Ch 27

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Harry's POV *3 hours later*

"Why the fuck didn't you say the ride would be three hours!?" Liza yells.
"I forgot." Azula answers.
"I feel like a stick." Liza mumbles.

The sky is cloudy and dark so it's gonna start raining soon most likely. This seems like a crowded place, on one of the signs it says 'Gladioli District'. There are a lot of shops and boutiques here, though a bit further away there is a skyscraper with flags at the top.

"There's a famous mall nearby, we'll be meeting my sister there." Azula states.
"This place looks rich." Liza says while looking around.
"Yep, a lot of famous businesses are here and that skyscraper is where a lot of government officials work." Azula replies.

Azula starts to walk in the opposite direction of the skyscraper, me and Liza follow right behind her. I notice Liza looking at the shops a lot, she looks amazed with everything. The prices on some items is very high, $900 for one bag that doesn't seem like it can fit a lot of things. In the reflection of the windows, I notice someone walking at exact same pace as us and copying my footsteps.

Even when we take a few turns, I still see them in the reflections. It's difficult to identify the person but there is a very detailed snake tattoo on their neck. This is either a coincidence or we are being followed.

At the same time though, a lot of people we're passing by is holding that very same bag. It seems popular here. We walk for ten minutes before we reach a mall that looks expensive, one fountain has a sign saying it's made out of literal gold.

"Let's just wait there." Azula points at a bench near the window.
"Alright." I reply.
"She should be here in just a few minutes so I'll go grab something to drink." Azula states.
"Ok." Liza yawns.

We sit on the bench, Liza observes the mall. That person is a good distance away on their phone. They are standing near a restaurant hiding their face, with the way Liza is looking around she might've noticed too.

"That person gives me the creeps." Liza mumbles while looking at that person.
"Let's act like we don't know they're there, just observe." I reply.
"Ok, I just feel a little nervous though." she responds.
"Don't worry about it, we're in a crowded area so they can't do anything right now if they actually are following us." I smile at her.

Azula comes back holding three cans of coke. She hands me and Liza them, she glances over at where that person is standing before opening her can. She seems in a defensive state, her left hand is her pocket and she's slightly facing where that person is.

A woman with a black skirt, white shirt with a black jacket and black boots that looks very similar to Azula approaches us from the entrance. She looks near identical to Azula but slightly younger.

"Hey Ause." Azula smiles.
"Hey addict, so you two are Liza and Harry?" the woman or Ause looks at me and Liza.
"Yeah." I nod.
"We should go somewhere less crowded and talk there." Azula states.
"Erm, what about that person?" Liza asks quietly.
"We're gonna have to fully confirm that they are following us first." Azula replies.

Ause looks a little confused but doesn't say anything, we all start to walk towards an escalator that goes to the second floor, that's when that person moves. Once we all reach the second floor, they go on the escalator and walks quickly up. The second floor is a lot less crowded luckily, the person is 20 meters away from us.

This person's footsteps are very quiet so I'm guessing they have done this before. Liza drinks up her coca-cola and when that person is about to pass a trashcan, Liza throws her empty can into the trashcan and 'misses' it hitting the person instead. The can hits the person right on the chest and hits the ground.

The person picks up the can and throws it into the trash. They don't look at the direction from where the can came from which is odd, Liza pulled a smart move, the person is actually following us.

With the way they didn't look up to see where the can came from, which most people wouldn't do and instead check to see who threw it a them. Moving at the exact same time as we are moving keeping a consistent distance and copying our footsteps, it's clear that they are following us.

"Oh sorry, I didn't aim properly!" Liza apologizes loudly catching some attention.
"Oh, uh it's ok." the person stammers, guess that caught them off guard. "I should've noticed it coming right at me." he lies, it's a male voice.
"It happens, don't sweat it." Azula states, her voice sounding very casual.

The stalker is clearly surprised, he's probably nervous now that we've acknowledged him. A few people are looking at us and he's avoiding making any eye contact. Liza approaches him and smiles.

"I'm Liza, what's your name?" she asks.
"Erm...Leon." he lies.
"Oh, awesome name! So how come you're here alone?" Liza questions.
"Uhm, my friends got stuck in some traffic so they're late." 'Leon' lies.
"Aww, that's painful." Liza replies.

'Leon' is still avoiding eye contact. His name isn't Leon and he definitely doesn't have friends that are coming. I'm sure his only goal is to observe us because he doesn't seem like he actually holds any kind of threat.

Liza's acting is good, she sounds like she genuinely doesn't know he is following us. Ause looks confused and Azula has a small smile on her face.

"Erm, I gotta go now." 'Leon' declares.
"Ok, bye!" Liza replies.
"Uh bye..." he responds and quickly walks away.

I open my can and start to drink out of it. Liza looks happy and seems to feel very accomplished. She did a very good job at chasing him away without causing a scene.

............................................................

Gladioli District is a hint for what I have planned for book 2

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