"I knew she would," he said and held out his hand. The man gave him 30 pieces and then siezed Jin, forcing her inside the redlight house.
She was given a room and a part of her was surprised at how well kept it was considering its location. The only thing she hated was the bed. It was made of feather mattresses and pillows with silky sheets on it. Only whore houses had silk sheet beds, and she knew immediatly the full intent for it. Cringing she decided firmly she would never lay in it. Sleeping on a cold hard floor was by far better than laying in such a disgusting bed.
There was a mirror and she looked at herself for the first time since she'd been taken. What she saw made her feel sick. Her face was bruised just as the man had said, but somehow seeing it made it feel worse. Dark ugly shades of black, blue, and purple were etched out along with a few cuts and scratches. As she traced out all her facial bruising she remembered where she'd been kicked, where they'd hit her, and where she had just hit the wall with a sickening thud. Almost every mark she knew exactly where it came from.
Tears stung her eyes and she looked around at where all these misfortunes had brought her. She was now far from her lover and in a dark place where, even if he did find her, she was uncertain that he would ever want her back. Being tainted was frowned on greatly no matter the circumstance.
She glanced in the mirror again and froze. For a brief moment she thought she'd seen golden eyes looking back at her, but whatever it had been was now gone. Resigning herself to the floor, she curled up and went to sleep.
----
A flower was laid to rest atop the grave and Zuko bowed respectfully to the poor young woman who hadn't gotten a chance to see the sun again. Katara, Toph, and Suki had all taken the young women back to their homes and would probably not return for a few hours. Sokka and Aang were discussing where they should look next while Zuko only waited for an idea to come to him before speaking. The shock of thinking Jin was dead had still not fully passed. Seeing that body like that, even though it wasn't Jin's, had gruesomely put it into perspective for him.
Soon Sokka and Aang seemed to be oblivious to him altogether, too wrapped up in their own conversations. He didn't mind though. In fact, he secretely wished to be alone. Looking over towards them and knowing they wouldn't mind, he stood up and wandered a little ways out where they were at least not in sight. Wandering out too far would be dangerous and the last thing he needed was to get lost.
There was a pond a little ways out and he sat by the edge of it, looking into the cool waters. He would have dipped his feet in it, but the algea and moss floating around made him think twice, so he just took in the tranquility instead. The peace was short lived though. His mind was still wracked with turmoil and regret. They seemed even farther than ever from finding Jin now, and he had no idea where to even begin looking. She had been sold, he knew that much, but where? A sick answer quickly came to mind but he shoved it away, not willing to believe it.
The whatif still lingered though...
"Jin..." he muttered softly in despair and hung his head. He wanted her back so bad. He'd missed her enough when she'd been safe at home, but now it was worse and nearly unbearable. "I have no idea where to go now..."
He closed his eyes, ready to give up when at once an idea occured to him. Long Feng! His eyes snapped open and he jumped to his feet, turning to run back to the others.
"Long Feng wasn't there!" he cried as he burst over to Aang and Sokka, both of which stared at him in surprise in confusion.
"What?" asked Aang, raising an eyebrow.
"In the underground prison... Long Feng was not there! That could only mean he was transporting the girls who were going to be sold. So if he wasn't there when we showed up then-"
"Then he has no idea the place was abandoned!" cried Sokka with a smile.
"And he'll be returning expecting everything to be the same," said Aang, catching on. "And he'll be alone since the rest of the Dai Li retreated."
"And he'll know where Jin is," said Zuko, finally smiling. "And so will we when he gets here." Sokka and Aang smiled as well, getting to their feet.
"I told you guys this would all work out," said Sokka, folding his arms over his chest.
"Actually you said we didn't stand a chance at finding her now," said Aang and Sokka smacked him. Zuko rolled his eyes and looked in the direction the girls had taken off in.
"They'll be back soon," he muttered. "But I don't want to miss him..." He glanced a Sokka and Aang. "I'll go wait by the entrance. As soon as the girls come back, bring them with you."
"Are you sure you should be alone?" asked Sokka.
"I'll be fine," said Zuko. "That monster sold Jin like she was an item. I won't let him get away." Sokka nodded and Aang smiled. Zuko took his leave and they waited patiently for Katara, Suki, and Toph to arrive.
----
Jin opened her eyes and to her dismay it wasn't even close to dawn. She had laid awake with her eyes closed, hoping sleep would fully take her and the next time he opened them she'd see at least a glimpse of sunlight. But for all she knew only a few minutes had gone by.
"So this is your plan then?" asked a voice and she nearly jumped out of her skin. "Just lay there like a dead dog while the man who loves you searches the world for you until he's wasted away?"
"Who's there?" cried Jin, struggling to get to her feet. The lack of food was really taking its toll on her tonight more than ever. She could no longer jump to her feet, alert and ready to defend herself. If whoever had joined her was an enemy, they would have no struggle in taking her down.
Jin looked around once she was standing, and felt her stomach cave in. Groaning a little from the uncomforting feeling, she looked around in the darkness, hoping to spot out where the voice had come from. "I thought you of all people would have been stronger than that. You who faced the Firelord Ozai himself! But instead you're laying here? Are you really that pathetic?"
"Who are you?" cried Jin, stumbling around.
"Look in your mirror!"
Jin turned around and looked into her mirror. A part of her dreaded seeing her starving and bruised reflection in it, but instead a different pair of eyes met hers. Jin's jaw dropped and she knew she had to be hallucinating from lack of food... if that was even possible. Gold eyes stared back at her and the familiar jet black hair was unmistakeable.
"Azula?" she asked. From the tone she'd heard earlier, she expected Azula to be looking at her with her usual condesending sneer, but that was not the case. Her tone was scolding, but her eyes were soft... almost sympathetic.
"Jin, what are you doing?" she asked her. "You realize in all this time, this is the first chance you've had at escaping? There's no guards, no Dai Li... and you just lay there in the corner waiting for something bad to happen?"
"I've got nowhere to go," said Jin immediatly. "I'm so weak, and I'll only be caught again."
"So you've resigned yourself to here?" stated Azula flatly. "You're giving up?"
"I'm not giving up," said Jin.
"Well your actions speak otherwise!" snapped Azula. "It's time to stop being weak! You've got your chance now sieze it! Don't wait for them to come for you!"
Jin lowered her head and closed her eyes. She was struggling just to keep on standing. How could anyone expect her to save herself? "Why are you here?" she asked finally. A pause.
"I'm here because... because of my brother..." she said. "I treated him badly in life and he's always had it rough. Always. He deserves some happiness, and if that happiness is you then I'm not letting it leave without a fight." Jin looked up at her with tears in her eyes. "I know you're weak, and I know you're scared. But I've been watching you this entire time. I need to make sure you stay safe and see my brother again. If you leave tonight... you won't be alone and vulnerable, that I can promise."
"So rather than crossing over... you're lingering around to keep your brother happy... to make up for how you treated him in the past?" Jin asked.
"Yes," answered Azula firmly. "Now listen to me closely. There's a man guarding the front entrance so you'll need to go out the back. Along the way you'll pass a kitchen. Take whatever food you want, but wait till you're out of here before stopping to eat, you understand me?"
"But where will I go? Will I still see you?"
"No," said Azula. "I can only come in dreams. This is a dream." She pointed to the corner and Jin turned around, surprised to see herself still curled up in a bony ball, sound asleep. "Don't worry though. You'll know where to go. Now wake up and get out of here now!"
Jin nodded and offered her a weak smile. "Thank you... Azula," she said softly. Azula nodded and offered a smile... Jin catching a touch of pain on it.
"Now wake up!"
Jin's eyes snapped open and she looked around the room. She was alone now, but somehow she knew the dream had been genuine. Not wasting time, she got to her feet and left the room, slipping down the stairs as quietly as her shaky legs would allow her, and hurrying to the back door, heading Azula's warning. Spotting the kitchen, all she could see laying around in the open was a loaf of bread. She quickly grabbed it and hurried, thinking she heard footsteps. Once stepping outside she smiled, realizing she was still in Ba Sing Se, and she knew exactly where she was. Home was too far away and she was still too weak, but just knowing where she was gave her hope again.
There was a farm house nearby and she hurried to, taking refuge in the barn, and after scarfing down the bread, she went to sleep, feeling safer now than she had in a while.