W.I.T.C.H. fan: I'd like to dedicate this chapter to one of my best friends. This is a late birthday dedication to her, considering her birthday was a couple weeks ago.
In Upendi
Later that night Will and Jet were lying on a hill star gazing and looking for certain shapes.
"Oh, look at that one. It looks like a baby rabbit," Will laughed.
"Yeah. Hey there's one that looks like two benders killing each other for a scrap of meat," Jet laughed.
Will raised her eyebrows in surprise and looked at Jet with a slightly irritated look on her face.
"Man I've never done this before," Jet said.
"Really" Will asked slightly shocked. She looked back to the stars a wistful look on her face. "Dad and I used to do this all the time when I was younger. He says the great kings of the past are up there."
"Do you think Ozai's up there?" Jet asked without thinking. Will looked at him her eyes widened slightly. Realizing what he had said, Jet got up and walked a bit away from Will, as she watched him, concerned.
Jet sighed. "He wasn't my father, but he was still…part of me."
Will walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Dad always told me that there was a darkness in Ozai that he just couldn't escape."
"Maybe there's a darkness in me too," Jet muttered.
Will suddenly wrapped her arms around Jet, hugging him. Jet hesitantly wrapped his arms around Will, returning the hug.
Up on the hill overlooking them, Zuko watched them. He sighed and looked up at the stars. "Father I am lost. Jet is one of them. Ozai's heir. How can I except him?"
"Zuko?"
Zuko turned and smiled when he saw Taranee. "I was seeking council from the great kings," He explained to Taranee.
"Did they help at all?" Taranee asked with a smile.
Zuko sighed. "Silent as stars. My father would never have-"
"Oh, Zuko," Taranee said leaning her head on her husband's shoulder. "You want so much to walk the path expected of you." She gestured toward her daughter and Jet still, embracing. "Perhaps Jet does not."
"What? How do you know what-" Zuko started to ask.
Taranee cut him off with a soft laugh. "I can see the two of them down there just as easily as you can. Get to know him and see," She said walking off.
Zuko looked back at Will and Jet, sighed one more time, and followed Taranee back to the palace.
Back with Will and Jet, he began to pull away clearing his throat.
"What is it?" Will asked.
"Nothing," Jet said, turning away from her.
"Jet."
He turned to face her. "It's just…my whole life I've been trained to…" He trailed off. He looked away from the princess. "Nothing." He started to walk away. "I gotta go."
"Jet wait," Will called after him.
Jet turned to look at her. They gazed at each other for a minute, before Jet turned to walk away. Before he could take one step, Hay Lin and Aang's hand suddenly appeared out of the tall grass, stopping him.
"And where are you going?" Aang asked.
"Uh, nowhere," Jet said confused.
Hay Lin and Aang popped up fully out of the grass. "Ha! That's what you think, dude!" Hay Lin laughed, before she and Aang disappeared back into the grass.
"Who the heck was that?" Jet asked Will, with a bewildered look.
Will giggled as she walked up next to Jet. "Friends of the family," She explained.
Then they turned and saw Hay Lin and Aang standing behind them. "Come on, follow us!" Hay Lin said, pulling Jet's arm lightly.
"Yep we know the way!" Aang said as he and Hay Lin ran off.
"Way to where?" Jet asked looking at Will, who shrugged.
Hay Lin and Aang now stood on a cliff ledge holding vines to swing away on. "You follow us. You see?" Hay Lin called to them.
"Hurry now!" Aang said as he and Hay Lin swung on the vines.
"Jet come on!" Will laughed as she and Jet ran after the air benders.
"Where are these two weirdoes taking us?" Jet asked.
Hay Lin smiled. "A special place in your heart called…"
"…Upendi," She and Aang said together. The pushed Will and Jet's faces together, causing them both to kiss and blush.
Suddenly they found themselves in a small leaf boat with Hay Lin and Aang steering. The two air benders started to sing.
Hay Lin: There's a place where the crazy moon makes
The monkey's sing
And the baboon smooch
Aang: And the sultry scent of the lotus bloom
Will carry you away
Where the hippos sing on the jungle vines
And the rhino remain a conga line
Hay Lin and Aang: Where the pink flamingos are intertwined
As the stars come out to play
In Upendi
Hay Lin: Where the passion fruit grows sweet
And it's so divine that you lose your mind
As it sweeps you off you feet
Hay Lin and Aang: In Upendi
Aang: Without a worry or a care
It just takes two
To make it true
Your heart will lead your there
"Where is it?" Will asked. Aang covered the girl's eyes and kneeled lower to her ear. "No place you don't with you," He replied. Will laughed as he uncovered her eyes.
Hay Lin: You better watch your step
Cause the path is steep
Aang: Better hold your breath
Cause the water's deep
Hay Lin: It's a long way down off of lover's leap
Aang: But falling's half the fun
Aang and Hay Lin: In Upendi
Aang: Where the passion fruit grow sweet
Some small fruit fell from a tree above Will and Jet. One landed in Jet's mouth and he had difficulty swallowing.
And it's so divine that you lose your mind
As it sweeps you off your feet
Will noticed Jet having trouble and, with a smirk, kissed him on the cheek, allowing Jet to swallow the fruit and blush.
Hay Lin and Aang: In Upendi
Hay Lin: Without a worry or a care
It just takes two
To make it true
Your heart will take you there
Hay Lin and Aang: You can leap the bush
Like there's no tomorrow
From Tanganyika to Kilimanjaro
But you can find Upendi wherever you are
Underneath the sun
Will giggled and looked at Jet. "Upendi means love doesn't it?" She asked.
"Welcome to Upendi!" Hay Lin and Aang cried in unison.
Hay Lin and Aang: In Upendi
Where the passion fruit grows sweet
And it's so divine that you lose your mind
As it sweeps you off your feet
Will, Hay Lin, and Aang: In Upendi
Without a worry or a care
It just takes two
To make it true
Your heart will take you there
About an hour later Will and Jet were walking to the palace hand in hand. As they reached the edge of the courtyard, Jet kissed the princess gently. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight," Will replied with a soft smile.
As the two walked off in their separate directions Will looked back at Jet and sighed softly. Zuko walked out of the courtyard and saw Jet leaning against a pillar. The king walked over to him.
"It's kinda cold tonight huh? Come on in," Zuko said.
Jet smiled and followed after Zuko. Up in the trees Mai was watching her brother. She smiled when she saw the scene below her. "Yes that's it! Get him!" She waited, but Jet didn't attack Zuko. Her smile faded. "What are you waiting for Jet? Get him!" Still Jet did nothing. She snarled and jumped from the tree.
A few minutes later in the outlands an angry scream and lightning bolts came from Nerissa after listening to Mai's report.
"Are you sure about this, Mai?" Nerissa asked her daughter.
"Affirmative," Mai told her mother. "I saw it with my own eyes."
Nerissa turned away with a growl. "Jet cannot betray us!"