The Royal Return (4)

"Aha~!" Ty Lee giggled as she was simply too tipsy to cartwheel around and chose to walk on her feet lest she hurls out everything she gulped tonight. Her expression was positively haggard but her smile was still as bright as she started hearing the exploits of the team early in the night. Letting her gaze wander over Nik, Ty Lee hummed, "Don't you feel lucky? I admit that my aura grew somewhat green with envy when I heard how much fun you've had..."

Chuckling in response, Nik shrugged, "It's been a great couple of months if you ignore getting captured by Fire Nation and ambushed by spirits alike."

Unlike others, Ty Lee took great interest in the supernatural side of Nik's adventure and wasn't quick to chalk them off as ridiculous despite how they sounded. In fact, she leaned toward Nik and whispered, "But... I suppose that Yue's story about how the Spirit of Moon and the Sea blessed you should make up for it, right? It almost feels like a passage out of a fairy tale."

Nik hummed as he recalled the peaceful and calm Tui always keeping boisterous La in check... and felt amused. He wondered what he represented from the duo. He wanted to be peaceful but always ended up in... well, Nut Cracking situations and Yue always wanted to tag along the adventure with HER warrior but the increasingly dangerous circumstances had forced her to train and be more adept first calmly before 'returning' to the 'troops.'

"It really does," Nik replied, his hand unabashedly coiling around Ty Lee's shoulder since she'd been wanting a good reason to get closer and Nik was happy to provide one. With her smile turning into a pleased grin, she cooed, "You know... Azula will really get annoyed if she saw us like this. Makes me wonder what you actually did to her to make her... so manageable. After all, everyone only had something questionable to say about Azula..."

While Jin hadn't gotten to the 'gory' bits of her relationship with Azula since it would muddy Zuko's name, too, the wheat-skinned darling did have a lot of shade thrown at Azula just to get a reaction. Of course, many matters, including those behind closed doors, were unanimously agreed upon to be kept to themselves.

"You know," Nik chuckled while leading Ty Lee to a room rather than sending her out of the manor like usual, "You don't have to wonder."

Opening the door for Ty Lee, Nik leaned against the edge of the door and let the girl enter, "Sleep well, I can't imagine you'd have a really refreshing morning so be sure to meet up with Yue before leaving. Her skills are what made June become entirely uncaring of hangovers... wonder what that alcohol is doing to her body..."

Giggling lightly, Ty Lee gazed at Nik with her eyes upturned. Again, she found herself attracted to the youth in front of her. Unlike others, Nik and Ty Lee, both of them didn't have to 'work' for it. Ever since the acrobat with the penchant for making everyone around her a friend of hers laid eyes on the youth, she did feel attracted. These few days only cemented this attraction and even if the fact that the youth in front of her was most certified a... well, 'Bad' Guy for her with how 'many' he had around her, this thought itself made the ever-curious Ty Lee more... drawn towards the youth.

Clearing her throat to pull his attention from her top that clung to her tightly and more than happy that her top did the task demanded from it, Ty Lee led the subject presented to her, "Speaking of those abilities... I didn't know there were things other than elemental bending... like Yue can heal things even Katara cannot with her waterbending, right?"

"Yeah, she's the reason why we can train as much as we do," Nik replied with a fond expression. Though feeling her aura get a little greener once again because of the expression on his face, Ty Lee felt her lips parch as she asserted, "I... actually can hold my liquor quite well... I have been capable of doing that since I joined the circus and even did a few tricks while being fully drunk..."

"Alright, that's totally unsafe," Nik gawked at the woman for a second who welcomed all the attention being showered to her and continued, "Um... well, I was curious about abilities... like, June admitted that she can fling pebbles and stones after you helped her. So, I got curious what other skills could do, too... and that only left Mai but she wouldn't speak of her ability..."

With her cheeks flushing again and her lips pressed together, Ty Lee shifted a little where she stood, "Of course... I convinced her to communicate her ability one way or another... so, you know... all that rum and wine wasn't the reason... I needed support... to walk..."

However, Ty Lee only found Nik staring back at her with an amused expression and she was quick to realize that her 'ploy' wasn't only seen through but he... most probably knew.

"Wow," Ty Lee deadpanned, "So, Mai won't speak a thing about you to me but would come back to you chattering?"

"It's not like you made it any harder for things to notice. You really thought June loves blowing against ears?" Nik shrugged, "That woman's a tease but she never really was THIS sensual. Besides..." touching the tip of his nose briefly, Nik added, "I can hear, smell, and see better than others..."

Realizing the implications of his words, Ty Lee's lips parted and her eyes threatened to bulge out of her skull as she was quick to press her thighs together with her face now turning beet red.

Leaning forward, Nik added as he, too, whispered a hot, teasing breath against her ear as June had been doing all night, "And I assure you... if you're getting such reactions with just whispers, Mai did more than twice your usual sensitivity as she claimed before. It's... maybe three or four times."

As if agreeing with his words, a low whimper unconsciously left the tight grip of her lips as Ty Lee closed her eyes and felt the impact of his breath multiple times more severe than June's heated ones.

Pulling back, Nik grinned, "It has this effect... but I suppose it'll wear off in a few minutes given that Mai didn't keep on using her chi to keep this skill working."

"Hmm..." Ty Lee nodded stoically and then briefly looked back at her room. It was barely furnished but had all the essentials... not the kind of room she really dug, to be honest and she was quick to voice her opinions for that matter.

"Is there a... I don't know, maybe a better room? I could bunk with Mai and Azula."

"Unfortunately, no one is in any condition to have more fun given how much they enjoyed themselves already. Thank you for that, really. Tonight was great. But... this is the better of the remaining rooms left," Nik shook his head.

"What about yours?" Ty Lee blinked before leaning forward, "Come on, you won't mind sharing, right?" Her usual puppy eyes did try to work their magic as she'd been riled enough to look even more tantalizing only for Nik to look past her and let out a loud, thoughtful hum.

He didn't mind sharing his space for a night, of course. But...

"I was planning to train for a few hours... we do have quite the situation come morning. Besides, my room is... the same as this one."

Ty Lee scoffed and crossed her arms, "I don't believe you. Your room must be awesome!"

Well... it wasn't. Not like he had gained any interest in decorations and stuff like that. Half the time he spent the night in other's rooms and the other half he enjoyed the night with training.

"Well, believe it. The only difference between your current room and mine will be... that I am present in my room. Here," taking a step forward and entering the room, Nik shrugged, "Welcome to my room now."

Ty Lee looked around the room once again and huffed lightly.

"What?" Nik inquired while Ty Lee shakily walked towards the bed, still feeling the shivers from before, and slumped on the mattress while supporting her upper body with both of her hands placed behind the mattress, "Nothing... I just thought your room would have been better..."

"Well... I suppose I have one painting that I would like to put up in my room but... Michi wouldn't let me," Nik chuckled as he sat beside her.

"What kind of painting?" Ty Lee inquired, hearing the first about it. After all, not many knew about 'Painting' except for a few that Rena brought back from Michi and what a sight it really is.

"Well, you'd have to ask Michi yourself. Hey, maybe you can convince her to draw you, too... that would be awesome," Nik chuckled while Ty Lee had her fingers clenching the sheets of the bed and the sound of a nervous, audible gulp escaped the confines of her throat.

"So... Nik, I've been meaning to ask you something," Ty Lee muttered, not really curious about this painting at the moment.

"Sure," Nik looked at her with a calm, soothing smile even if he was still somewhat intoxicated.

"After you... and others do put an end to Phoenix King's tyranny and that's a big if... what would you do next?"

"Leave for another world," Nik shrugged and Ty Lee pouted, "I'm serious!"

Looking at the woman with the 'bounciest' personality ever, Nik's smile broadened and he leaned forward, "Maybe I'll have the time of my life after defeating Ozai... Maybe I will search for Ra and Raat myself since they are taking their sweet time to pay me a 'visit.' Maybe I'll spend my days with all of you."

Ty Lee's eyes widened in surprise somewhat before she groaned, "But... I also want to stay in the circus... actually, I did have a boyfriend before in Fire Nation Capital but... he wanted me to... well, stay at home, with him. He certainly did not like my clothes after we became a couple..." Saying this, she looked back at Nik who snickered in reply, "So? You saw how free the girls are, right?"

Ty Lee nodded.

But Nik... only felt a certain presence within himself as his smile grew devilish with every passing second and his violet orbs seemed to captivate Ty Lee when he whispered, "Want to hear a secret?"

Their face was barely inches apart as Ty Lee understood what was to come and had she not been the least bit interested, there wouldn't be 'conditions' beforehand so that Nik could understand her wants and desires. She loved cute clothes, and she loved acrobatics even more!

Nodding in reply, Ty Lee felt her spine shiver when Nik asserted, "Freedom... is the most dangerous illusion. Just you wait until someone you so desperately need comes along and make you submit all of you... willingly. And hopefully..."

He leaned forward, his lips brushing against her own pillowy, soft folds as they didn't feel the least bit averse due to their own alcoholic breaths, "That someone is me."

Maybe it was the 'mark' on her crotch that Ty Lee got out of excitement... but she found herself melting into Nik's embrace as he left her no way of retreating with how he was 'blocking' the chi of her lips and turning HER into a putty this time.

Yet, Nik leaned back with a smirk, his fingers roguishly slipping against the waistband of her leggings and pulling them back to reveal pink panties yet Ty Lee couldn't yelp for... she realized that the 'mark' wasn't there.

"You didn't think that Mai is the reason why I could keep em happy, did you?" Nik narrowed his eyes as he gently traced the woman's face with the back of his palm, who realized just whose den she was in, and added, "Welcome to my room, Ty Lee."

Although Ty Lee found herself entirely in his hands, with her lips ravished in the manner she deserved and her body finally tucked in for the night since Nik really did have to train with their residence Avatar in the ways of Airbending, one thing was made clear to her— The Freedom she thought she sought... might really just be an illusion.

Of course, Nik did not only satisfy Ty Lee for the night who finally slept in the 'plain' room but also the younger boy with a massive set of responsibilities on his shoulders with his rapid improvement in Airbending since what really did come hard to Nik was Lavabending. Of course, the training continued till the next morning which allowed Nik to demonstrate the might of blue flames, too, to the young Avatar.

But the morning also signified that it was time to leave.

To Phoenix City.

---

Zuko... felt quite satisfied. Sure, he didn't manage to ask Ty Lee out, but then again, if he had been THAT interested, he would have tried it the first day she arrived. Instead, hanging out with Team Avatar was more than fun for him. While he and Nik did try to get along, it was perfunctory at best. Whether they wanted to be friends or not, their circumstances dictated that Zuko would NEED a long time to adjust around Nik. But that was the thing about Team Avatar...

They were 'Victims' of Nik's... 'responsibilities.'

Zuko could even empathize with Sokka and Tom-Tom... it was as if Nik looked irresistible to their female family members. But being with them also made Zuko realize that it didn't need to be as awkward. Sokka and Nik were buddies and say what he might, Tom-Tom certainly respected Nik.

But life has never been easy for Zuko. After coming along this much, even being able to hold casual conversation with Jin at times, he now had to have the 'talk' with his mother who seemed to have enough of hiding around a few facts. Not that Zuko was opposed to it.

For reasons known only to Ursa, she never did disclose what happened between her and his father. That... made Zuko confused and curious at the same time. Still, he focused on his training in the morning and had a good spar with the Avatar before leaving the group who helped in packing up the circus.

Zuko could be around Nik and Azula and get teased for days... but not Momo. The critter annoyed the hell out of him—

"Leave me alone!" Zuko groaned, launching a small spark towards Momo who promptly flew away with the massive spider still clutched in his paws.

Scoffing, he walked the usual path and found a dark-haired youth happily waving his hand toward him.

"Hey! Where the hell were you last night? I thought we were visiting tavern!"

Shrugging, Zuko refrained from telling the truth. Well, he didn't know the truth about Nik's ability and this lack of trust was one of the major reasons why Zuko and Nik couldn't get along easily. Sighing, he looked at Kei Lo and smiled, "I was uh... hanging out with the Great Pippinpadlospi?"

"Oh, you mean the Great Pippinpaddleopsicopolis," Kei Lo nodded as Zuko deadpanned, "What the hell? Did everyone learn his name except for me?"

"Pretty much, that old man is quite famous. More than your crush, Ty Lee~ Say, did you make any progress?" Kei Lo questioned while easily having one arm around Zuko's neck.

Scoffing, Zuko muttered, "Nothing like that... I was hanging out with uh... Akkos and others from the Circus. They're quite fun..."

"So is flying on a Sky Bison, dude... but come on, at least try asking Ty Lee out. I'm sure—"

"No, it's alright," Zuko interjected while Kei Lo looked at his buddy, "Wait a minute... wasn't Ty Lee super interested in you for some reason... did Azu—"

"Do you ever shut up?" Zuko growled, realizing that he would have been much more pissed if Azula had 'gotten' to Ty Lee instead of Nik, surprisingly.

"Oof, sucks man," Kei Lo shrugged as they idly meandered their way to a very specific location.

"So? Leaving today, huh, Blue Devil?" Kei Lo questioned as Zuko winced. While he hadn't gone into details of his past, Zuko did let Kei Lo into many of his secrets. Secrets that Azula and now Nik didn't want to be known just because, in Zuko's eyes, they were paranoid that many around them could be sleeper agents.

Nodding, Zuko muttered, "Something like that. We'd be leaving with the circus... but we can't take all of you so you must make sure that none of these Dai Li agents escape."

They walked out of the tunnel to see the large metal fortress that kept the Dai Li agents imprisoned. Many rebels were stationed here—

"Where are all of them?" Zuko came to a stunned pause. The Fortress which should have been filled with many, many individuals... was empty.

He turned around and found Kei Lo kneeling on a knee with his head lowered.

"Hey, Lo, where are they?" Zuko, positively confused, held his friend's shoulder and questioned, "Kei Lo! Where are they?"

"Poison is a wondrous thing, Zuko..." a deep, distinct voice filled the large and empty cavern as Zuko heard the footsteps and turned around to find a large man with fair but masculine features as his narrowed, golden eyes stared back at the youth calmly.

The man had his long black hair tied back with his beard shaved from the sides and let down in a long goatee. His body was garbed in Imperial red and trimmed gold while the sheer presence and 'warmth' the man exuded was unlike any Zuko had met, including his uncle.

Zuko's lips quivered as his words were stuck in his mouth yet Kei Lo, with his tone announcing the reverence he held for the man, claimed loudly, "All Hail the Phoenix King!"

His voice filled the cavern with his echoes as Zuko felt the world shift around him, "F-father..."

***

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