Disclaimer: I don't own the Avatar... I don't even own the computer I am using to type this
Iroh is a crafty old man... I wish I had an Uncle Iroh.
"I do not want to be Fire Lord…if it takes me away from you." He admitted to his wife the night she married him, he repeated this the morning after when he awoke with her in his arms.
"… if it means missing these perfect moments" He laughed as he lifted his 13 month old son high in the air. The toddler had finally succeeded in walking from the table to his outreached hand without falling over. "… if takes from me that which I love the most, that which matters most." He whispered as he bent over the funeral pyre to kiss his son's cheek one last time. He was relived when he returned from Ba Sing Se to find his brother seated upon the throne, his father dead. He was grateful to slip into the shadows.
"… I wish only to drink my tea and play pai sho" He all but shouted to his nephew the night after Ozai had been brought down. It was sentiment he repeated often to the intermittent council of leaders, the old warriors who remembered fighting besides him in his days as General and the young leaderless soldiers who had heard the stories whispered and embellished over draughts of flamewine and firewater…the legends of the Dragon of the West.
"I do not want to be Fire Lord." He said one last time… wearily to the Avatar himself "But what you say is true, it can end the civil wars within this nation, it can bring peace to this land, if the people themselves have called for it… then I shall."
Now as he sits lotus upon the throne with a temple priest's hands raised high above his head intoning the sonorous soliloquy of ancient blessings and the rites of passage. Now as waits for the eternal flame to come to rest upon him, he can't help but smile… inwardly. As his monstrosity of a father is rotting in his grave , as his traitorous brother is turning in it besides him, as the abomination that was his niece rocks back and forth in the tiniest cell of the tallest tower, trapped in the unstable corridors of her unhinged mind... the crown is being placed upon his head- his.
He grants himself the opulent indulgence of smug self satisfaction. He is the Fire Lord and he wants it.
He has reclaimed his throne, his name, his honor. He has survived them all. From his crazed father, to his cruel brother, through the callous horrors of war. He has been to the front line, faced his demons and theirs and he is still standing… head bloodied yet unbowed. For a moment he lets himself revel in it, the pulse of glory the great rolling overwhelming orgasm of victory against all odds… but for a moment only.
He exhales a deep and practiced breath and lets his arrogance, his ego, his self righteousness slip out of him.
Besides, there are more important things to think on.
First being his heir.
While producing a scion would be a more than enjoyable task he knows it was one he not fully up for. Besides he could never betray Zuko… the same way he could never betray his own son. Yes, he has a guaranteed successor in Zuko. A successor that he has molded with his wisdom, who has gone through the fire and proven himself to be crucible. But his anger his self doubt would be his eventual downfall if not kept in check. So Iroh would see to it that his successor would produce another. And he resolved to live long enough to shape this one too in a better, worthier image of himself and his father. Such a child would need passion and the unyielding, unflinching resolve of a warrior. These are things which came naturally to Zuko and he would pass them on to his progeny. But the future would also need compassion and the unyielding, unflinching resolve of a mother and herein was the crux. The child must be a perfect balance of opposing opposites.
Iroh opened his eyes for a moment to find the answer right in front of him. The mere thought of it almost made him lose his composure. But it was perfect. She was perfect. Politically it would be a flawless match… a symbol of healing and trust. Such a pairing would not only be unheard of in the Fire Nation but the entire world. It might even be enough to shock silent those who still protested against the Fire Nation. Personally she had reminded him of his own wife from the start, soft one moment then exquisitely vehement the next, creatively cunning, sharp of mind and tongue. True, she is a water bender but she embodies the heart of a fire bender. Her element has given her natural grace, poise, adaptability… all things a Fire Lady would need. She could contain the fire and temper it without being burned. More importantly Katara loved fiercely… Zuko needed to be fiercely loved. They would either cancel each other out or create something new. But his experience or hope convinced him that it would be the latter.
She hated Zuko. Iroh was well aware of that but he also knew that hate had the same components and currents as love. He merely had to redirect the flow. Such a thing would be a challenge. But he was master at warfare and most fortunately a grand master at pai sho.
Yes that will do …He
thought to himself as the metal tip of the eternal flame came to rest
gently upon his scalp…
That will do just fine
Reviews while having the addictive qualities of crack also have the constructive qualities of making a better writer. R&R plz :)
AN: "Head blooded yet unbowed" is a line from an awesome poem called Invictus. I thought of Iroh when I read it last :)