Azula woke up after sunrise for the first time in a long time.

She hadn't done that since the day after the comet, when she had been defeated, humiliated, and put in a cell. Firebenders rose with the sun. Everyone knew that.

Not rising with the sun was… disorienting. For a second, Azula was confused.

Then, she remembered. It was her day off. Uncle had deigned to allow her one day of rest per week.

Azula grinned. At least she wouldn't have to deal with the idiots at the Jasmine Dragon. Yawning, she stretched on her futon, soaking in the rays of the midmorning sun.

Rolling out from under the covers, Azula placed her feet on the wooden floor and walked into the living area. She smiled as she thought she would have the apartment to herself.

She frowned as she saw that wasn't the case.

"Morning, sleepyhead," said the tall Kyoshi Warrior with black hair. Ren or Ran or whatever her name was, Azula didn't care.

"What are you doing here? This is Uncle's apartment."

"You really didn't think we were going to leave you alone, did you?" said Suki.

Azula rolled her eyes. "It's my day off."

"That may be so, but we don't get a day off. We have to make sure you behave."

"I'm sure the Dai Li have this apartment under watch anyway," said Azula.

Suki and the other warrior glanced to the windows. No one was there, but the Dai Li's creepy presence could be felt… somewhere.

"We're doing this for the Fire Lord, not the Earth King," said the tall warrior.

"Ugh. So you're here to spy on Zuzu's little sister for him? Pathetic."

The tall warrior bared her teeth, but Suki held out her arm.

"Don't let her rile you up, Rin." Ah. So that was her name.

Azula strolled over to the small bookshelf Iroh kept. She pulled out a book without looking, stalked over to the low sofa, and flopped down by the window.

Suki arched an eyebrow. "I didn't realize you were a fan of romance."

"What?" Azula looked at the cover of her book. Sure enough, it was a romance novel, titled Secret Tunnel of Love.

Azula scoffed. "It's not my fault if all Uncle has for reading materials is this drivel." Glaring at Suki, she opened the book to the first page, and began reading.

Suki smirked. She glanced at the bookshelf. There were lots of different books, fiction and nonfiction, about many different things and in many different genres. But now, for some reason, Azula's pride kept her reading the romance book that she clearly had no love for. She could easily just go and pick out another book. Iroh had much more than just romance.

Suki knew about Secret Tunnel of Love. It was a sappy, over-the-top book dramatizing the story of Oma and Shu, the first earthbenders. It had cringey and unbelievable dialogue, and Suki had to put it down halfway through and never picked it up again.

She wondered how long Azula would last. Azula quietly flipped the page.

Suki shot a glance to Rin. Arna would come later to switch out with one of them, and then the person who had been resting would switch out with the person who stayed after that.

It was strange, seeing Azula in her knee-length nightgown, legs tucked under her, reading on the sunny spot of the sofa. She looked almost… harmless.

Suki leaned against the wall, tense and ready to go if Azula tried anything. Rin settled onto a nearby chair.

They didn't know what to expect guarding Azula at home, but if this continued on, it was shaping up to be a very boring day.

0-0-0

Azula frowned at the book as she turned another page. She honestly didn't care what was happening in the book. It was just something to do. She should honestly stop reading this drivel and try to practice in the yard…

And yet, something possessed her to keep turning the pages. Okay, maybe she found this bit of dialogue witty. Maybe she was a tad curious to see what would happen next to that character. She still thought it was a stupid Earth Kingdom book. A piece of trash that couldn't compare to the High Art of Fire Nation literature.

Not that she cared much for Fire Nation literature either. That was always Zuzu's specialty.

She flipped another page as she heard someone's stomach growl.

"Quiet!" she snapped.

Azula could see the Kyoshi Warriors shift in the corner of her eye.

"Um, Azula… that was you…" came Suki's voice.

Azula looked up from the book. "What?"

Azula heard the growl again this time. It was undoubtedly coming from her. She could feel it, too. Azula's face grew hot.

"It's a little past two o'clock," said Suki, unprompted.

"And you didn't think to tell me?" asked Azula.

Suki shrugged. "You were reading."

Azula looked down at the book in her hands. She was almost a quarter of the way through. When had that happened? If Suki was telling the truth, then Azula was reading for over four hours straight. She growled and placed the book face-down on the sofa. She got up, stretched, and made her way to her room. She needed to get into some real clothes.

0-0-0

Suki glanced at the spot Azula was. It was kind of entertaining, watching the princess get slowly sucked into reading the book. As the day wore on, Azula had moved across the couch to stay in the warm sunlight, like a slinking owlcat. At the start she was perched at the edge of the sofa, but by noon she was in the center. Even better, Azula didn't even seem to realize she was doing it.

Do all firebenders seek the sun like that? wondered Suki.

Azula also hadn't noticed Arna switch out for Rin. Or that Arna had brought lunch. Or that her own serving of the lunch was on the low table, uneaten and getting cold.

As the princess made her way to her room, Suki shot Arna a glance. They heard the door click shut.

"Has she been like this all day?"

Suki nodded. "She hasn't looked up from that book once. I guess she really enjoys it? I dunno, I could never finish it, it was too cringey."

Arna shot a glance to the book. "It looks like Azula disagrees," she said, pointing to the sofa.

Suki followed Arna's gaze. Sure enough, Azula had placed the open book face-down, so as not to lose her place.

This is just too good, thought Suki. Azula would never admit to actually liking it. Suki tried thinking of ways to work it into conversation to get a rise out of Azula.

Azula returned to the room, dressed in the outfit she had worn as Conqueror of Ba Sing Se. The golden Dai Li symbol was prominent on Azula's abdomen. Suki raised her eyebrow.

"What now?" snapped Azula.

Suki gestured to her clothes. Azula scoffed.

"Apparently, Zuzu had it packed for me. As well as several replicas. I guess he thought I wore it because I liked it, not because it showed my power over the Dai Li."

"You're not in charge of the Dai Li, anymore, Azula."

"It's not like I'm going to wear my stupid tea shop uniform on my day off."

Suki shot a look to Arna. Arna shrugged.

Azula picked up a pot, filled it with water, and placed it on the stovetop. With a flick of her fingers, she lit the burner underneath.

Suki could have pointed out that Azula had a perfectly fine (if a little cold, but Azula could easily reheat it) lunch on the table already, but she wanted to see this. She couldn't imagine pampered Princess Azula actually knowing how to cook for herself.

Azula waited for the pot to come to a boil, before placing a bundle of uncooked noodles into the bubbling water. She let the noodles cook for about three minutes, stirring occasionally. Once they were ready, she flicked her wrist and the flames went out. She grabbed a small packet from the cupboard, and opened it.

Suki recognized the smell from across the room. Fire Nation spices.

Azula poured the contents of the packet into the simmering pot, and then began to stir vigourously. Once the spices were spread out over all the noodles, Azula got a bowl and began to scoop noodles into it with some chopsticks.

"I didn't know you could cook," said Arna.

Azula glared at the waterbending Kyoshi Warrior. "I hunted my useless brother and uncle, and the Avatar, across the Earth Kingdom for months. Of course I know how to cook my own meals."

Suki nodded, feeling a grudging respect for the princess. At least she wasn't that spoiled.

It was a very low bar, though.

Azula sat down at the low table, eyeing the lunch that Arna brought suspiciously. She pushed it away, and began to eat the noodles she cooked herself.

It was very subtle, but Azula seemed to relax as she scooped the noodles into her mouth.

"You're going to have to get some new clothes, you know," said Arna.

Azula arched an eyebrow. "So you're going to critique my fashion?"

"You can't walk around the city with a giant Dai Li logo on your chest."

Azula frowned at her clothes. "I suppose you're right…"

Arna stood up. "After lunch, grab your money. We're going shopping."

"We?"

"You can't leave the house without a chaperone, Princess. Earth King's orders."

Azula huffed. "Fine."

"And grab a cloak, too. Gotta cover up that symbol."

Suki looked at Arna. Arna was from the Northern Water tribe, and only joined the Kyoshi Warriors after the war's end. Unlike the other Kyoshi Warriors, and most of the people in Ba Sing Se, she never suffered from Azula's actions personally. The Fire Nation as a whole, sure, but not Azula. Suki supposed this was why Arna seemed like it was a good idea to suggest a shopping trip with Azula.

Suki felt a pang in her chest as she thought of Sokka. He loved shopping. Maybe she should pick something up for him.

Azula finished her noodles and went off to her room. Suki looked over at Arna.

"You really think it's a good idea to take her out?"

Arna shrugged. "The Earth King said she could go out with an escort."

"He said she couldn't go out without an escort. Kinda of different."

Arna shrugged again. "Still, he basically implies that he knows she will go out, so she can as long as we're with her."

Suki shot a look to Azula's room. "She's extremely tricky, Arna. Don't let her out of your sight. You haven't experienced Azula like I have."

Arna nodded. "Don't worry. I'll be ready."

0-0-0

Azula didn't really want to spend her hard-earned money already, but she did want to see something other than the apartment.

She also wanted to leave her babysitters behind, but no luck there.

Suki and Arna followed her out onto the street. Together, the three of them made their way towards the market area.

Azula pulled the black cloak she was wearing over her shoulders. She didn't know where the Dai Li were, and she didn't like not knowing. She didn't like the uncertainty of what they would try to do. Even though Azula was an excellent fighter, she wouldn't be able to take them all on together.

Not to mention, the Kyoshi Warriors definitely knew chi-blocking. And Azula knew very well how slippery chi-blockers were.

As soon as they made their way into the clothing store, Azula noticed a problem. All the prices were in gold pieces. Azula only had silver pieces. She knew that a certain amount of silver pieces equaled a gold piece, but that amount was different between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom. She also didn't know either off the top of her head. Not that it mattered, because all the prices were in the hundreds; there was no way she had enough.

Still, Azula didn't say anything. She looked at the various clothes with feigned nonchalance.

"Wow, everything here is really fancy!" said Arna.

"Hmm," hummed Azula.

"She's right, Az—Mianju," said Suki. "Are you sure you can afford anything here?"

Azula ignored her.

"See anything you like, miss?" asked a clerk, coming to her side.

Azula left the rack she was looking at, heading towards the door. "No."

The clerk's face fell, but Azula didn't see it. Suki and Arna followed after her.

"What was that?" asked Arna.

Azula ignored her, crossing her arms and looking around.

"Azula," whispered Suki, "you didn't have enough, did you?"

"Well, what did you expect, when I'm making a peasant's salary?"

Suki tilted her head. "What?"

"Seven silver pieces a day? What am I going to do with that?"

Suki and Arna's eyes both widened. "Seven? Seven pieces every day?"

Azula raised her eyebrow. "Yes?"

Suki shook her head. "Azula, that's not a peasant's wage."

"Of course it is. Jin makes the exact same amount."

Arna looked at Suki. "I had no idea Iroh was so generous," she said in a low voice.

Azula was trying to understand what was happening. Something clearly was getting lost in translation. "Generous?"

Suki looked Azula in the eye. "The average Lower Ringer in Ba Sing Se makes one silver piece a day."

Azula thought that a punch to the face would have been less shocking. "What?!"

"And that's just the average. There's a lot of Lower Ringers who walk home with fifty copper pieces in their pockets, instead."

Azula opened and closed her mouth. "How… how many copper pieces are in a silver piece?"

"A hundred," Suki offered automatically.

Azula quickly did the math in her head. Along with buying food, and tools, and other necessities, the total would be…

A lot more than a single silver piece.

"How… how do you survive on one silver piece?"

Suki shrugged. "People make do. You either find ways to survive, or you die. The Lower Ring isn't exactly the picture of wealth."

Azula was still reeling from this information.

"Maybe the Middle Ring has some more affordable clothes. Let's go," said Arna, taking off to one of the monorail stations.

Azula and Suki followed, and the three purchased monorail tickets and made their way to the Middle Ring. Before long, they were in a clothing store, and Arna was right; the clothes were much more affordable. And also much more varied in style. There were qipaos and hanboks, a few kimonos, all in various shades of green.

"Suki! Arna! A—Mianju! Hi!" came a cheery voice. Azula turned around to see Jin making her way towards them.

"Jin! What are you doing here?" asked Suki.

"Well, usually I hang out with friends on my day off, but they all had their own things going on today, so decided to just wander around the Middle Ring. Look at the stuff." She shrugged. "What are you guys doing down here?"

"Just some clothes shopping for Az—for Mianju," said Arna.

"Ooo! That seems fun! Anything catch your eye, Mianju?"

Azula glanced around the store. Her eyes caught on a dark green dress with yellow designs. Shiny threads in the designs sparkled and caught her eye.

A little like fire.

"That one," Azula said, pointing at the dress.

"Go try it on!"

Azula looked to Jin. "Try it on?"

"Um, yeah?"

"Won't I just get measured and they'll tailor it to my size?"

Arna started giggling.

"What?" asked Azula.

"You gotta go find a tailor and pay them for that. Otherwise, you just work with the sizes they have."

Azula stared at Arna. "Fine."

Azula took the dress, and went to go try it on. Suki waited outside the fitting room.

"How is it, Mianju?"

Azula did not respond. It didn't fit her properly.

"It doesn't fit, does it?"

"Shut up. It's just a tad large."

"Let's see it."

Azula scowled, and opened the curtain. Immediately, Suki and Arna burst out laughing. The sleeves went over Azula's hands, and the hem of the skirt went much further than Azula's legs.

Azula scoffed and crossed her arms. She would not be made to feel like a fool.

The only one not laughing was Jin. "Oh, that's actually pretty good! You can easily hem it yourself so it fits! I think you should get it!"

Azula did not mention that she didn't know the first thing about hemming. "No, I think I'll just get something else," she sighed.

"Most clothes already come a little large anyway. It's easier for shorter people to just hem the clothes than it is for taller people to wear clothes that are too short." Jin tapped her chin. "I wonder if Avatar Kyoshi had anything to do with that."

Suki perked up. "Maybe! She was the tallest of any Avatar, you know!"

Azula sighed. "Fine, if you insist. Does this city have any practical wear? I can't practice bending in a skirt."

Arna looked at her own skirt. Without the black armor and makeup, her Kyoshi Warrior uniform seemed perfectly ordinary. "I'd beg to differ."

Azula narrowed her eyes. What would a nonbender know? Firebending had many moves that have flips and jumps; not to mention, all that loose fabric would be a fire hazard.

"Oh, yeah. There's another store near here that sells those kind of clothes. Why don't you buy that, and I'll lead you there?"

0-0-0

Azula changed back, bought the dress, and then followed Jin to the aforementioned store with practical wear. After selecting a suitable outfit that resembled her Dai Li uniform, minus the symbol, Azula paid for the outfit and considered her mission a success.

"We should be getting back to the Upper Ring soon," said Suki. "I'm due to switch out with Rin."

The four girls made their way to the monorail station, where they got in line to purchase tickets to the Upper Ring.

"Passport?" asked the lady in the ticket booth.

Suki and Arna took out their passports. Azula frowned at them. Earth Kingdom passports looked like green bookmarks, made out of some kind of wood. A dedicated carpenter with a hobby for painting could easily make a forgery. Fire Nation passports were little maroon booklets, with a person's information and blank pages for entry and exit stamps. Azula knew that the pages were made of a special paper, and had tiny, difficult-to-replicate designs on them to make forgery more difficult.

"Three tickets to the Upper Ring, please," said Suki.

"Number Three needs a passport, too," said the ticket booth lady.

Arna and Suki both looked to Azula, who shuffled.

"I… don't have a passport."

"You left it in the apartment?" asked Suki.

Azula shook her head. "I don't have one. No one ever said I needed one."

"Passports are required to enter the Upper Ring," said the lady.

Suki looked to her, then snatched her and Arna's passports back. She marched over to Azula, grabbed her arm, and dragged her over to where Jin was sitting, watching the group.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"She needs a passport to get to the Upper Ring. Is there an office we can go to or something?" asked Suki.

Jin started tugging on her braid. "Um… the passport offices are all closed today. They don't open until none o'clock tomorrow."

"Well then what am I gonna do?" shouted Azula.

Jin tapped her chin. "Do one of you have passports? Someone should tell Mr. Mushi."

"One of us needs to stay with Mianju," said Suki.

Arna turned to Suki. "You go tell Ir—Mushi—what's going on. I'll stay here with her." She gestured at Azula.

"You sure you can handle it?"

"I'm sure."

Jin waved her hand. "Since you guys will be kinda stranded here until the Transportation Offices open tomorrow, you can come stay at my place! I'm sure my parents won't mind!"

Arna's mouth dropped open. "Jin, we really can't ask that of you, we'll be fine—"

"Please, I insist," said Jin. She looked at Azula. "As long as you're okay with it."

Azula sniffed. "I've slept in worse places."

"Great!" said Jin, ignoring the insult. "My house is in the Lower Ring. Let's get going!"

Author's Note:

Azula learns some of the harsh realities of the "peasants" she's so disdainful of. To be fair, she never had a frame of reference for how much things cost and what an average wage is before.

Iroh may have made some mistakes in previous chapters, but he pays his employees fairly. Seven silver pieces is more than enough for a living wage in the Middle and Lower Rings, where most of his employees come from (many of them being University Students or people he's met when going about Ba Sing Se).

Jin continues to be a sweetheart. Also, Azula doesn't know that Arna is a waterbender.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please let me know what you think! :D