Chapter Text
The Jasmine Dragon was a small tea shop near where you lived. It was owned by a nice old man you had come to know as Iroh. Every day at around 4 pm you would visit the Jasmine Dragon, and order a cup of-you guessed it-jasmine tea. You would pull out your laptop, do research on any person the Earth Kingdom assigned you to, and snack on a cookie or two.
Sometimes you found yourself indulging in a small match of Pai Sho with the owner of the tea shop. You were no master, however, and you could never truly get a grasp on how to play the name. It didn’t matter to you though. It was this schedule that made living day by day a little more enjoyable.
So there you sat, at a small booth in one of the tea shop’s corners. You quietly sipped at your tea, swallowing the warm liquid and sighing in content as you felt the warmth spread through your fingertips. Some may have complained that summer was no time to be drinking hot tea, but as Iroh once said, “There is never a wrong time to be drinking the finest tea in the country.”
The people of this world were divided into five people. The Water Tribe mafia, the Earth Kingdom mafia, the Fire Nation mafia, the Air Temple mafia, and normal civilians. As mentioned above, you were apart of the Earth Kingdom mafia. A data broker, to be specific.
Word was spreading, and apparently there were rumors of a few Fire Nation members rooting themselves nearby an Water Tribe base. Your job: to gather data on all suspected members of any mafia and see if any fit as an enemy or traitor. It was exhausting, and was causing your eyes some serious strain, but you would do anything for both the money and your mafia.
You sighed to yourself, popping your fingers as you took a small break. You found yourself appreciating the Jasmine Dragon more and more as you slaved away on your laptop and computer. You also took this time to glance at the small timer imbedded into your forearm.
Soulmates were also a very common occurrence in your world. Over 70% of people in this world are assigned a soulmate the day they’re born, and 90% of those soulmates end up staying together and living the happiest life of their lives. Soulmate marks came in different forms and rules, you were glad to have a simple soulmate mark.
A small timer that counted down to when you first lock eyes with your soulmate. Luckily, it also ring loudly when this happens, so there wasn’t any chance of you making eye contact with a stranger and completely forgetting about your soulmate mark. Lately, however, you had found yourself getting anxious.
0 years, 0 months, 3 days, 2 hours, 15 minutes, 23 seconds
Three days. Three days until you got to look into the eyes of the person you were expected to spend the rest of your life with. Three days until you find out if your soulmate is apart of the Water Tribe, a poor normal civilian you’ll have to put in danger, or someone from a rivaling mafia.
You positioned your fingers back over your laptop keyboard, satisfied with the small break you gave yourself.
Being paired up with someone also in the Earth Kingdom would be ideal, seeing as you wouldn’t have to keep your occupation under wraps, and there would be no internal conflict with morals. Ending up with a civilian would be difficult. You’re almost sure that the secrets and doubt would break your relationship, and you’d be part of the 10% of soulmates that don’t work out.
Dating someone from a rivaling mafia. Now, that’s a situation you wouldn’t even like to think about.
You were so lost in your thoughts, you hadn’t noticed the bell of the tea shop as a new customer walked in. It was only when you heard the raspy voice of the newcomer did your interest get peaked.
“Uncle, we need to talk later. Over a cup of tea.”
You perked up at the sound of the male’s voice. Uncle? You glanced over, before pausing at the sight of the speaker.
A slim and muscular build. By the sound of his voice, he’s around your age; around 17 years old. His hair is messy and colored a dark black. From this angle you can see pink flesh on one side of his face, a scar, you assumed.
Your glance soon turned into a full stare. Whoever this stranger was, he was a looker. Most people you know would most likely be disgusted at the sight of the scar that decorated his face, but you didn’t really care about that small detail. You thought about how you would describe this stranger.
Mysterious? Handsome? Attractive? Those definitely all applied, but one word stood out to you.
Gorgeous, you decided. Whoever this boy was, he was definitely gorgeous.
He must have felt your stare, and soon you found yourself snapping your gaze back onto the screen of your laptop. His stare was definitely intense, but something inside of you twisted in delight at the attention. Ignoring this, you tried to focus, and the stranger soon averted his stare.
Now that you thought about it, why was he a stranger? As a data broker, you knew almost everybody in this area.
The woman near the window was named Atlas, age 26, birthday June 12, often came here on Wednesdays and Thursdays after dropping her kids off at daycare. The young couple in front of you have been dating for 4 years after looking at each other and finally seeing the world in color.
The male that just walked in, however, you knew nothing about him.
“Of course, Zuko! Why don’t you help me out for a bit before you set off on your other important duties?”
The familiar voice of Iroh reached your ears, and you decided that this was your cue to go back home.
Taking the final sip of your Jasmine tea, you slipped your laptop back into your bag and left your tip on the table as usual. You let out a small grunt as you slipped your back onto your shoulders, and made your way to the entrance.
“Oh, (Y/N)! Leaving so soon? Could I interest you in a game of Pai Sho before you go?”
You halted in your tracks at the sound of Iroh’s request, feeling the stares of multiple customers. You decided not to turn around, only bringing up a hand to wave him off.
”No thanks, Old Man. I already know I’m just going to end up making a fool out of myself,” you hummed.
You smiled at the sound of the rumbling laughter that followed your statement. You’ve been a customer here for so long, you and the tea shop owner have grown close enough to exchange small jokes and interactions.
”Why of course, no one can beat the master after all. But I’m sure you’ll be a great student if you let me teach you properly.”
You laughed lightly at his request. This wasn’t the first time Iroh’s suggested he really teach you the game of Pai Sho, but you always refused. You weren’t one for board games yourself. Civilization was much more advanced than a simple game, and you preferred the calling of technology.
”Maybe next time, Old Man! Have a nice day!”
You kept walking, the small bell attached to the door ringing as you left the tea shop. You could still feel the burning stare of the gorgeous man, and you admit that it unnerved you quite a bit. However, you knew you’d know almost everything about him after a few hours of digging.
The fact comforted you.