Chapter 17
Ty Lee had just finished having lunch over at Mai's house on a chilly winter day. She'd been trying to visit the young diplomat a little more frequently, knowing that her friend suffered from chronic boredom. And although Mai might never admit it openly, she enjoyed the chatty company.
Not much was new in Mai's world. She had just returned from an assignment in the Earth Kingdom and would be going back during the next week or so. Even four years after the war, there was a lot of damage that still needed repairing between the two nations. Despite Mai's less than cheery personality and her hatred of politics, she was surprisingly good at her job. Perhaps her dissociative demeanor helped her see things more rationally than others might. Ty Lee had no idea, she was just happy her friend was doing well.
Now the former acrobat had set off for another visit to the mental institution. Ever since she gave Azula the royal crest a couple weeks ago, the princess had been strangely content and non-confrontational. It was a little odd, but in a welcome way. Ty Lee found conversation easier than ever and though Azula still made the occasional snide remark at her, it was usually just for fun.
She smiled, walking through the outskirts of the city towards the docks. Today she felt optimistic about asking Dr. Liu for a favor. Azula had been exceptionally normal these past few weeks. As far as Ty Lee knew, she hadn't had any intense hallucinations and though her leg remained bandaged, it was healing well. The only unfortunate thing was that Azula still continued to burn her neck and shoulders for reasons unknown. Both Ty Lee and the doctor had tried multiple times to ask about the burns, but Azula always responded identically: they were the result of nightmares.
Ty Lee had always been skeptical of that answer, but now it made even less sense to her. Azula hadn't been suffering from major hallucinations and according to Dr. Liu, her nightmares were probably decreasing as well. So she was probably consciously burning herself. But the reasoning still eluded them.
She supposed it didn't matter too much. The burns were never serious and Azula had a nice thick blanket to deal with her room's temperature. Besides, her overall attitude had improved immensely with the crest. For now, though she was still concerned, Ty Lee told herself to try and stop bothering the princess about them.
She made her way to the docks, boarded the ferry, and spent the ride thinking of her pleasant afternoon with Mai.
Mai… I still haven't talked to Azula about what happened between them. She was reluctant to bring that subject up, afraid it would kill whatever good mood had surged inside the princess. But she knew she couldn't just let it go either. One of these days...
Her feet had carried her to the first gate of the facility while she was deep in thought. Passing through, she waved to the guards at each gated ring and knocked on the frosted door of Dr. Liu's office. A muffled voice called for her to come in.
He looked up from a patient's file and ruffled his dark gray hair, "Ah, good morning. You may proceed downstairs."
Ty Lee smiled and brushed her long braid over her shoulder before sitting down across from the doctor. Okay, just be brave and ask. It's not a big deal. If he says no, he says no.
Dr. Liu looked at her curiously before she spoke, "Actually, I was wondering if I could ask you a favor. See, Azula's been doing really well recently and I thought it might be nice to sort of reward her for good behavior, you know? So, um, I thought maybe you might let her take a walk with me up here or-or maybe even let her get a breath of fresh air?" She bit her lip and tried to keep her hands from fidgeting in her lap. Jeez, I'm not asking for her release, just relax!
The doctor leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. He closed his eyes and seemed to consider Ty Lee's question seriously. She was grateful for that. An immediate rejection was always disheartening.
It was a few more seconds before he responded, "I can allow a walk on this floor, but I'm afraid letting her outside is still not possible. You will be escorted by the two guards from her room at all times and she will have to be in the straightjacket. Perhaps you can spend some time in the patient common room? She hasn't been in there yet."
Ty Lee's eyes lit up and she bowed her head, "Oh, perfect. Thank you so much!" She stood quickly and Dr. Liu did the same.
"I'll go down there with you and inform the guards of their instructions."
The pair left the office and set off down the hallway. Dr. Liu stopped at the common room and saw that it was unoccupied. He was glad this was the case, as he wasn't entirely sure how the patients would react to seeing Azula. Or what Azula would do in the presence of other patients. He also quickly stepped into Minah's room and retrieved the straightjacket.
They descended the staircases to the sixth floor basement. Ty Lee practically jumped down the last few steps and tore down the hallway to Azula's room. Kai smiled, happy that someone was concerned about the well being of his most stubborn patient.
Ty Lee bounced through the metal door and ran up to the bars. Azula looked up lazily from her position in the middle of the floor.
"What has you so excited?" she sneered and eyed Ty Lee with suspicion.
"I'm taking you out!" she chimed with a smile that stretched from ear to ear.
Azula stood stiffly, her leg still bothering her a bit. The random shocks of pain had died down, but there was a lingering tightness that had yet to dissipate. She had forced herself to refuse sedation for the healing sessions, though her heart and mind still raced when the healer encased her leg in water. And, being awake, she was pleased to see that her foot and leg had lost their reddish-pink coloring. The thin jagged lines were still visible, but continued to fade with each treatment. Azula hoped they would not scar.
She picked up the crutch next to her and walked up to meet Ty Lee, "Out?"
Ty Lee was bursting with joy, "Yes! I asked Dr. Liu if we could go for a little walk inside and he agreed. Are you excited? I am!" She clasped her hands together, probably trying to keep herself from tearing apart at the seams with excitement.
Only then did Azula notice Kai whispering to the guards in the hallway. His eyes met hers and he frowned.
"Can you walk without the crutch?" he walked into the room, addressing Azula.
Azula also noticed the straightjacket he clutched in his hand. Ah, so he wants me restrained. Well, I'm sorry doctor, not today.
"Of course, especially if it means hopping up multiple flights of stairs with no arms for balance or holding the railing," she grinned sarcastically.
Kai flushed slightly and cleared his throat, "That's alright. I will have other measures taken once you and Lady Ty Lee are settled in the common room." He stood next to Ty Lee and unlocked the barred door, swinging it open to allow Azula to pass through.
The group of five proceeded out the door and to the right, entering the staircase that Azula had yet to set foot in. Just before the stairs was a small door, propped open to reveal a storage closet full of cleaning supplies and, Azula narrowed her eyes, that dreadful metal chair. Kai led the way up the stairs, followed by Azula and Ty Lee, the two guards bringing up the rear. Azula still hated using the crutch, but she had gotten much better at it and was keeping up easily with the rest of the group. Ty Lee meanwhile, had to refrain from linking arms with the princess as they walked. She figured it would throw her off balance.
They ascended the stairs and came out on the ground level, right near the front desk. Right near the front entrance.
Azula paid close attention to everything about this area of the building. The woman at the front desk was quite small with short black hair and vibrant green eyes. Kai leaned down to whisper something in her ear. Her hands were calloused, rough looking, and Azula was certain the woman was an earthbender. Judging by the structure of this place, she probably could manipulate metal to some extent as well. Better avoid her if I come this way.
She noticed heavy metal doors that probably lead outside. Fresh air… A shiver shook down her spine at the thought of standing beneath the sun again. Floors and floors of metal interference gone.
They continued to walk down the hallway and Azula saw a frosted glass paneled door with Dr. Kai Liu engraved on it. There were a few other closed doors with no labels, probably supply closets or visitor's rooms. Then she passed a more familiar section of this floor, the patient care room to her left, the healer's room opposite that, and then Kai stopped outside of the white padded room that Azula caught sight of the day after the lightning.
He opened the door and they entered the bright room. It was completely deserted of any other people, but there were several cards and game pieces scattered on the carpeted floor. Clearly, the room got plenty of use throughout the day by patients not being smothered by their brothers.
A few white cushy couches faced each other with a large coffee table between them and there were several sets of metal chairs and tables for pairs to sit at. Along the walls were numerous shelves of games, colored paints, and books. All of this would probably have been appreciated by the princess, but her immediate attention was focused elsewhere.
This room jutted out a little further than the adjacent rooms to accommodate a magnificent window which stretched across the entirety of the west side of the room. The glass was impressively thick and immaculately clean. Azula found her eyes glued to this glimpse into the outside world. A place she hadn't seen in so long, she'd almost forgotten it was real. She drifted over to the glass and stared at the luminous sphere of yellow-white light in the sky for the first time in years.
Her blood tingled. Pleasurable chills shot through her veins and she inhaled deeply, feeling her old power stretch and wake within her. She lowered her eyes after several moments and saw the dull winter green of Fire Nation trees lining the sides of the building's lawns. And then her heart skipped a beat. She saw the gates Ty Lee mentioned. She saw the guards Ty Lee mentioned. She saw everything outside of this building. It was too much and she bit the inside of her cheek to keep from eliciting a suspiciously manic sound.
The door to the room shut as Kai reentered. Apparently the man had left at some point during her window gazing. She'd traveled into her own blissful dimension for a few minutes, a thick panel of glass and a bum leg separating her from freedom.
Azula spun around and made her way back over to the quartet. They were observing her silently and she rolled her eyes at the misty look Ty Lee was giving her.
Kai was clasping a pair of handcuffs and a thick chain, "You'll have to remain in these as long as you're in here. They'll still allow you relative freedom to move your hands for games or reading, but we'll also have to secure them to the table."
She looked around the room and discovered that the metal chairs and tables were bolted to the floor, immoveable. There were little loops of wrought iron welded to the furniture, where she supposed the chain could be slipped through.
Azula sighed and held her hands out while Kai cuffed the metal tightly around her wrists. He led her over to a table and chairs by the window and secured her in place. Then nodding to the guards, now stationed beside the door, he exited the room.
Ty Lee hopped over to her, "So what do you want to do? There are a lot of books that you might like. Or I think I saw a Pai Sho board, we could play that, even though I know you'll beat me in ten moves."
Azula was barely listening, her gaze still focused on what lay beyond the window. "Pai Sho is fine."
Ty Lee grabbed a set off of one of the large shelves and brought it back over to the table. Azula was gazing unblinkingly out at the sun, golden eyes illuminated like two tiny suns themselves. It's the first time she's seen the outdoors in more than four years. I'd probably stare a lot too.
She set the board up and began divvying out the pieces, realizing quickly that they were short several tiles.
"Oh, we're missing a bunch. They must be all over the floor somewhere. I can go look for them—"
"No, it's fine. Go get a book to read or something, I think I'll just look here for a while," she was speaking softly. Ty Lee waved a hand in front of her face and Azula scowled, "What?"
She withdrew her hand and smiled, "Just checking."
Ty Lee put the game back into its little box and got up to peruse the bookshelves for something else. In the end, she decided painting would be the most fun to do by herself, as it seemed like Azula only had eyes for the window at the moment. Ty Lee selected a little rolled up canvas and some nice pastel colored paints, bringing them back over to where Azula sat as still as a statue.
The former acrobat was astonishingly silent and occupied herself with random doodles and a painting of a pretty meadow full of flowers with a stream nearby. She was not particularly talented at painting, but it was fun to try. Ty Lee was half tempted to paint the princess sitting across from her, but given her skills, figured she didn't want to butcher Azula's good looks.
Azula was grateful that Ty Lee wasn't filling the air with pointless drabble. The unusual quiet was nice, especially paired with the view. She couldn't take her eyes off of the sun, drinking in all of its distant power. Was it always so bright? Did it always have that little ring around it? I feel sorry I haven't seen it for so long.
She laughed abruptly. Apologizing to the sun, I guess I'm in the right place after all.
Ty Lee glanced up at the sound and couldn't help feeling heat rise in her cheeks. Azula wasn't smiling, but her face was free of worry and anger, her black hair was shining luminously in the rays of the sun. She looked so healthy.
They sat like that for quite a long time: Ty Lee painting and stealing glances at the princess, Azula looking at everything in sight beyond the glass.
The room was soon coated in the rich red-orange color of the rapidly setting sun.
Ty Lee finally broke the comfortable silence, "I should probably head out if I want to catch the last ferry." She blew gently on her finished painting, urging it to dry faster.
Azula ripped her eyes away from the window for the first time in a couple hours, "Alright."
"Here!" Ty Lee pushed the art across the table to Azula, "You can hang it up in your room. Even though it's not as depressing as it used to be, you could still use some wall decorations."
The princess examined it, "What is it? A bunch of seaweed?"
Ty Lee gasped, offended, "What, no! It's a meadow and there's even a little stream nearby. See?" She pointed out all of the clearly depicted features.
"A meadow of seaweed."
Ty Lee gently hit Azula's shoulder, "Hey, not everyone is as perfect at everything as you are."
"Apparently not," Azula smirked.
Standing up, Ty Lee put a hand on her hip, "Want me to walk with you back downstairs?"
"No. I'm going to stay here," she flicked her head at the sunset. Ty Lee grinned.
"Who knew you were so sappy about a giant fireball floating in the sky?" Azula glared but said nothing. "Alright, well, I'll see you next weekend then. Don't wrinkle that painting up!"
Ty Lee leaned down and quickly kissed the top of Azula's head before turning to walk out of the room. One of the guards told her to inform Dr. Liu that she was on her way out, so she stopped by his office.
"How was she this evening?" Dr. Liu was standing at one of his large file cabinets, sorting through the information of a few different patients.
"She was fine, really quiet. She just looked out the window the whole time while I painted. I gave the picture to her to put up in her room, if that's okay."
Dr. Liu nodded and they parted ways. Ty Lee walked with light feet all the way down to the ferry, glancing a few times back at the building and hoping to catch a glimpse of a sun-obsessed princess.
Kai returned to the common room after another half hour and found Azula still staring out the window. The sky outside was a thin swatch of vibrant red being slowly consumed by a gradient of blues. He approached her and sat down in Ty Lee's seat.
"Ready to go?"
Azula's eyes remained fixed outside, "Once the sun sets."
Kai stayed and they both watched the sun dip below the gates outside, plunging the common room into navy shadows. Dr. Liu gave her another ten or so minutes past the sunset and then unlocked the cuffs and chain tying her to the table. He handed her crutch over and both of them, plus the guards, walked out of the room. Azula quickly glanced behind her and saw the vacant front desk. The group descended to Azula's room.
Once inside, Azula flopped down on her bed, massaging her stiff leg. Kai was about to walk out of the room before he remembered Ty Lee's painting still sitting at the table upstairs, "Do you want me to bring Lady Ty Lee's painting down here for you?"
Azula had honestly forgotten about it, "Not tonight. You can keep it in your office for now."
"Are you sure? She seemed quite intent on you having it."
"Later," Azula looked pointedly at him, a request on her mind, "The next time she comes here, I'd like to be alone with her. For more than five minutes. No jacket."
Kai wrinkled his nose, "I think that's a bit of a far-fetched demand. I have to look out for her safety, why would I allow such a thing?"
"She gave me something and I want to return the favor in one of the only ways I can. I won't hurt her, just the opposite in fact," she grinned at the look on Kai's face. "You have my word."
"The painting? I don't think a drawing warrants a solitary visit—"
"The sun."
Azula's golden eyes stared into the doctor's. He was taken aback at her sudden sentimentality and found it hard to find a reason to refuse. Ty Lee's insistence on a walk had indeed given Azula something so obviously important to her, and probably most firebenders. Four years without seeing the sun or anything that the outdoors had to offer. Four years of being surrounded by glinting gray metal. Azula interrupted his considerations.
"I won't ask again. This would be the only time."
Kai exhaled and squeezed the bridge of his nose, "Alright. A single one-on-one visit."
Azula went back to loosening up her leg's muscles. It seems these weeks of being a nice little princess might pay off. As long as I can keep Father away, everything should be fine.
Kai left the room, a foreboding feeling flourishing in his gut.