Snippet #2581789

For some reason, Jangmu’s words provoked the Earthbender to fury. He launched three rocks that blew past her, and though they were not aimed to hit, she raised her arm to shield her face from the gust of wind that they raised in their wake. She had not expected such speed. He was obviously quick to anger, and the way his face burned with raw emotion made her suspect that he was unwilling or unable to hide his feelings. And now she noticed what had bothered her about his attire: it was unusual. Although cut of Earth Kingdom cloth, it had a design she was unfamiliar with, despite her travels and studies of the popular customs of the Earth Kingdom. And that conspicuous gold jewellery… she couldn’t place it, but she didn’t have the time now to try and identify what minor district he might have come from. She could always ask him. She did appreciate, though, that he backed off a couple of steps and sat on the ground, as if he sensed her discomfort at his closeness. More sensitive than he looked?

At that moment Yuzaku returned and quickly disabled the Earthbender. Surprisingly, the stranger made no move to resist, and even cracked a joke. He'd been angered at the few words Jangmu had spoken, but for someone frozen by a Waterbender he looked remarkably relaxed. What an unusual character he was. Perhaps he wasn’t as hotheaded as she’d thought.

"I don't want him harmed, Yuzaku," she said. "Not unless it's absolutely necessary. There's been too much senseless death in this world already for us to deal it out rashly." She drew closer to the stranger, examining his face as she thought. "This man says he's been following us for weeks. If he wanted to harm us, he could have done so any of the times we were separated. I know we don't have the luxury of trusting anyone easily, but I think there's more to him than a simple bounty hunter. He's obviously a powerful bender. He could make an ally. At the very least, we could point him towards the Fire Nation and be on our way. And he's right, I do need an Earthbending teacher. Yuzaku, release him. Let's talk to him and hear what he has to say. First things first, I want to know how he tracked us, and if others could find us as easily." She looked around in reflex, and shuddered slightly. "The Fire Nation are everywhere."