DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NICKELODEON'S AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER OR ITS CHARACTERS. I just pit all of the fruit for Azula's coronation...
Lan Chi entered the foyer from a morning ride to find that chaos had spilled all over the house. She heard it coming from the dining room, and saw it wash into the front room, where she stood, now frozen.
"This is insupportable. Absolutely insupportable!" This came from Uncle Fai – unflappable Uncle Fai, with notes of hysteria in his voice.
"Don't panic. Are you certain that he cannot write?" Reassurance came from Ming Yi, and Lan blinked.
Fai's fingers went into his hair. "Cannot write? He has broken both wrists! Of course he cannot write!"
"Well, you must get a substitute." Ming's voice held an unassailable confidence.
Fai turned to her, incredulous. "A substitute? We leave in three hours! The ship sails with the tide!"
"Can't you do without him?" A simple question came from Ming. Ming's questions were never simple. What was going on here?
"Do without a scribe? Shall I have the transcripts write themselves, then?" He opened his arms wide.
Ming Yi thought for a moment, then gave an emphatic nod. "I shall have to go. I will do it."
He threw up his hands. "Spirits forbid! You cannot be silent long enough to write anything!"
"Well!" His wife crossed her arms over her chest indignantly.
Lan thought it prudent to break in at this point. "Aunt Ming? Is anything amiss?"
They turned together to look at her.
"Amiss?" Fai rotated to his wife. "She asks if anything is amiss?" He turned back to his niece. "My scribe has fallen from his horse on his way here, and he cannot accompany me on progress."
Progress, as Lan Chi had long since learned, was the term given to the judicial circuits that Fai conducted several times a year throughout the southern Fire Nation colonies.
"Your scribe? The one who copies your decisions?"
"And precedents." Ming sighed.
"Oh." Lan raised her hand to her mouth. "That's bad, isn't it?"
Fai looked at her dryly. "Just a bit. I am supposed to make decisions, and someone is supposed to transcribe them."
"Hence the title scribe," Ming supplied helpfully.
"But without my scribe, there is no record."
Ming's index fingernail was in her mouth. This was serious. "And no precedent is set."
This was serious, indeed. Fai's entire job was to travel around the colonies and rule on matters of Fire Nation law, with his decisions becoming the basis by which lower court judges ruled. But, without a scribe to take notes and keep records, Fai might as well not go.
"Can't you do it yourself?" Lan asked reasonably.
"Make the rulings and write the briefs?"
Lan exhaled. "I suppose not. And you need someone within the next three hours, because you are leaving by ship."
Fai and Ming looked at her in surprise.
She looked back at them defensively. "I listened!"
"I suppose you could not help but hear." Fai smoothed back his hair. "I suppose that I shall have to cancel." he compressed his lips. "This is the first time I have visited this region in over two years. There is a backlog of cases as long as my arm." He sighed and sank down onto the sofa.
Lan looked between Fai and Ming, both of whom had become dear to her. Worry etched their faces. Fai's position was an appointed one, and, should he be unable to perform his duties, it was very possible he could lose his position entirely.
"I'll go." She said it decisively, and, again, both heads swiveled to her simultaneously. "I – I can do it. I can read, and – write, of course, and I am educated – well-educated, I should say. And I am a quick study. I know history – very well – and that must count for something. And, I've lived with Uncle Fai for almost a year." She gave a firm nod. "I can do it."
Fai and Ming turned to look at one another.
Ming was the first to speak. "I suppose beggars cannot be choosers."
"I won't take that personally." Lan's voice was wry.
"All right." Fai stood. "Be ready within the hour."
Lan supposed that she would someday get used to packing all of her belongings in a short amount of time. Spirits knew that she was becoming experienced enough at it.
Of course, when she suggested accompanying Fai on his business trip, she had no idea that she was packing for a journey of two months. She had never known him to be gone longer than three weeks. This progress, however, was to the farthest boundary of his authority – those colonies that could almost be considered in enemy territory. Because of the distance, he traditionally only traveled there once every few years. However, because of the length of time between visits, each journey to this area took on more importance. One missed progress meant that there might be no high-court adjudication there for perhaps five or more years.
And to complicate things even more, Changda would need to accompany Lan. It would not do, Ming had insisted, for Lan Chi to travel without her ladies' maid. Lan would definitely need assistance with dressing, since she was to dress formally for all the hearings – sparring clothes, which Lan had suggested as an easy alternative, would not do. Indeed, Ming had given a little shriek when she had heard this. No, no, no! Lan Chi could not travel around the Earth Kingdom in sparring clothes! What would people think of Fai, employing a hoyden?
So, Changda, whether she wanted to or not, found herself rushed into the carriage for a hurried trip to the port.
"Now make certain that you keep ink off your robes. It won't do for you to wear more and more ink through each successive session," Ming, who was accompanying them to the ship, admonished Lan.
"Yes, Aunt Ming," Lan Chi smiled. "Don't worry."
She looked surprised. "I'm not worried. Oh, I wanted to tell you that I will take care of all of your lessons."
"Will you be playing the liuqin while I'm gone?"
"Ha, ha. Very funny. No, I will let all of your masters know that you will be gone for a while."
"Two months is not a while. It's quite a bit more."
"Are you regretting your generous impulse?" Ming teased, looking at her husband, who was bent over a sheath of papers.
"No, not at all. I am going where I am needed."
"Well, aren't you altruistic?" Her aunt smiled kindly.
"I am trying to be." There was no rancor in her voice.
"Do you have everything that you need?"
"I think so."
"I sent a messenger ahead to the ship to procure you a cabin."
"Thank you. That will be preferable to sleeping in the hold."
"Infinitely. There should be a bed in the room for Changda." She smiled at the maid, who gave her a weak smile in return. "Don't worry, Changda," Ming patted the maid's leg. "I've sent a note telling your family where you've gone."
"Thank you, my lady." Changda smiled again.
Ming turned back to Lan. "I assume you have your bow and arrows?"
"You do know me." Lan smiled widely.
"Hopefully you will not need them."
"I actually do not anticipate using them in defense."
"That is good." She turned to Fai. "Did you pack the law books so that Lan can study up while you're on the ship?"
"I did." He laid a hand on her knee. "Everything will be fine, Ming."
"I know. I'll miss you both, though. The house will seem so quiet." Although her words seemed sincere, Fai thought he detected a gleam in her eyes.
"You're going to redecorate while we're gone, aren't you?" He asked knowingly.
Ming feigned innocence. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"Ming Yi Liang!" Lan's voice was tinged with accusation. "We're not even gone yet and you're already planning what you're going to do while we're away!"
A slight redness came to her cheeks. "I may be – perhaps – thinking of updating some things in the house. Just a few things. A table or two."
Lan gave her a skeptical look. "Please don't get rid of everything I own."
"Perhaps just the vanity. And the bureau." At Lan's alarmed look, she waved her hands. "Don't worry! I'll replace them."
Lan's smiled was equal parts fondness and exasperation. "You are one of a kind, Aunt Ming." She squeezed her aunt's hand.
"So are you, my dear." Ming put her own hand over Lan Chi's. "I'll miss you while you're gone."
"Me, too, Aunt Ming. Me, too."
After a slightly tearful good-bye, Lan watched from the deck as Ming sprang back into the carriage and ordered the coachmen off.
Fai's hand landed heavily on Lan's shoulder. "She's driving off to go shopping. I'm sure of it."
Lan laughed. "Do you really think so?"
"I've been married to that woman for nearly thirty years – I'm absolutely certain." He patted her shoulder. "Don't worry about her."
Lan nodded as Fai left her, although she felt a twinge of sadness at being separated from her aunt. Over the past months living with her, Lan had become very fond of the strong-willed, opinionated Ming Yi. She was frequently obstinate, and often aggravating, but she was always true, and always seemed to have Lan Chi's best interests at heart.
Lan mentally shrugged off her melancholy – their separation was not forever, after all. She left the deck to return to her cabin, where she found Changda putting away her things. Her maid had put a pile of books next to Lan's bed, and Lan sighed deeply. Her homework.
She sat down on the bed and picked up the first book. The title stared back at her. Fire Nation and Local Law in the Eastern and Southern Fire Nation Colonies in the Earth Kingdom: General Analysis and Four Case Studies on Laws of Succession, Guardianship and Marriage.
"Wow. Light reading."
"What's that, my lady?"
Lan shook her head. "Nothing, Changda. Just going over my reading list." Her eyes rounded as she opened the book and looked at the title page. "Fun."
After a few hours of skimming several weighty tomes, Lan had a raging headache and dry eyes, and she decided that was enough studying. She tossed the book aside with a thud and stood, stretching her tired and aching muscles. She walked over to her stateroom window and looked out at the ocean rushing by. She had ignored their departure in order to start on her reading, but, now, with the fresh, salty air blowing into her face, she felt a desire to go above decks.
She had dismissed Changda hours before to go explore the ship, which the girl had eagerly accepted. Uncle Fai, she assumed, was in his own stateroom reading briefs for the upcoming cases, so she decided not to bother him.
The deck was fairly uncrowded – since most of the passengers that the ship catered to were Fie Nation, there were many people suffering from seasickness – in the privacy of their own cabins, no doubt.
Lan found Changda at the railing , looking out over the ocean. Lan came up beside her. "Enjoying the view?"
Changda jumped a few inches. "Oh, my lady." She bobbed a quick bow. "I did not hear you come up behind me! I was just –"
Lan waved a languid hand. "You can do whatever you like, Changda. I wasn't going to chastise you. I am just glad to see you aren't sick to your stomach."
She shook her head. "Oh, no, my lady. Earth Kingdom doesn't suffer from that like Fire Nation does. Some of us get it – sure – but that depends on the person, not their ancestry."
Lan smiled. "Good to hear."
"But you don't have it, my lady!"
Lan shrugged, and looked out over the water. "I don't get seasick. I'm half Water Tribe, you know." She smiled sadly. "A gift from my mother, I suppose." She touched her braid. "Like my hair."
"We always wondered."
"We?"
Changda reddened." Oh, my lady! I – I didn't mean that I was gossiping, or anything – about you! We – we were just wondering – down in the servants' quarters, about your – hair color." She finished lamely.
Lan smiled. "It's all right, Changda. It's perfectly natural to be curious."
"Thank you, my lady." She still looked embarrassed, though.
Lan squeezed her arm affectionately. "Have you explored the ship yet?"
"A bit," Changda answered cautiously.
"Well, let's go explore everything else. We need to find the dining room. I'm starving!"
The voyage took nearly a week, time that Lan Chi used to begin to understand Fire Nation law. She was by no means an expert – she would have said, in fact, that she had little knowledge or understanding of the law, but she did have an inkling about some of the vocabulary used, and she was becoming familiar with the peculiar shorthand used by Fai's scribe. Although it required memorization, she realized that it would be much easier for her to use the truncated symbols and words in her note-taking, and then translate it into complete words and sentences for the official written record.
She practiced the symbols every night and tested herself on their meaning, and even had Changda read portions of law briefs to her so that she could transcribe them.
Fai was very impressed with her initiative and diligence, and started to believe that the progress would not be a complete disaster. Indeed, by the time they arrived in Nanzhou, their first stop, his confidence in the success of his mission had returned.
He did not have a lot of time to revel in his newfound confidence, however. The bailiff of the local court was waiting at the docks to escort Fai to the first tribunal. He and Lan, along with all of the law books, were hurried into a carriage, and Changda was sent, along with the luggage, to their hotel.
The bailiff, crammed onto the carriage seat with Fai while Lan sat opposite with her books, gave the girl a wary look. Fai briefly explained the situation to him, and, although the man's expression remained the same, he gave a curt nod in way of acknowledgment.
The ride to the courthouse took about ten minutes, and, as Fai and Lan alighted from the carriage, a guard in a Fire Nation uniform rushed out to salute them. The bailiff waved at the carriage.
"Bring those books to the courtroom for the judge's new scribe."
The man gave Lan Chi a startled look, but followed his orders.
The bailiff led Fai and Lan Chi into judge's chambers, where a small, wizened man in traditional judge's robes and long Wusha hat waited for them.
After the two men bowed to one another, a smile spread over the old man's face. "Fai Liang! Wonderful to see you again, old friend! It has been too long."
Fai returned the smile. "Almost three years." He turned to Lan. "May I present my niece, Lady Lan Chi Sun?"
Lan bowed to the man, who gave a shallow bow in return. "My lady."
"Your honor."
"What is she doing here, Fai?" He frowned. "This is most irregular."
"Well," Fai flushed, and cleared his throat. "My scribe suffered an accident mere hours before our departure and could not accompany me. Lady Lan Chi offered to take over his duties."
At the mention of her name, Lan smiled and bowed again.
The other judge gave her a doubtful look, but shrugged. "I will have you escorted to the courtroom, my lady, so that you might ready yourself."
"Thank you, your honor." Lan bowed again as the man opened the door and summoned a guard to take her to the courtroom.
The courtroom was small, crowded with rows of chairs, with a raised dais at one end, upon which sat two simple wooden tables – one on waist-high legs situated in the center of the dais, and a low table, to its side, with a cushion to sit on. It was on this lower table that the law books were stacked.
"There is parchment and everything else you may need on the table." The man escorted her up the dais stairs. "Court will begin in about a half hour."
"Thank you." She settled down as the man left, and looked at the brushes, ink well and stone, and paper weights upon the table's surface. She was really going to do this. She was really going to act as Uncle Fai's official scribe.
She felt a little sick to her stomach. What if she made a mistake in transcribing? What if a mistake she made caused a miscarriage of justice? She could end up condemning an innocent man to jail, or worse.
She shook her head to clear it. Calm down, Lan Chi. Everything will be fine. Uncle Fai will be here to help you. Everything will be fine!
She was not quite sure she believed herself, though.
She spent the next half hour reviewing the shorthand symbols again, and nervously dipping her brush in the inkwell, experimenting with the amount of ink necessary to write legibly and quickly.
Before she knew it, the time had passed, the doors were opened, and a large group of people surged into the room, all jostling for chairs. Those too slow or too timid to fight for seats filled the back of the courtroom until there seemed that the gallery could not hold even one more person.
The bailiff entered the room from another door, and climbed the dais. He cleared his throat. "This court of the sovereign Fire Nation Colony Occupied Territory of Nanzhou is now in session. The Honorable Fa Guan and the Most High Honorable Fai Liang presiding. Be upstanding." A hundred feet shuffled and everyone rose, with Lan jumping up belatedly.
Fai and the other man, who Lan presumed was Fa Guan, entered from the second door and ascended the dais. Fai was now dressed in his court clothing – a robe adorned with two cranes, showing his authority, and a long Wusha hat, much like Judge Guan's.
Fai nodded to Lan, and she gave him a small bow as he took his spot at the table, Judge Guan beside him.
All in the room were seated, and court was in session.
The next few hours were grueling for Lan. She was constantly either writing or referring to her page of shorthand symbols, or, frequently, furiously leafing through the law books trying to find a precedent or a reference to a particular court case.
Uncle Fai, in turn, listened to both the petitioners and the opponents of each suit, and, in some cases, ruled immediately. In some instances, however, he deferred judgment to a later time, citing the need to validate his decision with precedent.
Lan, luckily, did not need to transcribe everything that Fai said, although she had to listen closely enough to be able to discern between preamble and decision, which, in Uncle Fai's case, were often very similar.
After three to four hours of adjudication, Fai called a halt to the proceedings, and announced that the court would reconvene the next morning.
He rose and, along with Judge Guan, who had done little more than listen to Fai's opinions throughout the afternoon, he left the room.
Lan sighed with relief as the courtroom began to empty. She had gotten through the first session, and it had been difficult, and tiring, but she had done it. She had done it! Of course, she did not know how many mistakes she had made – she would have to review her notes prior to transcribing them in order to make sure that she had gotten everything right, but she had survived!
She began closing and stacking the books and blowing on the parchments to dry them more quickly, when Uncle Fai entered the room, in his street clothes once more.
"So," he smiled, "how did you do?"
Lan opened her eyes wide, and showed him her hands, stained with black. "I think I have more ink on me than the parchments do."
He laughed. "Occupational hazard."
She rubbed at the spots, but they did not budge. "I suppose so. Now I know why Aunt Ming told me to get some black robes."
He picked up her books as she stood. "You'll look like a judge yourself."
"I doubt very much that anyone would mistake me for a judge." She picked up the edge of a parchment wet with ink. "These aren't dry yet. What shall I do with them?"
"Give them a few more minutes. Let's take these books to the carriage and then we will come back and get them."
They walked companionably to a waiting carriage, and, as Fai had said, by the time they returned to the courtroom, the parchments were dry enough to be rolled into cylinders.
"Was the language difficult to understand? The jargon, and such?' He asked as they carried the notes to the carriage.
She shrugged. "A bit. Will you go over them with me later? I want to be certain that I got everything right."
"Over dinner. We'll order to my room and take a look at them."
"Thank you, Uncle Fai." She smiled at him as she climbed into the carriage.
He took the bundled parchment from her as she seated herself. "No, thank you. Were it not for you, Ming would be my scribe." He shuddered, and she laughed.
"That bad?"
"Oh, yes. That bad."
As Fai had promised, he reviewed Lan Chi's notes with her over a dinner of noodles with shredded pork and hot Fire Nation chili peppers.
He was surprised and pleased to find that she had made few mistakes, although he did laugh over her confusion regarding the symbols meaning litigation and cessation.
Lan Chi felt ridiculously pleased with herself, and after she bid goodnight to her uncle, she went to bed exhausted, but happy. She finally felt like she found a place where she belonged.
Author's Note: The title of the law book that Lan was reading is based on an actual law book! I goggled "boring book titles," and that one won!
A Wusha hat is the kind Sokka wore in "Avatar Day," and was the traditional garb for judges in China.
Lan has finally found something to occupy her time...you didn't think she would spend the rest of her life embroidering, pouring tea, and pining over Zuko, did you?