All three of us dress in the matching clothes Iroh picked out yesterday. They compliment each other, a sort of uniform for Iroh's new shop, the Jasmine Dragon. A dark green tunic, with golden accents. Underneath, Iroh's is olive green, Zuko's is brown, and mine is a deep shade of orange.
From the moment we unlock and open the grand doors at the front of the shop, we are busy. There are two women that are holding the door open, acting as greeters and directing people toward the many tables set out.
The room is well lit and cozy, despite its grand size. I wonder how Iroh got everything set up so quickly, but I imagine he had always had a vision for his tea shop in the back of his mind. My favorite feature of the seating area is the large rug with two dragons spread out. The gold and green accent the other colors of the shop well, but I know why Iroh picked dragons.
No one would ever guess that the Great Dragon of the West, the person who breached the walls of Ba Sing Se, would have the most popular tea shop in all of Ba Sing Se.
The only downside to the shop is that the people of the Lower Ring can no longer find a respite from their dreary life. I wonder if Iroh thinks about this at all. Granted, Iroh only cares about making tea, not about the fancy pot you put it in. His love for the teapot I made for him shows that.
I am in a team of three that are constantly baking cookies in the back. One of the bakers has helped design different cookie types, not just the lemon ones I used to make at Pao's. There is a sugar cookie, and an orange and vanilla cookie, and some of them have a thin layer of icing on them.
Because of the constant baking, the back gets too hot for me, and I have to come up to the front and join Iroh and Zuko, basking in the warm glow of the shop. Zuko sees me and smiles, and I smile back at him. There is a warm giddiness inside me, which is likely a mix of the shop being busy and Zuko's gaze.
Once I have joined the two of them, Iroh starts speaking with a big smile on his face. "Who thought when we came to this city as refugees, that I'd end up owning my own tea shop? Follow your passion, Zuko, and life will reward you."
Zuko is also smiling at Iroh, and at the people entering the building, and at everything around him. He's a different person now. "Congratulations, Uncle," Zuko says.
"You've earned it!" I say, patting him on the shoulder.
I'm glad Iroh found his passion, after all the loss and grief he faced. I'm glad I've returned to painting. I wonder if Zuko will find a passion of his own, not just live off Iroh and I's dreams.
"I am very thankful," Iroh continues.
"You deserve it. The Jasmine Dragon will be the best tea shop in the city," Zuko says.
"No, I'm thankful because you decided to share this special day with me. Both of you. It means more than you know."
Zuko pulls Iroh into a hug, and he grabs me on the other side of Iroh to join in too. Iroh relaxes into us, happy.
Zuko says, "Now, let's make these people some tea!" He walks into the back to start brewing.
"Yes, let's make some tea!" Iroh says, running after him.
Throughout the whole day, I can't stop smiling, even when it is batch after batch going into the oven, and coming out, and cooling, and touching a hot pan with the side of my arm, burning me. However, I fall into a nice groove of mixing and rolling the dough between my hands and greasing pans and adding wood to the fires that keep the oven hot. It's a good day.
I can hear the conversation between Iroh and Zuko, demanding tea and cookies. Sometimes, when either of them have a chance, Iroh and Zuko will come visit me in the back. They are also swept under in the rush of the day, making tea and filling orders and talking to customers. However, it is nice that they find the time to visit me in the kitchen, though their inner heat does nothing to cool me down with the hot ovens.
Iroh makes sure I take breaks and drink plenty of water. Zuko brings me conversation and shares some of the wild things customers have said within his earshot. Sometimes, he will put a warm comforting hand on my back. He seems genuinely happy, and I tell him this.
He smiles at me and puts a comforting arm on my shoulder. "I'm trying."
"I can tell. You're doing a good job." He squeezes my shoulder and disappears through the curtain separating the front of the shop from the back.
We stop for a late lunch/early dinner. Iroh makes sure we get enough to eat. It's another noodle soup, with thick noodles and vegetables and meat floating around. It's delicious. I had noticed Iroh putting something on the stove earlier, but did not pay much attention toward it.
Every worker in the building gets some when they find the chance. The servers, the greeters, and the dishwasher. They all enjoy it greatly. Some sit at the same table with us, and everyone feels comfortable, almost like a family.
Eventually, we slow down as the sun has set. People have left to have their own dinner and to spread the novelty of the Jasmine Dragon with all their friends. Most of the servers have left, and the other bakers have as well. The ovens have been turned off, but the air in the back is still thick with heat.
I move out into the front of the shop and sit down in one of the chairs near the giant rug. Iroh and Zuko are talking while they finish cleaning up for the night. There is no one else in the shop, it feels like. Zuko is sweeping and Iroh is tidying the place mats at the tables to make sure they're ready for the morning.
Even though we are technically closed, the doors are still open to let the cool spring air in. A man in a light green shirt comes in and stops at Iroh. He says, "A message from the Royal Palace." He bows his head and hands a rolled scroll over to Iroh, who accepts it. The man backs away while Iroh reads.
"I - I can't believe it!" Iroh is shocked, but smiling.
"What is it, Uncle?" Zuko asks, and I come up behind Iroh to read over his shoulder.
"Great news! We've been invited to serve tea to the Earth King!" Iroh runs into the back of the shop, and Zuko smiles, resuming his sweeping.
I grab the broom from Zuko, saying, "None of this feels real."
"Like a dream," Zuko says, nodding at me.
"And I don't want to wake up." Especially because I don't know when I would be waking up. A hundred years ago? Or two months ago, on Zuko's ship? Or in ten years from now, wherever that leaves me?
It seems like none of us have stopped smiling since the day started. I lean against the broom, looking outside. Even without the stars, the night is still beautiful. It is quiet, and cool, and perfect. I close my eyes.
This is a wonderful dream, and I don't want to wake up.
The next day, Iroh wakes Zuko and I up incredibly early to head to the Jasmine Dragon to finish preparations for the Earth King. It doesn't seem like he went to sleep but doesn't look exhausted at all. He is filled with energy because of the invitation, and it spreads from him to me to Zuko.
"Zia," Iroh says, spooning some leftover jook into a bowl for breakfast. The sun hasn't fully risen yet, and the sky is smudged with yellow and orange. "Wear that pretty dress today!" He turns his eyes to Zuko, who is definitely more awake than I am, probably because the sun is starting to come up. "Zuko, wear the brown one!"
Iroh rushes back into his room to change, and I stand and stretch, having finished my jook. Today is going to be a long day, but it sounds exciting. I've never met royalty before. Well, excluding Iroh and Zuko.
Ba Sing Se is different than I ever expected, even from hearing about it from the other monks and books. It isn't as beautiful as the iced capital of the North Pole, Agna Qel'a, but it is definitely different. I know why the other Air Nomads avoided it, but it is a place to hide. A place to be someone else.
I change into the dress Iroh mentioned earlier. It is longer than my tunics and has a lot of buttons and loops to secure it into place. The sleeves are huge, and I could hide a full meal in them. However, there are splits on the side that allow me more freedom of movement that the other dress lacked. My favorite part is the golden embroidery along the edges that stand out amongst the green. The fabric is light enough that I don't overheat, but there is still quite a lot of it.
I put my hair back in a low bun, using the bit of orange cloth to tie it off. I spin around, and the skirt twirls with me. I'm excited to meet the king, and to maybe share the issues of the Lower Ring that he isn't aware of.
Stepping out into the main room, I see Zuko already waiting for us. He is wearing two different shades of brown, and his tunic has its own gold embroidery. He doesn't look uncomfortable. I wonder what the royal Fire Nation clothes looked like. Were they as fancy as this? No, probably more so.
Zuko spots me standing in my doorway and smiles at me, waving me over to sit next to him.
"You look nice," I say, trying to fill the air. The sun is getting higher in the air, and I can hear Iroh rummaging around in his room.
"You look beautiful."
I blush, turning away from him. "Thank you." Zuko puts his hand on my leg and squeezes, sensing my anxiety.
"It's often very difficult to get an appointment with the King," Zuko says, looking out the window. "I wonder who boasted about Uncle's tea to him to warrant such a quick appointment."
"There were a lot of people at the shop yesterday. Any one of them could have been close to the King, right?"
Zuko nods, but he seems lost in thought. He adds, "The Earth King never leaves his palace. So we'll be going there."
I nod, and suddenly Iroh bursts from his room. His outfit is somehow the most extravagant of the three of us. He is wearing a bright green tunic, with a dark green belt and accents, which match to the green and gold robe he wears over that. His underclothes are white with additional gold accents. He has groomed his hair and beard. Iroh holds himself high and royally.
"You look great!" I say, going up to Iroh and holding him at arm's length.
"I always had an eye for fashion," Iroh laughs, nodding toward the outfits he picked out for Zuko and I. "We all look great! Come, we need to get to the Jasmine Dragon and that is where the carriage will pick us up!"
Ever since moving to the Upper Ring, both Zuko and I have stopped carrying out weapons with us wherever we go. However, when I travel to the other rings, I still carry my bo with me. We leave both our weapons in our apartment, excited for the day ahead of us.
I hope the Earth King likes my lemon cookies!