The Legend of Ba Sing Se ○ ATLA

5 ○ Dark Deeds

"Your plan is... uh-- hmm, how do I say this..."

"Just tell me, Jinju."

"...stupid. And incredibly reckless."

"Well... then-- ugh, what do you suggest I do?"

"I suggest... you rethink this thing. Entirely."

The two girls sat together in the same noodle shop that they ate in a few days ago, hidden away in a corner so no one would hear them talk. Kiiya had dragged Jinju through the overcast town and into the noodle shop only moments after she had been dismissed from university for the day.

It was a miserable afternoon. Harsh winds ripped by and rain clouds loomed along the horizon. If the sky could make noise, it would sound like Kiiya's voice at the moment– blunt, dark, and edged with the potential to wreak havoc.

Kiiya didn't want to have to rope Jinju farther into her plot against the war.

But Kiiya was desperate. And Jinju was a source of constant, overflowing information.

Information that she needed very badly.

"I have no time to rethink things," Kiiya said, her elbows propped on the table as she sat twisting her tangled hair between her fingers. "The Avatar is here in the city. Right now. And people are starting to take notice. He's no longer a little secret that you have to lower your voice about. I mean, he's the talk of the town. Someone told me on my way home yesterday that he was riding in a royal carriage past our Town Hall. That means our situation is more serious than ever."

"Is it really, though?" Jinju grasped Kiiya's hands, forcing her to stop fiddling with her hair. "This is making me start to worry about you, Kiiya."

Kiiya's eyes flashed over to Jinju's as she spoke. "You need to think about the possibility that maybe, just maybe, the Avatar came here for a reason."

"To drive us all out?" Kiiya retorted, worry weaved into her voice. "To bring the Fire Nation back?"

"No!" Jinju exclaimed quietly, followed by an exasperated sigh. She stared out the restaurant windows at the smoke-gray clouds that hid the sun from the world.

"Maybe he has a mission to complete," Jinju pondered aloud. "Maybe, he was sent here by someone. Who's to say he's not... hmm, relaying information to the government? Asking them to help prepare for battle?"

Kiiya scoffed. "What battle? What government?" She shook her head aggressively, then stopped herself to thank the server that brought them bowls of pho at that moment.

"As far as the king is concerned," Kiiya continued, "there is no battle happening. Anywhere. Our military isn't leaving this city. If the Avatar came here for help, he's not getting it. And he's a fool if he hasn't realized that by now."

Jinju pursed her lips. "Ok. Fair point." She gave a curt nod as she took a bite of beef. "But still... I..." Jinju dropped her chopsticks and took Kiiya's hands in her own again.

"Listen, Kiiya, I've been giving this some more thought since I told you this for the first time. Yes, I was terrified when I first learned that the Avatar had come here. A little more so when I realized he was fighting the Fire Nation right outside our door. But I didn't have all the information then."

Kiiya pulled her hands from Jinju's grasp. "So what haven't you told me yet?"

A twinge of hurt glazed over Jinju's eyes. "Calm down, please," she said stiffly. "You're going to fall out of your chair if you lean forward anymore."