"Come on, Mai! Come feel the wind through your hair," Ty Lee was practically leaning over the safety railing of the airship. Her arms were outstretched and her hair whipped around her smiling face. The edges of her dress threatened to wrap around her legs, and cause her to fall should she choose to move suddenly.

"No thank you," Mai was sitting on a bench at a much safer distance from the edge of the ship than her exuberant friend.

"Aww why not?" Ty Lee pouted turning around to face Mai. She propped her elbows up on the railing and leaned on it.

"I have no desire for my hair to look like an elephant rat was nesting in my hair," She gave a pointed look at Ty Lee's dark brown tresses.

Ty Lee reached up and began finger combing her hair, "Well at least I had fun." She stuck her tongue out at Mai.

Mai didn't respond to Ty Lee's barb. A few silent moments passed as Mai stared off at the quickly passing horizon, the green of the trees and the blue of the sky whizzing by. Ty Lee finished taming her hair and plopped down next to her friend on the bench.

"What 'cha thinking about?" Ty Lee asked, lightly nudging Mai in the ribs with her elbow.

"How on earth we've stayed friends all these years." She replied dragging her gaze from the horizon to meet Ty Lee's curious gaze.

Ty Lee look a little confused as though that was the last thing she expected Mai to say. "What do you mean?"

"Well, we only met because our parents were rich nobles. Then they sent us off to school together. And then we stopped talking after you joined the circus, and I never expected to hear from you again. But then Azula found us and turned us into her little pawns. But she fell apart in the end and instead of falling back into old habits we're still friends, and I can't quite figure out why. We're both very different people. I figured without Azula we'd just drift apart." Mai returned her gaze to the horizon as though she could find the secrets of friendship hidden in the whirling colors.

"We're not that different you and I," A smile bloomed across Ty Lee's face. "Sure on the outside our personalities couldn't be more different. You're so stoic all the time and I'm a little less," she giggled at her own joke. "But our hearts are in the same place. We both want what's best for the Fire Nation. We want our family and friends to be happy."

"Well yeah, lots of people want those things," Mai deadpanned her hands fidgeting with the edges of her robe.

"But lots of people don't understand what Azula would do to manipulate people. We both have firsthand experience in that. We also know what it's like to resist her," Ty Lee placed her hand on Mai's arm. "It's an experience that can't be explained to someone else." Ty Lee had a very solemn expression on her face. "At first it was nice to be around someone who understood what I went through at Azula's hand. But then, as time passed I found that I enjoyed your company for other reasons."

"Yeah, I guess," A hint of a smile danced across Mai's face.

"No more moping okay?" Ty Lee said flashing her own huge smile at Mai.

She jumped up off the bench "Besides remember no matter what happens remember," She took a moment to clear her throat and then broke into song. "You've got a friend in me. You've got a friend in me. When the road looks rough ahead and you're miles and miles from your nice warm bed. You just remember what your old pal said. Boy you've got a friend in me. You've got a friend in me. You've got a friend in me. You got troubles and I got 'em too. This isn't anything I wouldn't do for you. We stick together, we can see it through. 'Cause you've got a friend in me. You've got a friend in me. Some other folks might be a little bit smarter than I am. Bigger and stronger too. Maybe, but none of them will ever love you the way I do. It's me and you girl. And as the years go by our friendship will never die. You're gonna see it's our density. You've got a friend in me. " As she sang she danced around Mai grabbing her hands as she began the last line.

As Ty Lee ended the last note of her impromptu song Mai struggled to keep her stoic mask. That effort got her as far as Ty Lee's effort to look serious got her. They dissolved into a puddle of fabric and giggles. Heavy breathing punctuated the giggles as they tried to catch their breath and compose themselves.

As the laughter subsided Ty Lee pulled herself off the deck and joined Mai on the bench again. "Seriously though, I'm not going anywhere. I'll always be your friend,"

Mai looked over at her and smiled. "Good because I'm your friend too."

A/N

Word Count: 868

Event: Airbender: The two characters fly

Prompts:

Easy (1 point): (dialogue) "We're not that different, you and I"

Medium (2 points): (character) Ty Lee

Hard (3 points): (song): You've Got a Friend in Me