Chapter Text
Clarke awoke with a start, like she did almost every day since she had left her home. Not that the Fire Nation could be considered her home anymore. She didn’t have a home.
Her back ached from the hard floor she had slept on but she managed to rouse herself upright before too long. She had been in Ba Sing Se for almost a week now and yet she hadn’t managed to find a decent place to sleep.
When she had fled the capital, she thought she had brought enough money to start a new life half a world away. She had been wrong. She had been cheated, scammed and robbed too many times to count along the way. By the time she finally got to Ba Sing Se, she had been surviving on scraps for weeks and begging just to get by.
If only her mother could see her now, she would surely go mad just at the sight of Clarke’s grubby, calloused hands, blistered feet, sunburned skin and torn clothes.
Clarke made her way downstairs, greeted by harsh morning light and her growling stomach. She had been sleeping on the floor of an abandoned store since she had arrived in Ba Sing Se. She had found her way here in the dark, scared half to death that she was going to be dragged off into an alley along the way. She couldn’t firebend in the Earth Kingdom unless she wanted to end up in jail or dead and that left her feeling utterly defenseless.
She had gathered up her meager possessions and decided this was the day she was finally going to get a job and her own place. She had saved up some money from the last week, begging on the corner of the block, but it wouldn’t be enough. She needed a job and… she needed to sell the one thing of value that she had left.
The thought left a sour taste in her mouth which was only exacerbated by her hunger pains. She trudged out the front door after making an effort to brush her hair out and make herself look as presentable as she could.
She made her way down the street, clutching her worn-out bag to her side, keeping her eyes down. Clarke eventually reached her destination, a small shop that she had scoped out earlier in the week that bought and sold various collectible items. She shuffled inside, still keeping her eyes down.
“Hi. I have something to sell,” she said, her voice hoarse from lack of use.
The man behind the counter smiled a bit gently at her after sizing her up.
“Ah, a refugee are you?”
Clarke was, she supposed, a refugee of the war, but in a very different way than most of those around her. Still, she nodded.
“It’s jewelry,” she said quietly and slowly reached into her bag.
“Alright then, let’s see it.”
She pulled out the gold ring, clenching her fingers around it for the last time. It had been her father’s. She played with it in her fingers for a moment before sliding it onto the counter. Her heart ached at the idea of parting with it, but it was solid gold, and she needed to get back onto her feet. It’s what he would’ve wanted, she told herself, as if that made her feel any better about it.
“Well that’s a nice piece of metal you’ve got there young lady, looks to be a man’s ring,” he said. “An ex-boyfriend’s perhaps?”
“No," Clarke said in a tone that she hoped implied she was not going to divulge any more.
The man took the ring and turned around, inspecting it carefully.
Clarke tensed up, hoping this man was not going to be like so many others and cheat her out of the one thing she had left that might be worth anything.
“Listen, I can tell it must be hard for you to part with this. And it’s a very beautiful ring indeed, we don’t see many like this in the Earth Kingdom so I certainly hope it’s not stolen. But anyway, I’m willing to give you a fair price for it,” he said after a minute.
Clarke let out a breath she didn’t realize she had been holding in.
The man placed a pile of money on the counter and Clarke thanked Agni that it did in fact seem like he wasn’t going to swindle her. She sniffed slightly, realizing she would never hold anything her father owned again, before collecting the money into her purse.
“Thank you,” she said quietly, still not really meeting the man's eyes.
“Take care of yourself out there young lady,” he said, as she exited the store.
With the money jangling in her purse, Clarke set out to the apartment she had been eyeing earlier. It was nice enough for the lower ring and well maintained. The shopkeeper below it said his niece had lived there, but she had left to marry a man from the middle ring and now he needed to rent it out to someone new. She had begged him to give her a week to get the money, and now she had it.
When she reached her destination, she took a deep breath. Things were going to get better from here, she promised herself. She would have a safe place to stay, to shower, to eat. She could find a good job and provide for herself. She could meet her neighbors and learn more about the city. Maybe, she could even make a friend.
She wondered briefly what her friends back in the capital thought of her now. A traitor, a coward, a runaway. Clarke pushed the thoughts away and entered the shop. The shopkeeper, a tan man with flecks of grey in his black hair, was sweeping between the shelves of dried goods.
“Hi Ren, I have the money for the apartment upstairs,” she said softly, hoping not to startle him.
He turned around and flashed her a smile, “Clarke! I’m so happy to hear that, it’ll be lovely to have you stay there.”
She gave him a reluctant half smile and forked over the amount they had agreed upon.
“Excellent, I’ll show you up right now,” he said before turning over his shoulder to shout, “Monty, get out here!”
A boy her age with similar features to Ren walked out and smiled briefly at her.
“Watch the shop for your pa while I show Miss Clarke here to her apartment upstairs,” he told the boy.
“Sure thing,” he responded. “Nice to meet you, Clarke.”
Clarke smiled slightly in return while Ren took her upstairs.
The apartment was sparsely furnished but plenty spacious for just her. There was a small kitchen, a bathroom, bedroom and dining area. It was perfect. After months on the road, it felt so soothing to have a place to call home.
“Thank you so much, Ren,” Clarke said genuinely, turning to look at the man beside her.
“Of course, do you have a job yet then?”
“No, but I’m spending the rest of the day looking until I find one. I intend to pay my rent every month and not give you any trouble,” she said.
“I’m sure of that Clarke,” he said. “Listen, my friend Chin down the street owns a small shop. He sells all sorts of crafts from ceramics to jewelry to paintings. You said you're good with art, yeah? And you know your numbers well?”
“Yes!” she said, excitement bubbling up inside. She desperately missed art. Back home, she had done everything from embroidery to calligraphy but mainly drawing. It was one of the few things she had enjoyed about the Royal Fire Academy for Girls.
“Well he’s looking for an assistant, someone to keep the books and watch the shop,” Ren said. “If you make any good pieces, he might even be willing to sell them as well. His last assistant has gone missing unfortunately, too many good young men going missing these days.” He shook his head sadly.
Clarke nodded although she honestly didn’t know what he was talking about since she hadn’t been in the city for long and hadn’t kept up with any sort of news either. “That sounds perfect, I will go down there immediately,” Clarke said, remembering the manners that had been drilled into her. “Thank you so much for the apartment and for thinking of me for the job. I am honored.” She bowed afterward.
Ren looked amused after she bowed but shook his head slightly and said, “No problem Clarke, tell Chin I sent you. I’ll see you around the shop later then.” And then he plodded off down the stairs.
Clarke smiled to herself and went to inspect the rest of the house. She happily discovered there were a few pieces of leftover clothing in the closet, from Ren’s niece she supposed. She decided to shower and put on the green cotton dress before heading down to the shop. She wanted to look professional for her new boss.
After she got cleaned up, she took a minute to sit at the edge of her bed. Her bed. It felt so gratifying to finally have something that was her own. Everything at home had been her parents and everything she did felt like it was to pay them for what she owed. As if she had asked for any of it at all.
Clearing her thoughts, she decided to head out. She tried her best not to think about the Fire Nation. Not to think about the spicy food she craved or the fire inside her that she had not tended to in ages. She quickly walked down to the shop that Ren had directed her to.
The shop was unassuming from the outside, simply labeled Chin’s Fine Art, but the inside was beautiful. There were rows of tapestries, paintings, vases, jewelry and every other type of craft she could think of. She hadn’t expected a shop in the lower ring to have such high-quality art pieces, but then again, everyone wanted to decorate their homes right?
She cleared her throat to get the attention of who she presumed was Chin. He was dusting a beautiful ceramic pot. He turned around, without so much as a smile, “Yes?”
“Um, well Ren sent me over, Ren from the shop down the way. I’m staying in the apartment above his place. He said you’re looking for an assistant. I’m actually an artist myself. Well, I was. But I’m great with numbers too. And I’m organized,” Clarke found herself rambling and cut herself off.
“Hmm,” he said, taking a minute to look her up and down. “You’re not from here are you?”
This was the question she hated getting. It was hard to answer, even after months of being asked it. All along the way to Ba Sing Se, people wanted to know where she was from. Soldiers, refugees, barkeepers. She knew she didn’t look Earth Kingdom, being pale with light eyes and hair.
“I’m a refugee,” Clarke said shortly, hoping that would put an end to it.
Chin held up his hands, “Ok then, that’s all I need to know. I don’t need an artist though. I just need an assistant. I need someone to track the purchases, watch the store, keep it clean.”
Clarke nodded, “Of course. I’m happy to do all of that.”
They spent a few minutes discussing her wage and hours. He needed her four days a week from morning till evening and he offered her a fair but meager wage compared to what she was used to back home. They shook hands and she promised to be there on Monday to learn the ropes, which left her with the rest of the weekend to get settled in to her new place.