AN: Sorry for the short chapter. I introduce a new idea here, for the end of the book, so let me know what you think about the dialogue! Thank you for reading!

Her eyes were dilated at the scene she was witnessing.

She was sitting down in casual attire, girls dancing in front of her. The girls were from all around the world, something about "stripping for peace". It was clear that it was only for the image of inclusion, making the statement that they accepted everyone regardless of race (even if they didn't), but Azula wasn't going to complain. The wide variety of beautiful women stripping down for money, dancing in front and on top of her was therapeutic.

The alcohol did help. She didn't want to get blackout drunk—Agni knew what had happened last time she did that—but a few cups of plum wine were bound to help her relax. It wasn't every day that she was reminded that not only did her brother not trust her, but he would also be completely fine with someone killing her. Zuko had been building a relationship with Lee Ten, so even though Azula knew their sibling bond had been strained, she hoped that they could at least be a family. But no.

That little voice saying that she should be Fire Lord never left her mind, but she knew better than to listen to it. It was not her destiny. Being Fire Lord would not make her happy. She knew it, Lee Ten knew it, but it seemed as if nobody else did. Or at least, they didn't believe her, which hurt more. No matter what she would do in the future, everyone would always judge her for the actions of her teenage years.

She had expected everyone to act badly, but a naïve part in her head had thought that the worst that could happen was that everyone was going to yell at her. For some reason, she hadn't expected Katara to actually attempt to murder her in front of her son.

Her son, who was now probably emotionally destroyed, did not deserve to see that outbreak. It was her bad. She should have not done that while he was in the room. She should've planned ahead, taken into account how much Sokka's family hates her, and inferred how the reactions would be. Now Lee Ten was probably emotionally scarred thinking that his family hates him.

During all 14 years of his life, Azula had prided herself on making the best decisions for her son. He was not sheltered from the real world, and he had many opportunities to do as he wished. Some even called her the best mother in the Fire Nation. But the best mother in the Fire Nation would not have exposed her son to a violent waterbender. It was purely luck that Katara had not actually threatened Lee Ten. If she had, Azula would've probably killed her then and there.

The way Zuko had reacted had not been unexpected, but it still hurt. There was no doubt Mai thought the same thing as Zuko and wanted her out of the palace.

But she wouldn't go. Yes, she had implied it, but she wouldn't. The Fire Nation still needed to improve, and it was her duty as the princess to improve the living of her citizens. Zuko would not do it, so she must. Being a doctor had given her the chance to help her citizens hands on, but now it was time to improve their lives in a different way. She would make the Fire Nation great again. After that, and after Lee Ten was married with children, she would count her life as complete. Until then, she had a lot of work to do.

There was also the fact that Ursa—mother—had defended her. She had actually saved her life when nobody else had done anything. She wasn't ready to forgive Ursa for all of her misdoings during her childhood/teenage years, but perhaps they could try to be cordial with each other. It was ironic. The same woman who had essentially banned her from living in the palace was now one of the reasons why she was staying. Forgiving Ursa would be hard, if not impossible, but Azula could see that her mother was actually trying to mend their unmendable relationship.

If they did mend it, at least to some degree, then Azula would be able to have a family. Kiyi had been nothing but sweet to her and Lee Ten, and it seemed as if Ursa was trying her best for there to be something. Azula had thought that maybe Zuko could be part of what she considered family, but it seemed impossible now. He had wanted her to die.

A family like that would not be complete. Lee Ten needed a parental figure, which is what Sokka was offering. He was his real father, and there would be things that Azula just couldn't talk to her son about that maybe Sokka could. There were things about Water Tribe culture that Azula would be unable to teach her son, but that the Water Tribesman would most definitely be able to teach. But did having Sokka be a paternal figure to Lee Ten automatically mean she had to be with him? She wouldn't mind if she was being honest. She was attracted to him, yes, but she wasn't in love with him.

At the moment she wasn't in love with anyone. Yes, Ty Lee was the love of her life, but she wouldn't consider herself in love with the acrobat. She loved Ty Lee, always would, but it was like an idealistic love. Azula could not think of a single instance since she came back to the palace when Ty Lee and she had talked without one of them crying or arguing. It had been similar to what their relationship before had been, except much more direct. Before the princess cheated, they would always keep their mouths shut when they were about to have an argument, but the tension was still there.

But she really wants to make loving Ty Lee an important part of her life. Ever since she was little, she imagined herself being with Ty Lee in her deathbed. They were like a bargain on the market. Get Azula and have a Ty Lee for free. It seemed absurd now.

The women stripping in front of her helped Azula get her mind off of everything. The wine also helped a lot.

"Never thought I'd see you in a strip club." Said a voice from behind. Azula furrowed her eyebrows, unsure of who exactly had spoken.

She turned around and scoffed. "Teach me how you got your eyesight vermin."

Toph grinned and walked forward, bringing a chair to sit at the princess' side.

"I sold my soul to Vaatu."

"That doesn't work. Vaatu only gives people the ability to lie efficiently. I should know." The princess joked.

To her surprise, the blind earthbender actually laughed. "You're funnier than Zuko."

"Not a high bar for a princess."

"True, it's not that big of an achievement for an overachiever." Toph nodded as she got a drink from one of the strippers walking around with free liquor. "So, how come you're here?"

"I could ask you the same thing. You can't even see the strippers."

"True, but I come here for the free booze."

Azula nodded her head. "Understandable. To answer your question, I came here to see the women, and the alcohol, of course."

"Hmm." Toph sipped her drink. "You fucked Sokka."

Azula blinked thrice, taken aback by the nonchalant way the earthbender said what had caused her latest near-death experience.

"…Yes, I did."

"How was it?" Toph further inquired, staring blankly ahead.

"What?" Azula asked

The blind woman shrugged her shoulders. "I'm curious. I used to have a crush on him, so I want to know if I should feel like I wasted time in it or not."

"Why don't you ask Suki?"

"Because Suki's not the one who got pregnant with his child. I assume he gave it his all with you; literally."

Azula stared at the earthbender. She always knew that Toph was blunt, but she didn't expect her to be like that with her. Especially since the spectacle that the dinner had been.

"I don't remember." Azula lied

Toph laughed, which earned the glares of many of the men surrounding them. Azula covered her face, trying to hide herself from the people.

"Could you act a little bit more civilized, simpleton?"

"Oh princess, I didn't know that alcohol affected your ability to lie. Now seriously, tell me, how was he?"

The princess groaned and took a sip from her drink. She looked around to make sure nobody recognizable was in the vicinity, and then turned back towards the blind woman, who sat looking straight ahead with an impassive look.

"He wasn't bad."

"Aw come on!" Toph slammed her drink on the table, somehow miraculously not breaking it, "We're between friends here-"

"Not your friend." Azula interjected

"-so that means we can be open about this type of stuff. So come on now, tell me. I swear I won't tell anyone."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Fine fine, I'll let you be." Toph finally declared, taking some of her drink. The strippers in front of them began to dance to a brand-new song, spicier than the previous one. The lights in the establishment dimmed, making the dancers look even better than before.

"Are you going to get back with Ty Lee, or are you going to be with Sokka?" Toph asked just as one of the dancers was taking off her shirt.

Azula closed her eyes and sighed, trying to control her temper. All she had wanted was to relax in a strip club, watching beautiful women dance and drink booze, but now this blind dimwit was bothering her in ways she had previously thought impossible.

"I don't know, and I don't think this is something I should talk about with you."

Toph chuckled before drinking some of the drink in her glass. "Well, it's better if you talk about it with someone, and I'm the most impartial person you'll meet, so you should try to talk with me about it."

The firebender knew that the Earth Kingdom noble had a valid point. Everyone in the palace either hated her or had reasons to wish her to be with one of the options above the other. She didn't like calling them options, but in a way, that's kind of what they were. Two choices, and for the first time in her life, she was unable to do one when given the chance.

"Fine. In all honesty, I am not sure who I should be with. As you know, Ty Lee has been the person I was supposed to be with for all my life."

"And that's why you cheated on her."

Azula felt a pang on her chest. Guilt. "I was wrong for that, and I know my apologies will do little to bring back everything to normal, but there's not much else I can do. I still love Ty Lee, and deep inside I know that she's the one I truly want to be with…but it just won't work."

"You won't know unless you try." Toph suggested

"But I did try. Fifteen years ago. It started out well, but then there were problems. When I think back, I just see the happy memories, but if I actually look at how things were, I can see that I wasn't really happy. At least not as happy as I was when I was raising Lee Ten." Azula explained

The earthbender nodded her head in understanding. "What about Sokka? What's your dilemma with him?"

"Everything!" The princess exclaimed. "He got me pregnant and then denied any responsibility, and now he comes to tell me that he loves me and would do anything for me. But how can I trust his words if he abandoned me back then so easily? Yet, there's some part of me that wants nothing more than a family. You know, the conventional father, mother, and a couple of kids. Sokka can give me that, he even offered that. If I say no to Sokka, my lifelong dream, my happiness will be forever gone.

"He's not the person I love. I know how awfully obnoxious I must sound right now, but it's the truth. It's either being with the person I love but cannot live with, or have a family with a person I like, but not love. Perhaps I can grow to love him in the future, but there's no guarantee."

"Why do you want to be with someone so desperately?"

Azula furrowed her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Being single is always an option. By what you're saying, it seems as if you're conflicted because you don't know your priorities. You're awfully conflicted, which doesn't allow you to make good decisions. If you don't know what you truly want, then it wouldn't be fair for you, whoever you choose, or Lee Ten. The best way to know yourself is being my yourself."

"I have been by myself for fifteen years!"

Toph grinned. "That's true, but you were never thinking about yourself. All your thought were concentrated on Lee Ten, right? Everything revolved around raising him in a good environment. You need time for yourself, truly dedicated to yourself."

Azula looked at her drink as she swirled it around. "I won't be an absent parent."

"Right, because being in a strip club while your son is probably crying doesn't make you Worst Mother of the Year." Toph joked. When Azula didn't laugh, Toph cleared her throat. "What I'm saying is that it won't do any good to anyone if you become involved with someone you don't desire or don't see yourself having a future with. Don't rush into anything. If it's not meant to be, it's not meant to be, so don't force it."

"But Lee Ten wants a family. In four years, he'll be an adult, so there's not that much time for me to give him a family."

Toph furrowed her eyebrows. "That is the most absurd reasoning I have ever heard Princess. Just because he turns eighteen in four years does not mean that you need to plan your life in that span of time. He's still going to be part of your life after he becomes an adult. Besides, he already has a family, so you shouldn't pressure yourself on giving him a family."

"What family are you talking about? You saw what happened at that dinner table."

"Yes, Katara was out of line. And yes, Zuko turned into a tyrannical maniac king. But your mother stood up for you, Kiyi comforted Lee Ten afterwards, and Hakoda stopped Katara from attacking Sokka after he declared his love for you. Even if you don't notice it right now, there are plenty of people who you can consider Lee Ten's family. He now has a father, an aunt, but most importantly, he has your unconditional love. Even if it were only you two, he would still have a family. Family does not need to be perfect; it just needs to be made out of love. And if you love him as much as you show you do, then that kid will have no reason to believe he doesn't have a family."

Azula looked at the Beifong and smiled. Everything that the earthbender had said was true. When she was in Ido, she never felt as if she was lacking a family. Only when she came back to the palace did she begin to overanalyze her life and her future, not letting herself be she again.

The princess was about to reply before a man burst through the doors with sweat on his forehead. His armpit was full of sweat, and he was panting as if he had just run a marathon. His brown eyes showed panic, and the way he trembled further supported the idea that the young man was agitated by something he had seen.

"T-there's been an attack on the Royal Palace! The Workers Socialist Movement has attacked the palace!"