Azula watches Sokka's board glide atop the wave. The wave is a good eight or so feet high. Azula bites her lip, she may have an issue catching one of that size when her turn finally arrives. She watches him with extra care until she remembers that he can't bend water to cheat. She momentarily berates herself for forgetting such a significant fact. At least this year they won't have to worry about cheating—last year's competition ended with some watertribe girl bending the waves around her surfboard to rise higher, but at the same time less roughly so she could easier keep her balance. Azula could have sworn that the girl had also made the waves rougher on Zuko. The girl was caught and disqualified. But she still put a hitch in things. If Azula is honest with herself, she feels bad for the other waterbenders because they now have to deal with the suspicious stares.
Sokka, for all of his clumsiness on land, has mastered the ability to weave gracefully in and out of the waves. His board bobs and for a second she thinks he's going to lose balance. But he rights himself again and finishes the wave with a pompous bow. Azula rolls her eyes.
He trots smugly up the beach, right over to where Azula sits. He takes her by the hand and pulls her up. "You're up, good luck."
Azula quirks an eyebrow. "Luck? I don't need that. I have skill." She flashes a smile smug enough to match his own. "Congrats on not falling on your ass." She adds.
"I'll take that as a compliment." Sokka shrugs.
"It's the best you're going to get." Azula winks. She grabs her board and rushes towards the shoreline. She lets a few six foot waves crash and die. So far all she sees now are a bunch of ankle snappers. Finally, a sizable wave of seven feet comes along—she passes on it too because a good number of their points come from the size of their chosen wave. If she picked that one, Sokka would have a whole foot's advantage on her already. She waits a little longer and one of eight feet looms overhead. She considers it. She also mulls over the possibility of catching a nine-footer. This could be her only shot though, there's a good chance that no bigger waves would show up. It's a risk she's willing to take. Even knowing that she only had five waves left before she'd either be disqualified for taking too long or have to go with whatever size that fifth wave is. She waits, her stomach filling with butterflies as the third wave—only four feet tall—crashes against the sand.
Finally she spots it. It is about nine feet high, a perfect A frame too. Azula grins and readies her board. She runs out to meet the wave.
The ocean screams excitedly in her ears as she goes in for the bottomturn and finds her way to the top of the wave. She rides it down to the middle where she carves the wave for a good long time. She then goes in for a cutback, reversing her direction completely. It is fluid and flawless, graceful and somewhat showy.
She aims to get to the top again, where she can perform her airs. These are always tricky for her—for everyone she's talked to, really. But they add style. She has been practicing this for a long time, coming down to the beach as often as possible. So far every time she has come close but was never quite able to land her board correctly. She has always come so close though. She could always take the 360 out of the maneuver, but she owed it to herself to try.
Taking a deep breath, Azula goes for it. Her board leaves the wave; her heart is racing as she fights to keep her balance. She pushes herself anyways, taking the board into a midair spin before it crashes back down onto the wave. Again she feels her heart pounding, she wants to close her eyes, but he can't afford to do so, she knows if she does, she'll wipeout. But she doesn't, she is successfully back on the wave.
Azula smiles triumphantly to herself.
She hasn't much time to celebrate because she still hasn't gone into the tube yet. Her display wouldn't be complete without a solid barrel surf. She makes another cutback and goes into the barrel where she swiftly rides it out until just before it breaks. She makes one final bottomturn and ends her performance just before the wave hits the shore.
She is somewhat short of breath, but mostly with elation. Both Sokka and Zuko run up to her. Zuko grabs her board and Sokka slings her arm over his shoulder and helps her walk back.
"That was incredible." Zuko finally speaks. "I didn't know you mastered that one."
She thinks of the luck Sokka had wished her, perhaps it had come in handy after all. But she wouldn't let him know it. Instead she whispers to Zuko, "I didn't."
The trio sat down upon their beach towels and listened to the bongo players tap their drums. Though Azula was the last of the competitors to have her turn, it'd still be a while before the results come in. They may as well get comfortable.
"Sokka be a dear and get Zu-Zu and I some icecream?" Azula requests.
"Please." Zuko adds.
"Alright, but only because one of you asked nicely." Sokka shrugs.
"Yes, the sound of my voice is nice on the ears." Azula replies.
Zuko chuckles and watches Sokka head over to the concessions area. He comes back a sometime later with the ice cream and some news, "Looks like I scored second." He hands the list he had jotted down, to Azula. "Thought I'd get up there and look at it before everyone else realizes it has been posted."
Azula almost doesn't look at it, she wants to hear the names being announced. But her curiosity is too deep, she looks over the list. She doesn't have to look very far, for her name had been written at the top. "Is this the real list?"
"Why would I lie to you? If I did I would have said that I got first. I will get first place next year." Sokka vows.
"Not if I can help it." Azula gives a mischievous laugh.
"Congratulations, Azula." Sokka finally says.
"Yeah, you did amazing out there." Zuko adds.
They expect her to say, 'I know' or something of that nature. But instead she responds, "thank you, both of you." She almost continues but decides that anything else would be too sappy.
And besides, she got cut off by Long Feng and his angry grumbles as he passed by. "I got disqualified. I. Got disqualified."
"Disqualified?" Azula asked. "Don't flatter yourself, you were never even a player."