Chapter One

"Uncle, I'm sorry, but I just don't understand why my father is sending me here with you instead of bringing me on his important trip with him!" Zuko snapped.

Iroh raised a silver eyebrow at his shaggy haired nephew and chuckled before saying, "Zuko, your father makes this trip every few years. So, he took Azula this time, big deal. There will be other opportunities for you to go."

Scowling, Zuko answered, "I am the heir to Sozin Industries, I am the next in line to be the Fire Lord, everything is supposed to go to me. So forgive me Uncle, if I'm a little upset over him taking my sister instead." With this, Zuko dropped his head into his hands and groaned.

Sighing, Iroh hung his head. He opened his mouth to give some words of encouragement to his nephew, but a disembodied voice interrupted him before he could speak.

"Attention passengers, we are beginning our descent into the city of Ba Sing Se. Please fasten your seatbelts and remain in your seats until we have reached the gate."

Iroh turned his head to look out the window, the wall of Ba Sing Se looming beneath them. Sighing once more, he said, "It is only for a year, nephew. Who knows, perhaps you'll even end up enjoying your stay here." He turned hopefully towards the young man, and shook his head softly when he saw the headphones in his nephew's ears. "I wish there was something more I could do for you Zuko," he murmured.

Iroh's apartment wasn't anything too special. It was spacious and decorated simply. The furniture was nice, the view wasn't bad. And Zuko hated it. He hated that he was stuck in the Earth Kingdom for a whole year, stuck helping his uncle with his tea shop and working on the Ba Sing Se Animal Reserve that Sozin Industries was a major contributor for. He should be with his father right now, travelling around the Four Nations building relationships with their business partners, allies, political figures, meeting exotic women.

With that last thought, his mind wandered to Mai, his ex-girlfriend. He wondered what she was doing now. Pulling his phone out, he opened his messages and started typing.

Hey, what are you doing?

He held his breath as he waited, letting it out shakily as three bubbles appeared.

Bored. Same as always.

Zuko rolled his eyes. Typical Mai. Part of the reason they split was her complete lack of emotion and constant boredom. Nothing ever seemed to interest her. He felt the urge to reach out to her dwindling quickly. He tossed his phone on the bed and sat down, running his hands through his hair. It wasn't long before Iroh knocked on the door.

"Zuko, are you in there?"

"Yeah, come in."

With that, Iroh poked his head in the room. "You should come with me, Zuko. I was just about to head down to the reserve! We can tour around the place, I think you'll be very impressed," Iroh said.

That was the last thing that Zuko wanted to do right now, but it had been so long since he'd seen his Uncle Iroh, and he knew he'd be disappointed if he didn't tag along. "Um, sure. Just let me grab a jacket." Zuko stood and grabbed his zip up with the Fire Nation emblem on it and out the door they went. Iroh's black town car waited outside, idling quietly. The drive to the reserve wasn't interesting, it wasn't like Zuko had never seen Ba Sing Se before. They pulled up to the gates, Iroh flashing security a friendly grin as they waved them through. They stopped in front of a building with a sign that read "Reserve Management". Two women waited outside, looking every bit like a stereotypical zookeeper. Tan button-down shirts, green cargo shorts, hiking boots. As they walked up, Zuko noticed that one was much older. They looked like they could be mother and daughter.

"Hello, Iroh! This must be your nephew," the younger woman chirped, smiling broadly at Zuko. Her gaze lingered on his face longer than he was comfortable with, no doubt she was staring at his left eye. A large burn scar stretched the expanse of his eye, eyebrow, and cheek all the way to his ear. His scowl deepened.

"Why, yes, Song. This is Zuko! Please, excuse my nephew's poor mood. He is less than happy to be here. But, not to worry, I'm sure he will warm up, especially with such lovely company," Iroh said, smiling warmly at the young woman. She blushed. "Not to cut our greeting short, but I thought I might take a cart and give him a tour?" The young woman nodded, running inside to grab a key, handing to Iroh before peeking up at Zuko once more.

"Here you go, if you need anything, let me know," Song offered, smiling at Zuko again. Zuko nodded politely, and off they went.

Zuko listened as politely as he could to Iroh's explanation of the reserve's history, how a young man and his wife had created it a few years back with earth bending to help the old zookeeper out, creating larger, better environments for the different wild creatures inside. They passed Rabbiroos, Tiger-dillos, Saber Tooth Moose Lions, Hog Monkeys, and all other kinds of species. Iroh rambled off the odd fact about the different animals, and Zuko would nod and say, "That's interesting Uncle." His phone buzzed, and he glanced down.

Mai.

So you're just going to reach out, and then not respond when I answer?

He didn't have time for this right now.

Sorry, just got to Ba Sing Se and am with my uncle. I'll message you later.

He hit the power button and turned the phone off. He hadn't even realized they were back where they started, dusk approaching rapidly.

"Well, Zuko? What did you think of the place?" Iroh asked eagerly. He was met with a shrug.

"It's alright, I suppose. Nothing I haven't seen before Uncle. We used to go to that crappy old zoo every time we visited Ba Sing Se, remember?"

Iroh scoffed, responding with, "Maybe so, but now the animals are much happier! It's much different than the visits of your youth." Zuko rolled his eyes.

"Whatever you say, Uncle. Can we go back to your apartment now? I'm exhausted and want to eat and go to sleep," Zuko groaned. Iroh chuckled, nodding in agreement.

"Yes, it has been a long day. Come on, the car is parked around back."

By the time they got home, Zuko was barely able to keep his eyes open, shoving a few bites of komodo chicken into his mouth before muttering a good night to his uncle. Sleep found him almost as soon as he hit the mattress, and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.