The Forgotten Princess (SokkaxOC)

ii. XII

A/N; Hey guys! Sorry this took a little longer than expected (as you all know, I usually like to stick with once a week) but I was kinda getting distracted by a host of things and wanted to be sure I got it right.

Anyways, we are at that point now (I hope) so, uh, as usual hope you guys enjoy! Welcome to the Tales of Ba Sing Se :)

Iroh P.o.V.

"Are you sure? I really can't afford to lose the best tea-maker in the city on a beautiful day like this."

Iroh chuckled slightly, feeling very flattered. It was nice, he had to admit, knowing that his many long years had led to him being able to offer something worthwhile to others. He'd said it before - the key to good tea was proper aging, which he had certainly achieved by now. "You are very kind," he thanked his manager, Pao. "But I'm afraid I really do have some personal business to attend to."

"Ah... I can't say no to you, Mushi," the man smiled sadly as he nodded in acceptance. "If you really wish for the rest of the day off, I won't stop you. You can leave as soon as you finish this final order."

Smiling widely, Iroh bowed to the man in Earth Kingdom fashion - he was truly grateful to have received this time. While he greatly enjoyed making tea, today at least he had a promise to keep. He owed someone a visit, and he wanted to be certain he did it right.

Humming softly to himself, he started to brew the final order before he left - one small pot of jasmine tea, nothing complicated, so in the meantime he started to prepare a mental list of everything he would need. A basket, some incense, and maybe a new instrument... yes, that would work out quite nicely. A proper location was definitely in order as well.

Checking around him for anyone watching, he gently placed his hand on the side of the pot and poured some energy into it to accelerate the heating process. It was a trick he had learned decades ago from his father, and was one he certainly found useful - though, for obvious reasons he had to be careful with it - he was all too familiar with the city's tolerance for firebenders inside the walls.

His last... visit, to put it mildly, was certainly a testament to that.

As soon as the tea was ready, he added in the correct herbs and brought the pot out to one of the far tables with a lone girl waiting, her back facing the kitchen so Iroh couldn't see her face. She didn't seem like one of his normal customers, which was a bit odd - seeing as he had been here for weeks now and knew almost every customer - but he certainly wasn't opposed to meeting someone new.

Placing the pot of tea and two cups on a tray, he carefully lifted it and brought the tray with him, gently placing it down on the table as he smiled softly. "Here is the jasmine tea you ordered, miss," he announced cheerfully.

For seemingly no reason, the girl suddenly gasped in shock and nearly leaped out of her chair, and Iroh glanced over in surprise, not expecting such a response from her. Did I do something wrong, he wondered, before meeting her eyes - oh.

His day just got a lot more complicated.

"W-what are you doing here?" Azami whispered, her face having gone completely pale as she watched him with a horrified expression. His thoughts immediately started racing as the girl's eyes widened, as if hit by a realization. "Oh my spirits, if you're here, then... I have to-"

Gently, so as not to frighten her any further, Iroh held up one hand to stop her from panicking while he tried to calm her down, if only momentarily. "You must keep your voice down," he insisted. "I will explain everything in a moment, just let me return this apron and the tray, then we can talk." He quickly went to return the items he described, the weight of her gaze piercing his back every step of the way.