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Post by belated valentine on Jan 6, 2016 3:25:15 GMT -5
Luani hopped off Jet’s lap to go and help her friend bring in the plates. “Wait up!” she called, running off into the kitchen. She came back with one of the plates, Mei holding the other. The girls placed them down on the table, and then she saw Mei run over and jump onto Jet’s lap. Not fair!
“Mei! I was sitting there!” she grabbed a piece of salami and pushed Mei so she was only sitting on half of his lap, and she sat on the other. “Here try this, this is MY favorite!” she stuck the piece into Jet’s mouth. “Which is better?” she asked curiously.
Suyin couldn’t help but laugh. It was clear the two girls had a sort of crush on him. She smiled at Mei. “Thank you, you’re a sweetheart,” she replied, but she really hoped the others didn’t stare at her eyes when Mei brought them up. Thankfully everyone was engaged in chat.
“Read my fortune!” one of the neighbors had piped up in a slurred voice.
“You’re going to die a drunk,” Biyu replied without a second thought.
“That’s the plan!” The room erupted in laughter.
“Hey honey, you’re so quiet! Come here, you can be the first,” she turned to look at Suyin, who wasn’t too far away. “Come, give me your hands,” She leaned forward, over the table, and grabbed Suyin’s hands, startling her. “What’s your name again sweetheart?”
“S...um-Chai.”
Biyu looked at her knowingly. “That’s right, Chai. Is it okay if I read your fortune?”
“Sure.”
The woman reached up, pulling one of the flowers from her hair. She picked a petal from it and dropped it into one of the cups of tea, staring into it for a moment. She then focused again on Suyin, eyes closed for a moment. “Dear, you are running. This is something common for you. When I look at you I see movement, but I’m afraid it’s not the freeing kind, not yet. There is conflict in your life.” she pointed at her own neck then at Suyin’s. “You have learned loss, but my child I’m afraid to tell you there is more to come your way. But you must be strong, and you must face your demons.”
“However, you have a guardian - more than one actually,” she glanced at Jet then with a small smile. “One will leave your life, and the other will become an important figure for you.”
“As far as your love life…” Suyin blushed at this. “The man that you spend your life with will be a strong one. He will encourage you and guide you through troubling times. At times he is cold like the edge of a blade, but other times he is warm like the fire within you. He is very different from you, but you shouldn't let this break your spirit. Love is different for everyone, Remember, a relationship is only for those involved and the opinions of others shouldn’t be tolerated.”
She leaned in very close to Suyin for a bit more privacy. “I am only worried dear because I see things. It would be wise of you to not have children.” Biyu traced her finger over the fire bender's palm. The characters of her name. Su Yin
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Post by Fateful on Jan 6, 2016 3:52:00 GMT -5
"If you fight, I'm going to make you sit on the floor." He warned them as they climbed into his lap. He wasn't strict, but he wasn't a push over either. He tried the salami and he looked impressed. "That tastes pretty good, but I think they would taste better together." Jet placed each one of his hands on their heads and put their foreheads together. "You two should remember that your friendship comes before anything else." He smirked and leaned down at them. "And don't fight over food, because all food is delicious where I come from."
Mei giggled and covered her mouth. "You don't come from anywhere, you're a wanderer, right?"
"Oh, so I'm not stupid anymore?" He straightened his back when Biyu approached Suyin. He didn't want anything to happen. If this woman was actually what she claimed to be, then there was a chance she would know something.
The girls chatted in his lap as he listened to what Biyu said to her and he found himself growing more and more interested. She was running. This worried him, there was more battles to follow. He had always known that, but the fact someone else was telling him that he would have to kill for her before this was over somehow caught him by surprise. Suyin was running and part of the reason was become of him, he was leading her through an entire continent to a place where he wasn't sure he could really keep her safe. Why he wanted to keep her safe, he wasn't quite sure, but no one deserved to die the way they had tried to kill her. The people who hurt her were people who were supposed to love and care for her. Jet felt something inside him burn knowing that, knowing that a leader had the gaul to kill one who followed them, one they mentored and betrayed for no other reason than to satisfy themselves. Killing someone who you were responsible for didn't make you a leader, it made you a coward.
Everyone seemed interested in Suyin's reading and he moved his arm to Mei's head and his elbow softly touched Suyin's shoulder, as if indicating that she wasn't alone. He was looking at the girls who were laughing and excited to hear Biyu speak of love and how she would be loved so dearly, but it would confuse her.
"That's not nice!" Mei declared. "He should love you no matter what and warm himself so he's not so cold. You'll have to warm him up with love and food. Momma says food makes all men happy."
One of the men laughed as he was poured another drink. "Hear that? It's food that makes us happy." All the men laughed.
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 6, 2016 23:55:13 GMT -5
Suyin stared at the woman as she spoke, and then at the others. She was afraid of the woman mentioning something she didn’t exactly want the strangers around her to know. Like how she tried to kill the Firelord. Often she thought of how things would’ve gone had she succeeded. Would she have been set free. Would the people in this room be as happy as they were now, or would they be locked away in their homes in fear?
Her eyes fell upon the two small girls and guilt hit her instantly.
When the woman traced her real name over the palm of her hand, Suyin froze. Fear washed over her immediately. Jet’s touch on her shoulder pulled her back to reality. Before she could stop herself she was standing up. “E-excuse me,” she said, and headed down the hall and toward the bathroom.
Biyu watched her get up and her blue eyes stayed on her for a second as she headed to the bathroom. As she stared, her fingers reached for the next hands, and she turned her head back to the situation in front of her. Jet was next to Suyin, so his fortune was next. “Now you, handsom-” she had started to say, but she quickly pulled her hands back, as if she had been stung.
Biyu’s husband took notice of this and quickly tried to change the subject. “Hey, Meilin, when is that roast of yours gonna be done?” he called into the kitchen.
Suyin had also glanced back just in time to catch the strange interaction. Her hand was on the doorknob, about to step into the restroom when she saw it occur. It looked as though she had gotten burned. Who exactly was he? She turned away and entered the bathroom.
However Luani saw this and she stared. “Who are you?” she had asked, looking up at Jet.
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Post by Fateful on Jan 7, 2016 0:11:30 GMT -5
When Suyin stood, Jet's legs tensed, but was unable to stand due to the girls in his lap. She walked off and he watched her. However, when Biyu leaned toward him, he was surprised she was going to do him. He shook his head as her hands came forward. Her hands softly came to his and she suddenly pulled away as if his very skin had burned her. While he had never really believed in fortunes, he knew that anything was possible. Maybe she could see, maybe she couldn't. In any case, she saw or thought or knew something incredibly horrible about him. Something horrible and dark that he wished he could bury deep within the earth kingdom, things he tried to burn away in the fire nation, things that even the north pole could never wash away.
He looked down and was quiet until Luani asked him who he was. A weak smile came to his face and he shook his head. "Someone who does horrible things." He finally said.
"Girls!" Meilin called. "Please come help me bring all of this to the table."
Mei slowly slid out of Jet's lap and watched him as she went to the kitchen to help her mother. She was quiet and started to bring pans to the table, placing them on cloth to protect the table from the heat.
Jet stood from the couch and moved toward the door, looking outside at the lights from the village in the distance. He should have known that it wouldn't be easy here, that even here, he was never truly home. He looked across the room to see Suyin looking at him and he stared at her. He subtly moved his head to indicate that she should come over to him.
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 7, 2016 0:22:35 GMT -5
Luani’s eyes were wide. Without saying anything, she pushed off of Jet’s lap and walked over to her mother who was still quiet, trying not to stare at Jet but it was clear that she kept looking at him. “Mom,” the girl said, giving her mother’s shoulder a shake. The woman finally snapped out of it and stood with her daughter. The girl pulled her to the kitchen, but she kept looking behind her shoulder and at Jet.
Suyin walked out of the bathroom to find everyone else getting up and moving to the kitchen. To be honest, she wasn’t hungry at the moment. There was a lot on her mind. Her eyes caught Jet’s as he motioned for her to follow. With a quick glance at the others, she ducked through the crowd and out the front door with him. “That woman knew my name,” she said, looking back at the house as they walked away. “And what happened just then?” she questioned, gold eyes curious.
“You scared her.”
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Post by Fateful on Jan 7, 2016 0:29:02 GMT -5
Jet walked through the back yard with Suyin in silence. He wasn't really sure what to say. "I..." He paused. "I don't know what happened. She barely touched me and all of a sudden, she pulled away. I'm guessing if she knows your name, she knows things about me too." He looked down at the ground and then sighed heavily. His back rested against a tree and he turned to face Suyin. "I don't think it would surprise you based on the things you've seen me do that I have done things I wish I hadn't done." He finally said to her.
"If anything, I suppose she saw those things." He shrugged and rested his head against the tree so he could look all the way up at the stars. "Are you scared?"
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 7, 2016 1:03:43 GMT -5
“Should I be?” she asked, stopping beside him. “I don’t know enough about you to to be scared of you.” Truthfully, she was once afraid of him. In the beginning. But that was because she was convinced that he was going to kill her. Now, however, she wasn’t entirely sure what she felt. Who really was he?
She followed his gaze up to the stars, and her golden eyes wandered, trying to piece together the constellations she had once studied in school. “I think if we plan to travel together for a bit longer, we should probably establish some trust, right?” she asked, her eyes falling back onto him.
She contemplated for a moment. Her lips opened momentarily and then shut again, almost as if she wondering whether or not she should say what she was thinking. But then she did. “I wish I hadn’t tried to kill the Firelord. What sort of things do you wish you hadn’t done?”
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Post by Fateful on Jan 7, 2016 1:13:31 GMT -5
Jet motioned for her to come closer to him. When she did, he stood up straight, rather than leaning on the tree. "I made choices. As much training as you've had, I'm guessing that you've never killed anyone, that you've member seen anyone die, at least not in battle. I assume that you never had to take someone's life." He wasn't looking at her, he was still looking at the stars above them and how they glistened like rain in the dark forest.
"I have." He finally said. "I've killed people, Suyin. I've killed people to survive, I've killed people for revenge, I've killed people because I thought it would bring peace." He finally looked to her. "I wanted to kill the fire lord when he was nothing, when he was a refuge, as I was, as I became because of his father and grandfather." He took a few slow steps toward her, showing he didn't intend to hurt her.
When he reached her, he sighed. "I regret the things I've done and the people who died, but I can't change what happened. Despite that, I don't actually regret the men I've killed and the lives I've taken." He looked into her eyes. "If she knows who you are just by touching you, she knows who I am too, and it repulsed her."
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 7, 2016 1:45:29 GMT -5
Suyin didn’t say anything as he spoke, she just looked at him. It was true, she had never actually killed anyone. She had no idea what it felt like to kill someone. She had no idea how it felt to be able to say to another person that you’d taken someone’s life. Just how many people had he killed? The thought quickly left her mind. Most, if not all, of those people were likely of the Fire Nation and while that scared her a bit, she also couldn’t find it in her to hold it against him.
Being in the Earth Kingdom, she was learning things about the war she hadn’t known. It was another perspective. It was here that she learned that many of the people of the Fire Nation were brainwashed into thinking the war was good and that it helped the people of the other nations. That the Fire Nation was only trying to unify them all.
She opened her mouth to speak, but another voice took over.
“Hey,” Biyu said, standing in the doorway. She wandered out to them, barefoot. Her hands were folded on her chest, against the brightly colored cloths she wore. “I apologize about earlier.” She looked at Jet. “I didn’t mean to frighten you, I was just taken aback by you. Don’t take that the wrong way. When I touch someone I see their life and what they’ve gone through, and I was surprised by the things I saw.”
She put her hand on his shoulder. “You’ve endured a lot, is what I mean. You’ve also dealt a lot, but that is a different story.”
“Would you like me to properly read your fortune?”
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Post by Fateful on Jan 7, 2016 1:58:46 GMT -5
Suyin said nothing to him and it didn't surprise him. Even now, she had every right to fear him, to bend and try to escape. These people knew who she was, what she was. Jet knew, deep down, that she wouldn't be safer in the Earth Kingdom without him. Without people, without friends, she would be lost, she would have nothing. She would be alone and in that loneliness, no good would come. He always had a reason to move forward, to keep going: to protect, to lead, to council, to build. There was always something he had to do for those around him that kept him from really thinking about what he had done, to stop him from being distracted or upset. He didn't dwell on the things he could not change. After all, dwelling on what has already happened wouldn't save those people.
When Biyu came out to them, Jet's arm moved, but he didn't grab a weapon. He wanted to, but he didn't have them with him, nor did he raise a hand high enough to grab them, even if they were on his back. His eyes went to the ground and he was quiet. "If what you say is true, then you know I wasn't frightened." He finally looked to her, wondering what exactly he should say to her. "That still doesn't change what I've done. I don't know what you saw, but it doesn't matter anymore. Part of the person you saw is dead. I want him to be dead; to feel as I once did, to want to kill that way. I can't ever go back to being that ever again."
His eyes drifted to Suyin. "It accomplishes nothing to be so angry. I want a better life, for me and for my freedom fighters. That being said, I don't need a mystic to tell me my future. I have too much control of what happens in my life for you to be able to predict anything accurately. I appreciate your apology, but you should take her back inside." He gestured to Suyin. "She needs to eat."
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 7, 2016 2:17:04 GMT -5
Biyu smiled. “Of course. I was going to tell you that you have the strength to move past that. You already are,” she said, her eyes set on Suyin. To help a firebender after spending a lifetime of hating them. If anything was considered growth, it was that.
“Alright, he’s right. Come on, dear,” Biyu said as she held onto Suyin’s arm and carefully pulled her back into the house.
“Wait-” Suyin started, trying to pull away from the woman. She wasn’t ready to go in, but Biyu held her tight and continued walking. “Jet!” she called, as he stayed behind. Suyin realized her mistake as she said his name, but there was no one else nearby and the door to the house was shut. The only other person there was Biyu and she was certain that she knew his name already. Regardless, Suyin gave him one more glance. “I’m still not afraid of you!” With that, Biyu pulled her indoors.
“Is that the name he’s going by? That’s not what I saw.” Biyu said, with a small smile. Then she motioned to the dining area. “Come, let’s eat.”
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Post by Fateful on Jan 7, 2016 2:30:25 GMT -5
Having the strength didn't mean he felt as if he had strength. Still, it was a start and he wanted to try, to move forward and to be able to achieve things for himself, on his own with his friends. There was no other options; he had to do this for himself and for his people.
I'm still not afraid of you...
The words made him smile and he turned to watch her go back inside. He exhaled and relaxed slightly. He looked up at the stars, and strangely enough felt better, knowing she wasn't scared of him. A fire bender knew that he had killed other fire benders, dozens of them, and she didn't fear him. Certainly that meant something? It had to mean something.
So, he smiled to himself and watched the stars move before him and wondered, if maybe, Biyu was right and this was the path that he would make it so he wouldn't hate the choices he had to make to get to this place. Everything culminated to this place and this time, where he was lying about who he was and where he came from to protect a fire bender that was betrayed by a man who dared to call himself a leader.
After a few moments, he went inside and found Mei standing at the door waiting for him shyly. He slid the door closed and looked down at her. "You should be at the table."
"I know." Mei said softly, looking to where everyone was sitting. "But I don't believe you. You're a traveler, and you're a good man. Biyu said so. You just... struggled. She said that you struggled. Is that they you travel so much?"
Jet bent down to his knees before the girl. He put his hand on the girl's head, rubbing it and then pulling her into a tight hug. When he loosened his grip, he looked down at her and rose her chin to look at him. "The war is over now, but when I was your age, war raged. The avatar ended that, but the fire nation once did horrible things. I lived through those horrible things and it made me do things that I think are horrible. I'm not the bad guy. I'm not a monster and I wouldn't ever hurt you, okay?"
Mei started to smile and when he finished talking, it blossomed into a beautiful grin that spread ear to ear. Her mouth was open and she looked delighted. She jumped into Jet's arms and hugged him. Then she lead him to the table, holding his hand.
"If you really want to read something," He addressed Biyu. "You'll tell me when the two of them will marry." He pointed to Smellerbee and Longshot with a grin.
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 7, 2016 3:11:11 GMT -5
Biyu looked up from her plate when Jet entered. She was surprised that he’d returned so quickly. “I’m not allowed to share without their permission,” She winked at Longshot and Smellerbee. “But I’ll tell you that you should learn a thing or two from them.”
Smellerbee looked up when he walked in. “Back from your pout fest?” she asked, in a teasing voice.
Luani saw Jet come in and she smiled. She slid off her chair and patted the seat. “Here, sit by Chai!” She then squeezed herself into the seat Mei was sitting so that they were each on half of the chair. Leaning toward Mei, she eyed Jet. “See that, my daddy calls that ‘being a wingman,” she whispered to the girl next to her.
It was still so strange for Suyin to see him so good with children, but it brought a smile to her face nonetheless. From a man who had just confessed to killing several people, he did come off as a good person if you didn’t know that part about him. She scooted her chair a little to give him some space to sit down. The rest of the table was already up in chatter and laughter and someone leaned in to pour Jet a drink.
“Drink up! Tomorrow we’re sleepin’ in.” Someone said and another person passed him a plate full of a variety of foods.
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Post by Fateful on Jan 7, 2016 14:21:17 GMT -5
The notion of learning from them made him smile as he was lead to the table. The food smelled and looked amazing. "I've learned enough from them over the years, trust me."
"I wouldn't have to pout if it wasn't for you always getting me in trouble." Jet told Smellerbee, but shrugged all the same. It wasn't really about her, and it was the only way he could tell her that it was because of her he didn't need to stay isolated. He was a leader and sometimes that came with horrible situations and bad choices. He didn't want to dwell on the past. He knew he had to accept it, but not living in it was what he had to push through in this instance and being alone and isolated from these people would not help him in this situation.
That, and he could probably eat a sabertooth moose-lion. He was starving. For days he had eaten less than the other three and today he had done far more work. Passing out from hunger wouldn't do anyone any good. Biyu didn't seem intent on turning in Suyin as a fire bender, so he didn't see a reason to keep being upset when she wasn't afraid of him. He supposed he believed her if he knew Suyin's name, but he didn't want to alienate the people who had been so generous with them. His people.
Mei sat with Luani and looked at Jet and Suyin together, curious as to why they seemed so close and distant with one another. "How can you be a wingman if you're a girl? And What does a wingman even mean? Flying away?" She then started giggling at the table and ate what was on her plate. The girls wanted to help pour drinks for one another, but didn't have enough space since they were sharing a seat.
In the end, Jet poured them each a drink and told them it was what the adults were drinking. It wasn't, but they seemed happy pretending.
The incident was well forgotten as they ate and continued to pour drinks.
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Post by belated valentine on Jan 8, 2016 1:42:31 GMT -5
"Yeah, like an airbender!" Luani said, sticking her fork in some meat and chewing on it. “Mom can I be an airbender?”
“That’s not how it works sweetie,” she responded.
Suyin ate quietly, a smile on her face. This was really nice. It really did feel like a family. From across the table, she could see Biyu look her way. To be honest, she got a good vibe from the woman and she was thankful that she didn’t spill her secret. The woman gave her a smile and small wink.
As Jet talked with Smellerbee and Longshot, Suyin listened in. She didn’t actually partake in the conversation, but it was nice to hear the chatter around her. Instead, she sat and sipped her drink. It was sweet like juice and tasted great. She finished the first glass politely, but within a matter of minutes it was full again. Not this again.
Smellerbee scoffed. “Seriously? I’m the one always getting you out of trouble,” she joked. Well, sort of. It was true. She was teasing him mostly because she knew that he had been upset over what happened with Biyu.
Truthfully, he was better than he was before. She knew known him for a great deal of time and he was much different than she had known him before. That same drive that she admired was there, but he was channeling it differently.
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