Gladiator

by Seyary-Minamoto

In a world where the Avatar wasn't found, the Fire Nation took over two nations and they strive to overcome the last one. Water Tribe warrior Sokka seeks to fight for his people's rights, but he's captured by his enemies. His life is no longer in his hands as he fights as a Gladiator, and his fate will eventually depend on the Fire Nation Princess, who needs him for her own ends...

278. Chapter 278: S Air T-Secret Writings 7

Southern Air Temple/Secret Writings

7

The foreign name sent a shiver down Rei's spine. The reverential way in which the Princess spoke his title, his role in her life… that sufficed to erase all of Rei's previous understanding of what gladiators were. The woman before her, the fearless, powerful Princess couldn't have been so profoundly attached to a violent, cruel man whose entire existence was cemented in destroying other lives…

Just as Wen had told her, on the very day Rei had first heard of the gladiator, he had to be a far more impressive man than anything she could possibly imagine.

"I… I honestly don't even know where to start," Azula smiled, as another tear spilled down her cheeks: odd that her chest would burn with warmth, just as much as it ached with longing and helplessness. "Not sure anything I could say right now would… would really help you understand what an extraordinary man he was. Just saying that there's never been anyone like him… that there never will be anyone else like him, merely saying that isn't enough. But… it's still the truth. It's still the truth."

Rei bit her lip but nodded. Azula drew in a sharp breath, dabbing at the tears that still tumbled down her cheeks. Once she released it, she spoke again.

"I had no idea what I was getting into. Neither did he, really… when we first agreed to work together," Azula whispered. "Curses, even before that, I… I'm the one who made him a slave in the first place, in the South Pole. The one time my father sent me out on a mission just so happened to lead us to each other. Maybe there's such a thing as destiny after all… though I still fucked up beyond measure when I did what I did. He always said I had no other choice, I could either kill him or make him a slave, but… I wish I'd known what I'd learn in the future. I wish I'd understood, back then… just how wrong all of it was, slavery, the war, the Fire Nation's conquest, I… I really didn't see it that way at all, back then. I'd been raised to fight and win at all costs… and that's all I cared to do that day. But… he fought me with honor. He had done his best to defeat me, even if he wasn't strong enough to do so. I… I couldn't quite command his death after that. But if I'd just kept him to myself, if I'd just had the insight to want him as my gladiator from the start…"

"Do you really think that would've worked?" Song asked. Azula sighed and shrugged. "I mean… he wound up in an Amateur Arena, right?"

"In Hui Yi's," Azula said. Rei flinched, and Azula glanced at her. "You know of it? Or…?"

"I've heard about it. It's… an ugly place," Rei said, nodding. Azula grimaced.

"It's supposed to be a little less ugly these days… but I don't know if it really changed or not. At this point… it feels like everything I ever did has come undone," she sighed, dropping against the headboard of her bed, glancing at Song next. "But then, you think that, if I hadn't thrown him to the very dredges of hell, he might not have changed his mind about me? That he might have refused to work with me willingly? I… I guess that's possible, but… it would've spared him a lot of strife all the same. The things he went through in that place… they scarred him forever. I'm sure one of his strongest motivations to join me was finally being free from Hui Yi's nightmares for good. To get another life, a different one, even if he couldn't be sure it would be better, at first…"

"And you did make it better. So much better he fell in love with you," Song determined. Azula scoffed softly, with a weak smile.

"Not right away, he didn't… not that I have grounds to complain, it's not like I fell for him immediately either," she admitted. "Though… he was always unfairly handsome."

"And he definitely must have thought you were unfairly beautiful too," Song smirked. Azula actually laughed at that, shaking her head.

"I guess… he did tell me he thought I was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen, when we first met," Azula admitted, with a fond smile. "Though, according to him, I only grew more beautiful as time went by, too… not that his opinion is all that accurate, really. He was impossibly biased…"

"Was he, really?" Song asked, raising an eyebrow. Azula nodded.

"Biased, blinded by love, whatever it was, even after I got this wound," Azula said, pointing at her shoulder. "Even after I'd spent days without a proper shower, not a shred of makeup, no hair-combing… even then, he'd say I was more beautiful than before. Can you really say he wasn't biased if he'd make such controversial claims?"

"Alright, maybe he was a bit," Song laughed, softly. "But I mean… he did love you for lots of reasons, not just your looks. Might be he meant something more profound than that…?"

"Might be," Azula acknowledged, with a weak nod. "It'd make sense if he had been looking through my soul, somehow. I was a pretty unpleasant person at the start, but… he must have known somehow, that there was something worthwhile in me, no matter how bad I was. He changed me… I let him change me, I think I even wanted him to do just that. He was so confusing, so hard to understand, such a trueborn rebel… he had no idea how to just sit still and do as he was told, not if he had his own opinions and plans in mind…"

"He didn't… obey your commands?" Rei asked, puzzled. Azula chuckled softly and shook her head.

"Not often, no… not at the start, mostly. Hell, we bickered and fought and argued like cats and dogs," Azula laughed, rubbing a hand over her face. "I never really wanted to relent with anything, I was so used to… to winning at everything I ever did. I really saw our relationship, our partnership, as some sort of battlefield and I just wanted to win. I wanted to prove myself to him… every bit as badly as he wanted to prove himself to me. So we were, well…"

"Constantly trying to one-up each other?" Song asked. Azula smiled and nodded.

"And constantly making fools of ourselves in the process. But I guess that, precisely because we inspired each other to try harder, to do better, to be better, things took a turn they weren't supposed to. The way Toph put it once… he and I saw each other's worst from the start. We caused each other grief, we made terrible mistakes… and in learning how to move past those mistakes, we actually learned how to be a team. In the middle of so much stumbling, though… across every hardship we went through, every challenge we faced, we drew closer together little by little, until…"

"Until you fell in love?" Rei ventured a guess. Azula let out a breath and nodded again.

"Ironically, I only really acknowledged it as such when… when we'd only just agreed to stick to our professional bond, and nothing more," Azula whispered. "Only upon trying to close the door on a potential relationship with him did I realize that I truly wanted one. I wanted to open that door again later, but… I was scared. Scared of a lot of things that, in the end, weren't all that important. Though… I was also scared of this outcome. Scared of what would happen if… if my father ever found out that I loved the so-called wrong person."

"Is it all really because of that?" Rei asked, gazing at Azula compassionately. "Everything that's happened is because he found out the truth? About you and… and Sokka?"

"I'm afraid so," Azula said, her eyes saddened once again. Rei tensed up, fists tight upon her lap. "We… we went through a lot together, both before we truly gave in to our feelings and afterwards, though… so much more happened afterwards, honestly. We were together, well and truly together, for almost three years. It felt like we only got better, even when awful things happened around us, he and I… our bond only seemed to strengthen every time. We tried, though, to balance our relationship with our duties, with the expectations of the world around us, and… well, we failed in the end. If we'd had a little more sense, maybe none of this would have happened. But maybe it still would have, even if we had known better. Maybe it was just a matter of time before my father reached the obvious conclusion that… that two people wouldn't have been likely to go the lengths we did for each other if our bond had been strictly professional, as we attempted to make it at first. Frankly, we were awful at hiding the truth."

"But you still hid it for years…" Rei reasoned. Azula hummed, shrugging weakly.

"Only because… because people expected I'd know better than to get involved with a Water Tribe slave," Azula recited spitefully, her voice charged with sarcastic frustration. "As if there were any men in this world worthier than him. As if… as if they understood a damn thing about him. As if they had any right to judge him just because of where he was born… hell, they certainly had no right to judge him for the so-called lowliness of his station. I made fun of him often, when he pretended to be a prince… but he was the son of the Southern Water Tribe's Chief. By all effects, by Fire Nation understanding of societal hierarchies, they'd likely have no choice but to think he's on par with me, no matter if he never lived in a Palace, no matter if his people had no such uptight society…"

"Then he was a prince too…? Really?" Rei asked, puzzled.

"The closest thing you can be to one in his culture, and yet… he wasn't really raised like one," Azula said, closing her eyes. "His family… they may have been the leaders of the Tribe, but they were humble, kind, they cared about each other and protected one another as fiercely as possible. As much as… as much as I may miss him, knowing he's with them is the one relief I still feel about all this. He had a place beside me… but even though he was reluctant to go home at first, I know they'd always think he belonged with them. Might be he did… regardless of his bond with me, maybe that's where he should be."

"I guess you could think so, but…" Song said, softly. "I mean… can't someone have more than one meaningful bond, more than one place they're welcome at, more than one place to belong in?"

"Maybe," Azula acknowledged, with a weak smile. "But as things are now… he's better off away. He's better off safe… as safe as he can be, if he even is. I… I told him I'd try to stop my father from attacking his Tribe, which my father was likely to do, even if he gained reasons to suspect Sokka had taken refuge elsewhere. But… I haven't been able to do a damn thing. The minute I came back, the moment he caught Xin Long, I… I was done. He knew he had me, and I haven't been able to fight back against any of his accursed decisions ever since. I want to believe my helplessness, my compliance, meant my father wouldn't do anything else to hurt Sokka and his people… but I don't know about that, frankly. Even if he's been… less punishing lately, it doesn't mean anything in the end. If I so much as say a single word in defense of Sokka and his people… he's bound to demand my dragon is slain right then and there for my insolence, then charge with all his armies at the South Pole and destroy the Water Tribe for good. So, I'm… useless."

"You're not useless… you're stuck, trapped, just as he wanted you to be," Song sighed, dropping her head gently atop of Azula's. "But come on, now… surely you have ideas on what to do, how to fight back, in the future? Once things do calm down, maybe once you have more resources at your disposal…"

"You'd think, but… I think my days of plotting and scheming are well and truly over," Azula said, closing her eyes. "I can't even figure out a realistic way to save Xin Long… and that'd be my first priority. The first thing I'd have to fix. But if I somehow save him, so many more people would be in danger… at this point, I wouldn't even be surprised if my father used either of you as hostages too, not just Mai and Ty Lee…"

"Well… I'd like to say he won't be able to, but underestimating his cruelty isn't a mistake I ought to make," Song grimaced. "Still, though… you fought back against that invasion of the Fire Nation, right? The first one? And, well, the second one too, the one where you got the scar, so…"

"I've fought countless times, yes. I've protected this nation as best I could," Azula acknowledged. "And yet my father tossed me aside like a broken toy just because I dared love someone he couldn't approve of… and he couldn't approve because of the stupidest, most shallow reasons. Hell, if he'd just… if he'd just let it be, if he'd opened his mind to it, he'd actually have the only possible son-in-law he'd genuinely respect, and he'd be someone I'd be happy to be married to, just as well…"

"You… don't think he respects Admiral Zhao?" asked Rei, startling Azula.

"Well… not in that sense, I suppose," Azula frowned. "Zhao is his friend first, though… that's the whole reason why he forced me to marry him. He wanted someone reliable as his heir…"

"And that reliable heir is out and about, doing fuck-all, instead of being here," Song said, with a frown. "I haven't seen him since I first came to work in the Palace."

"Do you miss him?" Azula asked skeptically. Song smiled and shook her head, though Azula glanced at Rei wistfully. "No offense intended if you do, though. I know what he means to you…"

"Oh… w-well, I don't miss him that much," Rei admitted. Azula raised an eyebrow, quickly assessing that her answer was genuine, not a matter of succumbing to pressures caused by both Azula and Song's opinions. "He used to be nicer… back in the estate. Ever since we came here, he's been… weird. Tense, and… meaner, I guess. He never explained any of what was going on to me… he said he would, but then he didn't. I didn't really know why I had to leave the estate at first… and I was terrified when I came here for the first time. But instead of helping me find my bearings, he just… he just left me alone."

"Alone with me at my nicest… he's always making such great choices, huh?" Azula said, dropping her head back. Rei frowned, though.

"You… were nice. Even at first…"

"You nearly leapt half your height in the air when I first talked to you," Azula pointed out. Rei blushed, and Song chuckled softly. "I… should've been in better conditions to greet you. I wasn't… it wasn't a great day, when he brought you. It… it was my birthday. First time in my whole life it's been a completely mundane day, with no big feast, no sort of celebration, whatsoever… the only good thing that happened that day was that you showed up."

"Oh…" Rei gazed at Azula mournfully again, her eyes gleaming with compassion. "He… he didn't tell me it was your birthday. Had I known…!"

"I wouldn't have welcomed much of a celebration anyway," Azula pointed out, with a weak smile. "But to be honest… he might not even have remembered. If he did… then I guess he simply didn't give a damn."

Rei lowered her head, as Song sighed and shook her own. Without giving it much thought, if any, she wrapped an arm around Azula's shoulders, careful not to drop it over her scar.

"Well, that he isn't here now is the main reason why we get to talk like this, so late at night," Song pointed out. "If he were around…"

"Yeah," Azula sighed, closing her eyes. "I definitely don't need him here at all, and I doubt he wants to be here either. Otherwise, he would be."

"What do you think he's up to, though? Is he at the estate Rei used to live in?" Song asked. Azula shrugged.

"I don't know. Could be," she said. Rei, however, grimaced. "You don't think so?"

"Whenever he was in a bad mood, he'd… vanish for a while. It didn't happen a lot, but… it did a few times, since I've known him," Rei mumbled. "If anything, that's… that's bound to be the whole reason why he found out I existed."

"Because he vanished while in a bad mood…?" Song repeated, slowing down her words as awareness dawned upon her. Rei breathed deeply and nodded.

"When he's upset, or too tense… Admiral Zhao visits a brothel," she said, lowering her gaze as she delivered her confession.

Azula and Song held their silence then, upon Rei's implicit confirmation of what they'd discussed not so long ago, during a night like this one. Song's hand tensed around her empty teacup, and Azula eventually sighed, glancing at Rei compassionately.

"That's how you met him, then?" Azula asked, softly. Rei swallowed hard and nodded, shivering visibly.

"I… I didn't know he was my father all along. I had no idea who my father was, b-because my mother, well… she worked there," Rei confessed, her voice softer than ever. "I… was raised there. For as long as I can remember, I was just… in everyone's way. They taught me how to sweep and clean, so I could make myself useful somehow. It was the only life I knew until… until he showed up in the Scarlet Oasis, one day. He seemed tired, or irritable, but everyone knew him, and my mother… she went to see him immediately, yelled at him for something or another, I don't even know. He seemed to find it funny for a bit, but then I was called to clean something, I stepped into his line of sight and he… he changed completely. I don't know how he… how he knew I was his daughter. Maybe I look like him, I don't know, but… within three days, he'd arranged everything to take me with him to his estate. I was scared, I didn't want to go at first, I… I thought he wanted, w-well…"

"You didn't know he was your father yet? He didn't tell you before taking you?" Azula asked, eyes wide with outrage.

"He told me when we were on our way… and said he meant no harm. That he'd make sure I'd be safe," Rei finished, trembling and nodding. "I… I'd never seen a house that big before. I was scared of everything, but… I got used to it, after a while. He wasn't as harsh as… as lady Meili, or my mother, or the other women, so I felt a little freer, but… but he'd leave sometimes, like that, without any warning, whenever he came home after being away for a while and he wasn't in a good mood. When I escaped, after Master Hahn tried to take advantage of the Admiral's absence, I… I returned to the Scarlet Oasis. My mother didn't really want me there… not unless I meant to work too, which, well, I didn't. Lady Meili didn't seem to think it'd be enough if I just swept the floors anymore, either. But while I was there, one of the other girls… she said the Admiral had visited a few times after he first took me away. So… I guess he kept visiting the brothel after he took me away, anyway."

"So, you think that's what he's doing now?" Azula asked. Rei shrugged.

"It's a guess. He did come home a few times smelling like he'd been drinking, so… maybe that's what he's doing, instead?" she said. "I don't know. I don't want to say anything I shouldn't. Maybe I'm judging him too harshly, but…"

"Considering how he's been acting… you're allowed to judge him all you want," Azula said, still resentful at Zhao… still empathetic with Rei. "He keeps you in the dark about a lot of things, doesn't he? He… he never even bothered trying to teach you to read, either."

"He didn't want me to learn to read or write because that way I wouldn't be in trouble for seeing anything top-secret, is what I always thought…" Rei said, but Azula scoffed and shook her head.

"Did he ever say that, outright? Even if he did… it's no excuse. You've been through far too much as it is, Rei… giving you a chance to live a better life may have started with getting you out of that environment, but that was only the beginning of the job, or it should have been, anyway…"

"I… I guess so," Rei said, lowering her gaze. "Though… I never really thought he meant to, well, to give me a better life to the extent you might imagine? He needed a maid, s-so… I guess he wanted someone for the job, and when he saw me…"

"It's possible, but… there's a few other possibilities all the same," Azula sighed, lowering her gaze.

Zhao… he might have felt too uncomfortable visiting the brothel again if his own daughter happened to become one of the women offering her services once she was initiated. Along with that… it might have disturbed him to think that Rei could have witnessed him engaging in whatever debauchery he would indulge in, whenever he was away from the spotlight that Ozai's environment would likely shine upon him under any other circumstances. It was also possible that he simply didn't want his daughter to live in that sort of world… but if he found said world so appalling after his own daughter was nearly caught in it, shouldn't he have simply distanced himself from it altogether? Instead, Rei had heard he would continue to visit all the same…

Whatever the answer might be, Azula could only grimace and shake her head at the many revelations Rei had made. Confirming that her suspicions about Rei's origins were correct didn't sit well with her, all in all… but perhaps, now that Rei knew Azula better, it had been time for Azula to know more about Rei's secretive past, too.

"Either way… I'm sorry you had to go through all that, Rei. For most your life, too…" Azula said, breathing deeply. "For what it's worth… you deserved a chance to live a better life, all along. But we don't really get to choose where we're born, so…"

"We don't, but I guess being an Admiral's daughter, even if an illegitimate one, wasn't that unlucky?" Rei said, biting her lip. "Some of the other women had children of their own too and… well, once they reached the right age, Lady Meili would consider them initiated and assign a room for them. I knew all along what happened in those rooms, and I never really thought I wanted it, but I assumed I'd have to do it eventually anyway, and… and I really might have had to, if the Admiral hadn't taken me away when he did. I didn't really want to become a prostitute. I thought… w-well, that no one would ever want me. I also saw how the guests acted enough times to know that… that they could be even crueler than lady Meili. So…"

"You were afraid of winding up with someone terrible, but not quite of sex itself?" Song asked. Rei shrugged.

"I guess it might have felt scary, if… if I hadn't spent my life hearing about it all the time," she said. "Where you learned medicine, and the Princess went to the Royal School o-or well, whatever its name is… I just swept the rooms and corridors of a brothel, did the laundry, washed dishes… whatever needed doing. If I did it wrong, I'd be punished… so I did my best not to be punished, and… and I suppose I just hoped I wouldn't be punished once I became a prostitute too. Choosing to be anything other than that… it didn't seem possible at all. It never crossed my mind, but… when I could get away, even if just to be the Admiral's maid, I… I felt so much better."

"Good. I can't guarantee your fate will be better than it has been just because I want it to be…" Azula admitted, frowning. "But I do know that I'll do my best to ensure you never have to return to living your life that way. Whether as Zhao's maid, or as the brothel's…"

"I… thank you. I'm glad that… that you're looking after me," Rei said, with a shy smile. "I'm sorry too, for everything you've been through. I still don't understand most of it… but Sokka sounds like a much better man than any I've known so far."

"Well, good. I don't know all the men you've known, but I don't need to: I guarantee he was better," Azula smiled. "Yes, I'm biased, but I still know I'm right."

Rei laughed and nodded in agreement, though Azula's chest ached still over the suffering the young woman had been through. She was barely seventeen… and only now was she free, on the most part, from the dreadful way everyone had treated her for most her life. Only now, when Zhao was gone too… the whole reason the conversation had shifted as it had was because Zhao's absence had come up. And Rei seemed to not miss her father much… to not have much reason to miss him, either. Perhaps her relationship with her father hadn't decayed as badly as Azula's had with her own, but it wasn't a good relationship altogether, as far as the Princess could tell.

"I… shouldn't really ask this, I suppose," Rei mumbled, biting the inside of her lips as she glanced at Azula shyly. "But is it really any good? Sex, I mean…"

"Uh…" Song grinned awkwardly, though Azula smiled and shrugged.

"If you have it with someone you actually like, yes. If you have it with someone you love, even better," she said, simply. Rei nodded. "It probably was impossible to tell back then…"

"Well… yeah. I didn't really think love had anything to do with it. In a sense, I… I don't even know if I know what love is," she smiled awkwardly.

"Huh. I didn't know either, frankly, for a long time," Azula answered, with a sigh. "But I guess, once you feel it for the first time, it clicks all on its own, no matter how inexperienced you may be. It's probably weird that I didn't really doubt it, not once, when I finally came around and understood what Sokka meant to me. I didn't wonder if maybe I was just misunderstanding my feelings… I knew it was love even if I'd never felt that way over anyone before him."

"That sounds… well, interesting," Rei said, smiling shyly. "To know something like that, deep in your heart… I wonder what it feels like."

"Well, there's other kinds of love too, not just the romantic sort," Azula said, closing her eyes. "You could grow to love a family member just as well, or a close friend. I… I certainly love my dragon, as it is. Maybe you loved your dragon moose, too?"

"Oh… maybe. I guess so," Rei said, smiling more enthusiastically, though the grin waned after a while. "I suppose love is… when you miss someone and wish you could see them again, once they're gone?"

"That's part of it, definitely," Azula sighed in resignation.

"I'm sorry you went through that kind of pain… that you still are going through it," Rei said, gazing at Azula wistfully. "If… i-if there's anything else I can do to help, I will, gladly."

"Well… for starters, don't ever tell Zhao anything about what we discussed tonight," Azula said, dabbing at the corners of her eyes with her fingertips. Rei nodded immediately, promptly.

"I won't," she said.

"Or anyone else, really… Zhao's not the only one who might think to spy on my personal business," Azula said. "Other than that, for now… I guess there's not a lot left to be done. I've… talked, if just for a bit. I don't feel that much better, but… I guess knowing neither of you judge me for this emotional breakdown of mine is enough to make me feel a little saner."

"Well, you can be sure there's no judgment here," Song said, squeezing her gently. "In less than half a year you've been through more pain than most people can endure in a lifetime… with so many ups and downs, and your life's been rocked around until it flipped over itself, and the pieces scattered all over the place and…"

"And it's still flipped. Can't even seem to find all the pieces, they're probably under the furniture or something," Azula said, prompting Song to smile weakly.

"Well… if I find any, I'll pick them up for you," Rei said, suddenly.

Azula and Song lingered in silence for a moment, glancing at the blushing girl with confusion: she smiled a little, nervously.

"W-wrong moment for a joke…?" she asked… then, Azula snorted.

"You… just made a joke. You did?" Azula smiled, as Song, beside her, laughed without much restraint. Rei grinned more guiltily, and Azula's smile gained further affection. "Oh, we've definitely gotten to you. Now you have a sense of humor, this is exactly why everyone thinks I'm dangerous…"

"I like it when you joke around…" Rei laughed softly, as Azula joined with her own laughter.

"You… you're so much more than meets the eye, Rei," Azula said, smiling at the young woman.

She set her teacup aside, on her nightstand… but instead of reeling her hand back, she set it delicately upon Rei's: the young woman's eyes widened, her smile more tender as she gazed at the contact between their fingers.

"For what it's worth… I'm glad you're both here," Azula whispered. "I thought I'd be alone… I thought I'd never have anyone by my side again. I won't ever stop missing Sokka, that much is obvious, but… I'm glad I have the two of you now. It's… the only good thing that's happened since all this mess took the awful turn it did."

"Well, for what it's worth…" Song repeated, with a teasing grin. "I'm sure Rei and I will coincide and say that you'll never have to worry about being alone again, not while we're here. In fact… know what we should do, from now on?"

"Hmm?"

"Slumber parties!" Song declared, beaming. Azula snorted and laughed, glancing at her in disbelief as she grinned brightly. "What? It should be fun!"

"I… don't know what that is," Rei said, surprising Song.

"Oh… huh, you wouldn't have been in one, of course," Song smiled weakly. "Well, it's basically when friends who don't live together all gather at the house of one of them and spend the night there, just… hanging out, goofing about, playing games, talking about life…?"

"Stealing mochi from the kitchens…?" Azula suggested: Rei gasped and Song snorted. "Oops. Guess that's just my kind of slumber party…"

"Oh, I bet you have a whole route charted to do just that, don't you? Secret passageways throughout the whole Palace so you can sneak into the kitchen and steal the mochi without anyone knowing…" Song said. Azula raised her eyebrows haughtily.

"I won't confirm nor deny these foul accusations of yours…" she declared, prompting the other two to laugh carelessly at her newly playful demeanor.

Her world had yet to make sense again, Azula knew as much… but it wasn't quite as badly broken as it had been anymore. Perhaps she was still upside down… but much as Rei had joked about picking up the shattered pieces, Azula felt both the maid and the midwife were doing exactly that for her, perhaps without their awareness. Their patience, their kindness, their understanding and unwillingness to condemn her… in some ways, she struggled to feel worthy of any of them. But at the same time, all of it helped her feel real… it helped feel alive again, if just barely. After so much had changed, after so much of what she had cherished and dreamt of was gone, she wasn't only grateful to regain one bond she had nearly lost for good, but to forge a new one that, as fresh as it might be, brought much needed warmth to her heart and eased her soul.

No, it wasn't the same kind of lifestyle she'd lived in the beautiful days she'd spent with Sokka… if she could turn back time and return to them, she might do just that. But perhaps, with all its difficulties and strain, this life, so much humbler and still so dangerous, no matter how static it might feel on most days, had much worth treasuring in it, too.

That strange, electrifying sensation brushed against her again: she closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel it, to indulge in the utterly wishful hope that it was, somehow, the remnants of her energy's connection with Sokka's own… and as she heard Song and Rei's laughter, she let herself convey through that bond that she was alright. That she still struggled, and her heart still pained her… but she wasn't alone anymore. She was alright, and she deeply hoped so was he.

---

"Well, then: perhaps this is the time for you to share your thoughts, properly?"

The guru's awkward smile wasn't in sight for his five initiates, all of whom had their eyes tightly closed: they were meant to open their fifth chakra, the sound chakra, located in the throat, and yet none of them seemed to know what they were doing just yet.

He had guided them to a large chamber, where every word echoed and rebounded across the room in which he and the group of travelers sat. It seemed his attempts to reach them with this new chakra had forced everyone to look deeper inwards, far deeper than they had, just yet.

Sokka, however, found himself interrupted, halfway through his pondering, when a subtle sensation crept over his body. Fire, was it? Or… maybe something sharper yet, like lightning. He closed his eyes tighter, feeling it further… a familiarity, a tender comfort, seemed to wrap around him. He rather relished in it, so much he hadn't heard a single word spoken by the guru after the strange sensation had begun.

But this chakra was meant to be a matter of truth… and it was blocked by lies. What truth did this strange sensation intend to convey, then? Was there a truth to it at all… or was it simply a gentle, comforting feeling that had no connection with their latest stop in their journey of self-discovery? If so, could it be the bond between his energy and Azula's had somehow reacted to his new spiritual awareness? Was this a message she conveyed to him? Or was he simply delusional to hope so…?

"The chakra of truth doesn't relate to uncovering lies alone… it also relates to how you express yourselves," the guru said. Sokka forced himself to listen, though he wanted nothing but to continue clinging to that sensation… "Now that you understand yourselves better with every chakra you've opened so far, it is time to communicate, to speak your truths, be them whatever they may be."

"Then… it's not just about the lies we tell ourselves?" Kino asked.

"Recognizing those will allow you to understand the truth, too," Guru Pathik answered him. The former soldier frowned.

"It's hard to make sense of it… recognizing our lies between our truths, hmm…"

"Maybe… maybe the truth is I have no idea what my destiny is really meant to be."

Zuko's sudden words startled the others. He spoke earnestly, with much more naturality than he had with most previous chakras.

"If the idea is for me to convey my truth… then I think this is it: I don't see a set path ahead of myself. I see choices, many choices, many of which can lead me to the wrong paths, and recognizing those paths is no easy feat. I don't really know if I've made the best choices… but I do know I want to make the best I can out of each choice I make. I want to do better, to be better… and if I let myself think there's only one path, one that's already been chosen for me, I don't know if I'll be able to do that. If there's one thing I've never regretted, it's setting out on my own and making choices for myself, choices I took too long to understand I could make. There's bound to be much more honor in learning to make the right choices, in learning to bear with the consequences of one's actions, than in following people's expectations constantly, in the hopes that they might just have better judgment than I ever would."

"Ah. You speak with true wisdom, young Prince," said Guru Pathik, smiling at Zuko kindly. "Very good."

Zuko offered the guru a tight-lipped smile, and he closed his eyes again as he savored the strange, physical sensation of liberation after the chakra had been cleansed. Beside him, Aang breathed deeply before speaking, next:

"For a long time, I… I told myself I didn't want to be the Avatar. That anyone but me would have been better for the job," he said, softly. "It was just another way to run away from my duty. Whatever my past lives may think, whatever mistakes I've made… however strongly I feel my own humanity, the truth is I am the Avatar. It shouldn't be such a controversial or hard truth to understand… but it's one I've been hesitant to truly accept for a long time. Still, I am the Avatar… and I have a duty to this world that I intend to uphold, regardless of whatever comes next."

Guru Pathik smiled again and nodded when Aang opened his eyes. The Avatar smiled a little, unsure if he felt pride over the truth he'd accepted… but he certainly felt better about himself, all around.

"Then… how about the rest of you?" Guru Pathik said, glancing at the other three.

Sokka blinked himself out of his comforting, healing sensation upon realizing he had been addressed by the guru. He offered him an awkward smile, unsure if he should have been so distracted by whatever that familiar yet unknown feeling had been… but that enabled Kino, sitting between him and Aang, to groan and pout, interrupting his meditative stance.

"It's no use. I can't think of anything," he pouted, glancing at the guru hopelessly. "Give me a hint…?"

"A hint?" the guru repeated, perplexed, while Aang and Zuko smiled at Kino's hopeless, reckless request. "Why… I have no idea what sort of hint to give that I haven't given you already."

"Then I guess I just live by my truth very strongly because I can't see much in the way of lies…" Kino said, with a shrug. "I mean, maybe someone nice might say that, even though I'm not as useful as you guys, it doesn't mean I have no place here, but…"

"You… have only just hit the nail on the head and you didn't notice it," Pathik said, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not certain whether that's admirable, extraordinary, or simply… lucky."

"What? What'd you mean?" Kino blurted out, puzzled. "Wait, you're not going to say that's… a lie? Hey now, it's objectively verifiable and certifiable that everyone around me is pretty amazing in their own way: you can read their energies, right? Look at them, these three are benders, and this one here's the coolest guy alive…!"

"Uh, damn. Thanks, I guess," Sokka said, glancing at Kino with a weak smirk as Kino shrugged.

"Just telling the truth," he said. Pathik laughed.

"That all may be part of your truth… and yet your failure to see your own worth objectively is blocking your chi, evidently," Pathik smiled. Kino pouted. "If you believe bending is what makes them extraordinary… how would this young man here, non-bender as he is, be the 'coolest guy alive'? It wouldn't make sense, unless… unless people's worth weren't solely related to their bending, or their fighting skills. How does that hint sit with you, young man?"

Kino was speechless now, blinking blankly as he frowned to himself: he had thought that maybe he wouldn't open this chakra at all. His lucky spree seemed to have gone quite well until the last one, and now everything seemed far too challenging to keep up with. Yet… the guru did have a point. Bending wasn't the sole requisite for someone to be incredible, and he had offered Sokka some of his own usefulness over the span of their last days in the Water Tribe. Maybe… maybe he wasn't that bad. Maybe he did have a role to play yet, even if a role he couldn't quite understand just yet.

"Maybe… maybe I'll defeat the Fire Lord?" he said, with a giggle. Pathik chuckled too.

"You are the one who will choose what to make of your potential, young man. Never forget it," he said. Kino smiled brightly, nodding… and opening a new chakra, effectively, after that last self-reflection session.

Sokka cleared his throat and focused again: the sensation was now as good as gone… and he mourned its absence, even if knowing he'd do best to truly ponder what the guru wanted him to think about. Truths and lies: if Kino's own lie had been about his role in this battle, about his place among them, then… did that mean his own convictions, his own, self-deprecating thoughts of worthlessness, were lies?

"After all the chakras you have opened…" the guru explained, and Sokka frowned a little as he ensured to listen, this time. "You have learned to let go of your guilt, learned to accept your fears, to recognize your shame, to transform and renew your love: thoughts of worthlessness don't have any place in a flowing system of energy where you have set aside so much of what weighed you down, do they?"

"I… I guess so," Sokka said, frowning. "It's just… With all the bad choices I've made, but even before that, I… I've always thought I have to prove myself. When I had to kill all those men in the Amateur Arena… even before that, when I wanted to gain my father's approval by taking action when he didn't, I just wanted to prove myself worthy of… of my own existence, I guess."

"Curious, then, that your understanding of your worth is connected to your achievements, to your many feats and your ability to protect and defend those you love," Guru Pathik said. Sokka trembled but nodded. "Many of those you've protected, however, are much weaker than you. They may have made shameful choices in their past, too. Sometimes you've protected even those who don't deserve protection, simply because you're a man who attempts to soothe other people's pain rather than inflicting it: were they all unworthy of your help because of their past mistakes? Were they unworthy of it because of their weaknesses?"

"No, that's… no," Sokka said, frowning.

"You've fought for many, so many, who couldn't fight for themselves. Not once did you hesitate, not once did you think they might not be worth it: why would you think, Gladiator, that you need to prove your worth when you have never asked that of anyone else?"

Sokka shivered, fists tightened over his lap. The words rang true, so true, like a battering ram waiting for a cardboard door to be crushed under its strength… and he'd allow it.

"I… never did need to?" he said, hesitating still. "I… I was worthy, just as I was. E-even after everything I did, even then, I…"

"No one I've ever known is worthier than you."

Her voice had never echoed quite so profoundly, quite so powerfully, through his body. Sokka gasped, as that strange sensation gained strength anew… as though his energy truly were revitalized, strengthened by the bond they shared… as though, right now, she were thinking most proudly of how worthy he always had been. As though she were sending such thoughts to him… thoughts to confirm that she believed in him, and saw him far more clearly than he saw himself…

Maybe the guru was right. Maybe Azula was right. Maybe, despite what he'd thought all his life… he was worthy, for more reasons than he understood just yet.

The new chakra opened in a sudden burst, so powerful Sokka flinched… and yet he smiled. A strange feeling of liberation had taken hold of him… as one of the deepest thorns in his energy receded at last. After a lifetime of chasing for approval, hoping to become more than what he already was… suddenly it seemed he could look back at who he was, at everything he'd ever stood for, and find he might already have succeeded at a task he, nonetheless, continued to throw himself into, over and over again, all be it to convince himself that his survival, his existence, had to be justified somehow. But perhaps his understanding of worth, of human value, was simply skewed in ways he didn't even recognize. Only now, upon setting it aside, upon accepting himself as he was… only now did he feel any closer to attaining true peace within his tormented soul.

Only Katara was left now: the young woman frowned heavily, but she let out a sigh as she finally seemed to choose a way to compose her thoughts. She appeared just as troubled about her lies and truths as her brother had been… just as hesitant to share them, too.

"Well…?" Pathik said. Katara gritted her teeth and lowered her head.

"I've… tried to be everyone but myself," she whispered. "I wanted… to take my mother's place and help my family, but I wasn't ready, I was too young. Then, when my brother was gone, I tried to take his place, too, leading the warriors, and… and I couldn't be like him, or like my father. I tried to help my grandmother by tending to the ill and wounded too, and I discovered waterbending healing, b-but even so… I just keep stumbling after everyone, instead of doing what my father told me I should. Instead of carving my own path…"

"Well, now… following others is not, in itself, the wrong choice so long as you aren't following blindly," Pathik said, smiling. "Their examples have guided you in your life… but you have let yourself be consumed by following those examples rather than understanding yourself and building your own identity."

"I know that, but… I don't know how to do that now. I'm not sure I really understand how to… to stand on my own without constantly looking to others to help me find my way."

"Perhaps you should start by realizing that there is nothing wrong with finding your way with help?"

Katara frowned, opening her eyes to glance at the guru. He smiled again, nodding in her direction.

"Once you do… it's possible that you'll find you are, above all things, yourself: none of us become who we are without the influence of those around us, those we love and who love us in return. Perhaps you have consciously tried to imitate those in your family you admired, or cherished, or miss… the mark they leave in your heart is no less real whether you follow on their footsteps or not. You are, above all else, yourself: it is your choices, your actions, your beliefs, that define you. And just as your brother is valuable for who he is, so are you. The standards you try to measure yourself with… they are guidelines and boundaries you've set for yourself. But your potential, young lady, is limitless."

Katara's eyes focused on the ground before her, as a shiver shook her body. Limitless? Was she truly capable of achieving greater things than those she loved and admired most deeply? Was that truly what the guru meant…?

If she let herself grow out of her self-imposed boundaries, perhaps that could be true. If she let herself see beyond the restraints of her position, of being the youngest daughter, the little sister, the one in need of protection, the one in need of a mentor, of a leader to follow…

Perhaps she really was capable of more than she knew… so much more than she had ever let herself dream of.

She glanced at her four companions, to find most of them were smiling kindly at her. Even Zuko, who didn't smile, nodded in her direction. Her chest tightened, her throat did too… and a slow grin spread over her face next.

"I… am me. I am myself, and that's… that's already something to be proud of," she said: her smile gained strength as the guru laughed in approval: her chakra seemed to burst open, as energy rushed through her system, bringing her to smile brightly, blissfully.

"Good job, all of you," guru Pathik nodded in their direction. "More onion-and-banana juice is in order!"

"Guess so," Aang laughed, encouraging the others to rise to their feet and follow the guru out of the echoing chamber.

It was almost noon by then: once they finished lunch, the guru guided them to another large open expanse from which the sun shone brightly upon them. As strange as this process had been, all members of the tight group found themselves closer to each other than ever before: Zuko, as distraught as he had been over being apart from his family, now seemed to smile a little more often. Katara's tension over the upcoming journey and fears of the unknown also had given way to a stronger sense of tranquility. Aang appeared stronger, even if his heart felt vulnerable, all the same. Kino seemed less hesitant, too, no longer so quick to assume that he'd have nothing to offer the group. And Sokka… Sokka found a strange sense of calm inside his soul, one that he had only experienced very sparsely in the past. Seldom had he been at peace with himself, fully and genuinely… today, it seemed, he had reclaimed that feeling. Would it be as fleeting as it was in the past? Would it fade away over time, as he struggled to overcome countless challenges? It was hard to say… but he hoped it would linger for a few more hours, at least.

Under the glow of the potent sunlight, Guru Pathik explained their next chakra:

"It is the light chakra," he said. Sokka crooked an eyebrow: sound and light were the first two chakras that had broken out of the four-element cycle. Soundbenders, lightbenders… Azula had mentioned both, long ago. Perhaps each chakra also had a direct connection to a chi path that enabled a person to control each element? To control sound, and light… certain firebenders had been able to bend light, he remembered. Perhaps that was what Azula had learned about, all along…? "It is located in the forehead: it deals with insight, and it is blocked by illusion."

"Uh… that sounds a lot like the previous chakra," said Aang, cocking his head to the side.

"There are always similarities between the chakras, young Avatar," said the guru, beaming. "This, in fact, is one such illusion: the illusion of separation. Not because each chakra carries a different name or meaning do they stand for something entirely different: all of them are connected, much as everything in our world is connected!"

"Huh…" Aang blinked blankly, nodding respectfully at the guru's words.

Everything was connected? The illusion of separation… separation was an illusion? It certainly felt very real to Sokka, always had. He had been separated from his family for so long, for too long, even… and now, upon being separated from Azula, he had spent months struggling to conciliate the pain, so profound and intense, while being away from her. He certainly didn't think her absence was an illusion, if anything, the many dreams he'd found her in seemed to be illusions, welcome ones as long as he wasn't reliving their worst moments… but illusions, all the same. Was he supposed to see through them? To dispel them? Insight… it sounded like instincts, being capable of understanding more than what met the eye, but what on earth about his separation from Azula could feature any deeper meanings than the ones he already knew of?

"Is it… like what Sokka said earlier? Well, on the night when we first met you, Guru Pathik?"

Aang's newest guess didn't help matters much: so caught in his confusing thoughts, Sokka raised an eyebrow, glancing at Aang inquisitively.

"I said what, now?" he asked.

"You know… all that about how the past Avatars set up all those boundaries and limits, how they didn't really do their jobs the right way because, instead of teaching people why balance mattered, they just settled for enforcing control as best they could," Aang explained. Sokka blinked blankly. "I guess… it could just mean that all four nations shouldn't be separate at all. That maybe we're all… one and the same?"

"Huh. I… didn't really see it that way," Sokka frowned. "There are differences between each nation, between each element, but those differences shouldn't make anyone better or lesser, if you ask me…"

"They don't," Zuko said, sharply. "But maybe that's the point: seeing the differences rather than the points in common might be one of the reasons why some idiot ancestor of mine decided to go to war with everyone who wasn't exactly like him. Whatever marks us as different shouldn't divide us…"

"I definitely stand by that" Sokka said, nodding "But in a world like ours… there's a lot of inequality for lots of reasons that make no sense, altogether"

"Acknowledging that they make no sense should be a good starting point, right?" Katara said. "We can celebrate our differences without separating ourselves from others because of them."

"But still… there's no way I can really feel like I'm the same as you guys," Kino pointed out, tapping his chin. "Not just because of our nations, but… you guys can bend, I can't, Sokka can't. And what you all can bend… it's not really all the same, is it?"

"My, my," Pathik laughed. "Yet another illusion that you have yet to see through: all the elements are one, young man."

"All the… huh?" Kino blinked blankly. "So wait, does that mean we're ALL the Avatar? Even if we can't bend?"

"Perhaps!" Guru Pathik smiled, and Kino's jaw dropped.

"I mean… we all have the four chakras that correspond with each element, right?" Aang pointed out, glancing between the group. "Look at how our process went: we struggled with many of the chakras, all of us. It's not like Katara was better attuned to the water chakra just because she's a waterbender, or Zuko was better with the fire chakra because he's a firebender. It's… energy. Everything is energy."

"Energy…" Sokka repeated, closing his eyes. "Chi? I mean, all things considered… I did firebend, more than once."

"Well… the Princess did it, right?" Kino pointed out, with an awkward smile.

"But my energy channeled hers," Sokka explained. "If that could happen… yeah, I can't produce fire, I can't stir the air, I can't crack open the ground or part waters, but maybe my energy could still channel all those abilities if I figured out how to make it happen, somehow. I mean, maybe I can't, not really… but it feels like my body, my soul, my energy, all of them could channel the power of a bender, somehow. Maybe yours can, too, Kino…"

"T-that sounds… so cool and so scary," Kino said, swallowing hard. Sokka smiled at him and shrugged.

"And maybe… maybe the attunement of chi is unusual, only takes place between people who are very close, so much that their energies mimic each other until they're one," Sokka continued. "But if you could attune your chi to… to the whole world, I guess?"

"Woah!" Aang gasped, eyes widening. "The world? That sounds…!"

"Like what this guy has been doing the whole time," Zuko pointed out, gesturing at the guru. Pathik smirked and winked at Sokka, who flinched at the gesture.

"Now that's some insight, young man. Well done!" he said, beaming. "The ultimate purpose of opening your chakras is to connect your energy to the energy of the world. To understand it by understanding yourselves, first of all. From the minuscule to the massive, we have the potential to go well and truly beyond the limits of our mortal bodies and achieve an eternity of the sorts that countless have chased after to no avail: true eternity is found in the mundane, in the ephemeral, in what seems to fade with time, but that in truth, exists and endures forever."

Sokka breathed deeply, closing his eyes as the guru's words shook him again: eternity was found in the mundane, then. In the moments where he, somehow, had even broken free from his worldly trappings, from his body even, from the limitations of his existence and touched something far greater than himself…

It was a complicated concept to grasp, but it seemed a deeper truth than those they'd confronted earlier. Truly, it was a slow but steady journey, and with each new chakra they unlocked, each of them was closer to truly understanding not only themselves, but the world they had been born to…

"Then… not even non-benders and benders are all that different, huh?" Kino said, with a smile of his own. He glanced at Zuko and grinned more widely. "I knew you and I had more in common than you wanted to admit! Maybe we're actually twins separated at birth!"

"No wonder we bumped into each other again, if the illusion of separation is one of the greatest ones there are," Zuko said, with a sarcastic smile of his own. He frowned as he pondered everything Sokka and the guru had said, though. "But that… also means you and I aren't all that different, huh, Katara?"

"Uh… well, yeah. I guess so," Katara said, with a slight shrug: Sokka, beside her, snickered. "And what's so funny?"

"I always said you two were more alike than you'd ever want to admit. Good to know I was wrong about you not admitting it, rather than about you being similar…" Sokka chuckled, Katara rolled her eyes but smiled, as did Zuko.

"It's probably long past due that I accept it anyway," Katara said, rubbing her brow with her fingertips. "It'll be harder with other people, for sure, but… maybe that's how we can really stop this war. By understanding each other… by teaching others to understand us. Even if we're different, maybe we have much more in common than we'd like, as it is with me and Zuko…"

"And here I thought we'd finally be friends. Guess you still refuse…" Zuko sighed, prompting the others to laugh as Katara smiled and shook her head.

"Oh, you great whiner. Want me to go over there and give you a hug now, is that it?" she asked, causing Zuko to laugh as he raised a hand to deter her. "Because I would, alright? I would!"

"No need to prove anything, I get the message," Zuko laughed, shaking his head.

Aang smiled at them as well, a burst of pride in his heart… and a flash of clarity in his mind, too: the guru was right, they were no different from each other. All of them had a role to play, all of them were individuals with their own pain, struggles and experiences… but they had been born in this world. Separating their people, limiting who someone could bond with, blocking out certain truths simply because they were uncomfortable… that was no way to create the new world they wished to build. Now that so much had changed, that it seemed balance as it was known might never return… now, more than ever, Aang had to ponder what it meant to exist in this world, to see through every preconception everyone had taken for granted. It wasn't enough to find knowledge others had compiled, it wasn't enough to listen to other people's wisdom… he had to learn to open his eyes, his inner eye, to truths that weren't apparent at first glance. That was what it meant to have insight… and that was what he'd need if he hoped to shape the world into a better place.

This insight also meant questioning certainties, even questioning those he feared might have held absolute truths. So far, he had done his best to shake off the encounter with his past lives, to come to terms with it, to accept both his failings and theirs, to understand their sorrow over their war-torn, destroyed world… but perhaps it was time to consider that their certainty that their world was lost didn't obey a truth beyond Aang's grasp. Perhaps they were simply afraid… and Aang's role, as this new world's Avatar, wasn't limited to aiding people in understanding what this new path entailed. His role was to find balance, to help the common people build it and preserve it across their world… to push forward, past the misconceptions and discouraging turns of events that might yet await him. He had to see beyond the obvious, he had to find a vision of his own, a vision of the world he wanted to build…

As he glanced at his friends, all of whom had opened their insight chakras by now, Aang smiled fondly, his mind made up: this was the world he'd build. This was exactly what he had been born to do. If five people as different as all of them had found a way to become a team, to thrive in every challenge and help each other as they had so far… it would be beautiful, wonderful, if the whole world could learn to follow their example. They could set it for them, then… they could make it happen. By then, his past lives might just regain their own insight and realize, just as Aang had right now, that many things they took for granted could be challenged, questioned… and changed, for the better.

"You are ready for the final chakra, then," Guru Pathik said, smiling kindly at Aang. He grinned back and nodded: his head, so full of new ideas and understanding of the world, somehow felt lighter than ever before. The new chakra's cleansing had effects across each of them, some more physical than others… and the renewal Pathik had spoken about earlier seemed to rush through them with each newly clean chakra in their bodies.

"When do we start?" Aang asked.

"Tonight!" Pathik declared, surprising the rest of the group. "Well, take a chance to nap, if you wish… you seemed bothered that I'd overworked you before, and the next chakra is best opened at night. Let's hope the weather remains as clear as it is right now!"

"Let's," Aang smiled and nodded: strangely, if Pathik hadn't brought it up, he would have forgotten, outright, that he hadn't had any sleep since well over a day ago.

The camaraderie between the group had never felt stronger than it did right now: even Katara and Zuko's traditional hostility seemed nowhere around, and even if Kino said anything foolish, the others seemed to laugh it off without as much dismissiveness. After a few hours of casual chatting, of napping against Appa's side and a light dinner, the guru, who had vanished while they waited for night to fall, returned at last.

"Is it dark enough yet?" Zuko asked Pathik, who smiled and nodded.

"It will be, very soon," he determined. "Follow me!"

They did as they were told, tagging along after the guru in comfortable silence… up until the guru led them all the way to the tallest tower, at the very heights of the Temple. Sokka was immediately reminded of the tower Azula had been assigned to stay at on their first visit to the Northern Air Temple… he bit his lip but smiled at the memory, though the others appeared a lot less moved by the odd location the guru had picked for their final chakra opening session.

"You want us to sit on that roof?" Kino asked, eyes wide as they gazed at the top of the tower from the very base of the building. "Like… climb all the way up there?"

"Well, yes. The spire won't accommodate all six of us properly, unfortunately…" the guru sighed, shaking his head. "Yet again, the Eastern Air Temple is far better suited for these purposes than this one. There isn't much point in complaining, however! Let's go, let's go!"

"Well, it should be fun," Aang said, smiling fondly at the building. "I used my bending a lot to climb these towers when I was younger. I got into so much trouble for it…"

"We won't be too upset if you use your bending to hoist us up there, to be honest," Katara teased him, and Aang laughed. "Seriously! How many stairs will we have to climb?"

"As many as are needed!" the guru smiled: he had approached the tower's threshold and gestured at them to follow. With a sigh, Katara fell into step behind him, followed by the other four.

The long climb took them well around twenty minutes: Kino was as good as breathless once they reached the top, and Sokka felt distinctly lightheaded, in a way he had once before… back when he and Azula had risen to what they had thought was the top of the world. The Air Nomads had certainly liked living in strange ways if they were fine with such thin air…

The only Air Nomad around them was evidence of that, too: while Katara and Zuko seemed uncomfortable, same as Sokka, Aang appeared perfectly content to step out into the roof through the small door Pathik had opened for them, careless about how the wind might buffet him, free to enjoy the breeze and happy to ignore the discomfort of the thin air that plagued his friends.

"Now, now! Come along, all of you!" the guru smiled: one by one they stepped outside, and once they did, Kino, who had once been scared of heights, now seemed to be scared all over again, clinging to Zuko's back as he eyed the ridiculously long fall to the ground from here…

"Don't worry, Kino: if anything happens to you, I'll catch you before you hit the ground!" Aang smiled. Kino gritted his chattering teeth.

"I-is that supposed to reassure me…?" he asked: as much as all of them were still wearing their winter coats, the cold air seemed to seep right through the fabric, also pelting the exposed skin on their faces as daggers might.

"So busy looking around yourselves, at the ground…" Guru Pathik said, with a melodramatic sigh that turned into a smile as he spread his arms. "When you should be looking up!"

At once, the five followed his indication to find themselves before a starlit, beautiful, blackened canopy of a sky. Sokka smiled again as more memories flourished in his mind… memories of a night far warmer than this one, spent embracing the woman to whom he would be bonded forevermore.

"Look around the vastness that extends even beyond this world…" Guru Pathik said, as the other five gazed reverentially at the sky. "From the very basics, starting with how we survive, now it is time for us to examine…"

"Our place in the universe?" Zuko asked, blinking blankly. Guru Pathik froze before clearing his throat.

"Something like that. But you make it sound so simplistic," he said, shaking his head. "Now, then! Gather round, like always: it's time for all of you to sit and meditate once more."

They sat in a circle as always… but this time, they left a lot more room between themselves and the others, and for safety's sake, they didn't face each other: they sat facing the edge of the roof instead, spread all around the spire. Sokka breathed deeply, taking in the sight before himself, feeling alone in a rather agreeable way: perhaps this would be the most personal chakra yet, he guessed, but what else would the old man make them think about? What could there be left for them to meditate on?

"The final chakra is the thought chakra… located at the crown of the head," Guru Pathik announced. "It deals with pure, cosmic energy, like the one you are seeing right now, all around us."

"Pure, cosmic energy…" Sokka repeated, eyes wide: were they supposed to connect with the universe itself? That sounded massive. If he couldn't even be sure he was connecting properly with the energy of the world around them, at least, not consciously, how could he try to reach out even further? In a sense, it seemed terrifying…

Long ago, he and Azula had talked about their insignificance while underneath the stars. He had reasoned that their problems might feel small in the face of the vast universe that spread beyond them… but were they, truly? Now, more than ever, it seemed impossible to think of it that way…

"It embodies our full spiritual connection, not only with this world, but the Spirit World and every bit of cosmic energy that exists: as it happens, we are all cosmic energy," Guru Pathik continued explaining. "Once we tap into that energy, we can embody our greatest potential and become much more than ourselves. But of course, what blocks this chakra is our earthly attachments: what are you attached to, in this world?"

Sokka flinched immediately, shooting a wary glance over his shoulder. Not too far from where he sat, he could tell Zuko had reacted similarly: earthly attachments blocked this chakra? Didn't that mean…?

"Think on it: what anchors you to your existence? What locks you down on the ground, not so much physically, but spiritually?"

"Those I love," Sokka, Katara, Zuko and Aang blurted out at unison. Kino blushed, upon failing to give the same answer as the rest of them.

"We literally went over that in the fourth chakra," Zuko pointed out, and Katara nodded.

"Earthly attachments do not refer exclusively to your close bonds with others," Guru Pathik pointed out: Sokka frowned at the words, unsure of what to make of them. If the immediate attachments they could think of were connected to one chakra, perhaps it meant any of the other chakras could embody earthly attachments, too… "Your dreams, your hopes, your ambitions… your pleasures, your enjoyment, your entertainment, too. Your duty, your aspirations: everything you stake your very life on, everything that moves you, all of it represents an attachment."

"Then… what, our whole lives count as attachments?" Sokka asked. Guru Pathik smiled.

"Yes! You're on the right track!"

Sokka grimaced but closed his eyes again: if so… then everything he'd just learned had pointed out his attachments. His hopes for the future, to build a world without war, his willingness to fight for those who couldn't fight for themselves, his eagerness to protect those he loved… his devotion for Azula. That, above all else, had attached him to this world: he had even craved death for a long time, as good as hoping for it to find him when he couldn't fight against it anymore… but then she had come along, and from the very first moment, she had given him reasons to live again. Hopes to return to his people, first of all… which had eventually given way into the love he had staked his life over when everything came to a head. He hadn't wanted to die but to live for her, to live with her… had this damn chakra been open when he had lived in the Amateur Arena? It seemed unlikely, considering how blocked his survival chakra had to be in those days, so heavily burdened with fear…

"Think of all those attachments, now…"

Zuko gritted his teeth, evoking thoughts of his family, of the igloo he had crafted with his own hands, the first time he had truly worked hard for something that had paid off. The Tribe, the people who had grown to welcome him among them… even his uncle, who had raised and looked after him long after his father had discarded him, after his mother was gone. And his mother, too… even his aspirations to the Fire Nation throne. His willingness to build a better world for his wife, for his children, for his friends and everyone he had ever cared for…

Katara's thoughts almost mirrored his: her family, her Tribe, a world they had to save. Her mother, lost to the cruelty of the Fire Nation's forces, her father and grandmother, who had stayed behind. Her hopes for the future, her eagerness to become a better, stronger waterbender… her wistful thoughts of a life alongside Aang.

Kino squirmed, unsteady over this chakra and its implications: he had to think on what attached him to this world, and as it was, his best guess was the lack of impact he'd had upon it. His hopes to actually do something one day… to mean something, to someone. To be important, even if just for one person… to find someone worth fighting for, just as all his friends had. Odd that he could feel as though he could adapt to the world's changes without much struggle, but that one thought, that singular hope, would remain a constant inside his heart…

Aang lowered his head, trembling even if the chilly air was so familiar, something he was so used to: his immediate first thought had been Katara. Then, his duty as the Avatar. Everything he was fated to achieve, everything he had been told to fight for… he had so many expectations upon him and he couldn't imagine himself dying without fulfilling them. A life with Katara, though… a future alongside her was what he'd always wanted, perhaps even what he'd let himself be completely derailed by: he'd been living a life alongside her through the years since she had found him in the iceberg. His duty had gone forgotten, disregarded, until he had no more room to keep running away…

"Now… let go of all those attachments. Let them flow down your river of energy… forgotten."

"No."

Zuko's voice broke through the reverent silence, though it didn't truly surprise anyone: all of them had suspected this chakra would likely turn out this way once the guru had started to explain it… but it was no surprise, not truly, that Zuko would be the first one to oppose this chakra's requirements.

"I understand your apprehension, your unwillingness…" Pathik said, closing his eyes and shaking his head. "But you must learn to let go, or else the universe's cosmic energy won't flow through you."

"Well, maybe I don't need to open this chakra," Zuko huffed, folding his arms over his chest stubbornly. Despite himself, Aang smiled at Zuko's usual firmness.

"If you wish to find true balance within yourself, and if Aang hopes to master the Avatar State, there is no holding back from mastering this chakra," Pathik insisted, shaking his head. "It is, ultimately, your choice not to open your every chakra. There are many who never can reach the stages all of you have… but it seems to me that each of you could find a truer, stronger balance in yourselves than you already have found. As strong as your attachments may be, letting them go is crucial for…"

"Crucial? This is the same kind of nonsense my father believes in!" Zuko growled, bitterly. "He thought we shouldn't love, he thought we shouldn't care about anything, because the only thing he wanted was power! And I don't think I can harness the power of the universe the way Aang can, it doesn't make sense that I would… so maybe I'll just sit this one out."

"Wait, I can?" Aang asked, grimacing. "What's that supposed to mean, harnessing the power of the universe?"

"Sounds like it's something connected with having some perfect spiritual balance within your body?" Kino said, scratching the back of his head.

"Well, you tell me what sort of superior knowledge you access once you let go of your attachments, Kino. That way I'll know if it's worth it or not," Zuko huffed. Pathik sighed, shaking his head.

"You are blocking this chakra deliberately, then? You won't even try it?" he asked. Zuko gritted his teeth and shook his head.

"My attachments make me better. My attachments make me stronger," he said, firmly. "If I let go of them…"

"Isn't that the core of the matter?" Pathik pointed out, as Zuko trailed off without finishing his evident thought: "Upon letting go, you'll let yourself discover who you truly are. No longer would your attachments define and determine your path. Knowing that there's something bigger than yourself, something that spreads farther than any of us can conceive… it should enable you to build a healthier distance with what you are attached to. When said distance exists, you are no longer blinded by your devotion, by the strong pull these attachments can have over your heart. Sometimes, you may make the wrong choice when your attachments spur you to do so… and that wrong choice could have catastrophic consequences for that which you love, for yourself as well. You do not seem to quite grasp yet that you are valuable even beyond that which you value, that which you protect…"

"I am valuable because I can value. Because I can protect," Zuko determined, frowning heavily. "Because I can love, because I can hate, because I can feel everything I feel. Because I'm not some husk of a man with nothing in his heart but bitter hatred. I've grown out of that… and I can look in the mirror without flinching at the sight of my scar. I understand what you're trying to say, I really do… but I don't think I can do it. I don't want to. It goes against everything I am."

Pathik sighed, but he said nothing more. Not to Zuko, anyway. He walked quietly towards the next person who, even without hearing his opinion yet, was most likely to reject this chakra as well.

"And what of you? Is it impossible for you as well, Gladiator?"

Sokka gritted his teeth, closing his eyes as that word hung over him like a ton of bricks… grounding him, heavily, reminding him of his duty to the world, to one very special person: he couldn't be a gladiator without attachments. He couldn't pretend to be bigger than he was when he had always felt small, insignificant, in the face of the universe.

"I… don't know if it's impossible, outright," he said, softly. "But I don't want to do it either."

"Wanting, choosing your wants rather than obeying your spiritual needs… this is not balance," Guru Pathik said. Sokka sighed and shrugged.

"No, it's not. And hell, maybe this is exactly why I ruined everything. Maybe it's why things took the turn they did. Maybe this is the actual chakra Azula and I failed at: we were too attached to each other and to the future we wanted to build. I still am attached to both things, though… and that's the only reason why I'm still here now. If I hadn't been attached, I wouldn't have let my heart guide me back to her, and if by good fortune I can wind up by her side again at all, it is only because I'm bonded with her for good. Otherwise, I wouldn't have set out from home in the first place. All five of us would still be there, and I'd still be mourning and crying over everything that went wrong rather than doing something about it."

"That is precisely the risk you face: you are willing to stake your life on this journey, aren't you? You would sacrifice everything for the sake of success. This sort of commitment, this mindless walk into the jaws of a hungry beast may just be your undoing and prevent you from fulfilling your very goals: are you truly prepared to take that sort of risk?"

Sokka breathed deeply, opening his eyes: again, he let himself feel, deep in his heart, the truths he had held onto… the certainties that lingered after everything he'd been through, especially after their two days of opening chakras…

"You taught me many things, Guru Pathik," Sokka said. "You've made me reason with more of them than I can say. Words I've never wanted to accept, truths that I ran away from… all of it has made sense since you started us on this spiritual journey. Isn't it ironic to think that, if maybe you'd just started with this chakra, I might have actually agreed to what you're saying? If only you hadn't helped me clear all my darkest thoughts, my nightmares, my burdens… if only you hadn't taught me how to let go of my guilt, my shame and my grief, those very things might just convince me to open my heart to the universe and forsake my motivations and goals… very ironic."

Pathik grimaced as Sokka drew in a deep breath, casting a glance at Zuko: he sat, hunched, at the edge of the roof, his face drawn into a disgruntled frown.

"You talked to me before we set out from the South Pole, Zuko," Sokka said, startling him. "You… you as good as tried to convince me that our journey required for me to think bigger, to embody everyone's dreams, everyone's hopes, and not just my own."

Zuko's eyes widened as he glanced at Sokka. He hadn't thought of that conversation again… and yet Sokka's current words rang true. The exiled Prince scoffed, running a hand over his hair.

"Well, we can backtrack a few chakras and I can regret saying what I did, if you want. I'd be a hypocrite to demand that you're ready to do something that I… that I can't even fathom," Zuko said. Sokka smiled and shook his head.

"I'm not saying that, I'm just saying… there's a lot for us to fight for. So much more than we even know about. People who have been through hardships beyond counting, through ordeals we can't even imagine. My fight, my goals… they won't change. They won't fall to the back of my mind, just as I told you they wouldn't. But if I let go… it means letting go of all those dreams. It means letting everything flow away, including my willingness to fight. And see… I'd be fine with it, if I thought someone else might do what I've set out to. If I could sit back and wait for someone better suited than me to pull it off… maybe I would be okay with learning how to do it. But if there's something I've learned, something a hundred years of war should have taught us all, is that there's no secret savior, no last-minute hero who steps in to save the day, unless we're willing to become that person ourselves. For countless people, it's impossible to become that hero, that savior… but it's not for me. I have the strength to do it, the courage, the need… and I want to do it, more than anything. If I forsake everything and gain some superior awareness of the mundanity of my struggles… it means I'd risk losing the drive that pushes me to keep going. If I let go of my attachments… I'm afraid I'd risk sacrificing far more than by keeping them close and protecting them with a clear head."

"You do not know what dangers loom in the horizon, young man…" Pathik sighed. Sokka smirked at him from over his shoulder.

"And you do? If so, please share," he said. Pathik shook his head.

"My connection with the energy of the universe doesn't quite extend that far," he said. "But perhaps, if you craft a connection like this one, you could reach out and feel the one you love. You could navigate the flow of energy and reach for hers, consciously: wouldn't you wish to do this, Gladiator? Would it be so terrible to build that sort of bridge with the one you love…?"

"The bridge already exists. You said so yourself," Sokka said, with a warm smile. Pathik froze. "She and I… our energy is connected, it always will be. Reaching for her, feeling her heart beating in turn with mine… I already feel it, somehow. At least, I think that's what this strange thrill is. But… even if it isn't what I'm feeling, even if that sensation isn't our connection and I'm just being utterly mad… even then, reaching out to her with my soul is not enough. Not when she's in a world of misery and pain, while I still have the strength and hope to be able to save her from that nightmare. Maybe there are advantages to this cosmic connection, sure… but I don't think I need those advantages as much as I need to truly set her free."

"Oh, well…" Pathik said, shaking his head. "Most falter at this stage, it's true… but I suppose I'll do best to focus on the other three. I can only hope that one day, the two of you will understand my intent: letting go of your attachments isn't a lesson in forsaking them completely. It is meant to help you focus, find balance, not stake your lives on those attachments and bonds…"

"Well, I'll try to find balance in my own way, if you don't mind… just like we'll build a new kind of balance in this world," Sokka said, breathing deeply. "But like Zuko said, don't worry: I bet Aang can pull this off and, if we make a mess of ourselves, he'll be balanced and make us behave ourselves again."

"That's a lot of pressure you're putting on me," Aang called back to Sokka, who only laughed at the Avatar's reaction.

"So be it, then. It is a shame that you won't so much as try… but I suppose neither of you are the Avatar, so it's not that severe if you choose not to unlock this chakra," Pathik said, pacing towards the three that remained.

Sokka smiled guiltily at those words… but the guilt shook off easily enough as he let himself think of her, yet again… as he found himself wondering what she'd choose, if she were here now. Would she have agreed to let go of her attachments? Would she have known how? Perhaps she would have tried… and he certainly would have encouraged her, but if she so much as tried to convince him to do it too, he would have refused, outright. Then she would have likely scolded him for being ridiculous, he would have told her to let go of their attachments for the both of them… and then she probably wouldn't have wanted to do it anymore, too moved by his unwillingness to let go of her that she wouldn't let go of him either.

He laughed to himself, finding it strange, yet beautiful, to think of Azula this way. Was this what his father had explained about how he'd come to terms with Kya's death? How he'd learned to see her, feel her around him, visualize her reactions, sense her very spirit nearby…? Had Sokka slowly let go of his grief, guilt, shame, fears, illusions and lies, all be it to see the world so clearly, even without letting go of his attachments? For he remained as filled with inner peace now as he had been before this chakra… even if he hadn't wanted to open it, even if he had chosen not to, this was the freest he had felt since that final blissful afternoon, spent delighting in his victory over Toph with Azula…

"What's so funny?" Zuko asked, softly. Sokka smiled and shook his head.

"Just imagining how she'd handle this chakra, is all," he said. "I know we lost balance, yeah, that's why things fell apart… but I guess I've realized I have no idea how to regain that balance other than by throwing myself at her completely."

"Huh. That's an image," Zuko smirked, and Sokka laughed quietly. "Suki… I'd want to think she could do it, but I don't think she would."

"After everything we've all been through… letting go of what keeps us sane and human is no easy feat, huh?" Sokka concluded. "But maybe there are more ways to find balance than that…"

"Maybe there are more ways to access magical cosmic energy than by letting go of what does make us human," Zuko smiled. Sokka nodded. "Not that I'm all that desperate to do it, myself, but… I'd choose another way, not this. Never this."

"No judgment here, pal," Sokka said. "I'm no better, as you can tell."

As quietly as they might speak, Pathik still pouted in their direction, waiting for them to fall silent before focusing on the remaining three: Katara had been unusually quiet so far, a distraught expression on her face. The guru sighed, gazing at her hopelessly.

"Another surrender, I wonder?" he asked. Katara tensed up.

"Not… for the reasons you might think," she said, her uneasy gaze flickering at the guru. "I… I think I understand what you want us to do. I think… both Aang and I understand it."

The Avatar glanced at her: the wistful remorse in his dark eyes was reflected perfectly on her bright blue irises. This was exactly why they hadn't let themselves continue their relationship… they'd decided to put it on hold and prioritize other things over their bond. It didn't mean their bond wasn't important… it meant they knew they couldn't honor it, live it to the fullest, unless they set things right in the world first. Much as, right now, the guru expected them to choose that cosmic energy, the greater good or so, above their mundane life experiences…

"We have to think beyond ourselves… beyond the world we know, and beyond our attachments, to do what needs to be done. To fulfill our greater potential," Aang said, softly. "If I'm to bridge spirits and humans… the spirituality of this chakra would be necessary. I didn't set out on this journey solely to be the Avatar for the sake of ending a war. My duty, my work, my potential… they're much bigger than that."

"I understand that," Katara said, with a gentle smile. "And I know why you have to let go. If things ever came down to… to saving the world, or just me? I'd ask you to save the world, and you know it."

"I do," Aang said, with a weak smile. "Though… you would be able to save yourself. You're strong enough that you don't need me for that sort of thing…"

"Well, it was a hypothetical scenario," Katara laughed softly. "I'm just… just saying, if this is what your role as the Avatar requires, you should do it. Your past lives… they mustn't have had great gurus if they acted the way they did with you. Maybe they didn't unlock all their chakras… or maybe they got locked all over again, over time. But what I mean is… you have to be the best you can be. It's only right, as far as I can tell…"

"It's only right…" Aang repeated, though he glanced at her earnestly. "You have to do it too, though. Do your best… and expand beyond every limit and boundary you thought still held you down. I know it won't be easy for me, and I doubt it'll be easy for you… but I bet you'll do extraordinary things, Katara, once you can access your full potential."

"I… I'll hope so," she said, smiling a little.

"Doesn't matter what happens… we'll always have each other," Aang said, smiling gently.

"Doesn't matter for how long we may need to let go… we'd always be connected," Katara agreed, nodding.

After exchanging one more complicit, earnest smile, the two took up their positions for meditation. Guru Pathik sighed in relief, upon finding at least two of the five had chosen to abide by opening the thought chakra…

Though movement beyond them surprised him: at Aang's other side on the roof, Kino had just tensed up… then he relaxed, all in a position of meditation. Pathik raised an eyebrow, approaching him…

"Woah. That was something," Kino blurted out, with a careless smile. Pathik blinked blankly, standing behind him.

"Did you just… open your thought chakra?" he asked. Sokka and Zuko glanced at Kino with amazement, as the former soldier scratched the back of his head.

"Pretty sure I did, yeah," Kino said, nodding. "I don't think my main attachment is all that hard to let go of, really. So I did! And now I'm okay. I really am, you know? It feels like… like I'm one with the universe!"

"I… am not sure whether this is amazing or terrifying," Zuko admitted, to Sokka's amusement. Kino grinned at them, waving happily in their direction.

"All set and done!" he announced to them, with a wide, toothy grin.

The same wasn't true for Katara and Aang, at least not yet: the waterbender seemed to struggle, as letting go of her attachments meant letting go of even more than she had in the previous chakra. Her affection for her family, for her tribe… yes, she needed new balance, for it had rendered her erratic, chaotic, blind to truths that weren't convenient, for no other reason than that. With true balance, with a healthy detachment… maybe she could still look after her family and tribe without ever again risking breaking their hearts with her thoughtlessness and recklessness. If she just found it, if she could claw at it…

But it also required letting go of her regrets: she had done that before, and she'd do it again now. She let herself relax, allowing her thoughts to manifest before her, every beautiful attachment, every dream, every hope…

All of it was beautiful, yes. All of it deserved to be protected. But maybe just as they might protect the Tribe better by leaving it… maybe she could protect that which she loved better by letting it go.

No more clinging to her nation as though it were her lifeline after a shipwreck. No more clinging to her bitterness, to the hostilities she'd forged her motivations around. No more pushing others, no more unchecked emotions… no more expectations placed upon others' shoulders, no more demands made, no more compromises with anyone but herself and the world around her.

A powerful blast of energy seemed to shoot through her: a vision flashed through her mind, a vision of herself amid a sea of stars, and without thinking twice of it, she reached for it…

She came back to her senses with a gasp, and with the lightest, clearest heart and mind she ever recalled having.

"Ah! Well done!" Guru Pathik smiled, stepping closer to Katara anew. She breathed heavily but smiled: she really had done it. She had let go of so much… and somehow, she only felt richer, stronger for it.

"I… I guess I did it," she said, raising her head and gazing at the old man with reverent gratitude. "Thank you. Thank you for being here and helping us and… oh, just, thank you."

"I am pleased I could help at all," guru Pathik smiled. "You have done quite well, Katara."

She smiled proudly: he had addressed her by name for the first time, as though she finally matched who she was meant to be in body, mind and spirit…

As thrilled as she was, however, her eyes drifted to the side before long… to find a most surprising sight before them all, a sight that shook her companions to their core as well:

Aang was floating.

The Avatar's tattoos had lit up anew, even if his eyes closed: he hovered above the place he'd taken his seat at, slowly rising in the air, his crossed legs unfurling as he rose higher. Pathik smiled proudly at the sight of him, even though the others were slightly more apprehensive.

"This is different… he's not fighting it," Kino said, with a proud smile. Sokka and Zuko, who had stepped closer to him after he had successfully unlocked his final chakra, were astonished as they sensed the energies drifting through Aang.

"It's… smooth, feels like. Huh," Sokka smiled, raising his eyebrows. "Is that what it's supposed to look like?"

"It is," Pathik confirmed, his voice dripping with pride. "This… is the true Avatar State."

Aang hovered for well over a minute, his whole body aglow. Katara watched him with amazement, without as much fear as she expected to feel upon seeing him entering the Avatar State again… but he didn't lose control. Instead, Aang was calm and collected, so much it seemed as though he were in perfect harmony with the air around him, the world underneath him, the sky above…

He started to descend slowly after a moment, and by the time he was sitting smoothly on the roof again, his tattoos were no longer glowing. When he opened his eyes, Aang appeared perplexed over the experience but not unhappy, by any means.

"Well… that was something," he laughed shyly. "There was… a giant me among the stars?"

"Yeah! I saw that too," Katara smiled at him. Kino grinned.

"We're the cosmic trio!" he determined, bringing the others to laugh. "We did it!"

"Our chakras are clear, then?" Aang smiled, glancing at the guru with hopeful eyes. Pathik laughed and nodded positively.

"All of you have done a splendid job. Even those two," he said, glancing at Sokka and Zuko with a weak smile. "I shall have to hope the three of you will channel the energy of the universe sufficiently for the whole group, eh?"

"Hopefully," Aang said, letting out a deep sigh as he gazed at the sky with a bright smile. "Wow, I… I really do feel better. I thought I'd never find peace again, when we first arrived… but now I feel more peace than ever before."

"You deserve that and more," Katara said, beaming. "I, too… I'm feeling way better than I did when we first got here. This has been, well… transformative."

"Now that you understand what it takes for the chakras to be cleaned, I expect all of you will be able to meditate on each of your chakras whenever the need arises," Pathik said, as Aang, Katara and Kino rose to their feet as well: all five of them gathered together near the guru, albeit Kino was still somewhat apprehensive about falling off the roof. "If you keep in mind everything that you have learned… no matter how long and arduous as your journey may be, you will always be at your best when sorting through the hurdles that may yet await you."

As much as he and Zuko hadn't finished the final task, Sokka nodded at the guru's indications. Much of their future remained blurry, difficult to surmise… but after setting out of the South Pole and nearly crumbling over the heavy mission ahead, after saying goodbye to family and friends, after letting go of his childhood home, he hadn't been half as prepared to face the future as he felt right now. His heart was well and truly clear for the first time in ages, it seemed… and he intended to keep it that way across the journey that would bring him back to the woman whose energy was so intermingled with his that they had become one and the same.

They would set out by morning, and that meant they'd only have a few more hours of rest: the group climbed back downstairs carefully, and they huddled against Appa's large frame again, escaping the cold weather through the bison's natural warmth and a small fireplace before them. After so much strain, so much growth, so many lessons hard to learn… after all of that, they'd finally found peace enough to soothe their souls into a fulfilling, warm sleep.

Where dreams of the past, of his great love, had filled Sokka with anguish before, now he welcomed dreaming of his lost lover, of the Princess he refused to let go of. Her very presence seemed to set off light across darkness… her smile soothed and strengthened his heart's everlasting yearning to be with her anew. When her hand reached out for his, he took it in his own. When her lips brushed against his, he responded with equal passion. And when she called his name, he answered with hers: their souls were still bonded so intimately, so strongly, that they never failed to seek each other.

In the heights of a massive mountain, hidden within that tall, imposing and majestic building buffeted by cold breeze, Sokka had his first peaceful night of sleep after months, ever reaching for Azula's soul with his own.