Archive of Our Own ^beta

Azula and Ty Lee had been dancing around each other for pretty much their entire lives, but even that was different now that the war was over. Azula’s rehabilitation had been a slow and painful process but now, over four years after her mental breakdown, she was considered mostly sane again, at least enough to move freely and without escorts.

At first, she had only gotten worse even in the Fire Nation’s best facilities, but her mind had started to clear up again not long after Ty Lee visited her for the first time. It had been a heartbreaking reunion for both of them, but Ty Lee still returned the next week, and each one after that, for the two years it took until the doctors finally decided to release Azula into the care of her family.

Ty Lee had already been living at the palace at that point, mostly to avoid her parents and sisters in the overcrowded house she had grown up in. Her brief stay with the Kyoshi warriors had been fun and enlightening and she had made lots of new friends there, but she felt like she had lost herself in the group so, after less than a year, she packed her bags, promised her new friends that she would visit them soon and that she would regularly send them letters, and returned to the Fire Nation.

Her stay on Kyoshi Island, short as it may have been, had done wonders for Ty Lee’s self esteem while Azula had lost herself almost completely in the asylum and had to be built up again, so the girls who met each other on a warm spring day in a nearly empty room were not the same people that had parted on such bad terms at the Boiling Rock, though some of their old familiarity was still present.

By now, they were just as close as they had been during their childhood, though now they were on a more equal level, Azula no longer bossing Ty Lee around and Ty Lee no longer blindly following Azula’s orders. Instead, they talked through most decisions together, even if they didn’t directly impact the other, which was greatly beneficial for both of them.

And when, on very rare occasions, they threatened to slip back into old habits, either one would be quick to point it out and rectify the situation. Of course they still clashed sometimes but, all in all, they had rebuilt their friendship into something much healthier and better than it had ever been before.

Most people around them didn’t approve of this development and almost everyone Ty Lee talked to warned her to be careful around the princess. Some even tried to talk her out of spending time with her altogether. She tried to ignore them and to just respond with her usual positivity but, after a while, the constant criticism and judgement started to wear on her. She never once considered actually doing what they recommended but, after a while, she just wanted everyone to just shut up and leave her alone already.

She knew that Azula had messed up in the past, but they had grown past that and it was really annoying that no one else seemed to be willing to understand that. She constantly had to bite her tongue to keep herself from shouting at nearly everyone around her because they all just refused to understand just how much Azula had actually changed and how, even if she hadn’t, it wasn’t any of their business what Ty Lee did with her own life and who she chose to spend time with.

By now, the only times Ty Lee wasn’t at least somewhat annoyed and on guard was when she was alone with Azula, usually either in one of their rooms or somewhere in the furthest corners of the palace gardens, where no one else even bothered to go if they didn’t absolutely have to for whatever reason.

Right now, they were hidden between some tall hedges and having a picnic that consisted mostly of cake and other sweets. They had been there for hours, eating and talking and drinking tea like they had no worries in the world. It had been fun and delicious, but also extremely relaxing, so much so that Ty Lee was actually close to falling asleep at this point.

Azula, who was sitting cross-legged on the picnic blanket, didn’t seem to mind. She had gone completely still when, around half an hour ago, Ty Lee decided to lie down, letting her head rest in Azula’s lap and closing her eyes as soon as she was comfortable. Azula had been stiff as a board – clearly worried that even the smallest movement would disturb Ty Lee’s rest – for multiple minutes before she finally relaxed into the new contact.

After a little while longer, she even dared to lower her hand to Ty Lee’s head so she could run her fingers through soft brown hair. Ty Lee just smiled up at her, eyes still closed, and enjoyed their newly rediscovered physical closeness. She had really missed getting to touch Azula and being touched by her in return, there was simply nothing better, at least not in her opinion. No one else could make her as happy as Azula did by simply being near her.

Ty Lee was so comfortable on Azula’s lap, surrounded by her warmth, that she eventually drifted off to sleep. She must have been out for at least an hour because by the time she woke up again, the sun had all but disappeared behind the palace walls, only a few stray rays remaining, and the garden had grown significantly darker and taken on a golden tint. Aside from her hand, which was now gently scratching Ty Lee’s scalp, Azula clearly hadn’t moved at all the entire time.

They were surrounded by such a tranquil silence that Ty Lee kept her eyes closed for another moment and just let herself revel in its comfort before her eyes slowly blinked open. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight that greeted her. Azula had never looked more beautiful than in that very moment, smiling gently down at Ty Lee while the last of the day’s sunlight played with her slightly messy hair.

Her eyes were shining golden in the evening sun, and they were gazing into Ty Lee’s with a breathtaking intensity the likes of which she had rarely – if ever – seen before. Her own eyes nearly closed again in response, overwhelmed by everything she was feeling, but she forced them to remain open, not wanting to miss another second of this perfect evening.

Somewhere far in the back of her mind, Ty Lee vaguely thought that she would really like to kiss Azula, but at the moment that idea was secondary to simply enjoying the moment as it was. Maybe one day she would do it, but it didn’t seem worth it right then, not if it would ruin the calm they were currently experiencing. Even now, though, she couldn’t actually stay entirely quiet for too long.

“You’re so beautiful, Zula.”

She hadn’t actually meant to say it but her mouth seemingly had a mind of its own so the words formed on her tongue and left her lips before she was even aware that she had thought them. She was right, though, and not ashamed to admit it. There was really no other word for it, no way to accurately say just how stunning Azula looked in that exact moment.

Then Azula actually had the nerve to blush, and Ty Lee nearly swooned. It was incredibly rare to see her face take on even the slightest hint of red. She didn’t even get flushed when she was training or sparring, no matter how intense it got. But now, relaxed in a garden under the low spring sun, her cheeks and ears turned not only pink but deeply red, until their colour rivalled the Fire Nation’s flags. Somehow, it made her look even more breathtaking.

“You’ve made me soft.”

Her voice was so low that she was almost whispering and, despite her words, she certainly didn’t sound upset by this revelation. It was a huge change from how she used to be, and Ty Lee couldn’t be happier. Just a few years ago, Azula would have been furious and distraught if anyone had dared to imply that she was growing soft, that she had any weaknesses whatsoever – not that Ty Lee considered caring for others a weakness, but back then, Azula would have – but now it almost made her smile. They really had grown a lot. Maybe one day they would talk about all of that. Not right now, though, not on such a nice evening.

Instead, Ty Lee just kept smiling up at Azula and watching while her blush grew more intense with each passing moment. She wasn’t looking into Ty Lee’s eyes anymore, apparently suddenly fascinated by a spot somewhere next to her shoulder and clearly avoiding her eyes, almost as if she were afraid of what she might find in them. It was cute, but Ty Lee couldn’t really think about that because she was too focussed on how much she missed having Azula’s eyes on her already.

She spent a few moments trying to think of a way to catch Azula’s attention again without embarrassing her further and accidentally ending their outing long before she wanted to but, at least for a little while, she couldn’t think of anything she thought might work. By the time an idea finally entered her mind, enough time had passed in silence that it felt somewhat awkward to continue the conversation where they had left off. But Ty Lee ignored the slight weirdness and talked anyway, trying to infuse just the right amount of teasing into her voice.

“You say that like it’s a bad thing…”

Ty Lee couldn’t fully contain her knowing smile, though she tried to suppress it as much as possible, mostly because she hoped that Azula would actually admit that she didn’t mind caring, preferably out loud and directly to her face. She was a bit worried that it wouldn’t actually happen, especially when the previously bright red blush on Azula’s face faded to a gentle pink that was only slightly darker than her normal complexion.

At least she was looking at Ty Lee again, and her eyes were so full of affection – she could almost tell herself it was love, but that was probably just wishful thinking – that she almost expected her to lean down and kiss her. What she did instead, though, was almost better, even if a part of Ty Lee still longed to finally connect their lips in the kiss she had dreamt about since she first found out what kissing was. But she couldn’t truly be upset about that because Azula’s words alone were more than enough to send her mind spinning.

“It isn’t. Not anymore.”

Ty Lee was sure that, by now, her face was just as red as Azula’s had been when she complimented her mere minutes before. Her mind kept replaying the words and her eyes, now nearly overflowing with tears, refused to so much as blink because not looking at Azula’s exceptionally open face was simply not acceptable. She could barely breathe but that didn’t matter, not when Azula was still looking down at her like that.

Later, Ty Lee would feel incredibly silly for this overly emotional reaction to what was, in truth, just a simple and truly not that important statement, but that thought didn’t even cross her mind as she gazed up at Azula with nothing but love written clearly across her face. The only two things she could think about were how beautiful Azula was smiling down at her, and how soft and inviting her lips looked.

“Can I kiss you?”

Almost no sound left Ty Lee’s lips but at this point, Azula’s face had gotten close enough to hers that she could easily understand exactly what Ty Lee was asking, and why. Their lips were almost magically drawn to each other and they kept moving closer as if they were in a trance, and without noticing that they were doing it. They were sharing the same air, lips already brushing against each other, when Azula finally breathed her answer directly into Ty Lee’s mouth.

“Please.”

And just like that, Azula leaned down even more and Ty Lee finally got to experience what she had been dreaming about for nearly a decade. She wasn’t thinking of that, though. In fact, she wasn’t thinking about anything, letting herself get lost in the heavenly sensation of Azula’s lips against her own – and eventually Azula’s tongue in her mouth – entirely while everything else faded from her mind.

They spent the rest of the night in their hidden corner of the palace garden, simply enjoying each other’s company. They kissed until they needed to stop for air and then went right back to it as soon as they possibly could. By the time they finally slowed down again, the moon already hung low in the sky and they were both too exhausted to get up and return to their rooms. That night, they slept under the stars, comfortable in each other’s arms.