257 Ty-Plosion (1)

Nik's grin broadens as he looks at the girls. NOW it feels like the Fire Nation is properly welcoming them. The stuff Ty Lee and others bought on Wangjile Island did not even compare to the wardrobe in the royal palace. Well, except for the Crusted Mangoes.

Yep, Nik is in love.

Crusted Mango now holds a significant spot in his heart which he shares with his harem.

He means his heart, not the mangoes.

Positively exhausted as opposed to extraordinarily spirited Nik and Sokka, Zuko gives the girls a passing glance before sighing deeply again as he tries to come to terms with the greatest shame of the royal family.

The moment his gaze landed on Ursa, his blush deepened while Nik and Sokka looked at each other. That had been quite the surprise, and this isn't the kind of thing Nik would even imagine sharing with others, but they stumbled upon it while raiding the hidden storage unit of the royal family.

"You all look great!" Nik smiles at them.

Like Zuko, Azula dressed in a royal outfit. An intricate golden pin with a flame motif held her glossy black hair in an elaborate bun on the back of her head with all her bangs tucked in that exposed her shapely and narrow jaws completely. Her red robe lined with golden rims wrapped her body tightly alongside a thick black belt around her torso right underneath her breasts which seemed to make her bust pop out more than usual.

Suki, Jin, Katara, and Yue wear similar outfits: Dark maroon robes lined with silver edges alongside black undershirts or vests of their liking and silver belts around their torso.

Suki and Katara only wore a portion of their hair into top knots and let the rest flow freely. However, no flame motif marked their hair or other accessories.

In comparison, looking far more prominent with the sheer size of her bust, Jin wore her usually untamable hair in an elegant upper bun. A slick gloss of some hair product can be seen on her hair as it held all her stubborn strands in place.

And Yue wore her long white hair into a simple braid with hair parting from the center and pulled back, leaving a few strands to grace the corner of her ears. Somehow Yue got the most attention among them due to her neighborly look.

But Kya and Ursa understood the mission and prevailed. Not letting the number of outfits at their disposal confuse them, the two women dressed in sober red clothes. It's obvious what they are trying to achieve.

Kya wears a sleek red kimono that overlays on each other right from her collarbones, leaving little to see. She sinks her hands into the exaggerated sleeves of the top and a thick silver belt around her torso. But instead of her belt making her bust pop out, the dense material of the kimono grants her chest a slop-like look that instills an air of elegance around her.

A golden band with an equally golden moon motif holds her top knot on the back of her head while Kya lets the rest of her thoroughly brushed hair flow back.

Adopting a formal tone, Kya regards others with a practiced smile, "I am pleased to see all of you in such high spirits. I hope the royal palace has been to your liking."

Then, the mother of two looks to her side and finds another mother of two nodding back with a thin smirk.

Meanwhile, Ursa wears a similar red kimono, but it is nowhere as decorated or premium in quality. The light quality of her clothes accentuates her figure quite well. Sokka elbows Nik with a shit-eating grin on his face.

The girls quietly watch Zuko and Nik glare at the chieftain. This only pleases the latter further.

Pushing back her curiosity, Ursa brushes her hair which she has worn similar to Katara's and Kya's usual style.

"Shall we go, Milady?" She questions Kya, who sniffs a bit and sticks her nose high, "We shall."

"Oh," Nik's eyes brighten, "So, you are the Queen of the nation. Hmm, hear that, Sokka? Now she is part of the royal family."

"Okya, what is going on?" Azula questions snarkily and looks at their mothers and their men.

"Say, Nik, we found loads of interesting things back there, right?" Ignoring Azula, much to her chagrin, Zuko smiles at the increasingly displeased Sokka, "What do you think we will find there? Even if we don't find anything, we can certainly think of many things given what we already found, no?"

"Alright," the Chieftain grumbles and lets a huff, "Let's drop it."

"Drop what?" Katara questions.

"Yeah, did you find something interesting? Perhaps a spicy royal secret?" Jin questions with a starry gaze.

"Oh, it's spicy," Sokka nods and bursts into a fit of a chuckle.

"It's nothing!" Zuko vibrates in frustration and looks at Nik, who agrees quickly.

"Yep, nothing. We just found Iroh's stash of tea leaves."

"Oh, where?" Yue questions with interest while Suki stares at the blushing Zuko with confusion.

Something is definitely going on.

"We found a royal storage room," Zuko replies with a dismissive wave of his hand, "It was just a dusty old room."

But his words seize Ursa's heart for a moment and she glances at the trio carefully.

'It cannot be…'

"You went where?" Ursa questions and stares at the trio critically.

"The…" Zuko's voice is cut short with a reminder elbow from Sokka. Meanwhile, Nik is already holding his head in his hands.

"Nowhere," Zuko averts his gaze.

"Who has it?" Ursa questions after taking a deep breath to calm her furiously beating heart.

"What?" Zuko questions.

"WHO. HAS. IT?"

Losing all his humor at once under the mother's glare, Sokka is the quickest to step aside from the duo. But he refuses to throw them under the bus by answering her.

Zuko blushes harder and looks down. Adopting an apologetic tone, he mutters, "We didn't know it was there."

"Where was what?" Azula questions with interest.

"Nothing," Ursa shoots her daughter a look and stares at Nik. "Where?"

"I may have confiscated it," Nik replies, "But in our defense, it was just lying there. We even saw—"

"I don't want to know what else you saw!" Ursa huffs as red dusting becomes apparent on her cheeks. She glances at her son again before rolling her eyes, "It's alright. Let's drop it!"

"I want to know!" Azula sets her hands on her waist and looks back at the girls as her full lips stretch into a smirk, "Girls, don't you want to know the same?"

Kya covers her smile with her overly large sleeve and adds formally, "It has certainly piqued my interest. Go on, let us all know what you have discovered."

"Mom, please stop talking like that," Sokka thins his lips and cast a desperate glance in Kya's direction.

Nik raises his hands in a calming gesture.

"Let's not get too rowdy. It's nothing interesting."

"Oh, so it is not interesting?" Ursa eyes Nik with a tight frown, "Are you admitting that it holds nothing interesting."

Even with Nik's wealth of knowledge, sometimes, there is no winning with his fairer halves. Chewing his lips in frustration, Zuko adds, "Mother, that's not necessary right now."

"In a moment," Ursa huffs and locks her gaze on Nik. It is truly not the smartest to seek validation, but what the trio found may as well be something she could never achieve again, so hearing Nik dismiss it… kind of stings.

"Is it, or is it not interesting?"

"It is," Nik smiles tightly, "But do you really want to force the issue? If it wasn't, would I have taken it?"

Ursa huffs when she hears Kya speak from the side. A playful twinkle glimmers in the 'queen's' eyes.

"Don't keep us waiting, dear. I command you to spill the beans."

"Really?" Ursa deadpans at Kya.

"You have to stop talking like that, Mom!" Sokka begs.

"Well, I'm not going anywhere unless I find out what it is," Azula scoffs.

"If it's that important, why not drop the issue," Suki shrugs and smiles, "It's not like making them uncomfortable will help us with what awaits."

"It does seem more private with how Zuko is acting," Jin sighs and mutters under her breath, "And here I wanted to learn of some gossip…"

"You girls are pathetic," Azula sneers, and Kya glances at her critically, "Young girl, you will learn to respect others. I did not spend my youthful years just to have such a result."

"Wha—"

"Now," she looks at Nik, "Show me what item of interest you have procured. Hold nothing back. And Kya," the revived woman glances at Ursa, speaking humorously, "Let's not act unkindly toward Nik after he helped you reunite with your children." They planned to reverse the roles for the day and Kya (now Ursa), intended to make the most of it.

"Oh, no… no, no, no…" Sokka looks down desolately. He begged Kya to stop, and now…

He cannot unsee it.

"Welcome to the club," Zuko throws Sokka a stare without any pity. The chieftain had quite the laugh at his Nik and Sokka's expense.

Suddenly, Sokka snaps his head in Nik's direction and snarls, "Don't you dare imagine it!"

Slowly, Nik looks at Sokka. A kind smile reflects on his face. Understanding flickers in his eyes.

"It's too late," he whispers back and then closes his eyes with a tinge of satisfaction, "It's already done."

Sokka's lips part open while Ursa groans and shoots a confused Kya a glare.

"This is getting very confusing," Yue smiles. She tagged along with the promise of enjoyment that she shall have, "Isn't it better to just speak of it instead of showing anything? Not many things can surprise us about each other."

"No!" Ursa snaps.

"Just say it!" Azula groans.

"It would be the best course of action, daughter," Kya smiles at Azula.

"Shit… I can't unsee it now," Zuko's whisper reaches Sokka, and at the depths of despair due to the sudden reversal, Sokka snaps, "We found steamy portraits of the royalty in the hidden chamber of their secrets, alright? Can we please drop it? And Mom, can you please stop talking like that?"

The expressions of the girls freeze and Kya is the quickest to recover before she glares at Nik and Zuko while holding Ursa's hand comfortingly. But she will NOT break her character.

"I am disappointed in you, dearest lover and dearest son!" She knows exactly what she is doing as Sokka shudders, and Katara blanches a bit, "How dare you two imagine Kya in the poses I struck for the portrait! Nik, I shall visit your quarters later and retrieve it but not before punishing you."

""No!""

Sokka and Katara snap at Nik as he frowns, "Hey, don't look at me! Ursa, I willingly accept all responsibility!" He nods at Kya.

"Coming here was a mistake!" Sokka groans.

"I'm glad. It should haunt you, too," Zuko smiles and cherishes the new bond he has found with Sokka.

"Mom, please stop it," Katara begs, making Ursa sigh.

"Katara, dear, I'm not doing anything," Ursa smiles while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "And yes, I dislike how much trouble 'Ursa' is causing us." She glares at Kya who keeps a breezy smile,

This only makes Katara groan, too, and Azula shrugs, "What's wrong with you? Let your mother have fun. Or do you want her to act like she is still trapped in that death sentence?"

Katara and Sokka freeze in sudden guilt while Kya frowns, "Young lady!"

"Yes, yes, mother. I know. I shall visit his quarter with you and get punished alongside him," Azula smirks, eager to watch the world burn.

"You two are enjoying this quite a lot, huh?" Suki smiles at Yue and Jin who followed the development with eager expressions as Jin presents a toothy grin, "It would be a disservice to them if we did not enjoy it!"

"My thoughts exactly," Yue giggles.

"Let's just go to the Ty Manor," Ursa sighs deeply. Even she did not have the heart to make Kya stop now that the woman is enjoying herself a bit and it is a bit of Ursa's fault, too.

The former actor in the former queen gave Kya many acting tips while the latter styled her hair similarly to Katara's hairdo.

—

The moment Ty Woo informs Ty Lee of the routine they will be performing alongside her, the acrobat's emotions plunge.

Confusion, sadness, and a flicker of genuine anger birth in Ty Lee but she keeps herself in check for the time being—

'How could they just use that routine?'

— As hard as it may be.

An elaborately embroidered golden-lined white crop top covers her bust as its straight collar reaches her neck. A white skin suit underneath tucked into baggy, translucent white harem pants that reveal her covered legs underneath cover her flat stomach. A pair of gold anklets clasp onto the ends of the pant around her ankles.

Her sisters dress in the same outfit.

Recalling Nik's statement about how he can discern their differences, especially between Ty Liu and Lum because they swim and dance, they went as far as covering themselves completely.

There is a chance that Nik is just that good and his compliments on their body were a lie, but if they can screw with him and see if he was lying or telling the truth then… it would be optimal.

Optimal how?

That's for them to know.

After resting, bathing, and changing, Ty Lee moves around in the manor. She visits the gardens, at least in the small region not covered by the large tent where her sisters perform every weekend. She greets a few workers she remembers till now and finds out what transpired after her employment in the Circus.

Her sisters were more than equipped and knowledgeable in managing the family business after their father's passing because of their studies at the Royal Academy. But like Ty Lee, her sisters had no such interests. They tried to employ a few of their 'trusted' advisors but quickly caught on that those men and women did not have the family's best interest in their hearts.

For a group of girls only graduating from their teen years, they proved themselves far more perceptive than their naysayers.

Instead of letting their passion go to waste, the sisters tried to bring their hobbies to work: Ty Lin would play the flute for her admirers and workers in the warehouse; Ty Lat woke everyone in the manor in the morning with her harp; Ty Lao would leave beautiful pieces of origami to various workers with words of motivation drawn on them; Ty Liu couldn't exactly make the best use of her hobby, so she began teaching a few recent sailors how to swim accurately; Ty Lum would put on traditional clothes and dance to the slow music of Ty Lin's flute and Ty Lat's harp every weekend for the manor's maids and servants; And Ty Woo… quarreled with Sailors using insults that would put the entire profession to the shame.

Ty Lee learned that her sisters tried to find significant halves for themselves a few times. So that their beloved does not mistake them for the other sibling, they began wearing clothes of a single color, but their boyfriends made mistakes. Or at least, they tried.

Those men were left with sealed chi points and thrown out.

The more she learned about the things her sister went through, the guiltier she felt.

Ty Lee is well aware of how lucky her family is despite everything after performing in the Earth Kingdom for two years.

Even her blind optimism could not look away from the scar of war left on the Earth Kingdom. It forced her to open her eyes. That is one of the reasons why Ty Lee isn't vibrating in one spot with frustration but trying to understand what her family has been upto.

Yet, the more she learns, the more bitter she grows. Not for herself… but for them.

One of the maids revealed how Ty Lin started losing interest in the business. It would have been fine, but the real blow to her sisters was when Ty Lum stopped dancing. All of them began to grow sluggish. They would wake up late. Ty Woo began drinking heavily and would often raise a ruckus in the manor.

They were hurting and Ty Lee could feel it despite being unavailable to witness it by herself.

The final bit of her sister's tale concluded with Ty Lin suddenly bringing the idea of creating their circus. The plan was set in motion almost the same day, and while this caused a major hit to their father's business, the Ty Family has been doing better than ever emotionally and financially.

Ty Lee eventually enters the wide domed tent to find a similar face present in the seating area with a dazed look on her face.

"Ty Lin?" Lee voices out and her eldest acknowledges her with a quiet 'hmm.'

"What are you doing here?"

"Nothing… well, thinking about the performance… I'm nervous. We all are."

Exhaling heavily, Ty Lin looks at her youngest with a smile, "I know you feel I should have no right to ask this but do you have any tips on how to deal with performance anxiety? I can't take Ty Woo's word for it and just down a bottle of alcohol."

"She would say something like that without a doubt," Ty Lee huffs and approaches Ty Lin. Her hesitant expression only recedes when Ty Lin pats the seat adjacent to hers with a grin.

"When I feel anxious… I would usually pet the sky bison that we reared. You don't happen to have a few for yourself, would you?"

"None. We tried to get a few but the officials… do you remember how some boys used to tell us that it's a dream come true for any man to have all seven of us. The official charged with the maintenance wanted that dream come true."

Ty Lee thins her lips. "I could ask Azula to—"

"We blocked his chi so many times he is paralyzed now," Ty Lin shrugs and snickers, "But you can say we did fulfill his dream. After all, all six of us knocked him into his special space."

Ty Lee giggles at that.

"But I don't think it compares to your story," Ty Lin grins, "Energybending skill that makes you hot, appearing in another location, and even seeing an actual dragon! You really are the luckiest of us all!"

Sensing a brief moment of envy flash in her eldest sister's eyes, Ty Lee wanted to say something. It's not like their life hasn't been great when looking at the larger picture. The thought of her sisters envying her makes Ty Lee more than uncomfortable as their father's passing was only a minor reason why she left.

Before she could speak, the noise of a few performers entering the circus distracts them.

"Ah, there you are. Boss Lin, your guests are here."

***

Alternate Title: What is Love? Crusted Mangoes; Would You Share Crusted Mangoes? No; Swap Day; The New Queen; Changing Partners? Nah, They Changing Children!; Sokka's Nightmare; How The Tables Turn; Fire Nation Citizens Are Artistic Freaks; 'Ursa' is Going to Punish Nik and Azula; The Challenge that Awaits; Ty Family Being Savage; Envy From Both Parties; Troubled Past; The Hidden Depression

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