Chapter 20

Izara was several paces behind the Fire Lord, and he and Wen were walking to greet the Dragon of the West, Iroh. He was coming to fill in as Interim Fire Lord while Aang and Fire Lord Zuko were visiting some Fire Nation colonies in Earth Kingdom territory. She and a few others had been personally requested to be Iroh's guards, and she felt well out of her depth. The other guards here were all more experienced than her. Most had been working in the palace for years. However, she didn't let her self-doubt show, hiding her true feelings so well they couldn't be seen by anyone looking from the outside.

Fire Lord Zuko quietly discussed a few things with Wen as they walked towards the harbour. Iroh's ship had just arrived, and they waited for a few minutes as everyone began to disembark. Iroh's pace was casual until he saw his nephew and quickened to a power walk until they embraced strongly. Despite Izara's usually stone-faced attitude at work, she couldn't help but smile at the warm exchange between the two men. Some of the sailors waved and yelled a tearful goodbye to Iroh, who turned and similarly thanked them. It was common knowledge that he made lifelong friends no matter where he went, and everyone immensely enjoyed his company.

Iroh approached Wen, who smiled shyly as he held out his arm for her to take as they returned towards Izara and the others. Although she only knew things she had read and heard in passing about Iroh, Izara identified with him. He had once been a great enemy of the Earth Kingdom. He had tried hard for years to break through into Ba Sing Se. Still, he had changed so much and seemed to bring a sense of appreciation, calm and peace into every moment of his life and those around him. His part in ending the 100-Year War was well known. There was still a lot of mystery around his allies in the White Lotus, but some things couldn't be hidden or suppressed.

They stopped a few paces away as Fire Lord Zuko turned towards Izara and the other guards. Iroh stopped his quiet conversation with Wen, who he seemed familiar with and gave them all a smile. Izara didn't spare a second to bow low and stayed there, even after those next to her had straightened up.

"Uncle, these will be your guards while you're staying here. This is Luan, our second in command. This is Kai, Jay, Seju, and Chan. Last but not least, we have Izara. They will be rotating each day to look after you." Fire Lord Zuko gestured towards each person as he introduced them, and Iroh went between them and greeted everyone individually.

When he reached her, he must have seen something in her eyes that she didn't realise was there. He took her hand ever so gently and gave her a warm smile that reached all the way to her soul. The gesture didn't seem to be a simple greeting but rather a call to something more profound. Maybe it was something Izara was trying to pretend wasn't there.

"Izara. It is wonderful to meet you." His voice was genuine and kind, as if they had already known each other for years.

"The honour is mine. You have inspired me greatly, and I am truly grateful to be one of your protectors during your time in the Capital." Before she realised it, she had blurted everything out, and Iroh smiled when he noticed her panic. He laid a hand on her shoulder, and his calm demeanour eased her embarrassment.

"You are far too kind, but the honour seems mine. I am pleased to have such a kind young woman looking after me. Thank you."

Izara couldn't help but smile in reply. Still, she didn't notice Fire Lord Zuko's expression as he watched the interaction. In fact, no one did. They were too busy watching as well. When Iroh let go of her hand, he turned back to his nephew, who gestured for them to head back up towards the palace. The two men went ahead, and Wen was on the Fire Lord's left as he walked with his Uncle's arm around him.

The guards followed behind in silence, not wanting to disturb the reunion. It was lovely to see them be so happy to see one another, and Izara felt something strange, something that she couldn't identify. As they reached the palace, she and Jay were dismissed. They would be sharing night shifts, and the Fire Lord requested they be well-rested for their work beginning tonight. Izara had offered to take the first shift, and they would work two nights on and one night off. Since it was early in the morning, Izara would stay up and train for a few hours before going to the barracks and resting until her shift started that night.

She went and changed into some more casual clothes and headed towards the training area, saying hi to Zhang on the way. He commented on her being selected to guard Iroh, and she replied that she just thought it was the Fire Lord's way of validating her, to make her feel like she was doing a good job. Zhang's expression said that he didn't believe it, but he rolled his eyes at her and shooed her along.

A few people were training outside, but Izara moved over to a corner that wasn't being used, hoping to focus on some feedback that she had gotten from the Fire Lord during their last training session. Without paying attention to anyone else, she moved through each form they had been working on. She continued even as the sun began to go down. Her shift started at 10pm, so she headed inside once it was completely dark.

Ling was at the cafeteria and filled her tray with a beautiful rice dish, grilled fish, and a small bowl of soup. There was some fresh fruit out as well, and she grabbed a piece as she returned to her tray after she finished her meal. She headed to her shared room and grabbed her toiletries to bathe before her shift started. Although she wanted to linger in the warm water a while longer, she didn't allow herself to and hopped out once she was satisfied with her hygiene. She had already been there for at least 45 minutes, letting the hot water soothe her muscles after training for a few hours.

Once she had dried off, she returned to her room, got dressed into her guard uniform, and reported in. Iroh was spending time in the library with the Fire Lord, and Izara headed straight there, although she was a little early. She was taking over from Luan, and he told her what he had done today and reported on some of the activities and places they had been during his shift. Once he had passed on all relevant information, he left to report in.

"Izara, would you come in, please?" She straightened up at the sound of the Fire Lord's voice and dashed inside the library, trying to make sure she didn't look like too much of an idiot.

"Ah, yes. I met you earlier today. Have you enjoyed the rest of your afternoon?" Iroh smiled at her, and she nodded in reply, somewhat too nervous to talk.

"Izara is General Zaigan's daughter. Did you know him, Uncle? He led the siege at Kovu Cliffs." The Fire Lord looked toward his Uncle when he spoke but glanced towards Izara, and she felt that he was gauging her reaction.

"Zaigan...I believe we were in a war meeting together once. But I don't fully recall since it was many years ago. I do know about the Kovu Cliff siege, though. He cut off a major supply line for almost a decade, didn't he?" Iroh gestured his question to Izara, but she only knew what her Uncle had told her.

"So I've heard. I didn't know him very well." She replied in the most articulate voice she could muster.

"Ah yes, he died defending the siege, didn't he? Such a sad thing, but I am certain he would be very proud of you. You are in a rather prestigious position!" He chuckled, and she allowed herself to smile along with him.

"I have been immensely fortunate." Her smile was directed at the Fire Lord, who smiled back without hesitation and held her gaze for a moment. She looked away first and glanced back towards Iroh.

"Zuko did tell me about how he found you. It's quite a story. It seems that you are quite a talented young woman. Apparently, your firebending ability has increased exponentially during your time here."

"I can't take all the credit for that. The Fire Lord is a wonderful teacher. I'm sure he has taken many lessons from you as well. He quotes you frequently."

They all shared a laugh together, and Fire Lord Zuko nodded in agreement as he sat back in his chair. Iroh's laughter was the loudest, and he was clearly so proud of his nephew, and Izara could feel the love in the room. The Fire Lord was so lucky to have such a positive influence in his life, despite all the negative ones. Iroh's kindness seemed far more potent than Ozai's greed and warmongering and Azula's bloodlust.

"I'll leave you to your tea while you catch up." Izara bowed low to them, then left the room, standing just outside the door.

The two men talked for what seemed like hours. She had no problems guarding outside and occasionally paced a short distance in front of the door, taking care to glance inside and listen in every now and then to ensure everything was okay. Of course, they were just spending time together and catching up, so nothing interesting was happening.

Just before midnight, some of the lights in the palace had been off for a while, and she had gotten used to the low light and noticed a shadowy figure outside the window. She briefly looked inside the library as she paced past the doorway. From the angle she was on, she could only see about half of the window but noticed that it silently slid upwards, and adrenaline kicked in.

The shadowy figure landed inside with no sound as Izara rushed them, blade at the ready. She crossed the distance between them in barely more than a second, and Izara swung her leg in a spinning hook kick aimed directly at their left temple. They flinched, blocked it in time, and spun over to the right to avoid her next attack.

As they spun, the light shone on them properly, and she saw that it was Avatar Aang looking terrified, and he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. She immediately lowered her blade and dropped her hands as he smiled awkwardly.

"Sorry, I wanted it to be a surprise." Aang offered weakly as an explanation, and Izara raised an eyebrow at him.

"And that's what you get for trying to sneak up on the royal family in the royal palace." Katara's calm but motherly voice wafted through the room as the rest of the gang entered the library.

"Holy crap, that was hilarious!" Sokka had his arm over Suki's shoulder as she supported him while he guffawed.

"Not so subtle, huh Twinkletoes?" Toph managed to say between her raucous laughter.

They were all laughing at Aang's expense, and he hung his head forward. He scratched the back of his head and sighed, with his cheeks flushed pink in embarrassment. After a moment, Izara relaxed her stance completely, bowed half out of respect and half in apology, and began to walk towards the door. But the Fire Lord's voice stopped her.

"Izara. If you could leave that out of your report…" he looked over to Aang and laughed again. "That would be best."

"Leave what out of my report." She replied with a tone of subterfuge, taking the hint, but he spoke again before she could move.

"Do you see why I hired you now? You're so good you can even stop the Avatar." Although he phrased it as a joke to poke fun at Aang, his eyes were earnest, and she didn't know how to respond.

"Oh, I'm so glad we didn't wait til tomorrow to say hi. That was worth it." Sokka was still leaning heavily on Suki, who pretended she was annoyed, but her eyes were filled with mirth.

Instead, she just bowed in thanks and left the room, listening to their friendly banter and conversation as the group greeted Iroh, whom they hadn't seen in a long time. Katara explained that they had planned to wait to see Iroh to allow Zuko time to catch up but noticed they were still awake after they returned from a night out in the Capital.

She didn't feel the Fire Lord's gaze leave her until she was out of his eye line. Once she stood to the left of the doorway, she allowed herself to release the breath she had been holding and tried to calm her racing heart. As requested, she wouldn't report this, and the Fire Lord had clearly asked her not to so that Aang could avoid the embarrassment of other people knowing about that. With an amused huff and smile, she felt herself relax and continued as per usual.

At least another hour before, the group decided to retire for the night. Izara followed several steps behind the large group, who slowly began to split off, going their separate ways. Iroh stayed in a room down the hall from the Fire Lord's. She pretended she wasn't there, so she didn't interrupt them talking, but they went quiet all of a sudden, and she couldn't help but look over at them.

Both men were looking directly at her, and she felt her eyes widen in surprise.

"Izara. Thank you for your vigilance. I can sleep soundly knowing I have your protection." Iroh's voice was kind but tired.

"You're very welcome." She said with a smile and bow, and the old man walked inside his room and closed the door behind him after ruffling Zuko's hair affectionately.

Izara moved to stand directly next to the door where she would be for the rest of the night, and the Fire Lord didn't move to his own room.

"I meant what I said before. That's why I charged you with guarding my Uncle. You've certainly proved yourself." His voice was quiet, but his expression showed his seriousness.

"Thank you for believing in me. I'm not used to it, but I appreciate it." She allowed another smile and bowed her head in thanks.

"Get a good rest after you finish your shift, okay?" The Fire Lord replied softly, and she nodded in reply.

He walked backwards a few steps and smiled at her before he turned and continued a few metres down the hall to his own chambers. His door closed quietly behind him, and Izara took a slow breath. No matter how hard she tried, he seemed to see right through her and disarm her with little to no effort. She supposed that he had to be perceptive after all that he had been through, and it was a handy skill to have with the difficult job of running a nation.

Despite her mind threatening to wander, she pulled herself back to the present and stayed alert and on guard until 6am when Jay came to take over. She gave him a quick briefing and left to report before she returned to her room for the night. Aside from leaving out the incident with Aang, there wasn't much to write down, so she finished quickly and silently entered the room she shared with the other girls. They were all sleeping, and they didn't stir as she changed into her pyjamas and hopped into bed.

She was more tired than she initially realised, and it only took about 10 minutes for her to drift off to sleep…