Been sitting on this story for a while and finally decided to say: F*ck it! Let's just upload. A high school AU of Azula heavily inspired by BellatrixLestrangey's Wan High Weeping. I fell in love with the story as soon as I opened and finally have the courage to finally upload these meager scraps :).
This school year had gotten off to a rough start.
Azula had just turned 14 and was expecting another summer of heavily enforced volleyball drills. It was simple and she was used to it. Things were supposed to make sense, but now, they didn't.
At the beginning of the summer of her 14th year, her mother had reappeared into her life. Ozai and Ursa were divorced for very obvious marital problems that not even Azula would admit to spending nights up alone crying about. She remembered trying to find refuge under the sheets on her bed, drowning out the sounds of her parents' yells. Sometimes, she'd wander into Zuko's room and snuggle herself into bed beside him as he told her made up stories of faraway dream lands where families stuck together and never fought. Either way, her mother trotted off in the middle of the night without a trace and hadn't been seen by anyone but probably her father in order to file divorce papers for years.
For years Azula had kept up a façade of indifference towards the woman. Heavy emotions rolled in like the tides. She'd been pulling back and forth for years on an imaginary rope trying to decide whether she loved her mother or hated her. She hated to admit that she still hadn't reached a final decision. Ursa's favor was always towards her older brother Zuko and there was nothing she could do about it. The only time her mother would look in her direction was if she did something extraordinarily bad. Reluctance made her turn to Ozai. He acknowledged what she was capable of at least. That was more than she could ever say for her mother.
Ursa came standing at their doorstep looking just the same as before. The regal nose, pale skin, shiny hair, and slender body that drowned in whatever fabric she wore. Azula spent hours upon hours deconstructing and reconstructing her mother's face until it was etched in her mind for years. Every dip and curve was just as she remembered. Azula didn't have the words to express of the oddity of her mother's appearance. She only thought it was cruel that she could remain untouched by time – as if she'd never left – and pretend that there was no chasm between them. There was a smile on her face. She couldn't remember a time her mother had ever smiled like that while living with her.
She was prattling on about how she lived close to them now and that she would love to have them over if she could. Azula remembered the way Zuko's face lit up. He was such a nincompoop. He was 17 years old for god's sake! He could try not making himself look like some pathetic toddler.
The conversation kept going, mostly from Zuko's side, and she mentioned being remarried with a child. A daughter. A name she couldn't bother to remember that rolled so easily off her mother's lips. Azula wouldn't admit it, but it bothered her. She felt replaced.
Ursa had been able to run off and abandon them for years with little regard for their safety and then come back with the family she always wanted?! Azula wouldn't allow it. She would never forgive Ursa. The woman had to be patronizing her. How dare she parade around the daughter she'd so obviously always wanted in her face?! Zuko was a fool to fall into her trap. If Azula could be replaced, then so could her precious 'Zuzu'.
An agreement must've been worked out between Ursa and Ozai because she asked if they wanted to stay with her from time to time to get reacquainted. Zuko took up the offer without any hesitation. Azula, with years of practiced indifference, politely declined. Somewhere deep down, she knew that the invitation wasn't really directed towards her. It showed in the way her mother focused on Zuko, how she eagerly waited for his reply, the way they embraced like they'd never see each other again. Azula had to walk away. It was getting to be too much.
She found solace in her father's home office. Stacks of documents, constantly ringing phones, and the beeps of the fax machine were comforting to her. She was familiar with them. They were constant…unlike her mother.
On nights where she couldn't sleep, she'd make herself a palate in the office and listen to the soft hum of the fax machine until she was lulled to slumber. The whirs of the various machines made for dreamless nights. She was thankful for that. Anything was better than replays of her mother's departure or Ozai's fits of rage.
As if things couldn't possibly get worse, Iroh and Lu Ten had also made reappearances. Ozai and Iroh had never been on good terms, but he'd always made sure to keep in contact with Zuko. He tried to call Azula years ago, but her father had rushed Iroh off the phone and he never reached out again. It still bothered her when she thought about it sometimes.
Iroh and Lu Ten kept their appearances to wherever Ursa lived. There was really no love lost. Azula had never really known Lu Ten. She doubted that he would want to connect with her anyway with the way Iroh already actively avoided her. If what she heard was correct, he was his father's son.
Azula spent the entire summer honing her skills for the upcoming volleyball tryouts at her new school. She knew she was good, but there was always room for improvement. She was a perfectionist. Everyone expected it of her and she wasn't one to disappoint. Ozai showed no tolerance for anything less than the best.
Unlike Zuko, she couldn't breeze by with being a failure all her life. She couldn't hope and dream about love from her parents finally being reciprocated. She was realistic. Practical. Pragmatic. Not naïve like he was. People only loved you if you gave them reason to.
….
The first day of school was nerve racking. Azula could barely sleep through the previous night because she was a bundle of nerves. She ate very few bites of the breakfast served to her that morning because her stomach felt like it was doing round-offs.
However, she was the picture of confidence. Azula took note from her father. There was never any reason for the enemy to see your guard down. 'Don't give anyone reason to do anything other than fear you' was the quote that unearthed itself from the back of her mind.
She held her head high and strutted into the school with her pristine, new uniform as if everyone were beneath her. And they were. They just didn't know it yet. She'd have to find ways to make everyone aware of their inferiority later on.
"AZULA!" the high pitched voice of Ty Lee rang through the hallways.
The overly energetic girl was running over to her with her arms flailing in the air haphazardly. Azula scoffed as she watched innocent bystanders be hit by the ditzy girl's waves. Ty Lee could be such a simpleton sometimes.
Mai wasn't too far behind her. She held that incredibly impassive face that she always wore. To outsiders she may seem unbothered, but Azula knew the feelings that she kept inside.
"Good morning Ty Lee. Are you sure that the entire parking lot needed to hear you call my name?" Azula said just as both the girls came to a screeching halt in front of her.
Ty Lee shrugged off Azula's question with a girlish laugh. "Oh, I'm so happy Azula! It's our first day of high school and we're all together!"
Azula rolled her eyes playfully. You could always count on Ty Lee to be as optimistic and energetic as possible.
"I don't see what there is to be happy about," Mai commented with her arms folded. "It's just going to be four years of mindless lectures and pressures to succeed in a setting that ultimately means nothing after you leave this place."
"But you will get to see Zuko more," Azula countered.
A faint blush rose to the stoic girl's cheeks. Ty Lee hugged her over gratuitously to which Mai responded with a sudden incessant need to focus on their schedules.
"I have chemistry class with someone named Mr. Pathik," Azula observed.
Ty Lee snuck a glance at both her friends' schedules and frowned. Mai gave a slight pout, but fixed herself before it was noticeable.
"Aw, looks like none of us have classes together," Ty Lee sighed.
"Good," Mai deadpanned. "Maybe I'll finally get my work done without you whining over my shoulder about some stupid boy every day."
The girls all laughed in good nature. The bell for first period rang and they shared affectionate greetings before departing.
….
The end of the day was finally here and Azula couldn't be happier about it. Today was just an introduction for all classes, so, thankfully she wasn't assigned any work besides getting supplies on time. Tryouts for clubs were being held and she wanted to be the first one present.
Roku's Academy for Excellence was famous for many things, but it's athletics department had to be the most well-known aspect of it. The coaches were all good on their own merit, but there was just something about the girls' volleyball team.
Coach Kyoshi had been leading her team to victory for over 20 years. The team was currently on a six year winning streak and Azula just knew she had to join. She would seek out power wherever she could find it.
She was walking into the spacious gym when she spotted a very familiar face. A smug grin contorted every feature of his sinister mug.
"Hey! It's you!" he screamed across the gym.
Azula turned her head away and tried to put her gym bag somewhere in the corner, but the boy was proving to be persistent. A hand slapped down onto her shoulder as she sorted through her bag.
"Yo! Didn't you hear me?" the obnoxious voice came again.
Azula begrudgingly looked in his direction. It was Chan. Chan Park to be more exact. The nightmare of her entire summer. She'd made a completely innocent comment in passing one day about him being cute while at volleyball training camp and he hadn't let her live it down.
In fact, someone who had heard the comment reported it back to him and he'd decided to make a big show of rejecting her in front of everyone. She'd never been so humiliated in her life. Just thinking about the situation made her angry all over again.
But it was she who got the upper hand in the end. Chan had a house party at the end of the summer that included everyone from camp. It took a while and a bit of stealth, but she'd been able to get his records from the office and hunt down his parents' phone number.
They'd been awfully pissed to learn of his shenanigans. They were on a very peaceful trip on an island somewhere. She reveled in the disastrous aftermath that was his parents busting him.
She ended summer camp with the last laugh. Azula never expected to see him at the school she went to.
"Do you need something, Chan?" she huffed with her arms folded. Her brow raised in disgust.
Chan, still as arrogant as ever, pinned her against the wall. An evil smirk plastered on his face. "I know it was you," he snapped way too close to her ear for comfort.
"Do you expect me to be privy to all of your unwarranted accusations against me?"
Chan banged his fist against the wall. Azula looked down her nose at him without flinching.
"I know it was you who ratted me out to my parents."
"Unless you can provide some kind of tangible proof, what you're saying is nothing but baseless accusations."
Chan backed away from her with a stiff frown and an accusatory finger pointed in her direction. "Just you wait…" he proclaimed as he backed away slowly.
Azula unfolded her arms and rolled her eyes. He'd have to come up with something a little more menacing to intimidate her. Her father was Ozai. There was no one she feared more than him.
Out of Azula's peripheral vision, she noticed a shaggy-haired boy standing off to the side. If she remembered correctly, his name was Ruon Jian, a friend of Chan. He rarely spoke so she didn't know what to think of him. He waved at her shyly. Azula raised an eyebrow in suspicion. No one who befriended Chan could be good.
"Don't worry about what that idiot says. He's not smart enough to make the connection if he tried," he drawled in a lazy voice.
The corners of Azula's lips curled up in a smile. "Thank you for your…reassurance," she added with a dismissive hand wave.
His eyes softened. If her eyes weren't deceiving her, she could've sworn she saw his cheeks color. She ignored it. In all her time as a girl, there hadn't been anyone bold enough to show interest in her. Sometimes she'd get sad about it, but that was the cost of being such a powerful girl and a soon to be unstoppable woman. If people were intimidated by that aspect of her, then, they didn't deserve a girl as wonderful as she was.
It took around 30 minutes for the gym to fill with potential applicants. The room filled with mindless chatter. Azula took the initiative to focus on herself and start warming up. These other people could fraternize with each other if they wanted, she had important goals to achieve while she was here.
She was the best volleyball player on her team throughout middle school and she wanted to gain that same title here. She'd lead her team to victory so many times that they rarely relied on the coach for strategy. It'd take a bit of time to work her way to the top in a new place, but she was sure she could take it head on. She'd never met a challenge she couldn't beat before.
The actual tryouts were abysmal. No one, boy or girl, was half as talented as she was. Their serves were mediocre at best, defense totally weak, and it seemed that no one besides her knew how to pass. It wouldn't be hard to rise the ranks of this team, but it would probably stifle her growth being constantly surrounded by people beneath her. Father wouldn't mind her being the best, but he'd hate that she wasn't being challenged. He'd interpret that as her not wanting to challenge herself. Complacency bred mediocrity. It was why he'd hated how Ursa had coddled Zuko for so long. He described him as a child still suckling from his mother's tit.
No matter. All this mediocrity meant that she was a shoe in for a spot on the team. Coach Kyoshi would be an idiot to let her go so easily.
Well? Was it good? Bad? Characterizations off? Or were you guys just not feeling it at all? Let me know :)!