Ursa had to confront Zuko. She had to know why. She was on her way to Boiling Rock just to see Iroh had the same idea.

When they both went to Azula's door, she knew why they were there.

"Come in," she said. She had been arranging to meet with both the council and the groups Zuko had made unhappy. She wanted to get off to a good start.

Iroh got straight to the point. "Is Zuko allowed visitors?"

"I haven't prohibited it, so I assume you can visit him if he will see you."

Iroh went to get the palanquin ready.

Azula had something to say to her mother. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I have to find out why."

"I don't think any answer he gives you will give you closure."

"How do you know?"

"Zuko's mistakes are his own. They aren't about what Ozai did or what you failed to do. Sure every child is impacted by his parents, but children grow to become adults and eventually they have to own what they do. You have to stop blaming Ozai for Zuko's decisions the same way I had to stop blaming you for my mental breakdown. I committed too many offenses between my unfortunate childhood and my breakdown to blame it all on you. Somewhere down the line, I had to own my mistakes. It was the only way I could heal.

If you go to Zuko now, I can guarantee you that he will have excuses. He isn't ready to own up to anything. It's all too fresh and you will leave still distraught about where you went wrong. He isn't your responsibility anymore. He's a grown man who was married, a father, and he was Fire Lord for Agni's sake. If he still needed you to tell him right from wrong, then that shows his own failings, not yours."

"Am I allowed to go anyway?"

"I won't stop you."

Iroh got the palanquin ready. Ursa was very quiet. "Is something wrong, other than the obvious?"

"Azula didn't think I should go."

"Did she say why?"

"She said Zuko was only going to make excuses for himself, and if anything I'd just get even more distressed about the situation."

That was a strong possibility. "I don't think anything he has to say will make me feel better, necessarily, but I need to hear something. I can't just walk away."

Maybe that would be enough for Ursa too.

"Azula's a very direct person. If she doesn't think someone will give a satisfactory answer, she just won't ask the question. Sometimes you need to hear what people have to say for other reasons."

They got to Zuko's holding cell. They of course saw Ozai on the way.

"Come to visit me?" he sneered. "Oh of course, you came for your darling Zuzu. You always did pick him over me, and I never tried to kill a pregnant woman."

Ursa regretted coming already. The guard told Ozai to shut up or he was getting nothing but rice all day.

He was quiet, but his eyes had a sneer to them.

Zuko sat in the corner of his cell. He looked up to see his saddened mother and his uncle, looking stoic. The guard opened the cell and they stepped in side. He still held his arm gingerly. The doctor said the damage wasn't permanent, but Mai got him good.

Ursa couldn't move. Should she hug him or slap him? She was so mad at what he had done, but she couldn't stop loving her son. He came to bring her home. He saved her when Azula tried to kill her in a psychotic rage, but he was seemingly sane when he tried to kill her and Rei. How could he try to kill a six-year-old girl?

"Mom," he said weakly.

"I need to know why you did this."

"I was on top of the world. The war had ended. I was Fire Lord and the people loved me. Mai and I got married. We had Ursa II. We had made agreements with the other nations. We were all friends, but the economy got bad. There were droughts. Farmers couldn't pay their taxes. There was a food shortage. Problems came in left and right and people said I was too buddy buddy with the rest of the world, that my poor agreements put the nation in debt.

I went from the man to the jerk overnight. My intelligence group informed me that there were two groups looking to oust me that at least one of them wanted to replace me with Azula. They figured even if she was still crazy, they could get her to marry someone sane and make him the real Fire Lord. She would just be the figurehead. I worked so hard to bring peace. I couldn't let it just go to waste. Who could have known what she would have done? The last time I saw her, she had tried to kill you.

I asked the Avatar to find her that was it, but then she took off. I didn't know if she had something to hide or what it was, but I felt threatened. I sent someone to take care of her before she could usurp the crown and create chaos. He came back and said she was pregnant.

The next thing I know, the ship she was on blew up. I was in shock. Just like that, she was gone, her husband was gone, and these two kids appeared out of nowhere. I thought they should live in the palace. They were family, but then Azula left them with Ty Lee.

I thought it was all over, but the problems only got worse. The groups that opposed me united after Azula died. Some of them had been afraid of her, but with Rei, they could get a regent that they trusted to rule until she was an adult. I know she was just a little girl, but she was their way of taking over. I had to stop them."

"So instead of arresting them for treason, if they had committed treason, you tried to kill the six year old?"

"Rebellions will always rise if they have someone to rally behind. With Azula's bloodline out of the way, the groups would have quit. I thought taking two lives was worth the stability of the nation."

Iroh didn't say a word. He already knew the story was riddled with half-truths. He wasn't sure what he was expecting Zuko to say at this point. "I don't think you understand how wrong you are. I hope that someday you get it."

He walked away, his head hung in shame.

"I guess he's just like me after all," Ozai laughed as his brother left.

Ursa wondered how Zuko had gotten this way. Was it really visiting Ozai? She turned to her ex-husband. "What did you do to our son?" she demanded to know.

"What? You think I'm the reason he's here. He's here because he can't think ahead. Do you want to know what really happened? He came to me worried about this group of people, who kept saying he sucked, but they were all talk, they hadn't done anything and he had no proof that they were trying to do anything.

He was worried that Azula would be able to take the throne while his popularity was low and he asked me what to do. I told him he could bring her home and see if she can help him get his numbers up. If people were calling for her, then her appearance might be enough to appease them, but he'd have to give her a bone, something meaningful to do.

He of course refused to share anything with her. She never shared with me. She tried to kill me. I won't let her have anything. Well, as long as she was alive, she was a threat to his goal to have sole control. People would always prefer her if they didn't like what he did. If he wanted her out of the way, he'd have to kill her. I told her he had two choices leave her alone and hope she stays away, or get rid of her before she can make heirs.

Once she makes heirs, he's done for. There are too many ways in which he can lose the throne. I didn't tell him what to pick, I just told him everything comes at a price. He decided to kill her, only to learn she already had two kids, one of whom could take the throne.

As it turned out, that was a dumb move because the groups only rallied after Azula's death, merging into a super group or something. He waited to kill Rei until he thought enough time had past that he wouldn't be a suspect, only to botch that too. He came to me, asking me if I thought an accidental palace fire would be unusual. He made the decision to set her ablaze before he even talked to me. I didn't do this to him. Your son did it to himself.

If anything, I helped save the day. Azula came to visit me you know. She said she was you to get past the guards, and I told her all about our darling son. She was ready for his attempt to kill Rei because I helped her set a trap, and he walked right into it. My favorite child is on the throne, and yours is rotting away, like me. People may say I ruined her, but everything she is, is because of me."

"You see that's where you are wrong." Ursa looked him right in the eye. "You may have been her teacher, but she rid herself of you like a snake sheds its skin. You taught her what not to be. She's never been stronger than when she left you behind."

Ozai laughed. "If that's true, why is it she came to me when she was in trouble? She didn't come to you."

Ursa rushed out of there. She hated when he toyed with her mind like this.

Iroh had waited for Ursa outside. He couldn't stand being in there another minute. Ozai didn't talk to him. He just had this smug look on his face like I won, Zuko decided to follow me instead of you and look where his is. He always wanted his son to fail for Azula to take his place. He got his wish.

"I'm sorry for leaving you alone in there. I couldn't take it."

"I don't blame you. Let's go."

They went back to the palace. When they got there, Haru was playing follow the leader with Rei, Hiro and little Ursa. Kiyi had homework to do. She had been putting it off given all of the mayhem at the palace, but it was time for her to catch up.

Ty Lee and Sokka took Hakoda II to the market. They were all sharing the deluxe sundae. Sokka would be tasked with eating the bulk of it, but his son was eager to help.

The acrobat wiped off the little boy's face when he was done.

"Thanks Mommy!"

It was the first time he had ever called her that. It made her happy, but at the same time, she was sad that Suki had just dropped off the map. She kissed his forehead. She would be his mommy as long as he needed her to be.

After walking around, the boy got sleepy so Ty Lee took him home. Sokka wanted to get some more things, so he stayed out. Ty Lee took the palanquin back and it would return for her boyfriend later.

It had been a year and a half since they got together. Sokka thought it was time to start looking for an engagement ring. He had made Suki a betrothal necklace, so he decided to get something else for Ty Lee.

When he got to the jeweler, he didn't see what he wanted in the case. True to Fire Nation form, everything was rubies and gold. He asked if they had sapphire or silver.

"Hmm, I did just get some sapphires in. I haven't had a chance to set them yet, but if you can wait I can have a ring made."

He came back out with them. They were perfect, not too big so they wouldn't look gaudy, they weren't little specks either.

"These are perfect."

"What type of ring would you like them in?" He showed Sokka the different shapes.

"I like the one in the middle."

"The princess cut, a good choice. Did you want silver, gold or white gold?"

"They make white gold?"

"They do, well they find it." He came out with a sample. It was so luxurious.

"How much is that?"

Sokka went wide-eyed at the price. "I think yellow will suffice." He didn't want to be too cheap, but the white gold was too much

"If you wanted silver, you could put a diamond in the middle and the sapphires on each side for the same price as the 14k yellow."

"That sounds perfect." Sokka paid a deposit and waited for the palanquin to come back.

To his surprise, he saw Suki. She had missed the morning boat back to Kyoshi Island and had to wait for the evening one.

She approached him. "Where's your little girlfriend?" she sneered. She had been drinking that morning, heavily.

"She's back at the palace."

"You two look like you had a great time last night."

"The three of us did. You didn't approach us. It's been two years you know."

"Like I forgot how long you've kept my son from me."

"I didn't keep him. I tried to bring him to the island to see you, and I wasn't allowed past the dock. What was I supposed to do?"

"Of course, play the victim. I'm sure you jumped into Ty Lee's bed the first chance you got."

"This has nothing to do with her. It's not my fault you had an affair with a homicidal lunatic and then abandoned our son."

"If you hadn't hired that lawyer…. Do you know how much that cost me?"

"You think I didn't pay too. You wanted to leave me. You had every right, but not with my son."

"So he's your son now."

"He was our son, but he stopped asking about you over a year ago."

"I bet he calls Ty Lee Mommy now," she hissed.

Sokka didn't answer.

She does. "Have a nice life." She was gone.

Sokka had seen Suki at low points, but this was the worst. It was like she was an empty shell of the woman she used to be. He pitied her. He hoped she someday found peace.

Mai decided that she wanted some tea. She went into the tea room where Iroh was just pouring a cup.

"Mai, care to join me?"

"Of course." She sat down and poured herself a cup.

"How has your day been?"

"Pretty relaxing."

Haru had taken Ursa II along with his brood. He was playing Mr. Dad while Azula worked during the day. The Fire Lord wasn't completely scot free. She had to breast feed the younger children and the older two would periodically escape their dad to go find their mother. It was still an adjustment for Haru to be tending to them while Azula worked, not that they didn't adore their father.

This meant Mai wasn't as busy as she usually was. Surely, she would get Azula's tykes at some point, but for now, Haru seemed to be managing the bunch pretty well.

"How was your day Iroh?"

"Not so good. Ursa and I went to visit Zuko today."

Mai hadn't seen him since he got taken to jail. She didn't bring Ursa II to say goodbye. How do you say I had to stab your father because he turned evil and now he's going to jail?

"I take it things didn't go as you had hoped."

"I wasn't hoping for anything in particular, but it was somehow worse than I had envisioned. Ozai's presence hardly helped."

"Like father like son," she said bitterly.

"That was the worst part. It was like Ozai was proud to have drug his son down with him."

Mai sipped her tea. Zuko's failures were his own despite whatever words Ozai put in his head.

At dinner, the whole family was around the table. Haru's father would be with them for a couple of days before he headed home to Omashu. Azula and Haru had invited him to stay, but he wanted to finish up some engineering projects before he moved.

They had a light meal after the gorge fest the day before, pine carrot soup and grilled komodo chicken salad.

Azula asked her children how their day was.

"We played games and we built a fort!" Hiro said excitedly. The fort was made with all of the pillows and blankets from the suite he shared with his sister.

"We went and got ice cream," Ty Lee said.

"Chocolate!" Hakoda said excitedly.

After the meal, Rei and Hiro wanted to play in the garden.

"Will you come with us Mom?"

"Of course." She took them to get bread and then to go feed the turtle ducks. Haru got Ta Min and took her too. Lu Ten was asleep.

The family found a bench. Hiro wanted to get close to the pond. Rei grabbed his collar, so he didn't fall in and Haru tried to show Ta Min how to throw the bread, but she would just drop it on the ground.

"Almost!"

Hiro would pick up the bread off the ground and throw them in the pond.

Ursa watched them from her pavilion. It was a bittersweet feeling. She remembered sitting out there with Zuko. Azula was usually training or practicing for her next lesson. She was always so serious.

Lu Ten was just starting to wake up. His grandfather picked him up. "Aren't you tiny?"

He carried the baby with him, looking for his daughter in law.

"Have you seen the Fire Lord?"

"She's outside," the servant told him.

He brought the baby to his mother.

"Thank you," she held him against her breast.

Lu Ten started to fuss.

"Someone wants to eat." Azula started to nurse him.

Her father in law averted his eyes, sitting down with Hiro. Rei started chasing the turtle ducks, wanting to catch one.

"Be careful. They bite," her mother warned her.

Rei heard that and sat down next to her father.

When Haru's grandfather came inside, he saw Ursa watching them. "You could go out there you know."

"I don't want to interrupt. It's such a perfect scene."

"They are something else."

Haru kissed his wife. "I love you so much." Ever since she walked into his life eight years ago, things had never been the same. He knew from the first kiss that he wouldn't be able to let her go. They started off in a tiny house in a no name town and now they are the royal family, and it didn't matter to Haru who they were or where they were as long as they were together.

Azula wouldn't have any of this without Haru. He taught her how to love and because he loved her, she was able to have everything she needed and then some. She had so many demons from her past and when she thought she couldn't overcome them, he was always there to hold her. "I love you more."

Hiro started to get sleepy. "Let's take them to bed."

They each had a baby in hand as they made their way into the palace. After putting Ta Min and Lu Ten in the nursery, they got their children ready for bed.

"Who wants a story?"

"I do."

"Which one?"

"Tell us about how you met," said Rei.

Haru started. "Well, I used to live in Omashu and I was supposed to marry a young lady named Mei Mei, but we kept arguing. She wanted to have kids right away. I thought we should be saving and she was always shopping. Eventually, she got sick of me and left, and I decided to move out of the city because it was expensive.

It was raining and I was eating chicken stew, which I was often eating because I didn't know how to make that many things and I hear a knock on my door. There were two people outside, a blanket draped over them to keep them from getting wet.

I open the door and it was grandpa and your mother.

"It's raining bearded cats and polar dogs out there," he said as they came inside.

When I first saw your mother, she took my breath away. Her hair was wet and her clothes were soaked," clinging to her voluptuous body.

Azula smiled when he said that. She had found him quite attractive when she first saw him. He was tall and looked strong, eyes like emeralds and black shiny hair that rivaled hers.

"But she had the most amazing eyes and timid smile. I asked her what her name was and she said 'I don't know.'"

Haru had been totally confused. How could she not know her name?

"'I found her near the Forgetful Valley,' my father told me. 'She must have ran through it.'

I had so many questions. 'Do you remember anything? Where you came from? Anything about your family.'

'No. I was tired, so I must have been running the whole way and I was thirsty. I started walking down the road looking for a town when your father found me.'

'She didn't have any money, which means she either lived on the other side of the valley or she was travelling with someone.' She was too healthy to have been impoverished.

I realized she didn't know anything about herself, so I tried to figure out what she did know. She remembered basic things like the names of common objects and foods, but she had no recollection of major events. I asked her if she remembered anything from the war and she said, 'what war?'

When I told her the world had been at war for 100 years, she shrugged. 'I don't know what I was doing during it.'

They stayed the night and planned on going to Omashu when the storm was over. I never slept well in thunderstorms and that night I went downstairs to get some milk when your mother was making a pot of tea.

'Would you like some?' she said.

'Where did you get the tea?'' I knew I didn't have any.

'Your father bought it along the way. I remember that I like it.'

Out of all of the things she could have remembered, she remembered tea.

She poured me a cup and I started telling her about myself. Most of that evening, I had been asking her questions.

She told me she loved thunderstorms and I asked her why. 'They're loud and disruptive.'

'Yes, but the lightening is beautiful and the water helps the crops grow and the flowers bloom. The trees are always more colorful after it rains.'

We stayed up all night talking, drinking tea and watching the storm through the windows.

When we woke up, my father had left. He left a note saying he thought she belonged right here and ever since, we've weathered every storm together."

Hiro was fast asleep. Rei was like 90% there. "Good night," their parents said as they kissed each of them.

They headed back to their suite. "I'm going to take a bath," she said.

"Have fun."

"You aren't going to join me?"

"Am I invited?"

"You're always invited."

"Well, in that case," Haru picked her up and ran with her to their room. Their eagerness never slowed down. If Azula wasn't careful, she would have baby number five before she was ready.

Kiyi went to say goodnight to her mother. When she got there, she realized her mom seemed a bit out of it. "Are you okay?"

"It's been a long day."

"Visiting Zuko didn't go well." How could it really?

"No. I just don't understand what made him think what he was doing was okay." He tried to make excuses, but they just made her ill.

"Who says he thought it was okay? Maybe he just thought he could get away with it."

That just wasn't enough for Ursa. "Do you think I'm a good mother?"

Kiyi sat down. "Of course you are. You're a great mother. Why would you even say that?"

"Look at my track record. One of my children is in jail for attempting to kill his sister and niece. Another one had to be institutionalized after being haunted of hallucinations of me and going into a homicidal rage."

"You can't blame yourself," Kiyi hugged her mother. "It's not your fault Zuko got greedy and I'm sure there were a lot of things that went wrong in Azula's life before she lost it. Were you the best mother to her, I don't know, but she also had an evil father, a clearly toxic relationship with her brother, and who knows how many other problems."

Ursa didn't know how to deal. She told herself she was a good mother that Azula's demise was unfortunate but it wasn't her fault, look how well Zuko turned out. There must have been something wrong with Azula, but Azula got it all together by leaving her family and everything she had behind when Zuko had everything but it wasn't enough. If all of her past assumptions were wrong, did Ursa know anything?

Kiyi said goodnight to her mother and went to her room. She hated that Ursa blamed herself for everything. It wasn't all her fault. She wondered if there was anything she could do. She didn't really know her older sister. She saw her once, when she was crazy and tried to kill their mother, and then heard nothing about her for years, just to go to her funeral and see that she had two kids and now here she is, alive and in charge with a nation to rule and four kids to raise.

Kiyi hadn't really known her brother either. Sure he invited them all to the palace and took care of the expenses, but he had really gone to get his mother, not to necessarily integrate Kiyi and Ikem into his new family. The palace was comfortable, but her relationship with him was never particularly strong. She felt a much closer connection to little Ursa and by extension to Mai.

She took the passageway back to her room. The palace was full of secrets, some that she knew, and many that she didn't.

She felt badly for her mother, but she didn't know how she could help. There was a knock on her door.