The Assignment from Hell (Finished)

[Yukiko]

Yukiko mounted Hotaka as the ship she had boarded slowly stopped and dropped the walkway at the packed snow that passed for a dock in the frozen wasteland that was the North Pole. At least that’s how she saw it as she adjusted the pack on her back and the sword at her waist. She shivered as she urged Hotaka forward, wishing to find the rendezvous point quickly. She had forgone her usual attire in favor of a slightly warmer long-sleeved shirt, black pants and her cloak, hood up. But it still wasn’t quite enough to stop the biting cold. Once off the ship, she nudged Hotaka towards one of the dockworkers. “Can you tell me where I can find the Buzzard Bear Inn?” she asked in a strained voice. She wanted to be done with this business in the Northern capital as quickly as possible.

The man stared at her as he said, “The Buzzard Bear Inn? Why would you wanna head there when the best—” Hotaka’s head whipped around to glare at the man. A low growl rose from his throat, effectively cutting the man off. Yukiko nearly laughed as the man turned nearly as white as the snow around him. “Head straight until you reach the third waterway crossing. Then turn left. It’ll be halfway down the street. Huge sign of the buzzard bear and everything,” he rattled off quickly, taking a step back from Hotaka.

“Thank you,” Yukiko replied. She pulled a coin from her pocket and tossed it to the man before turning the massive eel hound towards their destination. Hotaka set off at a quick trot, low rumbling noises causing his body to tremble slightly. Yukiko laughed once they were out of earshot. It was light and bell-like. “No need to be so surly, Hotaka,” she cooed. “Surely you’re used to it by now.” The hound tossed his head, as if to flick away flies. She laughed again as they continued down the street. The air suddenly wasn’t quite so cold.

They soon reached the turn and then the inn. Yukiko lightly dropped to the ground outside the two-story snow structure. She set her pack beside Hotaka. “Sit tight until I’m done, ne? It shouldn’t take too long,” she murmured. She gently stroked his nose to soothe the troubled eel. “Then we can leave this wretched hellhole and go back home. I know you hate the cold as much as I do. And don’t cause any trouble, ne? No slashing people up like the last time.” The eel made a huffing sound that Yukiko took for both laughter and an exasperated sigh. She nuzzled his neck with a soft laugh of her own. “Lower profile is all I ask, Hotaka.”

With that, she walked up the steps and entered the inn. She was now in what she called her Kano-mode. Cold and calculating, she looked around the bar, quickly taking in the surroundings. There were two other doors and a set of stairs. One door, behind the bar, clearly led to a kitchen. Barmaids wandered in and out of the door with trays of plates. The stairs and other door probably led to either the quarters of the owners or another section of the bar. She was unconcerned with that. She had finally seen the client sitting at the bar and he now held all her attention. He was short, squat, and looked greasy. Fairly typical, as far as her clients went.

She strode rapidly over to him and sat beside him. “Yori Kojima, I presume,” she whispered hoarsely. The man jumped slightly before nodding. In front of him was a folio. He slid it over to her and finished his beer. “Everything you’ll need is in there. He’s currently here in the capital. I trust you’ll deal with this quickly. The terms of payment are also enclosed. We’ve also discreetly provided lodging at the Snow Koi Inn in the town square,” the man rattled off in a whisper. He then dropped some change on the counter and left the inn. Yukiko watched the man go with distaste. He had stunk of booze and sounded as greasy as he’d looked. She gingerly picked up the folio and placed it in the large inner pocket of her cloak.

She then left the inn and returned to Hotaka. Grabbing up her pack and mounting Hotaka once more, she set off for the Snow Koi Inn near the center of the city. As she rode, she pulled the folio back out and opened it. She ignored the other papers for the moment and focused on the photo and info at the top of the small pile. The photo was of a young man with shaggy black hair and amber eyes. He looked to be only lightly muscled, tending towards the thin and lanky look. The info sheet stated his name was simply Konji. He was 6 feet 5 inches tall and roughly 192 pounds. ‘He shouldn’t be too hard to pick out of a crowd, then. Especially here. He’s probably of Fire Nation descent.’

[alena]

Konji strode leisurely across one of the many bridges in the Northern Water Tribe. His amber eyes shown with silent satisfaction from his days work and the pay he had received, though his face was it set at its default, aka blank. Contrary to how others thought, he enjoyed coming here, not only for the inexpensive meals and boarding, but also for the many available jobs it had to offer. While, sure, he was cold, his long trench coat provided enough warmth to get him from one place to the next.

Feeling a strong gust of wind pick up, he held back a shiver and increased his pace, trying to make it to the inn where he currently staying before the warmth he had ran out. 'I could always firebend...' He thought, but then immediately wished he hadn't. 'No, I promised myself I would never do that. Besides, it would only bring me more unwanted attention.' He sighed, knowing full well that his height and broadsword made him stand out enough as it was.

Sighing again, he turned a corner. Still distracted by his thoughts of firebending and ect., he slammed into something very big and very...green. Stepping back quickly, he looked at what he thought to be an eel hound. He silently wondered how he'd managed to miss something so huge, then looked up at the person perched on top of it. A figure, appearance hidden by the hood around his or her face, looking to be tall and appeared to be reading something. He quickly put on a fake, believable smile and moved fully out of their way. "I am sorry, I was not paying attention to where I was going." He said politely, smile still locked on his face. "You were not hurt, I presume?"

[Yukiko]

Yukiko nearly lost her seat and folio as Hotaka jerked back. Only finely honed reflexes saved both from falling to the ground. She silently cursed whatever had caused her hound to lose his rhythm. “I am sorry, I was not paying attention to where I was going. You were not hurt, I presume?” She looked down at the offender, prepared to deliver a vicious reply. But the words died in her throat. She stared at the man standing there, smiling. The broadsword was a surprise, but there was no mistaking him. It was her target, Konji. This was almost too perfect.

She closed the folio and returned it to her inner pocket. Once assured that it was safely pocketed, she returned her attention to Konji. She said nothing for several long moments as she took in everything she could about him just from his appearance. Now that she was actually looking at him, she couldn’t help but note how fake his smile seemed. It wasn’t something that a normal civilian would notice—but she had never been normal, had she? As she looked at her target, Hotaka nosed at the man roughly. It caused a smile to flit across her face. The hound already didn’t like the man and he was obviously going to be rude about it. It was too amusing.

She briefly debated unsheathing her sword and decapitating the man right here. But that would hardly have been satisfying. It took only moments for her to decide how she would deal with this particular assignment.

Yukiko carefully drew her hood back to reveal her face. She effortlessly projected her usual air of kindness though her mind was in full assassin mode. Leaning forward and still smiling, she said, “I’m quite all right. But I believe my companion doesn’t appreciate your lack of attention. Do you, Hotaka?” Yukiko gently patted the hound as she spoke. “You’ll have to forgive him. He’s normally better behaved than this,” she added with another bell-like laugh. She looked back at the man, keeping her eyes kind and her demeanor meek. “Perhaps you could help me, though? I’m looking for the Snow Koi Inn. But I’ve never been to the North Pole before, so I’m afraid I’m rather lost right now. Do you know how to find it?” The hook was set.

[alena]

Konji watched as the figure silently as it pocketed whatever it had been reading, then turned it's hooded face to him. He looked back at it, slightly annoyed that he had no idea what he was looking at. As the person kept staring, however, he grew uneasy, his hand traveling automatically to his broadsword. As he grasped the hilt, he was pushed by the eel hound and staggered a few feet to the side. He looked at the hound, eyes narrowed in annoyance, but he said nothing.

Looking up at the figure who was still staring at him, he opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again as it removed its hood, revealing a woman with black hair and hazel eyes. She looked kind, but...a small voice in his head told him not to trust her, and he returned his hand to the hilt of his sword.

As she spoke, he didn't relax, but kept his 'smile' on his face. "It is quite all right; I did run straight into him. It is no wonder why he does not like me." He said and laughed lightly in response, the extremely rare sound strange to his ears. “Perhaps you could help me, though? I’m looking for the Snow Koi Inn. But I’ve never been to the North Pole before, so I’m afraid I’m rather lost right now. Do you know how to find it?” He paused for a second, as if thinking where it was. "Well, I am not a native here." He said at last. "But I do know where the Snow Koi is. It is where I am lodged, actually. So it would be no trouble to escort a beautiful lady such as yourself there." He let his 'smile' seem warmer as he spoke. 'I do not trust her...but I have no choice. If she means harm to me, then I would rather have her do it while I am with her then surprise me later.' He thought as he watched her silently.

"Well then, I suppose we should get going...it gets colder out here the longer you stay outside, and if you are not familiar with this place then you will get cold...fast." He said simply, stepping a few paces toward where the Snow Koi was to signal their departure. 'I do not want to get too far ahead of her...she is probably nothing dangerous to me, but I cannot be too careful.'

[Yukiko]

Yukiko didn’t fail to notice how Konji’s hand hovered over the hilt of his broadsword. Her hand nearly strayed to her own in response. She cursed herself for having stared so long at the man. This was obviously not going to be an easy assignment now. Despite his attempts to appear personable and friendly, it was clear to Yukiko that he neither trusted her nor wished for her company. She would probably have to shift gears before long to achieve her goal. But for now, she would do what she could to earn this man’s trust. Her mother had always said that trust was the first step to eliminating one’s target. ‘Time to get started, I suppose,’ she thought sourly.

She nudged Hotaka’s side, signaling him to follow their ‘guide’. The huge hound moved so that Yukiko was beside Konji as they walked. She looked down at him, observing him once more. Though he tried to appear at ease, she could see the tension that wound him tightly as a coiled spring. ‘Well, I am always complaining about the lack of challenge in assignments...’ She shook her head and spoke to her new companion. “You said you’re not native to the North Pole. May I ask where you are from and what brings you here?”

[alena]

Konji watched as the woman brought her eel hound to his side as they walked, his amber eyes carefully examining her every move. 'I could just be paranoid, since she seems nice enough, but you never know.' He thought. Even before he had first started his profession, there had been people after him; the number had just multiplied when he became a mercenary. While he had never seen the woman before in his life, there was a chance that she had been sent to take it away.

Breaking free from his momentary thought process and realizing he was staring, he was saved as he realized she was talking. “You said you’re not native to the North Pole. May I ask where you are from and what brings you here?” He paused, pondering his answer to her simple question for a few moments. "I am from Ba Sing Se." He said at last; though he tried to not visit the place as much as he could, he still thought of it as his birthplace. "I came here simply for job oppertunities..." He paused again, hesitating to say his next words, as he hadn't even admitted them to himself, "and to see if a friend of mine was here or not."

Immediately after saying the words, he felt out of place; yes, Aryana was a close friend, but was one of the few that he had, and he never visited any of them, especially not if there was a strong chance of them not being there. Shaking the thoughts from his mind, he looked at the woman once more. "If I may ask, what of yourself? Why have you come to a place like this?"

[Yukiko]

“Ba Sing Se?” Yukiko couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing. Nothing about the man spoke of Earth Kingdom blood. It instead conjured images of men from her home...the former Fire Nation. Child of refugees perhaps? And who could he possibly be looking for? She silently cursed the man’s timing and her recklessness. ‘If I had bothered to read the folio before rushing into this...’

She almost didn’t catch Konji’s question. “Hmm? Oh...I’m from the...what is it called now? The Burning Legion? Yes, I was born there. But I’ve been living in a small village in the Earth Kingdom for some time now.” The last was a small lie, of course. But she didn’t need anyone up here to know she lived in the Allied Earth States. “I’m here to find someone as well. I haven’t seen him for many years.”

She didn’t know what had made her say that. The person she sought was standing right beside her. But he wasn’t the only one in the North Pole that was of interest, was he? She lapsed into a pensive silence. How could she have forgotten her brother? ‘Genji is here, too...But I don’t have the time for that.’ She sighed. “It’s been too long,” she murmured.

[alena]

Konji continued his steady pace as the woman talked, raising an eyebrow slightly when he heard her say she was from The Burning Legion. 'She is probably a firebender then...' He thought, watching her with a more careful eye now. 'Though I am also one, I am a mercenary...regular firebenders do not often stray here unless...' His thoughts trailed off as he imagined the possibilities of the woman's being there. He pretended to pay attention as she spoke, keeping his never-failing false smile in place.

As she finished talking, he felt a sense of awkward silence fill the air. He sighed softly as he heard a faint murmur from her, but said nothing. 'It is times like these when I wish I knew how to make a conversation last.' He mentally sighed, struggling to find a topic.

His form of freedom from the discomfort came when he remembered her last words. "Well, it appears that we both seek someone here." He said at last, silently thankful that he had't been fully ignoring her. "If it is not too much to ask, who is it that you are looking for here?" He spoke the words as if they were foreign; he had no need to find out personal things from the few people he usually talked to, and thus, he'd never really used the question far too often. 'I just hope that was not too personal...'

[Yukiko]

Yukiko didn’t immediately respond to Konji. Her thoughts were wrapped around her oft-missed brother. He was all she had left of her family. And she had never bothered to seek him out or learn whether he was even alive. All she had to go by was a 14-year old letter tucked away in her journal back in the village. ‘He probably wouldn’t even recognize me if he saw me now.’

Eventually she realized that Konji had asked her a question. “Forgive me. I zoned out for a moment there. I’m searching for my brother, Genji Kazan. Though now he might go by our mother’s maiden name, Mizutani. Perhaps you’ve heard of him?” But what were the odds that he would know anything about Genji? She refused to get her hopes up on this. ‘As far as Im concerned, hes long-since dead. And nothing can change that.’’

[alena]

Konji watched the woman as she went quiet, patiently waiting for her answer. “Forgive me. I zoned out for a moment there. I’m searching for my brother, Genji Kazan. Though now he might go by our mother’s maiden name, Mizutani. Perhaps you’ve heard of him?” Konji paused in mid-step at the name for a second. 'Of course I know Genji, he is in the same boat as I; working for Dairou, anyway.' He thought, surverying the woman silently. 'I should not tell her of him...I do not know if he is her brother or not, nor is it my place. If she stays here, she will find him soon enough.'

Mind made up, he shook his head at her and began to walk again. "I am afraid that, while the name you spoke does sound familiar, I travel far to often for names to register long in my mind, and I cannot remember the person you are looking for. I am sorry...but it could very well be possible he is here." He told her simply, forcing a look on his face that made it seem as if he wished he could remember where he'd heard the name. 'The next time I see Genji, I should warn him of her.' He thought.

After a few seconds of silence and thinking, he suddenly realized that he had not learned the woman's identity. "All this talk of names has reminded me that I do not know yours yet." He let a kind smile play on his face as he spoke. "Forgive me for asking, but may I inqure as to who you are?" He questioned her.

[Yukiko]

Yukiko noticed the brief pause in the man’s stride. Recognition bloomed across his face briefly before he forced it away. Her eyes narrowed dangerously, instantly furious at his refusal to tell her. ‘This man won’t even do me the courtesy of telling me whether my brother’s even alive? ...Perhaps he thinks I’m out to kill Genji? What a preposterous thought. Genji never made an enemy while we still lived in the Fire Nation. He was almost more of a pacifist than Hikaru.’

But she kept her silence as well. Instead, she turned her eyes forward, staring at Hotaka’s head. She would make Konji talk later, if necessary. Silence reigned for a few moments before Konji spoke again. "All this talk of names has reminded me that I do not know yours yet. Forgive me for asking, but may I inquire as to who you are?" The semblance of a kind smile played on his face as he spoke. It only served to irritate Yukiko further and she didn’t bother to hide it this time.

“My name is Yukiko. My mother wanted at least some of her children to have names that spoke of her heritage. It was one of her rare moments of sentimentality for her past,” she said brusquely. Her tone caused Hotaka to huff, sensitive as he was to his mistress’ emotions. She patted him gently on the head to calm him before returning her attention to her ‘guide.’ “And what might your name be?”

[alena]

Konji watched as a look of irritation entered the woman's expression. 'Is it possible that she realized I was lieing about Genji? But how...' He looked at her cautiously, but took care now to make sure his emotions were not betrayed at all by his face. 'She is definately not normal, that is for sure...first Genji, then she spotted my lie...I should keep an eye on her for a while after this.' He thought.

"...sentimentality for her past." He was jerked out of his thoughts as she finished her introduction. "That is a very lovely name." He said to her, a small smile gracing his face as he spoke. At her question of his name, he paused for a split second, considering lieing to her. Covering his hesitantcy with a small cough, he spoke. "My name...I am known as Konji. However, unlike your name, mine is lacking a story behind it." He 'smiled' slightly wider at her, as a friend might. 'I might as well tell the truth. I need to know what I am going up against...so the sooner she confronts me, the better.'

Looking away from who he now knew as Yukiko, he noticed they had arrived at the Buzzard Bear Inn. "Ah...as much as I hate to say this, we have arrived at your destination." He said, turning back to her. Pausing and thinking for a second, he bowed slightly to her. "It was an honor speaking with you, Yukiko." He said at last. "However, if you have no further need for my guidance, I should be going...money does not make itself, you know." He 'smiled' charmingly at her, all the while thinking, 'The sooner I get away from her, the sooner I can find out why she's here...and who she really is.'

[Yukiko]

“My name...I am known as Konji. However, unlike your name, mine is lacking a story behind it.”

This was all useless chatter to Yukiko by this point. She knew his name, knew why he was here. She knew that he knew who and probably where Genji was—and that he was going to withhold that information. Her hands unconsciously tightened around Hotaka’s rein. But she wasn’t going to act now. It would require proper planning for this assignment.

Lost in thoughts of how to kill her target, she almost missed when Konji stopped walking. “Ah...as much as I hate to say this, we have arrived at your destination.”

Yukiko looked up to see the sign that declared this was, indeed, her destination. Their walk hadn’t been long enough—or short enough, for that matter. She looked down at Konji, a smile once more on his face. ‘Does he think that’s charming? Gah, what I wouldn’t give to just slit his throat right here!’ she fumed. Instead, she gave him a smile fit for a shark. Swinging down from Hotaka, she addressed her ex-guide. “Thank you for bringing me here, Konji. I greatly appreciate it. I’m sure I would’ve been quite lost without you.” She laughed lightly. It sounded a bit brittle to her ears. She tied Hotaka to one of the posts outside the inn. Ascending the steps, she looked back at Konji. “The next time you see Genji, tell him a little snowflake said hello. He’ll know what that means,” she said carelessly before entering the inn. She had little doubt in her mind that Konji would run into Genji at some point, if she allowed him to live long enough to do so. Perhaps she would, just to see what happened. But rest assured, this wasn’t going to be the last Konji saw of her. Not by a long shot. She scowled as she stalked up to the innkeeper and told him what she was after.

END.