"Please," Zuko said. "I'm not Fire Lord anymore. My daughter carries that burden now."
"But you're a legend," Bolin gushed.
"I'm old. And this tea will get too cool if we just stand around. Sit down and have a cup with me while we talk."
"Yes, sir."
Bolin slid into rather than sat on the stool opposite the retired monarch. Iroh picked up a full cup from the table.
"I'll take this with me. Let me know if you need anything, Grandpa."
"Thank you, Iroh. Enjoy the woods." Zuko sighed as he looked back at Bolin's still hero-worshippy expression but didn't comment on it. "We have a rather serious discussion here, young man."
"Sorry!" Bolin forced himself to look somber.
Zuko sighed again. "I believe Izumi and her advisors may have been…hasty in their decision regarding 'The Wind and the Flame.' Yes, it draws from controversial history, but it is that very history which means we should not return to banning art because we don't care for it. And none of us have seen or read the thing yet!"
"That's true." Bolin said. "About the script, I mean… it went through so many rewrites that most of the time we didn't see it until the day of. But in spite of that, it's going to be really good!"
"Yes," said Zuko. "So it would be much more of a shame if the people of the Fire Nation couldn't see it! And I think the best way to approach my daughter quietly about the subject would be to get a script for her to see. Could I borrow yours, by any chance?"
Bolin thought of the dog-eared, underlined and noted wreck of papers tied together at his apartment. "Er… it's not that I'm unwilling, it's just that it's kind of a wreck. It probably wouldn't help."
He looked down at the ground, littered with sawdust, and remembered Rie had mentioned that her husband was a carpenter. Which was why she could go unpaid for now.
"But I know someone who has a pristine copy."
…
INT. OMASHU PALACE- DAY
"Do you appreciate irony, Avatar?" Enze, the King of Omashu asked.
"Not enough," Xing sighed. "But it doesn't matter. I only want to travel through the Earth Kingdom as a nomad again. Perhaps visit the abbeys. I'll be no bother to you."
"Nonsense," the king pointed at Xing. "By being the Avatar, you are bother to me and have been since the days of Wan. Not even including the… baggage involving the new Fire Lord."
Enze stopped to sip from a large goblet of juice. He motioned for one of his attendants to pour some for Xing, too. The Avatar nodded gratefully but did not drink it.
"Besides, the Earth King has ordered that you not be permitted to leave the city."
Xing nearly upset his goblet, quickly steadied it, and then sighed, shaking his head. "I should have expected that."
"I'll intercede for you," Enze said. "It won't be long before Akoko makes demands of her own. I don't want Omashu in the midst of whatever trouble follows. As it undoubtedly will. The king in Ba Sing Se can deal with it. In the meantime… do you play Pai-Sho?"
…
Rie was tying the little turban she wore to cover her shaved head when there was a knock at the door. Grumbling a little, she tied a hasty knot and opened it.
"Hi," Bolin said.
"Fire Lord!" Rie bowed deeply. "Please come in! Sit down. May I offer you some tea?"
"What kind do you have?" Zuko asked, interestedly. "Thank you."
Turban coming undone, she quickly heated some water with fire-bending and began to prepare three cups. Bolin fidgeted.
She brought the tea things over and bowed again. "To what do I owe the honor of this visit?"
"I need to borrow a copy of the mover script," Zuko said. "Bolin said you were likely to possess a pristine copy."
"Of course," she jumped up and retrieved the papers from her messenger bag. "It would be an honor to assist you, after everything you've done for Fire Nation arts. It was the Ursa Scholarship that let me study acting in school."
"Well, after what my father and grandfather did to the arts, and the rest of the world, establishing a scholarship was the least I could do." Zuko sipped some tea. "This is excellent, by the way."