Azula at School: Recess Can't Be Over Yet!
(A young Azula crack fic)
The small smile on Azula's face was anything but the composed regal mask that she usually tried so hard to get right so that she could be just like her father and show him what a worthy daughter and princess she could be, without showing any emotions that could be exploited or used to diminish the dignity of her royal person. She was only five years old, but already she understood clearly that showing anything other than perfect calm and control was bad, because it was weakness and also because it was too common and the royal family were supposed to be better than everyone and above stuff like that. But right now it was hard. Ty Lee had suggested a new game, and it turned out that freeze tag was quite fun. She was good at this game, and she really liked it. She could run fast and make people stay in funny poses however she put them, and she always, always won.
Zuko told her school would be fun and that she would make lots of friends. He was right. She never actually told her brother when she was worried about something, princesses weren't supposed to be so soft, she knew, but somehow he always seemed to know anyway and know what to say to make her feel better. She always said "whatever" and pretended she didn't care about the silly mushy stuff he and mother said, but her eyes smiled at him even if her lips couldn't and when she hugged him afterwards she didn't tease him for once even though she usually did because it was funny. She supposed it made sense that he understood that there were things she thought but couldn't say; they were the only two people in the whole Fire Nation who had their father's lessons about how to be proper grandchildren of the Fire Lord – and worthy children to bring glory to Prince Ozai's name. Even if Zuko was worse at being a prince than she was at being a princess, he was pretty good at being a brother, and although she would never admit it to anyone sometimes that was nice.
So even if it probably wouldn't be purposeful and intimidating enough for her father, in this moment Azula would follow her brother's much more fun advice. Her happy smile grew as she chased after her friends, almost laughing when Ty Lee tripped while running but just turned it into a cartwheel instead of actually falling. That had been so cool! It was very graceful. She wanted to learn to do that. Even Mai, who usually seemed a little bored, was having fun with the game. Azula was just about to tag Mai and make her freeze on just one foot, when the bell rang to signal the end of recess and the start of the afternoon lesson.
Her smile faded and her mask returned as real life intruded into this happy little childhood scene. It was time to be the expected composed little Fire Nation girl again, the brilliant scholar, her father's and grandfather's perfect princess. But she didn't want to, not at all. Why did the stupid school bell have to go off then and mess up her fun? Dumb thing, trying to control her – her! She had a surprising sudden thought. Except for grandfather – Fire Lord Azulon – who everybody obviously had to obey, her father would never let anyone make him do something he didn't want. That wasn't how life worked. People listened to him and did what he said, not the other way. He was Prince Ozai! And she – she was his daughter, his favorite, his princess… Princess Azula of the Fire Nation. That was how things should be for her too; she was a princess and could do what she wanted, she was in charge here, nobody else. Princess Azula decided right then that she was not going to listen to that bell.
"No, I don't think so, girls," Azula said, frowning, as the bell continued to ring, summoning them inside.
Mai and Ty Lee looked at each other in confusion. "What, Princess Azula?" Ty Lee asked, her ever-present smile unwavering.
"We are staying outside to play. It's just too nice to go in right now." Azula's tone held the finality only appropriate for a member of the royal family – none could argue with her.
Ty Lee just grinned and continued running, enjoying their game and glad that the princess had decided they could keep playing instead of going back inside to a boring math lesson. Mai stood frozen in confusion. She did not know what to do here. Every morning her parents told her to be a good girl at school and bring honor to their family, and she knew that good girls obeyed the teacher and were on time to their lessons where they were always ready to learn and better themselves. But, her parents had also told her that she should be friends with the princess and she was always to listen to Azula and be a proper and obedient subject who would gain the princess's favor, another way to bring honor to her father and her family. But she couldn't do both things at once if Azula said to ignore the school schedule. What was she supposed to do now?
Mai's moments of indecision cost her in the game, as Azula quickly tagged and froze her before sprinting off after Ty Lee. The bubbly young girl eventually 'let' herself be caught by her princess, already easily able to tell that while Azula might enjoy the fun of running around and playing, she enjoyed the thrill of winning much, much more. "I win!" Azula declared for the second time already that recess. "Let's play again. Mai, you're it."
Again with that voice of command. Although Azula was only a little girl Mai's own age, she already spoke with an imperious tone definitely befitting her royal status. She had a command voice better than Mai's own father's, despite its childishness, and Mai was very much conditioned to obey that tone. Additionally, she would be obeying an instruction that was clearly very important to her parents, and at least this was somewhat interesting. She had very little choice, really, or at least that's what she told herself to justify her rule-breaking rebelliousness as she responded, "Alright, Azula," and began to count to ten before she ran after her friends.
Ayame Ajin, teacher of the first form at the Royal Fire Academy for Girls, was worried. She had paid a bit closer attention than normal to the girls at recess, wanting to be sure she was vigilant in her care of Princess Azula, the Fire Lord's supposed favorite grandchild. Consequently, she noticed immediately when the princess and her two friends hadn't lined up with the other girls to return to class. One of the students had noticed as well and, in typical young child fashion, had hurried to tell the teacher that someone else wasn't following the rules properly. Yet all Ms. Ajin did was shush her softly, saying, "Young ladies mustn't tattle, Jia." Frowning thoughtfully, the young teacher distractedly led most of her class back to the classroom to begin their math lesson. As she spoke to the students, reciting the opening of the lesson by rote, so well had she painstakingly memorized her lesson plans, the teacher's eyes scanned the classroom and lingered on the three empty seats. Her gaze next drifted to the window, through which she could see the princess and her companions playing.
If it had been any student other than Princess Azula, an indignant Ms. Ajin would have strode out to the courtyard and put an end to the blatant disobedience, sending the students directly to the headmistress to answer for their brazen violation of Academy rules. Yet it had been the headmistress herself who had taken her aside just before the school year started and impressed upon her how much of an honor it was to have royalty attending once again and how important it was that Azula be satisfied with every aspect of her education and have no reason to report to her parents, or worse, her grandfather, any complaints about their elite institution. Ayame was quite certain that any blame for a situation in which the young princess was dissatisfied with school would rest fully on her shoulders, and, since she was only in her second year teaching at the nation's most prestigious school, she knew she could not risk upsetting a member of the royal family under whose patronage the Academies flourished. The headmistress and her administration would not – could not afford to – support her if she incurred Prince Ozai's or Fire Lord Azulon's displeasure. Without ever saying anything directly, as such things could at most be implied without becoming unseemly and risking the school's reputation, the headmistress had made it clear that while she was indeed their student, Azula was still royalty, and a careful balance had to be maintained.
It was entirely possible that Headmistress Li hadn't meant anything quite so extreme as allowing the five year old student to determine who would attend classes and when, but like every good Fire Nation citizen Azame had been properly raised to revere the royal family, and she was both awed and intimidated by the thought of having her princess as one of her students. That, and she had heard some truly terrifying rumors about what happened to those who displeased the young royal. She fought down a shudder. No, she would not dare directly attempt to order the girl to do anything that was against her obvious wishes. Instructions given in a group setting to the whole class were one thing, but that was a step too far. She only hoped the child deigned to attend at least some of the afternoon lessons so that she and her friends were present at dismissal.
Nearly an hour later, Princess Azula strode confidently into the classroom, Mai and Ty Lee flanking her on either side and half a step behind her. Neither of them had anywhere near their princess's confidence in this situation. In fact, they were utterly terrified that they were going to be in huge trouble, Azula's assurances to the contrary or not. She had noticed their unease at the prospect of returning to class after what they had dared that morning, and she had calmly and flatly attempted to reassure them. "Relax. They can't get us in trouble. I'm the princess, and as I outrank everyone here I may do whatever I choose. You are my friends, so you will do as I wish and not as they may prefer." Her tone held a note of finality that said quite clearly, the subject is closed. Exchanging unconvinced and slightly wary glances, the princess's chosen companions uneasily fell into step behind her.
Ms. Ajin stopped speaking in mid-sentence at their arrival. "Princess Azula," she said in acknowledgement, "Ladies." The young woman prepared herself to offer a gentle, carefully phrased correction for this indecorous behavior of returning late to lessons, conduct wholly unbefitting well-behaved young ladies of rank.
"I believe," the princess cut in coolly, raising a single eyebrow, obviously aware that the teacher had been planning a comment of some sort on their behavior and unwilling to allow it, "that we are just in time for calligraphy."
Azame blinked. Never before had one so young unsettled her so badly as this oddly collected and confident child was now. "That is correct," the teacher said, thrown more than a bit off balance by her student's obvious command of the situation.
"You may proceed with the lesson," Azula said blandly.
Ty Lee stared at her in awe, impressed that she was able to speak so calmly to an important adult without getting nervous and tripping all over her words and forgetting what she wanted to say. Mai studiously stared at both everything and nothing simultaneously, hoping that by seeming uninterested and invisible she might actually be invisible if Azula's confidence led them falsely and they did in fact get in trouble for this. Azula just stared placidly straight ahead, looking her teacher directly and boldly in the eye until Ms. Ajin inclined her head the barest degree and turned to write on the blackboard, beginning the calligraphy lesson with no further word regarding the girls' obvious tardiness. Then, she nodded slightly in satisfaction. Even at school her position was respected. Unseen by her teacher, so her ungraciousness in victory wouldn't be totally unseemly even if all of her classmates were witnesses to it, Azula smirked. It was good to be the princess.