Chapter 52 – Prison Break… Again
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar – the Last Airbender
"—broken jaw, bruised nose, light burn", Jiang read from his scroll, sitting at the bedside. "And two of them would need some time in psychiatric ward due to mental trauma; fresh recruit, I'd bet. And all was caused by two attacks; not bad, son."
"Geez, thanks, Dad", Lin yawned lazily, lying on the bed. There were in his room in the Lin Family Estate; it had been awhile since the both of them were actually there. You know, really there; having fun, actually feeling at home.
"Be sure to thank General Iroh once you have the chance", Jiang rolled the scroll back. "He convinced the Council to let me keep you here until the day of your court martial."
"Yeah, yeah", Lin rolled his eyes. "So, why am I chained to my bed again?"
"You're a prisoner here, champ", Jiang replied matter-of-factly. "I have half a mind to put you in the dungeon but since you're sick—Ouch!"
"What was that again about putting your son in the dungeon?" Lady Wen suddenly appeared behind Jiang, giving him a smack on the head.
"Nothing", Jiang grinned innocently, then added under his breath. "Nothing he can't handle."
"Father of the year, congrats", Lady Wen applauded Jiang sarcastically, but awarded him with a genuine soft kiss on the cheek. She then turned to Lin, sat on the bedside and started checking on the boy's temperature and pulse.
"Am I dying?" Lin asked with fake yet convincing puppy dog eyes.
"You wish", Lady Wen patted his cheek. "Self-induced vomit, huh? Clever but crude, little friend. How did you get enough food to fill your stomach, anyway?"
"Let's just say that you guys were not my only visitors that day, certainly not the only one that brought food."
"Hmm…" Lady Wen raised a brow questioningly.
"…And Dad's cooking sucks", Lin admitted rather untactfully.
"Hey!" Jiang protested.
"I know", Lady Wen concurred with Lin, ignoring Jiang. "I mean, just look at the soy sauce chicken; spirits know how he managed to make it so black."
"There's nothing wrong with my chicken!" Jiang defended his pride of his culinary skill.
"Soy sauce chicken?" Lin frowned at Lady Wen, ignoring his father. "Man, I thought it was mushroom."
"It was chicken!" Jiang corrected irritatedly.
"And the stewed vegetable?" Lady Wen shook her head in disbelief.
"It was only overcooked a little!"
"Stewed?" Lin gaped. "You sure it wasn't stir-fried?"
And while they were having their conversation, the door was slammed open. An elderly man at his sixties, by the look of it, gestured at Jiang, wordlessly ordering him to follow him out of the room. Jiang sighed and got out, closing the door behind him.
"Wow…" Lady Wen sighed. "I could have sworn that I felt a wave of heat when that old dude opened the door. So, he's one of the Elder, huh?"
"Yep", Lin replied.
"I've heard about them; they said that those guys are like the only ones above the head of the family in your clan."
"True that."
"And those guys are like super powerful firebenders."
"Erm… not really. They're just older than most clansmen and more experienced because of that."
"So, they're not strong?"
"They're knowledgeable."
"What do you think they want with your dad?"
"I think they want him to make it so that I have to call you 'mom' as soon as possible."
"Hmm, I see."
"Yeah."
"…"
"…"
"Say what!?" Lady Wen finally got it.
"Think of it this way", Lin sounded grim somehow. "The one and only heir of the family is now a criminal. The current head is a young healthy man, currently courting a young healthy woman. Do the math."
"Wha— aw, maaaaannn!" Lady Wen whined, then pointed at Lin accusingly. "This is all your fault!"
"Sorry, Mom", Lin joked, causing Lady Wen to turn crimson. "Oh, come on! Look at the bright side, shall we?"
"What bright side?"
"I'm gonna have a brother!"
"Bro— but, I want my first child to be a girl!"
"No can do, Mom. Lin Family is ancient, so is its law: only male descendant can succeed as the head of the family."
"Does that mean I can't have a girl?"
"Yes, you can. If you're willing to get pregnant twice, that is."
"This sucks!" Lady Wen grumbled.
"Hey, at least you have an adorable son, already. Right?" Lin grinned.
"Adorable? You want my honest opinion?"
"Oh, it's okay if you lie; as long as it's pleasing my ear."
"Yeah, right!" Lady Wen cracked a smile, pinching the boy on the cheek. "I like you better when you're younger, you know, like when we first met. You were adorable back then. Now… ick."
"Aw, thanks, Mom."
They both laughed, then fell silent for a minute or so; a minute or so filled with Lady Wen busy rechecking Lin's temperature and pulse and Lin awkwardly avoiding having to start a conversation. Then, it was the lady who broke the silence.
"So, how're you feeling?"
"Weak", Lin admitted. "Feel like my whole body is numb. And then, there is this weird sensation in my stomach; like hunger but I'm not hungry, don't feel like eating anything."
"It's normal" Lady Wen explained. "That's the reaction from overeating when you're not used to it. You're weak because of the throwing up and the physical exertion. Nothing a couple of days worth of rest can't cure."
"Mmm", Lin simply mumbled.
"I have Ning Ma cooking a soup for you", Lady Wen added. "You should avoid heavy meal for at least until you gained enough strength."
"Thanks."
"What you did was stupid."
"I know."
"What were you thinking", Lady Wen raised her voice a bit; it seemed like she had been waiting for the right moment to let some of her emotion out. "Trying to break yourself out of the jail?! That was very very narrow-minded of you!"
"…"
"Think of what it might have caused for your father! He is a war general! And a nobleman!! Think of his reputation!!!"
"…"
"And when they brought you back here, your cousins all thought that they had mistreated you and almost had a fight with the guards!"
"…"
"And your Aunt Bing almost collapsed when she heard about what happened to you! And Biao, poor Biao, cried herself to sleep last night! Have you even thought about them when you—! Arrgh!"
"…"
Lin didn't say anything; he just stared at the angry lady who, despite her obvious fury, failed to hold back her tear, her concern. For a few minutes, they just stayed there in silence.
"Do you, at least, know what you were doing?" Lady Wen said finally, calm and wiping her teary eyes.
"I know it is inappropriate for me to say this, but I did. I knew what I was doing."
"That's good enough for me", Lady Wen sniffed.
"I'm sorry."
"Yes, you are", Lady Wen wiped her tear, bent down and kissed the boy on the forehead. She then got up and was about to leave the room but she turned back to Lin and said with a suspicious frown. "Don't even try to firebend."
"…How did you find out?"
"Your pulses are okay, heartbeat fine, all vital signs normal. But, you're as cold as a turkeyduck."
"Just like that?" Lin scoffed.
"I also heard that you used firebending on the guard", Lady Wen added. "And yet, you barely scorched them."
"Did you tell Dad?" Lin asked, staring at the ceiling deeply.
"Of course not", Lady Wen replied sharply. "It would freak him out: his firebending champ lost his inner fire."
"I didn't lose it", Lin frowned, defending his sore pride. "I just… just don't… feel like it."
"Just don't try to firebend, okay", Lady Wen said again, this time with a more authority in her voice. "You could hurt yourself. Give yourself some time to rest."
"Got it."
And so, casting a last worried look at her possible-future-soon-to-be-stepson, Lady Wen resumed her march to the door to allow the boy some rest. But, she halted again at the door.
"Look, kid", she said compassionately. "It's usually in the mind; regret, anger, sadness that are so thick and painful resulted by your fire. Just take a rest for a couple of days and try to get your spirit up, kay?"
"No problem, Doc."
"Dawn break!!!" somebody shouted. The mishap bundles of people around the small campfire shifted a bit, yet only less than half were sober enough to emerge from their sleeping bags.
"Get up, folks!!" Chey shouted again, rubbing his baggy eyes, sitting on top of a rock; he drew the short straw last night and was awarded with the night duty. "Come on!! Rise and shine!!"
"Shut up, cuz!!" Chit Sang mumbled, wiping his drool still with his eyes closed.
"Wake up!!!!" Chey didn't care.
"Cap'n", a soldier staggered to him, half asleep. "Are we there yet?"
"We've never set sail, bud", Chey yawned without having the courtesy to close his mouth, almost suffocating the young soldier to death with his morning breath. "Our cargo's been held up, remember?"
"Oh, right", the soldier staggered away, just to slump back on his sleeping bag.
"Wake up, guys! Come on!!" if Chey was getting desperate, he was hiding it quite well. But, alas… Chey was only a captain surrounded by a bunch of deserters, which means his rank means nothing. But, as determined as he was, Chey didn't give up! For he had something, a weapon that the soldiers could not disobey, and we call it: death… or a belt full of tear-gas grenade; whichever gets the job done with lowest amount of unneeded casualties.
"It's been an honor deserting with you, guys", he offered an unnecessarily polite salute before throwing the grenade he'd been itching to use; the one with black safety pin and labeled 'black pepper'.
This little incident has proven that violence, comical violence that is, is sometimes necessary to get the message across.
"Ouch! Hot! Hot!"
"Ops", Azula smirked a little as Lin spat his soup all over the blanket. It could not have been two or three hours after sunrise and there they were, already in the Lin Family Estate: Princess Azula and Prince Zuko, chaperoned/bodyguarded by their faithful and sleepy Uncle Iroh, visiting their now criminal firebending instructor who was currently chained to his own bed and fed a bowl of steaming hot soup by the aforementioned princess.
"Careful Azula!" Zuko scolded his sister. "Here, let me do it!"
"Nowb bwhat, Zukob (Know what, Zuko)", Lin interfered with his tongue slightly smoking. "Why don'b you bleb herb do ib. It'sb wirb if you'reb boing ib (Why don't you let her do it. It's weird if you're doing it)."
"Hear that?" Azula huffed.
"Yes, I do", Zuko faked a serious frown. "Most peculiar accent, little sister. What do you say?"
"Shub ub (Shut up)!"
"Zzz… Huh?" Iroh suddenly woke up. He looked around a bit, noticing the three bickering kids, noticing the hot soup, Lin's new accent, and Azula with the spoon. Not too hard to figure out what's going on…
The old Dragon was almost tempted to let them bickered on; after all, it had been awhile since he had seen a fight being fought by words, and occasional hand or facial gestures, instead of swords, arrows, catapults, and other kind of dangerous objects. But then again, he was here on a mission. He had planned to visit his informal, or rather soon-to-be, student privately early in the morning. Sounds perfect: early in the morning, alone with the kid; he could get any information he wanted from Lin. But, Iroh didn't put Zuko, who was waiting from the dawn break in front of his room, into his calculation. And so, without further ado, he was dragged across the palace by the eager Crown Prince who somehow managed to obtain the highly classified information about the former Battalion Strategist of the 212th Army Battalion's failed attempt at escaping during his midnight transfer from the Imperial City's Local Prison at the Central District to the Imperial City's Prison Tower. And to complete the miscalculation in his plan, they somehow had run into the lovely Princess Azula who was just about to begin her morning training and, for one reason or another, decided to ditch her training today and tag along with her uncle and brother to visit her soon-to-be former master.
So much for a plan! Iroh couldn't help but suspecting a conspiracy against him and him wanting to get a reliable information regarding the incident in Senlin Village.
"Prince Zuko, Princess Azula", Iroh addressed the two royalties with a kind smile painted on his face. "Listen here, why don't you both go to the dining room and have a breakfast first. Both of you haven't eaten anything since last night. Come, General Jiang has kindly arranged a magnificent dish fit for a king for both if you."
"We're not hungry, Uncle", Azula flatly refused.
"We'll have breakfast later, Uncle", Zuko also refused, though a bit less flatly.
"Now kids", Iroh sounded serious all the sudden. "Haven't I always told you it is rude to refuse an invitation to a meal that includes fresh orange juice?"
Always know the right thing to say… Zuko and Azula disappeared so quickly not even an after image of them left. In less than a second, Iroh was back on his original plan; well, at least until Zuko and Azula finished with their breakfast which would be relatively quick unless Jiang stalled them (as planned).
"Orange juice, really?" Lin asked incredulously. "I have tried everything, General, everything! Chocolate chips cookies, candied apples, cotton candies, ginger sweets, heck, I've even tried the 'free pass to punch Zuko under my supervision' exclusively for Azula; and orange juice! You get them to obey with just orange juice?"
"The greatest of pleasure is often found in the strangest of places, my boy", Iroh said sagely. "Or in the strangest of forms of beverage, in this case."
"Orange juice! Really?!"
"Putting that aside", Iroh dismissed the orange juice thing; they had a more pressing matter to discuss. "I believe you know why I'm paying you a visit this time of day."
"If it's about Master Tyro, you should've already received the letter from Bara", Lin mumbled. "And if it's about Senlin…"
"It is about Senlin", Iroh pressed gently; the last thing he wanted was hurting the boy's pride.
"Well… let's just say that I, um, won't be winning my court martial with justice on my side."
"Oh, dear", Iroh put a hand on his forehead. "That's a deep trouble you're in, boy."
"I know", Lin agreed.
"I cannot persuade the Council to drop their charges", Iroh admitted. "I am only one person against Ozai and his minions; my power in court politics has been growing weaker and weaker lately. I can, however, arrange for you to be hidden somewhere safe for the time being."
"Thank you, General", Lin sighed in genuine relief. Though he had been calm under the situation that might reduce any other war-hardened thirteen year old into a weak-kneed crybaby so far, it didn't necessarily mean that he was ready for any punishments he might receive from the Council. He, like any other thirteen year old, still yearned for freedom.
"Now, if you could bust yourself out before midday—"
"Sir", Lin hesitated. "Before that, I think you should see Lady Wen first. Ask him about my 'condition'; you'll know where I'm going with this."
"Alright", Iroh's amber eyes dimmed with genuine worry; just how much more trouble can he get himself into, Iroh asked himself. "Oh, and there is one more thing. I warn you: you won't like this."
"In this state, there are only two things I don't like: this itch on my nose and an order from the Big Red Honcho."
"Bingo", Iroh concurred. "He told me that it is almost time for your initiation."
"What initiation?" Lin asked, feeling a chill down his spine. Whenever the Big Red Honcho, aka the Fire Lord, was involved, there'd usually be death, blood, killing… you get the idea.
"Your initiation to the 'Nightshade Lover Association'."
"Am I not a member already?"
"Almost. You will receive an instruction directly from him regarding this matter."
"What instruction?"
"Usually an instruction to 'pick a specific nightshade' he has his eyes upon."
"Great…" Lin replied sarcastically. "When?"
"As soon as you're out of the Nation."
"Only visiting, huh?" Lin asked, his eyes narrowed into a suspicious slit shot at the bubbly girl in pink who was sitting at his bedside.
"Yep, visiting", Ty Lee reconfirmed the purpose of her unexpected arrival at Lin's room/prison. "What? Can't I visit a sick friend when I want to visit a sick friend?"
"That depends?" Lin replied. "When you say you want to visit your sick friend who was sick whenever you wanted to visit a sick friend, is he or is he not sick before he was branded as a war criminal who tried to get away from prison by being sick and hence transformed from your friend into your sick friend?"
"…Huh…?"
"Aha!"
"What?"
"You just admitted that you're here for other purposes than simply to just visit a sick friend whenever you wanted to visit a sick friend which is what you allegedly admitted upon the first questioning."
"…My head hurts…" Ty Lee whined.
"And so, are you or are you not here to visit a sick friend because you feel like visiting a sick friend? Answer quick!"
"Yes!"
"And do you have any other reason for visiting a sick friend rather than just because you feel like visiting a sick friend? Answer!"
"Yes!"
"What's that?"
"I'm running away from—oops!"
"AHA!" Lin shouted triumphantly. "So you do have— What was that!"
"I, uh…" Ty Lee giggled nervously after having her cover blown. "I'm…mmmm… runningawayfromhome."
"Ooo, Ty Leee" Lin singsonged. "Mumbling fast won't work on me. You're talking to a guy who's been chasing the most notorious training-dodgers in the whole nation, i.e. Zuko and Azula, across the Imperial Palace for morning trainings. And you know how fast they can run, especially before breakfast. Unless you can mumble at 5 Imperial Palace chambers/second, you can't fool me. You know I'm used to catching up to fast things, right?"
"I know", Ty Lee grumbled. "How did you find out anyway?"
"Ty Lee, my dear dear Ty Lee", Lin assumed a tone of a patient kindhearted teacher who were trying to teach a kid some basic math. "You are a daughter of a notable aristocratic family and yet here you are: visiting a criminal ten o'clock in the morning in the criminal's lair alone without a single bodyguard, carrying a big travelling bag."
"What travelling bag?" Ty Lee asked innocently, discreetly kicked her back that she put on the floor under Lin's bed.
"Ty Lee", Lin stared deeply into the girl's brown eyes. "Unless you want me to talk fast till your head explode, you better explain yourself."
"Urgh… I hate you military men", the girl gave up.
"Thank you, civilian", Lin graciously replied. "Now, spill it. I haven't got all day."
"Another checkmate, General", Iroh laughed, butchering Jiang completely in the Pai Sho match. After sending Zuko and Azula back to the palace with a contingent of guard, he decided to stay for awhile.
"Another game, General Iroh?" Jiang challenged… again.
"Sure, why not", Iroh calmly sipped his tea. He glanced out of the window at the morning sky outside; it's almost noon. Hmm… he had assured Lin that when the time comes, he would provide a distraction so that Lin could escape and meet up with Chey while Iroh stalled off his pursuers. But, so far, Iroh had just worked out the plan for stalling off the pursuers; he honestly hadn't thought that he would need to plan about fending off the pursuers or even to release Lin from his bound. Not that Lin actually requested any assistance in those departments but, come on! From his little catching up with Lady Wen, who was busy brewing a medicinal tea in the kitchen for the young Dragon, he had learnt that the worst of fate had befallen Lin: he had lost connection with his inner fire!
Bad? Sure is! That would mean that Lin would have almost no means to free himself; up to the point before the talk with the very concerned Lady Wen, Iroh had thought that Lin would simply tear the chain apart with his firebending. But, now… what in the Agni's name could the boy possible do to free himself?!
"Eeeeekkkk!!!"
A girl's scream tore through the peaceful morning, almost made the two generals jumped to their feet. Exchanging a questioning look at each other, both generals swiftly made their way to the direction of the scream. Their one minute jog was abruptly ended by them almost running over the back of a crowd on the hallway. Jiang forced his way through the crowd, followed closely by Iroh, only to be met with a horrific scene…
"Stay back!" he saw his son shouted at the crowd, his eyes wild like a deranged man, his hand gripping a knife pressed on the neck of the girl he was holding by the neck with the other arm. "I said stay back!!"
"Heeeeeelppppp!!!" Ty Lee cried, trembling wildly safe for the part where cold steel met her skin. "Save me!!"
"Stay back!!" Lin threatened again, halting a man who was about to lunge at him. "Stay back or she's dead!"
"Kid, easy now…" that man tried to reason. "Stop fooling around, come on! Give me the knife!"
"Shut up and stay back!!" Lin shouted back.
"You heard him, mister!" Ty Lee screamed frantically at the man. "Stay back!"
"Okay, okay…" the man took a few steps back, not wanting to complicate the hostage situation.
Oh, dear Agni, Iroh mentally slapped his forehead. Kids these days, they're so melodramatic…
Slowly but steadily, Lin and his hostage crept one inch at a time towards the main gate, encircled by the crowd that got bigger and bigger; more familiar faces joined the ensemble as the news that Lin had lost his mind and was currently taking an innocent visitor as a hostage to escape spread across the vast Estate like wild fire: Aunt Bing who tearfully begged him to stop, Biao whose plead turned fast into an angry threat, Uncles Kang and Masa who fixed their eyes on his knife, ready to wrestle it away the first chance they got, Cousins Shi, Yan, and many other who were busy clearing the hallway, some of the Elders who wasted no time to threaten him with varieties of corporal punishments ranging from beatings to stockade, Lady Wen who looked like she was about to cry.
"Open the gate!" Lin demanded once they had reached the main gate. Some cousins, receiving an okay nod from Jiang, quickly ran to the grand gate and pried it open. But, Lin wasn't finished. "Get me my ostrich horse! Now!"
A minute later, a pale-faced sweating stable boy approached him slowly and carefully, guiding Birdie by her reins. Lin ordered him to also load the two travelling bags Ty Lee was grasping on Birdie's saddle, which the stable boy did faithfully before he ran away as quickly as his feet could take him back into the crowd. Lin then demanded that the horror-stricken Ty Lee mount the steed, still with the knife pressed against her body; only after making sure that his hostage was secured on top of Birdie did Lin leap onto the saddle, sitting behind Ty Lee, and spurred the steed forward.
As they raced away from the Estate, they could hear shouts and screams, probably the Lin clansmen arranging a quick chase. Komodo rhinos… probably. But, sadly for them, Lin had already made a plan to take the hilly path down to south. Those heavy rhinos wouldn't be able to make it.
Half an hour of non-stop ride later, they arrived at the rendezvous point on the shore where Chey was stealing some nap and the rest of the group were sitting around him, killing time by drawing on the poor sleep-deprived captain's face.
"He's here!" Chit Sang shouted, pointing at the fast moving two legged creature that was dashing towards them from the distance. "Somebody's on to them!"
Chit Sang and two other, a man and a woman, dashed toward them, ready to aid their 'cargo' in the chase. Chey, who was awakened by the ruckus quickly ordered the rest of the men to board the ship and ready it for departure.
"Go on!" Chit Sang yelled at Lin and Ty Lee as they rode passed them. The former sergeant and his two companions assumed their stances, barricading the pursuers, two komodo rhino riders, from catching up with Lin.
"Captain!" Lin greeted, halting Birdie as he reached Chey and the ship. "She's coming with us."
"Argh! Another twist?!" Chey groaned, yet he helped loading their bags and Ty Lee into the ship without further complains. Lin descended from Birdie and looked back at Chit Sang and the two others, watching in horror as his cousin Shi jumped down from his steed and made a quick work out of them in a flash, allowing Jiang to resume his march uninterrupted.
"Where do you think you're going?" Jiang questioned coldly as he halted his steed a few feet away from the boat. Chey shrunk under the general's cold stare; it almost made the ink goggle and moustache on his face not funny.
"I'm going, Dad", Lin assumed his stance, ready to fight. "You can't stop me."
"Let's see about that!" Jiang had almost leaped own from his steed but Shi, who had arrived by foot in front of him, held out his hand.
"Uncle, please, let me", he volunteered.
"Cousin Shi, please stand down", Lin tried to reason.
"Are you ready?" Shi ignored Lin's plea completely.
"If I must", Lin sighed.
They stared at each other, their stance ready, and a second later…
—WHOSSH—
Lin rolled away just in time, barely evading the fire blast. He summoned a fireball on his palm at the size of a spit; yes, a spit, very small. He twirled it between his palms and sent at Shi a fireball the size of an apple, which Shi slapped, yes, slapped, away with his bare hand into the thin air. Shi, thinking that he was being underestimated, mimicked Lin's earlier technique but with full potency. Lin barely managed to jump away, only to find Shi lunging forward with fireballs on both palms. Another two fire blasts, one was sidestepped, Lin had to leaped high to avoid the other one, and he landed behind Shi. Shi, with his back on the ship, was preparing another fire blast when he suddenly tensed up like he had a stroke attack and fell down lifelessly like a ragdoll. As he fell, Ty Lee was seen trembling with her fists raised behind him. If Lin didn't knew better, he would thought that Ty Lee, a mere nine year old, was the one who did whatever it was to Shi, a battle hardened young soldier.
"I— I…" Ty Lee started to sob, obviously scared witless.
"Captain Chey!" Lin shouted; Chey, understanding the order, quickly leaped to Ty Lee and carried the frightened girl back into the ship.
"Surrender, son", Jiang demanded again, still sitting on his steed, his voice was a cold as before.
"What're gonna do now? Fight me?" Lin challenged.
"Of course", Jiang flippantly replied, raising his right foot which was ensnared by an inexplicable knot. "But, as you can see, my leg is entangled by my stirrup. So, I must ask you to wait until I free myself before I can formally answer your challenge."
Taking his sweet time, Jiang deliberately took his eyes off his son, occupying himself with his entangled leg; thus, allowing Lin to quickly ran into the boat. Not having any other choices, the boat decided to leave without their three comrades, leaving them, the unconscious Shi, and Jiang who was still struggling with his foot behind. It took ten minutes for Jiang to liberate his foot but, by that time, Lin and the others were already a black spot on the horizon, so far out of reach. Jiang walked over to Birdie, calming the beast who whined sadly as she watched her master's departure, stroking her beak gently.
"Is Captain Shi alright?" Iroh asked, suddenly materialized from the thin air.
"Yes, he is", Jiang casted a look at his nephew. "I recognized the technique he was hit with; Young Lady Wen can patch him up back to normal in no time."
"Good to hear", Iroh took off his coat and put it on Shi like a blanket; he then cast a deep solemn look at the ocean. "They sure grow up fast, don't they?"
"Yeah."
"How far has your son come with his training?"
"He has learnt the first 16 of the 36 Advanced Forms."
"Not bad."
"But, he has only mastered pretty much up to the tenth form", Jiang sighed; for a moment there, he looked like your average lethargic father. "He never has enough patience to thoroughly study a form before moving on to the next. I can't blame him though; he got that from my side of the family."
"Is it enough?" Iroh asked, smiling.
"I suppose so", Jiang scratched his chin, thinking. "When I was his age, I was stills struggling with the basic forms."
"Not a bad start for him."
"I sure hope so", Jiang sighed again, taking his eyes of the horizon. He cast a look around at Shi who was still unconscious, and the three deserters Shi had subdued earlier. "Now, let's clean this mess."
Author's Note:
Not much to say, except that I'm gonna have to take a break for about a month. Something's come up and I'm gonna be very busy until at least the middle of May. Sorry…
To hpswst101, I agree with never exercising on empty stomach. Been there on both occasions, never wanted to go back to either of them. Phew!
You're a taiko drum player. Hey, that's great! Like my teacher in elementary school always said: live in the modern time but always carry a piece of old tradition with you, doesn't matter whose or which tradition. And like I always say: as long as it's fun, safe, and not against the law, do it! :)
Good luck with the taiko and everything else!!!
Have a nice day, everyone!
