Previously, in the Corrupted Alliance…

Back on the ship, it was nearly five in the morning. Rei was helping the Waterbending doctor, Yuusaku, clean up the used utensils. All of the soldiers had been drugged and had fallen asleep, so it was quiet. Besides the occasional snore, that is. Rei was thinking about how kind Yu was, despite how he was a prisoner. No matter what his parents may tell you, Yuusaku was taken from a Fire Nation prison because of his healing powers. He was a kind man and he seemed to show zero grudges against the royal family. Yu and Rei got along pretty well, but they still didn't talk to each other much. It wasn't like they were the same age, either; Rei was sixteen and Yuusaku was forty-three. There would be no actual relationship there, and Yuusaku is just a side character in Kaitlynn's story, anyway. He'll come into play a few more times, especially whenever they get hurt, but that's for a later time.

After Yu gave Rei a thank you, the Fire Nation teen walked out of the quarantine. He started to head to Kaitlynn's cabin, to check if she was still alive. She had not been seen since she was left in the room hours before, so Rei couldn't help but to get worried. Thoughts ran through his mind. Did she sneak out of the room? Is she dead? Is she with mom? Is she still sleeping? Rei took a deep breath and opened the heavy steel door to her cabin, revealing a tired young girl strewn across the bed like a rag doll. Rei chuckled to himself silently for his own stupidity, and then shut the door. He started walking down the narrow hall towards his room. Light started to peek in through the windows, and that's when Rei started to rub his eyes. As he opened the door, the bed seemed to inviting. Perhaps he would use the remaining three hours on the ship to get some shut-eye.

Yes, this sounds good.

-

Soft pillow. Silk sheets. Cozy duvet. Warm sunlight. Cool air.

It took me a second, but no. I wasn't dreaming. I was perfectly conscious. I sat up and rubbed my tired eyes. Light flooded in from and open set of French doors. It led to a balcony outdoors. I was completely amazed. I had never been in such a room before. For the past few years, I was living in the slums of the Fire Nation; the nicest place I had ever been was quite possibly Zuko's war ship.

Zuko's war ship.

I pulled the sheets off of me and jumped out of the bed. I saw that I was nearly bare: I was wearing only my undergarments. I gasped, wondering who could possibly be perverse enough to undress a fourteen-year-old girl and place her in a strange room. Asleep, no less! I felt my face grow hot. I looked around the room for my bag because I knew I had my clothes in there. When I checked everywhere – the balcony, the vanity, under the bed, behind the door, everywhere – I realized that someone must have grabbed it. Or left it on the boat.

With the letters.

I groaned, taking my hands and rubbing my temples. Those letters held my past – and quite possibly my future – and if some random soldier began to read them, I would be done. I sighed and started looking around the room for any sort of clothing. I was about to give up when I saw a robe thrown across a chaise lounge like a blanket. I scrambled over to it to get it on. I had some trouble tying it, but when I got it, I grinned. Ah, the amazing feeling of silk against flesh. When I decided I was covered up enough, I opened the doors to the hall. It was quiet, but the smell of curry was lingering in the air. I sniffed, following my sense of smell. I was escorted to the end of the hall and to the left into a large corridor. I started walking slowly to relish the scent. Some sort of meat was cooking, too. But then I stopped. A gallery of pictures caught my eye.

They were all family portraits. A wedding photo was the first one. It was detailed with some colors, but mostly in black and white. The frame was a beautiful stained red wood. The picture itself was cute, too; Mai and Zuko dressed in white with gold trimmings. Mai had her arms around the Fire Lord's chest – but she was smiling. That was the strangest thing to me. Putting the thought aside, I studied just a bit more. I admired Zuko's gesture. He lifted Mai's hands and was kissing them gently. Smiling, I stepped over to the next photo. Zuko's hair was short in this picture. I frowned and looked back over at the wedding photo. It was long then, falling right above eye level. I shrugged, turning back to the shorthaired Zuko. I don't know why I thought it was so weird – Zuko's hair was short even now, flashing his deep red scar that still laid a mystery to me. But once again, it was the Fire Nation couple. They were in what seemed to be a courtyard. They were wearing their royal robes. I looked at the one I had on…it was Zuko's. I felt a sudden pang in my gut when it occurred to me. Zuko was the one who undressed me. Disgusted, I noticed the Fire Lord and Mistress's faces. Their expressions were cold and hard. I moved to the next photo. This actually was a family portrait. It was Mai, Zuko, and a young Rei altogether. Rei seemed to be the only one smiling – correction, grinning. Mai had an arm around the boy, but she didn't even try to fake a smile. Zuko seemed to be isolated; he wasn't near his family. He didn't even have a straight face, let alone a smile – but he had a frown. Or what seemed to be one, anyway. I was slightly intrigued, but I was able to pry my glare from the sad photo and turn to the last one that caught my eye. It was another family picture. But it didn't have Rei in it. Or Mai, for that matter. The facial features showed that it was Zuko, minus the scar. I raised my eyebrows. From the history books, the portrait suggested that it was drawn at or before the age of thirteen. I looked at his family: Ozai, Ursa…and my mother.

Azula.

I sneered and furrowed my eyebrows, noticing the charred border. It didn't have a frame; it was just nailed into the wall. That burned parts told me that it was caught in a fire – or thrown into one. I touched a black corner gently, feeling dust rub onto my middle and index finger. When I released my touch, the burnt corner fell to the ground from neglect. I sighed, and looked away from it, looking at everything else on the wall. The rest were all pictures of young Rei or Mai sitting around in a chair. I smiled to myself.

"Will you be joining us, Miss Kaitlynn?"

I turned to the sound of Rei's voice. My smile vanished and I gasped. I quickly ran a hand through my messy hair, hoping that I didn't look too disgusting. He chuckled simply, walking back into the room from which he appeared. Taking light steps, I followed. The small alcove I was led to was what seemed like a dining room. There was an average sized round table placed in the middle of the room. A chair was pulled out for me with a steaming breakfast set in front of it. I felt awkward as I sat down, mostly because of the tension between Zuko and Rei. They were sitting across from each other; Zuko staring right through his teenaged son as he shoved a wad of curry into his mouth. It was pretty quiet with the absence of the pregnant Fire Mistress. Sighing to myself, I looked down at my breakfast. Bacon and curry drenched in some sort of tomato sauce. I picked up my utensils with my left hand and began to eat in silence.

When I was done, a servant accompanied us and took our plates. Rei cleared his throat and Zuko yawned. I got a sudden feeling of angst. Will the meals always be like this? was my first thought. My second: What exactly happened to cause this much tension at the breakfast table? Before I was even able to think of answers, I started to speak aloud. "Where are my clothes?" I blurted, which was one of my thoughts. I immediately gave myself a mental kick, because that was a completely bogus question. We were at the table, for God's sake. Where we eat. Rei ignored me and began to play with the sash of his robe whilst Zuko turned to me.

"Mai took them, along with your bag when she put you in the guest room this morning. The servants should be hanging them up outside right now. They should be returned to you sometime this afternoon. In the meantime, this one here can provide you with some royal garments," Zuko told me, pointing to the dark-haired woman beside him. She smiled weakly, offering me a hand. I took it, following the servant back the way I came. Instead of going to the bedroom from which I emerged, we walked past it. All the way at the end of the hall, there was a door. The woman opened it to reveal a linen closet. She took from it: a pile of clothes and then led me down back to 'my' bedroom. When Zuko said 'guest room', I debated if he wanted me to stay or not. The lady never said a word to me as she handed me the pile of clothing and left, shutting the double doors behind her. I realized that the people there really weren't of the friendly type. Throwing the clothes onto the four-poster bed, I shut the balcony doors and closed the curtains for some privacy. I felt suddenly relieved that it was Mai that undressed me, and not my mother's brother.

After studying the clothes I was given, I realized that it would be of no point to get dressed. I felt dirty after the events of the day before. I called a servant to fill the tub in my bathroom. She continually tried to give me an excuse about why the water was lukewarm, but I was finally able to shut her up and dismiss her. I was finally able to relax as I shed the remainder of my clothing. I stepped foot into the tub. Lukewarm? This is freezing! I almost yelled aloud, but I managed to keep it in. I slid into the cold water and began to heat it up. That was one of the upside of being part Firebender. It's a God-given gift, I'm telling you. Taking a deep breath, I placed a hand on the side of the tin tub and let it pulsate to the beat of my heart. It was a very soothing buzz, almost lulling me into a sleep. I survived for about twenty minutes.

And then I got bored.

I removed myself from the tub and covered myself in a wad of towel before heading into the room again. The guest room had this musty air to it, but it was a good musty. Sort of like an antique; the whole room was so delicate. I was afraid for my drenched hair to drip onto the hardwood, but I ended up not caring. (Surprise, surprise.) The dripping hair woke me up, which reminded me of something. How long exactly was I asleep for? It was morning when I woke up in the room, but it was in the afternoon when I fell asleep. I blinked, throwing on my clothes. I never slept so well in my life. I did feel rejuvenated, but it could have been just my head. Smiling, I opened the doors to the balcony and peered below. The omnipotent Fire Mistress was ordering some servants around while lounging in the courtyard. That was the same courtyard I saw in the picture before breakfast. I quickly ran to the vanity and threw up my hair in a tidy enough top knot before running amongst the palace to find the courtyard.

It took me all of fifteen minutes just to stop get myself out of being lost, and an additional five to realize that the courtyard was in the middle of the palace. Hiding my embarrassment, I walked outside. The sun was shining beautifully, which made it all the more easy to find my clothes hanging on a line. I zipped over to them and reached, when someone grabbed my wrist. I gasped and looked up.

Fire Mistress Mai.

Of course.

"So you're not unconscious anymore, huh?" She smiled, her razor sharp claws digging into the back of my good hand. Despite how much it hurt, I didn't wince. "I thought you were dead, but of course dead people don't snore like you do," she laughed aloud. I rolled my eyes, taking back my wrist.

"I know for a fact I don't snore," I said, giving in to her tedious tricks.

"That's true, but it's still fun to mess with people's heads," she started, biting the inside of her cheek. She fixed my clothes on the line as the other women affixed more clothes a little ways down. "Either way, you can't have your clothes back until they're thoroughly washed. Your gloves are a bit dingy. Do you want them washed?" I screwed up my face. No one had ever asked that before.

"Dingy? These things are my life, Fire Mistress! They're…lucky," I lied, but pulled it off nicely. I realized that Mai was a little drunken, seeing a wine bottle next to the lounge where she was sitting earlier. That doesn't seem to be good for the baby.

"Ha, you're life? One of the guards was telling me that you refused to take them off when you were supposed to get executed! Maybe they are lucky," she decided with a strange smile. I had to hold in my laughter as she stumbled back over to her seat. I sighed and turned, looking for something to do. About an acre away, I saw Rei. He seemed to be training by himself, next to a large tree. Punch. Punch. Kick. Flip. Punch. Back flip. Punch. Kick. Punch. Repeat. After about two minutes, the routine set into my mind and I joined him when he was doing his front flip. My blue fire looked cold next to his red one.

"What do you think your doing?" The teen asked between breaths, doing a back flip. I joined him with his crazy flips.

"Well, I could ask you the same question," I smirked, kicking the air. I hadn't used my Firebending in a while, and I almost stopped. I had to remind myself that I couldn't, because I was the daughter of Princess Azula. I made the decision to show my Firebending to the Fire Lord, so now I had to be a Firebender. My Earthbending skills, I decided, would probably diminish over time. I wouldn't be able to use them as a royal.

"You bring up a good point," Rei admitted, panting now. "Well, I'm training. To try and please my father." The last part came quietly, but it was loud enough for me to hear.

"If you don't mind me asking," I paused to flip, "what exactly happened between you two?" Rei swallowed, stopping. I kept going, but my fire faded as I felt him stare. I smiled and looked at him. "What?"

"…Nothing…do you want to go for a walk?" He asked me. You would think a smile would be across his face, but his lips were pulled into a thin line. I was confused, but I didn't let it show.

"Sure, why not?" I kept my smile, wiping off my sweaty forehead with the back of my hand. I was breathing deeply, trying to slow my hear rate down but not pass out at the same time. I forgot how much Firebending takes out of you.

"Ma, we're going out for a little while. See you later," Rei said, waving to Mai as we walked past her. She grinned, waving her third nearly empty wine bottle in the air.

"Have fun," she hiccupped, "and pick up some alcohol on your way back! Dinner calls!" She laughed. I chuckled, looking up at Rei's weary face.

"Does she have happy hour every day?" I asked in a hushed voice, beginning to wonder how much alcohol the human body can consume in an hour without going into shock – especially a pregnant human body.

"Not every day. Only the days where she is particularly stressed," he paused, sliding open the door to let me inside, "which tends to be every other day."

-

"How are you feeling today?" Zuko smiled, striding into the large, maximum security building. It was only a few miles from the palace, so it wasn't hard for the Fire Lord to get there. He often walked there with about ten soldiers and two of his attorneys. They were more negotiators then anything, but he preferred a more professional term. On that particular day, he rode on an ostrich horse imported from the Earth Kingdom. His ostrich horse was in the middle of the herd of twelve others. It took about twenty-five minutes to reach the building, and the thirty guards – twenty of them were on break - let only Zuko in, his orders. He grinned at the thought of the Fire Nation finally having world domination, especially since it was himself who gained it. He built trust with the Avatar, and it was all worth it when he captured the tattooed nomad. He was in a box. He was placed in a literal box; processed metal in a giant cage. He was like a little toy, Zuko decided one day, a pet, even.

"Nothing has changed, Zuko, nothing has changed," the Avatar said dryly, looking up at the Fire Lord with nearly dead eyes. He was as white as a ghost. Zuko laughed, walking up to the cage, tracing a finger on a metal bar.

"You and Katara…Aang, I am Fire Lord, now. You were there, don't you remember?" Zuko sneered, but couldn't hide his confidence. Aang just shook his head. The man was weary, but he could express anger and sadness quite well.

"Do you remember, Zuko?" Aang questioned, making Zuko's confidence fade, if only for a moment. "That was the day that you promised your country that you would restore its dignity. You promised your people, Zuko. And now look–" the man pointed to his starving body, his ribs now sticking out a little "-you're starving your people! Is this what you want your nation to become?" Zuko laughed as if he was laughing at a toddler who told a severely crappy joke.

"To think that after all these years, Aang, you are still just a child. Don't you see that there is no such thing as peace? People will always be fighting. It's an eternal thing," as if it couldn't get much worse, Zuko continued. "It's what makes the world go round."

"And you are still just a teenager," Aang looked at the thirty-six year old man like he was insane. "Do you even hear what you are saying, Zuko? You are holding me hostage. Do you know how easily I could escape this cage? To blow away your 'friends' outside? But I'm not a fighter, and you know that," the bald man look like a boy again. His eyes were full of sorrow and hurt for his friend, not for himself.

"No, it is not easy for you, Aang. You just said yourself that you're not a fighter. And I do know that, and that is why this place is so weakly guarded. If I thought that you were strong enough to break out, I would have guarded this place myself," the Avatar immediately recognized his tone. The fake confidence. No, not fake - he believed that it was there, but his mind was lying to him. Zuko was ready to break. He was confused. The same way he was as a sixteen-year-old boy. As the Fire Lord turned to walk away, Aang began to contemplate. As his hand reached the door -

"You're losing yourself in anger. Don't do this, Zuko, don't turn your back on your country. Your family needs you. We don't need war." And the man hesitated. He almost turned around. He almost talked to the man with the blue tattoos.

But he didn't.

He opened the door and then shut it, and he was on his way.

-

Next time, in the Corrupted Alliance...

"Where were you really born?" He asked me ignoring my question. It didn't matter, anyway. He didn't answer a lot of things I asked him. It did sort of catch me off guard, though.

"I...I don't know." I answered truthfully. Surprisingly.

"...Weird. Was Azula...around when you were younger? Was she ever gone, or missing?" I felt a chill run down my spine, folding my gloves hands neatly together.

"Well, I never really did see her. It was a strange things, because I never knew much about either of them. My mother had always told me her name was Akari, and my father said his name was Kenji. Of course, we all know who Akari really is... Though I always believed my father. He taught me my Earthbending, and encouraged my Firebending. I loved him, but you took him away."


Author's Note: Is it that bad? I didn't think it was all that amazing either, but seriously? I get less and less people reading each chapter! The last time I got a review was in Chapter Seven! I can't fix it if I don't know what's broken! ;_;