AZULA

"ALRIGHT, KORRA, TELL ME: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BEND FIRE?"

The princess and the Avatar sat cross-legged across from each other, a small fire burning between them. They were in a clearing, not far from camp, where Lobsang dozed beneath a tree, Sokka whittled, and Toph glared at a piece of scrap iron that she had picked up not long before. It was around noon, but they had reached the final leg of the journey to Kyoshi, which they intended to approach at night, which meant resting through the day.

Across from her, Korra pursed her lips in thought, screwing up one eye as she called forth all the lessons that Azula had imparted in her. They spoke in Nihongo, since that was the language of fire, and their voices were calm and relaxed, like the scene around them.

"To bend fire…" Korra repeated. She nodded a few times, as if to set the words into stone within her mind, before she continued. "To bend fire is to bend your very essence, your very soul. A firebender may manipulate already existing fire, but that is not the true essence of firebending. A true firebender reaches within themselves, taps into their very life-force, harnesses that inner fire, and makes it real, tangible, sending it out into the void of reality." She paused, and her face twisted into a lopsided grin. "That still makes me laugh. The void of reality. It sounds so pretentious, you know?"

Azula chuckled. "Yeah, I know, but that's the philosophy behind these things." Truth be told, Azula hated studying theory. Her brother was the one who could delight in spending hours pouring over scrolls and essays and the like. She had always preferred application, to learning by doing, to getting out on the practice field and putting it all into action.

But, at the end of the day, fundamentals were fundamentals, and one had to understand the how and the why before one could move into the what. "And why," she said, continuing the lesson, couching her words in what Sokka called her Teacher Voice, "is discipline so important for a firebender?"

Korra was ready with the answer right away. "Because the energy of one's life and soul is not limitless. If one is not careful, one can burn oneself out, or, conversely, lose control. An out-of-control firebender brings danger, not just to themselves, but to others. It's the only bending art wherein it is possible to destroy oneself from within."

Azula wasn't entirely sure how true that was, but she had seen it happen before, seen an overeager student at the Royal Girls' Academy burn herself from the inside out. "Precisely. If we are not in control of ourselves, if we do not master and discipline our abilities, we risk losing sight of what firebending actually is, risk forgetting that to bend fire is not to bring death and destruction, but to harness the very power of life."

Korra made a face. "They actually taught you that in the Fire Nation?"

Azula had to give the girl that one. Is it just me, or is she getting smarter by the day? Azula couldn't help but feel a teacher's pride in the change that was coming over the girl. "Oddly enough, yes. You wouldn't think it, but it was true, especially at the Royal Girls' Academy, where they always said that there were training mothers, not soldiers, like at the Military Academy."

"And how does that jive with the whole, we exist to subjugate the world?"

Azula raised a finger. "Because we're not subjugating the world, Korra; only a madman would do that. No, we're enlightening the world." She sighed, and gave an awkward shrug. "At least, that's the story. My people may not have invented hypocrisy and self-delusion, but we sure have doubled down on it."

"I think the whole world has doubled down on such things." Korra frowned, rubbed the back of her neck. "Azula, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course." I may not answer, but hey, answering any question under the sun is Lobsang's bag.

"Well…" Korra rolled her head from side-to-side, as if weighing her words. "It's just…what does this have to do with wielding the blue fire?"

Ah. For all you immaturity, you're still the impatient teenager at heart. Which, Azula had to admit, wasn't at all fair for her say; she herself had often chafed under instruction. She remembered very well, stomping her feet, glaring at her brother, demanding to know when he was going to teach her to actually do stuff.

He always gave in, in the end, she remembered with a smile. But, back to the question at hand… "It has everything to do with bending blue flames. You see, there is beginning firebending, which you have mastered with admirable speed."

Korra grinned and bowed her head, not trying at all to be modest, a quality Azula identified with very strongly. "Thank you, sifu."

"Don't mention it. Then, there is the intermediate stage, which we are working on now. That's typically where you first learn of the blue flames, but before you can get there, you have to master the advanced stage, and, if possible, all three major schools."

"Which school have you been teaching me again?"

"Sozin's School, which is pretty much the officially sanctioned school of firebending."

"Hence the name."

"My great-grandfather was a fan of putting his name on things. Oddly enough, this school is the least esoteric."

Korra looked like she had just bitten into something rather foul. And I don't blame her. "Really? Ew. What's the most…um…esoteric?"

"The Dragon School, which, naturally, is the one my brother feels most at home in."

Korra laughed. "That…makes a weird amount of sense."

Azula acknowledged that with a nod. "You have no idea. Gives him the excuse to pour over dusty tomes in the back corners of libraries." Yes, my brother's a dork; that's why I love him. "But, back to your question…"

"Ah, right. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. You're actually a lot more patient than I ever was. But, yes, as for the blue fire…it's the most powerful level of firebending, and, thus, the most dangerous. Everything I just made you repeat to me, is just as true for bending blue fire, only doubled. It requires a level of discipline and mastery that you can't learn overnight."

Korra nodded, nibbling on her bottom lip. "I see…I…think? This is your way of telling me you're not going to teach me anything about it for a while."

Azula shook her head. "Not teach you about it? I'm teaching you now. I think you are capable of bending the blue fire, just not for a while. That doesn't mean I can't start preparing you for that day."

Korra pouted. "Well, that's no fun…"

Azula laughed. "I know, right? Still, it is what it is."

Korra huffed, looking a bit bummed. Azula felt for her, she really did, but did her best not to show it. "Alright…how long do you think it would be? Until that day."

Azula frowned, feeling confused. Why should that matter? It'll probably be a year, but I'm not going anywhere for the foreseeable future, and it's not like there's a time limit on the Avatar for such things. It's almost as if…

There was something there, something Azula could barely touch. She brushed it with the tips of her fingers, and then it was gone, and she wasn't entirely sure that she had ever even seen it. What is it? What am I sensing? She shook her head, cleared her thoughts. Don't worry about it; the time will come. "Who knows? I'm optimistic. But, for now, we continue the lesson."

Korra groaned. "If we have to…"

Azula had to struggle hard not to roll her eyes. "We do. Now, recite for me The Litany of Fire."

Korra took a big breath. "Okay. I am the fire, and the fire is me. The fire does not fear me, so I must not fear the fire. The fire does not respect me, but I must respect the fire, for I cannot destroy the fire, but the fire can destroy me. The fire…"

And so on, and so on, until Korra, to Azula's delight, had recited it all perfectly. As a reward, they went a little ways into the forest, and Azula cheered her student on as Korra fire-whipped pinecones out of the trees. It was all great fun, which filled Azula with a great sadness that she could neither identify nor explain.

I don't know why, but I really enjoy getting into the beating heart of bending. If you want more of my personal thoughts, check out Book One, because I will get my views, and I will get my followers, until, finally, some day, I get my damn fanart.

Someday...

Moving on...one of the reasons I'm looking forward to Book Three, is because, when the climax comes, I really hope a bunch of you start flipping back through this and Book One, because a lot of the things I hint at are going to make sense. *shifty eyes*

But I digress. In the next chapter, we check in with the absolute last person we want to check in with. Stay tuned!