Ty Lee was nervous.
No, scratch that. Ty Lee was scared.
She was sitting on the side of her bed, swinging her legs and watching the door. Zuko was here – she felt sure. She'd heard some kind of commotion an hour or so before, and she was pretty certain that this had been the Fire Lord's arrival. He probably went to Mai first, she thought. And then, once he's been with Mai...he'll deal with me. Ty Lee bit her lips, mentally rehearsing everything she thought she needed to remember. Call him by his title – don't call him Zuko. I better bow down, too. Luckily I've had a lot of practice with that. She glanced worriedly at the door again. Even though Mai had promised to speak to him for her, she had her doubts. And regardless, he was going to be angry.
Zuko was scary when he was angry.
She wished that Azula was here. It was easy for her to be brave when the former princess was around; she never even had to think about it then. But Azula was gone – spirits only knew where she was right now – and Ty Lee, unfortunately, now had plenty of time to think. She knew what happened to traitors. She knew, too, what happened to those who dared to raise a hand against the Fire Lord, or his family. And whatever Mai said, Ty Lee had certainly laid a hand on her. Twice, in fact. And everyone knows Zuko's got a temper, Ty Lee thought nervously. What if he just won't listen to Mai? She fidgeted.
Then she heard heavy footsteps – from more than one set of feet. Her eyes widened and flicked to the door again. She'd heard that sound before. The last time had been when she and Azula had huddled together in terror in the beach house on Ember Island...
A moment later, the door swung open. Four Fire Nation soldiers in full armor entered. Without a word, three of them moved to surround the bed on which Ty Lee was sitting. The fourth stopped a few feet away, drawing himself up with military briskness. "Lady Ty Lee, we are here to escort you to the Fire Nation embassy, by order of the Fire Lord," he said brusquely. "You will come quietly."
Before Ty Lee could really process his words, she found herself being hauled bodily off the bed and forced to her knees. She gave a faint gasp of surprise as her right arm was twisted up behind her. The chain that held her left wrist released; Ty Lee squirmed a bit as her arms were cuffed behind her back, and the grip on the back of her neck tightened until she groaned in pain. "You will come quietly," the captain repeated, more harshly this time. "If you resist, we will use force."
"I'm n-not resisting," Ty Lee whimpered. There was no response. A hood was suddenly thrown over her head, blocking out the light. She was pulled to her feet and marched forward. Blind and confused, Ty Lee stumbled between her guards. What's going on? What are they going to do to me? Her foot caught on something, and she fell. They caught her and dragged her like a sack of grain for several yards before she finally managed to regain her footing. The sounds around her changed – they were outside, now. She could hear the busy hum of the city. The rapid pace of the soldiers didn't change. Ty Lee tripped and fell again, and was dragged again. After several attempts to get back up failed, she gave up and let them half-drag, half-carry her.
Again the sounds changed, and she knew she was inside once more. This'll be the embassy. Ty Lee struggled hard, and managed to get on her feet. The floor felt smooth beneath the soles of her shoes. She heard a door open somewhere ahead. Then she was abruptly released. A sharp blow stuck her on the base of her spine, felling her to her knees! The hood was jerked off her head. Before her eyes could adjust to the light, a strong hand clamped around the scruff of Ty Lee's neck and forced her to bow low, until her forehead pressed against the floor. The hand released, but she didn't move. Wide-eyed, she stared at the smooth stone under her face, watching as her breath misted on its glossy surface.
There was silence for a while, perhaps twenty seconds. Ty Lee bit her lips; fear made a hard lump in the pit of her stomach. Then she heard a woman's voice – one soft and husky, and very familiar. "You're right in everything you say. I'm not trying to excuse any of it."
"Well, that's how it sounded to me." That was a man's voice, deep and authoritative – and angry. Ty Lee recognized it as the Fire Lord's, and shuddered with fear. "She aided the escape of a dangerous criminal and traitor to the Fire Nation. She not only assaulted you, Mai – the queen of the Nation - she actually kidnapped you! Nine of my soldiers are dead, and she helped kill them. And by your own admission, she didn't surrender or release you, so she's completely unrepentant."
"I'm not denying any of that. But she did save my life, Zuko..."
"...Which she wouldn't have had to do at all if she hadn't taken you as a hostage in the first place," Zuko snapped. "Enough. I'm not discussing this right now." There was a moment's pause. "You may rise, prisoner."
Slowly, Ty Lee sat up on her heels. She raised her eyes timidly to look around. She was kneeling in a war room, before a raised dais; Zuko was sitting regally on a cushion above her, with Mai sitting quietly to his right. He was glaring down at Ty Lee. His face was a cold mask of anger. Shivering, Ty Lee quickly lowered her gaze again. Her mouth felt dry. "First things first," he said. "We'll make this official. Ty Lee, you are stripped of your title and rank, and all of the rights, privileges and responsibilities connected with them." She blinked down at her own knees, her brow creasing a little. "Now, to business. You stand accused of high treason, assaulting and kidnapping the empress of the Fire Nation, the theft of a war balloon belonging to the Fire Nation military, nine counts of murder, and aligning yourself with my sister, which is a capital offense in itself. Now, Ty Lee – give me one good reason why I shouldn't order my soldiers to take you out and execute you right now."
Not good. Not good, not good, not good at all. Ty Lee could feel herself trembling, and the palms of her hands felt slick. "I d-didn't kill anybody," she faltered.
Zuko's expression darkened even more. "Did you or did you not attack nine members of the Fire Nation military and paralyze them?"
"Eight of them, yes...but..."
"And did my sister then proceed to cut their throats?" he demanded.
"Well...yes, b-but..."
"And did you or did you not continue in your allegiance to her, despite the fact that you knew that she had killed them?"
Tears were running down Ty Lee's cheeks, now. "Yes, my lord," she whispered.
The Fire Lord made a curt gesture. "Then as far as we are concerned, you are every bit as culpable in their deaths as Azula is. Now, answer the question, prisoner. Why should I let you live even one instant longer?"
Quivering like a leaf, Ty Lee turned desperate eyes to Mai. The young queen met her gaze for a brief moment; then, quietly, Mai looked away. Ty Lee's dismay deepened. With a sob, the prisoner bowed down again, as low to the floor as she could. "Please don't kill me!" she whimpered. She knew that she sounded pitiful, but she couldn't help it.
There was silence for a while. At length, Zuko spoke again. "Don't you dare to think for one instant that your former association with my wife shields you from anything," he said coldly. "You are every bit as eligible for the noose as my sister. Is that clear, Ty Lee?"
"Yes, my lord." Ty Lee shivered and waited helplessly.
"I'm going to let you live for a while longer, only because I think you can help us find Azula. But as far as I am concerned, you are living on borrowed time. Think very carefully about that for the next little while. Understood?"
The prisoner nodded her head, her forehead brushing against the cold marble. She felt some measure of relief, although the part about helping him find Azula worried her. "Yes, Fire Lord Zuko."
"Lock her up," he said curtly. "We'll question her later." The hood dropped over Ty Lee's face, plunging her back into darkness. This time the soldiers made no pretense of letting her walk. They hauled her bodily from the room, kicking at her feet when she tried to stand. Ty Lee was dragged straight for a while, and then down a number of stairs. The air grew colder. She heard the clanging of metal, and then she was thrown down. The back of her head struck against something hard with a sharp crack; she saw stars, and pain knifed through her abused skull. Vaguely, she felt shackles being fastened around her legs. Someone said something, but the words sounded strange and foreign, and she couldn't make sense of them. Metal clanged, and more words were spoken. Ty Lee felt the hood being pulled away. She fought the darkness for a few moments longer; then, laying her head down again, she quietly passed out.