Chapter 5

Chapter 5 We made our way to the boat dock, then, using our fake passports, boarded the ferry to Ba Sing Se. "Who would have thought that after all these years I'd return to the scene of my greatest military disgrace… as a tourist!" Uncle said, putting on a silly hat and laughing. How can he joke about our utter defeat? Here we are, a great general and a prince, running away to hide in the stronghold of our enemy. At this point, I am doubtful that we'll ever see our home again. We'll be prisoners within a walled city, afraid to venture out for fear of encountering Azula. What exactly is there to joke about? I find no humor in shame. "Look around, Uncle. We're not tourists, we're refugees." I slurped down a sip of the slop they fed us and quickly spat it overboard. "Ugh. I'm sick of eating rotten food, sleeping in the dirt. I'm tired of living like this!" "Aren't we all?" said a soft voice from behind me. I turned to see three guys—refugees, judging by their looks. "My name's Jet," one of them said. "And these are my freedom fighters, Smellerbee and Longshot.

我们来到船坞，然后用假护照登上开往永固城的渡船。 “谁能想到，过了这么多年，我又回到了我在军事上最丢脸的地方……作为一名游客！”叔叔说着，戴上一顶傻傻的帽子，笑了起来。 他怎么能拿我们的彻底失败开玩笑呢？ 这就是我们，一个伟大的将军和王子，要逃到敌人的据点躲起来。 在这一点上，我怀疑我们是否还能再见到我们的家。 我们会被关在城里，不敢冒险，因为害怕遇到阿祖拉。 到底有什么好开玩笑的？ 我觉得羞耻没有什么好笑的。“看看周围，叔叔。 我们不是游客，我们是难民。” 我吸了一口他们喂给我们的泔水，很快就吐到海里去了。 “哎。我受够了吃腐烂的食物，睡在泥土里。 我厌倦了这样的生活！”“我们不都是吗？”一个柔和的声音从我身后传来。 我转过身来，看到三个人——从他们的长相看，是难民。 “我叫杰特，”其中一个说。 “这些是我的自由战士，嗅蜂和长枪。

"Hey," Smellerbee said. Longshot just nodded. "Hello," I said cautiously. Freedom fighters? What do these guys want from me? "Here's the deal," Jet began. "I hear the captain's eating like a king while us refugees have to feed off the scraps. Doesn't seem fair, does it?" He stared at me as he asked, "You want to help us liberate some food?" I like the sound of that. I'm ready to eat like a king. And I'm sure Uncle is, too. "I'm in," I replied, tossing the bowl of swill overboard. That night, Jet, Smellerbee, and I made our way up to the captain's quarters. Through the window I saw a huge amount of food spread out on a big table. It looked like someone was about to have a feast. And that someone is me. Jet popped open the lock with his sword. He and I slipped in while Smellerbee stood guard. I cut down some roast ducks, then gathered up boxes of food with my swords, stacking and tying them in one swift motion. Just like old times—only without the blue mask. "Guards coming!" Smellerbee called out. That was our signal to leave. We grabbed a few more items, then ducked back out and headed down

“嘿，”臭蜂说。朗肖特只是点了点头。 “你好，”我小心翼翼地说。 自由战士吗?这些人想从我这里得到什么？ “事情是这样的，”杰特开始说。 “我听说船长吃得像个国王，而我们这些难民只能吃残羹剩饭。 这似乎不公平，不是吗？”他盯着我问道：“你想帮我们解放一些食物吗？”我喜欢你这么说。 我准备好像国王一样大吃特吃了。 我相信叔叔也是。 “我进去了。”我回答，把那碗泔水扔到海里。 那天晚上，杰特、臭蜂和我一起去了船长的住处。 透过窗户，我看到一张大桌子上摊着一大堆食物。 看起来好像有人要大吃一顿了。 那个人就是我。杰特用他的剑打开了锁。 他和我趁臭蜂站岗的时候溜了进去。 我砍了一些烤鸭，然后用我的剑捡起一箱箱的食物，迅速地堆叠起来，捆好。 就像以前一样，只是没有了蓝色面具。 “警卫来了!”闻蜂叫道。 那是我们离开的信号。 我们又拿了几样东西，然后又钻了出来，往下走

to the lower deck with our feast. Uncle, Smellerbee, Longshot, and I dug into the delicious food while Jet handed some out to the other refugees. I like this guy. He has an idea, makes a plan, and takes action. And because of that, we refugees have the food we deserve. "From what I heard, people eat like this every night in Ba Sing Se," Jet said, sitting down and joining us. "I can't wait to set my eyes on that giant wall." "It's a magnificent sight," Uncle said. "So you've been there before?" Jet asked. I stiffened slightly, not sure how Uncle was going to handle this. He can't let on that we're Fire Nation. "Once," he replied. "When I was a… different man." Okay, I hope Jet doesn't ask Uncle to elaborate. And he didn't. Jet nodded as if he understood. "I've done some things in my past that I'm not proud of. But that's why I'm going to Ba Sing Se—for a new beginning, a second chance." "That's very noble of you," Uncle said. Then he looked right at me as he added, "I believe people can change their lives if they want to. I believe in second chances."

带着我们的盛宴去下层甲板。 叔叔，闻蜂，长枪和我大吃特吃，杰特给其他难民分发了一些。 我喜欢这个人。他有一个想法，制定一个计划，并采取行动。 正因为如此，我们难民才有了我们应得的食物。 “据我所知，永固城的人每天晚上都这样吃饭，”杰特说着坐了下来，加入了我们。 “我迫不及待地想看看那堵巨大的墙。” “真是壮观的景象，”叔叔说。 “这么说你以前去过那儿？”飞机问道。 我有点僵住了，不知道叔叔会怎么处理这件事。 他不能让人知道我们是火宗人。 “有一次，”他回答。“当我变成另一个人的时候。” 好吧，希望杰特别让叔叔详细解释。 但他没有。杰特点点头，好像明白了。 “我过去做过一些不光彩的事情。 但这就是我要去永固城的原因——为了一个新的开始，第二次机会。” “你真高尚，”叔叔说。 然后他直视着我补充道：“我相信，只要人们愿意，他们可以改变自己的生活。 我相信有第二次机会。”

Is that what this is about? A second chance rather than a failure? A chance to leave my old life behind once and for all? A chance to start over in a place where no one knows me? Forget who I am… who I was? Maybe this is an opportunity rather than a defeat. I'm just not sure. The following morning as I stood at the ferry's railing, watching the ship approach the great wall of Ba Sing Se, Jet stepped up beside me. "You know, as soon as I saw your scar, I knew exactly who you were," he said. What—he knows I'm Fire Nation? That I'm a prince in exile? How can he? "You're an outcast, like me," Jet continued. Oh, okay. He has no idea. I was relieved. "And us outcasts have to stick together. We have to watch each other's backs. Because no one else will." I understood what he was telling me. "I've realized lately that being on your own isn't always the best path," I replied. Maybe I've met another "outcast" who thinks like I do. Maybe things in Ba Sing Se won't be so bad after all. Maybe. We arrived at Ba Sing Se's outer wall and, with the

是为了这个吗？ 第二次机会，而不是失败？ 一个永远离开过去生活的机会吗？ 一个在没人认识我的地方重新开始的机会？ 忘记我是谁…我曾经是谁？ 也许这是一个机会而不是失败。 我只是不确定。第二天早上，我站在渡轮的栏杆上，看着船驶向永固城的长城，杰特走到我身边。 “你知道，我一看到你的伤疤，就知道你是谁了，”他说。 他知道我是火宗人？ 我是一个流亡的王子？ 他怎么能？“你和我一样，是个被抛弃的人，”杰特继续说。 哦,好的。他不知道。我松了一口气。 “我们这些被抛弃的人必须团结在一起。 我们得互相照应。 因为没人会这么做。” 我明白他在告诉我什么。 “我最近意识到，靠自己并不总是最好的道路，”我回答说。 也许我遇到了另一个和我想法一样的“弃儿”。 也许永固城的情况不会那么糟。 也许吧。我们来到永固城的外墙，带着

fake passports Uncle's friends at the White Lotus club had given us, easily passed through the processing center. Now that we were in, we waited for the monorail to take us into the city itself so we could start our new lives. I'm still not sure what that means, but I can't stop thinking about Uncle speaking of a second chance. Jet came over. "So, you guys got plans once you're in the city?" he asked. Before I could reply, a tea salesman came by. "Get your hot tea here! Finest tea in Ba Sing Se." "Ohh!" Uncle cried. "Jasmine, please!" But he took one sip and spat it out. "Ugh. Coldest tea in Ba Sing Se is more like it!" As Uncle scowled and stared at his cold cup of tea, I got up and walked away, hoping to avoid Jet's questions. But he kept after me. "You and I have a much better chance of making it in the city if we stick together," Jet said. "You want to join my freedom fighters?" I'm not surprised that Jet asked me to join his gang. It might be a good idea, part of my second chance. They can help me create my new destiny away from the Fire Nation, and forge a new path. But is that what I really want to be doing? I don't

叔叔在白莲俱乐部的朋友给我们的假护照，很容易就通过了办理中心。 既然我们进去了，我们就等着单轨火车把我们带到城里，这样我们就可以开始我们的新生活了。 我仍然不确定那是什么意思，但我一直在想叔叔说的第二次机会。 杰特过来了。“那么，你们进城后有安排吗？”他问。 我还没来得及回答，一个卖茶叶的走了过来。 “把你的热茶拿来！”永固城最好的茶。” “哦!”叔叔哭了。“茉莉,请!”但他喝了一口就吐了出来。 “哎。这才是永固城最冷的茶！”当叔叔皱着眉头盯着他那杯冷茶时，我起身走开了，希望能避开杰特的问题。 但他一直追着我。杰特说：“如果我们团结在一起，你和我在这座城市立足的机会会大得多。” “你想加入我的自由战士吗？”杰让我加入他的帮派，我一点也不惊讶。 这也许是个好主意，给我第二次机会。 他们可以帮我创造新的命运远离烈火国，开辟一条新的道路。 但这是我真正想做的吗？ 我不