Of Spoken Words: Reminiscence

"Why did you kiss me then?"

"Because it seemed good at that time?" Toph curled her hands into fists and said hesitantly, "I've lead a sheltered life, Azula. I couldn't read and my parents treated me as this…fragile thing. I know nothing about love or friendship or who not to trust. I don't know what to do; most of the time, I just act out of instinct."

"Then trust your instincts, Toph. Do you truly think that I would mean you harm? When this is all over I—"

"I need to talk to Katara. I won't tell her about us or your identity. I just really—"

"Need someone to talk to, I know." Azula said, finishing, Toph's sentence. "Sometimes, I wish Ty Lee was here. She isn't the best of advisors but…her cheerfulness has always raised my spirits."

"And her soothing words have always calmed me." Azula murmured to herself. Closing her eyes, she tried to control the flood of memories that swept her.

"Where are you going, Azula?" Ty Lee asked. "I thought you were going to stay here in Ba Sing Se with me."

"There are things I have to do, Ty Lee," She said, choosing her words carefully. "I'm afraid we won't be seeing each other for quite some time."

"But why?" The other girl looked confused. "Does it have something to do with those nightmares you keep having?"

"I have to go now," Azula said, brushing the question aside. "I leave Ba Sing Se in your capable hands, Ty Lee. Do not fail me."

The young princess touched her brow and grimaced. Having slept little the night before, her head ached ferociously. The increased training regime did not help in the slightest; with her emotions constantly in turmoil, controlling those blue flames had become harder.

Her eyes snapped open as she felt a drop in temperature. From the feel of it, the bending was obviously of amateur work; the temperature would flare occasionally and the taking in of heat was messy. It reminded her of Zuzu when she was just eight.

Slipping on her Red Spirit mask, she followed the trail of temperature changes and found herself near a clearing. "Avatar."

Aang yelped in surprise and moved the flame above his head, bringing them around his shoulders before dispersing it. Taking a deep breath, he wiped the sweat of his face and frowned at Azula. "You know, you didn't have to scare me like that."

"Well, I'm usually with you when you're training," Azula pointed out.

The young boy made a face and assumed his stance. "I wanted to train without…well, without you I guess. I—" He stopped, his face the picture of uncertainty. "It's very hard to concentrate when one's life is constantly at risk, Sifu Red."

Azula crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow—although she knew fully well that the Avatar couldn't see the expression on her face.

He seemed to have sense her annoyance though because he sighed and raised his hands in defeat. "I know that I won't have that kind of leverage when we fight the Fire Lord but how am I going to learn if everything's way too fast?"

"There's no possible solution, Avatar. You just have to be determined enough."

"And what is it with you calling me Avatar all the time?" Aang asked, scratching his head. "I have an actual name you know."

"I don't believe I am privileged to say your name just yet. After all, we are not friends."

The boy gave her a tentative smile. "We can you know…if you try to trust us."

"It's not a matter of trust, Avatar. It's a matter of identity."

"Oh right…because you're secretly the Fire Lord behind that mask. Haha. Very funny."

Azula remained silent.

Aang jumped back and brought his arms up in a defensive stance. "Don't tell me you're really the Fire Lord!"

The firebender looked away and sighed, "I am not. But as to how I am connected to the man…I would rather not say."

"But why?" Aang asked, confused. Looking at his teacher worriedly, he spoke, "Did he…do something to you?"

He denied me of my legacy. Azula thought, ignoring the sentence that followed that statement: A legacy that was never mine. Shaking her head, she looked at Aang at the corner of her eyes. "Perhaps. I do not feel the need to disclose such information."

"That's teachers for you alright," the young airbender said, pouting, "always so secretive."

"Hey, I'm not exactly waving a sign that says: 'Please ask about my day. And while you're at it, might as well ask about my life, my past, my family, my opinion of the war and what kind soap I use.' Really, it's not like I want people to know about me. What do you think I wear a mask for?"

He looked startled. "Um…because you are secretly disfigured and don't want us to see your uh…face?"

Azula bit her lip, trying hard not to giggle. Disfigured? Sounds a lot like Zuzu to her. "I'm afraid my face carries no such…blemish."

"So you're telling me that you're wearing a mask because you want to keep your identity a secret? That sounds mighty suspicious," Aang said and tilted his head, a slight frown on his face.

"Wait a little longer…I beg you," Azula said, her voice somewhat strained as she struggled to keep the plea out of it. "When this war is over, perhaps I can tell you. Perhaps we can even be friends although the idea is alien to me."

Aang offered his teacher a small smile. "Deal." He turned around and started sniffing the air. "I think Katara's making dinner. You wanna come?"

The Fire Nation princess hesitated. "You go on ahead, Avatar. I need some time alone…to think."

"Alone time, gotcha," Aang said and gave Azula a thumbs up.

She watched the Avatar for a moment as he ran towards their camp. Shifting her gaze to a tree stump, she grimaced once more, pulled off her mask and rubbed her temple; the head ache was getting worse. Sitting down the stump, she propped her chin on her palm and gazed at the grass despondently.

"I wish you'd talk to me more, Azula," Ty Lee said, leaning against the balcony. "I mean, I know you talk to me all the time but it's not the same when it's always about the war. And when was the last time we actually had some fun that didn't involve kicking someone's butt?"

"Hey, it's not like there's anything else to do." She replied. A stab of pain made her grip her head. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going down to the kitchen for a cup of tea."

"And you always look tired. Is there something wrong? Are the battle plans too much for you?"

She gave the acrobat a reassuring smile. "Oh, not at all, Ty Lee. Just…bad dreams."

"Bad dreams indeed," she murmured to herself and closed her eyes. A whisper of a dream flitted into her mind's eye.

"Why are you helping me?" She demanded, trying to catch up with other woman. "I thought she was your friend."

"She still is."

"But you went against her like that. You fought your friend to protect me. I'm the evil one, remember? I'm the bad guy who deserves to be punished."

"No one deserves to get punished just by being at the wrong side of a war." Her saviour snapped. Wincing at her sudden outburst, she stopped. "Listen, Princess, now isn't the time for questions like this. Katara might catch up with us and trust me, you don't want to see her in a bad mood."

"As much as I want to avoid another confrontation, I'm afraid I can't run as fast as you because oh look, I've got a sprained ankle."

The bender blinked in surprise. "You do? How come I didn't notice?"

"I hide things very well, Toph of the White Lotus. Just as you can."

"How did—"

"I know you were connected to that group? Oh please, I'm not blind. Your gloves carry the insignia of the Order. Besides, I—"

Toph grabbed her chin, tilted it, and jammed her lips against Azula's. The other woman struggled under her grip but couldn't pull away. After seconds of silence, Toph finally let go.

Azula glared at the blind bender. "What the hell did you do that for?"

"I sensed a group of fighters nearby. You were so loud, I was afraid they might hear you." Toph said calmly.

"You do know that there are other better options than kissing me." The firebender grumbled, cheeks flaming. "And I thought you were blind. How come you knew where my lips were?"

Toph grinned. "I just followed the source of the noise. It was terribly easy to find."

Azula gritted her teeth and gasped. Falling to the ground, she curled into a tiny ball and shivered. Even now when she was just remembering it, the kiss still felt real. What did that mean exactly? And more importantly, was it connected to the feelings she had for Toph?

A/N: It's crappy, I know. But only because it slipped out of my control once she started talking to Aang. Gaah.

A lot of hints there if you squint real hard. The dreams will be explained soon. (if you call five or six chapters soon...)

And one last thing: I'm not gonna pair Aang and Zuko. Why? Because I told myself I'd write a het pairing and those two need to have kids. Seriously. (for one thing, there won't be anymore airbenders if Aang dies.)