A/N: We have new reviewers and new people who have joined the readership! My sincerest, heartfelt thanks to bozenz7, Guest, Sharpe, AsahixMe, Black Dragon Master, Lightbrightfury, IrishDreamer4, Raider, FireLordAziz, devilfiredog18, and Aquamirra for pushing this story over the 500-review mark! And thank you to FireLordAziz and BurntMacNCheese for subscribing/favouriting! It's amazing to know that even 48 chapters in, this story can still draw in new readers :D
Now, I know I themed this chapter 'tea', but I had no idea just how much of it would be spilled. The conversation just kept going and going, resulting in this whopper of a moment. Please enjoy the tea!
Time check: Still winter (albeit late winter), 177 AG (2 years and 6 months post-Book 4). Do note that everything from Chapter 39 until now has been taking place within a one-month timespan in-story, though it's been more than that in real life.
49. I reach for my tea and slowly drink in
Tea starts as a very quiet affair.
He and Bolin sit across from Natsumi and Sulanna, with a spread of scones, sandwiches, and fruit laid out on the table between them. A pot of jasmine tea is heated until it steams by Sulanna's fire and poured out into four cups with great poise by Natsumi.
It's so different from when he was Wu's bodyguard. For one, Wu had been in hiding and wasn't actually mixing with the upper echelons of Earth Kingdom society while under his protection; and secondly, as Wu's employee, he hadn't actually sat with the exiled Earth King at meals and meetings with other politicians. Here, he himself is part of the nobility at the table — albeit in a casual, downscaled setting with no servants waiting on them, so he can pretend they're just four normal people.
Perhaps predictably, it's Sulanna who gets the conversation going. "So, Mako," she says lightly, "are we what you expected?"
With her friendly, breezy manner, isn't as loaded a question as it might have been. He actually manages a wry smile as he responds, "Honestly, no." Then he exhales. "I really didn't know what I was gonna find when I found Mom's family, but I definitely wasn't expecting nobility. It's…a little unbelievable."
"Naoki must truly have reinvented herself as a Republic City native, if you find it that hard to believe." Again, Natsumi's lightly amused tone helps to avoid her statement sounding like a condemnation.
"Well, I guess she did." Though, in retrospect, if he really thinks about it, he does recall aspects of his mother that were rather atypical for a middle-class citizen. She'd always spoken with a kind of precise inflection that he never heard anyone else use, even other Fire Nation natives — and there was something about the way she'd carried herself that used to draw people's attention, almost subconsciously (he bleakly wonders whether that's why the Agni Kai noticed them that night). "But that's not the main reason why it's hard to believe."
"Then?" questions Natsumi.
"Mako and I grew up on the streets," Bolin answers between mouthfuls of a tuna sandwich. "After our parents died, we…didn't really have anywhere to go."
Natsumi looks appalled. "On the streets?"
"Yep. We had more than our fair share of sleeping on trash heaps and scrounging for food."
He's immensely thankful that Bolin hasn't mentioned anything about their more illicit activities in those days. He's not sure how well that would be received by their present company.
As it is, even the sanitised version makes Sulanna shudder. "That sounds awful."
Natsumi is stricken. "I am so sorry," she says fervently. "If I'd only known —"
"Nah, don't worry about it," Bolin assures her. "It's all in the past. And it wasn't all bad — at least we had each other. Mako was really good at keeping us safe."
He shifts uncomfortably under Natsumi's keen gaze. Unlike Bolin, he still feels the sting of growing up destitute. He'd borne the brunt of ensuring their survival in those days; even now, as a police detective, he is surrounded by reminders of that life. He deals with triads and their operations, same as he did as a teenager (though on the right side of the law this time); walks on streets where he'd once slept; and is fully aware of the darker aspects of city life, especially for the lower classes.
He doesn't blame Bolin for being blasé, though — is actually glad for it. He'd deliberately shielded his younger brother from much of the harsher realities of their life, taking them all on himself instead. The result is that, while Bolin is able to look back on their childhood with some sense of nostalgia through rose-coloured glasses, he cannot recall those days without vividly remembering their sheer struggle to live.
"That must have been incredibly hard," Natsumi says sympathetically.
He shrugs. "We managed somehow. Bolin's right, though — it's in the past." And he doesn't want to think about it anymore.
Sulanna takes the hint. "Things are better for you now, I hope?"
Inwardly sighing with relief, he nods. "Much. We both have stable jobs that make a decent living."
"Oh, what jobs?" Sulanna seems genuinely interested, although he's sure she's never had to hold a job herself.
"Mako's a sergeant in the Republic City Police," Bolin says proudly. "Second-in-command of the Triad Squad, right?"
"That's Juno," he corrects. "But yes, I'm on the Triad Squad — which means I handle crimes and cases involving the triad gangs in the city."
"Sounds exciting," quips Sulanna. "What about you, Bolin?"
"I'm with Varrick Global Industries. I actually work very closely with Mr. Varrick himself. I oversee a lot of our trade deals and business relationships."
He blinks, mildly impressed. He's never heard Bolin's 'business voice' before.
"Yes, I know Varrick." Natsumi's lip quirks as she sips her tea. "His ships transport the bulk of Shuhon's textile exports. I've heard he's in Caldera; I expect he'll be making a trip out here to discuss the contract for the next shipment."
Bolin coughs. "Ah, actually — he sort of asked me to handle that." He grins sheepishly. "He knew I was coming out here with Iroh, and he's still in the middle of negotiations with Fire Lord Izumi about establishing a branch company in Caldera…so he gave me the contract and told me to talk to you about it. We can discuss it tomorrow."
Natsumi raises an eyebrow. "Did he somehow know beforehand that we would turn out to be related?"
Bolin pauses to consider that. "You know, I don't think so. But once he finds out, I wouldn't be surprised if he makes me the contact person for dealings with Shuhon."
Natsumi chuckles. "Well, at least I'll be dealing with family. That's always nice — provided business goes pleasantly."
"We'll make it pleasant," Bolin declares. "Clan Keohso and Varrick Global will be fantastic business partners, both profitable and great company for each other." He offers his teacup to Natsumi, who gamely clinks her china against his.
"Yes, very impressive occupations, both of you." Sulanna's expression turns impish. "Now, what about personal lives? Mako, you're dating Avatar Korra, aren't you?"
"Sulanna," Natsumi admonishes.
"Oh, come, Mother. They're family — I'm allowed. Besides, don't deny that you're interested too."
He laughs in spite of himself; he's really starting to warm to his cousin. "Yes, I am."
"Very nice, I approve," Sulanna compliments jovially. "How long has it been?"
He and Bolin exchange knowing grins. "Well, that's a complicated question," he confesses. "About seven months, for now — but we've been friends for years, and we had a prior relationship before."
"Well, this sounds interesting." Sulanna glances at her mother. "But perhaps not for teatime conversation. Bolin, any special lady — or gentleman — in your life?"
"Opal Beifong." Bolin sighs dreamily.
"Beifong?" Natsumi repeats with interest. "Any relation to Suyin Beifong of Zaofu?"
"Her daughter," Bolin confirms.
"Well, how about that." Natsumi seems to be in good cheer. "I wasn't aware Suyin had a daughter. The last time I had a chance to meet her, she only had two sons."
"She has five children altogether," Bolin informs her. "Opal's the middle child; there are two other brothers after her."
Natsumi smiles fondly. "So Suyin did get her big family after all. I'm glad."
"You know Suyin?" he asks.
"She spent some time on Shuhon during her travelling years. We got along well, but I only met her twice after that. It's been…twenty years, at least, since I last saw her."
Connections, connections everywhere, he muses.
"Well," says Natsumi, "It's heartening to hear that despite your difficult childhood, you've both built good lives for yourself." She sobers then, her eyes turning sad. "Was Naoki happy?"
The merry lightheartedness fades, replaced by pensive reminiscence.
"I think so," he affirms. "We were happy, weren't we, Bo?"
"Yeah, we were," Bolin concurs wistfully. "We had that little house at the corner…"
"…in the heart of Harbourtown," he remembers. The longer he's in the Fire Nation, the more he remembers.
And so he tells them, his aunt and his cousin, about their family — and in the process, rediscovers the memories for himself. Bolin chips in occasionally with his own recollections, but he's the one who paints the picture.
Dad had operated a small grocery store (he and Bolin used to help out there after school sometimes); Mom had been a secretary at a modest business company. They'd been very firmly middle-class; they couldn't afford luxuries and had to be careful how they spent, but they'd put a down payment on a comfortable house and could give their children anything they needed. He and Mom used to rise at dawn and train firebending before school; in the evenings, Dad taught Bolin earthbending in their small yard while he'd helped Mom with dinner, which they all ate together most nights. On Sundays they used to listen to the radio in the living room, alternating between pro-bending matches featuring Dad's favourite team and the soaring concertos that Mom preferred (another hint towards her aristocratic upbringing). Through it all, he remembers feeling safe, happy, and loved. Life hadn't been perfect, but it'd been good.
When he concludes, there's a beat of silence. Natsumi and Sulanna both look enraptured. Natsumi's eyes are glistening; she sighs and discreetly wipes at them while he awkwardly sips from his teacup.
"She made the right choice," Naoki's sister muses. "I resented her initially, for turning her back on everything we knew and leaving me alone to bear our parents' expectations…but Naoki knew what she wanted, and she was willing to sacrifice for it. And she got her reward." She smiles, but it's tinged with melancholy. "She had a happy marriage, that's certain."
"Mother…" Sulanna's voice has a note of gentle exasperation.
Natsumi shakes her head and looks at her daughter with a rueful expression. "Apologies, Su."
He frowns in confusion, completely nonplussed by this exchange. Bolin ventures, "Um…?"
Sulanna heaves a dramatic sigh. "All right, let me briefly tell you about this side of the family. After your mother left the Fire Nation for good, my mother became the clan heir, and suddenly our grandparents were much more interested in whom she would marry. She picked someone from another noble clan, which satisfied them — so she married him, had me, and all was fine and dandy for about twelve years. Unfortunately, then my father decided to have an affair, so Mother sent him packing. We haven't seen him in thirteen years and we don't really care to. But sometimes Mother feels badly about the way things ended and has half a mind to reach out to him again, and I have to remind her that she doesn't need a husband to be happy." Sulanna nudges Natsumi fondly, teasing, "You have me, your wonderful daughter, and that's more than enough."
"You are incorrigible," Natsumi chastises — but her mood has lifted. Sulanna grins in satisfaction and turns back to the brothers.
"It's a holdover from growing up noble," she confides to them. "Marriages are meant for political and economical connections just as much as for personal connections. They're not usually ended so acrimoniously. I remember when Mother kicked Father out, she had a huge quarrel with Grandmother and Grandfather about it. They were fretting about the 'loss of status' and 'what will people think?'" She scoffs. "You didn't miss much, not knowing the grandparents. They could be decent at times, but in general they were overwhelmingly concerned with outdated traditions and remaining 'noble', at the cost of personal liberty and happiness."
How am I supposed to respond to that? "Ah," he mutters intelligently.
Fortunately, Bolin's natural enthusiasm redirects the discussion. "If you ever come out to Republic City, you should meet our other grandma. She loves royalty so much, she'll probably adopt you."
Sulanna's eyebrow arches. "We're not royal, though."
Bolin flaps a hand. "Close enough. She'll fawn over you way more than us anyway." He pauses. "Although…now that we're nobility too, maybe that won't be the case, eh, Mako?"
"Maybe."
"Well, from what I gathered in Garnet, Mako, it seems that you and Iroh are close," Sulanna comments casually. "Out of curiosity, has your grandma ever met Iroh? If she would be impressed by us as members of Clan Keohso, I'm sure she'd be absolutely thrilled to meet a future Fire Lord."
He groans involuntarily. Grandma Yin has, in fact, been pestering him about meeting Iroh ever since she found out that 'the handsome general' at his birthday party was also the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. After his experiences with Wu, though, he's been deliberately avoiding bringing up Iroh to Grandma — unlike Wu, Iroh is more likely to be embarrassed by, rather than enjoy, the well-intentioned idolisation Grandma would heap on him.
Sulanna smirks, clearly picking up on some of his unspoken thoughts. "Yes, I suspect Iroh may not be too comfortable with that kind of attention," she notes. "By the way, how did you and he become friends?"
Grateful to have a topic that steers back to lighter matters, he willingly tells Sulanna how his and Iroh's friendship developed. Then he sees the opportunity to turn the question back on her.
"What about you?" he queries. "What exactly happened between you and Iroh when you met during Fire Lily Season?"
Sulanna laughs, and even Natsumi smiles in amusement. "Iroh hasn't told you?"
"I haven't gotten straight answer out of him about it," he admits. Iroh has been oddly evasive where Sulanna is concerned.
"Really now?" Sulanna says with wicked interest. "My proposition must have flustered him more than he let on, then."
He blinks. "Proposition?" he repeats.
Sulanna laughs again. "Let me start from the beginning." She clears her throat and begins theatrically, "The year is 171 AG. I'm 20 years old and in the middle of my second Fire Lily Season at the Palace. The Season is about ten days old, in full swing, when — to the surprise and utter delight of every young and unattached noblewoman — Prince Iroh unexpectedly appears in court. Naturally, almost every girl is suddenly vying for his attention — much to the disgruntlement of the young men they'd been interacting with beforehand, of course. I, however, not being of the airheaded variety, notice what most of the starstruck hopefuls do not: our dear Prince seems to be uncomfortable with overtly flirtatious attentions. And so, being the considerate lady I am, I manoeuvre myself next to Iroh and actually engage him in intelligent conversation."
Sulanna has an entertaining manner of storytelling; he can well imagine a disconcerted Iroh, out of his depth in the midst of numerous young women attempting to flirt with him — most of whom would only be as keen as they are due to his status as the Crown Prince.
"It doesn't take long for me to realise that Iroh much prefers platonic and intellectual interactions, and is not looking forward to having to fend off blatantly romantic advances from ambitious noble ladies. He seems relatively at ease with me, though, so I suggest that we feign a blossoming courtship for the duration of his visit in order to deter the lion vultures."
"Did he go for it?"
"He did," Sulanna confirms with glee. "And he subsequently enjoyed the rest of his short stay far more than he would otherwise have."
"Not to mention causing no end of gossip and rumours," Natsumi remarks as she pours herself another cup of tea. "Imagine my astonishment when word reached me that Prince Iroh was courting my daughter."
Sulanna grins wickedly. "That was part of the fun, Mother. It was ever so entertaining to hear everyone talk about how the prince had finally begun a courtship, when we both knew it was completely false. We had several good laughs over the more outlandish pieces of gossip."
So far, he isn't hearing anything that Iroh would be embarrassed to talk about. "Was that the proposition that flustered him?"
"Not at all. Iroh only spent one week at court, and was very frank about our arrangement when his mother asked about the time we were spending together. I gathered she was rather disappointed to learn that it was all an act." Sulanna takes several sips of tea. "As I clarified to Mother later, neither Iroh nor I have any romantic inclinations towards each other whatsoever."
"Mothers can hope, dear," Natsumi interjects mildly.
"That said, that one week was very pleasant, and if nothing else, it showed us both that we genuinely enjoyed each other's company," concludes Sulanna. "So, the day before Iroh left, I proposed to him — only half-jokingly — that if he failed to find a suitable woman he'd want to marry, I'd be willing to fulfil the role."
He narrowly avoids choking on a scone.
Natsumi also seems taken aback. "You said what?"
Sulanna is unfazed. "It's a perfectly valid suggestion, Mother," she points out. "Iroh and I may not be in love, but we'd get along well enough to have a reasonably happy marriage. If Iroh really can't find someone he loves — who can also be a good Fire Consort — I think he'd be much happier marrying a good friend rather than someone who is purely an heir producer."
He can't help it; he does choke slightly now, drawing a pat on the back from Bolin. Sulanna is much more frank than he'd given her credit for — which is saying something, given his encounter with her in Garnet.
"And what about your love interests?" Natsumi questions in concern.
"What about them?" Sulanna asks serenely. "I don't have any right now." She winks at him. "Hence why I reiterated my proposition to Iroh after a long discussion in Garnet."
That would be why Iroh hasn't elaborated on his relationship with Sulanna. He knows, despite the prince's difficulties with romance, that Iroh still hopes to find someone he can truly love and share a real marriage with. In that regard, Iroh's idealistic perspective on romance has been shaped by the examples in his own family: specifically, his mother's and grandfather's marriages — in both cases, Agni himself must have smiled upon the matches. Both Lady Mai and Lord Kairo had been close childhood friends of Zuko and Izumi, respectively, from respectable noble families of high status — thus, both had the cultural and political education and noble bloodline required to be a Fire Consort in good standing. Moreover, in Kairo's case, as Lady Ty Lee's son, he already had strong ties to the Royal Family and a valuable connection to the Kyoshi Warriors and the leadership of Kyoshi Island. And both marriages had been (still is, in Izumi and Kairo's case) genuine love matches as well.
With those precedents, he really can't blame Iroh for banking on whatever fortune that allowed both Zuko and Izumi to find perfect matches to also hold true for him. And although Sulanna's proposition does have merit, he also now sees why Iroh said she wasn't his type. Sulanna is poised, cultured, insightful, well-educated, and liberal-minded — but she is also very direct, frolicsome, extremely independent, and rather more cavalier about romantic relationships than Iroh is. She's a marvellous foil for Iroh's more serious, dutiful nature — but she wouldn't suit him as a life partner.
Iroh has quite a task ahead of him. Perhaps he can enlist Sulanna's help to find a noblewoman Iroh might actually like to court. He gets the feeling that she knows a lot of people, and she knows Iroh too — maybe between them, they can give Iroh's love life the boost it needs.
That's something to think about later, though. For now, he has a family tea.
A/N: Whew, that's a lot of tea. By the way, today's lyrics is from 'Tea and Sympathy' by Jars of Clay. I was also considering 'Another Pot o' Tea' by Emmylou Harris, but there wasn't an appropriate lyric with 'tea' in it.
Headcanon explanation time!
#1: When Varrick said, "They make the best red stuff there!" in S2E11: 'Night of a Thousand Stars', he was referring to Shuhon Island specifically.
#2: Sulanna has a bit of a cynical side when it comes to romance, thanks to what happened with her father and her familiarity with noble marriage arrangements. She does believe in love, but doesn't have it as a personal goal. Her aim is to make a match with someone she likes and will be content spending her life with; she doesn't necessarily have to be in love with him. The most important thing for her is that her husband respects her and also has a mindset similar to hers. Side note: she is quickly becoming my favourite of the OCs I've created for this story.
#3: Yes, Zuko and Mai's daughter married Ty Lee's son (I could not resist). I've actually been sitting on the identity of Izumi's husband for a long time now. Kairo is an interesting bit of reverse dramatic irony, because most commonly in stories, the reader is aware of more information than the characters. In this case, however, we have the unique situation of Kairo's status being known to all characters in-universe, but not to readers (as Fire Consort, he is a well-known political figure, the same way Queen Elizabeth II and her direct family are known to us). Since the story is told from Mako's perspective, there was no way to bring this up earlier without it being out of place in the narrative, because Mako wouldn't need to have it explained to him who Kairo is, nor would he have much reason to think about him. I'm probably not going to write Kairo into the story in any significant way - that would unnecessarily inflate the now-substantial cast of OCs I have here - but I've envisioned him as a nonbender with Kyoshi Warrior training and expertise with a few different types of weapons. Mai Lee is a nonbender too, so Kairo would have trained her specifically in nonbending combat, including chi-blocking (whereas Iroh received firebending training as well as combat training).
And speaking of headcanons...Black Dragon Master and devilfiredog18 have mentioned some really neat ones to me in both reviews and PMs. Mako fans, please feel free to engage with them and commence discussions (maybe we should start a forum?).
I hope you're not getting tired of the Fire Nation. One major subplot of the Fire Nation arc has been resolved, but we still have quite a number of chapters set here to go. There are still more secrets to be revealed...