[Open] Training...yay...

[Lao Shen]

Wow.. I'm really out of practice.

Those words repeated themselves over and over as Lao ran through the city. The fire bender had been running through the park for the past month, casually increasing the duration of the run and how fast he went. Lao made his way to the city gym, slightly winded. He stood outside of the building for a while, catching his breath. He straightened his back after a while and made his way casually into the gym. His hair was tied back into a ponytail and he wore a pair of burgandy gym shorts, a tan tank top, and a light pair of running shoes.

Lao walked through the gym, surprised by how many people were actually in there working out. He had only heard about the gym and didn't think it was as popular as it really was. He couldn't tell if he was pleased or not by the turnout of people. From what he was told of the gym, there was an extra area in the back specifically for benders to practice their art without injuring non benders who wouldn't be able to defend themselves from the projectiles that come with the title of bender.

The firebender made his way out to the back of the gym. He sighed as he stepped outside, heading over to a high wall to keep projectiles from spilling onto the streets. The fire bender inhaled slowly and closed his eyes. He raised his chin as the sun shined brightly, basking in the warmth from the golden light. After a few minutes of deep, slow breathing, Lao opened his eyes with a grin on his face. Mm.. Now let the fun begin! He thought to himself.

Lao lowered himself into a basic stance, his right hand balled into a fist with the back of his hand next to his cheek. His left hand was open with his palm towards the wall. The next instant, Lao was launching barrages at the wall. He alternated with his jabs, the balls of fire that propelled from his fists growing larger. Lao took a few steps back from the wall and spun, extending his leg at the start of the spin. Half way through it, fire started to come from his foot, crashing into the wall in a blazing arc.

"Hmph... I'm a little slow.. a bit rusty." He thought aloud as he bounced on the balls of his feet lightly.

[Jia-Li Koh]

This place was so unfamiliar, so unlike her home land. Here, there were not only Earth Benders roaming the streets but Fire Benders and Air Benders and Water Benders alike. Even non-benders (some who were currently giving her distrustful looks) walked the crowded streets of Republic City. This was the pit, for sure. How many times had she tried and failed to find her sister on these streets in the last few days? How many people had rejected her when she asked if they'd seen somene who looked exactly like her? Too many, in her opinion. Back in the Earth Kingdom, people would have at least stopped to consider your request for information before barreling past you. If she'd been there, she might've known where her sister had gone by now. Still, Jia-Li wasn't complaining. Sure, she had her work cut out for her, but there was no need to make the situation worse by grumbling on about it.

Her clothes were bedraggled, her hair was unbrushed yet still in her signature ponytail as usual, and her face looked tired - yet guarded. Still, she had tried her best to wash her face and make herself look presentable before going out in public and had succeeded... for the most part, anyway. Right when she thought she just might have to sit down and rest after all this walking, the training gym came into view. She had never seen it before and it didn't much resemble the places she used to train with her sister, but Jia knew she could use some practice. No use in losing her touch, now was there?

When she entered, she wasn't stopped. Just by the color of her clothes, you would have to be brainless not to immediately assume she was an Earth Bender. The scant few who were currently training hardly spared her a second glance as she walked through the rooms until she came to a door leading outside. Shrugging, the girl pushed open the door and stepped out, poking her head around to find a wall used for training.

Unfortunately, someone else was already hard at work. She supposed there were other walls and places to train at, but this man was obviously a fire bender from his strikes and the heat he was flinging from various limbs. She hadn't actually gotten to witness a Fire Bender like this in a long time - since the only people she had ever known who were Fire Benders usually only passed through her village.

"Excuse me, sir," she interrupted, bowing at the waist after addressing him. It was only after bowing like this that she finally figured out she had nothing to say. Or, at least, nothing really of value. Then again, it wouldn't hurt to see if he had spotted her twin sister anywhere, now would it? Surely it wouldn't. "Have you, by any chance, seen someone who looks exactly like me?"

Perhaps I should have phrased that a bit differently...

[Lao Shen]

He continued on. His routine that he was taught by his grandfather once he reached the level of bending that he thought was his peak. He took in a deep breath through nose, filling his lungs to their max. His concentration was interrupted when he heard a voice behind him of the feminine nature. He turned his head to look at the source to see a girl a few feet behind him. He blinked couple of time and turned his head back, knowing that if he opened his mouth flames would fly from it. He closed his eyes and exhaled through his nose, releasing any tension.

Smoke expelled from his nostrils as he exhaled and his chest lowered in conjuction with releasing the large amount of air from his lungs. Once he was back to his relaxed state, Lao turned to the girl and wiped his forehead. "Sorry about that," the fire bender apologized with a bit of embarassment and looked the girl over, "Someone that looks like you? Hm... I don't think so." The fire bender raised his eyebrow as the girl bowed to him. He smiled and bowed back to her, matching the depth of the bow so he didn't seem as though he thought he was better than her.

Lao took a few steps closer to the girl and stopped suddenly. He felt that his hair had gotten loose from the quick pony tail he put it in. He blinked as his dread locks swayed from side to side and beat against his skin. He instantly looked to the ground, ot aware of how foolish he might have looked, frantically searching for his hair band. With a sigh, He picked up his red hair band from behind him and went to work with tying his hair back again.

"Now," he started as he finished tying the ponytail a bit more secure than before, "What's this about looking for yourself?" Lao looked at her without an ounce of sarcasm from his lips. His amber eyes scanning over the girl quickly.

[Jia-Li Koh]

Jia’s eyes widened and she began to wave her hands and shake her head. ”Oh! No, no, that’s alright,” she said, in reply to his apology. She was the one trespassing here, apparently. So there was obviously no need for him to apologize about anything, especially something as trivial as that. She watched as he tied his dreadlocks in a ponytail, blinking her large dark eyes as she scrutinized him. Jia-Li did not know that she looked as if she were analyzing the man, she was much too clueless to get that you did not just stare at someone for a long amount of time like she was doing or it might’ve been quite rude. Soon enough however, she let a smile grace her lips. ”It is exactly as I said, really. My twin came with me some time ago to Republic City, you see. She’s a bit out of control and I was not able to stop her from running off. We were separated.”

At this, Jia’s smile faded into a worried frown. She had never been without her sister. Never. It was hard to stand still even now, as she was itching to get out and look for her. She sighed, directing her gaze toward the ground. Her frown grew deeper and deeper with each passing second that she thought about the predicament she was in. How could this have gotten so bad? Surely others didn’t lose their siblings so easily? She was such a terrible sister! Honestly, she had to be, if this was the way things turned out.

”I’m… I’m sorry for interrupting your practice,” Jia-Li squeaked, not bothering to look up. ”But I do need to find her. It just doesn’t feel right to be without her in a place like this. She could be hurt or… or dying…!”

At this, Jia did look up, but the expression on her face was far from happy. In fact, she seemed to be almost frantic, something that was seriously unlike her. This situation was grating on her nerves more than she would like to admit. ”That’s what I mean, sir. She could be in quite a lot of trouble if I don’t find her soon. She seems to bury herself in trouble more often than not without meaning to, so it would be a blessing if I could find her... in a small amount of time, that is."

[Lao Shen]

Lao watched the girl as her gaze lowered to the ground. He blinked and felt his strings of his heart being tugged. He had never heard such sorrow from someone before. His inexperience with dealing with someone truly worried made him develop a slight soft spot. He sighed and walked up to the girl and put his hand on her shoulder, fighting his impulse for a full embrace. He knew that a hug would cross the line way too much for his own comfort with someone he just met. "Chin up... I'm sure she's fine." Lao smiled to the girl, not sure of what else to tell her.

The fire bender removed his hand from her shoulder and rubbed the back of his neck. Oh man... She really has it rough. He thought to himself watching her. He chewed on the inside of his cheek, thinking of how to deal with such a delicate situation. He's been a resident of Republic City for a few months now and could tell that it was a tough place to be. Especially for the younger people and non benders. With all of the gangs running rampant in most parts of the city, Lao wouldn't trust anyone he cared about on their own either.

With this, Lao could sympathize with the girl. He may have been an only child, but he knew how it felt to worry about a loved one. He worried about his mother constantly, his only relative. "Oh... my name is Lao. Lao Shen. There's no need to call me 'sir' or 'mister' or anything like that." The fire bender laughed a bit and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You know... you shouldn't really search for her on your own. The very reasons to worry for her would be after you as well." The gold eyed man snapped, as though he had a bright idea. "I got it! I'll help you search!" Lao didn't expect her to agree, but he did hope she did. He wouldn't feel right if she got hurt or in danger after coming to him about such a thing, without him trying to help.

[Jia-Li Koh]

Almost immediately after his first answer, Jia-Li’s expression became nothing less than stoic. ”Yes… yes of course she is. You’re right, I’m sure.” Maybe it wasn’t the truth, but it sure as heck would have to be for a while if she didn’t want to go crazy. She inhaled and slapped an appreciative expression on her face. She shrugged, as if embarrassed about her earlier franticness. It had been sort of stupid of her, she realized, to get that worked up in front of a total stranger. How was he supposed to know where her sister was? The poor man had probably been training here for a while and if he hadn’t then there’s no way he’d be inclined to notice some hyperactive earth bender running around on her own. It wasn’t even his problem.

So why did she feel so disappointed?

Obviously Jia did want to find her sister and she supposed that would be making her think rashly in this situation. This place was teeming with criminals and people who wouldn’t hesitate to stab you in the back at every turn. She knew this and she wasn’t about to lie to herself and say that her twin was safe and happy right now. Things never worked out that well for the both of them. After all, just look at the predicament they were in now.

”It’s nice to meet you, Lao Shen. My name is Jia-Li Koh,” she answered, relaxing a bit at the introduction. When he spoke about not searching for her twin alone, Jia-Li was inclined to agree. She hadn’t thought about the danger of being by herself in a foreign city like this one. Her earth bending skills were formidable, yes, but they only stretched so far. Back home she had only used her powers for menial things like chores. Here, however, it was expected to use them in a fight at least once – even if it was a game, like pro-bending.

”You’re right about that. I must admit that I’m not used to fighting others, even if it is only in fun.” Now that she thought about it, he seemed to be pretty skilled as well in the bending department. Perhaps he had been here for a long while and knew the dangers first hand. Maybe… that would be useful. She was reluctant to involve him in her problems, but… he did seem to be happy to help her out. No use looking a gift horse in the mouth. ”Thank you! Thank you, that would be very nice indeed.” She smiled then. ”If you know this city well, it would be wonderful if you could search with me today and explain about some things. I don’t really… well…” Jia-Li was embarrassed to admit that quite a lot of things confused her. She was used to villages and small talk and slow, slow days. Not the bustling madness that made up Republic City.

[Lao Shen]

Lao's eyebrows shot up and he blinked a few times looking at the girl. Not that good fighting others? Even for fun. Oh man. He thought to himself. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes, feigning to be in deep thought as she spoke. After she finished, the fire bender smiled and opened his eyes, laying his golden gaze on her. Looks like the perfect time for a crash course he thought to himself. "It'll be my pleasure. I couldn't imagine how you feel right now. I don't have any siblings so I can only imagine how close you two are."

The fire bender smiled and put his hands on his hips, a playful smirk on his lips. "BUT! I can't let you search for your sister without having some idea of how to combat a fire bender. We tend to play a pretty big role in the gangs around here. If you can defend against a fire bender, you should be able to adapt to any other." He smiled at her and took a few steps backwards, his eyes not leaving hers.

"Let's spar for a bit. Since you're out here, I assume your a bender right? What's your element?" His voice got louder, the farther he backed from her. She wore the clothes of an earth bender, but Lao had been in the city long enough to know that clothes wasn't a very good way to discern the bending principles of people he met. One thing was safe for him to assume, she was a bender. She wouldn't be in the area set aside for benders if she wasn't...right?