Author's notes:
EDIT:
So a very beautiful commenter pointed out that Ozai couldn't be fire lord yet since Ursa was still here. So I went back and edited any reference of Ozai as fire lord, and changed it to either just Ozai or prince.
With Iroh busy conquering Ba Sing Se, I'm just going to assume Ozai inherited a lot of authority and so he has control of a good chunk of the Royal Guard.
Also, Azula's fire bending performance in chapter 1 now happened in the training grounds, not the throne room.
The story in itself hasn't changed at all so don't feel the need to go back and reread. Just assume Azulon has been conveniently avoiding everything that has happened so far.
Chapter 4: Azure revelations
"So! What did you think?" Umi asks him from her seat next to him
They just finished watching a play called Love amongst the Dragons. He's never seen something so immersive and entertaining before. These "plays" went beyond just telling a tale with words, like the Water Tribes, but they go a different step using elaborate props and background, while the actors dressed themselves as their characters.
"It… was incredible" Hakku manages to say.
"The story was quite moving and…" he tries to continue but is unable to find the right words.
Umi smiles in relief. "Well! I'm glad you liked it because getting seats like these wasn't easy!" She says, pointing at the two seats by the front row they were currently at.
It's been two weeks since waking up in this village. Every day, seeing the welcoming treatment from the villagers, he was continuously challenged in his beliefs of the Fire Nation.
Sure, he had to hide his origin from them but, looking at them, living their lives, sharing stories, helping each other, laughing together, he realizes that the world isn't as separated as he once thought.
And then there was Umi. She was beautiful like he has never seen before. Her personality was like an unstoppable typhoon, dragging him along at her breakneck pace. So far, he's helped her on her job as a botanist. Which meant foraging for hours, working the nearby greenhouse, carrying large amounts of medicines, and selling them to the villagers, between other things. He's also befriended many of the people around.
Particularly, Umi's best friends, Ursa and Ikem, were the most welcoming. Helping him along to regain his strength and get him back on his feet.
After months of being held captive in one of those Fire Nation rat cages, he had lost hope of ever living a life like he was now. The only irony was that he was living it in the Fire Nation.
He wished he could go back to the South Pole. He remembers seeing his village up in flames, as he was being carried into the bizarre Fire Nation ship, showcasing a strange triangular flag sporting the image of a red sea raven.
He could only hope that some managed to get away to one of the other tribes in the south.
Kaze was walking back home after a particularly uplifting training session. He finally managed to perfect his secret water technique, the "Unagi", which he named after hearing about the supposed creature that lives in an island near the south pole.
The technique involved bending a large stream of water, which he let orbit him in the shape of a ring. He then bended the spinning stream to create shapes resembling tentacles and use them to slash at his opponents.
Not that he has ever used it against anyone but, it was cool nonetheless!
Opening the door to the three storied building his mother managed to barter from one of the local fishermen in exchange of her highly potent and effective sea sickness medicines, Kaze is quickly greeted by the smiling faces of 8 small children.
"Kaze's back!" one of the 5 girls shouts, as all eight run and jump at him.
"Yeah, Yeah, I'm home." He says in fake annoyance, a smile riding his face, while trying to pry the smaller children from his body.
He then sees a bigger shadow approach them from deeper in the house.
"Welcome back." His mother says, reaching out and ruffling his already messy hair.
She then takes a look at his drenched clothes, and sighs deeply "You were at it again, huh?"
"You know I'm all for you mastering your abilities but…" She trails off, sadness clouding her eyes, memories of red armored soldiers driving their spears down at a figure laying in the beach. She wraps him in a hug. "I can't afford to lose you too…"
"I'm being really careful mom so please don't worry!" He squeezes his mom back.
He then takes notice of the collection of blue, amber, and brown eyes looking worriedly at the two of them.
His mother then breaks the hug and walks to the kitchen, which was sitting in a room closest to the entrance to its left. "Dinner will be ready in a bit, so-" She points at the smaller children. "Why don't you play with them for a while."
Kaze smiles mischievously, before shifting to a sprint. "Bet you guys can't catch me!" He shouts, as he opens the door to the backyard. All the children chase after him while laughing. Their were from 5 to 7 years old, demonstrated by their clumsy running as they tripped among themselves.
Kaze then turns around and heads outside.
And then he falls to the ground, after crashing his face on a hard surface.
Dazed, he looks at the whatever the surface was, and his pupils narrow in fear.
A soldier, clad in the golden accented Royal Guard armor was standing in the door, his face hidden between the four narrow slits on the front of the helmet.
"We finally got you, waterbender!" He spits at Kaze.
Then a soul-shattering scream is heard from behind, forcing his eyes towards the front entrance.
Three other soldiers stood there as one of them readied, then stabbed his mom through her stomach, blood gushing out onto the wooden floor.
The children start crying uncontrollably, with the soldiers approaching them, spears at the ready. He sees one of them about to stab at one of them.
Then he hears the other one close in on his fallen form.
"This is what they deserve, for colluding with the enemy!" He says, his tone of voice piercing his head with pure cruelty.
"Die! Waterbender!" He shouts, as he lifts his spear and aims it at his heart.
"NO!" Kaze shouts at the top of his lungs, startling the only other current occupant of his guest room.
Azula stares in shock at the panting form of the boy who saved her last night. Then their eyes met.
Kaze panics, as he notices the color of the room and the clothes of the girl in front of him. But he quickly calms himself down, as he starts to recall the events of the previous night.
He sighs in relief. He hasn't had a nightmare like that in a while.
Azula doesn't know what to think of the sight, so she just puts one hand on her hip, before she glares at the boy.
"Are you done?" She asks, voice filled with her trademark sharpness.
Kaze stares at the princess for a few seconds.
"Uh… Yeah! Yeah, I'm done" He forces a smile despite still feeling on edge at his nightmare.
"So… what brings you here, Princess?" Kaze asks, noting how the sun was barely rising in the far distance.
"Well, considering you will be fighting against the best firebenders in the capital today, barring me of course, I thought it would be in your best interest if I helped you train beforehand." She says, before walking up to him. "And so, I figured starting as early as possible to be the best course of action." She says before flicking a finger on his forehead.
"Hey!" He exclaims while rubbing his forehead.
"And that, was for your sudden outburst!" Azula says while turning around and heading to the door.
"Well," She crosses her arms and raises an eyebrow at Kaze, who was still in his borrowed sleepwear, with an almost impressive looking case of bed hair.
"Are you going to keep me waiting?" Azula says, tapping her foot on the floor, the sound echoing through the quiet room.
Kaze stared at the princess once again, amazed that the trembling girl he met yesterday was the same one who was now standing tall and confident, issuing orders like she was born to do so.
He figured this could only mean one thing.
Azula must have cheered up!
"Okay, just give me a sec!" He finally answers.
And so, with a small grin on his lips, Kaze quickly scrambles out of bed and gets ready.
"Hey, Azula?" Kaze stammers out as he is being dragged around the palace hallways at a quick pace.
"What?" He hears come out of her, as he stumbles on one of the many carpets that go longer than some alleys out in the city.
"Umm… where are we going?" He asks, as he notices the stares of the servants who are rushing from point to point, fulfilling whatever roles they have.
"Where else? To the Royal Courtyard, its right by the throne room and has the clearest water in the entire palace." She says as if he somehow should've already known all of this.
And so, Azula drags him, her pace unrelenting, as they go through the many corners and doors of the Royal Palace.
But, once they pass through the same kitchens he admired last night, he is quickly reminded of the fact that he hasn't eaten anything since before he started his escape through the capital.
"Hey, Azula?" He asks once again, much to Azula's annoyance.
"What?" She answers once more.
"Could we maybe… I don't know… get something to eat?" Kaze asks, expecting Azula to refute him immediately.
To his surprise, Azula pulls them to a full stop, as she turns around to face him.
Her eyes narrow at him, as if she's considering all the ways she could kill him right there and then. This goes for a while, with Kaze fidgeting slightly at her piercing gaze.
"You're right" She finally says, as she resumes dragging him, but now towards the dining hall.
Kaze sighs in relief, excitement building in his body as he recalls all the delicious food he witnessed last night.
Azula walked through the palace halls in shock.
She's never seen a single person eat that much food at once. Maybe all peasants are like that, but of course she wouldn't know. She shakes her head and turns to look at her companion, just to be met with a grin showing nothing but pure satisfaction. She shakes her head again and picks up the pace.
Soon enough, they double a corner and land themselves in a wooden walkway, glowing in orange due to the early hours. A massive garden stands to their left, with one large pond surrounded by trees and flowers, while a family of turtleducks swam serenely through the crystal-like water.
Looking at the beautiful scene before him, Kaze takes notice of three figures he doesn't recognize.
Two girls, both dressed in similar clothes to azula, are sitting together near the water both looking at one boy who was going through some… interesting showcase of firebending.
"Oh zuzu, won't you spare us from seeing your pathetic excuse for firebending?" Azula asks while sporting a mocking grin.
"Shut up, Azula!" The boy says as he stops his katas and turns around to leave.
"I liked it!" One of the two girls suddenly speaks up. She had big round eyes, her voice bright and cheery. Her brown hair was fixed into a long braid, which was tied high on her head. "What about you, Mai?" She turns to the other girl.
This one felt the like a complete opposite. Her face betrayed no emotions, her dark hair tied by two red ribbons the sides, and she looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but here.
She averts her gaze "… It was alright" she says, a blush sneaking up her cheeks.
The boy freezes at her comment, his own embarrassment showing on his face.
"Anyways" Azula says as she walks behind Kaze and pushes him forward. "This is Kaze"
All three pairs of eyes dig holes in him, all seemingly surprised at the arrival of a new face.
"And we're going to help him train for his trial tonight." She says, grinning mischievously.
"Uh… Hi." He says lamely, drawing a giggle from the cheery girl, who then proceeds to stand up and cartwheel towards him.
"Hey! He's cute!" She says, her face now inches apart from him. "I'm Ty lee!" She then points at the gloomy girl "And that's Mai! We're Azula's friends!", she then lastly points at the boy. "And that's Zuko! He's Azula's brother!" She says with an almost overwhelming positive attitude.
Before he could answer, Azula's brother speaks up. "What do you mean trial?"
"Are you dumb Zuzu?" Azula answers "He's obviously going to be fighting the capital's best firebenders in a few hours." She then stands upright and looks to the sky. "And I'm going to make sure he wins!" She adds, while pumping her fist in the air.
Zuko's face shifts into fury. "But that doesn't make any sense!" He counters, voice rising in tone. "He's just a kid!"
Kaze feels slightly offended at this, but before he could defend his honor, Azula beats him to the punch.
"And this kid managed to defeat the assassin that snuck their way into the palace last night!" She says, grinning victoriously at the look of shock in her brother's face.
"Wait, so it's true then" Mai speaks up. "An assassin tried to kill you last night?" She asks as she stands up.
"What?! Someone tried to kill you?!" Ty Lee asked, her tone turning into distress at the thought of someone killing her friend.
Azula eyes take a solemn look, as she recalls the events from last night. But she quickly recovers and goes back to her usual expression. However, judging by the confused expressions on the other three's faces, Kaze could tell they noticed her quick change in demeanor.
"They never got to me." She says, voice flat and quick. "When I left to investigate, Kaze here had already dealt with them." She added, feigning indifference, although somehow, a smile managed to creep its way into her face.
Seeing the completely uncharacteristic look on his sister's face, Zuko can't help but gape at the small kid standing next to her. Whoever he is, he can't be a normal person if he can get an expression like that out of Azula.
'Maybe it's true then.' He thinks to himself, wondering how a kid that small could possibly defeat an assassin.
Listening to Azula lie about the encounter caught Kaze off guard. He couldn't understand why Azula would hide the fact that she had bravely stood her ground against the assassin. But one look into her eyes, followed by the small genuine smile on her face, told him to just play along for now.
"Yeah! I mean-!" He starts laughing nervously. "It wasn't a big deal honestly, just some… uh…" He stutters as he feels everybody's eyes focused on him. "It was easy! Yeah! Nothing I couldn't handle with my good old waterbending." He manages to get out.
Then, to Azula's horror, Kaze waves his hands towards the pond and pulls out a good amount of water. He then motions his hand in circular fashion, forming a crystal-clear bubble of water, before promptly bursting it with extra flare from his arms, creating a sparkly mist that enveloped the entire garden.
It was honestly beautiful. But no matter how pretty it is, it would not have prevented the looks of absolute terror in her friend's eyes.
Kaze was honestly proud of that one. The bubble was perfectly round, the sun shined at just the right angle, and the water dispersed in an almost invisible mist.
Then it clicked in his head.
Looking down at his spectators, he notices both Ty Lee and Mai gaping at him, while Zuko's eyes shook with fury.
"He's an enemy!" He shouts as he settles down into a stance, preparing to launch a fiery assault.
Preparing to defend himself, he once again motions his hands to draw water from the pond
But he is quickly interrupted by Azula, as she smacks Kaze in the head, before hastily rushing towards Zuko to deliver the same strike on him.
"What was that for?!" Both almost shout in unison as they fell to the ground holding their heads in pain.
"THAT, was for acting like morons!" Azula's tone of voice suggested she was considering burning both of them into a crisp.
"He was about to attack me!" Kaze protests, glaring at Zuko.
"Because you're an enemy!" Zuko counters instantly, returning the glare.
"Say's who?!" Kaze returns with equal fervor.
"That's enough!" Azula shouts over both, a small fire lit near her feet.
She points a finger at Zuko. "First of all, someone like you couldn't even hope to defeat someone like Kaze on your own, so don't even try it." Her voice carries a piercing venom that deeply wounds Zuko's pride.
"And you!" She turns around and points at Kaze. "You need to learn to not jump into every fight you see like some headless pig chicken just because you can!"
She then glares at the two girls who had remained quiet throughout the whole exchange. "And now you two will help me figure out how to make this imbecile pass his trial tonight!"
Both girls look at each other, then back to Azula, before quickly nodding their heads nervously.
"Great!" She then glares at Zuko, who is stumbling back to his feet, hands still rubbing his head. "You can leave now Zuzu, we don't need you here." She says, as if she was speaking to a lowly earthworm in the ground.
Zuzu's face contorts in fury, before he turns around and heads back inside the palace.
"Okay, I get the gist of it. But… how do you expect us to help?" Ty Lee asks, trying to make heads and tails from what Azula just told them.
"Yeah" Added Mai. "I mean, we're not firebenders you know." Her monotone voice lulling Kaze to sleep.
"Yeah! Why don't we just take a break and get to know each other!" Ty Lee suggests, as she stands up and sits next to Kaze. "I wanna get to know all about this Fire Nation waterbender here" She leans her body towards Kaze's, who in turn feels a blush starting to crawl on his face.
Azula grits her jaw in frustration. "No! If Kaze doesn't manage to win tonight, he'll be executed!" Azula shouts, anger leaking from her tone, as everyone present jumps in surprise. "And I'm not going to let that happen!" She finishes, fire once again seeping out of her feet.
"Well why don't you just fight him?" Mai's monotone voice suggests. "I mean, it's not like we know any firebenders stronger than you, Azula."
This prompts Azula to stare at her friend, as if she had just grown a second head.
"I think that's great idea!" Kaze adds, excited at the prospect of seeing Azula's bending firsthand.
Azula just taps her foot on the ground, eyes fixed to the ground while she nibbled at her lower lip, as if going over every possible scenario on her head.
'Why didn't I think of that?!' Azula berates herself. If she spars with Kaze, he not only gets the best possible firebending opponent, but she could also witness his incredible bending once again.
Azula is about to agree until-
Her mind suddenly goes back to the previous night. The monstrous torrent of water dragging the assassin's body like a ragdoll.
Fear sets in her mind. A feeling she has only ever felt in the presence of her father before last night. If he loses control again… she doesn't even want to think about it.
She raises her head, golden eyes meeting blue ones. The same eyes that protected her, that healed her, even after she threatened them. The same eyes that brought her mother back to her last night.
And so, determination filling her body, she strides confidently until she stops right by Kaze's sitting form.
"I won't hold back." She says, a playful smirk riding her face.
"Yeah, I know." He answers simply, knowing that if he could trust anyone's bending, it would be Azula's.
Ty Lee and Mai look at the fight with anxiety in their eyes.
Azula has been relentlessly blasting Kaze with and unbelievable amount of fire, quickly transitioning from precise form to precise form.
Her form was graceful and strong, every step, every swipe, every leap and every flip all generated a fire so hot, both spectators could feel it almost threatening their own safety.
But what was truly amazing, was the way Kaze was responding to Azula's barrage of fire.
He bended the water from the pond so smoothly, it seemed like he was dancing with the current rather than bending it. Every fireball was met with a perfectly placed water whip, the sizzling from the clash of the elements resonating in every strike. Every fire kick, blocked by a spinning shield of water. Any wild and curving ball of fire, dodged gracefully by riding a jet of water.
For every blocked flame, Azula's intensity rose, her desire to land a hit consuming her thoughts. And so, the heat went up, sweat dripping from all four of them.
Looking at it from their perspective, they looked like complete opposites, and yet…
And yet, all of Azula's quick and powerful movements somehow complemented Kaze's calm and smooth strokes. Like two opposite energies desperately wanting to connect no matter what.
And then, Azula stumbles.
It's such a small loss of balance that any normal person would simply not notice. But Kaze did, and so, he attacked.
The garden was filled with steam, the result of an endless clash of opposites.
As if trying to take hold of two ropes, Kaze extends his arms outwards, palms perpendicular to them. He closes his eyes as he reaches for, and then feels all the water in the air. And finally, he grabs hold of it.
In what seemed like an instant, all the steam in the air shifted to a new form. Not liquid, but ice. Tiny frozen particles floated in the air, dropping the temperature in an instant.
Being able to pull water from anywhere now, Kaze fires a large torrent of water at Azula.
But Azula dodges it by the skin of her teeth, blasting herself at blinding speeds as fire comes out from her feet.
But due to the intensity of the cold, Azula's surfing is quickly snuffed out, making her trip and roll through the ground.
Ty Lee looks at Azula, expecting anger or frustration to cloud her features. But to her complete shock, her friend is smiling, golden eyes sparkling as she takes in the frozen heaven that covered the courtyard.
Azula couldn't help but smile at the sight. Kaze once again proved his unbelievable control over his element, and so, she felt a shiver down her spine.
It's twice now that Kaze's waterbending shattered her grasp reality, on what true mastery of an element should be like. Looking at Kaze's face, she notices a similar look to that of the previous night. As if his bending was an extension of his body, as innate to his self as breathing is.
She decides then and there that she would do anything in her power to achieve this level of control. And to the person who now has shifted her destiny once more, she would make sure to never let him go, no matter what.
Her heart hammers in her chest. A rising anticipation starts building in her fingertips. The lower temperature no longer affecting her inner fire. She takes a deep breath, stoking the heat of her chi that flowed ever faster through her body.
She drops to a lower stance, concentrating all of her blazing chi on her right arm. Her eyes meet with his, before a massive blast of azure flames scorches a path forward.
Kaze was honestly amazed by what he just did. He knew freezing steam directly into ice was possible, he just never thought he'd achieve it so soon. He then hears the air pop and crackle. He looks at Azula, eyes trained on her stance, the temperature of the garden rising almost as quickly as it dropped.
'I guess we really do bring the best from each other.' He thinks as he locks his eyes with her. A million words transmitted without a single sound.
Kaze grabs hold once more of the frozen particles, individually feeling each one of them. He begins pulling his arms inward, arms shaking at the resistance.
Azula then shoots a massive wall of blue fire at him, threatening to extinguish every single fiber of his being.
But he wasn't scared, not even a little bit. This is the power of the girl that had turned his life on its head.
The blue flames felt like a call. A call, daring him to match her power.
And so, he obliges.
Feeling the pressure from the particles barely contained, he aims at the fire and produces an incredibly sized torrent of water, roaring with the strength of an unstoppable force of nature.
Ursa had been roaming through the palace all morning.
She was hoping to find a way to convince Ozai to let the young waterbender live without having to fight for it against grown adults.
She tried looking for both kids as well, worried for any lingering pain or problem from the previous night. But checking on both rooms, she finds them empty.
She then checks on the dining hall. And nothing.
She begins to worry, until she notices her son looking grumpy as he stomped his way towards his room.
"Zuko!" She calls out, making the boy jump in surprise.
"Mom? Did you need something?" He says, failing to hide the anger from his voice.
She looks at her son with concern but brushes it off as Zuko being grumpy isn't really a rare sight these days. "I was looking for your sister, do you know where she is?"
His face contorts in anger. "She's at the courtyard playing with her enemy boyfriend!" He says through gritted teeth before angrily running away once more.
'Boyfriend?', Ursa wonders with slight amusement, but quickly brushes it off, as she heads directly to where Zuko had told her.
It is halfway there that loud, wild tremors start shaking the hallways near the Royal Courtyard. Fearing her daughter was once again causing trouble with her firebending she picks up her pace.
Arriving at the exit, she's surprised to find the amount of people already gathered. Servants, Magistrates, Merchants, and Sages were all looking in disbelief at the sight before them.
She pushes her way through, determined to find out exactly what was happening.
She gets to the front and what she sees before her sends her mind into a frenzy.
Her daughter was blasting an imposing wall of blue fire, a sight she has never seen or heard of before.
And Kaze, the sweet boy that somewhat managed to fix the bridge connecting her to her daughter, was shaking as if he was trying to hold something together.
Then he blasts a deafening torrent of water.
And with that, her vision goes white.
The impact from the clash of opposing elements created a searing shine, before the entire garden exploded in a massive cloud of steam.
Mai and Ty Lee were blown back a few meters. The steam was now completely enveloping the entire courtyard, blocking their vision.
Dazed from the fall, Ty Lee shakes her head in an attempt to regain her bearings. She looks around and sees Mai in a similar dilemma, stumbling her way back into her feet.
"Ugh, that was the worst." She hears Mai exclaim, while she wipes her clothes from the dirt.
Ty Lee is about to respond, until two figures approach them from the cloud blanket.
"Yeah, sorry about that!" She hears Kaze say, followed by a nervous laugh. "I guess we got carried away there."
"Yeah well, I think you two should be happy that you got front seats to our little showcase of our power." Azula then adds.
Once both benders were standing in front of her, she manages to get back on her own feet.
"Haha! That was amazing!" She practically screams into the air. "I mean, I knew you were strong Azula, but I've never seen anything so beautiful and powerful before!" She gushed as she wrapped her friend into a hug.
"And you!" she then points a finger at Kaze, placing it on his chest. "I don't know how you did it but the way you kept up with everything Azula threw at you-!" She then starts dancing in place, as if imitating Kaze's movements. "It was incredible! You looked like a dancer, or a painter!"
"Well, I don't think any of that was worth ruining my clothes like this." They hear Mai's annoyed voice, as she walks up to them, the steam in the air completely drenching her form.
"Oh, come on Mai! You have to admit that was amazing I mean, it's rare that we see one powerful bender in action, let alone two." She rushes to her other friend "And a waterbender to boot!" Ty Lee responds, her attitude a shining sun among all the mist.
"Whateve-" Mai makes to answer but something freezes her.
"Mai?" Ty Lee asks confused, following the path of her eyes into whatever managed to widened her usually emotionless eyes with alarm.
And then she sees it. A large shadow is cast on the four of them, as a massive figure slowly makes their way towards them.
The steam starts clearing, and the identity of the figure was now making Ty Lee's blood to run cold.
It was the Azula's dad.
And he didn't look happy.