Iroh was yet again brewing himself a cup of tea. This time, it was a new flavor, a white jasmine mix, sent over from his grand daughter in her travels to the Earth Kingdom as an ambassador. The girl, as predicted, had grown up beautifully, becoming a firebending master at the young age of twelve. Iroh knew her exceptional firebending abilities somewhat worried his nephew, fearing his daughter would become another Azula.
Iroh sighed, remembering the unraveling of his niece's sanity during the war. It truly was a sad thing to happen such a powerful bender lain to waste by the twistedness of her upbringing. Iroh had never seen any potential for help with Azula, wondering how someone could be so corrupted to the depths of her heart. At the same time, he had pityed her immensely, knowing from a young age that she was beyond saving.
When Honora came along, he knew his nephew worried greatly for his daughter's fate. Though somewhat unconcious, the wise old man knew Zuko feared his daughter would end up as destructive as his sister, and would do anything to prevent it. Zuko's opinion on the matter was revealed soon after his daughter's birth, in one of the many lengthy discussions had with his uncle by the hearth in the Fire Lord's chambers.
Zuko had told his uncle that for a long time, he had not wanted children, fearing that the evil permeated by his ancestors and family would somehow transfer itself genetically to his offspring. Even with his councellors urging him to continue the royal bloodline and secure the throne, it had taken years for him to even consider this possibility.
Iroh smiled weakly. It was so unfortunate that his nephew had grown up the way he did. The father's mistakes had managed to trickle down into his offspring, latching itself and fermenting in Azula, and torturing Zuko.
Of course, it was quickly evident that Zuko's daughter was the polar opposite of his sister. The only similarity being the gender of which she was born and the raw talent with the bending of her element displayed from an early age. But then again, Iroh reflected, power and skill could be acquired different ways and by nearly anyone with time and effort. How one chose to use it was what mattered. No, Honora was nothing like her aunt. The girl possessed an immensily kind heart, wit & beauty, and was a gentle creature overall. She had never met her, but she rather possessed the temperament of her grandmother, the Lady Ursa, with of course the occassional outburst of temper inherited from her father (unfortunately, the family's shortness of temper was a difficult thing to dilute with generation).
In mid contemplation, a young boy was admitted in Iroh's tea room. The boy shyly made his way to the old man, glancing from him to the floor, obviously nervous to be in his presence. With a traditional Fire Nation bow, the boy extended a hand, handing a sealed letter to the Dragon of the West. If one looked closely, one could just make out a faded lotus in the seal. Iroh accepted the letter with a smile, and nodded dismissal to the boy. Reassured, the boy turned to leave, and Iroh was soon alone to resume his inner thoughts.
Iroh had noticed a brilliant fighter and a strategist early on in his grand daughter, and in his greatly advanced age, had begun looking for someone to carry on his life's work. Zuko would not do, his current position making the consideration impossible, nor was there anyone else the Grand Master could think of to take his place. There were certainly many worthy of this task, but none that would suit him fully.
Reading the letter, Iroh put thoughts of succession to the back of his mind, and walked to the aviaries, quickly scribbling the same quick note on four separate square pieces of parchment before rolling them up and sending off hawks to deliver his message. Of the Masters of the White Lotus, the only ones to remain from the war were Master Piandao and Master Jeong Jeong. The other two Masters had been replaced with trusted successors, the new Masters former students of Bumi and Pakku.
There would be a White Lotus congregation in the next week, and Iroh hoped that Honora would be back from her mission in the Earth Kingdom by then. He had taken the girl to a few meetings since an early age, showing her the inner workings of the ancient society. He recalled how one day around the age of 13, she had been by his side as he wrote a coded letter and sealed it with a stamp.
« Why are the letters all jumbled Grandpa ? And why aren't you using your customary stamp to seal the enveloppe ? » she had asked, a curious look on her face and a frown forming between her brows.
Iroh had then sighed, and explained to her his role as Grand Master. The girl had sat and listened with rapt interest amongst the red cushions that littered the office, exclaiming from surprise or delight as Iroh delved deeper in his recital of White Lotus history. Honora was a bright girl, and Iroh trusted her to guard his secret with her life. It had only been a matter of time until she had asked him shyly if she could come along to one of their secret meetings, and Iroh willingly let her.
The day was getting late, and Iroh went for a walk around the turtleduck ponds, a place he sought out for its calming effects. There had recently been an outbreak of rebellion in the Earth Kingdom, its leader claiming superiority over non benders. The whole thing was rather minor, but if ambassadors had been called in to intervene, this possibly meant a more serious matter was at hand, and it greatly worried Iroh. Not to mention the fact that his only grand daughter was in the midst of it all.
After his brisk walk, Iroh headed for his rooms where he expected to find his supper laid out and waiting for him. He had talked to the cook this morning, and was rather excited that her meal plan for the day included some komodo chicken.
The sun was just coming down over the horizon as he crossed the threshold to his room, taking in the dark red tapestries and the rich smell emanating from the covered dishes on the lowered table. With a twitch of his forefinger, the Dragon of the West lit the wall sconces and candelabras strategically placed around the room, and was delighted to find a meal companion sitting demurely at the table.
« Hello Grandpa ! » she said, a smile permeating her face.
Brown eyes met gold ones, and for a second they just stared at each other. She had been gone a month or more, and it was just so good to see her. She was even home early !
They embraced, a frail man and a woman all grown up a picture of family love with arms intertwined around each others middles.
As they sat down on opposite sides of the darkwooded table, Honora began recounting her adventures in the Earth Kingdom, all the while adding bits of food to her plate and his.
On her first day there, she along with several other ambassadors had been attacked at port by rebel troops. The renegades had set one of the docked embassy ships afire (not the one she had been on, she assured her grandfather as a look of horror crossed his age spotted face). Things had gotten better after that frightful first encounter, and with time they were able to negotiate a peaceful surrender with the leader of the oppressors, effectively putting a stop to the intimidations. The whole thing had been resolved faster than anticipated and a few peace agreements later, Honora had been able to go home.
« Forgive me, I should have told you, but it all happened so quickly and I couldn't resist giving you a surprise » she exclaimed between bites, her chopsticks poised over her plate.
« Im glad to have you back safe and sound » Iroh hold her, crossing his arms together under his wide billowing sleeves. « Does your father know you've come back already ? »
A mischievous look crossed her young face at that and she told him that no, she had raced here first as soon as she had arrived.
« Hmm,» Iroh thought. « I suppose I should let you go see your father and mother. Won't you stay for a quick cup of tea ? »
The seventeen year old nodded assent, brushing back a long lock of dark brown hair out of her eyes. She never wore her crown on missions or when travelling.
The tea set to brew and Iroh told her of the happenings of the palace during her absence. Her tutor had gotten married to a waterbender as expected, and he assured her that the turtleducks had been dutifully fed twice a day, everyday. The liking for the creatures seemed to run in the family. Honora then proceeded to tell him about a stealth mission they had needed to be done a few days after the ship burning. He was stunned to hear her confess she had volunteered to infiltrate the rebel camp they had discovered with information gathered around the docks. She was apparently not fazed by the danger she had so nobly thrown herself into. He noted the levelheadedness she appeared to maintain throughout the mission as she recounted it to him, and the preparation and planning that went into it, all of her own devising. Quite proud of his grand daughter, the old man realised he had just found himself a suitable Grand Lotus.
