Blue Fire 火 Tyzula

II. Palace

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The tree from Mt. Fuji - The Handmaiden OST

Azula and her older brother Zuko did care for each other to some extent.

They would often spent time together, playing in the palace and at their summer house on Ember Island, but as soon as they began growing up, they were put in a scenario where they were always competing against each other.

Zuko begging for his father's approval, Azula craving her mother's.

Maybe If they had been raised together without power and fear separating them, they could have been really close.

But truth was, Azula found an insane enjoyment picking on Zuko because deep down she was really jealous of the unconditional love and attention he would always get from her mother.

So she found a way to cope with her powerlessness by always becoming better than him at everything they did.

Were it be firebending, combat skills or knowledge, her true advantage was that Ozai, their father, had always liked her way more than Zuko.

When Azula's cousin Lu Ten died in battle, she suspected there would be some rearrangements in the Royal lineage since her Uncle Iroh's bloodline had ended with him.

She could feel a strong change in the air, and it had all happened within a matter of days.

Azula had sneaked into a meeting between his father Ozai and Firelord Azulon.

In such meeting, she had overheard him asking her grandfather to make him his heir instead of his firstborn, Iroh.

Firelord Azulon had been so disrespected by Ozai's request that he commanded him to take Zuko's life, so he could empathize with the loss of his own brother.

Azula went to Zuko's room to tell him the news of his future demise in a malevolent way, trying to pick at him like always, not truly believing this would actually be the case.

Zuko hadn't believed her, but their mother had overheard their conversation.

Ursa pulled Azula outside of Zuko's room and asked her to tell her what she had heard from Ozai's and Azulon's meeting.

After she told her with honesty how her grandfather ordered Ozai to kill Zuko, she was scolded and sent to her to her room.

Azula wasn't aware this would be the last time she spoke with her mother.

♫

Wish I had never been born - The Handmaiden OST

The very next morning, Azula got up pretty early like she always did on a school day and went to eat breakfast by herself in the dining room.

She noticed Zuko had left his dagger on the table, so she grabbed it to play with it, since he was probably still sleeping.

She went out to the garden and started swinging the dagger and throwing it at tree trunks. From all her rapid movements, her hair came out of her usual bun.

Ursa was usually up by now, and she would always do Azula's hair before she left for the Academy.

It was one of the few moments they shared together, and she would always tell Azula she had beautiful hair as she brushed it.

Azula went to her mother's chamber to look for her.

Her bed was already made, but there was no trace of her.