Memories- Part 7- Iroh

General Iroh was known far and wide for his military procedures and massive army. He and his men wreaked havoc throughout the Earth Kingdom on their march to Ba Sing Se. They has destroyed everything in their path, and the siege laid to the capital was only worse. But the stories told about the supposedly fearless general never really captured his true personality.

Iroh, the crown prince, had never been quite like anyone else in the Fire Nation military. Though ruthless and unforgiving in battle, he was a man who had a capability to love. He enjoyed the arts and was famous in the Fire Palace for his sense of humor. He cared about his family and soldiers above all else, and was determined to bring victory and honor to his county. His nickname, the Dragon of the West, may have installed fear into the hearts of most Earth Kingdom citizens, but those who knew him personally knew he was kind-hearted and loving.

The shouts of the Fire Nation men (''Honor! Glory! Victory!'') could be heard one day, the 599th day of the siege, as their army broke through the wall to Ba Sing Se. The men were still in good spirits as the two armies, Earth and Fire, met in a fierce battle. Needless to say, their celebrations only got more exuberant after the Earth Kingdom general surrendered his army and all their weapons to General Iroh. Iroh knew that several of his men had died in the short battle, but he was still waiting for a report of the body count and the identification of each of the men. While he was waiting, the General wrote a letter to his beloved family, back in the Fire Nation. He told them about their victory and sent gifts to his nephew, Zuko, and niece, Azula.

After Iroh rolled up the letter and put his seal on it, he gave it to the waiting messenger. He then walked out of his tent to check up on his men. They were still celebrating loudly, with singing, dancing, and storytelling all around. Iroh smiled and blew a small horn. The music and laughter immediately subsided, and all turned to face their General.

''Men! Good work today. I have a messenger going to the Fire Nation, if you would like to send messages to your families. Nunzio will arrive in the Fire Nation in eight days time. That is all.'' Many of the men went to get paper and brushes to write to their families after Iroh finished talking.

Iroh then went to look for his son, Lu Ten. But when the general arrived at the man's tent, he was nowhere in sight. He turned to the other men that stayed with Lu Ten.

''Have you mean seen my son anywhere?''

The eldest of them shook his head, saying, ''No, sir, but Harisha told me he was on the team that is recording the dead bodies.''

Iroh nodded. That meant he would see his son in the morning, when the team met with him to give their report. ''Thank you, sir.'' Iroh bowed to the man before heading back to his tent to drink some of his favorite jasmine tea.

Iroh slept fitfully that night. He was plagued with dreams about the Spirit World. Though he couldn't quite place what happened, exactly, the prince sense something was different when he woke up. Nothing looked quite the same, and when he looked out at his men, who were eating breakfast, he sensed a change. Though they still looked happy about their victory, the bags under many of the mens' eyes were more pronounced than ever. Shoulders were slumped all around Iroh, and several of the men had fallen asleep in their jook. Iroh could feel the change in himself, too. His joints ached and he felt like laying down and taking a long, hot bath.

He went back into his tent without eating, wondering what brought on this change. Only a few minutes later, a group of eight or so men came into the tent. It was the men who were looking for dead bodies.

''General Iroh, your highness, we have the report ready.'' The man in front told Iroh nervously.

''Yes, yes, get on with it.''

''Sir, we had three deaths. The Earth General says that they had eight deaths.''

''Mmm. Thank you. Please draw up the documents and send letters to the families of the deceased, Ihsan. Now, where is my son? Manu said that he was with this team.''

The man in front looked worried and scratched his neck. ''Well, um, General Iroh, Lu Ten... is one of the deceased. He was killed in battle.''

Iroh felt like his heart had stopped. He eyed the young man, as if he was going to shout ''Just kidding!'' at any moment. When nothing of the sort came, Iroh looked down at his feet. When he spoke again, his voice came out slightly choked.

''Thank you for informing me, Ihsan. You may leave now.'' He bowed to the man, who bowed back to his general and quickly fled from the tent.

Iroh then sat down on a chair, his head in his hands. 'No, I don't believe it. Lu Ten cannot be... he isn't.' But as Iroh thought about it more, he realized the men had to have been telling the truth. Nobody would dare tell the Crown Prince that his son was dead unless it was really true. He sat there for several hours, thinking and even crying once or twice, until he made a decision. Iroh knew that he wouldn't be the most popular general after, but he knew that it was the right thing to do.

He stood and walked out of his tent again, and blew the small horn to get his mens' attention. They all looked at him wearily. 'Why didn't I notice their exhaustion before?' Iroh wondered briefly.

''Men, I have been thinking about this for awhile, and though some of you may not like the conclusion I have come to, I feel it is best for us as a whole.'' He paused, looking around at the blank, tired faces listening attentively. Nobody knew what was coming next. ''Pack up camp, men, we are going home.''

He nodded to the men, as if to say ''go,'' but nobody made a move for their tents just yet. The camp erupted in murmurs of disbelief.

''Did he say home?''

''Is he serious?''

''Don't tell anyone I said this, but I think our general's gone mad.''

But the men began to disassemble their camp anyway, every single one of them too shocked to believe what was happening.

Iroh was numb too, as they marched back to the west coast. All he could think about was getting home, to his wife and family. He was relieved to be done with the siege, and away from the memories of Ba Sing Se.

The march to the coast, which would only take a small, quick messenger a few days, took an army as large as theirs nearly a month. It was torture for Iroh, who only wanted it all to be over. He wanted to leave the Earth Kingdom for good, or at least for now, while he collected himself. The ship ride back wasn't nearly as bad, it was nearly good-spirited.

When Iroh finally returned to the Fire Nation, he expected to be greeted with his wife and, perhaps, his beloved nephew. But the only person present to escort Iroh back to the palace was only a young servant named Jong-Mu. Iroh hid his disappointment well, greeting the boy warmly and carrying on a conversation with him. Before they reached the palace, however, Iroh did have one question for him.

''So, Jong-Mu, do you know why my wife is not here to greet me?''

''Oh, yes, sir.'' The boy looked at his feet, clearly uncomfortable. ''Princess Azayn... passed away three weeks ago. The plague, your majesty. I'm very sorry.''

Iroh looked crestfallen as he answered, ''Don't be sorry. It's not your fault.''

The boy led him to his royal quarters, decorated elegantly in red and gold, and bid the prince goodbye.

'So,' Iroh thought, 'My wife and son are both gone. Here I am, all alone in this world.'

He continued thinking thoughts like these until much later, right before dinner, when he was greeted warmly by his sister-in-law, Princess Ursa, and his nephew, Zuko.

''Uncle! It's so good to see you!'' Zuko said, smiling widely and giving his uncle a hug.

And Zuko certainly did look happy to see him, unlike his little sister, who put on a clearly fake smile and hugged him stiffly.

''Iroh! I'm so glad you and your soldiers are home safe.'' Ursa smiled at Iroh, bowing to him. ''I'm very sorry to hear about your son.'' She added solemnly.

Iroh bowed back to her, and assured her everything was fine. The four of them continued chattering lightly as they entered the dining hall, where Azulon and Ozai were already waiting.

They greeted each other formally, then started on their meal of roasted duck.

'Well, at least I still have this family.' Iroh thought, taking a sip of ginseng tea. He watched as Ozai said something, and the rest of them laughed, rather robotically. 'They may be as dysfunctional as any family, but I have them. You can't pick and choose who you're related to... I suppose it is better that way. There is a reason for everything. Lu Ten and Azayn must have been needed in the Spirit World. I wish them luck, for I shall join them someday. But for now, I have business to attend to.'

''Would any of you care to join me for a game of pai sho after dinner?'' Iroh asked cheerily.

Author's Notes: Wow, this was long. Stupid ending? Yes, oh, yes, it is. Ah, well. Azula is next.

Names:

Harisha: Means lord of the monkeys in Sanskrit. This is another name of the Hindu god Vishnu.

Jong-Mu: This was the original name of the Southern Air Temple, stated by Aang in very early advertising.

Ihsan: Means charity in Arabic.

Azayn: Zayn means beauty or grace in Arabic.

Manu: Means thinking or wise in Sanskrit. In Hindu mythology it is a title of Svayambhuva (the progenitor of the human race), and several of his descendants.

Nunzio: Means messenger in Italian. Yes, I know, names in Avatar don't come from Italy, but this one fit.

Somebody tell me if you think Iroh is horribly out of character, please.

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender, nor am I making any money from writing these drabbles.