Operation Avatar

Azora woke up bright and early the next day. For the first time in many weeks she woke up feeling completely rested and relaxed. She washed her face with the basin, and, for the first time in many weeks, she brushed out her hair and tied it in a long braid. She hadn’t braided her hair since the day Shen died. It was a sudden memory that shot through her heart like an icy arrow.

Remembering what Zuko had said the night before, about Iroh wanting to begin her lessons, Azora’s first task was to find Iroh.

It didn’t take long. He was seated on the top deck of the ship. There was an empty circular table to his side. Iroh was taking lazy draws from his pipe. Whenever he exhaled the smoke danced upwards into the air, twisting and turning before dissipating in the soft ocean breeze.

“Zuko said you wanted to see me,” Azora stated as she stood in front of Iroh.

A slow smile spread on his face. “Yes, yes. Please, take a seat.” He motioned towards the empty chair that sat on the other side of the table. She took a seat.

“Would you like a cup of tea?” Iroh offered. And Azora, knowing it was rude to refuse his offer, accepted.

They sat in silence. Azora sipped at her tea and Iroh smoked his pipe. Azora was beginning to wonder why Iroh had asked for her in the first place when he finally spoke up.

“It is a beautiful morning, don’t you think?”

Azora shrugged. Today wasn’t any more special than any other day. Sure, the ocean was calm, and the sky was cloudless and blue. But it was like that most every day.

“I remember way back when I was laying siege against Ba Sing Se I would be totally captivated by mornings like this. These were the mornings where everything seemed to be at peace, and everything in the world made sense. I would ask myself, ‘Why am I attacking these innocent people? What have they ever done to me? Don’t they deserve to enjoy this beautiful morning?’ But the moment would pass, and I would have to return to my job.”

Azora didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t exactly sure what Iroh was talking about, but it made her pause and think. About what, she didn’t know. She just sort of left her mind free to wander.

“Hm. All out,” Iroh said after about a half hour of silence. He was talking about his pipe, which he set aside. “Well, I guess I will get onto beginning your lessons.”

Azora perked up. In her musings she had forgotten everything about any lessons. What was she going to learn? Fighting? Reading and writing? History? She was so excited that she would be willing to learn anything.

Iroh pulled a large sack from beneath his chair and plopped it on the table. “It is time we teach you how to play pai sho.”

Azora’s hopes diminished. Anything but that.



Pai sho actually wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. It was all about strategies and puzzles, and being able to read your partner. Azora, expectedly, lost to Iroh, but as Iroh cleaned the tiles from the board he seemed very supportive.

“You show great potential, Azora. You picked up the game much faster than Zuko had. I think that with practice, you can become one of the greatest champions in the Fire Nation.”

Azora smiled meekly, not being used to receiving compliments.

Azora noticed Iroh’s attention had shifted to the main deck, which was situated below theirs. Zuko had walked out onto the deck, wearing his training clothes. There was a frown of concentration etched onto his face. Within moments of reaching the deck Zuko was stretching his body, warming it up to practice his Fire Bending.

Iroh let out a small sigh. “That boy never gives up.”

“Why is he so determined?” Azora asked. “He’s so serious all the time. What happened?”

It took so long for Iroh to answer that Azora thought he was going to ignore the question all together. But, much to her surprise, Iroh offered an answer.

“The young prince was banished from the Fire Nation. The only way he can return is if he captures the Avatar.”

Banished? A cold chill ran through Azora’s body even though the sun was high in the air. “Why was he banished?”

“For disrespecting his father.”

Azora’s eyes widened in surprise. Banished by his own father? Another chill ran through her body. Azora always felt an sliver of pity for herself because she was an orphan. But which is worse? she wondered. Having no parents at all, or being banished by your own parents?

Azora watched Zuko as he warmed up with a fresh pair of eyes. It was all beginning to make sense. Zuko’s harsh, and sometimes selfish, attitude. His intensive training sessions. Those moments where Zuko just stood at the bow of the ship, staring intently at the horizon, searching for what Azora now understood was the Avatar.

Slowly, Azora was beginning to understand Zuko.

Iroh stood up and, with a groan, stretched his body. “If you will excuse me, I have other business to attend to.”

Azora nodded, even though she had no idea what business Iroh was talking about. The old general left, and Azora took this moment to watch Zuko.

He was a powerful Fire Bender, perhaps the best she had ever seen. There was so much precision and force behind every move he made.

As Azora watched Zuko Bend she felt her fingers twitch in anticipation. She was jealous of the feeling she knew Zuko had right then. The feeling of power flowing through the veins, feeling invincible and like you could own the world.

She missed Bending. She missed it terribly. Some days the only reason she got out of bed was because she knew she would be Earth Bending later on in the day. It felt so natural, manipulating the elements. It was what she was meant to do.

Jealousy bubbled inside of her as she watched Zuko extend flames twenty feet long in the sky. The emotion was so strong she almost reached out her hands and forced the fire towards her. She felt the power accumulating in the palms of her hands as she reached out to Bend the fire.

By chance, a sudden gust of wind blew by, and Azora’s sleeves fluttered. Out of the corner of her eye Azora saw the vivid red of the scars that twisted around her forearms.

No! Azora shouted mentally, and she brought her arms to her sides. She couldn’t Bend fire. Not after it ended so badly the last time. Fire couldn’t be contained; she knew that now. It was too dangerous to try and Bend fire without proper instruction.

The thought saddened Azora. She desperately wanted to bend. She wanted to feel the power of energy flowing through her veins. It was like a drug, and Azora was in withdrawal.

Maybe I could get Iroh to teach me. The thought stuck in Azora’s mind. Iroh would be more than willing to teach Azora. But, he was bound to ask questions. Where did Azora learn to Fire Bend? Who was her teacher? And those questions would eventually lead to more questions about her past; questions Azora wasn’t willing to answer yet.

Then maybe Zuko? Zuko definitely showed a level of disinterest in Azora’s life. He wouldn’t ask her any questions. But he also, probably, wouldn’t be willing to teach her. But it’s still worth asking, Azora thought.

Without really thinking about it, Azora headed to the main deck. She didn’t even realize where she was going until she was right behind Zuko.

Zuko, feeling some presence, turned around. When he saw Azora a deep frown of annoyance crossed his face. “What do you want?”

Azora opened her mouth to ask him to be her teacher, but the words never came. She promptly shut her mouth and a blush of embarrassment colored her cheeks. She couldn’t even think up an excuse to explain what she was doing here. So, Azora did the only thing she could think of: turn around and walk away.

Azora quickly walked to her room, and when she was there she fell onto her bed and punched at her pillow. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Zuko probably thought she was a stupid, mindless little girl who got tongue-tied at the drop of a hat.

With a sigh, Azora turned around and looked out the small circular window that allowed her to see out of the room. One day she would ask Zuko to be her teacher. Today just wasn’t that day.