Author's note: I do not own Avatar: the Last Airbender or its characters. This is set just after Zuko's Agni Kai.
Waiting for Dawn
Iroh sat outside the Royal Infirmary and waited. The healers hadn't let him inside, and there had been no word on how Zuko fared in the last hour. They were hopeful that they could save his eye, but there would be scarring. Other than that, they had no idea how long this would take or how bad the final damage would be. No one else was waiting to learn how the young prince fared. It seemed that word of Zuko's punishment had already spread. Iroh quite honestly couldn't understand how his brother could do this to his son.
"General Iroh?" a soft, young voice interrupted his thoughts.
The girl stood to his side, holding a cup of tea. She looked like a porcelain doll with her perfectly coiffed hair and in her formal robes. The only thing that detracted from that was the tear tracks on her face. Iroh recognized her as one of Azula's friends, the quiet one: Mai. The cup of tea in her hands was steaming slightly.
He took the cup from her hands. "Thank you, Lady Mai."
"You're welcome, General Iroh." She didn't meet his eyes, and she was biting her lip.
"Are you all right, little one?"
Mai looked away. "Is there any word about Prince Zuko?"
Her voice was soft and hesitant, almost as if she was afraid to ask, and Iroh was reminded of all the times he'd caught Mai watching Zuko and the ways she went out of her way to show kindness to the young prince. Out of Azula's sight that was. When she was will Azula, the girl affected a rather bored persona. Still, it seemed that there was something deeper there.
Iroh smiled kindly at her. "The healers believe they can save his eye. Other than that, there has been no other news. Would you like to wait with me, Lady Mai?"
She nodded and delicately perched herself on the bench beside him. He sipped at the tea she had brought him. It was jasmine which was one of Iroh's favorites, and the girl clearly had a talent for brewing tea. It was a thoughtful gesture on her part. The girl didn't offer any conversation, and Iroh found himself grateful for that. She simply sat there and waited with him, and together they passed the hours waiting for news.
Finally hours later, the chief of the physicians appeared.
"You can see him now. The prince is still unconscious, but he's going to be just fine. The scarring will be bad, but he should retain full use of his eye."
It was better news that Iroh had hoped for. A soft sigh of relief, barely a whisper of sound, slipped from Mai's lips. She followed Iroh into the room. Zuko was laying the bed, the one side of his head swathed in bandages. Mai darted forward to touch his hand. Iroh watched as the girl gently squeezed it once and closed her eyes. Then she let go and disappeared from the room. Iroh tucked the moment away for a time when it might be important and turned his focus on his nephew. Zuko was going to need him when he woke up.