Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The boy in her arms, the boy who had been inside an iceberg blinked blearily and smiled up at her. “Will you go penguin sledding with me?” He asked, a little slurred.

“Uh, sure.” Katara agreed.

“Awesome…” Then his eyes snapped into clearer focus and he jolted out of her arms. “Oh no! Zuko!” He stumbled past a disbelieving and suspicious Sokka and leapt impossibly high to reach the- was that a saddle?! What she had thought was a mass of ice grunted and she realized it was a huge creature covered in white and grey fur. “Zuko! Come on, buddy! Wake up! Druk! Can you help?” Katara set her jaw in determination and, ignoring Sokka’s spluttered protests, climbed the side of the large beast. Once she crested the top she gasped. There was a dragon, about the height of a polar dog though significantly longer, curled around a pale boy in rust red and brown about the same age as the first boy. There was a huge bandage over one eye and his hair was cut oddly to accommodate whatever injury he had.

The other boy, the one who had been glowing and asked her to penguin sled, had gathered him up in his arms and was trying to wake him. “Aang…” The word was weak, the boy lifted his hand and gripped the first boy’s sleeve. “Why did we stop? We have to- The Air Temple- We can’t stop, Aang.” His voice was raspy, and the way that it got slightly louder at the end of that made her think he wanted to shout but just couldn’t.

“We’ve still got time.” Aang assured him. He rested his hand on his forehead and winced. “But you have a fever. The burn’s infected. We need to get you to a doctor.”

“No- Aang. The comet.” The boy (Zuko?) insisted, pushing his shoulder weakly.

“We have almost two weeks! We should have never tried to fly through that storm!” Aang pulled him into a hug.

“WHAT IS THAT?!” Sokka shrieked as he pulled himself over the saddle and pointed his boomerang at the dragon that curled around the boys, and ignored that he was on a beast just as peculiar.

“Gran Gran makes the best remedies in our village.” Katara assured him. “She’ll be able to help your friend, no problem.”

Aang swallowed and glanced back at the hut where his friend was lying. “I hope so.”

“I still say they are Fire Nation spies!” Sokka insisted. Aang gave him a strange look.

“Aren’t we a little bit young to be spies?” He asked. “I mean, spying sounded fun when I was younger, but then I realized how many lies we’d have to tell and Zuko is terrible at lying.” He rolled his eyes. “When we first met he tried to tell me his name was Kuzon. Can you believe that?” Aang chuckled, seeming a little bit lighter. “And when I clearly didn’t believe him he switched to Lee. He didn’t even try sticking to the lie. He’s just so bad at it!”

“That doesn’t mean anything!” Sokka snapped. “They could still be Fire Nation interlopers!”

“Sokka!” Katara scolded him.

“I mean, Zuko’s from the Fire Nation, but I don’t see how that’s a problem.” Aang said. “He’s even a firebender! A pretty good one too.”

The siblings gawked at him. Sokka recovered first, pointing at the boy. “See!?”

“I’m fine. We have to go.” Zuko pushed his way out of the hut, severely underdressed for the weather. He was flushed. His visible eye glazed but determined.

“Zuko,” Aang began, rushing up to his friend and steadying him. “We’ll go once you’ve rested a little more. It’s okay!”

“It’s not okay!” Zuko shouted. “We don’t have enough time before the comet arrives! Especially not if he realizes where I was heading!”

“What comet?” Sokka demanded, frustrated.

“The comet he’s going to use to kill all the airbenders!” The boy yelled, pushing Aang away. “He wouldn’t listen! He- he-” the boy made an aborted gesture towards his recently rebandaged eye. “We have to warn them! We don’t have much time left!” He stared desperately at the Water Tribesmen who were surrounding him. Katara, Gran Gran, and Sokka exchanged a glance.

“Sounds like this guy is fishing without a line.” Sokka said out of the corner of his mouth.

“We’ll make it!” Aang insisted.

“Yeah, sounds like you two are about a hundred years too late.” Sokka said. The boys looked at him, confused.

“I’m sorry, boys.” Gran Gran said. “I’m not sure what you are on about, but no one’s seen an airbender for a hundred years.”

Zuko went white and swayed in place.

“What? No. That isn’t possible.” Aang argued. “There must be some kind of mistake.”

Katara couldn’t let them go with Zuko in the state he was in, even if he was from the Fire Nation. But both boys were insisting they had to reach the Southern Air Temple as soon as possible and nothing could dissuade them. (And Aang really did turn out to be an airbender, so maybe their urgency was warranted. Maybe there was some new threat to a last pocket of the people wiped out by the Fire Nation. Katara could at least hope so.) Sokka wouldn’t let her go alone. And their grandmother, with a glint in her eye, assured them that she was more than capable of taking care of the village in their absence. To take all the time that they needed, because travel was good for the soul.

Druk, the dragon, flew alongside Appa, the bison. Sokka was trying to pretend he didn’t want to ride him. Zuko gently explained that Sokka was a little bit too big for Druk right now. Druk wasn’t actually supposed to carry anyone at this age but he was Zuko’s only way to flee the Fire Nation. He offered to ask Druk if Sokka could ride him when he was a little older. (Sokka called Zuko a pipsqueak and the ensuing squabble did at least seem to distract Zuko from his fear of what they’d find at the Air Temple. Besides, he was only thirteen, he’d grow.)

The Southern Air Temple was empty. Zuko punched the ground. Katara pretended not to see the tears running from his good eye but mentally made a note to change the bandages as soon as possible in case his other eye had working tear ducts. Katara and Aang went to explore, and as they walked away, Aang insisting that everyone just had to be hiding, Katara heard Zuko demand that Sokka tell him everything that had happened the past century.

Aang was the Avatar. At least Zuko seemed as surprised about it as they were.

“Zuko was upset.” Katara said.

“Yeah, well, I guess everyone from the Fire Nation can’t be bad.” Sokka grumbled. Zuko’s reaction had eroded any of his other doubts. “What about Aang?”

“Seeing Gyatso drove it home… but I don’t really think the rest of it sunk in.” Katara said. “They were coming to warn the Air Nomads about the attack. If they hadn’t gotten caught in that storm…”

“There might not be a war at all.” Sokka said. Then grimaced. “Nah. The Fire Nation wouldn’t have let a failed attack stop them but,” He glanced at the small yellow and orange form crouched next to the bandaged boy tending the fire. “The world would look pretty different.”

They were headed towards the North Pole. They had two untrained benders who needed to learn. A (somewhat) untrained warrior who needed to protect them. And a Fire Nation boy who didn’t have anywhere else to go.

“You have no idea where we’re going, do you?” Sokka asked flatly.

“I know it’s near water.” Aang offered cheerfully.

“Is this about the elephant koi?” Zuko asked.

“Yeah! I remembered you wanted to ride them and I figure it’s on the way!” Aang beamed at his friend. Aang could sometimes pull him out of his broody mood, brought on by guilt, grief, and anger, but he clearly put on a smile for the younger at times. Which is why Katara felt so bad popping his bubble as he perked up.

“Are those fish? Because Zuko can’t really get his injury wet right now.”

“Oh…” Aang looked disappointed.

“Hey, we can still go. I’ll just ride them another time.” Zuko was quick to assure Aang. He wasn’t very good at hiding his disappointment. Katara saw what Aang meant when he said he wasn’t a great liar.

“Wait! I was kidding! I can’t wear these! Katara! Please!” Sokka desperately stuck his hand through the massive hole in his pants.

“Then maybe you shouldn’t have talked about her like that.” Zuko snapped. He’d been watching them with his arms crossed and a growing scowl on his face. Sokka blinked at him. “She was doing important work and you’re dismissing it like it’s a given!”

“But I’m her brother.” Sokka insisted.

“So?!” Zuko spat back. “I wouldn’t talk to my little sister like that! You shouldn’t talk to Katara like that! Especially when she’s doing something so nice for you!”

“Look! We’re here!” Aang quickly interrupted the escalating argument, voice full of relief as they descended. Katara put a hand on Zuko’s shoulder.

“Thank you, Zuko. I’m glad some people recognize the importance of my contribution.”

Sokka wasn’t bitter that Zuko managed to evade capture longer than him. He was very bitter when Zuko decided to surrender and was way too excited about ‘Kyoshi Warriors’. (Apparently the Fire Nation Avatar was his friend Kiyi’s dad or something. So he got lots of Roku and some Kyoshi stories growing up.)

Once they were released, Zuko followed the Kyoshi Warriors with a starstruck expression he never wore around Sokka. And Sokka’s attempt to get him to cut it out, only resulted in his own humiliation… but he had to admit… he could probably learn a lot from them.

The Fire Nation ship showed up within days of them. Apparently word traveled fast when you claimed to be the Avatar, and the Fire Nation showed up to investigate any claim.

Zuko and Druk worked together to put out the fires around the village as quickly as they could be set. The Fire Nation froze and gawked at an actual dragon. They gawked and tried to capture the airbender, the Avatar, and one of them made careful note of as much information that she could about these relics from the past.

Entertaining Ozai was exhausting. It probably wasn’t fair to think, as his mother, Fire Lord Azula should have plenty of time for her son, but he was far too much like her. His words, not merely full of double meanings, but also containing seeds of doubt and poison. Ozai inherited her heart, but her brother’s eyes. While Iroh inherited her eyes and her brother’s heart. Was it any wonder why she preferred her elder son’s company?

Azula contained a sigh and suppressed the urge to rub her face. “Well, someone’s having a long day.” A familiar voice chirped.

“Next time, I should just leave him to you.” She replied with a faint smile. “You actually like him.”

“He’s adorable.” Ty Lee ascended the steps to stand beside her, laugh lines decorated her face. She moved as gracefully as ever, if somewhat less flamboyantly. “Like a baby you, fumbling with schemes.” Azula huffed, but didn’t disagree. “The doors are secure.” She added. “The guards are all mine. The most recent dispatches arrived late, just this morning, Muhn is reviewing them if you would like to wait.”

Azula shook her head wearily. “No. Let us begin. Would you prefer a window open.”

“Always.” Ty Lee answered, raising her hand and sending a breeze to swing the shutters free, letting in sunlight and air.

Azula met her favorite general’s grey eyes. “So, how is the Maelstrom Militia faring?”

They were interrupted by Muhn bursting in, a breeze causing the torches to flicker wildly. “Muhn! You know better.” Ty Lee scolded her granddaughter. Muhn panted, flipping up the steps, forgetting herself in a manner that members of the Militia rarely did. She shoved the latest decoded letter towards them.

Azula took it from her hand. She began to read. Her breath quickened. Her eyes widened.

“Ty Lee,” Her gnarled warm hands grasped for her friend’s.

Never in a century of friendship had Ty Lee seen so much vulnerability from her.

“What is it?” Ty Lee asked, pulling her close. Azula’s bronze eyes lifted and, before she could fully shutter them, Ty Lee could see hope warring with anger.

“It’s a sighting of a boy named Zuko.” Ty Lee swallowed. It had been decades since Azula took any sightings of her brother as anything but a hoax.

“There’s lots of boys named Zuko.” She said as lightly as possible. It was true. Zuko had become a popular name after the Crown Prince went missing.

“But how many of them travel with an airbender and a dragon?” Azula asked softly. Ty Lee stiffened. She held the letter out to Ty Lee. “An airbender, claiming to be the Avatar…” Ty Lee took the letter and skimmed its contents.

“Aang?” She questioned. It sounded like an Air Nomadic name. But that didn’t mean much.

“One of my brother’s best friends was named Aang.” Ty Lee’s breath caught. “Which means either someone’s found a connection and a name that I thought lost to everyone but myself.” The flames around them flared bright blue. “Or Aang did something… And Crown Prince Zuko is alive.”

Chapter Text

Zuko liked to travel. He knew that someday he wouldn’t be able to, the Fire Lord was restricted in that way, so he’d always jumped at opportunities to indulge his wanderlust while he had the chance. His friendship with Aang had done wonders for his travel. He had friends all over the world.

…He wondered what happened to them… How many had died at the hands of his soldiers.

But he wasn’t like Aang. He wasn’t raised on the back of a bison. He knew what it was like to leave home for the first time and the novelty of meeting different people from places he’d never been. So he completely understood the way that Katara’s eyes lit up when she met an earthbender for the first time. There was something magical about watching another person bend a substance that you couldn’t affect. Zuko loved working out how he could use their techniques and apply them to his own bending.

So when the earthbender ran away, Zuko started to offer to show her some of his bending before he was interrupted by Sokka pointing out that there was probably a town nearby. That seemed to cheer up Katara.

Sokka pulled Zuko back by the shoulder as Katara and Aang raced ahead. “Hey, I know things are different. So…” He hesitated. “Maybe remember not to firebend around other people? It could be bad.” Zuko stamped down on his rising indignation. He’d been doing it a lot and he knew that there was going to be a time when it exploded on him (he was never good at being subtle about it like Azula- he cut that thought before he spiraled into thoughts about what might have happened to her). He bit his tongue and nodded.

He tried not the be offended by the relief in Sokka’s eyes as they followed the others to the village, keeping an eye out for a safe place for Appa and Druk to remain while they picked up supplies.

Zuko was shocked by the prices in the shop. They were so high! How could anyone afford anything? He looked around at the scant options in dismay until a gasp from the shopkeeper drew his eye and he saw the same boy who had been bending in the woods standing beside her. He frowned as the panicked woman chastised him for bending.

They were interrupted by tax collectors. Fire Nation tax collectors. Demanding more money from a woman who had already paid them.

He opened his mouth to order them to stand down. To demand their names and ranks and march right up to their outpost to demand an explanation for their actions. He’d done it before. He’d even worked with his fath- other people to find ways to eliminate such abuses of power, though that had mostly been “supervision” which was a nice way of saying “learning policy implementation” and-

His mouth snapped shut.

He wasn’t the Crown Prince anymore. He wasn’t anyone anymore.

Then the officer started to let the flames drift close to the wood of the shop. And he could do something about that! He lifted his hand to extinguish the flame, only for Sokka to catch it and pull it back down. He jerked his gaze up at the older boy’s face. Sokka was staring determinedly at the scene playing out before them but his grip on Zuko’s hand tightened. (Just like his sister’s when he was about to do something stupid.)

Zuko’s jaw tightened. He couldn’t do anything, could he? He’d lost his name. His bending. And his nation had lost its honor.

He looked back down at the goods laid before them, sickened as he realized why the prices were so high.

He jerked as the Fire Nation officers mocked the woman before they left.

“Nice guy.” Sokka observed, giving his hand a gentle squeeze before moving it to his shoulder. “How long has the Fire Nation been here?”

“Five years.” The answer felt so wrong! The Fire Nation hadn’t expanded since Yu Dao, forty years before Zuko was born! “Fire Lord Azula uses our town’s coal mines to fuel her ships.”

Zuko felt like an airbender had just ripped the air out of his lungs. He couldn’t exhale. He couldn’t inhale. Aang gasped sharply, but Zuko was the only one who noticed as the boy snapped.

Fire Lord Azula uses-

She was alive. She was Fire Lord. She was-

“Earthbending is forbidden.” Zuko was pulled back. (Was he breathing? He had to be. But he didn’t feel like he was.) “He must never use his abilities.”

Zuko couldn’t speak. Thankfully, Katara objected for him. That’s how he learned that the Fire Nation had taken the boy, Haru’s father…

The Fire Nation. His sister’s Fire Nation.

Fire Lord Azula. His baby sister.

This couldn’t be right.

It just couldn’t be right.

Zuko felt numb, but he could feel a prick of anger building. The people here didn’t deserve this. They didn’t deserved to suffer at the hands of corrupt officer. Zuko fed the flame. It wasn’t Azula’s fault. Corrupt soldiers and officials were a problem not matter what the time period. It wasn’t- It was these Fire Nation soldiers. He had to focus on these soldiers. He- he could be mad at these soldiers. He couldn’t- he wouldn’t judge his sister. This was one town. Azula was responsible for a whole nation; things- things happened.

He quashed the tiny thought that he wouldn’t be making these excuses for himself or his father. Azula wasn’t either of them. She was smarter. She could make real plans. This could be one. Or maybe she just missed it. It was a whole nation.

He focused on his anger towards the Fire Nation officers. These corrupt officers.  

“This isn’t right.” He snarled. He looked up at Sokka and Aang. Katara had wandered off with Haru. “There are rules to stop this! And- and honor. Battles are supposed to be fought with honor! And respect is to be shown to your opponents whether they fall or not!”

Sokka watched him with resigned eyes. “The Fire Nation has changed, Zuko.” He said quietly. “This is what they do now. They invade. They take the benders.” He chuckled bitterly. “And if they want something you have. They stay.” Zuko swallowed hard.

“But the Fire Lord-”

“Would burn this world to the ground!” Sokka snapped. Zuko flinched violently enough for Sokka to notice. He took a deep breath.

“Look, you aren’t the Fire Lord.” Sokka said. “You aren’t responsible for the actions of your nation.” Sokka’s attempt at comfort just twisted the knife. He was responsible for the actions of his nation. He should have been the Fire Lord.

His wound burned under the bandages: a reminder of his failure to maintain his nations honor.

A reminder of how he had failed to prevent the spark that ignited this war: costing Aang his home, his nation its honor, and his sister a peaceful country to rule over in the wake of his disappearance.

They took away Haru. Zuko was furious. Sokka wasn’t sure about letting any of them go through with the plan Katara had concocted. Zuko’s main issue with the plan was that he wasn’t allowed to go with her because ‘two earthbenders isn’t believable’. (But apparently a lemur-bat earthbending was. They totally could have gotten away with it.)

He was stuck circling the rig with Sokka, Aang, and Druk on Appa. Sokka looked at him seriously. “Zuko, I know your instinct is probably to fight, but I need you not to firebend.”

“You can’t tell him not to firebend!” Aang objected indignantly. Zuko felt a rush of gratitude for his friend.  “That’s exactly what this prison is trying to do to the earthbenders!”

“I know! I know! Just-” Sokka looked away and sighed. “This isn’t Kyoshi Island. We got a major pass with Aang being the Avatar and our crazy story about time travel. But the people on that prison? The ones we are trying to save? They are just going to see a kid firebending and assume he’s with the guards. We don’t have time to explain and we can’t risk a prisoner attacking Zuko.” Zuko swallowed. He wasn’t used to being seen as a bad guy for his bending.

“But Zuko isn’t-” Aang began, still defensive of him.

“I know, Aang.” Sokka insisted. “But they don’t.”

“I can fight with swords.” Zuko said. “But I’m still going to firebend if it can save someone.”

Sokka sighed heavily. “Just try to stick to putting out fire. And be subtle about it.”

“Uh, subtlety isn’t his strong suit.” Aang said nervously.

“I can be subtle.” Zuko frowned at him.

“You can act subtle.” Aang corrected. “That’s not the same as being subtle.”

Zuko bristled. “What is that supposed to mean?!” He demanded. “And why are you smiling?!”

“Because I’m not subtle either.” Aang said, pulling Zuko farther into the petty argument and out of the sullen mood and bursts of anger he’d been showing since they came to this town. Eventually pulling the first smile out of Zuko since they’d heard the words ‘Fire Lord Azula’ when they ganged up on Sokka about his lack of subtlety. (Just as Aang planned.)  

Katara refused to leave when they arrived. Zuko agreed with her and they easily swayed Aang to their side, much to Sokka’s dismay. Zuko marveled, with mixed feelings, over the innovations of Fire Nation technology that had developed over the past hundred years, even as his stomach turned at the conditions of the prisoners. (It was the warden’s fault. They all agreed that the warden was awful. Zuko knew he was corrupt. Azula didn’t know about this. She couldn’t.)

In the chaos of battle, Zuko did use his firebending more than he probably should have. But only to keep things from catching fire. A few of the benders had the smart idea to ignite the coal but Zuko wouldn’t let it spark.

His bandaged eye continued to prove a disadvantage. And more than one he heard a grunt and turned to find Sokka or Aang had knocked someone out on his left. He needed to train for that until the bandages came off. (He- he thought he could still see out of the eye. The healers at the palace had said it was done very carefully and Kanna said it just needed more time to heal.)

He did panic slightly when Haru’s father dropped the Fire Nation soldiers off the side of the rig, but thankfully Aang silently pushed floating debris towards them with airbending. He met Zuko’s grateful glance with a wink.

It didn’t take too long for Zuko to head to the tree line where Druk had hidden after Sokka sent him away from the fight. The prisoners were celebrating their freedom and their victory over the Fire Nation. And… he knew that the prisoners had just been through something awful and that the prison was definitely corrupt. So it wasn’t fair of him to be mad at what they were saying about firebenders and the Fire Lord. They- they deserved to vent… but he was going to explode if he kept having to listen to them insult his nation and his little sister.

Monk Gyatso said it was okay to remove himself from bad situations (at least that’s what Aang said that his proverb meant). His father told him to defend his nation above all else.

Zuko decided he should listen to Gyatso.

Zuko was relieved when they decided to leave that day. Even if it didn’t give them time to look for Katara’s necklace.

They were exhausted when they landed to make camp. Sokka didn’t object to Zuko making the cooking fire with his bending. And Zuko tried his best to think about nothing as he drifted to sleep.

Aang rolled away from Druk’s probing claws with a groan. “Not now.” He mumbled, curling up to protect his sleep from the companion. Druk clicked in annoyance and tried to nudge him out of his ball with his snout. “Not now, Druk.” He slurred, hiding his face behind his arm and trying to fall back asleep. Druk chittered and moved away. Aang sighed contentedly, curling back up… until a wide wet tongue bigger than Aang lifted him to his feet. “Appa!” Aang scrambled back, barely registering the silhouette of the smug dragon on top of Appa’s head. “I’m not Zu-!” Aang froze and looked up at the brightening sky. Right, he’d asked Druk to wake him at the one time he could talk with his friend alone. Aang glanced nervously at Katara and Sokka. Sokka rolled over muttering something in his sleep. Zuko was already gone. “Thanks, Druk. Thanks, Appa.” He whispered loudly. Appa grunted and laid back down.

Druk leapt to the ground and swung his snout in the direction of a sunny outcropping that he couldn’t see the edge of from camp. Aang nodded and glanced at the others again. Druk took up a guard in front of the cliff to see that they were undisturbed. Aang made his way up the outcropping. Zuko was perched on it, eyes fixed on the horizon, awaiting the rising sun. Aang jumped up, a rush of wind announcing his arrival, and landed beside him, letting his legs dangle over the precipice.

“It’s okay.” Aang said quietly. “They’re asleep. Druk will warn us if they wake up.” Zuko kept his eyes on the sky, but slowly tipped until he was leaning on Aang.

“Fire Lord Azula.” Zuko’s voice cracked. Aang wrapped an arm around Zuko’s trembling back. He rarely comforted Zuko like this. Zuko’s negative emotions usually presented as anger. (He’d been angry when Aang got sick. He’d been angry when guards chased them for a prank they totally didn’t pull. He’d been angry when Aang arrived at their hide out to find him with bandages wrapped around his face and a desperate warning on his lips. He’d been angry at the empty shell of the Air Temple.)

Aang tightened his arm around the older boy. He wasn’t angry right now, and Aang wasn’t sure how to help. “They hate her.” Zuko whispered.

“They don’t know her.” Aang said softly. “They wouldn’t if they knew her.”

Zuko took a shuddering breath. “I know you believe that, Aang.” He sagged against him. “You don’t blame her for what’s happened, do you?”

“Of course not!” Aang hugged Zuko close. “I know Azula. She’s a little intense but she cares about people.”

“She didn’t want to be Fire Lord.” Zuko said softly. “She always planned on being my right hand. Traveling the world. Going places and doing things the Fire Lord could not.” A tear ran down from his uncovered eye. “I don’t- I never- What did she think happened to me?” Zuko started sobbing into his chest. “What happened to her?! They talk about her like she’s a monster, Aang!”

“She’s not.” He whispered fiercely. He didn’t know what had happened to Azula while they were in the ice, but he knew her. She knew him! She protected the people she cared about and she wouldn’t- there was a misunderstanding here. A reason they weren’t seeing. There had to be.

Zuko kept crying. Aang let silent tears fall down his face too.

There was a reason. There had to be a reason…  But would there being a reason make anything okay?  

“Azulon, I dare say this is the finest cup of tea you have ever brewed.” Iroh smiled at his nephew, who looked away, clearly dissatisfied with his own cup.

“You don’t have to lie to me, Uncle.” He placed the cup back down, glaring at it with a wrinkled nose. “I know it’s not up to your standards.”

“Bold of you to presume that you know what my standards are, nephew.” Iroh chided him lightly, pleased that these gentle rebukes were no longer met with muted fear and immediate apologies. (At least they weren’t when they came from Iroh.)

He was still working to rebuild the trust that had withered in his absence, consumed by his quest to retrieve his beautiful twin girls from the clutches of death. He’d neglected Azulon in his grief fueled obsession. Lo and Li would have been disappointed in him.

Azulon still glared at his cup. Iroh chuckled. “Such a perfectionist, nephew.” He put down the teacup loudly enough to draw Azulon’s attention, prompting him to, reluctantly, pour what he considered substandard tea.

He was wrong, of course. The tea was most excellent. But the boy had been rather out of practice when Iroh returned (defeated). And had taken Iroh’s gentle teasing about it far too personally after their first tea together. “It is good.” Iroh reiterated.

“It could be better.” Azulon insisted.

Iroh sighed. “Do not let the destination pull you from the path, nephew.” He reminded him. Azulon huffed his disagreement. Azulon would accept nothing less than perfection from himself. His father’s influence. Iroh had been working to undo the damage his half-brother had done to Azulon in the time he and his daughters had been gone; but, as Ozai was still an active part of Azulon’s life, most of Iroh’s efforts were for naught. At least he’d had some partial success in reigniting Azulon’s interests outside of firebending, such as tea, even if he was applying Ozai’s toxic attitude towards firebending to those activities.

Speaking of… “Have you considered my invitation?” He asked. Azulon tensed. “Your mother has agreed to accompany us if you are able to attend.” It was a bit manipulative. Ursa loved the theatre, but it would cause a stir if she were to attend a play with Iroh and without Ozai.

“I’m still thinking about it.” Azulon said, voice tight with emotion. “Father may have something he requires of me that day.” Ozai would certainly schedule something if he knew of the invitation. He was petty like that.

Iroh knew that he was pushing: pouring salt into the wound on both of their hearts. But wounds had to be cleaned in order to heal and Azulon had left his to fester for far too long.

The last play Azulon had seen was with Lo and Li. The night before they left to join Iroh on the frontlines. They’d regaled him with the story many times: how they’d snuck Azulon out under Ozai’s nose; how all three of them had known all the words; and how Azulon had lit up when they’d promised that they would find a way for all three of them to act in a play when they got back.

It had broken his heart when Azulon told him he didn’t have time for plays when he returned. It fractured further when he later let slip that night had been the last time he’d set foot in a theatre.

Iroh sipped his tea, debating whether to press-

When a servant entered with a bowed head. “Crown Prince Iroh, the Fire Lord requires your presence.” She announced.

Required, not requested.

No time to wrap things up nicely with Azulon then.

Iroh sighed and stood. “I am sorry to cut this short, nephew. I look forward to our next tea. Tomorrow, perhaps.” He added, ignoring that technically his half-brother ad scheduled enough to busy Azulon until next week. He wasn’t afraid of using his title to impose on his half-brother’s schedule for time with his nephew. Anything Ozai had arranged could be moved.

“Of course, Uncle Iroh.” Azulon said quickly. An excited gleam in his eyes. The boy always did idolize his grandmother.

When he entered the throne room he was surprised to find that it was not arranged to receive him, instead the table that converted the space into a war room had been brought out. Fire Lord Azula sat at its head instead of the throne with Auntie- that is, General Ty Lee, beside her, their heads tilted together reading something. A number of Ty Lee’s operatives scattered the room, an assortment of clerical, military, and medical personnel. Strangely, a Fire Sage hovered on the fringes of the gathering, his face a mask of excitement.

“Mother?” Iroh announced himself, sensing that now was not the time for formalities with excited low chatter of the Maelstrom Militia (who’d never had more than a perfunctory attitude for such things) surrounding them. Azula looked up. “Iroh,” She lifted her hand, beckoning him closer. Iroh passed the operatives conversing around the room, further cementing his assessment that this was not a normal meeting. It was rare that the Militia was so openly lax in their attitudes towards royalty and decorum.

When he was close enough, Azula dropped her voice soft enough that none but Iroh and Ty Lee could hear her.

“Years ago, you requested that I remove you from the line of succession.” She said. Iroh stiffened. He had. In the immediate aftermath of Lo and Li’s death; as his resolve hardened to venture to the ends of the earth and beyond to retrieve his daughters. The crown had been a distraction. Only his daughters mattered…

It was a bad stance for a Crown Prince to have. It would have been worse for a Fire Lord.

That was years before he’d come to himself. Before he’d returned and found what he would have subjected his home to. Iroh was a desperate father. Ozai was an uncaring one: his cruelty in his lack of love. (He hadn’t always thought that. Not when Ozai was a boy that he loved to spoil. And Iroh was certain that he would still be blind to his brother’s failings had he not seen the change to Azulon when he finally returned.) A father as coldly demanding and disdainful of his own child would be a Fire Lord who was indifferent to the suffering and lives of his people.

Azula must have seen that, because she had refused his request. His title had been waiting for him when he returned.

“I believe that I am the best choice.” Iroh said carefully. “My desires are secondary to those of the Fire Nation.” Azula watched him closely and Iroh knew that she could see what he was not saying. He didn’t want the throne. He didn’t want to be responsible of the deaths of Fire Nation sons and daughters, his own children were enough, but he’d accepted that it was his responsibility.

“Perhaps the spirits heard him.” Ty Lee suggested with a smile. Azula scoffed lightly but with fondness. She looked up at Iroh and gestured for him to sit.

“Crown Prince Zuko has returned with the Avatar.” She handed Iroh one of the pages. “Iroh, I knew him. He was Zuko’s friend… and they are both thirteen years old.” Iroh’s eyes widened and he quickly read the report.

“There’s others.” Ty Lee added. “And Azula recognizes the descriptions of both of them.”

Iroh leaned back, his brain whirling. His lost uncle returned with the Avatar in tow. It was like something out of a spirit tale.

This could, this would, change everything.

Iroh lowered the report and met his mother’s bronze eyes. “What do you plan to do?” He asked. He had no previous context to draw from. He never doubted his mother loved his uncle with all her heart, but she was the Fire Lord… and Prince Zuko was technically the rightful heir to their father’s throne.

“He must be retrieved.” Azula said. “This is not the world he remembers and if anyone knew who he was…”

Killed, kidnapped, tortured. Iroh was well aware of what evil could befall the heir to the Dragon Throne.

Iroh jolted as the doors flew open. “And Azulon is the perfect choice to retrieve him.” Ozai announced, sweeping in. The Fire Lord’s eyes narrowed and she settled back.

“Listening at doors is an activity for children, not men, Ozai.” She chided her youngest, but her eye were calculating. Ozai took a barely controlled breath and Iroh looked past him to see Azulon refusing to meet his gaze. Of course he would have told his father about Iroh’s summons.

“My apologies, Mother.” Ozai bowed deeply. “I was merely waiting for a moment of your time. My offer stands. Azulon is the perfect representative of our family to collect the wayward boy. Commander Zhao can depart at once for his last known location with Azulon and Azulon has certainly come far enough in his bending to handle a child Avatar.”

Azula’s nostrils flared throughout his speech and Ty Lee wore a lightly condescending, almost indulgent, smile. Iroh had no idea why she found Ozai’s machinations so endearing. He’d only been repulsed when he’d finally noticed what his half-brother had been doing.

Fire Lord Azula stood. “We do need to send the right people to collect Prince Zuko.” She climbed the steps. “Trustworthy people.” She turned back to look down on her youngest son. “Family.” She sat majestically on her throne, her gnarled hands curling on the ornate armrests. “Azulon is an excellent suggestion.” Ozai excitedly opened his mouth. “He will accompany Prince Iroh and Captain Jee to retrieve Prince Zuko, safe and unharmed.” Ozai’s jaw audibly snapped shut. A Militia operative couldn’t quite smother his giggle. Azulon hid his own surprise a bit better where he stood behind his father, his face going blank with practiced ease. “This could also be an excellent opportunity for Azulon to learn about leadership. Ty Lee, select some appropriate operatives to act as my grandson’s companions.” Azula continued as if she hadn’t just struck Ozai mute. Ty Lee looked far too entertained.

“I have the perfect pair in mind.” She said, eyes dancing with mischief and possibilities.

Iroh’s mind was still moving through everything that the return of the lost prince (and the Avatar) could mean, but slowed enough to allow a smile of satisfaction.

Prince Zuko’s return meant a lot of things, but most immediately it meant that Iroh had a chance to take his nephew from Ozai’s toxic grasp. (Zuko was already endearing himself to Iroh for that opportunity alone.)