"I thought that once we finally won the war, everything would be in balance and there would be peace," Aang told Appa and Momo. They were hiding in the stables from the Fire Sages and their lectures about all of the Avatar duties that needed to be done. They couldn't go out exploring during this storm.

"The four nations would be in harmony again. We could've gone to Ba Sing Se to see the zoo that I built and maybe we could've gone and had tea in Sifu Hotma-, I mean, Zuko's Uncle's teashop. And then Sokka might've painted another one of his really bad portraits again that Toph would've make a blind joke about."

He laughed at that thought. He then imagined that he would've gone out outside for some fresh air, and his forever girl, Katara, would've followed him and kissed him while there was an awesome sunset in the sky above.

Lightning flashed and Momo shrieked, bringing Aang back to the Fire Nation palace.

"I know," Aang agreed. "Even though we defeated Fire Lord Ozai and declared the war over, it doesn't feel as if we did."

They received a messenger hawk a couple days ago from Bumi that said that the Order of the White Lotus had managed to reconquer Ba Sing Se and were managing the Earth Kingdom in their monarch's absence. It sounded as if the Dai Li coup and the invasions had greatly disrupted the political system and that there was a lot of work to be done. However, besides a letter from Zuko's uncle saying he was on his way to the Fire Nation, they haven't heard any updates. They probably were stuck somewhere because of the storm.

The wind howled and the rain fell heavily on the roof. There would be a lot of damage that would need to be fixed after the storm. There was already a lot of injuries from the day of the comet. Katara was busy healing people every day. Zuko was recovering from the effects of Azula's lightning and Sokka had a broken leg. Everyone was exhausted and battered.

Aang drifted off remembering the kite flying games he would play with his friends at the air temples. He missed those days.

"There you are Avatar Aang."

He groaned. The Fire Sages had found him. Now he had to be the Avatar again.


The lightning flashed and Katara froze.

"We don't have to do this now," said Zuko. They were in his chambers doing a healing session for the starburst wound on his chest.

She tried to protest but the peal of thunder crashed into her senses. The water slipped from her control. They both were soaked.

"Sorry!" She tried to pull the water from their clothes. Her hands shook. "I'm sor-!"

"It's alright," he said, stilling her hands in his. He turned to a servant. "Can I get some towels, please?"

"Yes, sir."

He sat up on the edge of the bed and pulled her closer to sit next to him.

Katara hated feeling this helpless. She was supposed to be healing the wound that he got from the lightning that was aimed for her. Zuko was struck down by the lightning. Aang was struck down too.

She jumped when the warm towel was draped on her shoulders. Zuko tightened the towel around her.

"You're safe here."

She nodded and closed her eyes. Katara leaned into his body and listened to the beat of the blood being pumped through his body. He was here. He was alive.

When she dared to open her eyes again, Zuko was looking towards windows. His eyes reflected the golden candlelight while the heavens raged on outside.


Toph walked among the wreckage in the South District outside of the Caldera. It was a poorer district and the storm had damaged a lot of buildings. Roofs were ripped off, trees were toppled, and the land had slipped. The ground rumbled underneath. There were a lot of people around trying to pick up pieces of their lives and put it together again.

"Help!"

She ran towards the cry for help and found a fight breaking between a commoner and one of the palace guards she recognised.

"My wife," he pleaded. "she's in there!"

"It's too dangerous."

The man was pointing towards a collapsed house that felt very unstable.

"I heard her."

Toph walked towards the building, trying to pick out the vibrations of his wife.

"I'm sorry," she said sadly.

"What do you mean you're sorry?"

The guard said, "She means that your wife has passed on."

"How do you know that? She is alive! I'm telling you!" He ran towards his old home.

Toph slid her foot and shifted the earth beneath his feet. He fell to the ground.

"You're an earthbender!" he shouted at her. "It's your fault the spirits attacked us, you piece of dirt! Go back to where you crawled out from."

Toph stood her ground. "And what? Is that the best insult you've got? I'm proud of my healthy covering of earth!"

He got up and punched a couple of fire balls her way. She encased his feet in earth and waited in a blocking position for the heat of the flames, but they never came.

"That's enough!"

The man and the people around them knelt to the ground.

"Hi Zuko."

His guards did not seem pleased at the lack of title, but the Fire Lord said nothing to correct her. At least she didn't call him "Sifu Hotman" or something.

"The war is over. We have rebuilding to do if we're to survive the monsoon season." He spotted the man struggling to release his feet. "Release him."

She sighed and kicked open the blocks.

The man grovelled towards Zuko. "My wife, she's in there. I heard her."

"Toph?"

She shook her head and started walking away. There were other people that were buried alive that she wanted to get to first.

"The man should be with his family."

She put her hands on the ground to assess how to move the building without it toppling over. It was going to be slow to move the rubble away safely.

When the lifeless body was revealed, the man rushed forward to clutch at her.

Zuko sighed. He spoke to the soldiers. "Direct the man and his wife to the Golden Temple along with any survivors you see along the way."

"Yes, sir."

The man and the body of his wife ushered away.

"Aren't you going to say something?" Toph asked. "Like, thank you?"

"What are you doing here?"

She put her hands on her hips. "Helping your citizens."

"How did you get here?"

"I walked."

"The guards didn't notice you leave?"

"Apparently I'm not the blind one."

He rubbed his temples then said, "Anyways, your family sent another letter asking about you again."

She crossed her arms. "I'm not going back there."

"Why not?"

"All I'll be doing is taking etiquette lessons again."

"I get it. Even I have to take etiquette lessons," said Zuko. "At least you have parents that care."

She grimaced. "They have a funny way of showing it with all the threats of invading the Fire Nation."

"At least they care enough to come find you instead of sending you away to exile."

"You're don't want me around either," Toph realised. Aang was avoid earthbending training with her. Katara was busy healing people at the field hospital set up at the Golden Temple. And Sokka and Suki were helping with the repair and restocking of the ships to take everyone else home.

"That's not it." He crossed his arms. "I just think that it would be a good opportunity for you and your parents reconnect and forgive each other."

"You've been spending too much time around Katara. You sound just like her!"

He motionless for a moment and then said, "Very well, stay here if you want. Just make sure there are some guards around you."

She continued to search for survivors on her own, but Zuko was never too far away. He ordered his guards and soldiers to help pull people out after Toph had reinforced the collapsed structures and cleared a pathway to them with her bending.

Sometime after lunch, a guard approached him with a message. "Sir, General Iroh has returned."

"Your uncle is back? I going with you."

Toph could sense his frustration with her. She had just ignored his order to go rest, but she didn't care. She had enough of people controlling her actions. She wasn't a doll or puppet.


In Ba Sing Se before the comet, Zuko's uncle declared that he was going to reconquer his tea shop and play pai sho every day. Fire Lord Zuko was glad that the proclamation turned out to be one of his uncle's jokes. Once the situation in the Earth Kingdom had settled down and the typhoon had blown over, Uncle Iroh had returned to provide support and advice. His wisdom on managing the politicians and noblemen amongst everything else that was going on was invaluable.

Privately, Zuko would've handed over the crown to his uncle if he had asked. He had the training and leadership experience whereas Zuko had was still learning how to fix the mistake he kept making.

His uncle had said that that was the reason Zuko had to be Fire Lord during this time.

Zuko had a clear vision. He wanted to restore the Fire Nation's honour.

He pushed and pulled the energies, separating them, feeling their power and-

He landed on his butt. His ears rang. The scar on his chest throbbed.

A guard, only a year or so older than him snickered. Zuko vaguely remembered training with him in the Royal Fire Nation School.

In public, his guards treated him with the deference dictated by the court, but in private they relaxed their interactions after seeing his friends' casual interactions with him. Sokka, Toph, and Aang were always making jokes at his expense. Speaking of Aang, he should be training his firebending instead of having fun.

"Maybe you should rest, Fire Lord Zuko," said Uncle Iroh, barely sparing a glance. He was playing pai sho with one of the other guards.

Zuko accepted a towel from a servant. "Why am I still unable to bend lightning?"

His uncle placed a piece on the board. "You need to be in perfect balance."

"But we've ended the war. Everything should be in balance now."

"But are you in balance? Do you feel at peace?"

Zuko considered this while the guard placed tentatively placed his piece.

"No."

"Why is that?"

"There is still so much to do."

"Stopping the war doesn't mean everything is in balance and peace. It will take a lot of work build and sustain peace."

It seemed like an impossible task. "Where do I even begin?"

Uncle Iroh paused to play a tile before speaking again. "Before you can bring balance to others, you must find balance within yourself. This is one thing others can help with."

"How? I thought you said that I need to be balanced first before I could bring balance to others."

"If you are struggling to balance, it helps to have support." He looked up and made eye contact with Zuko. "For example, after Sokka broke his leg he couldn't walk and used crutches to help him balance and move around. Find people who will be your support and you will be more able to support others."

"I see."

The guard played a piece and Iroh immediately followed with one of his own. The guard lost and sat stunned in disbelief.

"And that is why it is crucial to choose carefully who you marry."

Not this again. "Surely that can wait."

"Who you marry would be involved in every aspect of your life and therefore has the potential to support or hinder it. In addition to succession planning, it is important to understand that the Fire Lord and his family symbolises the relationship between the citizens and the Fire Nation. They are deeply intertwined. My advice is to choose someone who you love. Now tell me Zuko, do you have a special, lady friend?"

He quickly dismissed the involuntary thought of Katara. He shouldn't be thinking of her like that. Instead, he said, "I had a girlfriend, Mai."

He raised an eyebrow. "Friend of Azula and daughter of the Governor Ukano?"

"I don't think she's friends with Azula anymore, but yes, that's her. But she hasn't returned to the capital."

One of the reports concerning Mai said that she and Ty Lee were sentenced to prison, and her uncle, the warden of Boiling Rock, was replaced on the basis of treason and incompetence. He was placed in another jail. A later report then said that Ty Lee had recently returned to her family, but Mai and her uncle have not returned to their previous positions. Presumably they had gone to one of the colonies where her father and family were now located after losing the New Ozai colony. The dishonour from losing the colony combined with Mai's betrayal of the Fire Nation Princess would have shamed them from returning to their home in the capital.

He felt guilty. The dishonour to Mai's family was caused by his own.

"By the way, have you managed to talk to Azula?"

Azula and Fire Lord Ozai were recently tried and punished according to Fire Nation Law. Because of her mental state and the argument that she was following orders, she was granted probation to be carried out in Capital City instead of being sentenced to prison like their father. However, Ba Sing Se was demanding that they turn her over to them with Fire Lord Ozai. If his sister or father were handed over to the other nations, they would be killed or held hostage.

"I tried, but she keeps turning me away," said Uncle Iroh. "It must run in the family."

Zuko winced at his not too distant memories. He was around her age when he was burned and banished. It was the best thing that could've happened to him, but even if they could, he didn't think sending her on a life changing journey will help her in this situation. They would have to find a way to help her here in Capital City instead.

"That's why I'm asking for your help. Maybe you could help her like what you did for me?"

"I wasn't as close with her as I was with you, but I'll try. It's painful to see someone so young and so full of potential not use it to her fullest."

"Thank you." If he couldn't help his family there was no way he could help Fire Nation. His sister wasn't well and father was in custody. He wished his mother was here and that they were a happy family again, but that was impossible.


Sokka and the others were at the docks saying their final farewells before they sailed home. General Iroh had presented him with an ornately lacquered chest filled with scrolls. He opened one up.

"Water Tribe scrolls?" He opened a couple more. "How did you get so many? They weren't there in the library." While he was on crutches and during his free time away from Suki, Sokka stayed in the library. It wasn't as large as Wan Shi Tong's library, but it held more scrolls than he had ever come across growing up. After finding a Water Tribe scroll, he spent the rest of his time searching for more only to find a handful.

"One of our friends had them," said General Iroh.

"Which friend?"

"Just someone we play Pai Sho with," said Pakku. He arrived in the Fire Nation Capital with the general a couple days ago and would be sailing to the Southern Water Tribe too.

Sokka narrowed his eyes. Even if he asked, he wouldn't get much more information about the White Lotus from them. He knew that they had influence over politics and were instrumental in dismantling Fire Nation rule in Ba Sing Se. In the short time that the General and Pakku arrived, they somehow managed to secure their ships and all the items they needed to repair and stock up after Sokka and Zuko unsuccessfully tried for weeks. But HOW they did that, Sokka had no idea.

"It seems that your leg is better," said General Iroh.

"Yup, thanks to Katara!" Even with waterbending healing, fixing a broken bone took a long time, but at least now he could walk now without any assistance.

"Where is she now?" asked their father.

Sokka turned his head to search for his sister. "She isn't here yet? I told her to be here before high tide!"

Everyone, including Aang who was going to train with Pakku, the Day of Black Sun troops, Hama, and a couple old southern waterbenders that they found were here like they were supposed to. If they missed this tide what were they supposed to do?

"Perhaps she's doing final check-ups on her patients," said General Iroh.

Before Sokka could complain how Katara's desire to help others interfered with his carefully made plans, an ostrich-horse carriage rolled up and out hopped his sister. He recognised the driver and other passengers as her friends from the healing centres. One looked exactly like Ty Lee but was apparently one of her older sisters.

Katara spotted Sokka and said hurried over with a large box. Hadn't she already sent her items ahead like he asked her to days ago?

"Nephew! Help Master Katara carry her belongings!"

Zuko, who was chatting to the rest of Team Avatar nearby, jumped to attention and hurried over to help Katara carry her stuff. Aang bounded over followed by Suki and Toph. As they approached the ship, a couple Tribes men came store it below deck.

"You're late!"

"There's still some time left before high tide. My friends had one last thing they wanted to give me, but I'm pretty much ready to go now."

Sokka's felt his father's hand on his shoulder and he held back his retort.

"Now that we're all here everyone, everyone should start boarding," Chief Hakoda announced. His father then bowed to the Fire Lord and General Iroh. "Once again thank you for helping to end the war, your hospitality, and for saving my daughter's life. You will be warmly welcomed at the Southern Water Tribe."

"Yeah, thank you for saving Katara," chimed Aang.

"And I'm sorry for all the trouble she's caused," added Sokka to his sister's chagrin and Toph's amusement.

"She caused no trouble at all," said Fire Lord Zuko, bowing. "In fact, she and everyone on board have done us a great honour by helping us with the rebuilding efforts."

"There is still much to do before we finally bring peace and balance to the world," added his uncle, "but if anyone can do it, it'll be you, my nephew, and your generation. You have already done what we thought impossible and ended the war."

Pakku and Sokka's father echoed the praises.

Sokka smiled at his friends and held hands with Suki. Considering everything they've gone through in the last nine months or so, would there be anything that wouldn't be able to face head-on? Together they had found the Avatar and ended the war, and now they would be able to sail home with their loved ones.


Author's Notes:

Hi! I hope that you and your loved ones are well.

Avatar: The Last Airbender was an important part of my life and when the series ended, I kept wondering what happened after they declared the war over. I know there are the canon comics, but by the time they came out I already had a few ideas rattling in my head that wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote them down in a story. It took some time to (mostly) make sense of it all, but here is the first of twenty chapters in this book. If everything goes well, I should be back with another chapter in a week.

This story takes place in the same post-finale AU as my other fic, Moments and Memories, but be warned, there are spoilers there.

Another warning; this story deals with mental illness. If there are some other warnings I should add, let me know.

I welcome feedback, but please remember that the characters are still learning and so am I. Stay safe. Be Kind.