Ember Island
Chapter 4
"…And each other."
Ty Lee wondered through the mansion searching for the one thing she couldn't seem to find: Azula. As of late, Ty Lee had seen less and less of the princess, it was like Azula was avoiding her. When she did manage to find her, be it during meals or a chance passing in the halls, she'd ask how she was and little pleasantries like that. Azula would answer with simple one word sentences and walk away; leaving Ty Lee confused and slightly hurt. The acrobat asked, several times, if she had done something to upset the princess. But Azula wouldn't answer and continue to pull away. It had been this way for weeks and Ty Lee was getting tired of this game. Something had to change. So, when her rounds of the mansion concluded she went into the kitchen, finding Une tossing a large salad. "Une," Ty Lee called lightly, as she approached the pale woman.
"Ty Lee." Une addressed back, not looking up from her work.
"You're always in the kitchen." She stated, getting distracted momentarily.
Une chuckled and answered simply, "I like to cook." Ty Lee nodded; she liked Une's cooking too. "Is there a reason you're here Ty Lee?"
Again the acrobat nodded and sighed heavily. "Yeah, have you seen Azula? I've looked everywhere."
The doctor hesitated as she thought. "Last I saw her she went outside." She answered vaguely, aware that Ty Lee had not looked there.
"Oh, thanks." The younger woman said but remained standing in the kitchen, swirling invisible circles on the hard wood counter.
Une eyed her for a second, as she continued to add things to the salad. "Trouble in paradise?" The pale woman noted, taking the heavy sigh from her company as a yes.
"She's been avoiding me and I can't for the life of me figure out why."
Une nodded. "Azula is on the beach, she's been sitting there for a while. Go talk to her and ignore anything she says that may push you away. She's been confused lately." Ty Lee stood in her place, registering what Une was saying. "Go." Une prompted, moving her hand in a shooing motion before Ty Lee could inquire any further.
"Alright, alright." Ty Lee replied with another heavy sigh as she moved to the door.
Her trek to the beach was slow as she thought about what she was going to say or do. Just like Une said Azula was sitting on the beach, where the sand met the grass. Idly the princess picked up a piece of yellow grass, plucking it from the ground. Ty Lee stayed on the path away from the princess, unsure if she should intrude on Azula's alone time, as she watched Azula, the sun casting her in hues of red and gold. "Ty Lee." Azula addressed, making the decision for her. "I know you're there."
Slowly, Ty Lee walked to the princess – careful of the slight dry sand dunes – sitting down beside her but not close enough to actually be touching her. "Hi." She started meekly.
"Hey." Azula answered back, her golden eyes never once looking at the acrobat.
The rustle of the wind through the grass and the waves crashing on the shore were the only sounds for the longest of times. It felt like an eternity to the acrobat. "Azula," Ty Lee intoned, touching the princess' arm lightly, pleased that Azula did not pull away. "Please, talk to me. Tell me what happened. What did I do?"
Azula turned to Ty Lee, her expression neutral but her aura clouded with doubt and confusion. "You betrayed me, Ty Lee. Why should I trust you? How do I know that you won't betray me again?"
Ty Lee was silent, gaining her bearings. She had hoped this conversation would never come up. "I wouldn't…"
"How do I know that? What proof can you give me?"
With smoky eyes cast to the ground Ty Lee sighed. "I don't know, aside from me just saying I won't." Those smoky eyes looked up into golden ones, the honesty in them almost making Azula believe. "But actions speak louder than words and I don't know what I can do to make you believe me."
Azula sighed, reminding herself that she was suppose to be angry with Ty Lee, though the acrobat was making it a difficult task to do. "Just tell me why you attack me."
Again Ty Lee sighed. That very question had haunted ever since she had done it. The guilt she felt only amplifying when she heard what happened to Azula after the war. She was pretty sure that she was the only one who was truly aware of the damage her actions caused. And couldn't help but think that if she were only closer to Mai none of it would have happened. "I just reacted. I could see in your aura that you didn't want to kill Mai, even though I'm pretty sure you would have, so I took the choice from you."
"Why? If you hadn't…"
"You remember when we were little in school and the teacher asked us what kind of person we wanted to be when we grew up?" Ty Lee interrupted.
Azula frowned at being interrupted but answered, "Yes. You said you wanted to be butterfly."
Ty Lee chuckled. "A pretty pink butterfly." She corrected. "And you didn't answer. But later when I asked you again you said that you wanted to be Fire Lord and the person you described was nowhere close to what you would have become if you had killed Mai."
"You don't know that and those were childish dreams Ty Lee."
The acrobat turned her gaze to the ocean and the setting sun. "Yes I do. And even if they were childish dreams that doesn't mean that somewhere deep down you still wanted to be that person."
The princess was silent, hating the fact that Ty Lee knew her so well and hating that she couldn't find it in herself to remain angry with her. As much as she loathed to admit it she depended on Ty Lee a great deal. After years of being bound in chains and the nearly endless delusions Ty Lee was her only constant, the only thing that never changed. The only one who never gave up on her, who was always there even if Azula couldn't remember most of it. Even when she was growing up Ty Lee was the one she would tell everything to, all her hopes and dreams – however vague and childish they may have been. It was always Ty Lee, the one person who knew her better than anyone else. Azula sighed, "You said you joined to Kyoshi warriors after that war."
"I did." Ty Lee smiled, happy for the change of subject but cautious of the subject topic.
"Did they trust you, given everything?" Azula inquired, picking up another piece of grass and twiddling it between her fingers, watching it slowly burn to ash.
Ty Lee nodded, leaning forward so that her chin was resting on her knees. "Yeah, well most of them. Suki and I became really close and the ones I was locked up with liked me a lot."
"So you were happy there?" the princess asked, turning her gaze to the blood soaked ocean – the sun just touching the surface of the waves.
"I guess." Ty Lee answered honestly. "It was different from the Fire Nation, greener, colder. And honestly that heavy white makeup was not good for my complexion."
"But you still wore it." Azula pointed out, with a soft chuckle.
"Yeah, after a while you got use to things like the weather and the makeup. I had a good time with them and learned a lot of new things. Like that pickpocket trick." She chuckled. "That was actually one of the first things I learned."
"Why didn't you stay with them, if you loved it so much?" Azula inquired defensively.
The acrobat hesitated, glancing at Azula's profile and debating if she should tell the whole truth. She looked back at the water, picking her words carefully. "It wasn't the same. I did love it and I still do. But it was a request from the Fire Lord…"
"Zuko requested you to help me?"
Ty Lee nodded. "He said that you responded to Mai and that you might respond to me better. We were always pretty close growing up." The acrobat bumped shoulders with the princess, but Azula didn't respond. This knowledge hurt her more than she cared to admit and she was finding it much easier to be angry with the girl beside her. Ty Lee caught on quickly, watching her princess' aura fluctuate and realized she had said something to hurt Azula. So, with tact she wasn't use to showing she chuckled and said, "Of course, everyone told me not to come. When Suki found out we got into a pretty big fight. She didn't understand why I was leaving so soon."
This confused the princess, "What?"
"As soon as I got the request I left. Nobody knew about you, you know. Zuko kept it pretty under wraps. A few rumors would leak but nothing substantial. When I found out what had really happened I left as soon as I could."
Ty Lee glanced at Azula's aura, seeing it calm to a smooth blue and smiled to herself. "And the fight with whats-her-name?" Azula asked, so she could make an informed decision on whether or not she could trust this woman beside her. Azula expected Ty Lee to giggle and recount a little girly squabble. If nothing else she figured she would get a few laughs out of this. Instead, the acrobat groaned lightly, hitting her head on her knee lightly. "Tell me the truth Ty Lee."
Grey eyes looked at Azula, the grim look telling the convalescent that she didn't want to recount this tale. "Do I have to?" Ty Lee whined.
"Yes." Azula said unwavering in her demand.
Ty Lee sighed.
~flashback~
The sun shone brightly through the cloudless sky, the cool air crisp and slightly chilly, but a perfect day to sleep in, especially since she didn't have any sessions till around lunch. At least, that's what she wanted to think as she pulled the stiff covers over her head and turned on her side, trying to find a comfortable position on her hard bedding. It was times like this she wished she was home with her silk pillows and covers and soft fluffy bed. When sleep was not forthcoming she simply lay on her bed, listening to the sounds of the early morning. Most everyone in the small village was already awake and moving around, their day started far earlier. But not her, not that that was unusual, she liked to sleep in. "Ty Lee." she heard the familiar voice of her captain call her to the waking world and felt the gloved hands shake her shoulders when she didn't respond. "Damn it Ty Lee, wake up." The acrobat didn't move. "You got a letter from Zuko."
The sound of a rolled up scroll waving in the air snapped the acrobat from her dazed state. Suki chuckled when the letter was suddenly not in her hand anymore and her newest warrior was sitting up in her bunk, her long hair shooting in all directions even though it was still braided. Ty Lee broke the official seal of the Fire Lord without a second thought and read through the slow deliberate script quickly. Her gasp drew Suki's attention to her. "What does it say?"
Without answering Ty Lee threw the covers to the side, setting her bare feet onto the cold ground and didn't complain like she usually did. "I have to go back home." She answered, pulling a small bag from under her mattress and stuffing her few things in it.
"Why? Ty Lee, answer me!" Suki demanded.
"She needs me." Ty Lee answered, handing the parchment to her captain.
Suki read the letter carefully, reading it a second time just to make sure she understood what was going on. "Ty Lee, you can't be serious! This is Azula we're talking about. It sounds like she got what she deserved."
Ty Lee ground her teeth together to stop herself from saying something harsh. She looked at her captain, reminding herself that she didn't know what Azula was really like. "That's not nice. No one deserves that." She pulled on the dark green kimono of her uniform, too much in a rush to realize that she was putting on her Kyoshi uniform.
"Ty Lee, come on, think this through." Suki tried to argue. "Look, I'm sure if we band together we can convince Zuko that you don't need to be there. Azula's his problem not yours."
"You're wrong and I'm going." Ty Lee remarked finally.
"This is a mistake." Suki admitted.
"You don't know that." Ty Lee argued.
Suki rolled her eyes, annoyed and surprised that Ty Lee was being so stubborn and unrelenting about this. "How could it be anything but? It's not like things have changed, she's not any different. You'll only get hurt." The Kyoshi Warrior remarked, truly worried for her friend, she knew how the acrobat felt about the former princess – it was pretty damn obvious. When Ty Lee still continued to pack, the only boat to the Fire Nation leaving in a few hours, she tried a different route. "She's a monster Ty Lee. That hasn't changed."
"Don't say that." Ty Lee growled, the sudden anger from the usually happy girl surprising Suki into silence. "She's not a monster. You weren't there when she was growing up. You didn't see the things I saw. You don't know her!"
"She locked you up." Suki yelled.
"But she didn't have me beaten." Ty Lee offered, her anger dying as she failed to suppress her tears. "All she did was have me locked away and given what I did it could have been much worse, it should have been much worse. I should have died from the lashes I should have received for attacking a member of the royal family. But I didn't. I was even allowed to join the main population only after a short while."
"Ty Lee…" the warrior whispered, she didn't know that. She touched a gloved hand to her forehead and sighed, "Alright. Okay. I can see there's no stopping you. Just…" Suki exhaled heavily. "Just promise me that if things get to bad you'll leave. She's not the person you remember. And you're always welcome here."
Ty Lee smiled at her captain, so glad that the argument was over and that she understood as best she could. "Thank you." She said, embracing the older woman.
~End Flashback~
"And that's what happened? You came racing back to me." Azula noted, a bit amused.
Ty Lee smiled at Azula's pleased aura. "More or less. And once I saw that pathetic excuse of a cell you were in I went to Zuko and demanded to have you put in a better one."
"I vaguely remember that." Azula admitted. "The moving to a new cell, I mean."
The acrobat nodded. "You were pretty lucid that day. Well, more lucid than you had been the first couple of weeks I was with you."
"But she was right you know. I am a monster."
Ty Lee frowned and shook her head. "You've said that before. You have to know that's not true. I don't believe it and you shouldn't either. If you do then you should talk to Une about it."
The princess chuckled, easily relenting seeing as Une said the same thing. Two versus one or whatever. "You're right, of course."
"I know." Ty Lee agreed happily.
Azula sighed. She understood why Ty Lee had stayed with her while she was less than lucid but she didn't get why she was still here. Not that she wanted Ty Lee to go anywhere, but she would like to know what kept the woman there. "What do you want from me, Ty Lee?"
Without even batting an eye the former Kyoshi Warrior answered, "I want you to be happy. No one deserves that more than you."
"And if I told you that you leaving would make me happy?" Azula tried, having no intention of making the only person who mattered in her life leave but still wanting to know what she'd say.
"I would leave." Ty Lee admitted. "I would hate it but I would leave."
Again Azula shook her head. "I just don't understand you."
Ty Lee smiled. "I'm not that hard to understand. It's simple really when you take into account that I…I love you."
The confession stunned the princess and she only stared at Ty Lee for a good long time before finally saying, "What?"
Ty Lee blushed, keeping her eyes on the ground as she repeated her confession – oh so glad she could read auras. Otherwise she might think the worst in this situation. "I love you." She said, more confident than before but still barely above a whisper.
Azula leaned towards her friend, forcing Ty Lee to look at her. "Say it again." She demanded, their breathe mingling.
"I love you." Ty Lee repeated, grey eyes half lidded as Azula moved closer with each syllable.
The kiss was simple, a light peck on the lips that lasted only a half-second longer than usual, but it was sensual and gentle, saying all the things Azula would probably never say out loud; I trust you, I forgive you, I love you. Ty Lee couldn't help but shudder at the simple kiss, feeling the electricity wrap like barbed wire all through her body and couldn't stop the tears that leaked from her smoky eyes. She had only dreamed that she would be forgiven so easily. A hand warmer than any the acrobat had ever known brushed the tears away, fingertips lingering to caress the soft flesh lightly. One look into those molten gold eyes and all of her fears and inhibitions melted away.
She wasn't sure why this scenario was any different from the others but when the acrobat pulled the princess into a more involved kiss, finding her way into Azula's lap, and running her hands under the edge of the red tunic – lightly touching bare skin – Azula did not stop her. Instead, the princess' hands pressed flat against Ty Lee's bare stomach, the toned muscles tensing under her warm touch, and moved up over ribs – stopping at the edge of pink fabric. She only hesitated for a moment before deftly continuing her trek. When those warm hands gently palmed a pair of soft flesh Ty Lee moaned but pulled back slightly – her hands coming to grasp Azula's wrists but not pulling them from under her shirt. "Azula, wait." She protested weakly, suppressing another moan as Azula disobeyed her and kneaded the other woman's plump breast. "Azula." She drawled, unable to stop her back from arching into the princess, the action bringing a smirk to Azula's lips. "Are you su…"
In an instant Ty Lee was on her back, Azula looming over her – the smirk still firmly tugging on her lips. "You talk too much." Azula answered as she withdrew one hand and proceeded to burn a line down the middle of the top, pushing it apart to reveal a chest sculpted by the gods.
"That was my favorite top." Ty Lee whined lightly, not really caring as that same hand ran a trail down her stomach to her pants, igniting the nerves under the smooth flesh.
The smirk widened as the princess leaned down and captured the acrobat's lips in a searing kiss, distracting her as the pants soon joined the top. "Hush." Azula demanded lightly, her lips and tongue assaulting the pulsing vein in her neck making her moan again.
"Azula wait." Ty Lee protested again, pushing lightly against Azula's shoulders and making her growl.
"What?" She snapped, even though she was very pleased with the dark mark she left on Ty Lee's neck.
The acrobat whimpered lightly as the cooling air hit her hot very naked body. "You're wearing too much." She stated simply, noticing that Azula was still very clothed.
With a lifted amused eyebrow the princess easily tore her clothing from her body, the dying sun casting her pale skin in tones of red and gold. "Better?" She inquired though she didn't expect an answer from her lover seeing as the acrobat seemed to be in some sort of awed shock.
It wasn't like it was the first time Ty Lee had seen Azula without clothing on but by the look on Ty Lee's face one would not have been able to tell. The princess only chuckled; feeling invigorated and empowered by her companion's expression. She enjoyed the whimper the acrobat produced when she returned to her original position, hot porcelain skin flush against warm peach. Grey eyes looked up into golden ones, telling her silently how much she wanted this. Azula smiled, leaning down to the mark on Ty Lee's neck and nipped it lightly, making Ty Lee wince. "No more stopping." Azula demanded and Ty Lee only nodded, her hands finding a temporary place on Azula's bare hips – barely able to believe that this was actually happening. "Good."
TBC
A/N: Yes, I know, I'm evil. Mwahahaha *cough*.
Anyways, someone informed me that Azula isn't as tall as I thought she was. Well, I knew she was short but 5 foot, seriously. She's shorter than me and that's saying something, no wonder she's such a bitch. So, I was talking with my friends telling them that if she was that short at 14 there was really no logical way for her to shoot up seven inches while being malnourished in a prison/sanitarium. Maybe two inches if she was lucky but not seven. Then one of my friends said 'steroids' and I'm like perfect. I know nearly nothing about steroids. All I know is that they make you bigger (unless we're talking about the nether regions of the male gender). So that's totally the reason she's 5'7" now. Not that it would have changed had I not come up with a reason. I like her tall, I always imagined she'd be tall, so she's staying tall.