Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I need you, Aang.

Aang sat up with a jolt, gulping in a deep breath of air. He pressed the palm of his hand to his chest, trying to slow his breathing to calm himself as his eyes darted around wildly.

Why is everything so… blurry?

Confused, he attempted to use airbending to push himself to his feet, but the air around him remained unaffected by his hand movements. He tried again, to no avail.

What's going on? Why can't I bend? Where—

It was then that he realized.

"I'm… in the Spirit World?"

At last, his surroundings slowly began to come into focus. He appeared to be sitting in a vast field of beautiful purple and teal flowers that were so vibrant they seemed to almost glow. He craned his neck to look up at the dark purple-colored sky and saw several groups of different kinds of spirits, all shaped like no living creatures he had ever before seen in the material world.

How did I end up here? Aang thought, brow furrowing as he manually pushed himself to his feet without the assistance of airbending. Why can't I remember?

He squeezed his eyes closed, trying his best to think back to what he could last remember prior to waking up.

Flashes of flying on Appa towards Ba Sing Se appeared in his mind's eye. Of the Fire Nation drill. Of tunneling under the palace to the Crystal Catacombs with Iroh. Of finding Zuko and Katara. Of fighting Azula and the Dai Li. And then…

His eyes shot open.

They had been completely surrounded and outnumbered by Dai Li agents. He'd seen Zuko on the ground in the distance, Azula's foot planted on his chest. And it had been then that he'd realized what he would need to do if they were going to have any chance of winning the battle.

I let go of Zuko, he thought, feeling sick to his stomach. And I almost mastered the Avatar State. But… I didn't.

Suddenly, a blinding, white-hot pain flared at the center of his back, and he doubled over, crying out in pain. He felt the lightning travel through his body, burning his flesh, searing his blood. In the distance, he heard an anguished scream.

And then… nothing. The pain was gone as quickly as it had come.

That was the last thing he remembered. He had been struck by lightning. Azula's, no doubt.

"No…" he murmured, feeling bile rise in his throat even though he was not in his physical body. "Am I… dead?"

That anguished scream… It had been Zuko's. It was the same scream Aang had heard in his vision during his training with Pathik—a warning of what would happen if he didn't detach himself completely in order to master the Avatar State.

Pathik was right, Aang thought miserably. If I had just let go of Zuko at the Eastern Air Temple and mastered the Avatar State then, then I wouldn't be…

He shook his head slowly, staring down at the purple flowers swaying gently at his feet.

Was this what the rest of his existence would be like from now on? Would he have to wait and watch helplessly from the Spirit World as his next reincarnation grew up in a world dominated by the Fire Nation, cursed to deal with the fallout of his mistakes until they were old enough to learn how to contact him? Was he now stuck in this form forever—the teenage Avatar who not only failed the world, but the people he cared about most?

He thought about everyone who had been counting on him to save them, to finally put an end to this near century-long war. His friends, who had put their trust in him. The innocent people of Ba Sing Se, who were now under Fire Nation rule.

He thought of Zuko. Zuko: his best friend, the person he loved more than anyone on earth. Zuko, who had trusted him, believed in him. Zuko, who had been forced to watch as Aang had failed, unable to do anything to prevent it.

Zuko, who would have to live with the memory of watching Aang die before his eyes for the rest of his life.

It was all horribly ironic. In order to save Zuko, to save everyone, Aang had attempted to let go of Zuko. And yet, in the process, he had ended up failing everyone; Zuko most of all.

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… Zuko…”

He felt his body begin to shake violently with sobs as he collapsed onto his knees, pressing the heels of his palms into his eyes as tears flowed freely from them. He felt his breathing grow ragged and shallow, and he began to gasp for air as he sobbed.

Typically, in the mortal realm, this was the point at which he would have lost control of himself and entered the Avatar State. But he supposed since he was dead and in the Spirit World, he wouldn't have to worry about that anymore.

Strangely, it felt almost cathartic to be able to feel his emotions freely like this. To feel them as himself and himself alone.

Suddenly, he felt his body lurch slightly. When he opened his eyes again, he gasped.

"Where… where am I?"

The field of colorful purple flowers was gone. Instead, Aang was now kneeling under a canopy of dark, twisted, and gnarled trees. In the sky beyond their branches, he could see lightning flashing, and the forest around him buzzed with a myriad of frightening sounds.

He felt so small underneath those giant, menacing trees, whose branches almost seemed to be curling downwards, reaching towards him, to grab him, strangle him…

Aang cried out in fear, scrambling backwards until his back hit the trunk of one of the trees. All around him, pairs of glowing red eyes seemed to appear in the darkness and mist, inching ever closer.

"…Gyatso!" he cried out, pulling his knees to his chest and burying his face into his folded arms, his entire body shaking with terror. "I want Gyatso!"

"Aang."

This gentle voice was not Gyatso's. But it was such a welcome sound amongst the terror of the dark forest that Aang couldn't help but cautiously open one of his eyes.

Lifting his head upwards towards the source of the voice, he was initially met with a near-blinding white light. The light seemed to cause the branches of the gnarled trees to shrink back as it shined its beam directly onto Aang.

As the light slowly faded, a beautiful young woman came into view, floating above him with the moon shining brightly behind her. She was dressed in exquisite white robes that rippled with a nonexistent breeze, and her stark white hair almost seemed to be made of moonlight itself. Her deep blue eyes, while piercing, were also full of warmth, as was her serene smile.

"…Yue?" Aang murmured softly, his brows rising with realization as he watched the Water Tribe Princess land gently on her bare feet in front of him. While she seemed surprisingly tall, practically towering over him, he did not feel any fear.

"It's good to see you again, Aang," Yue said kindly, still smiling at him. "I never got to thank you in person for saving Agna Qel'a, and my people."

Memories abruptly flashed in Aang's mind: the moment his mind and essence had merged with La's in the Spirit Oasis. Destroying the Fire Navy fleet. The feeling of rage, pain, terror, guilt, anguish…

"No, no, no," Aang murmured, covering his ears as he shook his head and squeezed his eyes closed. "I'm scared… I don't want to hurt anyone!"

“Aang,” Yue said again, her gentle voice cutting through his tumultuous thoughts. “It’s alright. You’re alright. Just look at me.”

When Aang reluctantly opened his eyes again, he saw that Yue was now crouched down in front of him, her hand gently resting atop his own.

He stared at her for a moment, his brow furrowing as he studied her features. Despite still appearing to be the same age that she had been when he had known her in life—about fourteen—somehow, she now looked much older at the same time. Her deep blue eyes seemed to hold infinite wisdom, but also infinite sadness.

"Is it alright if I sit with you?" Yue asked, removing her hand.

Aang nodded gingerly, sniffing as he wiped his nose with the back of his hand.

Yue moved to sit next to him, leaning back against the bark of the tree as well. She pulled her knees to her chest in a similar manner to him, and looked up at the hole she had created in the tree canopy with her beam of light. The formerly stormy sky was now clear, with the moon and stars shining brilliantly against swirls of dark purples and blues.

“You know," Yue began. "It was scary for me, too. When I first arrived here.”

Aang turned to look at her, cocking his head to the side with confusion. "You mean after you… died?"

He felt a sudden spike of panic deep in his gut as he remembered.

"Am… I really dead?"

Yue put a gentle hand on his shoulder, and somehow this gesture immediately helped to calm him. "You're not dead, Aang."

Aang sighed heavily in relief, slumping his shoulders. "So how did I end up in the Spirit World?" he questioned.

"Well," Yue replied, squinting one eye as she seemed to contemplate what she was going to say next. "You did come very close to death, I'm afraid," she said at last, her tone growing serious. "But luckily, Katara was able to save you with the waters from the Agna Qel'a Spirit Oasis. You're currently unconscious in the mortal world."

"Oh," Aang replied, his eyes widening. "But… if I'm just unconscious, normally I would be dreaming. I have to be in the Spirit World for a reason."

Yue nodded. “Indeed you are.”

She stood back up and held out her hand. Aang took it, and as he stood up, he suddenly realized that the princess did not seem nearly as tall as she had a few moments ago. In fact, now that he was standing up, he realized he was several inches taller than her.

“Good,” Yue said, smiling up at him. “Looks like you’re back to normal now.”

“…Back to normal?” Aang repeated in confusion.

“Both you and your surroundings are affected by your emotions in the Spirit World," Yue explained. "The fear, sadness, and guilt that you were just feeling—it caused your body and mind to revert to that of a young child.”

Aang stared at the moon spirit for a moment, and suddenly felt his face begin to grow slightly warm. "Well… that’s kind of embarrassing,” he mumbled in reply, rubbing the back of his neck.

Yue laughed. "There's no need to be embarrassed. Like I said, I remember how scary it was when I first got here. Thankfully, I also had someone who helped me back then."

She turned around, and from the darkness of the now much-less-frightening forest, Aang saw the form of someone—or something—drawing closer. Instinctually, he formed a defensive stance, but quickly dropped it when he saw Yue's amused expression and remembered that he couldn't bend.

When the figure in the forest stepped into the clearing he and Yue were standing in, however, Aang saw a handsome man looking to be in his mid to late twenties wearing pale red and orange robes with teal accents. The man was fair-skinned and sported dark, slightly messy shoulder length hair with a small beard on his chin. His dark copper eyes were filled with warmth, and they crinkled as he gave Aang a crooked grin.

"Hello, Aang," the man said. "It's nice to finally meet you."

Aang blinked several times at the man, trying to wrack his brain to determine where he had seen him before. Then, it clicked.

"You're one of my past lives," Aang said.

The man nodded. "My name is Wan. I was the first Avatar."

"Wait," Aang replied, shaking his head rapidly. "The first? As in, the very first?"

"What other kind of 'first' is there, kid?" Wan replied with an amused look.

"Wow…" Aang breathed, suddenly struck with awe. "Avatar Wan… This— this is such an honor."

He pressed his fist and his palm together and bowed deeply, but felt two hands grab his shoulders and pull him upright.

"Hey, hey," Wan said. "No need to do any of that formal stuff with me. I'm not Salai." His facial expression suddenly shifted slightly to one of nervousness. "…Don't tell them I said that," he added quietly, glancing around the area as though he was afraid this "Salai" person was going to show up out of nowhere.

Aang couldn't help but stare back at the man with confusion. Of all the things he would have expected the very first Avatar to be like… This was not it. Nevertheless, he found that he liked Wan quite a bit.

"Wan is here to help you," Yue explained.

"Help me how?" Aang replied.

"Tell me what you remember before you woke up here, Aang," Wan asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Um…" Aang replied, rubbing the back of his neck with a guilty expression. "I… I tried to unlock my last chakra so I could master the Avatar State… But then I got shot with lightning."

To his relief, neither Wan nor Yue looked at him with disappointment or disapproval.

"Do you remember what Avatar Roku told you a few months ago?” Wan asked gently.

Aang nodded. “He said that if I’m killed in the Avatar State, the Avatar will cease to exist," he replied grimly. "But… thankfully I didn't die. According to Yue, at least."

Wan nodded again. “You didn't die, thank the spirits for that. But when you got shot with lightning, Raava was injured.”

"…Raava?" Aang repeated.

Why did that name sound so familiar?

“Raava is my—our—Avatar Spirit,” Wan explained, his features softening as a small, wistful smile appeared on his face. “She and I created the Avatar nearly ten thousand years ago when we chose to permanently fuse ourselves together into one being. Raava has been with us throughout all our lifetimes, and we all carry a small part of her within us. It’s how we’re able to retain our identities and exist as separate entities in the Spirit World, even though we all share the same human spirit.”

This was a lot of information for Aang to receive at once, and he was quiet for a moment as he attempted to catalog it all in his brain.

“Woah. Okay. So, you said when I got struck by lightning, Raava was… injured?”

Wan nodded, his expression darkening slightly. "Thankfully, your friend reviving you with the water from the Spirit Oasis prevented her from being destroyed completely. Though it was a very close call.”

“Oh," Aang replied, paling slightly. "So… Raava's okay, then? The Avatar Cycle didn't end?”

“It hasn't ended yet," Wan replied. "As long as you are able to reconnect with Raava, the Avatar Cycle will continue.”

“How do I reconnect with her?”

“You must speak to all four of your most recent past lives,” Yue explained. “Reconnect with them, and they will help you reconnect with Raava. But you must act quickly, or you will lose your connection with all of your past lives… and the Avatar Cycle will end.”

Aang nodded, anxiety already burning in his stomach. "But how do I find them? Will you guys be coming with me?"

Wan put a hand on his shoulder again. "This is something you need to do yourself, Aang. But remember: every Avatar is a part of you. If you seek them out, you will find them."

"…Okay," Aang replied, trying to swallow his nervousness. "I'll try my best."

"Good kid," Wan replied, squeezing his shoulder and giving him another crooked grin. "And… hey. When you talk to Raava, tell her I said hi, will you?"

Aang raised an eyebrow and exhaled through his nose with a mix of amusement and confusion. "Uh... Sure?"

Yue chuckled and shook her head slowly. "How she has put up with you for nearly ten thousand years, I'll never know."

Wan gave the Moon Spirit a lighthearted glare. "She appreciates my quirks," he muttered before turning his attention back to Aang. "Good luck, Aang. I know you can do this."

"And be careful," Yue said. "Koh will be looking for you."

"He will?" Aang replied anxiously.

"Yep," Wan said, folding his arms with an annoyed look. "Seems he's still a bit pissed that he didn't get to steal your face when you saw him last. He's been wanting to add an Avatar's face to his collection for… well, forever."

Aang swallowed, taking a deep breath. "Alright. I'll be careful."

"Roku?" Aang called out as he wandered through the forest.

The longer he walked, the more his environment seemed to change. The trees around him had become taller, and the ground below him had become wetter. He could feel the air growing thick with humidity, and he couldn't help but be reminded of the Spirit Wild swamp he and his friends had gotten lost in all those months ago.

Suddenly, he heard a fwoosh from somewhere to his left, and flinched backwards when he saw a burst of flames erupt from somewhere in the dense trees.

Was that a firebender? he wondered anxiously as he continued forward, surveying the area apprehensively. No, he thought, shaking his head rapidly and feeling silly. Nobody can bend here.

Was it a spirit? If so, what if it was a spirit who was working for Koh? What if it attacked him?

If it did attack him, he was essentially out of luck. He didn't have any way to defend himself in the Spirit World. No bending, no staff.

Another burst of flames erupted to his right, this time much closer. It was then that Aang realized that it was not a person or spirit who was creating the fire blasts; what he was seeing were fire geysers.

Aang breathed a sigh of relief as he continued forward, still cautious, but less on edge.

"Roku?" he called out again, cupping his hands on either side of his mouth. "Where are you?"

Just as he was about to take another step forward, a blast of flames shot up directly in front of him, and he yelped, stumbling backwards.

When the flames dispersed, however, a familiar face greeted him.

"Hello, Aang," Roku said, though there was no friendly smile on his face as there had been with Wan. In fact, his expression appeared rather serious.

Oh no, Aang thought, biting his lip. He's probably angry with me for almost ending the Avatar Cycle even after he told me to be careful…

"I'm sorry, Roku," Aang said, bowing his head shamefully. "I tried to master the Avatar State… but I failed."

When he looked back up, he was surprised to see that Roku's expression had softened, and there was now unmistakeable guilt and sympathy in his eyes.

"Mastering the Avatar State takes much spiritual discipline and patience," Roku replied. "I learned this the hard way."

A roar sounded from above, and Aang looked up to see a dark red dragon descending towards them in a circular motion.

"Fang!" Aang exclaimed with a smile as the beast curled around them on the ground. He jogged over to give the dragon a scratch on the head, and Fang closed his eyes and gave him an affectionate growl.

"I'm starting to think he likes you more than he likes me," Roku said, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Come. Climb on back."

Aang did as Roku told him, and soon, they were taking off into the sky. As they flew, the world below them shifted, and instead of the colorful landscape of the Spirit World, he saw a familiar crescent-shaped island below them.

Did Roku transport us to the mortal world somehow?

"Where are we going?" Aang asked, his brow furrowing as he noticed the Fire Sage Temple at the island's peak.

"To the Crescent Island Fire Temple," Roku replied.

Aang was certain the temple had been destroyed by Roku himself in the winter solstice two and a half years ago. And yet, there it was, pristine and intact exactly as he'd remembered it prior to its destruction.

"…One-hundred-fifty-three years ago."

So that was it. Roku was showing him the past.

When they entered through the roof and into the main sanctuary of the temple, it too looked almost exactly how Aang had remembered it. There was one difference, however: when he looked at the spot where he remembered Roku's statue to have been, he saw that it was not there.

In front of where the statue would someday stand sat a young man with long, dark brown hair and a Fire Nation-style beard. He was sitting in lotus pose with his eyes closed, and across from him sat a Fire Sage.

Aang's eyebrows rose when he recognized the man's topknot headpiece.

"This is you when you were younger?" Aang asked as he and Roku dismounted.

A small smile appeared on Roku's face. "Yes."

"Concentrate on your breath," the Fire Sage sitting across from young Roku said. "Clear your mind of all thoughts. Let go of your earthly attachments, and enter the Avatar State."

"Fire Sage Kaja was my mentor for my Avatar State training," Roku said.

Though young Roku said nothing in response to his mentor, Aang could somehow hear the thoughts going through his mind.

Inhale… and exhale, young Roku thought.

I think my leg is falling asleep…

Young Roku shook his head rapidly.

Clearing mind…

I hope we're not eating komodo chicken for lunch again…

"Let go of your earthly attachments," Fire Sage Kaja said again. "Think of what attaches you to this world, and let it fade away."

He wants me to detatch myself, young Roku thought, his brow furrowing. But I don't understand how he expects me to do that. I can't just let go of everyone I care about!

Ta Min…

Sozin.

"Sozin?" Aang repeated in surprise, glancing up at the older Roku next to him. The older Avatar seemed to have not heard him; he was frowning slightly as he watched his younger self.

Surely he wasn't thinking of that Sozin, was he? Aang thought. Maybe it was someone else with the same name?

Arrgh, concentrate! young Roku's thoughts interrupted Aang's own. I have to master the Avatar State. I have to.

Suddenly, young Roku bolted to his feet.

"I can't do it!" he exclaimed to a bewildered Kaja. "I've been in retreat for five months and I'm no closer to mastering the Avatar State than when I arrived!"

"Roku, you must remember," Kaja replied calmly. "Mastering the Avatar State requires—"

"Patience, I know!" Roku snapped, beginning to pace back and forth. "I've been as patient as I can be! I’ve spent over a decade mastering all the elements. I've unlocked all of the other chakras. I just need to unlock one more… But I can't."

Fire Sage Kaja pushed himself to his feet and put a hand on the pacing Roku's shoulder, stopping him.

"I understand it is difficult to let go of what attaches you to this world. But you must let go in order to master the Avatar State and become a fully realized Avatar."

Roku looked at him apprehensively for a moment, then grunted in frustration again and stormed out of the sanctuary chamber. Kaja sighed heavily and followed, leaving Aang and the older white-haired Roku standing alone.

"I was impatient," Roku said, staring at the doorway that his younger self had disappeared through with a regretful expression on his face. "I had spent the last twelve years of my life away from Hari Bulkan training to master the other elements. I was ready to become a fully realized Avatar, and to return home."

"Twelve years?" Aang repeated in astonishment.

Roku nodded. "For some of us, it takes much less time than that. For others, it takes more. A decade was the standard for becoming a fully realized Avatar, from what I was told by the sages in my day."

Aang blinked several times. "I really hope it doesn't take me that long…"

To his surprise, Roku gave a small chuckle in reply. However, Aang could not bring himself to smile in return, as there was still something on his mind.

"…You thought about someone named Sozin," Aang said. "When Fire Sage Kaja said to let go of your attachments."

To Aang's surprise, a small, sad smile appeared on Roku's face.

"I did," Roku replied quietly. "And it is the same Sozin you are probably thinking of."

Aang shook his head rapidly, giving the other Avatar an extremely baffled look. "You were thinking about Fire Lord Sozin? Why?"

Roku sighed heavily. "Sozin was once my best friend."

Aang's mouth fell slightly open in shock. "He was?"

Roku slowly closed his eyes. "He… became a very different man as we grew older. I never could have imagined the level of destruction he would one day inflict upon the world."

From the pained expression on the older Avatar's face, Aang could tell that this was something that affected Roku very deeply. While he was itching to know more about his relationship with Sozin, he felt that it was for the best that he did not ask any further questions about it, at least not now.

"I was not yet willing to let go of my attachments," Roku continued, opening his eyes again as time seemed to speed up around them, the sun rising and setting over and over in rapid succession. "The people I cared about. The people I—"

The older Avatar cut himself off with a slight grimace, turning his head away from Aang.

"…I was certain there had to be another way. So I decided to use the winter solstice sun to help me."

Time slowed down again, and young Roku was back, this time sitting directly in front of the altar of golden flames that would one day accent his own statue. His eyes were closed, and he was meditating again.

Aang looked up and saw the red gemstone embedded in the wall that he remembered from when he'd come here last to try to contact Roku for the first time. He recalled how when the light from the gemstone had hit Roku's statue, Roku himself had appeared.

"What are you doing?" Aang asked as he watched the small beam of light slowly travel up Roku's body towards his head.

"I'm trying to enter the Avatar State using the spiritual energy from the sun," Roku replied.

When the beam of light passed over young Roku's face, his eyes shot open. They were blinding white.

"Did you do it?" Aang questioned, grinning as he turned to the older Roku. "Did you master the Avatar State?"

"Well," Roku replied with a slightly sheepish expression. "Not exactly…"

"Roku, what did you do?!"

Aang turned around to see a panicked Fire Sage Kaja standing in the doorway. When he turned back around to look at young Roku, there was a sudden flash, and a beam of pure white light shot up into the sky through the roof of the temple, causing the walls of the room around them to blow away in the explosion. When the dust cleared, Aang saw young Roku, still in the Avatar state, rising off of the ground surrounded by a sphere of air.

"I was stuck in the Avatar State," Roku explained as the winds of his younger self’s airbending grew stronger around them. "I could see my body, but I couldn't control it."

The entire building shook violently, and Aang looked to his right to see that one of the volcanoes of the island had exploded, shooting lava high into the sky.

"Luckily, Fire Sage Kaja was wiser than I, and he knew how to break the Avatar State's hold on me."

Aang turned back around and saw that Kaja had retrieved the still-intact red gemstone from the rubble. The sage lifted the gemstone high above his head, and the light of the setting sun filtered through it once more. He pointed the beam of light at Roku's face again, and in an instant, the glow of the Avatar State faded. With a shocked expression, Avatar Roku fell onto the ground on his hands and knees as Kaja ran over to him.

"…What happened?" Roku questioned weakly, coughing as Kaja looked down at him disapprovingly.

"Looks like we have a lot more training to do…" Kaja sighed, shaking his head. "After you rebuild the temple."

Young Roku lifted his head and gave a sheepish, crooked grin to the Fire Sage, chuckling awkwardly.

"My recklessness with trying to find a way to master the Avatar State without letting go of my attachments not only caused damage to Crescent Island," Roku said, shaking his head ashamedly. "But to many of the other eastern Fire Islands as well. The region suffered seismic instability as a consequence of my actions, and I spent the next several months cleaning up the damage."

Aang watched as Fire Sage Kaja helped young Roku to his feet, leading him downstairs. He realized that causing damage like this was always a risk he ran as a result of not yet having mastered the Avatar State, and felt a twinge of guilt in his stomach.

"I see my own impatience in you, Aang," Roku continued, turning to him and giving him a serious look. "And I see your reluctance to let go of your attachments. Do not be too hard on yourself. You will master the Avatar State, as I finally did."

Aang's brow furrowed as Roku made his way back over to Fang.

"But wait!" he said, running up behind the other Avatar as the man climbed onto Fang's back. "So… you did eventually have to let go of your attachments to master the Avatar State?"

Roku looked back down at Aang, sympathy evident in his amber-brown eyes. "I did. And you must do so too, someday."

Aang's frown deepened, and he lowered his gaze. When he heard a roar, he looked back up to see that Fang was ascending.

"Look for Avatar Kyoshi in the place where Hei Bai sleeps!" Roku called down to him as Fang took off, leaving him standing alone in the ruined temple sanctuary.

"…What?" Aang murmured as the scene around him began to fade.

Suddenly, he was falling.

Aang landed rather ungracefully, though he didn't feel any pain as he hit the ground. When he surveyed the area he had landed in, he saw that he was surrounded by stalks of bamboo.

"The place where Hei Bai sleeps?" Aang repeated as he pushed himself to his feet, looking to his left and right. "Is that somewhere around here?"

Guess I should just pick a direction and start walking, he thought with a sigh as he began to move forward.

He really wished the Spirit World was more straightforward. Nothing made sense here; everything felt like some strange dream.

I can't believe Roku was best friends with Fire Lord Sozin, Aang thought as he walked, his brow furrowing.

At that moment, an image of Zuko flashed in his mind.

…And I'm best friends with Sozin's great-grandson.

More than that. Aang was dating Sozin's great-grandson.

But Zuko isn’t like the rest of his family, he reminded himself. Zuko is a good, kind person.

…Had Sozin once been a good person as well? He had to have been if Roku had been best friends with him. So what had caused him to change?

Aang's thoughts were interrupted when he heard a roar from somewhere amongst the bamboo stalks. It wasn't the roar of a dangerous spirit—at least, as far as he could sense.

He pushed his way through the bamboo and emerged in a small clearing. At the center of the clearing sat a large black and white bear, munching on bamboo.

"Hei Bai!" Aang exclaimed, jogging up to the spirit, who gave a friendly roar in greeting as Aang squeezed him into a hug. He felt the spirit lick his face and laughed as he pulled back. "I'm happy to see you too. I don't suppose you've seen Avatar Kyoshi around, have you?"

Hei Bai roared in response and stood up onto his four legs. Aang hopped onto the spirit's back, and Hei Bai began to bound forward.

They moved through the bamboo forest at impressive speed for some time until Aang at last spotted a familiar figure in the near distance.

"There she is!"

Hei Bai skidded to a stop as Avatar Kyoshi turned to face them both, and Aang dismounted. Although he remembered just how large her clothing had been when he'd worn it to the trial in Chin Village, he was still surprised to see just how tall the other Avatar was now that he was speaking with her face to face for the first time. If he had to guess, he'd say that she almost seemed to be as tall as Avatar Roku, who already towered over Aang.

Aside from her height, Kyoshi's mere presence alone was intimidating. Her red and white makeup enhanced her sharp features, and as her dark green eyes assessed him, he suddenly felt very self conscious.

After a moment, however, Kyoshi smiled at him. "It's nice to see you, Aang," she said. "Sorry about the whole 'wrongfully accused of murder' thing back in Chin Village," she added, her expression appearing apologetic as she gave him a slight crooked grin.

The awkwardness in her body language caused Aang to relax slightly. He'd heard many a tale of the merciless Avatar Kyoshi, who never let anything stand in the way of justice. But he just like himself, Kyoshi was still human.

"That's okay," Aang replied, smiling back up at her.

Kyoshi's smile returned as well. "I knew you'd be alright in the end. You're pretty good at getting yourself out of sticky situations, I've noticed."

Aang chuckled. "Yeah. Most of the time…"

His smile faded as he recalled his failure in the Crystal Catacombs.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Aang," Kyoshi said, her voice softening, almost as though she was reading his thoughts.

"But… I failed."

"I made many mistakes during my time as Avatar, too."

"You did?" Aang replied.

Kyoshi smirked slightly. "No doubt the villagers on my island have told you many fanciful tales about my awe-inspiring deeds?"

Aang nodded with a snort. "They told me so many that I couldn't even count them on one hand."

Kyoshi chuckled, then sighed before looking off to the side, her expression growing serious again. "After Chin the Conqueror died, I helped the world live in balance. I accomplished a lot of good, but I also made some mistakes…"

The bamboo forest around them faded, and he and Kyoshi were now standing outside the walls of the royal palace in Ba Sing Se. All around them were crowds of angry citizens, shouting and cursing.

"Down with the Earth King!" Aang heard someone shout, and the rest of the crowd roared in agreement.

"One of my greatest challenges was dealing with a peasant uprising in Ba Sing Se," Kyoshi said as the peasants began to advance on the palace. "The peasants felt that the Earth King's role was outdated, and that he did not represent their interests. So they stormed the Upper Ring."

There was a flash, and suddenly, Aang and Kyoshi were standing in the grand courtyard of the palace. All around him, he watched as people toppled statues and set fire to the nearby buildings.

"The peasants destroyed priceless historical artifacts and buildings—anything that represented the 'old government'. So, the Earth King summoned me to help him end the revolution."

Aang watched as the throne room of the royal palace materialized around them. The man sitting on the throne in front of the platinum badgermole statue was not Kuei; instead, it was a sour-faced old man.

"I don't care how you do it, but I want you to squash those unruly peasants!" the Earth King demanded as Kyoshi strode into the room.

"I won't do it," Kyoshi said calmly, coming to a stop in the middle of the room.

A look of rage immediately appeared on the Earth King's face, and he bolted to his feet. "How dare you defy your King!" he snapped. "Guards, arrest Avatar Kyoshi!"

Aang watched anxiously as the king's guards began to advance on Kyoshi. However, the Avatar remained calm, her sharp eyes moving over each of the guards. Then, with a stomp, she whipped out her golden fans and created a massive crater around herself that sent each and every one of the guards flying backwards.

She then used airbending to propel herself upwards, and landed directly in front of the bewildered Earth King, causing him to fall backwards onto his throne.

"How dare you defy your Avatar!" Kyoshi said authoritatively, her voice now tinged with irritation as she leaned over the shaking king and pointed a closed fan directly at his face. "Are you ready to make a compromise?"

"…Yes," the Earth King replied timidly.

Seemingly satisfied with this answer, Kyoshi returned her fans to her belt and stood up straight. "I don't like this revolution either," she said. "But everyone in this kingdom must have a voice if balance is to prevail over tyranny. So I propose this: you will listen to the peasants' grievances, and I will protect your interests and Ba Sing Se's cultural heritage. Agreed?"

"…Agreed," the Earth King replied.

The scene shifted again, and this time, Aang and Kyoshi watched as the other Kyoshi surveyed a group of earthbenders, watching each of them with a critical eye.

"I immediately set to work training an elite force of earthbenders. They would be silent, precise, and feared by all."

Aang's brow furrowed as he watched the earthbenders punch forward, performing movements in perfect sync.

"They became known as the Dai Li."

Upon hearing this, Aang did a double take, shaking his head rapidly before he looked up at his past life with a look of astonishment.

"You trained the Dai Li?!" he exclaimed with a frown, feeling anger begin to arise within him. "But they're the worst, most corrupt earthbenders in the world! Thanks to them, the Earth Kingdom was conquered by the Fire Nation!"

…And I failed to prevent it.

To Aang's surprise, Kyoshi bowed her head, looking ashamed.

"I thought I was doing the right thing by creating a group that protected cultural history," she said. "I had no idea what they would become." She lifted her gaze to meet his own again. "Aang, our actions always have an effect: sometimes positive, sometimes negative, and sometimes not for many lifetimes."

Aang stared back at the other Avatar as the scene around them faded, and they were once again standing in the bamboo forest. He then looked down at his feet.

I'm sure my mistakes will have more immediate, long-lasting consequences than any other Avatar's mistakes in history…

"Kyoshi?" he murmured at last.

"Yes, Aang?"

"When I talked to Roku earlier, he told me about how he tried to master the Avatar State, and failed. He thought that he could do it without having to let anyone go, but he couldn't."

Avatar Kyoshi simply nodded.

"…I was just wondering," Aang continued, grabbing his forearm awkwardly. "What was your experience with mastering the Avatar State like?"

Kyoshi's brow furrowed slightly, and her gaze seemed to shift, as though she was looking far into the distance.

"Well. Much like you, my early experiences with the Avatar State were… not pleasant."

Their surroundings shifted again, and they were now standing at the bottom of a rocky gorge. In front of them stood three people: a tall, stocky Air Nomad with a long, bushy beard, an Earth Kingdom man who reminded Aang somewhat of Master Yu, but with much more calculating eyes, and an angry and terrified looking teenage girl with tan skin and a freckle-covered face, one of her legs covered in blood.

"Look at the two of you," the Earth Kingdom man snorted dismissively. "What you're doing is you're coming home with me. Neither of you are in any shape to argue."

Aang saw that the young Kyoshi was trembling as she gripped the fabric of the Air Nomad's back.

"You will have nothing to do with Kyoshi for the remainder of your life," the Air Nomad shouted. "You are no longer fit to serve the Avatar!"

This seemed to have finally affected the Earth Kingdom man, who looked slightly taken aback. Then, his features twisted in rage.

"Where will you go?" he roared. "Where? The Air Temples? The abbots will hand her back to me before you can finish telling your story! Have you forgotten how far you've fallen in disgrace with them? Didn't Tagaka jog your memory?"

Aang saw the Air Nomad man stiffen, his knuckles turning white as he gripped his staff.

"I know everyone in the Four Nations who could possibly help you!" the Earth Kingdom man snarled. "I put out the message, and every lawman, every sage, every official will be tripping over their own feet to hunt you down on my behalf! Being the Avatar will not save her from me!"

"Kyoshi, run!" the Air Nomad demanded, pushing the girl backwards and leaping forward, slamming his staff down to create a powerful air blast.

At the same time, the Earth Kingdom man blocked the blast with a shield of earth. Then, he made a quick movement, and a small piece of flint flew forward, slicing cleanly through the side of the Air Nomad's neck.

Aang stared in horror as blood spurted from the wound, the light rapidly leaving the Air Nomad man's eyes as he collapsed onto the ground. To Aang's astonishment, the earthbender who had just killed the man was now wearing an expression of what looked to be genuine regret.

Young Kyoshi, however, was distraught. The girl screamed in rage and anguish, and the whole ground began to shake violently.

Aang watched the teenage Kyoshi's eyes glow white, and she ascended into the sky, tears pouring down her cheeks as she began to create a cyclone. The Earth Kingdom man's face flashed with terror, and he ran off into the distance as Kyoshi rose ever higher.

The scene faded, and Aang was standing in the bamboo forest again.

He looked at Kyoshi, whose eyes appeared fatigued and filled with grief. When she looked back down at him, however, she gave him a small smile.

"I know how you fear the Avatar State," Kyoshi said quietly. "And I understand. For a long time, I associated the Avatar State with my trauma, my anger. My grief."

Another scene came to life in front of them, and Aang saw a bloodied, battered teenage Kyoshi—this time wearing her iconic headdress and makeup—hovering high atop a cyclone over a large field that was engulfed in flames. Her eyes were glowing again, though there were no tears on her face; just calm rage. She seemed to be holding a terrified-looking man by the collar of his shirt.

"You forget, Xu," Kyoshi said, all of her past lives speaking in tandem with her. "There is always someone who stands above you in judgement."

Kyoshi yanked the man closer.

"What will you do now? Knowing that your every step will have consequences?"

The man's eyes burned with pure rage, and he roared, spouting flames at the Avatar. With a tilt of her head, however, Kyoshi diverted them.

Then, she opened her hand, and the man fell to his death,

Aang abruptly turned away, but he still heard the man's body strike the ground with a sickening crack.

She killed him, Aang thought, feeling bile rise in the back of his throat. Unlike Chin, who had stubbornly refused to move out of the way, Kyoshi had purposefully dropped this man, knowing he would die.

Aang supposed he really shouldn't be surprised at this point. The Avatar was not bound by the same moral philosophy he had been raised with growing up as an Air Nomad, after all. And Kyoshi was clearly a very different type of person compared to himself.

It still bothered him nonetheless.

When he dared to look back at the scene again, he saw that Kyoshi had returned to the ground, the glow in her eyes fading. To his surprise, he saw another teenage girl with black hair dressed in Fire Nation garb also wearing red and white face paint running towards the Avatar, followed by a large man with an Earth Kingdom-style topknot, a woman wearing a green tunic who had sharp features and sapphire-blue eyes, a boy around Aang's own age who wore a sandbender-style headwrap, and a very old man, all wearing slightly varying styles of red and white face paint as well.

The Fire Nation girl ran up to Kyoshi first, and looked as though she wanted to embrace her. However, she stopped herself, her hands hovering for a moment before she lowered them. There was shock and a hint of fear in her dark amber eyes.

"Don't do this," Kyoshi rasped in her own voice, swaying slightly as she gazed at the girl with a pained expression. "Please. If you act like this, I won't be able to..."

"Kyoshi, your hands!" the Fire Nation girl gasped.

Aang felt a lurch in his stomach as he watched Kyoshi lift her hands in front of her face. They were covered in severe burns whose patterns were reminiscent of a lightning strike.

"We have to get her to a healer!" the woman with striking blue eyes exclaimed.

"Kyoshi!" the skinny boy with the headwrap shouted, attempting to support her weight as the Avatar began to collapse. "Kyoshi!"

It was the Fire Nation girl, however, who caught Kyoshi as she fell, tears streaming down her face as she collapsed onto her knees and held the unconscious Avatar close.

A flash of Zuko's tear-stained face flashed in Aang's mind as he watched this.

"Rangi," Kyoshi murmured softly next to him, her voice almost a whisper. He saw that she was gazing at the girl who held her younger self with unconcealed warmth and longing.

"…Who?"

"Rangi of Sei'naka," Kyoshi replied, her voice filled with both affection and sorrow as the scene began to fade. "The love of my life. I killed the daofei lightningbender Xu Ping An as a punishment for his crimes. But I also killed him for making her suffer."

Aang's eyes widened significantly.

"That was the first time I experienced some level of control while in the Avatar State," Kyoshi added.

Aang blinked in confusion. "…Wait. So you went into the Avatar State because the person you loved was suffering, but you had control over it? How?"

Aang hadn't had any control after what had happened to Zuko at Fong's base.

"I didn't have complete control," Kyoshi answered. "My past lives greatly disagreed with how I handled that situation, and tried to stop me. But I defied them, and acted of my own accord."

Aang stared up at his past life with his mouth slightly agape. Kyoshi truly was an Avatar of great strength. Despite the gruesomeness of the circumstances in regards to Kyoshi's memory, he couldn't help but smile, relief washing over him.

"So you didn't have to let go of Rangi to master the Avatar State!"

Kyoshi frowned slightly as she looked back down at him. "You misunderstand, Aang. I did not even come close to mastering the Avatar State that night."

"But… you said you had control."

"I had control because of the strength of my willpower and the clarity with which I wanted to achieve my goal. But as you can see, the decisions I made that night while in the Avatar State were not measured or thought out at all, as they should be when one holds that much power in their hands. They were fueled by rage, and a desire for revenge. I put everyone in the vicinity, even my friends, in danger because of that."

Memories of all the times Aang had gone into the Avatar State prior the Crystal Catacombs flashed in quick succession through his mind. They had all been triggered by negative emotions. And they had all resulted in varying levels of destruction of his surroundings.

"No," Kyoshi continued, shaking her head slowly. "I could not allow rage and pain to be the only way I could activate the Avatar State or have control over it. And I eventually realized that I could not allow my attachments to get in the way of my ability to uphold my duty as Avatar."

Aang felt his heart sink. "So… you did eventually let go of your attachments," he murmured.

Kyoshi nodded. "It's what was necessary."

Aang nodded as well, shoulders sagging sullenly.

"…I'm afraid you've lingered here too long, Aang," Kyoshi said, motioning for Hei Bai to approach. "You must seek out Avatar Kuruk."

"Where can I find him?" Aang asked as he hoisted himself onto Hei Bai's back again.

"I can help you with that," Kyoshi replied, pressing her large palm atop Hei Bai's head, and the spirit closed his eyes. There was a brief flash under her hand. "Until next time, Aang."

Kyoshi's form faded, and with a roar, Hei Bai bounded away.

Hei Bai traversed the vast forests, rivers, plains, and mountains of the Spirit World at a seemingly impossible speed, almost as though he was somehow bending the flow of time itself. In an amount of time that had either taken seconds or hours—Aang couldn't be quite sure—Hei Bai came to a stop.

This time, Aang's surroundings were familiar to him. They were in a somewhat swampy area, similar to where he had met with Roku, though there were no fire geysers here. The sky above them was yellow and hazy, and large, twisted trees dotted the landscape.

"Ohmmm."

Aang turned and saw a familiar white-furred humanoid monkey spirit sitting in lotus pose under an ancient-looking wooden gate: the Spirit World equivalent of the gate at the Spirit Oasis in Agna Qel'a.

The monkey spirit opened one eye with a slightly irritated expression, but their expression soon grew fearful when they spotted Hei Bai, who growled at them, his form shifting briefly to that of his more alien dark spirit state. Without saying a word, the monkey spirit fled.

"Hei Bai," Aang chastised lightheartedly. "It's not very nice to growl at people like that."

Hei Bai huffed, as if verbally rolling his eyes.

Suddenly, Aang felt a spike of terror in his stomach as they passed by a faceless curly-tailed blue nose monkey.

"We're in the realm of Koh, Hei Bai," he murmured. "We'd better be careful."

Hei Bai growled in reply.

"Is this where Avatar Kuruk—"

He was interrupted when a figure landed in front of them with a large splash, pointing a spear directly at him, and he yelped as he fell off Hei Bai's back and into the shallow water.

When he looked up, he saw a humanoid dressed in a blue fur-lined coat with what looked to be a polar bear's head.

"Koh took your face and replaced it with a bear's face!" Aang exclaimed fearfully.

However, when the person lifted their head, he saw that the polar bear "face" that he had seen was not a face at all; it was a bearskin hat. The person wearing the hat—a vaguely familiar, tired-looking Water Tribesman looking to be in his late twenties or early thirties—frowned at him.

"Relax, kid," the man sighed as he reached his hand out and helped pull Aang to his feet. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

Once Aang had stood up and recollected himself, the man gave him a small, crooked smile.

"I'm Avatar Kuruk. Nice to finally meet you."

Aang stared at him for a moment before he smiled as well. "Sorry I didn't realize sooner." He placed his fist and his palm together and bowed politely. "It's nice to meet you too."

After a moment, Kuruk's smile faded, and his expression grew serious once again. "Now, tell me. Have you seen a beautiful woman with long, brown hair around here?"

Aang's brow furrowed in confusion. "No. Who is she?"

A pained, dark expression appeared on Kuruk's face, and he turned his head to the side.

"…She's my wife."

Aang's eyes widened.

"When I was a young Avatar, I traveled the world, challenging other benders to tests of strength," Kuruk continued.

Their surroundings shifted, and now, Aang was viewing a younger Kuruk lifting a massive boulder with earthbending. Next to him stood another earthbender, who seemed to be struggling to lift his own boulder with two arms, while young Kuruk smirked at him while lifting his boulder with just one arm.

The scene shifted again, and it now appeared as though they were in the streets of a Fire Nation city. He again saw a young Kuruk, this time pointing his finger at a bewildered man.

"I challenge you to an Agni Kai!" young Kuruk declared.

"…Uh, I was just going to the store," the man replied timidly, raising his hands into the air.

"I loved impressing people with my bending prowess," the Kuruk next to Aang said. "Especially girls."

The scene shifted again, and this time, they were standing in a courtyard at the Eastern Air Temple, where a group of young Air Nomad women stood gathered around young Kuruk, who was bending an air funnel filled with lotus flowers.

"Bet you girls have never seen a lotus tornado before!" young Kuruk said, flashing a handsome crooked grin at the young women, who giggled at him.

"It's beautiful!" one girl breathed.

"I love you, Avatar Kuruk!" another girl shouted.

The scene shifted again, but this time, it was dark, and Aang couldn't make out their surroundings. He could, however, clearly see young Kuruk standing across from three people looking to be around his same age.

The first person was a young bearded Air Nomad. The second person was an austere-looking young man dressed in fine gold and green robes with calculating eyes. The third person was a beautiful young Fire Nation woman with pale skin, pitch-black hair, and dark amber eyes.

Strangely, all three of these people looked very familiar, though Aang could not place where he had seen them before.

"Jianzhu," young Kuruk said, taking a step forward.

The Earth Kingdom man gave Kuruk a small sneer, then turned and walked away.

"Kelsang?" young Kuruk asked, turning to the Air Nomad.

The Air Nomad man gazed at him with pity for a moment, but he too turned and walked away.

Young Kuruk was now left alone with the beautiful Fire Nation woman.

"…Hei-Ran," young Kuruk rasped, his handsome face twisted with pain as he reached out to grab her hand. "I—"

"Goodbye, Kuruk," Hei-Ran interrupted, her dark bronze-colored eyes filled with mixed disappointment and sadness as she abruptly turned around and walked away, leaving young Kuruk to fall onto his knees, tears in his eyes.

"I was arrogant, proud, and boastful," the Kuruk next to Aang murmured as the scene faded. "And it cost me my closest friends."

The scene shifted again, and Aang watched as several more scenes of Kuruk appeared in rapid succession before his eyes. He saw the Avatar partying, gambling, drinking excessively, kissing various women, challenging more people to bending duels.

To Aang's astonishment and confusion, however, interspersed between each of these scenes were flashes of Kuruk fighting what looked to be different dark spirits, screaming with rage and pain as he did so.

At last, the rapid shifting of scenes ceased. Now, Aang was watching a younger Kuruk crying alone in a dark room, hunched over a desk with a half-written letter under his hands, his tears staining the page.

"Hei-Ran…" the Kuruk at the desk sobbed. "Hei-Ran… I'm sorry. I should have told you…"

Aang couldn't help but be reminded of the words he himself had murmured the night of the opera in Ba Sing Se, when he'd thought he would never see Zuko again. He slowly turned to look at the Kuruk standing next to him, who seemed to be watching himself with an expression of regret and mild disdain.

"What happened?" Aang questioned quietly. "Why did your friends leave you?"

A wry smile appeared on Kuruk's face. "It was my own fault," he replied. "I began isolating myself from everyone I was once close with."

"Why would you do that?" Aang questioned.

The scene changed again, this time to Kuruk battling a large dark spirit in the Avatar State, using all four elements.

"I spent a good deal of my latter years battling and destroying dark spirits," Kuruk said. "And I never told anyone, aside from my one remaining companion, Nyahitha, who helped heal me after my battles."

"Battling… and destroying spirits?" Aang repeated questioningly. "But I thought you shouldn't fight dark spirits. I thought you had to calm them."

"And you would be right, kid," Kuruk replied with a sigh. "Deep down, I always knew that. But I was convinced that destroying them was the best way. I didn't have the time to try to calm each and every one of them when they were laying waste to villages and killing people, stripping them of their spirits. When I did try to calm them, it rarely worked. They were too angry."

The scene changed to an Earth Kingdom village being attacked by dark spirits. The buildings were on fire, the people were screaming. Some of them laid on the ground, still breathing, but their eyes were blank and lifeless. Their spirits had been severed and consumed, just like what had happened to the warriors of Ausuittuq, and just like what had almost happened to Zuko.

"During my time as Avatar, there were many dark spirit attacks," Kuruk continued. "Much of the world had forgotten their respect for the spirits, and many spirits began to turn dark and attack humans as a result. I eventually discovered that an ancient, malevolent spirit who had a thirst for human blood, Father Glowworm, had been tunneling small cracks from the Spirit World into the mortal world to feed."

A new scene appeared, this time of Kuruk battling a frightening-looking spirit whose body consisted of one giant, pulsing green eye, and a dark purple wormlike body, not dissimilar to Koh's. The most disturbing feature of this spirit, however, was that it possessed slimy, translucent green tendrils. These tendrils were wrapping themselves around Kuruk's legs, and Aang gasped when he realized that within these tendrils were what looked to be human teeth.

Aang watched in horror as the tendrils of Father Glowworm continued creeping up Kuruk's legs, and the Avatar screamed in pain. He could see that there was blood seeping through Kuruk's clothes where the tendrils were touching, as though the creature was sucking it out of him.

"While I could not destroy Father Glowworm completely," the Kuruk beside him spoke. "I did manage to greatly injure it, and it was forced to retreat into the Spirit World."

With a roar, the Kuruk in front of them activated the Avatar State, and with the might of the four elements, repeatedly struck the spirit, causing it to shrink backwards.

"However," Kuruk continued. "Even after I had defeated it, the cracks between worlds that it had left behind allowed other dark spirits to enter the mortal realm. And so, I spent the last years of my life traveling the world with Nyahitha to track down these cracks and seal them. I destroyed hundreds of dark spirits to save humanity… But I could not save myself."

"What do you mean?" Aang questioned apprehensively.

"Every time I destroyed a dark spirit, my own spirit became corrupted," Kuruk answered darkly. "After every battle, I could feel my humanity slipping away. I kept all of this a secret from my friends, who thought me to be a careless Avatar. They took it upon themselves to help keep balance in the mortal world when I could not."

"But why didn't you just tell them?" Aang asked. "Maybe they could have helped you—"

"They could not have," Kuruk interrupted with a harsh look. "They would have only gotten themselves hurt, killed, or worse... I couldn't have them risking their lives to help me."

Aang blinked at the man. He supposed he understood this line of thinking. There had been many times where he'd wished his friends would have stayed back and stayed safe instead of risking their lives to help him.

"I began to pursue a lifestyle of hedonism in an effort to feel something. To feel human again," Kuruk muttered, squeezing his eyes closed as he gripped his spear tightly. "I kept challenging people to bending duels. I drank. I gambled. I slept with countless women whose names I never remembered. But it was useless. There was only one thing that ever truly brought my humanity back."

A new scene appeared. This time, Aang instantly recognized that they were standing in the streets of Agna Qel'a. The full moon was bright in the sky above them, and there were many people bustling about.

"Even after most of the threats of dark spirits had been neutralized, I had been forever changed by my battles. I never thought about settling down. I never thought I could get close to anyone ever again. Until I met the love of my life."

Aang spotted a younger Kuruk on the streets in front of him, chatting to a group of women. While there was a smile on his face, Aang could tell that his dark blue eyes were tired and devoid of true emotion. Eventually, Kuruk turned away from the women to survey the crowd of people, and suddenly, he froze, his eyes widening as he seemed to spot someone in the crowd.

Aang followed his line of sight and saw her: a beautiful woman with long brown hair and kind gray eyes.

"We met at the New Moon Celebration, when the sister tribes would come together as one," the Kuruk next to him murmured, a soft smile appearing on his face as he watched his younger self abandon the group of women make his way through the crowd and introduce himself to beautiful stranger. "It was love at first sight."

The younger Kuruk's eyes seemed to light up as he introduced himself to the woman, flashing a nervous crooked grin. The woman laughed, and Kuruk's grin widened.

"Her name was Ummi," Kuruk continued, his voice soft. "She was from the Southern Water Tribe. And she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen."

The scene shifted again to show Kuruk and Ummi sitting on a cliff overlooking Agna Qel'a, holding hands under the full moon.

"With Ummi in my life, I decided to change my irresponsible ways and finally settle down," Kuruk said, a genuine smile on his face. "With her, I finally felt human again."

The Kuruk on the bridge presented a betrothal necklace to Ummi.

"A betrothal necklace?" Ummi gasped.

"Ummi… Will you marry me?" Kuruk asked, his expression brighter and more full of life than Aang had ever seen.

"Yes!" Ummi replied with a laugh, and the two kissed.

The scene shifted again, and they were now standing in the Spirit Oasis, where Kuruk and Ummi were traversing the bridges leading to the island where Tui and La's pond was located. They were both dressed in fine clothing, and Ummi looked absolutely radiant with purple flowers braided into her long brown hair as she smiled at Kuruk.

"We were to be married at the Spirit Oasis," Kuruk said, the tone of voice darkening. "But on the day of our wedding, tragedy struck."

Aang watched as Ummi's gray eyes glanced down at the outer pond, and suddenly, her smile vanished. With a jerk, she flew off the side of the bridge and into the water.

"Ummi! NO!" Kuruk screamed, jumping into the water after her.

"Ummi fell into the spirit pond, as if some unseen force had pulled her in," the Kuruk next to Aang said, his voice darkening again. "She didn't drown. She had disappeared into the Spirit World."

Aang stared at the other Avatar with a fearful expression.

"With the help of Tui and La, I meditated into the Spirit World, where Koh was waiting for me."

Aang watched as Kuruk stood in the small pond with the two koi fish circling him, his fists pressed together and his eyes closed. The scene shifted to the Spirit World, where he and Hei Bai had just been, at the ancient gate.

"Koh told me that he had taken Ummi as a punishment," Kuruk continued shakily as he and Aang both watched the centipede-like spirit circle the other Kuruk, shifting between faces mockingly. "A punishment for my past mistakes. For destroying so many spirits instead of resolving things the way an Avatar should."

Aang watched as the other Kuruk demanded that Koh release Ummi, but the spirit only laughed darkly before sinking into the water.

"Every year on the anniversary of our wedding, I traveled to the Spirit World, hoping to save my wife from Koh," Kuruk said. "But I failed every time."

The scene shifted again, and this time, Aang saw Kuruk lying in a bed in a small room. The man now looked gaunt and exhausted, and his breathing was raspy. Despite his sickly appearance, Aang could tell that Kuruk was still very young; he couldn't have been older than thirty-five at most.

Surrounding his bed were four different people. There was a Fire Nation man who he did not recognize, the beautiful Fire Nation woman named Hei-Ran who he'd seen earlier, now appearing to be several months pregnant, and the Earth Kingdom man and Air Nomad man—Jianzhu and Kelsang, if he remembered their names correctly—who he had also seen earlier.

It was at that moment that Aang finally recognized where he had seen the two men before.

"That man," Aang murmured, pointing a shaking finger at the Earth Kingdom man before moving it to point at Kelsang. "Jianzhu. I saw him murder Kelsang. In front of Avatar Kyoshi."

When he looked back at Kuruk, the man's face was twisted with sorrow and guilt, and he lowered his head shamefully.

Aang turned his attention back to the Kuruk laying in the bed, who reached out to grab Hei-Ran's hand. She did not pull away this time, instead crouching down next to him with tears in her dark bronze eyes.

The bedridden Kuruk whispered something to her, and then to the rest of his companions, who watched solemnly.

Then, with one last ragged breath, Avatar Kuruk was dead.

The scene faded, and Aang and Kuruk were standing in the shallow waters in the Spirit World again.

"On my deathbed, I tasked my companions with finding the next Avatar and doing right by them," Kuruk said quietly. "I had hoped that my successor would not have to suffer as I did… but I had no idea the sort of monster Jianzhu would become. That he would murder Kelsang, one of our closest friends, in cold blood..." Kuruk's fist tightened at his side, and his lip quivered as he squeezed his eyes closed. "…I suppose I didn't know my friends as well as I thought I did. "

Aang's brow furrowed with sympathy. "You couldn't have known what would happen."

Kuruk opened his eyes and shook his head slowly. "Because of my failures, Avatar Kyoshi's early years were filled with strife," he said. "It was my fault. I failed my friends. I failed my wife. I failed the world." He made a sound of disgust.

Aang stared back at the man unwaveringly, his heart filled with empathy. He knew exactly how Kuruk felt.

"I understand how you feel, Kuruk," Aang began. "I—"

"No, you don't understand, kid," Kuruk interjected angrily before turning away from him with a grunt. "No one does. And no one ever will."

There was a tense silence. Aang wracked his brain for something to say, but he struggled to determine how to best respond.

"…I need to continue my hunt," Kuruk spoke eventually, his voice almost devoid of emotion as he began to walk away. "And you need to find Avatar Yangchen."

"Wait," Aang said, jogging over to the man and putting a hand on his shoulder.

Kuruk gingerly turned to face him. All anger was gone from his eyes. Now, they were filled with guilt and sorrow once more.

"I'm so sorry for what you went through," Aang said softly, his own voice straining with emotion. "But… you didn't fail humanity. You saved so many lives by tracking down those cracks and defeating the dark spirits."

Kuruk made a snorting sound. "I also ruined a lot of lives," he chuckled darkly. "After I passed, everyone knew me as the failure of an Avatar who died young and let the world fall out of balance because of his negligence."

Aang shook his head slowly and sighed.

"You know, everyone always expects the Avatar to solve all the world's problems," he murmured, brow furrowing as he looked down at the marshy ground. "They expect us to be perfect. But we're not. We're just one person. We're still human, just as much as anyone else."

He looked up at Kuruk again.

"You were faced with a challenge that probably no person or Avatar had ever faced before. And you faced it over and over again, knowing that it was killing you, all for the sake of saving innocent lives."

Kuruk stared back at him apprehensively, but said nothing.

"You were a good Avatar, Kuruk," Aang said, squeezing his shoulder as he looked him directly in the eyes. "The world is a better place because of what you did."

Kuruk stared at him for another several minutes, his eyes wide and blinking. Then, to Aang's surprise, he laughed.

"…You really are a good kid, aren't you?"

Aang blinked several times as well. "Uh. Thanks?" he replied with a small, bashful smile as he removed his hand from Kuruk's shoulder and rubbed the back of his neck.

Kuruk let out a heavy sigh. "Perhaps I should have just told my friends that I was suffering instead of holding my pain alone. Perhaps I shouldn't have detached myself from humanity..."

"Avatar Roku and Avatar Kyoshi told me that they had to detach themselves for the greater good," Aang replied. Because it was 'their duty as the Avatar'. Is that another reason why you decided to isolate yourself?"

Kuruk nodded. "Mastering the Avatar State ended up being fairly easy for me since I'd already cut myself off from most of my human connections. And I used the Avatar State so often when fighting dark spirits that I ended up detaching myself even further. But then I met Ummi, and I realized just how much I missed those human connections, those attachments. I realized how important they were to me, and how much I regretted giving them up."

Aang blinked in surprise. He'd been expecting Kuruk to tell him that he would have to detach himself someday, just like Roku and Kyoshi had told him, and that it was his duty to do so as the Avatar.

"Do you… think there's a way I can do it?" Aang asked hopefully. "A way for me to master the Avatar State without letting go of the person I love?"

Kuruk shrugged. "If there is such a way, I don't know it. But you're a smart kid. Maybe you'll figure something out." He clapped his own hand on Aang's shoulder this time.

Suddenly, Kuruk gripped his shoulder with a surprising amount of strength, his eyes growing intense and serious.

"I would given anything to have lived a long life with the woman I love," Kuruk said quietly, his voice strained. "All of my power meant nothing compared to Ummi. I would have given it all up to be with her."

Aang's eyes widened.

"Once you've found love, you have to hold onto it, Aang. Don't end up like me."

Aang stared at him for another moment, then nodded, his brow furrowing with determination.

"…I really did mean it, you know," Aang said as Kuruk let go of his shoulder. "Earlier. When I said I understand how you feel. I failed the world after what happened in the Crystal Catacombs."

Kuruk gave him a small smile. "Failing is a natural part of being human. As you've learned, you're not the only Avatar to have made mistakes. At least you have the chance to fix them. Don't take that for granted."

"I won't," Aang nodded again.

"And speaking of fixing mistakes," Kuruk said, pointing at him with a serious look. "You really should move on to find Yangchen now. Time is running out, and I need to continue my search for Ummi."

"Wait!" Aang exclaimed, a memory abruptly resurfacing. "I've seen her! I've seen Ummi!"

Kuruk's expression immediately shifted to one of hopeful urgency. "You have? Where?"

"Koh still has her! When I was in Koh's lair a year ago, he showed me Ummi's face!"

Kuruk's brow furrowed, his dark blue eyes burning with determination as he gripped his spear with both hands.

"Thank you, Aang. My search is not over yet. I will keep hunting Koh until Ummi and I are reunited. Now, hurry—Yangchen is waiting for you!"

After another long journey across the diverse Spirit World landscape, Hei Bai came to a stop at last at the top of a very high peak. The mist-covered mountains that surrounded them both reminded Aang of the Patola Mountains that he had grown up gazing at through his window as a young boy, before he had run away and gotten lost in the storm.

He couldn't help but feel a small twinge of homesickness and grief in his heart as he thought about this.

"Hello?" he called out as he dismounted from Hei Bai. "Avatar Yangchen? Is anyone here?"

Before his eyes, a person began to fade into view in front of him. He saw a kind-faced, wise-looking Air Nun looking to be in her fifties.

"It's an honor to meet you, Aang," Avatar Yangchen said, smiling at him kindly.

Aang said nothing for a moment, simply staring at her with his mouth falling slightly open. It had been so long since he had seen another Air Nomad, had spoken to another Air Nomad. There had been the vision of his people when unlocking his chakras with Pathik, but none of the people in his vision had actually interacted with him.

Now, an Air Nomad was standing directly across from him, smiling at him, acknowledging his presence. He felt tears begin to well up in his eyes, and he sniffed, awkwardly turning to the side as he wiped them away.

"It's alright to cry, Aang," Yangchen said softly, as though she knew his thoughts. When he looked up, he saw that she was still smiling, holding out her arms invitingly.

In an instant, Aang rushed forward, hugging her tightly.

"It's been so long," Aang rasped against her shoulder. "So long since I've spoken to another airbender…"

"I know," Yangchen replied sadly, smoothing her hand down his back in repetitive motions. "You have endured much grief and suffering at such a young age. It's alright to be upset. Let your emotions out."

Aang allowed himself to cry for several more minutes before he began to recollect himself, sniffing as he released the other Avatar from the hug.

"…Sorry," he mumbled embarrassedly.

"There's no need to apologize, Aang," Yangchen replied, smiling warmly at him. "I assume you've already spoken with Roku, Kyoshi, and Kuruk?"

Aang smiled back and nodded. "It's been such an amazing experience to meet my past lives."

"And what did you learn by meeting them?" Yangchen asked.

"Well…" Aang replied. "They all struggled and made mistakes. Just like I have."

"Very wise," Yangchen nodded.

Aang smile faded slightly. "…They also told told me that they all had to detach themselves to master the Avatar State at some point. They talked about it like it was inevitable. But… it also seemed like they regretted detaching themselves, even if not all of them said it out loud."

Yangchen nodded. "I have my own regrets about the way I handled relationships in my lifetime," she replied with a wistful look in her eyes. "I regret not making stronger and more lasting connections with the people I cared about."

"But… what about detaching yourself from the world for the greater good?" Aang asked. "Isn't that the Avatar's duty?"

To his surprise, Yangchen shook her head slowly. "There were many great Air Nomads throughout history who were able to detach themselves from worldly concerns and achieve spiritual enlightenment. Some were even able to accomplish feats that seemed impossible."

"Like Guru Laghima," Aang said. "He let go of his 'earthly tether', and he learned how to fly."

"Indeed," Yangchen replied. "However, unlike Laghima, the Avatar can never truly detach themselves from the world."

Aang's brow immediately furrowed in confusion. "But isn't that what every Avatar has to do in order to master the Avatar State?"

"The Avatar's duty is to the world," Yangchen replied seriously. "This is why we can never fully detach ourselves from it."

Aang's brow furrowed even further, and he turned his head to look out at the mountain peaks in the mist that surrounded them.

"All of this talk about detachment… it's made me wonder," Aang murmured. "Why is the Avatar a human in every life? Why did Raava choose to merge herself with Wan? Wouldn't it have been easier for her to keep existing as an all-powerful spirit who didn't have to worry about attachments, or dying?"

Yangchen smiled at him again, the corners of her eyes crinkling. "Raava's reasons for merging with Wan were originally born out of necessity, in order to save the world from a monumental threat. However, the true reason Raava chose to merge with Wan was because of her love for him, and her love for humanity."

"Raava… loved Wan?" Aang replied with surprise.

"She still does," Yangchen said. "If Raava had not spent so many years with Wan as his close friend, and eventually as a part of him, she never would have grown to understand what it was like to be human. She would have continued to look upon humanity with cold indifference. Instead, she learned what it was like to experience sadness, anger, happiness, and love. "

Aang closed his eyes as scenarios in which he had felt these emotions appeared in his mind.

He thought of the sorrow and grief he'd felt when he realized he truly was the last airbender.

He recalled his rage towards the sandbenders for stealing Appa.

He remembered all those evenings he and his friends had spent at The Jasmine Dragon, talking and laughing.

He thought of Zuko. Of his warm amber eyes and his sweet smile. Of holding him close. Of spending the rest of his life by his side.

"By feeling all of these emotions, it helps the Avatar understand how precious life is," he heard Yangchen say. "And how you would do anything to protect it."

When he opened his eyes and looked up at the Air Nun, he saw that the forms of Kuruk, Kyoshi, and Roku had appeared in line behind her.

"And so, the Avatar continues to take human rebirth, and with each life, learns what it means to be human."

The other Avatars behind Yangchen faded, and she reached out one hand and placed her palm atop Aang's forehead, directly over his arrow. She closed her eyes, and her arrow tattoos began to glow. Aang closed his eyes as well, and he felt a pulse of energy rush through him, warm, familiar, and welcoming.

When Aang opened his eyes, he saw a glowing pattern appear on Yangchen's chest. Then, he looked down, and he saw that the same imprint was glowing on his own chest. The pattern was strangely familiar…

When he looked up again, he saw that Yangchen was fading away. In her place, another figure faded into view, though this time, it was not human.

Across from Aang now stood a spirit. The spirit was pure white, and seemed to glow radiantly. Its body was long and flat with delicate tendrils and a long tail—not unlike the kites Aang had seen at festivals before—and it did not have eyes, a nose, nor a mouth; only a familiar dark blue pattern that ran along the front of its body.

The pattern was the same one he had seen on his and Yangchen's chests. He touched his arrow tattoo with his fingers, trailing the markings. They were the same.

"Hello, Aang," the spirit spoke, its voice somehow imposing and ancient, but gentle and kind at the same time.

"Raava?" Aang breathed in awe. "You're alright?"

"I am now, thanks to your efforts," Raava replied gratefully. "Connecting with Roku, Kyoshi, Kuruk, and Yangchen has repaired our connection as well."

Aang breathed a sigh of relief. "So the Avatar Cycle is saved?"

"Yes," Raava replied.

Aang was quiet for a moment as he thought about what to say next. There were so many things he wanted to ask her. But there was one thing in particular that came to mind that he felt he should tell the spirit before saying anything else.

"Um… Avatar Wan told me to tell you he says hi."

There was a moment of silence. Then, to Aang's astonishment, the ancient spirit laughed.

"What a silly man," Raava sighed, though there was clear fondness in her voice. "He's still the same, even after nearly ten thousand years."

Aang grinned. "Yangchen said you love him. Is that true?"

"It is," Raava replied, her voice soft. "Our spirits are bound for eternity. We know each others' hearts deeply."

Aang continued smiling for a moment before he felt his nervousness return.

"Raava," he said apprehensively. "There's something I'd like to ask you about."

"Go ahead."

"Guru Pathik… he said the only way to master the Avatar State is to give up what attaches me to the world," he said, swallowing nervously. "And the person I'm most attached to…"

"Zuko," Raava said.

Aang's eyes widened. "You know who Zuko is?"

"I'm a part of you, Aang," Raava replied, and Aang could hear the smile in her voice. "Of course I know him. And I know how deeply you love him."

Aang immediately felt himself flush. It seemed Raava truly did know everything about him.

"All of my past lives kept talking about how they had to detach themselves from the people they loved," Aang said. "They talked about it like it was inevitable for every Avatar. But Yangchen said the Avatar can't fully detach themselves from the world."

"Yangchen was correct, young one," Raava replied. "While many of your past lives may think they completely detached themselves… It was never the truth."

"It wasn't?"

A vision appeared in front of them. Aang saw a teenage Avatar Roku grinning and hugging another shorter, stockier boy tightly. Then, with a flash, the two boys became two middle aged men, both glaring at each other with anger and fire in their eyes.

"Roku was never truly able to let go of his attachment to those he loved," Raava explained. "Especially not Sozin, his once closest friend. Unfortunately, this resulted in him being too lenient with the man. This is something Roku deeply regrets."

The scene shifted again, and this time, he saw a teenaged Avatar Kyoshi, her tan, freckled face free of makeup. He watched as Kyoshi ran up to Rangi, who was also no longer wearing makeup, and lifted her up by the waist, spinning her around. While the Fire Nation girl appeared somewhat flustered, the smitten smile on her lips was evident, and when Kyoshi lowered her to the ground, they shared a sweet kiss.

"Kyoshi loved Rangi deeply," Raava said. "She was the love of her life. When Rangi passed, Kyoshi maintained an outward image of strength. But inwardly, she was devastated. While she entered into romantic relationships with other people after Rangi's passing, she never truly loved anyone else for the rest of her life. She thought of Rangi every day without fail for over two hundred years."

The vision shifted again, and this time, he saw a young Kuruk sitting with Hei-Ran on a tropical Fire Nation beach at sunset, placing a fire lily in her hair as she blushed.

"Kuruk had two great loves," Raava explained. "Hei-Ran of Sei'naka was his first."

"Of Sei'naka?" Aang repeated. "Like Rangi?"

"Yes. Rangi was her daughter."

Aang's eyebrows rose high on his forehead, both at this revelation and at the irony of Kuruk's reincarnation falling in love with the daughter of his first love.

The vision shifted, this time to a familiar scene of Kuruk and Ummi sitting on the cliffs overlooking Agna Qel'a, kissing under the full moon.

"Ummi of the Southern Water Tribe was Kuruk's other great love," Raava continued. "Even when he thought his humanity had been completely stripped away, Ummi helped him realize that it still existed inside of him."

The scene shifted again, and Aang saw a young Yangchen standing at the edge of a cliff next to her sky bison, two lemurs on each of her shoulders. Her expression appeared wistful as her long dark hair fluttered in the wind.

"Yangchen herself told you how she regrets not having made more lasting connections," Raava said. "After the death of her beloved sister Jetsun when she was young, she maintained a level of distance from all future companions. But she still loved humanity deeply, and humanity loved her in return."

The visions faded.

"Love is a fascinating emotion," Raava continued, her voice growing soft as she turned to look out at the mountain range. "It's an essential part of being human. And it is essential for the Avatar to experience love, to embrace it."

"When I was at the Eastern Air Temple, and was about to master the Avatar State," Aang murmured. "I heard a voice telling me that it wasn't time for me to master it yet, and that Zuko needed me. Then I had my vision about him being in trouble. That voice was you, wasn't it?"

"Yes," Raava replied. "It was."

"So… it's okay for me to keep loving Zuko?" Aang asked quietly. "I don't have to let him go?"

Raava turned back to face him, but was quiet for a moment. "Guru Pathik was right that mastering the Avatar State requires detachment."

Aang's expression immediately fell, his heart sinking.

"…But it’s not what you think.”

"…What do you mean?”

"Once you master the Avatar State," Raava explained. "You will no longer find yourself trapped and acting against your will. Instead, your glow will only briefly flash, and you will be in complete control of your actions. In order to do this, however, you must possess the emotional strength to detatch yourself in that moment. To not let your emotions affect your actions. But this doesn’t mean that you must detach yourself from what you love forever."

Upon hearing this, Aang felt hope reignite inside him.

He didn't have to let go of Zuko.

"...Thank you," Aang said, wiping a tear from his eye with a smile. "You don't have any idea how relieving it is to hear that."

"You're welcome, Aang," the spirit replied kindly.

As she spoke Aang realized that her form was beginning to fade.

“Remember, even when you feel lost in the darkness," Raava continued, her voice growing more distant. "My light is always with you."

He looked down at his chest, and he saw Raava's pattern glow again.

Suddenly, a bright beam of light appeared from above, and he looked back up to see a smiling Yue descending, the moon shining radiantly behind her.

“You did well, Aang,” she said. “It's time for you to return to the material world now. But remember: while Raava has been healed, your physical body still needs time to recover. Make sure to take be careful when you wake up.”

"I will," Aang said, smiling gratefully. "Thank you, Yue. For everything."

Yue nodded. "I hope we'll meet again soon. Goodbye, Aang."

Aang closed his eyes and smiled.

MIDSUMMER, 99 AG

Zuko stared at Aang's peaceful unconscious face from where he sat in the chair in the corner of the small cabin as Katara pressed glowing water into his lightning wound. This was a routine he'd watched daily since Aang had gotten shot, and he was beginning to wonder if it was doing anything to help at all.

As Katara removed the water and returned it to the bucket on the ground, Zuko cleared his throat and pushed himself to his feet. She looked up at him questioningly.

"…How is he?" he asked.

Katara wiped the sweat off her forehead as she stood up as well. "Well. The good news is, physically, he's doing pretty good. His wound is still healing well, but it'll definitely leave a nasty scar."

Zuko briefly grimaced. This was something Aang would have to live with for the rest of his life, just as he had to live with his own scar.

"Can you help me apply new bandages?" Katara asked.

Zuko nodded. This was another routine that he had gotten used to doing at this point. He gently lifted Aang into a sitting position and held him steady as Katara wrapped bandages around his torso.

"There," she said when she'd finished, and Zuko gently laid Aang down on his back.

"Do you… have any idea when he might wake up?" Zuko asked quietly as she put the leftover bandages into her medicinal bag.

Katara sighed. "I'm sorry, Zuko. I still don't know. We just have to—"

"Be patient, I know," Zuko muttered, pinching his nose bridge. "It's just… it's been six weeks. I would have thought he'd have woken up by now…"

He felt Katara's hand rest on his arm, and looked back up at her.

"Don't lose hope, Zuko," she said quietly before removing her hand and bending down to pick up the bucket. "Aang was badly injured. His body is only just now beginning to recover."

Zuko instantly felt a pang of guilt, and he bit his lip, looking away. He never should have let Azula get a chance to strike. Because of his negligence, Aang had gotten severely injured, and the world was without an Avatar yet again.

Not just injured, he thought, feeling slightly sick to his stomach as flashes of that horrible, horrible night appeared in his mind. Of Aang's cold, lifeless body, limp in his arms.

He still wasn't certain what had happened that night. Had Aang truly died and been brought back to life? Or had he been on the precipice of death, and the Spirit Oasis water had saved him from it at the last second?

"…You should come eat dinner on the deck with us," Katara said, snapping him out of his thoughts. "You've been spending too much of your time cooped up in here today. Well, in general, really."

Zuko's brow furrowed. "I don't know. What if he wakes up while I'm gone?"

"Zuko," Katara replied with a stern look. "You need fresh air and some food in your stomach. Just come up for a little bit, and you can come back. Aang will still be here."

Zuko's eyes moved to the Avatar again, his heart twingeing with both affection and anxiety.

"…Okay," Zuko sighed. "You can go on ahead. I'll be up there in just a minute."

"Alright," Katara said as Zuko slid open the heavy metal door for her. "But if you're not up there in ten minutes, I'm coming back down to get you."

Zuko rolled his eyes lightheartedly. "Okay, okay. I get it."

Once Katara had left, Zuko pushed the door closed and made his way back over to Aang. The Avatar was sleeping peacefully, his chest moving with a steady rhythm.

Zuko smiled as he reached up a hand to gently brush his fingers through Aang's new full head of hair. It was still a bit strange to see; though, while he missed Aang's smooth shaved head, he thought his new hair suited him well.

"You're gonna be okay," Zuko whispered, more to himself than to Aang.

He didn't know how many times he'd said these words the past few weeks. All he knew was that saying them gave him at least a little peace of mind.

With a sigh, Zuko pulled Aang's blanket up to his shoulders, tucking him in. Then, he leaned down and kissed the airbender's forehead, directly atop the point of his arrow.

"I love you," Zuko murmured, cupping the slumbering airbender's face and caressing his cheek with his thumb.

Suddenly, Aang's brow furrowed slightly, and to Zuko's astonishment, with a slight groan, he ever-so-slightly nuzzled his face into Zuko's hand.

Zuko immediately felt his heart begin to pound rapidly as hope bloomed in his chest for the first time in weeks.

"…Aang?" he whispered, gently cupping the other side of Aang's face as well. "Aang, it's me!"

The only response he got was a deep breath in and out.

Zuko sat there with Aang for a few more minutes, waiting, hoping, silently begging for Aang to open his eyes. However, he continued slumbering.

With a heavy sigh, Zuko let go of Aang's face and sat upright, rubbing his temples with his thumb and forefinger. Aang responding to his touch had been a good sign, but the fact that he had not woken up completely still felt devastating.

With great reluctance, Zuko pushed himself off the bed and opened the metal door to the room again. If he didn't leave now, Katara would come back to drag him out of the room soon anyway.

He took one last lingering look at Aang, then closed the door.