When a 16 year old Zuko request for a change it's as surprising as it is welcome.

"What were you thinking of changing," Iroh asks him over a cup of tea.

"My bedroom," Zuko replies a little hesitantly. And then, because Iroh can't read his mind: "I want to redecorate my bedroom. I want to get rid of the red walls. ... And the carpet."

Iroh doesn't question Zuko's wish (although he wonders what is wrong with the carpet; he himself is rather fond of the lush green and the ivory flowerprint), but instead welcomes the idea with open arms.

The psychologist said that Zuko can not be forced to heal, that he himself has to permit it. It's a step in the right direction.

They spend the better part of the week at the hardware store, trying to find the perfect color because in true teenager fashion Zuko keeps changing his mind about which color he wants although he is a little more consistent about those he doesn't want. He also learns that he can let his creativity run wild if he wants to because Iroh has no objections whatsoever to a graffiti wall.

In the end, they buy cream-colored paint (the label reads 'Honey Cream') for the walls and several smaller containers of reds. Iroh is apprehensive until Zuko tells him he picked red because he likes it, not because...

"It could have just as well been green," he adds, then thinks about it for a moment and decides that red might not be the perfect color after all.

In the end - much to Iroh's relief - Zuko decides on blue. He still doesn't say why he needs 5 different shades of blue, however.

After the carpet is thrown out (Iroh really doesn't see what's wrong with it but the wooden floor underneath is also nice, he supposes) they set to work. Furniture is pushed away from the walls and covered in old bedsheets, comics and game guides are rediscovered (how did his Final Fantasy guide end up tucked behind the closet?) and the red slowly gives way to the friendlier cream. Slowly, because that red paint is pretty dark and they have to paint each wall 6 times until no more red is seen. It takes up their entire weekend.

On Monday, when Zuko returns from school, he takes out the blue paint. The shades range from a deep navy to a pale iceblue. Zuko uses it to draw stripes of various width on the outer (and longest) wall of his room, from ceiling to floor, picking shades randomely as he goes. Iroh is surprised by this sudden bout of creativity.

"Well," he says, looking around the room. "This is an improvement, isn't it? The room seems much bigger now."

Zuko nods his head while applying the paint in slow, even strokes. Iroh's next statement surprises him, however.

"So when are we going to get you some new furniture?"