Whirlwind [Avatar Aang]

☁Chapter Eight☁

As much as Nazadori didn't like it, she had to interview a Water Tribe person without the help of Avatar Aang. He was still at Yu Dao, visiting with a friend, so she had to do this all by herself. Well, by herself along with Gazon and a few of Bumi's other advisors. They were going to help her today since the Avatar wasn't here. She hoped that they would help her because Aang took control of the conversation when they met with the previous Earth Kingdom candidate.

She waited by the front gates of the palace when she saw a man with blue clothing approaching her, a guard walking directly next to him. He was chattering to the silent guard about whatever was on his mind, and he gestured wildly in front of him. This man seemed to find a conversation with anyone, even someone who couldn't speak back to him when he was on duty. That seemed good to Nazadori, who grew a little less worried about having to control the conversation today.

The man approached Nazadori, and she smiled at him. "Thank you for coming here today . . ." She trailed off when she realized she couldn't remember his name.

"Ah, yes, my name is Tosrek."

"Thank you for coming here today, Tosrek," Nazadori said, bowing slightly to the man dressed head to toe in Water Tribe garb. All pieces of his outfit were as blue as the sky above them, and even his eyes were the same color as the sky. He had an easy smile on his face as he bowed to her, one that put her at ease for the time being. "I'm sorry I could not meet you at the Northern Water Tribe."

"Oh, it's fine," the man said, waving his hand through the air. As his fingers twirled slightly, water droplets formed around them, and each of them fell down to the ground with a little splat. This man was a waterbender. "I've been traveling around the world, anyway, now that the war is over. I never have been outside of the Northern Water Tribe, and I realized it was my time to see what the world has to offer."

Nazadori returned his bright smile that he had directed on her, though her heart wasn't in it. Now that she was training to be queen, she knew she wouldn't have the opportunity to just travel the world without a second thought. She would have to watch everything she did and the places she went to make sure that she didn't bring shame on Omashu. "That's nice."

"It is!" He nodded enthusiastically. Just this little conversation with him made Nazadori realize that he might be a top contender for the Water Tribe spot on her council. He was already so much better and more competent than the Earth Kingdom woman her and Avatar Aang met with the other day. "When I heard about your proposition for a council here in Omashu, I knew I had to apply for it. This is such a great opportunity, and I knew I couldn't let it pass me by."

"Do you want to follow me?" Nazadori asked him, gesturing to the open doors of the palace. Gazon was waiting for her just inside the doors, along with a few other members of Bumi's very own council, the ones he had taken on when he was getting older and couldn't do everything anymore. "I can take you to the meeting room where the rest of the advisors are waiting."

"Of course." Nazadori began leading the man toward the front doors of the palace when he leaned in a little closer to her and whispered, "Have you heard the rumors about the person King Bumi had chosen to be queen?"

Nazadori glanced over at Tosrek and frowned. Did he not know who he was talking to? Still, she kept quiet about her real identity and said, "No, I haven't heard about the rumors of the future queen. Are they good rumors?"

"Oh, no, no, they're not," Tosrek told her. The two of them passed through the doors, and Gazon and Bumi's other advisors joined them. Everyone remained quiet as Tosrek began his tale of the public's opinion of Nazadori. "I've heard people talking in the markets that they think the future queen is a criminal. They say that she got kicked out of school when she was younger and never finished out, that she's uneducated and doesn't know what she's doing. They say that she has killed a person who went against Bumi's beliefs."