[color=8dc73f]“No, please, Mr. Hanwei, this way.”[/color] Jin urged the old man to follow him, but it was like goading a wild canyon crawler without so much as a morsel of food to grab its attention. 

“Oh, but is that not a chamomile flower? The tea we could make Tom-Ji.” 

[color=8dc73f]“It’s Temu-... yes, of course sir, but please we must keep on the road.”[/color] After a few pulls, he was able to finally get the man to follow him and away from the dandelion those crusted eyes had so readily mistaken for chamomile. [color=8dc73f]“Please.”[/color]

“Oh alright you impatient little….” Mr. Hanwei then suddenly looked quizzically at Jin, his lip curling back and his sparse eyebrows furrowing. “Who are you again?” the man asked, those same crusty eyes looking into Jin’s own. 

[color=8dc73f]“I’m Te… I’m Tei, your grandson.”[/color] During the pause Jin’s eyebrow arose in contemplation as he tried to remember the names from the old man’s ramblings. [color=8dc73f]“Now please granddad, we have to get to town. We’re travelling.”[/color] 

“Of course boy, you don’t have to tell me. It was my idea.” Jin sighed with relief as the old man seemed to return to a perfect state where his delirium was not so great that it made him non functional, but great enough that he was not able to recognize stranger before him as being a stranger and was thus susceptible to whatever the earthbender told him to get moving.

As they walked with the young soldier’s hand — the young warrior’s hand holding onto that of the old man, Jin was able to spot a scar on the head of the man he was helping. It was mostly covered by hat and thinning white hair and easily mistaken as a birthmark or the likes, but it was a grievous wound. Perhaps that was the source of the fellow’s poor state of mind? He was old, but he still had most of his teeth and wasn’t all that wrinkly as other people so ancient their minds began to fray. 

[color=8dc73f]“We’re almost there granddad.”[/color] Temujin remarked with anxiety instantly leaving his face. The senior’s legs were shaking now, clearly exhausted even if his brain hadn’t yet caught up to this state of affairs. Jin could carry him there, but that would be quite difficult if every few moments the old timer once more imagined an entirely new scenario he was supposedly in.

As they began to enter the town proper, Mr. Hanwei got the confused look that once more told Jin that his thoughts had been shuffled, eliciting a sigh. [color=8dc73f][i]What now?[/i][/color] 

“What is this, get off me, who are you?” he old man shook free of Temujin’s grasp, stumbling a little bit.

[color=8dc73f]“It’s me, your grandson, Tei.”[/color]

“What are you talking about you idiot, my grandson Tei died when they attacked Yeonma.” Jin froze. Yeonma. Balls of stone and flame crossing each other in the sky, the strike on the colony was as vivid in his mind as if it was mere days ago. “Who are you?” the demanded was repeated, now with anger to it. 

Jin sighed, closing his eyes with a deep breath before replying. [color=8dc73f]“I’m a stranger, but a friend. You’re lost, and I’m helping you get to town. Please, I-”[/color] 

He was cut off by a wave of the old man’s hand. “You’re one of them, aren’t you? Come to finish the job have you?” Well at least the scar suddenly made sense. “Well I won’t get on my knees and beg.” another wave of the hand, and Hanwei continued towards the village. Jin’s fists clenched and unclenched as he watched his brief companion head off towards the village, before he ran to catch up what little ground was between them.

Not quite getting into Hanwei’s vision in case he was still in that strange half-lucidity, Jin opened his coinpurse with a sigh and began counting. [color=8dc73f]“One, two….”[/color] well, hopefully that was enough to get the man out. If it wasn’t then he would probably just get lost in town and die. He hoped there would be a kind soul or two to take care of him on the boat, but the cynic in Jin told him that this wasn’t likely. Worse yet, what would happen to him if and when he did at last reach the Fire nation? When Jin found him struggling in a muddy ditch by the roadside, he found on his chest a pendant that seemed to belong to some sort of family. Perhaps he still had some sort of kin in their homeland that would be able to take him in. 

[color=8dc73f]“Why did you have to come here?”[/color] he muttered sorrowfully, shaking his head. Hearing some new rambling, Jin rushed to catch up to Hanwei, pulling both of their cloaks tighter to hide his own green uniform, and the distinctive red of the old man in the chance there’d be people harsh enough to harass him over it in town. 

Half-listening to Hanwei’s long story of how he had grown some beautiful pale roses in his daughter’s garden, Temujin was becoming distinctly aware that there was trouble in town. Soldiers, once comrades of his. Now just an ache in the depths of his heart.

Looking up at the commotion and making out a few of the words spoken, Jin realized that getting Hanwei out of town wouldn’t be as easy as he had hoped. [color=8dc73f]“Sit down old man, wait here, don’t leave for anything unless its for me.”[/color] he walked off, hoping there was just enough sense in the geezer to stay put in the stool outside the shop he had stopped at. 

For now the disgraced veteran simply crept a little closer as nonchalantly as he could. Somebody at least, wanted to give the soldiers trouble. He suspected it wouldn’t go all that well. Anxiety gripped him over what was going to happen. Was the old fellow just going to be stuck here? Jin couldn't abandon him, would he end up settling here just to take care of the man that would likely spurn his help every few moments? [color=8dc73f][i]“Stubborn, mighty, great and strong, our nation brooks no wrongs.”[/i][/color] he murmured the marching song under his breath, dark eyes darting side to side as he awaited an outcome of the proceedings. As he got closer, he realized it was a man of the Air Nomads. 

Well, that was something. What was his game? What was one of the them doing here?