Don't expect updates as quickly as before. Work and other matters are demanding my attention but reviews always inspire me to make the time.
Azula weaves her way through the crowd, gritting her teeth against the impulse to bend them out of her way. If she were in Caldera, the people would eagerly part the way for the Princess and let her pass but she's not in the capital city and she's not being the Princess now.
The idea had been to take a vacation at Ember Island and just relax. This meant leaving behind crowns and titles and anything that would signify status. There is something nice about the anonymity of being one of the masses. It affords her the chance to really toy with people but for the moment it leaves her with the problem of being lost in a crowd.
The beach at Ember Island is a popular spot for locals and tourists alike. Normally, one can navigate the shoreline without much difficulty but people tend to mob when certain demigods with highly recognizable tattoos appear. There is only so much anonymity the Avatar can have.
Azula eagerly slips away from their little entourage. Normally, she relishes attention but right now she just wants to be ignored. She breaks through the mob and moves down the beach without a glance behind her.
This is how she finds herself at a very nice beach house in the middle of a party. Most of the parties she attends are highly organized affairs that are meant to show off the glory of the Fire Nation and impress the nobility. There is nothing glorious about this debacle.
Normally, people limit themselves with their drink, unless they are like Azula and can handle it; even then they do not behave as outlandishly as some of these people are behaving. She watches in fascination as dancing in all stages of dress commences and as others have drinking contests. There are frequent displays of affection that really should be in a more private setting. At least there is a nice selection of food and drink.
"I don't believe I've seen you around here before?"
Azula turns her attention to the owner of the voice. "I'm on vacation." She looks him up, down, and dismisses him just as quickly from her mind.
However, he won't be put off that easy. "Would you like something to drink?"
She holds up her glass and raises an eyebrow at him.
He gives her a smile. "I don't mean that swill. I'm talking about the good stuff; the General's special reserve."
Azula is intrigued so she follows him upstairs into what appears to be a large office. He pulls a key out from a hiding spot on the desk and opens a locked cabinet. A dark bottle emerges.
"This is something my father picked up during the war from the Earth Kingdom."
She drains her glass and holds it out for him to fill. It goes down smooth and reminds her of some of the finer wines at the palace.
"Good, isn't it?"
"Hmm, very."
When she finishes off that one and holds her glass to be filled, he breaks into a wide smile.
"What's your name?"
She drinks slower this time. "Azula."
If he recognizes her, he doesn't let on, though many girls were named in honor of her grandfather.
"My name is Takumi." He fills his own glass and drinks it while considering her. "Are you vacationing alone?"
She walks around the office looking at the various portraits and framed orders of promotion. Ozai's signature stands out in the low light of the room. "My brother and his friends are here but they are on the beach right now." She answers absently as she traces the lines with her eyes.
"Do you not like them?" Takumi asks as he moves to stand beside her.
"I suppose they're fine." Azula doesn't look at him. "Where is your father now?"
Takumi takes a drink before replying. "He's at Caldera, organizing marches or whatever it is that he does."
Azula laughs. She is familiar with General Akita. The image of the rather corpulent man comes to mind. "Most likely taking advantage of all the rich food at the palace." The man is known for his eating.
Takumi's laughter joins hers. "You must know him! He never met a dumpling he didn't like."
"He must have known Fire Lord Ozai well." She says as she peers closer at the commendations from the war.
"That he did, though, I can't say he was fond of him. Fire Lord Ozai wasn't exactly known for his personality."
People almost always refer to Ozai in the past tense but Azula has to agree. Ozai was not a pleasant person all around. While she hasn't seen him since before the war ended, she's sure he hasn't changed. "Hopefully, Fire Lord Zuko is better."
Takumi shrugs. "Hard to tell in times of peace."
A Fire Lord is weighed by his successes on the battlefield but since the war is over there haven't been any battles to wage, at least not any that the public sees.
The party downstairs is in full swing and she leans on the railing of the second floor to look down. Takumi sits the bottle at their feet and chats to her about this, that, or whatever. Azula pays him little attention though as she is feeling relaxed. She vaguely wonders were the others are.
As if summoned by her thoughts, she sees Zuko enter through the open doors that face the beach, Katara at his side as they speak to one another and look around.
Takumi sees them too. "Is that Fire Lord Zuko?"
It can be difficult to tell as Zuko is casually dressed with his hair down though the scar is a dead giveaway.
"Could be." She answers neutrally.
Azula remains where she is as she watches Takumi dash down the stairs to greet the Fire Lord with a bow. She can practically hear Zuko asking him to not draw attention to them as they just want to enjoy themselves. When Zuko looks up she raises her glass to him and smirks. Zuko nods and directs Katara, hand low on her back, towards a table filled with food.
Takumi makes his way back up the stairs with a wide smile. "Imagine that! The Fire Lord is at my party. I don't know who he's with though."
Azula's golden eyes follow the woman in question as she fills a plate and finds a seat. Zuko sits beside her.
"Her name is Katara. She's from the Southern Water Tribe. You may have heard of her before. She's a war hero after all."
"Oh, yeah."
Feeling a creeping sense of boredom, Azula refills her glass as she looks out over the room from her perch above.
"Sparky, there you are," booms a loud voice drawing most of the party to a halt. "Thought you would be sneaky and try to get away!" Toph stands in the doorway, hands on her hips, looking suitably put out. "And you, Sugar Queen, you left us on the beach to the mob!"
Zuko glares at the Earth Bender who waves it off. "You can make it up to me later." She walks straight to the table and digs in. Azula notes with some amusement that the other Water Tribe peasant with the bottomless stomach and his fan-girl wife are close behind her.
"This is about to get interesting." Azula mutters to herself.
Takumi looks suitably daunted and excited at the plethora of war heroes in his house. "This is amazing."
"Wait for it." Azula warns as she pours another glass.
He turns questioning eyes to her but she is firmly fixed on the doorway. She isn't disappointed as a familiar person appears.
"It's the Avatar." Takumi is about to suffer from overload.
Aang walks in looking around.
"Hey, Twinkeletoes! About time you made it." Toph hollers, a leg of meat in one hand. "This is where Sparky and Sugar Queen ran off to."
He steps closer to Toph. "Do you really have to call me that?" Aang's voice is quiet as he focuses on Sokka filling up a rather large plate with food.
Toph take a bite as she thinks about it. "I could call you other things but Princess up there may not appreciate it."
Aang follows the direction she points her leg of meat in to the railing. Azula is looking down on them with a slight uninterested look. He narrows his eyes at the man beside her who is talking excitedly.
"I don't think she wants to be recognized here, otherwise, that guy wouldn't be so close." There is the hint of a joke in her voice. Toph often teases him about Azula and how Aang must have a death wish given the nature of their relationship.
If she doesn't want to be recognized, then he is content to leave her to it. Joining Katara and Zuko, he looks around the room. The party is picking back up though many people are looking their direction.
As the night progresses more people show up. Toph is in a comfortable fuzzy place and trying to keep her feet on the floor to track everyone. Katara leans against Zuko after having had too much. Zuko, Sokka, Suki and Aang are holding their own against each other in a drinking game involving cards.
The game has drawn many spectators who watch as the war heroes laugh and banter.
Azula watches from her vantage point upstairs. She frowns though when a woman draws closer to Aang's chair. The woman begins making comments to the Air Bender even reaching out occasionally to touch his shoulder. When the woman's hand lingers, Azula feels her fingertips begin to burn.
Sokka and Suki give up leaving the Fire Lord and the Avatar to face off.
Zuko narrows his eyes at Aang. "You must be cheating."
Aang's gray eyes are the picture of innocence. "Why would you say that?"
The Fire Lord shakes his head. "You hardly drink." Zuko's words are slightly slurred.
Aang shrugs and speaks perfectly fine. "You don't know what I get up to at the palace when you aren't around."
Toph bursts out laughing. "Oh, I'm sure Sparky has a good idea. We all do after last night, Twinkletoes."
Aang blushes, causing Toph to laugh harder. The house on Ember Island may be large but sound travels well; too well.
"Hardly my fault." Aang says in defense of himself.
Toph snorts and yells up to Azula. "Do you hear that, Princess? Twinkletoes says it's your fault we didn't get any sleep last night."
Azula scowls at the Metal Bender but calls back, "Who am I to argue with the Avatar?" The look she gives him shows her true thoughts though.
Takumi looks over at Azula. "Princess?"
"Yes." She answers without taking her eyes off the table below.
Before Takumi can make apologies, she waves him off. "I didn't want to be Princess Azula tonight though that is hard to do with them around." She gestures towards the group who has resumed their game.
"And from what I gather you are involved with the, uh, the Avatar." Takumi stumbles over the words.
"You could say that." Azula allows but her golden eyes register how the overeager woman has yet to take the cue and back off. Sometimes a Princess has to take matters into her own hands.
This time when Azula makes her way downstairs people get out of her way. There are some benefits to being recognized even if it was in a rather crude and bawdry manner. When she draws closer, the woman looks at her warily but Azula ignores her. There aren't any free chairs but Aang holds his hand out to her so she lets him pull her onto his lap as he stares Zuko down.
Toph makes a comment under her breath to Suki and the two break out into giggles. Sokka turns over another card in front of Zuko and the Fire Lord grumbles as he takes another shot. The next card is for both of them to drink causing Zuko to grumble louder. Aang smiles.
"What's the matter, Zuzu? Is it too much for the Fire Lord?" Azula purrs at him.
Zuko glares at her. "I think my sister has been a bad influence on you, Aang."
"I won't argue with that." He smiles as Azula scoffs at the notion.
"Careful, Twinkletoes, or you might be sleeping alone tonight." Toph cracks up again. Sokka and Suki join her.
The next card is for Zuko again. "That's it. I give." He shakes his head. "I'm ready to go back to the house." He nudges Katara who is leaning against him sleepily.
"So you're saying you surrender?" Aang teases him.
Zuko gives him a suffering look. "Yes."
"Does that make Azula a peace offering?" Toph chimes in as they all stand.
Their laughter fades from the house as they leave the party behind.
Ooo
The sound of the ocean surf wakes her the next morning. The house is eerily silent as the occupants are still sleeping off the night before. Azula stretches in the large bed but frowns at the cold sheets beside her. Propping herself up on one arm she casts tired eyes around seeking her errant bed partner. More often than not, he wakes earlier than she does. Even though Fire Benders rise with the sun, Azula finds her late nights often interfere with the tradition.
Wrapping her silken robe around her, she quietly pads across the room to the balcony doors. As she expected he is seated in the meditation position that has become familiar to her. The light of the rising sun serves to highlight the pale blue tattoos and she find her eyes lingering longer than normal on the broad plane of his shoulders. She leans against the doorframe and indulges in the pleasure of watching him when he doesn't know she is looking. Crimson lines which are drawn on his back run nearly parallel to the blue line. Azula is never one to be gentle whether it is on the training grounds or in bed. Even when still there is something powerful and vibrant about him as if there is an energy that can't quite be tamed by meditation techniques from a nation long gone.
If Azula were a different person then she may feel a pang of guilt over the part her family played in the end of the Air Nomads but she isn't. It's not as if she was the one to give the order. Azula can't say that she has ever really suffered from a guilty conscience. For a moment Ozai's sneering face flashes before her eyes. If only Father knew just what his favorite child had been up to, Azula smirks. Perhaps she should ask Zuko to permit a visit to the fallen king; only the Fire Lord and the Avatar are allowed.
It may not be wise to taunt Ozai though. Even without his bending and his throne, he is sure to be a formidable opponent, though it may go a long way to alleviate some of the restlessness she feels when she is alone at night. Sleeping alone is becoming a more regular occurrence than she would like. A series of rebellions in the Earth Kingdom have demanded the Avatar's attention, so has the fledgling Air Nation at the Northern Air Temple and, while Air Acolytes are not Air Benders, it is a start. Only one person has lived that life though so he is needed more and more as their ranks swell in number.
It does nothing to placate Azula but she won't complain. They have an unspoken agreement with one another about the nature of their relationship, at least unspoken on her behalf. At first Aang attempted to discuss it but she brushed it off. The last thing she wants is to label it, not that she would have any idea what to label it as anyway. Eventually, he gave up but she sees the look in his gray eyes from time to time. The Avatar wants more from the Princess.
"That's rather distracting." He murmurs without moving.
Azula shifts her weight to her other foot. "I would think you are accustomed to being stared at by now."
"No one has as intense a stare as you, Azula." She can't see his smile but she hears it in his voice.
The rumor mill of the palace has been busy concocting various scenarios and stories behind their affair. Some claim it is a power play on Azula's part to one day use the Avatar to wrest the throne from Zuko. Others say it is the Fire Lord's way of keeping the Avatar on his side as a warning to the other nations and any enemies that would challenge him.
It's not as if gossip is limited to the gossip mill. Those close to them are just as guilty of speculation and, in some situations, outright accusation.
Ty Lee is curious for details. Azula can tell the acrobat has a more than healthy interest in the Air Bender and what he is capable of when it comes to more intimate matters. More than once, Azula has been tempted spill a few key pieces of information just to see the woman's reaction, but Ty Lee already practically melts into a puddle just when Aang happens to say her name.
Toph knows more than she should and Azula is sure that Aang has not been sharing with the Metal Bender. The woman just has an uncanny ability to uncover things they would rather no one else knew. The taunts and teases mumbled under the girl's breath has been more than enough to spark blue energy at Azula's fingertips, never mind the rather crude things she is prone to shout. Aang is always quick to intervene but the smirk on Toph's face shows she isn't the least bit concerned about facing Azula's wrath.
Katara is silent on the issue though her cerulean eyes speak volumes. There is the unspoken warning in them as she sits by Zuko's side at the dinner table night after night. Not only is the Water Bender concerned for the Avatar's physical well being it seems she is also concerned about his emotional which is rich coming from the woman who has been in love with another man for years while pretending to be the adoring girlfriend. Still, the woman meddles too much for her own good.
Zuko himself is resigned to the fact, though he isn't neutral about it; far from it actually. When they are alone, Zuko tends to corner her about it peppering her with questions about the future, always the future. Does she realize that the future of the Air Benders hangs on Aang? Does she know how much it irks the Avatar that she allows other men to appear to court her? Of course she knows. She can see for herself the effect it has but Azula also knows she won't be put into a glass case like some porcelain doll, even if it is the Avatar doing it.
Azula shakes the dark thoughts off and walks the rest of the way onto the balcony, past the meditating Air Bender until she is near the railing overlooking the private beach below. The clear blue ocean stretches to the horizon and is bathed in a myriad of reds and oranges from the rising sun. Drawing a deep breath, she closes her eyes and feels the sun's fire burn in her veins.
"If you really want to enjoy the sunrise, you should do those breathing exercises I showed you."
Azula doesn't turn away from the ocean view. He's always at her to do this, change that, whether it is meditation, drinking less, or just whatever. It smacks of the spiritual harmony that Iroh would often espouse. The Air Nomads were very spiritual; perhaps that is why nearly every member of the Air Nation was also a bender.
A gentle movement of air behind her alerts her to the fact he is on the move and half a heartbeat later warm arms encircle her from behind, trapping her against the railing. She closes her eyes as his lips find the side of her neck.
Sometimes she is tempted to indulge his requests but part of Azula is stubborn, almost to a fault. Zuko counsels tolerance and an open mind; he would, given some of the less savory traditions of the Water Tribes. Azula has studied up on marriage customs with the help of old books and the more than enthusiastic representative of the Northern Water Tribe. She can't imagine Zuko carving anything, much less presenting Chief Hakoda with fur pelts hunted and cured by his own hand. No doubt Zuko would give it his all in order to gain favor with the Chief. Azula may have to tag along just to watch and, of course, provide sisterly support.
The arms around her waist tighten and one hand finds its way into the open neck of her robe, effectively driving thoughts of the Fire Lord falling through the ice from her head. Reaching back her long nails graze the back of his neck and he hums at the sensation even as his lips find that one spot on her throat that never fails to elicit a shiver from her.
The morning air is cool on her shoulders as he pulls the red silk down and Azula is thankful that the Fire Lord's house has a private beach when the fabric pools around her waist leaving her upper body bare in the sun's rays. His skin is heated as it presses against her back and his hands freely roam across her curves. Azula's deft fingers reach between them and find the ties of his pants. Soon the Avatar is wearing less than she.
From there it spirals quickly as her robe flutters to the floor and he bends her over the railing's edge. Sharp nails dig into the wood but Azula isn't afraid of falling. Having the arms of the world's last Master Air Bender wrapped tight around her gives her a sense of confidence about such things. Pushing up on her tiptoes, she feels his hips align with hers and with a quick thrust he fills her.
There are times he takes her gently but this is not one of those times. Every fiber of muscle in Azula's being tenses to absorb the impact of his body pounding into hers. One hand slides into her hair at the base of her neck and pulls arching her neck backward tearing a moan from her throat. The hand's counterpart grasps her shoulder roughly pulling her against him. The hand slides down the curve of her back skimming the light sheen of sweat coating it until it reaches her hip where those wonderfully long fingers dig into the skin there.
Azula will have bruises but Aang is always careful to keep them hidden, well, almost always. Fortunately, Azula's taste for sparring is a court sport and, while she is a prodigious Fire Bender, she likes the sheer physical triumph of besting her lessers in hand to hand combat. The bruises she acquires from her favorite sparring partner can easily be dismissed, though she does not miss the curious gleam in eyes of officials too polite to inquire about relations with the Air Nation.
Air Bender's can be fickle and the Avatar is no exception. Without warning he pulls her away from the railing and her nails leave deep scratches as she fights to hold on. Unceremoniously she is pushed to the balcony floor. The wood is rough under her knees even more so when the hand on her back pushes her down until her breasts meet the floor. The hand in her hair holds fast forcing her to turn her head to the side as he braces his weight on it, fingers entangled in her tresses keeping her pinned underneath him.
Azula likes control. Most of her day to day existence is an exercise in her amazing ability to control events around her. She has an uncanny knowledge of the thoughts and desires of those around her before they have even had a chance to realize it themselves. However, she can't deny how it feels to be controlled, to be dominated.
The only man more powerful than she is lets out a ragged breath, revealing how deeply affected he is by their union. His other hand pulls her legs farther apart and he delves impossibly deeper. Nimble fingers stroke her just right and Azula feels herself shattering from within ripping the most undignified moan from her. She can't be bothered though as he is soon plowing into her and shouting his own release.
The hand in her hair releases its hold as his heavy weight collapses upon her pushing her hips to the ground. Azula lies in a puddle of ecstasy and satisfaction as she feels his pounding heartbeat against her back and heavy breaths flitting across her heated skin. The morning air should be chilling on her skin as the sweat evaporates but she barely notices as the heat between them is intense and sparking with untamed energy.
Azula's eyes flutter close as she feels him shift against her. His breathing is more even and she knows it is a show of his impressive stamina rather than his Air Bending abilities. She lets out a deep exhale relishing the feel of her lover's body against her own and begins to drift to sleep…that is until one very irate Metal Bender exclaims, "Dammit, Twinkletoes!"