"Who are you and what do you want?" Jet glared down at the intruders with narrow eyes and a fierce scowl. Not ten minutes ago, one of the scouts that was positioned in the treetops on the outskirts of the colony had informed him they were coming this way. He'd then sent out the order for everyone to gather at the "Town Hall" (which was what they called the biggest tree house in their tiny clan that doubled as both Jet's living quarters and the place where all meetings were held) so they could assess the situation and decide how to handle it. Despite the fact that the war was over and the Fire Nation fortresses that had once loomed nearby were long gone, he still refused to let his guard down when it came to outsiders stumbling upon his village. Call him paranoid, he didn't care. He kept his followers safe.
"We come in peace!" It was the girl who had spoken, and his eyes flickered to her face. She had pale, porcelain skin, eyes the color of golden Autumn leaves, and short, silky black hair. She held her hands up in a gesture meant to reinforce her statement, but he was not fooled. She was definitely of Fire Nation descent. And that meant she could not be trusted.
"Who are you?" He repeated, his already threatening tone taking on a steely edge.
"My name is Song, and this is my father, Letoh," she said as she gestured to the man beside her. He had dark brown hair that was starting to gray pulled back into a tight topknot and he clearly hadn't shaved in a while, if the scruffy, tangled mass of hair that clung to his face was any indication. His eyes were small and beady, and didn't seem to fully take in what was going on around him. "We are travelling to the eastern shore of the Earth Kingdom in order to meet with some old... Friends."
He raised a brow as he catalogued the way she chuckled nervously and dragged her eyes to the ground.
"Friends?"
"Um, yes, you see, we have not seen them since the end of the war and we've been planning a sort of... Reunion."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, it is," she replied with the slightest amount of testiness. Her beaming smile had grown a tad strained and he could see that her shoulders were tensed, even from twenty feet above. He resisted a smirk. Good, he was getting to her. It was only a matter of time until his interrogation irritated the absolute shit out of her and cracked out the reason she was here.
He paused. "You're from the Fire Nation."
She visibly flinched and he knew he caught her.
"Yes, we are." She sighed and the smile fell from her face. "We know that there are many people in the Earth Kingdom who still scorn us, with due cause. My father and I are not proud of the violence our country has inflicted on the rest of the world. We are deeply sorry for any hostility or threatening behavior that our Fire Nation soldiers have displayed. That... That is why we are headed east."
"What do you mean? I thought you were just going to meet some 'friends'?"
She shifted from one foot to the other and glanced at her father, who still had not spoken a single word and continued to gaze off into the distance. Was something wrong with him?
"I don't think I can tell you."
Jet snorted. "Oh, really? And you think we're just going to let the two of you waltz on through our village without any explanation as to what you're up to, since it's obvious you're up to something, when you could easily be Firebenders planning to kill us all?"
The girl drew back slightly, her hands on her hips and her expression indignant. "I'll have you know-"
"Song." Jet's attention was redirected to the old man, her father, whose eyes were still glued to whatever he had been staring at this whole time. Song momentarily seemed surprised that he spoke, but quickly recovered and waited for him to speak. "It is clear that these warriors do not trust our people. Perhaps we have more to gain by telling them about our plan than we have to lose..."
The girl crossed her arms and seemed to consider this for a moment. Then, after glancing right and left at his followers, crowded together, listening intently in the trees, she asked, "Is there a more... Private place we can talk?"
Azula settled herself down on a scratchy, green pillow in the upstairs room of Jet's treehouse with a feeling of satisfaction. She thought she played the part of a high-spirited, outgoing, teenage girl rather well. This first little interaction with Jet and his followers was only just the first act, however. She would have to keep it up almost constantly. She could only really be herself when she was alone or with Katzu, and even then, she'd still have to keep her guard up. She was confident she could do it, though; she was a master manipulator, and no one would ever suspect that she was, in actuality, a ruthless and outgoing teenage girl. Well, at least not yet, anyway. Once she gained Jet's trust, freed the war supporters, and engaged in a battle to the death with her brother for the throne, then the secret might come out.
She glanced around the room with mild interest. Jet's living quarters were... Quaint, at best. There were a few raggedy, mismatched rugs thrown on different spots on the floor. There were a few shelves along the walls that held various knick knacks and a few pictures of what seemed to be a family. There was a pile of clothes in one corner of the room that looked as though they hadn't been washed in a few weeks, if the sweat stains were any indication. Azula crinkled her nose in disgust. Boys could be so gross.
The only thing close to a bed in the room was a hammock strung from one branch that poked through one of the walls to a hook imbedded in another. She wasn't remotely impressed with any of her surroundings until she laid her eyes on the various swords mounted on the wall behind her.
Well, those certainly look expensive. Wonder who he stole them from.
"Don't get any ideas." As if on cue, Jet marched through the door and plopped down in front of her and Katzu, eyeing them warily. He hadn't come in with them, probably because he was giving orders to some of the other boys in the camp to stand watch outside the door. "I'm armed with concealed weapons and those are too heavy for you anyway."
Azula turned back to face him, eyebrow raised and smirk intact. "I hadn't planned on killing you, so calm down. I was just looking. And how would you know those are too heavy for me? I can handle myself."
He smirked right back at her. She had to admit, he really was a handsome boy; with his tan skin, unkempt hair, and toned muscles that were clearly there under his nearly-skin-tight shirt. It was too bad he'd most likely ruin his pretty face and die in the end.
"Well, Miss Song, I don't mean to come off as sexist, but a small girl such as yourself wielding such large blades... I just don't see that happening."
"And yet you were still worried that I would attack."
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Never trust the Fire Nation."
Azula schooled her features into a serious expression and crossed her arms over her chest. "Okay. If we are going to disclose the information to you that explains why we are here and the real reason we are headed east, we need to make sure of a few things. You are not the only distrusting individual here."
His eyes flickered between them suspiciously. "And what kind of things do you need to make sure of, exactly?"
Azula took a breath before she continued. "That you don't work for the government, you won't expose our true motives to the authorities, you'll offer us protection if needed, and... You'll consider helping us."
"I can't agree to any of that until I know who you are."
The Fire Princess feigned a nervous yet annoyed glance at her "father", who nodded for her to give away the information the rebel in front of them requested.
"But Father, what if he turns us in? We've already come this far-"
"Song." Azula snapped her mouth shut and stared at her accomplice a moment longer. She had to hide her surprise at how well he was playing this game of charades. She'd expected him to screw up sooner than this.
"You have to understand, Jet," she said with a defeated sigh as she stared down at her hands, clasped together in her lap. "My father and I are not like the other people in the Fire Nation who wanted to take over the world. We believe in democracy, and that the four nations should live in harmony and carry on with their own customs and traditions." She ignored the faint whisper of her mother's voice in the back of her mind that chanted, Lies, lies, lies...
"When the Avatar defeated Fire Lord Ozai and Prince... Prince Zuko inherited the throne," Azula struggled to keep the disdain for her brother out of her voice. "Everyone thought they were finally safe, because the war was over and we were no longer a threat. Nearly everyone still believes this a year later. Even the most skeptical individuals have come to accept that we are not going to invade their homelands anymore, and that we are working towards becoming a friendlier and more peaceful nation."
Since she had read up on Jet's file before even leaving her real father's home, she knew that he was one particular skeptic who had not. The current look of disbelief on his face both reinforced and confirmed this fact.
"But, I am afraid that those who have come to trust our country once again, should not. You are very smart to be wary of us, though I assure you that we are not the ones you should be afraid of. In fact, we are going to east... To find help."
"What? Why? What's going on?" The confusion and alarm were evident in his eyes, and Azula had to repress a smirk, knowing it was only a matter of time before she had him lured into her clutches.
"My father is a very high ranking military officer in the Fire Nation. Or at least he was, before we ran away. He was able to get his hands on some information about Fire Lord Zuko's plans for another invasion in the coming year. I'm sure you've heard of the 'prison' that stands a few miles off shore of the Earth Kingdom. You also probably believe that it really does house all the most dangerous war criminals. Well, that is what they want you to think."
"But if the war criminals aren't the ones being detained, then who is?" The tone of shock in his voice let her know he was playing right into her hands.
She paused a moment for dramatic effect, something she was quite fond of. "The prison contains rebels, such as yourselves, who tried to defy Fire Lord's Zuko's plans for another war. They attempted to attack our capital, and did a hefty amount of damage. Our government and military have kept it hushed up, and threatened to throw any citizens who would dare to speak of it to persons of other nations in the prison along with them. We are going to free them so we can assassinate the Fire Lord."
Jet stared right through her, as if she wasn't even there, and let her words sink in. His posture had become tense, as if he was ready for an attack from any angle. Azula supposed that she made it sound like he should be ready for such a thing, and resisted a smug smile that was threatening to creep up on her face.
"How long would a quest like this take?" He finally drawled, slowly and thoughtfully.
"Well, we can't know for certain until we figure out how many people are willing to come with us," she replied tiredly. "We know we can't break the rebels out by ourselves. We're lucky to have stumbled upon your village. You and your followers seem to have at least some experience with fighting, judging by the protective armor that some of you wear over your clothes. My father seems to think that you could all be of help to us. Will you at least consider it?"
He leaned back on his elbows and stared up at the ceiling. "Proof," he muttered. "I need proof. How do I know this isn't a trick? I'm sure the army still has a death wish for me 'cause I gave them so much shit back when those colonies were nearby. How do I know you're not leading me to them or leading them to me?"
Azula nodded at Katzu, who then proceeded to pull one of the scrolls Ozai gave to them out of his bag. He unraveled it and handed it over to the rogue boy, who took it delicately into his hands and began to read aloud.
"I, Fire Lord Zuko, command all military strategists, soldiers, shipbuilders, and weapons manufacturers to prepare for a future invasion of the three other Nations besides our own (Air, Earth, and Water). This endeavor is a top secret subject and shall not be discussed outside of the palace meeting room unless otherwise permitted by me. The first meeting to arrange plans for this event will be held in approximately one month from now (June 16th). All members of the advisory board must be present, as well as the Avatar. He will be permitted to leave his imprisonment for this occurrence only."
Jet stared down at the wax Fire Nation insignia that served as an official signature, trembling in anger. "He had us fooled, that prince. He had us all fooled into thinking he was going to help the Avatar restore peace and be our saving grace. He lied to all of us. And now we'll all have to endure another war. People will lose their homes, their lives, the ones they love, all over again. Even more people are going to die."
"Not if we can stop it," Azula interjected gently, pleased with the fact that he was hooked on the bait. "Please, Jet. We need your help. We wouldn't know who else to turn to if you said no. I know this is a lot to take in, and if you need some time to think-"
He held up a hand to cut her off before standing. "I think the two of you should stay here tonight. The treehouse next door is vacant, and you can sleep there. But don't even try to run away. I still don't trust you, and there will be guards positioned outside in case you make any stupid attempts. I... I'll think about your offer and let you know tomorrow whether or not my colony and I will help you."
Azula nodded excitedly and put on an understanding expression. "Of course. My father and I greatly appreciate this. Thank you."
He shot a curt nod in her direction before opening the door and ordering a small boy to take them to the treehouse.
A/N: Wow, sorry it's been so long since I updated. I've been really distracted with so many other things like finals and college stuff and I'm not gonna lie, I kind of got really caught up in Mrs Pettyfer's "The Black Games", which is a fantastic Zutara fic, in case you didn't know. It's sort of an AU, set in the world of the Hunger Games. Or maybe I should say that the Hunger Games are set in the world of ATLA. Typically, I don't like a lot of AU or crossover stuff, but this was definitely a good read and I'm sort of disappointed in myself for putting it off for so long. So if you're a fellow Zutara shipper and have not read this yet, I highly recommend you do! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks to those who have reviewed. Let me know what you think so far! :)