Azula's secret friend

Another banishement and scar

A/N: sorry for the mistakes in the chapiter.
Aritho POV

I sat in the war meeting, it had yet to begin, still waiting for Iroh to enter and take his place around the table. When he indeed entered he was followed by Zuko. Now thirteen he seemed to want to take a bigger part in the war. It is good that he wants to make a difference or just learn how it goes in a war meeting but i have a quite bad feeling. It is not a simple task to be here. You have to wait for your turn to speak and not contradict the decision of Ozai. Many of the plans that gets proposed in here where already discussed prior the meeting. Knowing the young prince he will most likely want to give his opinion on the plans. He has a good and strong heart but you need more than that to survive the world. Here particularly, you have to shut your mouth before saying something that would compromise your safety. Iroh sat beside me and Zuko sat down by his uncle. Ozai's energy went south really fast, he was in a normal mood and now he is angry. He doesn't want Zuko here. It is clear. But he can't exactly kick him out, it would make a bad image of him. He can't have that to his most important persons around. So he said nothing and began the meeting. It was going great, Well as great as an war meeting can go. The plans were proposed to help with the ones already done. We were now going over a battle plan of the earth kingdom. The plan was to sacrifice some new recruits to give the veterans could take the earth benders by behind. That did not fly with the young prince. He was outraged that we were to sacrifice some youngsters to have a slight chance of winning. I too did not exactly like the plan, but i was stuck. I couldn't say it in the face of every one and i couldn't go and do my normal way of beating the earth kingdom. They have big muscles but you have to have a bigger brain. Politics are annoying but it is a far better way to solve conflicts if you want my opinion. Plus it prevent many lives from being taken away. And if you do it correctly you can recruit some people of the towns you have done business with. They know and trust you. Therefore they will be more inclined to follow you than if you take things by force. Zuko stood up cutting off the general that was speaking. He yelled at him amsaying that it was a bad plan and it shouldn't be put into action. That we should think of the parents that are going to receive the news that their kid had been killed in battle. Among all of the others. The other general snarled at him and then decided that he would fight an Agni Kai to decide what to do. I clenched my jaw, knowing that the young prince would not back down. The problem is that he's going to fight against his father and not the general. It's not the general decision he had contradicted it was the fire lord's. As i thought Zuko accepted the challenge and promised the general that he wouldn't go down without a fight. The meeting closed on a bbad note and the other decision were pushed back to the next meeting. Zuko was the first to get out of the room, i followed suit closely. He then turned around to face me.

"Why didn't you do anything?" He asked angrily. "You always say how much you believe that protecting the young is the most important thing but you did not defend them in there!" He continued on with his rant. Finally he turned to look at me.

"Are you done?" He took a long inhale but said nothing letting me continue. "I did not say anything because i couldn't." As i said the last thing he was going to cut me off but i lifted a hand to order him to stay quiet. " I know how frustrating it is to have to stay quiet when these kind if decision are made but you must control yourself Zuko. If you let your emotions run you, you will have a lot of trouble with ruling." He nodded his head. "Now about the youngsters we can still save them. But it will take too much time to be done today. Now go train you have an Agni Kai coming up." He nodded once again bowed respectfully before going towards the training area. I then turned to the curtains that is going all the way from the door in the throne room where the war meeting was being held.

"Still spying on your elders i see." I say as i turn to the curtain, from there two small feet were peeking out of the bottom of the curtain. A small end of a tail was also slightly visible from the bottom of it. Both Nalian and Azula got out if their hiding spot head down. unhappy that i was cutting short their time of quotidian spying. It was now very much usual for the princess to hide during the important meetings to hear what was being said in them. In her short free time she would go around the palace trying to find new hiding spots and secret paths. She had yet to find THE secret path. One that i had found on accident during my first time here. A path that go from one portrait in the portrait gallery to the training ground, and then in the royal tomb. That is the coolest place i went. Full of historic facts that we often forget. True stories of lives that are kept in the dark for most of their lives. And crunchy things too. It is like reading the best book of disasters and disagreements of the world.