Anonymous
Mar 21, 2013 12:45:54 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2013 12:45:54 GMT -6
He was confused. He had been here in the Police Station for a while now, knees drawn up to his chest, thinking, but all he could feel was confusion. He didn’t understand what had happened. He’d been awake for all of it, and the police had done their best to piece the story together with him. But he still didn’t get it, and he wasn’t sure he ever would.
His bending was gone. That was awful. He’d never been all that great of a bender, sure, but he’d been practicing, and he’d been getting better. He’d been thinking of finding a healer in the city to teach him more, maybe even enough to take on healing as a second job when he wasn’t working at the hotel. And the self-defense training that he’d been doing had been absolutely no help when the Equalists had broken into his apartment. He’d barely even had time to cry out before they’d gotten him. But now…now he couldn’t do anything anymore. Amon had actually touched him, taken his bending away forever.
What he wanted to know, more than anything, was why. Why him? He didn’t particularly like the Equalists, but he’d never actually had any run-ins with them. He’d seen Equalist gatherings in the park, but had always avoided them. They had their views, and he disagreed with them, but wasn’t about to attack any Equalists in their homes in the middle of the night. So why had they targeted him? He wasn’t a council member, or a probender, or a police officer…he wasn’t anyone important. There was no reason to take his bending away, and yet they’d done it. They had broken into his apartment, tied him up—his wrists were still red from being rubbed by the rope they’d used—and taken his bending. They hadn’t hurt him much, that was true, and they’d left him with the police, but that didn’t make him feel any better. How was he supposed to feel safe again?
Sighing, Takeo unlocked his arms, which had been holding his knees to his chest, and looked around. While he sat in his corner, police officers ran all over the building, asking each other questions and barking orders. At the entrance to the station, several officers were busy holding the tidal wave of press back, for which he was grateful. Here he sat in his sleepwear, feeling awful about what had happened. The last thing he needed was reporters barraging him with questions.
What he did need was something to do. If he just sat here and stayed in his own head he’d just get more and more bummed out. ”’Scuse me?” he called up to the officer who had been designated as his personal guardian. The woman glanced down at him, her expression a mixture of sympathy and exhaustion. ”I need to…I…can I just, just walk around for a little bit? I won’t go far, I promise?” The woman considered the question for a bit, then gave her assent with a nod. With muttered thanks, Takeo stood, his legs protesting at the movement after being stationary for so long, and slowly moved out of the corner and out into the hall. Then he kept walking up and down the halls. He didn’t stop to look in any of the rooms or talk to any of the other police officers. He just kept walking. If someone wanted to talk to him, he’d deal with it, but for now, this would do.
Anonymous
Mar 21, 2013 13:38:52 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2013 13:38:52 GMT -6
She felt cold. She tried to shy away from the feeling, but it wouldn’t budge. The coldness of her skin unsettled her, but she remained motionless lacking the strength to wipe away the frost from her dermis. She just wanted to heat up. Bunch her fingers together into a fist and produce a small flame to burn away the purple hue that had settled on her pinks lips, but she couldn’t do it. Shuai couldn’t bend anymore.
An officer led her by the arm into a quite room away from all of the curiosity and flashing cameras. She hoped no one had snapped a picture of her face. Shuai didn’t want her mother to know what had become of her twenty-one year-old daughter. The likelihood of that happening, however, was very slim since her mother rarely read the newspaper, and living outside of the city protected the old woman from all of the horrors that Shuai had once thought were exaggerations of people’s imaginations. But the exaggerations were true, and so for not believing, the young woman felt like she deserved what had become of her. The officer left her alone in the room.
The officers had been kind to her. One kept his voice to a whisper when he had sat Shuai down for questioning. Shu-shu was direct with her answers and left nothing out. It was her night off. She was alone at home. She wanted to cook something nice for herself and for her roommate, Yuuta. She got dressed. She left Yuuta a note in case he arrived while she was out, or at least she thought she had left him a note. As she shut the door behind her black figures with red eyes suddenly enveloped her and then everything went black and cold and she remembered nothing else, except for being tied up and left with a few other people outside of the police station.
The chair squeaked as Shuai slid herself closer to the table. She then rubbed her hands against her pants in order to warm them, but they just wouldn’t heat up. Maybe if she stopped sitting still and moved around, maybe then her body would return to its normal temperature? She bit her purple lip and decided to follow through on the idea. She stood slowly and grimaced as she strained a few muscles in her legs and back, then she made her way to the door. She opened it to find that the officer had really left her (probably to take a pee break) and without giving herself a moment to assess her choices the chef walked out into the hallway. She walked for a few minutes with her eyes glued to the floor and because of this she ended up bumping into someone.
She staggered briefly and muttered a broken, “I’m sorry,” before focusing her straw colored eyes on the figure she had almost knocked over. Her breathing stopped momentarily once she noticed who the person was–a fellow victim. She saw the rope burns and instantly reached for her own wrist. “I’m sorry,” she said again with some uncertainty. She wished she had something more to say, but her lips were purple and slightly cracked and she was at a loss for words.
Anonymous
Mar 21, 2013 14:58:34 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2013 14:58:34 GMT -6
Wandering the halls wasn’t helping. All it did was give him different places in which to think about things he was trying not to think about. At this point, he was considering returning to his corner. At least there he had a police officer to talk to if he felt so inclined—not that he had so far, but it was an option. But this aimless walking was not helping at all.
He was just about to turn around and go back from whence he’d come when he bumped into someone. He was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn’t do anything but take a step back and mutter a soft apology automatically. Then, though, he actually focused, and realized who he’d bumped into. He didn’t know the girl, but knew that she had been left outside the station with him. So she had been kidnapped too. Judging from the expression on her face, she looked as bad as he felt. Her lips looked kind of purple, which was alarming. She seemed cold and tired and…lost. Just like him. He felt like he should talk to her, say something that might make them both feel better, but he had no idea what to say. This wasn’t like him. Usually he was optimistic, happy, always ready with a smile and an endless flow of babble about nothing in particular, but now he didn’t feel like doing either of those things.
But he had to say something, didn’t he? Here they were, two people who had just shared a horrible experience. They couldn’t just go their separate ways, could they? He had to at least make an attempt to talk to this girl, if only to prove to himself that social interaction was something he was still capable of. When he finally spoke, his words came out slowly, his tone low, unsure. ”Are…are you okay?”
Stupid. Unbelievably stupid question. Of course she wasn’t okay. She had been taken from her home and had her bending taken away just as he had, so of course she wasn’t okay. As usual, he would be better off keeping his thoughts to himself.
He tried to apologize. ”I’m—I’m sorry. I didn’t…sorry.” Well, he was just on a roll with intelligent conversation today. Maybe Amon had taken his ability to talk like a normal human being as well when he’d taken his bending.
Anonymous
Mar 22, 2013 1:46:13 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 22, 2013 1:46:13 GMT -6
For no particular reason Shuai tightened her grip on her wrist. Maybe, she thought, if I rub the burn it will go away, and maybe if I rub really hard this whole situation will be no more and I can go home and curl up in bed. But that was a hope suited for a child and she knew that, however, in her current state Shu-shu couldn’t help but feel as desperate as a child. She never, never felt like this and the feeling did a weird thing to her stomach; flipped it inside out or something. All she really wanted was to talk to the stranger, to use her voice for something other than screaming or sobbing, but she couldn’t and that irritated the hell out of her. So, she resolved to just concentrate on his face.
Immediately, she noticed his freckles. She liked that he had freckles, because she had freckles too. He was also tan, like her, but his eyes were much nicer. A pretty shade of blue, like the color of a clear sky. She figured him to be–or rather, have been a waterbender, what with his blue eyes and all, but sometimes she was wrong, which again was just sometimes, not always. She wondered if he had been a good bender. He looked like he could have been. All of them could have been. She tightened her grip again and then he spoke.
She knew what he was going to say before he even uttered a second syllable, and so because of that she forgave him instantly. Someone was bound to ask that question at some point. She saw the embarrassment in his eyes and delicately tugged her lips up into a small smile. “It’s okay,” she quickly reassured him. She then took a step back and leaned her spine against the wall. “I’m just…sort of cold,” she admitted brushing her messy jagged bangs to the left side of her face. “I used to feel warm all the time, but now I’m cold and it’s kind'uh buggin me out.”
The young woman knew she wasn’t making any sense, but she liked that she was talking. “I’m sorry, that makes no sense.” She took a few steps toward him and extended her hand. “Name’s Shuai.” She liked being formal. It felt normal.
Anonymous
Mar 22, 2013 11:05:47 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 22, 2013 11:05:47 GMT -6
He hoped he hadn’t offended the girl with his idiotic question. He’d always had a habit of annoying people with his words, and if she was feeling anything close to how he was, she was in no mood to deal with him and his way of saying things he shouldn’t. But even if he had angered her, at least she would say so. At least he’d be talking to someone who wasn’t a cop, someone who wouldn’t be so careful with their words. Everyone he’d talked to so far tiptoed around conversations with him, trying to get information from him while doing their best to avoid getting too deep into what had happened lest he break down, and that irritated him. Yes, he felt awful, and he didn’t want to spend a lot of his time thinking about what had happened to him, but he wasn’t in danger of falling to the ground sobbing uncontrollably. Maybe that would come later. Now, he just felt numb.
Finally, the other victim spoke, reassuring him that his question had bothered her, causing him to sigh softly in relief. She mentioned that she was cold. Takeo frowned slightly at that. There had to be some way to fix that. It was bad enough being stuck at the police station without being in danger of freezing to death while there. He was distracted as he shook her hand and responded, “I’m Takeo.” When the grip had been broken, he realized how he could help Shuai, just a little. ”Wait here,” he told her, before turning away and going back the way he’d come.
He moved quickly, and caught the attention of the first officer he saw to make his request. When he came back to where he had left Shuai, there was a blanket in his hands, which he held out to her with a small smile. ”Here. It’s not much, but it might help you get warm.”
Anonymous
Mar 23, 2013 0:58:52 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2013 0:58:52 GMT -6
Takeo was a nice name. Shuai liked the way it sounded. Hell, his name could have been Toilet and she still would have liked the way it sounded. Shu-shu just needed something to like right now. Something to combat the hatred that was threatening to erupt from her core once the shock of having been kidnapped and her bending stolen subsided. She let go of his thankfully warm-ish hand and returned to her previous position of wrapping her right hand around her left wrist. She tightened her grip again as Takeo turned and left her alone in the hall. Maybe he was going to do something nice for her, or maybe she had freaked him out? Either way she was glad to have at least had a small conversation with someone other than a cop.
The young woman obeyed his order however and remained where she stood. Alone with just her thoughts the chef couldn’t help but wonder when the police would let them go. She felt bad that a couple of them would have to walk back home in their pajamas. As if they hadn’t been humiliated enough! Shuai bit her lip as she tried to remember anything from last night, but she just couldn’t. She almost started to cry, but then Takeo reappeared with a blanket. “Thank you,” she said as she took the blanket from his hands. Unfolding it she draped it over her shoulders and was surprised to see that it came all the way down to her knees.
She looked up and caught his eye. “Really, thank you. I don’t know why I didn’t think of this earlier.” A shy smile crept onto her face as she adjusted the blanket to her hourglass figure. “So,” she began as she bent her knees to take a seat in the middle of the hall, “I like your pajamas. I hope they’re keeping you warm. Also, waterbender?” She hoped Takeo wouldn’t be offended by her forwardness, but maybe he’d be okay to talk a little about himself.
Anonymous
Mar 23, 2013 1:56:25 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2013 1:56:25 GMT -6
Shuai looked less than all right when she took the blanket from him, but her thanks sounded sincere, so he wasn’t going to question it. Besides, given what had happened, he was surprised he wasn’t still sitting in a corner by himself wishing the whole world would go away. The fact that the two of them were even attempting to carry on a normal conversation was impressive, really. And that was sad. If this were any encounter, a smile would be fixed on his face, words would come too easily. He would talk too much, realize he was being annoying, and shut up, only to continue a minute later when a new thought entered his head. His old self had been gone for less than a day, but already he missed it. This version of him, who couldn’t bend or really smile or even talk more than a little…he was worthless.
When Shuai sat he followed her lead, crossing his legs under him and staring at his bare feet poking out from the bottom of his dark blue pajamas. He knew he should be ashamed of how he looked at the moment—it was likely that the reporters outside had gotten a photo or two of him like this—but he couldn’t be bothered to care. When his life had just been shattered, what did he care what he was wearing? Besides, Shuai liked his pajamas, and she was right, they were warm.
Takeo’s eyes lit up automatically at her question. ”Yeah! I’m—” Then he remembered, and his face fell. ”I mean, I…I was,” he finished, his tone low. He avoided the girl’s gaze, fighting back the tidal wave of grief that threatened to overwhelm him. Shuai hadn’t meant to wound him with her question, but having to respond the way he had hurt all the same. His bending had never been one of his major talents—if he had any of those, anyway—but it had always been something he’d been proud of, a topic of conversation that brought him joy. Now, thinking about his previous life just made him want to punch something or cry, or both at the same time. Where was he supposed to go from here?
Anonymous
Mar 23, 2013 14:53:09 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2013 14:53:09 GMT -6
The way his face lit up, like a child’s in a candy store, prompted Shuai to think that she had said the right thing, but then everything collapsed. She was caught off guard because it all happened so quickly. Her eyes grew darker and widened in shock. When she saw that Takeo was avoiding her gaze nothing but disgust for herself filled her frozen veins. She wanted to kick herself in the ribs or twist her arm behind her back. How could she have been so stupid? Why would she bring up such a sore subject? Where was her humanity? Did she feel anything, ever? Ashamed Shuai lowered her head and gritted her teeth. She should have said something else. The pajama comment was fine, he seemed to have taken to it nicely, but then she had to go and run her dumb mouth. Just because she was willing to talk didn’t mean that Takeo fully was. She needed to be more delicate. She needed to apologize.
“Takeo,” she said, her voice cracking slightly, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to throw salt in your wounds. I just thought…” She raised her head and tried to look him in the face. “That’s the problem,” she sighed, “I didn’t think, and I’m sorry.” This was probably why she had so few friends. Shu-shu tightened the blanket around herself and leaned her head against the wall. Eyes closed she continued to speak. “Firebender,” she said letting the word hang in the air for a moment. “I moved to Republic City a little over a year ago. You from here, originally?” Hopefully, this was a safer topic. If not, she was going to punch herself in the face.
Anonymous
Mar 23, 2013 17:09:50 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 23, 2013 17:09:50 GMT -6
It would get easier, and it wasn’t her fault. As broken as he was, Takeo could realize that both of these were true. His life was in ruins right now, but it would get easier with time. He had lost his bending, but that didn’t mean that everything had to change. He could still keep his job at the hotel, still wander the city and meet all kinds of people. He didn’t need bending to do those things. Right now it still felt like his world had ended, but it would start up again.
And Shuai…she was apologizing. He forced himself to look at her, meet her gaze. He shook his head, wanting to refute what she was saying, but he let her finish, change the subject to something less raw. Then he spoke, for once choosing his words carefully. ”You didn’t need to apologize,” he insisted. ”You were just asking a normal question. It’s just…well, you know.” She did know. She knew exactly how he felt, and of course, hadn’t meant to hurt him the way she had. He hoped she got that he understood that.
The best way to get past that incident was to answer her second, far more harmless, question, which he did, even managing a small smile to show that he was really trying. ”No, I’m from somewhere else. I moved here a few months ago after travelling around for a while. I still get lost all the time when I’m out by myself.”
Here he was, sitting in his pajamas in the hallway of a police station talking to a nice person about something they had in common. Not exactly something he was used to, but not unwelcome. Things weren’t so grim at the moment.
Anonymous
Mar 25, 2013 23:02:56 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2013 23:02:56 GMT -6
The sound of his voice invited Shuai to lean her head forward. She would have, if she had had the strength to, quibbled with his words, but in the end she realized that Takeo was right. Shuai did not need to apologize, she HAD to, otherwise she would have spent the rest of her time, however long that was going to be, with Takeo feeling like the absolute scum of the earth. His next utterance caused her to lock eyes with him and nod her head in understanding. If anyone knew, it was definitely Shu-shu, or the three others that were hidden somewhere within the grand edifice. For a moment Shuai wondered whether she would have a chance to meet the others, then she blinked her dark lashes and returned to the present, seated in the middle of a hallway with Takeo.
Her lips pulled back into a smile as Takeo spoke of his origins. She liked that he was from somewhere else, like her. The phone operator was, however, a bit put off by something else he had said and unconsciously knitted her brow showing her frustration. Takeo had only lived in the city a few months and this was how it chose to repay him? She wanted to vomit. She wanted to find a corner and just kick it until her foot went numb from the loss of blood. But she did her best to fight back those thoughts. Feeling the tension above her nose Shuai lifted her blanket covered fist to her forehead and rubbed away the evidence of her anger. Remain calm, she thought, remain calm.
“I met someone like you in the park once," Shuai said softly. "She also told me she was havin’uh hard time gettin around, but I told her she’d catch on soon enough.” A faint chuckle passed between the woman's frostbitten lips. “I bought her coffee that day. I oughta buy you a cup when we get outta here.” Here she smiled and pulled her legs up to her chest. “It’s only fair,” she continued, “as repayment, you know, for the blanket and all.”
Anonymous
Mar 29, 2013 15:46:21 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Mar 29, 2013 15:46:21 GMT -6
Whenever silence fell between them, he could hear the rest of the world. The station was just as busy as it had been since he and his fellow victims had been left there, cops running back and forth, making calls to higher-ups and trying their best to figure out how it had all happened, where it had happened, and how to prevent it from happening again in the future. He had cooperated when needed, answering whatever questions he could as completely as he was able, but he much preferred just sitting here talking to Shuai. Connected by tragedy though they were, at least she wasn’t interrogating him and doing a fairly awful job of being sympathetic. They could actually talk to each other as equals, which was just what he needed.
Shuai looked a bit upset after he answered her question, which he didn’t understand. As far as he knew, he hadn’t said anything to offend her. Then again, he never meant to cause offense when he spoke, it just happened. Hopefully his lack of thought on what he had thought was an innocent answer hadn’t ruined the conversation.
Apparently things were fine, because Shuai began telling him about someone she’d met who also tended to get lost around the city. Takeo was still confused, but nodded along all the same. He wondered if he and this woman had ever run into each other when they were both out wandering the city. Even if they had, he doubted that they had actually interacted. Most people who saw him out alone at night just gave him uneasy looks and hurried past, which was a shame. He liked meeting new people, but apparently new people didn’t much like meeting him in an alley in the middle of the night. Well, that was their loss.
Takeo shook his head at Shuai’s offer of repayment, but he was smiling. ”Coffee sounds great, but I can pay for myself,” he responded. “’Sides, it’s not like that’s my blanket or anything. They just gave it to me and I didn’t need it.” After a few seconds, he continued. ”So, um…what do you do when you’re not sitting in a police station in your pajamas?”
Anonymous
May 28, 2013 17:15:19 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on May 28, 2013 17:15:19 GMT -6
At the shake of his head Shuai pursed her purple lips. She should have figured that Takeo was going to play the pride card. What was it about men and their pride? Sure, Shuai was proud, but she wasn’t one to turn down a free coffee. It was, after all, just a lousy cup of coffee. It didn’t mean anything, except maybe a–Hey, thanks for the blanket I so stupidly didn’t think of getting for myself. But, she realized as she exhaled between her pearly teeth, I should have known better. At least he was smiling. It was a nice smile. It suited Takeo and…and, she’d find a way to buy him a damn coffee.
His question was simple enough and Shu-shu would have jumped right into her answer, but the chef couldn’t help but notice that Takeo had said, your pajamas. Did he really think that she was wearing pajamas? How embarrassing, she thought pulling the right side of her mouth back into a grin. Looks like I need some new clothes. She decided not to make a big deal of it and said, “Whaddya mean? I’m always here.” She chuckled a little at her own joke before proceeding. “Durin the weekday I’ma phone operator, but on the weekend I trade my puffy earphones in for a chef’s hat and apron.” Not the most exciting of jobs, but they paid the rent.
“And yourself?” she quickly added leaning herself forward a few inches.
Anonymous
May 28, 2013 19:23:28 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on May 28, 2013 19:23:28 GMT -6
His answer had upset her. That was not surprising, given that frowns were a usual reaction to what he said, though it was usually because he was talking too much. Had he been his normal, chatty self Shuai probably would have run away by now just to get away from his incessant noise. Luckily for her, he wasn’t in the right mood to talk her ear off. No wonder, then, that their conversation had lasted as long as it had.
Her joke made him laugh, though he couldn’t help imagining what life spent in a police station would be like, and he couldn’t suppress a shudder. It sounded awful. The officers had been nothing but nice to him so far, but already he missed the chaotic familiarity of his apartment. The sooner he could leave the station, the better. Unfortunately, given what had happened to him , it seemed unlikely that he’d get to go home any time soon, so he’d just have to make the best of his situation. At least he had Shuai to talk to. She was nice.
And with her answer to his question she proved herself to be both nice and talented. A phone operator and a chef. Phone operating he knew nothing about, but being able to cook was impressive, and he told her so. “I’ve tried to cook for myself before, but…” he shook his head. “I’m no good at it.” As Takeo saw it, cooking was one of many skills reserved for those who could actually focus on a single thing at a time. If Shuai was good at that, more power to her, but he’d stick to buying food from other people.
The question was turned back on him and he smiled. “I work in a hotel, as a bellhop,” he told her. ”Mostly just carrying luggage and stuff like that.”
Anonymous
Jun 8, 2013 0:16:44 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2013 0:16:44 GMT -6
Most of the men Shuai knew couldn’t cook. Not knowing how to cook seemed to be a common thing among men, then again Shuai only knew a couple of guys, if that. However, this small insight into the inner workings of Takeo gave Shuai an idea. If he couldn’t accept her buying him a coffee and all, she could at least give him a few cooking lessons, right? He couldn’t possibly turn that invitation down, especially if he was going to learn a necessary skill to survive and all. Everyone should now how to cook something, even a young ex-waterbender.
“It’s good work,” Shuai said reflecting on Takeo’s occupation as a bellhop. And she meant that wholeheartedly. Decent, honest, good work for a man his age–however old that was exactly Shuai couldn’t quite tell. She was very bad at guessing age, but if she had to guess his, the phone operator would peg Takeo somewhere around her own age, if not slightly older. “If anything,” she said her eyes locked on his powder blue eyes, “it must put you in great physical shape. And I’m sure allota girls give you tips.” Not knowing what she meant by that exactly Shuai smiled and tucked her legs closer to her chest. She needed to say something fast.
“But uh,” she cleared her throat a little before proceeding, “about cooking, I have an idea. How would you,” she paused for dramatic effect, “like a few lessons from me? Nothin crazy, just some basic stuff, and I won’t take no for an answer.” That oughta do it.
Anonymous
Jun 8, 2013 13:54:18 GMT -6
Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2013 13:54:18 GMT -6
Takeo’s face was neutral as Shuai praised his job. She was right—it was good work, and he enjoyed helping people—but he wasn’t so sure that he was actually good at what he did. Given his tendency to get distracted by just about anything, he was probably not half as attentive as the hotel’s manager would like him to be. But he hadn’t been fired yet, so he must be doing something right. That, or he was just too pathetic for his boss to let him go. Getting this job had been hard enough. Having to look for another one, for whatever reason, would be awful.
True to form, his mind was wandering again. He focused back on the conversation just as Shuai said something about girls and tips, catching just enough to blush and look away while muttering something noncommittal. It was true, what she said, but not something he took notice of. He was just happy to receive tips, and wasn’t entirely aware of the implications that came with who was giving him the money. He’d probably missed many an opportunity by being as oblivious as he was.
He was grateful when Shuai changed the subject, but wasn’t sure how to react to her offer. On the one hand it sounded like a fantastic idea, but on the other…well, he didn’t want to light Shuai’s hair on fire or anything. But he did like food, and if he knew how to cook he wouldn’t have to spend so much money. And besides, she’d said saying no was not an option.
Smiling, the ex-waterbender nodded. “Sounds great. I should warn you, though…I’m a slow learner.”
