Blood Matters

Tension

"So where are you guys going when you're done here?" Sokka asked as they huddled around the fire at the campsite. Six days till the day of black sun, six days to get rid of the two royal fire benders.

"We haven't discussed it to much but I want to go get uncle from prison," Zuko said calmly as azula looked at him for a moment.

"He's in the capital, it'd be almost impossible to do it and not get caught or at least seen," Azula rolled her eyes. She's never been close with the old man.

"We'll get him out anyways, we owe him that much," Zuko said with a soft nod.

"We don't owe him anything," Azula huffed a little.

"I owe him that much," Zuko snapped a little.

"You guys are going to the Capitol though? How soon?" Aang asked as he knew they wouldn't tell them their own plan.

"It looks like we're pretty close so I'd say as soon as we can," Azula looked around as she sighed softly. She didn't agree but it was somewhere to start at least.

"But with the eclipse coming up maybe we should do it then," she looked at her brother not noticing everyone else stiffen.

"An eclipse? When's that?" Zuko asked confused.

"I think it's next week with how the stars have been I know it's soon," Azula explained to him shrugging.

"How'd you know?" Sokka blurted out before anyone stopped him.

"The earth king told me back in ba sing si," Azula said simply.

"Her and the other girls were undercover as kyoshi warriors," Katara sat up straight remembering. "Then put me in jail,"

"Is that how you got in?" Zuko asked her confused.

"Yea, and Thats also how I found you, she came crying cause she saw you and uncle," Azula huffed a little as she tucked some hair behind her ear.

"You saw us at ba sing si?" Zuko looked at Katara surprised.

"At some tea shop, yea, I thought you were still after us," Katara defended.

"What a wild time," Toph smirked a little.

"So you know about the eclipse?" Aang raved them all off to get back to the point.

"I do," Azula admitted.

"You guys want to invade the fire nation don't you..?" She bit her lip a little.

Silence.

"That's why your not learning fire bending," Zuko looked at Aang making a face.

"I was hoping I wouldn't have to use it anyways so what's the point?" Aang said crossing his legs and sticking his hands in his lap.

"You're going to take down ozai? No hesitation? You don't have a lot of time," Zuko shook his head in disbelief.

"Hey that's still our father," Azula warned.

Zuko glared at her and shook his head.

"Can I talk to you?" He asked but it was a demand as soon as he got to his feet and separated himself with his sister.

"Uh oh," Sokka watched them walk away. Katara looked at Aang concerned seeing he looked uncomfortable as well.

"Will you calm down? Your getting fussy," Azula jogged after Zuko as he seemed more upset.

"Do you realize what the avatar will do on the day of black sun? What his destiny is?" She snapped grabbing his arm.

"He's going to kill our father!"

"Good!" Zuko yelled back.

"Ozai is not a father, to either of us, look back at our childhood azula, how can you still defend ozai and hate our mother when she was more involved with us than he was!" He cried out as azula rolled her eyes

"Just because dad hated you for being a disappointment and burned half your face off for being a coward doesn't mean he hates me!" Azula yelled back and Zuko froze looking at her wide eyes.

She covered her mouth in instant regret looking at her older brother.

"Zuko-" "go back to ozai, see what he'll do to you, who knows, dad will probably welcome his prodigy back with open arms, but that man will never be my father," Zuko snarled in her face harshly and walked past her with a sneer on his face.

"Zuko I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say it," Azula chases after him.

"Then what did you mean?" Zuko sighed in frustration keeping his back to her.

Azula bit her lip as she hugged her body a little, breaking eye contact and looked down in shame.

"I'm sorry, I know your right..." she whispered.

"Sometimes it's hard to see him as the monster everyone else sees him as," she gulped a little but Zuko shook his head.

"I don't want to talk to you right now, I'm going for a walk, go back to the others," he told her emotionless and kept walking.

Azula sighed rubbing her face going back to the campsite. They've both always had anger issues, but it doesn't mean she was right nor would Zuko be if it was rolls reversed. She was mad and maybe she missed home... she was homesick but it seemed like she was the only one.

"Everything okay?" Sokka looked at her as azula sat silently back in her spot before.

"Yea, zukos going for a walk," she said calmly.

"We heard yelling, what happened?" Aang asked awkwardly but azula sent him a look for him to stop there.

But there was tension in the air and it was obvious no one was comfortable.