[Totomi] Ripples on the wine

[Illah Karu]

Hearing Totomi’s resolve never to drink another such hot shot again, made Illah burst out laughing, quite unintentionally. The way he said it reminded her of Jun so much it hurt. Only with Jun, it had been never only until the next time. She figured Totomi to be the sort of person who more or less kept to his word.

She wiped tears of laughter from her eyes, or maybe the after effects of the drink, who knew. Nonetheless she was soon as composed as she had been before suggesting that stupid wager. That was to say, not very composed at all.

“I said pretty much the exact same thing, when I first tried it and here we are,” she chuckled and crossed her arms, leaning towards the bar counter. Her voice was still hoarse and low, but otherwise she was starting to sound like, well, herself.

“Oh? How important? Were you like a mayor or something?” Illah asked but looking at Totomi she figured he was maybe too young to attain such a post.

Then again there were always exceptional people who were able to do incredible things despite their seemingly young age. She had been a mere child when Yorn had left her to fend for herself and not even a full year after that she’d been picked up by Maruk. Thinking back on it now, it seemed as though she’d had to grow up overnight.

“Why did you move?” she asked rather bluntly and eyed the young man curiously. He didn’t seem like a person with hidden baggage but then Illah had never been known as good judge of character. Her whole life was a testament to that, what with people leaving her left and right, never to be seen again. She refused to believe any of those occurrences had been entirely her fault, if at all.

[Totomi Hojo]

Totomi looked at the glass as though it were some kind of evil being. He smiled as he turned to look at Illah and said. "Well I'm pretty sure I'm going to keep to my word." He coughed again feeling the effects still lingering in his throat. He didn't know why he had done it but it was too late now.

He looked at her when she asked if he was mayor. "No I wasn't mayor." He said shaking his head slightly. "I was just really really good with words when needed and so I was the one they went to when they had to make a deal with another village." He said. "Now I'm sure I'm not the best. But I still did rather well." Then he chuckled. "I don't know how well I would do in the city though." He added.

He smiled as he thought back to his days in the village. They sure were nicer days..... Slower and calmer days.

"I guess I moved because I was getting restless." He said thinking some. "Also the elders said that I was better off in a place where 'my talents can grow' as they put it." He said. "I got to say it's taking some getting used to that's for sure." He said.

"What about you? How long have you been here?" He asked meaning the city.

[Illah Karu]

Illah smiled, pointed a finger towards Totomi and said, in an amused tone: “You do that.”

She gestured to the barkeep, who was tending to another customer farther along the counter and soon the man trotted toward them, eager to fulfill their wildest drunken dreams. Illah ordered another glass of the cheapest swill on offer and a pint of water. She was adamant on walking home on her own two feet this time, and keeping hydrated was of paramount importance if she wanted to accomplish this task.

The bartender was quick to oblige and soon Illah was sipping on the sour tasting wine again. The second filling did not taste near as bad as the first and Miss Karu decided her tongue must’ve gone numb with her previous drink. It was not a bad thing.

“So, what kind of deals did you make? We’re there any land disputes or did you just trade with other villages?” she asked, curious about Totomi’s village life.

She had travelled around Earth Kingdom a lot during her days, and she estimated she knew the country better than any of the other nations she’d visited. However she had spent the last decade plundering the coast line of Earth Kingdom, and after that her travels had taken her mostly to the Fire Nation, so maybe her intel wasn’t up to date on all things. She certainly knew very little about village life in the inland territory.

“I suppose things might get tough for a smooth talker in a big city like this…There’s so much competition,” she pondered out loud and grinned at her companion deviously.

“Me? Oh, I don’t really stay in one place for long. I get restless too, and when I do, I require a drastic change in scenery. I’ve been here for a couple of weeks now and who knows when I’ll go on the road again,” Illah said and drained her wine until her glass was half empty. She wiped her mouth with her hand and smiled.

“New places mean new opportunities and I’m an opportunity lover,” she said and winked at the boy.