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"Zuko," he said in his best I-love-you-but-and-please-take-this-with-love "the more you speak, the less sense you are making."

He sighs. Deeply. Because he absolutely agrees with Iroh.

"Uncle, just look. That's called a video. It captures a moment. It's incredible. It's not even magic, it's— I mean, it is, but it's technology, other worlds have this, too! It's like a moving portrait with sound, but real, like time can be put in a jar and kept away! Imagine even freezing a whole play! They use videos to make plays that are called movies, too."

Okay, Zuko, get off the metaphors. He's very enthusiastic about movies and videos, even if he is not wont to use video messages himself often to communicate; he's too self-conscious of his scar to default to that online. And likes the ability to say what he wants over text with more time to consider his words, a rare luxury in life Zuko needs more than most others do. But the novelty of film itself — especially not even knowing about film, just about its descendants in modern movie magic technology — is mind-blowing forever, and deserves attention.

"That would be wonderful, but none of that explains how it works or how I should use it," he said, gentling his voice.

"To talk to people! Pssh..."

Spontaneously, Zuko gets up and... leaves the room. Just like that. No explanation, no warning, no goodbye. Just gets up and walks right out of the apartment back out through the front door he came in. Bye?!

Give him, like, forty-five seconds, though. And Iroh's phone will start to ring with Zuko's name appearing across the screen, "Incoming Video Call from un: fireprince" beneath it.

He stared as Zuko left, wondering what his nephew was doing? Giving up? Getting assistance? Venting his anger on something? Hunting the Avatar? With Zuko, one never knew.

While he was considering if he should go after the boy, or allow him some time to cool down, the device - the phone - started making noise. Um.

He took a sip of tea, got up carefully, went to the front door and unless he could see Zuko just by doing this, would call out, "Zuko! The thing is making noise!"

The phone rings and rings... and rings... Zuko's walked down the hall to the entrance of the inn outside, and is growing aggravated with every ring that goes unanswered. When the call drops, he lets out a groan, and stomps back to the room, knocking sharply on the door which had shut and locked behind him.

When Iroh answers the door, he'll find a very incredulous and disgruntled nephew standing there with his hands waving in the air emphatically, phone still in one.

"Uncle! I called you! You didn't answer!"

In fairness, Iroh also called you, Zuko, and you also didn't answer. And you didn't tell him how to answer or what to expect. This is a sink or swim technology lesson...

"And I called you and you did not answer. Perhaps," he was trying to be reasonable, "we did not hear each other. Where did you go? It made noise right after you left." Which would be when he called you, Zuko.

"That was me calling you!"

Oh, he's incredulous. He grapples with his phone emphatically, punching in Iroh's contact info to call him again. He holds the phone out as it begins to ring, shoots the old man a look, says...

"I'm doing it again! Pick up this time!" And shuts the door again.

And then thinks better of this hasty reaction, and adds as a final note, yelling through the closed door, muffled but clearly audible:

"Put your finger on the green circle!"

He stands outside the room this time, not going far, but waits beside the door for Iroh to answer the video call.

How was that him... and he was gone again.

Pick it up...?

He lifted the phone. "I have picked it up, prince Zuko," he called through the door.

Green... circle? Confused he brought it closer to his face to look at it, but he was looking at the back, not the screen and his fingers hung up instead of accepting the call. By the time he tuned the screen to face him, confused, there was, of course, no more green circle. But it was also done making noise. "I think I did it!" he said, delighted.

After a beat, the phone starts ringing again. Another "Incoming call from Zuko un: fireprince..."

Who is meantime outside kneading the stress out from between his eyes, waiting for Iroh to answer... He's not giving up on this.

"Or maybe not?" he asked, frowning at it. "Maybe I'm using the wrong hand?" He tried his other hand. That didn't work.

"Oh, perhaps I am supposed to lift it with Bending." He pulled on his beard as he studied it, trying to figure out how to use Fire Bending to lift it without destroying it.

Zuko might want to come back in before he got too creative...

Zuko groans when the call is dropped a second time. What's he doing in there?!

Yet another incoming video call... this time accompanied by three loud pounds on the door with his fist, Zuko still leaning against the wall next to it in the hall outside.

"Uncle! Green! Circle!" he shouts through the door in time with his pounding.

He's not going to make this easy for Iroh... Iroh isn't making it easy for him.

Oh good. He opened the door, hearing the pounding. "How do you make a cirrcle of Green fire?" he asked Zuko now that the door was open. Yes, he had gotten distracted that badly.

"Fire?! What fire?! Uncle, just press the green button! Look!"

Zuko's all but groaning pleadingly, turning to the man with a seriously worried, incredulous look. He's apprehensive to peek inside the apartment again, but relieved to see... no fire. Phew. The call drops and Zuko hits it again, Iroh's phone ringing once more, and he holds his hand out expectantly for the old man to show him the screen, where a circular, green 'accept call' button is shown, thoroughly unpushed, beside a circular red 'deny call' button beside it.

How did fire get into this...?!

"That is not a button, Zuko..." How had Zuko forgotten what a button is? "That is flat."

"I know it's flat and not a real button, Uncle! That's just what they call it! Just press it!" he shouts through the door.

He had thought he was being so clever and smooth getting up and walking away to demonstrate a call like this.

Boy, was he wrong.

"It feels like glass, If I press it, I will break it!"

"Don't press it hard, just put your thumb on it— damn it!"

The call times out and drops again before Iroh gets the chance. And Zuko calls again, grumbling to himself as he does. Before his call comes through again, Iroh will see a notification about his multiple missed calls pop up on his screen... Zuko's not coming in until they demonstrate this the way he wants to. His vision is fixed. He will continue to yell through this door like the bratty child he is — or at least, can often be... He means so well, though, he really does, just work with him here, Iroh!!!

"It went awa... oh, it is back! It is back,. Zuko!"

"ANS!WER! IT!"

He practically groans every syllable, weakly pounding against the door with a limp fist between each sound for dramatic emphasis.

"IT!" he called back, as if in an answer. "Did that work?"

"Stop goofing around and press the green circle to pick up the call, Uncle!"

Oh, the poor prince...

Okay so he had to press the glass as if it was a button. But he'd touched it several times and it hadn't depressed at all. So maybe he needed more force? Or... oh! Perhaps it required Fire Bending and that was why this had not worked so far. Zuko could have said as much, but his nephew was still new to teaching. So maybe he just presumed that Iroh would have realized that he needed fire to activate it.

He took a deep breath, focused, and then pressed down with strength, pressure, and flame on his finger.

Well, his finger went down. He opened the door. "I don't think that worked, Zuko," he said holding up the melting phone.

"Wha- Uncle, what did you do...?!" Zuko's voice almost cracks as he yells, so much in shock to see this... catastrophe. He left the room for, what, five minutes?! How did Iroh manage this?!

"I attempted to press the screen to do what you asked me to do."

Re: lol mazel!!!

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Sorry, this was just too funny to not.

omg i'm living for this thread rofl hysterical

Sorry I have been taking so long.

take your time!!! <3

Ty

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