A/N: The start of the Autumn Festival…it's been a long time coming.
Disclaimer: Not mine reeeee
Ursa, cont.
If I'd known everything that was going to happen on that first Autumn Festival journey, I'm not sure I would have had the courage to step foot in the carriage. But I was no fortune teller: I wasn't much more than a girl, really, despite masquerading as the confident hostess of the Fire Lord's favorite Autumn Festival.
All I can really tell you about how the journey began is that I was exhausted that morning. I hadn't slept very well the night before, too curious about what I'd learned from Piandao and anxious about spending a month on the road with Iroh following Aisha's revelation. I barely kept my eyes open as Azulon saw us off, and I was asleep in the carriage within moments.
It made sense, then, that when I woke up a few hours later…I really did think I was still dreaming.
Ursa lightly leapt out of the carriage, waving off Iroh's attempts to help her down. Her neck was a bit sore from spending most of the morning dozing - for how luxurious the carriage was, it was odd that there wasn't a better place to rest her head - but otherwise, she felt surprisingly well. The Autumn Festival was officially underway, and so far, she hadn't done anything to mess it up.
"We'll take an hour for lunch," she instructed the procession. "Please let me know if anyone needs longer. Thank you!"
Iroh was smiling at her when she turned to him, eyes shining in a way that set a nervous anticipation alight in her gut. "What?" she asked.
He shrugged. "You're a gracious princess."
"That can't be true. I spent most of the morning asleep instead of providing you with company."
"Well, you needed it. I heard you had trouble sleeping."
Piandao would have mentioned something to him, of course. "I spent a lot of time tossing and turning, worrying about getting everything right for today." She didn't mention what she'd learned from Aisha, even though it had played its part in keeping her awake. Iroh had waited a month to do anything about his brother poisoning her: it unsettled her, but she'd decided somewhere in the wee hours of the night that she didn't want to confront him about it when they still had so much of the journey ahead of them.
"So far, so good, I'd say." Iroh turned and gestured at his manservant Jun. "I'm going to freshen up and stretch my legs, and then we can grab our own lunch?"
"That sounds perfect. I'll do the same."
Mika and Rei, whom she was eternally grateful to have with her on the journey, dutifully accompanied her to the cover of the trees. The procession had stopped on the outskirts of a town somewhere to the west of the capital - Ursa tried to mentally picture the route she'd spent weeks planning, but she'd never been great with geography - and they were secluded enough for her to have some privacy in the woods. One of the nearby inns was emitting some rather tantalizing smells. It didn't seem like palace food, and Ursa's stomach growled at the thought of eating a regular lunch for the first time in months. Perhaps she could convince Iroh to eat here instead of looking for a more noble establishment.
"Here, Princess." Rei handed her a change of clothes, something soft and cotton and plain that made Ursa frown in confusion.
"What's this?"
"Prince Iroh thought you might like a different outfit for the rest of the day," she shrugged. "Mika and I will keep watch while you change."
Still unsure, Ursa unfolded the garments to find a maroon women's tunic and a black pair of leggings. A change of shoes was hiding underneath them, sturdy boots rather than delicate slippers. The perfect clothes for a long journey, but not the sort of thing Princess Ursa would wear: these were more reminiscent of what she would've donned in Hira'a while trekking up hillsides. She wondered where Iroh had gotten them, and why he was giving them to her now.
Well, she'd certainly rather wear these than a palace robe. The change was immediately refreshing; she hadn't realized how much it had felt like wearing someone else's clothes - someone else's life - since becoming a princess. Impulsively, she tugged her hair loose. Since she was reverting to her old appearance, she might as well go all the way. Mika handed her a simpler headpiece to go with the style.
Iroh had changed into traveler's attire as well, wearing a salmon vest and dark trousers with boots similar to hers. The lack of sleeves, she couldn't help noticing, was a great favor to his folded arms. "Your hair's different," he said, thankfully giving her something to focus on besides the way his armbands hugged the curves of his biceps.
"Should I change it?" she asked, self-consciously running her fingers along the small side braids that joined at her topknot. This half-up half-down style had been her favorite before marriage.
"No. It's nice." He tilted his head in the direction of the inn Ursa had been eying, and she realized he'd removed his crown prince headpiece. "Lunch?"
"Yes, please. I was hoping you would choose that place." There was definitely komodo chicken and sausage being cooked inside, the smell making her already-growling stomach lurch eagerly. "What made you decide we needed to change outfits?"
"I've been on enough of these journeys to know that royal attire isn't always great on the road." His eyes were shining again, something like mischief in them, as he beckoned for a pair of guards to accompany them on their way to the inn. Ursa suddenly felt a twist in her gut at the thought of marching into that roadside establishment as royals. That wasn't the normal lunch she wanted.
"Wait," she said. "Let's go in alone."
He paused, casting her a sideways glance. "You sure?"
"I don't want to make a big fuss over getting lunch. It's just an inn. We're already dressed as commoners. The guards will be outside, and you can take care of yourself, right?"
"Right." A smile pulled at his lips as she quoted his own words back at him. "Let's go, then."
Ursa was glad that they'd removed their palace garbs when they stepped into the inn. She could just imagine the scene if the crown prince and princess walked in: the bowing, the flattery, the special treatment. But without their robes and retinue, they were just another young traveling couple among many in the inn's swarm of lunch hour customers. Old habits came back quickly, and she found herself snapping her fingers for the innkeeper's attention and hollering for a table for two before she even registered that she'd practically pushed Iroh aside to do it.
"Sorry," she said quickly, blushing as she lowered her hand. "You go ahead."
"Are you kidding? It'll be an hour before we get a table if you let me handle this. Keep going."
Encouraged, she elbowed her way through the crowd to make her case directly to the innkeeper, a middle-aged woman with a stern but not unfriendly look. "My husband and I are newlyweds," she said, hoping she looked the part of a blushing bride as she pointed out Iroh. "We've been traveling all day. Please?"
The woman's face softened. "I suppose I can make room for that. But don't go expecting any discounts."
"Of course not. Thank you very much!" She motioned for Iroh to follow as the innkeeper led them to a table.
"What did you do?" he asked.
"I just told her that we're newlyweds on the road," she replied nonchalantly, winding her arm through his to add to the pretense. The warmth of his bare skin and the shift of his muscles under her touch made her insides flutter.
"You keep doing the talking, then." He winked, flustering her further. "I'm not so good at this."
"Well, you should at least relax your shoulders a bit. You look like you think you run this place."
Iroh clumsily attempted to correct his posture as he slid into his chair across from her, but the innkeeper had already taken note of his physique and regal bearing. "You a soldier, young man?" she asked, curiosity plain in her raised eyebrows.
"Um…yes, ma'am." he replied, looking a bit nervous. Ursa reached across the table and gently touched his wrist to sell the story, remembering Aisha's grief over Piandao leaving.
"Oh, poor dears. Love is hard in war." She cast them a pitying look before handing over two menus and rushing to tend to the next table. Ursa's cheeks warmed at the mention of love, and she quickly pulled back her hand to concentrate on choosing her food instead of whatever Iroh's reaction to those words was.
"I've never done this before," he said lightly, thankfully not mentioning what the innkeeper had said.
She peered at him over the top of her menu. "What? Visit an inn?"
"Visit an inn…by myself," he said carefully. "It's very chaotic."
"That's part of the charm."
Ursa selected the chicken skewers, Iroh the komodo sausage, and the innkeeper generously slid two bowls of vegetable soup that they hadn't asked for onto the table. "Good fortune for newlyweds," she said when they tried to protest. "Don't reject it."
"Her bark's worse than her bite," Ursa whispered to Iroh once the rest of their food appeared. "That's the best kind of innkeeper."
"So, you ate at places like this often?"
"Not often, but maybe once a month or so my mother would decide she didn't feel like cooking, and we would visit an inn or restaurant." She took a bite of her chicken skewer, relishing the explosion of chili-scallion flavor in her mouth. There was something in 'commoner' food that the palace kitchen just couldn't replicate. "Perfect," she sighed. "I missed this."
Iroh looked at her with a ghost of a smile on his lips, then pushed his plate towards her. "You can try mine if I can try yours."
"Deal."
The komodo sausage was excellent as well, with that ever so slightly charred flavor that noble palates would never tolerate. Ursa waited for Iroh to say something about how it didn't live up to the palace kitchens, but he scarfed it down and let out a hearty belch that made her giggle even as she wrinkled her nose in playful disgust.
"What do you think I should try for dessert?" he asked once both their dishes were clean.
"Dessert? Aren't you full?" Between soup, skewers, and sausage, her previously ravenous appetite had been well satisfied.
"Come now, my wife. Surely you know there's always room for something sweet."
"Hmm…" Ursa cast her mind for a dessert she'd been missing, a dish that the palace kitchen couldn't get quite right. Her eyes landed on a child a few tables away going to town on his messy sweet. A memory flashed through her: sticky fingers on humid days, her mother chiding her for getting it on her clothes while her father laughed and licked the syrup off his own hands. "Mango sticky rice."
"Alright, as long as you take some too."
The first spoonful tasted like sunshine. The second was like nectar. It turned out there was indeed room for something sweet in her full belly, and she ended up taking more than her fair share of the dessert, cloying nostalgia filling her mouth with each bite.
"Maybe I'm hungrier than I thought," she said, suddenly feeling very improper for eating so greedily.
"You should be. You barely ate breakfast." Iroh offered her the last slice of mango, then shrugged and scooped it up when she adamantly shook her head. "Sure you don't want anything else?"
"I'm sure. It won't be good for anyone if I get sick to my stomach after this."
That mischievous light entered his eyes again before he glanced around, looking uncharacteristically lost. "Okay. Out of curiosity, how does one go about paying in an establishment like this?"
Ursa laughed. "Here, we'll pay on our way out."
She briefly wondered if it was an abuse of royal funds to leave a generous tip for the kind innkeeper, but it turned out Iroh was well ahead of her. He discreetly placed a small pile of gold coins, enough to cover their meals fifty times over, into the shocked woman's hands.
"Good fortune from newlyweds," he told her when she tried to protest. "Don't reject it."
"I-" Her eyes flickered over Iroh's regal bearing once more, and Ursa could see the gears turning in her mind as she tried to piece together the identities of these strangely well-off young travelers. Fortunately, even if she did recognize them, she simply shut her mouth and ducked her head. "Thank you. May the spirits watch over you on your journey."
A glance at the inn's sign revealed its name as they left. "Madam Su's Bites and Brews," Ursa read. "Do you think she was Madam Su?"
"If she was, I should give her some suggestions for her brews," Iroh said, not having found any drink options to his liking. "But otherwise, I enjoyed this place. I'll try to remember it."
"So, your first time as a commoner was a success?" she joked.
"I'd say so. I was a bit skeptical when you suggested it, but I think you're right. There is a certain charm about being just another customer. Plus, I overheard a lot of things I wouldn't have if I'd gone in as myself."
"Really?" Ursa had been too preoccupied with the food to pay much attention to her surroundings, but she supposed it wasn't a surprise that Iroh had been listening. "What did you hear?"
"Rumblings about the war. Discontent about how many have been drafted, how the military has seeped into their towns, how the taxes have been raised…it's interesting, hearing what the citizens have to say when they think no one of authority's listening. Like you said, people commiserate with their peers rather than their superiors."
"You heard all that, and you still gave her that money?"
He gave her a quizzical look. "Of course. The food was excellent, and a little honest feedback never hurt anyone. Why wouldn't I?"
If it had been Azulon who'd overheard the inn's guests speaking so poorly about his rule as Fire Lord…Madam Su certainly would not have received a month's wages, let alone any praise. "I'm not sure your father would have," she said quietly, leaving the rest of it unspoken.
Something shifted in his expression. "Well, it's not my decisions they're deriding. And I heard nice things, too. People journeying to see family, celebrating a birthday, laughing with old friends. It balances out."
Azulon likely wouldn't have found any pleasure in the mundane niceties of his citizens' lives either, but Ursa didn't voice that thought. "Perhaps you should do this again, then. Every town will have different 'feedback.'"
"Perhaps. It worked well for you dressing up as a maid, after all." He flashed her a quick grin. "But you'll have to help me. Like I said, I'm not great at this."
"Of course. I'll just have to give you some acting lessons along the way."
He seemed a bit surprised, raising his eyebrows at her words. "Acting lessons," he repeated. "Yes, I suppose I might need some."
The reaction struck her as odd, and she quickly ran over her words in her head. Perhaps he didn't like what she'd said about his father? He was hardly paying attention to her now, instead scanning his gaze over the landscape as he led her back towards the royal procession. The hour was almost up, and then they'd be in the carriage again…maybe she should apologize to avoid it being awkward.
Before she could get the words out, though, he pointed her towards the trees. "Come on," he said. "We have to do one more thing before we get back on the road."
"Okay," she said, heartbeat picking up. There was something mischievous in his face once more; she'd thought maybe the change of clothes and the tip he'd left for the innkeeper would be the end of it, but apparently, he had more surprises planned.
"I have a confession to make, my wife," he told her once they were under the cover of the woods. "I've gone and tweaked some of your plans for the festival behind your back."
Ursa felt a flash of anxiety and, strangely, irritation spark through her. After all the time she'd spent on the festival, he chose now to tell her there was something wrong with what she'd done? How could she be his equal if he unilaterally overruled her whenever he felt like it? She thought of Aisha's confession again - Iroh had been sitting on knowledge of Ozai poisoning her for a month before doing anything, how could he? - but swallowed it down. "What did you change?" she asked.
"I added a stop for tonight, before we reach Ningzhou."
While her geography wasn't great, Ursa was relatively sure there weren't any towns notable enough for the royal procession to make a formal stop between the capital and Ningzhou. "Where? Why?" she questioned.
"I promise you it's important," he said, a poorly-disguised smile pulling at his lips. "It's something that's long overdue. I believe now is an auspicious night for a husband to visit his in-laws' home for the first time."
Ursa's mind stuttered over his words. Iroh's in-laws were, logically, her own parents. Azulon had made it clear that she was never to see her parents again. Iroh had not agreed with that decision, and she'd told him she didn't want to go against the Fire Lord's wishes, but he'd never actually said he was going to leave the matter alone. Could he have…was it possible…
"I don't understand," she stammered, not daring to hope, waiting for him to clarify whatever miscommunication was making her think this way. "You added a stop at…"
"At my in-laws' home, of course. In Hira'a." He grinned at her openly now.
It couldn't be. But surely Iroh wouldn't lie to her about this. "Really?" she asked, voice audibly trembling.
"Yes, really."
Instinctively, her hands curled into fists and dug her nails into her palms as hard as possible. It hurt, but it didn't wake her up. Thank the spirits; she would be inconsolable if it turned out this was a dream. "How?" she whispered.
"My father has his more agreeable moods," he said vaguely. "It's not perfect. We'll have to go alone, in disguise-" he gestured at their outfits- "and we can only see your parents, but…I thought it would be better than nothing."
That slightly embarrassed look on his face, like he was self-conscious about not doing enough, finally shook her out of her state of shock. Better than nothing? Until five minutes ago, she'd been resigned to the fact that she would never see anyone or anything from her old life again, and now...
"It's so much better than nothing. It's…" She faltered, searching for the words, but they failed to come amid the rush of excitement and hope that choked up her throat. "Iroh, I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything," he said. "This should have been part of the journey to begin with."
"It's not about what 'should have been.'" You stood up to your father. You pushed back against the Fire Lord's wishes for me. For me, the treacherous Avatar's granddaughter. "Thank you, Iroh. Thank you so much."
She was on the verge of tears now, shaking a little bit from the sheer joy of this revelation, and Iroh offered her a gentler smile. "I haven't even done anything yet. Thank me when you see them again, my wife."
"I will." Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to meet Iroh's gaze, calm spreading through her when she saw the warmth in his amber eyes. "How are we getting there if we're going alone?" she asked, turning her mind to more practical matters.
Iroh gestured for her to follow him further into the woods. In a private copse, Jun and Mika were waiting with some cloaks, travel packs, and-
"An ostrich horse?" Ursa asked, eyes widening with disbelief. She didn't think a crown prince would lower himself to such a common animal.
"It's inconspicuous. We can't exactly take the carriage."
"I agree, but…no offense, do you actually know how to ride one?"
"Of course I do," he defended himself a little too quickly. "I learned this and all sorts of riding in school. It'll be fine."
His uncharacteristically red cheeks gave Ursa a sneaking suspicion it wasn't going to be fine. But, as she accepted her pack and travel cloak from Mika and wished her a quick farewell, she found she didn't really care. After all, she was on her way to see her parents, thanks to Iroh. No amount of ostrich horse shenanigans could take that - the excitement, the hope, the joy - away from her.
The afternoon passed by with lighthearted banter and lessons on village life. Although Iroh regarded his plan to visit Hira'a as impressive, considering that he'd literally argued with the Fire Lord and won in order to buy his wife this opportunity, Ursa had simply burst into giggles when he'd clambered onto the ostrich horse commissioned for their secret journey.
"You sit on that thing like it's a throne, and you couldn't stop talking like a prince if you tried," she'd said, laughter dancing in her eyes. "If we're going to make it through this, we need to start your acting lessons now."
Ursa, he suspected, was enjoying his plight a bit too much. He wouldn't begrudge her the small pleasure, though. It wasn't everyday she got to be the one who was guiding him through an event.
"This doesn't feel natural," Iroh complained once he'd slouched and allowed the reins to hang loosely in his hands as instructed.
"And perching on an ostrich horse with a ramrod straight back is?" she countered. He supposed she wasn't wrong.
Next, they had to work on his stance. He carried himself like a warrior, in her words, which would certainly draw attention. She coached him as they took a break in a meadow to let the ostrich horse rest. The sunshine on her skin gave her eyes an extra sparkle as she told him what to change: his feet didn't need to be shoulder-width apart, and speaking of his shoulders, they didn't need to be so far back, and his chin should be lowered a bit, and if he wasn't careful his eyes would give the impression of someone looking for a fight-
"This is too many things to remember."
"Sorry," Ursa shrugged, "I feel I'm being pretty nice compared to some directors I've had."
"You probably are. Acting is just tricky for me. I'm not a great liar," Iroh defended himself.
There was no response to that, which struck him as odd considering the easy nature of their conversation so far. He turned to find her staring at him intently, plucking the petals off a flower in her hand.
"What?" he asked. "Is my stance that bad?"
"You think I'm a liar?" she asked, voice strained. There was something in her eyes that he didn't want to examine too closely.
"No." Surprisingly, he meant it. Once upon a time, when she'd been a stranger and he'd been a resentful groom, he'd regarded her as nothing more than an actress, and therefore, a natural liar. But looking at her now, he found it hard to reconcile that first impression with the Ursa he knew.
"Then what does that mean, that you can't act because you're not a good liar? What are you saying, if not that I'm a liar?"
Blast, he'd offended her. Iroh cursed his thoughtless tongue and scrambled for the right words to fix the situation. "Well…pretending to be something I'm not. That's what acting is, isn't it? It feels uncomfortable to me, even if it's just for entertainment, because I've always tried to be honest."
"And I haven't?"
"Ursa, that's not what I meant. Of course you're an honest woman."
Iroh waited for her to scold him further. He could see it brewing in the way her lips pursed, the way her brows furrowed - the same expression she wore during after-dinner talks when she was gearing up to let him know his interpretation of a song or a folktale was completely wrong - and prepared to be told all the ways he was mistaken this time.
"Honesty isn't just not lying," she said. "A prince should know the difference. I'm not any less honest than you because I like to perform as something I'm not. And how honest do you think the palace is? After everything I've had to change about myself to be royal enough?"
Her gaze had turned away from him, focused on tugging at some grass by her hand as she spoke, a little too focused on the task.
"I know it's not," Iroh said. "That's…part of why I try to be honest myself. Because I don't like that it's that way."
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and he felt encouraged to keep talking. "I wish neither of us had to worry about being royal enough. I guess that's pretending too, in its own way. It just doesn't seem the same to me, probably because I started learning all of it so young."
Ursa half-smiled now. "I started acting very young as well."
He sat cross-legged in front of her, enjoying the early autumn sun on his skin and the fact that her upset seemed to have thankfully melted away. "What was your first role?"
"That's a good story." Absent-mindedly, she began weaving together some grass and flowers as she told the tale. "I was six years old, and the town was putting on a production of Why the River Roars for the summer solstice festival. I was cast as the main character, Neelu."
Iroh knew the tale. Neelu was a curious little girl who formed a connection with the spirit of the titular river, eventually convincing it that humans were worth protecting. A six-year-old Ursa seemed perfect for the role. "I'm sure you were a natural."
"Oh, absolutely. I practiced my lines day in and day out, especially my important line in the finale: 'Great River Spirit, have mercy!'" She swung her arms out dramatically, her flower chain swinging in the breeze. "But on the day of the show…I got stage fright."
"You got stage fright?" he asked incredulously.
"It was my first performance! No one gets through their first performance without a touch of stage fright. I managed the first few scenes okay, but by the time we got to the finale for my big moment, I was a mess. I was just a little girl playing pretend in front of practically the entire town: what if I couldn't impress them? What if I embarrassed my parents?"
Even though she was recalling something inconsequential that had happened over a decade ago, the furrow of her eyebrows and the rise and fall of her voice transported him to the moment and let him share in the childish panic of six-year-old Ursa. "So, what did you do?"
"I said I had to go to the bathroom, and I decided I would hide in some dusty corner of the theater until they had no choice but to skip my line or replace me."
He raised his eyebrows.
"I didn't say I was a clever child," Ursa said, reading his expression. "But…my friend must have guessed what I was thinking. He followed me, and convinced me I could do it. He called me the greatest actress he'd ever seen, not that either of us had seen many, but it still felt like an immense compliment. So, I got on the stage and delivered my line, stopping the river spirit's rampage. Everyone applauded. When I saw my parents cheering me on in the crowd, my fear of the stage turned into love instead. And the rest is history." She held up the flower chain in her hand. "Here, let me put this on your wrist."
"Why?"
"It'll help you blend in. Around here, a handmade token like this is good luck; it's supposed to provide a wife's protection for her husband. Unless you're too noble to wear such a common thing," she challenged.
"Please. If you can be a princess, I can be a villager." He held out his left hand, allowing Ursa to deftly wind the makeshift bracelet around his wrist and knot it into place. It was quite intricate on closer look; he marveled at her ability to create it while talking. "You must have made a lot of these."
"Yes," Ursa looked away. "I used to for… my friend."
Iroh suddenly felt uneasy about this 'friend,' but the more sensible part of his mind pushed him to not be ridiculous. It was no secret that she'd loved someone else. Moreover, she was clearly at least attempting to not mention Ikem. There was no point nursing negative energy over her private feelings.
"Are you ready to keep going?" he changed the subject. "It should be an hour to Hira'a."
She sucked in a breath. "Really?"
Iroh nodded, getting to his feet. "Remember, even if we get there sooner, we'll wait until dusk to ride in so we have some cover. They would recognize you very quickly, but I'm optimistic they won't be expecting to see the crown prince without his royal attire and entourage, so you just hide your face and let me do the talking."
"I know, I know. Just make sure you don't sound like a boy king when you speak to people."
Since Ursa's father was the magistrate, it would be a straightforward affair to pose as travelers looking for shelter for the night and be directed straight to Jinzuk. No one would think twice about the magistrate taking in a young couple passing through the town at sunset who vanished the next morning; it was standard practice in the area, as Ursa had told him.
He helped her up, enjoying the sight of the grateful smile on her face. "Do you want a boost?"
"I've spent more time on ostrich horses than you," she reminded him.
"Force of habit; I was raised to be a gentleman." He swung himself into the saddle, attempting to steady the ostrich horse as it bucked and trotted under his less-than-perfect seat. "Not a word," he told Ursa, who was doing a poor job of smothering her grin as he struggled to rein in the animal. "I'd like to see you do any better on a komodo rhino."
"That's not very gentlemanly of you." She hopped on behind him with much less trouble, hands settling gingerly at his sides for balance. He told himself he was just noting it so he could have a sense of where she was behind him, not because his body was suddenly hypersensitive to her touch.
"All set?"
"Yes." He could hear the excitement in her voice. "Thank you, again. In case I forget to say it later."
They proceeded at a slow pace, Iroh figuring that it would be better to take their time on the way rather than arrive early and have to wait for dusk. He wasn't sure Ursa could handle being just minutes away from her parents' home and unable to approach; she was already practically trembling with anticipation behind him.
Not that he was paying an abnormal amount of attention to her, of course.
She was quieter in this last stretch too, only speaking up once or twice to call him out for sitting too straight or holding his head too high. They didn't run into many other travelers, seeing as Hira'a was not a particularly remarkable destination unless one had a niche interest in Avatar Roku's descendants. Soon, the road began to deteriorate into little more than a forest path, streaked with slowly lengthening evening shadows.
Finally, they crested a hill that Iroh vaguely remembered from his last time here. Ursa drew a sharp breath, her hands clenching into fists in Iroh's shirt. Hira'a was in sight, the setting sun casting the village in a golden light.
He turned to relay a final instruction to his wife, catching a glimpse of the raw emotions playing across her face. "Be still, and keep your head down."
She nodded and pulled her hood further up before wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning against him, getting into the character of a wife who was tired and slightly sick from a day on the road. Chances were it wasn't too much of an act.
When he'd first visited Hira'a, he hadn't really bothered to look around. The royal procession wasn't the most convenient for sightseeing, and he had been in a sour mood over his looming engagement anyway. His father hadn't wanted to linger either once they'd found Ursa, so all in all, they'd spent probably an hour in the village before riding out with his new bride. Aside from her family's greenhouse and the vivid memory of pig-chicken stench, he couldn't recall any distinguishing features of the place.
Now, he looked upon it and saw Ursa's childhood. In the schoolyard, children were playing hide-and-explode, and he wondered if this was where she'd played as a girl too. A group of women about Ursa's age walked by, casting him poorly-disguised glances and tittering among themselves about the handsome stranger; they might have been her friends at one point. Maybe she'd spent her evenings walking these streets after rehearsals, picking up a quick snack from the street vendors selling fresh fire flakes…likely with Ikem.
The fire flakes did smell good. He chose to focus on that over the sudden tightness in his chest.
"I'll stop to get some food and ask for directions," he told Ursa.
"Okay." She pressed her face into his back, playing up the act of a sick wife to hide her identity further. The tightness eased.
"Excuse me." He pulled up the ostrich horse in front of a stall run by a gray-haired but sturdy man, internally grateful that it had only taken one try to get the beast to stop. "Which way to the magistrate's house?"
The man's eyes flicked over Ursa behind him. "Young couple seeking shelter?"
"Pretty much," Iroh attempted to match his more casual manner of speaking. "She doesn't handle travel well, and I've heard strange stories about these woods."
"Wouldn't be the first." The man hawked and spat. "You'll find Magistrate Jinzuk if you keep going down that way and take a right at the town square. It's the house with the greenhouse in the back. I'm sure he'll be happy to have you. He and his wife have been lonely since their daughter left."
Ursa stiffened. Iroh scrambled for a normal response. "Flew the nest, did she?"
"Got snatched out of it, from what I heard." He shook his head. "Ah, that's hardly my business to be running my mouth about. I wouldn't ask them about it either. No need to upset kind folks."
"Right, thanks. And how much to buy what you're selling?"
"My fare's free to travelers, so long as you tell everyone back home that Lonnie in Hira'a gave you the best fire flakes of your life." He scooped a generous helping into a pouch and stood to hand it to Iroh, who took it with a smile.
"Will do, Lonnie."
Since fire flakes were definitionally street food, Iroh hadn't tried them often, but these were better than any he'd eaten before. They were crispy and light, with a hint of sweet sausage flavor that added an extra depth to the spice. Maybe he could coax the kitchen staff into preparing these just as an informal treat for the younger royals. He made it a point to tie the pouch to his belt once he'd eaten a handful; Ursa would appreciate them far more.
"Am I going the right way?" he whispered once he reached what he thought was the town square and turned as instructed.
She hummed in confirmation. Although Lonnie was out of sight now, she was still tense, no doubt thinking about what he'd said of her parents. Guilt rolled through Iroh.
The familiar greenhouse was hard to spot in the evening light, but Iroh recognized the unique carving in her house's gateway. It looked like an old spirit, which he hadn't wanted to ask about in front of his father during his first visit, but it had piqued his curiosity nonetheless.
Ursa hardly waited for them to come to a stop before sliding off the ostrich horse and opening the gate, her trembling fingers losing their hold on the simple latch a few times before she finally undid it. Iroh dismounted and kept a hold on the ostrich horse, hanging back to let her have her small reunion with her parents. She ran ahead, up the wooden porch steps, to the front door, knocking with small, rapid taps signaling her urgency.
The door opened. Iroh caught a glimpse of the magistrate's tired face in the porchlight, freezing as he laid eyes on his daughter for the first time in months.
"Daddy, please don't freak out." Ursa's voice was low as she explained the circumstances, gesturing over her shoulder at Iroh. Her father received a second great shock as he looked towards the gate and saw the crown prince standing there. Iroh awkwardly raised his hand in greeting, not sure what else to do.
Jinzuk seemed to come out of his stupor after a moment and whispered something to Ursa. She turned and relayed, "He says to tie the ostrich horse to the gateway and come inside at once. He'll take it around back later."
Iroh did as he was told, hoping the knot he created wasn't too tight or too loose, before following Ursa into her parents' home. As soon as the door was closed, Jinzuk sank into a bow, trembling slightly. It wasn't too different from the first time Iroh had surprised him at his front door.
"Honored prince," he said in a thick voice, "I am so grateful to you for bringing my daughter back, even for a night."
"Please, rise. Don't worry about formalities tonight; I'm here unofficially, and it's an honor for a husband to visit his in-laws' home for the first time. I should be bowing to you."
Jinzuk made a strange noise, something between a cough and a laugh, as he stood. Iroh realized his eyes were swimming with tears.
"You can trust him, Dad," Ursa stepped forward and hugged her father. "It's so wonderful to be back."
His daughter's embrace seemed to dispel any lingering discomfort over Iroh's presence. Jinzuk wrapped his arms around her and wept. "Oh, my sunshine, I thought I would never see you again."
"I know," she whispered.
"When you fell ill at the wedding, I was so worried, and those palace guards didn't tell us a thing before sending us away…they just said to forget we'd ever had a daughter."
Ursa began to cry properly now as well. Shame joined the pile of emotions that had been building up inside Iroh. There was so much sorrow that had been brought to this family because of him and his father.
"Where's Mom?" Ursa asked as she pulled back.
"She's in the greenhouse. She's there most of the time, these days. Come, let's go tell her the good news." Jinzuk kissed his daughter's forehead as he wiped away her tears, the tender affection putting a lump in Iroh's throat.
Iroh was perfectly content to wait in the living room while they had their reunion, but Jinzuk turned and beckoned for him to follow. "You as well, Prince Iroh. She'll want to thank you."
Feeling a bit like a voyeur, Iroh trailed behind the father and daughter towards the greenhouse. The duo walked arm in arm, Jinzuk asking questions about how she'd been and Ursa answering lightheartedly, prompting a few laughs. She was sugarcoating her experience, Iroh noted, but it was understandable. Why burden her parents with the full knowledge of what she'd been through if she could make them believe she was thriving in her luxurious life as a princess?
Rina was sitting cross legged beneath the mighty oak tree at the center of the greenhouse, looking about ten years older than the day the Fire Lord had come knocking at her door. Ursa called out to her. Their eyes met, and all at once, the extra years melted away. Rina got to her feet, reaching out as her daughter ran forwards and all but fell into her arms.
"Mama!"
"What are you doing here?" Rina demanded, a mix of worry and surprise coloring the question. "What…" The question died off once she saw Iroh behind Jinzuk. Immediately, she untangled herself from Ursa's embrace to bow.
"Please, don't," Iroh said quickly. "I'm not officially here anyway."
"Iroh brought me here for a secret visit," Ursa explained. "We have to go in the morning, but we can stay for the night."
Rina reluctantly straightened up, casting Iroh a poorly-disguised look of concern. "I wish I'd known you were coming," she said to Ursa. "I hardly have enough food for your first visit here as a married couple."
"Don't be ridiculous. You've only been making her favorites since she left," Jinzuk said with a smile. "I'm sick of cauliflower stir-fry."
"Well, maybe it's what she needs." Rina cupped Ursa's face, scrutinizing her with the intensity only a parent's gaze could hold. "You look a bit pale, darling. Are you eating enough vegetables in the palace? Without me there to cook them the way you like?"
"Mom!" Ursa protested while Iroh suppressed a smile. "I'm not a child."
"You're my child, and I know how you are." Her mother's eyes swept downward over the rest of her body. "You've definitely lost weight. Is it because of how sick you got at your wedding? I knew so much rich food couldn't have been good for you."
"That was months ago. I'm fine now."
"But what happened?" Jinzuk interjected, glancing at Iroh. "No one ever told us what happened."
Mother and daughter looked at Iroh as well, leaving it up to him to judge what details to share. "Bad sea slug," Iroh said, repeating the lie that they'd been telling nobles who expressed similar concerns. "Someone got lazy in the kitchens - they were immediately fired, of course. Suffice it to say we won't be having much sea slug around the palace anymore." He hoped his wry smile was sufficiently convincing.
Ursa nodded. "Iroh and the physicians were very attentive while I was recovering. It's like it never happened." She spun around for emphasis, grinning widely. "Can I help with dinner, Mom? I'm starving."
"No, no, you sit and rest. You've come a long way."
"They arrived on an ostrich horse," Jinzuk told her.
"An ostrich horse!" Rina looked aghast. "You both must be exhausted. Here - put your things down in Ursa's room. Sunshine, show Prince Iroh while I start cooking. Your father will find extra bedding."
Once they had split off from her parents, Iroh removed the pouch of fire flakes from his belt and handed it to Ursa. "You said you're starving."
Her eyes lit up. "Lonnie is arrogant, and overpriced, but he is the best," she explained as she took a handful of flakes into her mouth, sighing happily.
"We're lucky he doesn't charge 'travelers', then."
She laughed. It sounded different here, in her home. She was almost completely at ease, moving less like a princess and more like…herself. The girl she'd been before the marriage.
"Here's my room," Ursa said, opening the door. "It's not much compared to the palace, of course."
It was maybe a quarter of the size of Iroh's study, with a modest cot pushed up against the wall. The small window with a view of the backyard and greenhouse boasted a few choice plants on the sill that had clearly been tended by someone in their owner's absence. Posters of old performances by the Hira'a Acting Troupe decorated the walls. A wardrobe stood in the corner that Ursa immediately opened.
"My old things are all here," she noted with a shaky voice.
Of course her parents wouldn't have gotten rid of anything. Iroh's mother's belongings were still gathering dust in the Fire Lady's chamber after over a decade, waiting for someone to be brave enough to either repurpose or get rid of them. With Ursa still alive, why would her family dispose of the mementos they had? He stepped behind her, curiously looking over the assortment of clothes and trinkets that had characterized her old life. She hadn't brought anything with her to the palace, seeing as everything she could possibly need was easily provided to her as a princess. The notion that she might want something from home hadn't even occurred to him at the time.
"Your room is very nicely decorated." He found he really meant the compliment as he looked back over the swath of posters. "Are these all shows you've been in?"
She nodded, and Iroh pretended not to notice that she was wiping her eyes as she turned to answer. "Yes. I just did stage help or small roles for most of them, but I was involved with pretty much every show for the past few years."
"Which one was your favorite?"
"Love Amongst the Dragons," she said without hesitation, pointing. The show's poster, depicting a romantic drama of spirits and dragons, occupied the place of honor right by her cot. "It was always my favorite, even as a girl. I was so excited when the troupe announced we would be performing it."
Iroh smiled, enjoying the passion in her voice. "Which role did you play?"
"I was cast as the Dragon Empress." The light left her eyes as she suddenly glanced at the floor. "I- I didn't get to perform."
He didn't have to ask what had happened. It was obvious in the way she pulled away from him, looking back at the wardrobe.
I'm sorry.
The words were on the tip of his tongue, for all the nothing they would do for her now. He swallowed them down, leaving himself with the uncanny, empty sensation of helplessness. That wasn't something future Fire Lords were meant to feel.
"Ursa?" Jinzuk appeared in the doorway, his arms holding an assortment of blankets. "Do you think these will do?"
"Yes, thanks Dad."
Ursa brushed past Iroh to take the bedding from her father. Jinzuk glanced at Iroh warily before addressing him, "Your ostrich horse is in the back now, with some feed. You should be able to keep an eye on him from the window."
"Thank you," Iroh said sincerely. "I'm not the best with that animal, unfortunately."
A small smile lifted Ursa's face at his attempt at self-deprecation, but she didn't jump in to make fun of his poor attempts at riding like he'd hoped.
"Few are on their first try." Jinzuk, at least, seemed to warm up to him. "Dinner will be ready soon. Your mother's cooking in a fervor."
"I should go help," Ursa said.
"Nonsense. You'll only get in the way at the rate she's going. At least wash up and change out of your travel clothes," he advised. "Prince Iroh, I'm not sure I have any clothing that would fit you."
"That's all right." Iroh patted his travel pack. "I came prepared. I'd appreciate it if you could direct me to where I can wash up, though."
Jinzuk beckoned for him to follow. With one last glance at Ursa's downcast eyes, he left.
Reuniting her with her parents was supposed to bring her joy. But now, Iroh was starting to think that all he'd done was reopen a painful wound…and remind her that it was he and his father who had inflicted it in the first place.
A/N: Anyone watched the live action ATLA on Netflix? I watched the first episode and honestly feeling kind of disappointed…like why'd they ax all the fun parts of everyone's personalities just to make it "adult" or whatever? Iroh seems pretty solid so far, but I need him to start being more of the goofy uncle or it's just not the Iroh we know and love. I'll keep watching, though, it's definitely making an effort.
~Bobbi