"Zuko! Come on!"
"Don't rush me, Azula! This takes concentration."
The young princess rolled her eyes.
"You're an idiot, you know that?"
"Shut up Azula!"
It was about midday, the sun shining bright onto the palace, making the water sparkle like gems. The sun was high in the sky, a firebender's strongest time of day.
The two siblings were playing by the pond again. The eldest was balancing pebbles on top of one another. So far, he had made it to twelve. As for the princess, well she thought her brother was just a crazy person, like their uncle. He'd never succeed their father, wasting his time balancing stupid rocks.
A smirk crept onto Azula's face. With one swift motion, bright flames erupted from her fingertips, towards the tower her brother was building. The stones toppled over, splashing into the small pond.
"Argh Azula! Why'd you have to do that? I was almost to fifteen!" Zuko stomped his feet and stormed off towards the palace.
With a shrug, the child began to walk around the courtyard, looking for her friends.
"Boo!" A flash of pink came from the top of the tree.
Using her natural reflexes, Azula's hands began to blaze brilliant orange and red.
The pink flash tumbled to the ground with a muffled thump.
"Ahh!" A sobbing Ty Lee rushed over to the water and thrust her whole arm into the water.
Blisters were beginning to form on her forearm, all red and repulsive.
"You burned me, Azula!" Tears of pain rolled down Ty Lee's cheeks but slowly dried as the agony subsided.
"It was your fault, you shouldn't have startled me like that." Azula stuck her nose in the air, "Let's go look for Mai."
Ty Lee whimpered as she pulled her arm out of the cooling water and bit her lip as the pain returned.
Once she had adjust to the pain, Ty Lee followed the princess of the Fire Nation around the small field.
"Mai!" Azula shouted sharply.
A young girl about their same age lifted her head lazily from where she was sitting under a cherry blossom tree and raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, Azula?"
"We're going to play a game." She cocked her head and gave a slight smile.
Mai furrowed her eyebrows and looked behind Azula where Ty Lee was still nursing her hurt arm.
"Ty Lee? Are you okay? Can you play?" She asked, concerned for her friend.
"It doesn't matter." Azula said quickly, "We'll be playing a game where Ty Lee doesn't need to use her arm."
Ty Lee, always quick to recover, put her arm down and gave a toothy smile. "What game Azula? Tag? I love tag. It's really fun, isn't it Mai?"
"Sure." Mai said, back to her expressionless self.
"No, we're not going to play that insolent game. It's for idiots who are so poor they don't have anything else to do." Their leader gave Ty Lee a pointed stare.
"So . . . what are we going to play?" The little gymnast stuck out her bottom lip, in deep thought.
Azula gave them both a sly smile. "First, we need Zuko."
They huddled in a circle and Azula told them her plan in intricate detail.
"But, Azula, he might get hurt." Mai frowned slightly.
"What? Do you like him, Mai?" Azula raised an eyebrow.
"N-no! Of course not! H-he's weird." Mai stuttered.
"Well, I think that you love him! Mai and Zuko sitting in a blossom tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage!" Ty Lee giggled as she sang.
"Shut up Ty Lee!" Mai reached out to push the girl in pink, but was too slow. Ty Lee had already somersaulted in the air and landed on the lowest branch of the tree above them.
"Argh! I hate you!" Mai shouted as she walked out of the courtyard and back to her house.
"Do you think she's mad?" The acrobat dressed in all pink jumped out of the tree and looked worried towards the direction Mai had stormed off to.
"Whatever. We'll just play the game without her." Azula waved an impatient hand and turned her back to Ty Lee.
"Okay!" She said brightly, no one could tell she had just been distressed for the well-being of her friend.
"Azula! How could you do such a thing to your brother!" Ursa grabbed her daughter by the arm and pulled her over to a secluded room in the large palace.
It was night time, and the whole palace was asleep, save for those two. The area was a small lady's room and the curtains were drawn, with only a few dimming torches.
"You burned him Azula! No one should ever do that to anyone, much less their sibling!" Firelady Ursa had anger etched into her usually serene face.
"He's a firebender, he should've been able to avoid it." Azula shrugged and looked away from her mother.
"That's no excuse!"
Azula just gave Ursa a cool glare and said nothing.
The torches cast low light on Ursa's face, making her seem more than furious.
Silence made the tension in the air even greater, and Ursa finally cracked.
She lifted up Azula's hand, palm up, and slapped it.
The sound sliced the air like a blade, and the princess's short scream was its target. Tears watered in her eyes and Azula's palm had felt like a thousand bees stinging it at once.
"Do not let me catch you burning anyone or anything again. You understand?" Ursa's infuriated face glared at her daughter and she dropped Azula's wrists.
With one swift motion, Ursa turned around and walked towards the door. Even though Azula couldn't see it, her mother had tears streaming down her face.
"I HATE YOU!" The young princess screamed, her voice cracking.
Azula's mother closed her eyes, her back still facing her daughter, and closed the door softly. Azula was left crying in the small room for the night.
"Azula?" The prince knocked gently on his sister's bedroom door.
"You there?"
"Come in." A small voice came from within the chamber.
Zuko hesitantly opened the door, but what he saw made him rush to his sister's side. Azula was curled up into a ball, her day clothes still on from the day before.
"What happened?" Prince Zuko laid a tender hand on Princess Azula's back.
"What are you doing here? Did you forget yesterday? I burned you." Azula's cold voice shot out from under the covers.
"It's all good now, sis. The healers healed me all up! See?" Zuko smiled and put his left hand out for his sister to see. There wasn't a burn, scar or even a red mark on it.
Azula smiled softly into her knees but she didn't let her brother see it. Instead she just lay there, not wanting anyone to see her puffy eyes.
Her brother looked at Azula, confusion crossing his face.
"What's wrong?" He asked, quietly stroking her hair.
"Nothing, Zuko. I'm just tired. I slept late last night and I need my sleep." Azula tried to make her voice sound as tired as possible.
Zuko just gave a laugh that was almost identical to their Uncle Iroh's. "In all the years I've known you Azula, you've never once been tired. It's already two hours past dawn!"
She smiled once more, and again, hid it from her brother.
"Really, Zuko, I'm tired. Just give me a couple more hours and I'll be out." Azula still didn't move from her curled up position.
"Mai and Ty Lee are waiting for you, you know?" Zuko continued stroking his sister's matted hair.
"Just go play with them for now. I'll be out as soon as I get a little more sleep." She faked a yawn, which seemed to convince her brother.
"Okay, come out when you're ready." His brotherly nature made Zuko kiss his sister on the top of her head and pat her back once more.
The sound of the door closing brought Azula to a sitting position. Zuko was the one person who loved her no matter what she did. She had burned him for Pete's sake! And he still came to her with open arms and a heart full of warmth.
The young princess looked around her room. The sun illuminated the walls and furniture, creating a loving atmosphere.
How did he do it?
How did Zuko still love her? Their mother certainly didn't.
But who cares about her? Zuko was the one who Azula should've been worrying about.
The windows in her room shone bright rays of light onto her feet. Looking out them, Princess Azula saw three children, one boy and two girls, running around the courtyard.
They were playing tag.
"Zuko," Azula whispered softly, bringing her knees back up to her chest, "I love you."
A/N: Please review! Thanks :)