Of Fire

Chapter 18

Fear. It was the first thing she felt when she saw the cell they placed her in, overwhelming, all- consuming fear. She wanted to yell, to scream, to resist as they put her in it. But she didn't. She would not give them that satisfaction, absolutely refused to do that. Her breathing did elevate a little, not enough for the guards to notice, as they locked the door to the cold dank dungeon cell. This particular cell was not one she had stayed in before, the small differences giving her much needed comfort, but the vague memories of that time still haunted her. The smell of dried and fresh blood mingling with the dirt and mold was as fresh as if she was still in that cell so long ago. Once the door was locked tight, Azula began mediating, imagining herself back in her room with her daughter and wife and not in this cold wet prison. All she could do now was wait, knowing that her wife and child were doing everything in their power to get to the bottom of this.

~x~

Detia felt the fear her mother was feeling as she walked down the halls of the palace with purpose, each step weighing heavily against the tiled floor but no sound echoed off the wall. Ty Lee had run out of the room the instant the guards left, drying her tears as went. She could hear her Mommy arguing with the guards in front of Zuko's study, where the Fire Lord was currently holding a small meeting. Ty Lee was by no means quiet in her demands to enter, the people in the room not saying a word as they listened.

She could see it in her mommy's eyes when the older woman came into view. Ty Lee had every intention of dropping the guards in front of her and from the look in their eyes they knew it. They actually sighed when Detia placed a hand on her mommy's shoulder and silently told her, 'Let me handle this.'

Of course, when the child's golden glare – the same exact glare as her Mother's – was turned to them they went rigid again, being temporarily paralyzed was way better than being permanently scarred. A second later they couldn't remember why they had moved from in front of the door. Their superiors would ask and ask but no reason was forth coming. They simply moved out of the way and allowed the two to enter. The surprised look on Zuko's face when Detia, followed by a confused but still angry Ty Lee, entered the room would have amused Detia, but more pressing matters were at hand. The lightning bender nodded to the blind Earth Queen who sat in front of Zuko, silently acknowledging her, and eyeing her aunt, who stood behind Zuko.

"What is the meaning of this?" Zuko demanded, the fresh bandage on his face hiding the recent cut.

"We could ask you the same!" Ty Lee interjected, stepping in front of her daughter. "Why did the guards barge into my room and take my wife to the dungeon?"

The Fire Lord sighed, eyeing his ten year old niece. "This is not a conversation we should have with a child present."

"This is exactly a conversation we should have with a child present," Ty Lee argued as she stormed towards her brother-in-law, Toph quickly moving out of the way, and slammed her hands on his desk. "She was in the room when they took Azula away, Zuko."

His eyes widened in shock as he eyed his niece, who stood behind her mommy placidly, reading his mind. Though, he didn't know that. "I'm sorry you had to see that Detia," he said sincerely.

'If you're sorry, let me talk to the assassin,' Detia suggested, walking up to the desk, her hands hidden in her sleeves.

"The assassin?" Ty Lee questioned, "What assassin?"

'The assassin that attempted to kill Uncle Zuko,' Detia informed. 'Let me talk to him.'

Zuko sighed, intertwining his fingers, "I'm sorry Detia. But you are just a child. I don't want to get you involved."

'But I can read his mind!' Detia's voice yelled in his head like a sharp pain. 'I can tell who really ordered him to try to kill you!'

"That's why I asked Toph to come here. She can tell if someone is lying," Zuko answered and Mai nodded.

"That's not valid!" Ty Lee argued. "Both Detia and Azula can lie to Toph. Who's to say that others can't as well? No offense, Toph."

"None taken," Toph replied, sitting back and watching the scene unfold.

"It's not likely he'll be able to lie under the conditions we're putting him under," Zuko informed. The images of the bloodied beaten form of the would-be assassin chained to a chair in a room with no windows coming unbidden to his mind. "I'm seriously standing firm with my decision not to get Detia involved in this further. She's only a child."

Ty Lee sighed. She could understand that and really didn't want her child to get involved further. The acrobat turned to her child, "Detia, I agree… where'd she go?" finding the room empty of her daughter.

"She left just a second ago," Toph informed. "I can't tell where she's heading. Light as air, that kid."

"Okay," Ty Lee remarked, slightly confused as she turned back to Zuko. "Now that she's gone, tell me what happened."

~x~

Detia walked down the cold corridors of the secret passageway that lead to the dungeon. Unfortunately, the exit of the secret passageway was at the entrance of the dungeon, which was littered with guards. But with her new found abilities she easily walked past them. They didn't even try to stop her. 'Mother,' Detia's voice called, as she reached her mother's cell and found the princess sitting in the middle of the empty cell meditating.

Azula's golden eyes opened to find the guard handing her daughter the keys to her cell. She lifted her eyebrow in curiosity, half wondering if she was still meditating or even sleeping. Detia smirked and opened the cell, taking the key to the cell off the ring before handing it back to the guard. "What…" Azula started but stopped when Detia placed a hand to her own lips, telling her to be quiet. 'What just happened?' Azula inquired, gesturing slightly to the pocket Detia put the key in.

'He handed me the key,' Detia answered.

'I saw that. Why?' Azula inquired, thankfully finding that her daughter's presence alone was making her feel so much better.

Detia smiled as she walked to her mother, keeping the door to the cell open, and sat down in her lap despite the fact that she was ten. 'I learned to make people do what I want without them even knowing at school.'

Azula chuckled, pulling her daughter into a hug, glad for the familiar presence and not minding the slight weight. 'Interesting, I don't remember learning anything like that in school.'

'My friends taught me how, kinda,' Detia answered. 'You know the ones I was talking about earlier.'

Azula nodded. 'I remember. How did that happen?'

'They snuck into my room late at night,' Detia began. 'And we were talking, they were talking out loud, and a teacher knocked on the door. They told me to make her not see them. I thought they were crazy, but after some coaxing, I tried it. Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.'

'What did you do?' Azula inquired, truly surprised by her child's new ability.

'I found the part of her brain that connected to her eyes and manipulated the image she saw. I practiced all during the past year. Making people see things that aren't there and making them not see things that are. I can do other things too,' Detia admitted, glancing up at her mother's impressed expression and smiling.

'Like what?' Azula asked, the conversation distracting her from her surroundings.

'I can make anyone do whatever I want and they won't remember a thing. I can even do it with large groups.'

'That's an interesting ability,' Azula admitted. 'And you can do it to anyone?'

'I can. But I don't like to; it's not honorable. I'd rather talk someone into making them do what I want, so they know that they were doing it for me, rather than not knowing why they did something.' She paused, feeling her mother nod in understanding. 'But in this case, I think this way is better. Causes less problems.' Azula nodded, impressed, but the sudden silence reminded her of where she was. 'An assassin tried to kill Uncle Zuko. The assassin is being questioned again. He keeps saying you hired him. And Toph confirms he's telling the truth.'

"I didn't do it." Azula said. 'You know that, right?'

'I know, Mom. I know. I looked through his head while I was walking down there, even though Uncle Zuko and Mommy don't want me involved any further.'

'Like they could stop you,' Azula smiled, uncharacteristically kissing the top her daughter's head.

'I know right,' Detia laughed. 'But anyways, he truly does believe that you hired him. So, I looked deeper and the last thing he remembered before you supposedly hired him to kill Uncle Zuko was a bunch of flashing lights and sitting in a chair where he couldn't move. I'm guessing he was brainwashed.'

Azula nodded, her mind going directly to Long Feng and his brainwashing techniques. 'No one would believe you if you did try to tell them.'

Detia frowned, it was true. 'What are we going to do?' the lightning bender asked and Azula sighed.

'I don't know,' Azula admitted. 'But you should probably try to tell Toph what you know.'

'She already knows,' Detia admitted. 'I told her what I found when I found it. She said she'd look into it, but I doubt she'll find anything before Zuko dishes out your punishment. And even if she does manage to halt it, you'll be here until then.'

Azula sighed, 'I've been in a worse cell than this. I'll survive.'

Detia mimicked her mother's expression. 'I know, but I don't like you down here. And neither does Mommy.'

'Well, I don't like it either,' Azula admitted. 'But I don't know what other option we have.' The lightning bender leaned back against her mother, exhaling deeply and for a while there was only silence. Azula glanced around the small cell. It was bigger than the one she somewhat remembered during the early days of her insanity, but it was still a cell. She didn't know what she would do to stop herself from thinking about her surroundings and the unconscious memories that could suddenly resurface. Though she tried not to admit it, she feared that this type of solitude would drive her back into insanity.

'I could tell you a story,' Detia offered and looked up at her mother.

'What kind of story?' Azula asked, willing to try just about anything to stop herself from thinking about everything that was going on. Her life was going so well up until this point.

Detia ignored her mother's thoughts and answered, 'A story about the Origin of the Gods.'

'When did you learn that?' Azula asked.

The lightning bender hesitated. 'After I was struck by lightning while I was sleeping I had a conversation with my former self. She told me.'

'And you didn't think that information was pertinent to us.'

'Not really,' Detia admitted, wrapping her hand in her mother's so Azula wouldn't pull away from her. 'It was mostly idle chit chat. Though, when the Avatar showed up that was funny.'

'I bet it was,' Azula agreed, chuckling lightly. 'So, tell me about this origin.'

Detia smiled and started her tale, 'Well, a long, long time ago, before history was history…'

"Azula?" Ty Lee's confused tone interrupted them, her eyes puffy but dry, and she looked so tired. "What's going on?" she asked, touching the open cell door and looking at the guard who had yet to move. "What happened to all the guards? None of them moved at all while I just walked past."

Detia raised her hand sheepishly, 'That's my fault.'

"What?" Ty Lee and Azula chorused.

'Shh,' Detia whispered, putting a finger over her lips. 'Their minds are on a loop, and they don't see people that pass them. But loud noises will snap them out of it.'

Ty Lee nodded, too worn out to really be impressed. Azula, though, was highly impressed and patted her daughter on her head. She would have said something, but the expression on her wife's face was enough to make her worry. "Ty Lee?" Azula questioned lightly as the acrobat numbly walked into the cell, nearly falling on her knees in front of Azula and Detia, hugging them both. "Ty Lee?" Detia moved out from the grip and watched as her mother took Ty Lee into her arms and the acrobat started to sob. "Ty Lee, answer me."

"Tell me you didn't do it," Ty Lee whispered. "Just tell me it wasn't you."

Azula frowned at the implication that her wife might not believe her. "I didn't do it, Ty Lee. I have too much to lose." Ty Lee nodded, that's all she needed to hear. "What happened?"

Choking back a sob, Ty Lee gripped tighter onto her wife. "He wants to get this over with quickly. They've already decided what to do with you."

"They?"

"Zuko and his counsel," Ty Lee managed as Azula rubbed her back. "You broke the contract."

Azula swallowed roughly and nodded, quickly hiding her thoughts from her daughter. It had been a long time since that deal was forged between her and Zuko, but the details of it she would never forget. And she did not want her child to know what breaking that contract meant. At the very least, she'd have to leave the Fire Nation, where she'd go she didn't know. But she could more than likely easily convince Zuko to allow Detia to stay in the palace until she graduated from the academy. She only had two years – that was two less than every other child in the school. She could live two years without her daughter, maybe less if Detia actually applied herself. Trying to convince Ty Lee to stay would be impossible, not that she wanted to be without the acrobat at her side. Convincing Detia would probably be just as hard. But she was the parent, and Detia would listen to her - hopefully.

She kissed Ty Lee's head forcing back her own tears. The last thing Azula wanted was to leave her daughter. "We'll get through this, okay. You'll see it won't be that bad. Did he tell you when?"

"Tomorrow morning," Ty Lee answered, her grip tightening.

'You blocked me,' Detia interrupted, tugging the sleeve of her mother's robe. 'What's going on? What contract?'

Azula grabbed her daughter and pulled her into the hug. 'Don't worry about it,' Azula thought. 'We'll talk about it later.'

Detia didn't press the matter, even though she really wanted to, and held onto her parents tightly, feeling that she might not see them for a while after tomorrow.

BAM! The door to the cell being closed suddenly broke the trio apart and woke the guards from their stupor, all three stared at the door but only one knew what had happened. 'Uncle Zuko's coming.' Detia answered their unasked question.

"Azula!" his voice boomed through the empty halls as he and his entourage made their way to the front of the cell. He paused when he saw all the family together, his eyes softening as he looked at his niece who clung to her mother. He really hated to do this to her, his niece that is. Azula had broken their contract and he felt justified with the actions he was going to take. "How did you get in here?" he asked, speaking to Detia and Ty Lee.

'We walked,' was Detia's reply, as she glared at her uncle, who was also somehow blocking her from reading his thoughts.

How Zuko learned that ability she would never know, but she didn't like it. She was fine with Azula and Ty Lee knowing, they were her parents. But Zuko had no right to know. The Fire Lord frowned at Detia's cross expression, so much like Azula's. "Azula, you know what this means, correct?"

Azula nodded and said, "It wasn't me, Zuko." Even though she didn't doubt that he wouldn't believe her.

He didn't say anything and turned, "I'll see you in the morning."

~x~

The morning came quicker than anyone wanted. Ty Lee had stayed with Azula till morning when the guards came to get her. Detia had left momentarily to see if she could find out any new information from anyone but had returned when she came up empty handed. She had found out from a guard that the Avatar had arrived at the palace. But that wasn't something she thought was useful, so she didn't mention it.

The Fire Lord had ordered Detia not to be around when Azula was formally cuffed, forced onto her knees, her wrists and collar bound into thick heavy bands of metal. The bands would be suspended from stone pillars in the throne room, forcing her arms into the air and the core of being easily accessible. Detia watched as all of this was taking place, even though if she was found she would be forced to leave. She hated it, but she understood that her mother was a dangerous person and needed to be bound properly, or she could escape. So Detia stayed quiet and hid herself from the eyes of everyone, except her mother.

Azula only caught glimpses of Detia as she was bound, but just knowing that she was there made her feel better. Though, she knew it shouldn't. Her daughter was watching her mother being bound and punished for no reason, after all. But Detia was a strong child, and Azula was not worried about whatever psychological trauma it might cause her, even though she probably should be. As she was moved into the throne room where her punishment would be handed to her, Detia followed silently. Ty Lee was already in the throne room, pleading desperately with her brother-in-law to reconsider. However, Zuko would hear none of it. Not that Azula or Ty Lee believed he would, but they had to try.

Detia watched as the Avatar approached Azula as her arms were spread. He glanced around the room nervously, fiddling with his hands – his thoughts indicating that he was looking for the young lightning bender. "I'm sorry," he whispered and looked at Zuko, who nodded.

Azula hung her head slightly, thinking of no way to get out of this situation, as she felt Aang place one of his hands on her sternum and one on her forehead. A single tear escaped its prison and Aang apologized again. Light filled their bodies, blue for him and red for her, both even. Slowly, the blue started to consume her. Detia watched, her breathing labored and heartbeat erratic as memories of an old art, long forgotten, and highly forbidden when it was known, flashed through her mind. The blue light reached Azula's neck and suddenly Aang was sliding down the far wall, sparks of white electricity bouncing off his body as the word "No!" reverberated off the arched walls.

Azula slumped against her chains, unable to keep her breathing under control as the red light faded from her. She had expected a lot of things when she was stripped of her bending, but she hadn't prepared herself for the physical pain. A pain so strong it prevented her from moving and the emptiness inside, like a part of her had been stolen. When the weight of the metal bands disappeared and she slumped against the stone pillar, she didn't even have the energy to look up and see what was going on, but she was aware of the metal dust that fell like harmless sparkling snow around her. But she did feel Ty Lee's familiar, much needed, embrace and heard her voice telling her everything would be okay.

But when Zuko exclaimed, "Detia!" both Ty Lee and Azula looked at him.

He was sitting on his throne about the stand. Until a young demanding female voice commanded, "Sit down!"

The couple watched in amazement as Zuko was thrust into his throne, his hands clamped down onto the arms by an invisible force. He struggled against the nonexistence restraints but could not move. "Detia what is the meaning of this?" He demanded, glaring at his niece and drawing Azula and Ty Lee's attention to the child suddenly standing in the middle of the room, her open-palmed hand directed at Zuko.

Her golden eyes turned to her uncle, burning cold. "Did you think I was just going to stand there and let you rape my mother!" Her physical voice echoed in the silent hall.

He struggled again but the invisible restraints were not giving. "What are you talking about?" he demanded. "We were doing no such thing. Release me now!"

"Shut up!" Detia's cold tone exclaimed, pushing her hand closer to him and shoving him into the back of his chair. "You know nothing of Soul Bending! Its very nature is to rape a person's soul, forcibly take something that is not anyone's to take. In some situations the technique is warranted, but this is not one of them. You thrust that pain upon my mother when she is innocent."

"Detia, you leave me no choice. I really don't want to do this. Guards! Restrain my niece," he yelled and turned back to the ten-year-old as the Royal Fire Nation Guards approached her. "Just release me and I'll…" he stopped in stunned stupor as his personal guards were thrown against the wall by the same invisible force that bound him.

Any other day Detia would have smirked, but given the situation, she only glared at her Uncle. "Your guards are no match for me. I am a Goddess! And one of my many abilities is to control any metal that can be magnetized. That includes the iron in your blood."

Zuko's eyes hardened, his mind unable to latch on to her true ability. So, it latched on to little facts. "You attacked the Avatar," he stated, trying to calm himself as he watched Aang try to stand.

"He's lucky I didn't kill him," Detia countered, not even bothering to look at the Avatar. "In my former life if I learned someone was using Soul Bending like he was going to use it, I would not have hesitated to kill them. I would hunt them down and destroy their very being."

He sighed, giving up on struggling and tried to think of a way to reason with his irate ten-year-old niece. "Detia," he started, "I know she's your mother, and as such, I can see how this would offend you and make you feel the need to aid her. But you only see the good in her…"

"You are mistaken Uncle," Detia said with such clarity it had to be true. "The Assassin was sent by Long Feng and his flunkies. Toph just confirmed it. She's dealing with them as we speak. You were so eager to believe that she would betray you that you reacted before getting all the facts and ended up betraying her. Some brother you turned out to be." The remark shot like a hot dagger into his heart, making him flinch and doubt his course of action. "She had nothing to gain from killing you. The throne would not be hers if she only killed you," the girl reasoned. "You had to know that, and you punished her anyways."

"Detia," Azula managed, finding it harder to breathe than she liked, and getting her child's attention. "You can talk."

Detia looked at her mother and smiled as Ty Lee helped her to her feet. Her smile vanished instantly as she turned to her uncle. "We will be leaving the Fire Nation. You will provide us a fully stocked ship, and let us leave without incident."

"No," Azula interjected, stumbling slightly. "School…you have to finish," she managed, breathing heavily.

"If I need to finish school, I can do so in the Earth Kingdom," Detia informed as she approached her mother and hugged her tightly. She felt Azula lean most of her weight on her and the significant drop of her body temperature.

"When did you learn to talk?" Azula asked, trying her best to ignore the emptiness that was chilling her very being, using both her wife and daughter as crutches as they lead her back to her room.

Detia only smiled and called back to Zuko. "Get them ready, uncle."

Zuko sighed and slumped in the throne as the invisible force disappeared, his guards crashing to the floor. "Well, that didn't go like you hoped," Aang said, limping his way over to Zuko. "She had a point, though."

"Shut up," Zuko growled.

~x~

Detia helped Ty Lee place Azula in her bed. "Sleep, Mom. When you wake up, we'll be leaving to the Earth Kingdom."

"You're okay with that?" Azula asked as she touched her daughter's arm. "What about your friends?"

Detia frowned slightly, she had forgotten all about them. "Don't worry about that. I'll come up with something. And I don't mind leaving the Fire Nation. I always wanted to travel anyways."

Azula smiled, patted her daughter's cheek, and closed her eyes. When her breathing evened out, Detia turned to her Mommy, who had sat back and watched the transaction. For a second, they stared at each other before Ty Lee embraced her in warm hug. "Oh, sweetheart I'm sorry you had to see all of that. And you had to intervene."

"It's okay. I couldn't let him hurt her like that. She's not completely unscathed, though."

"Baby, I know. You're such a good girl. But it's you I'm worried about. Uprooting you like this, making you leave just as you found some friends," Ty Lee informed, tightening her hug on her daughter.

'I don't want to be here, honestly. Not that I don't love this place. I just feel like I belong somewhere else,' Detia said silently so only Ty Lee could hear her. 'I'd rather go to school in the Earth Kingdom. Don't tell Mom, though.'

Ty Lee chuckled. "All right then, oh great goddess," she said as she let Detia go, hearing her child chuckle. "Go get packed. Apparently, we'll be leaving soon." Detia nodded and left the room to go to hers. Ty Lee watched her leave then turned to Azula. Without any thought, Ty Lee crawled onto the bed and pulled her lover against her, aware of the lack of body heat coming from Azula. "Azula," Ty Lee whispered.

"Hm," Azula answered, knowing that Ty Lee could tell that she was only partially asleep.

"We're going to the Earth Kingdom. Probably Ba Sing Se, where Toph is."

"I know," Azula answered.

"Did you hear what our daughter said?" Ty Lee asked, wrapping her arms around Azula's waist and laying her head on her shoulder.

The princess nodded. "She wants to travel."

"We could make a trip of it; go through Kyoshi and journey through the Earth Kingdom to get to Ba Sing Se, like we did when we were younger."

For a second, Azula thought, in her mind a map of the planet popping up. "Kyoshi's kind of out of the way. Don't you think?"

"Omashu then?" Ty Lee offered.

Azula nodded, that sounded more plausible. "If we get there in enough time, we could probably go to one of the poles. She doesn't need to go to school anyways."

Ty Lee giggled. "Yeah, you're probably right. She's always telling us how bored she is at school, but she makes the top grades." A knock on the door drew them from their temporary silence. "Come in," Ty Lee called as Azula feigned sleep.

"I'm sorry to intrude." A random guard bowed deeply as he came in, not going far from the door. "The Fire Lord would like to inform you that a ship will be ready at the docks by noon."

Ty Lee nodded. "You may leave. Inform my daughter."

He nodded, not telling her that someone was already informing Detia, and simply left the room.

~x~

Detia walked around room, debating on what she would need and what she wanted to bring. She had clearly heard her parents discuss the prospect of a journey through the Earth Kingdom and was very excited about it. Though, one would not be able to tell by merely watching her. She figured that most of their things would ship directly to Ba Sing Se, and as such, she packed three bags already with things she wanted to ship there. The bag she was currently packing was one that strapped over her shoulder and she could easily carry. So far, the only thing she had in it was a water skin Yue had given her last year, a couple of changes of clothes, and she had no idea what else to bring.

"Detia," a meek, young female voice that she recognized said from the door, knocking slightly.

Detia turned to find her favorite cousin standing meekly at the open door, her hands behind her back, Ursa and Lu Ten standing behind her. 'Ezra, Ursa, Lu, what are you guys up to?'

"Are you really leaving?" Ezra questioned, moving closer to her favorite cousin, her only cousin, and tugging lightly on her sleeve.

Detia frowned lightly, 'Yes, I am.'

Lu Ten stepped up, his expression uncharacteristically serious and sad. He approached his younger cousin, breathing in deeply, before hugging her. "You'll come back, right?"

The initial shock of the sudden contact wore off quickly, and Detia shook her head, 'I don't know,' she pulled away from him. 'I'm only going to Ba Sing Se. You three can come and visit.'

They nodded in unison as Lu Ten pulled out a sheathed dagger and presented it to her. "You remember that knife I found in the sun warrior city?" Detia nodded, looking at the dagger with a lifted eyebrow. "This is it, dad had it polished, sharpened, made this sheath for it, and put some new rubies in it for me. I want you to have it, so you don't forget."

'Forget what?' Detia asked taking the offered blade and opening it, watching the sun bounce off the silver blade.

"So you don't forget that we still love you, and no matter what dad may have done, you and Aunt Azula and Aunt Ty Lee are always welcome back here. You just might have to wait till I'm Fire Lord," Lu Ten answered, smiling sheepishly.

Detia closed the dagger and secured it to her belt as Ursa came to her, pushing her brother out of the way. "That's going to be hard to follow, jerk," Ursa glared, sticking her tongue out at her brother. "I didn't know what to give. I don't have anything cool like a dagger, but I have this comb. This was what I was going to give you for your birthday, but I found something better," Ursa produced an ivory comb engraved with the image of a golden bird. The diamond eyes glittered in the light. "I was going to wait till next year to give it to you, but now is as good a time as any." She flipped the comb over, where the words 'to Detia from Ursa' were written. "See, I had it engraved."

Apparently, before Detia could thank either of her cousins it was Ezra's turn. She handed Detia a small box silently. "This is more practical," she said simply.

With a lifted eyebrow, Detia opened the box and pulled out a wide long piece of white silk. At first she didn't realize what was special about it, only noting that it was heavier than silk should be; a lot heavier. The lightning bender gasped when she caught sight of the thin sheet of metal sewn into the silk. She let the silk slip from her hands and concentrated on it. With little effort the silk wrapped around her waist once – obscuring the dark blue belt – crossed at her back, flowed over her shoulders, crossed again over her chest, and tucked comfortably under the belt. "Thank you. I appreciate the gesture," she said, pulling her stunned cousins into a hug. "But I won't forget."

Lu Ten pulled away first and pointed a shaky finger at her, making a bunch of mumbling sounds before yelling, "Since when have you been able to talk!"

Cocking her head slightly and lifting an eyebrow, a smirk playing on her lips but not quiet there, Detia answered, 'Always.'

"No. no, no, no." He repeated the word. "No, when have you been able to talk verbally!"

"Since I was struck by lightning," Detia answered verbally. "Ahh, the amazing power of lightning."

His stunned expression made even his sisters laugh, and he blushed because of it. "Why didn't you tell anyone!" he yelled out of embarrassment, his fist balled at his side with his shoulders raised.

Detia crossed her arms and smirked, 'Why would I? Talking verbally is an inferior form of communication; there are far too many flaws in it, too many ways for unwanted people to hear you.'

"But we're you family," Ezra noted quietly.

'My own parents didn't know,' Detia replied with a flip of her hand.

Lu Ten slumped, looked at his cousin, and deadpanned, "This is a losing battle isn't it?"

Detia's smirk widened, 'Yes, yes it is.'

"I hate you sometimes," the crown prince admitted but surprised his cousin by hugging her. "But I sure am going to miss you."

Ursa and Ezra joined in the hug, and the sincerity of it brought tears to Detia's eyes. She broke away, rubbing her eyes. "All right, that's enough, you saps. You're making me cry."

"Yeah well," Lu Ten smiled, having never even seen his cousin cry, better less make her do so. "You know you love us."

'Only because I have no choice,' she admitted.

The boy's grin widened. "Oh!" he exclaimed. "Dad told me to tell you that a ship would be ready by noon. You can get the servants to bring your things down there now. The ship itself is ready; the supplies aren't."

'Good to know,' Detia replied, turning back to her bag, pulled out a random shirt, and wrapped her comb in it.

"So, what happened?" Lu Ten asked.

'Ask your parents.' Detia replied finally as she placed her comb and clothes back into her bag.

~x~

Azula stood beside Ty Lee at the docks of the Fire Nation Capital, surveying as the servants loaded their belongings aboard a royal vessel. From there, the belongings would be shipped directly to Ba Sing Se where they would be kept in the palace. Azula and Ty Lee had discussed the prospect of a journey with Detia, and once confirmed they had quickly mapped out their route, starting just outside the border of Omashu. The acrobat didn't have much input, but she did enjoy watching her daughter and wife argue about which way was best.

Ty Lee looked at her wife, watched her every move as the princess ordered the servants around. Little things had changed about her, things no one would notice except those select few who were closest to her. She was paler for one. The princess had always been pale, but right after the soul bending, she looked sickly, all the color drained from her body. Luckily, the three hours of sleep she received had helped even out her complexion somewhat, but it was still a shade or two paler than it had been. And what's worse, Azula had always been a physically warm person. Mai informed Ty Lee that most Fire Benders were, but even by those standards, Azula was warm. But not anymore. Ty lee supposed Azula's temperature was about normal now. She wondered if it was a temporary change or a permanent one. Though, either would be fine for the acrobat. That was the most obvious but least of her worries.

The princess was tense, and when she thought no one was watching, she would glance around nervously. Ty Lee would like to believe that this behavior was because the princess was worried that Zuko might try to stop them, but she wasn't so sure. The colors emitting from the princess were not the colors one emitted out of the fear of being stopped but the fear of being hurt. They'd have to get out of the Fire Nation before she could confirm it, though. Still, that was not what worried her the most. It was the spark in her eyes, the flare in golden eyes that would light up her entire face when she was thinking about…well anything really. Now, her eyes were a dull, pale gold, as if all of her fight had vanished. Detia and Sunstone had even pointed it out. She hoped that there was a way to solve that problem more than any other.

Currently, the golden dragon, who had grown significantly since her birth and was now about ten feet in length, was wrapped comfortably around her mistress like she had been for the past couple of hours, her head laying over Azula's shoulder. Sunstone looked much like a suit of armor and wings with the way she was wrapped. Despite the fact that she looked heavy, Azula assured her wife that Sunstone weighted no more than twenty pounds, something about hollow bones or something. Ty Lee didn't quite believe her, Sunstone was all muscle and muscle was heavy, but she let it slide. Azula showed no signs of discomfort with Sunstone around her, so Ty Lee didn't have a problem with it.

"Where's Detia?" Azula questioned, turning to look at her wife, Sunstone's red eyes doing the same.

Ty Lee paused. Sometimes those deep, innocent red orbs frightened her, but she never said anything because Azula found it amusing. And it only lasted a few seconds, like when you look out of the corner of your eye and jump because you see something you didn't expect. "She left the palace shortly after we decided the route we'd be taking. Other than that, she didn't say where she was going."

Azula shook her head, Sunstone mimicking the motion, but didn't ask further questions as she mindlessly petted her dragon. Her daughter was smart, so she would more than likely arrive at the ship before they took off. Not that they would leave her. "Azula," the name was said cautiously and low, but none the less, Azula flinched and tensed visibly before she even turned.

Ty Lee placed a reassuring hand on her wife's arm, feeling her loosen only slightly as she turned to face the one who called her. To his credit, the Avatar, with Katara by his side, stayed his distance. Though from the look on his face, one could tell that Azula's reaction to him did not settle well, as it should. "Avatar," she addressed curtly, Ty Lee wrapping her hands around Azula's balled fist and leaning towards her wife, the extra warmth doing wonders on calming her down.

Azula smiled at her acrobat, the familiar presence alone making her feel less tense. "Azula," he said again, his tone apologetic as he took a step closer.

Again Azula flinched, her breath hitched at his approach. Ty Lee was sure that if she wasn't holding onto her wife, Azula would have run away and that fact pained her. Her Azula was strong and fearless. This behavior was so unlike her and Ty Lee had no idea how to help. But she figured glaring at the one who caused this behavior was a good start. Aang stepped back at both Ty Lee's glare and Azula's reaction to him. Though, Katara's hand on his arm helped as well. "Look," he started again, scratching the back of his head. "I just want to apologize. I'm sorry. I really am. I was talking with Katara, and she thinks that maybe she could help…"

"I don't need nor want your help, Avatar," Azula said, her tone showing all the confidence her body refused. "If I need healing, my daughter will do it. Good day." The princess turned, a small stream of fire huffing past Sunstone's lips, and made her way to the ship in a dignified manner. Though, she didn't feel dignified at all, seeing as she was trying her hardest not to start sprinting.

Ty Lee watched as Aang sighed heavily and heard Katara whisper, "You tried."

"Not hard enough," he answered her back in a whisper. "Not hard enough."

~x~

Detia walked down the busy streets of the Fire Nation, a small bag of coins and a scroll tied securely to her belt. She was slowly making her way to the docks, stopping every once in a while to look at the things the middle class was selling. She was in the process of buying fire flakes when her name was called out over the crowd. She turned to find Angi and Yuna running towards her. Well, Angi was running; Yuna was rolling her eyes and walking at a normal pace. 'Hey guys,' Detia said in a friendly manner as Angi finally reached her, Yuna following close behind.

"We went to the palace, but you weren't there," Yuna said before Angi had the chance, smiling at the tanned girl's scowl.

'Oh, there was incident,' Detia started.

"We heard," Angi announced, finally catching her breathe.

'How?' Detia wondered, it had only happened not more than five hours ago.

Angi shrugged, "Word travels fast. We heard you were going on a journey. Is it true?"

With a white eyebrow lifted, Detia answered, 'Yes. It's true.'

"Awesome," Angi proclaimed pumping her fist into the air and further confusing the lightning bender.

Yuna rolled her eyes and asked, "Can we tag along?"

'Won't your parents mind?' Detia replied.

"We live in the Colonies," Yuna reminded calmly.

'Yeah, but that's a lie,' Detia pointed out, making Angi laugh and slap her on the back, the action surprising Detia and making her flinch slightly at the unfamiliar sting.

"Yeah, we totally don't even have parents," Angi admitted, earning her a punch in the arm from the water bender. "Ow, what was that for?" Yuna just glared and rolled her eyes. "Whatever," She turned back to Detia. "Just let us come. It'll be epic."

Detia smiled slightly and nodded. 'I'll have to ask my parents, but it shouldn't be a problem.'

"Awesome. They're at the docks right?" Angi asked, wrapping an arm around Detia's shoulders.

Detia nodded and almost yelled as she suddenly found herself running down the streets towards the docks. She looked back for Yuna, but the water bender was at her side, keeping pace with Angi. Their eyes locked, and Yuna smiled sympathetically and mouthed the word 'sorry'. They made it to the docks in less than five minutes, which was a feat in and of itself considering the docks had been twenty minutes away. But Yuna was the only one who was out of breath, her hands on her knees as she tried to catch it. "Geez, you're slow," Angi stated, the look in her eyes saying that she only said it to get on Yuna's nerves.

Apparently, it worked because when Yuna's cerulean eyes looked up there was fire in them. She glared at her companion and made sure she was in her face before she yelled, "I'm a swimmer, bitch. Not a runner."

The lightning bender only shook her head, wondering if they were always like that. Almost immediately she tuned them out as she caught sight of the Avatar and his peasant walking away from their ship. "Who's that?" Angi asked, drawing Detia's attention to her.

'The Avatar,' Detia answered without even looking to see if that was who Angi was talking about.

The firebender nodded, her expression grim for once in her life. "What is he doing here?" Yuna asked, coming to stand beside Detia – on the opposite side of Angi.

'I don't know,' Detia answered and started to walk to the ship, calling to her mother mentally when she caught sight of the glittering golden scales of Sunstone's body.

Azula turned quickly, as did Ty Lee, when they heard their daughter's voice. The surprised looks on their faces as their daughter approached them flanked by two children her own age was priceless. 'Mom, Mommy,' Detia said when she was standing in front of her parents, 'these are my friends, Angi' Angi waved. 'and Yuna.' Yuna bowed slightly. 'We were wondering if it'd be okay if they came with us.'

Azula and Ty Lee looked at each other then back at the two children who looked so familiar, especially Yuna. "What about their parents?" Ty Lee asked.

'Apparently, they don't have any,' Detia answered honestly, making both of her friends sigh and shake their heads.

"Haven't you heard about the concept of lying?" Angi asked, eyeing the dragon and shaking her head in the negative.

Detia ignored that exchange and answered, 'Of course, but what relevance does that have?'

Angi smacked her forehead and Yuna laughed, and Detia felt she was missing something. "It's fine with us," Azula said, smiling at the confused expression on her child's face. "Just hurry up. We're leaving soon."

Ty Lee nodded in agreement, also smiling. Detia ignored her friends and watched carefully as her mother walked away. There didn't seem to be anything different about her, so maybe the Avatar chose to do the smart thing and leave well enough alone. "Detia," Yuna's calm voice called her as a cold hand fell to her shoulder and golden eyes turned to the water bender. "We should get on the boat."

'What about your clothes and stuff?' Detia asked.

Angi shrugged and placed her hands on Detia's shoulders, standing behind her. "Who needs them!" Angi yelled as she suddenly shoved Detia up the walk way to the deck of the ship.

Azula and Ty Lee watched in amusement as Detia stopped just as suddenly and threw her friend over her shoulder, the tanned girl landing hard on the wooden surface, the sound echoing across the docks. The water bender's laughter was loud and long as she and Detia walked past Angi. "This is going to be interesting," Ty Lee noted with a smile.

Azula nodded - as did Sunstone. "Yes, yes it is."

TBC