The morning began average as ever with a run around the capital, some training, and then some discussion of current events over breakfast. Afernoons were now completely cleared for Izumi to train with Azula with nobody outside of family knowing. Zuko despised the idea, but Mai insisted they continue to trust their daughter. Be too restricting, and she may run away. As their good friend, Toph had done in her youth.

"So what will we be doing this afternoon?" Izumi asked her aunt.

"This afternoon you will prepare for your first examination under my tutelage," Azula replied.

Izumi turned to her aunt curiously while Mai and Zuko watched from the walkway on the edge of the courtyard. Then Izumi turned to her parents, wordlessly asking if they knew about the 'examinations' Azula had planned for her. Zuko watched on with great concern while Mai's expression was unreadable, as always.

"Your first exam will be in the form of a mission, and your first mission as a professional liar, will be set aboard a pirate ship," Azula informed her pupil with the most stoic expression on her face as she and her niece paced back and forth in the courtyard of the resident courtyard of the royal palace.

"Wot?" Izumi asked with a tone of disbelief.

"Expert hagglers are great at selling absolute shit for millions. You need to do research, come up with a story, work on your acting and then sell this painted piece of copper as a royal artifact that you nicked personally from the disgraced princess Azula's former bedroom," Azula said whipping out a replica of the crown of the princess of the Fire Nation, dangling it between her thumb and her index finger before Izumi's eyes before placing it firmly into Izumi's hand.


"When did she have that made?" Zuko asked Mai quietly so their daughter would not hear.

"She didn't. I did." Mai replied stone-faced.

"Why?" Zuko asked.

"Because, like you, I want what is best for our daughter. Azula may be crazy, but she's one of the few people who could keep up with Zumzu. We've been talking about her training and came up with this exercise to test not just her 'ability to lie' or whatever we're calling it, but her adaptability. As Fire Lord, you have to always be ready and able to deal with the most unexpected shit to be thrown at your face. She should be able to handle it too,"


"And what's considered a pass in this test?" Izumi asked curiously.

"Getting at least 10,000 bahn for the thing WITHOUT having to use your cunt—" Azula answered.

"Again, WOT?"

"She means don't sleep with anyone for the money." Mai casually translated knowing everyone and everything her daughter had ever been exposed to and knowing that that did not include swear words.

"Besides, you must remain a virgin until you're married," Zuko reminded Izumi.

"I know, it is just—this is ridiculous. How do I even get aboard a pirate ship?" Izumi asked.

"Most crews get drunk at night. Sneak in then. They will wake up the next day and think everyone next to them is friendly. Just blend in then," Azula replied nonchalantly.

"Alright," Izumi said. She took a deep breath and accepted the test.


The Crown Princess of the Fire Nation was given an assortment of rags to assemble into whatever she thought a pirate might wear then was taken to the docks and dropped off in the night.

This is honestly the dumbest thing you've ever made me do, Aunt Azula. Izumi thought to herself as she stealthily made her way to the ship where she'd execute her assignment on some unsuspecting shopper.

Izumi sneaked onto the target ship easily and found the crew asleep as expected. She knew there was a high chance the pirates would suspect her for being an imposter, and didn't need to have empty pockets to confirm such suspicions if she were searched. So, the princess decided to pilfer a small yet valuable-looking item out of every pocket on each person abord the ship to add to her single item to sell. Once satisfied with her new cache, she lied down in a hammock with some random guy, placing her head at the opposite end of his and closed her eyes, listening, waiting for the sun to rise, and the men to sober up.


"Earth Nation! Fire Nation! Water Nation! So long as bargains are your inclination, you're welcome here! Don't be shy, come on by! Oh! You there, I can see from your clothing that you're world-traveling types. Perhaps I can interest you in some exotic curios?" one of the pirates said to some passerby's on the docks when morning came.

Izumi rolled her eyes at the cheesiness of his sales pitch and stood inside across from jewelry and knives section of the galley as curious shoppers foolishly browsed the contents of the ship.

"Hey Kuon, check this out!" one man said to his friend picking up an item. Izumi pulled out the fake heirloom and threw it at the man's wrist, sticking it to the wooden display case built into the side of the ship.

"Hey! What's the deal, woman?!" the man yelled at Izumi as she bent down to picked up what he dropped when she pinned him.

Izumi smiled and reached across his trapped arms to place the item back on the shelf. Then she took the copper hair piece and yanked it out of the wood, freeing his sleeve.

"Sorry, just enforcing company policy. Customers can't touch ANYTHING, unless buying! We don't treat thieves kindly with these rare and valuable artifacts" she said dangerously.

"What's that blade you carry?" the friend asked looking at the fake heirloom in Izumi's hand.

"Blade?" She looked at it and laughed. "Fool! This is no blade. It's hairpiece. One nicked straight from the royal palace. of the royal family. Knicked it straight from the disgraced princess Azula's room!"

"Psh! I know a load of pigeon scrap when I hear it!" the shopper scoffed.

"No, it's true! It is made of a rare and expensive combination of iron and steel that is plated in a titanium shield before it is coated in gold protecting it from being taken over by a metalbender,"

"Then the thing must be as heavy as it is soft. Lemme see it," the shopper said holding out his hand.

"Nope!" Izumi lifted it out of reach and pressed her free hand out in front of her and engulfed it in a cool red fire at the man. "Customer can't touch it unless they're certain they are buying it," She said with a smirk reveling in her control of her flame. She was the only known firebender in the world with that level of control over the temperature of her fire. After meeting Ran and Sha, Izumi could bend every color of the visible spectrum.

"How much do you want for the hairpiece?" the Customer asked with a nod.

"20,000 golden bahn," Izumi said shooting high.

The customer laughed. "And you won't even let us touch the thing to verify if it's real-"

"It is my most valuable piece for sale, I can't risk it getting stolen. Azula gets no more jewelry made and her beloved niece has different tastes so nothing like this will ever be made again," Izumi barked at the customer leaning forward with her narrow eyes boring into his skull.

The shopper growled.

"I'll give you two thousand," the customer offered.

"Twenty thousand," Izumi replied firmly.

"Two point five," the customer offered back.

"Twenty five thousand," Izumi replied staring straight into his eyes wondering if she could bend fire with just her face as the great King Bumi of Omashu could with earth.

"Ten thousand,"

"Thirty thousand."

"I am not sure where you are from, woman, but that is how haggling works in the Fire Nation!" the customer said.

"and I am not just any pirate," Izumi said holding the fake crown.. "Do you want the crown or not?"

"Fifteen thousand,"

"Fifty!"

The shopper roared and lunged at her. She jumped and landed on his head and leapt right off of him and turned to face him again.

"This is your last chance," Izumi said holding the fake crown.

"Fine, twenty thousand bahn,"

"Cough it up and I'll give you the crown," she said holding out her empty hand.

The shopper waved her to follow him off the ship. He pulled a chest out of his carriage that contained the gold.

As soon as she had the chest of gold in her hands, she handed him the crown and blasted lightning at the ground, splintering it to create a cloud of smoke and fled the scene.

The Crown Princess of the Fire Nation ducked into the city sewers traveling by drain all the way back to the palace with the chest of gold in her hands.


"What is that absolutely putrid smell?" Azula asked with a wave of the hand as she enjoyed afternoon tea with her overly-anxious Fire Lord of a brother, Zuko and a relaxed as always, Fire Lady Mai.

"That, Aunty, is the smell of success," Izumi said with the proudest grin dropping the heavy chest onto the table where her aunt and parents sat, spilling their tea unintentionally. "I sold it for TWENTY thousand bahn. TWICE AS MUCH as as you asked me to!"

Azula cackled madly with glee. "You ripped that guy off good, Zumzu!"

"But you spilled the precious tea, Izumi! How could you do such a terrible thing!" Zuko gasped looking over the steaming puddle on the table with an expression of sheer devastation.

"Father! Relax! It is just a pot of hot leaf juice! We could always make more!" Izumi replied with exasperation.

"JUST HOT LEAF JUICE? HOW COULD A MEMBER OF MY OWN FAMILY SAY SUCH A TERRIBLE THING?" Zuko sobbed uncontrollably.

Izumi frowned at him while Mai put a cold, yet comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Zuko, have you ever noticed just how much you are becoming like Uncle Iroh?," Mai deadpanned looking at Izumi with sympathy.

"He's not becoming our fuddy-duddy uncle. He's simply developing an unnaturally high affinity for fine teas. Besides, Zuzu will forever be a far-to-awkward little turtleduck to be compared to someone so legendary as the infamously honorable and traitorous 'Dragon of the West'," Azula jabbed at Zuko playfully.

Izumi giggled.

Azula watched her dear niece and smiled thinking about just how grateful she was the girl existed. One day, Azula would have to thank dear Zuzu and Mai for making Izumi and for teaching the girl about the world, and letting her travel and experience it before her mind became rigid and her first and sometimes false impressions morphed into dangerous misconceptions as had happened to her. Of course, Azula would sooner throw herself into an active volcano than admit it out loud, but she was of her dear brother, for being everything that Ozai wasn't for his daughter. And she was proud of Izumi, for being the Princess the Fire Nation desperately needed even if it or she didn't know it.

Azula thought back to when she was the crown princess. How different it had been then. Azula never had the freedom Izumi enjoyed. As Princess, she sat by her father's side in war meetings, discussed how to most efficiently burn the world to a crisp and how to best rebuild one Firey Planet from its ashes. She had been forced to fight and win Agni Kais almost daily against the most powerful generals and warlords of the Fire Nation to prove the royal family's prowess and invoke fear in the citizens of their nation. She had been taught by her father that fear was the only way to rule and she believed him. She was taught to hate and now, she was beginning to slowly change as she watched Izumi learning and growing so nicely.


AHHHH And a huge Thank you to my new beta reader, MusicPlayer81, for helping me with this story and 'Earth and Air'!~~~ 3