Hello everybody. I'm really happy to see, that this one also has caught the interest of some people, so I have worked on this little one a bit. This is an more experimental one for me and I try to play with some ideas about Azula and about a way to bild up a story, so I hope this works out fine. I still don't know, how long this story would be in the end, but due to my ideas about this plot it will be a shorter one. Nevertheless I hope all of you will enjoy this little project of mine.

In this chapter, the Fire Sage returns to Azula and shows her an aspect of his fire, Azula has never expected. I wish all of you a lot of fun with this new chapter.

Lighting up

Azula was surprised, as she woke up the next morning. She was sure, she might have had hallucinations again. But the rests of her old mask were still lying on the ground. Her fire was still weak but it has got back some air to burn. The staff had also changed her bindings. She still couldn't bend, due to the way her arms and legs were fixed, but it was less humiliating and painful for her and left her more space for movements. She wasn't sure, if this would be a good sign or not. She knew that her hallucinations had become worse in the asylum up to a point, when they suddenly had disappeared. They had left her, when she had surrendered herself in her desperation. They had left her, when she she had started to pity herself. They had left her behind with nothing but anger, grief, sadness and pain. Even the hallucination had left her alone and weren't willing to be with her in her weakness and shame. So why did this Sage has visited her? And why did he showed her a candle? This riddle started to puzzle her. Once she had loved solving riddles. It has been a long time, since she had to solve a riddle. For a moment she felt it. Her fire. Every time, she tried to find a plausible answer for her question, she could feel it burning a little bit brighter. Maybe she could keep it burning this bit brighter until he might show up again. So she kept focused on this question in order to keep her fire burning.

The Sage didn't return during the next days but some other things had changed since his visit. First of all he had spoken the truth. No one forced a mask on her face again. And the staff treated her better and were more patient with her, even if this made her more dangerous and difficult to handle. She still didn't know, why he had done this for her, but she was sure, that the Sage had ordered to treat her better. She couldn't understand, why he seemed to care for her. None of her family did. None of her friends, simply on one. She was a failure, so why should someone care for her and her fire. Every time she thought about his possible reasons, she came back to the suggestion she had already thrown at him.

At one morning the Sage was back again. She hasn't recognized, when he came in, which worried her about her own health and sanity a bit. Normally no one could sneak at her so easily, but obviously she hasn't woke up, as he has entered her cell. He was siting on the floor again in lotus seat and seemed to meditate. The hood was also covering his face again.

"No room-service? I had expected breakfast."

She gave him a sarcastic smirk as the Sage lifted his head a bit. He kept quiet but for a little moment she could get a short view on a part of his mouth behind the shadow from the hood and she saw a little smile rushing over his lips. This finally caught her interest. She sat up on her bed, the new and only part of furnishing in her cell. It was brought for her after his last visit. She observed the Sage and spotted the heavy leathern bindings beside him. And then she released a surprised gasp, while she watched her own ankles in disbelieve. Because her arms were still bound she also hasn't recognized that her legs were free. Tears started to roll down her cheeks, while she observed her legs and feet move freely. He has fueled her fire again a bit. But she doesn't understand why. She looked at him in disbelieve. Then she stood up and kept standing a while on her own feet. She tried some easy moves and steps, only to recognize how long she must have been bound up. Her legs were weak and wobbly but she could manage to walk some steps towards the Sage. He was still sitting on the floor, but he offers her to take place in front of him. She tried to sit down, but after been bound up for so long her legs couldn't hold the weight of her body good enough as she attempted to sit down. She lost her balance and might have been fallen, but instantly the Sage was at her side to hold her. She hasn't seen how he got up so fast and Azula had no clue how this could be even possible. She was nearly sure, that it must have been impossible to get up from the lotus seat fast enough to do so. To surprised to protest she let him help her to sit down. The Sage took seat again, like before. Then, like the last time, he took a candle out of his robe and placed it between Azula and himself. The gloomy green disappeared as he lighted up the candle and both stared to observe the little flame burning.

Again the light brought warmth to Azula. She missed her own bending. She missed her own fire. The power and the heat of the flames. The raw and wild nature of the fire. She closed her eyes and even this little candlelight gave enough heat to focus on, to warm her up inside. She focused on her breath and matched her breathing with the rhythm of the little flame. Like a little heartbeat she could feel it burning. And it shared its life with her, its warmth, its light, it comforted her and soothed her. Never before she had recognized this aspects about fire so clearly and pure before.

Both must have been sitting on the ground for a long time, cause the candle was nearly burned down, as Azula opened her eyes again. Sadness and frustration came to her. For her it was a cruel gift to show her the beauty and energy of fire again only to remind her, that it was only there to burn out. Why did he do this to her? Her face showed signs of anger and grief.

"Now I'm sure. This is torture, isn't it? An extra punishment. Well, I can make things easier!"

Azula leaned forward and blew out the candle. The gloomy green light returned. She didn't want to, but she started to cry as she turned around to hide her face. She recognized a sigh after a while and suddenly the warm heartbeat returned. As she opened her eyes, the gloomy green light was replaced by a cold but fascinating blue. She turned around in disbelieve and a new candle was placed beside the old one, burning with a blue flame. She was speechless. She just stared at a fire, of which she thought it was only burning within herself.

"Impossible!"

The Sage shook his head. Azula thought he only want to disagree, but due to his sigh he seemed to be sad about her disbelieve. He created a orange flame within his left hand and with a deep breath from him, the flame switched its color from orange to blue. Azula watched the flame with open mouth. The blue light shined in her golden eyes. This power. She had never expected to meet another person, who could share such a power. Someone who could have matched her own, as her fire had burned bright. The Sage stood up and walked slowly beside Azula and knelt down. She could feel the raw power of his flame near her hands and the heat of his fire. The heat went hotter and suddenly her hands were free too. The bindings were burned by the Sage and Azula put her hands in front of her face to prove herself, that she wasn't dreaming. The Sage gently touched her hands and Azula winced back. But he started a second try, even more careful and gentle and this time she let him do so. He directed her hands in front of her belly and placed her left hand with its palm up on the palm of her right hand. Then he took his blue flame between his own hands and placed it on her hand like an blue burning orb. The flame started to flicker and swirl and Azulas breath was hard and strained. She couldn't believe it. But suddenly the connection was there and for a brief moment both, Azula and the Sage were controlling the flames. A burst of light and warmth flooded through the cell. For a tiny moment the flames sparkled and shined within all colors of the rainbow. They were bursting out of the bright glowing orb surrounding the Sage and Azula. She could feel, how the Sage was protecting her from the flames, which were bursting out of the orb, how he carefully gave the fire a way to shine and to warm up the room, without consuming both. She has never seen such a beauty before, she had never felt such a power of hope and such a love for life. The light drove away the shadow of the hood, which has hidden the face of the Sage. Azulas mind went blanc. She knew that face. But this only doubled the riddle for her, why he was doing that for her.

"You?"