But eventually all the bowing and scraping came to an end, and we took our seats around the table, armed with cups of tea (at Iroh's initiative).
As for the latter, I was beginning to get the impression that, with Zuko now surrounded by decent company who could keep him in check, the general had finally shrugged the burden of responsibility off his shoulders and quite deliberately decided to let himself go, almost ostentatiously indulging his little weaknesses. And now, sensing an opportunity to get his hands on the stores of a man capable of getting rare herbs brought in from the other side of the world if need be, the Fire Lord's brother had wasted no time taking advantage of the chance to acquire something unusual, doing so with conspicuous enthusiasm.
Maybe he was trying to encourage all of us to act according to our own judgment without taking the "eccentric old man" hovering nearby into account—in other words, teaching us independence. Or perhaps he really had relaxed, believing that he'd already played his part and could finally take a break. Or maybe both motives were at work.
I didn't know the answer. But the fact remained that his obsession with tea was becoming increasingly comical to everyone around him, and there was no way that could be accidental. Though I doubted anyone besides me gave it much thought...
"Your Highnesses, Herald. I am immensely pleased that you have chosen to visit my city, but may I ask what brings you here? Assuming, of course, that it isn't classified information," Lao added immediately, having caught the fleeting shadow of displeasure that crossed the princess's face. The girl gave a short jerk of her chin in my direction—as if to say, this was your idea, so you explain the party line to the masses.
"There's no great secret behind our visit, though it would be best not to spread the word." The merchant lowered his eyes in understanding. "Your city may be one of the places the Avatar has gone."
"Oh, that's just what we needed!" The merchant clutched his head with complete sincerity.
"I take it you're not particularly fond of him?" Zuko asked Beifong.
"Are you joking, Your Highness? He's the reason we've had a pirate infestation! One voyage in three runs into them, and we don't always manage to save the cargo!" The sharp increase in the number of sea raiders had... upset the honest merchant, to put it mildly. "And if the rumors from the North are true, when he goes on a rampage, he can sink an entire fleet! I have two dozen ships being loaded in the harbor right now!"
"Then I assume you won't refuse to help us deal with this problem?" Azula asked with a sweet smile, beginning to neatly maneuver Lao into a corner.
"U-um..." The prospect of starting a confrontation in his own city with a being capable of deleting entire fleets from existence clearly didn't appeal to the merchant, but neither did he seem eager to refuse a Fire Nation princess. "Yes, of course, but I am still merely a peaceful merchant, and I doubt I can offer you any substantial assistance."
"Oh, don't worry. Informational support will be more than enough," Ozai's heir continued, still smiling as she drove poor Lao further into the corner. Hmm. Hadn't I said something about building a network of informants over the course of two or three months? This girl, meanwhile, had apparently decided not to bother with all that and clearly intended to build one in a week by making use of the trading posts belonging to one of the most far-reaching companies in the world... Good girl.
"Oh, in that case, certainly." The realization that no one was trying to drag him into an actual fight clearly cheered Beifong up. "Though even there, I'm far from all-powerful. There are plenty of regions entirely unexplored by me. Your wonderful archipelago, for example..." But Lao wouldn't have been Lao if he hadn't tried to find some profit in the situation for himself.
"And didn't that arrangement of yours with the Herald solve that particular problem?" But getting something out of Azula that easily? Yeah, right.
"Psst, Mai, I have a feeling this is going to take a while," Toph, who had finally managed to escape her mother and rejoin us, whispered to our squad's resident "island of indifference," briefing her on the current state of affairs.
"Possibly," the governor's daughter replied, taking a melancholy sip from her cup. If there was one thing Mai had in abundance, it was patience.
"How about we go find out what's happening with the tournament?"
"Oh! That'd be great! Wonderful idea!" Our squad's resident human dynamo, otherwise known as Ty Lee, immediately perked up. "Come on, Toph! I'll go with you!"
"Oh no, not you..." the girl groaned. Mai, however, finally failed to maintain her poker face and had to hide a faint smile behind another sip of tea, while Suki made no attempt to conceal her amusement, clearly enjoying yet another act of the ongoing production Hyperactive Acrobat and the Little Blind Girl Trying to Fend Her Off.
Meanwhile, the negotiations-cum-bargaining continued. I listened with half an ear, mostly for oversight and general education. All this ritual dancing around the golden calf definitely wasn't my thing, but Azula turned out to be surprisingly well versed in that area too... unlike Zuko. Judging by the prince's long-suffering expression, he'd lost the thread of the conversation somewhere around "trade tariffs and support for local producers."
Hmm, no, this was definitely going to take a while.
Maybe I should listen to the mission reports in the meantime?
(End of Chapter)
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