The journey began quietly, Aang too focused on the task at hand to try and deal with the tension that seemed to naturally exist (though, Iroh seemed relaxed and oblivious to it all in his typical fashion). However, as he moved the Earth and the two firebenders lit their hands for a light source, Aang decided to try and get something off his chest. In an awkward sort of way, he started after opening the path a little further. "So, Toph thinks you give pretty good advice and great tea."

"The key to both is proper aging. What's on your mind?"

Aiko could feel the tension lower as the twelve-year-old spoke with her uncle, but did not say anything in fear of striking silence up once more. She liked it better this way.

More earth was moved.

"Well, I met with this guru who was supposed to help me master the Avatar State and control this great power, but to do it I had to let go of someone I love. And, I just couldn't."

"Perfection and power are overrated. I think you were very wise to choose happiness and love."

Earth was moved further.

In that moment, a thought struck Aiko and that horrid feeling came back -- a powerful tug to say something. She didn't like it, not this time. What could she say to him? He probably thought that she was some sort of traitor still, how could she speak with him? But, it didn't take long for her desire to say something overwhelmed her. "If I may, Aang. I know it's not really my place to say, but perhaps, it would be wise to be able give up this person." She cut him off before he could interrupt as he tried to protest. "I understand that you care for this person dearly, but hear me out. While you may care for her, the ability to detach yourself from it all -- while it should never be a full-time experience -- would give you the sight to see things from a neutral perspective. A skill, I think, may become vital for someone so influential on the world." There was a slightly longer pause as she weighted her next words carefully. "On another note, imagine if you were to lose this person -- the pain you would feel. What good would you be to yourself and those around you if you couldn't at least control your emotions towards it. I know it's unpleasant, but it's true. . . Trust me."

Aang hesitated moving the earth any further. "But, I can't just do that. I don't want to do that to her. And yet, if I don't, what if I can't save everyone? Without the Avatar State, what if I'm not powerful enough."

Iroh nodded her way, knowing the insight came from experience. "Whatever your choice may be, remember that sometimes life is like this dark tunnel. Sometimes you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you just keep moving. . ."

There was a moment in which Aang remember to move the rock again, and it broke through revealing a gorgeous scenery of green crystals shimmering in the dark. In the back a beautiful blue waterfall cascaded into a rectangular channel amongst the stalagmites and and stalactites.

". . You will come to a better place."

In a moment of child-like giddiness, Aiko ran into the cavern, amazed by the sight before her. Oh, the wonder of it all. Crystals actually glowing underground! She smiled at it before halting to a stop. She could hear something coming from her right. It had been faint, but she swore it was her brother's voice.

It had to have been.

She signalled for the other two to come, and she made her way closer to the wall. Yes, it was him! It simply had to be. No one ever sounded so gloomy. She couldn't make out what was being said, but she pointed for Aang to earthbend it out of the way, and watched as he made the wall explode into another cavity.

The familiar voice of Katara calls out, "Aang!" Iroh took less than a second to locate Zuko afterwards. Aiko rushes to her brother's side and crushes him in a secure embrace before Iroh quickly does the same.

As the elder let go, Zuko brought up the one topic that had bothered him since they had all barged in. "Uncle, Aiko! I don't understand. What are you doing with the Avatar?!"

Aang continued to glare at him, as he retorted, "Saving you, that's what." Iroh had to physically restrain his nephew as he snarled and made to lunge at the young avatar. Aiko held onto her brother's arm in a comforting manner, sending him a mildly reproachful look that he remained purposefully ignorant of.

"Zuko, it's time we talked," Iroh said before turning to Katara and Aang. "Go help your other friends. We'll catch up with you."

Aang respectfully bowed to the retired general and ran off to go meet up with the others. Katara followed behind, unsure of herself. She managed one last glance back at the sullen Zuko before exiting into the darkness that Aang had entered.

Zuko turned from the other two. "Why?" Aiko could hear the torment that had raged in him during his sickness. She knew exactly what it meant -- whatever turmoil that had caused the sickness was still there and it was at a tipping point. The idea seemed to tangible to her that it almost hurt.

"You are not the man you used to be, Zuko. You are stronger and wiser and freer than you have ever been, and now you have come to the crossroads of your destiny." As Iroh said those words, Zuko's gaze fell back on Aiko. That phrase sounded familiar to him, but he couldn't place exactly where from. "It's time for you to choose. It's time for you to choose good."

An earthquake shook the three of them and both Iroh and Aiko were suddenly encased in crystal shards. The girl cursed the beautiful shards for their betrayal as Azula and two guards slid into the chamber.

"I expected this kind of treachery from Uncle, but Zuko -- Prince Zuko. You're a lot of things, but you're not a traitor. Are you?"

It only took a sentence for Aiko to start growling at the princess. "SHUT UP! YOU WITCH! JUST SHUT -- " Her words were cut off by crystals in front of her mouth, effectively silencing her. She made no hesitation to glower at the men in the room.

"Release them immediately!" Aiko smiled beneath the crystals. She gave her brother less credit than he deserved. He was still defending them.

Ignoring his request, Azula continued, "It's not too late for you Zuko. You can still redeem yourself."

"The kind of redemption she offers is not for you."

"Why don't you let him decide, Uncle?" There she was, at it again. The hypocrite, the evil witch. She was the one manipulating him, but playing it like it was Iroh speaking out of turn. Aiko licked her lips, dying to call her twin a few choice words. Azula turned back to Zuko. "I need you Zuko. I've plotted every move of this day. This glorious day in Fire Nation history. And the only way we win is together. At the end of this day, you will have your honour back. You will your father's love. You will have everything you want."

Zuko glanced back at Aiko who took her untrusting gaze off of the monster for a moment to smile at him. He had no idea who to listen to. Even with their past rivalry, Azula was trying to help him. If he did this he would be revered by the nation as a great hero. He would be seen as the person that he always wanted to be.

And yet, as he looked at his uncle and his sister -- as he looked at his family -- he could hear their unspoken words. Don't do it. You can get there on your own. It isn't right.

He turned and shut his eyes, unable to think properly. He barely heard Azula's parting words as she left with the Dai Li agents. To have his father's love again, but what of them? He wasn't sure what would happen to his Uncle as the old man had already chosen his fate in the eyes of the people. But, what of Aiko? Maybe he could speak with them, make them understand. She could go back with him. They would be a proper family and Aiko would no longer have to run, she'd be safe.

Aiko watched her brother, trying to worm her way out of the crystals. They were massive and she may have been small enough to slip through the barrier. If she could just maneuver out of there. . .

Zuko thought back to that nightmare he had. If he didn't choose properly here. . . Well, he didn't want to think about it. It was just a dream. Surely, they would understand. They would have to know that he did this for them. Yes, he made up his mind. Without a glance back at his uncle or younger sister -- if he had, he might have stayed -- he ran into the dark abyss that would lead him to Azula and the avatar.

Aiko cried out as he ran. A shrieked, and muffled, 'NO!' echoed through the chamber as her brother disappeared. A pained memory shot through her like fire. It was that show. She knew what would happen. Bits and pieces of the story were there, but his decision would cause the death of hope. Her body felt numb, and she collapsed backwards, effectively freeing her from her crystal prison.

"Uncle, I need to. . . I need -- they're in danger. I must go!" She crawled out through a small opening that went unnoticed as it was in the back, before looking back at Iroh -- the man she had grown to consider a father. "Forgive me, but I must go. They're in trouble. I have to -- Bye!"

She sprinted out and into a battlefield. Dai Li agents surrounded them all. Zuko and Azula stared down the young avatar, each person prepared to strike. Aang forced himself to turn away and covered himself in a crystal hut.

As she watched the scene below her unfold, her understanding of the world around her began to change. She'd seen this all before. She knew how it ended. Aang would be struck by lightning, but one part of it all that never made sense. How could he die in the Avatar State and come back with all past lives still in tact? She had to protect him.

In a moment of pure instinct she ran down and stood in a defensive position between the royal siblings and Aang.

"What are you doing?! Get out of the way," Zuko glared at her, hoping she would move.

"No, you idiot! This is the worst possible move you could make. Please, it's not too late you know. I could -- " Her words were cut off when a blinding light shattered the crystals, and in a feat of pure power, Aang's now glowing body began to float upwards in the light.

They say that time slows when life or death situations are at hand, but that wasn't even close to what Aiko experienced in that moment. Time moved by normally, but she saw in the back -- with no more than moments to spare -- Azula preparing to strike. Without hesitation she sprinted. This is what it was; this was how Aang made it through. She'd deflect it -- she could stop it from killing him. Uncle Iroh's training in redirecting lightning would come in useful here, even if it was only one lesson.

She held out her hands just as Azula began to fire the bolt. Electricity shot through her, and in a moment of exhilaration she felt the most power she ever had. But, it didn't last long. As the lightning continued its course through her, a crucial step was missed.

Zuko watched on, incapable of doing anything. His sister had run to the avatar's aid. She seemed to know what Azula was doing before he did. She jumped in front of the lightning and redirected it.

Something had to have gone wrong. Her movements to redirect the lightning halted and instead of moving it away from the avatar, it shifted it from his heart to his lower back. Aiko land harshly on the ground, twitching and sparking.

Zuko's moment of dazed shock at the younger's actions came to an end as the dull thud rang through the cave. He screamed, but long before he could do anything water swept through the area taking both him and the Dai Li agents off of their feet.

Distracted momentarily from Aiko's motionless form, Zuko moved with Azula to close in on the avatar who lie in the arms of the crying waterbender. Before any harm could come to the duo a blast of powerful flames hit the ground between them, pulling everyone's attention to the retired general standing on a cliff edge above all of them.

He jumped down from above, landing in between his family and the avatar. His gait became offensive -- ready to take out anyone who decided to move the wrong way. He turned quickly to the young waterbender, "You've got to get out of here! I'll hold them off as long as I can!"

Zuko, while wanting to help with everything, was not ready to attack his uncle. Instead, his attention pulled back to his younger sister lying on the ground, still sparking slightly against the cold stone. He couldn't. This wasn't what he wanted. It was precisely what he had seen before. Seeing her down there reminded him so much of that horrid dream.

He had been walking in a forest with Aiko. Her feet were beginning to hurt, he could tell. The road split in two. One paved, leading to a seeable shelter in which she could rest; the other, dirt road and it turned in a bend -- leaving him none-the-wiser of what lay ahead. He immediately knew which one to take, but long before it was reached, something happened. Aiko collapsed in pain. She couldn't continue and even as he moved to carry her along with him, she crumbled before his eyes. A tear ran down his cheek before waking in a start.

He had done this. He had caused it. If he had only paid more attention to her. He would have seen it coming. First, Azula shows up and takes him prisoner. Then, Aiko is taken out. A burn ran right through the same spot the first one had been -- right through her shoulder, near the heart. She was out and it looked so much worse this time around.

He had been so distracted, he didn't notice his uncle being taken prisoner. It was all too much. All of his prior optimism just seemed so foolish now. He saw no future in which he would come back the same.

☆¤☆¤☆

Zuko stood with Azula in the Earth King's throne room, lost in thought. They had to pry him away Aiko's body as she struggled to breathe -- completely unconscious. The only thing that worked was the promise of the best healers working to help her heal.

He feared the worst. Both the avatar and his sister had similar injuries. They had assumed the boy dead, but he knew better. If Aiko didn't make it through, the boy most certainly would -- that wretched spirit water with supposed healing qualities. Aiko needed it. He feared even with the best healers she wouldn't make it.

"We've done it, Zuko," Azula's voice broke through. "It's taken a hundred years, but the Fire Nation has conquered Ba Sing Se."

He couldn't force himself to look at the girl. She looked too much like Aiko with none of her qualities. He couldn't do it. "I betrayed them."

"No, they betrayed you. Zuko, when you return home, Father will welcome you as a war hero." She was pushing all the right buttons. She knew precisely what to say, but it just didn't have the same effect. It wasn't Aiko.

"How could he?" His voice broke slightly. "Not only do I not have the avatar, but she's not going to make it. Our sister, Azula, your twin. Dead at our hands -- "

"What are you talking about Zuko? What sister?"

"Oh, don't pretend like you don't know. The girl, Aiko. She was no imposter, she was your twin. Lost in some other world until nearly a year ago. If she dies, Father will be furious with us. He must be."

"Zuko, you're far too worried. Your nerves are getting to you. You restored your own honor today -- it is time to look to the future. Everything will be fine."

"And, for her? What will happen to Aiko?"

Azula measured her words, needing the boy to stay on her side in the matter at hand. ". . We will have to wait and hope for the best, I suppose."

He turned away from her pensively. She was right. What more could possibly be done?