he was doing.

It was another unfortunate truth that "one day" was not today. Today, he had sat down to meditate, thinking that the whole Promise fiasco was done and behind him…only to have Roku pop up like a disgruntled jack in the box and poke him with the "Kill-Zuko" stick. Tired and frustrated, he had cut ties to a very dysfunctional relationship with his past-life, vowing never to tell Zuko just how fucked up his family truly was…

…only to find out that it wouldn't have made any difference. Chances were that if they had the same dream about Roku and Ozai, it meant Zuko already knew his great-grandfather was out for his blood…which might explain why he was suicidal to begin with.

No, wait. Zuko had forced that promise on Aang before Roku decided to open his fucking mouth. Great, now things were even more confusing.

In a way, Aang's wish had come true. He now had another full-blown (if secret) crisis to deal with. So much for the nice, secure feeling of "home" he thought he had stumbled into when he followed Iroh into the teashop. Though at least now he had something to keep himself busy until the time came again to contemplate what he was going to do with himself after all of this was finally over.

Now what to do about Zuko? He couldn't just let things fester like this. He had to intervene somehow, to prevent the inevitable. As apparently shameful as this was (though Aang wasn't quite catching the logic of why it was so shameful), he didn't want his friend to kill himself. Perhaps it was just another symptom of his unwillingness to deal with separation in his life.

Perhaps. But it didn't matter. Aang would personally see to it that Zuko lived to a ripe old age of where-did-I-leave-my-prune-juice. He would do this because…

"Because I'm a flawed Avatar," he said to himself, staring broodingly into his cooling tea.

There was an awkward pause, during which Zuko was blinking at the monk in confusion. Eventually, when it became clear that Aang wasn't going to elaborate on that cryptic statement, the Fire Lord cleared his throat. He was starting to worry that he had somehow offended the younger boy.

"Don't get me wrong," he said quickly. "I'm grateful that you—"

But Aang cut him off, knowing instinctively that the stillborn end to that sentence would have been a flat-out lie. And he had been fed enough bullshit by Roku over the past week to last him a lifetime.

"Roku told me you're his great-grandson," he prompted automatically.

"That's true," Zuko replied casually, though one could hear the unasked question of where the monk was going with all of this.

Oh, perfect, Aang, he berated himself. Go ahead and hand the suicidally depressed guy a dangling noose. But it had been the first thing that had jumped into his head when he was flipping around for a change in subject. Quick…make it better. Make it better!

Lie through your teeth.

"Since Roku's my past life," he floundered, averting his gaze and wracking his brain for some sort of cue. "…in a way you're my family, Zuko." Good. Keep going. "And no matter how hard I've tried, I've never been able to detach myself from those sorts of bonds."

Great-grandpa loves you, Zuko. Fluffy kitten-squirrels in basket.

"It's a flaw, I know," he added unconvincingly. "But it's one I've decided to accept. For this life, at least."

Zuko just looked deeply saddened. "You're not the one who's flawed, Aang."

Oh, did he ever know it. Aang suppressed a shudder as he thought about the ice cubes, and the unique Waterbending technique Roku had tried to teach him during that infamous Spirit World orgy. If it was true that every Avatar needed a fatal flaw, Aang would take his attachments over an ice fetish any day.

But the monk's thoughts were mercifully diverted when he heard Zuko sigh forlornly. "Why can't the struggle get easier for me? Even just a little?" He now had the Aang's full attention as he lowered his gaze despondently into his empty tea cup. "Sometimes, I wonder how long I'll last."

Oh, bloody hell.

Then, abruptly, the clouds lifted from his expression. "You know," Zuko added, looking almost cheerful as he changed the subject. "In that dream, a woman stood with us on that mountaintop, watching from the shadows. I think she was my mother."

Aang blinked. Well, this was…interesting.

"Sometimes," Iroh spoke up, lifting the curtain that separated the dining area from the kitchen as he stepped into the room. "Dreams are the way a person's spirit reveals the answer to his own problems." He grinned. "But then again, sometimes they are just the result of eating spicy food before going to bed."

For the record, Aang knew where the retired general was going with that. Roku doesn't actually want you dead, it was all just a cur-raaaaaaaazy dream. However, Zuko's brain was apparently still churning through the first half of what his uncle had said, and was honing in on the word solution in particular.

It was a kernel of false hope.

"Maybe," said the Fire Lord slowly. "…finding my mother would connect me to a part of my heritage that isn't so murky and confusing." He looked up at Aang, a radiant smile on his face. "Maybe then I'd finally find peace."

Oh, Spirits, no.

Aang seriously had to stare at him now. "You mean Roku's bloodline?" he said incredulously, folding his arms against his chest and frowning deeply. Does he not remember how Roku was egging me on during that dream? Does this guy have a selective memory or something?

As a friend, he could not in good conscience allow Zuko to continue down this line of thinking.

"I don't know…"

But Zuko was long gone. Aang could only watch as the young monarch continued to peter off into the distance, where inevitably a dark cliff was waiting to swallow him. It was only a matter of time before he realized that the peace he was seeking would never be found.

And then they'd really have a problem on their hands.

"I never told either of you this, but right after I became Fire Lord, I sent out search party after search party looking for her. I even hired June and her shirshu. They all came back empty handed." He gestured hopelessly. "What can I do that I haven't already tried?"

This was good. Zuko was about to give up this ridiculous idea and then Aang was sure that he'd…um…completely lose hope all together.

Huh. On second thought, maybe it was better to give Zuko something to distract himself with. After all, Aang knew from experience that distractions worked miracles when it came to tough issues. He himself had been using the Harmony Restoration Movement as a distraction, hadn't he?

Sure, it ended up stressing him out even more than he already was, but…well…it had all worked out in the end. Maybe giving Zuko a project would have similar results.

Results. Now that was something Aang could get behind. Which is probably why he chimed in with…

"It's a new world, Zuko. You need to take some new risks." He smiled a little wider than was necessary, reminding himself through clenched teeth. "We all do."

Please, please don't let this be a mistake. Aang had made enough of those already. And while we're on the subject of mistakes waiting to happen…

"Speaking of risks," said Iroh suddenly, producing a tea-tray out of no-where laden with two tall glasses of…something. "…why don't you two try this brand-new beverage I invented?"

Before either of them could answer, the two cups were placed in front of them, directly in their lines of sight. Aang and Zuko blinked at the amber liquid, the black bead-like residue at the bottom, and the large, tube-like straws protruding from the glasses. It certainly looked…um…original.

"First," said Iroh enthusiastically. "I cook balls of tapioca until they're soft and tender. Then I put them in tea, where they sit like little pearl-sized snacks at the bottom of each cup! Add a little milk and—ta da!—a revolution in tea is born!"

Not wanting to back down from his new resolve to embrace new ventures, Aang took a long, slow sip. Before he could quite fathom the tapioca balls and their odd texture, he could hear the sound of the Fire Lord frantically spewing the contents of his beverage out of his mouth in disgust…which, as one might guess, ruined the experience for Aang.

"What is that trying to sneak into my mouth?!" Zuko gasped, looking horrified.

The young Avatar fumbled for something slightly less…insulting. But Spirits, he hoped this wasn't what was going to happen every single time he took a risk or decided to roll the dice.

"I've never had tea that's quite so…chewy."

Nonetheless, Iroh seemed crushed. "I am a man ahead of my time," he said sadly, clutching the tea tray to his chest.

A/N: This story is really proving to be a challenge. The main theme of the fic is that there is no member of Zuko's family that can be considered "normal." The search that Zuko now plans on undertaking to find his mother is going to bring up a lot of skeletons in Zuko's family tree, some funny, some kind of fucked up, and others that just make you cringe.

Unfortunately, this chapter I didn't really get to go into any specific family member in particular. I felt as if I was just rehashing the old Roku jokes, and I didn't even manage to fit Sozin anywhere into this. However, I needed to set-up the premise of the fic, i.e. the search that is doomed to failure (in Aang's uncharacteristically pessimistic eyes). I know Aang himself seems out of character, but I was trying to put the spin on it where he becomes this hardened, jaded character because motherfucking Roku.

As for Zuko, I'm seriously starting to wonder why (as I flip through The Promise Part One) the Gaang didn't all turn their heads towards him as he was going on about how Aang should "end him" and force an immediate intervention for his blatantly suicidal thoughts. I mean, it was almost as if the writers were trying to push the moral that if a very good friend asks you to help them kill himself, you're supposed to keep your promise.

Obviously, I had to fumble for the humor here because I realize that suicide is no laughing matter or a joke. However, I felt that this issue made itself extremely prominent during this conversation in particular (which is CANON in the Promise comics, and Bryke endorses it, which means it's probably canon for the Avatar-verse). And I couldn't not write a chapter for this little discussion since it sets up the plot point that Zuko goes to look for his mother.

All I could do was have Aang come to the sudden, almost comical realization that his friend was (and probably still is) in a very bad head place. But he only reaches this conclusion a year or more later, after Zuko announced to the group, "I'm asking you as a friend…if you see me go bad, end me." Oh, well. At least he got there eventually.

I should also point out that Zuko does not, in fact, want to kill himself. It just looks and sounds that way because the guy has his negative thinking patterns deeply ingrained. To someone like Aang, who used to be something of a perpetual optimist (at least before my fic happened), hearing things like, "I don't know how long I'll last…" or "I wasn't relieved because I knew you wouldn't let me die," naturally freaks him out.

Iroh, who is in the background listening as he makes tea, is used to Zuko's gloom and doom and doesn't bat an eye. But he will when Aang comes to him for some advice about how to deal with a friend who is suicidal. And then the two will make each other more paranoid and it will all come back to bite poor, oblivious Zuko in the butt.

So, yeah. I'm sorry if you guys think it's a heavy theme for this fic, but it also will set up the sub-plot where Aang feels a frantic need to monitor Zuko during the course of his search, perhaps feeling the need to cover up some family secrets that get uncovered along the way, all in the name of preserving the Fire Lord's sanity. And by the end of this fic, Roku will actually have to get in line of all the people Aang is going to have deep issues with.

I promise things will get funnier after this. Just, you know…plot. I'm not good at drabble-fics, so that means I have to work with continuity and canon source materials to draw inspiration from. And a fun fact: This entire conversation is written down word for word from the Promise comics. The only thing I added was the thoughts and narration, putting a new spin on a seemingly innocent scene.

So…what did you guys think? REVIEW!