Disclaimer - Avatar the Last Airbender is owned by Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino

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It is in Iroh's POV

"I love you, sister. Deep down I do." he says.

She giggles. It almost sounds innocent like a child's laughter. The drugs inside her body must be strong.

My nephew continues on despite the interruption.

"I know that neither of us have been good siblings to each other. You are still young and…"

Zuko looks at me for support. I just nod.

"…I believe you deserve a second chance."

Azula's lips contort into a manic smile. If I was a lesser man I would have cringed.

"How thoughtful of you fire lord. Tell me Zuzu, does this "second chance" have a catch. I hope it involves the waterbender."

My niece licks her lips. How disturbing.

"Azula, you are not well." I stated. I tried to keep the disgust out of my voice. She may have been my brother's tool but she was still a prodigy. One of the best I have ever witnessed. She had the potential to be better than my brother. Better than myself. It is a shame that Azula turned out like this. She became a true disgrace and I could not save her.

"Was I ever well, Uncle? I suppose you wouldn't know. You were too busy watching your son die. That must have made a pretty memory."

I want to slap her. Straight across the face. The only respect she had was for her damn father. She was her father. Sharp-tongued and broken.

"I have experienced the pain of this war, Azula. Something you could never understand. You, a spoiled princess have never lost anyone in your life. Or have you? You seem to have a soft spot for your mother. The mother that knew what you were from the beginning. A monster."

The tiny room is filled with her laughter. She is rolling around on the floor as if I told her a joke. And to her it probably was a joke.

Azula stops herself and looks at me. She has a wide grin on her face. It was like she was going to tell me the yummiest piece of gossip in the world.

"Tell me something new." she says.

I sigh. She may be a lunatic but her guard was not down. Azula would never open up to anyone.

Zuko tries to get through to his sister again.

"Azula, our intentions are not to hurt you. We are here to help you. To make you better."

"Better? What is wrong with the way I am? Father says I'm perfect and so does mother."

Zuko and I are confused about the last part and he asks, "When has mother called you perfect?"

"Mother has called me perfect many times." She smirks and adds, "A perfect monster."

I should have known better.

Zuko is not happy with that answer and he frowns. But he is not angry; he has empathy on his face.

"You are not a monster, Azula. You are a person like me and uncle. You were just raised wrong. Just because you are selfish and merciless, it does not make you are monster. None of us are perfect. Not even Ozai. You just need to be trained the right way. Uncle and I will help you. I promise."

I watch Zuko put a hand on Azula's shoulder. I'm surprised she didn't try to bite his fingers off.

Her face changes from amused to indifferent. She looks like her normal self again. I'm not sure if that is a good thing.

"What is the catch, Zuzu? I know you don't trust me."

Her voice is smooth yet there is no hint of emotion in it. Azula is doing business.

I nod my head at Zuko to continue.

"You can stay here for the rest of your life and have drugs shoved down your throat every day. Or you can come with me and uncle and have a normal life. But there is a condition for the second choice. For us to trust you…"

Zuko paused and cleared his throat.

"…we need to take your bending away."

We weren't sure if this information could register in Azula's brain. We didn't even know if she knew what happened to her father during the Day of Black Sun.

Azula's head lowered, her hair was covering her face.

"What would this "normal" life include?" she asks.

"Well…it would include…hanging out with friends, family gatherings, school…um…vacations."

Zuko was having a hard time answering her question. I didn't blame him.

He turned to me and asks, "Anything else uncle?"

Great now I have to think of something. Something wise and sagacious.

"You would have a peaceful life, sipping on tea, playing pai sho, and thinking about your future and what it holds in store for you."

Her hair is still in her face. She has not moved.

"Will my bending ever come back? Or will it forever be taken from me like father?"

There is misery in her voice. Whether it is from the knowledge of her father's fate or her own I do not know.

"I'm sorry, Azula. Your firebending will not return to you." I say.

My voice is soft; I do not wish to cause her pain.

"Think of it as a blessing."

I lift up her chin gently and I part her hair to the side so I can see her face.

Zuko and I have never seen such melancholy on Azula's face before. It was reminiscent of Ursa.

Behind me Zuko asks for her final answer.

Her eyes are cold and dull.

They do not concern me because her words pierce right through me.

"If I can't be my own. I'd feel better dead."

Her voice is not poisoned honey, it is pure like water.

Azula spoke the dead truth and it breaks my heart.

I didn't save Azula, no one did.

And now she faces an ultimatum.

To not be herself or to not be herself.

Should she choose to stay in the asylum and have the drugs take over her ability to think for herself?

Should she choose to be in the outside world and have her firebending, her very essence, ripped out of her soul?

There was no way Azula could win.

She knew it too.

The only answer was death.

At least she would still be herself.

My emotions overwhelm me and I feel myself embracing her petit frame.

Her hands are clutching my robe like a child clutching a blanket during a bad dream.

Zuko joins our embrace.

It feels like I am a father again.

It is the greatest feeling in the world.

A week has passed since that day.

I find myself visiting my brother, Ozai.

I tell him that I will be Azula's caretaker.

I will train her and love her.

Like a good uncle should.

We did not take her firebending away.

As long as I was with her, she would be safe.

Ozai nods.

He tells me her favorite foods, her weaknesses in battle, and her habit of throwing objects into mirrors.

Apparently it has happened many times before.

Before I leave, he threatens me.

If I ever arrange a marriage for Azula, he will gut me like a fish.

Maybe there is hope for him too.

Thank you for reading.

The quote, "If I can't be my own, I'd feel better dead." is from the Alice in Chains song, Nutshell. Which I DO NOT OWN.

Reviews to me is like tea to Iroh.

Well...not really but they would be nice ;-D