Written for our dear friend, gemsofformenos. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Chapter 1: Helping Hand

"Ready now? We're taking it slow, so just let me know if you need a break…"

Azula's brow furrowed as she clasped his hand, almost violently. He flinched but didn't recoil from her grasp. Her other hand trembled on the mattress she sat on, but she wouldn't let him see it. She wouldn't let anyone see the signs of her anxiety, of her fear that this wouldn't work, that she might not be able to push herself up today either, that she might find herself bedridden forever.

She exerted her strength as best she could, clinging to that hand, pushing herself off that mattress…

Again her legs gave out, quite nearly instantaneously. She tumbled downward, the ground coming perilously closer and closer…

Yet she never felt the cold tile of the palace floors. A set of strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her tight and holding her up.

"Easy there, Princess, I've got you."

Azula felt the heat rise to her face. She hated people seeing her weak. Doubly so when it was Sokka. He had proven to be more caring and generous with her than he had any reason to be, and she simply couldn't understand it.

He lifted her into his arms and held her against his chest. She nuzzled her cheek against it, gritting her teeth in frustration. She should have been able to do this. She should be able to do a lot of things. And yet the harder she tried the worse she seemed to get.

Sokka gently lowered her to the mattress and brushed a few strands of hair out of her face.

She scoffed and snapped, "I can still move my arms, Sokka. I can move my hair out of my face without help."

Sokka flinched and lifted his hands. "Just trying to…"

"I can take care of myself." Though mostly she grumbled it only to reassure - to lie to herself.

She expected some kind of snide remark out of Sokka. To see his patience finally crack. The way his lips pursed and thinned gave Azula the impression he was holding something back. Instead, he calmly took a breath and offered his hand again.

"I know. I'm just helping you take care of yourself." He smiled. "Like one of the maids that brushes your hair for you. Or the cook that makes your meals."

"Oh? Are you admitting that you're my servant now?" Azula sniped.

He merely shrugged. "Sure. If you want to think of me as one. You don't seem to mind when they help you."

She glowered, growling to herself. Despite an urge to protest, he was painfully correct. Even so, despite his and others' assistance, it only made her feel more hopelessly dependent. Like a deplorable parasite.

"Come on. Let's give it another try."

Frustrated, she took a deep breath and exhaled slowly through gritted teeth. "Okay," she murmured, nodding.

She wanted to give it another go, to prove to him that she could do it and didn't need to be so damn dependent on him or anybody else, that things could go back to normal and she could stop living in her spirits forsaken bed. So she extended her hand to him again, this time switching to her nondominant hand so she could use her dominant one to push up from the mattress. Surely she'd be able to find the strength this way…

But no, the end result was the same. Of course it was. Sokka caught her fall once again, but she almost wished he hadn't, that he'd just let her fall to the floor so she'd be forced to fend for herself. Why couldn't she do it? Just why? This should have been so easy.

"You did better this time!" he cheered with encouragement.

This only frustrated her more. "It's no use," she trembled, quickly shaking her head. "I can't do it."

"Hey, that's not - "

"ERGH!" she screamed, hurling a ball of blue fire across the room. It was all she could do to keep from breaking down.

"Azula…"

"Just leave me alone, okay? You're wasting your time. I'm never going to get better."

Too often, Azula would unravel, releasing her thoughts with little regard for the consequences of speaking her mind. As soon as she spoke the fatalistic words she found herself falling into yet another such situation… a most unwanted situation, especially right now. The enthusiasm would flee Sokka's countenance easily upon hearing her speak that way… his eyes, intelligent and heartfelt, would be burdened with disappointment. Her chest clenched, as she wondered if he might take her words seriously… as she realized she didn't want him to.

"Alright, alright… let's take a break, then," he sighed, raising his hands in surrender.

"A break?" Azula repeated, eyeing him skeptically.

"Yeah, a break. I get it, this is hard, it's not something we can fix just because we ask the universe nicely…" Sokka mused, running a hand over his head slowly. "If the universe had wanted to be nice, this wouldn't be happening to you in the first place."

"Good point," Azula said, lowering her gaze, taking a deep breath.

"The universe has been pretty lousy with me too, you know? Though, not quite in the same way," Sokka admitted, biting his lip and glancing at Azula's legs. She crooked an eyebrow. "But still, I mean…"

"Is this why you're helping me?" she asked "Because you feel some sort of kinship with me, since we're both plagued with misfortune? Or… is it because you have an excuse to look at my useless legs if you assist me?"

Sokka rubbed the back of his head abashedly. A faint blush worked across his face but he shook his head firmly and with complete conviction.

"Not everyone has ulterior motives you know. Against all odds I consider you a friend after what you did for Zuko. I'm here to help you get better. Though, I must admit I've had less attractive partners to work with before."

Azula rolled her eyes but couldn't shake the indescribable feeling that worked and gnawed through her stomach.

"If my legs worked, I'd come over there and punch you," Azula said haughtily.

Sokka could sense her teasing tone… so often his erstwhile companion would vacillate from one extreme to another.

"Well, I've gotta say, being punched by you is better than being on the receiving end of one of those fireballs."

Her face fell once more. What amazing things she could be doing if only she weren't bedbound. Bedbound and pathetic and helpless. She brought a small burst of blue to her palm and Sokka gave a reflexive flinch. She watched it dance on her palm. She had done so many incredible things once upon a time.

And it felt like a lifetime ago that she had been able to do them. Midair kicks and flips after a powerful running start, running up and leaping off of walls, spinkicks of fire…

She used to be something. She used to be someone. "You won't have to worry about any more fireballs."

"Really," Sokka winced. He cupped his hands beneath hers. "Because that looks mighty hot."

"You can dodge them and flee. I won't come after you…" She couldn't if she wanted to. And sometimes she did. Most of the time she wanted nothing more than to rise from her bed and, at minimum, give his toes a good stomp. "I can't do anything anymore."

"That's not true." He frowned.

"Oh? What can I do?"

He tapped the side of her head, "You're still smart and good at planning things."

Azula folded her arms over her chest. "I wasn't smart enough to prevent this." She gestured to her legs.

"You were smart enough to prevent something else, yes?"

Azula looked off into the distance, "I guess."

"You can do a lot of things," he promised again.

"Except walk," she muttered harshly. Her palms tightened over her arms, giving herself a protective embrace. Those words lingered in her ears and cast a shadow of dread over her mind, cutting her deeply.

Would she ever walk again?

Sokka's hand reached out to clasp her forearm. It was firm, yet strangely comforting. "Hey. This is hard. I can't even imagine what it's like to have your legs taken away from you. Knowing me… maybe I'd just give up too."

She was baffled. To hear those words said out loud was indescribably terrifying. She had never truly given up on anything before.

And then he smiled. "I always thought I was lucky to have others around to knock some sense into me. Stop me from… wallowing in dark places. Always reminding me to give things just one more try. Not to give up."

She looked down, turning her head away from him.

"But you…" he continued, "you've never really had anyone to encourage you, have you? All of your drive, your strength… that's come from within. Truth be told, it's always something I've admired about you."

She glanced back up at him, wondering if she imagined the faint blush on his cheeks because maybe subconsciously that's what she wanted to see.

"Your tenacity is limitless. And that's why I believe if you put your mind to it and you put in all the hard work, just as you always have, you'll walk again."

Feeling herself starting to get emotional, she clenched her jaw. There was no way on earth she was about to let him see her cry.

He took his arm off her forearm and shrugged. "Even if you feel like giving up, I sure as hell won't give up on you, whether you want me to or not."

The words sounded utterly alien to Azula's ears: had anyone ever spoken to her with such certainty, such faith in her abilities, in her possibilities? She couldn't remember it ever happening before. And she certainly couldn't understand why it was happening now…

"Why?" she asked, glancing at him despite the urge to cry had yet to recede completely. "What I did for Zuko, for the Fire Nation, hardly makes us friends. That sort of sentiment… why would you feel anything of the sort towards me? You're not responsible for me. No one is, and no one needs to be. I can…"

"You can deal with all this on your own?" Sokka predicted, and Azula's fists tightened at the mattress. "You know what, Azula? Maybe you're right to think so, or to say so. Maybe, if I left you alone, you could find the strength inside you, the one I just talked about, and prove to everyone you can overcome all the nasty odds that come your way. But I don't see why you'd have to do it alone… not if someone's willing to give you a hand. Or two, if need be."

His words stirred feelings she wasn't sure how to handle, feelings she would rather keep bottled up and never show to anyone, let alone someone who, until a few weeks ago, probably only thought of her as an incidental problem to deal with whenever she showed up. Could she truly trust him to hold her up when she needed someone to do so? Wouldn't he just drop her, let her down…?

Then again, Sokka had never let her down, never betrayed her. Betrayal came from friends, from family… and he wasn't either of those, at least, not until the past few days. Was it fair of her to weigh him with the same measure with which she'd weighed many others, despite the fact that he hadn't hurt her so far? She was scared, yes, of getting hurt… but she was already hurt, wasn't she? If just because of that, she could close her eyes and hope he'd be able to give her some of his own strength where she lacked some of her own…

"I… I'll try again," she decided, despite her resolve not quite being rock-solid yet. Still, Sokka smiled and nodded positively at her.

"I won't let go. I promise." And yet again, his words seem to cut her open, rendering her vulnerable, only to heal her soul right back within the same instant. It was a strange sensation… but it was certainly one that compelled her to trust him, even if her more guarded self couldn't seem to stop warning her against trusting anyone else altogether.

She was Azula, Princess of the Fire Nation. She had conquered Ba Sing Se before she turned fifteen. She, alone, had mastered blue flames. There was nothing she couldn't do…

Except stand on her own two legs.

Again she built up the courage, and again her limbs wobbled and gave way.

Sokka helped her sit back down on the edge of the bed. She gave an exasperated growl of dissatisfaction. She couldn't meet his piercing blue eyes or that ridiculously sincere smile. "You're going to walk again, Azula," he said confidently.

"How are you so sure?" she said with more than a trace of bitterness creeping on the edge of her voice. She turned to face him at last.

"Because you don't know how to fail. It's not in your nature."