Hi, everyone. It's been a while. I had GCSEs (ginormous whopper exams that determine how easy it'll be for me to get a job in the future, do you have those in America?) and it took me a while to get back into writing. I'm actually going to try and stick with this one, I have an insane amount of unpublished first chapters floating around. This is an idea that started off as semi-crack (I had given up on my Biology exam and was bored) and actually turned into something pretty plausible. For those who like their fluff with a side of adventure, you're in the right place. So, sit back and enjoy the Warm Embers saga (here's to hoping). I don't own Avatar. Oh, and this completely ignores the comics and Legend of Korra. It ignores the comics because I am a Maiko shipper and I hate them, and LoK because, although I enjoyed it immensely, it's more fun to make it up yourself, don't you think?

The first attempt on Zuko's life came right the heck out of nowhere.

It was merely a month into the new Fire Lord's reign, and there were still whispers of discontent. The indoctrination programme in the schools had been stopped abruptly - a replacement was still being planned - but there was no way of un-indoctrinating those who had already left, and still most of the population hated the fact that the useless, weakling, banished prince had come back to take over the country with his stupid, radical ideas, and pulled the plug on their Great March of Civilisation. Pray tell, dear people: how exactly were the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes supposed to be enlightened if there were no soldiers or tanks marching through their streets in an impressive display of the power they were missing out on? How was the Fire Nation supposed to prove its status as the only worthy country if reparations were being paid out daily to the other leading powers and the Fire Lord was demonstrating the nation's "penance"? How were their children supposed to learn pride, in themselves and in their country, if they were constantly told that they were equal to all the other vermin in the world? The thoughts were rife throughout the kingdom, but the whisperers, not used to the new free speech laws, kept them behind closed doors, under hands, from person to person rather than group to group, no-one trusting a stranger, so that plain-clothes guards sent out to gauge the temperature on the streets found nothing, and came back with reports of a people that, though grudging, were growing contentedly accustomed to the new régime. Thus, the opinion at the palace was that Zuko was doing well, and they had no real reason to worry.

Until one impressionable young man broke down the door to the Fire Lord's chamber, where the young ruler - still a boy, really - slept peacefully, arms wrapped tightly around his girlfriend.

It was Mai who woke first. She had her back to the door, but she rolled over with consummate grace and leapt out of bed. She did not sleep with knives on her body, but it took her a mere second to grab the knife belt from her bedside table and launch a round at the assassin, who gave one wild, desperate lunge out of the way, and then managed to stagger to his feet. Pulling his hidden blade from its sheath in his cloak, he decided to abandon the girl and just go for the Fire Lord. He made another wild dive towards the bed, only to be met with a hard foot impacting his head and sending him flying into the wall with a bang that finally jolted the groggy Fire Lord to full awareness.

Hiroshi, the assassin, suddenly found himself dodging a furious volley of fireballs. One here, one there, one nearly impacting his left shoulder, one narrowly missing his right ear. And still the knives came from the girl; now if only he could get near enough without dying horribly. He lunged for the Fire Lord, only to find the girl blocking his path. Fine then, cut her down, then go for her boyfriend - she was too much of a threat. He lunged at her, knife outstretched, but the Fire Lord had caught his movement and sent a wave of fire towards his head, and he had to duck again, mission aborted.

He tried to go at her from a different angle, but she was there waiting for him, all knives and deadly coldness. She grabbed his outstretched arm and knocked the knife from his grasp, sending it flying into the wall. Without his weapon, Hiroshi wavered. He could duck out now, run for the hills and come back another night, but then he thought about the gentleman who had paid him up – he expected to put his plan into action tonight, and that wouldn't happen with the current Fire Lord still alive and well.

Hiroshi's next idea was to wrestle the girl into submission. He took in her build – tall and lanky, not much muscle at all – and decided it was doable. He lunged for her, dodging the furious volley of knives that came his way, and grabbed her skinny arms. He did not expect to meet with much resistance, but she was surprisingly strong – how old was she anyway? She couldn't be older than twenty, and at close quarters, Hiroshi decided that she didn't even look more than sixteen. He reached past her arm and grabbed her waist, struggling to find purchase in the smooth silk of her nightgown – while he could barely afford wool to clothe his Mamma and younger siblings! – but the Fire Lord grabbed his own waist and tried to prise the assassin from his girlfriend.

Hiroshi was swiftly losing heart, but he managed to hold on to the girl as the younger but evidently stronger boy pulled him this way and that. After a while, Hiroshi realised that the Fire Lord was holding back, for fear of hurting his girlfriend. Using this to his advantage, Hiroshi managed to pull the girl towards him, her bare feet sliding easily on the polished wooden floor, and give a hefty kick to her unprotected stomach, sending her flying with a startled cry. She hit the wardrobe, a hulking monster carved with red-stained dragons, and crumpled to the floor, clutching her abdomen.

Hiroshi celebrated – finally out of the way – but only when he heard the bellow of rage behind him did he realise that he had let his guard down, and it had cost him the few precious seconds it took to spin around and block the fireball thrown at his head by his remaining opponent. He was forced to duck it instead, and he felt the searing heat on his face.

That was the final straw. Hiroshi gave the Fire Lord the strongest shove he could, ducked under his arm in the split-second it took him to regain his balance, and ran for the door. He kept going, past the guards he had drugged – for he was better at sneaking than at fighting – down the corridor towards the stairs that separated the floor given over completely to the Fire Lord's chambers from the rest of the palace (which was empty apart from those servants who lived in the palace) and had almost got there before he ran smack into two guards who blossomed at the top of the stairs seemingly from nowhere, in the perfect position to grab an arm each and, with a threatening "Where do you think you're going?", tow him back to the Fire Lord's chambers, where they found the boy crouching beside the wardrobe, checking that his girlfriend remained mostly unharmed.

"We heard a commotion, my Lord." The two guards that held Hiroshi ducked their heads respectfully, and the six that had followed – who a terrified Hiroshi had been staring in the face for what seemed like forever – performed the proper Fire Nation bow. Hiroshi thought that it would probably be difficult to do a full bow, noses to the floor, in their armour. "We have the assassin," the guard who had spoken added unnecessarily.

"Yes." Zuko stood up, trying to feel dignified with his hair a shaggy mess and wearing nothing but pyjama trousers. He was also too tired to think of anything Fire-Lordly to say, so all he could come up with was, "I can see that."

"Shall we take him to the prison block, my Lord?" The guard performed another little bow, and Hiroshi felt himself slide along the floor.

"Well, yes," Zuko said without thinking. "Isn't that where criminals normally go?" He saw the guard's eyebrows shoot up, and he could practically feel Mai rolling her eyes behind him. He finally recovered himself. "You can interrogate him in the morning. In the meantime, secure the palace. Make sure there isn't someone else ready to step in if this guy gets caught."

"Right away, sir." And Hiroshi was dragged away. He was still facing the opposite way to the guards holding him, and so he found himself staring into the Fire Lord's chamber as the owner of the room helped his girlfriend to her feet and pulled her into his arms. There was no trace of the fierce warrior who had fought so valiantly, only a relieved lover, happy in her boyfriend's safety, as she wrapped her arms around the Fire Lord's waist, a kind of tenderness as she tucked her dark head under his chin. Hiroshi felt wretched. He was no longer a bringer of justice, bravely risking his life to remove an oppressor and restore the justice and order of the Great March of Civilisation to the Fire Nation. He was a monster, come to murder a boy younger than him, further from his majority than Hiroshi himself, and break up this cosy couple, staining the room with her blood too if necessary. He had attacked and would have killed a lady. Mamma would be ashamed. And now he would never see her or his three younger siblings again.

"Agni, Mai, are you OK?" Left alone now, Zuko addressed his girlfriend. Mai raised her head from his chest and met his eyes, concern written softly in her own.

"I'm fine. Just a bit of a shock. How are you doing?"

"OK. Where did that come from? I thought the people were happy!"

"It only takes one guy to pay off an assassin, Zuko," Mai reminded him. "Come on. Let's get some sleep. You've got a lot to do tomorrow." She led him back to the bed and pulled him under the sheets. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Mai. I'm glad you're safe." Zuko kissed his girlfriend, then pulled her back against him. It wasn't long before he heard her breathing slow, but hours later, one hand rhythmically stroking her soft ebony hair, he watched the sun tint the black sky golden.

Ty Lee loved mornings on Kyoshi Island. Summer was slowly giving way to Autumn, and the clear, crisp morning breeze floated through the window as she threw open the shutters, propping them open with the wooden poles intended for that purpose, causing the warrior in the other bed, Niu, a pleasant-faced girl of fifteen, to moan groggily and rub her eyes.

"Ty…a couple more minutes, please."

Ty Lee checked the candle that had been kept burning all night, saw that it was a quarter past seven, and tutted. The candles were designed to be lit at seven in the morning, and burned steadily for twenty-four hours. There was, however, an extra hour allowed in case one did not wake up in time. She fetched a new candle and cut off a quarter-hour's worth of wax before lighting this new one. "Come on! Breakfast is in fifteen minutes, and then training – it'll be three hours before you can get something to eat!" The older girl's attitude to mornings reminded her a lot of Mai, and she felt a brief pang of homesickness before she shrugged on her robe and went outside to fill the little basin with water so that she and her room-mate could wash.

It was such a simple life, so provincial, so different from both the "anything goes" atmosphere of the circus and the strictness of the Fire Nation nobility. Ty Lee was as flexible with life as she was with her body, and she had settled in well among her super new friends, but there were times when she missed the old way. Mai was the one she missed the most, and part of her wished that she could have persuaded her oldest friend to join the Kyoshi Warriors, too, although she knew that that was unrealistic. Mai had not taken to the warriors, and she disliked the Earth Kingdom. Besides, Ty Lee would not begrudge the girl her new-found happiness with Zuko, so the weekly letters from Zuko (addressed not only to her, but to Sokka and Suki as well), with Mai's occasional input, had to suffice.

Azula was a greyer area. The other warriors said that Azula had been evil, and after what had happened at the Boiling Rock, she was going to believe them, and of course it was liberating not being under Azula's thumb any more, but sometimes, Suki would give an instruction, sure and confident, but kind and non-threatening, and Ty Lee would feel a strange tightening in her chest as she rushed to follow it – almost as if she missed the girl. Her feelings towards Azula were complicated, and Ty Lee had never been very good at identifying her emotions or thoughts – much easier to just stick on a big grin and feel happy. Her betrayal of Azula at the Boiling Rock had been a necessary action to save Mai, and not intended to mean that she no longer liked the princess. Sometimes, Azula had done something, or said something, that made Ty Lee twist up inside, not unpleasantly, and feel a little confused…

Ty Lee realised that she was wool-gathering, and that her basin was overflowing. She carried it back to her room, where Niu, fully awake now, waited for her. It had been Niu who had, in that miserable, dank prison near the palace, noticed Ty Lee's loneliness, and prompted her fellow warriors to offer her company. Yes. That was better. Live in the now. Azula was the past.

Ty Lee enjoyed training immensely. It was the third hour of training that she enjoyed the most. This was the hour given over to chi-blocking lessons, the time when Suki would step aside and let Ty Lee take the lead. It was nice to feel an expert for once, not being put down and told that she was stupid. In fact, Ty Lee could do something that these girls couldn't! That just made her day so much brighter, almost as if there were two Suns in the sky! And they were making such progress, too!

But, inevitably, her daily hour to shine came to an end and the other seven warriors helped each other to their feet, rubbing sore limbs and talking about cups of tea. As they headed towards the door, it opened, as it did every day, to reveal a brown-skinned boy in blue. The warriors all crowded around Sokka, chatting happily, grinning as he greeted each of them in turn and giggling as he addressed Ai as Xue (he was still learning to recognise them all with the face paint). It wasn't long before Suki pushed through the group to kiss and be kissed by her boyfriend. Ty Lee grinned. They really were a cute couple, and at times like this they reminded her of Mai and Zuko. It was these thoughts that helped her accept that Sokka would never consider a relationship with her, and now that he was a person in her life as opposed to a concept, she could feel her crush on him, never much more than an appreciation of his looks, fading more and more each day.

"How are you doing, Ty Lee?" he asked her, one arm still around Suki, and she grinned and sat down with the couple for a proper chat.

"I'm doing great!" she beamed. "The warriors are so super-amazing!"

"That's good to know," Suki replied with a smile, and as they settled down for a long, thorough confab, Ty Lee couldn't help but feel that she had found her true calling.

"I brought you breakfast."

Aang brought his early-morning meditation session to an end as Katara approached him with a tray. It always helped clear his mind of the last dregs of sleep, shaking the vines' hold upon his consciousness and leaving him ready to face the day. It also helped him stay positive, and reflect on all the good things in his life: his friends, his home at the (eerily quiet) Southern Air Temple, the generous amount of fan-mail he received, and of course, the gem of the collection, his month-old relationship with Katara. She was a blessing in his life, contrary to many of the monks' teachings about human attachment, but none the less sweet for it. Still too young to be thinking about his hormones, and with a girl too patient and understanding to rush him, his relationship with Katara was based on fun and games, kindness and empathy, a gentle hand always there to guide him and soothe him when he felt lost.

"Thanks, Katara. Good morning."

"Morning, Aang. The post is here – two letters and something that looks like it's from that guy in Ba Sing Se we saw a couple weeks ago." Katara fished around in her tunic and procured the said letters. After the war, it had dawned on Aang that, with the Fire Nation working hard to re-establish peaceful communications with the other nations, he had no idea what "keeping balance" might entail. After speaking to many of his past lives, he had come to the conclusion that each Avatar had their own methods, depending on what suited the time best, and so he offered himself as a kind of charity worker, flitting about the globe, using the Southern Air Temple as his base of operations, answering pleas for help and visiting war-torn locations – none too large or too remote – to help them rebuild and adjust.

Opening the letters, he found one from a small village in the Earth Kingdom, and the other from a larger town in the outermost reaches of the Fire Nation. Both wanted to settle disputes, and the Fire Nation letter had a complaint about the reparations. Aang frowned as he bit into a peach. Although he did his best to keep smiling, it was truly a crushing amount of work, and he realised that neither piece of business could be solved via letter. "I'll get Appa's saddle – we need to head out to the Earth Kingdom." he sighed. Katara gave him an understanding, encouraging smile, and he in turn smiled back, a weaker smile than his usual grin, but still one that conveyed gratitude and love. Katara leaned over and placed a kiss on his cheek, then another on his lips. He put his arms around her, and she did likewise, tightening their embrace. At length, they broke apart, and Aang, his enthusiasm restored, grinned properly. "Good morning, Katara!"

His girlfriend watched him air-scooter away.

"Good morning, Akemi. Looking forward to meeting your new patient?" Doctor Fukui, Head Doctor of the Kitasaki Mental Facility not far from the Capital, looked up from his work – his office being located near the staff entrance, with the door often open – and greeted one of his hardest workers. She was one of the only doctors he could trust with perhaps their most trying patient yet, and with her personality, he was sure that the two would mould together beautifully in time.

"Of course, Doctor," Akemi beamed at him. "I'm sure she'll turn out fine eventually. After all, it's so great for our hospital to have the Fire Lord himself trust us with the care of his own sister!"

"Always glad of the enthusiasm, Akemi." Doctor Fukui checked the time. "I'll take you along to meet her now. She's usually awake by now – practising her Firebending, the poor thing."

He led her along a variety of corridors through the circular tower, to one of the rooms where a newer patient resided. As predicted, they could hear the sounds of Firebending. Fukui knocked on the door.

"Could we come in, please, Azula?"

There was just enough of a pause to convey Azula's contempt, then the door opened a fraction of an inch. It had taken Azula a while to realise that, however long she waited, no-one was going to open the door for her. Neither were they going to go away. Fukui pushed the door open further and entered, gesturing for Akemi to follow.

They stood in a small room, comfortably furnished but with no hint of cosiness. It was customary for patients to decorate their rooms – Fukui was always very insistent that these were not cells – by buying or painting pictures, but Azula had always insisted that the décor must have been this way for thousands of years, and must not be trifled with. The walls were painted white, and the curved one was dominated by a window looking out onto a large, beautifully-kept garden. There was a small desk, well-stocked with paper, ink, and brushes, complete with chair, and the bed was made with soft red sheets – not the silk and ostrich-swan down that Azula was used to, but still a comfortable night's sleep. There was a little cupboard, a dressing-table, and lastly, a further two chairs for visiting, and in one of these sat a teenage girl. Her messy black hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, the shorn bits of hair that had once framed her face gone, cut off upon arrival. Her eyes glinted, her mouth, free of lip-paint, pulled up into a lopsided smirk only too familiar to those used to working with mental patients, her head tilted to one side. She wore exactly the same uniform as everybody else, a pink and red tunic and loose trousers, but there was an added royalty to the way she sat, the cross of her legs and the way her bare arms rested on the arms of the chair. She took Akemi in with a haughtiness that belied her age, before she spoke, her voice with a confidence that blatantly ignored her situation.

"You must be the new psychiatrist. Bow, both of you. Noses to the floor." She turned to Akemi once more. "In case you haven't been told, I'm the Fire Lord. Fire Lord Azula." She gave a high pitched giggle that sent shivers down Akemi's spine.

"We're not going to bow to you, Azula." Fukui's voice was calm and collected. He was quite used to the strange demands of patients – and this one, out of all the ones he'd heard this week – "No, really. You must bring some fire flakes for my elephant-rabbit. He's terribly unhappy sitting there on top of the cupboard." – this one was quite the most sane, considering what she'd had snatched from her grasp at the last moment. "I heard you Firebending."

Azula sighed and shook her head. It was quite clear to Akemi that she thought Fukui was stupid beyond measure.

"I'm going to leave you with Akemi now," Fukui told the girl gently. "I have other patients to attend to. Akemi, you know what to do. If you need me, just shout."

"Thanks, Doctor." Left alone with Azula, Akemi turned to the young girl. "So…how are you doing, Azula?"

"You peasants really are stupid. I'm doing terribly, but I'm pushing through. We royals have to be made from sterner stuff than the usual riff-raff, and, as the Fire Lord, I have to be the strongest of all." Azula rose from the chair, walking over to her new psychiatrist and attempting to stare her down. This was not a successful attempt as Akemi was a head taller.

"So you practice your Firebending every day?"

Azula rolled her eyes. "Of course. The Fire Lord's bending has to be the strongest in the nation. Besides," she leaned forwards conspiratorially, "I have to be ready for when they come for me."

"Who are they, Azula?"

Azula giggled, but then her face grew dark. "Why my brother, the Avatar, that Waterbending peasant, my father and mother, and Mai and Ty Lee." She waved a hand airily. "They hate me. They're coming for me."

"Azula." Akemi put her hands firmly on Azula's shoulders. "No-one's coming for you. We're all here to help. We want to talk to you." Something in Azula's demeanour made her heart wrench. The poor girl had been abused to the point of snapping. That was what made Akemi want to work for people with mental problems. Suddenly, she wanted, more than anything, to give Azula the bright future every girl deserved.

"Get your hands off the Fire Lord!" Azula's eyes flared and blue flames sparked at her fingertips. "GUARDS!" No guards came. "No matter." Azula seemed to have forgotten her request at once as Akemi let her go. "I have the power to have them all put to death anyway. Just throw them against a wall and open fire – and then they'll regret doubting my power. Just you wait, Ami or whatever your name is. Soon enough, the whole world will know the power of Fire Lord Azula!"

Her insane cackling filled the room, the fire and torches flared blue, and she clutched the desk for support. Akemi trembled. No longer did she see a vulnerable, scared little girl. Now, she saw a power-crazed madwoman who would stop at nothing to make her twisted little delusions a reality.

"Dinner. Now."

Zuko looked up and grinned when he heard his girlfriend's familiar rasp. "Mai!"

"Hey. You look like you could use a break." Mai came fully into the room and pulled Zuko's chair out from under his desk. He helped her scoot the chair back and she sat on his lap, straddling him, pulling his topknot out and running calloused fingers through his soft, downy hair. Zuko felt relaxed at once, putting his hands on her waist then wrapping his arms around her as Mai draped her own around his neck, leaning down for a kiss, soft and tender.

"Thanks, Mai." Zuko smiled as soon as they broke apart. "You always know how to make me feel better. He gestured behind her to all the papers littering his desk. "There's so much work – I don't know where to start sometimes. I've been up to my eyeballs all day."

Mai kissed him again and Zuko savoured it, her mouth soft and warm against his. They enjoyed a casual intimacy, love and sex inexorably entwined, knowing now that they had the luxury of all the time in the world, for they were the victors, and no-one could order them away from each other again.

"Come on. Let's get some food. It'll get cold and go lumpy." Mai got up and tugged her boyfriend with her, Zuko enjoying the familiar feel of her hand, soft skin, slender fingers peppered with callouses and tiny scars, the tough leather of her hand protectors. Zuko loved that. No-one else felt it when they took their beloved's hand.

They went together to the smallest dining room, where a table was set for two, food quietly steaming away its heat on ornate red platters. Despite the supply of biscuits and fire gummies that only Mai knew filled one desk drawer, Zuko was hungry, and the pork-chicken and steamed noodles looked like heaven. The two knelt on cushions on opposite sides of the table and began to eat.

The meal passed in silence for a few minutes, before Mai asked, "So…what were you working on?"

Zuko sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Some reports of conflicts in the colonies, bills – fucking bills – some peace treaty suggestions, and other crap like that. Oh, and a report on that guy who tried to do us in last night."

"Oh." Mai took out one of her favourite blades and spun it casually. "Him. Anything?"

"He squealed like a stuck piglet-lamb, but he never saw any faces. So basically I had to read this long report telling me absolutely fucking nothing."

Mai sighed, seeing the distress in her boyfriend's eyes, and reached for his hand. "You'll get used to the workload, Zuko. And you know I'm here to help if you ever need it." She smiled encouragingly, her wide lips twitching upwards. Zuko grinned back, squeezing her fingers in thanks.

"You're incredible, Mai. Are you staying over tonight?"

"Yes. My family are coming back in a couple of days, and I want to make the most of my time alone with you." She flashed him a suggestive smirk and Zuko felt his face heat up as he grinned back. Mai really seemed to have thrown caution to the wind. He wasn't entirely sure what prison had done to her, but the girl who sat opposite him was not the girl he had lain on the sofa with and kissed, prior to his joining Aang. She was rougher, somehow, more lewd with fewer inhibitions. He wouldn't put it past this new Mai to shed her clothing right then and there and encourage him to take her over the table. He grinned even more broadly at the thought, squeezed her hand again, and gulped the heat down. "What are you going to do when they do return?"

"Spend as much time over here as I can get away with. I don't really care who knows I'm fucking you." Mai smiled, and dug into her meat in earnest. "Besides, you need me. And I care about you."

Zuko smiled back at her, taking in every stunning detail of her beauty. He had long since worked out what "care about" was a euphemism for, and the thought made warmth begin in the depths of his heart and spread outwards, heating all the way to the tips of his fingers and toes. When he looked up, he saw amusement dancing on his girlfriend's features.

"Quit staring and eat your Agni-damned noodles. I want seconds and I'm not leaving any for you, so hurry up and take what you want before I eat it all."

Zuko began to pile noodles into his mouth, allowing himself to dwell on her words, on her complete lack of reverence for him. He loved having someone so close, someone who wasn't afraid to speak her mind to him – another thing he had noticed had changed – someone who protected and cared for him. He in turn tried to care for her, remembering his promises at the Boiling Rock, alone in that cell, of a brighter world for her and for the child they would have one day, an only, free from siblings to compete with and be ignored in favour of. He let his thoughts drift from his girlfriend to the assassin, there to throw a wrench in his plans. Thank Agni Mai had been there. The full implications of the attack disquieted him. There were discontents in the Fire Nation. How many wanted him gone? How many times would he and Mai have to fight for their lives? It marked, for sure, the ending of peace and the Fire Lord's state of blissful innocence. He looked up once more, and saw Mai smirking at him, once more.

"Staring again! That does it – I'm taking all the pork-chicken. Enjoy your plain noodles, Fire Lord."

So, yeah, nice gentle opening. A bit more will happen in the next update. Do let me know, however, if I do too much telling instead of showing. So, leave a review, leave a favourite, leave a fruit tart, and see you in the next chapter.