Chapter 14: Give Me a Reason

Shortish chapter, long Azula-Jet convo comparatively. It's an interesting conversation. Well, this is Azula's thinking period. She has to think. Thinking is essential. Think. Think. Think. Think. Think. Ok I'm probably done with that at this point. Well, maybe just one more. Think. Ok. Anyway. Probably owe a shout-out to Harlequin Jade, you review so very much. And people, I'm sorry about the shortness, but it's already written and can't be help. It is one of my goals for future stories to write far more, so well, catch me on that in my next story, which for now is called, "Because I Don't Make Mistakes" but I'm considering other titles and really, well, I dunno. Summary in my profile if you want to check that out, make suggestiong, yadda. Chapter. 14. Go for it.

"Azula's marooned with Jet," Sokka said.

"I was going to say the same thing," Crin said.

Tomo, who had been relatively silent through their journey, now spoke up. "Ok. Time to explain who Jet is and why it's so bad that he's stuck with Princess Azula."

"Jet is the leader of the Freedom Fighters, a very radical rebel force," Sokka said.

"Konashi was near them, so I heard a lot of stories," Crin added.

"He hates the Fire Nation and firebenders to the point of insanity."

"So, being stuck with the Fire Nation Princess…" Tomo thought out loud. "Oh, no."

"Exactly," Sokka said. "We have to warn the others."

Tomo nodded. "I'll send a message to the council. We'll leave in the morning."

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Azula walked confidently down the gangplank. Her soldiers, her friends, and a prisoner followed silently behind her. She stepped onto the beach. She argued with the Avatar in fast-forward. The world slowed again when her mother confronted her.

"Azula."

"Mom?"

"It's time to stop this foolishness."

"No. You're betraying the Fire Nation. I am loyal! Father loves me!"

"Your father doesn't love anything but power. Now let him go."

"No." Azula charged toward her mother. She wanted to smash that face. That honest face. But Ursa caught her fist and pushed her back. She tried fire. Lightning. Everything. She was panting into the sand now.

"When you clear your head, come find me."

Azula opened her eyes. It was still dark out. She was in Jet's arms again, but this time, she didn't scream. She found comfort in it. She let herself sink farther into his warm embrace. Jet's arms tightened around her. Azula looked back to see that he has awake as well.

"Can't sleep?" she whispered.

"Yeah. You?"

"A dream that used to be a nightmare."

There was a long silence.

"Jet?"

"Yeah?" he mumbled into her hair.

"What are we supposed to do?"

"What do you mean?"

"When we get off the island, what's going to happen?"

"I don't know. It depends on who finds us and what's happening to the rest of the world."

"If the Avatar can't stop my father by the end of the summer, the entire world will be under the Fire Nation's control," Azula said.

"I know the Fire Nation is strong, but they can't possibly take control that fast," Jet said.

"They can, and if the Avatar doesn't stop them, they will. There's a comet coming at the end of summer."

"The same comet that started the war?"

"The same."

"Azula, what are you going to do?"

"I don't know whose side I'm on anymore. Most of my family supports the Avatar. My father is the Fire Lord. I don't know where that leaves me."

"Azula, you can change the outcome of this war. You're an amazing firebender. It depends on who you want to help. Your father's conquest of the world to bring the Fire Nation glory. Or the people whose families die each day the war continues."

"You want me to choose your side. Against my Nation and my father."

"I would be a liar if I said I didn't. But this choice is yours to make."

Thoughts of conquest swirled through Azula's head. Glory, honor. She could bring these to her father, to herself, to her Nation. She would be remembered forever. She would be invincible. Her Nation, her people would be invincible with the world in their grasp. But at what price. Human life. Every man, woman, and child that died in the war. Every soldier, hers or theirs. Everyone that died. That was the price. But for glory… Glory stained by blood. True heroes die for their glory, don't they? Heroes of stories, not logical heroes. Heroes that will be remembered. She wanted to be remembered. She wanted lots of things. She wanted honor. She didn't want to lose her honor by being weak. She wanted lots of things.

"I don't know what is right," Azula said at last. She was caught between her honor and her repressed humanity. Her mother had brought that out. Now her humanity struggled to be heard over the orchestra that was her honor. Azula didn't know what she wanted anymore. She wanted lots of things.

"You have to find the right reasons," Jet told her. "I was fighting for the wrong reasons. I was so caught up in revenge, I forgot what mattered. Protecting the people I had left. The people that didn't deserve to go through what I went through."

"So you're saying I have to decide who and what is important to me and fight for those things."

"If it helps you make your choice."

"But I don't have anyone."

"You have me."

Alas there is one fatal flaw with my story. This is the sequel to Violets. Violets happens some time in season 3, logically anyway, who know if that happens. But admittedly, my time frame really doesn't fit with the "by summer's end" stuff. But screw that, I'm not compressing anything. Let's just say by some random event, a dark wizard created a riff in the space time continuum allowing much more time to pass that what really would pass in order for my ideas to occur at a reasonable rate and therefore also be logical alternate storylines fitting with the show. If you didn't catch that, well it's wordy and I probably confused myself at some point in there. In short, time is not my problem.