(Y/N) was by the Hearth when the door burst open. The slow, yet heavy steps into the threshold alerted her of the Fire Lord's presence.
It had been three days since Iroh and Prince Zuko had visited her, since then she had been kept under heavy supervision. Every evening two nurses would come in and check her healing wounds before the servants came to bath her.
During her fight with the Fire Lord, he had stabbed her in her lower abdomen to keep her down when he took her Token forcefully. That stab wound, although large but missing all vital organs, was still slowly healing. She wasn't used to her wounds taking this long to heal, the longer she was away from the Spirit World, and the more it was taking a toll on her.
"Good evening, (Y/N)." The Fire Lord greeted warmly as if greeting an old friend.
She turned to him, her (E/C) eyes narrowed. Azulon was an old man with greying hair tied up neatly. His eyes were hard and calculative, even his steps into the threshold were slow and deliberate.
She bared her teeth at him defiantly, her eyes colder than ice and fiercer than a burning inferno.
He chuckled, "Now now, settle down. I'm not here to antagonise you. I'm actually here to invite you to dinner. Eat with my family and I, you're not a prisoner here, you're a guest."
She scoffed. "A guest would imply I'm free to go whenever I want. So can I go back home?"
"Don't be silly," He stepped forward, his tall stature menacing, "This is your new home."
'Not by a long shot you old geezer,' she thought, glaring at him.
"Whatever you have in mind for me to do, I won't do it. I'd rather die." She hissed.
He walked closer to her. "Your will is strong for such a little girl. But tell me, Child of the Forest, if I were to go back to where I found you so defiant, what are the chances I'll find a little white dragon?"
Her eyes widened.
Hisashi...no
"He'd never endanger himself. He knows better." She argued fiercely but she knew deep down she was also trying to convince herself.
Azulon laughed. It was a deep low laugh that brought chills up her spine.
"Child, you're quivering. Unless you want to see your dragon's head plastered atop my Throne Room I suggest you cooperate."
He was in front of her, leering down at her with dominance and power glinting in his dark eyes.
A low growl reverberated from her chest and her eyes illuminated orange. The steady flames in the hearth shot up with such ferocity it burnt the engraved fire insignia atop it.
But Azulon made no move in defence or offense; he knew he had the vantage point here. He was a calculative man who saw wars and stepped into the threshold of death itself, the young spirit's infuriated reaction did not affect him one bit.
Iroh's words echoed in her head;
'You have to play along with whatever the Fire Lord asks and gain his favour. Only then will it make your escape back to the spirit world easier.'
(Y/N) inhaled and exhaled heavily. Finally she closed her eyes and unclenched her clenched fists. She had to play this out smartly, not as recklessly as she had been doing the past few days since her capture.
When she opened her eyes, they were back to its (E/C) hue.
"Very well. I will comply."
The Fire Lord smirked. "As you should. I'll have the servants and Lady Ursa prepare you. Don't be late."
When he had left the room and she was finally alone she released a loud shriek of exasperation. Her hair morphed its colour and her eyes glimmered orange. The fire shot up to the ceiling and burst out. The blaze caught the Fire Nation Banners on either sides of the hearth and burst into flames.
The door suddenly burst open and she glared at the intruders. It was a servant, three guards and a tall beautiful woman with warm eyes.
The guards grabbed their swords by the hilt but were stopped with a wave of the woman's hand. Her eyes were trained on (Y/N).
"But malady." One of the guards protested.
The fire behind (Y/N) from the banners died down, the walls were made of stone and apart from the banners nothing else was flammable. It was the Fire Nation so of course everything was mostly fireproof.
"Leave us."
"I'm afraid we can't." The guard said, still looking at (Y/N) cautiously.
"Please. I'll be fine." She smiled softly at them.
They stood reluctantly for a moment but then finally stepped back.
"It'll have to just be a moment." They informed her.
Ursa smiled and nodded. "Of course."
When they all cleared out and it was just the two, Ursa turned to her. (Y/N) was still breathing hard. She wondered if this elegant woman was a princess, she did have a monopoly over the guards.
"What is your name, Child?" Ursa asked in her soft voice, smiling maternally at the young spirit.
(Y/N) looked into Ursa's eyes and saw kindness, she was good. She lowered her guard.
"(Y/N)." She answered stiffly.
Ursa walked closer to her. "Well (Y/N), my name is Ursa. I know you must feel all alone in a foreign land, scared and confused. It wouldn't hurt to have a friend in all this, an ally, right?"
"I don't need friends here I wanna go home. I wanna go back to Hisashi!" She yelled.
Ursa pulled (Y/N) into her arms and hugged her. (Y/N)'s eyes widened, caught off guard.
"You poor Child," Ursa whispered, "You don't deserve to be tossed into such a mindless war. Let me be a friend to you so you don't have to be all alone."
(Y/N) didn't respond but her eyes returned to its original colour and her hair morphed back to (H/C).
This woman smelt like lilies and had such a comforting aura. (Y/N) smiled and melted into the hug. In her arms (Y/N) felt like all her troubles and pain could disappear and everything would be okay soon.
Ursa was sent by the Fire Lord to soften her up, to gain her trust. But Ursa mostly complied to Azulon's request because she genuinely did want to comfort the young spirit and make her feel alright and not alone anymore.
Since her capture (Y/N) had been dubbed The Dragoness. News of her had spread around the Fire Nation, most commoners saw it as hearsay, just another lousy rumour strung up by sailing merchants about a powerful key player that could battle even the likes of the Avatar when the time came. The Nobles and important people in the Fire Nation were the only ones aware of how real The Dragoness was.
The Fire Lord wanted to accustom her to the Fire Nation. He believed that with the right amount of force and propaganda, he could influence her actions and will. Soon she would fight for the Fire Nation purely out of free will, not because she was being held at blackmail.
Azulon just needed to gain her trust at first, treating her like a prisoner would only strengthen her resilience and as small as (Y/N) was, she seemed to have a will of fire.
Ursa pulled away from the hug and smiled down at the girl. "Now, it's time for you to get ready for dinner."
"Dinner." (Y/N) muttered, remembering the Fire Lords command. She had to comply if she ever wanted to see Hisashi again.
With that she let Ursa and the servant that came in earlier help her prepare for dinner. They had dressed her in a long white dress with red intricate flame designs running along the hem of her dress. Her hair was tied up neatly, much to her annoyance.
When she was finally ready Ursa told her that she'd have to go and prepare herself as well before leaving.
(Y/N) glanced down at the fancy dress and sighed in annoyance. She didn't like how unnecessarily extravagant it was just for a simple meal. She reminisce painfully the simple white dress she wore in the spirit world and all the fruits she picked while atop Hishashi's head while he elevated her. She missed that freedom and she missed her white dragon even more.
She knew that she had to return home soon, she just had to gain the Fire Lord's trust; a fancy dinner with the royal family seemed civil enough to start at.
As the same four guards walked her down the hallway and out of the South Wing of the palace, passing servants, guards and officials gaped at her, aware that this was indeed the one they called Dragoness. But she was unaware, lost in her own train of thoughts and wondering if Zuko was going to be there as well.
Didn't he say he was the Prince?