Chapter 8: The Occupation
Jin rested her chin in her hand as she stared at the game board. She was trying to remember tips for playing a solid game: avoid premature attacks, move pieces evenly from both sides of the board, set up all your pieces instead of just two or three, think ahead, see the whole board. It wasn't working. She clicked a tile impatiently against the table top, hoping that inspiration would strike.
If she put the rose tile there, then it would be in place for two harmonies in two moves, but then he would move to there and take that piece and then her first defense would be in ruins. She would have to be sneakier about placing her rose and beef up her main defenses a bit. Yes, that's what she needed to do.
Hyun Su was smiling absently and gazing around the shop like a man who had lost his memory. It was obvious that he wasn't going to give her any advice. She placed a dragon tile and he raised his bushy white eyebrows as if amused. He leaned forward to inspect the board, humming to himself and stroking his beard.
Whatever move he was going to make (which would surely throw off her entire flimsy strategy and embarrass her) was interrupted by some sort of commotion outside.
A shiver ran down Jin's back as the noise got louder and Hyun Su carefully set down his pieces and cautiously moved to the door. Jin followed after him.
With a rhythmic beat of armor that pounded along with her heart, row upon row of Fire Nation soldiers marched past.
Hyun Su's face had not changed from his usual look of mild curiosity, but his papery skin had grown pale – the only sign that he was less than thrilled. Their armor clunked and their feet stomped together in a pulse that she could feel just behind her eyes. Their faces were covered by skull-like masks, making them even more terrifying.
Oh spirits. Oh spirits. Oh spirits.
What were they doing here? How did they get in? What did this mean? Why hadn't anyone tried to stop them? She could run out right now and take one of them by surprise before they killed her. That probably wouldn't be worth it. But then, what should she do?
Several of her questions were answered as a Fire Nation harold passed slowly, his words barely audible above the pounding march.
"People of Ba Sing Se,
The Avatar is dead.
Your walls have fallen.
Your King has fled.
The city is now under Fire Nation control.
All Hail Fire Lord Ozai.
People of Ba Sing Se,
The Avatar is dead.
Your walls have fallen…"
They stood frozen in the doorway for several minutes, until Jin was able to swallow the feeling of dread and gently pull Hyun Su back into the shop, away from the terror that passed so close to them.
The marching continued for twenty minutes. They sat in silence, neither working, neither speaking, both waiting for the army to either continue by the shop, burn the place down, or kick in the door and kill them.
Then there was a ghostly silence for an hour. None of the residents came out into the streets, instead staying hidden in their homes or whatever building they happened to be in when the soldiers had appeared. The silence was almost worse than the thunderous noise.
Jin ached to know what was going on, what had happened, what would happen. She wanted to know if her family was safe, if anyone had been killed. She wanted to run and ask if anyone had any news. She wanted to run away and never stop running, never looking back.
But she was too afraid. She clutched the seat of her chair as if to hold herself down as the muscles in her legs tensed for flight.
Eventually, a smaller group of marching soldiers and a harold returned and made an announcement that Jin and Hyun Su could hear through the closed door. They were posting instructions for how to behave in the new regime.
Jin eased open the door and hesitantly joined the throng of people who had carefully left the safety of their homes to crowd around a bulletin board. After several minutes of being squeezed between strangers and shoved back and forth, Jin made it to the front of the pack, where she was able to read the Fire Nation notice.
1. A curfew is to be maintained and enforced throughout Ba Sing Se from sun set until sun rise.
2. All persons arrested, or who are now, or hereafter imprisoned, may be held in custody without probable cause or without an order issued by a court of competent jurisdiction.
3. All persons arrested, or who are now, or hereafter imprisoned, will be tried by a Fire Nation Tribunal.
4. No person shall defame, insult, or threaten the Fire Lord, the princess, their fully designated representatives, or the actions, decrees, or policies of the Fire Lord, the princess, and their fully designated representatives.
5. All rallies, demonstrations and other forms of group actions involving more than ten individuals are prohibited.
6. No person shall keep, possess or carry outside of his residence any weapon unless such person is duly authorized by the Fire Lord's fully designated representative to keep, possess or carry such.
7. Fire Nation soldiers may be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner.
8. All traffic between rings is hereby suspended. Any individual wishing to travel between rings must present themselves for inspection by the Fire Lord's duly designated representatives in order to receive updated documentation.
9. All executive departments, bureaus, offices, agencies and instrumentalities of the Ba Sing Se Government, along with government owned or controlled corporations should present themselves for inspection by the Fire Lord's duly designated representatives, and all current personnel are to give the loyalty oath to His Majesty Fire Lord Ozai.
10. All Earth Kingdom and Ba Sing Se soldiers should present themselves for inspection by the Fire Lord's duly designated representatives, and all current personnel are to give the loyalty oath to his majesty Fire Lord Ozai.
11. Fire Nation Soldiers and the Dai Li are to take into custody the individuals named in the attached list and to hold them until otherwise so ordered by the Fire Lord or by his duly designated representative.
A second notice held a list of names, most of which Jin recognized as members of the military and nobility.
She swallowed down the lump in her throat and slowly made her way back out of the grumbling crowd. Maybe if she went about her day in a daze, it would all be ok.
She spent most of the morning at the upper gate, waiting in the long line of people attempting to get new transit papers. After two hours she reached the front of the cue and stood before an Earth Kingdom official. Apparently the Fire Nation felt no need to bring their own bureaucrats. The man was simultaneously annoyed with his job and terrified of the two Fire Nation soldiers that stood behind him.
"Hello. I work in the upper ring and live in the lower ring, so I need new transit papers so that I can travel back and forth."
The man held out a knobby hand, "Your documentation."
Jin handed him her identification papers, her old transit papers, and a letter from Hyun Su explaining the situation. The official gave them a fleeting glance.
Shaking his head he said, "No, no. This won't do at all. I'm going to need proof of residency and verification of your employment."
"But I have those. My old transit papers-"
"-are now outdated"
"-and my letter from my boss –"
"-is not official documentation."
"Well, what is official documentation?"
"You would need your lease or mortgage statement, or even a bill or piece of mail-"
"-mail isn't delivered to the lower ring. We have to pick it up at the post office. It wouldn't have my address on it."
The man's eyes flashed. "Then you will need to bring in your lease, won't you?" he snapped. "And bring in a pay stub or a tax form to prove your employment situation. Next!"
"Wait. Those forms are at home. In the lower ring. Where I can't go."
"It is not my problem that you do not carry proper documentation with you."
"I'm supposed to carry my pay stubs and lease with me at all times?"
He simply raised an eyebrow and shouted, "Next!"
"Why didn't someone tell me this before I stood in line for two hours?"
One of the Fire Nation soldiers stepped forward threateningly and Jin turned and left in a huff.
Saying that it was easier for Zuko to get his transit papers was a bit of a lie. The process went quite smoothly, as he had access to all the paperwork he needed and had an uncanny knack for navigating tedious bureaucracy. He was, however, exceptionally uncomfortable with so many Fire Nation soldiers around. The fear that someone might recognize him made him tense and paranoid. It seemed, however, that no one was looking at his face. He was just another Earth Kingdom citizen who blended in with the crowd.
He also didn't like using his forged passport so often. The more he used it, the more likely it was that someone would notice the lie. He was on edge all day.
The whole thing drudged up old memories of his time in Fire Nation, making part of him feel like a failure. He had been banished and lost his honor and lost his father's love. Then he had failed to conquer Ba Sing Se or catch the Avatar. Yeah, he didn't really want to right now, but still a part of him felt annoyed that he wasn't a part of this, that he was on the losing side. He had betrayed his father yet again.
Then a part of him felt angry that they would come here, where his friends were, and ruin their lives just as they had ruined his own. He felt guilty that he had no power to stop it.
After he got his transit papers, allowing him to travel to the middle and lower ring between the hours of 10 and 4 to meet with vendors and collect supplies, he got detailed instructions on how to get the necessary documents for the girls and set out across the city.
The first stop was Suri's house, which was on the North side of the lower ring, near the middle wall. Her mother was home caring for Suri's infant sister, and answered the door cautiously, obviously terrified that he was a Fire Nation soldier come to kill her or hurt her or take her away, or that he had come to bring her news that her husband or one of her children had been killed or hurt or taken away.
She calmed down considerably after Zuko's explanation, and then herded him into the kitchen, where she dug through a drawer filled with paper and bounced the colicky baby on her hip. She refused to give him anything important, and finally decided that she could part with the invoice for the daily milk delivery. "But I want it back when you're done."
Next was Yun's apartment on the West side of town. No one was home and he took the key hidden in a lamp near the door and let himself in. Her apartment was a single room that looked as though several people lived in it. He dug through her neat stack of paperwork in a trunk that also contained an old music box, a pocket watch, and various other heirlooms. Yun's was the only name on the lease, which he found odd. What about her parents?
He decided that it really wasn't any of his business and locked back up.
He then went to Mimi's apartment on the South West side very close to the inner wall. It was in a shabby section of town, where the streets were narrow and winding and dirty. It took him quite a while to find it.
Her landlord lived in the building and spent all of his time sitting on the front stoop where he could watch the tenants come and go and spy on the neighbors. He was bursting with gossip about the recent take over and was thrilled that Zuko had come to see him. He insisted on hearing about everywhere Zuko had been that day, who he had talked to and what they had said (which Zuko found mostly uninteresting) before commenting that Mimi was a "hell of a girl" and writing a surprisingly formal letter stating that Mimi's family moved into the building on such and such a date 23 years ago and Mimi had lived there since so and so a time, giving her date of birth. He then described how Mimi's family were neat and quiet and always paid rent on time, and how his building was in good standing with the Lower Ring Residential Bureau. Zuko didn't know if any of the dates were correct, but it was impressive anyway.
The man told him that the Fire Nation Princess had disguised herself as an Omashu warrior to infiltrate the city and sleep with Long Feng. She then killed the Avatar with lightning, Long Feng with a sword, and the Earth King with a fire ball. Zuko didn't know how much of this was true, but it made his blood run cold.
He guessed that Mimi had learned to be a rumor monger on that very porch.
Finally he traveled the familiar route to Jin's apartment. He was growing even more nervous than he already was, and couldn't quite figure out why. It became more acute as he thought about how Jin's father might be home, and bordered on panic when he imagined that it might be her mother that answered the door. He didn't know what this anxiety was all about. Maybe he was afraid that Azula would pop out somewhere. That had to be it.
He paused a moment before knocking. Please let them be out. Please let them be out.
There wasn't any answer and he felt a rush of excitement as he knocked again. Please let them be out. Agni, he was a wuss. Please let them be out.
"Just a moment."
His heart sank as a thin, worn looking woman answered the door. She looked terrified, just like Suri's mom, and her voice broke when she asked, "Can I help you?"
For a moment he couldn't find his voice, distracted by how much this woman looked like Jin. Her features were slightly more sunken and she had the overwhelming smell of soap that sometimes wafted off of Jin's hair.
"I … uh … I'm here about Jin." Her eyes widened with terror. "No, no. She's alright. It's just that she can't get out of the upper ring until she has proof of her address and so I came to pick that up for her."
She let out a deep breath and ran a damp hand through her hair. "Oh Spirits." She looked up at him again with fresh eyes. "You're Lee, aren't you?"
He froze. "Umm… yes?" It came out almost like a question.
She smiled at him. It was kind, but neglected by years of heartache and sacrifice. "Jin talks about you. Come in, dear. Would you like something to eat?"
He was shepherded inside, where it smelled even more strongly of soap, and mumbled a "no, thank you" as she dried her hands on a rag thrown over a chair. He stood awkwardly next to the stove, unsure if he should sit down or offer to help, as she rifled through a trunk in the corner. There was a high pile of laundry next to a tub of water, and wet clothes hung from a string looped from the stove to a nail in the far wall. He guessed that she must do laundry for a living.
"We don't have much. Here's our lease, but it's in my husband's name, not Jin's. But why would she have a lease for somewhere she doesn't live? Then I have this letter from my sister. It has Jin's name on it, but no address. Just the post office box number. I'm sure that if they looked the number up they would see that it was lower ring. And then I have her diploma. It's for a school in the lower ring, and no one would go to it unless they lived around here. Will these work?"
"Yes, I think they will." He inspected their lease closely, "It's better than Suri's papers anyway."
Jin's diploma was printed on thick paper and wrapped around a stained cherry rod with the school seal burnt into the end. He handled it carefully, reverently. "I don't think I can take this … or your lease. The letter will probably do." He thought to himself that it probably wouldn't, but he didn't want to be responsible for something so important. What if he was captured on his way back? Her diploma would be lost forever.
"Nonsense. You take them and bring Jin home. You're a good boy. I trust you."
Why? Why on earth would she trust him?
He stared at her for a moment, and she gave him that sad smile again. He was just going to have to not get caught on his way back. That was the only answer. For no apparent reason, this woman trusted him, and there was no way he was going to let her down.
She looked way too much like Jin.
"Umm… it's getting late, so she might not be back until tomorrow. You know, curfew and all."
She nodded. "Alright."
A few steps out the door she called to him. "Keep her safe."
"Yes, ma'am."
He left in a hurry. Jin's mother made him feel disingenuous and guilty.
He had to run to get to the upper ring before four. He slowed down and averted his eyes when he saw any soldiers, in order to avoid attracting attention. He decided that he needed to get a hat.
He arrived back at the tea house to find it packed. Many people were stuck in the upper ring and had little to do besides sit in the tea shop for hours. It was good for business and seemed to be keeping the girls busy instead of allowing them to sit and fret. Except Suri, who had had a panic attack and spent the afternoon curled in a ball on the couch in the office.
When Zuko returned, she latched herself to his side and demanded to know if her mother was alright. Ever since she had seen Smellerbee stab him, she had looked at him with a sense of awe, as if he was the greatest person ever and could take any punishment and protect her from anything. She had also taken to carrying around the dagger that Smellerbee had stabbed him with. Apparently she had picked it up off the ground and kept it. There was something slightly disconcerting about how she would touch it when she thought no one was watching. It was annoying, but he would put up with it today.
The flower shop had closed early. Unlike a cozy tea shop, an orchid florist was not a pleasant all day hang out. Jin was helping his uncle brew, as his uncle attempted to distract her with a story about his trip to the spirit world. Every time his uncle told the story it changed, so there was no telling what he actually did there.
As the line at the upper gate would close soon for the day, it was decided that they wouldn't try to get the girls' transit papers until the morning.
"I can run and get some blankets and you can sleep here."
"Nonsense, nephew. They've had a difficult time. They should sleep in beds. And they've been here all day. They need a change of scenery. You'll sleep at our house," Mushi announced.
"Uncle, I don't think that's-"
"I'll make roast duck!"
The girls didn't see anything wrong with the situation. Suri was now permanently attached to his elbow, and Mimi noted excitedly that a "party at Lee's house" would be just as much fun as a "stock room sleepover."
His uncle tried much too hard to keep the mood light. Zuko could see the strain in his eyes as he laughed uproariously just as well as he could see Yun gnaw on her lower lip, and Mimi push her food around her plate, and Jin stare down at her clasped hands. After dinner his uncle insisted that Zuko play the tsungi horn for them.
"No."
His uncle shook his head and told Mimi in a carrying whisper, "He's shy."
This was met by a round of "aww!" And he noted that everyone seemed more at ease while making fun of him. That wasn't fair at all.
Zuko and Jin (and of course Suri) went though Zuko's clothes to see if he had anything for the girls to sleep in. After offering Jin a pair of dress pants and a wool shirt, she pushed him out of the way and went through his clothes as he stood sheepishly across the room. "Good grief, you're clueless sometimes. What are we going to do with you?"
"You mean, 'what would you do without me.'"
"Be very, very sad."
Suri giggled.
Yun and Mimi slept in his uncle's bed, while Jin and Suri shared Zuko's. The bed was small, but Suri was clingy. His uncle lay on the couch and Zuko was left to the living room floor. Curtsey sucked on days like this.
He spent the night staring at the ceiling and brooding. His uncle had worked diligently for almost two years to conquer Ba Sing Se. He was rewarded with being branded as a failure and losing his only child. Then Azula had snuck in and brought the city down in a matter of days, with minimal bloodshed. When she returned to the Fire Nation she would be rewarded with their father's approval and love and when it was time she would be crowned Fire Lord.
She had taken his throne and killed his Avatar. He had spent three years looking for that kid, traveling around the world only to be foiled time and time again. But Azula, perfect Azula, took him down in one shot, simultaneously taking down any chance Zuko had at regaining his honor.
How was that fair? His uncle was a good man and Zuko… well, he wasn't the best but he thought he was decent and he worked hard. Why should they be banished for caring about their people, while Azula was exalted for being manipulative and enjoying the thrill of deceiving others?
His mother once told him, "A kind heart and dedication will carry you far in life." Was that lie really any better than the ones Azula told? He wondered if his uncle's advice would be just as deceptive if it was ever decoded. Maybe it wouldn't be worth listening to, but then again maybe his uncle knew more about how the world really worked from his own failures.
Jin had once told him that little sisters needed their older brothers to look out for them, to take care of them, and to act as role models. Zuko had definitely failed Azula there. If only he had been a better brother, more understanding, spent more time with her, comforted her, would she have turned out as terrible as she was now?
She was probably in the palace right now, less than a mile away. He could go to her and try to make things right. No. He would be caught by the Dai Li and sent to prison before he even got to her. And if by some chance he did see her then she would just make fun of him, and his uncle, and the tea shop, and his friends, then his clothes and his hair. "Are you seriously consorting with Earth Kingdom filth? Honestly, I thought you had more self-respect than that, Zuzu."
Rage rose within him. How dare she? How dare she insult the girls? Jin was ten times the person Azula would ever be. How dare she insult the tea shop? They worked hard and it was great and they were successful and people loved them. How dare she insult his clothes? They were his, and she should back off.
How was he supposed to be a good brother if just thinking about her infuriated him?
What would Jin do? She would probably take Azula's belittlement. Maybe with a blank stare or a small smile. She might even laugh and agree with a few of her quips. Then she would say, "I've missed you, 'Zula," and hug her.
Yeah right. Azula would freak out at that point and slash him to death with her freaky fingernails. Then she would throw another fireball at his face just for kicks. It was a lost cause. He was just not a great brother. He wasn't even a good brother. Jin would be disappointed.
She was even closer at that moment than his sister was, but just as unreachable. Only a paper door and propriety separated them. He listened for any sound that might mean that she couldn't sleep either. He strained for any indication that she was staring up at the ceiling, maybe thinking about him while her cheek and hair rested against his pillow, while she was wearing his cotton shirt, while the bare skin of her legs was covered by his sheet.
Damn it. He really didn't need those thoughts. Having her stay here was such a bad idea. A terrible idea. He had much more important things to mull over. Stop thinking about it because it's not going to happen. Never. Ever. He didn't want that. Really. He didn't.
Damn it.
He was half asleep when he heard soft crying. Or was he dreaming? It soon subsided into sniffles as a lullaby drifted over him. It was gentle and calming and he had heard it somewhere before.
Before he could remember where, he fell back asleep.