Chapter 19
Ozai's heart was pounding in his chest. He had known that Meiko would be having their child shortly, which was why he had sent Lee to the colonies. Meiko had refused to answer any of his letters so she had left him no choice. If she thought that she could have his child and not tell him then she was sadly mistaken. Despite it all, that child was a potential heir to the throne after his children with Ursa, obviously, but a potential nonetheless.
"Meiko was not glad to see me," Lee said with a shake of his head.
"What is the baby's name?" Ozai questioned, going over to the door. He slid it open and glanced at Ursa's door across the living room and was relieved to see that there was no light coming from under the door. He quietly shut the door again and turned to face Lee.
"She hadn't named him yet when I left to come back."
Ozai nodded his head and paced back and forth in his room. He wasn't sure what he should be doing right now. Meiko was in the colonies and he felt a sudden surge of regret. He was a father and this child was in the colonies with those Earth Kingdom swine. When he had sent them away he had felt like there was no other choice if he didn't want his father and Ursa to learn about the existence of this child. But his father knew about the child already.
"How was Meiko when you saw her?"
"Angry. She's pretty mad at you for sending her away."
"It was for her own good," Ozai replied. "If people knew that she was having my child then they would use her to get to me. And not to mention Ursa."
"How is Ursa?"
"She's fine," Ozai dismissed, his eyes glancing towards the door again.
"You think she'll be happy that you're a father?"
"No. I can't imagine that she would be happy about this."
"No," Lee agreed. He walked over to the bar and poured them both drinks. He walked over to Ozai and handed him a glass. "Let's drink to your son."
"To my son," Ozai repeated, lifting his glass up and then bringing it to his mouth to drink to his son.
Ozai needed to think. He wanted to go to the colonies to see his son but how could he get his father to approve something like that? Things had been tense ever since their fight about the baby and he couldn't imagine going to him to ask permission to go and see the baby. Perhaps if he knew that it was a son then he would be open to Ozai traveling to the colonies to meet the baby. But even if he could get his father to agree, what would he tell Ursa? He knew that she would be devastated to learn about his infidelity and that Meiko had given him a child before she had.
"I only saw him for a moment before Meiko sent me away but from the glimpse that I saw, I thought that he looked like you," Lee commented as he took a sip of his drink.
"Meiko should have treated you better," Ozai replied.
"She's angry with you and can't take her anger out on you, of course, she was mad at me."
"Meiko does have quite the temper."
"She always has," Lee replied with a smirk. "If I remember correctly that passion is what drew you to her in the first place. And that is why it surprised us all when you married Ursa."
"Meiko wasn't wife material. Ursa was naïve and beautiful and she doesn't question me on my choices. Meiko on the other hand…is full of passion and opinions and she would have only complicated my life, just like she already managed to do without me marrying her."
"If you married Meiko you wouldn't be in this position either," Lee mused.
Ozai rolled his eyes. "Touche."
Lee threw his head back and laughed.
"Quiet! Ursa's sleeping, I don't want her to wake up."
It had been a long time since the two of them had gone out drinking, and while this wasn't the same thing it was something that Ozai had needed. Behaving was so boring and Ozai had been doing nothing but behaving lately. With Ursa having a child his father had been pushing the importance of family and duty towards his wife and he was tired of it. He was tired of playing the good husband, planning his wife's birthday dinner, and making sure that she was well taken care of and that all of her needs were taken care of. But who was looking after his needs?
"We need to find you a wife. Then she and Ursa could spend time together and we could go out without any questions."
"Nobody of substance is going to want to marry a man without a title," Lee replied.
"Then we need to fix that. I need Ursa to have friends that answer to me anyway."
Lee laughed. "There's the Ozai that I've always known."
"Do you think that the baby is a boy?" Lu Ten questioned Ursa as he looked up from his table in the Royal Library.
"I don't know," Ursa replied, resting her hand on her stomach. It seemed to be getting bigger by the day. "What do you think?"
"I hope that it's a boy. I can show him all the best hiding places in the palace and how to be a soldier," Lu Ten replied.
"That would be really nice of you," Ursa said with a smile.
She had been imagining the future lately as she got closer to meeting the baby. Ursa was excited about becoming a mom and welcoming another member into their family. She couldn't wait to meet the baby and to hold him or her. It was fun to see everyone's excitement about the baby, especially Lu Ten. She knew that it had been hard for him to grow up being the only child in the palace and he was looking forward to having another child in the palace. She wasn't sure that he realized that it would take a few years until the baby could play with him, but she didn't want to take away his excitement.
"Do you think that my dad will ever get married again?"
Ursa looked at Lu Ten in surprise. She knew that it had been a few years and Lu Ten was still so young, but it was surprising to hear him say that. She bit down on her lip, not sure of what to say.
"I don't know Lu Ten. Maybe one day," she said.
"He's gone a lot."
"Fighting in the war for the Fire Nation," she reminded him. What did Lu Ten think his father was doing while he was gone?
"I miss him," Lu Ten sighed.
"I know that you do, Lu Ten. He misses you too."
"How do you know?"
"Well, all parents miss their kids when they can't be around. I know that your father loves you so much and he misses you. But he's doing good things for our country. I'm sure he'll come home to visit soon."
Lu Ten sighed and looked down at the book on the table. "I asked Grandpa when dad will come home and he said that he didn't know."
"Well, Grandpa doesn't always know when his soldiers are going to come home," Ursa said.
She wanted to give Azulon the benefit of the doubt that he didn't want to lie to Lu Ten but she thought that he should have given him something better than he didn't know.
"I thought that Grandpa knew everything. Isn't that the Fire Lord's job?"
Ursa didn't know what to say. She bit down on her lip and looked around the library, wishing that there was someone that could come and help her talk through this conversation. She was afraid of saying the wrong thing. If she said the wrong thing she knew that it could get her into trouble. People didn't question the Fire Lord, especially not his own family. That was one of the rules that had been drilled in her for as long as she could remember.
"Well…Grandpa does know a lot of things, Lu Ten, but when it comes to things like the war it's hard for anybody to know everything because it changes at every moment."
Lu Ten was quiet for a long time before he nodded his head. "I hope that my father comes home soon."
"Me too, Lu Ten."
"Is Uncle Ozai going to leave a lot when you have the baby?"
"Maybe," Ursa said. "He isn't in the army like your dad, but he does have to go away on business for Grandpa."
"Oh," Lu Ten replied. "Well, the baby will have me and you."
Ursa smiled. "He will. And you have me and Uncle Ozai too, Lu Ten."
"I know," Lu Ten smiled.
"You should go to see your child," Azulon stated.
Ozai's eyes widened. For a moment he thought that he had misheard his father but after a moment it registered that his father had been the one to suggest that he go. He had thought that he would have had to ask his father if he would let him go but instead, his father was suggesting that he go.
"Do you think that it's a good idea?"
"Ozai, you have a son and you should go to see your child. Don't tell Ursa about the baby, we don't want to upset her in her condition but you should go. We will come up with a reason why you are going to the colonies so nobody questions why you are going."
"Isn't Iroh in the colonies? Perhaps it's time for Lu Ten to go and visit his father."
Azulon stroked his chin for a moment and then nodded his head. "I will send a messenger hawk to Iroh to be prepared. You can get the ship prepared and speak with your wife. You can leave when the ship is ready and we hear back from Iroh."
"Yes father," Ozai nodded his head before he bowed to his father.
Walking out of the throne room, Ozai felt a weight lift off of his chest. It had been on his mind for the past week, thinking about how he was going to ask his father if he could go to visit Meiko and his son. But it turned out that for all the worry, it hadn't mattered. Now he only needed to talk to Ursa and figure out a lie to tell her that she wouldn't question.
Meiko was going to be furious when he showed up at her house but he didn't care. Now that the baby was here, he wasn't going to ignore this child. He may not see him every single day but he was going to be involved with this child. Meiko was going to raise this child to the standards that he was going to set. One day Ursa would learn about this child, but now wasn't the time.
"Ozai!" Ursa suddenly called out from across the hallway.
Ozai turned to his wife and nodded his head. She walked across the hall and the first thing that he noticed was her growing stomach. It was a nice sight, he was hoping that they were having a son.
"Were you with your father?"
"Yes," Ozai said, intertwining their arms. "I have news."
"Oh?"
"Prince Iroh wants Lu Ten to visit the colonies and my father asked me to go with him. It will be a good bonding experience for me and Lu Ten."
"Oh. That's great!" Ursa exclaimed, looking up at him and smiling. "I'll miss you both but Lu Ten is really missing his father right now, it will be good for you all to have some time together."
"I'm glad that you think so," Ozai said. "So you are okay with me going?" Not that it mattered; he was going to do what he needed to do regardless of what Ursa thought. But it would be easier if she approved.
"Of course."
"Good. I'll leave in a few days and then we will be gone for a few weeks. But you're right; it will be good for us."
Ozai stood on the deck of his warship surveying the speck of land as it got closer, his hands clasped behind his back. He had been waiting for this day since they had sailed off from the Fire Nation. Somewhere on the deck behind him, Lu Ten was practicing his firebending with his teacher, and Ozai couldn't wait to get rid of him with his father. Three days with his nephew had been plenty for him for a while. He almost wished that Ursa was on this trip with them, at least then he wouldn't have had to spend so much time with his nephew.
"Uncle Ozai! Look!" Lu Ten exclaimed.
His lips twitched into a smirk as he turned to look at his nephew. He started to go through his firebending basics. It amused him that this boy was going to be Fire Lord one day. It was almost insulting that Lu Ten was as average as any other eight year old and he would one day be the Fire Lord. As much as Ozai disliked his brother and father he would never dishonor them by saying that they were average. He was sure that Lu Ten was average because Iroh and Kuvira had coddled him. Ozai was concerned about how much Ursa would coddle their child, but he would break the habit.
"Wow, incredible," Ozai said, sarcasm lacing his voice.
"Thanks, Uncle Ozai!" Lu Ten said with a smile, completely oblivious to the sarcasm. "Are we almost to the colonies?"
"Soon," Ozai replied.
He couldn't wait to drop Lu Ten off with his father and then to continue on to Meiko. Ozai wasn't sure what he was going to tell his brother, he didn't need Iroh to find out about the baby. He didn't want to see the moral superiority in his eyes when he learned about the existence of this other child. He was sure that Iroh wouldn't understand and he wasn't looking to having that conversation with his brother.
The closer that he was getting to Meiko and his son the more his body seemed to vibrate with anticipation. He wanted to be at Meiko's house first thing tomorrow morning. They would only be there for a few weeks and he intended to spend as much time as he could with his child. And he knew that it may take a few days to get Meiko to allow him to see the baby. He hoped that it wouldn't come to that but he was sure that Meiko would not be happy to see him.
It was a relief when they reached the dock, specially built for the warships. He could see Iroh standing on the dock waiting for them and Lu Ten started to shout to his father. Ozai held back the urge to roll his eyes at him.
"Father!" Lu Ten shouted.
They lowered down the plank and Lu Ten ran down towards his father. He stopped short when he got in front of Iroh and respectfully bowed his head. Iroh laughed and leaned down and pulled him in for a hug and started to spin him around. Ozai followed his nephew and suppressed the urge to roll his eyes at his nephew and brother. He could see the embarrassment on some of Iroh's soldier's faces. Did his brother not remember that he was a General? Sometimes he thought that his brother forgot who he was when he did things like this. Generals and Royals weren't supposed to show emotions the way that his brother insisted on.
"Hello brother," Ozai greeted Iroh.
"Ozai. It's wonderful to see you," Iroh replied with a smile, his arm around his son. "How's Ursa?"
Ozai nodded his head. "She's well."
"Good, good. I can't wait to meet my niece or nephew."
"Ursa can't wait either," Ozai replied.
"Father! I've been working really hard on my firebending drills, I can't wait to show you. And Auntie Ursa said that I'm getting really good!"
"I can't wait to see your progress," Iroh smiled.
Lu Ten continued talking as they walked towards the Soldier's camp. Ozai was beginning to get a headache between Lu Ten's continual talking; he didn't understand how Ursa and Iroh could deal with it. He realized that he was going to have a child soon with Ursa that he was going to have to learn to deal with and live with. He was going to have to figure out how he was going to deal with his child. He was glad for the moment that he wasn't going to have to also deal with his son with Meiko as much. He could be a father from afar with that child.
Ozai didn't miss the joy on Iroh's face as he listened to his son talk. He seemed too happy about being around his child, especially one that wouldn't stop talking incessantly. He couldn't wait for the moment that he could leave them and go on a little bit further to Meiko's home. As they came through the camp towards Iroh's tent, Ozai wondered if he could convince his father to allow him to join Iroh. Even if Iroh drove him crazy, it might be preferable to dealing with his child back at the palace. There was something about the rows of tents and the complete lack of children other than Lu Ten that was appealing to him.
"Come this way, son, I'll show you my tent and where all of the planning happens," Iroh said as they walked towards the largest tent. Ozai rolled his eyes and followed behind.
Meiko was exhausted. Exhausted and angry. She hated Ozai for getting her pregnant and throwing her aside. And then he had the audacity to send Lee there to spy on her and to presumably report back to him. He had reduced her and her family to this awful forsaken colony full of Fire Nation citizens that were trying to make a name for themselves. If she had had this baby in the Fire Nation then she could have hired someone to help her with the baby but here, the only person that she could hire was some Earth Kingdom woman. Meiko wasn't about to do that.
She leaned over to pick up her crying son and sighed. "You deserve better than this place. You are a Prince of the Fire Nation and you deserve to be treated like royalty."
Their house in the colonies was significantly smaller than their house in the Fire Nation, but Meiko had luckily been given her own bedroom to share with Asahi. Her sisters had been angry to have to share with each other but they got the bigger room. Meiko's room felt like a closet with the bed shoved up against the wall and Asahi's cradle was right next to her bed. There was barely any room to move around the room but it had to be enough for them. It felt like living in a tiny box.
Outside her bedroom, she could hear a knock at the door. She rolled her eyes, wondering if it was one of the Earth Kingdom people again. She looked down at her sleeping son in her arms and sighed as the knocking continued. Where were Emiko and Hinata? If the knocking woke up the baby she was going to be furious, she had only just gotten him to sleep. She heard another knock and growled, pushing off of her bed, she made her way out of her room and went to the front door.
Carefully shifting the baby, she pulled the front door open and froze.
"What are you doing here?" She demanded.
"Hello, Meiko. I've come to see my son."
Author's Note: I want to thank everyone for their patience with me recently. Things have just gotten very busy with school and I've been dealing with some writer's block but I'm hoping that that has passed now. The teacher that I was in for is coming back on Monday and my school is possibly going to be going the all remote route for the next few weeks so if that's the case, I forsee a lot more writing time for me. As always, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, and I would love to hear any thoughts that you have about it!
