AN: Guys the main difference between this one and the last is the rape bit. Like I put that in so people would feel bad for azula and I wouldn't really have to work for her redemption but fuck taking the easy way. This time round Ozais gonna be a not as terrible dad .

BOOk ONE: Fire

CHAPTER TWO: the girl in the palace part 2

Azula stared at the water, the blue sky reflected in its surface. She watched as the disturbance slowly fading away into small ripples, as the sign of what happened dispersed. Her mother was gone, no, her mother had never been there. Ironic, she thought. Even when her mother was here she had never truly been there for her. When Azula scraped a knee her mother would reprimand her, when she got a good grade her mother wouldn't bat an eye. When Azula asked her mother to watch her practices she had responded with the same old, "I'll be bussy," later azula had seen her mother and Zukos lessons. Thinking these thoughts made Azula angry and so she stopped, instead trying to focus on what had just happened.

But... what had just happened. It had almost seemed as if, now she knew it couldn't be, but it had almost seemed as if she... well, as if she had airbent. The thought was propositions, to even seggust such a thing would make you an idiot. Only, she could swear she saw the water move. There were still ripples in the surface!

Azula was drawn out of her thoughts as she heard the sound of aproaching footsteps. They were heavy, long strides that drew closer rather quickly. It wasn't that the person was rushed, simply long legged. She recognized the footsteps, her spine tingling with slight fear, her stomach clenching with apprehension. The person was behind her, his shadow blocking the sun from the back of her neck. She knew he was there, yet still she had to suppress the urge to jump when a large hand came down to rest on her shoulder.

The hand was so large it covered the expanse of space between her shoulder and neck. The weight, which could have been meant to feel reassuring, felt stifling, the skin uncomfortably warm yet sending shivers through her body. She stood there, unsure of what to do, waiting for him to say something, anything.

What she didn't expect was for him to say, "I've never truly realized the beauty of this place." She startled, confused as to what her father meant. He had been out here, the palace courtyard, multiple times. Sure he didn't spend time here often but still, it's not as if it had changed. He could sense her confusion and he laughed slightly. "What I mean is, the witch was always out here, and so I never truly got a chance to enjoy its beauty." He said, pausing. It was as if he was leaving her a silence to laugh. Perhaps he thought he had made a funny joke of sorts. Honestly, Azula wasn't even sure what he had said.

Her body almost felt numb, only her nerves were tingling. she wasn't sure why, but her mind felt far away. Her eyes stared into the water, her mind somewhere in the see beyond the island.

"You too must know the pain of loosing a first born son." Azula shivered at the memory of her

"Don't tell me you miss her," her father said, voice laced with judgement and amusement. Azula didn't reply, and he became conserned. It was very clear something was bothering her, not that she was trying to hide it. He would have thought it she was missing her mother, but she never cared about that women. He crouched down infront of her, brining her chin to face him. "Well what is it then?"

Would he have done it, she wondered. Would he have killed Zuzu. He sure looked as if he might. What if it was me, would he have killed me? She shook her head to clear her thoughts, eyes meeting her fathers. "I'm simply tired father," she spoke, the normal edge to her voice gone, replaced by a sort of resignation.

Ozais eyes bore into hers, reading ever twice of her face, the way her lips moved. He took note of the way she spoke, the words she said. After determining she was simply tired, he rose to his feet, turning around to face the turtle duck pond. The creatures where no where insight, as if something had scared them off. Someone, he thought chuckling at the memory of his daughter attempting to feed them.

"It has been a long day," he admitted, hands clasped behind his back. The crown resting on his head shone in the sun, a clear sign of his new position. "Get some rest, tomorrow you mush move into the new wing," right, the children of the firelord had different rooms. Zuzu was to move into Irohs and she was to move into her fathers.

Azula wasn't sure if her father had disdained her and so she waited, but when after five minutes he said nothing else she decided perhaps he had. And so, she made her war from the royal garden and back inside the palace walls.

She was aware of the servants eyeing her sadly, thinking she was affected by the loss of her mother. She was also aware of the nobles staring at her, eyes filled with scrutiny and suspicioun. The gossiping hounds, she truly hoped now that her father was firelord he would not allow them to stay in the palace so much of the time, they stained it with their filth.

She walked through the hallways, lined with portraits of past firelords. Her fathers would be here soon, followed by sweet Zuzu's. He may not be strong but he was kind, and she supposed that counted for something. Many would look to exploit that weekness, but if she stood by his side.

What was she thinking, she was so appalled by fact she was thinking of helping, supporting her brother. Yesterday she had all but laughed when she told him father was going to murder him. Why would she care what happened to him. Could it be that in loosing her mother she realized the importance of family, mayb she cared because Zuko was the last thing Azula had of her, she didn't ponder to long.

Azula made it to her quarters, slipping through the lucious rooms and making her way to the one reserved for her bed. She slipped out of her clothes, putting on a silk nightgown she had received so long ago from her mother. She could swear it smelled like her, she thought with a slight sadness as she pulled back her sheets and slipped into her bed.

Closing her eyes and finally, finally thought. She thought about what happened, what she did. Had she… airbent? No, it couldn't be. That was impossible. She was a fire bender, and only the avatar could bend more than one element. She sure as hell wasn't the avatar, she even laughed aloud at the thought. No, it must have been an illusion, just as the image of her mother had been.

And so she went to sleep, promising herself never to speak or think of the situation again. She would tell no one of her hallucinations, tell know one of what happened that day. And eventually, she would stop thinking about it. She would convince herself that maybe, just maybe, it never happened. Only it had, and three years later it would happen again.

AN: lol I told you I was sorta keeping the original plot which I will but things are changing trust meeeee.