Forged In Fire || ATLA

Playing With Fire

The Painted Lady

"I get burned, I don't learn, I'll be back, give it time. Yeah, I know it sounds crazy but guess I like playin' with fire." - Thomas Rhett ft. Danielle Bradberry

🌊⛰️🔥🌪

Aelita wasn't surprised when Kanao arrived before sunrise the next morning. She had expected it honestly. After all, this wasn't her first engagement to a prince.

Still, she was thankful for the other girl's early appearance because Kanao seemed to chase away the faceless thing that had entered Aelita's room just as she began to feel her dinner-time dosage of the terrible metallic poison fade from her body, each awful mouthful typically lasting about half the day. The thing whispered the Akira's name in hushed pleas despite its complete lack of mouth, but Aelita had been too heavy with shock and fatigue to move or respond. When it vanished at the sight of another human life, the bender kicked herself in the ass for letting it affect her so deeply. Things like it had been haunting her sleep since she was a child. She vaguely remembered learning that they were spirits drawn to her as the Akira, but so many of her memories she had built as the Spirit Pillar were becoming steadily foggier and foggier as time ticked on.

The fewer details she allowed herself to remember, the less her losses could hurt her.

What had shocked Aelita as she blinked away the final traces of the horrifying thing was the glaring absence of the Prince and the even more glaring presence of her morning 'medicine' on her handmaidens' tray.

Zetzu hadn't allowed anyone else to treat her but himself. There was never an audience to the toxic torment, and no one even touched the silvery liquid but him.

When Kanao only set a place at the small dining table for the princess-to-be and her four-legged companion, Aelita asked, "Is Zetzu not joining us this morning?"

The mute maiden shook her head no and Aelita could feel the rock forming in her belly. She wasn't sure if her reaction to the Prince's absence said more about their relationship or her own mental state, but she quickly chalked it up to the fact that she could not suffer through this day alone.

"Did he say why?" She questioned.

Again, Kanao moved her head from side to side.

Mushu began to chirp in content excitement but his chittering quickly turned to objection when his human shrugged a shawl over her shoulders and headed towards her still-guarded door. Kanao planted herself in front of the Akira, and she didn't flinch when the ferret climbed onto her shoulder to hold both paws out wide as an additional deterrent.

Aelita rolled her eyes at the sight. "I'm just going to check on Zetzu," She insisted, but when the pair refused to move, she nearly scoffed. "You two are being ridiculous. The Prince has taken nearly every meal with me since our return to the Fire Nation and any time he hasn't, he sent a note with his apologies explaining why," She reminded them. It was one of the many things about her husband-to-be that left her questioning the walls she had built up around herself because, at first glance, Zetzu was nothing but respectful and honorable. Maybe that was why a portion of her panic was genuinely wrapped up in the Prince, curious and concerned at what could be keeping them, especially on the morning their engagement was to be announced. " Surely I'm allowed to see what's keeping my intended on a day meant to celebrate our union."

Kanao looked guiltily at the Akira.

Mushu gagged at the sentiment.

Aelita flicked the ferret a vulgar gesture but softened to her handmaiden, "Please? This isn't like him."

Kanao seemed to consider the plea for some time before holding up a hand that said 'one moment', skittering off to the discarded tray on the table and returning a heartbeat later with the vile of metallic liquid.