Chapter Eleven

"Ty Lee… Please, come in. It is always a pleasure to have you. I got your letter. I'm sorry to hear that you and Azula have fallen out." Iroh said, boiling some water and pouring tea for his guest.

"Please, sit down. I have all the time in the world for you." He said. Ty Lee sighed, sitting down across from Iroh, blowing on her tea, fanning it with her hand as well. Iroh chuckled.

For a long moment, neither of them said anything. They just sat in silence. Ty Lee stared at her tea, seeming like she wanted to talk, but didn't know what to say. Iroh for his part wasn't in a hurry. He knew that the best way to get Ty Lee to open up was to let her do it in her own time. It might not even happen today. Iroh was happy to let her talk when she was comfortable.

"Uncle… Am I a bad person?" Ty Lee asked anxiously, afraid that she had caused hers and Azula's breakup, that her jealousy had driven a wedge between them. If she had just let Azula have that one time with Osak, everything would have been okay.

"Ty Lee, of course you're not. Why would you think you are?" Iroh asked.

"An old… Friend… Of Azula's came to Republic City. A guy named Osak. He worked for the hospital she was in and apparently she'd developed feelings for him. We took him out to dinner and Azula got drunk and started getting really aggressively flirty with him and… I didn't realize just how jealous I could be." Ty Lee said.

"And you are afraid that you caused the rift in your relationship with Azula." Iroh said.

"Y-yeah… But that's not it. The next day, she was ready to have sex with him and I… I told myself it was okay. I told myself it would just be one time and then he would have to leave anyway to go back to work. But I wasn't okay with it. I got really upset and went after Azula and stopped it from happening." Ty Lee said. She was biting her finger now and had started to draw blood.

"Ty Lee… Let me get you a bandage." Iroh said, cleaning her wound and wrapping it.

"Ty Lee… There is nothing wrong with wanting the person you love to yourself. You and Azula made a promise to date each other, I am assuming. While you may not have specifically said that you and she are exclusive, I assume that you considered yourselves to be so." Iroh said. Ty Lee gulped, nodding.

"Aang is dating both Katara and Toph now it seems. And Azula will probably run into them at the palace. She'll probably see them doing it and believe that I should be okay with it."
"Ty Lee. There is no absolute one way to be in a relationship. If being with only Azula is what you want out of your relationship, that is completely fine. If Aang, Toph and Katara are happy being in a three way relationship, that's fine too and it does not bear on what you want out of your relationship.

"It is important to talk to your partner or partners about your desires and expectations though. If you didn't want her to go with Osak, you had every right to tell her that and expect her to abide by it so long as she was in a relationship with you. Relationships are about mutual respect." Iroh said.

"But she's left me… She said that she didn't want to drag me down, but I just know that she's mad at me for… No… No, no, no, no, no… No, that can't be it. If she was mad at me, she'd have tried to manipulate me into doing what she wanted." Ty Lee said, struggling not to bite her finger again.

"I know she's trying to move past those old habits, but just this past week, she was back to her old self, using manipulation to get me to do what she wanted." Ty Lee said.

"It is hard for people to move past old habits. It doesn't mean she isn't trying and it doesn't mean that she enjoys hurting you. It just means that in times of stress, people fall back on old habits that kept them in the past. For Azula, that includes using manipulation to control people." Iroh said. He would have to go talk to Azula as well. It seemed she needed his help, even if she didn't want to admit it.

"Azula said that she didn't want to burden me, that she was leaving because she loved me and… But she seemed really upset. Her aura was so turbulent when she was talking to me when the cabbie came to take her back to the palace. I don't think she really wanted to leave. But she felt she had to. I tried to talk her out of it. I tried to get her to stay. I told her we could work things out. But I don't think she believed me. I'm worried about her. Her aura was really… Painful." Ty Lee said.

"Yes, she's come a long way since her days in the psychiatric center. And I do plan to go see her myself. I'm sure Zuko and Jin will be happy to see me. And I can't wait to meet their children." Iroh said. He was a great uncle and he was deeply flattered that he'd named his eldest Iroh II.

"My house just feels kind of empty without Azula there. Azula was usually quiet at night. She often read late into the night, going to bed long after Ty Lee was asleep. Sometimes she didn't go to bed at night. She had a strange schedule that just showed how aimless she felt. Ty Lee was trying to get Azula on a good schedule so that she would feel more direction in her life. But it was hard when Azula was struggling emotionally.

"We will get Azula on the right path. And whatever choice she makes in life will hopefully be right for her. You can hope that it will lead her back to you. You've done all you could for her up to now. Now all you can do is offer her support and let her make her own choice." Iroh said. Ty Lee gulped heavily, nodding.

"I don't know if I can reach her. I know how stubborn she is." Ty Lee said.

"She is stubborn. But if you love her, you can still try." Iroh said. Ty Lee nodded.

"I'll at least keep in contact with her." Ty Lee said. Iroh nodded approvingly.
"I am sure she'll be grateful that you're keeping her in your thoughts." Iroh said. Ty Lee hugged Iroh, who hugged her back.

"When did she leave your home?"

"A few days ago. It took me some time to get all the way to Ba Sing Se." Ty Lee said. Iroh nodded.
"Would you like to stay with me tonight and catch a cab in the morning?" Iroh asked. Ty Lee sighed. It would take several hours to get back to Republic City and it would likely be dark by then. Republic City wasn't exactly a hub of crime. But criminals were more likely to come out at night. Those who dealt drugs, those who loaned money and didn't accept 'I don't have the money to pay you back' as an answer were likely to be on the roads at night.

It might be wiser to leave in the morning. But Ty Lee also didn't want to impose on Iroh.

"I couldn't. I'll be okay." Ty Lee said, walking out with Iroh and hailing a new cab, giving him the address.
"That's a long trip. Are you sure you can afford it? It will be pretty late when we get there." The cabbie said.

"I'll be fine." Ty Lee said, putting a bag of Yuans in his hand and leaving for Republic City.

-0-

The next day, Ty Lee was up early, writing to Azula.

Dear Azula,

I'm glad that you're able to go home to the Fire Palace. I hope you're happy living there. How are Zuko and Jin doing with their kids? Have you met Aang and Katara's child yet?

Ty Lee paused for a long time, not sure of what to write next. Finally, she put her pen down and went for a walk, thinking about what she would say. She was out on the city for over an hour, stopping for tea and a meal at a nearby café before heading back to her home. Sitting down, she started writing again.

I really miss you here. My house just isn't the same without you and I hope to see you again soon.

Ty Lee was having some trouble writing the note. It all felt monotonous and repetitive. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes and thinking.

Maybe you could tell me a bit about what you're doing back at the Fire Palace. Has your firebending teacher started working with you yet?

I hope you get back to me soon.

With the greatest love,

Ty Lee

She rolled up the letter and tied it to the leg of a hawk and sent it to Azula, sitting back on the couch and taking a sip of her tea. She knew she should have opened her dojo for the day. She took a deep breath, heading out. She was opening up late, but it seemed that at least one person was there.
"Imalu, I'm glad to see you. I didn't expect that you would be coming today. But please, come in." Ty Lee said, opening up the dojo and bringing Imalu in, turning on the lights.

"I just needed to do some stretching and aerobics to keep in shape. I'm toning down on the actual martial arts lessons. But I do still like to come talk to you."
"How did your conversation with Soalom go? Did you tell him that you're pregnant yet?" Ty Lee asked.

Imalu sighed. It had been a rough conversation.

"Yeah. I told him. He's not happy. He left for almost a week and came back last night. I was worried about him. But we're talking at least." Imalu said.

Ty Lee went through the usual stretching routine with Imalu. They chatted while they stretched.
"You want to go running? We can go get something to eat afterwards if you want." Ty Lee said. She drew little distinction between her students and her friends. She considered Imalu to be a friend of hers and saw no reason not to go get something to eat and drink with her.

"I'd like that. I am hungry a lot more often lately." Imalu said.

"Could it just be a light jog? I'm trying to cut down on the heavy exercise." Imalu said.

"Of course." Ty Lee said, going out for an easy jog with her friend and student, passing by a few other friends on the way. She had made contacts throughout the city. People in high places sent their kids to her school. She mostly dealt with non-Benders, but there were a few Benders in her school, whom she was teaching to supplement their own style with Chi Blocking moves.

While Benders rarely needed to rely on close quarters combat, Firebenders and Waterbenders especially got some benefit out of the highly fluid and flexible style that was Chi Blocking.

"Hey, Ty Lee! I was wondering if you were okay. You weren't at your dojo today." A young man said.

"Yeah, I was just a bit overwhelmed this morning, so I opened up late. I'll be back at the dojo in an hour or two. Just doing a lesson with Imalu." Ty Lee said.

They passed the fountain and got to a nice little bistro, going in and sitting down together.

"Mmm… This Hogsheep-Cabbage Surprise looks good." Imalu said, looking at the options for tea, choosing a mint-chocolate tea. It looked good. Ty Lee just ordered an appetizer. She'd already eaten a little while ago.

"So, you and Soalom are talking now?" Ty Lee asked. Imalu hesitated.
"Sort of. I can tell he's upset that I'm pregnant. But he also wants to step up and take care of our children." Imalu said.

"Well… I'm sure he'll be a good father. I don't know anything about what his father was like. But I've met him and he's a good person." Ty Lee said.

"I like his aura. It's soft and gentle." Soalom didn't really have much of a talent for Chi Blocking, but she admired that he kept trying. He would have been better going into a job that didn't require him to fight, but he wanted to be a police officer.

"How is he doing with becoming an officer?" Ty Lee asked. Imalu rolled her eyes.

"He could come work for my aunt. She runs a bookstore. He'd be good in that role." Imalu said.

"But he's still trying to impress his father who's been dead for 10 years." Imalu said.

"Well… You know, Azula recently went back to the Fire Nation."
"Oh! I'm sorry to hear that. I know you and she really loved each other." Imalu said. Ty Lee nodded.

"We did. But Azula is having trouble moving on from the guilt of her past and I told myself I need to respect her process and let her heal on her own if that's what she wants.

"Azula's uncle is going to the Fire Nation to talk to her. So maybe he'll get through to her better than I did." Ty Lee said.

"I hope so. You two were really cute together. Azula was so beautiful." Imalu said. Ty Lee laughed.

"Yeah. She is. This was us back when we attended the Fire Nation Girls' Academy." Ty Lee said, showing a picture of her, Mai and Ty Lee in their uniforms. Imalu could tell how close they were, even back then.

Azula was clearly the leader of the threesome. But she was looking at Ty Lee with a strangely admiring if slightly domineering look.

"What were things like back then?" Imalu asked. She'd been fairly sheltered from the war. She'd only moved into Republic City recently. She'd hardly been a noble in Ba Sing Se, but she lived near the Upper Ring and so she was largely sheltered from the events of the war.

She knew that the Fire Nation had invaded Ba Sing Se, but they just stayed inside when soldiers passed by and not much changed when the Fire Nation came for her.

"Well… Azula is a complicated person. She was fiercely loyal to her family… But she struggled to trust people. I can't talk much about who she was as a person. I won't betray her like that. But she's… She's still learning a lot of things that she never learned as a child." Ty Lee said, paying the bill and heading back to the studio.

There were a few people there. She worked with them on their Chi Blocking maneuvers. She was a bit distracted. Going home to an empty house was hard now that she'd lived with Azula, even just for a few months.

Things went pretty normally in the dojo and finally, she closed up and went home, eating dinner and reading for a while before going to bed early.