Azula's Recovery - Avatar: TLA

13.4 - Azula

Tea with uncle had gone far better than she'd expected, and she was almost glad he'd pushed her to go see her father. Almost. 

She and Zuko followed the prison guards down the seemingly never-ending staircases. Ozai. Father. She was about to come face-to-face with him for the first time in years. She was nervous to say the least. Azula was no longer the little fourteen-year-old girl he'd been able to manipulate so easily. 

Azula wondered what he'd think when he saw her again. She remembered when she'd first arrived at the palace and seen her reflection in the mirror. She'd looked so much like Ursa it had stunned her. How would Ozai feel seeing her look just like her mother? What would Ozai try to say to her? Promise her? He would do anything to be let out, she was sure of it. 

"He's in here," the guard said, pushing open a door. 

The siblings stepped into a small room, with bars separating them from Ozai. His cell was by no means fancy, with only a small bed, a chair and table and small set of drawers for belongings. He sat on the floor though, meditating, it seemed.

Zuko didn't say anything, just stared down at his father on the floor. Azula was a little too stunned to say anything, why hadn't Ozai acknowledged them?

Finally, Ozai opened his eyes, a smirk on his face as he saw Zuko. It quickly changed into a look of surprise when he spotted Azula. 

He recovered quickly, "What a pleasant surprise, the Fire Lord and the Princess here to see me."

Zuko's face remained cold, but he said nothing. This was up to Azula.

She stepped closer to the bars, clasping her hands behind her back, trying to resume the calculating and calm nature of her younger self. "Indeed, though I must say, you've really let yourself go. This is no way to present yourself before royalty."

Ozai really did look horrible. His hair was long and unkempt, his beard unruly and long, and he wore simple gray clothes and no shoes. A far cry from the once invincible Fire Lord he'd claimed to be. Seeing him again, Azula couldn't even convince herself that he was the same person.

"It is good to see you again Azula. Though I admit you are looking...different. But I suppose you already know that. How is Ursa? Does she still reprimand you, even now?" His smirk remained and Azula resisted the urge to slap it off his face. She was too far away to hit him anyway.

She returned the expression instead, "Hmm, as fun as this is, I haven't come here to play mind games with you."

Ozai laughed, "Well, then you really have changed. My daughter would–"

"I'm not your daughter." The words came out so suddenly. Ozai's face remained calm but she saw the surprise. "I came here today to see what had become of you. To see the man that ruined everything. You're as pathetic as I imagined."

Ozai's eyes narrowed but Azula continued before he could say anything, "Power was all you ever wanted. You liked me because you thought I was powerful, because I could do anything you wanted me to do and succeed. But you never loved me. You never loved Zuko.  Why."

Her father chuckled, "Of course I loved you Azula. You are my children after all."

Azula's turn to laugh, "Right. I'm sure you were thinking about how much you loved Zuko when you set his face on fire, and when you banished him, and when you turned me into a killing machine, and when you set us against each other, and when you left me behind during the invasion. All of that, because you 'loved' us. Now tell me the truth."

"That's funny, you never cared about the truth before. But my dear daughter, I think you already know the answer."

Azula kept her expression calm, "Love is weakness."

Ozai smiled, "Indeed."

Azula snorted, "If that's true, then explain to me how you, completely loveless, lost to it. Explain how I–the most loveless of them all–was defeated by it time and time again."

Ozai waited. 

"I'll tell you, because it doesn't make you weak at all. It gives you purpose, something to fight for, to live for. And because love will always be stronger than fear." Azula remembered Mai telling her that, telling her she'd miscalculated. Azula had miscalculated. So had Ozai. 

Ozai laughed, before turning his back to them and returning to his meditation, "You were right. You are no daughter of mine."

Azula hid her gasp, confused about what had just happened. She turned to Zuko who only shook his head. But Azula wasn't finished yet. 

She turned back to her father, a new fire igniting within her. She punched forwards, and her blast of blue fire flew past his head before hitting the wall and dissipating. Ozai froze, before turning back to her. 

Azula regained her cold smile, "I heard you got your firebending taken away. A shame really, I was always good but now..." She held up her hand, a blue flame flickering within it, "I would've liked to see how I measured up to a true master." 

Azula took a step forward and Ozai took one back. There was nowhere for him to hide in his tiny cell. She found that she rather liked the look of growing terror on his face. 

"But you can't really be a master can you?" Azula said, her voice sympathetic, "I mean, you lost to a child. A group of kids, able to bring down the mighty Ozai. But you're not all that mighty either. I mean look at you, you weren't loved by your own father, he cast you aside. You were just the spare, paling in comparison to your older brother. But it's no matter, you got the throne, but only for a little while. Did you know that you had the shortest reign in Fire Lord history? And all your major achievements, well, those were all mine. Conquering Ba Sing Se? Me. Stopping the invasion on the day of Black Sun? Also me. Killing the Avatar? Me. And to top it all off, you were succeeded by Zuko, your weakling son, who proved to be stronger than you ever were."

Azula felt the heat in the air now, and remembered that it wasn't her only new skill. 

"You are a pathetic," Azula held out her hands, feeling for the energy in Ozai's body.

"Useless," she squeezed her hands, and Ozai convulsed.

"Small," Azula twisted her hands, forcing him to his knees before her.

Azula squatted down, eye to eye with him, "Weak man." His eyes were wide and terrified.

"Do you like my new trick? Learned it myself. Because I was always better than you too. Perhaps love is stronger than fear, but I assure you, there is no one left in this world that loves you. So, fear will have to do." Azula flicked her hand and Ozai was sent crashing into the back wall. 

He landed on his hands and knees, his eyes wild as he pushed himself as far away from them as he could.

"Goodbye Ozai." Azula turned to leave, and Zuko followed her. 

The door slid shut behind them, and they walked back up to the entrance in silence. 

When they finally stepped out into the early morning sunlight, Zuko whipped around to face her, pulling her into a hug. "Azula, I love you, but please don't ever do that again."

Azula returned the hug, trying to calm herself too. "Yeah okay."

He pulled back, "Are you okay?"

Azula nodded, "I don't know what came over me, I just...wanted to hurt him."

Zuko sighed, "I get it. But..."

"I know, I won't do it again. I don't think I'll have to. Is it bad that that was good? Like, it was exactly what I needed."

Zuko laughed nervously.

Azula rolled her eyes, "I just feel...free."

It was true, it was like a final weight had been lifted from her. Azula wasn't sure she'd ever forgive him, but she knew he could never come close to her ever again.

Azula was finally free.