OMG so imma set the record straight really quick: Keisai is about thirty, give or take a couple of years. That being said, I was pleasantly surprised by the general response to my OC, especially from Luccian. I decided to include Keisai out of necessity, since we never saw a proper lawyer in the avatarverse that I could recall, and he sort of developed from there. Major thank-yous to all of you guest reviewers- I wish I could thank you personally. Onward!


"He did what?!"

"Aunt Lin, since you're working late tonight I brought you-" Baatar paused, frowning. "Who's on the other line?"

"Not now," Lin muttered. "I can't help it, Su, the man offered and Junior was fine with it-"

Su's voice crackled through the speaker, distorted by her loud, shrill tone. "Is Junior there with you now?"

Lin and Baatar exchanged looks. "No," Lin said slowly, dragging out the word. "He's not supposed to be off for another hour..."

"I heard his voice, Lin! Put him on the phone."

They exchanged looks again, and Baatar dropped the takeout box on the desk, holding up his hands. "I'm not here," he mouthed.

"Sorry kid, you're on your own," Lin said, handing the mouthpiece to him and amplifying the sound by extending the cone of the earpiece.

Baatar swore under his breath. "Fine," he growled. "Hello, Mother."

"Junior, would you like to explain to me why the lawyer that I got for you is going to be representing you and that woman?" Su's voice was furious, and Baatar could almost see the deep frown lies marring her forehead as she spoke.

"I think you'd be better off calling him," Baatar said evenly. "I didn't put the idea in his head, if that's what you're implying."

"So you're telling me he spontaneously decided to take on her case? Are you going to be paying him for that too?" she exploded. "Your father and I will stop bankrolling you-"

"It's not my fault that the lawyer you hired is crazy!" There was silence on the line, and Baatar frowned. "Hello?"

"Talk to your father." Baatar heard some commotion in the background, and he assumed his father had taken the phone.

"What's going on, son?" he asked. "Your mom's been... difficult ever since she got the news about Keisai. Did you put him up to this?"

"No," Baatar said, groaning in frustration. "Keisai is insane. He wants to take Kuvira's case, and he's waived his fees for her-" He could hear Su angrily ranting in the background, presumably to the twins. "He brought it up first, and he was very eager to represent her in court, provided neither of us had a conflict of interest."

"What would that entail?" Baatar Sr. asked, his tone stern. "I hope you haven't made a crippling mistake-"

"Does he honestly think it's safe to trust her again?" Su's voice came through the earpiece again, and Baatar and Lin exchanged looks. "After all she's done, he thinks she can be trusted? She'll sabotage the case for him..."

"There is no conflict of interest," Baatar said loudly. "It has nothing to do with trusting her. Keisai had us sign the agreement, so if she deviates from it at all the legal consequences will be severe. I don't trust her any more than you do, but I know her well enough to know that she's too smart to take a gamble like that."

"When did this happen?" his father asked.

"Keisai visited her to see if she would be willing to work with him," Baatar said carefully. "She was very cooperative."

"Did he tell you that, or did you go with him?"

Baatar paused, concerned about the state of Wei and Wing's ears. "Is Mother still there?"

He could hear stifled laughter on the other line, and traded a small smile with Lin. "Yes, she is."

"Then no, I absolutely did not-"

"Listen to me, Baatar Junior," Su said, having evidently snatched the mouthpiece from his father, "If you're giving Kuvira another chance, when she hurts you again, do not ask me why she did it. You know exactly what she's capable of, and when it blows up in your face, I'll be waiting for you to come home to us in Zaofu. And this time, I will say 'I told you so.'"

"Junior," his father said firmly, "are you certain that she's legally bound to not sabotage your case? Are you sure that Keisai isn't playing some game here?"

"Dad, please listen to me," Baatar said. "You trust General Iroh, don't you?" His father murmured his assent. "Iroh has assured us that Keisai is a man of honor, and that his word is more than enough. It is completely impossible for Kuvira to expedite her release or even shorten her sentence by trying to hurt my chances of acquittal. I'm not asking you to trust her, I'm asking you to be rational."

There was silence for a moment, save for the dull mutter that likely came from Su. "And you're sure of this?" his father asked.

"Positive," he replied. "More positive than a definite matrix." He smiled, knowing his father would understand the joke.

"All right. I'll calm your mother down," Baatar Sr. said, his voice noticeably less tense. "Please call her and keep her updated.. she called Lin to see how the meeting with Keisai went, and that's what started all of this."

"I will," he said. "Sorry about that," he added as he could hear his parents arguing in the background.

"Mom and Dad are super pissed," Wing said, apparently in command of the phone now that Baatar Sr. was attempting to reason with his wife. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything!" Baatar snapped. "Mom's being irrational."

"Did you hook up with Kuvira again?" Wei demanded. "I'm pretty sure there are rules against that..."

"I'm pretty sure they hooked up when she was a captain in mom's guard anyway," he heard Wing say in the background. "Mom had rules against that too-"

"Shut up," Baatar said, glancing furtively at Lin. "No, I did nothing of the sort. The lawyer Mom chose will be representing the both of us in our respective trials, and she isn't happy about it."

"That's it?" Wei sounded disappointed. "Okay. Tell Opal we miss her."

"I will," he promised. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Huan has been painting a mural on the west wall of your lab," Wing added. "Don't kill him when we visit. Bye!" The line went dead.

"I can't believe them," he fumed, snatching the receiver from Lin and hanging it up violently.

"Neither can I," Lin said, her arms crossed over her chest as she leaned back in her chair. "Painting a mural after you told him to get his crap out of your room? That's obnoxious."

"Well yes, but if the paint doesn't have any combustible agents that won't really be an issue," Baatar explained. "The last few reactive chemicals I had in there have a half life of-" He paused. "Why am I talking to you about this? That's not important-"

"You said it, not me," Lin muttered, opening the box of noodles he had brought and helping herself.

"-what's important is that my mother is the most irrational woman I've ever had the misfortune-"

"Watch your mouth, kid," Lin said in a warning tone as she filled her own with noodles.

Baatar paused. "Yes, perhaps that was rude of me. Tell me honestly, do you think I made a mistake?"

"It's not the decision I would have made," Lin shrugged, "but that's irrelevant. Keisai knows what he's doing. I've been reading the case files in his repetoire in my down time, and there are two recurring themes here, the first being that he usually wins. The second is that he's a man of his word. I don't think he would have been so keen to take her case if he thought it meant letting yours fall through."

"That's what I though," Baatar agreed, "but why doesn't Mother see it that way?"

"Su considers herself very progressive," Lin said carefully, "but she's incredibly stubborn when she wants to be. Didn't you say the whole problem with Kuvira started after she refused to hear an opinion different from her own?"

He frowned. "I don't remember telling you that."

"You did." Lin arched a brow. "You're a lot less of a brat now that you've been working for the city, you know. It reminds me of Su."

"How so?" he asked, puzzled. "I'm more used to being compared to my father."

"You know how she was sent to live with our grandparents after she gave me this beauty mark, right?" she said, gesturing to her scar. "The difference is, she didn't stick it out. You actually are, and it's more than I expected of you."

"Thank you," Baatar said flatly. "Do you specialize in backhanded compliments?"

"All I'm trying to say is that it will get easier," Lin said, returning her attention to the papers that littered her desk. "Now get out, I need to get back to work."

"Have a good night, Aunt Lin."

"You too, kid." She waved him away without looking up from her desk, and Baatar set off for his apartment, feeling genuinely happy for the first time in a long while.

o0o

It had not taken long for Keisai to settle himself in Republic City. Iroh had set him up with various contacts, and he had agreed to cover the lease of a tenant who was vacating his apartment for a year. It wasn't long before he had converted the place into an office, and it was a rare occasion for the phone to be on the hook. Keisai had a habit of spreading out all of his belongings, giving the place a disorganized appearance. Glasses hung on the chord that opened the blinds, files were clipped to hardboard on specific pages, and a slew of notes littered the desk. A black book held the names and contact information of all the potential witnesses to be called upon, with more names lacking a strikethrough than those bearing one. There was little place to sleep, leave alone sit; even the foot of the bed was not spared. It seemed to be the permanent location for his briefcase, wallet, and notepad, and it resulted in him curling his knees to his chest every night when he at last retired. Working independently allowed him to live by his own hours, and Baatar quickly learned that calling before noon was a futile effort. Keisai was accustomed to rising at nine and ending his night a few hours shy of daybreak. Still, though Baatar found his methods odd, he observed the man at his craft with a grudging respect. It was all too evident that he was wholly invested in not just his case, but Kuvira's as well.

"The avatar will be back next week," Keisai said as he opened the door. "Now that's an interview that I'm looking forward to."

"Why?" Baatar asked frowning. "I would imagine it makes things difficult.. am I expected to be present for the interview?"

"Do you want to patch things up with the most powerful bender in the world?" Keisai said pointedly. "And no, I'm not talking about Kuvira... although the question still applies," he mused, stroking his chin. "You can bet that the prosecution will call her to the stand. I don't just want her testimony though, I want her to like you. I want her to understand where you were coming from, and I want to make sure she understands the technicalities of the case. She and Iroh may prove to be my most pivotal witnesses."

"You're calling Iroh to the stand?"

"Of course I am," Keisai said. "Did you listen to what I just said? Oh," he said suddenly, grimacing. "I've never had to call a friend as a witness before... would I have to question him by his formal title?"

Baatar felt his patience slowly being eroded, and he had only just arrived. "Are you telling me you don't know?"

"Formal title," Keisai said as if he hadn't heard. "Well, that's going to be awkward. Step into my lair, would you?"

The clutter and the mess never failed to catch him off-guard, and Baatar carefully navigated the papers, folders, clipboards, and occasional dishes as he followed Keisai in. The lawyer cleared a place for him to sit, feeling under the pillow for a pen. "How have you not lost everything important in this hovel?" Baatar said with distaste. "The main living area is immaculate, but this is how you live?"

"Everything is in its proper place," Keisai said dismissively. "Now, my main concerns are damages to Republic City, the fact that you were half of the authority behind the undeclared invasion, and the prison camps. Yes," he said, running a hand through his hair. "Let's discuss those. I've spoken to several of your top officials, and they seem either entirely ignorant of them or extremely cagey. Xi was perhaps the most helpful, admitting that he knew what was going on, but said that you and Kuvira handled that business personally. He said nothing more on the subject. What do you have to say?"

Baatar paused thoughtfully. "That's not entirely true, though not dishonest. We didn't handle it personally, but we had no middle men. Corporals were in charge of each reeducation camp unit-"

"Baatar, they were prison camps."

"-and they oversaw the laborers-"

"I'm not going to let you continue until you admit that they were prison camps."

"-who were housed in military style barracks with more than adequate food and shelter," he pressed on, crossing his arms.

Keisai pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know, if you want me to win this thing for you, you need to stop lying to me and to yourself. Do you have the orders for prisoner transfers and releases?"

"No, but I think I can get them with little difficulty," Baatar said. "How soon do you need it?"

"The sooner the better," Keisai said, rifling through a stack of papers. "Your mother is trying to expedite the trial, and I need all of our evidence approved beforehand or I won't be able to use it in court." He paused, snapping his fingers. "Oh, make sure you get orders filed for supplies... amenities, things like that. I'll also need a record of the number of prisoners in each camp. Please tell me you weren't lying about the adequate food and shelter bit," he entreated.

"She's trying to what?" Baatar frowned. "How can she do that? She is aware that she's not helping, isn't she?"

"Obviously not," Keisai said. "I think she wants you home, and if she could have her way we'd be working from Zaofu right now. This is much better, though... a friend of the avatar was able to set me up with some escapees from unit 12. Apparently they escaped with the aid of Varrick and another one of the avatar's friends..."

"Bolin," Baatar said. "The friend that gave you the contact- does he happen to work for Lin?"

"Yes," Keisai said. "Tall kid, probably in his early twenties, eyebrows sharper than your fiancée's..."

"That would be Mako, Bolin's brother," Baatar said. "Have you interviewed the prisoners already?"

"Not yet," the lawyer admitted, "but soon. I'm really hoping they don't say anything too damning, or I'll have to scrap that card. Keep quiet about that, would you? I don't know what the prosecution has planned yet but I think it'll be easy to exploit that angle."

Baatar held up a hand. "Wait, have you interviewed Bolin yet?"

Keisai smiled, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "Indeed I have."

Baatar growled in annoyance when he didn't continue. "And?"

"And he does not like you," Keisai said, his smile broadening. "But he's an honest kid, so I'm not worried. With him, it's all about method of questioning." He sat erect suddenly. "You work for Future Industries as part of your conditions of release, correct?"

"Yes, and partnered with Varrick Industries," Baatar said. "Why..?"

"Get me an interview with Varrick as soon as he's back from his honeymoon." He checked through his notes. "According to Bolin, Kuvira first threatened Varrick's life and you brought him back along with his wife and Bolin after they dissented." He tapped the pen against his chin. "Explain."

"They ran away, and they were brought back," Baatar said with a shrug. "They were unharmed. I can't speak for what Kuvira did, obviously, but she never followed through on threats like that."

"Really?" Keisai said, skeptically raising an eyebrow. "She fired on the watch tower for no reason." Baatar paused, at a loss for words. "Kuvira's biggest hurdle is her treatment of dissenters and the death of those two United Forces guards. I won't even get into the mess of attempted homicide just yet. How much did you have to do with all of it? From what I see, you weren't needed to co-sign on prison camp transfers, and are little more than a witness to her various.. questionable actions."

Baatar's eyes narrowed. "What are you trying to say?"

"Your trial will be first," Keisai said. "Iroh gave me some intel on the prosecution, and I'm not thrilled by the news. Since I'm representing the both of you, you can't downplay your role in anything, as that violates our agreement. But because you haven't co-signed on the majority of the prison camp orders, you're going to have to exploit that." The phone rang, but he ignored it, instead checking the black book on the desk. "Don't think about how that impacts Kuvira. Just trust me, and work with me on this."

Baatar felt uneasy for the first time in their partnership, but was too tired to argue. "Have you begun working with her yet?"

"I've been by a couple of times with my findings, just to keep her in the loop," Keisai said, bending down and feeling under the bed for shoes. "She asked about you; you should come with me for our next session."

"I can't," Baatar said. "Asami and Varrick are both abroad, which makes me effectively responsible for reconstructing the train lines and the roads... Construction for the expansion is already underway and I'm behind on the blueprints for the new City Hall, which very likely will be needed for the upcoming trials-" He paused, narrowing his eyes. "She asked about me?"

"Well, not exactly," Keisai admitted. "She asked how your case was going. It's basically the same thing."

Baatar stared. "That's not the same thing at all," he said flatly.

"Either way," Keisai said, packing up his briefcase and pulling Baatar to his feet, "if you're behind on the blueprints, you won't catch up now. Let's go."

"You're just hoping to see my aunt again."

The lawyer turned, shock registering on his features for the first time since their partnership's beginning. "That's what I like to see," he said with approval. "You're finally loosening up. Now let's go."

o0o

Baatar stopped at Lin's office, assuring Keisai that he would join him momentarily. "I won't be long," he said, waving the lawyer away. "Go ahead and get started."

"Suit yourself," Keisai said, shrugging. "While you're there, find out if you can get me the contract for her term as interim president, would you? And while you're at it, see if you can get your hands on the papers pertaining to your formal appointment as second in command. Kuvira doesn't have access to them." With those parting words, he was gone.

"Aunt Lin, I need to talk to you," Baatar said, leaning his weight against her desk.

"I don't seem to have the option of refusal," she said drily. "What's going on?"

"My mother is trying to expedite the trial," he said, irritated. "The International Military Tribunal is nowhere near ready for a hearing! It's nowhere near a year yet, and she expects us to be ready as if-"

"I can't really help, kid," Lin said. "I've tried to reason with her, but she's hell bent on getting you home. I'm trying to stay in the know about the judge panel, though. Saikhan will serve on the panel, but we're in trouble- Hotah of the Northern Water Tribe will also be serving."

"The man was in Unalaq's pocket for years!" Baatar exploded. "Who's putting the panel together?"

"Raiko's behind it," Lin said grimly. "He wants it to be as impartial as possible, and as the Chief Justice of the Northern tribe, Hotah's a shoe-in for the president of the panel." She snorted. "Real impartial."

"Who is the third justice?" Baatar asked, wondering if Keisai was aware of the news.

"I think the Fire Nation will send a representative," Lin replied. "Izumi's a nice girl, she'll probably send a state justice with a good deal of seniority."

"Well, this makes my evening a delight," he said, dejected. "Oh, before I forget- Keisai needed a favor." He stifled a chuckle as Lin's eyes bugged out and her face contorted into an expression of fury. "Nothing out of line," he reassured her. "He wants to know where he can get a copy of the contract for Kuvira's interim presidency, as well as my appointment as her second in command."

"Tell him to file his request with Saikhan," Lin said. "I'll call and tell him to grant it as soon as it's received. That's about all I can do."

"That will be more than enough," Baatar said, taking her hand in thanks. "So.. anything new that I've been unaware of? I've been bad about visiting of late, between rebuilding the roads and working with the lawyer.."

Lin quirked a brow. "Are you making small talk?"

"Maybe?"

"Is Keisai waiting on you with Kuvira?"

Baatar scowled. "How do you always know?"

Lin metalbended his seat, forcing him to stand. "I'm a pretty decent aunt. No more delaying, Junior. Get out of my office."

Baatar ascended the steps two at a time, nodding to the guards as they granted him entry. "So, we're going to say surrender at discretion," Keisai said, voice low over the sound of his pen scribbling across the page.

"All of my transmissions are recorded," Kuvira said, her old confident tone apparently having returned to her. "I believe that particular one was released after the news of my demise made headlines by loyalists, so you won't need my help to obtain them-" She paused, having noticed his entry, and gestured to the chair beside her. "Join us?"

"Lin will have Saikhan approve your request for the documents as soon as he receives them," Baatar said, ignoring her and turning to Keisai. "Here's the form you'll need to send," he added, handing him the paper.

Keisai smiled. "Well, this is uncomfortable."

Kuvira seemed to deflate a bit, but continued all the same. "What was next on your agenda?"

"Yes," Keisai said, snapping his fingers and pulling out the notes he had taken the previous week. "Let's discuss these 'reeducation camps' you were telling me about."

"I maintain that those were for dissenters to become productive citizens of the Earth Empire," Kuvira said evenly. "I admit that I went too far, but they were resistant to my rule. I would classify that as internal affairs though, wouldn't you agree?"

"I would," Keisai said, smiling and inclining his head, "but the prosecution will make a point of it being a violation of the laws and conventions of war, and therefore a point against you in the trial. Baatar's already told me how the treatment of the prisoners was handled, and I'm hoping that the documents only confirm your story, because then I'll be able to spin it as a moot point." He glanced at Baatar. "You're not going to say anything?"

"What's there to say?" he asked quizzically. "You're discussing her case."

"Baatar's name isn't present on most of the prison camp papers, from what I can tell," Keisai said pointedly. "I'm going to exploit that in his case to help him out. Since your trial will be about a month after his, we're not going to raise these points until then."

"Do whatever you need to do," she said, her eyes on Baatar. "My release is obviously high on my list of priorities, but his is your main objective, at least for now."

Baatar leaned back in his seat as the two of them continued to discuss the case, with Keisai occasionally stopping and asking him a question of clarification or to cross-check Kuvira's answers. His eyes narrowed as he watched the two. Kuvira had always been gifted at mental puzzles; it surprised him when he tried to explain linear algebra to her and ended up leaving her thoroughly flummoxed. She had struck him as a master strategist, something he had questioned when he saw how she carried out the takeover of Republic City and her refusal to surrender. Lin had told him that when she turned herself in at the end, her general was present with the entire fourth unit in tow. She could have allowed her men to rescue her, and return to Raiko with the capitulation agreement. In the time after the day of the colossus, he had questioned her judgement a hundred times, poring over every minute detail in search of the point when everything went wrong. If he truly had to date it, he would have chosen Wu's coronation. But now, a flicker of her old self was apparently rekindled, discussing the different points of her case with Keisai. He watched her appreciatively, taking in the sight of her alert, bright eyes and authoritative brows, her fingers steepled beneath her chin. She unlaced her hands to point something out to the lawyer, tipping her head to the side as she explained her idea, and Baatar felt his breath catch in his chest.

She was wearing the ring. He wasn't sure if the fact that she loved him made him feel better or worse; she had clearly valued the empire more than her own love for him.

"I'm going to have to look into the precedent for attempted homicide against the avatar," Keisai was saying, "but if my hunch is correct, the prosecution will be overzealous and that's going to be our greatest defense."

"And you still think a plea for serving out the shortened sentence is our best angle?" she said, doubt creeping into her voice. "It seems like a gamble, and I don't commit to something if I'm not one hundred percent certain about it.."

"Are you one hundred percent certain that you made the right choice in a lawyer?"

Baatar snapped out of his reverie, the spell of her appearance broken, and observed the two hyper-attentively. "No, but I can only work with what I have," she said evenly. "Let me know when you've gotten the contract and the prison camp records." She stood as he did, shaking hands with a firm grip.

"Until next time, then," Keisai said. "Baatar," he added, jabbing his thumb in Kuvira's direction, "you said she's a trained dancer? She should have been a lawyer."

"Can you leave us?" Baatar said, displeasure evident on his face.

"Certainly," the man said, clapping him on the shoulder and heading to the door, pausing with his hand on the frame. "Same time, next week?"

"I have nowhere else to be," Kuvira said drily. The door closed, and she turned her attention to Baatar. "You came."

"He asked me to."

"I'm not going to ask you for forgiveness," she said slowly, "but I want you to know that I'm sorry. And I'm sorry that it isn't enough."

"I know," he said, and they sat in a companionable silence, their hands consciously separated on the table by less than a foot of space. "I've missed you," he said simply.

"I've missed you," she said, eyes brightening. "Every day, since the radio call with Raiko-"

"No," Baatar corrected her, "I've missed you for much longer than that. I miss the woman I proposed to."

"Ah." She didn't say anything else, but he could tell he'd given her something to think on, and they sat together in comfortable silence until the guards reminded him that visiting hours had ended.


A/N: THE DRAMA CONTINUES. Hope y'all enjoyed, and omg the feedback. You all are the most amazing and perfect followers so I actually updated my author page FOR YOU GUYS. If you're wondering how she got the ring back, don't worry, I won't leave y'all hanging! I'm addressing it in the next chapter. Till then, speculate about it in the reviews! Love and cookies to all of you!