Author's note : Good to have this chapter posted . Thankfully I found some time in my schedule to write this one up . You know this story is a lot easier to manage in comparison to my other Rotsh story , since I weirdly don't feel the urge to weirdly pad things out in this story . But rather spread them through the chapters over a longer period .
Either way , I'm actually happy that I picked up this story .
:)
Alright enough mushy stuff , let's get down into the beef of the chapter . I'll admit that I wanted to add some Mai POV in this chapter but I decided against it since I wanted to focus a bit more on Azula and Kazumi . Rest assured the next few chapters , we'll finally get back to seeing what's been happening with the Royal Fire Family . It'll probably be in the next chapter or so .
Now I feel like I should have probably said this at the beginning of the story , but at this point there probably isn't going to be too much action in the story . I mean , I do plan for there to be action , just that there isn't going to be a lot in this moment in time . I really just want to focus more on Azula healing and not her learning or acquiring new cool powers or abilities . Not yet at least .
Sorry if this chapter feels a bit rushed , but I've been busy with college shit for a while now .
I think that's enough rambling , let's just get into the chapter .
Azula felt like she was drowning or more specifically like she couldn't breath . As if her lungs refused to take in air .
She was in a familiar scene , one that had replayed in her head constantly since it had happened .
She was back at Boiling Rock .
Staring down at Mai , the usually emotionless girl having an unfamiliar defiant look in her eye .
Azula could only watch in barely veiled shock and horror as Mai said the words that had resounded in her head .
" You miscalculated . I love Zuko more than I fear you "
' ... I know ...'
Azula wanted to say but the words got caught in her throat and she forced herself to swallow them . Whether out of her own pride , anger or just plain vulnerability . Or maybe all three .
Azula felt the fire in her ignite out of rage .
" No , you miscalculated . You should have feared me more ! " Azula shouted before she blasted blue fire at Mai , only for her to fade into embers .
Azula looked around her and saw that she was no longer at Boiling Rock ...
In fact she wasn't where she was .
She couldn't see anything . As if she was stuck in some kind of pitch black void and she could just barely see herself standing in the very center of it .
" Where ... Where am I ? " Azula asked but no one answered .
" I was always afraid of you . You scared me Azula "
Azula felt her whole body go rigid as she recognized the voice that came from behind her . Turning her head , she sees a familiar girl with braids step out of the darkness .
" T-Ty Lee ... ? " Azula asked in a mix of shock and horror .
" I was never your friend Azula . You scared me . You made me fear you " Ty Lee said with an uncharacteristic look of anger and disappointment on her face " What kind of friend does that to another friend ? I was nothing more than just a girl you met at the Academy that was just stupid and naive enough to stick around with you afterwards " Ty Lee's face turns stony " Can you blame me for betraying you ? "
" SHUT UP !" Azula shouted and the phantom of Ty Lee disappeared .
" You disappoint me daughter ... "
Another voice immediately stepped in after Ty Lee and Azula turned in fear to see her father step out from the shadows .
" F-F-Father no ...I ..." Azula tried to speak but found her voice had caught in her throat .
" Have I not provided you with adequate enough chance to accomplish your goals ? I provided you with the finest tutors , instructors and best education in the Fire Nation to be afforded to your status as a princess ... and you still failed me " Father sneered at her " Zuko was a failure , but I expected more from you Azula . It makes you look even more pathetic than Zuko ..."
" Father please I ..."
" SILENCE ! Do you honestly believe that I wish to hear your pathetic excuses !? " Father shouted which silenced her " It is because of your own failures that you ended up where you are now . Thrown away and forgotten by your own brother . Left to rot in an asylum till your death bed . And now living off of the pity of some woman you met in the woods weeks prior " Father laughed cruelly " You couldn't even muster up the courage to end your mother's life out of asinine feeling or perhaps hope that she still cared for you ... how pathetic ..."
Azula felt tears sting her eyes as she crumpled to the floor " P-Please father ...stop ..."
Father didn't speak again , but rather he disappeared into the shadows once more .
" You remind me so much of Ozai Azula ... do you honestly wonder why I hate you ? "
Azula opened her eyes once again as she looked up to see a familiar woman step out of the shadows . The woman that haunted her dreams .
"M-M-Mother ..." Azula muttered out .
" I tried Azula . I really really did . But you were impossible at every turn . Ignoring every warning I gave you . Hurting everyone around you " Mother looked down at her with pity " I loved you back-"
" LIES ! " Azula shouts back " You never loved me ! You loved Zuko ! But not me ! You were always there for him but not me ! "
" Because he needed it more . You had Ozai and-"
" Oh and a lot of good that did me ! " Azula let out a humorless laugh " I think even you can figure out that father only ever wanted me as a tool but you did nothing ! You were always too busy loving Zuko . Singing his bedtime stories or comforting him whenever he complained when things got too hard for him . I never got such a comfort "
" Hell , Kazumi has done more for me than you have in my entire life ! So don't you dare come here and suddenly say you love me when you have shown me none of it ! You can go to hell for all I care ! " Azula shouted in anger
" Very well ..." Mother disappeared into the shadows once more .
And Azula was left alone again .
Azula crumpled to the ground as tears came once again .
This is how it is ... this is how it always is .
" Azula ... Azula ..."
A comforting voice cut through the darkness and Azula heard that it was getting louder until ...
" Azula ! Wake up ! Please ! "
Azula opened her eyes to find herself panting for breath and Kazumi holding her hands , which seemed to have ignited fire .
" Azula please calm down ... its okay ..." Kazumi soothed and Azula immediately made the flame go away .
" What ... what happened ? " Azula asked out of breath .
" I heard you screaming in here and I rushed in to see that you set the floor and your sheets on fire ..." Kazumi explained .
Azula looked over the side of the bed and the ceiling that saw what looked to be some 'relatively' light burns on the carpeting . It seemed that she had bended in her sleep and caused a small fire . Luckily it seems that she wasn't burned anywhere .
" Thank the spirits that you weren't hurt ..." Kazumi said calmly " I was able to put it out before it did too much damage to the room ... are you okay Azula ? "
" I had another episode ... it was a nightmare ..." Azula barely muttered out " So many ... familiar faces were there ... they were ... they were ..."
" Its okay Azula ... you're safe now ..." Kazumi softly said as she pulled the young girl into a hug .
Azula didn't bother to fight it , if anything she let it happen . As she cried into Kazumi's shoulder once again .
Kazumi said nothing as she let the young girl cry all she needed . This was a girl who had lost everything that had mattered to her and was left with nothing to rebuild with . Well Kazumi wanted to help be there for this young girl .
Agni knows that she could have used some help back then as well ...
When she was at the lowest point of her life and despair was all that was left ...
Azula's cries rang out into the long hours of the night .
" Are you feeling better now Azula ...? " Kazumi asked as she offered some tea to Azula .
" ...A little ..." Azula said as she took the tea .
It was still late at night , around late midnight by Kazumi's best guess . Both Kazumi and Azula knew they weren't going back to sleep anytime soon , so Kazumi decided to make some tea for the both of them .
Azula took a sip of the tea and it wasn't so bad . They had better back at the palace but Azula was too prideful to ever join her uncle of all people for a tea session . She never did understand his odd obsession with tea .
" Azula ... if you don't mind me asking but ... what was your nightmare about ?" Kazumi played it slowly . She didn't want to overstep her boundaries right after the girl just had an episode .
" ... There were ... a lot ... familiar faces ..." Azula slowly explained " Mother ...Father ... my ... ex-friends ..." Azula listed them all , she almost wondered why a phantom of Zuko hadn't shown up .
" And ... what were they saying ? " Kazumi carefully asked .
" ...Hurtful ... truthful things ..." Azula vaguely answered .
Kazumi wisely didn't press too much there .
" Kazumi ... do you remember when I told you that my father always wanted perfection out me ? " Azula waited for Kazumi to nod before continuing " ... I did some ... very bad things ... hurt people I cared about ... and it was all for him ... but it was never enough "
Kazumi considered what she should say next " Azula I-"
" ...I'm sorry ... I don't want to say anymore ..." Azula finished her tea and got up , walking to the door . But before she left , Azula looked over her shoulder at Kazumi " And Kazumi ... I ..."
" Yes Azula ? "
" ...Nevermind . Goodnight " That was all Azula said before she left to return to her room .
Kazumi let out a sigh as Azula disappeared from her sight , she knew that Azula had trouble opening up about her problems but she also knew that with patience the girl would eventually do so on her own time . She just couldn't rush it .
Kazumi stood up and walked to a nearby window , looking up at the moon shining down on the house .
The night was still young ...
Shin had found that sharpening his weapons and taking stock of his team's supplies was a good way to keep his sanity .
As odd as it may sound this was not uncommon among veterans or even experienced trackers , they all needed some way to keep their sanity when they were stuck in a nightmare forest that was constantly trying to kill or eat them .
Most of his team had already gone to sleep from the exhaustion of another day of searching , but a few including him had stayed awake to keep watch . It was certainly a good idea to have a few people keep watch in case anything tries to creep up on them while they slept .
It had been a few days since they found that very thin lead pertaining to princess Azula's whereabouts ( Or at the very least her survival ) and ... they have yet to find another clue to her location as of yet . The men once again complained about their lack of progress .
Shin was not ashamed to admit it . But even he was starting to get wore down by this forest . He just wanted to go home to his wife and call it a day already .But he could not do that , he had already accepted this mission from the Fire Lord himself .And it would do no good for his honor if he backed out so easily .
At the moment , he was just sharpening his knife and planning out their route for the next day . They were running low on supplies so somebody had to make the trip into the village of Hira'a to get some more and-
That's when Shin felt all the hairs on his neck stand up suddenly .
He immediately stopped sharpening his knife and looked around to try and spot anything out of the ordinary in their surroundings .
It was an instinct that he had honed in his many years as a Yuyun Archer . The feeling to know when he's being watched .
And right now , he felt like he was being watched like a hawk .
" Sir ... is there a problem ? " Cheng spoke up , noticing the sudden jumpiness of his commanding officer .
" Thought I heard something ..." Well maybe not heard , but Shin could swear that he was not going crazy .
Just as he was about to approach some nearby bushes , a couple of birds flew overhead .
" It was just some birds sir , you're not the only one going stir crazy here ... " Zheng spoke up .
Shin threw a light glare at Zheng before sitting back down , his instincts flaring have gone down .
But he could have sworn to Agni himself that he and his team were being watched by something ...
I sincerely apologize for the severe drop in quality in this chapter , but this chapter was very rushed and I didn't even have time to do SPAG edits . College has been a real bitch to me and I can only assume that its going to get worse from here . I'll try to update this story as frequently as I can , but I make no promises is all I can say .
The next chapter we will finally get back to what has been going on with the Fire Nation family and all that , so that's something to look forward to . And if I get my indecisiveness in check , you all might just be in for one heck of a surprise .
Anyway that's all for now , see you all in the next one .
Angel Out .