It Was in Me

grief

6. grief - and when i can't be with you dream me near / keep me in your heart and i'll appear

Aang took a deep breath as he stepped onto the balcony of Iroh's tea shop in Ba Sing Se. The air was... well, not cool - it was never cool during Earth Kingdom summers, even if it didn't get quite as hot as in the Fire Nation - but it wasn't overly warm, either. The humidity wasn't too extreme in the evening, though if anything Aang appreciated the slight gravity to the air. It was... grounding.

Fitting for the Earth Kingdom, but perhaps an odd sensation for an airbender to seek.

Still. Aang found a certain comfort in the air's heavier presence. It was there. Surrounding him, clothing him. He was there, existing and living and breathing in the moment. In the present. In the now.

Only... He wasn't.

No, Aang was in the past, as he was wont to be. Particularly on that day of all days. If he closed his eyes, the Southern Air Temple sat before him, alive and carefree and in its prime as it had been... a hundred and one years ago. If he listened, he could hear the laughter of students learning their first airbending technique from the monks. Echoes of the past. If he took a deep breath, he could smell freshly-made fruit pies, sweet and tangy like those he'd whip up with Gyatso.

Sometimes... Aang could pretend nothing had changed at all.

Of course, the truth was that everything had.

Aang sighed, opening his eyes to stare down at his wooden necklace. Engraved in the center was the symbol of his people and their element. Today was a day of celebration, he knew, but the heart didn't often lend itself to such clarity.

It was the first anniversary of the end of the Hundred Year War. The first anniversary of the Fire Nation's defeat. The first anniversary of a new, peaceful era. A cycle of cruelty had ended, and a future of harmony had begun.

Well, perhaps it wasn't quite so simple.

A ghost of a smile graced Aang's lips. How the past lingered on.

His friends were inside the Jasmine Dragon, laughing and teasing each other just as they'd done a year ago. They were relaxing after a long day of political tasks and dull meetings and formal celebrations, a decision for which Aang could not blame them.

Soon, they would join him on the balcony. Aang knew this. His friends never let him be alone for long.

But for now, Aang basked in the stillness. And he breathed.

"Greetings, Avatar Aang."

Aang blinked upon hearing his name. Or rather, hearing his formal title. Of all his friends to join him first, he'd suspected it would be Katara. Maybe Zuko. But not... Well, who was Aang to question the workings of the universe? It was far more powerful than he.

"Grand Lotus Iroh," he said, bowing to the older man. "Is there something you need?"

Iroh chuckled. "I suppose I don't 'need' anything, but I will remind you that it is not necessary to address me so formally. Just 'Iroh' is fine."

Aang gave him a small smile. "On one condition - you have to drop the formalities for me, too."

Iroh's chuckling became full-on laughter, booming from the man's stomach. "Oh, you sound like my nephew. He can't stand it when I address him as the Fire Lord." He smiled at Aang. "I accept your condition, Aang."

Aang found himself laughing, too. "Thank you, Iroh." He'd always been fond of Zuko's uncle. For one, Iroh had given him memorable - powerful - advice on their journey into the crystal catacombs together. And two, it was clear as day just how much Iroh loved Zuko, and how he tried to be the doting father Zuko had never had. In that respect...