Unfortunately, Asami had mistimed the shops, so Xing had to put up with his robes for a night more. Finding an inn was easy enough, and she easily ignored the look the innkeeper gave both of them. Asami had attended balls and parties with far more scandalous insinuation attached to every moment alone with suitors and their representatives.

She followed Xing up to his room with little resistance from him, interestingly enough. Asami thought he'd be more politely embarrassed about it, but the former White Lotus minder easily accepted the reasoning of her needing to check on the room's condition.

"It looks decent enough," she remarked, noting the amenities. It might not be high end lodging, but there was a bed, a desk with a simple stool, a clothes drawer, a window, and decent walking space to move between them.

"It's worth the price?" he asked, and Asami remembered that Xing might be a bit more conscious about his current state than anything else.

"More or less," she replied casually, consciously not making a big deal out of it so that he wouldn't either.

Xing predictably bowed deeply before her, using genuine gratitude to mask his embarrassment. By now his humors had recovered and he was back to his usual placid self, but Asami could make out the bits of self consciousness in how he shifted. Like a factory engineer having to tolerate his overseer's overseer. "Thank you for your generosity, Asami."

If he wasn't so damned sincere about it she'd be rolling her eyes at the familiar words. "Don't sweat it, Xing. I'll come to pick you up tomorrow and we can discuss the details of your employment?"

"Of course."

Asami consciously remained by the doorway, feeling a sudden pang of self-consciousness herself as she regarded him. With an uneasy shift, Asami found herself giving an awkward smile.

"Uh, look, Xing… You don't have to think you owe me, alright?"

At his perplexed look, she sighed.

"If you can find something better for you, don't let me stop you. I'm sure that there's plenty of opportunities in Republic City…or even beyond it. "

Xing nodded, and the way his smile grew sent happy tingles shuddering up Asami's spine. "I understand. But you were right earlier, it would be foolish not to accept the chance you've given me. Thank you for your generosity Asami… I look forward to working for you, at least for as long as you can stand me."

Asami let out a good natured scoff. "Oh I'm sure I can work with someone who has been a minder for the Avatar for…what? A couple of years?"

"Five years," he corrected.

Huh. She tried picturing a younger Xing shadowing the Avatar, and inevitably wondered what kind of trouble the two teenagers could have gotten up to.

"I'm surprised you started that young…"

Xing shrugged. "The masters assigned me to that task for reasons I'm unaware of, and admittedly there are few options within the White Lotus, especially in the South Pole. I suppose I must have disappointed whatever notions they had for me."

"I bet you'll have some stories to tell…"

"I…will not take that bet," he replied with careful neutrality.

Asami let out a short chuckle before taking a step into the room, towards Xing. "So…I'll see you tomorrow?"

It was hard to simply ignore the growing sense of unease as he regarded her in silence. Finally, Xing nodded. "I will be ready by sunrise." He made no move towards her, his gaze didn't flash to betray any hidden intent, his smile remained as warm and grateful as it had been.

Asami didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed.

"Well then…good night, Xing."

"Good night, Asami."

She closed the door behind her as she left Xing to rest, briefly entertaining the mild disgruntlement that neither of them had tried harder to make anything more of the moment. But at the same time, she didn't want to leave a bad impression on Xing. And as much as she liked him, the innovator in Asami didn't want to hamper Xing from finding his full potential either.

Better to let him clear his head and see how things go tomorrow. Besides, if Xing's as good as she had a feeling he was, Asami was sure there'd be plenty of opportunities later.

*****

"There he is!"

They hadn't believed it at first when the dumpling man's wife had said she saw a very Xing-like person climbing out of the docks last night, and then appeared later out of the pro-bending arena following after a pretty lady with his attire missing a headpiece.

Speculation among the stallowners over whether it was really Xing (along with the wild theories that went along with it) had buzzed throughout most of the morning. Kai had the bright idea of sitting by and passively listening to the various tales, allowing him and Ren to piece together a general idea of what had happened.

It sounded doubtful that Xing would simply swim over from Air Temple Island just to meet up with Asami, as short as a time that Ren knew both of them. As pretty and kind as Asami was, Xing sounded too…what was the word Gramps used again? Loyal. That's it, he sounded the type to be stuck with his job - even if he clearly hated it.

So for him to be swimming over - assuming that it was Xing - and following after Asami - assuming it was Asami - meant that something major must have happened. The satay vendor said that he saw the airbender councilman in a bit of a huff when the Avatar made her appearance in the arena, so maybe it was related to that?

Anyway, with so many theories, Ren and Kai eventually had enough and decided to head out to the docks to wait for Xing and ask him themselves. Dressed in the comfy and hole-less new clothes he bought them, the two urchins easily slid through the main streets with the novelty of not being regarded with dislike by the richer folk.

Stolen novel; please report.

It hammered home the importance of appearances to both of them, and reminded Ren as to why even the lowest members of the triads liked to dress like bigshots. Not being seen like days old leftover and not having people instinctively grip their purses tighter was a nice change of pace.

They found Asami first, walking out of a fancy clothes store, giving off a different kind of smile that she gave Ren just the other day. Excited joy, if the girl had to place it.

It took a while for either of the kids to recognize Xing coming out of the store beside Asami, the sharp new modern suit that replaced his White Lotus robes making him look like a young triad lord. For a fraction of a moment, Ren froze at just how dangerous he appeared. Without his robes to obfuscate him, his movements were careful and smooth, with none of the swagger of goons running on bravado. Though smiling warmly at Asami, there was something calculative in the back of his amber eyes.

His pose was reserved, but not like the stuffy rich folks that turned their noses up at anything with so much as a stain on it. Instead, it was like he was constantly tense and ready to act.

Ren had seen such people before, usually while hiding out of sight along with everyone else who knew the streets enough, and they were almost always not triad.

Instead, Xing looked like the 'contractors' the triads hired when they needed a more professional approach to their usually messy work. The kind of work that makes people disappear without a trace, and witnesses becoming forgetful.

A carriage trundled down the road, and Ren noted how casually Xing shifted to put himself between it and Asami, likely without the woman noticing it. The way he walked while holding a deep conversation with her suggested that he was far from distracted with his surroundings, especially with the minute movements he made to discreetly guide Asami away from incoming or passing pedestrians.

What kind of bodyguarding did he have to do for the Avatar?

"Come on," Kai suddenly said from beside Ren, having recovered his wits faster than her. "He's still Xing, right?" he offered somewhat convincingly.

Swallowing her nerves down, Ren nodded and followed after her partner in crime, and they crossed the street in time to see Xing already turning to greet them.

"Oh, hi there Ren, Kai." It was Asami who greeted them first, her smile still bright though it carried a sort of not-quite-pity with it. Ren rather preferred it to the hollow and often halfhearted displays from some of the stupider rich folks.

Xing, for his part, gave a friendly nod as he usually did before giving a shallow bow. "I apologize for not seeking you two out sooner, there's been a change to our schedule."

"I bet," Ren managed to say with convincing cheek. "Finally decided to ditch the robes?"

"And the order," he smoothly added without missing a beat. Ren gawked with Kai at that, and then stared at each other.

"You can do that?" Kai asked in amazement.

The Whi- The former White Lotus man shrugged. "It's not exactly a profession with a clear contract…"

Did she want to know why? Maybe not now…

"Uh huh." Ren gave him a look, and then glanced to the rather proud and pleased Asami. "He's working for you now?"

The woman gave a satisfied nod before flashing a glance to Xing beside her. "He's accepted my offer, though it took some convincing."

Some of the more ludicrous theories from the vendors popped back into Ren's mind, and she had to force it back while Kai spoke with careful calmness. "So, you're no longer White Lotus…does that mean you won't need us 'guiding' you anymore?"

Oh yeah, there was that…

Before the disappointment could settle in, Xing gave a short but resolute shake of his head. "Far from it. If anything, I might require your assistance a bit more urgently if I'm supposed to quickly adjust to my new role."

Well, that was a relief. Ren pretended she didn't see Kai deflate with relief, just as she herself most assuredly kept her composure.

"And what's your new job?" she asked the well-dressed couple before her.

"Personal aide," Asami said with a cheery grin, and both Ren and Kai nodded at each other at how much that made sense. Xing seemed to be the type to rise up as a triad boss' right hand or something. A rich (and not snobby) lady's assistant seemed a close enough fit to that idea.

Then Asami's face lit up as an idea clearly struck her. She turned to Xing with a speculative look, tapping a finger to her lips. She glanced at Ren and Kai every now and then. "Come to think of it, would you require secondaries for your duties, Xing?"

Huh?

"That might be useful," he answered with a bit of a smile. "Though perhaps I should get accustomed to my role before making any hasty decisions."

Asami was about to say something, but then she nodded instead. "That's a fair point. No overhyped promises and pointless results. Smart. Looks like hiring you is already starting to pay off." She finished her words with a grin, and then returned her attention back to the two confused urchins.

"Say, the morning's still early enough, how would you two like to join us for breakfast or an early lunch?"

They couldn't say no to that, not with how brightly Asami was smiling at them. Following after her and Xing, the two children glanced at each other, and quietly wondered who was truly scarier - the man who walked like a 'professional', or the cheery and friendly lady who had just hired him.