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It was a sunny day in the small Fire Nation town, though Azula could hardly appreciate it as she fled through the streets. Her feet hit the ground hard as she ran, dodging past crowds of peasants. The men chasing Azula weren't far behind, but she was light on her feet and confident she could give them the slip. Azula dodged between people who were just wandering the street, clearly on their way to see the parade. Glancing back, she saw she had managed to create more distance between her and the royal guards chasing her.
It still irritated her, how these guards could see someone like her— someone royal — as their enemy. If she was their Fire Lord, she would have banished them. The problem was that she wasn't their Fire Lord. They didn't even treat her like a princess, it was disgraceful.
She rounded a corner, ducking into a side street. It was a risky move. She didn't know the town well and could easily head towards a dead end but Azula hoped the odds were in her favor, she kept running, glancing behind to check if her pursuers hadn't followed her into the street. She didn't spot them, which was a good sign, but it was too early to be triumphant. The princess looked ahead and smirked. She had made it to the docks. The salty sea air seemed to greet her, as well as the sight of different ships lined up in the water. An easy escape, if she could make her way onto one undetected.
Aware that she could be seen by her pursuers at any moment, Azula rapidly considered her options. Many of the ships seemed well guarded so she dismissed those immediately. Her gaze moved to a wooden ship, smaller than the rest and without any visible guards around. She didn't know how much time she had, so she made the decision.
Slipping onto the ship was surprisingly easy, it was clear most of the crew wasn't on board and those that were were distracted drinking and laughing above on the upper part of the deck. Azula crept in quietly, using the shadows to her advantage. She found her way into the cargo hold, hiding herself away in a far corner. It was a small spot behind some crates: dark, damp, and unpleasant. But at least it would be impossible for Zuko's men to find her here. As for the crew… well, she thought it unlikely they would head this deep into the hold, even if they did, she knew she could take some Earth Kingdom sailors without any trouble.
Azula's eyes adjusted slowly to the dark, her gaze moving over the cargo she could see. It was a strange mixture of different objects. Typical Fire Nation spices and food, but also things that looked too valuable to be here. She could make out what looked like a few statues with gems embedded in them all tied together with rope, as well as a wooden crate filled with ornate scrolls. They reminded her of the scrolls she had read in the Dragonbone Catacombs back at the palace. It was strange to see them here.
Overhead, she heard more people boarding the ship, the sound of things being moved and orders being shouted. Azula waited, exhaling in relief when she felt the boat start to move. Now she just had to wait here until they stopped again, then she could get out and disappear. She wouldn't even have to be subtle about it, she would be far enough away from any real danger. With a smirk, she imagined the faces of the crew when she burst out of the ship in a ball of fire. It would be entertaining, If nothing else.
Her spot wasn't very comfortable, but after a few hours her eyes started to drift shut. She could stay awake, Azula knew she had the discipline to do so if she needed it, but no one on this ship was a real threat to her. She might as well take the time to rest.
With her eyes closed, she reflected on her day. Going to see the parade had been a mistake. She'd seen the poster weeks ago, the Fire Lord coming to visit these remote Fire Nation towns, ostensibly to hear the voice of the people and see what would be needed to help everyone. In reality, she was sure he was just showing his face in another attempt to make the Fire Nation accept him as their leader. Whatever he was doing, Azula had to grudgingly admit that it was working. She'd spent a lot of time in various taverns and inns in the more remote parts of the country and had kept an ear out for talk about the royal family. She had noticed over the past years that the general opinion about Zuko was growing more positive, even if there were still plenty of people reminiscing about the glory days of the war. With the amount of assasination attempts early in his reign, it was a small miracle Zuko was still in charge.
But he had managed it, somehow. Azula didn't know how she felt about that.
She knew she shouldn't have gone to see him, but she had been drawn by pure curiosity. It had been a few years since she had seen her brother, since she had last fought him. She couldn't lie to herself. She had been curious. It couldn't hurt just to catch a glimpse.
And she had seen him for a moment, walking alongside Mai, looking so much like their father that it had startled her. Azula had hoped to be anonymous in the crowd, wearing a hooded cape just in case. Somehow, Zuko had still noticed her. She remembered how his head had turned, almost involuntarily. How he'd met her gaze— how he'd known immediately. Time had frozen for a second— and then he'd called his guards.
It was so irritating, she shouldn't have expected anything else from Zuzu.
With that thought, she dozed off.
When Azula woke she didn't stir, keeping her eyes closed. She had known instantly she was no longer alone in the room, sensing the other person even though they didn't move or make a sound. Immediately alert, she started planning. In a few seconds she would move, a fire kick should catch them off guard long enough for her to —
"I know you're awake."
A female voice, unexpected. Azula's eyes opened on their own accord.
The woman was hard to make out in the darkness of the hold, but Azula immediately noticed her casual posture. She was sitting a wooden crate, one of her legs crossed over the other. Azula saw the glint of a weapon and immediately moved into a crouch, ready to attack.
"Relax, if I wanted to kill you you'd be dead already," the woman said, leaning back slightly. She put a piece of apple in her mouth and bit down, using the dagger to cut off another piece as she studied Azula while chewing.
Azula didn't mind being underestimated, especially as it wouldn't be for long. "No, you would be dead." She said as she moved her hand forward, heating up until a burst of blue flame danced in her palm. "Gone. Along with your ship and precious cargo— it looks very flammable."
The woman raised her eyebrow slightly, then ate another piece of apple. "It is," she said, seeming unbothered by the fire.
The blue flame chased most of the darkness from the hold, Azula could see the woman more clearly. She was younger than she had expected, only a little older than Azula herself. She was bald and scarred and somehow the look suited her. The earrings shaped like Earth Kingdom disks showed her origins, though that wasn’t a surprise. Azula had guessed a few other things as well.
"You're pirates," Azula said, tilting her head to indicate the cargo. "You've stolen all this from the Fire Nation."
The woman smiled. "Well, yes. I think it's fair enough, don't you? You’ve stolen our land, our people and our labor over the past hundred years. I'd call this… reparations."
"Bold of you to do this while the Fire Lord is visiting the town." Azula said, still poised to strike if the pirate showed any sign of attacking her. "Your captain must be very brave, or very stupid."
The woman shifted, uncrossing her legs. "I'm the captain, Captain Jiang." she said with a slight grin. "And I don't know, I'm probably both. But the whole visit was an excellent distraction. No one cares about a ship leaving during such an important event, they're much more worried about danger coming in."
She paused then, studying Azula for a moment. "But you're not here on behalf of the Fire Lord, nor do you care about what we took. You're hiding."
Azula was surprised she was speaking to the captain— if the woman wasn't lying. She shrugged, sitting back now that it seemed clear she wasn't going to get attacked immediately, though she kept her fire ready. "What I'm doing is none of your concern. I'll be out of your hair once you arrive at the next dock. Figuratively, of course," she said with another glance at the woman's bald head.
The comment made Jiang smile, which hadn't been the intended effect.
"Or we throw you overboard now, I don't deal with stowaways."
"Of course, that is an option," Azula mused. "If you want your crew to go down with me. I don't think your ship will last very long if I set it on fire." Her hand moved slightly to the right, moving the flame closer to one of the wooden beams.
The captain's eyes followed the fire, Azula smirked. She knew she had her.
"Unless you think you can overpower me before I burn it all down— but you know you can't."
Jiang was quiet for a while, pondering her options. Azula knew she had won. There was no way for the pirates to force her out without giving her the chance to take them all down with her.
"We could turn back, turn you in… but I suppose that will have the same outcome?" The captain asked, tilting her head slightly.
"You could try and find out." Azula suggested sweetly. "But it's easier for all of us if you just drop me off at the nearest port, no fire necessary."
"That would be easier, if we were heading to a nearby port." Jiang said with a small shrug. "But we're not, we’re in the middle of the open sea. Returning to the Earth Kingdom."
Well. Shit. Azula hadn't considered that. She should have, obviously they wanted to get away with their stolen cargo.
She sighed. At least no one would find her there. "Fine," she said after a moment. "Same deal, I'll leave the ship when you arrive in the Earth Kingdom and you can just leave me alone." She would make her way back somehow, it wouldn't be too difficult.
The captain moved suddenly, Azula immediately shot into a fighting stance.
But instead of attacking, she kicked a bucket in Azula's direction. It came to a stop near her feet.
"You can stay, but you'll have to pull your weight. No one stays on my ship without earning their keep."
Azula bristled, looking down at the bucket before looking back up at the captain. "You can't make me do anything."
Jiang shrugged, smiling. "Of course I can't. But if you want food and a nicer place to sleep, you'll have to work." She made a show of looking around the hold. "You're free to stay here and eat rats if you prefer, but it's at least another week before we arrive. And yes, I know you can burn down the whole boat and everyone on it—" she continued before Azula could open her mouth, "but we both know you'll only do that as a last resort. I just told you we are in the middle of the ocean, who do you think has a better chance at surviving that? A firebender or a group of pirates who’ve lived on the water all their lives?"
Azula kept her expression neutral, but she felt a surge of irritation at Jiang's words. It frustrated her that her threat was immediately seen for what it was— something she could only do once and only if she really needed to. Her gaze moved down to the bucket in disgust. "Fine.." she snapped. "But I'm not cleaning." A princess had her dignity, even a princess in exile. She pushed the bucket away with her foot.
Jiang's smile was triumphant. "Very well, we'll find you something to do."
They made her help in the galley, which made sense. Cooking was a lot more efficient with a firebender. The cook was reluctant to trust her, which was to be expected. The rest of the crew was no different, barely acknowledging Azula most of the time. If they had to interact with her, it was with a lot of wariness and suspicion. Azula didn't mind, she was used to being feared. She preferred it that way.
Despite her new work taking up some of the time, Azula still found herself bored regularly. With no one talking to her and nothing interesting happening on board, the days went by slowly. She now had a decent place to sleep— if you could call a hammock separated from the rest of the crew by a makeshift curtain 'decent'. She supposed it beat sleeping in a cramped corner behind a crate, but only barely.
While most of the pirates seemed scared or at least intimidated by her, the captain was one exception. Azula had taken to going through firebending exercises after waking up in the morning— though without the actual fire (for now). One morning, Azula stopped after the first couple of exercises, sensing eyes on her. When she turned, she came face to face with Jiang, watching her from a distance. The pirate made no move to hide what she was doing, smiling as she saw Azula look in her direction and holding up a hand in greeting.
Azula didn't return the greeting. She frowned, unsure what to make of this. The captain was still staring at her. Did Jiang disapprove? Did she worry Azula would burn down her ship?
No, it was different. There was a weight to her stare that made Azula feel flustered. And Azula didn't get flustered.
Turning around resolutely, she returned to her exercises. When she finished, she noticed the captain was gone.
She ignored the strange sting of disappointment she felt and left the deck.
As the week progressed, the crew of the Flying Wolfbat slowly warmed to her. While still keeping a respectful distance, Azula noticed they kept trying to have conversations with her— even when she consistently cut them off before they could get more than a few words in. She had no intention of wasting her time chitchatting with pirates, even if there was no one else to talk to.
One evening, Azula stood against the ship's railing, overlooking the water and trying to tune out the noise from the lower deck. The crew was gathered there around a fire, making music and singing songs. She had hoped the sound of the wind would drown it out, but no such luck.
Footsteps alerted her to the presence behind her. Azula didn't have to look to know it was Jiang, her now familiar footsteps giving her away. The princess said nothing as the older woman moved to her side, also staring at the open sea.
"Why didn't you join the others? I saw Yung asked after you lit the brazier for them." Jiang said after a few minutes of silence.
Azula bristled at the reminder. She was nothing but a convenient fire source to these people, it was ridiculous to pretend otherwise. "Why would I waste my time? I can keep myself warm without a fire, and the music is atrocious."
Jiang sighed. "Well, three more days and you'll be rid of all of us," she said, pushing away from the railing. "You know, you might not hate us so much if you actually tried to talk to anyone."
Azula rolled her eyes. "I doubt it."
She saw the captain's mouth twist, then watched her walk away. She turned back to the sea. Three more days, she reminded herself, then she could forget all about this experience and about the captain with the piercing green eyes.
The next morning, Azula woke at the sound of shouting, panicked voices. She jumped out of her hammock in a flash, ready to defend herself against an attack. Her first thought was that the crew had finally grown tired of the threat of her fire hanging over their heads and tried to ambush her in her sleep. But she was alone— the shouting was up above on the deck.
Making her way up, she spotted Jiang immediately in the pandemonium. The crew was getting ready for a battle, but there was a sense of desperation in the air. They knew it was a battle they wouldn't win.
The captain was the only one standing still, staring off in the distance with a hard expression on her face. Azula followed her gaze, her eyes widening slightly at the sight of a much larger ship heading their way.
The ship was clearly another pirate vessel, it made no efforts to hide this fact.
Azula moved to Jiang's side, frowning. "What's going on?"
"The Black Koi, old rivals of ours, they’re coming to steal our cargo. Their ship is much bigger, we can't stop them if they board us."
"Can we outspeed it?" Azula asked as she watched the pirate ship grow bigger. She knew the answer already. If they could, the crew wouldn't be preparing for a battle. She didn't wait for an answer, turning to Jiang in frustration instead. "How did they get so close without anyone noticing?"
Jiang's jaw tightened. Clearly, she felt frustrated about that as well. "I'm the captain, you don't question my crew."
"The crew that was too busy drinking and dancing to notice the threat?" Azula asked, her eyebrows arching up.
Jiang made a disgruntled noise and pushed away from her. "I have a battle to prepare for." She snapped, drawing her sword.
"Not necessary." Azula said. Her words made Jiang turn back to her with an expression of surprise and confusion. Azula moved quickly. She got onto a crate and started to climb up the mast. She climbed the rigging, moving her way up until she had a good view of the oncoming ship. Azula stopped and secured herself, one hand tight around ropes. She took a deep breath, feeling the energy inside her. Her other hand moved, charging the air slowly. She had practiced this with one hand, she should be able to— her hand shot out as she felt the spark, her fingers already crackling with electricity. The lightning arched towards the larger ship, hitting Azula’s target perfectly. The mast cracked on impact with a clap that could probably be heard for miles, the princess watched in satisfaction as it crashed down onto the rapidly burning ship. She heard the panicked screams and watched for a moment as the pirates scrambled to save themselves.
Azula hopped down, landing back on the deck amidst the quiet crew, all staring at her with wide, terrified eyes.
Brushing some imaginary dust off her clothes, Azula walked away from them, passing Jiang. "I'll be in my room," she said, "trying to get some more rest after all this racket. Do make sure we get away from them quickly."
No one said a word as she headed back into the ship.
That night, the deck of the ship was nearly empty, though Azula noted with some satisfaction that someone was now keeping watch at the bow of the ship.
She moved to the edge like she had the previous night, staring into the distance, trying to will the coastline of the Earth Kingdom to come into view. It would only be a matter of time now before the crew moved against her. Fear could control people, but Azula knew it only went so far. If they tried to kill her, they were all doomed.
She wasn't surprised when Jiang joined her again. Azula looked at the captain sideways as she moved into the spot next to her. This time, Azula was the one who broke the silence.
"Aren't you going to thank me?"
An exhalation. Was it a laugh? "I suppose I should," Jiang said, turning her head slightly to look at her. "Thank you, princess."
Azula's heart skipped a beat, but she didn't react to the title outwardly. "You're mistaken."
"I'm not." Jiang turned to her fully, her expression hard to read. Was it admiration? Fear? Anger? A mix of all of the above? But there was something else as well, something Azula had sensed earlier when the captain had watched her train.
Azula turned as well, facing Jiang silently.
The captain went on. "I've heard stories about you— your lightning gave you away. I should have realized sooner, though I didn't expect…" She trailed off, shaking her head.
"Plenty of firebenders are capable of generating lightning." Azula said, though it was a lie. It was rare, rare enough to make people take note.
Jiang scoffed, raising her eyebrows. "Another firebender capable of this, fleeing from the Fire Lord, around the age of the exiled princess?"
Azula rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. She supposed there was no sense in denying it. "What are you going to do with the information?"
The question hadn't been meant as a joke, and it frustrated Azula that Jiang shook her head and laughed in response. She ran a hand over her head. "Nothing— what could I even do with it?"
"You're a pirate, a criminal. You can probably figure out some way to profit off it. Try to take me back to my brother, for one."
"Yes, I could try, and you'd catch on in a second and kill us all. I'm not stupid."
"Then why did you tell me you knew?"
"I just wanted to talk to you."
Azula frowned. "We are talking."
Jiang groaned, turning away from her again. "You're— you don't get it. I'm not your enemy, Azula."
Now that was a joke. "Everyone is my enemy."
"You saved us. Saved my crew, my ship— you didn't have to do that."
Azula tensed. "I saved myself."
Jiang shook her head, then looked at Azula again. She studied her, like she was a puzzle she was trying to solve. "You should stay."
It was the last thing Azula had expected to hear. "What?"
"Stay. Stay on board. The crew respects you, you're useful, you're smart…"
"You're asking me to become a pirate?"
Jiang shrugged, looking a little like she could hardly believe it herself. "I'm asking you to stay. With me."
Azula felt a heated flush move up from her chest. Oh.
Jiang watched her, waiting for a response.
"Your crew is terrified of me." Azula said after a beat.
Jiang inclined her head. "Does that bother you?"
"Not really."
A slight smile. Azula's heart fluttered. She pulled her gaze away.
"I'm not a pirate. I have no place here."
She felt Jiang move closer, closing the distance between them. Azula looked up, suddenly aware of how much taller the pirate was.
"I'm not hearing a no." Jiang murmured, her intense green eyes full of— hope?
"I'm not saying yes either." Azula said quietly, staying still as Jiang took another step towards her.
"I'll take it." The captain murmured. Her hand moved to brush against Azula's jaw as she leaned closer, pressing her lips to Azula's.
Azula leaned into it, pushing herself onto her tiptoes to meet Jiang halfway. One hand moved behind to hold onto the railing for balance, as the other gripped the pirate's side.
The kiss was gentle but firm. Jiang hummed in appreciation, her lips tasted vaguely of salt. Her arm snaked around Azula's side, pulling her closer as she deepened the kiss.
It lasted forever. It was over in a heartbeat.
When they broke apart, Azula knew her cheeks were flushed. She hoped the darkness obscured it, though the amusement in Jiang's eyes said otherwise.
"That's still not a yes." Azula murmured, slightly out of breath.
"I think I can convince you," Jiang responded quietly. She took Azula's hand, taking a step back towards the captain’s quarters.
Azula hesitated for one breath, looking at the captain's rough hand in her own. Then she exhaled, and followed.
Perhaps she would consider the pirate’s offer.