Lara: Yeah, poor Zuko lol. He needs some love and care. Azula's feelings for Zuko and his situation are going to be revealed throughout the story. As for her helping, right now Azula is going to be put in a place where she has a lot of her own issues to tackle so her involvement in Zuko's may or may not be there. "She expects a lot from him, I think. That's why she's so disapponted in him." She does, at the very least she wants a big brother. I would agree with your interpretation. She was the golden child in a sense and because of it she became very arrogant and, I would think, hard on herself. I would also agree with your interpretation of Zuko; he just didn't seem to have as many of the tools he needed to grow until later on. But yeah, I'd definitly say that they are both abuse victims.

Don't worry about the Glee thing lol, I already got so many spoilers from it that I don't think it matters lol. Mai is a character that I liked in the show but not in the comics. I liked her a lot because I'm goth and she's the Avatar world goth girl. Mai needs love too lol.

gemsofformenos: That's great to hear! Thank you, I'm happy to hear that it's paying off! He's not at his breaking point quite yet, but he's getting there. :D Like all of the other characters, he doesn't really have a good self image and so he found a terrible way to try to get rid of that or mask it. Like you said, it put many rocks in their relationship. My plan for him isn't as tight as the ones for Azula and Katara but I have an idea or two for him. Thanks again, I'm really trying to draw parallels between the fic and their canon counterparts. "So it's nice to see, that the siblings are careing about each other a bit." Eh, they're trying lol.

crapshak50: xP All of them are going to have a bad time. They all need a good ol' "that's rough buddy." It's Azula's turn again. Thank you, I thought that heroine would be the perfect drug for him. Heroin is commonly used to get away from physical pain and mental pain and I think that Ozai's abuse is the perfect storm. "The sibling concern between Zuko and Azula was a nice touch and contrasted with the subject matter quite well as it is very rare to see those two actually display any sort of concern at all." Exactly, you know you're balls deep in trouble when your rival of a sibling starts to feel concern. "May have been as a result of her essentially hitting rock bottom." That might be part of it lmao. And thanks again, the butterfly effect is very important in these few chapters and will perhaps become a themem of sorts. One that I hadn't intended from the get go, but a theme no less. "All I can say is that the writing is incredibly realistic as you can essentially justify all the actions the characters take and relate them to circumstances in reality and it seems like your actually putting in some research (which you've done with your other fics) which just reinforces how real the story is." Thanks once again, it's very reassuring to hear feedback like this. And don't be afraid to let me know if I have some facts mixed up. I'm going to be dabbling in a very, very new topic to me (won't say what it is yet because spoilers) but once it comes up, if you know anything about the subject feel free to drop some advice and input. "I hope they start to blend together and form a nice big story with an uplifting ending." They will, start blending together, in this chapter actually. "Honestly I'm just here for the angst and suffering hehehe..." you've come to the right place. This shit is gonna get heavy.

Her first day had been deceptively easy, minus her run in with Katara. But she believed rather strongly, that it was only because she either hadn't been recognized—the thought brought a hot tinge to her cheeks—or there simply hadn't been any time for anyone to comment yet. Or maybe they had and it just hadn't reached her ears yet. No less, she wasn't any more thrilled for day two than she was for her first, self-made, half-day.

She knew that it wasn't worth the effort but she knocked on Zuko's door. "You're not going to miss your second day, are you?"

"Go away, Azula."

She didn't know why she tried. She didn't know why she gave it a second shot. "If father finds out that you've been skipping…" she paused. "I don't think that I'll be able to talk him down this time." She knew that it was true for two reasons; on a normal day, talking her father out of hurting her brother was troublesome. But now that she herself was worthy of Ozai's contempt, she'd have a hard enough time talking him out of beating another break into her ribs, much less out of beating Zuko too. "You have no idea what he'll do." If he didn't hurt her then he would take out the frustrations he had for her on Zuko. She didn't have much love for her brother, but she didn't want to see him dead or broken beyond repair. "You still have time to get ready."

A sudden thump against the door caused her to jolt a bit, a motion that racked her ribs in just the wrong way. She winced and clutched at her side. "I said fuck off!"

To some degree, her pain guided her parting words. "Fine, stay home and get high again. No wonder you're such a failure!" She didn't wait for a reply, she had to get ready anyhow. Though most of her preparation at that point was mental. But it seemed that no matter how hard she tried to bury her dread, it would always unearth itself. Her least favorite part of the morning had arrived; she fixed herself something to eat and she felt bad for having done so at all. It was quickly becoming a habit to feel guilty for eating anything at all, but she forced it anyways.

Slowly, she made her way to her car. She was beginning to think that she was babying herself and grew more frustrated. She had to remind herself that she ought to continue to take things very slowly at least until the week's end. Then she should be in the safe zone. Frankly she was eager for her doctor appointment, it would be nice to get a solid and professional opinion. Driving took some of the stress away, focusing on the road left her little room to think about anything else. She pulled into her usual spot and killed the engine.

For a while she stayed in her car hoping to delay her venture into Wan high for as long as she possibly could. She spied a familiar car pull into the lot; painted bubblegum pink and loaded with glittering decals—bunnies, unicorns, and ice cream cones with cute faces among other things. She knew that TyLee would emerge before the girl even had the headlights off. Briefly she thought of trying to confront her.

Using that as a propelling force, she hustles out of her car before she can lose her nerve. Even if she couldn't catch up with her former friend, at least she had the momentum she needed to get through the double doors.

She was a little winded by the time she caught up to TyLee, and her ribs ached. "Good morning, TyLee." She tried to keep her voice cool and slick as though nothing has changed.

TyLee met her eyes only fleetingly. In that small glance, Azula could tell that the other girl had been crying again. Her eyes were puffy and red. She mumbled something that Azula didn't catch—she probably wasn't meant to catch it—averts her eyes, and shuffles towards the entrance. Azula sighed, it didn't hurt to do so as much as it would have a few weeks back. She supposed that, that was some progress.

She took a glance at her schedule. She was in no particular hurry, the school had so kindly extended the length of her passing periods. She could take as long as she wanted until her doctor's note expired. She supposed that there were some perks to having hurt herself, she was rather fond of not carrying around a bunch of obnoxiously heavy textbooks. No less, she would rather be on time to class so she made some final arrangements to her locker and headed to her first class. She was early, not as so as usual, but early no less and she knew it as soon as she spotted Katara, the only other early arriver.

Azula found herself a seat at the front of the classroom.

She heard Katara make a soft throat-clearing noise. "We already have assigned seats."

Azula rolled her eyes, the first ramification of having missed part of her first day was being thrown in her face. "And what seat was left for me?"

"You sit…" Her face looked almost pained. "You sit next to me." She pointed to the chair on her right.

Just perfect. Without a word she switched spots.

"Are you okay?" Katara asked. "What happened?"

Azula gave a bitter snicker. "You mean Usha hasn't told the whole school yet?" She could see it on the other girl's face that she already knew, she just didn't want to admit that she had taken any interest in any of the gossip. "What does it matter to you?"

Katara's lips worked into a semi-frown. "You know what, sorry for asking."

"You should be." Azula replied. "I'm still above you." God, she hoped that she was still above Katara.

"Not by much." Chan noted as he walked by.

Just like that, all of her dread came closing in. June stood before the class, but she doesn't quite hear anything that the woman was saying. Just how close to the bottom was she? Surely, she wasn't on Teo's level. She couldn't imagine dropping that far down. Yet she had this growing suspicion, that somehow she had.

Twenty or so minutes into the class and the queasy feeling still didn't leave. 'Not by much.' It keeps repeating. Every now and again she heard a soft and frustrated groan. Hands behind his head and leaning in his chair, Chan was kicking the back of Katara's seat. She counted herself lucky that she wasn't sitting in front of him, he always had gotten a kick out of being a pester.

It was much funnier last year.

Azula tried to focus on June but her mind kept wandering. Kept wandering and wondering if that was the kind of treatment she was in for.

She knew the answer very well. She just wasn't ready to accept it.

.oOo.

Lunch is much worse.

She didn't expect to have a good lunch.

"Hey legless!" She heard it from across the cafeteria. Chan and Chu-Leng were tormenting Teo again. That time Jet was present. And that time their choice activity was rolling his wheel chair back and forth between the three of them.

She slipped past them without having drawn attention, but just on time to see the wheel chair topple.

"Fuck!" Chan muttered. Not because he realized that he had overdone things, but because he feared consequence. "Shit man, let's go."

Jet had already fled the scene and Chan was making his break leaving Chu-Leng to cuss and scramble away on his own. She thought to go check on Teo, but she noticed Katara coming his way so she decided to leave it to her. The last thing she needed was to be seen aiding Teo on top of all else.

For it, karma works again. She didn't really know why she expected things to work out but she made an attempt anyhow. She picked out the volleyball team's table. It looked like everyone save for Oni and Innika had the same lunch.

She took a seat at the end of the table—rather she was about to. Kori's leg came up before she could. "Sorry, no room here." She shrugged.

"There's plenty of room." Azula motioned to the rest of the table.

"Not for you. Usha sniggers. "I don't think that any table is big enough to accommodate you right now."

Kazar spit out her milk. "Don't say things like that when I'm drinking." She scolded between laughs.

"Sorry." Usha replied, "when I see opportunities, I take them."

Azula didn't need anymore persuasion. Her mind raced to come up with something witty and cruel to say back, but humiliation overpowers all else. The need to flee outweighs the need to snap back. So she turns and heads away from the table, taking the care to not make her retreat look too hasty. It didn't matter how carefully timed her departure was because Usha gave her final jab regardless, "don't leave us too fast, Azula, you might hurt yourself." It wasn't even a good insult but it still hurt. Usha, Kori, all of them were just another handful of people to decide to write her off as a friend. She wondered if Usha had been a friend at all. Kori certainly wasn't.

She scoped out a table, she didn't really have any other friends to sit with. She found Mai sitting with a small group of goth girls that Azula didn't recognize. Mai had already made it clear where the two of them stood, so she passed that table by as well.

She also found the table occupied by Katara and Suki as well as a few others, but the pair kept to themselves. There was a part of Azula that wanted to try sitting there, she couldn't imagine Katara pushing her out, the girl didn't have much fight in her these days. But Suki was another matter. She wasn't in the mood for another round of rejection so she found herself a spot in the corner of the lunch room. A lonely spare table that was technically off limits to the students. But right then she dared any of the staff to try to pry her away from it.

Alone, that's what she was.

Even Teo had company. Haru, Long Shot, and Meng, sometimes Aang would join them. But she didn't see Meng nor Aang so she assumed that they didn't share a lunch.

How was it that even the schools most complete dork had someone to sit with, and she didn't?

Azula ran her hands over her face, she was terribly exhausted.

Exhausted and embarrassed. She could see Chan staring, nothing that she was alone. She noticed him laughing and she knew that it was at or about her. Her face burned with both mortification and outrage. How dare they treat her like this? And how dare she have allowed this to happen to herself?

She unpacked the lunch her housemaid had dutifully put together for her. She felt sick taking the first bite and even sicker still with Usha's remark fresh in her mind. She wished that she had someone to talk to, someone who could have distracted her from the guilty feeling.

She finished her lunch wishing that she hadn't.

She thought again of Usha's joke.

She fumbled with her purse, desperately fishing for her phone. When she found it she texted Zuko; a small inquiry about his day and then an even smaller indication that her own wasn't going so well. After some ten minutes she sent a more obvious. After ten more she dialed his number. She bit the inside of her cheek, her eyes growing some misty.

He didn't pick up.

.oOo.

She knew that home wouldn't be a sanctuary that night. She knew that her father would be home by dinner. And he was, he was home earlier than that. He was home and already digging into Zuko. She considered that perhaps that's why he hadn't answered her pathetic and needy phone call. Ozai might have come home around lunchtime and caught Zuko with a needle and some heroine.

Lord help him.

She heard a crack and a shout. Zuko's.

And then another shout. Her father's.

Azula couldn't make out what they were arguing over. But she recognized the familiar sound of a belt against flesh. She made her way to her room, where were her headphones? Naturally she had forgotten them in her locker. She heard Zuko cry out again and knew that she wouldn't be getting any homework done. She covered her ears, doing her very best to drown out the sound.

Once upon a time she wouldn't have batted an eye.

She couldn't even place when she had started to care.

But it hurt because she knew deep down that, that belt was exactly why her brother—why her Zuzu—had turned to heroine.

.oOo.

It was her turn.

Ozai didn't lash at her with a belt. He lashed at her with a blade of a tongue.

Azula quietly took a seat at the dinner table with a weary, "hello father." She couldn't bring herself to ask how his business trip went. She was preoccupied with bracing herself for a good scolding. But he remained silent, not even a returned greeting. She swallowed a lump in her throat. The maid brought the food out. She waited for him to take the first bite and waited another few moments after that. She didn't want to seem too eager, she didn't want to give him an easy opening.

She was dreadfully nervous and hoped that the emotion didn't breach the surface. She longed to have Zuko sitting next to her to take the heat off of her and felt horrible for desiring such. It seemed like ages that they ate in silence.

He waited for Azula's guard to drop. He let her finish more than half of her meal. As soon as she started to feel safe, as soon as she let the tension leave her shoulders he made his first remark. "I see I can't leave you alone." Ozai noted. "Your brother does drugs and you…" He paused, giving her ample time to flinch. "You throw your volleyball career away."

"I didn't—"

"I buy you your own volleyball court and you decide to sit around instead."

"I was in an accident, I couldn't help it."

"Couldn't help it." He scoffed. "Couldn't help it? You mean to say that you couldn't resist a few second helpings?"

Her face flushed. "That's not how it happened."

"Then what?"

She didn't know how to answer. She had a strong feeling that telling him that her broken ribs didn't leave much room for physical activity. So all she stated was the obvious, "I broke my ribs father." She wanted to remind him that she already told him, she told him right when it had happened. But his glare tells her to shut her mouth and keep it that way.

"Disappointing." He remarked. "Disgusting." He made a point of shoving her plate at her as if daring her to finish.

She wondered if Zuko could hear him. She wondered if he was chuckling to himself because finally he wasn't the family disappointment. It was her.

All for the sake of spite, she finished the plate he pushed her way, watching his face bunch up as though he were completely appalled. It was wholly satisfying until he walked away. Only after that did she start to feel as gross as he wanted her to. Maybe that had been his end goal; her ability to manipulate wasn't self-taught.

She wanted to make it go away.

She wanted to make that guilty, gross feeling go away.

She has an idea.

A terrible one, she knows.

But she is desperate. And it is an idea.