Alright. Let's get this Iroh party done with! PS…sorry it took a million years…

Disclaimer: So I was talking to Mike and Bryan the other day and they said that if I stopped writing fics, they would sell me the show. I said "REALLY?!" and their response was, "uhhh…NO!"…I DON'T OWN

The Journey to Iroh Pt.2

Zuko rushed to where Aang was and shouted before he even got there, "AANG! I KNOW WHERE MY UNCLE IS AT!" This excessive shouting caused many looks and glances from other members of the group and a very displeased look from Aang's earthbending teacher, Toph.

Zuko ignored the odd glares he was getting from everyone and focused on Aang who had put his hands down from the earthbending stance he had taken.

"Where's he at, Zuko?" he asked.

Zuko stopped short of Aang and was careful to avoid Toph, "He's with the White Lotus!" He then showed Aang the tile Sokka had been playing with.

Aang raised his eyebrow in question. Zuko was smiling so big he felt as though his mouth was going numb and Katara had come out of the tent to see what was going on.

"Sokka," she asked, "what's going on? And why is Zuko smiling like an idiot?"

Sokka shrugged, "Something about his uncle, I think."

Katara nodded and turned her attention back towards Aang and Zuko.

Zuko snapped out of his smile and noticed that Aang's eyebrow was still raised, "The Order of the White Lotus is a secret society! My uncle and I asked them for help when we were hiding out from my sister!"

Aang put his eyebrow down and nodded slowly, "That's great and all, Zuko, but how do we find this secret society?"

Zuko's smile vanished completely. He hadn't thought of where to find the club, he just knew his uncle would be there. Zuko shrugged his shoulders sadly, "I don't know."

He walked back to Sokka, "Where did you say you got this tile?"

Sokka grabbed it from Zuko and said, "My old swords master gave it to me."

Zuko nodded, "Where did you get trained?"

Sokka thought about it for a moment, rubbing his chin in the process, "At a small Fire Nation town. He lived in a huge mansion, his name was Piandao."

Zuko's jaw dropped.

"What?" Katara asked, "You know him or something?"

Zuko nodded, "He was one of my uncle's best friends. I would go to his house a lot when I was younger…We need to find him in order to find my uncle."

Toph decided it was her turn to bud in, "Have you forgotten our group is a lot bigger than it used to be, Prince? We can't exactly just pick up and leave whenever we feel like it."

Zuko looked around. She was right, Haru, the Duke, and Teo were indeed extra baggage.

"They can stay here," he said.

"WHAT?!" Katara shouted.

"Hear me out," Zuko said, "the vegetation is thick, there are plenty of hiding places, food is easily accessible, and Haru and the others can hold their own in a fight if worst came to worst."

The group looked to Aang.

"I see where you're going with this," the young boy said, "And I agree, we can't just wait here. Iroh would be a big help, and this is the only way we're going to find him."

"Fine," said Katara, "but you," she pointed to Zuko, "tell the others why they aren't coming along."

Zuko sighed and nodded his head. He didn't want to be the one to tell them, but he knew that Katara would not comply if he did not. So with his head held high, he walked over to Haru to tell him the news.

"Haru," Zuko said.

The earthbender turned to look at the prince. He smiled and signaled to the Duke and Teo that he would join them shortly, "What's up, Zuko?"

Zuko sighed and looked around the forest they were in. He wanted to stall, and Haru sensed his hesitation, "Look," Haru said, "whatever it is, just say it."

Zuko stopped looking around. He had been startled by Haru's voice suddenly coming from nowhere.

"We…that is Aang, Toph, Katara, and I…are…ummm…going to look for my uncle," he finally said rather lamely.

Haru nodded and rubbed his chin with his index and middle finger, "And what about the rest of us?"

Zuko looked down, this was the hard part, "You can't come with us."

Haru looked back at Teo and the Duke. He nodded solemnly. He understood the dangers of a too big group accompanying them. Still, it had not been what he wanted to hear.

"What do we do then?" he asked the older boy.

Zuko pointed west, towards the setting sun, "There is a small Fire colony out that way. They can provide cover against Azula, and food for you guys. Tell them General Iroh sent you. They still know of his kindness."

Haru nodded, "When are you all leaving?"

Zuko shrugged, he hadn't thought to ask, "Probably tomorrow morning."

Haru nodded again, "Then we'll head out there at that time too."

Zuko sighed with relief as Haru went walking back to the other boys. That wasn't as hard as he had thought it would be.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Azula led the other two girls up the hill that had a great mansion atop it.

"Oh, wow!" exclaimed Ty Lee as she did a front flip to catch up with Azula, "Who lives there, Azula?"

Azula opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by Mai, "It's the swords master, Piandao's home. What are we doing here, Princess?"

Azula turned to Mai, "Do not interrupt me anymore, Mai," she was satisfied with the grimace Mai gave her, "and we are here to pay an old family friend a visit."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aang, Katara, Sokka, Zuko, and Toph piled onto Appa the next morning and waved to the others goodbye. Katara still looked upset about leaving them there, but there was no convincing the others. She knew that Iroh was essential to the group, no matter how much she didn't want to believe it.

The ride to the town was a short one. At first they had no idea where they would be headed, but that changed when Aang pointed out that a comet had hit a site near it. That had triggered Zuko's memory. They knew where to go.

They reached the small hill where his mansion stood…or should have stood.

"What the…" Sokka said as Appa lowered them all to the ground a few feet away from the gate that should have been standing and that should have had the White Lotus symbol on it.

Zuko got of Appa first and stared at the sky where smoke was gathering above the mansion.

"Azula was here," he said to no one in particular.

"What?" Katara asked, "How would you know?" There was no malice in her voice, only true concern for her and her friends, Zuko included.

"The smoke," he said indicating the large billow of smoke above their heads, "There's too much, and the flames are still so big. They had to have started out hot…very hot."

"Blue fire hot?" Katara asked.

Zuko nodded, "Yeah."

"Well, that's just great," Sokka said as he too climbed off of Appa, "We came all the way down here for nothing! Obviously Piandao's not here!"

"Well, I wouldn't say that," Toph chimed in when her feet hit the ground.

"What are you saying?" Zuko asked as he turned to face the earthbender.

She placed her hand on the ground and said, "There are two people headed towards us from the house. It doesn't feel like your crazy sister, no offense." She added.

"None taken," Zuko responded.

The gang of four turned their attention towards the house that was still on fire. Indeed, there were two people headed towards them. Their silouhettes were hard to make out at first in the burning air. But as they approached it became clear as to who they were.

"Uncle…" Zuko muttered. Only Katara heard the regret in his voice.

Iroh and Piandao stepped into visible view of the gang and Zuko, who at first was unaware as to what he should do, ran forward and embraced his uncle.

"I'm sorry," he told the old man.

"I know," Iroh said as he hugged his nephew.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So how did you two escape Azula?" Aang asked as Iroh passed around tea.

The group had made a camp near the old mansion of the swords master in the woods nearby. They all sat around the fire Zuko had produced and had finished eating shortly before Iroh made tea.

"My mansion is full of secret tunnels the princess had no idea about. Funny, seeing as she spent a lot of her childhood there destroying my various objects from around the world," Piandao explained.

"I could have taken them out myself if I were a few years younger," Iroh interjected.

"How long have you been with Piandao?" Katara asked.

"Since I escaped. He was the only person in the entire Fire Nation with ties to the White Lotus besides me. One needs help in these troubled times." Iroh explained.

"I was only too happy to help," Piandao added.

The talk continued for several more hours, until the moon was very high in the sky and everyone decided it was time for bed. They did not know, after all, where they would be headed to next.

Zuko hung back after everyone was safely in bed and waited for his uncle.

"Zuko," Iroh said, "Why aren't you in bed?"

"I want to talk to you, Uncle," Zuko replied.

"About what?" Zuko's uncle inquired.

"…Stuff."

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Whoever guesses what they talk about will get a cookie. Sorry it took so long guys…I really am. I hope you liked, and all comments questions and suggestions are welcome through reviews! Till then, this is MisfitGirl13 signing off.