#evil overloards only wish they could keep him out

[summonthebats]

PIDW AU The Wrong Trauma Acknowledged

So a few Peak Lords are sent to the rescue but OH NO, the villian has a supper fancy and powerfull sheild around their Lair

Villain turns up to monologue about how amazing a clever and wicking their super cool sheild is, for only one who has suffered The Horrors (insert something traumatic here) and the wealthy brats of the cultivation scets could never suppass, strength from suffering, you have not endured etc etc

Ten minutes later Shen Jiu, who stuck around long enough to see the geeking out over what is indeed a supper fancy shield then left to do the real work, walks out of the house to murder the villian. Its been a very sucessful rescue mission as far as he's concerned.

The other Peak Lords are shocked, how could they have so misjudged their shixiong who has survived The Horror and endured so bravely?!

Then, confusion all over.

Of course the Peak Lords would never been so shameless as to tell Shen-shixiong that they know he has suffered The Horrors! They are fine young cultivators who could never been so rude to their brave shixiong. But it is changing their behaviour. Everyone has noticed.

Plus, Shen Jiu doesn't known about the condisions in the shield. He just concluded, correctly, that people with the time and education to design and construct super fancy magic sheilds are not doing their own cooking and cleaning and got in via the servants entrance. Has he suffered the Horror? Up to you, but he bypast the shield entirely.

But he is finding the new respect highly sus.

[bellatrixobsessed1]

To Capture The Dead (Part 4)

Sorry that this update took a bit longer than expected. I ended up getting sick and having to take a trip to the doctor. Loads of fun right there. Anyways, I decided two wrap things up with one longer chapter, so I'm gonna be calling this one complete for now. I'm going to be very honest though and say that I have ideas I'm simply more thrilled to take on and I don't want to keep this one going if I'm only going to see it as a side piece, know what I mean? I'd rather continue with this premise at time when I'm more focused on it and can do it better justice. Because again, being honest, I kind of felt myself trying to 'just get it done with' so I could move onto other ideas. And that's not the kind of mentality that makes for quality writing. Though I did leave it more open ended so there can still be an opportunity for some more chapters after Azula week and what not. I hope that this chapter doesn't disappoint. And I'd like to thank everyone for understanding.

Azula wept again, for the second time since coming to Ba Sing Se. Iroh was glad that he had stuck around. He requested that they unlock her cell when he heard it. This time he found her laying upon the bed, with her face to the wall. He quietly seated himself at the bed’s foot, placing his hand over her ankle. “I miss him too.”

 “He wasn’t supposed to die…” She whispered. “I didn’t actually hate him…”

 Iroh sat very quiet, he was sure it was for the best, but he still found himself feeling conflicted in stealing away her one coping mechanism without offering a substitute. “I didn’t think you did.”

 “But he did.”

 “I think that he knew you cared about him. In your own way, he is…was a smart boy.” Iroh replied, “smarter than people gave him credit for.” To this, his niece did not reply. He remained with her for as long as the guards would allow, which was as much time as he would have like. As much time as she probably needed in her state. He had half the mind to protest and carry her along with him. But such an action wouldn’t help her case any, they were already on quaking earth being linked so closely to his own brother. “I’ll work on getting you out of here.”

 “And my bending?”

 “One thing at a time.” Iroh replied.

 .oOo.

 Aang hated it, hated the feeling it brought him. The spirts never told him how awful it would be when he actually used his new powers.  He hated ripping the fire away from Zhao and he liked it less the second time. Every time he used snatched someone’s bending it seemed to leave a hollow place in his own spirit, as if he was doing something wrong. Maybe that was the price of wielding such true power when he hadn’t even mastered two of the four common elements. He almost wished the ability to reap bending hadn’t been bestowed upon him. But if it hadn’t…

He shuddered thinking of the state the Northern Water Tribe would have been in. Possibly the state of the world. A world without a moon, he couldn’t foresee it being a healthy one. No wonder Tui and La

 With Zhao there had been no other way; if he hadn’t taken the man’s bending the world’s balance would have been thrown out of his control. If he hadn’t taken his bending away he may have lost friends, Yue, Sokka, Katara, he could have lost any of them. He thought that he might have even saved Zhao, surly the only other way to ensure everyone’s safety, he would have been killed.

He kept telling himself that, it made it easier to shoulder.

With Azula there was no upside, just a crying, possibly broken girl. He was beginning to wonder if taking her bending was even necessary. It made him feel safer. And yet she didn’t need her bending to breech Ba Sing Se…

 Aang groaned. Why did he have to be the Avatar?

 He couldn’t wait for Iroh to drop by, he was in terrible need of advice. The kind only Iroh seemed to be able to offer.

 “How is she?” Aang asked.

 “It’s hard to tell, my niece is very good at hiding her feelings.” Iroh replied. “She misses her bending...”

 Aang hadn’t meant to cut him off, “I kind of wanted to talk about that.” He looked at his palms. “Do you think it’s wrong to play with someone’s spirit energy like that?”

 “I think that the matter isn’t as simple as wrong or right.” Iroh replied. “I think that there are cases where it is necessary. I think that there are cases where taking someone’s bending can protect them from themselves…and protect others.”

 “But how am I supposed to know when it’s for the best?” Aang asked. “I can’t decide what’s best for someone.”

 “Sometimes people aren’t in the right frame of mind to decide what is best for themselves.” Iroh pointed out.

 Aang got the sense that he was thinking of Azula, but he needed confirmation. “Do you think I made the right choice with Azula?”

 “I think you did what was needed at the time.” Iroh nodded. “But I think that there will be a time when such drastic solutions will no longer be necessary.”

 .oOo.

 Iroh hoped to see that day come soon. “I am going to need your help, Avatar Aang. The Earth King and his generals will hear your words more than mine.”

 “What words do you need them to hear?” Katara walked in.

 “First of all, that I am not a threat to them, that I want to help.”

 “Says the brother of the flaming evil overloard.” Sokka grumbled.

 Katara sighed, “that’s exactly why he needs Aang’s help.” She took a seat. “I for one, trust him. I don’t think that we would have been able to save Ba Sing Se without him.”

 “Yeah, and he makes some great tea.” Toph put in.

 “I’m also going to need you to help me help my niece.”

 “Now her, I don’t trust.” Katara muttered.

 “She chased us all over the Earth Kindom. Do you know how many nights of sleep I lost because of her!?” Sokka threw his hands up. “I’ll never get those back either.”

 “I’ll see what I can do.” Aang replied.

 And Iroh would too. He hoped to see Azula a few more times before her release. He liked to believe that she would be okay, but all the same he didn’t want to see her released in such a state that would land her right back in that cell. The child was destined for better things that remaining caged and wasting away. Though he and his brother had different ideas as to what this destiny was. This time though, Iroh refused to stand by and watch that man destroy another child. Among Iroh’s many mistakes, he had been a bystander, one who felt almost completely responsible. He just hoped that Ozai’s hold on Azula wasn’t too ingrained.

If freed, she could make a fine teacher for Aang.

She had it in her.

 .oOo.

 Azula held her hand in front of her, flexing her fingers, a phantom of a movement now that she could no longer bring fire to her palms. She rested her hands on her thighs, but only for a moment. She was growing bored and restless. With nothing else to do she dropped into one of her bending stances. Such always calmed her in the past and she supposed that going through the motions would work just as well if she could work passed the hollow feeling left by not producing any real flames.

 She was supposed to take the Avatar and claim the Earth Kingdom. That was her destiny, her right.

Her father had expected better of her. She brought her arms down in a parallel arc.

Her father had trusted her. And she thrusted them forward.

Her father…   She slid into a new form.

Her father killed Zuko.

 Why should she care what he wanted of her. If he could murder one of his children then he probably wouldn’t have any qualms about getting rid of the second, aside from not having an heir anyways. For that she gathered she was safe, at least in one regard. He would definitely hurt her though.

Like that, she realized that she didn’t fancy a trip home. Home wasn’t a pleasant place and it never had been. She had her hand in making it so.

 Her days were growing lonelier, having no visitors for a while now. She wondered if Iroh had forgotten her, she wasn’t his problem, all caged up like she was. So when her cell door finally cracked open she was quick to rise. Her eagerness faded very fast when she found not Iroh, but a team of guards. Her first visitors in days finally showed and was to escort her to a courtroom where she would stand before a council. They had given her no time to prepare, she suspected that this wasn’t an accident.

 .oOo.

 If Aang could convince her that Azula was safe to be around, then he could convince anyone, the way Katara saw it anyways. Iroh was rather reassuring as well. It was the princess herself that worried Katara, could she offer herself any good defense or would she make things worse. She didn’t look thrilled to have been unexpectedly thrust before the council and looked even less thrilled to see the Earth King as well. Katara wasn’t even sure if she should care what happened to the fire princess but for some reason she did. Maybe it was because the girl was no older than she. Or perhaps it was because she’d seen the way the girl had broken. Either way around, she found herself hoping that they would be lenient with Azula.

 It looked promising that Azula held her head high and even more so that she greeted her uncle rather fondly when given the chance. It was such a brief one though as the head councilman was ready to jump right into things, a slew of accusations and fabrications. He tossed out some rather wild tales about how the princess had aimed to kill them all and that she had set fire to various places in Ba Sing Se. Keeping quiet was hard for Azula, she could sense it on the princess, especially as the stories fell further from the truth.  

 “She’s crazed and uncontrollable…”

 This time Aang cut in, “I took her bending.”

 He was brushed off, peaking some annoyance in Katara. How could they disrespect the Avatar like that! And after he’d done so much for them. “She’s an enemy.”

 “A very important one.” Spoke another general. Katara recognized the man, General Fong, who had tried to force Aang into the avatar state. “We can use her as leverage against the Fire Nation.”

 “If that goes as well as your first plan, we’ll all be in trouble.” She heard Sokka grumble to himself.

 “We can.” Aang agreed. “But what makes you think that Fire Lord Ozai, who killed his own son, would be willing to trade off any of his power. If anything, he’ll send his entire military to get Azula if he wants her back.”

 Azula’s lips parted slightly, but it still wasn’t her turn to speak. Katara knew that she had to hate the position she was in, it was so far from the top.

 “Then we can execute her alongside Long Feng and be done with it.” Fong declared.

 Katara almost wanted to ask about Long Feng, surely his coup didn’t warrant that…

 “She’s a child.” Iroh’s tone was low and dangerous.

 “And him as well.” Fong shrugged. “The less firebenders around, the better.”

 “Iroh helped me save this entire kingdom.” Aang stood his ground. “Are you really going to execute the man who kept this kingdom from Fire Nation hands?”

 “And whose hands were they going to fall into?” Fong side-eyed the princess, who remained impassive.

 Katara watched Aang struggle to find an adequate rebuttal.

 “My niece could be a great asset…” Iroh started.

 “I would like to hear from her.” Kuei finally spoke. “Why should we set you free? How can we know that we can trust you?”

 “You shouldn’t and you can’t.” Azula answered snidely, causing Katara—and probably everyone else around her—to cringe. “But if you do, I can teach the Avatar firebending stances that my father hasn’t even mastered. I can tell him crucial secrets about my father and my nation…” She let it sink in. “He doesn’t even know that I’ve been captured, as far as he knows I’m still looking for my uncle. I can take my father down from within, just as I almost did here.”

 “My apologies if I don’t seem convinced of this.” Spoke the head councilman. “I don’t doubt that you can do those things, but I have a feeling you won’t.”

 “She will.” Aang declared. “Because she won’t get her bending back if she doesn’t.”

 .oOo.

 Azula went cold. How was she supposed to fulfill her end if she didn’t have her bending?  She swallowed, fixing her focus on studying Kuei’s face.

 “She really can’t bend?” He asked.

 “Not a spark.” Aang assured, dropping that cold to an absolute frigidness.

 Not a spark, she repeated to herself.

 “Alright, Avatar Aang, I’ll give you a chance to make use of Princess Azula and the old man. But if she at any time beings to pose a threat to the Earth Kingdom, she will be locked away again. Without release.”

 So she was the Avatar’s property now. Somehow, she liked that less than the notion of being in a cell for the rest of her days. At least in the cell, she would be her own. She held her hands out, “remove them.” The cuffs were growing uncomfortable.

 “She would apricate it very much if you did.” Iroh added politely.

 Azula hadn’t planned on breaking down again. But she did. After she was a good distance from the Earth King’s palace. It left her feeling like a fool. How many times was she going to cry? She felt as though in the past few weeks she’d been making up for a lifetime’s lack of tears and each time left her feeling twice as pathetic as the instance prior. Frankly she didn’t even know why she was crying that time. She’d already wept for her brother and for her lost bending. It couldn’t have been their words, she was never one to be phased by ill-wishers and running mouths. Perhaps it had finally set in that she was now under someone else’s control. Or that she had be so very close to being executed. Iroh seemed to believe that it was simply an overflow; a build-up of stress and tension that needed to escape. He was rather insistent that she’d feel better afterwards. She was certain that she’d only feel pangs of embarrassment. If the group had any judgements to make, they certainly weren’t vocalizing them. This didn’t surprise her, there was an atmosphere of discomfort and they seemed to keep their distance from she and Iroh. This was fine by her but at the same time, listening to them laugh amongst themselves as they walked along somehow brought the sorrowful feeling on stronger. Like that, Azula came to learn that she didn’t like to be alone.

She wondered what became of Mai and TyLee.

 The Avatar’s apartment was at least cozy. For all of the discomforts she’d experienced in the past few weeks, they were making up for it by letting her sleep in a bed with space enough to compare to the one at her home. They fed her well, dishes that weren’t bland for a change, and Iroh fixed her some tea. Her new clothes day clothes held at least some regalness and smelled a though they had just been cleaned. She wasn’t sure if that off-white, yellow-green shade of Earth Kingdom attire suited her. But at least the night gown she had on, though only a very plain linen garment, was better than prison robes. Unlike her own clothing it wasn’t fitted perfectly to her slender frame, and hung very loosely and with so much excess fabric it was becoming a tripping hazard. There was a reason she had her clothing custom made, and it was precisely because she was in between all of the sizes. That which fit her in height was too tight and that which wasn’t tight was too baggy for her height-wise. In this instance her outfit was much too big in both regards. She frowned and brought the tea cup to her lips. She got the sense that her new companions wouldn’t be thrilled to hear her complaints. Mai and TyLee, who she found had manage to pass under the guise of Earth Kingdom citizens, were used to it though. “I feel like Mai’s dress would be a better fit for me.” She muttered. Which was saying something, being as Mai towered over a good many people.

 “Yeah, it probably would.” TyLee agreed, ruffling her hair.

 “What did I tell you about doing that?” Azula huffed.

 Unphased by the grumpy princess, TyLee grinned, “that you enjoy it loads and think I should do it more.”

 Azula crossed her arms. “That’s exactly what I didn’t tell you.” She grumbled before moving on to her next complaint. Which was that her sleeve, though long, kept slipping down her shoulder. This one seemed to humor Toph.

 “That’s what you’re complaining about? Man, you and Katara are gonna get along great! She complains about the weirdest things.”

 “I do not!” Katara argued.

 “She does.” Sokka whispered to Azula.

 “This isn’t a weird complaint, it’s perfectly valid.” Azula remarked, pushing her sleeve up for what had to be the sixteenth time.

 “Yeah, I can see how that would be annoying.” Katara agreed.

 “See?” Toph declared as if that settled everything.

 “No.” Said Azula.

 “Oh come on, even I can.”

 .oOo.

 Iroh smiled to himself, he was glad that Toph had managed to break the ice some. He had trouble picturing his niece being the one to reach out, but he couldn’t see her turning away their attempts. If nothing else, Azula saw a useful alliance when it was in the forming. He hoped that it would eventually grow deeper than that. With her glorified image of her father rudely shattered, he couldn’t see the man’s warped ideals sticking in her head. She was more clever than that.

 He watched her curl up on the bed. Some rest would do him well, he decided. As patient and mild as he tried to be, Iroh admitted to himself that General Fong had ruffled his temper some. Even Aang seemed to think that the man’s ideas were dangerous, it was a wonder he still had a place on the council tossing around execution sentences like that.

 Iroh rubbed at his eyebrows. Such stressful days these were.

 He wasn’t quite sure where to go from where they were then. He wondered if it would be wise to set a course to the Fire Nation, surly the Avatar needed to familiarize himself with the place. He recalled overhearing the boy mention something of an eclipse. In which case they would need to be hidden somewhere in the Fire Nation. He looked towards Azula, she would probably know of such a place, she had a niche for finding them.

 .oOo.

 Azula was the first to awaken, she could tell that it was still very early. She thought of dressing herself in one of the more elaborate kimonos, but opted for something more practical. The outfit that seemed to fit her best was a pair of deep green pants that lacked any pattern and a shirt of the same color with yellow trim at the neckline. She fixed her hair up with a floral Earth Kingdom headpiece. It was too big for her liking and the soft pink of the flower wasn’t her number one choice, but she needed her hair out of her face. Deciding that this outfit was the best she could do she, making as little sound as possible, cast the door open and slipped away. They had put so much trust in her, leaving her unbound and to go wherever she pleased.

 And so she did. She took off, she wasn’t sure exactly where she would go but at least she had her freedom. What she would do with it, she was unsure. But at least she could say that she wasn’t the Avatar’s weapon…the Avatar’s property. She was her own.

 Without her fire, she assumed that it would be rather easy to pass as an Earth Kingdom citizen. Though, making it back to the fire Nation was ideal. The princess kept her pace for an hour or so before finally stopping to rest at a small creek. She splashed some water over her face and took a drink. Watching the water flow by she tried to formulate some semblance of a plan.

She would go home—empty handed at that—but with news of the Avatar’s whereabouts. She would request more military power so she could seize him as he tried to leave Ba Sing Se…but who could say that he wouldn’t already be gone by the time she made it home.

 Somehow she had to get home and with a way to keep her father’s trust and then she could be-rid of him and take the throne for herself.

 “But what’s that going to accomplish?” Zuko scowled. As he appeared to her now, reflected in the stream waters, his face was unscarred and confident. She could see the anger in his eyes. “You’re going to go back by him after what he did to me?”

  She knew she ought not to but she found herself asking out loud and very softly, what he would have her do then. She couldn’t see him doing any different.

 “I wouldn’t run, that’s for sure.” He folded his arms.

 “Yes, but you would do whatever you could to help yourself.” Azula disputed.

 “I guess that’s why I’m telling you to go help the Avatar and avenge me.” He shrugged. “Or something like that.”

 Azula thrashed at the water. She didn’t have to listen to him, he wasn’t even real. She didn’t need Aang or any of that lot, she could accomplish her mission on her own. The ripples in the water stilled and Zuko’s face came back into focus. She pressed her hands to her ears.

 .oOo.

 Iroh shook his head, he was disappointed. Disappointed and almost ashamed; he had put in such a good word for his niece had she had taken off without warning. He thought that he should have expected as much, but he had wanted to trust her.

 “Just give her a few more minutes.” He requested in spite of it. “She might come back.”

 “Might come back? She shouldn’t have left in the first place!” Sokka declared. “You heard the Earth King, she’s Aang’s.”

 Iroh noticed the Avatar wince at this. The boy seemed just as uncomfortable with the concept as Azula herself.

 Mai sighed, “that’s probably exactly why she left.”  

 “I wish that she would have taken us with her.” TyLee pouted.

 Iroh watched the group gather what they had. It had been decided; the group would be divided. He would travel by boat and land with Mai and TyLee and the others would fly upon Appa. Before each now location they would briefly speak of a point to meet, should they become separated. It wasn’t the best of plans but it was the best they could do for the time. Iroh took his time getting ready with the hope that if he stalled enough, that Azula would reveal herself.

 The minutes added up into a full hour and Iroh resigned to what he should have expected. “My apologies, Avatar Aang. I was really hoping for the best.”

 “Are you going to go after her again?” Katara asked.

 “Go after who again?”

 “Azula!” TyLee chirped, pulling her into a quick hug. “Where were you?”

 She shrugged, “just went for a walk.”

 “That was an awfully long walk.” Sokka grumbled.

 “I’m not familiar with this city.”

 .oOo.

 He was already making her regret her decision to come back.

 “Well, we were just about to leave, glad you could make it back.” Aang smiled. “Even if you didn’t want to.”

 “Yeah…” She trailed off, feeling anything but thrilled. Everybody seemed to think that this was the right decision. That things would end alright for her if she played against her Nation, against everything she knew. But she wasn’t so sure. She didn’t see anything healing nor promising about the situation.

 “Is she coming with us, or with you?” Katara asked Iroh.

 “I think that it would be better if she went with you.”

 It took a good degree of willpower not to shoot him a questioning look.

 “She is wonderful with navigation and even better with forming plans. And I think that it would do her well to get to know all of you.”

 And maybe it would, she wasn’t sure. The Avatar seemed so willing to take her in with open arms. “I have no interest in being the Avatar’s property.”

 “I don’t want that either.” Aang confessed, rubbing the back of his head. “What the council doesn’t know won’t hurt them right?”

 “We’ll see.” Azula attempted to crack a smile.

 .oOo.

 They were in the air again, Aang could already feel his fear lifting. He watched Azula staring over the side of Appa’s saddle. He wondered if she was enjoying the view or lost in thought, she probably had a lot to think about. He would say that there’s no better place to do some thinking than on Appa’s saddle. Still, she seemed troubled. She didn’t seem very eager to join any of the conversations and the look on her face was terribly sullen. He wanted to do something to spark some optimism. They could throw all of the pretty talk they wanted at her, all of the hopeful words in the world. But Aang thought that they ought to give her a reason to believe them. “Speaking of things Kuei doesn’t need to know about…”

 Azula turned her head slightly, “hmm.”

 “I was just thinking, that you can’t teach me to firebend if you can’t do it yourself.”

 Azula cocked her head, “you’re going to give it back?”

 “As soon as we land.” He promised. “I figured, you decided to come back on your own so, why not?”

 “Because everyone else is convinced that I will probably set you on fire.”

 “I don’t think that you will.”

 .oOo.

 He barely knew her, and what he did know of her wasn’t exactly pleasant. She was an enemy. And yet he had it in him to give her a chance. He was going to give her, her fire back. She turned from him and allowed herself a small smile. Perhaps, traveling with them wouldn’t be so bad, at least if the Water Tribe boy would stop making awful puns. Maybe she would be okay after all, it wasn’t so bad, she thought, to be able to tell the Avatar what to do—and maybe kick his ass—without repercussion.

 She looked back at Ba Sing Se, where one life ended and a new one had started. It was growing smaller and smaller as they glided away. She couldn’t say she would miss it at all. The distance would make it easier to shed who she had been, to forget the missions her father sent her on and begin her own.