The Earth Rumble in actuality was exactly as Naomi had pictured it-- stony and humid with awful scent of man's sweat and too many voices cheering at the same time. She wanted to do some serious redecorating as soon as she stepped into the "lobby". A small space that had a few chairs laying carelessly around and a large man standing in front of the doors to get into the arena, which was somewhat visible through two large windows to the left of the doors.
"That'll be two gold pieces," the man said in a gruff voice, holding out his hand for Naomi and Amaya to pay for their tickets at the door.
Naomi looked to Amaya nervously, "Do you have any money on you? I think I left mine back at the house."
Amaya shook her head, "Mine's with Tao. I could run back out and get it."
"No, there's a line girlies. If you leave now, I'm giving your seats away."
Naomi gritted her teeth, "Why are they so expensive anyways?"
"Big fight tonight. The Whirlwind's here. And your late. Only have a few seats left. Supply and demand, baby," he answered, getting too close to Naomi for her comfort.
"Look, I need to see Rong Fa." Naomi demanded. "Where can I find him? I swear, I don't even need a seat, I just want to go look around for him."
"Nice try, girlie, but if you aren't paying, you aren't getting in."
Naomi was having trouble containing herself lately, and she sort of wanted to try out that new fire of her's again--white, temperature controlled, and pleasantly scented. "Ugh! Do you know who I am?! I'm the daughter of one of the most important women in the fire nation, Firelord Iroh himself is my master, and I'm close, personal friends with Prince Zuko. So basically, I could kill you in a single second," she spit, her words making her seem just as large as him.
The man began to laugh heartily, "Sure you are. And I'm sure the reason you have that weird hair is that you were blessed by the sun spirit, destined to become ruler of the spirit world!"
"I've had a rough day. I nearly killed my boyfriend's ex-girlfriend and burned down half of the Inner Circle just so I could find out where Rong Fa is, so I don't need you telling me I can't see him! I'm on a mission given to me by the highest officials of the Fire Nation! i just need to see Rong Fa, dammit!" She pounded her fist against the wall beside him, fist filled with the white flames.
"Whoa there. Cool down there, little Fire Nation girl. Wait, what was your name again?"
She brightened for a moment, hoping this was a good sign, "Naomi, daughter of the head of the Fire Nation Department of the People, pupil of Firelord Iroh, friend of Prince Zuko."
"You tried to kill General Heart's fiance?" He asked, dumbfounded.
Naomi shrugged, "She's a bitch."
"I can't let you in. Even if you did have the money. You're on the list."
"WHAT?! What list?!" She screeched, turning red, gathering white hot white flames.
"Chill, lady! The list of wanted Earth Kingdom criminals."
"WHAT?!?! She tired to kill me first! Like, ten years ago! Now I'm the criminal?!"
"Naomi, calm down, we'll just wait outside until it's over, then we'll ask around as people leave," Amaya said delicately, trying to calm the flaming girl.
"No! We're going to talk to Rong Fa now!" Naomi shot her flames at the gruff man, who quickly dropped the few tickets he was holding to block her attack with a remedial form of earth bending, just a large rock that he threw up in defense.
"Security!" he yelled and Naomi kicked more fire at him, which was blocked by more rocks which melted into lava on impact of Naomi's new fire and hardened again as it hit the ground. If it was possible, three even bigger men opened the rock wall to their right as if it had been a door. Amaya yelped as they shot rocks at her and quickly pulled her bending water out of it's pouch to deflect them. "Naomi! What are you doing! Stop melting the rocks! It's freaking me out, friend!"
"Sorry!" she called, now using the temperature of regular flames once again. She found they easier to control, as they should be, but not nearly as exciting to use. The most peculiar thing, however, was that as hard as she tried, she couldn't get back to completely normal, red and orange fire. But she didn't dwell on it too much, as now she had a new strategy.
Her white fire cooled considerable, she tested it against her own skin quickly and without being noticed and felt no burns, just the exceedingly odd feeling of something alive and wild but nearly cold brushing against her skin. Using a tweaked version of the fire whip, she sent out serpent like ropes of fire that wrapped around them men and pinned them against the wall.
Quickly, Naomi grabbed Amaya's wrist and busted through the doors to the arena. "Hurry!" she yelled over the roar of the crowd as a person riding on a boulder was thrown high into the air and then slammed back down. They ran down the aisle, bumping into a popcorn salesman who was muttering something about how under appreciated cabbages were these days and that popcorn would be much better to sell and accidentally spilling all the popcorn onto him.
"MY POPCORN!" he screamed in agony.
"Sorry!" both girls called, behind them, not slowing down until Naomi realized something and went back. "I'm really, really sorry." she apologized graciously. "But I kinda need this," she continued and plucked the forest green hat from her head and put it on as they ran away again, her stuffing her tresses of blonde hair into the cap. The popcorn guy screaming in anguish behind them, "My popcorn! Oh, I miss my cabbages!"
"Hey! Get the girls who knocked over the popcorn man's cart! They're wanted criminals!" the guards yelled behind them. Naomi and Amaya ran faster. They waded through a crowd to disguise themselves among them, a nearly failed plan as the guards were getting closer and closer until Amaya suddenly dragged them down the stairs. Down, down, down until they were as far as the stairs would take them. They veered left and down the dimly lit hall, which Naomi assisted with a ball of fire. There was nowhere to hide, it seemed, no doors or anything to jump into. That was, until a boulder landed right in front of the two girls. They looked up to find that they were running through the pit the fighters fell into when they lost a match. They looked at each other in a panic, then Naomi spotted a cleverly hidden door just past the boulder. She pointed it out to Amaya and together they pushed the rock aside to get there. They bolted as fast as they could and slammed the door behind them, huffing and puffing as they leaned against it, pushing it closed. Naomi took off the popcorn man's cap just as she surveyed the room--nothing special, a table in the center with a few cushions around it, a teapot laying on it, a sink and towels, a chair, a mirror, and in the corner a girl about Amaya's age with short brown hair brutally beating a punching bag.
Naomi screamed instinctively and shouted, "I swear, if you tell me anything negative, I will melt your face off!"
"That'll be two gold pieces," the man said in a gruff voice, holding out his hand for Naomi and Amaya to pay for their tickets at the door.
Naomi looked to Amaya nervously, "Do you have any money on you? I think I left mine back at the house."
Amaya shook her head, "Mine's with Tao. I could run back out and get it."
"No, there's a line girlies. If you leave now, I'm giving your seats away."
Naomi gritted her teeth, "Why are they so expensive anyways?"
"Big fight tonight. The Whirlwind's here. And your late. Only have a few seats left. Supply and demand, baby," he answered, getting too close to Naomi for her comfort.
"Look, I need to see Rong Fa." Naomi demanded. "Where can I find him? I swear, I don't even need a seat, I just want to go look around for him."
"Nice try, girlie, but if you aren't paying, you aren't getting in."
Naomi was having trouble containing herself lately, and she sort of wanted to try out that new fire of her's again--white, temperature controlled, and pleasantly scented. "Ugh! Do you know who I am?! I'm the daughter of one of the most important women in the fire nation, Firelord Iroh himself is my master, and I'm close, personal friends with Prince Zuko. So basically, I could kill you in a single second," she spit, her words making her seem just as large as him.
The man began to laugh heartily, "Sure you are. And I'm sure the reason you have that weird hair is that you were blessed by the sun spirit, destined to become ruler of the spirit world!"
"I've had a rough day. I nearly killed my boyfriend's ex-girlfriend and burned down half of the Inner Circle just so I could find out where Rong Fa is, so I don't need you telling me I can't see him! I'm on a mission given to me by the highest officials of the Fire Nation! i just need to see Rong Fa, dammit!" She pounded her fist against the wall beside him, fist filled with the white flames.
"Whoa there. Cool down there, little Fire Nation girl. Wait, what was your name again?"
She brightened for a moment, hoping this was a good sign, "Naomi, daughter of the head of the Fire Nation Department of the People, pupil of Firelord Iroh, friend of Prince Zuko."
"You tried to kill General Heart's fiance?" He asked, dumbfounded.
Naomi shrugged, "She's a bitch."
"I can't let you in. Even if you did have the money. You're on the list."
"WHAT?! What list?!" She screeched, turning red, gathering white hot white flames.
"Chill, lady! The list of wanted Earth Kingdom criminals."
"WHAT?!?! She tired to kill me first! Like, ten years ago! Now I'm the criminal?!"
"Naomi, calm down, we'll just wait outside until it's over, then we'll ask around as people leave," Amaya said delicately, trying to calm the flaming girl.
"No! We're going to talk to Rong Fa now!" Naomi shot her flames at the gruff man, who quickly dropped the few tickets he was holding to block her attack with a remedial form of earth bending, just a large rock that he threw up in defense.
"Security!" he yelled and Naomi kicked more fire at him, which was blocked by more rocks which melted into lava on impact of Naomi's new fire and hardened again as it hit the ground. If it was possible, three even bigger men opened the rock wall to their right as if it had been a door. Amaya yelped as they shot rocks at her and quickly pulled her bending water out of it's pouch to deflect them. "Naomi! What are you doing! Stop melting the rocks! It's freaking me out, friend!"
"Sorry!" she called, now using the temperature of regular flames once again. She found they easier to control, as they should be, but not nearly as exciting to use. The most peculiar thing, however, was that as hard as she tried, she couldn't get back to completely normal, red and orange fire. But she didn't dwell on it too much, as now she had a new strategy.
Her white fire cooled considerable, she tested it against her own skin quickly and without being noticed and felt no burns, just the exceedingly odd feeling of something alive and wild but nearly cold brushing against her skin. Using a tweaked version of the fire whip, she sent out serpent like ropes of fire that wrapped around them men and pinned them against the wall.
Quickly, Naomi grabbed Amaya's wrist and busted through the doors to the arena. "Hurry!" she yelled over the roar of the crowd as a person riding on a boulder was thrown high into the air and then slammed back down. They ran down the aisle, bumping into a popcorn salesman who was muttering something about how under appreciated cabbages were these days and that popcorn would be much better to sell and accidentally spilling all the popcorn onto him.
"MY POPCORN!" he screamed in agony.
"Sorry!" both girls called, behind them, not slowing down until Naomi realized something and went back. "I'm really, really sorry." she apologized graciously. "But I kinda need this," she continued and plucked the forest green hat from her head and put it on as they ran away again, her stuffing her tresses of blonde hair into the cap. The popcorn guy screaming in anguish behind them, "My popcorn! Oh, I miss my cabbages!"
"Hey! Get the girls who knocked over the popcorn man's cart! They're wanted criminals!" the guards yelled behind them. Naomi and Amaya ran faster. They waded through a crowd to disguise themselves among them, a nearly failed plan as the guards were getting closer and closer until Amaya suddenly dragged them down the stairs. Down, down, down until they were as far as the stairs would take them. They veered left and down the dimly lit hall, which Naomi assisted with a ball of fire. There was nowhere to hide, it seemed, no doors or anything to jump into. That was, until a boulder landed right in front of the two girls. They looked up to find that they were running through the pit the fighters fell into when they lost a match. They looked at each other in a panic, then Naomi spotted a cleverly hidden door just past the boulder. She pointed it out to Amaya and together they pushed the rock aside to get there. They bolted as fast as they could and slammed the door behind them, huffing and puffing as they leaned against it, pushing it closed. Naomi took off the popcorn man's cap just as she surveyed the room--nothing special, a table in the center with a few cushions around it, a teapot laying on it, a sink and towels, a chair, a mirror, and in the corner a girl about Amaya's age with short brown hair brutally beating a punching bag.
Naomi screamed instinctively and shouted, "I swear, if you tell me anything negative, I will melt your face off!"