Author Note: Hello everyone! Welcome to chapter 7! Thanks for reading and sticking with me! This chapter I have gone back and forth about for a while, debating if I wanted to write it, let alone post it. But in the end, I did write and as you can see I'm posting it as well Enjoy! Hopefully it's enjoyed…
Now onward with the story!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any rights to Avatar the Last Air Bender. I did not create it and I will not profit from it in any way, shape or form.
Chapter 7: Freedom Reneged
Azula watched Sokka leave with his overly pissed off sister.
Good riddance.
Azula was tempted to tamper the candles and fall asleep in the big comfortable bed, but knew it would be smarter to pack now and sleep in tomorrow.
She walked to her old closet, a little worried that she'd find it completely barren. She opened the door and let out a sigh of relief. All her clothes were still perfectly arranged as she had left them years ago. Looking around she found that nothing had been moved or changed.
'Good, this is good. Now to find some Peasant wear'
She began pulling different outfits from dressers and from the hangers, thankful the she had remained the same size throughout the past years. If she found the clothing was acceptable, she neatly folded it into her traveling bag. If she found it unacceptable, it was put back exactly where and how she had found it.
Once she was satisfied with her clothing options, she moved to a secret chest that she had hidden behind a shelf of her shoes. Her normal chest of weapons, she had found, had been emptied before her arrival.
She wasn't sure if she would be allowed weapons, they believed she was going to kill them after all, but decided to risk it. Sure she had her fire bending, but she always believed in being prepared for anything and everything.
Inside the chest held an assortment of throwing knives, throwing stars and stilettos that Mai had favored back in the day. Azula decided on three stilettos and three throwing knives. She carefully tucked the rest away and hid the chest once more.
She decided to keep two of the throwing knives with her, to wear on the journey out, figuring that if they were found, she'd still have the others in her bag.
'Of course, the only way they'd find them would be to pat me down...'
Azula thought about who she'd prefer to have patting her down.
'Not happening Azula. Don't go there woman' she warned herself. Moving back to her bed, she began thinking of the 'almost kiss'.
At least that's what she thought Sokka was going to do. She hated to admit it but when he had mentioned them being in this together, it had emotionally touched her in a way she hadn't been touched before. She had been vulnerable, a feeling she was starting too loath, but couldn't help but feel.
Yet he didn't take advantage of it or rub it in, which she knew his sister would have, he seemed like he wanted to help her.
Azula climbed into her bed and snuggled under the covers. As she laid there she continued thinking of Sokka and the way he had touched her face. His hands had been big, she remembered, and rough though he had touched her so gently. She touched her face remembering him turning towards her, leaning in as though to kiss her.
Then his damn sister had to come and ruin it all...no not ruin. There's nothing to ruin. Focus she needed to focus. Focus was the only way she was going to gain her freedom. She could not afford to fail because of some...'peasant'. Even if that peasant had a really nice build, roughly gentle hands and made her feel...special.
She continued berating herself about being focused and needing to concentrate and be in control. But when she fell asleep, her dreams were filled with soft touches and endless kisses with a certain blue eyed man.
Azula woke up early the next morning, her inner fire bender sensing the arriving dawn.
Reluctantly she pulled herself out of the warm comfortable bed, grateful that she was able to get at least one night in it. Who knew when she'd get another one like it.
Now remember, we are to stay focused. No thinking about tall gorgeous men and their big hands and cute…damn it Azula. FOCUS!
Shaking those thoughts away, she went to the bathroom and prepared for the day. She strapped the two throwing knives to her forearms, keeping them neatly hidden underneath the sleeves of her simple off the shoulder black shirt. By the time she had dressed and finished her hair, a tight hair knot on the top with strands coming down on both sides of her face, she heard a knock at the door. She went back to main section of the room and grabbed her traveling bag.
Azula opened the door to find a neutral faced Zuko and an angry looking Sokka. Zuko was dressed in his normal Fire Lord armored attire. Sokka, Azula was surprised to find, wore a maroon tunic and black fire nation style pants. His sword was strapped to his back. Azula instincts told her that whatever they were about to say or do, was not going to be good. She hid her fear however, with her usual confident attitude.
"Don't worry; I'm all packed and ready to go. I was just figuring out if I had forgotten..."
"Azula we need to talk," Zuko interrupted.
"Well you better make it fast, I've heard that the Peasant I'll be traveling with is very time oriented," Azula responded smirking towards Sokka. Sokka didn't smirk back, or smile back. He looked angry. Azula thought back to last night but couldn't think of anything that she did that would upset him.
"Let's sit down," Zuko said moving towards the sitting area in the corner of the room.
"Let's not sit down. What's going on? We need to get going Zuko, dawn is approaching and we need to leave promptly at dawn," Azula said arrogantly. Or at least she hoped she sounded arrogant, a cold feeling of dread was starting to build in her chest.
"You're not going anywhere Azula. I've received word today that our mother is possibly in the old fire nation colonies. The mission is cancelled," Zuko stated looking directly at Azula.
She couldn't possibly have heard him right. The journey was cancelled?! Azula couldn't believe it. How did this happen? Why? What was wrong with their mother being in the fire nation colonies versus Ba Sing Se. It was closer for spirits sake. He couldn't do this to her. No she wouldn't let him.
"What?! You…you can't do that!" Azula shouted angrily. She prepared herself to fight her way out the palace. She could do this… she was not going back to that cell. "You said if I found her and brought her back I could get my freedom. Now you're changing your mind?! You can't do that! I won't let you…"
"You can't tell me what to do Azula," Zuko stated coldly. "I am the Fire Lord. I hold all the power. You are merely here because I allow it. And if I say it's cancelled and you're going back to your cell. Then it's cancelled and you're going back to your cell." He stood up from the seat he had been sitting in and moved threateningly towards her.
"I'm not going back there Zuko! You may be fire lord but I will NOT have this taken from me! You told me I could do this. You told me I could change with this. I am changing Zuko," Azula said desperately backing up from a closing in Zuko. She didn't want to strike out at Zuko, she didn't need anyone giving him an actual reason for sending her back…at least not yet.
"Azula this discussion is over, come on, I'm taking you back. I don't want to involve more people during this than necessary," Zuko said extending his hand towards Azula. Azula looked angrily at Sokka. She could feel the past catching up with her, it was Ty Lee and Mai abandoning her all over again.
"You told me we were in this together! Doesn't that mean anything?!" she screamed, still avoiding Zuko's grasp. She watched Sokka rub his hands on his face. She could tell he was fighting with himself over something. She had to get through to him. It was her last chance for freedom. "Can't you at least tell me WHY?"
"Azula don't do this. Maybe we'll try this again in a couple of years or something."
"A couple of years?! A couple of years?! No Zuko, NO NO NO NO! If you want to take me back to that horrid, hideous place, than you're going to have a fight on your hands. I will NOT go quietly. You told me I could do this. That I could earn my freedom and now you're just TAKING IT AWAY! I won't go quietly" Azula repeated creating a handful of blue flame. "If you want to take me back, then you're going to have to fight me dear brother. "
"Azula, don't do this," Zuko said creating a hand full of flame himself. They were facing off against each other, blue flame versus red. Azula was ready, she refused to lose this fight, this was her freedom. This was her life. No way was she going to give it up.
"Zuko wait!" Sokka finally had spoken up. Both Azula and Zuko look towards him. Azula watched as he took a deep breath and continued, "Okay let's put the jerk bending away and talk about this. She deserves to know why this is happening. She should know the risks involved if she still wants to do this."
"It's not a choice for her to do any more, the risks are too high. I tried talking, she's the one who went into a rage," Zuko stated heatedly.
"What are they? Any risk is better than going back into that cell Zuko. You don't understand. I can't go back there." Azula said. She closed her palm, extinguishing the flame. Anger and force wasn't going to keep her from going back, but talking might.
"You wanted to sit and talk, let's…let's sit and talk then." She moved towards the seat that Zuko had just gotten up from moments before and sat down, crossing her legs as she did so. "See I'm sitting. Now we can talk. Come on Zuko," she swallowed hard, "please let's talk." She never said please. Please was beneath her. Please was a weakness. But if please gave her a chance of freedom, she would plead as much as she possibly could.
Zuko and Sokka were looking at her like she'd lost her mind. Maybe she had, but if she went back to that cell, she knew she it would be a guaranteed thing. Shaking his head Zuko sat down in the seat across from her. Sokka took the seat next to her.
"As I mentioned, we recently discovered that mother was located in the old fire nation colonies," Zuko began.
"Well that's good then," Azula interrupted, "those are closer than Ba Sing Se. We'll go there, find her and bring her back in much shorter time than we would have otherwise. What? What's wrong with the colonies?" Azula asked seeing Zuko and Sokka exchanging a look.
"Azula," now it was Sokka's turn talk, "The fire nation colonies are full of rebellion battles right now. It's a very dangerous environment to go through, let alone have to stay in."
"But we were going to have to go through it anyway to get to Ba Sing Se. Why does this make any difference? We get in, find mother, and bring her back. We could do it in what a month?" Azula stated looking back and forth between Zuko and Sokka.
"Because, Azula, you would have to be staying in the colonies not just going through them to get somewhere else. We don't know the exact location of mother, which means you and whoever goes with you would be traveling throughout the colonies. Practically living in a war zone for who knows how long. It's too dangerous," Zuko stated.
"Too dangerous for whom, Zuko? Me? Please, I've faced off against more than criminals and rebels before and won why would this make any difference?" Azula said confidently. She had fought against the Avatar and survived hadn't she? She'd fought against Zuko, her uncle and the friends of the avatar and survived. What could be stronger or more dangerous than that?
"I can't risk you taking any guards with you to that place. Nor will I risk Sokka's life to go either. As much as I want mother back, I can't risk the life of my friend to do it." Zuko said regretfully.
"So just send me. My life isn't worth much to you. Let me go and get mother, let me bring her back here," Azula pleaded.
Zuko gave out a dry laugh. "Azula, you've been out of that cell for less than a day and already you've threatened me with your flames over going back in. If I let you go out there alone, you'd run and then I'd be spending the energy and men I don't have looking for you. That's not a possibility."
Damn it, she was losing again. She closed her eyes in defeat. This was hopeless. Why couldn't they believe that she truly meant them no harm, she just wanted her freedom. She didn't care who held the crown, or how they ruled the nation. She wanted to feel the sun on her face in the morning and breathe in the warm fresh air. It was an extreme change, she knew this, but she had never been one to do things in moderations.
"I'll go with her," Azula heard Sokka say. "I can act as a scout while I'm in the city. Give you and Aang more information to help stop the fighting. Be an inside man. Azula can come with me and look for your mother. It'd be like killing two birds with one stone." Azula felt hope stirring once more.
"Sokka we discussed this," Zuko said sternly. "There's no way to get into the colonies without everyone knowing who you were. You're from the Southern Water Tribe. You're neither from the Fire Nation OR the Earth Kingdom. You'd stand out like a sore thumb."
"Hey, I survived and stayed undercover in the Fire Nation before. Or have you forgotten Ember Island? Or what about when Aang and the gang were living in the Fire Nation before you joined our group. We fit in just fine, I'm sure I can do it again."
"And I'll be there to help him. I'm from the Fire Nation. I know our customs and I know how to keep Sokka from screwing anything up," Azula felt more than saw Sokka's glare. But she could tell they were winning Zuko over. She added in her most confident voice, "And plus Zuzu, I don't believe in failing. I leave that kind of thing for people lesser than me." She finished with a smirk.
Zuko stared at the ceiling then turned and cracked his neck several times. "Katara's going to kill me. I can't believe I'm agreeing to this. You were supposed to support me Sokka. Not Azula."
"What can I say Jerk Bender, she had a better point than you. Well except for the screwing up part, I never screw up," he stated giving Azula another stern glare. Azula just smirked back.
"Yeah, well I guess I'll go tell your sister and ward her off. You two better get going. Once she hears about this, she'll be the one on your ass," Zuko said standing once more. Azula stood up, and for the first time ever, she felt the need to hug her brother. Instead she gave him a promise.
"I swear to you Zuko, on everything I once believed in, I'll bring our mother and Sokka back to the Fire Nation safely. I won't fail in my task again."
Zuko gave a small smile, "I know you won't Azula." He started walking out the door, then turned back, "But you know, you could have avoided that whole scene by just sitting down and talking with me. You may want to work on that temper of yours. Try to control it. It'll help your bending." Azula frowned at him while holding back the temptation to throw a fire ball at him.
"Thanks Zuko, I'll have to remember that," she replied through gritted teeth. She heard him chuckling as he left the room.
"Well get your stuff, I say we have about 10 minutes to get out of here before Katara finds out and locks us both up. Plus we're running late. I hate running late," Sokka said. Grabbing his bag, which was conveniently sitting outside the door.
"Why is your stuff by my door if you knew Zuko was planning on cancelling the trip?" Azula asked suspiciously.
Sokka smirked and responded cockily, "I knew we'd get him to change his mind. I didn't know you would start a screaming battle with him over it, but I knew in the end we'd win. Now let's go, Princess. Daylight is wasting and the further we are from here before Katara finds out, the safer we'll be." He held out a hand. Azula picked up her bag and took his hand, enjoying the rough feel of it.
Chuckling softly she stated, "You're really afraid of her aren't you?" They started walking down the hall and out the doors where two Ostrich Horses stood ready.
"Well yeah. Younger sisters can be viciously crazy you know. They have this tendancy to think older brothers are too stupid to understand the most simple of things. Especially if it's not being yelled at them, tossed at them, or being hit with it."
Azula tied her bag to the Ostrich horse. Sokka gave her a boost up then jumped on his own.
She let out a laugh and said, "Well that's not our fault. How else are we going to get through those stubborn heads of yours unless we yell, toss or hit you with the information?"
Sokka gave her an are you serious look which just made Azula laugh. She gave the ostrich horse a kick and they were off.
Ending/Note: I had this idea come into my head and I wanted to get it out there. I guess it seemed too easy that Azula was just going out the door. She was pretty evil after all. But anyway, if you didn't like this chapter, just know that a more promising chapter is on its way Thanks for reading!
