Azulas POV
I watch as my brother solemnly climbed off the soaked sky bison drenched in water like a wet carpet floating up into the sky.
My mother's dry screams echoed thrue the forest she's such a dramatic, making this all about herself like that.
this was my death after all. Her crys cracked the smallest amount of guilt out of me that was completely underserved. After everything that women put me thrue and now she's crying for what attention, guilt?
Pokku Came back slowly wiping tears from his face and climbing into the shrubs we were hidden in.
" I wish you guys didn't make me do that, I thought you said they wouldn't care clearly they do"
" There just makeing a scene wouldn't come off right for the fire lords faimly to show no emotion for the death of the princess, its all for the public"
" Oh.. I'm sorry that's awful but your mother does seem really upset"
" She's a lying she never cared for me a day in my life why would she start now"
I dusted myself off and the rest of them followed me farther into the woods. They continued to talk behind me about the night before.
" So what do we do now?"
Kumara ran up ahead of me trying to strike up a conversation
" I'm are going to go save my father and kill those assassins before they kill us"
" Do we really have to kill them can't we just talk to them, maybe let the Avatar figure this out"
" I'm not going to rely on that child for help, those assassins were going to kill me and are going after my father this is my business"
" nuh uh it's our business to your stuck with us remember " Pokku said
" How could I forget I have three emotional children to watch over as well, if you slow me down I'm leaving you behind"
She shuddered and scooted back over to the boys to talk probably about how unfair I was being but I didn't care I wasn't letting three mental cases lead me.
We walked for hours more while they discussed ridiculous subjects like there favorite plays, foods and childhood memories.
They seemed to have forgotten last nights events easily I wouldn't have shown weakness even if it had shaken me but still the trait was rare in people my age.
" So what's your, father like?"
Zulon spoke and I turned to see a cocky smile on his face. He wanted to pull anger out of me to prove something to them I could tell.
" He's powerful and cunning, I take after him"
" I mean more personally I've only ever heard of the horrible things he's done but you were his daughter, that couldn't have been easy, was he at least a good dad"
" He was an amazing one, taught me to be strong and self reliant He didn't care for Zuko much though"
" Yah that's pretty obvious just looking at the poor kid"
" He had it coming! it's just a burn its not like he killed him Zuko is the one that tried to take out his own father"
He cocked his brow in amusement and started kicking the rocks below him
" My father was at the Agni kai he said it was all because he just spoke up at a meeting"
" It was rude and disrespectful he embarrassed father, he had to be taught a lesson"
" are you sure about that, haven't you ever spoken up at meeting before"
" Sometimes but that's because I had something important to add or my plans made sense they never contradicted my fathers"
Pokku grew more uncomfortable by the conversation about my father it was obvious, seeing him squirm around like a ant trapped under a boot. I could see his anxity exude from him.
For a talented liar he could do little to hide his obvious feeling in the matter of my father.
" and what exactly did my father do to you that you hate him so much huh"
Zulons brows lowered his already dark eyes shaded with warning and he tower's over me trying to intimidate me tightening his lips as to signal keep my mouth shut like that ever worked.
I slipped passed him and leaned against Pokkus shoulder
" really what was the horrible awful thing he did to you"
" I don't really want to talk about it"
" Oh come on he was my father, shouldn't I deserve to know why you peasants see him in such a poor light He was the most respected powerful man in the world and he shared his greatness with everyone just because your below him doesn't mean you should hold a grudge against him"
Zulon shoved me and I caught myself before tripping
"What?"
" What the hell is wrong with you, What our you trying to get out of him"
" Well we did just escape a nut house I just want to know what makes my current companions tick, make sure they're not going to snap under a little pressure"
" Your not like us , your not like any soldier you don't think I know about you about the things you did you disgust me"
" So dramatic of course I'm not like the common foot soldiers I am so much more I'm divinity royal blood gives me a destiny much more important then you. I gave my life to the fire nation you were meant to follow MY orders"
" We never asked you to do that You didn't have to become a general at fourteen and you didn't have to kill innocent people, NO one ever asked you to do that!
" It was expected of me! You think I didn't want a normal childhood I didn't have a choice but I did have talent to train and become the strongest and smartest of are generation and yet you feel I haven't done enough to deserve my rightful place on the throne"
" Everyone calm down its only been a day and your already tearing at each others throats"
Kamara pushed us away from each other and stared us both down. I let go of my rage and pushed her hand off me.
"He gave me this"
Pokku pulled down his collar around his neck and faced the other way. It was the same burn Kumara had.
I stepped back away from him in disgust
" what did you do, do all of you have that"
Zulon lifted his shirt revealing his muscular chest and showed me the same branding mark burned into his stomach that was shared with all of them.
" That's..... what did you people do "
Zulon cleared his throat and put his shirt back on
" we didn't do anything wrong, I fell in love is all... with Pokku and some fire nation soldiers caught us, I was ordered to attack his village and I couldn't bring my self to hurt him after he lost his parents so I spared him, cause unlike you I saw what the fire nation was doing was wrong and stopped, I snuck out to talk to him every night, until my captain found out"
He touched his stomach lightly as if it still burned him
"Your father had been visiting to show you the strategy of war or some other exuse to justify mass murder, and said me and Pokku could be a learning opportunity for you"
" But... but you can't do that its wrong"
" I fell in love with a firenation soldier during a war I was on the opposite side of, him being a boy should have been the less suprising part of are relationship"
Pokku leaned against a tree to catch his breath and Zulon stayed next to him and grabbed his hand
" I love him, and I wasn't going to let your fathers rules keep us apart"
I felt disgusted and confused, why would anyone fall in love in that way. all my life I've been told it's wrong and dishonorable that the mark that was barred on there skin meant shame.
I saw the fire and smoke and it felt like it was filling up my lungs and all the oxygen in the world had disappeared I could hear far in the distance the screams and the burned hands reaching out for help trying to grab hold of my neck.
I couldn't remember they're faces within them only the burns I had always tried to look away but if father wouldn't let me I'd look straight past them.
I couldn't remember their faces out of the many I saw tortured like that I was told to look at them with contempt like marking an animal.
I focused back into reality and pulled the strands of hair out of my face
" Fine I geuss your just a bunch of weirdos then... I'll start a fire"
I walked around the woods and started picking up dry branches and leaves until I couldn't carry anymore.
I counted the sticks while I collected them and this simple task calmed me. Air went back into my lungs and I could feel myself breath normally again.
I leaned down and moved away the rocks into a circle and stacked the fire wood up like a small log cabin.
I put my hand over it summoning a fire and felt nothing no warmth spreading down my arm and into my fingers, damn I forgot.
I was embarrassed to look up at Zulon for assistance. who nonchalantly made a fire appear in his hand and let it sit below the wood until it set fire.
I layed down on the ground and stretched my legs out that ached from walking all day.
Kumara pulled out her small bag and started shuffling thrue it until she pulled out four bottles
She threw one over to me and the other boy's
" I grabbed are meds while we put out the fire luckily Azumi had her office very well organized"
" why would I take these we're not in the hospital"
" Your still supposed to take them, you know that right"
" I don't like how they make me feel I'm weaker on them I couldn't firebend properly and my head feels foggy"
" well it's not like you can fire bend at all and if they help you feel even a little calmer you should still take them"
"Fine"
I uncapped the bottle and swallowed the pill. The fire felt nice near my feet it had been a while sense I'd seen fire. It wasn't blue like my own but it was familiar.
" Tomorrow we should make it to the prison we can break my father out and kill those assassins and we never have to see each other again"
Kumara poked at the ground with a stick and fiddled with her hair
" I geuss but what about you?"
" I'll be with my father I don't know what we'll do but we'll be able to start over at least"
" Are you positive you're father is the best person to go on the run with, I mean he's the most hated man in the world"
" My father values power we'll find are way back to the top eventually"
Pokku shuddered and curled up under the bottom of a tree next to Zulon who wrapped him up in his jacket.
What they had was wrong but I doubted they had much choice in it maybe a spirit had chosen to make them fall in love. Maybe they were both just under the control of the spirits pulling a prank on them, thats the only thing I could think would make this possible.
I watched the fire burn infront of me and threw more sticks into the pile feeding it. I wonder what my father would say learning my fire bending was taken. Maybe he wouldn't be to hard on me about it I mean the same thing happened to him. I'll just tell him about the assassins attempt and he'll under stand why I needed to break him out.
I wonder what was going on back home, By now Zuko and mother would return to the palace and the first day of mourning would begin. Of course they dont have a body to send away so they'll probably just fill and empty coffin with my things. The funniest part would be seeing Zuzu pray at my Butsudan Ha what I'd give to see that.
The sky grew darker and everyone had already fallen asleep none of them volunteered for the night shift So I geuss I'll do it. Not that I would trust anyone of them to watch over me.
Tomorrow we should make it to the prison and it will be the first time I've seen father in a year, I felt a chill go down my neck and made sure I didn't hear anything.