Reprisal
18. Pretty
Ty Lee says to her princess, "I used to be so jealous of you. Everything about you really, but I was really jealous of how pretty you were. I wanted to be pretty like you."
"I have no idea why you desperately seek acknowledgment; I have slept with you, haven't I?"
"That's…" That was not the point. The point was going to be that Ty Lee always thought she was jealous, but, really, she now knows she was just in love.
Ty Lee thinks Azula already knows that.
She is as clever as she is pretty.
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19. Daddy
"So… you surrendered yourself to be your brother's pet because you want to fuck that circus freak who destroyed my empire," says Ozai.
Azula does not honestly know how to address that comment.
"I think you overestimate Ty Lee's power over the outcome of the war," she decides to reply.
He does not hesitate to retort, "I think you underestimate Ty Lee's power over you."
"This is not what I came here to tell you. I came here to tell you that I came home and sur-sur-surrendered because I am…" Azula freezes. "I am…" She now has changed her mind about telling him she is pregnant. "I am assured in my ability to manipulate Zuko and gain both autonomy and the comforts of being royalty."
Ozai of course knows that those words may be true, but they are not the ones she was going to tell him.
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20. Snowy
"I only miss one thing about Kyoshi Island," Ty Lee says, staring out of the window at the rain. "It snowed there this time of year. Here, we're lucky to get rain. I love the snow."
Azula does not look up from her book.
Ty Lee gets very tired of talking to the walls.
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21. Confusion
"But no girl is like Azula. None of them. No boys either. I mean, after having her they all just fall short. But I don't know if she likes me back," Ty Lee stammers, her words spontaneous.
Mai would comfort Ty Lee if she knew how.
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22. Compact
"Look what I found!" Ty Lee exclaims, running into Azula's room uninvited. She has something in the palm of her hand. Gold, studded with rubies.
She stands in front of Azula and opens it, revealing the mirror.
"I…" Azula does not know what it means.
Ty Lee just smiles, not giving Azula a single clue.
She edges over to stand by Azula and holds up the mirror. Azula touches her own hair; she does not look as fantastic as usual today.
"Don't we look so good together?" Ty Lee is so scared to say it.
"Yes," says Azula.
Ty Lee wants to scream for jo.
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23. Sleepover
"Why do you stay with me?" Azula inquires one night. "I am not screwing you anytime soon."
"It's just like an endless sleepover! How fun!" Ty Lee smiles.
She does not tell Azula that she is a prison warden.
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24. Touch
Ty Lee finishes brushing the gold flecks on Azula's eyelids. The princess missed having her makeup done for her. Of course, servants are better at it than Ty Lee, but she likes the touch. Coal black eyeliner, curled, darkened eyelashes.
When Ty Lee steps back, she thinks her heart will overflow, melted. Azula's is still frozen hard.
"Do you like it?" Ty Lee asks.
"It isn't bad," replies Azula.
"I only want to make you happy," says Ty Lee.
"Of course. Everyone does." Azula smirks. Ty Lee wonders if it is because she knows she is breaking Ty Lee's heart back.
Yes, it is definitely a subtle form of vengeance. Azula is going to keep doing this until she breaks Ty Lee the way Ty Lee broke her.
"Can I braid your hair?" Ty Lee asks, feigning eagerness.
"Yes," Azula assents.
Ty Lee's fingers run through the soft raven locks. She thinks she likes braiding Azula's hair even after her revelation.
Azula cannot break her that easily.
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25. Unpacking
Ty Lee unpacks at last one day.
Azula does not protest.
Maybe that is progress.
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26. Elsewhere
Azula is clearly extremely unhappy. Maybe anybody would be in her situation. She just sometimes does not know if she can bear being here anymore. Azula should never have returned.
"You look stressed out," Ty Lee says and Azula does not move. Sometimes she does that. Too often she does that.
"Of course I am. I am sick of my cage already. You cannot possibly fathom my frustration," says Azula coldly. Ty Lee bites her lip lightly.
"I wish we could go somewhere else."
"I wish I could go somewhere else."
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27. Glass Castles
"This kind of thing doesn't last. It breaks very easily," Azula says.
Ty Lee does not know what she is referring to, but she pretends to understand.
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28. Curtains
Ty Lee is stuck outside. Not just metaphorically this time.
She would so call it a fire curtain. Did she not call it that in the past? She thinks she did.
Azula did this in the past and loved Ty Lee, she thought. So, she stood there, and waited and waited for the princess to calm down.
When Azula stepped out, expecting Ty Lee to be gone, she nearly stepped on the acrobat's face. She then considered stepping on the acrobat's face, but decided against it.
"Why are you still here?" Azula demands.
"I'm just waiting for you."
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29. Midnight
They are alone.
It is really dark.
It is really late.
They are alone and Azula has not said a word.
She has not told Ty Lee why she is angry, and so Ty Lee cannot fix it.
Either way, Ty Lee is probably going to get murdered by midnight.
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30. Stains
They sleep together that night.
They pretend it did not happen, but there are actions you cannot wash away, ones that stain your heart and soul and life.
This is one of them.
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31. Daybreak
"Sunrise or sunset, princess?"
"Sunrise."
"Really? But you always said you liked sunset best before…"
"Sunrise. Don't question me."
"I like sunrises too."