"Oh—and about your nephew, maybe you should tell him that you need him too."
Iroh could remember clearly the feeling that hit him when he was told. The feeling that completely overwhelms you and takes you over, and, sometimes, can even destroy you. The feeling that you should have been there, even though it's impossible that you could have.
The feeling of losing the someone that is closest to you heart.
"General Iroh, sir, I'm afraid I have some bad news."
"Bad news?" Iroh knew there was lots of casualties, and it hurt him to see so many men die. But it was part of war, part of conquering, and it had never been considered as bad news.
"It's about your son, sir."
Fear was suddenly evident in his chest, his blood, his whole being. "M-my son?"
"I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but…Lu Ten did not survive the last attack."
Lu Ten…did not…
"Wha…" Iroh was having trouble forming words. He wanted to send to the man away, but nothing would come to his lips.
The feeling sat on his chest, a huge weight, an elephant of fear and sadness and guilt.
He could see Lu Ten in his mind. His son, his perfect son.
"We'll have tea when I get back, Dad!"
He hugged Iroh. He waved at Iroh. And he was gone.
Little did Iroh know, he would never come back.
Conquering? What was conquering? Something that didn't matter, obviously. Everything that they were doing suddenly seemed so insignificant, so wrong. His son died trying to get this city, this stupid city, and now Iroh wanted nothing to do with it.
So the great Dragon of the West surrendered, and brought all of his troops home.
He knew Ozai had been crowned Firelord. He had gotten the letter on his way back home. Before, he would care. Before he had love in his life, he would've cared. His father, Azulon, had drilled the ways of fear and power into his brain. He had never really loved his father. He loved his father the way you were supposed to love a parent, that way where you had to, but the only person he had really ever cared deeply about in his life was his son. His son had changed the way he thought; cleared the muck that Azulon had placed in his brain.
Love was so much more important than power.
He had loved Ozai, but only the way you have to love your sibling. Ozai had never been interested in the things Iroh had wanted to do. Even as a child, even with Azulon's muck, Iroh had always been the one that was more kind, the one who would help the hurt animal, not enjoy watching its suffering.
Without Lu Ten, Iroh was alone and hopeless.
The muck was returning. But it was a different kind of muck. Not the muck of power and ruling, but the kind of complete and utter despair. He just wanted to sit down. Sit down for the rest of his life.
Through the gate and through the garden and into the palace he went, a ghost, a zombie. Many people came up and offered to escort him places, offered Iroh condolences. But he didn't want any of it.
"Uncle." There was a tug on his robes.
Uncle? I'm a…uncle?
He turned and saw a child. Much younger than Lu Ten, ten years at least, with a kind face and dark hair, held up in a ponytail. There were tears on his small face. He recognized that small face. It cleared the muck away in an instant.
"Prince Zuko?"
That is when Iroh realized.
There was another person in his life that he cared deeply about.
Holo! This is an authors note! Obviously. You guys knew that. You're smart. Anywho, this is the prolouge in a bunch of oneshots (Is that what you call them? I'm new to this.) that I want to write about Iroh and Zuko's bond (from Iroh's POV), because it's one of my favorite parts of the series. Sorry it's so short, but it's a prolouge, so, you know. And I wanted to get the idea out there. Enjoy! :D