— | | @paisholotus continued from HERE .
— | | 𝐀𝐙𝐔𝐋𝐀'𝐒 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐃 𝐌𝐈𝐃 - 𝐀𝐈𝐑 𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐒 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐘 from the wooden door of her Uncle's relative's home . It was not too late to 【 leave 】 . She could turn around . Go home . Nothing would change if she did . He did not need her in his life . Like every other adult in her life , he had 【 abandoned 】 her when he saw that she was nothing more than a helpless cause beneath her Father's thumb . He took her 【 brother 】 from her . She could have had a sibling , someone she 【 relied 】 on . . . The man behind that door took Zuko from her , and that was why she had to face the world alone . He , like so many others , was the reason she was allowed to become the 【 monster 】 her Father always wanted , and her mother always 【 feared 】 .
She took a step back . Just one . Her hand fell to her side , eyes faltering . She was unsure 【 why 】 she let her older abonination sibling talk her into this . It felt unfair . Should their relative not come to her ? Her mother had . . . And no , she did not 【 need 】 the fresh air . She had plenty of fresh air at her new home . It was brisk , and came with white , cold things that she liked to build snow creatures in . She did not need to have this 【 conversation 】 with this relative . She had not needed to have a conversation with her birth - giver either , but her brother was insistent -- stupidly so . Her amber eyes glanced down at her boots , and the speck of dirt to her left . A few obsidian strands fell beyond her shoulders to frame her face .
❛ It isn't too late to leave . You know this . Just leave him . . . He left you , after all . ❜ She looked to her left as a pair of boots similar to those her Father wore , appeared just next to her .
❝ I know . ❞ Crimson , manicured nails curled into fists by her sides , eyes drawn to the man next to her . ❝ I informed Zuko that this was pointless , but he did not listen . . . Just like with mother . ❞
❛ Just like your mother , he chose Zuko , remember . . . ❜ The voice hissed into her ear . ❛ . . . He always chose your brother . ❜
❝ . . . Everyone chose Zuko . ❞ Azula muttered to herself , quieter . . . More broken .
❛ He thinks you're nothing . . . ❜ Then her friend went away , just as the 【 haunting 】 creak of old wood drew her attention upwards .
She looked into the entrance as her relative 【 revealed 】 himself to her . She did not 【 recognize 】 him . Or , perhaps , she did not recognize herself , since the light in her mother's amber eyes had been 【 stolen 】 from her years ago . . . Though , because of a certain Warrior , that light was coming back -- 【 slowly 】 .
The man before her spoke , and all Azula could do was meet him in the eye -- not directly , however . Her eyes were fixed on his right ear , as if it were talking , unable to meet her relative in the eye 【 fully 】 . Silently , she followed him through his home . It felt . . . 【 warm 】 . It was strange , different . It made her feel the same mixture of hesitation and guardedness she felt in the palace . Everything smelled of tea , a fact she was not surpised by . Of course it did . Her relative was predictable . He followed a pattern . He 【 never 】 changed .
Curious eyes lingered on various objects throughout the house . Her feet stilled as an image came into view . It was a family portrait . She did not remember it . Clearly , it was sentimental . She recognized faces in it , but ultimately chose to ignore the object altogether . Her family . . . Were no longer those who were 【 related 】 to her . Just a singular sibling , her Father . . . and a Warrior . She continued walking , reaching the same room where she watched him 【 fumble 】 through his cabinets . She did not move from the doorway , as she was busy focusing on various objects and the man just a short distance from her . Her body was rigid as it stood in the 【 foreign 】 house she was supposed to feel something for .
Just like with her mother , Azula decided she would not speak to her relative . . . Not until he gave her a valid reason to waste her breath on someone who didn't waste a minute on 【 her . 】 He asked her a question , but Azula kept her eyes focused on a small crack in the floor . He should mend that . . . It might be more successful than his attempt at mending their familial relationship .
