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Post by nattoku on Feb 17, 2007 15:31:06 GMT -5
"It is an honor to meet you Miz Lyra,"Nattoku said, bowing in respect. "And earlier, you didn't really embarrass me, I was just very surprised." He grinned sheepishly, and began to rub the back of his head. "And you are very welcome on the compliments. Y'all all deserved them."
Nattoku turned to the other girl, Ayumi. "And it is an honor to meet you as well Miz Ayumi,"he said, bowing to her out of respect as well. She seemed like a sweet girl.
The teen turned back to Jin. "Sure, that would be great,"he said. "It's been a long while since I've had some good tea. Especially without either of my brothers trying to push my face into the tea pot or pour it all on me. Or puttin' something nasty into it." Nattoku scrunched up his face while remembering when his older brother had put some unknown slimy substance into his tea when he wasn't looking.
He then turned back to Lyra to answer her question. "Well Miz Lyra, I come from a fishing village in the southern part of the Earth Kingdom. My mom decided my brothers and I needed some time away, and when she heard about this festival from a passerby, she decided to take us here for some time."
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Post by laughingjin on Feb 17, 2007 16:14:41 GMT -5
Jin smiled softly as Nat spoke about his brothers pranks. In complete honesty it sounded like something he himself would do, just never to a sibling. Usually to unsuspecting patrons in the Tea House, or people he worked with with his father. He was about to speak when Lyra addressed a question to him. He shrugged nonchalantly, the friendly smile still stuck on his face, "I'm usually out with my father, or on the front porch of the shop."
And, as always, Ayumi piped up throwing her two coins in, "Or in the back waiting to reek complete havoc!" She giggled and Jin nudged her playfully. The two turned the direction of the Tea shop, ready and willing to get going.
"You're in luck," Jin spoke responding to what Nat had said about coming to Kei Lan. "You picked a great time to come. The village isn't this nice all year round." He was completely sincere, as was the friendly smile on his face. He took a step forward, heading toward their destination. "C'mon, let's get this road on the show."
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Post by lyra on Feb 17, 2007 19:18:36 GMT -5
"So is your mother here? Along with your elder brothers?" Lyra asked as the four kids made their way down the empty street toward the tea shop that Jin had said they were going to. She had always thought that while you were with someone, it was your job to keep conversation flowing - that was what she was planning on doing now. "Where are you all staying?"
As she walked, her bare feet slapped the road covered in dirt. The feeling comforted her, she felt at home here. She then turned to Jin and laughed, "Don't you mean, this show on the road?" She asked. Maybe it was something that he said, or maybe he had just gotten the phrase wrong. Either way, she had to ask.
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Post by nattoku on Feb 17, 2007 21:18:22 GMT -5
Nattoku ambled along the road, keeping up with the group as they headed towards the tea shop. He turned his attention back to Lyra's question. "Yeah, my ma and brothers are here,"he said. "But I do have to correct you on one thing.Sorry if I sound rude. I have just one elder brother and one younger. I'm the middle child. My brother Kyo is fifteen, sixteen very soon. I'm thirteen, but I'll be fourteen in a few months. And my younger brother Tian Tian is eight." He grinned a little, while thinking of how funny it had looked when their mom had lined them up in order of birth. It had been what she called a staircase effect.
Nattoku then continued with his answer. "We're staying at a small inn in the middle of town. I don't remember the name though,"he said. "I just know it is small. My mom purchased two rooms, so I'm stuck rooming with Kyo, and his snoring and talking in his sleep about whatever girl he's going out with. He changes girlfriends more than he changes his socks." The boy shuddered a bit at the thought of rooming with his older brother.
"What about you Miz Lyra?"he asked.
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Post by boragan on Feb 18, 2007 2:42:16 GMT -5
The treatment of captives were never Bora's specialty. He continued to hit him, even when the prisoner tried to recover his breathing. "You, know, this does not suit me real well," Bora whispered into the ear of the prisoner, "Just give me a name. All I want is a name. After that, it will stop." "Sir!" a shout came from outside. A private came in, breathing heavily as if he ran a great distance. "What is it private? I'm interrogating," Bora ordered. "Sir, we found a few of our men at the north post. They're dead sir," the private debriefed in horror. "what do you mean dead? How did this happen?" Bora continued to shout questions. "They were burned alive. From what the investigation said, they were attacked from the front. It appears that they were accompanied by very large animals."
The prisoner chuckled a little as he heard the briefing. "It's starts," the prisoner said softly, "The attack is soon to come." "What do you mean?' Bora asked. "Your nation, is almost over. The Rough Rhinos are the sign of the times. Your capital will soon be destroyed. You're finished." The prisoner didn't say another word as Bora smashed his fist into the mouth of the prisoner.
A thought came to his mind. Bora scrambled through the documents that were used as evidence and found the scroll that the prisoner had on him. As Bora scanned through the drawings, his eyes stared in shock. "These are plans of attack," Bora whispered. He turned toward his men and gave a direct. "Evacuate the citizens. Women and children specifically. We are being attacked!"
~-~-~-~-~-~-
As the lantern festival continued to go smoothly, a group of men from a less populated area of the streets walked on over to the larger crowds. All of these men looked as if they were in some robes and straw hats. They also had with them a couple of very large komodo rhinoes with them. Their walking pattern almost looked like a march as they advanced slowly to the larger crowd.
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Post by laughingjin on Feb 18, 2007 10:39:41 GMT -5
Jin let out a soft laugh and shrugged slightly when Lyra corrected him, "Close enough." As the conversation shifted to discuss Nat Jin contented himself in just simply listening to them. Besides meeting Lyra and Nat, nothing uneventful had happened. 'Maybe', Jin thought hopefully, 'it'll stay that way.'
Both Jin and Ayumi gave a synchronized snicker when Nat mentioned his older brother's snoring and girlfriend habits. "I know what it's like sleeping with snoring," Ayumi piped in, as always, her voice still filled with small giggles. "Our father sounds like a full grown platypus bear." Both of Jin's eyebrows raised high as he turned to address his sister. "C'mon, Ay, he's not that bad." "This coming from the boy who can sleep through an avalanche," Ayumi gave a teasing smirk.
Jin was ready to give his sister a playfully shove when something caught his eye. A man in, what looked to Jin to be, an Earth Kingdom army uniform. He kept his green eyes intent on the man as he rushed about the festival, zig zagging through the crowds. Jin furrowed his brow, trying to keep sight of the army officer as he rushed of sight. He never changed his pace, and continued to walk toward the Tea Shop as if he had seen nothing.
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Post by lyra on Feb 18, 2007 10:49:27 GMT -5
Lyra excused herself when Nat corrected her, "I was born in Bai Seng Sei. My father's an Earthbending Master and my mother is a wonderful woman. I disliked their rich lifestyle so I left home with my father and met up with some women who call themselves the Spirit Dancers - or the Abatu Bai. My father went back home and now I live with the women. We're like family, all sisters and mothers to each other." Lyra shrugged as though this was a completely normal upbringing and she continued walking. When Jin and Ay began to mutter to one another Lyra couldn't help but laugh, but her happiness soon ceased as she watched a group of Earth Kingdom soldiers march past the group of kids. Something wasn't right. Lyra knew that man in the festival was not to be trusted and that Earth Kingdom man who left in a hurry to the sound of 'prisoner', something wasn't right.
"Jin, some thing's going to happen. I can tell by their footfalls that something terrible is going on." Lyra's voice was frantic, her mind racing with the possibilities. Then something hit her - the Earth Kingdom was in the middle of the war caused by the Fire Nation, there was no doubt in her mind that an attack was about to happen.
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Post by laughingjin on Feb 18, 2007 12:00:14 GMT -5
Ayumi was all but gushing over Lyra. "Wow! That's so amazing, Lyra! You must have gone so many places and on so many adventures!" Her freckled face was alight in amusement, imagining stories that haven't been told yet. Jin's mind, however, was still on the Earth Kingdom army officer he had seen earlier. 'What was he in a rush about?' A thousand answers came to that question, each one filling him with dread. There was no upside to his rushing, there was no positive swing. Jin couldn't even convince himself that it could have been something positive, now that was an amazing feat in itself, he was usually an optimist.
When Lyra spoke confirming his dark thoughts, he tensed immediately. Quickly, his hand tightened around the neck of his pipa while his free one went to Ayumi's wrist. "We need to get, going. Now!" Such a drastic and urgent voice coming from the young man who's face was painted like a panda's was humorous in itself. If this were any other time, Jin would have laughed about how serious he was being, but this wasn't any other time. Hoping the others would take the hint he scooped Ayumi up to carry her on his back, he knew she couldn't keep up with him, and bolted off in the direction of the Tea House with a sprint.
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Post by lyra on Feb 18, 2007 12:13:37 GMT -5
Lyra's eyes widened and as Jin took off running with Ayumi, she followed him, her bare feet slapping the cool ground. Behind her her hair flew in complicated swirls, the hems of her robe dancing around her feet, her heart beating with anticipation. From the short moments her feet touched the earth, she could feel the frantic movements of the people in the festival as the officers made their way through the crowds. It was amazing how she could sense something so far away.
"Jin!" She called, for the boy was a few yards ahead of her, "Where are we going? The tea shop won't save us from whoever's attacking!" Lyra figured that the one's attacking were the Fire Nation, but she couldn't be sure. For all she knew it could be some rebels attacking this village.
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Post by laughingjin on Feb 18, 2007 12:41:39 GMT -5
Jin's heart pounded against his ribcage, not just from running but from the panic that was welling up inside of him. The coins in Ayumi's cup sloshed and jingled with each quick stride to the ground. He heard Lyra call after him but his breathing was coming to quick for a reply. Finally with a great force of effort he called out behind his shoulder, "I need to get Ayumi home!" His mind was utterly fixated on that one ideal. He needed to get his sister home, because here home meant safe. He needed to protect his sister, that was the only thing that mattered.
If it weren't for Jin's light green eyes catching a familiar figure he would have kept running, instead he skidded to a halt as the tall willowy woman dressed in green on green cloth robes came rushing toward him, carrying a long staff in one hand and a worried expression on her face. "Jin!" She called out as she neared. With a swift movement Jin set his younger sister to the crown and the eleven-year-old girl ran to their mother, embracing her in a frightened hug.
Chiaki, their mother, all but shoved his gùn staff into Jin's hand. "What has your father told you about leaving the house without that?" She was trying desperately to give her son a reassuring smile, as if this were all just a game. Jin returned the unsure gesture, handing his mother his pipa, "Do not loose that." With their smiles masking how they felt Jin had almost forgotten the gravity of the situation. Turning behind him to where he hoped Lyra and Nat would be he shout out. "We need to leave the village!"
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Post by nattoku on Feb 18, 2007 12:55:37 GMT -5
Nattoku had been running as fast as he could to keep up with Jin, Ayumi, and Lyra. He could keep up, but he wanted to get out of this place as soon as humanly possible. He had never been in a Fire Nation raid or attack before, only heard about it from friends and family and people passing through his village. But he did understand the danger. As Jin yelled that they needed to leave the village right then, a thought passed through Nattoku's mind, and he had something more important to do.
"I have to find my family to make sure they're okay and that they're leaving!"he yelled, and started to run in the direction he had just come. "Once we've left the village, I'll find y'all. But I have to find them!" He picked up some speed and began to look for the three familiar faces as he ran. Looking for his older brother's tall figure, his little brother's green cap, or his mother's green dress with a brown apron. There were people all around him, but he couldn't find his family yet. "Mama! Kyo! Tian Tian! Where are you guys?"Nattoku yelled ou their names.
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Post by lyra on Feb 18, 2007 13:34:53 GMT -5
Lyra forced a fake smile onto her face as they approached Jin and Ayumi's mother. She was a beautiful woman and Lyra couldn't help but feel sad that she had left her own mother. Her thoughts were whipped aside as Jin spoke about leaving the village. When Nattoku turned to leave Lyra yelled after him, "Hurry and find them! Be safe." Before turning back to Jin and nodding. "It's only the best if we leave now. I'm sure Ayumi and your mother will be alright." This was false hope, but Lyra couldn't say anything worse in fear of making Jin sad.
Whipping her head around she weighed the situation, wondering the best possible way out of this mess. In her fright, her hand immediately went up to her neck and clasped the stone arrowhead that hung around her neck on a thick leather cord. The arrowhead was her cousin's, who had died fighting against the Fire Nation two years go. Lyra had been twelve then, and Tokin a mere sixteen. Pushing the thought of her cousin out of her head Lyra looked to Jin with worried eyes, mentally asking him what to do next. Should they go back to the festival to see if this was all just a joke, or perhaps to go the opposite way and hope to outrun the danger that Lyra was sure to come.
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Post by laughingjin on Feb 18, 2007 14:18:31 GMT -5
Inwardly Jin hoped for Nat and even though every fiber of his being wanted to dash after him to help, he knew his place was by his family. When Jin caught Lyra's eyes with his own he froze. Yeah, Jin was a good leader when it came to schemes and pranks, but this was a serious situation, one that he had never dealt with, not on this scale. He could out run a problem or two, and he's fought and beaten a a decent amount of criminals and people who have picked on Ayumi, but this was completely different. He turned to his mother and younger sister, who were looking at him with the same hope of leadership. "Go to the edge of town and hide out in the wilderness until this clears up," he spoke in a low hiss. "I'll meet up with you as soon as possible."
Ayumi's thing bright eyes looked like they were about to spill over with tears. She ran over and wrapped her arms around Jin's waist, pressing her face into his lower abdomen. "No!" He smile softly down on her, pushing out of her grip and getting down on one knee to meet her at eye level. With his long index finger he lifted his sister's chin, the reassuring smile still on his lips, "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Now go." With a gentle push Ayumi went back to her mother. Jin straightened up as Chiaki spoke. "Be careful." And they were off.
As Jin watched them run off into the still quite calm crowd he thoughts turned back to Lyra. He turned on his heal to address her. "C'mon. We're going to help Nat."
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Post by lyra on Feb 18, 2007 14:27:49 GMT -5
The scene in front of her brought tears to her eyes. Just seeing Ayumi like that reminded her of herself when Tokin went off to war. Tokin was more like a big brother to her than a cousin, and now that he was gone, Lyra wished for nothing more than to have the same comfort she did when she felt like she had a big brother. Clearing her throat she nodded as Jin told her what they were to do. She began to walk in the direction Nat had left, whiping a single tear from her eyes as she pushed every thought out of her besides the thought of finding Nat and getting out of the town.
Looking back, she waited for Jin to follow her, "What are your plans once we find Nattoku?" She asked, waiting for him to catch up to her. As she spoke, her voice cracked. Her throat was dry and her emotions were mixed - that was the way she got when she was stressed. As her eyes met Jin's she looked away and muttered quietly, "You're a great big brother. Ayumi and your mother will be alright." As she spoke it felt like she had known this boy for her entire life - like they were the best of friends. After this adventure - if it could be called such - Lyra would figure that the four of them, Ayumi and Nattoku included, would be great friends.
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Post by nattoku on Feb 18, 2007 14:36:37 GMT -5
Nattoku stopped for just a mere second to catch his breath and see if maybe his brothers or mother were walking past or if they were coming. Many people were just walking. Others were running or jogging, whatever they could manage. But many were just walking. But still, the boy could not find his family. He didn't want to think of what might have happend to them, and just tried to keep an open mind.
I'll find them! They are okay and are probably looking for me too,the boy thought. Kyo and Ma are just probably having to calm Tian Tian down and are taking a little while. Or maybe they already passed me and got out of the village. Whatever it is, they are totally fine! Nattoku kept repeating this in his head over and over again. He just had to find them.
The boy continued to call their names. "Kyo! Tian Tian. Mama!"
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