The Princess and the Peasant - (An Azula Epic)

A Talk Between Uncle and Nephew

The commandeered airship soared in the skies while chaos was underway in the bowels of the airship.

Sokka and Aang were seated a distance away from Katara while they watched with fury in their eyes as Katara released a sorrowful cry while they treated her maimed arm.

"They are going to pay for this!" Sokka yelled out with tears in his eyes while the monk placed a calming hand on his shoulder.

"Please, Sokka. I am just as angry as you. But we need to try to stay calm right now. For Katara!" Aang reasoned with tears in his own eyes while his friend hid in the palm of his hand.

"I know, Aang. But it's not that easy." Sokka mumbled with a hand over his face while Aang nodded in agreement.

'I have failed once again! Toph is missing! Iroh lost an eye! And...and Katara! I swore on Bumi's name that I would stop the Fire Nation! I can't...I can't let this girl prevent me from defeating Azula and the Fire Lord! There must be something I can do to defeat her!' Aang thought with his palms clasped in his lap while his fretful eyes stared down at his feet.

All the while Pakku sat across from them watching the scene with pain-stricken eyes.

After many weeks of Zoi's torture, he wanted nothing more to pass out in a warm bed.

But he couldn't!

Not until he knew that his granddaughter would be okay!

The medical team worked furiously at their task while Zuko gazed in from the glass window with enraged golden eyes.

His disabled arm was now in a bandaged sling and he could only clench his fist in his anger at the sight before him.

'Azula! If you hadn't had struck Katara in the shoulder, she wouldn't been torn apart by the landmine!' Zuko thought with his fists tightening at his hip before turning to storm down the hall.

Mere moments later he come to a stop before another room to see his uncle seated on the floor with a bandage wrapped around the left side of his face.

"Uncle...are you..." Zuko trailed off with the words dying in his throat while Iroh turned to smile back at him.

And seated before the wounded man was two steaming cups of tea.

"I will be fine, Zuko. It's just only an eye." Iroh assured only for his nephew to stare at him incredulously.

"Just an eye!" Zuko shouted with flames burning at the fingertips of his good hand while the older man reached out to grasp his cup of tea.

"Look at the bright side. Now we share the same location for our battle scars." Iroh stated before taking a sip of his tea while his nephew glowered down at him.

"You are quite carefree. Considering that Azula now has the power to not only rival Aang...but completely neutralize him whenever that girl is in her presence! On top of that we now have to deal with Azula's bloodhound Zoi chasing us everywhere we go! And that isn't even getting into what she did to Katara!" Zuko exclaimed in a furious voice with his fist balling up in his anger while Iroh now gazed down solemnly into his tea.

"I...am aware of the gravity of our situation. I am just...relieved to see have you back." Iroh commented in a softer voice while Zuko stared down at him with guilt ridden golden eyes.

"I...apologize, Uncle. Both for losing my temper now and...before." Zuko muttered with shame in his eyes once more.

"And I will say once more that there is nothing to forgive." Iroh assured while he stared at his nephew taking a seat opposite of him.