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Tales of Republic City- Ch. 5

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Literature Text

A Minor Setback

He made it.
It had taken him a few hours to get there; a quick snack, several near misses with oncoming Satomobiles and many, many wrong turns; but, Feiying finally made it to Central City Station. Feiying took a deep breath and smiled, taking everything in; the people taking lazing around on the plaza's many benches, taking breaks from their jobs, the street performers performing their acts, trying to make some quick yuan, the sounds of city traffic around him mingling with the loud calls of hawkers selling their wares. Even now, he still couldn't believe he was in Republic City, in the midst of everything. And nothing, not even the screams of a fighting group of children could spoil this moment.
"Waitaminute, what?"
Feiying whipped his head around, hitting himself in the face with his ponytail in the process. Spitting out a few loose hairs, the young Firebender saw a group of four teenage boys, probably around fourteen or fifteen years old at the most, most likely street urchins, picking on a younger girl with long black hair, wearing a dirty and patched up pink dress. Sighing to himself, Feiying rolled his neck, wincing at each crack it made and stomped over to give them a piece of his mind. Whether it was here, or back home in Yu Dao; no matter where he went, some things never changed. And besides he technically wouldn't be breaking his promise if he used firebending to defend a girl's honor, right? Of course not, he just had to hold back a little.
Meanwhile, the teenagers continued their bullying, unaware of that Feiying was walking towards them. In fact, they didn't notice him until the angry firebender gave one of them a hotfoot. They didn't stop until he got a few feet closer and shot a jet of fire past the another, singing the collar of his shirt. And they didn't run away, screaming and stumbling over each other; until he threw a low kick, sending a line of fire into the ground in front of them. As soon as he was sure the four boys were gone, Feiying turned to the crying girl. "Hey kid, what's your name?"
The girl sniffled and looked up at Feiying, wiping her eyes on her sleeves. "Um... H-homura... I'm Homura."
The young firebender smiled and placed a hand on her head. "Well then Homura, I can personally guarantee you that those bullies won't be bothering you for a while."
The girl sniffled again and hugged him before looking up at him with the biggest puppy dog eyes he'd ever seen. "Really?"
Feiying blinked for a moment before chuckling and returning the hug. "Really really. Now small child, why don't you be a good little city child and find your parents. They must be worried sick about you."
Feiying smiled as he watched the young girl happily run off and disappear into the crowds. Yes, it made him feel better knowing that he did the right thing and... Wait, weren't those the same boys that he chased off earlier? Feiying squinted to try and get a better look. And sure enough, those were the same boys that were picking on that little girl mere moments ago, only now they were talking to her and laughing as she handed each of them a few yuan bills. The question was, where did that girl get the money? As far as he knew, she didn't... Wait a minute... Feiying's eyes widened and he shoved his hands into his pants pockets. The money he was saving for lunch and dinner had mysteriously vanished, all twenty four yuan worth of it.
"Well, son of a poodle-pony, I've been robbed."
Sighing to himself, Feiying simply trudged over to the statue of Fire Lord Zuko and sat at its feet. The young firebender shook his head, he wanted to get that money back. But, he couldn't simply march over and take it from them. Feiying leaned back and rest his head against the statue's base; even at his lowest and most dishonorable, he'd never sink to stealing from children. It just wouldn't be right, what with shaming the family and all.
-Mmmuuurrrbbbllleee-
Feiying groaned and clutched his stomach. Besides, the young firebender thought to himself,  blowing out a plume of flame, Grandpa Baiying always said a little suffering was good for you, right? Feiying nodded, Grandpa's words of wisdom had yet to steer him wrong.
-Mmmuuurrrbbbllleee-
Aaannnddd, that was enough suffering for one day. Now, he had to make some money. Feiying looked at the cloth-wrapped rod briefly before shaking his head. No, no matter how desperate he was, he wouldn't use that until the time was right.
Sighing, Feiying stood up, took a deep breath and hoped his mother would forgive him for breaking his promise one last time. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Girls and Boys! Step right up! Witness traditional feats of Firebending skill and prowess!"
Here's a new chapter about robbery! Why? because I like seeing my characters suffer. But, I'm not mean enough to just go throwing them into wars for that. Nope, I like to start small and work my way up.

P.S If anyone's wondering why Feiying is taking this so well, it's for two reasons. First, He's very easy going, and figures it was bound to happen at least once during his time in Republic City, so better now than later. Plus, there's the whole aforementioned honor thing... and if I'm being honest he's weird about that
P.P.S. Just so you know, the updates for this story are gonna be a bit less frequent from here on out. I'm in college again and I don't think I'm going to have enough time on my hands to write new chapters as often as I'd like. So, please be patient and I promise I'll do my best to write something good. But, until then, please leave feedback. I love hearing what people think.
© 2012 - 2024 Youryuu-Ren
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Omikami-Sama's avatar
Very nice. C: I kind of find it amusing that Feiying is all about "honor" like Zuko was and then he's stuck with performing for money. Poor guy. xD