Chapter 10

Tea Time With Iroh

Kai let a soft sigh escape her lips as she gazed listlessly at the wooden table she sat at. She rested her head in one hand while her other hand lay on the table. Her palms arched a bit allowing only her fingertips and the bottom of her hand to touch the cold wood. She absentmindedly allowed her fingers to trace the natural circular patterns the wood created. At first her fingertips followed one another until slowly one by one they abandoned their path leaving only her index finger to wander aimlessly through the never ending maze, until it slowly drew to a stop. She didn't move her finger any further; she just let it rest there. She looked down at her one finger through half-lidded eyes until her vision became blurred. Like what happens when a person finds themselves staring so intensely at one pebble in the sand that it becomes blurred, and even though that person can no longer see the pebble, their eyes remained locked in the same exact place. The sharp sound of a tea cup hitting the table brought Kai back to reality. Her head lifted itself slightly from her hand and she blinked furiously in order to bring her sight back to it's original state. Suddenly, she felt a slight discomfort in her legs and remember how she was sitting on them. She shifted slowly out of that position and sat cross legged on the cushion underneath her. A cup of tea was pushed towards her and she looked at the green, steamy liquid with suspicion.

"Go on, drink some, "said Iroh, who sat across from her, "it's quite refreshing and may help you calm down a bit."

"Who said I needed to calm down?" said Kai, glaring a bit through the steam that emanated from the tea.

"My apologies," laughed Iroh, "I suppose it's just natural for me to worry about someone who looks as if something's troubling them." Kai continued to stare and Iroh with that same heated look in her eyes silently saying There's nothing troubling me. "Oh!" exclaimed Iroh, "I'm assuming again aren't? Forgive me," he apologized.

"So, what do you want from me?" she inquired bluntly as she stared at Iroh through the steam that rose from the cup. Iroh's eyebrow's widened in surprise at the question. "It's not exactly part of my morning routine to be dragged off by some old man, sat down, and forced to drink tea. And since you seemed so surprised and confused, not that I'm blaming you. . . old age can certainly take a toll on a person's mind, I'm gonna ask you again. What do you want from me?"

"My aren't you forward," laughed Iroh once he recovered from brief moment of shock, "And to answer your question. . .well. . . I don't want anything from you. I just thought it would be nice to share one another's company and enjoy a nice cup of tea," smiled Iroh.

"I'm not interested in tea. . ." grumble Kai, her eyes started to narrow again. She quickly put her hand on the wooden table and stood up. But just before she could put her hand on the metallic door handle, Iroh spoke up.

"It's green tea," she could hear the smile in his voice. Kai immediately turned around and planted herself back on the cushion.

"Okay, maybe I'll have a little," Kai's hands reached out for the delicate looking cup and she slowly wrapped her fingers around it and pulled it closer to her. She stared at the warm liquid for a moment; the steam obscuring her vision, then brought the cup to her lips. The sensation of the warm of the cup pressing against her cold lips, made her shiver a bit and made her feel a bit uncomfortable. She pulled her lips away from the cup for a moment before she drank the soothing tea.

"How is the tea?" asked Iroh "Is it to your liking?" Kai put the cup down and looked at Iroh.

"Yeah," she nodded, "it tastes good. . ." Silence fell over the two of them and Kai looked down, avoiding Iroh's all-knowing smile, and swirled the tea in the cup by tilting it in a circular motion.

"So, Kai is quite an interesting name. . ." spoke up Uncle Iroh.

"I guess so," shrugged Kai, not really listening, "It's pretty simple. . ."

"Well, as it turns out, I happen to know the meaning behind your name," Kai looked up from her tea and looked at Iroh, interest tinting her eyes. Iroh smiled, upon seeing Kai's reaction.

"What is it?" she asked in a monotone as a way to mask her peaked interest.

"From what I've heard, Kai actually means water," Kai's lips quivered and her quickly covered her mouth to restrain her laughter.

"Really?" she asked. Even though her voice was muffled, Iroh could tell she was holding back her laughter.

"Yes. It's quite an unusual name for a firebender such as yourself," smiled Iroh kindly. Kai's face returned to its normal serious look and she looked down at her tea. Only there was something different, there was a soft, yet sad smile on her lips.

"Yeah," she said quietly, cupping the tea cup and pressing her cold palms gently against her the warm ceramic, "a strange name for a strange girl. . ." she said in almost a whisper. Even though Kai wasn't looking she could feel Iroh looking straight at her. To satisfy her curiosity Kai's crimson eyes stopped gazing at the cup and darted upward for a brief moment to look at Iroh. Her eyes darted back down, her curiosity satisfied. Iroh was in fact looking at her. But, it wasn't the fact that he was looking at her that bothered her. It was the look he had in his eyes that bothered her. His eyes were a mixture of empathy, kindness, and sympathy. She hated it when people felt sorry for her. She didn't need their sympathy and she didn't want it. Silence fell over them again, which was fine with her, she didn't feel like talking.

"May I ask you a question?" asked Iroh, breaking the silence.

"You just did. . ." Kai said bluntly as she raised an eyebrow at the old man. Iroh merely laughed at the response and Kai sighed, "Sure go ahead. . ."

"What were you running from?" Kai eyes widened slightly at the question.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when we ran into each other in the hall. . .Well, you were the one running, and I was just curious as to what you were running from and why. . ." Kai paused and took another sip of the tea before answer the question

"I just. . . wanted to get out that's all. . ." she mumbled.

"I can understand that, after all one may go mad if they stay in one spot for an entire day. But. . ." Iroh's voice trailed off, "in your current condition, it would be wise for you to stay in the infirmary so Dr. Shin can watch over you." Kai's eyes narrowed a bit, making her already piercing crimson eyes all the more menacing.

"Look," said Kai, sternly, "I think I know my own strengths and weaknesses and I know that I'm strong enough to get around on my own. And if anyone tries locking me up in that infirmary you sure as hell better be ready to bolt down the doors and hide, because I will knock down that door and destroy anyone who tries to put me back. And let me say one more thing, if you guys are going to let me wander freely. . . I will wander without a goddamn babysitter. The last thing I want is for someone to be following me around everywhere and, gods forbid, have them wait for me outside the bathroom!"

"Actually, I've been meaning to speak to you about that. Dr. Shin approached me with some concern about your current condition and he can already see that you like to wander . . . and both of us think it would be wise if you were to have a companion-"

"No," grumble Kai through clenched teeth as she drummed her fingers on the table

"We just think that in your current condition that it would be best if you had someone to watch over you; just make sure that you are okay. . ." Suddenly Iroh reached across the table and took Kai's hand gently in his wrinkled, aged hands.

"Please understand, that Shin and I are only thinking about your well, being and safety," Iroh said, his voice full of sincerity and concern. Kai, almost instantly softened and she couldn't help, but believe him. The way he looked, the way he patted her hand and the sound of his voice reminded her of the way some parents acted towards their beloved children. But, she rarely experienced that kind of parental love and affection, so actually experiencing it for herself made her feel awkward and she was compelled to pull her hand away. However, there was a certain warmth about this strange feeling that seemed to fill in imaginary gaps and holes inside of her.

"Okay, fine. . ." she agreed reluctantly. Iroh instantly let go of her hand and clapped his hands together, with a big grin on his face.

"Wonderful!" he exclaimed happily.

"So who's the sucker that's gonna be stuck with me?" said Kai, in a bored tone.

"Actually I was thinking that-" Suddenly the door opened behind her and Kai's head turned sharply to see who it was. "Perfect timing," Kai's eyes widened and filled with dismay. Her piercing crimson eyes met with a pair of equally piercing and familiar gold eyes.

"Oh good gods no. . ."

Author's Note:

OMG!!! I wonder who's at the door?! -fake suprise-

Anyways, uh as always... thanks for reading and I apologize for any mistakes and Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year Everyone

Oh! And for those who are curious... The name "Kai" does mean water in Hawaiian

-BeautifullyAbstract