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[rediscovering]

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[rediscovering]

"Come on, Uncle! Let's go buy you a new phone...!" Zuko calls from the hall with a huffy tone. Maybe the guys at the store can set these two straight.

[uncle_iroh]

He followed him. "I do not see where the money was, prince Zuko." He was holding it carefully flat now so the money wouldn't fall out.

[rediscovering]

"It's magic money. They're not coins. But it's kept inside your phone somehow. You need to use the phone to pay for everything. Like how I did last night at the inn."

At least his tone of voice is growing softer...

[uncle_iroh]

"Magic... money...?" he was so perplexed as he followed.

[rediscovering]

"It's all invisible — tiny parts inside the phone or something. I don't know how it works. Hikaru's boyfriend tried to explain it to me once, but— I didn't follow, honestly... Maybe the shopkeepers at the cell phone store will know how to explain."

[uncle_iroh]

"I hope so. And that they know how to get the money out to pay for it," he said, clearly unconvinced.

[rediscovering]

"I'm paying for it. My phone is fine."

He's clearly insistent to spend all the money he can on Iroh until the man's set up himself.

[uncle_iroh]

"And where did you get all this money, Zuko?" he worries. He's allowed to.

[rediscovering]

"Quests," he says flatly, glancing aside. "...I've been careful with my money."

Now that, in any universe, is an obvious lie. Zuko's a favorite customer at the teashop he frequents because he goes up and asks for 'the most expensive' tea leaves, verbatim, equating price with quality and flavor. They love him there.

[uncle_iroh]

"Why do I find myself growing more concerned, not less, prince Zuko?"

[rediscovering]

"Uncle, I'm fine," he insists, letting out a little sigh, but closing his eyes as they walk. "Please don't worry. Once we get you your new phone, I'll show you the Questboard — that's how people make money. There are all kinds of tasks and errands and challenges posted there that locals pay us to help with, some meaningless and tedious, some intensive and dangerous. I do a fair bit of both. I'm not rich by any means — just frugal. So don't break the next phone...!" he tags on, finally making eye contact again just to throw the old man a face.

[uncle_iroh]

"Tell me, Zuko, how exactly have you been frugal?" This is the problem with having someone who knows and loves you, Zuko. He knows you.

[rediscovering]

Oh, no. He wants details. Examples. Fuck.

"Uh— well, for one, I still live in the inn, so I don't have to pay rent or anything. Um— I don't have very many clothes or things... So I don't waste my money on frivolous shopping," he manages. These are both true statements that save him money. But... not... really impressive budgeting wisdom? "Oh, and, uh! Azula and I split the costs. For food. And stuff."

Financial expert.

But also not a lie. Him and Azula split the costs for takeout, which they order on the regular because neither of them can cook or wants to learn to cook, so they're not even that bothered that they don't have a real kitchen, either. However, they both manage to save so much money because they steal all their 'groceries' from the convenience store... which is really just a bunch of hot chips and flavored water. It's not a very regal life the Fire Nation royal siblings lead here. Shoplifting saves money, too, this is the real budgeting hot tip.

[uncle_iroh]

"And stuff...?"

If he was aware of the meta plans for a cast house he would feel that it could not come quickly enough.

[rediscovering]

"Yeah! Like, uh— y'know, expenses...! There are some things I don't compromise price on— like tea!" he hurries, like maybe that's some impressive point that will distract from the mysterious fault at hand here.

[uncle_iroh]

"Expenses?" Even tea cannot save you now, Zuko. Mwa ha ha ha ha ha ha.

[rediscovering]

"Like— Like gifts for the dragons! Or for Azula. O-Or for other friends. And wh-whatever else, I dunno, Uncle, expenses!" He's defensive, why is he defensive? Life has expenses! Also, why is he buying gifts for the dragons...? He does that...?! Zunyan says um, yeah, no, don't stop?!

[uncle_iroh]

"Perhaps we should look together over your budget." He messed up with the phone, he has to be able to contribute somehow.

[rediscovering]

“I’d rather not, Uncle… We’ve gotten along just fine this long. I’ve been on my own several months now! I even worked like 30 hours a week in Lunatia!” He’s deflecting. He doesn’t want to look over his budget with Iroh. That would involve receipts. Receipts for things he didn’t purchase. Yet mysteriously owns. Like, uh, almost all his food, that which isn’t overpriced delivery takeout. Ahem. No, thanks. But in Lunatia, it’s true he did better budgeting… …largely because his boss fed him every shift and he also somehow managed to find himself and his fellow hapless aristocratic teenage boy roommates a free private chef. But he’s conveniently leaving those details out when bragging about supporting himself on his tedious part-time job as a busboy.

[uncle_iroh]

"Do you work those hours now, Zuko?"

[rediscovering]

"...No," he mutters, looking to the ground, watching his feet as they walk. But he turns back to Iroh after a beat, still keen on defending himself here, clearly. "But that's because I do quests now, Uncle — not a real job! They're like— stupid errands. Or missions. Or I dunno, tasks. There's another kind of bulletin board on the phone where people post requests for all the different things they want done, and that's how we all make money here. So I just do lots of random quests that don't seem too aggravating to deal with. Some of it's tedious, some of it's adventurous, but that's how Azula and I get paid."

That all stood up until lumping Azula in somehow. She's not exactly the type to make a living doing other people's chores and tedious tasks they'd rather pay others to do than do themselves, at least not enough to create a balanced household with equally shared financial responsibility like he's trying to paint this picture. There's clearly something not being accounted for that Zuko's just as clearly not willing to admit to. And it will just have to remain between the lines until he's ready to either admit it or get a real job and stop stealing hot chips and flavored water from the convenience store and pretending it counts as harmlessly acquiring sustenance in a moral grey zone...

[uncle_iroh]

"Somehow I cannot quite see Azula doing that. Perhaps I shall join you for some of these... quests, Prince Zuko."

Was that a plural you? Singular? The world may never know.

[rediscovering]

"Please do, Uncle," he says with glib defiance. "It's true I do more quests than Azula. But you should definitely join me on some. You'll do many of your own, too. You'll see."

[uncle_iroh]

"Good, I look forward to seeing how these quests are handled."

[rediscovering]

Thankfully, since most everyone supports themselves on quests, there is no shortage on dangerous opportunities for people to break their phones, making Avalon a pretty profitable place to own a mobile phone store, which gives Zuko and Iroh now a rather nearby option. They’ve reached the phone store already, and just in time, too. Because Zuko can’t anticipate the questions Iroh asks half the time, the old man a much better pai sho player socially than Zuko is, it’s not a moment too soon that they can divert the topic away from Zuko’s thievery.

Zuko holds the door open for Iroh as they enter, then follows him in. There are two phone salesmen kibbitzing at the counter and no other customers this early in the morning. The salesmen are on their game, though, not even aware they’ve just got two out-of-touch folks and one young grouch who’s easy to swindle. The pair gets an enthusiastic welcome from one of the salesmen, who’s beaming at Zuko when he walks up to the counter with a scowl.

“We need a new phone,” he says pointedly. “Uncle— give them the old one.” He points at the counter, gruff and avoiding eye contact with the expectant employees. Oh, boy. Here we go.