This was ridiculous. Absolutely nonsensical. It all made no sense whatsoever.
He was a general, a commander, a leader. He'd been brought up to do this and this is what his life would always be about: His army. Keeping peace throughout the nations. Developing strategies. Training soldiers. He belonged on this ship, on the seas. He belonged to this dangerous, nautical world. He'd come to terms long ago that settling down was not an option for him. Marriage would be nothing but a distraction. No doubt he'd seen his share of beautiful women and was introduced to plenty of them. But relationships, love, marriage...those weren't in the cards. Not for him, anyway.
But, darn it all, it was so hard to focus when she was around. She was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful women he'd ever met. He could easily admit to that. But harboring any sort of...feelings for her...that was completely unacceptable. And he positively refused to admit that he had any. She was just...distracting. That was all.
He was meeting with the Avatar and a few of her friends in the control room, mapping and creating a plan on how to best strike the Equalist forces, when she came into the room.
He was raised to be polite, so he had no choice but to address her. But when her striking green eyes looked his way, her name suddenly slipped his memory.
"Good evening, Miss..."
"Sato. Asami Sato." She reminded him, her voice steady and calm as she walked over to stand by her friends. "But you can address me as Asami."
A tempting offer. But his propriety was a priority and he needed to keep boundaries between himself and this...girl. So 'Miss Sato' it would have to stay.
She leaned over the table across from him, staring intensely at the map, tracing the edges with her gloved fingers. Her sleek, dark hair spilled over her shoulder, curls covering part of the seas.
"We were just going over Avatar Korra's newest strategy and I would very much like another opinion." He didn't know what made him say that. Didn't know why he was asking for her thoughts or her judgment. She looked up at him, beautiful green eyes beneath furrowed brows, to see if he was serious. Perhaps it was a test of some sorts, to see if she really was just a simple girl who randomly happened to join this group of kids...He had no idea what her story was or how she ended up here in the first place.
As she listened to the Avatar explain the plan, he couldn't help noticing how she absentmindedly bit her bottom lip and twirled the ends of her curling hair with her finger.
Focus, Iroh. Focus.
"So, Miss Sato-"
"Asami." She corrected him kindly, a gentle smile on her mouth.
"...What is your opinion?" He asked, heart beginning to beat noticeably faster.
"From what I hear, it's a good plan. Although, I wouldn't underestimate my father with his air-crafts. I know he has some tricks up his sleeve."
"Your father?" He asked, lost for a moment.
"Asami is Hiroshi Sato's daughter." The Avatar quickly explained.
"Oh..." He felt embarrassed for not making the connection earlier and hoped his face wasn't turning red. "Forgive me, I was not aware-"
"Don't trouble yourself." She stated simply, walking closer to him, her eyes still trained on the map. "Like I was saying, my father has dreamed of making air-crafts and planes for the longest time. I'd see him in his study, drawing out sketches and new ideas for inventions. Amon's giving him a reason and an opportunity to create anything he desires. The more destructive the better. And my father's been reveling in that freedom."
She crossed behind him, to the other side. As he caught a whiff of her perfume, he was pretty sure his feet had melted into the ground.
"We've all witnessed some of his inventions and what they're capable of. I've never seen him create anything so powerful. All I'm saying is, we need to prepare and protect ourselves against anything and everything. Plan for the worst. We don't know what sort of tricks they have planned."
"Any suggestions?" He asked.
She went on explaining how they would need back up troops and reinforcements after sending in the first round of soldiers because Amon was sure to annihilate them all with her father's machines.
Everyone in the room knew this to be a fact deep down inside, but her saying it out loud had a profound effect. For the first time, they collectively considered the gravity of the situation. No matter what they planned or tried, it was inevitable. People would die. On both sides. A thick silence filled the room as each person attempted to come up with an idea. There had to be some other way to go about everything.
"What are we to do?" Mako finally spoke what was on everyone's mind. No one could answer him. Everybody turned to General Iroh.
He had managed to sneak out onto the deck that night after the meeting. He had to escape and think about things. The hundreds of lives that could be ended at his command haunted his thoughts. Was this the right choice? The right plan? What would his father or grandfather do? He'd looked to Avatar Korra for a better solution, but she seemed just as lost as he was.
Leaning against the ship's rails, he wished for some sort of sign, something to tell him that he was on the right track. Even generals needed some reassurance every once in a while.
"General?" He heard a voice behind him. He didn't have to turn around to recognize who it was.
"Miss Sato." She was another concern of his.
He could hear her footsteps coming closer.
"Mind if I join you?" She quietly asked. He shut his eyes and sighed.
"Sure." He said after slight hesitation. Dealing with her was going to be harder than he thought.
He sensed her next to him, leaning against the rails.
"Something troubling you?" she inquired. He opened his eyes and stared ahead at the tumultuous ocean.
"Yeah." He let out a bitter chuckle. "A lot of things. The war, for one."
She looked down at her hands, gripping the railing, and bit her lip.
"Right..." She mumbled. "Anything I can help you with?" she offered, turning to face him.
He allowed himself to look into her deep, green eyes and immediately regretted doing so. Her eyes pulled him in, mesmerized him, drew him to her. He took in a sharp breath and looked away.
"No, but thank you for your offer." He said, keeping his voice steady. "You've already helped us enormously with your input earlier today."
"It's a pleasure serving you, General." She replied, watching the waves crash against the ship below.
"Please, call me Iroh." He didn't want any more formalities tonight.
"Only if you agree to call me Asami." She challenged him.
He really couldn't. It was much too intimate. It was against his good manners. But he had asked her to call him by his first name as well. It was only fair...
"So, Asami. What kind of bending do you do?" He was too curious to find out.
He thought he saw a blush creep onto her pale cheeks by the light of the moon.
She cleared her throat. "I'm a non-bender."
"Really?" He was all the more intrigued.
"You must think me lesser for it." She turned away.
"No, not at all. I respect both benders and non-benders alike. I don't think one is better than the other." He assured her.
She looked back at him carefully, quiet for a moment.
"It's funny, I've never felt this inferior before, just for being a non-bender." She admitted.
"Oh...I'm sorry, I didn't-"
"No, it's not because of you." She looked out into the night sky, trying to find a way to explain. "I think it's because of the way I was raised. I was a privileged child, I'm not going to pretend I wasn't. I had my share of luxuries and indulgences. And those, I think, made up for me not being able to bend. I'd never felt inferior around my bender friends because all of my father's riches made up for all of that."
He watched her twirl the ends of her hair again, watched the outline of her face in the moonlight.
"When I chose to leave all of that and join the Avatar's team, I had a hard time realizing how useless I actually was to them."
"Not useless, I'm sure." He mumbled, staring at her.
"Well, maybe not useless. I'm fairly good with technology and figuring out how machines work, but only because my dad taught me a bunch of that stuff when I was younger. But I still wish I could do something, help them in some way. Mako fire-bends, Bolin earth-bends, and Korra's the freaking Avatar. I feel so...inadequate whenever I'm around them."
She was so vulnerable, so open in front of him, it caught him off guard. It was refreshing. He didn't know how to respond at first.
"But you have been a huge help. To everyone." He tried to reassure her.
She looked at him skeptically.
"Over the course of my life, I've noticed that there's something a little different about non-benders...They tend to be much more level-headed. They think straighter and clearer than a lot of benders do sometimes. And that's what I think you bring to this team. There's a certain peace that comes with you that everyone around here needs. Rationality, balance, steadiness...I think you have all of those qualities."
She looked up at the moon, considering his words. He could see a faint smile spreading on her lips.
"Thank you." She said simply. "I...I suppose you're right."
Then, she turned and arrested him with her beautiful, bright smile. He found himself smiling back, happy to have consoled her in some small way.
They stood together, looking out into the dark, sharing the silence and the cold, sea air. It was nice, having someone there beside him. He was so used to being out here alone. They were both so alike, having come from very similar backgrounds. He admired her maturity and strength. The way she carried herself was different from any girl he'd ever met before.
Stop it, Iroh.
He shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He'd told himself he would keep her at a safe distance and he was doing the exact opposite. What was it that initially drew him to this young woman? Whatever it was, he couldn't allow it to go any further.
"I better go to bed." Asami said after a while.
"I'll walk you back." He offered.
"No, that's alright. I've already intruded enough on your night." She waved him off.
"Well, in that case." He took her hand and brought it to his mouth.
"You don't have to." She said, blushing slightly.
He ignored her and lightly kissed her gloved fingers.
"Goodnight, Asami."
She withdrew her hand and tucked away some of her dark hair behind her ear. As she turned to leave, she looked back at him.
"By the way, I think that we should follow through with the plan. There's no other way we can defeat Amon. We have no other choice." She told him.
He looked back at her and smiled sadly.
"You're right. I just wish there was."