Disclaimer - I do nor own Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Author's Note: Welcome back my wonderful readers! To start off I want to say thank you to DangerouslySilent and croutondragon for their words of encouragement. I mean it when I say I'm not looking to inflate my ego, but simple reviews or messages are what help us writers know someone cares about this story. I also want to thank the people who have added my story to their alerts/favorites. Seriously, you readers are the best readers ever! Please read and enjoy!

Chapter 4 – Monster

In the few weeks that followed Aang was making real progress with Azula. They meditated in the early mornings before practicing bending. After their workouts they would have lunch and then go their separate ways. Aang was genuinely enjoying his time with Azula. She was kind of difficult and could be mean but for the most part she was cooperative.

During one of their meditation sessions, Aang was able to get inside of Azula. Now he knew what she was afraid of during their first session, it was the fog. She was able to keep the fog at bay but to get rid of it he would need to do an intense healing session. Slowly he pulled them out of their meditation.

"Azula, I can see the fog. If you're willing, I can get rid of it."

"How?" She asked with a hope filled voice. Aang didn't know what it would mean to her if the fog were gone. The fog reminded her of all her failures, of the disappointment she was.

"Spirit healing. Similar to what we've been doing here but with more intensity. I'll need you to lie down."

Azula closed her eyes. This was the moment whether she decided to trust him or not. If she allowed him inside of her completely, he would know all of her fears and insecurities. If he succeeded in removing the fog, she would owe him her life. Azula never depended on anyone before. The old Azula would not stand for this. But she wasn't the old Azula anymore. She did as she was told and lied down.

Aang went back into Azula's spirit. He saw the fog and began to walk towards it. Inside the fog, he saw Azula curled in a ball. Before her were replays of her memories, surrounding her were voices taunting her. One memory showed Azula as a little girl playing with a ball. A few feet away were a younger Zuko and Princess Ursa feeding turtleducks. The Azula on floor began to cover her ears as the voices evilly whispered, "See how much she loved Zuko? She never asked you to feed the turtleducks. She thought you were a monster. Like father, like daughter."

Aang pushed his way towards Azula screaming, "No Azula! Don't listen to them!" Before he could reach her, another memory flashed. Azula was once again a little girl; this time there was a large crowd of people surrounding her. Everyone was wearing a white band around his or her right arms. A few people were crying. Azula looked as if she were about to cry as well but one hard glare from her father dried her eyes. Zuko was holding Ursa's hand, but Azula stood alone. A Fire Nation priest was speaking about honor, glory and the name Lu Ten. Aang realized they were at Iroh's son's funeral.

The voice began their whispering taunts again, "How could you not cry for Lu Ten? He played with you. He was your cousin. But you wanted him dead, didn't you?"

Azula began to cry, shaking her head. But the voices did not stop. "Yes you did. You wanted Ozai to be Firelord…"

Before the voices could continue Aang ran up to Azula and put his arms around her. "Azula don't listen to them! Your mother loved you! You loved your cousin. You were just a little girl following orders. The past isn't your fault. If you fight these voices and accept what happened, your future could be brighter. Azula, you are not a monster."

Azula looked into Aang's eyes, "I'm not?"

"No Azula. You were just confused. You're intelligent, beautiful, and one of the best fire benders in the world. Don't listen to the voices. You can clear the fog."

Azula slowly stood up. "I am not a monster." As she kept repeating this, the voices grew weaker. Aang held her hand as the fog slowly cleared. Hours passed, but the fog was finally gone. Azula put her hand on Aang's face and smiled. "Thank you." Slowly Aang pulled them out of the healing session.

It was late in the day when they woke. Aang felt dizzy as he stood up to stretch. Azula opened her eyes but stayed down in the grass. She felt exhausted and disoriented. Her body temperature was rising but the fog was gone. She could hear Aang asking her something but she couldn't make out his words. She felt him pick her up before everything went black.

Zuko paced back and forth in Azula's bedroom. Mai stood by Azula's bed. Her fever had come down but it would still be a while before she woke up. The royal healer had said she would recover just fine but Aang still sat by Azula's bed, holding her hand. Both Zuko and Mai gave each other a curious glance as they watched their friend.

"Aang, you should get some rest. I'll watch Azula," Mai said as she gently put her hand on his back.

He didn't want to leave Azula but he knew he needed to be completely rested for when she woke up. "You're right. Thanks Mai. Let me know if anything changes." He gave Azula one last look before he went back to his own rooms.

"What was that about?" Zuko asked while getting comfortable in one of the lounge chairs.

"I'm not sure. He said he believes she will make a complete spirit recovery. They made a big break through this morning," Mai answered as she sat down next to her husband.

"Do you think she will really recover?" Zuko asked

"I hope so."

The next morning, Azula woke up. The first thing she saw was grey eyes. "Avatar?'

"Hi Azula, how do you feel?" He asked gently while holding her hand. She made no effort to take her hand back.

"Hungry. What happened?" She tried to get up but Aang gently pushed her back down.

He brought a tray of fruit with eggs. "The healing took a lot out of you. You developed a fever but you're better now. Zhuan, the royal healer said you just need to take it easy for a few days."

Despite her hunger, she daintily nibbled on her food, "You stayed with me this whole time?"

He smiled at her, "Well most of the time. Zuko and Mai took over for a few hours while I slept."

Azula put her chopsticks down, "They did?"

Aang nodded, "I told you we all want you to get better. You made a significant amount of progress Azula. Once you're completely healed we can meditate again and work some more on your bending. In a couple of weeks you'll be ready for the next phase."

"What is the next phase?"

"Socializing," he laughed as she rolled her eyes.

Zuko threw his hands in the air. "I give up. I'm going to live with the sand benders I've heard so much about and ignore every single one of you."

"Sparky you are such a drama queen. What did you expect when we learned you were keeping your crazy sister in the palace?" Toph said as she picked her toes.

Mai gave the blind girl a dirty look, "She isn't crazy. Aang is helping her recover."

Toph just shrugged her shoulders, "Whatever you say."

"Zuko, I get she's your sister but is it really safe?" Kartara asked.

"There are guards outside her doors and windows. Plus Aang's rooms are right next door. She's been here for two months now and she hasn't tried anything."

Katara frowned at the mention of Aang's rooms being so close to the princess's. When Sokka told her that Azula was out the asylum she figured it must have been a silly rumor. But Ty Lee had confirmed it. When she went to visit Toph in the Earth Kingdom they figured they should pay a visit to the royal couple and see what's going on.

"Since when did you two get so nosey?" Zuko asked.

"I'm not being nosey!" Katara yelled.

"I am," Toph stated happily.

Mai just rolled her eyes. "I will see you all at dinner," she said on her way out of Zuko's study.

Zuko just sighed, "I need to get some work done. Stay away from Azula's wing. You two can evaluate her at dinner."

Toph and Katara left Zuko and went to the wing with their bedrooms. "I don't like this."

"What's the big deal Sugar Queen? Jealous that Aang is helping the beautiful princess in distress?" Toph teased.

"Why would I be jealous? I'm concerned that our friends are living under the same roof as the "beautiful princess" that almost killed Zuko and actually killed Aang."

"I can tell that you're lying," Toph sang.

Katara bunched her fists in anger. "I'll see you at dinner," she said as she slammed the door to her bedroom.

Before going to her own chambers, Mai took a detour to Azula's rooms. As she suspected, Aang was there. He was sitting in the living area with Azula. They were comfortably silent, each reading a book. "Azula, how are you feeling?"

Azula looked up from her reading, "Much better thanks to my babysitter."

Mai didn't miss the look that passed between them, "Good. Aang, I need to talk to for a moment."

He looked reluctant to leave Azula but got up anyway. Once they were outside he asked, "What's up?"

"Katara and Toph are here. They wanted to check out the "situation" with Azula. They will be joining Zuko and I for dinner. Zuko wants you and Azula to join us as well." Mai said calmly.

Aang frowned, "I don't know, Mai. Azula is still recovering…"

"I'm sure Azula will be fine. I'll see you at seven," with that she walked to her own rooms.

Aang was still frowning when he went back into Azula's rooms.

"What's wrong?" Azula asked as she motioned for him to sit next to her. Ever since she woke up from her fever, she noticed that she and the Avatar were much closer. They didn't say romantic words or give each other longing gazes. But they did make small physical contact such as now; he rested his hand on her thigh. She didn't push his hand away.

"Zuko wants us to join him for dinner. There are guests here," he said evasively.

She raised an eyebrow, "Guests?"

Aang continued to rub her thigh, "Katara and Toph."

She didn't recognize the names right away but then it clicked, "The Water Tribe girl and the Earth bender." He nodded.

"Tell me Avatar. Are you and the Water Tribe girl involved with each other?" She asked with a smirk.

"What? No, not anymore. " He pulled her up from the couch. "Anyway, we did say phase two was socializing. No time like the present, right?"

Just like an air bender. Avoid and evade. She thought to herself. She nodded as she walked to her bedroom. "I'll see you at dinner." She said dismissively. She opened the doors to her walk in closet. She was glad Ty Lee had made her go to the royal tailors. She wanted to make sure she looked her very best for the guests.

Zuko, Mai, Aang, Katara and Toph sat in the private dining room. They were all waiting for Azula to make her appearance. "Can't we just start without her? I'm hungry." Toph whined.

"Toph, that would be rude," Katara scolded. Everyone at the table laughed. No matter what the situation was, Katara was a stickler for manners.

Their laughter was interrupted when the offending princess walked into the room. Toph didn't miss the way Aang's heartbeat quickened when he looked at Azula. And no one missed how he openly stared at her, not even Azula. Azula smirked knowing she had picked the perfect dress. It was form fitting and red always completed her skin and hair.

Azula flashed everyone a smile, "Don't let me interrupt you." Zuko and Mai frowned at the insincerity in her voice. Aang quickly stood up to pull back her chair.

The dishes were brought out and everyone quietly picked at their food, except for Toph. "So I heard you were sick. Guess you're better now right?" Toph asked in between mouthfuls of food.

"Yes, much better. Thanks to the Avatar," Azula turned to face him and patted his hand. Katara watched as Aang squeezed her hand. She bunched her fists under the table. Toph didn't miss any of what was going on.

"Aang, while I'm here we should get some earth bending practice done. You better not have gotten soft, " Toph said as she picked her teeth.

"Sounds good. Katara do you want to practice water bending?"

Katara nodded and forced herself to smile, "I'd love to Aang."

The rest of dinner went surprisingly well. The friends caught up while Azula quietly ate. She studied the way they interacted with one another. Zuko, Katara, Aang and Toph seemed completely at ease. There was some distance between the Avatar and the water bender. Mai however was different. It was only a slight difference, but Azula was quick to notice it. She could tell these people cared about one another, but Mai had not been part of their adventure. Maybe that's why she and Ty Lee missed me, Azula thought to herself.

After dinner everyone went his or her separate ways. Aang made sure Azula was safely in her rooms before he walked the two feet to his door. Before he could open the door he saw her at the end of the hall. She motioned for him to follow and he did.

Katara opened the door to one of the many rooms and closed it behind them. She threw her arms around him, "I've missed you Aang."

Aang returned her hug before gently pushing her back, "Me too Katara." Despite their argument a couple years ago, he genuinely did miss her. She and Sokka were his best friends.

"Aang I'm worried about you," her blue eyes filled with concern.

Aang sighed, "Katara, everything is fine. Azula is making great progress."

"Why are you doing this Aang?"

"I promised Mai. With Ty Lee gone I think Mai is lonely. Besides it's helping Zuko too. Azula is the only relative aside from Iroh that he has."

Katara gave him a look of disbelief, "Did you also promise Mai you'd hold Azula's hand? Or that you'd look at her the way you do?"

"What's this really about Katara?" Aang asked annoyed. He knew she was motherly and protective by nature but he was a grown man, not a little boy.

"I don't want you to be tricked by Azula. You're falling for her. I'm not sure I believe you can really cure her."

Aang gave her a bitter laugh, "Katara, I love you but you've got this all wrong. Azula needs a friend."

"Do I?" Katara said through gritted teeth.

"Katara do you know how I'm healing her?" She shook her head. "I've gone inside her soul. I've seen her inner most thoughts, fears and hopes. After knowing someone like that it's hard not to get close."

She sighed, "Just think about it Aang. You'll see I'm right. Good night." She closed the door, leaving him alone in the room. Aang shook his head and went back to his rooms. He needed to sleep.

She brushed her long brown locks while deep in thought. Aang really was falling for Azula; she could see the signs even if he couldn't. She replayed dinner in her mind. Yes, the signs were there for both of them. She was sure that Aang's feelings were genuine but she couldn't say the same about Azula.