Fire Heart

Chapter 55

Mother nods. Understanding why I want to know this.

"She's in her home town. I helped her get there. But...she's not Ursa anymore." Mother says, sadness on her eyes. I look at her in confusion.

"What do you mean? How can she not be Ursa?" I ask. She sips her tea.

"She couldn't stand the pain of leaving Zuko and Azula behind or the memories of how Ozai tortured her. So she went to a spirit who gave her a new identity. A new start." Mother tells me. I shake my head.

"No. It can't be. She can't be gone." I say sadly. Mother stands up and moves to sit beside me.

"Don't tell Zuko about it. He'll be heartbroken at the thought of his mother being gone in a completely different sense than he thinks. You need to focus on your husband, Ivy. You and your daughter are going to be fine. Along with your next baby. But Zuko will begin to be paranoid. People who supported Ozai's views and ideas are against Zuko's reign. They will do anything to remove him from the throne to give it to Azula. You must keep him in your sight at all times. They don't just want him to be taken off the throne...they want to kill him." Mother tells me. My eyes widen in fear while my heartbeat picks up and I place a hand on my chest as my breathing becomes shallow.

"Are you alright?" Mother asks worriedly. I nod slowly.

"I'll be fine. I...I have to go. Zuko will be worried about me if I'm out too late." I tell her. It's not the full truth. I didn't exactly lie though. He would be worried if I was out late. But I need to tell him about the people who want him off of the throne.

"Alright. Come visit whenever you want." Mother says with a soft smile. I return a small one before standing up and hurrying to the front door with Masumi in my arms. I then notice that Zuko left the palanquin for me. I climb in and the men look at me with concern.

"Is everything alright, Fire Lady Ivy?" One asks. I shake my head.

"Take me to the palace immediately. Did Zuko say where his meeting is being held?" I ask. They nod.

"In the throne room, Fire Lady Ivy." Another replies. I nod.

"Thank you. Please get me to the palace as fast as you can. It's important that I speak to my husband." I say. They don't reply. Instead they pick up the palanquin and rush me over to the palace as quickly as they can.

"Thank you very much!" I exclaim once we get to the front steps of the palace. They bow their heads at me as I get out of the palanquin. I run up the stairs and see Mai.

"Take Masumi to her room. I'll tell you what's going on later." I say as I give her my daughter. Mai looks worried as I begin to run off to the throne room. I'm exhausted, but I have to warn Zuko. My legs unconsciously move faster as the throne room doors come into view. The guards go to stop me, but I burst through the two large doors and let out a yelp as I collapse on my knees in exhaustion. I pant heavily and glance at the meeting table to see all of the leaders there. Zuko is at the head of the table with Aang on his right and Hakoda on his left. Everyone look at me with wide eyes. Aang starts to get up. But Zuko already jumps up from his seat and runs to my side.

"Ivy! Are you alright?" Zuko asks worriedly as he kneels in front of me. I shake my head rapidly.

"No. Zuko, Mother told me something and I'm scared to death right now." I reply. Zuko grabs my hands and helps me stand up with him. He guides me quickly to his seat at the table and he has me sit on it. Zuko then kneels in front of me again, clutching my hands in his.

"What happened? What did she tell you?" Zuko asks. I feel a few tears slip down my cheeks.

"She said that there are still followers of Ozai out there. They're against your reign and they want to remove you from the throne to give it to Azula." I tell him. He closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose.

"Dear, I know there are still followers of my father out there that don't like having me on the throne." Zuko says. I shake my head.

"You don't understand what I'm saying! They want to kill you, Zuko!" I cry. He looks up at me, his good eye wide in shock. The guards that tried to stop me from entering the throne room run up to the table.

"Sorry, Fire Lord Zuko. We tried to stop her from interrupting." One apologizes. Zuko shakes his head.

"It's fine. As I've said earlier, my wife and the Avatar are the only people who can walk in whenever they want." Zuko tells the guards. They nod.

"But it's good you're in here. I need you to get me Katara, Toph, Mai, Sokka, Suki, and Rin immediately." Zuko says. The guards bow to him.

"Of course, Sir." They say before hurrying off to get the people he requested. Zuko kisses my forehead lightly before hugging me. I cry into his shoulder as I grab onto his royal robes.

"We'll figure out what we're going to do. Everything will be fine." Zuko reassures me. I don't respond, I just continue to cry and cling to him. I don't want to let go in the fear of losing him if I do.

Hey Everyone! I hope you like the chapter! It took me a while longer than I expected to write this chapter since I have been working on something. If any of you know what Episode is, then you'll know they're interactive stories! Right now I'm working on one of my own based off of the Disney movie, The Newsies! It's going to take place after the strike. So it will have a completely different storyline to it! There will be multiple stories in it that can happen. It all depends on the decisions you make. The options for Newsies you can end up with are Racetrack, Jack, Spot, Mush, Kid Blink, Crutchy, and David. Sorry if you're a fan of a different Newsie that wasn't mentioned. I'm also writing Newsies fanfics here one Wattpad on this account and will be publishing the first chapter for each of them in September. I already have five chapters of each ready. Let me know which of these couples from the books I'm writing catches your interest and why.

Jack Kelly and Josephine Jacobs/Conlon (David's younger adopted sister/Spot's blood related younger sister)

Mush Meyers and Madolina Higgins (Racetrack's twin sister)

Racetrack Higgins and Isabella Kelly (Jack's younger sister)

David Jacobs and Danielle Myers (Crutchy's twin sister)

Crutchy Myers and Clarissa Balatt (Kid Blink's younger sister)

Kid Blink Balatt and Talia Conlon (Spot's younger sister)

Spot Conlon and Brianna Meyers (Mush's little sister)

I hope you'll check them out when they're published!

- Day