She was about to enter her quarters when she heard her daughter's teasing voice coming from her son's room.
"Stop it! Y-you're lying! Dad would never do that to me!"
"Your father would never do what to you? What's going on here?" Ursa entered Zuko's room, not at all surprised to see Azula there as well. She had a good guess to what was happening as it has occurred numerous times before. Still, she held her daughter's wrist and took her out of the room.
Outside, she held both of Azula's arms and crouched down on the floor, so they saw eye-to-eye. "Spill it, Azula."
"Well... I accidentally overheard grandfather talking to Daddy in the throne room..."
"Accidentally?"
The princess nodded fervently. "Daddy asked for Uncle Iroh's birthright and grandfather got really, really mad. He couldn't believe Daddy would do something like that so soon after cousin Lu Ten's death. Now for his punishment, Daddy has to get rid of Zuko! Grandfather wants him to know the pain of losing his firstborn!"
Ursa's blood ran cold as she listened to her daughter's words and what they entailed.
Ozai was going to kill Zuko for the throne.
"Go to bed, young lady. Now." She stood up and headed for the last room at the end of the hallway.
It was their shared bedroom, yet Ursa had not stepped foot in there for years. Not bothering to knock, she threw the door open, surprising the entertainer who was on the bed, beneath her husband.
"Leave us, Suiren." Ursa had no disdain nor hate for the beautiful entertainer. One look and she could tell that her submissiveness to Ozai was born out of necessity rather than emotions.
The entertainer got off the bed and fixed her clothes, tying her long dark hair in a quick, messy bun. She stood in front of the Fire Lady and bowed deeply before departing, leaving husband and wife in the room.
"Ozai, you can't do this." Her fists were clenched tightly at her sides, resisting the urge to lunge at her husband as he fixed his robes.
He knew full well what she was raging on about. "I have no choice. Refusing the Fire Lord's command is treason. But I am a merciful man. I was just passing the time with Suiren until he's asleep. He won't even feel a thing."
She was disgusted by his lack of remorse. But more than that, she feared it. She knew what he was capable of. And she knew he would do anything to get what he wanted.
One way or another.
"I'm going to make you a deal."
Ozai scoffed and leaned against the window, arms crossed over his chest as he looked at his wife. "You have nothing I want."
"You want the throne."
There was silence before he decided to listen to her. "Go on."
"I know how to make a poison that is colorless and odorless, completely untraceable. It causes the person to pass quietly as if he'd simply fallen asleep. I'll give you a vial of it in exchange for Zuko's life. Once the poison is in your hands, you do whatever you wish."
A truly ingenious plan it was, but only if the loose ends were cut off. "I accept your plan. On one condition. Once we have made our exchange, you must leave the Capital City and never show your face again."
She took long strides to stand in front of him. "Fine. But I'm taking my children with me."
"No." He towered over her, the light from the moon casting dark shadows that made him look all the more frightening. "The children are my collateral. As long as you keep your word, no harm will come to either of them. Should you try to stay or take your children with you, I will hunt you down."
Even his wicked smile made her sick to the core.
"Just like I did to your precious boyfriend."
The dark forest located an hour's travel from Hira'a was too dense for Appa to enter so they resumed their journey on foot. Even at the edge of the forest, Aang could feel the strong spiritual energy emanating from the place.
"So, this must be it... The Forgetful Valley..."
"How did you know?" Sokka looked around, wary of any spirits lurking. "Are you detecting something with your special Avatar powers?"
"No. It just says so on the sign over there."
"Oh."
Chiyo stayed close to Zuko, a firm grip on his arm as they walked further into the forest. He noticed it and he slowed down his pace. "Is everything alright?" She nodded, yet he could feel her unease. "I won't let anything happen to you, Chiyo. I'll protect you."
"Ha! As if you can, Zuzu..." Azula interjected as she matched their pace, trailing behind the group. "If I clearly remember a year ago, it was she who protected you from me!"
He rolled his eyes and retorted. "Only because you decided to cheat in our Agni Kai and send the lightning to Katara."
"It was an Agni Kai for the throne! And winner takes it all. Besides, the only rule of Agni Kai is that whoever burns their opponent wins!"
"I was your opponent. Not Katara."
"Yet, I still managed to hit you with lightning! So, I won, fair and square!"
Chiyo had enough of their banter. "I swear to Agni you both need too—"
"Shh, Chiyo, quiet! I'm detecting something with my Avatar powers!" Aang clutched his face, feeling the physical reaction of his body towards the energy. "It's making me wanna go like... this." He showed his face to the rest of them. One eye wide, brows raised, crooked mouth, and a frustrated expression.
Katara grimaced at the face her boyfriend was making. "Sweetie, not with the faces again..."
"No, no... I think Aang is onto something!" From his wary glances all around the forest, Sokka spotted numerous patterns everywhere. "Check out this leaf!"
Indeed, the wide leaves of the towering tree had shadings that resembled a face. Even the markings on the animals' fur and tree barks had some sort of image imprinted into that of faces that stared right back at them.
"That giant flutter-bat over there, Aang!" Sokka pointed to the winged creature passing over their heads. "The patterns on its wings sort of look like the face you were making!"
"You're right!" Aang went ahead of the group, jumping from branch to vine to go after the flutter-bat despite Zuko's protests.
They all ran after Aang until they reached a break in the trees. There was pool of clear, water that reflected the sun's rays. No wind made ripples to disturb the surface, no insect or animal in sight to drink from it.
"I've never seen water so clear and still." Katara knelt by the edge of the pool, fascinated by the water's familiarity in the spiritual sense. "Like Tui and La's pool in the Northern Water Tribe..."
Azula didn't understand what was so special with the pool of water so out of curiosity, she leaned in to take a closer look.
Instead of her own reflection, she saw her mother's.
"You're going the wrong way, Azula. Turn back and find your true destiny."
"You again?! Don't you ever shut up?!" Azula zapped the pool with lightning, disturbing the tranquil surface, water flying high above their heads. She then turned to Aang, shaking with anger, blue fire in the form of daggers in her hands. "She told you to lead me here, didn't she?! So she could keep tormenting me with her lies!"
Zuko stepped forward, stopping Azula's advances. "That's enough, Azula."
"You're right, Zuko! It is enough!" Katara raised her hands, the water from the pool rising with her movements. "We've tried to put up with her but she's too dangerous!"
Just as she was about to send the wave to capture Azula, several sharp objects whizzed past them. One caught Katara's sleeves, causing a small tear in the cloth and distracting her. Fortunately, the others dodged easily.
The attack ceased for a moment and Katara bent down to pick up one of the weapons thrown at them. "Throwing stars made of... flowers?" Flowers that were cold to the touch. Then she realized, "Someone's bending the water in these flowers!"
"They're not just bending the flowers," Sokka too out his boomerang, letting it fly above Aang's head to stop the advancing vines. "They're bending the vines too!"
A vine wrapped itself around Chiyo's ankle, catching her off-guard and pulling her high off the ground. "HELP!!!"
Before Zuko could make a move to save her, Azula had already fired at the vine's length without so much as a second thought, killing it effectively.
But dropping Chiyo in the process.
She fell to the moss-covered forest floor. Intense pain shot over her left leg and she swore she heard and felt something snap. Jaw clenched, eyes scrunched closed in agony, and unable to move.
"CHIYO!" He never felt so helpless in his life. Had he not been distracted, had he been a few seconds faster than Azula... Zuko knelt on the ground and tried to move her to his lap, stopping when she screamed at the slightest movement of her lower body. "C-Chiyo..."
After the shock wore off, Katara regained her bearings and closed her eyes, focusing on her learnings. As if using extended senses, she felt the water inside the vines and gained control of it, stopping the attack of the vines by taking out the water from them. "Whoever you are, you're not the only one who can waterbend! You've hurt our friend, you coward! Show yourself!"
There was movement from behind the trees and Katara readied the water suspended in the air in case of another attack. But seeing those who attacked them made her drop the water back to the ground.
One was an old woman, graying hair fixed into two traditional braids, deep wrinkles and dark circles under the eyes prominent on her aged face.
Holding her hand was man wearing a make-shift wooden mask. Slowly, but surely, they approached the group.
What made Katara stop was the clothes they wore. Though tattered and torn in some places, dirtied by dirt and moss, she recognized where they have come from.
They were Water Tribe.