(Theme Eighty-Five) Kintsukuroi

(As Prompted By) ThisUnitHasNoSoul

Ty Lee loves gifts of all kinds, but she particularly loves wedding gifts. Because she loves weddings too, and it is the perfect combination of course. It is also delightful because she does not have to open the gifts in front of anyone, and so when she and Azula, or, mostly Azula, hate things, they do not have to pretend.

Or, Ty Lee does not have to pretend.

Azula is leaning, wrapped in the silk sheets, against the foot of the bed, with her legs on the stone floor. She has been interrupted from what was a perfect wedding night, because Ty Lee has very little patience. Azula humors her, because she thought the interruption would be brief.

It is not brief, and Azula intends to put an end to it, although finding the proper way to begin their marriage by telling her that she is bored by Ty Lee telling Azula about the things that excite her and would rather be in bed is... difficult.

However, the gifts all are clearly directed towards Ty Lee, and she seems to need to comment on all of them. Azula just waits, not bothering to look interested, but not portraying her usual disinterest either.

The things she does for love. Honestly, Azula has been given so many awards for what she does say.

But she should be given far more awards for the things she doesn't say.

Azula then picks up the gift from Iroh and the night takes a turn for the far less tedious.

"I think my uncle has finally truly gone senile. I've been saying it for years but no one believes me. What even is this? I mean, I know he has poor taste, but Ty Lee." Azula holds up the ugliest set of teapot and teacups and assorted tea paraphernalia she has ever seen.

"Wait, wait, no, he told me about those." Ty Lee rubs her face and tries to remember the very deep and long lecture he had with her while he showed them to her. "Ugh, there's like, I put notes on it inside of the package. What did you do with it?"

Azula glanced to her left. "I think that the wrapping paper was getting in our way."

Ty Lee looked at the ashes she did not notice while fawning over her gifts and narrowed her eyes in thought with her hands on her temples as if she could channel her supposed clairvoyance. She knew she could remember, while Azula was pretty certain that Uncle was just being cruel.

"This is hideous and I would say we should break it if it were not already broken and put together with deplorably poor craftsmanship. Perhaps he did it himself and considered it thoughtful? I think it is real gold, which is a shameful waste," Azula muses as she taps the teapot with one fingernail. "My brother could do a better job."

Ty Lee's face lights up. "No, no! It's broken intentionally!"

"That's what all people with no talent say when they suck at things." Azula shakes her head slowly with a faux expression of pity for Iroh.

Ty Lee makes a sound like a distressed cat as she tries to figure it out. She would literally kill for those notes.

"It's like symbolic," Ty Lee begins as Azula stares at her with low expectations. "Like, the tea stuff is broken, and then the gold is there so that it's prettier when it's put back together because of he said butterfly-moths are appreciated for their beauty but few people think about what they went through to get there? And like, uh, people, who cry over spilled tea, or no, he spilled tea on his hand when he was saying that I think, or maybe it was important..."

"This is trying to make sense of a madman's ravings." Azula shrugs. "Continue. It's funny."

"It's about like, gold being sparkly and so many proverbs I don't know, and, uh... Look, okay, he said you would like it and appreciate the depth and meaning!"

Azula sighs and breaks one of the teacups. "He thought I would like it?"

Ty Lee groans and lies down on the stacks of beautiful clothes she has set up in excitement.

"It seemed really nice at the time. When I had the notes."

She looks forlorn and Azula tries to think quickly of how to make her feel better.

Clearly, the teapot upsets her, and so Azula throws it onto the stone floor and watches it crack. Ty Lee sits up again and Azula thinks she might have made it worse, despite the smile of her new wife.

"That's the symbolism!"

"That I hate the gift so much that I broke it? Or was it like some kind of test to see if I would be willing to destroy things to make you happy. I am. I would destroy most things, and kill most people and fight most dangerous animals for your happiness."

"That's very sweet. But, no, it's like..." Ty Lee points at the rubble of the teapot several times as if it makes her point clearer. "See, now nobody can fix it or something! I don't know!"

"Hm." Azula gazes at it as Ty Lee seethes. "Right."

"And like, you can't, apologize to teacups."

"I'm aware. I have never apologized to a teacup I have broken before," Azula purrs calmly as she leans against the foot of the bed. "The gold might be nice if melted into something. I still have no idea."

Ty Lee gives it one more try. "Okay, so, if you were to apologize to the teapot."

"I'm not going to."

"I know! It wouldn't... be put back together!"

"Why do I care? If I broke it, why would I want it to be put back together?"

Ty Lee lies down again. "I don't know. He really tried."

Azula waits for a moment and then smirks. Ty Lee squints at her.

"I think we are done with gifts. Which is actually torturous, and your monotonous and horrible interruption that I tolerated because I am so kind and generous has clearly ended since that was incredibly entertaining, unlike... I lost count. I did." Azula gently presses her hand against where her heart would be if she had one and Ty Lee gives in, feeling defeated and annoyed.

"Let's do fun stuff!" the acrobat declares eagerly.

"Of course."

[X]

When Azula gets out of bed in the morning, she sees Ty Lee lying on her stomach, stretched across the mattress in a position that should not be attainable by humans, examining the broken glass and gold still. The princess's lip twists; she has no idea why Ty Lee cares so much.

"Why are you still sad about that worthless tea set?" Azula asks with an eyebrow cocked. She then rolls her eyes. "Fine. It's called kintsukuroi and it's when you repair broken bowls or pottery with gold or silver, in order to show some wise significance about how the piece is more beautiful for have being broken."

"Thank ─ you knew that the whole time?" Ty Lee is suddenly flushed for an entirely different reason than earlier. There is no way that Azula would just be fucking with her like...

No. No, that is exactly something that Azula would do. Ugh. If she were not so pretty and wonderful and perfect...

Azula hesitates briefly before doing an impression of Iroh that Ty Lee manages to not laugh at through steely willpower, "Oh, Prince Zuko, the one who falls and gets up is much stronger than the one who never fell..."

"That was a good impression but I can't believe you ─" Ty Lee says shrilly, but Azula refuses to stand down until Ty Lee forgets again. It should not be too difficult.

"A man who conquers himself is much greater than a man who conquers a thousand men in battle," she continues with more gravitas, "Prince Zuko, stop looking for happiness in the same place you lost it... Being happy does not mean that everything is perfect, it means that you have decided to look beyond your imperfections..."

Ty Lee picks at her lip as she thinks about Azula's impression for a moment. "Those are actually really good advice."

"No, not really. They make no sense and are no excuse for a last minute, pathetic wedding gift that he probably just grabbed off of his shelf." Azula rolls her eyes as she at last finds somewhat suitable clothing.

"I know someone who has done all of those things..." Ty Lee smirks. Smirks.

But Azula wins this round. "I know someone who I can very easily convince to give you lessons in slowly putting layers of paint onto teapots as he lectures about his life."

Ty Lee lies back down. Nope, not worth it.