[Fanfic]: Prisoner
Title: Prisoner
Fandom: Avatar: the Last Airbender
Characters: General How; Major Kiet, Ichiro, Captain Liu (OCs)
Rating: PG/K+
Word Count: 2082
Summary: General How turns a prisoner of war over to the Dai Li, hoping they'll convince the boy to defect. (AU to my usual 'verse)
Notes: Liu belongs to beckyh2112 and is used with her permission. Kiet and Ichiro are mine. Written for atlaland's Media/Writing Bingo challenge.
In the end, it took four earthbenders to take the boy down.
He fought like a demon, with fists and with fire, moving constantly and making it hard for the earthbenders to just sink him. When they finally captured him, one of the soldiers took him by the hair. His blade was centimetres from the boy's throat when their commander stopped him.
"Sir!" protested the soldier. "He's too dangerous. If we don't put him down, he'll grow up and get worse."
"Or I could grow up and plant daffodils," the boy offered.
The soldier holding him punched him in the head. "Speak when you're spoken to!" he snarled.
"Enough," snapped the commander. "Back to camp. With him too." He eyed the soldier still holding the prisoner's hair. "Alive."
General How gently laid the report on his desk, then put his head in his hands. Sadly, when he looked up again, it was still there. "A Fire Nation soldier," he said.
Chalk moved on slate, and his aide proffered it to him. 'Yes, sir.'
How put his head in his hands again.
He heard Kiet writing something, but didn't look up until the younger man had completed his thought. 'About sixteen, according to the reports.'
"Why is he here?" How wanted to know.
His aide rolled his eyes. 'For the same reason approximately half the captured Fire soldiers pass through our walls, sir. They think we'll be better able to handle them.' He hesitated, then added, 'And frankly, sir, I think he'd be better off in our care. At least one of his captors is unnecessarily rough with the boy.'
That caught How's attention. "You've seen him," he said.
Kiet nodded. 'I wanted to see what kind of boy requires four earthbenders to capture.'
How drummed his fingers against his desk. "I believe I do as well."
"Unnecessarily rough," said How, looking at Kiet.
His aide shrugged, but offered no comment.
With a sigh, How turned back to the boy. His eyes had both been blackened and his nose broken; his sun-tanned skin was bruised through the rends in his clothing. He'd been sunk into the wall and gagged with earth. The last time Hyo had seen a man in restraints like these, it had been a bending master.
Even that hadn't been able to hold him.
However, a private barely out of boyhood was not a firebending master of any stripe.
He turned a mild look on the commanding officer of the group who had brought the boy in. The other man shrugged. "He's dangerous, General," he said. "Had to gag him to keep him from breathing fire on us." He sighed. "Also to shut him up."
How raised an eyebrow. "Really."
His voice was no less mild than his expression, but the commander flushed. "He has a... talent for being irritating." He gestured to the beaten soldier. "That's for his own protection."
"Leave us," How ordered.
"Sir," began the commander. How's eyes narrowed, and the man fled.
'Are you sure this is a good idea, sir?' Kiet asked.
How smiled at his aide, and spoke softly. "The day I can't handle a raw recruit is the day I dig my grave. Wait outside the door."
Kiet nodded and stepped out as well.
Once they were alone, How approached the boy, stripping the gag from him with a gesture. "Y' gon' get y'r licks in, too?" the boy asked. His golden eyes were far too clear for his speech to be so slurred.
How ignored the question and the hostility in his tone, instead taking the boy lightly by the chin and turning his head to one side. Green eyes narrowed as he noted that the boy's hair was matted with dried blood.
A quick intake of breath alerted him, and he held the boy's head in place as fire streamed from his mouth. "Enough," he ordered, and the fire stopped.
He let go and took a step back. "I have no need to revenge myself on a prisoner of war," How informed the boy.
"Your boys there don't think like you." The slur had miraculously cleared up.
"They're not mine," he said. "You have much to learn about the Earth Kingdom, Private."
"Yeah," the boy said, his tone so bitter that How took a closer look at him. "I know."
How wondered how willing a soldier the boy was. He was a firebender of considerable power; would the Fire Nation have allowed him any path but that of a soldier?
He was so young; one of How's fellow generals had a granddaughter that age. Young, and flexible. If he were handled correctly, How wondered if he could be turned against the Fire Nation.
He heard the boy drawing in breath again, and gave him a sharp look. He earned an innocent expression and an off-key tune in return. "Behave," he instructed the boy. "You've already learned that not all soldiers are so kind as I. Pushing the wrong man too far could get you killed."
"What's it to you if I die?" the boy demanded bitterly. "Nobody'll pay for an upstart colony brat."
Captain Liu was the best person to place the boy with, How decided. Though the man had been permanently disfigured by a firebender's hand, he bore no apparent hatred towards the Fire Nation. There could be no better man to turn the boy from his homeland, Dai Li captain or no.
How twisted his foot, earthbending a crack beneath his aide's feet. Kiet poked his head in the prison cell, looking curious. "We're taking him," How informed him. "Arrange for the transfer, and extend an invitation for Captain Liu to join me for tea in my office three hours after noon."
Kiet bowed and slipped out.
How turned back to the boy. "You will have new guards within fifteen minutes," he said. "Behave." His eyes didn't leave the boy's face until he assented. With that, How quit the cell.
Three hours after noon, a soft knock intruded on General How's thoughts. "Enter," he called, opening a sealed drawer in his desk to put away his papers, then closing it with earthbending.
The door opened and Captain Liu of the Dai Li walked in, green scarf covering the lower half of his face and throat. How rose from his seat and bowed in greeting. The captain bowed in return; a full bow, How noted. Uncommon to receive from a Dai Li.
"Please, sit," he invited the other man, keeping to his feet. The captain's eyes drifted to one side, where paper, a brush, and an inkstone had been laid out by his right hand.
"I prefer to have very little earthbending in my office," the general explained.
Liu nodded once, taking a seat, and How took down the equipment for tea. "You prefer brown rice tea, do you not?" he inquired. At the Dai Li captain's second nod, How began the preparations for tea.
Neither man spoke (or wrote) of business until the tea had been prepared and each of them had sipped from his cup.
'How may the Dai Li be of service, General?' the captain eventually wrote.
How sighed and sipped his tea. "A prisoner of the war was brought within our walls last night," he said. "A firebender, very powerful." He suspected that this news wouldn't make the Dai Li any happier than it had made him. "Also very young. A private, barely old enough to be fighting, even by Fire Nation standards."
'Surely the Fire Nation does not have the resources to waste one of such power as a mere private,' Liu pointed out.
"Indeed," How agreed. "I suspect the boy may have hidden his power until he found himself in a situation where using it was necessary. According to the report, it took four trained earthbenders to capture him."
'Impressive,' said Liu.
"Yes. However, as a result the boy has been handled... roughly."
The agent gave How a look for the understatment.
"Would you like a catalogue of the injuries he incurred after his capture?" How asked him. When Liu nodded, he went on. "Broken nose, both eyes blackened, a possible minor concussion, a head wound, and a large number of bruises. All were untended."
The Dai Li captain looked displeased at the list.
"The boy has been transferred to the custody of my men, who have less personal issues with the Fire Nation," How told him. "And who are less inclined to respond to baiting."
'Good,' said Liu.
"I've spoken with the boy," How said. "He gave me the impression that the soldier's life is not one he chose. He seemed very bitter about it."
The Dai Li captain looked intrigued, as he'd hoped. "I think it might be possible to convince the boy to join on the side of the Earth Kingdom -- of Ba Sing Se," How admitted. "But it would take cunning and subtlety that is rare to find in a soldier." He glanced at the captain. "The Dai Li are better suited for such a task."
Liu looked pleased by this pronouncement; How chose not to think of why.
"He'll need to be bound, at least at first," he said. He and Liu both knew this to be true, but convention dictated he must speak the obvious. "We don't want a powerful, angry firebender running loose in Ba Sing Se."
Liu nodded.
"He also indicated that he comes from the Fire Nation colonies in the West," How said. "His words implied a rift between them and the Fire Nation itself. That could be useful."
'Yes, it could,' Liu agreed.
"Will the Dai Li collect the boy, or shall I have him delivered to you?" How asked then.
'We will collect him,' was the captain's response.
How nodded. "I'll let my people know."
A few things had changed from General How's description of the boy-soldier, Liu noted. His nose had been taped into place; a bandage wound around his head. The general had had his injuries tended to. Liu kept a smile from his eyes. How was a kind man.
That kindness would be his undoing.
The boy appeared to be dozing, despite his uncomfortable position bound to the wall. Experimentally, Liu moved, allowing his robes to rustle.
Immediately the boy came alert, head snapping up and golden eyes blazing as he drew in a quick breath--
Which he let out slowly, with no flames, on seeing Liu.
Liu smiled behind his scarf. The boy knew not to make things difficult. He raised his left hand and signalled Niran and Seto to remove the boy.
It took a few minutes to get him out of the cell; even with the two Dai Li supporting him, the boy had trouble walking.
"Laogai?" Seto asked.
Liu shook his head. Not yet, anyway. He signalled for his agents to follow, then left the prison.
Just behind him he heard a startled intake of breath. Curious, that; Liu was certain firebenders could feel the rising and setting of the sun. The boy should have known it was night.
Putting that from his mind, Liu quickly scanned the streets. Between curfew and the number of Dai Li out tonight, they were empty. Nobody in this part of the Lower Ring had any desire to know Dai Li business. Captain Xiang's agents had made certain of that.
Liu set off for the apartment he hadn't used in some time. It was as good a place as any to watch the boy, and it wouldn't seem like a prison.
Halfway there, the boy's legs gave out completely. Niran nudged him towards Seto, who caught him below the armpits, and picked up his feet. They carried him thus to Liu's apartment.
Liu carefully unlocked the door, placing one hand against it as he did so to withdraw the stone spikes he used to lessen the chance thieves might enter. The room was dark until he uncovered the light-crystal near the door. He gestured for the agents to lay the boy down on the futon beneath the window.
It took but a moment to bend up stone bars so the boy couldn't escape that way; he was far too weak at the moment to try and break stone. Hopefully by the time his strength returned, he would be willing to stay.
"Sir," said Niran, breaking Liu's train of thought. "Do you need us for anything else?"
Liu shook his head and gave them the signal to disperse. He closed the door behind his agents and turned to the boy.
There was a curious look in those golden eyes. "What happens to me now?" he asked.
Liu placed his hand against the wall and etched, 'You sleep. We will speak in the morning.'
For a brief moment, the boy looked mutinous.
Liu regarded him calmly, catching and locking gazes with him.
It was the boy who looked away.
Keeping his hand on the wall, Liu asked a new question where the boy was looking now. 'What is your name?'
Silence, and then, "Ichiro."
Fandom: Avatar: the Last Airbender
Characters: General How; Major Kiet, Ichiro, Captain Liu (OCs)
Rating: PG/K+
Word Count: 2082
Summary: General How turns a prisoner of war over to the Dai Li, hoping they'll convince the boy to defect. (AU to my usual 'verse)
Notes: Liu belongs to beckyh2112 and is used with her permission. Kiet and Ichiro are mine. Written for atlaland's Media/Writing Bingo challenge.
In the end, it took four earthbenders to take the boy down.
He fought like a demon, with fists and with fire, moving constantly and making it hard for the earthbenders to just sink him. When they finally captured him, one of the soldiers took him by the hair. His blade was centimetres from the boy's throat when their commander stopped him.
"Sir!" protested the soldier. "He's too dangerous. If we don't put him down, he'll grow up and get worse."
"Or I could grow up and plant daffodils," the boy offered.
The soldier holding him punched him in the head. "Speak when you're spoken to!" he snarled.
"Enough," snapped the commander. "Back to camp. With him too." He eyed the soldier still holding the prisoner's hair. "Alive."
General How gently laid the report on his desk, then put his head in his hands. Sadly, when he looked up again, it was still there. "A Fire Nation soldier," he said.
Chalk moved on slate, and his aide proffered it to him. 'Yes, sir.'
How put his head in his hands again.
He heard Kiet writing something, but didn't look up until the younger man had completed his thought. 'About sixteen, according to the reports.'
"Why is he here?" How wanted to know.
His aide rolled his eyes. 'For the same reason approximately half the captured Fire soldiers pass through our walls, sir. They think we'll be better able to handle them.' He hesitated, then added, 'And frankly, sir, I think he'd be better off in our care. At least one of his captors is unnecessarily rough with the boy.'
That caught How's attention. "You've seen him," he said.
Kiet nodded. 'I wanted to see what kind of boy requires four earthbenders to capture.'
How drummed his fingers against his desk. "I believe I do as well."
"Unnecessarily rough," said How, looking at Kiet.
His aide shrugged, but offered no comment.
With a sigh, How turned back to the boy. His eyes had both been blackened and his nose broken; his sun-tanned skin was bruised through the rends in his clothing. He'd been sunk into the wall and gagged with earth. The last time Hyo had seen a man in restraints like these, it had been a bending master.
Even that hadn't been able to hold him.
However, a private barely out of boyhood was not a firebending master of any stripe.
He turned a mild look on the commanding officer of the group who had brought the boy in. The other man shrugged. "He's dangerous, General," he said. "Had to gag him to keep him from breathing fire on us." He sighed. "Also to shut him up."
How raised an eyebrow. "Really."
His voice was no less mild than his expression, but the commander flushed. "He has a... talent for being irritating." He gestured to the beaten soldier. "That's for his own protection."
"Leave us," How ordered.
"Sir," began the commander. How's eyes narrowed, and the man fled.
'Are you sure this is a good idea, sir?' Kiet asked.
How smiled at his aide, and spoke softly. "The day I can't handle a raw recruit is the day I dig my grave. Wait outside the door."
Kiet nodded and stepped out as well.
Once they were alone, How approached the boy, stripping the gag from him with a gesture. "Y' gon' get y'r licks in, too?" the boy asked. His golden eyes were far too clear for his speech to be so slurred.
How ignored the question and the hostility in his tone, instead taking the boy lightly by the chin and turning his head to one side. Green eyes narrowed as he noted that the boy's hair was matted with dried blood.
A quick intake of breath alerted him, and he held the boy's head in place as fire streamed from his mouth. "Enough," he ordered, and the fire stopped.
He let go and took a step back. "I have no need to revenge myself on a prisoner of war," How informed the boy.
"Your boys there don't think like you." The slur had miraculously cleared up.
"They're not mine," he said. "You have much to learn about the Earth Kingdom, Private."
"Yeah," the boy said, his tone so bitter that How took a closer look at him. "I know."
How wondered how willing a soldier the boy was. He was a firebender of considerable power; would the Fire Nation have allowed him any path but that of a soldier?
He was so young; one of How's fellow generals had a granddaughter that age. Young, and flexible. If he were handled correctly, How wondered if he could be turned against the Fire Nation.
He heard the boy drawing in breath again, and gave him a sharp look. He earned an innocent expression and an off-key tune in return. "Behave," he instructed the boy. "You've already learned that not all soldiers are so kind as I. Pushing the wrong man too far could get you killed."
"What's it to you if I die?" the boy demanded bitterly. "Nobody'll pay for an upstart colony brat."
Captain Liu was the best person to place the boy with, How decided. Though the man had been permanently disfigured by a firebender's hand, he bore no apparent hatred towards the Fire Nation. There could be no better man to turn the boy from his homeland, Dai Li captain or no.
How twisted his foot, earthbending a crack beneath his aide's feet. Kiet poked his head in the prison cell, looking curious. "We're taking him," How informed him. "Arrange for the transfer, and extend an invitation for Captain Liu to join me for tea in my office three hours after noon."
Kiet bowed and slipped out.
How turned back to the boy. "You will have new guards within fifteen minutes," he said. "Behave." His eyes didn't leave the boy's face until he assented. With that, How quit the cell.
Three hours after noon, a soft knock intruded on General How's thoughts. "Enter," he called, opening a sealed drawer in his desk to put away his papers, then closing it with earthbending.
The door opened and Captain Liu of the Dai Li walked in, green scarf covering the lower half of his face and throat. How rose from his seat and bowed in greeting. The captain bowed in return; a full bow, How noted. Uncommon to receive from a Dai Li.
"Please, sit," he invited the other man, keeping to his feet. The captain's eyes drifted to one side, where paper, a brush, and an inkstone had been laid out by his right hand.
"I prefer to have very little earthbending in my office," the general explained.
Liu nodded once, taking a seat, and How took down the equipment for tea. "You prefer brown rice tea, do you not?" he inquired. At the Dai Li captain's second nod, How began the preparations for tea.
Neither man spoke (or wrote) of business until the tea had been prepared and each of them had sipped from his cup.
'How may the Dai Li be of service, General?' the captain eventually wrote.
How sighed and sipped his tea. "A prisoner of the war was brought within our walls last night," he said. "A firebender, very powerful." He suspected that this news wouldn't make the Dai Li any happier than it had made him. "Also very young. A private, barely old enough to be fighting, even by Fire Nation standards."
'Surely the Fire Nation does not have the resources to waste one of such power as a mere private,' Liu pointed out.
"Indeed," How agreed. "I suspect the boy may have hidden his power until he found himself in a situation where using it was necessary. According to the report, it took four trained earthbenders to capture him."
'Impressive,' said Liu.
"Yes. However, as a result the boy has been handled... roughly."
The agent gave How a look for the understatment.
"Would you like a catalogue of the injuries he incurred after his capture?" How asked him. When Liu nodded, he went on. "Broken nose, both eyes blackened, a possible minor concussion, a head wound, and a large number of bruises. All were untended."
The Dai Li captain looked displeased at the list.
"The boy has been transferred to the custody of my men, who have less personal issues with the Fire Nation," How told him. "And who are less inclined to respond to baiting."
'Good,' said Liu.
"I've spoken with the boy," How said. "He gave me the impression that the soldier's life is not one he chose. He seemed very bitter about it."
The Dai Li captain looked intrigued, as he'd hoped. "I think it might be possible to convince the boy to join on the side of the Earth Kingdom -- of Ba Sing Se," How admitted. "But it would take cunning and subtlety that is rare to find in a soldier." He glanced at the captain. "The Dai Li are better suited for such a task."
Liu looked pleased by this pronouncement; How chose not to think of why.
"He'll need to be bound, at least at first," he said. He and Liu both knew this to be true, but convention dictated he must speak the obvious. "We don't want a powerful, angry firebender running loose in Ba Sing Se."
Liu nodded.
"He also indicated that he comes from the Fire Nation colonies in the West," How said. "His words implied a rift between them and the Fire Nation itself. That could be useful."
'Yes, it could,' Liu agreed.
"Will the Dai Li collect the boy, or shall I have him delivered to you?" How asked then.
'We will collect him,' was the captain's response.
How nodded. "I'll let my people know."
A few things had changed from General How's description of the boy-soldier, Liu noted. His nose had been taped into place; a bandage wound around his head. The general had had his injuries tended to. Liu kept a smile from his eyes. How was a kind man.
That kindness would be his undoing.
The boy appeared to be dozing, despite his uncomfortable position bound to the wall. Experimentally, Liu moved, allowing his robes to rustle.
Immediately the boy came alert, head snapping up and golden eyes blazing as he drew in a quick breath--
Which he let out slowly, with no flames, on seeing Liu.
Liu smiled behind his scarf. The boy knew not to make things difficult. He raised his left hand and signalled Niran and Seto to remove the boy.
It took a few minutes to get him out of the cell; even with the two Dai Li supporting him, the boy had trouble walking.
"Laogai?" Seto asked.
Liu shook his head. Not yet, anyway. He signalled for his agents to follow, then left the prison.
Just behind him he heard a startled intake of breath. Curious, that; Liu was certain firebenders could feel the rising and setting of the sun. The boy should have known it was night.
Putting that from his mind, Liu quickly scanned the streets. Between curfew and the number of Dai Li out tonight, they were empty. Nobody in this part of the Lower Ring had any desire to know Dai Li business. Captain Xiang's agents had made certain of that.
Liu set off for the apartment he hadn't used in some time. It was as good a place as any to watch the boy, and it wouldn't seem like a prison.
Halfway there, the boy's legs gave out completely. Niran nudged him towards Seto, who caught him below the armpits, and picked up his feet. They carried him thus to Liu's apartment.
Liu carefully unlocked the door, placing one hand against it as he did so to withdraw the stone spikes he used to lessen the chance thieves might enter. The room was dark until he uncovered the light-crystal near the door. He gestured for the agents to lay the boy down on the futon beneath the window.
It took but a moment to bend up stone bars so the boy couldn't escape that way; he was far too weak at the moment to try and break stone. Hopefully by the time his strength returned, he would be willing to stay.
"Sir," said Niran, breaking Liu's train of thought. "Do you need us for anything else?"
Liu shook his head and gave them the signal to disperse. He closed the door behind his agents and turned to the boy.
There was a curious look in those golden eyes. "What happens to me now?" he asked.
Liu placed his hand against the wall and etched, 'You sleep. We will speak in the morning.'
For a brief moment, the boy looked mutinous.
Liu regarded him calmly, catching and locking gazes with him.
It was the boy who looked away.
Keeping his hand on the wall, Liu asked a new question where the boy was looking now. 'What is your name?'
Silence, and then, "Ichiro."