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 Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:13 am
Tsai Shen was no longer angry, not since his meeting with Sen Wei. She wasn't rejecting him because he was unworthy, she refused to teach him because he was... A good person. Still, the boy was leaving his home, going to the Fire Nation to visit his Aunt, a wickedly intelligent woman who was rather fond of strict discipline.
He still hadn't given up on having Sen Wei as a master. His aunt would help harden him, make him sharper, faster, dedicated. Soon, he'd be what Sen Wei wanted, in everything but background and personality, that is.
Right now, though? He was packing.
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Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:19 am
Avani sat, barely able to hold still as her younger sister carefully brushed, parted and pinned up her hair.
"If you don't sit still, it won't look as nice," Lei said, poking her tongue out of the side of her mouth.
"Oh, I know, I'm sorry," Avani said, clenching her hands over the dark green material of her robes. As Lei finished, she jabbed Avani in the back to stand up and helped her tie the sash around her waist, into a neat bow.
Lei had always been better about that sort of thing, seeming to care about how she looked, while Avani would just tie it haphazardly and hope it stayed.
"You look so pretty in your new robes!" Lei exclaimed, watching Avani approvingly. Lei didn't know this Tsai Shen, but he had good taste in clothing, so he couldn't be all bad. Her older sister twirled once, then the little girl handed her the pouch. "His address is inside," She shook her head. "I don't know why he'd bother, though. If anyone found that, I doubt they'd return it."
Avani shrugged, then dashed out the front door and down the road. Miles later, the hems of her robes were a little dusty, but she was right outside of Tsai Shen's house. Trying to keep her hands from shaking, she walked into the large open area. Finding a servent, she asked where she could find Tsai Shen and was pointed in the direction of his room. Slowly, she approached the open door and knocked on it, starting to wonder if maybe she shouldn't have come.
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Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:25 am
"... I told you, I don't need any help, you guys have the day off..."
Without looking up, the tan boy mumbled at Avani, assuming she was one of the servants that had been bothering him all morning, asking if he needed anything. Nice of them, but he really didn't. Straightening as he tossed a last shirt into his bag, and pulled the ties shut, he stretched, rubbing the back of his neck; it was a little sore. As he yawned, he spotted her, and his eyes widened, as several emotions shot across his face. It brightened momentarily, then darkened rapidly, and he turned away, hunching his shoulders and tossing the bag from his bed, onto the floor, before reaching for a similar item to start filling.
"What do you want?"
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Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:32 am
Avani stepped into the room hesitantly, watching him thow his clothes into a bag.
"Well, I...wanted to talk to you," she said, lowering her eyes, and looking at her feet. "You know, about Sen Wei..." She moved across the room near to him, and picked up a shirt that had fallen and lay crumpled on the ground. The dark haired girl folded it and held it out to Tsai Shen.
"But if you don't want to talk to me, I can just go."
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Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:36 am
Then was silence for a long moment, and Tsai Shen make a grumpy noise before glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, and taking the shirt, also putting it in the new bag.
"Well... Talk then, I guess."
He wanted to, but he was also kind of still upset. Actually, he was really puzzled. Avani was a good person... So why was Sen Wei willing to "corrupt" her, but not him? Heaving a sigh, the boy spun to face her, and shoved his hands in his pockets.
"I forgive you.... You look nice."
A peace offering, it seemed.
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Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:49 am
Her pale face colored slightly at the compliment, and she smiled, recalling the short few hours ago when her sister had been wrestling with her to wash her face off. Lei had had a few colorful names for Avani, when she refused to let her sister clean her face off.
"Thank you," she said quickly. "Well, I mean...She had dismissed me, she wouldn't even listen to me," After she had mentioned Tsai Shen's name, but she ommitted that part. "Her daughter dragged me off. I guess she was afraid Sen Wei was getting to angry at me." Avani shrugged. "But then we started talking, about how Papa wouldn't allow me to bend. I guess Sen Wei was listening to us, because then she asked if I wanted to be her student."
She sighed. "I wish I could, but I just can't turn something like that down. Maybe someday, if I learn well enough, I can help my family out."
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Posted: Fri Oct 27, 2006 11:17 am
"Well, have fun with that then."
Tsai Shen had quickly finished packing, only two bags, actually. That might be a surprise to Avani, but he was visiting his aunt. Khutulan was a hardass, and he'd learned over the years to bring as little as possible when staying with her.
"I'm going to Fire Nation."
He sort of wanted to give her the address he'd be staying at but... Tsai Shen frowned, looking at her, then shook his head, and yawned.
"Tell Sen Wei where I'm off to, alright?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2006 12:42 am
"Tsai Shen...I'm sorry," she said. She wasn't sure what she was apologizing for...she really hadn't meant to hurt him, but she was sad she had, and even sadder she didn't have the capacity to turn Sen Wei's offer down. "I would wish for nothing more but for you to be with me and learn together."
Small green eyes widened at his next sentance. "The Fire Nation? But...but why?" she grabbed one of his hands with both his and looked up at him pleadingly. "But you're the first friend I've really had, besides Lei. You can't run away from me now!"
What with being the oldest, after her brothers leaving, Avani had matured quickly. Now she stomped her foot and whined in a very childlike fashion. "It isn't fair!"
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Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2006 10:56 am
"So we're friends now? I thought I was a rich brat, that you couldn't stand?"
Tsai Shen scowled at her for a long moment, then turned toward his desk, expression softening as he jotted something down on a scroll with ink. Facing her once more, he held it out.
"Here's my Aunt's address. Write me or something... I have to leave for a while. Besides you'll be busy with training, and your family. I'll come back soon."
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Posted: Sun Oct 29, 2006 4:55 pm
"Well, I..." Avani put her hand up to her hair and fiddled with the comb holding her long hair up. "Of course we are. Or, I think we are...and, I don't mean to be mean when I say that." She thought. "Anymore. I guess I meant it the first few times I said it. But then later on I was just joking."
She took the piece of paper, looking at it quickly then slipping it into her robes, frowning briefly, then she looked up at him. "O-ok," she said quietly.
"Why do you have to leave?" She asked curiously.
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Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2006 6:51 pm
Tsai Shen was rather rude at that point. His mother would have shook her head, but probably smiled a little too. The boy reached out to grab Avani's wrist, and pull her into a hug, shrugging slightly.
"I guess we are friends, then, 'ay, Spicy?"
Apparently, he hadn't forgotten what he'd called her the first time they'd met. A nickname, perhaps? Taking time with her actual question, he looked thoughtful.
"I haven't given up."
He didn't say on what, and perhaps, it wasn't really on Sen Wei's approval.
"And I could use what my Aunt has to give."
Discipline.
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Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2006 7:25 pm
Avani sighed into Tsai Shens hug, the put on a strong face, smiling brightly at him. "I guess I'm stuck with you, even if you are a rich brat," she said happily.
She wrinkled her pale nose, frustrated that he was being evasive. Oh, he had answered her, but not satisfactorily. The little bender let it lie for the time being. If he wanted to tell her, she thought he would in time.
"Well...I guess I should head back now, Lei might be worrying where I've gone to." She smiled and waved and retraced her steps over the large grounds to head back to her small house.
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