Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Azula and Zuko were born mere seconds apart.

They were identical in every visible way.

The only way to tell them apart without foreknowledge would be to strip them down.

It didn’t help that they taught each other to act like the other sibling. Azula would be Zuko, Zuko would be Azula. Azula would even share her makeup with Zuko.

They had fun. They loved each other. Ursa loved how much her children got along, she knew which child was which. What kind of mother would she be if she couldn’t tell her own children apart?

Ozai didn’t like it though, he hated it, wasted potential he had said. And so, never bothered with them.

Mai and Ty Lee were the cogs missing from the machine that was the fire twins. They’d become immediate friends. Mai and Zuko quickly developed something more. Ty Lee and Azula got along well, Ty Lee could tell Azula and Zuko apart easily, she had to learn six times over. Azula liked that about her, they became best friends quickly.

Years passed, both were prodigies at bending, Azula with her flames of azure and Zuko with his flames of gold. The sages had called them children of Agni himself. They took it with pride but didn’t let this information get to their heads. They were only children. They still needed practice. Power was a gift, a gift one must keep balanced. Zuko and Azula meditated and trained together.

Lu Ten died. It was so sudden. Azula and Zuko sobbed for hours, Ursa had done her best to comfort them. Iroh returned a different man, the twins and Ursa were there for him. Zuko and Azula became children to him as if they were his own. The twins were fine with that, Iroh was nicer than Ozai. He brought the twins tea and mochi. Zuko and Azula were taught the Breath of Fire. Neither twin said anything when their mother spent her nights in Iroh’s room.

Mom vanished one night, the twins were confused, scared, and suddenly alone. Zuko and Azula moved into each other’s rooms, taking turns staying with each other, secretly of course. The new Fire Lord couldn’t know of their hatred towards him. It had to be his fault. He never loved mother.

The twins got better at acting like each other. They were soon unidentifiable by anyone who didn’t know them well enough. Azula covered for Zuko when he was sneaking around with Mai, Zuko covered for Azula when she was sneaking around with Ty Lee. Things just worked that way.

The twins were thirteen when Zuko was challenged to an Agni Kai. He was inconsolable, even by Iroh, until Azula came to him. She’d given him information on who he would be fighting, how to beat him. Zuko was her twin, no way he would lose to some old man! Zuko calmed down and nodded. She smiled, she was proud of her brother. His first Agni Kai and he was going to win!

***

Zuko was going to die, he was going to die and she was frozen to her seat.

It wasn’t some old, stuffy general he was fighting. No. Zuko was fighting their father, the Fire Lord. She watched as Zuko crumbled to his knees, begging and crying for forgiveness. Ozai did not care. The Fire Lords’ words would haunt the twins forever.

“You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher.”

A burning hand pressed into Zuko’s face, an ear-shattering scream split the air. Azula leaped from her seat and ran to the dueling stage. She had to get Zuko away, she needed to grab Zuko and run. No, no! That was stupid, she needed to attack the Ozai. NO! Zuko came first, she-

Azula didn’t notice Ozai had discarded Zuko.

Azula noticed the burning hand coming her way too late.

Azula heard a blood-curdling scream erupt from her throat before everything went black. 

***

Neither twin could stay awake for very long, both swore they saw their mother once or twice.

It felt like years before they had awakened. They were tired, hungry, and confused. Azula pushed through the sluggish feeling in her mind and the pain that was sent through her body as she stood up. All she could remember was Ozai burning Zuko. She needed Zuko, she needed her brother, where was he, where was he?!

She felt someone try touching her. Not Zuko. She lashed out with a hoarse yell of rage, fire flew from her hands and someone else screamed. She didn’t care, where was Zuko? She needed him, he needed her. They can’t be apart. She wouldn’t allow it.

She felt several more hands on her. Ozai reaching for her, burning, screaming, smoke. Zuko. Pain. Ozai. Zuko. Fire. Painpainpain.

Adrenaline surged through her veins. She flailed her arms, shooting fire wherever her hands would allow, she kicked her legs like a wild saber-tooth moose lion. She felt her feet connect with bodies. She slammed her hand into something metal and shot fire from her palm. More screams that weren’t hers, more screams that sounded like Zuko’s. Ozai’s burning hand.

She snapped her head around, bellowing with rage. Bright blue flames shot from her mouth like a dragon, thick plumes of azure filled the room. The windows became beacons of her rage.  She wasn’t sure who she had hit, she didn’t care, they were in her way.

She was in the air, she didn’t know how or why but she knew she didn’t belong up here. She fought and kicked, spewing fire from her mouth

She felt something slam into her back, she was being held down. She screamed until her throat bled, flames sputtered out. She started to tire out, she continued fighting. Her breaths came out as heavy wheezes and pained pants. She coughed up a thick splatter of blood, she saw black spots in her vision. She felt a gentle hand take hers, she heard whispers of reassurance, she hiccuped, feeling tears run down her face.

“Zuko.”

And then there was nothing. 

***

Zuko didn’t know where he was, but he could tell something was wrong with Azula.

They couldn’t explain it, they could just tell when something was wrong with the other. It was weird but they didn’t mind. They did, however, keep it a secret.

Zuko could at least tell he was on a ship, the slight sway wasn’t because he was dizzy...at least he hoped that was the case.

Someone, maybe a nurse, noticed he was awake, brought something that reeked of medicine to his lips. He drank it down with a grimace, he hated the taste but knew it was something he needed if it was being shoved in his face.

His vision started to clear. He noticed immediately something was wrong, he couldn’t see out of his left eye, he quickly examined his face with his hand, relieved to feel it was only bandages. He was about to ask where Azula was until he heard a loud yell, followed by a scream.

Zuko snapped his head to the other side of the room to see Azula fighting and struggling in the grasp of several of the ship's guards; she looked terrifying. Azula had the same bandages as he did, only on her right side. He immediately tried getting up to go to his twin sister, but the nurse stopped him.

He begged to be let go, to go to Azula. Other guards had stood in front of him as Azula blew flames from her mouth. He stood, but his legs weren’t as awake as the other parts of his body. One of the guards caught him, but none of them understood. Keeping him from her would make her worse. Especially in the state she was in now, though in hindsight, it probably wasn’t a good idea to be begging to be let go and screaming for Azula in her current state.

Zuko jumped when they forced Azula back in the bed, she was starting to tire out. Her flames sputtered into smoke. The guards let Azula go when she started coughing up blood, doctors and soldiers coming in and out to take the injured. The guard holding Zuko up brought him over to Azula, he immediately took her hand. He whispered in her ear, telling her anything that would get her to calm down more. It worked. Azula hiccuped as tears ran down her face, she said his name. She sounded hoarse and not herself.

Zuko sighed to himself as Azula finally drifted back into sleep. He apologized to...everyone for what she did, no one seemed upset. It was almost expected, her mind was still in ‘protect Zuko’ mode from what the doctors had told him.  At least that’s how he interpreted it, there were a lot of medical terms that he didn’t really understand.

Maybe he could learn this stuff so he could treat Azula himself. He wanted to ask the doctor if he could learn...but he needed to know what happened, so he asked that instead. The doctor explained what the situation was. Father had burned him and Azula, they were tasked with finding the Avatar. Zuko almost fainted, he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Him and Azula...they couldn’t do that, could they?

Capture the Avatar. Capture the Avatar.

He glanced down at his unconscious sister, he’d wait to decide what to do until she woke up. He can’t make a decision for her, it just wasn’t right. Especially not something like capturing the fucking Avatar. He nodded to the doctor, falsely agreeing with the terms for now. He was left along with Azula after that, he let out a sign and climbed into the bed with her.



Azula and Zuko were born mere seconds apart.

They were identical in every visible way.

The only way to tell them apart is to know who’s scar is on which side. 

Chapter Text

Three years. Three fucking years at sea and not a single Agni damned sign of the Avatar.

To say Azula was pissed was a severe understatement, she was livid. This was a waste of all their time. She’d said just as much to Uncle and the ship’s crew, the various facial expressions across her men and Uncle told her they agreed. She wished this was all some stupid dream or someone pulling a prank, but she knew neither were true. She remembered the day she woke up for a second time rather well. It was her last decent memory on this Agni forsaken journey.

***

She woke up with a burning sensation in her throat, it was like she swallowed fire. She tried speaking but only dry coughs exited her throat. She felt a gentle hand on the back of her head, tilting it downwards until her lips met the metal rim of a cup, she felt it tilt upwards and immediately drank its contents, her nose wrinkled at the taste; medicine and other herbs. Rather than spitting it out, she drank until the cup was moved away.

She opened her eyes, blinking away the blurriness in her vision. The first thing she noticed was that she could see out of both eyes, the words ‘born lucky’ reverberated through her skull. She hated it, hated his voice, she hated everything about him. Azula panicked for a moment, not recognizing her surroundings in her tired haze, tried to sit up but Zuko had suddenly appeared in her vision. He looked awful.

Long, messy hair was haphazardly tied into a braid that hung over his shoulder, dark bags under his eyes, tear stained cheeks..and an angry red mark on his face, still pink and fresh, though looking good for the circumstances. She felt tears run down her face as she lifted a shaky hand to his face, gently running her thumb across the bottom of his newly acquired scar. How long was she out for him to let it be unbandaged? Zuko brought his hand to hers, she let out a shaky breath, “I’m sorry I didn’t protect you. I-” She was cut off by Zuko shaking his head, “No, no. Don’t. Do not apologize for what happened, it wasn’t your fault, please don’t blame yourself. This is Ozai’s fault.” Zuko said, his voice firm, but filled with sadness.

Azula let out a sigh and slowly started to sit up, Zuko helped her up. She was about to respond to him, but the metal door to the room opened, the twins both turned their heads quickly to the door, both immediately relaxed on seeing Uncle Iroh, Azula couldn’t hold back a sob of relief and held out her arms for a hug. Iroh smiled at his niece and made his way to her, setting the tray of food and drink onto the nightstand and gave Azula a warm hug. Azula threw her arms around her uncle, her body shaking with quiet sobs. She felt Zuko rubbing her back so she opened one arm and pulled him into the hug as well. Azula was glad she and Zuko wouldn’t be alone on what she assumed was a ship.

With a small hiccup she pulled away from them both, wiping her nose with her sleeve. She hadn’t seen herself yet but she assumed she mirrored Zuko, like always. The left side of Zuko’s head was shaved to accommodate for the scar, Azula’s must’ve been the same on her right side, she didn’t want to look in a mirror though, no more mirrors. 

“I’m glad to see you awake, niece. Your brother and I were very worried.” Iroh’s voice was tired, as if he was going to fall asleep at any moment, Zuko handed her a cup and she immediately drank from it, relieved that it was only water, “How long was I unconscious for? I remember waking up once, but…” She trailed off, shaking her head.

Iroh stroked his beard, with a sigh, he closed his eyes, “Initially you and your brother were only out for a day or two. However your...episode resulted in you being unconscious for another week.” Azula could hear the slight shake in his voice, he clearly feared she wouldn’t wake up. Azula rubbed her undamaged eye, she still felt so tired. “I suppose I should apologize to the crew, we need to..figure out what to do.” She told them, trying to keep her voice steady, she had to be strong for Zuko.

Her twin and Iroh shared a look, she noticed immediately. Zuko sat next to her, holding onto her arm as if he expected her to run off, he gave a nod to their Uncle, who rubbed the corners of his eyes, letting out a breath of exhaustion. “I will not lie to you, Azula. You both have been banished from the Fire Nation, Ozai has tasked you with finding the Avatar and only then you will be permitted to come back.” Iroh sat down on the bed with her and Zuko, putting a hand on her back.

Find the Avatar? Was Fath- Ozai crazy ?

Yes. Yes he was. And a fucking idiot.

Although, finding the Avatar could bring them home. They could go home .

Zuko said her name, breaking her from her thoughts. She took a deep breath, as a banished prince and princess they held no real power anymore. They could boss around the ship’s crew but a stressed crew made for bad sailing. She nodded once, “We’ll search the Air Temples. We’ll find the Avatar and go home. All of us.” She said, slowly standing up, letting her legs and feet get used to her weight. Zuko and Uncle helped her stand.

“We will find him, I know we will.” Zuko told her, Azula could hear the smile in his voice, she heard Uncle hum in agreement, Agni he needed sleep. Zuko did as well, come to think of it. She wobbled on her first step but caught herself quickly. “Come, then. We have an Avatar to find.” Azula’s voice had found itself, holding the firm, steady tone of a Princess as her brother and Uncle followed her out.

Air Temples first, the old Avatar could be hiding out there.

Besides, she and her brother were prodigies. Finding some old man would be simple.

***

She knew everyone on the ship didn’t deserve her anger. She was very grateful for everything they had done for her and her brother, she was especially grateful to their uncle. The healers, the captain, even the cook. She was grateful, but she was pissed . They’d spent all this time searching and they'd found nothing , not even a small scrap of evidence. She hated it, she wanted to cry. Why couldn’t mom have stayed? Why couldn’t-

A pillar of light pierced the sky, bright and awing. The whole crew had noticed it and were equally in shock. She could only think of one thing that could create such a sight. “Uncle, Zuko, do you know what this means?” She asked, her voice brimming with excitement, turning to the men in question, who had been in the middle of a pai sho game. Zuko however was looking at the beam of light just like the rest, “We...we found him! Uncle, it has to be him!” He exclaimed, standing up and running to the front of the ship to join his twin sister.

Iroh had indeed noticed the light, however he was silent on the matter. There wasn’t much to say, the twins’ loyalty to their father had been questionable at best. He hadn’t needed to lecture them about his cruelty, they knew about it first hand. Hopefully they would assist the Avatar, even if it took them some time to adjust to the idea.

“Set a course for the light! The Avatar is near, we will be returning home as heroes!” Azula’s voice rang out across the ship, the crew cheered and hollered, the ship’s destination was set, a goal was finally in view. Zuko and Azula had an arm around one another, an odd feeling settled into their chests, neither could explain it but they just felt... weird . Must be the excitement. They shoved it aside, they finally found what they have been looking for. The Avatar was theirs.

Elsewhere, two Water Tribe siblings were taking an airbender to their village. Unaware of who had caught sight of them.