Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

001

It has been one month since Azula disappeared in the Forgetful Valley. Fire Lord Zuko sent men to search for her but it was to no avail. His younger sister, even though she has gone crazy, clearly still has her impressive abilities. She covered her tracks so well that even the bounty hunters couldn’t find a scent of her. 

Zuko had put out a bounty for her in hopes that there would be traces of Azula if she went to a village or in another nation. Waiting for months had given him no news about her sister if she was even alive or dead. 

Yet, he couldn’t give up no matter how long he would have to wait.

Zuko knew that if he did give up, there would be no chance of saving Azula. He couldn't fully understand what she had been going through but he wanted to be there for his younger sister no matter what. He knew that in this world, he might be the only person that still believed in her, that she could change as he did in the past.

He just had to believe that Azula was alive.

...

She was alive, which she had thought was unfortunate for her. Azula raised her hand in the bright area that was unfamiliar to her. She was floating inside a body of water that left her back wet. 

The last thing that she remembered was that she wanted to end her life in the lakes of the Forgetful Valley. She had been hiding there for a month with her mind playing with her. Illusions of her mother and Zuko had been bothering her in daylight and even in her dreams.

The hurt she felt whenever she was reminded that her mother doesn’t love her enough continued to replay in her mind. Zuko would appear by her side and talk about the moments they had fun in their childhood. 

The guilt she didn't even know she had would come to pierce her battered heart and the helplessness would follow when she remembered her friends betraying her.

That was when she was awake and when the night came, it would become worse.

She would dream that her mother called her a monster while her father called her a failure, that she should have never been born if she was useless. Zuko would just silently watch her then turn his back on her before disappearing. 

Clamps of a chain would hold her up high in the darkness while her family and the people she thought were her friends would throw insults and laugh at her powerless self hanging up there. They would leave her alone in the darkness before her chains pulled her down in the dark abyss.

Then Azula would face the avatar in that deep abyss and he would take away her firebending, the only proof of everything she worked hard for. 

The guilt, shame, and failure would repeat themselves in a cycle that seemed to drown her in more despair. The loneliness and abandonment crushed her to the point that she shouted, wept, and cried for anyone yet there was no one there by her side.

Even if there was anyone there, no one would answer her call for help. She wasn’t worth any of their time. 

She had nothing and she knew that all of it was her fault. If she were any better, if she did more then maybe there would be something left for her. She did all best though to be perfect and appease the only person she thought loved her yet all of it was for naught.

She didn’t have anything that she could give any more. She couldn’t squeeze even a drop of will enough to keep herself strong. She was finally empty and broken inside. She hated her body that still wanted to breathe even if there is no reason to be alive. 

Slowly but surely, her body and heart became numb every time passing in the whole month. Everything faded in the background making the world black and white in her eyes, the only color left was her blue fire. 

Azula then decided to walk with no purpose. She walked straight into the lake of the Forgetful Valley even if she neck-deep into the water, she didn't stop. She wanted to extinguish this color until there was nothing left in her eyes and her world.

When the darkness of the water swallowed her, she expected to never wake up.

...

Yet here she was awake in another place. What a disappointment.

Azula brushed her hand on top of her head, not feeling her usual top knot. Oh, right. She had cut it off when she was inside the Forgetful Valley when she decided to have her ‘walk’. Now her hair was short and messy to the point that it didn’t even reach her shoulders.

She had been wearing the clothes she wore when she disappeared, the last time she had seen her brother and mother. She washed in the lake alongside her clothes that had become worn out because she would dry them with her fire bending.

Thinking about it, her clothes were still soaking wet. It seemed that she was still floating inside the lake yet she was in a different place.

Azula looked at the place where she woke up. It was a strange forest that seemed to shine from an unknown light source. There were plants that she had never seen before in her life and there were creatures that seemed to float or fly over the gigantic trees that seemed to glow. 

Azula immediately knew where she was and she has heard of this place from her uncle numerous times when she was young.

She was in the Spirit World. She must have accidentally traveled here through the Forgetful Valley.

Well, Azula doesn’t have any plan to move so she closed her eyes and let herself continue her floating. There was no care at all if she drowned or got eaten by a water spirit because that was her plan all along. 

“Child of Fire, it is time to stand up.” A majestic voice rang inside Azula’s mind which made her face frown. She ignored it and continued to close her eyes until she felt her body rising up with some strange energy. Tch, just when she wanted to sleep eternally.

Gold eyes opened up and met a pair of blazing red slitted eyes looking back at her. Azula couldn’t help but gape at the creature that had been flying in front of her which should also be responsible for the energy that made her float on air.

It was a dragon. A blue scaled dragon with a long body yet there were no wings behind his back like the ones depicted in the old scroll Azula had read before in the Fire Nation’s Royal Library. It should be a spirit since she heard that her Uncle Iroh had slain the last one.

“What? Can’t you see I am trying to die here?” Azula snarkily said as she crossed her arm in defiance. She knew that she had nothing to lose anymore, that she had become fearless in the face of anything. She was at that point of insanity already.

“It is still not your time to die, Child of Fire. Your destiny has already been set by the Fates and I am here to make sure you follow it.” The blue dragon told Azula which made her laugh hysterically.

“My destiny is to become the Fire Lord and it has already been stolen from me by Zuko! There is nothing for me left in this world, you freakshow of a lizard!” The young teen screamed with rage in her voice.

“Silence!” The blue dragon shouted inside her mind and used some strange force that made her feel like her soul was being teared up into two. 

Azula screamed and winced in pain, yet her gold eyes filled with rage. She was squirming on air, trying to escape the dragon’s energy but there was no use.

“I am the Azure Dragon King, Ao Guang, the right-hand of the Fire Spirit Agni. I will not take any insolence from a human child like you.” The dragon’s body elongated in front of Azula, looking down on her with eyes like the blazing red sun. 

“I could kill you so easily without even burning you to death.” A crazed smile appeared on the young girl's lips as soon as she heard it.

"Well, that is more like it. Why don't you do it then, O Almighty Dragon King? Just end this worthless life of mine and you'll have no more problem in this world." Azula, while her soul still felt like splitting into two, has spread her arms as she taunts the dragon spirit. Her golden eyes bright like she was excited to have her end.

Being able to talk and move while having her soul tear up by energy bending is a great feat for a normal human. The little human child surprised the Dragon King who was watching her with interest.

“For a person like you, I am sure being alive is much more of a punishment than death already. Having your death will cause me more problems and you have a role to complete in the physical world.” Ao Guang surrounded the young human with his body in a small distance. His red eyes faced her golden eyes who had shown disappointment.

“Could I just wait for the next spirit to devour me? I don’t like you. You’re giving me work when that is the last thing I want right now.” Azula gritted while her golden eyes showed the pain that she was experiencing spiritually and emotionally.

“No, you could not. You should face the reality that you could not escape your destiny. Child of Fire, you are not destined to be the Fire Lord. Your blue flame is the greatest testament of that.” Ao Guang explained to the young girl whose face scrunched up in frustration and pain. He slowly released the energy bending and he saw her body slouch in exhaustion.

“Why? What is a blue flame supposed to signify?” Azula asked in a tone full of doubt, she crossed her arms once more in an act of defiance.

"A blue flame means purity. It is a flame that has reached the highest point that it burns everything, leaving nothing. A perfect flame that destroys, unlike the red flame that signifies life." Ao Guang answered her with a matter-of-fact tone. He exhaled blue flames in the air that lit up their surroundings. Azula watched with an unimpressed look on her face.

"Thank you. I've always been a perfectionist. And a monster." The young teen replied with a nonchalant tone, already accepting it as a fact.

“The blue flames also means that the Fates had deemed you worthy of the role to eradicate the Dark spirits that feed on the souls of the dead.” The Dragon King blew a red flame that showed a vision of people's souls being devoured by different creatures of darkness.

“What? Isn’t the Avatar supposed to be the bridge between the spirits and the humans? Why am I taking his job now?” Azula asked with a baffled face. She raised an eyebrow as she stared at the Dragon King who had flown beside her.

“The war brought by you humans had empowered the Spirit of Darkness and Chaos, Vaatu and it had caused the Dark Spirits to go mad for the energy inside the human souls. Only the Avatar can defeat Vaatu but you can purify the Dark Spirits and protect the souls of the dead.” Ao Guang elucidates for the young human who is also watching the visions inside his flame.

“Protect the souls of the dead? And why should that be?” Azula asked in a doubtful tone. The people are already dead, all they are going to do is to pass on.

“Once a Dark Spirit took hold of a soul, they could corrupt it if they did not devour it and it would become another Dark Spirit. It won’t be able to be guided by the moon and reincarnate.” The Dragon King looked up to a location and Azula followed his gaze.

It was a place where the surroundings were dark as the night. On top of that was a small white temple where it floats on a cloud-like ocean. It was illuminating the reaches of the darkness and if Azula looked closely, it seemed that someone was living in the temple.

Then she turned to the other side of the spirit world, there was a bright flaming chariot that was running on clouds of fire and lightning. Some dragons were flying with the chariot. The chariot was lighting up almost half of the Spirit World. It was like the sun shining over the Physical World.

“That is the Fire Spirit, Agni who acts as the physical world’s provider of fire and lightning while also being the Sun in the sky. That is the creator of all Dragons.” Ao Guang spoke of Agni with a tone of reverence and adoration. Azula watched the Fire Spirit from far away yet she can feel a surge of heat inside her blood.

“The Lineage of the Fire Lords were blessed by the Fire Spirit in the past until the era of Sozin. There was a prophecy that when your father marries your mother, the Fire Nation will be successful and blessed. That is because your brother has been destined to be the Fire Lord while you were destined to right the wrong your bloodline has done.” The blue dragon glanced at the young teen beside him who also looked back at him.

“One will pave the way for the future while the other will cleanse the sins of the past.” Ao Guang matched the intense stare of Azula who stayed silent despite hearing his words.

“Okay, you have convinced me to at least try this destiny thing you have been blabbering about. It is not like I have anything better to do now.” Azula remarked while at the same time sounding disgruntled. Her heart was racing through inside her body, pumping her blood faster.

The Dragon King was giving her another opportunity, a second chance. A purpose to keep on living, she knew. An opportunity that can prove that all her hard work throughout the years of her life was not in vain even when she became the monster that she is now.

A chance that can put worth to her life which her father deemed useless, even though he was the one person who she poured all her efforts to because she thought he loved her. She wanted to prove him wrong. 

"So how are we going to start this? I can't even see spirits no matter how sharp my eyes are in the physical world." The young teen sat on air crossed-legged and looking incredibly relaxed at her situation.

“I am here to grant you a blessing that will help you fulfill your duty.” The blue dragon flew in front of Azula and raised his claw on her face. Touching the girl’s forehead, he pierced her skin with a single talon and dragged it down to her cheeks, directly passing over her left eye. 

Azula screamed in pain and cursed the dragon in front of her. She clutched the bleeding left side of her face and curled herself in a ball because of the intense pain she could feel from the depths of her soul. 

“If you could survive the change then you are worthy of being the Dragon King’s kin and following your destiny.” The blue dragon released his energy and dropped Azula on the lake where she woke up. His fiery red eyes watched her struggle on air before she flopped inside the lake.

The body of water boiled the moment Azula entered it due to whatever the dragon king did to her. 

Inside the lake, Azula couldn't feel anything except for the intense pain inside her. She felt like every part of her body was boiling up like magma and her bones were crushing themselves into pieces until they turned into dust. She had never felt so much pain in her life that she wanted to tear off her skin from the overheating change inside her body.

Before her consciousness disappeared, she cursed the giant lizard who was watching her from above.

Chapter Text

002

Gold eye opened and its owner cursed.

Azula thought that it was all a dream. Well she hoped to Agni it was all a dream, yet clearly, the stinging pain slowly receding all over her body was proof enough that it was all real.

If it was not enough proof, the gigantic lizard who was watching her with interest overturned all her hopes into nothing.

“Here I thought that you were going to perish. Well done, you have passed my trial of change. you are officially a kin of mine, Child of Fire.” The blue dragon stared at Azula with satisfaction as she was once again raised in front of him with his energy bending. 

“Who's your kin?! I am cursing you to death, you giant lizard!” The young teen gritted as she wanted to attack the Dragon King yet she was too weak to even move.

"Now, now. There is no need for a tantrum, Child. You need to change before you can fight the Dark Spirits. Becoming my kin will grant you the abilities of a dragon." Ao Guang turned Azula to face the lake with his bending to see her reflection.

Azula’s eyes widened when she saw her face with a long but healed jagged scar running down her left eye which remained close till now. With a little pain throbbing inside her eye, she opened it slowly to see if it was also healed. 

A blue eye stared back at her from her reflection. It was the same color as the Dragon King’s scales. Azula’s reflection stared back with gold-blue eyes and a long scar running down her left cheek which reminded her of Zuko’s scar, it was in the same location as his.

“What did you do to me?” Azula asked as she was raised on the same level as the dragon's head. Her gold-blue eyes stared at the fire-red eyes with wonder itched on her face.

“I gave you the blessing of a Dragon’s kin. It will grant you the ability to see the spirits and the strength of a dragon.” The blue dragon expounded for his new human kin and watched her face react with bafflement.

“You give me more power? Didn’t you know what I did and yet you trusted me with more power? Aren’t you afraid that I will kill Zuko with this?” Azula couldn’t help but ask the Dragon King who she thought was intelligent. One couldn’t be so smart to trust a crazy person with more power unless he wanted her to wreak havoc.

“Who said that I trust you? I placed some restrictions when I gave you the blessing. For one, I know that you didn’t want to be the Fire Lord anymore and the only person you still care about is your older brother.” The blue dragon sounded smug as he circled the frowning human child.

“But what about other people you say? Well, You can’t absolutely kill humans or spirits that are not crazed by chaos, you can only hurt them when they have the intent to kill you. You can’t kill yourself. You must kill the Dark Spirits around you. The Dragon side of you will automatically move to stop if you try to kill yourself or others around you.” Ao Guang explained the restrictions he had placed on her soul.

"Well, there goes my fun. Your blessing is stifling and annoying. So what abilities did I get from you? Can I turn into a dragon now?" Azula inquired while having a nonchalant expression on her face and a raised eyebrow directed to the blue dragon.

"No, you cannot transform into a dragon but you have the senses, strength, power, and stamina of a dragon. Being kin of mine also added great healing abilities.” Ao Guang proudly said to his newest human kin. The last time he had one was when Agni let him bless the first Fire Lord and the first Sun Warrior.

“Wow, I am not impressed.” Azula gave the dragon a slow clap to further drive her dissatisfaction. What is the use of these abilities when she couldn't use them for herself? Right, it was for her destiny.

“The Fates also wanted you to help the souls of the dead to pass on. So they granted you the ability to see the past of the dead to help them relieve their regrets and pass over to the guidance of the Moon Spirit.” Ao Guang ignored the young teen’s blatant disregard of his blessings.

“You’re going to give me more work? I thought this was more of a search and destroy because I am not a shaman or a monk. That’s more of the Avatar’s turf.” Azula balked at the idea of saying prayers for the souls of the dead. She is not shaving her head for this.

“The Fates gave you this role as atonement for your lineage’s work in disrupting the balance of the world.” Ao Guang pointed out with a serious look on his visage. It was a hundred years of disruption of the world’s balance and it was placed on the shoulders of the girl in front of him along with her brother’s.

“Your path is not to walk in the light but in the shadows. Reincarnation of the souls needed to be restored. The grievance of the hundred years war not only left regrets that trapped the dead in the physical world, but it also empowers the chaos of the Spirit World." The blue dragon told Azula in detail what the Fates wanted from her. He released a breath of red fire that gave her a vision.

“Your role is to protect the souls of the dead and relieve their regrets so that they may follow the guiding light of the Moon Spirit. At the end of that light was the cleansing water of the Ocean Spirit that will clear away their memories and sins.” Red eyes met the gold-blue pair as the dragon explained to the human girl watching him.

“Their cleansed soul will be given a new breath of life by the Fire Spirit. This is the path of Reincarnation for normal human beings who aren’t given the chance to become a spirit or aren't the Avatar.” Ao Guang continued as he circled Azula who had an inquisitive look on her face.

“Well, I find it laughable that the Fates created a monster to fight against other monsters. How convenient for them.” The young teen sneered at the role she was given. Her fire bending which she perfected with all her efforts to please her father, a monster in the eyes of others. It will be used to kill other monsters.

“All of your experiences have led you to this path because of your destiny. At the end of your journey, you will realize the purpose of everything that happened to you. Why you were given your talents, why you can’t die yet, and why have you suffered. For in this world, there is no such thing as a coincidence.” The blue dragon looked wistful as he said this to Azula, making her feel like there was something inside his words as his fiery red eyes stared far away.

“If you say so. Now, how am I going to start this destiny of mine? Do we have to call the Avatar?” Azula’s face contorted into disgust at the thought of asking her former enemy any kind of help.

“There is no need. You will come back from where you came from.” Ao Guang released the energy bending that was holding Azula and dropped her once again in the lake below them. 

“You mean by drowning again?!” The young teen managed to shout at the laughing blue dragon dancing in the skies above her.

“Good luck, little dragon.” Azula heard before she went under the water. She tried to swim up but there seems to be some force pulling her down. 

No matter what she did, the force grabbed her like chains, and with her last breath, the darkness surrounded her.

Chapter Text

003

In the peaceful lake of the Forgetful Valley, a teenage girl arose from the depths of it. 

Azula was starting to hate waking up in bodies of water. She was gasping for her breath, inhaling the air of the spiritual forest. Her clothes were as tattered as before and her hair was as short as when she cut off her top knot. Her eyes were watching her reflection.

The long scar running down her cheek and the blue eye was still there. It just meant that it was not a dream, meeting the Dragon King.

Azula knew that the damned lizard was not lying about granting her the abilities of a dragon.

 She swam half the size of the lake at a speed not possible for a normal human, yet she was not even breathless. She even tried fire bending and that resulted in her flames being larger and hotter than they should be.

Even just by punching a large tree, she left a large gaping hole in its trunk. She could hear and see from miles away if she focused her senses on a specific area.

She can only sigh that she had to start from scratch in her practice to control her newly acquired abilities. Deep inside her heart though, she was feeling a warmth in her numb heart. It felt like finding a purpose gave her vigor in the coming days.

Her hallucinations haven't gone away though but she is treating them as background noises now. She would even talk to illusionary Zuko now though she would only respond to him.

The Forgetful Valley was the place Azula chose to train as only the desperate would dare to enter this place. For the next few months, she trained to control herself so unlike when she was in her younger years. In those days, she would train to unleash her rage to be the living proof of the monster her mother feared she’d become.

Now that she became a monster, she would train to control herself because there would be a backlash if she accidentally hurt a person or a spirit.

It did occur once when she was training in the spiritual forest of the valley. She accidentally burnt an animal spirit in hiding. The soul tearing appeared inside her body like the one that the Dragon King did to her back in the Spirit World. She had to put all of her energy to stay conscious through the punishment racking up her mind and soul. 

The punishment lasted half a day and half of that left Azula weaker than she would like. She suspected that if she did break the restrictions intentionally, the punishment would be longer and much worse.

Azula practiced her fire bending from the basics to the forms she invented herself. Her blue flames color became more deeper and concentrated while her lightning became faster and sharper. 

It was the sixth month of her training that the day to leave and go back to the civilization had come.

It was actually in the evening when the full moon was high up in the night sky.

Azula was roasting some rabbit she had caught for her dinner. She was sitting on the roots of an old tree while in front of her was her campfire cooking the animal she hunted. 

She was planning to eat the roasted meat when a voice called out to her name. With her sensitive hearing, she knew that it came from behind her.

Azula turned and saw a figure of a girl almost the same age as her. She was wearing a flowing white dress and her hair was white and long, flowing down behind her back. She was beautiful and ethereal under the moonlight that shone in the forest.

She was a Spirit, Azula knew. The floating above the ground was a dead giveaway.

"Good evening. It would be a pleasure to meet you, O Great Moon Spirit, but I am having my dinner and it's not enough for the both of us to share." The fire bender teen stood up and gave a bow to the white-haired spirit. Her steaming rabbit meat is still on her hand as she spoke.

Since becoming the Dragon King's kin, her appetite grew enormously and she hated it. She thought that she needed to replenish the energy she spent like an equivalent exchange of energy; however, Azula knew deep in her heart that dragons are just gluttons.

“There is no need. I am here to deliver a message from the Dragon King. He asked me to tell you that it is time to start. The gates of the Spirit World were forcibly opened and some Dark Spirits were already in this plane.” The Moon Spirit told her with a soft smile, her face serene like she was not bothered by the events at all.

"Okay fine. O Great Moon Spirit, is the Avatar informed of this, or am I the only one having to clean up the mess?" Azula raised an eyebrow and took a large bite on her rabbit meat, unlike a princess that she was taught to be. She decided to throw out the princess' etiquette when she was thrown into prison. Having a dragon side in her just let out her more wild tendencies.

“The Avatar has been informed. You can also call me Yue the next time we meet. Farewell, Azula, the Dragon King’s kin.” With that, the Moon Spirit or Yue, faded into the moonlight. Azula was watching her with a nonchalant expression while chewing her rabbit meat.

“That is not only my imagination right, Zuzu?” The young teen suddenly asked her illusionary older brother who looked like he wanted to take a bite of her dinner. He appeared beside her out of thin air like usual. 

The difference between the real Zuko and her illusionary one was their eyes. Her illusionary brother has blue eyes the same shade as her left eye.

"Yes. She is real. Now, are you going to share your meat?" The Zuko in her imagination was standing beside her and staring at her food.

"Nope," Azula replied and took another bite, just to show off.

Chapter Text

004

“What are you going to do first, Lala?” Phantom Zuko asked Azula who was cleaning up her tracks, the campsite which she used, inside the Forgetful Valley. 

Azula stood at the exit of the Forgetful Valley with nothing on hand like she had when she entered the place. She had her black shoulder-length hair down while her clothes were still the Fire Nation clothing, only faded and tattered from overuse.

“For starters, I’d like to find some new clothes that don't scream vagrant and some coins for traveling.” The teenage girl replied to her illusionary brother who hummed at her reply. 

“I can’t exactly fly like the Avatar so travel on land is the next option. It would be nice to have a mongoose lizard with me.” Azula muttered to herself as she walked by the clearing of the valley.

“You had it sorted out then. You don’t need me accompanying you anymore, Lala.” The phantom Zuko with a smile, stood at the entrance to the Forgetful Valley letting Azula pass by him.

The young teenage girl turned to face him with gold-blue eyes and asked him quietly, “Are you finally going to disappear?”

“No, I’ll probably appear when you need me again.” A boyish smile came into her illusionary brother’s lips. Azula was reminded again of the simpler days in the Palace.

“Tch, I didn’t need you.” Azula turned away from him and walked forward in the direction of the village where her mother grew up, Hira’a. The phantom of her brother walked inside the valley and disappeared into the shadows.

The young teen stopped on her tracks, contemplating her need to look back but she didn't. Instead, she looked at the blue sky above her before letting out a sigh.

“See you later then.”

…

Azula reached the Hira’a Village outskirts after a few days and decided to steal the drying clothes at one of the houses. She thought that they had so many of them, they wouldn’t know if one went missing.

It was civilian clothing, so what she had was a light red top with gray sleeves that covered her arms halfway, black loose pants. She also took a red hooded cloak and wore it over her head as she walked down the streets.

Azula noticed that there were only a few numbers of people that walked along the street of the village. The windows of some houses were closed while the people walking about were stealing glances warily like they were afraid of something. 

She remembered that the Hira’a village was bustling with people the last time she had come here with Zuko and his friends. There would be plays held in public while the audience came in with a crowd. 

Now, it almost felt like a ghost town with only a small number of shops opened and no acting troupe performing on the streets. It was just a few months since she disappeared in the Forgetful Valley, the village shouldn’t change this much unless something happened.

Azula had shrugged it off since it wasn’t her problem. Maybe the economy went bad through the few months. She ignored that it wouldn’t explain the fear in the eyes of the people she walked by.

She saw the sign of a tavern and entered once she knew it was opened. She might be able to find some easy work for some coins. Seeing the inside of the tavern, it was the same as the streets of the Hira’a village. It was almost empty except for a few drunk patrons. 

She sat on one of the barstools while the bar owner came to her. Azula closed her left eye and turned to the large man who was wiping a glass on hand. She decided to hide her left eye in front of normal people since it would attract more attention than she’d want.

“Aren’t you a little young to be drinking, kid?” The bar owner asked the young teen who has a long scar running down from her forehead down to her left cheek. How unfortunate, the girl would look pretty if it wasn’t for her scar.

“I’m not here for a drink. I’m just passing by and I was wondering what happened here.” Azula replied and turned to look around the whole tavern with only less than ten people inside.

“If you’re passing by then, you should leave now, kid. There was a curse that fell on the whole village, you might get caught in it and never be able to leave.” The bar owner warned the young teen with a face full of seriousness.

“A curse? I passed by here a few months ago but I never heard of such a thing.” Azula commented while the bar owner sighed.

“Well, it happened a month ago when some villagers fell unconscious and now they won’t wake up. They were checked by the village doctor yet from what he could tell, the victims were all healthy. They were sleeping yet nothing could wake them up, no matter what we did.” The bar owner spoke with an exhausted tone in his voice. 

“Even the visiting merchants didn’t escape from the curse. The news spread out and now, no one would come to trade with the village. As you can see, even the locals are afraid to come out of their houses so the business is suffering.”  

“I see. How unfortunate.” Azula wondered if it involved a dark spirit. 

Thinking about it, the Dragon King never told her how she would find her targets. He told her what her work was supposed to be but never explained how she is going to do it.  Such an incompetent giant lizard.

“Nevermind the curse, do you know any small job here in town? I need some money to leave.” Azula inquired while tapping her nail on top of the wooden bar.

“For girls? None since the acting troupe closed up because some of their actors were also victims of the curse. Other women were forbidden to go out of their houses.” The bar owner answered while wiping another glass.

“How about for men then?” This question made the bar owner wary.

"Hunting, I guess. The market is in demand of meat since the hunters were too scared of the curse to hunt for animals." The bar owner pondered out loud.

“Oh, perfect then. I suppose I’ll try that instead. Thank you for the information, I’ll pay you for it when I come back.” Azula stood up from her stool in a smooth movement while the bar owner stared at her in a daze.

“H-hey, don’t do it. It’s too dangerous for you, kid. You might get cursed!” The bar owner anxiously called out to her before Azula stepped out of the tavern,

“I’m already cursed, adding one more wouldn't make it worse.” A smirk came upon Azula’s lips as she lifted her hand to touch the scar on her face before leaving completely, ignoring the sputter of the bar owner. She opened her left blue eye and pulled her hood lower to hide it.

“Now then, where is the closest forest?” Azula muttered to herself before noticing something in the corner of her right eye.

A man was curled up into a ball on the tavern's door, he was wearing Fire Nation armor that implies he was a soldier in the Sergeant class. The only thing that was strange to him was his see-through figure and the huge gaping hole in his chest through his armor.

A human spirit.

Azula narrowed her eyes at the human spirit beside her since she had never seen one before. It would be helpful to know the difference between the human one and the dead one in the future.

The dead one still looked like a human, yet there was a strange glow surrounding him. His slightly faded existence and a gaping hole in his chest gave way to the fact that he was dead.

The man suddenly turned in her direction and his eyes widened in surprise. He stood up in front of Azula and pointed to himself while saying, “You, you can see me?”

Azula stared at him intensely then turned away and walked towards the direction of the forest.

“Wait!” The dead soldier ran after the strange teenager who could see him. Ever since he died, no one had been able to see him unless they were also dead like him or a spirit from the Spirit World. He spent a year traveling back to his home yet once he came here, a disaster had fallen in his village.

Azula continued to ignore the spirit who had been chasing and nagging her until she reached the forest near the Hira’a Village, in the opposite direction of the Forgetful Valley.

“Use your brain. Oh wait, it's probably rotten by now. I can’t talk to you in the village without having people think I am insane.” Azula turned to the spirit before grabbing him by the neck and growled at him. 

Her gold-blue eyes glared at spirit intensely which quietened him up in fear. The dead soldier was surprised and scared at her ability to touch him. Who knows what the teenager would do to him now that she is not a normal human.

He heard from the other dead spirits that normal humans couldn’t see or touch them without going through meditation, rituals, or separating their spirit from their body. 

Yet the human girl in front of her defies this logic which makes her scarier.

“Well, I am insane but I don’t exactly want the whole world to know.” She added in an afterthought before releasing her hold on the dead soldier.

“You-what are you?” The spirit blurted out with astonishment in his voice.

"Me? A monster. Can't you tell?" Azula gave the man a terrifying smirk that made him back away from her.

“Wait… I don’t care if you are a monster. Please help me save my sister!” The dead spirit tried to grab Azula’s arm but he stopped when it burst into blue flames.

“Don’t touch me, you insolent fool.” A dangerous look came into those gold-blue eyes which made the soldier step back. 

“A blue flame… You’re Princess Azula.” The soldier blurted out while staring at the flame surrounding Azula’s hand. 

There was only one famous firebender who could produce blue flames. He knew of the cruel and brutal princess of their nation. He didn't know if she would help but she was his last hope.

A terrified expression came to his face yet it quickly changed to a stubborn one. He kneeled in front of the teenage girl and bowed his head on the ground.

“Her highness, please help me save my sister!” The dead spirit bellowed, his voice filled with desperation. His image reminded Azula of a certain person.

Azula stared at him for a long while before sighing. She knew she had no choice because protecting the spirits was in her job description. She already had a suspicion that a dark spirit was involved in the supposed curse.

“Raise your head and explain to me what happened to your sister.” Azula crossed her arm while looking down at the dead soldier.

The dead soldier raised his head with hope in his eyes. He opened his mouth and explained what happened to the Hira’a Village.

One month ago, a dark spirit came to the village and attacked the departed spirits who haven’t passed through the guide of the moon because of their regrets. 

It ate a lot of souls until he was the only one left in the village.

The dark spirit wasn’t satisfied yet and started to attack the living during their sleep. It took their souls rendering the villagers in a comatose state yet it can’t eat the souls because they were chained by the bond of the body. One of those villagers was his sister.

“It must be biding its time until the bond deteriorates and releases the spirit connection, Her Highness.” The soldier explained to Azula who narrowed her eyes at him.

“You don’t need to call me ‘Her Highness’ anymore. How long does the bond last?” 

“I-it depends on the person’s will to live. The stronger a person’s attachment to the physical world, the stronger the soul’s bond to the body.” The dead man looked down on the ground where he was kneeling.

"You should hope that your sister is as attached as you in the physical world," Azula responded before walking around the forest. The dead soldier followed her, passing through the solid objects of nature.

"What's your name, Sergeant?" The teenage girl brushed away a few shrubs while sniffing around with the soldier looking at her in confusion.

“Zhang Li. I’m formerly a local from Hira’a village.” The soldier responded promptly.

“Do you know where the dark spirit could be?” Azula turned to look at her left side and change towards that direction. A small lake could be seen from their distance.

“No, I could only feel its presence when the night comes and it would try to snatch the villagers in their dreams.” Zhang Li answered while wondering where the former princess was going.

“Then, I’ll move out when the night comes. For now, my priority is food and money so please shut your mouth starting now.” Azula ordered and narrowed her eyes forward when she heard movements from the opposite shrub of the lake.

The dead soldier watched the young teen crouch down to hide in the shrubs while staring intensely at the other side of the lake. He felt like he was watching a tigerdillo hunt. The former princess’s body was bunched up like she was readying to lunge at the creature opposite of them.

A large armadillo bear appeared in the clearing and from the looks of it, it was aware of the supposed prey hiding from it. It was sniffing around that reminded the soldier of what Azula did before in the forest.

An armadillo bear? Azula doesn’t want to destroy its pelt because she knew that it would be more expensive that way when she sold it to the market. So Fire Bending is the last option here. 

But it’s not a problem for her, fighting with only physical strength now. It might also be a good test on how strong she is now against larger animals. 

Zhang Li was going to warn the Fire Nation’s princess but she had already propelled herself in unbelievable speed towards the armadillo bear by producing fire under her feet. She appeared in front of the large animal’s face and stopped on air by extinguishing her fire.

Azula twisted her body on air to give the armadillo bear a back fist on its face. The large animal's head snapped and its body flew over the lake towards the direction where the young teen came from. 

Azula landed and went into a fighting position, waiting for the armadillo bear to get up. Yet after a few minutes passed, the animal didn’t get up anymore. She relaxed her fighting stance and walked towards the armadillo bear.

Zhang Li who was standing close to the large animal had his mouth gaping at the former princess who crouched bent down to check on the armadillo bear.

“Hm...It’s dead. Looks like I broke its skull. I was expecting more from this.” Azula commented while turning the animal's head sideways. A dent can be seen on the head of the large animal.

“W-what was that?” The dead soldier uttered in disbelief while he re-evaluates his views in his whole life and death. The spectacle he had witnessed seemed like a dream but the dead don't dream so it can only be the truth.

The former princess had sent an armadillo bear with one hit and killed it.

“Didn’t I say it earlier? I’m a monster.” A smirk came into Azula’s lips as she carried the armadillo bear and hung it over her shoulder. She walked towards the direction of the Hira’a village, dragging the large animal with one hand.

Zhang Li could only believe the young teenage girl as he followed her back.

Chapter Text

005

Azula sat on the bar stool with plenty of meals in front of her. The bar owner was giving her baffled glances with how many plates she had already finished and it was piling up beside her.

The bar owner doubted at first if a girl with her stature could even finish the row of meals she had ordered. Now, seeing her eat so much made his jaw drop in awe at the unbelievable sight.

He still couldn’t believe that the girl hunted an armadillo bear and sold it to the market early this afternoon. It had surprised everyone and she became the gossip of the whole village, the girl with the red hood.

No one had seen her face clearly except for the bar owner as she had always kept her hood up even now that she was eating in the tavern. 

Zhang Li was sitting beside the former princess who was gobbling up her meal but he was staring at the bar owner like imprinting his image in his mind. Even when the older man moved away, he followed him with his gaze.

Azula noticed that the dead soldier was watching the bar owner intensely but she ignored it in favor of her food. She was so hungry since coming out of the Forgetful Valley and it's been a while since she had eaten a cooked meal with flavoring.

“Thank you for the food. Is there any place where I could stay the night, like an inn?” Azula asked the bar owner while drinking her cup of water. The bar owner didn’t want to give her any alcohol and it was fine, she didn’t want to drink anything that would affect her performance later.

“The inn had been closed since the curse incidents but if you want, I have a small room available at my house. It’s not like I can leave a girl of your age out in the cold streets.” The bar owner offered Azula who gave him an evaluating look before bowing her head.

“Then I’ll take your offer but this is my pay for my stay. I don’t like owing people.” Azula placed a gold coin before standing and walked away from the bar while the old man called out to her. The dead soldier followed her from behind without thinking.

“Hey, where are you going, kid? This is too much and it’s dangerous at night here. You don’t even know the way to my house.” The bar owner forewarned the young teenage girl.

"I have my ways to find the place later. I still have something to do so I'll see you later, old man." With that, the young girl left the tavern waving her hand as a farewell.

…

The moon was rising in the night sky bright and serene, untouched by the eerie atmosphere of the Hira’a Village as the darkness wraps it in an embrace. All the lights of every household have been put out while every door has been locked because of fear.

Fear that they will be the next victim of the curse haunting their village.

Azula was sitting on the rooftop of the tavern while watching the moon up in the night sky. A cold breeze made her black hair sway as she had already removed her hood. 

Zhang Li was standing behind her while alertly watching the surrounding of the whole village. His gaze would sometimes stay on a certain house close in the row of houses.

“So when is that cursed thing coming around? Because I have been waiting for a while now and nothing is happening. I hate wasting my time." Azula asked the spirit behind her with an annoyed tone.

“It should be close now, Her High-...Young Miss.” The soldier perked up with nervousness when the former princess glared at him for his mistake. 

Young Miss was the compromise Azula had because she wouldn’t let Zhang Li call her ‘Her Highness’ and it would be too uncomfortable for him to call the former princess of their nation by her given name.

“Aren’t you going to hide like you always did from the dark spirit?” Azula mockingly asked the dead soldier.

Zhang Li kept a determined face while facing forward, his hands behind his back which was ramrod straight. “No, Young Miss. I’m not going to leave until I know my sister is safe.” 

"Ah, I see. I won't save you though if the dark spirit tried to attack you." The former princess leaned her head on her arm and narrowed her eyes in the abnormal foggy state of the village. It seemed to be coming from the forest where she hunted the armadillo bear.

“I won’t get in your way, Young Miss.” Zhang Li responded while his body was starting to shake uncontrollably. He had seen the fog so many times and he knew what would be coming next.

Azula stood up from where she was sitting on and winced as she felt the scar on her face starting to burn intensely. So this is how she'd know if there was any dark spirit close to her location. The Dragon side of her will warns her as the Azure Dragon King told her.

“We have to go.” The young teen ordered the dead soldier as she jumped down in quick succession from the rooftop to the ground. The spirit followed her, fleeting down towards the surface like a cloth blown by the wind.

“Where are we going, Young Miss?” Zhang Li asked as he ran after the former princess.

"We are going to meet them before the dark spirit gets into the village, of course. Or do you prefer to fight here in your village where I will burn a few houses down?" Azula retorted before she turned to enter a small space between the houses and headed towards the forest where the fog had been coming from.

“Thank you for the consideration, Young Miss.” Zhang Li replied with sincerity in his voice. 

The two entered the forest that was swallowed up by the fog where one couldn’t even see clearly where they were going. Zhang Li would’ve gotten hit multiple times by the trees if he didn’t pass through because he was dead already. Azula on the other hand has eyes that could pierce through the fog like an animal.

They had reached a large clearing surrounded in a circle by nothing except for trees. Azula stopped in the center of the clearing and readily went to her fighting stance. A smell wafted through her nose that made her want to vomit. 

It was the smell of death, like the decaying bodies of the animals she hunted before in the Forgetful Valley.

The dark spirit was close, Azula knew as she narrowed her eyes at the thick fog in front of them. Zhang Li hid on the tree behind the former princess because he knew that he can’t fight and would only get in the way. 

A few moments of silence passed before Azula had thrown fire in the soldier's direction. Zhang Li was so stunned that he couldn't move until he heard something burning behind him.

It was a large teal spider web that was burning on the ground with blue flames.

A light came up above the dead soldier, and when he looked up, Zhang Li was horrified. Up above the tree he was hiding in, a human-sized brown spider was hanging on with eight legs. It has eight red eyes with a star lighting up hanging on its head. Its teeth are large and jagged while salivating at the sight of him. It has a long tail at its back like a scorpion that produced the web.

A blue fire slashed the air, slicing across the face of the dark spirit who shrieked in pain. Zhang Li used it as a chance to run away from the creature towards Azula who was standing in the middle of the clearing, her hands pointed in two directions. 

One in front of her and one on her left, where the human-sized spider was still shrieking in anger at her.

“You forgot to mention that there were two dark spirits here.” Azula calmly told the dead soldier hiding behind her. Her gold-blue eyes narrowed in front of her. She knew that something huge was coming, she could hear it and smell the stench of death coming closer.

“I didn’t know! I-I had only seen one from afar and it was not that small!” Zhang Li stammered from behind her, he could feel the heavy pressure of the dark spirits around him.

Azula glanced at the human-sized dark spirit and remembered what the Dragon King told her. It must be a human soul corrupted instead by the dark spirit that came from the Spirit World.

A large hulking figure came from the fog in front of her which quickly took her attention. A large light was piercing through the fog, higher than the trees around them. Surely, the appearance of the dark spirit appeared in front of them.

“Oh, this is strange. Why can I smell the cursed Dragon King here?” A hissing voice came from the large dark spirit in front of Azula. 

In front of her was a brown spider that looked a lot like the human-sized one. It's just larger than the trees around them. It was covered by a dark miasma that was accompanied by a stronger smell of death.

“You take the smaller one. Looks like my hands will be full with the one in front.” Azula ordered the dead soldier to hide behind her.

“Impossible, I can’t firebend in spirit form.” Zhang Li lost all his facade of bravery in the face of eternal destruction.

“Tch, make yourself useful then. Distract it or be a bait, Soldier. You can’t save your sister by hiding in behind me, you fully grown dead man.” Azula grabbed the dead soldier by the cuff of his armor and threw him in the direction of the smaller spider spirit.

By mentioning his sister once more, Zhang Li's face transforms into one with determination. He crashed on the ground close to the human-sized spider spirit and quickly rolled to his feet to stand up.

He can’t be useless again when his family is in danger. He was unable to accompany them in times of trouble but now that he is still here, he has to do something.

“Try and catch me, you giant bug of shit!” He ran in front of the human spider and evaded its attempt to catch him with its tail web. He went deeper into the forest, away from the direction of the Hira’a village. 

Zhang Li was a local of the village and he also accompanied some hunters before he joined the army. He’d use his knowledge of escape from the spider spirit until the former princess defeats the larger one. 

Well, he hoped that she could defeat it, or else there would be no hope for all of them unless the Avatar came blazing through for them.

…

"You can see me… It must mean you're in the boundary between the two realms. Human child, why do you smell like that cursed dragon?" The dark spider spirit asked the teenage girl with gold-blue eyes staring at him.

“I don’t see the need to give you an explanation.” Azula generated lightning and directed it to the giant spirit. 

It was blocked by a large ball of teal spider web which quickly burnt it. Then the spider spirit sent a barrage of webs in her direction.

Azula jumped back and threw fire back at them, burning it before it could even touch her. She landed on her feet and kicked a series of fire lashes in the spider's direction.

“Nevermind then, I’ll just eat your soul. Those firebending of yours are useless against me.” The dark spirit swatted the blue fire with its tail before screaming, her fire left slashes of burnt marks at its tail, the wound revealed a teal-colored flesh.

“How?! It must be that Dragon King’s fault.” The larger spider spirit swung its wounded tail swiftly in Azula’s direction which the young teen blocked with her right arm. 

The human girl was forced back by the heavy strength of the attack and flipped on-air, wincing at the broken bone in her arm before sending a ball of fire in the spider's direction with her left arm. The spider spirit blocked it by firing a large number of teal webs from its tail.

Azula could feel her broken bone healing itself at a fast pace while she dodged the series of assaults from the giant spider spirit's tail. Its thrust pierced the ground and left a huge hole on the surface. 

If it hit a human, they would die with a large gaping hole on their body.

She should’ve guessed that spirits should be stronger than living animals. She wouldn’t need a body upgrade if a normal human could defeat it. She overestimated her strength because of the armadillo bear’s defeat earlier on the day. The dark spirit’s power should be stronger than her.

She is definitely at a disadvantage in terms of strength. This is a challenge but it's not like she couldn't win against it.

Her body felt heating up as she dodged a swat of the tail, rotating her body on-air while a smirk came upon her lips. She sent a slash against the thin part holding the tip of the spider's tail, making it shriek as it wound on the tail.

Azula landed forward and kicked down on the ground to send a large wall of fire right at the spider spirit's face, blocking its view. It turned to avoid her attack but it's too big and her blue fire attacked one of its legs, wounding it deeply.

The human girl twisted her body to attack the tail again behind her with lightning at the same spot she left a wound on. A flash of blue lightning tore into the wound on the tail but it was not enough to cut the tip-off.

“You puny human!” The spider rapidly turned its tail to attack Azula with a barrage of ball webs, one thicker than the last. 

Azula punched and kicked fire at the attack furiously, every single one burned until she didn’t notice one hiding behind a larger web, passing through and hitting her body, sticking it on the tree at her back. 

“It would be troublesome to let you live longer.” The large spider spirit crawled towards her and thrust the sharp tip of its huge tail directly at Azula’s chest.

Quickly burning the web wasn’t enough for her to escape the attack, it only gave her a moment to redirect the fatal attack to her right shoulder. Azula was pierced to the tree on her shoulder, bleeding profusely at the large edge of the tail’s tip.

The young human girl screamed in pain as she felt her shoulder bones pierced through along with the top of her ribs.

“It’s your fate to die here, human. Just curse your weakness.” The dark spider spirit dug its tail deeper on Azula’s shoulder, making her writhe in pain. It opened its mouth to try and swallow the human girl in half along with the tree she was locked on.

"You fell for it." A manic smile came upon the former princess's lips. Her gold-blue eyes were bright and fearless as she formed lightning with her left hand, directing it in the mouth of the dark spirit.

The spider spirit screamed as it felt the burning of its flesh inside. It tried to move back as far away as it could, but its tail couldn’t move as it had seen the teenage girl grab it with her right hand, piercing its flesh with her fingers deep, locking it on her shoulder.

Azula blazed her left hand with a fire dagger and dug it deep in the wound on the thin part hanging on the spider tail's sharp tip, cutting it off completely and releasing teal-colored blood. The dark spirit roared in pain at having one part of its limb cut off.

Azula pulled the tail tip out of her shoulder, showering the ground with her blood. She walked staggeringly towards the dark spirit who was screaming in pain. The hole overlapping her chest and shoulder was slowly healing itself and closing in.

“I am a monster created by Fate. And you know, what I hate the most? When those weaker than me don't know their place.” Azula jumped with blue fire on her feet, and while on air, she gave a kick making a long slash of concentrated flames like blades directed at the joint of the spider’s front left leg, tearing it open and sending it a batch of lightning attacks as soon as she landed. 

It completely tore off the front leg, making the spider spirit lean down slightly on its left side. It still had its seven legs to assist its stand and balance itself.

“Ah, I am going to give you the death you deserve, you gigantic insect.” Azula declared as she rotated her right shoulder as soon as the wound closed in. She produced two daggers of blue fire in both her hands and ran towards the spider spirit.

The spider spirit opened its mouth to take a bite of her but the human girl bends her body. She slid under the large creature dragging her fire dagger under its belly, creating two lines of a deep wound, then twisting her body with both her hands on the ground, fire reinforced kicking the large spider spirit up into the air before running out of the area where the spider spirit fell on.

Azula was behind the dark spirit as it hit the ground. With a cold expression, she grabbed what was left of the tail with her right hand, and lightning wrapped in her left hand, she pierced the joint where the tail connected to the whole body.

She pulled it off with her right hand while also simultaneously drenching herself with the teal-colored blood of the large spider spirit who was screaming in agony.

“Don’t underestimate me, human!” The dark spirit moved to ram its large body against the young teen, but she flipped on its large back before hitting it with an explosive fire sent by her kick. The large spider went to the surface ground with a grunt. 

“You were the one underestimating me!” Azula took this as a chance to run towards its head and struck it with her lightning on top of its head. She didn’t stop pouring it more energy until it pierced the head of the dark spirit and hit the ground itself. The limbs of the large spider went slack and twitched until it stopped. 

Azula was standing on top of the dark spirit’s corpse, she was heaving while looking up in the night sky. The fog around her was slowly dispersing and the forest was showing itself under the moonlight. 

Chapter Text

006

Azula stared at the corpse of the dark spirit in front of her, wondering if it was going to disappear on its own. It didn't but the former princess raised her hand and burned it with her fire until it spread in the corpse's whole body.

The giant lizard king told her that her blue flames can purify the dark spirits and the only way she knew how to purify anything was by burning it in a funeral pyre.

Surely, it turned into ashes as soon as Azula's flame spread on the body and faded into the wind. The strong stench of death had also disappeared as the corpse left nothing.

One more left, Azula thought as she turned into her senses and sniffed the air. She smelled the stench of death like a pathway across the forest. 

She trekked the forest and followed the smell as she moved. She ignored the animals that were now coming out because the strong dark spirit had finally disappeared.

She was disgusted even when she had no choice since the dead soldier didn't leave a scent, unlike the dark spirit. It might also be the same for the spirits that were not corrupted by dark spirits.

Azula reached a cave where the stench of death stopped and entered the dark place. That soldier was probably caught by the human-sized dark spirit.

The former princess can see in the dark the same as the nocturnal animals. She can't tell what kind of spirit the Dragon King was but he sure has convenient abilities.

Voices of groaning and moaning could be heard as Azula got deeper inside the cave. With her hearing, she knew that was getting close to the kidnapped villager. 

A clicking sound came from above the young teen and she quickly grabbed the object above her before throwing it in front of her. 

It was the human-sized spider who hit the rocky interior walls of the cave. It hissed back at her and shot teal-colored webs to catch her.

Azula deflected it with her flame with a swing of her hand, kicking balls of fire at the spider spirit with an unending barrage that was blocked by the webs. She then followed it with a wheel of fire to quickly burn all the webs that protected the dark spirit and sent lightning to its chest, hitting it directly at its center.

The lightning pierced through the dark spider spirit and Azula followed it with an explosion of her blue fire with a punch, wrapping its body with the blue flame. It was definitely easier than the larger one she killed earlier. 

Azula backed away as her fire ate the corpse of the human-sized spider spirit. Unlike the larger dark spirit, some cracks occurred in the corpse.

It peeled off one by one only to reveal the human spirit of the old man underneath whose eyes were closed. The cracks peeled off became ashes in the wind and disappeared.

The spirit of the old man woke up and saw Azula standing in front of him. He gave her a sincere smile before bowing her head at her. “Thank you so much for freeing my soul. Unfortunately, I don’t have much time, I must go. The moon is calling for me.”

Without waiting for any answer from the former princess, the spirit walked towards the exit of the cave where Azula came from and disappeared in the darkness.

"Tch, that old man left without telling me where to find the other spirits." Azula turned to go deeper into the cave until she reached the area that she had been looking for.

All around her were spirits of the victim villagers, trapped by teal webs hanging on the ceiling of the cave. She even saw the familiar face of Zhang Li who was also in the same situation as the rest of the spirits.

“Young Miss, you’re alive!?” The dead soldier couldn’t believe his eyes as he saw the sight of the former princess standing in front of him. 

Azula had teal-colored liquid covering her hands and arms while her top clothing and cloak had a large tear that exposed her shoulders, the surrounding part was covered by red blood even though no injury could be seen.

"Wow, you are as weak as I expected." Azula walked under the spirit and ignited the web covering him, it set him free and let him fall on the floor of the cave.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't do much in a spirit form." Zhang Li bowed his head in shame, thinking that the spider spirit caught him so easily.

“You should be then again, you did do your job to distract the small one properly.” The young teen commented before looking at the rest of the spirit hanging on the ceiling. 

The spirits hanging on have the same translucent appearance as Zhang Li; however, their difference from the dead soldier was that they only show the upper half of their bodies.

“The spirits here only have their upper body, is it because they're alive?” Azula noted while looking at the faces of the villagers. One of them was a woman who has similarities with Zhang Li beside her, it must be the sister.

“No, Young Miss. They only show half because they are half dead. Once the bond between the body is disconnected, they will have a full appearance as a spirit.” The spirit explained as he also looked at his sister whose body was showing halfway, his expression longing and sad.

“I understand. Then, do you have any idea how to save them? Because I am not going to do any menial work like finding their bodies one by one.” Azula glanced at the dead spirit.

“There is no need. You only have to burn those webs and the bond with their body will pull them back, Young Miss.” Zhang Li answered back to the former princess.

“Hm.” Azula hummed before performing a series of kicks and sending blue flames in a long wave. It cut off the teal webs that trapped the villagers’ spirits and when it completely burned it all, the spirits were set free and disappeared slowly on air.

The two, one alive and one dead, stood quietly in the dark cave. Zhang Li turned to Azula and bowed lowly to show his sincerity.

"Thank you, Princess Azula, for saving my sister! I know that it must have been a burden for you and you didn't have to do it. If there is any way to repay you, you can ask me for anything.” Zhang Li expressed his gratitude to the young princess of their nation.

Azula stared at him with her gold-blue eyes that seemed to shine in the darkness. She was thinking when has anyone ever thanked her sincerely and not out of politeness or fear. There was a chance that Zuko or Ty Lee did in their childhood but not when they got older.

There was a small warmth in her empty and numb heart at the sight of being appreciated, something she never had from her father. Maybe now that there was nothing in her heart that it can accept anything, even scraps of appreciation.

“Well, I want to rest so guide me to the bar owner’s house. He is your father right?” Azula remarked with a nonchalant expression. The spirit raised his head and gave her a shocked look.

“Ah, I was caught.” A sheepish smile came to Zhang Li’s lips. He raised his body straight again and gave Azula a nod.

…

Once they reached the Hira'a Village, the lights had returned and it was festive with all the noise in every household. The souls of the victims must have come back to their bodies and they finally woke up from their long sleep.

There were crying and cheers that could be heard as Azula passed by the alleys, guided by Zhang Li. It didn’t matter to the young teen though as she was tired and hungry that she could eat an armadillo bear alone.

They were using shortcuts rather than the main road because Azula’s clothes had a huge tear on her shoulder that passed through her cloak down to her top, exposing her shoulders. She had her hood up on her head to hide her face as she walked through the darkness, using it as a cover.

They finally reached a two-story house on the northern side of the village. It had its lights on so that must mean the bar owner was still awake. Azula knocked on the door and waited when she heard footsteps running down from the stairs.

“Kid, you’re back! What happened to you?” The bar owner opened the door with a happy expression that became worried when he saw the young teen’s rugged appearance.

“It’s none of your business, old man. For now, I just want to take a bath and rest if you don’t mind.” Azula gave a heavy sigh while closing her blue left eye at the same time as she removed her hood.

The bar owner moved aside and let her enter. Zhang Li passed through the walls and straight-up walked to the second floor without even talking to Azula. She was fine with it, the spirit will still be back here after she took her rest, and he owes her a favor.

“Alright. I’ll show you to the guest room. It also has a bathroom where you can wash off. There were also some spare clothes in the closet.” The bar owner said to Azula as he guided her to a room on the ground floor.

“I’ll pay you more for your hospitality.” The teen responded as she followed the older man. 

“No need, a thank you should be fine. The money you gave me earlier was too much.” The bar owner gave a wide smile.

“Ah then. Thank you, old man.” She tried to express the same amount of sincerity she heard from Zhang Li earlier. It came out as a soft mumble but the older man just smiled wider at her.

“Oh right, I forgot to ask your name earlier since you went out so fast. I can’t just keep calling you as ‘kid’ now that you’re a guest in my home.” The bar owner told her as they stopped in front of a door.

“Aoi. You can call me Aoi.” Azula replied quietly before looking at the bar owner.

“I’m Chang Li. Nice to meet you, Aoi. I’ll leave you to rest. You can join us tomorrow for breakfast.” The bar owner told her which Azula responded with a nod as she entered the guest room.

The room was small but it had a bed, a closet, and a door to the right which led to the bathroom. It was already a luxury for her who had lived in the forest for six months.

Azula didn't have much on herself but she placed her money in the closet and checked the spare clothes. She was surprised to see a towel, a brush, and a soap placed inside which she also took. She felt refreshed when she washed with fragrant soap and removed the dirt and grime from her body.

Azula tried her hair with the spare towel and put on the robe from the closet. She brushed her shoulder-length hair with the brush left in the closet. She laid down on the bed and fell asleep quickly from her tiredness.

She’ll talk to the dead soldier about his regrets tomorrow. She deserves to sleep in a comfortable bed.

Chapter Text

007

“She is so useless. Defeated by her weak brother and a waterbender peasant. She is a shame and a failure to the family. A disappointment just like her brother.” Her father whispered in her right ear.

“What is wrong with that child? She is a monster just like her father.” Her mother whispered in her left ear. 

She had heard these words so many times in this nightmare that even if she raised her hands to block her ears, it would still pierce through her mind. 

Shackled on a wall, both hands bound and unable to escape, Azula was forced to hear these words repeating on both of her ears. Tears ran down her cheeks and while her eyes were dazed in the darkness.

A sight of a person appeared from the darkness. He was wearing the Fire Lord outfit while looking at her with cold golden eyes. Zuko, her brother.

Azula knew what would happen next, he would turn without a word and left her alone in this hell she created. She had no hope in her and bowed her head in submission to her despair.

“Azula.” His voice called out to her which widened her eyes and made her raise her head again. 

Azula was surprised to see her brother looking at her with warm blue eyes. It was the phantom Zuko that accompanied her in the Forgetful Valley.

“I told you I’m going to appear again when you need me.” The illusion of her brother walked towards her and patted her on the head.

“Wake up, you have more work to do. You don’t have time to waste in here.” Zuko said with a warm smile on his lips. He grabbed the chains that were trapping her and pulled a little, breaking it into pieces. 

“Shut up, I didn’t need you.” Azula mumbled as she fell into her brother’s arms and before closing her eyes she whispered, “Thank you…”

…

Azula woke up before the crack of dawn appeared in the sky. It was still dark outside when she exited the house for a breath of fresh air. Climbing up on the roof of the house, she didn’t expect to meet the dead soldier there. 

“Hey, you. Go mope around somewhere.” Azula stood on the roof and shooed away the spirit to make the place alone for her.

“No! This is my spot! It always has and always will be!” Zhang Li stubbornly denied, being like a child while also shaking his head. He had his head tucked on his knees and he looked like a ball of misery.

“You know, I can make you disappear into eternity right?” Azula flared her flame on hand but the spirit didn’t even look at her.

“I don’t care! It’s not like anything matters anymore.” The dead soldier responded sullenly at the end.

Azula glared at him with her gold-blue eyes, wondering if she should just incinerate him to oblivion before remembering that she couldn’t do that anymore. 

It also irked her that he reminded her of that time when she was in front of the Dragon King. She was certain that she said something similar to the giant lizard.

“You. Why are you still here? I thought it was your sister that was keeping you here?” Azula extinguishing her fire before crossed her arms as she stared at the back of the dead spirit.

“Why are you asking? I don’t want to owe you anymore than this.” Zhang Li stared at the slowly brightening horizon indicating the sun was going to come out any minute now.

“Tch, I can’t believe I am going to say this but…” Azula muttering like she was contemplating what were the wrong things she did that deserve her punishment. Oh yeah, there were supposed to be a lot of them.  

“Call it a free service.” She continued even though her face was bunched up like she was struggling to spit those words out. 

The dead soldier turned to Azula with a disbelieving look on his face that made her itch to burn it.

“What?” She snarled at the spirit who shook his head while saying nothing.

"I...I made a promise to my sister before I went away and joined the army." Zhang Li started to talk while watching the sky turning brighter as the sun came out.

“When I died fighting in the war, I can’t remember what I said but all I know was her smiling face back at me. I-I think I was supposed to do something for her but…” The dead soldier slumped forward but stayed silent and didn’t continue his story.

Azula glared at the ground while heaving a sigh. Now, what is she supposed to do for this amnesiac spirit in front of her? She couldn't make him pass on if she doesn't even know what his regrets are supposed to be.

“Azula. Look.” An irritatingly familiar voice came from beside her. Azula glanced down to see Zuko sitting on the roof at her left side watching the sunrise. His eyes were once again blue as the scales of the Dragon King like her left eye.

“This is not the time to be having a hallucination.” The young teen whispered to herself while the illusion of her brother glanced up at her.

“Uncle told me that the eyes are the windows to the soul.” He told her before slowly disappearing to the wind that passed by her. 

"I don't believe in what our senile uncle says." She mumbled back at the phantom of her brother who disappeared. This attracted the attention of the dead soldier who glanced at her curiously.

“Just try to look and then you’ll see.” His voice that resounded in her mind lingered. Azula clenched her teeth and grumpily sat on the roof, her legs crossed over each other with her back straight like she was going to meditate.

“You. Sit in front of me.” The former princess barked at the dead soldier and gave him an intense glare. She thought that she should at least try it so she can say that she had done everything if she decided to burn the dead soldier if there is no other option. 

With no clue what she was doing, Zhang Li followed her orders and assumed the same sitting posture as the young teen a few distances away from her.

"Look at me and shut your mouth," Azula ordered the spirit while looking straight at his eyes. Gold-blue eyes met the translucent brown pairs.

Azula sat while concentrating her breathing like she was doing her fire bending. The light in the sunrise hits her and heated up her body as she continues to stare into the dead soldier's eyes.

Nothing happened after a series of minutes passed and Azula thought that she should’ve known better than to listen to her hallucination until she closed her eyes and darkness envelops her sight. 

…

Azula opened her eyes after she sighed and was surprised to see that she was no longer on the rooftop of the bar owner's house. Instead, she was inside the house, sitting in one of the second floor's rooms.

The former princess was holding a piece of wood and a carving knife. Her hands had changed into another that was larger and scarred.  She ran her eyes inside the room to inspect and saw that it was a bedroom full of costumes and masks for acting tropes hanging on the walls. 

Azula’s eyes met a mirror and in her sight reflected a familiar face. It was the dead soldier looking back at her but only he was younger than one she knew. It must be a long time before he joined the army because his appearance was of a teenager. 

Did the spirit somehow possess her body? Or did she possess the spirit? She couldn’t move like she would want to after seeing Zhang Li in the mirror. She could only watch the hand in front of her carve the wood, slowly turning it into a mask.

“Zhang Li, come here.” The bar owner’s voice called out to him from the door. Azula watched herself stand up and open the door, only to see the older man with eyes red, filled with anguish.  She could feel her heart, Zhang Li’s heart, race as cold fear ran through her veins. 

"We have to welcome your little sister...and say goodbye to your mother." Chang Li gave his son a tight squeeze on the shoulder. A tear ran down his face as he smiled sadly at Zhang Li.

Azula felt a familiar feeling from Zhang Li as the father and son walked towards a room. There was an emptiness in her stomach that got larger, suffocating her heart every step she took as they got closer to the room. 

Ah, this was the feeling she experienced when she passed by Zuko's room the day he was banished. She remembered ignoring this feeling every time she went to see her father in the throne room. Dread was it.

Azula watched and felt the intense sadness clutching Zhang Li’s heart painfully as he saw his mother lying on his parent’s bed. The woman looked like she was sleeping but they all knew that she was gone when her chest didn’t move anymore to take a breath.

The mixed feeling of dread, pain, and sadness was spreading from Zhang Li's heart causing his eyes to tear up and his body feeling cold. All of these experiences were happening to Azula like she was Zhang Li. She couldn't move to escape this suffocating body and was forced to experience this overwhelming grief.

Zhang Li came to kneel by his mother’s side and cried at the loss of his mother, holding her still warm hand in his. A cry came from the side of the room that took his attention and in his blurry sight entered his father holding a baby wrapped up in white sheets.

He stood up and stared at his newborn sister that he was meeting for the first time. The baby's eyes were amber-colored like their mother's eyes. She stopped crying to look at Zhang Li with innocent eyes and reached out her hands towards him.

Azula felt the warmth in Zhang Li’s chest that soothes the coldness of grief in his body. It was weird to feel the heavy grief of loss at the same time feeling some warmth of an emotion she couldn’t tell. 

The emotion made her want to give the world to this unknown baby in front of her. This idea baffled Azula because she never felt anything like it. 

This emotion grew and grew as Azula watched from Zhang Li’s perspective how he took care of his younger sister from a baby to a teenager. She experienced the warmth of happiness he felt when he saw his sister smile back at him widely. The pride he felt when she first walked, talked, and danced in front of him. The sadness he experienced when he saw his sister staring at mothers holding their daughters as they walked on the streets.  

Azula witnessed when Zhang Li joined the acting troupe as a prop maker and his sister joined as an actress. 

She also found out the promise he gave his sister that he wasn’t able to keep.

“When you become the leading actress for the Love amongst the Dragons, I’m giving you a gift.” Zhang Li said to his sister not knowing that he’ll be conscripted in the Fire Nation Army once the soldiers came to the Hira’a Village looking for fire benders.

Azula knew where he placed the gift he made for his sister before leaving the village to join the war. She also learned the emotions of homesickness that he felt when he was in the base camp. 

The fear he felt when he first faced an earthbender in Ba Sing Se and the disgust at his first kill. The dread, regret, and acceptance he felt when he was dying in the hands of the insurgents in Sozin’s Comet. Azula accompanied Zhang Li every important memory he kept in his soul until his death.

…

“Young Miss, are you alright?” Zhang Li’s voice called out to her which made her open her eyes. Gold-blue eyes stared at the dead spirit with so much intensity it made him flinch.

“How long have I been asleep?” Azula asked solemnly while clutching her chest exactly where the hole in Zhang Li’s body could be located. The phantom pain she felt when she died along with him slowly faded.

“Asleep? You just closed your eyes for about ten minutes, I think? I thought you were meditating.” The dead soldier replied to the young teen in front of him with a curious look. She had a pensive look on her face as the sun rising shone on her.

Azula took in the spirit in front of her and felt a certain closeness to him given that she witnessed almost all of his life until his death. 

Does she have to repeat the experience if she meets other spirits that need help to pass on?

Chapter Text

008

“Tch, come on. I have an idea how you’re going to pass on.” Azula stood up on the roof and brushed the dust off her borrowed clothes. She stared at the sun lighting up the sky and remembered the flaming chariot where Agni resides in the Spirit World.

“You do? How?” Zhang Li was ecstatic at what he heard. He followed the young teen who jumped down from the roof down to the ground in one swoop.

"Later, I'm going to eat first." Azula went inside the house and saw that there was already a meal prepared on the dining table. The bar owner was setting the table while another familiar occupant was sitting there already.

It was Zhang Li's sister, Zuli, who was eating the food set in front of her. Azula observed her from afar to see the changes since Zhang Li last saw her and consequently, so did Azula. The cave last time was too dark to see her properly.

The woman had long brown hair and amber eyes with a gentle smile. It was completely different from the spoiled teen Azula remembered from Zhang Li’s memories. She seemed to mature from the time her brother joined the army. 

Azula knew that when Zhang Li left for the army, his sister was just in her teens now she was a grown woman. The dead spirit by her side watched the girl he raised from birth change into a beautiful woman from the time he was in the army. 

Even if she was not looking at the spirit, Azula could feel what he felt for his sister because it had accompanied her throughout the years of Zhang Li’s life span. It made her feel warm looking at the older woman, she remembered the love of a brother for his younger sister. 

Azula's eyes softened while a question ran through her mind, she wondered how Zuko felt when he looked at her. Does he feel the same warmth as Zhang Li when they were amiable to each other in the past? Or does he feel disgusted to be related to a monster like her?

She knew that these questions would be answered as long as she talked to her brother but she’d rather fight dark spirits rather than doing that. 

"Hey, kid- I mean, Aoi, you're up. Come join us." Chang Li greeted her as he saw them standing by the door staring at them. He was sat beside his daughter as there were only three cushions available and Azula knew that the extra one was for Zhang Li.

Still, she sat there because the food was prepared in the cushion’s location and Zhang Li sat beside her. The spirit doesn’t need a cushion so it's much better for Azula to use it.

“There is a lot of food here, old man. What’s the occasion?” Azula asked after thanking her host and took up the chopsticks in front of her. There was a lot of food in front of them which was preferable since she had to replenish the energy she spent fighting the dark spirit.

“The curse was finally lifted and the victims had woken up. Oh right, let me introduce you to my daughter, Zuli. Zuli meets Aoi, she is a traveler passing by.” The bar owner introduced the two women with a bright smile. 

“Nice to meet you, Miss Aoi.” Zuli gave Azula a warm smile with her amber eyes filled with something the younger girl couldn’t tell.

“Nice to meet you too, Miss Zuli.” Azula nonchalantly greeted even though the smile of the older woman softened her heart. It was the same smile that made Zhang Li happy in her memories and it seemed that it also affected her to an extent.

“How long will you be here, Miss Aoi?” The older woman asked the young teen gently while also taking in her appearance. 

She was a beautiful teenager with shoulder-length black hair. There was a long scar that ran down from her forehead down to her left cheek. The girl also had her left eye closed so whatever happened that caused her injury must have affected her eye.

"I'll be leaving today as long as I am done with my errand here," Azula replied politely as she started to eat, ignoring the piercing stare of the older woman. Zhang Li beside her was watching his family with a sad smile on his lips.

The breakfast had gone through quietly with the bar owner chatting and Azula ignoring him, only humming as her answer because she was more focused on eating. Zuli was placing more food in front of the young teen as her father told her how much the girl can eat.

With the meal done, Zuli surprisingly wanted to talk to Azula alone so her father left to tend to the dishes. The two were left in the dining room while Zhang Li sat on his father’s cushion.

“So what do you want to talk about, Miss Zuli?” Azula crossed her arm and narrowed her right eye at the older woman who seemed reluctant to start the conversation even though she was the one who wanted it.

“Miss Aoi...It’s you, right?” Azula tilted her head in confusion once she heard the woman speak. She wondered if Zuli found out her identity as the princess but she doubted it. 

The royal family’s appearance was only famous in the Fire Nation Capital.  Zhang Li only identified her when he saw her firebend, the blue flame was a distinct feature of her reputation in the Fire Nation Army.

“It’s me what?” 

“The one who saved the Hira’a Village. The one who saved us in the cave.” Zuli stared at the passive expression of the young teen who seemed to be 17 of age.

“I don’t know what you are talking about, Miss Zuli. I was out hunting yesterday in the forest.” Azula responded with a stoic expression on her face. The dead soldier beside his sister was staring at her with mouth agape.

“I saw you in my dream before I woke up. I don’t remember much but I was trapped in a dark cave then you came to save us. And for some reason, you were with my late brother.” Zuli explained patiently with a sad smile. 

She continued with determined amber eyes, “I thought you weren’t real until you showed up in front of me this morning then I knew you were the one who released us from the curse.” 

Azula met those eyes and closed her right eye before she sighed knowing that there was no need to deny anything. She opened both her eyes and watched the older woman flinch at seeing her blue left eye. 

“Alright, you got me. Someone begged me to save you and I don’t think you need me to tell you who that was.” The young teen remarked before looking at the space beside the older woman. 

"Is he…?" Zuli turned to space beside her feeling chills running through her spine at the thought of her dead older brother lingering beside her. She was scared of course but the happiness overwhelms the fear as she faced the cushion her father usually sat on.

“Yes, but I am leaving to do my errand. Soldier, don’t leave until I come back. Miss Zuli, enjoy talking to the air.” Azula stood up from where she was sitting and headed for her room.

“Thank you.” 

“Thank you.” 

The two siblings, the alive one and the dead one, said to her at the same time, also bowing lowly at her to express their gratitude. She didn’t turn to look at them and left them alone. 

Azula returned to the guest room and put on the red cloak that still has a hole on her shoulders before leaving the house. She bid farewell to the bar owner who was in the kitchen area, saying she'll be coming back after hunting for a bit.

The young teen did run into the forest again and hunted a deer with a few rabbits to pack in her journey. She had to buy a lot of things like clothes and camping necessities because unlike the mission to chase the Avatar, she had no funds or backing in this forced mission of hers.

Azula ignored the glances of the villagers in the market as she sold her hunted animals to the meat vendors. There was a crowd on the streets now that the threat of the curse was lifted.

Azula had her hood cover her head so that they wouldn’t recognize her. She was irritated to see that Zuko had a bounty on her head posted in the village’s entrance gate. 

It will make her travels harder than they should be since she had to hide her appearance. She doesn't want to go back to the mental facility or in prison now that she was free outside.

After buying everything Azula thought she would need for camping like pots and seasonings, she picked up the heavy bag and went to a local tailor’s shop. 

She bought herself two red cloaks with a hood and some sets of Fire Nation clothing that was comfortable to move in. She also added a red scarf to hide her face in case her cloak gets destroyed again. She knew she'd have to change clothes every time she had to fight against dark spirits because of her latest experience.

Azula changed her old clothes to new ones so that the people wouldn't stare much when she passed by the streets. She headed to the Hira'a acting troupe's building. She knocked on their door and a middle-aged man opened it.

“How may I help you, girl? Are you here to join the troupe?” The director asked the cloaked teen who was carrying a large bag on her back.

“No. I was asked by an acquaintance to get something from here. His name is Zhang Li.” Azula replied politely to the older man whose eyes widened before showing a sad smile. He immediately knew what she came for then.

“Come inside and follow me, Miss.” The director opened the door wider and the young teen came inside.

“How did you know Zhang Li? I thought no one was going to retrieve it now that he passed away.” The old man asked Azula who calmly looked around the place she was led in. It was a room filled with masks, costumes, and fake weapons for the plays the troupe acts on. 

“I was a passerby when he met me and asked my help about this. Since I was around the village, I thought I should just be done with it.” Azula answered as she stared at a familiar blue spirit mask hanging on the walls. 

She remembered that Zuko wore one when he went all rogue while saving the Avatar. An idea formed in her mind as she stared at the mask but the errand must come first.

“Ah, I see. It was unfortunate that he passed away so young. He was one of my best prop makers.” The director remarked while scratching his beard at the thought. Then he added, “I should tell you that I don’t know where Zhang Li hid that gift of his. Even his younger sister doesn’t know of its location.”

"Speaking of his sister, she is an actress, right? The Bar owner told me about it." Azula commented while walking around, avoiding the props until she stopped in front of a column in the room.

“Yes. Zuli is now one of our leading actresses in our plays. She was the audience favorite for the play, Love amongst the Dragons.” The director proudly declared as he watched the teen stare at the column with confusion. There was nothing worth noting in the structure.

“That’s good for her then.” A brief small smile came upon Azula’s lips as she mumbled before knocking on the wall beside the column. She knew the acting troupe director raised an eyebrow at her direction but she ignored it. 

The older man couldn’t stop the young teen from her poking the wall and her finger buried itself on the wood. He gaped at her as he watched her pull a small block section of the wall that he didn’t know existed before. 

Azula took a dusty wooden box from the hollow section of the wall and returned the block she removed, it blended back to the wall as if it never existed before except for the new small hole where she dug her finger in.

“How did you…” The director gasped and walked over to Azula who was opening the box to see what is inside.

Azula saw the gift that Zhang Li prepared for Zuli inside the box. It was a pair of beautifully carved dragon masks for leading roles of the play Love amongst the Dragons. There were also costumes for the Dragon Emperor and Dragon Empress that were much more intricate than the usual props. The materials used were also high-end fabrics that would be hard to find in the village.

Azula touched the texture of the costumes with nostalgia in her eyes. She recalled how Zhang Li spent his savings, effort, and time to make it as perfect as it could be for when his sister takes on the lead as the Dragon Empress. The nights he worked on each mask and costume while also trying to hide it from Zuli were all witnessed by her.

“These are all exquisite.” The director voiced out with awe over Azula’s shoulder and it annoyed her, making her close the box. She grabbed it in her hand and turned to face the older man. His eyes were still focused on the box but he looked away when he met a fierce gold eye staring at him.

“I’ve done what I need to do so I’ll be taking my leave then.” Azula gave a small nod in the director’s position before making her way to the exit. The older man followed behind her with a wondering expression.

“Hey, how much would you sell for that? I’ll pay you a lot for it.” The director offered with a pleasing smile which Azula returned with a sneer. “Come on, it’s not like anyone besides us knows about it and no one will find out.”

“This is not something you should think of, old man.” She turned around and made her other hand lit a fire which made the director’s eyes widened at its color. 

“A blue flame which means you’re…” The older man backed away from the young teen who glared at him with one gold eye. He flinched and anxiously stared at the ground while shivering.

“I’m not someone you can cross, old man. Back off from that family.” Azula growled lowly before snuffing out her fire and leaving the building of the acting troupe.

....

Back in the Li’s house,

Azula opened the door with her large bag and the wood box. She headed towards the dining area where she left the dead soldier and his sister. When she entered the room, the older woman was calmly sipping her tea while Zhang Li was fidgeting beside her.

“I’m back and I’ve brought what he promised.” Azula greeted the two siblings who looked at her curiously. They were both staring at the box in her hand that she raised for the both of them.

Zhang Li's eyes were in a daze as he stared at the wooden box. From what Azula could guess, he was slowly remembering the promise he gave to Zuli. He stood up and walked towards the young teen.

“This is..” The dead soldier muttered while his eyes dripped with tears. Azula was surprised that a spirit could even cry. She passed by him and sat on the cushion opposite Zuli, placing the wooden box in front of her.

"Miss Zuli, this is for you. He wanted you to have this." Azula pushed the box in the older woman's direction. There was a tea set with another cup in front of the table meaning that Zuli had been waiting for her to come back. She poured herself a cup while watching the older woman take the box and open it in front of her.

Tears abruptly ran down Zuli’s cheek as she touched the Dragon Empress mask in front of her. Her fingers ran down to the smooth surface of the mask and she knew that it was made by her older brother. She did the same thing to all he made in his room when they received the news of his death.

Zuli moved the masks carefully and placed them on the table before touching the costumes underneath. It was soft and smooth as expected of expensive fabric, it must have cost Zhang Li a lot.

Then, she remembered the times when she would walk to the market with her brother. She would stare admiringly at the clothes made with expensive types of fabrics. Zhang Li smiled at her before promising that he would give her more beautiful clothing when he had saved enough money.

Before he left for the army, Zhang Li locked himself in his room for months. He didn’t even let Zuli enter it when she invited him out which made her upset. He coaxed her by buying her a lot of her favorite foods once he was done with whatever he was doing in his room.

Zuli sobbed at the memories of her brother that passed through her mind, clutching the costumes in her chest. She missed him so much that her heart ached in her chest. Why did he have to leave them? He said that he would come home but he didn’t.

Zhang Li sat behind his younger sister who was crying for him. He placed his head on her shaking back even though he knew she wouldn’t feel him. His eyes shedding tears while a small smile graced his lips. He was happy that she had received the best creation he could make with his hands.

Oh, how he wished he could stay but he could feel the call of the moon now that his regret has been fulfilled. He closed his eyes while listening to his sister's heartfelt whimpers of his name.

Azula felt a small piercing hurt in her chest when she heard Zuli’s cries. She noticed a sort of attachment to the older woman because she had shared Zhang Li’s feelings when she watched his life. The hurt grew larger when she had a series of thoughts in her mind.

If she died, would anyone cry for her like Zuli was doing now for Zhang Li? Would anyone even miss her if she did succeed in ending her life like last time? Would Zuko at least shed a tear for her? Will anyone ever remembers her or will they just move on like she didn't even exist in the first place?

“Princess Azula.” Zhang Li called out to the young teen that was staring at her tea in a daze. Azula raised her eyes to stare at him with dark gold-blue eyes.

“Thank you for everything that you have done for me, my sister, my family, and my village.” The dead soldier kneeled in front of her and bowed lowly with gratitude. She remembered the first day they met and he did the same posture only he was begging for her despite the fear in his voice.

“Are you finally going to leave?” Azula raised her voice and it made Zuli pause in her crying to look at her. She fixed her stare at the dead soldier who stood in front of her now. His sister followed her gaze knowing that there was something that she couldn’t see. 

“Yes. Now that my promise has been fulfilled thanks to you, I can feel the moon calling for me.” Zhang Li smiled in his sister's direction, tears still ran down his cheeks and so was Zuli's. He watched her with soft eyes while taking in the last sight of his sister.

"Miss Zuli, please say your final goodbye. He is facing you right now." Azula stared in Zhang Li's direction so that the older woman would know his location.

“Brother...Thank you for this wonderful gift, goodbye.” A bright smile graced Zuli’s face that she knew would always make her brother happy before leaving their house in the past.

Zhang Li grinned at his sister before looking out of the house’s window. He turned to Azula, “I’ll be taking my leave then, Princess Azula.”

Azula nodded at him and followed him with her gaze. She saw him pass through the walls of the house and the window, she caught a glimpse of the Moon Spirit, Yue, bowing in her direction beside the dead soldier. She closed her eyes when they disappeared from her sight.

Zuli, seeing the young teen’s expression, knew that her older brother had finally moved on to the afterlife. She wept again but now she was bawling like a child, hugging her brother’s creation. 

A hand that touched the top of Zuli's head startled her and made her raise her head at the teenage girl that sat in front of her. Azula was looking away from her direction with a frown on her face yet her hand was patting the top of Zuli's head like how her brother would comfort her when they were young.

Zuli didn’t know if Zhang Li told the teen to do this but she cried in front of the younger woman except it was now quieter.

Chapter Text

009

“Are you leaving now?” The older woman asked Azula in front of the house, her eyes still red and puffed up from crying. 

“Yes, I’m done with all that I have to do here.” The young teen raised her heavy bag on her back and raised her scarf along with her hood to hide her face.

“That’s unfortunate. Here, I want you to have this,” Zuli pulled the red dragon mask that her brother had made for her. It was the mask of the Dragon Emperor which was a role she usually acted in when she played with Zuko in their childhood.

Azula scrutinized the older woman’s face with a raised eyebrow. Zuli chuckled softly while placing the mask on the younger woman’s hands. “This is all I can give to you in exchange for everything you have done for us, Miss Aoi. I’m sure Brother would be happy if I give this to you.”

“...I see. Thank you for all the hospitality of your family. Send your father my gratitude.” Azula bowed back to the older woman while clutching the red mask in her hand. She placed it inside her large bag and turned around to face the exit of the Hira’a Village.

“Have a safe trip, Miss Aoi,” Zuli called out to the young teen before she disappeared on the road to the next village. She watched her stop for a minute and waved a hand before continuing to walk.

…

Azula stared at the red mask in her hands while she sat in front of her campfire. She was walking for a day and when she had finally stopped to think about her destination, she didn’t know where she’d be going next. So she stopped inside a small clearing in a distance away from the road and built her camp.

She already had her dinner which was roasted rabbit meat and had built her small tent to sleep in for the night. She took out the red mask that Zuli had given her and pondered what had just occurred in the past few days.

“That’s a great mask for you.” The voice of her older brother, Zuko appeared by her side. It came back again, the illusion of him with blue eyes instead of his gold ones.

“I know, I’ve always been great as the Dragon Emperor and you were always the Dark Water Spirit. You even used it as your secret identity to save the Avatar but I knew it was you as soon as I heard about it.” Azula responded nonchalantly before looking at the phantom of her brother. He was sitting beside her on the dry log she opted for as a seat.

“And now, you’re going to use the Dragon Emperor’s mask to hide your identity when hunting the Dark Spirits, aren’t you? It's proof that we’re siblings.” Phantom Zuko fearlessly poked Azula’s cheek while smirking at her. Her illusion was the evidence that she was not right in the mind.

The young teen glared at her hallucination and swatted in his direction even though she knew it would do nothing to him. He laughed at her irritated face before facing the night sky. 

“It fits you, the Dragon Emperor. It's just ironic that even with the identity of our roles, we are still on the opposite sides of the story.” Zuko muttered lowly while staring at the bright moon peeking through the leaves of the trees surrounding them.

“That is how our destiny worked for us,” Azula replied while placing the mask beside her and crossing her arm indignantly.

“It doesn’t have to be now. We are finally on the same side.” Zuko gave a small smile in his younger sister’s direction.

“I was only on this side by force, you mean.” Azula snarkily retorted while the phantom of her brother smiled wider.

“Regardless of the cause, I am happy with this.” The illusion remarked with a gentle voice.

“You are not real. You’re a figment of my imagination. The real Zuko would only be happy to see me locked up in a cage or a mental hospital like the rest of the world.” Azula declared with a dull tone, believing the idea that it was her against the world.

“You don’t believe that because I am here like this.” Illusionary Zuko commented before facing the moon. Azula scoffed at his statement and stared at the campfire burning in front of her.

“Look Azula, something came falling from the sky.” The young woman raised her head to see what her hallucination was talking about. 

A bright light came from the moon, slowly falling towards the small campfire. The light revealed itself to the Azula as the illumination faded slightly. It was Yue, the Moon Spirit, smiling gently down on the younger woman who raised an eyebrow in her direction. 

“Good evening, Miss Yue. To what do I owe the pleasure of you personally visiting us here?” Azula politely said but she didn’t even stand from her seated position on the dry log. She relaxedly placed her head on her hand while her gold-blue eyes shone from the fire in front of her.

“Good evening, Miss Azula. The Dragon King wanted me to give you something.” Yue, reaching into her illuminating robe, took out a blue scroll and gave it to the younger woman who was watching her skeptically. 

Azula took the blue scroll and with the Moon Spirit’s nod, she opened it to reveal the map of the whole four nations. It was familiar to her since she had accompanied her father in the war meetings and the map was laid out in front of her and all the generals attending. 

The strange thing about the map was that blue flames were lighting up in some areas of the four nations. Some were stronger than the others while some were barely just a flicker.

“I’m sure you can infer what those blue flames indicate. They are the dark spirits that have passed through the gates from the Spirit World.” Yue explained patiently while watching Azula’s face contort into irritation while looking at the map. 

The moon spirit couldn’t see it but the illusion of her brother was blocking her view of the map. Phantom Zuko commented, “That’s quite a lot, Azula. Some are also on different sides of the nation. How are you going to get there?” 

Azula ignored his question and glanced at Yue, “What does the strength of the flames mean?”

“The large flames indicated that the Dark Spirit should be dealt quickly. They are active and stronger than the flickered ones who are probably dormant.” The moon spirit remarked while Azula took note of the six large flames in the map.

“I see, anything I need to know?” The younger woman rolled the scroll and placed it inside her bag. Phantom Zuko was now quietly thinking beside her and whatever he was thinking, she probably knew. He was an illusion created by her broken mind so she ignored him for a bit.

“Oh, the Dragon King wanted to tell you about the soul search ability but you had already performed it as you successfully released Zhang Li’s spirit from his regrets.” The white-haired spirit told the young woman.

“Soul Search?” Azula tilted her head in confusion. Then she remembered the sharing of memories she had done with the dead soldier.

“Oh that. Do I have to do that for every spirit I meet?” She inquired because it would be hard if she had to do that with every spirit she meets.

“You don’t have to. It was meant for spirits who had forgotten their regrets or obsession. Some spirits remember their regrets which are easier to comply with and Zhang Li was one of the special cases who had forgotten about it.” Yue informed Azula who was contemplative with her arms crossed.

“So are there any more hidden abilities that the senile lizard forgot to tell me? Because I don’t like surprises.” She now disliked it more especially since she had been ‘surprised’ at her friends’ betrayal.

“Not that I know of. All I can say is that the Fates will reveal what needs to be for the sake of the whole world.” Yue smiled gently at the younger girl who looked at her with an annoyed expression, her gold-blue eyes brimming from the campfire.

“Fine. If there is nothing else to say I would like to take a rest now, Miss Yue.” Azula told the moon spirit with a sigh and stood up to bow lightly at the moon spirit.

“Of course, Miss Azula. Farewell.” Yue returned the small bow and floated up into the night sky, disappearing in the moonlight.

When the spirit disappeared, Azula released a sigh and relaxed her body. The illusion of her brother was watching from behind on the log she was formerly sitting on. 

“What are you going to do for the dark spirits far from you? You can’t leave them alone.” Phantom Zuko asked which made Azula glanced at him before she headed towards her small tent.

“I was planning to but since you mentioned it, it's better to pass off the work on to others.” Azula turned to smirk at her hallucination. She asked, “Do you have any idea how to send a letter to the Fire Lord or the Avatar as a fugitive?”

…

Fire Nation Capital, 

The Fire Lord was sitting in front of his desk, reading the reports sent to him by the officials of the Fire Nation. It was a stack of papers throughout Zuko’s desk and there were still more to read and examine. He couldn’t believe that his father had done all of this and also attended the meetings in the throne room. 

It was not until he heard from Mai that Azula was assigned to read and respond to the letters Ozai had been receiving throughout the years of his banishment. When she went away to search for the Avatar, the role was passed to a loyal minister instead.

As the Fire Lord, Zuko knew that he couldn’t be like his father, and from the day he took the throne, he has been responsible for the reports given to him.  That is why he took over all the official reports even though he knew that it would take too much time and there would be a better alternative to working on it.

During the period where he had been reading the reports from the island colonies, there were strange occurrences like curses, mysterious deaths, and spirits. Zuko planned to ask Aang’s help in checking those areas that were involved with spirits.

Regarding Azula’s situation, there was still no report from soldiers or bounty hunters but it seemed that he received the news straight from the source instead. Holding in his hand was a letter sent by his younger sister who had been missing for almost a year already.

Zuzu, 

I don’t know when my letter will reach you after I coerced one of your officials into sending this but I advise you to change this person immediately on the reasons that my blackmail succeeded in the first place. Never mind, it’s not my business if you want to keep your corrupt officials by your side.

My business is that you need to send the Avatar in some places because he isn’t doing his job properly if people are dying left and right due to some dark spirits roaming around. They are all marked in my loosely drawn map on this letter and refer to your reports, which I know you’ll be reading, for specific locations. 

Please retract the bounty on my head because you are wasting money, human resources, and paper in search of me, there is no hope for them. Don’t worry, I’ll send you a letter again if I lose one of my limbs or if I need you to pay for my funeral services. 

Your sister,

Azula

Zuko stared at Azula’s name for a long time before looking at the map she had drawn on the letter. His younger sister was a perfectionist that even her ‘loosely drawn map’ was quite detailed. 

He remembered that one time when they were young. He and Azula had free time in the Royal Library as a break from their royal studies. Azula explained the advantage of memorizing the geography of all the four nations for their war strategies, even the maps drawn before the start of the Hundred Year War. 

Zuko returned his focus to the content of the letter where he compared the reports to the map marked by his younger sister. It truly matched where the location of strange disappearances and deaths but he couldn’t still believe in the content of the letter. It might be that Azula is the one behind the occurrences and it might be a trap for Aang instead.

Still, Zuko wanted to give Azula some doubt because the locations were far from each other so unless his younger sister had her bison, airship which was monitored tightly, or finally learned how to fly then it would be impossible for her to reach these locations by the time of their occurrence. 

With his gold eyes narrowed, the young Fire Lord took out a few scrolls and a brush to write letters. Zuko decided that it was time for a reunion with his old friends.

Chapter Text

010

Azula yawned as she walked towards her next destination, the red dragon mask was hidden inside her bag. Her hood was over her head and a red scarf hid her face from the people she hitched a ride on towards the next village. Grimacing at the baskets of cabbage in the carriage, she clenched her fist and decided that she would buy her mongoose lizard no matter how expensive it was. 

In the map provided by the Moon Spirit Yue, the closest large blue flame to Azula marked a village by the sea so she simply omitted that place from her letter to Zuko lest he sent a search team to every location she marked on her hand-drawn map. 

The next village she’ll be going to is called Hansha and it is a village focused on fishing and ship transportation that can connect her to Shuhon Island which is the second-largest island in the Fire Nation. Fire Fountain City could be found in Shuhon Island, it is also a place known for spiritual experiences in the past. This is why she is confused why the blue flame marked Hansha rather than Fire Fountain City.

“Girl, this is as far as we are willing to go near Hansha village.” The owner of the carriage stopped suddenly which spurned Azula back from her thoughts. 

The young teen went down from her seat and noticed a large road on the side that went down the hill they stopped on. At the foot of the hill, a village on the shoreline could be seen from Azula’s location.

“This is quite far,” Azula commented as she picked up her large bag from the carriage. 

The owner grimaced while he saw a glimpse of the Hansha Village. There was fear inside his eyes before turning to face the young teen. 

“Are you sure that you’re still going there? That village is cursed. There were a lot of strange happenings like ships venturing out in the sea and coming back with everything intact except for their crew and passengers. Even the fishermen were missing, that is why no one was willing to travel in that village for months now.” The carriage owner warned with trembling in his voice. 

“So that’s why you’re going to the Capital City instead of heading for Fire Fountain City which should be closer.” Azula fixed her hood and scarf before carrying her large bag on her back. 

“It’s safer to travel there these days even if it is much more expensive and time-consuming.” The carriage owner was visibly frustrated by the situation, seeing the knot of his brows and the tiredness in his face.  

Azula collected a few coins from her bag and flipped it towards the owner who caught it with a slight fumbling on his seat in front of the carriage. When he faced the young teen’s direction, she had already entered the large road towards Hansha Village. 

“Thank you for the ride, old man. Good luck on selling your rotten cabbage, you’ll need it.” Azula waved but never turned back even when she heard him curse her from afar. The sound of the carriage reached her ears until it disappeared in the distance. 

The young teen continued walking down the rough path while only the surrounding nature accompanied her. It was quite peaceful that gave her the illusion that she is just on a stroll instead of going to a cursed village. 

“So, we’re going to the sea right?” The voice of her older brother came from her side. Azula sighed, she knew that there would be no peace as long as she is out of her mind. 

“Where else, Zuzu? The sea swallowing the people should clue you in. Maybe the spirit of the ocean has been corrupted.” Azula pondered as she took a glance at the illusion of her brother. He was now wearing the clothes she remembered when they were in Ember Island. His eyes were still the same blue shade as her left eye which seems to light up under the afternoon sun.

“No, it should be a different spirit. The Ocean Spirit should still be living in the North Pole.” Phantom Zuko answered back with a matter-of-fact tone which made Azula stop on her tracks before facing her hallucination fully.

“How do you know that?” The young teen narrowed both of her eyes at Zuko who also stopped but continued to face the Hansha Village. 

“I was there when the Ocean Spirit was on a warpath and swallowed Zhao because he killed the Moon Spirit.” Illusionary Zuko shrugged his shoulders with nonchalance as he answered her question.

“But, I don’t know that. All I know from the reports was the Avatar turned into the Ocean Spirit and Zhao went missing, presumably dead. No mention of being eaten alive by the Ocean.” Azula stated while not moving her stare on her hallucination of her brother. He should be a figment of her broken brain but he knew things that she doesn’t know.

“What are you?” The young teen growled while her body tensed in caution. Was she suddenly possessed by a dark spirit without her knowing? Her hands burst into blue fire, putting on a defensive stance. 

“I’m Zuko, your brother. I’m still the same one who accompanied you from the Forgetful Valley.” The phantom Zuko smiled calmly, seeming like he didn't notice the flaring blue flames in Azula’s fists. He then added, “But I am not your hallucination. All I can say is that I am a part of you that is why only you can see me.”

“Tch, you must be part of that giant lizard's curse. It would explain the blue eyes.” Azula looked away while putting out the blue flames on her hand. The young teen frowned as she continued her walk but then suddenly, she turned to the Phantom Zuko behind her with a curious expression. 

“So, I am not crazy?” She asked in a wondering tone. The phantom of her brother laughed before patting her on the back gently.

“No, you are crazy, Lala. Terrifyingly crazy too.”

…

Azula had reached the foot of the hill in the evening and was facing the Hansha Village which was covered by a strange fog. From the top of the hill, this heavy fog couldn’t be seen at all. The young teen was about to take a step to enter the fog but stopped when she smelled a familiar stench like rotting dead rats. It was like the smell of the dark spirit in Hira’a but only lighter, probably because the dark spirit lived in the sea. 

With a face of disgust, Azula lowered her hood and tightened the scarf around her neck before proceeding inside the thick fog. Within a few minutes, she stood in front of the Hansha Village’s entrance. Her gold-blue eyes opened while she looked around because she knew that a normal person wouldn’t even be able to see in this fog. Her eyes could pierce through the fog so she can see as clear as day.

Hansha Village felt like it was a festival but for the dead instead with how one could feel the fear surrounding the place. There were a lot of white lanterns hanging in front of every house because this may be the only way for the villagers to see where they are going in the fog. It also signifies that people are living inside the houses.

People brave enough to walk outside had brought their lanterns. Azula might be able to count them by just using her hands. In their sight, they could glimmer the lantern which may mean that it was a place or a person walking towards them.

“This is how the ancient had done their funeral rites for important people in the past. I wouldn’t even be surprised if they made a parade for the dead.” Phantom Zuko commented from beside Azula who continued to walk forward, avoiding the people she passes by on the road. 

“The people still do it even in the present. In the past, they would carry the dead noble around the village they govern for some foolish reason but now it is only headed for the tombs.” Azula mumbled quietly while looking around for any sign of an open tavern. The hallucination of hers disappeared inside the fog after smiling at her gently.

With everything bleak and sorrowful, a tavern wouldn’t even close because the people need a place where they could forget everything. Just like in the Hira’a Village. What she wants is in the information of the tavern, be it the owner or its patrons.

Azula found the sign of the tavern and its lantern was lit up so she pushed forth the door. There were only five people inside the tavern including the owner behind the bar. They were all looking at her with a slack jaw as she continued to walk to the bar, she sat in front of the owner and let down her hood.

“Old man, what dishes do you offer here? It’s rude to stare, you know.” Azula spoke under her scarf but made sure to be loud enough so that the owner could hear her. He was still staring at her with amazement but snapped out of it when she spoke.

“Here you go kid, the meals with the fish aren’t available though for obvious reasons.” The owner was a middle-aged old man who had a thick beard and a muscular body. He wore a simple faded red robe but its sleeves were rolled up to his shoulders. Azula guessed that he was one of the fishermen in the village by how he wore his robe. 

“Obvious reasons? I want this, Old man.” Azula mumbled and pointed at the Hippo-ox steak meat. She was craving for a large meal before setting off to find a boat to carry her to the sea.

“Okay. But seriously, you sure dare to come to Hansha Village. Haven’t you heard what’s been happening in the village? This village is cursed.” The owner passed her order to the cook behind the back door. The smell of cooking meat wafted inside the tavern.

“Oh? I haven’t heard any of it. Please enlighten me.” Azula nonchalantly lies under her scarf, her left eyes still closed as soon as she is in front of normal people.

“For some reason a few months back, a thick fog coming from the sea appeared. It would disappear in the morning so we didn’t mind it much.” The owner explained with a grim expression on his face. 

“Slowly but surely, the fog became thicker and touched the shore. The transport ships that we sent at night to Shuhon Island never returned. We sent search teams but they found nothing. So we stopped any activities in the evening and only during the daylight. We thought it was enough until one day, the fog appeared during the daytime on the sea. The transport ships we sent sailed back with everything intact except for its passengers and the crewmates.” The young teen wondered if all tavern owners like chattering nonstop, the last one in Hira’a was also the same.

While the old man was lost in his memories, the hippo-ox steak appeared in front of Azula served by the cook. She continued to listen to the story while gobbling up the delicious steak. 

“Some said that it was the work of the Ocean Spirit who cursed us while others said that the Fire Nation committed grievous sins during the war and that is why we are being punished. There was only one man who could tell us what really happened and currently, he was unconscious.”  The owner sighed at the thought of that unfortunate man.

“There was a survivor?” Azula paused from her eating because of the new information that is in front of her.

“Yes. He is the lone survivor of the last transport ship from Shuhon Island. He was originally from this village so it may be that his family were moving back here. His wife and daughter also disappeared and he was unconscious from that time. There was still no sign of him waking up and it had been weeks since he came ashore along with the transport ship.”

“I see. So where can I find that man?” The young teen asked casually before continuing to eat again, there was only a bit more before she finished it all. The owner shot her a curious look. 

“He is currently bedridden at his late parents' old home, it’s the one closest to the village doctor which was his only fortune despite what happened to him.”

Azula finished eating her steak and drank the cup of water offered to her. She reached in her bag and took out a few coins, placing them on the bar table. She said, “This is for the meal, Old man. Thank you for the information, I’ll be taking my leave.” 

“Wait. Where are you going, kid? It’s dangerous out there at night.” The owner watched as the young teen raised her hood and hung her bag on her back. 

“I’m going sightseeing because it seems there’s a lot of interesting things happening in this village,”  Azula said as she walked out of the tavern and disappearing inside the thick fog covering the village.

Chapter Text

The sea breeze was becoming stronger as the night fell deeper in the Hansha Village. The waves were resounding like thunderclaps as they hit the port side of the small village. The fog has become thicker than a normal person could no longer see the lights of the lanterns that served as the guide to one’s home. 

Nonetheless, these events don't bother Azula at all as she strides forward. What put the scowl on her face was the incredible stench of death coming from the ocean. It made her want to gag at how it surrounded the whole village. She would need a shower after she pulverized that damned dark spirit. 

Azula was sure that the dark spirit residing in the sea was stronger than the one in Hira’a Village. The ‘curse’ in this village occurred for months and the victims were a large number of people without even adding the souls of the dead. It would be lucky if there were still survivors once she reached the area of the dark spirit.

From what she observed in her last mission, it takes time for the dark spirits to consume the souls of the living persons. But the souls of the dead would either be eaten completely or corrupted into a dark spirit. With the span of the months here in the Hansha Village, there were no souls left for the departed and she didn’t know how many of them were turned into dark spirits.

Azula was tasked to protect the souls of the dead. So was the mission already a failure? No, the first thing she needs to do is figure out how to defeat the dark spirit in the sea, the damage left by the spirit comes after the fight. She is a firebender and it was an incredible disadvantage to fight in the bodies of water against a waterbender, much more a spirit who lives in the ocean.

She had the thought to leave this village alone but the curses placed on her prevented her from doing so. Every time she had the thought of abandoning her mission, her heart would pump so hard she felt that it was going to explode.  Her body would go stiff like she would become a block of ice. She could feel her fire and body heat leave to the unknown, evaporating into thin air and it left her gasping.

The curses would leave her motionless for a few minutes before her body would return to normal. The thought of not fighting the dark spirit close to her gave her the same experience and she could only swear at the Dragon King for it.

She walked through the fog, following the white lanterns until she reached a red one.  The villagers changed the doctor’s lantern to the color red so that it would be easier to find it in case of an emergency. Azula knocked on the door of the house and she heard the voice of an old woman.

“Who's out there?! It’s this late already! This better be an emergency or else I’ll make you into one.” The sliding door opened to reveal a frowning old woman carrying a candle lamp. Her hair was gray tied into a loose bun and she was wearing a faded red robe, looking like she was heading to bed. 

“Good evening.” Azula gave a small bow to the older woman. Her hood was raised but her scarf was not, revealing her smiling face along with her gold eyes glimmering under the candlelight. 

“I came from the village tavern and they said that I could ask here where I could find the survivor from the last shipwreck. Are you the village doctor?” 

“Yes, and you are? As far as I know, Mizuo didn’t have any relatives left in any part of the nation.” The older woman’s eyes narrowed in suspicion while her posture went defensive at the smiling teen in front of her.

“I am Aoi. I am a traveler collecting stories around the Four Nations and I am interested in the story behind the curse in your village.” 

“A storyteller? Kid, you better find a real job back in the Capital City. What you are doing is wasting your time.”

“I am sure I’ll be fine, I sell the stories I find to theatre troupes in Ember Island and they gave me a great deal,” Azula answered calmly without the indication that she was lying. She was sputtering lies, pulling it out of thin air but it seemed to be a great idea as her background since she’ll be dealing with curses and such throughout her mission.

“Tch, it’s your life.” The old woman sees Azula’s calm smile for a moment before sighing. “Next morning, I’ll guide you to Mizuo’s house. You should be here before I put out the light of the lantern.” 

“I see. I’ll be here at dawn.” Azula nodded before turning around to disappear once more in the thick fog. The old woman was left wondering how the younger one could walk through the night without a lamp on hand.

Azula didn’t move far away from the village doctor’s house but watched as the older woman closed her door before walking back and jumping to the roof of the house. She landed quietly with a cat’s grace and sat down on the tiled roof. She wrapped herself with her cloak like a blanket and laid down on the roof with her bag as her pillow. 

The young teen had the thought of threatening the older woman but seeing her hardened eyes, it was no use. Azula had seen those eyes before from her uncle when she visited him in prison during the war. Those eyes screamed conviction and had no plans on surrendering their principles under the threats of fear. 

The old doctor must be a strong person who prioritizes the safety of her patients above all things. It is also the reason why the older woman said to guide Azula in the morning wherein case of danger, she can ask for help from people around them who should be asleep at this time of the night. 

Azula compromised rather than antagonizing the older woman because she thought it would be more beneficial to be amiable towards the villagers. She was still in need of a boat or a ship if she planned on fighting against the dark spirit. The young teen closed her eyes for rest rather than waiting for the dawn to come. It’s much better to conserve her energy in case of an emergency. 

…

Azula was having a nightmare and she was aware of it.

She was back again in her prison cell, lying on the dirty floor with her hands and legs bound in chains. Her mouth was covered with a cloth to prevent her from screaming every time they slashed their whips across her back. They were all prison guards bent on crushing her will for the sake of “justice” inside the four-cornered walls of her cell. 

At first, she tried to struggle against her restraints but as the days went longer, her will to live became a failure to die. The shame crawls all over her body and the regrets seep inside her heart making her numb and cold. The bleeding pain on her back became the only source of warmth to her and the reminder that she is still alive, breathing the air inside her chest as she gasps from the searing pain across her back. 

Now that she had escaped from the Capital City, she still had these recurring nightmares of those days in her prison cell. Sometimes the prison guard would change their faces to a person she had known. Her father. Her mother. Zuko. Sometimes it was Mai and Ty Lee, even the Avatar and his party would appear to change with the prison guards.

With every scathing pain from the whip, they would spout every failure she had done in her lifetime. The ending of that nightmare would be when her chains get pulled up by unseen force, forcibly making her bound to the walls of her prison cell and they would laugh at her condescendingly and with disgust on their faces. Zuko would turn his back on her and disappear from her sight.

The nightmare changed the last time it occurred because of the blue-eyed version of her brother who woke her up by breaking her chains. Maybe the horror of her mind adapted to her current situation because while she was bound to the walls, there was a murky black pit where the dirty ground should be found. 

“I see that there is still a spark of life left inside you, it seems that the crushing of your will was still lacking.” A voice said to her that it brought terror all over her body. Azula’s gold-blue eyes lifted from the black pit where she was kneeling on and meeting mocking two gold eyes.

The person standing in front of her was a younger version of Azula. She wore the armor of the Fire Nation, looking like Azula’s past self who was just sent out to hunt her brother and the Avatar. 

Her hair was in a bun and there was no strand out of line. A cruel smirk gracing those lips while there was something cold inside those pairs of gold eyes. Her aura screams danger and power as she stood over the older Azula tied by chains on the wall of her prison cell. 

It was her past self her father was proud of, the one before she committed her failures. The one who had everything controlled in the palm of her hands and feared by everyone, even her brother and her supposed friends. The self who was deemed by her mother as a monster.

“Looking at you right now is so disgusting. Your pathetic existence reeks of failure and weakness. You failed our father and you even failed killing yourself.” Her past self was standing above the murky black pit where half of Azula’s body sunk in.

She stared dazedly at her past self smooth face with a grin of a predator as she leaned down and grasped Azula’s chin. She couldn’t respond with the cloth gag in her mouth and could only listen to the torment of how she crushed her dreams and future because of her weakness in her younger self’s lips.

“I don’t even know why the Fates choose you to live. Even with your current mission, you are still failing.” The younger Azula pointed down and the older self looked down in the black pit swallowing her to the hips. 

Azula’s gold-blue eyes widened in horror as she saw what’s inside the black pit. It was all the souls of the dead grabbing her legs, their limbs chaining her down and wanting to pull her inside the black pit. The only thing stopping them was her chains to the walls. 

Now that she noticed, she could feel the two forces wanting to rip her apart into two pieces. She could hear the wails of the dead saying why didn’t she save them, why was this happening to them. It’s all Azula’s fault for not being fast enough, strong enough, to save them from the dark spirits plaguing them.

“This is the result of your pathetic existence. The souls of the dead and the lives of the living were lost because of your weakness.” The younger Azula grasped her chin with pointed nails and with a crazed smile, she said. “That is why you should die, to repay them for your failures.”

Azula watched as her past self raised her hands towards her chest as if to claw out her heart. She feels numb as she didn’t know what she would feel if she died under the hands of the perfect version of herself. She didn’t know if she’d feel relief or guilt at not being able to finish her mission, the only thing that became her purpose to still go on through her miserable life.

“You don’t belong here, wraith.” With a wave of his hand, the phantom of her brother made her past self disappear in a cloud of smoke. His pair of blue eyes gleaming in the darkness of Azula’s nightmare. 

Zuko walks towards the only Azula left and once again, grasps her chains and breaks her free with brute force. He pulled her out from the black pit effortlessly, with the wails of the dead following her escape. He caught her in his arms and muttered with a warm voice in her ears.

“If there is one thing good with your past self, it's her tenacity. You’ve been fighting against yourself throughout your life. You can’t lose to her now more than ever. Wake up, Lala. You still have a job to finish.”

…

“Ugh, what a terrible nightmare. It’s even worse waking up under this stench.” 

Azula grumbled as she sat on the tiled roof, the fog slowly thinning under the upcoming sunrise. Her wrapped cloak sat on her hips before wrapping it up around her body once more. She grabbed her bag behind her and placed it on her lap, pulling out a dried beef for her breakfast along with her water gourd.

“Nice morning.” There was a phantom weight on Azula’s back as she felt the illusion of her brother leaning his back on hers. His arms were crossed from her peripheral vision. 

“What are you doing here?” Azula asked before taking a bite of her dried beef. Her gold-blue eyes watched as the sun pierced through the fog yet she couldn’t feel the heat from it.

“There is something I forgot to say. I don’t want you to lose against your past self. That Azula only has the power to destroy. You, on the other hand, have been tasked to protect.” Phantom Zuko said with a casual tone from behind her.

“Protecting others is much harder than destroying them. You’ll win when you can protect much more than the perfect image you thought of yourself can destroy. That’s right… You can’t lose to the past you who lost everything she had.” Unseen by Azula, the phantom of her brother was staring up in the sky with a smile on his lips. His blue eyes were glistening even through the fog. 

“Winning huh? It’s almost like my life revolved around that word before. Now, I only want the power to break through my chains and punch my past self in the face for looking down on me.” Azula aggressively bites her beef while her gold-blue eyes reflect something like tenacity which had disappeared from her eyes replaced with the craziness in the past years after the war had ended.

The illusion of her brother laughed loudly but only Azula could hear his amusement. “If that’s what you want then you have to get stronger physically and mentally.”

“I know. Once I get better, maybe I’ll finally stop hearing your voice in my head.” Azula responded before emptying the water in her gourd. She needs to replenish her supplies before going against the dark spirit in the sea.  

“Well, I doubt that. I told you already that I am not your hallucination.”

Chapter Text

“You’re here early.” The old village doctor grumpily said as soon as she opened her door and saw Azula standing on the side with arms crossed.

“I did say I’ll be here at dawn.” The younger woman watched the older one put out the light from her red lantern and replaced the candle inside with a new one.

“Fine. Let me just get my things and then I’ll guide you to Mizuo’s house.” The old woman squinted at Azula who stared back with only her gold eye, closing the scarred one, hiding her blue eye. 

A few minutes passed and the old doctor exited her house once more carrying a rectangular basket that Azula guessed were medicinal herbs from the way it smelled with her heightened senses. The old woman ignored the younger one and continued to walk for the house on the outskirts of the village. 

The house was the last one on the outskirts of the village, there was no more house closer than the one owned by the village doctor. It was a small house close to the sea with a smaller port along with a boat. There was no lantern outside the house, Azula guessed that it was because the owner can’t even walk so there was no need for a guide.

The old woman opened the door and waited for Azula to enter before closing it. She was watching the younger woman closely in case she had evil intentions regarding her patient. Yet the teen was looking around the house curiously with her gold eye. 

The doctor judged that her left eye should be blinded by how deep and wide the scar ran down from her forehead down to her cheek. It should have been made by a beast of some kind because it resembles the scars made by the claws of mountain lions that she treated before.

Azula knows that the older woman was watching her closely ever since they left the doctor’s house but she paid it no mind. She noticed that the interior of the house was similar to the dead soldier, Zhang Li’s house. There was a dining area, a kitchen, and a hall covered with a thin curtain on the side. She observed that it should lead to the bedrooms just like Zhang Li’s stairs that lead to their bedrooms on the second floor.

Azula stayed quiet as she followed the older woman down the hall. There were three rooms which the two passed by before stopping in front of the door at the end of the hall. The village doctor opened it and the younger woman finally found the lone survivor of the ‘curse’. 

On the single bed, a young man was lying on the bed. He seems to be a man in his late twenties. His face was healthy yet wearing the pale gray robe, making him look sicker than he should be. If not for the knowledge of what occurred to him, Azula would’ve guessed that he was just asleep. There was a lone table and a cabinet inside the room with the young man. 

Azula watched the old doctor place her basket on the lone table and sat beside the unconscious man, checking his pulse. She didn’t know how the doctors observe their patients' health with only their pulse. She was curious about the practice but she knew that knowledge wouldn’t help her conquer the world with her father. So in the end, she gave up the idea of learning about it.

“I told you that you were wasting your time here, kid. Even though you have questions about the curse you’re interested in, Mizuo won’t be able to answer it with the state he is in.” The old woman sighed as she finished, her eyes fixed on the young man lying on the bed.

“What exactly is wrong with him? He seems healthy to me.” Azula commented while crossing her arms and leaning on the wall beside the door. Her scarf covered half of her face yet her piercing gold eyes never left the old woman’s back,

“His body is healthy but his mind or spirit is not. I don’t know what he experienced back then but it traumatized him to the point of not wanting to wake up.” The old woman sighed and reached for her basket. She pulled out a bunch of dried herbs and a small brown clay pot. She placed salt inside the pot before she mixed the herbs and tied it into a bundle.

The old woman with her bundle of herbs turned to the teenage girl who was watching her quietly. She said, “Come here and make yourself useful. Lit up the end of the herbs but don’t make a fire.” 

Azula frowned before pushing herself off the wall and walking towards the old doctor. She touched the end of the herbs until they started to burn and release smoke. “How did you know that I am a firebender?”

“Well, those who possess golden eyes are most likely to be firebenders. From what I can get from you, you seem to be a powerful one.” The doctor replied before placing the bundle inside the pot. The smoke that was released gave off an aromatic smell that surrounds the room. 

Azula was surprised that it blocked off the stench of death that she had been smelling since she entered the fog surrounding the village. It has also given her a sharp cool effect that relaxes the tight nerves in her body. It was a mix of fragrances that made her familiar along with the earthy scent of the herbs. 

“What is in those herbs?” The teen asked curiously and pointed to the clay pot that the old woman placed close to the unconscious man’s body.

“It’s white sage with a mix of lavender. White sage can relax a person’s spirit and mind along with lavender. If what happened to Mizuo is a real curse then the sage can help him. The Air Nomads of the past believed that sages could ward off evil spirits.” The doctor explained to Azula who had been listening seriously.

“Then where can I…” The younger woman trailed off as her focus was caught by something she didn’t notice before when she entered the room.

“There’s a lot of sages that grow in the mountains close to our village. I heard they are also found in the coastal areas in the Fire Nation. You buy some dried ones in the tavern, it seems they use it for cooking too.” The old doctor didn’t notice the look of surprise on Azula’s face.

“Oh...I see. Thank you for the information. That would be a great help for me.” Azula’s blue left eye opened from her surprise. She was lucky that the old doctor’s back was facing her or else her unusual eye would’ve been seen by others.

She was focused on the misty image on the corner of the room that looked like the man currently lying on the bed. He was in a fetal position with his eyes closed and his expression pained as he leaned on the wall. A black smoke swallowed his legs and it looked like it was alive with its tendrils seeping out. 

With both of her eyes, she could see the corrosion in Mizuo’s soul that was enveloping half of his spirit. There was a thin red thread attached to his ethereal body that connected its end to his physical one. Is this the soul bond of the living that Azula had heard before?

She noticed the effect of the sage’s smoke on Mizuo's body. The corrosion which looked like black smoke wrapped around him had been receding. Azula felt that it would be bad if it reached the red thread on the soul of the unfortunate man.

“That’s the breath of life given by the Fire Spirit Agni which attaches the soul of a person to the physical body created by the Earth Spirit Enki. That is called a soul bond. The thread’s thickness and strength depend on the will of the person to live.” 

“You didn’t explain this last time. Why is it now that you decided to talk?” Azula whispered to the phantom of her brother who suddenly appeared beside the soul of Mizuo, examining the thread attached directly to the ethereal body’s heart.

“Even if I explained it last time, you wouldn’t be able to see it. This man has a weak will to live and it may be the reason that his soul doesn’t return to his body. The soul bond’s pull is too weak and the dark spirit’s corruption doesn’t help his case too.” Phantom Zuko pointed at the black smoke that was slowly lessening because of the sage.

“So what will happen to him if we leave him alone?” Azula’s gold-blue eyes met the blue eyes of her brother’s illusion. 

“Well, if the corruption reaches his soul bond in this weak state, it will definitely lead to his death. The corruption will swallow the detached soul faster and he will turn into another dark spirit in a matter of time.”

“Since you are in a talking mood, why does it take time to corrupt a dead person’s soul into a dark spirit? Why was I able to save the old man last time in the cave? Didn’t he already turn into a dark spirit?” The young teen sent a barrage of questions towards the phantom who was still staring at herself with gleaming blue eyes.

“What are you murmuring there? We need to leave since there is no use in staying here.” The old doctor called out to the girl who has been whispering to herself for a while now. 

Azula closed her left eye and turned to the older woman with a nod. Her expression was calm even though her mind was erratic. She followed the doctor as she exited Mizuo’s house. The two women walked to the doctor’s house in a quiet and somber mood.

“So what do you plan to do now?” The old woman turned to Azula with narrowed eyes.

“I’ll stay in the village for a day or two. Please notify me if that man shows signs of waking up.” Azula told the doctor, turning her back to her to heading back in the tavern’s direction. She planned to buy all of their sages now that the dark spirit’s stench came back to her as soon as she left Mizuo’s house.

“You are wasting your time here. It would take a miracle if he wakes up this week.” The old woman replied as she entered her house, leaving Azula standing outside.

“Now, there are a lot of questions I need you to answer.” The young teen turned to her other companion which only she could see. She saw the phantom sighed and faced the house they just came from.

“Sure but you need to hurry back or else that man will die and you will fail to protect this person’s life.”  

…

Azula returned to Mizuo’s house and entered unscrupulously. She walked into the young man’s room and stopped to bring down her bag on the ground. She pulled the seat that the old woman had been using before and sat on it, arms crossed and both eyes narrowed at the phantom of her brother standing before her.

“I don’t like being made a fool of so I’d like it if I get some answers to my questions earlier.” Azula snarled at her hallucination, her body full of a dangerous aura. She reached the end of her patience while she walked back to Mizuo’s house. 

“It’s fine because your questions are related to saving him.” Phantom Zuko pointed at the weakened soul in the corner of the room. His blue eyes faced Azula as he started to explain.

“A person’s soul has a core called soul essence. It is the soul in its purest form or its blank state. When a person dies, their soul bond or the breath of life given by Fire Spirit Agni extinguishes itself. The soul will be detached from the physical body and the physical body will return from where it first came from, the earth.”

“The soul of the deceased will contain a lot of memories the person has experienced throughout his life. These experiences and memories will strengthen or weaken the soul essence depending on the actions they have committed during their lifetime. It is called Karma here in the mortal world. It is then decided by the Fates or by the strength of their soul essence if he will become a spirit or return to reincarnation.”

“Karma? You mean that thing Uncle Iroh and some priest babble sometimes?” Azula interrupted with a raised eyebrow, showing her doubt clearly.

“Yes, everything has an equivalent exchange in the eyes of Fate. Uncle Iroh has a strong soul essence, maybe he will be given the chance to become a spirit when the time comes.” Phantom Zuko replied with a pensive expression on his face.

“The greater sins committed, the weaker and darker the soul essence will be. That is why the Moon Spirit guides the souls of the dead to be cleansed of their memories and experiences. It is to return the soul essence into a blank slate, ready for their next life, with no sins hanging on their shoulders.”  

“So what does this have to do with the time needed for the dark spirits to corrupt the souls of the dead?” The teenage girl returned to her original question earlier.

“The memories and experience act as an outer shell of the soul, protecting the soul essence that acts as its core. The corruption of the dark spirit needs time to surround and destroy the outer shell of the soul before it can touch the soul essence. Once it reaches that point, the soul can no longer be saved and they will turn into a dark spirit.” The phantom of her brother answered calmly as he returned his blue gaze on the soul of Mizuo, sitting on the ground in a fetal position.

“Then how did the old man back in the cave survive?” 

“He has massive experience and memories that protected him from the dark spirits' attempt of corrupting his soul essence. He must have done a lot of good things for his soul to be that strong. With some of his memories eaten by the corruption, he still managed to retain his soul for however long it took before you saved him.” 

“So the younger the soul is, the easier it is for the dark spirit to corrupt?” Azula inquired, she was having a clearer perspective of the mortal souls.

“The younger and the eviler you are, the easier it is to be corrupted by the dark spirit.” Phantom Zuko looked at her pointedly as if to prove the point that Azula had scoffed at.

“Okay, how am I supposed to save this man?” The young teen stood up from her seat and walked towards the soul of the unconscious person in the room. 

“It’s quite easy. Just do what you did for the old man in the cave, touch the dark spirit’s corruption and purify it with your flames. It will not affect his soul. But the hard part is strengthening his soul bond enough so that his soul will return to his body.” Phantom Zuko responded nonchalantly as they both looked down on Mizuo’s soul, glancing at the thin red thread coming from his heart.

“Okay. Then, the last question. How do you know all of these things?” Azula’s gold-blue eyes were piercing as she gazed at the small smile on the lips of her illusion of her brother.

“When the Dragon King changed you to his kin, he placed some knowledge inside you that only I can access, and as to why is that, I’d like to keep it a secret until the time comes.” Phantom Zuko had the gall to smirk at Azula that she wanted to punch him in the mouth if she could touch him.

“Tch, so you are the fail-safe the damned lizard king placed in me, right? That’s what you meant earlier when you said you are not my hallucination.” 

“No, but you’re not completely wrong either. As I said, you’ll know when the time comes.”

“What does that even mean?” The young teen grumbled before flaring up her blue flames and directing it towards the black smoke wrapped around the lower half of Mizuo. The two watched the black smoke materialize and crack before turning into ashes, fading in the wind. 

Azula stared down at the soul who was still unconscious, “Now, any idea how to give this guy his will to live? I need to get this business done fast and I’d be taking his ship along with me for this life-saving grace.”