Author's Note: Hi all, Argon here! This is another of my fics that has been sitting on AO3 for a while and now I'm bringing it over to FFnet for everyone here to enjoy. This is another Azulaang piece, and one that's being worked on in the same time as my cooking fic, The Way to Cook, so don't think that they'll be abandoned anytime soon! Hope you enjoy this start to Aang and Azula's adventures, and please read and review!

Summary: It is Azula's tenth birthday, and she wakes up not in her quarters at the Palace, but in an unfamiliar forest in the Spirit World. Her mind is troubled, weighed down by the death of her cousin Lu Ten, and the disappearance of her mother Ursa. As she tries to make her way out and find a way home, she encounters a strange boy in robes of yellow and orange. Where could this path lead her?

A canon divergent AU where Azula disappears into the Spirit World every year on her birthday, and runs into Aang each time. Their adventures would change her fate, and that of everyone around her.

Chapter 1: Ten

She awakened to the feeling of grass on her face. Wait, grass?

In a lightning-fast jolt, Azula sat up and readied herself for nearby threats. The feel of the rough ground beneath her feet meant she sure wasn't in her bedroom anymore. If this was a kidnapping, she needed to make some noise, and quick!

"Guards! Guards— "

Her cry for help stopped the moment Azula got her first look at where she was. An empty field, surrounded by dense woods. Which was strange, because she sure didn't remember ever getting here. It became a lot stranger as she looked closer, because last time she checked, the world wasn't supposed to be tinted blue.

"Zuzu?"

Azula thought her brother might have had something to do with this. But this felt… different. Was it a good different or a bad different? She had no idea.

"Mai?" Perhaps her friends had done something during the night? "Ty Lee?"

In response, Azula got only silence, and the rustling of those distant trees against the wind. She was alone in this forest, and probably very far from the safety of the Palace. That unnerved her just a little.

"…Mother?" She called out, knowing it was likely useless. Her mother was gone, disappeared in the night just days ago.

"…Father?"

Again, no response but the wind in her hair. Not a single thing. Whatever happened to her, it couldn't have been natural. The slightly blue grass beneath her feet only made things stranger. Where in Agni's name was she?

A closer look at the ground told her nothing, other than it looked just like the same grass in the Palace courtyards. Aside for that blue part. She needed to know more to even begin guessing where she was. And so, Azula began making her way towards the forest, hoping she could find an answer there.

As the forest came ever closer, she could feel a fog closing in as the smell of mist tickled her nose. She thought it rather nice, until she began entering the dense woods. That very fog became much more sinister as it blocked her view and darkened the forest. She felt a slight tingle of fear creep up her spine as she went further and further into the tree-covered darkness.

It wasn't long before a chill seeped in, a cold which didn't feel natural. It seemed to strike right to her very core. Maybe a small flame would help, she thought. She directed some of her breath towards her right palm and prepared for the warmth of her blue fire.

Nothing. Not even a puff of smoke emerged from her hand. She tried again, thinking she'd just forgotten some of her breathing techniques.

Yet not a single hint of blue flame was to be found. She brought her hand to her cheek and thought it cold to the touch. She didn't manage even a little heat. How?

As she marched on, trying again and again to make some kind of flame, Azula became more and more desperate as every attempt failed. This couldn't be real, she thought. This couldn't be real! Her fire! It couldn't be gone, just like that!

While the terror sank in, however, she noticed something different in the trees. The blue tint that once covered the entire forest seemed to be giving way to something else. A slight yellow glow in the distance. She decided to follow it, hoping it would lead her somewhere a little less scary.

She followed this hunch of hers for a bit, curious and just slightly afraid, still trying to make even the tiniest of flames without success. That is, until she heard something snap in the distance. A dry twig, most likely. And then, as she listened carefully, there was the sound of something—or someone—stepping over dry leaves. She wasn't alone here after all.

Azula quickly readied herself for danger and did her best to find out who this might be. Tiptoeing her way to the source of those footsteps, she could see a glimpse of… bright orange?

It was a boy. A bald one, too. In weird robes of bright yellow and orange, no less. She watched and followed as this strange boy wandered through the forest, almost floating through the air as he walked. She let out a breath of relief. Of all the strangers she could have run into, this boy seemed the least dangerous. But that did not mean she could be complacent.

That relief was quickly replaced with surprise when the mysterious boy seemed to sense her presence and suddenly froze in place. Seeing him begin to turn around, she darted behind a large tree and prepared herself for a confrontation.

"Hello?"

Well, that did it. He knew she was there now. Great job, Azula.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

She did not answer.

"I'm sorry if I scared you. Are you still there?"

At least he sounded harmless. She turned around and stepped into view of this strange boy.

"Greetings."

Said boy seemed to brighten up greatly when he saw her. She found it suspiciously naïve.

"Hi! I'm Aang!"

Azula quickly went into a firebending stance when this boy—Aang—decided to approach her. Even though that was likely futile, seeing as her fire's nowhere to be found.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to freak you out, just wanted to say hi."

As if she would be freaked out by a mere stranger approaching her, Azula scoffed.

"I'm simply being wary of strangers."

"You're right, it's always good to be careful!" The boy's beyond-cheerful tone somehow brought a little warmth to her. It reminded her of Ty Lee. "It's nice to meet you—um—I'm sorry, I didn't ask for your name."

Could she risk it? Could she reveal her identity so carelessly? Something in this boy's manners screamed "trustworthy", so she made the jump.

"I'm Azula."

"That's a lovely name, Azula. Are you a firebender? I noticed your stance when I freaked you out a little. Sorry about that."

Azula noticed a few things behind this boy's lightning-quick words. He's observant, that she could tell. Even worse, he already knew something about her, but she still knew only his name. Her lessons in conversation warned against this imbalance.

"I am, yes. Why?"

"Because… I don't think bending works around here."

Was that even possible? For a place to simply block out all bending? Her lessons now were getting more serious about firebending and its source, but even they didn't have anything about losing bending like that.

"How?"

"Well… bending's only a human world thing. Not here. Not in the Spirit World."

"You're joking. That's only a fairy tale."

"There's no reason it can't be both. All I know is that my bending's useless here."

So, he's a bender too? That she couldn't even tell. Her lessons on the other nations covered their bending styles, but this boy's behaviour was nothing like that of the Water Tribes, or the Earth Kingdom! Unless…? She was wondering why he had a bright blue arrow tattooed on his forehead.

"Are you… are you an airbender?"

"Yep!" In his cheerful style, this boy Aang had just shocked her completely. How could this be? Azula knew all the airbenders had been destroyed for good by her great-grandfather a hundred years ago.

"I've never met an Air Nomad before."

She decided not to mention their demise to Aang.

"Well, now you've met one. So, how did you get here?"

"All I remember is going to sleep last night and waking up here and that's it. How about you?"

"I… I was stuck in a big storm. Over the sea somewhere. Appa—my sky bison—he was having trouble flying. Wait a minute… Appa!"

Aang yelled into the air, likely looking for his pet… sky bison? Azula doubted he would succeed.

"I don't think Appa would be here, Aang."

His face morphed into one of sadness, and it made her feel a little sadder too. Father had taught her that this was weakness, but somehow it felt wrong not to. Especially with Aang's expressive sorrow.

"I… I miss him. Air Nomads aren't meant to be without their bison. I just hope he's doing alright."

Azula had no idea how to respond. Not when it came to helping people who were feeling sad. Even so, she decided to do her best.

"Maybe you'll find him if we can find a way out of here?"

Aang seemed to cheer up a little at that thought. The determination he exuded brought her a little confidence as well. He just had that aura, to use one of Ty Lee's expressions.

"Right then, let's find a way out!"

She nodded and began following his footsteps further into the forest. After all, he was the more knowledgeable one here. It would be a great dishonour for her to presume otherwise.

"First, do you have any idea why we're here, of all places?"

"Nope!" He seemed far too cheerful for someone admitting they had no clue. "Not a single one. This place has its ways of messing with you. I've heard stories of people suddenly appearing here like we did."

"Oh great." Of all the things her studies included, a fairy tale world was not among them. "How very helpful."

"I know, right? The monks told me the Spirit World messes with you, your feelings, space, and even time!"

"Time? So time here is… different?"

It would explain how she was talking with someone who should have been long dead by now.

"They said that time flows differently here. Like a river, but with many branches and loops as it goes. So I could be from your future!"

"Or my past, perhaps?"

"Who knows?" Aang shrugged, something Azula found rather funny. To act so informally in front of princesses was social taboo, that she knew. Then again, she didn't even mention her title, so he couldn't have known. "All I've been taught were stories the monks had collected. They promised me they'd tell me more, but then…"

He had that sad look on his face again, Azula noticed. This one felt like he was hiding something, though. She was curious as to what it could be but decided not to interrogate him. Would be most impolite to subject a—was he her friend now? —to that.

"But that's enough blabbing for me." As quickly as he stopped, Azula heard him speak again. "Maybe your stories taught you something the monks didn't tell me?"

"Do you really think me telling fairy tales will help get us out of here?"

"Even fairy tales have some truth in them, Azula."

A boy like Aang had no right to sound so wise, she thought.

"That may be. The only people who ever told me those stories were my mother… and my cousin. Everyone else didn't take that view."

"That's awful! Fairy tales are the best part of being kids!"

Azula gave a little smirk at how right he was. After all, those bedtime stories were about the only time she didn't feel any pressure forcing her onwards.

"My family doesn't really do fairy tales, Aang." Part of her mind was screaming at just how much information she was blurting out. But she ignored that. "My father thinks they're not worth his time."

"Well, at least you have your cousin and your mother to make up for that, right?"

The hopeful look on his face melted when her own expression became much sadder.

"Neither of them are… around anymore. My cousin—he died recently—and my mother's gone. Not dead, I think, just… disappeared not long ago. Gone in the night."

Azula didn't expect to be dumping her problems onto a stranger so quickly but here she was. And what's worse is she could see the pain Aang felt for her in his eyes.

"I-I'm sorry for bringing that up, Azula. I didn't know."

The sadness and shame in his face was so honest Azula could feel it herself. He really had no filter for his emotions, she mused.

"It's fine." It was not, but she wasn't about to dump her troubles onto a potential friend. "You couldn't have known, Aang."

"Do you… do you need to talk about it? I know it's hard when you lose people close to you so soon."

"I wouldn't say either of them were really close." Her words were almost hollow, Azula thought as she spoke. "My cousin was a lot older than me, and he was always away for this and that. As for my mother… the last thing I remember her saying about me was 'what is wrong with that child?', so… that was that."

A very big part of her wondered why she'd revealed so much and so little to someone she didn't quite know. She would continue to ponder this for some time. But first, she noticed that the two of them had stopped walking through this forest, and that Aang was looking straight at her, the sorrow in his eyes clear as day.

Before she could react, he'd enveloped her in a hug. The first one she'd received in a long time, Azula thought. Members of her family, as a rule, didn't hug. Except for her Uncle and Lu Ten. Aang's own hug was a gentle reminder of those, and for just a second, she let herself relax into this strange boy's arms. It didn't hurt that his airbender robes were soft and very warm.

"I—I don't know what to say to that, Azula." His shock was evident in the way he shakily disengaged from their hug. "That's horrible! How could she say such a thing?"

"Evidently my mother sees—saw me—as a monster."

Part of her wanted to admit to Aang that her mother wasn't wrong.

"I don't think you're a monster. I think you're perfect the way you are."

It was how plainly he said it that shocked her. How he could say it so casually and yet put so much honesty behind it. For once, Azula had no words to respond with, and she could almost feel her eyes begin to fill with tears. This was quickly suppressed.

"No one deserves to hear that from a parent, Azula."

"I remember her saying it very clearly, you know. For something I'd said."

"What did you say… exactly?"

"I… I said that my uncle should have gone back to finish the job after my cousin died in the war. Like any good general does. Even if his son died."

She watched as Aang had another look of shock on his face. A tingle of fear and shame came to her, thinking she'd become a monster in his eyes as well.

"You see what I mean? My mother… she was right, wasn't she?"

"Well, you had to have a reason to say it, I know you did."

"I… I don't know! There was so much going on that I just… said it."

There was a moment of tense silence as Azula watched Aang think carefully over what he'd just heard.

"Your cousin… he was very close to you, wasn't he?"

There was that amazing talent Aang had again. How he just knew what the problem was.

"Yes, he was."

"What was he like?"

"He… he was nice. Fun. Someone to look up to. But he wasn't tough or hard on anyone. Whenever he was home, he'd tell fairy tales and play tag. I always won, of course."

Aang gave her a beaming smile as she spoke. He almost seemed to glow with happiness hearing her, she thought.

"He must have been a brother to you then. A good one, it sounds like."

Azula let herself smile a little as she remembered how she, Zuzu, and Lu Ten caused the palace servants quite a lot of trouble once with their tag games. That smile disappeared as soon as she recalled hearing of his death.

"We used to play tag with him, me and my brother. Then he said he'd be off on this campaign in the war, and that he'd be back for another game. He… well, he…"

"I'm sorry. I can't imagine what it must have been like."

She could tell Aang could feel the same sadness she went through when she got the news of Lu Ten's death. How he managed to feel the same way, she did not know. But it felt nice, she thought. To have a friend who knew.

"That was just a few weeks ago." Aang's sadness became shock as he heard her. "A messenger came. He told us my uncle had stopped his ongoing siege due to… due to the death of his son."

She didn't think it wise to tell him that the city under siege was Ba Sing Se.

"That wasn't the best way for you to hear of it, was it?" Aang's insight was showing again, she thought.

"I don't think there was a good way for me to hear of that news, Aang."

"Oh, sorry." His head now hung low in more than a bit of shame.

"I told my brother about the news, though. That's when I said the whole… I said that a real general would have stayed and burned it all to the ground."

The fear she could see in Aang's eyes at that moment made her realise just how horrifying her words truly were. Yet she did not sense any disgust in his expression. Fear, yes, lots of it. Sadness, too, from what she could tell. But not disgust.

"I… you were in shock, Azula. Shock changes people in many ways, and that's normal. Did… did you mean it afterwards though?"

An insightful question that she had no answer for. Yet somehow, she found it nice to have Aang here, even if they were talking about the death of Lu Ten.

"I thought I did. Now I'm not sure anymore. I just wanted—I just wanted to—"

"You wanted to change what happened to your cousin, I understand. Or at least you wanted to do something about it."

"Yeah, that. But no, I couldn't and he's still dead."

"The past can't be changed, Azula. Just the future, by what we do in the present. More monk teachings for you there. Straight from my mentor Monk Gyatso!"

Part of her wondered if she could find some more Air Nomad lessons to learn from. After all, this lesson seemed to be helping. But even her library didn't have any Air Nomad texts, she remembered.

"I… I can't bring him back from the dead, can I? Does the Spirit World do that?"

"Azula I—I don't know. There are stories of some people who go here when they die but it's…"

"It's what, Aang?" That bit of hope made her brighten up a little. Yet his tone stopped that hope before it spread itself fully. "Aang?"

"It's not a guarantee. I only got taught a few tales of monks who got here through years of meditation. And even if they got here… who knows where they could be?"

"Oh." That hope in her died again. "So what can I do now, in the present?"

"Well, is your Uncle still around?

"He fell apart when he got the news and is still in mourning, yes. But he's… I don't know, what could I even do for him?"

"Even just a little chat will help, I know that for sure. Like what we're doing now."

She had to admit, Aang was being a great help, just from his talking. But could she do the same for Iroh?

"You think that counts as doing something?"

"It counts as not doing nothing. But having someone around during things like that always helps. I know you could do it."

"I… I'll try to do that."

"Nope!" The monk now shook his head in response to her. "Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try."

"More monk lessons?"

"Always."

"So you think I can do it? Help my uncle through this somehow?"

"Definitely." He nodded with his trademark smile.

"There is one problem. He… I'm not very close with him, Aang. It won't be easy."

"I never said it would be. But you'll do so much good doing something, rather than doing nothing."

He was right, she thought. Plus, Iroh was family, as distant as he was from Father. Maybe it wouldn't hurt?

"I think I could do that. He… he does have a love for tea, maybe that would help?"

"That sounds perfect!" Aang perked up at her words. "When we find a way out of here, have a cup of tea with him. Promise me?"

The reminder that the two of them were still stuck in the Spirit World brought her back to reality. No matter how hard she tried to hide it, she was scared.

"We'll find a way out of the Spirit World, Azula." Was he reading her thoughts? "It brought us here for a reason, and it will get us out of here."

"I… I hope so."

"I know what might help cheer you up."

"What?"

She jolted to attention as Aang placed a light tap on her shoulder.

"Tag, you're it!"

"What?"

"You're it, Azula!"

"Are you seriously thinking of playing tag now?"

"There's never a bad time for tag."

"Even while we're trying to find our way out of this place?"

"Maybe we'll get out faster that way?"

"That doesn't make any sense. How are we going to get out faster if we don't know where to go?"

"Are you trying to say that you're afraid to playing tag with me?"

Now that was just insulting. For him to think Princess Azula of all people wouldn't rise to a challenge. This had to be corrected at once!

"Oh, you are on, Aang." She reached an arm out to tag him back, only for the airbender to jump backwards beyond her reach in a blink. "I'll get you if it's the last thing I do!"

She immediately dashed towards her target, who responded in kind with his own sprint through the forest. He was just a bit bigger than her, and possibly a bit nimbler, but she knew she could beat him.

The forest became a blur in her eyes as Azula pursued her prey. She had one goal in mind: Aang. Her training would not fail her, she thought, as she leapt over tree roots and followed the sight of those bright orange robes. He was fast, she had to admit that. But her days chasing Zuzu and Lu Ten through the palace would not fail her now.

"Come and get me!" He taunted, much to her chagrin, though she couldn't deny that she was enjoying this.

"You're only making it easier for me, Aang!"

She could hear him laugh as he continued his flight from her. That itself was an unforgivable offence.

Her singular focus on Aang propelled her forward, as the dark cover of the forest seemed to lighten. That brought her a glimmer of hope as well. Perhaps he was right? Would this lead to a way out?

And sure enough, the forest disappeared as they emerged into another clearing. Aang had changed his tag strategy as well, choosing to zig-zag through the grass to evade his eventual capture. She could work with that.

Running after him, she began preparing her move. As soon as she saw him turn, she leapt.

"Are you sure you can cat—oof!"

Azula never got to hear the end of that as she launched herself through the air and right onto Aang. This tag game turned out to be much more violent than she thought as the two of them tumbled onto the ground from her tackle.

"Gotcha!" She had won. Quickly gathering herself, she stood up from the patch of grass that padded their tumble. The pain from hitting the ground at that speed did not matter in the face of victory. That, and Aang was an excellent cushion. "I win!"

"You tackled me!" She thought it funny how he was talking while still crumpled on the grass.

"I told you I'd get you."

"You… you tackled me! That hurt!"

"We fell on thick grass, Aang. Not easy to get hurt on that, you know."

"There could have been a rock or something!"

"I made sure there wasn't." She crossed her arms, still feeling the rush of triumph. "Victory is mine!"

"Oh yeah?" There was a change in Aang's tone. This could be an issue. "Let's see how this changes it!"

Before she could respond, the airbender jumped up and swiped his leg at her feet. Uh oh. It caught her completely by surprise, and she found herself falling to the ground again. She would never forgive herself for this mistake ever again.

"Gotcha! Now we're even."

"Not fair!"

"The tackling wasn't fair either, Azula."

She had to concede that point.

"We are even then."

"We are."

"For now, of course, I'll get you back eventually."

"I'd like to see you try." He sat down beside her, probably to gloat even more with that grin of his. "So, what do you want to do now?"

"Another game of tag, maybe?"

"I… not if you keep tackling me to the ground every time, no."

"Fine." She crossed her hands and pouted. "No tag then. What else can we do?"

"How about some cloud watching?"

"Cloud watching?"

"Cloud watching!" Aang lay down next to her and seemed to make himself comfortable on the patch of grass. "Monk Gyatso and I used to do this a lot! It was… it was a lot of fun."

She couldn't help but notice a change in his tone for when he spoke of his mentor. There had to have been something behind that, she thought.

"You and Gyatso spent your time doing nothing?"

"Cloud watching isn't doing nothing, Azula. Plus, you sometimes see clouds that look like this animal and that object, and we'd give them names and all that! It's fun!"

She was patently sceptical of his idea but seeing as the Air Nomads had some good ideas at least, she decided to go along. For now.

"I think that one looks like Appa!"

She turned her eyes to where he pointed and saw… a cloud. If she squinted, it would be a very blobby cloud.

"I just see a cloud."

"Sometimes you have to apply a little imagination. Look, there's his tail, and then six legs, and two horns! Almost… almost like he's here with us."

The hint of sadness she heard behind his words felt almost devastating somehow.

"We'll find him eventually, Aang. When we get out of here, we'll find him."

"I hope so. He's always been with me since… he's been with me for a long time. He's like family. I can't imagine losing him."

"I… I know how you feel." The words took a moment to form, but she thought they were the right thing to say.

"I just hope he's doing alright. Appa doesn't like being alone."

They lapsed into an uneasy silence, the anxiety in Aang's words thick in the air. Azula decided this could not be allowed to continue. It didn't feel right to hear Aang afraid and anxious. Maybe she could just distract him?

It was at this moment that she saw a pattern forming in the skies to her left.

"Hey look, that cloud is like a dragon!"

"What?" Aang seemed surprised, she thought. "Which one?"

"Look just a little to the left." She pointed to the clouds that had arranged themselves in the image of a golden dragon twisting its way through the skies. "It looks like it's flying!"

Indeed, if she pressed her imagination a little, Azula could even see the dragon's fiery breath emanating from its "head".

"Huh. So it does look like a dragon. See? You're getting the hang of it!"

She smiled, this time with the smile she reserved only for herself. She almost wondered why she'd even done so, especially in the presence of others. But it felt… right, somehow. It didn't hurt that she could almost feel the joy emanating from Aang like a beacon in the dark. And because of that, her smile lingered for much longer than she expected.

"Maybe cloud watching isn't so hard after all.

"Told you so. It's simple, yet difficult!"

"Simple, yet difficult. Sounds like more monk wisdom."

"Nope. That's entirely from me."

"Explains why it sounded off."

She couldn't see his face, but Azula could almost hear the massive pout coming from her right.

"Now that's an interesting cloud, don't you think Aang?"

She noticed it to her right, in the shape of an arrow. Aang's arrow, in fact.

"The arrow cloud? What about it?"

"It looks like your tattoo, doesn't it?"

"My tattoo's an arrow, I'm pretty sure it would be similar, Azula."

She rolled her eyes at the sarcasm in his words. But then, at that moment, something in her curiosity itched.

"What… what does that tattoo mean?"

"My tattoos? It's to show I'm a master. Every airbender has to learn thirty-six techniques of airbending to be a master."

"So you got through all thirty-six then?"

"Actually… not quite. I got to thirty-five and then I invented a technique of my own. The monks thought that counted as the work of a master, so… I am the youngest airbending master in history."

A prodigy, Azula realised. His meek admission carried an undertone of anxiety, and of fear, and for once she truly understood it. She couldn't sense even a hint of pride in his words, and she knew. More than anything else, she knew how it was to be a prodigy.

"I… I never thought I'd get to meet another bending prodigy."

"You're one as well?"

"My teachers… they said I am close to mastering the main firebending forms now. They even said I was the best of my generation, Aang, but…"

A mix of pride and fear filled her as she spoke. It felt like bragging, and it was, but her bending talent was a stark reminder of just how much she had been pushed and pressed to get this far.

"You feel the weight of it all on you, I know. I…it's that fear that you'll never live up to what everyone expects. That maybe you're a failure after all."

Hearing his words strike at her heart, she could feel a little something snap as all those anxieties bottled and all those fears suppressed returned in full force. It took all her strength not to cry right there and then.

"How do you handle it, Aang? It's so much it's… how do you handle the possibility of failure? I can't fail. Not for myself, not for my family, never."

"It is possible to commit no mistakes and still fail. That is not weakness, that is life." She could hear the grass rustle as he rolled to face her. "At least that's what Gyatso always told me."

And just like that, her anxieties and fears calmed themselves. They weren't gone, but the turmoil was past. She let that sink in for a moment, feeling the relief of tranquility fill her.

"There's another thing he told me about bending, Azula. Always have fun with it, and never make it become a chore."

A surprising philosophy, she thought. But it seemed like what an Air Nomad would think. Yet for her, firebending was an exercise, a tool to be used and developed. A very useful tool, but nonetheless enjoyment wasn't quite the goal here.

"You wanna know what the technique I invented was?"

She quirked an eyebrow at his words. A glimpse into long dead airbending forms!

"A new attacking move?" She could think of many ways air was useful for offence. "Something to dispatch your opponents all at once?"

"What? No! No, not that. Airbenders don't attack, Azula. Unless we're provoked, we're not fighters."

Oh. The airbenders were pacifists? But what of their lethal armies? What of their raids on the Fire Nation's colonies that forced her great-grandfather's hand? Could Aang be lying to her?

"You mean Air Nomads don't have an army to defend their people? How preposterous!"

"We… we do not, no. An Air Nomad fought only for defence, never to attack. I've been in fights before, but that's only when I had no other option but to fight. And even then, we were all taught to do as little harm as possible."

Not even a hint of a lie in his words. She'd been using every little trick she could to analyse what he said, and not a single one showed traces of deception. His belief was so strong, his conviction so deep that what he said felt true.

"I've… I've heard stories about airbenders being very lethal fighters, Aang." Whatever the cost, she had to know more. To reconcile that chasm between Aang's words and her studies. "From lots of places."

"I can't say all airbenders are peaceful, I'll admit that. But Gyatso and the other monks always taught me that an airbender who lost their way would soon see their bending suffer. So it's not impossible."

"So could there have been an Air Nomad army, ever?"

"Not without us truly losing our ways. The Air Nation is at peace with everyone else, as we have been for a long time."

Was, she thought. They were at peace once. And now, they were also at peace again, forcibly pacified into oblivion through great-grandfather's judicious application of fire.

The weight of their conversation collapsed into another heavy silence, with Azula contemplating how to bridge her lessons with Aang's testimonies. Could her books have been wrong? Could… could her Nation have been wrong?

"Do… do you still want to find out what my new airbending move is?"

His question tickled her curiosity and jerked her out of her thoughts.

"Of course I do."

"Awesome! The technique I invented was… the airscooter!"

The ecstatic joy she could hear in those words contrasted greatly with the image she had in mind of such a move.

"Really. An airscooter?"

"Nuh-uh, not just an airscooter, the airscooter! It is my invention, after all."

"Sounds very interesting to me."

"It is! I bend a ball of spinning air under me, and then it can be controlled to go anywhere I want it to! Much faster than running and way cooler than gliders!"

The mental picture of the goofy Aang riding a ball of air brought a little smile to her face.

"You invented an entire airbending form just for fun?"

"You mean you haven't thought of making up a new bending form?"

Azula took a moment to think and realised she had never thought to make something of her bending. Like many things, her firebending's growth had been a natural and inevitable progression, chosen long before she had a choice. Deviating from that path was forbidden.

"I haven't, no. Firebending's a tool and an exercise. At least that's the way they're teaching it to me."

"That's… that's awful!" The sheer indignation in his voice shocked her. "How could they turn bending into something so boring? Whoever they are they need to apologise to you, right now."

"Aang, it's just bending. Not really too difficult once you practise enough."

"But that's… that's boring! It takes all the magic out of bending and makes it dull!"

She had to admit, he was right. The part of her that loathed every exercise, every drill, every single kata she had been forced through until her bending forms were perfect, that long-suppressed part had returned.

"I… it's worth it when I get the bending forms right, Aang."

"Is it really if all the fun of bending gets sucked out of it?"

"It… maybe not. But what can I do? That is the way I must learn firebending."

"There's nothing stopping you from making your own forms, Azula. Think of it as a different way to practise!"

"Sounds… sounds hard. Creating a new bending form."

"Never said it wasn't. You know how many times I failed trying to get the airscooter right? Turns out there's a neat trick to how fast it spins, or else it collapses, or it becomes uncontrollable."

"I… I've never done something like that before, Aang."

"That's the thing about invention. You can do anything! But think about it. You're a bending prodigy, the best of her generation, and you couldn't possibly think of something new to firebending? Impossible!"

His half-insult, half-taunt, half-compliment, was at once heartwarming and appalling. To think that Princess Azula of the Fire Nation couldn't do something.

"You are on. When I get back home, I'll be inventing a new move a day, just for you."

"See? That's better. Anything you want to especially do with your bending then?"

It was now that ideas began to trickle into her mind. Some were hopes, others barely coherent, and some… some she thought she could realise in mere moments, if she went for it. And then, her sense of curiosity itched a little.

"How did you come up with the airscooter then?"

"I was curious. I've seen the monks bend air into balls like that before. They could carry someone's weight, so… was it possible to make one and ride it like we do bison? Turns out it was!"

It gave her some hope. Maybe she had seen something in her Father or her Uncle's bending that she could try?

"I wish we weren't stuck here, then I could show so much, Azula! Air ball, air scooter, and gliders!"

"Gliders?"

"Gliders! And flying! How could I forget flying?"

The thought of flying seemed exciting, she mused. Could a firebender do it, perhaps?

"What's it like to fly?"

"Once you get up there you never want to come down, that's what flying is like. The wind rushing past you, the freedom of the skies, just… the feel of it!"

That's it, whether a firebender could fly or not would be tested the moment she returned home. It just sounded too good for her not to try.

"It's that awesome?"

"It's that, and so much more. It's something you never want to let go of, Azula. Flying sets you free. It opens you to the world. You could try it as a firebender even!"

"You think, Aang?"

"There's nothing that says you can't, which means you can!"

"That doesn't make sense, but alright."

"More Gyatso wisdoms for ya. But really, firebending creates a push, right?"

She nodded. She could almost see where he was going.

"Which means if you push hard enough you could get a pretty good lift going, and from there it's a short step to flying!"

Had this not been the spirit world where their bending was somehow blocked, Azula would have begun trying to fly there and then.

"You think it could work?"

"I think it couldn't not work. So yes. You can fly someday, Azula!"

The words struck her like lightning, and she could almost feel an unquenchable desire for flight growing more and more as she thought it over. It consumed her, as her brain filled with ideas of flying and freedom from the rigid katas of her training.

"That's the first thing I'll do when we get out of here then. Thanks for giving me that thought, Aang. Now I can't stop thinking of flying."

"Welcome to the airbender's problem. We could be up there flying all day and never get bored!"

"I could see why."

"The first time you liftoff it's scary. And for good reason. But once you get used to it flying becomes… magical!"

His words struck a chord in her heart, and it made her all the more determined to experience it. The way he described it, it mesmerised her to her core.

"I wish we could get out of here soon. Then I can show you the airscooter and everything!"

She had a little idea pop up in a corner of her mind.

"You know what will help with that?"

"What?"

"This!" She sprang into action, jolting upright in a blink and giving Aang the lightest of taps on his nose. "Tag, you're it!"

"What?" The airbender jumped to his own feet, still registering what just happened.

"I said, you're it!" This time, she dodged Aang's attempt to tag her back, and made straight for the forest nearby. "Catch me if you can!"

The sound of running feet dominated her hearing as she did her best to keep ahead of him. He had the advantage of being just a tiny bit bigger than she was, but after their last round Azula had analysed his tendencies. Yes, she could definitely work with what she had.

Their mad rush through the forest continued, as Aang's frantic footsteps reminded her of the task at hand. Evade him at all costs. She would have to be strategic with this, as she darted from tree to tree and twisted her way through the woods. Aang may have been faster, but his size did him no good when it came to agility. Not even the airbending seemed to help with that here.

She kept running for some time, always doing her best to evade those dreaded steps of his chasing her. She knew the sound of them by now, and they seemed further away with each of her own steps. This was another resounding victory in the making, she thought.

And yet, it was now that she realised those steps were nowhere to be heard. She stopped in her tracks and turned around, hoping to see some glimpse of yellow and orange in the distance.

Nothing.

For the second time in this very distressing day, Azula felt the sense of loneliness truly seeping in.

"Aang?" She cried out to the sound of trees rustling in the breeze. "Aang!"

There was no response. Could… could something have happened to him?"

"Aang!" She began retracing her steps, hoping he'd stopped somewhere along the way. "Aang? Where are you?"

Her lessons taught her to prepare for the worst, and the anxieties that came with those lessons crept into her mind with each moment of silence.

She kept going, following the path she'd made through the woods. He couldn't have been far behind! He couldn't have disappeared just like that!

It was when she'd almost lost all hope, that she saw a glimpse of orange low to the ground in the distance.

"Aang?" She approached this sighting and could make out bright yellow in that distant silhouette. "Aang!"

Azula quickly made her way to his location and found the airbender crouched to the ground. He seemed to sense her coming and turned.

"Shhh! You'll scare the spirit! "

A spirit? She remembered this was the Spirit World after all, so it shouldn't have been too much of a shock.

"Where?" She lowered her voice and slowly approached.

"Right here." The monk stepped a little out of her way to reveal a fox, currently rubbing its head on Aang in the most adorable way. "Look at it!"

"What… what spirit is it?"

"The monks had tales for lots of fox spirits, so… wait, I know! It's a Knowledge Seeker! Come say hi!"

"A knowledge seeker?" She stepped closer to the spirit, who seemed to regard her approach with little caution. "What's that?"

"There are stories we Air Nomads have of a great library run entirely by spirits, Azula. These foxes are the ones adding to the library, book by book. So, this little guy… or girl, ventures everywhere to seek more knowledge, hence the name!"

"Do you think it can tell us how to get out?"

The fox seemed to recognise her words when it turned and moved to scratch itself on her legs. Aang's betrayed glance at the very cute spirit didn't escape her attention.

"It seems to like you." The Air Nomad beamed a massive smile as he watched the fox circle around her. "Maybe it understands?"

She turned to face the Knowledge Seeker directly, and decided it cost nothing to ask.

"Do… do you know the way out of here?"

The spirit had no way to speak, it seemed, but Azula thought she recognised a nod in there.

"Do you think that's a yes?" She wondered if spirits even understood human mannerisms.

"It… it might be? I'm not very good with spirit talking. Not yet at least."

The fox now took a few steps away from them, before pausing. It then bobbed its head, seemingly motioning for the two of them to follow.

"Looks like a yes to me. Come on!"

Aang followed suit, as the Knowledge Seeker began a slow trot. It seemed to know exactly which step to take and which paths to follow as the three slowly wound their way over the tree roots of this dense forest.

"I think we're going somewhere; I can feel it."

How Aang could even have that sense, she had no idea. Maybe airbenders just had some connection to the spirits, she thought.

"If only you had that feeling long before this we'd have been out of here much faster, Aang."

The beaming grin he sent at her as they walked did nothing to alleviate her feigned discontent.

"I don't have magic powers, you know. Only bending."

"Didn't you say your airbending was magical?"

"You get my point."

"I do. Still, work on that spirit sense of yours, it seems handy, doesn't it?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

She almost huffed in response to his little jab, an action stopped only due to the years of etiquette training she'd undergone.

They lapsed into a contemplative silence, still following the light steps of the Knowledge Seeker. It seemed to be a long way, with the path leading deeper and deeper into the woods.

"How much longer do you think we'll have to go?"

"As long as the spirit knows it to be, Azula. If we rushed it, we might get lost in here, and that's…"

"Not desirable, no."

"Well, if you do get lost here many things can happen. You could be trapped for eternity, some of the monks would say."

"Let's try… not to do that then."

"Yeah, maybe not."

Another uncomfortable silence arose from their conversation, this time with the thought of forever wandering the depths of the Spirit World hanging over their heads.

"If we do get lost it's not all bad, Azula. I'd still have you here. Always good to have a friend!"

She smiled at that thought. A bittersweet smile when combined with the thought of never returning home, but a good smile anyways.

The silence remained, even with Aang's attempts to lift it a little. But he did succeed in one thing. It wasn't so uncomfortable anymore.

They continued following the fox spirit, and this time Azula noticed something in the distance. A light. She could see beams of white hidden behind the leaves of the trees in front of them. The Knowledge Seeker was indeed leading them to something!

She turned to her side and saw that the Air Nomad had noticed the light as well, the excitement in his eyes in full view.

"Do you think that's our way out, Aang?"

"It… it feels like it. I can sense the energy coming from that light. It's… deeply connected with this place."

This had to be some Spirit World magic at work, Azula thought. It had to be their way out.

It was but a few moments before they came into full view of the source. It was… it was truly breathtaking.

"I… I'm out of words, Azula."

"Me too. I've never seen anything like this."

Their spirit guide seemed to notice their shock and paused right in front of the source, a glowing pillar of pure white light. It turned its head, as if it was curious, before facing the light and jumping straight into the base of the column. In a blink, the light enveloped it, and their guide had disappeared.

"What… what is it?" The presence of this light felt old. Primal. Like it deserved respect and even some degree of worship.

"I think it's… it's a spirit portal. The monks had tales of people finding these little doors into the Spirit World, leftovers from when it was joined with our world. The legends forgot to say how beautiful these are."

She could see the wonder in his eyes as he spoke with sheer reverence of the symbol in front of them. She was inclined to agree. The very atmosphere around them seemed to pulse with each moment. This light felt old, ancient, connected to the very beginnings of time. Her mind had few ways to describe it other than with awe.

"So, it's our way out?"

"There's no way of knowing for sure. But I would say it is. There's nothing else that it can be other than a portal."

"I guess this is it then." She gestured to the glowing light, their ticket out of the Spirit World.

"Looks like it, Azula. Shall we go then?"

"Do you know where it will lead us?"

"It… it's fuzzy."

"Fuzzy?"

"All I know is that it leads you out. The specifics of where it leads you to, that's anyone's game."

She saw him take a step towards the light, and felt fear build up inside her heart. A thumping that thought she'd never see this airbender again.

"Aang, wait!"

"Yes?"

"What if… what if the portal lets us out at different places? Or times?"

"I… I don't know." He shrugged, and she could feel the anxiety in those words. "I can't say for certain we'll be dropped off in the same place. But hey, we'll remember each other at least!"

His nervous smile did little to calm that little thought at the corner of her mind.

"There's only one way to find out, Azula. We go through at the same time."

"Then… before we go, I have one last thing to do."

She enveloped Aang in a hug. He returned it, and she could feel the warmth that came with his embrace. This was something she could not have seen herself doing with a stranger, but this was Aang, and it felt right. If she was never to see this boy again, then she wanted her last memory of him to be of his warmth, and of his cloud-soft robes. Her eyes welled with tears, and it took all her strength not to break her façade and cry.

"What was that for?" The airbender slowly disengaged from their hug, an ecstatic smile on his lips. "You… you okay?"

"That was… a hug of gratitude. Thank you, Aang. For just being here today. And for being a friend. We are friends now, right?"

"You are always welcome, Azula. And yes, friends. Good friends! See you on the other side then?"

"See you. Hopefully."

"I have a feeling we'll see each other again. See you around!"

She watched as Aang took a step towards the portal and seemed to steady himself. It was now that she realised, she had yet to say a proper goodbye.

"Here goes nothing!" She saw him firm up for a jump. "Yip yip!"

"Aang, wait—!"

The monk did not get the chance to hear her words, for as soon as his hand touched the light, he was gone. She was alone now, and the silence felt all the more desolate from his absence.

There could only be one course of action now, Azula knew. To take her own leap and hope that the airbender would be on the other side, wherever that was.

She approached the light, and rather than Aang's headlong leap into the unknown, she slowly let the light consume her, and felt it tug at her body. The last thing she saw before the white pillar enveloped her was the warm orange glow of the Spirit World around her.

The ground seemed to give way to nothingness, and her stomach lurched at the falling sensation as things seemed to spiral. The plummeting feeling continued to worsen, all of her senses being overwhelmed by the unreal things she felt. Rather like a nightmare of falling from the sky, part of her thought, as she continued to fall.

She let out a wordless scream as her senses continued to spiral. She could only hope that Aang was there on the other side after this was over.

And then, she could see it. Ground! But she was coming in far too fast! Far too fast!

And so it was that her senses registered a massive impact, and Princess Azula jolted awake on her tenth birthday in her chamber at the Royal Palace.

Her mind was a haze, her heart beating at speeds yet unseen, her senses overwhelming her like she'd just been born, but one word seemed to ready to escape her mouth.

"Aang!" She half-yelled, half-cried.

Yet she did not and could not for the life of her understand what this word meant. She felt the weight of it as she spoke, something that suggested a deep connection being invoked, yet failed to materialise in her head. A memory in her mind that led to somewhere locked away.

"Aang?" She said it again, but now that connection felt even further away. Attempts to unlock it only caused an itch within her mind, to no success.

All she could really say about that strange phrase was that it brought her a sense of serenity. And a bit of hope, however that seemed to work. A mystery, that she knew.

It was then that she saw the silhouette of her Uncle passing by her door. And something in her mind decided to seek him out.

She tiptoed her way to the corridor and saw the old general making his way through the palace.

"Uncle?"

"Princess Azula!" The older man turned to face her, a wise, yet melancholic smile on his face. "What can this old man do for you on your birthday?"

"I… I was wondering if you could show me how to make tea, Uncle."

The sadness seemed to lift in the eyes of the Dragon of the West for a short moment, and for that Azula felt a great deal of happiness for him.

"I would be delighted to serve you my finest jasmine tea, Princess."

And so, she followed her Uncle to his quarters, for what would prove to be a very significant pot of tea.

Author's 2nd Note: That was a doozy, wasn't it? I hope this was a good introduction to a more dramatic style I've worked on for this fic, with a bit more plot in it than the cooking fic. Anyways, I really hope you enjoyed reading this, so please leave a review if you enjoyed it. Tell me what you liked, because your feedback improves my writing. Chapter 2 is already on AO3, so I will try to add it to FFnet as soon as possible. See you soon, my colleagues!