More Blind!Ozai

[beckyh2112]

This takes place three days before the previous bit.

Ozai sat on the balcony of his apartments, sunlight warm on his face. He toyed with his undone blindfold, weaving the silk between his fingers in cat's cradles and knots. Azula's little friend - the one that didn't chatter brightly - read to him from Lady Zhonakan's Pillow Book. Unlike many of his servantwomen, she didn't try to gloss over the racy bits.

It was, all in all, rather pleasant.

Fire, hot as the sun and many-layered, approached through the palace. Ozai growled, one hand clenching into a fist. Lightning crackled, then he released it with a sigh. It didn't matter how much he didn't want to speak with his brother. Iroh wanted to speak with him, and Iroh was Firelord.

He heard the shift of cloth as Azula's friend glanced at him, but her reading did not falter. She really was a much better reader than he usually had.

"Iroh," he said as the balcony doors were pushed open. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Good news." Iroh sounded pleased with himself. Happy even, though there was still an edge of grief to his voice. Lu Ten was less than two months dead, but his murderer's endurance for torture had finally ended a week ago. Perhaps throwing the man's corpse to the jackalpigs had satisfied something in Iroh. "Lady Mai, why don't you go tend to Princess Azula?"

"As you wish, Firelord." There was a soft sound as the book closed, a rustle of cloth as she stood and walked away.

The balcony-door closed quietly behind her, and his brother's fire approached closer. Warm hands took the blindfold from him, and Ozai fought the urge to incinerate the silk scarf as he felt it placed over his eye-sockets. His hands clenched into fists in his lap, and he focused on his breathing. Soon enough, Iroh finished tying the blindfold, patted his hair, and stepped back.

"The Comet is coming, little brother. I will crush the Earth Kingdom, and we will win the war."

"So we will," Ozai murmured, well aware how little 'we' there was involved.

"The Firelord rules the Fire Nation. But the last man to rule our entire world called himself Emperor."

"You're giving yourself another title then?" Ozai bestirred himself to face in his brother's general direction. "Between your own and Azulon's, you have quite enough."

"I will be giving up one to make up for it." Iroh was smiling; he could hear it in his voice. "I will become the Dragon Emperor, Ozai, which means I will not be able to rule as Firelord."

"You won't need a Firelord."

"Of course I will. Someone must govern the Fire Nation while I pacify the Water Tribes and stamp out rebellion in the Earth Kingdom. I had thought to have Zuko do it, while Lu Ten became Earth King, but- Matters changed."

"They died," Ozai said flatly.

"Your son isn't dead."

"No, he's just a traitor. It's the same difference."

Iroh sighed. "Be that as it may, you will be crowned Firelord in three days."

Ozai sat up straighter. He bit back on a 'what?' because he knew he had heard his brother correctly. But Firelord? After all the whispers of how far he could have gone if he hadn't been blinded, how it would have been different if it was some other wound, how useless a firebender who couldn't see truly was? After years of pity and contempt from the Palacefolk with only his wife, nephew, half-sister, and most trusted servants not treating him like some useless, breakable thing?

This had to be mockery.

"And you will rule from Ba Sing Se?" he asked coolly.

"Of course not," Iroh replied. "Perhaps if Lu Ten had lived... But someone has to be here to answer any challenges you receive, Ozai."

So he'd be given a few crumbs - a worthless crown, a useless title. But everything would be the same as ever. "You bastard!"

Comments

[dunmurderin.livejournal.com]

I like this a lot! Iroh's attitude about his brother's disability is very believable and it's hard to say if he's being cruel deliberately or simply being 'helpful'. Though, the bit about taking Ozai's challenges for him, that seems a more deliberate attempt at getting a dig in at his brother.

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I think Iroh is mostly trying to be helpful, but he's not above getting a few digs in. He knows Ozai better than most people do.

[arrayepl.livejournal.com]

I love you! Iroh is really a cruel bastard here. Was he responsible for Ozais "Handicap"? Did Zuko (traitor) went to teach the Avatar in your AU too or was he just responsible for his cousins death? What happened to Azula? And were is Ursa? More questions then before :)

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Well, what happened to Lu Ten and Azula was answered in the previous piece. Zuko went to train Aang. Ozai was blinded "accidentally" in an Agni Kai when he was younger.

I'm really not sure if Iroh is deliberately being a dick here, or if he's trying to be helpful and just Not Getting It.

[weirdlet.livejournal.com]

*facepalm* Oh, Iroh... Yeah, I can see Ozai being content with big brother to fight his battles, surely.

Eloquent piece- definitely has a kind of lounging deadly-cat feeling to it.

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Yeah, as much as Iroh knows his brother, the people who know how much of a mistake that is are not here anymore.

[spyridona.livejournal.com]

I think, I will go with the opinion of 'Not Getting It' with Iroh. Perhaps a selective 'Not Getting It', something he tends to show to people he doesn't quite favor anymore. Example? Azula getting the Doll and Zuko getting a knife. I would say it's an example of Iroh's dickery, but I doubt the Crown Prince of Fire Nation had the desire to stoop to a child's level and purposely send a gift to upset a child.

Frankly, Ozai shows a remarkable level of restrain. I love the little touches of Iroh fussing over his blind baby brother.

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Yes, that seems to fit what is in my head the best. A good bit of genuine Not Getting It, some deliberate but unconscious obtuseness.

Ozai has had a decade and a half to learn restraint. It works better for him like this than "pitching a temper tantrum". For one thing, Iroh doesn't accuse him of pitching a temper tantrum.

[gigabomb.livejournal.com]

This was great, and I kind of now want this Ozai to punch this Iroh in the face, but now I'm curious about this half-sister. Did Azulon have yet another bastard in this universe, except now one he actually acknowledge or something?

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

The half-sister is Kajizu's first daughter, who isn't formally acknowledged as Azulon's but everyone knows she is. In some 'verses (notably the ones where Ozai is taken out of the political picture early), she and he are friendly.

[gigabomb.livejournal.com]

... I don't know whether Ozai would in the long term be happier or sadder with less power and more friends, or canon more power and no friends.

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Well, I don't know how this 'verse is going to turn out, but in the other 'verse where he and Emi are friendly, he eventually goes completely off the deep end. So.

[the-little-lion.livejournal.com]

Oh, yay! You continued! ^-^

I like the idea of Mai reading to Ozai. That's cute to me, for some reason.

Oh, Iroh... So unintentionally mean...

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Mai seems somewhat fond of Ozai in this universe. (I have no idea what she thinks of him in the canon 'verse.) She enjoys reading to him.