Aang sat in his room dwelling in the aftermath of the high that comes from tacking another's bending. He hates the thrill, the satisfaction, the pleasure, and the inevitable guilt and shame. Why did the universe deem those prisoners unworthy of the gift the spirits gave them? Well, reluctantly Aang had to admit the universe didn't decide, men did, and he followed them.

So instead of standing up for what he believed in this morning, Aang instead chose to lay on his bed covered in a layer sweat residue in the darkness. Because why should he deserve to make a spark that could light the lamps when Azula could no longer do it? Why should he enjoy the calming waters of a bath? Why should he feel the pleasant grounding that from standing tall on the stone floor?

What would Gyatso think of him now, the avatar that does what he is told instead of what's right? The avatar that ended a cruel war so he can perpetuate harm on those who were most hurt by the war? But no, he's not Aang the avatar, no he Aang the soul stealer. He doesn't bring balance; he cripples people by ripping parts of their spirit out and forever destroying their chance of balance.

The air around him was thick and oppressive. Each breath he took felt like he was trying to breath in water. He might choose to lay in the dark, but he wouldn't stand for the stifling stagnation of the air. So, he tried to focus on the currents of air and force them to speed up, but he couldn't touch them.

He closed his eyes and focused on his meditation, trying to feel out the smallest breeze from the window or draft coming through the gap in his door, but he couldn't even feel them. In a slight panic he grabbed a couple marbles from the side table to do his marble trick. But he couldn't move the air, much less the marbles to perform the trick he perfected at six.

Ty Lee was not prepared to handle Azula after she lost her bending. She thought she was, she prepared mentally for Azula crying or having another mental breakdown. She was prepared for her to start shouting vile things and attacking anyone she saw.

She was not however prepared for Azula to get dangerously ill on the boat ride over, having never regained consciousness after Aang removed her bending. The doctor that came with them was incompetent and incapable of thinking ahead. The doctor knew Azula would have her bending removed, but still gave the girl a dangerously high dose of tranquilizer for a firebender, and a certainly fatal dose for a non-firebender. Then he was constantly botching Azula's care until they arrived at the old beach house.

It was hard to tell who was angrier at the doctor, Ty Lee or Ursa. While Ursa threatened to light him on fire, it was Ty Lee who chi blocked him and left him face down on the docks. Both girls would have gladly thrown him in the stables with the mongoose lizards if they weren't so worried about Azula.

But instead of doing horrible things to the doctor, Ursa was out looking for a competent doctor to ensure her girl lived. And Ty Lee was now in Azula's room with a rag wiping Azula's sweat covered face and speaking words of comfort to the unconscious girl.

After what felt like ages Azula's eyes fluttered open, with pain and exhaustion written in the iris and pupil. Quickly and carefully, Ty Lee lifted Azula's head and brought a glass a water to her friend's lips.

Once the glass was drained Azula started a long and powerful coughing fit full of sharp breaths and wet rattling wheezes. But Ty Lees eyes were drawn away from her friend and towards the lamp placed on the bed side table. With every breath the fire grew in size, and with the coughs it shrank, and a few times Ty Lee saw the flame's core turn blue.

But it couldn't be, the Avatar couldn't have failed. Surely with how weak Azula had been taking her bending would be painfully simple.

Pull. Stomp. Punch. Slash. Nothing, no water, no earth, no fire, no air.

Aang had been in a far-off training arena for the better part of the night, with the only company being the half-moons light and the voices of the crowd just beyond the palace walls. He worked on moving in the gentle and smooth stances of water bending, but he felt stagnant. He tried the well-rooted stomps and punches of earth bending, but he was groundless and timid. He focused on his breath as he went through the passionate punches and kicks of firebending, but he felt cold and disinterested. He worked on the free swings and jumps of airbending, but he was trapped.

No matter what he could do he was now utterly incapable of manipulating a single element. He knew that energy bending Azula did not go as anticipated. She started off just like the others, but when he finally found where her bending source, something changed, her defenses became impenetrable. He felt something give and break, but maybe that was him not her.

Aang realized he had lost a fundamental part of himself. Now he had no passion, lacked grounding, forever stagnant, and imprisoned in his own body.

He was no longer a bender and no longer the avatar.

A/N

Hello all, and thank you for reading my story. This is the first story I have written and I am interested in any feedback you may have for it. I am also thinking about turning this story into a longer work that would focus on a world that learns that the Avatar lost his bending and that the most hated person in the earth kingdom walks free. So I am curious for what you all would expect the repercussions from this event being and what you would like to see happen.