Gladiator

by Seyary-Minamoto

In a world where the Avatar wasn't found, the Fire Nation took over two nations and they strive to overcome the last one. Water Tribe warrior Sokka seeks to fight for his people's rights, but he's captured by his enemies. His life is no longer in his hands as he fights as a Gladiator, and his fate will eventually depend on the Fire Nation Princess, who needs him for her own ends...

360. Chapter 360: The Next Move 2

The Next Move

2

Usually, a commanding officer of a Fire Nation army would single out a prisoner for the sake of subjecting them to worse torment and torture than whatever the rest of the group would receive. At times, they were made examples of. At times, they were simply an insurance, means through which to threaten the less strong-willed members of their forces into offering any information to save their leader's life.

It wasn't very common for the prisoner to be given any personal freedoms, and Anorak anticipated none. Winding up with hands tied, thus, came as no surprise…

But that the ropes on his arms would be fastened over a comfortable chair's armrests caught him off guard. His calves were bound to the chair's legs, too. That was the treatment the tall, bulkier soldier had determined in the Princess's absence, within the first ten minutes of their arrival into the Morishita family's home.

The building lacked notoriety, Anorak thought, utterly unimpressive for a man who had spent time in Omashu and Ba Sing Se's Palaces. It felt like serving a sentence in a commoner's home rather than a nobleman's… while Anorak certainly preferred this over a cold jail cell, he was out of his element, out of place at the family's dining room, empty besides himself and the man he had heard the Princess refer to as Chan.

"Okay, there we go! Too tight?" he asked. Anorak scoffed.

"Is this supposed to be some sort of recreative activity, or am I a prisoner? What does it matter if it's too tight?" he asked. Chan pouted.

"Are Water Tribe guys always this ungrateful? I'm trying to be nice here and you're just being pissy. Aronak, you're no fun."

"Anorak!" the waterbender exclaimed. Chan blinked blankly.

"Isn't that what I…?"

"Ugh. Stop talking. Particularly, stop talking to me. Find someone else to chat with and leave me be," Anorak groaned.

"Seriously, why is everyone so rude? Keep reacting to me like that and Renkai will be your best friend before the day is out," Chan huffed, arms folded over his chest. Anorak winced.

"No, thank you. I have no intentions of befriending any of the Princess's lackeys," Anorak said. Chan scoffed.

"Lackeys. I suppose you say the word as an insult…" Chan said, tapping his chin. "I'm sure she'd say she would love to have far better lackeys than us, though."

"And she would be right to say so."

Chan squirmed and turned towards the Princess with a broad, guilty grin: she had only just approached the dining room with her Imperial Guard, appearing calmer than before. Anorak eyed her skeptically: she had given her speech, the crowd had acclaimed her… and instead of rejoicing with them, she had given everyone the slip as fast as possible, dragging the rest of her group with her. The earthbending girl had accompanied them at first, but then she had returned to the celebrations, as far as Anorak could tell.

Then, upon arriving, the Princess had tasked Chan with tying up Anorak properly, without the chains, and she had taken off with her Imperial Guard back outside. Anorak wasn't sure where she had gone, but whatever that was about, Azula seemed to be far more level-headed now than she had been since he had first laid eyes upon her, half a day ago.

"You tied him to a chair," Azula stated, an eyebrow raised skeptically as her other goon approached and stopped beside her. Chan shrugged.

"Figured he'd be uncomfortable otherwise," he said.

"So very considerate of you," Azula said, her tone muted.

"I'll look for a place where we can put him for the time being," Renkai said. "Surely there's… something. A closet, maybe, or…"

"Are you for real?" Anorak scoffed.

"How about the food cellar? He might be less abrasive if we feed him," Chan suggested, grinning carelessly.

"Neither thing," Azula said, bluntly cutting down their suggestions. "The two of you will scoop up that chair… and you'll carry him to my room."

All three men froze upon hearing that command: they even eyed her skeptically for an instant, only for Azula to huff and roll her eyes.

"Either you stop your minds from reaching the wrong conclusions right now, or I'll add a few more names to the list of people I've killed with lightning today. I'm still in a bad enough mood to do it."

"R-right. Sorry! It's just, well, weird. He's tied up, so, you know…" Chan said. Renkai coughed.

"Most people don't exactly take prisoners to their bedrooms…" Renkai admitted, no doubt slightly bashful. Azula rolled her eyes.

"There's only one Water Tribe man I'd tie down on a chair to have my way with, and it certainly isn't this one," she declared without a shred of a doubt: now the three men blushed, if for the intended reasons. "Had enough information about my private life yet, or would you like for me to elaborate more on…?"

"That's about enough for me! Yep, yep, Grumpkai, pick up some slack, take the right side, I'll take the left, and let's get going right away…" Chan swallowed hard, leaning by Anorak's chair as the waterbender grimaced, unwilling to so much as meet Azula's gaze after her last statement.

The room in question was as ordinary as everything else in the house was. Chan and Renkai set Anorak down by a corner of the room after walking awkwardly, with poor synch, across the flight of stairs and the second floor's corridor. Anorak was deeply grateful to be set down again – he wasn't one for motion sickness, usually, but the unexpected clumsiness of his captors seemed poised to change that.

"Okay, so…" Chan said, turning towards Azula, as she crossed the room's threshold. "What now?"

"Send Song here," Azula said, surprising Renkai and Chan.

"Isn't that…?" Chan blinked blankly, glancing at Renkai.

"Are you sure?" Renkai asked. "I thought you wanted them to stay in the shed until…"

"She wanted to have another look at my injuries. Better for her to do it now than for it to wait for later. Maybe start cooking something if either of you know how," she said. "I'm not exactly hungry, but that's no reason for us not to eat. I… haven't had any food since this morning. I don't even remember if I had breakfast, frankly."

"You were bending like that without breakfast?" Anorak asked, eyeing Azula with disbelief. Azula shrugged.

"I don't remember, I said. Either way, it's better if we all have something to eat, so…"

"I'll try to scrounge something up, then!" Chan announced. Azula grimaced. "What? I can cook! At least a little bit!"

"Well… if you're lying, just pour unnatural amounts of spice in my meal and I'll be fine with its mediocrity," Azula suggested. Chan's eyebrow twitched.

"Unnatural amounts? You're serious?" he asked. Renkai sighed.

"She is. I'll find Song, then," Renkai said. "Though… will she inspect you?"

"Most likely," Azula said, eyes narrowing when Renkai shot Anorak a dirty glare. "She can do it in the bathroom rather than…"

Her explanation didn't satisfy Renkai: he stepped forward, clasping Anorak's chair and turning it around so he would only be able to look at the room's corner. Anorak huffed, rolling his eyes.

"I don't have a death wish, you know?" he told Renkai.

"I don't care," Renkai rebuffed. "The Princess may jest by offering revealing information at times, but even if she didn't mind that you're in here while she's being tended to…"

"She scares me less than Sokka," Anorak said, startling all three Fire Nation people. "Pretty sure he wouldn't find it agreeable if I see even an inch of his woman's skin, so…"

"His woman? Hey! That's a weird way to phrase it, it sounds off," Chan squirmed, shaking his head and glancing at Azula… to find her raising an eyebrow, as if approvingly. "W-what the hell?! Do you like it?!"

"I have expressed no opinion on the matter. Now shoo, get to cooking already," Azula said, waving a hand in his direction as Chan glanced at Renkai in disbelief. The Imperial Guard shrugged, clasping his ally's shoulder and dragging him away.

"Yes, her bond with the Gladiator is inexplicable, don't ask me to elaborate on what I don't understand…" were the last words he said as he walked away, leaving the door ajar behind himself and Chan.

Anorak grimaced, nervous upon being alone with the Princess in her room. It certainly felt like he was invading her privacy even when she had been the one to decide on this course of action… and Renkai's efforts to ensure he couldn't look at the woman weren't all that effective. He could glance over his shoulder and see her standing by the bed…

The harshness of her glare, the energy packed with her behavior so far, was gone.

Instead of a daunting leader, Anorak found himself left behind with a surprisingly vulnerable, tired woman.

She remained still and silent for the better part of two minutes before sighing and beginning to unbuckle her armor. Anorak turned his head again, knowing better than to watch whatever she was up to… the ajar door burst fully open a moment afterwards.

"Azula…! You should've waited, I was on my way already…!"

"Sorry. It just… feels worse than I realized. Figured I'd try to get it off, but…"

"I'm here now. Sit down, take it easy…"

"Right."

Anorak raised an eyebrow as he listened to their words… as he registered the very different tone the Princess used upon speaking with the new arrival – the woman named Song, most likely. He heard the tingling sounds of the armor until they set it down on the floor with a thud. Then, they progressed into her private bathroom.

He overheard some of their words, though a lot of it came off as muffled mumbling. Nevertheless, Anorak closed his eyes and attempted to focus on their conversation, unsure of what kinds of information he might glean from it.

"… does seem a little weird to have a prisoner in here, doesn't it?"

"Don't know where else to put him for now. Guess the shed, once the three of you have proper rooms to relocate to. But I have questions for him right now."

"Questions you don't want anyone else to overhear or interfere with…?"

"It's hardly like I'll be incurring in any worse treason than I already have. The information I want should be harmless for him to give."

"Well… ask him about Rui Shi, if you get the chance."

"Provided he's willing to answer anything at all, I will."

Anorak frowned: Rui Shi… Sokka's Fire Nation ally. The former Imperial Guard… and before that, Royal Guard Captain, at the Princess's service. The woman with her knew him… Anorak, however, had no idea why. He didn't speak much with Sokka's allies, merely respecting them from a distance, understanding the Gladiator's connection with them was deeper and more complex than he instinctively could grasp…

"It looks like they treated you properly. Though you'll still need frequent check-ups…"

"Good thing you're around to make sure I get those. How are you holding up, though? You and Rei…"

"She's… probably handling things better than I am. I kind of… lost my grip on reality a bit, once the battle started. Guess I just assumed it was happening again. I… I can't even tell you how relieved I was when it was you walking through that door. If anything had happened to you…"

"Nothing too serious did, in the end. Won't get rid of me that easily, Song."

"I'm glad I won't. I… I'm glad we didn't lose you."

Anorak frowned: the Princess had behaved differently at many points in time, but right now, she was unquestionably vulnerable in ways she hadn't been so far. The woman with her, though, whoever she was… she prized the Princess's survival. She counted on it, it seemed… she had feared the Gladiator Army's arrival? Her remark that 'it was happening again' sounded like she had faced warfare before… but was that what it meant? Or was she simply a friend of the Princess's, and this wasn't the first time she had feared for her life?

He snarled, wishing he had talked more to Sokka about his past. Wishing he had known more about the people in it… but he had never truly cared to learn any of it. He hadn't thought he'd need to know: who could have anticipated he'd become the Princess's prisoner this way? How would it ever make sense for him to need information about Princess Azula's closest associates other than for military purposes?

He heard footsteps again as they returned from the bathroom, and he glanced from the corner of his eye towards the bedroom's door. The Princess's friend seemed to hesitate, and Anorak didn't turn his head fully to look at her.

"You're sure you want to be alone with him?" Song asked.

"It'll be fine," Azula said, though her voice didn't betray the confidence with which she had spoken before.

"If you're not up for questioning him now, you could always do it later…"

"I'll be okay. If I need to rest, I'll call Chan and Renkai to take him out of here," the Princess said. "Go back to the others. Stay in the shed until we sort things out with Mayor Morishita… well, if Kori didn't handle it herself already. Either way…"

"We'll stay there until we're ready to go," Song nodded. Azula sighed.

"I should've done this from the start. Should've trusted the city's defenses would hold…"

"You couldn't know they would. You couldn't easily move us anywhere without raising suspicion too. We're unharmed… we're okay. You protected us. Don't think about what could have gone wrong… find relief in all the things that didn't."

Azula sighed and nodded: Anorak noticed the other woman embraced the Princess, and he crooked an eyebrow at the gesture. He couldn't quite fathom any commoner hugging the Northern Water Tribe's Princess that way… not out of any obnoxious behavior by Princess Yue, but by the strict rules that bound his culture and the royals in it.

He caught sight of Song as she reached the door: where he expected a harsh glare, threatening him not to cause the Princess any grief, he found a remorseful, empathetic brown gaze instead. His chest tightened: even though she looked the part, something told Anorak that the woman before him might not be Fire Nation at all. Those pleading eyes suggested she felt compassion for him… but she also feared what he might be capable of, Anorak guessed. She wasn't comfortable leaving the Princess alone with him… but rather than threatening him, she wordlessly begged him to cause no more harm before stepping through the doorway. The Princess closed the door behind her.

Anorak gritted his teeth, boldly glancing at her now. If he had thought she looked tired before, it was nothing compared with her current appearance: her hair was down, if not disheveled as it had been in the bay, and her half-lidded eyes suggested she was moments away from collapsing on that bed and resting for a week.

"You don't mind staring at the wall for a while longer, do you?" she asked. Anorak scoffed.

"You think I'd rather look at you?" he asked, derisively. She let out a soft laugh.

"I hadn't thought about it that way. I just… don't know if I have the strength to turn you around."

Anorak frowned, glancing over his shoulder as the Princess, no longer wearing her armor, marched back towards the bed. It seemed terribly inappropriate to be in her private chambers this way, and an instinctive, foolish thought rushed in his mind as he wondered how jealous or angry Sokka might be if he knew about this strange, apparent interrogation he'd be subjected to…

If the Princess intended to coax valuable information out of him through pretenses of vulnerability, however, she was out of luck. He had no intentions of…

"Is he eating well?"

Anorak froze. He glanced at her again to find she had reclined on the bed's pillows, a wistful look on her face. Anorak blinked blankly.

"That's your first question? That's what you brought me here for?" he asked.

"Were you expecting anything else?" she responded. "I'm afraid I'm much more bark than bite… especially after I nearly had a rib broken. And when I'm covered in flesh wounds and ice burns. Also, when I killed someone for the first time… not that my actions had never resulted in deaths before, but I'd never done it personally. Can't really hope to process it yet, so… I'll try to focus on something that I hope won't break me."

"Sokka wouldn't break you?" Anorak asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are you that desperate for news about him?"

"I shouldn't say I am. He's… been a lot more communicative than I ever thought he would be," Azula admitted, sighing and closing her eyes. "But he's not about to report whether or not he's eating properly, so I figured I'd ask you. Sleeping properly, too, if you happen to know…"

"Why does that matter?" Anorak asked.

"Because if he's not, it means your side's chances for victory are slimmer."

Anorak frowned: the chair shifted when he did, moving it slightly with his body weight. Azula didn't react as he turned as best as he was able, staring at her in confusion.

"Whenever we had any stupid arguments, particularly the ones that felt big but were… were utterly stupid, in the end? He'd stop eating up a storm," Azula explained. "His mind would be all over the place… his performance in the Arena never failed to suffer for it. If he's taking better care of himself than that, then… I'll be relieved. You should be, too."

"I… I have no idea what his diet is," Anorak confessed. Azula scoffed.

"Tons of meat, most likely…"

"I mean, I have no idea what he's been eating. At most I must have shared five meals with him since I first met him. I wasn't paying attention to his eating habits," Anorak said. Azula sighed.

"Too bad. How about his rest?"

"I certainly didn't share any nights with him, if that's what you're asking," Anorak said, skeptically. Azula snorted and shrugged.

"That's a relief to know. Though I didn't expect otherwise anyway," she said. Anorak scowled.

"You're that sure of his faithfulness, are you?" he asked. "You truly don't think he could've moved on to someone else?"

"A man who sends letters like the one he snuck to me recently is very unlikely to be cheating on me, I expect," Azula said. Anorak frowned.

"Letters? W-what are you…?"

"He sent one. Through my so-called husband's corpse."

Anorak's eyes widened. Azula sighed, running a hand over her loose hair.

"I'll admit, I… I could barely believe he'd done that. Part of me wanted to think he had better sense than to attempt to communicate with me directly, but… sense has never been his strong suit."

"What…? What did he tell you?" Anorak asked, eyes wide.

"Nothing you're not likely to know already," Azula said. "You're aware my brother got hurt in the North Pole?"

"Yeah, we… yeah. They told us about that."

"That's probably the only noteworthy information I could share," Azula said. "Everything else was… well, his flow of thought. His frustration at our distance. His attempts to understand the terrible things I've had to do, too…"

"Did he talk to you about me?" Anorak asked. Azula raised an eyebrow.

"Why would he?" she asked.

"Beats me… but I figured that might be how you learned my name," Anorak said. Azula hummed.

"Guess that's been bugging you," Azula remarked. "Wasn't that hard. What your boss, if he was that at all, screamed at me was stuck in my head for quite a while… frankly, it still is."

"You mean… about you being Sokka's, uh…"

"Indeed. The Blue Wolf's whore," Azula repeated, with a sardonic smile. "I suppose the one thing I can commend him for is having the guts to say it to my face. I suppose, once time goes by and my rage dwindles, I'll… I'll properly regret what I did. But it might be hard to feel compassion for someone who was threatening the lives you've been hellbent on protecting, so…"

Anorak frowned: she hadn't given him an answer yet, and when her eyes met his, she realized as much, too.

"Right. Well, before he shouted that, he called a name. 'Anorak', he said. As if vying for a specific someone's attention. It made little sense since it seemed like he was the leader of your group… so why would he call on someone else, then tell them to inform Sokka that I'd been found? It didn't add up."

Anorak frowned. Azula flexed her legs, making faces of discomfort as she struggled to find the right position to lay down on.

"Then you were the most assertive person in that jailcell… I had a lot of things to say. But I partly stalled to remember what exactly was the name that guy had called. Once I remembered, I saved it for later. Figured I'd give you a fright that way. Guess it worked."

"What would you have done if I hadn't been Anorak? If Anorak had been dead already, maybe?" he asked, scowling. Azula snorted.

"Would've made a fool of myself, no doubt. But I didn't really care if you were Anorak or not. All that mattered is… that you seem to have known him better than the others. You've spent time with Sokka… you could speak for him in ways no one else in that jailcell dared. So… I figured you were the one I needed to talk to."

"To figure out if he's eating and sleeping properly?" Anorak repeated, derisively. Azula sighed.

"Can you blame me for asking? Would you rather I asked specific questions pertaining the functioning of your army and how you operate, maybe?"

"Well, no, but…"

"Indulge me and just tell me he's doing fine. That he's standing strong, that your White Lotus people respect him… have there been attempts on his life? Has anyone tried to backstab him? I wouldn't be surprised if Jeong Jeong had, but…"

"What do you want to know all this for?" Anorak scoffed. "Someone who's siding against him in the war has… has no right to act concerned for his sake. If that's what you're doing, if that's who you've decided to be, why would you have anything else to do with him anymore?"

Azula fell silent at that question. Anorak glared at her over his shoulder… unsure of what he'd find in the Princess's inscrutable face.

She lowered her head. Anorak's eyes widened.

"I guess… I guess that's true," she whispered. "If I were in your place, I doubt I'd feel any differently if my captor were concerned over my boss's health that way. It… it sounds ridiculous, even, doesn't it?"

Anorak gritted his teeth: the Princess brought a hand to her forehead… her voice was thick with tears. She was manipulating him, wasn't she? Women often did that when they wanted to have their way. That was how it worked… right?

"You don't have to…" Anorak said: she shook her head, dabbing at her eyes quickly.

"I'm sorry. It's been… it's been a fucked up day," she confessed, with a humorless laugh. "I don't even think I should explain anything. I doubt it would matter, if I did."

"I know you're not exactly questioning me the way you were in the prison cell," Anorak said, with a frown. "You obviously had to put up walls and show yourself as invulnerable and determined beyond belief. But…"

"But I'm pathetic right now, and I wasn't before?" Azula finished for him. Anorak winced. "Project the right image… and you can win battles without fighting them at all. Simple as that."

"And you intend to win this one too?" Anorak asked.

"I'm tired of fighting," Azula admitted. Anorak blinked blankly. "I've done more than enough of it today. If you won't tell me even the measliest information about his wellbeing, then I… I have nothing to gain from you. I'd just call Renkai, tell him to move you elsewhere, and then I'd… nap. I suppose. That's my great plan, Anorak. I'll reschedule scheming and plotting to destroy the lives of everyone I cared about to tomorrow, at the earliest."

"Very funny," Anorak said, eyes narrow. "Not like you need to reschedule it at all. Working for the Fire Lord, fighting for him as you are… that's the worst thing you could be doing to him. The very thing he swore and attested, for ages, that you'd never do. He told everyone that you were on our side, and now…! Now look at you. Look at what you've done. I'm not going to pretend that you had no reason to fight as fiercely as you did once Unnuaq had you, but you could have simply…! You could have surrendered by the walls. You could have let us have the city…!"

"You'd think. It's not as easy as that. Might have been easier if he had been there, but… I wouldn't have been free to do that even if Sokka had showed up personally."

"Free to…?" Anorak frowned again. "What does that mean, being 'free' to do whatever? You're not going to pretend you're not making choices of your own free will, or are you?"

"I suppose it's easier to think I'm not. As far as you're concerned," Azula whispered. "I guess you might not be that close to Sokka if you don't know just how tight the noose around my neck is. Apparently, he does."

"He knows?" Anorak blinked blankly. "You mean… are you referring to the stuff that war minister talked about?"

"Ah. Qin. The sleazy wretch who would sell a leg and an arm, preferably not his own, to secure his survival," Azula said, with a dry grin. "We figured he'd run his mouth about everything once your side caught him. It's no real surprise that he'd have given away as much as he did about me… if anything, what's surprising is that he paid enough attention to realize how tight my leash was."

"It can't be that tight if you're here now," Anorak huffed.

"You think I begged to be sent to Yu Dao?" Azula asked. "My father allowed me to refuse… though I didn't. I… I wasn't going to find a better chance to get away from him and his assassin than this one."

"Assassin?" Anorak frowned. "I… I think Sokka said something about that."

"Oh, joy. He told you about Seethus but not about my circumstances?" Azula said, rolling her eyes. "He continues to be infuriating, honestly. Good to know that side of him hasn't changed."

"Sounds like you'd rather it did," Anorak said, dubiously. Azula scoffed.

"Of course I wouldn't. I love that fool," Azula whispered. Anorak winced upon hearing her say it so boldly, a second time around. "His rebelliousness had no small part to play in the development of my affection for him. His lack of sense didn't, either. If you want embarrassing stories about him, I have plenty to offer. The first time I took him to Piandao's Mansion in Shu Jing, he clasped the door's knockers when I was distracted by Rui Shi, and he started slamming them at a ridiculous rhythm… he embarrassed me so carelessly and then just talked back to justify what he'd done while I tried to scold him. One of the next times, he dumped a water bucket over his head in the most shameless manner…"

"Why…?" Anorak grimaced, eyeing her with uncertainty. "Why would a Princess like you ever find any of that endearing, exactly?"

"I found it infuriating, I said. But it was far more alluring to me than it should have been, yes," Azula admitted, with a weak smile. "Men who are unaware of their own charms are far more powerful than they know… he certainly was unaware of them. Not to say he didn't exploit them, though, whenever he realized I was reacting like a fool to whatever he got up to…"

"That's, uh… far more human of you than I anticipated," Anorak said, blinking blankly. "Forgive me for saying so, but…"

"That's fine. The only person in the world who somehow convinced himself that I'm not a monster is him."

Anorak winced. She sounded terribly defeated upon saying those words… she glanced towards the darkened window, her heart clearly elsewhere right now.

"Though… he did admit once that it might just be that he was as bad as I was. Which could explain why we got along so well," Azula said, with a wistful smile.

"Do you think he's a monster?" Anorak asked. "Do you… do you think the things he's done to the Fire Nation army are unforgivable?"

"I know he does. I expect him to refuse any forgiveness, even," Azula said. "It's no worse than what I've done anyway. My attempts to survive and protect victims in my father's line of fire have saved a handful of people while condemning thousands more. I'm not blind to the horrors I'm responsible for. He might think he shouldn't be forgiven… I can attest that I shouldn't be, either."

"You… don't want forgiveness," Anorak frowned. "You think the mistakes you've made can't be taken back. Is that why… why you're fighting on the Fire Nation's side? Because you expect no forgiveness, and so, you're better off throwing your lot with them?"

"Not exactly," Azula said, running a hand over her hair. "If you truly must know… I'm well aware of the fact that your side is far more likely to win this war, in the end, than the Fire Nation could ever be."

"You…? Then why are you fighting alongside them?!" Anorak scoffed, looking at her in disbelief. "If Sokka knew…!"

"He'll find out soon enough. Though I'm not sure he'll be able to see through me as easily this time," Azula admitted, lowering her gaze. "But it's fine if he doesn't. If he's mad at me, if he loses whatever faith he has left in me… it's no less than I deserve. Hardly like I've been calm and collected ever since I learned he'd run off to war…"

"He's fighting for what's right," Anorak remarked.

"I'm aware of that," Azula said. "Doesn't change that he's risking his life, and the lives of countless people, to attain victory. I saved him… asked him to wait for me. He decided not to. He ran out to war and… he could've died out there. I thought he did, for one ghastly night I'd rather not think about. He knows how dangerous this journey is, he knew all along, and that never stopped him. If thoughts of how angry I'd be to learn he was risking everything for my sake didn't stop him, nothing should."

"You shouldn't have been angry about it," Anorak reasoned. Azula scoffed. "If you understand the things he believes you do, about how wrong the Fire Nation is, about your father's crimes, then you should be on his side in this. You should understand…"

"I understand why he's done it. You're the one who doesn't understand that my reaction to his choices have nothing to do with what's right or what's wrong," Azula said. Anorak grimaced. "Are you married?"

"I… no."

"Ever met anyone you'd like to marry? Ever loved someone so much that they became your purpose, your reason to fight, to live on even when the entire world seemed hellbent on convincing you that you were better off dead instead?"

The dark paths through which the conversation coursed stunned Anorak now. He stared at her in confusion, a powerful, gripping fear seizing his heart: did she want to die?

"If you've never known what it's like to feel like life is not worth living if that single person isn't going to be part of it… you can't ever hope to understand why I've been as conflicted and troubled by Sokka's choices," Azula said, closing her eyes, brow furrowed. "I love him. The man fighting this war is, without a doubt, the man I love. The one who makes the most rebellious, reckless choices, thinking very little of the consequences, or deciding to thwart said consequences, to keep them from reaching those he loves… he is unstoppable once he sets out with a goal in mind. He puts fear in the hearts of the most powerful people in this world. He is relentless, he is tenacious, he is the smartest man I've ever known… and I love him for all this, even if he winds up being my undoing because of it. Yet I… I want him safe and sound. I want him somewhere my father could never reach him. If someone else could be fighting this war rather than him, well… I'd certainly sleep better at night. But it's him… and of course it is. Who else has what it takes to defy my father? No one does. Not the Avatar… not my brother, not Jeong Jeong, none of them do. Only Sokka would."

"You have that much faith in him…" Anorak said, frowning. "And yet you're willing to fight against him. Do you… do you think it's fine if you fight back because ultimately, he'll win?"

"Do I think it's fine…? No, I wouldn't say that," Azula said. "I know it's not fine. I know he's not going to be okay with this. I'm not fighting back out of vindictiveness, Anorak, or to punish him for putting me in a complicated position… I'm not that petty. Not that foolish."

"Then why?" Anorak frowned.

"Because I've done enough harm as it is," Azula said, her voice bleak. "Because I killed your friends today. Because I'm responsible for the deaths of countless of your compatriots in the Northern Water Tribe. Because I'm responsible for the deaths and enslavement of every person my father took his rage out on when he learned the truth of my relationship with Sokka. Because my dragon is a prisoner, cut off from the skies, in a worse kind of entrapment than the one I freed him from when I first found him. Because I've betrayed vows I never should have, regardless of the reasons why I did. Because… because I want a better world for my daughters, and I can't give them one myself."

"I don't understand," Anorak frowned. "You think… you think all those things condemn you? If you regret the trouble you've caused…! Curses, most of it is because of the Fire Lord, not you, right?"

"The Fire Lord's worst was triggered because of me. He used me as an excuse, you could say… it makes no matter. If I'd never done anything, nothing would have happened. Sokka wouldn't be in danger. No one would be," Azula said, bitterly. "He asked me, once, to regret nothing. To cherish everything we had, because our love was worth everything. If only I could live up to that, I would. But I've done things no one should forgive me for, Anorak… and I know Sokka will find an excuse or twenty to pretend that none of it was as unforgivable as I know it is. You, though… you ought to know better than that. You were under Jeong Jeong's service, weren't you? He would advocate for my immediate execution if he had the chance…"

"And I would refuse to let that happen," Anorak said. Azula scoffed.

"That makes no sense," she said.

"I don't feel like I know the first thing about you. The more you talk, the more you confuse me," Anorak admitted, eyeing her skeptically. "But if Sokka believes there's worth in you… then I believe in you simply because I believe in him, first."

"Ugh," Azula groaned, hiding her face behind her hand. "And here I thought you'd be reasonable."

"The things you've done may be unforgivable, Princess. I wouldn't pretend otherwise," Anorak said, frowning. "But I won't overlook the darkness of your circumstances. Nobody should. Or are you trying to tell me that, if things had been any different, you would still stand by the Fire Lord's side rather than Sokka's? If the Fire Lord didn't hold your dragon as a prisoner, and if no one you cared for was in immediate danger because of him…! Surely you would have made a different choice. Or are you trying to tell me that wouldn't have been the case?"

Azula held her silence this time. Anorak glanced at her… and he found he couldn't read the darkness of her expression as easily as he would have liked. She looked tired… she looked irritable. The question he asked was not as easily answered as he expected it to be.

"Is the Fire Nation the only thing you'd ever go to war for?" Anorak asked, frowning. "Do you still believe in… in all the spiel the Fire Lords have been forcing into everyone's heads?"

"I can certainly answer that last question with a definitive 'no'. The others, I'm not so sure," Azula said. "My nation is nowhere near as grand or great as my forefathers have pretended it is. Our people are as distant from perfect as can be. We have spent well over a hundred years destroying this world by searching for glory that we will never find. But even when that's the case… I would never turn my back on my nation. I could never truly fathom… even after all the times I indulged Sokka, all the ideas we had about finding your lot, the White Lotus, and striking alliances with them so that we could depose my father… the truth is I can't fathom forsaking my nation. Which means… I'm condemned to go down with it."

"You're punishing yourself for your loyalty to your nation. A nation you know is flawed beyond repair, beyond belief," Anorak scowled. "You… you really don't expect to live past this, do you?"

"Why should I?" Azula asked. "I've betrayed the man I love on every possible level. Like I said before, my very existence has catalyzed so many disgraces for countless others that I can only imagine the number of people asking for my head is…"

"You talk so much about understanding Sokka and loving the way he instills fear into people… but somehow, you still think anyone would have the gall to tell him you have to die? And that he'd give into it, too?" Anorak asked. Azula scoffed.

"Just how easy do you think he'll have it to stand up for me after what I did today?" she asked. Anorak gritted his teeth. "He could have convinced himself that everything I've done, every knife I've had to stab into his back, was unintentional. That I did it unwillingly. But this? Is it possible to argue as much when it relates to the war and the liberation of the Earth Kingdom that he has spent the better part of this year fighting for?"

Anorak scowled. Azula's skeptical eyes scrutinized him, looking for doubt and disquiet, and finding plenty of both.

"What do you mean… he could have convinced himself?" Anorak asked. "Did you do any of it willingly?"

"I'm here now, aren't I?" Azula said.

"You are. But you said you didn't ask the Fire Lord to send you," Anorak stated. Azula shook her head. "He ordered you to do it. And you did it to protect people. To protect… y-you said your daughter. Daughters? Was it… twins?"

"No," Azula said. Anorak frowned. "I have two daughters. One I took in, the other I bore myself. Hotaru is… is his. Sokka's."

"Then…!" Anorak gasped: it seemed he would have jumped up from his chair if the restraints hadn't kept him in place.

"I had to do terrible things… to be able to give birth to Sokka's child," Azula said, with a dry grin. Anorak winced. "Things I certainly don't want to talk about with you. Suffice to say… I knelt before my father and told him I would marry Admiral Zhao. I wasn't dragged kicking and screaming into that ceremony. No matter if I felt I was dying on the inside while I endured it, I still went through with it. All be it to ensure that Hotaru could be born at all… that I could have a smokescreen behind which to conceal the true identity of her father.

"But once she was born, there was nothing to be done to keep her hidden," Azula said, with a humorless laugh. "Once she was out in the world, proof of my transgressions and betrayals to my father were easily evidenced in my daughter's very complexion. Even so… he hasn't demanded to see her. So… it's safe to say that my father has enough suspicions, regardless of my betrayals and deceit, about who my daughter's father truly is. Any steps out of line… and he'll kill her. I know he would. He boldly said to my face, years ago, that he would have killed my brother if it hadn't been too inconvenient to do so… would anyone expect me to trust my father to withhold his rage instead of unleashing it upon a child?"

"No, but… if you're here, if you were on your way to this city, you could have simply turned on the Fire Nation now and joined us," Anorak frowned.

"While leaving my friends behind in the Capital? My dragon in chains, in the Palace?" Azula said. "I am selfish, Anorak. I've saved people I love… at the cost of countless people who don't deserve their dark fates. I did it under the belief that… that Sokka would be able to save those I can't. But I suppose it didn't work out that way… not on the most part, at least. My father's cruelty, his resources, his possibilities, are far too great for Sokka to rack up victories on top of victories with no death toll to speak of. Therefore, everyone he has been unable to save, every life he's seen snuffed out in a battlefield, at least ever since the incident in the Northern Air Temple, can be blamed on me. And I only did it to save those I loved. Unfortunately… that doesn't make me all that good a person, or does it?"

"I… I don't know," Anorak frowned. "It's not up to me to judge you."

"Why not?" Azula said, folding her arms over her chest. "Forget about Sokka for a moment. Imagine he's incapable of hurting you, or that he defers everything to you and your judgment because you're that much wiser than him…"

"I can't fathom…"

"Humor me," Azula said, curtly. "If you had the power to determine my fate and there were no consequences for it… what would you choose, Anorak? Would you let me live… or would you have me die for my crimes? For every terrible thing I've had to do, or that I can be held responsible for?"

Anorak gritted his teeth: unfortunately for the Princess, he couldn't even hope to separate his idea of her from Sokka. The very notion of calling for her death would put fear in his heart…

But he gazed at her intently, as best he could, even shifting the chair slightly to do it more comfortably. Azula returned his stare, her face a cold mask, arms folded over her chest. There was something about her expression, about her behavior, that gave Anorak pause well beyond Sokka's involvement…

If she were a total stranger. If she were simply an enemy commanding officer whose fate he had to dictate…

"He asked you to regret nothing," Anorak said. "You said you do. Does that include everything you've chosen to do, every person you've sacrificed to save the ones you did?"

"It does… but not to the point where I'd make a different choice, should I have the chance to do so," Azula whispered. Anorak frowned. "I'm selfish that way, I said."

"You would not have chosen for their lives to be sacrificed, if you could have prevented it," Anorak asked. "You're not… thriving in destroying cultures the way the Fire Lords usually were. Or are you?"

"I… no," Azula said, lowering her gaze with undisguised guilt.

"You hate being part of that process, even if you have no choice. Or you feel you don't have a choice, for everything you treasure could be lost if you made a different decision," Anorak continued. Azula frowned.

"It's no excuse," she said.

"And that you know it's not one is enough to convince me not to condemn you," Anorak concluded. Azula scoffed. "I… I would have liked to hate you as much as I used to. It was easier before… when I could very well pretend you weren't human. When I hadn't heard any stories about you beyond what a monster you were. If you wanted me to condemn you, I'm afraid you're out of luck, Princess. I can't do that."

"Is this a Water Tribe thing?" Azula sighed, defeated.

"What? Compassion?"

"Undeserved compassion, rather," she said. "Maybe I should've picked another of your waterbenders rather than you."

"They would have been too terrified to say you should die, too," Anorak said, with a slight smirk.

"They would have wanted me dead, though. That'd be an improvement over this," Azula said, shaking her head. "I… wanted you to be impartial. To tell me the truth with no emotional attachments to speak of. And yet…"

"Don't misunderstand… I'm not emotionally attached to you" Anorak said. "But where I would likely demand for your father's head as soon as I crossed paths with him… you're to blame for my refusal to demand the same for you, honestly."

"Heh. Another thing is my fault. Your mercy is my fault," Azula said, with a skeptical laugh. "Life certainly has a way of being ironic."

"If you wanted me to be an unforgiving bastard… you'd have done a far better job of it by pretending you never cared about Sokka or about anyone else," Anorak said, with a weak smile. "But when you said in that cell that he was the man you loved… if you hadn't said that at all, I would have refused to come with you. That's what gave me pause."

"Guess he infected me with his constant honesty," Azula sighed, shaking her head. "I didn't want you to have compassion for me. I wanted you to understand I might not survive this war. Most people around me… they don't want to believe that will be my outcome. They would fight for me if I let them… sacrifice themselves, even, when I don't want them to. They would beg and plead so that I can be spared, no matter if I don't deserve it. Objectively, the things I've done are heinous enough as it is. If you were someone who truly respected Sokka? I wanted to believe you would also be distant enough from me to understand that my life is not more valuable than anyone else's. Maybe you'd be able to tell that Sokka is out of his mind for going out of his way for me as much as he has, too…"

"Maybe I would have been that, if… if Unnuaq hadn't said what he did," Anorak grimaced. "I hope you know I wasn't lying. Sokka would never stand for anyone talking about you that way. Fact is, no one would have dared. Even back when I hardly respected him, I mainly insulted him, not you…"

"Heh. Guess you must have grown on him if that's how it was," Azula said, with a skeptical smile. "Fool would have gladly let someone drag him through the mud so long as no one messed with me. He never had much sense, frankly."

"Which might be why he's been able to achieve everything he has," Anorak reasoned. Azula sighed and nodded.

"Quite right," she said.

"But then, you wanted to talk to me to gauge whether I could be the kind of person who would suit… whatever need you have of me? Whatever you wanted me to do?" Anorak said, frowning. "What was that purpose you had in mind for me, then? Why would I do it, exactly?"

"I thought you'd do it because, if you truly are loyal to Sokka, you would likely feel honor-bound to save his daughter's life," Azula said. Anorak froze. "I don't want you to join us, Anorak. I don't want you to fight alongside me and my allies. I don't want you to be executed… unfortunately, you'll have to remain a prisoner, lawfully speaking. But I want you to be the kind of person who would know to choose the right priorities when the situation requires it. If the White Lotus came for us, and they very much did today… the one thing I want, selfish as I am, is to ensure that my daughters survive it. While Sneers did his best to that end today… he's still clearly as far out of his mind as the others. He saved my life when he threw those axes and broke your leader's hold on me… but by doing so, he endangered them anyway."

"Wait," Anorak frowned, looking at Azula in confusion. "You… you're saying your daughters were…?"

"Them and Song, yes… hiding in one of the ships in the harbor, since we had no idea if the city itself would be more dangerous for them to stay in," Azula said. "I told them to leave, to sail away, if things got bad… Song agreed to it but most unwillingly, and frankly, I imagine she would have refused to leave if anyone had asked her to. Rei has very little sense too, she's carrying heavy burdens that fill her with fear for my fate and utter disregard for her own… Hotaru is a baby, she has no idea what's going on to begin with. And all of them are here, in Yu Dao, because I couldn't fathom leaving them with my father in the Fire Nation. I would have likely returned to find all three of them murdered, if I had."

"Murdered by… the assassin, you said?"

"Right," Azula frowned, staring at Anorak with a frown. "You know about Seethus. You said Sokka told you…"

"He did, once. When he was explaining his position regarding the Fire Nation," Anorak admitted, swallowing hard. "He said you stood up to the Fire Lord in defense of your people, no matter if they were members of the Order of the White Lotus. The people he was assassinating… that was why they were being killed, right? Because they were in the Order…?"

"It was," Azula sighed. "And now that assassin is lurking about, ready to pounce if I'm ever careless. If I hadn't kept them safely hidden even when we were back in the Fire Nation, he would have already gotten them, and me, killed. He's… determined to find out who Hotaru's father is, of course."

"Hell…" Anorak frowned. "By the Fire Lord's orders?"

"Apparently not," Azula said, frowning. "This seems to be the one time he made his own choices, and he's done it to inconvenience me as much as he can. Anyway… it's still kind of surprising that Sokka would keep his mouth shut about so many things, but not about Seethus. Granted, it's useful for the White Lotus to know what kind of enemy you're up against, but…"

"He didn't share this with everyone, this was… well, when we were taking Omashu," Anorak explained. "I hardly trusted him yet, but… well, I decided to join him at it anyway. I didn't know for sure that it would work, but I figured they'd have better odds if I helped with their crazy scheme."

"Crazy scheme," Azula said, blinking blankly. "I suppose it couldn't have been anything normal if my father spent such a long time fretting and panicking over whatever was happening in Omashu. A straight-forward battle wouldn't have resulted in that reaction."

"You've heard nothing about it?" Anorak asked, perplex. "Not even about… well, the moose-lions?"

Azula's expression suddenly seemed far livelier than any other so far… if just to scowl and stare at Anorak in confusion and disbelief.

"Did you just say…?" she said. Anorak offered her a tense grin. "No. No way. He… he found Foo-Foo Cuddly Poops again?"

"Guess he met that one when you were still together?" Anorak smiled awkwardly. Azula gasped, raising a hand to her brow.

"You're joking. That's not even… h-how, though? And how does that have anything to do with Omashu?" Azula said, shaking her head. "That madman will never make an ounce of sense, will he?"

"I suppose not? Does that bother you much?" Anorak asked. Azula snorted.

"Bother me? No, actually, it… it relieves me," Azula said, with a slight smile. "I did worry that he might not feel much like himself these days, but that nonsense alone is enough to… shit, he's a crazy bastard. My crazy bastard, but still…"

She laughed, covering her face in her hands – the sound of it was shocking, and Anorak suspected the Princess, too, had assumed she would have no reason to laugh over anything until she heard the least expected tale pertaining the man she loved.

"Okay… okay. How, exactly, does a moose lion serve to capture a city?" she said, with a slight smirk.

"They were confusing distractions," Anorak admitted. "We lured the whole herd to the outskirts of the city. They kept the city guard on edge, and that allowed us to infiltrate the city, break out the rebels from the prisons, and strike at the strategic locations Sokka planned for us to hit. As the city was smaller than Ba Sing Se, it was much easier to control communication there…"

"Of course. So, Foo-Foo was a flashy smokescreen for what was happening inside the city," Azula said, with a fond smile. "Bet Sokka was delighted to find him again and continue inflicting that terrible name on him. Poor creature…"

"It… it really is a bad name."

Azula laughed honestly again, and Anorak smiled slightly: seeing her like this certainly felt like she was a wholly different person from the one who spoke with him in prison, or the one who fought him in the city's bay. She was certainly a woman of many talents, of many faces, too… as hard as it had been to understand it before, he couldn't be too confused anymore as to why Sokka had grown to love her as much as he did after this conversation.

"But I'd guess you'd rather hear these stories from him, huh?" Anorak said. Azula's smile grew more mellow, perhaps even melancholic as she sighed, shaking her head.

"I have no idea if I will. It's fine to hear them from you, if just a bit, for now," Azula said, biting her lip. "About Rui Shi…"

"The firebender? Your guard?" Anorak asked. Azula nodded. "They arrived after we took Ba Sing Se. Rui Shi… he had a lot of people with him. I think they were… ten firebenders, total? The White Lotus wasn't too keen on them, but nobody would have refused anything Sokka wanted at that point. As soon as I told Sokka they had asked to see him, in the ferry station, he lost his mind and demanded to be taken to them."

"Of course he did," Azula said, her smile warming. "I'm glad they reunited, despite everything. I'd rather all of them stayed safe, but… it feels like Sokka will be safer if Rui Shi's with him. Did… did he get to talk to Myeung? A cook, in Ba Sing Se?"

"The woman who lashed out at Sokka?" Anorak asked. Azula's humor fled her face at once. "Once we took the Palace… well, we were very triumphant, but Sokka wasn't alright. The governor's wife slapped him…"

"Jin?" Azula grimaced. "Is Tiang alright? Or did Sokka…?"

"He defeated Tiang in single combat," Anorak explained. Azula scoffed.

"Well, that's not fair. Tiang probably needed three more allies to make it a fair fight. Sneaky Sokka…" Azula huffed. Anorak smirked.

"You really don't underestimate his martial prowess, huh?"

"I believed in his potential as a warrior to the point of putting my life in his hands from the moment our partnership began. So indeed, I don't underestimate him in the least," Azula said, firmly. "If we ever sparred again and I won, I'd never fail to call him out for going easy on me."

"That's a lot of confidence you put in him… can't say it's not deserved, of course," Anorak remarked. "Either way, the cook lady cried and scolded him, somewhat, for what he'd done. He seemed to be really shaken up by her reaction, but she eased up after his firebending friends showed up. I believe all of them were your guards in the past, but… they had to leave when you two got caught, I suppose?"

"They helped us escape, rather. I wasn't about to drag them into hell with me… I forced them to leave," Azula explained. "You saw no injuries in them? No sign of sickness, not even Taro and his breathing ailment…?"

"Huh. I think I overheard some comments about someone needing medicine for a breathing condition. Must have been him," Anorak said. "I'm sorry, but I didn't really get to know them very well. There was too much going on, so…"

"How about Toph?" Azula asked. "Did you get to know her any better?"

"Well, not a lot, but… she arrived first, well before Sokka did," Anorak said. "With, uh… General Iroh. Whom, I assume, you despise just as much as Sokka does."

Azula let out a bark of skeptical laughter, rolling her eyes at the thought of her uncle. Her expression darkened, but she breathed to calm herself regardless.

"Then he dragged her to the White Lotus. Just as I figured he might have, when the two of them were nowhere to be found," Azula said. "Did she hold herself well, or…?"

"She kept breaking into the cellar and drinking all our liquor," Anorak admitted. Azula snorted.

"Shithead. No real surprise, of course…" she said, with a fond smirk.

"It truly mustn't be one," Anorak said, raising an eyebrow. "Sokka's arrival changed her. It's not that she was alone all the time, that other guy was with her constantly, but…"

"Other guy?"

"Uh… Jet. Captain Jet, once we moved out, but…"

"Oh. Huh. She was…?" Azula said, a slow smirk spreading over her face. "Well, well. I'll hope that went well for her, then."

"It did seem they had some manner of relationship… but I didn't really look into it. Didn't think it was my business," Anorak said. Azula nodded.

"Sounds like you're a decent man. Didn't know much about my relationship with Sokka, or Toph's with Jet… you know better than to snoop about. Good on you."

"Thanks, I think. I suppose it's something you'd appreciate about me, considering, well… General Iroh," Anorak said, eyeing Azula remorsefully. She sighed, shaking her head.

"If you'd be so kind… the only news I'd welcome to hear about that accursed, spineless, treacherous hypocrite is that he fell into a pit full of poison-laden spears and impaled himself to death in them. Or something comparable," Azula said. "If you don't have anything of the sort to share, then… I'd much rather not talk about him at all, mind you."

"You don't even want to know… about any of the threats your side might face in the coming battles?" Anorak asked. Azula shrugged. "The way you predicted what Sokka would choose to do was… well, scary. But I figured you'd want more information anyway."

"I could ask for more. I wouldn't expect you to yield," Azula said. "Besides… I'd much rather talk about the people I care about and make certain that they're holding their own in this madness. If… if there's anything else worth sharing about Sokka, please do. Any information I receive about him… well, it can't seem to suffice, frankly. Nothing would until he stood before me again, and… I have no idea if he will."

"He'll certainly want to," Anorak said, glancing at her with uncertainty. Azula sighed, shrinking in place.

"As much as I would welcome stories about his achievements… I hope you know, Anorak, that I'm feeling utterly and entirely unworthy of even looking him in the eye as of late. I'm not sure whether I should hope or dread seeing him again. If he welcomed me as I am… I would not feel I deserve it. If he rebuked me for all the reasons he should, why, I guess I'd feel I'd be better off dead if even Sokka can't want me anymore. There's no positive outcome. Your information about him is all I'd have to go on… even if it's about something as simple as his diet or sleeping patterns."

"Are you mad at him?" Anorak asked, with a frown. Azula sighed.

"When am I not?" she said, simply.

"You have reason to be, too. He dreaded that you would be, just as much as you dread being unworthy of him, I guess," Anorak said. Azula scoffed.

"Dreaded…? The fool… if I ever was enough of a hypocrite to tell him off for what he's done, you can be dead certain that he'd fight back every step of the way and argue with me until either one was too tired to keep going. Or, uh, he'd shut me up in a rather effective way. I'd choose that over a shouting match any day, of course, but…"

"But that's none of my business," Anorak smiled awkwardly. Azula laughed and nodded.

"It truly isn't. But… maybe he's just been away for far too long to remember that I don't scare him all that much," Azula concluded, with a sigh.

"He might say the same thing if he knew you don't even know how to look him in the eye," Anorak said.

"The difference lies in the gravity of my actual actions compared to his… as well as his likely strategic ways to force me to do just that," Azula said, raising an eyebrow. "The bastard would definitely say something stupid to rile me up and I'd forget about my shame for just long enough to give him room to worm his way into my weak heart again. And then I'd just… lose all my resolve to see this end with me."

"To see what end with you?" Anorak asked.

"The war. This world, so that he might build the one he dreams of," Azula said. Anorak scowled. "I know, I know, he'd say it's not worth it without me… but maybe he was Oma all along, and maybe I was Shu."

"You… what?" Anorak blinked blankly. Azula smiled weakly.

"He has the power to shape this world. He didn't always, but he found it, nonetheless. I don't think it'd be an exaggeration to say that he's the most powerful man alive right now," Azula said, closing her eyes and sighing. "Whatever he chooses to do with that power will be up to him… all I can ask from you, all I wanted to ask from you, was that you would promise to protect our daughter."

Anorak blinked blankly. Azula sighed again, sitting upright properly: her golden eyes glowed with an intense determination, far purer than Anorak would have expected from a woman whose hands had committed the murder of several men on that bay, just that day…

"What I've done to protect those I love is unforgivable… this I knew from the start. It doesn't matter if I can't be forgiven, provided they live on, provided they survive, provided the world he wants to build exists for them. I want Rei to have a free life, too… but Hotaru is a baby still. Her life so far has been chaotic, complicated, I… I've made choices that have endangered her, I'd dare say, more times than I ever should have. The world Sokka wants to build is a world where our daughter would grow up safe and free. But that won't happen if… if anything bad happened to Hotaru once I'm gone."

"'Once'? Why are you so sure that…?"

"I have my reasons to be," Azula said, firmly. Anorak scowled. "And if I'm wrong? You can ridicule me for it for as long as I have left to live. I don't mind. But if I'm not… I will need your help, Anorak. I need to trust that… that your loyalty to Jeong Jeong or the White Lotus is not any greater than the one you appear to feel towards Sokka. I don't know how close the two of you were… maybe you weren't all that close at all, and I'm making up something nonexistent in my head, but…"

"We were friends. At least, I thought so," Anorak said, earnestly. Azula breathed out slowly.

"Then… please. This is… this is his child. She matters more than anything," Azula said. "I understand how devastated Sokka will be if my choices really do become so egregious that even his faith in me crumbles… just as I know that, if I'm killed in battle, executed, any such thing, he will lose himself to grief just as badly as I nearly did when I thought he was dead. But… but he will have Hotaru. She will need him. She deserves to grow up with her father. He will do right by her, I know he will. I just… need you to promise me that you'll watch over her until you can deliver her safely to Sokka. I ask for nothing more."

"You brought me here to make that kind of request?" Anorak frowned.

"More like… to gauge whether or not it was safe to make that request from you," Azula admitted. Anorak sighed. "I know it's a lot to ask, Anorak… but I'm desperate. I have asked this of Rei and Song, of Sneers and Renkai… I wouldn't dare ask it of Chan or Aonu, they're bound to react even worse than the others did. Ultimately, though… all of them want me safe and sound far too much to privilege Hotaru's needs over me. No matter how much I beg of them to do so."

"What, exactly, do you expect the future will hold?" Anorak asked, scowling. Azula gritted her teeth. "What, a huge new battle? Another conflict like…?"

"There will be a final battle. One that will determine the fate of this world. I don't know when it will happen… but if my father decides I must face it by his side, I will do so," Azula said, earnestly. Anorak frowned.

"You… you shouldn't. You know what kind of risk that would represent, if you truly believe Sokka is as powerful as you thought he was…!"

"It's not about that. That… that's not the reason why I'd fight, Anorak," Azula said, earnestly. Anorak scowled.

"The prisoners he holds? His hostages? Well, maybe ask me to free them…"

"You can't break the entire Fire Nation free from his grip," Azula said, closing her eyes. "Not unless you kill him, I suppose. And so far, no one has even come close to doing that. I can't turn against him without risking everything I've fought to protect. Sokka is… is their only hope. I can't falter. I can't hesitate. Any sign of treachery and my father will kill me, or my dragon, or anyone else I care for. He's been waiting for me to slip up again for a year now… I can't give him any excuses to do exactly what he's looked forward to doing for that long. So…"

"So… that's it? Your final stand is… waiting in a battlefield to see whether the Gladiator Army lets you live or die?" Anorak asked. Azula gritted her teeth. "That… that's not nearly as final as you'd like to convince yourself it is. If you wanted to die, you should've kept Unnuaq alive. He would have done it gladly."

"I wasn't about to let him live when he was a threat to Hotaru, Rei and Song's safety," Azula said, gritting her teeth. "As were you, evidently. But if you won't be one anymore… if you'll respect and understand how much this matters, Anorak, please promise me you'll watch over her. I don't need you to join my side, curses, I'd never ask that of you. Just… if things get complicated, if I have to separate from them again like I did today… I need you to be there for Hotaru. I need you to… to keep her safe until she can finally reach her father, so he can protect her himself. That's all. That's it. I don't want anything else from you."

Her request sat ill with him, more so after today: she had been shockingly charming, far better at steering him into enjoying their conversation than he ever imagined she could be. It truly was no surprise that a woman like this one would have swept Sokka off his feet anymore, to the point of going to war to return to her side at all costs… but she hardly wanted him to. Her guilt, her shame, were so great that she craved Sokka and yet dreaded his arrival.

It seemed so obvious that she could make another choice and change her fate… and yet Anorak didn't know for sure that she could do so without sacrificing so much more than the world was ready to lose. She was still alive right now… enough to plan for her own death and whatever might happen after she was gone. It was tragic, distressing… but Anorak couldn't find it in him to dismiss her words and stubbornly dig his heels into the ground anymore.

He lowered his gaze, and he sighed.

"May Sokka forgive me one day for agreeing to your terms…" he said. Azula gasped. "You'd better not jump out there to get yourself killed without fighting back. If he ever finds out that I knew you wanted to die, or intended to, and that I didn't stop you, well… you'll probably end up having company in the afterlife before you know it."

"Huh… guess that's true," Azula smiled a little. Anorak glared at her.

"So, if I'm promising that I'll watch over your daughter, you're promising that you won't give up just like that," he said. "No one who knows you would stand for letting you go down… not without the most unthinkably epic battle of all time."

"I suppose not, but… it might not be like that in the end," Azula said. "I don't know what will happen, frankly."

"Neither do I… but I'm agreeing to watching over Hotaru for you. Just… accept that he will want to raise that baby with you, not by himself," Anorak said. "You may be ready to sacrifice your life at the drop of a hat, I don't know… but if the people who need you have kept you going so far, then maybe remember he needs you, too. You're the main motivation that keeps him going. The source of his strength, stubbornness and inspiration… so, please, think of what you'd do to him if you're gone. He's one of the people you need to protect too, isn't he?"

Azula gritted her teeth, lowering her gaze. Anorak watched her with uncertainty… knowing, with some relief, that his words were hitting her deeply. Azula sighed, shrugging slightly.

"You might be right, but… he might feel a little differently once he hears of what I've done here," she whispered. Anorak frowned. "If he knows I've become an actual commanding officer on the other side of the war… well, he'll be cross, for sure. I don't know how much patience he'd have left to bear with the fact that the person who was his inspiration would have… done the things I have. So…"

"I'll have to hope he loves you too much to decide you're worthless, then," Anorak said. Azula hummed.

"He's never had enough sense to love me any less… but who knows if that's changed nowadays," she whispered. "All this, however, is something to worry about in the future. For now… thank you, Anorak. I have no certainties regarding what the future will bring… you'll still be a prisoner, but my prisoner. And unlike how it was when I captured Sokka forever ago, I intend to do better by you. Just… don't take advantage of your waterbending to do anything out of bounds. It'll cause us all more trouble than necessary…"

"Including my allies in prison?" Anorak asked, unable to mask his bitterness.

"They'll have to be careful too. I hope they won't be reckless," Azula sighed. "I've given orders for them to be treated with dignity, but security measures will be necessary regardless."

"As long as that security doesn't mean they'll be tortured whenever they brandish water through their bending…" Anorak asked.

"It won't be. I'll see to that," Azula said. "Frankly… all any of you need to do is survive long enough for the war to end. By then, provided everything's handled properly, you and your allies will be free once more and no worse for wear than you've been so far, I hope."

"You really have no faith in the Fire Nation's victory, do you?" Anorak asked, amused. "You ought to sabotage them if that's how it is…"

"I can't do it. Getting caught sabotaging anything would be just as dangerous as rebelling openly," Azula said. Anorak sighed.

"You're not making this any easier. It's fucked up how easy you've had it to convince me that Sokka isn't all that crazy after all…"

"Oh, no. Don't you dare pretend I've given any credence to his soundness of mind, because he truly is crazy…"

"You are worth saving," Anorak cut her off, startling Azula. "And I truly would be better off if you weren't. Everything would be easier. But it's not. So… I'll just hope that all your other allies will fight tooth and nail to keep you alive while I protect your child. That makes sense to you?"

"I… guess so," Azula said, eyeing him apprehensively. "You have a much bigger heart than you should, Anorak. Might really be a Water Tribe thing."

"Might be. We don't like seeing good people paying for mistakes they shouldn't be suffering for," Anorak said. Azula scoffed.

"Well… I don't count in that particular category, I'm sure. More so after what I did today," Azula said, breathing deeply. "I'm sorry for your friends. And for whoever died in the forest, too. I know nothing will make up for their losses… but may your side reach for victory in their honor regardless."

"May it be so," Anorak sighed: the waterbenders lost that day certainly stung him deeply, even if it was a risk he had warned Jeong Jeong and Unnuaq of all along. They shouldn't have done any of what they did… much less should they have done it under Unnuaq's chaotic leadership. He wouldn't say his lost ally had asked for his fate… but he had received as good as he gave, and he had failed to measure how threatening his enemy truly was. The man would not have offered anyone any apologies, remorseful about the kills to his name, if the outcome of the battle in the bay had been the opposite of what it was…

War was messy. War was unpleasant, chaotic, confusing and disturbing. War was waged by people with convictions they were ready to stake thousands of lives on… and those lives could be destroyed or altered forever in the process. Over a hundred years of war had changed and destroyed their world… but Anorak could only hope that the Princess's expectations for the future would be proven wrong. That Sokka would find a path she hadn't anticipated… that she would survive the dark horizons that spread before her, despite her expectations of paying a dark price for all the sins she had racked up to her name. He didn't know what would happen then, should Sokka succeed at saving the world, as well as the woman he loved… but Anorak expected the future to become far more promising once the two of them found their way back to each other once more.

They lingered in silence for a short while, in which Anorak wondered if the Princess would fall asleep, when footsteps approached the room: the army captain, Chan, knocked on the door and pushed it open without being told whether he could do it or not, poking his head through the threshold and shooting wary glares at the two of them.

"Everyone still in one piece? You still tied up to your chair?" he said. Azula grunted in an unfriendly manner, and the captain smiled a little at her.

"I didn't say you could come in," she hissed.

"And I did it anyway!" Chan declared, proudly. Azula rolled her eyes.

"What is it? Food's ready?" she asked.

"Almost, and the Mayor's back. Kori's explained the situation. Your girls have been brought to the main house officially now," Chan said. Azula perked up once she heard those words. "Also? Looks like this guy's going to end up in the shed, after all. Just so he knows."

"The shed…" Anorak repeated, before sighing. It wasn't bound to be a good place to sleep at, but it was summer now. He wouldn't go cold at night, even if it wasn't a proper location for people to reside in…

"Find him a futon, then," Azula said. Chan snorted.

"A futon? Want me to help him bathe too, while I'm at it?"

"Well, he is a waterbender, I can't imagine he would need help, but if you're offering, you'll have to ask him if he needs…"

"I was being… sarcastic!" Chan squeaked. Azula smirked.

"You can't even recognize sarcasm and you expect to wield it? Against me? You're too green for that, Chan. Wait about a thousand years and you might just be ready to do it."

"You're just… ugh! Whatever! I'll pick him up in his chair and…!"

"Untie him, put on regular shackles. It'll be fine," Azula said. Chan winced.

"You… you're serious? You're sure?" Chan asked, eyeing Anorak awkwardly. The waterbender smirked at him.

"Got a problem with that? You're defying your Princess's decision?" he teased. Chan snarled.

"I just don't know why she would trust you that much when… when she took like ten weeks to trust me or however long it was," Chan pouted. "Just one conversation and you're best friends with him?"

"I'd have started braiding his hair if you hadn't stormed in when you did," Azula said, closing her eyes. Chan yelped, and Anorak stifled a laugh as the Princess sighed and crawled over the bed. "You get the respect you offer me, Chan. It's how I put it when we crossed paths anew, and it's true for Anorak too. Behave yourself, take him to the shed… I'll go speak with the Mayor and check on Hotaru now. They didn't… see her yet, or did they?"

"Uuuuh…" Chan smiled awkwardly. Azula sighed, shaking her head as she leaned over the bedside, buckling her boots all over again. "They're okay, though, aren't they? Trustworthy?"

"I believe so, but I would have rather been there for it," Azula said, pushing herself up to her feet. "Be decent to Anorak or I'll demote you."

"Hey!"

Chan pouted as the Princess took off: voices drifted from the lower floor, particularly female ones. Anorak watched her go, noticing the change in her demeanor once she left the room and headed downstairs: the exhausted woman who had spoken with him had become a sharp, harsh leader and Princess all over again.

"What happened here, huh?" Chan asked, approaching Anorak and folding his arms over his chest. "What did you tell her? Are you going to work with her?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business. If she decides to share what we discussed with you, then that's up to her. I have no obligation to do it," Anorak declared. Chan's eyebrow twitched. "What? Bothered that she treats Water Tribe people with more respect than she offers you?"

"I… am not. Not even a little bit," Chan lied, eyebrow twitching. Anorak smirked.

"Your confidence should not be so easily shaken, soldier," he said. Chan scoffed.

"And yours shouldn't be bolstered just because you talked with her one time! I did too, you know? And she respected me a little more afterwards!"

"A little? Well, if that's the best you can shoot for…"

"Ugh! You're just… a smug bastard," Chan grumbled, marching out of the room again. "Bad enough that Renkai's a cranky bastard, now this one too…"

Anorak smirked as the man walked away: he wasn't surprised that he'd return with the Imperial Firebender, and that they'd shackle him as the Princess commanded, right after untying him. His compliance seemed to confuse the firebender, but Anorak abided by whatever was expected of him quietly so far, regardless of Chan's constant grumbling.

They returned downstairs, where it seemed the Morishita family was quite busy setting up for dinner: they walked past the living room, and the archway that led into it allowed Anorak to glimpse, if just for a moment, a most heartrending sight: the very Princess he had spent the past hours with was holding a small baby in her arms, hugging her tightly. Two women stood with her, both with kind smiles on their faces.

The baby turned her head towards him, and Anorak's heart jolted.

He couldn't quite see her in detail… but the resemblance with Sokka could not be denied. That was his leader's child…

He smiled a little: as complicated and messed up as the situation might be, that small baby's innocence seemed to cleanse away all corruption in the world. She didn't know he was supposed to protect her… he didn't know how he'd go about doing that if he was kept chained, too. But that child was a unifying factor… a symbol of so much more than she knew she was, just yet. So small, and yet so significant…

Unbeknownst to her, Hotaru might just embody the greatest potential of change this world had ever known. An heir to the Fire Nation throne who carried Water Tribe blood in her veins, too… a child who deserved the new world her father was keen on building for her. It was no wonder Azula would be so ready to kill and die for her daughter… Anorak suspected he would feel as strongly as that, too, if the ultimate proof of how balance and peace could be achieved were his own child.

He smiled and tore his eyes off her, marching onwards, following Chan out of the house. He heard the child's voice and his resolve strengthened: he would bring that baby to her father… and he firmly believed that Hotaru's mother would survive long enough to stand beside them, too, when the time came.

"Shh… what's wrong?" Azula whispered, rubbing her daughter's back gently as she made soft sounds, stretching an arm out towards the door.

She glanced that way, finding Renkai nodding respectfully in her direction. Azula offered him a weak smile and a nod of her own: one of their most complicated, chaotic days in recent times would finally end… and for once, she wouldn't need to run across the city to find her daughter, nor would her baby need to be brought to her after a long trek underground. The tunnel, Song had explained, had suffered some damage but remained structurally sound enough for them to cross it at haste. Sneers rushed them to the shed just in case any bombs set off accidentally nearby, and they had waited until Kori straightened out everything with her family before entering the house proper.

"They said we can have Kori's room, so you can stay with Hotaru in yours, but…" Song whispered. "I'm not sure we want to do that, heh."

"If it's okay… can we stay with you?" Rei asked. Azula snorted.

"What kind of question is that? You've been sharing rooms with me for months now. There's no need to ask," Azula said, smiling at her older daughter. Rei grinned gladly, and Song sighed.

"Then we'll go move the futons and… all that," she said, stepping towards a nearby couch and sinking in it. "But maybe we'll do it next week. I think that's when I'll wake up again."

"It's been a long day. Long month, rather," Azula whispered, rocking Hotaru carefully. "I could go for a month-long nap to make up for it, myself."

"So… I'd be the only one left to watch over Hotaru?" Rei asked, with a weak smile. Azula laughed.

"Right. That's the problem with being the only youthful one among us, Rei. Song and I are as good as crones compared to you at this point…"

"Of course not!" Rei scoffed: exhausted as she was, Song couldn't hold back some laughter as she rested with eyes closed on the couch. "You're only about… w-well, eight years older than me, is it? If you're a crone, then I'll be a crone when I'm your age? Is that what you mean?"

"Hopefully not, but fate can be unkind…" Azula smiled, stepping over to the couch and sitting by Song's side. "By then… Hotaru will have to watch over the three of us, helpless crones that we will be."

"Poor thing," Song smiled sadly, opening her eyes to glance at the baby. Azula chuckled, stroking her hair gently.

As tense and stressful as everything had been, Hotaru miraculously had calmed down. The others had fed her some of their food reserves while in the shed, but Azula would take care to nurse her again too shortly. The mood between them was starkly different from what it had been over the last weeks… though the tension and anguish appeared to have been replaced by exhaustion.

"Shouldn't be long before the food's ready," Azula reasoned, hugging Hotaru to her chest. "But until it is…"

"Everything was fine with the waterbender?" Song asked. Azula nodded as Rei sat at her other side.

"He's… shared some useful information," she said. Song raised an eyebrow.

"About Sokka's next moves?"

"Nah… about the past ones. Including that he found Foo-Foo Cuddly Poops all over again," Azula smiled. Song balked, and Rei blinked blankly.

"Foo… who?" she smiled awkwardly. Azula laughed, shaking her head and hugging Hotaru tighter still.

"It's a long story. I'll probably explain later. But that fool… he's going to win this war eventually," she said, with an earnest faith that seemed utterly incompatible with the reality of what her words entailed. "He'll do it… and he'll meet Hotaru. It won't be long before he does… I know it won't be."

Her companions could tell her words were more ominous than what Azula seemed to register them as just yet, but they said nothing. Instead, they offered Azula weak smiles before leaning closer to her, resting with their heads on each of the Princess's shoulders. Their moment of rest and relaxation would end quickly, once dinner was ready… but for now, an instant of peace would suffice to ease their hearts. The war would not end solely over the result of the battle in Yu Dao… violence, chaos and strife would knock on their door once again, bringing unwanted tidings pertaining the next heights the conflict would reach in the coming days.

But Azula would determine what their next move would be starting tomorrow. For now, she hugged Hotaru affectionately, pressing soft kisses upon her daughter's head, making the most of one more chance, one more night, spent with the child that would find her way to Sokka's arms sooner than she knew…