"Mother visited you last night?"

Azula looked up from her breakfast, to see her older brother looking at her. He was her mother's favorite and right hand at any war meeting. Azula couldn't say she disliked him, but she did harbor some bad feelings for him, "..So.."

Zuko looked at his little sister, with little respect for her. She was second born and wasn't going to do anything with her life, but marry and have children. Their was a whole country waiting for him to rule one day and he was going to take it, "What did she want?"

Azula looked in his eyes to find anger and hate, her distaste for Zuko had been their since they started to fire bend. It was a unnatural dislike, but she was noting to to be the one to stop it, "Why do you need to know?"

Zuko slammed his hand on the table, "Just tell me wha-"

When he stopped mid-sentence Azula looked up to find their mother walking into the room. She was wearing flowing white and gold robes and her crown made the room seem brighter; she almost looked godly. Ursa took a seat between her two children and smiled t them, "My beautiful children, what is it you are fighting about?"

Before Azula could speak, Zuko was trying to feed the woman lies, "Well Azula was trying to tell me she could do a better job as your general and I was telling her it was harder then she knows."

The Fire Lady looked at him and smiled, "It's good your trying to learn how to lie, but you shouldn't start with me. I heard you Zuko, yelling before I came in the room."

Azula almost thought the woman was going to fall for it, "He wanted to know what we talked about last night."

Ursa looked at her and smiled, then she turned to Zuko, "Sweetheart...It is none of your business. What I say to your sister is between me and her. So don't keep asking her and don't try anything underhanded."

Azula watched him hang his head and then storm out the room. She looked at her mother to find her looking at her with a predatory gaze. The younger fire bender felt trapped, "Yes...m-m-mother."

"How is your day going so far?"

Azula swallowed her eggs wrong and started to choke, before she could choke out the first word warm hands were patting her back and rubbing her throat, "Sweetheart...even death went take you away from me."

A chill went down Azula's spine and the words felt oddly true. The younger fire bender wiped her mouth and then spoke, "Besides what happened with Zuko, everything is fine."

The older woman smiled, "Good. I have plans for us today."

Azula pushed her plate away from her, "I have plans to see Mai and Ty Lee."

Ursa frowned, "You would rather spend time with your friends, then spend time with your mother?"

Azula was torn, she almost never spent time with her mother and she was actually happy to get a chance too. On the other hand, Ty Lee and Mai were her best friends and had been their for her when her mother left her in the cold, but she knew which one to pick, "It's okay, we can do what you have planned."

Ursa beamed at the girl, "Okay. First we are going to the spa, then we will have tea in the garden and lost we will go to the war meeting tonight. You will have your first taste of real war."

"You mean I get a chance?"

Ursa leaned close to the girl, "You will get one chance. Don't mess up Azula." She whispered.

The young fire bender lowered her head, "I won't. I promise. I've been studying and making sure to keep up with the most current-" She paused when soft breath blew across her ear.

"Just like him." The voice was so soft Azula shivered, her mother wasn't soft and this new tenderness was something she had to get used too. "Do me a favor Azula..."

Azula looked around the room, hoping no one would walk in, but even if they did, she knew they would say nothing. Azula lowered her eyes, "Anything."

Ursa groaned, "I love that word. You know when I first started dating your father, he said his favorite word was anything. I asked him why and he said, 'because it holds so much power and promise', I thought he was crazy, but soon learned it was true. So you'll do anything for me princess?"

Azula closed her eyes, but opened them when her chair was pulled closer to her mother. She was close enough to see the woman's eyes had a gleam in them that meant trouble, "Yes."

Ursa growled low in her throat and then rubbed her hand across the girl's back, "Now that I have you where I want you, I don't even know what I want from you. I could take anything I want and you would be okay with it?"

Azula tried to stay cool, but the hand running up and down her spine was like liquid heat. It felt so good, but she knew this was wrong. The heat coiling inside her was wrong, but she couldn't refuse the woman, "Yes."

Ursa licked a trail from her collarbone to her ear, "Well...let's see...how about you meet me later tonight around midnight in the moon viewing room. Their will be a red...or should I say hunters moon tonight."

Azula knew the myths about the moon and knew what was coming. When she was younger she was often told to stay indoors during the red moon. It was a bad omen and was notorious with trouble and danger in the fire nation. Often she herd tales of fire benders going crazy because of the moon. They would lose control and burn themselves and others. Their were tales of woman being taken and never returning home on red moons. Last was the tales of murder, those seemed the most true to her and her people. During the last red moon, reports had come in saying their had been multiple fires and murders. These tales and facts put fear in Azula.

"Azula...Azula," the young fire bender looked up to find golden eyes looking at her.

"Yes."

"You shouldn't black out like that. I was telling you something." Ursa said.

Azula sighed, "I'm sorry."

Ursa's hand tightened around the back of Azula's neck, "Don't let it happen again...Now you will meet me at midnight in my private moon viewing room. Don't be late."

Azula was moved softly back to her original spot. She looked up to find her mother leaving the room. A wave of relief washed over her, but was replaced with fear of what would come later that night.