Avatar Rose: Dusk

Ch.70:Nathan

I quickly look up at the clock in the bookstore. 10 minutes to 1. I tap Gwen lightly on the shoulder, and gesture the clock when she asks what I want. Rowan looks too. "Next place," he says a little dully.

The bell tinkles lightly as we file out. "A law firm next. Want to skip it, Rowan?"

I speak up. "I'll go in alone. You two can go to the sandwich parlour over there," I say, gesturing to the next building. The two nod. Rowan gets off the bench he rested on, and the two retreat from my view. I go over what I'm going to say in my head, and then step into the small building.

It's neat and proper, and I feel rather out of place. Black, leather chairs line a crisp oak table, and a receptionist with a very proper dress and a tie nods towards me. I must look ridiculous, in jeans and a T-shirt.

"Anything I can help you with, sir?"

"Yes, yes," I reply, taking on a rather gravelly accent. "My twin brother was drafted for the military. We're from Ganshan, you see, and all our family's belongings were burned in the attack 4 months ago. Right now, for financial support, we need him here. I would enlist in his place, but I have a heart condition so they wouldn't let me in any case."

She hands me a sympathetic smile. "My sympathies," she says, "could I have your name?"

"Xiaou-Lu Raobei."

"Thank you," she says scribbling down the characters on a fancy little notepad with a fancy ink pen. "I can get someone to help you if you make an appointment. Most of our Thursdays are available..."

"Oh, of course. But could I just ask a couple of questions?"

"Concerning what?"

"Oh, the militaria's drafting process and whatnot."

She straightens her chair. "Of course."

I sit down in the fancy leather chair opposite her. Black hair frames her face, and she has radiant brown eyes that seemed to emit a happy glow. If I didn't know better, I would have thought she was fire nation. Perhaps she was a half-breed like me.

"This is wishful thinking, but can the military afford to lose a couple soldiers here and there?"

The receptionist immediately shakes her head. "Not possible. If anything, they're running low on troops, especially in the regular unit."

"Regular unit?"

"Well, sure."

"I'm not that familiar with that term."

"Your brother, he's a bender?"

"No, he's not."

"Then he'll be in the regular unit. He won't be able to just duck out unexcused."

The receptionist raps her fingernails onto the desk, must be a habit. I just glance at her hand, my attention taken by the sound. It's slightly tanned. Just like Rose's after a battle.

It could just be my mind playing tricks on me. I decide to check, just in case.

There's a white coffee mug on her desk sitting very professionally on a fancy little coaster. There's a little cup with pens in it right next to it.

"Can I have some contact information of your offices-" and as I reach for the pen, I tilt my had slightly and my fingers push the coffee onto the receptionist's hand."

She lets out a little yelp of surprise, then waves her hand, while sucking in breath through gritted teeth.

"Fuck!" I yell a little loudly, then, mocking concern, I turn to her hand. "Oh man! Pardon, pardon! Let me look at your hand..."

And I sneak some water out of my satchel and start healing her hand.

"You're a waterbender?" The receptionist lady looks confused.

Almost there...

I search for her chi print, where her chi flows through her body. Boom, there it is.

I grin. "And you're a firebender."

Her expression completely changes. Her eyes sharpen and get serious, her cheekbones seem to lower and her eyebrows knit themselves into a growl.

"How much do you want?"

I'm a little taken back. "What do you mean?"

"How much money." She says it like a statement, not a question.

"I want information, not money."

"I ain't giving it you."

"See, I'm not exactly up to torturing girls, but I have a friend who's awfully good at it. I don't really want to ask 'er, but when it comes to information on the Fire Nation, I'll use any means necessary. "

She scowls. "I'll fight you."

"Let's do it, I won't feel so bad when I torture you later. Is there a back lane over here."

"Outside that door."

"Hmm. Just one question though."

"What is it, you bastard?"

"What are you."

"Fine. I'll tell you. You aren't making it out of this encounter alive anyways. I'm a fire nation spy."

I feel my eyebrows bounce. We really got lucky.

When we both get out, she immediately launches a lightning attack from the get-go, but I bloodbend her arms and legs, and she walks stiffly beside me as we head to the sandwich parlour.

"Gwen," I call to her when we get in.

Rowan's chatting up the manager, so she peels away from him and heads to me. "What's up?"

"We got a lead." I make the 'receptionist' wave her hand. It takes every inch of my concentration to keep her lips from moving and her vocal chords from screeching.

Gwen looks at her. "She..."

"Exactly as you think it is. Don't be too rough."

She nods. "Rowan," she calls.

"Just a second."

He joins us outside, a faithful second later. He notices me straining a little and the woman beside us walking robotically and he gets the memo, but visibly he's slightly disturbed.

We walk around into a back alley.

"Rowan, do you mind bending a hole in the ground?"

"Oh, sure."

He bends it, and then we all jump in and he seals it back, and we're left in pitch darkness. Gwen gets out a flashlight and flicks it on, shining it directly onto her prisoner, and I let the firebender out of the bloodbending grip. She doesn't scream, but immediately sends a fire punch to Rowan's face, which Gwen blocks instinctively and pins the girl to the dirt wall in a full-body blanket of ice.

The girl looks scared, almost terrified at Gwen's cold expression. But she doesn't say a word. Her bottom lip trembles with fear.

Gwendolyn crosses her arms. "Let's get started."