Playing With Fire

Aria grabbed the red satin ribbon, laying curled on the vanity, and secured it around her ponytail. Checking her reflection a last time, she skipped out of her room and down the grand staircase. The warm June air caressed her face when she pushed the solid oak door open. Even from the front of the house she could smell their extensive gardens in the back; the flower’s aroma heavily perfumed the air. There were no clouds in sight and Aria took a moment to enjoy the hot rays of the sun before moving off, headed to the Royal Palace. Being a firebender, she felt a natural connection to the sun; it empowered her, lending her its strength.
On the way she couldn’t help but let her mind dwell on the last two months. Her father had summoned her to his study not long after the dinner the Firelord had attended. At the time, Aria had been nervous, thinking she was being chastised for something she may have done to displease him. It was nothing of the sort. General Jirou had informed her that he had entered into marriage negotiations with the Firelord. She didn’t know what to think. At first she was mad, how dare they tell her who she was going to marry? On further reflection she supposed she shouldn’t complain, Zuko was her choice anyways and the marriage wouldn’t take place for several years to come. Exasperated, she shook her head and turned to other thoughts.
The palace was not far and she reached it within minutes. The door swung open at the lightest knock, evidence of the Firelord’s well-paid servants. The man servant recognized her immediately from her frequent visits and offered a slight bow, stepping aside to let her in. Aria stepped forward reluctantly, not wanting to be inside on such a glorious day.
“He is in the courtyard Miss.” The servant said in a somber voice. He motioned for her to follow him and led her briskly through the house to the door opening upon the courtyard. Aria uttered a quick thank you and bounded down the steps towards the pond in the middle of the courtyard; her eyes fixed on the figure she had come to find. Kneeling at the water’s edge, turtleducks were clustered around him and he had not yet realized he had a visitor.
“Hey, birthday boy!” Aria called cheerily. Zuko turned around and seeing who it was, scrambled to his feet.
“That was three days ago.” Zuko reminded her, “You know, that big celebration here? The one you were at? Three days ago?”
“I know! But I haven’t given you your present yet.” Aria said, ignoring the sarcasm and hugging him. She looked up at him, being probably six inches shorter, and smiled widely. “Do you want it or not?”
“Well yeah…please.” Zuko said somewhat sheepishly.
Aria plunged her hand into her pocket and pulled out something concealed by her closed fist. She paused for just a moment before slowly opening her fist, revealing her gift. The long intricate chain glinted in the sunlight, highlighting the gold. Attached to the chain was a medium sized pendant, a couple of inches in size. He ran his thumb over the flame, the Fire Nation emblem. The craftsmanship was remarkable; the tongue of flame seemed to dance and flicker in the sunlight. Flipping it over, he received another surprise. Engraved on the back were fine, slanting words. With love, Aria. He looked up at her, his expression stunned.
“This is amazing.”
“I knew you’d like it” Aria said happily. She took it from him and, reaching around his neck, clasped it in place. Before stepping back, she kissed him quickly on the lips.
“Was that part of the present?” Zuko asked teasingly.
“No. That was because you’re cute.” She answered.
“Thank you.” Zuko smiled warmly. Aria plopped down on the grass and Zuko followed suite. The turtleducks paddled around the pond, their quacking reached Aria faintly and she smiled. Watching them was always amusing; the mother turtleduck was run ragged trying to keep track of her babies. Tearing her gaze away from the frolicking ducklings, she looked up and caught Zuko looking at her. She raised her eyebrows in question and scooted closer to him.
“Can I help you with something Mr. Fire Nation Prince?” She asked teasingly.
“I love you.” Zuko answered seriously. Aria was taken back; he had never said that before. She considered him for a moment, her amber eyes flickering back and forth between his. A grin spread slowly across her face and she hugged him fiercely, knocking him back onto the grass.
“I love you too!” She exclaimed. She kissed him and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. She pulled slightly away and smiled at him, pushing a lock of hair that had escaped from his top knot back from his face. In a flurry of movement all the turtleducks swam fast, fleeing to the other end of the pond.
“Aw poor Mai, I guess you don’t have a chance with Zuzu.” Azula taunted the moody looking girl standing next to her. Aria looked up, squinting against the sun, and saw the source of the turtleducks fright. She rolled away from Zuko and jumped to her feet, feeling slightly embarrassed.
“Good morning Azula, Mai.” Aria said shortly. She didn’t care for either of the girls. Azula could be just plain nasty. They had been friends in the past but Aria wasn’t willing to be dominated like Azula’s other friends so it hadn’t lasted. For a happy person like Aria, it was hard to put up with someone as moody and depressive as Mai. The fact that Mai had liked Zuko for a long time did not help.
“What do you want?” Zuko demanded angrily.
“Zuzu, stop being so angry,” Azula smirked, “I just came to tell you there’s a war council going on. Aria’s father is there, but apparently you weren’t invited…”
“What!” Zuko shouted, jumping to his feet. He had wanted to attend a war council for ages. Being the heir to the throne, Zuko felt it critical to learn as much as he could about running his country. War Councils were where everything concerning the war was decided; it was his rightful place to be there.
“Aria, I have to go, I have to be there.” Zuko said hurriedly.
“Its fine, I’ll talk to you later.” Aria said understandably. Zuko hugged her again briefly and walked away quickly, disappearing into the house. Aria watched him go and sighed. She hoped he was allowed in. He rarely talked about it, but she knew how he felt when he was excluded from the councils. The top Fire Nation military leaders were always in attendance, the same men who could someday be answering to Zuko. Aria headed for the entrance of the garden, she had no intentions of staying and talking to those two girls. She was almost to the entrance when she overheard Azula’s carrying voice.
“Get over it Mai, he’s not worth it and he’ll drop her soon enough, she’s just the worthless daughter of a great general who never inherited any of his talent.” Aria paused, gritting her teeth; it had been no accident that she had overheard Azula. She took a deep breath and forced herself to keep walking. It would have only made Azula happy to know that she had controlled Aria by making her retaliate. She shook her head and headed for the park, hoping to meet up with some of her friends who hung out there.