To Hold Without Keeping
72. Packing
"You do not need the half of those things. We are staying on Ember Island for a week," Azula says and Ty Lee looks up at her.
Sometimes she is the most beautiful, perfectest girl. Sometimes she is really, really annoying and controlling.
"Well, how much of this can I buy on Ember Island, huh?" Ty Lee asks as she pouts at her suitcase. It isn't like anyone is going to care if she brings an extra few bags. She is totally doing Azula a favor by accompanying her on her forced vacation.
Azula stares at her for a moment and Ty Lee thinks she is going to get shoved into, locked in and burned in her suitcase.
"Perhaps you should make a list and I will put in a military requisition for some stuffed animals," she says and Ty Lee knows she is being sarcastic, and so she pounces on her and throws her arms around Azula.
"Yay! Thank you," she says brightly, her laughter shaking them both.
She really thinks she likes Azula's perfume. Or maybe just how Azula smells.
And so she forgets to let go for a little too long.
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73. Elsewhere
Azula is clearly extremely unhappy.
Whenever she is in front of Zuko, she tends to play up her flawless life with admirable gravitas. She brushes off this vacation as something Zuko is whining about only because of his inadequacy which makes Ty Lee's stomach squirm, but she understands.
The princess feels worried about Zuko being here, and, Ty Lee thinks that maybe there is very much going on behind the curtain of fire that she does not allow anyone to see. Ozai could not have been happy about her bringing Zuko home. Zuko could not be more ungrateful about it if he tried.
Maybe he is trying.
And so, on the third day that Ty Lee tries not to watch Azula lying on a sandy window-seat staring directly at the horizon as if she can will herself into the palace and back onto her father's lap, she finally snaps.
"You look stressed out," Ty Lee says and Azula does not move for a moment.
"Of course I am. I have important things to be concerned about that you cannot even fathom," Azula replies as she taps her fingers on her stomach and refuses to remove her gaze from the window.
"Can I help?" Ty Lee asks weakly and Azula glances up at her with a shrug. "Yay. You could… lie down here on the bed."
Okay, well Ty Lee did not realize how that sounded until she already says it. But Azula ignores the poor phrasing and stands up. Ty Lee tries to hide her grin of happiness at Azula complying, but it does not work so well.
Azula does lie down and Ty Lee does crawl over to be closer to her.
She hesitates for a few moments before touching one hand to her shoulder. Ty Lee's toes wriggle from her nerves as she forces herself into the first step. It works without ruining her whole life. Ty Lee very gently does what she does best with her extensive knowledge of pressure points.
"This is uncomfortable," Azula says, because the touch works but it is how good it feels that is the uncomfortable part.
Ty Lee tries to stop, and then Azula grabs her hand and she starts again, somehow even more confused than usual now.
"You could uh…" imagine someone other than me doing this to you. "You have the best imagination ever. You're really creative and have such vision that maybe you could imagine like the sun or some kind of colors…"
"You're not so creative, are you?" Azula asks and Ty Lee's blush makes her feel less uneasy.
No getting attached.
That is a simple rule to follow.
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74. Sandcastles
Azula watches Ty Lee build a sandcastle.
It's beautiful.
"I'm gonna live here with my future wife," Ty Lee says and Azula's breath catches before she decides Ty Lee clearly was saying I'm going to live here in my future life.
Azula cannot wait until she isn't a teenager anymore.
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75. Curtains
Ty Lee gets stuck outside of the fire curtain again.
Ty Lee doesn't think it is her fault that other people acted in a way that made Azula mad at her.
Ty Lee doesn't think it is her fault that she screwed up while trying to keep Azula from getting mad at her.
"I'm sorry, Azula, it's all my fault," Ty Lee says into the doorknob.
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76. Midnight
They are alone.
It is really dark.
It is really late.
They are alone and Ty Lee thinks that maybe Azula is still mad at her.
She probably is going to be murdered tonight.
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77. Stains
They are together but alone.
It is slightly lighter outside.
It is really early but not morning yet.
Azula is together but alone with someone and she does not have a word to say.
She does not want to say anything, because it might make this mean something and Azula could not handle the idea of this meaning something.
But she doesn't wash the sand or stains out of her clothes.
Like some teenage girl in love.
Which Azula isn't.
She's just some teenage girl in lust which is completely appropriate and she is sure Fire Lord Sozin did this kind of thing with girls and it is not a problem.
But she doesn't think Ty Lee feels the same way. Azula should feel victorious, as she intended to. Azula did it because she wanted to do what Ty Lee allowed no one else to and therefore be better than all of those dreadful teenagers and prove to herself and Ty Lee that it is nothing but a royal exercising her power over a petty noble.
Ty Lee is clearly extremely unhappy.
Whenever she is in front of Azula, she tends to play up her cute, ditzy self who didn't know better with admirable acting skills. She brushes off the stains of time as something she just did for fun and isn't at all worried about.
It kind of makes Azula's stomach squirm, but she would not have this any other way.
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78. Daybreak
"Sunrise or sunset, princess?"
"Sunset."
"Really? But you and your firebending and sun spirits blessing you…"
"Sunset. Don't question me."
"I like sunsets too."