A. N. : I never thought I'd ever say this, especially not after having to spend 15 chapters, twice, on unneeded mental anguish - but thank the spirits for Jet ! On an unrelated note, I will be travelling for the next month, meaning next chapter might have to wait until I get back. I'll try my best, but sharks apparently enjoy eating vietnamese internet cables, so no promises.

Jet is fine.

It's weird to think about, really, because he is in the middle of the Fire Nation, travelling with two firebenders – three if he counts Aang, but apparently the lessons aren't going that well, son nah – and Sokka threatened to kick him out of the group just a few hours ago. And yet, he's good.

He helped people. And sure, he also had a lot of fun destroying the machinery in that factory, and sure he wouldn't have done any of that if the army hadn't been the cause of the problems but – he helped people.

The old him would've simply destroyed everything, with no care for the village at all, but he – he stopped himself that first night. No. Zuko and Katara stopped him. And then he helped the village directly, because he wanted to.

He had forgotten how good it felt to do these things.

So yeah, Jet is fine, even though Katara is way more terrifying than he remembered and he has no idea how she didn't kill him at Gaipan, even though Sokka felt threatened in his leadership and took it out on him. Even though Zuko looks terrible.

Normally, he should be joining the others with Toph, but the army left and the group can probably manage on their own, and anyway Toph is already sitting next to Zuko and asking what's wrong – plus something about his pulse ? whatever – so Jet walks to Zuko's other side and sits down too.

Judging by Zuko's face – sad and lost, almost desperate with a hint of reluctance – that fact that he keeps staring at a very healthy-looking Lin, and the tight hold he has on her, he is probably questioning his ability to care for her. Or it has something to do with the Fire Douchelord. Or both. Or something completely different, but Zuko doesn't have that many secrets anymore and that look reminds Jet of his own face when he had just lost a kid to his own mistakes, so –

There goes the mood. Still, Jet sets his guilt aside, at the back of his mind where it belongs, and focuses on Zuko's answer to the question he was just asked. Motherfuck the guy speaks low. Jet had already noticed that in Ba Sing Se, especially when the subject got serious, but between the river and Appa's breathing it's getting pretty hard to hear him now.

Maybe the steam pipe that exploded right next to Jet's head in the factory plays a role in that too. Maybe.

Thankfully, Toph exclaiming that what do you mean, of course you're not going to hurt Lin kind of helps with understanding. So Jet was right – you're kind of dumb Sparky, but Toph doesn't get it, can't get it, can't get that even if Zuko is the best person to take care of Lin, much better than Jet ever was to his kids, there's no way he won't question it.

Toph can't get it, but Jet can. So he tells Zuko what he would've wanted to hear, back in the forest, back when he still cared about helping his kids more than about revenge.

He tells Zuko that Lin can't ever be safe, not in this world, not the way she is, and that there are only so many people who would care for her. That the way things are right now, no one is safe. That Zuko is the nicest person, the best person Lin could've found, even if he has as many enemies as there are people in the world. Which he doesn't. That was just a figure of speech stop making this face.

That only he can do that, even if it's far from perfect, because there is no better option, and because he knows how bad things could get with someone who doesn't care, or forgets how to, and so he'll be careful to always give Lin his best.

That only he can do that, but that doesn't mean he has to do it alone. They're a group, the whole of them, and that means they're never alone – Toph punches Zuko in the arm right on cue, don't think you can get rid of me.

And Zuko takes his eyes off Lin, looks at Toph, at Jet, and his voice sounds all choked up but he says sure.

And Jet is reminded of all the times he soothed The Duke's nightmares, of all the silent discussions he had with Longshot after a kill – Longshot never liked killing – of all the silences he shared with Smellerbee when one of the kids died.

Jet thinks of family, and thinks maybe, after all the mistakes he made, after losing so many people to the fire in his head, maybe –

Maybe he can get this one thing right. Help this one person without messing up. Share his experience with Zuko and support him, and trust Zuko to stop him.

Because – he dares think this again for the first time since he learned about Zuko's fire –

Because Zuko is family.