[Open]

[prettyinhandcuffs]

[Duo can be found wandering around the Spirit Wilds with a pencil and a newspaper in hand, scribbling bits of English onto the paper and occasionally going up to people to ask to get a bit of the text read to him.]

Hey, can you make out what that says?

[Man, he was glad the locals spoke English, even if they didn't write it. Couldn't be too hard to pick up the rest though, right?]

Comments

[wolfstrike]

Huh?

[Yuri blinks as some random guy comes up to him and shoves a paper at him. The dog at his side looking at Duo with impassive curiosity.]

Nope. It is supposed to mean something?

[prettyinhandcuffs]

Really? Thought this was the local language. It's what the paper's written in and everything.

[Duo peered at the newspaper, half expecting it to have changed. It took him half a moment to figure out the confusion.]

Ah, not the notes. The stuff that's handwritten I know what means. It's the rest I'm trying to figure out.

[restoredhonour]

[The scarred elderly man frowns at the paper, and then at Duo, at a loss.]

No, I'm afraid not. Is that some kind of code?

[prettyinhandcuffs]

[It was a pretty damn cool scar, if anyone asked Duo. Not that they did of course. But since the man seemed to be making the same mistake as the first guy Duo'd asked, Duo was ready.]

Not the handwritten stuff. The type font.

[restoredhonour]

[If he wasn't already confused, he is now.]

Yes, of course I can read that part. It's the front page of Republic City Times. Is there a problem?

[prettyinhandcuffs]

Yep. Least for me there is. Can't read it.

[He pointed to one of his scribbled notes.]

This is my language, and I'll tell you what, trying to translate something you don't have a basis for is hard.

[restoredhonour]

Ah, I see. Forgive my ignorance -- I've never seen anything like that language before.

[He must be one of those other worlders, like Henry. Intrigued, Lord Zuko focuses his attention back on the paper.]

Which part would you like me to read for you? Or perhaps there are specific words you would like me to mark down...?

[gainedacoupon]

[ Jin squinted her eyes, doing her best to try reading what she can only imagine were notes on this newspaper, but honestly it just looked like strange markings. ]

I'm really sorry, but it looks like I can't help.

[prettyinhandcuffs]

[And that made three for three. He was starting to get the idea that the locals just didn't really know about foreign languages. Duo rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh.]

Meant the typed. Though I'm starting to guess that no one uses Roman lettering around here, huh?

[gainedacoupon]

Sorry about that I guess I should have realized that's what you meant.

[ She gave him a sheepish smile and glanced at his paper again. ]

It's talking about how these spirits are kind of causing trouble and how the leaders of Republic city have kind of gone missing.

[prettyinhandcuffs]

Hey no worries. Should have been more specific.

[He puzzled over that information with a bit of a frown.]

Well that's not good news. Then again, what paper puts good news on the front page?

It say what kind of trouble?

[gainedacoupon]

It's saying that we should probably try staying away from the spirits the best that we can, because a lot of them giving contact to others are giving them strange physical changes.

[airyopalescent]

[Opal regards the paper with raised brows and curiosity clear on her expression. Then she gives the man a slight, somewhat sorry smile.]

I can't. I'm sorry.

[prettyinhandcuffs]

Ah, sorry, pointing to the wrong bit.

[Mostly because his 'pointing' had been holding the paper, but hey, semantics. Duo made sure to point out a specific part of the typed text, giving her a sheepish grin.]

Meant this. Trying to figure out what everything translates to in English.

[airyopalescent]

English?

[prettyinhandcuffs]

Yep, my language. Yours sounds just like it, but the writing's different.

[He pointed to the penciled in words.]

This is English.

[airyopalescent]

I see...

[She leans in a bit then to take in the penciled in words a little better.]

... It really is a whole different set of writing, isn't it.

[lavamylife]

[Bolin takes the piece of paper and looks pretty heavily at it, even squinting. He makes a rather concerned and frowning face. Not able to read it, he turns it upside down, thinking that maybe just maybe he's just not holding it right even though really there's no way it looks anything like Chinese from any angle, but nope, still nothing.]

Oh oh! I got it! [There's a sudden burst of enthusiasm that comes out of nowhere.] This is a secret message, right? [Then with a much more discrete voice.] Like a top secret message, right? Completely hush hush. And written........... in coooooode. You're a secret spy, and you want to know if I can be part of your mission, right?

[He pauses before sighing sadly.]

But I can't read it...

[No secret mission for Bolin...]

[prettyinhandcuffs]

[Duo had to stare at the other man for a moment before snickering and reaching to take the paper back as he shook his head. Sure, he'd done his share of spy work, but sorry Bolin, he wasn't up to that sort of thing here.]

Sorry buddy, scribbles are just English. I was actually asking about the bits in the local language. Can't read it, you see, and I'm trying to fix that.

[lavamylife]

Oh a different language? [There were other languages? That was actually something of news to him. Especially since everyone seemingly could speak to each other just as easily.]

You can't read the stuff here? I... uh, didn't know there were other languages here. Though if you're one of those people from another world, well...

[prettyinhandcuffs]

That's sure what it's sounding like. And we've got a ton of different languages, written and spoken.

[Finding a spot on the paper with room, he scribbled out a few words in Mandarin.]

This is the one I know that looks closest to yours, but I'm gonna guess to doesn't translate.

[bookbends]

[ Jinora looks at the paper for a moment, frowning before finally shaking her head. ]

No, I can't read it. I've never... [ She stops herself. ] Actually, I've seen someone with a book with writing like that! What is it?

[prettyinhandcuffs]

[He'd been about to go into the same spiel clarifying that he'd meant the typed text when he stopped and went over just what she'd said one more time.]

Really? It's English, one of the languages we use back where I'm from. Don't suppose you know where this person is now, do you?

[bookbends]

[ Jinora shakes her head. ]

Not... right now. He was looking for Avatar Korra. I'm sure I'll run into him again, though.

[prettyinhandcuffs]

Shoot. Well, maybe I'll run into him at some point too.

[Duo still flashed her a grin.]

Thanks anyway. Name's Duo.