"What are you thinking about?" Suki asked, and Azula startled out of her musing.

"Oh, um," Azula fussed with her skirts, "Nothing really, just thinking."

"About?" Suki raised her eyebrows over her teacup. The two of them had gotten into the habit of sharing tea together while the boys were out doing whatever it was that boys did while they were unsupervised except for fawns. Nothing good, Azula assumed. Today their impromptu tea party was taking place on the veranda overlooking the ocean, nymphs hurrying past every so often to deliver yet another sample tray of sweets, trying to figure out their still-new child queens' preferences.

"My uncle loved tea. He always tried to get me to come drink with him before he followed Zuko into exile." Azula had never really cared for the tea her uncle served, but since coming to Narnia had discovered a weakness for mint tea with almost more honey in it than mint, "Of course, he'd probably have an apoplexy over how I take my tea now."

Suki snorted inelegantly, trying to cover it up with another sip from her cup, "A purist, was he?"

"You could put it like that," Azula allowed with a grin, taking a bite from one of the latest pastries brought by. She felt her eyes widen. Ooh, that was good. It was an oblong pastry, filled with sweet cream and topped with a shiny coating of the dark substance the narnians called chocolate. Azula was instantly in love and discreetly claimed the rest of them.

Suki retaliated by stealing all the miniature lemon tarts, but that was alright. The nymphs had noticed and brought out full trays of the tarts and the oblong pastries. Azula wondered how on earth they were making all these sweets so quickly.

"Do you miss them?" Suki asked abruptly.

"Pardon?" Azula blinked.

"Your uncle. Your brother. Your parents. Do you miss them?" Suki asked.

Azula frowned, thinking about it. "Mother has been gone for a long time, and our relationship was never good, not for lack of trying on her part, though. I don't miss her really, anymore, but knowing what I know now I do wish I'd been closer to her. Father… I love him, but he wasn't good for me, I have the perspective to see that now. Not for me, not for Zuko, maybe even not for the Fire Nation." Aslan had been very helpful in guiding Azula to the truth.

"My parents both died when I was young, but I do miss the other Kyoshi warriors," Suki admitted, "Joining them was always my dream, and I was set to make captain before coming here."

"Do you regret it?" Azula asked, "Becoming queen rather than returning home to become the captain?"

"Not really," Suki shrugged, "I might always wonder what if, but, well, Narnia needed me more, and I love the life we're building here. Do you regret not staying to inherit the fire nation?"

"Never," Azula swore immediately, "I shudder to think what state I would have been in by the time I took the throne from my father, if he ever gave it up at all. Besides, it's Zuko's birthright, not mine."

"Fair enough," Suki shrugged, taking another bite of her tart, "And for what it's worth, I'm glad you're here. I can't think of anyone I'd rather have as my fellow queen."

"You're just saying that because I can manage the Calormen ambassador when all you want is to take his head off," Azula snorted.

"You don't have to say it like that," Suki scowled, "Speaking of, do you know when the boys are supposed to be back?"

"Half an hour ago," Azula determined, squinting at the sun, "Do you think Teo broke his axle?"

"Again? He's already done it twice since our coronation!" Suki exclaimed.

"We should set some of the dwarves to making him something sturdier if this keeps up," Azula agreed.

"Wait, here they come now," Suki pointed to where the boys' little herd was trooping up the beach, all clearly in high spirits with Teo clinging to Laith's back and two of the satyrs carrying his chair. Nonetheless, they were all grinning so widely that Azula could see the smiles from here.

"Bets that they made a mess we're going to need to clean up?" Azula asked, sipping her tea.

Suki laughed. "No bet."