Task: Write a story using a classic fairytale as inspiration. Tale: Aladdin (One Thousand and One Nights/Disney)
Prompts: (object) a ratty old hat, (character) Iroh II, (quote) A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work." - Colin Powell, and (AU) Genderbend
Word Count: 2826
Main Characters: Korrin (Korra), Mako, Bolin, Iroh II, Asami
Summary: A twist on the classic tale, "Aladdin", using the One Thousand and One Nights and Disney versions as inspiration. Korin (Korra) gets his hands on a magical lamp that will make all his wildest dreams come true. Non-bending AU.
Dust flew up from ground as Korrin's feet hit the ground. Bolin jumped out of the moving van after him and slammed the door shut. Korrin grumbled inwardly as he looked at the dilapidated mansion in front of him. This job was going to take a lot of work. Still, the compensation was good. Better than good, he thought to himself, great. Because of that, he refused to voice his annoyance at the size and state of decay of the building. It was their first good job in quite a while, after all.
Bolin let out a long whistle. "Damn," he said, running his fingers through his hair. "This place is a piece of work, huh?"
"No kidding," Korrin agreed, "but work is work."
"Yeah, I know." He leaned back against the side of the truck and closed his eyes. Korrin did the same as they waited for Mako to return. He was always the one to deal with the customers. He and Bolin were just the muscle, and that suited him fine. Korrin hated sucking up to the rich people of high society, even though he wanted to be one of them someday.
"One day, Bolin. One day we're gunna live in a big fancy house like this one…" Korrin said as he daydreamed about the house they would have someday. It would be somewhere warm by the seaside with vaulted ceilings and the finest furnishings money could buy. They would have servants at their beck and call. No expense would be too great. Women would flock to them. Korrin's imagination ran wild with these thoughts.
"Yeah," Bolin said sarcastically. "And I'll be the President of the United Republic."
Korrin took the ratty old hat from his head and threw it at Bolin. "I'm serious."
"And how are you gunna make that happen?" Bolin asked as he got Korrin into a headlock.
"Stop messing around, you two. We've got a job to do here." Mako scolded them with his hands on his hips and a scowl on his face. He came to a stop in front of them with a man who Korrin presumed was their client. Bolin immediately released Korrin and the both stood at a militant attention. It wasn't often that Mako brought the clients to meet them. Korrin wondered why today was different. "Our client, Iroh, has some specific instructions for us, so listen up!" Mako barked. "Go ahead, sir." Mako said, giving the floor over to Iroh.
"First of all," Iroh said in a booming voice, "thank you for coming out on such short notice. I recently acquired this property in order to remodel it. The previous owner was quite an eccentric man, but he had exquisite taste. However, I haven't been able to make a record of everything in the dwelling. In addition to moving everything to my storage facility, I want you to catalogue every item in detail. That way I can quickly find the furnishings of most interest and restore them. Understood?" Iroh directed the last question at only Mako.
"Of course, sir. You can leave it to us." Mako said with a slight bow to Iroh's back as he walked away. He looked back at Korrin and Bolin, who had dropped their attentive stances the moment Iroh had turned around. "Well," Mako said impatiently. "Let's go!"
Bolin and Korrin opened the back of the truck, unloaded their moving equipment, and followed Mako into the house. Room by room, they moved through the building. Mako compiling a detailed list of every item as they went. It was hard work, and after clearing out half of the rooms on the first floor, they were all covered in sweat.
Bolin's stomach rumbled and he looked at Mako with pleading eyes. "Lunch break?" He asked.
Mako sighed and pulled out his pocket watch, examining it with scrutiny. "Alright," he acquiesced. "But let's keep it short. We've still got a lot of work to do." Bolin whooped. Food always made him very excited. Korrin didn't usually get as excited as him, but after all that heavy lifting, he was ready for some sustenance, as well. They left everything in the house and went back to the truck for their lunch boxes. They spotted a nicely shaded spot in the front yard and sat their as they devoured their food quickly.
"No wonder this job pays so well." Korrin started up a conversation with his mouth full of food. "All this cataloguing...on top of moving everything out! This is taking forever!"
"Seriously," Bolin agreed between bites of his sandwich.
"Quit your whining, both of you," Mako said as he swallowed a mouthful of his food. "Lets just be thankful that we actually have some work for once. It's better than hustling on the streets."
"Yeah...I know." Bolin said in a dreamy kind of tone.
"The money was better on the streets, though," Korrin said begrudgingly.
"Hey, man," Mako said seriously, "no talking like that. We were lucky to get out of that life. And we are not going back!"
"I get it, man," Korrin shot back. "Relax."
Tires squealed in the distance, disturbing the trio's conversation. They all looked into the distance. Korrin couldn't pinpoint the location of the sound, but it was clearly getting closer. Suddenly, a black and red convertable whizzed around the corner and screeched to a stop in front of the residence. Korrin oggled at the driver as she adjusted her raven hair in the mirror of the satomobile before stepping out. The woman shot the three boys a smile before walking into the house and out of sight.
"Looks like someone's in love…" Bolin elbowed Korrin and teased, but he was right. It was love at first sight for Korrin.
"Get your head out of the clouds," Mako said. "She's way out of your league."
Korrin pouted and gave Mako a sideways glance. "I never said anything about pursuing her."
"Your eyes say it all." Mako told his friend as he packed up his lunchbox. "Come on, Korrin, we've known each other long enough for me to know when you're interested in someone." He laughed and stood up. "Keep it in your pants. Let's finish this job and get paid. After that, you're free to get your heart broken by anyone you'd like." He looked down at them and crossed his arms. "Hurry up!"
Korrin and Bolin slammed down the rest of their sandwiches and got back to work with Mako. Korrin kept an eye out for the woman from earlier, but she was clearly keeping clear of the work they were doing. All the sweat that had dried up during their lunch break was back in force as they lugged heavy loads between their truck and the mansion.
Everything was going smoothly until they came upon a locked door. Mako ran off to find Iroh to see if he had a key. The two of them returned, but Iroh seemed just as baffled by the locked room as them.
"What do you want us to do?" Mako asked.
"Break it down." Iroh said without any resignation.
"Alright," Mako said without skipping a beat. "Korrin?"
"Okay," he said and shrugged his shoulders. It had been a long time since he had smashed a door down, and he had never done it for some who actually wanted their property damaged. "Stand back." Korrin warned and the others stepped back a few paces. One strong kick was all it took to get into the room. The door lock shattered and the door swung open, revealing a small dusty space with nothing but a few lackluster wooden chairs.
Iroh walked into the room first. The floorboards creaking with each step he took. He looked around the room intently, clearly searching for something. He let out a long sigh and turned back to the movers. "Pack it up." Iroh left without uttering another word.
"What was that about?" Bolin whispered to Korrin as Iroh stalked off.
"No idea…" Korrin said feeling rather confused about their client's behavior, "Let's clear this place out." Bolin pushed the dolly into the room and the two of them placed the the chairs on it with ease as Mako wrote detailed descriptions in his notepad. The chairs were much older and lighter than any of the other furniture in the house. They really seemed like nothing special at all. When everything was loaded up Korrin grabbed the handle of the dolly and started to push it back out the door when a loud crack pierced the air. He looked down at his feet and saw that the floorboards beneath him had fractured. He gulped, "Uh oh…"
"What was that?" Mako asked from outside the room.
He started to walk back in, but Korrin yelled out, "stop! The floor's cracked. It looks like it could give way any moment."
"Oh shit…" Mako said.
"Here," Korrin said as he pushed the dolly toward the door with all his might. It reached Mako but, as it rolled across the room, more cracking and popping noises filled the room. Korrin examined his surroundings, trying to find a path to the door that didn't have any broken floorboards, but he didn't see any such route.
"Don't move," Mako advised.
"What the hell else am I supposed to do? Just stand here?" Korrin crossed his arms agitatedly. He took a step toward the door gingerly, ignoring Mako's advice. He planted his foot and bent a bit, but they didn't break. Korrin let out a sigh and lifted his foot to take another step. This time he wasn't so lucky. The floorboard under his base foot snapped and he tumbled down into a dark room followed by a shower of wood. He lay on the ground coughing through the dust his fall had kicked up into the air. He waved his hand to get some of the dust out of his face and felt a sharp pain shoot through his shoulder and arm. Korrin looked over and saw a piece of wood sticking out of the thick flesh of his shoulder and groaned.
"Korrin!" Bolin called out from above him. "You okay, buddy?"
He looked up and was able to make out the outlines of Bolin and Mako through the dust. "I'm alive," Korrin answered. "But I've got a bit of a wound."
"Great…" Mako groaned. "Bolin, go get a ladder. I'll get Iroh. Hang in there, Korrin."
"Don't worry," he called back up, "I'm not going anywhere."
"Smart ass…"Mako mumbled silently, but Korrin still heard him.
He heard their steps slowly fade as they left to do their assigned tasks. Slowly, Korrin was able to throw the rubble from the fall off of his body and stand. He didn't dare touch the wooden stake sticking out of his shoulder. It was better to leave it as it was until he could get to a doctor.
A small glint of light caught Korrin's eye from across the room. He walked carefully through the mass of fallen floorboards and rock to reach the source of the light. It was something that he hadn't seen in a long time, an old kerosene lamp. He picked it up and examined it. The only distinguishing thing about the lamp was a small engraving of a flame on the bottom. Korrin recognized it as the emblem of the Fire Nation royal family, and realized this lamp would be worth a fortune to the right buyer.
"Ladder coming down, man!" Bolin yelled. His voice was followed by the thump of the ladder hitting the ground.
In that moment, Korrin made a decision that would change his life forever. He stuffed the lamp in his pants. "Coming!"
…
Korrin leaned back on the couch and fingered the edges of the bandage covering his shoulder. He was glad that the day was finally over and he could kick back and relax with the boys with a beer or two. Mako was already hard at work on dinner, and he hopped it was a big one. They could afford it after the payment they got from the job and Iroh had even paid them extra after Korrin's injury in addition to paying for his medical bill. It almost made him feel bad for stealing the lamp. But, Iroh himself had said he didn't know everything that was in the house. Ignorance was bliss, and in Iroh's case, he would never know anything was missing.
"What a day!" Bolin said in his loud, boisterous voice. He stretched his arms high above his head, a beer in each hand. He handed one to Korrin and then plopped on the couch next to him.
Korrin took a swig of the ice cold liquid and smiled in spite of his pain. "I know, right? And," he paused and pulled the lamp from his pants. "I got out with a souvenir."
Mako turned away from the stove and toward Korrin. "Are you kidding, man? You stole that?"
"It's fine," Korrin said calmly. "What the guy doesn't know won't hurt him."
"The first good job we have in ages and you steal something…" Mako turned back to what he was cooking and continued to mumble incoherently.
"Let me see that, Korrin." Bolin asked excitedly. Korrin tossed him the lamp. "Hmmmm," Bolin said as he checked out Korrin's spoils. "This is cool, man. But we already have a good teapot."
"It's not a teapot!" Korrin yelled. "It's an old fashioned lamp." He lowered his voice, "and I didn't steal it because of what it is...I stole it because it belonged to the Fire Nation royal family."
"Really?" Bolin asked.
"What?" Mako yelled in shock. "Let me see that." He turned it around in his hands until he found the engraved seal. "Are you crazy? This is probably what that guy was looking for!"
"Who says he was looking for anything? Besides, I could fence that thing for a fortune." Korrin said raising his voice in anger.
"Why would he make us take such detailed notes about what we were moving out!" Mako pinched his nose. "And you are not selling this thing. It's a piece of crap, anyway." He chucked the lamp back at Korrin.
"It's not a piece of crap!" Korrin yelled back. "It just needs a good spit shine." He spit on the dirty thing, "throw me a rag, would you?" He said to Mako. Mako threw a hand towel over his shoulder without looking back, and grumbled. He clearly wanted nothing to do with the lamp or the situation. Korrin snatched the towel out of the air and started to rub the lamp vigorously. Blue smoke began to pour out of it and Korrin dropped the lamp fearfully with a gasp.
"What the hell?" Bolin said as he jumped up from the couch and hid behind Mako.
"What is it…" Mako turned around. He saw the lamp lying on the ground and the blue smoke, "now?" The three of them looked on in shock and awe as a figure materialized out of the smoke.
This figure, that resembled a woman, looked straight at Korrin and spoke. "You who awakened me from my slumber, I am Ravaa, the genie of this lamp. We are bound together until the day you die. As a slave to the lamp, I am a slave to you. You shall have anything you desire. Master Korrin, what do you desire?"
Korrin sat on the couch, wide-eyed and unmoving. "This can't be real…"
"I assure you, I am real." Ravaa answered.
"Oh, oh!" Bolin said from behind Mako. "Wish for-"
"There's no way this is real! Magic isn't real, Bolin." Mako said, cutting off his brother.
"We won't know unless we try," Korrin said sitting up tall on the couch. "Ravaa," He said boldly. "I wish for a bag of one hundred yuan bills."
"You're wish is my command." Ravaa said stoically and disappeared into a cloud of smoke. When the cloud cleared, a sack sat upon Korrin's lap. He opened it feverishly.
"So…?" Mako asked skeptically.
"I can't believe it…" Korrin said and pulled his hand out of the bag with a handful of one hundred yuan bills. "I think I just found our ticket to the good life and all our wildest dreams!"
"A magic lamp…" Bolin said as he slowly came from behind Mako and kneeled down by the lamp.
"This is crazy. A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work. Using this thing gives us an unfair advantage." Mako argued.
"The world isn't fair. You think the guy we worked for today started off like us? He had an unfair advantage, too! It's time for us to level the playing field." Korrin picked up the lamp from the ground and rubbed the side of it until the blue smoke came out again.
Ravaa appeared, "what is your wish Master Korrin?"
Author's Note: Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed my silly story for the Pro-bending circuit. I'll likely make this into a two or three shot to complete the story and get some Korrasami action in here. Until then, enjoy!