his own hands burst into flame, sanguine hues twinkling with interest. are they going to have a fight ? oh he loves a festive introduction !
” I’ve just come by to see if there’s anything worth taking. my collection of treasures is getting very low. “
[ ——» ☼ «—— ]
the fire is a surprise, she thinks, watching it crackle between his fingers. but she’s fought other firebenders before – and none of them were as good as her. this will be no different.
“ Taking? “ lips draw back into a broad, wolfish grin, “ You come aboard my ship without permission and expect to take from me ? “ she laughs, blue flames flickering with every beat of breath. “ I think you’re sorely mistaken,peasant, “ regardless of his status ( or abilities ) he is nothing to her, “ do you know who I am? “
royal gaze lands upon the familiar girl, annoyance fills golden eyes. Mai’s hollow tone is unwarranted now – what she needed was advice, strategy, not a sarcastic answer. she huffs. “Well if you’re not going to give me anything intelligent, you might as well join Ty Lee outside. “
Dark hues fixed on the princess as she spoke with a rather distressed tone, it was a sound she was very familiar with. It did not startle her as she sat down allowing her large pink tongue to hang out of her mouth in a pant. The creature was still very much a wild animal, but she knew her place. If she attacked she would be met with some nasty fire, and she didn’t want that at all.
So here she sat waiting for the teenager to make the first move, but she would not hesitate to defend herself. At the moment the creature was in her much calmer dog mindset, but if provoked she could easily snap into the darker more dangerous bear mindset. A large back foot raised to scratch her floppy ear as she let out a yawn as if she was bored with the princess.
[ ——» ☼ «—— ]
the animal sat complacent, quieter than expected. Azula would not approach the creature first – she’d never actually encountered something like this before. white fur, pink tongue, huge body mass. the biggest creature she’d ever encountered was a turtleswan, or a messenger hawk. but this thing? something out of a nightmare.
she lifts her hands, steadies her position, and moves forward step by step until she can feel the hot ( stinking ! ) breath of the animal on her arms.
“ Where in Agni’s name did you come from?“
she frowns, leaning forward and poking the animal’s nose, reeling back and taking a defensive stance ( just in case ).
arms crossed, eyes averted. she takes the defensive stance. sometimes she thinks Ty Lee takes her for a fool. she’s witty enough to know how her friend feels, smart enough to deduce what had been going on. ( cracked windows, unlocked doors, notes written in codes they shared — Ty Lee was a sneaky but not quite enough.)
“ who do you think has been putting your seat placement next to mine for dinners?“ she turns, eyeing the other, ” or leaving the door unlocked? “ smirks, ” or replacing the flowers you continue to pick from the royal gardens?“
it was hardly romantic, but she’d known all along. it was hard to keep a secret from the girl who saw everything.
"That’s the least romantic thing anyone has ever said to me…"
[ ——» ☼ «—— ]
she must admit the previous statement was not her best attempt at impressing the other girl, but the comment was not anything Azula might have said otherwise.
" you know, Ty Lee, you are useful to have around,sometimes. “
comments like this will not get her far with the other girl, so instead of fixing what has been said ( she has no need to anyways, she hasn’t hurt Ty Lee to begin with ) she moves forward, slipping her arm around the other’s small- er waist and pulls her very close, smirk across her crimson lips.
five times kissed... well i mean u sent it first... /pouts...
send me five times kissed for a drabble about five times our muses kissed
[ ——» ☼ «—— ]
i. Azula is barely six when she first meets the circus girl. the little brunette is beaming, but the summer fire nation air is getting to all of them: the girl with the braid is sweating, droplets rolling down her rounded nose and porcelain forehead. Azula has never seen anyone like her, never seen eyes so grey, hands so small. Zuko steps forward after Ozai gives some sort of command, and he bows and kisses her little knuckles, then drops her hand with fearful and embarrassed eyes. Ozai says something to Azula too, and since Zuko kissed her knuckles, she assumes this is what she is supposed to do as well. so she steps forward (chest puffed out, pink tongue running over her chapped lips) and grabs the little girl’s hand, pressing her lips to her fingers, staring into those strange grey eyes (getting lost, almost) until Ozai barks and she stumbles back into place beside her brother (whose face is bright red, and lips curled into a smirk). everyone in the room laughs and laughs, and Azula’s hands get hotter and hotter until she can feel the heat in her head. they tell her girls just curtsy when they greet a visitor, and when they finish this little gathering Azula can feel Ozai’s golden eyes boring into her back and she vows never to kiss that girl ever again.
ii. when Ty Lee tells her it is her birthday she continues to pick at her nails. it isn’t a big deal, she thinks, they happen every year. (it’s curious how the other girl has been with her for four years now and this is the first birthday she’s ever mentioned) ” I’m turning ten ! “ she breathes in Azula’s ear as she braids her hair (Ty is the only one who is allowed). usually, Azula gets presents for her birthday, but she knows Ty Lee won’t get anything, since her parents are so far away. “ What do you want?“ Azula asks, only out of curiosity. the little girl is silent, hands moving in a gentle rhythm to keep the pattern going. ” Maybe a kiss from Zuko. “ Azula gags at this response, and although she knows this is a joke, she is immediately enraged. she bats at Ty’s hands, pulling away and turning to glare at her. “ Why would you want one from him if you could have one from someone else ? “ she asks, and hears Mai snickering from a few yards away. the princess sends an icy glare in the other little girl’s direction. Ty Lee is looking at her with surprise, grey eyes wide and hands crooked as if she is still braiding hair. ” Who’s going to kiss me then ? “ Ty Lee asks, but Azula has already turned around and gestured for her to continue her work with her hair. ” I don’t know. “ she snaps, and soon enough nimble fingers are brushing through her dark locks. after Mai goes home for the night Ty Lee follows Azula to her room (like she does most nights) and Azula grabs her arm. Ty Lee comments quietly how Azula is giving her bruises but the princess is focusing so hard on moving her face that she barely hears her. the prodigy presses her lips to Ty’s cheek and pulls away lightening-fast. she slips into her room without inviting Ty Lee inside, but when Azula sees Ty at breakfast the next day she can’t help but to blush at how big the circus girl’s smile seems to be.
iii. Azula watches her brother burn under her father’s hand. Ty Lee helps her into her bedclothes that night, long after Mai has left. (Mai was always weak, too soft on Zuko. he deserved it, she thinks. she should have been the heir.) Ty asks her why she’s smiling, and when she turns, she sees the other’s solemn gaze. the princess is confused— she should be happy that Zu-zu was punished— this is good for Azula. but she isn’t. and Azula does not know what to do to make her happy for her. a memory of a broad smile forms in her mind, so she takes Ty’s chin in her hand and pulls her forward until she can feel the other girl’s warm breath on her lips. ” Because … ” but when the other glances at her mouth she can’t seem to form anything coherent so instead of talking she leans forward and kisses her hard until she can feel tears on her cheeks. when she pulls away she realizes it is Ty Lee that is crying, but there is a smile on her face. the girl’s ( beautiful) shoulders bob up and down as she sobs, hands moving to grasp Azula’s shoulder for support. but the princess shakes her off and dismisses her. the door closes with a soft click, and with the new absence everything falls silent.
iv. no matter what they do, they cannot locate the avatar and his friends. (and, in effect, they cannot find her brother. ) Azula is growing frustrated. Mai is watching from afar, but, as always, Ty Lee is up close, invading the princess’ space. lightening burns at her finger tips and she feels weight on her chest, but a calming hand touches the space between her shoulder blades and dances along her spine until she’s spun around, facing the other girl (and those strange, grey eyes). their noses brush, and Mai says something snarky, so in rebellion, Azula takes this opportunity to show Mai what she’s missed. breaths mingle and mouths brush hungrily against each other for a fleeting moment, but as fast as it started it ends, and Azula goes up onto the deck of the ship to feel the fresh air against her skin (that is now very, very hot).
v. somehow, Ty Lee finds her after the agni kai. those familiar nimble fingers brush her tangled hair from her face. her gentle voice coos, asks her what happened to that beautiful hair, strokes her cheek as she lays her head on those pink- clothed knees. she grasps onto the other’s body, letting her heavy tears slip out and stain her clothes. those calloused (but oh, so soft) hands take her cheeks and pull her up, lips brushing around her forehead and nose and cheeks and chin, helping her to slow her breathing, her heartbeat. she closes her eyes and the other kisses her eyelids too, and after a quite moment, she kisses her lips. the princess doesn’t remember what happens after this, but when she opens her eyes again she is alone, chains around her wrists, and the memory of perfect fingers ghosting across her skin.
it’s funny, she thinks, that her elite have never been anything more than that to her. she knows their strengths, flaws, tics— but she forgets they know hers.
sometimes Ty Lee will breathe silly songs into her ears while they rest because she thinks Azula’s asleep. the princess doesn’t understand what makes her do this, but the words in the lullabies ring in her ears when she looks at the other girl, the words she calls music tell a story: her story.
Azula never tells them how she feels, if she’s hurt, what her life was like before. she doesn’t need to. they all have their sob stories. there’s no use wasting time crying over something you cant change.
when she looks at Ty Lee she thinks she wants to. change, that is.
but sometimes Ty Lee crosses lines, thinks Azula cares about her dainty little feelings, thinks that after all this is said and done the reward will be something more than good money and good seat placement at royal dinners. (something more like a place beside Azula, perhaps, when she becomes Fire Lord, or even something reminiscent of friendship between them.) when Ty Lee makes a particularly personal remark one night, Azula realizes that they have come too close to that, to something ‘m o r e. ‘
so because Azula doesn’t want her to think she’ll allow this kind of familiarity on this particular mission, she makes a remark of her own — something about how, if Ty Lee had been unavailable, any of her sisters would have been properly suited to be apart of this team.
because Azula doesn’t care about Ty Lee, or Mai, or Zuko, or anyone. she only cares about herself. ” Yes. ” she says, back turned to the other girl because she knows if she turns around she’ll see her crying. the princess picks at her nails with a look of boredom on her face. by luck, the lullabies have silenced for this moment and she can think clearly— with thoughts untainted by special words and longing. ” Because you shouldn’t have any weaknesses. ” she says, a silent demand that she dares to speak a moment later.
” If you want to help me finish this mission, you’ll be sure to toughen up, won’t you Ty Lee ? “
and after that the songs of seven sisters and circus acts and beautiful girls who adore their princesses are silenced, and Azula sleeps soundly.
SEND A ♡ TO HEAR HOW MY CHARACTER WOULD TELL YOUR CHARACTER THAT THEY LOVED THEM WITHOUT ACTUALLY USING THE WORD “LOVE.”
[ ——» ☼ «—— ]
“ Don’t say that about yourself ! ” she snaps, and both parties are immediately stricken. She’s shocked herself by saying that ( but it was a justified reaction — she hated when Ty Lee talked poorly of herself ).
“You’re … better than that. “ she concludes, turning away quickly and leading the other out the door.
