Prompt: "It's the quenchiest!"

Characters: Sokka, Iroh

Pairing: None

"Ha! I have you now! So, I move my wheel tile over to this square, and then…"

Sokka's triumphant crowing, however, promptly turned into a cry of dismay when Iroh casually reached out to pick up his white lotus tile and move it two squares over—definitively winning the game.

"Gaaa-aaah!" Sokka rocked his chair backward, pulling his hair out of its wolf tail as his fingers scrabbled at his skull. "How do I keep forgetting about that white lotus tile!?"

In response, Iroh only grinned. "So many people underestimate the white lotus tile, even though it is the most important piece in the game of Pai Sho."

"You're telling me." Sokka let his chair fall forward again, continuing with the motion until his forehead met the table. His head came back up, however, as another thought occurred to him. "Hey, isn't that piece connected to the Order of the White Lotus? I remember Zuko telling me something about a tavern in the Misty Palms Oasis…"

"Ah! So my nephew remembered, I see." Iroh looked pleased in spite of the likelihood that Zuko had only remembered due to the fact that he'd been in such a bad mood at the time. "I could tell you some stories about my first time in that place."

"Well, it's right on the edge of the Si Wong Desert, so I bet." Sokka's eyes glazed over as he began to recall his own adventures. "First time I went in there I discovered a whole hidden library—that's where I found out about the Day of Black Sun." Encouraged by Iroh's smiles and nods, he continued proudly, "But then we almost got eaten by a spirit monster. And while we were down there Appa got stolen and we had to cross the entire desert on foot. Though I don't remember a whole lot of that part, because… well…" He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Katara ran out of water pretty quickly, and we didn't have anything to drink…"

"Ah yes, the juice of the Si Wong cactus. It's very thirst-quenching, is it not? The quenchiest, as a matter of fact. It is a shame about the aftereffects, however."

As Sokka gaped at him—Did Toph tell him she better not have told him I swear I'm really going to kill her this time—Iroh folded his hands over his ample belly with a serene smile. "I did tell you, didn't I, that I could tell you some stories."

A/N: I like the idea of Sokka somehow becoming Iroh's Pai Sho apprentice. (Agni only knows Zuko isn't up to the task.) Also, I get the feeling that Iroh wandered the earth quite a bit prior to the start of the series. I imagine he's got an adventure or two of his own to share with these kids.