༻࿇༺

"You kids get back here this instant!" Those are the first words twins Li Kun and Lin hear when they wake up in the morning and the last before they go to sleep at night. 

In all the Earth Kingdom, no one pair causes more trouble than Lin and Li Kun. The sun has only just risen, and already they've knocked off one lowly cabbage cart, a few fruit stands, evaded confrontation with the authorities on six occurrences, and it's a pretty good day for panhandling suckers too. They make it through three little villages by mid day (their motto is travel fast and travel often), setting up shop in a quaint little town just outside of Omashu -- the city is a day's walk or so away, Li Kun thinks. 

Lin wants to test out their new and improved wheeled shoes (it's the fifth remodel they've done since last winter). Li Kun's distracting the owner of one small stand among many in this quiet little market -- the boy could really talk up a storm if he gets the chance, it's why he's always the diversion. "-- and did you know badger-moles can see by feeling around in the dirt?" he tells the owner of the stand. "Something about being the first Earth benders. I'm not a bender myself, but I still think that's pretty cool, don't you?" 

The shopkeep (Li Kun calls him Goat in his head, because he's got a long, white beard that reminds him of the goat-pig he kept as a pet when he was three) is less than enthused with his antics, his eyes lifeless and dull; but the old man still doesn't see Lin when she sneaks up behind him. He doesn't notice her, at first, when she reaches up to snatch a few things off his cart, his full attention on Li Kun in front of him. "Look, son, if you're not going to buy anything --"  

"Oh, I don't have any money to buy anything," Li Kun confesses with a shake of his head. He flashes Goat a wide grin -- it's meant to portray innocence, but Lin says he can't pull it off. His smile's too crooked, and his eyes are too devous -- there's a certain spark in those small, russet irises that can only mean trouble. It gives it all away, makes it obvious he's up to something. And if that doesn't do it, it's the way his tawny hair is so disheveled. It sticks out in all sorts of directions -- left, right, straight up. Lin's tried to tame it before, but like Li Kun himself his hair is much too stubborn. What's more, he just looks like he's up to no good. His poor posture, the way his fingers never stopped moving, how his legs were so twitchy, itching to move, ready to run at a moment's notice. The boy is mischievous straight to his core. 

Goat narrows his dull brown eyes in a silent demand: turn out your pockets. Li Kun obeys, but he can't stop the grin that's begun forming. "I'm not stealing anything." He leans on the cart, in part to look cool but also to peak around the thing and see if Lin's got her wheeled shoes ready. She's busy strapping them on, the bag of stolen goods already slung over her shoulders. "It's my sister you have to watch out for. She's the one with sticky fingers." 

There's a brief moment of confusion that flickers over the old man's face; then Lin is slipping out from under him, zipping by at unbelievable speed. She propels herself with the edges of the cart, shoots downhill. Li Kun jumps, pumping his fists in the air, crying out in excitement. It actually works this time! He can't believe how fast Lin's going. His pride is short lived, however, as Goat starts rounding the cart. Li Kun bolts, sprinting after his sister. Both twins are cackling madly as the shopkeep shouts at them to come back with his stolen property; they laugh hard as Lin nearly runs over a group of women trying to walk through the street. The women scatter in all directions, like a group of deer-cats. Perhaps, it's unkind, and perhaps stealing is wrong, especially when the victim of the theft is an honest, hard working man… But that's life on the streets. They have to steal what they eat or else they would starve. Nothing personal. That's what Li Kun always tells himself anyway, that they have no choice. 

The wheeled shoes are quick, especially since Lin's path is all downhill. Li Kun can run pretty fast, considering he's got long legs, but even he has trouble keeping up with it. He can't help but to be impressed with his own work. (Is that arrogant?) 

The speed is good, it turns out, as the authorities of the little village arrive. (Because of course Goat couldn't just let the two nasty street rats get away with taking his goods!) They're home free… Until Lin happens upon a sharp turn. She can't maneuver herself, the shoes are too heavy, they're unbalanced; and she's going too fast. There's no way to stop either. (They haven't figured the breaks out yet.) Before she knows it, she's smashing right into a brick wall, civilians jumping out of the way with a few startled yelps. 

Li Kun cringes and runs to her aid, but authorities are quick to apprehend them before he reaches her. They grip Lin by the shoulders tightly, the girl wobbling slightly on the wheeled shoes. The guy in charge, Li Kun decides to call him Chief, narrows his dark green -- almost the same shade as an Emerald -- eyes at the twins; they're almost black in the shadow of a nearby oak tree. They're stern, but at the same time they're lax. As if he's trying hard to think up some big speech meant to make Li Kun and his sister see the error of their ways but his heart isn't in it. He's got grey side-burns and just enough hair on his head to form the thinnest of top knots. His muscles are tight, like he's ready for a fight, but from the various lines around his mouth and nose Li Kun guesses he's been on the job for thirty years or more -- perhaps, without seeing anything particularly interesting, hence that bored gleam in his eyes.  Everything about the old man screams, 'I just need to survive this year, then I can happily retire!' The ground, Li Kun thinks, rumbles under his feet, almost as if the earth itself was offended by the twins' small crime. So, Chief is an earth bender. 

Chief snatches the stolen goods from Lin's hands. The gesture is almost lackluster, as if he couldn't care less about a couple of thieves, much less two that are so young. (Perhaps, there was a time when he would have cared more, but after years of hard work and little respect in return he just doesn't anymore.) He's got better things to do, like planning where he'll go after his retirement or if he'll even travel at all. Perhaps he's too old and frail by now. Still, he has to uphold the peace -- or at least look like he's making an effort. 

Lin cries out in protest, but the other, younger officers still have a firm grip on her. (They've got Li Kun too, but their hold on him is not nearly as tight.) The wheels on Lin's shoes are still much too wobbly to do anything about it anyway. Chief sneers down at the twins -- it's in the same manner with which one might watch the grass grow. "What do you have to say for yourselves?" There's no weight to his words. He doesn't care why they've done it, just wants to bring them to justice or whatever so he can go home already. Get his one, final year over with already. 

Lin grins up at him. She's missing a tooth, (she'd knocked it out during their first test run with the wheeled shoes) which makes her look sort of silly and childish even though she's already fifteen. She bats her eyes at Chief innocently. They are different colors -- it's subtle, but they're two contrasting shades of green. She says it makes her look cool, unique. Li Kun says it makes her look like a freak. (She always hits him when he says that.) They've got this evil twinge in them, though it's not as sophisticated at Li Kun's. He's brainy and quick witted, she thinks on her feet, relies solely on dumb luck. Li Kun can think up a cunning escape plan in seconds, Lin will simply de-pants her adversaries and run away cackling. "Uh -- we're orphans, we never had a chance!" 

Ah, yes. The orphan card. It's one they've played many times over. Usually, it gets them off the hook, easy. Officers, shopkeeps, merchants and even pirates all puff out their cheeks, their eyes going all glassy with sympathy, especially after they hear the twins have spent a good portion of their lives drifting from street to street with no real place to call home. They pat their heads, give a little, "There, there, you poor things!" And the twins are sent off with whatever they want. 

Chief doesn't even bat an eye. "Right." His voice is monotone, deep and slow. He lets out a long, heavy sigh, rolls his eyes. "Everyone has a sob story." The orphan card only works two out of three times. 

Lin's grin falls. She glances at Li Kun, head tilted to the side, as if to say what now, Brainiac? 

Li Kun has a rule -- 'When in doubt, keep talking!' It's meant to discreetly uncover weaknesses, but if nothing else it annoys their foes so much they're forced to let them go. "If we're going to jail do we get to send out a letter via messenger hawk?" Li Kun asks. "Because I think we should. Of course we don't really have anyone to send a message to." He grins when Chief narrows his eyes further. This boy is wasting his time, and he knows it. "But can you imagine the face of some random person getting a letter asking them for help paying bail?" 

Lin snorts, and a few of the less professional officers let out soft chuckles. But Chief is still unmoved. So, Li Kun keeps going. "Speaking of hawks, did you know that female hawks are larger than the males? Which is kind of cool, because usually it's the other way around." 

"That's...fascinating," Chief deadpans. "Let's go." He nods for the officers to bring them along. 

"Měilì de Chéngshì has a bunch of hawks -- they're known for their wildlife," Li Kun says. "And the sights aren't bad either. I mean, they don't call it the Beautiful City for nothing! They even have a nice lake that's pretty clean, no leeches or anything. You should go there when you retire."

At the mention of his retirement, there's a small gleam in Chief's -- perhaps, he's daydreaming of the day he could go to somewhere like Měilì de Chéngshì. 

Li Kun tilts his head back to look up at the offices restraining him and his sister. There's two covering Lin, keeping her from rolling over; the wheels on her shoes make the girl so heavy, the two officers have to use up all their strength just to push her forward. The one on the left is a fellow entrepreneur, judging from the way he keeps eyeballing the wheeled shoes. "It's really too bad we had to fall into a life of crime isn't it? Our talents are being wasted on petty theft and whatnot." 

The officer, Visonaire Li Kun decides to call him in his head, shrugs. "You said it, not me." But it's written all over his face. He thinks they're wasted potential. Maybe they are. 

"In another life you could be our mentor," Li Kun says. "Spirits know we need one! Look, we can't even get the balance right on these shoes!" He gestures to Lin's feet, and as if to help prove his point she stumbles, dragging the two officers with her. "These are too heavy, the last ones we made were too light…"

Lin nods eagerly as Visonaire and the other officer straightened her up again. She's been silent up until now, usually let's her brother do all the talking. He's better at that, she's better at taking action. "It's true. They flew right off my feet and clocked some poor sap in the face. Broke his nose, too. And these…" She frowns at the shoes on her feet. "They're great for going straight, but not for much else. They're also way too tight, they hurt my feet! Still, at least the wheels didn't pop off this time." 

"We have a big problem with making the wheels stay on," Li Kun informs. 

"Well you could --" Visonaire is cut off with the other officer on Lin's arm smacks his shoulder -- her nickname is Trooper. 

"Don't give them any ideas!" She's got the same eyes as Chief. They're related. She's his daughter, Li Kun assumes; Chief's her hero, so she followed him into the force. But that's not the only reason she's become a solider. She has to prove herself, to prove that women can be warriors too. Trooper is strong, independant. She could easily kick any man's butt with both her hands tied behind her back, and she doesn't even need her Earth bending to do it, either. Blah, blah, feminism, blah, blah girl power. 

There's something between her and Visonaire too -- no, scratch that. Something between her, Visonarie, and Handyman (that's what Li Kun nicknames the officer holding him, based on the calluses on his hands, he's the go-to guy whenever something is broken). It's all in their eyes. Handyman has been crushing on Trooper since they were kids; they're probably childhood friends. But Trooper has a thing for Visonaire, who actually is madly in love with Handyman. Has been ever since they met on the job three years ago. It's the finest love triangle Li Kun has ever laid eyes on. 

It's very easy to exploit. 

"You should probably listen to your girlfriend," Li Kun advizes. "It's very dangerous when we start thinking." 

Visonaire is quick to dismiss the idea, shaking his head, even letting his hands drop from Lin to wave them through the air for extra emphasis. "Oh, no. We're not -- She's not even my type!" 

Trooper scoffs, also lets go of Lin to place her fists on her hips and shoot a glare Visonaire's way. "Oh, well excuse me! I didn't realize dating me would be such a terrible option!" 

"I didn't mean it like that!" Visonaire shifted his weight from foot to foot; his eyes shift towards Handyman. 

"Don't look at me, man!" Handyman protests. He lets go of Li Kun, stepping towards the other two. "You dug yourself in the hole, I'm not getting you out this time!" That's all it takes for the three of them to start squabbling; it's like they've forgotten all about the twins they were supposed to be apprehending. Li Kun grabs his sister's wrist -- she's already snatched the bag of stolen goods from Trooper again -- and drags her along with him. She's heavier than she should be, thanks to the added weight of the wheeled shoes (they really should figure that little weight problem out), but there's no time to slip them off. 

Chief looks up as they go, does a double take. He shouts, "Hey! You kids get back here this -- Oh forget it…" Then, he stalks off, presumably to make reservations for Měilì de Chéngshì. 

Lin lets out a loud cackle, a throaty sort of noise that sounds absolutely demonic. "Losers." 

༻࿇༺

"I don't understand. Why can't I do it?" Miko and her father are sitting in her room for the girl's private fire bending lesson. (She studies separate from Zuko, because her incompetence is embarrassing.) For the past hour she's been trying to…do something. Anything at all really. Light a candle, make some smoke, some sparks. But nothing happens, she's grasping at thin air. Fire bending has always been a struggle for her; she just can't do it -- not the way she's supposed to anyway, not when she's trying so hard.  

Iroh sits calmly, patiently. There's something in his eyes that Miko can't quite place. It's not negative. Iroh never looks at her (or Zuko for that matter) negatively. He stays silent for a moment, lifts his tea cup to his lips (because of course he has a cup of tea), takes a sip and lowers it again. "For generations fire benders have used rage and hatred to fuel their fire bending," he explains, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "It seems you do not harbor enough spite for this method." 

Miko pouts,"So, I can't fire bend?" It seems backwards, unfair. Her father is the best fire bending master Miko has ever seen, but he is also the least hateful man she has ever met. He's the kindest soul, even to the rudest of people, even to Commander Zhao; he always listens even if the tale is dreadfully long and irksome, even if the story is utter nonsense. If fire bending was fueled by anger and hate, how could he fire bend but not her? 

"I didn't say that." 

She tilts her head to the side. Iroh moves to place his tea cup on the table carefully; he sits forward, facing his daughter. His legs are folded, criss cross in a Lotus potion, hands folded in his lap. Miko smiles softly, knowing what this means: he's going to tell a story. "Long ago, dragons and people lived together, side by side. The dragons were the original fire benders. They passed their knowledge onto the first human fire benders -- an ancient civilization around long before the Fire Nation was ever even thought of. They were called the Sun Warriors."

Miko nods slowly. She remembers this story from her days at the Academy; it's one that every fire bender must learn by heart, the story of the lost civilization. Only, she finds as Iroh continues, she hasn't heard this version of the story. "The Sun Warriors predate the modern Fire Nation by thousands of years, thus their philosophy regarding firebending is pure and uncorrupted, based upon the life-giving and creative aspects of fire rather than the destruction and distorted ways we have today." Miko sits forward, pressing her hands against the bed spread, her eyes wide. Creative and life-giving aspects? They had definitely forgotten to mention that in school. 

Iroh gives a small, warm smile as he takes note of that little spark in Miko's eyes. They're so full of life, purity -- a rare sight for someone of the Fire Nation. "It was the Sun Warriors who developed the original fire bending forms; they drew their power from the sun's energy -- hence the name Sun Warriors." He laughs at his own joke, and Miko offers a generous chuckle of her own. She doesn't want him to think her rude, even though the joke wasn't all that funny to her. Iroh grows serious again a moment later. He continues, "They focused on the physical heat as well as spiritual enlightenment and idealism. To them fire didn't merely represent destruction but life and energy." 

Miko's gives a wide grin. So, that's how her father was able to fire bend -- through the original ways of fire bending, like the Sun Warriors. There's still hope for her own fire bending. With that in mind, she gave it another go. This time, she makes the smallest of flames -- it's like an infant. Miko jumps, and in her excitement she lets the little fire dissipate. 

Her father looks back at her, pride gleaming in his eyes. "Very good, Miko." 

She beams. It doesn't work the next time, though -- it's a fluke. Her father tells her not to be discouraged, it's progress after all. Miko spends the rest of the afternoon finishing her paintings, composing music, and writing stories -- it all comes much easier to her than fire bending. 

When evening comes, Miko seeks out her cousin. Her father had informed her a few hours prior that he had been fruitlessly scouring the ends of the Earth for the Avatar after discoveirng the crew had absolutely no idea where he had gone. She figures he needs a break. (At least, she can't imagine that staying hunched over those maps for so long could be good for his back.)

"Whatcha doin'?" Miko asks, leaning in the frame of her cousin' s door. 

"What does it look like?" Zuko's response is cold, his voice tight, muscles tense. He doesn't look up. 

"Brooding in the dark?" Miko's suggestion is not appreciated, earning her a glare. At least he's meeting her eyes now. 

"What do you want?" Zuko hisses. "I'm busy!" To prove his point, he jerks his head back down to the maps with a huff. 

Miko shrugs. "Attention mostly." She sits in front of her cousin, rests her chin in the palm of her hands as she looks at him, smiling brightly. "I'm bored." 

"So, go find something to do!" Zuko orders. He ignores her stare, already knowing she's going to drag him out of his chambers; and he can already tell she'll want to force him into something incredibly stupid, to waste his time with nonesense games and puzzles and whatever other stupid things her little mind comes up with to distract him. He doesn't have time to waste on nonsense! Why can't she understand that? 

"I want to spend time with my cousin," Miko tells him. And there it is. It's times like this that he wishes his uncle would have just left her back at the Fire Nation homeland. Zuko cares for Miko, he really does, but she does not have her priorities straight. Finding the Avatar should come first, above all else, even family bonding.  

Zuko sighs. She's much too fragile for him to tell her that point blank. "Miko…" He searches his mind for the right words. "I need to find the Avatar."

"That shouldn't mean you can't have fun in your down time." Miko snatches the maps from him, keeps talking before he even has the chance to protest. "Staring at these aren't going to make him magically come back to the ship." 

"I have to do something!" He doesn't mean to, but he raises his voice. The flames on the candles rise a bit higher. "No one else is doing anything useful!" He doesn't mean to say that either. It slips out before he even fully forms the words in his head, and he doesn't realize he's said them until he glances up to see Miko pouting like a child. She looks pathetic; and all because of a few meaningless words. She's too sensitive. It's not his fault, Uncle Iroh didn't teach her to have a backbone! It's her own fault her feelings get hurt so easily. She's the delicate one! 

Still, he finds himself trying to fix it. He can't take the words back, but he can humor or for a while, if not just to stop her from crying before Uncle Iroh finds out he yelled at her. "Fine," he relents relucdantly. "What do you want to do?" 

Miko's frown is replaced with the biggest grin in seconds. He almost thinks she was faking her offense, her mood changes so quickly. "Let's play a game -- I'll give you a hint and you try to guess what I'm thinking of, okay?"

"That sounds incredibly stupid." And there he goes, talking before his brain has a chance to register the words completely. It's the truth, though, this game is a waste of time. In fact, any sort of interaction with Miko is a waste of time; she only leads him off his course, distracts him from his destiny, from getting his honor back. 

"Shush." Miko takes a slow look around the room; and when she lets out a tiny giggle he assumes she's found something worthy enough to be the object of her dumb little game. "It's small," she says. "But not small enough to fit in your pocket. It's round and brown." 

"It's the tea pot Uncle left in here earlier," Zuko says. The answer is easy enough. There's not much in Zuko's room; he's opted to leave most of his things back home, after all. It'll all be there, waiting for him, when he finally returns home with the Avatar. That is if Miko ever stops pestering him long enough for him to find the Avatar again before Zhao does. "Are we finished now?" 

Miko shakes her head. Of course not, he just had to ask didn't he? "It's your turn now." 

"My turn?!" 

"Yes. You give me hints, and I guess." She grins at him, looking innocent enough; but Zuko knows his little cousin will one day be the death of him. She's going to kill him with stupid little girl games and that sweet smile that has everyone fooled. She looks nice on the outside, but Miko is truly an evil monster. 

"Fine!" He takes a quick look around the room, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible. It doesn't take long to find something. The walls are mostly bare, save for one lone Fire Nation banner and his two broadswords. Those are too obvious. Miko wants a challenge, she likes to think hard. His eyes drift to the edge of his bed, that's where he spots it. "It's something that can be worn, but it's not considered clothing." 

Miko thinks for a moment. Her hands slide to the top of her head. "My hair pieces?" 

Zuko shakes his head. Miko keeps scanning the room. Eventually, her eyes light up; she gets up and moves to the end of the bed. "Is it this?" She's holding him his Dark Water Spirit mask from the play Love Amongst the Dragons. Zuko nods. Perhaps, he's not very good at this game; he hates games. "Are we done now?" 

"Nope. Still bored." 

They end up playing three more rounds before Miko finally gets tired. She falls asleep on Zuko's bed, which is just as well, he supposes. It isn't as if he plans on sleeping there any time soon.

They get news of the Avatar's whereabouts at dinner the next night; it's rumors passed through a grapevine of merchants and traders. The Avatar is on Kyoshi Island. One of the crew members heard the story whilst picking up a few dozen fish to prepare for meals. Zuko's quick about ordering the helmsman to plot a course and the soldiers to ready the Komodo Rhinos. Soon enough, he and his men are marching upon the little village in search of the Avatar.  

Zuko has his soldiers fan out. He wants the Avatar alive -- it'd do no good to have him dead and reincarnate all over again. The village is seemingly empty at first glance, but a closer look at the wooden structured buildings reveals the civilians are hiding. Cowards. 

The men are ambushed by warriors -- they're females, all dressed in long, green dresses with yellow head pieces and fans for weapons. The warriors move swiftly, knocking the soldiers right off their rhinos; the leader of the warriors charges Zuko. Miko shifts from her place behind him, eyeing the girl running at them. His cousin is too weak for battle, but there's no better way to teach her strength -- she has to endure it. That's why he's brought her with him. 

Zuko punches the air, flames soaring for the warriors' leader; it misses and she jumps at him. But he spins the rhino around, the creature smacking her with its massive tail. Miko flinches; the warrior skids over the ground. A second warrior -- Zuko doesn't realize it's that Water Tribe peasant dressed as one of these pathetic girly warriors -- jumps in front of the leader, protecting her from any further advances. A third warrior knocks Zuko off the rhino; the beast runs off. Miko's still on its back. Zuko spins himself around, kicking fire up at all the warriors. They go down easy. 

He finds the Avatar soon after; this fight is over quickly too, though it's not in Zuko's favor. The Avatar finds some old relics from his past life, Kyoshi's fans -- or at least a replica pair. Zuko doesn't see how fans could possibly be used as lethal weapons, but the Avatar makes do, sending a gust of wind at the fire prince. Zuko soares, crashing into the nearest building and breaking down its outermost structure. 

The Avatar sees his chance and takes it; he whips out his glider and flies away, overlooks the village as he goes. There's fire everywhere; the Kyoshi Warriors are holding their own against Zuko's men, but who knows how long that will last. The flames are high; everything burns much too easily, what with all the wooden buildings and shopping carts. Even the statue of Kyoshi is on fire. He spots Katara at the edge of the village, ushering some children to safety. He goes to her. 

Meanwhile, Sokka is parting from the girl he now fancies -- leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, Suki. They're ducked behind a building, the battle raging on just on the other side. She gives him a small peck on the cheek, just as a Komodo Rhino rushes past them. It's the one with Miko on it; the girl has her eyes closed, clutching on to the harness for dear life. Sokka gets a brilliant idea -- at least he seems to think so. "Before we go," Sokka tells Suki. "Do you think you can help me out one last time?" 

It doesn't take long -- three seconds tops. Suki places herself in the rhino's path, aiming her fans at the ugly beast. Meanwhile, Sokka hops on top of the thing, albeit rather clumsily. He uses his borrowed fans to clock the adopted princess on the head, effectively knocking her unconscious. It's really easy, actually, and he finds himself wondering if she's ever actually seen battle before. He doesn't contemplate it long, though. There's no time for that. He takes her with him as Katara and Aang find him, riding on Appa's back. 

Katara scowls as they take to the skys once more; the Fire Nation soldiers follow them, just as they had speculated they would. "What are you doing with her?" she demands, pointing at the unconscious princess. 

"She's our prisoner!" Sokka declares proudly, only for Aang and his sister to shoot disapproving glances his way. "What? The Fire Nation takes prisoners all the time! I figure, why not even the playing field a bit? Besides, there's no way Prince Jerk Face is going to try anything if we have his cousin, right?" It's a bit unethical, but they can't argue against that point. Aang is too preoccupied to think up a good counter point at the moment anyway. So, they let him keep his prisoner -- for the moment. 

"I know it's hard," Katara tells him. "But you did the right thing. Zuko would have destroyed the whole place if we stayed. They're gonna be okay, Aang." 

Aang huffs, watching the flames over take the village, watching Zuko's Fire Nation ship retreat, leaving as if nothing had happened. As if they haven't just completely destroyed the homes of innocent people. Innocent people than Aang had put in danger. This, everything, it's all his fault. 

On a whim, he dives into the ocean below; he finds the sea monster that had nearly taken his life a few days ago, the beast he'd rode on just a few hours ago when he was showing off to those girls -- the Unagi. He flips himself on to the back of the monster's head, uses its whiskers as reigns. He forces the beast to spray a fountain of water on to the burning village. Then, he air bends himself away, back on to Appa's back.

It's not much, and now things might be flooded and soggy as well as charred and burned, but maybe it will give them a start. A chance to rebuild what was lost.