Our walk isn't that long. Just few minutes until we reach the apartment that belongs to the family of the victim. Mr. Bao from what Oma shared with me during our brief walk to our destination, he's working in the council in some lower position. Good pay to get a good apartment and fluff the family a bit.

His wife should be there with her daughter. She was unemployed and spent most of her time home cleaning, cooking and taking care of their daughter.

We reach the door and I motion to Oma to knock. She does so.

Then we hear locks upon locks being unlocked. Out peek a face of a beautiful woman. She was around 1,7 meters tall. Brown hair and topaz eyes, skin similar to Akenos, slightly pale. She is wearing a simple baggy shirt and what in our world would be classified as Jamaican pants. Even with all those clothes her breasts are easily visible I dare call them an H-cup. Voluptuous hips, THICC legs with a butt to match. The thing is she doesn't have all that much fat. Sure, a bit on the chubby side but not on the walking meatball side of things.
All in all
Mr. Bao had good preferences in my book.

The loving housewife
Bayarmaa Bao
Human (Female)
Age: 35
Class: Civilian
Level: 6
STR: 5
VIT: 20
DEX: 13
INT: 20
WIS: 35
LUK: 12
CHAR: 30
Relationship: She doesn't know you
Mood: Saddened, Scared

Widow whose husband was killed by yet to be revealed perpetrator. She is terrified about what will happen to her daughter now that they don't have a source of income

A teenage girl right behind her.

An everyday teenager
Geriel Bao
Human (Female)
Age: 16
Class: Civilian
Level: 4
STR: 2
VIT: 13
DEX: 20
INT: 16
WIS: 12
LUK: 20
CHAR: 20
Relationship: She doesn't know you
Mood: Saddened, Scared, Angry

Angered by the murder of her father. She doesn't know how to cope with it.

She's like a clone of her mother. At 1,6 meters an hourglass figure. A pretty face with sapphire eyes. Short hair in bowl cut. Less developed than her mother, but still a killer.

I put those dirty thoughts aside and enter with Oma as Miss Bao lets us in.

"Would you like some tea?" Ms. Bao asks tiredly. There are heavy bags under her eyes.

I look at her. Frown on my face.
"It would seem you're the one in need of a calming tea." I tell her gently. She shrinks at my comment.

Oh no I'm sending bad signals. I walk closer to her and give her a smile.

"Could you show me the way to the kitchen? I am more than willing to brew some tea."
She looks at me and nods slowly.

Aw, my heart bleeds oceans for her.

She shows me where everything necessary is. Then she goes back to Oma to tell her about what she knows.

I look around making sure her daughter or herself aren't here to see me do this.

I open the Gamer Store. It's really for mundane things like food, ingredients for cooking, furniture and clothing plus some basic supplies.

I find the tea I was looking for.

Supreme cherry relaxing tea
Effects: Calms the mind and acts as a natural antidepressant.

Best tea for this situation.

As I prepare the tea, I hear someone walk behind me. I look who it is.

Geriel Bao

"Can I help you?" I ask her.
"You're not a police officer are you?" She asks with a furrowed brow.
"I am not. I'm what you call a civilian consultant." I tell her.
She just quirks an eyebrow.

"A person who helps police officers with cases. They technically aren't police but can act in their authority. Just nothing too major. Like let's say telling everyone to stop and wait for inspection. That they can't do."

She still had a look that lacked understanding. Then again, my explanation sucked ass. For all the point I try to put into INT it sure as hell isn't paying off.
"Whatever." She walks to a table in the kitchen and takes few sheets of paper. Then she turns around and goes back into the living room where we'll be asking Ms. Bao few questions.
I put the teacups on a plate and bring them with me to the living room. Said living room is colored in numerous colors like green, brown and yellow…and a shade of green and yellow.

These guys ancestors must have been from the earth kingdom. Don't believe me? Every time that people have a certain color scheme, they pretty much tell you where they're from.

For example, Akenos mother has roots in the Earth Kingdom whilst her father is from the Fire Nation. That is shown through her emerald eyes that are prominent in descendants of the earth kingdom immigrants and her dark brown hair. Her skin is slightly on the pale side as is with most people from the fire nation, which doesn't make any sense from an evolutionary standpoint. I mean you're really close to this world's equator, yet your skin doesn't show a bit of tan. Even though you live on paradise like islands.

Shit I'm losing track of the situation.

I look at others as I place the plate on the table in the middle of the living room. I think it's best to sit next to Fu on a couch rather than alone in a single chair.

I look once more at our hostess.

Red puffy eyes, dark bags under them, showing a lack of sleep, her entire frame slightly shivering. Her daughter on the other hand, has a scowl on her face.

Oma decides it's time to start. "Ms. Bao, your husband has been found dead in front of your doorstep with a chest wound caused by a sword. Do you agree that that is what happened?"
Seriously? No slow introduction, no buttering to make them feel a bit better so they can talk a bit easier? Oma what the hell?
Ms. Bao simply nods in conformation.

"Is there anyone whom you suspect of this crime?" She shakes her head at that.

"I can't think of anyone who would- "She gets cut off by her daughter.

"By the spirits, it's obvious! She would have done it just to spite you! She loathes you!"

Me and Oma glance at each other.

"Who?" She asks for the sake of us both.

Ms. Bao looks at us. Her gaze lowers to her teacup still on the plate, left untouched. She grabs it and takes a sip.

The effects are near immediate. She relaxes, her sorrowful expression lessens.

"My sister. She lives on across the hallway. We… haven't been on speaking terms for a long time. We simply politely ignore each other."

Daughter lets out a bitter laugh. "More like if looks could kill, it would destroy the Avatar cycle. I've seen how she looks at you and dad when you're together. I swear, she wouldn't lift finger if mom was dying and she was the only one capable of help."

"Stop it!" Her mother shouts. Her daughter seems surprised at the outburst.

"I know her well enough to know that she would never do such a thing. She was slightly distant from the family, but that doesn't mean she hates us. We just had a disagreement in the past that's all." During the entire speech she calms down and by the end of it has a sad look.

Her daughter quickly collect herself and huffs. "If she wasn't the one to do it then it definitely had to be that perverted gardener."

A perverted gardener? Really?!
Seeing my incredulous look, she explains.

"Every other day I help my mother water the plants we have on the roof. A lot of people from this apartment block have plants there. That gardener though. He takes a lot of space with his miniature farm. Every time we go there, he sits on his chair reading the papers of the day and pretends that he isn't peeking at us from behind."

I quirk an eyebrow at her, take a sip form this heavenly tea, before responding. "That doesn't explain why he would want to kill your father."

"When dad takes a day off to spend time with us, since he has a lot of work, his job being part of the paper nightmare that is the republic city council, he decides to help mom with her chores or help me with math and other school subjects. When he helps with watering the gardener always glares at him."

Who wouldn't? He was lucky to have such a sexy woman for a wife.

"I see." Oma responds in a frown, grabbing her own teacup and drinking from it, thinking all that new information through.
She looks at me with fire in her eyes.

"Then it's settled. Each of us goes to one of these individuals and interrogates- I mean politely asks them about the murder of Mr. Bao." She says like that stop before changing the wording didn't happen at all.

I look down at her arms and she's rubbing the gauntlet with that metal rope module that all metal bender cops have. Either she's going to torture the information out of him or worse, she might be a BDSM dom, in which case good luck pervert. You'll probably need it to survive, unless you're a sub.

Hey I don't judge… too much.

I lean forwards to grab the plate only to be stopped by Oma and Ms. Bao.

"You made the tea; I'll at least take them back to the kitchen." Oma says.

"And I'll wash them." Ms. Bao adds.

So, they both get up and walk to the kitchen. Oma carrying the plate with teacups, Ms. Bao following.

I'm left here wither daughter. Geriel. Hmm, Gary. That's a good nickname.

I don't think that we can be friends though. Her attitude is pretty irritating.

"So, you like to push everything bad that happened on the people you hate huh." I start.

"Excuse you?" She scowls.

"You don't like your aunt." I simply state.

"Obviously. Didn't you hear what I said about her." She says giving me a sneer.

"Every word. Your mother doesn't seem to agree though." I tell her whilst looking directly into her eyes.

"She's naïve. Honestly, she thinks that world isn't as cruel as it actually is. I love her, she's kind and caring but sometimes you need to be hard to help others and she doesn't see that." She looks at the ground as she talks, arms crossed.

I'm more inclined to believe you're more of a pessimist, than your mother is an optimist.

"Let me ask you this. Why would your aunt, her sister, want to kill her husband?" I ask genuinely curious.

"Because, she's jealous that mom found someone like that whilst she never found anyone. Always thinking that she's better than us just because she has an engineer title and somehow got moms parents to rewrite their will so that when they died, she would get their possessions and apartment!" She huffs.

"Or maybe you let your anger cloud your judgement and make her out to be worse than she actually is." I say slightly angered. I continue

"Maybe her lack of communication with other left her incapable of healing old wounds left by their ´debates´. She might be trying to fix it but doesn't know how. How would you know! You can't read her mind."

She stands up, face red. Veins popping on her forehead.
"You mean to tell me! NO! You dare to tell me that his murder could have been an accident, that the one responsible isn't related to our family at all! That this uncaring world decided to just torture us for fun!"

Her eyes start to get watery. Her breathing becomes ragged.
"If not them, then who? Why? What have we done to deserve this?"

She starts to sniffle and sob. I give her one of the handkerchiefs I bought from The Game Store. She accepts it uses it to clean her wet eyes.
"You did nothing. There is nothing you could have done. That is how life usually is. Out of our control. It's how we deal with the obstacles that come our way what defines us. Of course, that would make us passive. Only reacting and try to overcome it. Then there is our reason to live."

"But there is there is no reason to live." She retorts weakly.

"That is true, with the exception of Avatar, whose more like a pet on a leash for the worlds amusement. To keep it balanced, whatever is meant by that. But more on that some other time." She looks at me with a weird expression, comparing the strongest bender and spirit to a pet on a leash.

"However. Unlike the Avatar, we have the option to choose what our lives will be. The universe will smack us left and right, but when it comes to people like Oma, whose reason to live is to see justice done and to bring fairness to this unfair world or your mother who can get her life swept from her feet and just get up and keep smiling and helping others, at least I think. Or take me for example, I'm a passionate guy, deny me my pleasure and passion, baby I'll fight with the force of a hurricane that'll make your average storm reconsider its business career. Deny quenching my thirst for knowledge and you'll see just how much of a thorn up your ass I can be." I tell her as I slowly start to grin.

"But that's insane, suicidal even. You could die!" She says not entirely sold on the idea.

"Yep! But, if we die, we'll die on our terms. What is the best way to die than to give the world a middle finger with a smile on your face." I tell her with a grin probably found on insane people.

"Now." I look at her. She stands in attention with wide eyes by my change from probably insane to deadly serious.
"What is your reason to live?" She just stares numbly. I feel mentally drained. Apparently, this is not considered a threat by gamer's mind to stop it.

I decide to walk over to the windows and see that it's already dusk.

"Oma!" I shout and see from the corner of my eye that a figure jumps at the mention of her name.

I knew it took too long to wash four teacups.

"It's getting pretty dark, so we'll continue the investigation tomorrow." She blinks a few times, before nodding.

We leave the apartment and Ms. Bao gives me a somewhat bright smile. Guess they both heard me.

As we walk Oma starts talking.
"I didn't know you were like that. To live life to the fullest filled with passion and experiences."

I don't respond. She looks at me slightly concerned.

"Tomorrow, when you wake up, knock on the door I'll be there." She nods before responding.

"So, you won't be…" She trails of knowing I'll understand.

"Tonight, I feel like spending some time alone. Clear my head a bit." Sorry Akeno, your deal will have to be postponed.

We reach our respective apartments say our goodbyes for today and close the door.

I lean against it.

…
Maybe I've been a bit too hard on the girl…

That thought was one of many that occupied my head last night.

AN: I think Albert comes across as a bit preachy. I hope I did a bit better job in fleshing out the characters. Welp see you next time.
And yes, I suck at naming chapters.