Chapter 48.3- And so the Dragons Danced

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“Well that’s a fucked situation” I said as we all stared at Azula’s body. We had laid both her and Aang next to each other, dead as they were.

“Extremely so” Toji agreed. He’d been standing next to Azula and so had sustained a few burns on his body, but he could still stand, and that meant he could still plot.

“We burn the bodies” was the first thing Maki said.

“Why?” Toph wondered.

“Azula is dead from a lightning strike. Guess who happens to be famous for tossing lightning around?” She asked.

“But it wasn’t him. It was the Avatar”

“Yeah, most people will believe it, but there will always be rumors— especially if we do what I think we should do. It’s best to burn the Avatar as well. Looking at him, it’s obvious he was stabbed from behind. Can’t have something like that gathering whispers, can we?” She asked.

“We can’t” I agreed easily. The Fire nation nobility could be extremely anally retentive about their rules of civilized combat, and stabbing an enemy in the back was a massive no-no.

“What do you think we should do? Swear to Zuko?” I asked.

Toji snorted, like the thought itself offended him. I could relate to it.

“He’s the heir. Firelord Ozai never explicitly disinherited him, and while his banishment might have made Princess here Heir Presumptive, she’s dead. He’s the eldest and only son of the last FireLord. The last living soul with the blood of Sozin. We can’t just ignore that” She was right, but there were a few problems.

“Bend the knee to someone who had to cavort and plot with water benders, traitors, and the Avatar to seize the throne? I would rather die” Toji said, spitting to the side. This was a new side to him, but not an unexpected one. Whether he liked to remind people of it or not, he had still grown up in the Zenin family.

“Dying is likely either way. I did kill his Uncle, the man who was a father to him” I said idly, still watching the bodies as they laid. Death wa sa funny thing. I’d died before, and I’d felt nothing before I came here. Maybe it was time to rest. Aang had been a good fight, but I was tired. Bonedeep weary. I’d just beaten the strongest that this world had to offer. Might as well leave on a high note, I thought to myself.

“Then we don’t bend the knee” He said. I tilted my head. I’d considered it, yes. But we had no legitimacy for a rebellion. Azula was someone we could rally behind. She was a pretext we could use. With her dead, there was nothing.

“Becoming an outlaw doesn’t much appeal to me” I said. I had gotten used to a certain level of luxury and stability. A life on the run appealed little. This palace was over and done with, and without the army, I had little chance of maintaining a hold on Ba Sing Se. But I could take the Dai li with me and retreat to a smaller city. Taking Omashu again would be almost easy at this point. It was a distinct possibility, I figured.