Zuko had made Asahi stop afterwards, not wanting to burden her any longer. She went to her own room and once again he laid awake for half a night. Her soothing voice had made him fall into a deep slumber those other days, but that night, it just left him feeling empty. Not only had she lost her mother at birth, but her father had been murdered by his father's forces. There wasn't anything he could tell her that would cheer her up. He figured to just leave it be.

...

Asahi was just as awake in her own room. Not because of her memories, but because of the haunted look that Zuko had granted her. She should have known that burdening him with that part of her story would be too much. She sighed and turned around again. Slowly, she fell into an uneasy sleep.

In the morning she had come to a decision. When she arrived at the gardens, Zuko was already there. He looked at her as if she would break at the tiniest trouble. She sighed.

"Morning, Zuko." She said.

"...Good morning..." His voice was insecure.

"Oh, good spirits, Firelord!" She exclaimed "If you keep looking at me that way, I'll have to rip your face off!" She gnarled at him. He blinked at her. "What?!"

"That's the first time you've called me Firelord in a while." He said, a blank expression on his face.

"Well, yeah, got a problem with that?" Embarrassed, she shot back at him.

"No..." At least now he'd fixed that compassionate expression on his face.

After a few seconds of silence, Zuko took his usual seat.

...

At the end of practice, Asahi was smiling naturally again and Zuko felt extremely relieved.

"So..." She started talking "I was wondering if we could invite your friends again."

"My... friends?" He was confused.

"Um... the Avatar and his Gaang?" She looked at him inquiringly.

"Oh, yeah, I guess they're my friends..." He never actually put into words what they were to him.

"So?"

"Hm?"

"Do. You. Think. We. Could. Invite. Them?" She pronounced every single word as if he were too stupid to understand. He could feel the irritation creeping up his spine again. Spitting out the words, he answered:

"What do you need them for?"

"Oh, nothing much really, just a chat." She said nonchalantly but he could make out a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Alright..." He didn't press the matter but after returning to his duties assigned Suki to invite them all to tea for the next day.

...

Asahi sat down for tea after having greeted the group cheerfully upon their arrival. They had admired Pyro over and over and Asahi thought she could see the little Dragon double in size. She would have to make sure the attention wouldn't go to his head.

"Then your training is going well?" Katara asked Zuko.

"It's all right." He answered. Asahi was surprised by his honesty.

"Now, I'm sure you didn't gather us all just to have a little chit-chat, did you?" Sokka looked at Asahi enquiringly.

"Actually..." She glanced over to Zuko. "Why don't you go attend your Firelord duties?" She asked, grinning. He shot her a blank look.

"...what?"

"I'm saying: go and do your Firelord thing!" She ordered.

"Are you kidding?" He stared at her, not comprehending what was going on.

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "Go discuss about urgent Firenation matters, we'll be fine without you."

The Gaang watched their little squabble with amusement.

"Seriously?!" He got up and looked at the others who just shrugged, then stormed off, mumbling "I can't believe this woman! Who does she think she is?!"

Asahi's mouth twitched.

"Wow, you're one mean girl!" Toph commented. Asahi turned towards her, feeling a little guilty.

"I'm... Sorry?"

"I love it!" Toph announced.

"So, what's this all about?" Katara asked.

"Well, you see..." It was hard to explain what she wanted. "I've noticed Zuko has some... struggles with being Firelord." She looked around into solemn faces. "But, you knew..." She concluded from their looks.

"We... had a hunch." Aang said.

"I want him to recover his purpose... the reason why he does what he does." Asahi looked at her intertwined hands.

"Asahi... Why do you care about this so much?" Suki gave her a suspicious look. "You're not... in love with Zuko, are you?"

Everyone stared at her and she blushed furiously.

"No, no way!" She answered quickly "It's because of Pyro."

"Pyro?" Katara looked astonished. "What does Pyro have to do with that?"

"Well, everything." She began explaining "You see, Dragons are very self-sufficient creatures. They see themselves as part of the greater good and thus feel no need to justify any of their actions. A Dragon will never feel guilty about anything it does."

The others remained silent, listening closely.

"Raised by one another, they only take what they need and stay in harmony with nature. But if a Dragon is raised by a human, he is affected by a trait that is unique to mankind only: emotions. If Pyro were to grow up surrounded by Zuko's doubt in himself, his constant criticism at his own actions and his regret of his past actions, I can only imagine what he would turn out to be." She concluded.

"Then, what is your plan?" Sokka asked after a short silence.

"For now? Make him remember the time when he was truly happy and balanced: when he was traveling with you."

"How do you know all this?" Aang asked, awe-struck "You've barely known Zuko for a week."

"Ran and Shaw enlightened me." She granted him a small smile. "Dragons are amazing creatures, you see."

"Then you want us all to leave our everyday life behind to travel together with Zuko through the Fire Nation?" Tophs voice was clouded in disbelief. Asahi squinted.

"I know it's a huge request and I understand if you'll deny-"

"That's awesome!" Toph exclaimed and sprang to her feet "Let's ditch those duties!"