He was born with a gift…
The walk to the shop this bleary morning seemed far too quiet to the old man, the stillness of the cold air unsettling as was the news he had received earlier the night before. Minsheng pulled his coat tighter around his middle as he pushed forward, brown eyes glancing upwards to the dark clouds rolling in from the north. Another cold front coming in today. What fantastic news for his already aching bones. He grumbled the rest of the short distance to his shop and pushed the door open, the bell overhead alerting the only other patron of his arrival. A much younger version of the elder gentleman greeted him with a wide yawn, a messy crop of black hair sticking up every which way with blue eyes peeking up over the top of a romance book.
"Why do you bother reading those dreadful things, Keiji?" Minsheng asked, pulling off his winter wear and hanging it up next to the door. The other chuckled as he turned another page, leaning back in his chair.
"I'm telling you, Uncle. The girls these days dig a guy who's into this kind of thing!" He smirked, waving the book in front of the old man's face. "With the business we run, I could use all the help I can get."
"Oh, that we run? I do all the work while you sit and read that garbage all day. You are far too lazy, nephew." Minsheng said with a small laugh, his voice low-key and slightly raspy. He moved over to the small mirror in the hallway, rubbing his jaw rough with stubble and noticing a few more grey hairs than there were from the day before. Time was not his friend when it came to his appearance. With a sigh he turned back to his nephew, reaching into his front pocket for his bifocals.
"Has our morning appointment arrived yet?" He asked, putting his glasses on and holding his hand out for the log book. Keiji nodded, setting aside his novella and handing his uncle the thick spiral journal.
"She came in this morning… poor thing. She looked so sad… " Keiji sighed, a pitying look in his blue eyes. Minsheng nodded.
"We'll just have to do our best to accommodate her for her big day. Go ahead and get everything set up for it, nephew." The old man said distractedly, flipping through his appointment book and reading off the first name as he walked downstairs to his office.
He opened the doors and set the log on his desk, moving over to his small closet in the corner and slipping into his stark white uniform before stepping across the hallway and smiling at his guest.
"Miss Sato! How are we today?" He asked cheerily, moving over to the heiress and taking her chilled hand in his own. She tried to return his smile, though Minsheng could tell it was forced. Her tourmaline colored eyes seem to be dull and held no spark that should have been there, her cream complexion now a ghostly white parlor. The poor dear looked distant and ill, something understandable given her circumstances. When she trembled slightly he knelt before her and held her hand between his own while her other hand clutched the thin robe she wore tightly.
"Now, now… there's no need to fret, my dear. You've got such a big day ahead of you today and we can't have you looking like this." He said softly, a comforting smile on his wrinkled face. It took her several minutes to calm down enough to stop shaking before she nodded mutely, meeting his smile with one of her own again, this one more genuine than before. Minsheng rose to his feet and helped her up, leading her over to a small chair next to a large metal table dressed with a thick sheet. Her eyes lingered on the brushes and make-up that sat next to her on a tray, a variety of colors in shades for all skin tones. The old man walked over to a sink in the corner, washing his hands and humming a song under his breath.
"I remember when you were here with your mother and father. You adored her floral arrangement, especially the daffodils." He said, drying his hands and slipping on some gloves before walking across the room for something. Her eyes followed him as she watched him bring a large, clear container of a lotion back to the table and opened it up, nodding at her for her to remove her robe. Hands lingering on the ties he chuckled and shook his head.
"My dear, you have no need to be shy around an old fool like myself. I enjoy the company of those closer to my age and more masculine." He commented with a sly grin. The heiress turned away and removed her robe, neatly hanging it on the back of the chair before laying on top of the table. Sensing her discomfort still, he reached underneath the lower end of the table and pulled out a towel to cover her. Asami flashed him a gratuitous smile as he took her arm and began to massage it.
"Spirits, you are so tense… where was I?" He frowned, pausing to think of where he left off in his story before recalling the memory and nodding. "Ah, yes. You wanted her to have nothing but those flowers and your father! He took one from the bouquet nearest you and placed it behind your ear. You were so cute." He chuckled, shaking his head at the memory of the little girl with dark curls and a yellow flower in her hair. Spirits, it felt so long ago. Asami smiled bitterly at the memory, closing her eyes and sighing.
"I remember." She whispered, opening her eyes slowly and looking at the ceiling tiles above her with a scowl. Minsheng frowned at that and patted her arm sympathetically.
"Come now, there should be none of that from you on your big day, Miss Sato!" He said, moving to her leg after a few minutes and grunting. "I swear, I am more limber than you are and I am three times your age!" He muttered, focusing on a particularly stubborn spot on her thigh. Asami chuckled at his remark, reluctant to admit that his actions were working in relaxing her after everything of late. Minsheng moved to her other side and continued his massage, finishing up and sighing.
"There! That wasn't so hard. How are we feeling now?" He asked, looking down at her with a raised brow. The heiress nodded up at him and smiled appreciatively. "Thank you. I suppose I've been putting that off for too long. Work has been a little stressful lately." She confessed, flexing her pale hand with slight ease. The elder gave her a knowing wink before moving back and sighing, looking at his instruments.
"Next, we get to tackle this fun mess." He said, her green eyes drifting to the device sitting on the far counter. It was a large box, like a medium sized chest with tubing sticking out of the back. He walked over to it, trading out his gloves for a new pair as he started twisting a few dials and grabbing some of the tubing before returning to her side. Her smile wavered as he gave her a grim expression, holding her hand.
"Now you might feel a bit of a sting…" He said, his face stoic and serious for all of three seconds before he chuckled, the heiress smacking his arm at his attempt at humoring her.
"…will it hurt?" She asked, her voice small and frail in such a large room. He hesitated in his actions, looking at her sympathetically and taking her hand in his once again.
"I'll be gentle, dear. You won't feel a thing." Now that was something she almost laughed at as she turned her head away, not watching him as he reached for a clamp and more towels. She tried to deafen her ears, to think of something else but stilled at the numb pinch of her skin and the slow, chilling feeling of something slipping into her inner thigh. It was something she was familiar with given her past run-ins with pharmacists and such, yet this syringe was thicker than those she had felt in the past, and almost always it had been accompanied by a twinge of pain. This time there was nothing but a strange numbness that left her uneasy. Asami swallowed thickly and exhaled unevenly, her hand balling into a tight fist until Minsheng rapped her knuckles lightly.
"Relax, Miss Sato. This will be over soon." He chastised, waggling his finger at her as he walked past her. Green eyes followed him and watched as he flipped a switch underneath the container, a dull whirring sound emitting from it. "Noisy little bastard… Would you like to hear the radio to help you relax?" He asked over his shoulder, moving over to flip the dial on the radio on the small table just as a commercial for Flameo noodles went off and an upbeat song came on. The elder's face lit up and he smiled widely.
"Oh, I love this song!" He exclaimed, tapping his foot to the big band playing. Spirits, he was an eccentric old man she realized with a smile, finding herself watching him dance around the room and laughing, not even registering the tubing anymore until he was walking over and switched the direction of the piping.
"Well then… I was just about to show you my good moves, too." He teased, a little winded as he eased the syringe out after a few minutes. "There we go. Nothing to worry about, you silly girl." Asami pouted up at his attempt at name calling but said nothing on the matter. There came a knock at the door. She froze, realizing she was completely indecent save for a tiny scrap of cloth covering her nether regions barely. Keiji stuck his head in nervously while Minsheng focused on his work and hummed softly under his breath despite the intrusion.
"Sorry to interrupt, but the florists called. What are we wanting to do about Miss Sato's arrangements?" He asked, looking at his uncle and the heiress with a quick glance. Minsheng looked up at her with a raised brow for a beat before smiling.
"Daffodils." Minsheng replied, returning to his work. His nephew nodded before closing the door and leaving them alone once more.
"I apologize about my nephew. He's still not accustomed to this lifestyle quite yet." He said. Asami let out a breath and waved her hand at him, noticing her palms were rosier than moments before. She commented on this idly, earning a small chuckle from Minsheng.
"Yes, you've developed quite the lovely blush, Miss Sato. You look positively radiant." He crooned, moving along to the beat of a smooth and easy flowing jazz that filled the air. Its soft melodious tune lulled Asami into a dreamlike state, causing her to not pay much attention to the older man or the gentle tugs on her body until several long minutes later when he sighed rather loudly.
"There we go. Nice and ready for the final touch-ups." He stated, turning around and walking to the sink with a vile in his hand, running water and clearing it out. She blinked dazed, looking down at her body and reaching for the robe next to her. "Should I go ahead and grab the dress or wai—"
"No, no my dear! That's the final piece of the puzzle!" He said, shaking his finger at her as he came back to her side. Asami sighed, looking at the tray of make-up. "I suppose you're going to make me look like a little Ba Sing Se doll?" She mused, giving him a cheeky grin. Minsheng chuckled heartily, patting her shoulder affectionately and easing her back down on the table.
"Not quite. Come now, let's wash that hair of yours and get you all made up for today, hmm?" He asked, reaching above her head for the small shower head and turning it on. The heiress nodded, closing her eyes at the sound of running water. How strange… she could hear it and could tell that the old man was washing her head based on how her head was tugged side to side gently, but she couldn't feel the heat of the water. She only felt cold. It must have been the nerves…
"So, who's the lucky man?"
Her eyes opened up to find him grinning down at her, brown eyes flicking to the small mark on the hollow of her throat. If she could blush, Asami would have been ten shades of red and then some. As it was she was giggling like a schoolgirl with a crush.
"Well… his name is Mako. He's a probender for the Fire Ferrets—"
"Oh, girl snagged her an athlete!"
"—but he doesn't love me… at least, not anymore. I can see it in his eyes." She added softly, her smile slowly disappearing. Minsheng seemed saddened by the news, shaking his head and sighing.
"That's a shame. The heart is a terribly fickle mechanism, Miss. Fragile yet resilient, always taking a beating and coming back for more. Why, I once knew a young man who swore up and down that he had not one but TWO hearts! It wasn't until his untimely demise did the doctors discover that he had been telling the truth all along." He said, rinsing her hair out. Her brows knitted together in confusion.
"How is that possible? He couldn't have known that."
"My dear, I've learned that there are times in life where it is best not to question things." He said. There was a silent pause between them before she spoke again.
"How'd he die?"
"Heartbreak after the loss of his wife and children, I'm afraid… a man with too much love to give shall grieve the hardest when it's gone." Minsheng replied sadly, his own heart clenching at a painful memory of his own.
He finished in record time, easing her up in a sitting position to dry her hair and began to comb it. "Now, what style did you have in mind? Ribbons? Curls? Oh, there's a new look called a 'bob' that would look absolutely darling on—"
"Minsheng, I'm not a little girl anymore. I think just how it was would be fine. Clip and all." She laughed, his excitement lifting her mood some. Minsheng nodded, setting to work on fixing her hair and singing an old Fire Nation lullaby. Asami found herself wishing to sing along, unfortunately having forgotten the lyrics after not hearing the tune for some time. The clip snapped in place and he smiled, stepping back to admire his work.
"Just about… oh, you're going to be so beautiful, Miss Sato." He said, holding her hand briefly before clearing his throat and mumbling about allergies, turning his back on her and grabbing the tray filled with make-up.
"Now…hold still." He advised, applying a base to her face and neck, as well as the back of her hands before blending it in some and moving on to add a bare swipe of rouge to the apples of her cheeks, finally adding her trademark plum eye shadow and her burgundy wine lipstick. They bickered for a moment about whether or not to use mascara – "Your lashes are already thick enough, girl!"—when she won him over with her pout. All in all, the process took a grand total of five minutes but still managed to look flawless.
"Well, it's not how you probably wear it these days but it's there." He commented, standing back and putting his things away. Asami stood up from the table, moving across the room to the small wire hanging rack in the back corner to look at her dress. The shop owner heard no movement after several beats, turning around to find her holding the cloth in hand with a heavy look in her eyes, one he was accustomed to. He walked up to her side, resting a hand on her shoulder and smiling gently.
"Do you require assistance, Miss Sato?" He asked. She shook her head, taking the dress off the hanger and unzipping the back.
"No… I just can't believe that today is the day… I'm not going to lie, I'm feeling nervous." She chuckled, stepping into the dress and pulling it up, zipping the back up and pulling her hair out from her collar. Minsheng moved around to her front and nodded understandingly, straightening her hair and smiling.
"Of course you are, dear. Today is going to be a big day for you, isn't it? Just remember this: when all eyes look on you, you will have never looked more beautiful." He said, taking her hands in his and holding them gently.
"I can't tell if that's a compliment to me or to your handiwork." She teased.
"Give the old man his credit, child. It's been a long day."
Asami smiled up at him, her green eyes still dull and listless but with a strange touch of happiness in their depths.
It was a quiet affair, one with only her closest friends and acquaintances mingled with what few relatives that could make the last minute arrangement. Everyone gathered in the main lobby, whispering to themselves quietly with matching expressions of somber disbelief and shock, eyes rimmed red and hands filled with balled tissues from the ceremony. All eyes followed a tall figure walking down the center aisle, the crowd parting as if the guest had the plague when in fact it was quite the opposite. A man needed his space after something like this. There were a few of the other guests lingering around the front podium, their backs to him and speaking softly to one another. He was just able to catch a few words of their conversations around him.
"—looks so beautiful—"
"I told her she was working too hard—"
"—but she had to after what her father did—"
"She looks like she's sleeping—"
"—but look what working all those hours cost her—"
"All that hard work for nothing…"
"Oh, isn't that her boyfriend?"
Ochre eyes flinched at the word, his heart clenching painfully in his chest as he felt all eyes fall on him as he approached the steps, taking all four of them like he had on a pair of lead boots. Mako reached her side, his breath stopping at the sight of the heiress. It had only been a couple of days since he had last seen her, and their last encounter had been anything but pleasant, ending in a screaming match before he stormed out. He was giving them time to calm down before apologizing and now that opportunity was taken from him.
An older woman came up beside him and peered down at Asami. "Oh my, she looks so…"
"Alive." Mako mumbled, staring at the heiress solemnly. Her dark locks were fanned out around her head, hands folded neatly over her waist and face so serene and at ease Mako felt his heart shatter at the sight. Even now, her lips were upturned in a faint smile, the same one that he came to love so long ago and flushed as if she had been laughing all morning long.
"I'm…I'm so—"
"You must be Mako."
The firebender looked to his left to see an older man come up to him, a consoling smile gracing his wrinkled face. He pushed up his glasses as he stopped by the other's side and looked down at Asami with a sad shake of the head, leaving the teen baffled.
"—-sorry… I mean, yes I am. Have we—?"
The older man looked at Mako with a confused look before remembering something, almost appearing sheepish.
"Oh no, no we haven't met. I would hope I don't have to see you back here anytime soon, either… no offense."
"…none taken…" Mako mumbled, frowning at the elderly man. The senior cleared his throat and held out his hand. The firebender glanced down at the outstretched limb warily before taking it in his own, the older man shaking his hand rather energetically.
"Manners, of course. Minsheng, owner of this establishment. I've worked with the Sato's since Miss Asami's grandparents. Lovely people, but a bit off in the head…" He trailed off, shaking Mako's hand continuously until the teenager had to practically pull away with an awkward nod.
"I-I see… wait, so you did…" He trailed off, amber eyes slowly falling back on Asami's still form. Minsheng nodded gently, sighing heavily.
"Yes, I was in charge of handling Miss Sato, as I was with her mother and her mother's mother. Keep up, boy. I don't like to repeat myself. It was a terrible tragedy to find her in my office so early in her life and over something as simple as over-exertion. Poor dear… it seems only yesterday she was here with her father and playing with the daffodils." He smiled softly, looking up from the heiress to the floral bouquets of yellow daffodils around the room along with an assortment of other flowers. Mako chuckled, remembering a date they had gone on where she stopped the car out on some back country road to picnic in a field of the yellow bastards, and how he had sneezed the entire way home.
"Yeah… they were her favorite." He smiled fondly, hands going to his pockets. Minsheng looked at him out of the corner of his eye, noting the warm spark in the bender's ochre eyes as he walked down memory lane. The old man felt his heart swell at the sight and he turned to give the poor boy some time alone but not before giving him a parting gift.
"She loved you, you know. Right up to the end."
Mako whipped his head around and stared after the retreating form of the old man, confused and bewildered at his message.
"Wha-? How do you-?"
"The dead don't talk, my boy. If they did, I'd be doing a poor job."
He was born with a gift, one that helped bring others together in ways not thought possible. He was Minsheng, voice of the people.
((wow, this took way too long to do. The research for this was way detailed and everything, so I had to kinda water it down for y'all. Uh… let me point out that for Minsheng's faceclaim I ultimately decided on Jean Reno after watching 'Godzilla' and I think I wanted to use Logan Lerman for his nephew Keiji. Perfect match. Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed it))