A.N. Hello everyone! This is my first not-a-oneshot Avatar fanfiction, so I'm very pleased with the supportive reviews I've gotten so far! In case you didn't figure it out, anything written in italics is from the 'present' time, i.e. right after Azula and Co. burn down Chan's house. The rest is one big flashback. Anyway, thanks for reading and please leave reviews!
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Chapter 2: Passing Time
"I-I'm sorry about what I said earlier."
"That's okay. I forgive you. It's not a big deal, everyone calls me a circus freak at one point or another."
She couldn't believe he was apologizing. Out of all the years she'd known him, she'd only ever seen him apologize once; to his father. She met his amber eyes and the dark lapping waves on the shore floated away and left the two of them in darkness. She was swallowed up by his aura, so close to her that it made her shiver.
They were standing outside the ruins of the party. Fire crackled behind them and she heard a crash somewhere inside. She thought it must be the girls giving the place some last finishing touches. But all that didn't really matter to her at the moment.
She was dangerously close to being lost completely in the boy's gaze. So she broke eye contact with him and faced the sea, ignoring the cold air that seeped over her body from the salty breeze. She forced a smile upon her face. She had to keep up appearances, if not anything else.
"I love the ocean! It's so...bubbly!"
He grunted something in response and then turned away, walking back toward the burning building. His aura left a path of chaos in the air behind him.
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The next day Ty Lee awoke to a chorus of chirping birds sitting outside her window. She rolled gracefully out of bed and landed on the floor with a soft thump. The guest room she was staying in was huge: billowing curtains, Fire Nation decor, crimson bedspreads, and large mahogany chests.
Smiling, Ty Lee stuck her hand underneath her pillow and withdrew a small cloth bag. Tiptoeing over to the open window, she brushed the thick curtains asides with one smooth motion from her wrist. Ty Lee opened the bag and placed her fingers inside, pulling out a handful of tiny round seeds.
"Here you go birds!" she said, scattering the seeds on the grassy ground outside her window on the first floor.
Ty Lee watched with her hands resting on her cheeks as the chirping birds settled down on the pelt of grass and began to peck up the little black seeds. She loved birds so much. She loved all animals. Especially the cute ones. When the birds had finished eating, they glanced at Ty Lee appreciatively and then flapped away into the sky. Ty Lee was glad to see that the sun was out again, casting its warm glow all over the palace. It was another beautiful day.
Ty Lee bounced over to the wooden cabinet in the corner of her room and quickly changed, pulling on the softest, most comfortable clothes she owned. She wanted to be able to play without being hampered by her stiffer, more ceremonial robes and gowns.
She was glad that her parents had decided to let her spend the summer at the palace with Azula and Mai. All three girls were starting school in the fall and Ty Lee's parents and Mai's parents had sent them to stay with Azula until the Royal Fire Academy for Girls started up again.
"Ty Lee! Are you awake yet?" Azula's voice made Ty Lee jump; she hadn't heard her friend coming.
The door to her room burst open as the little black-haired girl stomped into the room, already dressed with her hair done, her everyday outfit cleaned and silky. Azula frowned when she saw the window open and then walked over and closed it with a snap.
"You'll get sick if you leave the window open all night," she proclaimed, "let's go. Mai's waiting for us in my room."
"What are we doing?" Ty Lee asked, pulling her pretty pink shoes on her feet and wiggling them around in the air, admiring the glimmer of light bouncing off the silk material.
"My dad's having an important war meeting," Azula explained, looking down disapprovingly at Ty Lee's shoes, "we're going to sneak in and listen."
"Oh, but won't we get in trouble?" Ty Lee said anxiously. Her mother and father would be furious if they found out she'd caused trouble. Or maybe they wouldn't. Who could tell what would set them off.
"No dum-dum, they're not going to see us," Azula said, not trying to hide the contempt in her voice, "now hurry up. It's starting any minute now and I know the best hiding place."
Azula seized Ty Lee's hand and yanked her out of the room, not pausing to give her time to comb back and braid her hair. Azula's hand was surprisingly cold and Ty Lee wondered if her friend was getting a fever. But Azula's eyes were gleaming with their normal determined stare and her paces were quick and steady. She dragged Ty Lee along the corridor and turned sharply, leading her into an enormous room.
"Wow Azula, your bedroom is amazing!" Ty Lee exclaimed, looking over the intricately patterned canopy bed and dark wooden ceiling.
"Yes I know," Azula snapped, gesturing to the bored-looking girl sitting on her bed, "come on Mai, let's go. Miss Pretty Princess here was taking forever to change."
Ty Lee smiled at Mai. She too, looked primped and polished. There were no grass stains on Mai's pants, like there were on Ty Lee's. And Mai's hair was smoothed down and tamed, unlike Ty Lee's wildly long brown locks cascading over her shoulder. Ty Lee wished Azula had at least let her tie her hair up into a ponytail.
"So, who else is going to this war meeting?" Mai asked, as Azula exited the room, still pulling Ty Lee after her.
"If you mean Zuko, no he's not coming," Azula said testily.
"I wasn't talking about him!" Mai protested, her cheeks flushing red.
Ty Lee giggled. "You always blush when you're thinking about Zuko," she observed, "and you're definitely thinking about him now!"
"Shut up, both of you," Mai muttered.
Azula and Ty Lee exchanged a look but the three girls kept walking at a swift pace. Azula took the lead, finally dropping Ty Lee's hand, and showed the other two into a small side-chamber a few corridors away from her room.
"This is where the servants enter to bring my father food and drink," Azula explained, tugging Ty Lee and Mai into the cramped dark space.
A single spindly table sat in the corner. A silver tray with a glided jug sat on the table besides a waxy candle that wasn't lit. Azula snapped her fingers near the wick of the candle and a small flame burst into life, lighting the room up with a pasty yellow glow. Azula closed the door and motioned for the girls to be silent. Ty Lee felt her heart thumping with excitement. It was always fun to play with Azula. She came up with the coolest things to do.
Mai turned and pulled out a thin fletched dart out from inside her robe. She inserted the dart into the lock on the inside of the door and with a swift movement and a click, the door was locked. Ty Lee smiled. Mai was so talented. She had a knack for aim and accuracy with sharp pointed objects.
Azula nodded her approval of Mai's action and then placed her hands on the wall, obviously feeling for something. Ty Lee watched as Azula's fingers hit a groove in the wooden wall. The Fire Nation princess scratched at the groove, digging her long fingernails into the crack. Finally, she managed to slid part of the wall back, letting even more light spill into the closet-sized room. Ty Lee stared wondrously at the secret wall. It was undetectable to anyone who didn't know it was there.
"Follow me and stay quiet," Azula whispered, stepping out of the room.
Ty Lee sprang out of the side-chamber with agility, making no noise as her feet landed on the stone floor. Slinking after Azula, Ty Lee had no trouble staying quiet. Her training as an acrobat paid off; she could be incredibly light on her toes.
The room they had entered took Ty Lee's breath away. It was surrounded by tall marble pillars (which the girls were currently hiding behind) and long, wall to floor cloth banners, portraying the insignia of the Fire Nation upon red satin. The floor was made of a dark wood and a screaming wall of fire encircled what Ty Lee knew to be Fire Lord Ozai's throne. A long, low table stretched across the middle of the room. Scarlet cushions bordered the table and Ty Lee could just see maps spread out over the tabletop. The entire room was lit by harsh torchlight coming from each pillar. Men already were seated around the table, their hard faces frowning at the maps in front of them. Ty Lee couldn't make out Fire Lord Ozai among the men and realized that he must be sitting on his throne, overseeing the meeting.
Azula beckoned her finger at Ty Lee and Mai and crept further along until she came to one of the long Fire Nation banners. Shooting a sly look at the serious war generals, Azula disappeared behind the banner. Ty Lee bit her lip to suppress her excitement and then somersaulted over to where Azula had vanished, followed more slowly by Mai. Lifting up part of the cloth, Ty Lee saw that part of the wall here had been carved out, leaving a cave-like lee in the marble. Two chairs were placed in the hiding space. Azula was sitting on one of them, her legs crossed, a smirk playing on her face.
"What is this place?" Ty Lee asked quietly, slipping in with Mai.
"The perfect spot to spy," Azula replied, "I think the servants are supposed to sit in here until my father calls them out."
Mai looked around uninterestedly and then settled down on the chair next to Azula. That left Ty Lee to sit down on the small woven rug that adorned the floor. She looked up expectantly at Azula.
"Now what?" she asked admiringly.
"We listen. The meeting will start in a few minutes," Azula replied.
"What are we going to do after this?" Ty Lee questioned, "Can we play with Zuko again?" She shot a teasing look at Mai, who frowned at her.
"Just shut up and don't be so impatient all the time," Azula snapped.
Ty Lee obediently closed her mouth, annoyance racing through her body, but not daring to say anything to Azula. She tossed her tangled hair over her shoulder and sighed quietly. This wasn't exactly her idea of fun. Sneaking in had been exciting but now she was just bored, though she'd never admit it to Azula. She'd much rather be practicing her gymnast routines then be stuck in a war meeting. Ty Lee leaned back against the cold wall. There was nothing for her to do now but wait.