Chapter Text
Aang wrinkled his nose in disgust every time he heard the title bandied about.
Dragon Slayer.
“Did you hear about his voyage with Lord Zuko to slay the last dragons?”
“I bet they got their scars from the dragon fire.”
“Imagine being able to kill a whole dragon by yourself!”
These words, always whispered and never spoken, stabbed at Aang as though they had been screamed in accusational tones. He wanted to stand and shout that it wasn’t true, it would never be true. He’d never kill an animal arbitrarily, especially not an original bender! Hot indignation gnawed at his mind as he thought of the tales springing up around himself and the new Firelord.
They had already been an iconic duo, even before Sozin’s Comet had struck. The Fire Prince and the Avatar, longtime foes, whose battles were notoriously spectacular, had been rumored to have struck an uneasy alliance after a messy eclipse. Then Zuko had bested his sister Azula in an Agni Kai, the prodigal defeating the prodigy, and Aang had taken the bending of the mightiest bender on the planet. Stories had run rampant: Zuko had consumed the entire Caldera City with his masterful lightning, Aang had bent whole mountains at the Firelord, and similar exaggerations. Katara, Sokka, Suki, and Toph had not been left out of the wild conversation, but most people seemed to think that Aang and Zuko were by far the protagonists of recent world events.
And that was before the rumor started that they had found a dragon. Aang felt the same twinge of frustration every time he thought about it. How could such a rumor possibly start? Surely there was no way anyone had spotted them chatting with the Sun Warriors. Nobody was even talking about the Sun Warriors; they were still forgotten by most. Aang glared around at the crowded tables nearby, and saw several sets of eyes look away from his solitary corner hurriedly.
He gave a derisive snort as his anger mounted. What right did any of them have to tell a story that wasn’t their own? They left Katara out of nearly every rendition. Sure, Zuko won his Agni Kai for the throne with legendary coolness, but Katara had been the one to actually capture Azula and heal the stricken prince. That was more impressive to Aang. Katara didn’t have some celestial power boost to help her! Why did she get none of the credit?
In his righteous fury on her behalf, Aang failed to notice the tea server’s heavy step approaching behind him. He gave a small jump of surprise as a rich voice stabbed through the dense haze of his thoughts.
“What brings the most important man in the Earth Kingdom to my humble tea shop?”
Aang fumbled for words.
“Oh, uh, U-u-uncle Iroh! I didn’t know you held the-- carried the tea on-- yourself”, he finished weakly.
Iroh released a hefty chuckle, as though he’d been saving it for a moment that needed some laughter to lighten the mood.
“I usually don’t! But I can’t afford to pay my servers enough to wait on the Avatar when he’s angry!” He laughed again. “What weighs your brow so low this time?”
Aang leaned back in his chair, unable to keep himself from grinning a little at Iroh’s unflappable good humor as the older man seated himself on the other side of the small table.
“There’s just a lot going on right now.” Aang frowned. “I thought life would become a lot simpler once there wasn’t a big war in the way. But it seems like it’s only gotten more complicated.”
Iroh sighed.
“You know, I was thinking the same thing myself.”
“You were?”
“Yes! I thought I would come back to the Jasmine Dragon and finally retire. I’ve been waiting many years for a chance to really relax. But Ba Sing Se needs the White Lotus, and the White Lotus needs me. Even though I’ve invaded this city twice, I really care about it and so I must work to keep order. The Earth King doesn’t have the Dai Li to help him anymore.”
Aang nodded in agreement.
“Now that I think about it, everyone has more things to do except for Toph. She just wanders around the city waiting for us to leave.”
Iroh’s face crinkled into a knowing smile as the Avatar continued in a more inquisitive tone.
“Huh. What actually happened to the Dai Li?”
He knew that when Azula had departed Ba Sing Se, Long Feng’s imprisonment had left a power vacuum. Until Fire Nation generals took charge of the city, the secret police organization had made their decisions by popular vote, though their highest ranking members had all gone with the Fire Nation princess when she’d returned home. He hadn’t been briefed on anything more than that, and it had suddenly occurred to him that he should know what they were up to.
Iroh’s grin vanished, but he kept his lighthearted tone.
“I don’t know what happened to them, after you knocked out Azula’s bodyguards of course.” He paused. “Perhaps that will be what worries you tomorrow, but I do not think it is what worries you today. What brought you so down today before you came to my shop?”
Aang made a mental note to ask King Kuei about it, but he really wasn’t in the mood to talk to the Earth King today.
“Oh, that. Well, it’s a lot of things. People don’t really understand what the Avatar is for. Sometimes even I think I don’t know. But Katara doesn’t know either, and so she’s not very happy with me.”
“I thought this might have something to do with your waterbender friend,” Iroh said conspiratorially. “I hope you don’t regret your choice of love over power. Every time I’ve chosen power, it has only caused pain for myself and for others. Whenever I’ve chosen love, sometimes it causes a small struggle, but in the end it has been better for me and for the people I love.”
“I don’t regret it. I could never regret it!” Aang was adamant. “After Ozai- wait, I never told you the story, did I?”
“You told me about fighting my brother, but I don’t think that’s what you’re talking about now, is it?”
“No, I’m talking about the catacombs, when we fought Azula. Katara told me you helped us escape after Azula shot me?”
“Ah, yes. It was the only time I ever fought my nephew.”
Iroh looked solemn for a moment, as though remembering just how recently he and Zuko had come to blows, fiery blows that were probably more painful for him to give than to take, blows that had been exchanged two hundred feet below where they sat over their untouched lukewarm tea…
“But it’s true,” he continued, still with a slight frown, “I never heard from you what happened before I came to the cavern.”
“Right. Well, the Dai Li separated us and surrounded us, and there was no way we could win. So I made an earth tent and I gave up Katara, to go into the Avatar State. I think that’s why it was so easy to control my power after Ozai pushed me into that rock. I was going to say that choosing Katara worked out in the end, but I guess it didn’t really. I gave her up to get that power, didn’t I?”
Iroh nodded, and took a moment to formulate his words.
“I think that you knew the difference between what you needed and what the world needed. You needed to keep your personal connection, but the world needed you and Katara to escape from Azula. I’m no Avatar, but I think you made a wise choice both times, with the Guru and in the cave.”
“But now Katara has the same sort of idea that Guru Pathik had. Our first few days were great, but now she’s worried I shouldn’t be so attached. She thinks if there were a choice and she were in danger, I’d save her instead of the world!”
“Would you?”
Aang’s eyes dropped to the floor.
“That’s the same thing Katara asked me. I… I couldn’t tell her no, so I said nothing. But really, I would save her without even thinking about it.”
Iroh’s expression softened.
“I don’t think you’ll need to choose between the world and the one you love. Times are changing, and the world is a kinder place than it used to be. I think it is worth it for you to enjoy your young love.” He caught Aang’s gaze and looked at him knowingly. “The dangers of yesterday have kept you from each other for long enough.”
Aang smiled for the first time in a day. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, young Avatar!” Iroh responded warmly as Aang swallowed his cool tea and stood up. “A few weeks of peaceful life here in the city will work wonders for you and for her.”
“I’ll go and tell her. Or maybe show her! We’ll go out near the Outer Wall to those rolling hills, or maybe to the markets in the Middle Ring, and nothing bad will happen. You’re right, Iroh. It’s a good time for love when there’s peace!”
Aang airbent his glider into his hand and snapped it open with enthusiasm. He didn’t see Iroh wave after him as he lept headfirst from the nearest window, letting the currents rise beneath him as the afternoon sun filled his body with energizing warmth. His other concerns, the rumors, were blissfully forgotten.
One stop at the palace, he thought. Just to ask King Kuei about the Dai Li, and then I’ll find Katara.