Paradise

"Azula, wait." The acrobat put a hand on her friend's shoulder, expecting to be pushed away.

Instead, the princess halted on the balcony where, with Zuko and Mai, as well as Li and Lo, they'd all shared dinner that evening. A smile tugged the corners of Ty Lee's lips. She took Azula's hand in her own, looking at the princess's outline against the starry sky. The waves of Ember Island rocked gently along the shore, and in the distance Ty Lee could hear the muffled shouts of angry party-goers.

Azula's gaze was steady on the horizon, and a breeze stirred a wisp of her black hair. She didn't react to Ty Lee's touch. The acrobat took this as a sign to continue. She waited for the wind to settle, the fluttering in her stomach like the rise and fall of the tides. One moment she felt confident, and the next she collapsed into subdued silence, unsure of even the remotest way to begin.

"I want you to know, I don't think you're a monster," she said, her heart like a heavy stone in her chest. She didn't think she would ever have to reassure Azula, her perfect princess. Her racing heart feared Azula's backlash; she knew the girl had walls put up for a reason. Tonight was one rare occasion Ty derived true pleasure from, because she had seen over them.

The acrobat gave Azula's hand a reassuring squeeze, their fingers intertwined. The princess had yet to respond.

"I think you're wonderful," Ty Lee continued, her shimmering gray eyes lingering on Azula's blank porcelain expression.

Azula let go of the contortionist's hand, instead resting her elbows on the balcony, her clasped hands under her chin. Ty Lee winced, recalling Azula taking a similar position with the boy she'd wanted so desperately to impress. She hadn't meant to spy, but she had noticed Azula out there, and wanted to see how she was doing. She never meant to see them kiss. She could still feel the ache in her chest where her heart throbbed painfully, feeling bitterly betrayed.

Taking another stab at conversation, Ty Lee ventured closer to Azula's side. "I think what you did for us tonight was truly amazing. It really brought us closer together." The acrobat put her hand delicately on Azula's bare shoulder, a sharp intake of breath alerting the princess to the electric reaction Ty Lee received from just a simple touch.

"Please talk to me, Azula," Ty Lee continued in a choked voice. "No one else is here. You can trust me." She wore her sincerest smile as her glistening eyes trailed desperately along the outline of Azula's sharp features, silently begging for her princess to notice her.

A sharp silence cut through the air, and Ty Lee nearly gave up hope, anxiously pleading with the spirits to give her more than empty silence from her princess. Casting a fretful glance over the ocean waves, Ty Lee moved closer to the girl, trying to find the courage to take Azula's hand again.

Suddenly the princess began to speak, her voice that of a ghost.

"My mother," Azula said, gazing out over the ocean, "left when I was only nine years old." She paused, letting the implications sink into Ty Lee's heart. The acrobat gasped, a sob for her friend's awful experience lodged deep in her throat. What nine-year-old's mother could leave their daughter with such an awful impression of herself?

"Zula – "

"I won't pretend I missed her," continued the princess dismissively. "She was always there for Zuko." Her shoulders sagged, her posture no longer rigid. "Not for me. I never needed her, after all, and missing her was tedious." She released a slow breath of air from between her parted lips. "It's difficult to miss someone that doesn't want to be part of your life."

Ty Lee cringed, sensing a flutter in Azula's aura. She blinked back tears. "No, it's not," she whispered, boldly placing her hand on Azula's. "You miss her. I know you do."

Azula didn't glance at her. Her eyes darted to the beach, where waves were pulling against the grains of sand in the darkness. "You don't know what you're talking about, Ty Lee." She sighed, turning around, leaning against the balcony with crossed arms. "It hardly matters. Not having her to rely on made me stronger. I suppose I can thank her for that." The cold glint in her eye told Ty Lee that she wanted the subject to be dropped. She could sense that behind the resilient mask of indifference were tears, memories of long nights being kept awake by the loneliness of the haunting word, monster.

Drawing a courageous breath, the acrobat took a step towards her princess, hesitantly placing a hand on her trembling cheek. Azula looked at her with surprise, and Ty Lee could hardly control the pounding in her chest. Her fingers caressed the soft skin of Azula's cheek, tense with nerves, only a fluttering sensation deep in her abdomen telling her that this was right.

"I'm here for you, 'Zula," she said, holding the princess's shimmering gaze in her own smoky eyes. "I will always be here for you." The knots in her bare stomach shuddered unpleasantly, needing more than just the feel of Azula under her fingertips.

Without realizing quite what she was doing, Ty Lee drew herself up to full height on her toes and sealed the promise with a kiss. It wasn't until afterwards that she felt the bitter, hot blush creep up her neck and settle on her cheeks for what she thought would be eternity.

Azula looked at her without saying a word, pressing two fingers to her lips. Ty Lee wondered if the princess could still taste her lips the way she could Azula's, but shook the thought away because of sudden panic.

"I…I love you, Azula," she whispered when the princess still didn't say anything. "And I will always love you, until my dying breath."

She waited, her nerves trembling, for Azula to make some response – anything would be better than this agonizing silence. After a moment, the princess stepped forward, pulling Ty Lee into her arms and pressing a kiss to her forehead, then her ear, and finally, her lips.

"Always?" she asked, her voice trembling. Ty Lee's smile was exultant as she found paradise in her princess's arms. She'd known that Azula had had her heart since the moment they'd met, but she'd never realized that she'd had Azula's too. It soothed her pulse to realize that Azula had been waiting for her.

"Always," the acrobat responded solemnly, sweeping Azula's lips into another soft kiss. Azula's fingers trailed down Ty Lee's cheek as she pressed her against the balcony, the murmur of waves behind them disguising their secret kiss.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed! This was inspired in part by an RP I did with someone, and also by the song 'Paradise' by Coldplay, which for some reason gives me extreme (often depressing) Tyzula feels. Hope you enjoyed the more sensitive side of Azula too. Read and review! Thanks!