Wandering Firebender
Eighty One: The Cave Of Two Flames
It was hard to tell how much time had passed until Elio finally caught up with Azula. It had to have been at least 10 minutes. Unfortunately for him, she was very fast, and even though she'd only gotten a small head start, it was enough for him to never close the distance.
But he hadn't lost track of her completely. Not yet.
"It's gonna take forever for the others to figure out where we are," Elio thought to himself. "I might be on my own here after all."
Now back on the ground, Elio slowed to a walking pace. His chest was getting tight from how much he was overexerting himself. He needed to breathe. And as athletic as Azula was, she likely couldn't keep up the pace either, he figured.
As long as he didn't lose her.
A piece of black fabric caught his eye, causing him to stop. Elio crouched down lower, carefully moving to his left and circling around while using the trees as his cover. He leaned over to look and saw that Azula had left her cloak on the ground. She had also set down a small sack on top of it.
Then he heard some movement in the trees above him. He looked up just in time to see Azula shooting a fireball directly at him. He quickly moved out of the way, hiding behind the tree closest to him.
"Can't I even eat in peace without you trolling behind me like livestock?" She said, jumping down and landing on the ground. She raised her hands up and started to advance, ready to attack again.
"You're the one running away and attacking me, Azula. If you stop this right now and come back with me willingly, we can end this whole thing right now." Elio said.
"So you can put me in a cage and take me back to my padded cell? I don't think so! I'm not a fool, Elio." Azula said, shooting a fireball at the tree he was hiding behind. Elio moved away from it and shot a fireball back.
"No, just lost." Elio retorted.
Azula attacked again, growling aggressively as she sent an arcing fire shot his way. He ducked under it. It struck a tree, sending splinters flying. The splinters smacked against the side of his face. He stepped forward and jumped into the air, twisting and sending a downwards fire kick her way.
Azula dodged the kick, moving behind Elio and blasting him in the back with fire. He yelled out as he was thrown forward. He fell and immediately pushed himself into a forward roll. He ripped off the outer garment of his uniform after it caught fire. He took two steps back from her.
"You know you can't beat me on your own. Why drag this out anymore? You don't wanna fight, right? Just let me go." Azula said again, speaking in her normal smooth tone this time.
"You expect me to just leave you? Let you hide away like a fugitive while you set the whole Earth Kingdom on fire?" Elio asked sarcastically.
"I hate that compassion of yours. It gets annoying fast." She said before attacking again.
She only got off one fireball before the two of them were suddenly surrounded by earthbenders, bringing the fight to an abrupt halt. "They must have seen the trees on fire." Elio realized.
"You two must be the reason for the distress message we received." One of them said.
"What a surprisingly fast response time. Tell me, did you ride here on animals, did we already burn those?" Azula taunted them.
"Don't listen to her, please," Elio spoke up. "My name is Captain Elio, and I'm here to-"
Elio was interrupted by the earthbenders suddenly bending all at once. Elio's eyes widened. He grabbed onto Azula right as she was about to attack. They created an enclosure around Elio and Azula; one made of solid rock without any light inside.
"When our general gets here, he'll speak with you. But for now, you'll wait here. We don't need anymore damage being done." One of them decided.
"Hey!" Elio shouted, hitting his fist against the rock wall, "Let us out! I'm on an approved mission from Fire Lord Zuko!" He yelled. Azula rolled her eyes and sprouted a blue flame from her left hand so that they could see.
"Save it. These earthbender simpletons don't care about your authority or Zuzu's. We're stuck here now thanks to you." She said to Elio.
"My friends were following behind us. They'll get this sorted out when they get here."
"Well until then, we're trapped in this...box." Azula grumbled, throwing her hand up and shaking her head. Elio sighed and shook his head too.
"This is ridiculous." He muttered aloud.
"For once, we agree on something." She said...
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" One of the earthbenders asked. They all had gathered in a circle to discuss the situation. They were standing just outside of the rock enclosure.
"You saw them fighting. They would've set the whole forest on fire!" One of them pointed out.
"But you heard what the guy said. He works for the new Fire Lord."
"They abide by our rules here, not the other way around. They can take it up with the general when he gets here." Another decided.
"You think they're still fighting in there?" One of them asked curiously.
"Doesn't make a difference to me. I think things will be just fine with two less firebenders in the world." One commented. So they were all in agreement that they would stay and wait for the general to arrive so he could properly address what had happened both in the forest and at the coastal village...
Meanwhile, inside the enclosed cave, Elio took a seat on the floor and let out an impatient sigh. Azula did the same on the other side. She rolled her eyes and shook her head again.
"This is embarrassing. If we still had half our glory, they wouldn't dare treat us this way." She pointed out.
"We'll get out of this. It's just gonna take time."
"Wasted time," Azula commented. "Had you not stopped me from getting away, we wouldn't be in this mess."
"Oh, don't act like I'm the reason we're here. You're the one who started blasting away as soon as you hit the shore." Elio argued.
"I don't have to explain myself or beg for anything, Elio. Not here, not anywhere. They should well know by now what the consequences would be when I said who I was." Azula pointed out pridefully.
"Real smart thinking there, princess." Elio responded sarcastically, rolling his eyes at her. Azula growled and shot a quick fire blast at him through her foot. Elio was forced to move to the side to avoid it.
"Don't forget who you're stuck in here with." Azula warned him, holding a finger up.
"Don't forget that we're stuck in here. Anything more than a small flame will just bounce around and make it hotter." Elio said in response, still speaking with an attitude.
"Tch, fine. But I'll get you back for this when we get free."
"Whatever," Elio sighed, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. "Shoot flames at the one guy trying to help you here." He commented under his breath, loud enough for her to hear.
"How exactly do you consider this helpful?" Azula asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"At least back in the Fire Nation you have a chance to recover from whatever's going on with you." Elio pointed out.
"A chance to recover," Azula repeated and scoffed. "Zuzu wants to lock me away just like he did our father. He'll force me to spend the rest of my life under guard like a prisoner under the ruse that I'm insane." She said, waving her hand around as she spoke.
"Once you get yourself right, Zuko will welcome you back and let you be a princess again." Elio countered.
"Ah yes, I'm sure that's what he told you to make you feel better. How gullible are you?" Azula shook her head at him.
"Come on, Azula. I really am trying to help you here. Even I can see that you're not well." He pointed out.
"Oh really? Because you know so much about me," She said sarcastically. "What exactly is it that you think you see?" She asked, rolling her eyes at him.
"You're not this impulsive. I may not know a lot according to you, but I know enough. Home is where you want to be, isn't it?" Elio asked. Azula folded her arms and looked away. Her flame disappeared when she folded her arms, so Elio had to create his own flame to see her.
"I lost everything, Elio," Azula said, glancing sideways at him and keeping her arms folded. "My title, my status, my pride...my friends. There's hardly any 'home' left for me now." She said bitterly.
"I'm sure it feels that way now, but that doesn't mean you can't rebuild. You don't have to be alone here." Elio said earnestly.
"And if I go along with the soft, weak-minded platitudes that my brother is promoting then I'll be accepted back? So I'm the one who needs to change. I don't need that kind of insincere acceptance that badly." She said, closing her eyes and turning her face up and away.
"I'm sorry that's how you see it." Elio sighed and sat back against the wall.
"I'm sorry you're so blind to it." Azula retorted.
"Maybe. But it's not insincere. At least, not from me." Elio brought up.
"Which I don't understand," Azula said, unfolding her arms and looking at him once more. "Why do you want to help me so badly? What sort of favor are you hoping to gain?"
"Yours, I guess," Elio quickly gave his answer. "If it'll help convince you that not everyone is against you." He added.
"We've only ever been against each other." She pointed out.
"Well, technically not. There was that one time," He brought up. "That wasn't so bad." He said with a little shrug.
"Are you talking about Su again?" She asked, looking at him sideways.
"I was actually referring to when we fought those earthbenders at Foundation City. Remember? You gave me your headpiece?" He asked.
"I do. And you still have it, I'm assuming?"
"I do, yeah. I was planning to give it back to you when you boarded my ship." He revealed.
"I have no use for it now." Azula dismissed the thought.
"You're still the princess of the Fire Nation. You should have it." He insisted.
"I am what I am all the same. I do appreciate the sentiment but that is yours now, Elio. Besides, it's rude to return a gift." She said, cracking a sideways smile at him. Elio scoffed and shook his head.
"You're so stubborn," He said, looking away with a smile. "But you sound more like yourself now." He noticed.
"You say that like it's a good thing." Azula said ironically.
"Well it's a start," Elio said in a more playful way before speaking seriously again. "It's better than what I've heard."
"And what exactly have you heard about me?" She asked again.
"Why don't you just tell me what's going on with you?" He suggested instead.
"Hm...I was betrayed by Mai and Ty Lee – those traitors," She said that last part under her breath. "I couldn't reconcile after that. Dealing with that while becoming Fire Lord...well it didn't really matter, because father was going to undermine me by creating a new, higher position for himself.
"So I was being disregarded again." She admitted honestly, keeping her eyes off of him as she spoke.
"I see...so you were angry and cracked under the pressure." Elio summarized.
"Of course I was angry! They had no right to treat me that way! I was foolish to trust those two. And father? After everything I did for him? I was the perfect daughter and the perfect heir!" She pointed out, placing the tips of her fingers on her chest.
She was speaking at that rapid pace again.
"Hey, slow down now," Elio said, holding his hands up. His flame disappeared when he did so. He took a deep breath, prompting Azula to do the same before she sprouted her own flame.
"You gave your everything and it didn't work out. I don't blame you for being upset, even if I don't agree with what the goal was. I get the feeling," He said.
"And I'm sorry about Mai and Ty Lee. I don't know the context, but I can see that's what upsets you most. They were your best friends, right?" He asked.
"All our lives." She confirmed with a nod.
"I've been there...I went through something similar with Cassian. I was stuck in the worst time of my life, and I made the wrong judgment call by lying to him. He could've tried to understand where I was coming from, but he chose to let that be the end of the friendship.
"I had hoped maybe he would've tried to help me, what with how close we were, but he didn't see it that way. I'm sure you can imagine." He related.
"I don't have to," Azula sighed. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay, but it just shows...sorry, what did you just say?" Elio paused, cutting his own thought off. Azula scoffed and rolled her eyes, folding her arms over her lap.
"You're really gonna make me say it again, huh? Fine. I am sorry for what happened to you...and the role I played in it." She added. Elio swallowed and nodded meaningfully.
"I mean, I wasn't really mad about it, but..." Elio stopped for a moment, remembering back to all of the times when he and Azula fought; the insults, the teasing, and the harsh things she would say in the heat of the moment.
"I accept your apology." He finally said.
Azula only nodded a little and looked away again, letting the flame in her hand go out.
There were a few minutes of silence between them as they let this exchange sink in. The tension in the air began to thicken in a strange way. Elio couldn't tell if he was making progress with her or not, not really. Finally, Azula spoke again.
"So suppose I change my mind and agree to let you take me back to the Fire Nation. What exactly is your plan for me?" She asked, finally deciding to humor him. Elio sat up a little and sprouted a flame from his hand as he began to explain.
"When we get back, we can meet with Zuko together and explain your case. I can vouch for you and we'll get your accommodations improved, make it better so that you can focus on bouncing back from all this." He spoke enthusiastically.
"And if I do, I'm sure my brother would expect that I go along with the new goals of the Fire Nation: world peace and security, as if that were possible." She said skeptically.
"Why would that be such a bad thing? Even if it seems foolish to you, wouldn't it be better for everyone involved, including you?" He asked hypothetically. Azula shrugged and shook her head.
"I'm a weapon, Elio. Keeping my skills in top form is the only way I've remained useful up until this point. What's the point of having these talents if I can't use them?" She posed one of the many questions on her mind.
"Who's to say you couldn't again? I mean, times are changing but obviously there's still a lot of work to be done. It would just be a matter of using more discretion...and showing a lot more restraint." He added.
"Haha," Azula let out a dry, insincere chuckle. "It's all easier said than done, but the way you describe it...I suppose it's not impossible."
"I think if you come with me, you'll find there's more ways that you can be useful. There's more to you than that." Elio said to be reassuring. Azula glanced at him, considering this thoughtfully.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd assume you were being disingenuous...thank you. I can see why you were chosen for this mission." She commented.
"Hey, I'm just here to try and help you, mission aside." He said in reply.
"I'm surprised you're so willing to stick your neck out for me. You are aware of how that could come across, aren't you?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"I don't care about that. I'm not worried about appearances." Elio waved that off, accidentally cutting off the flame in his hand to make the gesture.
"Just what you think is right, right?"
"Right, right." Elio answered with a nod.
There was another pause between them, but this time the silence only lasted for a few moments.
"He seems like a nice young man. You should go with him."
Azula gasped in shock. She created a brighter flame in her hand. She now saw her own mother standing to the left of Elio. She wore a kind expression, but her sudden appearance was frightening to Azula nonetheless.
"Wh- How did you get in here?!" She exclaimed in shock.
"Please, honey; the fight is over. You don't have to keep holding on to the terrible standards that your father set for you. You can be free, free to live your own life." Ursa urged her.
"Don't act like you believe in me now. You've never seen me as anything but a fearsome monster. Why stop now?" Azula said, getting to her feet. She couldn't even hear what Elio was saying to her.
"Azula, I've said it already and I'll keep saying it: you're my daugher and I love you." Ursa insisted. Azula's eyes narrowed on her as she fought back any urge to cry or show emotion.
"Liar!" She shouted, raising her hand up and shooting a blast of fire at her mother. She continued firebending at her for a couple more seconds before Elio ran up around her. He grabbed onto Azula, wrapping his arms around her and forcing her hands down to get her to stop.
"Azula! Azula, stop!" He pulled her back and she finally stopped abruptly. It went dark in the cave as he pulled her to him.
"Elio! Let me go!"
"Are you trying to cook us alive in here?!"
"Just her." Azula said through her teeth.
"Who?"
"What do you mean 'who'? She was standing right next to you!" She pointed out without thinking.
"There's no one in here," Elio said. He brought his hand up and let a flame shoot up from it so she could see. "See? It's still just us."
Azula looked at where her mother had been standing; she was gone now. She looked around in confusion before looking up at Elio with a distressed expression. Then she shut her eyes tightly and pressed her head into his chest, letting out an embarrassed groan.
She couldn't hide it now.
"What was that? Who did you see?" Elio asked, putting his hands on her arms. It went dark in the cave once again.
"Forget what you saw, Elio." Azula demanded, pushing him away and backing against the wall again.
"Forget what I saw? You were talking to someone who wasn't there!" Elio exclaimed. Azula held up her hand impatiently, creating a flame just for a few moments so he could see her motioning him away.
"Would you just stop? Give me a minute..." Azula said with a shaky breath, sliding back down the wall until she was sitting on the floor again. Once the light went out, her face dropped down into her hands and she shook her head.
Elio created his own flame to see her, and it was at that moment that she had started to cry, stifling her sobs in the palms of her hands.
Elio watched her with his eyebrows furrowed in concern. He had spent days on end thinking about all the ways this conversation could have gone and what he should say, but he couldn't have anticipated this. Now he didn't know what to do.
Elio took a breath before approaching her. He quietly sat down on her left. With his free hand, he reached around her. She smacked the hand closest to her away, causing the flame in that hand to go out. In total darkness, Elio wrapped his arms around her and gently pulled her back into his chest...
It took them a few moments to realize that they were both in an extremely vulnerable position. But Azula allowed him to hold onto her, and Elio allowed her to lean against him. He didn't say anything; he just allowed whatever she was feeling to pass through her until she was calm again.
Azula spoke first once she was up to it, "I don't know where this is coming from." She said quietly.
"I couldn't tell you. But I think it's pretty clear now that we need to go back to the Fire Nation and get you the help that you need." Elio said definitively. Azula sighed again.
"I suppose I can't really argue after that display." She said with a slight shake of her head.
"I'd rather you didn't." Elio said.
"I'm sure." Azula said with a scoff.
"Heh...so will you come back with me now?" Elio asked softly, his tone a little more hopeful.
"If we ever get out of here?" Azula asked in turn.
"Hopefully, yeah." Elio answered with a small chuckle.
"Tch...fine." She finally agreed.
"Yeah?"
"Do I have any other choice?" Azula asked rhetorically.
"Not a better one." Elio answered.
"Hm, touche."
"But I promise that I will do whatever I can to help you." Elio said again, speaking slower for emphasis.
"I know you will." Azula said softly in response.
Elio felt Azula's hand touch his shoulder before sliding down to rest on his chest. Elio rubbed her arm comfortingly. He was waiting for her to say something else, but instead he was surprised by feeling her other hand touch his face. Her hands were very warm.
He was in disbelief that this was happening, but still he leaned forward and embraced it. His lips found hers, and they lingered near each other even after the kiss had ended.
"Sorry. I wasn't trying to..." Elio started to say.
"There's plenty of things you can apologize for, Elio. That doesn't have to be one of them." She said before he could finish. Elio swallowed and nodded a little.
"Right." He said awkwardly.
Azula sighed, raising her hand up and creating a flame so they could see again. Being this close to her, he could feel the heat of her blue fire a lot more now.
"I've tried to pinpoint the exact moment that things started to go wrong, but I don't think there is just one. But I couldn't tell you how things ended up like this – how we got here." She thought aloud.
"Got here as in...like where we're at physically? Or in life?" Elio asked.
"The latter, obviously."
"Oh yeah. I think about that all the time, especially now. If you had told me last year that I'd become a special agent with his own airship and crew, I'd have never believed it." Elio said with an ironic chuckle and a shake of his head.
"Or a fugitive and a traitor before that." Azula added.
"Yeah, exactly." Elio scoffed, going a long with it.
"Well, I suppose I don't have much room to talk, being a fugitive now myself...so I suppose we've both spiraled off our paths." She said.
"Well, that might be the wrong way to put it. I don't know. I think everybody has a way they think things will go and then it doesn't work out."
"Well, I thought that I would be the Fire Lord that finishes the war and rules over everything. That isn't quite working out right now." Azula joked dryly.
"Yeah. What I really wanted was just to be like a firebending performer. Like the ones you see at the Fire Festivals, you know?" He brought up.
"Is that so? You do have a lot of technique. But your fighting instincts are good too. It would've been a waste." Azula shared her thoughts on the matter.
"Maybe, but it would've been fun. I love firebending tricks, but I don't get to do them anymore."
"Then show me one." Azula offered.
"Now?"
"It's not like we're busy or anything." She pointed out.
"Yeah, fair enough. Okay. Uh...here's one." Elio said.
He brought his hands up and cupped them together. He created small flames and shaped them as he spread his hands apart a little. In the palm of his left hand, a small bird made of fire began to flap its wings. Elio held it closer to Azula so she could see.
"I've never seen this trick before." She said.
"It's an off-shoot of the Taming The Dragon trick. I came up with it myself. Watch." Elio made a pretense of letting the bird go. Linking a thread of fire to his hand, the bird took flight and glided around the cave with its wings spread.
"That's pretty," Azula said with a smile. "I'm sure that took much practice."
"Oh yeah, you've gotta be a perfectionist to pull this off." Elio said with a chuckle, bringing the bird back before letting it fade.
"Sounds like I might be good at it then." She commented with a chuckle.
"Would you like me to show you how?" He offered, turning to look at her.
"I don't see why not." She shrugged.
She brought her hands up towards Elio, a flame still burning from her right hand. Elio reached up and brought his hands under hers. He was about to start explaining what to do, but he found himself frozen in place once he made eye contact with Azula.
Azula scanned Elio's expression and saw that he was unsure of what to do. He was stuck between what he felt he should do and what he wanted to do. She couldn't help but smirk.
"You're hopeless. You know that?" She shook her head at him before closing her hand, letting the flame go out before they kissed again, this time wrapping their arms around each other...
Suddenly, the side of the cave opened up. Light flooded inside, forcing them to look away. Elio let go of Azula and slowly stood up, holding a hand up to shield his eyes.
"Elio! Are you in there?" A familiar voice called to him.
"Yeah! Alger, is that you?" He called back.
"Yes! Are you hurt?"
"No, no! We're fine! I've got Azula in here with me!" He said.
"Okay. We were able to settle things with the general. It took some convincing, but they'll let us leave if we do so right now." Alger explained.
"Great! Fine by me!" Elio said with a nod before turning to Azula and offering a hand to her, "Ready to go home?" He asked.
Azula said nothing in response as she took his hand...