I would like to thank WildCitrusSunflower for being the beta for this story and fixing all of those mistakes I tend to make. Also, I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.


Looking at the old, small jewel chest she knew. They were closing in on her.

She had done everything she could to keep a low profile, to avoid discovery, and yet somehow they still managed to get closer and closer to her. She knew that there was no sense in trying to run, there was nowhere left to run to. In the beginning she had moved from village to village never staying anywhere for a long time, but such journeys were dangerous, especially since she had little money and couldn't risk asking authorities for help when trouble arose.

She quickly discovered that by moving as much as she did she made it easier for them to find her, not harder. The villagers noticed the few strangers that came through their villages, even more when they tried to get work for a few days in return for some food and a warm bed. She couldn't risk selling her jewels for fear that they would attract her pursuers. No, that was too risky. Instead, she kept them hidden and used the few coins she had taken along during her escape, but soon they were gone and the few jobs a stranger was given weren't enough to keep her fed and clothed. So she chose a middle sized town used to strangers coming and going in the older colonies and started working there, first as a waitress, later as a maid in for a merchant family.

The work was hard, the pay barely enough for herself, but no one noticed her in the masses of travellers coming through town and she was so far from the people that might recognise her, both in rank and location, that she had remained hidden until now. It was exactly what she needed.

Her mistress Hinan Ueda was a kind woman, more a friend than anything else. Her husband was gone most of the time and her two children were at school all day long and afterwards spent the day playing with their classmates. So she and Hinan would spend the days cleaning and cooking and the evenings sowing and embroidering. It was everything in life she had ever dreamed of. A peaceful and quiet existence where no one bothered her with expectations she could never fulfil and without the constant fear of her husband and his moods.

Of course in the beginning she had tried to gain any information she could about her husband and even more so about her children, who had been her treasure and refugee during those hard days. She had stopped though, when she had learned of her son's and brother-in-law's death only to later learn that her son was still alive, but had become just like his father. In fact, if rumours where to be believed, he was worse than her husband had ever been. Her husband at least had let his brother live and stopped hunting her, when it became apparent that she would not try to fight him in any way, but her son was still searching for her, trying to bring to an end what he had started with his uncle's, father's, and sister's murders.

Sometimes she cried for the son she had lost. Sometimes she remembered how much she had loved the gentle boy that was now forever lost due to her husband's influence. She had known that he would lose some of his innocence when she left him behind that fateful night, but there had been little choice. He would not have managed to escape. Her husband might not have bothered to look for a wife that was no longer a threat and could only be considered useless, but there was no way that he would let his heir disappear, or so she had thought. How wrong she had been. Only two years later he had send him on a suicide mission and afterwards turned him in the monster that now ruled this nation.

If Ursa could change the past, she would let her husband kill her son that fateful night. That way at least he would have died a quick death with a pure heart. She often thought about how much Zuko had to have suffered in these last few years to turn her gentle son into the tyrant that his own people feared more than even his father. She had no illusion about her fate. Soon, her son would come and kill her. She no longer feared her own death. No, when she cried at night she did not cry for her own fate, her fate had been sealed the day she had been married to Ozai. She cried for her people that would have to suffer under yet another monster. She cried for Princess Katara, the future Firelady, knowing only all too well the terror she must be living through. She cried for her dead children. And since she had realised that her son had found her she cried for Hinan and her family as well.

At first, when she had heard about the rumours that men were looking for Princess Ursa, she had considered running. She had known that she would not get far, had known that they would catch her, but she had hoped that perhaps her connection to Hinan and her family could be hidden. The very same day though Hinan had told her how some of the merchant wives had mentioned their envy of the competent and well-educated maid she had. Hinan never understood why her old friend had run from the room in tears. It was on that day that Ursa had realised that the persona of Samatsuna had been noticed too much for her to suddenly disappear without anyone noticing. Her son knew that she was in this area for a long time. If he wished to destroy not only her, but all that had helped her as well, he would find out where she had lived one way or another.

For a long time she considered warning them of the danger they were in, the danger she had brought upon them, but that too would be a useless attempt. Even if they believed her, which wasn't likely, where were they supposed to go with two children? No, she would wait for the day her executor came and stand tall before him. She would, for one last day, be the former future Firelady. For one last time she would stand tall and proud, as was expected of her.

And so, she had waited for the day of her death.

It was almost that time. When she had first learned that her own son would come to town, she had thought it a joke. In two weeks' time the royal engagement banquet would be held and her son was down here? She was not so foolish as to believe that it had anything to do with an inspection of the preparations for the bride price. He was here because he wanted to make sure that she truly was dead. Maybe her death by an unknown was not enough. Maybe he wanted to make an example out of her, to show everyone that no matter what, no one would escape his wrath, not even his mother.

"Satsuna! You won't believe it! It's the Firelord! He is coming here!" Her mistress called as she stormed into her chamber, startling Ursa out of her musings.

"Here?" Ursa echoed.

"Oh, of course not to this house specifically, but to our district." Hinan continued excitedly. "He might even walk through this street. Quick, put on your best dress. He is currently in the middle of Second Street. If he follows that road he will walk straight to our house. No one knows why, but hurry!" The house she had lived in these past few years stood exactly at the intersection of Second Street and the road called Northern Gateway. It was a T-formed crossroad at which Second Street ended.

Looking her mistress deep in the eyes, the maid suddenly seemed to straighten and spoke quietly, "Thank you, for everything. I am sorry."

There was something in her voice that made Hinans heart freeze. "What do you mean, Samatsuna?"

"Please, leave me alone to get ready. Just know that this was never my intention. I never wanted any of this." Ursa replied. Startled, the merchant's wife left the room to return to her children standing outside, hoping to get a glimpse of their ruler. By now the procession that was led by the Firelord himself, sitting on a large Komodo Rhino, followed by two rows of guards had almost reached the cross section. Hinan had trouble holding back her youngest, who had just turned six, from running towards the animal. The sovereign of the Nation of Fire wore red pants, covered by a wide tunic that opened in the front of his legs to allow a comfortable seat in the saddle. It was held together by a belt. A cape hung over his shoulders, covered by the traditional chest armour.

Even though everyone living in the area stood at the side of the street it was eerily quiet. No one dared to make a sound, except a baby crying somewhere in the crowds. The emotions on her neighbours' and friends' faces ranged from fear and apprehension to excitement and happiness. Whenever the group came close, people bowed low, but it was almost as if they did not exist. The regal ruler, who was said to never smile, seemed to do his best to live up to his name, his body straight, his eyes looking ahead as if there was something fascinating at the end of the road. Of course this meant that his Highness was looking straight at Hinan and her children, as if all the secrets of this world were hidden behind them.

It was only another dozen meters until the Firelord reached Hinan, that she noticed that he was in fact not looking at her nor her children. No, his gaze was fixed on something behind them. Surprised by this she turned around, instinctively moving a step to the side, pulling her children along, revealing her maid. But there was nothing maid-like about Samatsuna as she stood in the door way, looking just as regal and proud as the Firelord himself.

She still wore the simple yellow tunic she used for work, but her hair, streaked with grey, had been put up. It had been pulled into a traditional bun, not allowing a single strand to fall free, and was held together by a golden ornament, which was formed like a small single flame, resembling a crown. The short arms of the tunic revealed a small bracelet also made of gold. As the ruler approached she made no move to bow, simply standing there looking at the man approaching.

When the Kodomo Rhino stopped just before her the women and children, Hinan quickly bowed and pushed her children into a motion that resembled one as well.

For the next few moments the world seemed to hold its breath as Lady and Lord, mother and son, stared at each other. Hinan hesitantly spied at the two, still too startled to even wonder why the Firelord seemed so interested in her maid.

Finally something startled the young man out of his hypnosis and he bowed low to the woman in front of him. If anyone present other than the two nobles had been educated in the finer points of royal etiquette, they would have registered this bow as one used by a prince to his Firelady, as it was only two of them knew.

Before her son could make fun of her any further, Ursa spoke, not even trying to keep her voice kind or at least neutral, "It is an honour to see your Highness again, to see that your eminence has truly become his father's son, my Lord." The last words, as well as the low bow, that of a princess to her lord, held such a sneer in it that Zuko could not help but take a step back. This was not the reception the young man had hoped for.

In all his dreams of finally finding his mother, it had never been like this. For the boy his mother had always been the fix point of his world, for the teenager she had been the one point of warms. For the ruler, she had always been the voice of reason. But more than all of that, for the man she had been the last one that could offer him any warmth. The last one to safe him from his eternal loneliness. The day that he had learned that his mother had been alive had been one of his happiest, only second to the one that he received the letter that she had finally been found.

He had known how irresponsible it was to leave the capital so shortly before the banquet, but for once he had not cared. For once, his duties had been pushed back for his own needs and now that his mother had been found, she stood before him like a warrior on the way to battle. She wore her hair in the style of death, a hair dress used when a royal expected not to survive the day. He had thought that she had simply done so in order to fit in amongst the peasants, who tended to put their heir up in such a manner to make work easier and had only had time to put on the royal jewellery but not do her hair before his arrival. He knew better now, she had told him exactly what she expected him to be. His father's son. He had lost her as well. Just as he had lost everything else, his last hope had been taken as well. He was alone.

"Forgive me, my Lady, I have been mistaken. I thought for a moment to have found what I was looking for, but I was mistaken. I did not mean to disturb." With another bow, just as low and formal as the first one, the Firelord turned, his head held high, his steps even. If one were to look closely however, they would see a single tear run down his cheek, but no one did. He was, after all, the Firelord. Who would dare to look him in the face?


Hi,

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know some of you were waiting for Ursa and I hope you weren't disappointed. I always thought there had to be a reason why Ursa never returned and I wasn't exactly happy with "The Search".

I imagine Ursa as a strong woman who loved her children but at the same time feared her husband. Nothing along these lines was ever revealed in the original, but I couldn't imagine that a man like Ozai could respect a woman as kind and gentle as Ursa.

She had no ambition other than to raise her children and yet Azula never felt loved. Why?

For me the explanation was always that as her father's favourite Azula was allowed to do whatever she wanted, while Ursa was forbidden from being the mother to her that she wanted to be. Ozai wanted Azula to be like him and because of this he couldn't have his loving wife meddle in affairs. Zuko on the other hand was considered useless by his father, probably both his greatest blessing and curse, outside from being a royal at all, and as such Ursa was free to look after him.

Now of course the question is why didn't she return as soon as her husband was dead? I tried to explain this in the story. She left Zuko when he was only nine, an age at which he is still very impressionable. What else is she to expect, but that her son follows the only example he has left, especially with the rumours going around. Ozai had his father killed, Zuko killed Ozai for the throne. Like father like son….

Yes, Ursa was a strong woman, but everyone has a breaking point. Alone, abused, having lost all she ever loved, she had no choice but to wander the world and listen to the stories about the monsters that were her family.

In my eyes, she can't have been from a simple family like portrayed in "The Search", blood and status are too important in a monarchy for that to be the case. That however also means, that she couldn't have friends nor family outside the palace, otherwise wouldn't she try to get help from them? Wouldn't she try to get Zuko out of the palace?

Sorry about this impossibly long author's note. Tell me what you think.

Greetings, Yorushike

The names:

難 (ひなん)= Hinan (asylum, shelter )

瑣末な (さまつな) = Samatsuna (unimportant)