Chapter 13
The river Thames glittered under the summer sun. Just down the way, the London bridge almost seemed to reflect the sunlight off of it. Though that might have only been the cars driving across it.
Ashoka and Harry walked with Sirius, Penelope and Remus down the side of the river. Enjoying each other's company, now that the school year is over. Soaking up as much sun as they could.
"Hey," Sirius suddenly said, stopping their little group. "It's about lunch time. What do you all say that we get something to eat?"
There was a general agreement, but Ashoka stepped away. "That sounds great, but I need to do something first."
"What?" Penelope asked.
With the entire group, and even a few tourists, watching Ahsoka, she stared directly into her parents' eyes as she reached into her bag. Pulling out a bottle of Snapple, she slowly and deliberately unscrewed the cap off the bottle.
They watched, with confusion as Ahsoka, who continued to stare at her parents, slowly poured the tea out of the bottle. And into the river.
"What are you doing?" Sirius asked, completely confused.
"Why would you waste tea like that?!" Penelope said, distraught.
With a calm voice, so quiet that over the hustle and bustle of the busy street nearby, they all had to strain to hear Ahsoka's words. "This is how a TRUE American celebrates the Fourth of July in England."
"But you're British! Just like us!" Penelope said, confused. Her head cocked to the side.
"I may have been born in England. But I was raised in America!" Ahsoka said, her chest puffing up slightly.
Remus, noticing the brand on the bottle for the first time said, "That's not even real tea."
"Oh, like you Brit's and English, would know what real tea is!" Ahsoka shouted for all to hear. "You guys stole it from the Asians!"
Every brit and English in the surrounding area stared at her. Their mouths hanging open. While off in the background, a distinctly American voice said, "Shots fired!"
"Now, if you will excuse me," Ahsoka said, putting on the mental mask that she would wear when she went to Penelope's social gatherings. Being the polite heiress her mother trained her to be. "I am going to have some real tea. With my new friend, Lee Chan."
Ahsoka turned, throwing the now empty bottle into the trash can. Walking over to an elderly Chinese man, she linked her arm with his. At first, said the old man was very confused, but once tea became involved, he calmed down.
As they walked away, the crowd parted. And one by one the people finally found their voices. Whether to shout rude comments, or to laugh and cheer.
One particular drunk group of American tourists chanted, "USA! USA! USA!"
Lee Chan leaned slightly on Ahsoka for support, as they left the increasingly loud crowd behind.
"You know, I've never actually had real tea before. Like, real Asian tea." Ahsoka informed her companion as they walked away.
Lee Chan patted her hand, "Do not worry. We shall fix that."
Lee Chan's face hardened slightly as he got a thoughtful look. "Although… if you throw my tea into the river, like you did with the fake tea. You shall follow after it."
"Duly noted." Ahsoka nodded in assent.