Lotus


The Fault in Our Stars


"It's just not safe to invite Princess Izumi back in the academy at this time. We're more worried for her safety than our share of threats. Izumi isn't an idiot, but she doesn't understand the severity of the issue and you have to shield her as much as possible…Azula."

"Of course."

This is the first time Izumi's headmistress addressed her without her title. Azula remembered most staff in the Fire Academy for Girls, but never brought it up. Teachers were often classmates she terrorized. Mothers, former students themselves, remembered her as the snappy child that hated not being the center of attention. But Headmistress Xiao Hung knew her since she waddled.

Azula's road to recovery was a battle. It felt like two masses were pulling her until her body crumbled and split apart.

The headmistress tilted her head.

"You still have the same face," she said with a soft smirk. "But you're beginning to look like Lady Ursa."

"Why does everyone say that?"

"Because they can without being killed. Your father never liked seeing your mother in you. And it's refreshing to see you calmer. It suits you."

Azula scoffed, "Are you still upset I burned your tapestry for practice?"

"The wounds have numbed," the headmistress murmured. Azula began to fiddle with her fingers over her lap.

"Azula."

"Yes?"

"You should never be afraid of doing what is right."

After exchanging quiet good byes, Azula found Izumi sitting alone in the waiting room while swinging her legs. Her twin tails clasped in neat buns, she tossed her aunt a tired look.

Since school reopened, Azula guarded her niece because Zuko couldn't even trust the guards to protect her. Hooking her hands under the girl's armpits, she hauled Izumi up until chubby cheeks touched her lips. Izumi lower lip pouted, looking every bit like Zuko at four years old.

"Auntie Zuzu, am I coming back to school?" she asked.

"…I'm sorry Izumi."

Azula could tell that Izumi began to notice something was off. Standing in the empty corridor, Azula held Izumi in a bear hug as soon as the first tear fell down Izumi's cheeks.

"I'm tired, Auntie Zuzu."

Reddened eyes forced Azula to sit and hold on tight. "I know, but just bear with this for a little longer. Your father will fix things, alright?"

Izumi sniffed with a nod, not looking at Azula's face, "'Kay."

"You want Fire Flakes?"

Izumi nodded, blinking when Azula kissed her cheek.


Ursa found Avatar Aang, interesting. Aang had the stature of a powerful warrior but spoke with the naiveté of a young child. Young maids blushed anytime they served him. Intricate blue tattoos over his skin often had Kiyi look more than twice at his body. Even Mai snuck in a look now and then.

Aang sat in a dark corner, his body poised in a meditative state.

"Avatar Aang," Ursa smiled as Aang peered his eyes opened. She stood in the empty grand hall, the same place she married Ozai. Sunlight peered from hundred feet narrow windows, placing a glint over the gold ornaments in the hall.

Aang grinned, "Lady Ursa! Good morning!" He bowed with his fist thrust out. "I'm so sorry I didn't show up at the palace earlier."

"Oh no," Ursa said with a wave of her hand. Aang straightened with a bright grin. "I'm sure Azula kept you busy."

He laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. She's interrupted them in enough positions to go insane and lock herself in her room. Azula may be her daughter, but she wasn't afraid to kiss her husband to be in the middle of a political meeting. "Come. I want to show you the moonflowers I've planted."

"Of course."

Though big, Aang's steps were light, so light that Ursa looked down several times to see if he actually stepped on the ground.

The gardens welcomed them as they rounded a corridor. They now sat by the turtleduck pond. She took out a stale bread piece from her robes and began to feed the ducks. Aang perched.

"Can I?"

"Of course."

They fed the ducks. Aang kept his hands low enough for the ducks to eat. Ursa paused once to watch him laugh when a duck pecked his palm. Her chest welled up, watching him pull back to take out more crumbs.

"My daughter used to throw rocks at the turtleducks."

Aang looked up, "When she was little, she stayed with me like this. But she began bending at five, and her father took her under his wing. She turned into...someone I didn't know," Ursa said, watching Aang sit up. "But she's back. She still needs time to grow. She needs someone to get her. Do you understand me?"

"I do."

"She doesn't like to come to the pond," Ursa said. "Anytime she goes to the guest home, she stays as far away from it as she can. She's frightened of ruining things for people, and I believe this is the reason she gave you such hard time. You have my blessing. But I'm afraid it may not be enough to protect the both of you when needed," Ursa sent him a glance.

Aang had a strange expression. In a way that made him take on the stricken look of her son once he was struck by a rock Azula threw. It occurred to her that her only image of Aang was of him smiling and bowing to others in peace.

"Lady Ursa, I don't care for Ozai," Tiny squawks filled the tensed silence, like a tiny bomb waiting to explode in a pool of water. "Every day I have to worry about Azula leaving me because she likes to think over everything,"

Ursa didn't note the wind picked up. She watched Aang's eyes shake within its sockets. "It's frustrating being in this position because I know your daughter is the only person in this world who loves me as if..."

"As if she has little time to," Ursa said. "Like she'd die any second. That's why it's easy for her to let go when necessary."

Aang nodded, "But I am not letting her go because of him."

He recedes back into himself. Slowly, Ursa's lips lifted up into a wide smile as she remembers one thing: that Aang took away Ozai's bending.

"I believe you."


"Have you been protecting yourself?"

Azula blinked over the gush of hot air on her face. Mai sat across in the tiny study they dined in, stroking a sleeping Izumi's hair on her lap. It's been a week since the Winter Solstice ended. Azula received a gracious letter from another terrorist who was kind enough to threaten to invade the palace.

Now her mother couldn't sleep and Kiyi had to start bunking in with her to keep her calm. Zuko looked more agitated than necessary and Aang fell in the midst of sending out several letters to request a cancellation on his appearances.

Mai's bunking in with Izumi and Zuko all at once sealed the deal. Still, Azula had to work with her recent spat with Kiyi and the anxiety she's been experiencing anytime Aang comes near her.

"A personal guard?" Azula scoffed, taking a bite out of a sweet red pepper. "It's not necessary, and I don't like the idea of some giant getting in my way when I have to fight."

"I don't mean having a guard."

The Fire Princess paused, looking up at Mai.

"That's none of your business," Azula retorted. The hot smoke wafted from the top of a porcelain cup, obscuring Izumi's face smudged in between Mai's breasts. "Yes, I have been drinking the tea you made for me."

"Azula,"

"Alright, no. I have not been drinking it. But I am not sick or anything of that sort," Azula said. "You're more skilled in that department."

"Major difference: My dad was Ozai's pet and Zuko wasn't an Airbender when I got knocked up. This is just for your own good. Zuko still isn't used to him yet and we have crazy rosy eyed people who'll do something bad to you if you try bringing a baby in the mix. Next time you screw him, drink the tea first."

Azula looked away, tapping the table with a perfectly filed nail. The food before her no longer tasted good. She didn't like staying here instead of the dining hall either, but they all had to be careful. Just in case.

Izumi squirmed. With one look, Azula wiped her hands and drank the rest of her tea. Straightened up, Izumi's eyes blinked open as Azula reached out with a small smile. She fell back asleep as her aunt hauled her up and propped her head over her shoulder.

Mai rose to brush off invisible crumbs, "For the record, I think you'll be a great mom."

Azula froze before scowling, "I'm not babysitting her again."


The corridors brightened as torches lit up.

A young girl padded down the marbled place. She mapped out the entire palace, including its people. Servants sauntered down, guards conversed. There's the Firelord and Firelady. Zumi. Princess Azula and Kiyi, along with Lady Ursa. Tami knew that her mother worked in the kitchens and her father was a guard who did night duty.

But there were new guards who came in.

They didn't come like the way other new guards came. New guards came one at a time. These ones came ten at a time, sometimes twenty. Her mother began talking to these men in low voices while her father liked to take them into a corner to 'talk'. Tami remembered asking her mom why these guards were coming in the palace like this.

Her mother said, "To save our nation."


A Week Later

A quiet laugh rippled through the quarters. Sunlight peered through the cracks of few feet window near a fluttering curtain over the entangled bodies with crimson sheets. Aang peered his eyes open at a patch of milky skin covered by dark hair. He burrowed further under the sheets, clutching something soft and warm until he smelled jasmine and firelilies. Azula murmured, squirming until she settled again into his arms.

"I really don't feel like working today,"

Azula chuckled, her eyes still closed as he perched up to look at her plain face, "You're an idiot." He kissed her shoulder. "We're not working. It's resting day." He roved his hand across her belly, inching up until he felt softer skin. "Work doesn't start until tomorrow. And I want to go back to sleep."

"How about playing with me," he brought his hands down to another softer patch of skin. A warm wave over took him at the thought of not having to do anything today, crawling down to his groin.

"Playing? Is that what you call it?"

"What would you call it?"

"Attending to your perverted ways."

He laughed, kissing her softly. Then she said in a murmur, "I can't wait to marry you."

Aang grinned, "You kind of are."

"I mean the wedding," she said. Kiss. "Mother's been inviting friends over to congratulate me. She's already hired a wedding planner and dressmaker to visit tomorrow."

Aang stopped, forgetting their position for a moment, "…you know what I can't wait for?"

"What?"

Aang leaned over, his lips pressed against her ear as he whispered. His hot breath tickled, making her melt to bits inside. His arms clasped around her waist, he let her press her forehead against his.

"Really?"

"Every time I see you, I think of a little girl with the same face as yours," he said. "She'll probably pester me about buying her things-"

"And you'll give her everything," Azula said with a glare.

"It's not so bad!"

"It's terrible," Azula said. "I know you'll spoil her." She smirked when Aang laughed. "Do you know what I'd like?

Aang grew silent, "What?"

"Airbenders. Lots of them."

He gave her one of those crooked smiles that told her to thread well. But Azula kept her arms around his neck. "Does it bother you? That you're the only airbender?"

Aang blinked, "It hasn't bothered me much since Katara and I split." Azula watched his eyes glisten, "Any child from you is fine with me. I don't even mind if we have none. As long as you're with me."

"…really?"

"Of course. I love you. Child or not."

Azula shifted to meet his kiss. He tugged the sheets off them, lost in the drunken tangle of their tongues. Aang sighed at her hands touching him there. Pumps. Back and forth.

He dragged his lips down over her chest, taking a plump dark nipple in his mouth. A quiet mewl forced him to pull her hands away. The slight ache in between his legs, accompanied by the drunken turn his mind took, led him to worship every inch of her body.

Azula sighed, moaning the more he tasted her. Fingers splayed over his head, he reached the other nipple. He inched down, finding the pink swollen nub he'd wanted.

The room's clouded silence stilled. Azula's knees shook. Her soft coaching teased his ears. He held the soft skin of her thighs, tugging the soft organ back as he rose again.

At the creak of their bed, he hauled her up until she sat over his crouch. A few more smacks broke the room's silence. Azula's lips reddened and swelled. She rolled her hips until she found him and sank slowly over him. She pressed his chest until he fell down over cool sheets.

"Relax," she gushed out, hands still over his chest as she began moving. "And watch me." He held her hips.


Ursa forced her body to stop shaking with anticipation. Azula sat a considerable feet away from Kiyi, who kept her eyes on one of the windows. Mai fanned herself on a settee. Azula blinked at the sample garment gleaming while held up by two young servants, "Isn't that too heavy? I may as well wear my armor for the wedding."

"They say this is the latest fashion," Ursa said, darting a glance at her other daughter. "What do you think, Kiyi?"

Kiyi flickered her gaze over the garment, "It looks hideous."

Mai rolled her eyes, "You just can't help but be shady."

Kiyi didn't respond. Azula scoffed before she asked the servants to put the garment back in its case. Since the Winter Solstice, the palace now crawled with life, filed to the brim with an average of fifty visitors per day. This happens on the first stage of a traditional wedding, when the bride is congratulated by other nobles in the Royal Plaza.

Azula glowed, a far cry from the way Ursa felt on her upcoming wedding. It soothed Ursa to see Azula so sane, smiling now and then. Zuko's wedding had the entire nation jumping in glee, but Azula's wedding sent the Fire Nation civilians in a wild chaotic frenzy.

It all started yestermorning, when a fashion magazine spread revealed its first photographic front page: the image of the Fire Princess at a formal event. Clad in glimmering gold and red brocade, Azula's dark hair was swept up by an elaborate headdress.

The headline above Azula's head read: The Avatar's Newest Bride – Honorable Princess Azula! Her image in black and white still stunned readers of that magazine in a blinding wave of adoration and jealousy.

"Mother, what's wrong?"

Ursa looked up at Azula. Ursa hated to be one of those noble mothers who prided themselves on having beautiful daughters. But she just had a lot to be happy about.

"Oh nothing," Ursa said wiping her eyes. Mai looked alarmed. "You're just stunning and I'm so happy."

"Mom! Stop crying!"

Azula couldn't move when Ursa snatched her into the most suffocating hugs she had ever given.


Zuko didn't register the hard thumps coming his way until the doors into his private study banged open and a harsh huff forced him to look up. Jiji bowed, but in a way that was rushed and automatic.

Besides the constant stream of visitors coming into his home and the fact that he did not want to address Azula about the wedding he certainly did not sign up for, Jiji was the first to come into his space with a panicked look that rendered his hands still over a scroll.

Her spectacles gleamed.

"What is it?"

"Your majesty, Ozai broke out of the Boiling Rock."


"Are you still upset?"

Kiyi gave Azula a look before she returned to sorting through Azula's clothing on the bed. After picking out wedding gown samples, Azula quietly asked Kiyi to help her clear her closet. Cleaning together without the aid of servants helped her clear her mind.

"No. I don't have time to be angry with you," Kiyi said with a flip of her hair. Dark chestnut turned borderline russet under the sunset peering in through the windows. "Besides the wedding coming up and your obvious lies to an innocent man, I'm perfectly fine."

"I'm not lying to him."

"You sure are," Kiyi said. "You love him, but just not in love with him. You still are scared of the one thing that could break you both apart. If you were to get married now, I bet you that it'll crumble real fast if you keep acting like an idiot."

Kiyi had a special talent: she insulted viciously with a friendly look on her face.

"I don't understand why you feel like you suddenly know who I am," Azula said.

"Oh you don't? Let me tell you who you are then," Kiyi tossed Azula's clothes aside. She walked over until she was right in her face, her nose almost touching hers. "You are a gold digger who manipulated the Avatar into fucking you. You planned for this all to happen. You wanted him in your bed just when he was trying to get over Katara-"

"What?"

"Then he falls for you and you con him into thinking you're letting him go when you're not! He came back for you and you go off this little chase with him toiling around like some sick puppy and you finally calm down to accept his proposal. With the Avatar by your side who knows what fame you'll get!"

"That is not me."

"Then who are you?!"

The shattering silence that befell them repulsed Azula.

Kiyi's eyes glistened. Azula soon felt the back of hers burn. She didn't know. Agni, she had no idea…but she didn't do this to hurt anyone. Her throat grew heavy, her tongue numb as she tried to answer. She looked down.

"You're disgusting, and I hope he finds out soon enough."

Kiyi turned away, snatching up a few belongings before she began to walk out of Azula's room. Azula didn't react to the hot tears trailing down her face. The back of Kiyi's pink gown flowed too high, making Azula stop.

The windows were not opened.

At Kiyi's first steps, a tinkering made the younger woman slow down.

Snickt!

Jet flames shot out of her fingers. Shadows flew across. A blink of an eye and they're gone. The torchlights burned off. Azula almost toppled over when Kiyi's back smashed against hers.

"Someone's here." Kiyi said. "Stay with me."

"I know."

Their pants were the only noises in the room. Nothing fell out of place. Azula's chest tightened, as though any more pressure could suffocate her on the spot. Someone had been listening to them, and he was standing in this room.

A deadly tumble headed in her direction.

Azula released a barrage of firebombs, gasping at the light casted on the four guards spreading out. A torch it at her aim. Wham! Something hit the side of her face.

"Azula!"

"I'm fine!"

With the room fully lit, the sisters saw eight guards. Azula inched back, holding on to Kiyi until Kiyi was flat against the double doors.

"I want you to find Aang,"

"I'm not leaving you here-"

"Find him!" Azula said, "Because it's him they want. Find him and my brother. I'll be fine."

A taller guard stepped front of the tiny group, "We come in peace, Princess Azula. Your father would like to speak to you."

"And he had you invade my room to request this?"

"We apologize for the interruption," the man said with a blank expression. "We are what is left of your father's legacy. Our only purpose has been to follow your father's wishes. We did not mean any harm."

Azula's panting decreased.

"Azula, don't listen to them! They're lying!"

"Leave!" Azula shouted, not looking behind. "Go find them! Nothing will happen to me!"

Kiyi began to sob, "I don't believe him…"

"Go."

"They're going to kill you…"

He would never do that to me. Azula wanted to believe. She felt Kiyi's shuddering body against hers. The leader of the group waited, watching her. Azula noticed his glassy stare. A part of her wanted to trust and follow, but what would her father want with her now?

"Why does he want to see me?" Azula asked.

"He's worried that you are destroying the will of the New Ozai Society," the guard said. "He wanted to make amends with you. He believes it is his fault that you…ventured away."

At his last words, Azula noticed him sneer.

"I'm not coming."

The guard slowly blinked. He straightened, "Princess Azula, you of all people should know your father dearly. He would be disappointed."

Azula's eyes narrowed, "I'm his child. I know him."

The guard stopped. Azula noticed the scar on his temple. Crooked and short. "My mother was a noble, but she and I lived in the slums, eating the dirt off the gutters because your brother imprisoned my father. We managed to cultivate whatever was left of you father's regime in hopes that you would save us!

You returned to the palace, turned your back on us and this is how you repay your followers? By refusing to at least tell your father why you are no longer with us?!"

"I don't owe a piece of shit like you ordering me around," Azula snarled as the guard gritted his teeth. "Tell my father that I cannot see him! If he truly respected my wishes, you all wouldn't be here!"

Out of his side, the guard pull out a long sword, speared into three prongs at the tip. His henchmen lowered into fighting positions. Azula forced Kiyi to the side, just in time for her to counter the bright wall of fire with hers. She missed the wild turn of his hand. Too quick!-

"Kiyi leave!-"

The thunderous roar of fire headed her way blinded her. Kiyi's shrill screams was the last thing she heard as her body slammed against concrete and a searing rip tore her body. She doesn't remember thrashing, and the room engulfed in a silver blue inferno, quaking under a shower of electricity.


End Note – Please don't kill me yet! I've been typing but it's just finding the time to edit and post this. Thank you everyone for your reviews and follows! The next chapter will certainly be coming up soon! And title of the chapters is from the movie, of course!

Holmesfreak1412Oh my goodness, thanks so much for your input. That means a lot to me!

Guest – Oh don't worry! Buckle up!

Tyleepoof – Haha! Okay I'll keep that in mind. Thanks so much for your support!

Lone ranger22 – Yep. Haha! Exactly why I picked him!