Bonding (Defeated)

[darkauthor26]

Title: Bonding

Fandom: Avatar: the Last Airbender

Characters: Toph, Azula

Pairing(s): brief mention on Mai/Zuko

Rating: K+

Warning(s): None

Word Count: 881

Prompt: Defeated

Summery: Azula spends some quality time with her niece.

 

 

 

Toph raised an eyebrow, a smile tugging at her lips. “I never thought I’d see the day the great Azula was beaten up by five-year-old.”

 

“I’m not being ‘beaten up’ as you so kindly put it,” Azula growled, painfully aware the fact her ankles were tied together and she was being choked by a small arm around her neck said otherwise.

 

“Yeah, right.”

 

“Auntie ‘Zuuuuuuullaaaaa,” Amaya said, reaching for Azula’s wrist, “come on. I’m supposed to tie you up now. It’s part of the game!”

 

“Game? What game?” Azula tried to shrug Amaya off her. “I don’t remember us playing any game.”

 

“Of course we are! You’re the bad guy, ‘member? I’m supposed to tie you up and take you to jail,” Amaya said.

 

“No, I don’t remember,” Azula said, struggling to untie the rope around her ankles with one hand and remove Amaya’s arm from her neck with the other. “All I remember is you attacking me like a savage the second I entered the room. Where did you get this rope, anyway?”

 

“If I’d waited, I wouldn’t have taken you by surprise, and you might’ve escaped! Then I would’ve had to chase you.” Amaya pulled herself up onto Azula’s shoulder and grasped her right wrist. “Gotcha!”

 

At that moment, Azula loosened the rope around her ankles and stood up. Amaya slid to the floor with a squeak. Azula bent down to finish untying her legs, paused and straightened up, glaring at Toph.

 

“Don’t you have somewhere else to be? I seem to recall my brother making you his bodyguard. Shouldn’t you be off guarding him?”

 

Toph shrugged. “Zuko and Mai are at a meeting, and Miss Gloomy asked if I could watch the kid since she seems to like me. And for whatever reason, the kid seems to like you, though I can’t imagine why.” 

 

Azula was about to retort when a battle cry cut her off. Amaya tackled her, wrapping her tiny arms around Azula’s waist. Azula tried to step back to catch her balance, but her legs were still tangled in the rope, and they both toppled backwards into a chair. The chair crashed to the ground, spilling them onto the floor painfully. Azula banged her shoulder hard on the corner of Amaya’s desk, and her head smacked against the wooden floor.

 

As she lay there, dazed briefly, she heard Toph roaring with laughter and slapping her thigh. Slowly, though, another sound met her ears, and it took her a moment to place it: Amaya was sniffling.

 

She’d better not be crying, Azula thought and turned her head. ...Damn. Amaya’s face was screwed up in pain. She cradled one hand to her chest, and though she looked determined not to cry, two fat tears rolled down her cheeks.

 

Panic welled up in Azula. She had never had any tolerance for crying (except from Ty Lee), but she didn’t think Toph, Mai or Zuko would take kindly to her telling a child—let alone her own niece—to “shut up and stop that pathetic sniveling.” And she would certainly hear about it later from Ty Lee.  

 

She sat up quickly, and pain stabbed her shoulder and skull, sharp and white hot. “Shit,” she hissed.

 

Amaya stopped crying at once and gasped. She ran to Toph. “Toph! Tooooooooph!” She stared up at Toph with wide golden eyes.

 

“Yeah, kid?”

 

“Auntie ‘Zula said a bad word,” she said, tugging on Toph’s sleeve. Azula noticed she was using the hand she had supposedly hurt. “Daddy says we’re not s’pposed to say bad words ‘cause of ‘em being bad.”

 

Toph grinned at Azula. “Yeah, ‘Zula, Daddy says you’re not supposed to say bad words.”

 

“Shut up,” Azula snarled.

 

Toph’s grin widened. “Now, now, Azula, that’s not very nice, is it? Don’t you want to set a good example for your niece?”

 

Azula opened her mouth to tell Toph exactly what she wanted to do when Mai appeared beside Toph in the open doorway.

 

“Mommy!” Amaya cried, smiling, and hugged Mai.

 

“Hello, Amaya,” Mai said. She returned Amaya’s smile and stroked her shiny black hair. “Did you have fun with Toph?”

 

“Yeah, and me and Auntie ‘Zula played a game, but Auntie ‘Zula played it wrong.” As she said this she shook her head sadly.

 

“Did she now?” Mai turned her gaze to Toph. “Thank you for watching her, Toph. You can go get lunch now if you want.” Azula stopped rubbing the back of her head when Mai finally noticed her and scowled. “Azula, what are you doing?”

 

“Nothing,” she growled and glared at Toph who remained leaning casually against the doorframe, that wide grin still plastered on her face. Azula ripped the remaining rope from her legs, tossed it aside and stood up. “I was just leaving.”

 

Toph snickered. Azula pointedly ignored her, but when she passed, Toph pushed off the wall and followed her.

 

“That was really impressive, Azula,” Toph said. “You’re a true fighter there, Princess Hothead. The way you defended yourself against such a fierce enemy! They’ll tell tales about your heroism for centuries!”

 

Azula grit her teeth.

 

“Hey! Hey, Twinkletoes! Listen to this!”

 

Azula didn’t watch as Toph ran off down another corridor. She kept her eyes fixed in front of her. Just keep walking…just—keep—walking.