Bothering Lee had been your best entertainment these past few days, but after his hissy fit, it's best to let tea boy simmer down. Since that night, you've been back to your regular routine. Also, your eye had been healing surprisingly fast. It no longer stung when you touched it, and there was only a slight discolouration left over.

Today's events were nothing special. You had sold the last of your goods at the market, meaning you needed to replenish your stocks at some point. Though you hadn't prepared a route ahead of time, you had a vague idea of places you wanted to visit. You spent the rest of your day running boring errands, such as shopping for food, tidying your home, getting your daggers sharpened, or picking up your laundry from Mrs. Hung's.

You find yourself missing your visits to the tea shop, but know not to press your luck. The last thing you want is to cause another scene. You remember the commotion when you first saw Lee, followed by the events of last night. It would best to avoid your new 'friend' for now.

As one of Ba Sing Se's famous sunsets spreads through the atmosphere, you gather your thieving supplies. Since you don't have the time for a lengthy commute to the middle ring, tonight is going to be a local job. It might also keep the authorities off of your back.

You set off once you see the stars twinkling in the night sky. The rooftops in this district weren't nearly as well-maintained as those in the middle ring, so you find yourself on the ground more often. (You've slipped on a loose roof tile before, let's just say that's the first and last time you've fallen off of a building). You avoid any people you see, though not that many in this particular area would question a shady character running around late into the night. You're glad you sharpened your daggers today.

It's been a few hours, and you're about halfway done. You're just down the street from your next target: a clothing shop. Checking that your mask is secure, you steadily grow closer to the building. That's when you see something move.

You dart into the shadows, pressing your body flat against a wall. Waiting a few moments, you listen for the sound of footsteps. After a period of silence, you inhale deeply through your nose before tip-toeing along the wall. When you get to the edge, you crouch low to the ground before peeking around the corner.

Up ahead, a silhouette of a person is barely visible. It moves slowly, but with purpose, as it circles around the building side. The shadow doesn't seem to be too large, and the footsteps are barely audible, hinting that you stood a decent chance against this stranger, should a fight occur. You weigh your options. Either you wait in silence, hoping the mystery person continues on their merry way soon, or you confront. The first, and obviously smarter route, seems to be the way to go. Yet something within you is leaning towards the latter. Probably your boredom.

As if fate was listening in on your internal monologue, you notice the figure advancing towards one of the taller buildings in the area. Your thief-senses are telling you that they intend to scale the structure, either for stealth purposes, or just for the useful vantage point. All of your experience with the fragile-topped houses in the lower ring have taught the dangers of traversing them. One misstep could send you leg deep in someone's home, or sliding to the ground in an instant.

You're at the base of the building in seconds, and the dark figure is approaching the top.

You quickly scale the building next door; you have more faith in its roof tile integrity, since it's a newer structure. The person stops to rest on the highest balcony. Just as they are about to hoist themselves onto the rooftop, you shout a word of advice into the night.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Your words take the dark figure by surprise. They turn suddenly, and you find yourself face to face with a fellow masked hoodlum.

He lifts his arm. You barely have enough time to duck before you hear something fly past your head. A throwing weapon sticks somewhere behind you with a satisfying thud, and you're glad it wasn't buried in your head. You yank the item from the building wall behind you, and examine it closely. It's not a throwing star, but rather a small knife shaped object; a kunai.

"Hey! That wasn't very nice!" you shout as you pocket the petite knife. Jeez, you try to help a brother out and he tries to kill you as thanks. You see the ungrateful man visibly shrug before reaching for another kunai and launching it in your direction. Prepared this time, it misses you by a few feet.

"Now that's just downright ungrateful," you complain. The sound of a low chuckle floats through the night as your assailant turns his back to you, and mounts the unsafe roof. Despite your warning, the fool seems to insistent upon breaking a bone or something. You cautiously switch from your lower rooftop, to the higher, less stable one, and watch him carefully step across the roof. He starts slow, shifting his weight from one foot to another. When nothing happens, he picks up the pace.

The stranger lets out a snort of victory, and you roll your eyes. He looked really stupid just now, but you decide to keep that to yourself. Then, it finally happens.

Without warning, his foot falls straight through the roof tiles with a splintering crack, tripping him. He falls mask first into the rooftop. You laugh hysterically as you approach. Can't say you didn't warn him. He scrambles back to his feet, but his foot is still caught in the new crater. He tries to tug it out, and his failure only further fuels your amusement. You approach cautiously, and offer a hand to help him escape the grip of the roof's snare.

The moment is interrupted by the sound of voices.

"Geun-Lee! I think there's somebody on our roof!" comes the shrill cry of a woman's voice. "Don't worry, sweetie," rasps another, "Go back to bed. I'll take care of this."

The masked man doesn't have time to reject your offer. You tear away at the tiles and a chunk of wood as quietly as possible, and he finally manages to slip his foot free. You're both frozen, not daring to make another sound, in hopes that the silence would ward off the civillian's attention. The idea proves to be futile as the angry man is now on the balcony, squinting directly at you.

"What are you doing on my roof!?" he shouts. Without giving it a second thought, you turn to your accomplice and grab him by the arm, dashing away from the furious citizen. Reaching the edge of the building, you quickly examine your getaway options. The closest jumpable rooftops are accessible on the other edge of this building. From where you are, you could only make the jump to the building over with a perfect running start and a little bit a luck. You could either run past the screaming man and escape from the other side, or jump straight down and land on a cart full of… was that lettuce? You make the split second decision and leap into the alley below, dragging your associate down with you.

SMASH

Leafy chunks go flying, and it suddenly smells strongly of...cabbages? At least the vegetables broke your fall. The two of you climb out of the cabbage cart, as you hear shouts from above. So much for laying low.

You bolt together through the backstreets. Eventually, you spy a narrow alleyway. If you could even call it an alley. It was more of a tight crevice between two buildings, as it was extremely narrow. It was the perfect spot to tuck yourself away until the commotion died down.

That was too close for comfort, and you're starting to regret your decision to confront the mysterious criminal. On top of that, you didn't collect nearly as much bounty as you should have. Here you are, in the dead of the night, stowing away in a cramped alley with a complete stranger.

Speaking of complete strangers, you study the unfamiliar person sitting beside you. You have no doubt that he is indeed a male. Taller than you, but not too big, he looks like the athletic type. Dressed in black from the neck down, one would assume he's a common thief. What really stands out, though, is the blue mask that shrouds his face. Unlike your own disguise, which only exposes your mouth and chin, this one conceals his face completely. It's a very angry looking mask, painted a rich blue. It has striking white and silver details to form the facial features. It's similar to your own mask, stylistically. However, yours is scarlet with black and gold accents. You wonder who's beneath the disguise.

You suddenly realize how close the two of you are, and that you've been staring at him for the past few minutes in awkward silence. The distant yelling eventually stops, giving you two the all-clear. The blue mask stares at you, and it takes you a second to realize you're blocking the exit.

"Oh, s-sorry," you mumble, shimmying out as he follows suite.

"Thanks for the help back there," he states honorably. He's been practically silent throughout the duration of your busy situation, so his voice catches you by surprise.

"Oh, uh- yeah! No problem," you reply, trying to play it cool. He nods, and turns to leave.

"Wait!" You call out. He pauses, lending you his ear.

"Nice mask."

"You as well, Red Spirit." And with that, he jumps off into the night, and you're left alone. You look to the night sky, realizing there's only a few hours left in the night. It's time to make your way home and get some rest. You'll need to have some energy for what you've got planned tomorrow. As you walk home, you fiddle with the kunai in your pocket.