Eight years.

That's how long I'd been a Freedom Fighter. Eight years of blood, battle practice, and warrior paint.

I'd thought those eight years had prepared me for anything. But nothing could've prepared me for watching Jet die.

The training, the battles. They suddenly meant nothing. For the first time in those eight years I felt completely helpless. I felt like that lost little girl after the Fire Nation destroyed my village.

Just like then, I couldn't stop the tears.

Just like then, I was losing someone I loved.

Jet looked at me through glassy, pain-filled eyes. "Why are you crying, Little Bee?" he slurred. "There's nothing to be worried about. It's gonna be fine. It'll all be just… fine."

And then his eyes closed.

I didn't have to check for a pulse. Didn't need to listen for breathing. I knew he was gone.

I looked up at Longshot, who had an arrow notched in his bow, aiming towards the only entrance.

"Longshot," I managed to choke out, "I don't think they're coming. I think they're more worried about the Avatar than they are about a couple of kids who got in the way."

He looked at me. I've always been able to tell what he was thinking, even without reading his face, though I still don't know how. At the moment it was, (They are kids who got in the way.)

"You know what I mean. A couple of kids the fate of the world doesn't depend on. It's not like we'll be any help without Jet. We're not benders!"

He put the arrow back in his quiver and lowered his bow. Then he walked over and sat down next to me.

(We'll be okay.)

"HOW? We're alone. Pipsqueak and the Duke are all the way in Omashu, Sneers and everyone else are back in the forest, and Jet's…" I couldn't bring myself to say it. "We can't depend on him anymore."

(We'll be FINE.)

I jumped up. "No, we won't! How can you even THINK that! Jet was the one that got us to join the Freedom Fighters. He was the one who created the Freedom Fighters! Without him, honestly, we'd be dead! Killed by hunger, or thirst, or how about the FIRE NATION?"

(You're back to your old self, I see. You know, it's kind of scary, seeing you like that.)

Like what, I thought, a girl? "My POINT!" I yelled.

(Okay. You're right. We wouldn't have… survived if it wasn't for him. But he wouldn't like seeing you like this. He even said so.)

I hadn't realized he'd been listening. I fell back onto my knees and stroked Jet's forehead. "I guess you're right. But what are we gonna do? We can't stay here. The Dai Li WILL come after us, eventually."

(We can get the Freedom Fighters back together.)

I looked at him. "What?"

(Jet would've wanted us to. We know where everyone is. Pipsqueak and the Duke are in Omashu, Cinnamon and Honey said they'd go back to the Northern Water Tribe, Sneers is back in the forest, managing everyone who stayed, and everyone else said they'd stay around there.)

I had to admit it was a pretty good plan. There were just a couple… kinks. "Okay," I said slowly. "Omashu's maybe a month or so away, a couple weeks if we somehow get an ostrich-horse or something. There aren't too many villages around the forest, so it shouldn't be that hard to find everyone who stuck around. But do you REALIZE how far away the Northern Water Tribe is? We're in the Southern Earth Kingdom. Omashu's even farther south, if we want to go there first. And then we have Sneers. He's 'in charge' of everyone else. You know how stubborn he is. And he was the one who got us to leave in the first place. I don't think he'll be wanting us back there any time soon."

He cocked an eyebrow. (And has that ever stopped you before?)

I smiled. "No. But what about Cinnamon and Honey? It wouldn't be the Freedom Fighters without them." Even though they were Water Tribe, they were still like my sisters.

(We just need time. And it's not like we have to do this by the end of Summer, or anything.)

"Yeah. But speaking of Summer's end, we should probably see if we can help Aang."

(What happened to us not being any help without Jet?)

"Honestly, Aang needs all the help he can get." I thought a moment. "But, about Jet, what can we do with him? It's not like we can carry him all the way to the hideout, and we can't exactly bury him here."

(I think… he wouldn't want us to move him. He'd rather stay at the field of his last battle. Even if it wasn't against the Fire Nation.)

"So… we just… leave him?"

Longshot nodded. (He would've wanted it that way.)

I nodded slowly. "Yeah. You're right." I stood up and held out my hand. "Well, come on. We've gotta get going if we wanna get Pipsqueak and the Duke before they blow up Omashu." The kid loves explosives. I still regret introducing him to blasting jelly.

Longshot took my hand and I pulled him up. I'd just started walking when I got an idea.

"Hang on," I said. I ran back over to Jet.

I obviously didn't have any flowers on me, but I felt like I needed to leave something.

So I unsheathed my khukri and laid it across his chest. It'd been a present from him. My first weapon.

Longshot stepped beside me. He took an arrow out of his quiver and set it so the point touched the tip of the sword.

He looked at me. (A piece of each of us.)

I smiled, just a little. It hurt, but we needed to get moving. There wasn't enough time to just sit there, crying.

I started walking. "Come on. Before the Duke gets into even more trouble than us."