The Unrivalled Expert in Human Nature

Chapter 12

Well, it's been almost two weeks... I'm super sorry. I'm a bad author.

Things to remember --- in the NOW (134 AG) time Zari and Azula got attacked by protesters last chapter.

Also there will be some flashbacks from '2 weeks ago' those are immediately before Azula got involved with the Gaang again.

Anyway, yeah, this is the final chapter, even though I could drag this on, this is how I decided to end it.

Enjoy :)

oooooooooo

133 AG

"I won't even dignify that with an answer..." Azula rolled her eyes at Shi and looked back at the financial statements in front of her. She never answered questions about her and Wen's bedroom activities. Not when he was alive, not now.

"Sorry, just curious." Shi shrugged, putting away a book on Azula's office shelf. Oh boy, that woman was allergic to friendly bonding... "I didn't want to make you sad."

"I am not sad."

"You sure about that? You tend to get a bit touchy around the date it happened, Your Royal Toughness." Shi sat down opposite Azula, "Is everything... You know, are you cool?"

A few quiet seconds passed, but Shi stood perfectly still expecting both an answer and proper eye contact.

"I'm cool." Azula said, lifting her eyes from her papers. Shi judged her expression for a short time, probably to decide if she believed the response. Then she leaned back in the chair.

"Anyway, I have this for you." she pulled some kind of rolled-up paper from her pocket and unfolded it, "It's a message from the north."

"Is this how you always transport sensitive documents?"

"I'm not your delivery girl, you know..."

"Liking our new position, Admiral Shi of the West? Getting kind of full of ourselves?"

"Oh, shut up, you love me..." Shi smiled, "It's about that Yakone guy, I think the lad said."

"Good, leave it here, I'll get to it when I have time." Azula looked away to write something down, expecting Shi to obey and get out of her office. She did find having one of those was more practical than a throne room.

"The tar-get c-u-r-r-e-n- currently i-n-h-a-b-i..." Shi tried spelling out that last word a couple of times, but with no success in recognizing it.

"Since when can you read?" Azula interrupted, suddenly interested.

"Zari's been teaching me."

"Wen and I begged to teach you for years. You refused us every time."

"What can I say? He just has a way with people." Shi looked down at the paper again, "Anyway, I don't know that last one... I think it's a fancy word."

Azula extended a hand and took the message.

"It says inhabits."

"Great. What does that mean?"

"Lives. The target currently lives in one of the villages at the edge of the North Pole."

"Then why can't they just say lives?!"

Azula ignored her friend and just quickly ran through the text of the message.

"He's married. They just had a son." she turned the paper over, "Noatak."