Dreams

A gloomy mood hang over him. He couldn't find the words to say to comfort his twin sister. The doctor had told them that she should not take part in any physical activity for at least a month. That would give her cracked ribs enough time to fully heal. Ling didn't look devastated but Shen was aware of how much she loved training. He wondered if it would be possible for Ling to keep still for even a day.

In their first bounty hunt, Ling was the only one who got seriously injured. Shen and June came away with a few bruises. However, they all shared the pain in their humiliating tale of defeat.

"Experience can be a brutal teacher," said Zoraya as they walked to the lodge. "Learn from it and move on."

"Am sorry Sensei. You taught me to keep my emotions in check and to think ahead but I didn't do any of that today. I let my excitement get the better of me."

"Don't beat yourself up. We all make mistakes."

"Mine nearly cost me my life." He vividly remembered the pit closing above him and the fear of death that overcame him.

"Yes it did, but that is the beauty of being in a team. We look out for each other, no matter how hard the fall or how deep the pit."

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Back at the lodge June and her friends sat quietly at their dinner table a few feet away from the adults. After her meal, she pushed her chair back and got up to leave. A gentle steady hand fell on her shoulder. She was startled and moved away but later felt embarrassed by her actions when she realized that it was Dan.

"Relax it's me."

"Oh.... hey Dan."

He stared at her for a minute or two before saying, "What's with the gloomy faces?"

"Nothing. Just had a bad day."

"Ok. Let's talk about it," he said as he pulled up a chair

"I don't feel like sharing."

"It's a lot easier talking to a stranger, trust me, I know."

"And what would a stranger know about being a bounty hunter?" Ling asked as June sat back down.

"Oh, so you're bounty hunters! Am sure you have interesting stories to tell, right?" His words cut like a knife. At times like these, when she was a little girl, June would tell a lie just to save face.

After a moment of silence Dan said, "Let me guess. Your first mission didn't go so well, did it?" More silence. An attendant brought a round of drinks to their table and Dan gave her a tip and asked for more drinks. "So what now?" he asked while staring at the drink in his cup. "You plan on quitting? Having second thoughts about your career?"

"Have you ever had second thoughts about whatever it is that you do for a living?" Ling asked.

"Am a merchant. To answer your question, yes I have. Kind of hard to forget your first day. I had this grand idea of taking over my grandpa's clothing business and I imagined that I would attract people from all over the continent. Little did I know that my dream would require a lot of work to be successful."

"I couldn't create anything so I decided to start small. I would buy things at a low price and sell in other towns at a higher one. I forgot to factor in the cost of living and travel, as well as the risk of bandits and accidents, but I learnt as I went. In my first month, I failed to sell a single product and I became bankrupt." He smiled as if he was proud of this achievement.

"And what about your second month?" Ling asked.

"How could I have done a second month when I had no money?"

"So what happened next?"

"I quit."

"What?!" June and Ling exclaimed.

"And here I thought you were about to share some words of encouragement or wisdom." said Shen.

"Why do you all seem disappointed?"

"Because Dan, you made it seem as if you were telling a 'happily ever after story'." June replied.

"But it is."

Why do the cute ones seem to have a few screws loose in their head?

"You see,"Dan continued, "I learnt what I shouldn't do. Sometimes your experience will teach you how to make your career better. At other times, it will teach what career you should or shouldn't do."

"So that's it? You just gave up on your dream?"

"People change. Hobbies change. Dreams change. You need to know when to let go and when to hold on. Why did you become a bounty hunter?"

"To catch the bad guys and have fun doing it," said Ling.

"I thought it would be a fun adventure," was June's reply.

Shen said, "pretty much what she said." He was referring to his sister.

Dan nodded his head a few times. "There are other ways of having an adventure. Also, who are the bad guys? The ones on the posters? The people who the authorities say you should be aware of? There are some bad guys who aren't on posters, who move among us as if they have done nothing wrong. Why not catch those bad guys."

Ling snapped. "Hey, I don't have ears and eyes all over the world. Not even the avatar can be in two places at once. I will do what I can to make my town or home a safe place. If you have something against government officials or have evidence of corrupt officials, take it up with King Bumi."

Dan laughed. "I was only giving you some food for thought. Forgive me if it came out in the wrong way."

"Wait! You said you are a merchant but yet you gave up on your dream. How does that work?" asked Shen.

"I stopped dealing in clothes and focused on raw materials. At the moment, crops are doing very well. Our soldiers and people need to eat after all."

"I see. Well that's it for me. Am off to bed."

"Sorry," said Dan," I didn't catch your name...."

Shen gave him a cold stare and continued to walk away.

"What's with you?" asked Ling but he didn't respond.

June felt awkward but didn't say anything. She continued to chat with Ling and Dan for a few more minutes; talking about their future dreams and making fun of each other till late in the night.