Well, I can't believe I got my lazy ass to write this. It's been an idea I had for some time. The philosophical view on life here is not mine, it's actually a popular idea but I don't know where it comes from. I don't take credit for it. Anyway, I felt it fit PERFECTLY with Irko. :)
The Best Cup of Tea
Iroh sighed happily as he wiped clean the last cup from the tea shop he managed in Ba Sing Se. It had been a heavy workload compared to days passed. The cleaning up after the last customers left was uneventful as it had always been. "Aah, where's prince Zuko when you need his help?"
Zuko had left his uncle alone to tend to the cleaning and stepped outside of the shop, claiming he had "a lot of thinking to do". He'd been sitting against a tree just thirty yards from the shop's entrance, tracing the current positions of himself and his uncle. Iroh turned out the lanterns in the tea shop and closed the door as he left to search for his nephew. He made sure to bring with him two cups of boiling hot sweet tea.
The former general spotted the exiled prince and took a seat beside him against the tree, placing a cup of tea in front of him. Zuko became aware of his uncle's presence but did not stir. Neither said anything for some time; Zuko let himself become absorbed in his thoughts while Iroh watched the sun set, blistering the sky with a blend of beautiful colors. "May I ask what's on your mind, prince Zuko?"
Zuko said nothing for a minute although he'd heard the words clearly. "I'm just thinking." He didn't bother to look up and kept his eyes closed.
"Go on." Iroh sipped his tea slowly.
"I don't want to talk about it right now," Zuko spoke as he looked his uncle in the eyes. Iroh sensed from Zuko's eyes a lack of confidence, a lack of security, the look of a worried young child. He tried to change the subject. "I don't know how long we can keep doing this. We need to..." But he never finished. They'd been on the run for some time now. Although the tea shop Iroh ran kept them running, it wasn't a secure future.
"You're unsure of what beholds us, are you not?" Iroh asked calmly. "Nervous?"
The young boy took his time to respond, carefully replaying words in his mind. "That's part of it," Zuko had wanted to talk to Iroh about a matter troubling him much. "But I feel like I don't understand life at times. I don't know what to do, who I should follow. I'm just...confused." Zuko frowned as he summed up his thoughts. He didn't know if Iroh would understand or if he'd be able to help him. It seemed no one understood him anymore. Iroh cocked an eyebrow at him. What a pleasant surprise that was.
"Nephew, life is a game. What you do and what you do not do is the complete reason one ends up where he does." Iroh lectured reassuringly. He pulled his gaze down and looked at the darkening grass.
"I can see that...but what does it mean?" Zuko asked in a whisper, turning his head to look at the Dragon of the West.
Iroh thought slowly for some time, sipping some more tea. Zuko had not touched his yet, and the fading luster of the setting sun gave the steaming tea a glowly, orange look. "There's a different meaning for everyone." Iroh answered finally. "You must find your meaning yourself, nephew."
"Oh," Zuko looked away for some time as the sky's glowing atmosphere faded slowly. "What do you think it means, uncle?"
"Surely you wouldn't want to end up like me, prince Zuko!" Iroh joked, chuckling quietly. "You've got your whole life ahead of you. As you progress, you'll slowly develop your own answer to the mystery. Will you do that, nephew?"
"I will, uncle," Zuko returned as he look back at his smiling uncle. "But can I ask you what you see life as?"
"Hmm," Iroh grew quiet, pondering his thoughts. His gaze shifted to his surroundings: what he sit on, what lay beside him, what he heard, and the like. His eyes lit up and he grinned as he located a small glass jar within arm's reach. He made haste to grab it and dust it off after he grabbed it from a pile f debris. "We'll start with this."
"Uncle, that's a jar." Zuko observed, cocking an eyebrow.
"For now, yes," Iroh smiled. He turned to pick up the biggest of rocks he could find, and he placed them in the jar. It took a minute for the small jar to be unable to host anymore large chucks of earth, a minute in which Zuko carefully watched his uncle with curious eyes. "Is the jar full?"
"Yes." Zuko answered calmly.
"No, it's not," Iroh returned slowly with a smirk. He grabbed a handful of pebbles and dropped them into the jar. They slipped into the gaps created by the bigger rocks until no more pebbles could be placed into the jar. Zuko watched carefully, his eyes never leaving that small, clear jar. "It seems full now, yes?"
"Yes." Zuko repeated. "Where are you going with this?"
"Well, it's not," Iroh smiled. He scooped us some sand with his palm and poured it into the jar. It sank to the bottom of the jar, and within a matter of seconds, sand was brimming at the from the opening. "And you see, it's full now. Or is it?"
"Are you trying to trick me again?" Zuko asked cautiously. His uncle's grin gave away nothing. "Um...yes. It's full now."
"Okay." Iroh smiled slowly at him.
"Well, what is it?" Zuko asked irratibly. He didn't see where this was going.
"Guess. Think about it." Zuko thought for a minute, staring at the jar. Eventually, he just shrugged and shook his head.
"This, prince Zuko, is life." Iroh spoke calmly over the slowly howling wind. The night wasn't very cold as it had been in passed days.
"Uncle, I was asking seriously!" Zuko retorted.
"I mean it, nephew," Iroh was calm. "This is life."
Zuko looked, annoyed, at the jar. Rocks, pebbles, sand. What did it mean? And so he asked. "What does it mean?"
"Well, the rocks are the things in your life with the upmost importance. Your health, your family and loved ones, and such things. Without these, you would be desimated." Iroh spoke slowly, allowing Zuko to listen to each word carefully.
"I...can see that." Zuko answered. He scratched his head. "What about the rest?"
"The pebbles are the next most important things to you. Your wealth, your job, your home, and the like," Iroh answered slowly again. He saw Zuko's face light up with realization. He actually understood what his crazy uncle was talking about. Zuko didn't comment this time but instead, looked at his uncle with eager, hungry eyes. "The sand is everything else. This is what makes you you.Your hobbies, your pride, your interests, your talents, among others. These are important to you, but not as meaningful as the rocks."
"I get it." Zuko smiled at his uncle, the first honest smile he'd made in over a week's time.
Iroh smiled in return. He grabbed his tea cup and took a final sip before slowly pouring the remaining liquid into the jar. Now it was full. But he continued. "Like I said, the bigger rocks are the most important. If you place the pebbles and the sand in the jar first, there is no place for the bigger rocks to squeeze into. That is a destroyed life. You must know what's important and what's most important."
Zuko felt awed at what his uncle had told him. He'd never thought about life in such a way. It amazed him. "How does this apply to you, can I ask?"
Iroh couldn't be happier. "The sand for me is my tea and my firebending. My pebbles are this tea shop. It's both our home and whatever wealth we have." Zuko took it in. He took it all in. it didn't seem they had much now that Iroh said it, but the young prince could see his uncle was content.
After a slight pause, Zuko asked another question. "What's the rocks for you?" He was genuinely interested.
Iroh's eyes watered slightly from happiness as he placed a hand on his young nephew's shoulder. "You." It was just above a whisper.
Without hearing a word, Iroh felt himself trapped in a loving embrace. He let the tears flow this time. He grabbed his nephew tight and brought him closer. After a minute or so, the two seperated. No words needed to be said. The aroma surrounding them was the most comforting they'd felt in a very long time. The last ray of light the sun gave away before she went to sleep for the night shone upon Zuko's face, exposing trails of tears, glistening with joy.
"I...don't know what to say, uncle." Zuko whispered as he wiped away his shed tears. He tried to replace his grin, but it didn't manage to go away.
"I'm glad we had this talk, nephew. Never lose focus of your life. If you'll excuse your old uncle, I'm going to turn in for the night." Iroh slowly sat up and started walking his way over to the tea shop where him and Zuko spent the nights. He had left the jar in Zuko's hands. But a voice stopped him before he wanded too far away.
"Uncle, wait!" Zuko called. "What does the tea mean? Why did you pour it in the jar?"
"I thought you'd never ask," Iroh grinned without turning around. "No matter how busy, how troubled your life is, there's always time for a nice cup of tea!" Iroh sighed contently.
Zuko chuckled lightly. Never had he been so happy to hear those words. "Thank you, uncle. Good night."
As Iroh started to leave again, Zuko picked up his cup of tea and took a heavy sip from it for the first time that night.
THE END!As always, thoughts are appreciated. You don't have to be logged in.