Where There Is Smoke, There Is Fire [Avatar: The Last Airbender Fanfic]

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Izara entered the Captain's office to report for her afternoon shift. The past few weeks had been uneventful, and she felt like she was hitting her stride. She was doing well in firebending, although Zuko had been too busy to meet with her since their second session. However, Kazan had been happy to take some time with her, and he had also been a great help with the beginner forms in Suki's class. Kazan was in the highest-ranked class for palace guards, not that Izara was surprised. Suki suggested that Izara bump up to the next level. She didn't feel ready since she had only worked for over a month. Maybe people would think less of her if she hadn't done her time in the lower classes. Suki was understanding but encouraged her to go up as soon as she felt okay.

Luan had met with her a few days ago to ask how she felt about moving shifts. There was plenty of staff on each shift, but one of the male night shift guards had just welcomed a new addition to his family. He wanted to be at home through the night with his wife and spend some more time with them through the day and had asked for someone to swap shifts with while they were settling in with the new baby. Most of the night guards were high-ranking and long-serving, but Luan had suggested that he thought she would do well, so she had accepted. Unfortunately, she wouldn't start until this block of shifts was over. Until then, she was trying to stay up late to ensure that she was well-prepared for the change in her sleeping pattern. It wouldn't be permanent, Luan said, but he wanted to give the other guard at least a month or two at home with his wife through the night.

When she had reported in, she went to her post. Today, she was outside at the wall next to the training grounds, which was always the most exciting spot to be through the day. There were guards training in combat, with weapons and bending. It was the day and afternoon shifts' favourite post. She didn't have to do much aside from keeping an eye on each side of the wall and patrolling her 25-metre section. Since bad situations seldom happened, most guards spent their shift watching everyone training. Izara wanted to get down there and train herself but settled for going through some forms mentally as she walked up and back in her area.

Raiko was on the next section of the wall, and they made pleasant conversation throughout their shift, and it ended up going quickly. Night fell after only an hour or two, and the training grounds fell quiet afterwards. The city was more interesting to look at after dark since the lights from the houses and shopping district stood out across the night sky.

The remainder of the shift was utterly uneventful. Once relieved, Izara returned to report in with Raiko in tow. Once she had checked in, she headed to the cafeteria to get something to eat. The late-night staff at this time mainly prepped ingredients and dishes for the next day and accepted deliveries in the early morning for fresh produce. Since Izara was moving to the night shift, she hadn't seen Ling, who was usually there throughout the day. She had made an acquaintance, Gualin, who always ensured she had something to eat. There were still plenty of leftovers from the dinner rush, and there was a hearty stew served with crusty bread.

After enjoying her meal, Izara returned to her room, keeping as silent as she could as she grabbed her things and headed to the bath. It was dead quiet, and she didn't mind the silence as she washed before hopping in the tub and letting the hot water soothe her muscles. She had been working incredibly hard to pick up everything and probably needed to give herself a break. Training so much had been helping her get to sleep at night, stopping her from laying awake all night, overthinking everything, so that was good.

Once she had thoroughly enjoyed her soak, she got out and dried off. Her bedclothes desperately needed replacing, as they were just her old clothes. She made a mental note to go to a shop that Lia had suggested. Lia tended to have expensive tastes, whereas Izara was far more practical. Still, she appreciated that Lia did always buy quality items. You got what you paid for and didn't worry about loose threads, weird sizing, or crappy materials. She figured that since you spent at least a quarter of your day asleep, you might as well spend a bit more to be comfortable. She also noticed yesterday that her boots, the only pair of shoes she owned, were fraying badly and would need replacing. Something else would need to be done as soon as possible. It was probably worth getting a pair of other shoes, such as sandals, to wear while she was off duty.