For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Moderator: LadyTevar
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
How do you arrive at that conclusion? Of the three, she's the most openly flirtatious. She's frequently made passes at Sokka, and in The Beach, she soon collected a small crowd of male admirers.
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lord Martiya
- Jedi Master
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Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
I think that's for the same reason DA people love to imagine Azula and Ty Lee as a lesbian couple. Namely, Ty Lee is a very lonely person, and Azula was her best childhood friend.LadyTevar wrote:I also have to wonder why Ty Lee doesn't like Liao. His Earth kingdom blood? Ty Lee doesn't seem that kind of person.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Sorry, I ment Anti-Bender.Setzer wrote:How do you arrive at that conclusion? Of the three, she's the most openly flirtatious. She's frequently made passes at Sokka, and in The Beach, she soon collected a small crowd of male admirers.
With the exception of Azula, she doesn't seem to like Benders.
I've been asked why I still follow a few of the people I know on Facebook with 'interesting political habits and view points'.
It's so when they comment on or approve of something, I know what pages to block/what not to vote for.
It's so when they comment on or approve of something, I know what pages to block/what not to vote for.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
There's also the fact that Ty Lee is the only person who Azula felt bad about upsetting.lord Martiya wrote:I think that's for the same reason DA people love to imagine Azula and Ty Lee as a lesbian couple. Namely, Ty Lee is a very lonely person, and Azula was her best childhood friend.LadyTevar wrote:I also have to wonder why Ty Lee doesn't like Liao. His Earth kingdom blood? Ty Lee doesn't seem that kind of person.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
“We’re deeply honoured to have the Fire Lord’s daughter and her fiancé at our humble circus. Tell us if there’s anything we can do to make the show more enjoyable.”
Azula stroked her pet. She hadn’t named it yet. I’d suggested Snappy, but she didn’t go for it. Pity, the potential for jokes was almost limitless. “I will,” she assured the circusmaster.
Up above, Ty Lee was beginning her routine. Given the height involved, I really couldn’t see all that much but she seemed to be supporting herself with one hand on an upturned table, itself resting upon a spindle on the high wire. While herself being upside down. An impressive feat of balance.
“Incredible,” Azula crooned as Ty Lee switched hands. “Do you think she’ll fall.”
The circusmaster seemed insulted by the notion. “Of course not.”
“Then wouldn’t it make it more interesting if you removed the net?”
The poor man – boggled slightly. “Um. The thing is, the performers -”
“You’re right, you’re right.” Azula appeared to relent. I knew better, but the circusmaster closed his eyes in relief. “That’s been done.”
Leaning over, I whispered, “What are you thinking?” into her ear.
She smiled smugly and turned her own head so that her lips were next to my own ear. I could feel her breath tickling against my skin as she whispered: “Why not set the net on fire?”
Now even if I knew it would work out in the end (1) and even if Ty Lee didn’t like me very much, I do think that that was an unnecessary thing to do. So I smiled slightly and whispered back: “Wouldn’t that discourage the wild animals from waiting below to eat her?”
“What wild animals?”
I drew back slightly and looked at the circusmaster. “What sort of dangerous animals do you have?”
“Well, our circus boasts the most exotic assortment -”
“Release them all!” Azula ordered.
.oOo.
“What an exquisite performance.” Azula had brought flowers to congratulate her friend on the success of the night (2). The audience certainly hadn’t minded having an animal act underneath the trapeze, even when a couple of the herbivores had fallen prey to the carnivores present. I suppose the circus had more in common in some ways with the ancient Roman tradition than with the more modern equivalent. “I can’t wait to see how you’ll top yourself tomorrow. Are you going to set the net on fire?”
Ty Lee stared at herself in the mirror rather than face her friend. “I’m sorry Azula, but unfortunately there won’t be a show tomorrow.” Her eyes were very wide, possibly to hold back tears. She stood up to place the headpiece she’d been wearing up on a hook.
“Really?”
“You don’t think I’d leave you to handle a dangerous fugitive like your uncle alone, do you?” She turned and smiled. “If the offer’s still open?”
Azula smiled triumphantly. “Of course you’re welcome, Ty Lee. And just think: it’ll give you and your cousin time to get to know each other.”
“Thank you so much.” Her smile slipped ever so slightly. “I have to settle a few things with the circusmaster, but I’ll be back before long.”
“Take all the time you need.” Azula could be gracious in victory although she rarely chose to be. “We’ll be leaving for Omashu in the morning to collect Mai.”
“It’ll be just like old times.” Her eyes flicked to me. “With one addition. Azula, could I borrow my cousin for an hour or two? He can help with my luggage and we can get acquainted.”
So I’m not only superfluous, but she also thinks I’m a packhorse? If I wasn’t such a nice guy I’d probably do something unpleasant to her luggage. Mind you, I’m not that nice a guy. I reached over and touched Azula’s shoulder. “Since we’re parting for a while, and neither of your chaperones are here...”
The kiss was almost tentative, as if Azula was uncertain of being so demonstrative in front of Ty Lee.
I kept my arms around her. “I’m going to miss you.”
“You’ll only be an hour or two.”
“It will feel like forever.”
She leant forwards and our lips met again. Funny how that happens. When she drew back, she was breathing heavily. “How do I look?”
“Not a hair out of place,” I assured her, reluctantly letting her step away. “I can see I’ll have to try harder.”
Azula laughed. “You’ll burn your... lips.”
That’s the sort of thing I might have said. Was I redeeming her? Or corrupting her? Was there any difference and did I care? “Or my heart.”
She kissed me again, fiercely this time, and then she was gone and I was faced by Ty Lee, or at least her back. I will admit to having been sufficiently distracted not to have noticed if she had turned her back prior to our public displays of affection or had waited until Azula was gone. Either way, her ignoring me was ostentatious – ‘I’m ignoring you, can’t you tell that you do not have my attention?, do you not realise I am snubbing you?’ – and essentially pointless since by turning away Ty Lee was facing her mirror, which was reflecting me right in front of her face.
I picked out a convenient closed chest, pressed down on the lid to check it would bear the weight and then sat on it. Patience is not only a virtue, but also a very apt weapon upon the social battlefield.
The silence was awkward, grew uncomfortable and finally became intolerable. For her, anyway. Ty Lee was born to chatter.
“You seem very attached even if you didn’t see each other for years.”
“Meeting each other again has changed our relationship,” I admitted. “After two years of being restricted to writing back and forth, it’s intoxicating, seeing and hearing all the things that the letters couldn’t tell us about each other. At least, that’s the way I feel.”
Ty Lee laced her fingers together and then turned around. “I need to get into that chest.”
How could any gentleman refuse so charming a petition. I stood up and stepped aside to give her access. When she stepped past me one of her fingers stabbed out, striking my elbow before I could react. The arm went numb immediately, hanging limply. A curious experience and quite unpleasant. I can see why Aang and his companions would flee her.
Hmm. That might imply that they were more fearful of Ty Lee than Azula. Interesting, if not something I would necessarily share with either girl.
Rather than react aggressively, which was Liao’s instinct – and a powerful one – I merely arched my one eyebrow. “If you’re making a point, consider it taken.” And my own point in return: fear or anger would be the expected response, would mean falling in with Ty Lee’s plan, whatever it was. My apparent indifference was not something she had anticipated.
And so, she hesitated and then opened the chest, removing garments that I shall not describe for your titillation. Once she was well out of arms reach she turned again. “Whose idea was it to turn the animals loose?”
“Mine.” I paused for her to assess that. “Azula wanted to set the safety net on fire.”
Ty Lee’s voice was sugary, sweet and insincere: “The two of you deserve each other.”
“Spirits forbid we should all receive what we truly deserve.”
.oOo.
The walk to Omashu wasn’t all that strenuous – all I had to do was keep pace with the poor devils carrying Azula’s palanquin. Which was about the size of a small car. Given that there were only four of them, we weren’t moving all that fast. Hopefully she was intending to leave the thing behind when we reached the ‘agile and nimble’ stage of pursuit.
“So,” she asked, as we crossed the bridge into Omashu. “Did you two enjoy yourselves after I was gone?”
We exchanged looks. “It was an interesting conversation, mostly about you.”
“Yeah,” Ty Lee agreed quickly. “Liao was telling me how you’re getting along now that you don’t have to communicate with letters.”
“I sort of miss that,” Azula admitted.
“I’ll start writing one, next chance I get.” I glanced over the side of the bridge and fought back a gulp. It was quite a drop to the canyon below and I was relieved once we reached the gates and had solid ground under our feet again. I’m not an airbender and frankly I could live without dealing with heights.
Which probably means I’ll have to confront them at some point soon. Joy.
Mai was waiting for us outside the Governor’s mansion. Presumably the guards had sent a warning ahead to prepare a suitable welcome. No sooner had the palanquin been placed on the ground than the princess had jumped down and she walked ahead to greet her friend. Ty Lee lagged a few steps behind while I waited, leaning back against the palanquin while they had their girl talk.
The girl bowed her head, clasping her hands in front of her in petition. “Please tell me you’re here to kill me.” She raised her eyes to look at Azula, smirking slightly and then the two of them snickered at what was obviously an old joke.
“It’s great to see you, Mai,” Azula said fondly, giving her a perfunctory hug and then stepping back so Ty Lee could throw herself wholeheartedly into the taller girl’s arms.
Apparently surprised by her presence, Mai returned the hug. I noticed in passing that like Azula she wore her fingernails long and sharp, which was particularly obvious with the dark red nail polish she was wearing. “I thought you ran off and joined the circus. You said it was your calling.”
Ty Lee stepped back slightly. “Well Azula called a little louder.”
“I have a mission and I need you both.”
Mai stepped forward immediately. “Count me in. Anything to get me out of this place.” Her eyes flicked left, towards the mansion. Possibly she didn’t so much mean out of Omashu as much as away from her family.
“I’m in awe of your friends, Azula.” Now that reunion was over, I walked a little closer. “Lady Mai, it’s been quite a while, hasn’t it?”
She nodded without any great show of enthusiasm. “Liao Quan.”
Unlike Ty Lee, Mai had met Liao once or twice although we weren’t exactly friends – or much of anything to each other when you came down to it. Just faces in a crowd, and since Liao’s marital future had long since been decided, there had been no political reason for Mai’s parents to seek closer ties to me. Azula’s letters had made enough mention of her to cover for at least some knowledge on my part though. “I saw a lot of soldiers on the streets – is the city restless?”
She frowned slightly. “Most of the rebels in the city managed to escape last night. They took my little brother hostage.”
“Now that’s playing with fire.” I frowned. “Okay, bad pun. But they have to know that they’re going to get b- that they’ll be facing the wrath of a very angry governor if one hair on his head is hurt.”
“How did they manage to get out of the city?” Azula asked, focusing upon the tactical situation.
Mai grimaced. “They pretended that they were stricken by pentapox. Dad had them driven out of the gates to spare the rest of the population.”
“Pentapox?” I frowned. “What’s that?”
“Oh, I think I’ve heard of that.” Ty Lee said. “Isn’t that the one that rots bits of your body until they fall off?”
“What bits of your body?” Azula asked with rather gruesome interest.
I consulted Liao’s memory while . Nothing came to mind, confirming that Katara had invented it on the spur of the moment. “It’s the first that I’ve heard of it. Is it something local?”
“How would I know?” Mai sounded bored by the whole thing.
“I suppose it doesn’t matter. Have they made any demands regarding your brother?”
She shrugged, although I don’t think she was quite as indifferent as she pretended.
Azula and I exchanged looks. “That sort of behaviour can’t be tolerated,” she declared. “It’s clear I’m going to have to straighten things out here before I can continue with my mission.”
She swept into Governor’s mansion, with the rest of us trailing behind her. Family time was over and now the princess was back in business. And unlike her, I knew we were heading for our first encounter with the mighty and feared Avatar that had been the Fire Nation’s bogeyman for generations.
I probably should have taken that a bit more seriously.
.oOo.
(1) For Ty Lee. I didn’t particularly care about the wellbeing of the animals, and setting predators loose next to a fire seemed a touch dangerous in general.
(2) The fact that they were black may have provided something of a mixed message through.
Azula stroked her pet. She hadn’t named it yet. I’d suggested Snappy, but she didn’t go for it. Pity, the potential for jokes was almost limitless. “I will,” she assured the circusmaster.
Up above, Ty Lee was beginning her routine. Given the height involved, I really couldn’t see all that much but she seemed to be supporting herself with one hand on an upturned table, itself resting upon a spindle on the high wire. While herself being upside down. An impressive feat of balance.
“Incredible,” Azula crooned as Ty Lee switched hands. “Do you think she’ll fall.”
The circusmaster seemed insulted by the notion. “Of course not.”
“Then wouldn’t it make it more interesting if you removed the net?”
The poor man – boggled slightly. “Um. The thing is, the performers -”
“You’re right, you’re right.” Azula appeared to relent. I knew better, but the circusmaster closed his eyes in relief. “That’s been done.”
Leaning over, I whispered, “What are you thinking?” into her ear.
She smiled smugly and turned her own head so that her lips were next to my own ear. I could feel her breath tickling against my skin as she whispered: “Why not set the net on fire?”
Now even if I knew it would work out in the end (1) and even if Ty Lee didn’t like me very much, I do think that that was an unnecessary thing to do. So I smiled slightly and whispered back: “Wouldn’t that discourage the wild animals from waiting below to eat her?”
“What wild animals?”
I drew back slightly and looked at the circusmaster. “What sort of dangerous animals do you have?”
“Well, our circus boasts the most exotic assortment -”
“Release them all!” Azula ordered.
.oOo.
“What an exquisite performance.” Azula had brought flowers to congratulate her friend on the success of the night (2). The audience certainly hadn’t minded having an animal act underneath the trapeze, even when a couple of the herbivores had fallen prey to the carnivores present. I suppose the circus had more in common in some ways with the ancient Roman tradition than with the more modern equivalent. “I can’t wait to see how you’ll top yourself tomorrow. Are you going to set the net on fire?”
Ty Lee stared at herself in the mirror rather than face her friend. “I’m sorry Azula, but unfortunately there won’t be a show tomorrow.” Her eyes were very wide, possibly to hold back tears. She stood up to place the headpiece she’d been wearing up on a hook.
“Really?”
“You don’t think I’d leave you to handle a dangerous fugitive like your uncle alone, do you?” She turned and smiled. “If the offer’s still open?”
Azula smiled triumphantly. “Of course you’re welcome, Ty Lee. And just think: it’ll give you and your cousin time to get to know each other.”
“Thank you so much.” Her smile slipped ever so slightly. “I have to settle a few things with the circusmaster, but I’ll be back before long.”
“Take all the time you need.” Azula could be gracious in victory although she rarely chose to be. “We’ll be leaving for Omashu in the morning to collect Mai.”
“It’ll be just like old times.” Her eyes flicked to me. “With one addition. Azula, could I borrow my cousin for an hour or two? He can help with my luggage and we can get acquainted.”
So I’m not only superfluous, but she also thinks I’m a packhorse? If I wasn’t such a nice guy I’d probably do something unpleasant to her luggage. Mind you, I’m not that nice a guy. I reached over and touched Azula’s shoulder. “Since we’re parting for a while, and neither of your chaperones are here...”
The kiss was almost tentative, as if Azula was uncertain of being so demonstrative in front of Ty Lee.
I kept my arms around her. “I’m going to miss you.”
“You’ll only be an hour or two.”
“It will feel like forever.”
She leant forwards and our lips met again. Funny how that happens. When she drew back, she was breathing heavily. “How do I look?”
“Not a hair out of place,” I assured her, reluctantly letting her step away. “I can see I’ll have to try harder.”
Azula laughed. “You’ll burn your... lips.”
That’s the sort of thing I might have said. Was I redeeming her? Or corrupting her? Was there any difference and did I care? “Or my heart.”
She kissed me again, fiercely this time, and then she was gone and I was faced by Ty Lee, or at least her back. I will admit to having been sufficiently distracted not to have noticed if she had turned her back prior to our public displays of affection or had waited until Azula was gone. Either way, her ignoring me was ostentatious – ‘I’m ignoring you, can’t you tell that you do not have my attention?, do you not realise I am snubbing you?’ – and essentially pointless since by turning away Ty Lee was facing her mirror, which was reflecting me right in front of her face.
I picked out a convenient closed chest, pressed down on the lid to check it would bear the weight and then sat on it. Patience is not only a virtue, but also a very apt weapon upon the social battlefield.
The silence was awkward, grew uncomfortable and finally became intolerable. For her, anyway. Ty Lee was born to chatter.
“You seem very attached even if you didn’t see each other for years.”
“Meeting each other again has changed our relationship,” I admitted. “After two years of being restricted to writing back and forth, it’s intoxicating, seeing and hearing all the things that the letters couldn’t tell us about each other. At least, that’s the way I feel.”
Ty Lee laced her fingers together and then turned around. “I need to get into that chest.”
How could any gentleman refuse so charming a petition. I stood up and stepped aside to give her access. When she stepped past me one of her fingers stabbed out, striking my elbow before I could react. The arm went numb immediately, hanging limply. A curious experience and quite unpleasant. I can see why Aang and his companions would flee her.
Hmm. That might imply that they were more fearful of Ty Lee than Azula. Interesting, if not something I would necessarily share with either girl.
Rather than react aggressively, which was Liao’s instinct – and a powerful one – I merely arched my one eyebrow. “If you’re making a point, consider it taken.” And my own point in return: fear or anger would be the expected response, would mean falling in with Ty Lee’s plan, whatever it was. My apparent indifference was not something she had anticipated.
And so, she hesitated and then opened the chest, removing garments that I shall not describe for your titillation. Once she was well out of arms reach she turned again. “Whose idea was it to turn the animals loose?”
“Mine.” I paused for her to assess that. “Azula wanted to set the safety net on fire.”
Ty Lee’s voice was sugary, sweet and insincere: “The two of you deserve each other.”
“Spirits forbid we should all receive what we truly deserve.”
.oOo.
The walk to Omashu wasn’t all that strenuous – all I had to do was keep pace with the poor devils carrying Azula’s palanquin. Which was about the size of a small car. Given that there were only four of them, we weren’t moving all that fast. Hopefully she was intending to leave the thing behind when we reached the ‘agile and nimble’ stage of pursuit.
“So,” she asked, as we crossed the bridge into Omashu. “Did you two enjoy yourselves after I was gone?”
We exchanged looks. “It was an interesting conversation, mostly about you.”
“Yeah,” Ty Lee agreed quickly. “Liao was telling me how you’re getting along now that you don’t have to communicate with letters.”
“I sort of miss that,” Azula admitted.
“I’ll start writing one, next chance I get.” I glanced over the side of the bridge and fought back a gulp. It was quite a drop to the canyon below and I was relieved once we reached the gates and had solid ground under our feet again. I’m not an airbender and frankly I could live without dealing with heights.
Which probably means I’ll have to confront them at some point soon. Joy.
Mai was waiting for us outside the Governor’s mansion. Presumably the guards had sent a warning ahead to prepare a suitable welcome. No sooner had the palanquin been placed on the ground than the princess had jumped down and she walked ahead to greet her friend. Ty Lee lagged a few steps behind while I waited, leaning back against the palanquin while they had their girl talk.
The girl bowed her head, clasping her hands in front of her in petition. “Please tell me you’re here to kill me.” She raised her eyes to look at Azula, smirking slightly and then the two of them snickered at what was obviously an old joke.
“It’s great to see you, Mai,” Azula said fondly, giving her a perfunctory hug and then stepping back so Ty Lee could throw herself wholeheartedly into the taller girl’s arms.
Apparently surprised by her presence, Mai returned the hug. I noticed in passing that like Azula she wore her fingernails long and sharp, which was particularly obvious with the dark red nail polish she was wearing. “I thought you ran off and joined the circus. You said it was your calling.”
Ty Lee stepped back slightly. “Well Azula called a little louder.”
“I have a mission and I need you both.”
Mai stepped forward immediately. “Count me in. Anything to get me out of this place.” Her eyes flicked left, towards the mansion. Possibly she didn’t so much mean out of Omashu as much as away from her family.
“I’m in awe of your friends, Azula.” Now that reunion was over, I walked a little closer. “Lady Mai, it’s been quite a while, hasn’t it?”
She nodded without any great show of enthusiasm. “Liao Quan.”
Unlike Ty Lee, Mai had met Liao once or twice although we weren’t exactly friends – or much of anything to each other when you came down to it. Just faces in a crowd, and since Liao’s marital future had long since been decided, there had been no political reason for Mai’s parents to seek closer ties to me. Azula’s letters had made enough mention of her to cover for at least some knowledge on my part though. “I saw a lot of soldiers on the streets – is the city restless?”
She frowned slightly. “Most of the rebels in the city managed to escape last night. They took my little brother hostage.”
“Now that’s playing with fire.” I frowned. “Okay, bad pun. But they have to know that they’re going to get b- that they’ll be facing the wrath of a very angry governor if one hair on his head is hurt.”
“How did they manage to get out of the city?” Azula asked, focusing upon the tactical situation.
Mai grimaced. “They pretended that they were stricken by pentapox. Dad had them driven out of the gates to spare the rest of the population.”
“Pentapox?” I frowned. “What’s that?”
“Oh, I think I’ve heard of that.” Ty Lee said. “Isn’t that the one that rots bits of your body until they fall off?”
“What bits of your body?” Azula asked with rather gruesome interest.
I consulted Liao’s memory while . Nothing came to mind, confirming that Katara had invented it on the spur of the moment. “It’s the first that I’ve heard of it. Is it something local?”
“How would I know?” Mai sounded bored by the whole thing.
“I suppose it doesn’t matter. Have they made any demands regarding your brother?”
She shrugged, although I don’t think she was quite as indifferent as she pretended.
Azula and I exchanged looks. “That sort of behaviour can’t be tolerated,” she declared. “It’s clear I’m going to have to straighten things out here before I can continue with my mission.”
She swept into Governor’s mansion, with the rest of us trailing behind her. Family time was over and now the princess was back in business. And unlike her, I knew we were heading for our first encounter with the mighty and feared Avatar that had been the Fire Nation’s bogeyman for generations.
I probably should have taken that a bit more seriously.
.oOo.
(1) For Ty Lee. I didn’t particularly care about the wellbeing of the animals, and setting predators loose next to a fire seemed a touch dangerous in general.
(2) The fact that they were black may have provided something of a mixed message through.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Drakensis, I would just like to say that I love your fanfic. Your writing is composed well and intelligent - especially compared to many Airbender fanfics out there; it is a breath of fresh air. If there is anything I could possibly to do help expedite releases, such as proof reading or fact checking, please let me know.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
I’ll skip past the lambasting that Azula gave to Mai’s father. It was embarrassing watching a middle-aged man grovelling to a slip of a girl and her decision to rename the city as New Ozai merely highlighted her daddy issues.
Ostensibly Azula’s plan was straightforward: meet with the rebels in front of the statue being built of her father (which would be even larger than the one in Fire Fountain City and I winced at the expense of moving it part by part to Omashu) with the captive King Bumi and hand him over in return for TomTom. Even without my foreknowledge, I would have had my suspicions about that.
“The terms are three of them and three of us.”
“Ty Lee and I will accompany you,” declared Azula. “Liao will oversee delivery of King Bumi. We’ll use a crane to move the casket that he’s imprisoned him in. That way there’s no risk of him using his earthbending to cause problems.”
I scratched my head. “One thing that bothers me is how they’re planning to get into the city to make the exchange. It’s not as if they’re walking up to the gates. They’re coming to the heart of the city, which means that they still have a high degree of access to Omashu.”
“You’re right. Just another mess made by the Governor. What’s the point of driving the rebels out of New Ozai if they can come back any time they want to.”
“If it was that easy then they wouldn’t have needed to fake a plague to get out the gates.” My brow furrowed. “Whatever their method is, it must be something that works for a small group but not a large one. If it’s earthbenders bringing them in then they can’t have access to many of them.”
“Why does it matter?” That was Mai, betraying one hundred percent more interest in my tangent than I had expected.
I smiled at her. “I don’t approve of kidnapping. And I intend to ensure that my opinion is widely known and widely respected. The degree to which I think this should be taken would be such that anyone contemplating this course of action will have screaming nightmares at the very thought. I’m sure you understand that my interest in their proposed escape route is more than academic.”
Mai nodded slowly. Ty Lee looked startled. Azula smiled approvingly. If one of them called me Charlie I think I’d probably die laughing.
.oOo.
There were three small figures standing on the scaffolding when Azula and her friends reached the agreed point of exchange. The angle looking down from the crane wasn’t great, but with the aid of a spyglass I could make out that one of them was wearing an orange turban and that the other two were wearing blue. That made it fairly evident who they were.
Good. If my presence was sending sufficient ripples at this stage to have changed this, then I would have had to discard almost expectation I had.
I nodded to the crane’s operator and he started unspooling the chains holding King Bumi’s casket, dropping it down behind Mai’s party. The mad king of Omashu had been living up to his name the whole time we were moving him, and it was something of a relief not to have to listen to him anymore.
Of course then there was a brief moment of conversation and Mai stepped forwards, giving the handsignal to abort. How unexpected!
“I’ll leave this in your hands,” I said, slapping the operator on the shoulder as he started hoisting the casket up again. With my other hand I lifted my Ba Chui from where it had been resting in a corner. “Looks like something just went wrong down there.”
Leaving the cab I ran across the scaffolding, to where I’d left a convenient rope and pulley when we were planning this. Down below, a dust cloud marked Aang kicking off for a rescue attempt and I saw Azula charging to meet him, blue fire slashing in front of her. Aang leapt up over it and out of sight, below the planks I was crossing. A moment later he emerged into sight again, this time on his glider. So much for his disguise.
That wasn’t my concern though. I knew that Azula would head for a pulley near the centre of the structure but my own was at the far end. Grabbing a loop that I’d prepared, I dropped off the edge of the scaffolding. A weight on the other end of the rope hurtled upwards – it was lighter than I was, but just heavy enough to keep my own plunge from being terminal.
As it was, I reached the far end of the platform just in time to see Sokka skidding on the back towards the edge. Since he was carrying TomTom, that was no small concern. Swinging off the line – which promptly whipped upwards again without my weight at the end – I landed practically on top of him as he scrambled to his feet.
Ty Lee, who had been closing in as well was suddenly whipped backwards when a water whip latched onto her ankle. Turning, I kicked Sokka’s feet out from under him, careful to make sure that he’d land on his back rather than the baby and pumped my left hand, sending a ball of fire to dissipate the water.
Sensibly, Sokka took the opportunity to scramble away, heading for a ladder leading further down the structure but I caught hold of him by the back of his bandoliers and hauled him back. “Let go of the baby.”
“I did already!” He was already twisting around to try to get free, but his hands were empty, so I dumped him off the edge of the scaffold.
It’s not as harsh as it sounds. I could have thrown him down to the next large section of decking, which was thirty or forty feet down. Instead I was nice about it and aimed for a platform only one level down. Unless he landed badly I figured he wouldn’t have more than the wind knocked out of him.
Blue fire rushed from the sky and I couldn’t resist looking up to see Azula apparently flying (she’d let momentum on another pulley fling her high in the air) and hurling more of her trademark waves of blue fire at Aang and Bumi. Unfortunately what this accomplished was breaking the already weakened chains supporting Bumi’s casket and dropping the two back down into the construction site.
I didn’t wait to see if Azula had a landing site in mind for herself. Instead I scooped up TomTom and ran for where Ty Lee had bounced to her feet. “Get the kid clear.” I shoved TomTom into her arms. “Go!”
She looked indignant for a moment and then acquiesced, running into the shadows below the scaffold. Great, baby clear, that’s objective number one out of the way. I’m not psychotic after all. With a crash Azula landed in one of the stone basins used to carry goods down Omashu’s chutes and started careering down one of said chutes in hot pursuit of Aang. Okay, objective two (recapture Bumi) seemed to be in the bag. Easy enough since he wasn’t actually trying to escape. That left me with...
The sound of water pinpointed where Mai and Katara were fighting. Right, get Azula’s friends through this intact. And since Ty Lee wouldn’t be around to tamper with Katara’s bending that meant that Mai could probably do with some help right now. I poured fire into the head of the Ba Chui as I ran, the metal almost glowing with the heat.
Katara had latched a waterwhip on Mai’s right arm, freezing it to trap the limb before the older girl could hurl more steel at her. I brought my fiery club down where water began to freeze, shattering part of the ice and vaporising water. Spinning, I brought the weapon round in an arc that would have clipped the waterbender’s head if she hadn’t retracted her truncated whip block it, more water flashing to steam.
“The child is safe.” Reassurance for Mai and although she did not know it was intended that way, for Katara.
Once, twice, thrice. Hot metal smashed into shielding water. My breath was hot and fast. She was not giving ground and she was probably not tiring herself as much as I was. Fire is all aggression, water redirects that force. In a contest of endurance, I would lose.
Of course, this wasn’t a fair fight. Mai had freed her arm at last and three daggers spun through the air towards Katara. The waterbender shortened her whip, spinning off a second one to lash at the floor. A board broke, one end flipping up to catch two of the knives and she ducked her head to avoid the last. It didn’t quite work – the blade was sharp enough to slash through her braided hair as it whipped behind her. About half the hair fell away, leaving the rest to unravel which seemed to startle her.
“I realise you’re both girls, but did you really need to style her hair in the middle of a fight?”
Who said that?
Two pairs of eyes glared at me.
Oh crap, I’m a dead man.
Apparently attacking her hair was enough to convince Katara to move over to the offensive, which broke my rhythm and let her smack me across the face with the thickest portion of her whip. The look on Mai’s face as I crashed backwards to the floor, pain announcing that my nose was broken, was profoundly unsympathetic although she didn’t let feminine solidarity prevent her from sending several darts at Katara, one of which caught her in the leg.
Katara screamed in pain, which was punctuated by Sokka – presumably under the impression that it would be faster than coming up and over the edge – riding Appa up through the scaffolding. I will leave to your imagination the damage that a six ton flying bison does when he decides to ram through relatively simple planking.
Mai, being on her feet, was able to jump away from the devastation. I, being flat on my back, was in a less enviable position as the decking erupted upwards and I fell to the next level. Given it wasn’t so very different from what I’d done to Sokka myself, some might call that karma.
By the time I had scrambled to my feet, Appa was already soaring off over the city, in the same general direction taken by Aang and Azula.
Mai jumped down. “Are you hurt?”
I glanced over the broken boards, an plan already forming. A crazy, dangerous plan, pretty much like everything that had happened so far. “Nothing serious. You?” Finding what I was looking for, three planks still held together by a set of crossbeams, I picked it up.
“The same.” She stared at my prize. “What are you going to do?”
I started running for the nearest chute. “They’re all headed the same way as Azula. Are you coming?”
“Coming where?” She ran after me and then saw my destination. “Are you... Stop.”
I didn’t. A moment later sharp metal was flying at me. I later deduced that she was trying to pin my clothes to the scaffolding to force me to a halt. At the time, I didn’t have the time for such reasoning – I swept the boards around to intercept the knives. “Thanks, I needed some handholds.” One more step and then I dived into the chute. At the last minute someone crashed into me, a desperate last minute tackle, but all it did was bounce us off the side of the chute as I began to slide faster and faster down it, Mai hanging desperately off my side, trying not to be ground to mincemeat against the stone.
“Idiot!” I shouted, kicking off fire behind me to power us out of the side-by-side slalom that her momentum had put us into. Gripping one of the knives embedded in the wood, I managed to draw my legs up under myself and onto the planks.
Mai yelped into my ear, writhing against me as she tried to keep hold. “You’re an idiot.”
I’d never tried my hand at winter sports, but this felt uncomfortably like attempting to bobsleigh on a tea tray. It would have been risky with just me. With two of us...
Well, it wasn’t like I could stop us at this point. We were going way too fast. Which suggested a certain problem would present itself in three or four minutes. “Stop playing around and get on my back!” I shouted, the wind inside the chute snatching my words backwards.
With me holding still for her, Mai was able to do so. Then, with a groan, I pulled my knees forward and pushed my shoulders up, leaving her clinging piggy-back upon me while I was kneeling up on the boards. The air resistance was trying very hard to drag us off them and I had to tighten my grip as I looked ahead.
Even with my new, higher posture I couldn’t see all that far ahead. The elevation of the chute meant that most of what I could see over the sides was nothing but empty sky. I couldn’t even see Appa, which probably meant that they were far ahead of me and lower down. And with my feet under me, I couldn’t exactly throw more fire backwards to accelerate us faster than we were already going.
Not that I was really worried about Azula’s ability to handle Aang – if the little monk stood and fought, I was confident that at this point she’d make mincemeat out of him. Which would have its own problems, of course. And with Katara injured there was no chance whatsoever that Aang or his friends would be doing anything other than getting the hell away from Omashu.
Unless, of course, the sight of Katara’s blood convinced Aang to go all Avatar State on Azula.
Couldn’t this damned thing go any faster?
I had only a moment’s notice, the sight of broken torii over the chute, to identify the place where Aang must have tried to slow Azula down by dropping the wooden beams in her path. The path where her cart had blasted through the obstruction was mostly clear, but I hurled a wave of fire ahead anyway to remove some secondary debris from that. I had to force the fire ahead of us to avoid running face first into my own flames, and as it was the move slowed us.
Of course, that wouldn’t work on the next obstruction: the stone Bumi would have bent up to stop Azula if the events of the chase had taken place as I recalled them from the show.
“How are you going to stop us?” Mai actually seemed to have calmed down.
“I’ve been wondering about that,” I told her and was rewarded by her nails jabbing into my pectorals, even through my shirt. “You’re perfectly free to get off and walk, you know.” I saw the irregularity in the chute ahead of us now. The slope had eased somewhat and we’d stopped picking up speed, but we were still moving dangerously fast. “In fact, I insist.”
With a convulsive heave I straightened, snapping one foot forward to brace myself against Mai’s knife before the force of the wind hurled us back off the boards. At the last minute I whirled my arms, dislodging her grip and then forced the most concentrated flame I could manage forwards, driving me back against Mai as we arced over the boulder, the abruptly halted planks shattering beneath us.
Ostensibly Azula’s plan was straightforward: meet with the rebels in front of the statue being built of her father (which would be even larger than the one in Fire Fountain City and I winced at the expense of moving it part by part to Omashu) with the captive King Bumi and hand him over in return for TomTom. Even without my foreknowledge, I would have had my suspicions about that.
“The terms are three of them and three of us.”
“Ty Lee and I will accompany you,” declared Azula. “Liao will oversee delivery of King Bumi. We’ll use a crane to move the casket that he’s imprisoned him in. That way there’s no risk of him using his earthbending to cause problems.”
I scratched my head. “One thing that bothers me is how they’re planning to get into the city to make the exchange. It’s not as if they’re walking up to the gates. They’re coming to the heart of the city, which means that they still have a high degree of access to Omashu.”
“You’re right. Just another mess made by the Governor. What’s the point of driving the rebels out of New Ozai if they can come back any time they want to.”
“If it was that easy then they wouldn’t have needed to fake a plague to get out the gates.” My brow furrowed. “Whatever their method is, it must be something that works for a small group but not a large one. If it’s earthbenders bringing them in then they can’t have access to many of them.”
“Why does it matter?” That was Mai, betraying one hundred percent more interest in my tangent than I had expected.
I smiled at her. “I don’t approve of kidnapping. And I intend to ensure that my opinion is widely known and widely respected. The degree to which I think this should be taken would be such that anyone contemplating this course of action will have screaming nightmares at the very thought. I’m sure you understand that my interest in their proposed escape route is more than academic.”
Mai nodded slowly. Ty Lee looked startled. Azula smiled approvingly. If one of them called me Charlie I think I’d probably die laughing.
.oOo.
There were three small figures standing on the scaffolding when Azula and her friends reached the agreed point of exchange. The angle looking down from the crane wasn’t great, but with the aid of a spyglass I could make out that one of them was wearing an orange turban and that the other two were wearing blue. That made it fairly evident who they were.
Good. If my presence was sending sufficient ripples at this stage to have changed this, then I would have had to discard almost expectation I had.
I nodded to the crane’s operator and he started unspooling the chains holding King Bumi’s casket, dropping it down behind Mai’s party. The mad king of Omashu had been living up to his name the whole time we were moving him, and it was something of a relief not to have to listen to him anymore.
Of course then there was a brief moment of conversation and Mai stepped forwards, giving the handsignal to abort. How unexpected!
“I’ll leave this in your hands,” I said, slapping the operator on the shoulder as he started hoisting the casket up again. With my other hand I lifted my Ba Chui from where it had been resting in a corner. “Looks like something just went wrong down there.”
Leaving the cab I ran across the scaffolding, to where I’d left a convenient rope and pulley when we were planning this. Down below, a dust cloud marked Aang kicking off for a rescue attempt and I saw Azula charging to meet him, blue fire slashing in front of her. Aang leapt up over it and out of sight, below the planks I was crossing. A moment later he emerged into sight again, this time on his glider. So much for his disguise.
That wasn’t my concern though. I knew that Azula would head for a pulley near the centre of the structure but my own was at the far end. Grabbing a loop that I’d prepared, I dropped off the edge of the scaffolding. A weight on the other end of the rope hurtled upwards – it was lighter than I was, but just heavy enough to keep my own plunge from being terminal.
As it was, I reached the far end of the platform just in time to see Sokka skidding on the back towards the edge. Since he was carrying TomTom, that was no small concern. Swinging off the line – which promptly whipped upwards again without my weight at the end – I landed practically on top of him as he scrambled to his feet.
Ty Lee, who had been closing in as well was suddenly whipped backwards when a water whip latched onto her ankle. Turning, I kicked Sokka’s feet out from under him, careful to make sure that he’d land on his back rather than the baby and pumped my left hand, sending a ball of fire to dissipate the water.
Sensibly, Sokka took the opportunity to scramble away, heading for a ladder leading further down the structure but I caught hold of him by the back of his bandoliers and hauled him back. “Let go of the baby.”
“I did already!” He was already twisting around to try to get free, but his hands were empty, so I dumped him off the edge of the scaffold.
It’s not as harsh as it sounds. I could have thrown him down to the next large section of decking, which was thirty or forty feet down. Instead I was nice about it and aimed for a platform only one level down. Unless he landed badly I figured he wouldn’t have more than the wind knocked out of him.
Blue fire rushed from the sky and I couldn’t resist looking up to see Azula apparently flying (she’d let momentum on another pulley fling her high in the air) and hurling more of her trademark waves of blue fire at Aang and Bumi. Unfortunately what this accomplished was breaking the already weakened chains supporting Bumi’s casket and dropping the two back down into the construction site.
I didn’t wait to see if Azula had a landing site in mind for herself. Instead I scooped up TomTom and ran for where Ty Lee had bounced to her feet. “Get the kid clear.” I shoved TomTom into her arms. “Go!”
She looked indignant for a moment and then acquiesced, running into the shadows below the scaffold. Great, baby clear, that’s objective number one out of the way. I’m not psychotic after all. With a crash Azula landed in one of the stone basins used to carry goods down Omashu’s chutes and started careering down one of said chutes in hot pursuit of Aang. Okay, objective two (recapture Bumi) seemed to be in the bag. Easy enough since he wasn’t actually trying to escape. That left me with...
The sound of water pinpointed where Mai and Katara were fighting. Right, get Azula’s friends through this intact. And since Ty Lee wouldn’t be around to tamper with Katara’s bending that meant that Mai could probably do with some help right now. I poured fire into the head of the Ba Chui as I ran, the metal almost glowing with the heat.
Katara had latched a waterwhip on Mai’s right arm, freezing it to trap the limb before the older girl could hurl more steel at her. I brought my fiery club down where water began to freeze, shattering part of the ice and vaporising water. Spinning, I brought the weapon round in an arc that would have clipped the waterbender’s head if she hadn’t retracted her truncated whip block it, more water flashing to steam.
“The child is safe.” Reassurance for Mai and although she did not know it was intended that way, for Katara.
Once, twice, thrice. Hot metal smashed into shielding water. My breath was hot and fast. She was not giving ground and she was probably not tiring herself as much as I was. Fire is all aggression, water redirects that force. In a contest of endurance, I would lose.
Of course, this wasn’t a fair fight. Mai had freed her arm at last and three daggers spun through the air towards Katara. The waterbender shortened her whip, spinning off a second one to lash at the floor. A board broke, one end flipping up to catch two of the knives and she ducked her head to avoid the last. It didn’t quite work – the blade was sharp enough to slash through her braided hair as it whipped behind her. About half the hair fell away, leaving the rest to unravel which seemed to startle her.
“I realise you’re both girls, but did you really need to style her hair in the middle of a fight?”
Who said that?
Two pairs of eyes glared at me.
Oh crap, I’m a dead man.
Apparently attacking her hair was enough to convince Katara to move over to the offensive, which broke my rhythm and let her smack me across the face with the thickest portion of her whip. The look on Mai’s face as I crashed backwards to the floor, pain announcing that my nose was broken, was profoundly unsympathetic although she didn’t let feminine solidarity prevent her from sending several darts at Katara, one of which caught her in the leg.
Katara screamed in pain, which was punctuated by Sokka – presumably under the impression that it would be faster than coming up and over the edge – riding Appa up through the scaffolding. I will leave to your imagination the damage that a six ton flying bison does when he decides to ram through relatively simple planking.
Mai, being on her feet, was able to jump away from the devastation. I, being flat on my back, was in a less enviable position as the decking erupted upwards and I fell to the next level. Given it wasn’t so very different from what I’d done to Sokka myself, some might call that karma.
By the time I had scrambled to my feet, Appa was already soaring off over the city, in the same general direction taken by Aang and Azula.
Mai jumped down. “Are you hurt?”
I glanced over the broken boards, an plan already forming. A crazy, dangerous plan, pretty much like everything that had happened so far. “Nothing serious. You?” Finding what I was looking for, three planks still held together by a set of crossbeams, I picked it up.
“The same.” She stared at my prize. “What are you going to do?”
I started running for the nearest chute. “They’re all headed the same way as Azula. Are you coming?”
“Coming where?” She ran after me and then saw my destination. “Are you... Stop.”
I didn’t. A moment later sharp metal was flying at me. I later deduced that she was trying to pin my clothes to the scaffolding to force me to a halt. At the time, I didn’t have the time for such reasoning – I swept the boards around to intercept the knives. “Thanks, I needed some handholds.” One more step and then I dived into the chute. At the last minute someone crashed into me, a desperate last minute tackle, but all it did was bounce us off the side of the chute as I began to slide faster and faster down it, Mai hanging desperately off my side, trying not to be ground to mincemeat against the stone.
“Idiot!” I shouted, kicking off fire behind me to power us out of the side-by-side slalom that her momentum had put us into. Gripping one of the knives embedded in the wood, I managed to draw my legs up under myself and onto the planks.
Mai yelped into my ear, writhing against me as she tried to keep hold. “You’re an idiot.”
I’d never tried my hand at winter sports, but this felt uncomfortably like attempting to bobsleigh on a tea tray. It would have been risky with just me. With two of us...
Well, it wasn’t like I could stop us at this point. We were going way too fast. Which suggested a certain problem would present itself in three or four minutes. “Stop playing around and get on my back!” I shouted, the wind inside the chute snatching my words backwards.
With me holding still for her, Mai was able to do so. Then, with a groan, I pulled my knees forward and pushed my shoulders up, leaving her clinging piggy-back upon me while I was kneeling up on the boards. The air resistance was trying very hard to drag us off them and I had to tighten my grip as I looked ahead.
Even with my new, higher posture I couldn’t see all that far ahead. The elevation of the chute meant that most of what I could see over the sides was nothing but empty sky. I couldn’t even see Appa, which probably meant that they were far ahead of me and lower down. And with my feet under me, I couldn’t exactly throw more fire backwards to accelerate us faster than we were already going.
Not that I was really worried about Azula’s ability to handle Aang – if the little monk stood and fought, I was confident that at this point she’d make mincemeat out of him. Which would have its own problems, of course. And with Katara injured there was no chance whatsoever that Aang or his friends would be doing anything other than getting the hell away from Omashu.
Unless, of course, the sight of Katara’s blood convinced Aang to go all Avatar State on Azula.
Couldn’t this damned thing go any faster?
I had only a moment’s notice, the sight of broken torii over the chute, to identify the place where Aang must have tried to slow Azula down by dropping the wooden beams in her path. The path where her cart had blasted through the obstruction was mostly clear, but I hurled a wave of fire ahead anyway to remove some secondary debris from that. I had to force the fire ahead of us to avoid running face first into my own flames, and as it was the move slowed us.
Of course, that wouldn’t work on the next obstruction: the stone Bumi would have bent up to stop Azula if the events of the chase had taken place as I recalled them from the show.
“How are you going to stop us?” Mai actually seemed to have calmed down.
“I’ve been wondering about that,” I told her and was rewarded by her nails jabbing into my pectorals, even through my shirt. “You’re perfectly free to get off and walk, you know.” I saw the irregularity in the chute ahead of us now. The slope had eased somewhat and we’d stopped picking up speed, but we were still moving dangerously fast. “In fact, I insist.”
With a convulsive heave I straightened, snapping one foot forward to brace myself against Mai’s knife before the force of the wind hurled us back off the boards. At the last minute I whirled my arms, dislodging her grip and then forced the most concentrated flame I could manage forwards, driving me back against Mai as we arced over the boulder, the abruptly halted planks shattering beneath us.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Another great chapter, thanks; keep it up!
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
ARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!
CLIFFHANGER! What Happens?!? How badly do they land?!
CLIFFHANGER! What Happens?!? How badly do they land?!
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.
"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
The explosion of fire didn’t stop us entirely, although it half-stunned me and I suspect that having me slammed against her by its force did much the same to Mai. It did slow us enough that we didn’t sail into what would have been a quite fatal drop – we were still well above the city’s buildings and the shallowness of the chute at this point was relative only to that higher up, I’d have guessed at easily a forty-five degree gradiant.
Liao and Mai both had the same training in handling a fall, even one resulting from such bizarre circumstances. Fortunately it was a relatively straight section or we might have missed the chute. As it was, I had my doubts about managing the fall without further action and since we didn’t have much time before we landed, I acted immediately.
Twisting in mid-air, I grabbed Mai at hip and collar and heaved her upwards. This, of course, slowed her descent very slight at the expense of accelerating mine by the same degree. And then with considerable effort I forced one last burst of fire out of my depleted chi, kicking it downwards and slowing me further.
My knees protested as I landed, bending them to absorb as much of the impact as possible. I even managed to gallantly catch Mai, bridal style, in my arms and softened her landing. It was only after I’d put her down that I saw Azula. She was only a few yards further down the chute, her posture making it quite clear she’d seen the entire spectacular end to my little sleigh ride. She didn’t look happy. Possibly because she didn’t have the Avatar captive at her feet, possibly just because she was docking me points for the landing.
“Liao, what have I told you about recklessness!?”
“Not to let it kill me?” I pressed two fingers against my carotid artery (harder than it sounds since my fingers were unsteady for some reason) and checked my pulse. Hmm, quite fast. “I seem to be still alive.” In fairness, my legs were still a little shaky and I leant against the side of the chute. I had a feeling that when the adrenaline wore off I’d feel a not insubstantial amount of pain.
Azula didn’t seem impressed by my reasoning. “And if you’d blown yourself halfway across the city, do you think that that would be the same? Don’t ever do that again!”
My eyes narrowed. “No.”
“What!”
I stepped forward, trying not to wobble. “You were chasing the Avatar. Alone. And his friends were closing in to support him. You think I was being reckless?” I pointed ahead to where Appa – now with three visible passengers – was clearing the city wall. “However much confidence I have in you, I will always come for you. It’s who I am. And it’s not negotiable.”
Azula’s eyes were wide. She seemed surprised by my words.
“Your boyfriend is insane, Azula.” We both turned to look at Mai, who seemed to have recovered her composure. Her eyes flicked to me. “If you try that again, I’ll just cut your hamstrings. I’m sure Azula wouldn’t mind too much.” She looked back at Azula. “Think of how much harder it would be for him to get into trouble if he was confined to a palanquin.”
Worryingly, she actually looked tempted.
“I hate to interrupt this touching conversation,” I interjected. “But since the Avatar is our only lead towards capturing Zuko and your uncle, perhaps we should mount some sort of pursuit?”
Azula glanced back over her shoulder and then shook her head dismissively. “Perhaps if we had mounts ready we could catch them, but we don’t,” she decided. “An oversight that will not be repeated. The Avatar is certainly skilled at running away, but he does not impress me as a combatant.”
“Hard to catch, easy to bring down.”
“Precisely.” She smiled. “Since you’re so inventive, Liao, perhaps you have an idea of how we can do that?”
I exhaled, hard and then sat down. The adrenaline rush was wearing off and if anything I’d underestimated how much I was going to hurt after pulling that stunt. “The airbender thinks that he’s safe in the sky. I believe that War Minister Qin had some plans to take control of that battlefield for the Fire Nation – something called a war balloon. How fast do you think you can get one deployed down here with a crew?”
Azula took the necessary steps up the chute to check my vitals. “A good plan. I’ll obtain one. But in the mean time, you’re not leaving my sight.” She brushed hair back from my face and then peeled back one of my eyelids. I have no idea what she was looking at, but my moment of weakness left me no energy to contest her. “Pushing yourself like that may not have killed you, but how much use do you think you’d have been against the Avatar like this.” She turned her head slightly and fixed Mai with gimlet eyes. “Are you injured?”
After a moment of self-assessment Mai returned the look. “Only bruised.” One of her sleeves had been half-torn away and her long hair was a mess, but I’d guess that her assessment was correct.
“Good. And Ty Lee?”
Mai shrugged and I cleared my throat. “I left her some loose ends to clear up at the top.”
“Next time, let me do that and take her with you when you do something insanely dangerous.”
I wasn’t too tired to smirk. “I thought that you were bored and wanted some excitement to spice up your life. Besides, if Ty Lee had been hanging off me, I think she’d have battered me to a pulp on the way down.”
“Proving that she is wiser than most believe,” Mai muttered under her breath.
.oOo.
On Azula’s insistence I was provided with a high-backed armchair and servants to carry it everywhere for the next day. And two muscular guards to ensure I didn’t leave my seat unless it was absolutely vital (1). For some inexplicable reason she was of the opinion that I would manage to kill myself if I didn’t sit back and rest. Being hauled around on the chair made me sick to my stomach, not out of any anachronistic objections to having servants carry out menial tasks (someone had to and at least they weren’t slaves) but due to the rocking motion of the chair as I was moved.
As a result, I had had myself placed at one end of a courtyard and – obedient to other, earlier commands from my princess – was supervising at some distance as the servants used two millstones to grind the little cakes of gunpowder back into dust again. I should mention, before anyone suggests that I was merely being reckless with their lives rather than my own, that the cakes had been gently broken into smaller sections not much larger than a coin before doing so. If one of them did spark up then the risk to those doing the grinding was marginal.
A disturbance at the doorway drew my attention away from the scroll I was reading. Mai’s father walked in, his face less troubled than it had been at our earlier meeting. “Lord Seung. I would have thought you would be with your family.”
He smiled slightly. “I was. My daughter had quite a lot to say about you.”
“I doubt that.”
“Well, as her father I do have some ability to read between the lines.” The governor looked over at the grindstones. “I suspect that asking what you’re having them do would be a mistake.”
“Knowledge is power, sir. I’m sure you know how little men and women enjoy sharing power with others.”
“Ah yes.” He frowned. “Mai has given me a rather mixed impression of you, one that raises questions in my mind since she will be travelling in your company on the Princess’ mission. On the one hand, you rescued my son from the kidnappers and quite probably saved my daughter considerable difficulty at the hands of the waterbender. On the other, my own feeling is that she was very nearly killed racing down those chutes with you.”
I nodded. “The latter is an accurate statement.” I imagined that he would be quite upset about that but the expression on his face was simply regretful.
“I haven’t spent as much time with her as I could have. And when I did, my attention was almost always on someone or something else. You and Princess Azula are taking her away now and I have to wonder when Mai grew up.”
There was an awkward silence as I tried to find the words. “With the greatest of respect, Lord Seung. Why are you saying this to me and not to Mai?”
He harrumphed. “There are some things that are hard to say. Most of all those that you...” He swallowed. “I imagine that one day, should your relationship with Princess Azula come to its fruition then you will understand. What I am hoping is that while she is in your care, you will treat Mai the way that you did when you fought the waterbender together... and not as you did in the chute.”
“You want me to look after your little girl.”
Lord Seung hesitated before nodding. “I ask this of you in my family’s name.”
Ouch, formal phrasing. Implying an incurred obligation towards me in return for that favour. “Sir... we’re chasing after the Avatar and the Dragon of the West and the Fire Lord’s son. None of that is going to be safe for any of us and since we’re being totally honest here, my first priority is going to be watching the Princess’ back.” And her front along with any other angles that might present themselves. “So I can’t promise you that.”
His face fell. “Lieutenant...”
“Governor, I’ll do my best to keep Mai alive. She’s a...” Nice girl? Hardly. Homicidal maniac who’s already threatened to cripple me? Accurate, but not suitable for poor sheltered parents. “...friend. I’d do that whatever you said.”
“Thank you. I know you refused the favour, but if there is anything I can do.”
“Actually...” I’d been meaning to do this myself, but I was currently trapped in this damn chair and Azula probably wouldn’t let me out of it for the rest of the day. “I was meaning to get some brasswork done for my little project, but since we’ll be moving fast I don’t think I can stay around while the work is done. If I leave instructions with a smith here, would you mind shipping my order after me?”
He took being asked to play deliveryman quite well and I did thank him very politely. Of course, that probably meant that he thought I owed him a favour. Politics!
.oOo.
I’d underestimated Azula’s resolve over keeping me out of trouble. She didn’t let me out of the chair except to sleep until the war balloon arrived (2). Given that it was about the same as the Mechanist’s prototype and Zuko’s later acquisition, there wasn’t going to be room for the four of us and a crew, which meant that Mai, Ty Lee and I got to learn the ropes while Azula dealt with the ceremony of renaming Omashu as New Ozai. I have to wonder how ‘old’ Ozai felt about it.
“It’ll be interesting to see Zuko again, won’t it Mai?” Ty Lee asked while we were practising our new skills, provoking a slight smile from the other girl. Mai was certainly feline in certain ways, I had come to notice.
“Oh that’s right. You knew him, didn’t you?” I knew, of course.
Ty Lee nodded enthusiastically. “Back when we were all children Lady Ursa brought him with her when she visited the Academy. Mai was very fond of him.”
“...”
I sighed and adjusted course again. All we were doing was circling Omashu at the moment. Our first ‘solo’ flight without having some of the crew who’d brought it here aboard to instruct us. “What was he like back then? I have trouble seeing him as a little kid, the way he was when I met him.”
“You met him?”
Glancing back, I saw them both staring at me in surprise. I hadn’t recounted the one encounter I’d had so far with Zuko yet and I suppose Azula wasn’t keen to admit that Zuko had gotten away, even if it was with Iroh’s help. “Once or twice. We tried taking him into custody the easy way. Told him that Ozai wanted his family close and he was walking right into a cage when some idiot ran his mouth off and gave the game away.”
“Oo! Was that when Iroh threw you into the sea?”
“That’s right.”
Mai looked out over the mountains surrounding Omashu. “What was he like?”
“Iroh?” I asked her.
She just shot me a withering look. Like she was interested in the wellbeing of a man old enough to be her grandfather.
“He’s angry, impatient and doesn’t seem to care about much of anything except getting back into his Daddy’s good graces. Of course, a week or two on the run may have changed him. I have to wonder if his father was like that when Iroh was heir.” Which was an interesting question to ponder at a later time.
Ty Lee scrunched up her brow. “That doesn’t sound like Zuko. He was pretty nice. For a boy.”
“I know it sounds strange, given we’re about the same age. But he really needs to grow up.” I shrugged. “There are usually a few officers a bit like him in the frontline corps. Mostly they die or get career ending wounds before long. If they’re lucky, it’s the Earth Kingdom that does it.”
Okay, that was probably a touch cynical to say to a pair of semi-sheltered rich girls, but what the hell? It wasn’t as if they weren’t used to Azula’s low opinion of her brother. “Don’t get me wrong – he seems to be a decent bender, better than me when you come down to it, and he managed to hound the Avatar from one end of the world to the other – but he’s not the sort of person I’d want backing me up in a tight spot.”
I could see Mai’s fingers tighten around the edge of the basket. Silly name for it, given it’s made of metal, but that’s the technical term. I suppose that using something as flammable as wicker would be foolish around firebenders.
“Now you could say that there are reasons for that and I would agree with you,” I added. “My father never burned my face half off, so I wouldn’t really know. Because right now, that nice boy you mentioned is buried under a ton of resentment against just about everyone in the world. And if either of you lets your guard down, that nice boy might just put you down. Hard.” I smiled thinly. “So don’t lower your guards because you think you know him.”
.oOo.
(1) Sure, I could have probably beaten them up if I was in form – but after all the excitement I wasn’t sure I’d be able to at least until I’d had some time to recover.
(2) And for certain bodily functions.
Liao and Mai both had the same training in handling a fall, even one resulting from such bizarre circumstances. Fortunately it was a relatively straight section or we might have missed the chute. As it was, I had my doubts about managing the fall without further action and since we didn’t have much time before we landed, I acted immediately.
Twisting in mid-air, I grabbed Mai at hip and collar and heaved her upwards. This, of course, slowed her descent very slight at the expense of accelerating mine by the same degree. And then with considerable effort I forced one last burst of fire out of my depleted chi, kicking it downwards and slowing me further.
My knees protested as I landed, bending them to absorb as much of the impact as possible. I even managed to gallantly catch Mai, bridal style, in my arms and softened her landing. It was only after I’d put her down that I saw Azula. She was only a few yards further down the chute, her posture making it quite clear she’d seen the entire spectacular end to my little sleigh ride. She didn’t look happy. Possibly because she didn’t have the Avatar captive at her feet, possibly just because she was docking me points for the landing.
“Liao, what have I told you about recklessness!?”
“Not to let it kill me?” I pressed two fingers against my carotid artery (harder than it sounds since my fingers were unsteady for some reason) and checked my pulse. Hmm, quite fast. “I seem to be still alive.” In fairness, my legs were still a little shaky and I leant against the side of the chute. I had a feeling that when the adrenaline wore off I’d feel a not insubstantial amount of pain.
Azula didn’t seem impressed by my reasoning. “And if you’d blown yourself halfway across the city, do you think that that would be the same? Don’t ever do that again!”
My eyes narrowed. “No.”
“What!”
I stepped forward, trying not to wobble. “You were chasing the Avatar. Alone. And his friends were closing in to support him. You think I was being reckless?” I pointed ahead to where Appa – now with three visible passengers – was clearing the city wall. “However much confidence I have in you, I will always come for you. It’s who I am. And it’s not negotiable.”
Azula’s eyes were wide. She seemed surprised by my words.
“Your boyfriend is insane, Azula.” We both turned to look at Mai, who seemed to have recovered her composure. Her eyes flicked to me. “If you try that again, I’ll just cut your hamstrings. I’m sure Azula wouldn’t mind too much.” She looked back at Azula. “Think of how much harder it would be for him to get into trouble if he was confined to a palanquin.”
Worryingly, she actually looked tempted.
“I hate to interrupt this touching conversation,” I interjected. “But since the Avatar is our only lead towards capturing Zuko and your uncle, perhaps we should mount some sort of pursuit?”
Azula glanced back over her shoulder and then shook her head dismissively. “Perhaps if we had mounts ready we could catch them, but we don’t,” she decided. “An oversight that will not be repeated. The Avatar is certainly skilled at running away, but he does not impress me as a combatant.”
“Hard to catch, easy to bring down.”
“Precisely.” She smiled. “Since you’re so inventive, Liao, perhaps you have an idea of how we can do that?”
I exhaled, hard and then sat down. The adrenaline rush was wearing off and if anything I’d underestimated how much I was going to hurt after pulling that stunt. “The airbender thinks that he’s safe in the sky. I believe that War Minister Qin had some plans to take control of that battlefield for the Fire Nation – something called a war balloon. How fast do you think you can get one deployed down here with a crew?”
Azula took the necessary steps up the chute to check my vitals. “A good plan. I’ll obtain one. But in the mean time, you’re not leaving my sight.” She brushed hair back from my face and then peeled back one of my eyelids. I have no idea what she was looking at, but my moment of weakness left me no energy to contest her. “Pushing yourself like that may not have killed you, but how much use do you think you’d have been against the Avatar like this.” She turned her head slightly and fixed Mai with gimlet eyes. “Are you injured?”
After a moment of self-assessment Mai returned the look. “Only bruised.” One of her sleeves had been half-torn away and her long hair was a mess, but I’d guess that her assessment was correct.
“Good. And Ty Lee?”
Mai shrugged and I cleared my throat. “I left her some loose ends to clear up at the top.”
“Next time, let me do that and take her with you when you do something insanely dangerous.”
I wasn’t too tired to smirk. “I thought that you were bored and wanted some excitement to spice up your life. Besides, if Ty Lee had been hanging off me, I think she’d have battered me to a pulp on the way down.”
“Proving that she is wiser than most believe,” Mai muttered under her breath.
.oOo.
On Azula’s insistence I was provided with a high-backed armchair and servants to carry it everywhere for the next day. And two muscular guards to ensure I didn’t leave my seat unless it was absolutely vital (1). For some inexplicable reason she was of the opinion that I would manage to kill myself if I didn’t sit back and rest. Being hauled around on the chair made me sick to my stomach, not out of any anachronistic objections to having servants carry out menial tasks (someone had to and at least they weren’t slaves) but due to the rocking motion of the chair as I was moved.
As a result, I had had myself placed at one end of a courtyard and – obedient to other, earlier commands from my princess – was supervising at some distance as the servants used two millstones to grind the little cakes of gunpowder back into dust again. I should mention, before anyone suggests that I was merely being reckless with their lives rather than my own, that the cakes had been gently broken into smaller sections not much larger than a coin before doing so. If one of them did spark up then the risk to those doing the grinding was marginal.
A disturbance at the doorway drew my attention away from the scroll I was reading. Mai’s father walked in, his face less troubled than it had been at our earlier meeting. “Lord Seung. I would have thought you would be with your family.”
He smiled slightly. “I was. My daughter had quite a lot to say about you.”
“I doubt that.”
“Well, as her father I do have some ability to read between the lines.” The governor looked over at the grindstones. “I suspect that asking what you’re having them do would be a mistake.”
“Knowledge is power, sir. I’m sure you know how little men and women enjoy sharing power with others.”
“Ah yes.” He frowned. “Mai has given me a rather mixed impression of you, one that raises questions in my mind since she will be travelling in your company on the Princess’ mission. On the one hand, you rescued my son from the kidnappers and quite probably saved my daughter considerable difficulty at the hands of the waterbender. On the other, my own feeling is that she was very nearly killed racing down those chutes with you.”
I nodded. “The latter is an accurate statement.” I imagined that he would be quite upset about that but the expression on his face was simply regretful.
“I haven’t spent as much time with her as I could have. And when I did, my attention was almost always on someone or something else. You and Princess Azula are taking her away now and I have to wonder when Mai grew up.”
There was an awkward silence as I tried to find the words. “With the greatest of respect, Lord Seung. Why are you saying this to me and not to Mai?”
He harrumphed. “There are some things that are hard to say. Most of all those that you...” He swallowed. “I imagine that one day, should your relationship with Princess Azula come to its fruition then you will understand. What I am hoping is that while she is in your care, you will treat Mai the way that you did when you fought the waterbender together... and not as you did in the chute.”
“You want me to look after your little girl.”
Lord Seung hesitated before nodding. “I ask this of you in my family’s name.”
Ouch, formal phrasing. Implying an incurred obligation towards me in return for that favour. “Sir... we’re chasing after the Avatar and the Dragon of the West and the Fire Lord’s son. None of that is going to be safe for any of us and since we’re being totally honest here, my first priority is going to be watching the Princess’ back.” And her front along with any other angles that might present themselves. “So I can’t promise you that.”
His face fell. “Lieutenant...”
“Governor, I’ll do my best to keep Mai alive. She’s a...” Nice girl? Hardly. Homicidal maniac who’s already threatened to cripple me? Accurate, but not suitable for poor sheltered parents. “...friend. I’d do that whatever you said.”
“Thank you. I know you refused the favour, but if there is anything I can do.”
“Actually...” I’d been meaning to do this myself, but I was currently trapped in this damn chair and Azula probably wouldn’t let me out of it for the rest of the day. “I was meaning to get some brasswork done for my little project, but since we’ll be moving fast I don’t think I can stay around while the work is done. If I leave instructions with a smith here, would you mind shipping my order after me?”
He took being asked to play deliveryman quite well and I did thank him very politely. Of course, that probably meant that he thought I owed him a favour. Politics!
.oOo.
I’d underestimated Azula’s resolve over keeping me out of trouble. She didn’t let me out of the chair except to sleep until the war balloon arrived (2). Given that it was about the same as the Mechanist’s prototype and Zuko’s later acquisition, there wasn’t going to be room for the four of us and a crew, which meant that Mai, Ty Lee and I got to learn the ropes while Azula dealt with the ceremony of renaming Omashu as New Ozai. I have to wonder how ‘old’ Ozai felt about it.
“It’ll be interesting to see Zuko again, won’t it Mai?” Ty Lee asked while we were practising our new skills, provoking a slight smile from the other girl. Mai was certainly feline in certain ways, I had come to notice.
“Oh that’s right. You knew him, didn’t you?” I knew, of course.
Ty Lee nodded enthusiastically. “Back when we were all children Lady Ursa brought him with her when she visited the Academy. Mai was very fond of him.”
“...”
I sighed and adjusted course again. All we were doing was circling Omashu at the moment. Our first ‘solo’ flight without having some of the crew who’d brought it here aboard to instruct us. “What was he like back then? I have trouble seeing him as a little kid, the way he was when I met him.”
“You met him?”
Glancing back, I saw them both staring at me in surprise. I hadn’t recounted the one encounter I’d had so far with Zuko yet and I suppose Azula wasn’t keen to admit that Zuko had gotten away, even if it was with Iroh’s help. “Once or twice. We tried taking him into custody the easy way. Told him that Ozai wanted his family close and he was walking right into a cage when some idiot ran his mouth off and gave the game away.”
“Oo! Was that when Iroh threw you into the sea?”
“That’s right.”
Mai looked out over the mountains surrounding Omashu. “What was he like?”
“Iroh?” I asked her.
She just shot me a withering look. Like she was interested in the wellbeing of a man old enough to be her grandfather.
“He’s angry, impatient and doesn’t seem to care about much of anything except getting back into his Daddy’s good graces. Of course, a week or two on the run may have changed him. I have to wonder if his father was like that when Iroh was heir.” Which was an interesting question to ponder at a later time.
Ty Lee scrunched up her brow. “That doesn’t sound like Zuko. He was pretty nice. For a boy.”
“I know it sounds strange, given we’re about the same age. But he really needs to grow up.” I shrugged. “There are usually a few officers a bit like him in the frontline corps. Mostly they die or get career ending wounds before long. If they’re lucky, it’s the Earth Kingdom that does it.”
Okay, that was probably a touch cynical to say to a pair of semi-sheltered rich girls, but what the hell? It wasn’t as if they weren’t used to Azula’s low opinion of her brother. “Don’t get me wrong – he seems to be a decent bender, better than me when you come down to it, and he managed to hound the Avatar from one end of the world to the other – but he’s not the sort of person I’d want backing me up in a tight spot.”
I could see Mai’s fingers tighten around the edge of the basket. Silly name for it, given it’s made of metal, but that’s the technical term. I suppose that using something as flammable as wicker would be foolish around firebenders.
“Now you could say that there are reasons for that and I would agree with you,” I added. “My father never burned my face half off, so I wouldn’t really know. Because right now, that nice boy you mentioned is buried under a ton of resentment against just about everyone in the world. And if either of you lets your guard down, that nice boy might just put you down. Hard.” I smiled thinly. “So don’t lower your guards because you think you know him.”
.oOo.
(1) Sure, I could have probably beaten them up if I was in form – but after all the excitement I wasn’t sure I’d be able to at least until I’d had some time to recover.
(2) And for certain bodily functions.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Is that Lee's real opinion or is he trying to manipulate Mai and Ty Lee?
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Lee? There is no Lee, there is only ZUUUUUUULLL!
Ahem.
Liao has no major issues with Zuko from the latter half of Book Fire. However, at this much earlier stage in his character development Zuko is (as I have put it elsewhere) something of a dick and something of a tool. And Liao has enough on his plate without trying to civilize another self-centred, self-righteous scion of Sozin's line.
Ahem.
Liao has no major issues with Zuko from the latter half of Book Fire. However, at this much earlier stage in his character development Zuko is (as I have put it elsewhere) something of a dick and something of a tool. And Liao has enough on his plate without trying to civilize another self-centred, self-righteous scion of Sozin's line.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Ah, bugger, I meant to type Liao. And yes, Zuko was a bit of a dick. But he had Iroh, and without Liao, Azula wouldn't have anybody. And we all know how that would have ended.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
Well then, let me moderate my answer. While we will not see a lot of the process, Zuko will at a minimum mature at least as well as he does in Book 2 of the cartoon. By that point events will be quite different but I do not intend to bash him and I have no real expectation that he'll come to a bad end.Setzer wrote:Ah, bugger, I meant to type Liao. And yes, Zuko was a bit of a dick. But he had Iroh, and without Liao, Azula wouldn't have anybody. And we all know how that would have ended.
Re: For the Love of a Fire Princess (A:TLA)
I, for one, am not surprised that Zuko and Iroh's actions will be in the background, as you are focusing on Azula's chase after Aang, as well as the other factors going on during the Book of Earth (I am already wondering if Liao will be dressing up as a Kyushi Warrior as well). However, there will be a point where all of Liao's pebble in the pond will ripple into a tidal change. The events in Ba Sihn Si (sp) and the start of the Book of Fire is where I think the real changes will be.drakensis wrote:Well then, let me moderate my answer. While we will not see a lot of the process, Zuko will at a minimum mature at least as well as he does in Book 2 of the cartoon. By that point events will be quite different but I do not intend to bash him and I have no real expectation that he'll come to a bad end.Setzer wrote:Ah, bugger, I meant to type Liao. And yes, Zuko was a bit of a dick. But he had Iroh, and without Liao, Azula wouldn't have anybody. And we all know how that would have ended.
But what will they be? Azula's lightning bolt Missing? Zuko not returning to his Father? Iroh being the Fire Master who teaches Aang? Or will Drakensis surprise us, and the ripples show earlier?
What if Appa had not been captured? His capture forced the Gaang to traverse the Earth Kingdom on foot, and resulted in the Avatar showing in places he otherwise may not have stopped. Why tread the Serpent's Pass, when Appa simply flies over it? Aang's actions on foot also affected Iroh and Zuko, as their paths crossed in surprising ways. Toph having tea with Iroh, before the Gaang and Zuko teamed briefly to fight Azula's group? Never happen if the Gaang has Appa.
Yet... I believe the Book of Earth was much better for Appa's absence. Zuko was not the only one who grew during this Book -- Aang also 'gained grounding' if you'll excuse the pun. There is a big difference between flying over a land, and walking amongst it's people, feeling the land around him. I think Aang learnt more about Earth Bending by walking than he'd have learned flying on Appa.
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.
"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet