The two big mysteries that all of us fans were
left with at the end of Avatar the Last Airbender were, what would happen to Azula after her
defeat, and more importantly what happened to Zuko’s mother Ursa? Thankfully, both of
these questions have been answered in the official canon comics, and today we’re going
to dive in to what really happened to Zuko’s mother. So remember to subscribe for more
vids just like this and let’s get into it. So the story begins with the familiar scene
from the show where Ozai is speaking with Firelord Azulon, his father. This meeting
came shortly after Ursa had received a tragic letter informing her that Lu-Ten, the son of
Iroh had died in the siege of Ba Sing Sei. After finding out about this news,
Ozai visited his father and asked him if he could take Iroh’s place
in the royal line of succession, since now Iroh had no descendants. Firelord
Azulon was absolutely inflamed with this request, asking how he could dare ask for such a thing so
soon after Lu Ten’s death. As a response to this, Azulon punished Ozai by ordering him to kill
Zuko, so that he would know the pain of losing his first-born son, just as Iroh had. An extremely
cruel reaction to an extremely cruel request. Soon after this, Ursa was informed of the
conversation because Azula had been secretely listening in on it. She then put Azula to
bed and frantically rushed to Ozai to ask him if he would actually go through with
the plan. After hearing Ozai’s cold “yes”, Ursa was sent into a horrible panic. She
frantically began planning how to save her son’s life. She eventually came up with a
plan that would exchange the Fire Nation throne for Zuko’s life. To do this, she would mix an
untraceable, colourless and odorless poision, which she learned from her herbalist mother to
kill Azulon. She would then create a fake will passing the birthright of Iroh onto Ozai, making
him the new firelord. In exchange for this plan, Ozai ordered that Ursa leave the palace in
exile, never to be seen again. He feared that if she stayed, she would use the
poison on him in the future. Furthermore, Ursa requested to take the children with her,
but Ozai refused, making sure they stayed as collateral. Should Ursa ever return or cause
any trouble, they would be killed immediately. Ursa then kissed her two children goodbye and
immediately ran off into the night. The first place she went to after leaving the palace was her
parents old house. Once she got there, she knocked on the door and a young girl answered. Ursa asked
if Junzuk and Rina were there, but the young girl delivered the horrible news that they had passed
away many years prior. In tears, and with nowhere to go, Ursa rushed to the middle of her town
and visited a stage where she used to peform in her years before becoming the Fire Princess.
There she silently cried to herself in silence. Some time after, a man named Noren approached her,
believing she was looking for a part in the next play at the stage. Once he noticed her crying
however, he offered Ursa breakfast and she was happy to accept. During their conversation over
breakfast, Noren suddenly called Ursa by her name, which startled her since she had been careful not
to reveal it to anyone since leaving. This made Ursa nervous, and caused her to lose her appetite,
so she got up and was about to leave. However, right at this moment, Noren admitted
that he was in fact a man named Ikem, which before Ozai chose her as princess, was
actually engaged to marry her. Noren had seen a spirit named the Mother of Faces and changed his
entire appearance and identity so that Ozai could not hunt him down and kill him. After hearing
this, Ursa asked Ikem why he had never gotten married since their engagement was cut short,
and he simply responded by saying “you know why”. After some time reconnecting, the pair agreed
that Ursa should change her own face and name too, so that Ozai could never find her and punish
her for what had happened at the palace. At this point, the two then travelled through a
place known as The Forgetful Valley for months without success in finding the Mother of Faces.
Finally though, their luck changed and the spirit appeared. Ursa then made her request to change
her appearance, but the Mother of Faces asked her why such a beautiful human such as her would
want to throw her appearance away. To test if Ursa was truly willing to commit to such a change,
the spirit offered her a much more plain face, and she accepted without hestiation. The
Mother of faces could sense Ursa’s deep pain, and offered also to wipe her mind of any memory
having to do with her time as the fire princess. Ursa was initially extremely reluctant as this
would wipe the memories of her own children, but after some time she decided that she
needed to end the pain and suffering of that life. She found it too painful to always
be worrying whether they were safe and sound at the palace. She then accepted, and
the mother of faces granted her wish. So from this point forwards,
Ursa dropped her old life, her old memories and her old identity.
She would now be known as Noriko Some time later, Ursa and
Ikem (under their new names), decided to get married and start a
new life together. They soon after had a daughter named Kiyi and lived
on in peaceful hiding for 5 years. This peaceful life was interrupted however when
an undercover investigation party, which was team Avatar arrived at their residence. The main
purpose of this mission was Zuko’s quest to find his mother, hinted at right at the end of the
Last Airbender series. And along with team Avatar, came Azula, who was recently released out of her
mental hospital to come on the mission. **That is fully explained in the video that you will find
in the description and the pinned comment.** And trust me, it’s a good story. Soon though, Zuko
was able to figure out that Noriko was actually his mother, and he went to go see her at her
house. And do remember that at this point, Ursa still doesn’t know who Zuko is, as
her memories of that time have been wiped. When Zuko arrives at the house, he chooses not
to tell her of the truth because she seems to living a normal, happy family life with her
new family. Ikem though stops Firelord Zuko and encourages him to just tell the truth.
Eventually he tells her the full truth, that he is the firelord and that she is her mother.
But before the conversation can get much further, Azula bursts onto the scene, having gone crazy yet
again and attacks the family. Azula had still been having crazy hallucinations about her mother and
thought that if she killed her, they would stop. Eventually though, Ursa pleaded with Azula and
apologised for not loving her enough, despite not even remembering it… At this point, Azula
backs off and runs off, not to be seen again… But if you want to find out what happens, check
out that vid in the pinned comment after this one. After this incident, Zuko brings Ursa back
to the Mother of Faces and she immediately agrees to have her face and memory granted
back to how it was prior. Ursa then tells Zuko too that she was sorry for not loving
him enough, before setting sail with her to the fire nation capital. The first time she
would be allowed to return since her exile. During the voyage, Aang went penguin
sledding with Kiyi, and this terrified Ursa, as it probably would any mother. When
Ursa when to hug her daughter though, Kiyi pushed her away, completely struggling
to recognise her mother’s new face. She even refused to touch the doll that Ursa had hand
crafted for at all since the face change. Soon after this, a messenger hawk arrived
on the ship, sent by the Kyoshi warriors. Upon reading the message, a sense
of shock swept across Zuko’s face, which deeply worried his mother… Although he
didn’t tell her what the message contained, she could see that Zuko was very concerned…
There had been a change of plans. The next day, a submarine popped up next
to their ship, and out popped Uncle Iroh and Suki. Iroh and Ursa were stunned
to see eachother again after so long, and Iroh apologised for the pain that his family
had caused her. The two then hugged, and Ursa assured him that there was no need for apology,
as Iroh’s prescence had always given her hope. After this, the group arrived at the palace,
but Ursa was extremely hesitant to enter the great hall for the first time since her exile.
She was still scarred and anxious about the last time she was there and what had gone down.
zuko even offered her to stay in her old bed, but she declined, not wanting to bring
back those old memories. She was even more startled after she came across
Ozai’s painting in the Royal Gallery. Later, as the night deepened,
Ursa and Ikem, settled down, while Zuko moved Kiyi to a different room, as
she didn’t want to be with her mother. However, this decision unwittingly exposed Kiyi to
danger, as she was soon abducted by Azula, who had cunningly disguised herself as a
Kemurikage, a spirit from Fire Nation folklore. The tranquil night was shattered by the sounds
of conflict erupting outside the palace. Ursa and Ikem were abruptly awakened, their hearts
sinking as Zuko broke the distressing news: their daughter Kiyi had been snatched away.
The parents, gripped by fear and uncertainty, clung to each other in a tight embrace, a
silent testament to their shared anguish. In the midst of this turmoil, Ursa found herself
alone, cradling Kiyi's doll, a reminder of the daughter now missing. Her solitude was soon
interrupted by the arrival of Iroh, who had come swiftly via airship. The air heavy with unspoken
words, Ursa finally voiced her deep-seated fear: that Kiyi might never truly accept her again,
now that her face had changed. But Iroh, ever the wise and comforting presence, urged her
not to lose hope. He shared his own heartache over the loss of his son, Lu Ten, confessing that
such grief never truly fades. His words offered a solemn reminder: parents cannot always shield
their children from harm, but they can equip them to face their fears with clarity and courage.
Thankfully, soon after this, Kiyi was rescued and the mother and daughter finally embraced
once more, and Kiyi accepted her doll back. After this, Ursa gathered the strength to
visit Ozai in his cell, marking the first time she would see him since the exile.
Iroh escorts Ursa there and after asking her if she’s truly ready, reminds her to stand
strong and show no fear of her former Husband. The once-mighty Fire Lord, now reduced
to a mere shadow of his former self, hurled threats and vitriol at Ursa. Yet, she
saw through his bluster, recognizing him for what he truly was: a man who had never truly
cared for his family or even himself, a man who tried to appear larger than life but was, in
truth, very small. Turning away from his cell, she left him calling out in desperation, a pitiful
figure clinging to the remnants of his lost power. Following this, Ursa was relieved to finally
have confronted her past. Now it is all behind her. She returned to her family in the palace, and
from that point , her story in Canon ends there. Hope you guys enjoyed this story, if you did, hit
the sub button and ill see you in the next video!
