Azula's morning was filled with waiting.
There were people waiting on her, of course, with fresh towels, and hand-picked cherries (pitted), and steaming cups of coffee. The servants, sorry, hired help, asked her many questions, waiting for her commands.
More coffee, miss?
Would you like your towels warm or cold, miss?
Do you prefer your windows open or closed, miss?
Azula's personal least favorite attendant, a wisp of a girl named Sakura, inched forward, not daring to look her in the eyes. That's what was wrong about her, Azula supposed. She never waited for a command, she just moved as quickly out of the way as possible before Azula could say anything.
"Sakura. Do you remember what I told you yesterday?"
The girl froze, and Azula could feel her trembling. "I-I'm not sure, miss."
"Yesterday, I nearly choked on a cherry pit during lunch. I told you to specifically make sure that all my cherries from now on are pitless. Now tell me, what do you think I discovered when I bit into one this morning?" Azula picked up a cherry from the bowl and gazed at it thoughtfully.
Sakura went white as a ghost, and Azula thought that was a rather nice color on her. "A...a p-pit?" she peeped.
She clapped loudly. "How intuitive of you, Sakura! I've got another question for you now, then. Do you have anything to say for yourself before you're fired?"
The servant's knees instantly hit the floor, and she clasped her trembling hands together. "Please, miss, have mercy. This job is all I have, I promise I'll serve you better in the future-"
Azula rolled her eyes. "Oh, very well, stop your groveling. You can stay, only because I find dealing with you in any manner tiresome." She waved a hand to dismiss them. "Get out, all of you. I can dress myself, none of you have any taste."
They hurried out of her bedroom, nearly tripping over each other in their haste. She'd have to ask Father for a replacement in staff.
She slipped out of her silk robes and selected a white cropped sweater and a tight-fitting black skirt with a lot of zippers on it. She put her freshly-brushed raven hair up into a bun, purposely leaving two tendrils escape, and applied a layer of red lipstick. She eased her feet into a pair of jet black booties, and accessorized the outfit with a diamond necklace.
Now to wait for her guests to arrive.
Azula had a little time before she needed to be in the entrance hall, so she spent a while browsing on her phone. There was nothing particularly new or interesting, until she scrolled down near the bottom of her feed. It was an advertisement for a tea shop, The Jasmine Dragon. They were having a sale today, buy two cups get one cup free!
She scoffed. She was surprised the shop was still in business, given the general carelessness of its owner. Her lazy uncle's obsession with tea had always mystified her, and she was even more confounded by the fact that it had somehow passed onto her brother. Living with Uncle Iroh for five years might do that you, she supposed. At least they were both out of her hair, hopefully forever.
The door opened, and a servant shuffled inside and bowed her head. "Miss, your guests have arrived."
...
"Azula!"
Before Azula could even react, she was wrapped inside a bear hug and almost lifted off the ground. "T-ty Lee..let g-go..." she squeaked.
The girl released her instantly and took a step back. She had fair skin, bright cloud gray eyes, and light brown pulled back into a braided ponytail. She wore a short top with a v-neckline, which was all light pink and decorated with little strawberries. Her jean capris led to beige ballet flats with pink bow on them.
She tucked a loose tendril of hair behind her ear and laughed sheepishly. "Sorry, Azula, I just got a bit excited. I haven't seen you in so long, where have you been?"
"Probably checking her own reflection."
A new figure appeared from behind Ty Lee, with a much calmer and quieter presence. Her skin was pale, and she also had gray eyes, but they looked less like clouds and more like steel. The top layer of her onyx black hair was tied into twin buns, while the rest laid down. She was enveloped a storm gray jumpsuit, jet black combat boots, and a soft crimson jacket hung around her elbows. Silver teardrop earrings dangled from her ears.
"For your information, Mai, I was looking at colleges," Azula retorted. "I don't know why Father bothers, we both know I'll be accepted into Republic University."
"Ooh, that's the best college in all the districts, right? You're so lucky!" Ty Lee gasped, stars in her eyes.
"It's the only college fit for my caliber, if that's what you mean. Agni knows how Zuko got in."
Mai shrugged. "He was an honors student all through high school and got an incredible score on his entry test. It's not completely absurd."
A beat.
"Rina, get our guests some food. I think they're a tad lightheaded." Azula snapped her fingers, and a nearby servant quickly bowed her head and scurried off to the kitchens.
Mai rolled her eyes, but Ty Lee beamed. "Thank goodness, I'm starving! And you always have the best food, Azula."
Azula smirked, and led her guests over to the dining room. "Of course we do. We only have the best serving the Meiyo family." She made a point of staring at Sakura, who let out a squeak and returned to the kitchens.
"What did she do this time?" Mai asked, as the three of them took seats at the table in unison.
"I specifically requested pitless cherries after I briefly choked on one yesterday, and do you know what she served me?"
"Pitted cherries?" Mai deadpanned.
"What?" Ty Lee responded at the same time.
Mai and Azula slowly their heads toward her, and Ty Lee simply shrugged. Her expression lit up like the sun a moment later, as the staff brought in plates of finger sandwiches and strawberry cheesecake. As soon as the cheesecake was set in front of her, she dug her fork in. "This is heavenly!" she gushed. "Can I have the recipe? Pretty please?"
Azula smirked as she took a polite bite of her cheesecake. "The Meiyo family needs to protect their secrets, don't they?"
Mai's eyes glinted mischievously. "The destruction it would wreak across the world would be unfathomable."
"Fine, hoard all this deliciousness to yourself," Ty Lee pouted. "Say, Mai, how's little Tom-Tom doing?"
The girl rolled her eyes. "Same as the last time you asked. Drooling, eating, sleeping, crying, the usual. I thought it might be exciting and take some attention off of me, but things are as boring as ever."
"I dunno, it sounds like fun to to have a little brother."
Azula snorted. "Siblings are overrated. They're only make messes for you to clean up afterwards."
Silence filled the room for a minute.
Ty Lee suddenly slammed her palms down on the table, a bright look in her eye. "I can't believe I almost forgot! I have some really big news to tell you guys!"
The other two perked up. "What?" Mai asked.
"I qualify for the Trilympics next summer! I'll be the youngest gymnast there, can you believe it?"
Mai's expression was uncharacteristically shocked. "That's...incredible. Congratulations, Ty Lee."
"Thanks!" she beamed.
Azula, on the other hand, was quite perplexed. "Then what exactly are you doing here?"
"Huh?" Ty Lee cocked her head like a puppy.
"Why are you here, eating cheesecake and sandwiches, instead of training? You can't let yourself go soft now, when your competition already has an experience advantage. I thought you would be taking this seriously." Her golden eyes analyzed the bubbly girl.
"I mean..." Ty Lee fiddled with her napkin. "I just thought it would be fun to hang out with my friends. I would burn myself out if I trained every day for months."
"There's no such thing," Azula retorted. "Only lazy people burn themselves out. If you don't have the strength to keep going, why bother?"
"Even those who work the hardest run out of steam eventually. There's nothing to be done about it," Ty Lee insisted.
"Guess you haven't been working very hard, then."
Tears bubbled in the gymnast's pale gray eyes.
A fork dropped onto a plate with an abrupt clatter. Mai was looking at Azula with an icy stare. "Maybe you're right. Maybe Ty Lee should be going home."
"No, Mai, it's okay, really." She wiped tears from her eyes. "Azula's just trying to look out for me."
"How was that-"
Ty Lee stood up and walked over to Azula, and dipped her head. "Thank you for the cheesecake, Azula. I'll see you at the Trilympics, won't I?"
She blinked. She hadn't expected Ty Lee to calm down so quickly. "Of course. Father and I go every year."
"Great!" The girl was beaming, but it wasn't quite the same as before. "I'll see you there, then."
Then, just like that, she was out the door.
Mai, it seemed, didn't want to let it go. She stood up from her seat, strutted away from the table, and followed Ty Lee out.
Azula drummed her fingers against the table. She didn't need them, really. If anything, they needed her. She'd bet she was the only reason Ty Lee qualified, anyway. If they chose to ignore her, well, it was less weight off her back.
"Sakura!" she snapped. "Clean up these dishes!"
...
Azula's bedroom could hardly be called a room, because it stretched across an entire side of the manor. It was wide, with a large window on the left showing the courtyard outside. A crimson four-poster bed sat in the middle, with two dark wooden dressers on either side, and a T.V. on the opposite wall. There was a huge walk-in closet, a couple of assorted couches and armchairs, and an attached bathroom.
She walked over to a bookshelf and pulled out The Times of Roku and Sozin, a personal favorite of hers. She'd always empathized most with Sozin, dropping dead weight in order to achieve his goals. She dropped the book onto the armchair, and then rifled through her nightstand drawer for a bookmark. She felt a piece of firm paper, and pulled it out.
Azula froze.
It wasn't a bookmark. Instead, it was a photo of a family, all posing for a picture. Nobody smiled, no one had their arms around one another, and their eyes looked dull. It sent a pang in her chest anyway. They'd taken it at their vacation home in Ember Island, and she and Zuko had just finished cleaning themselves up after spending the day at the beach. Zuko had been looking for shells, and Azula had been running up and down the shores chasing crabs. Zuko had given his favorite red shell to Father, and he'd actually smiled. Their mother swept both of them into her arms and took them back home, chuckling at their pleas to keep playing.
Azula remembered a time when she'd truly believed her mother loved her. She'd braid her hair and tell her how pretty she looked, read her stories before bed, and take her to the turtleduck pond. She'd fall asleep in her arms, and inhale her vanilla perfume.
What a lie it had been.
She'd left to protect Zuko, she knew. Father had found out that she had been sending letters to an old flame, and due to misunderstandings, thought that Zuko wasn't actually his son. He was wrong, of course, but nothing Mother said could convince him otherwise. He was going to kill Zuko that night, but Mother bargained with him. Her parents were herbalists, and she had a thorough knowledge of poisons. She promised him that as long as he spared Zuko, she would kill their grandfather swiftly, and with Uncle Iroh trekking the world, he'd be free to inherit the company. Father agreed, on the condition that Mother would leave the manor.
So she did. She was gone without a trace, leaving behind her blubbering son and her monster of a daughter.
The door was opened by a servant for the second time that day, snapping Azula out of her reverie. She instantly dropped the photo back into the drawer, and slammed it shut.
The servant at least had the decency not to comment on it. She dipped her head. "Master Ozai is home, miss, and he wishes to speak with you in his office."
...
Azula slipped inside Father's office, softly closing the door behind her. She walked a few hesitant steps forward, quiet so as not to disturb him.
The office was an intimidating place, with a large wooden desk, shelves with different trophies, some of which Azula had won, and filing cabinets piled high against the walls. There was a large window behind the desk, looking out onto the streets below.
"Azula."
She immediately stiffened, and she bowed to him. "Father."
He was standing up, looking out the window with his back to her. He didn't look her in the eye often, so this wasn't out of the ordinary. "You wanted to see me?"
"I need you to do a favor for me. This task requires a bit of discretion, a skill you wield well."
Azula beamed with pride, and nodded even though he couldn't see her. "I'm at your service."
"Do you know where the Pouhai strip mall is?"
She cocked her head to the side. "Yes, I do. But why..." It clicked in her brain. That was where the Jasmine Dragon was located. But what could Father possibly want with it?
"The landlord for that strip mall works at this building." He finally turned around, but still didn't make eye contact. He pulled a slip of paper out of his jacket and slid it across the desk. "Convince him to raise the rent there by this specific amount."
Azula pocketed the address, but she couldn't shake the funny feeling that came with it. "Consider it done. But if you don't mind me asking...why do you need to?"
"You know what's there, don't you?"
"Yes, but it's completely insignificant-"
"Are you questioning me?"
Fear struck Azula's heart, and she shook her head furiously, trying to control her trembling. "No, of course not! I just-I don't know-"
Father chuckled, which was almost a foreign sound coming from him. "Don't worry, I'm not concerned about the Jasmine Dragon, or your uncle, for that matter. He lost his way a long time ago. No, this has more to do with your brother."
Azula froze. She couldn't tell if she was livid or terrified. She laughed nervously. "What does Zuko have to do with anything? He's never had any use."
"I can think of an excellent one, but first, I need to break him down. And that starts with your uncle."
"Whatever it is that needs to be done, let me do it." She took a bold step forward. "Zuko will only disappoint you, like he's always done!"
"Azula."
She stopped abruptly, and scurried backwards, biting her tongue.
"Are you going to continue undermining me, or are you going to do what I told you to?"
Azula knew better than to answer, and swiftly filed out of the room.
...
"Ugh-Uncle, pick up! Come on!"
Zuko had been calling his uncle for about fifteen minutes, and each and every one of them had gone to voicemail. If he heard have a beau-tea-ful day! one more time, he was going to lose it.
Sokka had been sitting at the table the whole time, watching Zuko with worry. "Is...is everything okay, dude?"
"Oh, yeah. Everything's peachy." He tapped the numbers on his phone viciously, as if it had personally offended him.
Before Sokka could reply to that, Uncle finally, finally picked up. Zuko went silent instantly, and waited for words to come out.
"Hello, Zuko! What are you calling abo-"
"Uncle, I've been calling for fifteen minutes! You better give me a good explanation as to why you were behind on rent for several months!"
A moment of silence, then a sigh echoed from the other end. "I was hoping you wouldn't find out about that just yet. The rent was substantially raised over the last few months, and it got too much for an old man like me to handle. There was nothing to be done. How did you find out?"
"Azula called me. W-why would the landlord do that? We were bringing in good business!" Zuko sputtered, feeling his heart break in two.
"I asked him, and he just said tax reasons. Listen, I don't want you to get too upset about this, alright? Focus on your studies."
Zuko laughed incredulously. "How could I not get upset? We lived there, where are you even staying?"
"I'm staying at Bumi's house at the moment, and all of our stuff's in his garage. Zuko." He stiffened at the serious tone in Uncle's voice. "Don't let this distract you, you hear me? I know it's tough, but you need to keep going. I'm doing okay."
Zuko sniffed. "And you call me the horrible liar."
Uncle laughed, but it sounded sad and remorseful. "I know, it's very ironic. I'll call you every day, nephew. Stay strong."
He hung up.
Zuko slowly slid his phone onto the table, where Sokka was still looking at him like he was a kicked puppy. "Zuko...what's going on-"
He didn't get to finish his sentence, because Zuko was already throwing himself into Sokka's arms. There was no reaction at first, and then Sokka's arms slowly wrapped around him. "I don't know. I don't know what's going on anymore," he whispered.
They stayed like that for the rest of the evening.