Wrote this on the road while sleep-deprived, listening to traditional Chinese instrumental music, and having a conversation at the same time, so quality's probably not too great. Posting anyway; tell me your thoughts.
The moment Jet sees the boy's scar he knows they'll get along.
After all, it's just like his, only visible. The Fire Nation left a big ugly mark on him too, but it's an invisible thing that tries to smother him every day, as opposed to the huge burn in plain sight on the boy's face.
Sometimes Jet wishes he had a burn scar too or something to show as proof of what the Fire Nation did to him. All he has are memories, memories of screaming and blood and ashes, memories that stalk him wherever he goes, memories that trip him and taunt him and never leave him alone.
The memories are like a haze of anger and hatred that clouds his vision and muffles his ears, blocking logic and reason. They've caused him to do many stupid things before, which is why he's on this ferry to Ba Sing Se, looking for a fresh start. If he can get away from the Fire Nation, go somewhere where there are no firebenders, guaranteed, maybe the memories will leave him alone.
His Freedom Fighter instincts are still strongly intact though; barely any time has passed before he finds out about the captain's unfair food policy and his heart clenches in indignation; his fingers just itch to do something about it. Jet can't stand unfairness.
But he's trying not to get involved in such things anymore; he hasn't in a while. Not since Katara.
He's standing on the deck of the ship when he sees the boy for the first time. At first he only catches a glimpse of short dark hair and pale skin, but then the boy turns slightly, revealing a slash of dark red across the left portion of his face.
Jet's breath catches in his throat, because he knows exactly how that feels. It's like the scar his memories left him has been replicated on this refugee boy's face.
In that instant, Jet makes a decision and steps forward, just in time to hear the boy complain about the food and life in general. Jet offers him an opportunity, already knowing what the answer will be. Because this boy is just like him; he's been hurt and badly scarred, but he will keep fighting. He will get up again and again no matter how many times he's been pushed down.
The boy—Lee—has reminded Jet of why he fought in the first place. Katara made him realize he was far too extreme in his ways, but Lee made him remember why he was a Freedom Fighter in the first place. And if there's anything he can do to make something more fair, he should do it.
Lee turns out to be a skilled swordsman, excellent at wielding dual dao blades. He doesn't talk much, but when he does, his voice is quiet and raspy like it's been broken. He doesn't say anything about his past or why he's on his way to Ba Sing Se as a refugee, but Jet knows. He can see himself reflected in the boy's eyes—a curious shade of pale gold, one normal and the other skewed into a permanent glare.
He tells Lee as much, and Lee seems to agree. That's why Jet's so surprised when Lee turns down his offer to join the Freedom Fighters.
"Have it your way," he says, but he doesn't mean it. Lee would be perfect in their group, and he's already made up his mind. One way or another, he'll get Lee to join.
Then he sees the old man's tea.
Just a moment ago, the old man—Lee's uncle—was complaining about how cold his tea was. Now he's drinking it contentedly, steam wafting from his cup.
There's no way he could have heated his tea that quickly... unless he's a firebender.
Jet's eyes widen, and in that moment Lee turns to look at him. The two boys lock gazes for a moment, Jet's shocked and angry, Lee's heated and intense. Then Jet forces himself to turn away, heading towards the train into the city.
Smellerbee and Longshot catch up with him. They're talking—well, Smellerbee is talking about something interesting she's seen and Longshot is nodding, but Jet can't pay attention. If Lee's uncle is a firebender, that means he's Fire Nation. And if Lee's uncle is Fire Nation, that means...
Jet doesn't want to believe it because that would mean he was wrong about Lee, but he can't deny what he saw. It leaves a bitter taste in the back of his mouth to think he'd nearly trusted someone Fire Nation, that he'd thought he had something in common with someone Fire Nation, that his instincts had been wrong.
Suddenly, everything about Lee seems too Fire Nation, from his too-pale skin to his light gold eyes—even that burn scar; he probably got it from a firebending practice accident or something. Which would mean Lee's not only Fire Nation, he's also a firebender, just like the old man.
Smellerbee and Longshot don't see the situation as severely as Jet does when he tells them what he saw; Smellerbee even tells him to relax. "So the old guy had some hot tea. Big deal," she says.
"He heated it himself!" Jet snaps. "Those guys are firebenders."
To think he'd actually worked with a firebender...
It makes him so angry, because the reason he decided to move to Ba Sing Se in the first place was to get away from the Fire Nation. And now they've followed him here. He's been imagining this for a long time, setting foot in the great city behind the walls, and now that he's finally here, all he can think about is Fire Nation-related. It's still the same anger, the same hatred, the same memories crashing around him.
No. Jet clenches his teeth and shakes his head. He won't go back to being the rage-filled, compunctionless person he was only a few months ago. He's sure now that many of the things he did were wrong, and he doesn't want to let hatred warp him into that person again.
He'll do this the right way then, the proper way. Once he has sufficient evidence, he'll turn the firebenders over to the authorities. Lee and his uncle will be locked up, and then Jet can put them out of his mind.
And maybe then he can finally start over.