Mako sighed as he looked at the few yuans he had made that day. There were barely enough to feed one person, much less two. This isn't fair, Mako thought to himself. A 13 year old shouldn't have to be fighting to survive, barely scraping by on a day to day basis, all while trying to care for his 11 year old brother. They should be home with their parents, playing together and enjoying the sunshine. But no, their parents were dead, and Mako and Bolin had to fend for themselves on the streets of Republic City. Mako quickly used his fire bending to smoke the fish he had managed to catch, and then turned to look for his brother.
"Bolin?" Mako asked, looking around. Bolin had a tendency to wander off, even though Mako was constantly telling him not to. "Where did you go now?" he sighed as he went off in search of his brother. Knowing Bolin, he probably wasn't too far off, but Mako was still worried. Ever since he'd watched his parents die, he hardly trusted anyone.
"Mako!" a voice suddenly called from behind him. Mako sighed with relief.
"Bolin, where were you?" he asked.
"Look what I found!" Bolin said, holding up a small fire ferret. Mako shook his head. Bolin was always finding the most random things.
"Where did you find that?" he asked.
"In the square by the statue of Firelord Zuko," Bolin explained. "Can we keep him?" His eyes widened pleadingly. Mako sighed. He hated saying no to his brother, but this was just a little too much. They could barely feed themselves, much less another animal. Not to mention, it was probably riddled with disease.
"I'm really sorry, Bolin. We just can't afford another mouth to feed," Mako said. Bolin's face fell, and Mako felt horrible.
"Please?" Bolin begged. "He's really good, and we could train him to find his own food… I'll take care of him, please?" Mako was trying to hold a straight face. He hated having be the responsible one. "How can you say no to this little guy?" Bolin held the fire ferret up in front of him, eyes wide. It squirmed out of his grip and climbed up Mako's arm onto his head. It sat there with his tail wrapped around Mako's face, occasionally getting in his mouth and nose.
"Okay, okay," Mako laughed. "But you have to promise me you'll take care of him. I can't do it all, you know." Bolin smiled, and gave his brother a hug.
"Yes, thank you, Mako! I promise!" he said. Mako smiled back, and the fire ferret climbed down from his head back onto Bolin's shoulder.
"What should we call him?" Mako asked.
"Umm…. How about Pabu?" Bolin suggested. Mako had no idea where the name had come from, but he liked it.
"Pabu it is," he agreed. "C'mon, let's go find some dinner." Bolin nodded and the two walked off together, their new pet following closely behind.