Avatar - Standing on Air
One day, I will learn how to enter a fandom without writing introspective pieces. I will. I will.
Iroh, being the guardian of an angry teenager who isn't cynical enough sucks.
Spoilers for the last few episodes, especially Zuko Alone.
Iroh couldn't deny that it was easier to travel without Zuko. One old man wandering on his own in war-torn Earth Country wasn't too memorable, but teenagers that exuded righteous anger tended to be recalled, if only because they posed threats. It was physically easier to travel without Zuko.
But the worry canceled out all the advantages.
He shouldn't have been worrying. Not that he had been surprised when Zuko finally chose to travel on his own--he'd been expecting that since they lost all legitimacy to their hunt for the Avatar, because Zuko was one of those children cursed to learn by his mistakes and his alone, and not the failures or wisdom of others. And Zuko knew full well that Iroh didn't need an escort through this land. It wasn't that he shouldn't have been worrying for those reasons.
He shouldn't have been worrying about Zuko because Zuko should never have been in this kind of danger. His nephew should have been at home in the palace, training in preparation for joining the war, learning to navigate the politics as well as the firebending and the battle tactics. He should have been discussing his preferences for his future wife with his mother, and dating some girl in secret, should have been assuming that no one else in the palace had ever been a teenager and wouldn't understand. He should have been growing from a boy to a man at the proper pace, not thrown in charge of a small ship at fourteen and sent on a fool's errand.
. . . He never should have been allowed into that room, not when he was still too young to support his idealism. His brother should never have been given the opportunity to clear the path to the throne for his daughter.
. . . Ozai should never have had the throne. Iroh should have been Fire Lord, and his son should have been acting as regent and learning the nature of Fire Nation's expanding domain, feeling out which councilors he could trust and which he should quietly have removed when he took the throne. Luten should have been making allies and taking note of enemies, becoming respected among the troops and generals, all under the guise of taking responsibility for the tasks Iroh brushed off and claimed he was too old to want to deal with.
Luten should have been alive.
Entire worlds could be built from what ought to have been, and a man could live in them up to the day they collapsed and left him standing on air. Iroh couldn't afford that.
After all, while he hadn't really expected--hoped, yes, but not expected--Zuko to give up his goal even if he had nothing to gain by it, and while he was glad that his nephew still took pride in who he was and who he was meant to be, when Zuko announced his name and presence in the middle of Fire Nation-occupied territory, it made it a little difficult to convince the people who'd heard it that it would be more trouble to them if they attracted the Fire army's attention by reporting the incident rather than just remaining quiet.
Iroh managed, of course. He had charm.
And as for the Earth Country militia that had also overheard, well. Iroh was also a firebender, and old enough to know when not to be merciful.
I have faith in the man you will become.
Iroh, being the guardian of an angry teenager who isn't cynical enough sucks.
Spoilers for the last few episodes, especially Zuko Alone.
Iroh couldn't deny that it was easier to travel without Zuko. One old man wandering on his own in war-torn Earth Country wasn't too memorable, but teenagers that exuded righteous anger tended to be recalled, if only because they posed threats. It was physically easier to travel without Zuko.
But the worry canceled out all the advantages.
He shouldn't have been worrying. Not that he had been surprised when Zuko finally chose to travel on his own--he'd been expecting that since they lost all legitimacy to their hunt for the Avatar, because Zuko was one of those children cursed to learn by his mistakes and his alone, and not the failures or wisdom of others. And Zuko knew full well that Iroh didn't need an escort through this land. It wasn't that he shouldn't have been worrying for those reasons.
He shouldn't have been worrying about Zuko because Zuko should never have been in this kind of danger. His nephew should have been at home in the palace, training in preparation for joining the war, learning to navigate the politics as well as the firebending and the battle tactics. He should have been discussing his preferences for his future wife with his mother, and dating some girl in secret, should have been assuming that no one else in the palace had ever been a teenager and wouldn't understand. He should have been growing from a boy to a man at the proper pace, not thrown in charge of a small ship at fourteen and sent on a fool's errand.
. . . He never should have been allowed into that room, not when he was still too young to support his idealism. His brother should never have been given the opportunity to clear the path to the throne for his daughter.
. . . Ozai should never have had the throne. Iroh should have been Fire Lord, and his son should have been acting as regent and learning the nature of Fire Nation's expanding domain, feeling out which councilors he could trust and which he should quietly have removed when he took the throne. Luten should have been making allies and taking note of enemies, becoming respected among the troops and generals, all under the guise of taking responsibility for the tasks Iroh brushed off and claimed he was too old to want to deal with.
Luten should have been alive.
Entire worlds could be built from what ought to have been, and a man could live in them up to the day they collapsed and left him standing on air. Iroh couldn't afford that.
After all, while he hadn't really expected--hoped, yes, but not expected--Zuko to give up his goal even if he had nothing to gain by it, and while he was glad that his nephew still took pride in who he was and who he was meant to be, when Zuko announced his name and presence in the middle of Fire Nation-occupied territory, it made it a little difficult to convince the people who'd heard it that it would be more trouble to them if they attracted the Fire army's attention by reporting the incident rather than just remaining quiet.
Iroh managed, of course. He had charm.
And as for the Earth Country militia that had also overheard, well. Iroh was also a firebender, and old enough to know when not to be merciful.
I have faith in the man you will become.