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31_days2011-08-04 09:51 am
rosehiptea.livejournal.com) wrote in 31_days2011-08-04 09:51 am
[August 2] [Avatar: the Last Airbender] Crown Prince
Title: Crown Prince
Day/Theme: August 4/regret, that other form of hope
Series: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Characters: Iroh, Lu Ten
Rating: K
Word Count: 267
Being a Crown Prince and a general did not leave much time for being a father. Iroh's peers left their sons in the hands of their mothers or, more often, their nannies. Lu Ten's mother had died when he was a baby, and Iroh did not trust even the best of servants with his son. But he had no choice. He chose the most loyal, caring woman he could find to care for his child and he kept his tears to himself.
Iroh spent long hours in planning sessions, only wishing that he were at home, watching his son write his first words and teaching him Pai Sho. But most of the time he was away, making his name as the Dragon of the West, as Lu Ten grew and learned.
Sometimes he was gone for weeks or months, but Lu Ten always greeted him with a joyful cry of "Father!" and begged him for more and more stories of faraway lands.
Then, when he was barely a man himself, Lu Ten was killed. A thousand chances flew away and Iroh was alone again, overcome with guilt that he wasted the time he could have spent with his son.
Now, Iroh is an old man who sits in a teashop and plays Pai Sho with other old men. He can think of very few things he has missed in his life, except for seeing the happiness of Lu Ten. But he knows that when he dies he will go to another world. Perhaps he will see his son there, and once again someone will call him Father.
Day/Theme: August 4/regret, that other form of hope
Series: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Characters: Iroh, Lu Ten
Rating: K
Word Count: 267
Being a Crown Prince and a general did not leave much time for being a father. Iroh's peers left their sons in the hands of their mothers or, more often, their nannies. Lu Ten's mother had died when he was a baby, and Iroh did not trust even the best of servants with his son. But he had no choice. He chose the most loyal, caring woman he could find to care for his child and he kept his tears to himself.
Iroh spent long hours in planning sessions, only wishing that he were at home, watching his son write his first words and teaching him Pai Sho. But most of the time he was away, making his name as the Dragon of the West, as Lu Ten grew and learned.
Sometimes he was gone for weeks or months, but Lu Ten always greeted him with a joyful cry of "Father!" and begged him for more and more stories of faraway lands.
Then, when he was barely a man himself, Lu Ten was killed. A thousand chances flew away and Iroh was alone again, overcome with guilt that he wasted the time he could have spent with his son.
Now, Iroh is an old man who sits in a teashop and plays Pai Sho with other old men. He can think of very few things he has missed in his life, except for seeing the happiness of Lu Ten. But he knows that when he dies he will go to another world. Perhaps he will see his son there, and once again someone will call him Father.