Happy holidays! This was written for 31_days on LiveJournal, 19 December: "there is no use in right or wrong." Ordinarily I post those ficlets to my collection of Avatar drabbles, but this one happens to be a bit long to be called a "drabble" in even the loosest sense of the word. Anyway, thank you to Juxtaposie and The Pterodactyl for the beta. A warning, also: spoilers for episode 207, Zuko Alone.
A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.
-- Oscar Wilde
---
He Sees the Dawn
It was early, but the palace was already bustling, servants and officials and noblemen running in every direction. Firelord Azulon had died last night, and protocol had to be followed; rituals of mourning had to be performed, letters sent, the body prepared, the funeral planned. His last wish had completely upset the lines of succession, and so scholars and officials ran to and fro, shouting, referencing scrolls and planning the coronation of Prince Ozai in such a way that the people could not object.
In all the activity, nobody noticed Princess Azula sneak into her brother's bedroom and steal a small, engraved knife. Now, studying it, she thought of what her mother would say to her, had she not mysteriously vanished during the night. It's not right to steal your brother's things, Azula, she could hear Ursa saying as she had so many times before, could almost see her looking down at her, stern and disapproving.
Azula scowled. It's not right to murder people either, Mother, she thought. But I suppose you thought it was all right, since it was for your precious Zuzu. The rules always changed for him. Azula had to strive to be the best, the greatest Firebender anyone had ever seen, the fastest learner, a prodigy; only then would their father accept her. Nothing, of course, was good enough for Mother, just as nothing Zuko did would make him worthy in Ozai's eyes, but he didn't realize how good he had it, to be the recipient of one parent's unconditional love.
That was about to change, however. Zuko would soon have to follow the same rules everyone else did, with no one to run to when his feelings got hurt. He would soon learn that right or wrong didn't matter, only what was best for their nation. He would learn, or he would be cast out. Azula had little doubt which would ultimately happen, though; he had been too coddled by their mother to survive for long without her.
Twirling the knife in her fingers, watching the way the light caught the engravings, she looked up. She could already hear her brother calling for their mother. She grinned. This was going to be fun.