"Pleease?"

"No.

"Please?"

"No!"

"Please?"

"No! No, no, never, no, not in a million years!" Zuko snapped.

Aang frowned and said in response to this outburst, "Please?"

"Avatar, I already told you, I told you a million times, no! No, no, definitely not, no!"

"Please?"

"No!"

"C'mon, Zuko, it'll be fun!"

"No!"

"You've got to try it at least once," Aang pointed out.

"No I don't," Zuko replied stubbornly.

"Please?"

"Avatar, nothing you say or do will make me want to learn to sing!"

"Why not," pouted Aang.

"Why not? Why not? It's idiotic! Stupid! Horrendous! Pointless! Embarrassing!"

"But its fun," protested Aang.

"It's a meaningless, inane, frivolous, childish, immature, absurd, illogical, strange, moronic, incongruous, inappropriate, unreasonable, irrational, bad, awkward, thwarting, dimwitted, brainless activity invented by idiots with nothing better to do than repeat meaningless lyrics for the annoyance of others," Zuko told him calmly.

There was a long pause.

"You said meaningless twice," Aang pointed out.

"What?"

"You said 'It's a meaningless' (all that other stuff) 'activity invented by…' (more stuff) 'with nothing better to do than repeat meaningless lyrics…' (the rest of that stuff)."

"Do you know what's meaningless?" asked Zuko.

"No, what?"

"YOU!"

While Aang pouted, Iroh put in his two cents. "You wouldn't think singing was all those things, Prince Zuko, if you ever came to music night."

"Uncle," snarled Zuko, trying to keep from yelling. "Shut up."

Now, as it was Iroh's turn to pout, it was Aang's turn to comment.

"C'mon, Zuko, it'll be fun," he repeated.

"I do not see what is so 'fun' about straining your voice to say 'la la la' repetitively. It's a stupid waste of time. As is talking to you, so I would like you do to what my uncle is and shut up."

Iroh's turn again. "Zuko, won't you even consider trying?"

"NO!" he shouted.

"Why not?" asked Aang. "It'll be fun. I still can't believe you've never tried to sing before! Singing's the sort of thing you have to try at least once!"

"What is so great about singing?" demanded Zuko in a strained voice.

"It's fun."

"Yes, we seem to have covered that point," Zuko said sarcastically.

"It's relaxing," Iroh told him. "You need some relaxation in your life, Prince Zuko."

"Uncle, I do not need to relax. I am fine. I do not need to sing. Leave me alone."

"Please?" Aang had started up his previous tactic again.

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please"

"No"

"Please?"

"No!"

"Please."

"NO…"

"Please?"

"NO!"

"Please!"

"No!"

"Please?"

"NO!"

"Please?"

"NO."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"Avatar…"

"Please"

"NO! FOR THE SAKE OF ALL THAT IS SANE IN THIS WORLD, NO, NO NO!"

"Please?"

"No!"

"Aww, why not?" asked Aang. Iroh was impressed. The Avatar was a very stubborn child.

"Exiled princes of the Fire Nation do not sing, they hunt Avatars," Zuko said through gritted teeth.

There was a pause, followed by "Please?"

"NO!"

"I've already told you what you need to sing," Aang pointed out. "It's not that hard. I promise I won't laugh. There's no need to be nervous."

"Avatar, the reason I do not want to sing is not for the preservation of my nerves, it is for the preservation of my sanity. No."

"Would you prefer to sing something easier? Here's one. It has practically no tune at all. You basically just have to say it!"

"Row, row, row your boat.

Gently down the stream.

Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily.

Life is but a dream."

Zuko stared at him. "Life is but a dream? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I guess it means life is dreamlike and good," Aang replied with the innocence and cheerfulness that was his trademark.

"It's not," Zuko told him bluntly. "And that song's stupid."

Aang frowned. "Alright, let me think of another one…"

"Avatar, for the last time, I do not want to sing! I do not want to hear you sing, I do not want to learn to sing!"

"Then what do you want to do?" complained Aang.

"I want to be left in peace!" He stalked off to the other side of the cage, sat down, and proceeded to ignore him.

Iroh leaned over to Aang. "I think he needs a song that fits him better."

The boy frowned in concentration. "Hmm… They didn't teach us that many songs for depressed, evil people. Monks don't sing that kind of stuff."

"What do monks sing?" asked Iroh curiously, deciding to ignore the reference to his nephew being evil.

Aang shrugged. "Most sing religious songs and stuff, but my mentor, Monk Gyatso sung a lot of… different things. Like the Llama Song. He was… unique."

Iroh blinked. "He seems like a very interesting person. You'll have to tell me about him sometime, but for now, we have to worry about find a song that Zuko will actually sing."

Aang frowned, concentrating. "Hmm… Oh, here's one!"

"The fuzziest slippers in the neighborhood!

The fuzziest slippers in the neighborhood!

I have the fuzziest slippers in the neighborhood!

'Cause my slippers are very fuzzy!"

He grinned at Iroh. "My friend Bumi taught me that one. He's King of Omashu now, but he still thinks he has the fuzziest slippers in the neighborhood. I'm not quite sure about that, but I've never really bothered to check. Maybe I should sometime…"

While he pondered the idea of going around and asking everyone in Omashu if they would show him their fuzziest slippers, Iroh pondered whether or not that song correctly represented Zuko.

"I guess not," he sighed finally. "I just can't picture Zuko singing about fuzzy slippers."

Aang giggled as he tried to picture just that. "I guess you're right. Too bad, though, that would be very entertaining."

Iroh grinned. "It would, wouldn't it," he commented. "Perhaps one day, when Prince Zuko is not quite so… temperamental, we can get him to sing about fuzzy slippers. But for now, let's stick to something serious."

"Okay," sighed Aang. He tried to remember all the serious songs he knew. All were either depressing enough that he didn't really want to hear them, or just didn't fit Zuko any more than a song about fuzzy slippers. Finally, though, he came across a song somewhere in the deepest reaches of his memory.

"I've got it!" he cried.

A/N I own The Fuzziest Slippers. I made it up myself. Somehow, I can just picture the King of Omashu singing that. Can anyone think of a song that Zuko would actually sing? I certainly can't, or this chapter would be longer. Please tell me if you can. I'm very stuck.