Chapter Text
(0 years, 0 months, 0 days)
The car ride through the small town was torture. Most car rides were torture but at least some provided something interesting to look at or good conversation with friends. This trip provided none of that. The town was beyond boring, almost everything looked exactly the same as it did to all other towns they’d been before, and the car was dead silent.
Zuko moved a tad in his seat every few minutes but beyond that there was hardly any sound. Azula would try to give Zuko a look to get his attention—not wanting to be the one who spoke first—but she never could. Their case worker, who was driving the car, kept his eyes trained on the road and never even tried to make small talk. Mostly because he didn’t know if the two would take to it or not.
Finally, the map, as if it too could no longer take the silence, declared, “Your destination is ten minutes away. Take a left at the next exit then turn right at South Pole road.”
“Alright.” Piandao sighed, “We’re almost here.”
“Yay.” Zuko grumbled.
“Hey. None of that. Can you two at least try to be good?”
“We’re delightful.” Azula said with the fakest smile she could muster, “What could they have to complain about?”
“Do you two realize how lucky you were to find a family willing to take you both?” Piandao asked, “It wouldn’t kill you to try and meet this new foster family with a bit of-“
Zuko scoffed at Piandao’s words and crossed his arms over his chest, “What? Should we be grateful? Happy that they realized they get a check for taking us in? Or that we can be some charity story they show off to their friends?”
The case worker sighed. He knew this would be a challenge. It would be hard for two teenagers to honestly believe anyone would want them, especially with some of the families Zuko and Azula already had. Still, after three years with the sixteen and fourteen year old he truly hoped that this family would be good for them. Adoption wasn’t looking too good for either of them at this point. Foster families were the only way Zuko and Azula stayed fed, safe and together….or maybe just one or two out of those three.
“I’m only saying that this family might be different. You could be a bit more optimistic.”
“That’s what you said about our last five foster families.” Zuko reminded him, “You were only right about one.”
Piandao winced, “Alright, but I have a good feeling about these people. You’ll see.”
“Whatever you say.” Azula sighed.
“Your destination is on the right. 04 South Pole Road.” The destination lady said before turning off. Piandao drove into the driveway of the house, giving the siblings a perfect view of their new home.
The house was two stories—though they assumed there was a basement—with sky blue paint decorating the whole house except the windows which were outlined in white. The door was a dark red color with the number in gold on it and two trees hanging over the front door. It was out of sight but the siblings assumed there was a backyard as well given that this looked like a house that would have a large backyard for little kids and a dog to play in.
“Come on. Time to meet your new foster family.” Piandao got out of the car and opened the back so that they could collect their individual small suitcases. Three years in the foster system did a lot to their personal possessions. Azula, personally, had started out with six large bags of stuff when they were first taken by social services but all that had dwindled down to a small case of her most valuable and necessary possessions. Zuko had two bags but one was his stuff and the other was an emergency bag, a bag filled with food, water bottles, cash, a couple items of clothing, and a map.
The front door opened before they arrived, revealing a couple: a man and a woman. They both had dark skin with brown hair and blue eyes. The woman was a bit bigger but looked like she had the strength to punch someone’s lights out if need be and the man was short but held himself with the same power that their father had.
“Zuko! Azula!” The woman smiled, walked over to them, “It’s great to meet you two! Let me carry your bags for you.”
“You don’t have to do that.” Zuko told her, “We can carry them ourselves.”
“I insist.” Piandao stepped in.
“Thank you for the kind offer but they prefer to keep their bags with them.” He said.
Kya seemed to realize her mistake and backtracked, looking embarrassed, “You two must be exhausted. Why don’t we show you a quick tour of the house and show you your rooms.” Rooms?
“Rooms?” Azula asked, “As in…we aren’t sharing?”
“No. We have enough space that all you kids should be able to have your own room.” She told her.
While Zuko and Azula were completely shocked—usually they had to share a room or shared with other foster kids or the bio kids—Piandao stepped in, “Zuko, Azula, these are your foster parents: Kya South and Hakoda South.”
“And our children are currently in school but they’ll be home soon.” Kya told them, “We also have a dog that our neighbor is currently watching so you two aren’t bombarded by him.”
“That sounds lovely.” Piandao said, “Do you mind if we come in?”
“Of course not!” Hakoda walked out of the doorway to shake Piandao’s hand then turned to Zuko and Azula.
“It’s nice to meet you both.”
“Nice to meet you too, sir.” Zuko said first. Azula remained silent.
“There’s no need for that. You can call me Hakoda.” He said. It was the safest bet right now for names. Better than them calling him Mr. South or Sir.
The five walked into the house in painful, awkward silence. Kya and Hakoda knew it was going to be awkward at the start but they could work through it. They had been prepared for this. They looked at one another and nodded: a home tour.
“So, this is the kitchen. You two are welcome to come down here and get something to eat whenever you want. If there’s anything you want and we don’t have it you can put it on the shopping list right here.” Kya gestured to the refrigerator where there hung a piece of paper and a pen, “Family dinner is every night but if you have homework or sports or some other commitment just tell us so that we know.”
They walked through a small hallway connected to the left side of the kitchen which spat them out into a living room. The living room had a couch, chair and carpeted floor with a nice tv on the other side for everyone to watch. All along the mantel were pictures of the family and some pictures of random people.
“This is the living room. We’ll usually watch family movies here but it’s also a nice place to go if you want to sit and relax after school.” Kya told them.
“Outside we have a deck which overlooks the backyard. It’s getting a little too cold for it but when it warms back up it’s always nice to sit out there.” Hakoda added.
The couple then gestured to the final hallway and pointed to a door at the very end of it, “That’s our room. We will be downstairs while you kids are upstairs but if you need anything, you can come down and get us.” Zuko and Azula remained silent, only giving slight nods to confirm that they were listening.
The five then walked up the stairs to see a long hallway that stretched across the entire second floor. Kya pointed to the first open door they saw after climbing the stairs.
“Zuko, this is your room.” She said, “Azula, your room is right next to his.” Slowly, the siblings poked their heads into their rooms.
Zuko almost dropped his jaw at the size of his room. After three years of never having his own space, seeing a bed neatly laying against the wall, a nightstand, a closet, a bookshelf and a desk and chair all laid out in his room was an amazing sight. The room was pretty bare though. The only color that was added to it was the bed which was dark red. Zuko also took the opportunity to look at Azula’s room which was pretty much a copy and paste of his except her bed was light red.
“Piandao told us you like the color red.” Kya nervously explained, “We can go to the store later if you don’t like it.”
“No!” The siblings quickly cried, not wanting to anger their foster parents on their first day.
“It’s okay. We do like the color red.” Zuko said, “It looks really nice.”
“That’s great.” Kya smiled.
“There are also snacks in your rooms.” Hakoda pointed to the small bedside table which held some goldfish, chocolate chip cookies, fruit, chips and a bottle of water, “Those belong to you. Feel free to have some whenever you want. Azula, Piandao told us about your peanut allergy so we made sure that all the food in your room is nut free.”
“Oh, um, thank you.”
“Well, these are your rooms and then this is the bathroom right here.” Kya gestured to the door that was on the other side of the second hallway. The two hallways made a sort of T shape with the second one containing the doors to Katara and Sokka’s room and the bathroom, “You can fill the room with whatever you need and we keep this room stocked with medicine, toothpaste, extra toothbrushes, whatever you need.”
“And that’s the whole house. There is a basement but it’s not finished yet so please don’t go down there. Not much but it’s livable.” Hakoda nervously smiled.
Azula and Zuko remained quiet, “Zuko? Azula?” Piandao whispered. He gestured slightly to the adults.
“Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. South.” They said.
“Alright. I’ll be heading out now. You have their registration for school and medical information?” Piandao asked.
“Yes. We got all the emails and everything has been printed out.” Hakoda confirmed.
“Good.” He then turned to the kids, “Why don’t you two get all situated here? I need to talk to Kya and Hakoda for a moment.” He said.
The siblings shared a quick glance but left to grab their bags—which had been left downstairs—anyway. Piandao turned to the couple.
“I assume you’ve both been prepped on them?” They nodded, “Good. I promise they’re good kids. Azula excels in school and Zuko is an amazing artist and writer, but they…they need time. They’ll be a bit resistant at first which is completely normal.”
“Of course. We were told about their father. We can’t exactly blame them for being skittish.” Kya said.
“Yes, well, if at any point that skittishness turns into full blown anger make sure to give me a call.”
By now, Piandao was able to tell when a foster family would not be a good fit and when they would be. Some of the foster families Zuko and Azula had been with in the past were horrible fits and he shudders at remembering the two calling him and begging him to take them away. Piandao liked to think the agency did a good job of turning away those who just saw foster kids as paychecks but they weren’t always successful. The fact that Zuko and Azula started out as genuinely curious and scared children and had now become cynical and jaded teenagers was proof of that to Piandao. But he had faith in this family. Something about them told Piandao this would be different.
“We will.” Kya confirmed.
“Good. I should get going.” When Piandao walked down the stairs, he was greeted by the sight of the two standing next to their bags.
“Done with your super secret talk?” Azula asked.
The man sighed, a hand on his forehead, “Please give this family a chance. Just one chance.”
“Piandao-“
“Please.” His voice was close to breaking. The two suddenly found that they had lost the will to yell, to be sarcastic and snide at their case worker, “I-I don’t know if another family will be willing to take in two teenagers again. This could be the last family where you two get to stay together.”
“We’ll give them a chance.” Zuko whispered.
“Thank you.” Piandao whispered, hugging the two teenagers, “You two have my number if anything happens. Goodbye! I’ll stop by every so often to check in.” With that, the case worker walked out of the house leaving the couple to look at the siblings.
“So….have you two had lunch?”
——————————
The hours waiting for Katara and Sokka to return were agonizing. Azula and Zuko didn’t speak unless they were responding with yes or no to a question Kya or Hakoda had asked of them. The two hadn’t eaten so the couple decided to make them something.
“What do you like to eat?” Kya asked.
“….”
“Will you eat chicken?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. Then I’ll make some baked chicken. Would you be okay with some fries as a side?” Hakoda asked.
“Okay.”
Silence filled the room again pretty quickly. The only noise that could be heard was the sound of cooking and machines running. The silence continued on for multiple minutes, Azula and Zuko kept their eyes trained on the table to avoid looking at their new foster parents, until a large sound behind them made the two jump.
“AH!” Zuko grabbed Azula and forced her behind him as the two whipped around to see what the noise could be.
“What’s wrong?!” Hakoda and Kya also turned around when they heard the two scream.
“Nothing. Nothing.” Zuko was blushing now at the realization of what had frightened him.
“Oh!” Hakoda realized, “It’s just the pipes.” He said.
Under the stairs was a small little door which no one had really mentioned before on the initial tour. Hakoda opened the door to reveal that it was a tiny room, only about the size of one adult or so, with pipes inside.
“See? Nothing too dangerous or scary. The pipes make that noise every few minutes.” He explained, “But I promise there’s no one in there. We’re not as horrible as Harry Potter’s parents.”
“They’re his aunt and uncle.” Kya argued, “You should know this.”
“Parents. Aunt and uncle. Close enough.”
“Not close enough! You’re messing with the fabric of Harry Potter.” Kya laughed.
"I'm so sorry. Please, forgive my horrible and shameful action of getting two fictional characters mixed up." Kya playfully hit her husband on the head.
“All I'm saying is there is still a big difference between Harry’s parents and his aunt and uncle.” Kya said, “What do you two think?”
Zuko and Azula looked at one another, trying to find the right answer. Did they agree with Hakoda or Kya? Azula, deciding on an answer for them, responded with, “We’ve never really read or watched Harry Potter.” It wasn’t a complete lie. They had read the first book when they were initially brought into foster care and then one of their old families had the second book but they never saw the movies or read anything beyond that.
“Well, I know what my choice for family movie night is going to be.” Kya said, “No children should go this long without Harry Potter.”
“Or lunch.” Hakoda snickered.
“Yeah, yeah. The chicken is almost done. Why don’t you get them plates?”
Within minutes, the food was set down in front of them. Kya also prepared a plate for Hakoda and herself so they could sit across from the teenagers. Silence returned to the kitchen, minus the pipes, as they all ate.
Azula and Zuko had a specific frequency that they ate at. Never fast enough that they could be accused of stuffing themselves and be yelled at by their foster parents but also never slow enough that the food could be taken away before they were done. It took time to master but they had it down by now. By the time they were done, they had perfectly timed it to when Kya and Hakoda finished eating as well.
“Do you two have any other items except for the bags?” Hakoda asked.
“No.” Zuko told him.
“What did you bring?”
“Toothbrushes, toothpaste, chargers, a couple books, hairbrush, clothes, medicine and pictures.” Azula easily recited.
“Do you need anything else? We could go to the store?”
“Oh, no!” Azula quickly said. She hadn’t meant to make it seem like they needed more stuff, “We’re good! Really, we have enough.”
“Are you sure? We could go to the store and get you two some stuff to make your rooms feel more personal.” Kya offered.
“No, no, we’re okay. We have everything we need.” Azula said again, “Actually, we had a long drive here, could we rest for a bit?” She asked. Zuko and her braced for the response. Would they be angry at them for not wanting to spend time with them? Accuse them of being ungrateful?
“Of course! Head upstairs and rest. We put school supplies in your desks so feel free to take a look at that and see if we missed anything.”
“Thank you!” The two ran before Kya or Hakoda could change their minds. They ran all the way up to their rooms and hid against the wall.
Less than two hours they had been in this house and already they were hiding. Not because Kya and Hakoda were loud or angry, but because they were kind and seemed to care about them. To the siblings, this was worse. At least when parents were angry they were upfront, but it didn’t matter. It wouldn’t take long for Kya and Hakoda to show their true colors. All it was now was just a waiting game.
—--------------------
Katara and Sokka came home with a slamming door. The noise startled the new siblings who were still hiding in their room. Azula slipped out of her room and into Zuko’s. They hid against the wall so that no one could see them.
“Biological children are here.” Azula whispered.
“I heard. How do you want to do this?”
Azula bit her lip, “Mmm…I think we should see what they do first. It’s better if we let them talk first and see what they’re like so that we can tell Piandao when we have to leave.” He wouldn’t be able to accuse them of anything if the bio kids were hostile to them first.
“Good idea.” Zuko nodded, “You ready?”
“Not at all.”
“Me neither. Let’s go.”
All Azula and Zuko had been told about Kya and Hakoda’s current children was their name and ages. They had looked them up and found Instagram accounts for the two but they had no other information beyond those three pieces. When they walked downstairs, they were instantly greeted by the sight of the two kids. The girl gave them a huge smile while the boy looked at them kinda weird.
“Hello!” Katara chirped, “My name’s Katara and this is my brother, Sokka! It’s great to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too.” Zuko said, “So….you were at school?” Azula had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. Of course they were at school. Where else would they be?
“Yeah. Our parents say you’ll join us on Monday.” Katara said.
The foster kids looked towards Kya and Hakoda, “We wanted to give you a few days to settle into the house before you went to school. You’ll have the weekend and then you’ll start school on Monday.” Kya explained.
“Then I guess we start classes Monday.” Zuko confirmed.
“You’ll love it! Four Nation High School is great! And we can show you around.”
“That’s great. Thanks.” The tone of Zuko’s voice made it clear that he was hardly as invested in the conversation as Katara was. Katara backed off, giving Sokka a look that begged him to take over the conversation.
“....Were you involved in any clubs in your old school?” Sokka asked.
“I was on the debate team for a few months and our old school had a law club that I really liked.” Azula admitted.
“You’re interested in law?” Hakoda asked
Sokka swooped in first, “That's amazing! Our school has a law club if you want to join that. I'm sure you'd do great."
Azula instantly went stiff and wrapped her arms around her body, “It’s okay. I never got that involved. I had to leave because we switched foster families and our last high school didn’t have a law club.”
“Oh.” Sokka went quiet.
After about two or three minutes of no one saying a word, Kya finally cried out, “Who wants some ice cream? That little place in town reopened.”
“The place with the chocolate cake batter ice cream!?” Katara asked, “Yes! Yes!”
“Finally! I thought they’d be closed forever.”
“I’ll go get my purse. I think I left it upstairs.” Kya said. She took off before anyone could say another word.
“We-um-we don’t have the money.” Zuko told her, “But feel free to go without us or we can go and just stay in the car while you go inside.” Some foster families didn’t trust them alone in the house. One of their old foster dad’s specifically told them that they would probably steal from him and flee so they would never be allowed in the house unsupervised.
“Oh! No! No, you don’t pay. We’ll pay.” Hakoda said, “You kids never have to worry about that.”
“What?” Azula asked, “Are-are you sure?” Most families wanted them to pull their weight for any kind of family activity. No family had yet to tell them they had to pay rent or anything like that but for family outings like parks, ice cream, movies, etc, Azula and Zuko were usually expected to pay for themselves.
“Of course! The state gives us plenty of money for an ice cream trip. You two just come along and we’ll get whatever you want.” Hakoda promised. He tried to set a hand on Azula’s shoulder but the fourteen year old backed away from him and the sixteen year old flinched.
“Okay.” Zuko’s tone was suspicious and Azula still looked off. It was as if the two expected him to suddenly change his mind and laugh in their faces.
“Come on!” Kya chirped, coming back downstairs, “Let’s go get some ice cream!”