She felt good—no, great. Flashes of orange fire came at her in slow motion and she dodged with ease, the roar of flames drowning out her own crazed cackle.
"Fools!" she cried, electricity already blossoming from her chest and shooting into her hands. Her muscle memory fired off and the intricate steps required to bend lightning came back to her as though she'd been practicing daily. It felt so good to bend again and she rode the high, letting her pent-up excitement unfurl in a thunderous crackle of lightning. It shot straight into the horde of guards racing towards her, ripping through them like a white-hot bullet.
Was it overkill? Yes. Did she care? Not one bit.
They crumpled simultaneously and she dashed forward, still cackling loudly as she turned the corner and out the door they rushed from. It didn't take long for her to realize that Zuko had locked her in a prison deep in the earth below the palace. It was a stupid place to stow her. She would never put someone as deadly as herself somewhere so close to home. She took comfort in knowing he was probably panicking now, desperate to hunt her down and lock her away again.
His stupidity was her advantage. Azula knew the palace like the back of her hand. She'd spent her childhood not only honing her bending and martial arts, but also playing games with Ty Lee and Mai where she'd discovered several hidden passageways out of the palace. The thought of her dear old traitorous friends brought a sour taste to her mouth. She pushed them out of her thoughts and began her ascent upwards.
The light pouring into the prison entrance was blinding. She squinted, catching her first glimpse of sunlight in over a year. It was so beautiful.
The moment was rudely interrupted with a flurry of fire rushing past her head. She snarled at her attackers and sent a flaming kick in the air, a scorching blue wall erecting to obscure their vision as she sprinted away. Moments later she found refuge behind a thick pillar near the royal throne room. The guard's footsteps rushed by and she exhaled in relief.
The moment of silence calmed her enough to take a good look at her surroundings. The palace grounds brought strange feelings of nostalgia and pain. The very grounds she used to play and train on as a child had become her prison. She stifled the twisting of her heart and blinked away the angry tears. She needed to focus and find a way out without alerting any more guards. She already knew of the best secret passageway out.
It was easy to duck in and out of the shadows and find the tunnel near her old quarters to bow out of. It led outside the palace walls and into the Fire Nation Capital. She lifted the trap door and slid into it, ready to sprint towards freedom, but paused when she heard an all-too familiar voice echo in the adjacent room. She listened, an angry snarl twisting on her face.
"Zuko, you must calm yourself."
"How am I to calm myself when my crazy sister is on the loose? How the hell did she escape?!"
Azula heard Zuko's heavy robes swish with his frantic pacing, followed by Iroh's sigh.
"Where do you think she would go, Zuko?" Iroh prodded. She heard Zuko's exasperated sigh followed by what she hoped was her idiot brother ripping out his own hair using what little brain power he had to decipher her whereabouts. Of course, he'd need their dullard uncle to help him come to an answer. He'd never been able to do anything on his own before and that held true, even as Fire Lord.
"I don't know, Uncle. It's Azula… she's not going to hide anywhere obvious."
You're right about that Zuzu, she thought as Zuko continued his musings.
"If it were me, I'd hide in an area of thick population. Somewhere like Ba Sing Se, on the lowest level. It'd be out of character of her to live in such conditions… that makes it the perfect place for her to hide."
Azula grinned widely. It would take weeks for them to comb through Ba Sing Se looking for the fugitive princess of the Fire Nation. That gave her more than enough time to get herself as far away from Ba Sing Se as possible. She'd already thought of the perfect location.
The Southern Water Tribe? You won't survive a fortnight there, Ozai sneered. Azula was sorely reminded that no secrets could be kept from the ever-present voice in her head. Amid her escape she'd almost forgotten of his presence.
Do you ever tire of hearing your own voice, father?
My voice, your voice… they are one, Azula, he answered in the same oily voice.
She sighed and made the conscious choice to ignore him until she was safe. It was beyond distracting to have him whisper in her ear while she fought for her freedom… even if he was right. The chill of the South Pole wouldn't halt her bending, but it would diminish it from full power. It wasn't like she hadn't endured an entire year in an icebox. It wouldn't be that difficult. At least that's what she told herself.
Besides, she thought, if I'm to infiltrate and blend in with the savages I won't be able to bend anyway.
Zuko's irritating voice broke her thoughts.
"Send the Kyoshi warriors out to search Ba Sing Se… discreetly. We can't allow the world to know Azula is free. The frail bonds we've built with the water tribes and earth kingdom must be preserved."
Iroh hummed in agreeance. She heard a clink of porcelain and the steady stream of tea being poured into cups. "They should be returning from their assignments today. I'll have them informed and on their way to Ba Sing Se by morning."
Azula's eyes narrowed angrily. Zuko had the Kyoshi warriors at his beck and call?! One Kyoshi warrior wasn't a problem, but a horde of them wasn't ideal. She no longer had the support of her friends to back her up. She'd have to find a way to deal with them eventually.
"What about Aang?" Iroh questioned, his voice dropping lowly as the heavy footsteps of armed guards patrolled by.
Azula strained to listen to their hushed tones. Information of the Avatars location was priceless and Zuko was always so good about spilling the beans at the most inopportune times.
"He's taking a break," Zuko admitted with a guilty sigh.
"A well-deserved break," Iroh mused. "The duties of the Avatar must have been tedious since Ozai's downfall. Is Katara with him?"
"Yes. I told them to take a few weeks on Ember Island to unwind. It's been a long year. They deserve it."
The fury Azula felt flared exponentially upon knowledge of the Avatar's whereabouts. Ember Island?! That was her vacation spot as a child. How dare her dimwit brother allow the Avatar and the Water Tribe witch to sully their home-away-from-home? She had half a mind to go straight to Ember Island first and blow it, along with the Avatar and his wench, to smithereens.
"Well, we'd best let them enjoy their time," Iroh agreed. Azula heard him take a long sip of tea before droning on, "… Don't worry, Zuko. These things always have a way of working themselves out. I have no doubt all will be well."
We shall see, Uncle.
She closed the door of the hidden passageway and flitted down the empty carved path towards the Capital, leaving her brother and uncle to continue their misguided musings about her whereabouts. As much as it irked her that the Avatar was at Ember Island, she couldn't ignore the opportunity of going into hiding without him on her tracks. Even she couldn't have planned a better time to escape. With any luck she'd be able to find a change of clothes and sneak onto a vessel leaving for the Southern Water Tribe soon.
She quickly approached the exit of the passage that would open into a dark alleyway that branched out into the most populated street of the Capital. The Fire Nation port was just two clicks away from this location.
Good luck not being recognized when you surface, Ozai jeered.
She gritted her teeth. Her face was easily identifiable in the Fire Nation, falling short only to Zuko and the Avatar himself. She'd need some way of disguising her identity. A change of clothes would be a good place to start.
She turned her attention to her appearance and scowled at her soiled robes and bare feet. There was nothing she could do about that now. But her hair—her hair she could fix. She swallowed thickly, remembering her last haircut as anything but pretty. The uneven bangs she'd given herself had finally grown out, leaving all physical signs of her mental breakdown gone. She wished her unhinged mind was as easy to fix.
Azula grimaced as she pulled her dirty hair into one hand and lit a sharp blue flame on the index finger of her other hand. She closed her eyes and swept the scorching fire over her black tresses, coughing at the smell of her singeing hair. Her head felt much lighter now, her dark hair just skimming the tops of her shoulders. She couldn't remember the last time it was this short. It was traditional for Fire Nation royalty to grow their hair out and she briefly felt regret. It was like a piece of her birthright had been stripped away.
She sighed, shaking off the sadness and turning her attentions back towards her ultimate goal: escape.
"No taunts, father?" she asked, throwing her cut hair onto the ground and moving towards the exit hatch. His silence was somehow just as painful as his insults.
Slipping quietly into the alleyway was easy enough. There were a few people strolling by, but Azula waited for the right moment to dart out of the shadows and begin her search for a change of outfit. She kept her head down, letting her hair shield her face as she stepped into the crowded street.
It was louder than she had anticipated.
Vendors called noisily from their various carts of produce and other goods, enticing shoppers with promises of great deals. To her displeasure, there seemed to be a lot of visitors from other nations flooding the Capital. She saw flashes of blue and green blobs through her shield of hair. There were piercing swishes of water from blue-clad vendors selling trinkets and the low rumble of Earthbending from merchants wearing green. The people shopping and walking were chatting with each other, but it felt like they were screaming into her ears.
Zuko has opened trade to the other nations. Disgraceful, Ozai spat.
Azula couldn't respond to him. Her vision swam with disorientation from the flashy merchants and the hordes of people moving around her. It was loud—so loud. She clapped her hands over her ears and closed her eyes, taking uneven breaths. She hadn't calculated this mishap into her plan, hadn't calculated that she would no longer be able to function normally outside her cell. She'd grown so accustomed to the silence of the icebox that what should have been the easiest part of her escape was now the most difficult.
"Dearie, are you alright?"
Azula felt a warm hand on her shoulder and jerked away from a tiny old woman with kind, green eyes. She kept her head down and gritted her teeth, barely able to keep a hold of her balance as shoppers bumped past her. She saw the shuffle of the old woman's feet approaching her through bleary eyes.
"Come with me," the woman urged, reaching out for Azula's hand.
Azula felt warm fingers on her own and she grasped them tightly, allowing the woman to guide her away. She closed her eyes and wondered when the cacophony of sounds would become tolerable. Her ear drums were throbbing from the noise and a dull pain spread from the base of her neck up through her temples.
"Fuck," she spat, disgusted with her own weakness. It wasn't supposed to be like this. She was strong, a fucking prodigy from childhood. She'd shined brighter than Zuko or any other Fire Nation royal for her entire life—but here she was, crippled by a little noise and overstimulation. She felt a gentle squeeze on her hand followed by the sound of a door creaking open.
The woman led her into a tiny home. It was quieter inside and Azula's pulse slowed, her awareness returning gradually with her steadying heartbeat. She said nothing as the tiny woman shuffled around in a drab kitchen, filling a cup with cool water.
"Drink," she urged, pushing the water into Azula's hands before turning her back to rummage through some old creaky drawers. Azula seriously considered incapacitating her good Samaritan and making a break for it, but instead chose to sip on the water and see what she could get out of this interaction. This was clearly not a Fire Nation native and the crone was old enough that Azula wasn't worried about her safety. She cleared her throat, putting on the innocent mask she'd mastered when fooling Zhang.
"Thank you. I've had a sensitivity to noise since childhood. Homelessness made it worse," she lied fluidly, using a higher pitched voice. Her sharp eyes perused the small home, identifying several green Earth Kingdom trinkets and old-fashioned décor hanging about. It was hideous, but she hid her antipathy under a warm smile as the woman turned to face her holding up equally unsightly green robes.
"You look like you've been through something fierce, Dearie."
Observant old crone, Ozai growled.
Azula chuckled nervously and cleared her throat, swiping the clothing out of the woman's hands. "Yes, well… I'm fine now."
Was she, though? It didn't make sense. She'd had no problem blasting her way through the palace guards and those encounters had been just as loud as this—no, even louder. Why were these chatty peasants affecting her so strongly?
You were born to fight, to kill, to rule, Ozai answered. He didn't say it, but she understood the implication. She was comfortable with slaughtering guards but couldn't hold a normal conversation with a stranger, much less interact with several at a time. Why?
Because you made me like you, father. Incapable of a real relationship, incapable of anything but chaos and ruin.
Foolish girl, I made you strong. Trust and love are for the weak, Azula. Power and fear are the difference between Kings and Gods. I am a God—and you would have been too, had you not been so weak.
Azula flinched inwardly. Ozai's harsh words made her stomach flip uneasily. Was this what she really felt? Was this manifestation of his personality who she really was? She reflected on his blunt words, desperately searching for the lie.
"You look so much like my daughter. She died many years ago," the woman replied with sad eyes. Azula was briefly reminded of Ursa and her kind mask fell, irritation twisting her expression.
"I'll be on my way now," she muttered dismissively, putting down her empty cup and gripping the new clothing tightly. She couldn't stop it—couldn't stop the rage rising in her chest, threatening to spill out of every pore of her body.
"What—were you expecting me to cry with you about your dead daughter? She's gone. Deal with it… or don't. It makes no difference to me."
Ah, there she is. Welcome back, Azula, Ozai chuckled darkly. She grunted angrily as she discarded her tattered robes onto the old woman's floor and shoved her body into the new change of clothes, all while ignoring her now stunned helper.
"W-What did you say, Dear? I'm sure you meant—"
"I meant every word, hag. If you'd be so kind as to give me a pair of shoes as well," Azula cut her off, waving her hand glibly.
"Y-You wretched girl!"
"Shoes, now," Azula threatened, her cool voice not matching the piercing eyes she shot at the woman. Fear pooled on the hag's face, an expression Azula was supremely comfortable with. Fear was always the fuel to get the things she wanted out of people. She could feel Ozai's approval, even though he didn't say anything.
The woman scuffled into another drawer, pulling out a pair of old brown boots. Azula grimaced, yanked them out of her wrinkled hands, and stepped into them.
Moments later, she was headed towards the door. She paused, turning back to face her unnamed helper.
"Trust is for fools. You do well to remember that in the future before blindly helping a stranger."
With her wise parting words, she left, heading straight for the port of the Capital.
A/N: Thanks for reading! Please leave a review if you can. Sokka will be introduced in the next chapter :)