"May I speak to you for a moment, my lord?"
Zuko had been expecting this. The moment he said to Azula, in front of the guards, that he would consider letting her firebend again, he knew it wouldn't take long before everyone in the palace knew about it, including Azula's main doctors. And he knew that Mayu would be the one who would try to solve the matter with him first.
But he had expected it to take at least an entire day, not just a couple hours.
He took the doctor to his office, deciding it would be best that no one else heard them discuss the issue. He knew most people were still very suspicious of Azula, and that hearing their Fire Lord defend her right to use and improve her terrifying abilities would do nothing but scare them and distract them from their work.
"I've heard your sister would like to start training her firebending again, and that you'll allow it once Chise and I consent to it, is that correct?"
"Yes" Zuko was thankful that she wasn't the type to avoid an uncomfortable subject, despite being extremely polite and kind to everyone. That was one of the things that annoyed him the most about being Fire Lord - people's unwillingness to just get to the point. Everything had to be said in that meek, submissive, idiotic tone that it made it sound like they were apologizing for being alive. Even when they questioned him, they took forever to say what they wanted to say. It had been nearly two years, but people still were not used to being ruled by someone who wouldn't take offense on every minor thing.
"My lord, I understand that bending is an important part of your sister's identity, and that it would mean a lot to her and to you if she were able to learn how to see it as more than just a way to hurt others. I know that you believe the best way to achieve that goal is to allow her to practice it in a different way."
But...
"But I don't think I need to remind you that there are more urgent issues she needs to work through before we can even think about letting her use her abilities freely. She has burned you, me, the other doctors, the guards, and even herself after nightmares and while hallucinating. Taking her bending away would be a dangerous thing to do considering how tied it is to her sense of self, but even that would preferable to allowing her to practice it right now."
"Doctor, I understand your concern and I assure you I won't let Azula do anything that goes against your recommendations. I do plan on letting her firebend eventually, but definitively not right now. I've made that very clear to her, but we can go talk to her about it if you want to make sure everything is okay."
"That won't be necessary. Doctor Chise is already talking to her."
Zuko frowned "Why didn't you just talk to us at the same time?"
He was getting tense now. Chise and Mayu had not known each other before Zuko brought them to the palace to take care of his sister, but the two women worked so well together that anyone who didn't know them would assume they had been doing so for a long time.
They were also unbelievably intelligent, and knew how to get people to comply. That had been the reason why Zuko chose them to be his sister's main doctors, and why, even at her lowest points, Azula seemed to have a grudging respect for them instead of labeling them as 'useless idiots' like she had with the others.
"Tell me, my lord, once we consider Azula stable enough to firebend, are you going to join her in every session to make sure it was the right decision to make?"
"Yes" he was starting to understand what his sister meant when she said that talking to a concerned doctor could sometimes feel like being interrogated, though he didn't know if it wasn't just because Mayu knew how to get to him in particular. After all, she had been the only one who managed to keep his hope alive when Azula was at her worst.
"You'll be acting as her master. Just like you're also acting as a guard that makes sure she's not a threat to herself and to others. And as the person legally responsible for her. And as her Fire Lord, and her brother, and her doctor.
Zuko understood the hidden message behind her tone on that last word. She had always tried to limit how involved he was with Azula's treatment. He had thought she wouldn't mind it as much now that his sister was doing better, but obviously he was wrong.
"And as I understand, you've allowed her to watch some of the council meetings. I know she wasn't allowed to speak during said meetings, but I think I know my patient well enough to be sure she didn't restrain from doing so when you two were alone.
"Where are you going with this?" he was starting to get sick of this conversation.
"Your life is becoming too entwined with Azula's. You hold too much power over her right now, and she still has a great deal of influence over you."
"We're siblings. We're supposed to be close" he defended himself.
"Not this close. It's great that you're finally getting along with her, but this level of involvement is dangerous for both of you. You've already proved to her that she has someone she can count on, now let her move on without you. Let someone else train with her when the time comes. Let your guards be the only ones making sure she won't try to flee or hurt anyone. Don't spend every night with her, let Chise and i comfort her if she has nightmares. Don't try to take care of her without our guidance, and don't give her too much authority before we're sure it won't go to her head."
"I will keep all of this in mind" Zuko said, raising his hand as a sign for the young woman to stop speaking. He had heard enough. Mayu was blowing this whole thing way out of proportion "I have work to do now. Please leave."
"Very well, my lord" she bowed to him, a somber expression on her face, and left the room.
Azula must have handled this a lot better than me. Chise is brilliant, but she must have come up empty handed too. Azula would never say anything.
It took him a minute to remember there was nothing to say. The doctors were wrong, they were exaggerating.
They had to be.
