Chapter 96: He Shall Not Grow Old
Zuko had known the day was approaching fast; it was one of several days that he dreaded every year. The anniversary of his mother leaving, of Iroh's 'death' (though that was, thankfully, an anniversary he could forget), the day of the Agni Kai, the day he deserted, and then this day.
Uncle had called off today's training and Zuko knew why. He knew that his Uncle probably intended to spend the day alone, and he also knew that they'd both spent this day alone far too many times.
Zuko rose with the sun, his chi reacting to the dawn. He left a note in the kitchen for Katara to find and he left the house, heading towards the Jasmine Dragon. He'd been in his Uncle's apartment above the shop several times since they'd found one another, and knew that's where Iroh would be.
Katara woke up a couple hours after sunrise, yawning widely. She saw to her morning ablutions and then headed downstairs, ready to begin the day's work. She glanced out of the window that overlooked their private garden and was surprised to notice a lack of Firebenders. It had become almost commonplace to see Iroh and Zuko out there, either meditating or Zuko would be running through katas while the old Dragon observed.
She'd found that she liked Iroh, despite her anger regarding his inaction during Zuko's Agni Kai. The old man was a calming presence, which was not something that she'd ever thought she would apply to a Firebender, particularly one whose epithet was 'the Dragon of the West'; then again, Katara found Zuko to be a calming influence on her.
As she entered the kitchen, she saw a note on the table, tucked under a glass. She picked it up and was met with Zuko's handwriting. On the odd occasion she'd seen him write, she was always surprised to find that his writing was neat and elegant. To look at him, you'd expect some sort of scrawl.
It read:
Katara,
I left early. I don't know how long I'll be gone, but it will probably be well into the evening when I return. I'll explain later.
Zuko.
Brief and to the point, without really saying anything; it was Zuko all over, she thought wryly.
Katara put the note back and began gathering the necessary ingredients for breakfast. She wondered what Zuko was doing, where he'd gone. She wondered if he was with Iroh, and that made her worry a little; the reason Zuko's Firebending lessons happened here was because they were hidden behind large walls, away from prying eyes.
She tried to shake the worry away. Neither Firebender would do anything to risk themselves, she knew that.
Katara worried a little anyway.
Zuko had met Iroh as the older man was leaving his shop; a small sign had been placed in the window that read, 'Closed for mourning'.
Zuko bowed his head and said, "Uncle."
Iroh smiled sadly at him. "Nephew. I was not sure whether to expect you or not."
Zuko raised his head and returned the sad smile. "Where else would I be? Today of all days?"
Iroh nodded and started walking, Zuko falling into step beside him.
Zuko tentatively asked, "Is this the first since you've been here?"
Iroh nodded again. "I have not been here too long, Zuko. A month or two before you arrived, no longer."
That made Zuko raise his eyebrow. He and his Uncle had discussed many things after their reunion, but the duration of his Uncle's stay in Ba Sing Se had not come up.
"Wait," he said, a thought occurring to him. "So how did you get the teashop so fast? In the Upper Ring, no less?"
Iroh smiled a little more genuinely. "As I said during our reunion, Nephew, my talents were seen and recognised. I gained employment in the Lower Ring at a teashop and some wealthy businessmen heard tell of my tea-making. They offered money and real estate here in the Upper Ring."
"So you don't own the Jasmine Dragon?"
Iroh shook his head. "Not as such, no. The name, yes. The tea and the ideas, yes. But the building? No. The profits are divided between myself and those that backed me, along with providing wages for my staff and such."
Zuko marvelled at his Uncle. "I never took you for someone so… savvy in business."
Iroh laughed a little. "Nephew, I used to lead armies; compared to that, one little teashop barely requires my attention."
Zuko laughed as well.
They reached the gate leading to the Middle Ring and the guards allowed them past; one of them smiled at Iroh and said, "Morning, Master Mushi."
Iroh returned the greeting pleasantly.
Zuko rolled his eye. He'd never quite understood how his Uncle managed to… ingratiate himself wherever he went. It baffled him.
He asked, "Where are we going, Uncle?"
Iroh was quiet. Then he said, "There is a hill situated just outside the Inner Wall. I-I would like to collect a few things and then go there. It is… It is not far from where it happened. It is as close as we can get without arousing suspicion. Besides, it is… beautiful there."
Zuko nodded and placed his hand on Iroh's shoulder, squeezing gently. The old man patted Zuko's hand with his own.
They entered the Middle Ring.
It had been… strange for Zuko to observe his Uncle on this day, of all days. While the man had appeared subdued when they first met that morning, his mood seemed to improve as they walked through the market.
Zuko had watched as Iroh purchased a small basket, chatting politely with the shop-owner. As Iroh had stepped away, he'd shifted a small vase containing a moon flower into the shade, causing it to bloom.
"The moon flower likes partial shade." Iroh commented, before bowing and stepping back over to Zuko and continuing on.
As Iroh had examined a stall selling musical instruments, and Zuko found his eye drawn towards a tsungi horn, they were both distracted by the crying of a small boy. The boy's mother was beside him, trying and failing to console him.
Iroh had stared at the scene a moment and then proceeded to pluck up a small, stringed instrument that Zuko didn't recognise. His Uncle had then strummed a familiar melody and began singing to the crying child.
"Leaves from the vine, falling so slow," Iroh sang. "Like fragile, tiny shells, drifting in the foam."
Zuko found himself whispering the words under his breath, in time with Iroh's singing.
"Little soldier boy, come marching home. Brave soldier boy, comes marching home."
The little boy had stopped frowning during the course of Iroh's song and had even reached out and tugged on the man's beard, startling both a groan and chuckle from the retired General. The boy's mother apologised and thanked Iroh before leading her son away. Iroh patted his beard back into place, paid for the instrument he'd used and placed it in his basket.
He'd turned to Zuko, smiled sadly and said, "Shall we, Nephew?"
Zuko nodded and fell into step beside his Uncle, marvelling at the man.
When they'd had to dodge an oncoming ball, courtesy of a gang of children, Zuko had been ready to snap at the kids, but Iroh placed his hand on his Nephew's arm, stopping him.
They turned to see that a window had been broken behind them and a man's voice could be heard shouting, "Hey!"
Iroh remarked to the children, "It is usually best to admit mistakes when they occur, and seek to restore honour."
They all watched as an exceedingly large man appeared on the other side of the broken window. Zuko and Iroh found themselves stepping back slightly at the man's colossal proportions.
The man shouted, "When I'm through with you kids, the window wont be the only thing that's broken."
Once again, Zuko found himself on the verge of retorting when Iroh's hand stopped him. Iroh turned again to the children and said, "It is usually best to admit mistakes. Not this time. Run!"
They all took off running; the gang of children, Iroh, and Zuko all ran, the man's angry shouts audible behind them. Strangely, Zuko found himself on the edge of laughter; the children had already fallen over that edge and were cackling loudly and freely. Iroh, too, allowed a chuckle to bubble up as they came to a halt, breathing heavily.
It was when they were paused at the mouth of an alley, catching breath, that a voice stuttered out behind them, "You two, give me all of your money!"
They turned together, Zuko's hand falling on the hilt of his swords.
A man stood there, thin to the point of starvation and dressed in ragged clothing, and he was holding a small dagger. Zuko could see at least three, maybe four, different ways of disarming the man without even drawing his Dao blades.
Iroh, it seemed, also saw this as he asked, "What are you doing?"
The man looked around and then hissed, "I'm mugging you!"
Zuko raised his eyebrow. He'd encountered robbers, bandits, highwaymen, and outlaws of all kinds during his time in the Earth Kingdom, but he'd never seen one so obviously unequipped for the task.
Again, Iroh echoed his thoughts. "With that stance?"
The 'mugger's eyes widened in confusion and he looked down at his feet and then back at Iroh. "Huh? What are you talking about? Just give me your money, old man!"
The 'old man' comment drew a little anger out of Zuko to the point where his hand tightened around the hilt of his swords. Iroh's hand twitched beside him; Zuko instantly recognised it as the Fire Army gesture for halting the attack. He relaxed his grip once more, but didn't remove his hand from his weapons.
Iroh continued talking to the would-be thief. "With a poor stance, you are unbalanced, and you can be easily knocked over."
Iroh's arm shot out, grabbing the man's arm, disarming him, and throwing him to the floor.
For a split second, Zuko saw his Uncle as he was, a General and warrior of the Fire Nation, but then that man was gone, replaced by an older man with a pleasant smile, casually twirling a dagger in his hand.
Uncle stuck his hand out and helped the man to his feet. Zuko was more surprised that Iroh returned the man's knife.
"With a solid stance," Iroh said. "You are a much more serious threat."
The Dragon of the West then demonstrated and helped the man to achieve a respectable offensive stance.
"Much better! Though, to tell you the truth, you do not strike me as the criminal type."
The man drooped, dagger loosely held. "I-I know. I'm not. I'm… I'm just confused."
Iroh had then gestured the man to step back into the alley and they settled down, side-by-side, on the floor.
"Nephew," Iroh said. "Perhaps you would be so kind as to fetch us both some tea? I believe there is a stall not too far from here."
Zuko eyed them a moment but nodded and slipped away. To collect tea.
When he'd returned with the tea, the two men were chatting amiably. Iroh had accepted two cups from Zuko, smiling in gratitude, before handing one to the man next to him.
"Here you are, Tycho." Iroh said. "Life always seems lighter with tea."
Tycho smiled and accepted the drink, taking a small sip. Iroh mirrored him.
Tycho said, "So you really think I could be a good masseur?"
Zuko frowned in confusion. What happened while he was gone?
Iroh nodded enthusiastically. "Of course!"
Tycho shook his head, disbelieving. "This is… bizarre. But great! So great. No one has ever believed in me."
Iroh smiled and took a sip of his tea. He said, "While it is always best to believe in oneself, a little help from others can be a great blessing."
The two had sat there a little longer while Zuko loitered in the mouth of the alley. Eventually they'd risen and Iroh embraced the other man, smiling softly as they parted ways.
Zuko wanted to ask what had just happened but something made him refrain.
Iroh smiled at his Nephew, as if he knew what was on the boy's mind but was glad that he hadn't spoken it aloud.
They continued on their way.
Katara was concerned. Zuko had yet to reappear.
She'd decided to head over to the Jasmine Dragon after lunch, Toph in tow, to see if Zuko were there with his Uncle.
"I'm sure Sparky's fine, Sweetness." Toph said dismissively. "And if he's with Iroh, then he's definitely fine. There's a man that knows what he's doing."
Katara tried to accept the Earthbender's words and let her worry go, but found herself unable to. Her worry increased when they reached the teashop and she saw the sign in the window.
'Closed for mourning.'
Toph looked at her questioningly. "There a problem, Sugar Queen?"
Katara cleared her throat and said, "It's closed, Toph. There's a sign in the window."
Toph's frown deepened. "What does it say? Iroh wouldn't just close the place over nothing."
"It says 'closed for mourning'."
The Earthbender's face went sombre. "Oh." She said. "You know who or…?"
Katara shook her head. "No. Zuko never said anything."
Toph just repeated, "Oh."
They returned home in silence.
They'd collected incense on their way through the market. They talked their way out of the Inner Wall's gates and Iroh led them towards a hill that sat just on the horizon.
Neither one spoke as they trekked up the slope.
Zuko remained silent and standing as his Uncle settled himself down before a large tree, taking off his hat and removing a small portrait of Lu Ten from inside his pocket. He positioned it carefully against a small pile of rocks and then reached for his basket.
From it, he removed the incense, and a small bundle of flowers. Purple hyacinth, a voice in Zuko's head provided. It sounded like his mother.
Iroh positioned the incense sticks carefully and lit them with his finger.
The old General said, "Happy birthday, my son."
Tears slipped down the man's face, silent but there. Zuko knelt beside his Uncle and placed an arm around his shoulders, squeezing gently.
Iroh's voice was broken as he whispered, "If only I could have helped you…"
He trailed off a moment before clearing his throat. "Leaves from the vine," he sang. "falling so slow. Like fragile, tiny shells, drifting in the foam. Little soldier boy, come marching home. Brave soldier boy, comes marching home."
They sat there until the sun set.
