A/N;

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-Rain

The large boar snorted angrily, pawing his foot on the ground. Jet held his hook swords at the ready, crouched slightly as he prepared to spring.

The beast roared and charged forward. Jet's young frame leapt nimbly out of the way, landing a few feet to the left. He'd practiced this hundreds of times. He faked forward, lashing out with one of his swords. The boar stumbled to the side, trying to evade the silver blade, only to have the second one slash his side.

Jet moved as soon as he'd made the first gash, prepared to run from an enraged boar, or fight a slightly weakened one. It all depended on the animal's temperament, or how badly it had been hurt. Judging by the awful snarling it was doing, not that much.

Stabbing one of the hook swords into a nearby tree, Jet swung from it and landed on the boar's back, sliding the blade out as he went. He lifted the sword, about to slice it into-

Oof!

The boar threw him off, catching Jet by surprise. He shook his head, slightly dazed. He yelled out, watching helplessly as the boar reared up- about to crush him...

There was a faint whistling sound, and the boar groaned in surprise. Jet rolled out of the way as he slumped to the ground, dead. Instantly cautious, Jet looked around frantically. He found Longshot standing a little way away, bow out.

"Thanks, Longshot." Jet sighed, relieved. He grinned. "I would've been mashed up if you hadn't showed up."

Longshot merely shrugged and put his bow away.

"Here, help me."

Together the two boys took what they needed and took it back to the hideout, ready to roast it for dinner in a few hours. Min was at the trunk of the tree, practicing her earth bending. She looked up and waved, face lighting up as she saw the food. They hadn't had meat in a while.

She wove her way up and dropped down on the hideout platform beside Jet. Longshot had gone to store the meat away.

"Yum, yum." Jet grinned, waving his blood-covered hands in Min's face. She rolled her eyes and shoved him backwards.

"Go wash your hands, pig." She smirked. Jet dropped from the trees, heading for the river a few yards away. They'd picked a good spot to build their hideout- water nearby, plenty of food available, well hidden...

"Hey! Get away from me, you big jerk!" Jet looked up, searching for the source of the sound. "Help!" Jet tore through the woods, heading for the dirt path that wound its way around the forest, connecting the villages. He crouched low to the ground, seeing a small girl in a dirty brown dress being held down by a Fire Nation soldier.

Jet narrowed his eyes, watching as the girl sobbed fearfully. "Stop it!" Jet whipped out his swords, charging forward and leaping onto the soldier's back. He stood up in surprise, releasing the girl. Jet jerked his head in the direction he had come, and the girl took off.

"You little-" Jet was picked up and thrown to the ground like a ragdoll, but he was persistent. Growling angrily, the boy slashed into the man's arm with a hook sword, watching with glee as the blood dribbled down from the wound.

The soldier blinked in surprise, but his stare soon turned angry. He punched forward, connected with Jet's face. He felt his nose crunch, and hissed out a breath, feeling the pain.

"Hey! You jerk!" suddenly the girl was on the man's shoulders, smashing a rock down on his head. He dropped like a stone, and the girl kicked him as he went down before jumping off.

"Woah... thanks." He said in surprise. She shrugged.

"Thank you." She said. "Who are you?"

"I'm Jet. Who are you?" the girl bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Smellerbee. That's what my Dad called me." She said softly. Jet scowled- would the Fire Nation ever stop?

"Did they..." Jet trailed off as the girl nodded. "Me and my friends have a hideout not too far from here. Come with me, and you'll be safe." She didn't hesitate, she just followed without question.

--

Min stared at Jet in surprise as he introduced the girl he had brought with him.

"I send you out to wash your hands..." she shook her head, smiling. "Hi Smellerbee, I'm Min." The girl smiled back shyly. Min frowned when she saw the girl's tattered and singed clothes. "Let's go get you something better to wear."

She took the girl's hand and they went into Min's room. Min threw things on to the make-shift bed for her to try on, things they'd stolen from trading carts or surrounding villages. Eventually, Smellerbee settled on an outfit she liked.

"Oh, those are boys' clothes." Min said, shaking her head. "Jet's old ones. They must've got-"

"I like them." Smellerbee insisted. She looked sad. "That man wanted me because I was a girl." Min made a mental note to ask Jet what had happened later. Right then, she smiled.

"That's okay. We're going to have dinner soon- how about I show you around?" she offered, watching with relief as Smellerbee nodded with an eager grin. She seemed to be okay about her parent's assumed death, for now. But Min knew the anguish would come later, when she was alone with her thoughts.

She just hoped that Smellerbee could find hope in their little gang, like she did.

--

"Story time, kids." Jet smirked, lazily chewing on a piece of grass.

"Kids? Longshot is older than you, and we're the same age!" Min protested. Jet shrugged. "Fine. I'll go first." She grumbled.

Story time was something Min had come up with when they first settled in the trees. She wanted to remember past, happier times, an attempt to focus on the good instead of the bad. Smellerbee had been there a week, and had so far cut her hair into a crude boy's fashion, sharing Jet's obsession with swordplay and practicing with him any chance she got.

"I remember my Dad used to take me whenever he visited other villages, and he'd smile and say to me 'One thing, Min. One thing.' By the end of the trip, I had countless little trinkets that he'd bought for me." She smiled, blowing back a strand of hair, "He always said that one of these days he'd have to be more stern, but he never meant it." She tapped Jet on the hand. "Your turn."

He thought for a moment. Min's tradition of 'Story time' once a week seemed stupid to him, but it meant a lot to her so he never failed to have a story ready. He'd never admit it, but it did make him smile, just a little.

"My brother used to take me out and practice fighting with me. He used a katana, while I used a simple sword. I never liked the sword too much, and would beg my father for a weapon of my own." He smiled, remembering his father's laugh.

"Then, he bought me these hook swords. Tai always let me win. He was the best at fighting out of all the boys his age, but he let me win every time."

Jet lay back, staring up at the dark sky through the leaves. He missed his family, but his new one needed him. He would do whatever it took to keep them safe and free of the Fire Nation. At first it had just been Min and him, and Min was as tough as him anyway.

Then Longshot had come, and there was another mouth to feed. Now Smellerbee, who needed to be trained to fight like the rest of them could. He liked Smellerbee- she was resilient for a girl her size. Longshot was a good scout- silent and stealthier than he or Min.

Their little troop was growing.

"My big brother used to protect me from the mean kids in our village. I was different to them- I didn't like dolls or having my hair brushed or anything like that. I hated wearing dresses, but I did it to keep my mother happy." she sighed, staring down at her lap.

"They used to ask me if I was really a girl. I just told them that dresses annoyed me, and swords were more interesting than dolls. Still, they continued to call me names. Then, my brother stepped in. He and I snuck into the meanest girl's house and stole every one of her dolls. We hid them from her, and she never knew it was us." She grinned, and Min laughed.

"He told me to be happy with who I was." Longshot smiled at her, and began writing in the dirt.

My father taught me how to hit a target hundreds of feet away.

Longshot's stories were always short, but that was no big deal. He didn't like talking, and no one pushed that.

Jet glanced around at the Earth Bender, the archer and the swords girl sitting around the campfire. He grinned- maybe, just maybe, they could make a difference. Every day, families were being torn apart, homes destroyed and lives lost. They had freedom, so why couldn't everyone else?

Together, they would be a force to be reckoned with.

A/N;

A little shorter than the others, but not by much. I hope you enjoyed it, and please review :)

-Rain