Chapter 10 – Sword

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Steel danced around him, slashing, stabbing, cutting the air, whistling a beautiful tune of death. Nightshade had found a maser once more. The Dark One was one of the most talented swordsmen in history, one of the very few masters of weapons who could incorporate bending art to support his weapon skills, not the other way around. Using weapons to help with bending is child's play.

The blade was seventy centimeters of straight double-edged blade, stiff, subtle, and reasonable supple. The handle was twenty five and, like the scabbard, was made of unadorned black ivory. The wielder of the blade will have his or her skills truly tested. Swords are the weapons of killing; unlike the case is with a spear, a staff, or even an axe, it is near impossible to subdue an opponent with a sword.

Nightshade's long handle had earned it the nickname 'Shield' from the famous swordmaster Jian Wu as it allowed the wielder to parry and counter-attack an opponent's blow almost effortlessly. To use Nightshade, a swordsman must be in touch with his passive side, his Yin. His aggressiveness, his Yang, would be curbed down and it truly takes a master to bring it out when the time comes wielding Nightshade.

For the past few decades, Nightshade had been in the safekeeping of Master Piandao, as the Dark One had no successor to take up his mantle (literally, his mantle; the Dark One was one of the few vigilantes who wore no mask and was famous for his long flowing hooded robe and the fact that no one had ever forced the hood off of his head), Lin the twenty-forth, the Dark One's alter ego passed down his sword, not his mantle, to one of his swordmasters, Jian Wu.

Jian Wu, a vampire, was there at the last moments of his mortal pupil's dying breath; Lin the twenty-forth had been raging a losing battle against a disease of the liver that ate him from the inside. One of the most powerful warrior ever unknown in history (Lin the twenty forth, to keep his vigilante identity hidden, had portrayed a shrewd but pacifistic war strategist) taken by an invisible foe.

Truly a shame, Jian Wu still thought whenever he got drunk; the Dark One was his best drinking buddy and whenever the swordmaster indulged himself, he would always offered a toast for his departed pupil and friend, and filled an empty cup to a brim that would remain untouched in honor of his friend.

Piandao reminded him a lot of the Dark One when the latter was young; brash and impulsive but put a sword in his hand and he transformed into calm and serene wielder of the blade.

When Piandao finally opened his school, Jian Wu sent him the sword for safekeeping. Jian Wu was the Imperial Sword Instructor and lived in the Royal Palace. Hosting a blade that had belonged to the vigilante who, at some point, had fought two of the royalties at the same time would not be good for him. He remembered when Prince Zuko and Princess Azula came back from that particular mission. Prince Zuko had recounted on how Princess Azula fought the Dark One all by herself on the roof of a moving train. Prince Lu Ten had voiced his concern rather vocally and called for a nationwide manhunt on the Dark One for the crime of endangering his cousins. Jian Wu had been a swordmaster for more than two millennia and rarely did his blood run cold from fear.

Admiral Jeong Jeong was privy of his uncle's more shady side and had refused blatantly to resume his fight against injustice from the shadow. Like many wide-eyed young lads the admiral had been, he was more interested in the more glorified ways of serving his country. Fire Nation had always been good at the war effort and recruitment department; despite being the smallest of the three Nations that actually has armed forces, Fire Nation had more soldiers and more advanced war machines than the other two Nations.

Jeong Jeong had done more than just refusing to take up his uncle's fight. He had made sure no one from his family could. If it came out that the admiral was related to a known vigilante who had earned the ire of half the Royal Family, the repercussion would be dire. The Dark One knew of his nephew's fanatics towards his military career and how his vigilante work might be detrimental to it, and sent his sword to Jian Wu.

Years passed and the Dark One had been forgotten in history.

And yet, there it was. The blade that had once been a nightmare for those who dared commit injustice.

Lin concluded his form and bowed reverently to his master. Piandao nodded approvingly and gestured to the right side of the long stone bench he was sitting on; Princess Azula was sitting on his other side with the small puffy-furred pup on her lap.

"A most fascinating style", Azula commented airily, stroking the napping puppy with the back of her slender fingers. "I never know one could combine one-handed and two-handed style that way."

"It's the sword", Piandao replied as Lin arrived at the bench and sat down.

"And I never knew the firebending prodigy of the Lin Family is studying sword", Azula inclined her head gently to Lin. "Please forgive my manner for not asking earlier yesterday; I was exhausted from the journey."

"Not at all, Princess", Lin answered just as quaintly. "I was exhausted myself. I had just arrived hours before you do in the middle of the night. And my sleep was disturbed by a… raccoon-rat entering my room and smashing through my window."

"Fascinating", Azula smiled sweetly but glared dangerously when Master Piandao was not looking.

"How is Prince Zuko nowadays?" Piandao asked; Fat entered the private training courtyard on the top of the hill overlooking the sea, bearing a tray of tea and two plates of snack.

"My brother is doing fine", Azula answered sweetly. "He's apparently been courting a Young Lady Mai for quite some time now."

Piandao shot a frown at Lin and his unexpectedly spluttering the tea in his mouth.

"Sorry, spice", Lin choked. Dear Agni, she really did it!

Azula smirked slyly at Lin; Piandao, who knew nothing better, resumed the pleasant talk, completely missing the subtle jabs Lin and Azula exchanged with each other.

It cultivated in a friendly spar when the three talked about one thing they had in common: swordsmanship. Azula's preference for the rare form of dual-jian-wielding and Lin's unorthodox style, the way Piandao saw it, intrigued each other; Azula and Lin had known of each other's sword style for years but they played their part well.

Lin held his stance firmly; Azula had hers loose and light. Nightshade's blade was the regular stiff, but it was suppler than the regular thick blades that are designed for war. Azure was a fencing jian: a straight double-edged sword with thin blade, designed in such a way that the blade was thicker at the part near the handle for defensive purposes but paper thin at the rest to the tip for slicing (not cutting) and stabbing; a near obsolete weapon in the field of war but an elegant aristocratic sword for urban fight in the hand of a master. Scarlet was a thick-bladed short sword Lin had at first guessed was for defensive purpose only. Most dual-wielders he had encountered used one weapon to attack and the other to defend.

Azula, however, though she favored her right hand, was ambidextrous. Lin had never sparred with Azula before and the occasion he witnessed Azula's prowess in swordplay was few. Azula herself rarely carry her swords with her when she was doing her job. Lin used to own a ninjato as part of his standard regalia. One time, Lin was tailing his target skulking among the foliage, the sword he strapped to his back kept making noises, brushing against leaves and twigs and getting stuck on branches. When the blade finally broke against an earthbending attack, he had not requested a replacement.

Lin shifted ever so slightly, Azula moved a step to match his gracefully. Azula had not always known Lin to be a swordsman. When Azula had met him that time in the pirate hunt, Lin had already lost his sword. She remembered the boy armed only with a dagger in his hunt and thought he was crazy. Sure, Azula herself brought nothing but her bending but she had absolute confidence in her skills that had been honed in numerous lifetimes.

His patience was boundless, Azula commended. Well, he was dating her, the most finicky person in the entire universe. His eyes were almost glazed, focusing on nothing in particular; the best kind of defense is when a person does not assume how or when the opponent is going to strike and simply be ready for it. That way, the defender will be ready for all kind of attack. If you are expecting a slash but your opponent stab instead, your opponent will catch you by surprise.

Azula decided to deliver the initial strike; courtesy, of course, she mentally facepalmed. She was a Princess, he was a nobleman; he was showing courtesy by allowing her the first strike. Strange, Azula thought as Azure flew in a straight trajectory aimed at Lin's neck. Whenever she was with Lin, she had never thought of herself as a Princess; she was just… Azula. And she did not realize it until now.

Lin parried the blade up with a two handed grip; Azure's blade vibrated at the collision. Scarlet came next in a plain side slash and Azula took advantage of the force of the collision to bring Azure back into the offense with a diagonal slash, aiding Scarlet's attack and transforming it into an expertly done double slash. Lin evaded the whole attack by leaping backward.

Azula did not let up on her offense. She delivered blows after blows, soft and fast; Lin parried each one effortlessly with simple movements, keeping his blade closed to him. Scarlet, the smaller blade but the heavier hitter, failed to break the defense. Azula had to admit that Nightshade was a well thought-out creation. The handle made it easy to parry attacks and the blade was thick enough to hold against a hard blow but thin enough to wield easily. Lin was no Dark One though. Azula noticed his defensive tendency, unlike the Dark One's more aggressive style.

Lin's offense came unexpected to Azula; one second he was holding his sword vertically to hold against Azula's side slashes, the next he flicked his wrist and the wicked tip of the blade flew to Azula's face. The Princess let her knees buckled and bent backward, letting Nightshade sailed over her face and her back touched the ground. Returning the flow of strength back to her lower extremities, Azula rose a little into a crouch and rolled forward; she knew Lin could take the advantage of her position and she would not be able to react fast enough to defend herself.

She leaped to her feet and assumed her stance; Lin was apparently waiting for her. Courtesy.

Smirking, Azula relaxed her stance. "Shall we make this more interesting?" she asked, flicking her wrists; her signature blue flame coated her blades.

"As you wish", Lin smirked back; her bright orange flame erupted on his blade without him moving a muscle.

Firebending would always be his first weapon.

His large flame arc held proudly against Azula's double blue flame slashes. The two Elements collided and thick smoke erupted only to be washed away by the strong autumn wind. They dashed sideways, sending blasts of fire from their slashes, not taking their eyes off of each other while getting further away from their non-bender master. Piandao watched with mild amazement of the way his two former pupils exchanged long-range blows with their bending-infused swordplay. He clearly did not teach that.

Something touched his thigh and he looked down at the puppy standing on its front paws on his leg, looking up with pleading eyes. He ignored the wolf pup in favor of Azula's refined twin flame whip failing to break through Lin's thicker wilder flame. The puppy whined and Piandao turned his attention back to it. Sighing, the swordmaster picked a piece of dried moon peach and fed it to the pup that had climbed up to his lap. He stroked the puppy's head while the small creature ate, doing it in such adorable way, and had to admit that it was fluffy and soft and warm. No wonder Azula took a liking to it.

Lin parried Azula's numerous blasts with his sword and flame, closing in the distance between the two; Azula mimicked his advanced. Soon, they were within less than a foot away from each other and brought their battle into a close-quarter combat. Flame met flame, steel clashed with steel. Lin slashed fast and true, Azula ducked and was unprepared to evade the next lightning fast attack. She raised Azure to defend and Lin twisted the blade upon collision with his expertly; a disarming technique he had learnt from his senior, the one-armed swordsman.

Lin spun the blue jian with his sword and flicked it away to the side; Piandao, who was sitting at the direction of the flinging sword, picked Azure's sheath that Azula had put on the bench and caught the tip of the blade in the opening before it hit him, returning the blade to the sheath with that one simple and calm movement. He propped the sword against the bench and the puppy descended to the bench seat and began nipping at the sheath; Piandao took it away from the puppy's reach and scooped the little fluff ball up and put it to his other side before setting the sword down again.

The advantage of the duel ahead was a little unclear. Azula might have lost one of her swords but any neophyte in swordplay knows that in such a close-quarter combat, shorter sword has the advantage; Lin's had his Nightshade up and ready but Azula now could focus her attention on Scarlet and he knew not how good Azula was in using one sword.

Lin soon found himself being pushed by Azula's expert handling of the short blade, switching from one hand to the other as she danced, jumped, and spun like a celestial dancer, sending blow after blow of the sword and her flame with little visible effort. Lin finally decided to use his bigger frame and heavier weight to advantage; parrying Scarlet with one hand, meeting Azula's flaming hand chop with Fire Breath, he lunged and grabbed the Princess' waist with his other hand and wrestled her to the ground.

Azula gasped as her back met the ground, not as roughly as she thought it would be since Lin held her up at the last second and settled her down gently, holding Nightshade's blade across her neck, lying on top of her.

"You lost", the boy grinned, his breath hot on her face.

Azula smirked, not at all minding the position they were in, pressing onto each other thought they might be. "More like a draw, actually", she corrected, tapping Lin's back with Scarlet, telling him that she could have pierced his spine.

"Not bad", Lin smiled, drawing closer.

"You, too", Azula smiled, ready to close her eyes if only to appease her thumping heart, wanting the kiss he was dangling over her, literally dangling over her with their faces so close and the tips of their noses brushing against each other lightly.

The wolf pup, totally misreading the situation barked with its high-pitched puppy sound. Lin and Azula came back to reality and Lin got up, rolling to the side, sitting and exhaling loudly from his mouth; his fingers brushed on hers as Azula sat up and she felt Azula pinching his finger lightly with hers. Lin got up to his feet and held out his hand for Azula. The Princess delicately took it and let the boy help her up.

They walked back to their master to store their swords and, in Azula's case, pacify the cranky pup. Excusing themselves, they returned to the mansion and parted ways with polite words and gesture. They walked to their own respective rooms, going on a different direction.

Piandao, left in the courtyard with his drink, thought the two of them would make a cute couple.

-B-L-O-O-D-

Azula was occupying a guest room; her old room was taken. Currently, the Princess was playing a most beautiful sounding flute. The heavenly sound of the instrument penetrated the red door of the room. Students who were loitering around after lunch were captivated by the sound. They lingered outside the room in a respectful distance. Azula was still a Fire Princess in their eyes and they had to keep their distance.

Among them were the vampire prankster twins Yung and Rei, who, after a short conversation to decide who they should go to first, Lin who was their bother-in-pranks, or Azula their sister-in-pranks who had the authority to access any military arsenal, chose to go to Azula first.

"So beautiful…" Yung gushed at the sound of the flute and, like everyone around, was completely oblivious that Azula was currently perching precariously on the small narrow side roof under Lin's window, knocking on the window impatiently.

Lin entered his room, rubbing his damp hair with a red towel; he guessed correctly that Azula had been knocking for awhile now. Quickly locking his door behind him, he strode to the window and opened it to a rather upset Azula and her puppy.

The small wolf pup leaped from Azula's arms to Lin's face, tackling the yelping boy to the ground and Azula leaped in, taking care to land gently on Lin's stomach.

"That creature is rabid. You need to get it vaccinated", Lin muttered at the wolf pup that sauntered away to a patch of sunlight on the floor, coming through the transom.

"Aw, don't be jealous", Azula cooed, tapping Lin's nose. "You're still my favorite", she kissed the tip of the boy's nose and got up. The Princess walked to Lin's wardrobe and extracted the wooden box and her bag of fire flakes from under Lin's clothes.

"What's in the box?" Lin asked, drying his hair.

"Stuff", Azula sang, walking to the center of the room with the wooden box, fire flakes, and a small gourd. She clicked her tongue and the wolf pup ran to her. Kneeling down, Azula ripped open the fire flakes bag while the wolf stood on its rear legs, front legs on Azula's thigh, wagging its tail and tongue.

"Hand me a bowl", Azula ordered. Lin got back to him with a large bowl and damp towel draping on his neck. Azula poured half the content of the large bag into the bowl and put the rest of it in the bag down. The wolf pup promptly feasted on its lunch and Azula scratched its small head lovingly. "Where's your sword?" Azula asked, handing Lin the bowl.

"You still haven't told me why you're here", Lin said while he walked to his bed to get Nightshade; he missed the sight of Azula tensing up in a fraction of second.

"I'm bored", Azula replied flippantly as she uncapped the gourd. On her knees, she poured the content of the gourd, viscous dark red blood, on the floor carefully, turning on the spot and making a perfect circle. She made a smaller ring inside the first one with six inches space between them. Getting out of the circle, she began drawing arcane symbols that she recalled from memory.

Lin, tying his ponytail back up, was amazed by Azula's neat handiwork and the fact that she could recall so much detail from the magic circle. Then, he reminded himself that Azula was nearly fourteen hundred years old and spent the first few hundred years of her life learning Ancient Magic. Plenty of time to memorize the numerous arcane circles and symbols, spells and rituals.

"What are you doing?" Lin asked as Azula got up, smirking at her work. She gestured with her hand and Lin threw Nightshade to her.

"Waiting for the blood to dry", Azula replied lightly, unsheathing Nightshade and putting it carefully in the empty center of the circle.

She walked back to Lin with the gourd and wooden box, sitting on the floor leaning her back on the bed's foot by Lin's side. Azula drank the rest of the gourd, swallowing less than a mouthful before the gourd was empty. Frowning, she lifted the gourd up above her opened mouth and shook it lightly; nothing came out. She took a peek inside the gourd and then shook it with both hands. Lin was smiling at how a fourteen-year-old-looking girl looked like a four year old child who had just drank the last of her sweet juice but still wanting more.

Azula grunted and even that sounded like a petulant child. She sighed and put the gourd away; taking the wooden box onto her lap, she rested her head sideways to Lin's shoulder. Lin's reflex kicked in, looked away, and held out a hand. "Don't kiss me!"

Azula pounded his lap with her fist. "I wasn't going to", she said, smacking her lips.

She opened her box and inside the compartmentalized interior was an assortment of stuff; some solid looking rocks with strange coloration, some colorful powders, and some other stuff wrapped in a wax casing.

"So, this is your big secret? A box of candies?" Lin asked dryly.

"It's not a box of—"Azula began miffily but stopped to take out her dried fruit candies and peanut bars and relocated them to the fire flakes bowl. "It's not a box of candies", she huffed. "It's a box of magical ingredients. I'm going to enchant your sword, okay?"

Lin felt his brow quirked; his sword was a family heirloom. But, he knew that Azula had her own way to show that she cared. "Okay", what's the harm in it? "What kind?"

"Hmm…I suppose you don't want anything fancy", Azula hummed, hovering her finger over the many ingredients in the box. "Let's see… I can give it the ability to repair itself; I put this enchantment on my swords", she picked up a lump of red rock with milky white lines all running all over it. "Volcanic marble and powdered Blood Ruby", her eyes darted to a compartment holding a pile of blood red powdered crystal. "It will have the ability to absorb metallic substance in blood and use it to repair itself."

"Handy", Lin commented, embracing the girl by her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder, enjoying her flowery girly scent, and the warmth she radiated. "That sounds so vampiric."

"That's why I like it", Azula said smugly. "What about… hmm, will you be open to a spell that alters the shape and look of the sword?"

"No", Lin muttered, closing his eyes and squeezing the girl in his arms briefly.

"The spell that makes it thorny is a no then", Azula's orbs darted up as she searched for more idea. "Hey, I noticed your sword smoking a bit after the firebending attack. Moon steel…" Azula lifted up a slab of cool icy-blue metal. "…will make it heat resistant. And perhaps diamond powder to preserve the edge. You won't have to sharpen it too often."

Lin suddenly thought about the Blood Ruby in the ring Azula was now wearing in her left index finger –she did not wear it in public, Lin had noticed- and the amulet he kept in his pocket (he sent the letter as per his instruction on his way to the bathroom). "Hey", Lin started. "What about a spell that can be activated at will? You can fix a trigger in the sword or something."

"No", Azula scowled. "Activating magic uses the caster's energy. It's dangerous."

"It's just a tiny bit", Lin reasoned, smiling amusedly.

"Well, yeah, a little here, a little there. Before you know it, a-a… a rabid monkey-boar breaking into your room and mauling you to death!" Azula turned her scowl to his direction.

Lin found the way she puffed her cheeks and pursed her lips cute.

"Rabid monkey-boar?"

"Fate is a crazy b*tch!"

"Language, Princess", Lin muttered, smiling warmly as he leaned in for a kiss. Azula closed her eyes slowly and tipped her face up. All of a sudden, Lin pulled away. "Oh, almost forgot, blood. Icky. No kissing."

"Dummy", Azula giggled as Lin kissed the tip of her nose and got up. The boy walked to his wardrobe and changed into a simple sleeping garb of sleeveless shirt and baggy shorts. He returned to Azula who was already at the magic circle, standing over it, inspecting it with one arm crossed on her chest and her free hand holding on to a chocolate cookie she was nibbling.

"Will it be loud?" Lin asked.

"A bit. Oh, shoot, the door", she turned to the door quickly and cast her standard anti-intruder/eavesdropper/peeper/pest/Ursa incantations. "That's a close one."

"You're off your game lately", Lin walked to the bed, kissing the top of her head as he walked past. Sitting at the foot of his bed, the wolf pup came to him, sniffing and licking his bare foot.

"I'm not", Azula huffed, crossing her arms and pouting, not at all intimidating with a cookie crumb on the corner of her mouth. "I'm just still tired. I cast a difficult spell that makes a musical instrument play by itself before I came here."

"Ah, the old 'delicate, demure, and feminine Princess' trick. I thought you only use it against your mom", Lin snickered.

"Time changed", Azula popped the rest of her cookie into her mouth and rubbed her fingers to get rid of the crumbs. Smiling, Lin got up and walked to her. He embraced the girl from behind, feeling Azula's back melting on his front. He leaned down and gave the girl an open-mouth kiss on the corner of her mouth, licking off the cookie crumb. "What about a Mastery Enchantment?" Azula suggested. "The sword will recognize your touch and your touch alone; nobody else will be able to touch it."

"Hmm… could be tricky. What if I have to let someone hold it for me?" Lin pondered aloud, pressing his mouth and nose on the soft creamy-white skin of Azula's neck; she might look gorgeous with her hair down but Lin had to admit the top-knot allows more access.

"There are a lot of option", Azula advertised, tilting her head to give Lin more space. "I can set it so that the edge will dull and the sword is nothing more than a piece of blunt metal when you're not holding it."

"No", Lin drawled. "I can think of many ways things could go wrong."

"So, just the standard self-repair and permanent sharp edge? That's boring", Azula baited.

"And heat resistance, don't forget that one. You suggested that one, remember?" Lin reminded her. Azula mentally facepalmed.

"Yeah, of course. I thought I said that already", she evaded. "Anything else. Come one, we've got to start before the blood gets all crusty."

"What about…" Lin sucked in a breath, thinking hard. "I don't know… give it an ability to shoot laser beam or something. Uh, please… give it the laser beam magic."

"That's Activation Enchantment. So, no", Azula scowled at him; sometimes, she regretted ever teaching Lin magic. "Remember the monkey-boar thing? You cannot use magic!"

"Stingy", Lin poked his tongue at her; Azula caught it in her mouth and licked it with hers. Yelping, Lin raced to his nightstand where he kept a pitcher of water and a goblet.

"Yuck! Blood!" he gurgled and spat into the goblet, looking disgusted. He even shot a stream of flame from his fingertips and let it glazed on his tongue.

Smirking at her revenge, Azula began the incantation. Holding a hand over the circle, the blood smear began to glow a bright red light. Nightshade slowly rose to the air, hovering vertically, suspended by the magical power.

One by one, the ingredients she had lined in the circle floated up; the lump of volcanic marble, the pile of powdered Blood Ruby, the piece of moon steel, and the pile of diamond dust. They glowed their distinct reddish-orange, blood-red, icy-blue, and sparkly-white color respectively, dissolving into the magic and transforming into pure energy. Soft hum was heard over the process.

The reddish-orange volcanic marble and blood-red Blood Ruby mingled and slowly floated to the sword's blade, coating it and seeping into the surface. The icy-blue moon steel flew next, also seeping into the core of the blade. The sparkly-white diamond dust floated slowly and dispersed into a long line that encase the cutting edge of the blade like a sheath. It took longer for the diamond dust to settle in and seeped into the edge of the blade.

The humming quieted down gradually and the red light from the circle died down. Azula stepped into the circle and grabbed the sword, still suspended in the air, by its handle. She picked up the scabbard from the floor and sheathed it.

"Done", she called, smirking proudly as she walked to the bed to join Lin. "Now, what do I get for going through this trouble?"

"Well", Lin, already lying in the bed under his quilt, tugged the part covering the other side of the bed invitingly. "Come and find out."

-B-L-O-O-D-

"*sniff*… I know she's been playing non-stop for hours and all", Yung began, lips quivering. Yung resumed. "…but, it's so beautiful."

The whole hallway shushed them.

-B-L-O-O-D-

"Let's leave", Azula suggested softly, shrugging her naked shoulder to beat the cold, her bare leg was out of the cover, draping over Lin's legs. "Let's go to your family mansion. It should be less people there."

Sighing, she climbed on top of Lin, lying on her folded arms on his chest, smiling as Lin pushed her long hair off her face. "Better yet, let's go to Ember Island. It's warm and my family's summerhouse is completely empty."

Lin said nothing, simply looking into the bright amber of her eyes.

"I love you", he said.

"I know", Azula replied, evading his eyes.

"Say it", Lin tugged her chin gently with his finger, aiming her face to his. "Please."

Azula felt a flush washed over her face and it made her want to cry and her lips almost quivered. "You know I do", she muttered, closing her eyes and sighing. "That should be enough."

Lin smiled sadly. "Yeah… I guess it is."

-B-L-O-O-D-

Zuko opened his door, ready to begin his day at such lovely afternoon.

Lu Ten was sitting at his doorstep, hugging Pillow Azula, rocking back and forth like a lost child.

"Cut it out, Lu Ten", Zuko began bluntly. "Azula is not kidnapped. She went away somewhere."

"YOU DON'T KNOW THAT!" the older Fire Prince snapped angrily, flame erupted from his ears.

"Her emergency bag is missing", Zuko pointed out for the umpteenth time. "And the Royal Magicians said she went to the Magic Observatory to borrow an enchantment kit in the middle of the night. She's not kidnapped."

"You're a bad big brother!" Lu Ten accused angrily. And childishly. "Go and get kidnapped somewhere! I won't care about you!"

Gripping his throbbing head -he drank quite a lot after he got to his room-, Zuko left the spot and wandered off on automatic to the dining room. On the way to the kitchen, he ran into the reason for his smile.

"We need to talk", Mai started without so much as a warm greeting. When Zuko got within range though, she kissed him on the cheek.

"If it's about Azula screwing us up, you're gonna have to wait. She's missing", Zuko said without a touch of concern.

"Really?" Mai showed so subtle a change in her expression even Zuko was not sure if there really was a change. "I don't think she's kidnapped. Where has she gone off to?"

"I…"

A pair of arm came from the shadow of the cherry blossom tree, embracing Azula.

"… don't know", and Lu Ten called him a bad big brother. "Lu Ten fed her sugar, remember? Who knows where she'd turn up in this time."

They arrived at the dining hall where Zuko promptly devoured everything the servants brought him; Mai had refused meal and sat there, watching Zuko ate with a bored expression.

"You don't seem overly concerned", Mai stated plainly, playing with a piece of meat with a chopstick. "In fact, you don't seem concerned at all. Where is she?"

"I don't know", Zuko said with matching brooding tone. "Azula can take care of herself. I'm sure she's out there making somebody's life miserable."

-B-L-O-O-D-

"W-wait, wait, waiiit!"

"No."

Giggling and struggling and shrieking, Azula could not do much, tied up to the bed by her wrist that she was, when Lin assaulted her sexually.

-B-L-O-O-D-

"That's not what I want to talk to you about", Mai sighed, taking an apple from the fruit basket and began peeling it with her own knife. "It's about us."

Lu Ten's tiny voice flared to life inside Zuko's mind; he had never been close to his father and his uncle was often away, and Lu Ten had been the one who gave him the talk. Lu Ten had once warned him that when a girl said those three words Mai had just said (or its other variants) Zuko must brace himself for impact. Or run away, whichever more probable; it depends heavily on the venue.

Zuko knew how crazy his cousin was and chose to ignore his advice.

"Okay", he frowned, taking a piece of meat from the plate with his chopsticks.

"Your mom and grandmother sent me stuff", Mai sounded like she was complaining. "Some jewelries and silk dresses. I don't think they know that the other sent me some stuff too. Anyway, they're welcoming me to your family."

She cut up her apples into tiny pieces. "My parents are quite happy though. They're already consulting an astronomer to set a date for the wedding."

That got a response from Zuko; the Fire Prince choked on his meat.

Mai stabbed her knife on the table and lazily reached out to the coughing Prince by her side and stoked his back gently.

"What are you going to do about this?" Mai demanded.

"Why me?" Zuko took a drink form his cup. "My sister is currently missing. Don't I get a special consideration for this one?"

"No", Mai replied curtly. "Especially since you're sitting on your butt when you could have done something to find her."

She looked at her boyfriend sharply to convey her meaning.

Zuko got it. "I've done something", Zuko said seriously, putting down his bowl. "Her scent ends at the Astronomy Tower."

"High place", Mai said. "If you didn't find her splat on the ground, I would assume she flew."

"And only the Royal Family can transform into the Higher Form", Zuko concluded, began eating again. "She must have left on her own accord."

"You could have done more", there was a certain sharpness in Mai's voice that only Zuko could notice.

Zuko met her severe amber eyes and sighed. "I have done more", he muttered softly, wary of prying ears. "I checked with every shady tavern and bars and no one had said anything about a Princess being kidnapped."

"Zang Hei Sect must still be out for her blood", Mai reminded him.

"Zang Hei was still recuperating from a battle", Zuko said, unsure of why he actually felt reassured. "I used them to get Ruon Jian."

"What did you with him anyway?" Mai asked, frowning.

Zuko whipped his head towards her direction, suddenly furious (and jealous). "Why would you care?!" he demanded heatedly, slamming his fists on the table.

Mai was unfazed.

"No reason", she shrugged nonchalantly. "Just curious. Is that wrong?"

Zuko clenched his jaw, suddenly not feeling hungry anymore. He simply got up and stormed off, leaving Mai sighing with a touch of boredom.

-B-L-O-O-D-

"Pervert", Azula sniffed, her wrists still tied up over her head on the headboard. "You just practically molested me. That's a crime. I'm reporting you to the police."

"Hmm, yeah", Lin sighed contentedly, landing his head on Azula's chest, and snuggling close as he lay on top of her. "You're the one who wanted to be rewarded."

Azula turned away, humph-ing, ignoring the boy who teased her neck with his finger. She blew her annoying untied hair that had fallen over her face to no avail. "Hair", Lin pushed the flock of raven off of her face. "Okay, continue", Azula said and began dry sobbing again.

Lin chuckled and squeezed her a little, embracing her by the torso, enjoying every bit of her petite frame his bare skin touched. He rested his face of the girl's soft and warm chest, kissing her collarbone. "You make my life less grim."

"I know. I'm the best thing that has ever happened to you", Azula said smugly. "Dummy…"…for making her chest go all fluttery.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…untie me."

"No. I'm not through molesting you", Lin smirked, hand already roaming the sensitive part of the girl's inner thigh.

"Pervert", Azula squirmed, giggling, clamping her legs. They snuggled –well, Lin did- again and simply enjoyed each other's presence. After awhile, Azula called. "Hey?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm not flat, am I?" she asked timidly. And begrudgingly.

"Haven't I answered that already", Lin smirked. He repositioned himself, falling to the side and slumping against her, throwing the cover off, displaying the girl's naked chest. "Let's see", he began, tracing a finger on the girl's mound; Azula squirmed and but her lip to prevent the smile from forming. "They're soft but firm and you have beautiful skin", he traced his finger to the tip, running his finger slowly around her areola and tweaking her nipple gently. "And I love the color of your nipple. It's light and doesn't clash with your skin tone."

He looked up to the blushing Princess, squirming up to her face and kissed her gently on the cheek. "As for the size", he rested his head on top of hers, his right hand sneaking up to cup Azula's left breast and gently squeezed it. "They're perfect", he said, kissing her again. "Just like the rest of you."

Azula exasperated. "Oh, damnation", she grumbled.

"'Oh, damnation'? Who still says that?" Lin sniggered. Azula ignored him.

"You just have to go and say all those stuff to me", Azula pouted. "Come on! We're doing it now!"

"Yay!" Lin squealed. "Really?"

"No", Azula dry sobbed. "What is wrong with me?! I mean… shouldn't I want to do it?" she spluttered. "I do want to do it! B-but… it's… I don't know", she pouted. "I just… can't", she turned to Lin, looking downcast. "You must be mad at me sometimes."

"Why? Because you're not a tramp?" Lin snickered, pecking her on the forehead.

"Oh, great, the forehead. The platonic zone. You're breaking up with me", Azula felt like crying for real.

Lin laughed. "Breaking up with the most beautiful, the smartest, the funniest, craziest girl on earth? I hardly think so", he smiled warmly. "I love you", he pecked her on the lips. "And your boobs are not flat. I mean, seriously", he gave the boob he was still gripping a jiggle. "How in the name of sweet Agni do you fit them in your armor?"

"I wear tight bindings", Azula said in her whiny voice, smirking amusedly.

"Aw, poor babies. You're suffocating them", Lin playfully chided the girl. "Here, let me kiss them better."

Azula giggled against as the boy slide down and molested her breasts for the umpteenth time that day. After giving each one a thorough round of pleasuring oral stimuli, Lin went up again and kissed the girl tenderly on the mouth.

"Hey", Azula called again.

"Hmm?" Lin smiled. Oh, the smile… it got to her.

"I…"sayitsayitsayit!

"Yeah?" Lin drawled, still smiling.

"Ng… nothing", Azula mumbled, closing her eyes. She could not bring herself to look him in the eye. I love you, she said, finally said, in her mind, knowing that it was true in her heart.

It should be enough for now.

It must…

It had to be…

A silent tear escaped her closed eyes, as she savored the sweet kiss of her lover.

…she loved him.