Two weeks later. Somewhere off the coast of the north pole.

The smell of sea salt was thick in the air. Huge waves battered against the side of the ship, violently rocking it from side to side. Heavy rain pelted down from dark clouds, and the sky rumbled with the sound of distant thunder.

But amidst all the turbulence - completely unperturbed by the maelstrom of nature surrounding her - was a girl. She stood there beneath the outer roof of the swaying deck of the ship. Her arms were folded calmly behind her, and her back was to the world as she stared out at the horizon.

Heavy, burgundy colored armor shined from the constant assault of rain and sea-spray. She stood there imperiously, unmoving and unwavering, like a small beacon of stillness in an ocean of chaos.

"Princess!" the ship's captain called loudly to be heard over the pounding rain.

Two ebony locks of hair swayed in the wind as she turned to look at him. They framed a pair of piercing gold eyes that were narrowed in annoyance. In the captain's opinion, she greatly resembled a hawk, one that was looking at a particularly bothersome mouse to be specific.

"What is it Captain? What news have you to report?" she asked silkily.

The grey-bearded sea captain shivered. Whether it was because of the way she was looking at him, or if it was because of the icy rain was anyone's guess. He bowed respectfully before straightening up and saluting in a fluid movement that one could only get from years of practice.

"As requested, I am here to inform you that the drop point is rapidly approaching. We should reach it by noon tomorrow at the latest."

Azula said nothing. She simply stared at the captain, privately enjoying how he seemed unnerved by her silence. But the captain was much too experienced to make a novice mistake like speaking to her out of turn, so he remained at a disciplined position of attention.

Finally she grew bored and waved him away. "Consider it duly noted," she said succinctly, before turning her back on him once more. To her growing annoyance however, the captain did not leave her presence. Instead, he bowed so low his nose almost touched the deck and spoke to her once again.

"Begging your forgiveness, your highness, but the storm isn't going to clear for at least three days. Our forecasters predict that it will only worsen as we travel further north. Attempting a landing under those conditions would not be possible..."

At first it appeared that she had not heard him. But then she spoke in a whisper that was somehow heard over the howling of the wind and pelting rain.

"I'm sorry Captain, but I do not know much about storms. Could you explain something for me?"

"Of course, your highness."

"Does the storm command this ship?"

The captain stammered for a second before answering. "Uh. I'm afraid I don't understand."

"You said the storm would make it impossible to attempt a landing. Does the storm command this ship?"

"No princess," came the hasty reply.

"And if I were to throw you overboard, would the storm think twice before smashing you into the icy glaciers?" she asked casually.

The captain visibly swallowed. "No princess."

"Well then," she paused to tuck a lock behind her ear. "Maybe you should worry less about the tides, who've already made up their mind about killing you, and worry more about me, who's still mulling it over," she said, finishing the threat up with a malevolent glare that made clear how serious she was.

The captain bowed deeply once more. "I'll prepare the ship for landing," he said, before beating a hasty retreat.

Narrowed golden eyes watched him leave until he disappeared out of sight. Then, finally, her shoulders relaxed as she felt herself become alone once more. Or rather, almost alone. There was only one person on the ship with whom she felt comfortable letting her guard down.

"You can come out now Lieutenant Aizon. The Captain's scurried off like the worthless rat he is," she said with disgust audible in her voice.

For a few seconds nothing was heard except the ever-present sound of pattering rain and crashing waves. Then there was an almost indiscernible sigh, followed by the sound of footsteps drawing nearer from around the corner.

"How did you know I was there?" he asked curiously.

"That's how did you know I was there, princess, Lieutenant Aizon," she corrected, before turning to face him.

Just like her, he seemed completely at ease with the raging storm around them. His face was a mask of perfect composure, and not a single speck of dirt marred his crisp red and grey Fire Army uniform.

It gave her a feeling of deep satisfaction to see how her lessons had sunk in. It would have been a shame if her efforts on him had been wasted, so she was glad he hadn't regressed back to the slob he had been.

After being dismissed from the Imperial Guard, Aizon had been reassigned to a part of the army reserve for the capital defence forces. Azula had specially requested that he be put there, because being reserve meant he would have plenty of time to focus on her training.

But now that she was looking at him in a uniform, she almost regretted not asking for him to be placed in a more active service branch. Azula would never admit it to him, but she privately thought he looked quite smart all buttoned up as he was.

"Must we stand on ceremony Azula?" he asked in a somewhat exasperated tone.

She raised an eyebrow, looking pointedly at him.

Aizon barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. "I mean, must we stand on ceremony, princess?" he corrected himself.

She favored him for a brief moment by stretching her rosy lips into a half-smile. "Yes, Lieutenant Aizon. The niceties must be observed. Else, we may ourselves become no better than the snow savages whom we seek to destroy."

Aizon nodded awkwardly, his unease increasing as a question he had been asking himself a lot recently reared its ugly head in the back of his mind once again. Did Azula regret the kisses they had shared? Aizon didn't know, and he was almost afraid to hear the answer.

After their mutual confessions that night before they boarded this ship for the north pole, Aizon had expected that their relationship would deepen. Instead, it seemed to have reverted completely.

Azula had started acting aloof around him again, like their kisses had never even happened. She treated him no differently than she treated any of the other officers onboard. That is to say, not with any special fondness.

Aizon couldn't decide if he should've been offended or not. On one hand, he had to constantly remind himself that she was the freaking princess. And as such, she didn't owe him or anyone else anything.

But on the other hand, they had kissed! Aizon hardly thought she would kiss just anyone. In fact, he had kind of got the impression that they had shared a first kiss together. Surely that, and the fact they had admitted their mutual like for each other counted for something, right?

Yet despite all that, the fact remained that Azula hadn't actually said anything about their relationship changing. All she had said was that he had "graduated" from being her student, which Aizon had assumed meant to be her boyfriend.

Seeing as she had immediately kissed him right after saying it, that had seemed like a logical conclusion at the time. And if it had been anyone else, Aizon wouldn't have thought twice about it. The implications were clear.

But this was Azula they were talking about. A person with a growing reputation for being a master of deceit and manipulation. So after spending far too much time thinking about it, Aizon had come to the conclusion that the assumption he would be her boyfriend was just that.

An assumption.

She could have just as easily had the literal meaning of her words in mind. That he had graduated from being her student and nothing more. The obvious solution was to just ask her about it, but Aizon was hesitant to do so.

As much as he felt himself attracted to her, and as much as he admired and respected her, Aizon also feared her equally as much. Azula had a sadistic streak a mile wide, and she was ruthless to those whom she disliked. The recently present captain was a good example of that.

"I know my mystifying beauty is a sight to behold, Lieutenant. But the silent staring is beginning to concern me. Is there something the matter? Shall I call for a medic?" Azula asked, startling him from his daydreaming.

When he then realized that he had just been standing there, looking at her without saying anything at all for almost a whole minute, he became quite flustered. Nevertheless, Aizon didn't let that stop him as he pushed on to ask what he had been putting off for far too long already.

"I.. I.. I was just thinking… about us," he finally got out without too much stuttering.

She had no reaction at first. But after a pregnant pause, she finally released a long sigh. "I assume you're speaking of the incident the night before we departed the capital?" she asked.

Aizon winced at the way she framed what he had thought was a romantic moment as "the incident," but nodded anyways.

Azula released another sigh before she turned back to face the ocean. "Hmm.. I guess I did leave where we stood unclear… and I can also see how in your inferior, hormone-ridden male mind it would plague you even in your sleep…"

Aizon was glad she was facing away from him now, because his cheeks pinked at her last comment. He had indeed had quite a few dreams about her since that night. All of them ending with quite an embarrassing finish.

But Aizon would rather have thrown himself overboard than admit that, so instead he made a non-commital noise. In any event, she didn't seem to care all too much, as she continued on regardless a few seconds later.

"Very well. I suppose you deserve an answer after all the time we've spent together…" she said as she turned back to face him, an indecipherable expression on her face. "To be perfectly frank, Lieutenant Aizon, what happened that night between us, words and actions all, was a mistake."

"A mistake?!" Aizon couldn't help but interrupt as his worst fears were confirmed.

Azula nodded. "Yes Lieutenant, a mistake. Rare as they are from me, I still occasionally make them. I freely admit that I'm not perfect... I'm only almost perfect. Now that's not to say I regret it. Not at all, I quite enjoyed that mistake."

Aizon's head slumped depressedly. "But if you liked it, why was it a mistake?" he asked.

"Well I would've thought that would be entirely obvious, Lieutenant. Besides the fact that you come from a lower noble family, and the small matter of your duty to be protecting me, not snogging me, there is also my concern about your loyalty…"

He looked back up at her incredulously. "My loyalty? princess, you're only girl who I ever-"

"Loyalty in regards to romance is not what I speak of. I am referring to your loyalty to me as your ruler. As your princess, and as the next Fire Lord…"

Here Aizon's eyes widened even further. "Azula, princess Azula," he quickly corrected himself. "If this is about Jeong Jeong, I swear. I have nothing to do with him anymore. I condemn his traitorous actions to the highest degree. Please, you have to believe me. I'm loyal to the Fire Lord, and the Fire Lord only. No one else…"

But his reassurances did not appear to appease her. To the contrary. They only seemed to agitate her. The look she was giving him was cold. Colder than the freezing rain still falling in buckets, and colder than she had ever looked at him before.

"That is exactly the problem, Lieutenant Aizon. I am fully convinced of your loyalty to the Fire Lord. But what I desire out of you, or out of any potential suitor really, is absolute loyalty to myself, and myself alone. I will not stand for competing loyalties, even from my father."

Aizon was stunned into silence. The thought of being loyal to anyone more than the Fire Lord had never even occurred to him. Aizon would sooner betray his own mother than the Fire Lord, and she wouldn't even complain, since that was how she had raised him after all.

But Aizon could see how it would be in Azula's interest to have his absolute loyalty. It was not a problem anyone else in the world would have to face, save for perhaps her disgraced brother. But it suddenly occurred to him just how much stress it must cause to have the Fire Lord for a father.

Did the Fire Lord bake princess Azula a birthday cake every year? Did he help her with her homework? Somehow Aizon couldn't picture the Fire Lord doing any of those things. In fact, Aizon wouldn't have been surprised if Ozai actually made for quite a poor father. Trying to run a country, lead a war effort, and be a good husband and father all at the same time would be a tall order for anyone, let alone Ozai.

But then there was the question of romance. Azula couldn't date just anyone she wanted. The royal family married exclusively from rich, well-connected noble families. But even that wasn't always enough, as anything the Fire Lord - and by extension his family - did had political implications.

If she married the wrong person, it could upset the fragile social order of the Fire Nation, and even lead to civil war. Aizon couldn't imagine having that kind of pressure on every little move he made.

And then there was something else that came along with being the Fire Lord's daughter, something more sinister than any potential whining from slighted nobles. What if the Fire Lord ordered him to betray her?

For anyone else, it was unthinkable to even consider. But for the crown princess and heir to the throne of the most powerful nation in the world, backstabbing of the highest magnitude was a real possibility. Especially from the Fire Lord.

It was not only completely right for her to demand his exclusive loyalty, but also quite sensible if she wanted to maintain a lifespan beyond her teenage years. All of that just begged the question though. Could Aizon be completely loyal to Azula? Even if it meant high treason?

"Well Lieutenant Aizon? Have anything you want to say? Before I dismiss you for the night?" Azula asked, breaking the silence that had fallen between them once again. Aizon didn't miss the unasked question though. Where does your loyalty lay? With me? Or with my father?

It went against everything he believed, everything he had ever fought for, but after a moment more of silent contemplation, he realized the shocking truth. Aizon felt much more loyal to Azula.

When he thought of Fire Lord Ozai, he thought of a shadowy figure who never left the palace. Almost twenty years he had been in power, and yet, the war dragged on still as if no time at all had passed.

There were many who wished for the good old days. The days when the Fire Lord would get stuff done, and crush the Fire Nation's enemies beneath his heel. In fact, Aizon knew he wasn't the only one who thought that way. Ozai was far more unpopular than his predecessor, Fire Lord Azulon.

Azulon's victories on the battlefield and massive territorial expansions contrasted sharply with Ozai, who hadn't left the capital since ascending to the throne. So maybe it shouldn't have been so surprising to Aizon that he would prefer someone more like Azulon as Fire Lord. Someone who wasn't afraid to take action, and make bold, world changing decisions.

Someone like his namesake Azula perhaps.

Now that he thought about it, with this mission under her belt, Azula would herself have more battlefield experience than Ozai! Adding in how much he daydreamed about her pretty face everyday made it no contest. Aizon would pick Azula over Ozai any day.

But just as Aizon was about to declare his complete loyalty to Azula and Azula alone, another thought entered his mind. A dark thought that made him slam his jaw shut. What if this was Azula's way of testing his loyalty to the Fire Lord? What if it was all a set up?

He looked up into her eyes, looking for any sign of trickery or deception. He silently begged her for something, some sign that she wasn't lying to him. She must've guessed what was troubling him, because the cold look she had been giving him lessened.

"You should know, Lieutenant, that no matter your answer, I will not use it against you," she sounded sad having to admit that, and it broke Aizon's heart a bit to hear.

He knew she was a good liar, and an even better manipulator, but in that moment, staring into her gold eyes that shined like the warmest fire amidst the freezing rain, he knew she was telling the truth.

He stepped closer to her, closer than he had been to her ever since he got on this accursed ship. He reached out for her hand, and was extremely relieved when she didn't move to pull away from him.

"Princess, do you remember what I told you that day before you started teaching me, when you warned me I would rue the day I signed on for the Royal Procession, what was two months ago, but seems like so much longer… when I said I would follow you to the ends of the world?"

She nodded, and Aizon was encouraged when her icy look lessened even more, until it all but disappeared. "Yes, I do," she answered.

Aizon motioned around them at passing icebergs. "Well here we are, at the end of the world." He brought her hand to his lips, never breaking eye contact, and kissed it softly, trying to convey the sincerity of his emotions. "And I'll still follow you anywhere… Even if it meant going against the Fire Lord himself."

And then, for the first time since that night he had confessed his feelings for her, that fiery look that paradoxically gave him chills entered her eyes. And Aizon silently vowed to himself that he would make her look like that more often.

Suddenly, just as she opened her mouth to say something, another voice not belonging to either of the two of them called out to her.

"Princess?" came the slightly confused call.

They broke apart like they had been scalded, and then both turned to look at the surprise interlocutor.

It was Captain Shen, and he was looking at Aizon with deep suspicion. Thankfully though, he made no comment of the compromising position he had found them in, and instead turned to Azula to ask his question.

"I came to check to make sure everything is prepared for the landing tomorrow… I wanted to ask you personally, since I have about as much faith in the second-rate huckster who calls himself a Captain on this ship as I do the madman who calls himself the king of Omashu."

Remarkably, Azula, who had seemed a bit flustered only a moment ago, now answered his question without any difficulty. "You can rest assured, Captain Shen. I've personally gone over all our supplies and made sure we'll have enough food, water and fuel for the trek."

"Have you double checked? Because once we disembark, there's only going to be one way out of the snow. And that's straight through the heart of enemy territory," he asked in a gravely serious tone.

But as ever, Azula was the epitome of self-assured. "I've triple checked Captain. Was there anything else?"

Shen shook his head. "No, that will be all… By your leave then, your highness" he said. Then, he saluted, shot Aizon one more suspicious look, before turning heel and disappearing back inside the ship. Only when his footsteps faded into silence did they both look back at each other.

"I don't know why we had to bring them along…" Aizon said.

"As I've told you before, Lieutenant, the two people I wanted to bring both refused on account of the freezing cold. The war council, as the only other people I trust enough to fight alongside, were the only alternatives."

Aizon didn't know who those two people were, nor did he really care, but he was curious who had the nerves of steel required to refuse Azula anything.

"Just convincing my father to allow so many seemingly random people to come along for the mission, without raising suspicion, was hard enough without your complaining…"

Mention of her father brought the previous topic of discussion back to mind, which in turn made for another awkward silence to take hold.

"Azula-" was all Aizon managed to say before he was cut off.

"Save it Lieutenant. Talk is cheap, and sweet talk is even cheaper. If you truly want to convince me of your loyalty, you'll show me it on the battlefield."

"But-" again she interrupted him.

"I'll promise you this, Lieutenant Aizon. If you follow my orders exactly to the letter, and I mean to the letter. And you kill a sufficient amount of snow savages… I'll seriously consider your request to court me… consider, and nothing else. I make no guarantees beyond that."

Aizon sighed, unhappy with how the conversation had turned out, but he nodded all the same. At least she hadn't completely rejected him, as he had feared at the start. But if he ever got his hands on Captain Shen, he was going to kill him.

"Well, if that will be all, I bid you goodnight Lieutenant." And with that farewell, Aizon was left alone as the sun dipped below the horizon completely, revealing one of the clearest night skies he had ever seen. A shooting star streaked across the sky, and as was ancient custom in the Fire Nation, he promptly made a wish.

"I hope we win," he said quietly to himself, praying for a quick victory over the northern water tribe. What Aizon didn't know was that he wasn't the only one who made a wish over a shooting star that night.

Far away, high up in the sky flying on a strange furry animal, was the world's most wanted man. And though he didn't look it, he was quite old. He remembered the ancient Fire Nation tradition, and he too wished for a quick victory over the enemy.

Neither would ever know that both their wishes would be granted…

Six days later. At an undetermined distance from the northern water tribe.

Azula tried once again to get comfortable in her stiff cot as the tank lumbered along through the howling blizzard outside. Six days ago they had miraculously managed to make an easy landing when a window of calm had opened in the storm for an hour.

But just as soon as they had unloaded all their gear onto the ice shelf that was their landing spot, the storm had returned with a vengeance, and so they had set off without any preamble.

For six days now they had traveled night and day, in noisy, smelly tanks. Stopping only to take short, five minute bathroom breaks every six hours.

For six days they subsided on a diet of canned rations and bottled water alone.

And for six days they had barely left the confines of their tanks as temperatures regularly plunged below freezing.

Even with thick, special issue fur lined winter gear designed specially for the polar climate, it seemed impossible to ever get warm. It was especially bad because they were all firebenders, and as such particularly sensitive to extreme cold.

But they pushed ever onward regardless, determined to fulfill their mission, and determined not to give up.

Eleven men. Four tanks. And one princess. All on a seven day trek.

Being a princess had its perks though, and so she had kicked out Captain Shen from her tank and made him cram in a different one. She was not at all eager to share close quarters in a tank with such a crotchety old man. Azula almost felt bad for the unlucky tank that got stuck with him.

Of course, this had the unintended side effect of making her spend seven awkward days alone in close quarters with Lieutenant Aizon, but there was nothing she could do about that. Someone had to drive the tank when she slept, or rather, tried to sleep.

It wasn't that she disliked the lieutenant. On the contrary, she liked him very much, and she was pretty sure he reciprocated her feelings. But as was only dignified for a princess, Azula had her standards. And she would not sacrifice them on account of pure physical attraction.

The Lieutenant would have to prove himself before she would give him a chance. But so far she had to say he was performing admirably. He drove the tank in fourteen-eight hour shifts instead of twelve-twelve, so as to give her more time to rest.

Unfortunately, the extra time to rest only made her more restless. It left her with nothing to do as she could never sleep for fourteen hours, even when not inside a cramped and freezing tin box. She could barely sleep for six here, so she just whittled away her time staring at the ceiling, and praying for it all to be over soon.

Just as she tried to do the mental calculation as to when they would be arriving for the millionth time, she felt to her enormous surprise the tank come to a slow halt. Was it time for a bathroom break again? No, that couldn't be, they had had one only two hours ago.

She slowly sat up on the cot and pulled her winter gear on. Maybe her prayers had been answered, and they had arrived a day early. She laced her boots up and finally donned her armor before exiting the tiny bedroom of the tank to see what the hold up was.

As soon as she entered the main compartment, she had to put her hand up as she was nearly blinded by bright blue light that was turning the night sky bright as day. "Spirits of the islands! What is that?!" she exclaimed in complete bewilderment.

"Princess!" came the surprised answer of Lieutenant Aizon. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. I just couldn't see and had to stop for a few seconds…"

She waved off his apology and went over to sit down in the passenger seat. "Don't worry about it. I wasn't sleeping anyway," she said as she fished around in one of their supply containers.

"Oh. Well in that case… What are you looking for? You know we're not supposed to eat outside of the schedule. Those rations only last so long…" he trailed off when instead of pulling out food, Azula brought a pair of binoculars out.

"Check it out Lieutenant. Straight from the laboratory of War Minister Qin. Why have one telescope, when you can have two at the same time? Genius right? I asked for a dozen pairs, although, the military seems to think they'll never catch on…"

"Do you have an extra pair?" Aizon asked intrigued.

"Sure. Give me a second," she said, before fishing another out of the container and handing to him. Together they stared through the lenses out at the blue light in the distance.

"What do you make of it?" he asked.

For a few seconds Azula didn't answer, as she didn't have one. It was too far away to really see clearly, but she could tell it was moving. Almost as if… as if it was alive. But that wasn't possible. It was far too large to be a person or animal of any sort.

"My best guess," she eventually said. "Is that it's some kind of continuous, ongoing explosion that is being buffeted by the wind, and having it's image distorted over distance. Perhaps another invention of Qin's?" she mused, looking up at the ceiling.

"Well, whatever it was, it's gone now," Aizon said. And indeed, when she glanced back down, the night sky had returned to it's customary pitch black darkness. They both sat there quietly for a moment.

"I have a bad feeling that something has just gone horribly wrong with the invasion," Aizon's voice eventually shattered the stillness.

Azula turned to look at him critically. "And how often are your feelings about these sorts of things correct?" she asked sarcastically.

"Nearly always," replied Aizon in a whisper full of dread.

Azula still looked skeptical though. "There's nothing that could possibly stop the invasion. We completely outnumber the enemy, many times over in fact, and we also enjoy far superior firepower and bender to non-bender ratios."

But Aizon was shaking his head before she even finished. "You're forgetting one thing."

"What's that?" she asked. She couldn't think of anything. Not unless the snow savages were secretly hiding fifty thousand soldiers in an ice cave somewhere.

"The Avatar," said Aizon simply.

She crossed her arms, her skepticism increasing. "There's been no corroborated reports of his return yet. There's no logical reason to think that any of that would change now."

"I suppose we'll find out tomorrow," Aizon compromised, clearly not in the mood to argue.

She graciously accepted, knowing how exhausted he must be from the constant tank travel. "I suppose we will. Wake me if anything else interesting happens."

"Of course princess," came the respectful reply.

She returned to her cot and undressed once more. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she felt her eyelids droop and become heavy. Maybe all that talking and speculation was the sleep inducer she had been needing all along.

In any case, as sleep began to overtake her, it was without any worries about strange moving lights, the invasion, or even the avatar. Instead, it was to pleasant thoughts about a certain silver-eyed lieutenant…

She really needed to get out of this tank.

A/N: I know that first scene about "who commands this ship" is straight up stolen, but it's just so epic, I had to include it. One of the most bad ass Azula lines in the whole series. Kind of a slow moving chapter, I know, but I promise next chapter will be much more action packed. Did you notice any foreshadowing? Dare anyone make some predictions? Make a review! Also fav, follow. Thank you.