It wasn't a matter of right and wrong, good and evil, light and dark. That wasn't how Azula thought, and it never had been, and it was never going to be.
It was a matter of getting what she wanted.
Side with her father, and she'd get power, assuming he won. She'd get money and fame and glory, and her father would continue to give her his approval. Someday, the power he acquired would pass down to her.
The price, until now, had been easy. Hurt some people, kidnap others, lie and smile and torture and hurt. She hadn't minded any of that. It was easy. If that had been all, she would still be with her father.
But he'd taken Ty Lee away from her, and that wasn't a price she was willing to pay.
Azula had never needed anyone else in her life. Not Uncle or Zuko or even Father. They were useful, but she didn't need them. She didn't love them, not in any way they would have considered meaningful.
But then Ty Lee had come along, and she'd somehow wormed her way into Azula's life, and now Ty Lee somehow mattered more than power or money or her father's approval. She had ceased to be a means to a goal- she was now the goal, in of herself.
It was irrational, and stupid, and Father would have called it weak, too- but Azula found that she didn't care.
Ty Lee came first, now. And Azula was going to get her back. No matter what else it cost.
“I'm not here to fight you,” she told the Avatar's group, after fending off their initial attacks. “I'm here to offer my services. You know exactly how useful I could be, if I were on your side. I know my father's plans. I know his resources. And I'm an amazing firebender, too- better than Zuko. I can help teach the Avatar firebending.”
“Why would you switch sides?” the waterbender asked. “How can we possibly trust you after all the horrible things you've done?”
Heel face turn 1/2
It was a matter of getting what she wanted.
Side with her father, and she'd get power, assuming he won. She'd get money and fame and glory, and her father would continue to give her his approval. Someday, the power he acquired would pass down to her.
The price, until now, had been easy. Hurt some people, kidnap others, lie and smile and torture and hurt. She hadn't minded any of that. It was easy. If that had been all, she would still be with her father.
But he'd taken Ty Lee away from her, and that wasn't a price she was willing to pay.
Azula had never needed anyone else in her life. Not Uncle or Zuko or even Father. They were useful, but she didn't need them. She didn't love them, not in any way they would have considered meaningful.
But then Ty Lee had come along, and she'd somehow wormed her way into Azula's life, and now Ty Lee somehow mattered more than power or money or her father's approval. She had ceased to be a means to a goal- she was now the goal, in of herself.
It was irrational, and stupid, and Father would have called it weak, too- but Azula found that she didn't care.
Ty Lee came first, now. And Azula was going to get her back. No matter what else it cost.
“I'm not here to fight you,” she told the Avatar's group, after fending off their initial attacks. “I'm here to offer my services. You know exactly how useful I could be, if I were on your side. I know my father's plans. I know his resources. And I'm an amazing firebender, too- better than Zuko. I can help teach the Avatar firebending.”
“Why would you switch sides?” the waterbender asked. “How can we possibly trust you after all the horrible things you've done?”