The Fire Nation was a lovely place, a chain of islands where every day was sunny, and a rainbow followed every rainstorm. It was a paradise of the world's best designs, with the warmth of the populace and its peoples, its cultures, assuring that there was never a cloudy day. The entire world knew of the beauty and abundance of the Fire Nation, ruled by the generous hand of the royal family.
"Your majesty, the birth was a success..."
Yet little probably realized the Fire Nation could also be a lonely place.
"The baby is a boy..."
Ursa had always seen the Fire Nation, the royal family, as lonely, but lately, it seemed slightly warmer. It appeared less lonely in this palace of ivory towers and hushed horrors hidden behind locked doors.
"He seems to be healthy..."
Her pregnancy had offered her a chance; she had finally found something that might make her feel less alone in this cold palace of fire. She finally found something that might make her forget being torn from her home and forced to marry the Firelord's second son, leaving her family and lover behind her to serve her nation.
"Although he is smaller than expected-"
"Let me..."
Urea's voice was hoarse and tired after giving birth, but she had to try. She had to try and fight her utter exhaustion from childbirth and raise her sweat-laced hand towards the Fire Palace doctor holding her crying child, "Let me... hold him..."
Ursa had to hold her child as soon as possible.
"Please..."
Ursa's child, her baby boy, was alive.
"Let me name him."
Ursa had to hold her baby and tell him he wasn't alone in this palace. She would be there; she would never leave him alone, like she had been abandoned. She would whisper sweet lullabies in his ears and thank the spirits for his birth because she had been alone, and now she was free.
"Let me see him."
Even with the murmur of disapproval from the nearby priests and the frown on the palace doctor's face, she held her hands gently outstretched. Her eyes were firm even as her body struggled to stay awake after labor, sweat lining her body as she spoke with more conviction than the words spoken prior.
"Let me hold my child."
Ursa would not be denied the right she held as a mother. Her voice was laced with the authority she held as a member of the royal family, and it trampled the hesitancy of the doctors who helped ensure her birth ran smoothly.
"Now."
A slight murmuring flew between the physicians and court doctors, but a few seconds later, her freshly cleaned baby was in her hands, and she could see the slightest twitch of its nose and hear the sound of its cries.
"Hello, little one..."
Ursa's baby was tiny, but he had some lungs on him; crying was healthy for babies, and hers was doing a lot of it and only stalling when she started to cradle him in her arms and rock him back and forth, murmuring the sweet lullabies of her village until her baby had stopped crying and looked at her with wide golden eyes.
"There, there..."
Ursa decided then and there that there could never be anything as precious as a child.
"My baby boy..."
Ursa decided she would live her life for this one beautiful baby boy in her arms who had taken up her whole heart just for being born.
"My little Zuko."
Ursa, like the world, had gotten a little brighter-
"All hail the Second Prince Ozai, son of Fire Lord Azulon!"
Then, just like that, it crumbled, her eyes frozen in fear as the doctors and sages bowed, and a cruel man with long black hair and narrow eyes stepped into the room and instantly commanded everyone's attention. His royal robes glinted in the morning sunlight that slipped through the windows of the palace as he turned his gaze towards Ursa, who had lowered her head just as the others did to offer her greetings, "Hello Ozai, have you come to see-"
"Is it a boy?"
Ursa flinched at the uncaring tone, hiding her clenched fists beneath the covers as she nodded, looking up to see Ozai giving a slight nod before walking over and holding out his hand the same way one would ask for a product they had just bought at the one do the market stalls.
"Let me see."
Ursa subtly ground her teeth, making sure her face was clean of emotion as she nodded before handing over her baby with gentle hands. She watched with a hidden worry as her husband took her baby in a single hand and looked at it with a tilted head and an analytical murmur.
"He's small..."
The seconds passed before Ozai's expression became tinted with the smallest frowns and an icy tone.
"And he has no spark."
To Ursa, it was like a hammer had struck her. Her eyes were wide as she tried to keep the growing panic out of her voice and convey an expression of blatant indifference: "He is just a late bloomer."
"Do not lie, Ursa!"
Ozai roared, scaring the nearby doctors and sages as the torches in the room flared in response. His eyes were narrowed in anger as he watched Ursa's indifferent mask crumble and panic etched into her eyes, "I am not; in time he'll-"
"In time, he'll become as useless as his mother."
Ozai said with a disdainful scowl, ignoring the flash of panic that flashed across his wife's face as he turned and started walking to the nearby window, open to give fresh air to the room drenched of sweat and blood from childbirth, "Late bloomers are just hopeful lies told to worthless children, and I will not waste my time raising a worthless heir!"
They were on the second floor; it should be high enough.
"Ozai, wait! Please don't! I'm begging you!"
Ursa's cries echoed through the room as she fell off the bed and crawled to her knees. The pain of childbirth faded from her mind as she saw Ozai pause in front of the window, turning back with a raised eyebrow as Ursa put her head to the ground and begged with a shaky voice.
"Please do not rush; the sages will tell you that his chances of being a late bloomer are high. And even if..."
Ursa's breath hitched at the thought, her trembling eyes closed as she gulped and let the sick words pass her lips, "Even if he is a non-bender, we can have another child."
The thought of having another child with this monster shook her to her core.
"Zuko would love to have a little sibling to play with."
Yet she held fast, and her offer echoed through the quiet room as she kept her head to the ground. Listening to the small him that left Ozai's lips as he considered her offer, his next words no longer directed at her but instead at his head doctor: "Is what she says true?"
Ursa looked up, watching the doctor glance at her wearily before turning back to Ozai and saying, with the slightest tremor in his old voice, "It is true. With your blood in his veins, the chances of him not being a bender are small."
The doctor gulped as Ozai's eyes narrowed on him, collecting his wits as he gave a logical and rational explanation for the baby's condition: "The boy is small for a babe. Once his body grows, it is likely his bending will follow."
It was a logical explanation, if not a slight reach, but it didn't alleviate the Second Prince of the Fire Nation. Ozai's eyes were narrowed in distaste as he turned back to his son, scanning the small boy in his hand who had started crying.
This one is worthless...
Ozai could tell, from the small body to the large lungs that never ceased to annoy him, that the child in his hand was nothing but a disappointment in waiting. It would be years before this bender, if it even were a bender, showed any signs of usefulness, and by then, he would have wasted all his time and efforts.
It would be a weak bender even if it did gain a spark down the road...
The thought etched a frown on Ozai's face, his eyes flicking towards his kneeling wife as he gained a stray thought. Ozai mulled it over in his head before giving a cruel smirk and speaking in a commanding yet confirming tone, "You will have another child."
"I will."
Ursa said with a flat response, her eyes never leaving her child as she watched Ozai seamlessly move it inches away from the window. Ursa's eyes were too focused on her baby to realize the cruelty of the words that left Ozai's lips until it was too late.
"Then if the child survives..."
Ursa's eyes went wide with horror as she wretched forwards. Her body crumbled as it fought against its utter exhaustion to try and reach Ozai, who had moved his hand back towards the window and held the baby, her baby, out of it with a lax grip.
"You can keep it."
Ursa was sure the unholy shriek that left her lips once gravity had her baby in its grasp could be heard throughout the palace.
It was ten minutes before the doctors could get back into her room, nine minutes after Ozai left after having claimed he had dealt with enough of her 'incessant screeching.'
Please...
It was ten minutes...
Please let my baby be alright.
Ten minutes of utter torture.
Please Agni...
Ten minutes that felt like an eternity.
Please don't-
"Your majesty, the servants have found the baby," a stray sage informed Ursa, pulling her out of her prayers as she turned with frantic and wide eyes. The sage shrank under the painful hope that littered Lady Ursa's eyes as he walked out of the way so a servant could bring the baby inside.
"We are sorry, he won't live long. He would have died instantly if he hadn't landed in a patch of Fire Lillies... you... you should say your goodbyes."
The dying baby.
"No..."
Ursa said with a shaky breath as she watched a palace servant walk in with a bundle of bloody cloth in her hands. The waiting lady held back her tears as she handed Ursa her baby and watched as the mother broke down in agonizing sobs.
"My b- baby..."
Ursa's wretched cries wracked her body as she grasped her baby boy close to her chest, her ragged breaths filling the room as she prayed in a fit of hysterical despair. She was holding her baby close. She tried to feel his breathing, which was getting quieter with each passing second. Like the air in its lungs was taking its time until it left indefinitely.
Please...
Ursa prayed and prayed in a fit of broken sobs as she held her baby.
Please Agni...
Ursa prayed to the spirit of the sun to save her child.
Please save my baby boy...
Ursa prayed and prayed for what felt like an eternity. Her shaky breaths and trembling hands froze as she felt a warm sensation crawl through the air and heard the watching eyes gasp. Ultear's eyes, drawn red from tears, opened to see a golden light peeking through the windows, shining in her baby boy like a bright blessing.
Please Agni...
Ursa watched with wide eyes, barely able to keep herself from fainting with relief as she saw the bloodied baby boy in her arms shine. The bloody cut over his left eye was sealed shut as the golden light touched it and left a golden tattoo, reminiscent of a golden flower with the sun's curling rays, over the upper left corner of his face.
"It's Agni..."
"Someone get the Fire lord..."
"A blessing of Agni..."
"It's a miracle..."
"Agni has blessed the royal family..."
Ursa ignored the frantic murmurs of the sages and the palace staff. Her eyes never left her baby boy, whose little eyes peeked open, blinking up at her with a slight giggle. As bright as the sun's rays, if not brighter, she shone a light on her dreary life in the palace with a gummy smile.
"Thank you, Agni."
Ursa murmured her heartfelt thanks as she reached out a shaky finger, an exhausted smile etched on her face as her baby grabbed it.
"Say thank you too, Zuko..."
Ursa smiled for the first time since she had been taken to the palace as she held her curious baby, her little miracle, in her trembling arms. A grateful son escaped her lips as she watched with a tearful smile and relieved breath as the cute little thing tried to eat her pinkie finger.
"Agni has blessed you."
Ursa would have endured a thousand hardships in this cold palace to see that little smile at that moment.
Agna Qel'a was a beautiful city of ice and centuries of traditions. Built on the backs of their ancestors and the bending of their predecessors, it was a city and a stronghold all at once, with the gates to the ocean offering a view miles into the ocean's horizon. The icy walls of Agna Qel'a provided all its inhabitants a sense of safety and comfort, yet Arnook didn't feel comfortable.
Please...
Arnook was worried, incredibly so.
Please Tui...
His wife was in labor, a harsh labor. They had hoped for children for a long time, yet it seemed as if fate thought their prayers too heavy. His wife had gotten harshly sick during the pregnancy, and it had been hours since her water broke.
Please La...
Arnook hadn't seen his wife since the best healer in Agna Qel'a, Yugoda, had taken the time to see her through it in one of the palace rooms. To guide her through the arduous labor process and hopefully assure that Arnook's wife and baby wouldn't be lost on this cold winter's night.
Please don't take my wife and child...
Arnook prayed to the spirits as he paced outside the labor room, biting his fingernail as he waited for Yugoda to leave and tell him what had happened. Good or bad, he just had to know; he wanted to know what had happened to his unborn child and wife, who he hadn't seen in hours.
Please don't-
"Arnook."
An aged and tired voice cut through the room, prompting Arnook to stop his restless pacing and look over to Yugoda. The latter stepped out of the palace waiting room with a grave expression and a voice lined with exhaustion.
"It is done."
Arnook, assuming the worst, looked towards Yugoda with a small and shaky breath. His eyes were pleading as he watched Yugoda give a downcast look and speak with a quiet yet sympathetic voice, "Your wife will recover; however, I must advise against any future pregnancies. Her body might not be able to handle it."
Arnook breathed a breath of relief, the mixture of gratefulness that his wife survived and grief at the news fading away as he nodded. He knew Luna had wanted more children, but he would adhere if fate said it was best to stop them.
"Thank you, Yugoda... I understand."
My wife is alive... that's all that matters.
Arnook's sincerity was conveyed in words, prompting Yugoda to smile in return. One that fell to a thin line as she watched Arnook shake his hands as if shaking away the last of the nerves before asking the question she didn't want to answer.
"My child..."
It was such a sad thing to tell a parent.
"What of my child?"
Arnook watched with teetering hope and rampaging nerves as Yugoda gave a slight shake of her head, closing her eyes before opening them and placing a sympathetic hand on Arnook's shaking ones, "Your child has been born successfully..."
Arnook felt his shoulders sag in relief before tightening once he noticed the frown that had carved its way onto Yugoda's aged face. His eyes were laced with thinly hidden concern as Yugoda pulled him towards the door; the ice carvings lining its intricately carved frame were among many throughout the palace. A palace of cold water with a long history of never melting, it was a place of beauty and grit as sturdy as Agna Qel'a.
"But Arnook..."
The palace was supposed to symbolize strength for the Northern Water Tribe.
"I'm afraid she won't make it."
Yet it had never felt weaker to Arnook in that moment.
She was so light.
My baby girl...
Arnook's daughter was so unbelievably light.
Why must this happen to my baby girl...
Arnook bit back his despair as he cradled his baby girl, tan skin and a beautiful head of black hair. The same as her mother, who was slumbering nearby to recover from her long and painful pregnancy. She was resting peacefully, unaware of the pain he was suffering, watching his baby girl, who was light as a feather, take breaths that were too tiny to be healthy.
"Yugoda..."
Arnook's baby should have opened her eyes by now, but she hadn't. Not even once. She hadn't cried, whimpered, or struggled; she just slept in his arms.
"I'm taking her to the Oasis."
Arnook's baby was dying because she was too small. Yugoda said it was most likely due to the stressful pregnancy, but it was impossible to tell.
"Please..."
How could Arnook describe the despair that came with knowing his daughter had been born from the suffering of his wife? How could he describe the futility of knowing she might not even make it through the night regardless?
"Watch over Luna."
Arnook couldn't; he couldn't describe the pain that came with taking his baby, his wife's baby, away from her before she had a chance to see it. If his daughter... if his daughter died, his wife would never have had a chance to lay her eyes on her, a sin he would have to bear for the rest of his life.
"I will, Arnook."
Yet he was determined to try, to try and save his baby girl.
"Thank you, Yugoda."
So he gave Yugoda a stiff nod and walked over to his wife. He gave her a soft kiss on the head, admiring her sleeping beauty, hair damp with sweat from birthing his baby, before he turned and left the room, idly hearing Yugoda's parting words as he walked away from his wife.
"May Tui and La bless you."
Arnook walked swiftly through the palace, following hall free hall as he made his way towards a seamlessly innocent door hidden at the end of a long hallway. Taking the keys from his neck and unlocking it while his baby girl was cradled in his arms, listening to her quiet breaths with an eternal fear that one of them would be the last.
'Click'
With a click, the door of ice and wood opened, revealing a small tunnel connected to the Oasis. It was a side entrance that ran under ice and even had a section where the tiger seals could emerge from one of their successful hunts.
Please Tui...
Arnook walked through the long tunnel with a quick and hurried step, trying his best to hold himself together because this wasn't about him. He couldn't afford to break down and sob over the little girl slowly dying in his arms.
Please don't let me lose my baby girl...
Yet every footstep echoed with the sound of fallen tears, as silent as the night sky and the surrounding tunnels. Arnook only allowed silent tears because they wouldn't debilitate him. It felt like an eternity until he finally reached the entrance to the empty Oasis. A small circular island of grass and a singular tree, surrounded by a small stream and walls of ice that protected it like a natural fortress.
"Oh, Tui and La..."
In the center, near the edge of the island, there sat a pond where two fish circled each other. One had black scales and a white dot on its head; the other had white scales and a black dot. There were the physical incarnations of Tui and La, and they were the only chance his daughter had at survival.
"Please save my daughter."
Arnook echoed his sentiments over and over again as he reached the pond's edge, placing his daughter gently, softly in the pond, making sure to keep her head above water as he put his head to the ground and begged, "Please don't let my daughter die."
Tears streamed freely down his face, his cries and panic no longer silent as he let his girl rest on the edge of the pond. Her back against the grass and toes in the water as Arnook pleaded with a shaky breath laced with utter and pure desperation.
"Please don't let her..."
Arnook's cries stopped as he saw a flash of white light, his eyes flicking upwards as he raised his head, and the words he had been saying died in his throat.
"Die..."
Arnook saw it that night; he witnessed a miracle: the pond water gently took his daughter off its shallow banks and pulled her towards the center. Letting her float above the two koi fish as the moon shone overhead and its white light shone down on his baby girl, leaving the water sparkling with moonlight and turning her hair snow white.
"Thank you, Tui and La..."
Arnook choked on his breath as he reached a gentle hand out, and the water returned his baby to him. Her cries were now loud and plentiful and beautiful, filling up her lungs as she opened her eyes to look at the moon that saved her life.
"Thank you for blessing my daughter."
Arnook had been chieftain of the Northern Water Tribe for more years than he could count, and in his lifetime, he couldn't think of a more joyous moment...
"Thank you for saving Yue."
Than the night the moon spirit, Tui, blessed his daughter Yue with life.
A/N: Hey so this is one of my old stories I'm rewriting, posts will be flexible, just as a way to avoid burnout. I'm also going to end up adding Reflection on this site once I get to rewriting it. That's all, hope you enjoy :)