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Between all of the death, destruction, politics, competitions, and general lack of anything resembling a decent day of relaxation, I've decided that I'm going to host a party. Not a big one, not for any particular occasion, but it's just going to be a bunch of people coming together to have a good time, recover, and if any of you have anything you would like to add that falls under the category of relaxing and letting go of some stress, let me know so we can plan it out appropriately. A live band would be especially desired.

[ A paper copy of the invitations will be delivered to everyone's mailbox in a fashion that breaks no windows whatsoever and is probably quite refreshing. On the back of the paper copy are directions to the block between Oak & 8th and Nettle & 8th. ]

Locked to Team RWBY, JNPR, and Sun
As you may have noticed, there are currently two candidates for City Guardian. I wouldn't exactly endorse either of them, but one of them I do want to make sure each of you know something about. If it ever comes to fighting against her, and I'm not saying it will but if it does, don't use anything based in fire or electricity unless you want her to win.

I don't know that it'll come to that and don't tell her I said anything either. Professor Ozpin said not to judge either of them based on their pasts, so I'm not, but I'm just saying! If one of them tries to burn down the city, I'd rather we at least have how not to get killed straight away.

Also, I need to speak to each of you about your roles in my party. [ Yes, she is entirely volunteering anyone in her team to help with this. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ honestly, zuko doesn't know. he can't say for sure whether he liked mai because he was supposed to, because she was a proper match of a high enough status for a prince, or because he actually did. before he was allowed to come home after ba sing se, he hadn't seen her since he was thirteen and didn't have half of his face charred off. he couldn't say if quiet girls who hated the world were his type or just something he told himself to tolerate because it was part of the way things were supposed to be. it was proper. it was allowed.

but it was over, whatever it was. he was sorry, but he was also selfishly relieved that he didn't have to figure out what it was or where he stood on top of sorting through the mess of who he was and what he wanted out of life. what he'd even do with his life if he managed to live through the end of the war. ]

No, he's not. [ if she thought he spoke passionately about firebending, the way he's speaking now surpasses that. ] I have a father. Someone who's been more of a father to me than Fire Lord Ozai could ever hope to be, and his name is Iroh. My uncle. The rightful heir to the throne. The man who took me in after Ozai burned my face, who accompanied me on a fruitless quest for the Avatar, who never once lied to me, who still treated me like I was worth something when nobody wanted me. [ not even his own mother, who left him at the palace while she fled for her life. couldn't she have foreseen the kind of life he'd be forced to live without her there to protect him?

she was alive. she's been alive all this time and not once did she come for him. not even after ozai disfigured him and kicked him out of the country.

...he was not going to cry. he wasn't. that was just his hair getting in his good eye. all the same, he looks away so he can properly scrub at that eye with the butt of his palm. zuko looks back to her once he's recollected himself. ]

Professor Ozpin? Is that one of your teachers?

[ The sudden veracity that jumped into Zuko's voice startled her a little. She couldn't imagine not loving her father regardless of what happened, even if he were to do something like that. She wouldn't stand by him if he did, but she definitely didn't think she could understand something like that.

Then again, she didn't really have anyone until she went to Beacon, so there were differences. More than she'd thought there was before. So she didn't really understand. There were a lot of things that they had connected on, but this wasn't one of them. Weiss was still glad that he had someone though. That was important. Honestly, she was fairly certain that had to be what had kept him connected with the possibility of being a good person despite his past. ]

Then you're lucky you have someone still.

[ Honestly, she didn't really know what to do here, especially not when it was really obvious that he was wiping his eyes. Weiss wasn't the most.. comforting of person. Nicknames like Snow Angel and Ice Queen didn't pop up because she was a warm person. ]

He's our headmaster.

[ it was. his uncle was his rock, and zuko had realized it a moment too late. but iroh had freed himself from his prison and even if zuko never saw him again, at least he knew that now, finally, he was doing right by the man who actually raised him. he stood up to ozai, left the fire nation, and joined the avatar. he was working on restoring balance, on cleaning up the mess that his great-grandfathers started. ]

Oh. Is he here?

He's here. I actually asked him to run for City Guardian given the current... options.

[ Your sister and some kind of weird animal. ]

He said no.

Why, because of Azula?

[ it wasn't an insult towards the headmaster. azula's intimidating. he wouldn't blame anyone if they didn't want to go up against her, especially now that they've seen what she can do. ]

He believes that I should give them a chance to prove they're not the same people they used to be and says that if they're not, Fairy Tail is centered in Fayren. Without their support, any City Guardian is going to be essentially powerless to do as they please.

[ Which given what she knows about at least one of the members of Fairy Tail, she isn't sure how much she doubts. ]

I still don't know how I feel about that, but I can't make him run and I'm not experienced enough to do something like that myself.

Who are you going to vote for, then? Azula or Mewtwo?

[ he didn't have a choice in the matter if he was going to keep up his rouse. he would vote for his sister. and he doesn't care much for what he's seen of mewtwo, his ghastly animal-like appearance aside. ]

Azula, and I'm asking some of my friends to vote for her as well.

[ Not because she really had that much against Mewtwo that was substantial or because she liked Azula, though. ]

Frankly, I don't like the idea of having someone who I learned after research apparently used to strongly dislike humans and decided that instead of helping people in need, announcing his campaign was a good idea. Azula might be completely unstable, but she has someone I trust near her to keep her from being an absolute terror.

[ It wasn't like it was hard to look up past posts, even if she did hear a bit about him from Ozpin. Then again, not being human or at least faunus gave her an excuse not to trust him too. ]

She asked me to be one of her advisers, said it would pay more. I can't tell whether she's trying to do me some sort of backwards favor or wants to keep family close. Probably a bit of both.

See? If Mewtwo wins, then we have no one to keep an eye on everything.

So you're saying I should do it, be one of her advisers?

[ he might've initially told her that he was happy serving tea... ]

You should do whatever you want to do, Zuko. I'm just saying, she accepts your opinions. Even if you're not her advisor officially, I doubt she'll completely ignore you.

I'll have to think about it.

[ and look for a mask. azula wouldn't ignore him, but he could give her something else to pay attention to. ]

What time should I be at the party? It won't take me more than a few minutes to get a good blaze going.

[ Oh, Weiss just thought of something. Since Zuko's power is from the Sun, she might not want him doing everything after dark. Just the bon fire. Timing-wise, it'd probably just be good to have the show during the day and give him some time to save up his strength for the bonfire, just to be on the safe side. ]

You can show up whenever you'd like, but I'd like to do your show at some point during the middle of the day. Does 3:15 sound alright? That should give you plenty of time to rest between that and the bonfire.

[ She's definitely going to be scheduling events properly, but Zuko can get first pick. ]

[It's not like she didn't have anything else to do with her time, but considering her efficiency level and the lack of enemies or a certain bald brat here in Genessia, Azula had a lot of time in her hands until the election, outside of the research she's been doing. So there she was closely monitoring her brother's movements.

There was an actual smile on Azula's face as she watched her brother wrap his hair backwards. It was more fitting. They were Fire Nation royalty and it was nice to see him looking like one. It was their birthright after all. It may take more time, but he needed to act more like a Crown Prince and less like an old man who spoke of tea and failure.

She wasn't far from where Zuko was. She can't hear anything he was saying, but she can see him clearly from her vantage point. After all, she had stealth and cunning on her side. Then, Azula saw Weiss meet up with her brother. She had initially thought this was a personal training session. Apparently not. This only confirmed that Weiss really did know Zuko and yet chose not to speak about it. Azula was not happy about that.

But she remained still and reigned in all her emotions. She was not like others who had the luxury of exuberant emotions, she denied herself of that as a kid. So she just watched as the two spoke. She watched that dance Zuko made, something that reminded Azula of something yet nothing came to mind. She never saw this sort of power from her brother. For one, she never expected him to have such a power. Second, she's always known about his training, because she received similar training from their tutors. Was he keeping this power from her? For what? As if she'd copy him. But then, she just had to remind herself, Zuzu was not a traitor. He didn't have the heart of a traitor. Not unless he was directed by someone else, like their uncle.

So, she continued to watch his little fire display. A part of her entertained, and a part of her slowly growing irritated. He didn't just smile once, he smiled a couple of times. His smiles were not just because he was proud of his skills which he was showing off, there was something behind his smiles. Azula felt her heart sinking.

To heck if Zuko almost burnt this girl, she was just a girl. She was not Mai. What's worse was how his body, his face and his every movement betrayed his emotions. This was something Azula prided herself in, she was exceptional at reading into things and seeing through people's weaknesses. She couldn't care less about the different fire tricks Zuko made, there was something more urgent. Was Zuko falling for this girl's charms? She wasn't even from their world. She was not of noble blood. She was not Mai.

Azula carefully plotted out Zuko's life for him long ago. She knew Mai liked him and Azula took steps to make sure they'll remain together, even when she was still a child. For as long as Mai was happy, it meant that she was loyal to Azula. It also meant that Azula can watch her brother be goofy in love. They've been together for years. It hasn't been more than two months, and Zuko was already acting this way. She didn't hate Weiss and in fact, she could prove to be useful one day. But Azula wasn't just about to give her brother to just anybody. Instead of finishing all the pleasantries they were having, Azula decided to leave before they did. Him being friendly with someone whom wasn't from their world could prove to be potentially dangerous. She didn't know Weiss all that much, and yet seeing how friendly Zuko was with Weiss, Azula knows it could lead to trouble. Even if Zuko is full of good intentions, Azula was sure he'd let certain important information slip without knowing it. Dumb-Dumb.]

[ he opened his mouth to protest, to remind her that he knew how to bend without relying on the sun or putting unnecessary strain on himself, but silenced himself before anything came out. she was right, he should do the show before the sun set. were azula in attendance, she'd probably question him or at least scold him for pushing himself to the limit, and that wasn't something he was prepared to deal with yet. azula couldn't know that he'd taught by firebending masters who were supposed to have gone extinct before they were born. ]

Yeah, I can do that. I get off work at 1:00; that gives me enough time to change and get my swords.

Where do you work?

[ Not that she even wanted to tell him where she worked, but that was more issues with herself than Zuko. ]

A tea shop in Genessia City near the Fayren Gate. I like tea, and I'm good at making it.

[ did he sound proud? because he was. it was a very humble means of earning a living, but something he felt more at home in than he did in the bulky armor he stuffed himself into while sitting to the right of his father's throne. ]

Well, I might have to swing by before I start getting everything ready then.

[ Just maybe. ]

[ zuko brightened visibly at the prospect. ]

Yeah? I'll make you a cup of jasmine tea, if you do. It has a very soothing aroma and soft aftertaste, and its scent can be very relaxing.

[ Well now she has to go. ]

I'll be expecting it to be very impressive if you're recommending it that highly.

It is. I use my uncle's recipe and scent the tea carefully over the course of a few days. It's a very tedious process, but it pays off.

Tea must take a lot of patience. I always thought you just put the bag in a cup for three to five minutes.

[ But she's definitely not a tea expert, as she's quickly learning. ]

It does. Patience and concentration. Sure, you could just use a mass produced teabag, but that takes away from the freshness and quality of the tea. If you want tea done right, you have to prep the ingredients yourself and brew it the old fashioned way.

So it's like how freshly ground coffee beans make much better coffee than those cans of pre-ground coffee, but an even longer process. It's a good thing I know someone who likes making real tea.

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