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~ Tales of Ba Sing Se (Part 2)~
Ryuu POV
龙的故事
(The Tale of Ryuu)
An evening off seemed like a good idea. Three days of work had tired me out already, so I was dreading a full week. To take my mind off Zuko's date and Iroh's mourning, I decided to take a walk in the Middle Ring. It was a brilliant sunset and the birds gave the last evening chorus as I made my way to the station to catch the train to the Middle Ring.
Lower Ring citizens were allowed into the agrarian zone and Middle Ring, but never the Upper ring as we are considered to 'dirty '. I grabbed my staff and art set (given to me by Pao's wife, an artist herself) and caught the train. If rattled into the next station and stopped with a jolt. As soon as I departed, it smelt different to the Lower Ring. Given the trees and wide open spaces - it should really.
I adventured through the streets, occasionally stopping to sketch something in charcoal. I went down a side-alley and was disturbed by the sound of simultaneous laughter and crying. I rounded a corner - only to be met by a group of kids beating up another.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"
The lead boy - who only reached up to my waist - yelled for his group to scatter. They did, leaving the poor beat up kid behind. He wiped his tears from his eyes with the back of his hand and sobbed up at me. The light from the green roof tiles played with the light in the alley. I sat the boy on a doorstep and let him compose himself.
He looked reasonably rich - considering he lived in the middle ring it was expected. The kid blinked up at me and smoothed down his hair. He looked around ten years old and his little face was bruised. The kid wiped his nose using the hem of his tunic; very un-middle ring like.
"Thanks, Miss. My names Bao, can you take me home. I'm scared if they come back..."
He tried to rise, but he back down. I put a gentle hand on Bao's shoulder.
"Kid - Bao. You need to rest. You took quite a beating; trust me."
He sighed, "I know. They always do that."
I was shocked by his complacency of the bullying. I took my hand from his shoulder and touched Jee's lucky charm. The kid stared at his feet.
"Why you?"
His voice wobbled - as did his lip. Fearful of crying again, Baoput his hand to his other arm and pulled at it. It came off in his hand, revealing it to be a prosthetic arm. I bit my lip as he dropped the arm into his lap and stared up at me. His green eyes were glistening with tears.
"I'm a freak..."
I sighed and turned away from him. I pulled up my trouser leg and pointed at my own prosthetic limb. He blinked and bit his thumb. I smiled gently.
"You are no freak. You are strong. Stronger than most people."
He rubbed the point at his shoulder where the limb had sat.
"I was born like this. My Father wanted to disown me... I was a disappointment to him. But my mother convinced him to keep me. My Grandmother also had a missing arm..."
I ruffled up the kid's hair and then rolled my trouser leg down.
"I lost my leg to a Firebender."
He turned to look up at me, "Really? What happened? Was it in a big fight?"
In child like innocence, I asked if I had been a hero and done an amazing feat. I stared at the floor and inhaled. Bao realized that it was a touchy subject so backed off. I licked my lips, turned to the kid and cocked my head.
"I made a mistake. A big one. Because of it my father got killed... anyway, shall we get you home?"
He bit his knuckle and re-attached his arm. He still wanted to know more about how I lost my leg but he acted like a good kid and stayed away from the topic. I got to my feet and tucked my art set under my arm. I held me staff and Bao took my other hand. He shuffled along, jumping at every noise.
"A friend of mine once told me 'Family sticks together'. I'm sure your father does love you, he's just worried that you'll get hurt."
Bao exhaled and grunted. He directed down another road and I complied.
"I don't think so. He thinks I'm weak and pathetic. So do the kids who beat me up. "
I sighed and crouched down. So was tugged to a halt as I took his shoulders. He pouted at me.
"Trust yourself. If you stand up to the bullies, you'll be surprised. Bullies are cowards. You aren't. "
Bao hugged my neck in a swift movement. He let go and ran ahead, pulling me behind him. We jogged through a few streets before stopping at a fancy and decorative house. Outside was a small pond with turtle ducks bobbing about. Bao knocked at the door rapidly. I went to leave, but Bao tugged at the edge of my tunic.
"Please stay, Miss!"
He gave me big kid-puppy eyes. I groaned - not being able to withstand the look. The lady who answered the door wore a delicate layered silk dress over woollen trousers. She had a small contented smile and looked uncannily like her little son.
"Bao!" She let her emotions crack through a composed exterior, "Miss, how did you find him?"
She turned to my and grabbed my shoulders. She shook me eagerly.
"Uh- he was getting beaten up... I just helped him. I didn't do much."
She enveloped me in a hug, "But you found my son."
Bao scanned the room behind his mother, "Where's Father?"
His mother let me go and crouched down infront of her son and hugged him tightly.
"He was worried sick. He's out looking for you."
Bao pulled out of the hug and stared aghast at his mother.
"Worried?" Bao gaped.
His mother nodded and told him how his father was so worried that he hadn't come back from his friends that he went out to search for Bao. The little boy began crying into his mother's arms. The pair didn't see me slip away. But half way down the street Bao tackled me into a last hug.
"Thank you!"
Unable to escape the kids hug, I ruffled his hair. He finally let go and grinned up at me. I touched the Jee's lucky charm again and sighed as Bao ran back to his mother. The sun's Ray's were just disappearing when I got back to the station. I got back to home in time to watch Zuko being attacked by Iroh with a comb.
When he came back from his date he was acting strangle. Stranger than usual. He slammed the bedroom door shut but answered Iroh's question. His answer made my insides twist with jealousy. Eventually, I went to bed to find Zuko curled up in the darkness.
"Junior? "
He didn't answer. He was asleep. I lay next to him and wrapped my arms around his waist when he whimpered in his sleep. Nightmare. Probably the same reoccurring one. When I drifted off to sleep, I saw Bao and his mother. It made me smile.
