"Do you have to be so mean?"
The question posed to the Fire Nation's princess had the intended effect, making her peel open her eyes to glare at her youngest sibling standing over her form. Azula felt the handmaidens' movements slow with cautious combing through her splayed hair in the wash basin. She could almost feel the stifling fear in both women's fingers, though, it did not have the same effect it once did when she was fourteen and foolish.
It must have been the newfound, inner peace that comes with womanhood that made the once, universally feared princess dismiss her sister's ill tongue. When she once would have bitten the girl's head off and spit it at her, she now sighed and answered, "I prefer to see it as acknowledgement. Uncle Fuddy Duddy has always seen me as just a girl, so I answered his misogyny in kind".
The fifteen year old with the similar face to her own pursed her lips at which Azula smirked.
"Do you need a dictionary or some chronology of words, Dear?" Asked Azula, pleasantly, noting the handmaidens' renewed confidence that they would finish their duties unscathed.
"I know what misogyny means, Sis," said Kiyi with an eyeroll. "But, I don't think Uncle Iroh meant it that way".
"Then you do not know my uncle. He is the embodiment of it. Try as he may, he can't distance himself that much from Ozai. If things were different, I would be in one of the water tribes or the earth kingdom, barefoot and pregnant in a loveless, diplomatic marriage". Though it was not Azula's intention, Kiyi giggled.
"Speaking of!" Kiyi suddenly squealed, like the true, childish fifteen year old she was. "Avatar Aang just arrived!"
Azula's nostrils flared. She did not miss the teasing tone in her sister's voice. Her smirk was replaced with a frown. "Your point?"
Kiyi shrugged. "He's alone this time and-"
"Married," Azula finished for her. "With three children. He's also over 100 years older than you, Child," she added before Kiyi could say anything further in such a public space.
Signaling the end of the conversation, Azula rose from the wash basin, taking a towel from a servant to dry her hair. A cigar was offered, at which she readily took, lighting it with her middle finger in hopes that the smoke would run off the talkative teenager, who was too naïve to understand just how much damage her innocent banter could do. Kiyi did not run from the smoke, however, so Azula dropped her towel and left the room with the clicks of Kiyi's heels hurriedly matching her pace towards the balcony just beyond the temple's spa.
Azula had enough on her mind to concern herself with than her half-sister's insinuations. The teen's mind could conjure obscene fantasies sometimes. Though, obviously, that wasn't an excuse as her ex-best friend had also hinted at similar wild theories of a so-called repressed attraction between herself and the air nomad avatar, due to their training sessions. Azula chose not to bother herself with such foolishness. She was a woman of substance and would never stoop so low as taking the peasant Katara's husband and father of her kids.
Of course, people blamed attraction whenever a woman was in a position to train a man. She could almost recite what her uncle would say if such rumors reached his ears. A part of her felt compelled to bring it up in front of him, just to piss him off.
No, she was done with her old, manipulative ways, for the most part. Controlling situations and people had yielded unpleasant results in the end for her. Though she never said so, Ty Lee and Mai's betrayals had taught her a key lesson about friendship. Not to mention, the stress of ruling strictly through fear was bad for the looks. She refused to shrivel up like Ursa any time soon.
Ursa. Azula blew thick rings of smoke and watched it dance through the air. Finding Ursa had proven useful and beneficial to herself and her siblings' relationship. Kiyi deserved a big sister to look up to and it was nice to release her long-standing rivalry with her older brother. She wasn't ashamed to admit how her thoughts of her mother had taken a toll on her, nowadays. She accepted it and to a degree embraced it, though she and Ursa agreed to a silent truce that involved saying as little as necessary to the other.
"Are you going to see him?" Kiyi asked, invading her thoughts.
Azula clicked teeth. "Let it go, Kiyi. Of course, I will see him. I have eyes like anyone else. I'm sure he is here to bless Izumi so he will be a part of the coronation ceremony tonight".
"And after?"
Sighing, Azula leaned onto the balcony's railing. "We will train and he will stay the night in the guest room, then he will be on his merry way by morning".
"Is that all you're going to do?" Kiyi continued, making Azula bare her teeth in annoyance and disgust. Did her sister really think so lowly of her?
"If you're insinuating-"
"The dragon eggs!" Kiyi cut her off, provoking a raised eyebrow from her. "Maybe Aang could convince Iroh to give the other to Izumi even though she's a girl. Just ask him, he would do it for you!"
Azula could almost see the lightbulbs in Kiyi's bright, peasant eyes flicker on. Her sister could be pretty intelligent when she wanted. Azula would have called her a genius, but held the thought. That one egg she had held was priceless and if her uncle was being truthful, if it was real…had endless possibilities attached to it.
I could burn the colonies to the ground. She told herself.
The Fire Lord had chosen to keep their father's banished location a secret. Azula smiled inwardly at the idea that a single dragon could just lay waste to all of them in that case.
"Well?" Piped Kiyi, naturally seeking the honor of the fire princess's approval as most people still did. Even the avatar was not immune to the lure of being the coveted recipient of a "Princess Azula Compliment". The fire lord, though he would rather self-harm his good side than admit it, felt Azula's approval was worth gold as well.
Lifting the cigar to her lips again, Azula inhaled and released, resisting the urge to pat the girl's head like an eel-hound.
"Perhaps, you are more precocious than the average peasant," she offered, at which Kiyi beamed. "Either way, it would require some fancy work from the avatar to convince my bone headed uncle to do something he's so foolishly against," she continued, bursting Kiyi's elated bubble. "Either that or flat out dishonesty, which is it out of the question for Mr. Monk".
"Yeah," sighed Kiyi. "You're right, I guess".
"Of course". Azula dismissed, flicking her cigar with a tap from her freshly painted nail.
"I just don't think it's fair for Izumi," added Kiyi, lifting with her arms to sit backwards on the balcony railing. Looking down to her sister, she asked, "Do you?"
Azula shrugged. She could care less about fair. Nothing was fair in this man's world, it seemed. Funny how Iroh's twisted male logic seemed rampant within all of the intact nations. Females aren't even allowed to serve on the royal council in Ba Sing Se, nor were they included in the Dai Li's ranks. The Water Tribes were their own brand of primitive, however. Boomerang boy turned playboy Councilman Sokka certainly proved this fact with his constant objectification of women and thus remained a bachelor with countless lovers.
Fairness is a tricky word that Azula never put much stock in. Why if everything was fair, she wouldn't be a princess with subjects at her beck and call. So what, life's not fair, though with a dragon…
"It is the way things are, Kiyi. Maybe Izumi could change it one day".
Azula thought on her niece, freshly emerged from Fire Lady Misery's womb. Though she, Misery and Ty Lee would never make amends, Azula was proud of the little heir to her nation's throne. If she had anything to do with it, Izumi will be the greatest fire lord in history. The baby was destined to polish her aunt's tarnished legacy, Azula was determined to make sure of that. Though…what would a baby need with a dragon?
The cigar made frequent trips to her lips as Azula pondered the matter over. Kiyi found entertainment in discussing, rather loudly, the personal business of varying nobles entering their home for the ceremony in their finest. Some of them nerved to shoot a glaring eye up before nearly pissing themselves when they noticed whom was standing by the teen's side.
"Stop pointing," Azula coached, offhandedly, her mind searching for a reason to go with Kiyi's plan. I could make use of a dragon, now. They live for a hundred years at least. Izumi has plenty of time to find her own.
Her niece's only interests were eating, filling her diaper and sleeping currently. What harm would it do to borrow the dragon once Aang wrenched it away from Uncle? It would be for the greater good. Besides, Iroh may never get the male heir he wanted for Lord Zuzu.
The princess was so engrossed in her mind, she had not noticed her half-sister's figure change from slim and petite to towering muscle, complete with a shaven head and freshly trimmed beard. It was only when she heard, "If the body be feeble, the mind will not be strong".
Azula cleared her throat smoothly from the smoke she had swallowed thanks to the startling voice, though she was careful to keep her heart rate slow. Without looking at the man suddenly by her side, she smirked, inhaling sharply before answering, "Well, we can't all be pure idiots, fortunately".
A burn in her chest, that had nothing to do with the cigar, erupted when her student laughed. Azula found his innocence charming, though she found his presence increasingly annoying.
"So, you invade a woman's privacy, why?" She asked.
"You're on the balcony," Aang pointed out.
"In my bathrobe. Not a good look for the famous avatar," she paused, side-eying him before adding, "Or a married man, for the matter".
Aang shrugged. "No one in their right mind would think us a couple," Aang said with a chuckle. Azula chose to ignore the unintended insult, and puffed on her cigar, flicking away the ashes intermittently. She wasn't in the mood for the boy turned man Zuko had pushed off on her to train due to him "focusing on work" as fire lord, so her thoughts ventured elsewhere.
"I would think the birth of my niece would warrant time off from training you," she said, waving him away.
"Now, now, Sifu, since when have you believed in breaks?" Aang shot back, seemingly closer now.
Azula sighed, releasing heavy smoke that the man batted away. "Fine after the new princess's coronation tonight, perhaps I'll change my mind. You are joining the festivities, correct?"
Aang nodded. "Yeah, Zuko wanted a traditional Air Nation blessing ceremony. It was thoughtful of him to think of. Most nations know nothing of Air Nation traditions".
"Yes, Zuko has proven himself a very capable fire lord," said the princess, surprising Aang. "Well, if you will excuse me, I have more preparations to attend to. Unfortunately, I don't wake up beautiful," Azula said turning to leave, when Aang gave a shock of his own when he answered, "If that's the case, you don't sleep at all, Sifu".
Azula nearly missed a step, but did not look back. Surely, the avatar was not flirting? Was he? Did she want him to? Should she flirt back? It may have its benefits, though Azula was not good at such things, a fact only that wretched circus freak knew. Continuing to walk away, she made sure to put on her best princess walk under the gray eyes, she was sure were locked on her as she made her exit as her mind turned like a turbine.
Perhaps, I should think of a name for my new dragon, after all. The thought brought a playful smirk on her lips at the…possibilities.