Wanted
By: AgentAyu
Chapter 7
Notes: It's been nearly a year since I last updated 'Wanted'. It doesn't feel that long! Again I apologize for the long wait in between updates with 'Wanted' and 'GWWR'! I'm working out a new thing to make it a habit of writing more and not accidentally ignoring my stories. I'll be working on an updating rotation from now on: Wanted, GWWR, and PWL (Playing With Lemurs).
Also since this was story began before Korra Book 2 was released, Kya is the oldest Kataang child in this story and Bumi is the middle child.
WARNING: This chapter mentions of some sensitive topics, but does not go into too much detail.
Disclaimer: Disclaimer from Prologue still applies.
Zuko sighed as he gently grabbed Azula's hand. The family physician had her heavily sedated to keep her from hurting herself or others. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry this happened to you. With everything you've done to me I could be just as cruel and leave you the way you are, but I'm not. I don't want us to be like dad and Uncle Iroh. I admit there are a lot of things I lack in that could use your help. We do make a great team when we're not fighting as well. You're going to get help, I'll make sure of it."
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Ty Lee bit her bottom lip. She struggled with herself to enter the room. She didn't want to interrupt Zuko while he talked to Azula and second she was afraid to see what have become of the princess. She couldn't help, but blame herself for what happened to Azula.
"She brought this on herself."
"Mai!"
"It's karma, Ty Lee. She did a lot of cruel things and now she's paying for it." Mai glared into the room.
"But she doesn't deserve this, Mai. Even this is too cruel... And it's my fault. It's my fault she's like this."
Mai gripped Ty Lee's shoulders. "No, it's not."
"Yes, it is!" Ty Lee exclaimed harshly. She looked into the room to make sure her outburst didn't bother Zuko. The acrobat pulled herself and Mai away from the doorway. "There was something wrong with her."
"Yeah, she tried killing Zuko and me that day."
Ty Lee shook her head. "No, it's much deeper than that. She tried to kill you and Zuko because she was backed into a corner. The night before we went to the Boiling Rock she was hurt and struggling. I got her to open up to me, she confided in me. You and I both know that their father told them trust was a weakness. I told her that it was strength and that she was strong because she did trust me."
"And the next day you betrayed her."
"I know! But I did it to protect her from herself! She was going to kill you and I couldn't let her do that. She's not a murderer and I couldn't stand by and let her become one." Ty Lee covered her face with her hands as she began to cry. "It's ironic. You fell for the prince and I..." She let out a small laugh and gave a sad smile. "I just want her to be okay."
"Then why are you running away?"
"I'm not running away."
"Yes, you are. You're running away to Kyoshi Island."
Ty Lee bit her lip as she couldn't come up with a response. Mai continued. "Not only are you running away, but you're becoming part of a matched set again. Isn't that why you ran away to the circus to begin with?"
"More like let go." Ty Lee mumbled.
"What do you mean?"
The acrobat leaned against the doorway and looked at Azula. "The night I left the Fire Nation started out with me running away, but Azula stopped me."
"How could she have stopped you? You did ran away."
"I told you it started out with me running away, but it changed to me being let go to run. I was at the edge of Caldera before we had to climb the edge to leave the city. I didn't know she was there until I got to the stairs. She somehow knew I was running away that night; she always knew something was going to change."
She bit her lip before smiling sadly at Azula. "She asked me why I was running away. She tried telling me reasons why I shouldn't leave. I kept brushing off her reasons and dodging her questions. When I tried leaving again she grabbed my wrist. It wasn't just any grip... she had a tight grip, but not enough to hurt me. Enough to get my attention. She was already hurt and was beginning to struggle. Her mom disappeared three years ago and Zuko had been banished for a year. If it wasn't for us, she would have been alone. She needed us... she needed me."
Mai huffed. "She never needed anyone, but herself. She didn't really need us during the war. She wanted people she could control."
"You didn't originally think that way, Mai! You were relieved that Azula asked you to join her. You wanted anything that could have gotten you out of Omashu. You only began resenting Azula when we returned to the Fire Nation after conquering Ba Sing Se. May I remind you that Azula hooked you and Zuko up? And remember how she slipped on Ember Island about her mother? She did need us." Ty Lee straightened her back and stood tall. "The night I ran away, after Azula grabbed me, I could see in her eyes and aura that she was begging me not to go.
"But I couldn't bare staying with my family any longer. I really didn't have my own name. No one could tell my sisters and I apart until I met Azula. Even when my sisters were trying to impersonate me she knew they weren't me. But that wasn't enough. I needed to break away even more. I told her that and she looked so broken. She let go of me and watched me leave. She actually stood there and watched me climb the stairs until I was gone. There were so many things she could have done to stop me, but she let me go. Me going to Kyoshi Island is different... I'm not running away, I'm going somewhere where I'm wanted. The Fire Nation never felt like home to me and it never will."
Ty Lee allowed the tears to flow freely as she glared at Mai. "You don't know the first thing about Azula. There is a lot more to her than what you or anyone else sees in her. Zuko and I seem to be the only ones who can see that."
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"So, you're leaving tomorrow?"
Zuko gave Ty Lee a reassuring smile as they sat on either side of Azula.
"Yeah, we stayed to witness your coronation and Suki begrudgingly allowed me a few more days to stay here. Suki and Mai believe she deserves this. No one deserves this. Are the doctors going to keep her in a straight jacket?"
The newly appointed Fire Lord nodded. "At least until the chi blocking anklets, bracelet, and choker arrive. You're sure they're not going to harm her?"
"Define 'harm', Zuko. I may not be a bender, but you're going to be blocking her ability to bend. For us nonbenders our limbs become noodle like because we lose the natural chi flow in our muscles. Benders become stiff since your chi flow is stopped abruptly while you control the chi of your element. I can only imagine how awkward it's going to be not feeling the normal chi flow you guys usually feel since it's enough to just block your ability to bend. I just hope they don't cut off her blood flow in the process." Ty Lee gripped the sheets near Azula's hand.
The two didn't speak. Zuko stared at Ty Lee as he tried solving this puzzle he felt was in front of him between his sister and their friend. He knew Ty Lee was always loyal to Azula, no matter what the princess did or said to the other girl. It's like he told Aang and the others it would not be fair to keep Ty Lee here to chi block Azula every time it wore off. He noticed Ty Lee's hesitance to even try to touch Azula as if the princess would break. All because Ty Lee had to betray Azula to prevent her from killing Mai. Zuko didn't have to read auras to know that action shook the acrobat.
He felt his smile grow when he began thinking of the last few days they spent on Ember Island after crashing Chan's party. There was definitely a shift in the way his sister and friend interacted with each other than when they arrived on Ember Island. Ty Lee later let it slip that Azula had actually apologized to her over something during the party. Zuko couldn't believe his ears and tried to get a confirmation from Azula, but he ended up head first into the water with Azula's help before he could say anything. But to this day he swears he saw his sister blush. The imaginary puzzle finally came together for him.
"I'm curious, Ty Lee. Why did you join the Kyoshi Warriors?"
"Because it's a group where I can be myself and part of something great as well. Also it's to get away from the Fire Nation again. I can't stand being near my parents and sisters. And because the Kyoshi Warriors wants me to be part of them. I'm finally wanted somewhere for being me."
"You don't think you were ever wanted here for being yourself?"
Ty Lee looked at Zuko. "Never... except when I'm with you, Mai, and Azula. Especially Azula. She always knew how to tell my sisters and I apart. I don't think she realized that she gave me some great advice when we were in school.
Zuko let out a sigh before blurting out, "Was there something going on between you and Azula?"
A faint blush crept onto the acrobat's face as she frowned. "No. Nothing officially. Well, not even unofficially. I know what I feel for Azula. I don't think she had a clue on what she was feeling. Nothing happened though and now nothing will happen."
"Ty Lee..."
She shook her head. "It's okay, Zuko. I'll be fine. Nothing can happen now because she needs to heal first. When she does recover, she probably wouldn't want to see me ever again anyways. I did betray her afterall. I'll just keep on going and if fate would have it to allow us to reconcile, then I will welcome it with open arms."
"She's lucky to have you, Ty Lee. I hope things turn out well for the both of you."
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"Yu, this is a bad idea. I can't go with you. I know I'm your assistant, but I absolutely can't go with you with this case." Azula argued.
"You can and you will. Normally my wife helps me out with this, but we don't know when she and the other women will be back to the village on Kyoshi Island to help me out. Today is their last training day, so they might be going all out. We don't have time with that baby on it's way. We've already spent longer than I like getting everything for the trip and it takes us an hour to get to Kyoshi Island. So, you're it and you're going. I'll vouch for you."
Azula placed the last of their luggage on the boat before continuing to argue. "Doesn't Kyoshi Island have their own midwives and doctors?"
"Their resident doctor passed away a few years back. I'm the only doctor closest to them. Their doctor never trained someone else to take over when he passed. His assistant is currently off in Ba Sing Se trying to get their degree to become a doctor, but I don't they're going to be coming back. You're coming as my assistant. End of discussion."
The princess kicked an empty crate into the air and threw a fireball at it, incinerating it, out of frustration before walking to the stem of the boat as the boatsman sailed them towards Kyoshi Island. She wasn't ready to face the people of Kyoshi, their warriors, or Ty Lee. Now, she didn't have a choice. Azula's very presence is not going to help the soon-to-be-mother relax while she's in labor. Not when the soon-to-be-mother was Suki, leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. Then there was the factor she'd have to face her mother as well. Or at least Yu's wife, Jing's mother. The woman who Azula fully believes to be her banished mother.
She felt her hands tremble as she gripped the edge of the boat. Azula didn't know if she would be relieved or heartbroken if it turns out that Jing's mother, Lan Long, was not her mother, Ursa. There was too much coincidence for Ursa not to be Jing's mother. "Spirits, mother! How exactly would you and Ty Lee have handled that situation if it is indeed you? Surely, the other Kyoshi Warriors know something is up." Azula thought out loud.
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"What happened?!" Zuko barked as he barged his way into the head doctor's office.
"My lord, I ask of you to please refrain from damaging my office any further than you already have the last time you were here. What happened was I had to replace another one of my staff because of what your sister did. How many staff members do I have to lose? She managed to burn some of them, make a lot of them not want to be anywhere near her, and even drove one of them insane that we had to admit him into our asylum."
Zuko shook his head not believing what he heard. "What do you mean she burned some of the staff? She has special anklets and bracelets to keep her from firebending. She even has a choker to keep her from breathing fire!"
The head doctor sighed and gestured towards the empty seat in front of her desk. The Fire Lord complied without question. "It was during one of the sponge baths. The employee didn't realize she wasn't fully sedated before taking the bracelet off. Thankfully she was sedated enough to prevent any major damage… But I have lost five doctors already. She's is by far the most difficult case we've had. I can only imagine what had happened to the Princess that lead her to this condition. My lord, I'm not sure what exactly it is we can do. I'm sorry, but I don't think there is much we can do."
"No…" Zuko objected quietly. "Please, I beg you! This can't be the end! My sister needs the treatment and needs help recovering. I don't know what else to do if she can't get help here!"
"We are at our last option, my lord. I've asked a dear friend of mine to take on the Princess's case. My friend has done many wonders as a doctor in a small Fire Nation village. If she can't help Princess Azula recover, then I am sorry, there is nothing else we can really do to help her recover. We can't help someone recover if they refuse to receive help, even if she is not altogether mentally she can subconsciously object the treatment." The head doctor explained. She leaned forward on her desk to make sure she had Zuko's attention. "What I say next has to be stayed between you and I. While many people of this nation is thankful for the war to be over, there are still many who support your father and didn't want the war to end. And this does involve the matter of my friend's safety."
The Fire Lord leaned in. "I'm listening.
"My friend is a waterbender. But, she can't practice her bending as openly as she liked. I'm one of the few people she trusts and I thought it best to mention it to you before her arrival."
This concerned Zuko greatly. "I'm not sure if that is a good option. I want to help my sister, but… during the comet she and I had an Agni Kai. Things happened and in the end my friend, Katara, defeated her. Katara is a waterbender. Do you think my sister would react poorly to having a waterbender doctor?"
"Hmmm…" The head doctor leaned back in her seat. "It might cause a poor reaction, but maybe this is exactly what the Princess needs. Water is her natural opposite and my friend is a water healer, but she's very spiritual as well. This is why she is the last resort, I have that much confidence in her."
Zuko shifted in his seat uneasily. This was all too much to handle, first the Harmony Restoration Movement, nearly going to war again, fixing his relationship with Mai, the wedding, and the first plans of building the Republic Nations and Republic City, he wanted something to finally go right when it involved his family. "I would like to meet her before she meets my sister."
"Of course, my lord."
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"What's bothering you, Zuko?"
He rolled onto his back and looked at the ceiling of the bed canopy. "Azula. I'm so lost right now. I want something to go right with my family." Mai swatted his shoulder somewhat playfully causing him to chuckle. "You know what I mean, Mai. You have very much been a right in my family and so has our son or daughter." Zuko sat up slightly and placed his hand on Mai's swollen belly. "But, I want things to be right with Azula and I again, like when we were kids. I know you think she deserves it, but she doesn't. We were dealt a crappy hand with our family and I could have easily ended up just like her if I didn't have Uncle. She needs someone to be there for her when she needs it most."
"Zuko… we talked about this already. It wouldn't be right for me to stop you from helping her despite my own opinions. While I'm still bitter over it, family is important. It took my father trying to recruit me and Tom Tom into betraying you to realize that. I can't forgive her now, but maybe someday." She kissed his bare shoulder. "What's happening now with her?"
"If this new doctor can't help her, they're giving up on her. The head doctor said there is only so much they can do with a patient who doesn't want help in recovering. Azula apparently drove two doctors mad themselves." Zuko leaned back down on the bed. "I have a meeting with the new doctor tomorrow. I'm scared, Mai. I'm scared I'll never get my sister back. I won't be able to check in as often with the baby almost here. I don't know what to do."
Mai wrapped her arms around her husband and leaned her head on his shoulder. "You'll think of something. Maybe there is something that hadn't happened yet for you to see it." She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "I don't hate you."
Zuko smiled. "I don't hate you too."
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"I'm very sorry, however, I have to ask… how is it you lived here in the Fire Nation for so long without drawing attention to yourself?" Zuko asked the healer.
"Because I'm half-Fire Nation and practiced my waterbending in secret, my lord. I'm not going to hide it since you need to be aware of how much your predecessors have hurt so many lives. My mother was one of the waterbenders taken from the Southern Water tribe. She was beaten, tortured, starved, raped, and I can continue listing all the horrible things that the guards did to her, but I'm sure you have the idea. She was only able to escape that prison because one of the other waterbenders managed to get out and over take the guards. Forgive me when I say I hate this nation for what it's former rulers have done to the rest of the world, my mother, and myself through. I grew up with my mother struggling to love my unconditionally and despising me because of how I was conceived. I'm the child she never wanted since my father is one of many men who raped her. Can you imagine hating the only place you've known as a home and not feel wanted?
I was fortunate to find one a few villages in the Fire Nation who was opened to people from other nations being part of their community. But that was after I was old enough to take care of myself." She gave Zuko sad smile.
"I... " Zuko swallowed hard. "I am so sorry for everything that has happened to you and your mother."
"Don't pity me, my lord. You weren't even born yet. I wanted you to understand some of the harsh realities of the war your ancestor started. Because there will be more stories similar to my mother's that will come to light and others will expect you to atone for what you inherited when you became the Fire Lord. I can only hope that you and your descendants shed a new light onto the Fire Nation."
Zuko let out a deep sigh. "I know we, my sister and I, don't deserve your kindness, but I'm begging you to please heal my sister."
"Fire Lord Zuko, I am a doctor first and foremost. As I said I might hate this nation because of the horrible things that happened to my mother and what I had to deal with growing up, but I will not turn my back on a patient who needs my help. You are not Fire Lord Sozin, nor Fire Lord Azulon, nor Fire Lord Ozai, neither is your sister. As Doctor Hino has already told you there only so much we doctors can do to help your sister. If she doesn't want help her body will reject any treatment, but I will do what I can to help her." The water bender looked Zuko in the eyes. "Now, I'll begin my assessment of your sister tomorrow afternoon when you firebenders are at your strongest. From what Doctor Hino has told me, Princess Azula lost to a waterbender during the comet, yes?"
"That is correct."
"Well, it's only fair that I use my waterbending on her when she doesn't feel so vulnerable, however, I won't be surprised if she still rejects my help since she'll be restrained with those chi blocking cuffs. I'll be assessing her chi through my waterbending. Whatever, caused your sister to have her mental breakdown it has heavily affected her spirit as well which in turned caused her to shut down. Most of her recovery will depend on her though. I can only act as her guide and make the transition easier for her. You may watch if you like, but I will not allow you to question my methods on how I handle your sister's recovery. I have inclination on harming her. Do I make myself clear, my lord?" She gave Zuko a slight bow asking for forgiveness on her rudeness that was necessary. She was not going to let anyone, including the Fire Lord, question how practices as a doctor because she was half-Water Tribe.
"Yes, I understand. Thank you, Doctor Chi."
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Hino inhaled deeply before blowing out the smoke that she inhaled from her kiseru. She wasn't joking with the Fire Lord about his sister's condition and what would happen if her friend couldn't heal the princess. Princess Azula was the toughest case they've ever had.
"Being a doctor, don't you know smoking is bad for you? Give me that." Hino looked up to see Chi inhale from the kiseru.
"That bad with the Fire Lord?" The firebending doctor asked as she took her kiseru back.
Chi shook her head. "He's an older brother looking after his little sister. The only family he has left besides his wife and unborn child. Well, I guess I can't forget about General Iroh now can I? But he's in Ba Sing Se from what the Fire Lord tells me." The waterbending doctor sat down next to her friend. "Seeing how the Fire Nation royal siblings are like, it doesn't make our lives look as bad in some ways. Here we thought they had everything and no problems… What could have happened in that family that would lead to a fifteen year-old girl's mental breakdown?"
"Sozin, Azulon, and Ozai. They were children like everyone else in the world born during the time of a senseless war. Only they were raised amongst the source for the war." Hino exhaled another smoke. "You and I both know if Fire Lord Zuko hadn't become friends with Avatar Aang, the war might have still continued. If not with Fire Lord Zuko then probably with Princess Azula as the Fire Lord. Or 'Phoenix King Ozai'." Hino snickered at the name.
A weak smile appeared on the other doctor's face. "I heard some of the other doctor's say that she's a 'broken princess', but that's not what I saw when I checked on her. I saw a lost little girl who doesn't have someone to help guide home."
"What you think you're the one who can guide her home?"
"That's why you asked for me isn't it?"
"Point."
Silence fell between the two women.
"I can be her guide if she let's me. From what her brother has told me, that girl has lost everything that she held value." Chi took Hino's kiseru again. "Her father's approval, her mother's love and acceptance, being the perfect soldier to a war of lies and propaganda, and becoming Fire Lord."
"We had our own demons growing up with our parents. Is it because she's the princess that it led to her mental collapse?" Hino leaned back until her elbows her on the ground.
"Wouldn't you have a mental collapse with all that pressure on you at fifteen? And on top of that all that effort you've put towards those expectations still wasn't enough and losing everything you considered valuable? Even though I knew my mom hated me, I also knew she loved me. That's what I had to grow up with. You…"
"I had to grow up with my father wishing I was the one who was stillborn and not my twin brother. Yeah, that was a great reminder every time I didn't do something correctly in my father's eyes. Didn't help my mother did nothing about it either. Even when I became a doctor he still wishes it was me instead of my brother."
Chi inhaled one last time before handing Hino the kiseru back. "I have a feeling things are turning for the better and will improve even more once Princess Azula recovers. I can see this nation and other nations thriving if the Fire Lord and Princess can work together. We've seen what happens when two siblings don't work together, but from what I saw with Fire Lord Zuko… he wants his sister's help."
Hino nodded slowly be lifted her kiseru to the sky. "Long live Fire Lord Zuko and Princess Azula."
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"Azula?"
"What?"
Jing wrapped the blanket around her shoulders even tighter as she leaned against her teacher's shoulder. They were sitting on the porch of Suki's house while Yu helped the mother-to-be prepare for the birth. "What did you do that caused the people of Kyoshi to hate you so much? I never saw Dad like that before. He really defended you."
"Like I've told you before other times, I have done a lot of bad things during the war and made quite a few enemies. Enemies with me specifically and not the Fire Nation. The Kyoshi Warriors and people of Kyoshi being high on the list. Long story short, after a couple of friends and I defeated the Kyoshi Warriors, we took their uniforms and invaded Ba Sing Se incognito as the Kyoshi Warriors. I tarnished their name in order to secure a major victory for the Fire Nation."
"Ba Sing Se is the Earth Kingdom capital that the Fire Nation tried over nearly a hundred years to conquer, right?"
Azula nodded. "Unlike my great-grandfather, grandfather, and father, we conquered Ba Sing Se from the inside while they tried an attack from the outside."
"Suki is also usually really nice whenever Dad and I visited. Does she hate you that much because of the war?"
"Yes." Azula's whole body began trembling as the two firebenders continued to sat outside during winter. She let out a few deep breaths, blowing out some small fires from her mouth to keep herself warm. Jing rolled her eyes and wrapped part of her blanket around Azula.
"You can ask for help you know?" Jing said as she began to shake.
"Says, the one who isn't asking help on keeping warm." Azula wrapped her arm around Jing's shoulders to help transfer her heat to the young girl.
The silence that fell between the two firebenders broke and a herd of people came towards the house. Azula slowly stood up as she recognized them to be the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors followed by who she assumed were the women of the Jing's village. The excited chatter amongst the Kyoshi Warriors fell to a dead silent when they realized who was standing on Suki's porch. Not wanting to give the Kyoshi Warriors any excuse to suddenly attack her, Azula stayed perfectly still and kept her eyes on the group. Murmuring could be heard amongst the other women on what was happening. The tension in the air continued to build between the warriors and the princess.
"MOMMY!"
Azula snapped her attention away from the Kyoshi Warrior as she watched Jing run from the porch into the crowd where the young girl's mother was. She felt her throat tighten and her muscles tense as her eyes fell upon Jing's mother. Slowly she looked for Ty Lee, when she found her their eyes met. The look Ty Lee gave her was all she needed to confirm her suspicions. Lan Long was Ursa.
