The Palace had a full house. There were still several empty bedrooms, but there were so many people in the palace at the moment, that you never had to walk far to find someone. This was unusual for Kiyi. When she first got to the palace, the Kyoshi Warriors were here, but they were often in a group and they left years ago. For a long time, it had just been her parents, Zuko, Mai and Ursa II and now there were an additional 11 people here. Sure only six of them were going to be here permanently but even that is double the population.

So many people were in the palace, but none of them were in her age group. She was almost 13 and the child closest to her age was only 6. Out of the people older than she, the youngest was her sister who was 23, married and with four children; neither candidate was really in her world, one too young for school, and the other long done with it.

She liked her nieces and nephews, but it wasn't the same as having someone her own age as a friend.

Mai's brother was almost her age. He used to come over and play but they were in that awkward stage for boys and girls after cooties but before dating.

She started to read.

Little Ursa loved having all of these kids in the house. Before, she would only play with Mom or Aunt Kiyi or Grandma, but now, she had three other kids for games and Uncle Haru would play with them during the day.

Today, they were playing save the princess. Rei was the dragon. Hiro and Hakoda were the heroes, Ursa was the Princess in need of a rescue and Haru was the narrator because all fairytales have narrators.

"Release the Princess at once!" Hiro and Hakoda had sticks for swords.

Rei growled and began to chase them.

"Oh No! Will the warriors save the princess or will the dragon eat them for dinner!"

"Fe Fi Fo Fump I smell the blood of two warriors."

Hakoda tripped and fell on his butt.

"One warrior is down. Hiro, it's all you."

"I'm going to slay you!" He fake stabbed Rei.

"AHHHH!" she screamed as she died a fiery death.

Hiro came back for the princess. "You're saved!"

While the kids played outside, Sokka and Ty Lee enjoyed a lazy morning in bed.

"I love you," he murmured against her skin as she curled up beside him.

"Say it again."

"I love you Ty Lee."

She kissed him gently. "I love you Sokka."

They were grateful that Haru would take Hakoda II with his brood in the morning, giving them a couple of hours to themselves.

"I'm excited about going to the tribe."

"They're going to love you," he said.

"I want to see your world. I've only barely seen snow before."

"Barely?"

"There was practically none in Omashu last winter."

"That was more like dandruff than snow."

"And you would know Mr. Dandruff."

"Yeah ... wait a minute."

She kissed his nose. We should probably get up and help Haru with the kids.

When they got outside, he was just bringing them all in. It was time for Hakoda's nap.

Ty Lee picked him up. "Ready to rest."

He was already starting to fall asleep.

Hiro insisted he wasn't tired but he kept yawning.

"How about a short nap?" Haru put his son on his shoulders and got him in bed.

The girls had a tea party with Mai and Ty Lee, leaving the guys to their own devices.

"It's like you have a village in this house," Sokka told him. He didn't know anyone with four kids growing up.

"I love it. I always wanted a lot of kids, being an only child."

"What about Azula?"

"She agreed to two right away and then let's play it by ear. I would like to have more, but she needs a break. She's been pregnant for almost half our marriage."

Sokka did the math. "She spent like three years pregnant."

"She reminds me often, but she's such a great Mom." Haru's mother died when he was young, so it had always been just him and his father. Azula was never close to her own mother, so she was extra determined to be close to her children, and she promised she would never pick favorites.

Sokka couldn't disagree. Hakoda II had taken a liking to her when he stayed with her in the cottage. He and Hiro were like brothers. "I want to have at least one kid with Ty Lee."

"She has siblings right?"

Sokka laughed. "She's got six identical sisters."

"Six!"

"You don't remember seeing all of them arguing at Zuko's coronation."

"I was shitfaced. I thought I had double vision."

"Nope."

"Well, I guess she doesn't want seven kids."

"Not on her life."

"I wouldn't mind seven."

"You wouldn't be pregnant for 2+ years trying to get them."

"Azula might have twins."

Ty Lee might be more likely. "Do multiple births run through bloodlines?"

Haru shrugged. "I have no idea."

Sokka pictured trying to fit a bunch of kids under one icy roof. He might need to build a bigger house.

Aang and Katara were back at the Air Nation. He would need to go back to the Fire Nation to talk to Azula about Zuko's punishment at one point, but he decided to hold on the discussions until the investigation was finished. There was no point in decided what to do with him before they completely uncovered what he had done.

"I wish we had more time to ourselves," Aang said to his wife. "I swear as soon as one problem is solved a new one is waiting for it, so it can emerge." They had just dealt with a gang of thieves in Republic City and were on their way home when Zuko had gotten arrested and deposed from the crown.

To her credit, Azula had gotten the country under control quickly, having meetings with all of Zuko's advisors, his staff and everyone with a high level position all within the first week of her taking over.

"Me too, but let's enjoy this while we have it." She kissed him and they rested on the couch while Bumi played in the grass.

Aang wondered how he was supposed to bring back the airbenders and be the avatar and be married.

Katara was just relieved they only had one child for now. She was tired just with him. She knew she would do the brunt of the childrearing with him saving the world all the time, and she knew it would only get busier. At the tribe, all of the mothers would band together, but now, it was just her.

"I wonder how Sokka did it before Ty Lee." He had been raising Hakoda alone. It couldn't have been easy, even with Gran Gran's help.

"No idea. He always hated chores, called it women's work!"

"I bet he doesn't say that kind of stuff now."

"I wonder why he's still at the palace." He said he'd come visit before he went back to the tribe. She thought he would have sent a letter giving them a date by now.

"He might be helping with the investigation," Aang said.

"How many kids do they have under that roof?"

Aang did the math. "They have two babies, four young children and Kiyi who is almost grown."

"I would think they're trying to restart a race," Katara said.

"Haru said he wanted more."

"Than four?"

"Yeah."

"I sympathize with Azula. Being pregnant is tiring."

The warriors were all back on Kyoshi Island. Meng was effectively the leader of the group at this point. She had given Suki her leadership position back when she returned after leaving Sokka, but Meng was taking responsibility since Suki moped a lot instead of leading.

Girls had come and gone since the war ended. Ty Lee had been a warrior for seven years, and by the time she left, there had been more warriors that joined after her than ones that had joined before her. Almost two years later, Suki was the only one left. Everyone else had either married or taken employment elsewhere, where they could make more money or face less risk. Most girls were warriors for 5-8 years or so. Suki had over a decade in and her best warrior days were behind her.

They were having a team meeting, which they had inside during the winter and behind the warrior house when it was warmer.

Suki stayed in her room, feeling under the weather.

One girl said, "why is Suki still a warrior?" She skips meetings, isn't all that attentive during her shift and she's not too pleasant to have under your roof.

"We don't just kick out girls because they are older," Meng said.

"What about being useless?" said another girl.

"She did a lot during the war," Meng replied.

"Like what, get captured."

"She defended the palace after the war."

"She had an affair with a murderous Fire Lord."

"I like Suki," one girl said, "but she needs help, like professional help."

The majority of the girls there wanted her out and to free up a spot for new blood.

Suki only loved one man. She thought that she would have been his wife, that he would have left Mai for her if she had given him a son. She had only slept with Sokka like once during that time. How did the baby end up being his?

Now, she had nothing. Sokka had her son. Ty Lee had replaced his memory of her. Her soul mate was in jail, probably for life and not even the warriors wanted her anymore. Well, she was staying until they kicked her out. They may not like her under their roof, but she didn't have another one.

Iroh was going to head back to his teashop soon. He had come to make sure that the palace was stable and to stay for Azula's coronation. Now he was ready to get back to his own roof.

He saw Sokka headed down the hall. They had been having guy time while the girls had their tea party.

"Sokka, how is it going?"

"It's going really well. How are you?"

The two men started talking. Iroh asked him if he was planning to go to the tribe soon.

"Soon, but not immediately. I have one last thing to do here, then to the Southern Air Temple and then we're going to the tribe."

"You've been quite the nomad over the last few years."

From helping the Avatar, to his journeys with his son to his trips with Ty Lee looking for a would be killer, he had been all over the place. "I've been pretty busy lately. It will be nice to settle down at home."

"I'm going to be heading home too." Iroh joined the guys in the lounge where Haru had Hakoda, Hiro and Lu Ten, who was asleep in his father's arms.

Azula was working when Iroh stopped by.

"How's it going?"

"Slowly," she said. She was trying to figure out what Zuko was smoking when he negotiated these trade agreements. She was looking to opt out of all of the ones with options in them.

"A lot of paperwork."

Azula was drowning in it. "A lot of gibberish. I can't believe Zuko signed any of this." He sold our crops undervalue in a drought. He paid way too much for foreign imports.

"I think he put international harmony over fiscal responsibility."

"If we have to starve our own people for international harmony, I'm just going to bite the turtle duck and be unpopular."

"Maybe it doesn't have to be a zero sum game. Just because Zuko chose one over the other, doesn't mean you can't have both. It just means you have to rig your scales."

"Before I even get to that stage, I have to read all of this crap."

"Doesn't Zuko have a staff for this?"

"The same staff that helped arrange this crud. Hey, will you help me undo all of the work you did over the past year. It was really bad."

Iroh snorted. "I suppose that would not be the best way to start your reign."

"His chief of staff hates me. I think most of his staff is scared of me and even if I wanted to replace them, I need to find replacements which will eat even more time right now."

"Have you had any volunteers?"

"Other than Ozai's cronies hoping for a comeback."

"You're not impressed."

"It's a hard line. Some of these guys have a lot of experience, which would be helpful when I've been out of the political arena for almost a decade, but some of them got to their success on their father's coattails or by bribery. Also, I'm trying to carve a new name for myself. I can't follow my father or my brother's path, but if I take either of their staff, it looks that way and it is hard to teach an old dog new tricks."

"You have a unique problem." The Fire Lord position used to last people decades. Ozai only lasted six years. Zuko didn't make it until nine. She was the fourth Fire Lord in her lifetime, which was unusual for the country. "Maybe you need a blend of staff, some from Ozai, some from Zuko, some that are yours. You need to be aware of the past problems while building towards something new."

"Three different staffs all under one roof. It will either be a genius move or a total disaster." Azula could see it go either way.

"For the Crown, that is nothing new."

"Why are you helping me?"

"I usually try to be helpful."

"I know that, but usually not when it's about me."

"I thought about you a lot when I thought you died. I tried to understand why I could never relate to you before. I think you were too much like me for me to get along with you."

Azula frowned. Unfortunately, that made a lot of sense.

"We each were the favored child of tyrannical a Fire Lord, eager to prove our worth with our bending and military prowess. We both had poor relationships with our brothers who tried to prove themselves to their dad's only to get rejected repeatedly.

I wasn't very close to my mother either, not that we didn't get along, but she just stayed out of war and politics and that was my world. We both were raised to believe the Crown was ours and ignored every sign that it might not be and ultimately we both lost what we cared about and got pushed aside by brothers who found their way around their fathers.

Everything changed for me when Lu Ten died. I realized that my ambitions were not worth what I had given up to try to get them. I set myself on a new path and it was hard for me to watch you grow up because you were just like how I used to be. It was easier to shed my past like a snake, act like it was some other Iroh that had nothing to do with me, but you were too familiar. It was like looking into a foggy mirror; I couldn't escape what I was.

I favored Zuko because I thought he was my second chance. He was like a son to me and I thought if I got it right with him, it would make up for failing my brother and my son, but it just compounded the problem. I saw Zuko as a heroic archetype and not as a man with serious character flaws that I noticed during the war, but after it, I thought Zuko had defeated all of his demons. I stopped paying attention.

While I ignored the darkness that was still in Zuko's soul, I had entirely missed out on the light that was in yours. When you were in your darkest hour, you couldn't come home, but that wasn't your fault. It was ours and a part of it was mine. I can't give you back the time you lost with your children or undo the hardships you faced along the way, but I can try to help you now."

For the first time in a long time, Azula smiled at her uncle. "I'd like that, but I actually have a family problem I could use some help with."

That weekend, Azula got the entire family ready for the beach.

"Are we all going to fit in the family's vacation house?" Ursa asked as they got ready to get on the palanquins

"No. I bought the one next door to it."

"Maybe we should buy the one on the other side too," Haru said. "In case we have more kids."

"It's not happening anytime soon," she chided.

"But the house might be gone by then."

"You just want me to have more kids."

"Yeah."

They got everyone to the beach. Azula's last two trips here had not been so good. Hopefully, this one will be better.

Hakoda was just learning to swim. Ty Lee was cheering him on while Sokka was actually teaching him. Azula was in the water with Hiro and Rei. Little Ursa was building a sand castle with Haru.

"You're cheating!"

"I can't use my earthbending?"

"Nope. Gotta get a bucket!"

Kiyi went to go play with some of the older kids, and Ikem was sleeping under a book he had brought to read.

This left Iroh with Lu Ten, and Ursa and Mai were with Ta Min.

"I can't believe she took this many people on a vacation," Mai said. When she said family vacation, Mai had assumed Azula's immediate family and maybe the other two kids, but she brought everyone.

"We used to come here when they were kids. She put a turtle crab in Zuko's swimming shorts."

Mai snorted. "Like mother like daughter." Rei was chasing Hiro around with a turtle crab in her hands.

"Auntie!" Ta Min said with a giggle.

Mai scooped her up. "Aren't you the cutest?"

After swimming was lunch at the turtle crab shack, afternoon naps for the younger children while the ladies went shopping and they went out to a show after dinner.

Azula knew the children would sleep through Love Amongst the Dragons, so instead they took them to a circus inspired, art show, with fire juggling, a tightrope walker and a mime, a contortionist and various dancers.

It was an outdoor performance so you could come and go as you wished. Kiyi saw some kids her own age and disappeared.

"She's always ditching us," Ursa said.

"It's only going to get worse at her age," Mai told her. "Wait until she starts talking about boyfriends."

"Oh Agni No!"

Ty Lee, Sokka and Hakoda walked along the beach together. "It's so beautiful here," Ty Lee said.

Sokka nodded at Hakoda.

"I have a present for Mommy!" He handed her a box.

She was surprised to get a ring box. "Where did you get this?"

Sokka got on one knee. "Ty Lee, will you marry me?"

Her heart skipped like five beats. "Yes!" She jumped in his arms.

They kissed passionately on the beach, almost forgetting Hakoda's presence until he said, "Mommy!"

She broke the kiss to scoop him up and kiss his forehead.

When they got back to the house, Ty Lee had a ring to show off.

"Mommy said yes!" Hakoda yelled proudly.

"It's gorgeous," Mai told her. "And Sokka's not so bad."

"Haha, thanks Mai." Sokka was so happy right now.

Of course, the girls started gabbing about wedding plans. The guys started drinking beer and the kids got put to bed.

Azula closed her eyes. She really needed this vacation. Iroh suggested it to help Ursa. When everyone else was asleep, Azula was making tea.

"Still a night owl?" Ursa asked her.

"Sometimes."

"You used to roam the palace halls at night."

"I know. The best conversations were the ones that happened when the kids were supposed to be asleep."

"You were always too smart for your own good."

Azula started pouring the cups. "I'm nothing. I think Rei might have been born an adult."

"She is just like you."

"That almost sounded like a compliment."

"It was." Ursa was learning to let go. It was a struggle, but she had to move forward with what she had. "How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Everything, marriage, four kids, being the Fire Lord, not falling asleep at this very moment."

"It's easier when you love your husband," Azula said bluntly.

Ursa looked startled.

"I didn't mean that the way it came out."

"No, I never loved Ozai, well not the way I love Ikem, but I was young, and a small town girl. It wasn't every day that a Prince came through at all, and to ask for my hand. I couldn't say no."

"You could have said no. You were just afraid of the consequences, so you said yes."

"What's the difference?"

"The difference is accountability. Your choice was understandable. Your choice was even forgivable at least it was for Ikem, but when you take choices you don't like, the hard ones, and say you had no choice, you fail to own up to what you did. You don't learn anything, and the next time you're facing a tough choice, you're no better off than the last time. It's how people get into trouble." It's how Zuko got into trouble."

"I always struggled with making decisions. Sure I would pick the one I thought was best at the time, but I would doubt myself as soon as I did it."

"Of course. Once you've done it, the negative consequences sink in. Before, it's easy, all you can see is the outcome you want, not what you had to pay for it."

"I thought I did the right thing, the night that Azulon died, but now I keep asking myself, what would have happened if I talked to him instead; maybe, he just would have jailed Ozai, and we all would have been okay."

"You're starting to get it, but when you make two steps forward, you take one back. You are reconsidering your past choices, which is good, but your end goal is to try and imagine a world where Zuko didn't do what he did. You can't rewrite his script to give him a better ending, and you can't say your choices were bad because he made worse choices over a decade later.

Zuko is like Ozai, which is why they don't get along. Each of them is close to his mothers but spurned by his father. Each ignored by his father for a more talented sibling. Each convinced that the Crown was their only form of vindication. Each of them had another do his bidding to get the crown, and each became obsessed with eclipsing the legacy of the man who went before him, causing his downfall.

Ozai ignored the warning signs that his plans to rule the world weren't working. The dead Avatar wasn't dead. The resistance was bold enough to invade for the first time in 100 years, failing of course, but they organized and attempted to do it. Ozai lost Omashu and various prisoners escaped, but he refused to quit because he had to beat Azulon; he had to do what his father couldn't. He tried to burn down the Earth Kingdom only to find himself stripped of his bending and in jail.

Zuko had the promise to make things better, but he couldn't change who he was. He couldn't let go of his resentment for his father. At first, being Fire Lord was fairly easy. He was popular amongst the people and yeah there were some assassination attempts, but none of them were particularly good, but he went to Ozai for political advice.

Why do that when he could have gone to Iroh, or Mai's father or any number of people with experience with the Fire Nation? He had to remind Ozai that he was in charge. He was rubbing salt in the wound. Ozai could either help Zuko or get shut out entirely, so he decided to offer advice. Zuko should have cut himself loose, but instead he decided to dance in Ozai's web. His ego got him stuck in it.

Skip ahead a few years and the post war excitement is over. People want tangible results and Zuko can't deliver them. He's facing a potential revolution, but he doesn't ask for help. He can't show his father or anyone else that he is too weak to rule on his own. He can't ask me for help because I'm the favored sibling he resented. He can't risk me replacing him, which might happen if he doesn't do something, so he tries to kill me.

He couldn't bear the idea of his legacy being as much of a failure as his father's. If I had succeeded him or even ruled alongside of him, he would have had to admit that Ozai was right, that he didn't have what it took. Proving a point to his father mattered more than anything else, and it lead to his ruin.

You can't pick his priorities Mom. There were a lot of what ifs that could have changed things, but his what ifs have to come first. He has to want to change. Until he does, there's nothing for you to do other than move forward with your own life. You have a husband, two daughters, two in laws and five grandchildren. You have a lot to look forward to if you just let yourself."

Azula went to bed, leaving her mother with that thought.

Like Azula, Kiyi liked to eavesdrop on the adult conversations when she was allegedly in bed already. This was her first time really observing her sister. Azula was a complex character. Her relationship with their mother was most unusual, somewhere between child and therapist.