The training had been particularly hard for Azula that day. She wasn't even supposed to be training that morning, and she had even snuck into her brother's room so they could play together past their bedtime since she thought they'd both get to sleep a little more the following day. But her father would always find a way to her training more difficult, to test how her limits and see just how strong she really was. Honestly, this time she didn't care that much. Having to practice her firebending and repeat every form a million times while she was tired was much better than having to spar with her father and pretend he didn't hurt her - she knew he never meant to hurt her, but sometimes he seemed to forget that, as powerful as she was, she was still a kid.
Thankfully, he was in a good mood, and the training was far more like it used to be when she had been just starting to learn how to control her flames. He was clearly more pleased and prouder of her than he usually was, and he actually talked to her once they were done. She had always liked their little talks, but it seemed he had less and less time for her, so these moments became much rarer.
Though there was one subject she had not imagined he would bring up.
"You've been spending a lot more time with your brother. Why is that?"
It really had taken Ozai almost an entire month to ask her that. If weren't for the few somewhat confused and surprised expressions he'd make whenever he saw her and Zuko enjoying each other's company and if her father wasn't always going on and on about how people in their position should always play attention to everything around them, Azula would have assumed he had never noticed they were becoming close friends again. Really, she should have expected his reaction to be very different from Ursa's; her father was a practical man, and he didn't waste his time with unimportant things.
But while Azula could understand that, and was well aware that this was convenient for her, she found herself wishing that her friendship with Zuko did matter to him, since it mattered to her. Even her mother, who had never truly liked her, or at least not as much as she liked Zuko, was happy that they were getting along again, and it was clear that it wasn't just because it made life easier for her, but because it made both of her kids happy. She couldn't understand why her dad didn't seem to care that she was happier now, despite how close they had always been to each other.
He must have his reasons. I'll probably understand when I'm his age. It's not personal. And besides, I can't complain. Mother yells at me all the time for not caring about things that are important to her, but not to me. This is no different.
She already had a very careful, almost genuine answer for his question anyways, so there was no need to go over his motives to ask, or not ask, anything about the situation.
"Well, whether I like it or not, he is family, and as much of a royal as I am. We're gonna have to be around each other, so it's better for everyone if we get along, right?" her tone was a bit more unsure than she had meant for it to come out. She couldn't help but get a bit over-apologetic and self-conscious around her father, even during a casual conversation.
Ozai nodded and Azula felt a huge weight being lifted off her shoulders, but she could tell he couldn't quite understand her logic. After all, the only way he and his own brother managed to 'get along' was by being as far away from each other as possible.
"And the lessons you give him? It must be difficult trying to make Zuko of all people learn anything"
"Actually, he's doing much better than I thought he would. He's nothing special, but not bad either" for some reason, Azula always felt a little strange complimenting her brother, but it was even harder to do so in front of Ozai. Some part of her seemed to still be waiting for all of this to go up in flames and for things to go back to the way they were, with her and Zuko arguing all day, every day, for absolutely everything, fighting each other as fiercely as their nation's army was doing against their enemies.
"As long as it doesn't get in the way of your own training, you can keep helping him. Agni knows he needs it. And it makes your mother stop being so over-dramatic about the two of you being difficult"
She doesn't think Zuko is a difficult child, the princess wanted to say, but bit her tongue. Ozai didn't appreciate being corrected, hated listening to people whining about silly things, and, despite having obvious problems with how Ursa did... well, everything, she was still his wife, which meant any kind of disrespect directed at her, in his eyes, was also directed at him.
"You can go rest now"
The princess bowed respectfully to him, and left. As she walked through the hallways, she continued, without even meaning to, to try and come up with some kind of justification for her father's apathy. It didn't last long, as usual, as she had one very good reason to try and find something else to take her mind away from that train of thought:
Dad would be mad if he knew I'm questioning him.
That never failed to put her in line.
Zuko would have never guessed how that day would have ended. One second he was running through the gardens with his sister, the two of them laughing, enjoying themselves. The next... Lu Ten was gone.
They both knew that was a possibility, after all even the strongest of warriors could fall in battle, but it still felt like something that couldn't be true. But it was, and Zuko could tell that, even though she was trying to hide it, Azula was hurting too. Just a few weeks before her 'indifference' would have been enough to trick him, and he would have been furious at how she was acting - much like his mother was - but now he knew better than to just believe everything she did, especially the things she did to imitate Ozai. As much as he loved his dad, he didn't like the way he made Azula act.
But he knew there was nothing he could do about it, so instead of worrying about it, he tried being there for his sister. The more time they spent together, the less he could stand to see her hurt or upset. And even though she was annoyed by having him constantly follow her around all day, he just couldn't leave her side, not even when she lashed out at him at night and practically kicked him out of her room. He just had to check on her at least one more time.
But he did not expect to see her clutching a stuffed animal. And judging by the angry expression on her face when she noticed his presence, if she had not been embarrassed, she would be hitting him with that old blue dragon Lu Ten had given her when she was a toddler.
"I told you to get out!" she whined, pouting and with an indignant look in her eyes. Seeing her like that would have made him laugh in some other circumstance.
"I'm sorry, I just wanted to make sure you were-"
"I know! And I told you a million times that I'm fine! Now leave" her voice cracked on the last word, as if she was fighting back tears.
Hesitantly, awkwardly, Zuko patted her on the head, feeling the same anxiety he would have if he were doing it to a wild, dangerous animal that could attack him at any second. His sister, of course, noticed his discomfort, and as it often did, it seemed to amuse her and she cheered up just a little.
"I don't bite, dum-dum"
"Yes, you do" he argued "You used to bite me all the time"
"I was little then"
"You're still little" he couldn't help but tease "Weren't you complaining about being the shortest girl in your class just the other day?"
She answered by punching him in the gut, making him grunt in pain. He looked at her in both anger and annoyance, but it all melted away the second he heard her little chuckle. If his misery amused her, then he could put up with it. When she offered him a shy little smile, he couldn't help but return it. Zuko then stroked her hair and caressed her cheek, a bit surer of himself this time. Azula leaned into his touch.
"Are you really okay?"
She nodded "I just want to be alone for a while, okay?"
He didn't want to leave, but Azula had already turned away, hugging her plushy and shutting him off. He wanted to find some way of comforting his baby sister, but he didn't know how - he didn't even know how to process his own emotions at that moment.
Feeling defeated, he tucked her in, and left her room.
The young prince had never thought he'd be so glad to go to yet another one of the audience's his father had arranged with Azulon. It had been years, yet Ozai still didn't seem to understand that the Fire Lord would just never care about his attempts to impress him - and Ozai had the nerve to call Zuko a 'slow learner'. But as unpleasant as these disasters were, they were still preferable to the absolute hell that was having to listen to his mom and Azula fighting yet again.
Their mother had been completely right to be mad at Azula; she had said unbelievably cruel things about their uncle, and right after he had just lost his son. He had keep reminding himself that Azula was just lashing out because she was hurting, but every time she'd speak up he'd find himself wanting to yell her... just like their mother was doing before they were all called to the throne room.
They could all tell something was off right away. Ozai looked way too happy, like he often would whenever he did anything he was sure would end up benefiting him somehow. But that was just never what happened whenever Azulon was involved, and it always led to them having to put up with his anger for days or even weeks.
Azulon told him to go on with whatever it was that he wanted to do - as long as it really was important. Despite the clear warning that the Fire Lord's patience was already running low, Ozai decided to risk it, and asked Azula to come forward and demonstrate her progress on her firebending.
Whatever it was that he wanted, it must have been something big. He usually saved Azula's talents and status as a prodigy for last, a way to regain some sympathy whenever he screwed up. If he was starting out with her, it truly had to be an urgent matter.
Azula, of course, was absolutely perfect on her demonstration, and for once Zuko wasn't feeling even a hint of jealousy. He simply watched her every move, fascinated by every little thing she did, feeling proud of his baby sister and rooting for her. Yet Azulon watched her amazing performance as if it had been the most tedious thing to ever happen in the whole world. The young prince couldn't help but feel a bit offended on her behalf, and he knew that despite how calm and collected Azula seemed to be, inside she was likely absolutely furious.
What he had not expected, however, was for Azula to then challenge him to demonstrate his skills.
"You should show them what you've got" she whispered and gave him a predatory smile "Unless you're too scared to face a walking corpse like grandpa"
For a brief moment, Zuko wondered if his sister wasn't trying to trick him into making a fool out of himself just so she wouldn't be the only one upset. He was ashamed of himself for considering it, but it would not have been the first time Azula did something like that to him. But he decided to trust her. While she could still be a manipulative, insufferable brat, he wanted to believe that this wasn't completely malicious, but simply another dare that Azula used both to have fun and to actually push him to be a better firebender.
So the young prince got up, and said he'd like demonstrate what he had been learning. While his father had seemed almost proud of his progress before, on that moment he was visibly angry at him, obviously expecting Zuko to make some foolish mistake and embarrass himself, and his dad, in front of Azulon.
Despite the overwhelming pressure, he had never felt so confident, and he was pretty sure he had never performed that well. He followed his sister's instructions and ignored what he already knew damn well worked for her, but not for him. He had also had failed at the usual fighting stances more than enough to realize he'd just never adapt to it. Instead, he focused on incorporating some of the things he had learned with Master Piandao, creating fire daggers to better illustrate what he could do if he had an actual blade in hands, and adding some of the less tradition fighting moves he had learned.
But there was one thing he did manage to do just like his sister. While he wasn't quite as agile as she was, he could move quickly and attack in treacherous, sudden ways like Azula could. Feeling a bit bold, he even used one of her favorite moves, creating flames with just two fingers and making said flames act like the world's sharpest blades.
His grandfather had been just as indifferent as he had been during Azula's demonstration of her bending, Ozai seemed pleasantly surprised for once, and Ursa looked absolutely proud. But all Zuko could focus on was his sister's strange reaction, which was hard to read, as usual, seeming to be a mix of disdain, pride and amusement. Zuko sat right next to her, smirking and raising an eye-brow, which clearly annoyed Azula. Despite that, their 'competition' felt like just another one of their games, and it helped them not think about his cousin, even if just for a little while, so Zuko assumed it had to be something good, even if it was still a bit tangled up with their (past?) rivalry.
They both watched as their father looked at Azulon like he was expecting something big - or at the very least any sign of mild interest. It was strange seeing him quite clearly not being the one in control during a situation and needing someone else's approval. They knew Azulon was the Fire Lord and was therefore above all others, even his own family, but they couldn't help but just expect their dad to always be the authority figure everyone answered to.
"Prince Ozai, why are you wasting my time with this pomp? Just tell me what you want. Everyone else, go!"
Their mother instantly obeyed, and Zuko started following her, but was suddenly dragged back into the throne room by his sister. She didn't let him even try to argue, and they both hid behind the curtains. Zuko was terrified of getting caught - facing Ozai's fury was bad enough, but potentially having to deal with Azulon's wrath as well left him paralyzed with fear for a few moments. Azula on the other hand, just seemed curious.
"Father, you must have realized as I have, that with Lu Ten gone, Iroh's bloodline has ended. After his son's death, my brother abandoned the siege at Ba Sing Se, and who knows when he will return home. But I am here, Father, and my children are alive"
"Say what is it you want!" Azulon demanded even though Ozai's intentions were very clear by that point.
"Father, revoke Iroh's birthright. I am your humble servant, here to serve you and our nation. Use me"
"You dare suggest I betray Iroh? My first born? Directly after the demise of his only beloved son? I think Iroh has suffered enough! But you... your punishment has scarcely begun!"
The flames behind Azulon grew unbelievably fast, scaring Zuko away. He tried leaving, but once again Azula didn't let him, forcing him to hear something that he had never expected anyone, let alone his grandfather, would ever demand of someone.
"You must know the pain of losing a first-born son. By sacrificing your own!"
This time, Azula was the one who seemed panicked, staring at Zuko with wide eyes, then dragging him out of the room, through the hallways, and into her chambers, locking the door. They barely had the time to breathe before they heard a knock on the door, making them both jump.
"Children, are you okay?" Zuko heard his mother ask and immediately felt safer. She would know what to do, she was one of the few people Ozai would occasionally listen to, and she knew how to handle him better than anyone. Going against his sister's wishes, he opened the door to Ursa and immediately told her what they heard. She was absolutely appalled "Are you sure this is what you two heard?" she asked, grabbing him by the shoulders.
"Yes! Mom, you gotta help me"
She pulled him in for a hug, holding him tight "I'll handle this. You just stay here with your sister and lock the door. Don't let anyone in and don't get out until I come back"
Without another word, their mother left, and Zuko instantly locked the door just like she told him to. He also made Azula drag some of the furniture to block it, just in case.
This won't be enough. Dad can burn down this entire room in seconds. If he wants me dead, I'm dead.
I'm dead...
Azula put a hand on his shoulder "Calm down, Zuzu. Mother will make them see this is ridiculous. Killing one of our own for such a silly reason would just make us seem weaker and stupider in our enemy's eyes. Dad won't go through with it" when he didn't respond, she made him look at her "Everything will go back to normal in a few days, dum-dum"
She had no idea how wrong she was.