Zek

"So how do you guys normally go about looking for work?" Ka'lira asked as we sat at a small table in a corner side shop near the center of the town market.

"Well," I said. "Being honest. This is really the first time we've done it this way. Before, we'd just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Now, well, just gotta figure it out as we go."

"So what are we listening for?"

"Anything that sounds like there's people who could use help."

"Lots of people here could use help. I mean, we talked to that one guy who had trouble taming horses."

"Yeah, but, that's different kind of work."

"You mean honest work."

"Precisely. And we're about the farthest things from that. So for now, let's listen for the kind of work that involves us getting our hands dirty. That's where the money is."

"How would you know where the money is? Didn't you just say you're all new to this."

"Where I think the money is. All honesty, I'd much rather still be in the army. Pay was stable there at least, but being honest, it's nice to know I'm not at risk of transferring over to a guy I absolutely hate who'll put me in front of civies and tell me to 'get the job done'"

"You have a commander like that before?"

"Yeah. In Ba Sing Se for a small while. Being in armored, I was part of a screening force sent to clear the grounds for our camp. We came by a few towns and our commander just told us to steamroll right through them. Not necessarily targeting civilians, but to force everybody else, and kill those who resisted. It didn't last long though. General Iroh-"

"The Dragon of the West?"

"Yeah. Him. He found the officer who gave the order to do so, my commander, and relieved him of duty, sending him back to the Fire Nation for trial."

"So you had some good commanders too."

"Yeah. Plenty. They showed me what it was to be a good soldier and a good man. But it's nice having Boss in charge. I know he's somebody I can trust, somebody I don't have to worry about being transferred, court-martialed, anything like that."

"But being killed-"

"Well yeah. Obviously, but that's always been the case. Nothing new there. At least now I can cut out the military bureaucracy bullshit."

At around that time, the waiter passed by, and, upon noticing our empty cups, asked, "Would you like something more?"

I turned to Ka'lira. "Want anything?"

"You have tapioca tea?"

"We can have it out right away. And you, sir?"

"Nothing for me. Thanks." He left, and I turned to Ka'lira. "Tapioca tea? Are you kidding me? Really?"

"What?" she asked, a grin coming to her face.

"That's shit's disgusting. How could you like that monstrosity of a tea?"

"It's really not that bad. You ever try it?"

"Well how else would I know it's disgusting? Tapioca balls with milk in a tea? What about that sounds good?"

"It's not a bad taste. Where did you have yours?"

"At Baijaju. In the Muli province"

"Never heard of it. You probably just had a bad maker."

I put on my best face of bemused suspicion at her comment, obviously with the intent to spark a comedic reaction. "Yeah. Sure. If you say so."

She smiled at the face I had put on, and the two of us returned to listening around us. Frankly, there wasn't much to listen to aside from a conversation that a group of 3 younger guys, maybe in their early 20s, having a conversation two tables to our right. "No. No," said the first man. "I didn't care that she had been fucking an earthbender. I mean, that was before we met, but what pissed me off was that she refused to fuck me because, and I quote her, "she was afraid of being burnt."

"You're fucking kidding me," replied the second. "She said that?"

"Yeah!"

"And when was this?"

"Maybe a few months ago after we first met."

"So now?"

"I'm getting there. So now, it's winter, and she wants to have sex all of a sudden. She wants to sleep with me, right? So, naturally, I say, 'Fuck it. Let's do it.' And take into account, this was about mid-December. So it was fucking cold. So I take her to my place, we start getting intimate, and she finishes me off with her hands. So you know, that kinda hurt my resolve. I tried getting it back up but was too fucking tired. Anyway, I fell asleep and we didn't do anything. When the morning came, she told me she was sorry, but the heating in her place was cut off and she needed the warmth. Would you believe that shit?!"

There was a burst of laughter amongst the group while Ka'lira and I turned to each other, trying to contain our own giggles in an effort to hide the fact that we had been eavesdropping. Amid that, the eta had been brought at one point to the table.

"Was it a good handy at least?" asked the third member of their party mid-laughter.

"Oh it was great."

The conversation switched topics at one point, prompting me and Ka'lira to turn back to each other as she drank her tea. The smell alone was enough to make me gag, which it did.

"Oh please, Zek. Stop being a child."

"You kidding me? That smell. For spirits' sake. How can you drink that?"

"It smells worse than it tastes."

"That's what everyone says about anything, but it always ends up tasting like shit either way."

"Then try some, you baby. 5 coppers say that you'll end up liking it."

"Alright? 5 coppers? I'm down. Pass that shit over here."

She picked up the cup, handing it over to me. I forced myself to ignore the stench, knowing 5 copper pieces awaited me at the end of it. I took the taste. And no. I didn't come to some huge revelation. My memory did not end of being false as I was introduced to a brand-new world of tapioca tea. I spit out what little I had tasted. "Well. Somehow, it was even worse than I remember."

"Oh shut up. You're lying."

"Not lying. It's just complete shit."

"Oh fuck off. It is not that bad!"

"It really is! I have no idea how you can drink this garbage."

She was smiling now, no longer clearly repulsed by my insulting of her favorite beverage, instead, breaking into laughter.

"What?" I asked

Between laughs, she said, "Sorry. It's just hard to take you seriously when you have a tapioca mustache."

I quickly brought up my sleeve to wipe it off, but her laughing continued. "What?!" I asked, less annoyed, but starting to laugh with her, smiling."

"It's still there."

I wiped again, to no results apparently as Ka'lira continued to laugh over my misery and suffering until giving up, licking her napkin, reaching over to wipe it off. Naturally, I pulled back, intent on removing it myself.

"Stop squirming!" she said.

"Stop trying to clean me, woman!"

And as quickly as it had begun, the charade was ended by the sound of somebody clearing his throat to my right and her left. We looked over in unison to find Boss standing there with Jadoh and Luke. "If you're about done here, we have a job to do."