A. N. : Wish you all some happy holidays if you have these, otherwise just a generally good time ! Also wish you to not get your home internet mysteriously going down, or having to emigrate to your uncle's house to get wifi. Things are going great. I accidentally had Sokka and Zuko refer to different units of length in earlier chapter, and decided to run with it. So the Fire Nation has meters, the Water Tribes have miles (maybe not even the same one between North and South), an the Earth Kingdom has li. The li was standardized during Kyoshi's era, to about 500m. Yes this was just for a throwaway joke, no I will not stop. Just wait until I mention money...

Jet is so fucking jealous.

That Sokka gets a master and learns sword-fighting, fine. That he gets a free sword out of it, okay. But a sword made of space rock !? Jet calls bullshit.

And of course they're the ones who have to push that big ass rock uphill, over what, fifty li ?

Thank the spirits Toph can do half of the work with her bending, otherwise Jet would've stabbed Sokka.

And when they arrive at the ridiculously large mansion – seriously, didn't Sokka say there were like, two people living there ? Jet could fit all of his kids in that house, two times – Jet has to squint at the door. Really ? A huge, gold, white lotus tile as decoration ? Even Zuko's uncle wouldn't. Probably.

Ok, no, he totally would and that just proves Jet's point.

He elbows Zuko to show him that stupid tile, but Zuko just frowns in confusion and lets out an offended what the fuck Jet. You'd really think after all this time spent with his uncle, the guy would end up remembering some Pai Sho, and yet.

So Jet has to point out the obvious. White lotus. Pai Sho. His uncle's favorite strategy. Seriously Zuko this is basic stuff you've got to be kidding.

And Zuko finally – finally – looks like he understands what Jet is saying. And then snaps his head back toward the door and mumbles something about – old people and a sunfish club ? What ? – and Jet wonders what's going on with that weird existential crisis Zuko is having over a terrible decoration choice.

Maybe… maybe it's about that whole friendship through Pai Sho philosophy that Zuko's uncle tried to teach Jet in the few days they played. Maybe there really is a secret resistance in the Fire Nation.

Maybe Zuko won't have to keep his stupid hood on for the entirety of their stay while praying his old master doesn't recognize his very recognizable face.

They all agreed, when Sokka came back to ask for their help, that Zuko would once again be Li, the very silent and very unnoticeable father of a totally non-Earth daughter. No one would ever suspect Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation of going around doing his traitory things with a child on his back, after all. Lin offers the perfect cover for hiding in plain sight – but even then, it's still better to just not have to hide at all.

Do they take that risk or not ? Jet would rather not chance their safety on Pai Sho tiles, but Zuko's reaction clearly showed there was more to it. And it's not like they have the time to discuss it. Ultimately, it's going to be Zuko's call.

Sokka knocks on the door, which opens immediately. And there's the master, looking at them in a perfectly normal and curious way like they are perfectly normal unexpected guests – except his eyes linger on Zuko a moment too long. No other reaction, but that was enough. They're busted. Totally busted. And unless the guy has the best gambling-face ever, he was expecting them to show up, not anyone else – he recognized Zuko, but he wasn't surprised to see him.

What the fuck did Sokka do that betrayed his identity ?

Still, they're all welcomed inside, a big man – not just a servant, he stands too straight for that, walks too much like a soldier – looks at the rock like he is reconsidering every decision he made in his life, before helping them push it while Sokka hurries to the forge, and when the door closes Jet realizes exactly how much of a perfect trap this would be. No Appa, no easy way out, a house big enough to hide fifty soldiers.

If that Piandao dude isn't on their side, they're fucked. Jet didn't think too much of it all before, because he trusted Sokka to be careful enough, but that was apparently the wrong choice and there are ten different horns blowing in Jet's head and shit, he should've anticipated this, should've planned for that, the others are too trustful so he has to take that duty upon his shoulders but he failed and now they're trapped and they could all be killed at any time, any moment now –

The master would start with Sokka, a silent, precise kill in the forge, away from curious eyes. Then Toph would feel something is wrong and the soldiers hidden in the house would storm out and the big man would deal the first blow. It would be a massacre on both sides, blood and death and fire and Jet can see it happen, can see them die one by one, Aang escaping by the scrap of his neck, but alone and injured in more ways than one, and Katara would try to bend like that again in a last ditch attempt to protect everyone and she would lose herself before losing her life, and Zuko would be kept alive, just barely, so that the privilege of killing him would go to either his sister or his father, and Lin would –

Jet's hand twitches at his side – failed failed can't trust fire scum, they're all going to die and it will be his fault for trusting – and it's all he can do to avoid grabbing his dagger – can't attract attention, he needs to find a way to warn the others, shit, why didn't they agree on a code earlier, if he manages to survive he will drill that into everyone's brain – and he keeps waiting for the shoe to drop and crush him.

He could stab the master right now. Or slit his throat while his back is turned. It wouldn't save them entirely, but it would help. One master is like an entire troop after all. Jet could –

Jet should –

He can't gamble all of their lives on a Pai Sho tile.