SO this is my first story. Please be kind. I was doing this one day because I was bored and had nothing to do and decided to upload it for the hell of it :D Enjoy. ALSO I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, just Anala and any other character that isn't from the show. Lol.

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The Fire Nation citizens watched with their mouth's hanging opening, looking like stunned mullets as the girl in the vivid red dress bounced cheerily down the street. Some people came to a complete halt to stare while others had to take a second glance and rub their eyes as if to make sure it wasn't all a dream. Some people even bowed. But the girl was oblivious and continued on her way, her golden eyes gleaming with happiness.

"Princess Anala!" a cry came from behind her. She stopped and spun around, making her dress fly about. She'd been found by the guards and they were hot on her heels. She smiled mischievously before running into the crowds, disappearing like smoke. The soldiers were getting irritated and pushed their way through the people, threatening them in all sorts of ways. Anala, however, had quickly exited the crowd and ran into the nearest alley. She chuckled as she watched the guards search through the crowd like a turtle-duck looking for its lost baby in the reeds.

She ran down the alley, tripping once but quickly recovering as she ran into the next street. She spotted some crates stacked on each other and ran for them as fast as her little legs could manage. She began to climb just as the guards had come around and spotted her yet again. They called and called but the girl kept climbing until she was on top of the roof. The guards attempted to climb the boxes, but they gave way under their weight. Anala giggled and brushed a few strands of her ebony hair out of her face. "You come down here this minute!" one of the guards shouted.

"Never!" Anala squealed before she ran along the roof, leapt, and landed on the next one with catlike grace. The guards were holding their breaths, fearing the worst. They briefly imagined the Fire Lord burning them alive for letting his eldest son's only daughter perish while they were supposed to be looking after her.

Anala cried with delight at her victory and decided to try jumping onto the next roof. But what happened next, no one saw coming.

As she ran, time began to slow down. She went to leap but she'd pushed off on a loose tile. She slipped and began falling to the ground below her. She closed her eyes and screamed as she fell, faster and faster. She waited for the impact, for death to claim her, but it never did. She felt herself being held tightly in someone's arms. She worked up the courage to peak her eye open to see who her saviour was.

Her uncle glared down at her, gold eyes filled with anger, whether at her or the guards or both, she never knew. He took his gaze away from her and looked to the guards. He never said a word, just glared, before he turned back and headed towards the palace. Anala held onto his robes tightly the whole way, her heart still beating at an unbelievable speed.

It was typical for her. She wanted to get out and explore, not be stuck inside like a prisoner. She felt like a prisoner sometimes. She didn't like being told how to act, or how to do something and the times when she was forced to do something, that's when she felt most like a prisoner. It was scary, being a prisoner in your own home where you'd expect to feel safe. Anala hardly ever felt safe within the palace walls. The ghosts of the pasts and the angry spirits were there. She could feel them. Lurking just around the corner, in the shadows where they hid, waiting to attack her, to punish her for her ancestor's actions.

She knew what happened to the airbenders was wrong. She knew what was happening to the rest of the world was wrong. But she could do nothing. She was taught all her life that the Fire Nation was superior and that people from the other nations were barbarians, monsters. Sometimes she believed it. She'd never seen a person from another nation but she heard things, whispers, faint conversations about the cruelty shown by the other nations. She couldn't help but feel a bit fearful.

Sometimes she had nightmares. In her nightmares she saw monsters, in-human creatures that bended earth or water, sometimes even both. They had glowing red eyes, fangs so long and sharp that it looked like they could easily skewer someone. Their skin would change colour from a menacing dark blue, the colour that the sky would turn before a large storm, to a sick, dirty dark green. It terrified her. Before her brother, Lu Ten, went off to war, she used to sneak into his room and he would comfort her before she'd fall back into a dream-less sleep.

Once they'd reached the palace, her uncle set her down and pushed her slightly, but still with force, towards the direction of her room. "Go to your room and stay there," grumbled her uncle. She didn't disobey; instead she rushed to her room, holding back tears of embarrassment. She'd nearly died because of her own stupidity. Of course, it wasn't the first time she was doing risky things as she was running about and it certainly wouldn't be the last. She had a knack for getting herself into trouble where she would almost always end up in a near death situation, although before that day, no one had ever been around to witness her slip up.

She ran and flopped onto her soft bed after she'd slammed the door shut. She buried her face into the pillow, just wanting to disappear, to escape the humiliation. But her wish was never granted. She rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, feeling lonelier than ever.

She wished she had a friend. Sure, she had her cousins to play with but Azula was usually cold and always insulted her while Zuko was shy and quiet, always worrying over the silliest things, so he'd never go on any of her adventures. The sons and daughters of the noblemen and women weren't any fun either. The girls were always pleasant to her, but she knew they'd always talk when her back was turned, whispering harsh insults she sometimes heard. She laughed as she remembered one time where a group of girls had insulted her, not behind her back but to the face. Azula had heard and she came over and set leader's dress on fire. She knew that it wasn't very nice of Azula, but she appreciated her cousin sticking up for her.

The boys were always being forced upon her, the worst thing was they'd range anywhere from the shocking age of forty and the youngest was about four, six years younger than herself. She felt insulted at times. The fathers were always trying to hint at arranged marriages just so they could become a part of the royal family. She thanked her lucky stars that both her father and grandfather hadn't agreed to any request, and she hoped it stayed that way.

At that moment, she realised she had no one. Her aunt was always with Zuko, Azula with her friends, her uncle off doing spirits knows what, her grandfather was busy ruling a country, her father and brother were at war and her mother had died giving birth to her. She was an accident, and she knew it. She'd heard a couple of maids talking once, about the time when her mother had found out she was pregnant. Her father and mother had been shocked, it was unexpected. They hadn't planned another child and apparently didn't want one. Her uncle had heard the chatter also and she never saw those two maids again. She felt lonely, she had no one and her existence was an accident. A friend sounded nice at that moment. She closed her eyes and thought about a happier place, where she'd feel welcome and loved.