Forgot to update here . . . I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Glass Half Empty
III
Mushi starts to stare at both him and Li with such an intensity that it almost unnerves Jet, the tanned Alpha already used to seeing the old man as nothing but all smiles, a smile that returns when the man seems to light up like a lantern, smiling bright as he hugs the vase closer to his body and says with a too chipper tone that belays the hidden mischief.
"Jet, why don't you take Li and look around the city for a bit~?"
Jet blinks.
And Li damn near has an aneurysm.
"It's been a while since he's done anything fun, I think it'd be nice if he were to hang out with someone his own age~."
Li is gawking, but his jaw snaps shut soon enough and he starts bristling, readying himself for what looks to be a tantrum that would, without a doubt, end the world . . . but Jet is already thinking, his mind already coming up with multiple possibilities, and they all point to the same thing. This is a chance for him to learn more about Li, to at least crack open his shell just a tiny fraction. So Jet smiles one of his best disarming smiles and says with complete confidence:
"Sure thing."
Li whirls on his heels to glare Jet down.
Mushi smiles even brighter, "Great~!" the old man starts to turn away from them, "Make sure to bring him back before dinner~! There's a curfew if I remember correctly!"
Jet watches the old man disappear into the crowds before turning to his bristling companion, the look on Li's face almost makes the Alpha want to take a step back, instead Jet offers another disarming smile that only seems to grate on Li's nerves even more, but he continues, not to be deterred by Li's scornful glower. Slipping an arm behind Li's back without touching, corralling him, and using his other arm to gesture the opposite direction of where the teenager's uncle had just disappeared in.
"Seems we've got all day to look around."
Li continues to scowl at him, standing rigid in the middle of the street, the air surrounding him turning vile with murderous intent, his face twisted to match the scarred half, hateful and ugly, the people choosing to move around the mock statue. Again, Jet has to remind himself that Li is an Omega, and it just blows all previous thoughts of what Omegas were out of the water because Li is an angry and scornful Omega, snarling at the world that did him injustice . . . Li was probably from a well off noble family with the way he holds himself, but had a run in with the Fire Nation. And it's just depressing thinking about how much they've lost, about how different they would have been if they hadn't been touched by the war.
Shaking himself out of it, Jet rolls his eyes at the huffy teen and lets his arms fall to his side, his hands resting easily on his hips as he starts to stroll away, "You've got a choice, Li!" he calls back to the Omega, and it's only when he hears an annoyed huff behind him does he realize that Li had decided to follow and that adds another question to his growing list surrounding Li, what made him so adept at sneaking around, but Jet slows his pace and allows Li to walk beside him, "So," Jet toys with the stem in his mouth, "Any ideas?"
"You mean you don't?" Li spits bitterly, Jet glances at him, Li looks away petulantly, "No."
Jet regards Li for a moment before he lifts his nose to the air and attempts to locate a certain smell.
Li snaps, "What are you doing?"
Jet turns to look at Li once more, "Trying to find the food stalls?"
Li's nose seems to wrinkle as he hisses, "By sniffing the air like some animal?"
"Well," Jet's suspicions about Li being from a noble family seem to be right on the money if he's upset about proper etiquette, "That's how we did it back in the forest."
Li's mouth opens but immediately snaps shut, his entire body turning tense and his eyes pinned to Jet's left, Jet then feels someone at his side, turning to look at the perpetrator, he's greeted with the sight of a tall woman with an overly pronounced hourglass figure, dressed in black silk and classy jewelry, her lips and lids painted blood red, her hair a silky black and styled in a sophisticated up-do, she scans them over with unsettling hazel eyes . . . the woman reeks of pheromones and sex, enough so that it begins to bleed into the air and cling to his very person.
"Can we help you?" Jet finally asks.
"You can." the woman speaks, she sounds like those nobles still being spoon fed from a silver spoon and it grates on Jet's nerves, "I am the Mistress of the brothel, the only brothel you'll find in Ba-Sing-Se. I hear that a young man matching your description saved one of my kits."
Behind him, Jet can hear Li murmur a confused, "Kits?"
"I would like to offer you a job."
Jet offers his best charismatic grin, lacing the edges with the slightest bit of poison, placing himself between the woman and Li, "Sorry, I'm not looking to whore myself out. But I am flattered that you think I have the looks to do so."
The woman rolls her eyes at Jet's entire being, "I meant as the muscle. As you are no doubt aware, the job my kits do is quite dangerous, especially when there happens to be a jilted patron. I don't like it when my kits are roughed up and I very much dislike the trouble of tracking unruly patrons down to teach them a manner or two."
Jet tilts his head, "What would I have to do?"
"Stand guard. Patrol. Listen and look out for trouble, deal with it."
"I'm a refugee." Jet drawls, fishing for more.
The woman sighs, "You will be paid, and by working for me, I can offer services in the way of protection and such if need be."
"And the trouble, I can deal with it any way I like?"
"As you see fit."
Jet grins, "All right. I'm in."
"Good." the woman gives Jet a firm handshake, "You start this evening, don't be late."
Both Jet and Li watch the woman walk away with a sway to her hips, easily disappearing just as easily as she'd appeared.
"You're really going to work for her?"
"Sure," Jet turns to face Li, "Why not?"
"She . . . smells." Li mutters, Jet arches a brow, Li groans, "She smells like Omegas, multiple Omegas, all in heat and Alphas . . . Alphas." Jet doesn't understand what Li is trying to get at and Li knows this for he regains his composure and snaps at him, "How are you even going to find this place?"
"With this." Jet holds up a paper the woman had placed within his hand during their handshake.
G-H-E
They eventually find the food stalls and food peddlers when they come across a large crowd surrounding something, curious, Jet makes his way through the crowd with Li hissing at him to leave things alone. As they're making their way through the people, they pick up on people making cooing sounds and wistful sighs . . . it puts Li on edge, but when is he never on edge. They finally break through the throng of people and are immediately greeted by the sounds of someone singing: it's a man singing to a woman, the man is smiling as he twirls the woman around, the woman smiling wide as she too joins in on their own special love song.
It was a little disappointing to see that it was nothing worthwhile.
"Okay Li," Jet sighs, he turns to his companion, "Let's go."
Jet pauses when he sees the way Li is scowling at the woman, his eyes glazed over and his arms lightly wrapped around himself.
"The woman's an Omega." Li murmurs as if in a trance.
Jet's brows furrow, "Yeah, and?"
Li looks up at him, Jet witnessing the light return to his eyes as Li gets a hold of himself and shakes his head, "Never mind." he turns and starts shoving his way past the people crowding the scene, "Let's get something to eat."
And Jet follows in silence, eyes glued to the back of Li's head . . . something happened, something that must have deterred him from embracing his rank, something that left him bitter . . . a hand falls on his shoulder, the startled teen grabs the wrist and twists the arm behind the person's back.
"What are you doing!?" a familiar voice snaps, "Let go!"
Jet immediately releases Smellerbee's wrist, "Smellerbee? Longshot?" he's legitimately baffled by their presence, "What are you guys doing here?"
Smellerbee is rubbing her wrist, glaring at Jet as she says, "What do you mean what are we doing here!? I was calling your name for the longest time!"
"I was . . . just thinking." Jet looks around and doesn't see Li anywhere, "Did you guys see Li?"
"Li?" Smellerbee questions before huffing under her breath, "Spirits, Jet. Is that why you're messing around instead of looking for a job?"
"Hey." Jet grins at his friends, "I have a job, I start tonight."
"Tonight?" Smellerbee frowns.
Longshot stares at Jet.
Jet turns his head away, twirling the wheat stalk in his fingers, "I'm working as hired muscle at a brothel."
Smellerbee flounders, "Jet! That's not . . . that isn't a job that will . . . !"
"Hey!" Jet interrupts, "I got a job, right?"
"Still . . . ,"
"There he is." Jet interrupts once more, he starts walking towards Li, the other watching a vendor cook some kind of meat, Smellerbee grumbles underneath her breath while Longshot gives her an even stare, she huffs once more. "By the way," Jet throws over his shoulder, "We're eating at Li's place tonight."
Smellerbee's shoulders fall, her eyes wide, she turns to Longshot with a harsh gesture at Jet's back, silently asking if Longshot was even hearing Jet at this point, Longshot blinks and Smellerbee groans . . . Jet saddles up beside Li:
"Are you going to get some?"
"I don't know."
The day passes relatively easily and before they know it, dinner is fast approaching and they're all piling into Li and Mushi's little apartment, Li sitting grumpily across from Jet with his arms crossed over his chest and hunched over whilst Mushi places bowls of food before the four teenagers.
"During my walk, I spotted a cozy little shop run by a mated pair, they sold homemade quilts, cushions, and futons." he sits beside Li, still smiling as he starts to pour himself a steaming cup of tea, "And I couldn't help myself from buying the most adorable quilt I'd ever seen~." the old man then pulls out a padded quilt with little turtle-ducks printed across it and hands it to Li who promptly chokes on his food, Smellerbee snickers under her breath, Longshot smiles, and Jet does his best not to make noise of any kind, "For you, nephew~!"
Li's face is red, voice indignant, "What am I going to do with it!?"
"Put it in a corner." Mushi smiles, Jet glances at Li from over the rim of his cup, Li is now looking at the blanket differently, "It's always nice to have a spare just in case of emergencies."
"It'll just make a mess of the room." Li frowns, "I don't like making a mess of my room."
The conversation had taken a turn, one none of the remaining Freedom Fighters had expected, because why buy a quilt just to put it up in a corner to gather dust . . . until Jet reads between the lines and realizes that Mushi had bought the quilt for Li as nesting material, and that Li apparently hated making nests, or just nesting in general. In fact, it brought Jet back to his earlier suspicions, Li seemed to hate everything about being an Omega and that was almost sad in a way.
So Jet changes the subject:
"Where are you guys working at?"
After dinner was done and Jet parting ways with his friends to head for his new job, he starts to wonder if it could really be considered a nest if there was only one blanket and the terrible futon Li must have been given. The thoughts entertain him until he comes across a fairly decent looking place, for the lower ring anyway, Jet double checks the letter given to him then approaches the door and enters, only to be greeted by musty scents and lusty pheromones, musky and sweet, with smoke lingering in the air and the sharp sting of alcohol. The scents attack Jet's sensitive nose and make him choke on air as he recoils, hand reaching up to cover both his nose and mouth.
Laughter catches his attention, he finds the Omega he'd saved earlier.
"You get used to it."
"I hope so."
"Follow me."
Jet follows the Omega through the den of sin and is led upstairs where he sits upon a fancy couch, despite the building's dull exterior, the inside was rich and pampered, veils hanging from the ceiling, the wood polished, the furniture extravagant, the workers dressed in silks, velvets, and jewels, looking to tantalize patrons . . . just like the Omegas in the scrolls, but Jet can't find it in himself to be interested in much when the smells still assault his nose, he wonders if the people here have a terrible sense of smell, or just don't give a damn.
"Can you smell it?"
Jet looks up in time to see the Mistress sashay her way to the couch opposite of him, the Alpha watches the woman begin to ppour a drink of amber colored liquid, he can't smell much of anything at this point, his sense of smell dulled.
"Smell what exactly?"
"The heat."
Jet watches the woman knock back the glass, "One of your workers is in heat?"
The woman hums, "It's consensual, don't worry."
Jet frowns, "At this point, I'm afraid I can't smell much of anything."
"Sensitive nose, huh?" she pours another, "You'll get used to it, some of my kits were the same." she swirls the liquid in her glass, "Eventually your nose will learn to sort through and ignore certain smells." she meets his gaze, "Unless you're actively looking for more."
"I hope you're right." Jet mutters, "Smoke makes me sick."
"It makes all of us sick." the Mistress states, "Come." she gets to her feet, "I'll show you around."
Jet is led back downstairs where he spots several scenes of debauchery going on, the tan Alpha finds his eyes immediately falling upon those with pale skin and dark hair, and he happens to be watching one of these pale skinned and dark haired tempters when he bumps into someone. Jet recoils but arms are already wrapping around him and there is suddenly a face so close to his, the person looks dazed, their eyes glassy and cheeks flushed, the woman could be mistaken for being drunk if it weren't for the subtle hint of lust within her body language . . . then the smell hits him.
The woman is an Omega and she's in heat.
She moans, "Alpha~."
Jet's entire body turns rigid as he feels her begin to press her body against his, her leg slipping between his and rubbing at his lower regions, she starts panting and whimpering, her hands wandering his back and arms, she gives one of his arms a squeeze and moans at the tense muscle . . . so many things were running through Jet's mind, the first and foremost being why he wasn't as turned on as others may have been. Perhaps it was because he simply wasn't interested in the woman, she was beautiful, but she just didn't quite fit the bill, or maybe because her scent was soured with smoke and the heady scent of horny Alphas, male and female. Jet was a possessive and vengeful bastard when he wanted to be, and the suggestion that the woman had been with multiple lovers turned him off.
The smells were making him dizzy.
If he wanted a one-night only, he made sure he knew little to nothing about them, he also made sure that they didn't reek of others, it was easier to think that they came from nowhere and disappeared into thin air with no ties once so ever.
Getting a hold of himself, he manages to gently extricate himself from the woman's hold and hand her off to one of the nearby workers before he follows the path the Mistress had gone. As he turns the corner, he comes to an immediate stop when he spots the woman watching him with a calculating gaze, he feels himself tense up.
"What?"
Her eyes flit from his eyes to his lower region, "I don't smell anything from you."
Jet arches a brow, "And?"
"Most of my new help would have jumped at the chance."
Jet realizes what she's getting at and rolls his eyes, "The smoke is off putting. Plus I'm a possessive person."
"Ah." the Mistress hums, she turns on her heel, "So you're a romantic."
Jet frowns, "No. I said I was possessive, I said nothing about romance."
"You don't need to. You want a partner who is devoted to you and only you."
"I'm also narcissistic."
The Mistress laughs at this.
It's late into the night when Jet finishes his first day, night, on the job, he reeks of sex and pheromones just like the Mistress had been when she'd approached Jet. It was disconcerting and dizzying. And he was so tired.
This is just a filler chapter.
