#hnhnn ive been sittin on this for like a week bc i wasnt sure if it was good enough

[versatilewindow]

Muddy Hair and Pretty Waterfalls

Find it on Ao3

Summary: Ty Lee and Mai wash their hair together, there are undertones of yearning

A/N: i was like, the yearning and softness of washing someones hair, and then asked the lads for a pairing, i hope yall think i got their characterization right

In retrospect, Mai should’ve taken more precautions before helping rebuild the palace grounds. Not that it was particularly difficult with the amount of benders around to help with moving the bigger pieces around, but earth AND water benders around copious amounts of mud is something with an obvious outcome. Mai let out a large sigh as she passed her comb through her long dark hair, or rather tried to, as the mud had already dried, caking down the usually shiny soft locks to her scalp.

“Ya need some help there?” It was Ty Lee Mai saw in her vanity mirror, holding a comb of her own. If Mai thought her hair was long gone, looking at the other girl’s braided ponytail took any thought out of her head. The ex-circus member had been playing around in the mud while the majority worked at clearing the rubble. Mai couldn’t stay any type of mad at Ty Lee for long though, as her antics and bright attitude brought a much needed smile to her face. (Not that Mai would ever admit this to anyone at all.)

“It looks like you’re the one who needs help Ty,” letting out another sigh, Mai stood out of the plush chair and gestured towards it. “Sit down, I’ll see what I can do.” Ty Lee hopped into the seat, taking out her lower hair tie so her friend could start combing through her usual braid. Mai didn’t get very far before succumbing to the same frustration she felt with her own hair.

Ty Lee looked at Mai through the mirror and lightly huffed before pouting, “This would be so much easier to get out if the mud was wet.”

Mai stared back through the mirror before saying, “I have an idea.” and exiting the room, leaving a somewhat confused Ty Lee to follow. They made a stop at the bathing chambers, grabbing shampoo and conditioner; then the linen closet for towels; and finally Mai’s room again for a change of clothes and a bag to put their things in. Deciding that she had waited too long already, Ty Lee asked Mai to elaborate on her idea, only for a curt response telling her not to worry. 

Following the taller girl out of the estate, Ty Lee’s curiosity continued to grow even larger, and her questions more frequent. That all stopped when they reached their destination, a clearing with a small waterfall running off rocks that seemed to be a perfect mix of haphazardly and expertly placed through a running stream. It was a bit of a walk outside of the gardens on the estate, so it was unlikely the two would be disturbed. In awe, Ty Lee turned to her friend to go off about how beautiful the place was, and how she couldn’t believe that in all their years of friendship, Mai had never told her about this particular location on her family’s estate. Instead, she saw Mai at the stream’s edge, removing her robes and grabbing the shampoo and comb. Following through without expressing her thoughts, Ty Lee did the same, stepping out of her robes and carefully folding them next to the stream edge before grabbing her comb. 

Once the two were under the waterfall together, they fell into a comfortable silence, combing out the once stubborn mud from their hair, dirtying the once clear stream running beneath their feet. Hearing a soft ow from the brown haired girl, Mai looked up to see Ty Lee with her comb stuck in her hair. She let out a light tsk, “Ya need some help there?”

The other looked up sheepishly, a quiet “Yes, please,” leaving her lips. 

Mai removed Ty Lee’s hand from her tangled hair, and used her own comb to detangle starting from the tips up towards the root-where the other comb was stuck. Ty Lee took this as an opportunity to tell the other about her day playing in the mud, and joking around with the children of those working to help with the rubble surrounding the battle. “Ahh, I maybe should have thought a little harder before deciding to make a mud spirit.”

“A mud spirit?”

“Yeah this one kid was telling me about how in the water tribes they lie down in the snow and wave their arms and legs around making a shape in the snow, so I figured, if I can't make a snow spirit because there’s no snow, then I could make a mud spirit—because there was a looot of mud.”

A soft chuckle escaped Mai as she continued to comb. “Never change Ty Lee.” Ty Lee felt light heat rush across her cheeks and a soft flutter in her stomach at the subtle praise from her usually uninterested friend. The silence crept back in as a contented sigh left Ty Lee’s lips. Feeling the light touch of Mai’s nimble fingers on her scalp, massaging the shampoo all around, Ty Lee closed her eyes, a small smile appearing as a faint satisfied hum filled the air. The movements relaxed Ty Lee’s whole body allowing her mind to drift. She couldn’t remember the last time she was touched with such tender love and care. It certainly wasn’t in the past few months, or in the circus; her relationship with the other performers was certainly friendly, but they were nothing more than co-workers. That left her time at home;she and her sisters definitely took time to brush out each others’ hair, or to hug, but it felt more like obligation rather than a love for each other. Her train of thought only stopped when she finally heard Mai asking her to return the favor and wash the rest of the mud out of her hair.

Repeating the same motions Mai had, Ty Lee combed through the silky black tresses, working her way up from the tips to remove the rest of the mud. While working the shampoo into Mai’s scalp, Ty Lee felt the tension that had made permanent residence in her neck and shoulders begin to leave, and her impeccable strong posture relax just a bit. 

In an uncharacteristic meek voice, Ty Lee broke the silence, “Ya know, I was thinking of joining the Kiyoshi Warriors.” The tension in Mai’s neck returned. “Suki was a really great opponent and I’d like to learn her fighting style, and back in prison she told me about their community and goals, I think the world really needs some fixing and I think the Warriors could really help with that.” 

Mai turned around to face her friend, examining the nervous look on her face before saying, “I think that would be a good path for you.” She turned back around for Ty Lee to continue her work, “I’m not sure what I should do though, I love Zuko, but our relationship has never been entirely stable. I want to be there for my brother, but that would mean talking to my mother and father, and they haven’t been in the running for parents of the year for a long time. Sometimes I just want to run away from it all,  live in the woods where there’s no societal expectations for me to disappoint.”

“Well I think you should do what feels right right now, if it doesn’t work out, you can always change your mind. Or you can join me with the Kiyoshi Warriors~.” The tension in Mai’s neck left again at the encouraging words, and she waded over to the neat pile of their belongings. 

“There’s a hot spring near here, you coming?”

A wide grin overtook Ty Lee’s face as she pranced over to where Mai was waiting to show her the way. The two had a lot of decisions to make, some harder than others, but none of that mattered. In this moment, all they cared for were overdue warm embraces, laughter over shared meals, and late nights playing children's games with the rest of their new friends.

A/N: Hope yall liked it!!! leave a comment!!!! boosts the ego and my motivation to write!!!