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1 year. 365 days. 12 months. 8760 hours. That’s how long Azula has been trapped in this place and in that wheelchair. It’s been long, and awful. And she misses Ty Lee.
2 years. 730 days. 24 months. 17520 hours. And as another year goes by, she still feels trapped, but she felt trapped in herself for her entire life, and after all, this isn’t that much of a change. And she still misses Ty Lee.
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Ty Lee feels free. She gets out of prison when the war ends, not as a criminal but as one of the Kyoshi Warriors. It's a weird feeling knowing that this will be her life now, with a group of people she grew up believing were the enemy.
For the first time in her entire life, she feels like she’s doing something for herself and not something that she felt the need to do just so the rest of the world could see her as an individual and not just her siblings clone.
When Zuko and Mai first tell her what happened to Azula during their Agni Kai, Ty Lee didn’t mean to eavesdrop. Obviously, now that she was one of Zuko’s personal wards, she was always near him when shift started.
She heard rumors around the palace about what happened to the fire princess that everyone loved so much, but she still wonders how everyone preached so high about her and about how good of a ruler while be while following her father footsteps, but when Sozin’s comet was coming no one saw her slipping like that.
Back in the circus when she first heard about how the Avatar was alive, all she could think about wasn’t Zuko and his banishment or his honor, it was Azula who she thought about, and how the Avatar’s return would affect her. Of course, she knew it wouldn’t be long before she comes back looking for her and telling her about a mischievous plan she has for capturing the Avatar (whose name is Aang and it's the last airbender alive, she learns later on).
When the war ends and Zuko is crowned Fire Lord, all Ty Lee thinks about is how awful everything looks, and how there’s no sign of Azula anywhere, but when she really looks she finds the remnants of the Agni Kai they tried to hide. But when it comes to Azula, Ty Lee is sure she can see everything about her, wherever she is with her or not.
Time passes, Zuko goes on a trip with Team Avatar (apparently, he’s one of them now) and releases Azula from the awful prison they have her in and take her, Ty Lee learns later on that what they were searching for was their mother, Ursa.
Ursa is back, and they have a baby sister now, and seeing the different bond Zuko has from his baby sister to Azula hurts. But she knows that it is the way it has to be.
After two or so years, everything seems back to normal, until one day she knows that maybe what she feels for Azula is not just the love you have for your friends, it's the love you feel when you want something more. But the worst of it all, is that she needs to see her. She wanders through this cold and hostile place, wondering how malicious are the things these people have done to end up in a place like this. Zuko gave her the number of her room, the one she had just after they arrived from the search, knowing that keeping her without supervision would be dangerous not only for the rest of humanity but also to herself, at least she’s safe, and that calms Ty Lee a little.
After being static in front of the door, she knocks, and a very tired nurse appears, but she can see her, because all she sees is Azula on the bed with her head down, as if she was ashamed that she came to visit her. The nurse says something about how they’ll be outside the door just in case, but she’s terrified that the one person who once was her best friend could be dangerous now.
“Oh, funny of you to come here now” says Azula, and Ty Lee feels ashamed, ashamed of herself thinking that after 2 years of not seeing each other and everything that happened during that time, things would be different. But they aren’t, and they both have to learn to live with it for the rest of their lives.
“I know, and I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner, but all of this hasn’t been easy for me either.”
“What exactly hasn’t been easy for you, how you betrayed me to save my brother and those criminals just so you could have a peace of mind?” Azula asks, always in her sarcastic way with that fake smile.
Ty Lee feels angry for the first time in a while, not knowing exactly how to react because she knows how manipulative Azula can be, but she also knows that she misses her, but maybe what will happen to them is that they're destined to love each other but never to happen. Deep down, they both know that no matter how much love is between them, nothing good will ever come out of it.
“I’m just here to see you, hoping that whatever happened wouldn’t affect it, I just wanted to see how you were doing” she tells, with her head looking at the polished white floors because she can’t stand to look at her.
Azula now seems much calmer, probably because she knows that if she keeps shouting like that the nurses will come and take Ty Lee away, and that is not something she wants to happen.
“Well, you have seen me now, I think you can leave, just like you always do” she says, in that cold tone that makes her sad.
“Okay, if that’s what you want” and while she says this, she looks at Azula, really looks at her and notices how sad she is.
They look into each other's eyes for a moment, and Ty Lee is afraid that her eyes will soften when she looks at her, just like they always did. She’s afraid that the last time she will see Azula will be like this, that Azula will feel like this forever, like she’s some kind of monster, she wants to tell her that no matter what happened in the past or whatever will happen in the future, Ty Lee will always love her, no matter what.
“Of course I want you to leave, traitor”
Those were the last words Ty Lee ever heard from Azula, until the end of their days.