"It's all my fault," Varrick said aloud, running a hand through his hair before leaning over the spirit vine again. Aside from the fact that he didn't want to be assisting Kuvira anymore, his work seemed so much harder without Zhu Li's assistance. He still couldn't believe she had betrayed him just like that. Sure, he wasn't the most sensitive guy and he probably was a little too hard on her given everything she did for him, but still. She had never shown any signs of wavering loyalty before. And he certainly wasn't used to feeling bad about things he had done to other people, but Zhu Li was different. Zhu Li was his partner, his protégé, and although it was hard to admit, one of his only real friends. He still remembered the first time she had approached him. He had been invited to speak at Republic City University, to a class of business students. Of course he had accepted, given the large sum of money they were willing to pay him. Many of the students had asked questions at the end of the lecture, but it wasn't until he was packing up to leave and the rest of the students were filing out that Zhu Li had approached.
He was used to young, attractive girls attempting to gain his attention due to his celebrity status, but he could tell right away that Zhu Li was different. She was shy, her hair up in a tight bun and her glasses low on her nose. She had shown him some of her ideas, and he was genuinely impressed with her work, and the more they talked the more enthusiastic she became. He had given her a business card and advised her to look up Varrick Global Industries after she graduated. Just over a year later, she was hired, and remembering the potential he had noticed in her back at the university lecture, he requested her for his personal assistant. He realized to his regret that over the years he had ended up treating her more like his servant than a partner, and she had never said a word. It surprised him that she hadn't had this outburst sooner.
He sighed, not able to focus on the experiment at hand anymore. "It's all my fault," he said again.
"I'm glad you finally got that through your head, sir."
Varrick looked up and around to the locked door where Zhu Li's face peered in between the bars across the window. "Zhu Li! You're back!"
She shushed him, putting a finger to her lips, and then waved him over. "We can't let them know I came to see you, Kuvira has forbidden it."
"That bit-" Again, she shushed him. He moved closer to the door, until their faces were only inches apart.
"I'm sorry sir, for all that I said back there," she said in a low voice. "I needed to say it to get Kuvira to trust me. Otherwise I would have been moved to one of the camps, far away from you and unable to help at all."
"You have a plan?" Varrick said hopefully.
"No," she said, and he frowned. "I'll think of something eventually. For now, try to hold off on the spirit vine project for as long as possible. Make some excuses, say you're having difficulty."
Zhu Li's hands were resting on the edge of the window, and Varrick reached between the bars to lay his hand over one of hers. "Thank you," he said, truly meaning it. "I didn't know if you were coming back."
Zhu Li looked up in surprise. She couldn't remember Varrick ever thanking her for anything. All she ever looked for was his approval, his praise, and he had never given it to her. She felt heat rising to her cheeks but she made herself clear her throat, and then pulled her hand away from his. Although she was pleased, she put on a mean face. "You'll owe me after this, Varrick. What I said back there, I said it to get Kuvira to trust me, but it wasn't exactly a lie. I did everything for you, and never complained, but I never got as much as a 'good job, Zhu Li', or a 'thank you, Zhu Li'."
Varrick actually managed to look ashamed. "I know, and I'm sorry, I was wrong to treat you that way," he paused. "And you know how hard it is for me to say that."
"You never did like admitting you were wrong. Then again, you're not often wrong." He smiled at that, and she shook her head at him. "I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but I'll see if I can enlist Bolin's help again. He hasn't been moved yet. I probably won't be able to see you again until then, too many guards." She didn't mention that the guards that were guarding him tonight were currently unconscious in the next room over. She had snuck up on them, so they wouldn't know it was her once they woke up.
"How will I know when you've set your plan into motion?"
"You'll just know. Keep your ears open." She went to turn away, but Varrick had reached through the bars again and managed to grab her shoulder. She turned back to him.
He squeezed her shoulder, so badly wishing he could do more. "I need you now more than ever, Zhu Li. I have faith in you, but in case something goes wrong and we don't see each other again, thank you for taking care of me all these years." Zhu Li looked away from him, trying not to let tears well up in her eyes at the thought of never seeing him again. He let his hand drop from her shoulder when she didn't say anything. "Be careful. We both know how dangerous Kuvira is. Not to mention absolutely nuts. I'll do my best to hold off on the spirit vine."
Zhu Li nodded, looking back up at him. She opened her mouth to say something else when there was a commotion down the hall. She turned her head. "I have to go, someone is coming. If they see me they'll ship me off to one of the camps for sure."
"Go then," he said, pulling his arm back through the bars and into the room. "And Zhu Li, make sure you come back safe."
"That's one order I'm glad to obey, sir!"
He watched her go, running down the hall the other way, until he lost sight of her. He walked back to the spirit vine on the table and stared at it again. "I may not need to make any excuses," he said to himself. "This is so much harder to do without Zhu Li…"