She reached the palace a little before dawn, which, at this time of year, was very early, and found, nearby, a large tree with heavy leaves. She hoisted herself up into the branches, and found a sturdy one to rest on. She leaned back against the trunk, and with a quick prayer to the spirits that she didn't fall, she drifted into a light sleep.
She awoke several hours later and pushed aside the foliage to peer at the sun. It seemed to be sometime mid-morning. Time to go. She secured the dagger in the top of her boot and experimentally wiggled her ankle. Not obvious. Good. She slid off the branch and made her way to the ground. Fortunately, there was no one near enough to note a girl come out of a tree - that surely would have excited comment.
She adjusted her clothes and kerchief, and nonchalantly sauntered towards the entrance of the palace. Crowds of people were gathered there - bureaucrats obvious by the piles of paper clutched in their arms, guards and other military keeping the peace, families with small children, and even what appeared to be groups of children on school trips.
One of the school groups was comprised of both boys and girls who seemed to be only slightly younger than Lan, so she stood near them, and surreptitiously sidled into the pack. Their teacher was a harried woman of middle years who seemed, to Lan, to spend a lot of her time screeching random names, and who, thankfully, was not alert enough to notice that her group had grown by one. Several of the other students noticed Lan as they lined up to enter the palace, but a menacing look from Lan stilled their tongues.
Their palace tour guide was a thin, fluttery young man who liked to talk at his charges rather than to them, so he launched into a lecture on rules and regulations as he led them within.
"No talking no eating no drinking no quills no ink," this he emphasized, "no candy no large bags no touching anything no stopping no speaking to the guards no loud voices no stomping your feet," finally he turned to them, "and no potty breaks." His grin was more of a baring of the teeth. "Now, let's have fun, shall we? We're walking. We're walking." He was off, with 27 sets of feet shuffling after him.
The twenty-eighth set of feet saw her chance, and joined a smaller group that consisted of several families. They were obviously on a more-in-depth tour, because their guide was actually a royal guard. He was stopped in front of a painting of Zu Jia, twelfth Fire Lord, whom Lan Chi recognized from a history book.
"Zu Jia, as many of you may know from history, was the boy Fire Lord. He ascended at ten years of age," the guard was saying.
Twelve, Lan corrected him silently.
"His uncle, Cai Zhu, was made regent, and, upon Cai Zhu's death when Zu Jia was fifteen, the remaining uncles Guan Zhu and Huo Zhu attempted to usurp the throne. However, that rebellion was quashed when Zu Jia's mother, Su Zhu, a powerful firebender in her own right, rallied the noble families to her son's side and routed the rebels at the Battle of Xiapu."
Lan Chi had to bite her tongue. It was actually at the Battle of Xia Bei that Su Zhu defeated her former brothers-in-law, but Lan did not think it was worth correcting.
She smiled at a little boy was looking at her curiously, and he tugged on his father's hand to be picked up. Lan stuck her tongue out at him.
"Let's move on, now. We'll be entering a portion of the palace that we have included in the tour for honored guests only." He bowed to the man now holding the little boy, who bowed back.
They passed through a large set of ornate doors guarded by two masked firebender soldiers, and Lan averted her eyes from them. It would not do to attract attention by staring at them, and it definitely would not do if she was recognized!
They were now in the portion of the palace that included the private apartments of the royal family. She smiled.
"We will start in the jade sitting room. It was the site of the signing of the treaty that ended the Yian Ding War."
Despite the fact that the historical period that the guard alluded to was among her favorites, she resisted the temptation to listen to the entire tale. Over the course of several minutes, as the tourists oohed and aahed over the lacquered table that still showed the ink marks of the signing, she edged closer and closer to a second door, which she recognized as leading to a series of corridors that would take her to Iroh's quarters.
As the guard began to narrate the events that led up to the cessation of hostilities, Lan opened the door quietly and slipped out.
Fortunately, there was no one in the hall.
Success! The spirits are smiling on me today!
She walked quickly down the hall. She was well acquainted with this portion of the palace. However, she had not been here since Ozai had become Fire Lord, and she was apprehensive. Should she meet any guards, or worse, Ozai or Azula, she knew that being returned to the Royal Fire Academy for Girls was the best outcome. The worst outcome - she could not imagine.
Another door. She turned the knob uneasily. An entire platoon of guards could be on the other side.
A long, empty hallway greeted her. She breathed a sigh of relief and passed through.
One more. Just one more.
At what she thought was the end of her journey through the palace proper, she became careless. In a bid to gain the courtyard exit, she hurried past a doorway that she had not noticed. The door slid open silently, as all doors in the great palace did, and someone stepped out.
Someone very familiar with the Water Tribe child, even disguised.
Author's Note: So, how do you like the cliffhanger? This chapter was originally twice as long, so I decided to split it into two. Diabolical, I know, but it gives me a cushion to keep ahead of you voracious readers! So, short chapter.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter - it is a departure for me, being mostly exposition and little dialogue, which, I admit, is my favorite part of writing. I hear the dialogue in my head sometimes - it makes taking phone calls a challenge, I acknowledge...
Note, please, my homage to Sokka's memorable speech to the Water Tribe kids (season 1, episode 2) at the end of the tour guide's lecture to the school kids.
I had lots of fun making up Fire Nation history - I based it, of course, on ancient Chinese history, although the names and situations have been changed to protect the innocent (actually, so no one would write to me and say "Uh, you got that wrong. It was the Battle of (insert correct battle name here) that ended the War of (insert correct war name here)." ) One of the things that I wanted to illustrate is that Lan Chi is, through and through, a Fire Nation patriot. Although she is an outsider in many ways, she was raised in and is loyal to the Fire Nation. So there.
Her love of her country will, in the future (part 2) be put to the test, and the decisions she makes at that time will have far reaching effects...
Chap 10
Start from the beginning
