Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction ❯ Bad Blood ❯ Prologue ( Prologue )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

It was truly a shame that Katara wasn't born Fire Nation... the red and gold the new Fire Lady wore suited her better than any shade of blue. Within the folds of crimson satin it was clear her girlish figure had evolved to that of a woman, the soft curves of her hips and bust evident by the fabric's gentle cling. Her neck glittered with rubies set in gold and her eyes flashed behind thick lashes. The Waterbender shined with the all the light of the sun, her happiness radiating all the way to Ba Sing Se. Katara was not just a girl from the Southern Water Tribe anymore. She was the Fire Lady. Mai couldn't change that.

Nor did she want to change it. It was so clear as she gazed upward upon the scene of Katara's wedding and coronation that she herself was all wrong for the part. Katara was complimentary beside Zuko; soft where he was hard, gentle where he was rough. Together they sowed a distinct harmony. What had been the hallmark of her own relationship with Zuko? A mutual hatred of the world? Mai watched with a hard heart as the man she loved looked upon his new bride. The stone in her chest fractured a measure at the sight of his genuine smile, her gaze omitting the unpleasant way his scarred face wrinkled. Fire Lord Ozai's horrendous mark could do nothing to deter the sensual way his son's lips curled up at the corners or the way his untouched eye glittered brightly when he was caught in moments such as this.

Moments of unchecked happiness.

Such moments were rare for Zuko but when they occurred they were always beautifully, tragically displayed on his handsome face. Katara leaned in close to her new husband and whispered something in his ear, Mai's sharp eyes noting how his grin fluctuated a fraction bigger as Katara let out a vernal giggle. Finally, Mai let her heart finish breaking as she took in the scene to completion.

Katara was the new catalyst of Zuko's smiles. That was how it was, and so it would be. She would not stand in the way of Zuko's happiness. She had decided a long, long time ago that the young Fire Lord deserved only the best and sweetest things for all the days of his life. Cruelty was not Mai's game and she would not begrudge him something that could make him smile like that. She liked seeing that smile regardless of if she had put it there or not.

The rites of the ceremony were completed with a rousing cheer as the Fire Sages presented the newly wed monarchs. Around her the people rioted in approbation for the union not only of their king and queen, but of two nations. It was advertised as a cornerstone for the fragile peace since Ozai's defeat four years previously. Marriages had long been used as instruments of peacekeeping by all the nations internally between nobles and it wasn't much of a stretch to apply the matrimonial concept to international politics as well. But Mai was clever and her mind sharpened against the propaganda of the match. She saw the union as putting the balance on even rockier footing. Though none would say it to the Fire Lord directly, she knew from her father that most of the Fire Nation's governing officials weren't keen on a Waterbender marrying into the royal family.

For generations the marriage of a prince had been a long and careful process in which the most eligible Fire Nation girls had been inspected and groomed for a lifetime as Fire Lady, but Katara had no such background. And while it was true that long ago there had been a practice of Earth Kingdom princesses entering the family to shake up genetics every now and again, it had been forbidden centuries ago. Zuko's marriage to Katara went against every tradition of law, a fact dismissed by the young Fire Lord with a swift declaration of himself as the chief mandate of the nation and reappointing of a few key officials to make his point.

There was also the issue of whether or not the marriage itself would be successful. A separation, no matter how amicable, would cause nothing but strife. The entire marriage was simply a setup for calamity, she knew.

But hearts rarely care for politics. She had loved him when it wasn't in her best interest,  hadn't she? She always had, no matter what Azula said, no matter how painful it was to hear him talked down by his own people in his absence. Mai could almost smile to herself at that. Zuko always had possessed a talent for causing her pain. Even now, if Mai was to be truly honest with herself, she would admit pain over the marriage she had just witnessed. Not necessarily because it had occurred; it was clear that Zuko would marry another when they decided that the termination of their relationship would be best. It was more from the fact that their separation had occurred approximately two months prior, and today he stood at a wedding altar.

That stung.

She shifted in her weight subconsciously as Zuko and Katara began their descent, down the great flight of stairs from the altar to the ground where Mai and the rest of the wedding guests stood. Respectfully, she bowed her head as they passed, holding her breath. Her stone heart rapidly came back to life and flushed heat and embarrassment into her cheeks. She could have scolded herself. They hadn't even noticed her as they swiftly stepped past her and the rest of the nobles on their paraded walk to their reception.

Once the couple was a proper, respectful distance away, Mai was free to observe the remainder of their wedding march. She spotted the regretful glance that Katara paid the Avatar, Aang, an echo of the love that had existed between the two. There were no such glances like that from Zuko for her and it was all that Mai really needed to solidify her decision.

Her posture stiffened and when the crowd adjourned from their seats to follow the Fire Lord and Lady to their party, Mai quietly slipped away. She knew the palace well, her small feet privy to the intricate passages the corridors formed. Of course there were still guards posted over the grounds and within the halls, but Mai was common enough a visitor that the armored men paid her no mind as she wound her way down flights of steps into the undercroft. Among the cavernous expanse beneath the palace she found herself less familiar with her path but forged her way determinedly forward, finally springing open a thin wooden door into a room filled with freshly laundered washing.

A quick moment of searching brought her a plain red dress hemmed to her calf and a dingy black apron, the perfect instruments of a premeditated escape. With a show of flexibility she felt would have earned her ridiculous and cheerful praise from Ty Lee, Mai unbuttoned the row of tiny silk buttons that ran from the nape of her neck to the small of her back and tugged the luxurious dress from her frame. She had no curvaceous hips to which the fabric could cling as the New Fire Lady boasted, but her hips remained prominent if not a bit bony. She examined her body quietly, first noting each and every imperfection and then each perceptible change. Swiftly she pulled her plundered clothes on, hiding from herself and returning to the business at hand.

Her jewels came off her throat, wrists, fingers, and ears to be wrapped in a square of linen and tucked into an apron pocket, along with the tortoiseshell hairpins she pulled from her buns. She ran her thin and precise fingers through the freed locks, blending them into the rest of her thick black hair. Finally, she scooped up her discarded finery and made use of it as kindling in a boiling fire before exiting the undercroft far from where she had entered it and wandering quietly out of the east gate of the palace.

She had made her decision to turn her back on both Zuko and Katara, and she had made her decision forever.

She had no plan as she picked her way through the capital. She had to be gone before the morning because that was when she would be missed, but already her feet felt weary and her heart heavy. Mai realized now she did not truly want to leave, but she saw no other alternative. To stay would hurt so many people, least of all herself. She pressed on through the night and did not rest until she had boarded a ferry that would take her from the mainland, a jeweled earring from what was now her former life serving as payment for her passage.

Visions of the wedding plagued her as she settled deep beneath the deck of the boat, far from the sun. Zuko's smile filled her mind's eye and Katara's laughter rang in her ear. They already seemed like such distant memories. Had she only been gone one day? No, less. Hours. Only hours had passed since her departure. But here she was. Here they were.

She rested her hand on her stomach, filled with uncertainty for her future.

“Come, Nebi.”

Nebi toddled after her, ever obedient. Walking was not new to him, though he had not seen his second birthday. He had walked early and perhaps ran sooner. Talking, however, was not in his repertoire of skills. Neither was feeding himself without wearing the majority of the meal.

“Mama!” he called, stretching his arms after her as they navigated the market of Shu Jing. He was a well-built child, neither thin nor chubby, and with an excellent development of muscle control and tone. The older mothers of the village told Mai that it was the sign of a child that would become a strong man and Mai had no reason to disbelieve their claims. His father was strong, after all.

Why should the child be any different?

Mother and son stopped at their final vendor, an elderly woman with a hunched back. Mai knew her well. A spinster with little to her name, Dima was a force in Mai's new life. After arriving in Shu Jing Mai hadn't the slightest clue what to do with herself when Dima found her, fed her, and set her on her way to finding a job as a laundress. Mai had known absolutely nothing of washing clothes, but found herself quickly assimilated regardless. The service she worked for was door-to-door, with girls collecting the sacks of soiled clothes from clients and returning the clean washing the next morning. Mai had been a bag runner in her earlier days, but now she scoured with the best of them until her poor hands – once the hands of a noble girl – were rubbed pink and raw.

“And how is the little lad?” Dima cooed as they approached. Nebi shied away from the attention, hiding himself behind his mother's leg, thumb in mouth. Dima tsked. “Ah, I see. Still at it, is he?”

Mai nodded, “I can hardly get him to take it out of his mouth.”

The old woman waved her off, “We can fix that.”

And so she went about mixing a paste of bitter herbs for Mai to slather onto Nebi's thumbs in hope the awful taste would deter him from sucking them. While Dima worked, Mai perused the stall's inventory, selecting those things which she knew to be depleted in her own home. Seasonings for food, medicinal teas. Dima funneled the bitter paste into a little jar and corked the lid, passing it to Mai who placed it into her basket. They haggled, eventually settling on the fair price even though neither was pleased. Mai wanted to pay more. Dima wanted her to pay less.

Coppers were exchanged and goodbyes were said. Mai took Nebi's hand and briefly he disentangled his thumb from his mouth to wave Dima goodbye. Back through the marketplace they wound, edging towards the street that would take them home to their apartment. But Mai stopped when she saw a notice being posted in the center of the square. She bent, lifting Nebi onto her hip and hurried to the post before it would be lost in a sea of earnest people eager to glean news.

She read:

The notice went on to describe in which towns festivals would be held to honor the newborn prince, but Mai read no more. Instead she clutched her own baby closer and turned sharply away, hurrying faster now to the safety of home. Joyous whooping followed her from the square, cries of happiness at the birth of a prince. The first prince of his generation, the crown prince, the future of the Fire Nation. Even in her apartment the sounds of jubilation followed her. She put Nebi down and as he wandered off to play, she emptied her basket. When she came to the jar of bitter paste, she took it and joined her son on the floor where he busied himself with his toys.

Mai took his little hand in hers and dabbed the paste along his thumb. “You're a lucky little boy, you know,” she said softly, pushing his soft, curly black hair away from his face. Her son looked up at her with wide, expectant amber eyes and she kissed his cheek.

“Congratulations, Nebi. You have a new baby brother.”

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