Morality Chain
Guuhhhh… I just started university about a month ago, and good lord it's eating up so much time… and of course lots of good new videogames don't help.
I thought about doing a 'Tales of Ba Sing Se' variant, but I think I decided that it wouldn't work too well in context of the plot progression. Oh well!
On we go.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Standing in the doorway of the nursery, Azula peered curiously at the occupants of the sunlit room.
Her brother, Zuko. Her cousin, Lu Ten.
And… her Uncle Iroh.
The three of them were crouched together near the farther end of the room, playing a game of some kind.
"Nothing in my hand, nothing up my sleeve," her uncle was saying to Zuko. "Now, where could that Pai Sho tile possibly be?"
"It's in your robe pocket!" her brother declared triumphantly. "I saw you put it there earlier!"
"Really now!" Uncle made a huge show of turning his pockets out while Lu Ten simply sat back and smirked. "No, it looks like nothing's in there after all."
"What? But-"
"Ah! What's this?" reaching over, Uncle made a quick tugging motion by Zuko's left ear, from which the prince instinctively jerked away. "It was in here all along! Now, Zuko, you really should know better than to try and hide Pai Sho tiles from me! And especially in your ear!"
"What – But I –" Both Uncle and Lu Ten burst into laughter at Zuko's flustered reactions. Unnoticed by the three of them, Azula rolled her eyes and turned to walk away.
Her mother had been standing there, looking down at her the whole time. It took all of Azula's self-control not to let out a startled cry. She settled for furrowing her brow.
"Yes, mother?"
Her mother smiled and tilted her head slightly. "Don't you want to go play with them?"
She hesitated for the briefest of seconds before shaking her head. "No, I don't."
Something Azula couldn't easily identify flickered through her mother's eyes. "Why not? Azula, you only ever play with Zuko when he's alone. Why won't you play with other people?"
Because they don't like me. "Because whenever other people play they come up with stupid games like the one Uncle is playing now, and I don't like it," Azula turned and began to walk down the hallway.
"Azula! Don't turn your back on me when I'm talking to you!" she heard her mother's reproach but Azula merely quickened her pace and ran down the hallway back to her own room, where she could be alone.
(X)
For several very long seconds, Zuko sat there dumbfounded as he beheld the portly figure of his Uncle serving tea to Earth Kingdom peasants. He wasn't sure what was more stunning, that Uncle was currently in Ba Sing Se, or that Uncle was here in Ba Sing Se.
Fortunately, before Jet or Jin could question him on why he had and inexplicably lost his grip on a porcelain teacup, Uncle noticed their little group and walked over, a broad smile on his face. If he was surprised by Zuko's presence, he certainly didn't show it.
"Ah, Jin!" he said, a broad smile on his face. "Are these your friends? It's always nice to have some company to drink your tea with."
"No, they saved me from a bunch of thugs, and I thought this was the least I could do," the girl replied. "Jet, Lee, this is Eeroh. He works here, mainly tea brewing, although he helps with the serving during the busy hours too."
"Nice to meet you, old man," Jet smirked and offered one hand.
"The pleasure is mine," Uncle accepted and gave him a firm handshake before turning to Zuko. "And who's our clumsy friend?" he inquired, eyes travelling down to where Zuko had spilled his teacup. "Lee, was it?"
The obvious prompt was enough to rouse Zuko from his stupor – somewhat, anyway, and he rose mechanically to shake Uncle's hand. "Yes, that's my name. Lee."
"I'll just go get you a new teacup, Lee," Jin said as she turned towards the back room. "Wait just a moment…" Jet turned to look at Jin as she departed, giving Zuko several precious seconds to lean close to his Uncle.
"Eeroh?" he hissed. "That's your idea of a fake name? Changing the pronunciation of one syllable?"
"I don't think anyone who calls himself 'Lee' is in a position to criticize the creativity of chosen names, do you?" came the reply, which instantly sent a flush up the prince's neck.
"I… had to think fast," he mumbled as he slumped back onto his seat.
"What are you two talking about?" Jet said as he entered the conversation. "You two know each other?"
"No, he was simply telling me how much he loves the tea here. Really, it makes him dropping it all the more inexcusable," Uncle shook his head sadly. "If you'll excuse me, I really should be checking on the next batch. In tea, timing is everything!"
As Uncle wandered off, Jet leaned back in his chair, and Zuko glanced over at him. "So, how long have you been in the city?"
"Not long," Jet furrowed his brow a bit. "About a week? Little less."
"Huh, me too," Zuko paused, weighing his options. "Hey, have you heard about the Avatar?"
He'd intended to start a short discussion about the Avatar, and then maybe segue into asking if Jet had heard anything about him, but Jet's reaction was rather unexpected. His eyes widened for a split second, a quick flash of something – pain? – showed on his face, and even when his usual demeanour returned, there was a hint of a darkness hanging about him.
"Yeah," Jet said quietly. "Yeah, I've heard about the Avatar. I met him once, as a matter of fact."
Zuko barely managed to rein in his startled reaction. "Really? Where was this? How long ago? What did you-"
Jet turned away abruptly. "I don't want to talk about it," he said, sharply enough that Zuko knew not to press the issue. He grit his teeth in frustration. He had been so close to getting more information!
He sighed and slumped. "Well, it's a small world, I guess. Especially since the two of you ended up in the same city again."
"The Avatar's here?" Jet whirled and gazed at Zuko in shock at the same moment that Jin returned with Zuko's replacement tea.
"Ah, yes!" she said brightly. "There's nothing official, of course," there was an uneasy glance towards the entrance of the tea shop. "But anyone who's in the know knows that he helped us fend off another attack from the Fire Nation just the other day. There was some kind of… giant drill that they wanted to break through the Outer Wall with."
"Huh," Jet mused. "Guess I wasn't paying enough attention. Not that it matters," he shook his head and took another drink from his cup. "We've gone our separate ways."
Once more, Zuko tried to ponder how the boy in front of him could have met the Avatar, while Jin neatly settled herself into the chair next to Jet with her own teacup, prompting a raised eyebrow from the boy.
"Don't you work here?" he said teasingly.
"I happen to be on a break," she said primly. "Anyway, how long have you guys been here? You're not locals, I can tell."
Jet and Zuko glanced at each other shrugged. "About a week," both of them said at the same time. Jin chuckled.
"Well, if you newcomers like, I could show you around the Outer Ring. There're a lot of places of interest in just this section."
Jet grinned. "Wouldn't half mind having someone in the know show me the ropes."
Zuko, meanwhile, glanced down at his cup. "Thanks, but that won't be necessary."
Jin pouted at him. "Oh, come on! You're going to be staying here for a while; you're going to need to know your way around the place."
"I'm not –" Zuko started but then pursed his lips. His assumed status as a refugee would lead to the basic assumption that he would be spending quite a while here. And if he tried to brush it off by saying that he wouldn't be staying long, that would only open up more questions…
"Fine," he finally said. "I'm in."
"Great!" Jin smiled and stood from her table. "I'll meet you outside here at, say… sundown?"
With a brief nod, Zuko stood to leave the tea shop, wondering just what he had gotten himself roped into.
From the inner alcove of the tea shop, Iroh smiled at the figure of his departing nephew.
(X)
Breathe in.
The candle flames in front of her flickered slightly. Even though her eyes were closed, her intrinsic connection with fire allowed her to feel the most minutes changes in any flame around her.
Breathe out.
What with their constant travelling and general lack of downtime, she'd rarely gotten the chance to properly meditate, and she fully intended to make up for lost time now.
Breathe in.
Calm. Absolute calm.
Breathe out.
There was nothing else except her and the fire. Nothing but herself and-
"Uncle's in the city."
Azula's eyes snapped open and the candle flames billowed upwards into a scorching blaze that melted the candles to puddles of wax in seconds. She whirled around to confront Zuko standing in the doorway. "What!"
He leaned against the doorway, not looking at her. "You heard me. He's working in some tea shop a couple of streets down."
Azula slumped herself back against a chair, a low growl escaping from the back of her throat. "He knew. He knew that we'd be coming here, he found his way here ahead of us-"
"Actually," Zuko paused. "I… don't think Uncle knew we were here."
"What?"
"He looked pretty surprised to see me, actually," Zuko folded his arms and gazed off into the distance. "Like he hadn't expected us to be here."
Azula pursed her lips and turned back to regard the candles she had been using for meditation. What to do about her uncle? Removing him from the equation by force wasn't an option – even ignoring the tiny voice whispering in the back of her mind that it was by no means certain she could manage such a feat in the first place, it would definitely cause a commotion and avoiding attention was rather high on her priority list right now.
As always, her Uncle being a completely unknown factor threatened to upset all her plans once more. Shaking her head, she settled herself down on the floor again. She certainly couldn't leave Ba Sing Se now, not with her target so close (and yet so far…)
"If he doesn't bother me, then I won't bother him," she said shortly. "But… where's this tea shop you were talking about?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"I like to know where potential sources of problems could come from," Azula said shortly. "And since I have no idea what Uncle's doing in the city, he counts as a source of trouble."
"You're too paranoid, Az," Zuko remarked as he pulled up a chair and sat himself heavily on it. "He's probably headed here because that's where all refugees go."
"I got where I am today by being paranoid," she replied bluntly. "Where's the tea shop?"
With a sigh, Zuko provided her the address and Azula tucked it away into the corner of her mind. Meanwhile, her brother stood and headed for his room. "I'll be heading out tonight," he said.
"What? Where to?"
"Some… I met someone from the Earth Kingdom, they offered to give me a tour of the place," at her sister's raised eyebrow, Zuko sighed. "You can't tell me knowing the place better won't be helpful."
"No," she conceded. "But be careful, Zuko. You don't want to associate too much with people from the Earth Kingdom. It's not good for you."
Zuko sighed. "Az… it's not their fault they were born into the wrong country."
She remained silent as he entered his room and after a long moment, she closed her eyes.
Uncle… what are you doing here, really?
(X)
The sun had all but set by the time Zuko came into view of the tea shop where he had agreed to meet the Jet and Jin. As he neared the establishment, he could see the girl dutifully cleaning the tables – from the looks of things, her shift was just about done.
"Hey," at the brief word of greeting, he turned to see Jet walking up, with two people coming up beside him. After a brief moment of hesitation, he gave them a short nod of acknowledgment.
"What'd I tell you? Almost as quiet as Longshot," Jet smirked. At that moment, Jin stepped out of the place, wiping her hands on a piece of cloth.
"Jin, these are my… uh, my friends," he waved his hand in their direction. "She's Smellerbee, and this one's Longshot. You don't mind if they come along, do you?"
"Of course not!" Jin smiled. "After all, the more the merrier. All right, let's be on our way."
"Where to first?"
"Oh, there's this fountain I want to show you – at night, they light the lanterns around it and it all reflects into the water and it's beautiful…"
As the small group set off down the streets, none of them noticed the lone figure in the darkened alleyway. Azula stared at the tea shop with hard eyes for several long seconds before turning and walking off into the night.
(X)
"When she told us that she wanted to show us around the place, I didn't really have a sightseeing tour in mind," Zuko whispered to Jet as they strolled through the streets. Up ahead of them, Jin was chatting animatedly, pointing out places of the city she found interesting – which was just about everything.
"Well, I'm not complaining," Jet said, his hands in his pockets. "I kinda like the cheerful types."
"Cheerful types?"
Jet raised and lowered one shoulder. "You don't see much of those outside the walls. Best you get are those who keep a stiff upper lip. But the war's spread everywhere," he gave a sidelong glance to Zuko. "But I guess you'd know all about it, huh?"
It took several long seconds for him to realize that Jet was looking at his scar, the reddened skin shimmering slightly in the light of the torches. He looked away. "I guess," he said quietly.
Nothing more was said until they were at the fountain, and Zuko found that he had to agree – it was beautiful.
"My parents met here, you know," Jin said softly. "So I guess this place always had a special place in my heart," her words trailed off as the others slowly spread out across the plaza, silently admiring the scenery. After a moment, Jin stepped closer to Jet and Zuko.
"Hey, Lee?"
"Hm?"
"Where're your parents?"
Zuko stiffened and coughed. "They're… no longer together. I haven't seen either of them in a while, actually."
"Oh! I'm… I'm sorry, I didn't mean to –" in a transparent bid to move away from an awkward conversation, she quickly turned to Jet. "So, uh, what about yours?"
Jet gazed towards the pool. "My parents are dead. The Fire Nation killed them," it took all of Zuko's effort to keep a neutral expression on his face, but Jin simply looked ever more mortified.
"Oh – oh, I'm so sorry!" Jin blurted out.
"No, it's all right. It just reminds me of who I am... of what I need to keep doing," Jet closed his eyes, and let out a long, slow breath.
A few minutes later, all of them were walking down the streets of Ba Sing Se's Outer Ring, a visibly embarrassed Jin leading theway, Jet and Zuko hanging near the back of their little group.
"You've known those two for a while?" Zuko gestured towards Smellerbee and Longshot.
"Yeah, we go back a long way," Jet smiled, but it was bitter and hard-edged. "They were with me when… when our village got attacked. As far as I know, we're the only survivors."
Zuko didn't respond.
"I've had other mates over the years, but the two of 'em have stuck with me always," his smile became warmer. "It's nice to have someone you know is always watching your back, you know?"
Zuko glanced down at the street and nodded. "Yeah, I know," he said softly.
(X)
"Well, that's that!" Jin smiled brightly at them. "All the stuff… at least in this area. Ba Sing Se's really too big for anyone to know everything about the place, but I think I got this part of town covered pretty well."
"That you did," Jet chuckled. "I don't think we'd have ever known about all these restaurants and other places if it weren't for you pointing them out."
"Yeah," she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her head. "I've lived here pretty much my whole life, and well, since you're all refugees here, I thought I'd do whatever I could to help you all get settled. I mean, we all have to do our part, right?"
Jet chuckled and nodded. "Thanks, Jin."
"Yeah, thanks," Smellerbee piped up. Behind them, Zuko let out his breath.
"Thanks for being our guide, Jin," he said softly before turning away.
"Hey, hang on!" at the sound of Jet's voice, Zuko paused and looked back.
"Yeah?"
Jet cocked his head to one side. "See you around sometime, huh?"
Zuko almost smiled. "Yeah, okay."
(X)
"Ty Lee, why'd you even buy that doll for?" Mai questioned as the two of them walked down the street.
"Because it looks cute! Also, if I jiggle this lever at the back, her mouth moves up and down! Isn't that amazing?"
Azula closed her eyes, tuning Ty Lee out and trying to keep her temper in check. Over the past few days she'd managed to discern that the Avatar was currently sequestered in the Inner Ring of the city, and access was severely restricted to those from the Outer Ring. Of course, she felt confident that she could sneak, bribe, intimidate or otherwise make her way inside, but even the Inner Ring of Ba Sing Se was a large place and she didn't want to make a move until she could feel certain.
In any case, she had time. As expected, the Avatar wasn't too interested in moving out from behind the supposed safety of Ba Sing Se's enormous walls, and so long as he remained, Azula could slowly and safely find a way to worm up to him and put a lightning bolt into his back.
Or perhaps a dagger. She wasn't picky.
"Hey, Az?" Ty Lee's question snapped her from her musings, and she glanced up.
"Yes?"
"Mai and I are going to get something to eat. You want to come with us?"
Azula shook her head. "No, I had a big breakfast this morning. You two go ahead," pausing for a moment to watch the retreating figures of her two friends, Azula shook her head and begun to head back to their residence.
"… like fragile, tiny shells, drifting in the foam…"
Azula pulled short in her walk and nearly tripped over in what would have been an entirely undignified manner. Her eyes widening, she quickly scanned the street.
I know that song. I know that voice!
There! Near the far end, her Uncle was… serenading a little boy. Azula raised an eyebrow. Her Uncle was forever doing things that she could never fathom anyone doing, and yet whenever she chanced on him doing so, she was somehow never surprised.
Even as she watched, her Uncle finished his song, patted the little boy on the head, and stood to go on his way. On an impulse, Azula began to walk after him.
At first, it was largely an uneventful affair, and Azula was beginning to wonder if she'd wasted enough of her time already. But the items Uncle were carrying and the path of his walk didn't seem to suggest a simple afternoon stroll, and some corner of her mind caused her to persist in following him. If nothing else, she might get a chance to talk to him in private.
Aside from a couple of middling delays, Uncle was able to progress on his walk unimpeded, and the further they moved, the more Azula became aware that they were heading out of the city limits and out into the farmlands beyond the Inner Wall. Pursing her lips, she quickened her pace, eager not to let her Uncle out of sight.
Gradually even farmland gave way to wild, unspoiled hills of grass, and just as the sun was beginning to sink fiery red in the horizon, Uncle halted at a small stone marker at the top of a grassy hillock.
For a long moment, she lingered in the distance as he unpacked what he had brought with him. It was only when the joss sticks were brought out that Azula took a closer look at the marker, and at the picture resting there.
Lu Ten? Taking a deep breath, Azula walked forward, her boots making soft crunching noises through the springy grass, until she was standing just beside the seated figure of her Uncle.
"Ah, Azula," he said softly. "It's good to see you again," and Azula could hear that his throat was tightened with grief.
Silently, she lowered her body, until she was kneeling in front of the makeshift memorial. Closing her eyes, she bowed her head for several seconds.
When she had finished, she sat back, and opened her eyes again. Her Uncle was looking at her, a curious expression in his eyes. "I did not think you were close to your cousin."
"He fought and died for the Fire Nation," she said stiffly. "That is enough reason for me to pay my respects."
"Indeed," her Uncle's voice was soft, but Azula barely heard it; with questions long buried now starting to surface again. Closing her eyes, she opened her mouth.
"Why'd you do it, Uncle?" her voice was hard, tinged with bitterness and hostility.
"What do you mean?" if her Uncle noticed her anger, he gave no sign. On the contrary, his voice was nothing but puzzled.
"Why did you call off the attack?" her eyes snapped open, and although she could not know it herself, they blazed with passion and anger. "Why did you order the retreat? I've read the battle plans and studied the troop dispositions – you could have won. You should have won, and Lu Ten's death should have spurred all of you to fight even harder, not run away with your tail tucked between your legs! Lu Ten's memorial should be a massive, glorious edifice looking down upon the city back there, as befitting a prince of the Fire Nation! Not… not this!" Not a forgotten, untended stone in the countryside that only a single old man knows exists. "Why didn't you do it, Uncle? Why didn't you take revenge on those who took your son from you?"
Her Uncle was silent for a very long moment, so much that Azula was on the verge of storming away in anger when he finally let out a long and low sigh.
"Azula," his voice was steadier now as he raised his head to look her in the eye. "Let us say I did what you wanted. Let us say I stormed Ba Sing Se, found the men responsible for ending Lu Ten's life, and I took my revenge on them. Would they know why?"
"What?"
"Would they understand or care that I did that because they took something from me? Or would they simply see it as an unnecessary act of brutality and cruelty that would in turn cause others to seek revenge against me?"
"Don't be absurd. You're the Dragon of the West. There's no way a bunch of random Earth Kingdom soldiers could ever get the better of you."
"You'd be surprised," and Azula was indeed surprised to see a smile crinkle the side of her Uncle's face. "But that's not the point, Azula. You were right, we could have won the battle. But winning a war is more than just conquering cities. Look at the City of Golden Lilies and Da Chen – they were massive hotbeds of rebellion and revolt from the day we raised our flag there. And we have no one to blame but our own brutality and harshness."
"Are you saying that if we were nicer they'd step in line?" Azula chuckled. "You'll forgive me for doubting that that's the case."
"I didn't say that," her Uncle replied. "It's true that many people – most people, in fact – do not think highly of the Fire Nation. There's no need to add even more grievances to the list," from somewhere within his robes and bag he had magically produced two cups of steaming tea, and he offered one to Azula, who took it hesitantly. "And now, returning to the question of why I left Ba Sing Se…"
"Yes, when father asked you about it on your return, you spouted some nonsense about how 'you were tired, and your men were tired'."
Uncle chuckled. "Yes, I knew Ozai wasn't as interested in the reason for my failure so much as the simple fact that I failed," and he turned to regard Azula with a keen eye. "You read the reports, you say. Then you would know the estimated casualties and losses if we had continued on our campaign to take Ba Sing Se."
She grunted her affirmation as she took a sip of the tea. Ginseng, something in the back of her mind noted.
"They would have been horrendous," her Uncle confirmed with a nod. "Thousands upon thousands of the best men from both sides – an entire generation – sacrificed in what would easily be the bloodiest battle of the war. Blood that would be on my hands."
Azula bit down the instinct to call her Uncle a coward, and instead simply asked, "But you were willing enough to start the campaign, weren't you?"
"Yes, I was. It wasn't until I lost Lu Ten that I realized just what I was doing. The pain of standing over the cold body of a loved one… it is a grief no words can describe. No words…" Uncle trailed off again, and Azula could see tears glimmering in his eyes once more.
A short, sharp image of Zuko lying broken on the ground flashed through her mind, and she resisted the urge to flinch.
"It was only then that I realized that this was the kind of grief and suffering I had sown through the Earth Kingdom – and not only of those who lived there, but all the soldiers who fought and died at my command. What are promises of a greater, unified world next the corpses of your father, your husband, your son, your brother and best friend?" Uncle shook his head.
Silence descended upon the two of them once more until Uncle shifted his gaze over to the Outer Wall in the distance.
"Nine times we have hurled ourselves against the Walls, and nine times we've broken like water against a rock," he said, shaking his head. "This city has seen enough bloodshed already."
Feeling oddly muted, Azula stood, carefully placing the teacup by the stone marker. "Thanks for the tea, Uncle," she said curtly.
He nodded, "It was my pleasure, Azula."
And Azula turned and walked away.
(X)
Standing in the doorway of the nursery, Azula peered curiously at the occupants of the sunlit room.
Her brother, Zuko. Her cousin, Lu Ten.
And… her Uncle Iroh.
The three of them were crouched together near the farther end of the room, playing a game of some kind.
Azula shook her head and turned away, mentally counting off the days until Lu Ten returned to the front lines. At least then there'd be one less person to-
"Hey, Az!"
She froze and turned around. Zuko had spotted her. She resisted the urge to scowl. "What, Zuzu?"
"Come play with us! Uncle's teaching me how to play Pai Sho, and he says that when you learn it, we can play together!"
Azula glanced at her Uncle, who had a warm smile on his face, and Lu Ten, who was looking at her with a raised eyebrow, and she sighed.
"This better not take long," she muttered.
And then she entered the room.
Chapter End
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