Azula stared at her reflection, her eyes wide and mouth slightly parted in surprise. She'd stopped having these hallucinations months ago. Why were they all of a sudden coming back? It couldn't have been because she hadn't been taking her medication, could it? If that was the case, they would have started up again earlier.
And… Her hair. She gently reached up and gingerly rubbed the end of one section between her finger and thumb. She had always been a practical girl and cared nothing for looks, but it was just so… Short.
She set the scissors back down on the nightstand and collapsed on the bottom bunk with a sigh.
No matter, she thought as she pulled out a small scroll from one of the drawers. Father told me I would need a disguise, anyway.
She unraveled the parchment and began to read Ozai's instructions for what was probably the millionth time since they'd departed from his home.
In order for her to see this mission through, she had to become someone entirely different, with a new name and back story. Specifically, Song; a young, teenage girl from Kotzut, the capital of the Fire Nation, who was traveling to the Earth Kingdom with her father (a role that was intended to be portrayed by Katzu, she noticed disdainfully). Whenever they found this Jet character's hideaway in the forest, she was supposed to let it slip that her "father" had formerly been a high-ranking lieutenant, and had information about the Fire Lord's "plans" to start another invasion.
She smirked. Daddy really does have it all planned out.
She put the scroll back in its place, stood up, stretched, and yawned. Her fingertips were merely a few inches away from grazing the ceiling, and she scowled at the tremendous lack of privacy that the cramped boat provided. She was definitely not used to this at all, even after spending a year in a claustrophobic prison cell. At least then she didn't have to listen to anyone snore. Maybe if she had gotten the bright idea to chop off all her hair earlier, they could have gone into town and stayed at an inn that night. She still would have had to deal with the snoring, but an actual bed would have made up for it… Sort of.
"Erm, Azul- I mean, Song- could you perhaps open the door? I've got my arms full of provisions and need a little bit of help."
Azula rolled her eyes and huffed angrily as she marched over to the door and flung it open. "You idiot," she hissed after ushering him inside. "Barely a month into this mission and you already drop a name. There are other boats docked nearby, you know. Anyone could have heard you and easily reported us."
"Oh, uh, yes, of course- you're right, Miss. I'm very sorry…"
But Katzu didn't seem to be paying attention as he stumbled over to the counter in the kitchen nook and began pulling various travelling essentials out of the bags.
She threw up her hands in exasperation and made her way back to her bunk. "Men," she muttered as she slid under the blankets. "Honestly, they never listen. Katzu, finish packing our bags quickly. We're leaving first thing tomorrow morning and we'll need all the energy we can get. We will be reaching our destination by nightfall."
"Yes, Miss."
Azula was tired. Azula was dirty. Azula was irritated.
For nine hours, she had trekked through the forest with her clumsy, know-nothing tag-along and there was so far no signs of any type of human life. Where were the footprints? Where were the snaps of broken twigs after a heavy body came down on them? Where on earth was this boy supposed to be?
Granted, she hadn't yet arrived at the exact coordinates her father had given her, but she was an impatient girl and sometimes that flaw got the better of her.
Calm yourself, Azula. Remember to hold your temper...
"Do you suppose we could take a break, Miss?" Katzu, or rather, Letoh, inquired as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "It's almost as hot here as it is back home."
Azula pinched the bridge of her nose and blew a bit of smoke out of her nostrils in annoyance. "No, Katzu, we are not taking a break," she said as she turned to face him. "And from now on, you must refer to me as Song. This mission requires us to act like father and daughter, and though your pathetic, bumbling, good-for-nothing ass could never actually live up to my real father, you had better start getting into character soon. Understand, Letoh?"
The man gulped and nodded quickly, clearly frightened by the frustrated and wild-eyed Firebender standing before him.
"Good. Then let's continue."
They pressed on for about another hour and a half before a faint whooping and hollering could be heard in the distance. Azula turned to Katzu once again.
"Alright, looks like we've found the place. Judging by the volume of those voices and the echos created from the waves bouncing off the walls in this valley, I'd say the rogue encampment is only a five minute walk away. Remember to act weary and reserved, as if you've seen and heard more things you wish you hadn't in your years as a lieutenant than most would in an entire lifetime. If anyone speaks to you, don't reveal too much. Details shouldn't be important, but if they are, let me handle them. Do you have the scroll my father gave you?"
He nodded and pulled it out of his knapsack to prove that he hadn't lost it before shoving it back inside.
"Good. Do not forget that my name is Song, now, or that you are to introduce yourself as Letoh."
He nodded again and they set off once more. Just as she predicted, it took only five minutes for the first shabby treehouse to come into view. Oddly enough, it didn't seem like anyone was home. Nobody was walking around or yelling for someone to come look at the mysterious strangers that were waltzing into their territory. Azula narrowed her eyes ever so slightly in suspicion as they passed another vacant treehouse and made their way farther into the camp.
Try not to look too threatening, she reminded herself. You're supposed to be an innocent traveler with no combat or reconnaissance experience. You didn't even know these treehouses were here. This is a coincidence.
"Wow, Father, these tree huts look old," she proclaimed with a false tone of surprise. She figured that they were being watched by hidden eyes and that word was spreading through the tiny camp that they had unexpected visitors. "I wonder who built them. They sure are impressive."
Katzu shifted his eyes around in a mock display of distrust. "Stay close, Song. We don't know what could be lurking around in these parts. We could be robbed blind by bandits."
Azula forced a throaty chuckle and rolled her eyes. "Oh, Father, don't be silly. This place looks thoroughly abandoned! Why, I bet that no one's lived here in-"
"Identify yourselves!"
They had arrived at what appeared to be the heart of the camp and stopped in the very center of the small, circular clearing at the sound of a decidedly male voice. Azula had to restrain her smirk and replaced it with a fearful, wide-eyed expression as she snapped her head in the direction it had come from. There, on the balcony of the biggest treehouse that sat upon the clearing's circumference, stood a tan, shaggy-haired boy with a piece of sweet grass protruding from his mouth. He glared down at them, his arms crossed over his chest and his fingers tapping against the hilt of his sword in his waist holster. Though he had given them no identification either, she instantly knew that this was Jet. Behind him stood twenty or thirty more ragamuffins, some young, some in their late teens.
Well, they certainly don't look too happy to see us.
A/N: And here, my friends, I give you... Jet! Or at least his grand entrance into the story. Sorry I haven't updated this in a while. It's just that, lately, I've been really focused on school, looking into colleges, practicing for my dance competitions, and just trying to deal with life in general, basically. Plus, I've had a little bit of writer's block the past few weeks, so I've been writing (or attempting to write) a lot of spur-of-the-moment oneshots that will probably never make it onto this site because then I get writer's block with those too and can't make it past the first paragraph. So I haven't necessarily been working on this, haha. Well, let me know if you like it so far! Reviews make me happy and make my day. I may not get around to replying to every single one of them, but I definitely will read them all because they are greatly appreciated. See ya later :)