Author's Disclaimer: I don't own a thing belonging to "Avatar: the Last Airbender." Not a dayum thing!
Author's notes: Something plot-pointy! Read on, my lovelies….I hope you enjoy! It's alittle but I hope to update again by mid next week; I am hosting relatives from out of state. This should hopefully tide you over until then!
Maraghoul: Oh just you wait….. just you wait! 😝 Thanks again for helping me form the bones of the plotpoints to come…..Many thanks and a flagon of ale!
QueenTyzula: My stab at Tyluko was to be expected. With this chapter and all! Enjoy my friend.
CharlieBarrow: You get the cred for asking if Ty would leave anything for her daughter. Well, she does! Thanks again for all the questions and nudges and suggestions for my story. It has helped ^_^
NeverFoundandLost: Question answered somewhat? 😝 Enjoy.
Harley Quinn Davidson: Now it begins…this chapter! 😝
Guest Mai: You bring up a good point, "Mai!" I hope you like how I handle your character ^_^
"Stoking the Fire"
Chapter thirty-five "Leaving"
Ty Lee woke slowly. She made herself slit her eyes open and glance around her bedchamber. The damp greyness outside of the windows could only mean the sun hadn't risen yet. Zuko snored softly beside her. Ty Lee grew used to the dimness of the room and watched him. She glanced across the room where Izumi slept in her cradle. Zuko felt that he had sufficiently blanketed the baby's chi signature enough so that she didn't need to be constantly held while she slept.
Well as much as was needed. Zuko enjoyed doing it, but he had started laying the baby in her cradle at night, heavily swaddled and comfortable in her pink blankets. Zuko had teased her about wanting to surround their daughter with pink things; a regal red was more in order, he insisted. But he allowed the pink toys and fluffy blankets because he knew it made her happy.
Righting wrongs would also make her happy…. Ty Lee watched the slumbering Fire Lord out of the corner of her eye. His hand was stretched toward her. She wanted to touch him one more time…but she couldn't risk waking him. Ty Lee slid off the edge of the mattress and tiptoed to the washroom.
She had hidden her clothes and supplies there, random items scattered. Ty Lee found her grey peasant garb from the hidden catch at the bottom of the laundry hamper. She cast off her sleeping shift, still finely embroidered for a sleeping garment, and pulled on the simple trousers. Ty Lee wound a breast band around her round breasts and tied the end, shouldering into the tunic. She stuffed the hem of the tunic into the waistband of the trousers and closed all the fastenings. It was more modest and simply tailored. She had scuffed boots to match. Quickly, Ty Lee's fingers flew as she combed her hair and rebraided it. It wasn't her usual elaborate braid; it was more of a peasant's tail.
Ty Lee cast one last look at herself in the looking glass. She was waking and her eyes took in her slightly scattered expression. She had to hurry. Turning to the linen closet, Ty Lee poked in the back. A few careful stones pushed revealed a small crawl space. On her knees, Ty Lee grunted as she poked in to pull out her pack. Inside were cooking tools and camping essentials. There was also a few heavy coats and hood since winter was still in full effect outside.
Ty Lee pulled the coats on, but left the hood back. She stuffed heavy mittens into the pocket of her coat and peeked out of the washroom carefully. Zuko's snores indicated he was still in dreamland.
Ty Lee reached into the pack and drew out a rolled scroll of parchment. She eased into the bedroom and laid the parchment on the table beside the rocking chair she sometimes nursed Izumi in. Ty Lee bit her lip and pulled out a tangled chain as well. The circle of jade flashed in the dim candlelight, reflecting off of the fire emblem carved in the middle. She carefully laid the necklace beside the parchment. She intended it for her daughter; it may have been a bauble, but she hoped her child would one day keep it close to her heart as her sire had….
She had to leave. The sooner the better. Ty Lee made for the door, then angled back to the cradle. She peered inside, hoping she wasn't seeing her daughter for the last time. Izumi slept deeply, heavily swaddled and covered with her pink blankets. Her black fluffy hair stood straight up and her perfect rosebud lips parted as she slept.
Tears pricked Ty Lee's eyes. No, she had to go….she couldn't linger….. But the moments passed as Ty Lee absorbed her daughter's sleeping features into her mind. Despite herself, the mother reached for her daughter's tiny hand. Izumi clutched her finger as she slept on and Ty Lee felt her heart slowly crack under the emotions that besieged her.
Ty Lee let her child hold her for a few more moments; gently, she eased herself from the infant's grip. Izumi's lips parted. Ty Lee caught her breath. If her child woke, if she called out to her, there would be no way she could leave. She would hide her things and nurse her, Zuko would wake and the cold winter day would begin as they had all that winter. Safe and hidden in the Fire palace.
But Izumi slept on. Her lips parted and closed. Ty Lee eased a sigh of disappointment mixed with relief. She carefully slipped to the main sitting room of her apartment. She fished out a last scroll from her coat pocket and left that in the main room. She climbed out of the window of the sitting room. There was a ledge of roof outside and she carefully walked along to where it dipped down to a courtyard. Ty Lee jumped down, with half ready ease. Before Izumi, this would have been no problem. Her legs quaked slightly, but she could feel her old strength coiled in her muscles. She had been halfway to getting in shape.
She had to press on. Under the gently swirling snowfall, Ty Lee wrapped her braid around her neck and pulled her hood up. She pulled on the heavy mittens and made a careful trek around the royal gardens.
She knew the guard's rotation and schedules and avoided every imperial soldier. She knew the Kyoshi Warrior's schedule even better, so she really didn't encounter one single being which was fine by her.
Ty Lee had to vanish without leaving a trace.
Outside the royal palace, Ty Lee shouldered her pack and fell in behind a stream of farmers making their way to the capital marketplace. She continued on the snowy dirt path past the marketplace and further on.
A good sufficient distance away, Ty Lee ducked her nose into the folds of her coat and pushed into the nearby icy forest. The Kyoshi Warriors had taught her to track, as well as how to hide her trail. She walked carefully in recent animal tracks, hiding her boot prints. The snow continued to fall and Ty Lee smiled grimly to herself.
The weather itself would help hide her trail. Any boot print she had left around the palace would be hidden by the snow itself.
The sun began to rise as the concubine pressed on.
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Izumi began to wail. Zuko woke steadily and he sat up, rubbing his eyes. A glance beside him showed the bed to be empty. Ty Lee must be in the washroom, readying for the day. He climbed out of bed and padded to the cradle. He peered in at his irate daughter.
"Morning, baby," he said. Izumi flailed her fists and wailed. Zuko tutted her and picked her up. He rocked her as he began to head toward the washroom. "Ty, are you up? She's hungry."
No answer. Zuko shouldered the door open gently and peered in. "Ty?"
No one was in there. That wasn't so odd; she could be out in the main area of the apartment with Ying. Zuko shrugged and continued to the main sitting room, rocking his crying infant.
Ying was in a panic, shouldering into her Kyoshi Warrior robe, a scroll open in one hand. Her startled eyes flew to meet Zuko's and discontent settled in his belly.
"Ying, what's wrong?" he asked. Izumi wailed against his chest.
"Ty….it's Ty….." Ying flung her parchment at the Fire Lord. She exchanged it for Izumi, carrying her to the waiting wet nurse. She handed the baby over to be fed. Silence roared in Zuko's ears as he read.
It was a letter in Ty Lee's hand, telling her friend she was sorry but she had to do what she thought was right. Zuko's wild eyes flew to Ying's.
"What is this? What does she mean? Where is Ty?!" he demanded. Ying darted to the front door to bark an order to her sisters in arms on guard.
"Go find Suki. Get the other sisters to search the palace for Ty Lee. Do it now!" she ordered. "Yoshiko, you stay here with the princess."
Yoshiko pushed in, and stood on guard beside the wet nurse and infant.
"I don't know, my lord! Hurry, we have to look for her," Ying worried.
Zuko ran at a full sprint back to the bedroom to find his tunic and trousers. After all but jumping into the garments, he finally noticed the scroll beside the nursing rocking chair. Zuko scraped his fingers through his longish hair, pulling it back into a half-hazard topknot. He approached the small table and picked up the scroll slowly, feeling dread yawn in his chest. He picked up the necklace as well, wondering.
Ying darted into the room as Zuko broke the seal and began to read. His brows pulled low over his anguished golden eyes and he seethed in emotion. He flung the parchment to Ying, who he trusted above all else.
"She left….she left!" he hoarsely whispered. Ying darted her eyes quickly over the characters.
'…..and while I care for you, I can't allow you or Azula to kill each other. My affection for you wouldn't allow that….nor my love for her….'
Ying cast wild eyes to the frantic Fire Lord. "She can't have been gone long," she swore. "We'll search the palace grounds!"
"I'll go with you," Zuko yelped. He cast a last look to Yoshiko. "Guard my daughter!"
"My lord," Yoshiko bowed. Zuko and Ying dashed out of the concubine's chambers. He ran straight to his uncle's chambers and hammered on the door. When Iroh opened the door, sleepy-eyed and still in his sleeping robe, one look at his wild-eyed nephew told him he was needed.
"What is it, Zuko?" he asked, waking instantly. Zuko panted against the doorframe of his apartments.
"Ty…Lee…." He wheezed. Iroh darted inside to change and in moments he ran with his nephew to alert the palace soldiers to join the search.
Iroh didn't know what had happened to Ty Lee or why she had disappeared….a kidnapping? An assassin? But Zuko wouldn't divulge any details. He just knew Izumi's mother had vanished and she needed to be found.
The morning sun rose over a disheveled palace, searching hard for one individual.
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"That little idiot," Mai murmured. She had read Zuko's letter, finding it flung onto the floor of Ty Lee's bedroom. She had ducked inside to find Izumi's changing supplies, and had stepped on it by accident. After changing her stepdaughter, she had decided to read it. The palace having been turned upside down suddenly made sense.
And the chaos was still going on outside the chambers. Mai slid her left arm around the curve of her daughter. She was wearing her sling, and she loved the warmth the baby pressed against her.
"Do you need anything, my lady? Are you hungry?" one of the wet nurses asked. The two women were on edge, rightly so, as the Fire Lord, Lord Iroh, even Lady Ursa and her husband were searching the palace grounds with the soldiers and Kyoshi Warriors.
"What about you? You two need your strength," Mai murmured. It was true; without the mother, Izumi needed the wet nurse's milk.
"We'll order lunch," one of the women said. She flagged down a servant and Mai settled into the sofa, with Izumi cradled against her. The infant was sleeping, clean and dry and warm against her. She wished she could relax. But her friend was spirits knew where, and she had chosen to leave. Was she really going to try and find Azula? The princess was like to injure her, or worse, on the spot. What was she thinking?!
Mai sighed heavily, brows lowering over her eyes. Izumi's mouth moved in her sleep and she cradled her close.
Yoshiko opened the door to the concubine's chambers and permitted in a rather frazzled Zuko. His cloak streamed behind his frantic movements. He started, noticing his wife with the baby.
"Mai…." He said. Mai frowned sadly.
"I take it you didn't find her," she guessed. Zuko moved around the sitting room, looking for something. He darted to the door again.
"No! I need my armor…." He muttered. Mai jogged after him, baby in tow. He started, shooting a wide-eyed glance over his shoulder as they moved hurriedly down the hallway to their old bedchambers. "What are you doing? Stay with her under guard!"
"I read the letter," Mai said. Zuko cursed and opened the door to their old chambers. They moved past the sitting room and into their old bedroom. Zuko opened a wardrobe in the corner and pulled out his breastplate. Mai would have helped him with his armor, but she had the baby in a sling around her. Zuko shook his head and barked for a servant to attend him. "Nobody took her, did they?"
"No!" Zuko cursed. He held his arms out and allowed the two servants that had materialized to secure the breastplate over his tunic. They attached the waist covering, secured with a wide leather belt. One servant moved to the greaves along Zuko's shins, to better protect his legs. The other held out his lord's helmet. "Hurry up!" he snapped to the man on his knees before him.
The man finished fastening the greaves and bent back up. He helped adjust Zuko's warm cloak over the shoulder pads of the breast plate.
"What are you doing, Zuko?" Mai asked gently. Zuko glowered and lowered the helmet over his head. The Fire Lord looked imposing in his armor, but the look he gave her was all dread.
"She's not in the palace. We've already searched every nook and cranny. She has to have gotten further away. I'm taking the soldiers and Kyoshi Warriors on lizard back to scout out her trail," Zuko said. The two servants bowed and backed off. Zuko strode to their sitting room.
Mai hurried after, following her husband. "Do you think Ty Lee wants to be found? If she chose to leave…." To leave US….. "She'll find a way to remain unseen. You know how determined she is…."
Zuko turned on his heel and Mai almost slammed into his armored back. "I'm not looking for her just for me!" he snapped. "Think, Mai! Will Azula leave her alive?!"
The look of horror that crossed Mai's features would have been comical if the situation weren't so dire. "Find her," she swore.
Zuko gave a chivalrous half bow and righted to lean in to kiss her cheek. "I don't know how long it will take," he swore. "Please, watch over the baby. She needs you."
"She needs you too," Mai insisted. Zuko's anguished eyes fell ono his daughter's scrunched up face. She was waking, wriggling gently in her sling. Mai's arm curled around her back protectively.
'I need you…..' she thought. Zuko allowed himself to touch Mai's cheek with his palm. His golden eyes were weary and sad.
"I'll send a messenger hawk with any news," he said. 'Good or bad' was implied. Mai nodded. Zuko walked her to the concubine's chambers and left her with Yoshiko and the wet nurses. All too soon he had spun on his heel, taking off at a sprint, Kyoshi Warriors in tow.
Mai rocked Izumi, staring into her wide golden eyes. "None of this has to do with you, little one….. just rest…." She crooned.
Izumi yawned against her robes.
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"We have the lizards ready, Lord Zuko!" Suki called. Zuko nodded and jogged into the messenger hawk station. The sole woman on duty there straightened at his presence and bobbed a low bow.
"My lord," she said. Zuko hurriedly scrawled characters on a piece of parchment on the servant's desk and blew on the ink to dry. He handed the parchment out carefully to the woman.
"Once this dries, send this to Yu Dao's city hall. Address it to Avatar Aang and seal it with the royal seal," he ordered. The woman carefully took the parchment and stretched it out, willing the ink to dry faster.
"Of course, Lord Zuko. It will be my pleasure," she said. The Fire Lord left in a rush, the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors on his heels. As soon as she was alone again, the servant clenched a fist. A slow stream of fire struck the edge of the paper, setting it aflame. The woman smiled, retracting her bending, and went to clean the desk of the pile of smoking ashes.
"Whoops," she said out loud, unapologetically. The messenger hawks squawked inside their cages at her.
End for now
End notes: And here we go! Stay strong, my lovelies. Next update will be very soon! Like it, smash that button, and do that review thing ^_^
Sincerely, pen
3/24/2017