On this day, the 38th day of Spring in the 1001st year of the Solar Calendar,
by Royal Decree of Her Royal Highness, Celestia, Princess of the Sun,

We hereby grant passage to the City of Canterlot to the Firebender Iroh by any means he deems reasonably appropriate. All costs for said transport are to be reimbursed by the Royal Treasury as is necessary upon proper receipt countersigned by hoof / paw / claw / hand / mouth / magical signature. Properly signed and notated receipts are to be sent to Balanced Ledger, care of Canterlot Palace.

We hereby grant a stipend and residence in housing to be further appropriated within the Faculty Terrace attached to Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns for a duration of five years or until means are found to send Firebender Iroh to his home plane, whichever is shorter.

While housed in Canterlot, Firebender Iroh will be expected to participate in trans-planar thaumatological and cultural studies as required. Optionally, Firebender Iroh may choose to participate in the tutoring of students in appropriate and approved areas of study. These areas of study have been tentatively identified as fire control, fire fighting, interspecies diplomacy, meditation and military tactics. Other subjects may be added as they are identified.

Resources are to be allocated to the appropriate departments of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and other research facilities in order to identify a controlled and safe method of return for Firebender Iroh to his home plane.

Signed on this day, 38 Spring, 1001SC
Princess Celestia

Accepted.

__________

Iroh let out a half grunt and half sigh as he rolled the scroll back up again. Of the three offers, this was the one that caused him the most conflicting emotions. On the one hand, it was clearly the offer that would offer him the fastest way home. On the other, he would potentially be in contact with researchers who could be similar to the unicorn who had assaulted him mere hours ago.

"Impressive..."

The single word, murmured almost directly into his ear, had Iroh launching from his perch on the edge of the porch, his heart hammering in his chest.

As he stumbled on the grass, flailing and falling onto his rump, Iroh felt like a first-year cadet caught reading peace poetry. On the porch itself, an older mare trying to decide whether she was laughing or trying to cough up a lung, her voice loud and braying.

At first, Iroh thought it was a unicorn that had snuck up on him, until he realized that it was not a horn he was seeing, but one of her exceptionally long ears. Looking closer while he tried to still his frantically beating heart, he noticed her muzzle was also significantly larger then even most of the stallions he had met in town.

"Oh! Oh my goodness!" She gasped as she grinned widely. "I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. I'm so sorry, but when I saw you making use of my comfy old porch, I just couldn't resist."

As the mare wound down from her laughter and got his heart back under control, the two studied each other. The mare's wide grin was belied by her tired demeanour, the bags under her eyes and her greying mane betraying her age. It was then that Iroh noticed another odd feature of this old creature. Taking note of it for later, Iroh bowed formally to the apparent owner of the house whose shed he had slept in not two nights ago.

"It seems I owe my apologies threefold to you then. I am Iroh, miss..."

"Matilda. Though I don't see how parking your rump here needs three apologies; just once will do."

Iroh grinned sheepishly at that and rubbed the back of his neck. "Ahh, I do believe it was your shed that I slept in a couple of nights ago while I was trying to evade the locals."

"Didn't break anything, did ya?" said Matilda as she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

"Oh no, no nothing like that." Iroh shook his head and hands in appeasement.

"Then the third apology better not be for refusing a chat with a curious old donkey. Git on in here and pull up a chair while I make us some coffee. This mad town's even madder than I remember it and I know you're a jack who's got a tale to tell."

Iroh could only blink helplessly as Matilda opened the door behind her with one of her rear hooves before stepping to the side and glaring imperiously at him, the all too familiar smirk of a woman who knows she's going to get her way on her lips.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight called as she spotted her mentor heading towards the chariot parked next to the library. One of the guard stallions stationed next to the chariot raised an eyebrow in her direction as the alicorn turned her head.

"Did you find him? Was he okay? Did he say what he was going to do?"

Celestia sighed internally and turned her full attention to her overwrought student. "It is nice to see you have taken our little talk to heart, my faithful student, but please calm down. Iroh has been given my offers but wishes time to ponder them. Rest assured he will be looked after for some time, even if he chooses to resettle as far away as Minos or Ottapaw."

Twilight stopped in her tracks as she dredged up her knowledge of geography.

"Ottapaw? Isn't that in Canida?" she said with a hint of disgust in her voice.

The student shuddered for a moment, "I'm not sure if I would want to go there. The diamond dogs in this area are dangerous enough, thank you very much. Besides, if I remember right, the diamond dogs in Canida are even worse for getting along with outsiders than the buffalo near Appleloosa are."

"That is true..." mused Celestia. "The Taurian States have the advantage that the minotaurs are closest to Iroh in body shape and size, even if they are generally taller than he is. Then again, they do tend to be very boisterous, where he seems to be quite the quiet type. Personally I hope he takes my offer to teach in Canterlot. It would make getting an idea of what his home world is like—not to mention, sending him back—that much easier. It would be a bonus if the firefighting squads got some much-needed training in a secure environment."

"What about here? What's wrong with Iroh staying here in Ponyville?"

"Staying here does have its merits, especially with the amount of trouble that seems to find its way here. From our discussion earlier, Iroh's talent lies in organisation, especially during stressful times. Something that would certainly overlap with a certain student of mine..."

Twilight had the grace to blush and look away as Celestia smiled down at her.

"But first I need to apologize to him for getting overzealous and foalnapping him today."

"Talk to him. Don't force it, but talk to him, Twilight. Iroh is far from your level of genius, but it is easy to tell that he has wisdom and experience in social situations that I know you would rather avoid. Ah. Ah." Celestia stopped her student as she opened her mouth.

"That is his story to tell. If you want to hear it, you will have to make another friend. Be mindful that he is from a very different culture and try to be accepting of the differences, as well as the similarities, with ourselves."

Celestia looked to the sky for a moment before sighing and turning back towards her chariot.

"I must go now; it is almost time for me to lower the sun for the day. Be well."

Twilight sighed, wishing she could spend more time with the Princess, but she understood that her royal duties always came first and foremost. "Goodbye, Princess."

As she turned to head for her library, her ear perked up at Celestia's call.

"Oh, and Twilight? One of the options I gave him was to stay in Ponyville and have you study his problem."

Twilight's cheer could be heard from behind Celestia as her guardsponies took to the skies with her chariot in tow.

Iroh lay back on the couch and considered his day, even as he tried to get comfortable with the rather short blanket loaned to him by Matilda. He was thankful that although pony beds (as well as the sheets and blankets that came with them) were rather short, their couches were much much longer, being sized properly for two or more ponies to recline on as was their habit.

To go to the pony capital and earn his living teaching and being studied by ponies or to stay here, with the ponies he had already made friends with. Perhaps he should take the opportunity to travel this world and see its sights. The talks he had had with Zecora and just now with Matilda made it abundantly clear that there were many sights and many beings to be seen in this world. Many of which he would never have dreamed of seeing back home.

The call of the road was powerful to him and he was sorely tempted by it; but then, he worried for Zuko. His brash, impulsive nephew had been alone now for at least four days and was mentally at a critical point. It would only take a few nudges one way or the other and he knew his nephew would begin to fall to the same kinds of madness that his sister was prone to.

Zuko could survive without him, Iroh was certain of that. The boy was simply too stubborn to die, it seemed, but he would not thrive; he would not be able to step out of his father's shadow without guidance and wisdom.

"Wisdom... that we need more of..." he grumbled aloud as he twisted himself into a more comfortable position and started to drift off to sleep.

"Wisdom... and tea...."

Iroh jerked awake as the thought hit him full force.

He scrambled off his makeshift bed and rushed into the kitchen, flicking his hand in the direction of one of the lamps in the room light it, only to wince when the shade caught on fire.

"Right... lightning based lights, not fire..."

Dousing the flames again before they could do more damage than they already had to the poor lampshade, Iroh knelt down and fumbled underneath until he found the bullrush-like bead at the end of the cord that could be pulled to turn the lamp on and off.

He held his hands up, ready to catch the lamp when it wobbled from his slightly too hard tug on the cord before the lamp stabilized. When the lamp had settled, Iroh turned back towards the table and the three scrolls sitting to one side of it.

Iroh opened one scroll and scanned it quickly before rolling it back up and opening the next. Smiling tersely as he found the correct scroll, he read it again carefully to see if it would accommodate what he had in mind.

With a grunt of satisfaction, he triple checked the passage, before he frowned in concentration. It had been years since he had practiced this skill and he had only one chance to do it right.

Partially re-rolling the scroll, he scanned the last few lines before he signed on the line provided for him at the bottom, a sad smile on his face.

Resources are to be allocated to build Firebender Iroh a suitable dwelling, within a reasonable budget, within the boundaries of the town of Ponyville for his use as he sees fit within the laws of Equestria.

Signed on this day, 38 Spring, 1001SC
Princess Celestia

Accepted.

Prince Iroh of the Fire Nation