"Aang, I know swimming is fun and all, but do you really think you should be exposing yourself like that? Cover up!"

"What? I'm wearing trunks."

Elyrie only heard the muffled bickering of Aang and Toph. Her ears were submerged as she was floating on her back in the warm water of the hot springs. She felt the sun warm up her bare skin and a pleasant tingle went over her entire body.

It had been a long time since she felt this relaxed.

"Don't worry," she swam back in the direction of Toph, who was dangling her feet in the water, "We are surrounded by volcanic rocks." She motioned upwards to the cliffs surrounding them, along with the waterfalls.

"Besides," she added as she dipped her head down and submerged herself for the last time before coming up again, "We are in the most quiet part of the country. This island is quite remote and nothing ever happens here."

She massaged her scalp until all the kohl had been washed from her hair, eyebrows and face. The remains drove away in a mirky cloud on the surface of the water.

"Good to see the brown again," Sokka commented with a grin when she shook out her wet hair.

"Black didn't suit me, did it?" Elyrie shrugged as she combed her finger through the wet strands. Inspecting her fingers, she saw no more black stains. Good, she thought to herself.

"Made you look sulky and sombre." Sokka nodded, "Like someone from the Fire Nation."

He ducked from a splash of water Elyrie shoved in his direction. With the motion, one could have mistook her for a waterbender.

"Hey!" Sokka looked up, droplets falling from his hair, "You made me lose my fish." At the end of the rod, only a small empty hook was dangling.

"I do apologize," Elyrie said casually as she warmed up her body temperature. A small cloud of steam evaporated from her hair and skin. Within moments, she was completely dry and put on her clothes.

"Neat trick," Aang said admiringly.

"Do you want me to show you how to do it?" Elyrie offered as she tied her hair in a small topknot, "It is quite a basic technique."

"No, thank you." Aang said as he ran off to the waterslide.

Elyrie arched an eyebrow. "He has to start someday, right?" she asked Sokka, but he only lifted his shoulders and Katara mimicked her brothers reaction.

Toph exhaled through her nostrils in response. "He still hasn't mastered Earthbending, so that needs work too."

"Well, he should at least make a start." Elyrie insisted as she lit up her palm. The fire danced over her fingers, stretching out just past her nails. The pleasant warmth tickled her skin. She clenched her fist shut and aimed at a nearby rock.

The fireball left black scorch marks on the surface, as well as a solid dent about the size of a watermelon - a watermelon from very fertile volcanic grounds.

Just above the dent, a crack was visible sneaking it's way up. Elyrie lit up her fist again and aimed at the exact same spot. The rock cracked in half, sending some pieces of stone high in the air. After a few seconds the boulder broke off and landed with a crash on the ground.

"Nice job, Princess." Toph commented from 30 metres away.

"Thanks! Must be all the Earthbending you threw in my direction." Elyrie answered with a small glitter of pride, "Hard work does pay off."

It was true and it was amazing to see as she watched the remains of the rock crumble off. Only a few more weeks and she would be able to blast herself through thick stone walls.

Now, I wonder… she mused as she lifted her hand again. Placing her thumb against her middle- and indexfinger, she inhaled deeply. As she snapped, she aimed for a smaller rock.

Only a few sparks flew from her fingers. She sighed defeated before she turned back to the others. "Does anyone need anything from the market?"

His Father was punishing him, Zuko was certain of it. Or at least torturing him.

For what other reason could he possibly have to banish him, along with his sister and her friends for a weekend on Ember Island. No matter what Azula claimed, he felt like a child being sent away. Again.

So now he was forced to sit on the scorching sand under a parasol, along with a gloomy Mai – covered in black lace and satin, matching her mood.

And, to top it al off, he had the unforgettable image of Lo and Li in bathing suits that was imprinted on his eyeballs. He resisted the urge to boil water and rinse his eyes with it - but just barely.

Mai sighed next to him. Annoyed, he looked over at her solemn face. The ends of her mouth dipped down, her lower lip stuck out and her eyes were empty.

He leaned back on his elbows, spotting a pink shell next to him. It was curved in a spiral with a lovely pink tint. He felt the corners of his mouth tip. Elyrie had found one just like.. No. He interrupted his own thoughts.

But he did pick up the shell and inspected it's smooth surface. It was gorgeous. With a soft smile, he turned to Mai. "This is for you."

He expected her face to light up, or to at least make her smile. But her face remained as impassive as ever. "Why would I want that?" her tone was bored.

"I saw it, and I thought it was pretty," Zuko said defensively, "Don't girls like stuff like this?"

"Maybe stupid girls." Mai scoffed.

"Forget it!" Zuko snapped as he threw the shell away. He stood up, kicked some sand and walked in the direction of the water. Mai didn't even call him back.

Zuko watched as another guy picked up the shell and raced towards Ty Lee to offer it to her with a wide grin. "Thanks! It is so pretty!" he heard Ty Lee exclaim enthusiastically.

He sighed as he watch Ty Lee giggle and the guy flirt with her. It may not be the attention he wanted, but a little joy would have been nice. Had he expected that from Mai? Had he expected to see her jump for joy?

Of course not. He knew that. It would be unfair to expect that of her.

He turned away and overlooked the horizon. The waves playfully rolled over his bare feet and the sun warmed his pale skin. He should relax and enjoy he moment. He had done it before on a beach, not too long ago.

"Guys!" Toph voice cut through the silence of the night, ""You're all gonna think I'm crazy, but it feels like a metal man is coming."

Elyrie, who had been awake anyway, sat up immediately. She heard Aang groan next to her as a small light reflected on his sleepy face. Her eyes followed the line of the source up the walls of the rocks.

The light reflected from a silhouette standing atop the cliffs. In the corner of her eye, Elyrie saw Sokka clenching his sword. Her own hands went to her thighs, where her fans were attached.

Then, a bright light illuminated the spring for a moment. Before she could register what was happening, an explosion landed just a few metres from their camping spot. The hot air blew in her face and she felt herself being thrown away by the impact.

She landed rough on her side, covering her face from the pebbles and dust that followed. Coughing loudly, she lifted herself up as she wiped the dust from her eyes. As she squinted her eyes in the dark, she tried to make out obviously dangerous situation they had found themselves in.

Toph reacted faster and steadied herself on the earth. The next wave was coming – from whatever it was. She hadn't time to comprehend as she saw Toph erect a rock slide to shield them from the attack.

It didn't deter the attacker as he launched another explosion, completely disintegrating the rocks in an instant.

Elyrie dove behind the rock nearest to her. A few metres next to her, she saw that Aang, Katara and Sokka were crouching down as well.

"This is crazy!" Sokka yelled above the sound of the explosion that followed, "How do we beat a guy who blows stuff up with his mind?!"

Combustion bending, quickly passed Elyrie's thoughts. A rare bending ability.

"We can!" Aang yelled back, "Go to Appa!"

"I'll cover!" Elyrie shouted back. Peaking over the rock, her eyes could just make out the silhouette coming down the cliffs. She waited for the moment for him to light his combustion bending, which started with a small light from the source.

In a flash, she saw it and aimed a fireball to redirect the attack. Mid-air, a major explosion erupted when her flames and the combustion collided.

The smoke gave them the needed cover as they made their way to Appa. But just as Elyrie stepped outside of the smoke, she was knocked back for the second time. An explosion was aimed just before her and she fell hard on her back. With the air knocked out of her lungs, she coughed hard.

Standing up, she turned around when she heard the sound of metal and rock colliding. In the corner of her eye, she saw a glister in the moonlight. In a reflex, she ducked - just fast enough to escape from the metal claw that lunged for her.

Propelling herself upwards with her bending, she made her way over the rocks that surrounded them. Jumping along with her fireblasts, she hopped over the stones. Higher, she repeated to herself, higher, and don't look down. One foot in front of the other, she reached the edge of the cliffs. Barely two metres wide, she steadied herself as she turned around. Behind her she only saw smoke. No sign of Appa, the rest or the faceless man.

She had hoped that the confusion would temporarily hold him off. But not even a second after she landed on the edge of the cliffs, she heard the rocks shake behind her. As if it was nothing, the man walked with long strides along the walls of the cliffs - his metal leg and arm giving him the balance he needed.

Elyrie ran away as the man followed her, blocking her from a distance with smaller explosions at her feet. Her breathing came in small puffs as she tried to jump over the explosions without losing her balance. Her steps became faster and faster. Her lungs were screaming for air, before she tripped on the rough ground near the edge of the waterfall.

There was nowhere she could turn now. It was too high to jump down. He would follow her down anyway, or block her with another explosion.

The silhouette inched closer. She stepped back in a reflex and saw the pebbles fall down behind her heel. No use in running now, she thought through gritted her teeth. She drew her fans from her sides and unshielded them, taking a fighting stance.

He was close enough now to make out his figure. He was at least 2 metres long, with a very brawny build. The muscles rippled along his arms and chest. But on one side, his arm and leg were replaced by shiny metal prostates. His face was impassive: bald with a dark beard. His most distinctive feature was the tattooed third eye, right in the middle of his forehead.

She was certain she had never seen him before – a third eye she would have remembered.

"Who are you? What do you want?" she asked, trying to win some time.

The man didn't answer as he reached out his metal hand towards her. She jumped sidewards and swung her fan upwards to his chin. His head snapped back when the metal slapped him but he made no sound.

She lit up her left hand and attacked again, but he blocked the second attack almost effortlessly as his metal claw closed around her upper arm.

She cried out. It was as if a metal chain was getting wrapped too tight around her skin. The fire extinguished from her fingertips as quickly as if a candle had been blown out.

She swung her free arm to his head, her fan unshielded. But the man simply blocked her attack by raising his elbow and knocking her hand away from him.

Gritting her teeth from frustration and pain, Elyrie struggled as she tried to wriggle herself free. "Let go!" she cried, heating up her feet to do a fire kick. But the only leg she was able to hit was his metal one.

The man didn't even blink when she kicked him with all her might. He remained stoic, letting her struggle without releasing his grip on her.

In her panic, Elyrie saw all different outcomes cross her mind. Kidnapping, murder, torture… Why had he caught her? Why was he targeting them?

But even in her desperation she realised that if he wanted to kill her, he could have done it by now. And he hadn't.

That clarity gave her some peace. Just enough to breath in and out, heightening her temperature. Channelling her anger, she inhaled through her nose and lifted her chin to him. She held her breath for a moment before she exhaled like Uncle taught her.

Flames sprung from her lips like a fountain, directly in the face of her attacker. With a growl, the man pushed her away in a reflex. The flames were by no means as enormous or deadly as the ones the Dragon of the West could channel, but they were effective. The front of his shirt was scorched and the skin of his neck was glowing red. With a slap of his good hand, he extinguished the last flames that smouldered on his clothing.

For the first time, Elyrie saw a flicker of anger reflected in his eyes. But only for a moment as he lunged for her arm again with stoic precision. She had been expecting this and spun out of the way, under his arm. In her movement, she nicked the side of his abdomen with her unshielded fan. The fabric ripped and she saw that she had drawn blood.

Just as the man was about to turn to her, Elyrie saw a large silhouette cross the night sky as a rain of icicles descended down on them. Expertly aimed by Katara, they avoided her and slammed down on the nameless assailant. With a grunt, the man tried to protect himself from the razor-sharp icicles. Elyrie saw that they had cut his skin, leaving a trail of blood on his arms.

As Katara aimed more attacks at the man, Appa dipped behind them just under the cliff.

"Jump!" she heard Sokka's voice shout below her. Without a second thought, she turned around and jumped down. She felt the metal fingers grab the fabric of her skirt, but the thin fabric ripped as she toppled over the edge.

For a moment, she felt weightless in the air before gravity took over. The air swirled around her and the adrenaline pumped. Her eyes became watery, but she extended her hand to the outstretched arm of Sokka.

She landed hard in the saddle, still trembling. On her hands and knees, she caught her breath. Every inhale of air hurt her.

"Are you okay?" Katara asked, her enormous blue eyes wide in shock.

Elyrie only nodded as she looked around the group. Everyone seemed to have escaped relatively unharmed, albeit shaken.

"That was random." Toph murmured as she sat hunched over.

"I don't think so. I get the feeling he knows who we are." Katara answered as she looked over her shoulder.

"He definitely knows who we are." Elyrie agreed as her thought finally settled down. She stretched her arm as she inspected the bruises on her upper arm. Her heart was racing and her breathing was hitched, but she was able to see things a little cleared now the adrenaline lessened.

The man knew who they were. The question was: what did he want with them? With her?

The night on Ember Island was quiet. The moon was covered by wispy thin clouds, leaving enough light to see the ocean and the dunes surrounding the prestigious beach house.

Zuko hadn't been planning to visit the abandoned beach house, but after the disastrous evening he was drawn up the familiar path. He halted for a moment as he look up to the building. Once, the house had been the most beautiful one on the island. The roof had been a deep cranberry colour, with the edges curved upwards. Gold decorated the rims of the rooftop. The doors and windows were ebony wood, with accents of gold as well. But in the night, all the colour seemed to have been drained even more. The once brightly white walls were now greying.

Zuko reached for the doorhandle, but it was locked from the inside. He pulled again, before he lifted his foot and kicked the decaying wooden door open without effort.

The wind blew in from behind him and the old house seemed to sigh from the invasion. It was obvious that no one had been here in a long time. The musty smell of rotting and salt invaded his senses as he stepped inside.

The open room seemed smaller somehow, after all these years. The wooden planks on the floor creaked as he walked over them. He placed his hand on the railing of the once magnificent staircase leading to the first floor. His fingers left a trail in the dust.

We used to come every summer when we were kids.

"That was a long time ago." Zuko whispered to himself as he led his eyes go over the dust-covered cabinet at the top of the stairs. He reached for the stone imprinted with his own baby hand print. His mother had made it with him, he remembered. She had gently placed his hand on the wet plaster to make this.

He lifted it up and placed his hand on it. It seemed so much smaller now.

He looked up to the portrait hanging above the cabinet. He saw himself and Azula sitting in front of their parents. The hand of his father was placed on his shoulder. His father's face was as stern as he remembered, but it seemed softer on the canvas.

At last, he looked at the face of his mother. She was as beautiful as he remembered: her regal face, her ravenblack hair and her friendly golden eyes. Her slender hands, playing the piano. Her soft voice.

It had been a long time since he had seen his mother's face.

That was another life. A life in which he built sandcastles with Lu Ten; a life filled with moments with his mother; al life where he took walks with his father in the dunes and played with Azula on the beach.

He sighed and took the portrait of the wall. With the picture and the plaster, he walked back outside. For what felt like hours, he sat down on the old porch with the plaster in his hand and the family portrait laying beside him.

"I thought I might find you here," Azula's voice cut through the silence of the night.

Zuko didn't have to look up to know she was still dressed in her party clothing, just like he was. Trying to be normal at that awful party at Chan's. As if they could ever be normal.

"Those summers we spent here seem so long ago." He said as he still looked down the plaster in his hand, "So much has changed."

"Come down to the beach with me," Azula said, her voice soft, "Come on. This place is depressing." Zuko followed her, leaving his plaster behind on the porch. The picture, however, he did take with him.

Brother and sister walked in companiable silence alongside each other. How often had they walked this path together as kids? Zuko wondered if it had been ten years – it had been before their Father became the Fire Lord. Before their mother vanished.

What could Azula remember about their mother? After all, she had been two years younger than he had been when they had last seen her. She had been eleven, maybe twelve?

He didn't ask her. He didn't want to spoil this rare moment of companionship with his sister. And far too soon for his liking, they reached Mai and Ty Lee on the beach.

His annoyance flared when he looked at Mai's solemn face. The reason he had left the party early was because of a fight with her. She and Ruon-Jian had looked a little to cosy for his liking.

"Hey." Mai said when she saw them approaching.

"Where's your boyfriend?" Zuko sneered at her. But she didn't react. Of course, he thought irritated, as if she could be bothered to care. But again, could he blame her? Hadn't she always been like this?

"Are you cold?" he asked instead as he sat down next to her. He carefully placed a hand on her shoulder, but she slapped him away. Zuko sighed.

"I'm freezing!" Ty Lee exclaimed.

"I'll make a fire," Zuko gave her a small smile, "There is plenty to burn down here."

After a few minutes, he had assembled enough dry wood to make a comfortable fire. He lit up his fist and ignited the small pyre. As the fire grew, he looked at the picture he brought with him – the one with his family. For a moment, he glanced at it before he tossed it in the fire.

"What are you doing?" Ty Lee asked with a shocked expression.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Zuko asked, his voice slightly more challenging than he had intended.

"But, it's a painting of your family?" Ty Lee answered.

"You think I care?" Zuko said angrily as the last remains of the picture disappeared in the orange flames. She started to sounds suspiciously like another brunette.

"I think you do." She answered softly.

"You don't know me, so why don't you just mind your own business?!" Zuko sneered at her as he turned away from the campfire.

"I know you." Ty Lee whispered.

"No, you don't!" Zuko yelled. "You're stuck in your little 'Ty Lee'- world where everything's great all the time!"

"Zuko, leave her alone." Mai cut in with a frown.

Zuko shot her an angry glare. He had more than enough of sombre, emotionless girls. But a chatty, lively girl that had everything handed to her – now, that opened some wounds,

Yes, you are spoiled rotten. You say you want change and that you want more, but you sit around passively waiting for things to magically solve itself.

But she wasn't here now to feist his anger and frustration on, so Ty Lee had to do.

"I'm so pretty. Look at me. I can walk on my hands. Whoo!" Zuko imitated Ty Lee's high voice as he did a handstand. Then he let himself fall over on the sand. "Circus freak."

He heard Azula snicker behind him, before Ty Lee yelled at him. "Yes, I'm a circus freak!" He heard the emotion in her voice, "Go ahead and laugh all you want. You want to know why I joined the circus?"

"Here we go." Azula said in a bored tone.

"Do you have any idea what my home life was like? Growing up with six sisters who look exactly like me?" she said, her voice thick with tears. Zuko turned on his stomach to sit up and look at her. He felt a pang in his chest when he saw the hurt in her eyes.

"It was like I didn't even have my own name," she continued as she fell down on her knees, tears dripping from her cheeks on the sand, "I joined the circus because I was scared of spending the rest of my life as part of a matched set. At least I'm different now!" Her grey eyes found his as she finished angrily, "'Circus freak' is a compliment!"

"Guess that explains why you need ten boyfriends, too." Mai said.

"I'm sorry, what?" Ty Lee asked indignantly. She sat up on her knees and placed her balled fists on her hips.

"Attention issues. You couldn't get enough attention when you were a kid, so you're trying to make up for it now." Mai explained in a monotone voice.

Zuko cocked an eyebrow at her explanation. Ty Lee certainly had her fair share of admirers, but he never saw the harm in that. Men were naturally drawn to her lively persona. He of all people could know how elevating it was to have a ray of sunshine near you - sometimes.

"Well, what's your excuse, Mai?" Ty Lee bit back, "You were an only child for fifteen years, but even with all that attention, your aura is this dingy, pasty, gray ..."

"I don't believe in aura's." was Mai's only reply.

"Yeah, you do not believe in anything." Zuko said as he stood up.

"Oh, well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy as the rest of you." Mai replied sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, too," Zuko answered as he walked back to the campfire, "I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once instead of keeping all your feeling bottled up inside! She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?"

"What do you want from me? You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well, it wasn't," Mai answered as she leaned back and folded her arms under her head, "I was a rich only child who got anything I wanted, as long as I behaved. And sat still. And didn't speak unless spoken to." Zuko heard a quiver of emotion in her voice as she continued, "My mother said I had to keep out of trouble. We had my dad's political career to think about."

Elyrie's father had a political career, but she never suppressed her emotions like this, Zuko thought involuntarily.

"Well, that's it, then." Azula shrugged, "You have a controlling mother who had certain expectations, and if you strayed from them, you were shut down. That's why you're afraid to care about anything, and why you can't express yourself."

"You want me to express myself?" Mai suddenly shouted as she jumped up, "Leave me alone!"

"I like it when you express yourself." Zuko said as he extended his hand to her, but she slapped him away again.

"Don't touch me! I'm still mad at you." Mai sat down again and turned away from him.

Zuko felt the anger flare up in his chest again. "My life hasn't been that easy either, Mai!" he said annoyed.

"Whatever. That doesn't excuse the way you've been acting." She answered with a shrug.

"Calm down, you guys!" Ty Lee interjected in her usual airy tone, "This much negative energy is bad for your skin. You'll totally break out."

"Break out?!" Zuko spun around angrily, "Normal teenagers worry about bad skin. I don't have that luxury! My father decided to teach me a permanent lesson on my face!" He leaned forward and pointed to the left side of his face.

"Sorry Zuko, I.." Ty Lee began, but Zuko cut her off again.

"For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy!" he cried out, "I'm back home now, my dad talks to me. He even thinks I'm a hero!" For a brief moment, his eyes met his sister's, "Everything should be perfect, right? I should be happy now, but I'm not. I'm angrier than ever and I don't know why!"

"There's a simple question you need to answer, then. Who are you angry at?" Azula asked.

"No one," Zuko answered, shaking his head, "I'm just… angry."

"Yeah, who are you angry at, Zuko?" Mai asked.

"Everyone." He pressed his palms against his temples in frustration. "I don't know."

"Is it Dad?" Azula asked.

"No, no!" Zuko answered quickly.

"Your Uncle?"

"Me?"

"Elyrie?"

"No, no!" Zuko felt the tension stifling him.

"Then who? Who are you angry at?"

"Answer the question, Zuko!"

In less than a second, a million images crossed his mind.

He saw his Uncle, bound in chains and brought to a cell on the ship. He had disappointed him, turned against him; He heard Elyrie's scream still ringing in his ears. Her hateful glare aimed at him; He felt the tension in is chest as he thought of Father's praise for killing the Avatar.

"I am angry at myself!" he finally roared. In his rage, he bended the campfire to an enormous blaze upward. The heat spread through his body while he kept looking at the flames They danced before him, forming pictures and images. He saw his own face, his Uncle's eyes and her vivacious blue eyes, who looked at him with blazing fury.

The embers danced in the black night, before dying out in the sand.

"Why?" Azula asked as the fire simmered down.

"Because I'm confused. Because I'm not sure I know the difference between right and wrong anymore." He sighted defeated.

"You're pathetic." Azula sneered.

"I know one thing I care about." he heard Mai's voice behind him. She placed her hand on his back as she leaned into his frame, "I care about you."

She inched forward and Zuko responded to her kiss, but her lips felt cold. A slow clap behind them made him draw away from her and turn around.

"Well, those were wonderful performances, everyone." Azula commented sarcastically.

"I guess you wouldn't understand, would you, Azula? Zuko asked, "Because you're just so perfect." Born lucky.

"Well, yes, I guess you're right. I don't have sob stories like all of you," his sister shrugged, "I could sit here and complain how our mom liked Zuko more than me, but I don't really care." She stared in the flames for a moment, "My own mother… thought I was a monster."

Zuko saw a shimmer in the amber eyes of his sister. What is wrong with that child? Their mother had asked, when Azula once again so carelessly disregarded others feelings. Was she remembering it too?

"You know, she was right but it still hurts." Azula lifted her chin after a momentary pause and pushed her black hair over her shoulder in a careless motion.

Zuko only shook his head. Some things would simply never change.

Mai sat in the windowsill of her room. The crashing of the waves below the window were soft and melodious. The moon was half full, shining it's bright light over the calm water. This had to be the darkest hour of the night - their talk on the beach was hours ago. And so had been the trashing of Chan's party.

She turned her head to watch Zuko's silhouette in the bed. His back was turned to her and he was asleep. She could tell by the slow rising and falling of his shoulders with every breath.

She had offered to spend the night together, but Zuko had refused to allow anything more to happen. After tonight, she might have thought he was ready to open himself up a bit more to her. But after the talk on the beach, he had become withdrawn again.

Sightly irritated, she slipped a shuriken out of her sleeve and threw it to the wooden panel of the windowsill. He had accused her of bottling up her feelings and yet he refused to open up himself.

She had even told him she loved him, but he hadn't said it back at her.

It hurt more than she could bare, that he kept a part of him secret. Was it her own fault? I didn't ask for your whole life story. Had she been wrong to be so gruff?

But she still believed that he cared for her. He had never had a girlfriend, so maybe he was just getting used to this?

He turned in his sleep, muttering something incomprehensible. His breath became more and more rigid. Mai slipped from her spot and walked over to the bed. Her long fingers touched his forehead. He was drenched in sweat.

His eyes snapped open and he grabbed her wrist, pushing her away from him.

"Zuko," Mai shushed him, "It's okay, I am here. What's the matter?"

"Nothing." He said as he gently pushed her arms away, "I'm going to my own room."

Mai didn't say anything as she watched him disappear in the dark corridor. For a moment, he halted in the door. He turned around and her heart skipped a beat.

But the golden eyes didn't look at her. He gazed past her through open window. Then he disappeared in the dark.

Mai turned and walked to the window. For a moment, she looked at the brilliant moon in the sky. Then, she slammed the shutters shut.

Across the waves, another woman was gazing at the same moon. Even though they were a hundred miles apart from each other, the two women shared the same thoughts.

Elyrie let her head rest against the stones. They had chosen to camp on a rocky side near the beach, out of sight of anyone but open enough to make an escape if need be. She sighed and prayed for a quiet night - she couldn't more distress.

Tears flowed down her cheeks and she tried to quiet her sobs as not to disturb the others. Well, that was only part of the reason: she mainly didn't want to talk to anyone.

That afternoon, she had picked up gossip in town. Today, she had heard that the Prince was relishing in his return to the Capital. That he had killed the Avatar. That Fire Lord Ozai had welcomed the conquering heroes of the Siege of Ba Sing Se.

Now that was bad enough to relive. She had accepted her defeat in the Catacombs, although it still stung. Zuko betrayed her in the Catacombs. She knew from the moment that Azula offered him his home and his honour, the battle was lost.

Tentatively, she let her fingers caress the scarred flesh of her shoulder. She pushed herself up and swiftly walked away from the camping site as she let her thoughts flow.

She remembered the old stories about lost loves she used to read as a child. She had soaked up the flowery language as she turned the pages and read about the two lovers who had been kept apart due to forces greater than themselves. They had done anything to get back together when the time came and leave everything behind if they needed to.

She had often dreamed about such deep, devoted love. The kind of love that crosses borders, languages, even death. She had imagined that she would find that love, even though she didn't know his face yet.

An ironic smile crossed her lips as she remembered the nights she tried to envision the man who would capture her heart and soul. He had a million faces, a million shades of hair, but never the one that lingered in her thoughts now.

The golden eyes, the ravenblack hair, the red scar across his left eye. The straight nose, his high cheekbones. His lips, which seldom formed a smile unless she pried one from him. His deep voice.

But as she let her thoughts float far away from her, back to the stories where the big 'why' question was always debated, she realised that they were just that: stories. It was not happening to her - he would never find his way back to her.

Zuko never could see beyond the point he had now reached. No matter who it was – Uncle, his own mother or she -, nobody could heal the scars Ozai had left him with. Their loving presence was something he didn't feel like he deserved because he didn't suffer for it.

It might have been wishful thinking that she believed that he knew what was more important – that he would choose her.

"Why?" she whispered to the air out loud as the teardrops fell down her cheeks. She began to run to the beach. The deep sand caught her by surprise as her feet got stuck. She fell forwards, landing on her palms. She started slamming and kicking the sand away before her.

"You selfish, dishonourable, cowardly,-" she cursed out loud, using words her mother would definitely have chastised her for. The dam had broken and everything poured through the opening. She didn't just cry anymore – she howled. Tears streamed down her cheeks and the sparks flew from her lips as she cursed all that Zuko had done.

She punched and slammed the sand beneath her. Her tears continued to fall down, while her fist scorched the grains of sand.

After what felt like hours, she stopped. But she didn't feel any lighter. It hurt so bad.

"Have you even thought about how this is for me, Zuko?" with teary eyes, she looked out over the water. She had allowed his name to cross her lips again. But she knew that deep inside her, he had never left. No matter how hard she had tried to block him out the past weeks.

"Elyrie?"

Elyrie turned around and saw a very sleepy-eyed Toph standing behind her. She sighed: it had been naïve to think that a girl who could sense a metal man from hundreds of metres away, would miss her sneaking off.

"Are you all right?" Toph asked tentatively, her voice far softer than Elyrie was used to. Involuntarily, she smiled. She was bruised and battered, but she would be damned if she let him break her.

"No," she answered as she wiped away her tears before she straightened her back, "But I will be."

Merry Christmas :)