Gladiator

by Seyary-Minamoto

In a world where the Avatar wasn't found, the Fire Nation took over two nations and they strive to overcome the last one. Water Tribe warrior Sokka seeks to fight for his people's rights, but he's captured by his enemies. His life is no longer in his hands as he fights as a Gladiator, and his fate will eventually depend on the Fire Nation Princess, who needs him for her own ends...

84. Chapter 84: The Slate-Festivals 2

"Okay, so they might not be as good as the ones you had before," Ty Lee said. "But I think they'll work for you. I hope so, at least."

With that, Ty Lee slid a long, slender box towards Suki over the dining table. Haru stopped cleaning the dishes they had used during breakfast to glance over his shoulder, eager to catch a glimpse of Suki's reaction as she opened the box.

The girl's jaw dropped when she saw the two gold fans, neatly placed within the white box. A smile spread across her face as she took them into her hands, and she shivered as she unfolded one of them: the familiar weight of fans was a callback to another life, one she suddenly found herself missing dearly.

"They're… they're wonderful, Ty Lee," she said, beaming as she detailed the fans. Her former weapons had been of a single color, but these had red clouds drawn over the yellow background, with the word 'virtue' inscribed in the center with black ink. They were lined by sticks carved out of strong cypress wood, coated by dark lacquer. "If anything, they're so beautiful I don't think I should use them in battle."

"Really?" said Ty Lee, smiling as Suki laughed.

"Thank you," she said: Ty Lee's cheeks reddened slightly as she giggled upon being at the receiving end of Suki's gratefulness.

"No need to thank me, you'll need them if you're going to train with us, won't you?" she said, and Suki nodded.

"I'll also need them if you'll sponsor me again one day… right?"

"Right," said Ty Lee. "But that can't happen for a few more months, so don't fret about it, okay?"

"I won't," said Suki, nodding as someone knocked on the door.

Ty Lee stood up to get the door while Haru returned to his chores. Suki continued to admire her new weapons, fascinated by them until she was distracted by the sound of Ty Lee's voice. She seemed distraught by something. Suki raised an eyebrow and stood up, walking towards the kitchen's doorway, from where she could see the house's entrance.

"Then Azula can't make it?" Ty Lee was asking Sokka, whom she had only just allowed into the house. The gladiator didn't look too happy about the news he was conveying to Ty Lee.

"Nope, her hands are full with the ceremony," he said, disheartened. "I'll have to find another firebender to train with. She said she'd ask one of her guards to do it, but…"

"Then the Princess won't be here today?" Suki said suddenly, startling Sokka.

"Oh… hey. Didn't notice you were there," he said, smiling and waving at her. "And, uh, no, she won't be. She's got other stuff to deal with. You know, royal duties and whatnot."

"Huh, too bad," said Suki: she had been looking forward to meeting Azula in person, but it seemed this wouldn't be the opportunity to do so.

"In any case, even if you can't train with a firebender today, at least I can start teaching you chi-blocking now, if you're ready," said Ty Lee, smiling. "How does that sound?"

"Dangerous and crazy, but I'm ready to get started," said Sokka, smiling and nodding.

"Great!" Ty Lee exclaimed, beaming.

Once Haru was finished with the dishes, the four of them walked out to the house's back door. Suki took her seat in the veranda that led to the garden, watching the other three as they began their lesson in the unkempt garden. Sokka stood in place, at a safe distance from where Ty Lee was appeasing Haru, letting him know she wouldn't be too ruthless today.

"Well, then!" Ty Lee said, once she turned towards Sokka. "Your first chi-blocking lesson will be theoretical, mostly, because it takes a while to get the basics right."

"Alright, then," said Sokka, nodding. Piandao had always taught him the theory of any fighting styles first, after all.

"Chi flows through everyone's bodies," said Ty Lee. "It's our vital energy, it allows our bodies to work the way they do. Everyone has chi within them, every little thing in the world! So, when someone's chi gets obstructed, their bodies stop working properly. See?"

With that, she struck Haru's shoulder with a steadier fist than Sokka realized she could conjure. The earthbender gasped in pain as his arm fell limp on his side. Sokka stared in amazement as Haru gritted his teeth, incapable of moving his arm altogether.

"With that, Haru can't bend because I've disrupted his arm's chi path!" Ty Lee said, proudly, before tapping the man's shoulder playfully. "Come on, show him you can't move your arm, Haru."

Haru grimaced and did as she told him, and he couldn't lift his arm at all. Sokka looked at him worriedly, but Haru waved his functional hand carelessly towards him.

"Don't worry. It's not the first time she does this to me," he said, and Ty Lee giggled with malice.

"Oh, it sure isn't. But anyways, that's not the point," she said, turning towards Sokka again. "Alright, Sokka, now you see why chi-blocking is a very efficient fighting style. You can render any bender or non-bender helpless by hitting their pressure points and stopping the flow of their chi. Now, you can't be too brusque, or you might cause more damage than intended… I mean, you could kill people if you hit someone too hard in attempts to chi-block them."

"Huh," said Sokka, his eyes wide. "H-have you killed someone like that?"

"Oh, no, but the man I learned chi-blocking from sure had," said Ty Lee, biting her lower lip before shrugging carelessly: Sokka wasn't eased at all upon that revelation. "Anyways, don't worry. I'm not going to kill Haru and neither will you."

"I sure hope so," he said, and Haru grimaced.

"Enough with the bleak thoughts, Sokka!" she said, smiling. "You're going to need to study up on the human body and chi paths, so you know which ones to block. Some of them are less risky to block than others, but that results in blocks that only last for a few minutes, at most. If you want to be efficient about the block, you have to know where to hit your opponent to deliver the most damage with the least effort. For instance, I could block Haru's other arm…"

With that, she moved towards Haru's right and hit his shoulder again. The earthbender cried out and looked at Ty Lee accusingly, but she ignored him.

"But he still would have his legs, right? He could still run away from me if he wants to. But there are certain points where you can block someone's chi and render all their limbs useless with just a few movements. See?"

Now she moved towards his back, striking the nape of his neck and the lowest part of his spine with two quick jabs. Haru yelled louder this time and collapsed on the ground, falling face-first in the grass. Sokka gulped as Ty Lee beamed.

"Therefore, as you can see, the ideal thing for you will be to block the Millennium Dragon's chi paths like this! Then he'll be rendered helpless before you."

"Sounds a lot easier said than done, but sure thing…" said Sokka, gulping. "What if he's wearing armor, though?"

"Well, that makes it a little more difficult, but I doubt he'd wear one," said Ty Lee, crossing her arms and tapping one of her forearms with a finger as she thought hard. "Most firebenders don't wear armor in the ring, or do they?"

"Huh. Not really," Haru replied from the ground, as Sokka leaned down to help him to his feet.

"Oh, woops. Are you okay, dear?" Ty Lee asked the earthbender, who couldn't stand up as he was.

"Heh. I… give me a minute," he said, as Sokka led him towards where Suki was sitting.

"Here. Stay put," he told him, before turning to Ty Lee again as Haru mumbled that he had no choice upon the matter. "Well, then, I'll need to know the chi paths in someone's body, and I'll need to know how to strike them, is it?"

"Indeed, and well, chi-blocking doesn't require too much strength," said Ty Lee. "If you go too far, you might actually…"

"Kill the person, you said it earlier" said Sokka, with an uncomfortable smile.

"And that's not the plan, so you have to be careful," she said. "Stop the chi's flow altogether and you might cause serious damage. The idea is to stop the flow momentarily, making it halt for a brief instant before it resumes, but much slower than before, seeing how its regular flow was interrupted for a moment."

"Got it," said Sokka, smiling a little. "So… it's just a matter of striking with the proper force."

"Oh, also, strike a single point in one path, too," said Ty Lee, nodding. "Don't try to hit the intersections of the paths either, that might change the flow of chi completely and that's not good. So just picture it as puncturing one of the paths, alright? And by puncturing, I mean strike it in the proper, single spot! Got it?"

"Well, I think I did," said Sokka, blinking blankly.

"Huh, well, that'd be odd," said Ty Lee, surprised. "Most people need to experience chi-blocking firsthand to actually grasp the concept."

"Uh, yeah, well, I don't think I…"

"Now, now, don't be shy, come here and let me show you for good!" she said, moving towards him. Sokka was quick to turn on his heels and run in the opposite direction.

"I already saw you do it to Haru, you don't have to do it to me too!" Sokka exclaimed, as she gained on him. The girl was faster than he expected her to be, though.

Convincing Ty Lee not to attack him was a lost cause, though, and he knew it when he felt a pair of fingers stabbing his lower back. Sokka yelled as he dropped on the ground: his legs had been rendered unresponsive. The bolt of pain on his spine had been harsh and sudden, and it throbbed now that the initial pain had subsided. He gritted his teeth and glared accusingly at Ty Lee, who simply smiled at him. Clearly, she didn't regret attacking him as she had.

"See? That's what chi-blocking does to a person!" she said.

"No kidding!" he exclaimed, trying to push himself up with his arms, but failing to do so when his spine hurt too much for him to move by himself.

"It's going to be a very handy ability for you in the battlefield, you'll see!" she said, taking one of his arms and throwing it over her shoulders. She dragged him to the veranda, where Haru was currently lounging, with Suki next to him.

"What a great first day of training, really," said Sokka, an eyebrow twitching. "I already can't walk and we haven't been at this for over half an hour. Wasn't this supposed to be a theoretical class?"

"It was, but I guess it wasn't in the end, huh?" said Ty Lee, shrugging and smiling at Sokka. "Now, don't be so sour, it's all for your own good! The best way to understand a weapon is to know what it feels like to be at the receiving end of it"

"Heh, you might be right about that, but you still shouldn't have done that," said Sokka, grimacing as she placed him on the veranda's steps. Sokka cringed, the pain in his spine still too strong. "Damn it! How long does it take for it to wear out?"

"Not that long, look at Haru! He's already feeling his arms again, see?" she said, smiling, and Sokka glanced at his friend to find he was flexing his fingers with difficulty as Suki tried to assist him, albeit not knowing how to do it.

It took little over an hour for Sokka's body to work properly again, and only when he was finally managing to walk again did the last two arrivals show up at the house. Sokka was cringing as he walked back and forth in the veranda, a hand on his back, when Ty Lee exclaimed:

"Mai! You're finally here!"

Mai acknowledged Ty Lee with a nod, but Ty Lee threw her arms around her friend regardless, so Mai patted her back nonchalantly. Zuko watched them with a raised eyebrow, having entered the house right after Mai, and he was quick to scan the place, looking for Suki, but his attention was taken over by Sokka when he found him hunching over himself as he was.

"Why are you walking like an old man?" he asked Sokka, who glared at him.

"L-let Ty Lee chi-block your back before asking me that question…" he muttered.

Zuko smirked a little at Sokka's confession, but his smile became much gentler when he found Suki with his gaze. She waved in his direction, but Zuko frowned as he noticed the absence of someone who hadn't been amongst them on the previous day either.

"How come isn't Azula here?" he asked, and Mai frowned too.

"She's not going to be here for training," said Sokka, forcing himself to stand up straight and supporting his weight with a hand on the house's wall. "She's got a lot on her plate right now, so…"

"So, she expects everyone else to train you, just like that?" Zuko asked, raising an eyebrow "Really?"

"Well, I told her about what we discussed yesterday," said Sokka. "She said I ought to learn new fighting techniques, and I'm sure she'd love watching me get chi-blocked, but she's too busy at the moment to enjoy that."

"What do you mean?" Mai asked. "Busy with what?"

"It's… well, I don't know if I'm allowed to talk about it, but I guess I am," said Sokka, shrugging. "Some festivals are happening in a couple of months, right?"

"Oh, yeah, on the holidays," said Ty Lee, clapping. "I can't believe I'd nearly forgotten about them!"

"Well, apparently she's going to perform some ceremony there, and she has to get ready for it, so she doesn't have time to train with me," Sokka finished, stretching and finding he would be able to walk without crouching by now.

"The ceremony?" Mai repeated. "I thought that was something only Fire Sages would do"

"It seems her dad wants her to do it this time," said Sokka. "She wasn't too thrilled about it, but she's going to do it all the same."

"Well, it's Azula. How hard could it be for her?" said Zuko, folding his arms over his chest. "If someone can perform that ceremony without breaking a sweat, it would be her."

"She said something about how firebending isn't always the same, though," said Sokka. "It sounded like she'd need a lot of practice to get ceremonial bending right."

"It's to be expected," said Mai. "She would refuse to give out a mediocre performance. If there's one thing Azula takes more seriously than anything, it's bending."

"True," said Ty Lee, nodding.

"But if this is how it's going to be," said Mai, looking at Sokka. "How are you going to train against firebenders? While Ty Lee and I can teach you new fighting techniques, you need to train with a strong firebender. Else you might not be able to endure fighting in the Slate, no matter how many new skills you develop."

"Well, she said she'd send one of her guards," said Sokka, scratching his head. "Not that I'm too fond of that, though, she's way stronger than them. Still… I guess we can figure that out later."

"Why, though?" said Suki, suddenly, surprising them. "I mean… Zuko is here. Why not him?"

Zuko froze in place as all eyes fell upon him. Ty Lee, Mai and Haru looked at him expectantly, Suki hopefully, and Sokka reluctantly: the expression on Zuko's own face soon shifted into a grimace.

"Uh… I don't think that's a good idea, Suki," he said, frowning and looking at her. "I really don't want to…"

"Yeah, I mean, Zuko really can't be tough enough to compare with the Millennium Dragon," said Sokka, and Zuko flinched. "I fought him once already, and he really didn't…"

"Hey!" Zuko exclaimed, glaring at him. "That fight was no standard for you to measure my skills with! I was angry and using swords I'd never wielded in my life!"

"Oh, sure, and you were firebending too, but that didn't make a difference," said Sokka, smirking. "I still got the better of you."

"No, you didn't! I was winning!"

"You were winning? What the hell? How on earth were you winning, Zuko?"

"If Azula hadn't gotten in the way…!"

"If Azula hadn't gotten in the way, you two would have wrecked my house," Mai intervened, at which the two men were silenced. "If you want to show Sokka the true extent of your skills Zuko, by all means, start training with him as well. If not, though, spare us the pointless arguments. Come, Sokka. You're up with me next."

"Oh… okay," said Sokka, gulping as he followed Mai dutifully out into the garden again.

The others stayed in the veranda, watching them, Haru still regaining the feel in his limbs while Zuko frowned. Should he train with Sokka, if only for a chance to give him a proper beating…?

"I'll make this brief, I can't stay all day because Yuudai is at home with the servants and I won't impose on them so much," said Mai, turning towards Sokka. "So just show me what you can do with a projectile, will you?"

"Sure," said Sokka, biting his lip before pulling his boomerang from its sheath. "Want me to hit anything specific?"

Mai looked around them, finding a tree not too far from where they stood. She surprised Sokka when she pulled out a knife from her long sleeve, and she surprised him even more when she tossed it with a fast movement. The knife sank deeply into one of the tree's branches.

"Take it down with your boomerang, then," she said.

Sokka narrowed his eyes as he calculated the distance and the strength he'd need to put into throwing his boomerang to achieve her request. He lifted his right arm and tossed his weapon with great force, but instead of hitting the knife and knocking it down, it hit the branch, cutting through it cleanly. The knife fell to the ground, still latched to the broken branch.

"Well, there you go," he said, smiling as he caught his weapon again. Mai raised an eyebrow.

"Creative, I'll give you that, and your aim isn't entirely bad. But it's not so good either" she said, looking at Sokka with judgmental eyes. Sokka gulped. "I told you to take down the knife, and you did it in a different way than expected. Surely that's a good thing in some levels, but it's not when you have a very particular objective in mind. If you're going to chi-block with that boomerang, you can't think about hitting another point in hopes it'll yield the same results. It won't. If you're going to disable someone, you need to hit the specific spot that will allow you to do so. There are no ways around it, no clever alternatives for it. You'll need to be efficient in the Slate, first and foremost."

"B-but I did knock down the knife…" Sokka muttered, gulping.

"You did, but this would be equal to cutting off your enemy's arm with your weapon when you're trying to block his chi," said Mai, raising her eyebrows. "I trust that's not what you're after, or is it?"

"Not entirely," Sokka admitted.

"It would be much harder to cut through a man's arm than a tree branch" Mai said, and Sokka nodded. "Blocking his chi would be more efficient in the fighting ring than tossing your boomerang in hopes it'll lodge in your opponent's shoulder. It might not even cut through his skin at all, to begin with"

"Right," said Sokka. "Still, my aim isn't that bad, is it?"

"I suppose not. You need a few improvements in that aspect, but we can work on it once Ty Lee has taught you how to chi-block for good."

"Good, then," said Sokka, relieved to hear her acknowledge his skill with his boomerang.

"Then it should be Suki's turn now, if she's up for it" said Mai, looking at the girl.

Suki swallowed before nodding and standing up, making her way towards Sokka. Mai returned to the veranda, where everyone watched Suki warily, especially Zuko. It would be the first time she trained with anyone in a very long time. Her injuries had healed, mostly, despite her ribs still pained her at times. Was she ready to spar with Sokka?

"It's been a while since we last faced off against each other, huh?" she asked him, with a smile. He nodded, with a grin of his own.

"Feels like a thousand years ago," he replied, relieved to be saying that and actually meaning it. Nothing was as it had been when he had first fought Suki.

"Well, you were very skilled with your sword and weapons, but I don't think I saw enough of your hand-to-hand combat skills," she said, sliding her new fans into her sash, for she didn't plan on using them just yet. "So how about we start from there?"

"Alright, then," he said, smiling and lifting his fists.

Suki raised an eyebrow at him. She only took a defensive stance when Sokka looked puzzled by her lack of response. She stood still, though, so he assumed she was hoping he would take the lead. Sokka stepped forward and threw a fist in her direction, but not a very powerful one. He wasn't going to start off too strong…

She deflected his movement by pushing down his wrist with the palm of her hand in a single, fluid motion; Sokka started to wonder if perhaps he ought to add more strength to his attacks after that. Suki smiled at him, showing him he wouldn't get anywhere if he went easy on her. He frowned before throwing a stronger fist, but Suki didn't even move, knowing he was only bluffing with that. Sokka withdrew his fist only to punch her for good now, and Suki moved out of the way, pushing his wrist again with her palm and making him stumble forward clumsily.

Suki was under the impression she had heard Zuko laugh, but she paid it no mind as Sokka turned to look at her, irritated.

"Quick as a cat, huh?" he asked her, before moving forward and trying to kick her now.

To his chagrin, Suki ducked under his leg and stretched out one of hers so she could trip his left leg, the one where he was balancing his weight now. Sokka tried not to fall, but her kick had been too strong. He fell on his back, gritting his teeth and feeling like an idiot.

"You're not that bad…" said Suki, at which he glared at her. "But you should try to use your opponent's strength against them. It's not that hard, once you get the hang of it."

"Sure thing…" Sokka grumbled, standing up and glaring at her. "Alright, then, once more!"

Every new round ended in the same manner, though at times Sokka was face-first on the ground rather than on his back. But he landed no blows on Suki, no matter how hard he tried, and she always found a way to turn his strength against him. By the end of that session, Sokka was rubbing his back again as he dropped on the veranda once more, irritable and frowning.

"See, I said you were better than him" Zuko told Suki proudly, and she simply laughed before rolling her eyes.

"You have to relax and take a different approach against her," said Haru, and Sokka sighed.

"I guess," he muttered. "But she's going to have to explain that matter of 'using my opponents' strength against them' better. I can't be expected to know how to do it just because I'm told to."

"Well, if you had asked for an explanation, I would have given you one," she said, smiling, and Sokka glared at her again.

"Oh, joy. Why didn't you say that earlier?"

"How was I supposed to when you just kept coming at me with more strength each time?" said Suki, shrugging and laughing a little.

"Heh, yeah, well… bleh," he said, before turning to glare at Zuko. "And mind you, maybe she's better in hand-to-hand combat, but I did beat her in the Arena with weapons. So quit being such a sore loser."

"Sore loser?" Zuko asked. "How am I a sore loser when you've proved me right when it came to Suki?"

"I proved you right in one regard, not in…!"

"Ugh, would you two shut up?" Mai said, exasperated.

"Really, though, how about you use all that macho bravado to fight one another? Would be a little more helpful than…" said Ty Lee, sighing.

"You know what…?" said Zuko, raising an eyebrow. "I think we'll do just that"

"Huh?! Hey, that's not fair! I just spent most my energies fighting her!" Sokka exclaimed, and Zuko laughed.

"So, you're backing down on me now? What happened to the tough, weapons guy, huh? Come on, I didn't bring my swords so I can only fight with firebending. Let's see how strong you really are, gladiator."

"You… you know what? Fine!" Sokka exclaimed, standing up and whipping Space Sword out of its sheath. "You want a fight, I'll give you a fight!"

Zuko smirked as he stepped down into the garden, followed by Sokka, who glared at the Prince with irritation. Zuko lifted his fists, Sokka his sword. And with that, the fight began.

Sokka moved away from the blast of fire Zuko sent his way with a punch. He lunged forward, hoping to cut Zuko before his fire could reach him. Yet Zuko delivered a kick now, one that forced Sokka to change his strategy by performing a barrel roll to the side and standing up quickly. Zuko cast more fire towards Sokka, and the gladiator gritted his teeth before swatting the fire away with Space Sword.

Zuko cringed when he saw Sokka defeat his fire so easily, but he didn't give up with that alone. He took one of his best stances and struck the air with his fists. Two long blasts of fire intertwined as they moved towards Sokka, but before they could reach him, the gladiator tossed his boomerang through the flames.

Zuko didn't see the attack coming until it was too close for him to do anything about it. He ducked, bending over backwards to evade the boomerang, but he fell back, dropping on his rear. And before he could rise to his feet again, he found the tip of a blade between his eyes.

"Well? What's the matter, jerkbender?" he mocked him, and Zuko snarled, his previous good mood having disappeared. Sokka was much stronger now than he had been when they had first fought.

"Okay, okay, that's quite enough for now," Suki said, stepping forward and compelling to Sokka lower his sword by placing a hand on his forearm.

"He used his boomerang!" Zuko exclaimed. "That's not fair, is it?!"

"Oh, boohoo, so you think I was playing dirty?" Sokka said, amused. "You really are something…"

"I only had one weapon and it was, my fire!" Zuko exclaimed, back on his feet. "Next time, I'm going to use my swords too. And then we'll see who's laughing, gladiator!"

"Can't wait for it," said Sokka, with a pleased smile.

Ty Lee, Haru and Mai watched from the veranda, worried looks on their faces.

"This might not be such a good idea, you know?" Haru said, and Mai grimaced.

"It's not a good idea at all, actually. Zuko will try to kill Sokka long before that Millennium Dragon does."

"W-well, but at least Sokka will have a firebender to train with, huh?" said Ty Lee. "Even if it's not Azula. And one who surely will do his very best to give Sokka a good challenge…"

"Always trying to look at everything from the most positive point of view…" said Mai, sighing with resignation. With this new vicious rivalry in tow, training Sokka was going to prove a lot harder than it had already promised to be.

---

"…Then, you must set the Beacon of Feng Huang ablaze using both your hands. You're free to use whichever stance suits you best for this," said the Head Sage, taking a deep breath to demonstrate a firebending move.

The Beacon wasn't in the Temple's ceremonial hall today, seeing as they were only practicing right now. Azula watched the Sage with a raised eyebrow as the man spread his legs apart, lowered his torso and, after charging his limbs with firepower, unleashed twin blasts of flames into the air.

"And, lastly, you'll perform the Salute to the Phoenix," he said next.

The Sage now moved his right hand above his head, the other one at the level of his shoulder. He took two steps forward, and on the second one he moved his right hand downwards diagonally, a flare of fire bursting from it, and then he leapt, a leg stretched out to create an arch of fire. He landed again amid a circle of fire produced by his hand and feet.

"Do you grasp the concept, then?" the Sage asked, and Azula raised her eyebrows.

"Do you believe me to be inept, Head Sage?" she replied. "Of course I do. Do you need me to prove it right away?"

"W-well, I wasn't trying to say you're not capable, I meant that I could perform the routine again if you hadn't…"

Azula rolled her eyes when the sage started rambling, and she stepped away from him before starting to imitate his movements from earlier. She started by holding her hands in front of her, posed as though to make a royal salute. From the fist came blue flames that she bent with her right hand afterwards, taking the embers in her hand and striking them forward with a powerful, steady blast. She withdrew her form, her right leg creating an arc of fire behind her, and she moved backwards, her every careful step creating a new arc of blazes.

She moved her hands in circles next to her, creating two rings of flames rapidly, through which she shot two fireballs with strong fists. Next she flexed her right knee, then stretched her left leg and twirled, making yet another circle, now on the floor. After two spins, she leapt upwards, boosted by her flames. She performed a kick to the ground, and with that, her flames became larger still. Now wherever she stepped, she brought fire along with her. She continued to bend as powerfully, as fluently as she could, moving from one stance to the next both quickly and precisely. No movement was wasted, no flame was uncontrolled. Everything was exactly as it had to be.

Once she had performed all the stances the Head Sage had showed her – the entire routine took her almost seven minutes – Azula made the final movement, bringing forth more flames than the Sage had when she landed on the floor. She lifted her gaze to find the old man staring at her with his jaw dropped, never having seen someone memorize the long ceremonial routine right away, let alone perform it so flawlessly on their first attempt.

"How was that, Head Sage?" she asked, with a smirk. "Did I forget any stances?"

"N-no, actually… you remembered them all. And you performed them quite well, I must add," he said, his eyes wide. "You're a very fast learner, Princess."

"I take pride in that, yes," Azula replied, pleased with herself.

"Nevertheless, though, there's…" said the Sage, and she frowned. "I'm not sure what it is, but something doesn't feel quite right, if I may…"

"Oh, really?" said Azula, folding her arms over her chest and staring at the man with skepticism. "Something doesn't feel right about my ceremonial bending, yet you, a master of the art, can't tell what it is?"

"Well, perhaps it's merely that I'm not used to your bending," he said. "Surely if you performed it with orange fire, like most people do, it wouldn't feel different from the usual ceremonial firebending."

"Orange fire?" said Azula, glaring at the man. "Mind you, but blue fire is my personal brand of fire. If you want a ceremony with regular, orange firebending, feel free to ask any other firebender in the region to do it. But if I'm going to do this, I'm going to do it with the bending I've mastered and perfected. Understood?"

"U-understood, Princess," said the Sage, apprehensively. "Yet… if you could, perhaps, try it with orange firebending. Then we would be certain that is, indeed, what feels wrong to me."

Azula frowned. She hadn't bent orange fire in longer than she cared to remember. She had only ever bent blue fire ever since she developed the skill. She had never found a reason to return to the typical, orange bending when she thought her personal fire was better for all means and purposes.

All the same, she complied with the Sage, if only to humor him… but as soon as she started the sequence again, the fire was blue. She frowned and used her left hand to manipulate the flame, trying to weaken it, and only when the flame was very faint did it become orange.

She attempted to start over, but yet again, she was having a hard time producing orange flames. She cringed and tried again, focusing on decreasing the fire's heat. The flame flared blue when she first conjured it, but soon it turned orange when she willed it. She started with the ritual again, certain she could make it this time, yet when the time came for her to use her feet to create fire arcs behind her, the flames were blue once more.

"Curse it…" she whispered, and the Sage frowned.

"Uh, this is a sacred temple, Princess. Please keep obscenities to…"

"Oh, shut up," she said, rolling her eyes as the Sage's eyebrow twitched. "This isn't making a difference, or is it?"

"Well, if anything, your fire seems shaky and unstable now, when it wasn't before… and no, it really isn't an improvement at all," said the Sage, shaking his head, and Azula glared at him.

"Then what would you have me do? If my execution was perfect with the blue flames, and your sole complaint is that there's a subtle, unknown thing that doesn't feel right, then perhaps I should continue doing it as I did at first."

"But it's still… not quite right, Princess," said the Sage, sighing. "I don't really know what it is, I'm sorry if I'm being bold, but…"

"If you don't know, then who would know?" Azula asked, staring at the man inquisitively. "How am I supposed to fix whatever I'm doing wrong if you don't understand what it is?"

"Well… maybe you ought to read on the Fire Sage's doctrine," the Sage suggested. "Perhaps you'll find something there that will illuminate you on what you're not doing right."

"This is ridiculous," said Azula, rolling her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Princess," he said, "But there is more to ceremonial bending than executing each move with utmost accuracy."

"Oh, really? What more is there to it, then?" she asked.

"I guess… it's the feel of it, Princess," he said, shaking his head. "You, as I said, are executing the stances perfectly. But you aren't performing them as a Sage would. You're performing them too perfectly, you see?"

"Why, as a matter of fact, I don't," said Azula, looking at him in disbelief. "How can something be too perfect to be adequate? If anything, perfection should make it work! You realize you're making no sense, don't you?"

"It may sound odd to you, Princess, but you might need to take a different approach with this matter. Perhaps take some time to ponder how your firebending works, and why it is so different to regular firebending. It might help."

"I doubt it," Azula said, cuttingly. "My firebending is unique, and thus it should make the ceremony memorable this year. Yet you're asking me to forsake what makes it unique so I can suit your standards?"

"I'm asking you to consider what makes your firebending different, Princess, because it… it feels cold, you see. And fire should be warm…"

"Cold?" Azula repeated, skeptical to the point where she was nearly amused. "Cold, you said?"

"Well, not literally cold, but…!"

"My firebending is colored blue precisely because it's hotter than most people's flames. Yet you think it's cold?"

"As I was saying, not literally!" said the man. "But it lacks… essence."

"It lacks essence?" Azula repeated, with a sarcastic laugh. "You can't be serious."

"Well, Princess…"

"You know what? I think I have learned everything I could from you," Azula interrupted him, rolling her eyes and starting towards the door that would lead her outside the Temple's ceremonial hall. "I won't stand for more of your insults towards my fire."

"I'm not insulting your fire, Princess! Pardon me if I offended you, it wasn't my intention to do so. But I am only trying to help you be successful as a ceremonial bender!"

"Or, rather, trying to prevent me from being successful at all," Azula whispered to herself before stopping on her tracks and turning to face the man. "Your attempts are well appreciated, but I have already memorized the routine and I doubt I'll need your assistance in any other way if you don't know how to make my fire adequate for the ceremony. I will meet you again once I've tended to the matter in my own time. Farewell for the time being, then, Head Sage."

The man watched her go with unease, but Azula didn't turn back to look at the expression on his face. She made her way outside the hall, irritated. There had never been anything wrong with her bending. Nobody had ever dared imply she was inadequate for bending in any way. She couldn't see how it was a problem for her bending to be too perfect. And the Sage had said her fire was too cold… whatever did that mean. She didn't think it meant anything to begin with: the Sage was merely being picky and whiny, that was all there was to it. He was bitter to see her master the ceremony's routine in a matter of a single day when surely it had taken him years to do the same…

But Azula knew there was some sense to the Sage's complaints. She had said herself that ceremonial firebending wasn't the same as combat firebending, after all.

Azula had witnessed the Ceremony of the Sun many times now, along with other ritual performances by the Fire Sages. She had never thought their bending was better than her father's, or her own, but she had always noticed there was a quality about it that made it different from her flames. Yet she had expected the Head Sage to either overlook that, or for him to explain, clearly, what that quality was so she could add it to her bending. But he had provided no guidance for Azula whatsoever when it came to this problem.

Or perhaps he had helped a little, by suggesting something that just might help Azula. She frowned and stopped on her tracks, right at the Temple's exit, and once she had made up her mind she turned back inside, towards the Fire Sages' Library.

The Library was dark, for the illumination of the room was supplied by lanterns that the sages would set alight only when they were in the room. Since Azula didn't really know what she was looking for, let alone where she would find it, she lit up all the lanterns. Tall bookshelves lined the walls, old books encased within them. Azula glanced around, making sure the Library would be empty indeed, and she approached the shelves, her eyes raking the spines of the books in search for a volume that might help her with her predicament. Perhaps one that explained the difference between ceremonial and combat firebending clearly…

None of the books she saw at first helped, but eventually one of the books caught her eye, despite she doubted it might contain the information she required. She opened it carefully, eyeing it with more interest than she could justify. It was old and dusty, and while the dark, leather cover and binding of the book looked brand new, the pages were tinged yellow with age.

She sat on one of the reading tables and moved the table's lantern close to where she was, so she could read the book with ease. The Book of Fire was a title she had often heard about, but she hadn't taken her time to read it until today. The ancient manuscripts her culture had spawned from had been left to accumulate dust over the years, no longer obligatory books a child had to read for school. Even the Fire Sages didn't seem too study these old tales as thoroughly nowadays as they used to. Yet Azula felt curious about it, for some reason. Perhaps returning to the original tales about firebending would help her find what her fire was lacking…

The skies were comprised by shadows until his arrival, the book read, coated in blazes of every color this world had yet to see. The Phoenix, Feng Huang, arose from the mirk, his fire waking nature and all its creatures from their slumber. His eyes glowed with power. He spread open his immense wings, so he could embrace the entire world to provide it with warmth and light.

When the Phoenix spread its wings, two of its feathers fell on the earth. From the feathers were born two creatures, very different from one another, albeit their origins were the same: they were the man and the dragon. They were the children of Feng Huang.

The light of Feng Huang gave life to the world, but the Phoenix's glow was short-lived. As suddenly as he arrived, he also faded into nothingness. His flames were all-powerful, and even Feng Huang couldn't withstand their might forever. The Phoenix collapsed into ashes and, again, the world was covered in shadows.

The two children of Feng Huang cowered in the darkness and shivered in the coldness. Nature fell into its slumber yet again. The brightness of the world promised to become only a memory for the man and the dragon. Yet they waited, the man sitting by his long-bodied brother, as they both waited for their Protector to return to them, even though they had seen him perish in his ashes.

Their hopes were rewarded on the next morn, when Feng Huang rose again, more powerful than before, in his coat of feathers and flames of colors on end. The dragon, blessed with the ability to fly, soared through the skies towards the Phoenix. He couldn't reach the flaming bird, though, for the intense heat would reduce him to ashes if he dared come too close. Yet the Phoenix compelled him to speak, even from a distance:

"Why have you risen through the skies, Dragon, and left your brother to fend for himself down below?" the Phoenix asked.

"I have come for I wanted to be near you, Protector of Life and Flames," the Dragon replied. "Your absence filled me and my brother with fear. I ask you not to leave us again."

"I cannot grant your wish, Dragon," was Feng Huang's reply. "In order to provide life to the world, I must lie in my ashes for as long as I give you and your brother my light. I must die every night to return with mightier force every day."

"But how will we get by in the cold darkness?" the Dragon asked, desperate.

"You are my sons," said the Phoenix. "Both you and the man were my feathers. Born in you is the power to light your own fires, Dragon: use it wisely. For fire can bring forth greatness, but it might also bring devastation. Fire can bring life, yet it might also bring death. It is a great power I have entrusted to you, Dragon. Use it as you believe is best."

The Dragon was filled with pride and strength as Feng Huang spoke his words. With a roar, the flying creature discovered it could breathe fire. It danced and rejoiced, thanking the Phoenix for the gift of life and flames, and he soon returned to the ground to his brother.

The Dragon taught the man what the Phoenix had shown him. The man lifted his hand, and blazes danced on his palm. Thus, the first firebenders awakened their power.

Azula raised an eyebrow as she finished reading the first pages of the book. She had heard this tale retold in many ways, but she had never seen the original transcript until today. The man, she knew, was allegedly one of her ancestors, for he was the grandfather of the first Fire Sage, who was granted the title of Fire Lord for being a direct descendant of the sun. Still, she rather doubted the veracity of the tale. Old stories of this kind couldn't be taken too seriously, no matter how engaging they might be.

Yet this didn't have the answers she needed. Azula skimmed over a few other pages before looking for another book, hoping it might be more direct in its approach to firebending. She scanned a few other volumes, but to her chagrin, she didn't find anything satisfactory in them. She couldn't find anything about ceremonial firebending as opposed to combat firebending.

She returned to the Book of Fire eventually, despite herself, for it was the only book that had engaged her attention. To her surprise, she found it showed, on its more advanced pages, the foundations of the Fire Nation Society, including the festivals and the Ceremony of the Sun. Perhaps the book could prove more helpful than she had assumed on first glance.

She headed back home, deciding to look for the Book of Fire within the Palace's own Library so she wouldn't have to borrow the one from the Temple. She made her way through the halls, hoping to take a bath to relax before having dinner, but before she could head into her room, she happened upon someone she had wanted to meet since the previous day.

"Ah, Captain," she said, her voice as collected and menacing as ever. The man had been speaking to other soldiers in the hallway, briefing them on their duties for the day. He was startled when he heard the Princess's voice. "Just who I needed to see. It's been unusually difficult to find you these days."

"Princess…" he said, his conversation with the other soldiers forgotten as he saw the steel in Azula's eyes.

"I need a word with you, Captain. In private," she said, with a meaningful glare.

Rui Shi swallowed hard, knowing all too well why the Princess required his presence so urgently. He bade farewell to the guards he had been speaking with, and he followed Azula down the Palace's long hallways all the way to her room. The Captain closed the door behind him once they were both inside, and he braced himself to hear what the Princess would say. He had plenty to say to her as well.

"It has been brought to my attention, Captain," she said, as she paced before him. "That you've acquired some information I rather wish you hadn't obtained."

"If I may, I wish I hadn't either," Rui Shi said, not caring if he was being insolent. "But unless you have found means to wipe my memories…"

"That would be ideal," said Azula, turning towards him with her arms folded across her chest. "But regrettably, I can't quite manipulate your memory that way. Therefore…"

"You're going to ask me not to speak of this?" Rui Shi muttered, lowering his gaze. "You're going to… to tell me not to get in the way of your relationship with the slave?"

"I'm not going to do such a thing, Captain," Azula said, and he frowned before looking at her in confusion. "I know all too well what I'm putting at risk with this. I have spent over a year weighing those risks, believe it or not. And while I am being reckless, I won't deny it, I have already made my decision regarding this matter."

"You've… made your decision?" Rui Shi repeated, looking at Azula in disbelief. "Then you don't care if this will ruin your life, if this will destroy everything you've ever worked for…!"

"It wouldn't only ruin mine, but his as well," she said. "And yours."

Rui Shi froze and looked at her in confusion yet again. Azula's hands dropped to her hips.

"I'm fairly certain my father would hold you responsible for this if he ever hears it from any source but you, Captain," she said. "He would expect you to keep me in line, just what he expected from Lo and Li long ago. He would also expect me not to get involved with Sokka, but alas, for once I've proven incapable of being the perfect daughter he deserves."

"Indeed, you have, Princess," said Rui Shi, shaking his head. "And if it were over anything but this, he might forgive you, but…"

"But it is what it is, Captain," she finished. "And as much as you may hope to appeal to my reasonable side, it's not going to work. I won't be swayed when it comes to this."

"You're never swayed when it comes to anything," Rui Shi retorted. "So don't worry, Princess. I didn't expect to change your mind about this."

"Huh. Good to know," said Azula, pleasantly surprised. Yet Rui Shi sighed deeply.

"But still, Princess…"

"Captain," Azula said, sternly. "As I said, I won't ask you to keep your silence. I won't ask you to stand by and tolerate what I'm doing. You're free to do as you wish with the information you've acquired, whether that is to keep it to yourself or to disclose it to my father."

Rui Shi's eyes widened as he stared at Azula in shock. She couldn't mean that, could she?

"Nonetheless," she said, looking at him coldly. "Know that you are either with me or against me, Captain. You're free to choose whether to keep to your vows as a guard or to do your job, I won't judge you for either thing…"

"But my job is…"

"Your job, Captain, is to protect the member of the Royal Family you were assigned to," she said. "Ponder what that means if you must. As I said, feel free to rat me out to my father or to go to the grave with this secret. In all honesty, it won't make a difference."

"Why wouldn't it…?" said Rui Shi, frowning. "I mean… would you lie if I told the Fire Lord about this? Would you…?"

"I will do what I must to protect what I care for, Captain," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "If my relationship with Sokka were endangered, I would figure out the best way to cut my losses where I must. All the same, there would be nothing but your word against mine. I remain a virgin to this day, therefore I haven't quite dishonored myself as you might have thought I had. If anyone were to check, they would find I am still as pure as my father wants me to be."

Rui Shi swallowed hard and Azula raised an eyebrow towards him, wondering if he would say anything to that. He didn't.

"In any case, think carefully of what you'll do, Rui Shi," she said, startling him when she used his name. "I could rid myself of your accusations easily, but they would cost you our… friendship, if you will? So, tread carefully, and weigh your priorities. You don't want to do something you'll regret."

"You say as much… but you're the one doing something you'll regret," he said, frowning. "This can't end well, Princess."

"Good thing I don't mean for it to end, then," Azula said, giving him a mocking smile. "You're dismissed, Captain."

Rui Shi stood in place for an instant before nodding and leaving the room without another word. But once he closed the door behind him he removed his helmet and hood, and rubbed his temples with his fingertips, his mind in disarray. He was being forced to play a very dangerous game, one he hadn't wanted to play to begin with. And, no matter what he did, it seemed the only possible outcome for him would be to lose…

---

Over the span of a week, Sokka's training progressed more smoothly than anyone expected it to. After proper lessons on the locations of the chi paths in the human body, Sokka had started testing his hand at chi-blocking against the one person who was always at the receiving end of the technique. Sokka had jabbed Haru many times with too little strength, or in the wrong spot, until he finally managed to block his right arm for the first time. Naturally, everyone but Haru rejoiced over his accomplishment. Ty Lee had taken Sokka out shopping once, and while he hadn't been too sure that was a good idea at the time, he found otherwise when she took him to the stores that sold clothing with fire-retardant properties.

Mai was implacable, for she was almost as much of a perfectionist as Azula was. Unless Sokka hit the earth dummy Haru had built in the very spot she had marked, she would force him to keep tossing his boomerang until he got it right. And even if he succeeded she wasn't happy, but Sokka simply assumed she never was.

Once Suki had explained how to use an opponent's strength against them, Sokka had gotten much better at hand-to-hand combat. No longer would she make him fall to the ground, although he hadn't beaten her yet. Whenever he had a chance to defeat her he would hold back, not wanting to hurt her, and that only resulted in Sokka getting hurt instead.

As for Zuko, he was the one who enjoyed his bouts with Sokka the most. Mainly because, with his dao swords, he would often gain the upper hand on the non-bender. Sokka was quite irritable about that; Zuko took absolute pride in it.

"If I had two swords myself I'd get you no problem…" he grumbled, as the group took their mid-afternoon tea break. Mai wasn't amongst them anymore, since she always returned home early to tend to Yuudai.

"Who's the sore loser now?" Zuko asked, smirking, and Sokka rolled his eyes. "I don't know why you're complaining, though. You'd have it harder if you were training with my sister, wouldn't you?"

"It'd be more fun, though…" Sokka mumbled under his breath. Being defeated by Azula didn't bother him in the slightest. But when it came to Zuko…

"It is a pity she's not here," said Ty Lee. "I'm sure she would be happy to see how you've progressed!"

"Maybe she would be," said Sokka, with a weak smile now.

"Can't she come over to see how you're faring, even if just for one day?" said Ty Lee. "Surely she could use a break from preparing for the ceremony, right?"

"I doubt she'd want to take one until she's perfected the whole thing," said Zuko. "And who knows what else she's getting ready for, too. The ceremony isn't the only big celebration of the festivals."

"Yeah, but if we're going to the Slate, she'll miss out on a lot of those," said Ty Lee, sighing. "But wait, we'll get back in time for the ball!"

"We…?" said Sokka, surprised, before frowning. "Huh, she did mention a ball. What exactly is that about?"

"Oh, just a great ball in the Palace at the end of the holiday week," said Ty Lee, with a smile. "A lot of highborn people are invited. It's a very fancy event."

"Nice," said Sokka, intrigued. "So, we'll be back in time for that?"

"Yeah, and… say, do you think slaves will be allowed to attend?" Ty Lee said, her eyes gleaming as she asked Zuko the question. He looked at her in surprise before sipping his tea.

"W-well, I wouldn't know. Sokka was in Azula's feast, by my father's request… so I guess he wouldn't mind having him in the ball again"

"You think?" said Sokka, raising an eyebrow. "Things weren't exactly smooth that day, though not really because of me, but he might not be that comfortable with having me around this time. Why do you ask, though, Ty Lee?"

"Because I want to know if Haru can come!" she said happily, clinging onto one of his arms and nearly making him spill his tea over himself. "I wonder if I'd be allowed to bring him with me."

"Eh, that might be weird," said Sokka, with a grimace. "I doubt people will be happy to see a gladiator dancing with his sponsor…"

"Oh, come now, I'm sure you'd dance with your sponsor too if you could get away with it," said Ty Lee, and Sokka's face heated up, despite his best efforts to will the blood away from his cheeks.

"I… I don't even know how to dance, how would I even…? Yeah, no. I don't think it'd ever happen, and I don't need it to," he said, trying not to sound too flustered as he spoke.

"Hehe, you're so lying," said Ty Lee, giggling. "And I can let you borrow Suki too, Zuko! That way you wouldn't go alone!"

"W-what?" he said, as Suki's eyes widened. She had been silent until her name was spoken, and she looked at Ty Lee in surprise at her suggestion.

"Come on, don't be a proud dummy like Sokka," she said, smiling. "You know you want to!"

"D-doesn't really matter if I'd want to, he's right," said Zuko, and Sokka was surprised to hear him say those words. "Slaves probably won't be allowed to attend the ball."

"Oh, boo. You're being pessimistic! Look, Suki wants to go!" she said, and the former gladiator smiled weakly.

"I… don't really need to go," she said. "I mean, it sounds a little interesting, but I don't have to get involved in it…"

"Well, aren't you all party poopers," said Ty Lee, pouting. "Come on, it'll be fun!"

"The most fun thing probably will be the food…" said Sokka, sighing. He doubted he'd have a proper chance to spend time with Azula during an event such as that one.

"The food, really? Ugh, whatever. Zuko, find out if slaves can go or not, alright? If your dad thinks they can't, fine, I won't push it. But… I really want to take Haru!" Ty Lee declared, and Zuko sighed heavily before nodding in resignation, knowing the girl would insist more if he didn't comply.

Once they were done with the tea, Ty Lee returned to her chi-blocking training with Sokka. Given that it was already getting late, and he wasn't bound to train with the gladiator anymore, Zuko decided to head back home for the day… and he was surprised when someone followed him to the front door.

"Uh… Suki?" he said, surprised. "I can find my way out by myself."

"I just… well, I figured I could go with you to find out what Ty Lee wanted to know," said Suki, stopping on her tracks. "Or is it you weren't going to do that?"

"Uh, yeah, I… sure," he said, smiling. He actually hadn't meant to ask anyone about the matter, but if Suki was tagging along just for that, he just might do it. "I take it you want to go to the ball, then?"

"Well, not that much," she said, as he opened the door and they stepped outside. "I'm actually just curious about the Palace. And since they're not going to need me here for now, I guessed I could tag along with you. Is that okay?"

"If you want to… great," he said, grinning as they made their way outside the house and through the streets of the city.

The Capital wasn't too large a metropolis, but Ty Lee's house was quite far away from the center, where the Palace stood. By the time they got there, Suki found it was exactly as she expected it to be, a daunting, massive structure hidden behind sturdy walls, with tall towers and soldiers guarding every inch of the premises. She knew she wouldn't have been allowed inside if she hadn't been with Zuko, so she resolved to stay close to him while in the Palace to avoid trouble.

"Who do you think we should ask about the ball, then?" she told him, once he had toured her through the gardens and some of the halls. If she hadn't brought up the topic, he wouldn't have remembered why she had come with him in the first place.

"Oh, uh… right," he said, biting his lower lip. "I don't think my father would be an option, even though he's the one person who would know… but if I asked him about this, he might say slaves aren't allowed to come just to make me miserable."

"Would he, really?"

"Well, that is, if he even answers my question," he said, shrugging and Suki grimaced.

"Have you tried talking to him recently? Maybe… maybe he's not going to be as harsh as you thought he'd be?"

"You don't know him, Suki," said Zuko, sighing as they turned into the main hall of the Palace. "He's not a man of second chances, and if there's someone he's not going to give another one to, it's to…"

Zuko suddenly stopped talking and halted, with a surprised expression on his face. Suki raised an eyebrow and lifted her gaze as well. She froze as well upon seeing a dark-haired woman, clad in regal crimson clothes, walking in their direction as she analyzed a book and walked simultaneously, her brow furrowed.

"Azula?"

She lifted her gaze, still frowning, and she stopped walking as well when she saw the two people standing before her.

"Zuko?" she said, looking at her brother with confusion. "You… got a haircut."

"Uh, yeah," he said, blushing a little. "About a month ago, maybe more…"

"Unexpected, but I approve. This style suits you better than the mess you had on your head before," she said, as malicious as ever, and Zuko's eyebrow twitched at that. Yet Azula's attention had drifted towards the girl next to her brother by then. A girl she couldn't recognize, and who was looking at her with a mixture of awe and fear in her eyes. Surprisingly, there was more of the former than the latter in her stare. "And this is…?"

"You don't know?" Zuko asked, frowning. "I thought you were the one who had sent Ty Lee to find her…"

The words hit Azula like a boulder to the head. She stopped for a moment to look at the girl, unable to recognize the fighter she had seen in the Arena so long ago.

"Huh. So it's… you," she said, her voice colder than either Zuko or Suki had expected it to be. "And you're… why exactly are you with my brother?"

"Oh, we met in the Arena once," she said, quickly. "When Ty Lee brought me back he heard of it, and he's been helping me ever since."

"Really, now?" Azula asked, looking at Zuko with disbelief.

"W-what, you think I can't do good things for other people just because I want to?" he asked, blushing.

"Well, I didn't quite say that…" Azula said, a mischievous smirk on her face before looking at Zuko again. "And you're touring her through the Palace? Will that improve her health, I wonder?"

"She wanted to see it," said Zuko, bashfully, and Suki nodded.

"Isn't she a curious one, then," said Azula, regarding Suki with judgmental eyes. Her cold eyes made Suki's smile wear off quickly.

Azula wasn't being antagonistic on purpose, despite herself. In fact, she was rather curious too. She had never seen her brother with a girl she hadn't pushed at him before: she wasn't about to start indulging in the hopes that a relationship of any sort would be born between Zuko and the former gladiator, though. It seemed rather convenient… too convenient to be true.

"I, uh… actually hoped I might find you here, Princess," said Suki, surprising Zuko: Suki hadn't told him she wanted to see Azula.

"Did you, now? Only a few bold people have the nerve to look for me," said Azula, with a proud smirk. "Few of them find what they expect, though. Why did you want to see me?"

"Well, as Zuko just said, you sent Ty Lee to find me… and I don't know why you did, because Mai said you weren't going to use me in any way," said Suki, raising her eyebrows and looking at Azula, half-expecting her to contradict that last statement. "But whether or not there was a purpose in sending Ty Lee to find me, I wanted to thank you for helping me get out of Shu Wo. I truly feel like… like I owe you my life."

Azula raised an eyebrow, taken aback by what Suki had just said. Zuko as well seemed shocked, staring at Suki with concerned eyes. Surely he believed she shouldn't have told Azula what she had…

"You do, then?" Azula said. "Well, as Mai said, I truly have no interest in using your life in any way; you ought to worry about what Ty Lee will use you for instead. Nevertheless, you're most welcome."

She gave Suki a proud but fake smile, for she actually felt she wasn't deserving of any gratefulness. But since she still harbored some resentment towards the girl in front of her, however misplaced it might be, she refused to be earnest with her.

"Why did you do it, though?" Suki asked, and Azula froze. "I mean, it's not like you had to help me in any way… did Sokka ask you to do it?"

"Why should he have asked me to do it?" Azula asked in turn. Suki's eyebrows rose.

"Well, I just… can't think of another reason why you'd even know I exist," said Suki, shrugging.

"You're right about that, of course," said Azula. "All the same, you need no explanations. You're free from Shu Wo, you're friends with a Prince, and I'm not demanding any services from you. Shouldn't that suffice?"

"Sure, it suffices, but I just thought…"

"If you're that grateful, maybe show it by not asking questions," said Azula. "Let's say it was my 'good deed of the day' and leave it as that."

"W-well… if you say so," said Suki, surprised. As much as Zuko had warned her that his sister wasn't the easiest person to get along with, she was surprised by how authoritarian she was through the harshness of her words.

"In any case, I suppose you have your tour to resume, while I have a book to finish, therefore…"

"Uh, wait," said Zuko, lifting a hand towards Azula, who raised an eyebrow and looked at him skeptically, as though he couldn't make her wait just because he asked. "We actually came because…"

"SPICYYYYYYYYY!"

The shout startled all three of them, and Azula's eyes widened when she recognized who was responsible for it. She turned on her heels slowly towards the hall's opposite end, just in time for a certain short earthbender to throw her arms around her, locking her in a bear-tight embrace.

"D-Dirt Worm…" she muttered under her breath, her arms held out awkwardly as the blind girl hugged her.

"It's been too long!" Toph exclaimed, releasing Azula and showing her a large grin. "How's it going? Where's the Dog?"

"What in the name of…?" said Zuko, staring at the two girls in horror: seeing the pair of them being so friendly was the stuff of nightmares for him.

"Eeeeh, if it's not Cranky Pants!" said Toph, beaming. "And, wait a sec… you have a girl with you, Zuko? Are you serious?! Damn, a lot has happened since we left, Iroh!"

The old man, most unlike his gladiator, hadn't bolted down the hall at full speed to greet his niece and nephew. He was smiling, as ever, but his eyebrows raised appreciatively when he caught sight of the girl standing next to Zuko.

"Oh, my, a lot indeed," he said, turning towards the Prince. "It has been far too long, Zuko."

"It has…" he said, smiling a little. "Did your trip go alright?"

"It most certainly did. I learned of many Earth Kingdom brews while we traveled to Gaoling," said Iroh, beaming. "And it would seem you were busy while I wasn't here to keep you company, eh?"

"D-don't say it that way, it sounds like… well, it's not like that!" said Zuko, blushing, and Toph chuckled.

"Oh, but you sure wish it were, huh, Zuko?" she asked, prodding his ribs with an elbow.

"Shut up! I didn't say that!" Zuko exclaimed, before freezing in his spot. The last thing he wanted was for Suki to see him lose his temper. But to his relief, she only seemed amused by it.

"So… I assume you're the girl Zuko spoke of," said Iroh, smiling. "Suki, was it? Kyoshi's Heir?"

"W-well, yes," said Suki, blushing a little. She had no idea Zuko had told his uncle about her. "That's me."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Zuko holds you in very high regards," said Iroh, beaming.

"D-don't… just stop," said Zuko, sighing in defeat and shaking his head. Iroh laughed loudly and patted Azula on the back now, at which she raised an eyebrow.

"Good to see you again as well, Azula! Is everything well?"

"Well enough," she said. "Or it had been, until Zuko interrupted me when I was in the middle of reading…"

"Oh, the Book of Fire!" said Iroh, smiling as he saw the book Azula had been holding. "It has been a long time since I last read it. How are you finding it?"

"Too metaphorical for my tastes, actually," she said. "Why do writers insist on complicating matters just to embellish them, I'll never know."

"Ah, it is but art, Azula. No matter how we try, it is impossible to grasp why it is how it is," said Iroh, smiling.

"Uh, well, you can get back to your book in a moment if you want," said Zuko, staring at Azula and Iroh in surprise. He had never seen them hold such a cordial conversation before. "But we were going to ask you, Azula, if slaves will be allowed at the festival's ball. Ty Lee wanted to know, so…"

"Oh. She does, doesn't she?" asked Azula, crooking an eyebrow. "Not quite surprising to hear as much, I admit… Well, actually, I don't know if they'll be allowed or not, my father hasn't said anything about it to me as it is, but…"

"Ah, he'll allow gladiators to attend, I'm sure," said Iroh, smiling. "After he let Sokka come to your feast, I promised Toph I'd bring her to the next public event to be held in the Palace!"

"Y-you did, but it's not like I need to go that much," said Toph, grimacing. "I'm not a fan of fancy nonsense, remember?"

"Well, if anything you can eat and not dance," Azula suggested, with a smile, and Toph raised her eyebrows, actually considering her suggestion.

"Doesn't sound so bad, to be honest…"

"You can bring Sokka too, and then Zuko can bring Suki!" said Iroh, smiling, and Zuko blushed.

"I-I don't think… well, she's really not my glad-… y-you know? I was actually showing her around, so I'll just keep doing that…"

"Do that, then! We'll go talk about the Book of Fire, right, Azula?" said Iroh, smiling at his niece. "A nice conversation about old books over a nice cup of hot tea!"

"Huh. I wonder if that'll help," Azula said, but she wasn't reluctant to comply with Iroh. Her uncle usually didn't share his wisdom with her, only ever with Zuko. She wondered if he might have something helpful to say after all.

"Read a book, you said?" said Toph, grimacing. "Not my thing, to be honest. I'll catch up with you two later, then, if that's what you'll be up to."

"Feel free to do as you wish, Toph," said Iroh, smiling at his gladiator.

"Well, we'll be going, then," said Zuko, nodding towards Azula, Iroh and Toph. "Good to see you're back, Uncle."

"It's good to be back, Prince Zuko," Iroh said, beaming. "We have much to talk about."

Zuko merely smiled awkwardly and nodded before starting back through the same hall he had come from, with Suki right behind him. He took a corner at a new hall and led her into a room, lighting up the beacons of it with his firebending quickly before closing the door and sighing.

"Is this your room?" Suki asked, looking around herself, surprised. It was opulent, more than any other bedroom she had ever seen, but it still had an unexpected simplicity to it that made it quite cozy.

"Yeah. Sorry I just dragged you here, but I didn't want my uncle or Toph to continue pestering us," he said, with a sigh. "I mean, you know how it is, when you finally bring someone home people just rush to conclusions…"

"You don't have to excuse yourself," said Suki, waving a hand carelessly as she stared pointedly at the wall next to Zuko's bed. "I admit I'm a little surprised, though. I didn't think you'd have one of these."

"One of what?" said Zuko, turning towards her now… and only remembering the poster on the wall when he did.

His jaw dropped, and his blood seemed to slow down in his body. When he rushed to the wall to take the poster down she started laughing softly, and Zuko blushed violently.

"I-it's nothing, okay! I didn't…! I…!" he stuttered, not knowing how to cover up for what she'd seen.

"Oh, you always seemed too good to be true," she said, chuckling as she sat on his bed, her fit of laughter making her knees weak. "You were a fanboy all along and I never knew it!"

"I wasn't! I'm not! I…! I didn't want this poster, okay?!" he said, taking it down harshly and dropping it on his desk. "Those fans of yours went crazy when you bumped into me that day, and they were saying all sorts of nonsense because you'd talked to me! They gave me a load of 'Kyoshi's Heir' goods and this poster was amongst them, but it's not like I was really one of them!"

"Uh, sure, but you pinned it to your wall," she said, giggling still. "Even if they just gave it randomly to you, why did you do that?"

"W-well, because…!" he said, still blushing. "I just… didn't have anything else to remember you by."

"You…?" Suki said again, her amusement fading as she looked at him with confusion. "You wanted to remember me? Why…?"

"It's hard to explain," said Zuko, scratching the back of his neck.

"Well, I'll try to understand" she said, patting the bed, urging him to sit next to her.

Zuko gulped before doing as she'd asked. He hung his head, his elbows on his knees as he started talking, avoiding her gaze pointedly.

"I wasn't exactly in the best place in my life before you fought Sokka," he muttered. "I had just returned home and everything was the same, but nothing was. Everything I'd looked forward to had become a long-gone memory: the girl I thought I'd marry was pregnant with someone else's son, my father refused to see me, my sister had a gladiator… everyone moved on, as though my absence hadn't been important for anyone other than me. And I was just miserable. Ty Lee wanted to help, she kept me company at times, but even she was getting tired of me. She dragged me to your fight with Sokka, and, well… I actually owe her for doing that. Because when I saw you fight, I had something new to look forward to, just like everyone else did. You were a stranger, someone who didn't know me and probably never would, but you were fighting in the ring, and you were…"

"I was…?" Suki asked, and Zuko gritted his teeth.

"W-well, the most beautiful fighter I'd ever seen," he said, and now she blushed too. "You were graceful, talented… and you were someone I hadn't known from before, so I didn't feel like I'd disappointed you in any way. You were a breath of fresh air, and that was something I really needed. So, I just kept coming to see you because you were an escape for me. I didn't care if we'd never talk, I felt that watching you in the Arena was a privilege in itself, so…"

"And then we did talk," said Suki, looking at him gently. "And… you were really nice."

"I tried to be," Zuko admitted, gulping. "That was when they'd jumped on me, the crazy fan club. I'd seen them around, but I didn't want to be one of them, honestly. They wanted your attention by praising you, and I really didn't need that. I just needed you to be you. That was all."

"Well, that's… actually quite surprising," said Suki, biting her lower lip. "I mean, the fan club was crazy, but I actually liked them a bit. It was really nice to see my supporters cheering for me as they did. I was going to tell you I didn't mind at all if you were like them, but… now I'm a bit glad you weren't. You kept your distance from them, and that was the main thing that made you stand out in the crowd. Still, I'm surprised you'd pin the poster to your wall."

"I did after we really talked that day… I was a little, well, stupidly elated, I guess," he muttered. "So I put it there. When you disappeared I thought I should take it down but it was the only memory I had of you. So I left it there… and I never thought the day would come when you'd be in my room, so I never expected you to see it."

Suki chuckled a little, her shoulders moving slightly with the gesture.

"Elated why, though?" she asked. "I mean… you helped me feel better, but it's not like I did anything for you, or did I?"

"Heh, it's going to sound stupid to you," said Zuko, sitting upright even though he was still avoiding her gaze. "But, well… you'd pretty much called me your friend. I couldn't really remember the last time I'd made a new friend, let alone the last time I was acknowledged by someone I admired, so… I was just happy, I guess. I know it's ridiculous, though…"

"It's not ridiculous," Suki said, extending a hand towards his. He stopped talking, his eyes finally finding hers. "I'm actually… surprised, in a good way. I can't believe I meant so much to someone without realizing it. And, well… it wasn't just anyone. It was you, and that makes it even more amazing."

"So, you don't think it's… stupid?" asked Zuko, and Suki smiled before shaking her head.

"You should stop thinking so lowly of yourself," she said. "There's no reason to be ashamed of… of good feelings."

Zuko froze, his eyes locked with hers. Nobody had ever said such words to him before. The notion of not being ashamed of his better feelings felt foreign to him. All along he had been full of unpleasant emotions, feelings he had wanted to shake off even though he had learned to live with them. Happiness, in itself, was something others might enjoy, but not him.

He had never actually sought happiness in his life, and he only noticed this now. He had been happy once, back when his mother had still been in the Palace. But being happy had never granted him his father's favor. Showing a smile to his grandfather had never made the man nod at him in acknowledgement, he had been little more than a pest to Azulon. Those were the men he was supposed to grow up to be like, though. His father, his grandfather… the Fire Lords. There was no time for him to waste in frivolities. If he was to be Ozai's heir, he had to be like him. And his father wasn't happy. He was a serious, stern man, the finest firebender of his generation. And Zuko had to be like him, there was nothing more to it.

For years he had been chasing after an ideal he hadn't really wanted to chase after. If he thought about it, he couldn't quite think of the moment when he had decided to follow on his father's footsteps. He probably had done it because it was what was expected of him. But what did he truly want?

It was the first time he had ever asked himself that question with honesty. He sat where he was, his eyes lost in Suki's violet gaze, as he felt like he was waking up from an extremely long dream. As he felt that, for the first time, he could forget about what others wanted him to be, so he could be himself for real. As though he were free from the chains that had been holding him down and forcing him to conform to everyone else's ideals. The unpleasant feelings he had been enslaved by, his anger, his frustrations, his envy, his sadness… they had been holding him down all along without his awareness. And now, just now, he allowed himself to contemplate a simple idea, a single thought: could he find happiness?

The intensity in his gaze was making Suki nervous. She didn't know what was crossing his mind right now, and that filled her with unease but also with curiosity. Her hand shivered slightly in his, but she didn't let go of it. It felt right to touch him, and she was pleased that it did, for she hadn't thought she would be glad to hold a man's hand ever again. Still, she wondered if perhaps she ought to pull away, no longer out of her need to keep distance, but because maybe Zuko didn't need this right now. Yet she had just told him not to be ashamed of his better feelings… so she should feel no shame for hers either. She didn't want to back off, not at all.

"S-so… I shouldn't be ashamed," he muttered, lowering his head a little. "I should just… cherish what makes me happy, you think?"

"Well, it'd only be right… right?" she said, and now he licked his lower lip, his hand tightening around hers.

"Right" he whispered.

She would always hold his last gesture responsible for prompting her to do what she never thought she would.

As she leaned closer to him, Zuko's eyes widened. His heart thumped in his chest, for she had never been at such short distance from him. And yet there she was, her nose brushing lightly against his before her lips touched his.

The lack of response from him could have stopped her, but Suki didn't falter despite it. She wasn't ashamed of what she was doing; if anything, she was proud of it. She couldn't believe her own boldness, but she was glad she had proved capable of kissing him. She had tested her limitations, and discovered she could push further than she had known she could. Her past wouldn't stop her from seizing happiness, not anymore.

Zuko was shaking almost violently by the time he returned her kiss. His hand was clenched around hers, while the other gripped the sheets, his knuckles turning white. He closed his eyes and his response became more enthusiastic. It wasn't the first time he had kissed someone, but it felt like it was. He was euphoric, ecstatic…

"Woah! Way to go, Cranky Pants! Show her what you're made of!"

The shout from outside the room startled the two of them. They pulled away brusquely and stared at each other in surprise, as though they hadn't been quite conscious of what they had been doing just now. Yet Zuko gritted his teeth and glared at the door, his cheeks burning red.

"Shut up, Toph!" he yelled, and they heard the girl's distinctive laughter die down as she walked down the hall.

"H-how did she…?" Suki asked. She knew little of the Blind Bandit, only the few things Zuko had mentioned of the girl.

"She's got a creepy style of earthbending, she's blind so she can hear everything around her or something… so don't worry. She's always like that," said Zuko, still flustered, a hand on his forehead.

"Well… I'm not worrying," said Suki, with a weak grin.

Zuko raised his eyes and found her smiling, and he breathed out in relief before grinning as well. Even though Toph had interrupted them, it didn't seem Suki regretted what they'd done. Naturally, neither did he.

---

"You two aren't going to believe what I just…" Toph was saying, laughing mischievously as she entered the sitting room where Iroh and Azula were, in the middle of a conversation that she sensed she shouldn't have interrupted. "Oh. Woops. You guys are reading that weird book, right."

"We can read it aloud for you if you want," said Iroh, as Toph took her seat on one of the room's cushions.

"Nah, I doubt I need to hear it," she said, waving a hand carelessly. "Carry on with your thing, never mind me."

"Well, then," said Iroh, turning towards Azula again. "You said you can't quite seem to find the answer you're seeking in the Book of Fire, then? It's a question about firebending, though…"

"Obviously," said the Princess. "And reading about the lives of the Sun's children, or the foundations of the first cities, hasn't helped in any way."

"What exactly is it you need, though?" asked Iroh, raising an eyebrow. "Why the sudden interest in the philosophies of fire?"

"I have a certain… problem, you could say," Azula replied, rubbing the bridge of her nose with two fingers. "My father has requested that I perform the Ceremony of Fire, and while I've learned the ritual in itself already, it seems my fire isn't quite what's needed for ceremonial firebending. Therefore…"

"Oh, my," said Iroh, his eyes widening. "Well, that's quite an honor. I never performed it myself, it was always the job of Sages."

"Well, from the looks of it, the Sages don't know how they do their jobs," said Azula, frowning. "The Head Sage was the one who said my fire didn't suit ceremonial bending, but he couldn't quite explain why. So I started researching on my own, but I've found nothing of use. I have the feeling there might be something in the Book of Fire, though, but it's eluding me. I can't seem to find anything that helps me understand firebending better"

"It might be that the answer itself isn't in the book," said Iroh. "Perhaps the book will simply point you in the right direction to find that answer."

"Oh, really? And what direction is that?" Azula asked, looking at Iroh skeptically.

"Well… the book might be telling you to ponder what fire really is," said Iroh, shrugging. "Go back to its origin. Think of what makes fire the element of power."

"You want me to meditate on this, then?" Azula asked. "Maybe I ought to fly upwards and speak to the sun so it tells me that the key to firebending is inside of me? From what I'm interpreting, that simply means that the key to firebending is breath, something I already know. So truly, how am I supposed to learn anything new from all of this…?"

"You've forgotten a very interesting detail, Princess Azula," said Iroh, smiling. "The Phoenix told the Dragon that the key to firebending was within him, but it was not the Phoenix himself who shared the secrets of fire with the man, or was it?"

Azula raised her eyebrows, her fingers intertwining as she placed her elbows on the table, her chin on her hands. She looked at her uncle, now with a subtle frown on her face.

"If that's so, then the book doesn't have the answer… but a dragon does," she muttered.

"If only you could find one of those, eh?" said Iroh, winking and laughing happily before standing up. "Ah, I'll go fetch us some tea, then. Want some, Toph?"

"Sure thing," said Toph, who had dropped on her back, her hands behind her head.

"What about you, Azula?"

The Princess only nodded absentmindedly. Her Uncle had only just pointed her in the right direction… or she hoped he had, at least. Fortunately, there was a dragon she could speak to, but did he have any answers she lacked? Did he understand fire better than she did? Naturally, the only way of finding out was by asking.

Xin Long welcomed her happily into his refuge on the next morning, eager to know if she had enjoyed those stories she had been reading about dragons and winged, flame beasts. Azula had smiled and patted his snout, nodding.

"I did, but story time is over," she said. "I'm at a loss, Xin Long. And from the looks of it, you're the only one who can help me now."

Xin Long groaned weakly with confusion, tilting his head sideways, but Azula's intense gaze hadn't shifted in the slightest.

"I need you, Xin," she said, stepping forward. "I need to understand the true meaning of fire."

The dragon seemed puzzled, but he didn't back away. He simply looked at his rider with concern, fearing he might not be as helpful as she hoped he'd be.

"So… can I count on you for this?" she asked, looking at him with hopeful eyes.

Xin Long groaned and nodded, smoke puffing out of his mouth and nostrils. He had no idea how he could assist Azula, but even if he wasn't sure of how to do it, he was determined to help his rider.