Chapter 2
Drifting rays of sunlight glanced upon the grass, and outlined the houses and markets of Tochigi. Another day had passed, another slow paced day, the minutes taking forever to fade away. Night was coming, and Zuko stood ready once again, to go and face the dark. The evening was the time Zuko put on his disguise, and slipped into the shadows of the city, so that no one would spot him. His tight black clothing and dark crimson mask made it perfect for him to be unnoticeable. Once it was dim enough, Zuko headed into the village.
There were still many people doing some last minute shopping for dinner. Seeing this, he felt his stomach growl a bit. No surprise about that though, he needed to get some money that night, he had run out. Spotting a bunch of men gathered around a booth, he quickly edged his way towards them, and crouched down. He pick pocketed each one with elegant ease, and Zuko was so subtle that they didn't even notice him slipping away. When he was in an alley, he held out his hands, and counted about ten gold pieces, six silver ones, and twelve copper pieces. That was good enough; it would have to do.
He knew it was wrong to steal, but it was the only thing that he was good at, and Zuko was now desperate to have something to eat. Around the corner, he saw a market stand that had no customers, and it was closing up. The woman behind the counter turned around for a minute, and Zuko sprang towards it. When the women turned back around, she saw that the food she was about to put away was gone. Her shock faded away quickly because in its place were two gold pieces, three silver pieces, and four copper pieces. She smiled and took the money. At least the scoundrel was descent enough to pay for the meal.
Zuko saw the lady take the money, and so he found an alley, which was deserted, and stopped there to eat. There wasn't much, but it was filling nonetheless. After about twenty minutes, he decided he would go around and see if there was anything else he could find for the night.
..:-:..
Katara couldn't believe she was doing this. For her desperation for some money, she had agreed to do it, and for no other reason. It was all so degrading and sexist, but because she could feel her stomach growling, and because she wasn't going to steal, Katara had agreed to take part in the "fashion show". After scrounging around in Tochigi for food, she had heard about it from whispers of angry women. 'I can't believe they are doing this! My husband is going, and leaving me home alone! My children are even asking what it is going to be! One even asked if he could go! Oh, Mokari, this is dreadful!' And it went on and on like that. So when she found the spot, she put away her black cloak, and slipped into a red kimono that was lying on the ground, a bit dirty, but good enough. She saw two men who looked like the people in charge, and with a deep breath she approached them with her biggest smile.
"Ahem,"
The two men stopped in mid sentence, and turned towards her. After looking her up and down, they nodded their heads in agreement.
"All right, you are added to the line up. We will get another pail for you."
She wondered why in the world she would need a pail.
"Excuse me, but what for?"
They burst out laughing, and then one pulled her in close. She pushed away and smiled hesitantly.
"Well you are here for the money aren't you?"
"Yes, yes I am."
"So where did you think the men would put the money?"
"Perhaps down your…"
Katara didn't like where this conversation was headed.
"Oh, yes, thank you. I understand."
"What are you waiting for then? The dressing rooms are in the back. We start in an hour."
She nodded and headed away quickly; glad to get away from those men. It was getting dark now and she could see the bursts of fire from the lanterns in the back area. Women, all of whom were older than she, were laughing about, while getting dressed in all sorts of different clothes. When she came in, everyone stopped talking and stared at her. Katara felt awkward and waved a hand meekly.
"Hello everyone… I'm Katara."
She opened up her eyes, and the smile was wiped off of her face. All of the women were glaring at her with hatred. Katara looked to see if there were some more clothes left, and then she isolated herself to them. After a minute or so, the chatting roared up again, but this time hushed, because all of it was about the new girl. Katara was just flipping through the racks of clothes, when suddenly, someone pushed her slightly into them. She fell through, and then picked herself off of the ground, wiping away the dirt. The lady was big, but she was just about Katara's height, so she wasn't really intimidating.
"Don't think you are going to wipe us out! You are going last!"
The woman shoved her again, but this time Katara stood her ground. All of the women were clapping and cheering as the plump figure walked into their crowd again. Something snapped in Katara, and she was furious. So they thought that she was a threat? Well, if that was the way they wanted it… She turned back to the racks of clothing, and she went deeper and deeper. None of these outfits would even fit her, and they were all used and torn. Out of the blue however, her eyes spotted some shiny fabric glinting in the background.
It was breathtaking. The gold sequins decorated the hems of the sleeves and skirt, the scarlet kimono bore threaded insignias of fire and it's beauty. Katara winced at the fact that it was the only kimono her size, so she would be forced to pretend to be a ravishing girl of the fire nation. At first she was just going to slip into it, but then when she looked at the other women, she saw that they were putting on other clothes underneath their kimonos. It intrigued her as to why they would do that, but Katara guessed she would have to do it too. Fortunately, right next to where she found the kimono was an elegant soft silk dress, covered with black lace. She smiled broadly to herself, as she changed into the garments, hiding behind the racks of clothing. When she came out, the dead silence returned.
Every woman looked at her with rage, fury and most of all jealousy. Katara found her pail, and picked it up, walking over to the end of the line. She heard jeers and clapping from the men on the other side of the huge curtain, separating the stage and the dressing area. As the women went through, one by one, her heart started to beat quicker. Now the feeling of complete dread overwhelmed her body, and her heart was telling her that it was going against everything she believed in to be doing this. But her stomach told her something different. It said, that if she wanted to survive, she would have to do this.
The loud jeers and cries from the crowd outside were now deafening. One more woman went through the flap, and it flittered for a while. Cheers roared up again, and Katara peered out to see what she was supposed to do. To her horror, she saw the woman walk down a plank from the stage, and into the crowd of crooning men. She playfully showed herself off and pulled down her kimono so that her shoulders were bare. The men smiled broadly and when she showed off her bucket, the sound of coins batted against the metal. When she could no longer see the woman, she was shoved through the curtain.
Zuko heard the jeers of men coming from around the corner, so he decided he would go see what it was all about. Maybe there would be something entertaining he would observe, and that would lift up his spirits. When he found the crowd, his gaze ran over the blaze of fire lanterns, and onto the stage where a woman was prancing about, trying to persuade the men for some money. Zuko looked at her for a bit, but when she showed her bare shoulders, he cringed. The old woman was hideous, and he had no idea why these men would allow themselves to be made penniless over a worthless woman parade.
He was about to leave at that moment, but he stood frozen to the spot behind all of the men, when another woman came out. His heart began to race as his eyes wandered from the top of her head, all the way to her feet, and back up again. This young woman was simply stunning and breathtaking. Her dark hair flowed freely down from her head. The beautiful and shimmering kimono fit tightly at her every curve and her tan skin was smooth and soft. The white make up on her face surrounded a pair of the most gorgeous blue eyes. All of this, and Zuko had a feeling that he had somehow met her before. But he didn't know who she could have been.
Katara stumbled onto the stage, and once again silence greeted her. She stood in her place, unable to move for fear of all the strange men ahead of her. But suddenly loud cheers and big smiles greeted her. Somehow, she managed to move along the stage, picking up the coins that were scattered among it. From the crowd came a sudden angry shout. She was upsetting them; she couldn't evade them any longer.
So Katara slowly walked down the ramp and into the cloud of men. Zuko quickly pick pocketed some men who weren't looking, and then scowled himself because when he looked up, the woman was gone from his sight. She must have been somewhere within the crowd. But going in would be too much of a risk. Katara's eyes were filled with pure terror. Every inch she moved, it was because this or that man had jerked her closer towards him. Through all of it, she heard the clinking of coins, and she felt her pail gain weight. Suddenly, as she walked through the mass of men, two of them grabbed her at the same time, and her kimono tore in half. She stood motionless as every pair of eyes that wasn't already on her, now was.
Zuko tried to get a better view, but there wasn't much he could do. He stepped on some crates and then scanned everything until his gaze fell upon her. His mouth fell agape, as he looked at her. Her kimono was gone; instead she adorned a beautiful deep red silk dress, with mildly scattered black lace. The woman's shoulders were bare, as the dress began to slip off of them. If it was possible, for the first time in his life, Zuko's only thoughts were about a girl.
Katara's whole body shivered as she felt the men grope their arms around her neck and shoulders. She tried desperately pushing them away, but more and more came to her. Zuko saw this, and decided he needed to help the damsel in distress. Katara was making her way to the back of the crowd, and Zuko made it just in time to meet her right there. Katara could barely hold onto the heavy pail, and she still was pushing away some men. Suddenly, she was pulled into the darkness, and all of the men who gave away their last pieces of wealth, turned away and into the city. She breathed a sigh of relief, and set her pail down. Next she pulled up her dress, and then did she realize that someone was there with her. Katara turned here and there, but all around her she could only see darkness. Zuko examined her, and felt like a brick had hit his chest. She was the most gorgeous creature he had laid eyes on, but still he had this feeling he knew who she was. Now that he was so close, he saw her blue eyes. It was curious that a person in the fire nation would have blue eyes, but then again, there were many slaves, she could have been one of them, trying to obtain some more money.
As Zuko was so entranced by her and his thoughts, he didn't react quickly enough to grab her when she picked up her pail and ran off. Zuko recomposed himself and began to follow her quickly, craning his neck for that dark red dress, and white face. Suddenly, as he neared the retreating crowd of men, he heard some coins fall to the ground. She was in sight again, but he wasn't quick enough, because she darted behind to the clothing area. He lost the ability to concentrate, and to think of how easily he could be spotted.
"Hey! It's him! He stole my money!"
Zuko turned his head and swore at himself for blowing his cover over some stupid girl.
Backstage, Katara quickly emptied the pail into a black bag, and tied it around her waist. She changed back into her disguise, a black kimono and a black cloak. She wiped off the entire make up and put on her mask. Outside, she could hear angry shouts and she sighed with frustration. When she made it out into the shadows, she could see a bunch of men, and it looked like they were fighting each other. But when she got a closer look, she could see a man dressed in black. Figuring that he wasn't at fault for anything, Katara threw the nearest object she could find. It happened to be an empty pail.
The men separated and looked around to see who had thrown the pail. Zuko thought he saw something dart away into the shadows, but he didn't stop to think about it. He ran away from the men, and turned down an alleyway. The distance provided him vanishing shouts and he smiled. In his bag was just a bit more wealth than he had had at first. Katara found herself running past homes and markets. Suddenly she stopped when she saw a familiar place. She looked around to see if anyone was watching, and then went in through the door, closing it shut behind her.
..:-:..
The laughing men drank their wine, Zuko looked hurriedly for the old man he had seen last night. Finally after a couple of minutes, he saw him sitting in a corner, all by himself, drinking away his miseries. For some reason, it reminded him of his uncle again, and a thought crossed his mind. Maybe he could trust the old man.
Zuko walked along the walls and past the men who were talking about their wives, and comparing them to the women they saw that night. He pushed away the thought of the mystery girl he had seen. It was time to get down to business.
"Excuse me sir."
The old man turned around slowly, and then his eyes jerked wide open, when he was pulled into a far away room. When in there, Zuko shut close the doors, and the old man sat there bewildered, even more so, when Zuko pulled off his mask.
"I can't believe it! It is the banished…"
Zuko put his hand over the elder's mouth, and then pulled out five gold pieces.
"This is yours if you vow never to speak a word of my presence or what I discuss with you."
The elder nodded and took the money greedily.
"What is your name?"
"My name? It is Wontai. What may I call you?"
"You may call me… Red."
"All right, Red, what is it you want from old Wontai?"
"I heard you last night."
Wontai's eyes widened, and then relaxed.
"Ah, so you were that trouble maker?"
"Yes, but I think I wasn't the only one."
Wontai looked away, not wanting to look at the banished prince.
"Well, you might like to know that I believe you, what you said last night."
Wontai looked up with joy on his face.
"You do? I was beginning to think that everyone in this town was against me…"
"Well, I'm not against you, nor am I your ally. I have a favor to ask, and whether or not you agree to it, I will see if my loyalties lie with you."
"Okay then. Fair enough."
Zuko made sure no one was near and then he leaned in close to the old man.
"Where, how, and when can I get one of the four legendary jewels?"
Wontai sighed and closed his eyes for a moment.
"I thought this is what you would ask of me."
"Well, can you help me, or not?"
"Because I want your loyalties, and because I see you have some … monetary value, I will agree to help you."
He sat there for a while, and then Zuko got annoyed. He gave him a few more gold pieces, and then Wontai smiled, putting the coins away.
"I think many have heard of them, but I only had the fine chance of meeting them once and only once. Have you heard of the pirates, Red?"
Zuko's eyes widened and then his lips tightened.
"Yes, I have heard of them…"
"Well, I hear they have acquired many things after traveling to numerous places. One of these was the Northern Water Tribe. There they received many valuable items, of course including none other than the Azure Jewel."
Zuko closed his eyes momentarily and then clenched his fists.
"Will they be here any time soon?"
"Oh yes. In fact, they are said to travel here very shortly. Could be tomorrow even."
"Wontai, you have earned my loyalty. And I expect loyalty from you as well."
He nodded and Zuko put on his mask again.
"If I need to speak with you, I will meet you here."
Wontai stood up and bowed.
"I shall be waiting."
