Azula's Journey

On The Road

Azula tapped her foot anxiously as she waited for Ro to meet her by the river. What little belongings she had were stuffed in a bag on her back, which was growing heavier by the second.

A rustling of branches disturbed the quiet of the morning as Hira emerged from the forest, Ro on her back. He smiled brightly, holding out his hand for her to take.

"Ready to go?"

Azula ignored his hand, pulling herself up onto the eel hound's back. "Let's just get out of here."

Ro nodded, turning Hira in the direction he wanted her to go. "You might want to hold on."

Azula rolled her eyes. "I'll be fin--aahhh!"

Hira took off at lightning speed, forcing Azula to wrap her arms around Ro's waist as the forest flew by then in a blur.

"I tried to warn you!" Ro called over his shoulder. "You okay?"

Azula muttered a reply under her breath, letting her words get lost in the wind. Ro sighed. Unable to hear her, he took the silence as his answer.

🔥

They had been riding for hours when Azula felt a familiar gaze upon her. She looked up to find Fang soaring above them. He looked down at her before turning away, veering off in a new direction. Azula was tempted to ignore the annoying spirit, but her curiosity won over.

"Go that way!" Azula shouted in Ro's ear, pointing in the direction Fang had flown.

Ro brought Hira to a stop so that he could turn to face her. "What? Why that way?"

"Because...." Azula trailed off. What was she going to say? That they should go that way because the dragon spirit her dead great grandfather sent to guide her flew that way? He'd think she was insane.

"I think I remember a town being in that direction." Azula replied matter-of-factly, masking her uncertainty. In truth, she had no idea where Fang was going. She just knew that's where she needed to go. "It would make sense to head towards somewhere we could find shelter for the night."

"Oh." Ro replied. "I guess so. You sure we should show our faces though? Word travels fast, even between towns."

"We've been travelling for hours on one of the fastest creatures in existance." Azula deadpanned. "I think we've put enough distance between us and that town to avoid the gossip for now, don't you?"

"Alright, fine. We'll go look for this town. But don't expect me to save your butt again." Ro replied, a smirk tugging at his lips.

Azula rolled her eyes. "I never asked for your help. I could have handled it."

"Suuurrre." Ro chuckled. "You looked like you had it completely under control."

Azula narrowed her eyes, igniting a flame in her palm. "I am a prodigy when it comes to firebending. I could have easily taken them down. I don't need some peasant treating me like I'm weak."

Ro held up his hands as he backed away, eyes wide. "Woah, Mai, take it easy. I was just joking around."

Azula flinched at the mention of her false identity. Why out of all the names had she chose that one? She clenched her fist, extinguishing the flames and taking a breath.

"Let's keep moving." Azula finally spoke, deciding to ignore the situation. "We're wasting daylight."

"Yeah, alright." Ro agreed, studying her carefully as she walked over to Hira.

A voice in the back of his head grew louder as it nagged him that something was off. It had been clear from the moment he found her screaming down by the river. Yet he couldn't bring himself to walk away. He wanted to know her story.

Ro stroked Hira's side before climbing up on her back in front of Azula. He tensed when he felt her arms around his waist, thinking about the fire they had held just moments before.

Ro gave Hira a pat and she took off through the trees, though not as fast as before. They continued their ride in silence, watching the trees pass by and listening to the sounds of the nature around them.

"So you're a prodigy, huh?" Rozan asked, breaking the silence.

"Yes." Azula replied. "I mastered all my forms at age 11 and from there I continued to practice to hone my precision and technique."

"Wow." Ro replied. "I started learning the advanced set when I was 10, but I never completed my training."

"Why not?" Azula asked. "Didn't you want to be a master?"

Ro sighed. "Of course. I loved learning about my bending and how to control it, but life got in the way and it just never happened."

Azula hummed thoughtfully. "Perhaps we could do some training together."

Ro cracked a smile. "Are you offering to train me Master Mai?"

"Don't call me that." Azula huffed. "And no, I'm not. I would just like to test your abilities. Its been a while since I had a worthy opponent. Sparring with you could prove to be useful."

"Whatever you say." Ro chuckled. "I'd be happy to spar with you."

Azula rolled her eyes, focusing her eyes on the road ahead as the forest opened up and houses appeared in the distance.

"Looks like you were right." Ro told her, steering Hira toward the village.

Azula smirked. "I always am."