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The plum that blossoms in autumn	By : MaiLee Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > Het - Male/Female Views: 16917 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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The edge of the horizon began to lighten, the darkness draining away to the west, as the light blues of the sky rose, welcoming the morning sun. The wind was strong, blowing hard at the bow of the Fire Nation ship. But since the day promised to be sunny and cloudless, they were bound to approach the docks without any inconvenience.

The crew was in a cheerful mood, since they were proudly escorting the new governor of Omashu and his family to their new home. Ever since the conquest of the large city, fire nation soldiers got better places to stay and relax at. Now even the lowest in rank could get a fair spa treatment, so crewmen anticipated the approaching day off duty.

The new Governor was charming and talked to everyone about problems he would encounter in the Earth Kingdom, important issues that should have been dealt with. Meanwhile his wife got all the maids she thought were needed to get the appropriate care of little Tom Tom. The little baby became a real Prince of the Ship.

Mai preferred to stay out of the happy crowd and remained in her room for most of their trip. She had so much to think about…

Straighten her thoughts, because she didn’t know what to do, what to think. She could stay awake all night, thinking about her last encounter with the Fire Lord. She would take the blade and throw it at the wall, repeatedly, until her hands didn’t start aching. She would roll that moment again and again in her memory, until nothing was left in her mind except for Ozai. And while everyone were preparing for landing, she lay in her bed. Daydreaming.

She almost felt his body on hers, black hair falling down, framing the pale skin of his face. In the dim light of the fire, his eyes seemed to glow. It was hot. Mai’s hand involuntarily slid to the belt of her pants. She breathed in, as Ozai leaned in to give his favorite agonizingly slow kiss, biting accurately at the soft skin of her lips. She felt the fire burning her from within.

“Mai… You shouldn’t be afraid of fire. You can bend it, if you are patient enough,” – he smiled at her trembling figure.

The girl shivered, as her hand slid lower, slithering through all the intricate folds of cloths. And a loud sigh escaped her mouth when fingers reached the point of her pleasure. She breathed heavily as her orgasm was building up.

“But if you hurry, you will burn yourself. And remember that many burns can remain for all your life. For example, on your face…” - a demonic smile lit his features, as a tear welled up in the corner of her eye.

And she bit her lip hard, as she stroked herself hard. Just as she was about to come, she slipped her fingers into herself, and felt the muscles spasm. Another tear slid down her cheek, as she felt her skin burning with shame.

“Mai, Mai, Mai… - a soft laugh sounded just near her ear. – You are so impatient, just like my son.”

- Zuko… - she breathed out, just before fainting into another worried dream.

Just as Mai thought, Earth Kingdom was nothing like the Fire Nation. The landscape was a dull brownish-yellow, a radical contrast to the turquoise sky above. Everything was in dust, or sand, and the light wind seemed to play, blowing it throughout the nearby mountains, often stopping by the bushes and small trees, shaking them, in case an interesting bird would fly out.

The houses in Omashu were of the same yellow color, and she guessed they were made of earth by the buff earthbenders Fire Nation held in prisons. Although the one house they got to live in had a nice rooftop, which slightly reminded her of their old home, except for the emerald coloring.

The view from their windows was big: you could see the whole city below and feel the fresh breeze coming from outside. While her Mother and Father enjoyed the view, Mai looked down. That city, like many Earth towns had a strong class-dividing system: people of higher rank lived in the upper ring, whereas peasants, traders lived just beneath. The poorest got to reside near the city wall, closer to the sewers, where bat-rats built their nests.

Down there is where the earth kingdom people lived. Only humble servants of the Fire Nation could reside in the upper ring, but of course there were no other people except for them, their servants and army people. And since there was no one above their family in position of power, she could do anything she wanted.

The free time and the free space she got, was a chance to grow as a warrior. She worked on being fast, quiet and spot-on, whenever she aimed or tried to catch her prey. She often played small tricks on the soldiers that guarded their house, pinning them to their spots or to the near walls. Mother would be at the verge of fainting, whenever she’d walk into her daughter’s room to be met by a passing dagger, hitting the target near the door.

Mother. When they were leaving Fire Nation, Mai hoped the woman would be occupied by her smallest son, but now that they had so many servants and maids, there had been no problem getting extra time for “Mother-Daughter bonding”. It made the teen utterly sick, while her Mother tried to get her daughter to wear pink gowns, or learn tea-serving etiquette. She quickly became the most annoying thing after the bleak landscape and the quiet boring days of Omashu.

The thing Mai hated the most was the chit-chat talk Mother enjoyed. Each one was doomed to turn into a fight or grow into a real confrontation. Mother blamed daughter for being spoilt, demanding and arrogant. Daughter pinned mother for selling out to the Fire Lord. The later had to be the sharpest corner in their conversation.

But really, nothing has changed. Mai was the perfect child of a politician: quiet, smart, attentive. But she would break, when pressed to her limit, and her Mother was that limit to her patience.

“Maybe you don’t understand it, but if you go too far, you’ll be either betrothed to a commoner, or dishonored. I really doubt he’ll marry you.” Her Mother once said in one of their many fights. And these words cut her deep, made her feel filthy, as if she was crawling in mud. Neither Azula nor Ozai could ever have burnt her this bad. After all it’s the closest people that hurt you the most.

But she did what she was already used to doing: building a shield. With each day the shell grew thicker, as she kept driving the blades of her knives deeper into the walls of her room. Concealing weapons became an everyday habit, and a stiletto was always at her hand. She felt she needed to get ready, as if the wind whispered that change was coming her way.

It could have been intuition, or sheer luck, but Mai felt that when things happen, they happen all at once. A mysterious attack of the rebellion forces, the kidnapping of Tom Tom, and of course a visit of her old friend. That day, as she bowed to Princess Azula, Mai knew her wish was about to be granted.

The hugs, the smiles, Ty Lee… Azula sure did her homework. It may have seemed like a reunion of childhood friends, but Mai knew she was here to ask something. Power play, they were all in a big game of power play and Azula was the best student of her Father.

Princess Azula learned a lot in the Fire Nation, but traveling by herself changed her. And this change was one for the better: her every move seemed to be filled with energy Mai never knew of, her head was held even higher than before, and it was obvious she had excellenced at her precious ability – her firebending.

Eventually, Azula became the commander of the situation, ordering her parents like puppets, and they could do nothing else, but bow and pray for the safety of their heir. Yet, blinded by their love and despair, they made a mistake royalty was sure to correct.

Trading a two year old for a powerful king – such a waste… the Princess knows how to pull the right string. Because Mai must obey the Fire Lord and the Princess of the Fire Nation, it is a command and she is a soldier. She almost regretted calling the deal off, but the fight was worth it. It wasn’t practice, this time she had a real target that may have been killed, real prey, and she was given permission to spill blood. After all she was a warrior of her Nation. She did her best, but they lost.

Losing a battle never meant losing the war, and Azula wasn’t ready to give up. Those three kids were added to their “wanted” list, because one of them was the Avatar. But in her thoughts Mai was more occupied with the other two men they were hunting down, Prince Zuko and General Iroh of the Fire Nation.

Her heart sped its beat, but she could only bow in agreement.

She was dismissed to pack some things for the trip, but her mind was confused about hunting down the traitor Prince, her heart leaped and stopped. At that moment she had to get to her room, sit down, and gain control of her breathing. But when the teen opened the door, she found her Mother sitting on the bed, one of the blades in her hands.

- Mai? – the girl stopped, clutching at her chest.

- Mother.

- I heard the Princess called the deal off, - and the woman put down the weapon. – Is Tom Tom alright?

- Yes.

Mai walked briskly towards the wooden chest and started taking out some of the clothes, packing them into a sack.

- You shouldn’t worry so much. The Avatar is just a kid – he is going to return the baby to his Mother. It is obvious.

- I hope you are right, Mai – the woman shifted on her place. – You are leaving tonight…

- Yes, it is the royal order. I must obey it, - the eyes of the girl flashed. But her Mother just sighed and looked down at the soft pillows on her daughter’s bed.

- Ever since the day Prince Zuko was banished, I thought about you. You two were so pretty together. I hoped to arrange your marriage, especially since you liked each other, and the boy was the Crown Prince. But he ruined everything, and Fire Lord Ozai…

Mai stiffened, looking down. Mother turned to her and pleaded:

- What did he do, Mai? – the teen just shook her head:

- Don’t.

- Well. Did he… hurt you?

- No, but really don’t try being the good Mother, - the girl stood up, picking up the bag with her belongings. – It might work with anyone, but not me.

And she walked towards the doorway, but paused when her Mother spoke:

- I know. You were always much smarter than me. I just want you to know that I’m sorry.

Mai looked back at the woman, a puzzled look on her face.

- I’m sorry you were born so beautiful… that you attract such powerful men.

- No, - the girl winced, and pushed the door. – His son was beautiful, not me.

- So… do you miss my Father? – Mai shot her a glare.

Azula smirked at the older teen, leaning back in her chair. They stopped for the night at one of the Fire Nation army camps. While Ty Lee went off to flirt with some of the younger soldiers, the Princess summoned Mai to her tent for a talk.

- That would be inappropriate.

- Oh, come on, Mai! Right now I’m just your old friend Azula, not royal Princess. Just tell me what’s on your mind.

Mai considered her answer for a moment, weighing the right words, before she spoke:

- I must admit I have mixed feelings at the moment.

- You like him? – Azula rolled her eyes. – Well, it’s all right, considering that he is good looking, smart and strong…

- No! – Mai shifted on her chair, looking down at the small table before them. – I don’t like him, this is just fair trade.

- Well, it is not your bargain. Your parents used you to get their position, - and the Princess looked at her nails, following the other girls actions from the corner of her eye.

Mai took a deep breath and sat back. By habit she took out a blade from her sleeve, playing with it.

- You are such a bitch, do you know that? – she looked up at the Princess.

- Yeah, I notice people thinking it all the time. But I’m just really curious, - and Azula took a handful of fire flakes from a bowl on the table. – Though one thing interests me the most.

- What would that be?

- When Zuko left, - at the mention of the Prince’s name, Mai jerked her head up. Her hand clutched the blade tightly, - your parents let you go to the Palace alone, and continued doing so for the following years. But why did my Father want You?

Mai did not answer, looking into Azula’s eyes.

- He could have anyone, when he wanted sex. Even a child, if it’s his perverted will. But why make a deal, why bother?

- There was no sex, if that is what’s bothering you.

- Oh, - the Princess smirked at the girl. – Then my guess might be right. Do you want to hear it?

- Well, I don’t have a choice, do I? – Mai sat up, holding the blade tightly.

- You know that my Father had always been disapproving of Zuko. That war meeting where Zuzu has spoken out of line was a chance to teach him a lesson, the Agni Kai… but you know the whole story. My guess is that he wants you, because you and Zuko had feelings for each other. It’s just that simple.

Mai looked down and Zula couldn’t see her eyes behind the bangs of the jet black hair. So the Princess was really surprised, when a blade had been struck hard into the table.

- May I go to my tent, Princess Azula? – her head was still down, and the royalty couldn’t clearly read the other girl’s expression.

- You are dismissed, Mai, - her eyes narrowed as she looked down at the weapon. A few drops of blood were trickling down the razor edge.

The folds of the tent rustled softly, and the Princess was left alone. Azula laid her hands on the table and glared at the blade. After a while, she touched the blood and smeared it over her long thin fingers.

She hadn’t told Mai everything. But the other girl was too smart to be told much information. Moreover it was just her guess, a stupid thought…. Even if it made sense, that Mai had somehow reminded Ozai of Ursa. But she was smarter than her Mother: she would never have picked feelings over reason. Mai would never have prefered Zuko to her.

The Princess looked at her fingers, covered in blood. As long as she was in control, everything should have been fine.

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The plum that blossoms in autumn