Lao spoke: "Today, at this hour, my fellow students we are going to perform an exercise of enormous benefit. It can aid us in our darkest moments of doubt, depression and despair. We are going to try and see with our inner eye, the Mother, in all her glory before us. Like everything else I teach it can be performed alone but sitting here together will give us the strength of support and mutual aid. For truly, whom among us really feels happy being utterly lonely. This exercise will helps us feel loved even if we have no one around us at the moment."

This was the moment Azula has been waiting for with apprehension. Again, she felt Lao's words being directed not just to every student but to her specifically. She enjoyed copying the scroll for him despite her hand being rather tired from it at the moment, it reminded her of the times her father watched her train firebending. Now that her mentor spoke of loneliness she couldn't help but look back on much more recent and much more dark times of her imprisonment, when she felt completely abandoned and rejected. Back at lunch people chatted her up and despite not always knowing what to say to their simple and polite questions she appreciated the attention they gave her. She now listened carefully at Lao's words with something in her heart she hadn't felt in a depressingly long time, hope.

"In order to see the Mother with our inner eye it is of great benefit to first look at her image with our outer ones. I therefore direct your attention to the statue we are fortunate enough to have at the middle end of our hall."

Azula now carefully looked at it, just like the other students. Though she never considered herself a great knower of the arts she nevertheless found the life sized statue quite stunning. The colors and decorations were vibrant, the shapes well made, she looked as she might move at any moment, yet remained perfectly still. She wondered who crafted it, maybe Lao himself. What she noticed specifically was her eyes and her smile. She knew that kind of look from a woman and she knew with pain and envy in her heart that this look was usually not directed to her. This mother however was different, she had to be, Lao promised it after all. Lao kept talking and describing all the details of the image with loving passion and tenderness and how each detail of the statue represented something special and beautiful. Being able to imagine it for yourself in your head with your eyes closed would bring the benefit of that characteristic to the person imagining it he told. When he was done with describing and explaining he asked everyone to close their eyes and try it. Azula followed.

It wasn't as easy as she thought and hoped, her mind was used to imagining plans and battlefields, positions and strategies or to guess the motivation of people. She wondered what was the Mother's motivation for being the way she was, what Lao's and Maitri's motivation was for being kind to her. What did she do to earn it? She remembered the text of master Kung she read and copied earlier and how you win over people by your generosity, humanity and genuine concern for them, all the things a monster like her lacked. This doubt lasted long and it was unsettling. However, she remembered Lao's words about her fundamental goodness and that of all people. Perhaps he saw something in her that she herself couldn't see or sense, something even her own mother Ursa was blind too. Lao went over all the details of the statue again, asking the students to imagine it with their eyes closed. When they arrived to Guan Yin's face however she saw another one, much more disturbing, the face of Ursa and heard her voice and her lies again.

"Go away." she spoke firmly, silently yet with clear determination.

"Azula, I love you." the vision of Ursa spoke. Now the image in Azula's head was completely that of her own mother, in all it's vivid and disconcerting detail.

"I'm not interested in your lies mother, go away." she spoke again, this time a little louder.

The vision kept repeating her words, ever louder and more desperately. Azula tried chasing her away but the image stayed, she even opened her eyes yet she could still see it.

"Just go!"

This time, her words were clearly audible and it attracted attention. The other students looked at her. Lao raised his hand when he noticed some of them were about to get up. He approached Azula who sensed his presence. "Can you see her, make her go away." Lao was unperturbed by the baffled look of the other students. He knew what his new charge was asking for and what he had to do.

"I'm afraid I don't see her as clearly as you... but I can clearly sense her presence. What is she wearing?"

"The formal reds of our nation."

"Ah, I do notice it now. She looks quite like you, the family resemblance is very clear."

"I don't care if I got her beauty, she never gave me what I truly wanted from her."

Lao put his hand firmly on Azula's shoulder, he could sense her shaking. He spoke:

"Mother of Avida, why do you come to disturb your daughter in this sacred place? Why do you do this to her? If you have any true love for her you would know that you failed her and that the kindest thing to do would be to leave her in peace."

"She doesn't care, she just wants to bring me down with her lies."

Lao put his other hand on her other shoulder and held her down gently yet firmly.

"If you haven't come to apologize then you are not welcome. Your daughter has a new family now, the family you didn't provide, be happy for her and do us all a kindness and leave. She can't forgive you and I will not ask her to do so unless you cooperate."

Azula breathed heavily yet Lao could sense she was calming down. "Avida." he said. "Look at the statue of your true mother again, take a long look and then look back to me or the wall."

She did as she was told, she looked at Guan Yin for a long time, then when she finally felt calmed down by her presence she looked around and saw the faces of her fellows full of compassion and concern, especially the one of Maitri.

"She's gone." Azula breathed with relief.

"Good" Lao removed his hands from her and spoke to his wife: "Please take Avida to her room, take good care of her. I will come after we are wrapped up her."

Maitri came and picked up Azula gently and led her by her hand to the common rooms and placed her on her bed.

"I didn't want to ruin your meditation."

"It's OK." Maitri said, placing a hand on Azula's arm: "Me and Lao knew from the beginning that it might be hard for you, I'm sure the other students will want to come to see you and wish you well."

"What did I do to deserve this, why are they doing it? Why are you and Lao doing it? Why is your goddess the way she is?"

"You mean compassionate? It's really hard to explain but it will be clear to oneself once you start feeling it for others. The very fact you feel sorry for interrupting our exercise shows you have it in you as well. And nobody does anything to deserve it, if the compassion of the Mother and her students were conditioned on what you do or do not it wouldn't be the wonderful and mysterious thing that it is. I believe you felt the compassion we all have for you, perhaps you feel it for the first time truly and unbound and that's why you can't believe it. I hope you can one day trust me and Lao."

"I want to believe you but I swear if you let me down I'll..."

"I'll never forgive myself either if we somehow managed to betray you and threw you back in the pit of suffering." Maitri said. "I want you to have something, to show you that I mean it, I usually always carry it with me. It was a gift from Lao on our wedding day, I think you now need it much more than me."

She picked a small item from her pocket and put in Azula's hands who looked at it curiously. It was a miniature of Guan Yin.

"Whenever you see the image that haunts you take a good look at the statue of the Mother and remember that Lao and me will be there to chase it away. I hope one day soon when you close your eyes you will see the mother who loves us all instead of the mother who neglected you. Now please try to rest."

Azula closed her eyes and grasped the miniature firmly in her hands. Sleep soon overcame her and in her dream she could faintly yet pleasantly see the image of Guan Yin with a face she was now certain she would come to regard with pleasure, Maitri's.