Empress Of The Old World {Legend Of Korra}

PART 2: Calming Mind

Sitting in the dark was a new experience for the Fire Lord's sister. She had tried humming loudly to annoy her uncle but she was starting to get worried he'd leave her in the middle of nowhere.

Azula had been surprised when Iroh had agreed to take her on this little trip but, anything for his precious Zuzu.

The plan was to get out of the fire nation to go somewhere calm for some much needed peace and healing. She wasn't opposed of course, it definitely beat rotting in a cell forever.

"How is this supposed to help exactly?" she snapped, opening her eyes to see that her uncle, sitting with his eyes closed in front of her.

"Quiet Azula," he told her, frowning furiously as he tried to ignore her whining, "you need to learn some patience before you'll be able to go anywhere near the spirit world."

The only way he could get her to stay focused was to give her a goal. Iroh wanted to explore the spirit world himself, so giving her the option to help him with an added nudge in the right moral direction was something that only needed a little convincing from her brother.

He had to admit that he had lost hope on Azula a long time ago but if Zuko was convinced she was worth saving, he knew he should try.

Azula huffed and closed her eyes again. She had been nothing but conflicted since her failure at the Agni Kai. And some peace would be nice for once.

She allowed her mind to wander. She had let her fear get the better of her. It had broken her. She had lost control. How could she have--no, not right now.

"Iroh I--," she started, but he was gone, "Iroh?"

The whole area around her had changed. Not just in scenery but in colour and... Well... Everything.

"Hello," a voice said, causing her to flip her head around to where it was coming from.

The soft, almost whispy voice came from a young woman. She was sitting with her legs crossed under one of the strange trees.

"Who are you?" Azula demanded, getting to her feet.

"My name is Sukara," she said, a slight gravelly undertone beginning to unearth itself as she spoke, "and yours is Azula."

"How do you know that?" Azula asked, her demanding tone still strong as she took a step back from the stranger.

"How do you think you got here?"

"Wha-- Where, exactly, is here?" she questioned, still unsure of Sukara.

"You wanted to come to the spirit world," Sukara told her, standing up, "so I let you in. You're in a lot of pain Azula, I can feel through the walls. You don't have to be scared here though, this can be your escape."

Azula looked shocked, she didn't know what to do, or to say. She felt defensive but she didn't know if she should be.

"What about Iroh?" Azula asked, deciding to try and get the subject away from her own trauma, "why didn't you let him in?"

"I will," Sukara said softly, taking a single step in her direction but she stopped when Azula backed off again, "but I wanted to talk to you first."

She would always remember Azula's face. She was so unsure of it all, scared and apprehensive but also touched and happy that she had finally been seen.

###

Sukara woke up with a start, like she had fallen off the edge of the road, but she was still laying in the bed Izumi had given her. When she had told her how she knew her great uncle Iroh she had been more than hospitable.

It had been a couple of weeks since she had left Korra and the others, she was glad that she didn't have to fight Korra, it wasn't how she wanted to start her new life.

Dreaming of Azula was a nice change from reliving the nightmare her mother had put her through, over and over again every night. It also helped her to stay focused on her new task. She was going to find Azula. Or if the worst comes, a gravestone. She just wanted to see her again, to talk to her in some way.