AN: Bear with me a bit, because this chapter's going to be slow.

Disclaimer: Still don't own it. If only. I would make a spin-off series with the original Gaang but older.

So it Goes

by: N3L

What happens in the aftermath of Zutara? A Zutara fic. But not for Zutara enthusiasts. A new chapter of her life unfolds as all she ever identified with is out of her grasp. Mai-centric.

Part Five: While Left Ashore

Mai lounges.

She recalls her visit to the Fire Nation prison. She had every intention to wring out information from those bastards, but upon arrival is stunned to see them incapacitated. They groan listlessly on the floor. A few look to be unconscious. Confused, she turns back to question the guard about this.

"Well...look who it is."A familiar voice drawls.

Her head snaps to a cell down the hall. No wonder Mai hadn't seen her at the palace.

"Azula."

"Long time no see, Mai."

Azula's voice spills out slick and smooth like oil. The way it always was and probably always will be. The Fire Princess beckons her, and Mai cautiously makes her way over. Azula stands tall, everything about her person exudes her status as royalty and the fact that she was behind bars didn't dull the effect a bit. She flicks her gaze up and down Mai's form, resting on the crutches and raises manicured brow.

"So it's true? Those buffoons really got you?" Azula steps back and considers the noblewoman. She lets out a little noise of thought as she considers her. Then she looks nearly genuinely disappointed. "The Mai I knew could take out fifteen men without a sigh," her gaze lingers over wounded leg. "You must be growing soft," she sneers.

Azula's eyes are bewitching even from beyond the darkness of the cell.

But Mai is all too familiar with Azula's ways, and keeps silent. She waits for her to get to her point.

Azula's hands are bound behind her. Her binds have been wrought especially for her. Yet when the princess begins to pace the space she's allotted in her cell, and despite standing outside the bars...Mai can only feel the familiar sense that a tiger is circling her.

Azula had long returned to her old self in the past years, despite her apparent break down after Ozai's defeat. She hadn't changed too drastically. Though Azula had gotten...less...power hungry, perhaps. Mai isn't quite sure. In the time she's spent with her with Zuko...she can't really ever believe that Azula's endless hunger would ever be sated. There are still times when Mai thinks she sees something swirling behind Azula's honey-hued eyes.

The princess of the Fire Nation wore fine clothing and her appearance is still regal. She lived the title of royalty to its fullest. She kept the servants of the palace busy and their lives hectic. And if Mai was already beginning to feel irritated from boredom here after a few short days, she imagined Azula must've been going out of her mind. However, Azula was far from insanity. Her eyes were bright and cunning. Mai briefly eyed her bindings, memories of her blue flames and crackling lightning vivid in her mind. Azula was only in here temporarily. She and Zuko were on tenuous terms as usual, but the young Firelord was determined to make it work. His shining optimism was clearly amusing to her, which Mai felt that Azula would indulge from time to time purely for the sake of her own entertainment. The princess was free to roam the grounds to her whim once she'd recovered, though of course, there were some set 'boundaries.' Mai idly wondered what Azula did this time to be put in 'time-out.'

"Aren't you going to say anything? It's been more than a year since you've seen me."

Mai only waits for Azula to make her point.

"Oh, Mai," she croons. "So suspicious. I only wanted to see how you were doing. Seeing as how dear Zuzu dropped you like a rock, yet again for the Avatar."

Mai's face remains still. If Azula was trying to get a rise out of her, it wasn't going to work.

Azula sighs to herself. "Or if I were to be more specific, the water bender. For no less than the Avatar's little girlfriend. Charming. Just charming."

"What does it matter to you?"

"It doesn't matter to me. After all, the great Firelord can do whatever he pleases. I was just curious about you, seeing as how you disappeared rather quickly." The princess eyes her crutches before resuming to encircle the cell. " Zuzu certainly is famous for changing loyalties. As you are most aware of. But I'm sure with enough passing time he'll tire of the water bender and come crawling back to you."

Mai's eyes narrow a fraction. Where was she going with this?

"But of course, how could you trust him? The grand Firelord's eyes will probably wander off again..."

The princess stops briefly, watching Mai watch herself.

"You know it to be true, Mai." She offhandedly adds, "Well, I certainly know it to be true. Zuzu after all has always been rather weak in character, don't you think?"

"Zuko's a good man." Mai nearly bites the inside of her cheek instantly in regret. Azula was most likely baiting her, as for what exactly, she did not know, but she got the immediate feeling that her reply would have been better kept to herself. But even with all her regret and all the pain and despair, Mai believes her words. Zuko is a good man.

"Oh Mai. See, this is why I'm concerned."

Mai is still as a statue.

"You have such blind faith in Zuzu. It is quite admirable, I must admit," her eyes nearly glow as Azula draws up close to look her in the eye. Mai couldn't tear her eyes away even if she wished to at this point. Azula's eye gleam like gold. "But it certainly is blind."

After her little stunt of defending Zuko's character, Mai jaw is clenched shut. She keeps Azula's gaze without faltering.

Her lips spread slowly into a smile before she begins the pace her cell again. She puts on a little show of being deep in thought before changing the subject. "What about those boorish imps?"

Mai's eyes dart in the direction of the men. "What about them?"

"They are such a nuisance, aren't they? They really ought to be ashamed of themselves." Mai's eyes narrow in thought. Azula's giving her the idea that their current state of injury was due to the princess herself. If those men were incapacitated because of Azula, the only question was...why?

"Ashamed?"

Azula scoffed. "They call themselves fire benders. I call them a disgrace. Running around like that. Distasteful." She peers at Mai. "You have changed, haven't you Mai? Working in a tea shop of all places," the princess regards the noblewoman from down the bridge of her nose. "Growing soft with Iroh."

Mai's patience is growing thin. "What do you want?"

Azula's stares her down. "Well, aren't we irritable? Be off then, if it is what you want."

The young noblewoman eyes her uncertainly. It would have appeared that she'd been dismissed.

"Goodbye, Mai."

"...Goodbye, Azula."

"You really ought to come to visit more often," she calls after her. Mai can hear the smile in her voice.

She frowns to herself as she exits the prison, unsure what to make of Azula's intent. Her eyes gleaming like gold from the shadows.

.

.

.

The air is still.

Aang and Katara stand over Iroh, hands hovering over his body in an attempt to discern any possible minute changes. Anything they could have possibly missed.

Katara attempts to focus on the task at hand but they've done this nearly every day since Iroh had arrived. If there is anything wrong, she cannot find it. She's worried for Iroh but Aang's presence begins to distract her and he is all that she can think of while standing in this quiet room.

They finish the scan and find nothing. Again.

It is very frustrating. The only consolation they have is the peaceful look on Iroh's face. In the very least, he shows no discomfort at all. Aang's brow furrows, wondering what in the world could be wrong.

"Nothing again," he sighs. The Avatar looks to the water bender briefly, "I'd like to do a last one later. When is a good time for you?" He is polite and efficient.

"After dinner is fine for me, I guess," she answers softly. Katara's hand rests on her other arm. She begins to gnaw a little on her bottom lip.

The Avatar nods and begins to leave the room.

"Aang!" A hint of desperation resides in her voice.

He turns to her from the doorway and regards her with calmly with mild curiosity. "Yes?"

For a second, she doesn't know where to even look. Katara aches to see him smile again. She swallows and searches his face for anything more.

"Aang, I -," she starts. Her gaze traverses the room again. She isn't quite sure what she wanted to say. "Um...how are you?" She settles on, genuine concern in her face. Katara really did want to know how he was in all sincerity. It had been a while since they'd even been in the same room like this, spending time together. If it could even really be called spending time together. Her eyes are a little hopeful as they land on him.

His features remain perfectly neutral and he gives a thin lifting of the lips. For a split second, Katara wonders if she imagined his face darken. She begins to bite her lower lip again.

"I'm fine," he speaks. His gaze rests on the bed. "I'm mostly worried about Iroh. I wish that we could figure out what was wrong and do something about it. It's been too long, and I still don't know why he won't wake."

And with that, he breezes out the door.

Katara stays. Her brow crumples and her gaze stills but she no longer sees anything in front of her. It's clear to her that Aang wasn't as perfectly fine as he always assured. Though he was doing a splendid job of portraying it for the most part. He was doing his Avatar duties flawlessly. The ache in her chest grows cold. She misses his laughter and his brightness of his grins. But what can she do about it? There was nothing she could do for Mai. Katara can only remember the broken look on his face when she first told him that her affections were split between him another man. The yelling. His anger. That incredible breathtaking heartbreak that she'd inflicted upon him. It'd hurt her hurting him so. That look on his face...that was the last of any real solid expression she'd seen on Aang's face for her. She sighs to herself, quite forlorn over these strained relationships which felt to be hanging on by a bare thread that were once as solid as rock.

Aang's warmth is replaced by a distant and professional demeanor. All his laughter and jokes are a thing of her memory. He is never outright cold to her, but she may as well have been a perfect stranger. He treated her the same way he treated Zuko. He was a mediator first, involved party second.

His thin-lipped smile disturbs her. Maybe it was too much too ask, but she felt that enough time had gone by...and she missed him. She longed to be able to talk to him in the same manner as they used to. With his easy-going nature and bright spirit. His ease of support and putting things into perspective. The playful mannerisms and unending enthusiasm where something she sorely missed.

Katara leaves with one last long look at Iroh, hoping he would wake soon and begins to wander the long corridors of the Fire Nation palace, searching for something she can't quite find.

Iroh finally wakes on his ninth day of slumber.

After some debating and preparation, Aang entered the spirit world for any possibilities. It was a good hunch, as Aang finally found Iroh's spirit wandering around in the Forgotten Valley.* For reasons unknown, the exit continued to shift and elude him.

Mai sat watch at the bed. Out of sheer awkwardness after Aang had entered his meditative state, Zuko, Katara and Mai had decided to each take turns keeping watch of the two. She observed Aang in his meditative state, entranced by the faint glow of his tatoos.

He really is the Avatar.

It took some time, but after careful dealing with Iroh's body, his spirit was let back in. The two finally returned to this world unharmed. Though an entire day had nearly gone by.

When Iroh wakes, the first thing he feels is his hand being squeezed tightly. The next is that he's back in the Fire Nation, after wandering the Forgotten Forest for weeks. He turns to see Mai hovering over him, relieved and happy, her two hands are clasped tightly on his and Iroh smiles in greeting. And Aang on the other side, smiling as he sets a hand on his shoulder.

"You're awake," Mai sighs in relief. She glances to Aang quickly then back, questioning. She watches him imploringly, and Iroh doesn't need to hear the words to know that Mai's been worried.

"It is a long story." Iroh smacks his lips. "Is there any tea? I've been so thirsty."

Aang laughs lightly, and gives his shoulder a squeeze before leaving the room. "Good to see you're okay, Iroh. I'll go see that they make some for you."

"What happened?"

He turns to the young woman and smiles. "I got lost in the spirit world, and I couldn't find the exit for some reason. Then while I was searching, I got thirsty," his eyes widen, as he relives the dreadful memory, "So very very thirsty." He ponders to himself. He'd been wandering for what felt like weeks in the spirit world, "How much time has passed here?"

"A little more than a week."

He nods. "I see." He then turns again to look over Mai fully, glad to see she that looks good as new. "You've healed?"

She gives a little smile. "I'm fine."

"Thank Agni."

Iroh groans and tries to get up off the bed. His bones creak a little. Soon enough the sounds of footsteps approach rapidly.

"Uncle!"

"Oof!" Iroh finds himself enveloped in a tight hug.

"Uncle, we were so worried!"

"Good to see you too, Zuko."

Iroh grins happily. After his long journey, he has returned to his home world. "I was busy chasing the sun*," he glances at his surroundings. "Some tea will make everything better."

Zuko helps him out of the bed. Iroh groans and stretches his body that has been lying dormant for more than a week.

The days pass by quietly as Iroh regains his strength.

.

.

.

Aang throws the stiletto clumsily. It bounces off the intended target and falls to the floor with a clatter.

Mai smirks from her position beside the column. "Superb," she comments drly. "Truly the master of all the elements." The sight of Aang throwing knives is amusing and entertainingly incongruous with his character.

The Avatar turns back to look at her. "Ha. Ha. Very funny." After a few more attempts, he relents. He'd thought he'd try his hand at her choice of weaponry out of curiosity. It looked super easy.

He was super wrong.

His attempts were certainly less than graceful, and the many blades that littered the floor were testament to that.

He retires from the stark sun and joins Mai in the shade.

She slips a knife from her hand and idly tosses it up and down.

Aang finds that he is covered in a fine sweat from the effort. With a little twist of his fingers, he summons a small current of air to whirl about him. With a loud sigh of contentment, he leans into the wind with a wide smile of satisfaction.

Mai only arches a brow. How convenient.

"Your tattoo's are faded," she notes.

He looks at his own hands anew and the wind dissipates.

"Hmm. I guess you're right. They are a little faded." He glances back up, and as a few moments pass, he becomes entranced with the knife that she's idly tossing up and down. It's faintly memorizing in it's tempo. It circles the air in perfect rhythm and lands between Mai's slender fingers easily each time. She catches him eyeing it, and tosses it a little higher in the air to see if he follows it. He does. A question begins to settle onto his features as he watches.

"Yes?" she asks.

He catches himself, and looks at her. Hmmm. "Just how far can you throw?" He asks. It was no secret that Mai was exceptionally skilled but the details of her talent eluded him.

"Far enough," she answers simply.

"...Can you hit the wooden edge of the roof?" He points across to the awning opposite of them across the courtyard.

"Sure."

He raises a brow at her. "...Can you hit the dragon figure on top of the roof?"

She slides her gaze over to him. "Are you testing me?"

His lips pull to one side as he considers her. "Mayybe."

Mai casts him one last look before straightening up a bit, with a flick of her wrist, a small thud sounds. Aang sees the minuscule figure of the blade catch the sunlight on the wooden ledge of the roof across the wide span of the courtyard. "The dragon's sacred. And made of stone," she offers by way of explanation for not hitting that instead. Never mind the wooden ledge of the roof of this grand palace that has stood here for generations probably.

Aang nods his head a little, faintly impressed but not yet completely. He points again. "How about there? In the corner?"

Another blade materializes and another quick flick of her wrist. The same result. This goes on for a few more times as Aang arbitrarily points in a direction while adding more ludicrous instructions such as: "Could you take off two of those flowers at the same time in one throw?"

She humors him. Each throw carries out his instructions flawlessly, and Aang isn't very surprised. He rubs his chin in thought as he tries to think of where else he could ask her to aim.

"Did I pass?" She inquires deadpan.

"Heh, yeah." Aang gets up to retrieve her blades with a quick grin to save her the trouble with her healing leg. He leaps up onto the roof to get her first throw. This, however, does surprise him as it takes some effort to remove the blade from the wood. Upon closer inspection he see that the blade is embedded a fingers width deep. "Wow," he remarks to himself, quite impressed. He'd never questioned the accuracy of her aim, but the sheer force behind every throw was something he'd never considered. Another yank, and the blade relieves itself. After collection, he returns them all to their owner.

"You got every one," he sums.

She only looks up at him in response as if to say: gee, you don't say?

Aang rubs the back of his neck, "Yeah, I'm not surprised." He takes his seat beside her. "I got to say though, you make it look easy. You throw these things pretty hard."

She blinks once, "How else am I going to pin people down in motion?"

"True. Guess I just never thought about it really."

Mai lifts up the length of her sleeve and Aang gets a glimpse of the holsters on her wrist before they're quickly deposited and her sleeve falls back down like the closing of a curtain. She holds on to a spare and resumes tossing it idly in the air.

"I can't bend, but this, I can do," she remarks.

Aang briefly imagines Mai as a fire bender. It's not that difficult to imagine. The knife spinning through the air catches his eye again and he follows it.

"How long have you been doing this?" he wonders aloud.

The noblewoman tilts her head a fraction at him in thought. "Perhaps when I was six or seven. Maybe younger."

"I was busy playing around the temple when I was seven," Aang replies. His expression turns wistful as he recalls the laughter of his friends from so long again. It feels to be an entirely different life.

"I was bored in the so-called finest Fire Nation Academy for Girls."

The Avatar's a little surprised that she offered this piece of information to him. Granted, it was nothing mind-blowingly personal (no surprise there), but Mai usually didn't take initiative in their past conversations. His lips pull into a one-sided smile, "You were born bored with a knife in hand, weren't you?"

She looks at him for his teasing and lifts a delicate brow, all the while the knife spins through the air. She catches it with ease without the need to look at it. "Yes. I was."

Aang smiles in amusement at her answer.

"I can't help it if school was painfully boring," she adds.

He is reminded of his brief stint as a student in the Fire Nation school more than half a decade ago. The memories are faint in his mind now but the impressions left are that yes, it was indeed boring. The feeling of being incredibly underwhelmed with the education system comes to him. And the history lessons were inaccurate. "Hmmm. Guess I can't blame you. I remember it to be kind of boring too, and I wasn't even there for very long."

Mai turns to him fully, intrigued by his statement. "You remember it to be boring?"

Aang nods, "Yeah, I was briefly enrolled for a short time during Ozai."

"Why?"

"Uh...well. I was looking for a Fire bender to teach me how to fire bend. And we were in hiding. From...you guys actually, back then."

"Oh - that's...actually pretty smart."

Aangs frowns to himself a little as he attempts to retrieve any more memories. It feels like eons ago. "I don't remember that much now to be honest. Hmm. The history was weird."

"Weird," she repeats in question.

"Well, I remember them saying that the Air Temples all had their own military force, which isn't true at all," he supplies.

It is Mai's turn to frown to herself now, "I see." She recalls being told that in class. She wonders what else she has been taught that is incorrect.

"Yeah," Aang shrugs then his face turns a little incredulous. "And dancing wasn't a thing!"

Mai's face is still as stone when she turns to him and meets his eye.

"Dance is everything to my people," she states like saying that the sky is blue or the grass is green.

Aang is caught off-guard by her words and nearly believes her for a split second. The idea is ludicrous enough that it makes him break out in a bark of bright laughter.

Mai almost smiles.

The Air Nomad speaks through his dying chuckles, "Maybe Ty Lee..."

Again, her face is still as she replies in perfect deadpan. "Especially Zuko."

Aang's eyes widen comically for a moment and screw together as he attempts to digest the image of Zuko dancing away passionately for the sake of the love of dance.

His silly expression pulls at the corners of her lips.

The young man hangs his head in defeat and shakes his head. When he raises it to look back up at Mai, there is bright laughter dancing in his eyes. This time her lips form a tiny smile. "I can't picture it," he shakes his head again, "at all."

"Neither can I," she confesses. Zuko was quite a few things, but a smooth and passionate dancer was not one of them.

"You know, now that I think of it - I threw a secret dance party for everyone because of that."

She lifts her brows,"...somehow I can see that."

"Heh, it went pretty well if I remember right!"

She lightly snorts in amusement. A secret dance party in the Fire Nation? What an idea.

"We danced at the temples," he recalls. Aang's mind wanders down the long path of his winding memories further back.

"Oh?" She's never really heard much from Aang about his personal experience at the Air Temples. She's mildly curious. All that she'd heard was incredibly brief, and apparently, wrong.

"Yeah. I kind of always ended doing other stuff other than my studies," he admits a little abashedly.

"What did you study?" She asks.

"Mmm, well. Air bending. Our history, the mantras and philosophies," he answers offhandedly.

"Sounds interesting."

Aang looks to her to check for sarcasm but is pleasantly surprised to find none. He smiles a little eagerly. "Do you want to hear about them?"

Mai considers it for a moment and shrugs lightly, "Alright."

The Avatar begins to regale her with information of what he knew from his past research and memory. A warm smile begins to bloom on his face. He laughs brightly in the memory of his past memories. His smile is quite infectious and Aang loses himself in the story so much, that Mai cannot help but catch a tiny bit of his enthusiasm. The smile softens and shrinks as he tells of the history of his people. Mai learns that the people of the Air Temples are not loyal to one king or nation as she has known and been tailored to in her life. Aang's people are loyal to a philosophy, to way of life, and of respecting life. The conversation meanders and she listens and takes it all in. It actually was quite interesting in its own right to her. She asks a question here and there to clarify and finds that Aang is not only pleased but quite happy to explain.

Mai feels the warm air surrounding them and thinks about how Aang is essentially a living relic. The last remainder of what was once one in the four great nations. Even if she weren't accustomed to the sheer volume in this conversation, Mai realizes how special this is and how this explains his eagerness to spread his culture. She almost feels sad for a moment, but then Aang's animated story-telling negates it. She sees the bright shine in his eyes as he speaks fondly of the things relating of the Air Temple and its beauty. The warmth of his smile prevents her from feeling like a child being lectured, and instead of a friend partaking in personal history.

Mai wonders at these things that she's never seen. And she wonders if they are as wondrous as he paints them to be.

She vaguely recalls that a small group of 'honorary' Air benders have been relocated to the temples, but she never went along on that trip with Zuko to celebrate it.

Before long the sun's rays begin to wane, and everything begins to reflect gold.

Aang didn't expect Mai to be such an active listener. This quietly curious and scholarly side of her is new to him, but welcomed.

Katara lingered in the distance. She had just said goodbye to Sokka. The previous encounter with Aang still hung back in her mind. After some hedging, she decided to head in the general direction that she saw Aang head off in. She planned to talk to him one on one in hopes of making some headway with him.

Maybe this is the time it would happen.

She was tired of that thin-lipped smile. Of tip-toeing around him. The young woman's heart ached with wanting nostalgia. How she missed him. But what she found instead across the vast courtyard was that Aang wasn't alone as she had hoped. He was actually in animated conversation. With Mai of all people. Feeling uneasy and caught of guard, she hovered and kept her distance. She and Mai had already spoken, and the results were certainly disheartening. Katara grows sad and frustrated at the memory of it.

Katara and Mai grown into a strange but strong steady friendship. They had a rocky start, but soon enough they found themselves spending more and more time together with their respective partners being a couple of the most important people in the present world. The grudging respect that they afforded one another grew into a solid understanding. Eventually, she found that Mai is witty, and caring, though she deigned to show it. Though she never spoke a word of real affection to her (not that she did to anyone else, really), Mai would always lent her support to Katara in different ways. She came to know when to lend an ear and simply just let Katara vent, or when to ask her to spar because she'd been thinking too much. It made Katara furious whenever she was on the street and heard anyone trash talk of the 'Frigid Ice Queen' of the Fire Nation. Mai was so much more than they knew, really. A few years her senior, every once in a while Mai almost felt like the older sister Katara would've loved to have. Sparingly, she gave Katara advice in dealing with the strange amorphous areas of politics that pulled her and Aang in different directions and many times to even different continents. Mai often came with a blunt honesty that she found incredibly refreshing to the polite manners and subtle passive aggressiveness she often came across.

It was bound to happen. They had shared triumphs, defeats and mended arguments.

The only thing was that she also came to share these things with Zuko. As she got to know Mai better, she came to know Zuko even more so. She came to admire how determined he was to overcome his past and bring a brighter future.

But other things had followed. She was blind-sighted by her growing feelings.

She hung back and despised this. Katara would never have had to hesitate in this manner before. Be it Mai. Be it Aang. Especially not with Aang. With a deep breath Katara determinedly took a step forward with the intention of asking Aang to speak with her privately before she stopped at the sound of his laughter filling the air. The water bender stilled, eyes wide and ears alert.

When was the last time she had heard such easy laughter from him? It couldn't have been that long, she reasoned. She watched as Mai spoke something and Aang's laughter continued. He wore a bright grin and spoke something in reply that escaped her ears. Katara made out the smallest hints of amusement on the elder girl's usually stoic face.

It surprised her. Honestly, the easy manner of their interaction wasn't something that she had really expected. Katara had no idea that she and Aang were on such casual terms, and it glued her feet to the floor. The two people that she had once known so closely are quickly now strangers to her, and the newness of their interaction seemed to solidify that. She didn't know Mai or Aang as well as she used to, it seemed. What else didn't she know? The young woman felt something unpleasant stir within herself and awaken at the sight of them together able to converse with each other with such ease, a simple joy that Katara herself had now been barred from.

Aang was so close, yet so far. Katara paused and turned to walk away from his laughter. It was at least nice to see him smile and laugh. She just didn't expect his laughter to flow so easily with Mai of all people.

For some reason, she felt like she was intruding and that perhaps was what was the worst of all.

Once the bewilderment wore off, she huffed hotly to herself. She tried so hard with Aang. But he hardly cast a glance to her. Katara had done everything short of begging on her knees just for him to look at her again. To simply be again to talk to him again! But she was met with nothing. Just that thin smile that she despised. Aang's countenance remained as cool and still as the surface of a pool of water, and Katara herself hardly garnered a ripple in it. (She used to be able to stir waves in it, with but a mere look at him). Then all it took was a word from Mai for him to laugh like that? To smile and joke around with her? It made her fume. (Katara missed laughing and joking with him). The ease of his smiles only made her every step harder on the fine polished floors of the palace. (She missed those smiles). The darkness of the corridors she turned into suddenly seemed to match her feeling, and the water bender stepped into the dimming light, looking for something that she still couldn't quite find in the shadows of the palace.

Iroh takes a sip of his tea. The weather is pleasant, and songs of birds fill the air. It is really the simple pleasures in life that make it worth living. He glances to the young Firelord, whose face looks troubled.

"Why don't you enjoy some tea, my nephew?"

Zuko automatically takes a cup and downs it in one gulp. Iroh frowns. That is not what he meant, obviously. "Did you even taste the tea?"

"Yes."

Iroh makes a noise in his throat. "What is the matter, Zuko?"

They had already discussed the kidnapping and the rogue men involved and Iroh was actually not too perturbed by it. It simply did not surprise him very much that there were people who clung to Ozai and his thirst for power. They clung to the past, to the scales heavily tipped in their favor and having that taken away did not sit well them. What did unsettle him a little was however, the fact that the poison they slipped him had such a curious effect. It is strong poison. If he could have avoided it, the situation would have hardly escalated that high.

"Those men..." Zuko started.

"Have been taken care of," Iroh finished for him.

"They hated me enough to take it out on you guys," Zuko muttered, face dark. He seemed to be spiraling.

"We are fine, Zuko. Mai's wounds are quick to heal. Don't take those men as a reflection of how you are as Firelord. They have been blinded, and are only bitter from having something taken from them that was never theirs to begin with."

The young Firelord abruptly deflates into his chair. "You're right." The darkness from his face doesn't completely leave however.

Iroh pours his nephew some more calming tea. "Drink," he instructs him. "Slowly."

His nephew pauses with the tea cup mid-air, and makes himself only take a sip. Then he takes another.

It works. He feels a modicum calmer than before. His eyes bug out for a moment, incredulously. Was he turning into Uncle? There are some things he would never be able to fully grasp. His mind returns to the issues weighing his heart down.

Iroh waits for Zuko to form his words properly.

"...How can I fix this, Uncle? With Aang, and Katara and Mai and me?"

A sip of tea. first. "You cannot urge the sun to rise any earlier than it does, or the trees to grow faster than they do. These things follow their own rhythm and time. Just as Mai and Aang need their own time to deal with this."

"But...it's already been so long."

"Not long enough then."

The young man lets out a loud sigh.

"Rushing things will not help, Zuko," Iroh warns. "A deep trust has been broken."

His nephew looks positively miserable.

Iroh continues, "It is as if you have dropped a porcelain bowl. It has cracked and broken in pieces. It takes careful time and ability to put it back together into it's original form, but even then, it may never be as it was exactly."

His nephew's dejected silence is Iroh's only reply.

"...Zuko. This is a difficult matter. Pain is different for everyone. From what I know of Mai, and what of Aang, it is probably best to be patient."

The Firelord sighs. "So it's beyond repair? Things will never be the same."

"It will probably never be the same. But it can grow even stronger. They love you, Zuko. Just give them some time to remember it."

Iroh smiles encouragingly at his nephew. "They will come to see you again as I do."

"...I hope so, Uncle. ...Thank you."

Aang gets up and stretches.

"Well, time to go!" He turns to Mai, who only lifts a thin brow at him.

"Farewell," she utters.

The Avatar's arms dangle at his sides with her reply before he points one in her face, "You are so coming with me."

She crosses her legs. "Why? I'm not invited to the meeting."

Aang sits back down beside her. "Okay, I'm inviting you."

"No."

"Maiiii," the Air Nomad puts on his most pitiful face, eyes wide and begging, "Please? I don't want to go in alone."

Mai merely looks at him coolly. "Are you not usually alone at these things?"

Aang sputters, "I am, but well – I mean – y'know..." He stares at her imploringly. He seems to be attempting to communicate with her telepathically but Mai's mind is quiet. His wide eyes bore deep into hers while screaming some invisible message.

Mai stares back evenly, attempting to catch his meaning. She blinks when she gets it. Maybe it worked after all. Avatar's and their magical everything. Facing Zuko and Katara in there alone wasn't the most pleasant thing she would look forward to either, she supposed. Agni damned empathy. A loud sigh leaves her.

He flashes a mollifying grin at her surrender.

"...Fine."

Aang gets up and sweeps an arm out, motioning 'ladies first.' Mai frowns, stands up with great effort, and smooths the fabric of her clothing before walking with the Avatar to the dreaded meeting room. "You can be my advisor!" he chirps. Mai could only roll her eyes in response.

A little staring occurs when she takes a seat down next to Aang, who pulls out the chair for her. The quiet chatter takes a halt. She can feel the eyes linger over her. The Avatar takes his seat and looks about the room. It appears that there are still a couple of people who have yet to make it to the table.

Zuko catches himself after blatantly staring for a moment. He's not the only one. Mai is one of the last people he'd expect to follow Aang to the table and glances between the two curiously.

The young noblewoman has a faint frown on her face. Aang appears to be mentally twiddling his thumbs, impervious to all the questioning eyes. A few minutes pass and thankfully the two missing people arrive full of apologies and take their seat. One recognizes her instantly with a blatant second-take and hesitantly greets her.

"Wh - what a surprise! It has been a while, Lady Mai. I trust you've been well?"

"Quite well, thank you."

Aang clears his throat quietly and gestures to the young woman next him, "As some of you are familiar with Lady Mai, she will be sitting in with us today to help advise me on some matters," he clarifies.

The attendees acknowledge it distractedly with some stares before the meeting begins. It had been a while since she'd been at one. At least she could concentrate on the topics at hand. She'd nearly forgotten about how amusing some of these could be if she just sat back and watched it unfold.

Mai nearly sighs when she realizes it'd prove to be a little more difficult to focus at the topic at hand than she liked. The mood was certainly more awkward than preferred. In addition to everyone else, she catches Zuko's and Katara's curious eyes hovering over in her and Aang's direction here and there. The meeting is projected to be much longer than she'd want.

Mai only frowns to herself as she hunkers down, determined to pay attention to the meeting instead of be distracted by these wandering eyes.

There is work to be done, and she will welcome it gladly after loafing around the palace for days.

When all is finally said and done – when Mai and Iroh begin their journey back to Bah Sing Se, Zuko finds himself decidedly feeling bothered. Katara had suddenly left to join Sokka in the Southern Water Tribe for the annual hunting ceremonies. He is now left alone with his thoughts and it was doing him no good.

He exhales loudly and runs through the fire bending basics, to hopefully quell what ever that was stirring inside. Zuko recalls how he momentarily lost himself that day while he was watching over Mai in bed. The smoothness of the skin of her knuckles come to mind. Just as he remembered. The wounds she garnered eat at him.

A quick burst of flame exited from his fist. Then his foot.

It was incredibly strange how easily he became accustomed to seeing her inside these palace walls again. It was incredibly strange to realize that he missed seeing her in red. It was incredibly strange to see her at work again in the meeting room with the other attendees.

It was incredibly strange to see her beside Aang, as his advisor.

Something is bothering Zuko, and he is not sure what. Actually, he is not even sure he wants to know. All he knows is that right now he is merely scratching the surface of it.

"Hello, Zuko."

He continues pushing through his stances.

"Hello, Azula."

"Something the matter, I see."

"Nothing's the matter."

"As you say then, Zuzu."

"Don't call me that!" Zuko kicks at the air. He lets his fists fly. He feels his heart pound, but his mind is no quieter.

Azula scoffs silently to herself, "Forgive me...Firelord." Zuko doesn't need to even look at her to know that Azula's rolling her eyes. He turns around to see her about to leave.

"Wait!" he calls.

The princess turns around to regard her brother with steady eyes. "What is it?"

His brow's furrow, and his mouth draws into a deep frown. "Nevermind."

Azula regards her brother's irritable demeanor.

"Mai and Uncle just left, didn't they?"

"Yes," he retraces his steps.

"I see. So I just missed them."

He breathes and forces his chi to exit his foot. Then the tips of his fingers.

"Must be something to see her again here," she comments offhandedly.

She catches her brother tense for a moment, and then idly checks the state of her nails. They are sufficiently painted for now.

"I wonder, was it awkward, Zuzu?"

He doesn't answer.

Zuko looks to be fighting an invisible enemy. She snorts. It's most likely himself. How like Zuzu to be lost within his own self. "Well, what a shame." Azula turns to leave with one last comment, "It could've been just like old times, couldn't it?"

The young Firelord falters for a moment, her words sinking deep into him.

Just like old times.

AN: I can't tell whether or not I did the right thing by throwing in Azula, but she appeared in my head as I wondered what would have happened to her in this pseudo-future and then she wouldn't leave me alone. She's quite fascinating as a character. Well, they all are, arguably. Anyhow...I've started re-watching the series and tbh, the more I watch, the more I don't understand how you could be against Kataang. Seriously. They're friggin' adorable. And Mai's appearances are hilarious. Welp.

*This is from what I remember of the Chinese myths of the dragon's eternal chase after the sun.

Kola Kola Veins: Thanks! I am definitely trying, hah

xxxbluewolf: Yeah, I'm getting intrigued the more I write this, I admit. An unprecedented side effect of this fic for me personally. And yes, Painter Tool SAI is definitely awesome. I totally recommend it, I enjoy just because it's so light weight and is great for just the way I paint.

jacobviers: thanks for the R&R

Thank you for the reviews as always, they help motivate me!