Chapter 47

The morning after returning from the Sun Warriors' jungle ruins, Raiden reported for duty bright and early as usual. He stood guard during the Fire Lord's training session, watching from a distance as she performed her usual exercises. He breathed a sigh of relief when he could see that she was firebending as well as ever, though perhaps with a bit more care and restraint than before. There was a new looseness and vitality to her movements as well, a difference that was hard to explain but definitely real. Azula's firebending had always been interesting to watch, but now she was downright mesmerizing.

Afterward, the captain had a quick meeting with his guards while his monarch cleaned up, and then accompanied her down the hall to the throne room for her council meeting. She greeted him with only a sly smile. She had put on her crown and most stately robe for this meeting, her first since returning from Yu Dao.

The Fire Lord and her ministers sat around the table with the giant world map, and Raiden took his usual place against the wall.

Just before calling the meeting to order, Azula turned around and addressed him. "Captain Raiden, would you like to join us?" She gestured to an empty place at her right side.

He swallowed, surprised. "Excuse me, my lord?" In front of the others he used her title, just as she had. This had been their custom since the Ember Island trip. It somehow served to make both ways of addressing the other feel more intimate than before.

"If you prefer, you may remain on the wall with the other guards, of course. But I value your counsel just as much as that of the other advisors here, so you are invited to take a seat at my table."

"Very well, my lord." The room was so silent that the click of his sword against his side as he walked forward sounded unusually loud. Aware of the eyes of his guards and the other ministers on him, he sat down. Azula was close enough that he could touch her knee under the table if he only reached a few inches to the side.

The meeting proceeded. The report from the colonies told of the upcoming independence referendum. A date had been set, and partisans of the three factions were campaigning vigorously.

Colonel Karai suggested stationing the armada in the bay south of Cranefish Town, ready to attack if the colonies voted to leave the empire. Raiden was unsurprised to hear his conservative commanding officer give such bellicose advice; he had made his opposition to the Fire Lord's peaceful policies clear.

But Azula shook her head. "We won't be attacking, so there's no point in readying the ships."

"But they won't know that you don't plan to attack," Karai argued.

"Captain Raiden, you attended my meeting with the colony leaders. What were your impressions?" She turned her head to the side, inviting him to speak in her support.

"They seemed pretty determined on independence," he reported to the group. "My lord made them a quite attractive offer, but nothing would sway them from their course."

"If bribes don't persuade the rebels, perhaps a show of force will swing the vote our way," the colonel pushed.

"I won't threaten them." Azula shook her head.

"But–" sputtered the colonel, eyes agog.

"I am quite decided, Colonel. However the residents of Yu Dao and the other coastal cities vote, we will respect the results. If my generosity fails to influence the voters, then we will break ties with the territory peacefully."

"It may be that threatening the cities would only backfire," Raiden put in. "Many of the residents already feel resentful of the Fire Nation's history in the area. If we try to scare them, it might only make them all the more set on independence, or worse, reunification with the Earth Kingdom."

Everyone agreed that was the worst possible outcome. The ambassador reported briefly on Governor Morishita's campaign to persuade the people to vote to remain in the empire, and then the meeting moved on to the next item on the agenda.

The council debated new educational programs and industrial improvements. Since these were not his area of expertise, Raiden stayed quiet for much of these discussions. Nevertheless, the Fire Lord made a point of asking for his opinion once more, and then another time, simply glanced at him, and he took the hint and spoke up.

After she adjourned the meeting and stood to go, Azula turned toward him and held her hand up, palm down. It took a second before he realized she was inviting him to recreate the kiss from the night before, this time in public. Since he had claimed that spot as top advisor with his words the previous night, she was giving him an opportunity to make it clear to everyone that he was first in her counsel.

It felt like a dare.

Eyes on her for verification, moving slowly in case he was reading her wrong, he lowered his head and placed a quick kiss on the back of her hand. There was no feeling in it, not like the night before. But he noticed she had a small, satisfied smile on her lips as he straightened, and the other ministers began murmuring. Then she turned and led the others out of the room.

The other advisors dispersed, while Raiden and a few guards walked the Fire Lord toward her office. They paused when they came to the gates to the outside. That was where they were to part; Azula had her economics lesson, and Raiden had to check in with the sentries in the towers.

"Join me for dinner, Captain," she said coolly in farewell. He couldn't tell from her intonation whether it was an order or a question.

Either way, his answer was the same. "Very well, my lord." He bowed and took his leave.

Colonel Karai found him on the parapet. "This is your doing, then?" the older man accused, his voice gruff.

"Excuse me, sir?"

"Giving away the colonies!"

"Fire Lord Azula does not propose—"

"She does not propose anything! She's not taking any action!"

"Her program of investments—"

"She's giving away our tax money as well as the territory our ancestors won!"

"That depends on the vote—"

"Which she should never allow to happen. No self-respecting empire gives people a choice over whether they want to be colonized or not! My great-grandfather served in Sozin's army, you know. I'm named after him. To think his sacrifices for the glory of this nation are turning to ashes…." The man trailed off; it appeared that his throat had closed from an excess of genuine emotion. He covered his trembling lips with his fist.

"I'm sorry you disagree with the Fire Lord's policies, sir," Raiden answered respectfully. "Perhaps you should take it up with her, instead of with me."

But Karai just snorted. "Same thing, isn't it? Now that you're her right hand man." He drawled those last words to make them sound extra dirty.

"I assure you, the Fire Lord makes her own decisions."

"But you persuade her, don't you? You whisper your radical little sweet nothings in her ear late at night….

"I do nothing of the sort, sir, and I cannot allow—"

"What could she possibly see in you? You're not even from one of the Three Noble Clans!" The colonel snickered snobbishly. "You must be pretty good with that right hand of yours."

"Watch it, Colonel." Raiden drew himself up to his full height and stepped into his commanding officer's personal space. Normally he would not dare to address a superior this way, but he could not tolerate an insult to Azula.

"You watch it, Captain. I've done my research, you know. Legal research. Perhaps you don't know that since the time of Fire Lord Charyu, it has been illegal for a guard to conduct a romantic relationship with a daughter of the royal house." Raiden's stomach lurched. His dismay would have been written all over his face if his anger hadn't been there first, etching his features in red. "You've obviously been taking advantage of dear Azula's youth and inexperience. She's all alone in the world, without a father to protect her from unscrupulous libertines like you. I've heard about your reputation."

"You have no evidence–"

"Not yet, I don't, or you'd already be on your way to the Boiling Rock. But the second I can prove that you've seduced our Fire Lord, your career is over."

Raiden was still reeling from the encounter when dinner time came, and he reported to the dining room to see Azula. She greeted him with a smile, and soon they picked right back up with their conversation from two nights before, when they'd been trapped by the Sun Warriors. They talked about opera and education policy, and at her prompting, he told a story about a stunt he had pulled as a student, climbing on the roof of his school. It was as if the previous day, mostly spent apart, hadn't happened, and the two hand kisses didn't even create any awkwardness. The sumptuous meal included a couple of his favorite foods. He wondered if she'd requested them on purpose, to please him.

When the plates had been cleared, Azula discreetly dismissed the servants who lingered in the room, suggesting that they go ahead and eat their own dinners.

Raiden was keenly aware of the fact that they were now alone together, in the palace, where Karai hoped to catch him doing something improper with the Fire Lord.

She put her hand on his. "Raiden, I must ask you, is this all you desire from me?" That word was heavy, but she said it in such a matter-of-fact way that it sounded more bland than seductive.

He swallowed and decided to stall. "What do you mean?"

"You wanted official recognition as my top advisor, a post you have held informally for quite a while. It is now widely known how much I value your counsel," she stated the facts, then posed a vital question. "Are you content, Raiden?"

There was a lot she might have been saying, underneath her words, it seemed to him. Was she asking him what he had truly meant with that kiss last night? Was she giving him the opportunity to take back his courtly formulation, and turn that moment back into the romantic gesture it had been initially? He would have been glad for the chance, if their positions were equal, if he could trust her stability.

"I am…as content as I can be," he answered carefully. It was true. He was happier than he'd ever been, in his new closeness with this fascinating woman.

"I would like to demonstrate my gratitude for the way you helped me regain my firebending. Is there anything else you would like from me?" Azula paused, one eyebrow raised. He looked away, torn with indecision. Her hand felt heavy, but soft, on top of his. When the minutes stretched on, and he didn't respond, she suggested, "A promotion? A raise?"

"I don't need anything like that," he shook his head, resisting the urge to feel offended. Surely she didn't suspect he was just using her for advancement.

She shook her head. "That was not my question. I assume your salary is sufficient for your needs. I asked what you want."

What did he want? Raiden wondered. He wanted safety, first of all. Before he could even think of anything else, he needed to know that he wasn't about to be sacked for breaking some obscure law restricting princesses' personal lives.

He considered simply asking her to abolish it. He could emphasize that this was necessary because their friendship could create the appearance of impropriety. But their bond felt so new and tentative right now. It seemed like everything depended on them both pretending there was not even a possibility they could ever be more to each other. Bringing up Charyu's law would take him too close to speaking of his true feelings.

There were other ways to rid himself of the law's threat, though. "I wonder if you would ask Colonel Karai to retire," he suggested impulsively.

Surprise registered on her face, and she withdrew her hand from atop his. "I know he's disagreeable, but why?"

"He and I have a bad history."

"Oh?"

"Remember the story I told you about Sozin's comet on Crescent Island? He was the one who gave the order I questioned."

"Ah." Azula looked down at the table and touched the base of her wineglass, adjusting its placement. Her voice turned businesslike. "Well, I offered you anything, so I'll speak to Karai tomorrow. But I must admit that I'm taken aback by this request. I didn't expect you to choose vengeance."

"Maybe there's some darkness in me, too," Raiden whispered, slightly ashamed of his choice. It was a bit cowardly, he had to admit.

"It's important to me that you feel comfortable," she told him, her eyes unusually earnest. "In your work here at the palace, I mean."

"I appreciate that, Azula." He touched her hand briefly in thanks, then let it go.

Author's Note: Leave me a review to tell me what you think! I appreciate every one! If you're interested in beta reading for me, you can read the WHOLE rest of the story NOW. Let me know. For everyone else, the next chapter will be up in a week.