Nazadori didn't know what to write in the letters she was tasked to work on for her new council members. She stared down at the black pieces of parchment, the ink sparkling in the sunlight. Her fingers curved around the quill, which hovered over the first piece of parchment, not knowing what to write out at all. She wanted to quit working for the day, but this was her only task that needed to be completed.
A timid waiter from the Double Dumpling approached her table, but one of her guards stepped forward, giving him a weird look. Nazadori sighed and gently set the quill down. Running a hand through her dark hair, she bit back a snarky response for the guards standing at her side. She wanted the guards to leave her alone, but she knew they wouldn't listen to her even though she was going to be queen.
She shoved the pieces of parchment away from her, quitting for the moment. She knew she needed to finish these letters for her council members, to welcome them to the job and to let them know when she was going to be crowned queen, but they would have to wait until later. She just couldn't focus on them right now, not with the way her heart sped up at the thought of being crowned queen.
That was coming up much quicker than she cared to admit. She couldn't imagine standing in front of all of Omashu and be crowned queen when the public didn't even trust her as the monarch. All they saw was her past -- the same one that she kept running from. But she couldn't run from it any longer. It made her who she was now, and she wouldn't have been the person she was if she hadn't experienced all her heartache and rejection as a child.
A strong breeze blew through the otherwise empty restaurant, and both of her guards stepped away from her to check it out. Most of her scraps of parchment flew away from her, so she stood up and retrieved them. By the time she picked them all up and set them back on her table, she realized that she wasn't alone anymore in the restaurant. Avatar Aang stood in front of her, and her heart jumped in her chest at the sight of him. She couldn't help but remember their kiss the other night, one that should never have happened.
"I have to go," Aang said to her breathlessly. It seemed like he had run all the way from the palace to her here at the Double Dumpling, located in the lower part of the city. Her guards waited outside the restaurant, not letting anyone else inside. Besides Aang. "I have to leave the city. I can't just . . . spend all my time here. I have to save the world, you know? But I needed to say goodbye and --"
Nazadori took Aang by the shoulders and shook him a little. He immediately stopped talking, staring into her eyes. She hated how much she felt for him, and deep in her heart, she knew she couldn't follow through with any of it. Aang needed to keep the world in balance, and she needed to keep Omashu moving forward. They were on two separate trajectories, two different paths that would take them away from each other.
"I understand," she whispered to him. She pulled him closer to her until their foreheads were pressing against each other. For just a second, everything was right in the world. She had everything she needed -- someone who understood her more than anyone else could, happiness floating through her chest, a future in her mind. But it all fell apart when she took a few steps away from him. "I get it. You are the center of the storm, the calm in the whirlwind of my life, the peace in all the pain. We were destined to meet, but I believe we were also destined to depart from each other."
Aang's face showed the devastation traveling through her chest. But his eyes . . . that look in his eyes told her everything. He understood their dilemma. He understood her. He understood their relationship. He understood everything.
"Thank you for everything, Avatar Aang," Nazadori said, bowing her head to him. She held back tears as she straightened back up, and instead, smiled at the boy that saved her from herself and her grief and her anger. "I am pleased that you agreed to be on my council."
"Of course, Queen Nazadori," he said, bowing to her too. "The pleasure is all mine."
And with that, Aang turned on his heel and walked quickly and quietly out of the restaurant. Nazadori's throat burned as tears sprung to her eyes. She tracked his movements until she couldn't see him anymore. Turning away from the view of her guards, she allowed one tear to slip down her cheek, but that was it. She couldn't spend her time grieving over a future that was already over.
After a few minutes of breathing to control her tears, she turned around to sit back at her table when she saw Gazon standing in the doorway to the restaurant. Why in the world were people sneaking up on her, especially when her guards were supposed to stop anyone from entering the place? Still, she was glad that he was here, even if anger spiraled through her chest. She knew this was going to happen sooner or later.
"Can we talk?" Gazon asked Nazadori awkwardly. She shifted on her feet, squeezing her hands together. Nazadori didn't know what to say to the man in front of her. He was supposed to be her advisor, the one that Bumi chose specifically, to help her make it through this process. But he was also the one who was ruining her experience, who got angry because she was different from Bumi. "I have a lot to say to you."
"Sure."
"Thank you."
He struggled to get down on the mat in front of her, and she almost rushed to his side to assist him but didn't. It was nearly reminiscent of her final few weeks with Bumi, helping him walk around the palace and going to see Flopsie the last time. She was there with him every step of the way, but it was different with Gazon. The older man had made her miserable in the role that Bumi knew she could do; he made her doubt Bumi's choice.
"I'm going away soon," Gazon told her with a shrug. His weathered face finally looked at peace and free. Nazadori's heart sunk in her chest. What was she going to do if he left her? They may not have gotten along much these past few months, but she needed someone there to help her transition to the life of a queen. "My family is taking me on a trip around the world. They want me to actually enjoy my life instead of advising another ruler of Omashu who won't bother listening to me."
"Listen, Gazon --"
He raised his hand, cutting her off. She had no idea where he was going with this, but she didn't want to interrupt him right now, not when he was finally talking to her like she was an adult, someone who was ready to be queen. "My plan of action for both you and Bumi was to keep with tradition here in Omashu," he said to her. "I didn't want to shake the boat here because of how our people have always been: steadfast and strong. But I have slowly realized that steadfastness and strength can come in many forms."
"For Bumi, it was physical strength," Nazadori said, and Gazon laughed, nodding his head. She smiled softly at the memory of the strongest man she ever knew. Even men like that could die, she finally realized. "He always proved to everyone that he was the strongest man in the room and that he could take them with just a nod of his head."
"But he also had a steadfast heart," Gazon continued. Tears burned in Nazadori's eyes, but she couldn't help but smile. "He cared so much about our city and our people. He did everything he could to help those who couldn't help themselves. And I see that in you, too."
"Really?"
"You put your life in danger to help a girl who was getting robbed," Gazon said, shaking his head at her. "It was risky and reckless. And you know how angry I was."
"Yes, I do."
"But I'm proud of you, Nazadori. I know I haven't shown this in a long time, but I am speaking the truth. You care about people, and I know that you will continue to be steadfast and strong in your own way."
Nazadori didn't know what to say to him. She hadn't expected this at all. Gazon had been so angry with her lately, and she thought that he hated her and the way she had begun ruling the city. But that wasn't the truth at all. Sure, he wanted to focus on tradition and not upsetting the people of Omashu, but he also realized that she had to learn how to do this by herself. No one else understood this feeling -- this pressure. Only she could figure it out, and that would take a long time.
"Now, how about we enjoy the world-famous dragon dumplings," Gazon said with a wide smile on his face. He didn't seem to notice the tears filling her eyes as he waved over a waiter. "I'm starving. Are you?"
She couldn't answer him, so she enthusiastically nodded her head. Hope blossomed in her chest as Gazon talked to the waiter, his actions slightly sloppy now that he wasn't working. In the quiet, she found herself . . . hopeful. Maybe, just maybe, she was meant to be Queen of Omashu. Nazadori knew that her future wasn't determined for her, but she was able to create it for herself. And everything about this -- ruling the city that had watched her grow up and bloom into the person she was meant to be -- felt right.