"Hello. Would you like some tea?"
"Um, yes, sure." Katara brushed the ground clear and sat cross-legged in front of the old firebender. She watched quietly as the old man used his hand to heat the pot, allowing it to boil until he was satisfied. Then, he slowly, almost lovingly, poured the freshly-made tea into two small cups. With a gentle smile, he proffered one to Katara.
They sipped in silence for a few minutes, leaving Katara alone with her thoughts.
"This is really good. Thank you," she said, just to break what was becoming an awkward silence.
Iroh beamed as he replied, "It is a recipe of my own invention. The secret is the fire lily blossoms."
"Fire lilies? I've never heard of those."
Iroh sighed. "They don't grow outside of the Fire Nation. A few colonists in the Earth Kingdom bring them to plant their gardens, but they do not live for long there. It is too moist."
"Then how did you get these?"
"I have a friend who runs a small flower shop bordering the desert. It is dry enough there to grow fire lilies."
"Hmm, I see," Katara mumbled appreciatively. She couldn't help but be impressed by the dedication the old man showed to his hobby. Of course, it was the same sort of determination that made his nephew such a threat, but right now, it didn't seem all bad.
"Might I ask what you are thinking?"
"Just that something can be good or bad depending on how it's used."
Now it was Iroh's turn to mumble and let the subject drop.
The peaceful silence lasted for almost an hour, its interruptions infrequent and pleasant. Katara was beginning to wonder if they could just spend the entire day there when she heard a shout.
"Ahh!"
"What was that?" she asked, leaping to her feet. Iroh followed suit within seconds and they shared a shocked glance.
"It's Zuko." They both raced towards the source of the noise, hearts pounding.
…
Their anxiety ebbed, however, when they got closer and heard the prince's voice, strong as ever. If anything, he seemed irritable, not scared.
"… think more clearly once the sun's up. It's hard for us to get up early, and… Shut up!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Big Bad Firebender. You're not going to hit me, are you? Oh wait, you can't! It's still dark ou- ouch! Hey!"
Twenty feet away from the clearing, Katara couldn't help but snicker. Iroh tapped her on the shoulder.
"It appears that my nephew is in no mortal danger," he whispered. "Therefore, perhaps we should go back to camp before your friend the avatar notices we're missing."
They quietly trooped back, leaving Sokka and Zuko to it.
…
Aang was awake when they got back, and after a quick explanation, he was more than happy to settle down to a breakfast of tea and noodles. Toph still wasn't up when Sokka and Zuko returned.
"Hey, guys! We got fish!" Sokka triumphantly held up a scrawny pair of fish. Zuko had even managed to reel in a tiny carp.
"Mmm, those look… delicious," said Katara, trying to keep her smile sincere.
"Oh yeah! I'd like to see you do better!" Sokka yelled, his rude tone belied by his smile.
"So, Zuko, did you learn anything useful about fishing?" Iroh asked, cheerfully gutting the first of Sokka's catches.
"They stop biting after sunrise." Noting Sokka's smirk, he went on. "Oh, and never get a fishhook stuck in your hand." He rolled his eyes. "Apparently, it happens to a lot of people." This prompted a general laugh and a protest from the jest's target.
"Hey, where's Toph?" asked Sokka. "We need to take off soon."
"Still asleep. You're welcome to wake her up if you want." Katara's eyes twinkled with mirth.
"Maybe I will! Toph!" he shouted, stomping off to her earthen tent. It wasn't until after he was gone that Iroh noticed his nephew's clothes.
"Zuko, I don't mean to pry, but why are you all wet?"
"Sokka dropped his pole in the river."
"Again? I don't know why he still fishes. He's so clumsy."
"He didn't seem that bad. He told me that he once caught a fish bigger than his head. Was he lying?"
"No, he wasn't. When was that, Aang? Before or after the time he caught your shirt in the hook?"
"Gee, I don't know, Katara. I think that it was around the time he fell in and you had to use your bending to pull him out."
They would have continued, but a loud shout announced the arrival of Sokka's flying body. "Toph's up," he muttered.
"Good. Now, where were we?"
"I think that you were about to tell them about the time he got two fishhooks stuck in his hand."
"He what?" Iroh's surprisingly childlike tone of interest prompted a laugh from Katara. "How does that even happen?"
"He tried to get the first fishhook out with another fishhook."
"It seemed like a good idea!"
Zuko's only response was to roll his eyes and suck in a mouthful of noodles.