Crossroads

[bentflame]

Something would have to be done about her father.

Azula did not like having to admit this. Fire Lord Ozai had been an excellent leader-- was still an excellent leader-- and it was a shame to see him brought off course in such a way, like a child distracted with a new toy. Not that she herself had acted much differently, she supposed-- upon her own arrival, she had made the same mistakes; the same miscalculations. However, she hadn't been in her father's position. Had she been at the very top of the tier, with no one to run the show while she was focusing on frivolities... the results would have been far more disastrous. What the Fire Nation needed right now, more than anything else, was an attentive leader-- one who wouldn't be distracted, even for a second, from his goals. Azula didn't know for sure that Ozai's actions would cost them the war, but she didn't want to take that chance.

She wouldn't kill him, of course. He wouldn't even be imprisoned. There would just be a partial, temporary seizing of power, until he came to terms with the discovery of the community (and what it entailed) and was prepared to govern the Fire Nation (and only the Fire Nation) fully and effectively again. If they were both lucky, he would be too busy even notice. And if he did notice... he would be angry; Azula knew this. But she was confident that he would thank her for it later. She knew what she was doing, and he would eventually see that for himself. Unfortunately, right now, he was still effectively blind. That was one of the main reasons that she was choosing to keep certain things from him. Her worldhopping feather, for example, as well as some of the off-world technology she had acquired. He wasn't ready for it yet. And considering some of the things that had happened (the confrontation about Ty Lee, as well as his strange demand that she refer to him as "Fire Lord Ozai"-- not "Father", as she always had in the past), she didn't like the idea of having no real advantages over him.

Pacing across her room in long, purposeful strides, Azula made a mental list. These frivolous things he was asking of her would have to stop, despite his response when she had mentioned it to him. If he was going to waste his own time it was crucial that he didn't drag her down with him. As a princess, her frequent off-world "vacations" were one thing, but she knew perfectly well that if she were Fire Lord (and if she didn't have the means to worldhop by herself) such things wouldn't be possible. She would also have to somehow curtail his suspicions about her relationship with Ty Lee. Despite his apparent acceptance of the situation, Azula hadn't forgotten his warning.

Lastly, and most importantly, he could never find out that she had kept anything from him-- whether it was about the worldhopping, the foreign weaponry, or anything else. If he discovered any of this and moved to take action against her, Azula already knew what she would do-- and it was something that she hoped to avoid for as long as possible.

There was, after all, a difference between wanting to kill your father and Fire Lord, and only being willing to do it if it was absolutely necessary.

Comments

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

The Princess Azula's behavior recently had been...well, not exactly up to his expectations. Which was why he had a messenger sent to Azula's chambers to bring her to the throne room.

It was obvious that she had some resentment of his behavior; that would be stamped out quickly. With a cup of tea, Ozai waited.

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

When the message had arrived, Princess Azula had luckily still been dressed in her day clothes, with her hair done up in its usual top knot. She appeared on the throne room less than ten minutes later, bowing low before her father. "Your majesty."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"Princess Azula." He took a sip of his tea. "I've been meaning to talk to you; face to face."

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

She remained in a kneeled position. She was careful to appear appropriately submissive, but in reality she kept herself alert and ready for action, should any be necessary. "Of course, Fire Lord Ozai."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

He stayed sitting and lowered his cup of tea. He wasn't about to give permission to let Azula rise, not yet before he said his piece. "You said you had reservations about your displacement as leader of the Dai Li. Describe them to me now, let's see if I can, ah, ease them." Meaning, he wanted to test Azula's ability of persuasion. Besides, he didn't want to say his true reasons for summoning her just yet.

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

"Of course." She cleared her throat lightly.

"I was the one who originally recruited the Dai Li. I've made dealings with them in the past, and know how they operate. Furthermore, they know how I operate. This mutual... understanding makes for a much smoother working environment.

"I think it pertinent that we remember that they are, first and foremost, Earth Kingdom. Their allegiance is currently to the Fire Nation, but I doubt that they're particularly loyal to us, or to our cause. In their eyes, you are likely to be nothing more than a figurehead-- they haven't seen your might and power in action. On the other hand, the agents experienced my takeover of Ba Sing Se for themselves, and they know not to cross me. This, of course, isn't to say that you couldn't easily put them in their place should they decide to rise against you as their leader, but considering how close we are to victory, I would advise against inviting any sort of setbacks at all-- even minor, temporary ones."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"The Earth Kingdom is no longer. Remember it. It is now Fire Nation, as will the rest of the world be. These minor...rebellions, for lack of a better term, will be crushed soon."

Fire Lord Ozai drunk deeply from his tea before continuing.

"You seem to be of the mind that you recruited the Dai Li to be your own special task force. This is not the case. You recruited them for your nation, and they know this as well as I do. Besides..." His lips curled in a mocking smile. "How are you supposed to say when I give orders?"

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

"Of course they were recruited for my nation, Your Majesty. They, however, don't see it that way. They side with whoever is shown to have the most power and might, and from their experience, that would be me. The error in that assumption would of course be shown to them should they decide to try to take advantage of you, but I would suggest waiting until the war is won before making sure that they know their place."

Azula paused, maintaining her composure. Her face remained passive, not showing a flicker of anger or defiance. "Thank you, Fire Lord Ozai."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"Get up."

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

She stood-- muscles tensing, but not visibly so.

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

He stood, the Fire Lord had to be taller then anyone else in the room. After gently setting down the tea, he walked to his daughter, staring down at her. "Thank me."

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

"Thank you, Fire Lord Ozai."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"For..." He trailed off.

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

"For everything."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"Wrong answer, dearest daughter." He looked at Azula straight in the eyes, trying to see if there was any change. "Try again."

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

They might have hardened just the slightest bit. "Perhaps not what you were looking for, Your Majesty, but nonetheless true. I owe you for absolutely everything that I have; everything that I'm capable of."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

He narrowed his eyes, perhaps she could hear the sound of his teeth being ground. "You do, this is true. I made you, you are nothing without me. You would be orse than your brother. Worse than a servant. Correct?" He was daring her to say 'no'. It wasn't a game anymore.

Edited because I fail at past tense

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

She could keep her face emotionless, true, but if he was looking into her eyes he would see a different story. Her father had never spoken to her that way before. "Correct."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

Ozai, in his twisted mind, had no reason to speak so in the past. Before he was...too lenient. "Is that defiance I see?"

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

"I have nothing but the upmost respect for you, Fire Lord Ozai."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"Your eyes tell a different story, Princess Azula."

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

By that point she was struggling to keep her face impassive. "I'm ashamed to appear that way to you, Your Majesty."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

"For your sake, you better be." He wanted her to lose impassiveness, to show 'weakness'.

[peoplesprincess.livejournal.com]

She blinked, keeping her eyes shut for a second longer than was necessary. "Of course. I am better than Zuko--" The slightest of pauses. "-- because of you."

[fierysire.livejournal.com]

Ozai looked at her hard. "Only. Repeat that sentence, correctly." He turned around, heading back for the throne. Every muscle was tense, waiting to see if she was to make a move.