Chapter 7: Heartbreak
After a month in the city, Azara felt comfortable with her living. Aside from the alarming occurrence on her first day, things had gone very smoothly; she was improving in her combat training, breaking her old habits formed after years under the strict rules of an Agni-Kai. Feeling confident, she had once challenged Tymon to a rematch, in which she was rapidly bested, still unable to land a hit on him. At least, she thought, I'm beginning to land hits on Kaito. Speaking of him, things between them had also been going very well. Within a week they had overcome their bashfulness towards each other and by then end of the next they were beginning to flirt in between training sessions. He had even asked her out to dinner once, but Tymon had insisted on tagging along, in case another identity crisis happened. Indeed, the only thing getting in between them was Tymon himself; whenever Azara felt the mood was getting good, he found any and every excuse to pull one away from the other, which annoyed her greatly. It was almost as if he was… jealous. In order to counteract this, Azara and Kaito had quietly devised a plan that would give them time, if only half an hour, all to themselves.
Thus, on a late autumn afternoon, Kaito gave her a signal and she addressed her escort.
"Hey, Ty?"
Earlier that month, Ty had taken a trip to Air Temple Island as a tourist and bought a book of airbending forms, which he now stopped practising from and turned to face her.
"What is it?"
"I- I think I forgot to bring a change of shirt today, could you go fetch one from the inn?" Now that she had said it, it seemed like a really weak excuse.
"Why can't you get it?"
"Well, er… You're the one who's always telling me how important my training is! We're right in the middle of something here could you just get it for me?"
Azara felt proud of herself; there was no way he could refuse if she used his own words against him!
He inspected the two for a doubtful moment, and then relented.
"Fine, I'll be back in ten minutes, don't get lax just because I'm gone, you hear?"
It would take him longer than ten minutes; Azara had carefully hidden her spare shirts in preparation that morning. Once they heard the outside door shut, they turned to each other and burst out laughing.
"He fell for it!" howled Kaito. "He completely fell for it!"
In the spur of the moment, Azara crunched her face into a disapproving grimace and dropped her voice to imitate her chaperone.
"Don't get lax just because I'm gone! Hur-hur I'm the greatest thing since sliced bread!"
This only got them laughing harder, Azara's stomach beginning to hurt. With Tymon gone, she felt like shackles had been removed and she was free to mess around with Kaito as she pleased. Good riddance to him. After their laughter died down, she smiled at her tutor suggestively.
"So…" she began. "Now that he's out of the way, what do you say you and I… get down to business?"
She bit her lip seductively and took a step towards him, but as he moved to do the same, she ducked under his arm and twisted it, flipping him gracelessly onto the rubber floor, a move she'd learned from Ty while sparring.
"That hurt! What gives!?" he complained. Azara tutted in rebuke, now smirking teasingly.
"Unfortunately for you I'm not that easy, you're going to have to work for your reward Mr Kaito." She said, offering him a hand to get up.
In the dojo lobby, Tymon placed his head in his hands and sighed in disappointment. He'd suspected they might try something like this and on his way out had opened and closed the door to the street without going through, before moving to watch the pair through the screen door, which he'd purposefully left ajar. After spending his adolescent years alone, he'd developed a resistance to emotional attachment, not allowing it to cloud his better judgement. This would not be the case for either of them, however, and as much as he wanted happiness for his friends, allowing them to get too close could only spell disaster. So while he wished to get between them as little as he possibly could, there was only so far he could let their flirtation go.
Azara had a huge smile plastered on her face, only now did she realise what a damper Tymon put on things; she hadn't had this much fun in years! To toy with Kaito, she broadly followed the training exercise they had been doing earlier, but now and then, she would entice him in bewitchingly, only to push him away at the last second. Despite this treatment, Kaito was smiling too, treating it more as a challenge than an insult, and kept on the offensive. After several minutes of this, she surprised him by stepping into his reach, close enough to embrace, but before he could, she jumped back a little too quickly, tripping over her own feet.
"Watch out!" Kaito shouted and lunged at her as she fell, their landing abruptly ending their dance.
Dazed after her sudden impact with the floor, Azara's vision cleared after a few seconds and she breathed in sharply, realising what had happened: in trying to catch her, Kaito had fallen with her and now their position was quite personal.
Kaito lay atop her full length, his arms supporting the brunt of his weight either side of her head. Their faces had fallen close, too close, and she could feel his breath tickling her face along with an uncomfortable pressure against her groin where his legs had landed. Both startled by their position, they lay still and silent for a moment, staring alarmed at each other. Kaito was first to regain himself, and instantly went for the kill. He pressed his chest against hers until she could feel her racing heart and stroked her face softly, a look of longing in his eyes.
"Azara…" he paused, "Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?"
Not able to speak, she placed her hands against his arms and felt the rippling musculature beneath. Her body grew hot as she returned his gaze and his eyes closed, his face inching closer, closer…
It was at this moment Tymon decided to intervene, slamming open the screen door and entering the room. The couple froze, their lips a finger's breadth apart, and watched him cross the room, hardly daring to breathe. Tymon pretended not to notice them at first as he retrieved his staff from where it sat against the wall, but then he turned to stare at them, raising an eyebrow in mock surprise. Changing his expression to one of honest suspicion, he spoke:
"Am I… interrupting something?"
The two firebenders shot to their feet and stepped away from each other red in the face. Azara was first to speak.
"N-No! Of course not! We were just starting to wrap it up for today, we should probably get changed."
Tymon had flipped his emotional switch to off, and his impassive face looked particularly unimpressed. As pupil and tutor walked past him towards the changing rooms, he laid a hand on his old friend's shoulder to stop him.
"A word, if I may?" he growled, more of a demand than a request.
Azara saw this as she walked into the lobby and after a moment's hesitation at the changing room, she hurried back and pressed her ear against the screen door. She heard Tymon speak first, his voice low and uncharacteristically angry.
"And just what do you think you're doing?"
Kaito played innocent.
"I'm not sure I understand what you mean…"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" snapped Tymon, beginning to lose his composure. "Did you think I haven't noticed you putting moves on Azara?"
Kaito laughed mockingly.
"Oh! So that's what this is about! Now now Ty my friend, is she that special to you? Because the feeling I'm getting here is that you're just a little bit jeal-"
"SPARE ME THE CRAP KAI!" Tymon's words shook the walls as his airbending took hold, shocking Kaito into silence. Tymon then continued, his voice calm but equally terrifying.
"Just think about it Kai, just for one second. Getting your hands down her trousers is only going to bring you trouble in the long run, both of you. In case you've forgotten she's a Fire Nation princess, the last thing someone of her high profile wants is a sex scandal, and the last thing you want is to be mixed up in it."
"Okay, maybe I'm being a little greedy, but I can't help myself! She's just so… perfect!" Kaito had given up and resorted to grovelling, his voice pathetically whiny.
"Then I think it's high time you learned how. You need to stop letting the little head do all the thinking for the big one, and this will your first lesson, because no matter what tricks you pull, what pelvic sorcery you might use, I will not let you have her!"
With this, Tymon opened the screen door and was unsurprised to find Azara listening in.
"We'll talk later. I noticed you packing a spare shirt as we left, go get changed."
They walked back to the inn in silence. Once safely inside their room, Tymon told her to sit on the bed and leant on the wall to address her. He took a deep breath and looked at her not with anger, but with sympathy and a tinge of regret.
"So? What's your side of the story?"
Azara's anger at him finally boiled over.
"My side of the story is that you're a jealous, meddling little bastard who can't stand to see his friend doing better than he is!"
Tymon didn't even flinch, and waited for her to continue.
"I have so much fun when I'm with Kaito and he makes my training enjoyable, not you! You have no right to come between us like you are; all you ever do is throw a wet blanket over things! Kaito's more of a man than you could ever hope to be!"
Her last statement got a reaction as Tymon narrowed his eyes slightly.
"So? Have you fallen for him?"
The question surprised Azara. Looking back, she'd seen how good looking he was and just started flirting with him without a second thought. As time went on their relationship had improved, but Azara wasn't sure whether there was anything tangible between them.
"Well… O-of course! If it wasn't for you getting in our way I'm sure we'd be all over each other by now! Don't get angry just because you're jealous!" she said this with a confidence that her mind didn't match, and he saw through her façade immediately.
"Azara, forget how I might feel for a moment and answer me honestly: have you fallen in love with Kaito?"
She paused for a moment, then lowered her head in defeat.
"No… not yet, thanks to you."
"And do you think you'll fall for him in the future?"
"…Yes." She looked up at him defiantly, and saw sympathy still in his eyes. He took a breath to steel himself.
"Then before you set your heart on him for good, I think there is something you need to see."
He walked over to the window and opened it, the sunset pouring into the room. Beckoning her over, he checked the street for witnesses and after seeing it deserted, picked Azara up and jumped out onto the ghetto roofs.
By the time they had reached the dojo, the sun had set and they were cloaked in darkness. They watched from a rooftop nearby and eventually the lights inside clicked off and Kaito emerged, locking the door behind him. As he set off down the road, Tymon gestured Azara into silence and they began to tail him, jumping noiselessly between the cramped roofs of the ghetto. This continued for about a quarter of an hour until Kaito entered a house which was tall and thin, typical for the ghettos. Lowering themselves into the derelict building opposite, Tymon walked over to the end wall, which was pockmarked with holes where electrics and plumbing would be, if not stripped out by looters for the metal. Inspecting the holes individually, he found one that showed him what he wanted, and waved Azara over.
"Here, take a look."
Peering through the peephole, she eventually adjusted to the light coming through and could make out a window in the opposing building. Through it, she saw a woman who appeared to be cooking, wearing an impractically frilly apron to do so. What surprised her more however was that she seemed to be wearing nothing else. Just as Azara was about to pull away and accuse Tymon of voyeurism, a door opened in the house, and Kaito stepped into her view. The woman skipped over happily and planted her lips on his cheek, as someone might greet a lover. Azara's mouth dropped open. Then, after parting for a moment to remove the apron, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips, hard. As their petting got heavier, she saw Kaito's hands move to cup her breast and behind, squeezing them roughly. The lovers turned, giving her a full view and fell back onto a bed out of sight.
Unable to bear any more, she wrenched herself away from the wall and collapsed backwards onto her rear.
"Seen enough?" Tymon sat against the wall facing her, his voice coloured grey with regret.
"What the hell was that? Who is that woman!?" She was still not quite able to believe what she had just seen.
"I don't know who she is, all I know is that since I last saw Kaito three years ago, seven women have been in her place."
"But… but that can't be! Kaito couldn't do that, he wouldn't do that! Would he?"
Tears began to bead in the corners of her eyes and Tymon stared forlornly at the floor in front of him.
"For all the hundred good things I can say about him, this is his one glaring flaw."
Azara began to weep, and in her anger she leapt at her escort, pinning him to the wall by the scruff of his neck.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she wailed. "Does my sadness get you off!? I hope you're having fun because I'm not!"
She began to pummel his chest feebly, before he gently caught her wrists, his expression morose.
"I should've, I really should've, but when I first learned of this Kaito made me promise never to tell anyone, and today I went back on that."
He hung his head.
"I'm not looking forward to breaking it to him."
He stood and helped Azara to her feet, putting her cloak around her and flipping up the hood. Silently he guided her to the other side of the room and dropped them into the alley beyond to start the long walk back to the inn.
Back in their room, it was Tymon's turn to sleep on the bed. He'd offered it to Azara as they entered but she'd shaken her head. While she had stopped crying, she didn't want to talk, retreating into apathy. Exhausted, he threw off his top layer of clothing and fell onto the bed, wriggling until he was covered by the blanket; they would both feel better after a nights rest. Azara flicked off the light and began to undress herself. In her current state, she probably wouldn't complain if he watched, but he turned to face the window, respecting her privacy. Closing his eyes he tried to get to sleep.
He heard Azara padding away from the light switch to do the same, but his eyes shot open when he felt a pull on the blanket and Azara slipped in behind him without a word. Her arms snaked around him and gripped tightly as she buried her face between his shoulder blades. Her skin was smooth, soft and cool to the touch and he could feel her warm breath against his back, alongside a pleasant pressure from her breasts. Pulling herself closer into him, she began to sob again, quietly. She felt used and betrayed, hating that she had fallen for Kaito's charm so easily. She also hated herself that she had let him turn her against Tymon, who had only been acting with her in mind, never complaining at his unfair treatment. She'd even forced him to break a promise to his best friend.
For the first time in years, Tymon had no idea what he should do. He wanted to sleep, to leave tomorrow's problems to tomorrow, but he simply couldn't relax himself, and Azara wasn't making it any easier. Loosening her embrace, he turned over to face her, trying very hard not to look down at her half-naked form. Placing a reassuring arm around her, he tried to say something, anything.
"Azara… if there's any way I can-"
His voice caught in his throat as she looked up to him. Her cobalt eyes were stained with tears and yearning. This man had saved her life and was now risking his dwindling friendships to keep her safe. For a moment, she felt something tangible between them. Moving her hands to his shoulders, her lips parted invitingly and her eyes slid shut as the distance between them closed, and their lips connected. After several seconds' shocked silence, Tymon drew out of the kiss and met her eyes, now filled with more than simple yearning. Breathing heavily, she tightened her grip around his neck and leaned in again…
And was stopped as Tymon placed his fingers against her lips.
"Azara… I'm sorry. I have no idea how you must be feeling, but this isn't going to fix things… I think you should sleep, you'll feel better in the morning."
She realised he was right: what healed a broken heart was not titillation, but time. Turning away from him, she snuggled back into his arms, pulling one into her chest; she felt a cosy warmth spreading into her. Tymon was about to move to the bedroll, but stopped when he felt her slow, regular breathing: she had fallen asleep. Resigning himself to his fate, he brushed her hair lightly out of his face and joined her.
Tymon woke to find his arms empty. Sitting up, he noticed Azara's clothes were gone, but her cloak remained; perhaps she had gone to wash her face. Rising out of bed, he began to dress. As he finished, Azara returned, a towel draped around her shoulders. The pair stared at each other for a time before Tymon broke the silence.
"How're you feeling?"
She broke eye contact to look at the floor timidly.
"You were right, I feel a lot better after sleeping on it. I… I'm really sorry, about last night."
Tymon shook his head gently.
"Don't worry about it; it's my fault too."
They remained in an awkward silence for a minute before Azara walked up to him, taking a deep breath.
"I just want to say it again. I'm sorry… and…" she rose onto the balls of her feet to plant a kiss on his cheek.
"…Thank you."
Author's note: bit of a long 'un, but I've been looking forward to this chapter ever since I started, I can only hope I did justice to the script in my head. On the bright side, ONE person has now followed and favourited the story, w00t! Big thanks to them.
Next chapter our heroes must face Kaito and fix this whole mess, I have a good idea what to write so it should be out in the next few days or so.
