Summary: Prince Iroh- son of Fire Lord Azulon and his wife Ilah- has had many interactions with his soldiers. Some have made a deeper impact on him than others.
“Concentrate, Prince Iroh.”
Iroh takes a deep breath in. The fire within him is fueled and the light behind his eyelids grows brighter. He breathes out and the fire recedes and the light dims. His mind begins to wander to plans to advance the front further into Earth Kingdom territory.
A large burst of light and heat sends Iroh reeling back.
“What did I tell you?” Kagami demands as he cuts off his fire’s fuel. He stands and rubs his eyes. “What was it this time? A woman? The war? Politics? Food?”
“The war,” Iroh replies, leaning back so his arms support him from his sitting position. “Strategies.”
Kagami gives an exasperated look. “As brilliant as you are, your patience needs work.”
“I have plenty.”
“More than most your age, but that’s not gonna cut it,” Kagami states before he leans against the wall. “Again.”
“Need I remind you I am your prince and your commander?” Iroh snaps.
“Need I remind you to respect your elders?” Kagami growls.
Iroh blinks. “Wait... how old are you?”
“Thirty-five,” he answers.
"That’s hardly a difference,” Iroh mutters.
“It’s enough.”
“I doubt it.”
“Never assume,” Kagami snaps. “Just because you are the crowned prince doesn’t mean you get to shirk off your training. Now... again.”
_____________
“You’ll catch a cold at this rate.” Kagami as the umbrella resting on his shoulder in a lazy manner. When Iroh doesn’t respond he shifts it so it’s over the prince. “If you insist on staying out here, at the very least be smart about it.”
“Do you think I could’ve done something to save that boy?” Iroh asks quietly.
Kagami sighs and slackens his grip so the pole of the umbrella lands on Iroh’s head with a thunk. “What a dumb question.”
Iroh pushes off the umbrella off when it’s not moved and stares up in confusion at the other man. “What does that mean?”
“It means you’re just looking for validation to whatever you’ve already decided the answer to be.”
Iroh presses the heels of his hands to his eyes. “He was only thirteen, Kagami... he wasn’t supposed to be able to join for three more years... I promised him I’d get him back home and I failed.”
“Did you have no intentions of bringing him home when you made that promise?”
Iroh startles and looks up at the man in horror. “Of course not!”
“Did you slack off when the Earth Kingdom troops surrounded us? Did you let them kill him without a fight?”
Iroh shakes his head. “No, no! I tried! I just couldn’t-”
Kagami lowers his torso so they’re eye level. “This was an unfortunate incident. We cannot go back and change the past, but we can take steps to change the future. You have a choice to make. Are you going to sit here and cry and get sick and die or are you going to take a stand and make a change so this doesn’t happen again?”
_____________
“What the hell was that?!” Kagami roars as he grabs the front of Iroh’s armor and holds him so the prince has no choice but to look at him.
“An experiment,” Iroh answers sheepishly.
Kagami shakes the young man as if he wants to throttle him. “That was reckless beyond belief! I’ve never seen such stupidity in my life. What were you even trying to accomplish?!”
Iroh grips the other man’s wrist to pry it off but the grip is too strong. “I need to redirect lightning. I needed to see if it’d work...”
Iroh grows quiet seeing Kagami’s face go blank and feeling him tremble under his hand. There’s a storm brewing underneath that silence- Iroh realizes- and he’s afraid of how it will come out. Prince or not, Kagami did not tolerate foolishness.
“You nearly died.”
The words give no room for defense or argument.
“I-” Whatever words Iroh had in mind die on his lips as Kagami’s head droops so he looks at the ground. “Kagami?”
“You foolish boy.” Kagami looks up with eyes dry as ever but so full of bitter sorrow and relief Iroh finds it hard to breathe from the weight of guilt on his chest. “Never do something like that again... do you understand me?”
Iroh nods despite his confusion.
“I’m not saying this just because it’s my duty to protect you from all harm... I’m saying this because... because if you died...” Kagami’s grip on Iroh’s armor tightens and his trembling stills.
The message was clear enough.
“I... I don’t know what to say.”
Kagami looks him in the eye with a fierce expression. “Never. Do that. Again.”
Iroh nods. “On my honor.”
Kagami releases him and lets out a breath. “Thank you... let’s go back to the palace before the spirits decide to strike us down for being out here during a lightning storm.”
_____________
“I’m proud of you, Prince Iroh.”
Iroh turns on his heel and sees Kagami. “When did you get here?”
“My shift started twenty minutes ago,” Kagami shrugs with an amused smirk. “I saw what you did there.”
“It wasn’t much,” Iroh mutters, face flushed.
“It meant a lot to that child to see that her future Fire Lord was human.” Kagami leans against the tree.
Iroh’s gaze slips down to the legs- more specifically his right. “Has your leg been bothering you?”
Kagami waves it off. “I’ve had this injury since before you thought of joining the army.”
“That doesn’t mean it’s still not concerning,” Iroh insists.
Kagami walks forward and it looks as normal as anyone else if Iroh hadn’t been trained to notice small things. He puts a hand on Iroh’s shoulder and smiles reassuringly.
“You said to only downplay your injuries in front of the enemy,” Iroh says carefully. “Do you consider me an enemy?”
“As your guard I cannot afford to show weakness, even in supposed privacy.”
Iroh signs quietly but doesn’t say anything more on the subject.
_____________
Iroh shakes as he looks down at Kagami. “You idiot...”
Kagami chuckles quietly. “I suppose the tables do turn every once in a while.”
“Why would you go and do something so stupid?! We can’t afford to lose anymore men! You’re lucky you only came out with minor injuries,” Iroh scolds.
“We needed those supplies to get through and we couldn’t let the enemy cut us off from it.”
“So you and a small squad go out without any backup and without telling any one else?! You’re one of the most experienced soldiers here, you know better.” Iroh kneels down beside his friend. “Why did you do it?”
Kagami grows silent and looks away.
Iroh closes his eyes and sighs. “Spirits help me... I miss him, too... but he wouldn’t want us to do anything reckless. You drilled that into us.”
“It’s... difficult... without him,” Kagami admits.
“I know.. trust me, I know.” Iroh puts his hand on Kagami’s shoulder, prompting him to look up at the prince. “But you’re not alone. The rest of us are here for you just like you’re here for us. We are brothers bonded by shared experiences and those experiences cannot break us if we help one another.”
Kagami is silent for several moments. Slowly he smiles- one of the brightest since that day which is sad because of how dim it is. “When did you become so wise?”
“When did you become so foolish?”
Kagami laughs and reaches forward to pat his shoulder. “You’re alright, Iroh. You’re alright.”
Kagami was chosen by Daiki- Prince Iroh’s first head guard- to help train and protect Prince Iroh two months before his retirement. Prior to this he was a trainer for new recruits and- as such- treated Prince Iroh as another new recruit due to his inexperience. This earned him Prince Iroh’s respect as he was blunt and never let him take shortcuts on his training. Over the years- despite his closed off and tough demeanor- Kagami grew fond of Prince Iroh and eventually started calling him by his name in private after Iroh’s insistence- he thinks of Iroh as family.
To find out more about this character and many more, please stay tuned for the up and coming Dragon’s Breath. Coming… eventually. Or just drop an ask in my inbox.
