The Prisoners: Chapter Seven
Title: The Prisoners
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mai, Ty Lee, Huu Pairings: Mai/Zuko; references to Sokka/Suki
Word Count: ~26,000; fourteen chapters. Chapter Seven: ~1,700
Summary: Mai and Ty Lee are trying to adjust to life in the Boiling Rock when they learn they're being transferred to the prison near the Fire Nation capital. Mai's uncle has rivals among his fellow wardens who demand that they be removed from his custody to avoid a conflict of interest. At Warden Poon's prison, Ty Lee finds new, unexpected friends in the Kyoshi Warriors and is comforted by being closer to her family. Meanwhile, Mai meets some of the oddest people she's ever seen: water benders from a swamp in the Earth Kingdom. She even becomes friends with one of them in particular, who challenges her pessimistic view of life.
Seven
Hansuke and Ming entered the cafeteria with the other guards. He called Mai to his line, for the garden workers, while she summoned Ty Lee to hers, for the laundry workers. Ty Lee looked back at Mai nervously, and Mai said, "Remember--we'll see each other later."
Ty Lee nodded, and went to join her line.
Mai studied the fifteen other prisoners on her work assignment: ten men, five women. Three of the men she recognized from the outskirts of the war prisoner group: one was tall, thin, and dopey-looking; the second short, round, and less dopey-looking; and the third fat and serene-looking. The dopey-looking ones had dark brown hair, while the serene-looking one had gray; all had dark skin and blue eyes. They looked something like Bato and his friends, although without the muscle or menace of hardened warriors. There was something about them that seemed strange--not threatening, just odd--but she couldn't figure out what. However, none of the inmates in the line did more than glance at her with curiosity, which she took as a good sign.
Hansuke escorted the group through a gate in the west wall of the prison. Mai was surprised to see what had to be the Warden’s residence on the other side. The house was not much to look at, a single-story, gray stone building with minimal ornament: bronze statues of komodo rhinos on either side of the front steps; red tile eaves, the edges carved in the shape of flames; and a bronze lantern stand decorated with gold tassels by the front door. Compared to the rest of the prison buildings, it was lavish, but compared to every other building in the capital it was plain.
But the house was surrounded by a garden that-except for the high, thick wall topped with a guard tower circling it-would not be out of place among the courtiers’ homes near the palace.
On the other side of the house was a tall, precisely trimmed hedge. Beyond the hedge, the land sloped up. A waterfall flowed over multi-colored rocks artfully placed on the incline. On either side were a pair of gold flamingo-heron statues, and at the bottom were a pair of turtle ducks and a badgerfrog on a lily pad, all in stone. A pebbled footpath curved up the bank, flanked by small trees and shrubs. At the top was a red wood teahouse, guarded by a gold statue of a dragon. Next to the dragon, a pond shimmered in the morning sunlight, with round stepping-stones leading across it. A little distance behind the teahouse stood a line of tall fire oaks, red leaves rustling in a breeze. Past the fire oaks was another building, but she couldn’t make out what it was.
Mai stared at the garden. When her uncle said that Poon had an interest in plants, she imagined he kept bonsai in his office, not that he had turned a corner of a prison into an elaborate botany set piece. It was mad.
While the other inmates walked toward the fire oaks, Hansuke pulled the three war prisoners aside. He said, “We have a new inmate who’s been assigned here. Her name is Mai. I want you to show her around.”
Two of the men, the dopey-looking ones, looked at her with surprise, while the third, the fat one, simply continued looking serene. She bit her lip to keep from protesting. Hansuke was trying to help her, but there had to be someone who wouldn’t murder her on work duty other than these weirdoes.
After Hansuke left, the four of them stood in silence. The tall, thin man and the short, less fat man exchanged glances. Finally the tall one said, “Well, my name’s Due. This here’s Tho,” he swung his thumb at the short one, “and this is Huu.” His thumb swung to the fat one. “Pleased to make yer acquaintance, Miss Mai.”
She sighed and said, “I know nothing about gardening.” Rather, she knew how to appreciate the aesthetics of a garden, but she knew nothing about working in one.
Due said, “Aw, don’t fret ‘bout that. The jobs ‘round here ain’t difficult t’ learn. And there ain’t no plants that’ll bite ya.”
Mai raised an eyebrow. “Did you just say there aren’t any plants that bite?”
Due answered seriously, “No, not here. You got all docile plants, not like back home in the swamp, where you gotta watch yer fingers when you go berry-pickin’.”
Tho tapped Due’s elbow, “We’d best get movin’ before the Warden comes by and sees us standin’ around yakkin’.”
Her first impression was right: these three were very strange.
The trio took Mai on a tour of the grounds. The building she had seen on the other side of the fire oaks was a greenhouse. To the right of the greenhouse were a series of large plots, abundant with a variety of plants: herbs, peppers, vegetables (tomatoes, summer squash, watermelons, and others she couldn’t identify through all the leaves and vines), flowers (with sunflowers, fire dahlias, and dragon irises in full bloom now). Several of the other inmates were already at work, picking small, bright yellow peppers.
Due and Tho were discussing what job Mai should do when the Warden approached.
Eyes gleaming, Poon said, “Ah, so here is our new guest.” He nodded to the men. “Due, Tho, Huu, you know what your jobs are.” Due and Tho headed for the vegetables, Huu for the greenhouse, leaving Mai alone with Warden Poon.
He smirked. “I have just the job for a foul traitor like you. Come with me.”
On the other side of the flowerbeds furthest from the greenhouse was a small shed. Behind the shed was a low, circular fence enclosing a red wheelbarrow with a shovel leaning against it. Next to the wheelbarrow was an enormous pile of manure, more than half as tall as Mai.
Poon said, “We get it from the army’s rhino stables. Excellent stuff.” He told her which plots to fertilize, then watched, smiling, while she started digging. The surface of the pile had dried, locking most of the smell inside, but when she broke through the crust, the stench erupted like lava. She coughed, her eyes watering. It was far worse than bear poop.
Poon covered his nose and added, “We get a shipment every week," before walking away.
If Azula didn’t kill Zuko, Mai would. And then she would kill Azula. And Poon.
Spreading the manure took all day. By dinnertime, she was exhausted and sore, feeling like her arms and back had been beaten with mallets. She was strong and accustomed to martial arts training, but she had never done this kind of droning, repetitive work before. The drain on her body and mind was surprising.
The Kyoshi Warriors laughed heartily when they heard about the job Poon had given her. Ty Lee wrinkled her nose and said that at least the Earth King’s bear had been cute.
After lights out that night, Mai quickly plunged into sleep.
The shrill clang of metal cut through her dream. She stirred. A male voice whispered nearby, “Keep it down. You’ll wake the whole cellblock.”
Hearing those words, she sat up immediately. There were three guards standing at her cell door, a woman and two men. She couldn’t see their faces under their helmets in the dim light. The woman was short-the shortest guard Mai had yet seen. Both men were tall, one with much broader shoulders than the other.
The woman said, with fake reassurance, “Don’t be alarmed. We’re just checking out some suspicious noises.” One of the men snickered.
Anger flooded through Mai at the disgusting false friendliness in the woman’s tone. She stood, squaring her shoulders and emphasizing her height. Her voice was cold and dangerous. “I don’t think the Warden would approve of guards being away from their posts in the middle of the night.”
The woman turned the key in the door, unlocking it. She said, her voice now dangerous as well, “The Warden will not believe stories told by a traitor.”
Mai tensed, her heart pounding. If they thought she wouldn’t fight them, they were wrong. But she wouldn’t win trapped in this cell. Afterward, they could tell Poon whatever they wanted--they had caught her trying to escape, or with contraband. Of course he would believe his guards over her. Any help her uncle could offer would come far after the fact.
Another voice in the cellblock startled her. “Kuo. Jaran. Akita. You know, whatever brought you all down here at this hour is worth informing the night watch supervisor about.”
The three guards froze. Hansuke stepped out of the shadows and stopped in front of Mai's cell.
The broad-shouldered man said, confused, “Captain. Sir--weren’t you on day shift today?”
“I’m working a double,” Hansuke replied smoothly. “Heung Zhu is sick. Now, what are you doing so far from your posts?"
The woman said, “I-I couldn’t see the prisoner in the cell, sir, and I called for back up to check it out." She paused slightly, then added, "These are very dangerous prisoners, sir.”
Hansuke peered through the bars of Mai’s cell door for a moment, then pointed at her. “Well, she’s right there. You don’t even need to unlock the door to see.” The woman quickly locked the door again. He clapped his hands together. “All right, now that I’ve found the dangerous prisoner for you, get back to your posts.”
After the guards filed out, he whispered, “What happened?”
Mai suddenly felt cold. “I woke up and those three goons were standing there.”
He touched the bars on the door. “Go back to sleep. I’ll handle them. This won’t happen again.”
Mai suspected that Hansuke working through the night was no accident. She wanted to ask what he would do, but he probably wouldn’t tell her.
After he left, all was quiet again, except for the snores of some other prisoner. The aborted attack didn't seem to have woken anyone else up. Even if it had, she doubted the other inmates would have cared much.
Leaning against the bars, she whispered Ty Lee’s name. When there was no response, she was glad-her friend was still asleep. There was no reason to disturb Ty Lee unnecessarily by telling her about this.
She hoped her uncle’s ally could keep his word.
--end Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mai, Ty Lee, Huu Pairings: Mai/Zuko; references to Sokka/Suki
Word Count: ~26,000; fourteen chapters. Chapter Seven: ~1,700
Summary: Mai and Ty Lee are trying to adjust to life in the Boiling Rock when they learn they're being transferred to the prison near the Fire Nation capital. Mai's uncle has rivals among his fellow wardens who demand that they be removed from his custody to avoid a conflict of interest. At Warden Poon's prison, Ty Lee finds new, unexpected friends in the Kyoshi Warriors and is comforted by being closer to her family. Meanwhile, Mai meets some of the oddest people she's ever seen: water benders from a swamp in the Earth Kingdom. She even becomes friends with one of them in particular, who challenges her pessimistic view of life.
Seven
Hansuke and Ming entered the cafeteria with the other guards. He called Mai to his line, for the garden workers, while she summoned Ty Lee to hers, for the laundry workers. Ty Lee looked back at Mai nervously, and Mai said, "Remember--we'll see each other later."
Ty Lee nodded, and went to join her line.
Mai studied the fifteen other prisoners on her work assignment: ten men, five women. Three of the men she recognized from the outskirts of the war prisoner group: one was tall, thin, and dopey-looking; the second short, round, and less dopey-looking; and the third fat and serene-looking. The dopey-looking ones had dark brown hair, while the serene-looking one had gray; all had dark skin and blue eyes. They looked something like Bato and his friends, although without the muscle or menace of hardened warriors. There was something about them that seemed strange--not threatening, just odd--but she couldn't figure out what. However, none of the inmates in the line did more than glance at her with curiosity, which she took as a good sign.
Hansuke escorted the group through a gate in the west wall of the prison. Mai was surprised to see what had to be the Warden’s residence on the other side. The house was not much to look at, a single-story, gray stone building with minimal ornament: bronze statues of komodo rhinos on either side of the front steps; red tile eaves, the edges carved in the shape of flames; and a bronze lantern stand decorated with gold tassels by the front door. Compared to the rest of the prison buildings, it was lavish, but compared to every other building in the capital it was plain.
But the house was surrounded by a garden that-except for the high, thick wall topped with a guard tower circling it-would not be out of place among the courtiers’ homes near the palace.
On the other side of the house was a tall, precisely trimmed hedge. Beyond the hedge, the land sloped up. A waterfall flowed over multi-colored rocks artfully placed on the incline. On either side were a pair of gold flamingo-heron statues, and at the bottom were a pair of turtle ducks and a badgerfrog on a lily pad, all in stone. A pebbled footpath curved up the bank, flanked by small trees and shrubs. At the top was a red wood teahouse, guarded by a gold statue of a dragon. Next to the dragon, a pond shimmered in the morning sunlight, with round stepping-stones leading across it. A little distance behind the teahouse stood a line of tall fire oaks, red leaves rustling in a breeze. Past the fire oaks was another building, but she couldn’t make out what it was.
Mai stared at the garden. When her uncle said that Poon had an interest in plants, she imagined he kept bonsai in his office, not that he had turned a corner of a prison into an elaborate botany set piece. It was mad.
While the other inmates walked toward the fire oaks, Hansuke pulled the three war prisoners aside. He said, “We have a new inmate who’s been assigned here. Her name is Mai. I want you to show her around.”
Two of the men, the dopey-looking ones, looked at her with surprise, while the third, the fat one, simply continued looking serene. She bit her lip to keep from protesting. Hansuke was trying to help her, but there had to be someone who wouldn’t murder her on work duty other than these weirdoes.
After Hansuke left, the four of them stood in silence. The tall, thin man and the short, less fat man exchanged glances. Finally the tall one said, “Well, my name’s Due. This here’s Tho,” he swung his thumb at the short one, “and this is Huu.” His thumb swung to the fat one. “Pleased to make yer acquaintance, Miss Mai.”
She sighed and said, “I know nothing about gardening.” Rather, she knew how to appreciate the aesthetics of a garden, but she knew nothing about working in one.
Due said, “Aw, don’t fret ‘bout that. The jobs ‘round here ain’t difficult t’ learn. And there ain’t no plants that’ll bite ya.”
Mai raised an eyebrow. “Did you just say there aren’t any plants that bite?”
Due answered seriously, “No, not here. You got all docile plants, not like back home in the swamp, where you gotta watch yer fingers when you go berry-pickin’.”
Tho tapped Due’s elbow, “We’d best get movin’ before the Warden comes by and sees us standin’ around yakkin’.”
Her first impression was right: these three were very strange.
The trio took Mai on a tour of the grounds. The building she had seen on the other side of the fire oaks was a greenhouse. To the right of the greenhouse were a series of large plots, abundant with a variety of plants: herbs, peppers, vegetables (tomatoes, summer squash, watermelons, and others she couldn’t identify through all the leaves and vines), flowers (with sunflowers, fire dahlias, and dragon irises in full bloom now). Several of the other inmates were already at work, picking small, bright yellow peppers.
Due and Tho were discussing what job Mai should do when the Warden approached.
Eyes gleaming, Poon said, “Ah, so here is our new guest.” He nodded to the men. “Due, Tho, Huu, you know what your jobs are.” Due and Tho headed for the vegetables, Huu for the greenhouse, leaving Mai alone with Warden Poon.
He smirked. “I have just the job for a foul traitor like you. Come with me.”
On the other side of the flowerbeds furthest from the greenhouse was a small shed. Behind the shed was a low, circular fence enclosing a red wheelbarrow with a shovel leaning against it. Next to the wheelbarrow was an enormous pile of manure, more than half as tall as Mai.
Poon said, “We get it from the army’s rhino stables. Excellent stuff.” He told her which plots to fertilize, then watched, smiling, while she started digging. The surface of the pile had dried, locking most of the smell inside, but when she broke through the crust, the stench erupted like lava. She coughed, her eyes watering. It was far worse than bear poop.
Poon covered his nose and added, “We get a shipment every week," before walking away.
If Azula didn’t kill Zuko, Mai would. And then she would kill Azula. And Poon.
Spreading the manure took all day. By dinnertime, she was exhausted and sore, feeling like her arms and back had been beaten with mallets. She was strong and accustomed to martial arts training, but she had never done this kind of droning, repetitive work before. The drain on her body and mind was surprising.
The Kyoshi Warriors laughed heartily when they heard about the job Poon had given her. Ty Lee wrinkled her nose and said that at least the Earth King’s bear had been cute.
After lights out that night, Mai quickly plunged into sleep.
The shrill clang of metal cut through her dream. She stirred. A male voice whispered nearby, “Keep it down. You’ll wake the whole cellblock.”
Hearing those words, she sat up immediately. There were three guards standing at her cell door, a woman and two men. She couldn’t see their faces under their helmets in the dim light. The woman was short-the shortest guard Mai had yet seen. Both men were tall, one with much broader shoulders than the other.
The woman said, with fake reassurance, “Don’t be alarmed. We’re just checking out some suspicious noises.” One of the men snickered.
Anger flooded through Mai at the disgusting false friendliness in the woman’s tone. She stood, squaring her shoulders and emphasizing her height. Her voice was cold and dangerous. “I don’t think the Warden would approve of guards being away from their posts in the middle of the night.”
The woman turned the key in the door, unlocking it. She said, her voice now dangerous as well, “The Warden will not believe stories told by a traitor.”
Mai tensed, her heart pounding. If they thought she wouldn’t fight them, they were wrong. But she wouldn’t win trapped in this cell. Afterward, they could tell Poon whatever they wanted--they had caught her trying to escape, or with contraband. Of course he would believe his guards over her. Any help her uncle could offer would come far after the fact.
Another voice in the cellblock startled her. “Kuo. Jaran. Akita. You know, whatever brought you all down here at this hour is worth informing the night watch supervisor about.”
The three guards froze. Hansuke stepped out of the shadows and stopped in front of Mai's cell.
The broad-shouldered man said, confused, “Captain. Sir--weren’t you on day shift today?”
“I’m working a double,” Hansuke replied smoothly. “Heung Zhu is sick. Now, what are you doing so far from your posts?"
The woman said, “I-I couldn’t see the prisoner in the cell, sir, and I called for back up to check it out." She paused slightly, then added, "These are very dangerous prisoners, sir.”
Hansuke peered through the bars of Mai’s cell door for a moment, then pointed at her. “Well, she’s right there. You don’t even need to unlock the door to see.” The woman quickly locked the door again. He clapped his hands together. “All right, now that I’ve found the dangerous prisoner for you, get back to your posts.”
After the guards filed out, he whispered, “What happened?”
Mai suddenly felt cold. “I woke up and those three goons were standing there.”
He touched the bars on the door. “Go back to sleep. I’ll handle them. This won’t happen again.”
Mai suspected that Hansuke working through the night was no accident. She wanted to ask what he would do, but he probably wouldn’t tell her.
After he left, all was quiet again, except for the snores of some other prisoner. The aborted attack didn't seem to have woken anyone else up. Even if it had, she doubted the other inmates would have cared much.
Leaning against the bars, she whispered Ty Lee’s name. When there was no response, she was glad-her friend was still asleep. There was no reason to disturb Ty Lee unnecessarily by telling her about this.
She hoped her uncle’s ally could keep his word.
--end Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight