So I absolutely forgot that I hadn’t queued up the rest of my atla crossover stuff so expect an influx of that in the coming day or two. This one is a direct follow up of the last one I posted here and takes place like within the same hour more or less. Iroh is a tricky pov character and I hope I did him justice.
"You're a very brave young lady, but this could be done with very easily."
He genuinely smiles at the girl, who only stares blankly back at him. Every so often she'll glance away, up towards the sky--likely scanning for any sign of that flying bison or towards the woods as if planning her own escape. He had stepped forward after she had flat out ignored any attempts of Zuko's at bartering a trade using the necklace. It seemed that her brief words after he'd first revealed it were her only words for them, making things rather difficult.
Still, his words caught her attention and slowly her eyes slide towards him and she leans back into the tree she's tied against. Iroh feels some sympathy towards her discomfort but also knows that it's necessary, especially after she had taken out two of the pirates. He hadn't been there for her capture but apparently, she had been standing guard for her sister, who had been waterbending techniques from the stolen scroll under the elder's watchful gaze. The plan had been to capture both but the pirate's share hold of strength had been almost entirely focused on the elder girl, who fought viciously and without hesitation as she screamed for her sister to escape through the water. A clever move, since it would make tracking the girl by scent or footprints practically impossible.
Iroh has seen children like her before, most prominently Azula but occasionally they cropped up during his time as an acting general. He would sometimes visit the more prestigious fire nation military academies back when Lu-Ten had been alive. Every few years there would be a stir of some younger student with incredible aptitude being moved up and funneled directly into the military, mostly they ended up among the Yuyan archers but occasionally ones would actually make rank and end up apprenticed to a high ranking officer. Long ago, Zhao had been one such student and while Iroh wouldn't compare the girl to him in most ways they both showed a ruthlessness not unusual in prodigies but where Zhao flaunted it this girl kept it carefully hidden under a cool veneer of boredom.
Ever so slowly her head tilts and she watches him like she's sizing him up--Which he knows is exactly what she's doing and he does his best to convey himself as a simple kindly old man. He truly doesn't want her getting hurt because of this but his nephew is stubborn. Both of them are,
"We'll return your necklace and--"
Given the expression that had shown on her face when his nephew had shown his hand and offered the necklace, he knows he'll get a response. He simply doesn't expect it to be the girl's leg lashing out and nearly taking him off his feet. She makes just enough contact that he'll certainly have a bruise on his leg tomorrow but nothing detrimental. Her words come out harsh and biting now, free of the emotional thickness from before.
"He won't find his honor kidnapping children."
She's so young, not even older than his nephew but she says the word like she isn't one and something about that makes Iroh's heart twinge more than his now throbbing shin.
