"A wise man…does NOT know…"
"So…this is your room. I guess, ya know…for now." Sokka said.
Zuko slammed his bag down on the old mattress, ready to relax.
"Unpack. Lunch…soon. Uh…welcome aboard." Sokka nervously spoke his enemy who had suddenly become his ally. Zuko looked back at him, smiled and nodded, but did not say anything. Sokka left, feeling very awkward.
The former prince searched through his pack. With him, he carried his swords, a change of clothes, a bag of Fire Flakes. Nothing of real value…except for one thing.
He pulled out an ink painting of his uncle, back when he was a 'proud' member of the Fire Nation, back when he ever present in Zuko's life.
Zuko smiled when he saw his uncle's face, unable to forget the kind of man he was. The last time Zuko was at the Western Air Temple, his uncle had told him something. He shared with him some great wisdom. Zuko did not understand what he meant back then, back when he was consumed by rage and frustration. But now that his mind was clear and that he was on the right path, he knew what his uncle meant.
"If I have to, I will spend everyday of the rest of life hunting the Avatar." Zuko looked down. "I know it's my destiny to capture him." The young prince felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and then heard kind words flow into his ears.
"You know Prince Zuko, destiny is a funny thing. You never know how things are going to work out, but if you keep an open mind…and an open heart, I promise you will find your own destiny some day." Iroh smiled at him. For the first time since his father scarred him, Zuko smiled back. Iroh figured that he should keep going while he had the boy in a good mood.
"I have discovered my destiny." Iroh continued. "It took me most of my life to realize what it was. But the funny thing was that I always thought I knew. Thinking that I knew the answer to everything prevented me from learning new things, things that may have helped me long ago. After all, just because something is correct in one situation, does not mean that it will be correct in another. The truth was that I did not know much of anything, and I will never know everything."
Iroh eyes shifted towards his nephew. Zuko was patiently waiting for him to say more.
"I have been alive for…well, quite some time. But I will continue to learn till the day I die. There are so many things to learn, so many places to go, so many stories to tell…" Iroh paused. "If you lived for a million years, you'd still never hear all of the stories, all of the adventures this world has to offer. Your knowledge, your wisdom, your skills…they can only improve if you acknowledge that the road ahead of you is endless. If you stop walking down that road, then you will never progress. So, understand Zuko…a wise man does NOT know. A wise man knows, whether he is a young boy or an old man…that he still has much to learn."
Zuko smiled, remembering all that his uncle had done for him, everything that he taught him, and how he never gave up on Zuko…even when Zuko had given up on himself.
He remembered the endless stories his uncle told him, some that seemed too incredible to be real. The tales of The Dragon of The West, as farfetched as they often seemed, were more than just a collection of fables.
It was a man. It was a life. It was the choices he made, his imperfections, his flaws, his failures. It was a road that was very difficult to travel, but worth the journey.
And now, Zuko was about to walk down his own road. Iroh had pointed him in the right direction.