This Girl's A Little Different (Jinoochy One-Shot)
A/N: Hi everyone, this is just a little something I typed up two nights ago. It's just a one-shot for now, but if enough people like it, I'll continue it? Yeah, that's it. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I am neither half of Bryke, and don't own any part of AtLA or LoK. I just like to play with their world a little.
Before I begin, let me just clear one thing up: I did not purposely steal from the only airbending master alive. Promise.
I mean, technically she's the only female master; her old man's still alive, but you get the point. Basically, if I had known who the random girl reading in the park was, I'd've kept my distance.
But when I first saw her, she wasn't anyone of importance - just another target. Another blank face that wouldn't notice if their overflowing pockets became a little lighter, if their neck was suddenly bare, or if their pocket watch went missing.
This time, I wasn't after some silly necklace - nah, that was too easy for a guy like me. Today's target had a real challenge: a decorative band wrapped around her head, covered in delicate swirly designs. It was an eye-catcher for sure, and some lady out there'd pay handsomely for a piece like that. Even if it was sold by a sketchy street rat.
Come to think of it, this gal looked pretty sketchy herself. Not in the way I'm pretty used to - no threadbare clothes or bare feet to be seen, but she still looked... different.
Her clothes, that must've been it. It was the regular lower class Republic get-up: plain brown clothes, a few faded splashes of color mixed in. Nothing that gave the wearer's nationality away. (You know us Republic folk - we do love ourselves some mystery.)
Anyway, yeah, the clothes were nothing to look at. But that was the problem. Everything about this person gave her the image of "plain ol' citizen"... except for her headband. No simple gal could afford a beauty like the one 'round her forehead, trust me. And, when I looked real carefully, I saw her shirt was a little on the bigger side, sleeves ending at her fingertips, and her shoes seemed tight around her feet. If she could afford that headband, she should definitely'd been able to buy some clothes that fit right.
Yup, something about this girl was definitely odd. But that was a total advantage on my part.
A plan already set in my head, I casually strolled over towards the girl, whistling a song I'd heard on a radio that I'd stolen earlier. I paused in front of the bench, pretending to examine the view of the bay in front of me. It really was kinda pretty, with the sun shining down on the water and everything. Not that I'd tell anyone that.
After a moment, I sighed quietly and plopped myself down onto the bench. The girl next to me eyed me silently before scooting a few inches in the opposite direction and returning to her book. Still, she didn't run away, and that kinda impressed me. Nobody decent would usually stick around me for more than a few seconds.
A minute of silence passed by before I cleared my throat, causing the girl to jump. "So... beautiful day outside, ain't it?"
Her face was obscured by her book cover, so when she didn't respond I had no idea what to think. I was about to say something else when a real quiet voice spoke up. "It's supposed to be sunny all week."
I raised an eyebrow, even though she couldn't see it. She actually responded normally, like I was a real human being. I mean, of course I am, but not that many people out there treat me like it. "Yeah, I heard. Only hope there'll be a nice breeze, too."
"Oh, I think there's a good chance of that," she said, a hint of amusement in her timid voice.
Another pause, the only sounds being the chattering of passerby and the flipping of pages. She sounded like a fast reader, though I wouldn't know. I can only read a few important words: stop, food, no, police, and money. Really all you need to survive in this city.
Anyway, after she flipped maybe the tenth page, I began to talk again. "The name's Skoochy, by the way." I got no reply other than the turn of a page. " 'Nd you are?"
The girl dropped her book, obviously startled, for what reason I didn't know. Picking it back up off the ground and smoothening the pages, she replied, "I'm, uh, I'm Yue. Nice to meet you." She held out a hand in front of her, the other one still preening her book.
For a moment, I just stared at it, unsure of how to react. I'd only ever shaken hands to seal deals, and those kinda handshakes meant you spit into your hand before. Still, I managed to snap out of it, and pumped her hand up and down several times before letting go. Yue... that name sounded familiar.
While I pondered the name, the girl absently pushed the headband up on her forehead and picked at whatever minuscule pieces of dirt remained on the cover. "Yue..." I muttered to myself, staring out over the water. Only then did the realization hit me like a boulder. "Isn't that Yue Bay right in front of us?" I said, and she flinched again. Told you something was strange about this girl.
"I'm, um, named after the bay?" Her voice rose higher with each word, making for very bad convincing.
"Riiiight. And you're also just a regular ol' gal who just happens to have enough money to buy that headband of yours."
"...I do a lot of jobs?"
"Not with those delicate hands you don't. Admit it - you couldn't afford that headband unless you sold your parents to the circus."
She huffed, crossing her arms. "Are you implying that because I'm a girl, I can't work hard?"
"No," I said, "I'm implying that because your hands are soft and manicured that you aren't working hard."
Her eyebrows creased, and a smile played on my lips. I'd caught her now. "And do I even have to mention that none of your clothes fight you right?"
Glancing down at herself, 'Yue' played with a loose thread on her shirt, eventually pulling it off. "Fine, you're right. My name isn't Yue."
"And...?"
"And I don't have multiple jobs."
"And...?"
"And these aren't my clothes."
"So basically what you're saying is everything you've said so far is a lie," I concluded, a smile stretching across my face.
She hung her head, face pink with embarrassment. "Yes."
"I'm disappointed in you," I said, and even though I'd only met this girl five minutes ago, she looked up at me with shame in her eyes. "Your lies need a lotta improvement before you'll get my seal of approvement." The shame turned to realization, then happiness, and I knew I'd done something right by coming over here.
Still, a stupid little smile couldn't change my objective. I was here to get the headband, not to make friends. Even if this gal was kinda cute...
The shrill sound of a whistle blowing made us both startle and look over to the left, where a park official was standing, red-faced and angry looking. He was rather round, and his face was all screwed up in frustration, making him not exactly a pretty sight to look at.
Wait a sec... I knew this guy. His big belly pulled up a memory, and I groaned. "Out of all policemen..." I'd gotten into some, er, trouble with him and a few other cops days ago, and clearly he remembered the incident as well, though not fondly.
Pulling the whistle out of his mouth, he pointed at me and sputtered, "You! Republic City Park has a bone to pick with you, street rat!"
I held up my hands in defeat, standing up slowly even though the man didn't have a weapon out. "Now Ping, let's talk this out like gentlemen..."
"You are no gentleman!" Ping said indignantly, before pulling out a Sato-Stick and pointing it at me. Juuust great. I glanced at the girl out of the corner of my eye, and saw that she was clutching her book tightly. Unfortunately, the police-dud followed my gaze, and shifted the aim of his weapon to her. She squeaked and dropped the book. "And who's this? Your partner-in-crime, I presume?"
I shook my head furiously. "No, no, you've got it all wrong-"
Before I could finish, Ping began lifting the whistle to his lips, and I panicked. Next thing I knew, a block of cobblestone had lifted the man into the air, and he landed in the water with a large splash. So much for being gentlemanly.
Luckily for me, Ping surfaced, gasping for air before meeting my eyes. And if looks could kill...
Knowing there wasn't much time, I grabbed the girl's hand and yanked her out of her seat. "C'mon! We gotta get out of here!"
She didn't resist, and we were already out of sight by the time we heard the whistle blowing. Faaaantastic. Now every single official would be out looking for us.
We made it safely for maybe a minute or two, before turning around a corner only to almost run right into a blue-clothed policewoman. She glared at me, mouth already open and ready to give a scolding, before widening her eyes, apparently recognizing who I was. News must've travelled fast.
And the next second, she was surrounded by a thick barrier of rock, and we were high-tailing it out of there.
We came upon a patch of forest ahead, and I shouted, "I know this area! There's a good hiding spot in here, just follow me!" She replied with heavy panting, and together we plunged into the forest.
I stumbled around a lot, not used to all the hidden roots and plants in the ground, but my buddy navigated the floor as if it were the easiest thing in the world. I let her take the lead, only huffing out directions when needed. Eventually, we reached my destination: a giant tree in the middle of the forest, with sturdy branches climbing all the way up. Me and my buddies had hidden up there more than a few times before. She gazed at it in awe while I struggled to climb onto the first branch. When I reached the third one up, I looked back down at the girl. "Well?" I said, and she was sucked out of her amazement, "are you coming up or not?"
She nodded, before expertly jumping onto the first branch. It didn't even sway at the sudden movement.
Seriously, that girl was like a freaking hog monkey. By the time I reached one of the highest branches, she'd been there for at least a good minute. I panted heavily, leaning against the trunk for support, while the girl wrung her hands nervously. "I am so dead; I am so so so dead..."
"Hey, you're not the one they're chasing here!" I complained, still breathing hard.
She glared at me. "Since I'm apparently an "acquaintance" of yours, that makes me a bystander to whatever crimes you've committed."
"Who said I did any crimes?"
"You were eying my headband the whole time we were talking earlier."
"I - okay, fine, maybe I was. But only because it's so out of place with the rest of your clothes!"
She bit her lip, somehow managing to look cute and serious at the same time. "I know, I know. The headband is actually my own. The rest I, um, temporarily borrowed from someone."
"You stole it?" I said, shocked. "Wow, now I'm impressed."
Rolling her eyes, she replied, "Yeah, well, my dad sure won't be when he finds out."
"Wow, not even an 'if he finds out', it's a 'when'. Glad to see you trust my hiding skills so much."
Burying her head in her hands, she shook it back and forth. "I am soooo dead."
"Well, someone's Daddy's Precious Little Girl."
Another well-deserved glare. "You don't understand - I'd rather get arrested than have to face my father. Actually, even when I do get caught, he'll find out soon enough."
"...Yeah, I'm lost."
"Oh," she said, tugging on a strand of brown hair. "Right. You still don't know who I am."
Slowly, she untied the headband, leaving it carefully on the branch between us. My mind flashed through different options: was she an assasin? A street rat? A princess?
Then, she looked back up at me, and my mouth fell open. It wasn't just for decoration, like I'd thought before - the band had disguised a giant blue arrow.
"I'm Jinora, nice to meet you."