A/N: I apologize for the large amount of OOCness you will witness here if you read this fic. But...it only really works if I make Azula a bit more outgoing and less 'sadistic and controlling' when with her friends, and if I make Mai a bit more talkative and caring about Ty Lee's feelings for the fire princess. Anyway...enjoy! Also, it's kind of AU, because it takes place at Ba Sing Se at a unspecified part of the timeline. This fic isn't connected to the timeline of the series in any way, which is obvious.
When Princess Azula woke up that morning in Ba Sing Se, she wasn't expecting Ty Lee and Mai to be standing over and staring at her...yet there they were.
"What are you two doing...?" She asked between clenched teeth as she sat up in bed. Like always, Ty Lee was grinning widely and giggling; the thing that worried Azula the most though was the slight resemblance of a smirk on Mai's normally emotionless face.
"Don't be so temperamental, Azula!" Ty Lee exclaimed happily, "We just wanted to properly congratulate you!"
"Congratulate me...for what?" Azula demanded to know.
Ty Lee giggled again and replied, "We're congratulating you for finally coming out of the closet last night! You admitted you were actually a lesbian...don't you remember?"
Azula had no idea what the hell she was talking about. She couldn't even think of a threatening response, either. She just rubbed her temple and closed her eyes, trying to wrap her mind around the situation, which was hard because of a major headache she suddenly got.
"Hold on, Ty Lee," Mai suddenly interrupted, "I, uh...don't think she remembers. I mean, she was really, really drunk when she said how much more she liked girls than guys...and said how she'd love to have another woman by her side as her wife when she becomes the new Fire Lord and all..."
"But she did say it! I heard her! She loudly and clearly proclaimed her lesbianism!" Ty Lee said.
Mai nodded. "I heard it, too...but maybe Azula didn't really mean it. She might have just been too drunk to realize what she was saying..."
While the two girls continued to argue over the matter, Azula decided to head over to the bathroom and take a shower. Noticing this, Ty Lee called over to her and said, "Hey, Zula! When you're done in there, hurry and get dressed; we're gonna find you a girlfriend today!"
Azula just ignored her and slammed the door behind her.
"She's so cute...when she's not being evil and violent." Ty Lee mused.
Mai smirked and remarked, "She must not be cute a lot of the time, then. You like her, don't you? Heh...I'm surrounded by lesbians...good thing I'm just bisexual, but I'll still like my dear handsome Zuko much much more than any girl I'll ever come across..."
Ty Lee glared at her and quipped, "Hey...how about I tell Zuko who took your virginity, huh? It was very tasty, if I recall..."
Mai - "Can I have it back?"
Ty Lee - "No."
Mai - "Shit."
Mai blushed and turned her eyes away. "...Anyway, if you're in love with Azula, why don't you just tell her? Considering she's probably a lesbian, too, it'll end up working out for you..."
Ty Lee shook her head and said sadly, "No...I'm sure Azula would be happier with someone other than me. I mean...we're complete opposites; she's serious and sadistic, and I'm happy and bubbly. It wouldn't work out between us. I'll just settle for making Azula happy...that's all..."
Mai sighed, wishing she knew some comforting words to give her friend; unfortunately, 'comfort' wasn't exactly her strong suit. Ty Lee continued to sulk up until Azula came out fresh and fully awake, which is when she put back on her usual cheery attitude.
'I wish there was something I could do to help Ty Lee...' Mai thought.
As soon as the three girls exited the motel, Ty Lee immediately began searching for Azula's perfect girlfriend. "I already told you guys," the fire princess exclaimed, "I'm not gay! It was all just a mistake! I was drunk last night when I said it! Why can't you two just forget about it?"
Mai placed a hand on Azula's shoulder and explained, "Listen, Azula...no matter what you say, you've proved yourself more than enough times to be somewhat of a lesbian. Besides...even if what you said last night doesn't count, you're probably still gay..."
'Dammit! Is there no way to convince them otherwise about my sexual orientation?' Azula was wondering when Ty Lee ran up to her and grabbed her by the sleeve.
"Come on, Azula! I finally found one!" Ty Lee cried as she dragged the fire princess halfway across the marketplace to a small counter, where a girl about Azula's age was sitting. She had short brown hair, wide blue eyes, and a slightly curved nose. She also had a line of freckles going across her face. She was pretty thin, and a tattoo of a Chinese dragon was evident on her bare left thigh.
Standing between the two girls, Ty Lee introduced them to one another. "Azula, this is Koev. Koev, this is Azula." The girl called Koev looked Azula over a few times, determining her worthiness in her eyes. As it so happens, Azula was doing the exact same thing.
"So...you're like me, huh?" Koev eventually asked, "A rugmuncher? A dyke? A lezzie? A butch chick? A femme chick?"
"Y-Yeah...I guess so..." Azula replied, not sure what any of those names really meant. She wasn't exactly very well-educated in the ways of same-sex loving. For the first time, though, she actually felt nervous and out of character. The real reason for this problem was because she had to act like herself and be calm...which was hard when you're usually acting like an evil psychopathic sadist. In fact, she barely even understood herself well enough to really form a real relationship.
"You seem nervous...which I find odd, considering you look like quite a tough bitch..." Koev remarked when she saw how much Azula was shaking and sweating at the same time. Ty Lee quickly diverted Koev's attention by exclaiming, "Hey, hey, hey! You don't need to give her a tough time! She's...she's new to this!"
Suddenly, fed up with this uncomfortable feeling inside of her, Azula swung her fist and slammed it hard against Koev's nose, blasting her with an explosion of lightning at the same time. As the poor girl flew backwards into a stand, Ty Lee and Mai both cried out in the same time, "WHY THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO THAT??"
Azula brushed a few stray hairs out of her face and hissed furiously, "I...HATE...FEELING...WEAK!! ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S CAUSED BY SOMEONE AS PATHETIC AND WEAK LIKE THAT...THAT UGLY BITCH KOEV OR WHATEVER THE HELL HER NAME IS!"
"Well...you sure showed her..." Mai muttered as Ty Lee quickly checked the girl's pulse. "She's still alive...just unconscious and bleeding a bit..." the acrobat girl called over her shoulder. Before Azula could cause any more destruction, the three girls ran back to the motel as fast as possible, leaving many confused bystanders behind them.
Once they returned to the room, Azula turned to Ty Lee and, her entire body practically bursting with flames of rage, snapped, "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU? TRYING TO FORCE ME INTO A RELATIONSHIP WITH THAT...THAT...THAT SKANK? I DON'T CARE WHETHER I'M REALLY A LESBIAN OR NOT, BUT I NEVER WANT TO BE IN A RELATIONSHIP THAT MAKES ME FEEL WEAK INSIDE LIKE THAT!"
"I'm...I'm really sorry...I...I didn't mean to...to upset you..." Ty Lee whimpered with tears in her eyes.
"That doesn't cut it! I...I made myself look like a fool in public because of you! Get out of my sight! Be glad I don't burn your sorry little ass right now! YOU RETARD!" Azula screamed, finishing it off by firing a blast of lightning into the ceiling light, causing glass shards to shatter everywhere.
Covering her face with her hands, Ty Lee dashed out of the room. Azula breathed heavily for a few moments before collapsing onto her bed and stared at the ceiling in despair. Mai, who was standing nearby during the whole scene, stepped over to the fire princess and said, "Azula...I need to talk to you..."
"Not now...I need to sleep off my shame..." Azula muttered.
"Listen...I want you to apologize to Ty Lee. I know you didn't really mean to say those things..." Mai said.
Sitting up, Azula glared at her friend and said, "Are you telling ME what to do? Who do you think you are, you miserable excuse of a-"
"Ty Lee is in love with you."
Azula's eyes widened, but then she shook her head. "That's beyond ridiculous, Mai. If that was true, why would she even bother trying to hook me up with other girls? Besides...don't you remember me saying that I'm not a lesbian?"
"You ARE a lesbian, Azula...or at least bisexual with more of a liking towards girls..." Mai remarked.
Azula sighed. "Fine, you got me. I'm a lesbian...but you two determined it as the truth before it was even confirmed. Now...if Ty Lee being in love with me is true, don't you think it would've been better to have told me BEFORE I threatened to kill her and call her a retard?"
"I apologize. But...Ty Lee is my friend, and I care very much about her. She may act happy and sweet all the time, but...when we're alone together, she could be even more emo than me...and that's saying something..." Mai explained.
"Well...what am I supposed to do about it?" Azula asked, "Yeah, we're both lesbians, and I should apologize, I know that, but who's to say we'll end up together? I mean...we're complete opposites! Ugh...all this talking about loving girls is giving me a headache...I need a nap..."
Mai grabbed Azula by the arms and pulled her up to a stand. "No. Before you do any sleeping, I want you to apologize to Ty Lee...I know it may sound strange, but...I think you two are perfect for each other..."
Azula rolled her eyes and sighed, saying, "Fine...I'll apologize. But that's it, okay? No kissing or making out or sex or whatever...oh, god, I really hope it doesn't end up having to be sex...I know nothing about it..."
"Really?"
"Well...I was only taught things that my father deemed useful to me. I guess...he didn't think things like 'sex' were important...which I could understand, but still..."
Mai shrugged and pushed Azula out the door and followed her over to Ty Lee's room, making sure the fire princess wouldn't shirk from her duties. Although Azula knew she could easily overpower Mai and escape, she didn't want to live with this guilt of hurting Ty Lee that Mai had talked her into.
Knocking on the door, Azula called, "...Ty Lee, are you in there?"
There was no response.
"...Ty Lee? Are you in there?"
No response.
"Ty Lee...?"
No response.
"DAMMIT, TY LEE! OPEN THE DOOR!"
Still no response.
Looking over Azula's shoulder, Mai said, "Uh...this isn't good. Ty Lee usually always answer after the first few knocks."
"What should we do?" Azula asked, suddenly feeling worried about her friend's well-being.
Suddenly, just as Mai was about to go and get the keys to the room, the two girls heard the sound of something...or someone...walking around on the roof of the motel.
"Ty Lee...she's up on the roof..." Azula muttered.
"Thanks for pointing that out. Now go up and talk to her!" Mai snapped, trying to get her friend back to her cheery self as soon as possible.
As the two girls headed up the stairs to the roof, Azula remarked, "You know...I know you two are friends and all, but you seem really determined to keep Ty Lee happy. I thought things like that were too 'boring' for you..."
Mai blushed and looked down at her feet. "I...I..."
Before she could blurt out what she was trying to say, Mai looked up and saw Azula opening the door and stepping out onto the rooftop. Ty Lee was sitting with her legs hanging over the edge of the roof as she looked out at the city of Ba Sing Se. The glistening of tears could still be seen on her cheeks.
Even as Azula drew closer to her, Ty Lee didn't move. She didn't even bother looking up at the other girl. Azula sighed and sat down next to Ty Lee and stared at her for a while. Blushing a bit, Azula thought, 'Wow...in this light, she really does look-'
"What do you want...Princess?" Ty Lee suddenly snapped, breaking Azula from her trance. Her tone was icy and cold; completely unlike anything Azula had ever heard from her before.
Rubbing her hand behind her head, Azula muttered, "I...um...I wanted to apologize for what I said earlier...okay?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...Azula?"
"...Yeah?"
Ty Lee looked over at the fire princess and asked, "...Azula, do you really mean to say that you're truly and sincerely sorry, or are you just apologizing because you're being forced to and you'll just go back to screaming and insulting me by tomorrow?"
Azula wasn't really sure what to say in response, so she just shot back a question of her own: "Ty Lee...are you really in love with me? Is it true?"
Ty Lee smiled a bit and nodded. "Y-Yeah...ever since we were little kids, actually. I always looked up to you and I always wanted to be strong and self-assured like you...it wasn't until I saw you again after those many years...when you requested my help in catching the Avatar...that I realized I had romantic feelings for you...I couldn't help it..."
"If that's true...then why were you trying to hook me up with that Koev girl?" Azula questioned.
Ty Lee took in a deep breath before explaining, "Well...I kind of figured we would never work out together as a couple. We're complete opposites, you and me. I do care for you deeply, but...I would rather see you happy with someone else than be miserable with me..."
Suddenly, Azula smiled (which was quite a surprise to both Ty Lee and Mai) and pulled the acrobat girl into a hug. As she ran her fingers through the other girl's hair, Azula whispered, "I'm sorry for what I said, Ty Lee, but...don't you know? Opposites attract...I can accept your love..."
Mai grinned as she watched the two girls then kiss passionately on the lips just as the sun began to set behind the walls of Ba Sing Se. Deciding to leave them alone for a while, Mai headed back to her room and pulled out a photo from her pocket; it was picture of her and Zuko as kids.
'Zuko...I wonder how you'll feel when you find out about how much your sister has changed since you last seen her? Oh...I really hope I get to see you again...' The black-haired girl thought with a sigh. Sticking the photo back into her pocket, Mai undressed for the night and went to bed early...but Azula and Ty Lee's contant love-making kept her up through the night.
