#any reminder that azula isn’t the girl she was is met with discomfort from her

[hella1975]

lately ive been crying like a tall child. etc. if you even care

[bellatrixobsessed1]

Protea (Part 9)

Snapdragon closes her eyes, leans back, and inhales the vapors. Lilac and firelily are the dominant scents. There is something about them. Something familiar. The way the way the scents intermingle brings her to a place that is both close and distant. She runs the bar of soap over her skin and tries to pull that distant thing closer.

She doesn’t dwell much...doesn’t dwell at all on the blank spaces in her mind. But there is an itch within those spaces and the scents tickle them. She counts the freckles on her arms after cleaning them of dirt and grime. And this time they seem foregin. Foreign as though she isn’t sure if they are supposed to be there.

She shakes her head and reaches for the shampoo. Her hair could use a very good scrub. She wonders if Mai well ask the servants to help her with that. Her hair is such a tangled mess that she isn’t sure she will be able to work with it on her own. She dips her head under the water and basks in the warmth it radiates. She is so very cozy. She wishes that her factory had a hot spring in or near it. She likes hot springs very much, she decides.

She leans her body against the rocks and inhales the lilac. She can’t shake the feeling of familiarity. She pushes it to the back of her mind; of course it feels familiar, she has done this once before. She stares at the hand that rests upon the spring’s rocky deck. It is rough and calloused. It is familiar.

One of several serving girls slips back into the room, “Mai would like to know if you’re done with your bath yet.”

Snapdragon nods and holds out her arm for the towel. The girl hands it over and she pats herself dry. She scampers around for her robe...granted it isn’t actually hers. She tugs it on and fusses with the sash. After a few moments of watching her struggle, the serving girl offers her a hand. ���Tight enough?” She asks. Snapdragon nods again. “Where is Mai?”

“Waiting for you in the spa.”

Her eyes light up, “do I get to use it too?”

The serving girl smiles, “unless you think that you can fix this mess on your own.” She ruffles Snapdragon’s hair.

She shakes her head, “I wasn’t even planin’ on tryin’ to fix that.”

The girl leads her to the spa. With each corner turned, Snapdragon finds herself more daunted, the palace is so huge. It would only take getting distracted and falling behind for her to get lost within its expansive halls. She wonders if the Fire Lord even knows how to navigate it.

“Here we are.”

“I finished my bath, Mai!” She declares proudly. A few of the serving girls cringe and she recalls that these folks don’t enjoy loud greetings. They don’t seem to enjoy loud things in general. She mumbles an apology as walks towards Mai. Mai who doesn’t seem particularly bothered by her overly enthusiastic outburst. “I keep forgettin’ about the palace rules.”

“They aren’t official rules.” Mai rolls her eyes, “you should here Zuko when he’s frustrated.” She gestures for Snapdragon to sit. “His father too. That whole family is pretty loud.”

“Lean your head back.” The serving girl instructs.

“Oh yeah.” Snapdragon replies, “I’ll do that. Can you use the same shampoo that you used last time? I liked that smell.”

“Which ones did we use the last time?”

Snapdragon looks at Mai who gives a little shrug. And then her eyes widen for a flicker. “Firelily and jasmine.”

“I dunno how you remembered that.” Snapdragon mumbles as the serving girl retreats to fetch the bottles.

“Uh...they used to be Azula’s favorites. You smelled like her…”

Snapdragon somehow gets the impression that this isn’t a good thing. “Well I can use firelily and…” she taps her chin. “And snapdragon! I am Snapdragon so I can smell like snapdragon!”

“That makes sense.” Mai agrees with a slight smile. “You think that you can handle being a lone for a bit, I’m going to go find Zuko and let him know that you’ll be spending the night here.”

Her tummy flutters once at the notion of being alone with only the servants and twice at the reminder that she will be staying here at the palace with several more hours of time to make both she and Mai look foolish. At least now she won’t be dirty and grubby when she does it.

“Okay, I’ll stay.”

Snapdragon shakes her head. The woman running a comb through her hair sighs and gives her another reminder to keep her head still. Snapdragon mumbles another apology. “It’s fine Mai, I can be alone for a bit.”

She regrets saying so as soon as Mai leaves the room. There may not be any uppity nobles about this time around, but even the serving girls seem to have more class and poise than she. Everyone is so elegant, they can bury her under as many fine silks and scents as they please but she doesn’t think that they will ever truly be able to drive out the scents of Capital City’s lower ring smog. “What is this?” The girl with the brush plucks a cluster of pine needles from her hair. But Agni, are they giving it their best shot.

“That must be from when I were trying to reach the bird’s nest. I were gonna take it down if there were no eggs in it.” Snapdragon explains. “I climbed up all the way to near the top of the tree…”

“The sap is practically gluing your hair together.”

That doesn’t exactly sound like an easy fix.

The serving girl sighs. “I hope that you’re comfy. This is going to take a while and if I can’t wash the sap out then I will have to give you another haircut.”

Snapdragon swallows. She wishes that she weren’t such a burden, if only she had nice, silky hair like Mai’s.

“Ami, you’re making her uncomfortable.” Snapdragon recognizes this voice. It is the serving girl she had met first. Yora, if she recalls correctly.

“She could use some discomfort if you ask me.” Ami mutters. “Look at this.” She holds up a clump of her hair. The strands are held together by a decent glob of pine sap.

Yora chuckles. “I’ll work with this, you just shampoo her hair.” She turns her attention to Snapdragon. “And you just relax, trust me you’ll feel much better after this.”

Snapdragon can believe that, she already feels better, more respectable now that she smells like firelily. Yora is a lot more careful than Ami, she still snags Snapdragon’s locks but she doesn’t yank at them. She closes her eyes, she must admit that it is relaxing to have the shampoos massaged into her hair.

Like the spring water, the steams that they pour over her head are kindly hot. She watches tendrils of steam twist and curl towards the ceiling. She thinks that she can nearly see the scents on them; she imagines that the firelily would take on a vivid orange and that the snapdragon would be a flashy red smoke.

“Cherries?” Offers a new serving girl.

With a grin, Snapdragon pops one into her mouth. She may not be able to get used to this, but she certainly enjoys it. She takes a second cherry and a third. And then she loses track of how many cherries she has eaten.

“We’re almost done.” Yora says. “I’m going to have to give you a bit of a haircut though. I can’t seem to get this one clump of sap out.”

“Okay.” Snapdragon agrees. She takes another cherry from the bowl and bites down. “Ow!” Momentarily forgetting her about her surroundings, she spits the cherry pit out. She hears it ping against one of the decorative vases.

Ami pinches the bridge of her nose, “someone pick that up.”

Snapdragon rubs the side of her mouth. She wishes that she hadn’t bitten down so hard. She supposes it could have been worse; she could have swallowed it and choked… The serving girl scrubbing the callouses off of her feet pauses.

The sense of deja vu comes over her again but with more potency. A headpoudning potency. To further spike Ami’s irritation, she shifts uncomfortably in the chair. This sense of familiarity itches at the back of her mind. Whatever it is, it is just out of reach. Just out of reach in just the same way that recollections of her time in the jungle are.

“Don’t let Ami bother you.” Yora leans in and whispers. “She’s a stern old flutterbat.”

Snapdragon allows the comment to wash away her unease. She gives a little laugh.

“I thought that it was funny.” Yora continues. “It would have been even funnier if you spit it out at one of those guards. They’re no fun.”

Snapdragon laughs again.

Ami inhales through her nose, “please. Sit still.”

“Sorry.” She mutters again.

She leaves the spa feeling quite refreshed, her head feels so much lighter now that it isn’t loaded with sap, pine needles, and twigs. She feels lighter in general. And the aroma of firelily and snapdragon leaves her with the sensation that she could levitate, could drift away on a cloud of their perfume.

She holds her sleeve to her nose. She expects it to smell like the shampoo but she finds that it has a scent of its own; firelily and jasmine with a touch of smoke. Her head begins to ache again.

.oOo.

“What’s wrong, you’re not acting like yourself tonight?” Mai frowns.

She doesn’t feel much like herself tonight.

“You’re all quiet again. Are you still anxious about being surrounded by nobles?”

That must be it. She is still nervous. She nods, “a little.” Though she isn’t sure that that truly is what is bothering her. She can’t think of anything else that it could be though.

“I’m surprised that you aren’t shaking with joy. You were really excited for another palace banquet.”

And she was. She thinks that she still is. Though, at the same time, she doesn’t have much of an appetite at the moment. Mostly she feels queasy? Foggy? Distant? She isn’t exactly sure what she is feeling. Other than unwell. “I feel…”

“You look pale.” Mai notes.

Snapdragon nods. “I feel sick.” That doesn’t quite fit either but it is the closest thing that she can think of.

“Do you want to skip dinner and go see the palace physician.” The Firelord offers from the head of the table. “They’re really good, I promise.”

She shakes her head, “I want food first. I came here for the food.”

Mai chuckles, “that sounds more like you.”

Snapdragon smiles. Maybe she’ll feel better after a gourmet meal. Maybe she’ll feel more like Snapdragon if she does things that make Snapdragon happy.

[evilcharming18]

Ruby Red Tattoo Shop

I’m late as always but it’s still the 14th in the west coast so...🤷🏾‍♀️

Here’s my entry for day one of Azula Week 2019, Tattoo Shop AU

“You know I don’t think any of us ever imagined you turning out like this,” Zuko says softly as he takes in his sister’s office. The artwork covered the room from the floor to the ceiling, none of the original wallpaper could be seen. Instead, you saw all of Azula’s artwork, the rough sketches and the paintings that she worked on for weeks, the doodles that were done while waiting for her next client and the messes of paint and fire that were thrown together in some of her fits of rage. Everything Azula was and wasn’t covered that room completely, a full expression of what Azula was actually like. What she liked, disliked, felt was surrounding them both. Those walls showed him a completely different person from the Azula he had known in the palace, the Azula he had grown up with, was jealous of, had feared and had overcome. The Azula that was perfect and exact, the Azula who always had a plan and never failed, the Princess Azula.

“Yeah, well neither did I Zuzu,” She scoffs back, keeping her eyes glued to her paper as she continued to draw her latest piece of work. She had a client coming tomorrow and she wanted every line of this tattoo to be perfect. She never gave her clients anything less than perfect. She couldn’t let herself.

“I didn’t even know you could draw like this,” The Fire Lord continues to look around her office, at the intricate pieces of artwork that surrounded him. Never in a million years could he see his sister being an artist, she had never shown an interest in art and for her to grow into not only an artist but a tattoo artist was a shock to everyone. The sounds of her brush moving over the paper were the only sounds that filled the room and Zuko couldn’t help but feel awkward. As if he was with a stranger and not his sister.

“There is a lot that you don’t know about me. It’s not like you ever tried anyways,” While the response sounds nonchalant leaving Azula’s mouth, it hit Zuko like a ton of bricks.

“Azula, that isn’t-”

“Nope, stop right there,” Azula finally looks up at him, a glare fixed on her face and heat surrounding them suddenly. This was the face he was used to, the glare, the anger, the preciseness of every feature of her. And this was the Azula that she was trying to let go. A sigh leaves her mouth and she shakes her head for a moment. “Do not come in here, into my home and business and try to act like we were something we weren’t. That you were some sort of caring brother or that Ursa cared or that anyone in the godforsaken palace gives a damn about me. If you want to come here and check in on me, make sure this isn't just a cover for my plot to take back the throne, go ahead. Want to watch me do what I do best because you’re interested, fine. But don’t try to make some petty excuses when I say nothing but the truth Zuko,” She tells him, the heat leaving the room as quickly as it had appeared and the fallen princess picks up her paintbrush again, resuming the stroke she had left off on. She wanted to get as much done as she could before her client for today arrived. And she didn’t want the stress or discomfort of Zuko hanging over her. She didn’t need to make any mistakes today. She would not let Zuko and his nonsense throw her off.

Zuko stared at his sister for a while after her harsh glare had left her face and her focus had returned to her artwork. Azula was right, back then he hadn’t cared much, his jealousy got in the way of him caring. Caring the way he should have. And after learning about how Ozai truly treated Azula behind closed doors, he only feels guiltier that he hadn’t cared more.

He was distracted by his own thoughts that he barely heard Azula speak up until she repeated herself, “How long are you staying in town this time Zuzu?” She asks him and he clears his throat before answering her. “Not long just until tomorrow. I just wanted to check in before I continued my journey to Ba Sing Se.”

“All alone this time?” She asked, her tone almost curious.

“The Gaang decided to look around the shops around the city.” He answers and she nods.

“No one wanted to accompany you on your visit to your crazy sister huh?” She says with her usual smirk but he shook his head.

“Azula you know that’s-“

“Zuzu I’m kidding, I wouldn’t want them here anyways. Why are you so defensive?” She says and Zuko frowns.

“Because I want you to feel welcome at home and with us,“ Zuko tells her genuinely and Azula rolls her eyes.

“You’ve never tried before so why try now. I am fine where I am-“ Before Azula could finish her sentence the bell above the front door rang and she sighed. She knew exactly who walked through that door. It was her client for the day and she had hoped that Zuko would be gone before she had gotten here. The woman was a dear friend and Azula didn’t need Zuko ruining things for her.

“Who is that?” The Fire Lord asked and Azula puts down her paint brush, closing her jar of ink as she ignores Zuko’s question. She stands from her seat and goes to the shelf on the other side of the room, finding her box of tattoo supplies and the drawing she was looking for. She turns around and looks at him, irritation forming on her face.

“That is my client for the day so you’re either going to leave or sit out there silently and watch me do what I do.” She explains quickly, her voice reminding him of how she used to sound and he nods, moving towards the door of the office so he didn’t irritated her further. Azula leaves her office and is almost knocked to the ground when her client hugs her.

“Azula!! I haven’t seen you in months! How are you?” Imi asks excitedly, still holding her in a tight hug.

“I have been good Imi, I’d be better if you weren’t crushing my lungs.” Azula breathes out and her fellow firebender lets go of her.

“Oh sorry, I just missed you is all.” She laughs and then looks up to see Zuko standing in the corner. She gasps and instantly bows for the Fire Lord.

“Oh you don’t have to do that.” Azula groans as she moved to her chair and table, setting her things down. Azula watched as Zuko turned red and Imi continue to bow. She shook her head and began set up for Imi’s tattoo, ignoring the foolishness that was taking place. Her friend only wanted a small fire lily on her back, nothing too difficult but she still took it very seriously.

“What do you mean, it’s the Fire Lord, of course I have to bow.” Imi tells her and Azula rolls her eyes.

“It’s just Zuko, he’s nothing special,” Azula says indifferently. Zuko makes a face before sitting in a chair on the side.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Fire Lord Zuko,” Imi tell Zuko and he smiles at her.

“The honor is all mine. It is not often I get to meet one of Azula’s friends.” Zuko starts. “Actually, how did you become friends with Azula?” He asks and she smiles brightly.

“I met her in the Asylum, at first she was a little reserved but one day she helped me with a particularly rude guard and we’ve been friends ever since. She’s the best friend I’ve ever had,” Azula freezes at Imi’s answer. She could feel Zuko’s eyes on her as she takes a breath and recomposes herself before finishing up her set up process. She hadn’t expected Imi to say that, sure they were close but Azula didn’t think she was her best friend. She thought Imi would have friends all over, friends kinder and better suited for Imi than her.

“Your best friend huh?” He comments and Imi nods, a bright smile taking over her face.

“Of course. She’s the best person ever, don’t you think?” Imi says as she starts to walk over to the chair and got in position for the tattoo. She removed her top shirt, leaving her in her wrappings that covered her chest, just enough room for the Fire Lily to go on her shoulder blade. She lays down on the chair on her stomach and turns her head to look at Azula who had a frown on her face. “What’s wrong Zula?” Imi asks and Azula looks her, her features softening as she looked at her friend.

“It’s nothing, you ready for this?” She answers and in turn asks, and Imi nods.

“Of course, I’m so excited!” Imi answers and Azula smiles.

“Well then let’s get started,” Azula says. She wipes Imi’s back with the alcohol to sterilize it before placing the ink stamp on her back. The ink takes and there’s a nice outline of the flower on her back. The former princess used her firebending to sterilize the needle she planned on using before taking the first dip into the permanent ink.

Zuko watches as Azula begins to pierce Imi’s skin with the ink covered needle. The girl didn’t seem to be in too much pain though this was clearly not Imi’s first tattoo. The girl’s arms had a ton of them which seemed out of character for a girl as bubbly and happy as her. He paid attention to Azula’s every move as she traced every line perfectly, nothing out of place. It took over two hours for her to complete the piece of art, layer after layer until the ink was dark on Imi’s tan fair fire nation skin. Azula hadn’t even broken a sweat and quickly cleaned off the tattoo before rubbing some cream over the area. She allowed Imi look at the tattoo in the mirror and as soon as Imi saw it, she wrapped Azula in a tight hug again.

“Oh I love it so much Zula, it’s gorgeous! You never let me down, ” Azula stiffens for a second before relaxing into her hug. She could feel Zuko’s eyes on them which made her uncomfortable but she wasn’t going to let him ruin the moment.

“I’m glad you like it. You deserve nothing but the best.” Azula tells her. Azula begins cleaning up around her area before looking back at Zuko.

“Done enough snooping for today. Finally sure I’m not on a rampage,” Azula asks him and he sighs.

“Azula you know that’s not why I’m here, it’s never why I’m here, not anymore. I’m just making sure you’re okay.” Zuko tells her and Azula shakes her head.

“Sure zuzu, and I’m a flying Bison.” She responds sarcastically.

“You know I actually came to invite you back to the palace, we’re having a dinner in honor of the 10 year since the end of the war and I want you to be there.” He tells her and her guard instantly rises back up at the mention of the war.

“Why would I come to that. To be surrounded by people who hate me. I’ll pass,” She dismisses it quickly to keep her emotions in check. She really didn’t want to be having this conversation in front of Imi. Not that she was embarrassed but her past was not something she was proud of and didn’t need to be mentioned in front of the only friend she had.

“Fine Azula, i just thought I’d ask anyway. I actually think it’s time I’d head back to the inn before they send Aang looking for me.” He tells her and she scoffs.

“We wouldn’t want them getting the idea that I killed you now would we.” She mutters and Zuko sighs.

“It was a pleasure meeting you Imi,” He says with a small smile before moving towards the door. “I’ll be back in two months Azula and the offer still stands, you can come home to the palace any time you’d like.” He tells her firmly before leaving out of the door.

A ragged breath leaves Azula’s mouth as she turns to look at Imi. The girl has a sympathetic look on her face and it makes Azula uncomfortable. She could tell that Imi wants to say something but doesn’t know if she should.

“Go ahead, say it.” Azul tells her and Imi nods.

“I think you should go.” Imi rushes out and Azula’s eyes widened. Out of all of the things she could have said, she didn’t expect that.

“I can give you a thousand reasons why I shouldn’t go.” Azula tells her and Imi nods.

“I know but I can tell he really misses you. Sure it had been bad but it’ll never get better if you don’t try.” Imi tells her and she pauses. The girl had a point but why try, she knew that they’d always view her as a monster.

“Maybe so but I’d rather keep what I have than risk losing it for people who will never truly accept me.” Azula tells Imi, who sighs.

“I just think you shouldn't give up yet.” Imi tells her and moves to carefully put her top shirt back on. Once it’s on she looks at Azula again with a small smile. “Just think about it, okay,” She tells her and Azula nods.

“Okay.” Azula agrees, “Will you still come to help me with the shop tomorrow?” She asks and Imi nods.

“Of course! I’ll be here bright and early!” Imi smiles and Azula smiles back.

“Thank you Imi, so I’ll see you tomorrow.” Azula tell her, her voice lighter than it had been. She never expected to have a friend like Imi but she was so glad she did.

“See you tomorrow Zula!” Imi tells her before leaving out of the shop.

Azula begins to clean up the shop so she could close for the day, she couldn’t help but to think about what Imi said. Maybe she should take him up on his offer to visit the palace, maybe Imi was right and he truly missed her and wanted to get to know her. But she was fine where she was, she had Imi, she had her shop. What else did she need, she never had a true family so why did she need one now.